Tour of the Battenkill

Turns out I had registered in the wrong category (seems road racing is a bit more organized on this front then the regional mtb races) and didn't find out until days before that I was off the waiting list and in the Cat 5 White group. Finding out at the last minute that you are in a race gives little time to prep and get mentally ready for the event. Luckily while I hadn't been training hard it had been going alright so finishing wasn't going to be a problem but riding in a pack of 50 riders could provide a bit more excitement then I was ready for.
Since the forecast was calling for temps in the mid 30s, winds in the 15-20 mph range and a chance of snow showers in the morning, I had to venture to the house for a better assortment of gear. This meant hitting the road at 5 am to leave prerace registration and warm up time. The lovely Mrs C-Dubs had done a great job of setting me up with an assortment of digestibles for the drive as well as after the race. Armed with two cups of high powered Costa Rican coffee I set off for the great white north. Getting pumped up listening to some good old rock and roll and the spiritual guidance of my Tom Tom buddy Serge, I followed his every command ("in 200 yummy yards go right" and "go gay, I mean straight") and 2 1/2 hours later I arrived at the starting area.
Opening the door I felt like a newborn being pulled from the warmth of the womb. At 8:00 am the temps were only a few degrees above freezing and when you factor in the overcast conditions and the windchill (winds were out of the Northwest at 15-20 mph) it was well below freezing. Within minutes the snow started to fall but thankfully it was only for a quick flurry and there was no accumulation. About an hour later Top Chef and Braveheart pulled up in the A3, glad to be starting an hour later then I was.
Heeding to the advise of Marci de Sade, I made sure to get a slot right at the front of the pack for the rolling start to avoid getting boxed in and taken down in a crash. Riding right up at the front paid off, within a 1/2 mile of the start I heard the first crash happen and shortly after a gunshot sound as a rider lost a tube. During all of this one rider slipped slowly off the front and none of us really felt like giving chase at that point, but once onto the dirt roads he was out of sight and the pack immediately picked up the pace and the chase was on. The first big climb came at 18km in and the pack was immediately shattered with a group of 15 getting off the front with the rest of us scattered about the course. The first lesson of road racing was just learned - don't lose the pace line or your f#*ked. There I was in no man's land with riders just up the road and I was neither catching or being caught over the next couple of climbs. Once out on the rolling terrain we all faced stiff head winds and here I figured out lesson number 2 - if you can't catch the guy in front ease up and join in with the next group that comes up. Over the course of the rolling terrain our 4 man pace line battled the gusty winds until I lost a bottle as we crossed the railroad tracks. Time for a quick decision - do I keep going without any fluids to stay in the pace line or turnaround and grab the bottle and ride in no man's land? I figured no matter how much energy I was saving in the pace line if I dehydrated (and with all the layers this wouldn't take to long) I would be off the back and solo so I turned around and grabbed the bottle only to watch the other 3 slowly ride off into the distance as I went at it alone (actually I had another rider on my tail but he refused to take the lead). The balance of the race was either solo or two man efforts with the final 7 miles all alone, finally crossing the line in 18th and a time of 3:28:16.
Meanwhile in the Cat 5 Black Top Chef was cooking along and had hooked into a nice 9 man freight trainpowering home in 14th with a time of 3:26:37. Braveheart, sans kilt gave it his all and after switching from Cat 5 White to Cat 5 Black came through the finishing area so fast the computer failed to register his time.