 |
Copperopolis Road Race
4/7/07
Juniors 15-16
Field: ?
Teammates: Peter, Nick A, Alex, Chris, Alicia, Trevor
Place: ?
I was looking forward to this race, hoping I could do well. We started out rolling pretty easy and people were talking and stuff.
Then on the first hill, AMD got on the front and had the pace pretty high. I stayed right at the front with Peter, the AMD guys and another guy from davis or something? They kept drilling it, and I stayed with them. About five or more of us started to get a gap from the field. After a while it looked like the group was going to stay away. At this point, I wasn't doing too well. I was trying as hard as I could to stay with the lead group. I was sure that if I could just make it over the hill with them, I would be ok. Near the top of the hill, I fell off the back of the lead group. There were at least two or three, others trying to bridge up to the lead group. I fell back and hung with a couple of these guys and we took turns pulling. Still on the hill, I dropped the two guys I was working with and gave it everything to get back to the lead group. It felt like the group was right there, but I just couldn't get back up to them. After the hill, my legs felt dead. On the flat part I could still see them, but I was loosing time. One of the two guys who I was working with on the hill caught back up to me and we worked together on the flat part. The lead group got far out of sight, and I rode alone for a while (I don't remember what happened to the other guy.) Then I saw what was left of the main group (like six or seven guys?) catching up to me. I just sat up and waited for them. Nick was in there, and Zach Wick was basically pulling them all. I jumped on the back and rested... That felt really good. Then on the second hill (before the downhill) one of my water bottle cage screws came out I guess. The cage was like halfway off, but I couldn't pull it off and it was totally in the way of me pedaling. I was now at the back of the group and this was right before the downhill. Eventually I got the whole thing to come off, but by this time I was off the back of the main group. I tried to catch up on the downhill, but didn't make up much. I just kept going as hard as I could, and I had almost caught them by the feed hill. On the hill I caught back up to them, but shortly after that they dropped Nick and I. I basically rode the rest of the race by myself and felt really bad. I was out of water and hurting a lot. When the 3's race passed me, I got a water bottle from Dan Jerabek (thanks) who was driving the support car. Then Nick who was off the back of the 3's race told me to jump in with him and a few other guys, so I rode with them for a bit and finished the race alone. Not quite what I was hoping for, but there's always next time...
Merco Road Race
2/4/07
Cat 4
Place: DNF--Crashed
Teammates: Peter, Eric, Jason.
I ate a GOOD breakfast this time. We got there with plenty of time to spare. We warmed up on the road for a few minutes and got to the start. I was feeling really strong at the start. The pace was pretty fast, but I felt fine. In the first few minutes A couple guys got a small gap off the front. I thought about trying to bridge up to them, even though it was very early in the race I decided to. I started going, I looked back after a second and the field had come with me.
When I saw I was towing the field, I just eased off and let the other guys pull them back. A few attacks were going off, but nothing that got very far. Peter attacked, but didn't get far either. The pace was still about 25-27 mph. I was staying near the front most of the time, but before the left turn onto the sort of bumpy part, I was about in the middle. A short time on the bumpy part, and two guys just in front of me and to my left crashed. My immediate reaction was that I had a line to get through on the right. Well I was wrong. Suddenly a bike slid across the road in front of me and I went down pretty hard.
I got up quickly, and got out of the way trying not to get run over.
I immediately noticed my hip hurt pretty bad when I got up, but I was ok. Eric had also gone down. We were hoping we would be able to get back in the race, but I looked at my bike for a second and my front tire was flat. I asked Eric if he was ok and he said he was fine but his derailer was bent. Now we were both out of the race. There were two guys who were not getting up, one with a broken wrist and on with a broken collarbone. A moto stopped and called an ambulance for those two guys. I had carried a tube and co2 with me. I put in the new tube, and pumped it up. I had gone too quickly and didn't notice that I hadn't gotten the tube in all the way. I pumped it up and the the tire came off the rim and went flat. I was thinking about what to do.. And the guy who broke his collarbone said I could take his front wheel. When the ambulance got there we put the "really hurt"
guy's bikes in the sheriff's car and I traded wheels. We rode back to the start finish (on a really nice carbon front wheel)... My hip hurt a bit but we took it easy and I was ok. Anyway, I got fixed up at the first aid station, then waited around until the car came by with my wheel in it and I traded. I learned something this race too... STAY AT THE FRONT! Yeah, I'm a little sore and scraped up but nothing serious so that's good.
Merco Crit
2/3/07
Juniors 15-16 mixed with 17-18
Place:12th
Teammates: Peter, Nick A, Will, Alicia, Chris, Andy, Alex, Adam, Nick, Ye, Eric
I woke up at 4:50, took a shower, and didn't eat a good breakfast. I mostly ate fruit, and only a couple bites of oatmeal. I got a pretty good warmup and got to the start. We had to do rollout and the line was really long. When I was in line, all of a sudden I started to feel like my blood sugar was WAY low. This was bad. I felt like I had almost no energy. I asked Peter if he had anything to eat with him, but he didn't. When we got through rollout, I got to the start line.
Will gave me some cytomax and a hammer gel, this REALLY HELPED. We were waiting at the start for a little while. A few minutes after I had the cytomax and hammer gel I started to feel a little better. The pace was fine at the start. In the second lap there was a crash on the back stretch. I was a bit behind it, heard people yelling and had no problem getting around it. I was in about the middle of the pack, towards the front a little, but not for very long. I stayed like this most of the race until the end. With about two laps to go, I found myself near the back. I new I had to move up, before the finish. I tried to move up in the last two laps, but didn't get very far.
Before the last corner, I got dropped from the pack and Nick pulled me to the line. I wasn't too happy with my finish, but I learned something... Eat a GOOD breakfast that wont burn off and leave you empty right before the start.
Snelling RR
2/24/07
Juniors 15-16
Place: 10th
Field: 25
Teammates: Peter, Chris, Alex, Adam, Max, Nick, Will, Trevor
This was my first road race. After being sick for about a week and a half, I wasn't feeling great at the start. I was really cold at the start (my fault) but got warm enough during the neutral part. As soon as the race started there were some attacks, most of them were covered until two guys (I think one from amd and one from dbc?).
Peter and I tried to pick up the pace and chase them down, but no one else would help. after we both pulled off the pace just slowed down again. after the first lap we kinda gave up chasing. --fastforward a bit... at the beginning of the last lap I was hurting pretty bad, starting to fall off the back .. my cough was acting up a little..
On one of the little hills someone attacked and I fell off the back.
I was pretty pissed about that. after trying to chase back on while they were still in sight, I eased up a little, ate some food. Then I gave it everything I had, and near the turn before the bridge (I
think) I spotted the pack. After I had caught back on, I just sat in and tried to rest a little. Then Tisdell kept on going to the back and attacking (like he'd been doing the whole race) when the pace got slow. When we got to the bumpy part after the left turn Peter told me to go to the front and pick up the pace as much as I could. I went to the front and just went as fast as I could until was fried. after the race Peter said this helped a lot because it kept Tisdell from attacking. Anyway.. I was dropped from the pack just before the finishing hill and finished tenth (I think).
|
|
