Orosi is a tough, beautiful race. I haven't really put the training time in to do 90 mile races yet. I knew going in that this would hurt, but the scenery and course make up for the pain. We staged with only 8 guys, a result of some big race down south and the challenging terrain.
The first lap was pretty mellow; we set up a good tempo up the main climb and stopped for a nature break on the way down, and didn't get passed by the E4 pack until the smooth highway, which was a lot later than last year. Some attacks went off right after feed zone, and I zoned out and kind of followed, never in much difficulty, but got left in no man's land, which is where I stayed until the turn back onto Boyd when I got caught by some chasers. My brakes a-squealin' I kept up with my two companions on the fast descent, now chasing the three up the road.
On the last climb, we swept up one of the guys off the front, and dropped one of the guys that had caught me on the highway section, so we were racing for third. My companion asked me to take it easy on him on the climbs, so we could work together on the flatish sections of the course. I sat up and towed him in most of the way, enjoying a few minutes of draft on the highway. I actually felt pretty good, aside from hunger and a sore back. I rolled away from him ( he said he wouldn't contest a sprint anyway) on the approach to the finish and took third. For my longest ride by 20 miles and first race this year, I'm pretty happy with that result even though it means next to nothing for upgrade points.
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