"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Big Creek RR

Anyone doing the Big Creek RR in Iowa tomorrow?

I just found out about it... planning on making the drive in the morning!

Well I'm going! Can't believe I'm going, though. But these Minnesotans don't know how to plan a race schedule (can't blame them with the crazy weather here), so I'm getting my first race of the season in... after a nice FOUR HOUR drive to Des Moines.

45 miles, supposedly flat course, expecting lots of wind and possibly lots of rain.

Not expecting to do much but hang on. Race report this evening!

Good luck! I did the 4 hour (each way) drive yesterday. It sucks but is definitely worth it (sometimes).

My only advice, if you are driving 4 hours don't just try to hang on, try to make something out of it. Anyway, good luck and have fun.

Good luck! I did the 4 hour (each way) drive yesterday. It sucks but is definitely worth it (sometimes).

My only advice, if you are driving 4 hours don't just try to hang on, try to make something out of it. Anyway, good luck and have fun.

your a maniac dude

Four hours TO the race... feels like two. Four hours home, with no shower and feeling exhausted? Feels like it took six.

I just moved to the Midwest from DC, and discovered today that Iowa is windy. REALLY windy. Winds from the South/SSE @ 20mph all afternoon. And it's a square course, so one side is a badass headwind, the other two are crosswinds, and the one is, thank goodness, a tailwind. No rain... whew! The wind was my biggest problem today, and I tried to stay out of it, but it doesn't always work that way you want it to!

I ended up doing a 4/5 race (I'm a Cat 5 still). No other choice! Expected to get shelled, and I did.

On the second lap of the fairly flat, incredibly windy 45 mile course (5mi/lap), the pack splinters as a small group increases the hurt and takes off. INTO the wind. *******s. I try to hang on, but another guy and I lose it and trade pulls with each other before he decides he's going to be gung-ho and tries to catch up.

Three guys way behind me catch up at the end of lap two and we start working together, eventually reeling in gung-ho dude and catching another to become six. We do great work together for a few laps, trying to keep pacelines going and even echelons (those are not easy). We turn it on at the end of lap 5, I'm thankful for this, because a couple of the guys are not taking their fair share of pulls. I'm hanging in just fine and feeling good until we get back around to the headwind. This is when I blow up and lose the pack after the last turn of lap 6. So now I do 2 laps solo. Fun.

I was hurting bad, feeling the cramps in my legs coming, especially whenever I stood to give my back a rest. To make matters worse, I ran out of water with 1.5 laps to go. Ouch!

So now I'm flying solo, no water, and 20mph headwinds.

I decided to keep an eye on my Powertap, keep it steady, and avoid getting swallowed up by the rest of the pack (which was nowhere to be seen behind me). I tried to keep it steady all the way around the course both times, even in the headwind.

About 1 mile from the finish I caught sight of one of the dudes that I was in the breakaway with that wasn't doing his job pulling. I decided to catch him.

Ramped up the watts a bit, got on the tailwind stretch, and let out everything I had left. Felt like my legs were going to seize up right there on the bike, but I caught him 100m before the line! Ka-ching! 14th place for me. Not so bad when you consider I was racing against guys with much more experience than I. The breakaway that I was dropped from got 10th - 13th.

I know it's only 14th, but I feel good about my results, and am happy to know that I can faithfully use the Powertap as a tool to gauge myself. I was able to stay right "on the edge" without blowing myself up completely, and held off the rest of the pack, even gaining a place.

Looking back on the race, I should not have tried to hang with that fast group that droped the hamer. I guess I hoped it would settle down after things splintered, but I never really caught on to the back of their paceline. I should have given up right there and floated back to the group behind me. I ended up wasting alot of energy trading pulls with the gung-ho dude. Lesson learned!

I hope this bodes well for the season.

The race, 30s smoothing.
http://robbyers.com/power/BigCreekRR_30s.png


2min smoothing (easier to see where I get dropped and start sucking).
http://robbyers.com/power/BigCreekRR_2min.png


The cadence kept dropping out on my Ptap, not sure what's up there.

These numbers prove I suck. My TSS for the day was 280, I can't imagine putting in over 300.

RACE:
Duration: 2:18:59
Work: 1667 kJ
TSS: 250.3 (intensity factor 1.04)
Norm Power: 222
VI: 1.11
Pw:HR: 10.61%
Pa:HR: 7.95%
Distance: 46.412 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 799 200 watts
Heart Rate: 50 186 162 bpm
Cadence: 20 122 84 rpm
Speed: 2.4 31.9 20.0 mph
Pace 1:53 24:46 2:60 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 407 69 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 1333 223 lb-in

I think you should raise your FTP.

Something like 230 seems reasonable.

Thanks, I'll get right on that. :o

Been doing Friel's workouts and training plan, but I think my zones are off. Thinking about switching to Allen/Coggan.

Thanks, I'll get right on that. :o

Been doing Friel's workouts and training plan, but I think my zones are off. Thinking about switching to Allen/Coggan.

Sorry, I think you misinterpreted what I meant.

I intended to say that I believe you're lowballing your FTP based upon the numbers you posted. Your VI isn't all that high (1.11) and for 2h18m, given the power you put out, unless you've got a really flat curve I'd wager your actual FTP is in the realm of 230w.

This would of course assume you're doing 20-30 minute L4 intervals at something approaching 240-250w.

I see, I see.

Well, this is good to hear because you are exactly right, my last test a little over a month ago told me my FTP is 219.:eek: I have another test at the end of this week.

I don't think I've been doing enough long-duration intervals (or any at all, really). Friel doesn't really call for them... the longest I've done are 10min.

I see, I see.

Well, this is good to hear because you are exactly right, my last test a little over a month ago told me my FTP is 219.:eek: I have another test at the end of this week.

I don't think I've been doing enough long-duration intervals (or any at all, really). Friel doesn't really call for them... the longest I've done are 10min.

Friel calls longer intervals M1, M4, M5, M6, and M7, Muscular-Endurance in general. Turn to page 257 of the good book for more info...

I intended to say that I believe you're lowballing your FTP based upon the numbers you posted.

Well, hell, dude. If he had known that before the race it might have been enough extra wattage to not get shelled.

--Steve

Well, hell, dude. If he had known that before the race it might have been enough extra wattage to not get shelled.

--Steve

:rolleyes:haha... not likely!

Well, hell, dude. If he had known that before the race it might have been enough extra wattage to not get shelled.

--Steve

Unless he's very light/aero a 230w FTP honestly isn't going to terribly be competitive yet (sorry). Fortunately it's low enough that I doubt any sort of genetic potential has been reached, so with just general riding, let alone smart training, a more reasonable season ending goal of something like 250-275w should be totally within reach.

Congrats on your first race of the season. 8 hours of driving is hard core.

Unless he's very light/aero a 230w FTP honestly isn't going to terribly be competitive yet (sorry).

Sigh. My post was a lame-ass attempt at a joke.

--Steve

Sigh. My post was a lame-ass attempt at a joke.

--Steve

Eh, I know. I'm multi-tasking. Taking some percs to take the edge off the road rash, while at the same time trying to bang out a research paper that focuses on tedious minutiae have sapped my humor. I'm surfing BF when I get sick of the paper.

Well, thanks for the encouragement, anyway :)

I showed good potential last season, on the few races I was able to do. Hopefully my training the past many months hasn't been for naught and I can make something out of it yet!

Hey! I did that race on Sunday as well... I got 17th in the 4/5 group. So you were just up the road from me :) It was windy as hell out there! My legs were pretty well spent from a MTB race the day before, but it was still a fun time. I'll have to post my power info from it later. We had a freeloader in my little 5 man group as well.

I'm in the blue kit, coming around the start finish line on one of the laps.
http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/4120/bigcreek1tl8rz3.jpg

Hey! I did that race on Sunday as well... I got 17th in the 4/5 group. So you were just up the road from me :) It was windy as hell out there! My legs were pretty well spent from a MTB race the day before, but it was still a fun time. I'll have to post my power info from it later. We had a freeloader in my little 5 man group as well.

I'm in the blue kit, coming around the start finish line on one of the laps.
http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/4120/bigcreek1tl8rz3.jpg

Good job briscoe! That guy behind you in all green gets some major OCP for the matching of everything (helmet, bike, kit):D

That entire team looked like that... they sponsored the race. Sharp!

Yeah, Briscoe, you all were right behind me I guess. Do you know where I can see the results online? I'd like to see what the mix of 5s and 4s were.

You and I are rocking the same bike... Tarmac, right? But I have DA not Campy. Powertap, too. But mine kept falling down :(

http://fryguyimages.smugmug.com/gallery/4668698_xkeh3#275828568

red/white near the back.

Results are here http://cyclingupdate.com/