Ride Reports

Roastie

Chris: Great post!

benno68

Well done Chris - top effort and a great post to boot!

cjcp

Good post, CIB.

lost_in_thought

JonGinge wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

It's called 'Flatout in the Fens', as the name suggests it's nice and flat! I've signed up for the 77 mile distance, mostly because my main focus is just to get round and develop some understanding of what one does at a sportive, but have received an email informing me that I can do any distance I like on the day... so could do the 112 mile one if I'm feeling good - or the 153 mile one. Or not. :shock:

TBH, like I say, it's just going to be a tentative first step into the world of sportives. I hope I don't get lost.

How'd it go?

It didn't... I had exams today that I really wanted to do well in, so reset my priorities and just went for a 40m blast on Saturday afternoon.

Another time.

-spider-

Brilliant run in today. Sun shining, light breeze, hardly any clouds. Got the hybrid out for a change (well carrying a loaded backpack today) set off over the first hill. Great views, red kite overhead, birds singing - life is great. I'd done about 7 miles before I saw my first car but that was only because I had to travel on an A road for a few hundred yards. Back to the peace and quiet of the B roads (mostly downhill too!) for four miles then onto the cycle track at the side of the A9. Over the Kessock Bridge towards Inverness and dolphins swimming in sea below. Does it get any better!. Through the city (Inverness a city - lol) and got to work about 0730 and just wanted to keep going - a circuit of Loch Ness would have been just fine. But need the money for a new bike.

Never mind - get to go home in 9 hours.

Roastie

I had a great time at Palace tonight, which was great after my disastrous last outing at Hillingdon. Short version: managed to ride near the front for a quite a while and avoided being on the wrong side of the split. A bit further on a few successive accelerations up the hill pushed me too far into the red, so I splintered off the rear. Chase group formed, blah blah blah (long version on my blog).

Overall tho', it was a good experience. I am getting better, so I expect to soon be mixing it in at the end. Also, my friend, who has a couple more Palace outings under his belt, had a great finish taking what looked like 8th in a fast sprint. Always good to see a mate doing well.

gert_lush

is anyone doing the Dartmoor classic this sunday?

Looks like its a completely different course to last year (but still nice and hilly ) and looks like its also gonna be a warm again, so extra water at the ready!

Roastie

Oops.

Feltup

Had a nice cruise in to the Chilterns on my fixie last night. I thought my knees might explode on one of the descents as they are not designed to spin that fast :shock:

The real bonus was there was a roadie in all the gear stopped at the side of the road just putting some food away. I cruised past and then realised he had taken pursuit. GAME ON! the first obstacle was a short but sharp hill to descend, now I know he had the advantage here as I was going to hit max cadence and make it around a corner and he could change gear! After that it is fairly flat and I just span at a nice rhythm all the way to T-junction where I could legitamately do a check to see how close he was.

OH YEAH, I had taken a hundred meters out of him in a mile and a half. I cruised after that as I was getting close to home and decided to warm down a little. At the top of my road I had to wait for a car to move and he just caught up as he turned left and I turned right. That felt like a scalp to me!

Rich158

Roastie wrote:

I had a great time at Palace tonight, which was great after my disastrous last outing at Hillingdon. Short version: managed to ride near the front for a quite a while and avoided being on the wrong side of the split. A bit further on a few successive accelerations up the hill pushed me too far into the red, so I splintered off the rear. Chase group formed, blah blah blah (long version on my blog).

Overall tho', it was a good experience. I am getting better, so I expect to soon be mixing it in at the end. Also, my friend, who has a couple more Palace outings under his belt, had a great finish taking what looked like 8th in a fast sprint. Always good to see a mate doing well.

Sounds like you had a better time than me. I started the wrong side of the split again, and just couldn't bridge the gap on my own :evil: I was finally caught by the chasing group and decided to stay with them for a while, even though I felt I could have ridden a bit harder. When the lead group came round again I tagged onto the back, trying to stay out of every bodies way, and stayed with them until pretty much the end, where I was caught up in the crash on the blind corner, which brought my race to an end. I got off fairly lightly with a lightly grazed knee, chin, and shoulder. The bikes in the LBS being checked over but it looks like just a slightly buckled rear wheel. It was great fun up until that point, I've now learn't my lesson that it pays to work hard and stay with the lead group from the off.

What where you riding Roastie, I was on the Trek Madone in matching kit.

il_principe

Rich158 wrote:

What where you riding Roastie, I was on the Trek Madone in matching kit.

Racing on the Madone? Rich, you are a brave man!

bigmat

Rich158 wrote:

Roastie wrote:

I had a great time at Palace tonight, which was great after my disastrous last outing at Hillingdon. Short version: managed to ride near the front for a quite a while and avoided being on the wrong side of the split. A bit further on a few successive accelerations up the hill pushed me too far into the red, so I splintered off the rear. Chase group formed, blah blah blah (long version on my blog).

Overall tho', it was a good experience. I am getting better, so I expect to soon be mixing it in at the end. Also, my friend, who has a couple more Palace outings under his belt, had a great finish taking what looked like 8th in a fast sprint. Always good to see a mate doing well.

Sounds like you had a better time than me. I started the wrong side of the split again, and just couldn't bridge the gap on my own :evil: I was finally caught by the chasing group and decided to stay with them for a while, even though I felt I could have ridden a bit harder. When the lead group came round again I tagged onto the back, trying to stay out of every bodies way, and stayed with them until pretty much the end, where I was caught up in the crash on the blind corner, which brought my race to an end. I got off fairly lightly with a lightly grazed knee, chin, and shoulder. The bikes in the LBS being checked over but it looks like just a slightly buckled rear wheel. It was great fun up until that point, I've now learn't my lesson that it pays to work hard and stay with the lead group from the off.

What where you riding Roastie, I was on the Trek Madone in matching kit.

What's the deal with racing at Crystal Palace? Sounds like fun - when / exactly where is it? Do you need to be in a club or could I just rock up? I assume I'd need to be British Cycling affiliated or something? I've decided that as I can't climb and can't time trial, I must be a natural sprinter (I have the build for it at least!) so would be keen to give it a go. What is the standard like?

Rich158

Il Principe wrote:

Rich158 wrote:

What where you riding Roastie, I was on the Trek Madone in matching kit.

Racing on the Madone? Rich, you are a brave man!

I nearly cried when I crashed, my first thought was "is the bike OK, please let the bike be OK, are you OK baby, oh you are". On the other hand it's what it was designed for, and it feels great railing corners at nearly 30mph.

She's now in the LBS getting some much needed tlc, and will have good wipe down and polish when I get her back I think I need to get out more :oops:

Rich158

MatHammond wrote:

Rich158 wrote:

Roastie wrote:

I had a great time at Palace tonight, which was great after my disastrous last outing at Hillingdon. Short version: managed to ride near the front for a quite a while and avoided being on the wrong side of the split. A bit further on a few successive accelerations up the hill pushed me too far into the red, so I splintered off the rear. Chase group formed, blah blah blah (long version on my blog).

Overall tho', it was a good experience. I am getting better, so I expect to soon be mixing it in at the end. Also, my friend, who has a couple more Palace outings under his belt, had a great finish taking what looked like 8th in a fast sprint. Always good to see a mate doing well.

Sounds like you had a better time than me. I started the wrong side of the split again, and just couldn't bridge the gap on my own :evil: I was finally caught by the chasing group and decided to stay with them for a while, even though I felt I could have ridden a bit harder. When the lead group came round again I tagged onto the back, trying to stay out of every bodies way, and stayed with them until pretty much the end, where I was caught up in the crash on the blind corner, which brought my race to an end. I got off fairly lightly with a lightly grazed knee, chin, and shoulder. The bikes in the LBS being checked over but it looks like just a slightly buckled rear wheel. It was great fun up until that point, I've now learn't my lesson that it pays to work hard and stay with the lead group from the off.

What where you riding Roastie, I was on the Trek Madone in matching kit.

What's the deal with racing at Crystal Palace? Sounds like fun - when / exactly where is it? Do you need to be in a club or could I just rock up? I assume I'd need to be British Cycling affiliated or something? I've decided that as I can't climb and can't time trial, I must be a natural sprinter (I have the build for it at least!) so would be keen to give it a go. What is the standard like?

Just roll up Tuesday evenings and pay your £10, racing starts at 7'ish for the seniors. You can get a day license to race but at £10 a go it gets very expensive very quickly. The best bet is to get BC membership and get a full license.

The standards pretty variable, the main group seem to average about 24mph over the hour, but there's riders dropping off all over the place, and normally a few chase groups form at a slightly slower pace. You just need to beware of people making stupid moves on the corners, and be used to riding in a fairly tight group.

I've done it twice and it's the hardest I've ever worked on a bike over an hour, but the best fun I've had so far

bigmat

Right, I'm in! Am away the next couple of Tuesdays but will aim to be there the one after that (14 July). Whereabouts in Crystal Palace is it exactly? And how much does BC membership cost for a year? Sorry for all the questions - I promise those are the last ones!

Rich158

MatHammond wrote:

Right, I'm in! Am away the next couple of Tuesdays but will aim to be there the one after that (14 July). Whereabouts in Crystal Palace is it exactly? And how much does BC membership cost for a year? Sorry for all the questions - I promise those are the last ones!

I turn left down the hill from CP parade, just after the busses, and then a left into the park, and what I assume are the main car parks. Go through the car parks and you'll see hoards of lycra clad, shaved leg weirdo's waiting to race :shock:

I'm currently using a provisional license I got with my silver membership, it cost arround £60 for the year iirc, but I think you also get the license with Bronze membership which is cheaper. The only downside to this is if you start to accumulate points with top 10 finishes you won't get moved up a cat 3. If I start to look like I'm going to to do well then I'll get a full license which is only available to Silver and Gold members.

Rich158

I'll look forward to seeing you there Mat, it would be good to have an SCR group in the peloton

Roastie

Rich158 wrote:

...I was caught up in the crash on the blind corner, which brought my race to an end. I got off fairly lightly with a lightly grazed knee, chin, and shoulder. The bikes in the LBS being checked over but it looks like just a slightly buckled rear wheel...

Sorry to hear about that, never a nice thing to have happen. Glad you're OK.

What where you riding Roastie, I was on the Trek Madone in matching kit.

Blue Ribble, Dulwich Paragon kit. I think I spotted you in the 2nd group after we reformed.

When the lead group came round again I tagged onto the back

Please don't do this dude. Let the leaders go when you are lapped; don't tag on. Race your race, let them race theirs. Stay out of it, as tempting as it may be.

There were actually repeated instructions from the officials for all lapped riders to drop out. As in end of your race. Stop riding. The rules state that you are out as soon as you are lapped, but it is at the discretion of the officials to let you continue.

Sorry to get all school-teacher on you.

itboffin

Pah racing! Next thing you know you'll all be racing on your commutes

Rich158

Roastie wrote:

Rich158 wrote:

...I was caught up in the crash on the blind corner, which brought my race to an end. I got off fairly lightly with a lightly grazed knee, chin, and shoulder. The bikes in the LBS being checked over but it looks like just a slightly buckled rear wheel...

Sorry to hear about that, never a nice thing to have happen. Glad you're OK.

What where you riding Roastie, I was on the Trek Madone in matching kit.

Blue Ribble, Dulwich Paragon kit. I think I spotted you in the 2nd group after we reformed.

When the lead group came round again I tagged onto the back

Please don't do this dude. Let the leaders go when you are lapped; don't tag on. Race your race, let them race theirs. Stay out of it, as tempting as it may be.

There were actually repeated instructions from the officials for all lapped riders to drop out. As in end of your race. Stop riding. The rules state that you are out as soon as you are lapped, but it is at the discretion of the officials to let you continue.

Sorry to get all school-teacher on you.

Yep I think I spotted you.

I must admit the instructions from the officials were duly noted, and I wasn't attempting to tag on as such, simply ride as hard as I could to the end for the practice more than anything. Is it Ok to carry on riding if your lapped, or should you simply drop out there and then?

cjcp

Rich158 wrote:

I'm currently using a provisional license I got with my silver membership, it cost arround £60 for the year iirc, but I think you also get the license with Bronze membership which is cheaper. The only downside to this is if you start to accumulate points with top 10 finishes you won't get moved up a cat 3. If I start to look like I'm going to to do well then I'll get a full license which is only available to Silver and Gold members.

Rich - you'll do well, but, to accumulate points, you might be better off choosing easier circuits and, if you can, racing at the weekend.

Mat - if you're a sprinter, give Hillingdon a crack. Sit towards the front to limit the risk of being in a crash and so you can cover any attempted breaks. Oh, and avoid doing too much work at the front so you also conserve your energy for the final sprint. It's a negative tactic, but the object is to get out of 4th Cat so you can ride more interesting road courses.

Am now getting slightly itchy feet reading these reports and want to enter a race again...

Christophe3967

cjcp wrote:

Rich158 wrote:

I'm currently using a provisional license I got with my silver membership, it cost arround £60 for the year iirc, but I think you also get the license with Bronze membership which is cheaper. The only downside to this is if you start to accumulate points with top 10 finishes you won't get moved up a cat 3. If I start to look like I'm going to to do well then I'll get a full license which is only available to Silver and Gold members.

Rich - you'll do well, but, to accumulate points, you might be better off choosing easier circuits and, if you can, racing at the weekend.

Mat - if you're a sprinter, give Hillingdon a crack. Sit towards the front to limit the risk of being in a crash and so you can cover any attempted breaks. Oh, and avoid doing too much work at the front so you also conserve your energy for the final sprint. It's a negative tactic, but the object is to get out of 4th Cat so you can ride more interesting road courses.

Am now getting slightly itchy feet reading these reports and want to enter a race again...

Do it

As you say, Hillingdon's much easier than CP and pretty flat although it gets very windy

Stupidly I pitched up there yesterday with a cold - won't be making that mistake again :oops: You don't notice it commuting but it takes a toll when you're racing. You need to be doing 24 mph average but last night I struggled to get above 22 after the E/1/2/3s came past. Race started late so it was shortened to 45 mins which prompted everyone to up the pace a bit. Very keen to stay out of trouble after my crash last time, and that hurt as well. Might as well have spent £9 on Pimms, stayed at home and watched the tennis :x

cjcp

I will. Eventually. I need to give the legs and lungs a bit more time to settle in after the holiday first as I've not raced in the 3rd Cats yet.

EDIT: Chapeau for havin' a crack after the commute. I did a club training ride led by an Elite rider and 2nd Cats end of last year and damn near collapsed. Got dropped something near Weybridge IIRC. :oops: I imagine racing after the commute would be exactly the same!

Rich158

Hillingdon's a bit far out for me and the wrong side of London :evil: I might give Hogs Hill a go on Thursday's, I know it's not meant to be the easiest circuit but what the hell. Weekends are out, I've just too much to do as it is, and Sunday is very definately an off-road day.

The upside to all this is that I'm now pushing harder than ever on the commute, at 22 miles and about an hour it's the ideal distance for some race training.

@ITB, nobody will play with me on my commute, either that or I leave them for dust

roger_merriman

cjcp wrote:

I will. Eventually. I need to give the legs and lungs a bit more time to settle in after the holiday first as I've not raced in the 3rd Cats yet.

EDIT: Chapeau for havin' a crack after the commute. I did a club training ride led by an Elite rider and 2nd Cats end of last year and damn near collapsed. Got dropped something near Weybridge IIRC. :oops: I imagine racing after the commute would be exactly the same!

passes nr to my house might one day take a look, probably from the pub lets be honest!

cjcp

roger merriman wrote:

cjcp wrote:

I will. Eventually. I need to give the legs and lungs a bit more time to settle in after the holiday first as I've not raced in the 3rd Cats yet.

EDIT: Chapeau for havin' a crack after the commute. I did a club training ride led by an Elite rider and 2nd Cats end of last year and damn near collapsed. Got dropped something near Weybridge IIRC. :oops: I imagine racing after the commute would be exactly the same!

passes nr to my house might one day take a look, probably from the pub lets be honest!

Suspect I'll join you next time!

Roastie

Rich158 wrote:

Is it Ok to carry on riding if your lapped, or should you simply drop out there and then?

Keep on riding unless told otherwise, just keep to one side as they pass - ignore those that latch onto the passing groups.

But before I get too high and mighty, I'll admit that myself and another Dulwich rider grabbed a brief tow from a group of 4 E/1/2s that came past - no way I was losing his wheel - I think you were with us at the time ...

Rich158

I think I may well have done, I was feeling pretty good towards the end. Is it just me or did the main group go off at a hell of a lick and then slow up towards the end. I need to get in the front group and try and stay there next week, I think some High 5 Extreme may be in order to give me the kick I need. Mind you I won't sleep for days afterwards, I'm quite sensitive to caffeine :roll:

Your lot had quite a turn out last night, it was a veritable sea of blue at times. I should have my London Phoenix kit next week so I'll have to up my performance

Roastie

cjcp wrote:

Am now getting slightly itchy feet reading these reports and want to enter a race again...

Two of us are headed over to Hog Hill tomorrow for the 3/4 race - my friend will be catching the 18:30ish train out of Liverpool Street...

We're both planning to just treatit as a nice hard training session.

...give Hillingdon a crack. Sit towards the front to limit the risk of being in a crash and so you can cover any attempted breaks. Oh, and avoid doing too much work at the front so you also conserve your energy for the final sprint. It's a negative tactic, but the object is to get out of 4th Cat so you can ride more interesting road courses.

+1. If you can get to Hillingdon mid-week, this is the best thing to do. Get those points needed for 3rd Cat and then move on.

As much fun as Palace is, it isn't doing me any good in my mission to get the last few points I need for 3rd Cat. There are a couple more 4th Cat only weekend races left in the season, so I'm trying to make sure I'm sharp for those so I can sort those points out.

cjcp

Roastie wrote:

cjcp wrote:

Am now getting slightly itchy feet reading these reports and want to enter a race again...

Two of us are headed over to Hog Hill tomorrow for the 3/4 race - my friend will be catching the 18:30ish train out of Liverpool Street...

We're both planning to just treatit as a nice hard training session.

Everyday this week has been hard for me. :oops:

However, I'm interested, tell me more...

I thought you couldn't take bikes on trains at that time. If I can go, and no club mates of mine are riding, I don't mind putting myself in the wind's way for you and your mate in case this helps.