7 posts tagged “race”
Wente RR
40 starters – teammates – JS
Course 3 laps (4 times up Carroll). Weather: cool and WINDY.
Bike: Felt b/c it has climbing gears!
I warmed up solidly – got the HR up to 160 on the trainer. Learned that some friends had missed their start and that the officials were running about 3 minutes early so I made sure to get there early. Good thing I did!
On the start line, the officials announce the QOM prize on the FIRST time up the hill – wtf? So we were all together finding good position, made the right hand turn onto Altamont road and came to a screeching halt as a HUGE red truck nearly took us out by turning INTO the peloton as we were making the right hand turn… where were the volunteers and police??? Why did the truck run past the barricades that said BIKE RACE? After nearly rear ending the truck, it took me about 10 minutes to calm down – just as I was getting my heart rate back down, we got too the right turn onto Carroll and the fireworks started. Marley and Davis girl were way off the front and I was just hanging onto the peloton… So we had a pack together for about 3 miles – before it was blown apart.
I made sure to ride the hill like I know how to ride, and refusing to be dropped or blow up. I got up and over the freeway and into the slight uphill and I was dangling with April Hamlin and Colavita gal. We worked super solidly together and chased and chased and chased and finally caught back on after the downhill – Colavita said “we’re there” and I still had 10 yards to make up and no matches to burn to get there. April and I were now dangling, and refused to give up. We were ON and then we made that right hand turn to go up and over that tiny but steep hill – I stood and just said (a la “A Christmas Story” … FUUUUUUUUUUUDGE) and I was dropped. That was it. They were only 10 yards ahead of me but I had fallen off. I set about recovering and sitting up to see who was behind me. Hooray it’s 5 gals including Lucia and a few others… I got into their paceline and sat in to recover. Then Lucia pulled out and I mentally was ready to too. The front group sat up and recovered as well so we caught back on as we were making the right turn again in Altamont. Whew. Recovered and surely they wont ramp it up until the last lap. Wrong. The two were still off the front and the climbers started putting the hurt on. I just didn’t have much left to burn. After completing the climb I was with Mason and Dolce… I decided enough. I’d been dropped and caught the field twice – and the third time I got dropped, I decided it’s a training ride.
Meanwhile the wind really picked up by this time. I rode the climbs my pace and rode away from the other two gals, and caught up to a SJBC Jonathan Racine. I passed him on the uphill, and then he passed me on the flats, and so we decided to ride it in together. Solid choice to save it for tomorrow. I rounded up a VeloBella who was clearly fading in my race and got her on my wheel and paced her to the finishline to help her recover… she was ever grateful.
Fitness for climbing is just not there and this race confirms my need for a break.
SUNDAY
Wente Crit 1-2-3. 3’s prized and scored separately.
Weather: 60 and light breeze – much warmer and less windy that the RR.
Teammates – Bev
Start time: 2:40.
Avg speed 25mph
Ate at noon – good choice of a bland sandwich to give me enough energy to stay competitive! Watched the W4 crit. Good times – with Ash taking 4th! Woot!
Bev and I were on the trainers for a solid 45 minutes – legs felt like crap for a full 15 minutes. Around 30 minutes I finally started feeling loose. I did three solid one minute high HR efforts. Felt good and warm.
Took a lap before the race. On the start line in the second row. The gals in front of me SUCKED at clipping in… But I was warm so once out of traffic, I was up and INTO the race. I’ll be honest, I was a bit scared right off the bat – remembering the total trouncing we had in Santa Cruz, and then deflated again from yesterdays race.
I was tentative in the first 3 laps – just seeing how people were riding and checking out the course at speed. There were a few instances of guttering after turn 2 – into the left gutter. Once I found where I could be comfortable (and it was different areas on the course) then I stayed there. I was totally protected about 66% of the time, but around turn 4 the gals were taking a crappy line too much inside, so I consistently moved to the outside so I could steadily pedal but took the wind, and found myself out in the wind fighting to get back into the pack. So either stay on a line and grit my teeth – or move outside and move up!
About halfway thru, a vanderkitten filled a tiny gap to my right where there wasn’t really a gap – so we ended up leaning into each other and pedaling until we moved off each other – it was surprising but I wasn’t going to let it go, I refused to go down. Yay!
Around 6 laps to go, a break had formed after a prime – and I was moving up anyway so I jumped across and was in a break for about ½ lap. Pretty cool to try anyway. It crumbled as metromint gave serious chase.
With 5 to go I had drifted back to chill and recover – Bev was up front looking awesome. With 4 to go I was still in a bad position. Bev was looking good in 3rd wheel.
With 3 to go I was moving up up up.
With 2 to go I was thinking move up move up move up. I needed to be in the top 10 -15 by the last turn.
With 1 to go I was moving up and listening to girls breathing really hard. But I didn’t position myself well – I guess maybe I started moving up too late. When the sprint started, I was about 4 rows back – I passed about 6 gals maybe more by my count. We were all over the road and as girls were falling back and I was passing them, I was having to choose to move around them, left? Right? I hope nobody is coming up behind me? Anyway – I passed a few gals but was solid mid-pack. However I felt I had another sprint left in my tank.
In the end: I moved up, back, around up thru the middle in this race
and was very happy to have made a few moves in the front of the race. My confidence has
taken a beating lately so this was a good race for me, I turned self doubt into
confidence again because I was totally fit enough to hang with these women.
Some of the major competitors that Bev and I have been racing with the first
part of this year did not do anything during this race – and we were both solid
and impressed with our finish. Next time, move up with 3 to go, no matter what.
GTTM
Today was the "for real" race. For points. I hesitated even going down to Fremont today - it was overcast and the clouds looked pregnant. Because they were ready to unleash more rain at any moment. Cathy, Jessica and I pow-wowed down to the race area - quickly got the tent set up and got on our bikes, registered and ready for the clinic. Wow what a fun day. Weather was CRAP but there were plenty of women out for the clinic. Our instructions - practice pacelining - single, double and threaded - wow that was fun, coming up the middle!! So with all the rain falling recently, we had plenty of puddles and plenty of rooster-tail crap all over our faces from sitting on wheels all day. The clinic was fun but lets fast forward to the race... We started off in a hurry. The number one woman the past few weeks showed up today and pushed the pace from the start. I held on for a lap and a half and suddenly a gap opened and the top 4 ladies got a break, Bergen got in there, and Bev and I didnt catch the break fast enough. So we organized a chase group...But they were gone and we didn't see them again! They stretched the field way out - and we popped all the other ladies off our wheels - it was down to 5, (Me, Bev from the Mouse and then Emma from Dolce and two other gals - metromint and someone in green). I tried to encourage everyone to work together for some laps - Bev and I took some pulls, but the other three didnt seem to want to cooperate. So with about 6 laps left, a mentor said to me "you really need to talk with your teammate" -- Bev and I concocted an idea - if those ladies didnt want to work very hard with us, then let's attack and counter attack to drop them. And thats precisely what we did. Bev shot out and I sat on the other 3 girls wheels until they reeled Bev in, just as we got within 10 feet of her, I stood up and sprinted past them - and they jumped again and reeled me in - we did this twice each and dropped two of the three girls off the back (YES!). So it was down to three - and as a mentor said "okay, you have 3 laps left and it's down to three...." I took off again - that's all i heard - I took off and Emma was left to chase me down - which she did... after a 1/2 lap she also popped and suddenly it was me and Bev. That our tactic worked was enough to give me energy to kick ass to the finish with Bev, we knew that there was still a break ahead of us but we didnt know how many gals were in it - I thought 6. And another mentor told us were just racing for top 10. I shouted "Bev, want me to lead you out?" she grabbed my wheel with 50 m to go... and we raced to the finish to lots of cheers! She came across inches in front of me - we got 5th and 6th today! So we had 4 Meece in the top 6!
Cheers all the way around. MUCHO thanks to the guys team that stuck around to cheer for us, thanks to Mo for the advice and support, Thanks to Cathy for the ride, and thanks to Timmy for the directions to BART - and congratulations to all the girly mice out there. Boy did we represent!
GTTM
Yup, it's January - and that means time for the EARLY BIRD criterium race series again. VeloPromo race promotors are hosting the series in 2008 - that means for 3 more sundays in row, I can get up and on the freeway by 8am to do some pre-race learnin and then RACE with mentors by my side - kind of like having sports commentators in your ear the whole time, talking me through what I did wrong, what I should do next time, and what I did right at different points in the race. What a blast - the men (most of the mentors are guys) were genuinely thrilled to have such a huge women's contingent racing out there - and we are seemingly pretty darn good. I have a ton of racing to learn - it's a GAME folks - who's on who's wheel, who wants who's wheel, and who can defend wheels - throw in some complex team dynamics and you've got your own version of survivor...
Todays race was my first ever crit. It wasnt so bad. Notes from today:
It was fast, there was suffering, there was lots of learning - (like dont bridge two non teammates up to your teammate who made a break...).
I won the prime (that's a sprint in the middle of the race - the first person across the line on that lap wins a prize... it's pronounced 'preeeem'. Bev I owe it to you!) I ended up 4th overall = but really everyone's a winner at these races - no points are awarded.
I have a pretty good sprint - one of the mentors told me so...and had I ridden smarter, I could've taken top three if not the win... but
...bike racing is all about tactics and patience... and i didnt have much of either today...i wanted to see what it was like out there off the front - and they left me hangin... i did too much work (by that, I mean that I was pulling into the wind, wasting my energy while all the gals behind me were using 1/3-1/2 as much energy as I was). My legs felt great - but I just didnt quite have the sprint at the end - came up 4th.
So, be smarter next week - and plan some tactics with my teammates!
Overall - it was a flippin BLAST for 45 minutes :)
Cant wait to do it all again next weekend - bring it on FREMONT...
PS thanks to R and M for the rides to and from the race - and thanks to M for the leisurely bike path at the end :)
Today was Peak Season CX race #1. I signed up with Women's Cs - I didnt know who was going to be there, or how large the crowd was. I'm definately going to Cat up to the Bs when I go back - the field was mucho small.
Ingredients that came together to form todays race (in order of decreasing amounts)
- Bumpy bumpy grass - ouch!
- Twists -
- Turns -
- Run ups - double ouch
- Downhills - on which to recover
- Deck walkway - what? cycling? over water? sounds dangerous
- Barriers
I think I came in at 6th overall for women - and 1st in the Cs. Next in this race series is after Dec 25... check it out here
Shout out to M for handily finishing what is most possibly the hardest mountain bike race in the world!
Congrats to J and B - and welcome to Talula Mae! Congratulations!
Welcome back A and DP.
Happy Holiday week.
3 is a lucky number. that must be why the third cx race in the BASPS series was so stinkin crazy, hard, fun. To quote a teammate: "it was uphill, bumpy, and twisty, and downhill bumpy and twisty. That about sums it up.
the preride on Saturday was really really great - mentally IN THE GAME. Mo and I and a bunch of teammates were out in force on Saturday. Sunday morning I arrived early enough to pre-ride twice. There's something so satisfying about knowing the course before race day. Probably because I"m over the disbelief of the course by then, and revel in the mental advantage that I have, because nothing is surprising!
Well, fastfoward to the race... I got the hole shot - raced up that dang runup of terror, smiled at B (my feed guy - thanks B - wish i could've taken a feed!) and went to "put the hurt on" - unfortunately i had to run the berm because i was not in first - so i made a MESS of that corner... but took props from D hopped on her wheel and away we went... woohoo - the yellow train out front :)
well as luck would have it, i went around her at the run up - and she hopped on my wheel! i got a bit ahead after that downhill - and because i was a bit ahead, i thought "yes - go ahead and ride that corner, you did it twice yesterday" - ah while i did have the mental toughness of 'yesterday' i failed to realize HOW MUCH that corner had changed in one day - so that was my big BEGINNER mistake and real lesson of the day. things change.
So - my bike hit something (stump?rock?root) and whatever it was, the bike STOPPED - and my momentum carried my sternum into my headset/handlebars - and then i was on my way to the ground - and POOOOOFFFFTHUD - that was all the air exiting all cells in mylungs.... ever get the wind knocked out of you while your heart rate was redlined? i dont suggest it - it's a serious form of real torture. i thought i might die. or pass out. actually i was hoping I'd pass out, at least i'd stop the pain. searing rib/arm/shoulder/thudding stomach pain.
I'm sorry to all the ladies that might've been really scared at coming across this carcass in the middle of the course :) i couldnt say or do anything but moan. but everyone raced strong and did me proud. While my entire right side, from my neck to my knees is throbbing today - my pride hurts the worst because it was my first DNF.
But hey, you win some, you lose some, and sometimes you're that smooshed bug on the windshield...
the rest of my report is as follows:
things that are cool: the meece team still OWNS the women's C leaders jersey (though i couldnt manage to keep the rubber side down). way to gooooooo, meece! props to everyone out there it was a tough scary fun course...
cool: - the start and the first barrier/run up, only Altezza gal passed me and i could hear D close behind...
Things that sucked - that run up! whew a lungbuster (i'd like to say that the day after is more of a lungbuster...in hindsight)
Good: D passing me while running (and i was riding) up that little killer non-hill after the log - i ran it the second time
bad: when I decided to try and 'ride' that super loose corner by the tree.
Sucked: when i ate shit and endo'd by said corner and tree - and knocked the wind out of myself and could not do or say anything but MOAN and roll around like a shaken baby.
Good: i made D ride FASTER (says D) because she wanted to get someone to help me.
Bad: not being able to say "go ladies-i'm fine" because i couldnt say or do ANYTHING whilst rolling on said dirt with bike in the middle of the race..
Good: the two wonderful samaritans that found me and helped me up and walked back to the mouse tent.
Good: all in all, i have no broken bones and i should be ready to race next week.
Good: larry's max strength ibuprofen
Also good: brooke's IPA
Also good: that sweet photo of T in that cyclocross magazine - where do i find one for you to autograph T?
Thanks everyone for yet another stellar crazy race day.
Cross race 2 - this course scared the crap out of me. I was actually nervous, staring down the scary offcamber's - I just dont practice them at all. Really, it was a fast course - but the offcambers... well I had no clue. So I made a pact to just hop off and run up them, because then, at least I wouldnt crash... SO - that's what I did... AVG HR for the 42 minutes = 171bpm. That is well into zone 4 - almost zone 5 for me (hrmax 192) SO - 42 minutes of screamin pain - that was ef - you - en. (FUN).
1 = how many times i was clipped in going down the short bumpy and STEEP downhill into a lovely left turn... YIKES (out of a total of 6 laps - 4 racing and 2 warm up)
2 = amt of times I tumbled and fell off (once was a real fall, rolling downhill and everything - totally funny as i was moving about .5mph when i went down) and the other was not really a fall but rather a scraped left shoulder and left brake hood which actually hurt more than the fall...when I scraped up a 10 foot section of concrete wall (there's a longer story for anyone who cares)
3 = the amt of times I gunned it for the final offcamber/run up of each lap AND MADE IT WITHOUT RUNNING UP (out of 4 laps)
0 = number of dollars stuck in beer cans along the course (there's always next time).
FIRST = my place amongst the C women. Next race - it's the B's for me!
Well, I did it. My first road cycling race is officially under my belt (or would that be 'under my chamois?") Anyway, I did it. What a spectacle of a day it was. Full of bumpy road, headwinds, pot holes, and lots of new friends! Dunnigan Hills Road Race set in the glorious (and really flat and kinda ugly) Dunnigan CA. Straw fields and tomato trucks are the two things we saw more than once.
So here's my race report: Bergen was my teammate for the race - and it was also her first race EVER - woohoo Bergen! Such a strong rider - I was hoping to just try and keep up! And then M was in the race too - so much fun chatting with M and catching up on the past couple of months.
First off, we started off almost an hour late due to traffic and late registrations. Once all 50 Category 4 women were all on the road (at 10am!) the first thing I noticed was the heat. Quickly followed by the seemingly quick tempo our race started with. One of the things I learned first was to stay mentally tough - and suck up the quick accelerations followed almost instantly by a breaking "slowing" session (picture I-80 traffic). But any time I thought we might be going too fast, it was quickly followed by a S.L.O.W section where i thought we were going to die of boredom we were goign so slow. But by and large - the pace was fine. I followed Renee's advice (thanks again for all the info and advice ahead of time - invaluable!) to stay patient and stay in the pack - we dont have a big team so we dont need to do the most work (breaking the wind etc). V-girls and m-Mint were set to do most the work (as they had huge teams in the pack of 50 or so Cat 4 women). Anywho - time went by, we cycled. couple of people dropped due to mechanicals. nobody crashed...
fast forward to the finish - we were slogging thru this 9 or so mile flat boring road - and were really starting to jockey for position and get some speed going when we were suddenly slowed and 'neutralized' to let the pro men pass us. I think we had to 'pull over' for almost 2 minutes... talk about ruin your game! But I kept my head together and didnt dwell too much on the fact that it was frustrating as hell to be less than 1k from the finish and be STOPPED to let a whole group of faster men go by...
So - we got to go again and everyone immediately jumped on the speed - whew - and suddenly the right turn was there - SWEET tailwind which buoyed me and my spirits up the gentle incline. I saw that nobody was using the whole road (which was the only part of the race where we were allowed to use both lanes of the road)... so I swung left and followed one of two ladies up the incline - as we were cresting, I swung out left again and headed downhill fast... hanging on to some speed and hammering at the 3rd telephone pole (about 200m?) from the finish... I thought to myself when I hit that pole "um, when is everyone going to start sprinting (to the finish?)?" I looked ahead and saw it was just me and one or two other gals and the finish line - so i poured it on... and took second! in my first ever race! How CRAZY is that? I think it was great recon, great advice from Renee, and the fact that we rode almost the whole way a bit under my ability - so I had quite a bit left in the tank when I was finishing up.
The day was a REALLY FUN intro to the world of road race cycling. and behold the Mouse - Thanks to Bergen for agreeing to this as our first team race! Great job in the field today B! We had amazing races! Thanks Renee for the excellent and thorough advice! Thanks to DP for the ride to the race and the secret weapon for the day - breakfast burrito! And thanks to all the Meeces who rode today. And finally - to Denny's - the eatery that promotes pigging out after a race. Yum to that chocolate milkshake I inhaled.
Here's a photo of the team (the guys that were left anyway) and me holding my prize (it's a tshirt - which i'm currently wearing to my amusement. Note my cute hair... helmet head!). More racing to come!
