Icebreaker Criterium
Since my Redlands race was cut short due to me being cut in the crit (I vow to have this never happen again, I am built for crits!) I decided to have a wicked racing weekend. My legs were feeling pretty good on Friday so I headed down to Eugene with the boys from our River City Bicycles/Specialized team for the Ice Breaker crit. My plan was to race the Cat 1/2/3 women's race and then race with the Cat 3 men for training. Here are the suspects:
Tom, Tim, Joe and Gary with Chris (needs a new team kit) and Austin in the backIronically, Joe's antics in front of the camera with his tongue hanging out of his mouth foreshadowed the act of Joe puking after the Master's 35+ race. Joe was in a break with 3 other guys and they held it until the finish. The sprint began at 200 meters and Joe took 2nd place, then tossed his cookies. Way to go Joe!!!!
I was worried that my race would wind up a repeat of last year where we had 4 Cat 1/2/3 women race and it sucked because the back section of the course is always really, really windy. Well, this year we had 8 registered, but only 7 showed up. So, for the most part, better than last year. Kay Bork and Kori Kunz were there from the Eugene based Poplollies team, Jan Moss from Group Health, Marth Walsh and a couple of newly upgraded 3's. I decided that I wanted to do well in this race and decided to play defensive and not waste any energy launching my own attacks, which obviously wouldn't stick. I knew Kay and Kori would work together and I would be out numbered by them, that is exactly what they did. Kay went off the front and I chased. Jan launched several attacks and I chased. That was pretty much the situation I was in. This was fine with me because not only did I want to do well, I wanted a good workout, I wanted to be in pain and have to dig deep to win the sprints. I did manage to win 2 primes ($20 total) which also put me way off the front a couple of times. I would take this opportunity to make them work to catch me but not work hard enough to make myself tired. Kori was riding strong and her strategy is to go early in the sprints. Well, I am not a pure sprinter so that is my strategy as well. I knew in the final sprint I had to go before her to win. We both happened to end up at the back of the pace line, she was behind me, coming into the final corner. Not really a good position for me, reminds me of match sprints at the track (by the way, I suck at those). I think we must have both gone at the same time, she on the outside and I was on the inside. I managed to accelerate fast enough around our group that I had enough time to set myself up for the last corner and swing wide on the finishing stretch. I cut back to the inside fast and saw that Kori was a bit behind me. I can honestly say that the sprint to the line felt like the first real sprint I have done. I wanted it so bad and I knew I had to dig deep to keep my lead. It paid off and I won the final sprint. I was most pleased.
Immediately after my race I jumped in with the Cat 3 men which all of my teammates (except puking Joe) were going to race as well. I figured this would be good NRC crit practice as the speed and accelerations would be fast. I felt good the first few laps and then on about the 5th lap we came in to the back stretch and there was a flat bed truck 3/4 across our lane. I can't figure out how that happened, this crit is in a business park around one building, there was no one else there but us. So basically the whole pack got strung out and I was towards the back so I ended up having to chase into the headwind to get back on. My legs were screaming with pain at this point. I managed to hang on a few more laps but eventually fell off with Gary and Tim. Gary and I rode together and caught another couple of guys and were basically going to ride until the group came around again and we could jump in or they pulled us from the course. We caught up to two more guys, one from Paul's and some guy with no team kit. This was good, more people to work with. It was great until this idiot who wasn't wearing a team kit managed to end up behind me and when I would pull off the front of the pace line he would stand up and sprint. I always managed to be pulling off after I had pulled in the headwind so I had to fight tooth and nail to get back on because Mr. I Just Upgraded From Cat 4 had to accelerate when it was his turn. Does he know anything about a paceline? Did he honestly think we were going to catch the main field? What a DORK!! So my legs could only handle this a couple of times before I couldn't get back in. I tried to position myself so he wasn't behind me, but that is hard when there are only 4 of you. I gave up eventually and then saw that this guy managed to shake Gary and the Paul's guy as well. I caught up to them and we jumped back in the main field as they came around. I lasted a lap or two and then decided that was enough racing for one day and went to do my cool down and recover.
Piece of Cake
I was really excited to to PoC as a training race. Amy and I decided to race with the Cat3 men to get a good training ride in with a pace more similar to what we might find at an NRC race. PoC is pancake flat and I did it last year with the women and it was so boring. Yes, we had a lot of women, but it was rotating pace line for 51 miles with a sprint at the end. Basically a time trial. I wanted something harder. So the Cat 3 men's race seemed like a good idea.
The Cat3 men's field is an interesting group. You have a bunch of weekend warriors with hairy legs and seasoned racers mixed into one group, there was even a dude riding his rain bike with fenders. See where I am going with this? I wanted something hard, what I got was something scary. It was a 51 mile squirrel fest. You couldn't move up because the roads were narrow and we only had one lane. I can't even count how many times I had to hit my brakes and I heard and smelled tires rubbing. Amy and I set-up shop in the way back, far enough back to get around any catastrophes. This also put us in prime surging area. Every corner we had to sprint back into the field. I was fine with this, I wanted a good work out and it got easier as the guys on front wore out. It was pretty uneventful until the last lap when there was a big crash in front. Amy and I got around it but as I rode by I saw an unconscious Half Fast Velo guy and a few others on the ground. Two were taken by ambulance to the hospital and ended up with broken collar bones and one had a broken wrist to top it off. I was glad when we made it to the finish and Amy and I took 42nd and 43rd place. Woo Hoo, we're kickin' butt!!! David Hart and I rode an extra lap before the afternoon races started so I got about 70 miles in that day.
There were only 4 Cat 1/2/3 women that showed up for the afternoon race and I was tempted stay and race knowing that I was guaranteed cash for finishing, but I had been gone too much that weekend and I wanted to hang out with Bryan and Lander. I heard it was another 51 mile TTT so I didn't miss out much. The good thing is that my friend Mechele took 2nd in the Master's race. I think she can with the Master's BAR this year.
It was a good weekend. My fitness is coming around, too bad it didn't show up for Redlands!!!!
I was worried that my race would wind up a repeat of last year where we had 4 Cat 1/2/3 women race and it sucked because the back section of the course is always really, really windy. Well, this year we had 8 registered, but only 7 showed up. So, for the most part, better than last year. Kay Bork and Kori Kunz were there from the Eugene based Poplollies team, Jan Moss from Group Health, Marth Walsh and a couple of newly upgraded 3's. I decided that I wanted to do well in this race and decided to play defensive and not waste any energy launching my own attacks, which obviously wouldn't stick. I knew Kay and Kori would work together and I would be out numbered by them, that is exactly what they did. Kay went off the front and I chased. Jan launched several attacks and I chased. That was pretty much the situation I was in. This was fine with me because not only did I want to do well, I wanted a good workout, I wanted to be in pain and have to dig deep to win the sprints. I did manage to win 2 primes ($20 total) which also put me way off the front a couple of times. I would take this opportunity to make them work to catch me but not work hard enough to make myself tired. Kori was riding strong and her strategy is to go early in the sprints. Well, I am not a pure sprinter so that is my strategy as well. I knew in the final sprint I had to go before her to win. We both happened to end up at the back of the pace line, she was behind me, coming into the final corner. Not really a good position for me, reminds me of match sprints at the track (by the way, I suck at those). I think we must have both gone at the same time, she on the outside and I was on the inside. I managed to accelerate fast enough around our group that I had enough time to set myself up for the last corner and swing wide on the finishing stretch. I cut back to the inside fast and saw that Kori was a bit behind me. I can honestly say that the sprint to the line felt like the first real sprint I have done. I wanted it so bad and I knew I had to dig deep to keep my lead. It paid off and I won the final sprint. I was most pleased.
Immediately after my race I jumped in with the Cat 3 men which all of my teammates (except puking Joe) were going to race as well. I figured this would be good NRC crit practice as the speed and accelerations would be fast. I felt good the first few laps and then on about the 5th lap we came in to the back stretch and there was a flat bed truck 3/4 across our lane. I can't figure out how that happened, this crit is in a business park around one building, there was no one else there but us. So basically the whole pack got strung out and I was towards the back so I ended up having to chase into the headwind to get back on. My legs were screaming with pain at this point. I managed to hang on a few more laps but eventually fell off with Gary and Tim. Gary and I rode together and caught another couple of guys and were basically going to ride until the group came around again and we could jump in or they pulled us from the course. We caught up to two more guys, one from Paul's and some guy with no team kit. This was good, more people to work with. It was great until this idiot who wasn't wearing a team kit managed to end up behind me and when I would pull off the front of the pace line he would stand up and sprint. I always managed to be pulling off after I had pulled in the headwind so I had to fight tooth and nail to get back on because Mr. I Just Upgraded From Cat 4 had to accelerate when it was his turn. Does he know anything about a paceline? Did he honestly think we were going to catch the main field? What a DORK!! So my legs could only handle this a couple of times before I couldn't get back in. I tried to position myself so he wasn't behind me, but that is hard when there are only 4 of you. I gave up eventually and then saw that this guy managed to shake Gary and the Paul's guy as well. I caught up to them and we jumped back in the main field as they came around. I lasted a lap or two and then decided that was enough racing for one day and went to do my cool down and recover.
Piece of Cake
I was really excited to to PoC as a training race. Amy and I decided to race with the Cat3 men to get a good training ride in with a pace more similar to what we might find at an NRC race. PoC is pancake flat and I did it last year with the women and it was so boring. Yes, we had a lot of women, but it was rotating pace line for 51 miles with a sprint at the end. Basically a time trial. I wanted something harder. So the Cat 3 men's race seemed like a good idea.
The Cat3 men's field is an interesting group. You have a bunch of weekend warriors with hairy legs and seasoned racers mixed into one group, there was even a dude riding his rain bike with fenders. See where I am going with this? I wanted something hard, what I got was something scary. It was a 51 mile squirrel fest. You couldn't move up because the roads were narrow and we only had one lane. I can't even count how many times I had to hit my brakes and I heard and smelled tires rubbing. Amy and I set-up shop in the way back, far enough back to get around any catastrophes. This also put us in prime surging area. Every corner we had to sprint back into the field. I was fine with this, I wanted a good work out and it got easier as the guys on front wore out. It was pretty uneventful until the last lap when there was a big crash in front. Amy and I got around it but as I rode by I saw an unconscious Half Fast Velo guy and a few others on the ground. Two were taken by ambulance to the hospital and ended up with broken collar bones and one had a broken wrist to top it off. I was glad when we made it to the finish and Amy and I took 42nd and 43rd place. Woo Hoo, we're kickin' butt!!! David Hart and I rode an extra lap before the afternoon races started so I got about 70 miles in that day.
There were only 4 Cat 1/2/3 women that showed up for the afternoon race and I was tempted stay and race knowing that I was guaranteed cash for finishing, but I had been gone too much that weekend and I wanted to hang out with Bryan and Lander. I heard it was another 51 mile TTT so I didn't miss out much. The good thing is that my friend Mechele took 2nd in the Master's race. I think she can with the Master's BAR this year.
It was a good weekend. My fitness is coming around, too bad it didn't show up for Redlands!!!!
