May 26, 2015 CCAP Tuesday Night Race

"So what's the plan tonight?"

"Well, the first week I just sat at the back. I didn't know how hard it'd be so I just saved as much as I could. I think I can be more active though. I don't want to just sit at the back, I want to be involved a bit more. Maybe be up near the front more and stuff like that."

Yeah, yeah.

Start. Most of the field, it was a small race tonight.

I dislike small fields. It's depressing, as a promoter, and it's difficult, as a racer. Less shelter, less room for error (meaning if I go too hard somewhere there are fewer people to pass me before I get shelled), and overall it exposes my weakness (lack of FTP) and doesn't allow me to maximize my strengths (hiding from the wind).

So when only a couple dozen riders lined up I felt a bit dejected. A few more riders rolled up late but still, it wasn't a big group. I counted the local pro (just one of them), the guy that won Raritan P12 and Somerville Cat 2s in the last two days, a former M35 Canadian Cross champ (okay, he's my teammate), a couple Cat 1s, a bunch of Cat 2s… yeah.

The antagonists getting ready at the front.

Of course those that could got to the front, looking to put down the pain early. I thought about what the Missus asked me on the way to the race, and I thought about my answer. I decided that I'd go with whatever big moves, no matter what it took, and try to hang on.

Two to the left attacking hard.

I saw the pro and a Cat 1 go for it. A few others followed, but I couldn't see them because I was a bit far back. But I knew that the pro would go, the Cat 1 was good for a break, and there were enough guys going up the road that this was the move.

The front group is going away - it's the race and I know it.

I knew that at least two teams would be blocking. I didn't realize it but one of my teammates followed the move. Had I known that I'd have sat in, but I didn't see him and the move was going away so fast I had to go as soon as I could find room to move.

The view as I launched.

After Turn 3 (the break went at Turn 2), I launched hard. I launched so hard I hit numbers I haven't seen all year. 1266w jump. 1100w for 10 seconds. 750w for 30 seconds.

Going past two guys, on the way to the front group.

About 15 seconds in, maybe 20 seconds, I haven't checked, I rolled by two guys that weren't quite on. I was starting to realize that I'd gone way too hard but at this point I wasn't going to slam on my brakes so I kept going.

Effort.

Arg.

About to bridge at Turn One.

It took me until just after Turn 1 to bridge. I got some satisfaction when I looked back. The break had a solid 1/3 lap lead on the field and this was only the 3rd lap of the race.

I knew I'd gone too deep and the only thing that would save me is if they went sort of steady for, I dunno, the next 30 minutes.

The break goes hard out of Turn Three and I'm done.

Yeah, right. About 30 seconds later the front guys punched it out of Turn 3 and I was ejected like there was no tomorrow.

Waving to Junior and the Missus.

I couldn't get back into the field, nothing. I was absolutely and totally cooked. I spent a number of laps waving to Junior, who looked very worried the first time I saw him. I must have been making faces and stuff, plus I wasn't going "bike racers very fast" like I normally do.

More waving, this time he was clapping.

I felt better when I saw him clapping. That was better than looking at me all worried and stuff.

Cooked and unable to do much of anything.

My numbers were pretty pathetic. I had nothing.

Lance, good guy and former teammate, rolled by.

Lance, who helped immensely at the Bethel Spring Series as well as the Aetna Nutmeg Spring Series, lapped me a few times, like everyone else. Of course the first thing he said when he lapped me was to get on his wheel so he could pull me along.

I asked him if he was off the front. He was, and in fact I think he was 4th on the road. So I tried to repay him for all the laps he rode at the front for me, all the hours he marshaled, all the hours he swept and brushed and plowed at Bethel, for the help in troubleshooting some of the small engine problems we had on various Sweep Days.

Pulling for Lance.

I couldn't pull him much, just 3/4 of a lap, but I tried to make it count by pulling into the wind, hard, and sitting as high up as I could so I could give him shelter. Seems a bit sad that that's all I could do for him, but there will be other races, other opportunities to try to give something back.

Lance on my wheel.

The long shadows make me look tall but Lance towers over me.

All I can do.

I couldn't pull more than that and I had to tell him to go after a much-too-short pull.

The Missus asked me what I was doing, circling at 10 or 12 mph. It's a sign of how slowly I was riding when a spectator can ask me a detailed question and I could give a detailed answer. I told her I'd do a sprint and stop. I wanted to do a sprint with a clear course. Then the break lapped me (they had lapped the field twice I think so it was a different set of people) so I decided to do my sprint that lap and make it a bridge as much as a sprint.

Before I jumped, that's the break ahead of me.

This is exiting Turn 3 so just the straight plus the curve and then the finish line. I wanted to bridge by the finish line. The break was maybe 2/5 of the way to the line.

Mid effort.

I did what I could on the jump. It wasn't great but it was okay.

Bridge at the finish line, sort of.

I bridged shortly after the finish, coasting up on them as I closed the last few meters. I went straight at Turn 1 when they went left - I knew I was done and made a U-turn and found the Missus and Junior playing in the field.

Junior jumping up and down.

With Junior so happy to see me it was hard to be upset about my race. I felt disappointed, of course, but I took away the one positive - I could read the race perfectly. I knew the move to follow, I just couldn't follow it.

So I played with Junior, caught up with friends, and then packed up and headed home.

Racing - Aug 14, 2012 @TuesdayTheRent

I'm a bit hesitant to call it "racing". It doesn't even qualify for "training". I rode less than 5 miles in total before I put the bike back on the roof rack.

I had an inkling it wouldn't be good on the way down. I sat next to Junior in the back - usually this is how we roll now, with one of us sitting next to Junior - and I started feeling car sick/queasy. I'm really bad with motion sickness, boats, cars, buses, anything that rolls around. Usually it takes a bit before it goes away but this time it stubbornly stuck around.

I felt exhausted as well. Junior, very unusually, woke up at 3 AM in the morning and wouldn't go back to sleep until about 4:30, fussing much of the time. Since I don't have to get up at any particular time I take the early morning wake up calls. This unexpected 90 minute break from sleep wreaked havoc on the rest of my day. With Junior waking up for real at 8 AM I spent the day in a groggy, sleepy, "really want to take a nap" state. I had to run errands and with Junior's regular couple short naps a day schedule I had no chance to nap myself.

In fact, when the Missus got home, she took a look at me and asked me if I wanted to race at all. I figured we should at least go to the venue, even if I didn't race. I could relax, watch the race, and we could still meet up with SOC and Mrs SOC after the race.

I decided that I should try to race but maybe I should nap on the way there. Although I'm known for being able to sleep virtually anywhere, feeling queasy in the car wasn't conducive towards napping. I'm good anywhere location-wise but I need to feel tired and relaxed, not queasy and worried that it'd get worst. It was the last chance I had to nap before I kitted up for the race.

A nice thing about Tuesday's races is we use the same number weekly. I leave the number in the car, along with a slew of pins, and I usually have stuff ready to go when we arrive at the Rent. I also pre-fill a release form and pre-write a check so all I have to do is hand over the folded up release, check inside, sign the weekly sign-in, and I can race.

I felt so queasy I couldn't pin in the car. I did slip into the team shorts but saved any more complex maneuvers for stationary time, when I knew the car wouldn't be rocking and rolling.

I flatted my rear tubular at New London (although I didn't realize it until last Tuesday) and I haven't bothered gluing another tire on that wheel. I brought the matching front but faced with my topsy turvy stomach I decided just to put on the clinchers, leave them at whatever pressure, and ride.

(I should note that I rode Sunday for 2 hours and inflated the tires to just 85/90 psi. I fully expected the tires to be in the 60/70 psi range.) I swiggled the bike a bit, veerying left and right, and the tires seemed reasonable. I figured if nothing else I'd see what low pressure feels like in the turns.)

I kinda sorta meant to warm up but my stomach and fatigue led me to dwaddle near the start/finish area. A local (Legbreaker - he lapped us twice the evening before he went to solo to a win in a pro race) asked me about my pelvic fracture and recovery. Apparently he slid out recently and the impact fractured his pelvis.

Luckily for him he can put weight on it (I couldn't when I broke mine) so I expect him to recover quickly and completely. In fact based on the guys I know who broke bones who were there that evening (three came to mind immediately) then went on to have a spectacular next season, I expect him to be signing a pro contract by the end of 2013.

Whatever, I ended up doing a massive warm up that consisted of rolling over to Junior and the Missus, watched the former grin when he saw me, kissed the latter for good luck, and rolled to the line. I'd say it was a good 100 feet.

I still felt queasy.

We set off on a somewhat manageable pace. I mean, okay, the early guys that put in digs put in some good digs but on a normal night I'd have been okay, even this year. Instead I floundered at the back, my stomach doing flip flops but not really expressing an urgent need to void itself. I suppose if I made myself sick it'd have improved things but I haven't been able to bring myself to that ever and I wasn't about to start now.

Instead I drank some of the ice water, trying to calm my insides down. I wished I'd had a Coke, I know they seem to settle things down (must be the acid?).

At some point I moved out of line and drifted off.

I let the group pass me once while I rolled at some unimaginably slow pace. I jumped on when they passed me again, hitting my max wattage for the night of 940w, but in half a lap I sat up.

I had nothing.

I rolled back to the Missus. Junior broke out into a big grin. Things were good.

I went to the car to change and grab the camera so I could take some shots of the rest of the race. When I was about to walk back I noticed the sun setting. This was the second last Rent of the year. After next week there aren't that many races left.

The CCNS Kermis on Friday August 24th.

White Plains Crit on Sunday September 16th.

And that'll be the season. I'm already thinking of next year but the winter feels cloudy. Life isn't just about me and the Missus anymore. It's about me and the Missus and Junior. We'll have to see what I can and can't do over the winter, see how things go.

The immediate helps keep me distracted. I want to glue a new tire on the rear Stinger. I want to get into the Tsunami 1.1 build. I need to do stuff around the house. I have projects.

But for now I'll leave you with this.

The sun sets on another Rent.