my58vw

Well I just got back from what could be considered one of my worst races... (wow what a way to start)...

Domingious hills state championship crit, cat 5, 7:00am - 1.5 hours of sleep (got off work at 1 am, got home by 2 am, to sleep by 2:30 am had to get up at 4 am to make the 50 mile drive to the race... all for a 30 minute crit!)

Flat tire 10 minutes before going to the line, myself and another guy from our team... staple through the tire and tube, instant flat. No time to change tire, so I borrowed a friends 10 speed training wheel, an dura ace hubed mavic cvx (something like that), about 250 or so grams heavier in the back than my training or race wheels.

Went to the line and had to go back to find the other team mate who was fixing a flat at the same time. We got going and I started helping out in the front, we were like discovery (ha ha) pushing the pace trying to shed people (we did that), 6 healthnet guys! I was one of the ones to get dropped. I kept on having handling issues between the really lite front deep wheel and the back wheel... fun!

On the way up I was feeling real weak, as in I could barily hold on the steering wheel. I nearly fell asleep behind the wheel, it was bad. My legs just were not working, and after about 10 minutes I could not pedal anymore... I abandoned about 10 minutes in... what a race.

There was two crashes, one took out the main guy from our team but he got up and continued (took 5th), another took 8th and another 9th... not too bad in a field of 40.

Well it was the last race of my season, I had fun, just got up from a nap... now I feel like racing ... Well in the next few days I will reflect on the season, and forget about the flat tires and remember the moments that I will never forget as a cat 5... now on to 4...

Mojo GoGo

What!?!? You didn't win??? You have no business as a Cat 4

Best of luck next year! With training this winter I hope to be competitive as a Cat 5 next year as opposed to pack filler

My sympathies as I had a similar bad morning on the local group ride. Hopefully you had more fun losing sleep than me - my daughter likes to climb in bed with my wife and me turn sideways and knee kick me in the kidneys or jewels...

cjbruin

V-Dub...you crack me up. You're just a train wreck dude Your group rides, races and solo rides all seem to have an element of drama. I think I've been reading your posts since February and I can recall you not having enough money to enter a century...then the LBS sposored you. You crashed in a group ride and almost got the crap kicked out of you (even though you're like 6'5"), on another group ride you got yelled at for being too fast...the list goes on. Now you only get 1.5 hrs of sleep before a race and then get a flat. You kill me!!!

You seem like a nice guy. I really hope your luck gets better.

Gustaf

I dont think that extra 250g of weight is why you got dropped....

and dont they race through like october down there in california?

my58vw

I agree, 250 grams did not get me dropped, lack of sleep, not enough training, ill nutrition, etc... got me dropped, although it is no excuse.

They race year round here, but crit and rr's are until late August and I wanted this to be my last "offical" race, although I will be out in Ontario in a few weeks.

The 250 grams I think is more mental, but my legs were just not working. As for me in drama... hey... that is me! Drama is the reason that I ride solo now 80 percent of the time...

Funny I was just thinking about the century thing last week when I signed up for my next century this year! Actually I think the reason that you think this is because I do not post about the mondane 40 - 50 miles training rides, etc but all the fun stuff... out of the 15 now races I did this year I posted about maybe 7 of them... drama makes our lives fun!

(those darn people should pick up their staples that were out in the road... ahhh!)

offthepace

that sucks but just another day of racin'.
I did my first cat 4 race and just missed top 20
(21st unofficially as the guy who got 20th crossed the line a few inches ahead of me right next to me).
Much smoother than a cat 5 race but the pace was just a tad higher at 26 and some, actually a little slow compared to previous 4,5's i had raced. (for that generally around 24 for that course in the cat 5 races i had done). The riders are definantly stronger, more confident in themselves and their bike handling and actually, a lot less talkative than the cat 5 racers. A lot less (virtually none) "inside"s yelled or hold your lines. Definantly fun and it felt safer. Of course it could just be that race but stil...
I'm not doing west la but i will be doing manhattan beach.

gruesome crash in the cat 3 race (lots of blood and an ambulance) on the final sprint. the guy who got it worse was in and out of consciousness and left lots of blood on the street. He had a history of bad crashes and had had a broken neck. Very disturbing. Everybody was concerned and the next race was very subdued (30+ 123) and the whole race was quiet. The cat 3's also had a crash through turn 3 i think (between 3 and 4). The other rider that went down in the sprint was a phenomenol jr. (who wins lots of races and probably would've won that race hd it not been for the crash) who had some bad road rash and required some attention. Aren't these guys supposed to know what they're doing?
I didn't stay to see any of the other races so... any reports on what happened.

my58vw

^^^^ Sandbagging... exactly!

These guys come out and destroy us on pur local crits... one thing I know, I do not think they are 5's... but this is not a USCF race. Last time they raced 4 if I remmeber right...

Wow, crashfest today after I left... wow! I hope everyone was ok... then "that is racing".

7:00 am is WAY TO EARLY to be racing for sure, that is why I am glad that I am going to 4. Someone said that the cat 5 was something like 25.5 MPH average... not bad!

The guy with the rolf wheels was the one who lent me his wheel... nice guy, it just was not going to be my day... but we all have days like that.

my58vw

Sorry for not saying in the last report... good race too... I will try and keep those guys out of cat 5...

FatguyRacer

Its callled paying the dues. I remember it well and i dont miss it. Sorry about your bad race. It happens. Forget about it and move on.

puddin' legs

Why on earth would anyone sandbag in cat.5? Or 4 for that matter? Is it the tremendous accolades and prize money? If you're finishing regularly in the top 10, move up. If you can't finish in the top ten, you're not ready.

TCR

Yea, them sandbagging HealthNet guys! Unless I plan on joining the HealthNet team I guess it's time for me to upgrade as well since I now officially have 12 mass start races as a CAT5. Actually, I think half the field was sandbagging!! I'm almost positive the guy that won the CAT4 race a few weeks ago at Rancho Dominguez was in the CAT5 field this morning. Oh well, guess that's what you get when it's not USCF regulated.

Aside from the crashes in the CAT5 I really enjoyed this morning's races. I placed 10th in the CAT5, my highest placing this year, and took a prime in the CAT4, my first ever. I didn't stick around long enough to see the posted results for the 4 but I don't think I was in the top 20. There's a possibility but I doubt it. Taking the prime in the CAT 4 race was one of the most exciting moments of all my racing this year. I was sitting at the back of the pack when the bell rang for the prime and thought why not. I started moving up around the outside and felt really good so I just took off halfway between turns 2 and 3. I took a quick look back, saw nobody reacted and kept on motoring. It was an awesome feeling coming around turn 4, way out in front, knowing nobody was going to beat me to the line. Now if I can only do that with the 1 lap to go bell.

cjbruin

Tak. How did you do? Was Johnny Ringo there too?

TCR

Yea, I was on the yellow TCR. What were you riding or what team were you with? Were you in the 4's or 5's?

I won a nutritional book of some sorts. Haven't even looked at it yet; it's still out in my truck somewhere. I've been told it's pretty good so hopefully I'll learn something of what and how to eat.

No, I've never done El Do. I live up in the high desert and that's just too far for me to drive during the week. Occassionaly I'll make the drive down to San Dimas and do Bud's ride on Wednesdays. That one always kicks my azz though. Those guys are way too fast for me on those hills.

Time to check the racing calendar and see what's coming up next.

hi565

I may be wrong here but...

I was talking to a guy at my lbs who has been racing forver and races cat 2 and was cat 1 for a while. And he said really that cat 5 is expirence. Your first race you go into saying ok how does this work. Now after 10 races you have the expirence (that doesnt necessarily mean winning or placing top 5) and you move to cat 4 where you really becomes serious because people now have the expirence and at least know somethng about racing, and have raced before. (now I hope this makes sense because I dont want people to say that hes wrong becasue I wrtoe it wrong)

A word of advice he said to me about racing was "If you can finish the race, there is no reason you cant win it." If you think about it it is very good advice.

next year, oh next year...

hi565

he also said "you need to shave your legs" pause... "this"lifts his shorts a little to show nasty road rash on his shin and kneee! eek!

TheKillerPenguin

ohhhh yeah, taking bandages off with hair hurts so much more. We'll see if I get into another crash tomorrow Any of you rochester guys going to the concrete crit in Rome?

TCR

Yep, I was there. That was my first race. It was more like a flood at times, though.

my58vw

Good job TCR... you definitly are ready for cat 4 also...

I have been thinking about the race all night... ya you know. I will go on, no big deal, definitly will be racing ontario now just go I do not have something over my head all off season

I made a deal with myself... if I ever flatted in a race as a cat 5 I would drop out... and today I realized why. I also realized why you should have a backup set of wheels avalable...

And get some sleep! (I was dozing off all night at my "church duty"... even the pastor made a comment about it


We live and learn, cat 5 is that way...

Mojo GoGo

I'm not planning on it and I haven't heard Geneman mention it...

Why's grandma so mad that she looks like George Blanda?

jit2

Race Report - I Tanked Again

Would have been a more appropriate title.

Another race and same result as always just a diferrent set of excuses. Getting kind of repetitive only now when you write them you will be losing in another Cat.

I can't wait to hear how you fare after the upgrade. Should be worth a few laughs and you'll have the off season to formulate a new set of excuses. Or, do you get to reuse the old ones after the upgrade, you might have to get a ruling from the commissars at your next race.

socalrider

Exactly how many races did you even finish with the pack? Back in the day you would move up when you were ready or had the results to do so.. I know that you can move up by just starting a number of mass start events.. But if your getting smoked every time, that is saying that you are not ready..

I remember after that 1 training ride where you dropped a bunch of your teammates you had thoughts of upgrading then.. This result shows that you need to train more and stay in 5' until you at least get a couple of top 10 finishes..

goodall

[QUOTE=socalrider]I know that you can move up by just starting a number of mass start events.. But if your getting smoked every time, that is saying that you are not ready..
QUOTE]

You have to FINISH ten races to upgrade, not just start. Right?

ZappCatt

NOPE, just start....I think his last post said that he has finished about 40% of his previous 14 races...

FatguyRacer

Considering its cat 5 to cat 4, i dont think it makes a difference if you went 10 or 20 or 30 races. Cat 4 is still a novice class too. There are so many combined 4/5 races nowadays that its almost a moot point. Based on my expierience, Cat 4 isnt any safer, just a little faster and just as insane, but you do have to show results in Cat 4 to move to 3. Do your 10 and move up.

my58vw

Exactly, that is my point. Around here if you can win a cat 5 you can almost win a cat 4, the speeds are maybe 1 MPH different. There is no benefit to staying in cat 5 after 10 races, win, drop or not. It is my choice to upgrade and at the beginning of the season I said I would do this win, lose or not. No one can say upgrade or not but yourself and USCF (or CBR).

Jit2 - You are a jack ASS! I am tired of your trolling comments. Why do you not go and cry to someone who cares. I want you to come out one day with near no sleep, not excuses - REALITY.

If I want to upgrade to three by the end of next season I need to start getting results. Results come with a good off season training, weight room, etc. Take a minute and step in my shoes... actually wait a minute you could never really know. No actually think of it this way, remember the first time you EVER rode a bike. Try that and start racing maybe a week later and try and keep up. Even better, delete about half you muscle mass and do that... and see how quick you get dropped.

I have made great gains this season, more than I ever have though that I could make. No one can take that away from me. Some may say that I should stay in cat 5, if that is the case I would not be here next year - literally - there is a reason for cat 5, to get experience and to me it is the most demoralizing thing to have to start cat 5 over again... it is like failing a grade in school. Why do you think that USCF does not all cat 4 to 5 downgrades? Going to a five would defeat the entire purpose of catagory 5.

What have I done this year...

1. Go from getting dropped in the first lap of a crit to executing a long solo break, finishing in the top 30 in a crit, finishing a 26+ MPH average race, finishing the last 4 of 6 races including Saturday, wining a prime, etc.

2. Learned the essential bike handling skills to be safe in a crit situation.

3. Be involved in ZERO crashes in catagory 5

4. Six pack finishes, a few finishes on the lead lap and several finishes with the cards out.


Should I be CAT 4 now... yes! It is my decision and what happens next season is in my hands. None of you were there or will be there as I suffer through hill repeats, 20 minute LT intervals, sessions in the gym, etc. I am riding stronger now than I ever have, and I am seeing improvment all the time. Well this is it, one more fun race this season and it is over, until next season. Then we will see what my potential is then...

Until then have a good ride... I certainly will...