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Nor Cal Racing this weekend

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Nor Cal Racing this weekend

Old 05-14-06, 06:27 PM
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Nor Cal Racing this weekend

It was pretty warm here in Nor-Cal this weekend with temps in the mid to high 80's for the 2 races I did this weekend.

First was the Cat's Hill Crit on Saturday, my first race in the 35+ 1/2/3.
I had a great w/u but was still unprepared for how fast this group would start. I was hanging on for dear life in dead last for the first 2 laps, which must have been close to 30 MPH (we're not in the 4/5's anymore!). I'm a good climber, but it didn't do me any good since the hill on this course is just 1 block at a 23% grade, so the power sprinters would just blow by me each time up the hill. We settled down a bit and I was able to work my way up through the field (on the flat parts), and eventually got to the front after 14 of 20 laps, and stayed near the front until the bell lap. I was actually leading with a lap to go , which means absolutely nothing since I can't sprint. I got passed by 24 guys in the final lap to finish 25th out of 70+ starters. The lap is claimed to be 1 mile, so if that's correct we did 20 miles in 43 minutes. Tough race.

On to Sunday. A 3.7 lap 71 mile RR on rolling terrain with 2 good sized climbs on each lap, the second one (to the finish) being about 1 mile with a 9% grade. We were pretty relaxed for about 25 miles before guys started attacking. With some help from my teammates, I managed to get into a break with 10 other guys. We were working fairly well together, but not well enough to avoid being caught 20 miles later by another group of about 10 riders. After that there was attack, after attack, after attack by one strong team, which served it's purpose of tiring most of us in the break. As I mentioned earlier, it was a hot day. I started with 2 bottles, and got a bottle of H2O at the neutral feed on the 2nd lap. I was dry and ready for another bottle on the 3rd lap, but they were out. Nooo! I had about 2 swigs left to last me the final 19 miles.
By the top of the hill with 1 lap to go, we were down to about 15 or so. There seemed to be less cooperation on the final lap, and a lot of solo attacks. With about 5 miles to go, 2 guys went off the front and the rest of us were too drained to chase (maybe I shouldn't have done that crit yesterday). I tried to pull away on the first hill, but our group of 12 or so stayed together, so it would be this group sprinting up the final hill for 3rd. On the final climb, 3 of us separated ourselves from the pack. I held on as long as I could, but ran out of gas in the final 200 to finish 5th.
I was very pleased with my results overall, and very glad to have cold beer by my side right now.

Congratulations to Vinokurtoff who raced 3 times this weekend with a win and a 5th in 2 crits on Saturday! I look forward to reading your race reports.

Anyone else race this weekend?
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Old 05-14-06, 08:22 PM
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I skipped Cat's Hill even being in my own backyard and saving my energy for the Panoche RR next Sunday in Hollister.
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Old 05-14-06, 10:32 PM
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Originally Posted by Pizza Man
Anyone else race this weekend?
Good job on your first race in the 35+ 1/2/3!

I was supposed to race in the Master 45+ category but had a collision with a pickup truck a couple of weeks ago and got the short-end of the deal, naturally. I broke a couple of teeth, dislocated two fingers, had a small fracture at the base of my left pinkie finger, so I decided to skip Berkeley Hills and probably Mt. Hamilton as well.
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Old 05-14-06, 11:07 PM
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Originally Posted by SteveE
Good job on your first race in the 35+ 1/2/3!

I was supposed to race in the Master 45+ category but had a collision with a pickup truck a couple of weeks ago and got the short-end of the deal, naturally. I broke a couple of teeth, dislocated two fingers, had a small fracture at the base of my left pinkie finger, so I decided to skip Berkeley Hills and probably Mt. Hamilton as well.
Sorry to hear that.
Planning on doing Mt. Hamilton. Probably going to get dropped on the first climb, but whatever. I'll still have fun. Will be a nice test for my front carbon Ritchey wheel (if I manage to glue a damn tire to it).
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Old 05-15-06, 12:27 AM
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I had a pretty cool weekend.

Did two races at Cat's. First up was the Elite 4, against the kids. 100 of them. Had moved up well until the last lap when some guys blew up in front of me and I had to bridge a gap to the lead group. Took a bit out of my legs that I was saving, knocked off a few people in the sprint and ended up 5th.

Next up was the 35+ 4/5, against the kids again (hey, I can say that at my age...not sure if that's a good thing) but only 75 of them this time.

Buddy from the hometown goes off solo a couple of laps in. One guy trys to bridge and blows. Five to go a strong guy I had been watching in the E4 pops off the front, I nail it to jump on him and we proceed to run down my buddy. We've got 14 seconds to the field at the bell lap, and it's pandamonium when we hit the hill. People yelling and screaming "GO GO GO!!!". Cow bells ringing, the whole bit. I'm the lightest guy in the group so I figure I'll put some hurt on the legs and really go hard. Get to the top of the hill and a guy I've never seen before pulls up next me. Arrrrgggggg.

He tries to run off and I chase him down, as soon as I do so one of the guys from Pizza's team shows up and tries to run off. Turns out the two did a big bridge. I chase HIM down, pull up next to him and drive the pace high down the hill and into the last corner. Slide in behind, wait a few seconds, catch the draft, then bury myself into the sprint. Win by a wheel or so. First win of the year, at the coolest race I've done so far. Wow. Am I stoked? Heck yeah. It only took me 28 tries this year.

Podium pics and head north for the Berkeley road race, 45+ open (see Pizza's description). I'm there to support my Nat'l champ team mate against the other Cat 1 ubberstuds.

As expected, there's lots of scorched earth on the first climbs to thin the herd. Legs feel less than perfect from 24 runs up Cat's Hill the day before. Four guys go off the front midway through lap one. Second lap I get my attacking instructions and hit it a bunch of times to close the gap and send the leader off to the break. Close, but no cigar. I'm so blown from multiple efforts that I almost lose the group several times but grit it out to get back on. Last lap the boss blows a spoke out, waves us on, but I look back and see him chasing with a new wheel he's borrowed from a bystander. I drop back and help him a little bit getting back on.

Herd is thinning some more when just before the finishing climbs, he goes off the front with another rider and they make the bridge to the group of four. I'm cemented into the chase group now unless someone else tries to bridge and I hop on. This doesn't happen so we'll be picking up the bottom half of the top ten.

Second to last climb we're at 8 riders, at the top it's four. We hit the finishing hill and the pace keeps ratcheting up. Now we're three. Super small ubber climber tries to bury us but we're not dying and he blows. Now it's mano a mano. Pace keeps lifting. Finally it's time and I do my best sprint climb and start to get a little lead. 10 yards to go and he finds some little blast, now he's a half wheel ahead, we're going the same speed, and that's how it ended, I got 8th.

Like Pizza I was really happy with my rides. I just mailed off my upgrade, it should finish me out for my Cat 3 so I can chase Pizza around again. It really is a different world with the Cat 1 guys, cleaner but horrifically fast at times. Long stretches at 30+. Mouth gaping climbs.

Pizza gets big kudos on a 5th in that group. The 35+ 1/2/3 is stupid fast and talent enriched, top five is awesome. Pizza, was it the bag boys that were hitting it or my folks?

Last edited by Vinokurtov; 05-15-06 at 12:36 AM.
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Old 05-15-06, 10:04 AM
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Originally Posted by Vinokurtov

Pizza, was it the bag boys that were hitting it or my folks?
It was the bag boys. I was surprised that none of your guys got in out 11 man break, but they did lead the chase back up to our group.

Vino, great race report, I really enjoyed watching your victory, even though you outsprinted my teammate . I watched most of the race on the hill, then went to the finish for the final sprint. You timed it just right!

Are you going to take a week off now?

I'm skipping Panoche Pass, but plan to do Mt. Hamilton.

Steve, sorry to hear about your fall. I hope you're back out there soon!
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Old 05-15-06, 11:45 AM
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Originally Posted by Pizza Man
It was the bag boys. I was surprised that none of your guys got in out 11 man break, but they did lead the chase back up to our group.

Vino, great race report, I really enjoyed watching your victory, even though you outsprinted my teammate . I watched most of the race on the hill, then went to the finish for the final sprint. You timed it just right!

Are you going to take a week off now?

I'm skipping Panoche Pass, but plan to do Mt. Hamilton.

Steve, sorry to hear about your fall. I hope you're back out there soon!
Thanks. Your guy did a great job to bridge up. I thought it was him that got second, but I see he got thrid. Still a great ride. Let him know the podium pics are up on the website.

Yeah, I'm taking a weekend off. I just got the Email that my upgrade has been approved, I was seriously considering doing Panoche if I didn't do well at Cat's or Berkeley, but now I can rest. It'll be the first weekend I've haven't raced (or done a big ride) in a couple of months.

I'm going to do Hamilton, in the 45+ 1/2/3. The Boss is riding it also, should be painful

The other cool part of Cat's was my coach/teammate won your race. He had Mother's Day duties so he begged off Berkeley, though we had some other strong riders there, just not a full group. The bag boys have been very aggressive this year, adding the Bear Flag makes them a bit scary. I'm hoping to do some work for the guys in a few of the bigger races, if nothing else I can block and soft pedal well.
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