Race reports

I meant to post this yesterday but got distracted after doing the OP. :o

I rode my first ever crit yesterday at the Tameside circuit on the east side of Manchester. It was a 4th cat only race for an hour. I've done a fair bit of track riding now but this was my first road race. I ended up losing the bunch after about 40 minutes and rolling back to the starter's hut. I've had a cold all week and wasn't feeling too great, but it was still a good experience to get some laps in at race pace.

Coming from the track to the road was not much of an advantage as the skills are so different. I really struggled with moving up the bunch on what was a relatively narrow circuit, and that meant working hard to chase back on after tight corners. All that effort added up in to being spat out the back eventually and chasing back on was never going to happen with the wind. I just don't have the absolute power to ride like that - need a circuit with a few lumps in to make it interesting!

I feel like I could at least get a top 10 though with a few more skills and knowing the right wheels to follow. Just have to keep practising and training.

https://www.strava.com/activities/268460485
 
I saw this show up in your ride feed yesterday. It looked like fun :) I suspect I'd struggle with a narrow course and the bends too tbh... Let alone all the other stuff when it comes to racing.
 
Handicap race at the weekend, same as two weeks ago.

Moved up a bunch to the block group, but had a similar handicap time as we previously did. We gained a big guy off the scratch group who got put back to our group who is a machine on the flats. Going out to the hill we were hitting 45-50kmh rolling turns in our group of 4.

Going up the climb the other guys struggled a bit more than me on the steep bits, but when it was 1-4% the speed ramped up again massively. Going over the top of the hill we started to pickup other groups, blowing past a few riders on small rollers. At the turn around we had a few passengers but we were still going full gas rolling turns, had maybe 1 min over the scratch group who I think started 1-30 behind. A small climb before a big downhill was enough to unseat all the hangers on apart from a national road women's rider who joined us.

From there to the finish we just went flat out doing turns, the big guy did a massive turn in the last 2km as scratch were within 15 seconds of us, and we put time into them then. I almost went off the back of the group then! One guy jumped and just went for it 500m out incase we got caught. He picked up the win, the big guy got second and I rolled the NRS lady on the line for third.

Podium clean sweep from our group, 5 minutes faster than two weeks ago. The main difference was getting back up to speed after cresting the climbs, there was no hanging about waiting for people. Straight back to full gas, kept our group of 4 together even if it meant holding back slightly at some points for each other.

43.9km, average speed 40.0kmh, elevation all over the place on different segments, but about 400m. No power as using Zipp wheels.

Got home, two hours later, flat front and rear tubulars! Lucky, or not... If I'd been on clinchers I might have flatted out the race.

Spent all my winnings in the coffee shop as I had hunger shakes by then.
 
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One More Solo said:
I meant to post this yesterday but got distracted after doing the OP. :o

I rode my first ever crit yesterday at the Tameside circuit on the east side of Manchester. It was a 4th cat only race for an hour. I've done a fair bit of track riding now but this was my first road race. I ended up losing the bunch after about 40 minutes and rolling back to the starter's hut. I've had a cold all week and wasn't feeling too great, but it was still a good experience to get some laps in at race pace.

Coming from the track to the road was not much of an advantage as the skills are so different. I really struggled with moving up the bunch on what was a relatively narrow circuit, and that meant working hard to chase back on after tight corners. All that effort added up in to being spat out the back eventually and chasing back on was never going to happen with the wind. I just don't have the absolute power to ride like that - need a circuit with a few lumps in to make it interesting!

I feel like I could at least get a top 10 though with a few more skills and knowing the right wheels to follow. Just have to keep practising and training.

https://www.strava.com/activities/268460485
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Nicely done. Takes guts to put yourself in for that sort of thing. well done.
 
One More Solo said:
I meant to post this yesterday but got distracted after doing the OP. :o

I rode my first ever crit yesterday at the Tameside circuit on the east side of Manchester. It was a 4th cat only race for an hour. I've done a fair bit of track riding now but this was my first road race. I ended up losing the bunch after about 40 minutes and rolling back to the starter's hut. I've had a cold all week and wasn't feeling too great, but it was still a good experience to get some laps in at race pace.

Coming from the track to the road was not much of an advantage as the skills are so different. I really struggled with moving up the bunch on what was a relatively narrow circuit, and that meant working hard to chase back on after tight corners. All that effort added up in to being spat out the back eventually and chasing back on was never going to happen with the wind. I just don't have the absolute power to ride like that - need a circuit with a few lumps in to make it interesting!

I feel like I could at least get a top 10 though with a few more skills and knowing the right wheels to follow. Just have to keep practising and training.

https://www.strava.com/activities/268460485
Click to expand...

Nice one, good to read another on the forum having a go at racing. There is very little in training that can easily replicate the surging of crits, so to keep in touch that long with a cold having been used to track riding only is good. I'm sure after another race or two and feeling healthy, you'll be more than comfortable in the bunch.
 
One More Solo said:
^Thanks. Lad I know posted up his own race later that day, 90km at an average of 40km/h. Put it into perspective really!
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I guess that would be a road race though?
It's so much easier to maintain a high speed in a road race, especially if you dont need to work at the front and you can just roll along in the middle of the bunch.
I would guess that your 30ish kilometre crit is pretty similar in terms of energy expended to a 90k road race.
 
touch said:
I guess that would be a road race though?
It's so much easier to maintain a high speed in a road race, especially if you dont need to work at the front and you can just roll along in the middle of the bunch.
I would guess that your 30ish kilometre crit is pretty similar in terms of energy expended to a 90k road race.
Click to expand...

It very much depends on the circuit. That one that OMS did had some nasty hairpin turns which would require a lot of speed to be scrubbed off. The racing at the Hillingdon cirucit in North London is pretty brutal even in CAT 4. Those races average 41/42kmph and 45kmph in CAT 3. Most lay people don't appreciate just how hard it is to pedal at that speed. If you get dropped it must be near impossible to get back on unless you are super strong.

Having said that I noticed on Laurens ten Dam strava feed the other day that he average 212 watts over a stage that hit 26mph average. Shows the power of the peloton draft.
 
Calpol said:
It very much depends on the circuit. That one that OMS did had some nasty hairpin turns which would require a lot of speed to be scrubbed off. The racing at the Hillingdon cirucit in North London is pretty brutal even in CAT 4. Those races average 41/42kmph and 45kmph in CAT 3. Most lay people don't appreciate just how hard it is to pedal at that speed. If you get dropped it must be near impossible to get back on unless you are super strong.

Having said that I noticed on Laurens ten Dam strava feed the other day that he average 212 watts over a stage that hit 26mph average. Shows the power of the peloton draft.
Click to expand...

Someone was saying on another forum that the year Boonen went off the front in the Paris-Roubaix, he averaged 440w for the hour, which shows you what some of these pros are also capable of. Just insane numbers. I can't even hold that for 5 minutes, let alone an hour.
 
Thomas. PLease. said:
Someone was saying on another forum that the year Boonen went off the front in the Paris-Roubaix, he averaged 440w for the hour, which shows you what some of these pros are also capable of. Just insane numbers. I can't even hold that for 5 minutes, let alone an hour.
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Read that in pro cycling its a Wiggins quote, but thought it referred to Cancellara.
 
touch said:
I guess that would be a road race though?
It's so much easier to maintain a high speed in a road race, especially if you dont need to work at the front and you can just roll along in the middle of the bunch.
I would guess that your 30ish kilometre crit is pretty similar in terms of energy expended to a 90k road race.
Click to expand...

Yeah - his was a fairly non-technical road race but CAT 2/3/4 so obviously a much higher standard.

The sprints from 20-25kph up to 40-45kph every lap on the hairpin finished me I think. I didn't have my cadence meter going sadly but apparently my comedy track cadence stood out a mile among the grinding roadies. :p
 
Tough 67km with 750m elevation scratch race today. Average 35kmh, max speed of 81kmh! Things get a bit sketchy over 75kmh usually as that seems to be the speed I can get a speed wobble on, was ok today, but it's not a straight descent, some sweeping bends and usually a few bits of loose chip.

Small group today to race against as some riders are away racing and a few didn't show. Two CAT3 climbs and a few small climbs non categorised.

Few attacks but all together by the first climb. Short descent halfway up, I was allowed to get a small gap off the front which I was glad for, I could ride the steeper second half at my pace. Got to the top with 20 seconds or so gap, sat up and waited, with 8km or so descent I didn't want to set off and have the bunch fly by me when it flattened out a bit with a huge speed difference.

Two riders gone after the climb, I put in a big turn on the lower slopes of the descent and blew someone else off the back. We all sat up for a bit and he got back on.

Threw another attack out there and got 100m or so gap, kept going on my own but never got more than 250m and after 5km I got caught. Another rider did the same thing almost straight away, then people started to try and jump across. I got on someone's wheel but was struggling to hold it at 50kmh. Had a small gap open and the guy behind me was obviously hurting even more as he didn't help, I just needed another wheel to give me a bit of a breather. I tried to keep the pace on hoping the front 3 would sit up but they didn't.

Worked with the other guy hoping one of the front three might pop, no joy. Just did turns till the end, the other guy was ruined, he was doing 500m on the front and I'd do 2km into a headwind home. Picked up 4th and it turned into a good training ride!
 
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2nd round of the local time trial league this morning. The route a hilly 22.5 miles, first rider off at 7.30.

Not the best of preparation, had a long old day yesterday after a rubbish nights sleep, and woke up about hour earlier than I'd hoped this morning. But positive news was down at 66.6kg on weigh in. Which could only help.

Weather was lovely and dry but my god it was cold, full leg warmers along with long sleeve Base Layer and arm warmers as well as skin suit and proper gloves. Wind was a North easterly, so not ideal for the course.

Started out well, knew that over the first half until the drag I'd like to be about 250w, pretty much hit this dead on, trying to keep my cadence down, had a bit of pain in my left hip flexor after about 3 miles though!

Paced myself well and hit the climb, pushing up the power slightly, climbed it well keeping seated for most of it. Descended down tentatively due to the wind, but still hit good speeds, then back up the 300 yard hill from hell (check strava) thought I was going to throw up at the top, but whacked it into the big ring and focused on my power trying to keep it up above 240, so got it into the top gear and pushed thru at 80 to 85rpm for the last 6 miles or so. Wind being North easterly meant I had this behind me on the way back, which for a rider my size was not ideal. Got to the last turn, then small 1mile kick to the end. Was pushing about 310w to the finish.

Finished in 1:00:47,which is a pb by 13 seconds, and given the wind and temp was a huge way ahead of my previous best. Think I finished 13th,but could have top 10ed if I was 6 seconds quicker! Doh! But 2 places higher than the last event.

Will be analysing my power numbers in more detail later. Need to eat lots first though! :-P

http://app.strava.com/activities/272159028
 
Berger said:
Temperature 2c! It's nearly April, must warm up soon for you!
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I bloody hope so! :D Was 1c riding last night, and hailing/raining! Horrible evening! Lot of Northerly winds at the moment bringing the cold air down! Just need it to switch directions.
 
Raced the division 3 criterium at Mt Panorama yday. 60 riders in Div3, 4 or so guys from our club who Id say I was equal to or better than so I felt good. 18 lap race with 3 preims for $.

Started off mid pack, nearly got taken out on lap 1 by someone who swerved out of the group into me. I shouted at him and someone else came alongside and gave him a roasting too. I moved up in the group to save myself from surging and was sitting happy inside the top 5-10.

Three riders got away and picked up the first two preims, lap 11 they sat up a bit and I thought their move would stick to the end. I had a go at bridging but ran out of gas. Dropped back in the pack to 20th or so and took a lap to recover then started to move back up thinking of the finish.

On a downhill before a chicane (pit entry at the race track) rider two infront seemed to sit up. Guy infront goes round him on the left and I on the right. He starts to move over onto me as I'm almost past so I shout. Unfortunately there were very small cones on the edge off the tarmac here which you couldn't see unless you were at the front and I hit one with my shoe. No harm done I thought until I lean into the chicane at 45kmh.

A quick 180 or more degree spin as the rear tyre blows out throws me off the back of the bike, and I use my cleats as skates to go backwards along the tarmac standing up holding the bike. Somehow the whole pack misses me and I end up stood on the grass at the pit entry.

A spoke has pulled through the carbon zipp 303 rim, my chains off, my cleats and shoe heels are non existent, my rear tyres blown and my hr is off the chart.

Come away with $1000 repair bill and just some tyre burns to one shin....
 
My options are to rebuild wheel with new Chinese rim, try to get a zipp rim, see if I can get discounted crash or warranty replacement, but a new wheel from the UK might be cheaper than all the above... or claim on home insurance....
 
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Downloading my Garmin today, I was doing 55kmh coming into the chicane at the track yesterday before having a mechanical/blow out, and I went from 55kmh to 0 in about 3 seconds. One guy said today that I almost went over the bars, I guess when the spoke broke the brake locked on the front wheel spinning me round, then the rear tyre blew as the wheel was locked up with the chain being off!

Had to back up from yesterdays Criterium to a 70km road race today.

Some good team building last night on the town meant we were in good spirits for the race despite being slightly hungover. We wanted to make it a hard race from the gun and not just a roll around.

There is a 110km race which most of the state and national teams enter, I did the 70 with some friends and club guys.

Lining up, it seemed a mix of guys I knew from club racing, some middle aged club riders and some U23/U19 riders who weren't local and a few girls. The racers are set off in waves, this was the 40kmh+ wave, and I doubted most of these guys could ride 40kmh or above on their own.

Sure enough, it ended up being the club guys doing 90% of the work, with guys from out of town not seeing the front or doing a tiny turn before swinging off widely because it was too windy/tough. It's undulating terrain for the first 35km, then a small CAT 4 with a KOM, downhill and flat until the last 3km which then has a series of small pinches to sort it out.

Few guys tried to break but nothing stuck, it was too windy to get a break in the peleton, at one point there was 15-20 guys on the front and then a big solo line behind which started to shed riders but not that many. It kept coming back together on the downhill sections when people relaxed.

Got to the KOM point, its steep at the bottom then a low gradient for 2km or so. One younger guy went on the steep bit and I jumped over to him hoping to get a free tow for a little while out of the wind. Unfortunately he then sat up straight away, not sure what to do I just kept going full gas. 500m from the top another club rider jumped across to me, hes one of the strongest guys and amazing all round. Sat on my wheel and took a breather, then stood up and dropped me. I thought I was still OK and kept my tempo going. 200m to go I cracked and 20 guys came past, my mate patted me on the back and sat up a bit. We dropped 10m or so off the back over the summit but got back on the group no problem.

I took it easy for the next 10-15km, with some riders coming back on the downhill as the group wasn't really working. The first hour I averaged 273w so I was feeling a little beat up. Last 15km had to work hard to maintain position in the bunch, lots of people obviously feeling fresh having done nothing thinking they can win with an attack which obviously wont stick.

Coming into the last 3km there is a hard left hander with gravel and bumps, few younger ones flew up the inside in a bit of a stupid move, I was on the front but got swamped and dropped to 30-40th spot. The road kicks up straight away, full gas out the saddle for a minute, I took maybe 15-20 places back as all the people who were super fresh and excited blew up. I was just off the back of the lead group, but managed to get across coming into the last 2km. I had burned a bit too much energy by then, so when the attacks came I was on the back of the group and couldn't follow.

Finished somewhere inside the top 25 I think, no results yet. The guy who beat me for the KOM went on to win the race too!

If only I had my lighter Zipp wheels on I'm telling myself, they must be worth 10-20 seconds over a 2.5km climb...

Average power today 251w, weighted 293w, max 958w. Average speed 40.2kmh, 70km distance and 650m elevation.
 
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