Thread: Tall Tales
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Old 04-13-13, 01:44 PM
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AzTallRider
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2013-04-13 AZ Criterium Championships

M55-59:
I almost bowed out of this race, not because I'm on my backup bike, but because I started finally succumbing to a head cold exposure on Thursday. But I worked from home Friday, hydrating like mad, and appear to have fought it off. So I raced in what, for many of the 55+ crowd, became a lesson in "be careful what you ask for". We were scheduled to start with the 50-54 pack, but there were enough guys asking for a delayed start, and claiming (falsely) that it had been done last year, that the officials agreed and delayed us for 30". Laps on that course run ~1:45 to 2:00. They kept our start close to the 50's, no doubt to try to delay them lapping us. No doubt that seemed reasonable to the officials at the time.

We start, and almost immediately a couple of guys are pushing the pace. My HR quickly gets up into rare territory. It's windy, which is typical for that course this time of year, but the direction is a bit different. It's in our faces on the short section leading to the home straight, and on that start-finish leg (uphill) as well. It makes that uphill leg a real challenge, and I am hanging on by my fingernails after only a few laps of it. A couple of 55 guys go OTB, and we are passing a few that fell off the larger the 50 pack. The make-or-break point comes as we are getting close to the 50 pack on the uphill stretch. Someone decides to crank it up the hill, and I fall back to where I'm pushing some air. We head down towards a fast turn, with me working to close the gap I gave up on the hill, and hit the 50 pack right after the turn. At first, it looks like the 55 guys have backed off, but as I get there and check numbers I realize they are already past, and I crank it to get around the 50's. I'm just off the back of my pack as we hit the hill again, and am unable to hold on. After a few futile solo laps, I'm out.

As the race plays out, only three 55 guys are left on the lead lap, avoiding a 2 man break from the 50's. The five of them do a good job of avoiding drafting each other. One 55 crashes, gets his bike squared away in the pit, and rejoins the other two. He tries to take the sprinter out of his game at the finish, but to no avail. The sprinter goes from ~300m out, and it is no contest as he coasts over the line. Deserving win for him. The 2 50's are never threatened, and it is a pack sprint for third in the 50's. Pretty sure only the three from our 55 pack got a finish. Small field, splintered by running into the 50's and by a strong wind... kablooey.

So, a bit of a cluster, but the really good guys showed their stuff and handled it well.
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