TRIA Orthopaedic Center Your Cycling Blog

Carson Miller, racing in the NVGP for Land Rover-Orbea, has provided us with another entry after today’s Uptown Minneapolis criterium. Enjoy!

Another pleasant and relaxing day here in Minnesota culminated in a blur. With the Nature Valley having been comprised of late afternoon and evening races until now, the riders and teams have begun to settle into a daily routine.

After sleeping in, probably later than normal for most, we awake to our coffee pots which have been pre-programmed to turn on. The coffee is complimented by breakfast and time spent in front of the TV and computer. Some riders check the news, others update their Twitter pages, and the rest of us fill our time with e-mails and phone conversations back to our homes and family.

With breakfast and the first cup of coffee consumed, some riders will head out for an easy one or two hour spin, and the rest of us choose to keep our reclined position on the couch until the last possible moment; only leaving the couch for a massage or to refill the bottle from which we have been drinking out of. As the riders return from their morning rides, they get their turn on the massage table before returning to the couch.

Lunch and a brief nap come next, before we depart for the day’s race. Many riders climb into the team vehicle with some snacks and a steaming hot cup of coffee for the drive. Upon arriving at the race, it is go time. With the vehicles staged for the race, riders begin their pre-race routine. Different riders will have a different way of preparing for each day’s race, depending on their job for the day, and their style of riding.

This week I have been focusing on trying to find my way to the front end of the race, making and following moves that look to have promise. When I am not covering moves, I have done my best to look after our protected riders, ensuring that they have plenty of food and drinks to get them through the day’s stage.

Tonight’s criterium was run around downtown Minneapolis on a very fast and fun challenging circuit. With fans lining the entire length of the course, and the battle for the overall General Classification becoming tighter, it was sure to be fast – from the gun. And it was. After spending what seemed like an eternity on the start line, I could feel my heart rate slow, and my legs bristled with goose-bumps. Not exactly what I want to feel. Sitting there with my heart beating only 60 times per minute, I knew that my world was about to be rocked. Out of the blocks, and I was summoning every ounce of strength I had, trying to push the pedals faster and more forcefully.

Twenty minutes passed before I was finally feeling comfortable on my bike, and on the course. The remainder of the evening was a blur as the peleton raced around the course. Near the 1-hour mark, and with 10 laps remaining in the race, several crashes took place. With some riders starting to feel fatigue, while other teams were setting up lead-out trains, the tight corners became chaotic, and I found myself caught out on two separate occasions.

Initially I gave chase, hoping that I would be able to regain contact with the peleton, but realized my efforts were in vain after several laps of riding flat out, only to maintain the same gap between myself and the field. With the writing on the wall, I sat up and rolled across the line. My day ended a little bit early, but I knew that there was no point in wasting energy that will be valuable over the final 2 stages.

With tonight’s race behind us, we have returned to our host house for showers and dinner. Tomorrow’s stage will be a change of pace as we again hit the open roads of Mankato, MN for nearly 150 kilometers of racing in the middle of the day. Between now and then, I have some serious resting and recovery. Hopefully I can find some freshness in the legs tomorrow, and with that, I might find my way back to the sharp end of the racing.

Thanks for reading. See you all in Mankato tomorrow afternoon.

Keep the Rubber Side Down,

C-

Carson Miller,Land Rover,MBF,Minnesota Bike Festival,NVGP,Nature Valley Grand Prix,ORBEA     Comments Off