Saturday was the last ontario cup race of the season and I was hoping to get enough points to move me into first place. This race was held on the roads surrounding horseshoe valley resort, north of barrie. The weather was pretty wet so I was stuck using my training wheels because they had more traction on the wet, slippery roads. The course was a good one with lots of rollers (next to no flat sections), although it didnt seem like an ideal setup for people to watch, due the the loops and finish line being a few km away from the resort (and parking).
I started the race knowing who I needed to beat. I started at the front and kept a good position for the first lap. Three guys tried a break away that lasted about 5 mins before they threw in the towel. The second lap things started to pick up and I found myself sliding back in the group. At the end of the second lap I was at the very back and knew I had to get lucky to get back to the front as the group was riding the width of the lane making it tough to move up.
I had to strategize and move up where I could. On the up hills I attacked harder, and sprinted out of the corners faster to slowly creep my way up to the peloton. These were the only times gaps would form. On the stretch before the turn onto the finish leg I found myself near the front and made sure I held my position. Two CHCH guys were doing the work, but they were masters riders so it worked for me.
As I turned onto the finish leg three guys went for it again. I saw the sign saying 5km to go. I knew they tired themselves out earlier and this pack looked hungry so they werent staying away. We turned a corner onto 3rd line which went uphill. We caught the guys here and they fell back. I did everything I could to stay near the front. It was hard for me to see (the rain got to my glasses and i couldnt see clearly). This made it very difficult to judge when to start sprinting. I waited for someone else to start it. As I started sprinting I noticed they guy I wanted to beat to move up in the points standings and we were neck and neck. I used everything to get a few inches ahead. I thought I took the win. I was so focused on beating this rider that I didnt pay attention to the guy beside me who probably beat me by an inch. The closest finish I have ever seen. The top four elite four guys all within a wheel length!
I was still happy with second place, it was the best ocup race result I have ever had! (not including the time trial) I was happy with my pack riding skills this time, im really starting to figure it out I think. What I need to work on is practicing the 'lunge' at the end of my sprints. If I did this I probably could have won. Hopefully this result will be enough for the OCA to upgrade me to elite 3!
On sunday my girlfriend Lise raced her last ontario triathlon in niagara. She did amazing coming in second place in her age group. She pulled her best placings in this race and showed huge improvements on the swim.
For some data:
garmin: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/209895180
results: http://www.ontariocycling.org/web_pages/results/20120812-142812-wbresults.htm
final ocup standings: http://www.ontariocycling.org/web_pages/results/20120812-024233-Ontario%20Cup%20Road%20Standings%202012.pdf
Sorry no pics in this post, stay tuned for a pictures page where I will post a few pics from each race (if I have them).
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
It was over before it began...
Today was the Tour de Terra Cotta. The weather was beautiful and the course was awesome. Completely closed with no yellow line rule. During the weekend I was having problems with a tendon on the back of my knee and was hoping that it wouldnt hurt me today.
We got there early for my girlfriend to race the 26km race. She was terrified to do a road race but did terrific! For not having much big group riding practice she held her own and finished 3rd overall for the women in the race.
My race started with a 3km neutral start which ended just after the first hill. I never knew the race could be won in the neutral start! You would almost think it the way people were crazily jockeying for positions. Not wanting to get into trouble I found myself sliding back. Right near the end of the 3km there was a nasty pile up, and I got stuck behind it! There was a group of around 20 of us that were now 30secs or more off the pack.
Out of this group of 20 only about 5 of us were willing to work to get back into the race. The group sucked at taking turns, with no one wanting to push before the hill. I would signal that I was done and needed a switch and no one would take my spot so Id have to let up because I had nothing left and once the speed dropped about 10kph someone would take over. Due to this we were never able to catch up.
Throughout the race the pack was dropping people and picking people up. Towards the end we even dropped greg paupst who did a lot of work in the pack early on and didnt have enough. Fellow HCC rider Sarah Rasmussen fell back to our group for a bit, she just didnt havent have enough to stay on to the group till the end due to her hard riding at provincial track cycling.
For the last lap I was planning on getting some work on setting myself up for a good sprint. On the third stretch a reckless mattamy homes/racer sportif rider made a move cutting me off. I made the decision it wasnt worth crashing in this race , we were only fighting for 70th position. Took it easy until the end to roll into 90th position out of 172.
Tactically I should have been in the front of the pack to start and throughout the race to avoid problems. I liked how I tried to take control, although it didnt work. Im definitely getting stronger and I was glad that I made it the whole race. With an avg speed the same as my other races but with 40km extra tacked on, I was glad I had enough conditioning to make it.
Next up for me is the WOB ocup race next weekend. With a good result I could take over 1st place in the ocup standings!
We got there early for my girlfriend to race the 26km race. She was terrified to do a road race but did terrific! For not having much big group riding practice she held her own and finished 3rd overall for the women in the race.
My race started with a 3km neutral start which ended just after the first hill. I never knew the race could be won in the neutral start! You would almost think it the way people were crazily jockeying for positions. Not wanting to get into trouble I found myself sliding back. Right near the end of the 3km there was a nasty pile up, and I got stuck behind it! There was a group of around 20 of us that were now 30secs or more off the pack.
Out of this group of 20 only about 5 of us were willing to work to get back into the race. The group sucked at taking turns, with no one wanting to push before the hill. I would signal that I was done and needed a switch and no one would take my spot so Id have to let up because I had nothing left and once the speed dropped about 10kph someone would take over. Due to this we were never able to catch up.
Throughout the race the pack was dropping people and picking people up. Towards the end we even dropped greg paupst who did a lot of work in the pack early on and didnt have enough. Fellow HCC rider Sarah Rasmussen fell back to our group for a bit, she just didnt havent have enough to stay on to the group till the end due to her hard riding at provincial track cycling.
For the last lap I was planning on getting some work on setting myself up for a good sprint. On the third stretch a reckless mattamy homes/racer sportif rider made a move cutting me off. I made the decision it wasnt worth crashing in this race , we were only fighting for 70th position. Took it easy until the end to roll into 90th position out of 172.
Tactically I should have been in the front of the pack to start and throughout the race to avoid problems. I liked how I tried to take control, although it didnt work. Im definitely getting stronger and I was glad that I made it the whole race. With an avg speed the same as my other races but with 40km extra tacked on, I was glad I had enough conditioning to make it.
Next up for me is the WOB ocup race next weekend. With a good result I could take over 1st place in the ocup standings!
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Tic toc, tic toc...
This past weekend was the ocup Bike the Bruce ITT. Racers are sent off one at a time in a race against the clock. The fastest rider wins. (Good equipment definitely plays a factor into this). Aerodynamics is the name of the game here, especially when it was as windy as it was on sunday. Lacking a time trial bike I had to ride this one Merckx style (for those unaware, Eddie Merckx is a legendary cyclist and he was able to dominate time trials without the use of the time trial bars to get you into a better position). In my category there were only two other riders, one completely decked out in gear and another riding Merckx.
The course was relatively flat out and back style. At about the 1.5km mark there was a short steep downhill. Here I thought I was going to crash because I started to get some insane speed wobbles. Luckily I made it through and kept riding. At about 9km there was a gravel patch about 15ft long from construction. Just had to play it safe going through there and avoid and flats or unnecessary crashes. Before I hit the end of the first stretch I had a waterloo cycling guy from E3 pass me. This kind of dropped my hopes and reinforcing the knowledge that I wasn't going as fast as I wanted.
On the way back I tried to push harder but the wind was killer. You never got a break from the wind on the course, not out nor back. I was able catch the other Merckx E4 rider before the steep uphill. I powered up the climb trying not to redline too far so that I didnt drop to a stop to recover. I pushed it as hard as I could till the finish.
Equipment wise I really wish I had TT extensions at least. I needed to get lower as I was too upright. Im also going to try to work on my back flexibility to help this (I am very inflexible :p) . I used the giro selector helmet, which is a great helmet. For that hot of a day (30+) the visor stops the sweat from evaporating. I spent most of the race trying to wipe it out of my eyes. While the visor looks great, its definitely not for me on hot days.
Overall I finished second, 3 mins back off first. I wanted to avg 41, but I got 38.6km/h. I know I can go faster, as I have done in both 40km TT and 15km TT. I don't know if it was the heat, the wind, my legs but I was slower than I should have been. Either way I earned a bunch of upgrade points and ocup points. I now sit 5th in the standings!
No pics but here are some links
Garmin : http://connect.garmin.com/activity/202099902
Results: http://www.ontariocycling.org/web_pages/results/20120723-204950-bbresults.htm
Picture: http://www.sportszonephotography.ca/Cycling-2012/Bike-The-Bruce-O-Cup-TT/Part-II-Later-Startng-Racers/24334495_NH5hNn#!i=1982809916&k=txFBZjF
As always thanks for reading!!
The course was relatively flat out and back style. At about the 1.5km mark there was a short steep downhill. Here I thought I was going to crash because I started to get some insane speed wobbles. Luckily I made it through and kept riding. At about 9km there was a gravel patch about 15ft long from construction. Just had to play it safe going through there and avoid and flats or unnecessary crashes. Before I hit the end of the first stretch I had a waterloo cycling guy from E3 pass me. This kind of dropped my hopes and reinforcing the knowledge that I wasn't going as fast as I wanted.
On the way back I tried to push harder but the wind was killer. You never got a break from the wind on the course, not out nor back. I was able catch the other Merckx E4 rider before the steep uphill. I powered up the climb trying not to redline too far so that I didnt drop to a stop to recover. I pushed it as hard as I could till the finish.
Equipment wise I really wish I had TT extensions at least. I needed to get lower as I was too upright. Im also going to try to work on my back flexibility to help this (I am very inflexible :p) . I used the giro selector helmet, which is a great helmet. For that hot of a day (30+) the visor stops the sweat from evaporating. I spent most of the race trying to wipe it out of my eyes. While the visor looks great, its definitely not for me on hot days.
Overall I finished second, 3 mins back off first. I wanted to avg 41, but I got 38.6km/h. I know I can go faster, as I have done in both 40km TT and 15km TT. I don't know if it was the heat, the wind, my legs but I was slower than I should have been. Either way I earned a bunch of upgrade points and ocup points. I now sit 5th in the standings!
No pics but here are some links
Garmin : http://connect.garmin.com/activity/202099902
Results: http://www.ontariocycling.org/web_pages/results/20120723-204950-bbresults.htm
Picture: http://www.sportszonephotography.ca/Cycling-2012/Bike-The-Bruce-O-Cup-TT/Part-II-Later-Startng-Racers/24334495_NH5hNn#!i=1982809916&k=txFBZjF
As always thanks for reading!!
Sunday, July 15, 2012
He Shoots He Scores!
Today was the provincial championships located just outside of Bradford, Ontario. It was a great 12km loop that had flat start/finish, side 2 had a nice downhill for recovery, side 3 was flat to rolling hills, and the fourth side had a hill strava has listed as 'the beast'. I didnt find it all that bad of a hill, but thats kind of biased because I love to climb! This is a long post but lots of action!
The weather was perfect for the sportif race that launched in the morning. It was only 3 laps long, making it feel almost too short to go to. I knew I didn't have the conditioning for the much longer u23 race. So I thought I would have some fun with some tactics in the sportif race (which is what the elite 4 men are 'suppose' to do). From the get go my plan was to attack the first lap on the hill and try the break away. If the third lap came around and I was still in the group i would sit back and rest for the sprint.
The race started at a fairly slow pace. No one wanted to work it seemed. On the third stretch on one of the rollers, Mark riding for LapDogs, attacked. It was a bit earlier than I wanted to go so I moved up and started to go after him. I looked over my shoulder and noticed I was bringing everyone with me. I backed off and waited for the hill. The hill was the steepest at the bottom. Halfway up the steep section I jumped and had bridged the gap by the top of the hill. No one else came with me which was perfect! I immediately took command as I wanted this to hold. We started rotating every 30seconds keeping the pace high. The downhill on the second stretch allowed for much needed recovery time every lap.
On the second lap we started to pass some masters riders that started 2 mins before us. I knew we were doing good and had to keep it up. I encouraged him that 2nd place was better than last so we needed to work together and go! I was having chain problems (quick derailleur adjustment before the race screwed it up, should have let it be!). I almost dropped my chain on the second time up the hill. I let out a nice curse word then realized I was alright so I kept going. I was hoping that the Mark wouldnt take advantage of this on the last lap and leave me on the hill.
We got through to our last lap and I couldnt see the chasers behind us. Now it was time to make sure I had some left for the end, but not to slow down too much. Mark had his own plan having me take the wind during most of the third stretch with the hill. Lucky for me he didnt attack then. Once we turned the corner to the home stretch he went! I couldnt grab his wheel and thought I had lost it. I remembered Wiggins' tactic from watch the tour and tried to reel him in slowly. It worked and 500m left I was on his wheel. He slowed right up and let me back on the front. I kept the pace high enough to try and prevent him from recovering, but slow enough that I could still sprint. Now I was thinking of David Millar's win just a few days ago when he took the win from the front. I was watching the shadow waiting for a move. At the 200m mark I knew I would hit my max speed right by the finish line. At that point he hadnt gone yet so I figured it's in my best interest to sprint to the finish! All my sprint training the past few weeks paid off and he couldn't get by me! I took my first ever road victory!!! We ended up making a gap of just under 2 mins on the next group back which shows some good things for the time trial ahead next weekend!!
Tactically wise this race, everything went the way I wanted it to. The only thing for next time is to not screw with my derailleur just before the race!
Links: results http://www.ontariocycling.org/web_pages/results/20120715-205541-prresults.htm
Garmin data: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/199675090
And a picture of the sprint to go home with! (courtesy of the Lovely Lise Munsie)
The weather was perfect for the sportif race that launched in the morning. It was only 3 laps long, making it feel almost too short to go to. I knew I didn't have the conditioning for the much longer u23 race. So I thought I would have some fun with some tactics in the sportif race (which is what the elite 4 men are 'suppose' to do). From the get go my plan was to attack the first lap on the hill and try the break away. If the third lap came around and I was still in the group i would sit back and rest for the sprint.
The race started at a fairly slow pace. No one wanted to work it seemed. On the third stretch on one of the rollers, Mark riding for LapDogs, attacked. It was a bit earlier than I wanted to go so I moved up and started to go after him. I looked over my shoulder and noticed I was bringing everyone with me. I backed off and waited for the hill. The hill was the steepest at the bottom. Halfway up the steep section I jumped and had bridged the gap by the top of the hill. No one else came with me which was perfect! I immediately took command as I wanted this to hold. We started rotating every 30seconds keeping the pace high. The downhill on the second stretch allowed for much needed recovery time every lap.
On the second lap we started to pass some masters riders that started 2 mins before us. I knew we were doing good and had to keep it up. I encouraged him that 2nd place was better than last so we needed to work together and go! I was having chain problems (quick derailleur adjustment before the race screwed it up, should have let it be!). I almost dropped my chain on the second time up the hill. I let out a nice curse word then realized I was alright so I kept going. I was hoping that the Mark wouldnt take advantage of this on the last lap and leave me on the hill.
We got through to our last lap and I couldnt see the chasers behind us. Now it was time to make sure I had some left for the end, but not to slow down too much. Mark had his own plan having me take the wind during most of the third stretch with the hill. Lucky for me he didnt attack then. Once we turned the corner to the home stretch he went! I couldnt grab his wheel and thought I had lost it. I remembered Wiggins' tactic from watch the tour and tried to reel him in slowly. It worked and 500m left I was on his wheel. He slowed right up and let me back on the front. I kept the pace high enough to try and prevent him from recovering, but slow enough that I could still sprint. Now I was thinking of David Millar's win just a few days ago when he took the win from the front. I was watching the shadow waiting for a move. At the 200m mark I knew I would hit my max speed right by the finish line. At that point he hadnt gone yet so I figured it's in my best interest to sprint to the finish! All my sprint training the past few weeks paid off and he couldn't get by me! I took my first ever road victory!!! We ended up making a gap of just under 2 mins on the next group back which shows some good things for the time trial ahead next weekend!!
Tactically wise this race, everything went the way I wanted it to. The only thing for next time is to not screw with my derailleur just before the race!
Links: results http://www.ontariocycling.org/web_pages/results/20120715-205541-prresults.htm
Garmin data: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/199675090
Monday, July 2, 2012
Round and Round We Go!
This past weekend was the CHIN picnic criterium. It was held on a short 1.4km course that is part of the molson indy track to be held soon. Overall a fun, fast course with some tight and dangerous corners. The weather was perfect for the 8am race and there was a start group of about 50. I had high hopes for this race as my legs were feeling great all week. I was also just getting over a cold so I was hoping it wouldnt hold me back.
I had trouble clipping in at the start, so I started at the back. Then a few laps in there was a huge pile up just before the lap finish. I came to a stop to try and avoid it. Spent ~4laps (about 8mins) maxed out trying to catch back on. Finally got back on and tried to recover. The whole race was me catching back on then getting pushed back due to a crash or flat. My pack riding skills need a lot of work. I was able to get to the front towards the end but ended up dropping right back (perhaps I was being to cautious with my energy). In the last lap I had to slow down to avoid two crashes, one flat, and had to hop a curb to get past some guys slowing down that were cutting me off. I ended up finishing back behind the lead guys by almost half a minute.
For the next race I need to ride more aggressively, and trust my legs. I need to be at the front or near the front. I know I have the speed and power to win a race, I just need to ride smarter. The only good thing that came from the race was that I did not crash. Also I am now ranked 9th in the Elite 4 division of the Ontario Cup.
I have next weekend off, and Im racing next at holland marsh challenge. After that I get to show the boys my speed at the the bike the bruce TT !
Here are some links if your interested. The first being the race results, the second my garmin page.
http://www.ontariocycling.org/web_pages/results/20120702-112443-chinresults.htm
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/194611833
I had trouble clipping in at the start, so I started at the back. Then a few laps in there was a huge pile up just before the lap finish. I came to a stop to try and avoid it. Spent ~4laps (about 8mins) maxed out trying to catch back on. Finally got back on and tried to recover. The whole race was me catching back on then getting pushed back due to a crash or flat. My pack riding skills need a lot of work. I was able to get to the front towards the end but ended up dropping right back (perhaps I was being to cautious with my energy). In the last lap I had to slow down to avoid two crashes, one flat, and had to hop a curb to get past some guys slowing down that were cutting me off. I ended up finishing back behind the lead guys by almost half a minute.
For the next race I need to ride more aggressively, and trust my legs. I need to be at the front or near the front. I know I have the speed and power to win a race, I just need to ride smarter. The only good thing that came from the race was that I did not crash. Also I am now ranked 9th in the Elite 4 division of the Ontario Cup.
I have next weekend off, and Im racing next at holland marsh challenge. After that I get to show the boys my speed at the the bike the bruce TT !
Here are some links if your interested. The first being the race results, the second my garmin page.
http://www.ontariocycling.org/web_pages/results/20120702-112443-chinresults.htm
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/194611833
Monday, June 25, 2012
24hr Summer Solstice!
This past weekend was the 24 hour race that everyone loves. The weather was amazing for the race (although some would argue we could have use a bit of rain). It took place at albion hills near Bolton. The track was fast, flowy, and super dry. You really had to be careful about sliding out in the corners. Riding mainly road this year my plan was to play it safe on the single track and then pin it on the double track.
I raced on the RacedayRush.com / Pfaff Audi team, and it was a great bunch of guys. All of them were fast and they knew quite a bit about the sport so I was able to learn a lot. The team suffered from a few mechanicals during the race and a few crashes but we were never discouraged.
The race for us came down to a fight over 3rd place. After two slow night laps (mine being the slowest) the fourth place team was within 1 min of us. Luckily we had our fast guys already planned to be going out, which appeared to be against their slower riders. In the end their team wasnt able to come back in before noon in order to get that last lap in. So in the standings we finished one more lap completed than their team but it was a close battle.
Overall I had a great weekend. Maybe the long ride friday wasn't a great idea before a race but I was still able to pull off some decently fast laps. I would definitely recommend this race to anyone that loves to bike, especially mountain biking because it makes for a thrilling weekend. Even if your not aiming for the podium (a lot of the riders there werent. There were a lot of flat pedals, reflectors, baggy shorts, etc.) This week I prepare for CHIN picnic crit on Canada Day!
Heres a link to the results! (we were a 6-10 all male team!) http://chicoracing.com/results/409.html#Cat1
I raced on the RacedayRush.com / Pfaff Audi team, and it was a great bunch of guys. All of them were fast and they knew quite a bit about the sport so I was able to learn a lot. The team suffered from a few mechanicals during the race and a few crashes but we were never discouraged.
The race for us came down to a fight over 3rd place. After two slow night laps (mine being the slowest) the fourth place team was within 1 min of us. Luckily we had our fast guys already planned to be going out, which appeared to be against their slower riders. In the end their team wasnt able to come back in before noon in order to get that last lap in. So in the standings we finished one more lap completed than their team but it was a close battle.
Overall I had a great weekend. Maybe the long ride friday wasn't a great idea before a race but I was still able to pull off some decently fast laps. I would definitely recommend this race to anyone that loves to bike, especially mountain biking because it makes for a thrilling weekend. Even if your not aiming for the podium (a lot of the riders there werent. There were a lot of flat pedals, reflectors, baggy shorts, etc.) This week I prepare for CHIN picnic crit on Canada Day!
Heres a link to the results! (we were a 6-10 all male team!) http://chicoracing.com/results/409.html#Cat1
Sunday, June 10, 2012
KW Classic from Hell
It was a beautiful day for the race. No wind, no rain but it was super hot. The course was roughly a 4.6km loop that was a little hilly (no true flat sections) that ran through a suburb with some nice houses, and then through an industrial area. There was a fast downhill corner into the suburb that got me scared every lap that something was going to end bad. The only other sketchy corner was the right turn out of the suburb heading toward the hill. There were a few bumps between riders here but from as far as I know, no one went down in our group.
The entire race my legs felt terrible. I could feel it in the warm up. It felt like I just couldn't get my legs to wake up, but i'm at a low in my training plan having just peaked for Niagara classic. That could account for it. But enough complaining, I came to ride bikes!
Still not wanting to DNF from a race a pushed through it. I didn't want to look weak to the other riders after looking so strong at Niagara so I took a few turns at the front hoping it would 'wake' my legs up. There was a solo breakaway that went around the third lap (out of 13). Not sure when we caught him but I guess he made it a lap or so. A few laps later, on the back stretch the masters had a bad crash. There were a few guys on the road and a truck blocking the road. Our group started yelling to get the truck to move. Andrew House was able to squeeze through with his speed and kept hammering. This caused everyone else to have to navigate around the truck and then have to sprint to catch back up.
The rest of the race I was trying to stay safe, and hang on to the group. On the last lap, I thought Id have no chance at the sprint. Coming up the last hill the right side of the road was open. I was a little scared because last time I did this at Springbank I got taken out. But it was worth a shot, so I took the right side of the road up from the back of the group to about the top 10-15 riders. Now every other race, I always started to sprint too early and end up getting passed by 5+ riders. This time I planned before the race, to start sprinting when I passed a certain road sign.We flew out of the chicane, and people started sprinting. I grabbed onto someones wheel, waiting patiently (sitting around 15th). Passed my sign and then opened up. It felt great! I flew by people the whole way up to the finish taking 8th overall and top under 23 (avg 38.7km/h over 60km incase you were curious on the speed). Andrew House ended up passing Jordan Broad on the line due to an early celebration that nearly got him disqualified (can't take both hands off the bars). This ended up giving him the victory.
Overall, with the conditions and how I felt I was very happy with my finish. My best OCUP finish so far! Happy with the sprint planning and finally having self control. The one thing I really need to work on is holding my place in a pack. I find I am yo-yoing from the front to the back and probably wasting a lot of energy in the process.
In case you are interested, heres the link to my garmin page for the ride! http://connect.garmin.com/activity/187757493
Heres a few pictures to thank you for stopping by! (Photo cred to the amazing Lise Munsie)
The entire race my legs felt terrible. I could feel it in the warm up. It felt like I just couldn't get my legs to wake up, but i'm at a low in my training plan having just peaked for Niagara classic. That could account for it. But enough complaining, I came to ride bikes!
Still not wanting to DNF from a race a pushed through it. I didn't want to look weak to the other riders after looking so strong at Niagara so I took a few turns at the front hoping it would 'wake' my legs up. There was a solo breakaway that went around the third lap (out of 13). Not sure when we caught him but I guess he made it a lap or so. A few laps later, on the back stretch the masters had a bad crash. There were a few guys on the road and a truck blocking the road. Our group started yelling to get the truck to move. Andrew House was able to squeeze through with his speed and kept hammering. This caused everyone else to have to navigate around the truck and then have to sprint to catch back up.
The rest of the race I was trying to stay safe, and hang on to the group. On the last lap, I thought Id have no chance at the sprint. Coming up the last hill the right side of the road was open. I was a little scared because last time I did this at Springbank I got taken out. But it was worth a shot, so I took the right side of the road up from the back of the group to about the top 10-15 riders. Now every other race, I always started to sprint too early and end up getting passed by 5+ riders. This time I planned before the race, to start sprinting when I passed a certain road sign.We flew out of the chicane, and people started sprinting. I grabbed onto someones wheel, waiting patiently (sitting around 15th). Passed my sign and then opened up. It felt great! I flew by people the whole way up to the finish taking 8th overall and top under 23 (avg 38.7km/h over 60km incase you were curious on the speed). Andrew House ended up passing Jordan Broad on the line due to an early celebration that nearly got him disqualified (can't take both hands off the bars). This ended up giving him the victory.
Overall, with the conditions and how I felt I was very happy with my finish. My best OCUP finish so far! Happy with the sprint planning and finally having self control. The one thing I really need to work on is holding my place in a pack. I find I am yo-yoing from the front to the back and probably wasting a lot of energy in the process.
In case you are interested, heres the link to my garmin page for the ride! http://connect.garmin.com/activity/187757493
Heres a few pictures to thank you for stopping by! (Photo cred to the amazing Lise Munsie)
Jordan and Andrew Sprinting (im on the right side a ways back)
Me sprinting trying to make up lost ground
CHEESE :D
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Racetiming.ca Crit - Finally cracking the top 10!
As the title says, finally I was able to crack the top 10 in an E1/2 Ontario Cup. For some reason this race wasn't very well attended. I...
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The weather was the best it had been in years. Legs felt great and I was aiming for a top 100 spot to make the elite wave next year. The cou...
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Knowledge is power. Power is watts. Therefore knowledge is watts! Today I am going to try to help you get more watts with a bit of educatio... -
I will try and tell the story with as few words as possible. Instead I will share pictures from the week (minus TT ones that are in the pos...