The following is by Touchstone and CFEB's own Danielle Ones. We miss her.

My first Stage Race By Danielle Ones

On May 15, 16 and 17th I competed in my first ever stage race. It was the Kern County Women's Stage race in Bakersfield, CA: actually, none of the stages were in Bakersfield proper but in the surrounding areas like Tehachapi and Woody. The event was three days long and I raced in four different stages. This was something that I have been training for since I first decided I wanted to pursue cycling as something more then a great way to stay in shape.

A stage race is based on the shortest overall time; You do not have to win every stage or even one stage to win over all. As long as you have the shortest time you are golden. The length and number of races vary greatly. It can be 3 days like mine was or it can be as long as the Tour de France, the 21 stage Mere De Tout Les Course.

There are various sorts of stages.

1) There is the Time Trial, this is the simplest and purest style of racing, in my opinion. You go out on your own and you race the clock. The distances are usually not too great so you go as hard as you can and as fast as you can the whole time. They are usually on flat roads with little rises perhaps, sometimes even short climbs. You try and get as aerodynamic as possible. Bikes, clothing, helmets, sunglasses, etc are all manufactured specifically designed for this type of racing.

2) The Road Race: You start as one big group with all the people in your category. There is much more strategy that goes into the road race. Since you are all starting together you must make sure that you are doing what you need to do and racing with who you need to race with in order to defend your position and/or move up places. You can use the group (in cycling lingo this group is called the peloton) to your advantage for things like blocking wind creating gaps if you and others have broken away from the main peloton. These stages are the longest and vary from relatively flat courses to full on hill climbs.

There is also a stage called the Team Time Trail but it is mostly a type of racing that is done professionally.

My Story:

1) I woke up Friday morning (on the 15th) way before my alarm. The night before I felt like I may have been getting sick, you know that tingle you get in your throat? I still had my tingle but I felt pretty much ok. I figured I would snort/gargle some salt water and all would be good....I made my power breakfast; Oatmeal, eggs, turkey sausage, fruit... eating wasn't a problem yet. Brian (my 'Directeur Sportif'/Coach/Mechanic/Masseuse/biggest fan/love of my life) and I packed up the car and headed for Bakersfield. My first stage was at 1:00 that day. The individual Time Trial.... We drive into the parking lot and there are already ladies on their bikes warming up (although all you needed to do was step out of the car and you were hot and I'm talking HOT, it was High Noon). I register and get my little souvenir lunch bag with a packet of power goo... Suit up and hop on my bike. By the way... the whole time Brian is tending to my bike, pumping tires and checking brakes... he even carried my bike for me over the gravel to the road. He spoils me. Pro ladies and category 3 go first... then at approx 1:53 it's my turn. I want to do well of course but my secret goal is to pass the woman who goes in front of me. We went out 1 min apart. Countdown and go.... get to top speed ASAP and stay there I carefully monitor my breathing and heart rate so I don't blow up. I can see the girl in front of me getting closer and closer... 5 miles to the turn around and 5 miles back....I hit the turn around...get back to top speed and blow past the girl in front of me... then I blow past the girl in front of her... Is this actually happening? I am in pain but I am smiling. The return leg has a small hill climb... I encourage myself out loud to push harder. I reach the top of the climb click into my big gear and sprint to the finish. I pass Brian who yells some obscenity at me which makes me push harder across the line. "Well, I think I did OK, but I won't get excited". Brian runs over to me, he already knows the unofficial time so far.... I am in 2nd... We go back and check later after all the girls are done and I am overall in 3rd... Wow, mission accomplished for today. I feel a little glimmer of pride and anticipation well up and overtake my tingle... Could I actually finish top 5? The strategy begins...

2) I woke up at 5:00 am on Sat (the 16th). The night before I took my 20 min long ice bath, ate, got a massage, and slept. I am nervous. I have to ride 2 stages today. A 37.5 mile long (mostly flat) road race, and then a 10 mile hill climb. Eating is hard... I take big bites to get it over with sooner... Gross. We go. Stage 2 is set in Walker Basin. I say hello to the ladies I met yesterday. I don't notice it but maybe they are wondering at this point what I am capable of ... I am too. I suit up, pee, then pee again... WTF? Brian is getting my bike ready... we had a small mechanical issue with my front brake yesterday.. nothing my mechanic couldn't handle. He shows me my handle bars. Taped on them are small pieces of paper with the top 10 ladies numbers, times, and team names. :) I scout them out so that I can recognize them by site. Number one is a beautiful extremely tall slender woman who looks like she should be a pro... Shit. Intimidation sets in...."forget it Danielle warm up and just keep your eyes on her". Time to go. Line up, whistle blows, we are off. Half way around the first loop I realize most of these ladies do not know how to ride in a peloton... All I can hear is whining.. "I'm on your right, OMG don't get close to me, someone just cut me off"........ Um I thought we were racing!? I do not race dirty or unsafe.. but if you don't like to get nudged once and a while, don't be a bike rider... I move to the front where it thins out. I can hear Brian's voice in my head "don't do all the work, sit in." I won't do all the work but I do want to push this pace a little. 2nd lap I am sitting on a girls wheel she misses the turn... SHIT SHIT SHIT! Chaos for a moment... then we all re-group... "Danielle go with your gut, don't follow people the wrong way, I know your mad but get over it". Third lap and then fourth lap. Every lap at the finish there are time bonuses. Teams work together to snatch them up.... did I mention I am a Lone Ranger? Whatever, no one of extreme importance at this point is getting the bonuses. I roll through 7th, but we all got the same time. The top 5 times and positions remain the same......I make friends with a woman named Margret. She has great advice and makes me feel good about myself. I instantly love her.

Now the money stage, the one I have been anticipating for months. We drive to the hill climb. There is no time in between to go back to the hotel for an ice bath. I decided to drive the climb to get an idea of what it's like. I end up going into a nervous frenzy and cry. It is steep and hot. I want to hold my lead and it could all be lost here... I doubt my abilities...Brian comforts me and brings me back. We go to the picnic area and I lie on a table and get a massage..again (it's not as luxurious as it sounds). He makes me eat...The combination of nervousness and heat makes eating feel like toture. I make a deal with myself... "you can go pee but only if you finish your disgusting sandwich, and you really have to go, so hurry up". I go through my get ready routine again... Brian leaves before me. He rode the climb so that he could be right in the action. Line up again... I have ice in my sports bra and in my jersey pockets, and I pour a whole jug of water right on my head. Whistle and go! Some chick breaks away right at the line.... it was so fast many didn't even see it happen. Well the tall girl is still here so that's good. Maybe break away girl will burn out. We climb and climb and climb... the peloton blows up....hello, I am still with the lead group... I can see tall girl... Then she gets closer and closer.... I pass her... WTF? Ok I'll take it. Brian is waiting half way up... He sees me and cheers me on. I want to let him know I feel good without being too obvious... After I pass him I look back and give him a smirk... He flips out and starts yelling and running around... :) 1 KM to go... my legs are starting to tire.. but there are only 2 girls with me... 200 meters they take off... and I am right behind. I roll through the line 4th. But how much time did that one girl gain on me... What's her #???? Relief! I did it! HELL YES! I feel good. Time to rest.

We go to the hotel later and look at the times a placements... I am 2nd, I moved up a spot. Tall girl fell way behind... but the new #1 has 13 second on me overall... Ok... I could actually win!!! I try not to think too much about it because it just doesn't seem real and it's not over yet....

3) I wake up at 4:30 on Sunday (the 17th).... seriously? I stare at my food for a good ten min, trying to figure out how I am going to eat it. I read some news post on yahoo about wrestling to take my mind off my task, while taking huge bites... like eating bricks.... with poop on them. I do it.. yes! We go. The one comforting fact is that whatever happens in the next 4 hours or so it will all be over... It doesn't really help because now I want it... I want to win.... I want to win so bad I can taste it. But again.... I doubt my abilities... I think I am my own worst enemy...? This final stage is summed up in one word... TORTURE. It is a 24 mile loop that I have to do twice, with a 2 mile climb at the start and 3-4 mile climb at the finish... with rolling hills and flats in between. And it is HOT! In direct sunlight it feels easily over 100F. I just want to go... I am tired of waiting... I do know who I need to beat and I size them up while I get ready. Then a girl comes up to me... her name is Anne, she is the girl who took off and won the hill climb. She is in first place... She wants to work with me... like me she is a lone ranger with no team mates. The other 2 ladies behind us both have at least 2 others to help them out. The ranking is as follows... Anne 00, me 13 second behind... Tamara 35 second behind... Roaring Mouse Girl (I forgot her name so I will refer to her by her team name) 55 second behind. Line up for the final time, hear the whistle for the final time, and go for the final time. The first lap Anne pushes the pace up the climb... I hear grumbling... :) I push the pace on the descents.... Keep up biatches! My plan ( Brian and I discussed many, but you never know what's going to happen until you start racing) is to break away on the decent after the first lap... I feel pretty good and then I take off. I notice people behind me. Crap... I get to the bottom and I have to climb again right away... the decent was much shorter then I though.. Crap I am still tired! Shit it's Tamara, Roaring Mouse girl, and another. Anne is nowhere to be found, she couldn't keep up on the decent. At first I am pissed but then I realize I need them if I am going to make it. The pace is pushed on the climb..... SHIT@&*^&#$!(&#*(#^&$!@%&^!@(*^&^$@$#%^@&*(*!*@&^ I need to rest... Roaring Mouse's dad/coach? Keeps passing water to her (NOT IN THE FEED ZONE grrrrr) and dumping water on her.... I let it go I have to focus... He is forgiven when he tells us we have a 30 second lead... Then we rally and work together. That precious gap could be eaten up if we are not willing to help each other.... We get a pace line going and I get to rest a little but I still feel like shit. I feel like barfing but I know I have to eat... It is so HOT! I want to fall off my bike and pass out. I have some seriously low thoughts... about quitting.... not making it... I just keep going... Then at the start of the final climb I get my 7th wind... I know that I have this in the bag... stay with them and no matter how you roll through the line you are the winner... but I want to go through first.... 1 KM I can see the tent... yes! yes! I am almost there! Push Push Push!!! Just a little bit more! Tamara takes off but I am right on her wheel...100 meters out I yell out of desperation... yelling to keep my legs moving... yell at her.. yell because I know I am going to get first no matter what... I roll through the line right behind her and it's over.... Fuck Yes! It's over... I step off my bike and hit the deck... I have never been this worked in my entire life! It doesn't seem real. I feel like someone is going to tell me I have another lap or something.... But Brian comes over and hugs me and I know that it is real..... and I know that I did it!

After everything was over and I said good bye to my new friends... It finally dawned on me that I had done something quite miraculous... And that it's OK to be proud and it's OK to be annoyingly happy... I learned a lot this last weekend not only about racing, but also about myself and what I am capable of as an athlete. I will always be the hardest on myself but I know that I can be proud of myself too. I will always hold back my excitement and show modesty when I am in the thick of competition, but now when it's all over I will love myself for what I have done win or not. Cycling has brought me back to life and the most amazing thing is that I am just getting started. So watch out ladies..... and gentlemen.

FINALLY! I just want to thank Brian.... Having you there meant the world to me. I feel like our bond only grew stronger this weekend. It would not have been the same without you! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! I love you!

See you on the road...

Danielle

WOD 090520

Run 800 Meters
21 Power Snatch 95/65
Run 800 Meters
21 OHS 95/65
Run 800 Meters
21 Power Clean 95/65
Run 800 Meters
21 front Squat 95/65

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