Reports by:

• Brad
• Richard

Category: C
Result: Mid-pack

Will cut to the chase....my only points placing for the evening was a 4th (out of 12) in the 200meter sprint. I was way tired tonight, clearly suffering from the effects of doing a triple workout yesterday....Palomares loop (34 miles), 1 1/2hrs of weight lifting, and Captain Birch's delightful little sprint workout over at Eureka circle. C u all on Saturday!

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Category: A
Result: Mid-pack

Three-quarters of the usual suspects were at the track this evening, PP, BB and yours truly. I am still exercised by the choice of gear, but decided to stick with 50x15 for at least a few more evenings before trying 51x15.

The warm-up was good and towards the end, PP and I did a couple of jumps. There were enough women for there to be a separate women's group with 9 riders. Two others rode in the B group instead.

Notable riders were Daniel Holloway and Dave McCook in the A group - McCook rode for Prime Alliance last year and really knows how to ride a bicycle very quickly. He also has great handling skills and moved through the A bunch almost effortlessly - impressive. Last, but not least, Paul Mircik must be mentioned as has gives me someone bigger than I am to draft. After one event, Paul accused me of being a "wheel-sucking bastard." Er, "Guilty as charged, your honour."

The racing this evening was quick. I was pleased in that in 3 of our 4 events, I was able to hang in there and at least be capable of keeping up with the sprints. Our 10 lap snowball was impressive - it started out fast and just got quicker and quicker. The win-and-out had a nice rhythm to it with attacks and counter-attacks.

The final race was a shortened (due to time) points race of 30 laps. I was worked hard in this, but even had enough to have a dig with 12 laps to go to do a breakaway. Much to my surprise, I got a group of 5 off the front and we contested the sprint at 10 to go. I was almost tailed by them, but got back on only for them to sit up and decide to wait for the rest of the bunch. It was fun to realise that I was the catalyst for the move.

I spoke with Sally Wilson of the Club about the criterium and mentioned that I was phoning her late as I had been racing at the track. She expressed interest in spectating at one of the Friday night race meetings where there should be a commentator and there will be money on the line. Maybe she can get a contingent from the Club to cheer us on?

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