Strawbuger's Racing Log

[sogood]

That's a lucky escape at racing speed. You must be thanking the sandy locality.

[Strawburger]

Date: 5 February 11
Venue: Heffron Pk
Conditions: Tailwind on straight, 44-46 degrees HOT!
Grade: C - 12 Laps (reduced for conditions)
Result: 5th
Report:

Too bl00dy hot to race! Most of the others were of the same opinion. I headed down hoping for a nice sea breeze, but got a north westerly. I bit the bullet and had a go anyway, as did 15 others in C grade. I wanted an incident free first few laps so i sat on last wheel and soaked up the rubber banding effect as much as i could. One by one riders started dropping back so i jumped ahead of the wilting riders and stayed in the main bunch. By lap 7 two riders (i think from norths) jumped and the bunch shattered into 4 pieces. I tried to maintain position but ended up passing a few riders attempting to stay within reach of the first two. There were 4 chasing the front 2, with myself and one other trying to catch the 4 chasers. By lap 9 i had run out of water just as the other rider with me grabbed some water from a spectator. He asked if i had any legs to catch the bunch ahead but i surrendered that chase and ended up solo for the remaining laps. The sensible thing was probably to quit but my brain doesn't give up that easy. I kept a 32km/hr pace for the final laps using it as a mini time trial exercise. As i crossed the finish line i stopped and walked into the sheds for a cold shower. Many riders didn't end up going the distance so i ended up 5th.


dist - 24.24kms
time - 45min 38sec
speed - 32.1km/hr avg (44.0 max)
cadence - 96 avg (122 max)
heart rate - 174 HR avg (184 max)

[Strawburger]

That's a lucky escape at racing speed. You must be thanking the sandy locality.

Indeed, the face was covered in sand, fortunately it wasn't the concrete or i'd be looking for a plastic surgeon!

[toppity]

Good courage shown. 174 average HR. I'd be dead if I did that.

[foo on patrol]

Showing some real ticker there Strawbuger!

[Strawburger]

Date: 19 February 11
Venue: Heffron Pk
Conditions: Headwind on bumps
Grade: C - 13 Laps (miscounted by officials)
Result: 11th (out of 22)
Report:

Really struggling at the moment. Just tried to hold on for dear life again at the back of the pack. As the slower riders dropped off i passed them and held on. No real breaks as such - the pack held together up to the sprint. I got dropped on the last lap but regathered at the squircle only to get dropped from the final sprint.

I'm slowly regaining fitness and speed although it's very frustrating not being able to mix it up front yet.

dist - 26.26kms
time - 44min 41sec
speed - 35.3km/hr avg (45.8 max)
cadence - 98 avg (125 max)
heart rate - 178 HR avg (188 max)

[Strawburger]

Date: 6 March 11
Venue: Dunc Gray
Conditions: Early morning - nice and still
Grade: C/D - 40mins +3 laps
Result: DNF
Report:

All riders started off with a one lap flyer for grading purposes. This was my first time here so i couldn't ascertain the speed through corners with one roll around the course on warm-up. I ended up doing a 1:13 which i thought was ok considering my state of health with a persistent cold. Still, about 8-10 sec down on A/B (going on Mikesbytes lap time). Some keen C/D riders thought i should be in the A/B, but a shake of the head and i was in the C/D grade.

A bunch of about 10 riders rolled out about 30 sec after A/B and the pace was on from the start. I found myself in the Moncoutie position pretty quickly so i worked my way up a couple of spots and try to get a feel for these quick turns. Within a couple of laps A/B had caught up to us. We call out that they are approaching. The back 4 riders slow to allow them through (which i was one of), the front however accelerated causing a split in the bunch. The front of C/D then jumped on the A/B bunch and drifted away as if it were a handicap race. I jumped to the front of the chasing pack and tried to drag us back to the back of the bunch. I got the call (i think it may have been sogood) asking if i had the legs. I shook the head and after 3 laps trying my race was done. I spent the rest of the time getting my cornering skills back up to scratch and did a bit of time trialling getting lapped twice in the process. After 37 mins i got the call to come in next lap so i smashed out a quick final lap and pulled off to watch the finish.

A bit peeved about what happened, but in the end i was never going to challenge and i should have been better placed when A/B grade came through.

Garmin corrupted the file... rough stats:

dist - 22.4kms
time - 37min 30sec
speed - 35.8km/hr avg

[fats]

So was the lower grade drafting allowed or just missed by the comms? Not permitted in our club racing.

[mikesbytes]

Bear in mind that my time in the one lap screamer was 3rd fastest and only a couple of ten's off second. My strong time is in part due to the speed that I took the corners down the back. A better comparison would be to Simon L who did 1.09 so you were only 4 seconds off the A/B pace.

It must of been a nightmare recording times, you crossing the line close to Simon S and me crossing the line close to sogood, I wouldn't blame Chris for making an error. And to make thing more confusing Peter left at the incorrect time

Agree that the first half of C/D shouldn't of got on the back of A. The problem was in part that we arrived to overtake C/D just as they overtook E/F so we kinda went into the sharp corner 3 races abreast. Mark was on the front and had to make the call on what to do, he went around but slowed a tad and I think Julian took the opportunity to tag on and the rest followed. Then A rode around in typical wait for the attack mode so our road speed was a bit low for the next lap. I think (if it was) Julian hung on for a while

[toppity]

Still, at our races the lower grades are expected to sit up and let the higher grade ride past, then resume racing. It's unfair any other way imo.

[Strawburger]

Bear in mind that my time in the one lap screamer was 3rd fastest and only a couple of ten's off second. My strong time is in part due to the speed that I took the corners down the back. A better comparison would be to Simon L who did 1.09 so you were only 4 seconds off the A/B pace.

Aah, yes it itsn't too bad after all! I noted your time on the day to compare with mine but didn't see the others. Yours was quite a quick time and personally i can't see myself getting anywhere near that so as you say i'll compare to the others.

It must of been a nightmare recording times, you crossing the line close to Simon S and me crossing the line close to sogood, I wouldn't blame Chris for making an error. And to make thing more confusing Peter left at the incorrect time

I don't blame them at all for missing my 1 lap time. Riders were coming thick and fast with not much time to record and check the next one. They did well getting what they did.

Agree that the first half of C/D shouldn't of got on the back of A. The problem was in part that we arrived to overtake C/D just as they overtook E/F so we kinda went into the sharp corner 3 races abreast. Mark was on the front and had to make the call on what to do, he went around but slowed a tad and I think Julian took the opportunity to tag on and the rest followed. Then A rode around in typical wait for the attack mode so our road speed was a bit low for the next lap. I think (if it was) Julian hung on for a while

Yeah that's exactly what happened. We all met at the same point, bunches meshed together and didn't get a chance to reform. I guess some riders yesterday don't race crits every week plus it was the first club crit of the year.

Still, at our races the lower grades are expected to sit up and let the higher grade ride past, then resume racing. It's unfair any other way imo.

That probably should have happened but with all 3 bunches meeting it would have been difficult with the speeds at the start of the race.

So was the lower grade drafting allowed or just missed by the comms? Not permitted in our club racing.

It was noted by an A grader in their bunch, the guy who held on (Julian as noted in Mike's post) was DQ'd toward the end of the race.

[sogood]

They were recording down to 1/100s! I had no ideas how they managed that.

[mikesbytes]

Didn't know that Julian got DQ'ed

They were recording down to 1/100s! I had no ideas how they managed that.

No way they managed that, there was a different time piece being used to the one finishing. I'm wondering if Chris's time piece, which might of been a phone had some sort of ability to take snapshots each time it was pushed?

Probably the real reason for the fine times was to ensure no one had the same time as the points position seems to have been calculated on a ranking.

[Strawburger]

Date: 12 March 11
Venue: Heffron Pk
Conditions: Headwind on bumps
Grade: C - 14 Laps
Result: 11th (out of 22 i think)
Report:

Still at the stage where i'm regaining fitness. Not much happened really. Loads of accelerations with a single one man break that got pulled in pretty quick. In the end it was 14 laps of speeds all over the place that ended in a sprint! I sat at the back for the race concentrating on the racing lines and managing to hold on to the pack. Fortunately didn't get dropped this week and contested the sprint - albeit from about 50m behind the leaders

Felt like i've turned the corner and can see the improvements. Still a way off until i get the nose in the wind through. Dropped my cadence by a few per minute - hopefully using more power!

dist - 28.28kms
time - 47min 45sec
speed - 35.8km/hr avg (53.3 max)
cadence - 93 avg (160 max - must be a spike)
heart rate - 179 HR avg (189 max)

[mikesbytes]

What was the wind like?

Were you riding a fixie this morning?

[Strawburger]

What was the wind like?

Were you riding a fixie this morning?

The wind this yesterday or the race? I didn't really notice the wind yesterday so it must have been a tailwind for most of it. Yes, i was riding the white fixie yesterday. Where did you spot me?

[scotto]

Still, at our races the lower grades are expected to sit up and let the higher grade ride past, then resume racing. It's unfair any other way imo.

unfair my &*%##.

what gets my goat up ( what does that actually mean?) is when as a c-grader, we get a 5 man break away going only to be passed by a grade who then proceed to slow down and then yell at us to stay back. to print my response would break the forum rules, but we kept to the side and passed most of them, avoiding any drafting. whist they eventually pulled their proverbial fingers out, that was our race gone. they often have a tendancy to ruin final sprint laps too !

at least i got to tell eddie salas to move to i could pass him

[toppity]

Still, at our races the lower grades are expected to sit up and let the higher grade ride past, then resume racing. It's unfair any other way imo.

unfair my &*%##.

what gets my goat up ( what does that actually mean?) is when as a c-grader, we get a 5 man break away going only to be passed by a grade who then proceed to slow down and then yell at us to stay back. to print my response would break the forum rules, but we kept to the side and passed most of them, avoiding any drafting. whist they eventually pulled their proverbial fingers out, that was our race gone. they often have a tendancy to ruin final sprint laps too !

at least i got to tell eddie salas to move to i could pass him

As I see it the problem is not everyone tries to go around without drafting. Anyway you have your opinion and I have mine.

[scotto]

dont get me wrong, drafting higher grades is wrong, and i'm the first to yell out if someone tries!, but higher grades passing and then coming to a standstill isnt fair either.

[toppity]

dont get me wrong, drafting higher grades is wrong, and i'm the first to yell out if someone tries!, but higher grades passing and then coming to a standstill isnt fair either.

I agree with that.

[mikesbytes]

What was the wind like?

Were you riding a fixie this morning?

The wind this yesterday or the race? I didn't really notice the wind yesterday so it must have been a tailwind for most of it. Yes, i was riding the white fixie yesterday. Where did you spot me?

Lillyfield rd, I've spotted you twice riding into town while I'm riding away from town in the morning

[Strawburger]

It's been a while since my last race... Been riding up some big hills instead... for The Tour of Canberra

Date: 29 April 11
Venue: Stage 1 - 55km
Conditions: Overcast, cool, not much wind about
Grade: Masters 1/2/3
Result: 23rd (out of 29 starters) - +4.24
Report:

It finally arrived, been dedicating most of my recent (3 months) training efforts for this event. My goal was to finish the event and not to come last. I woke up with a chest cold which wasn't too good, but at least with 55kms it wouldn't be such a long ride back if i got dropped. The group rolled out of Stromlo & negotiated the first big climb out of Uriarra Crossing all in one bunch. The speed was fairly quick and it was soon evident that it's going to be hard to hold on to the main bunch. At the 2nd major climb just before the turn around point at Condor Creek, the bunch splintered as the Belconnen team jumped to the front and flew up the climb. I chose the wrong wheel to sit on and ended up dragging 5 or so dropped riders half way up the climb before shedding them. I got within a few metres of the lead group of 14 before running out of hill. On the decent i teamed up with an unknown rider from NT and we attempted to chase down the lead bunch who were very quick at the decent. We gave up after about three minutes realising we weren't going to get them and sat up for the chasing group of 8. The bunch worked well pacelining most of the way back. We remained as a group for the climb back up Uriarra Crossing. I sat in behind for the last few kms as the chest cold was setting in and the heart rate would not drop below VO2max rate. I didn't end up contesting the sprint but made sure i rolled in with the same time as the bunch. Pretty stoked i didn't come last, in fact i had put 12 mins on last place which i was aiming to avoid.

dist - 57.64kms
time - 1hr 40min 12sec
speed - 34.5km/hr avg (69.7 max)
cadence - 90 avg
heart rate - 171 HR avg (189 max)

[Strawburger]

Date: 29 April 11
Venue: Stage 2 - 20km ITT
Conditions: Overcast, cool, not much wind about
Grade: Masters 1/2/3
Result: 27th (out of 29 starters) - +7.57
Report:

My first ever time trial! Without having one piece of equipment or technique looking vaguely like i was riding a time trial i was out to make sure i finished in a reasonable time. Within a minute of starting the rider behind me from Belconnen (+20sec later) had whizzed passed me! I tried to keep the cadence steady and heart rate at just below VO2max and tucked in as much as possible. I was feeling the effects of the morning's ride and could hardly breathe. The riders kept passing me as the stage went on and i hung in there to limit the damage to about 4mins on the group i had finished with in stage 1, about 8mins on the eventual winner (the guy who flew past me after 1 min). Pretty happy with this result and again i was not last (although a pretty close 40sec ahead). In the GC, i stand 24th (AT) +12:30

dist - 19.60kms
time - 35min 50sec
speed - 32.8km/hr avg (51.0 max)
cadence - 93 avg
heart rate - 175 HR avg (181 max)

[Strawburger]

Date: 30 April 11
Venue: Stage 3 - 130km
Conditions: fog/sprinkles of rain/sunny then warm. not much wind until later in the day
Grade: Masters 1/2/3
Result: 21st (out of 24 finishers - 5 abandoned) - +19.20
Report:

Woke up and could hardly breathe. I was also very dehydrated so i carried a hydration pack with me. The pace was on from the start and the the tour leader had already punctured and regathered before the 1st climb out of Uriarra Crossing. After the first climb the leaders of the tour smashed up the pack. One guy from Turramurra turned and said we can either try to chase them on the next climb or sit back and have our own race. There was about 110kms to go with 20 climbs left so most people decided to work together and get home in a reasonable time. At the turn around point for the 80km event the marshal said we were only 2mins down so we put the hammer down to try and close the gap. A few peeled off as the pace was tough especially on the climbs. At the feed station just before the half way point we were still only a few mins down. We kept pushing. There were some tired legs in the pack as the efforts were wearing us down. I couldn't quite keep the efforts up and had to sit at the back for lengthy periods whilst i recovered. At the 2nd last significant climb at Mt McDonald with about 20km to go my legs gave way. We also managed to pick up a DH rider from B grade at the base of the previous climb. The fellow DH rider provided me with some words of encouragement and got me up the mountain as best he could. Just on the summit i got back on the tail but as the bunch descended my race was all but over as i didn't have the strength to keep up. The DH rider dropped off the bunch too and we rode the final 20kms at a gentle pace to the finishing circuit. We put in a bit of a sprint finish, the DH rider beat me by a good 20m! I gave away about 20mins to the leaders, half of that was lost in the final 20kms. It pays to be in a group... But i made sure i wasn't the first to get dropped! I did notice a few in the broom wagon as it drove past with 5kms to go. In the GC, my final result was 21st (AT) +31.46.

dist - 124.87kms
time - 3hrs 58min 53sec
speed - 31.4km/hr avg (71.7 max)
cadence - 85 avg
heart rate - 163 HR avg (185 max)

Very happy with the result, i basically entered to finish the race. I exceeded all expectations not only finishing, i didn't get last either! Thanks must go to Alex from DHBC for helping me in that last 20kms of stage 3. It was the worst pain i have felt for some time and he really did get me through it. Looking back i really enjoyed the racing even though it was probably a bit too hard for me. Can't wait for next year!

[foo on patrol]

A good effort there Strawburger. When you have chest infections taking hold of you, they really knock the stuffing out of you!

Make sure, that you allow proper recovery time, before hammering yourself again.