This was the 3^rd year in a row that I decided to start my season at the Mediterranean Epic in southern Spain. I love starting my season here because the course gives you a bit of everything to practice early in the year – long climbs, technical descents, short and fast stages, and some longer races. When you’re just getting going at the start of the year, it’s also nice to have 4 chances back to back to make adjustments while it’s still fresh on the mind rather than waiting weeks until the next race to try again. I’ve also found it important to start the year at a high level competition, in order to really get a fair assessment of where the form and fitness is. Being an HC level stage race (the highest level of stage race), this definitely fits that bill. We flew over to Spain arriving on Sunday, and had a quick turnaround to race on Thursday. The season has officially begun!

Stage 1: Time Trial

In years past, the time trial has been the stage I’ve struggled with the most at the Mediterranean Epic. I think partially because it’s so short, partially because it’s the first race of the season, and partially because it’s the first hard effort after international travel. This year though, I was determined to do it differently. My coach, Chris Mileski, worked hard to give me an exact pacing plan and I followed it to a T. It was fun to practice both forms of confidence: the confidence needed to hold back at the start and the confidence needed to go all in even when unsure if you can hold it all the way to the finish. It’s been really fun and rewarding to practice and acknowledge the important of both of these types of confidence. I finished the time trial in 3^rd, only 43 seconds behind the lead. This was my best start to the season yet.

Stage 2:

Stage 2 was an opportunity to practice staying calm in the chaos. The stage started with a calm but intense ramp up the first climb. In the moment I remember thinking, “This feels harder than it should” but looking at my power file after, it felt about as hard as to be expected for that effort. Three of us gained a small gap on the first descent and were starting to work together to establish the gap when suddenly, Natalia, sitting on the front, yelled that we had gone the wrong way. We flipped around and all immediately looked down at our headunits. After a few moments, the other women caught us and in equal confusion, flipped around as we all debated the direction of the course. Finally, after some time, which felt like hours, but was probably only a minute, we all began back on course, but the chaos had taken hold. You could feel the discomfort that people were now existing in. Some had ridden further than others in the wrong direction, some had let it frustrate them more, some were still debating if this was ‘for sure’ the right direction. I continually brought my attention back to the task at hand, riding as fast as I could in the moment. Upon reflection of the race, Enso Mental Performance had the perfect words calling my ability to tolerate the messiness the ability to “execute in chaos.”

The 3 hours went by in the blink of an eye. I crossed the finish line in 2^nd place, a fantastic performance, but the real clincher was the fact that in all of the hubbub, I had not quite fueled to optimization, and that would come back to bite me on Stage 3.

Stage 3: The Queen Stage

As we started the longest and hardest stage of the race, I could immediately tell that my body was resisting. Instead of diving in, my legs were fighting back. I kept pushing harder and my legs were in full revolt. Today’s lesson would be to find joy in the challenge. I had to trick my body into cooperating today. I started pounding the First Endurance Liquid Shots and I kept telling myself that things would click at any moment if I just kept fighting. And…little by little they did. I moved from 5^th into 4^th by hour 1 and before hour 2 I had moved into 3^rd position. I fought my way back into the podium and limited the time damage done from the top 2 riders. At the finish line in the interview they all told me “We could tell you were having a hard day at the start, but you really turned it around. You lost all of your time at the beginning.” Those words made me really proud, because so much of that is racing with heart and never ever giving up.

Stage 4:

Stage 4 was a chance to embrace gratitude. I started the day sitting in 3^rd position with 3 podiums behind me and just the final stage ahead. After the start I found myself battling for 3^rd with one other girl. She would fight hard on the climbs, and then despite feeling stronger on the descents, there was no room to pass. I could feel time slipping away as I sought for every moment to pass. I finally held my breath as I sent it down a super rocky line for a risky pass before the longest downhill of the stage. I broke free and got a surge of adrenaline feeling the trail open up in front of me. I powered to the finish and couldn’t help but break out in a smile as I rode along the sand of the Mediterranean Sea. I finished the Stage in 3^rd with 4/4 days on the podium and 3^rd in the GC. What a great start to the season!

Up Next:

Now we have 2 weeks in Spain before the World Cup in Costa Blanca and then we head back home.  It’s quite interesting being an American spending time in Europe just for racing. There isn’t much site seeing and it’s a constant balance of embracing the culture differences and finding your own rhythm and small comforts to recover and race at your own highest level. When you’re seeking the 1% the small differences can seem to make a big difference, but it’s also important to relax, embrace the uncontrollables and enjoy every step of the journey. I’m so thankful for these opportunities. I know I will remember them forever.