I now have a fire to do better in time trials and take them more seriously after the nightmare of going to the prologue of the Tour of Washington county ten minutes late and not havng a warm up. Terrible preparation on my behalf and the disappointment of losing that much entry money was a pisser.
After seeing guys like Art Browne and my friend Paul Lengermann going out to the team time trial and doing an earlier time at church creek and also the team one I am in a state of admiration for said individuals who have the heart and self sacrifice to endure soo much pain. Good pain that earlier in my years as a racer I would accept and endure.. now I wonder if I am just trying to enter what I can do with ease and comparative less pain. An attitude I never admire and I am beside myself for lapsing into such a complacent mode. I was angry at the official who would not give me a new start time last weekend, but I am more than over it and I realize that to accomodate for one is to do soo for all and thats a form of weaness. Weakness is something of which I detest to a degree. Therefore its a contradictory attitude on my behalf to expect or ask someone to display a behavior for which I have little respect. As for the team I ride on this year, I tried to convince them of the value of the team time trial and the individual one congruent with my recent realization, but to no avail. ( granted it was a couple days in advance of said event) I hate having little influence on the direction of the team I ride for and it will sit with me for awhile. I have never liked not being listened to since childhood which to my recollection was the constant with a gifted twin and an older brother. Cest la vie, but one should be aware of the things that one can change. Anyway, congratulations to all the riders who faced today the most honest challenger out there; the clock.
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
123 field- to- pro -1- contrast and similarity post
The 1.2.3 race this weekend was pretty fast. I mean the Clarendon cup event on Saturday. The staging was pretty silly where the officials allowed some of the riders to enter from the pit side and displayed there lack of authority over the race. This was annoying because it totally put me at the back of that race which I seem to always end up from the start. They are either going to have to have grid qualifiers for a 123 event or actually officiate something besides minutia. This seems like an important issue to regulate because it would appear as though the worst riders try to get their best positioning for this one just to let a duo go into the first turn never to be seen again. Effectively blocking the field long enough for a significant gap to open. Yes, DC Velo did do intentional blocking. Yes there was also some pretty damn sketchy blocking done on their behalf also, and also some plain old effective methods but nonetheless the rest of the not soo honorable types did their part by simply being wusses.
Comparing the two fields between Saturday and Sunday is like comparing apples to oranges. The orange would be Saturdays Haymarket guy who is a not too talented singular rider (their biggest guy) and Sunday being the apples ( mostly very talented and stable riders ) I pick on the orange solely bc he was the worst rider I have seen ever...hands down... except for the saving grace for him, and annoying for everyone else, that he could motor back every time after bungling the turns. All the way to the very last turn.
The pro -cat 1 race was thankfully exempt from the cat two up n comers in at least two ways. They couldnt be lame in the turns because they were not allowed to enter. They couldnt weasel to the start line by any means necessary because they were not allowed to enter. In my mind there are two reasons to wrestle to the front and be soo concerned about getting ones wheel on the line at the start either out of plain fear of being dropped or to actually do something like break away very early. The very same reason why the whole front of a race would sit back and not chase, or lets say not hold the wheel slipping away or go around the one rider who is blocking, FEAR. It was a very disappointing raceon Saturday in this respect. In the calamity of talentless individuals and there lacking courage and strength also. It is not fair to say the riders off the front`were slow because Josh and Mike did a fine job, but the field should boast very little and honestly Kelly, Battley-Harley Davidson, and NCVC should hang their heads low for doing nothing very affective to pull this twosome back.
The Crystal classic was smooth as a babys bottom as far as the riders went. The course was as nasty and dangerous as an outpost position in Afghanistan. There were soo many flats due to potholes that to take count would have been difficult. The speed is soo much faster then amateur racing and one had better really be used to getting tight in the draft or suffer the consequences. Cornering in the pro fields for the most part is simple and courteous and there are not nearly the same amount of desperate chops being dished out by eager riders. people hold the wheel in front of them and dont take the opportunistic advancements that lead to sketchy bunching up out of turns and cause crashes.
I managed to place 35 th and I was glad to represent for Artemis this weekend. The hat is off to Ryan Mckinny ( DC Velo) who dragged the group of split off riders along the start/stop stretch for the run in to the finish. We were all stretched as far as limits go due to the 2 to go United health power train that crushed all hope of a bunch sprint....instead it was a spent riders sprint. In our group DJ had a launch that went flying, just as me and Chuck Hutch started our jump. It was really an effort to start the sprint there and there was a waiting game that shoulda gone earlier but nobody had anything left in that group and again it too an honorable soldier like Mr. Mckinny to volunteer and pull the whole distance from the last turn. A nice guy thru and thru.
On another note. As I was cooling down along the very wide open section of the course, the team of Colavita women were on the road and one of them said coming thru or sumpin but I was not around others or swerving soo I just held my line and the last rider was a little lady with big attitude and hers was the only pro that gave me an uncalled for injection of nerve gas as though I was totally in the wrong. I figured if I turned around not knowing which side they wanted to pass me on than I might move into their train ....anyways ...you can please some of the people...
I did enjoy the racing, though the potholes did do my rear rim a dinger....such is racing and at least it held psi...thanks being to tubulars.
Comparing the two fields between Saturday and Sunday is like comparing apples to oranges. The orange would be Saturdays Haymarket guy who is a not too talented singular rider (their biggest guy) and Sunday being the apples ( mostly very talented and stable riders ) I pick on the orange solely bc he was the worst rider I have seen ever...hands down... except for the saving grace for him, and annoying for everyone else, that he could motor back every time after bungling the turns. All the way to the very last turn.
The pro -cat 1 race was thankfully exempt from the cat two up n comers in at least two ways. They couldnt be lame in the turns because they were not allowed to enter. They couldnt weasel to the start line by any means necessary because they were not allowed to enter. In my mind there are two reasons to wrestle to the front and be soo concerned about getting ones wheel on the line at the start either out of plain fear of being dropped or to actually do something like break away very early. The very same reason why the whole front of a race would sit back and not chase, or lets say not hold the wheel slipping away or go around the one rider who is blocking, FEAR. It was a very disappointing raceon Saturday in this respect. In the calamity of talentless individuals and there lacking courage and strength also. It is not fair to say the riders off the front`were slow because Josh and Mike did a fine job, but the field should boast very little and honestly Kelly, Battley-Harley Davidson, and NCVC should hang their heads low for doing nothing very affective to pull this twosome back.
The Crystal classic was smooth as a babys bottom as far as the riders went. The course was as nasty and dangerous as an outpost position in Afghanistan. There were soo many flats due to potholes that to take count would have been difficult. The speed is soo much faster then amateur racing and one had better really be used to getting tight in the draft or suffer the consequences. Cornering in the pro fields for the most part is simple and courteous and there are not nearly the same amount of desperate chops being dished out by eager riders. people hold the wheel in front of them and dont take the opportunistic advancements that lead to sketchy bunching up out of turns and cause crashes.
I managed to place 35 th and I was glad to represent for Artemis this weekend. The hat is off to Ryan Mckinny ( DC Velo) who dragged the group of split off riders along the start/stop stretch for the run in to the finish. We were all stretched as far as limits go due to the 2 to go United health power train that crushed all hope of a bunch sprint....instead it was a spent riders sprint. In our group DJ had a launch that went flying, just as me and Chuck Hutch started our jump. It was really an effort to start the sprint there and there was a waiting game that shoulda gone earlier but nobody had anything left in that group and again it too an honorable soldier like Mr. Mckinny to volunteer and pull the whole distance from the last turn. A nice guy thru and thru.
On another note. As I was cooling down along the very wide open section of the course, the team of Colavita women were on the road and one of them said coming thru or sumpin but I was not around others or swerving soo I just held my line and the last rider was a little lady with big attitude and hers was the only pro that gave me an uncalled for injection of nerve gas as though I was totally in the wrong. I figured if I turned around not knowing which side they wanted to pass me on than I might move into their train ....anyways ...you can please some of the people...
I did enjoy the racing, though the potholes did do my rear rim a dinger....such is racing and at least it held psi...thanks being to tubulars.
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