I’d never been to Logosland in Cobden before. In fact most of the communities which we’ve been visiting these past Sundays for the Eastern Ontario Cyclocross Series are new to me. Even though I’ve lived in Ottawa since 1990 I really don’t have a sense for the surrounding communities.

Naturally I was curious about Logosland… The name doesn’t tell you much but lets just say this large piece of property has everything – a restaurant built into a boat, water slides, walking/running trails, time shares, and a lot more that I likely didn’t get to see.

But best of all – it is a great place to hold a cyclocross race. Thanks to the very generous terrain that gave the organizers lots of room to be creative with we raced on definitely the longest cyclocross race course I’ve ever ridden – 6 kilometers of cyclocross fun. Yes, 6 kilometers… that was a long lap!

But it was a lap jam-packed with lots of action – two steep run/ride-ups, a small sand pit, a short patch of beach riding, fun twists and turns in the woods, fast descents, steep descents, and long grinding climbs. All in all, it was a cyclocross that had something for every type of rider regardless of skill level and fitness.

Sunday was a fantastic day for a cyclocross race – warmish and breezy – perfect skinsuit weather (mind you, we’ll be riding around in skinsuits when it is pouring rain and hovering above freezing…).

The race? Well, it was good. A mediocore start had me chasing from the beginning. After some time I was able to pass a good chunk of women and I had my sights on the trio of Cyclery riders just in front of me. I was being careful at moderating my energy – during my last race I went too hard early on and faded very badly on the last lap. At the start of the second lap I was pretty sure I would catch the trio – but then I made a mistake… I overshot a corner, got hooked up in the course tape and lost time and positions getting unwrapped… Sigh. Well, I put my head down and got busy trying to play the “chase, catch and pass” game – this ended up being a lot fun. Three of us ended up trading positions numerous times and it was fun to see how far I could deep.

I’ve noticed that this year my barrier technique is a bit lacking. Goes to show that practice really does lead to improvement. Normally I start practicing barrier dismounts/mounts and other “key” cyclocross skills in the spring and continue this through-out the season. Well, this year I haven’t been doing this and it shows… So one of my goals for this race was to try to improve my dismounts each time I came to a set of barriers. My other goal was to ride as “cleanly” as possibly – in other words to stay off my brakes as much as I could and to minimize mistakes.

I think both goals were achieved… There were times when I struggled but this is what makes goals so worthwhile – they are not easy to achieve but are achievable.

Many thanks to the organizers for another great Sunday spent outside riding around on bikes like little kids. Also big thanks to those who came out early to setup the course and to those who stayed afterwards to tear down the course. Another big thanks to the folks who were out cheering and snapping photos. Last but not least – a huge thanks to the massive number of women who came out to race on Sunday – it is super encouraging to see so many women coming out to race cyclocross – some who are seasoned racers, some who are new to racing, some who are doing it for the first time, and some who I’m sure will go on to race on the World Cup circuit…

Yes, lots of fun was had at Logosland in Cobden. Six kilometers of fun!

Gosh, I sure wish I was in Tabor, the Czech Republic right now. So many of my friends are there getting ready to race the first World Cup of the season on Sunday. Normally, I’d be there.

I haven’t really missed much this year – but now I’m really missing being in Tabor. Great city. Great race course. Great country. Traveling to a World Cup is more than about the race itself (sure the race is the priority) but there is everything else that comes with it: exploring a new country, reconnecting with friends, meeting new people, escaping from the same old training routes, and getting to race with some darn fast women.

I raced my first World Cup in Treviso, Italy in 2009. I flew to Venice, picked up a rental car and somehow found my hotel without a GPS. My friends were shocked I traveled to a World Cup alone – but I really had no choice. I wanted to race so I got on the plane and did it. I was very lucky to have the help of Christine and Jonas – we stayed at the same hotel, I trained with them and Jonas rescued me when I flatted moments before the race started. It was also in Treviso where I met my good friend Nikoline Hansen.

Last year, Nikoline and I had a great time in the Czech Republic. We explored Plzen and shared many laughs. I also got to spend lots of time with my super friends Nancy and Andy. Experiences and times I won’t forget. (Sounds cheesy but it is true.) I’ve made some lifelong friends all thanks to these World Cups and traveling with others. Of course, I can’t forget the training and touring I did with Gabby and Gregg in Plzen and Prague.

I’ve raced in Tabor twice: the first was at the 2010 World Cyclocross Championships and the second was last year at the World Cup. Two of my best days on the bike. Days that are imprinted on my brain. Good times indeed.

Well, this year I won’t be there – instead I’ll be cheering from afar and looking forward to hearing all about it from my pals. I’ll be racing on Sunday in Cobden, Ontario as part of the Eastern Ontario Cyclocross Series. Kind of fitting really – I started racing in this series and if it wasn’t for this volunteer-run cyclocross series of over 20 years, I would never have lined up at that first World Cup in Treviso or have met the great people that I have.

Wherever you’re racing on Sunday – pedal hard, smile often, take it all in and enjoy it.

All this week I’ve really been thinking about recovery. Recovery while riding to work. Recovery while racing. Recovery while sitting on my backside watching my new obsession: Great British Bake Off.

Recovery is the key to effective training and racing. During training, recovery comes in many shapes – super easy rides when you put it in the small ring and simply roll along, taking days off the bike giving your mind and body a complete rest, active recovery when you do things such as yoga, stretching, walks or cyclocross skill sessions. During a cyclocross race, finding the spots on the course to recover are crucial to a successful race.

Most of us have tried to go “all-out” for the entire lap – this works for only so long. Eventually after a couple of laps it is harder to sprint out of corners, to run quickly, to have smooth barrier technique and to attack with vigour. You can only go all-out for so long during a cyclo-cross race – because the nature of the race requires punchy efforts and you do need to recover from these. Watch a rider who tries to race a cyclocross race like a time trial – it doesn’t really work over the duration of the race.

So when and where do you recover? Well, I subscribe to the Belgian philosophy – go really hard when the course is hard, sprint out of every corner and obstacle, and recover on the easy sections. This typically means that if there is a heavy section (mud, sand, false flat, climb, run-up) you need to give it your all – these are the sections when your competitors will be suffering and will have the tendency to ease off a bit. The recovery comes in on the pavement sections, long straight sections, descents, and coming into the barriers/dismount sections.

Finding these little spots of recovery allows you to dig deep when you need to and to continue to have that punchy power you need during a cyclocross race. When it comes to training the same philosophy holds true – recovery allows you to have more effective and purposeful training sessions which likely during this time of the year involve lots of different types of intervals.

Of course, I haven’t touched on mental recovery. This is highly individual – some of us recovery mentally during recovery rides, others might recovery mentally by not spending any time reading cycling blogs/news articles/etc, and some others might not worry about mental recovery until the end of the season. This type of recovery is a very different domain than physical recovery but in my opinion is as equally (if not more) important than physical recovery. The cyclocross season is a long one and it is important to give yourself a mental and physical break.

Recovery is essential if you want to avoid the “crack”. I’ve experienced the “crack” in almost every season I’ve raced. Typically for me it would come around December – I’d have been racing since September and the weather was likely unpleasant at this time while living in Belgium. The “Belgian crack” is not a lot of fun but after a couple of seasons of experiencing this, I learned what to do to prevent it – sometimes this involved a little bit of chocolate therapy – but in all seriousness this meant taking days completely off from the bike and doing something like a day trip to Leuven or Antwerp or hanging out at Cafe Libro with a good book and tasty latte.

Whatever you do, don’t neglect recovery. While hard training gives you a big feeling of satisfaction, recovery lets your legs and heart have a break and truly benefit from the hard efforts on the bike.

Yesterday was the third race in the Eastern Ontario Cyclo-Cross Series – a large number of hardy and eager cyclists made their way out to Perth, Ontario for a great day of racing and fresh air. While the day started out a tad brisk, the sun soon came out and most racers (myself included) were complaining of being overdressed for their race… Yes, it seems even with lots of experience racing and training in all sorts of conditions, I still can’t get it right – I forget that the body warms up rather quickly when faced with the task of a 50 minute romp through grass, over barriers, up hills, down hills and through numerous twists and turns. Amazing how much warmth that thin spandex suit actually provides!

(Lesson number one: a cycling cap provides a great deal of warmth – more than is needed on a 10 celsius day, especially when all ready wearing leg warmers, a long sleeve skin suit, thickish socks and gloves.)

The race in Perth was a big step forward for me. I’d be racing for a full 50 minutes in an all women’s field. I was a bit nervous. Okay, I take that back – a lot nervous. Each time I saw another fit woman show up and pull on her racing kit, the butterflies in my belly got a bit more active and I started to feel a bit more hesitant. But then I reminded myself that this was for fun – there was no pressure. And hanging out with some long-time racing friends, helped take the edge off.

The course in Perth is a lot of fun. Long power sections where if you have the fitness you can really open up your legs combine with some sand riding, some nifty twists and turns, good use of the hill and two sets of double barriers. Really a course for everyone but one that I think allowed the true cyclo-cross riders separate themselves a bit with smooth brake-free riding through the corners and knowing how to ride some of the more “boggy” sections. (Lesson number two: when you see a long wide section of tall grass and there are tracks that look wet and muddy – look for the dry grass. You don’t have to ride where everyone else is riding.)

So the race. Well, I had a decent start – should have gone harder at the start as I wished I was on Sophie’s wheel as she was able to get free of the bottle neck and traffic that clogged up the first two turns. I was sitting comfortably in the back of the “chase” group, looking for spots to pass and trying to figure out how to get up to Alyssa who I was hoping would take me up to Sophie… Then came the steepish hill and I made a big mistake – I dropped my chain at the bottom of the hill. Drat! I had to stop and put the the chain back on and then I had to run up the hill… Sigh, I lost many spots – oh well, I put my head down and executed my typical race strategy – chase, catch and pass. This actually turned out to be a lot of fun. I ended up riding in a group for a while and simply tried to ride each section as cleanly as possible. (The cheering squad by the sand was fantastic!) With one lap to go though, I kind of ran out of steam – I could no longer accelerate out of the corners and my barrier technique had become rather poor. So I let go – and simply rode. All in all, I’m satisfied with the race. Having a better start and not making the mistake with my chain would have made a difference. But really, this only would have made a difference on paper…

The real outcome was still the same. I got to be outside racing my bike and having a good time. Until yesterday when people have asked me if I’m racing again, I would answer with something along the lines of “well, I’m not really racing. I’m just going out and riding around”. But this is not true. I am racing. I am lining up and giving it my all. It doesn’t matter that I’m not as fit as I normally am or that my technical skills are not as sharp as they normally are. I’m out there and I’m doing it. So yes, I’m racing again. And it is fun. Darn fun.

Big lesson learned: racing is what you make it. It doesn’t require that I be in tip-top shape. It doesn’t require that I have flawless barrier technique and that I sprint out of every corner. Racing requires that I’m out there, digging when I can, huffing and puffing and at the end of it smiling.

I suppose it is fitting that this big lesson sunk in on Thanksgiving weekend. On August 21 there was no way that I would have dreamed of lining up for a cyclo-cross race. But I did it. I couldn’t be more thankful for this.

A big thank you to the person who yelled this out during the race “It is great to see you out here again Vicki”. Wow – that really hit me hard – I think I grinned when I heard it. Because you know what – it is great to be out again. I wouldn’t miss it for anything.

Next race is in Renfrew, Ontario. Another fantastic town that has welcomed the Eastern Ontario Cyclo-Cross Series. See you out there!

(Oh, check out the new website that Marc and I launched today: Guide To Racing Cyclocross In Belgium. Our goal with this website is to help anyone out who is interested/curious about racing cyclocross in Belgium. We’ve spent the last five years there racing, training and living – we’ve learned a lot along the way – some of it the hard way… and we want to enable others to go to Belgium and have the same experiences we’ve had.)

Sunday was the big day – my first race since mid-November when I crashed and fractured a vertabrae in my spine. I was a bit nervous in the morning but by the time I arrived at the most excellent park in North Gower, my nerves had settled. I have to say that seeing so many friendly faces and talking to so many cool people before the race really helped to settle me down.

The extra special factor about Sunday’s race in North Gower was that it was the annual madison race. This is a partner race – your partner does a lap – tags you – you go out for your lap – tag your partner – etc. This lends itself to a relaxed racing atmosphere with some teams focused on the “win” and most others simply out there to have fun. Due to the popularity of the Eastern Ontario Cyclo-Cross Series, the organizers held two races – the first race featured mainly kids, masters riders, women and occasional racers and the second race was primarily elite riders with a few women as well.

I’m not sure how many times I’ve raced the madison race but this year goes down in the history books: I was able to partner with Marc! I think this contributed to my nerves – I really didn’t want to let Marc down. But Marc was in it for fun and did everything he could to encourage me and cheer me on.

The race course was a lot of fun with a tricky sand pit, some fun little bumps, some twists and turns, a steep climb up the hill and a few well-placed barriers. The perfect course for my first race back. So how did it go? Well I went out way too hard for my first lap – had that horrible burning feeling in the back of my throat and some tightness in my chest. Needless to say my next three laps were ridden at a slower pace!

I have to say – I had a blast. The cheering from those watching, the banter during the race as we waited for our partners to roll in, the cheering of others in the race – it all just made for a great experience. After the race it was very nice to see so many people help take down the course.

All in all, a great day on the bike. I’ll be out at the next race this Sunday in Perth (I heard the hill is a bit steeper there!).