this guy reminds me...I did not approach the Shenandoah Mountain 100 to assert myself and hold the position as the fastest Clydesdale on the course
that was never my focus
that was never my concern
I had a solid day on the bike
but honestly... I had not prepped or prepared for this event
I had figured I could coast on through
I just assumed that each year built on the year before and I could continue putting in faster times at the Shenadoah Mountain 100
but early in the race I realized that I was not as fast as I was the year prior
I accepted that and ran a different race
not so much focused on a finishing time
not so much focused on finishing ahead of anyone
just focused on finishing
at the tail end of the race I got some inspiration from reeling in a friend on my cycling team
joe foley... he was as frustrated as I was pleased when I arrived
seeing joe did give me a breath of fresh air
I picked up the pace to assure that I did not just catch him
but that I finished ahead of him
I rolled into the finish a minute before him, rang the gong, picked up a pint glass, and got a glass of beer
it was only after the shower that it had occured to me to check the standings
I had known that Greg had finished ahead of me
as I had watched him leave check point five as I changed my clothes
I arrived there before him
he left before me
maybe too much time at the check points... he finished two minutes ahead of me
Greg had not entered as a Clydesdale
I told him to change his class at the finish, but I expected the race promoter Chris Scott to have a scale at the finish
I doubted Greg's Clydesdale Status
as a matter of fact I had been calling him Clydesdale Lite at the Wedenesday at Wakefield races
there was no scale
I was not weighed at the finish
I just banged the gong and got my pint glass
there was no standing on any scale
later that night there was some celebrating in the pavilion
chris scott was awarding anyone and everyone for their effort
breaking down the race without classes to all sorts of sub classes
when chris called up the clydesdales he made mention of my blog
then called up greg who had already left
then called in the leading clydesdale
I will check the results for his name
but am not sure if I could find a baseball card with his stats
but he looked like he was maybe 5' 10" tall
it did not appear as if he was weighing in at 200 pounds
Chris called him out in a joking fashion
requesting a scale
this guy shook the champagne, grabbed his swag, and took off
I congratulated him
never pushing the issue of his weight and the scale
he may have been a Clydesdale
but it did not appear so
that guy on the bike in the picture
that guy is a Clydesdale
and to my dismay
I am a Clydesdale
before the race
after the race
I am a Clydesdale
even if shed a few of these extra pounds around the midsection
I am still a Clydesdale