happybday29475

So, in 1.5 weeks is Tulsa Tough. Should I:

a) make the trek to Tulsa to compete in 2 Masters' B's crits (B's are 40+ 3's and 4's, so it will be my first racing with 3's, and also with folks 10 years younger)

or

b) stay close to home and chase 50+/4 BAR points, and compete in a TT (maybe ~5th place finish) and a HC (maybe mid-pack finish)? I'm a contender in the BAR competition and the points from each event (even at my guestimated finish) will keep me in the hunt, or possibly even lead.

TT's I'm actually enjoying. HC's I'll be well off the winning pace (I'll be the biggest guy on the startline), but HC's are always a fun/rewarding workout.


I can't decide. I had planned on Tulsa Tough but then I never imagined that I would be a BAR contender.

shovelhd

Being able to get away and stay away to win takes a combination of things, all of which you need to train specifically for. It takes technique, power management, and confidence, as well as some luck. Nobody wants to go with you because they know that you will beat them in the sprint. So they will test you solo until you beat them solo. In the meantime keep working on your ten minute power and confidence by trying things in training races. Don't start the break, go with a decent looking one instead. Assess the commitment and work hard to make it succeed, even if you have to do a little more work early on. Don't focus on saving energy for the sprint. You know you have a good one. Be confident. You won't win if the break doesn't stick.

valygrl

You mean, like vomit. No, but almost.

IBOHUNT

Could of had you a Team Stem Sticker

happybday29475

Thank you.

LAJ

Sunshine Hill Climb. 21/29 I knew that there was only reason to enter this, and it was for training purposes only. 9 miles, 3100 feet of climbing, and 3 miles of dirt at the top. Detestable course, and I went into it with that attitude. My power was where it should have been, and there was no reason I shouldn't have done better than I did, other than attitude. So, after talking to John, that's on the upswing. Just because I'm not a waif, and can't climb like a goat, doesn't mean I shouldn't go out and kill it. Simple as that. No one is saying I can go out and win the thing, but there are PR's around every corner. Next Sunday is the Guanella Pass H/C, which is roughly the same elevation gain, no dirt, and a couple miles longer. It finishes at 11,700 feet, so that's a bit of a difference.. I plan on having a good time.

The highlight of the day was enjoying a conversation and a piece of pie with rapwithtom after the race. Stuff like that turns a good day on the bike, into a day that's great.

Heathpack 

Pie? You ate pie? All I can say is that I hope it was professionally made pie, because there is nothing more self-evident than the fact that professionally made pie is superior to homemade pie.

I talked two of my Nightcrawler friends into Piru tomorrow. One of them was telling me yesterday how she's done the TT before and she even won her class. Shut up, why did I invite you anyway?! Lol, she was the only one in her class it turns out. But still. If I hadn't invited her, maybe *I* would have been the only one in my class. Live and learn.

And, looking on the bright side: if next week's climb is a few miles longer but has the same elevation gain, it logically follows that it will be less steep and therefore more fun.

LAJ

That's my logic too, @Heathpack.

Rip their legs off today!

Heathpack 

I learned last night that my NC friend is bringing the Boy Wonder. So I should have the unique pleasure of being passed by a 14 year old. Fun times.

valygrl

Nice job LAJ and rapwithtom, even giving that race a sthot. I only did it once, and it was so bad for me, I haven't gone back.

sarals 

No, you'll pass him! Think positive!! Good luck out there today!!!

sarals 

+1! Great job!!

Heathpack 

Haha, I see that you are unfamiliar with the Boy Wonder. Very likely he will pass me, he is not your average kid. It will depend on how many people are there, as I undertsand things, I should start before him but I'm not sure how far ahead. It's actually kind of a good thing, now I'm expecting to be passed and it won't freak me out.

But that's fine, I have a number of items on my agenda for today's TT. Competing with a young cycling phenomenon is not one of them.

revchuck 

Good job LAJ & RWT! Heathpack, make sure that whippersnapper has to work to pass you.

sarals 

My take!!!

Heathpack 

Piru 20k TT, 2nd/5. My first TT or race of any kind. It was really fun. Flat course (actually 1% downhill out and 1% uphill back), out and back, 30 second starts. I had a pretty specific game plan and pretty much executed it exactly- I wound up riding an ave power 1 watt higher than my plan. And I finished 1 min 10 sec under my goal time.

Typical minor rookie mistakes. I lost track of where I was when I was warming up and had to hustle to make the start, but then the whole thing started late anyway. I was the first start, which left me a little confused because I've never even seen a TT actually so I didn't really know what to expect. Then a little flustered by it all and trouble clipping in at the beginning.

But once I got going, I hit my groove and all was right with the world again. Nine minutes in, I got passed by the road-bike guy behind me, then I passed him back at 16 minutes and then he passed me again just before the turn-around. I didn't want to get anywhere near him, he had been riding the whole time down the middle of the (non-closed but fortunately low traffic) road and was generally a little erratic. So I slowed down significantly to give him a wide berth at the turn.

On the return leg, I felt pretty good, ramped it up a little. For sure though if my attention would lapse even a little, my power would drop a lot, I had to really try to focus. The road-bike guy ahead of me was fatiguing and riding an uneven pace, I also found that when he would slow, it was sorely tempting to ease up myself, almost like an excuse to do so. I poured it on during the last minute or two and almost caught the guy.

The weirdest thing was that I rode 98% of the 36 minutes over my LTHR and I didn't even feel that stressed by it. I could see the HR numbers on my computer but they didn't seem to correlate with how I felt, so I just kind of disregarded them. It was a little hot, maybe that's what it was.

I got passed by 3 or 4 people, but besides the road bike guy just behind me, it was all men on TT bikes, so ok by me. The Boy Wonder did not pass me, he started way after me (although he did ride 4 mph faster than me). Overall, there were more people than I expected and it went better than I expected. I was pretty wiped at the finish, but I still think I could have gone a hair harder. I'm happy with it, though, I think it was a good a first effort.

valygrl

Nice, Heathpack! Pretty soon, you'll be racing crits. Never say never.

sarals 

I knew it. I could have written that for you! Yes, TT's are all about pain and concentration, and you'll find (once you settle down, something us low-time TT types have trouble doing) that you fall into the pain cave and don't look up. I think perhaps if you'd had a better clip-in and turnaround, your time would have been enough to put you into first?

Outstanding job, Heathie - I'm proud of you!

valygrl

Ridge at 38 SW3 10/13,

6 corner crit with the last 3 corners being very short blocks and then a super short finish stretch, like 50meters. I was tired from a training ride yesterday, and feeling un-confident about the finish (I do better with a longer finish), so I decided to work for my teammate. I guess that almost feels like a cop-out, but it ended up being super fun.

I tried to bridge to an early break, which ended up bringing the break back but I didn't get separation. I brought back (most of the way) the 3-to-go break, and gave my teammate a leadout up to the 3rd to last corner, from which she held on to win.

shovelhd

Nice racing LAJ, valygrl, and heathpack.

LAJ

Thank you all!


Great stuff, Heathpack! Kinda fun, eh?

Very nice, valygrl! That's one crit I do miss doing. Being in my old stomping grounds, I would have liked to have given it a shot.

revchuck 

Ditto!

Heathpack 

I can see the appeal.

sarals 

LAJ, Valygrl - nice job! Great racing by the both of you!!!

happybday29475

Sunshine Hill Climb - 11th, minutes off the winning time

You know how I've been whining about crits being too cruisey? Well, to a 200-pound fatty, there's no better antidote to cruisey than a 3,000' hill climb with sections of 14% grade.

There was one delectable moment when I caught and passed my chief BAR competition near the top. It just might have made the suffering worthwhile. No it didn't.

The previously mentioned apple pie with LAJ and the subsequent 2-hour nap were well-earned and well appreciated!

Horrifyingly, because I'm chasing BAR points, there's another 3,000' monster in my near future. To my knowledge, there's no pie shop on top.