Hasta La Vista 2011 Road Season

Finished the 2011 road campaign at the inaugural Tour of the Adirondacks in Lake Luzurne, NY last Saturday. This turned out to be a really nice course, too bad more riders did not attend. Great venue.
It consisted of two laps of a 31 mile loop, each lap containing two climbs, one moderate, less than a mile, the main climb 5 miles from the finish, very steep and maybe 1.5-2 miles long.
First lap we started with maybe 20(smallest field of the year, but the top riders were good) 40/50's combined, and the 40's set lots of steady tempo early. First time up the small climb, easy, then the big climb came and it got rough. A lead group of 6 split off with me #6 and hanging to my ass. With 1KM to go to the top, we were all strung out, maybe 10 meters between riders. 500 M to go and I was completely buried and desperately trying to keep in contact as I knew if I lost the 5 guys ahead of me that was the bike race and I would never see them again. Huge effort in the last 100 meters left me close enough to get a wheel and safety. Whew. Sometimes bike racing is so f-ing hard. Took me several miles to uncross my eyes after that. Lap 2 started and the 6 of us rotated for the next 20 miles pretty much until about 10 miles to go. The group now comprised three(one 40+ flatted on lap 2 and was out) 40+ guys and only one other 50+(Kevin uber-Mosher)and myself, so the worst I can do at this point is 2nd. But I wanted to try and win. Knowing Kevin would probably drop me on the big climb I figured my only chance was to try and get there before he did. So I repeatedly attacked, using every tactic in the arsenal. To no avail, he chased me down every time, but I tell you it felt good to actually be racing my bike instead of following for a change. We hit the final climb and I figured what the hell, I am going again and we gapped the 3 40's. Now just the two of us and I am grinding away trying to hold his wheel. Shortly he starts to distance me, I stand and push hard, suddenly POW!! and down I go hitting the deck and wondering what the hell. Look back and see my chain splayed all around and know my race is over. Broken chain=DNF. Luckily the wheel truck was right behind us so he picked me up and I had a silent ride pretzeled in the back with 10 sets of wheels. That was pleasant. Oh,and about a mile from the parking lot, my right inner quad cramped and I almost destroyed some nice wheels as my leg shot out like a rifle bolt. 
Bottom line, I raced my bike hard, and had my best result of the season(abeit small field)in the bag, till shit happened. Oh well. No worries. It can always be worse. The season really did end with a bang, or a thud!