Nationals report

The good and the bad. The bad, I did not accomplish my goal of finishing. I pretty much rode like an idiot technical wise with my usual culprit being to blame: placement in the pack. The good, I rode hard, never gave up and had good legs. I should have finished with the legs I had, no problems on the climb but there are only so many gaps one can close up to the leaders in a day. I went in with the goal of finishing and not giving up. Every time you feel like quiting, drop it down a gear and dig deeper. Proud to say I did just that. After fighting hard on the first lap for some position coming into the climb, I dropped my chain on the final corner starting the climb but was luckily able to get the chain back one with minimal trouble. Unfortunately I was now back at the back with gaps opening. Followed a bit of wise advice rode conservatively on the early pitch pulling myself back up through the pack and then continuing to move up as the folks who went too hard exploded out the back. Not bad. The second time up the climb went much harder making it harder to keep moving up. More gaps and another big effort over the top of the climb to get back into the game. Much of the rest of the race continued like this. Sometimes spending a lap off the back chasing in special needs gruppettos. Apparently no one is able to ride a caravan anymore. Finally the last straw snapped after I spent 2 laps several hundred meters behind the pack, but unable to close the final gap. Finished off a lap on my own at pretty much a snails pace. End total: 12 laps, 11 bidons, 1 turkey sandwich (apparently I can't eat Cliff bars without throwing up), 2 gels, and 12 lbs of salt lost. Hard day. Next up: OBC GP. Time to ride a better race, hopefully with the same legs. Time to rest up.