Mt. Washington Hillclimb

I’m normally pretty prompt with race reports, but the report went on Velonews before I got down from the mountain. On top of that, I had to drive 30-something hours to Houston. Why Houston, you say? Did I find another race to snipe? Nope. Just family stuff. School starts next week, so I had to drive south anyway. It’s kind of on the way if you’re like me and you’d rather chew glass than give your money to an airline.
Since I’m leaving Amherst, I’d like to share a couple points of trivia as an homage to my temporary home.
1. Amherst is the birthplace of Emily Dickinson and the home of Smith College.
2. It’s the 2nd-lowest zip code in the U.S. (01002). 
3. Neighboring Hadley is the nation’s asparagus capital, and you can purchase the real thing from a number of roadside stands.

Also, some pictures taken just near my house:

Oh yeah, the race. It was good. I kind of expected to win since all the big climbers were in Utah. Of course, last time I said that, I got some flak for it, but guess what? My competition had full time jobs, families and tandem bicycles, were aged 9-75, and were glad to finish. I, on the other hand, train full-time for events just like this one. They won’t take it personally that they didn’t win. In fact, everyone there was really nice. I got tons of cheers from friends and strangers at the top and at the awards ceremony. It sucks to win a race and not know anyone while you’re sitting around waiting for the awards, but I made a ton of friends, took pictures with kids, ate turkey and stuffing, and generally enjoyed myself.

There were a few good climbers there that made me earn it. One guy rode 10 feet behind me for the first part of the race, and when he cracked, a guy from Boulder stayed within sight for the next half hour. He finished almost two minutes back, but looked closer since it was all uphill, and he made me push that little bit harder. 
All that said, there are still a few (7) things that make this a big result for me. 
1. Something finally went right: I didn’t flat or crash. I rode my race, and I won.
2. Prestige: lots of big names have won this race, and it’s nice to be in their company.
3. Now there was a reason for all that threshold training: I did a ton of steady, hard efforts in training for U23 time trial nationals, but I flatted and couldn’t go fast. I’m glad I could take advantage of that fitness.
4. It’s my first win that came up on cyclingnews under “major races,” so everyone saw it.
5. My time: it was good. I did the climb in July and was over 56 minutes, losing almost a minute to Anthony Colby. This time, I went under 55, which beat Colby’s time from that day by 15 or 20 seconds. I’m not saying I would have beat him, because he probably could have gone faster if I was next to him, but it’s my only basis for comparison, and it seems pretty good.
6. I’m 22, and I think I can get 5-6 minutes faster by the time I’m 30. Watch out, Danielson.
7. Prize money is nice.

It was cool to see some familiar faces there, like the folks from Cycle Logic (sorry I didn’t get to chat with you guys). I’d like to thank Dan and Bernie, who drove me down the mountain, although I really want to ride that descent someday (wearing some sort of armor). Also Mary Power, the promoter, Steve and Darcy, who had a sweet farewell BBQ, and Matt White, who gave me that old-school skinsuit.

Lastly, if you saw the pictures from the race, you’ll be glad to know that I have since shaved. That sleaze beard was awful. 

Alright I’m caught up. I leave you with some pictures of Deborah, courtesy of Steve and Darcy. Deborah has officially earned a page on my website when I get around to it. Explanation forthcoming.