Sedalia/Otterville Weekend

I’m a pretty fortunate guy.  You see, this past weekend was my wedding anniversary and my wife let me go to the races.  Yeah, I’m a lucky guy.

Sedalia Crit [8/40]:

We stayed at the Hotel Bothwell.  Recommended.  Know going in that it was built during a different era, namely the era when people weren't so big and used to such big spaces.  As Cameron pointed out: "it's euro."  In the one bedroom we fit myself, my wife, two toddlers, and my road bike, so it wasn't that small.  After watching the 3/4 race (with teammate Eric holding off BJ by a whisker for third!) we tucked the kids to bed and I ran back out to warm-up for the 1/2/3 race.  Perhaps the best warm-up was the trip up/down 6 flights of stairs?

This was a night-crit in a small MO town.  A good mix of StL and KC racers turned up, I’d guess around 40 guys and Carrie Cash Wooten (kudos to her!).  The course was lit just so-so as turns 1 and 3 were pretty dark.  Ok, turn 4 was dark too.  Pavement was pretty good, a few bumps here and there but nothing awful.

A huge number of primes were offered, it felt like every other lap $20 was waved in front of us.  A $300 crowd prime was put up.  It was pretty cool of them to offer so much cash at this small race.

I followed wheels and practiced cornering in the dark.  The field was pretty hungry and the constant primes meant nobody was staying off for long.  The legs felt good, especially in the second half of the race.  I noticed I could stay seated coming out of turns 2 and 4 when others were standing – always a good sign!

Unfortunately, the race organizers/officials did not have a clock/lap counter at the venue.  For once I wasn’t so hypoxic that I could actually look for/read it and it wasn’t there!  That was pretty bush-league, but Aaro kept us informed of the last 5 laps over the PA.  

Coming into the last couple laps I was in the top 20 or so as swarms were constantly altering the pack.  On the last lap I was in the top 15 and moved up going into corner 3.  I got a little nervous when I saw 4 guys to the inside of me as we hit the turn faster than any lap prior.  I tapped my brakes and instantly lost a lot of speed and valuable positioning.  A loser in all white kit then chopped the last turn, clipped a pedal, slid out, and took Cameron Rex (Gateway Harley/Mesa) into the curb (and breaking his s-works tarmac).  I was the last rider through, but the whole ordeal distracted me enough that I let a gap open – not ideal with 250 meters to go!  I jumped hard and passed some folks taking 8^th place.  

It was a fun crit and sort of a slower dress rehearsal for the Lafayette Square crit next weekend.  I’m pleased with another top 10 in a 1/2 race though it highlights many lessons I need to learn about crit racing.  Thanks to my teammates for cheering me on!

Otterville RR [DNF/14]:

After getting to bed around midnight due to the crit, I was up early for the 9am RR in Otterville!  Otterville does not have a gas station or any restaurants, so any food or water you needed you had to get in Sedalia.  I had enough to start the race (3.5 bottles) but not enough to finish (3 laps/72 miles/2 feeds), so I had my lovely wife run back into town to fetch a pail of water.  Yeah, I’m a lucky guy.  The other thing Otterville had a dearth of was restrooms.  Big blunder by the organizers here: 2 restrooms on site.  Sorry guys, but before I spend (an anticipated) 3 hours on the bike, I’m going to have to hit the potty – and so does everybody else!  The line was 15 minutes long which, given the early start sent a lot of people to the trees – not what you want if you wish to hold the race again!!  Toilet talk aside, the road race course was a good one.  The roads were pretty empty and featured rolling hills and changing winds which reminded me of the Hermann RR course, though more open.

The crit field was 40 strong while the RR field the next morning turned out 14.  Jensen and Stolte (Trek/Tradewind), 2 Mesas, Justin + Jim + Anthony (Dogfish), a Monster drink, Lawrence (CBC), Kent (Colavita), and a few others made for a small but fast bunch.

Justin attacked on the second hill and built up a sizable gap.  Jensen then organized the chase urging us to help out.  I foolishly obliged.  I would pull a turn or two, then think I was being conservative by dropping back and resting a while at the back.  However, all I was doing was softening myself up for the decisive move later in the race.

On lap two we started to reel Justin in and I knew the punches would start flying.  Everyone else knew too, so nobody would pull except for Kent and the Tradewinds.  Brian saw this coming and sat up while Kent kept riding and cruised off the front to join Justin.  Over the top of the next climb Jensen attacked hard taking Jim with him forming the break du jour.  Brian had successfully isolated the best TT’r in the race (Justin), tired him (getting everyone else to chase him for a lap), isolated the next best chasers (Kent + Jim) to weaken any possible chase group, and then dispatched us on a climb.  By leaving Bill in the chase group, he was guaranteed a rested counter should it all come back together.  Well played sirs.  

After we topped out I took a few breaths and then tried to bridge, I got away cleanly but blew up on the next hill before making contact.  The chase group caught me and I slotted in to recover.  After a spell of resting I started to take turns at the front again.  We were catching them and I wanted to help our group stay in the race.  Unfortunately, we hit another steep ramp after I pulled off the front and that was all she wrote – popped off the back.

While cruising into town I could make out another rider in front of me, I “caught” him as we came into the feed zone hill and both of us decided to call it a day.  I started rehydrating and cleaned up while getting to spectate the finish (actually I was just waiting for the wheel truck!).  Jensen won, with Jim and Kent filling out the podium.

I was quite impressed with the way Jensen and Stolte played the field.  Why did we let the strongest guy in the race talk us into working for him?  Next time I don’t plan on playing the pawn so easily.  Kent also impressed as he was working the entire race showing strong fitness, earning that podium.

This race will serve as fodder for the trainer sessions this winter as I struggle with forging ahead in my fitness.  How fast do I need to be?  How fit must I be?  This is a new benchmark.  The entire weekend reminded me of the words of Wayne Simon here, under Cat 2.  

Next up: Friday Night at Gateway and returning to AR for work…

Morton Crit Race Report

Racing in Peoria

The Proctor/Peoria crit has been a favorite the past several years.  Not only was the race on a really fun course, just a short drive from Urbana, it also served as the state championship criterium.  I was disappointed to see the classic 8 corner removed from the schedule but excited to return to greater Peoria nonetheless for the Morton Community Bank Cycling Classic.

I was excited since Peoria served up my very first bike race back in 2007.  I was reminded of this when I bumped into Nick Ramirez (Psimet/Enzo’s) and he introduced me to a cat 5 named Michael.  Mike just completed his first race and (I think) placed fifth!  I hope Mike finds the rewards we all enjoy through the challenge and discipline of competitive cycling.

Like Michael, this part of the season is all about experience for me.  As a new cat 2 I have a lot to learn about racing, so I approached Morton with this in mind.

At registration I handed in my waiver and said I was there to race.  The woman responded: “Cat 4’s?”  Ouch.  Nice ego bruise that.  Whatever, I cheerfully said what race I was in and was given the number five.  I love low numbers.  It is clear you are in the big boy race.  But five?!  It didn’t look like a big field would be showing up today, meaning there would be no place to hide in the peloton.  I’d need a lot of tactical nous and good legs to finish well. 

Morton Crit P/1/2 Field.  Photo Credit: Niki Campen Nation.

Sixteen other riders found their way to the start-line: Hogan Sills (ABD), Nick (Psimet/Enzo’s), the Stone Pony (Scarlet Fire Racing), Drew (Nuvo), Joey Iuliano (Racing for Riley), James Bird (ISCorp), two Wheelfasts, two Bloomingtons, two Proctors, two Panache, a guy in orange/purple kit, and an SCW rider.  There were lots of fast dudes in the group but I was particularly concerned with Sills, Ramirez, and Drew.  The only reason I was not watching Mr. Stone that carefully was that he already raced twice that day!!  (And if you know about this guy you know that he races at and off the front.)

The race was very exciting with numerous attacks from the start (Joey gets the “most attacks” prize by a nose over Nick!) and (perhaps wrongfully) I was concerned not to be left out of early moves.  I was bridging and jumping with early stuff as I had witnessed Hogan get away early in other races and I watched Nick ride away with the Hermann Cat 3 RR earlier in the year.  Nick was hyper-active during this time, jumping away and driving breaks.  My legs hadn’t really come around to feel good but there was little time for that – go go go!

Holding on to Hogan's wheel for dear life during an early attack.  Photo Credit: Niki Campen Nation.

75 minutes is a long time to be on the gas, but you need time to separate the racers.  After numerous attacks, counters, and reshuffling of the breaks two men were off the front with a good gap.  I think Dave Stone was one of them.  Nick and two others got free of the pack and began chasing.  Perhaps Hogan was in this group, perhaps Drew.  The rest of us were largely looking for others to do the work of pulling these guys back as the frenetic race had left many on the ropes – myself included.  If you’ve been in a race you know exactly the moment I’m describing: legs and lungs hurt, wits are dulled, and gaps are opening.  It is THE time to get away if you can.  Well, three more opportunists (including Sills – the order of the second and third groups may be off) broke the elastic and now half the field was up the road and half the field was left in the “pack”.  I was in the pack.  Then I saw it – the coup de grace – the moto ref pulled ahead of our group.  I don’t recall what time/lap we were at but I’d say about 45 minutes in (complete guess).  Was my race over?  Were we fighting for the distinction of “also ran”?  Would we get pulled?

It was gut-check time as a lot of firepower was up the road.  There were no more games, we had to chase!  Joey, a Wheelfast rider (#12), myself, a Proctor, and occasionally a Panache rider began rotating.  I recall several times having both legs light up with lactic acid on pulls going into the red as we chewed up tarmac to reach that front group.  Miraculously, we made it!  We closed down the gap and brought it back together.  The dark humor in the moment came when I looked up and the announcer/officials called out “22 laps to go!”  Oh, only 22 more laps?!  Then, on the next lap (or so) 2 guys went off the front.  Here we go again…

Ramirez, Bird, and Bloomington (?) took off and a new chase began.  I guess my legs came around as I did help a little.  Hogan, Drew, Joey, and some others did work and as the laps ticked down it looked like we could catch them.  During this chase we lapped several riders who got dropped in the field split chase.  The Stone Pony came unglued during this time, too.  The man made the big split in the race, only to have it blow up again.  His racing was absolutely incredible considering: 1) he had already podiumed in a master’s race on the day, 2) he already raced yet another masters race, 3) he has a son my age (!), and 4) it took an hour plus of an all-out-knife-fight to pop him.  Studly stuff that.

The last three laps I skipped pulls to try to save something for the finish.  I had a top ten on account of the lapped/dropped riders but maybe I could finish higher.  Perhaps this is the loathsome lazy sprinter in me, or perhaps said tactical nous.  Sometimes they are hard to differentiate.  The finishing stretch was quite long and I was too timid coming into the line.  Rather than jump multiple times to try to hang on to Hogan, I waited at the back and then moved up late to take 3rd in the bunch, 5th on the day.  I am still pleased with a top 5 finish in this race.  Racing with the big boys (and this isn’t even Gateway we’re talking about!) is much more taxing mentally and physically but also much more exciting and rewarding.  Of note: James (ISCorp) hung on for the win while Hogan (ABD) took the field sprint for 3rd.

It is worth noting that this is the third race on the new Tarmac.  I can't believe the difference.  Cornering and sprinting are noticeably better. I'm super pleased with the bike.

After the race Nick took me aside and clued me in to some needed tactical advice.  Here’s to gaining wisdom!  Then the wife and I headed to a state park for a fun night of camping with the kids. 

I am really thankful for that Saturday.

Next up: the Sedalia Crit and Otterville RR!

MO State Crit Report

MO State Crit

First time in Jeff City.  First race with Brian Jensen and some of the Trek/Tradewind Energy crew (he won, by the way).  First time a shifter broke with 4 to go and I DNF’d in a P/1/2 race.

Yup, that was the MO state crit for me.

My teammate Kurt and I raced well as a team but came up shy of the result we wanted.  Regardless, the race brought my confidence up as my new Tarmac felt great and I was able to go to the front during the race and put in some work.

With a few more crits before Gateway, I hope I can bring the speed up a bit and have a solid finish to this great season.

Babler Circuit Race + GEO Crit Reports

Babler Circuit Race [13/17]

Babler was my first race as a cat 2, so there was a lot to learn going in.  Add to that a 3 week break from racing and I was fairly nervous.  The course was a 4 mile loop with 2 big hills – one up and one down.  I don’t have numbers (no computer, just feel!) but Adam (RecycledCycles) said his Garmin topped out at 18% on the climb.  Let’s just say it wasn’t easy.  With 8 laps I was looking to follow wheels and try to help my cat 1 teammate, Kurt.

I felt good up the climb the first two laps as an early move dangled off the front.  I felt comfortable in the group but was definitely working hard on the hill.  The two-tiered climb usually played out with a steady pace on the lower section with riders kicking it up on the second slope and over the top.  Once they saw that everyone was together the pace would slow a little and the pack would take a deep breath.  It’s funny to me how the first couple times up the climb you keep your breathing quiet and try not to show your cards but by the third or fourth time up the hill you don’t care that you sound like a sow in heat!  By the seventh time up the climb my back was a snare drum and my legs were empty.  I gave in and let the pack go up the road.  I was in the race until the real racing started.  Ouch.

The race highlighted the need to be judicious in the use of strength and cautious to put one’s nose in the wind.  Next time I plan on being around when the fireworks go off!  I’m also taking steps to move past the back pain by getting a bike fit with Russ of Mesa Cycles.  I’ve waited too long to do this!

Kurt rode well and placed 3^rd - another podium for 708 Racing!  

Thanks to Gateway Gastroenterology, Off The Front Racing, and the Park Staff for putting on a great race!

Note: only 17 riders were scored but I thought I counted 25+ at the start – this was confirmed by Daniel (Lindenwood) at the GEO crit as he thought there were ~30 guys in the race.  Suddenly 13th doesn’t suck so much.

Great Egyptian Omnium Crit

After attending a friend’s wedding in Indiana Saturday, I stopped by Carterville, IL for the GEO crit Sunday.  Keith and Erik rode well in the Omnium but had to finish the crit as a t-storm rolled in.  Dead air became 30mph+ gusts uncomfortably quick.  The boys kept the rubber down to seal a good weekend of racing.

For the P/1/2 crit I was hoping the race would be a quiet affair – another chance to get my legs going before the MO state crit and Gateway Cup.  I knew Daniel (Lindenwood) and Eduardo (Bigshark) were going to be there but as I had suspected, Jonathan (Nuvo, National TT champ) showed up.  It would be anything but a slow race now!  Not only that but more firepower came to play via 5 IsCorp riders – this would be quite a race!  Unfortunately, that t-storm that escorted the 3’s to the line poured out lightning on John A. Logan College for 1.5 hours, scrapping our race.  It looks like another 3 week gap between races.  Motorpacing time?

Big thanks to Chad Briggs who put on a great race (from what I could tell about the rest of the omnium) and had super community support (I heard a GEO ad on the radio while driving in!).  Not only that, but Chad refunded the P/1/2 crit entry.  This is definitely a race to attend next year!

My last weekend of bike racing...as a cat 3

Glencoe Grand Prix and Webster Groves Criterium Race Reports

In brief:

Buncha guys lined up.  One rode away 15 minutes in.  I won the field sprint.

If you’re not into the whole brevity thing:

Mike, Nick, Keith, and I headed up to Glencoe to contest the IL state criterium championship for the cat 3’s.  I decided coming in that this would be my last weekend racing in the category.  I had the points for the upgrade (including several wins) and more importantly I was starting to feel stagnant.  Part of that is the place in the season – after racing since April I had accumulated more race starts this season than any prior YEAR!  In fact, I have raced more this year than my first two in the sport combined.  Regardless, I convinced myself that I wasn’t happy with a race unless I won (or a teammate won).  So of course the rational next step is to begin racing in a category where winning means finishing!?

Off the shrink’s couch and on to the race…four of us showed up to represent 708 Racing.  The guys all had good attitudes but I was a basket case.  The state crit always gets in my head and I have trouble sleeping and notice that my normal neuroses and compensation mechanisms all fly into overdrive to deal with the additional self-inflicted stress.  During the warm-up I felt alright but not great and everything that had to happen got done.  I entered the staging area pretty late but pushed Tim Speciale out of the way.  At first he thought someone was being rude, but once he realized it was me the joking began.  It was a good way to kill a little stress before the start.  As they let us go to the preliminary line I snuck forward in the group.  Then they let us go to yet another line and I again moved up.  The race was soon underway and I was looking out for 5 guys: Tim (Psimet), Kyle (Tower), Ryan (xXx), John Villena (Rhythm), and The Squirrel.  I also had to watch the Burnham team as for sheer numbers they could sneak somebody off the front.  

The pace was quick and Burnham kicked things off.  Mike (708), acting the dutiful lieutenant, covered several early moves.  The plan was for Keith and Nick to cover moves while Mike would lead me out for the win.  “Plan B” was to put me in a break.  The team was 100% committed to me (see nervousness above) and I could see it in those first laps.  Nick jumped away during an early lap and stayed off long enough to take the first KoH sprint and I felt comfortable about how we were minding the pack.  I believe that at this point the pace was quick and the course tight, but all 4 708’s were near the front (top 20?).  On the first sprint lap Ryan Fay (xXx) took off.  It was around 15 minutes into the race and I was riding next to Mike in the top 10 or 15 wheels.  I turned to him and said: “What do you think?”  Mike: “It’s early.”  Me: “Yeah, let’s let him dangle.”  Well, that was the wrong decision!  Ryan began putting time into us.  A chase group formed just off the front with Tim and a few others (John?  Kyle?), so I jumped just before the start finish to bridge.  People on the course were giving us splits – 12 seconds, 15 seconds.  Alright, I thought, we caught Ryan and the field has split.  We even have a nice gap!  But by the end of the lap the numbers had gone up and the field had caught us…hmmm, aren’t we all together?  No.  Ryan was still off the front.  I thought for sure he was part of the group I bridged to, but I was very wrong – he was 25 seconds up the road and hammering.

After these early efforts guys started making poor decisions in the tight turns and crashes befell the chase.  The Squirrel was the first to go down (surprise?), but even TSpesh ate it.  Ryan on the other hand knew how to drive his bike and just kept the pressure on.  The gap from spectators was coming in as high as 45 seconds.  The race was up the road.

Nick, Kyle, and I trying to get something going in the chase.  Photo Credit: Elizabeth Rangel.

I ordered Keith and Nick, my khalkotauroi, to the front and they worked to bring back Ryan.  We got back 10 seconds - down to 30 total - but it was too little too late.  I even began my own probing attacks and taking turns at the front to try to instigate a more energetic chase.  It is on this point that I’ve thought over the last week(s).  Should I have tried to bridge solo?  Would it not have been better to go down swinging (or pedaling as the case may be) than to sit in and wait for 2^nd place?  I did have some of these thoughts at the time and considered that there was a chance that Ryan would run out of gas or crash in a turn.  I wasn’t hoping tragedy would befall him, but cracking while holding off the field was a real possibility.  Secondly, being a week or so past prime I haven’t felt very strong for 20 minute solo efforts.  So bridging a 30 second gap solo was racing my weaknesses, not my strengths – it seemed a fool’s errand.  Avoiding this scenario was exactly why I introduced myself to Ryan before the race as I wanted to be sure I knew who he was, what he looked like, and what number he had pinned.  Ultimately, I let a known mark get a gap and race his strengths.  So this race boils down to my tactical failure.  I don’t think this was a question of legs as I bet there were 8-10 guys in the field who could have bridged to Ryan’s move, but we all thought it was too early.  We were all very wrong.

Ryan stormed home with a 34 second advantage, supposedly (since I didn’t see it!) soft pedaling the final straight and enjoying the win.  He certainly should have as he earned it!

Behind we were on a quick lap but I wasn’t in the red – a good feeling leading into a sprint.  I was in about 10^th wheel and I saw Nick in the top 3.  Clearly he was my leadout man into the final turn.  I burned a match up the climb one last time and kept the gas on to make it to Nick’s wheel.  He assumed the front and I shouted commands as he kept the pack strung out.  I told him “this is it!  Go Nick! Go!” and he stood hammering out a pace which served as a launch pad.  While still 50 meters out from the corner I jumped at 80% and hammered into the turn, railing it at speed.  I stood and powered out of the saddle as hard as I could shifting as I got on top of the gear.  I could see Kyle’s wheel beginning to edge up to me on the right so I gave it another kick to be sure he didn’t get me at the line.  I sat up and held up three fingers.  I thought there was a two man break up the road and I had just found the last podium spot. 

Sharing the podium with Ryan Fax (xXx, center) and Kyle Selph (Tower, right).  Photo credit: Nick Gierman.

I was surprised to hear that I finished second but was still disappointed.  I was truly happy for Ryan as he had earned the victory.  However the race was my best chance at a state championship for some time as the P/1/2’s aren’t exactly going to let me waltz across the line uncontested.  But this is what makes state championships special – they are hard earned.  If everyone was champ they’d be meaningless.  My cat 3 campaign for 2011 will close with a silver medal in both state races – not too bad.  Shall I buy a TT bike and see if I can finish second to Ryan in late august for the trifecta?  No thanks.

I think it's clear from my recap, but just in case you missed it: I have awesome teammates.  Thanks again to the 708 team for working for me.

Webster Groves Crit

Racing is fun, but most of the time it is serious fun.  You set goals, train hard, and do your best, accepting the outcome.  Sometimes it is fun to just have fun and not take it seriously and that is how I approached this race.  I think I had to.  My shoes (which have worked great all year) had a buckle break (already repaired – thanks Mesa!) and I was mentally exhausted from the previous day’s race and travels.  So my goal was to win preems and be a jerk to anyone in a breakaway.  I didn’t care how I finished, I just wanted to horse around!

To that end I took the front on the first lap and kept it strung out for a little bit.  It was a 3/4 race after all, and we don’t need those cat 4’s hanging around crashing us out(!).  I chased moves and stole a preem from Jason (CBC), even tried my hand at a “Fay” but only stayed off for 2 or 3 laps.  Je suis fatigue.  (I don’t speak French.)

We had fun and mugged for our great cast of StL photogs.  One of the highlights of the day was seeing my sister’s Father-in-Law there.  Lockwood is a Webster Groves local and he came out to see a race.  His nephew, Jeremy Bock (Dogfish) was unable to make it – a huge disappointment for Lockwood.  What started as “I can only watch the first 20 minutes” ended as “I just couldn’t leave – it was so exciting!”  Amen.  Nick Hand hung tough and finished 5th on the day.

This race day saw a crash from a racer named Randy.  He's still in the hospital (several weeks later) and we're all pulling for him.  If you think of it, please pray for his recovery and his family's comfort.

At the end of the crit I took off for a 2 3 week work trip to Arkansas.  Yeehaw!

Race Reports: Ste. Gen + Hellbender Crit

Le Tour de Sainte Genevieve Cat 3 [24/40?]

Ste. Gen served up the MO state RR championship this year.  Dare I say it was nearly perfect for a June bike race?  A gentle wind and some clouds were present as we started on 2 laps of hilly racing for a total of 69 miles in the cat 3’s.

The field was similar to the O’Fallon Grand Prix (2011 IL RR Championship), with fewer turning up than I expected.  It really puzzles me why more do not come out for these races.  They are in my view the biggest road races of the season.  With frequent complaints regarding the “critcentricity” of US racing, here we have two ~70 mile road races, with hills, and guys don’t come out to play.  Perhaps we just have too many races?  Between Tulsa Tough, Ste. Gen, and Galena, a limited number of racers were spread thin.  (This isn’t even accounting for MTB races, of which I know nothing.)  But it begs the question:  why do riders show up for training crits and early season races yet avoid the races for which the training exists?  Do we train all winter to be fast at Froze Toes?!  Or do we train all winter to win Ste. Gen?!

Anyway…the racing began as Shawn (Momentum) attacked through the feedzone (which marked when the neutral start ended, I think – but it’s humorous considering the recent discussions of feedzones following O’Fallon…).  Shawner was off and nobody seemed too interested in chasing or bridging – it was a suicide break with 67 miles to go.  But then, maybe it could work!  

 708 dispatched some riders to the front to keep pace.  Kudos to Keith, he did the thankless job of setting pace for many of those early miles.  Eventually it became clear that the other teams would not lend a hand in the chase, so Keith rolled off the front and was soon joined by an opportunistic Dogfish.  Several riders from other teams bridged.  The cards kept reshuffling as different breaks went up the road and came back.  Nothing very serious was let go as Momentum, Dogfish, and Hub instigated and chased moves alongside 708.  After several miles of this I considered myself a carrot, and with a few riders dangling off the front, I decided to provide something a teammate could counter – perhaps to glory.

On a slight incline I was joined by Aaron Koch (Dogfish) and we soon got out of sight of the peloton.  I did a fair amount of work on the front already and was hoping this would only last a few miles.  However, the pack didn’t chase too hard at first so Aaron and I kept cruising.  Soon we found ourselves on the KOM.   The benefits to my teammates of my little move were already showing up – no attacks on the KOM as the points had already been taken.

On the rollers into town we caught sight of the peloton and knew pretty quickly that they were chasing enough to doom our little run.  Alas.  We stayed off until the feedzone, which was good as I grabbed a few bags for teammates, allowing them to avoid that dangerzone.

After completing my domestique duties I returned to the pack while the pace ebbed and flowed.  I was starting to feel the day’s effort on the hills and was concerned several times that I would be dropped.  Always a humbling thought.  

Coming into the final hills Shawner had been caught (and was livid that no teammates countered his suicide break – Paging B.J.!) and Adam (Recycled Cycles) was off the front.  I found myself sag climbing the hills but the bunch wasn’t flying yet.  I ate a little something and the body woke up before the KOM.  Turns out my decision to use another product instead of my normal Hammer Gel was a poor one!  Nothing new on race day, genius!

Chris (708) is a big rider, so when he attacked the pack on the KOM, I was impressed.  The group surged to catch him over the top as gaps started opening.  Nick and I held tough and I paced him back up through the group.  Coming into town Adam (Recycled Cycles) was being drawn back from a long, bold move while the descents gave me a chance to rest the legs a bit before the finish.  Nick and Chris were with me and we discussed the leadout briefly.   I had a flash of adrenaline and excitement: “we really can do this, we are going to get a jersey” I thought.  The finish is a really cool one: a wide right, followed by a tight left, then another mile run-in to the line.  We had to nearly stop taking the sharp left turn – I think I took the worst line in the history of bike racing that didn’t end in a crash.  I paced Nick back to the front and Chris had taken the reigns and was doing his Berny Eisel impression.  I pulled through around 600 meters out (too far!) and pulled off after we went up the little hill under the rail road bridge – completely cooked.  Nick gave his best but the hills had softened his legs.  He finished as the 9^th MO rider – a universe ahead of the DNF he had last year.  Just think of how he’s going to crush souls in this race in 2012!

So the team had a lock on places 21, 23, and 24 – a failure, right?  No.  While we didn’t win we raced our plan and wrote the story on the day.  While many teams race like individuals, we’re trying to execute team tactics.  Big ups to Momentum for taking the race to everyone, too.

Hellbender Criterium Cat 3 [3/12]

I wasn’t expecting to race the Hellbender Crit but the schedule got flipped around.  As preparation for the event I accepted a “challenge” from some coworkers to go for a 4 mile run during lunch the day prior.  Not a big deal, except I hadn’t run that distance since August of last year.  Add in that I was wearing my Chaco’s and we were at lunch with the power out from a t-storm and you have a fuller picture.  Oh, and I had just eaten a pizza.  Needless to say, my intent was to sit in and survive come Saturday!  My teammate Nick wanted to ride in a breakaway, so we were set for the day’s tactics.

The course had great pavement and featured some nice touches: tight cornering (2 corners were off camber), a little rise on the back stretch, and a false flat into the finish line.  A great course that would have been very tough with more than 30 riders.  12 showed up to contest the cat 3’s and what we lacked in quantity, we made up for in quality as I believe the top 10 in MOBAR were present for the 3’s.

Jason (CBC) got a little gap on the first lap through the tightest section of the course and decided to push it a little.  A lap later Nick decided to bridge.  I thought it was a little early for a move to stick (race was 45+5, and we were assured by Aaro that we’d be racing a full 45 minutes!), but Jason is a strong rider and I wouldn’t mind blocking a bit.  A few more laps go by and Trent (Michelob) rolls off the front.  At this point, alarm bells should be going off in everyone’s head: the best cat 3 TT rider in the area just snuck off the front – all hands on deck!  The group chased with a little more gusto but didn’t bring him back.  Once he made contact with Jason and Nick, I knew my boy would be safe up the road.  Trent is a diesel!

The rest of the race was good tactical fun.  I had a problem to figure out: to bridge or not?  As BJ, Brett, Chad, and Adam worked themselves down in the chase I constantly took stock of myself, should I bridge now?  Next lap?  The last thing I wanted to do was bring back Nick, and with crappy legs, would I even be able to get away?

I found myself continually saying: “next lap, Mark.  Attack on the rise next lap.”  But each time there was a reason not to: I haven’t seen BJ for a while, oh, he’s been sitting on my wheel!  Or, I just had to close a gap and don’t have the confidence, etc.  I missed an opportunity to do something great, but at least I didn’t screw it up for my teammate up the road.  It’s the least I could do: no harm to his chances.

As the minutes switched to laps I knew it was very unlikely that I would bridge and focused on preparing for the sprint.  At the end of the penultimate lap I tested everyone’s legs (including my own) to see if I could get away early.  The results were ok, but not as good as I had hoped.  So when Adam (Recycled Cycles) put in an attack on the back stretch, I made sure I got his wheel.  Coming around the final bend I managed to hold off B.J. in the sprint, taking 3^rd on the day.

Jason popped in the break and Nick fought it out with Trent, getting bested but learning a lot.  I was very pleased with the result considering the quality of my legs and I think Nick was rightfully happy.  Big congrats to Nick who rode strong and notched his first cat 3 podium finish!  Five out of six cat three 708 racers have gotten on a podium this season!!

Nick (708) 2nd, Trent (Michelob) 1st, Frenchy (708) 3rd - who happens to be channeling his inner male model.

On Sunday I skipped the hilly road race but Nick rode to a top ten, earning 4^th in the weekend omnium.

Next up: the Glencoe Grand Prix (IL Crit Champs!) and the Webster Groves Crit (MOBAR points!).

O'Fallon Grand Prix (Cat 3, 2011) a.k.a. The Sour Grapes

IL RR Championships (O’Fallon Grand Prix, Cat 3, 2011)

June is already here!  And with June came the first state championship of the season for the 708 Racing team: the Illinois state road race championships.  O’Fallon has a good course for determining an all-around racing champion.  There are three climbs per lap but they aren’t long enough for the mountain goats to distinguish themselves.  There are open areas and long stretches exposed to wind but nobody will argue that this is the Leland Kermesse, favoring the big gear grinders.  Meanwhile, the final climb (which on the third approach in 104F heat doesn’t tickle) is inside 1K from the new finish line, meaning the sprinters have to earn it.  In sum, it’s a course that produces a well rounded winner.

The conditions on Saturday were hot.  Air temp reached 97 or 98 degrees, while the sun’s heat reflected from the black pavement cooking the riders in 100+ conditions.  Winds were up to 11mph out of the WNW if memory serves.

The field was a little small considering (in my view) this is THE most important road race on the calendar.  But no matter, you have to show up to win and many were choosing not to win.  With only 26 riders pre-registered in the cat 3 field, my homework was pretty easy.  Two IL riders to watch were Dustin Morici (Burnham) - who has had a great year so far and was strong in the heat and hills of the Hermann RR - and Patrick L (R-Bikes.com) - a MTBer who had some good RR results.

The 708 plan was to work for someone other than me in a 2008“Ronde Van Vlaanderen” scenario.  In 2008 all eyes were on Tom Boonen who was marked heavily.  This allowed strong man and Quick Step teammate Stijn Devolder to get away for the win!  Is it not a little bit of vanity that I thought of myself as Tommeke?  The plan fell apart and I’d rather not get into the kiss-and-tell.  As it worked out, I was by myself in a selection of 10+/- that included 4 other IL riders.  3 MO riders were up the road.  I mistook Joe Fuller (Veda, MO) for Brett Bohanan (Proctor, IL) and instigated his capture.  2 MO riders up the road.

Speaking of Joe, I need to write a few words about him.  I was in the break with Joe and Shawn (Momentum) at Forrest Park a couple months ago.  He’s a strong rider and comports himself with class in the pack.  At the end of the first lap in O’Fallon he attacked immediately following the final turn.  I took it as an “attack the feed zone” move at the time and complained about him to others in the pack (we were not actually in the feed zone yet).  He, being the classy rider he is, bridged to 2 guys off the front and was not to be seen till the latter stages of lap 3.  My grumbling (and surprise) about his move reached his ear so he came to me the next day at the crit to talk it over – a class gesture.  I was wrong to say he was attacking the feed – he thought there was a prime for the intermediate laps. 

I don’t think I saw anyone attack the feed but the eventual winner did take feeds outside of the feedzone from his significant other.  Not his only clever tactic.  (Yes, my sour grapes are quite sour.  Nobody like a sore loser, i.e. me.)  The whole “attack the feed” concept lacks the class that makes cycling a sport of gentlemen.  These unwritten rules of etiquette belie the honor that each man carries into the race.  You may dismiss this but remember, these are the guys who follow decorum to the point of shaving their legs, wearing specific shoes, and piloting $4K carbon fiber rigs.  Alright, enough of that rant.

Back to the race, Dustin (Burnham) and I had done a lot of work at the front through the race and the heat and miles were starting to wear on us.  But about 8 miles out guys started attacking the group (remember, about 10 of us).  Dennis K. (Dogfish) took off with a nice seated move before a turn and dutifully applied a little pressure.  Brian K. (Dogfish) kept telling me what a good move it was.  I guess I agreed as I jumped hard (bike creaking and wailing – more on this in the sour grapes section below), going over the top of him into the corner I shouted for him to get on.  The group chased and after the next two turns we were back together again.  Dustin smartly countered, taking Patrick with him.  I jumped to close the gap.  This kind of thing went on more or less to the finish.  Dustin looked completely smoked yet he put in at least 3 such attacks.  Patrick always followed then sat up.

Sums up my day.  Photo Credit: Dennis Fickinger

Coming into the finish I asked Brian to lead it out and promised him $20 if I was the first IL rider across the line.  Tyler (The Hub) lead us after the penultimate hill, then Brian took the front up the final climb.  Patrick held his wheel and I was on Dustin’s.  I moved up to Patrick’s wheel during the climb, cresting third.  We took the corner nice and fast and Patrick jumped around Brian.  I held his wheel as he sat back down before jumping again.  In the last 100 meters Patrick stood up and I jumped trying to come around him on the left.  I threw at the line but knew I wasn’t there.  I had lost the state road race by half a wheel.  0.035 seconds.  Thanks chip timing.

Photo Credit: Nikki Cyp

The Sour Grapes:

Two days later I took my bike to Champion Cycling in Ft. Smith, AR for repair during a business trip.  My bars would flex a good inch up and down when out of the saddle.  I suggested that the fork might be broken as I was sure the stem and handlebars were installed properly.  As it turns out, the carbon steerer tube was flexing all over as it was debonding (a word?) from the crown of the fork.  You can see the crack/separation on the unit.  When I think back to all the attacks, all the hillsides I stood on, and the sprint at the finish, I consider the wasted watts of the flexy front end.  Would it have been enough to give me a wheel in the sprint?  I think it would have.  Regardless, I have nobody to blame but myself as I am responsible for my bike and I am the one that cancelled the work order at Mesa Cycles two weeks prior.  Ugh.  My new Orbea Orca…fork is super solid and I feel like I have a new bike underneath me.  I’m pretty sure I’d have a new jersey in the closet had I raced in the new configuration.  Wah wah wah.

The two MO riders that stayed away had big earned results.  Trent (Michelob) and Brian (Momentum) both stayed away after bold early moves.  The gap at the finish was over 2 minutes.  Big ups!

Big big thanks to the Momentum crew who fed me each lap.  Thank you!

O’Fallon Grand Prix Criterium

Sunday we were back in O’Fallon for a technical crit.  Turnout was low but the conditions were near perfect: 92F (which felt nice after the previous day!) with minimal wind.  The pavement was horrendous.  It was the worst pavement I’ve raced all year.  I watched riders get air coming out of the penultimate corner! 

We had a few new faces on Sunday (Jason (CBC), Chris (The Hub)) but a lot of tired legs after Saturday’s deathmarch.  The pace was brisk and I noticed we were taking the corners foolishly – only using half of the road.  I noticed I wasn’t comfortable on those lines and getting gapped a little bit out of a few turns.  What gives?  I also noticed that I was breathing through my nose while we were lined out, so maybe things weren’t so bad.  I just had to focus on where the apex of the turns should be, as most of them had potholes in the actual corner.

Photo Credit: FicksPhotos.com

The early move was Mike and Keith (708) going off the front tempting the pack to chase.  I didn’t counter it as I think Trent and Joe (CX guy?) got off the front.  They are both motors so I bridged up – it only took an entire lap!  The two South Chicago Wheelmen juniors bridged up too.  More and more guys bridged up and soon our group was 10 strong, starting to look more like a field split than a break.  The field eventually came together and more attacks were tried and brought back.  Permit me to add that Trent (Michelob) is really rolling right now.  Keith (708) also got in a good looking move a little later but everybody had too much juice and it came back together.

Photo Credit: Elizabeth Rangel

Coming into the finish we decided we’d work for one of our sprinters.  I would do leadout work with Nick.  Trent was on the front (jeez!) as we crossed 3 to go.  I thought I could hold the front long enough such that Nick and maybe Keith would only have to lead Mike the last lap.  I pulled for the next two laps and felt like a fighter pilot, taking the turns how I wanted – outside, inside, outside – and just focused on picking up the pace on the straights (so as to keep it lined out).  Trent jumped me into the chicane entering one to go and I jumped back up to him as I flicked off coming out of turn one.  Unfortunately our train got derailed on that last lap as 5 guys swarmed the front.  Mike (708) managed a solid 5^th place.  I’m convinced we had the right tactic, but we’re still ironing out the leadout.  On that course, first one out of the last corner wins.  Another “next time.”

Post race chat w/ Mike.  Photo Credit: Elizabeth Rangel

Epilogue:

The results this weekend were disappointing but our team expectations are pretty high: a cat 3 win every time.  The state championship was a personal and team goal and we took 2^nd by a pretty close margin.  Vittoria, you are elusive.

I’ve been weighing whether to upgrade or finish the season in the cat 3’s.  The prospect of getting smoked by the P/1/2’s is inviting, but I think I should race a full year as a 3.  It should be the last time I do so.  Further I have these opportunities each weekend to work as a teammate.  I truly enjoy it.  It is also an area that needs improvement.  Tous pour un, un pour tous!  

Next Stop: Le Tour de Sainte Genevieve – the MO State RoadRace Championships!