First post ... first race ...
 

Hi All, just turned 50 in January! Got my first road bike in September last year, bought a Specialized Roubaix in January for a birthday present. Had my first race this past weekend, cat 5, Tour de Fleur.

The crit was on Saturday, the course was insane, thru a residential area. Lots of curves including a very sharp nearly 180 degree turn and then there was a .3 mile climb to the finish line (3% grade, seemed a lot harder). Well I got dropped on that first big climb of the first lap. Then, on the second lap, I came around the 180 and found someone lying on the ground from a really bad crash. No one else was there so I stopped to make sure that he wasn't ... well dying. He was bleeding pretty bad but nothing seemed broken and he was conscious and said he was ok. So I continued on. They had an ambulance on the way, one of the other racers saw the crash and reported it.

Anyway, I finished the crit placing 22 out of 32 starters.

Sunday was the road race, pretty short for us cat 5s, 20 miles. Kept with the pack as close to the front as I could. The about 300 yards to the finish the big sprint started. I jumped up and pettled by my ... off. Finished 6th! out of 42. It was cool! Great day!

Hey, congrats on your 50th, the new bike, and the first race with a top ten finnish! It's nice to know there is life after 50, yes?

I ride the Specialize Roubaix Comp 18 and love it. Although I often feel it's more bike than my riding skills warrant.

Nice post and glad to have you with us!
Very good of you to stop and check the downed rider.
I'm not a racer, but your results certainly sound good to me. Keep it going!!

Fantastic results and great first post!! My buddies tell me horror stories about the crashes in Cat 5 races so be careful!!

Hi all and thanks! I'm very pleased with my results and look forward to more races. It seems to help with the motivation. And JPPE, thanks, I have heard a number of stories about crashes and after seeing the results of one crash I plan to be very careful.