2013 cycling race report thread (Page 2)

Thanks CJ! Hopefully it will all come together someday. I think my lack of aggression earlier in the race is making less aggressive at the end. I'm getting lulled to sleep. If I race this weekend (weather's looking bad) I'll try to put more effort in at the end. Otherwise, another 3-day stage race the next weekend.

Yes I ride with Tolero.  I am new to their team this spring.  Coming out of Tri and into road racing.

Were you in the 4 race?  I was the course marshall on the hot corner by the dumpster... my teammate was about 3rd or 4th wheel going into that corner on the last lap and got bumped and slid around but managed to stay up (I thought for sure he was going down).  The near crash caused lots of riders to sit up and hit the brakes which made it hard for anyone behind him to be able to be in a position to contend for the podium.   The 4 race had the biggest field of the day and was very fast.  Top ten finish is strong.   

 I did not ride the RR due to conflicts, but I am riding the Tucson Bicycle Classic and hope to have a good showing.  I will be in the Cat 5 over 40 catagory...(old newbies).  Looks like weather is going to throw a wet towel on the Presidio Crit this weekend, but hopefully it will clear up by evening for the Pro race (Old Pueblo).

I understand about travel for a short race... if you decide to come down for one of our races maybe you could get in a catagory race and a masters to make it worth the trip? 

Are you racing TBC?

Yeah, I was in the 4s in the San Tan kit. We were lucky there weren't any crashes, there was plenty of opportunity out there! TR seems like a good team. I've met a few of the guys and they're all really cool.

I'll be racing TBC, hopefully better than I have been lately. If you see me out there, say 'Hi'! The Tolero races are still up in the air for me. I need to figure out my schedule after the San Tan crit in Phoenix.

South Mountain Circuit Race - Cat 4 - 2 mile circuit with ~180 feet of climbing per circuit in a figure-8 layout. 7 laps total.

I started out easy as I wasn't familiar with the course. There was a big team there, and they seemed content to keep the speed slow so that none of their people would get dropped. I attacked on the hill during the second lap and the group chased. In the next two laps, we dropped about half of the group. I was content to sit back on the 5th and 6th laps to rest up. There was less than 1/3 of the group left on the final lap. Unfortunately, my attacking eventually got the best of me and I was dropped over the final climb I couldn't catch up on the descent. I passed one other guy who was dropped but that was it. Finished ninth.

I wanted to be aggressive in this race and I think it went OK. After I pulled off the front, the pace slowed and there was a lot of panting. My goal was to dish out some pain and get a good workout. I didn't have the best finish but I was happy with how it went.

Sounds like you accomplished your goal, with rubber side down. Ching!

That said, would you have done anything differently? Or was that just how it was gonna be, on that day? 

Thanks. As with all races, I've been going over it in my mind. There's one thing I could have done differently that probably would have had me with the group and a high finish. Prior to the main climb, the course has small rollers that trend upwards. I had the opportunity to move to the front of the pack here. This would have let me lead up the hill at the start and I probably would not have been dropped (or at least not as badly). This just proves (again...) that being placed high up in the last lap leads to a strong finish. Someday I'll remember this DURING a race.

Tucson Bike Classic stage race - Cat 4

TT - 3.2 miles, rolling course with a net gain of ~200 ft. Hot, gusty, windy conditions. 8th.

RR - 60 miles in hot and windy conditions, 3 laps of a 20 mile course with 700 ft of climbing per lap. A small break got away and dangled off the front for a while in the wind. They slowly built up more time on the group, where I was sitting in. Everyone thought they would get caught. A few people tried to bridge but they were all caught (I tried to bridge, and also helped chase down other bridge attempts). The break was whittled down from ~8 to 5. The uphill finished was all clogged up due to the yellow line rule, and nobody wanted to be the lead out. Everyone behind was stymied. Nothing happened until the final 200M when a couple of the people in the front finally took off. I was about 3 deep and had to maneuver around a couple of people to get through. Finished 7th in the field sprint and 12th overall.

Circuit Race - 33 miles - 6 laps on a 5.5 mile course with ~300 feet of climbing per lap. I wanted to be more aggressive in this race and possibly get in a break of my own. I tried a few breaks, but nothing would stick. After a couple laps of this, I decided to sit in and get a good finish. On the 4th lap, two people touched wheels in front of me on a climb (someone standing up in the saddle...) and several people went down. I went down trying to stop. I lost about 40 seconds on the group. I joined up with a few other guys to chase. We were gradually catching up to them, but my work at the beginning of the race caught up to me first. Two of the guys made it back to the group and I finished a minute or so later. Very frustrating for me. I finished 36th in the race and dropped from 8th OA to 23rd OA.

I was pretty frustrated with the RR finish and was hoping for more in the CR. Obviously that didn't happen either, which pushed my frustration level up even higher I know it's just racing and these things happen. It was hot in Tucson and a lot of people dropped out of the RR and CR. Of the 76 people that started the TT, only 53 finished the CR.

Thanks for posting your report.  I had a great TBC experience (Cat 5 Masters).  I finished 3rd in the TT.  In the road race I got in a six man break on the final lap and we stayed away.  Miss timed my sprint and finish off the podium but held onto 3rd in the GC.  Couldn't ride the CR due to other obligations so I didn't find out whether I could have held onto that for the 3rd day or not.  I worked the feed zone during the Cat 4 RR.  We had one of our guys in the break.  I was really surprised that the break survived with all the wind....they were away for over 40 miles.  The 4 race was a stacked field.  I know lots of the guys in there besides my own teammates and can say that it was packed with talent.  Finishing FOP in that race is noteworthy.  Good job.  The wind shattered a lot of riders.  There were tons off the back in the 4 race and there were guys off the back in the 2 race that were at risk of being lapped.  The wind made it a hard day.  It was windy on Friday too... I was surprised how hard the TT was... how hard could 3.2 miles be right?  I ride that loop a lot, but obviously not at TT intensity.  My throat hurt well into Saturday from all the gasping and wheezing for air.  I caught my 30s and 1 minute men and that felt good.  Looks like you bested my time by half a minute.  What's next?  Did you decide to come down for our Crits?

I'm glad your TBC went well! This was the first time with the 40+ cat 5 group, sounds like it would have been a good one. My throat still hurts from that TT!

I'm doing the San Tan crit this weekend (3/4 and 40+) since it's my team race. Not sure of my schedule after that. Tumacacori for sure, and the state RR. I've been trying to decide when to submit my upgrade request (i.e. when I want to start getting my butt kicked again). I'm kind of looking forward to a few weeks off so I can go through another build cycle before the late season races. If I can figure out a way to race the Tolero crits, I will. I like the course.

What are your upcoming race plans?

First race of the season this weekend.  Doing both the 5 and 4/5.  Hoping for a good result in the 5... just trying to hang on in the 4/5 since there is very little rest inbetween.

That race is all you, I skip any race with the word "Hills" in it.

So first race of the season went out pretty well.  No crashes or issues - 22 out of 56 for Cat 5. 

The race was in Boyd, MD called Black Hills, which is a 1.2 mile circuit loop with a nice .2 mile 8% climb in the middle of it.  Heres the hill (http://app.strava.com/activities/45685005#786762628) and it was 7 laps (roughly 30 mins.)

Race started at the bottom of the hill and my team started with about 16 guys deep.  Whistle blew and up the hill we went, quite slow actually.  The back side or .8-1.0 of the course is down hill with slight gradual risers.  The pace picked up on the down hill and everyone was excited to get moving.  The first 2-3 laps we dropped A LOT of riders who had a hard time with keeping the pace up the hill and I was able to surf around a bit through the pack.   

Going up the hill the peloton would bunch up and then have the same issue on the downhill.  I had a big issue finding a consistent wheel during the race, so on the downhills I'd have to break due to people slowing down WAY too much and not keeping a consistent flow over a hill they could easily grind up for 5-10 seconds.  

Around lap 4 there was a big crash behind me that I heard and kept going.  Next time around we saw the carnage and had to slow down, which allowed the peloton to all re-group.   

Lap 5 the pace picked up on the uphill and there became a gap between the front of the pack (10-12 riders) and the rest group one (5-8 guys).  I had a teammate on my back wheel and I dug hard to latch back on.  I was able to get back to the group and was pretty gassed by this effort and tried to recover as quickly as possible. But of course we were near the base of the hill again and back to climbing.  Needless to say I burnt a bit too much energy and got close to redlining myself a bit.  

Lap 6, the pace picked up again and I had hard time trying to catch back on after the hill.  So instead of blowing up with only two laps left I allowed for a few guys to get in front of me and for me to rest a bit.  Needless to say they had a similar issue of slowing up on a small .1 mile barely 4% climb.  So I blew by them and tired to prep myself for the last climb to the hill.   At this time I caught up with two teammates and tried to save myself for the last sprint into the last hill.  Ended up exhausted and completely out of breathe.

Final results were 22 out of 56.  Was happy with the results and wish I didn't use so much effort to keep back on.  If I didn't do that I would have been near the top 10 since the teammate I bridged up for ended up 6th.  

Overall our teammate got 1st OA in the 5.. and 4/5.  Needless to say he will upgrade VERY soon and hopefully dominate with the faster guys.

I was supposed to do the 4/5 but the cold air wasn't treating my lungs too well. Recently got over a sinus infection and feel a little bit of bronchitics possibly coming on.  Going to rest a few days and make sure I'm okay.  Then get back into it for the next race in the middle of April.  

I am doing the Tolero Crit 1 and 2 and that should give me enough starts to upgrade to 4.  I am iffy about the state Crit, but will do the state RR, South Mountain TT, and possbily Bike the Bluff.  I had considered going out to Tour of the Gila, but after doing the Shootout this weekend I was reminded that there is a big difference between riding Cat 5 and riding with guys with real experience.  I am excited about the state RR though.  We could have as many as 7 teammates in the cat 4 race....something that has not happened this year yet.  It will be fun to have enough guys to really work as a team.  Hope to see you down here for the crits. 

Great stuff CJ! All of those little efforts add up. The bunching up can get frustrating. Eventually you just need to anticipate it and try to rest as much as possible when you notice it happening. Save your energy (mental and physical!) for when the race gets harder. Sounds like you had fun though.

Blue - I don't think I'll be racing at Tolero this weekend. I need to get some more training in, as I can really feel that I've dropped off from the beginning of the year. I'll be down for Tumacacori and then doing the state RR championships the following week. I'm also doing Bike the Bluff and Flagstaff Omnium. Looks like we might be racing each other in the state RR if you upgrade!

San Tan Crit - Great course, figure 8 with smooth roads, ~1 mile.

Masters 40+: I had no aspirations for this race. I slept horribly and probably wouldn't have been racing if it wasn't my team race. I was also volunteering so my head wasn't in the game. I finished with the pack (22nd).

Cat 3/4: Same as above. Hung out at the back and closed gaps. Pack finish (20th).

I think if I'd had more rest I would have tried harder. As it was, I just wanted to practice moving in the pack and finish with the group. I accomplished this, so I was satisfied. Time to get ready for the late season races...

2 races this past weekend, Wix Brown Spring Series and Aldergrove Long Spring Series.

Race categories are A/B/C. IMO, the guys are strong, so I race with the Cs. I think there's a limit of 50 people per race, and usually the B & C categories are full, so maybe 50 starters on both Saturday and Sunday. There's also a race within a race as they separate the women's results and junior results from the overall results. Maybe 10 women in the C races on Saturday and Sunday.

Wix Brown on Saturday was a big square with some rolling hills. Start/finish straight was a false flat, with a headwind, after corner 1 there was some rolling hills with a crosswind/headwind, then after corner 2 was slightly downhill with a tailwind, and after corner 3 was a bit more tailwind before turning back to the start/finish. The finish line was about 500m after corner 4. Race was not that eventful. Some attacks, so some faster laps and some slower laps. Rode the race in the front 1/4 of the pack, so didn't really have must trouble following attacks and didn't have to sprint around corners. Got of the front once with 2 other guys, but were quickly brought back. The roller section was easier for me comparatively. I noticed most people were breathing harder than me and struggling more than me, but the flat sections were harder for me than others. I find it a bit hard to match accellerations on the flats, but was able to use my position in the pack to close gaps easily. Last half of the race, there's only 2 women left in the pack. The other woman was riding the race almost identical to me, but I think I was a better sprinter as I judged her a couple of times coming out of corners. Final lap and I have a good position around corner 4. People start sprinting right away about 500m out, and then some die before the line. I rode good wheels, and ended up maybe 8th? They only take top 5 placings. However I was the first woman, which motivated me to sprint.

Sunday's race was basically a longer square as well. After corner 1 there were quite a few rollers and potholes, but it was a wide smoothly paved road, so lots of room to move around. After corner 2 was downhill mostly with some flat and a wicked crosswind. After corner 3 was a long flat with maybe a bit of a tailwind. After corner 4 was a bumpy road that was slightly uphill and smoother on the right, then turned into a smooth road with a steep uphill. Finish line was at the top of the hill. We did 7 laps of this course. First few laps were pretty easy. I was always at the front and hid well in the cross wind where we were strung out single file. We set an easy pace on the hill and I was at the front. Pace picked up further into the race and we started dropping people every lap, particularly on either the hill or the crosswind section. Once I was talking near the back on the downhill and got caught behind a split. Luckily rode on some stronger guys to pull me back to the pack and didn't let that happen again. Feeling a bit more tired by the last half of the race. Hill was starting to wear on me, but I was able to get myself to pretty near the front on the bumpy section, just passed everyone on the left as they were all trying to ride on the right, then kind of sagged my way to 20th on the hill, so never got gapped there, though pack was getting smaller so had to stay near the front. Last 3 laps there were only 2 women. Then unfortunately in that time, the other woman had a mechanical issue with her seatpost (training race so no follow vehicle) and took a shortcut to fix her seatpost. So last lap comes and I'm pretty tired and pretty sure I'm not going to be top 5 and was the only woman left, so I didn't sprint up the hill and just kind of rode in at the end of the group.

3 races this weekend for our yearly training spring series omnium races. 

First race was a crit on Saturday morning. Large group in the Cs and there was a crash on the first lap, 2nd corner. Some people brakes some people hit the braking people. I was stuck behind and put my foot down. Debating taking a lap, but ended up chasing the pack down. Wish they would have neutralized the pack. Anway after about 2 laps got onto the pack and then was fairly tired and the pace was high, so hung out in the back a bit. Had to close some gaps. Couldn't really get to the front. We lapped the people that didn't get back on the pack and the dropped people twice. Ended up finishing with the group and there was just one other woman in the group, so 2nd woman. She rode well, so no problem getting beat by her.

Second race Saturday afternoon was a 12km time trail. I'm working on my time trialing. Went by HR. Course was an L with a turnaound. Kept my HR at 175-180 for the first 3 quarters. Last section was a headwind and maybe slightly uphill. Hurt the most, but gave myself little goals to focus on. HR went a bit above 180 here, but finished and felt I rode it right. Ended up the first woman overall and 12th place out of 48 in the Cs. TT results.

Road race on Sunday was a gruelling course. It had a hill called snake hill which was someone long and started off fairly steep then got up to a 15% grade, then a false flat almost to the finish line. Cs raced 7 laps. I managed to get myself up with the group the first 4 times up the climb. Had good positioning especially on the first two. People were breaking chains, dying all over the hill and it wasn't that fun to pass. Managed to sag my way to the end of the group. Lost contact with the group with 3 laps to go. Then the As lapped us and I managed to use that to my advantage. As lapped the C pack down the hill and the C pack had to neutralize and I was able to kill it down the hill and catch back on. Caught the group a couple of kilometers from the hill again. Was a bit tired this time up the hill because of the work I had to do to catch and got popped again on the hill with 2 laps to go. D'oh. 2 women left in the group. Rode hard and the one other woman who was in the group got dropped too and I ended up catching her just before the bell lap. Rode that lap with her and a few other people who had been dropped, but she beat me up the hill again to the finish, so I was 3rd woman. So for me on the omnium, a first, a second and a third and the other woman I was really racing had two firsts and a second. She beat me well.

As for the woman who just beat me in the road race, she didn't race the omnium, just the road race. I think half of the C pack only raced the road race, so they were fresh! That's my story anyway.

The dreaded double post. I swear I only hit submit once!

Race report please! For the kids too.

My very first Crit was tonight.

I got smmmmoooookkkkkeeeeeddddd. :P

As it turns out, you can't just try to time trial for 20 minutes...

LOL, you can actually but you have to have the right course and or be very, very strong.