Covered Bridge Series, Peninsula, Ohio, May 3, 2009
From CRCycling
This was the third and final Covered Bridge race for 2009. The promoters, organizers, and volunteers of this series did a great job. Thanks for all the hard work!
4/5 Race
By Kevin
I stayed off the bike completely Thursday and Friday, and did nothing except a couple of sets of crunches on the stability ball hoping to be fresh for the race today. I felt great when I went for a quick spin on Saturday and felt fresh this morning when Chris, Mike, Al and I lined up to race. 33 riders were in the "B" field. My goal was to stay with the field as long as possible and hopefully at least see the finish.
The race started at an easier pace than last week. I felt reasonably good through the first lap. Even though I put in some time during the last couple of weeks working on my descending skills, I was still a little skittish on the downhills and slid back through the field and had to chase back into the field by the time we got to Riverview. On the second and third laps I let a gap open and had to TT back on. Not good. I don't have that many matches to burn and I was lighting them for no reason. On the third lap when I caught back on, an attack went off the front and I was too tired to chase, so I just settled into training ride pace and finished up.
I need to work on my descending skills while in a pack. If I hadn't wasted so much energy, I probably could have hung in there.
I didn't achieve my goal of finishing in the field. I still have a lot of work to do, but it's only May!
By Chris
I did RATL on Saturday and was curious to see how fresh my legs felt today on the hills of this course. I realized quickly that my legs felt fresh and if anything RATL was a benefit. I found that I was able to quickly react to surge in speed and recover quickly as well. I felt like I was able to hold back quite a bit while climbing and sit while going up the hills while other riders were out of the seat and rocking their bikes (not a bad thing, but I would much rather sit and conserve energy while climbing).
I was trying to stay positioned in the top 15 during the race to be able to watch for any major breakaways/gaps and reduce my chance of crashing. This worked out pretty well for the most part. The starting group of around 33 thinned to probably 25 after the first 2 laps. I moved up and down that group throughout the race. I figured the last lap would slow down a bit and I had a few sections on the course that I would move up to make sure I was in a good position for the finish. Coming down Ira past the school on the last lap, I was about 5th when Brent from Stark Velo jumped. Others jumped behind him and I joined them. The problem was everyone, except Brent, jumped too early...about 250 meters early. The group I was using as a leadout faded quickly and a train of riders came by us. I couldn't jump in with them due to their speed coming by and how tightly packed they were. I ended up finishing in 13th place. This race was great for my confidence because:
1. No crashes
2. I was able to focus on who to avoid, where on the course were good passing points, and watch for breaks
3. I felt strong throughout the race
4. I could have finished much better, possibly top 5, if I would have executed the finishing straight better.
AVG HR 169, MAX HR 189, AVG 23.9 MPH, 26.5 Miles
By Al
I started this "race" with the group, and I will probably go back next week to do the last two laps. Bad day does not even begin to describe this debacle. I woke up not really wanting to race, and that turned out to be a harbinger of things to come. Even warming up I felt nervous and tense (in spite of just having done OK here 2 weeks ago), and when the race started I was very tentative and riding defensively. As a result, it wasn't long until I was at the back of the pack and was swiftly whipped off the back. Maybe it was the long ride Saturday, or the 3 grilled brats for dinner, or maybe because I forgot to wear my Madonna del Ghisallo medallion. Oh well, any ride that doesn't end in the ER (me or anyone else) or with major damage to the bike (mine or anyone else's) is a good one I guess.
