Postby Xplora » Sun May 11, 2014 4:55 pm
Great work Ignoto; well deserved and it goes to show that you make your own luck on the racetrack. To podium when you aren't trying to take a result is really great.
Tuesday
Marconi B grade - Hot Dog circuit, 41.4kmh, 45 minutes.
First time on the hotdog, that most traditional of criterium tracks, and I installed the 130BCD standard as well, 15 minutes before leaving for the start. I knew that there were no hills, and it would be a fast and furious affair (as Marconi races tend to be), so I reasoned that a quick front derailleur adjustment that had the top 9 cogs available would be sufficient. This was a correct assessment...
At the northern end, its a tight hairpin and the southern end is a much looser hairpin that you can carry some speed through. I started midpack and drifted forward and back. Trek_Arty has been rebuilding fitness and was running B grade, and was launching a few attacks here and there. I was mindful that breaks seldom get away here, and that I could expect a sprint out of the north turn so I did my best to see if I could stay up front after 20 minutes. At the 35 minute mark, I attacked from the front to try and break away, with another couple of guys. Success! We made the break happen, and proceeded to hurt hurt hurt for 3-4 laps... I expected a bell at around 45 minutes, which didn't happen, and after 30 minutes straight of the most horrible chain noise you've ever heard, I finally dropped the chain 1.5 laps from the end. I adjusted the FD today - the cage was angled 10 degrees instead of straight. Hmm, seems like my speedy FD check missed tightening the FD enough to avoid slippage or bumps.We had 100m on them when I dropped that chain. Crank worked great, standard BCD is just the ticket for these 40+ average races too. But the mechanical was pretty disappointing after a really bad weekend.
Sunday
Mark Smith Memorial, first Penrith Regatta road race. 70kms.
I wasn't going to race, pelvis bursitis was really bad on Tuesday and I knew a 2 hour race wouldn't help that, but I woke at 5am and couldn't sleep. Fixed up the FD, had brekkie and away we go.
Round and round and round, spent 40km sucking a few wheels, keeping the heart rate low. After 10 minutes in, a break formed and just wasn't caught - all race. The strong riders were up the road or waiting for a tow to bridge the gap. I had a few digs but ultimately couldn't make anything happen. The break was too far away (250m, 25 seconds) and I didn't get much useful help until way too late. The boys in the break just didn't let up, full credit to them, the bunch just wasn't disciplined enough to put a dent into them. The bunch dragged it back to 150m but the break just dug in and held their ground.
I was pretty disappointed because we could have caught them, but my plan of scratching myself for an hour was certainly a bad bad bad plan. I didn't get support when I needed it, and lacked the legs to bridge. No training, every excuse imaginable; ultimately I was a small fish in a big pond, which is amusing because I felt like a small fish at Marconi and had a completely different race.
Congratulations to Shagga from Penrith, taking out the A grade today for his second win; he has been involved in fundraising for Mark Smith since his passing at the last Penrith summer crit, and was a close friend.