With February still in full force the Missouri road racing schedule began with the "Winter Worlds" epic the Froze Toes road race. With many riders making the morning decision to bag the event because of weather the brave few riders that made it out will not soon forget the misery. The team had members riding in the Masters, Cat 3/4 and the Cat 1/2 races. With several casualties due to mechanicals and some the result of the twitchiness of the seasons opener the folk lore of this race did not disappoint. After all, the riders of central Missouri know as BOCOMO would have you know that this is the end all, be all of races in the midwest. What would it be without crazy winter weather, flat tires, wrecks, excuses and certain controversy. Flats were a plenty for our guys in blue with Rusty P, Mick and Keaton all blowing wind out the rubber stuff in their respective races. This was the story of the day for more than a couple of teams. Steve Kaspar tried his hand with several attacks in the Masters race, but the wind and the pace did not force the issue, and Steve had to settle for the 14th spot on the line. Keep your eyes open, these guys will be rolling through the line closer to the front before you can blink. Karl was able to ride through the only mishap of the day when an attack split the Cat 1,2 field. A short chase brought things back together, but this race was run off in a relatively negative manner. With small numbers up the road the break made its way out of sight, and looked to be successful. Loosing Brian Dziewa was certainly a blow, but a late attack from old timer Ethan Froese look to go the way of every other soft move of the day....nowhere. Karl was left flat footed with what seemed to be no options. A late attack from a Big Shark rider gave Karl an opening, and he bridged to the solo rider with another rider also making the connection. With a full head of steam the trio managed to hold off the charging field with fourth place in sight. Karl managed 6th on the day. Certainly, the team ended the afternoon in a much better situation than some. Avoiding tragedy as many did not. The team will look for a full roster next outing, and a chance to improve on the weekends results.
News from other areas around the country were that season openers were just as bloody as this BOCOMO favorite. Here is to keeping everything up right this year.
