Hey gang while I am not a racer the big US teams are in my back yard...I am going to try to get down there later this week to watch some racing, looks like most of the major domestic pro players are here. The web site sort of sucks but here is the schedule and the day 1 TT results.
The more I think about it I think I am going to take Friday off and ride to Martinsburg for the circuit race. That will be 104 miles round trip so a decent ride with the break in the middle to watch the racing.
http://www.tourdetoona.com/stagesched.asp
http://www.tourdetoona.com/results.asp
2006 International
Tour de 'toona
RESULT: Altoona Beasley Manufacturing Downtown Time Trial
Scroll Down for Women's Results
Men Pro 1-2
Pl Bib Name Team Time Behind
1 204 Menzies, Karl Health Net Pro Cycli 05:09.15 5:09.15
2 214 Milne, Shawn Navigators Insurance 05:13.53 @ 4.38
3 203 Louder, Jeff Health Net Pro Cycli 05:13.77 @ 4.62
4 217 VanUlden, Bernard Navigators Insurance 05:13.85 @ 4.70
5 200 Henderson, Greg Health Net Pro Cycli 05:14.26 @ 5.11
6 290 Baldwin, Christopher Toyota - United Pro 05:14.58 @ 5.43
7 243 McCormack, Mark Colavita - Sutter Ho 05:15.93 @ 6.78
8 241 Frattini, Davide Colavita - Sutter Ho 05:16.21 @ 7.06
9 206 O'Neill, Nathan Health Net Pro Cycli 05:17.68 @ 8.53
10 293 Mariano, Friedick Toyota - United Pro 05:17.91 @ 8.76
11 297 Wherry, Christopher Toyota - United Pro 05:19.26 @ 10.11
12 285 Pipp, Frank TargetTraining 05:19.96 @ 10.81
13 261 King, Edward Priority Health Cycl 05:19.97 @ 10.82
14 211 Chadwick, Glen Navigators Insurance 05:20.12 @ 10.97
15 332 Donald, Jason Team Einstein's Cycl 05:20.24 @ 11.09
I'll be racing the Cat 5's on Sat/Sun, so if you didn't have a reason to go before, you totally do now. :D
Grasschopper
07-25-06, 08:03 AM
I'll be racing the Cat 5's on Sat/Sun, so if you didn't have a reason to go before, you totally do now. :D
What time is your start on Sat? I think several of the guys from my LBS are racing also but I am not sure what cats.
DrPete
07-25-06, 08:48 AM
What time is your start on Sat? I think several of the guys from my LBS are racing also but I am not sure what cats.
The men's 4/5 RR is at 1:15 on Saturday, and the Cat 5 crit is at 3:30 sunday.
smellygary
07-25-06, 09:00 AM
Are you doing the crit also?
DrPete
07-25-06, 09:23 AM
Are you doing the crit also?
Yeah--I'll be there for both. I have some family in State College, so the free lodging clinched it for me.
Grasschopper
07-31-06, 06:56 AM
Well I missed the whole thing. Couldn't get off work on Friday and played golf on Sat...shoul dhave gone to watch the cycling as my round sucked.
So DrPete how did you do?
DrPete
07-31-06, 07:18 AM
The Tour de Toona ROCKED. Really a great event. Very well-run, very professional.
Saturday was the RR. It was actually a combined 4/5 race, so between the 110 4's and the 50 5's that showed up, it was the biggest pack I'd ever ridden in. The elevation profile really didn't do it justice. The first 2 miles or so out of town were relatively flat, with 3 short but extremely steep rises that slowed the peloton, and on the 2nd rise someone wasn't paying attention and came plowing into the back of the peloton, taking out like 10 guys. I didn't look back to get any more details. That was pretty much it for the carnage.
After these 3 rises that really separated the 4's from the 5's (I think at this point I gave up too soon on staying with the 4's, but oh well) and the long climb began to tunnel hill. What a lonely 45 minutes that was. After the field was all blown to hell, I got into a couple pacelines and worked my way up the mountain, watching my HRM closely to keep it at or below LT. That really paid off, because as I worked my way up the climb I managed to pass a good number of 5's and a couple 4's. Just from keeping my HR down. The climb actually got steeper at the end, and the last 400m or so were about a 10% grade. I'd never been so happy to hear cow bells. I passed the KOM checkpoint and hit some flats with a couple rollers for 2 miles or so. Caught up with another 5 who I paced with for the rest of the race.
The last 9 miles were a BLAST. We made the right turn downhill, and after a short, flat sprint we're headed down, FAST. My max was 50 on the nose. The grade flattened out about halfway, and there were some flats where I was actually pedaling. At this point the legs are not happy with me, but they held in there, keeping the speed between 25 (there were a couple little ridges)-40 for the whole descent.
We made the left turn into Altoona, and we still had to make it back over 2 of those evil rises that were there at the start. After those, the last mile was flat-out to the line, going up a 3-lane road with no traffic. I decided that I wanted to at least get a little soul-crushing in, so I went for the sprint with about 300m to go, and left my new-found riding buddy in the dust. I had done most of the pulling down the descent, so I thought it was fair. I came in 23rd in the Cat 5's, which was much better than I expected given my total lack of climbing ability.
Sunday was the crit. GREAT course. 1 mile, 6 turns. Very few squirrels in the cat 5's. I was disappointed, though, because of the 50 riders signed up for the crit, there were only 20 at the line. Lame. Very fast, very smooth pavement, lots of fun. The last half mile or so of the lap was mainly downhill with a slight uphill at the finish. I tried to make a move at the top of the descent on the bell lap, knowing that I could out-handle the rest of the pack (WHY DO YOU BRAKE IN WIDE TURNS IN A CRIT??!!!), but it was too little too late. I got back in the paceline sitting around 10th. Saw one final opportunity in the quick left/right about 400m from the line, but it was risky and I didn't want to taste hay, so I left it for the sprint and worked my way up the pack to finish 7th. I'm still kicking myself for not giving more at the top of the hill. Watching the pro races, there were some good breakaways that got away for a little while, so I figured I could pull it off if I got a decent break, but it wasn't meant to be.
I hope I'll have a chance to ride next year, because it really was a great race with great support, and it was fun to watch the pros do it right. Team Navigators swept the jerseys for the men, and team Lipton crushed some souls in the women's. Great stuff.
DrPete
07-31-06, 10:35 AM
Forgot to add average speeds for those who might be curious:
Cat 5 RR: Winner's avg: 22.4
Cat 5 Crit: Winning avg: 25.0
Hipcycler
07-31-06, 01:21 PM
Awesome report.
Those speeds are way above my head!
Nice job!
WCroadie
07-31-06, 01:25 PM
Nice job DrPete, I got my 2nd road race and 1st time trial and crit coming up in 2 weeks, looking forward to it.
botto
07-31-06, 01:31 PM
someone wasn't paying attention and came plowing into the back of the peloton, taking out like 10 guys.
sounds like a cat 4 - and i guess these days - Cat 5 race :)
Saw one final opportunity in the quick left/right about 400m from the line, but it was risky and I didn't want to taste hay, so I left it for the sprint and worked my way up the pack to finish 7th.
sounds smart. a couple of my oldest biking buddies, and the guys who taught me most of what i know, were on the Yale cycling team. None of them were very gung ho for crit sprints. i always assumed it was because they were too smart - they were actually fully aware of the risks involved, and considering that, they chose to sit up. ;)
congrats on a job well done. now get yer over-educated, employed by uncle sam's skinny ass out of the 5's and into the 4's, so you can get somewhere safe, like the 3's :D
DrPete
07-31-06, 06:21 PM
congrats on a job well done. now get yer over-educated, employed by uncle sam's skinny ass out of the 5's and into the 4's, so you can get somewhere safe, like the 3's :D
I hope you're talking about Uncle Sam's ass, because there's nothing skinny about mine. Hence the pain on the climb. :)
DrPete
07-31-06, 06:24 PM
Awesome report.
Those speeds are way above my head!
Nice job!
Hehe... the RR winner's speed was above mine too... I was 19.9 as I recall from my computer. General concensus was he shoulda been racing 4's anyway. :D
flythebike
07-31-06, 08:46 PM
The way to win that crit in my book is simply be second wheel coming down the hill. Then drop everybody in the last S turn and kill everybody all the way to the line. That is what I was doing in the four race last year when my rear wheel cracked. My chain came off. I got it back on in the small ring. I still got third. I went from second wheel three turns from the finish, led through the final two turns and emerged with a huge gap. Trying to drop everybody on that hill on the last lap- they just are not going to let you go. And that sprint isn't hard enough to pick off more people than you did, just a couple guys. It is a long way to the line but if you keep your rear wheel clean you can go last corner to the line and win.
I spent the weekend with my family this year, don't regret missing it, I'll probably do the Master's 35+ crit next year, unless I am really feeling it to do the Cat 2. I climb like Cippolini so doing Saturday might be fun to do for training/epic-ness but I would come in DFL. You don't have to finish, though, it is a points race. I could just go to the train museum...but I digress.
smellygary
07-31-06, 10:41 PM
Woohoo! You make me miss crits!
Good job buddy boy! (By the way, 5s slow down for ALL turns, even wide ones!)