MegaSack DRAW - 6pm Christmas Eve - LIVE on our YouTube Channel
Patience dear boy!
In some ways, the timing for today was good! I finished the meaty part of Sweetspot Base 1 on Trainerroad last Sunday and this week was recovery week. However, I had been dodging a cold at work for the previous two weeks and it finally caught up with my wife and then inevitably, me.
I still wanted to race. This was my last chance until February so I wanted it in the bank to fuel my January training. I made the decision to not ride at all and tried to rest as much as work would allow.
Yesterday, I did the bare minimum in the morning and then spent all day chilling and worrying about whether to bother going. Weeksy and Joe both advised against and to be honest, I agreed with them.
But I had been working myself into a frenzy about it too. Every morning I was waking up earlier and earlier and I was craving the bike- a good sign I was hitting some form. Strava agreed and even though my fitness was no higher than the day before my last race, my form score was +5 points.
When I woke up this morning, I lay there and assessed how I felt. Rough was the answer! No better than yesterday but with some dizziness too. I ate breakfast and did the dogs and the morning air perked me up. Perhaps a stuffy day mainly indoors had not been ideal yesterday!
Oh what the heck, I would only end up doing tomorrows work today if I stayed here so I decided to go and give myself the option of bailing at any point.
I’m obviously in a good routine now what with all the practice I’ve had and was able to turn up, sign on and get out on the bike very much on autopilot. I set off with over thirty minutes to go and was surprised how late most people left warm up. I literally ambled around at <200w and only at 13:00 did I open up the legs down the straight. 26mph seemed to take about 500w with my coat on and I quickly put any thoughts of attacking out of my mind.
The Costa was kicking in by now and I went back to the car to ditch my jacket and put my arm warmers on. I felt ok! Not great but certainly not the worst I’ve felt pre-race.
The total entries were close to thirty I think with a strong contingent of 3’s. A couple of brand new racers were out too. I stand by what I said in the summer. 3/4 races are NOT good for beginners and they get sucked along way out of their comfort zone at times. It was much sketchier than the (albeit small field) Cat 4 only race the other week with a few shouts and one or two folks on the grass.
Channelling my off-bike frustration during the week, I read Matt Fitzgeralds “How bad do you want it?” book after all the publicity TR have been giving it. And one thing had given me hope. Whilst certainly not the same league as some of the examples (the lady with a tumour having her calf muscle removed and the guy with one arm) by a factor of about 10,000,000, the idea of ‘workarounds’ by your body had never the less inspired me that whilst I may not be fully fit and healthy, I would have to use every ‘workaround’ in my repertoire to gain an advantage.
I was actively trying not to brake in the bunch at all again but it was much harder than last time and I had to drag the front once or twice to avoid running into smaller guys on the descents. I also utilised tail-gunning at times to shorten the route and move up whilst coasting where ever possible.
So to the race! It started off dull. Boring in fact! I was sitting in around two thirds of the way back and it felt slow. Laps 5 and 6 were 23 and 24mph!
All this meant that the Cat 3 contingent were barely working and would be soon buggering off at pace. I decided to jump the gun and taking a few opportunities to coast to the front, it coincided with a couple of no-name but matching kit guys trying to do some kind of one / two. Crossing the Start line one of them was 30yards off the front and the other bridged then went over the top of him. This neatly coincided with me cruising down the sheltered side of the bunch. So I followed. As we approached Brians, they were already fizzling out so I countered over the top of them both up the hill and kept the power on until half way down the hill. Then I tried to recover whilst maintaining the speed. In some curious daydream, I had no idea what speed or watts or HR this was, I just thought “How bad do I want it?” and pressed on the pedals! (No, honestly, I did think that lol!)
As I reached the end of the start straight, I realised I had a gap. Bugger! Now what! This was my 5 lap to go plan, not my 5th lap plan!! Ah well, keep going but cruise a little. As I rounded Brian’s again, the whoosh of aero wheels could be heard and some optimistic chap shouted “UPUPUP!” to me and somehow, I found the energy to latch on to his wheel. Yes! Break away! Now we’re talking!
Two more guys were there behind me but I found myself having to pull past the clubhouse. Veering off and trying to latch on again, I realised I was out of my depth. Ah well, try and cling on. Nope! Not happening. With that, the winning break of 4 and a nice guy called Nick went up the road. Nick ended up coming back but the rest stayed away until the finish- great work by them!
The bunch came ripping past me. This was bad++. HR was heading towards max and I was literally seeing stars and feeling sick. DO NOT GET DROPPED was now my immediate concern. If the endorphins of a break make you feel invincible, the panic of realising your race could end right here makes you feel stupid! Stupid is as stupid does and I deserved to get dropped for my ridiculous attempt at playing with the big boys.
At that moment, if someone had held up a bottle of milkshake, I would have stopped and downed it and gladly gone home. I have never felt that bad on the bike. But I didn’t quite get dropped! I was ten yards off the back at times and only by taking short lines and moving up to sag back again was I able to cling on.
A tiny glimmer of hope appeared! This was going to have to slow down. As my HR crept down, so my expectations changed once more. From “survive this straight” it became “survive this lap” to “Hmmm, see how you feel at the end”.
Downing drink at every opportunity, I started to feel a bit more normal and after a few laps, consider options! Crazy! The break was holding steady at 30-40 seconds I reckon and at 40minutes in, I started to wonder if I could bridge. Even now, I’m too bad at maths to know how fast I would need to go to close the gap in time so I didn’t even bother trying to work it out, just lurked around waiting to see if a good launch-moment presented itself.
It didn’t! The others started to try and rally. One (Scottish?) guy from TCC (I was joking about them shutting things down!) tried to be a road captain and get all the non-TCC guys pulling. It was chaos.
As I reached the front, I got suckered into pulling rather than launching the attack I was considering but found I dropped everyone by accident! Twice! Hmmm- that’s worth knowing!
Three to go then and things slowed down. Two to go and things sped up! I considered a flier but the pace was too high. Nick decided it was his time so launched past the clubhouse and hard left on the main straight.
Once more, I found myself cruising down the sheltered side and what’s this? A gap on the right!!! The Bell literally spurs people into action so luckily, I went about 20m before it rang for us and gained some surprise. Right, guts or glory now, save nothing for the sprint! Don’t look back! Just head down and go for it.
Reaching Brian’s, I sensed a gap- crap! Attack the hill and still a gap- double crap! Feeling like junk but pressing on down the hill and still a gap!
Once more “How bad do you want it?” popped into mind and I buried myself. Onto the start straight and I still had a gap! Some dude on the bank was shouting “GOGOGO!” and I realised it was close. I couldn’t help but look back. Triple crap! There’s a swarm of angry racers launching their sprints. I have no idea how hard I was going, I could barely steer in a straight line. I just kept pushing on the pedals! However, I sensed I was clear and sat up over the line!
That was epic! I couldn’t believe there were only four in the break so I had to go and ask! Yes! 5th place! And very pleased with that!
One year ago pretty much to the day, my normalised Power was 300w and I got lapped twice! I joked to Weeksy and Joe that if my NP was 300 this year, I would expect to have won! Well it was 294 so that’s why I only got 5th lol!!!!
I bloody love your write ups!
When I read your numbers I think "hmmmm". Assuming my turbo is accurate I reckon I can manage 280 for 50 mins. So it all comes down to tactics/skills/technique. Obviously in my world it's the surges where I'd suffer most with flat power profile I seem to have. But I'm working on that, along with after Xmas working on weight, which using your numbers, means I could potentially hold a pack with you.
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Attack!!!!! Forget how cringeworthyly ridiculous your form looks 😆
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Punching above my weight in the winning break!
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**JUST** enough!!!
@ Weeksy- it's not about numbers. Or rather, it's about your numbers. How your numbers relate to your whole package of drafting, aero's, not braking, reading the race, giving yourself room to sag back etc etc is what decides if you hang or not.
You'd have hung the first six laps today and got dropped when they chased me down- exactly like my first 3/4 race when Nath attacked. Third cats attack, attack and attack whereas 4ths attack and then have a doughnut 😆
I was thinking more 4th for me anyway. Possibly Thruxton for the experience, although the hill worries me.
I need to get to Hillingdon with you fellas for some testing as you guys can ride how a bunch may do with surges and lulls etc to give me an indication in the real world what may or may not be viable.
28/29th if dry?
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Maximising your time in Z1 is as important as how many watts you can do for an hour 😉
(Yes, I'm a guru now 😆 )
I'm a Zwift god, I own the book on sitting in the bunch relaxing 😆
Oooh....I might be able to do 28th....!
Works for me Leigh. I'm off until 2nd. Busy on 30th though. 31st would work too if not too late in day.
Yes!!! Congratulations. And so richly deserved. Half way in only two races. Now cast your mind back a full year and think where you were.
I know Sam was racing today for TCC. he finished third last time out. Not sure who else was out. It's a team sport.
Thanks TiRed 🙂
I did see Sam but didnt get a chance to say hi (I already knew he was racing when I BC-stalked all the pre entries 😆 ). There were three or four TCC guys I think?
Looks like the 29th is on..... Weeksy, Leigh and myself. Are you around TiRed or MrB?? Or indeed anyone else who fancies it? Minet Ladies have it booked PM from 13:00 so AM weather dependent....
I'm certainly up for a ride, I'd like to see how quick I can lap, whether I can hold your wheel and also stick in some miles at pace to see how I cope. Should be good.
Wooo well done CH!! Gutted I couldn’t be there to see it!!
I’ve stupidly broke a couple of ribs so will be off the bike longer than anticipated...
If there's a race on the 29th I should be back. So yes. Except I think I need to ride the Rapha Festive 800. Been ill for a couple of weeks and fallen behind my target total. Might be a long 8 days!
Well it depends how you define 'race' 😆
Well done CH, I read the road racing threads and it seems it's been a long time coming!
Sounds like my last road race of this season where I got 10th, I was off the back so many times and debated jacking in but something just kept me hanging on (one of my club mates marshalling the last corner helped!)...
So, anyway, would you recommend the Matt Fitzgerald book??
Thanks! I guess so, although I've always felt like I've been making progress ticking off TiReds list. I've also prioritised getting home in one piece and so backed out of many a sprint I could perhaps of challenged for. I've only just got the legs to pull off racing the way I want to race.
It's also cheating as the races are 2mph slower than the equivalent summer ones 😆
As for the book- it's ok. It's not what I was expecting. He goes into great descriptive detail about the athletes back story in each chapter to make a relatively simple point. (Hypocrite, moi? 😉 ) The underlying theories of are quite interesting but probably make up less than 1000 words of the book.
It does provoke thought though about what 'being fitter' means. Obviously power meters quantify it for us in a way not yet available to runners (as accurately) but still- perceived exertion is usually the barrier, not our physiological limits.
But it's more of a book of tales about key moments in various athletes careers that illustrate the theory rather than a text book.
Thanks CH - I'm reading another similar book by the sounds of it. I suppose it's hard to demonstrate the power of thought, without anecdotes, as opposed to power numbers, heart rates, weights etc.
well done crosshair - podium next, then !
Yes! I want to win 😆 Question is- "How bad do I want it?" 😆
I think winning is going to take an element of luck. Whereas your 5th has been hard work and determination.
Good question 😆
There's always luck in bunch racing though I guess. The ripple effect means every move anybody makes has a consequence.
I believe I can do it now, especially at Hillingdon. The biggest problem I foresee is trying to win and accidentally getting second or third- then I get 12 points and lose my best chance. A 3/4 win would have to be luck- trying to hang with the break showed me that much..
I believe I can do it now, especially at Hillingdon. The biggest problem I foresee is trying to win and accidentally getting second or third- then I get 12 points and lose my best chance
Exactly. So a chunk of luck as a pair of 3rds would see you out of the 4s. But the 3rds could be by a fraction of a second so put you out of there by luck as much as anything.
Apart from the fact I have 9 races pencilled in for Feb and March and they are all Cat 4 only 8) 😉
But what happens if you get the points in races 1/2, I assume you can't race the rest?
It's awesome mentally too as I'm now free to go for it! Every race I can chase exciting breaks and try fliers and forget about the lethal bloody sprint 😆 Literally go for a win or lose trying.
I think they all have a 3rd Cat only race too so if I get the points, I'd have to switch yes.
You can still race any races you have pre-entered as a 4th cat. You can't get any points for your 2nd Cat though. I expect they'll shift you from the 4ths to E153 FOC. And everyone should try an E123 😈
see, that's my worry - I'm a fundamentally lazy, non-competitive arse"How bad do I want it?"
Thanks TiRed! Yeah, whilst I have them eyed up I haven't entered anything yet.
I'd love to try a big boys race if I get my points this year! Just for the much needed bump back to earth 😆
I think Scaredypants, this year, I haven't wanted it. Not saying that's why I didn't score any more points but I wasn't fit enough for Cat 3 so I just wanted to earn my stripes and race! And I really loved it.
But now I can smell blood 😈 😆
Well done on the first points of the year 🙂
You can still race any races you have pre-entered as a 4th cat. You can't get any points for your 2nd Cat though.
It might be allowed but it's a bit of a dick move racing as a 4th cat if already secured an upgrade. Maybe it varies around the country but the racing community is small enough here that those that do that will get some stick about it rather than given praise for a good race or result.
A year late due to ankle surgery, but first race now entered 😯 Cat 4 only bedlam at Crit On The Campus in April - should be enlightening!
Nice one!!
Did the Crit on the Campus last year it’s a tough little course with the speed bumps. My advice is to take a turbo or rollers, have a really good warm up the get up the front at the start. Last year I didn’t warm up properly lined up near the back of the bunch and ended up in the 2nd pack in the race. Then again I’m not great at crits.
So, Rd1 at Abingdon coming up this week. A good showing from team STW last year- I know Leigh is on board but is anyone else entered?
I’ve got a few busy days on my feet coming up- so have jammed some efforts into my legs over the weekend and am going to do nothing on the bike until Friday now, with an early rest week.
55 in Cat 4 I think so avoiding a crash and covering breaks is the plan.
Grrrr!
Stupid forum!
I give up! Cold and wet!
My memories of last season at Abingdon were pretty bleak. Wide expanses of windswept nothingness with harsh conditions and a face-full of grit! But still, after my result at Christmas, I was hoping to be at the pointy end of things.
The lazy winds that go through you rather than around you were not present but the conditions were actually worse than anything I faced last year and it was only the presence of a few friendly faces that made it seem worthwhile being there.
Leigh was there with one eye on the clock for a speedy return to work, Chris from Southampton was there looking crazily lean! He’d lost 2 stone since Thruxton and rode a great race. Pete from Condor’s was there with a few team mates and he only needed the one point to get his Cat 3- which he did with a suspected fifth place.
I was not feeling the love! A week off the bike following a half-arsed Sweetspot Base 2 block left me uncertain of my fitness. I wanted to go though to get back into the swing of racing though as I have high hopes for Hillingdon next Saturday.
Being fat, I am lucky to not really feel the cold. My gamekeeper mates joke that they wear more on the beach in Egypt than I do on a freezing December but I slipped up today! I didn’t take my clothing seriously enough. With just my skinsuit on (plus arm and leg warmers) and a 23mph jetwash of spray being levelled at my face, I was not prepared for the drop in my core temperature.
As the race got underway, I felt completely alien in the bunch. 6 weeks away had robbed me of my sharpness in the bunch and it was taking way more concentration than usual to hold a wheel. The first lap was slow and as we ramped up through the second, I was not enjoying myself. Relating back to the ‘How bad do you want it?’ mindset of December, I began to fantasise about a puncture or a snapped chain! Right now, what I badly wanted was to be anywhere else.
Shaking myself out of it, it was time for some Rule 5 and I made my way forward with ease just as a couple of guys were stringing things out. At this point at least my situational awareness was still well tuned if nothing else!
RPE was odd this race. At times, 180w felt like 500 and at others, 400+ felt like a breeze. This was one of those times and I just carried my momentum forward to join the break attempt and then powered off the front. Another Condor rider and myself got a small gap and pressed on. I took a turn down the main drag and sat on 380-410w whilst he freewheeled to avoid running into me lol. As we rounded the bend, it was clear he didn’t want to work and we re-joined the bunch.
My HR only reached 173 max today and that lap at 340w average was only 165bpm- a sure sign something wasn’t right and I think basically my body was too busy keeping warm to give me what I needed to drill it.
Anyway, recovering as best I could, things plummeted from here. My moral was awful as I struggled to see over my glasses and through the spray. Nothing exciting happened. I alternated between tail gunning and the front third of the bunch just chilling out (literally!) in the bunch and following the occasional surge.
By this time, I couldn’t feel any of my lower legs or hands and cornering was an odd sensation of trusting muscle memory. There was no feedback at all to gauge grip or angle, just a hope thing’s would work out and that people would hold their line.
Eventually the three to go was called and I was worried about how I felt. I was half way to being spaced out I think and I seriously considered pulling over now. But the adrenaline kicked in and perked us all up a bit and the bunch strung out a little then slowed and so on. Two to go and I considered a flier. The pack wasn’t inspiring confidence and it was only 8-10minutes of effort right? I tried to remember my 8minute power and compare that with my earlier solo lap but it was useless- my brain was flat out dealing with the bunch to even consider recalling useful information or do basic maths.
I decided against it and thought I’d see what happens instead. Bell lap then and I made my way forwards. A small train on the front surged and I hoped we would get a gap. But no, they were all hedging for the sprint and each little effort soon sizzled out. Onto the huge long straight and the bunch surged around me and the riding became hairy. Someone behind leant against my rear triangle hard with either their wheel or fork. I was being forced over but luckily my excess baggage kept us planted and luckily a guy on the outside of me realised what was going on and gave me space. Somehow we all stayed up!
That was it for me. Mentally I was now out of it. I didn’t want anything other than to get off of my bike. So I powered to the front and tried to ride off. Of course, everyone else had their blood up and I was just fuelling a lead out. At least I had plenty of room for the final corner though and as we tipped in, I ran wide and let them past. I had neither the motivation or the energy for a bunch sprint and I tagged on to the back of the bunch and covered my brakes waiting for a pile up! Luckily it never came and everyone stayed upright.
Suddenly, I realised I was FUBAR’d and I started shivering. I caught up with Chris to chat our way back to the car park but we could barely talk. Joe was back there and kindly offered to buy me a coffee. I had the Landy today which takes about an hour to warm up so I tried to get changed whilst simultaneously shivering like mad and revving the tits off of it to try and get some heat going.
Eventually I fumbled myself into warm clothes and had a semi-delirious conversation with Joe as I shivered black coffee all over my arm and the floor!!
Anyway, we survived and stayed upright so that the main thing! Lessons have been learned and if I race in conditions like that again, I’ll make sure I have better kit.
Well done to everyone who survived- especially to Leigh for being in there at the pointy end when it mattered!
Ruuuubish! It pasted the un-edited one full of stupid sentences 😡😡
Andy,
I reckon you could do an exciting write up about a walk around tesco...love it!
The local boys have reviewed the tapes and think I had 9th...I'll try not to get too excited until I see it somewhere official though!
Also if that was you feeling rough...I'm worried for later races when you are feeling good!! (Gulp!)
Awesome!!!! Fingers crossed for you mate- that would be fantastic 🤞🏻🤞🏻
Lol! It’s all irrelevant when I coast in behind the bunch 🤦🏻♂️
I want another long year of racing mind you so discretion is still the best policy and I felt very freaked out after that guy leant on me!!
Nah- there’s loads of stuff I edited to fix that really bug me like saying ‘in the bunch’ twice in one sentence 😡🤣
Well done. Was absolutely, unbelievably freezing yesterday. After two weeks off due to illness, I've deferred Winter Series racing until some form of fitness returns. Going better, but not faster. Almost back up to base mileage target (400lm/week). Then some Saturday afternoon interval sessions at Hillingdon.
I run a training session called riding in contact with another rider. Adults are normally completely freaked out. Kids absolutely love it!
Crosshair you have a real gift for writing, I feel like I was there with you. Awesome.
Anyone doing Thruxton in a couple of weeks? My first ever attempt at a Cat 4 so wouldn’t mind a few friendly places to help me through...
Thanks Curto! Yep, I’ll be there. Probably in the 4ths still but let’s wait and see 🤞🏻
It generally all comes down to the small rise up to the chicane on the last lap- big 1 min Power for that finale is king at Thruxton.
Super well done to Leigh with a 9th place and first point- anyone contesting that sprint after such a tough race deserves all the rewards they get 👍🏻👍🏻
It had felt like a long week! With hindsight, last race was a catalogue of errors and the thought of it was frustrating me. Still, this is a journey after all and these things are only a waste of time if I don’t learn from them.
The first thing to cure was my gear. Whilst my skinsuit is super comfy and makes me feel fast just by looking down at the Castelli badges- it was not ideal for the torrential and freezing conditions at Abingdon!
Heading to Decathalon, I filled my basket with some things to make life a little more bearable should I face such weather again. I needed options, so I grabbed an aero base layer. This would fit nicely under my skinsuit and help stop me freezing quite so much- even if it wouldn’t keep me any drier.
For training and real wet races, I also picked up a thick fluorescent jersey too. With an integral snood, it was really comfy if a little bulky perhaps.
Combined with the stuff I already had, this gave me a load of options from Skinsuit best case scenario through to base layer + jersey + thick winter jersey for proper arctic stuff. I also grabbed a fresh pair of overshoes and a cracking set of BTwin 4 lens glasses. My existing clear glasses were several years old and covered in scratches as well as being prone to misting up resulting in the librarian look as I peered over the top of them.
Fingers crossed it would all sit in the box unused though as the forecast was quite good all week.
My appraisal of last weeks ride was that I was like a bull in a china shop. Aware that points are now mine for the losing, I wasted energy left right and centre, followed silly suicide moves and then bugged out the second things looked hairy. Along with my poor gear choices, rubbish position and supressed HR, it was a bad show all round and I felt I had wasted another entry fee.
Another problem was the way I ride. As I’m sure you have twigged by now, I can’t switch my brain off. I overthink everything to the extreme. Thus the 1.5mile course (as opposed to the 0.9 one of last year) meant any reference I had to lap times was blown. I also had a subtle mistake on my home screen on the Garmin- instead of Time I had Lap Time left over from some intervals. With Autolap being triggered by position, I never knew how far into the race I was- so felt totally blind with regards to pacing.
I hoped that just by rectifying this list of errors this week, I could execute my plan with precision. I won’t lie- I wanted to win. Since I found out I couldn’t race in January, this was the one I had set my sights on. With Hillingdon feeling like my second home and so many laps under my belt, strategizing was so much easier.
As the week wore on, the forecast gradually deteriorated and I made sure every eventuality was present in the race box when I loaded up.
Warming up, I settled on wearing the thick jersey alone. It was just about the right choice I think as the weather was awful again mid-race- as wet as last week if a touch milder. It wasn’t until the water came in through the soles of my shoes that my feet got wet which was a vast improvement on the sock balloons of last week!
It was really windy. The wind speed is always a couple of MPH faster than the forecast there and today was no exception. It was a tailwind down the start finish straight and coming down the hill on the reverse side, 18mph was taking 270w!!! I know MrBlobby laughs at my lack of aero’s but trying to ram 90kg through the air is an oft-forgotten downside to the power that comes with it.
My plan all week was to replicate the last lap flier that earned me 5th place in December. I have literally been channelling every spare moment’s thought into perfectly executing that final blast. My HR was going up just thinking about it last night and I had visualised it to the point that I almost knew every pedal stroke required.
Arriving on the line in my BTwin garb, I felt like I was in disguise a little! Some familiar faces were there including a London Dynamo guy from the no-points race in early December who was in one of the pics with me. He’d unwittingly helped me through an interval session or two in the meantime (I have a slideshow of inspiring race pics on my iPad for the real killers!) and it was reassuring having a known wheel or two to tag onto.
I had a chat with a nice South African guy during warm up who was there for the first time. If only I’d known how prophetic my description of a typical Hillingdon race would be, I’d have told him something different!!
Rolling up to the line, conditions were worsening and I felt snug in my snood. Everything was in place, Caffeine gel popped, Garmin reset and started and a plan to follow. Let’s go!
In for the long haul, I was right at the back in the little chainring. Flying Zwift-esque starts seem to be more of a US Crit thing and other than Nath messing around and one other occasion where two guys TT’d from the line to victory, I had never seen anything other than nice relaxed beginnings to a Hillingdon race. Uh, that’ll learn me then!! A couple of juniors and everyone else in the vicinity drilled it from the off!! Straight away three of them had a gap and they even got a bit of through and off going.
Last week, I’d have been sprinting across and trying to play but this was doomed right? Stick to the plan. The brutal headwind meant a bunch sprint-out was the most likely outcome and everyone knew it. This meant my surprise attack could work well.
Two laps or so later (I often realise I was a lap or two out on my guesses when I check the Fly-by but close enough for the gist of the story hopefully) and I was wondering whether this was more serious! Worthy of a bridge perhaps? Someone shouted the gap to us as being 9 seconds. But every time I tried to move up, I found I had very little advantage today. A quick pre-race Strava stalk had revealed some stiff competition. Almost all of the 18 pre-entries had a 2018 point and many had finished well at Hillingdon. Perhaps Pete had the right idea with his 9 December/January races to score the required points after all and I became further annoyed at my lack of racing in January!
The laps would pan out in the same fashion, it would bunch up into the tough headwind down the hill and then be strung out going crazy on the long straight! There was little chance of moving up here today and in fact, it would often take me 350w to just hold the wheel!
A brave junior tried to bridge across but his little legs couldn’t outrun the bunch and we all ended up back together- including the original break.
For the next few laps it was pretty surgey and I felt worked but in control. I never really moved up though. The front few seemed to be going hard all the time and being in the wider part of the bunch gave such a noticeable advantage in the wind today that it seemed crazy to try and fight for it. So, I cruised and surged and chilled and coasted and kept swigging from my bottle.
A few attacks were attempted but they were all very naïve it seemed. The field was way too strong to let someone just roll off the front and once or twice guys were just hanging there at probably twice the watts but not making any progress.
With 38minutes gone, the pace had levelled off a touch and most people were beginning to consider their sprint position I’m sure. At which point, some total superstar put his head down, scrunched himself into a ball and launched himself off into the distance.
Way back in the bunch, soggy with spray and focussing on my plan, I could only watch. I usually have a small break in the plan as a viable option but I hadn’t even considered it today. It was a little early for me anyhow and I could just watch and wonder at his fate. If I’m right, he held it to the line which is great going in the conditions!
The longer he stayed away, the more certain it seemed my chance of a win was gone and so the goal shifted. Now, I just wanted good solid points. I re-focussed once more on the plan and decided not to even consider following anyone else- just get well positioned with three then two to go and launch before the line.
As the three to go sign came out, I was unsure how many were off the front. I reckon it was at least one more- meaning the sprint would be for third to tenth and the pace began to lift. Still focussing on my all-out two minute effort, I tried to be patient and hold my ground. The bunch was strung out and the customary two-to-go pause never happened. These guys were well rested and meant business.
A Thames Velo guy of around my build tried to go. Attacking into the wind down the hill with about three laps left, he swept past us and was soon ten yards clear. My move being played early? He never went any further! Despite the obvious strain going into the pedals, he was coming back to us and the bunch soon engulfed him once more! Hmmm- was that a sign?
As we rounded the last corner on the penultimate lap, things once again strung out down the wind. I was powering hard but not really gaining. No cruising down the slipstream into a natural launch today! I did a quick appreciation and realised that by the time I had reached the front and got clear, I’d be unable to sustain the pace to keep me away and I decided to postpone. I had considered this of course and in fact I mentioned to the lads on Wattsapp that if I couldn’t get clear, I’d sit back in for a last minute effort or even a proper go at a Sprint.
No panic! I felt good, was not half way to hyperthermia, had yet to burn a proper match and was feeling safer than usual in the bunch. We crossed the line at serious pace! 32mph and were nicely spaced out. Into the lee side of the rough ground through the Bus Stops though and the bunch reformed. London Dynamo were right in front of me and looked like they had a lead-out strategy. I tucked in tight behind them in a really good spot. Totally sheltered in the middle of the bunch about two rows back, I was confident I could get a better run through Brian’s than most, crest the hill in the top ten and then launch a full gas one minute effort from there. If I could reach the start finish straight remotely in the clear, the tail wind would negate much of the draft and I could hopefully have a free if intense push to the line! Game on!
And then London Dynamo wiped each other out right in front of me! Time stood still and I was glad I had finally fitted the Swisstop pads and bedded them in. With my back wheel in the air and my arms locked solid, I tried not to stare at the wheel spinning madly on its side in front of me. It was all about the bounce now and luckily the riderless bike went the other way. Coming off the brakes, I tried to get back on but the gap was too big. I kept a bit of power on right to the finish, just in case there was another crash on the main straight but thankfully they made it over in one piece.
And just like that, another week’s dreaming had come to nothing.
Oddly though, apart from the few minutes after the race when I was fuming, I enjoyed it! I love the suspense, love the planning, love the strategy, love visualising the hard efforts and then love dealing with the unfolding action that slowly unravels all of your preparation! I also love the way the intensity ramps up as time and options gradually disappear and you know it’s now or never! So despite wanting to leave Cat 4 behind more than ever- I still enjoy racing for racing’s sake- which means more heartache next week I’m sure!
As for the South African guy at the start, I said to him- “It’s usually pretty safe. Everyone generally looks out for each other until the last lap- which is 3 mph faster and causes a massive pile up!” sadly that part came true even if nothing else did!
Well done for staying upright. Points will come, bide your time. Was feeling rubbish again this week. Seems that all the viruses I missed last year and the year before have caught up with me!
London Dynamos were probably confused being out of Richmond Park 😉
Gulp, just entered Thruxton next Sunday!
Trying to work out the best plan for the coming weekend.
Even though i've been 99% indoors this month, i've still racked up 1250kms for 2018 up to now. The legs are tried though that's for sure. I've had 2 rest days in Feb, last Fri and the Thurs before.
I'm thinking that realistically i can't lower my chances of completing more than 1 lap by training, but i can certainly decrease them by over-training. So planning on resting Mon-Tue, then ride on Wed, then rest Thurs/Fri/Sat..... Does that seem excessive ? Are there any potential downsides to it ?
Its often a good idea to get an activation ride in the day before a race. Something like a 45 minute session with a few short intervals that aren't enough to fatigue the body, but just get it ready for the effort ahead. Everyone has their own format but I've often just gone through the watt range in 5 minute 20 watt increases up to about 90% threshold and then warm down.
Only a fool does the same thing and expects a different result right? With that in mind, I was certainly foolish today!
I could literally cut and past the round 9 write up from last year.
With a huge field of circa 100 riders, it was going to be a tricky race to be in the bunch. So I spent the first five laps trying to get in a break/split. The same 10-15 riders with the same idea rotated around, each stringing things out in turn at the piece of the lap that best suited them.
Leigh was always there or there abouts and I shouted a few ‘bend your elbows’ and other cheeky comments.
As small gaps came and went, everyone's spirit was gradually crushed and nobody got remotely close to an organised gap. Not one with the pace and discipline to last another 70minutes that's for sure.
Retreating back to the bunch to get the normalised power down a little (305w already) I instantly regretted it. I didn't feel safe at all. As is the way at Thruxton, the bunch veers from side to side often at random and it was catching a lot of people out. Watching folks blindly riding into disappearing gaps, I could only wonder at their lack of spatial awareness.
Experience is great and all, but it also heightens the stress a little as you see accidents developing where thankfully, most don't materialise- but only by luck!
Time to move back up! The old cornering magic at the top chicane meant I could make up fifty places and coast off the front with very little energy wasted. Positioning myself in front of the approaching riders, I was able to get back in just by accelerating as the first rider passed and passively forcing the next few off of the wheel. Simple but safe and effective.
Nothing happened for a bit. The top twenty kept rotating but with no urgency now. One theme continued- Leigh was always there- often on the front!
With 65minutes on the clock- 3 to go, a bit of positioning started and things picked up a notch. The adrenaline returned and it was time to start planning. I knew I wanted to stay off the front, stay in the top ten and end up on the right for the final time up the hill.
Leigh was still there- drilling it!
Not wanting to burn a match up the hill, I dropped back a little then made all the places up at the chicane again, slotting in behind Leigh.
Final lap then and a vast swarm of riders surged across the line before nearly wiping each other out through the first gradual bends. I hate it! I desperately wanted to be off the front but I don't have 5 minutes at enough power so I had to man up and make the best of it. Leigh solved the dilemma by staying right on the front. A wise move!
Once more the chicane moved me up and I was in a good spot. However, the herd of riders who had braved the bunch all race had spare energy now and swarmed around us on the wide track.
Bollocks! I was far left and blocked in. It seemed ludicrous to drop back when the speed was so high but perhaps that would have been a better move. I hoped I would get a slot to move across as we entered the hill but it never came. As usual, the bunch headed left and it was obvious what was going to happen- so instead of powering into my finale, I was coasting and moving hard right. As I checked my blind spot, I realised I was almost at the back! Stupid boy! This has happened before.
Anyway, too late now, so I started surfing wheels. As per round 9, it was like a 90’s Sega car racing game as slower riders appeared and I just hit left or right key to dodge through them.
My caution was vindicated though as by this point, I would have top ten on the left if I hadn't dropped back and I heard the all too familiar clatter of bikes right where I would have been. Spidey sense? Luck? Too many Cat4 races? Who knows but it is my wedding anniversary and at least I wasn't going to spend it in A+E!
I pressed on, further left for a bit and then back to the right, all the time making up places. There's Leigh! All that work on the front meant he had dropped back a little and I hoped to hitch a ride. Safely though the chicane and Go! I stayed seated and powered as best I could unsure of when to kick. It never felt worth it in the end, the 10y gap to Leigh's wheel wasn't closing. More keeno’s who had gone early came back to us and as we crossed the line, I already knew I was out of the points. Fingers crossed Leigh sneaked in though- you certainly deserve it mate.
So, a botched last lap in an otherwise okay race. If I was being hyper critical, I'd say I worked too hard for five laps for nothing. But the small chance of an 8 man break getting organised for the duration seemed worth the risk at the time.
Had I spent more energy at the front on the downhill on the last lap, perhaps I would have maintained it up the other side- but we will never know!
I was genuinely pleased with surviving unscathed which is a sad indictment of Cat 4 I guess.
More work on my FTP and 5-8minute power seems to be the way forward. Just sit tight and bugger off with one to go- regardless of the length of the circuit!
Gonna try a new venue next week too- see if I can finally get in a break that sticks!
I went, I was rubbish.
Shorter than theirs, but then again so was my race.
Disappointed lots
What happened Weeksy?
Andy,
You too were a pretty frequent face on or very near the front as I recall..!
Thanks mate, I don't think there was any points for me this time though...!
Nice to meet Weeksy, and see Joe again, I managed to miss all of you at the end of the race though!
Still going to be working on you tripping to Cardiff CH, and hopefully will make it to odd down soon also..
I went, I was rubbish.
Shorter than theirs, but then again so was my race.
Disappointed lots
Need a bit of perspective 🙂
Had a look back in the old thread for CH's first race last year...
"Ouch! that was tough. I got lapped 4 times and pulled off when they had 2 to go."
Taken him a season of racing but now he's bossing the pack and competing for points. He's fitter but there's a lot more to it than that. Takes time to learn how to ride efficiently in a race, to learn the flow of racing, to learn some race craft. If you enjoy it and want to get better at it then stick with it.
Need a bit of perspective
Had a look back in the old thread for CH’s first race last year…
“Ouch! that was tough. I got lapped 4 times and pulled off when they had 2 to go.”
Taken him a season of racing but now he’s bossing the pack and competing for points. He’s fitter but there’s a lot more to it than that. Takes time to learn how to ride efficiently in a race, to learn the flow of racing, to learn some race craft. If you enjoy it and want to get better at it then stick with it.
Totally understand that buddy.... 100% i get it. Simple answer is also above... It was OK... but nothing that made me think "Yeah i want to do this more".
If i race again this year, it will be at Southern XC, not Roadie stuff.
Cool no problem. A bit of experience and you'd have done a lot better. You either get the bug or you don't.
Hope to see you at some Southern XC rounds, may well dust off the XC bike for a few rounds this year 🙂
A bit of experience and you’d have done a lot better
It would have been hard to do much worse 🙂
Just caught up on this thread. Crosshair - thanks for your long write ups, please keep them coming, I really enjoy them. Best of luck to the rest of you too. I shall continue to live vicariously through you lot!
Lol! Thanks! I’m hoping Saturday will inject some much needed fresh material 😂
I was in CH first race, tryin* to Marshall him into the back of the pack.
And Weeksy, I was rubbish for my first whole season, then mediocre and finally mid pack fodder. But everyone has to learn to race. Once you’ve done the apprenticeship, it’s like crack.
Speaking of crack, my club mate broke six ribs and has a punctured lung from n Hillingdon on Saturday. That was the 3/4 race. Taken out on the last bend.
Feeling a bit better. Still down about 10-15% on go, but getting there. Form is temporary, class is permanent. Just need some me of that there permanence!
Speaking of crack, my club mate broke six ribs and has a punctured lung from n Hillingdon on Saturday. That was the 3/4 race. Taken out on the last bend.
Eek, that's going to be sore. I popped a lung about 6 years ago. Ended up having to have surgery to stick it to my chest wall and stop it deflating again. Chest drains are painful, even without broken ribs! I hope his lung heals up without needing too much intervention.
(I realise I must sound really accident-prone. Up until 6 years ago, I'd never even had a stitch! Since then...bah.)
Speaking of crack, my club mate broke six ribs and has a punctured lung from n Hillingdon on Saturday. That was the 3/4 race. Taken out on the last bend.
I think he's lucky it was nothing more serious than that.
I was spectating on Saturday and to say the crash was spectacular would be an understatement, when you see bikes cartwheeling through the air a couple of metres up you know it's not going to end well.
The whole way through the race it looked like there was going to be crashes, I was chatting to another couple of spectators and they thought the same. A mate of mine who was racing nearly pulled out after the first smaller crash as he was expecting it to go horribly wrong at some point.
Hopefully your mate is on the mend but having watched a few races at Hillingdon and seen some pretty big accidents I think it's only a matter of time before something more serious happens 🙁
Yowch! I stand by what I said about 3/4 races being bad news!!
Crazy how many times the sprint lap causes a crash- and hopefully proves I’m not just being a pussy!
I’m not sure why people don’t try different tactics more- it’s not like they are going to get any further without learning some. Is it as simple as they all want to win?
Note to self- NO MORE SPRINT LAP ATTEMPTS 😂
Is it easy to park at Hillingdon? Thinking of going down on Saturday
Yep 👍🏻Parking either inside the barrier or in the Goals carpark. Never even had to wait for a space.
Great, thanks
It will be my first time at Hillingdon on Saturday. Is parking free? Any course tactics to help me?
Semi-serious point. It's hardly surprising places like Hillingdon are crashfests, when I was a young racer (back in the days of third cats being the start level) the Surrey League 3rd cat road races were known for the carnage, now the equivalent riders (and possibly even less skilled as you had to be a club rider to race back then so may have done some chain gangs etc) are racing tighter circuits in big fields and possibly with a lot more alpha male bs making them sprint wildly for 34th place 😉
I've seen so many people taking big risks for 34th, there's no point. I don't play if the top 10/15 isn't on.
Yep, free parking.
It’s usually 3mph faster on the final lap and suddenly everyone forgets how to ride in a bunch.
Not sure I’m the best to ask for tactics 🤣
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