Sunday, July 23, 2006
Lost some Nauga-hide
I'll start with the 35+, then get to the meat of the matter later...
Okay, I guess I'l have to start by saying I stand guilty of not precisely executing according to plan during this race. Matt, Wade, and Zane were pretty aggressive towards the start of the race. Matt was up front early and in a small group off the front at least once that I saw. Other than the first couple of laps towards the front, I sat in for the majority of the race, so I really wasn't getting a full view of what was going on up front.
I started to get situated for the sprint at 5 or 6 to go. Funk (I think?) was still of the front, but coming back. I moved up behind Badger, then got on the inside line behind Big John Interlandi (another guy I can actually draft off of!). I was getting full on psyched for the finish, thinking positive thoughts and getting into an aggressive state of mind - perhaps too much so. Seeing who had moved up front, I thought there was the potential for a counter-attack.
I was so convinced, I launched one myself. I got a bit of a gap, but unfortunately was not joined by anyone else. I suppose at this point, I should have pulled the ripcord and gotten ready to sprint after all, but I was bit too stubborn. I figured there was a chance that either I could hold out the remaining laps or maybe have someone bridge up. At some point, my oxygen starved mind heard "...good gap..." over the radio, which egged me on. Someone finally did bridge up, but, unfortunately, too late. I could not hold the wheel going up the hill at the end of 2 to go, filtered through, and out the back of the pack. I came in well behind, so anything that happened during the sprint is a mystery to me and need to be commented on by those involved.
Category 4/5, juniors, etc....
I took a 1/2 lap coldown then rushed to the start of the 4/5 race. First few laps were spent getting the legs to come 'round again. The pace was relatively slow enough with the expected bunching at the turns (especially 2 and 3). I found that if I picked my line right, I could gain on the turns and minimize having to deal with the accordion effect. Seemed like a good plan until midway through 8 to go. All I hear ahead of me is "...blah, BLAH, LINES!!!!" CRASH, SCHHHHCHHHH! as a rider a few bike lengths ahead an to the inside of me felt it more prudent to yell and rub wheels than brake and stay upright. I had an out to the outside (albeit very close to the crash victim's wheel) and went to head around. Unfortunely, crash victim #2 hit his other wheel, throwing crash victim #1's other wheel in front of mine. I high sided it and slammed on my right hip and arm.
After figuring out that neither I nor the bike had any major broken bits, I got on and headed up the road bisecting the course to hit the pit. I got checked out and okayed for a free lap. Meanwhile, crash #1 and #2 came around the long way (with crash 1 still bitching about *expletive deleted* people and their lines - which earn admonishment from the official for bad language) And we were back in with 6 to go.
My hip and especially my right thumb were unhappy, so I was thinking twice about the sprint. I figured, what the heck, lets go for another flyer. The plan was to go in the second to last lap, but a good situation presented itself a bit earlier, so I attacked to catch two riders up the road. When I cought them, I figured their speed wouldn't cut it, so I went by on the left. One of the two attached and sucked wheel for a good part of a lap. When he pulled through, I realized I was paired with a strong junior from CCB who offered me no shelter from the wind. I figured next time I pulled around that I best go all or nothing and tow him in. Well, turns out it was nothing. Last time up the hill I was caught and swarmed. I had nothing in the tank, so I sat up and rode in.
I guess the positive note is I got a couple of anaerobic threshold workouts in and came away still able to walk and ride, sort of.
Okay, I guess I'l have to start by saying I stand guilty of not precisely executing according to plan during this race. Matt, Wade, and Zane were pretty aggressive towards the start of the race. Matt was up front early and in a small group off the front at least once that I saw. Other than the first couple of laps towards the front, I sat in for the majority of the race, so I really wasn't getting a full view of what was going on up front.
I started to get situated for the sprint at 5 or 6 to go. Funk (I think?) was still of the front, but coming back. I moved up behind Badger, then got on the inside line behind Big John Interlandi (another guy I can actually draft off of!). I was getting full on psyched for the finish, thinking positive thoughts and getting into an aggressive state of mind - perhaps too much so. Seeing who had moved up front, I thought there was the potential for a counter-attack.
I was so convinced, I launched one myself. I got a bit of a gap, but unfortunately was not joined by anyone else. I suppose at this point, I should have pulled the ripcord and gotten ready to sprint after all, but I was bit too stubborn. I figured there was a chance that either I could hold out the remaining laps or maybe have someone bridge up. At some point, my oxygen starved mind heard "...good gap..." over the radio, which egged me on. Someone finally did bridge up, but, unfortunately, too late. I could not hold the wheel going up the hill at the end of 2 to go, filtered through, and out the back of the pack. I came in well behind, so anything that happened during the sprint is a mystery to me and need to be commented on by those involved.
Category 4/5, juniors, etc....
I took a 1/2 lap coldown then rushed to the start of the 4/5 race. First few laps were spent getting the legs to come 'round again. The pace was relatively slow enough with the expected bunching at the turns (especially 2 and 3). I found that if I picked my line right, I could gain on the turns and minimize having to deal with the accordion effect. Seemed like a good plan until midway through 8 to go. All I hear ahead of me is "...blah, BLAH, LINES!!!!" CRASH, SCHHHHCHHHH! as a rider a few bike lengths ahead an to the inside of me felt it more prudent to yell and rub wheels than brake and stay upright. I had an out to the outside (albeit very close to the crash victim's wheel) and went to head around. Unfortunely, crash victim #2 hit his other wheel, throwing crash victim #1's other wheel in front of mine. I high sided it and slammed on my right hip and arm.
After figuring out that neither I nor the bike had any major broken bits, I got on and headed up the road bisecting the course to hit the pit. I got checked out and okayed for a free lap. Meanwhile, crash #1 and #2 came around the long way (with crash 1 still bitching about *expletive deleted* people and their lines - which earn admonishment from the official for bad language) And we were back in with 6 to go.
My hip and especially my right thumb were unhappy, so I was thinking twice about the sprint. I figured, what the heck, lets go for another flyer. The plan was to go in the second to last lap, but a good situation presented itself a bit earlier, so I attacked to catch two riders up the road. When I cought them, I figured their speed wouldn't cut it, so I went by on the left. One of the two attached and sucked wheel for a good part of a lap. When he pulled through, I realized I was paired with a strong junior from CCB who offered me no shelter from the wind. I figured next time I pulled around that I best go all or nothing and tow him in. Well, turns out it was nothing. Last time up the hill I was caught and swarmed. I had nothing in the tank, so I sat up and rode in.
I guess the positive note is I got a couple of anaerobic threshold workouts in and came away still able to walk and ride, sort of.
Monday, July 17, 2006
Unionvale RR
It was Arlen, Matt, Wade, and I. Sorry if I'm a little light on details here, but i'll do my best. A pretty small field of about 50 riders (even though it was pre-reg only, it looked like a few were able to register day of - Lee Sorrels?? and probably others). Last years winner Fernando was there and he had a pretty strong team to support him. I didn't realize he had such a strong accent until I tried to talk to him during the race. Big mistake, I'm still trying to figure out what he was saying. Seems like a nice guy though, then again, he could have been swearing at me for all I know. Verge Sports Test Pilot (orange jerseys) also had a really strong team. The Stage 1 guys were also there in full force. I think we were the first field to start which was good because it was getting really hot. I made a big mistake and only brought 2 water bottles (the small ones). Also took two gels that they gave out for free at the start. Definetely not good to take without adequate fluids. Money bags Domnarski took more than his share of the free gels. That was his big pay-off for racing today.
The first lap was pretty hard. The verge guys were pushing the pace, and I wasn't sure whether to stay in the big ring or shift to the small ring. It finally settled down, but it was still really hot on the climbs. Shade good but no shade no good. I pretty much held my position close to the front for most of the race. That strategy seemed to work well for me lately, so I stuck with that. We were communicating well during this race. I can't remember all the little details of each lap, but I did know that I had finished a bottle and there was a lot of racing left. Today was not the day to be conservative with the fluids, but that's what I ended up doing. Our guys looked good and the miles were ticking away. All breaks were allowed a little distance then reeled in usually on the climbs. As most of you already know, even though the climbs weren't really long and that steep they come at you pretty fast making the race difficult. If your feeling weak, you're pretty much done. There's no coming back to the pack. Even if you do, you'll get dropped on the next climbs. You've gotta have the basic fitness for this kind of race, hang in there, and stay focused. Of course, staying focused is my strength, yeah right!! I struggled but did o.k. with that part. I'm finding that when I start to lose focus, the best thing to do is ride even harder.
At the top of one of the steepest climbs on like lap three, I pushed it a little and find myself off the front with Xavier Melendez (won the FSR Crit.) and a strong Verge guy - I think the guy who eventually won the race today). We are organized and working hard and get a good gap on the field. I'm not feeling great, but doing my share of the work. The field eventually closes the gap and we let up. I'm pretty sure if we had a target training guy with us we had a good chance to make it. Wade mentioned that Fernando was at the back when we got away so they ended up leading the chase. I recovery pretty well and stay at the front.
As the race continued it was only Arlen and I left. It was kind of funny, but good, that everytime i would look back to see who was left, Arlen would wave to me. He rode a great race for sure. He attacked at one point but no-one responded and followed. I wasn't in a good positon at the time so couldn't do much to help him. He was quickly brought back, but a good move and he obviously had some snap in the legs. As Matt already mentioned in his report, he fell off the pace.. The field came up to Matt on one of the smaller climbs and I was thinking how could we be lapping Matt. I didn't realize he had taken a wrong turn and cut the course short. Probably a good thing given the heat and all. Wade looked good and then he was gone. I'm sure little Nate was the culprit. I wish I had thought of asking Matt for his water, then again it probably would have left him dead. In retrospect, better off i didn't.
As we approached the long final 1.5 mile climb to the finish, the pace picked up significantly. I had been out of water for about the last 15 - 20 miles or so, but I was still o.k. I mistakingly took a gel without water and had a major cramp on my side before the last climb and hoped it wouldn't come back. It didn't. Xavier Malendez attacked before the final climb and hung out there at about 5 seconds all the way to the base of the climb. Lee Sorrels was working really hard up front to chase him down. Not sure why since Lee had no team-mates. Maybe he was feeling great and said why not work. It was good for the rest of the field since we just sat on the train. When we hit the base of the climb, it was strung out and all together. I was in the front 10 and praying for it not to hurt too much. This year no-one really attacked the hill (i.e., last year John McKone did and it worked for him). It was a steady grind from the bottom. It hurt for sure!! O.K., I'll stay positive here. The hurting was good because it created a split and i was in the front group of 6 or so. The others behind were not coming back and i think Arlen was in that group. Arlen said there really wasn't a group behind, it was just staggered riders. I dug in as deep and stayed in the front group tyring to get into a rythym. The hill kept going and going and I was at my max. I eventually had to let up and let 5 guys go. I kept it steady and passed one rider toward the top. The finish never seemed to come. The last 1 km seemed to take forever, but I had 5th clinched for sure. There was a huge gap behind to the next rider. I almost collapsed at the finish line and was really glad it was over. I must have drank about a gallon of water after the race. I never knew water could taste soo good. Arlen finished a solid 12th and was happy with his result and fitness. Matt looked like death and was definetely dehydrated. I picked up $45 for 5th place. It was a hard race for sure. Simply finishing is an accomplishment. Glad I was able to put in a decent effort for the team.
Ed
The first lap was pretty hard. The verge guys were pushing the pace, and I wasn't sure whether to stay in the big ring or shift to the small ring. It finally settled down, but it was still really hot on the climbs. Shade good but no shade no good. I pretty much held my position close to the front for most of the race. That strategy seemed to work well for me lately, so I stuck with that. We were communicating well during this race. I can't remember all the little details of each lap, but I did know that I had finished a bottle and there was a lot of racing left. Today was not the day to be conservative with the fluids, but that's what I ended up doing. Our guys looked good and the miles were ticking away. All breaks were allowed a little distance then reeled in usually on the climbs. As most of you already know, even though the climbs weren't really long and that steep they come at you pretty fast making the race difficult. If your feeling weak, you're pretty much done. There's no coming back to the pack. Even if you do, you'll get dropped on the next climbs. You've gotta have the basic fitness for this kind of race, hang in there, and stay focused. Of course, staying focused is my strength, yeah right!! I struggled but did o.k. with that part. I'm finding that when I start to lose focus, the best thing to do is ride even harder.
At the top of one of the steepest climbs on like lap three, I pushed it a little and find myself off the front with Xavier Melendez (won the FSR Crit.) and a strong Verge guy - I think the guy who eventually won the race today). We are organized and working hard and get a good gap on the field. I'm not feeling great, but doing my share of the work. The field eventually closes the gap and we let up. I'm pretty sure if we had a target training guy with us we had a good chance to make it. Wade mentioned that Fernando was at the back when we got away so they ended up leading the chase. I recovery pretty well and stay at the front.
As the race continued it was only Arlen and I left. It was kind of funny, but good, that everytime i would look back to see who was left, Arlen would wave to me. He rode a great race for sure. He attacked at one point but no-one responded and followed. I wasn't in a good positon at the time so couldn't do much to help him. He was quickly brought back, but a good move and he obviously had some snap in the legs. As Matt already mentioned in his report, he fell off the pace.. The field came up to Matt on one of the smaller climbs and I was thinking how could we be lapping Matt. I didn't realize he had taken a wrong turn and cut the course short. Probably a good thing given the heat and all. Wade looked good and then he was gone. I'm sure little Nate was the culprit. I wish I had thought of asking Matt for his water, then again it probably would have left him dead. In retrospect, better off i didn't.
As we approached the long final 1.5 mile climb to the finish, the pace picked up significantly. I had been out of water for about the last 15 - 20 miles or so, but I was still o.k. I mistakingly took a gel without water and had a major cramp on my side before the last climb and hoped it wouldn't come back. It didn't. Xavier Malendez attacked before the final climb and hung out there at about 5 seconds all the way to the base of the climb. Lee Sorrels was working really hard up front to chase him down. Not sure why since Lee had no team-mates. Maybe he was feeling great and said why not work. It was good for the rest of the field since we just sat on the train. When we hit the base of the climb, it was strung out and all together. I was in the front 10 and praying for it not to hurt too much. This year no-one really attacked the hill (i.e., last year John McKone did and it worked for him). It was a steady grind from the bottom. It hurt for sure!! O.K., I'll stay positive here. The hurting was good because it created a split and i was in the front group of 6 or so. The others behind were not coming back and i think Arlen was in that group. Arlen said there really wasn't a group behind, it was just staggered riders. I dug in as deep and stayed in the front group tyring to get into a rythym. The hill kept going and going and I was at my max. I eventually had to let up and let 5 guys go. I kept it steady and passed one rider toward the top. The finish never seemed to come. The last 1 km seemed to take forever, but I had 5th clinched for sure. There was a huge gap behind to the next rider. I almost collapsed at the finish line and was really glad it was over. I must have drank about a gallon of water after the race. I never knew water could taste soo good. Arlen finished a solid 12th and was happy with his result and fitness. Matt looked like death and was definetely dehydrated. I picked up $45 for 5th place. It was a hard race for sure. Simply finishing is an accomplishment. Glad I was able to put in a decent effort for the team.
Ed
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Shine On You Crazy Diamond
Monday, July 10, 2006
Ed has a good day at New Britain
His story:
I was pretty relaxed at the start not expecting very much of myself given the competition. My goal was to stay in the front of the race for as long a possible to stay out of trouble and maybe get into a move. I jumped hard when it started to get within the top 10 or 15 and just kept it going. The race seemed pretty fast and wasn't having any problems staying in the top 10 or so. The fact that it was pretty strung out for much of the race probably made it easier to hold my position. I also think that I was having a pretty good day. Probably a combination of both. I was kind of expecting that sooner or later I'd lose my position up front, but surprisingly it never really happened. Lap after lap I held that position, and actually feeling pretty good. Paul came up once or twice and that was good to see. I wasn't really sure about what was happening behind with others. I just assumed folks were sitting on, as much as possible, for later in the race. A few guys attacked here and there but the pace was very high and most were brought back. There were some good size primes and some smaller ones that I saw come and go. I thought about going for a few but didn't act on any of these thoughts. By the way, the guy that had cancer in his mouth ( Wade or Matt or someone else found out about it after North Stonington ) was in the race and riding well. I talked to him for a while during warm-up. He said he went to the Dentist because of a tooth ache and they found cancer. Had it removed and was out for a while but is now back and very strong. If fact, he got one of the bigger primes during this race.
After the halfway point, Mark McCormick comes to the front and I figure here we go. Mike McGinley and others were definitely following him closely and marking his every move. A group of maybe 5 guys splits off the front about this time, or maybe a little earlier, and gets a nice size lead. They stay out there for about 10 or 15 laps. Their gap varies from 25 seconds to 10 seconds during this time. The Anthem guys worked pretty hard to control the race and I think set it up for Mike. McCormick and a few others decide to up the pace and I hang on for dear life, but manage to stay up front. I'm even actually able to recover and still ride strongly to help chase a little! I did keep hearing Wade in my head saying you don't have to work if there is no benefit to you. So I quickly took his advice and let the bigger teams do the work right up front. The group finally was brought back, and a little later another group develops and gets about 15 seconds on the field. At this point I'm pretty tired and ready to call it quits up front, but without really thinking start to follow this guy (not sure who he was) on the inside of the field. I am glued to his wheel and feeling really good and relaxed. We work our way to the break pretty quickly and effortlessly, for me anyways, and now the group is I think around 10. I don't recognize anyone in the break except for Sean Forsthye, John Funk, and Tim Unkert. There's still about 15 laps left and were moving along pretty good. I can't say it was smooth or steady but it was pretty well organized and I was doing my share of the work. Thankfully, it was a good size group so we didn't have to take really long pulls. I think I rode it as well as I could. As we got closer to the end, I can see that we had a winning gap and that was great. However, I was also pretty tired and not recovering so well anymore. I was also losing focus as the mind started to wander. Someone on the sideline was yelling to the group that we had to stay focused. That actually helped. It was good to hear that this loss of focus thing is fairly common among riders. I thought I was the only one with this problem. I had to keep reminding myself that this was the winning break and to snap out of it. During the last two or three laps I was toast but hung in there. John Funk attacked with one to go and was pulled back. Too bad that I couldn't do a thing to increase my chances for a win. I think that staying relaxed toward the end of a race instead of tensing up is key. Maybe visualizing the last few minutes of a race over and over again in a positive way can help for the future. Anyways, I managed to pass one rider and was kicking myself a little for not being able to at least get by Funk who had to be more tired than I with his earlier effort to get away.
Anyways, I think I got 8th or 9th. What a surprise, especially in a crit. By the way, earlier that morning I made a slight adjustment to my bike position Zane. I think I do better when making all these minor adjustments just prior to a race. Problem is, I'm running out of adjustment to make :-)
Ed
I was pretty relaxed at the start not expecting very much of myself given the competition. My goal was to stay in the front of the race for as long a possible to stay out of trouble and maybe get into a move. I jumped hard when it started to get within the top 10 or 15 and just kept it going. The race seemed pretty fast and wasn't having any problems staying in the top 10 or so. The fact that it was pretty strung out for much of the race probably made it easier to hold my position. I also think that I was having a pretty good day. Probably a combination of both. I was kind of expecting that sooner or later I'd lose my position up front, but surprisingly it never really happened. Lap after lap I held that position, and actually feeling pretty good. Paul came up once or twice and that was good to see. I wasn't really sure about what was happening behind with others. I just assumed folks were sitting on, as much as possible, for later in the race. A few guys attacked here and there but the pace was very high and most were brought back. There were some good size primes and some smaller ones that I saw come and go. I thought about going for a few but didn't act on any of these thoughts. By the way, the guy that had cancer in his mouth ( Wade or Matt or someone else found out about it after North Stonington ) was in the race and riding well. I talked to him for a while during warm-up. He said he went to the Dentist because of a tooth ache and they found cancer. Had it removed and was out for a while but is now back and very strong. If fact, he got one of the bigger primes during this race.
After the halfway point, Mark McCormick comes to the front and I figure here we go. Mike McGinley and others were definitely following him closely and marking his every move. A group of maybe 5 guys splits off the front about this time, or maybe a little earlier, and gets a nice size lead. They stay out there for about 10 or 15 laps. Their gap varies from 25 seconds to 10 seconds during this time. The Anthem guys worked pretty hard to control the race and I think set it up for Mike. McCormick and a few others decide to up the pace and I hang on for dear life, but manage to stay up front. I'm even actually able to recover and still ride strongly to help chase a little! I did keep hearing Wade in my head saying you don't have to work if there is no benefit to you. So I quickly took his advice and let the bigger teams do the work right up front. The group finally was brought back, and a little later another group develops and gets about 15 seconds on the field. At this point I'm pretty tired and ready to call it quits up front, but without really thinking start to follow this guy (not sure who he was) on the inside of the field. I am glued to his wheel and feeling really good and relaxed. We work our way to the break pretty quickly and effortlessly, for me anyways, and now the group is I think around 10. I don't recognize anyone in the break except for Sean Forsthye, John Funk, and Tim Unkert. There's still about 15 laps left and were moving along pretty good. I can't say it was smooth or steady but it was pretty well organized and I was doing my share of the work. Thankfully, it was a good size group so we didn't have to take really long pulls. I think I rode it as well as I could. As we got closer to the end, I can see that we had a winning gap and that was great. However, I was also pretty tired and not recovering so well anymore. I was also losing focus as the mind started to wander. Someone on the sideline was yelling to the group that we had to stay focused. That actually helped. It was good to hear that this loss of focus thing is fairly common among riders. I thought I was the only one with this problem. I had to keep reminding myself that this was the winning break and to snap out of it. During the last two or three laps I was toast but hung in there. John Funk attacked with one to go and was pulled back. Too bad that I couldn't do a thing to increase my chances for a win. I think that staying relaxed toward the end of a race instead of tensing up is key. Maybe visualizing the last few minutes of a race over and over again in a positive way can help for the future. Anyways, I managed to pass one rider and was kicking myself a little for not being able to at least get by Funk who had to be more tired than I with his earlier effort to get away.
Anyways, I think I got 8th or 9th. What a surprise, especially in a crit. By the way, earlier that morning I made a slight adjustment to my bike position Zane. I think I do better when making all these minor adjustments just prior to a race. Problem is, I'm running out of adjustment to make :-)
Ed
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Dove è la mia bici?
Onde está minha bicicleta?
Wo ist mein Fahrrad?
나의 자전거는 어디에 있는가?
¿Dónde está mi bici?
私のバイクはどこにあるか。
如果我的车?
في بلادي حيث الدراجه؟
Où est mon vélo ?
Where's my bike?
Monday, July 03, 2006
Can You Tell I'm the Only One Without a Real Job in the Summer?
Here’s my summary of the 2006 Fitchburg-Longsjo Classic
Stage 1: 6.2 mile Individual Time Trial
I did a proper warm-up and felt good. Went with a full rear disk and clip on bars. And shoe covers. Have to have those shoe covers. I hit the first uphill at full-speed and felt great. HR about 178-180, manageable searing pain in my legs, and I caught my 30-second man just as the first long rise was finished. The guy behind me caught me just before the sharp right hand turn onto Rt. 140. I got a little worried but I re-passed him on the uphill and then kept him in sight after he re-passed me on the run-in to the last turn. Every time I tried to go a little harder, and my HR went into the 180s, I had to back off or blow up. I hit the finish hill strong and crossed the line, looking back to see my finish time and place. 17:55 and 60-something-th place. WHAT?!?!?!?! I guess I really do need to work more on my TT. Or not.
Everyone else finished reasonably well (OK, that’s being generous. We all suck. Ted, where are you?) with Gary leading the way in 41st place with a time of 16:45.
Stage 2: 28 mile Circuit Race, 9 laps
Rode to the race from our hotel, a nice 7 mile warm-up. It was sunny and about 75 degrees at race time. The pace was brutal from the gun but settled down on lap 2. Our plan was to play it cool and try to drive it on the last lap leading into the crucial final corner, delivering Arlen and/or Ed to a win (or at least a high finish). Other than a split on lap 4 (or 3?) on the back side when it strung out and broke into 3 groups, things pretty much stayed together. Gary popped on the climb on lap 2, but his plan, with Spike’s help from the sideline giving time checks on the radio, was to get “caught” on Fitch Highway on the last lap, adding one powerful body to our lead-out train. It worked to PERFECTION. As we rounded the sharp corner at the top of the course, Arlen screamed either “WHAT ARE WE DOING FOR LUNCH!” or “GO AS HARD AS YOU CAN” (I’m not sure which) on the radio, and I glanced back and saw a green jersey on my wheel, which I thought was Matt (turns out it was Paul). Someone attacked on the left, stringing the field out, and I went hard on the right with wide open spaces ahead. Problem was I went too hard (yes, go ahead and re-read that again…it’s correct), flew past Gary, and was solo off the front coming down the long straight to the last corner. I died about 200 yards before the corner, but it worked out with Gary leading a stream of green at 35 mph into the corner. The plan worked with Ed taking 8th and Z. Arlen 16th. I couldn’t tell you for sure exactly what the finish looked like, since I was dying at the back. I really messed up 100 feet from the line when I looked up and realized the 2 riders I thought were last in the pack, were lapped women! Paul and I got a time 20+ seconds off the field since we were technically about 2 seconds off the back of the pack. Oh well, you snooze, you lose.
Stage 3: 58 mile Road Race, 5 laps plus climb up Mt. Wachusett
Rode over from the hotel and didn’t really warm up more, since conserving energy is always my plan for this stage. It was sunny and not too warm. I took 3 bottles but only drank 2 during the whole race. The plan was the same as last year; try to get as many guys to the base of the mountain as possible, sacrificing only Gary, Matt or Arlen to chase or go with breaks if something looked dangerous. As it turns out, between Badger and Roszko battling it out for the points jersey, and Bicycle Link and CRCA/Blue Ribbon guys chasing, trying to preserve top GC spots, we had an easy day. The smaller field and the slightly weaker caliber of the field overall (or maybe I'm in better shape?) made the 5 laps painful, but not too dangerous. The feed zone hill hurt really badly on lap 2, but other than a short-lived split in the field there, we all made it (except Gary) to the last lap in the front group. Jon Gallagher went away with another rider on the 4th lap and I thought for sure the race was over and he’d win but Bicycle Link made another valiant chase to bring him back before the feed zone. The final time up the KOM hill on the last lap really strung things out, with the tail of the 40-50 man field heading into the final climb quite a ways back of the head of the field. We found out later it was CRCA drilling it to the park entrance to get David Taylor a head start on the climb and he rewarded them with a 2nd place finish.
I was a little farther back than I would have liked as the climb started in earnest, with Ed just ahead of me. I had to dodge Badger and Donny Mills as they started to blow up as we turned left onto the steepest part on the climb. I passed Ed about 200 yards later, and he said “I want to go home” as I passed him. I tried to encourage him to stick with me and set as hard a tempo as I could hold from there on in, taking 20th on the stage, 1:22 down on the winner. I was very happy with my ride but Matt was the star of the day finishing 29th, about 20 seconds behind Ed and me. Everyone did a great job, and we stuck to the plan and all finished strong.
Stage 4: 17 mile Criterium, 19 laps
I said one too many times during the weekend: “Wow. Looks like we’ll actually have a Fitchburg with no rain.” Stupid me. We woke up to high clouds and a stiff breeze but about 9:30 as we were warming up, it started to rain during the Women's 3/4 race. Quite a grim prospect on the slick, crosswalk-laden streets of downtown Fitchburg.
Unfortunately, my race was useless. It was still raining at the start and other than a brutal pace on the first lap, there were no crashes, and I had settled in near the front of the pack. Then all hell broke loose. On lap 4 or 5, Badger slid out on the sweeping corner at the top of the course, right into me, which slowed me down and put me at the back. Then 100 yards later, one guy went down, sliding along on his butt at 30 mph, Stuart Jensen crashed badly into the curb, and Paul got hit by Bodin, disabling his rear wheel. I unclipped one foot and nearly came to a stop while scooting between Paul, Bodin, and Paul’s bike. With the rash of crashes, the pack instinctively slammed on the accelerator pedal. Uh oh. In hindsight, I should have headed to the pit and taken a free lap. Instead, I thought I could chase back to the tail of the field. By the time we turned onto the finish straight, it was clear that was a fantasy. I was left to the mercy of the officials, hoping they’d give me a free lap or somehow not notice me riding solo for several laps. One of the two happened although I didn’t know it at the time. I chased with 3 other guys for a lap but dropped them. I thought that at least if I could get to 10 to go I’d get a time if they pulled me when I got lapped. With 8 to go, I got caught, and jumped back in the field. Problem is I was useless at this point, having TT'ed at 25 mph for 15 minutes. Why can't I TT like that in a TT? Xavier Melendez jumped away with 1 to go and held it for the win.Ed still took 5th in the field sprint, for a fine 6th place.
Summary
We did a great job as a team, had great fun, Ed scored 2 top ten placings, and several more of us had top 20s. We worked as a team as well as we ever have at the CR. Everyone gritted it out and stepped up on the RR and Matt, Arlen, Ed and Paul stepped up again on an ugly, ugly, ugly rainy day at the crit.
Arlen is a little obsessed with vegetables, and Paul thinks the trees are spectators and that spinning 15 minutes before bed is normal behavior, but other than that no one drove anyone else too crazy off the bike. If you ever eat at the Wachusett Village Inn, order the burgers. They are AWESOME.
Matt gets my award for Rider of the Weekend (his 40th birthday weekend) and probably did well because he wasn’t loony from hanging around with the rest of us during all the down time.
The quote of the weekend probably won’t seem funny to anyone else, but was hilarious if you were there. The scene is sitting on the sidewalk next to a closed intersection while watching the Pro-1 circuit race.
Irate Female Driver (screaming through her car window, and gesturing angrily to the other side of the closed street): How do I get to my house?!?!?!
Arlen: I don’t know lady! Tell us where you live and maybe we can help you out!
Stage 1: 6.2 mile Individual Time Trial
I did a proper warm-up and felt good. Went with a full rear disk and clip on bars. And shoe covers. Have to have those shoe covers. I hit the first uphill at full-speed and felt great. HR about 178-180, manageable searing pain in my legs, and I caught my 30-second man just as the first long rise was finished. The guy behind me caught me just before the sharp right hand turn onto Rt. 140. I got a little worried but I re-passed him on the uphill and then kept him in sight after he re-passed me on the run-in to the last turn. Every time I tried to go a little harder, and my HR went into the 180s, I had to back off or blow up. I hit the finish hill strong and crossed the line, looking back to see my finish time and place. 17:55 and 60-something-th place. WHAT?!?!?!?! I guess I really do need to work more on my TT. Or not.
Everyone else finished reasonably well (OK, that’s being generous. We all suck. Ted, where are you?) with Gary leading the way in 41st place with a time of 16:45.
Stage 2: 28 mile Circuit Race, 9 laps
Rode to the race from our hotel, a nice 7 mile warm-up. It was sunny and about 75 degrees at race time. The pace was brutal from the gun but settled down on lap 2. Our plan was to play it cool and try to drive it on the last lap leading into the crucial final corner, delivering Arlen and/or Ed to a win (or at least a high finish). Other than a split on lap 4 (or 3?) on the back side when it strung out and broke into 3 groups, things pretty much stayed together. Gary popped on the climb on lap 2, but his plan, with Spike’s help from the sideline giving time checks on the radio, was to get “caught” on Fitch Highway on the last lap, adding one powerful body to our lead-out train. It worked to PERFECTION. As we rounded the sharp corner at the top of the course, Arlen screamed either “WHAT ARE WE DOING FOR LUNCH!” or “GO AS HARD AS YOU CAN” (I’m not sure which) on the radio, and I glanced back and saw a green jersey on my wheel, which I thought was Matt (turns out it was Paul). Someone attacked on the left, stringing the field out, and I went hard on the right with wide open spaces ahead. Problem was I went too hard (yes, go ahead and re-read that again…it’s correct), flew past Gary, and was solo off the front coming down the long straight to the last corner. I died about 200 yards before the corner, but it worked out with Gary leading a stream of green at 35 mph into the corner. The plan worked with Ed taking 8th and Z. Arlen 16th. I couldn’t tell you for sure exactly what the finish looked like, since I was dying at the back. I really messed up 100 feet from the line when I looked up and realized the 2 riders I thought were last in the pack, were lapped women! Paul and I got a time 20+ seconds off the field since we were technically about 2 seconds off the back of the pack. Oh well, you snooze, you lose.
Stage 3: 58 mile Road Race, 5 laps plus climb up Mt. Wachusett
Rode over from the hotel and didn’t really warm up more, since conserving energy is always my plan for this stage. It was sunny and not too warm. I took 3 bottles but only drank 2 during the whole race. The plan was the same as last year; try to get as many guys to the base of the mountain as possible, sacrificing only Gary, Matt or Arlen to chase or go with breaks if something looked dangerous. As it turns out, between Badger and Roszko battling it out for the points jersey, and Bicycle Link and CRCA/Blue Ribbon guys chasing, trying to preserve top GC spots, we had an easy day. The smaller field and the slightly weaker caliber of the field overall (or maybe I'm in better shape?) made the 5 laps painful, but not too dangerous. The feed zone hill hurt really badly on lap 2, but other than a short-lived split in the field there, we all made it (except Gary) to the last lap in the front group. Jon Gallagher went away with another rider on the 4th lap and I thought for sure the race was over and he’d win but Bicycle Link made another valiant chase to bring him back before the feed zone. The final time up the KOM hill on the last lap really strung things out, with the tail of the 40-50 man field heading into the final climb quite a ways back of the head of the field. We found out later it was CRCA drilling it to the park entrance to get David Taylor a head start on the climb and he rewarded them with a 2nd place finish.
I was a little farther back than I would have liked as the climb started in earnest, with Ed just ahead of me. I had to dodge Badger and Donny Mills as they started to blow up as we turned left onto the steepest part on the climb. I passed Ed about 200 yards later, and he said “I want to go home” as I passed him. I tried to encourage him to stick with me and set as hard a tempo as I could hold from there on in, taking 20th on the stage, 1:22 down on the winner. I was very happy with my ride but Matt was the star of the day finishing 29th, about 20 seconds behind Ed and me. Everyone did a great job, and we stuck to the plan and all finished strong.
Stage 4: 17 mile Criterium, 19 laps
I said one too many times during the weekend: “Wow. Looks like we’ll actually have a Fitchburg with no rain.” Stupid me. We woke up to high clouds and a stiff breeze but about 9:30 as we were warming up, it started to rain during the Women's 3/4 race. Quite a grim prospect on the slick, crosswalk-laden streets of downtown Fitchburg.
Unfortunately, my race was useless. It was still raining at the start and other than a brutal pace on the first lap, there were no crashes, and I had settled in near the front of the pack. Then all hell broke loose. On lap 4 or 5, Badger slid out on the sweeping corner at the top of the course, right into me, which slowed me down and put me at the back. Then 100 yards later, one guy went down, sliding along on his butt at 30 mph, Stuart Jensen crashed badly into the curb, and Paul got hit by Bodin, disabling his rear wheel. I unclipped one foot and nearly came to a stop while scooting between Paul, Bodin, and Paul’s bike. With the rash of crashes, the pack instinctively slammed on the accelerator pedal. Uh oh. In hindsight, I should have headed to the pit and taken a free lap. Instead, I thought I could chase back to the tail of the field. By the time we turned onto the finish straight, it was clear that was a fantasy. I was left to the mercy of the officials, hoping they’d give me a free lap or somehow not notice me riding solo for several laps. One of the two happened although I didn’t know it at the time. I chased with 3 other guys for a lap but dropped them. I thought that at least if I could get to 10 to go I’d get a time if they pulled me when I got lapped. With 8 to go, I got caught, and jumped back in the field. Problem is I was useless at this point, having TT'ed at 25 mph for 15 minutes. Why can't I TT like that in a TT? Xavier Melendez jumped away with 1 to go and held it for the win.Ed still took 5th in the field sprint, for a fine 6th place.
Summary
We did a great job as a team, had great fun, Ed scored 2 top ten placings, and several more of us had top 20s. We worked as a team as well as we ever have at the CR. Everyone gritted it out and stepped up on the RR and Matt, Arlen, Ed and Paul stepped up again on an ugly, ugly, ugly rainy day at the crit.
Arlen is a little obsessed with vegetables, and Paul thinks the trees are spectators and that spinning 15 minutes before bed is normal behavior, but other than that no one drove anyone else too crazy off the bike. If you ever eat at the Wachusett Village Inn, order the burgers. They are AWESOME.
Matt gets my award for Rider of the Weekend (his 40th birthday weekend) and probably did well because he wasn’t loony from hanging around with the rest of us during all the down time.
The quote of the weekend probably won’t seem funny to anyone else, but was hilarious if you were there. The scene is sitting on the sidewalk next to a closed intersection while watching the Pro-1 circuit race.
Irate Female Driver (screaming through her car window, and gesturing angrily to the other side of the closed street): How do I get to my house?!?!?!
Arlen: I don’t know lady! Tell us where you live and maybe we can help you out!
Fitchburg Photo Essay
I'll post a race report in a bit but I'm sure this is what you all have been waiting for. And no...I will not post THAT picture of Arlen...remember my Mom reads this blog.
TT start times...
Kris Auer drove all the way from MD just to watch Arlen try and get up on his rollers...
Warming up for the TT...
Paulie's "secret" methods for stage race success...
How much better can it get. Look at Sponge Bob and yourself at the same time...
He claims it's not a spray-on tan. You decide...
Powerade and Wachusett Country Ale. The perfect recovery drink/analgesic...
Happiness is tons o' food at the Princeton Congo Church...
TT start times...
Kris Auer drove all the way from MD just to watch Arlen try and get up on his rollers...
Warming up for the TT...
Paulie's "secret" methods for stage race success...
How much better can it get. Look at Sponge Bob and yourself at the same time...
He claims it's not a spray-on tan. You decide...
Powerade and Wachusett Country Ale. The perfect recovery drink/analgesic...
Happiness is tons o' food at the Princeton Congo Church...
2006 Tour de France Newsflash
News flash...
The Horst-Benidorm-Property Research Corp. Masters Team has been asked to ride during the last week of the 2006 Tour, as there will be no riders left by that point. We have sworn we will only take aspirin, ibuprofen, and Prozac as performance enhancing drugs. We will, however, be required to drink only French coffee out of those tiny sissy cups since there are no Dunkin' Donuts stores in France yet.
I will not be required to ride in the final TT since I could not beat even my dead grandmother in a TT. Only Ed, Paul and I will be required to ride up any of the hills. Gary can ride around them. Matt is allowed to drive a Mass State Police cruiser at any time at any speed on any road, and Arlen as team DS can ride with him. Ted and Wade get to stay back in the states but will receive the same time as the main peloton on all stages.
No one will be allowed to "snap the carrot" at any time during our stay in France.
The Horst-Benidorm-Property Research Corp. Masters Team has been asked to ride during the last week of the 2006 Tour, as there will be no riders left by that point. We have sworn we will only take aspirin, ibuprofen, and Prozac as performance enhancing drugs. We will, however, be required to drink only French coffee out of those tiny sissy cups since there are no Dunkin' Donuts stores in France yet.
I will not be required to ride in the final TT since I could not beat even my dead grandmother in a TT. Only Ed, Paul and I will be required to ride up any of the hills. Gary can ride around them. Matt is allowed to drive a Mass State Police cruiser at any time at any speed on any road, and Arlen as team DS can ride with him. Ted and Wade get to stay back in the states but will receive the same time as the main peloton on all stages.
No one will be allowed to "snap the carrot" at any time during our stay in France.
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