This weekend I took part in my very first cycling road race. Not even a year after getting my road bike, and jumping into Lycra, and I'm already giving road racing a shot.

I can honestly say I tried, hard as I could, to do well in this race. My bike had other plans for the day though!

The race was Jeremy's Roubaix, out in Pitt Meadows. This is a classic race put on by Local Ride, and is part of the Cycling BC Premier Series. The race takes place on the same day of, and is inspired by, the Paris Roubaix, a really famous cycling race in France. The race featured a 10 km course, with about 50% of the course on gravel paths. The proceeds from the race go towards helping a local young and talented racer, Maggie Coles-Lyster, make her way to race World Championship races - which is a cause I'm happy to support.

I had my normal pre-race nerves - and with this being my first road race and not knowing what to expect, I was a little extra nervous. I'd barely been riding a road bike for a year, I had barely been on my bike all winter and I am not generally the fastest rider in any group.

Because the registration line-up was so long, I had only a short couple of minutes to warm-up my legs. The women's Novice/Cat-4 group was small - less than 10 of us. The majority of the group was decked out in team colours and kits....I was just happy to be sporting my fancy new SAKO7 socks.

The race started a little behind schedule, and off we were...

I started off close to mid-pack, and had no problem staying in that position until a corner came up. I would fall off in the corner because I was taking it too slow, and then I'd have to sprint to get back in. By the middle of lap two I was in the back of the pack - but I had managed to figure out the corners, so that I wasn't falling to far behind the group.

In my mind, I was going to hold on as I was, until the third and forth lap, where I would take chances on the paved sections to sneak up a place or two. My bike had other plans.

On the second lap, as we came off of the gravel section and back onto the paved road, the group went to sprint ahead. While I went to stand, push and sprint, my gears decided to jump around and caused my to spin wildly and make no head way. I frustratingly fumbled with my feet on the pedals and tried to get my gear to a better place - but by the time I was set to sprint, and sprint I did, the pack of women riders was far ahead. I used as much energy as I had in me to sprint and push and sprint and try to catch back up to the group - but they pushed faster than I could before I ran out of energy. Gassed, I finished the race on my own.

I finished the race and headed straight home.

I was being a poor sport. I was frustrated with my mechanical failure. I was embarrassed with my performance. I was being hard on myself because I knew I could have done better.

I eventually got over it. I had a bath, drank a beer, swore a bit, talked about it. When I left the race, I swore I would never race road again - I was that frustrated. When I calmed down, I realized that road racing presents a new challenge for me. I may not have a fancy bike or equipment, I may be new to this sport, I may not be the strongest rider or the fastest sprinter...but I am determined and I don't give up. I like this challenge.

I have a couple weeks until the next race, and I have plans to practice hard and get prepared. As my boyfriend was reassuring me, I will only get better if I keep trying. He's right. I know he is. I may fail a few times, or a whole bunch of times, along the way - but as long as I keep trying, and don't give up, that's what matters the most.

So, for now, I'll race my Frankenbike. It's been all dialed up since the race, and the gear issue has been fixed so that won't happen again. I'm looking forward to having a better attitude at the next race, and being more prepared, now that I have an idea of what to expect.

 Tell me about a time you did something for the first time, and how it went for you.

Event Organizers - Local Ride