The 2021 Cactus Cup Recap

Finally racing was on the horizon, we finished up our last big week of base season at altitude in Durango and headed for the desert. This year Cole and I decided to kick off our season at the Cactus Cup, a three day stage racing event in Phoenix, Arizona. Before this weekend it had been over a year since we had raced against our biggest competition, and it was exciting and nerve wracking to see 80% of the top US pros on the start list! 

The stage race started out with an individual TT on Friday, a 40 mile XC race on Saturday, and a desert Enduro on Sunday. Here’s a recap of each:

Friday TT:

After getting to spend a couple days riding the course, I was feeling ready to start off the weekend. The pre-race jitters were definitely there, but they were welcomed after so many months without that same feeling! My start time was at 4:50pm, and as each rider went off a storm started to roll over the venue. The wind picked up and knew it was going to be a fast, blustery race. 3, 2, 1…the 2021 race season was on! This TT course was challenging to pace yourself on, with the first half being rolling, fast, single track dodging through the cactus, and the second half a steep climb and loose decent to the finish. Being smooth and efficient was key. I started and the lactic acid rushed through my legs. My lungs burned, but I welcomed every bit of it. Racing again felt so good! 5 minutes in and I began to settle into the pace, knowing I needed a punch for the upcoming climb. I got through the first half smooth and gave it everything I had on the climb. Nearly missing a friendly *looking* cactus, I sprinted across the line and took the stage win! So much work has gone on behind the scenes in the last 12 months and it felt so good to finally be able to put it to a real test. 

Saturday 40 mile XC:

Bright and early the next morning we were back at the venue for our 7:50am start. The XC was an old school style long 3ish hour loop through the desert (normally our XC races are 1.5 hrs repeating the same short lap 5-6 times). My race started out well but didn’t go exactly to plan. In the lead group about 13 miles in I hit a sharp rock and got a double puncture. One hole sealed right away on the top of my tire, the other was on the bead and stubborn. I ran out of co2 and to be honest was pushing the limits only running 15 psi. After getting it sorted in the feed zone, the lead group was long gone and I had a solo grind to the finish. Some of my thoughts the rest of the way were:

1. I was thankful to be racing my bike again, whether or not I had any friends out there. :P

2. The nut butter bar I stuck in my pocket last minute was soo good - I was so excited when I remembered I had it! 

3.  Orange Seal did it’s job, I just need to work on my co2 execution and line choice.

Sunday Enduro:

One last day to empty the tank! This “enduro” was three stages, the first almost a false flat - super fast and smooth, the second a short fast climb and a rocky decent, and the final one coming down part of the TT climb into the finish. I had a good run on the first stage and made a couple small mistakes on the last two. After two hard days of racing, finishing with an Enduro is brutal where every second counts! It was tight racing and I was happy to finish third on the day.

Next up is a nap, school work, and Puerto Rico! We are headed to a C1 race and Pan American Championships on Tuesday in Salinas, PR. 

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