Frost Bike Race Recap

I headed to Carthage, Missouri this afternoon for a 20 mile time trial style bike race.  The race is part of the Rufus Racing Ruthless Series, however, Mother Nature did not cooperate with the race founders.  The race was intended to be done in the dead of winter and earn the name Frost Bike.  Mind you, I would not have done the race under those circumstances! We have had a beautiful week with temps ranging in the mid-60's so with a little prodding via Facebook announcements I decided to do the race.  I'm a total race swag fan and the cool keychain swag had me sold (once I knew the weather would be warm, that is!)

So much better than a t-shirt!

The race was set up with a time trial start. Racers started every 10 second from a complete stop with one foot on the ground.  Some friends of mine (Brent and Cole - a father/son duo) also participated in the race.  I was rider number 25 and they were 63 and 64 so I got quite the head start on them. 

Cole and I before the race...check out his bike with star rims!

The start was straight into a headwind for a short distance.  Honestly since I wasn't from the area the race course was a complete mystery to me.  It was very pretty for the most part with the course going on country roads with little traffic.  The downside to country roads are rolling hills.  I found out the course elevation chart on Map My Ride was not accurate.   

Race start

 The race was uneventful for the most part.  I spent a lot of the ride wondering when Brent and Cole would catch up to me.  I kept ahead of them until around mile 10 and 12 respectively.  They had a little competition going between them.  Cole, the son, was riding a single speed bike that he has just finished restoring.  His dad was riding his regular road bike with gears and it sounded like some trash talking had been going on between the two! Brent was rider 63 and caught up to me first.  He told me I should tell Cole that he was way ahead of me:) Unfortunately we were on an out-and-back section of the course so I couldn't mislead Cole. Also of note, Cole was racing in jean shorts or jorts over his bike shorts and had Vans shoes on!

While the temperatures weren't as frosty as the race organizers would have hoped, the wind was out of this world.  The wind was steady at probably 10-15mph with gusts up to 30-40mph.  There were sections of the course that were directly into the wind and you could just feel your bike slowing.  The cross wind was also a little tough but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

Cole, Me, and Brent after the race

 I finished up the race in 1 hour 11 minutes 7 seconds.  This calculated out to a 16.87mph average pace and 8 out of 17 for females.  I was pretty pleased with my performance given the rolling hills on the course and the stiff wind.  For the family competition, Brent ended up with the win and a 20.8mph average to Cole's 20.2mph average.

Going into this race, I was worried that I wouldn't remember how to ride outside since I haven't had my bike off the trainer since November.  I guess it's true...you never forget how to ride a bike!