I almost won a race this weekend. ALMOST. And if you were to ask me what I would have done differently during the race or in those last few hundred meters I would tell you: nothing. Nothing! I did exactly what I needed to do to give myself the opportunity to win and the bottom line was simply that I got beat to the line. Sadly for me, my “twitch” seems to be getting even slower- a sign of the times I suppose. But even on my best day BACK in the day, I was not know for my flashy finish. BUT. I did hang on for second and that can be called a good result. I“ll take it.
Combined with the Thursday night training race, the 63 or so miles I did on Sunday raised my weekly hours to…….. 5! And I’m not telling you that as an excuse for not being able to close the deal, or because I’m high and mighty about being able to go out and race on the weekends and still be able to mix it up in the 1/2 fields- which REALLY takes it out of me and takes me usually until Wednesday of the following week to start feeling like I can ride again (sad)- I’m telling you this because it’s a good example of using ones experience, tactical sense, limited fitness, as well as a healthy dose of lucky to score in road race- and a challenging road race at that. So here it is.
This weekend was an omnium event that included two road races. The state road race championships was on Saturday and the Longbranch road race was on Sunday. In an omnium, you can race one or all of the events to earn points for the overall and you can also earn money and or prizes for the individual races. I chose to race only on Saturday for personal reasons….. I wanted to type that, step back and then read it. “Personal reasons” sounds really corny to me. I picked my wife up at the airport at about the same time as the race on Saturday and since she had been out of town all week I chose to see her over riding around in the rain for 95 miles. Of course I had made the decision long before I knew it was going to rain, but it was nice to know I wasn’t missing anything either. I will also mention that as of late last week, I have decided to no longer race in the cold Spring rain or even in the rain in general, simply…… because I do not like it. And since I am supposed to be having fun, I am going to avoid riding in un-fun conditions. However, if it should rain after the start, will not drop out. I do not count cyclo cross in this due to its 1 hour or less race length and that fact that part of the FUN is racing in the wet and mud. We shall see, because I have been threatening to race cross for 5 years now….. BUT, I am pretty sure that THIS is the year.
I woke up to sunny skies on Sunday and I was G’d to go to a race. Richter finished 3rd on Saturday and was sitting in a good spot for a chance to win the omnium. He would need to win the 63 or so mile race in order to do so, but the finish was one that really suited his style and simply put, Richter is one of the
fastest guys around. And not only that, he is one of the most experienced guys around AND he is pretty much in shape all of the time. Our plan for the race was pretty straight forward: keep it together so Richter could take a shot at the win via a group kick. AND, if one of us found ourselves in the early move or a move in general, sit and wait for Dave, so that when he did show up we would be able to give him a hand at covering moves and leading it out in the final. The Longbranch course is tough enough that a group usually gets away. One did last year, and I was in it, so was Richter and it went EARLY. REALLY early. I was not very excited to find myself in the move that stayed out all day because at the time I was riding much less than I am now. I was shattered by the end of the race and did everything I could to stay in front of the field to the finish . This year I am in much better shape and the training I did over the winter seems to be serving me well for the most part.
This year the break do not go early, it went INSTANTLY. I think it’s safe to say it went in the first 5 minutes. And I would bet most of the time that a move that early would not stick, BUT we needed to have a guy in the early move and I happened to be in the right place at the right time and decided to roll. It wasn’t long before things got sorted and a group of 8 were off and really rolling on the first of 7 laps on a twisty turny loop with a nasty kicker and a few other choice rollers. I helped to get the group established once I was sure that we had a gap and that no one else was coming across but as soon as I heard 2:30 to the field, I pulled the pin and played my card: sitting on and waiting. I was sure Richter would find himself into a small group that would ride across the gap but……. the gap kept growing and growing and there was no sign of anyone. Yikes. If in fact this group held it together, I would have to step up and try to finish the deal. And since I was the guy who was sitting on, it would make sense that I/we would be the “freshest” when it got down to the last few k’s. NOT what I was hoping for. I was hoping we would get caught because quite simply, I was not confident in my form- confident enough to stay with the group maybe but not so much if it came down to a group kick. There was a team that had 2 riders in the break- a strong team and strong riders and one of those riders was also siting on with me- smart. He knew what I was doing. I don’t think he knew that I was not that on about 5 hours a week of riding. WHATEVER. I knew that if we did not get caught by the chasing field, I would have to deal with this guy.
On the last lap there were seven of us. 1 of the original had been dropped and we were joined by one another who had dug deep to make it across (nice!) Four of the break had been riding hard all day and were getting tired for sure. The gap was coming down and little attacks were starting to happen. I was quick to respond to the attacks, especially the ones from the team with two riders who were definitely testing the waters. I ended up in a few small groups but was going to hold my cards until I was SURE that Richter was not going to make it up to the break. With a half a lap to go I knew it was on me- we were not getting caught. And I knew exactly where I was going to make a huge dig to try and get away. If I did not get away, the back up plan was…… I had no back up.
The last hard kicker was in the feed zone and that is where I punched it. The gap opened up quick and my partner in crime- the gent who had also been sitting on for most of the day, was not far behind. 5k was a long way for me to go it alone, but I would have been happy to try. Turns out I did not have the option. The two of us were GONE and gone quick. All I had to do now was unload a good sprint and take the W. GREAT idea. Turns out I simply could not get it done. I ended up leading it out- which I prefer really, but I could not hold off the other guy. I thought about what I could have done to keep him from coming around me, short of hooking him, but there really wasn’t much. Even on my best day BACK in the day, my kick to the line was not so flashy. And it seems as though it has gotten less explosive with time. I did a scheduled sprint workout in 2006……. maybe I should think about adding one in the next few weeks as crit season is around the corner.
I almost won this weekend, and next weekend I might have the opportunity again.
I played the card I had on Sunday and it almost payed off. Some might say that sitting on a breakaway all day is not very honorable but I did what I needed to do to try and win and if I had to do it over, even if I were training 20 hours a week I would played the same card- though sad to say it might have ended up the same way! The team had a plan and we executed. Turns out the best plans do not often work out in bike racing.
That being said, I turn FORTY tomorrow. OH my.
TH
