Races 3-5: Choisy au Bac, Choisy la Victoire, and Dreslincourt

Here's a brief summary of the past three races:

Choisy au Bac

This is a local race put on in the honor of André Mahe who won the 1949 edition of Paris Roubaix. He was even there at the start to see off the riders. As for me, the legs never showed up to the race and I actually DNF the race. I left the course after around 30 minutes nearly in tears partially because it hurt so badly, and also because I don't like to think of myself as a quitter.

The evening turned out alright when I was able to get my picture with Mr. Mahe and France's beloved "Mr. Eternal Second Place", Raymond Poulidor (Second in the Tour de France 3 times and third place 5 times).

Choisy la Victoire

This race took place two days after the previous and this time the results were better. I managed to sneak into a break away group of about 7 riders that worked well together as we stayed out front for the final 30 miles despite the howling crosswinds. Geared all up for the final sprint to the line, I attempted to accelerate and my legs finally said, "No more, bro!". I had exerted too much in the last hour and half and I was juiced. Despite the lackluster finish, I was super pumped about my performance and placement.

Thad and the McAuley boys (minus Lucas of course) made it to cheer me on!

Dreslincourt

Well, mama said there'd be days like this... I had a mechanical 10 minutes before the race and wasn't able to warm-up or take a look at the circuit. Let's just say the first part of the race was a tough one. On the bright side however, Thad and his sons were there to cheer me on and he took some great pics of me and my suffering.

Cheers!

J