The Race Reports Thread

jibberjim

Spawn of Cabbie wrote:

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.

Don't be so sure, 6 months ago I was dropped on the first lap, and then lapped and generally came last in a beginners race.

Tonight though I had no problem jumping on Dan Lloyd's wheel as he came past and was looking very good for a top 10 finish in an E/1/2/3/4 race until someone decided to come straight across me into my wheel so instead I crashed...

So well done for trying, and if you are interested in it, definately do a least one more before you decide you need loads more training, experience matters a lot too!

thebongolian

Spawn of Cabbie wrote:

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.

I've only done two races so am no expert but the first was a 'mare dropped after two laps then a puncturethe second I happily finished in the bunch

What was the difference?

I doubt I was much fitter so I reckon it was three things:

(1) More confidence riding in the bunch - pushing to stay at the front, sticking on wheels, keeping my line

(2) An easier circuit in better conditions meant less breaking into and accelerating out of corners so easier to keep up with the pack (Hillingdon in bright sunshine vs Crystal Palace in the murk)

(3) A cat 4 only race meant more matched ability

All of these are controllable though depending on location perhaps not easy to find. But specificity is the most important thing in training so my plan is to try plugging away at a race I can do, then as I get stronger and more confident (fingers-crossed) try my luck elsewhere

SO, I guess what I'm saying is: if you want to bunch race take heart as your first experience isn't the way it always has to be, and look for opportunities to build experience in ways that may be less disheartening

(and sorry if this sounds patronising, but I've been drinking )

Mettan

Spawn of Cabbie wrote:

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.

Happens to many new racers - I've been in exactly the same situation - not a nice feeling - on the positive side, you know exactly what you need to bring "power/speed-wise" to stay nearer the front - riders learn alot from their first few races, and gain confidence - sounds like with more training (and group riding) you'll be right back at it next season - good luck.

jibberjim

Kitsmead Lane Surrey League Handicap,

Last month this was my first race with a result, as I stayed away with the 4th/3V's to finish 4th. Back this month to go again, but now off with the regular 3rds.

Cycled to the start to find Dan Lloyd of the Cervelo Test Team warming up, so figured it might be quite a fast night. Our group of 3rd's 15 or 20 or so were slow, and pretty lazy worked reasonable well as a group but no real urgency or pace in the group and after 6 of 10 laps we we were caught. The scratch group went through quite hard, I jumped comfortably on to Dan Lloyd's wheel, but he slowed anyway to give one of our group a little push and some encouragement to stay with it. Pace jumped from averaging 41km/h to 45km/h but I still felt really comfortable.

A team-mate got a small gap on the final lap - 50m no more - and I was feeling good enough to disrupt the chase with a weak pull through at the front. Unfortunately it came together again. Coming out of the final corner up the hill I accelerated well and held the 12th or so spot in a nice strung out line passing a rider who was slowing a lot down the left he decided to jump sideways and hit my front wheel hard - I went down in a pile. Broke the R3's Top Tube but no parts of me, just some road rash. Really annoyed with the result as I felt really good and liked the run in, I think I had a good shot at top 10.

Very happy with the form though, 5th race in a week and still strong enough to comfortably ride the race. Hopefully I won't be sore and off the bike for too long.

Bronzie

jibberjim wrote:

Broke the R3's Top Tube but no parts of me, just some road rash.

Ouch - glad you are in one piece though. Did you get an apology (not that it helps much)?

Spawn of Cabbie wrote:

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. .

Although it feels weird riding up the top of the banking at Dunton, there is loads of grip in the dry. Just a matter of getting used to it I suppose although I do a bit of track racing at the outdoor track at Welwyn which is a similar sensation.

As the others have said, don't right off bunch racing without at least have another few gos at it. The training requirements for time trialls and bunch racing are a bit different as well, so if all you've done in training is steady paced rides then you will struggle on your first few attempts but sometimes the racing itself is the best training.

surista

OK, I'm going to take the plunge and do the Heron Go-Race event on the 16th. Any one want to offer any tips to this old (41yr) beginner? What's the course like, what's the general distance/time/speed etc?

Spawn of Cabbie

I did the Go-Race thing last week (race report in the thread).

They race for an hour plus 3 laps I believe. I reckon the average speed is about 23-25mph unless someone attacks then it can be a bit hectic.

Each lap is abput 1.2 miles long. It starts falt, goes up a short incline, then a long downhill straight, turn and the home staright is flat (was quite windy when I was there).

I found the bunch riding fairly predictable but I kept getting forced onto the banking on each corner. I would avoid this. It's uncomfortable riding up there and I think you have to work a bit harder when you're there.

Good luck.

Bronzie

surista wrote:

OK, I'm going to take the plunge and do the Heron Go-Race event on the 16th. Any one want to offer any tips to this old (41yr) beginner? What's the course like, what's the general distance/time/speed etc?

The course is the Ford test track at Dunton - a tarmac straight with 2 banked conrete loops at either end, the easterly one going up a bit of a hill (nothing major, but at race speed it will make the leggies burn). There are no sharp corners, so the speed is pretty constant. If you can keep in contact up the climb each lap, you should be fine.

As mentioned above, riding at the top of the banking can feel weird if you are not used to it.

I'd expect average speed to be around 22-24mph depending on who turns up and what mood they are in.

Try and stay in the first 10-20 but without doing too much (if any) work on the front. Your first race is really about practicing holding the wheel in front and moving about the bunch safely. If you finish with the bunch then you can think about trying to get off the front in your next race. If you get dropped, well at least you know how far off the pace you are and can direct your training to improving for the next one.

Good luck with it!

surista

Txs Spawn, Bronzie. Will I see either of you two there?

Any sort of training I could do to replicate that kind of effort?

Bronzie

surista wrote:

Any sort of training I could do to replicate that kind of effort?

I'm away this weekend so won't be there.

In terms of training, obviously not much you can do for this weekend, but certainly over a period of 4-6 weeks you should be able to make some big improvements depending on how much / what training you've done recently.

I'm no coach, but I'd suggest a mix of solid tempo rides (level 3), longer intervals around TT pace (level 4 - search "2x20" in the Training forum) and some shorter more intense efforts (levels 5-6 - 6x3 mins, hill intervals or 1-min on/1-min off).

Have a look here at guide to training zones:
http://home.trainingpeaks.com/articles/ ... evels.aspx

Toks

Hey Jim well done in the Surrey League stage race. It sounds like your rode fairly competitively. Racing wise, you've been on a fairly steep learning curve this season and have coped brilliantly. I'm sure you'll continue to get stronger. Sorry about your crash in the SL handicapped race. I hope you back racing soon

jibberjim

Toks wrote:

Hey Jim well done in the Surrey League stage race.

Cheers! where's your report from the Ras de Cymru?

Toks

jibberjim wrote:

[Cheers! where's your report from the Ras de Cymru?

I'm absolutely swamped with reports from work to write so I hope to update my blog next week. Mean while here are full reports from two other Addiscombe members (Slvain and Andy) who did the Ras De Cymru race and some bits from me.
http://addiscombe.org/members/phpBB2/vi ... f=4&t=9636

RickyG

First ever race at Darley Moor 4th July

I only bought a road bike in November so my aim was not to get dropped. Lining up at the start with 59 other riders was fairly daunting to say the least and the first lap pretty terrifying as everyone jostled for position. Once it settled down I sat in near the back and got my confidence up as I spotted when the pack seemed to accelerate and when I could save some energy by easing off and freewheeling instead of accelerating/hitting the brakes constantly.

The thing I struggled with the most was the speed around the hairpin. I think I just need to do some more high speed cornering to learn where the levels of grip are.

Once it settled down I was staying in the pack fairly comfortably and had the odd foray to near the front when it slowed down before the first corner. It was great fun and I finished in the pack as I’d hoped. I’d even felt good enough for a sprint off the front at the bell and managed to get a decent lead before blowing up and getting reeled in by the pack. Still enjoyed it immensely though.

Unfortunately that was the last race at that circuit this year so I think I’ll concentrate on enjoying my riding for the rest of the summer with a few sportives and longer rides with mates and hit the winter training hard.

The Smythe

No mention of half your team crashing on the ride back from finish to HQ on final stage???? :roll:

Mettan

surista wrote:

Any sort of training I could do to replicate that kind of effort?

Get out on the bike at 4:30 - 5:00 am when there's no traffic - and try and average 20 mph for 1 hour (loop) on the flat - that'll involve plenty at 22-28 mph which will make up for the sections when you're doing 16-18 mph - sounds a bit old fashioned - but that's the kind of pace you'll need (at minimum) to stay in the bunch - obviously, you'll get some protection from the wind when you're in the bunch (on race day), so if you finish, you'll typically end up with a 22-24 mph avg on a 3/4 circuit race. But if you can try and avg 20 (or near) for 1 hour in training, you'll get a good taste of the demands. All imho.

And be prepared for a fast start - depending on the circuit (and riders), it'll go straight up to 24-28 mph and stay there for a bit. Just try and hang in there in the initial period - you'll relax and settle in after 5 minutes or so.

And good luck with the race.

Toks

The Smythe wrote:

No mention of half your team crashing on the ride back from finish to HQ on final stage???? :roll:

Well if the crash happened in the race I can promise you it would've been mentioned - we're pretty thorough in ACC you know.

But seeing as you're pretty keen to know the details - lets go there!. On the ride back to the HQ I admittedly took my eye off the ball when a chap infront of me got out of the saddle on a little rise. I touched his back wheel, fell off and landed on the pavement. I promptly got up slightly red faced (if thats possible for me ) laughed about it and rode off with the rest of the group.

Unfortunately Andy's crash was purely down to another riders stupidity. There was now a big group of us and this guy decided to ride with his Helmet perched on his handle bars. The helmet slipped out and landed right infront of Andy's front wheel. Inevitably he went down and two other riders fell on top of him. It wasn't funny and there was a lot of damage done to Andy and his bike :x . Apart from that one incident we had a brilliant time in Wales and I thoroughly recommend the Ras De Cymru to those of you that dont mind hills and would like to do a stage race. There ya go, Simon

don key

Were there any survivors from the crash at Hillingdon vets last Wednesday night?, we thought the break had crashed but it was in fact the tail end of the chasing group. Some of the guys looked quite bad.

surista

Mettan wrote:

surista wrote:

Any sort of training I could do to replicate that kind of effort?

Get out on the bike at 4:30 - 5:00 am when there's no traffic - and try and average 20 mph for 1 hour (loop) on the flat - that'll involve plenty at 22-28 mph which will make up for the sections when you're doing 16-18 mph - sounds a bit old fashioned - but that's the kind of pace you'll need (at minimum) to stay in the bunch .

Txs for the advice - will give that a try. The race is next Thursday so I doubt i'm suddenly going to get magically stronger in the next six days, but will be good to keep these tips in mind for next year.

Toks

don key wrote:

Were there any survivors from the crash at Hillingdon vets last Wednesday night?.

:shock: :shock: :shock: are you implying people died? Surely not.

don key

Toks wrote:

don key wrote:

Were there any survivors from the crash at Hillingdon vets last Wednesday night?.

:shock: :shock: :shock: are you implying people died? Surely not.

No, not quite but there was a look of Passion Dale as he eyed up a bit of skirt giving mouse to mouse.

surista

So - about six weeks after getting back on the bike, I took the plunge and entered my first real live race today - I entered the Heron Go-Race series, which was advertised as aimed at beginner/novices/cat 4s and provisionals (although some of them sure didn't seem that 'novice' to me).

I suppose the moral of the story today is: BE PREPARED.

I drove to the track from work. No real problem there - it was about an hour drive or so. There was some heavy traffic at one point, which had me wondering if I'd be late, but eventually the roads opened up and I got to the track with about 15 minutes to spare. Here's where things went a bit hairy. I changed, went down to register and pay my five quid - and realized I hadn't brought any liquids with me. Hmm. Amazingly, one of the organizers offered to fill up my water bottles at a sink in a nearby building (thank you!!! That was truly above and beyond the call of duty). But by this time they had whistled everyone over and one of the organizers was giving a short briefing. I was getting my bike ready, waiting for my water, etc. Just as people are starting to clip in, they guy comes with with my two water bottles (in hind sight - I probably only needed one). As I'm putting them in place...everyone suddenly rides off!

Sh*t! :shock: I get my water bottles in, hop on, clip in and take off - but by this time the group is already a good 50 yards ahead and going like the proverbial bat out of hell. Here's where I remembered that I had done -zero- warmup. Let's face it - spending an hour in a car is probably not the best way to prepare for a race. I did my damnest to catch up, grabbing a wheel of one of the guys in front of me, only to realize belatedly that he was part of a small group that had gotten shelled out the back on the very first hill right after the start.

Without any warmup, I simply wasn't able to push it that hard right away, and to make a long story short, I never even came close to catching the main group - so it ended up as one long time trial. I passed a couple of guys, which made me feel better (I wasn't the slowest guy on the track!). One guy and I traded pulls for a couple of laps until I accidentally dropped him on the hill - I'll mark that down as the first time I've ever dropped someone other than my 8-year old nephew. After about 20 minutes or so I got lapped by the main group. I tried to latch on to the back, but boy they really wizzed by, which makes me wonder if I could have kept up even if I had managed to stay with the group from the start.

Now, a couple of comments on the course. The backstretch is generally one long headwind. Not fun. The high banks were a bit nerving at first, but i rode up high once or twice to convince myself that I wasn't going to fall over as long as I kept a decent speed (easier said than done on the hill...). Perhaps the biggest surprise was the two mini-speedbumps (!) coming out of the east corner. Since this is coming at the end of a downhill section, you're hitting that bump at speed, which is quite jarring. At one point I almost lost a water bottle.

Anyway - about 30 minutes or so in I got passed by two guys. I managed to latch on to their wheel for almost an entire lap - the first instance where I realized that maybe drafting was beneficial. I was starting to feel...well, not necessarily comfortable, but at least I was in a bit of a zone; at the very least finishing the race wasn't going to be a problem. Unfortunately, as the three of us were coming down the above-mentioned downhill section, my chain jumped off as I tried to shift up to a larger gear. I was able to coast down the backstretch to pretty much just across the starting line. I decided to just call it a day.

I lasted a bit over 35 minutes, total distance of 10.7 miles, or an average speed of 18.2mph. Interestingly, my NP for the entire 35min was 226, higher than my current assumed ftp of around 190-200.

After the race, my lungs hurt considerably more than my legs.

I added the WKO and original Polar file pics to my blog for anyone who for whatever reason would be interested.

So - a less than stellar start to my racing career, but after only six weeks on the bike (and really, only two or three of that doing any real training) I guess this is par for the course.

I had hoped to join the next Heron Go-Race event in two weeks - but it coincides with one of the busiest weeks of the year for me work-wise, which means I'll be lucky to get out of work by 7pm, let alone get to a race an hour away by then. So I'll have to look at some other beginner events on the weekends.

Toks

Well done for giving it a go. Generally I'd advise arriving a minimum of 45 mins before the race starts especially if you've never raced there before. Putting on numbers, signing on, changing into kit and warming up (20mins at least) all takes time

Si C

surista wrote:

Mettan wrote:

surista wrote:

Any sort of training I could do to replicate that kind of effort?

Get out on the bike at 4:30 - 5:00 am when there's no traffic - and try and average 20 mph for 1 hour (loop) on the flat - that'll involve plenty at 22-28 mph which will make up for the sections when you're doing 16-18 mph - sounds a bit old fashioned - but that's the kind of pace you'll need (at minimum) to stay in the bunch .

Txs for the advice - will give that a try. The race is next Thursday so I doubt i'm suddenly going to get magically stronger in the next six days, but will be good to keep these tips in mind for next year.

I've rode 3 of the Dunton series races this year, like you these were my first taste of racing.

I find if you try to stay mid-bunch then you generally seem to get pulled around without too much effort. The back straight you can virtually free wheel in this position.

The first race I stayed mid-bunch then had a reasonable sprint and got 8th. I came away feeling I had more to give, so next time out I had a go from the front...big mistake! blew completely then spent 2 or 3 laps hanging off the back of the bunch recovering, and finished mid-field.

Try staying mid-bunch and let yourself recover if you need it on that back straight. The banking takes a few goes to get comfortable with, but you'll find it can be used to your advantage particularly on the hill.

maryka

Been a pretty quiet thread here lately, so I'll throw in my report for the first race I've done in two months (Dunsfold Park yesterday).

http://smaryka.blogspot.com/2009/08/ret ... acing.html

Toks

Nice write up Maryka. Thats a shame it looked like you were about to bag a win in the womens race. That last lap or bell lap confusion has happend to me a few times - very annoying :twisted:

maryka

Toks wrote:

Nice write up Maryka. Thats a shame it looked like you were about to bag a win in the womens race. That last lap or bell lap confusion has happend to me a few times - very annoying :twisted:

Well, "bagging a win" in a women's 3/4 race that actually takes part in the middle of the men's 4 is not much to write home about! It becomes a case of "who can sit behind the biggest guys/fastest wheels" rather than who's the best woman out there. In any case, my Surrey League teammate Claire Leonard wins both categories as she was by far the best and had the best finishing place (though she's a cat 2 so technically not in our race).

Still, it was interesting to be sprinting like I normally do, then see the Southdowns girl ahead of me and think "uh oh, how did she get there?" and figure I better sprint even harder to catch her. I'm a climber more than a sprinter and I'm embarrassed to say I hardly ever stand up at the end of a sprint, I just sit and spin as fast as I can -- but I did stand up yesterday and I ending up flying past her. Now I'm thinking I should be practising that more often!

thebongolian

Raced in the 4th cat race at Hillingdon this evening. A beautiful evening with a reasonably strong headwind down the back straight.

The same wind meant my ride over was a bit of an effort and I wasn't feeling great on the warm-up laps so once things got going rapidly found myself at the back of the bunch which must have been 35-40 riders at most.

Fortunately the pace seemed quite easy (but see below) and I was quite happy sitting behind everyone else as I don't seem to have the knack of keeping my position towards the front of the bunch and waste a lot of nervous energy if I try - something to work on.

A few groups tried to get away but the headwind down the back straight and the strength of numbers in the bunch seemed to do for all the attempts. The E/1/2/3s overtaking us didn't help either as we kept them pegged barely 50-100m up the track for quite a few laps giving attempt escapees nowhere to go (some jumped on the back of the senior race for a few laps though eventually came back to the fold - which was good otherwise there would have been some angry words at the end...).

Anyway as the race went on I felt stronger and pushed up a little but was umming and erring about whether to try and contest if it came down to a sprint. As it was we arrived all together on the last lap. A couple of guys tried to take flyers then faded and I found myself in the last third of the pack going into the finishing / straight. Put down the power and seemed to be gaining on the leaders and probably worked my way up to 15th overall.

All-in-all a very pleasing evening. Having checked my Garmin the average speed was a little higher than last time I raced (24.8 mph vs 25.5) but my average and peak heartrate where both down. In part this was probably due to the wind pushing up the climbs but I hope it means I'm getting a little fitter too - or maybe it's just my new wheels...

Fingers-crossed the weather and work will cooperate and I can do it again next week

PS To add no crashes and generally quite a good bunch in terms of holding line etc.

jibberjim

thebongolian wrote:

Fortunately the pace seemed quite easy (but see below) and I was quite happy sitting behind everyone else as I don't seem to have the knack of keeping my position towards the front of the bunch and waste a lot of nervous energy if I try - something to work on.

Thanks for the report! One thing I noticed in that race, that for the last 10 minutes, before the 3 laps to go board, the breaks tended to stop trying to go. And the group was more than happy to be led around at just about any speed. So you can sit right on the front, pedal at an easy pace - nothing that is going to hurt you on such a short race - and this means it's a lot easier to hold a good position for the sprint. I was generally in a good position for the sprint, I just didn't have a sprint, so rather than gaining on people I always went backwards.

thebongolian

jibberjim wrote:

thebongolian wrote:

Fortunately the pace seemed quite easy (but see below) and I was quite happy sitting behind everyone else as I don't seem to have the knack of keeping my position towards the front of the bunch and waste a lot of nervous energy if I try - something to work on.

Thanks for the report! One thing I noticed in that race, that for the last 10 minutes, before the 3 laps to go board, the breaks tended to stop trying to go. And the group was more than happy to be led around at just about any speed. So you can sit right on the front, pedal at an easy pace - nothing that is going to hurt you on such a short race - and this means it's a lot easier to hold a good position for the sprint. I was generally in a good position for the sprint, I just didn't have a sprint, so rather than gaining on people I always went backwards.

Not done enough races there to notice that but might have to try it. Thanks for the tip!