Race Report Thread

[ni78ck]

strava says the winner of A grade did a lap of 4'43" at 47 km/h

Do they change the course there? The one I did was this http://app.strava.com/segments/651319" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; but it sounds like you're talking about a different layout or something? I'm keen to go back out there for some more racing. Just a bit of a way to go to get to the race.

Phil you did the speedway track. We were on the drag way track. Which is the drag way and around the carpark

[tiz1974]

ni78ck, i was put in A grade as well, after coming 2nd in the EricMathers cup in B grade. iwas in parra kit , chatting to you at the back of B . I lasted 3 and a half laps in A grade, im nowhere near that level, anyway they have told me ,that next time i race there to let them know what happened , and i assume they will let me race B grade ! i havent won a B graderace yet, but was still put up to A !! anyway it was good to see how much of a difference there was, and gives me something to aspire to in the future !!i made the mistake of starting A , at the very back of the 67 riders, and was sprinting out of the corners, and we were doing 53kms down the straight in the first 3 laps !! i stayed at the back of B , for 60kms, and then had an early mark, and watched the finishes !!

[ni78ck]

yep, that was me you were chatting to. the track had too many corners and i was sprinting out of all of them too. mayby on another track we may of lasted longer. as you said something to aspire to!

[ft_critical]

ni78ck, i was put in A grade as well, after coming 2nd in the EricMathers cup in B grade. iwas in parra kit , chatting to you at the back of B . I lasted 3 and a half laps in A grade, im nowhere near that level, anyway they have told me ,that next time i race there to let them know what happened , and i assume they will let me race B grade ! i havent won a B graderace yet, but was still put up to A !! anyway it was good to see how much of a difference there was, and gives me something to aspire to in the future !!i made the mistake of starting A , at the very back of the 67 riders, and was sprinting out of the corners, and we were doing 53kms down the straight in the first 3 laps !! i stayed at the back of B , for 60kms, and then had an early mark, and watched the finishes !!

Nick and Tiz, I have raced A at that circuit many times, including the Cervelo cup with nearly 80 riders - Brutal (I think Mike was there that day.) I would say, very close to no-one can survive at the back when the hammer is down on that course. So you should not take away from your racing that you are not A Grade. That is not a valid conclusion. If you had positioned yourself as you would have for B grade, mid pack, ideally towards the front you would have survived. About 3/4 of the way through the race settles down. So it was mostly just lack of confidence to race as you naturally would, you hung out at the back and got dropped. If you try A Grade on the EC curcuit (no carpark) you will find the racing very different. Anyway, the point of my post is don't take any negative lessons from your race.

[RomanTheCube]

ni78ck, i was put in A grade as well, after coming 2nd in the EricMathers cup in B grade. iwas in parra kit , chatting to you at the back of B . I lasted 3 and a half laps in A grade, im nowhere near that level, anyway they have told me ,that next time i race there to let them know what happened , and i assume they will let me race B grade ! i havent won a B graderace yet, but was still put up to A !! anyway it was good to see how much of a difference there was, and gives me something to aspire to in the future !!i made the mistake of starting A , at the very back of the 67 riders, and was sprinting out of the corners, and we were doing 53kms down the straight in the first 3 laps !! i stayed at the back of B , for 60kms, and then had an early mark, and watched the finishes !!

the waratahs gradings seem to be quite harsh but understandably so I think. I went there for the eric mather cup after getting dropped (haha) in D grade at the MWCC west head race which was my first ever race and they wanted to put me straight into B. They were telling me that they get a lot of people who tend to go there and swipe prizemoney in lower grades than what they should be in, so basically if you podium they keep pushing you up a grade to stop it from happening.

[jules21]

in theory, the fastest rider in C grade should be slower than the slowest in B. we all know that's not the case in practice, but getting dropped by the fastest guys in your grade isn't automatically a valid reason to drop a grade.

[mjd]

Racing smarter is the key. Anyone & everyone has bad days but when going up a grade you cant be to shy about being there. Don't do all the work on the front but don't be the last wheel doing all the work either unless you know who you are following at the tail end of the pack. If the mind lets go before the legs have turned you have no chance. Its all learning so get in there & learn how, when & why. Some lessons are hard but these are usually the valuable ones.

[vander]

in theory, the fastest rider in C grade should be slower than the slowest in B. we all know that's not the case in practice, but getting dropped by the fastest guys in your grade isn't automatically a valid reason to drop a grade.

I dont think your theory is correct at all there will be C graders that are stronger then B graders. It depends very much on the type of rider the type of race etc.

I do agree just cause you get dropped doesnt mean that you should drop a grade.

[jules21]

I dont think your theory is correct at all there will be C graders that are stronger then B graders. It depends very much on the type of rider the type of race etc.

most gradings are done for specific races. I race D, C and B at different crits. if they're all organised by the same club, they might put you in the one grade, but usually you can 'choose' to suit.

[ni78ck]

in theory, the fastest rider in C grade should be slower than the slowest in B. we all know that's not the case in practice, but getting dropped by the fastest guys in your grade isn't automatically a valid reason to drop a grade.

I dont think your theory is correct at all there will be C graders that are stronger then B graders. It depends very much on the type of rider the type of race etc.

I do agree just cause you get dropped doesnt mean that you should drop a grade.

hi vander, im not sure if your refering to my situation or not but then at what stage do you suggest one should go down a grade, if they get dropped on their very first A grade ride?

[vander]

in theory, the fastest rider in C grade should be slower than the slowest in B. we all know that's not the case in practice, but getting dropped by the fastest guys in your grade isn't automatically a valid reason to drop a grade.

I dont think your theory is correct at all there will be C graders that are stronger then B graders. It depends very much on the type of rider the type of race etc.

I do agree just cause you get dropped doesnt mean that you should drop a grade.

hi vander, im not sure if your refering to my situation or not but then at what stage do you suggest one should go down a grade, if they get dropped on their very first A grade ride?

I dont know your situation well enough. I did however get dropped in a few of my A grade races (although not the first one). Getting dropped is something that happens. Especially with A grade because there is such a wide variety of riders as its the highest you can go. I would say however if you want to be a better ride, stay in A grade. If you feel like you are not going to get any better, go back to B grade. Also it is masters, I know plenty of people that race A grade there and B grade elsewhere.

[ni78ck]

thanks for your response Vander. in a short summary i had my first race in C grade in October last year and came 3rd. i spent alot of time in the front.
in november i had my first B grade race and hid for most of it as i wasnt comfortable at lansdown on the descents. i did however make my way through the feild on the last lap for a win. and my next race was last week in A grade where i lasted 9kms......

[rogan]

in theory, the fastest rider in C grade should be slower than the slowest in B. we all know that's not the case in practice, but getting dropped by the fastest guys in your grade isn't automatically a valid reason to drop a grade.

I dont think your theory is correct at all there will be C graders that are stronger then B graders. It depends very much on the type of rider the type of race etc.

I do agree just cause you get dropped doesnt mean that you should drop a grade.

Definitely. Especially for people who are able to sprint. A good sprinter can win the race despite being only average for the grade in terms of fitness. It's by no means an indicator that that person is ready to go up.

For the rest of us non-sprinters, by the time we win any grade, it's time to go up...

[vander]

in theory, the fastest rider in C grade should be slower than the slowest in B. we all know that's not the case in practice, but getting dropped by the fastest guys in your grade isn't automatically a valid reason to drop a grade.

I dont think your theory is correct at all there will be C graders that are stronger then B graders. It depends very much on the type of rider the type of race etc.

I do agree just cause you get dropped doesnt mean that you should drop a grade.

Definitely. Especially for people who are able to sprint. A good sprinter can win the race despite being only average for the grade in terms of fitness. It's by no means an indicator that that person is ready to go up.

For the rest of us non-sprinters, by the time we win any grade, it's time to go up...

Yep being a sprinter sucks, makes for a whole lot of pain.

Nick it sounds like you are on the way up, just keep at it you will get better and better. 9km is not back would be around 15min or so yea? The difference between what you can do for that and what you can do for an hour or 2 is not much. I also think it was a pretty good field out there on the weekend people seem to like the enduros and coming into sydney road titles there are quite a few on good form.

[ni78ck]

thanks for the tip

[toppity]

Yep being a sprinter sucks, makes for a whole lot of pain.

This is the truth. I have copped flack on one occasion for winning a vets B grade race after doing nothing on the front. To be honest there were times in that race I nearly got dropped. I would have been mid to bottom of the group as far as form/fitness goes, but when it comes to a one off effort I can go o.k. When i'm fit I might stick with some of the Vet A graders but I would have to be on my absolute best to be at the front come sprint time. They very rarely have a large selection left at the end of races (except for Sandown where the racing is faster and the fields bigger) so just getting there would be a minor miracle.

[jules21]

This is the truth. I have copped flack on one occasion for winning a vets B grade race after doing nothing on the front.

i just don't get that. cycling is one of the only sports where some competitors expect you to sacrifice you own chances of beating them. i suppose they can always ask - and you can tell them no!

[dale79]

ive been dropped from 2 B grade masters races and won a B grade masters race and there is no way in the world i could keep up with the A graders espically at eastern creek
i run c grade at marconi at the drag strip and finish top 10 most of the time and would call my self a c grader at best lol

[cerb]

CCCC Glenvale C-Grade
54mins total, 39.7kph avg

Did my first race away from my home circuit yesterday, as the SKCC season was effectively over - was good fun. I usually race D at SKCC and turned up to Glenvale for the start time of D-grade, only to be told that I wasn't allowed to sit on the front, drive the pace or place if I rode in D... This didn't sound much like racing, so I took the hint and signed up for C-grade.

After waiting around for about 1.5 hours we lined up and the pace was on from the start with constant attacks. After about 5 laps I had a stick go through my spokes and knock my speed/cadence sensor into the magnet, making an awful banging sound with each wheel revolution. A quick mechanical lap out to fix it and I joined back into the race only to have the pace settle down another 5-6 laps later. There were a couple of attempts to get a break which I went with, but we still couldn't get away from an excitable bunch, so about 15mins from the finish I settled in to the pack to conserve for the finish. Almost straight away, a group of about 4-5 went and got clear quickly.. bugger!

We caught a number of people from the break inside the last 3 laps, but not sure if the whole break ended up being brought back. Final lap, I held good position coming into the second last corner until the guy in front went irratically-wide and almost took out the person on his right. I lost all momentum from that and ended up coming into the last corner about 10th wheel and already out of juice. Gave it a kick anyway and came across the line about 7th in the sprint - still not sure if there were any of the break-away left.

Fun race - I'll be back there until the end of their season! Added bonus of racing at Glenvale was that the ride to and from the race made for approx. 120km day out. This alone is pretty much equal to (or more than) the number of k's i've been riding a week all crit season, so hopefully a few more weeks of racing there will make me fitter and faster too.

[filip]

crit race at Wyong, central coast
B grade
5/4/13

Last crit this season, and it was a short one at that as we ran out of light. As last week a 3 man break stayed away, none of the breaks this week got any leeway and got reeled in quite quickly. The call for the last lap came very soon, and i placed a cancellara like attack into the first corner. The group had no problem getting into my wheel though and we ended up doing a bunch sprint. Back home i looked at my power numbers and last month's lack of VO2 max training clearly showed : my cancellara like attack was more a puff of wind in stead of an attack. Doesn't sound too promissing for the road season at Calga.

[trek52]

Syd Champs M1/2

Easy race, boring at times. Man that circuit is boring, not much action and everything got closed down quickly. Had a good race and managed to win M2, pretty happy with that. was only 42 ave

EC Under Lights Tues night

Awesome, you have to come out and race, A grade was steady not to quick about 42 I think......managed 2nd. But seriously come and race under lights

[MREJ]

ACT Vets Tour of Gunning, C grade

Before: nervous, hopeful, optimistic. I hadn't ridden with these guys before, nor ever seen the course. Thinking through tactics and outcomes.
The players: 14 in all. Includes my brother in law TB, who warned me about a few, including king sprinter AB, clever rider Double A, TT specialist OT, dark horse DK, and the country hard man Rob.

Saturday: Prologue - 4k ITT
Jumped out of the blocks into the downhill. Big gear, working the bike. Looking down, I saw 54kmh. OK. Around the bend and the wind hit. Feeling the effort, and needing a target, I focused on the previous starter AB, a few hundred metres ahead. Onto the flats and starting to flag, then into the "hill". Now I had to pay for what I realised had been over-exuberance. Forcing myself to chase, but losing that battle, I limped to the line. "Only 4k" - hah! Next time, next time....26 seconds down and in 11th place. OT in the lead and 5 riders within 7 seconds, including Rob, AB, Double A, DK. Brother in law TB a few seconds back in 7th.

Saturday: Stage 1 - 48k graded scratch, out and back
This was more my style. I feel better when I'm competing against others in a more obvious way. Hitting the range after about 6k, we started to work. Watching, marking, careful. Getting a handle on who was strongest. Rob, probably. Still together, waiting for the interim sprint. There it is - top of this little climb. I'm in second or third wheel when two come around on the right. I go left and pass one or two, then decide I can't win, so ease off a little. 4th over the top; it's ok for a first effort.

Down the other side and out to the turn. Watching the side wind on the flat, but no-one really forcing the pace. Incipient cramping; trying to contain it. Then coming back to the sprint hill again, bang! It hit me hard. Had to ease off, while they rode on. Struggled to the top with a couple of hundred metres gap.

14k back now, mostly downhill with a tail wind. I decide to chase hard. Down low, my chin nearly on the speedo. Swooping around bends, the bunch in sight for k after k. Feeling good again, but not good enough, and slowly losing ground. The final climb pronounced judgement as my energy waned. One minute 42 down at the end; little chance of a podium now. In 11th place still. AB on top, TB up to 5th 12 seconds back. Rob and Double A in the top 5 with Axel.

Sunday: Stage 3 - 100k graded scratch (2 laps)
Now I feel more confident. I know the course, the riders. Goal is clear - stage win, and help TB where I can. My strategy - let the GC contenders do the work.

Out to the beginning of the range and Rob is trying it on. Every rise brings another assault. AB follows closely, protecting his first place, and I chew the stem to keep up. By the beginning of the real climbing, a few have dropped off. We crest together with another sprint at the top, and descend the other side with little drama except a short-lived attack by DK. Turning around, we feel a stronger wind than the previous day, and take it easy til we reach the hills. Back to the start again with the 14 whittled to 10, and swinging around the neutral turn, we take fresh bottles and enjoy the downhill while talking bull and eating.

This second time up the range it's not so active, with everyone seemingly cautious and waiting. Over 60k in and we approach the end turn for the last time, rounding once more into the headwind for the ride home. As we roll along the flat, the games start in earnest. No-one wants to work and we slow to bike path pace, with TB on the front unable to persuade an apparently unwilling Double A to even do a gentle turn into the wind.

Then Rob makes a move. Not dramatic, just slowly cruising away. What do the other GC contenders do? This is what they do - nothing, except watch. I say to Double A, "you'll never see him again", in an endeavour to get someone to chase. At that stage, it would have been easy. After a bit, DK sets off too, with a little more gusto. Now there are two GC candidates away, but very much in sight. Still the others watch and wait, ambling along.

As we reach the hills for the last time, the pace rises somewhat. Suddenly, Double A yells and swings off with severe cramp. He's gone. Perhaps that's why he wouldn't chase earlier. With another punctured along the way, the group is down to 6, with Rob and DK, separately, off the front. TB is with us and looking pretty good.

I go to the front up the hills to do my bit. I'm cramping now too, in the upper legs today. At least it's a change from yesterday when it was the calves. I decide the front is the best place to be when cramping. I can go fast enough to dissuade anyone else from taking over, but slow enough to give myself recovery time.

As we reach the crest, I decide that's enough. Rob and DK are well ahead now and out of sight around the bends. There's only 14k of mostly downhill left, although with a headwind. So I put the gas on, and we finally get going, taking turns and chasing. This is more like it. Somewhere along the way I realise that OT is no longer there, so we are a bunch of 5, of whom at least 3 must consider themselves GC candidates if we can catch the two breakaways.

Now the road is straighter we can see DK ahead, his broad back and strong legs committed to the task of slogging away towards the final climb. Slowly, slowly, we gain ground, and optimism rises. To his credit, he holds off to the final climb, only a couple of k from the finish.

Rob though is further ahead still. He has pulled a mighty solo effort for the large part of the 24k return leg. Yet I am not sure I can even see him, or at least, distinguish him from some other grade riders out ahead. So we reach the final short climb and start up the hill. It's obvious that Rob has won and we have failed. The 5 of us finish close together to claim the 2nd to 6th places, with valiant DK only just on our tails. There is a gap of a little over a minute from 1st to 7th, but then it spreads out, with 3 DNF. I am in 6th on the stage and 7th overall. TB claims 3rd, lifting him into 3rd overall, behind AB in 2nd and Rob a convincing winner.

Summary - a great two days racing and learning. Very well organised by the volunteers, with times posted within 20 minutes of the finish and clear marshalling and communication. Thank you to the crew and to all the riders who raced with me in C grade. Your friendly welcome and generous competitive spirit was much appreciated.

[toppity]

awesome report MREJ

[ft_critical]

awesome report MREJ

+1 MREJ

[ro.]

Cool report. Im interested as to why didn't you go with Rob once the bunch hesitated to chase him?