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Snelling Road Race
Saturday 23rd February, 2002
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Reports by:
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What Richard saw:
Category: 4
Result: Did not finish - flat.
[Tim wished us all luck the day before...]
Luck was something I could have done with at Snelling - I had a puncture after 2 laps, so that was that. Upon inspection, the cause was a thorn, not the bad pavement before the finish. There was really bad pavement for about 1.5 miles before the finish and prior to that there was a set of potholes as the road went through a farm.
As we (Cat 4's) went through the farm on the first lap, there were something like 6 riders from the preceeding Cat 3's already at the side of the road with flat tyres, not to mention a few errant waterbottles. And then we got to the really bad pavement. The first time through, I was on the right side and there were also flats on this stretch. The rider immediately in front of me saw too late that the edge of the road had been eaten by a pothole and tried to bunny-hop the gap. He didn't make it, and landed with his full body-weight on the rear wheel as it hit the lip of the hole - instant flat and that was the end of him.
The second time through the bumpy stretch, I saw two more flats. One guy was in the middle of the bunch and did exactly the right thing - he held his line and slipped backwards through the field. People were not paying attention and were shouting at him! Idiots.
So, to the race itself: Kent, PP and I were there and we lined up together near the front of the group for the promenade. The starter informed us of the bad pavement saying that those of us who didn't know it would know it when we found it (we did). The promenade to the circuit was uneventful, except for Kent asking "Are we there yet?" a couple of times.
As soon as we were on the circuit and given the signal to race, Kent went to the front and was soon leaving the bunch behind on a solo effort. A bit early to be doing that thinks I, but then again, having a team-mate up the road means that no work apart from blocking is required from the rest of the team. Kent worked up a reasonable lead into the wind on the outward leg of the circuit, and shortly after the feed-zone a group of 3 started to work its way across to him. Great thought I, if they can bridge to Kent, then he will get soem help and perhaps there is a chance that he will stay away for a significant time.
Unfortunately, the group was having none of this, and turning onto the downwind part of the course, the pace picked up significantly and once on the downhill section, the group and finally Kent were captured. Then we had the fun with the poor pavement and were able to scope out that the run to the finish from the final corner is uphill - Oooh, I like up-hill sprints I do...
Lap 2, and the bunch is brisk, but not too brisk and Kent tries again, this time not getting more than a few yards off the front. I found myself at the back of the bunch heading into the feed zone and a measure of how relaxed the pace was at that point was that I was able to move from the back to the front by having a small dig up the hill just after the feed. Shortly afterwards, we were passed by the 3-rider break of the Masters 1,2,3 race. They were seriously motoring and left us for dust.
We turned onto the downwind stretch and suddenly Kent was going very quickly backwards through the field. Not long afterwards, the chasers of the Masters came past. The pace picked up and picked up again in a serious way as the bunch of the Masters came past, complete with Garry hanging on for dear life at the back. Once they had finished passing us, some semblence of order was restored and it was onto the bad pavement again. Going through the finish, we pass Garry in a small group off the back of the Masters.
Heading out into the wind, the pace slowed right down and I felt the back end being soggy, but wasn't certain that I had a flat. The pace was so easy at that point that I thought I would stop and check to make certain, knowing that I could get back on easily. Sadly, I did have a flat. Garry went past asking which wheel did I I need, but his Campy 10 is incompatible with my Shimano 8, so that wasn't working.
That was my race. A bit frustrating and not the first puncture I have had when feeling OK in a race. I was far more relaxed about this one, probably because it happened so early on.
I turned round and headed back to the finish to watch the groups come through for a good while before getting a lift back to the race HQ, but not before I saw the Cat 5 bell-lap incident. I'll let Brian and Mike explain this one. Oh yes, watching the Velo-Promo van head off so stuffed with the victims of flat tyres that there were 3 riders standing on the back step clinging on to the outside of the van was memorable.
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What Kent saw:
Category: 4
Result: Did not finish
After reading about how everyone else did at the Snelling race, I guess it is my turn for a self flogging.
I did everything wrong in the cat 4 race and I paid dearly for it. I bonked at the end of the second lap. I was cruising very comfortably along side Richard to the start of the race. As soon as the motorcycle moved aside, another rider attacked. Instead of sitting back with my team riders, I got anxious and I responded to the first attack. But when I caught up to the rider he let up. At that point I looked back and noticed that there was a sizable gap between us and the pack. So I began to pace myself in an attempt to maintain the gap. I tried to enlist the other rider to paceline with me but he wasn't interested.
I was naive to think I could hold the gap by myself for the rest of the race. By the second lap, the pack had caught me and my heart rate had been above 90%. I knew I was in trouble. I moved to the rear of the pack in an attempt to recover. But when I got into that position, the pack accelerated and I was unable to respond. I dropped off the back of the pack towards the end of the second lap. As I reflect on my mistake, I realized that this was my first real road race. I assumed that my training rides were close to race pace. I am riding in the cat 4 group. And I did not ride as a team. Lots of lessons to be learned here.
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What Mike Z. saw:
Category: 5
Result: Top ten
The soon-to-be Infamous, Snelling Road Race, Cat 5 bell-lap incident.
As we neared the last 150 meters of the 3rd lap of a 4 lap race, suddenly Brian broke from the group and yelled something like, "C'mon Mike, let's go." Rather than yelling back, "What the f*** are you doing" as I should have, I followed him out. I thought that maybe he wanted to start a break. Apparently he thought we were on the last lap. We decided that this was probably due to the fact that the bike of one of our fellow racers had this annoying bell-like sound every time he shifted. Brian must have heard that on the preceding lap. Anyway, we sorted things out and gave the rest of the group a good chuckle to start the last lap. One fellow asked us if the race was over yet. I said we were just trying to get our picture taken.
The rest of the race went well for me. I stayed near the front and made my big move down the right side of the cobblestones going into the last corner. I came out of the corner in second place with only 200 meters to go to the finish. Since I had already sprinted at the end of the 3rd lap, my legs told me that I wasn't allowed to do it again and I watched seven other riders fly past me up the short finishing hill (I'm pretty sure it was only seven). So, I managed to come away with no flats and ninth place, I think.
Brian did not have as good of luck. On the last corner, he pulled out of his cleat and lost a lot of momentum. He too finished without a flat, but not without a lot of flack about his counting, math, etc. Oh, and not without his prime points on the 3rd lap.
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What Brian J. saw:
Category: 5
Result: Back of pack
Let me start with saying sorry Mike! I thought it was the final lap. I had watched my position made sure I stayed up front. Watching who was the strong riders and what I was going to do. I had even tossed a full water bottle away just to lighten my load for the sprint. When we came on the final straight away. I looked and said to myself hell, if I give it my all at the speed the guys are going I could pick Mike up on my wheel. I would give my all and blow-up and He could bring himself in the rest of the way and win. Sound like a good idea in my head. I will never forget the looks on everyone's faces as I came sprinting up. If they could only have seen my face when the bell rang. Didn't take me long to figure out I had f..ked up!!
I knew I was going to have to recover real quick and I managed to, but I knew I was going to be in some trouble, because of the wasted energy and I had thrown away a perfectly good "FULL" water bottle. Believe me this will not happen again!! So we are doing the FINAL LAP and I'm in the front with Mike and others feeling good. We are about to approach the back side where the wind is at our backs and the attacks take place. We had just turned to the right at the stop sign when everyone took off as I knew they would and I would need to be up in the front, but it didn't happen when I jumped up out of my saddle to hammer on the cranks. I decleated. I kept my balance, but lost my stroke which was just enough at that time to turn it into a catch-up. OUCH!
I knew the speed had picked up, because racers where getting laughed off the back. I saw the pack I just couldn't jump back on. I finished and I wasn't last. Smile!!
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What Garry saw:
Category: Masters 1/2/3
Result: Off the back
What I wonderful day to go racing, if only I could have done it justice. However, whatever personal goals where not met were more than compensated by the great team spirit and turnout.
I was unsure whether to race, I was fighting a throat infection all the week and the night before was the worse I had been. However all preparations had been made so I was sort of committed. Even if I had not raced I would have gone down there to lend a hand.
The day started off with a jolt. I did not hear my alarm but did hear my front door bell ring at 5:38, 8 minutes after Brian had been due to load me up and whisk us away. Bless him, he waited awhile before pressing the door bell. I appeared bleary eyed and in my robe. Not a pretty sight I'm sure. Brian loaded up and quickly we were on the road.
We got there really quick, less than 1 1/2 hours from my house. The parking lot was already full with still an hour before the first race of the day. I signed onto the Masters 35+ 1/2/3. The only riders I recognized where George from the WOT and Glen Winkle of USPS. We started off at a reasonable pace, I was having a great time. The two guys next to me where having an interesting conversation, one was saying how he thought that this year he could do better than his 9th at the worlds, and should be able to get onto the "box". It made me very aware of the quality of riders around me. Anyway, we were zooming along and I was in the top half of the 80 plus field, feeling good and thankful for no rain. The fast section was incredible, 35 to 40 mph and we were all strung out in a line. Then we hit the rough section and water bottles started flying. I was doing my Paris Roubaix thing, hands resting but not gripping, arms bent and butt hovering over the saddle, all the bumps being purged before they got upto my eyeballs. Up through the finish area and 4 to go, I was confident!
Then it got faster and faster. The cat 4's where ahead, attacks were going and at the back I was not feeling comfortable anymore. The fast section was screaming and I was hurting, the bumpy section was a haul down the right hand gutter and we flew by the 4's. No available energy to yell encouragement to Richard and Paul, but I did hear them shout good things to me. About two minutes later my personal elastic broke and that was it, into the garbage being strewed in the wake of the fast boyz. I kept it going, the 4's overtook me again, I latched onto a couple of guys who had been shelled out before me (that made me feel better) and we did the next 3 laps on our own. I saw Richard, forlornly beside the road with a flat rear tire. If it had been the front, I would have given him my wheel. He could have caught them back up, no problem.
It's a small world. I was wearing my new shorts, my UK club's team issue, sent over to me by my parents as a birthday present. These shorts have the word "Evans" written on them. One of the guys I ended up riding with was a Brit who had worked at Evans Bike shop 10 years ago. What's the odds of that happening?
Anyway, after the race we all swapped stories and had a good laugh at the day's misfortunes (numerical lap paralysis, flat tires, lone break syndrome, etc) and then got some food . All in all a great day out and our new boys did really well. Next year will really rock there world.
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What Carl saw:
Category: Masters 4/5
Result: Back of pack
I met up with Santiago and Alan in the parking lot prior to the race and then again at the line before the stroll to the course. This being my first road race in about 20 years I was on a mission to do some learning about who I'm racing with (relative strength of the field) and what tactics were going to be used.
The race began with Santiago and Alan near the front of the group and with me towards the rear, after the feed zone on the first lap the wind was on us and I was trying to figure out where to be (like Mike Z. said in his e-mail the right side was wrong). I managed to stay with the group waiting for the fast, wind at the back stretch that I had heard talked about in the parking lot that was good for +40 mph, when the group took that turn you were either on it or gone and unfortunately this is where Alan got dropped and then had a solo training ride.
As with the other groups the first time past the little farm house area with the pot-holes was exciting with a least 2 flats and a couple of water bottles skidding across the ground. The rest of the race was fairly uneventful with the group slowing into the wind and going hard at the hills especially on the ones on the back side and I would always see Santiago at or near the front looking strong. I stayed with the group, taking a couple of pulls at the front, until the last set of hills before the rough section on the last lap where I lost contact and just could not make up the ground on that rough pavement. I finished about about 30 seconds behind the group and found out that Santiago finished in about 7th in the sprint but would place at about 10th since there was a break away of 2 or 3 riders that finished ahead of the group.
It was a good race for me in that it had many lessons to teach and I finished the complete race with a personally respectable placing.
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What Santiago saw:
Category: Masters 4/5
Result: Mid-pack
What a BEAUTIFUL day out there..... after last years experience, this was a completely different race, sunny, warm and of course windy... but DRY.
As Carl says, it was a tricky race because you had to be ready for sudden changes of pace, specially going downwind, where we were changing from a 22-23 mph pace to 40mph, it was a great acceleration.
Well there I was, as usual, working at the front, pretty much it was the same group of about 6 guys in front all the time, with Carl making a couple of appearances, it was good to see you up there. Anyway, I was in a couple of failed break away, and on that 3rd one, I decided to stay because I didn't think it was going to be successful, but them a breakaway from the Pro/1/2 (mainly Mercury guys), came by and the Motorcycle and follow up car pushed us to the right and made us slow down while they went by, and then the chase group came, so after all this passing and slowing the three guys that went for the break, just disappear ahead of us, and never got to saw them again, also there was some confusion if they were ahead or not, so no actual chase was organized, at the end we found out that they only finish 1 min ahead of us. In any case, on the last lap the pace picked up and coming into the last turn there was a break of around 15 guys or so, and I managed to get 8 or so on the final sprint, so I'm not sure about my final place but it must had been anything between 11 and 13.
Nasty road, almost lost it on the last lap, when my left foot uncleated after hitting a couple of holes in a row, I managed to cleat back and staty with group.
Overall a good race.
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