Race: Mt Hamilton M45 3/4
No teammates in my race. Geno was in the E5 field.
Field: ~50
Results: http://usacycling.org/results/?permit=2012-1118
I got my warm up riding to the start which was at 9:20. It was chilly but once we started climbing it warmed up quickly. The first climb was not hard. After Grant Park the green bike guy went to the front and picked up the pace. I held on until the third climb about 20 minutes before the top. It’s too bad I did not push harder to keep with the lead pack. I started descending with one guy but he was taking it too slow. Another guy flew past us so I went faster but I never saw him again. So I was alone until the top of the small climbs after the big descent. Finally about 10 guys caught up to me so I was able to make good pace without blowing too much energy.
I had one hand on the bars fumbling in my pockets for food when I hit a hole and nearly crashed. Fortunately there was no one on my left because my bike skipped across the lane but I managed to regain control.
We had some rotation efforts but there were only a few of us working. After the Junction one guy pulled ahead about 100m. The pace was slow and we were not rotating. I decided to bridge the gap but the pack did not follow. After sitting on his wheel I moved up to pull but he did not keep up. Without really trying too hard I had put some good distance between him and the pack. We still had 20 miles to go but there was a big group ahead so they apparently were not concerned with working too hard. I felt good so I forged on at a strong pace passing lots of riders but all from other fields. I imagined this could have been a perfect break if it were not for the small group ahead of me! Finally I caught one from my group but he was too tired to work with me. With about 5 miles to go I picked up a cat 4 in my race. He had cramped so all he could do was hold my wheel. I did not mind and at the 200m to go I pulled ahead. Not sure how many were in the lead group but I heard it had shattered. I probably finished between 10-20th. It’s too bad I separated on the Mt Ham climb because I really felt good after that.
The ride back to Fremont was enjoyable too. I rode with a few people that were going all the way back to the start.
Bill
larry_nolan
nice one Bill! I wish I could have joined you.