Book of fRedlands Verse 4 Chapter 1: The End, or the Beginning?
I should go ahead and start this out by saying I have never finished the last stage at Redlands. I think when I was racing more, simply "finishing" was kinda looked down on. The general consensus among the elders of our crew seemed to be that if you weren't gonna win or help someone win, you should just quit and get recovered for next time. I am trying to break this mentality now that finishing is an accomplishment. I tried in the circuit race this year, but it was pretty obvious pretty early that it waren't (yes waren't) gonna happen. For the record, I don't think I've ever seen more than 30 guys actually "finish" this stage. The organizers were kind enough to put a time bonus on the opening laps of the crit. course, and at the top of the circuit on the first lap. So we went fairly ballistic from the get-go. There was a crash due to an errant parked car on the course and generally mayhem ruled the day. I was hanging for grim death, and pretty well pulled the pin the first lap of the circuit. Typically, this is when I ride back down the hill into town, but today I decided that what with the streets being traffic free, I should go for a bike ride at least until lapped by the racers. Typically in this scenario, I have kept my head down embarassed by the spectators cheering for me off the back. Not this time. Instead, I was trying to get the crowd pumped up. The city of Redlands puts a lot into this race, and the people who live here really look forward to it. You never know when it may be your last opportunity to do something like this, I decided to soak up the townspeople's enthusiasm. Adios Redlands- see ya next year??
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