Coming up for air

Finally. It only took me until Wednesday!

So I suppose I left off after 'Cross Vegas? Thursday went better, I suppose, huh? I still had a bit more bike maintenance to do in the morning, but I was asleep by a reasonable hour after the 'cross race. I did finally manage to get over to the show and say hi to a few people. Shannon from Tifosi, Charlie from Champion System, Edwin and Ted from Van Dessel, and all the guys over at the Time booth. From there I had a 2-hour meeting with a few UCI race organizers and Peter Van den Abeele from the UCI 'Cross Commission. I was finally back to the hotel and trying to take a nap at 6 pm, before a race that started at 9:30 pm!

I don't think I've ever had my picture taken more, or ever felt like more of a pro than I did at Vegas. To be second overall and so close to the win, to be treated like part of the big show, to feel like I mattered, frankly - it was all I ever really want from bike racing. That, and to get paid, I suppose, for doing the thing I love to do.

Smiling isn't my strong suit. I did a lot of it:

Granted, that was more a smirk, which I do tend to do. Here's a smile:

I ended up 3rd in the race, which was a great result in itself, but it wasn't enough to take the overall win. I came up short by 13 points, and we were 3 points back for the overall team win.

My team:

Seriously, you can't fuck with these guys:

Road Bike Review had my post-race interview almost verbatim, and I stole some of these photos from them. Thanks, guys!

http://reviews.roadbikereview.com/blog/mcrae-and-clarke-win-the-usa-crit-final-in-las-vegas/

I finally finished packing my bike up around 1 am. My shuttle to my flight was at 4 am. Nothing to do but go out, although all I drank was water. I got to my flight 2 hours early with no sleep, ready to pass out on the plane, only to find out it was 3 hours delayed. I eventually got back to Boston around 7 pm, unpacked and built my bikes, passed out, and got ready to drive to Vermont for the first Verge UCI races the next day.

Not sure exactly what I was thinking on Saturday. I didn't feel terrible, but I was definitely jet lagged, and probably should have been gentle for the first part of the race. Instead I started hard and overconfident, blew, went backwards for a while, got my shit together, and started picking guys back off to finally finish 10th and nab the last UCI point.

Sunday I felt much better. I finally felt caught up on sleep, which was worth a lot considering this was now my 6th race in 10 days, and my 4th 'cross race in that period. Naturally, nothing can go well for me, and I slipped on some mud and crashed on my hip again on my way to the start line, ripping everything wide open. I almost missed the start tearing off and reapplying bandages so I wasn't bleeding all over myself, but it was a little late. Bloody, I started conservatively, and as a result, made the front group at the end of the first lap. Timmerman was already gone, and when Chris Jones went after him halfway through the second lap, I opted to continue with the conservative approach and stayed with the group. And then... I rolled my tire on an off-camber U-turn, hit the deck AGAIN, and found myself chasing. Matt White had also rolled a tire, and I latched up with him as he came by. I held on for 2 laps, and finally the wheels came off completely. My back hurt, my hip hurt, my brain hurt, and with only two laps to go but out of the top 10, I called it a day, and a week. NO MAS! At least I got my photo on Cyclingnews for the effort:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/cross.php?id=/photos/2008/sep08/greenmountain08/gm_Adam_Myerson_Time_Pro_Cycling_charges_down_the_hill_in_the_Elite_Mens_race

Finally, I'm happy to announce that I was able to add a few more sponsors to the group for the 'cross season. I'm back on Crank Brothers pedals, I've got some TRP brakes on the way, and a small armada of carbon wheels from Williams Cycling. Keith Williams was nice enough to seek me out himself, which might be a first for me, and it felt good. Thanks to all you guys for the support.

http://williamscycling.blogspot.com/2008/09/williams-signs-adam-myserson.html

I'm on a rest week now, and considering taking the weekend off since there are no big events, and I can really use the time at home. I'm leaving the day after Gloucester for my European trip. More on that in the next entry.