70 riders took to the start line for this year’s edition of
the Tour of Bronte. It was a beautiful day for it, some even were spotted
racing in shorts, which was a nice change from the terrible weather we have
been having. The course consisted of an 8km loop that was half pavement and
half gravel. The potholes weren’t as bad this year as last I found. The gravel
section was pretty wet and mushy in spots due to the large amount of rain from
the previous day. Would have been nice to have 25c tires.
This was my first race on my new Scott Foil. While heading
to the start line, I went to shift into the big ring, and I heard a snap. I
thought the shifter broke, but it was the plastic cable guide down under the
crank. I had no access to the big chain ring, and luckily the other half of the
guide that controlled the rear derailleur stayed intact. I got the neutral
support guy to lend a hand in tightening the limit screw keeping me in the big
ring. One problem I didn’t notice until after was that we moved it over too
much and the crank rubbed the front derailleur on each pedal stroke. Luckily
that was only cosmetic damage. The bike gods thought this was enough punishment
I think, as they kept me safe in the race that was about to ensue.
The race started fast, with many riders being popped off the
back in the first few laps, or flatting out of the race. I wasn’t racing smart,
and stayed at the back the whole race. While it kept me safe, it also forced me
to do a lot of extra work to hang onto the group in some of the tight corner
sections, especially at the beginning of the gravel section.
I think the first crash that I remember in the main group
was on the sharp muddy right hand turn. That only brought 2 riders down that I
believe caught back on. A few laps later there was a bigger crash by the
registration cabin on the turn. People were not holding there lines through the
corner and a bunch of riders went down. I was able to cut through the grass to
avoid this one narrowly. Many of these riders didn’t join back to the group.
Then towards the end of the race, just past the registration cabin, over the
bridge there was another crash. The group was getting antsy as it was getting
to the finish and everything clustered together, and some people went down. The
final crash happened just before the loop turn around point on the last lap. I
was somehow able to get around this, but not without slamming on the brakes.
This caused me to lose contact with the ‘lead’ finishing group behind
Mackinnon.
I had no idea Sean broke away, but he built an impressive
gap on the field. He is going to kill it in Europe in the coming weeks. As for
the rest of the riders, the race was a mess. It was a combination of the
slippery conditions and early season excitement with riders not having spent
much time on their bikes. It looked like some forgot how to properly ride in a
group, and others paid for it. As bad as that is, you need to expect that in
early season races and plan your strategy accordingly.
A nice little clip highlighting the day: (video footage courtesy of Jill Wyman)
Personal note for next year, don’t be afraid to get to the
front and have some fun up there. It isn’t all that fun at the back. It is also nice to have someone at your race to help cheer you on, because if you feel like you are almost out they can give you that extra energy to keep pushing on. I am happy
with how much better my fitness is this year compared to last year. Next up is
Good Friday RR, and I will get to test my skills with the big boys yet again.
Garmin data: here
Results: here
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