Tactic for Hillingdon 4th Cat

jibberjim

okgo wrote:

Ha, sounds about right. But it doesn't take a lot to win a 4th cat sprint there from what I saw.

Especially when your team mates sit up and let you ;-)

okgo

Haha, he was in a wheel for the last 300m, I was on my own!

ozzzyosborn206

proto wrote:

Maryka, please don't encourage them. I'm looking for a nice steady pace, no breaks, no mad accelerations. Just a decent club run pace with a bit of a dash at thend, which I will watch from the back, just to be on the safe side.

whenever i have raced at Hillingdon it has always been way safer out front, unless your talking actually off the back of the pack, trying to stay upright in that pack for the last few laps is one experience I'd rather not repeat

proto

During the race itself, I agree, sitting in top ten position is safest, but when the last lap madness happens, if I haven't alreday been dropped or (lapped!) I'll slow down and be way off the back and watch the carnage from a distance.

Setarkos

okgo wrote:

Setarkos wrote:

okgo wrote:

Yes, there will be a few people there tomorrow who will be capable of much more, I know of one, and I'm sure among the other clubs there might be one or two aswell.

Who is this? (pm?)

You can find out for yourself tomorrow ;-)

Another one of you Wheelers then? :P

okgo

Nah. One of the others I know.

Setarkos

Guess that was my last 4th cat race. Didn't need those 5 points from last week after all

okgo wrote:

Nah. One of the others I know.

How did he do? Was he the one on the white Cannondale in the escape-jersey? Strongest guy today imo.

jibberjim

Setarkos wrote:

Guess that was my last 4th cat race. Didn't need those 5 points from last week after all

Good, good - how did the race go?

Setarkos wrote:

Strongest guy today imo.

So not the KW on a Wilier with carbones?

Setarkos

jibberjim wrote:

Good, good - how did the race go?

It was surprisingly hard, I'd say. Big field, 60 people. Not necessarily that fast on average but many accelerations. Virtually impossible to get into a break, because there were too many teams chasing whenever they didn't anyone in it. I tried a couple of times anyway but in vain.
Luckily a few guys made the last 2 laps really fast (first and foremost the guy in the black-green escape-jersey, who was actually a catford cc rider in disguise) so there was no one near the front who had a sprint left in their legs except for one other guy whom I beat by a few centimeters on the line.

I used the slight incline away from the club house (we were going counter clock-wise) to move up into the first 5-10 stayed on the right through the S-bends to have space on the right in the sprint. Worked out exactly as planned. We had a slight head wind so I wanted to go late but the other guy had already a bike length on the rest so it was close but he faded on the last couple meters.

So not the KW on a Wilier with carbones?

Didn't notice him so I would say no... I can imagine though that a few people waiting for the sprint didn't anticipate the last lap to be that fast and couldn't move up.
I did notice his bike though at the start :P

jibberjim

Setarkos wrote:

because there were too many teams chasing

I think you mean "mindless 4th cats"...

Thanks for the report.

Jimmy Gears

Evening all. I was the guy on the white cannondale. No Catford man in disguise I'm afraid. Ride for Cadence, a bike shop in Bath. Average speed of 25mph today. Pretty nippy! I enjoyed my first race. And stayed out of trouble at the front, I'd say the VERY front. See ya next week.

Setarkos

Jimmy Gears wrote:

Evening all. I was the guy on the white cannondale. No Catford man in disguise I'm afraid. Ride for Cadence, a bike shop in Bath. Average speed of 25mph today. Pretty nippy! I enjoyed my first race. And stayed out of trouble at the front, I'd say the VERY front. See ya next week.

Ah, that's why your mates kept chasing after you

Thanks again for that last lap, played perfectly into my hands.

DavidJB

jibberjim wrote:

Setarkos wrote:

because there were too many teams chasing

I think you mean "mindless 4th cats"...

Thanks for the report.

4th cat racing is great...QUICK SOMEONES GOT 5M ON US...CLOSE HIM DOWN!

okgo

Its the same at 3rd cat level.

Setarkos

Well, I haven't raced 3rd cat in the UK but usually it's not quite as extreme in higher categories. Obviously nobody is going to give you more than a minute because they need to keep you in sight without radio and stuff but it's not impossible to get a few hundred meters.

Setarkos

After seeing this video from last saturday, I have to admit that staying away in the 5 man group wasn't that impressive after all as the field was barely bigger and had two of Paul's team mates in it who weren't going to work.

I sure hope they filmed this saturday's race!

Dess1e

72 riders in Saturday's 4th cat race, no crashes, no complaints from riders about standards either.

For those used to Hillingdon who may not recognise Setarkos's description of the last lap, Imperial were trying a new finish at the new judge's hut, but reverting to a counter clockwise circuit. This means the finish is about 75 metres after you exit the corner nearest Sainsbury's giving a slightly more technical finish where tactics and position can play a big a part as pure horsepower. Certainly seemed to work this week, although this may change with respect to weather and circuit conditions.

Setarkos

I heard there was a crash at the back and also someone chipped my front wheel with his rear one (by doing an unforeseeable wiggle for whatever reason) a few laps into the race, I was lucky do be in the drops so I had enough weight on my front wheel to stay on the bike.
And generally I found the positioning quite dodgy - but that has nothing to do with the direction you go at Hillingdon if that's what you meant.

Dess1e

No one reported any crashes!

I was only referring to the new finish trialled on Saturday, in that direction the usual finish is at the top of the hill, but riders managed to forget about the esses during the sprint, despite riding through them 20-30 times in the race.

proto

I heard from a clubmate that there was a faller. Someone managed to ride off the track at the bottom of the slope, just after the club house, and cartwheeled into the hedge/fence, or something like that. A solo effort by all accounts. I didn't see it myself as I spent all but one lap sitting near the front, trying to keep out of trouble. Don't ask about the other lap when I wasn't sitting near the front though.

ShavedWheels

proto wrote:

I heard from a clubmate that there was a faller. Someone managed to ride off the track at the bottom of the slope, just after the club house, and cartwheeled into the hedge/fence, or something like that. A solo effort by all accounts. I didn't see it myself as I spent all but one lap sitting near the front, trying to keep out of trouble. Don't ask about the other lap when I wasn't sitting near the front though.

Yes there was a faller. He rides for our club. This is what he said about the incident:

"I got knocked orf on the last lap when someone decided to try to sneak up my inside and then steer straight into me. Luckily I ditched on the grass, so only bruises and a swollen elbow to show for it. "

What were you wearing/riding on Saturday then?

proto

I am the really, really old bloke who was riding a nude carbon Ridley, wearing blue/white/yellow High Wycombe kit.

maryka

What's with the twits riding with their arms draped over the bars?


4th cat race


3rd cat race

Earth to idiot riders, you are not and never will be Cancellara. Learn to get aero in the drops or go take up TTing.

proto

Looks like that is near the judges hut/finish line. Easy to stop, instant disqualification.

ShavedWheels

maryka wrote:

Earth to idiot riders, you are not and never will be Cancellara.

+1

Dess1e

proto wrote:

Looks like that is near the judges hut/finish line. Easy to stop, instant disqualification.

Would have been if I'd have seem them, unfortunately I didn't. Bear in mind that I'm normally standing a couple of metres the other side of the line, looking down the bunch.

Setarkos

DIdn't realise the field got that destroyed on the last hundred meters...

Adding to the topic of handle-bar positions; why didn't they sprint in their drops???

okgo

He looks lower and more aero than you and you are in the drops!

Setarkos

But I won

Serious response: In the sprint it's not that much about aerodynamics but about technique and you can simply sprint better if you're in the drops. In fact having the same upper body position, drops is generally less aero than ergos but you'll never see a sprinter grabbing at the ergos in a sprint.

jibberjim

okgo wrote:

He looks lower and more aero than you and you are in the drops!

His body position would be the same but he wouldn't have his arms sticking out like teapot handles catching even more air though if he was in the drops. You should be comparing how aero he could be, rather than how aero someone else is.

Also when in the drops you can rotate forward more changing the hip angles and often allowing for more power production.