Provincial RR

Well, it was a race of contradiction for me.
30+ guys lined at the start,near Cochrane. For the first time, Mike and I lead out the start, along with two guys from Juventus. It was a great feeling to set the pace and socialize a little for the first few kms.
Through the first half I sat comfortably in around the top half of the pack, which was a very comfortable group; nothing like Pidgeon Lake.
Nobody was trying to attack, nobody was being an idiot trying to force themselves to the front.
At the half way mark turnaround, the oncoming "Hill" loomed. This is the hill of legends. That is, everyone I talked to before and during the race, talked about this hill.
About 1km in length, and quite steep, it certainly did wreak havoc on the peloton. I was feeling really good, however, and managed to side-step several riders, including Mike, and keep up with a small pack of about a dozen riders off the front, consisting of about 5 STers.
A couple of us tried to get a paceline going, but the majority were just dragging their wheels, and it was a bit frustrating, as the rest of the riders eventually caught up to us again. For the final 30 kms, I was always in a top 3 position, along with a Juventus rider, and another ST. Nobody else was coming up to help drive the pace, fearful of excerting too much energy no doubt.
Nonetheless, I was feeling really good. At the 10km mark, a pedalhead guy jumped up to push the pace a bit, and going into the final turn, I sat comfortably in about 4th wheel, right where I wanted to be to launch my sprint attack.
The only problem was that I was a bit boxed in between 2nd and 3rd, but I considered it bonus, so that no matter which of them sprang first, I would follow them. Something happened with around 400m to go, just as the real race began... my front wheel clipped the rear wheel of the guy in front of me as they started swaying under the force of accelleration. I went over the bike hard and just like that, my glorious run to the finish was over.
So dissappointing. Never before have I been so close and feeling so good to contest a podium spot; I know these opportunities don't present themselves every day for an old guy like me!

A damage assessment ruled that the handlebar was completely spun around on it's stem, and both hoods were bent in and the rubber and bar tape was completely thrashed. My gloves looked like confetti, as did my one shoe cover, as did the left shoulder of my ST jersey.
Personally, I was quite fortunate to come out with nothing more than a bad case of road rash... both elbows, left knee, both wrists, most fingers, hip, and shoulder. In fact, I'm sure I'll be finding new scrapes for the days to come...
Walked my bike across the line and got patched up by the EMS, then began the healing process at home, putting my bike back together.

I should note, that my energy level and nutrition were great. Bev had made some wonderful Feijoada (ride, beans, meat) which I had been taking in for a few days prior.
Also, ate my cereal bar early, about 90 mins before race time.
Had one energy gel after the big hill, about the 1 hour mark. And I brought a bottle of Gatorade G2, which was not quite finished by the end, but adequate for the sub 2hr race.

JayLap this weekend, so I hope this skin heals so I can get a good night's sleep soon...