globecanvas

Great shots. Somebody left a loofah on the apron though.


I'm planning to do some track racing next year, never done it, really looking forward to it. Though I think Kissena is a lot less picturesque.

sarals 

Nice work, Ex. I am always surprised by how you surprise yourself. Good stuff!

valygrl

Lookout Mtn Hill Climb SW3, 9th/11. well I'm consistent, anyway.... consistently bringing up the rear in any race involving a hill. :/

LAJ

Nice work, valygrl. It was stinkin' hot today.

sarals 

VG, you did well. I'm sure you were close, and I know the competition is very tough!

valygrl

thanks guys. I finished my weekend by getting dropped in a P123 crit and chasing with another girl for 20 minutes, then screwing up the last lap and she came in ahead of me. ouch! I seem to be in my usual late-season slump. Oh well. One more crit next weekend then a few weeks w/no racing, so finally some time to train!

Hermes

Yesterday, 500 meters and 2k pursuit done and dusted. I was very close to a PR in the 500 meters and competitive with my competition. My leg felt very good - no problem. It is still a little tight. It is going to take months to become normal if it ever does.

I did well in the 2K for the limited training I have done. I was glad that I could do it at all. The motor drills really helped and I went with a smaller gear. Floating the turns for a couple of pedal strokes requires more power coming out of the turns and a small gear is easier to accelerate. I targeted a couple of RPMs higher to get the lap times I wanted. My legs did not load up and I was able to accelerate and increase the speed of my last lap.

Heathpack 

Just nice to be back at it, I'm sure, feeling pretty ok.

LAJ

Tough weekend, valygrl. In your defense, you sure didn't pick any slouches to race with. I think you did very well.

New course next weekend. Of course, all the horses have escaped, so I'm glad the barn door is finally shut.

LAJ

Very cool, Hermes. Back at it in a strong way!

LAJ

I did Mt. Evans Hill Climb weekend before last, and the whole weekend was such a piece of crap, I really didn't have much to say. Rain during the Mile High National on Friday, so Mrs. LAJ and I only saw one round of qualifying runs. I did get my nitro fix, which may have explained Saturday's performance... Sunday, we left the drags because the wino's were just too much to handle. Saturday, I rode/raced from Idaho Springs to the top of Mt. Evans, which is 7K climbing in 27 miles, starting at 8,000 feet. It was brutal, I didn't perform well, and it really is a tough climb. 19/29 Being big boned is rough in that setting.

Last Saturday was Lookout Mountain. As referenced, it was hot out there. This was a mass start, and holy crap did they go out hard. I hung with the top ten longer than expected, but ended up 12th out of 27.

20 minute test tonight, then I think I get to go ride my bike for a couple months.

valygrl

I was wondering why we hadn't heard from you LAJ. Mt Evans is such a ridiculously hard race - good job for doing it. Racing at that altitude is ... I don't even know what word to use!

Isn't Lookout a 20 minute test?

Racer Ex 

Just take the data from the hill climbs and save yourself the pain.

LAJ

Thanks valygrl. I swore I would never do it again, but of course, that was a week ago. I plan on doing better next year.

That's what I thought too, regarding the 20 minute test. but it went out so hard that I think I would have done a bit better had I kept just a little in reserve. But, it was important to try and hang with the boys as long as I could.

LAJ

Mount Evans was so pathetic, that it put me into the negative power range.

sarals 

Red Kite #12 Criterium, Cat 3, Livermore, CA


Teammates - Norma


I needed to get a crit in my legs prior to the State Championship criterium, which is fast approaching. It dawned on me that I haven't done a crit since May, although I did do a road race on a closed course in mid June. That was a month and a half ago, and my intensity and fitness was sure to have suffered. This race was on a flat course in an industrial park in Livermore. It featured four corners, wide streets, some Botts Dots, good pavement. My kind of course! The field was combined Cat 3/4, and I believe it was around 24 riders? My plan was to stay out of trouble, stay attached, get some intensity, and finish the race.


I warmed up for 25 minutes on the trainer, and then did 15 or so minutes on the road. I was NOT pleased with how my legs felt. I felt if I stayed sheltered, I'd be okay, and I'm not one to chase primes or silly breaks, anyway.


We rolled off at the whistle, and the peloton settled into a moderate pace. I was back 1/3 for the first lap, staying outside (to the left) and watching the other riders to get a gauge on skills. In the second lap the pace picked up a bit, and I was still feeling fine, having zero issues staying where I wanted to in the peloton. At some point Norma came up, and I got her wheel. She also preferred the left side, which was quite comfortable for me. I felt very good on Norma's wheel. She's a great bike handler, and she is very experienced and does a fabulous job reading a race. On the third lap, the peloton stretched the speed up to close to 30 MPH on the short chute between the back straight and the finish straight. That one tested me pretty well, but staying sheltered and where I wanted to be, not allowing gaps to form, was still no issue. At some point I "drifted" up the left side of the peloton and ended up second or third wheel. I was feeling too much wind up there, so I drifted back to the rear 1/3. I was relieved to see that there was not a lot of surging, cornering was steady, and the lines and skills appeared to be fine.


On the fifth lap the prime bell rang. The peloton did not ramp up the pace significantly, although one or two riders started moving up to position themselves for the prime sprint. I let them go, I'm not interested in burning matches for a bottle of wine! Then, on the short chute between the back straight and the finish straight there was a crash in front of me, about mid pack. I heard it and I heard the yelling before I saw it, and when I did see it, I saw a bike up the air and three riders on the ground. I had room to move left, following Norma and other riders.


The race was neutralized for 20 to 30 minutes because of the crash so EMS could tend to two of the downed riders. The race officials stopped us at the start/finish line. I rode around a bit, trying to keep my legs warm, but, tall order!


We rolled off again with 8 laps to go. I settled in on Norma's wheel and we stayed at the back of the peloton. On the next lap, a pretty good gap opened up between us and the main field, so I came around Norma (who had been doing more than her share of work), and told her I'd pull her back up to the pack. I was feeling pretty good and I was confident I could bridge us both to the pack. Nope! I had timed it counting on the pack slowing for one of the corners, but they didn't slow. I had to pull off, and Norma came around me. I got back on her wheel to recover, we settled into our own pace.


I took a pull on the next lap, but I went way too long. I started to blow, and when Norma came around me I couldn't get her wheel. If this had been a "do or die" situation, I would have dug deep to stay with her, but I didn't feel I needed to do that. My legs weren't there, the lack of intensity and lack of meaningful rest were really telling on me, so I sat up and let Norma go ahead.


I finished four laps later, DFL, but that's okay.


I was staying with the younger women very well, in spite of my current fitness level. I was a little concerned that I didn't have the "will" to stay on, but after considering that, I'm okay with my reasoning - "live to fight another day". I had concerns about the pack skills going into this race, and I'm sorry my concerns were born out. Those worries did affect how animated I was in the race, and it also affected my placement in the peloton. I prefer the front 1/3, not the back 1/3, but I was being safe.


All in all, it was a good hard race.


Thanks for reading!

shovelhd

Did Norma catch the field?

sarals 

No, she was only about a quarter lap ahead of me.

bostongarden

@sarals A solid race where, perhaps, you exceeded your plan. Well done.

Heathpack 

Nice report, @sarals. Sounds like your mission was mostly (fully?) accomplished. The definition of success is not necessarily told in the final placements for any given race.

sarals 

Thanks, folks! It would have been nice to stay with the pack, and on a day that I needed to, I would have. This was training for me. I'm VERY glad I was able to miss that crash, but I'm not so glad that my concerns about one happening dampened my "aggression". It's almost like I left my racing instinct in my car. Well, the State Crit will be different. That one means a lot to me.

shovelhd

It was a good warmup. You'll be ready.

revchuck 

Sara - you're probably the last person I'd worry about concerning having the will to stay on. Good chance that going deep enough to stay with Norma would've done more harm than good. Save it for State!

happybday29475

Just one more thing...

50/4's CO State Crit Championships: 1 / 35.

I'm now a 3.


Tl;DR
Uneventful until the end; there were a few attacks, a couple I covered, most were covered by others. Last lap, 1 guy attacked from 3' out, I was boxed in, couldn't follow. 2nd wheel (not counting the solo flier) into final corner before 500m straight...guy in front of me didn't make the corner and went off in the weeds, leaving me at the front of the field. Being at the front of the field is not where I wanted to be from that far out (learned the hard way 3 weeks ago). Thankfully, Steve, a super strong guy, came around me and graciously led me to about 100m, where I went around him. We both nipped the guy who took the long flier.


Mental Floss
I spent the last 2 weeks on vacation in Europe. I rode some, but did no structured training. We returned 36 hours before race time. Race day I was tired and jet-lagged, not motivated, worried about not being sharp, and thinking mostly about those fine croissants on the other side of the pond. I honestly nearly skipped the race; I showed up just committing to myself to simply get a hard workout.

In hindsight, it's pretty obvious that all of my best results this year have been where I didn't put pressure on myself. I really need to get a grip on the mental aspect!


Appreciation
3 weeks ago, I thought I was done for the year, and gave my overall season an "A". Now this...yippee! Better than I ever imagined a few months ago!


Certification
I am now qualified to post here - right?

valygrl

Tom wow!!! So cool, congrats on the championship and the upgrade! That's huge. So happy for you.