DWC Club Champs - MTB TT

I would not call this one of my strengths, but I had a really good ride, for me, in the final event. 4.75 miles and 900' of climbing, and some tricky descending. Despite a wipe out on a sweeping right hand turn on loose shale, and hitting an 8" oak head on but staying on the bike, I descended about as well as I ever have, certainly faster than I ever have. I'm comfortable going 40mph downhill in a group on the road, but I don't have the nerve solo on the dirt!

I finished 7th, with a time of 31:34, which was my lowest placing of the 4 events and therefore didn't get me any extra points. Brandon won handily and leapfrogged into the Champion's jersey with 65 points. Steve got 9th and ended up 2nd with 60 points. I stayed at 53 points and 3rd place overall.

I'm psyched with the final result, especially as I had a shot at the overall victory. The format of the event is fun, kinda like a stage race. I'd encourage other Ciclistas to give it a go next year. As for me, I'll bump up and do the "B" flight next year, see if I can be competitive there.

DWC Club Champs - RR

I had three goals for the road race:
(1) - Win it;
(2) - Prevent Steve D. from getting the bonus sprint points;
(3) - Get the sprint points myself if I can.

Well, two out of three ain't bad...

It was a gorgeous if chilly morning as we started at Trimble Lane on 550, headed to the summit of Coal Bank. At mile 4.5, (on the rollers right before the hot spring) there was a sprint for bonus points. We all knew we had to wear down Steve or else he would just increase his lead with more points, so there were lots of attacks after the train tracks. He covered them all and in the process wore himself down. As we approached the line, I stuck right on his wheel to cover any move he might make. Jim came flying by on the left, and there wasn't anything Steve could do. As much as I wanted to try to go for the points, I knew that if I went, I would just drag Steve to the line. So Jim got the points, and Steve did not - a good start.

Then we all soft pedaled trying to recover before the climbs. I pulled away slowly on the lower slopes of Shalona, and nobody followed. Just before going over the tracks, Brandon jumped across, and the two of us worked to increase the lead. We had a few hundred yards at the top of Shalona. By Haviland Lake, there was no sign of anyone behind. We worked really well together on the rollers to the base of Coal Bank, catching some stragglers from the groups who started earlier. Then we dug in for the last 6 miles.

We each pulled for about 2 miles. As we neared the top, Brandon was in front, and I was feeling OK but not great. I pulled alongside, and we discussed our options. We thought about finishing together and splitting the points; if either one of us won outright, we would take the lead in the omnium, but if we shared the points, Steve would still be in the lead. So we decided to go for the win, and with that, Brandon accelerated. I put in a dig and got back on his wheel. I decided to stay right there, and try my sprint at 100m. Brandon would accelerate and slow, accelerate and slow, trying to drop me. As we neared 100m, he accelerated again, and I knew I would have to go for it. I took a few meters to get back on his wheel, and then stomped it. I got by him almost immediately, and then just hung on for dear life for the last 50. Whew! I am really thankful for all those hill sprints we've been doing on the club rides, without those, I wouldn't have known I could do it.

So Steve and I are tied at 53 points apiece, with Brandon in 3rd with 52. The fourth and final race is a MTB TT in Horse Gulch tomorrow. Best 3 of the 4 results count for the final omnium. Steve has the advantage, as this will be his third race and all his points count (he dropped out of the RR once he missed the sprint points). Brandon and I are each racing for incremental points, trying to do better than our lowest placings (5th for me in the crit, 5th for him in the TT). I think we're racing for 2nd, but anything can happen, I suppose.

DWC Club Championships

I've been riding in the club championships in the 'C' flight this past week. That may be sandbagging a little bit, but I know for sure I am not competitive in the Bs.

Anyway, a good start last Thurs in the 16 mile TT. I took 3rd place with a time of 42:18, just over 23mph average. The criterium on Sunday was mixed for me - I rode a strong race and placed 5th, but strategically it was very poor. The TT winner also won the crit, and may have an insurmountable point lead at this point. Trouble was, all of us knew he was likely to win a bunch sprint, and yet we couldn't get it together to try a break, or at least push the pace to string it out some. I felt strong all race, and for some reason thought I'd see if I could outsprint him, but I should have gone on a flyer in the last lap and a half and hoped to stay ahead. At least then I'd have a good guage on my strength relative to the group, and probably done no worse than 5th anyway.

So, a little frustrating. Only my fifth competitive criterium, and there's lots to learn about tactics! Road race is this Saturday, Trimble to Coal Bank, and I have a good chance of winning that, but I think I'm too far behind to win the overall. We'll see.

Tues Ride - CX and road

Hola Ciclistas:

As Lance mentioned last Friday, for those who want to start their cyclocross training, there will be regular(?) Tuesday evening cross rides, most likely at the course on Boggy. We’ll try to keep you posted on particulars as they happen, through e-mail and at the blog. For this Tuesday, meet at Flanders/Sol Cycles in Dolores at 5:15pm to ride to the course, or 5:45 at the course. (The start/finish for the course is on the FS road in the Boggy area – continue past the Boggy parking lot on Road W for about 2 miles, park on the side of the road). If you’re interested in learning about cyclocross, bring your mountain bike, and have a blast!

I, however, am still riding on the pavement, and am looking to ride to House Creek Tuesday evening. Meet at Flanders/Sol at 5:30, and we’ll head out from there.

Hasta,
Michael

Cyclocross Racing @ Fort Lewis in November

The Squawker Cup –

Registration: 8:30 AM.

Pre-ride: 9:45 AM.

Racing: 10:00 AM.

Entry Fee: $10 – Public, $5 – FLC Club Members (and $100 Club Boosters).

Categories: Men A, Men B, Men 40+, Women Open.

Dates: Five Sundays

11/9/08
11/16/08
11/23/08
11/30/08
12/7/08

Prizes: Awarded to overall winners of each category at end of series.

Check http://cycling.fortlewis.edu/ for updates.

ABQ club ride last w/e

Rode with New Mexico Velo Sport this past Saturday while down in Abq, same group Steve rode with last Easter. Friendly group, good tough ride out to Tijeras, around and back. Same mileage as our W. Fork/Fish Creek, but with 1000' more of climbing, and about 10* hotter - mid nineties when finished. Will take adavantage of this club ride in the winter!

Tuesday Eve Ride 8/26

There will be a Tuesday night ride leaving from Flanders Park at 5:45pm. Tuesday evening rides have been about two hours long. Hope to see everyone there!

Steve

Tuesday Eve Ride, 8/19

Hola Ciclistas,

There will be a ride Tues evening, leaving from Flanders Park in Dolores at 5:45pm today. We’re heading out to House Creek and back. Nothing too intense. Come out and enjoy the awesome summer evening!

Escalante Days!

I just wanted to give a big thanks to all the Ciclistas for the last year of riding with the club! A year ago my fitness was so poor that I did not ride in the Escalante Days race because I knew my time would be so slow on my geared bike in the sport class. This year I rode the Expert race on a single speed and feel I owe most of my improvement in the last year to riding with the club! When I joined the club at the end of last July, I suffered to finish the three hour rides we went on but by sticking with it and lots of encouragement from everyone I slowly improved my fitness so I could hang in. I owe everyone in the club a big thanks and especially Lance for helping me with my cadence, nutrition and some hill specific training we did this Spring to improve my weak climbing ability. The new enthusiasm for riding I got from riding with the club allowed me to ride my first twelve hour race this Spring and buy a single speed and ride it like I never would of thought possible before this year. I wish other people in the community would realize the benefits of riding with the experienced riders there are in the club as they could improve as much as I have just by being around you guys. Well the race itself did not go as I would of liked, as the rain the night before made the trail just slick enough in a few spots that I went down on a corner when I was out of the saddle and pedaling hard and my front tire broke loose and threw me down in some brush. When I got up, I knew I was bleeding pretty good from the side of my head and it felt like I pulled a groin muscle, but it was a race so you keep going. I gave what I had left and finished and then went straight to my truck to check my head and seen I had a good size flap of my ear hanging down. I headed to the ER where they cleaned me up and glued my ear back together. On Monday, I went and had my leg checked out as it hurt all day Sunday, and they told me I had a pulled hip flexor muscle so they taped up my leg and sent me on my way. If you ride long enough and hard enough, everyone goes down sometime, but mine always seems to happen when I don't want it to. Well, there is always next year! Well this story kind of dragged out longer than I thought it would, but I will see you guys on Sunday for the group ride and I am looking forward to another year of improving our fitness and riding skills!

Thanks Boys!
Steve