Carnation Circuit Race: Attack!!

[catching up on the last few races of the season]

A few weeks ago was the final race in the three-race circuit series, a flat 4-mile loop out in the fields of Carnation. Views of the Cascades, scattered clouds, and about 66F - what more could you ask for?

Oh, about 54 other cat 3's to race against, that's what.

Ride to the ride

Took the bus from downtown to Redmond, just to save time and not have to leave super early like the ride to the Gig Harbor race a few weeks ago. From Redmond I rode Novelty Hill Road out to Snoqualmie Valley Rd which was part of the race course. Some hills but nothing too bad, and some nice views along the way.

The ride was slow and pleasant. Didn't get there in time to see the end of the 4/5's race, but saw all the usual suspects after the race. Jeff won again, that seems to be a repeating theme in that field!

The Race

I had four other Recycled Cycles team mates in this Cat 3 race, and one of our guys, Eric, loves to attack. And he did so just after the lead car sped up, ending our short neutral rollout. I used to be kind of nervous when the neutral rollout would end and the pack would speed up at once, but now I'm more excited and ready for the race to play out. And hopefully have an effect on the outcome..

The backstretch of this course was a narrow one-lane farm road, but we had had the center-line rule, so (in theory) you can't move up on the left side since cars might be coming the other way. But people still did it anyway..

It was a decent size field of 54 riders, enough to pack a lane and make it really hard to move up. For some reason I started in the back with a few of our guys, while two of our guys started up front. I should have just started up front, but instead had to slowly work my way up in the turns and the sprint.

Last year I had a really hard time hanging on when we came down the final straightaway, especially when at the back. Almost got dropped.. but this year I made sure not to be on the back there, and at least have a wheel to hang onto while coming through there.

That section was much easier for me this year, I didn't feel like the elastic was going to be snapped for me even during the sprint lap. So while I was trying to move up, Eric was still putting on attacks, one after another, I loved watching that!

Mid-way through the race or so, our field was neutralized and we had to come to a stop on the finish stretch, there had been a crash in the final sprint of the women's race. When we were re-started we passed some riders still down from the spill, I saw some skinned elbows, torn kits, ouch.

Later that lap we were stopped again, this time while sprinting out of a corner on the backstretch. They were still clearing riders from the road and had to bring in an ambulance..

The refs said they were shortening the race, and that there would be one to go after this, when there would normally be two to go. Shortly after they changed their mind, and re-started us, the race was back on.

I was sliding back somewhat during this lap, just not paying attention, and Carl on my team reminded me I should probably move up if I wanted to contest the finish at all. Good point! We moved up through the pack but there wasn't much space at all.

On the backstretch where everyone broke the rules and left the left side to move up, I did the same and hopped into 20th wheel or so, a decent position for the sprint.

It was pretty windy, with what felt like a cross-wind on the backstretch, and a headwind on the finish straight. I didn't want to be on the front of the pack coming out of the last turn..

Attack

On the last lap, the pack was all together and I was about 20th wheel, thinking about how the sprint was too long for me, 300-400m, so I needed to approach it another way. I gained some speed and came up the side of the pack, and lit up an attack. Went all out and held it for about a minute, then just tried to ride it out to the finish with one mile to go..

I went over the bridge with a decent gap, but I hadn't looked back yet, it was too early, though I could tell from the silence behind me.

Came around the penultimate turn hard, hoping to build on my lead. With an attack like this you can't commit 90%, you've got to give it everything. All or nothing. Gave a quick look back and the pack looked small!!! I was surprised. Maybe I'd caught them off guard and this was the winning move?!

Two riders warming up for the 1/2's race cheered me on as I hammered towards the final turn, off the front. 500 meters from the line and the race is mine.

It was starting to hurt if it didn't already, and looking at the data I spent about 2 minutes at 194 bpm (heart rate).. and averaged 28 mph for this last mile.

Came around the last turn, into the final straight, 300 meters to go, and the race is mine!!! (maybe, maybe, I'm hoping)

The headwind is evident as ever and my legs are turning into slush. Burning slush. Looking down I'm doing about 30 mph, giving it all I've got, but I know that's not enough to hold off the pack, which surely must be gaining by now.

A quick look back and I see a First Rate Mortgage kit on the left, damn. Up until that point I thought the race was mine, guess I got ahead of myself!

200 meters from the line, and 35th place is now mine. But it was one of my best Cat 3 finishes, even if my worst result so far. In some of the photos you can barely see me in the background, just hoping not to get hit by riders coming around me, wondering where my legs went.

Maybe next time I should go with 1km to go instead of 1 mile.. it was a great race though.

Post-Race

Hung out with some team mates after the race, checked out results, and got ready for the ride back.

I went back to Redmond via Union Hill road, took it really slow since my legs were kind of tired and there was a race tomorrow, the last of the season: The Seward Park Season-Ender.

Gig Harbor Circuit Race+ 2010

The main goal for this race last Saturday was to survive. Last year, I survived up to the last lap, then I got dropped. Came in outside the rolling enclosure that race, first time ever in my race career to come in to the silence of off the back.

In addition to surviving the race, I wanted to get in some extra miles in addition to the ~30 mile event. So I rode from Capitol Hill to the Fauntleroy ferry, then from Southworth to the race start in Gig Harbor. About 32 miles extra each way, not much, but the ferry adds a ton of time to the round trip!

The 3's race was at 11 am but I had to leave way early to catch the 7:30 ferry, since the 8:30 ferry would be cutting it close, with the 22 mile ride from Southworth to the race. And of course there are short but steep hills out there on the peninsula. Luckily most of them were steeper downhill on the way there, with a few big "rollers" too.

Got to the race a way earlier than I wanted to, but it was better than getting there too late. Was going up to the start when the 4/5's pack came shooting by in the opposite direction, with a few familiar faces in there.

Got registered and went back to watch the end of the 4/5's race. Was yelled at by the officials when crossing the road, even though the pack was a good 500 meters up the road, but that's their job I guess. But dammit I wanted to see the final sprint!

As the sprint became more clear, I saw a Second Ascent rider in blue/white leading the pack with a nice gap and good speed. As he gets nearer I see it's my friend Rob!! I give him a good shout and am really glad I'm filming this at this point.

The pack is extremely strung out behind them, and later we learn there was a crash at 1k to go.. yikes. No wonder they're all spread out..

And then Chad from Hagens rolls up with a broken handlebar, and blood splattered on his white shoe. Looked like his fingers hit the road and took some of the grinding on chipseal, damn.. and there I was sitting with no gloves at all (lost a pair and have been lazy about replacing them), really wishing I had some long-fingered gloves to use.. oh well.

Chatted with Rob, the race winner, and JC from my team, along with a few others after the race. Can't wait until they're in the 3's...

The Race

Suffering all around, on a nice summer day - 39 Cat 3's doing 7 laps:

(source)

I had two team mates in the race, but I told them up front my plan was just to survive, I had no intentions of going off the front or doing anything spectacular, due to last year's failure on this course.

And it felt weird to watch Eric P. go off the front about 4-5 times in the first two laps of our race, and not be able to try a counter-attack.. but it was great watching him put on a display of aggressiveness while it lasted (he ended up having to DNF due to a plastic bag getting in his rear derailleur of all things).

The hill on the backside near the 1k sign was still there, and still hard, but it did seem a tad easier this year. Was it the 18 lb bike instead of the 22 lb bike? Or the fact that I'm probably 5-10 lbs lighter as well since last year.. or all the training over the winter/sprint/summer? Perhaps all of the above.

But it wasn't easy by any means. I soldiered up it n the 53x25, and once the 53x23 for some reason, holding my spot in the pack or sometimes drifting backwards a bit. Only 45 seconds or a minute of suffering, but oh did it hurt. And it flattens out a bit at the top, then has one last up before you get over the top. Ouch. Would have been some good pictures from there..

On the first few laps a small dog (chihuahuah?) was running out of a driveway on the left, and yapping at our heels from about two inches away... that was interesting. People were yelling "DOG!! DOG!!" and swerving to the right a bit, pinching others on the right. Quite the scene.

But the dog was at least smart enough not to cross the center-line and dive into the pack.. but I figured if it came down to it I could bunny-hop it. Luckily it didn't come to that..

Besides the dog the race was pretty normal. There were attacks, and more attacks, and I watched them all with no response. Not the way I usually like to race but I just wanted to save energy, not waste it.

The downhill was fun, but a little scary - we must have been doing 40-45 mph in the pack, taking a wide right turn and just hoping the guy next to your doesn't decide to move into you, or randomly crash, which would take you out. And people are depending on you to keep a straight line as well, to not do anything drastic. Lots of trust, and it all worked out. Even with little divots/potholes on the left side that could really wake you up.

On the backside I realized that last year I hammered up the little riser before the flat section to the bigger climb, wasting energy. This year I took it only as hard as I needed to, no harder.

The final bell lap came, and it was time to lay it on the line. I was glad to still be in the race, and not be totally red-lining, though I was definitely close. On the climb near the end I was sliding backwards, and eventually found the wheel-car on my wheel, e.g. I was at the back of the pack! No!

So I made an effort to move up, and did. But there were still 15 people ahead of me and a lot of ground to make up.. the 1k-to-go sign came and went, and I didn't have enough gas in the tank to really get up front and have a go at 4th place (at this point there were two guys up the road, and one bridging to them).

The 200-meters-to-go sign came, and I'm in a pack, but too far back to really do anything useful. 20th place... oops, I kind of let that one slip by, wasn't up front like I should have been, guess I was more gassed than I thought. But it was fun..

The Ride Back

Was slow.. took about three hours (including stops) instead of the two it took to get out there. And it was hot. Like 95-degrees hot, which is a lot for the Seattle area! And it seemed much steeper going north on Crescent Way, one section had to be 15-20% for a good 1/4 mile.. good times.

But I made it. 97 miles total. What a day.

Skagit Flats Cat 3 Circuit Race - Breaking Away

A few weeks ago I made it up to Silvana with three team mates, for the 1st in the Lake Wa Velo Circuit Race series. The first of a three-race circuit race series.

Last year I did horribly in circuit races, coming in 49th at Gig Harbor, and 45th at Carnation.. some of my worst placings all year! At Gig Harbor I remember finishing outside of the "rolling enclosure" of the race, getting dropped on the last time up the hill - not something I want to repeat this year.

I didn't make it to the Skagit Flats race last year, so this was a new race for me. All I knew about it was a few keywords: flat, fast, windy, crappy roads, crash-marred finish. What else could a budding Cat 3 ask for?

On the way up we planned the race a bit, and my "role" was to stay up front, cover breaks, and generally ride for Josh, our sprinter who's also a new Cat 3. He's a 2 on the track, and has been killing sprints so it made sense for him to be "the guy" for this race.

We made it out to the farmland of Silvana, and found a parking spot in the gravel lot in front of the old grain silo. It had been wet all morning but was drying up.

While getting ready in the parking lot, Rob, a 4 from Second Ascent, came by and said he crashed out! Sounds like there was one problematic corner, that took someone out in every lap of every field so far... yikes. Rob was OK, luckily, but it was nice to have the warning about this corner.

But luckily it dried up by the time we raced at 11 AM.

The Race

After an OK warmup of riding around the country roads, we lined up in a small-ish field of 35 riders. Only my 5th Cat 3 race, but already some of the faces of other competitors are becoming familiar.

We'd been warned many, many times about "the corner" where everyone was crashing, but it was drying up and never was a factor.

The course was on flat farm roads, and even featured a few squeezes when we went under a few railroad trestles, complete with big wooden posts and a tight space to get everyone through.

The wind was out, to be sure, and some decided to spend the next hour+ in the comfort of the pack, others like me, decided to go for better odds in the sprint and go off the front.

On the front, part of my role was to cover breakaways that looked promising - so that at least someone from the team would have a chance of winning should the break stay up the road.

Josh, the guy we were riding for, decided to take a few flyers, looking very strong - probably just getting warmed up. He upgraded to the 3's a few months before me, and is a great team mate to have since we're almost always riding well together, finishing pretty close to each other.

Eventually it was my turn to cover a break, and was sitting about 10th wheel when I saw the two riders up the road, about 200m ahead. I turned on the gas and stayed in the saddle, just riding by everyone on the front not with a race-winning sprint like I usually try, but just enough to do 30 mph instead of the 25 they were doing.

After 30 seconds of hammering, not looking back at all, and just focused on the group ahead, I found their wheels. They were working well and taking short pulls, a good sign.

One of them was Jennifer Wheeler, a super strong Cat 1 Hagens-Berman racer who was using our race as a warmup for her later Women's 1/2/3's race, the other from Second Ascent, I think. I was hurting once I made it, and sat on for a bit and announced that I was here, let's do it, etc.

The speed was good, doing 27-28 mph pretty well, taking super short pulls. We made it about a lap (6 miles) before a strong UW guy bridged up, but by this point I was hurting a lot and already skipping pulls again. Not because I wanted to get an advantage on anyone, but because I just couldn't sprint through every 30 seconds for that long. After all it was only the 3rd lap or so out of 5.

Jennifer said after a while that we needed someone from Team X, a big team not represented in the break, I think it was IJM perhaps. If they weren't in the break, they would chase us down, was the thinking - and she was right. I was hurting too much to think much about strategy at that point, so it was good someone was.

We got brought back in eventually, and it was kind of nice to do a leisurely 20-25 mph instead of the grueling 27+ we were pushing out in the wind.

Not too long after there was a sprint lap coming up (for series points), and I was sitting about halfway down the pack. Carl, a guy on my team who is also more experienced than me, said I probably wanted to be further up for the break that will inevitably go after the sprint. He was right, so I moved up to 10th wheel or so and got ready. Here we go again..

Holding on to the group of 4-5 that were going for the points was enough to establish a small gap coming through "the turn" and the straight section through the finish. Sure enough, once the sprint was complete, a group of 2-3 went.

We had a good group of 3-4 for a little while, but the organization wasn't as good as before, and we only stayed out there for maybe half a lap if I remember correctly.

The final lap eventually came, and we were chasing one guy off the front. As we came up to the final turn we were back in a big group, jockeying for position for the final sprint. I was sitting 20th wheel or so, and made a move up the side of the pack and slotted into 5th wheel, though looking back I wish I'd been more like 10th coming out of the turn, it's a long 300-400 meter sprint..

We lit up the sprint and I see the pack of 5-6 ahead, but I don't have enough to hold any wheels and start to slip backwards. We had maybe a small gap on the rest of the pack but before too long I'm getting swamped and am ready for it to be over, and roll in knowing I'm out of the top 6 (for upgrade points), damn. I hate those long sprints like that.

Ended up 11th, Josh got 8th. A lot of work for no real result for me or the team, but it was fun! And a great workout.

Photos

Josh coming into The Corner, with a nice gap on the field:



A sequence of the final sprint:


The buy in yellow (bikesale.com) and the guy in white (NWCC) are Mike & Ryan, both new 3's. And killing it. And killing my legs..


It was a pretty close sprint, but Mike took it - nice job!


Of course, I don't think anyone in the top 6 spent any time in the wind at all during the race, which was the winning strategy of the day. But sometimes, the break sticks.. and when it does, I want to be there!

Photos from wheelsinfocus.com.

Hello Cat 3! (Capitol Crit & Boston Harbor CR)

This weekend marked my entrance into the Cat 3 field in Wa bike racing. (Cat 1 is the highest amateur category in the US, and you start out as a 5 and move up from there - rules are here)

Well you have to jump into a new category at some point, and this was my chance. No reason in waiting until the end of the season to upgrade, I had the points, and upgrading was in fact the point of racing in the first place. When I first started watching local races a few years ago, the Cat 3's seemed so sleek, so slim, and so fast. They were half-way to pro for all I knew.

Fast forward a few years later, and they don't look so tough any more. (Well, a few of them still do!) And now I'm one of them!


The Capitol Crit Cat 3's, 50 minutes - Saturday 6/26/2010

It was a rush to make the ~1 hour drive down, and we left a tad late and got stuck in traffic... it was a close call, but there was no way I was going to forfeit the race just from being late. I'd rather get dropped from a race than be late to it!

Anyway we made it down with minutes to spare, 10 to be exact, barely enough time to sign up, do a lap, and line up. Upon lining up I noticed the pack was tiny... wtf? I thought this was a big annual race (at least, I think it used to be), but the word on the street is everyone is burned out from the racing season and taking a break. Or something. Screw that, at least a few of us showed up!

The course is interesting, right in front of Olympia's capitol dome, a slight uphill, some snaking turns, broken up pavement, and a little uphill sprint finish.

Only 15 racers, but it'll have to do. I didn't have a goal of getting a good placing for upgrade points, just wanted to hang on and see how it went. They say Cat 3 races aren't actually that much faster, just longer, smoother, and more animated.

And indeed, from the gun, attacks went up the road. I figured they were all doomed, as it was so early in the race! But after a while they were still out there, and guys were bridging up, or trying to. I thought about going as well, but was already at >180 bpm and didn't want to get dropped from my first Cat 3 race.

More people were going up the road, and it was all I could do but watch. At first the gap was around 10-20 seconds - a manageable gap so early in the race. I was this close to jumping on a wheel to try to bridge as well, but held back so as to not overdo it. Just hang on, see how it goes.

After a few more minutes the gap had grown to 30 seconds, then 40. And somehow 4-5 others had made it up there, leaving 10 or less of us behind! The race announcer even threatened to pull us towards the end, if we didn't close down some of the gap. And here I was thinking they were they break and we were the race, but maybe they were the race and we had been reduced to a chase group?

I also had no idea which teams had guys up the road, meaning I wasn't sure who was trying to "block" the chase and who was trying. Looking back it seems obvious, but at the time it was confusing.

But no way I'm getting pulled in my first Cat 3 race! So I got on the front a few times, though it hurt a good deal, and pulled. Or tried to. When I did so, it sent the heart rate way up (e.g. over 190) and I had to back off... ugh. There's just nowhere to hide in a group of 7-10 riders on a windy-ish day.

There were points where I thought I was going to have to pull myself (read: get dropped), but I kept on pushing. That's the name of the game, keep pushing on, don't give up. The finish is out there somewhere. (This idea works well in the rando world too)

Finally I look over to see they've stopped the count-down clock and switched to the lap count. 10 laps to go. I can handle that, just hang on..

5 to go. Still in there. Time to start thinking about the finish, and my positioning in the "pack." With 1 to go, I tried to get in the top 3-4, and did so.

Coming out of the final turn, there were 3 guys ahead of me. One took the turn a bit wide, so I passed him on the inside. Then he finished his wide turn, while sprinting and apparently looking down, and came back into the lane, where I was. Luckily I was ahead of him by enough that his wheel just hit my frame (or something), and I cringed a little, waiting to hear that sound. (of bikes & people hitting the ground)

After the dust settled I'd gotten 3rd in the "field sprint," for 8th overall. Not too shabby for my first Cat 3 race!

On the cool down lap the guy that almost ran into me came up and said, "You did this and that, yada yada yada..." and I replied, "hey file a complaint with the officials, I held my line!"

Later after we'd cooled down a bit I said I was sorry, even though I'm still pretty sure I was going straight at that point, and he came to the right into me.

Had I made a crazy move in that last 50-100 meters, the USAC officials would have relegated me or DQ'd me, or something. That's what they look for, it's part of their job. But nope, there I was in the results, scored as 8th, proof enough for me that I didn't do anything wrong in the sprint besides lose. Maybe next time I'll just yell during the whole sprint so people that aren't paying attention will at least know what's around them...

Boston Harbor Circuit Race - Cat 3, Sunday 6/27/2010

6 laps of 6 miles each, on rolling hills north of Olympia. Not very long of a race, but it'll do. Last year I had a rough time with the circuit races, placing 30th or worse in all of them. Dunno what it was about them, but they always hurt, bad.

Having survived the crit the day before, I had a little more confidence coming into this one. Plus I was gonna have some team mates in the race! They say team tactics don't really start until the 3's, so I was excited to see what the talk is all about.

And I was glad to see 50 or so other Cat 3's show up, so we had a decent field. Cool. Too bad we all had to be packed into one tiny lane... there isn't a ton of space to move up in these types of races!

Anyway we set off and did a 1/2 mile neutral lap, where people jockey for position for when the race really starts. We went down the hill, a sweeping right turn, then a slight uphill. The race was on.

In a big pack like this you can stay protected, and dare I say relax a bit! Instead of the 182 bpm I averaged for the whole 50 minutes of Saturday's crit (yes, ouch!), I looked down to see 130-150. Ahh, this is like a group ride around the lake!

Well, only for so long. In the first lap the attacks started, and there were many. Adam on RCR went off the front, but was reeled in. Groups of 2-4 would try, and maybe last 1/2 lap, but get pulled back in.

About halfway through a group of 4-5 was up the road maybe by 50m, and it looked promising. I was on my team mate Mike's wheel, and was going to try to bridge if he didn't, but he did. And once he did I tried my hand at "blocking," so I got on the front and went slow. But I didn't do it right, it was way too obvious, and a guy behind us (there was another guy from another team blocking as well) yelled, "C'mon guys, there's blocking and then there's blocking."

So I scooted over and let him through, he just wanted to bridge up. Maybe that was the last of the big teams would bridge up and the pack would be happy with the combination of riders up the road, and let them go. Which I'd be happy with since Mike was up there.

Of course you don't want to chase down your own team mate in a break-away, so once people starting amping up the pace I just let them do their thing. No need to break wind for anyone and make it easier for them to catch my guy up there!

The group got brought back though, and we were only about halfway through. Still plenty of racing left.

Later in the race I joked with Josh, "Hey man when are you going off the front?!" And he replied, in a serious voice, "Soon." Sure enough, within minutes he was heading up front, getting ready to make a move. In the beginning of the last lap he moved up the right side of the pack and rocketed off the front, solo.

By the time we hit the right turn leading to the first big-ish downhill, only maybe 30 seconds later, he had what seemed like a huge gap. "Fuck yeah, go Josh!" I yelled with glee. But 5-6 miles can be a long time when you're trying to average 25 mph or so, solo.

He stayed off the front for almost the whole lap, getting caught on the slow riser leading up to the 2nd biggish downhill. It was a great attack though, I enjoyed watching it. I thought about countering once he was caught but figured it would be a suicide mission.

So I waited for the field sprint, along with everyone else. The last mile features a little climb, then a flat/almost-downhill section leading to the finish line. Alex had told me this race usually ends in a big field sprint with a big crash, so I was up front to hope to avoid the chaos. Mike, a team mate who's been racing for 10 years or more, also advised me to stay in the top 15, at least, for the finish.

I was fearing the sprint in fact, not because of crashes, but because of the hill that led up to it. Lucky for me most others seemed to have the same thoughts, and the whole pack took it (relatively) easy from the 1k mark at the top of the hill to the 200-meter mark. A breather at the end of the race, last thing I would have expected! (Looking back, that would be the time to attack, though it's tough given the previous hill)

Anyway we hit the 200-meter sign, and everyone went at the same time. From 30 mph to 35 mph, and then....

CRASH, BANG, BOOM!

Right in front of me guys started falling. At 35 mph no less... bikes and bodies flying, and that sound. Quite the view I had, that's for sure. Went left around the carnage, ran over a bunch of shattered plastic (sunglasses perhaps?), and saw a bike with big aero wheels cartwheeling towards me from the right.

Ok, that was close! After making it around the crash I pretty much sat up, given someone had already won and the top 6 was spoken for, the results didn't matter anymore. What mattered was that I made it out unscathed! Pretty sure I came in about 20th, but never saw the results so it's hard to say.

After the race we talked to Sean, one of the guys who went down. Shoulder had a quarter-size hole in it, but worse was that his back was covered in road rash, as if he'd been clawed by a dragon. Ouch.

Patrick, a nice guy I'd just met the day before, also got caught up in the "action" and looked about the same, if not worse.

At least they were walking around, but will certainly need to take a few weeks off to recover. Could've been me, it was so close.. but hey that's racing.

You don't get rewarded without taking some risks.

All in all it was a great weekend of racing! Next up is the Joe Matava crit on the 4th, one I did last year. Can't wait! Let's see if I can avoid the carnage... with more confidence I hope to start animating a bit more in these Cat 3 races. Time will tell.

Michelob Ultra Circuit Race 2010: First Crash

I was signed up for a class out at the track, but rain was threatening and I felt like doing this race instead.. a circuit race out across The Sound, in Glenwood, Wa. (initial confusion offered by Google put this near Mt. Rainier, way far away! Luckily it was just a drive out to the Port Orchard area)

Seven of us loaded in the Recycled Cycles Van and headed south to drive around The Sound via the Tacoma Narrows bridge. Cool temps, gray skies & little sprinkles on the way down reminded us this isn't SoCal, but then the sky returned to its dry gray and we were reminded this is indeed racing in the Pacific Northwest. Rain or shine, let's do it.

The Course

The course started off on a slight downhill, leading to an easy right turn and then we started the undulations. Just as the profile showed, there was plenty of ups and downs here, but nothing lasting longer than 30 seconds or so. "A course for punchy riders" I think the flyer said, and I thought that sounded good for me and my riding style. Looking back I'm not even sure what "punchy" means, and whatever it is I need to train my punchyness..

But for some reason circuit races just aren't my thing. I can hang in long and slow(er) road races, and short and blazing-fast crits. But the circuit race is somewhere in between, you basically go fast for an hour and a half or so, the laps going by quickly and the speed not letting up all that much. My worst placings last year was definitely at the late-summer circuit races, usually it was the top-end speed coming through the finish that would almost drop me, putting me at 35th place or worse.

The Race

Short neutral rollout and then we were off to a nice pace. Most everyone was smooth, with a few notable exceptions (in fact even a "repeat offender" from Vance Creek!), and the riding was nice until we got on the short but steep-ish climbs. Not that I really wanted to climb all that fast, but we would just jam into the backs of riders slowing in front of us, and have to climb at a crawl it felt. Shouldn't be surprising, as this is the way the pack-dynamic works - those in the front slow down as they hit the hill, but still in the draft you end up having to brake to not hit their wheels.

Trying to Get Away

About 20 minutes into the race we were on the backside on the slight 2-3% uphill, doing what felt like a ridiculously slow pace all of a sudden, I think it was 16-17 mph. So I worked up the left side, and put in a dig to make separation, my new favorite past time in bike racing. It was early in the race, probably too early, but this is a great test of how the legs feel. And people will generally let you go since it's a doomed mission 95% of the time anyway..

Sure enough, while the pace seemed "ridiculously slow" while in the pack, it was taking 190 bpm (my max is 196-200 bpm, mind you) to stay off the front, and all of a sudden being in the pack felt like a better idea.

Looked back, had a gap, rested a bit, but the HR wasn't going down. Yikes, not a good sign for the longevity of the solo break.. get back in the pack! Tried to go once more on a different lap in about the same spot, but just couldn't hold it.

Team mate Ian went off the front once or twice, and Jason did too. I wanted to go again but didn't have the legs, and I actually cramped a bit on the 2nd to last lap, that sucked. Was just hanging on for the finish towards the end, really didn't feel like I had anything to offer at the end.

The Crash!

The last lap came, and there was still one rider pretty far up the road, and given my position in the pack and his big gap, I'd pretty much given up on the catch, just wanted to see what happened in the sprint for 2nd place.. well a lot happened.

We took the last corner, jammed it and got ready for the slightly downhill, the pack speeding up to at least 35 mph I'm sure, getting ready for the sprint. We were close to the 1k to go sign, or maybe just past it, and with thoughts focused on the field sprint ahead all of a sudden there was commotion in the pack ahead, and a big crash, right in front of me.

Slammed on the brakes, skidding, fishtailing a little.. I remember at least one bike on its side in front of me, and just not wanting to run over it or its rider, who was also on the ground, sliding. For a split second I thought I'd saved it once again, but ran out of space and before I knew it my front wheel was swept out from under me, and I too was on the ground. I think I landed on a bike or two, not sure.

The next thought was "am I gonna get hit next?!" and I glanced up to see people slamming on their brakes, but somehow nobody fell on me. Then I thought, "Wow, it finally happened."

Actually my first thought was probably "DAMMIT." The top 12 or so missed the crash, but just about everyone behind that was either on the ground or having to go around the mayhem. And given a few sketchy riders I witnessed during the whole race, I wasn't too surprised it happened. Even more motivation to get to the Cat 3's, where I don't think a big stupid crash would happen like this.

In the end I really have only myself to blame for being a Cat 4 and not being in a winning position (top 10) in the last 1k of the race anyway.

Looking at the Garmin data, I think I was only stationary for about five seconds, then I got rolling again! Felt longer, I guess everything does at 180+ bpm.. didn't notice the gash on my shin, the big hole in my bibs on my hip, or the small blood spot on my elbow, I just wanted to finish this damn thing.

After crossing the line I saw Rob from Second Ascent puking on the other side of the road - what a race! I love the carnage. He was on the front a ton during the race, and stayed up there to stay out of trouble and come in somewhere around top 10. That's what I should've been doing..

The Results

Somehow came in for 25th (out of 80+ total in the 4/5's field, lots of DNFs though) overall, which was surprising given I was on the ground.

The Raleigh Prestige got a big ol' gash on the top tube, you can see the carbon weave and it's soft to the touch.. sounds like it's repairable but I'm not sure I want to race on a carbon frame I repaired.. (I can even hear it shearing just by grabbing the seat & bars, not good)


Looking to get my hands on another Raleigh and get back out there, Ravensdale road race this weekend, then Wenatchee the weekend after! Gotta get them points and get up to the Cat 3's.

Carnation Circuit Race Cat 4/5 2009

Woke up at 6 AM to the sound of wet roads and drizzle. Hmm, should I still head out to the race today? I must admit I had second thoughts at first, but then realized I'd regret missing another opportunity for training and race experience.

I figured it was raining in Carnation too so I donned my wool Seattle Rando jersey, wool knickers/socks, then Kira & I headed out to the race staging area.

And how could you not want to race with scenery like this? (course map here)

I made quick work of signing up, and pinning on the number. The legs felt fresh but I wanted to get in a warm-up lap, unlike the last circuit race. So Jordan and I took a little spin around the course, which was great to be able to see all the bumps, wet spots (on a corner), and dirt/gravel areas we'd have to contend with.

We finished a lap and lined up behind the Masters group who was heading out five minutes before us. The rollout was on grass, and a little mud, which made things interesting.

A few minutes after the Masters (35+) group rolled out, our Cat 4/5 peloton rolled out for a neutral kilometer at about 25 km/h. One guy had a big clump of grass & mud on his shoe, but I figured it wouldn't help to tell him at this point.

(Huge thanks to Kira for taking these great photos too!)
Our group of 65-70 riders was squeezed into that one little lane - so once again it was pretty challenging to move up. And once again the first few laps felt like a breeze, but almost out of nowhere things got rough for a bit.. anyway before that it was a game of moving up, Jordan and I squeezing into spaces smaller than we'd like.

Another lap (2?), and most of the group is intact. Surely a few have already peeled off the back, but nobody has crashed out. Yet.

Another lap:
And I'm still in the pack, though in the middle/back-ish area. Tried to move into little gaps but things like a crash or two pushed me back further than I would have liked. Still, I felt better than in the Gig Harbor Circuit race and was thinking about placing better this time too.

More riders, including Rob on Second Ascent (blue/black/white) coming through.

Somewhere on the backside (which had no center line, yet the "center-line rule" seemed to be enforced), a rider went down on a slick corner and took out at least one other rider. This was to my right and I was able to skirt around it, getting more than enough of a peek at the carnage that is bike racing. Here's a shot of the pack coming around for another lap.

The backside was also interesting that it had more turns, and bumps, than expected. At first I thought this was a four-corner deal but circuit races don't seem to be laid out that way. It had some winding sections, with two hard-ish right turns, one that was nice and wet from the earlier rain.

Also there was no real shoulder, except for dirt/gravel and/or grass that some riders got lucky skidding through. I think some gravel took out at least one rider, who went down alone. Also I saw a few riders (standing) in the grass on the 2nd turn, which squeezed us into a narrow lane.

Another pass of the 4/5 pack.

This spectator was taking in all of the races - a true fan:

I was starting to hurt, and yo-yoing on the back at about 35 minutes in. You'd speed up to close a gap, only to hear "SLOWING!" and have to hit those brakes.. over, and over, again.

On the fourth lap as we were turning right on to Carnation Farm Road, we hear the sound of an approaching ambulance. Uh oh, time to "neutralize," e.g. everyone get on the right side of the road and go about 20 km/h.. surely someone had gone down in the Masters race and it required some serious attention. (A photo of the ambulance below)

The fun thing for those of us at the back-ish of the pack was that as soon as the ambulance passed the front of the pack we all sprinted, but they now had quite the lead on us. We (from the middle on back or so) were all of a sudden closing a huge gap. Yet another reason not to dangle on the back of a race, unless it's your only choice.

The right turn onto the finish stretch was where everyone jumped out of the corner, and hauled at 50+ km/h over the km or so.. and since the ambulance passing happened just before that, all of a sudden after part of that finishing stretch there was road between me and the peloton - not good.

Looking back I see a group of stragglers, but I didn't even want to get into the saga of a chase group. I wanted to stay in and finish with the pack, so I fought as hard as I felt I could and still wasn't making up ground. I guess I was doing about the same speed as the pack, so I had to keep up the gas until they slowed, which we always did on the 1st slight uphill corner. It was a long few minutes..

I liked this shot Kira got of me in no-man's land, aka the "pain cave."

Lucky for me another straggler came around and gave me some shelter from the wind (there wasn't much, but at 50 km/h you're making enough of your own drag), just enough to pull my sorry ass back into the pack.

Ahh, back in the race. Though once in the pack there was a point I had to coast and drift backwards about 20 spots, just to get about 10 seconds of rest.

Sailing through:

2nd to last lap?

So then it was the last lap, only I thought we had one more to go. I guess I didn't notice the increased pace and jockeying for position at the front, since I was sailing around at the back, struggling to hang on. I also didn't notice the final lap bell, or the sign that said 1 to go. That's what red-lining will do to you, give you tunnel vision.

There would be no contention for me in this race, but I at least wanted to finish with the pack.

I was positive it was the last lap when everyone was over the double yellow line and sprinting towards the finish.. 300m to go.. so I kicked it in but could tell I was 40+ people back.. still, not as far back off as I was in the last circuit race.

The sprint up to the line was pretty close:

A true photo finish! The unattached E'cole(?) rider in white on the left got 2nd, while the Wines of Washington rider in yellow/black took the win, and Chad in the Hagens-Berman blue/white took third.

Jordan, riding for Blue Rooster, and Tim (unattached) coming in for 13th and 14th(?).

Here I am crossing the line (blue SiR jersey) for 45th place, feeling a mix of relief that the race was over, but also disappointment in that I didn't have what it took (whether it was a mental or physical defect I'm not sure) to contest the top 20. Still, the 5th USAC-sanctioned race for me and 50% of the way to Category 4.

More Photos

here (4/5) & here (Masters)

Thanks, Kira for the photos!

The Data

Final sprint reached 58 km/h according to the Garmin, though I'm not quite sure if that's correct (36 mph). Too bad it was for top 50..

Carnation Circuit 4/5 race 2009:
Duration: 56:35
Work: 735 kJ
TSS: 79.5 (intensity factor 0.918)
Norm Power: 262
VI: 1.21
Distance: 38.773 km
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 991 216 watts
Cadence: 19 129 83 rpm
Speed: 3.7 72.3 41.0 kph
Crank Torque: 0 200.9 23.2 N-m

Here's the full race graph, smoothed down a lot so you can see the trends more than the spikes. Yellow is power, and the lower yellow horizontal line is 285w (estimated FTP). Blue is speed (km/h), and the lower blue horizontal line is 40 km/h.


You might notice the two spikes in the middle of the race - that was when I was yo-yoing off the back of the race and trying to catch up! Just goes to show it takes more power to dangle off the back (and catch back on) than it does just to sit in the pack. Hopefully a lesson learned.

Thanks to Hagens-Berman for putting on the race series, and of course to Kira for driving me out and taking these great photos of the event! It was definitely "flat and fast," just as the flyer suggested - good fun.

Gig Harbor Circuit Race - Failing But Loving It

It was Saturday, finally time for the 2nd edition of the Lake Wa Velo circuit race series. Part of a three-race series, this was finally a chance to try something different than .08 mile lap Seward Park race or a 1 km-lap four corner criterium. This course was four-mile laps, five laps our Cat 4/5 group. Oh, and with a few inclines along the way too. Sounds like a good time to me.

Kira was her usual wonderful self and offered to give me a ride out to Gig Harbor, to come cheer me on and maybe get a few pictures of me suffering. Thanks, baby! It helps to have someone out there rooting for you.

Still having randonneur (read: crazy) blood in my veins from the recent brevet series I completed (200k-600k), initially I thought about pedaling to the start, at least from the Southworth ferry dock. The route was about 25 miles, not too much to add to a 20-mile race I figured. But in the end I decided to save any energy I had and hopped in the car at 7:15 AM for the drive down there.

Google directions led us into a dead-end driveway, and the race's directions didn't make sense either. (though they do now, I saw on the way back I was reading them wrong - but the Google directions were still off!) We asked for directions and eventually found our way, following a group of 10 or so riders training on the course.

The Race

The Masters C/D (30+ Cat 4/5) started five minutes before us, and the 4/5 70-man peloton rolled out at 9:05 AM. Since I started at the back of the pack more or less, and since the "center line rule" (can't cross the 2nd yellow line in the middle of the road, e.g. only take one lane), I had to somehow move up through 50 or so people if I wanted to do anything useful in the race.

I was happy to be in the whir/buzz of the peloton again, and this time it also counts towards the Cat 4 upgrade. We rolled out of the Kapuchuck Middle School's parking lot and took a left down the hill, then taking a quick right on a nice 8% downhill, now on the race course. We passed the official's stand and the ambulance, and zoomed downhill at a nice 45-50 km/h. The air was cool but dry, perfect racing temps.

The officials warned us before the race that there are bumps & reflectors in the center and you really don't want to be riding there. But sure enough, about two minutes into the race someone goes around another rider and into the center, and their bottle flies out. Nobody went down but a bottle is one of the last things you want to see in front of you when doing 46 km/h on rough chipseal is a water bottle.

And of course there was the ever-present possibility of someone randomly going down in front of you and taking you down with them. In fact I watched a few riders having speed-wobble issues - or was it just control issues? I suppose for some it's hard to ride in a straight line. So it's a mix of risk & trust in the peloton, a delicate balance.

The pack dynamics on this course were interesting, as even though space was limited, you could find space to move up now and then. Some were more daring than others, but nobody went down.

One thing that really sucked at the back (reason #501 you don't want to be there) was all the slowing - the "accordion effect" as it's known. People four rows up slow for whatever reason, and of course that sets of a chain reaction of yelling ("Slowing!") and squealing brakes. In fact I swear I could smell burned rubber at few points during the race..

I tried to move up a little here and there and made it about halfway up the pack. When the uphill sections came I listened to a fireworks show of grinding gears and popping derailleurs. I stayed in the big ring, afraid of dropping my chain if I tried to downshift - in the end this was a huge mistake, though at this point I felt fine and though this first 7% uphill (w/ 12% spike) was tough, it was doable. Or at least seemed that way on the first few laps.

After the first uphill section, there's a shorter 5% section, followed by a slow rise to the finish. One lap down, and I was about halfway up the pack. So far so good.

The second lap was straight-forward, and while I wasn't hurting too much and was still in the middle or so, I wasn't really moving up either. Just wanted to stick this position out until the end, and see what happens.

I think it was on the third lap where my legs seemed to fall apart, and I knew why - pushing the 53x25 up the 8-12% grade. Talk about wasting energy! I wasn't red-lining yet, but knew it was around the corner, and it became progressively harder to recover on each lap.

On the fourth lap I started to drift back a little. I usually don't look back but as I did I noticed there were only a handful of riders behind me. Damn, at the back. We slowed down a good deal on this lap (I'm sure most were tired), and this was a welcomed chance to rest. But when the uphill came it was all I could do just to hang on.

Then The Race Went South

On the final lap I was going backwards uphill with about 1k to go.. first time in my 15-race career that I watched the peloton pedal away from me, I was officially OTB ("Off The Back"). Damn. Legs on fire, lungs gasping, it was all I could do to at least keep the pedals turning to the finish.

I looked back and wasn't even sure anyone else was back there - I'd just been passed by the official's & wheel cars, and the peloton was up and over the last little peak, someone was probably already crossing the line. I wasn't even sure if I was supposed to dismount and walk in shame to the end, or what, but I just kept going.

Not a good feeling, coming in off the back - spectators giving you the "pity clap" or the "blank stare" - but at least the official was still recording finishing numbers so I was at least still a part of the race. Finishing upright and close to the pack is good enough for me at this point, though a little disappointing.

In the three other USAC-sanctioned races I've done I got 13th at Ballard, 11th at Joe Matava, and 15th at Derby Days. Not wins or even top 10's - but I was really happy to having showings like that in my first season. Those were all criteriums and about half the length of this ride, and flat - so maybe this just isn't my type of race at this point.

I wasn't DFL like I thought at first, or even worse DNF. The official result showed me at 49th out of 70 riders - but as a Cat 5 I guess all that matters is that I started. At this point it really is mostly about gaining fitness & experience. Now just six more (official) races and I'm a Cat 4.

That's Great, But Who Won?

Hopefully my tale of life in the day of Cat 4/5 pack fodder was at least entertaining. But in the end, any race is all about winning - and it turns out my friend Jordan took the win! He's a 5 as well, we've been racing at Seward Park a lot where he's taken a few podium spots. Though I didn't get to see the finish, here was his recount:

This was my 1st circuit race and It wasn't bad, the pace seemed a lot slower than I expected with a lot of yo-yo. The 12% climb and the slight grade at the finish made the difference!

Nothing eventful happened during the race until the last lap.. I made sure I was close to the front on the 12% climb so I still had about 15-20 guys ahead of me by the time I got to the top.. After I crested I punched it and leap-frogged wheels and quickly caught up to the 15 off the front and had shit-tons of momentum I decided to just go for and jumped all of them.. Unfortunately those 10-15 guys had the road blocked, I had no where to take all of this momentum I gained going off the backside of the climb into the last 300m.. So I had to think quick and well there was no choice except to go onto the shoulder into the loose gravel and grass and go around these guys and jump back in front of them.. It sure worked, but there was still 1 guy off the front another 20 ft. and I punched it again with 200m left and that was that! I won by a few bike lengths!! Fun times!!

Huge congrats to Jordan on the strong & creative win!

Race Data

This graph from WKO+ shows all five laps - red is heart rate (horizontal red line is 171 bpm for ref.), yellow is power (horiz. dashed yellow line is my estimated FTP 285 watts), and the orange-ish is the elevation.

Here is a zoom in on one lap. As you can see my HR (red line up top) went down as we descended the hill, then a big power spike (yellow vertical line) at the turn onto the uphill section. It doesn't tell you much by itself, but compared to other laps I can see how on the last lap my HR was not recovering like it was before - and that I wasn't putting out the power I was earlier in the race.

Splitting the race into halves, I obviously put out more power in the first half (and went faster) - but I found it interesting that the average bpm (heart rate) was a bit higher on the 2nd half.

1st half:
Duration: 28:00
Work: 354 kJ
TSS: 46.8 (intensity factor 1.002)
Norm Power: 285
Distance: 17.107 km
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 946 211 watts
Heart Rate: 82 185 162 bpm
Cadence: 22 129 83 rpm
Speed: 4.9 91.4 36.7 kph

2nd half:
Duration: 27:57
Work: 345 kJ
TSS: 44.1 (intensity factor 0.973)
Norm Power: 277
Distance: 15.425 km
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 935 206 watts
Heart Rate: 132 186 166 bpm
Cadence: 35 150 87 rpm
Speed: 2.7 79.5 33.1 kph

From the complete race data I can see that my HR didn't even get over 186 - whereas I usually top out at 195 each time at Seward - perhaps this points to my lack of a warm-up this time around, not sure. Seems like I basically wasn't firing on all cylinders..

Entire workout (210 watts):
Duration: 56:00
Work: 700 kJ
TSS: 90.8 (intensity factor 0.987)
Norm Power: 281
Distance: 32.546 km (~20 miles)
Elevation Gain: 648 m
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 946 208 watts
Heart Rate: 79 186 164 bpm
Cadence: 18 150 85 rpm
Speed: 2.7 91.4 34.9 kph (21.7 mph avg)
Crank Torque: 0 203.9 22.4 N-m

The third installment of this circuit-race series is on the 29th, in Carnation - and then the Seward Park "Season End" Classic (an official USAC race) is on the 30th. But before that, there's a Black Diamond-Sunrise permanent (~300k in total) on Monday, and the Baker Lake (Redmond-Baker Lake) 400km (249 mi) brevet on the 22nd.

The season's not over yet, folks!