STS #1 Recap

We awoke to 33F temps and overcast skies this morning the day of our first race of the 2008 road season. Today was the AAVC Spring Training Series race #1. James and I were out the door by 7am to get coffee and bagels at Panera bread. The wind was blowing fairly strong out of the east which made if feel colder than it was. In light of that, James and I elected to do more of a mechanical than active warm up. We cranked up the temp in the car to 90F and just let it cook. Before long we were developing a sweat.

I left James in the car to go through the race day ritual of signing in and pinning bibs. Additional duties this year included coaching the C-racers. Anyone who wants to can join us for a half hour training session on the do's and don'ts of criterium racing. We had a sizable group numbering over 20. I bundled up in my North Face jacket to keep the sweat going from the car warm up while we rode around the course.

James and his fellow C-racers got off arond 9:15 am or so and boy was it a fun race to watch. I rode with them to give advice on staying upright and tactics. The actions was fast and furious as several attacks, (I hope I instigated some of them!), got off the front. None lasted very long. Ultimately one rider did ride away with it and never looked back. He was clearly a B-rider who was warming up. The rest were really racing. James stayed with the big dogs in the field and they eventually shattered the field. Their little group of 8-10 riders stayed intact and James took 6th in the field sprint giving him 7th overall. I pulled off for the last couple of laps to watch the sprint. On the last lap I yelled for James to not "go to early!" Almost as soon as I said that, He launched a major attack! I was standing with the other coaches and some team mates and we just had to laugh. I figured he was going to blow up and was going to just come riding in solo. Well, much to my surprise, I spotted James still with this group as they were climbing the hill just before the finish. Oh man did he finish this thing well! He later told me that his attack was designed to get him to the front to slow the field to get Alexey back on so they could do what they do when they race together. Well, it was a nice try but I don't think the others liked his idea. It was a splendid effort.

We debriefed the C-riders and then I put James in the car to take him home to get ready for church. From there it was off to church then back to runway for my race with the heat blasting out 90F air.

Our race was pretty standard Miscene crit racing. We were missing some of the best riders. There was a TT on the other side of the state and a practice race the day before so maybe those things explain the slim field. It could have been the low temps...I dunno.

So here's how it goes...fast, fast, fast for 10K or so then a break gets off and everything goes into slow motion. That is the recipe for most Michigan crits that I have raced. This one fit into that mold more or less. Our team managed to insert 3 riders in a 6? man break! That meant the rest of us had to slow the field and keep them from chasing the break. This sounds easy but it is not. It takes a lot of energy to do this because you have to cover every attack that threatens the break. I think we were successful in this because the break ended up lapping the field. We had Vince, Rob and Eric in the break and Joe, John, myself, James K., Pat, Scott Gifford and Alex in the field.

Paul Alman gave the lapped riders a 3 lap warning that their race would end so that the break could sort out their race on the following two laps. Somewhere in here Vince attacked again and the break was off the front again. I felt good coming down to the last lap and I was holding the position I had for most of the race. During that time I was chasing down Tim Finkel over and over again. He was doing his utmost to make an attack stick. So, I came around the last turn and Alex sprinted by me going up the hill to the finish. I jumped on his wheel and as he began to fade I turned on whatever jet power I had left and I took the field sprint for 7th? place overall.

Reflecting on the race, I think I did a good job after my team mates got away. The only thing that is bugging me is not going with Tim Finkel. He was giving me ample opportunities to make a go of it. At the time, I was concerned about holding anyone back that might threaten the break but there was a point when another break might have made sense for us. It's all inside baseball stuff because even if I had done that, I wouldn't have placed any better than I did and our team wouldn't have done any better. It is just a tactical decision I made that I am questioning. If you have any insight just leave me a comment.

As for how I felt all I can say is I felt great! As the race went on I felt stronger and stronger. It seemed like the hill was getting easier and not harder as the laps clicked away. I have never been a cold weather racer and maybe I needed to have a few laps to warm up some more. Anyway, it was fun and I learned some more about racing today! My boy did great and is showing promise and I had a fun reunion with friends I hadn't seen in several months.