2011 Lion of Fairfax, First Elite Cyclocross Win!

[Jim Hewett]

Saturday was the Lion of Fairfax cyclocross race at White's Hill School in my home town, Fairfax.  I was excited to have such easy access to the venue, though my attempt to pre-ride Thursday was thwarted by a middle school XC track meet.  I made my way over to the venue Saturday morning and got my first look at the course.  I had raced this race two years ago, and the course was similar.  Bumpy and loose, through the school on pavement and concrete, around the ball field on bumpy grass.  This year, they added a bit of bermed turns and pump-track-like features (built as part of the Shwashbuckler Short Track mountain bike race course for later in the day), which most people seemed to like.  The course had small accelerations all over, but few places that were smooth and long enough to favor more road oriented racers.  I think my carbon rigid 29er with 1.8 tires and 37 x 11-36 drivetrain was a good choice!

The line-up at the start was pretty casual.  It looked like we were missing a few fast guys that usually do this race.  I recognized Scott Chapin, Don Myrah, Cameron Falconer and Derek Yarra.  From racing against these guys recently, I felt like Scott would be the man to beat.  From the gun we went pretty casually around the ball field.  Scott jumped the barriers just ahead of me on his bike, as I dismounted to run over them.  Impressive, as I had deemed them a little too high (15 1/2") and close together to hop in the race.  I left the ball field area in 4th place, and we motored around the back of the school in single file.  I passed Scott on the run-up and quickly hopped back on for the bumpy steep descent into the berms.  As I left this section, I heard someone go down behind me, which turned out to be Scott (throwing in a little too much "styley").  I wasn't sure what had happened, but I accelerated to make the most of it.  I moved into second behind Derek and looked for my chance to pass.  I found it in the tight corners through the school and turned it on for a minute to make a break.  I came around the ballfield with a decent gap and kept the hammer down for a little bit to increase it.  It was nice to be leading in front of a hometown crowd, and my son Simon was there at the fence cheering for me!

I looked back around on the ballfield to see Derek and Don behind me, but I couldn't see Scott.  I wasn't sure what had happened, but there were 6 laps to go and I knew I would have to keep it up (I learned later Scott had flatted and stopped to switch wheels with a teammate on the course).

Each lap brought a little more familiarity with the course and slightly improved lines.  It was great to be off the front, uninhibited by other riders.  Being a mountain bike racer, this definitely favored me more than the road racing style tactics.  The course looped back on itself in many places, and I was able to gauge a 30 second lead over Don Myrah, who was behind me in hot pursuit.  Scott moved into third, a little behind Don, and we rode that way for a few laps.  It was great to have people cheering for me throughout the course, as I usually am not a familiar face to the Bay Area CX fans.  I tried to keep the hammer down while staying smooth and avoiding any mistakes.  I felt fresh all the way through, which told me I would not be losing the race unless I had mechanical difficulty.  I cruised in to the finish at around 50 minutes for my first Elite men's CX win!