Road Bike Racing - There is pain in my future

So next Saturday is the Belterra circuit race and the course is a beeootch! The 15% climb isn't so bad as you carry a lot of speed up to it, however the finish straight is a beast. It's only 6% or so but it's a long drag and we are going to hit it about 15-17 times. I pre rode the course yesterday and did 4 laps at race pace solo (4min 25sec per lap) with an ave wattage of 301w. There really isn't anywhere to recuperate for more than about 15 seconds. That's all, I just wanted to share what will be haunting my dreams for the next 6 days.

Here is a course profile:

http://www.swcyclesport.com/belterra_race_profile.pdf

Having just had a crit with nowhere to recover, I feel your pain. I'll be sure to raise a glass for you. :beer:

Crap, I did not realize that this course was going to be that difficult!

I guess it is time to make use of all the hill training that I have been doing for the last month. Just to let everyone who is a 5 and doing the race, look for the blue and yellow BSK jersey to attack at the base of the 15% as much as possible!!!!!:D

Daaaang. That sounds absolutely brutal. I'll be looking forward to your race report on that one.
Rip their legs off!!

You will hurt, but so will everyone else. Can't wait for a report.

Crap, I did not realize that this course was going to be that difficult!

I guess it is time to make use of all the hill training that I have been doing for the last month. Just to let everyone who is a 5 and doing the race, look for the blue and yellow BSK jersey to attack at the base of the 15% as much as possible!!!!!:D

Yeah if you haven't pre ridden this one it's going to be a kind of unpleasant surprise! I'm hoping that my race report will have a happy ending. I need a good result in this race if I plan on catting up by the end of April.

Did you tell them about the part where you're thinking about racing 4's and M35+???

Crazy.

Did you tell them about the part where you're thinking about racing 4's and M35+???

Crazy.

I'm starting to rethink that idea ;)

ugh.

Correct: I race with the 3’s and collegiate A’s.

Sorry, dude, but an apostrophe is not used to denote the plurality of a number or an uppercase letter.

--Steve

Sorry, dude, but an apostrophe is not used to denote the plurality of a number or an uppercase letter.

--Steve
Pluralizing numbers is up for debate -- using one is not an abuse, but not required. It's a commonly accepted usage, like for decades: "the 70's" is as acceptable as "the 70s."

Pluralizing capital letters -- it's required to eliminate ambiguity. "A's are better than B's" would look like "As are better than Bs." Though, in my example, it's not ambiguous.

Anyway, I'm just sick of seeing "Which tire's should I buy?" around here :)

On top of that, I'm going with an Oreo sig soon. :D

I have a big hill race next weekend too. I'm looking forward to it though

Sounds like a race of attrition, and a race where the strongest will win. Mr. Rojo, this is your type of race. Go get 'em!

Looks to me like there will be a lot of DNF's. Too many people will go out too fast, will get anerobic right away and never recover. Trick here is to find a rhythm on the climbs. If you get into the red zone, you will never have a chance to get out.

I've had a pretty good season this year, 1 podium and 4 top 10's. My coach has got me in a good place right now and I know I've got the fitness to be on the podium on Saturday. When I pre-rode the course on Sat another team showed up after I'd been there for about an 90min. I did one warm up lap with them then two more race pace laps and my legs felt great. The only negative feelings I'm having right now is that I need to score some points to reach my goal of catting up after my next race at Ft Davis. I'm feeling a bit stressed about that aspect.

Stallionforce and Roadwarrior are right, the guys who did the race last year said they lost 4-5 guys a lap in the last 4 laps.

I've had a pretty good season this year, 1 podium and 4 top 10's. My coach has got me in a good place right now and I know I've got the fitness to be on the podium on Saturday. When I pre-rode the course on Sat another team showed up after I'd been there for about an 90min. I did one warm up lap with them then two more race pace laps and my legs felt great. The only negative feelings I'm having right now is that I need to score some points to reach my goal of catting up after my next race at Ft Davis. I'm feeling a bit stressed about that aspect.

Stallionforce and Roadwarrior are right, the guys who did the race last year said they lost 4-5 guys a lap in the last 4 laps.

The cool thing is that you'll be one of the guys causing that attrition. It sounds like you're in a great position for this race.

The tension is already building.
There is going to be a great race report next week.
I am seriously pulling for you EDR. I enjoy your thoughts on racing and have learned some things from reading your posts. I'm pushing the big 4....0.... this year so your success keeps me motivated when I pull up to the line against all these 22 year old stallions.

To add to the excitement it is pissing rain right now and the forecast is for heavy rain during my race.

That's perfect! Anything that weakens your competition helps you. You might consider going out right now to gain some wet cornering confidence. That chicane at the end of the Veloway is great because it's usually free of debris... short laps to that set of turns could be a nice recovery ride.

I just got back from intervals, and it was really fun. Although I'm dripping all over my cube right now (sitting in the guest chair ;) )

Good luck tomorrow EDR. More points are awaiting your arrival at the finish :D

That's perfect! Anything that weakens your competition helps you. You might consider going out right now to gain some wet cornering confidence. That chicane at the end of the Veloway is great because it's usually free of debris... short laps to that set of turns could be a nice recovery ride.

I just got back from intervals, and it was really fun. Although I'm dripping all over my cube right now (sitting in the guest chair ;) )

Good luck tomorrow EDR. More points are awaiting your arrival at the finish :D

Not so sure about that, there are only 36 guys pre-registered and with the rain I'm sure we'll lose some. I need a field size of at least 30 to gain any points. This sucks I'm feeling really good and I really believe I had a shot at winning this thing. I could possibly walk away with out any points this weekend even with a win.

Not so sure about that, there are only 36 guys pre-registered and with the rain I'm sure we'll lose some. I need a field size of at least 30 to gain any points. This sucks I'm feeling really good and I really believe I had a shot at winning this thing. I could possibly walk away with out any points this weekend even with a win.

Do most people pre-register down in your neck of the woods? Races up here in OR usually have a much bigger turn out than you would expect from the pre-registration numbers, even on rainy days.

Good luck - I'm looking forward to your race report.

Not so sure about that, there are only 36 guys pre-registered and with the rain I'm sure we'll lose some. I need a field size of at least 30 to gain any points. This sucks I'm feeling really good and I really believe I had a shot at winning this thing. I could possibly walk away with out any points this weekend even with a win.

That's really surprising that only 36 preregistered. Any chance Bonnie will help you along if it only misses 30 by a few?

I am there no matter what, I need the mass starts!

I just looked and there is only 17 riders registered for tomorrow. Will I receive credit for a mass start with that amount of riders?

I am there no matter what, I need the mass starts!

I just looked and there is only 17 riders registered for tomorrow. Will I receive credit for a mass start with that amount of riders?

Bonnie just emailed me and I guess contrary to the USAF website I only a field of 20. Time to crush them ;)

Mike you only need 10. That shouldn't be an issue, but I'd do it no matter what, I'm sure Bonnie is going to look favorably toward anyone who actually shows up tomorrow.

Bonnie just emailed me and I guess contrary to the USAF website I only a field of 20. Time to crush themget 'em. get 'em alllllllll.

Kill em, Dr. Zaius. Kill those filthy, stinking men.

Kill em, Dr. Zaius. Kill those filthy, stinking men.

I will show no mercy as I crush them with Simian ease. The rain actually works in my favor as I've got pretty good bike handling skills. I just hope we get a enough riders to meet the requirement.

Good man.

If you feel good riding in the rain you've already got one up on a lot of the competition.

I on the other hand do not enjoy riding in the rain, it is going to be a long 45 minutes. . . .

Bash them as a Blue Meanie would bash a newbie!

Now that I know the true face of the devil, I can cheer you on tomorrow. Just watching for me unfortunately untill the knee clears up.

Rojo...Leave no soul untouched! You are there to bring pain. Let the pain rain down on them.

I kinda like riding in the rain, provided it's a warm rain and not cold out.....

...well... antici pation...

antici payaetion its making me wait....

Worst day EVER. I got about 3 hours of sleep last night, which isn't always a deal killer with me but about 15 minutes into my warm up my stomach started to cramp pretty bad. I spent the next 15-20 min in the porta john sh$ti'n my brains out. I tried to warm up again but I could tell my legs were toast.

Race starts with about a 40 man field, by the end of lap one we were down to about 15. I rarely stand on climbs but I was out of saddle just hanging on in the lead group....this was not to be my day. End of lap two I realize that I'll be lucky to finish with these guys and decide that it's not worth the effort and pack it in.

It's now 7 hours later and my legs are still toast and my stomach is not much better. I don't have a fever but I must have some intestinal bug. I didn't have the energy to unload the car until about 10 minutes ago. I'm bummed about the fact that this time yesterday I had visions of winning this race...I really felt like it was going to be my day today. I guess this is the 'beauty' of this sport. Even at this level things have to be right or you'll pay.

Time to put this behind me and focus on Ft Davis in three weeks...thanks for all the well wishes I wish I could have come home with better news...next time!!!!

Ahh man.

**** happens...sometimes literally.

Feel better Rojo.

Man, I feel your pain and frustration with this one. Tomorrow I will race on the course that last year saw me with the same symptoms you just described. That was also one of my worst days.
Get healthy and you will get them in three weeks!

Ugh! Bad luck with the bug timing, but you'll bounce back. It's awesome that you were able to make that selection in your condition.

Hit some Tuesday Nighters between now and Ft. Davis? :beer:

I hear ya. Yesterday, I was reallllllly looking forward to this really hilly 75 mile ride route I had planned out last year, but never got around riding it and was going to do it this morning. Today I woke up with my head in a fog, slight feeling of nausea, and kept having to pee....which is a telltale sign for me that I will be getting sick very soon. Needless to say I didn't ride today, and got some Airborne.

Man, I feel bad for you...I have been out all day with the wife and you and this race kept popping up in my mind. Sorry it didn't work out but you have your day!

Worst day EVER. I got about 3 hours of sleep last night, which isn't always a deal killer with me but about 15 minutes into my warm up my stomach started to cramp pretty bad. I spent the next 15-20 min in the porta john sh$ti'n my brains out. I tried to warm up again but I could tell my legs were toast.

I know the feeling. Fortunately, there's a next time.

--Steve

Thanks everyone..it's now 12 hours since the start of the race and I'm finally starting to feel a bit better. I'm going for an easy 1.5 hour spin in the morning if I feel better, and then start the training for Ft Davis.

Of all the weekend warrior sports, like softball or basketball, cycling may be one of the toughest to compete in if you are not at your best. You just can't fake it!

Sorry to hear about your bad day EDR, mine was almost that bad.

I woke up at 7am, checked over my bike and packed everything up. I planned on leaving at 8am, which would get me to Belterra at 9:15 or so, plenty of time to warm up/register for my 10:20 race. Well, I pulled into Belterra at 10:10, I ran over to the reigistration table and talked my way into registering for the race. I sent my lil sis over to fill out all paperwork and went to assemble my bike which was in my dad's trunk. I threw it all together and off I went, I even had time to talk to a few guys while climbing up the hill to the start/finish line, they gave me a few pointers and I was ready to get it on, despite my lack of warm-up.

The race started and right away I could tell something was not right, I was having a hard time keeping up with the pack. I hung out in the back of the pack for the first lap trying to figure out what was going on, finally half way through the second lap I turned around to find the problem, somehow my brake was rubbing my rear wheel! I attempted to fix it while riding only to find that my entire brake caliper had come loose, at that point I just coasted into the finsh line, planning on DNF'ing but my dad would not have it. The search for the multi-tool began, I finally got one and fixed the crappy rear caliper and off I went.

I am not sure how many laps I missed, but it must of not been too many. I somehow placed 16 in a 30+ person race and got credit for the mass start, which is what I really wanted. My day did get better though, I rolled over to Bicylce Sport Shop and test rode a BMC Pro Machine, I need that bike!!!!!!

Sorry about your race EDR (just found this thread and didn't know how you faired until now). That blows. FWIW that's EXACTLY what happened for me at Lago. It just happens sometimes.

I let the front pack go after 2 laps. I was really there to get my last mass start under my belt so I could move up to the 4's. I think I could've hung with 'em, but I told Bo before the race that I'm still pretty green race wise and some of these guys were p/1's/2's - I wanted to sit back and watch and stay out of their way a little. I knew from last year though that a lot of guys drop out of this race and if you just ride your pace and get a tempo going you can pick people off from behind and move up pretty well. It worked out well - I got 18th overall which I'm really happy about in the masters group. Like your race I'd say half the field or more bailed, lol.

BMC pro machine - DROOL. Man, I haven't ridden one but they sure are perty. ;)