Team Jeep/CJB Construction Reaffirms Reputation of Strength Rolling Into the 2008 Season
Team Jeep enjoyed a very successful season opener last weekend at Rouge Roubaix. 13 members strong, Jeep rolled into the parking lot of the St. Francisville Inn ready to race. Saturday afternoon all gathered for a short pre-ride. We drove out to the first of three dirt sections and rode both the first and infamous 1.5 mile hill. It was great to get out of the car and onto the bike! Nerves subsided after seeing the great condition of the gravel roads (remember this is all relative!). In the past the sections of gravel/dirt roads have been treacherous, but thanks to a little Louisiana downpour two days prior, the gravel and dirt were well packed for our steady 23-25 mph pace.
After the 1.5 hour roll around the course, we drove back to the hotel to enjoy a “boot camp” style shower to make our dinner reservations on time. The reservation for 30 at the Cypress Grill was a sight to behold. Team Jeep dominated the restaurant and definitely overwhelmed the kitchen!! We enjoyed some excellent Cajun blues music and a special meal of pasta prepared just for us, thanks to Don. The food was great and company unparalleled. With full bellies (especially Ty after polishing off two plates of food!) and calmed nerves (then again, I may have been the only nervous one….), Team Jeep headed back to the hotel for a full night of sleep before the big day.
Unfortunately I can’t say much about the A race as I wasn’t there (though someone started rumors that Rachel and I started with them. Fresh, eh?!?), but the B race was a blast. There were three good wrecks throughout and Ty wasn’t involved in any! Way to go! We had only one mechanical when Robbie’s derailleur hangar decided to snap off and throw the derailleur up into his rear wheel. It was not a pretty sight!
After the first dirt section, the field steadied out with a good rotating paceline up front. Guy Lott was up there working hard the whole time and representing the Jeep team. Ty shadowed Rachel in case of a blow out or mechanical issue, and Rachel, Destry, and I stayed back with Johnny to rest up for the big hill. Wow, it was nice not to work! Sorry everyone, but I may get used to chillin’ out in the pack and taking it easy! Dave, you would have been proud!
On the long stretch leading up to the dirt road we saw Rachel move up close to the front and knew the hill must be coming. She hadn’t raced the course before, but somehow she just knew. So we followed suit and moved up to get in position for the rutted road, crummy bridge, and great climb. Rachel, Destry and I climbed together and all crested the top at about the same time, collecting $100 for Team Jeep getting the first female up! We got our feed bags, dropped one, shared some food and drinks, and were off to start the race at around mile 67.
There was a breakaway group of about 8-10 people. I failed to count as we picked them off one by one. The next milestone was the third dirt road section. Foolishly I was under the impression that this was only 3-4 miles long and “no big deal.” HA! Parts of this behemoth section were roughly a 24% grade on gravel road! Cyclists in front of us were tipping over like dead trees and most everyone unclipped to walk or run up! Team Jeep impressively pushed through and Destry, Rachel and I road a significant portion of the road together. Somewhere along the way Rachel had a slight problem with her chain and we lost her. Six people ended up coming out of the, no longer in my mind, innocuous third dirt road section. We pedaled like hell to make distance and soon the group of six dropped to four, making it 50% Jeep! We worked together well with the other two: Aaron from GI Pathology (Memphis) and Lance from Bay Breakers (I think-all I can remember is the blue Boudreaux Butt Paste on his pants!) out of Mobile.
On the last hill Destry and Aaron dominated and Lance and I fell back about 100 yards. They pushed into the finish with Jeep taking it (way to go Destry). As soon as I saw the finish line, (perhaps in poor etiquette – I must learn about that!) I sprinted in to take first female and third overall. Rachel finished second after pedaling a significant portion of the last 20 mile stretch on her own due to the chain drop. Johnny and Ty both made strong finishes both in the top 20 (we think, though official results were not out when we left). And Robbie got to watch all the fun action from the wheel truck!
Overall it was a great success for Team Jeep/CJB Construction. We brought home a significant amount in prizes and even got some venison sausage which I enjoyed a little of last night! Yum! For those that missed it, the next adventure will be out at Barber Sports Speedway! Call or email Destry for details.
-Mel