"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Tuesday Night Crits, 4/1, How'd You Do?

DNF here. Started well, then about halfway through the race a guy crashed right in front of me. I managed to stop and stay upright courtesey of a couple of glancing blows off his bike and helmet. Stopped and helped him get his bike off the track, rode around by myself for a few laps, flatted just before the end.

Can't wait for next week. This is a very odd sport.

How did everyone else do?

no tuesday night crits around here.

no tuesday night crits around here.

Bleak. How long before you get a new address?

month.

Tuesday nights don't start here until April 8th. So next week. Of course my chess team couldn't find a better time than to schedule a tournament game on that night. Argh... so I gotta wait until the 15th.

Man I suck bad. Not sure what the problem is. Maybe I've been pushing too hard lately and need a break.

Rose bowl training ride: 10 laps around 3 miles each. 120 feet of climbing per lap, pretty much all within a 1-mile section. Not steep at all, but we go up it at 25 mph (easy night) or 28mph (fast night). Then, 35mph down the other side.

I lasted 4 laps and just started the 5th when I blew. Tried to catch on the downhill, but didn't have any power. Second week in a row where I only lasted 4 laps. I'm quitting.

Ours is a road race on Tuesdays (9-mile laps, no stops). Mine went pretty well with the A race. I survived the break escape, and was able to stay in the main pack, which had gone from ~80 riders to about 12. There were three off the front, including a teammate (Cat 1).

At the start of the third lap, I flatted. I got it fixed before the Bs got there, and finished out the last lap with their main field. I hauled them up the hills on the front side of the course at a pace that dropped a few. Then I put in a couple attacks until I got away.

Off the front, I moderated the effort for a couple minutes, hoping a training partner would attack and bridge. He did, just when I thought he would. Once he got on, I opened up and we almost stayed away (break partner was gassed). 1km from the finish, I sat up, recovered, and waited for the sprint. Unfortunately, we had a dropped rider go backwards through our sprint from the A race, so that messed it up and I had to hit the brakes hard then wind it up again. Got 2nd.

couldn't make it to this week's tuesdaynighter because i have a class on tues afternoons and it gets out just barely too late to make it there on time. fortunately the professor promised class would be canceled this coming week if the Tar Heels play in the NCAA final game. One more reason to root for the Heels!

Are these actual, sanctioned races, or are they the underground type?

http://media.movieweb.com/galleries/225/178/lo/co3.jpg

Ours is underground. There's no web site or contact. 100-150 racers just magically show up every Tuesday Night. The A race bumps up to 36 miles once the daylight allows people to ride home afterwards.

Our Thursday night Driveway crits are USAC. Every week during DST (badass).

The Tuesday night crits here are USAC.

Pack finish. Hoping to do better next week now that I know the course.

Tuesday nights don't start here until April 8th.

Ditto with the Westlake crit series here in Cleveland

Recovery week. I had a beer.

couldn't get past the wall set up by the slow guys. i guess that makes me one of the slow guys. pack finish.

Ours is a road race on Tuesdays (9-mile laps, no stops). Mine went pretty well with the A race. I survived the break escape, and was able to stay in the main pack, which had gone from ~80 riders to about 12. There were three off the front, including a teammate (Cat 1).

At the start of the third lap, I flatted. I got it fixed before the Bs got there, and finished out the last lap with their main field. I hauled them up the hills on the front side of the course at a pace that dropped a few. Then I put in a couple attacks until I got away.

Off the front, I moderated the effort for a couple minutes, hoping a training partner would attack and bridge. He did, just when I thought he would. Once he got on, I opened up and we almost stayed away (break partner was gassed). 1km from the finish, I sat up, recovered, and waited for the sprint. Unfortunately, we had a dropped rider go backwards through our sprint from the A race, so that messed it up and I had to hit the brakes hard then wind it up again. Got 2nd.

Jeez, will ya stop torturing the Bs already?

Lucky for me that I hung with the little group of A-minuses/B-pluses.

Tuesday night races (sanctioned by OBRA) start out here next week.

Jeez, will ya stop torturing the Bs already?

Lucky for me that I hung with the little group of A-minuses/B-pluses.

Good job hanging with those groups! I think I saw two main groups go by when I was fixing the flat (on the first climb, third lap, off on the right). Both those groups were flying and tight. Not to be taken lightly. Even the back group still had the full 5 minutes on the Bs when they came by, and everyone in that group had probably already hit the wall a couple times.

It's actually pretty fun in the Bs. Since I'm not sitting in, I don't feel quite as bad. As are good for pack riding and edge-of-my-ability racing. Bs are good for attack training. I was really looking forward to the field sprint in the As though :mad:

didn't get out there...but had a blast on the trainer for an hour at 90-95%. yippee.

edit: nevermind, they don't start till next week--I thought yesterday was 'opening day'.

The Tuesday night crits here are USAC.

Same here ... sorta. You need a license to sign-up, but then there's just an "A" and "B" race and kids races. They're low-key, so newbies can jump back in if they get dropped.

Good job hanging with those groups! I think I saw two main groups go by when I was fixing the flat (on the first climb, third lap, off on the right). Both those groups were flying and tight. Not to be taken lightly. Even the back group still had the full 5 minutes on the Bs when they came by, and everyone in that group had probably already hit the wall a couple times.

It's actually pretty fun in the Bs. Since I'm not sitting in, I don't feel quite as bad. As are good for pack riding and edge-of-my-ability racing. Bs are good for attack training. I was really looking forward to the field sprint in the As though :mad:

I've got to find my way there...I need the workouts!!! I'll be at The Driveway tomorrow/Thursday...feel free to approach the slow old guy on the red RB-1 and tell him how to find the Tuesday night races :-)

Good job hanging with those groups! I think I saw two main groups go by when I was fixing the flat (on the first climb, third lap, off on the right). Both those groups were flying and tight. Not to be taken lightly. Even the back group still had the full 5 minutes on the Bs when they came by, and everyone in that group had probably already hit the wall a couple times.

It's actually pretty fun in the Bs. Since I'm not sitting in, I don't feel quite as bad. As are good for pack riding and edge-of-my-ability racing. Bs are good for attack training. I was really looking forward to the field sprint in the As though :mad:

It was more consistent hard work than any race I've done, partly because there were fewer riders, partly cause it was just fast. I was toast at the end, no energy for a sprint of any kind. Can't wait for next week though.

My Tuesday Night Experience (http://www.bikeforums.net/showpost.php?p=6445513&postcount=1) was one of frustration last night.

Tried ever so diligently to get a break going but the nervous B's wouldn't let anything slide away. When the bell rang for the final lap I sat up at the start/finish, put my hand up, let everyone by and coasted around OTB. In the final 3 laps the pack got really nervous and people just started killing themselves trying to get in position to sprint for 20th (:rolleyes:) and since this is just a Tuesday Night training crit I really didn't feel like contesting in what could be an ugly field sprint.

Sure enough, there was a wreck.

Next week I'm really going to bury myself. I've already got a solid plan drafted and (weather permitting, praying for a break from these high winds) it stands a fair chance of being successful based on my analysis of the B's nervous-psyche.

And yes, it does involve a bit of HTFU!

Same here ... sorta. You need a license to sign-up, but then there's just an "A" and "B" race and kids races. They're low-key, so newbies can jump back in if they get dropped.

Yup.. thats how they are run here. You get dropped, you just wait until they come around again and hop back in.
It's more for training pack riding skills than anything else.

A little late here, but what the heck.

Eldo 4/1

After being off the bike for a week I wanted to test my fitness, so what did I do? I put in serious work up front the whole race! It felt damn good. I moved the sprinters up a couple times for prime laps, we took both. The rest of the time I was jockey around on the front. On the last lap we got stuck behind a wall of slow pokes, oh well. There was a nasty crash on the final turn. Three guys got squeezed on the outside, carbon on pavement, bodies flying. All three were on their feet when I came back around to see if they needed help.

Good times.

Damn...Eldo has only gone 1 week this series without a crash.

I watched from the sidelines. Sick. :(

I saw one of the guys from my peripheral endo-ing through the air. I was surprised to see them up and walking. Those gd cement things lining the course are scary.

I saw one of the guys from my peripheral endo-ing through the air. I was surprised to see them up and walking. Those gd cement things lining the course are scary.

the first thought in my mind when i took my initial spin around that course and noticed those things was "be ready to bunnyhop if the ***** hits the fan..."

the first thought in my mind when i took my initial spin around that course and noticed those things was "be ready to bunnyhop if the ***** hits the fan..."

+1
the eldo on tuesday was my first bike race. I had the same thought about those concrete curbs when I was warming up. I didn't see the crash going into the final turn though, it must have been behind me. Hope everyone was ok.

+1
the eldo on tuesday was my first bike race. I had the same thought about those concrete curbs when I was warming up. I didn't see the crash going into the final turn though, it must have been behind me. Hope everyone was ok.

...and you didn't come introduce yourself to us??? What's that about? ;) :p

...and you didn't come introduce yourself to us??? What's that about? ;) :p

haha, yea I didn't really talk to anyone...too nervous i guess. After seeing pictures on another Eldo thread, i think I remember seeing Chucklehead...I'll try to say hi the next time I'm out there. But anyways...I think I did pretty well, i might have sneaked in the top 10 for cat 4/5, but the results still haven't been posted online.