A Tale of Two Bucks

Thursday's Buck had your noble author leading out up the hill with Brendan soon taking over on a paved climb, only to let me by as he clipped a pedal on a stump. While dodging his tumbling body, I asked if he was Ok. He said yea, dude, never been better. At this point I pulled a Contador and took off like a bat out of hell...no...more like a Contador out of saddle. I proceeded to take advantage of Brendan's misfortune for the next three laps or so. But suddenly guilt struck me. It was so strong, I could feel it like a hunk of burning lead in my legs. Thus, I decided to let up and let him pass.

Not waiting to be seated

Sunday's Buck had Brendan leading up the initial climb with your author in toe. By the time we started the second lap, it was down to Brendan, me, and Eric Thompson. I took the pull on the second lap. The first lap went by smooth, but the second I may have set the pace a bit too high for my own good. By the third lap, on the grassy part of the climb, I was waving for Brendan or Eric to take a pull, but they didn't want it. On the paved part of this climb, however, they blew by me, sneaking into the singletrack in front a lapped rider who apparently couldn't slow down for one more half a second to let me in. Oh well, the way I was hurting, I couldn't have stuck with those guys for much longer anyway. The next lap was spent alone except for all the lapped traffic. SamO came and gave me company with two to go. We had a thoroughly indepth conversation about life and all its complexities for a lap and a half. He was really haulin. I fell off, and he ended up gaining 50 seconds on me, and catching Eric all in the final half lap. That kid knows how to pace a race.

With one more Thursday Buck left, that will make it ten for me this season. Ten times 4 laps plus the six from Sunday puts me at 46 laps. It will be a relief to be done. It will also be sad to be done.