Aches and Flats

It looked like it would rain all day, but it never did.

Ted at Farragut State Park near Coeur d'Alene

Me racing in Missoula Saturday night.

We spent our weekend in Missoula, Montana and near Coeur d'Alene. First up was a cyclocross race in Missoula last night, which had us racing under the lights of a stadium. It was only about 40 degrees, and most of Ted's race had rain, so we were cold! I raced first and it was really not a course suited to me, with rocky, technical terrain and almost no power or running sections. By the end, my back was super tight and sore, though I did catch a few women.

Ted's race didn't really see any better luck, as he flatted his just-glued sew-up before the race even began. Then, on his first lap, Ted crashed pretty hard going down a slick muddy descent, leaving him with sore hands and a need for another wheel change. He finished out his race, but neither of us was in the best mood last night.

My back began bothering me last Wednesday evening. There wasn't anything traumatic that happened to it, but it was feeling tight and sore. We contemplated whether we should even make the trek to Missoula, and sure enough, my back was pretty bad after last night. It's the same spot that has plagued me a few other times now, and you can see that the muscles are causing my spine to curve to the left. I really wanted to race today because I was still in the running for the overall win at our series, but I sat it out today. Most likely, I am now out of the top few places overall for the series now, but it's better than setting myself back further. I just can't believe I have such a bad back at such a young age. I think I will try to go to a masseuse tomorrow.

Ted raced today on what was a new, and very bumpy, course. Everyone was complaining about their backs after the race, so I know I made the right choice to sit it out. Once again, during his warm-up lap, Ted flatted, so he wasn't very enthusiastic from the get go. Admittedly his head wasn't really in it, so he just rode the race to do it.