October 25, 2006

Practicing Pain


October 24, 2006
The infamous “Amphitheater of Pain” will be the highlighted feature when the Verge MAC Cyclocross Series powered by Hammer Nutrition makes it’s annual pilgrimage to the UCI C2 Beacon Cyclocross in Bridgeton, New Jersey. Located in the Atlantic City area, the Bridgeton course is one of extremes. On one hand, the majority of the course takes place on hard-pack roads and trails throughout the massive Bridgeton Central Park, making it one of the fastest courses on the circuit. But on the other hand, the Beacon Cyclocross features two of the most fearsome obstacles on the circuit: the beach run that extends to the absolute limit of the UCI rules, and the “Amphitheater of Pain” -- nearly three stories of climbing up the Park’s amphitheater on every lap. Of course, the “regular” stairs are reserved for spectators, so racers are forced to clamber up the terraced seating area, where each step is twice as high. And this year, the organizers have made the climb even harder by inviting the local Red Sky Café to cook their famous Tex-Mex cuisine right at the top of the amphitheater as an additional temptation to just stop pedaling.
I added an extra 10 minutes to my run today prepping for this one, I think I'll practice drooling tonight while I watch a movie, sounds like I'll be doing both more than usuall this weekend.

No comments: