brian44

Cat 3 Crit (45 min) - P4

First race since coming back from injury.
Ι was able to sneak into an early break of five and lapped the field. I have a sprinter's physiology/power curve, so I surprised myself with this move...definitely not mad at it. I was fairly cooked when we caught the field (for reasons previously mentioned); two other guys from the break plowed through and went back off the front. In hindsight, I could've tagged along with them, but I was able to scoop up a few upgrade points (p4) so its all good!

Yep

Ha brian44 , you stole my update! I too did a crit on Thursday, but it was a 2/3/4 (In the States it'd be like 2/3/4/5). There was a group of 2 who go up the road, and then 3 of us in a move trying to bridge. The 2 stayed away and lapped the field, and so did we! Final laps were a little nutty, as they are when the field gets lapped. I came 4th, which was great but lapping a field has always been on my bucket list.

tobukog

So a bit of advice. There's an old adage, "When in doubt, lead it out."
It's actually a great piece of advice IF it's executed properly. Too many racers, especially non-sprinters, take that to mean, "Sit on the front for the finale, and wind up the sprint from 500-1000m out because I'm not super explosive." Which is pretty much a recipe for finishing 20th. As a pure sprinter, I'm just delighted when a non-sprinter decides to take it up early.

So what does it really mean for the non-sprinter? It means engaging the sprint from about 250-300m, maybe 3-5 seconds before "REAL" sprinters really want to go. If you're going from 250m, you'd do it from 3rd or 4th position. If you're trapped further back, you have to go earlier, but you really have nothing to lose. Leading it out from 250 from the FRONT pretty much never works for non-sprinter-- it's too easy for everyone to react and see the early sprint. The only riders who can legitimately lead it out from the front early and gradually, (often called a razor) are powerful sprinters with a decent amount of range. However, if you go from 250-300 from good position, you'll most likely get a good placing, maybe a podium, and perhaps even (rarely) the top step-- despite being a "slowtwitch" rider.

furiousferret

SCNCA State Champs 50+ 14th

I know technically it's a district, but it covers 26 million people, so I kinda feel the term 'district' underrates the quality.

36 miles over hilly terrain. I did a lot of work during the ride and tried to jump on 2 breaks, but they didn't stick, and I did a lot of pulling. According to my wife, I pulled at least half the laps. In past 50+ races it's been a, 'Let's all go 15 mph until the last 300 meters' and I didn't want that to happen. Also, pulling up a hill is probably the same work as people behind me, I was easily the lightest guy in the field.

I was in good position going into the last turn (which there's still a good mile) but then the guy in front of me decided to soft pedal, boxing us in next to the curb and cost 2-3 of us a sprint. That being said, even if I was clear I don't think I had the energy. I need to learn that racing isn't Worlds and I can't ride people off my wheel.

I don't know if this is a legit complaint or just whining, but we were mixed in with 45+. That group animated the race, and dictated things. It helped big teams and sprinters, who wouldn't have extra teammates or a draft to protect them. I'm not really disappointed, maybe a tad, I just need to figure out how to actually get results.

TMonk

45+ is a super deep field in SCNCA. I think there is more talent and power than 35+.

furiousferret

I saw you out there! One lap you were leading the way. I wanted to stop by and say hi, but I had to park a mile a way so was pressed for time. If you heard someone yelling 'TMonk' that was me lol.

TMonk

Oh thanks haha. I heard lots of "go David!"'s but that's somewhat to be expected given that its local and a lot of the community knows me.

My race was the 35+/40+ combined, and it was a bit of a confusing, chaotic race. We had 5 in the 35+ including myself and the two others spent a good chunk of time attacking OTF.

I wasn't feeling too great but spent a lot of time patrolling the front, covering moves, bridge attempts etc. With a bit over one (3.5 mile) lap to go I went on a hero attack that lasted for about 3 miles. The downhill rollers on the course are real hard to stay away on (esp solo) so I knew I'd get caught, but at least it gave my teammates some spots near the front with no obligation to chase. Best we managed was 3rd on the stage, so kinda meh, but still it was a fun race in hindsight.

We have the elite TTT next weekend and then I think I'm done racing road for the year. I ramped up my volume real quick after my knee issues late last year and I've been a bit behind on recovery and kinda fatigued. Looking forward to taking a more relaxed approach to training and racing for a few months, and preparing for a high Sierras backpacking trip in August - Evolution region including Mt Darwin and Mt Goddard.

Hermes

SCNCA District Team Time Trial State Championship:
Two Rider Mixed Open Division: 1/1
Course: 23.5 mile rectangular course with 50% smooth pavement and the other rough with some ruts. The final six miles is a repeat of the first leg. One has to ride back to the start line.
Wind: 6-8 mph
Elevation: high desert - 2700 feet.
Temp: 65-70
RHO:1.100

My wife and I wanted to do a TTT and the open division was the only option. We were the only entries, so we won. We take our competitors as we find them.

I had two problems with my bike before the race started. The pad on my aerobar came off. The Velcro came off the carbon support. Fortunately, I had the glue we use to glue on numbers and glued it back on.

After the warmup with 8 minutes before the start, my rear disc tire went soft. I went to the car and pulled out an Easton 60 mm spoked rear wheel (we brought two spare wheel sets) with the same rubber as the disc.

The outbound leg is 6 miles before a right hand turn with slightly increasing grade and rough pavement. There was a tail wind. So off we go with my wife leading out with her 4 w/kg at 106 pounds with the wind at her back. I am a negative split guy and she likes to gas the start and is full of adrenaline. We are flying along and I am suffering a lot right at the start with 20 miles to go.

There was also an execution matter in that we had a very fast team 4 minutes behind us and we did not want to meet them at the first turn. Guess what. Yeah, they showed up at the first turn and my wife slowed down to let them have a clear shot at the corner ahead of us.

We made the first turn and the pavement was smooth and there was a cross wind. I am starting to recover a bit. We made the next turn and the pavement was good and flat to slightly downhill and into the wind. Now I was recovered enough and started to add more value on my pulls. I was good until we were on the final 6 miles back on the rough road slightly uphill to the finish. I suffered immensely for the last six miles. My wife seemed about as fresh as she was at the start. We passed our two minute team ahead of us right before the finish line.

Thanks to the promoters, USA cycling and the volunteers for a fun race, okay course on a beautiful day in the high desert and my wife got in some hour record practice. And we get a state jersey…I think. Usually, they have a state jersey at the race to put on for the podium pics. Nothing this year.

Our setup was Cervelo TT bikes, disc trispoke wheel set, Nopins ski suits, Rudy helmets, VeloTech socks, power meters and ERO positions optimized at Velo Sports Center.

TMonk

Sorry Hermes! We would have passed sooner if we could . Our ride as the only team in the Men's Elite was rather sloppy. Two on our team (including me) were uncomfortable taking the four 90 degree corners on the course at speed in position so that kind of messed things up a bit. One of them was particularly sloppy, I recon we lost a good 30s from execution alone. Still, we covered the 40k in about 48 minutes which isn't awful I guess considering that it was a windy day. Our team captain (Kevin) won the more contested P/1 ITT the weekend prior with a time that was 2 minutes faster... Ya... he's good.

I've been doing a weekly MTB series (QnD) the last couple Thursdays and placed 2nd both times in the men's 31-40 Sport open. Man, MTB racing is hard, I am so cooked after. But fun! There is no down time, in road you can use discretion with when you go deep, unless it's a particularly challenging course. In mountain, it's just "On" the whole time. I imagine cross is like that too.

Both days I had a pretty crappy start and found myself 30s behind the front of the race within the first 5 minutes.... This week I intend to line up early, pre ride the early parts and be prepared to hold my spot in the front. Then maybe I can use my climbing fitness to get a win! We'll see.

Hermes

@TMonk No worries. We planned what to do if your team was approaching at the turns.

rm -rf

Garmin elevation chart
Managing climbing is the key for a decently fast ride for me.
I use the Garmin elevation chart page on all my rides (but this only works with loaded routes). The routes have all sizes of hills, from tiny rollers to 1.5 mile climbs. The chart really helps to manage my climbing efforts. The turn map pops up and beeps when I get near that turn.
I like this instead of "Climb Pro", which only pops up near the base of the major climbs, and doesn't tell me what's coming after the crest.

The chart scrolls horizontally as I ride, showing the elevation chart with .5 mile & 200 foot tick mark lines.
Two fields at the bottom: power and elevation % (perhaps cadence would be good here.)
I have the chart is configured for 0.5 mile horizontal increments, and 200 foot vertical increments.

I see the previous 0.5 mile, and the next 1.5 miles, and about 800 feet of elevation in view. After using this for a while, I can estimate local grades pretty easily, within 2% or so. And see how tall the climb is, within 25 feet approx.

instant answers:
Is it steep at the top? Or a steady grade all the way? What's after the crest -- more climbing, or a nice downhill?
Do these small rollers continue for a while, or does it get hillier?

Radish_legs

Cat 3/4 Crit

First race in 3 years. Fitness bad. Wondered if I was going to get dropped early. So much turnover in the scene that I wasn't familiar with most of the riders. One of the new young-ish guys was pointed out as probably the best pair of legs, I guess he's been dominant. So I kept an eye on him.

A few guys trying to form a break, a few different times. I closed some stuff down. I never pulled through to try and keep the break going. I had to do a pretty big bridge to catch on with the 3 strongest guys who attacked. Got up to them, dragged 1 guy behind me. And then the group caught on. Teammate of the strongest guy did a perfectly timed attack. He was solo off the front. Uninspired chase. I actually did a half-lap pull to keep him distance (which is very unlike me). I would have been perfectly happy with a 2nd or 3rd.

Gambler's prime on the 2nd to last lap. Pace really sped up, 2 guys sprinted for it. I was behind strong guy who caught up to those 2, so now one lap left. I'm 2nd wheel (no teammates in the race). And strong guy is pulling, he pulls through the headwind section. I was hoping he would gutter the group more in the crosswinds. And 2nd is not really all that great. But I knew I was in pretty good position, to at least not be boxed. I'm closing off the inside. 2nd to last turn is my place to go, I sprint. Go to last turn and take the outside, so no draft around me on the crosswind, and that's all she wrote. 1st place in 1st race back, with mediocre fitness. In like 100 degrees. Only my 2nd win ever in a Cat 3/4 crit (I started doing 1/2/3 crits after the last time I won).

GGDaddy

Salisbury Circuit Race Cat 4/5 on July 16. I'm a Cat 5, working on 10 finishes to earn my Cat 4 old-school. This would have been my 9th finish.

3 laps to go. Dumb*ss divebombs the corner. He did say "Inside, inside" so I guess that makes it okay? Comes across chopping my front wheel and I go down HARD.

Two fractures in my pelvis, two broken ribs, grade II liver lacerations, and a "substantially collapsed" lung. Drove 4 hours home, where my 20 y.o. daughter (the MVP here) used my own tone against me: "You don't want to go, but we're going to the hospital. PERIOD. Your only choice here is Fair Oaks or Reston." Started at Fair Oaks Hospital's ER, which transferred me to Fairfax Hospital's stronger trauma center. My favorite part was that my blood oxygenation measured 99% despite the collapsed lung. Because we all race here, and that's how we roll

Four days in the hospital, have been home a week. 10 more weeks until I'm back on the bike. Race video below from another rider , where can see me creeping up on the left (red stripe on bib short right leg), followed by my drifting back, and then the crash in the rear-facing view. Unsurprisingly, that is me shouting, "OH F*CK!" Bike seems to be okay! The right corner of the saddle a bit ground down by the concrete, but perfectly fixable.

furiousferret

Ouch, get better soon. Its a dangerous sport, I'm glad you're relatively okay. Having punctured a lung myself in a crash, it could have been worse.

Did they stab you on the side and put in a tube? That sucked.

GGDaddy

Thanks furious. Ugh, sorry to hear you’ve been through it too. Yeah, they absolutely did stab me in the side and put in a tube. Mine involved 8” on the inside snaking around to the back. Every time I’d move for three days, the tube (connected to a machine) would jostle and I could feel it moving around deep inside. For those who haven’t had the pleasure, they punch it through your ribs where lots of nerves are (in the intercostals), so I also had phantom chest pain where my confused nerves thought **** was going on.

fun times, fun times.

Radish_legs

glad you are okay. What is the time stamp of the crash in the video?

GGDaddy

Thanks. Happens just after 34:20. It should cue up there when you hit the link if I did it right.

burnthesheep

And......I took up only TT/cross/gravel from one of these kind of deals myself.

In cross I can go thru the course tape to avoid something or slide out into mud and go home. TT is all on me alone to stay upright.

But, in cross I've had giant a-holes divebomb corners from behind and your choice is let them t-bone you in the leg/frame or brake hard and they swing wide in front of me and take a spot and we lose lots of time to whoever was in front of us. I wound up with a p-4 instead of podium in a cross race for that divebomb BS.

TMonk

Sorry to hear that GGDaddy, hope you heal up soon. IME, racing tends to get smoother, faster and safer as you cat up. Still, in high-stakes P/1/2 races people will take risks in the corners on critical laps, they just tend to be better bike riders.

Take that a step further and start doing some Master's racing. Respectable, safe, fast racing. Guys race like they need to work on Monday, or at least like their bodies wont heal as quickly as the whipper-snappers. Breaks stick more often as well which is great for me as I'm an attacking rider with good over/under physiology and prefer breakaways (vs sprints). I have been thoroughly enjoying M35+ road and criterium racing.

Heal up and hopefully you make it back safe. I think in most districts you need to be a 4 (minimum) to race Master's, so maybe just cruise some pack finishes until you get there!

Hermes

Radish_legs Congrats on the win and welcome back on BF. It is great to see race results.

GGDaddy

Appreciate it TMonk. Sounds like outstanding advice all around!

Radish_legs

Thanks! Best to you as well.

UmneyDurak

San Rafael E3/4. Start field was 100, although it's same like 10 people at the front. I got a good start on front row. Local club Alto Velo brought in a full squad and were active at the front, attacking from the start, and controlling the pace in final laps.
Race was stopped with one to go due to a bad crash. Apparently dude was out cold, and ambulance had to be brought in. He was posting next day so hopefully no permanent damage.
Anyway they restarted 20 minutes later with one neutral lap and 3 hot laps. I just couldn't get back into a race mentally again. Another pack finish (or what was left of it). :/
You would think I would be better at not getting swamped after all these years of racing, but nope.

Radish_legs

3/4 Crit yesterday
2 young fast favorites attacked. Another young fast guy attacked and was bridging. I bridged up to the bridging guy (only one who made it). And we started working together to get to the 2 on the front. Just a few seconds behind, my saddle started slipping forward. So I called it quits and sat up, went back to the car and tightened it up.

Masters 1-4
Did the Masters crit next. Many attacks, much stuff happened. Unfortunately my memory card was full, so I didn't get any video. I made a small selection of the best guys in the race, and there were several attacks. The best sprinter had a teammate going over the top twice, which added to the complexity, as he had to be brought back. Actually did some work in this race on the front for tactical reasons. Sprinter attacks half-mile out into the headwind, drops one of the main rivals who had done a lot of work to bring back the sprinter's teammate. Me and sprinter are off the front, but slow up in the headwind allowing a couple more guys to catch on. Then I'm on the front with half mile to go. I didn't want to be on the front. But no one would pass me. We were rolling about 23mph. At the 2nd to last turn I hit it, and managed to hold off the sprinter, even though my power numbers were garbage and my top speed was garbage. I must have gapped him good at the beginning of the sprint. He was catching up to me before the line, but probably had 1.5 bike lengths on him or so. 1st.

TMonk

Nice results Radish_legs ! Upgrade coming soon?