Chico Stage Race feb27-mar1

Elite 3/4 field
Maxed out at 75 riders
No Teamies! 🙁

My mind is weary after 3 days of racing, not all will be correct, but I’ll try

Stage 1: Thunderhill circuit race 75min

I’m very familiar with this course as I used to race motorcycles here. 15 corners (really only 3 corners you have to ease up on the pedals for), check out the course map @ http://ridewithgps.com/routes/6664284. The uneasiness I felt through turn 14 on my motorcycle was justified as I had the same sensations on the bicycle (even now trusting the schwalbe’s). But I think I figured it out now, its more than 90′ coming off of a very fast straight, when its windy (like it was) the wind comes from the right but your coming out from behind a small protective hill so as you turn in and apex the wind hits you, and it leads to t15 which is less than 90′ going onto the finish straight so you want to go through t14 as fast as possible! Fun spot #1 is what locals call the cyclone (reminiscent of laguna’s corkscrew) a complex of a right hand arc uphill to a narrow left immediately dropping downhill to the right making up t5. This uphill you could carry speed into and didn’t hurt so much unless at the back of the pack. Fun spot #2 was a stretch between t9 & t10, long uphill grind that got steeper at the top. Total elevation gain was 2k ft in 31 miles, stats I’m not used too.
The race was delayed at the start line (so we’re all baking in the sun) due to a flat from 1 rider and mechanical from another. We finally did get going and in t1 people were getting squirrely (hazards of having to much road, mixed field might have something to do with it as well). Of course breaks start trying to go up the road. Eventually there’s riders from 2 well supported teams up the road and their teamies are controlling the pace. I jump and bridge across to make a group of 4 (starting to see the same people in these breaks). We work well together and I’m able to take fast pulls on the flats but its obvious I’m weaker going uphill. I decide with 3 stages to go still that I’ll take my chances with a field sprint and go back to the pack. Laps tick off. Break still up the road. Did I make the right choice? As if it was a choice. I was suffering on the inclines! I go to the front to try and help bring the gap down. Pull where I’m strong and let the pack take me up the hills while trying to save for sprint. We start closing but in the final laps their still up there. Finally we pull them back enough to kill their spirit and one by one they come back, all except one. He stayed out there until t15 on the final lap when he was caught. The run in. I knew with the wind I wanted to be on the left side on the back straight but the right side on the finish straight. I moved up to the top 10ish around t14 and tried to get to the inside between 14 and 15 but someone was there, crap. Now stuck in the middle I was looking for any opportunity to find a hole and stay in the race. Every time I thought I saw and opening and jumped into it the gap closed, wasted effort. I almost wiped out my front wheel when a rider to my front left and I came together, the twang of spokes at 30mph is never something you want to hear. Finally the gap I needed opened and I shot through. Just a little late as another rider opened up his sprint so I had to close a 15ft gap. 3 of us drag raced to the line. I stayed to the right as planned but all the wasted jumps into gaps earlier had taken their toll. Finished 2nd 1/2 bike length behind the leader and a wheel width in front of 3rd. No yellow jersey. I justified it by telling myself I didn’t want the yellow going into the road race because I had no teammates to help protect it and there were lots of teams that wanted it. Lies.

Final stats: 31miles, 1:14 duration, 25.5avg, 36mph sprint, 2nd in GC due to time bonus

Stage 2: Paskenta RR 2laps for 90miles

This one had me worried. Hills, 5miles of gravel, no coffee or restroom stops, oh my! Typical lower category RR start. Slow and uncontrolled. But I’m not going to do anything about it! Maybe try and break on 2nd lap after gravel was the plan, or just hope to make the selection. Couple early breaks tried to go, they were either hung out to suffer or brought back quickly. It took a long time to move up through the pack starting at the back with only 1 lane to work in. Some people were exercising their gravel skills early on the side of the road to move up. Pace picked up dramatically a couple miles from the gravel and when we hit the gravel it was mayhem! It had rained the night before and we were all hopeful for a little hard pack. It was quite the opposite. Dry and loose. I maintained decent position through that section. Almost washed the front a few times. Cringed at the sound of gravel and garmin 800 sized rocks bouncing off of carbon bikes and wheels. Survived the gravel and following climbs and was feeling pretty good about the stage at that point. Then the talk of peeing started. Crap. We’re only 30miles into a 90 mile race. I attempted to move up to take care of business and then the pace picked up. Argh! At about 5k to go to the line on the first lap I was following wheels when disaster struck. I hit a pot hole hard and my rear wheel went down. So ticked off! Here I am feeling good about the stage I was most worried about, and circumstances out of my control take away any hopes for overall GC. I pull over and get the wheel off. I see the sag in the distance pacing a couple limitless juniors (funny, cuz the sag wagon was limitless parents) so I start waving my wheel in the air. They didn’t see me because they stopped and turned around. I’m cursing now. I take the opportunity to eat and evacuate the bladder. Finally they come back around the corner. I start waving again, yes! they see me! they speed around the group they’re following. I get my spare wheel and put it on. Then for some reason I listen to another from my group who has a flat complain about how the sag is helping their kids. He didn’t put wheels in(wheels in/wheels out, not neutral support), screwed. 6min on the side of the road. I race to the finish line and ask officials what protocol is. Finish race within time cut, another minute lost. Off I go, 1:50 in. TT mode. I start catching other people who have fallen off the group and tell them to sit in. I don’t ask for help, I don’t want it now, but maybe later. None stay with my pace. So much for help later. Finally after being solo for over an hour, it takes me a while to pull in another rider up the road, but when I get to him he grabs on and shortly pulls through. Finally, company. We don’t talk, just work. Eventually we start to see a group up the road. Could that be them? Wishful thinking. Closing, closing, uh-oh, legs are starting to complain. My partner starts to pull away. He sits up when he realizes and I tell him I have to ease up slightly. He obliges. Still closing on the group, I fall deeper into the pain cave. We’ve been together for almost and hour now. Within 100m of the group I tell him to go because I can tell he wants to get there. I do too. He bridges and I TT slowly to them. Just as I get there to realize they’re not part of our group they pick up the pace and I fall back again. I cross the finish under 12min back of the winner. Oh if I’d gotten that wheel faster. Hindsight, I probably should have just finished in the time cut. TT is the next morning and I didn’t help myself by chasing so hard.

Final stats: 90miles, 4:16duration, 21.7avg, 5400ft, 46th GC 11:49back

Stage 3: River road TT 10.5mile point to point

Final day. I get up pondering what and how much to eat. Should I pack up the hotel now or later. I basically waste too much time. I get to the warm up location behind my preferred schedule and start prepping. Only get about 15min of warm up in. I ride to the start line .25miles away and find my position. Find my gearing. Foot down start. Why? All TT starts should be held! Anyway, off I go, probably to hard. I try to settle into a power. There’s a slight headwind on the way to the first turn, but I maintain good speed fading slightly but catching my minute man (we were started every 30seconds). Make the turn and see my 2.5 minute man up the road. For some reason the middle leg of my run was slower but power was same or higher. I catch all 3 riders and make the turn onto the final leg. Tailwind now. Speed goes back up. One more catch over a bridge. 3k to go, turn it up, 1k to go, full gas, across the finish. 23:50. Not impressed but the best I could manage. Maybe pancake flat isn’t for me (and over 2hrs in z4 chasing the day prior).

Final stats: 10.5miles, 23:50duration, 26avg, 273w, 88rpm, 9th on the stage 1:31back, 37th GC 12:52back

Stage 4: Downtown Crit 50min

Well, I didn’t win the TT and all I can do now is go for crit stage win. I had watched Mike L in the 4/5 race and knew I had to stay near the front. With the wind and technical nature of the L shaped course, being at the back was not going to be good. I also knew with the finish 100m after the final turn, it was a race to the turn not the line. Race sets off as expected, GC battles and stage battle. I stayed near the front as planned but made sure not to do any unnecessary work. Prime bell rang for 100$. Bang! Into action. Need to recoup something this weekend! Tieni Duro rider Drew (overall GC winner) happened to be making his move at the same time (he was down on time going into crit). I bridged to him and let him take me to the line where I sprinted to the line, $ in the bank. Eased up after sprint and Drew said “its just us”. It was not in my plan at all to break away at this stage. I rolled through t1 and he came past in t2. I let him go (Mike Hernandez told me later he was disappointed to see me do that) and watched 2 bridge to him as I went to the pack. Guess I should have stayed with him because the 3 of them worked to hold a gap of 16 seconds. A crash on the pin-ultimate lap stopped the field on the bell lap. We were restarted with 2 to go, break 50m in front of us plus 16seconds? I got a good start and stayed near the front again not doing any work and letting GC’s try to pull back the break. As planned, on the final lap, with the break up the road, I went through the final turn first. Then a brain fart, is this it? I got to the turn too easy. I accelerated out of the turn but didn’t sprint. I looked at the digital lap board, it read 0, but I still questioned it. A Davis rider pipped me at the line. I’m a dummy. Oh well. Break finished 24 second up, a break I could have just sat in on and not participated. I’m a dummy.

Final stats: 22.5miles, 53min, 25.5avg, 38.5mph sprint, 5th on stage, 36th GC 12:58 back

Final thoughts: This was awesome! Mechanicals suck! I need to be smarter. I should have conserved more after flatting as the TT was of great importance to me and this year. If I’m going to come out of a break it better be because I HAVE too! Protect my front wheel, a crash day 1 would have put me in an even worse mood than flatting day 2. I’ll be back!