So my first race was approaching. I had finally graduated from the rat traps to Speedplay pedals and shoes with clips. Now I really felt like one of the greatest cyclists of all time. I was, however, missing one thing. I needed to shave my legs. I didn't know why at first, but I knew that that was what cyclists did. I wanted so badly to be a real cyclist that I was willing to do anything. With much hesitation and fear of what people would say, I shaved my legs. Finally the day was here. I was nervous, scared, and excited all at the same time. I had no idea what I was doing but I knew I was doing it. I saw other cyclists riding around in the parking lot and I heard them talking about warming up so I figured that I needed to warm up by riding around in the parking lot to be one of the cyclists. As I rode around wondering if I was doing the right thing, butterflies kept building up inside me. I decided to ride through this one part of the parking lot without paying attention and before I knew it, I hit a rubber speed bump and was flying through the air. For those of you that don't know, cyclists are supposed to have two wheels firmly planted on the ground and sitting in good posture on the bike. I had my first moment of not feeling like a cyclist. I scraped my hands and got a little road rash on my elbows. My teammate who had been showing me the ropes took a look at my bike and made sure everything was ok. The paramedics at the race then bandaged me up and asked if I wanted to go to the hospital. What silly kind of silly question is that? I was there to race and be a cyclist so I am going to redeem myself, race, and show everyone that I am a cyclist. Before the rave, my sister gave me my first pair of Oakley sunglasses. This was important to me because I had always remembered hearing about how cyclist have good sunglasses and because she is my sister, she knew exactly what I was thinking. They called the cyclists in my race to the line. We all lined up. All 12 of us. My mom, dad, and sister were standing on the side of the road getting ready to cheer me on and take pictures. The official went over the rules, although I don;t actually remember him going over the rules because my head was in the clouds. It was after all my first race as a real cyclist. Then he blew the whistle and we were off. The butterflies went away and I did the only thing I knew how to do. I pedaled as hard as I could. On the first lap, the field got split up into groups because everyone couldn't keep up with the next group. As we came around finishing up our first lap, I was trying so hard to focus on the race but I could not help smiling for the camera as my parents and sister took pictures and cheering me on yelling "GO CHIS YOU CAN DO IT"(Chis was a nickname that was passed to me from my dad and was one of my favorite things hearing from my parents as I would ride by the crowds during my cycling career). I was doing it. I was a cyclist and I could prove it because I was racing and had the pictures to back it up. I didn't care how I did in the race. I was just racing out of pure love. Adrenaline pumped through my body and I had a feeling that I have never felt before in my life. I don't remember much about everything that happened during the race because I was in a semi black out. I do remember, though being so disappointed when they rang the bell for the last lap. I didn't want the race to end. I wanted to keep going. I came across the line on my own. I knew I had not won the race because there were a few riders in front of me but that was not important. I got off the bike and as my family came over to me with huge smiles on there face, I looked at them and the first thing I said was "when can I do this again?". It was love at first race. I was hooked and I didn't want to let go. It turned out that at my first race in a field of 12, I had gotten 4th. That's me tooting my horn a little. This was the start of an amazing journey that still continues to this day. It is a race that I will never forget.
