Hey all,
Sorry not to have updated sooner, but I haven't had time to sit and write this for a while!!
Stage 3 of the Ras de Cymru was a tough 20 mile circuit that we covered 3 times, including one brutal climb that kicked to 20% at the top. The weather was awful with rain for the first 50 miles of the race, which made the long fast descent a bit tricky. The race started fast and I tried to stay up near the front and managed to stay with the main group after the first ascent of the hill. A 4 man breakaway soon went up the road and quickly established a solid lead over the main field, despite the hard work being done by the strong teams at the front. Second time up the climb I got distanced by about 200 metres at the top and had to use everything I had to get back on and work my way through the cars to the back of the peleton, luckily when descending on your own you can afford to take more risks and they paid off as I reached the rear of the bunch just as it flattened out, we then went full gas for the next 3-4 miles and I was really blowing, and knew I needed to recover before the final time up the climb... I couldn't, I got shot out the back and soon found myself in a 7-man chaingang of riders, we pushed so hard and in the last half hour of the race, I dug deeper than ever before and we managed to limit our losses to the fast moving bunch to under 1m30, a bloody good effort considering how 'on the limit' we all were! The stage was won by the breakaway, and Alex Peters of Eastern Region took the win, Mike and Henry managed to finish at the back of the main bunch so moved up to 42 and 47 respectively on the GC, I however had dropped to 54th, and the team were in 15th after stage 3. We hoped to make up some time with a good Team Time Trial in the afternoon.
The TTT was awful... We finished 2 minutes down on the winners, and all dropped places in the GC.
Stage 5 was the place to make up time on a tough hilly place to place course, it started with a long drag that never seemed to end, and at one point I found myself in a front group of about 20 riders and we had opened up a gap, however the chasing group caught us on the flat and the race came back together. The high pace though meant that riders were being shot out the back the whole way up the long climb. I felt good and fairly comfortable in the front group. A large break soon went up the road and pulled out around 2 minutes, the bunch contained defending champion Mike Smith of Team Corley. Adeo Cadence worked hard pulling the bunch along at a fast rate to look after the interests of Tavis Walker, however the break maintained their gap over the rest of the course, even though along a 10 mile stretch of flat dual carriageway, the bunch didn't slow much below 30mph for the whole stretch of road. We soon jumped off the DC and before long we were on the final run in and at the foot of the sharp climb to the finish, I was near the front and when Liam Stones of Corley Cycles attacked, I followed his wheel, but he was too strong and halfway up the climb I slipped backwards, and managed to finish just at the back of the front group. A succesful day in the saddle with Mike and Henry working hard to stay in the front group too, we jumped several teams in the Team GC and moved to 11th, we were all ecstatic. We all moved up in the GC too, I moved to 43rd and Henry/Mike were joint 38th on the exact same time after 5 stages!
Finally we had reached the last day of the race, stage 6 was a flattish course for most of the day with a long 4 mile climb to the finish. Nothing much happened in the run up to the foot of the mountain, although Nick Hinze had a breakthrough and found himself attacking off the front at one point, great to see him up there having suffered in the previous days. We hit the climb at pace and the sharp kick at the bottom split the group right up, I tried to stay in the wheel of Mike Betts, but he proved too strong and halfway up I cracked... ended up rolling in 55th on the day, with Nick Hinze doing a storming ride to finish ahead of me. We ended up consolidating 11th place on team GC, a great success. I finished 41st, Henry P 36th and Mike 32nd. Nick managed to move up to 79th, a respectable placing having worked his ass off for 5 days! Chapeau everyone. The stage was won by Mike Smith, who in turn took the General Classification for the 2nd year running!! Well done Mike. Brennan Townshend ended up 2nd, a great race from a young rider, definately a name to look for in the future. Third place went to Gruff Lewis. Adeo Cadence took the team standings, deservedly so, having ridden at the front for most of the 5 days.
All 4 Zappi riders left the race feeling happy with how we'd done, and raring to get back next year stronger and faster, ready to contend the GC and stage wins!
When I got back from the Ras I rested for a couple of days then did a 10 mile TT on the Wednesday, not a good idea. The position was all wrong on my new Cervelo P3, horridly uncomfortable... This coupled with my legs still feeling heavy meant I was over a minute down on my course best on the F11/10, only managing 21.38. Not a bad time, but I was bitterly dissapointed as I was hoping to get close to 19 minutes. Nevermind.
Yesterday I raced at Portsmouth, broke away multiple times, never stayed away, felt super strong and ended up taking 6th in the sprint. Today was a very wet 11.4 mile hilly time trial and I did no warm up, just sat in the car until my number was called! Managed to take the win by 1 second... not too bad!!
Next up is the H10/17R 10 mile TT on Saturday, followed by the Bath RC Junior Road Race as part of the national series on Sunday.
Until next time.
Ciao.
Thursday, 21 July 2011
Thursday, 7 July 2011
Ras de Cymru - Stages 1 & 2
Good evening bloggers!!
This week has finally brough about the much anticipated Ras de Cymru 2011, promoted by Cadence Cycle Racing. I was coming into the race on the back of some good form, having smashed my 10 mile TT pb with 20:36, winning the sprint at the MK Bowl, and riding hard and fast in the Stratford CC Road Race. I felt strong and was aiming to finish in the top half of overall GC, with it being my first stage race.
The Zappi's team consisted of Mike Betts, Henry Peacock, Nick Hinze, and me Henry Latimer. We arrived into a wet, overcast Wales early on Wednesday morning for the race briefing before the prologue TT in the afternoon feeling motivated, strong and raring to go!! The prologue was a hilly 6.9k course with a 1km climb to the finish. The early pace was set by Tavis Walker of Adeo Cadence RT with a rapid time of 11:31, which we later found out would stand as the winning time for the day, conditions began to worsen as the Zappi's start times were looming and the rain began to come down, nevertheless we all recorded respectable times, Nick Hinze coming in 83rd of 102, in a time of 13:29, Mike Betts taking 80th in 13:25, Henry Peacock snuck inside the top 50 with a time of 13:00, and I came 42nd in 12:54. Personally very happy with my start to the Ras, and hoping to come good as the race went on. Tavis Walker managed to gain 19 seconds on defending champion Mike Smith of Corley Cycles to take the yellow jersey going in to stage two.
Stage 2 was to be a 51 mile hilly road stage, starting in warm but overcast conditions, the race saw an early break of 5 gain 2 minutes on the main field, and despite the hardworking Adeo Cadence Road Team pulling the bunch along at over 30mph, the main field gained little time on the break and those 5 riders managed to stay away with Steve Calland of South Downs Bikes taking the win on the final climb to the finish by 5 seconds of Jamie Howard (Team South West), who in turn took the yellow jersey from Tavis Walker who rolled in with the main field, leaving him 1:39 off the pace in the General Classification. As for my ride, I felt strong in the race but stayed well hidden in the bunch, the race started quickly with the first 3 laps avergaing over 26mph, once it was clear the break had gone for good, the race became less frantic but the pace remained high, I rolled in with the main bunch over 2 minutes down on the stage winner, with Mike Betts riding a strong race finishing at the front of the main field, and Henry Peacock alongside me in the bunch. Nick Hinze had unfortunately lost contact with the race due to the frantic early pace setting by Adeo Cadence, and rolled in having ridden a 50 mile TT on his own, he managed to limit his losses by riding strongly and only losing 25 minutes on the main bunch. The results of todays stage mean that I am now sitting in 39th on GC, with Henry P in 45th, Mike in 62nd and Nick in 95th. The team have also moved up to 17th out of 27 on the team classification, which is currently being led by Team South West, closely followed by Corley Cycles.
Tomorrow sees us race another hilly road stage in the morning with a brutal climb in the middle, followed by a TTT in the afternoon, so it's time for bed now to rest up ready for a tough day tomorrow!!
Follow the results on the Cadence Cycle Racing website.
Ciao.
This week has finally brough about the much anticipated Ras de Cymru 2011, promoted by Cadence Cycle Racing. I was coming into the race on the back of some good form, having smashed my 10 mile TT pb with 20:36, winning the sprint at the MK Bowl, and riding hard and fast in the Stratford CC Road Race. I felt strong and was aiming to finish in the top half of overall GC, with it being my first stage race.
The Zappi's team consisted of Mike Betts, Henry Peacock, Nick Hinze, and me Henry Latimer. We arrived into a wet, overcast Wales early on Wednesday morning for the race briefing before the prologue TT in the afternoon feeling motivated, strong and raring to go!! The prologue was a hilly 6.9k course with a 1km climb to the finish. The early pace was set by Tavis Walker of Adeo Cadence RT with a rapid time of 11:31, which we later found out would stand as the winning time for the day, conditions began to worsen as the Zappi's start times were looming and the rain began to come down, nevertheless we all recorded respectable times, Nick Hinze coming in 83rd of 102, in a time of 13:29, Mike Betts taking 80th in 13:25, Henry Peacock snuck inside the top 50 with a time of 13:00, and I came 42nd in 12:54. Personally very happy with my start to the Ras, and hoping to come good as the race went on. Tavis Walker managed to gain 19 seconds on defending champion Mike Smith of Corley Cycles to take the yellow jersey going in to stage two.
Stage 2 was to be a 51 mile hilly road stage, starting in warm but overcast conditions, the race saw an early break of 5 gain 2 minutes on the main field, and despite the hardworking Adeo Cadence Road Team pulling the bunch along at over 30mph, the main field gained little time on the break and those 5 riders managed to stay away with Steve Calland of South Downs Bikes taking the win on the final climb to the finish by 5 seconds of Jamie Howard (Team South West), who in turn took the yellow jersey from Tavis Walker who rolled in with the main field, leaving him 1:39 off the pace in the General Classification. As for my ride, I felt strong in the race but stayed well hidden in the bunch, the race started quickly with the first 3 laps avergaing over 26mph, once it was clear the break had gone for good, the race became less frantic but the pace remained high, I rolled in with the main bunch over 2 minutes down on the stage winner, with Mike Betts riding a strong race finishing at the front of the main field, and Henry Peacock alongside me in the bunch. Nick Hinze had unfortunately lost contact with the race due to the frantic early pace setting by Adeo Cadence, and rolled in having ridden a 50 mile TT on his own, he managed to limit his losses by riding strongly and only losing 25 minutes on the main bunch. The results of todays stage mean that I am now sitting in 39th on GC, with Henry P in 45th, Mike in 62nd and Nick in 95th. The team have also moved up to 17th out of 27 on the team classification, which is currently being led by Team South West, closely followed by Corley Cycles.
Tomorrow sees us race another hilly road stage in the morning with a brutal climb in the middle, followed by a TTT in the afternoon, so it's time for bed now to rest up ready for a tough day tomorrow!!
Follow the results on the Cadence Cycle Racing website.
Ciao.
Friday, 10 June 2011
RTTC Junior National 25 Mile Time Trial Championship
So last weekend was the big one, the National 25!! My favourite distance, I was in the form of my life, and feeling more motivated than ever before!! The event was held in Holsworthy, Devon, and we were staying in a Travelodge in Okehampton. I was travelling down with my team-mate Cameron Foster and his parents, we drove down early Saturday morning and arrived in Devon around Midday. A quick drive down one leg of the course and we were ready to go and reccy the course!!
Cameron and I got changed, sorted the bikes out, training wheels in and we were on the road! The course started in Holsworthy town centre, descended under a bridge and out of town before a sharp left hander onto the main road for the course. This section was to be closed off to traffic on Sunday, so could be taken quickly and safely!! Once on the main road there was a sharp climb right away, followed by various up and down sections along both the outward and return legs of the course. Not a flat section in sight... There were some very fast downhill sections with a couple of sweeping bends that you could carry your speed through. We finished our ride and both felt pretty good about the course, it suited us with its sporting profile. We were now ready for the big one!!
Cameron and I got changed, sorted the bikes out, training wheels in and we were on the road! The course started in Holsworthy town centre, descended under a bridge and out of town before a sharp left hander onto the main road for the course. This section was to be closed off to traffic on Sunday, so could be taken quickly and safely!! Once on the main road there was a sharp climb right away, followed by various up and down sections along both the outward and return legs of the course. Not a flat section in sight... There were some very fast downhill sections with a couple of sweeping bends that you could carry your speed through. We finished our ride and both felt pretty good about the course, it suited us with its sporting profile. We were now ready for the big one!!
Cameron & I riding the course!
We woke up Sunday morning feeling refreshed, strong, and up for it! We arrived at Race HQ nice and early to leave plenty of time, but before long we were changed and warming up! My warm up consisted of 20 minutes steady on the turbo with a couple of sprints to get the blood lactate up to threshold. Cam was off 4 minutes before me so we made our way to the town centre in good time, saw the closed roads, the start ramp, and the riders being sent on their way!! It looked amazing, like something out of the Tour de France!! Cameron was soon off and he sprinted off the ramp at top speed. Then a couple of minutes later I was up...
Ready on the ramp!!
I was set off down the ramp and was greeted by a cheer from the crowd, this got the blood pumping and I pelted down the closed road section and took the sharp left hander at speed!! Then it went up... I powered up the short climb to applause from the spectators at the top of the hill. I pelted along the rest of the course at completely inconsistent speeds, this reflected the profile of the course. I got to the turn in fairly good time and could see I was gaining on a few riders, I continued to power back towards the finish and despite my visor continually steaming up due to the rain in the air, I remained focussed and managed to push hard in the final few miles, catching 5 riders in the last 5 miles. The final push for the line, and then it was over, I pootled back to HQ and after sorting everything out I went in and the results were up... 11th. Damn. My aim was to break into the top 10, and I had missed out by around 30 seconds to Mike Barnes of ColourTech RT. Nevermind, a good result nonetheless! My time was 1:00:58, a good 4 minutes off my PB for a 25, but not a bad time for the course, Cameron completed the course in 1:02:44, another good time and a great showing from the Zappi's!!
The event was won by National 10 champion Ryan Mullen of Planet-X, a clean sweep for Mullen this year, at only 16 years of age, definately one to watch in the future!! Oli Rossi from PCA Ciclos Unos came second with Luke Grivell-Mellor topping off the podium for the Mid Shropshire Wheelers. The womens event was won by hot favourite Julia Shaw of Drag2Zero.com, but a fantastic ride by team-mate Chrissy Radon meant that the Zappi's were on the podium in 2nd place! Well done Chrissy!! Michael Hutchinson won the mens event, despite a mechanical whilst riding, a testimony to how powerful a rider he is!!
Here are a few pictures of my ride:
A great success in my opinion, for now I am more than happy with 11th place at nationals, and I am now focussing on getting good results in road races and bring down my 10 and 25 mile TT times!!
Since the Nat 25 I have done a couple of club time trials and came 2nd in both, form is still here, now to bring in some points in the bunch racing!!
Thanks for reading!!
Ciao.
Wednesday, 1 June 2011
Midweek Stuff.
Since my last blog I have done 1 local club time trial, and 2 midweek crits.
Last Thursday was the Didcot Phoenix 10 mile club time trial, the weather wasn't great, fairly windy and rain was in the air. It did however stay dry for the race itself and the 18 riders who had braved the weather were pleasantly surprised that it turned out to be a fairly fast night. The course was a single carriageway course containing no less than 11 roundabouts... But by no means a slow course. I ended up winning the event in a time of 22.04, only 3 seconds off my pb, and this on a much slower course, so things are looking good for when I get back on a quick course!! My winning margin for Thursday... 53 seconds put into 2nd placed Alan Alcock of Didcot Phoenix who record 22.57.
I had a weekend off racing last weekend, playing cricket instead for my local team, not a bad weekend, scored 93 runs, nearly a century!!
Back to cycling, on Monday I went to Ludgershall for the cat 3/4 race. The track was covered in muck, flints and looked wet!! The race started fairly fast and I felt strong, always staying up near the front of the pack. After 30 minutes I discovere my front wheel had punctured, I quickly stopped to put in my spare and was back in after a lap out. The race was still fast but my legs felt good and going into the final lap I was well placed behind team-mate Chris Boote who was there to lead me out, then disaster, at the start of the final lap I felt my back wheel go down, a puncture, but I couldn't bring myself to stop when in such a good position. I was completely blowing and was deep into the red, I kept pushing on behind Chris, but could simply not compete in the sprint, we both finished outside the top 10, I rolled in 17th, still in the top half of the bunch, not bad on a flat tyre... Team-mate Andy Mckay took a brilliant 4th place in the sprint. Overall I was happy with my positioning and strength in the race, and felt good for a top-3 finish, but bad luck at the wrong time put paid to that. Ludgershall, not a track I will be returning to any time soon!!
Finally, this evening I travelled to the Eelmore for another 3/4 criterium race. Conditions were good and the race started fast, remained fast and finished fast. But once again I felt strong and followed a few attacks off the front, but nothing stayed away due to the ferocious pace of the race. I tested my sprint on the primes after 20 and 40 minutes respectively, taking 3rd in the first, and 5th in the second. Not bad and looking good for a top 10 finish if I could position myself correctly in the line up to the final bend before the sprint. It didn't work out that way, the bunch slowed on the straight before the final bend, it bunched up and i found myself boxed in. No chance, I still sprinted hard but nothing came of it and i rolled in around 20th place... Not a complete waste of time however as my team-mate Chris Boote remarked after the race... "I think I won" ... Turns out he was right!! 10 more points for Zappi's and we're moving up the Central Regional Rankings!! It must be my turn to bring in some points for the team, it's been too long that I have been 'riding well' with no reward.
More motivated than ever before.
Bring on the National 25.
Ciao,
Last Thursday was the Didcot Phoenix 10 mile club time trial, the weather wasn't great, fairly windy and rain was in the air. It did however stay dry for the race itself and the 18 riders who had braved the weather were pleasantly surprised that it turned out to be a fairly fast night. The course was a single carriageway course containing no less than 11 roundabouts... But by no means a slow course. I ended up winning the event in a time of 22.04, only 3 seconds off my pb, and this on a much slower course, so things are looking good for when I get back on a quick course!! My winning margin for Thursday... 53 seconds put into 2nd placed Alan Alcock of Didcot Phoenix who record 22.57.
I had a weekend off racing last weekend, playing cricket instead for my local team, not a bad weekend, scored 93 runs, nearly a century!!
Back to cycling, on Monday I went to Ludgershall for the cat 3/4 race. The track was covered in muck, flints and looked wet!! The race started fairly fast and I felt strong, always staying up near the front of the pack. After 30 minutes I discovere my front wheel had punctured, I quickly stopped to put in my spare and was back in after a lap out. The race was still fast but my legs felt good and going into the final lap I was well placed behind team-mate Chris Boote who was there to lead me out, then disaster, at the start of the final lap I felt my back wheel go down, a puncture, but I couldn't bring myself to stop when in such a good position. I was completely blowing and was deep into the red, I kept pushing on behind Chris, but could simply not compete in the sprint, we both finished outside the top 10, I rolled in 17th, still in the top half of the bunch, not bad on a flat tyre... Team-mate Andy Mckay took a brilliant 4th place in the sprint. Overall I was happy with my positioning and strength in the race, and felt good for a top-3 finish, but bad luck at the wrong time put paid to that. Ludgershall, not a track I will be returning to any time soon!!
Finally, this evening I travelled to the Eelmore for another 3/4 criterium race. Conditions were good and the race started fast, remained fast and finished fast. But once again I felt strong and followed a few attacks off the front, but nothing stayed away due to the ferocious pace of the race. I tested my sprint on the primes after 20 and 40 minutes respectively, taking 3rd in the first, and 5th in the second. Not bad and looking good for a top 10 finish if I could position myself correctly in the line up to the final bend before the sprint. It didn't work out that way, the bunch slowed on the straight before the final bend, it bunched up and i found myself boxed in. No chance, I still sprinted hard but nothing came of it and i rolled in around 20th place... Not a complete waste of time however as my team-mate Chris Boote remarked after the race... "I think I won" ... Turns out he was right!! 10 more points for Zappi's and we're moving up the Central Regional Rankings!! It must be my turn to bring in some points for the team, it's been too long that I have been 'riding well' with no reward.
More motivated than ever before.
Bring on the National 25.
Ciao,
Sunday, 22 May 2011
RTTC Junior National 10 Mile TT Championship - 21/5/11
So the time had come for my first National event of the year, the National 10 Mile Time Trial Championships, promoted by Hartlepool CC on the T102 course near Middlesborough. We headed off on the 4 hour journey at around 7 oclock to allow plenty of time before my start time at 2.20, arriving at about 11.30. We drove the course and found that this event had the worlds longest turn consisting of 2 90 degree sharp left handers, a drag up over a bride then a sweeping left hander back onto the dual carriageway, I figured the event could be won or lost there!! The wind had been howling all morning and it soon became apparent that the longer outward leg would be a block headwind, and the shorter return leg would be a flying tailwind, not ideal but the same for everybody!!
When we stopped in the service station along the course to grab lunch, it was a nice surprise to see Bradley Wiggins, the hot favourite for the mens event and pro rider, getting his bike out of his car. I went over and had a chat with him for 10 minutes or so, before he wished me luck and declared he was off to ride the course 3 times, oh how the pros do it differently!! Really nice down to earth guy though.
When we stopped in the service station along the course to grab lunch, it was a nice surprise to see Bradley Wiggins, the hot favourite for the mens event and pro rider, getting his bike out of his car. I went over and had a chat with him for 10 minutes or so, before he wished me luck and declared he was off to ride the course 3 times, oh how the pros do it differently!! Really nice down to earth guy though.
Me & Brad.
I started all my pre-race prep nice and early, and began warming up about 40 minutes before my start time, felt like my legs were working okay on the turbo, and by the time I rocked up to the start I was feeling warmed up and ready to go.
I started quickly down the slightly sheltered slip road, quickly getting up to 25mph, but when I joined the dual carriageway my speed considerably dropped and with a couple of drags up to the turn it all meant that my 5 mile split was 13.42, an average speed of 21.9mph.
At the 5 mile mark
I sped round the turn in pretty good time with the rider just before me in my sights, I rejoined the dual carriageway and soon overtook the rider in front of me, Hannah Barnes of Motorpoint who would go on to take the Junior Womens title, well done to her. I sped home with a brilliant tailwind and the second 5 miles took a mere 9 minutes and 42 seconds, averaging 31mph all the way back, with a top speed of 39.7mph over the finish line!!
Pushing on down the DC!
I rolled back to the finish HQ wondering how I had placed and how other riders had got on. When I got back to HQ it turned out I was 4th fastest thus far in a time of 23.24, but with a lot of quick guys still to come in I knew I would be hard pushed to crack the top 10. I ended up in 15th place, but a lot closer to a top 10 placing than it first seemed, 13 seconds slower than 10th place. The win went to Ryan Mullen of Planet X in an astonishing time of 21.33, 37 seconds ahead of Alex Royle in second, last years champion Oli Rossi rounded off the podium a further 17 seconds down.
Overall I was very pleased with my performance, and happy to show I can compete highly at National events. The ride has also given me the confidence to push on and aim for top 10 in the National 25, which takes place on June 5th in Cornwall!
In the Womens event, Julia Shaw was run very close by Laura Trott of 100% ME, but in the end Shaw, riding for drag2zero.com won in a time of 22.53, followed by Trott in 2nd with 22.57, 3rd place went to Hannah Mayho of 100% ME, in 23.28.
The mens event went to Bradley Wiggins in a phenomenal time of 19.14, worth noting his 5 mile time of 11.01, meant that he averaged 27.2mph into a block headwind... enough said. The comp record holder Michael Hutchinson took 2nd in 19.55, with Joe Perrett rounding off the podium in 20.26.
No events planned before the National 25, but I will probably do a few club TTs, and maybe a midweek crit somewhere..
Until then.
Ciao.
Sunday, 15 May 2011
Reading CC Road Race - 15th May
Today I did a road race promoted by Reading Cycling Club, it was held on the Great Milton circuit, the same as the Thames Velo road race earlier in the year. The race was to be 60 miles, a lot longer than any other race I had done before, it was also including 2nd cat riders, so the race itself would be faster, longer, and tougher!!
On the start line we held a minutes silence in memory of the late Wouter Weylandt, a fantastic young rider who was tragically taken from us in a stage of this years Giro D'Italia, a great mark of respect to Wouter. The race itself did not start well for me personally, as after less than a mile I heard a crunch and noticed my front mech grinding on my chain, the mech had somehow bent out of shape and was rubbing on the chain making the worlds most annoying sound... I had no choice but to continue on ignoring the horrible sound of rubbing metal!! The race continued at high speed through various villages and along the long straight road up to the climb of Clare Hill, I was near the back of the bunch the first time up the hill and having not felt great for the first few miles I struggled up and got blown out of the back, I spent the next 2-3 miles trying to bridge the gap back to the bunch with one other guy and eventually made it, on my own, I dropped the other guy with a huge dig to make the last few metres back on.
The next lap was all about resting and recovering, I did this pretty well and just stayed out of trouble in the middle of the peloton. A break of 8 got away during the 2nd lap, but I didn't have the legs to go with them at that point so just watched them ride away. As we approached the climb for the 2nd time, I found myself in a much better position and felt slightly stronger, having warmed up fully now. I made it over the top near the front of the group, then disaster... I slipped my chain off and couldn't get it back on, I pulled over and struggled to get the chain back onto my chainring. The neutral service car stopped and helped me sort it out, and then quickly paced me back up to the main group... averaging 33mph behind a car is always fun!!
I caught back onto the group around the start of the 3rd lap and started to feel a lot stronger from then on. I led the group over the hill for the 3rd time and was feeling good! I stayed on or near the front for the remainder of the race, and felt good right to the end!! Worth noting is that I managed to get through the feed-zone unscathed, photographic evidence is below!! Thanks to Henry Peacock got passing up the bottle.
On the start line we held a minutes silence in memory of the late Wouter Weylandt, a fantastic young rider who was tragically taken from us in a stage of this years Giro D'Italia, a great mark of respect to Wouter. The race itself did not start well for me personally, as after less than a mile I heard a crunch and noticed my front mech grinding on my chain, the mech had somehow bent out of shape and was rubbing on the chain making the worlds most annoying sound... I had no choice but to continue on ignoring the horrible sound of rubbing metal!! The race continued at high speed through various villages and along the long straight road up to the climb of Clare Hill, I was near the back of the bunch the first time up the hill and having not felt great for the first few miles I struggled up and got blown out of the back, I spent the next 2-3 miles trying to bridge the gap back to the bunch with one other guy and eventually made it, on my own, I dropped the other guy with a huge dig to make the last few metres back on.
The next lap was all about resting and recovering, I did this pretty well and just stayed out of trouble in the middle of the peloton. A break of 8 got away during the 2nd lap, but I didn't have the legs to go with them at that point so just watched them ride away. As we approached the climb for the 2nd time, I found myself in a much better position and felt slightly stronger, having warmed up fully now. I made it over the top near the front of the group, then disaster... I slipped my chain off and couldn't get it back on, I pulled over and struggled to get the chain back onto my chainring. The neutral service car stopped and helped me sort it out, and then quickly paced me back up to the main group... averaging 33mph behind a car is always fun!!
I caught back onto the group around the start of the 3rd lap and started to feel a lot stronger from then on. I led the group over the hill for the 3rd time and was feeling good! I stayed on or near the front for the remainder of the race, and felt good right to the end!! Worth noting is that I managed to get through the feed-zone unscathed, photographic evidence is below!! Thanks to Henry Peacock got passing up the bottle.
Grabbing on to a bottle!!
The last lap consisted of me jumping on to every move that went away, and always getting brought back... I was still feeling strong though and doing my fair share of the work on the front. The breakaway was still up the road and looked to be staying away, so it was down to a sprint for the minor placings.
With 2k to go I was up near the front hovering about 3rd wheel, but I judged it wrongly and heading into 1k to go I found myself on the front... That was my sprint out of the window... I decided to try a lead-out for my team mate Gunther who I knew was sitting behind me. It worked well but I left him with a little too far to go and he could only manage 5th/6th in the sprint and 14th overall. My race did not end there as I had a personal battle to finish with a friend of mine Harry Strudley from Team AW Cycles... It was close as we both lunged for the line, as yet it is unclear who took this epic battle for 40th place...
Epic contest with Harry...
In general I am happy with my race, especially after the 2 early mechanicals. I felt strong in the latter stages of the race which bodes well for future longer races. I still need to work on my position towards the end of races, but I am getting there!!
Race Stats are 60.5 miles at 25.7mph with over 2000ft of climbing and a top speed of 39.7mph!!
Race Stats are 60.5 miles at 25.7mph with over 2000ft of climbing and a top speed of 39.7mph!!
National 10 next Saturday...
Ciao.
Friday, 13 May 2011
MK Bowl - 12th May
Went to the MK Bowl this Thursday for a 3/4 circuit race, mainly to be used as training, but as always I was looking to get a decent result. The race started with half an hour on an inside loop of the bowl before extending out around the bowl for the second half, with the second half being much more technical.
The race itself started slow for a couple of laps before people started shooting off the front, including team-mate Cameron Foster, I kept myself near the front, and having seen Cameron attack off the front for a second time, I also sprinted off the front to try and bridge the gap to Cam. I looked behind to see another rider bridging across behind me, Lucy Garner of the Motorpoint Ladies Team. 3 Juniors in a break off the front and we thought we had a decent gap at one point, although it was probably only about a quarter of a lap in reality, and despite working well together we were never destined to stay away and got caught after around 7 or 8 laps on our own.
The race itself started slow for a couple of laps before people started shooting off the front, including team-mate Cameron Foster, I kept myself near the front, and having seen Cameron attack off the front for a second time, I also sprinted off the front to try and bridge the gap to Cam. I looked behind to see another rider bridging across behind me, Lucy Garner of the Motorpoint Ladies Team. 3 Juniors in a break off the front and we thought we had a decent gap at one point, although it was probably only about a quarter of a lap in reality, and despite working well together we were never destined to stay away and got caught after around 7 or 8 laps on our own.
Myself, Cam & Lucy pushing on.
Nothing much happened after this and the race seemed to be heading for a sprint, on the final lap I made up ground to get up near the front of the bunch, and onto the final climb to the line I started sprinting slightly too late and lost a few more placings than I should have. I ended up 14th out of about 35-40 riders, Cameron got 10th so gets a solitary point for the team!
My proper race for this week is on Sunday, the Reading CC Road Race, on the Great Milton circuit. 60 miles/100km and a cat 2/3/4 race, so I am really psyched up for that!!
Ciao.
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