IS A BLAST!!! Second early bird crit was today and I did a lot better. A couple of crashes in the women’s 4/jrs race, but far away from me. Full report up later…
I was a little worried about not liking it, but so far it’s a blast!
I am so not going to say anything other than, way to go, Cathy! Also, its awesome that you are starting early; hopefully you are staying at the front, riding hard tempo, and making and chasing breaks, rather than sitting-in the whole race (save the tactical racing for the few races or time of year you are focusing on). Enjoy.
Yeah, it was fun today, and good to meet you in person, Cathy. That race was FAST…can’t wait to see what all those CAT 4 women will be like later in the season. Good to see so many women out there!!
Damn, I feel like I have to go train now …
Keep the rubber side down.
Leigh
P.S: Can we get Nikki to wait until after the second lap to jump? (Just kidding! Congrats, Nikki, if you’re reading, you are awesome!)
That’s the way you get the hammer into your bike. Ride like roadies and then the triathletes be toasties. I look forward to reading your report. I love it when athletes can find others ways to keep their competitive spirit going throughout the offseason. Stay away from the road hazards and have fun.
Thanks Garth! I need to work on the starting and getting to the front part, but I was able to move around more today and rode one lap at the front, so that’s an improvement. I think we need a session on tactics and all that, but lots of folks still need to work on the basics.
And Leigh: Great to meet you today!
Good job ironclm. Keep us updated.
Cathy,
I did three of these races last year - and they can be fun - they can also be pretty sketchy. The first race was fine - it was fast, but I finished in the main pack, so no complaining. The second race, with three laps to go, I popped a spoke on my rear wheel - which only had 16 to begin with - and the wheel went wildly out of true. Of course, I didn’t realize this until after I finished the hardest three laps of my life - I thought I had just cracked and was pretty disappointed with myself until I realized the problem.
The final race I did was probably the most fun right up until 2 laps to go. I was in the main group, and we had just passed turn two and were doing a serious acceleration along the Kaiser Drive straightaway when someone a couple riders ahead of me bumped the guy next to him, who crossed his front wheel and went down taking about 10 or 15 other riders with him and breaking the pack up. I had to brake hard and swerve between a bike and some guy’s head to make it through upright. Needless to say, we could not catch up with the 10 or so riders that were in the front of the wreck, so I settled for another MOP finish.
re: tactics. Look for the flyers that they hand out at the race. Last year they offered a class on tactics up in Richmond. I didn’t go, but it looked pretty good.
Glad you could stay upright Cathy. I was at the Cal Aggie crit in Sac, and I warmed up watching the Mens 4/5 race. Those folks were just plain crazy. Three laps, three crashes.
If you ever do any races on a Saturday, come over and say Hi. I am one of the CSUS guys. Are you doing Patterson in two weeks?
Good luck this season.
Negative on Patterson RR. I was reminded yesterday of my Ironman preparation which needs to begin NOW, so I’ll be doing an Ironman preparation type ride that day.