The Race Reports Thread

flyingelephant

Toks wrote:

le patron wrote:

[Couldn't believe I was in the same race as him. I survived the devil, but with one lap to go my group was lapped (except for a couple who had got away).
.

Cool, well done

I was there too. No idea there were primes until the race was started. Glad they kept the hairpin corner in. Nice and hot out on the track, but so smooth with no cars,potholes grids to worry about.

Christophe3967

Hillingdon last night was a bit messy.

I was OK as was the bike but one of the riders was in bad way - hope she's OK. Sadly her Pinarello snapped in two so not a good night for her.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzVnifQs ... annel_page

le_patron

:shock: snapped in two ? What happened ?

maryka

Hard to tell what happened there, but it looks like she might have overcooked it on that outside corner (or someone was doing that in front of her) and she locked up the brakes and went over? Too bad she couldn't have hit the grass, that would have limited the damage to both her and her bike. She did not look good, hope she's ok.

Christophe3967

Guy on the yellow and black Dolan lost his wheel - think he had a flat and took the girl with him. The girl had lost a tooth and her face was a mess. Don't know what other damage but just hope its not too bad. I think she had Olympic Development Squad kit on - as you can see it happens so quickly you really have nowhere to go.

jamiecurry

Actually it was the result of a guy on a yellow terry dolan who had an instant puncture whilst leaning over round the bend.

It was not anyones fault really just a really bad time to have a blow out when leaning at 45 degrees.

The junior BC girl who came down was second in line behind him so took the major blow, the fork crown had snapped off clean in two on her pinarello which would have basically saved the frame,

on the other hand my dolan the forks (easton 90SLX) were intact and so strong they actually caused the head tube to crack the toptube and downtube due to the weight being put through the tubes. Thankfully have managed to sort out a deal to get it replaced which was nice.

Interesting to see it all captured on camera though, thanks for the links

James Curry
British Airways - Have You Clicked Yet?

Christophe3967

jamiecurry wrote:

Actually it was the result of a guy on a yellow terry dolan who had an instant puncture whilst leaning over round the bend.

It was not anyones fault really just a really bad time to have a blow out when leaning at 45 degrees.

The junior BC girl who came down was second in line behind him so took the major blow, the fork crown had snapped off clean in two on her pinarello which would have basically saved the frame,

on the other hand my dolan the forks (easton 90SLX) were intact and so strong they actually caused the head tube to crack the toptube and downtube due to the weight being put through the tubes. Thankfully have managed to sort out a deal to get it replaced which was nice.

Interesting to see it all captured on camera though, thanks for the links

James Curry
British Airways - Have You Clicked Yet?

Jamie

Didn't realise your bike was that badly damaged - hope you're not feeling too sore. I rode out of the track with the guy on the Dolan and his bilke seemed OK. As you say, nobody's fault just one of those things.

andrewgturnbull

Christophe3967 wrote:

Hillingdon last night was a bit messy.

I was OK as was the bike but one of the riders was in bad way - hope she's OK. Sadly her Pinarello snapped in two so not a good night for her.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzVnifQs ... annel_page

Ouch.

Christophe - I spent 90% of the video shouting "Get on a wheel!" at you...

Cheers, Andy

Christophe3967

andrewgturnbull wrote:

Christophe3967 wrote:

Hillingdon last night was a bit messy.

I was OK as was the bike but one of the riders was in bad way - hope she's OK. Sadly her Pinarello snapped in two so not a good night for her.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzVnifQs ... annel_page

Ouch.

Christophe - I spent 90% of the video shouting "Get on a wheel!" at you...

Cheers, Andy

I was telling myself the same thing...but couldn't decide which ones were OK :? Need to be near the front...

nolf

Ouch... looked rather nasty.

+1 stylish crashing points to the guy in blue who managed a cartwheel.
Shame we don't have a vid of the crash where the guy broke his shoulder in my last race. I only saw a bit but watching bikes go flying in the air is always impressive.

jamiecurry

Well even staying near the front can have its problems, I'm never usually out of the first 15 riders to try and stay out of the crashes etc, guess I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The crash has seriously left me wondering about carbon frames though! Yes they are light but so are EM2 and scandium derivatives of alloy frames and I be they would not shatter in a crash, everyone I have seen on alloy frames (crash) have never broken them, If I should be unlucky again on carbon am going to go back to alloy for sure as cant keep on shelling out £600 for a new frame every time. Carbon seems to have no give in it to allow it to flex and bounce off things!

I'm off to Saudi today for a work trip for 2 weeks to a month, see you all when I get back!

jibberjim

Did the Surrey League Kitsmead handicap today.

Got set off in the 2nd group, the first group had women and 4th cat veterans in, our group worked pretty well together, with a few people sitting in totally, and we managed to stay away, catching the group ahead which had two team mates in, with a little help from them, to get me out of a tricky position, I managed to come through to 4th on the undulating finish.

Pretty pleased with that, a result at last!

Full report on the Kingston Wheelers forum

Bronzie

Nice one Jim - keep plugging away at it!

don key

jibberjim wrote:

Did the Surrey League Kitsmead handicap today.

Got set off in the 2nd group, the first group had women and 4th cat veterans in, our group worked pretty well together, with a few people sitting in totally, and we managed to stay away, catching the group ahead which had two team mates in, with a little help from them, to get me out of a tricky position, I managed to come through to 4th on the undulating finish.

Pretty pleased with that, a result at last!

Full report on the Kingston Wheelers forum

Similar to last year when Josh won it, a lot of people do not believe they can stay away but the effort alone is worth it, if you go all out and the Elite 1 2s catch you it can be difficult staying on the back, best work out I've ever had. The hanger on, drop him when you figure out how, dead weight , read what Gordon McAuley has to say about them, Paris Sites, hunch back probably.

Last year when Josh won it was four different clubs in the break till it turned out that two of the Twickers were in disguise, my mate got well turned over.

jibberjim

don key wrote:

Similar to last year when Josh won it, a lot of people do not believe they can stay away but the effort alone is worth it, if you go all out and the Elite 1 2s catch you it can be difficult staying on the back, best work out I've ever had. The hanger on, drop him when you figure out how, dead weight , read what Gordon McAuley has to say about them, Paris Sites, hunch back probably.

There were 4 or 5 sitting on, but I never knew if they were sitting on because they could do no more, or were refusing to work, and I didn't exactly have much more to start playing silly buggers trying to drop people, and I wasn't very coherent and able to talk to the others.

I definately agree the effort is worth it trying, even if the E/1/2's catch you, and go hard through to make it tough to jump on as they'll always try to I'm sure. Then so what if you fail to jump on - it'll be sad. But it's better to be tired and fighting for a place against your group, than fresh and having one chance for a wheel as they pass, and then again for 20th behind the higher cats.

jibberjim

Went to the hillingdon tuesday series again tonight, big field, lots of strong riders ensuring no breaks were getting away but quite a lot of people tried and it was the fastest race I've done there.

Perhaps that was why I finally had something in the sprint and came home 4th again just like last week at Kitsmead. But that means I'm now a 3rd cat...

Full Report on the KW site

Bronzie

jibberjim wrote:

But that means I'm now a 3rd cat...

You say that like it's a BAD thing - congratulations, and as I predicted following the race at Cranfield

jibberjim

Bronzie wrote:

jibberjim wrote:

But that means I'm now a 3rd cat...

You say that like it's a BAD thing - congratulations, and as I predicted following the race at Cranfield

It is a bad thing! I'd foolishly said I wanted to do the Pearson Jaunt 5 day back when I was a 4th and couldn't do it, figuring there was no chance of being a 3rd before entries had closed....

Now maybe I have to!

It was also nice feeling really comfortable and strong in the 4th cat races and having plenty of time to think rather than just being able to do nothing more than stare at a wheel and hope it doesn't go away. Gave me time to actually think about the racing.

Toks

jibberjim wrote:

Went to the hillingdon tuesday series again tonight, big field, lots of strong riders ensuring no breaks were getting away but quite a lot of people tried and it was the fastest race I've done there.

Perhaps that was why I finally had something in the sprint and came home 4th again just like last week at Kitsmead. But that means I'm now a 3rd cat...

Full Report on the KW site

Hey nice work Jim congrats on making 3rd cat. Are you in the 300watt club yet?

jibberjim

Toks wrote:

Hey nice work Jim congrats on making 3rd cat. Are you in the 300watt club yet?

Nope, 296...

I also need to get my weight reliably under 75kg...

Toks

Cool, 296 watts for 60 mins is pretty good going. I'd love to have my threshold power tested a few times a season. At a guess I reckon I'm around 310watts (72kg)

jibberjim

Toks wrote:

Cool, 296 watts for 60 mins is pretty good going. I'd love to have my threshold power tested a few times a season. At a guess I reckon I'm around 310watts (72kg)

So I did 307 in the park tonight for 60 minutes - had to keep pushing it after the 3rd lap to make it up to the hour, but did turn off to go through the middle not being able to face the big hill into the stiff headwind again, but a good workout, felt I had a bit more.

Trying to decide if I should fo the 5-day stage race now, and go straight into the deep end.

Toks

I'm doing the 5 day stage race RAS De CYMRU in wales for the 2nd year in a row. Its a 2,3,4 race. I think with your threshold power you should definitley be able to complete the stage race especially if you can...

1. Recover well from daily workouts
2. Ride conservatively in the bunch
3. Carb and fuel effectively up both during and after races
4. Get lots of rest after each stage

thebongolian

So finished my first race tonight at Hillingdon (the only other one I've done ended ignominiously with a puncture)

Great fun and finished safely in the main pack. No crashes despite a few nervous looking riders (guy in a green jersey on a litespeed seemed to have nasty speed wobble going at times - kept away from him...) which probably also includes me

Will definitely be back to try being at the pointy end for the finish :?

jibberjim

Well done thebongolian, despite the regular accidents there I enjoyed the Hillingdon 4th cat races, the E/1/2/3's are a bit too much of a step up to enjoy them the same way and it's a shame I won't get to do any more of the fun ones.

Good to hear no accidents, and well done for finishing in the pack - better than my first race!

jibberjim

Toks wrote:

I think with your threshold power you should definitley be able to complete the stage race especially if you can...

1. Recover well from daily workouts
2. Ride conservatively in the bunch
3. Carb and fuel effectively up both during and after races
4. Get lots of rest after each stage

So I entered... Here's the report.

Day 1. 7.8mile TT Downhill first half, uphill second half after some rolling bits, overall downhill. Disastrous, no idea why, but I had a bad night, HR was high before the start, stayed high, but the watts stayed low, it then got even worse and I really suffered in the last km. 3rd from last 2minutes 17 seconds down.

Day 2. Bletchingley circuit, 61 miles hilly - after the previous poor day I felt better, but 45 minutes into it, my chain came off and got jammed between the frame and the small ring. Lost 70 seconds tugging at it by the side of the road before getting going. Chased hard, got the bunch in sight - catching and passing dropped people, slowing each time in the hope that they'd jump on and I'd have some company, but other than two guys briefly until the road went up again I was all alone. Abandoned the chase after 21 minutes when I really started suffering on a hill, but picked up a couple of guys who were just dropped to ride with to the finish. Pulled out a lap early after catching two more guys, 16:15 lost. Which actually wasn't too bad as 9 people lost over 24 minutes, and I actually moved up overall.

Day 3. Staplefield circuit, 53 miles - Started okay, stayed near the front during the early stages, it seems to be a habit of mine, I'm just happier near the front, so the "ride conservatively" advice I don't seem too good at. On lap two, I was on Rob Hurd's wheel - which always seemed a good place to be to watch and learn, and he started hammering up the hill, with all I knew being hold the wheel I tried. 20 seconds later I had a new power record for everything from 8seconds upwards, and I was still on his wheel. We also had a bit of a gap! Great for my confidence, but of course Rob was just testing people and wasn't actually interested in going off.

At the start of the next lap (one before bell, but they're pretty long laps) I again started going off with attacks and got in some proto-breaks, but none that were really going to hold, they were all on the wrong hill. One guy alone got away though, and on the next hill - 4minutes at 400watts, or just about enough to kill me when fresh. Rob Hurd and another went up the road, I tried and failed to get on his wheel. In fact at the end of the four minute climb, I'd gone right through the bunch and out the back - got back in contact though after only a brief moment of panic. The bunch was then blocked very strongly by a strong Army team. My teammate attacked on the same climb the final lap, which dropped me again, but I got back on around the corner again. Felt pretty dead at the finish and after not having a good position didn't contest the sprint for 4th onwards. My laziness ended up costing me 8 seconds on lots of riders as enough of a gap opened up. Another 1:24 lost on the leaders.

Day 4. Dunsfold Circuit 55 miles - An insanely fast start, after 3 mile or more neutralized section, guys were off the back before the first corner a couple of miles into it. A team mate got away on his own, and I found the tone set for the rest of the day, a team mate down the road, me sitting on the front, watching/blocking/covering attacks. Or at least that's what I told myself, mostly I just cycled along. After a bit a team mate, an "Army guy" and another spent a few laps away, it had a great chance of staying away permanently with the two strongest teams represented, no danger to the GC, and a hot day. I knew our guy would be good on the finishing hill too so felt confident. Unfortunate the puncture fairy caught the Army guy, and their team swapped from blocking to pulling back. When the bunch was together again another team mate went down the road - and his group was finally got 1km from the line. Nothing more but the sprint, which I rolled in 14th, losing 4 more seconds - there was quite a hill in it.

Day 5. Ewhurst 55 miles, finish with Leith Hill Climb, 2km 7% average max 14%. Nothing to race for here personally, so I was just going to be working for my team mate who was 7th on GC, and likely to go very well up the hill. Break went immediately from the start, but no-one of any worry to anyone so they were allowed to get away, after a couple of laps one of the guys we were worried about got away, and along with the Army I helped hold the gap at under a minute before finally chasing the break down on the penultimate lap. Surprisingly few attacks went on the final lap until about 5km from the base of the climb when a guy made a small move which got a very little gap which I covered along with my teammate, we thought it was going to come to little agreed not to work and I handed him the last of my water - neither of us had managed to pick up a bottle on this very hot day.

As this happened an Army guy attacked hard down the road with the bunch still behind, we decided to go for it. I closed up the gap and now the four of us worked hard to get a gap over the 4km before the real hill. I gave everything I had, took more turns than I had to, I just cared about the bottom of the climb. We got there, I blew immediately it went above 4% dropped it into the 34x25, and picked a pace that would at least get me up the hill. Depressingly quickly the first guys passed me, but we still must've had at least 30seconds on the bunch at the bottom. I crawled up the hill watching people go by, I lost 2 minutes on the hill to my team mate, who managed to comfortably beat our two break companions, but couldn't quite hold off Rob Hurd, but second was still a great result for him. He actually didn't lose any time to anyone else, so he'd've probably been second without me anyway, but at least I can pretend it was a job well done.

A good race, I got better every day, or at least no worse and had better results. Glad I did it. Stage racing is definately fun. On Toks advice, I had no trouble recovering from daily efforts, I carb'd up well all the time. I actually put on 2.2kg during the race, although that had a lot to do with lack of sleep, my weight and sleep is linked. I didn't however ride conservatively, I just prefer it at the front, but I need to learn to change that so I can actually have something left at the end.

Bronzie

That's quite an epic for someone who only started racing this season - chapeau Jim! 8)

thebongolian

A great effort Jim and a good read. Not sure it sounds like fun but definitely inspiring

jibberjim

thebongolian wrote:

A great effort Jim and a good read. Not sure it sounds like fun but definitely inspiring

Thanks, it was great fun! And surprisingly being in a bunch at 25mph was a great way to keep cool in this heat, you have loads of breeze and aren't working that hard.

Bronzie wrote:

That's quite an epic for someone who only started racing this season - chapeau Jim! 8)

I'm definately glad after getting dropped on the first lap of my first race five months ago I didn't jack it all in and tried again.

Spawn of Cabbie

While properly categorsised racers were flying round Hog Hill, I was flying up the A127 in a bid to get to Dunton on time for the 7pm start which I made by about one minute - already less than ideal preparation.

I was about to take part in one of the Go-Race events held at the Ford complex for beginners.

Or should that read "beginners" as some of us were clearly closer to the beginning of our racing careers than others as I spied waxed legs astride 3 grand carbon bling machines. While this may have been aesthetically pleasing (the bikes, not the legs I hasten to add) it did nothing for my pre race nerves!

The first couple of laps didn't go too badly - an attack off the front was closed down and I managed to stay with the bunch through this initial period.

My main problem is was my inexperience and lack of confidence riding in the bunch. Even though I was following a more experienced wheel, I found myself on the high side of the banking that flanked each corner.

I'd never been in that sort of position so didn't know how the bike would react, if slowing down would take me sliding down and taking out half the bunch. So I made what I think was the final mistake and dropped to the back so I could get on flatter ground and be more confident. The banking switched sides as I did this and what was a minor rise for everyone else turned into an incline several degrees steeper for me and I soon had a gap of a couple of metres in front, then ten, then twenty...well you can probably guess the rest.

I could see them a a hundred metres or so in front ad it was downhill so I thought I would try and get back on - I closed the gap by maybe half before turning into a pretty strong headwind and the gap went up again.

After that it was a couple of laps of soloing, occasionally seeing the race on the other side of the track until I was lapped.

I was a little disheartened and decided not to latch on the back for what probably would have been only a few seconds.

I climbed off at the end of the next lap before I started getting in the way of the bunch at the end of the race.

A good experience and an indication of where I need to get to but I think TTs and training rides are probably a better use of my time (and money!) until next season.

Sorry for the long post but I hope to one day look back on it with a wry smile.