Absolute piss...

That pretty much sums up the first two days of the Tour of Ohio.  I'm just not feeling great on the bike.  Stage one was a 30 mile crit on a 1/2 mile course with 7-8 turns and a section of brick.  Thankfully the officials decided to negate any time gaps and give all riders the same finish time less time bonuses.  That said, this caused some serious issues as guys were just sitting up wen a gap opened that they didn't feel like closing.  I spent the first half of the race picking my way through the chaff and made what would end up being the final selection of 30 or so riders.  I was working my way thru the remainder f the field when a Target Training guy got tangled up and wend down on the bricks.  I T-boned him pretty good, but didn't hit the ground.  I thought I could case back on but got to within 5 seconds but never any closer.  After getting pulled, I coughed until I vomited and my nose was bleeding.  It is time to go back to the doctor as I'm still not over what ever is up with my lungs.  The only good news is that Curtis (C-dubs) had a good ride and finished 13th.

Stage two is the Queen stage of the tour and a right bitch.  The first 25 miles are chill, but then it is one steep climb after another until you get to the line at mile 66.  I tried to be a good teammate and patrol the front of the race.  There were several times that a dangerous group was off and I rode hard to keep them close or pull them back.  I ended up cracking pretty bad with three major climbs to go.  I was able to chase back, but the writing was on the wall as probably the hardest two climbs were left.  I rode the last 10 miles or so solo or in a small group. 

Frankly, I'm really disappointed with my race. I didn't ride smart at all, and it may have cost me  chance at a good GC placing.  I'm guessing that I'm at least 10 mins down and there is no way for me to make that up. I really have no idea if my lungs are the problem, or if I'm just slow.  Regardless, I need to have a good race soon or I'm gonna be fried mentally.  I'm sick of feeling helpless on the bike.

The other bad news is that Chris Hong was the only guy from our team to make the selection today, and while he is a strong rider, It is going to be hard for him to make up any time as the rest of the stages are pretty flat. 

On the positive side, Tank had a pretty good ride.  He is a Cat 3 and a big guy (about my size) and he was a second placed rider on the stage.