As you may know, my first race in 10 years or so is tomorrow at the Sea Otter Classic down in Monterey, CA. I'm a bit nervous, as one should be, mainly because I'm racing a tough category and age group (Cat 1 30-34). I've been training consistently for almost an entire year now with the help from Carmichael Training, and I've never ridden better in my life.
My focus is doing the Leadville Trail 100 under 9 hours, so anything beforehand will be good training. I'm assigning the Sea Otter as a C race, meaning winning isn't my highest priority, but perhaps finishing in the top ten would be great. The course itself is rather brutal coming in at 40 miles and roughly 7,000 feet of climbing. Thankfully moving to San Francisco and riding the Marin Headlands have given me a good idea of what to expect.
I've given myself a proper rest day today, doing a light spin around town the other day. I'll probably do a lot of deep stretching this afternoon. I've learned my lesson from the past of riding too much before a big race, giving myself enough time to recover.
My bike was filthy, so I wiped it down and gave everything a good once-over. I don't like to fiddle with my bike too much before a race, just making sure all the gears and brakes work, cleaning and lubricating the chain and checking to see if my tires aren't about to split open or explode.
The most important thing I have to keep remembering is to have fun, because then what's the point?
Wish me luck.