Rose Festival 2010

Well, got lucky with the rain ending just before the race.  The entire last 30 minutes of driving to State Center was done in some seriously bad rain, could barely see.    There were 21 racers who lined up at the start of the 30 minute plus 3 lap race.  I was the only FD Trisporter to race today.  The roads on the course were wet, but not really slick, little rough.  The course had 6 turns with smaller inclines, lots of fun.  Felt pretty good, read for some results.  Things went well, pretty much stayed together.  Bell lap, had bit of a mental lapse, thought I heard the official say 4 laps to go, he must have said 4th lap (after the 30 minutes).  Whatever, got it wrong as I was unsure if it was the last lap or not.  Anyway, last corner, boom, crash, with some race sliding out, right in front of my wife and boys.  Another rider went into the downed rider and flipped over.  Great, just what my 10 year old needs to see before he gets his first road bike next week.  He tells my wife "I'm not sure if I want to do this".  Back to the race. The crash automatically gets my attention and after rubber necking for a few seconds, I remember there is a sprint to contend with.  On with a sprint for a pack finish, approximately 8 or 9th.  Glad to race in front of the family, heard them cheering me on multiple times throughout the race.  Awesome. - Ben Acree