what a blast!

after a long break over the xmas period and well before that from mtb racing i was itching to get back and race on the dirt.
i've been doing a lot of road racing over the summer months ( two races a week for quite a while before xmas ) and it certainly paid off today.
i got a good start near the front and held my position without slowing any faster riders up. my plan was to go flat out from the start and just keep going as fast as my body would let me, if i slowed to a snails pace at the end then so be it. but it wasn't to be and i just seemed to keep motoring.
only six riders past me in the whole of the race(the top four placings, who lapped me and a couple of pro looking team riders) this was a real confidence booster and just made me want to try harder towards the end when feeling tired(and i was!)
saw a few of the guys out there from time to time and also back at base, i'd say that some of them weren't having as good a day as i was, bad backs, cramping and so on(i know these guys aren't usally soft so these were genuine complaints)
anyway, 11 laps in and i thought it was my last but ended up coming through transition about 5 minutes earlier than predicted( must have been the shout of "watch out for that brown snake") so i had to go out and smash my 12th!
all in all, that was probably my most solid mtb race i've ever done and was happy to get 14th out of 107 solo riders with Gordo and Troy leading the pack.
the only complaint i have is the lack of categories, most people train as hard as they can to get as good as they can( for their age) and normally i ride in masters category as i'm 40 years old. i'm sure the 'open' only option for the solo's would have put a few of the vets, masters and super masters off racing today. i know its extra work for the guys who do a great job of organising these events and i know they all do it for love, but it's nice when you're an 'oldish' bloke like me to know where you place against other 'oldish' blokes.
i certainly wont be paying the 60 bucks entry for the 4hr thats incorporated into the Sydney 24hr for the simple fact that its, again, just an 'open male solo' category. sorry, my legs are weary and my mind and hair is fading fast, i want to race blokes who have the same problems as me, not elite riders and blokes 20 years my junior!
Rant over! great day today but bring on the state rounds!
one more thing, well done to my girlfriend Martine who placed third in the solo women( and she's older than me but i wont say her age as i might get a slap!)