The Race Reports Thread 2011

gattocattivo

Back at Hog Hill again for another 4th Cat crit. It was supposed to be an hour long, but they shortened it to about 45 minutes because they were running behind schedule (not much of a race for the £20 entry fee!). There were 33 starters, but the pace was high at the start and the bunch got rapidly whittled down (not helped by a crash on the second lap). When they announced there were five laps to go there were only 13 of us left in the bunch (I counted!), so I knew I was going to at least equal my 13th place of the previous weekend. By this stage I was just desperately hanging on and I was really glad they'd shortened it - it was hot and windy and tough. As the end approached the bunch was stretched out in a line with me at the back and with two laps to go I popped on the hill and lost contact. With a lap to go I'd already lost about 20 seconds and probably double that on the final lap. When I left they didn't have the full results, only down to 11th, which suggests I got 12th place as I was the last to get dropped and the first man behind the bunch to finish.

furrag

You should have hung around - they said they had 14, but they've only put 10 up on the Londoncyclesport results. Considering 30 riders were shelled, it's a good effort.

It was my first time at Hog Hill. I had high hopes of a good result being better up hills as opposed to the sprintfest at Hillingdon.

On the 2nd and 3rd laps, my cleat came out of my pedals on the hill. I was 100 metres off the back and took me 3 laps to get back to the group. I had to attack the hill in the little ring every time and try my best not to pull up on the pedals. I sat in for the rest of the race. I came unclipped again on the penultimate lap on the descent, but got straight back in thankfully which is when I came by and took the lead.

On the last lap I moved up and was 3rd going into the hill. I went around the outside as it meant not taking the steeper part, and also that if I came unclipped, I could pull over without affecting the bunch. I didn't unclip and finished 4th in the end. Delighted to have finished the race, but pissed off having tuned my bike but not checked the cleats (done 1000 miles this month, and no problems with the cleat at all). Gutting, but an important lesson learned the hard way.

gattocattivo

Well done - that's pretty good going considering. There was an East London Velo rider in the group of 13 as well whose front mech stopped working with about 5 laps to go and he got trapped in the small chainring. Somehow I think he managed to keep in there to the end.

furrag

Yup, forgot about that - Nick went on and finished 3rd. Impressive stuff considering that last lap was about 25mph. Would love to see his cadence figures!

furrag

Ooft.

Did Crystal Palace 3/4's tonight and got utterly pwned. Start was manic, and was shelled out of the back straight away. Went into the hairpin and sprinted when it thinned out into one big line. Got to the uphill to find the elastic had snapped and riders were off the back, myself included!

Gotta work on that cornering (and sprinting hard out of corners!). Merk'd!

greeny12

I guess we have to put the bad up as well as the good....

http://cyclingapprentice.wordpress.com/ ... w-you-are/

maryka

greeny12 wrote:

I guess we have to put the bad up as well as the good....

http://cyclingapprentice.wordpress.com/ ... w-you-are/

For the use of the term "lady racers" you should have been dropped, stomped on, lapped and forced to clean everyone's bibshorts afterwards. By hand.

Fwiw, when the groups catch each other is often the toughest moment in a handicap as the faster group wants to fly by as fast as possible to drop as many of the slower group as possible. So when you ride handicaps, you need eyes in the back of your head a bit to know when you're going to be caught and make sure you've neither just finished a massive turn on the front of your group, nor are out of position when the catch happens.

Goodwood happens all season though, so plenty more races to improve! Make sure you join a few of the road handicaps in your area too, they are well worth it.

Richj

After a couple years of unsuccessfully racing 3/4 cat road races I did my first 4th cat only race at tockwith motor circuit in yorkshire. Field of around 40 riders tackled 20 laps on an open flat circuit. High winds made for very challenging conditions and the standard of riding was very good, no crashes and no near misses from what I saw.

The strong wind made for a super fast first half a lap then a long slog into a headwind for the second half of the lap. One after another a good handful of riders tried to get away but nothing stuck. The pattern of riders soloing away in the tailwind and being brought back in the headwind continued for pretty much the whole race. I worked hard to keep in the the first 10 or so riders for nearly the whole race, had a couple of goes to get away but like everyone else I just faded in the headwind.

With 3 laps to go a rider kicked over the start finish line just after the headwind section, my legs went dead and I couldn't respond and just fell back through the group which now had around 25 riders in it. From being at the front I was hanging on the back. Took a lap to recover and as we took the bell a tried to work back through the group but struggled to get anywhere in the fast tailwind. A couple of riders jumped clear and I thought my race was over. Into the headwind for the last time the bunch just seemed to lose speed out of no where. With about 500meters to go I saw a gap open and just went full gas. Couldn't believe my luck when no chased and just gritted my teeth and went for it, the riders who had gone early were losing speed and I shot past them leading into the last corner and sprinting the final 200 meters to my first victory.

I just crossed the line in utter shock that only a couple of laps before my legs seemed to have gone pop and out of nowhere I'd just been able to hit the front and no one went with me. Winning margin was only a handful of meters as the charging bunch were gaining on me fast.

Can't stop smiling.

Zachariah

Richj, sounds great and well done! I'm going to be doing the six race series at Tockwith coming up soon (first one on the 10th). I'm doing the 4th-only ones as well (it'll be my second race ever).

I had a quick look at the track - it does look nice and flat, but very exposed so I'm not surprised the wind stopped any solo efforts. Not that I won't make a mad stab at it, though! If you've got a race license, you'll be 3rd cat now, so I won't see you there...

Richj

Super smooth tarmac and wide sweeping bends, one chicane which the bunch got through fine. The course is on a very slight slope, not a climb bit you can tell the drag up the slope.

Yes 3rd cat super-stardom for me

Town center race for me today. Legs not really feeling it though.

greeny12

maryka wrote:

greeny12 wrote:

I guess we have to put the bad up as well as the good....

http://cyclingapprentice.wordpress.com/ ... w-you-are/

For the use of the term "lady racers" you should have been dropped, stomped on, lapped and forced to clean everyone's bibshorts afterwards. By hand.

Ha ha! Guess I'm too much of a traditional gentleman at heart!!

Good strategy points noted, however. Thanks!

gattocattivo

Congrats Richj!

I did the ECCA Festival road race today. Just over 60 miles (more than double anything I've completed before), mostly 3rd cats (and I'm still a 4th cat with no points*), and very windy, so I was fully expecting to get dropped in record time.

To my surprise and delight I managed to stay in the bunch all the way round. I nearly dropped off the back on the final 11.5-mile circuit when we went up a hill and both my thighs were cramping up, but somehow I dug in and got back on. We averaged about 24mph, but there was a break a couple of minutes up the road so I guess the bunch didn't go for it on the final lap quite as much as they normally would.

*but with a 12th and a 13th in the last two weeks, I'm sure I'll pick up some points sooner rather than later

amaferanga

Richj wrote:

After a couple years of unsuccessfully racing 3/4 cat road races I did my first 4th cat only race at tockwith motor circuit in yorkshire. Field of around 40 riders tackled 20 laps on an open flat circuit. High winds made for very challenging conditions and the standard of riding was very good, no crashes and no near misses from what I saw.

The strong wind made for a super fast first half a lap then a long slog into a headwind for the second half of the lap. One after another a good handful of riders tried to get away but nothing stuck. The pattern of riders soloing away in the tailwind and being brought back in the headwind continued for pretty much the whole race. I worked hard to keep in the the first 10 or so riders for nearly the whole race, had a couple of goes to get away but like everyone else I just faded in the headwind.

With 3 laps to go a rider kicked over the start finish line just after the headwind section, my legs went dead and I couldn't respond and just fell back through the group which now had around 25 riders in it. From being at the front I was hanging on the back. Took a lap to recover and as we took the bell a tried to work back through the group but struggled to get anywhere in the fast tailwind. A couple of riders jumped clear and I thought my race was over. Into the headwind for the last time the bunch just seemed to lose speed out of no where. With about 500meters to go I saw a gap open and just went full gas. Couldn't believe my luck when no chased and just gritted my teeth and went for it, the riders who had gone early were losing speed and I shot past them leading into the last corner and sprinting the final 200 meters to my first victory.

I just crossed the line in utter shock that only a couple of laps before my legs seemed to have gone pop and out of nowhere I'd just been able to hit the front and no one went with me. Winning margin was only a handful of meters as the charging bunch were gaining on me fast.

Can't stop smiling.

Nice one! I was 3rd in that race, about 6 inches off second (better gear selection and I might have caught you ) . Made no difference really as I only needed 4 points to get my 3rd Cat after coming 4th at Thoresby last weekend.

I thought it was a bit of a rubbish race at Tockwith due to the wind and the fact that riders were trying to go off the front on their own. I stayed for the 2nd/3rd/4th Cat race (I actually did it, but didn't finish cos my legs were dead after a hard week of training and racing) and 4 guys went off the front together early on. They worked together and stayed away. Another 6 guys got off the front a few laps later and also stayed away so the main bunch were out of the points. The difference in the 4th Cat only race and the 2nd/3rd/4th Cat race was I think mostly down to people being 100% committed and prepared to put the effort in themselves to get away and stay away, where as the 4th Cats (and most 3rd Cats IME) just don't do that.

Next season goal for me is making 2nd Cat

Richj

Well, after the success of Saturday I was brought crashing down to earth at the Spalding Crits on Sunday.

Did the 2/3/4, short 1km circuit with 3 corners 40mins plus 5 laps. Could feel the race the day before in my legs and the heavy week training I'd had and was just never up for it. From the go was clung onto the back of the group, the accelerations out of each corner just wore me down lap after lap. Just spent the first 20 mins jumping onto the back of the group as riders fell off. The pace seemed pretty high and after halfway I was yo-yo-ing myself, losing contact after each corner but gaining contact by the next. Finally I managed to get onto the group and stayed in for a few laps until a rider who was several riders ahead of me just sat up shaking his head. In seconds me and a few others were 10 meters off the back of the group. I dug in but I hadn't seen the danger and the gap was just too big. Myself and another rider worked together and setting a steady pace without the accelerations out of each corner we managed to hold the bunch at about 50 meters for the next few laps but finally we lost sight of the bunch. Me and this other chap continued to work together with the sole aim of making to the end. Unfortunately we were lapped just before we took the bell, so although we finished I doubt we'll get a finishing place.

Very enjoyable race, bit gutted on how I lost contact but I was always just hanging in there and a lesson learnt in paying more attention. For anyone who will comment I should have been further up the bunch, I was fully aware but I was just struggling so badly I never had a chance to move up.

milese

Few more race reports....

Newquay Velo RR 2/3/4 - April 17th

The course is a triangle with 3 left turns, of around 7 miles per lap. There is one main climb that runs up to the finishing line, with another hill that isn't as steep but probably longer and into the wind. Apparently over 60 started.

The pace seemed quite high and I struggled to get near the front of the bunch for most of the race. There was an accident early on that took a few riders out of the race and unfortunately resulted in an air ambulance trip for one rider, although we were told it was nothing too serious.

A few attacks went and 6 riders got away in smaller groups, not that I was near enough to the front to really observe or worry too much about them, survival was my game.

The more laps we did the more riders fell off the back, and each time we tackled the main climb the more I suffered and fought the urge to pack. On one occasion I fell off the back by 20 yards or so, but managed to get back on over the top.

I was now suffering majorly, and got away with allowing gaps to open a few times.

On the run in to the climb on the final lap I steadied myself a bit, and having previously decided that I wouldn’t contest the finish (due to pain and problems just hanging on) I thought that as I'd come this far I may as well do my best.

I rounded the final bend quite near the back and the climbing pace wasn't as high as I expected, so I went for it from the bottom and suffered. Pain that seemed to last forever. I could only see one rider ahead of me so knew I was doing ok, but was expecting more attacks. All I knew was pain. Then I got a glimpse of a mid devon rider coming up my outside and had to endure a bit more pain to hold him off to beat him over the line by a wheel.

2nd in the sprint, and 8th overall, 55 miles.

There is an alternative report on this on the BC website.


Portreath Circuit 3/4 - 23rd April

Had a bit of a rest week leading up to this, and didn't feel strong from the start. A One and All rider attacked early and I went with him. Foolish move really, and I was suffering enough whilst he took his turn to manage to be any use on mine.

I then sat in the bunch, and couldn’t summons the effort to close down or join the attack that was the decisive move as 4 got away. With a One and All rider in the attack, they used the strength of their numbers to prevent any chance of it being caught. It came down to a sprint and I got 3rd, although felt like I could have won if I'd been on better form.

Mentally or physically I wasn't really right for this. Maybe I lacked the nervous energy as I debated even turning up for it.

7th overall.


St Eval Circuit 2/3 - 4th May

Evening race on a go karting track. Unlike anything I had done before. Good surface, lots of tight bends, high pace and wind.

Field of 18, about 5 fell off the back on the first proper lap, such was the pace. Was constantly on my red line, fighting the urge to pack again. Spent quite a lot of time towards the back of the remaining dozen or so, unable to move up.

As peopled tired gaps started to open, but the technical nature of the course gave chances to get back on. A rider 2 in front clipped a pedal and went down with 2 laps to go. Thankfully he slid enough out of the way and somehow we managed to avoid him, just.

An uncatchable gap then opened and I found myself as the front rider in a pair. I led him around for a lap, knowing that there was another rider behind who would catch us if I eased off too much. I was delighted when my follower went past me on the second to last corner, and I returned the favour by beating him in the sprint out of the final bend to land 7th place.

Race only lasted 35 minutes (20 laps), but was very hard work with no rest, apart from the few seconds spent banked over on the sharp bends.


Now only 20 points from 2nd cat.

mamba80

Jeez, you are getting some great results............ good luck for the next 20pts as well, sounds like you should get what you want.

but try to enjoy it a bit more 8)

DHTT

Update on this weeks racing

Chivenor

This weeks been all about trying out new circuits it seems, first up was the North Devon Wheelers promotion at Chivenor, part of the South West series and a great event. The course was a flat-ish sqaure with a Z bend thrown in before the finish and a narrowing on the penultimate straight. The day had been very windy so we went up expecting splits, when I went off the line I failed to clip in first time but move up quickly to 2nd wheel by the second corner, I liked this course and I was feeling good! Halfway down this straight I put in an attack to string it out early (35 min+5 Laps). I'm away 10 seconds ahead of the bunch dangling till the start/finish line comes round where I'm brought back by some Mid Devon riders. Yet as soon as I'm back in the pace backs off again, I'm going again. Still no-one comes across, force on I'm committed 3 laps by myself in the wind and a MDCC rider bridges across, the gap is about 15-20s, he does a turn and I see a team-mate bridging (Joe) who is higher in the SW series then me so I don't work till hes across, just behind him is a tied rider in SW series with him, Joe gets across, after the effort he about to sit in but I see Harry come across and shout GO GO GO. We sprint trying to open up the gap on Harry. He gets on though so we start working together. Then SW series Leader and team-leader Jake comes bridges across solo, this break is too strong for the bunch to pull back with riders from the strongest teams in its unlikely anyone will get back on. Now the tactics back on we're all up here our compact team of 3 is strong and hold the numerical advantage over MDCC in the break. I attack, get reeled back in by MDCC then Joe goes, gets reeled in by MDCC I go again reeled in, but theres only 1 MDCC rider left as the other has blown chasing us down.Ok guys its 3 vs 1, we set out for the 1,2,3 time to make it count. I go 100%, he doesn't chase I keep digging in 10 seconds, Joe bridges again, followed up by Jake. Jake tows us round for 3 laps then Harry somehow gets back on, credit where credits due thats an immense ride, with 2 laps to go its the 4 of us still, then Jake pings off the front we wont see him again. Harry goes to chase but Jake isn't coming back, the bell rings, as we go into the 2nd straight I attack into the corner, act as a springboard for Joe to go also (higher in SW series) now its up to me hold of Harry, in the Z bends, out of the Z bend SPRINT SPRINT look behind I've got the gap, punch the air we've taken the 1,2,3 in a SW series event! Thanks for a well hosted event North Devon Wheelers!


St Eval.

The day after Chivenor a more local race but with a fast race in the legs the day before I wasn't expecting an easy ride. The circuit is a go-kart circuit tight and twisty but the surface is superb, as is the organization sign on get my number and warm up on the circuit I'm liking this so far only one corner I'm not liking a hairpin but its the kick out of it which my legs don't like! Time to race, off the start line we push it on through 2 chicanes into a 90 degree into another chicane followed by a hairpin then another 90 degree over a fly over hairpin/270 degree turn then a 90 degree under the bridge and into the headwind straight. Jake flys off the front on Lap 2, I attempt to bridge but caught out in a bad position and am chased down. We've whittled it down again Joe and I and just one Mid Devon rider. We build the gap for a couple of laps then start attacking,. After 2-3 laps we get the gap on the final straight, right work work work. Hes dangling about 10-15s back, ok 2 laps to go and I'd agreed with Joe if we got away its a free for all between us. Together on the bell, now Joes a mental cornerer so I'm not sure whether I can hold but I've been bringing him back on the rise, I managed to hold him till the hair pin I don't like then let a 2-3 second gap out, Joe turns round and sees I'm closing down and goes fast into the 90 degreer before the rise, the camber rolls his tyre and he goes down, I try to wait as best I can but Kye(MDCC) is coming up fast. I look over my shoulder to see Joe a corner behind when I'm going under the bridge, Its too late to get back on. I finish 2nd and he manages to hold off Kye for 3rd. So another 1,2,3 though not the perfect circumstance like last night.

So in the space of a weekish I've managed to score my first BC points of the season (5) with 2 seconds and 1 third. With another race this weekend hopefully I'll score some more!

Ilton
Well another podium! Very windy today with quite a good field around 20-25 riders, on the first lap I went held a gap but was caught as we came round the start finish line. Drove it on a bit more on the third lap and established a gap, 3 of us worked together to gain about 25 seconds however we didn't know behind it was fragmenting. With an average of 24mph with strong winds this was a fast race, Jake and a newport velo rider came across to our group and went straight away, I managed to get on and once again there were only 3 of us. Jake and I played the old one goes one counters for a couple of laps, then Jake managed to get away, at one point I even took the Newport Velo rider over to the other side of the runway while Jake went on the other side! With about 1 1/2 laps to go Jake was away, the newport velo rider deciced to attack, with the whole race at the front in my legs I didn't have the legs to follow however after the initial kick I held him about 5 seconds for the rest of the race and rolled in 3rd. So in the last 4 races thats been 4 podiums! Time for a break till next Thursday at Ilton!

milese

DHTT, that is some aggressive racing. Love it, well done.

Jake certainly is strong.

cleeve hill reject

A little report on the 3rd Cat race at 1st Chard Wheelers Spring Circuits in the 2nd half of today's blog: http://mattdowler.blogspot.com/2011/05/ ... ected.html

greeny12

For anyone who is interested in my aimless textual meanderings, here's a report of sorts on my Goodwood 4ths yesterday:

http://cyclingapprentice.wordpress.com/ ... icken-run/

frankieh

I got a dislocated shoulder and broken hand from the 3rds race at goodwood yesterday

Zachariah

Tockwith Spring Series 1

Course: Tockwith Autodrome Car Racing Circuit (We went round the opposite way to the video). Flat, but with a wicked headwind covering the finishing straight and the long curved section immediately following it.

While I queued up to sign in I knew it was going to be tough - the other racers were a mix of guys, but were predominently lean, mean young racing machines on unfathomably expensive bikes, most in team kit (Crosstrax had a big contingent, for instance. Maybe someone here can tell me why a Cat 4-only race would be choc-full of such entrants...While on one level it's nice to see the UK racing scene has such depth, I think this indicates a flaw in the ranking system but that's for another thread)

Spent too long putting the number on my back, then did a few laps of the circuit. Was impressed by the standard of the tarmac, all very nice and smooth, just a few leaves and twigs blown onto the windy section.

All too soon we lined up and got going, my fears of a lousy clipping-in allayed when the man with the loudhailer told us to roll out slow and clip in before they started the timer. I was also surprised to hear there would be two primes, not that I would have anything to do with them (and they're pronounced in the French fashion, 'preem', which was news to me)

And off we went! The pace was high in spurts, with hard pulls out of every corner and lulls on the straights. A handful of riders were shelled immediately and we lapped them several times over the course of the race.

The chicane section was the worst part, giving me several wobbly moments (Tip to shouty people - shouting at wobbly riders does not help them, or you, or anyone else). The lead-in to the chicane is a nice straight stretch with the wind at your back, so the peleton takes it at close to 30mph and it's tense, very tense! Shouts of 'Hold your line!' echo down the group. Then it's swing out to the far right of the track, to go round a very tight left turn (not a hairpin but more than 90 degrees), three or more abreast and leaning very hard to the left, then push-push-push to keep up with the front of the peloton which is now accelerating along the start/finish line.

There was a breakaway group, though I never saw it take off or catch sight of it until it was caught with about five laps to go. They must have taken the primes. My original plan to go for it with five laps to go came and went, and with the pace continually high I found it difficult to make my way near the front. I kept working and when we passed the line with two laps to go, I took my chance when the peleton slowed down on the windy section and put the gas on.

Man, it felt good! I knew I had no chance in a sprint finish, but for a minute or so I can lay the power down and get a good speed up. I swept past the chicane and the tight bend on my own, took the bell and kept my head down. Sadly, when the minute was up I was back on the windy straight with lots of work still to do, but the cupboard was bare and the peloton whooshed past leaving me with a nice view of the sprint finish as I rolled in at a sedate pace half a lap behind. Shouty people shouted for me to both hold my line and clear the road, which was quite difficult what with them whooshing past me at the time.

I will keep trying! I have lots to work on - my bike-handling is improving in leaps and bounds, and I can now turn tighter and faster than I thought possible. I'm not sure how much fitter and faster I can get, realistically - I have to race smarter to get a result, and, fun as they are, that means no more solo efforts and staying with the group until the end.

Same again next week!

Zachariah

Mystery double post

amaferanga

Zachariah wrote:

Tockwith Spring Series 1

Course: Tockwith Autodrome Car Racing Circuit (We went round the opposite way to the video). Flat, but with a wicked headwind covering the finishing straight and the long curved section immediately following it.

While I queued up to sign in I knew it was going to be tough - the other racers were a mix of guys, but were predominently lean, mean young racing machines on unfathomably expensive bikes, most in team kit (Crosstrax had a big contingent, for instance. Maybe someone here can tell me why a Cat 4-only race would be choc-full of such entrants...While on one level it's nice to see the UK racing scene has such depth, I think this indicates a flaw in the ranking system but that's for another thread)

Spent too long putting the number on my back, then did a few laps of the circuit. Was impressed by the standard of the tarmac, all very nice and smooth, just a few leaves and twigs blown onto the windy section.

All too soon we lined up and got going, my fears of a lousy clipping-in allayed when the man with the loudhailer told us to roll out slow and clip in before they started the timer. I was also surprised to hear there would be two primes, not that I would have anything to do with them (and they're pronounced in the French fashion, 'preem', which was news to me)

And off we went! The pace was high in spurts, with hard pulls out of every corner and lulls on the straights. A handful of riders were shelled immediately and we lapped them several times over the course of the race.

The chicane section was the worst part, giving me several wobbly moments (Tip to shouty people - shouting at wobbly riders does not help them, or you, or anyone else). The lead-in to the chicane is a nice straight stretch with the wind at your back, so the peloton takes it at close to 30mph and it's tense, very tense! Shouts of 'Hold your line!' echo down the group. Then it's swing out to the far right of the track, to go round a very tight left turn (not a hairpin but more than 90 degrees), three or more abreast and leaning very hard to the left, then push-push-push to keep up with the front of the peloton which is now accelerating along the start/finish line.

There was a breakaway group, though I never saw it take off or catch sight of it until it was caught with about five laps to go. They must have taken the primes. My original plan to go for it with five laps to go came and went, and with the pace continually high I found it difficult to make my way near the front. I kept working and when we passed the line with two laps to go, I took my chance when the peloton slowed down on the windy section and put the gas on.

Man, it felt good! I knew I had no chance in a sprint finish, but for a minute or so I can lay the power down and get a good speed up. I swept past the chicane and the tight bend on my own, took the bell and kept my head down. Sadly, when the minute was up I was back on the windy straight with lots of work still to do, but the cupboard was bare and the peloton whooshed past leaving me with a nice view of the sprint finish as I rolled in at a sedate pace half a lap behind. Shouty people shouted for me to both hold my line and clear the road, which was quite difficult what with them whooshing past me at the time.

I will keep trying! I have lots to work on - my bike-handling is improving in leaps and bounds, and I can now turn tighter and faster than I thought possible. I'm not sure how much fitter and faster I can get, realistically - I have to race smarter to get a result, and, fun as they are, that means no more solo efforts and staying with the group until the end.

Same again next week!

If these guys that are 4th Cats are actually any good then they won't be 4th Cats for long. Its easy to look the part but having a £5k bike doesn't make any difference in a 4th Cat race.

I raced at Tockwith a couple of weeks back and it was also very windy so I know what its like. Solo off the front is never gonna work unless you're MUCH stronger than everyone else.

Anonymous

FORD CC DUNTON SERIES (EVENT 1)

This was my first race this year and the first race as a vet having turned 40 in January. Turned up, signed on and went onto the track which is a test circuit at the Ford test centre near Basildon, Essex. Warmed up for 3 laps, the surface a mix of tarmac road and concrete slabbing in the corners. As the track is shaped like a figure 8 the 2 long turns at either end are banked quite steeply which was a new experience for me, quite the outside velodrome !

We formed up and set off, the ABC riders quickly distancing themselves from the older categories. The pace was steady initially and I was sitting in the top ten watching 3 blokes in Ford CC jerseys, where they positioned theselves into the turns as they obviously knew the track well. The first 20 minutes saw 3 riders getaway but the bunch was happy to let them go as it was windy and the bunch was strong, gradually ramping up the speed with every lap. As you came out the first chicane the road drops down and the speed kicks it but there is quite a seam of tar joining the slabs to the tarmac section of road and there were a few wobbles here as we were hitting it at about 30mph. The bunch concertina'd its way round, and I found I was able to move up places I'd lost on the uphill by sliding up the inside left using the momentum off the hill as the bunch fanned out into a large echelon. As the race was 1 hour an 3 laps, the last lap of the hour the speed went through the roof and into the first chicane I mistimed a gear change and about 8 riders passed me whilst desperately moving to the left to get out the way. Unfortunately some of the riders who had been shelled out the back were on this line so you had to get round them whilst the bunch peeled round at speed to the right. Got a wheel, dug in and made some places up. The final 3 laps were fast and furious, everyone trying to jostle for position and finished up with the small break getting caught and a long sprint for the finish. I managed about 19th place I thing out of a field of about 60, which whilst not ecstatic, happy to finish in the top third. Intervals on the menu for me as I am lacking that final burst of speed when needed.
Average speed was just over 25mph and my top speed was 35mph.

Next race on the 26 May.

Heres a link to the sat image of the track to put words into some perspective

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&tab=wl

Then type SS156EE.

Cheers.

Toks

DHTT wrote:

I've got the gap, punch the air we've taken the 1,2,3 in a SW series event! Thanks for a well hosted event North Devon Wheelers!

Brilliant race reports; loving the team approach to racing. Just one gripe, try and throw in a few more paragraphs - just makes your reports it easier to read

cleeve hill reject

Tor Series Race 2 at Ilton – 3rd Cat

Once again there was quite a big field for the 3rd cat race, almost double the size of the 4ths and once again the wind was blowing hard – quelle surprise! One of the things I love about racing at Ilton is how predictable it is; if the weather is nice it will be a bunch sprint, if it is nasty there will be a selection and you need to make sure you’re in it if you want a chance at some points!

Even with that in mind I set off towards the rear of the bunch. My legs were protesting from the lack of warm up and it normally takes a couple of attempted breaks off the front to tire the chasers’ legs out before one sticks, I figured there wasn’t any point in burning my matches too early. So, a nice sedate pace for the first lap as people got a feel for where the wind was blowing, happy days! A couple of groups tried to get away but were brought back pretty quickly, despite the wind, those who fancied a sprint at the finish were happy to do some chasing. This continued for about 30 minutes, at which point a group of about 6 got off the front and had about 100m on the bunch. Right I thought, this one might stick, time to get across. So I launched myself off the front and was making good progress across. Unfortunately they decided to sit up just as I got onto the hindmost wheel and the group swallowed us up. By this stage though, there were some very tired legs in the bunch and I was starting to feel quite strong.

The next lap round a group of 8 got off the front into the wind on the finishing straight, and as we got to the uphill drag again I made my move, bridging across the 100m gap bringing some lazy bugger with me who did not respond to my frantic elbow flicking! So as a group of 10, we started to work and pulled out a nice gap. With only 15 minutes of racing left the bunch failed to organise themselves quickly enough and we were away. There were a couple of guys from the break I was in on Sunday there and so everybody soon worked out the drill – moving up on the leeward side and keeping the pace nice and constant. Anyway, on the last lap we lapped the 4th cats and then for some reason one of the guys decided that they were in fact the main bunch from our race and announced that ‘they’re going to catch us’. Anyway, this meant that 4 of the group started working very hard on the front whilst I sat in knowing that our bunch was a good 500m behind us.

I’m not a fan of those who sit in and don’t work in breaks, but in this situation I didn’t feel too guilty, who am I not to try and profit from people’s inability to remember what has happened all of 2 minutes previously? Unfortunately the tactic didn’t pay off. We shelled a few riders in the last Km and I sat last wheel of 7 coming round the corner into the finishing straight. The front men kicked, the chap in front of me couldn’t follow and I was left trying to make up the gap into a strong headwind at sprint speeds – it wasn’t going to happen. I sat up and rolled in in 6th place, my second successful breakaway finish in 5 days, and also in 3 years of racing! Maybe the days of sit in and sprint are behind me?

DHTT

[/quote]Brilliant race reports; loving the team approach to racing. Just one gripe, try and throw in a few more paragraphs - just makes your reports it easier to read [/quote]

Sorry :oops: Will try to keep this in mind!

Another race report, Ilton again. However there was to be no team racing with Jake riding the 3/4s only in which he got in the break and came 9th ish.

The race was a lazy U shape one way tail wind one way head wind, we went off the line, didn't get clipped in fast enough :? get in eventually and sprint back up to group and slot in 2nd wheel. A couple of laps later, I'm getting told to do some turns by someone who hardly ever works, which is a bit ironic! Anyway I guess this means he suffering so as we come round the hairpin I give it a dig, however I'm a marked man with riders shouting out which side I'm attacking anytime I put in a dig, when other people went the shouts didn't happen. Eventually through a couple of digs its whittled down to 4 riders.

Entering the last 5 laps, a rider comes up on my inside giving it some I latch on but hes gone too deep and goes out the back of the group leaving 3 of us. Bang goes an attack, I'm on the wrong side of the wheel to react, and have to come round the long way, cover it just... the other rider puts in a dig I leave it for my other companion to close down, but the gaps just growing, as I'm towing he comes sprinting round and bridges the gap around 5s just before we turn into the headwind.

I'm holding them at 5 seconds with 3 laps to go, there working together doing turns, I'm about to get back on and the sprint goes from that group, with 2 working toghether and me trying to chase the gap is jumping about but is generally around 5 seconds so close yet just seems unbridgeable.

Last lap, though I didn't know it due to lack of a bell! Absolutely burying it to come back but its not to be, roll in around 5 seconds down in 3rd. Ah well, its only an evening race so not the biggest disappointment. Next stop Thruxton for a round of the National Youth Series.

Zachariah

Tockwith Spring Circuit Race 2, 4th Cat only

The second in a series of six. This time I knew what was coming and signed in early. I also got a lot more food in before the race, as I have a 12-mile ride to the track which is effectively my warm-up. Coupled with a bottle of Mountain Dew to drink a few minutes before the off, I would not be wanting for energy this time.

My plan was simple but brilliant: stay at the front to conserve energy and avoid the surge after each corner, then contest the sprint at the end. Helping me in my efforts would be a team-mate, one with experience of racing in Europe. Nothing could go wrong!

Except it did. Staying even in the first ten was a major effort - not due to the speed, which was manageable, but because the front runners kept changing pace and riders would sweep round from the side all the time, forcing me to the back of the group. So I ended up in the same game as last week of playing catch-up after each turn.

And my team-mate turned out to be treating this is as a training run, and quickly dropped off the pace.

But! My reticence on the bends was gone, and there were no wobbles (that were my fault, at least). I stuck to the plan and resisted the impulse to dash ahead. With four laps to go, I got as near to the front as possible without going into the infernal wind that blasts you in the face on the finishing straight. But alas! I wasn't as near the front as I needed to be, and on the bell lap I somehow got swallowed up by the peleton again. Just before the last almost-hairpin, I was completely blocked and once more rolled in after the scoring positions had been decided (though this time only a few seconds back, rather than half a lap). Curses!

I didn't feel nearly as knackered after this race as I did from last week's solo effort. But then, I was tiring toward the end - my plans to conserve energy failed miserably. I think I can improve my stamina a lot, but it will take a while to get there. More than a week, certainly.

Wish I could provide a little list of the top three and so on, but nobody seemed to know who had won when I went back to the office to collect my license. Maybe next week I'll go for a prime and see what happens.

gattocattivo

Brief catch up:

Dunton (two weeks ago): a break went from the off which I wasn't strong enough to go with. After 2 or 3 laps I attacked on the hill and bridged across to the break, but we all got caught within a few minutes. Other breaks formed at various times, but all of them came back after a few laps (same as every other time I've raced there). I tried to go for one of the primes, but the guy who got it (a junior, I think) just rode me off his wheel. There was a big bunch sprint - I got a bit boxed in and was too far back and finished nowhere - maybe 20th out of 40 or something like that. It turned out the finish line camera had broken, so there was no official result anyway.

Hog Hill (last week): did the first 'Tuesday 10' time trial, couldn't be bothered to fit my tri bars so just did it on my road bike as it is, but still managed to get within 18 seconds of my best time on the course with tri bars.

Dunton (tonight): deja vu at the start - a break went from the off which I wasn't strong enough to go with. This time there were about 7 or 8 riders in it and it actually stayed away - for the whole race! After about 15 minutes they were still hovering about 300 metres in front of the bunch - so near and yet so far. I decided they probably weren't comign back, so tried to bridge across to them. I attacked on the hill again and got to within a hundred metres of them in no man's land, before flagging badly and getting reeled in by the bunch. Four or five of us had a few more goes doing through and off to try and bring them back, but we couldn't do it. The gap stayed more or less the same until the last ten minutes or so (of an hour-long race) when it opened up more. The bunch was winding up for a sprint for minor placings - I fought to stay in about fifth place for the whole of the last lap and then went up the banking to open up my sprint on the final bend. I went clear on my own and for about ten seconds thought 'yes - I've got this spot on!', but I'd gone too early (about 500 metres from the line) and I died and sat up as most of the bunch galloped past in the last 200 metres.