Category: 4
Result: Mid-pack

(Following on from the Diamond Valley RR report, ed.)

Casino
After the road race, we checked into our hotel, got food, fixed my bike, and then went to a casino. We ended up at the Carson Valley Casino and Resort for our gambling. As Mike just turned 21, I felt obligated to introduce him to the sin of gambling (not like he's an innocent angel or something ;) ). We played roulette and craps. I made $55 while mike lost his $20 at the roulette table. I played the 2nd and 3rd column the whole time while Mike tried different, unsuccessful tactics. We then played craps, where I won a measly $7.5 while Mike lost $5. My winnings paid for the new chain I had to buy, but I don't think Mike will be going back to a casino anytime soon.

On Sunday morning we were kicked out of our motel room at 11AM. Since our race started at 4:15PM, we had about 4 hours to kill. We spent it watching other races, debating over the effectiveness zig-zagging as a blocking technique, and sleeping.

On to the race. The course is a flat 4 corner course with a small chicane after turn 3. The field was 28 people and there was a strong headwind on the back straight. We started the race in single file. I probably started somewhere in the middle of the pack. I tried to move up for the first couple laps, then got tired and drifted backwards.

Finally, the pace slowed down after about 20 minutes and the pack had been reduced to about 15. The pace was still pretty high and I was content to sit on near the back. On the second to last lap, the pack really slowed down and I was able to move to about 5th position. However, someone also put in an attack at the same time and I drifted backwards again. In the sprint, I passed a Team Spine rider for 12th.

Drive Home
I forgot which road we took to get to Minden: 88 or 89, since it was dark and I was sleepy during the Saturday morning. We opted for 89 because we saw a stockton sign. About 30 minutes into drive, I realized that this was the wrong road as it turned into a single lane road with steep switchbacks, and I do remember that the road we took saturday morning had at least two lanes :). I didn't want to backtrack, so we forged ahead. Anyway, 89 is pretty scenic, but does increase travel time by an hour.

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