by Maghalie Rochette

I've always been hot or cold in Charm City...literally and figuratively. I've had good or really bad races. Being in Baltimore, the temperature is always very humid, and it's not rare that we get extreme heat and saune-like racing temperature at this race. But when it is not crazy hot, I actually like the race, because it is a fun, physical course, and the fans over there are very passionate. In fact, one of the biggest kids club in the country is in Baltimore! The event celebrated 20 years of existence this year, which is pretty impressive for a cyclocross event!

On Saturday, when we got to the race, the sky was gray and a light drizzle had made the course slippery and fun. However, by the time the afternoon rolled around, the clouds had vanished, the sun came and started absolutely cooking the park. We could feel the moisture evaporating from the ground and it felt like a sauna.

Now, I've never been good in the heat. I've worked hard to get better at it, and I never wanted to accept that I was not good at it. But let's face it, we all have strength and weaknesses. A road rider that specializes in the sprint accepts that a mountain top finish is not his/her thing. And I don't judge them for that. They shine when the sprint finish races come. Well, I'm finally ready to accept it: I'm not good in the heat. And that's okay...it's partly why I chose a winter cycling sport! My body performs really well when the conditions are completely cold, wet, awful. I love that stuff.

A weekend of contrasts
That said, I don't have much to report from Day 1 of racing. It was so hot, my strategy was to start in control, to make sure my body wouldn't overheat, and then build into the race. Well, I basically started slow and finished slower. I felt like crap and I honestly don't even feel like i was racing. It felt more like completing laps of the course.

On day 2, I woke up and felt a bit scared that the same thing would happen. I decided that no matter what the weather would be, I would use a different strategy; I would put myself in the fight from the beginning, and see what would happen. Hot or cold, this was the plan. David helped me feel good about this plan, and suddenly, I was very excited to race.

Lucky for me, the sun understood the assignment: It never showed up! It was drizzling most of the day, and it was cloudy. The conditions on course were fast, with a bit of slippery in some corners; just the most fun!

I fought at the front with Helene Clauzel, Manon Bakker, and Sidney McGill for a good 4 laps. It was cool to be in the mix. The Charm City course is pretty physical with some long draggy hills. It was interesting; I knew what moves I should be making to get the edge on the girls, and I was trying to make them. But the truth is, I simply didn't have the power to make those moves stick. I still need to regain some fitness, but having been stronger before, I just know what I would do if I have my top fitness...and now I couldn't haha! So I had to be smart and ride smoother. Eventually, Sidney and I got gapped, and we had a battle on our own. I managed to edge her out on a climb and rode home for 3rd.

I was pretty happy with that! I had a lot of fun racing.

Accepting
Accepting that things are what they are is not my strength, My personality is more one to believe that anything is possible, and fight to get what I want. It is good for some things, but it is often extremely disappointing when reality is not what you had hoped or expected.

I've been working hard to learn to accept things the way they are, and then still do my best to achieve what I want, but try to stay rooted in reality.

I think this mindset helped me tremendously to race well yesterday. Instead of being frustrated that I couldn't do the moves I wanted to make, I instantly started thinking of how I could adjust my strategy to achieve a similar outcome. I normally would have been pretty bummed out to be dropped from the winning duo... This time, I instantly focused on how to win 3rd place. And ultimately, I was proud and happy when I crossed the line in 3rd place; which gives me great momentum to build upon for the next races. And that's way more positive than if I would have been disappointed not to have won.

So here is to accepting reality, and making the most of it!

Thanks Charm City for a great weekend of racing!

-Maghalie

What's Next
USCX stop #4: Waterloo, Wisconsin

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