Category: A
Result: Back of pack

Pritpal and I were racing in the A's at the track this evening. Tonight we had the Keirin as out final event, something I hadn't done before, so I was looking forward racing this for the first time.

First up however was a short scratch race. Daniel Holloway, Pritpal and one other went off the front and I tried to block when I could, but PP was dropped from the leaders. I then did a couple of good digs at the front trying to get away but the rest were not letting me go. It was nice to have that effect on the A's.

Second for us was a 30 lap points race. Again, a group got clear and I was one of the protagonists forcing the pace at various times. It was fun and I was basically using the race as interval training.

Third for us was a miss and out where I wasn't first to be pulled, and then we were onto the Keirin. In the Keirin, the riders go from a standing start and are motor-paced for a number of laps (4 in our case) whilst the moto picks up speed. In a change to the rules for this year, the moto now accelerates to 50 km/h (31 mph) which really launches the riders into the final 2 laps.

As you might expect, there is a lot of jockeying for wheels, of the moto and the good riders in the race. Contact is not uncommon, and there was certainly some of that in the heat I was in. In his heat, Pritpal got onto the moto though he was unable to contest the sprint. In my heat, I was near the back and was therefore able to observe the bumping which was going on, though I didn't ride a good race. Still, it was fun and I was still upright at the end.

Another fun evening at the track.

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