While the overwhelming favorite for the upcoming Thursday Evening World Championship has to be Jeff "Ace" McDermott, the rider who won in a solo breakaway on last week's Tuesday ride on exactly the same course is the venerable Wheelsucker.
"You have to give it everything and you have to be very lucky to stay away from a field containing Ace, Tim Shaffer, and Brian MacLean", said the wheelsucker. "But the Patrick Hogan crash forced them to stop and the gap grew too large for them to close."
When Bike Racing News asked about the upcoming Thursday Evening World Championship the loquacious wheelsucker replied: "I dug very deep at the Turkey Day race and then the St. Michaels Century. When you go that hard you have to give your body a chance to recover. But I have been taking it easy, riding less, but still going hard occasionally. I have good sensations in my legs and I am tranquil. My lower back is killing me, but it loosens up after I warmup on the bike, so I am hoping it does not limit me during the race. We'll see."
While the course is not really suited to the wheelsucker’s strengths (primarily wheelsucking on a non technical flat or downhill course) and he has never beaten Ace McDermott in a sprint on this course, no one else is crazy enough to try to ride away alone during the neutral rollout and try to stay away for the entire race.
Weather could be a major factor for the race; the forecast is for heavy rain and flooding, and riders are wondering if organizers will postpone the race to next Tuesday evening.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
Thursday September 23rd Training Ride
The Wheelsucker Report
With thoughts of the Tuesday break in his head, the wheelsucker was determined to go early and go hard and see what happened. He managed to arrive at the P&R early and had over 20 minutes warmup when he met the group rolling out, just after they turned left onto Rossback Road. The wheelsucker had been stopped at the side of the road zeroing his Powertap, but turned around, chased back on, and then rolled passed the smallish group, telling them there was a car back. Alex Pline and Iain Banks were on the front chatting, but Alex ignored the wheelsucker's gesture to come with him.
So the wheelsucker rolled off on his own, pushing at wheelsucker threshold. Wheelsucker threshold power is nothing that would alarm a strong cyclist -- the wheelsucker is not Louis Leon Sanchez or Phillipe Gilbert -- but it is the best power an aging wheelsucker can sustain for 20-60 minutes, and it is hard work!
Now it would be easy to accuse the wheelsucker of being a dreamer, and thinking he could ride away, but the wheelsucker was not actually thinking he could stay away to the finish. Initially he was hoping a few riders would come with him, but as the gap grew it became less likely that anyone would try to bridge the gap; soon the main field was out of site. The wheelsucker was now thinking he would be caught once the main field got serious, perhaps shortly after 214, or at Harwood Hill, but was hoping to stay away for as long as possible. Every now and then the wheelsucker checked behind him looking for the chase. But there was no chase at 214; no chase at the top of Queen Anne Bridge; no chase at the top of Harwood Hill, no chase at the turn onto route 2, and no chase down route 2 when he first checked. The wheelsucker was pacing his effort so as to go as fast as he could while still having something left to grab a wheel when he was caught. And he was planning to soft pedal as soon as other riders were close, to get a little recovery.
There is one spot on route 2 where there is a straight view back for quite some distance, and when the wheelsucker checked there he thought he saw two riders a long distance back. The wheelsucker was now thinking that he might be caught by a small chase, not the entire main group. The gap was large enough that it was going to take some work to close, and the wheelsucker thought Ace would not want to tow weaker riders and give them a free ride so would jump and try to bridge on his own, or with a small group of riders.
So the wheelsucker kept going at wheelsucker threshold, with his forearms resting on the tops of the handlebars and his hands dangling forward or holding onto the cables, getting as low in front as he could to be as aero as possible. Actually the wheelsucker got so low and so aero going down one small hill he knocked his Powertap off the handlebars and had to turn around and go back for it, losing perhaps 45 seconds.
At the route 2 circle he could not see a chase; at the bump on Bayard he could not see a chase. And to the wheelsucker's surprise he never did see a chase. Once he turned onto Sands the wheelsucker figured the group must have taken one of the shortcuts due to the lack of daylight, but just in case, he kept hammering up the road.
The wheelsucker was working hard and had to rinse sweat off his sunglasses (with low light lenses) to see properly. The tops of the handlebars were slick with sweat and his forearms were sliding. His legs and lower back were sore and the wheelsucker was breathing hard and struggling to hold threshold power, but he kept going.
He finally crossed the finish line and rode slowly and easily back to the Park & Ride.
There was a small group in the P&R who reported a crash on route 2 when Brian MacLean and Patrick Hogan both jumped to get on Ace's wheel when Ace jumped. They tried to occupy the same space and Patrick went down. While Patrick was a little scraped up but insisting he was not hurt badly, his bike had ended up in a route 2 traffic lane and had a couple of paint dings, and his Garmin was a fatality.
This group had short cut and returned to the P&R by a shorter route. Very soon after the wheelsucker arrived at the P&R another group who had ridden the entire course (though also stopped for the crash) rode in.
The wheelsucker thinks this counts as a solo win, but he is not quite sure.
So the wheelsucker rolled off on his own, pushing at wheelsucker threshold. Wheelsucker threshold power is nothing that would alarm a strong cyclist -- the wheelsucker is not Louis Leon Sanchez or Phillipe Gilbert -- but it is the best power an aging wheelsucker can sustain for 20-60 minutes, and it is hard work!
Now it would be easy to accuse the wheelsucker of being a dreamer, and thinking he could ride away, but the wheelsucker was not actually thinking he could stay away to the finish. Initially he was hoping a few riders would come with him, but as the gap grew it became less likely that anyone would try to bridge the gap; soon the main field was out of site. The wheelsucker was now thinking he would be caught once the main field got serious, perhaps shortly after 214, or at Harwood Hill, but was hoping to stay away for as long as possible. Every now and then the wheelsucker checked behind him looking for the chase. But there was no chase at 214; no chase at the top of Queen Anne Bridge; no chase at the top of Harwood Hill, no chase at the turn onto route 2, and no chase down route 2 when he first checked. The wheelsucker was pacing his effort so as to go as fast as he could while still having something left to grab a wheel when he was caught. And he was planning to soft pedal as soon as other riders were close, to get a little recovery.
There is one spot on route 2 where there is a straight view back for quite some distance, and when the wheelsucker checked there he thought he saw two riders a long distance back. The wheelsucker was now thinking that he might be caught by a small chase, not the entire main group. The gap was large enough that it was going to take some work to close, and the wheelsucker thought Ace would not want to tow weaker riders and give them a free ride so would jump and try to bridge on his own, or with a small group of riders.
So the wheelsucker kept going at wheelsucker threshold, with his forearms resting on the tops of the handlebars and his hands dangling forward or holding onto the cables, getting as low in front as he could to be as aero as possible. Actually the wheelsucker got so low and so aero going down one small hill he knocked his Powertap off the handlebars and had to turn around and go back for it, losing perhaps 45 seconds.
At the route 2 circle he could not see a chase; at the bump on Bayard he could not see a chase. And to the wheelsucker's surprise he never did see a chase. Once he turned onto Sands the wheelsucker figured the group must have taken one of the shortcuts due to the lack of daylight, but just in case, he kept hammering up the road.
The wheelsucker was working hard and had to rinse sweat off his sunglasses (with low light lenses) to see properly. The tops of the handlebars were slick with sweat and his forearms were sliding. His legs and lower back were sore and the wheelsucker was breathing hard and struggling to hold threshold power, but he kept going.
He finally crossed the finish line and rode slowly and easily back to the Park & Ride.
There was a small group in the P&R who reported a crash on route 2 when Brian MacLean and Patrick Hogan both jumped to get on Ace's wheel when Ace jumped. They tried to occupy the same space and Patrick went down. While Patrick was a little scraped up but insisting he was not hurt badly, his bike had ended up in a route 2 traffic lane and had a couple of paint dings, and his Garmin was a fatality.
This group had short cut and returned to the P&R by a shorter route. Very soon after the wheelsucker arrived at the P&R another group who had ridden the entire course (though also stopped for the crash) rode in.
The wheelsucker thinks this counts as a solo win, but he is not quite sure.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Tuesday September 21 Training Ride
The Wheelsucker Report
Getting older may beat the alternative, but it is still not great. The wheelsucker was looking forward to the Tuesday evening training ride, but was still feeling his Saturday century and Sunday Ellicott City efforts in his legs and lower back.
So the wheelsucker responded in his usual way, sitting in and wheelsucking, hoping to have a long easy warmup. Steve Owens, Bob Walters and Alex Pline rolled off the front very shortly after the left turn onto Rossback Rd. The wheelsucker watched them go up the road from his near-the-back vantage point, but stuck to the plan. The rest of the group included Ace, ex pro Pete Penzell, Matt Albanese, the wheelsucker and Ty Wu, so the break did not have the horsepower to stay away from a serious chase. However, this did not stop Steve, Bob and Alex from giving it all they had (later reports from riders in the break indicate that Bob was driving very hard).
The break was soon out of sight, but the small main field did not start to chase until the wheelsucker found himself on the front at the left turn onto Queen Anne Bridge road and pushed up the climb. The pace picked up from then on, but was still survivable for an aging wheelsucker, up Harwood Hill.
Matt pulled off the top of Harwood Hill at a decent pace, with the wheelsucker carefully tucked in behind him. The wheelsucker pulled through shortly before route 2 and led through the turn and up the short climb before pulling off where Polling House runs into route 2. The break was down to just Steve and Bob (Alex had other commitments and had turned around) and was not far ahead.
The next rider in line when the wheelsucker pulled off was Ace, and Ace went by deciding he wanted to get to the break NOW! The wheelsucker saw him go by in a blur and quickly decided that trying to sprint for his wheel was inconsistent with both the wheelsucker's plans to sit in and take it easy, and the wheelsucker's abilities.
The next guy to roll by was Pete Penzell. He was already gapped by Ace, but was going at a pace that the wheelsucker could briefly get to, so the wheelsucker grabbed his wheel and hung on down the route 2 shoulder. This was made easier because Pete was initially waiting for Matt, but Matt was too far back after pulling off to make it on. No one else made it on either.
Ace quickly bridged the short distance to the break and then drove it hard, initially opening the gap back up. The wheelsucker decided following one of the two strong men on the ride was his best option, and could not imagine bridging the gap by himself, so just wheelsucked behind Pete.
Pete went steady hard taking long pulls. Having ridden with Pete before, the wheelsucker was paranoid that Pete would let him take a pull to tire, and would then easily jump across the gap without him, so offered to pull provided Pete did not jump him. So the wheelsucker started taking short pulls. The trouble was that to keep the speed up so as to close the gap to the break, the wheelsucker had to pull at above his VO2 Max power. He could not do this for long, and was "burning matchsticks" rapidly doing it.
Bob Walters popped out of the break on the South Polling House climb, and then Steve fell off Ace's wheel on the last South Polling House rollers and jumped on the back of the Pete Penzell train as it came by.
Ace was still ahead early on Polling House, but not by much. He was caught before the fat man's sprint. Steve Owens led up the climb while the wheelsucker was paranoid that Ace and Pete would jump on the climb, and had been wheelsucking at the back trying to recover in case he had to go hard. Steve faded off the top; Ace and Pete did not jump, and the wheelsucker took the right turn onto Bayard and tucked in behind Ace and Pete and tried to hang on. The wheelsucker could not actually avoid pulling through and was on the front leading into the Sands Road right turn.
But as he took the turn he felt a small pop in his chest and felt dizzy for a couple of seconds. Concerned for his health the wheelsucker sat up The dizziness cleared, but Ace and Pete were up the road. There was no chase in sight behind, to the wheelsucker TT’d to the finish, frequently checking behind, but never seeing a chase.
In post ride discussions the wheelsucker learned that Ace had dropped Pete on some rollers, and that Pete had not been riding at all for something like 1.5 years. This may explain why he was pulling at 26-27 mph down the route 2 shoulder instead of the 30 mph the wheelsucker remembers.
Wheelsucker data (from crossing finish line on the way out to where he sat up)
Time: 47:51
Power: 231/807 watts
HR: 145/166 bpm
Cadence: 95 rpm
Speed: 24.2 mph
From sitting up to finish line
Time: 22:44
Power: 250/643 watts
HR: 150/165 bpm
Cadence: 87 rpm
Speed: 23.0 mph
So the wheelsucker responded in his usual way, sitting in and wheelsucking, hoping to have a long easy warmup. Steve Owens, Bob Walters and Alex Pline rolled off the front very shortly after the left turn onto Rossback Rd. The wheelsucker watched them go up the road from his near-the-back vantage point, but stuck to the plan. The rest of the group included Ace, ex pro Pete Penzell, Matt Albanese, the wheelsucker and Ty Wu, so the break did not have the horsepower to stay away from a serious chase. However, this did not stop Steve, Bob and Alex from giving it all they had (later reports from riders in the break indicate that Bob was driving very hard).
The break was soon out of sight, but the small main field did not start to chase until the wheelsucker found himself on the front at the left turn onto Queen Anne Bridge road and pushed up the climb. The pace picked up from then on, but was still survivable for an aging wheelsucker, up Harwood Hill.
Matt pulled off the top of Harwood Hill at a decent pace, with the wheelsucker carefully tucked in behind him. The wheelsucker pulled through shortly before route 2 and led through the turn and up the short climb before pulling off where Polling House runs into route 2. The break was down to just Steve and Bob (Alex had other commitments and had turned around) and was not far ahead.
The next rider in line when the wheelsucker pulled off was Ace, and Ace went by deciding he wanted to get to the break NOW! The wheelsucker saw him go by in a blur and quickly decided that trying to sprint for his wheel was inconsistent with both the wheelsucker's plans to sit in and take it easy, and the wheelsucker's abilities.
The next guy to roll by was Pete Penzell. He was already gapped by Ace, but was going at a pace that the wheelsucker could briefly get to, so the wheelsucker grabbed his wheel and hung on down the route 2 shoulder. This was made easier because Pete was initially waiting for Matt, but Matt was too far back after pulling off to make it on. No one else made it on either.
Ace quickly bridged the short distance to the break and then drove it hard, initially opening the gap back up. The wheelsucker decided following one of the two strong men on the ride was his best option, and could not imagine bridging the gap by himself, so just wheelsucked behind Pete.
Pete went steady hard taking long pulls. Having ridden with Pete before, the wheelsucker was paranoid that Pete would let him take a pull to tire, and would then easily jump across the gap without him, so offered to pull provided Pete did not jump him. So the wheelsucker started taking short pulls. The trouble was that to keep the speed up so as to close the gap to the break, the wheelsucker had to pull at above his VO2 Max power. He could not do this for long, and was "burning matchsticks" rapidly doing it.
Bob Walters popped out of the break on the South Polling House climb, and then Steve fell off Ace's wheel on the last South Polling House rollers and jumped on the back of the Pete Penzell train as it came by.
Ace was still ahead early on Polling House, but not by much. He was caught before the fat man's sprint. Steve Owens led up the climb while the wheelsucker was paranoid that Ace and Pete would jump on the climb, and had been wheelsucking at the back trying to recover in case he had to go hard. Steve faded off the top; Ace and Pete did not jump, and the wheelsucker took the right turn onto Bayard and tucked in behind Ace and Pete and tried to hang on. The wheelsucker could not actually avoid pulling through and was on the front leading into the Sands Road right turn.
But as he took the turn he felt a small pop in his chest and felt dizzy for a couple of seconds. Concerned for his health the wheelsucker sat up The dizziness cleared, but Ace and Pete were up the road. There was no chase in sight behind, to the wheelsucker TT’d to the finish, frequently checking behind, but never seeing a chase.
In post ride discussions the wheelsucker learned that Ace had dropped Pete on some rollers, and that Pete had not been riding at all for something like 1.5 years. This may explain why he was pulling at 26-27 mph down the route 2 shoulder instead of the 30 mph the wheelsucker remembers.
Wheelsucker data (from crossing finish line on the way out to where he sat up)
Time: 47:51
Power: 231/807 watts
HR: 145/166 bpm
Cadence: 95 rpm
Speed: 24.2 mph
From sitting up to finish line
Time: 22:44
Power: 250/643 watts
HR: 150/165 bpm
Cadence: 87 rpm
Speed: 23.0 mph
Monday, September 20, 2010
St. Michaels Century - Another View
ABRT did the Bike Doctor/St. Michael's Century on the eastern shore this past weekend. It was a beautiful day for it; low humidity, sunshine and cool temperatures. This is one of the things I love about the "century season" in the fall and I try to do as many as possible (Bay Country, Civil War, Seagull). Such a welcome change from the typical summer conditions. While these are not races, it is fun to do them with teammates and friends in a challenging, but not "dog-eat-dog at all costs" kind of a way.
The attraction of this particular event was that Bob Roll, yes, THE Bob Roll ("Bobke" as he is known to fans) was going to be the guest of honor. I thought that was kind of cute, he'd be there giving a speech, ride with various people. Whatever. That to me was just a minor sideshow. A lot of ABRT folks were in and that's what I was looking forward to. While I very much enjoy Bob Roll as a cycling TV commentator, both for his in-depth knowledge of the sport and his quirky personality, I'm not much of a celebrity worshiper. I typically don't like to invest any emotional energy in social interactions that are not meaningful in some way. Shaking hands with someone who will not remember you and you will never see again is one of these scenarios, so the fact that Bobke was going to be there didn't really raise the bar much form me. To quote Lisa, my wonderful wife, "The key to happiness in life is low expectations." I'm not quite sure what this says about me… but I digress. Well, it turned out to be quite a bit more interesting than I expected.
It was a "mass start" kind of event at 8:30. It was a smallish group of typical century (non-racing) riders, maybe a 100 and change; much smaller compared to events like the Seagull Century with thousands of riders that filter onto the course over several hours time. Since the roads were wide (at least to start) and pancake flat, the ABRT train quickly built up a head of steam with about 20 riders. Sure, we were not "sitting up and smelling roses" but it was a nice group ride tempo. Not too surprisingly given our numbers of strong riders, we quickly were tête de la course. But when Spencer flatted, we lost about 10-15 minutes as riders streamed past - most notably to the Bike Doctor group (ride hosts) which contained Bobke. Once we got started, we chased at a good pace, weaving up and down the Peninsulas of Talbot County, never quite managing to totally reel in the Bike Doctor group. It wasn't until about the half way mark, at the Bellevue-Oxford ferry, that we caught up with them at the scheduled rest stop. Since we were waiting for the ferry we enjoyed "ride" food and drink and had an opportunity to chat with Bob. Nice. He certainly seems to enjoy hanging with the bike crowd. Everyone got some nice pictures on the ferry, Bob was very patient and accommodating, getting his picture taken with groups and one on one as if they were old time buddies who hadn't seen each other in a long time.
When we exited the ferry, the ABRT, Bike Doctor and a number of other riders trucked down the road. That's when things really started to get more interesting. The ABRT train rolled off the ferry last and had been gapped a bit by the others on the ferry. Once we caught up to the main group, we rolled by. I thought we might leave them behind while they just kept riding tempo. No way. About a minute or two later, as I came off the front, here was Bob moving up the line looking over at us with his signature shit eating grin - not so fast guys... This was an omen. From that point on, the pace really started to jam with a nice rotating paceline. The pace was high enough and steady enough that riders were being shed off the back. By the time we got to the last rest stop at ~80+ miles we were down to about 8 ABRT riders, Bob and one Bike Doctor rider. Since we were tête de la course, the support vehicle led the way and some of the Bike Doctor guys were taking video and stills of our paceline. I can't wait to see the footage! Another great benefit is that we didn't need to pay much attention to the route, which is good given that we we took a wrong turn in the first 3 miles!
We got rolling again just as the off the back riders started coming in. The home stretch, the last 25 miles, was through some really scenic small farms roads with a pine tree canopy. What a beautiful smell. I was still in the rotation and taking my pulls, although they were getting decidedly shorter. At about 90 miles, Bobke starts these surging off the front 10 second efforts and accelerating out of every corner, opening small gaps and really fluctuating the pace. I was thinking "This is starting to hurt. He knows what he is doing. Testing, probing, tiring the group." He only put out a small effort, making you chase then sitting back in. Every time he came as far back as me, I would (could?) not pull through. I was thinking "if you're going to hurt me, I'm not pulling you back". This went on for about 5 more miles and then at 95 miles, the rubber band breaks. Pop, I'm OTB. I recover as best I can and time trial my way back. The last 9 miles is basically on wide open roads leading into St. Michaels, but it is windy and the apparent wind angle is about 45 degrees, so it's basically on the nose and I have to no company. I managed to struggle along at about 20 mph, finally catching a shortcutted rider with whom I work and that gives me a little rest. I rolled in with a time of 4:40 (22.2 mph) a few minutes after the remnants of the group, just hitting the parking lot with Bobke who must have sat up to cool down at the end.
The Wheelsucker was there until the end and recounts the last 10 miles with the group in his post.
All in all it was an extremely fun and interesting ride and a very pleasant surprise for a club racer like me to really RIDE with a guy like Bob Roll. Everyone socialized a bit after the ride with Bobke and more than that, I think the interaction we as a group had with him was indeed meaningful. I hope he enjoyed it as much as we did. I understand he has not been riding all that much and I'm not sure how hard he really worked. My guess is that he is like my old squash partner Joe Prahl who, over the years I was improving always put out just enough effort to beat me. That way you always think, "hmm maybe if I just did X, I'd win". Perhaps Bobke has perfected the art of riding with local teams - just put out enough effort to make them feel like they are hurting an ex-pro. Who knows? A pro in many ways... Regardless, that guy can ride a bike and at the same time make you feel good about riding yours.
The attraction of this particular event was that Bob Roll, yes, THE Bob Roll ("Bobke" as he is known to fans) was going to be the guest of honor. I thought that was kind of cute, he'd be there giving a speech, ride with various people. Whatever. That to me was just a minor sideshow. A lot of ABRT folks were in and that's what I was looking forward to. While I very much enjoy Bob Roll as a cycling TV commentator, both for his in-depth knowledge of the sport and his quirky personality, I'm not much of a celebrity worshiper. I typically don't like to invest any emotional energy in social interactions that are not meaningful in some way. Shaking hands with someone who will not remember you and you will never see again is one of these scenarios, so the fact that Bobke was going to be there didn't really raise the bar much form me. To quote Lisa, my wonderful wife, "The key to happiness in life is low expectations." I'm not quite sure what this says about me… but I digress. Well, it turned out to be quite a bit more interesting than I expected.
It was a "mass start" kind of event at 8:30. It was a smallish group of typical century (non-racing) riders, maybe a 100 and change; much smaller compared to events like the Seagull Century with thousands of riders that filter onto the course over several hours time. Since the roads were wide (at least to start) and pancake flat, the ABRT train quickly built up a head of steam with about 20 riders. Sure, we were not "sitting up and smelling roses" but it was a nice group ride tempo. Not too surprisingly given our numbers of strong riders, we quickly were tête de la course. But when Spencer flatted, we lost about 10-15 minutes as riders streamed past - most notably to the Bike Doctor group (ride hosts) which contained Bobke. Once we got started, we chased at a good pace, weaving up and down the Peninsulas of Talbot County, never quite managing to totally reel in the Bike Doctor group. It wasn't until about the half way mark, at the Bellevue-Oxford ferry, that we caught up with them at the scheduled rest stop. Since we were waiting for the ferry we enjoyed "ride" food and drink and had an opportunity to chat with Bob. Nice. He certainly seems to enjoy hanging with the bike crowd. Everyone got some nice pictures on the ferry, Bob was very patient and accommodating, getting his picture taken with groups and one on one as if they were old time buddies who hadn't seen each other in a long time.
 |
| On the Oxford Bellevue Ferry. The author is kneeling, first row on the left. |
When we exited the ferry, the ABRT, Bike Doctor and a number of other riders trucked down the road. That's when things really started to get more interesting. The ABRT train rolled off the ferry last and had been gapped a bit by the others on the ferry. Once we caught up to the main group, we rolled by. I thought we might leave them behind while they just kept riding tempo. No way. About a minute or two later, as I came off the front, here was Bob moving up the line looking over at us with his signature shit eating grin - not so fast guys... This was an omen. From that point on, the pace really started to jam with a nice rotating paceline. The pace was high enough and steady enough that riders were being shed off the back. By the time we got to the last rest stop at ~80+ miles we were down to about 8 ABRT riders, Bob and one Bike Doctor rider. Since we were tête de la course, the support vehicle led the way and some of the Bike Doctor guys were taking video and stills of our paceline. I can't wait to see the footage! Another great benefit is that we didn't need to pay much attention to the route, which is good given that we we took a wrong turn in the first 3 miles!
We got rolling again just as the off the back riders started coming in. The home stretch, the last 25 miles, was through some really scenic small farms roads with a pine tree canopy. What a beautiful smell. I was still in the rotation and taking my pulls, although they were getting decidedly shorter. At about 90 miles, Bobke starts these surging off the front 10 second efforts and accelerating out of every corner, opening small gaps and really fluctuating the pace. I was thinking "This is starting to hurt. He knows what he is doing. Testing, probing, tiring the group." He only put out a small effort, making you chase then sitting back in. Every time he came as far back as me, I would (could?) not pull through. I was thinking "if you're going to hurt me, I'm not pulling you back". This went on for about 5 more miles and then at 95 miles, the rubber band breaks. Pop, I'm OTB. I recover as best I can and time trial my way back. The last 9 miles is basically on wide open roads leading into St. Michaels, but it is windy and the apparent wind angle is about 45 degrees, so it's basically on the nose and I have to no company. I managed to struggle along at about 20 mph, finally catching a shortcutted rider with whom I work and that gives me a little rest. I rolled in with a time of 4:40 (22.2 mph) a few minutes after the remnants of the group, just hitting the parking lot with Bobke who must have sat up to cool down at the end.
The Wheelsucker was there until the end and recounts the last 10 miles with the group in his post.
All in all it was an extremely fun and interesting ride and a very pleasant surprise for a club racer like me to really RIDE with a guy like Bob Roll. Everyone socialized a bit after the ride with Bobke and more than that, I think the interaction we as a group had with him was indeed meaningful. I hope he enjoyed it as much as we did. I understand he has not been riding all that much and I'm not sure how hard he really worked. My guess is that he is like my old squash partner Joe Prahl who, over the years I was improving always put out just enough effort to beat me. That way you always think, "hmm maybe if I just did X, I'd win". Perhaps Bobke has perfected the art of riding with local teams - just put out enough effort to make them feel like they are hurting an ex-pro. Who knows? A pro in many ways... Regardless, that guy can ride a bike and at the same time make you feel good about riding yours.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
The Wheelsucker Rides Hard at the St. Michaels Century
A number of ABRTers decided to ride the St. Michaels century this year, as a group. The wheelsucker was looking forward to riding in an ABRT "train" as he had not actually ridden a full century yet (he has ridden 100 miles once or twice, just not in a century).
The ABRT train rolled out after listening to an amusing welcome speech from the legendary (team 7 Eleven rider in the pro tour and then Versus cycling color commentator) Bob Roll. While some other riders had left a little earlier, the ABRT train was going fast and was quickly rolling by everyone. A few wrong turns were taken, but the train would correct this and reform quickly enough. Without the real "alpha dog" riders in attendance, the next tier riders took the opportunity to step up, and Tim Shaffer, Mike Wagner and the wheelsucker were taking hard pulls at the front, with several other riders also stepping up and going hard at the front, and everyone taking their turn. Patrick "I don' need no stinkin' padded shorts" Hogan was taking shorter very hard pulls, hard enough to generate color commentary from some riders in the pack behind him. Ty Wu, Ted Harris and the amazing Amanda Wu were also pulling hard, while Ted Harris, Tim Shaffer, Mike Wagner and several others were always ready to jump out of the pack and ride past the front if they thought the train was not going fast enough.
Spencer Siebert flatted early and a number of riders and groups that had been passed, passed the ABRT train back (as it was stopped in the shoulder), including a group of mostly Bike Doctor riders with the man himself, Bob "Bobke" Roll.
With most of the century still to come and lots of time and miles to reel them back in, the ABRT train settled down to a steady pace once Spencer was back on his bike, but then was stopped again when someone hit Scott Olson from behind, and Scott stopped to make sure the other rider was OK. But finally at one rest stop the ABRT train had gotten close enough that riders saw the Bob Roll group leaving as ABRT rolled in.
The ABRT train lost some time at that rest stop but were soon off in pursuit. The train caught Bobke's group waiting for the ferry, but they got off first and were up the road by the time the ABRT train had reformed and started. Tim Shaffer took a long steady hard pull to close most of the gap and then pulled off leaving the wheelsucker on the front. The wheelsucker-led ABRT train finally caught Bob Roll's group shortly after getting off the ferry, about mile 60. As the wheelsucker pulled the ABRT train by on the left, several ABRTers congratulated the wheelsucker on dropping a legend. Other ABRTers were concerned that this was being rather rude, and sat up, and some of these were gapped and never made it back on.
But Bobke was far from dropped!
The two groups merged and continued up the road, with the combined group slowly shrinking from then on. Soon it was down to Bobke, one Bike Doctor rider and about fifteen ABRTers.
It turns out Bobke can ride a bike! Who knew? ;-)
It stayed a train for awhile with riders taking turns at the front. Through a long section with frequent turns at intersections, a Bike Doctor SUV was acting as lead vehicle with Scotty "Scooter" Millar in the SUV taking video and still shots. The presence of cameras may have increased testosterone levels, as the pace stayed high and there were a couple of attacks and jumps, and some hard riding to stay with the lead group. By about mile 80 the group had shrunk to about ten riders, and Bobke was looking stronger all the time. Everyone else was tiring. Every time the wheelsucker looked over as he passed Tim after Tim had put in a hard pull, Tim would be sweating hard and looking a little glassy-eyed. Then the wheelsucker noticed that Bobke was gapping everyone at every intersection. He wasn't going super hard, certainly not like a Steve "Stevie Wonder" Wahl sprint, but cutting the corner and standing and pushing and opening a gap that had to be closed each time. And then he started accelerating as some riders finished a pull, again easily opening gaps that had to be closed. The wheelsucker was watching his computer indicate 90 miles – and trying to convince himself that he had ten more miles in his legs -- just as Bobke went again! Countering Bobke's testing and probing was hard work for everyone else (which was probably why Bobke was doing it) and the group continued to shrink, as one rider after another tired and was gapped on a surge, and could not get back on. The last Bike Doctor rider sat up, leaving Bobke isolated, but Bobke seemed more and more capable of dealing with ABRT by himself!
Knowing that he might not be able to close a big gap, the wheelsucker was being VERY attentive, going IMMEDIATELY to get Bobke's wheel, or the wheel of another chaser at each jump. The wheelsucker was expecting a sprint at the finish, and rather doubting that he could out-sprint Bobke, was trying to get Tim to sit on Bobke's wheel, so he would be fresher for the finish. At one point the wheelsucker let a gap open to let Tim and Ty off the front, but he quickly felt a hand on his back as Bobke pushed him into the gap, both closing it and letting Bobke ride behind them in line.
So the wheelsucker got to the front and pulled whenever he could to keep the pace up and keep Tim off the front. But Tim is a class act and would not lower himself to just sitting on a 50 year old legend's wheel, and kept pulling through. About mile 100, with the wheelsucker suffering and wondering why on earth he could not see the finish point at the school yet, the amazing Amanda Wu, Mike Wagner and Rick Paukstitus were gapped and the lead group was down to Bobke, Tim Shaffer, Ty Wu and the wheelsucker. And Bobke was still jumping! He finally got a gap by jumping after Tim had taken a hard pull. The wheelsucker thought he might be able to grab Bobke's wheel with a short hard effort (whether he could stay there to the finish and then sprint was another matter), but looking back saw Tim and Ty temporarily blown and gapped. Not wanting to leave his last two strong team mates, the wheelsucker waited a couple of seconds for them to grab his wheel and then started chasing. Bobke may not be training much these days (in discussions after the ride he admitted to doing only two rides in the last few weeks, and no riding at all during the TdF), or maybe he was being a gentlemen and eased up after making his point; so the wheelsucker was able to pull Tim and Ty part way up to him before Tim took over and got the three of them the rest of the way to Bobke's wheel. Ty was continuing his practice of going hard as he pulled through, and got a gap once or twice, but did not try to hold it for long. But he had a small gap off the front when the school finally came into view. With no actual "finish line" on the road, deciding who won a sprint was going to be problematic, and Bobke is a class act and did not sprint anyway. So the ABRT story is that despite hard riding and about 20 Bobke jumps/attacks in the last 25 miles, Ty finished first by a few bike lengths, with Bobke, the wheelsucker and Tim a second or two behind him, all with s. t.
It is not at all clear that to the wheelsucker that Bobke was going as hard as he could. Looking fresh and smiling, Bobke was probably just being a good guy and having fun. He was looking good a 70 miles, was looking strong at 80 and even stronger at 90. As for the wheelsucker, the St. Michaels century might be the hardest bike race he rode this year.
Wheelsucker Data (from initial warmup to final cooldown)
Distance: 106.05 miles
Total elapsed time: 5:58:13
Century riding time: ????
Power (av/max): 197/840 watts
HR (av/max): 138/167 bpm
Cadence (av): 90
Speed (av/max): 22.4/33.8 mph
The wheelsucker's hardest 30 minutes, 60 minutes and 120 minute intervals were the last 30 minutes, last 60 minutes and last 120 minutes, respectively, of the ride.
The ABRT train rolled out after listening to an amusing welcome speech from the legendary (team 7 Eleven rider in the pro tour and then Versus cycling color commentator) Bob Roll. While some other riders had left a little earlier, the ABRT train was going fast and was quickly rolling by everyone. A few wrong turns were taken, but the train would correct this and reform quickly enough. Without the real "alpha dog" riders in attendance, the next tier riders took the opportunity to step up, and Tim Shaffer, Mike Wagner and the wheelsucker were taking hard pulls at the front, with several other riders also stepping up and going hard at the front, and everyone taking their turn. Patrick "I don' need no stinkin' padded shorts" Hogan was taking shorter very hard pulls, hard enough to generate color commentary from some riders in the pack behind him. Ty Wu, Ted Harris and the amazing Amanda Wu were also pulling hard, while Ted Harris, Tim Shaffer, Mike Wagner and several others were always ready to jump out of the pack and ride past the front if they thought the train was not going fast enough.
Spencer Siebert flatted early and a number of riders and groups that had been passed, passed the ABRT train back (as it was stopped in the shoulder), including a group of mostly Bike Doctor riders with the man himself, Bob "Bobke" Roll.
With most of the century still to come and lots of time and miles to reel them back in, the ABRT train settled down to a steady pace once Spencer was back on his bike, but then was stopped again when someone hit Scott Olson from behind, and Scott stopped to make sure the other rider was OK. But finally at one rest stop the ABRT train had gotten close enough that riders saw the Bob Roll group leaving as ABRT rolled in.
The ABRT train lost some time at that rest stop but were soon off in pursuit. The train caught Bobke's group waiting for the ferry, but they got off first and were up the road by the time the ABRT train had reformed and started. Tim Shaffer took a long steady hard pull to close most of the gap and then pulled off leaving the wheelsucker on the front. The wheelsucker-led ABRT train finally caught Bob Roll's group shortly after getting off the ferry, about mile 60. As the wheelsucker pulled the ABRT train by on the left, several ABRTers congratulated the wheelsucker on dropping a legend. Other ABRTers were concerned that this was being rather rude, and sat up, and some of these were gapped and never made it back on.
But Bobke was far from dropped!
The two groups merged and continued up the road, with the combined group slowly shrinking from then on. Soon it was down to Bobke, one Bike Doctor rider and about fifteen ABRTers.
It turns out Bobke can ride a bike! Who knew? ;-)
It stayed a train for awhile with riders taking turns at the front. Through a long section with frequent turns at intersections, a Bike Doctor SUV was acting as lead vehicle with Scotty "Scooter" Millar in the SUV taking video and still shots. The presence of cameras may have increased testosterone levels, as the pace stayed high and there were a couple of attacks and jumps, and some hard riding to stay with the lead group. By about mile 80 the group had shrunk to about ten riders, and Bobke was looking stronger all the time. Everyone else was tiring. Every time the wheelsucker looked over as he passed Tim after Tim had put in a hard pull, Tim would be sweating hard and looking a little glassy-eyed. Then the wheelsucker noticed that Bobke was gapping everyone at every intersection. He wasn't going super hard, certainly not like a Steve "Stevie Wonder" Wahl sprint, but cutting the corner and standing and pushing and opening a gap that had to be closed each time. And then he started accelerating as some riders finished a pull, again easily opening gaps that had to be closed. The wheelsucker was watching his computer indicate 90 miles – and trying to convince himself that he had ten more miles in his legs -- just as Bobke went again! Countering Bobke's testing and probing was hard work for everyone else (which was probably why Bobke was doing it) and the group continued to shrink, as one rider after another tired and was gapped on a surge, and could not get back on. The last Bike Doctor rider sat up, leaving Bobke isolated, but Bobke seemed more and more capable of dealing with ABRT by himself!
Knowing that he might not be able to close a big gap, the wheelsucker was being VERY attentive, going IMMEDIATELY to get Bobke's wheel, or the wheel of another chaser at each jump. The wheelsucker was expecting a sprint at the finish, and rather doubting that he could out-sprint Bobke, was trying to get Tim to sit on Bobke's wheel, so he would be fresher for the finish. At one point the wheelsucker let a gap open to let Tim and Ty off the front, but he quickly felt a hand on his back as Bobke pushed him into the gap, both closing it and letting Bobke ride behind them in line.
So the wheelsucker got to the front and pulled whenever he could to keep the pace up and keep Tim off the front. But Tim is a class act and would not lower himself to just sitting on a 50 year old legend's wheel, and kept pulling through. About mile 100, with the wheelsucker suffering and wondering why on earth he could not see the finish point at the school yet, the amazing Amanda Wu, Mike Wagner and Rick Paukstitus were gapped and the lead group was down to Bobke, Tim Shaffer, Ty Wu and the wheelsucker. And Bobke was still jumping! He finally got a gap by jumping after Tim had taken a hard pull. The wheelsucker thought he might be able to grab Bobke's wheel with a short hard effort (whether he could stay there to the finish and then sprint was another matter), but looking back saw Tim and Ty temporarily blown and gapped. Not wanting to leave his last two strong team mates, the wheelsucker waited a couple of seconds for them to grab his wheel and then started chasing. Bobke may not be training much these days (in discussions after the ride he admitted to doing only two rides in the last few weeks, and no riding at all during the TdF), or maybe he was being a gentlemen and eased up after making his point; so the wheelsucker was able to pull Tim and Ty part way up to him before Tim took over and got the three of them the rest of the way to Bobke's wheel. Ty was continuing his practice of going hard as he pulled through, and got a gap once or twice, but did not try to hold it for long. But he had a small gap off the front when the school finally came into view. With no actual "finish line" on the road, deciding who won a sprint was going to be problematic, and Bobke is a class act and did not sprint anyway. So the ABRT story is that despite hard riding and about 20 Bobke jumps/attacks in the last 25 miles, Ty finished first by a few bike lengths, with Bobke, the wheelsucker and Tim a second or two behind him, all with s. t.
It is not at all clear that to the wheelsucker that Bobke was going as hard as he could. Looking fresh and smiling, Bobke was probably just being a good guy and having fun. He was looking good a 70 miles, was looking strong at 80 and even stronger at 90. As for the wheelsucker, the St. Michaels century might be the hardest bike race he rode this year.
Wheelsucker Data (from initial warmup to final cooldown)
Distance: 106.05 miles
Total elapsed time: 5:58:13
Century riding time: ????
Power (av/max): 197/840 watts
HR (av/max): 138/167 bpm
Cadence (av): 90
Speed (av/max): 22.4/33.8 mph
The wheelsucker's hardest 30 minutes, 60 minutes and 120 minute intervals were the last 30 minutes, last 60 minutes and last 120 minutes, respectively, of the ride.
Monday, September 13, 2010
The Wheelsucker at Turkey Day
Turkey Day was the last race of the season (the wheelsucker does not do cyclocross). The 45+ race was only 14 laps of a 1.1 mile loop (approximately 15 miles), too short for BAR points and short enough to tempt the wheelsucker to do two races (the Deep Blue TT had temporarily cured him of trying for three races). After playing Hamlet over whether the second race should be cat 3, 35+ (which had so few riders registered, decent BAR points were guaranteed!) or the P123, the wheelsucker chose the P123. Racing P123 races has been a goal for the wheelsucker for some time. He had yet to finish one, with the closest to success being hanging on at a Greenbelt A Race for 16th place.
But the 45+ was the first of the two races, at 10:50AM.
After several break attempts including some from the wheelsucker, four riders including Steve Owens got off the front. The break had riders from EVO, Artemis, ABRT (Steve), and AVC (John Olinski)). The Artemis rider popped out of the break after 2 or 3 laps, so it was a three rider break. Ted Harris, the wheelsucker, and an AVC rider did a great job of blocking and the break stayed away to the finish. Steve was third when Olinski surprised the other two by starting his sprint very early.
The wheelsucker was very pleased for Steve, but a little disappointed not to be in the winning break himself. But being a good team mate is a reward in and of itself, and in this race no one from the main field was going anywhere without Ted, the wheelsucker, or the AVC rider on their wheel. The three blockers completely shut down riders like Paul Mittelstadt and cat 1 sprinter Marc Frazer. Hey when did Frazer get so old he decided to race 45+?
No time gaps were given, so being unsure of the gap the wheelsucker decided not to jump with just a few laps to go, as he did not want to risk sparking a reaction that ended up bringing the break back. The sprint was a little sketchy on the wet surface, but the wheelsucker probably rolled across about 8th in the main field.
P123 race, late afternoon
Despite his age and lack of results in masters racing, the wheelsucker harbors ongoing fantasies about being strong enough to race P123 races. And he wants to do more than hang on in the main field, he wants to be a player. In his few more lucid moments he might concede that he is unlikely to actually win a P123 race (consider that he has not won a Masters race yet, either), but he dreams of being strong enough to do good work for team mates.
The Turkey day course was almost dead flat and had no tight corners, so it was nearly ideal for an aging "never was" to try a P123 race. The race was 27 laps, almost double the 14 laps of the 45+ race.
This race ended up being a bad news/mostly good news situation for the wheelsucker.
The bad news: His weight weenie seatpost clamp broke with about four laps to go, when the wheelsucker hit a bump very hard. The seat and several seatpost clamp parts fell off the bike onto the road.
The good news: The wheelsucker was not dropped until then, while some others were. He covered moves, got into some breaks and even attacked twice. He blocked when his team mates were in breaks, and was a player -- not a major player, but a player -- in the race.
When the seat came off, the wheelsucker slowed and pulled off to let the field by, then picked up the pieces he could find, dropped them at the start finish line and jumped back into the race after the field went by, hoping to be scored as finishing. He rode the last 2-3 laps standing, in his 53x11. One of the wheelsucker's goals for the season was to finish a 123 race. He was told that he was scored as finishing the race, so this goal was met.
The seatpost clamp breaking was a little disappointing, but the wheelsucker is close to ecstatic about how he did until then, and believes had it not broken he would have finished with the main field. As above he got into some breaks, chased down some strong riders, helped chase down breaks, attacked a couple of times, and on one attack got a big gap on the field on a prime lap before being caught with 1/4 lap to go.
And he believes his efforts helped his team mates, and team mate Stephen "Stevie Wonder" Wahl won the race. The wheelsucker rather doubts his efforts were a major factor, but at least he did not chase his own team mates.
Wheelsucker Data:
45+ Race
time: 35:02
power: 252/821 watts
HR: 149/166 bpm
cadence: 103 rpm
speed: 25.70/35.2 mph
P123 Race (until sitting up when seatpost clamp broke)
time: 53:48
power: 251/983 watts
HR: 155/170 bpm
cadence 104 rpm
speed: 27.3/34.2 mph
But the 45+ was the first of the two races, at 10:50AM.
After several break attempts including some from the wheelsucker, four riders including Steve Owens got off the front. The break had riders from EVO, Artemis, ABRT (Steve), and AVC (John Olinski)). The Artemis rider popped out of the break after 2 or 3 laps, so it was a three rider break. Ted Harris, the wheelsucker, and an AVC rider did a great job of blocking and the break stayed away to the finish. Steve was third when Olinski surprised the other two by starting his sprint very early.
The wheelsucker was very pleased for Steve, but a little disappointed not to be in the winning break himself. But being a good team mate is a reward in and of itself, and in this race no one from the main field was going anywhere without Ted, the wheelsucker, or the AVC rider on their wheel. The three blockers completely shut down riders like Paul Mittelstadt and cat 1 sprinter Marc Frazer. Hey when did Frazer get so old he decided to race 45+?
No time gaps were given, so being unsure of the gap the wheelsucker decided not to jump with just a few laps to go, as he did not want to risk sparking a reaction that ended up bringing the break back. The sprint was a little sketchy on the wet surface, but the wheelsucker probably rolled across about 8th in the main field.
P123 race, late afternoon
Despite his age and lack of results in masters racing, the wheelsucker harbors ongoing fantasies about being strong enough to race P123 races. And he wants to do more than hang on in the main field, he wants to be a player. In his few more lucid moments he might concede that he is unlikely to actually win a P123 race (consider that he has not won a Masters race yet, either), but he dreams of being strong enough to do good work for team mates.
The Turkey day course was almost dead flat and had no tight corners, so it was nearly ideal for an aging "never was" to try a P123 race. The race was 27 laps, almost double the 14 laps of the 45+ race.
This race ended up being a bad news/mostly good news situation for the wheelsucker.
The bad news: His weight weenie seatpost clamp broke with about four laps to go, when the wheelsucker hit a bump very hard. The seat and several seatpost clamp parts fell off the bike onto the road.
The good news: The wheelsucker was not dropped until then, while some others were. He covered moves, got into some breaks and even attacked twice. He blocked when his team mates were in breaks, and was a player -- not a major player, but a player -- in the race.
When the seat came off, the wheelsucker slowed and pulled off to let the field by, then picked up the pieces he could find, dropped them at the start finish line and jumped back into the race after the field went by, hoping to be scored as finishing. He rode the last 2-3 laps standing, in his 53x11. One of the wheelsucker's goals for the season was to finish a 123 race. He was told that he was scored as finishing the race, so this goal was met.
The seatpost clamp breaking was a little disappointing, but the wheelsucker is close to ecstatic about how he did until then, and believes had it not broken he would have finished with the main field. As above he got into some breaks, chased down some strong riders, helped chase down breaks, attacked a couple of times, and on one attack got a big gap on the field on a prime lap before being caught with 1/4 lap to go.
And he believes his efforts helped his team mates, and team mate Stephen "Stevie Wonder" Wahl won the race. The wheelsucker rather doubts his efforts were a major factor, but at least he did not chase his own team mates.
Wheelsucker Data:
45+ Race
time: 35:02
power: 252/821 watts
HR: 149/166 bpm
cadence: 103 rpm
speed: 25.70/35.2 mph
P123 Race (until sitting up when seatpost clamp broke)
time: 53:48
power: 251/983 watts
HR: 155/170 bpm
cadence 104 rpm
speed: 27.3/34.2 mph
Thursday, September 9, 2010
The Wheelsucker Digs a Little Too Deep at Deep Blue
One would think that having raced Deep Blue twice before, the wheelsucker would have learned that one has to arrive early, and that despite the shorter-than-Church-Creek distance, it is a hard race. But one might be wrong, or perhaps the wheelsucker is just more forgetful at his advanced age (birthday in August).
In any case, for whatever reasons, the wheelsucker managed to roll over to the start line just four minutes before his 08:44:00 start time, so his warmup was all of three minutes. The wheelsucker's other immediate problem was that in an earlier fit of irrational exuberance over his time trialing ability, the wheelsucker had signed up for not just one, not just two, but THREE time trials; 45+, 35+ and cat 3. And the race he cared about -- 45+ -- was the last one. To fit three races in organizers gave him the first adult start time (only the juniors started before him) and the last single rider start time, just before the tandems and teams.
The wheelsucker's first race was for cat 3, and the wheelsucker tried to not go "to the limit" for the entire race so he could save something for later races. The wheelsucker went out way too hard (as nearly always happens), struggled in the crosswind, and came back with a time of 25:20.47, a little slower than his best time at Deep Blue, which was set in less wind.
After a far too brief rest -- most of which was spent taking off the first race number -- the wheelsucker started his second race, the 35+. The good news was that he was quite familiar with the course and where it was windiest, the bad news was that the first race had taken its toll, and the wheelsucker struggled to hold decent power numbers. But somehow he was able to ramp it up on the way back and drive average power up all the way back, so averaging higher power in the second half than the first, though rather lower than the average power for the first race. The time was slower too, 25:35.41.
The best news was that the wheelsucker had a longer recovery interval before his third race. This did not seem to help much though, as the wheelsucker rolled out for the third race and fairly quickly discovered he was having even more trouble holding power than in the second race (this may be expected by everyone who knows anything about cycling, but the wheelsucker was, and continues to be, in denial regarding his lack of power) and was well down on average power. But once again the second half worked better than the first and the wheelsucker was able to drive the average up by holding higher power in the second half of the race, crossing in 25:29.43.
Note that this third race had the lowest power, but the middle time.
Wheelsucker Data:
cat 3 25:20.47, 296 watts average, 25.9 mph average, 6th place (Powertap not properly zeroed)
35+ 25:35.41, 271 watts average, 25.5 mph average, 4 place
45+ 25:29.43, 264 watts average, 25.7 mph average, 3rd place
Results on US Cycling website
While the wheelsucker likes to think he could have gone faster if he had done the 45+ first, he does not think he could have gone 50 seconds faster, which is what it would have taken to get close to Grant Soma who was second, or anywhere near a fast Spencer Becket who was first.
The wheelsucker now thinks that three races maybe one or two too many, but is liable to forget this by registration time, next year.
The last word goes to the wheelsucker's coach: "You're nuts to do 3 categories!!"
In any case, for whatever reasons, the wheelsucker managed to roll over to the start line just four minutes before his 08:44:00 start time, so his warmup was all of three minutes. The wheelsucker's other immediate problem was that in an earlier fit of irrational exuberance over his time trialing ability, the wheelsucker had signed up for not just one, not just two, but THREE time trials; 45+, 35+ and cat 3. And the race he cared about -- 45+ -- was the last one. To fit three races in organizers gave him the first adult start time (only the juniors started before him) and the last single rider start time, just before the tandems and teams.
The wheelsucker's first race was for cat 3, and the wheelsucker tried to not go "to the limit" for the entire race so he could save something for later races. The wheelsucker went out way too hard (as nearly always happens), struggled in the crosswind, and came back with a time of 25:20.47, a little slower than his best time at Deep Blue, which was set in less wind.
After a far too brief rest -- most of which was spent taking off the first race number -- the wheelsucker started his second race, the 35+. The good news was that he was quite familiar with the course and where it was windiest, the bad news was that the first race had taken its toll, and the wheelsucker struggled to hold decent power numbers. But somehow he was able to ramp it up on the way back and drive average power up all the way back, so averaging higher power in the second half than the first, though rather lower than the average power for the first race. The time was slower too, 25:35.41.
The best news was that the wheelsucker had a longer recovery interval before his third race. This did not seem to help much though, as the wheelsucker rolled out for the third race and fairly quickly discovered he was having even more trouble holding power than in the second race (this may be expected by everyone who knows anything about cycling, but the wheelsucker was, and continues to be, in denial regarding his lack of power) and was well down on average power. But once again the second half worked better than the first and the wheelsucker was able to drive the average up by holding higher power in the second half of the race, crossing in 25:29.43.
Note that this third race had the lowest power, but the middle time.
Wheelsucker Data:
cat 3 25:20.47, 296 watts average, 25.9 mph average, 6th place (Powertap not properly zeroed)
35+ 25:35.41, 271 watts average, 25.5 mph average, 4 place
45+ 25:29.43, 264 watts average, 25.7 mph average, 3rd place
Results on US Cycling website
While the wheelsucker likes to think he could have gone faster if he had done the 45+ first, he does not think he could have gone 50 seconds faster, which is what it would have taken to get close to Grant Soma who was second, or anywhere near a fast Spencer Becket who was first.
The wheelsucker now thinks that three races maybe one or two too many, but is liable to forget this by registration time, next year.
The last word goes to the wheelsucker's coach: "You're nuts to do 3 categories!!"
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