Bye-bye cross, see you next year!

Last weekend marked the final 2 cyclocross races of the 2015 season, and what a great weekend it was!

Saturday's race location was a really fun course layout. It had lots of off-camber, short ups, quick downs, twists and turns. Although it wasn't typically the type of course I usually do well on, I was really pleased with my race.

I was able to have some smooth lines, power up where I wanted to/needed to and felt comfortable on many of the tight turns; WITH EXCEPTION TO ONE SPOT!

This hill (above) should have been totally ride-able, but on each lap I either had someone in front of me blocking my line and stopping me OR my bike kept bouncing off the line I was going for! I always ended up getting only so far before having to dismount and run up. Regardless, it was a really fun day with beautiful weather! (last year, there was snow!)

Saturday's race was also on Halloween, and some racers dress up for the race. While it was fun "finding nemo" as he rode around the course, my favorite was this guy!

ET Go Home - So awesome!

The final great thing about Saturday's race were the money grabs, and this year I got one! An American dollar too, so it's practically worth 10 dollars Canadian! (HAHA) Post race we were rewarded with a delicious bowl of homemade chili and an ice cold beer. So good.

Sunday's race location was in a different spot. We were located just out of town on an AG society property. When we pulled up we could see most of the course and it did not look appetizing. It looked fairly flat and dull, not really what we'd hoped for for our last race of the season. Sunday also had some different weather. It had cooled off from the day before and more layers were needed - but as they say, that's cross weather.

While I was not feeling this course at all on pre-ride, it turned out to be one of my better races over the entire season. It wasn't very technical but did have some sections where I could shift into my big gears and hammer it; rare for cyclocross!

Sunday I was also lucky enough to have a sweet battle going with this chick, which was really fun! Some days in cyclocross (or any race for that matter) its all about the race within the race. You battle back and forth with someone for much of the duration until one of you finally pulls away or ends up winning it at the line.

One of 4 logs spread out on the course;
they got bigger and bigger!

Head down: hammering it!

While I have no problem pushing myself to the limits, it's always fun to have someone to chase or stay ahead of! Since moving up categories this year, I haven't had the opportunity for many battles - open women is a tough-ass category and I'm still finding my legs to keep up! On this day I won my battle and finished the last race of the season strong and completely exhausted! On that, I call it a successful season!

I'll take mountains in the background any day!

Cyclocross is such a short, intense season but it's SO much fun! While I'm sad it's over, finishing off the season with two solid and strong races is a great way to end it.

Happy face: won the battle!

Coming up next weekend is cross-country provincials - my final cross-country race of the season; as well as my official last race before entering into off-season. While I'm still planning my off-season training and finalizing my 2016 race schedule; I'm looking forward to building up my strength and power over the next year so that I will be able to push my limits even more! What will you be working on in your off-season?