Cleave

AJ, Hermes, and Velo Diva: Ride fast in Seattle (or thereabouts)!

sarals 

What Cleave said!

I'm off to San Ardo for the NCNCA Championship Road Race. Thinking fast thoughts!

valygrl

Can't wait to hear the race report, sara!

shovelhd

Good luck everybody. Race safe.

sarals 

2014 NCNCA Road Race State Championship, San Ardo Road Race, MW 60-64

I went over the Seven Reasons I Suck as a Bike Racer list on the way home from this one, but that bronze medal trumped each step.

Ex had sent me and my teammate a detailed plan for this race. We were racing in different categories, but we expected to be in the same field. However, not to be. The senior citizens, me included, were only to do one lap, and the "young-uns" (50-59) were to do two. Contrary to what we (the old ladies) wanted, that younger group rolled off before we did. My group consisted of FOUR women, three 60-64 and one 65+. The 65+ lady, Phyllis, is well known and highly respected, and she is awesome. One of the gals in my age group, Nardia, is also well known and respected. Both she and Phyllis are top notch time trialers. Norma was also in the 60-64, and she has a big diesel engine. To top it off, the temperature when we rolled off was 93 degrees and climbing. I just love heat... I had my work cut out for me.

The course goes right into a 2 mile climb, and I knew I needed to stay attached in order to get to the roller section, which made up most of the first half lap. I thought we'd stay together because our field was so small, and it would have to been our benefit to work together. Phyllis told the gals in front of us while we were all on the line that she was "going to bridge up to you!". I thought she was kidding. She wasn't. She got on the front and proceeded to make things hard. I hung tough all the way up the climb, and I was close to redline a few times, but recovery was working and my recent TT experience was keeping me in the game. Then we hit a sharp left hand roller, and Nardia and Phyllis gapped Norma and I. Right after that Norma gapped me. I fought hard over the whole 10 miles of rollers to bridge back up, and I got close, ever so close, twice. No dice, though - just couldn't grab the string.

There was short descent, I got some recovery, then hit a short but steep climb right after the descent, and boom. All she wrote. The heat got me, finally. I don't recall EVER feeling that bad. I recovered some from that, but the long TT effort I put in along with temperatures now over 100 degrees really did me in. There was no full recovery. I could do little more than soft pedal the rest of the way. I fully expected the 50-59 peloton to catch me, but they never did.

I finished close to Norma, I haven't looked at the results, so I don't know her time or mine. Phyllis and Nardia caught and PASSED the 50-59 group, so they had the hammer down. There was no way I was going to match that effort! I am so proud I hung with them over that first climb, we were doing 15 to 18 MPH up that hill.

I'm pretty strong, but I'm not the fastest thing in the world. However, if I get my head right, like I did today, and suck it up and race, I can come away with a medal.

It was a good day!

nacler22

Way to go sara. Now you are a State podium alumna.

The heat kicks my ass as well..............one of the reasons I prefer CX, aka the "stupid" discipline.

sarals 

Thank you, nacler!!! I'll tell you, that medal feels really good!!

Hey, if CX is stupid, then I'm getting dumber. I'll be joining you in the dirt in September! I can fall down and go boom and maybe not break anything.

nacler22

Don't tell Ex, or he'll disown you.

Seriously though, it's way fun. Stupid fun, but fun none the less.

shovelhd

Congratulations Sara. Nobody gave that medal to you. You earned it.

AzTallRider

Awesome, Sara. I'm so happy for you!!

sarals 

AzT, Shovel!!! Thanks, guys! Oh, I feel really good about this medal - I definitely worked my tail off for it. I did earn it!

Nacler - Ex approves!!!

revchuck 

Rocky Mount Stage Race M35+ 4/5, fifth of five.

The week prior was the toughest week to date at my present job in the bike shop - the work itself isn't too bad, but being on my feet that much tires me out. Of course, Friday I had to stay after closing to help finish some work, so I got out of there at 6:30, went home and packed and drove four hours to the race hotel. Great start.

The road race started out pretty well. I actually led out for the first couple of miles, much of it downhill. We rode in a good paceline for the first 45 minutes or so until we came to the hardest climb on the course which forced a selection...which I didn't make. I ended up off the back with another guy, and we rode together for about the next two hours. About then, my ability to make power just went away, and it was all I could do to stay in Zone 2 except for the climbs. I ended up riding the rest of the race by myself. DFL by about 4:40. I was whupped.

Then it started getting hot. How hot? That road race was the association's skill-based championship, and they didn't do podiums due to the heat; they gave out the awards under a small building's overhang. The TT started soon after.

My team sat under a big folding tent with no sides. We drank water and noted that we really should do a warm up prior to the TT. Then we drank some more water and waited for our start times. I got to the starting line a few minutes early, so I actually got to spin a little before I started. The TT was five miles, and started with a slight uphill leading to a six percent downhill that stretched almost a mile. I was spun out in 50-12 about halfway down, couldn't get my fried legs over 110 rpm. I railed the 140 degree corner at the bottom and kept my power near where my coach had planned it on the flat part. I actually was close to my target watts on the uphill part back to the finish line, too. According to my Garmin, it was 102 at the start and 113 at the finish. DFL there, too, but by eight seconds.

The crit was this morning, 40 minutes around a really nice community college campus on a perimeter road with only three 90 degree corners to slow down for, everything else could be taken flat out. Only five showed up at the start. I had the rare good fortune of clipping in on the first try and took the lead. All I was thinking was that I had to make it through this crit. I led for the first two laps; as we passed the start/finish line at the end of the second lap, a prime was called. I kept the lead for about another half lap and then the rest of the guys blew by me. I dug for about 20 seconds to try to catch on, and didn't make it. I went into TT mode at that point, but was still close enough to see one of the guys overcook the next corner and launch into a parking lot. (Turned out that he had been given a free lap and rejoined the race apparently none the worse for wear, we rode the cooldown lap together.) I got lapped a couple of laps before the finish.

That "I just have to survive this crit" mindset screwed me. When those guys passed me and I dug to catch them, I probably could have stood and sprinted and caught back on; I've done it before. I just sat on my ass and pedaled. Lesson learned. I might've ended up fourth instead of fifth.

I led this one out...just because. I know those guys were back there snickering, "SUCKER!" But now I know what it feels like.

nacler22

I think that standing all day is more taxing then riding all day. Tough way to go into a stage race.

Way to give it the college boy try anyhows.

MDcatV

+1. congratulations Sara!

sarals 

MD, thank you!!

sarals 

Chuck, put away the Seven Reasons Why I Suck list and focus on the positive. You did pretty darned well, and left it out there, in a stage race in tough conditions. AFTER having a tough week at work! You finished all the events, and your TT was on the mark. Eight seconds? Outstanding! The crit? Don't lead out, I know it's tempting, but when you're all ready fatigued, sit on a wheel, stay out of the wind, stay attached, don't contest primes, and save it for the end. You learned a lot in this one, buddy, and you did really well. Don't beat yourself up. You pinned on a number and went for it. That says a lot.

MDcatV

@revchuck, sounds like a tough race with temperature conditions, and when it's a small field, it's even harder because it's like riding in a break all day without breakaway mentality (i.e. we should collaborate for a while before we start working against each other).

I've done the "I should have sprinted to get back on instead of what I did," i.e. i should have dug deeper thing, but if I sit down and really consider it, with very few exceptions I was out of shovel, there was no more digging to do.

MDcatV

Since I put this out there, I thought I'd just reply to it. As stated, it's a flat 40K TT on the eastern shore of Maryland. The typical course is a help wind for about 20K to 25K then a hurt wind for the next 20K to 15K, with hardest headwind being last 10K dead into it. I've been practicing on my TT bike much more than prior years and was pretty comfortable in what I could do. My goal was to be in the 56 minute marker. Got there in plenty of time, warmed up like I typically do, mostly ez spinning with a few efforts to get the heart pumping and roll to the start line.

Bobby the bullet Phillips was the holder at the start. Always nice to see Bobby. I am not a big fan of being held at the start, trust issues I guess and I always feel like I'm going to get dropped, but I didnt, so all good.

Countdown, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and go! I got up to speed quickly and settled in, focusing on not starting too hard and keeping wattage in low threshold range. I noticed in that range, my speed was a little less than I'd expected, and forced myself to forget about it, focus on the Ws and the Ss would take care of themselves. The first turn is about 4 or 5K in, and approaching it, I noticed that the guy 30" behind me was on me. I know him, and respect his ability, but didnt expect to see him on me at all, let alone that quickly. I railed the turn in the saddle without stopping pedaling and kept it going. Guy behind me passed me a few minutes later. It took some mental fortitude to not panic and said to myself, this is an ITT, if you get caught up in chasing or negative thoughts, you'll blow. So I just kept with my pacing strategy. A few minutes later a nat champ TT guy came flying by. He's a former teammate of mine and is a TT specialist. Rock on brotha!

So, I'm pacing it, and rolling along, which is kind of what you do in a TT. The guy who passed me was continuously about 100M or less in front of me. I didnt want to pick up a draft from him due to a) it would falsify my time; b) it's cheating and could get a DQ, which would be really embarrassing, but I didnt want to blow past him and mess up my pacing. So, if he went to the mid of the road, i'd go to the side, etc. At about 20K I was at 28 minutes and change. Quick math, I have a chance at 56 mins., how many seconds was it in the 28 minute? damn, I dont remember, OK, just keep pedaling!

I started upping my pace and realized I was gaining on guy in front of me, then at 25K or so, I passed him and then another guy, then some people that I'm not sure if they were TTing or riding, if they were really even there or just my imagination. no matter.

I made the final turn onto the head wind section and knew this was going to be the slowest leg of the course but I needed to slice it to get to my goal time. I started having conversations with myself. "turn a bigger gear, no higher cadence, no just go with what feels better, stay aero, no go with what's faster, no go with whats higher wattage, does that truck have truck nuts on it?, rumble strip ouch that hurt, stay aero, pedal harder, smooth, wiggle your jaw, relax, rumble strip ouch that hurt, 5K to go, keep your head down, 3K to go I dont think I'm going to finish, 2K to go, harder, bury it, I must have missed the 1K sign, ****, there it is, 1K to go, where is the goddam finish line, harder!, 500M seriously?, harder, there's the finish, sprint!!!!!!, and I rolled across in what was 57:19 on my computer, but 57:22 on the official timing.

So, I missed my target, but I was 12W higher AP than last year, 36 seconds faster than last year, and paced it perfectly with my max 1' being my last minute, etc. all the way to max 30" which were at the start.

pedaled back to the reg area with some others who thought it was a slow day, and some who thought it was a fast day, etc. results posted, and they have me listed as 4th in the 35+ list. What? OK, so there were only 13 finishers and my former teammate who passed me DNFd somehow. 1 spot from the podium, but 2 minutes and 2 seconds away, so not very close.

Highlight of the day was the crab cake sandwich I had at a place called the Suicide Bridge Restaurant, best ever!

Then lowlight was the 4 hours it took me to get home due to a nasty crash on the chesapeake bay bridge that had beach traffic backed up for miles and miles.

That's a lot of words for an ITT!

edit: best time of the day was 49:29. for 40K. that's over 30 mph. that's fast. and non-masters age poster @echappist put down a 56:26 on the day :-).

Racer Ex 

That was only his 2nd 40k ever BTW. We had him put in a lot of TT bike work over the last two weeks; I see good things in the future.

So despite 8 hours in 8 weeks I figured I'd go race the Ontario closer; chance to meet some new teammates and help my tandem partner Big M lock down 2nd place in the series overall. Felt OK in warm up, plan was for me to save what I had for the last few laps to help control things and set up the sprint. 3rd place had a big team and was only 4 points out, there would be a 4 point prime and 15 points sliding downward for the various finishing positions.

I sat in for the first 20 minutes or so, gliding around between 20-40th, close enough to keep an eye on the front but staying out of the wind. When they called a prime I figured I'd slide up just in case, 3rd place in the series was moving up and I wanted to cover any move he made.

My doppelganger from another team jumped and started to gap the field. I thought about it for a minute, figured they were going to ring the points prime bell soon, and knew we could stay out and make 3rd place chase, so I jumped across. Coming to the line for the prime it would have been an easy sprint but he was doing a lot more pulling than I was so I told him "it's yours". A lap later they called the points prime, ended up a teammate of the 3rd place guy (and series points leader) bridged up and took the points. Didn't quite get that move.

We got gobbled up right after, so I went back into shadow mode. 5 to go two groups of two go OTF, one of them has a really strong TT guy in it. We sit and wait for a chase but the rest of the field seems to be fine with letting this go and the gaps get bigger. One of my new teammates goes to the front and starts to ride hard tempo with Big M sitting. I slide up the field and then slide in front of him to give him a break. Now there's three of us on the front. We start rotating and not long after our other new teammate comes up to help. We've got the whole team on the front now...hoping we can get a picture of this.

We slowly draw the two breaks back, and make the catch with less than 2 to go. There's a bit of bunching, and Big M and our other teammate get elbowed back a few spots. The "ONE" card comes up and I go to the front and ramp it up to 31 into the headwind. By this point a guy had pushed in onto my back wheel. He pulls off with me (bad move) but my other teammate takes over. Big M is a bit further back on our other teammates wheel. He gets pulled up enough contest the sprint, taking 3rd and locking up 2nd for the series.

Really fun race. We worked really well as a team, and almost nailed the lead out train. It's a bit of a bummer that I won't get to race with these guys as much with the move, but it's going to be a lot of fun when I do. We have two other strong guys and if we can get the whole crew out at once next year...

shovelhd

Nice work MDCat. Anything you would have done differently? Great to see you back in action Ex.

MDcatV

@Racer Ex, yep, I'm happy for chappy! he's got a high ceiling for ITT, and FTR, only my 2nd 40K TT as well.

MDcatV

thanks, I've gone over the file and subjective details, and cant say definitively what I could have done differently to achieve trimming 23" off of my time. I've broken it down into 3 legs based on the turns, and show that my first leg was at 264W for 22'; 2nd was at 272W for 15'; 3rd was 283W to the finish line so 20', which is the max 20' i've ever done on a TT bike. AP for the duration was 273W, so pacing wise, I might have had too much in the tank at the end, but sensations do not support that theory.

I've only done 2 40K TTs, but I think best strategy for going faster is going to be position adjustment to get more aero ... and buying some speed (i.e. equipment optimization), which I'm prob not going to do.

sarals 

MD, that was a great read. You brought into clear focus the (nightmares) visions that go through my head in an ITT. Great ride!!

Ex, what Shovel said! That sounded like a good time as well as being a great race. Say hi to Big M for me and tell him I said "congrats!"

IBOHUNT

Well done. I had a horrible day finishing with a time 3 minutes slower than my previous Church Creek.
Trying to get back to the west really really sucked. I can only hope that the lady that was medevaced off is doing OK. I'm surprised that there aren't more head on collisions. Sure someone will be losing their job for that happening.

IBOHUNT

BAM! Well done Sara; congrats