CAT 5: http://www.strava.com/activities/112326671
Mens 35+ CAT 4/5: http://www.strava.com/activities/112326676
When I found out after the Boulevard race that Shannon had already registered for the crits today (that's right...crits as in plural), I just couldn't resist. One, it was a flatter route and two, I just like racing together with Shannon to represent team BRCM. We did see Jeremy there before the CAT 5 race that we were in and Vin subsequently during the race, but they were in their ARB4U team kits where we didn't want to interfere with their team strategies since there were a few of them out there.
For the first race, Shannon and I managed to get a warm-up lap on the course despite thinking originally that it wasn't allowed. However, no one lined up for our race yet and no other races were in progress. When we did line up, we didn't see anyone else we knew so the plan was mostly to just survive the race...especially after hearing about last week's crash at the Red Trolley. I'm not too sure the warm-up lap we took really bought us anything in terms of course familiarity but it was better than nothing.
When the race took off, Shannon and I didn't really stay together as we were both trying to find our lines and feel the rhythm of the race. I had been taking more of an inside line for most of the race thinking it would be ideal, but it ended up actually making it difficult to keep any kind of rhythm. It was hard to get in a good position, which I didn't really attempt early on, but when I did try to gain in position, I would probably lose everything I worked for getting pinched in the corners. I got by Shannon at one point in the course, but I lost sight of him after that. I also saw Jeremy and Vin and I was thinking of riding with them for a bit, but ended up getting squeezed out in a turn where the next thing you know, I saw Jeremy up toward the front. I tried to figure out a way to make my up, but I just didn't know how to do so. Shannon had found a way and was able to push up on the last lap or so and had gotten 4th place as a result (woo hoo, congrats!). That's will right there. I still kept struggling to find position even on the last lap where it was so jerky that I only managed 19th after making some last second passes on the final stretch. Jeremy mentioned he had gotten 9th while Vin finished behind me at 21st or so. Good job, gents!
Since Lisa came with me, we decided to get something to eat and actually ended up going home. I guess I was a little tired as I passed out in bed and managed to have a nice little nap before heading back to the 2nd race. I was a little disoriented when we left and almost forgot my bib and a towel to change in, but fortunately I remembered just before driving off. Of course, when we were on the road again, I realized I brought nothing to drink. Oh boy. After a quick stop at a Ralphs near the event, I was ready to go. If Lisa didn't go with me, I'd be sitting on the sideline watching the next race rather than being in it. Thanks, babe!
Shannon had texted me about some crashes he saw after our race, so that didn't really sit too well when I found out. They actually had to stop the 45+ race all together I think after the 3rd crash that occurred. I'm not sure what those guys were doing, but the race coordinators reminded our class when we lined up that we need to be safer out there. I think that made people think a little more, so we managed to have a good race that was uneventful in terms of injuries.
There was no warm-up lap on the course when we got there and we lined up right away. I had warmed up beforehand on my trainer while Shannon did a couple laps on a separate block. I may have warmed up a little much given I was sweating pretty good before the race, but better warm than cold I say.
Unlike the first race, which was only 25 minutes, this second race was 15 minutes longer so I wondered how the pace would be. However, it still seemed pretty fast despite more laps, but the good thing about this race was that I was going to ride with Shannon for the length of the race rather than trying to figure it out on my own.
I stayed with Shannon for several laps, and we weren't pushing it too hard because 1) he showed me a much better line and 2) we figured we can save it for when it mattered. Lisa admitted to me she was a little worried because we were actually at or near the back for a good number of laps, minus some who dropped off, but I never worried since I was with Shannon playing his wingman. Here's a video Lisa took of us in turn #4 early on. Yes...we're toward the back.
About 6-7+ laps out or so, Shannon started to pull up toward the front and actually started to break away on the back half of the course. I was a little stuck, but I wasn't going to let him not have any help. I found an opening and started to give chase. He had drawn a 3-4 guys behind him, but he was still up and away from the rest of the peloton. It was during the climb leading to the front straight of the course that he turned it on more and ended up dropping those behind him. I had just arrived at the wheel of those guys after breaking away from the peloton also, so there wasn't much time to rest and I just took off from behind those guys to chase Shannon and give him some support.
As I approached him, I called out to let him know I was coming so that he was able to latch on as I passed. Although there was one other guy who had broken away ahead of us, it was just Shannon and I at the #2 and 3 spot trying to maintain the breakaway. When one guy finally caught us, both of us were working to recover and knew that it wouldn't be long before we were swallowed back up by the peloton. We kept the breakaway for almost 2 laps though, but there just wasn't enough of us to keep it.
When we got back in the peloton, the group was still pretty large so it didn't take much to get back on. The teams who were racing in this class were definitely a lot more organized for this race, so they started planning for the finish. Attempting another breakaway at that point would have probably gotten a faster response, so we stayed in the pack and tried to plan for the final lap.
During the final lap, we tried to get into a better position but it was a bit chaotic at that point. We started sprinting two corners out, including up the final hill, but Shannon got blocked in where I found a line outside to pass and have him follow me in. Unfortunately, it was not enough to really contend, so we ended up getting 20/21. This was probably back from 39/40 though when we hit the 2nd to the last corner.
Here are some final sprint action shots:
What a day of racing. Shannon and I got to share a couple beers after the 2nd race, which is why we do this stuff for, right? I'm already signed up for next week's race with Shannon in Dominguez Hills (two again), so I'm looking forward to the drinking after, I mean, more team BRCM racing for sure.
All the pics Lisa took for today can be seen here: http://s13.photobucket.com/user/rlaureano/library/Brea%20Crit%202014?sort=3&page=1.
Mens 35+ CAT 4/5: http://www.strava.com/activities/112326676
When I found out after the Boulevard race that Shannon had already registered for the crits today (that's right...crits as in plural), I just couldn't resist. One, it was a flatter route and two, I just like racing together with Shannon to represent team BRCM. We did see Jeremy there before the CAT 5 race that we were in and Vin subsequently during the race, but they were in their ARB4U team kits where we didn't want to interfere with their team strategies since there were a few of them out there.
For the first race, Shannon and I managed to get a warm-up lap on the course despite thinking originally that it wasn't allowed. However, no one lined up for our race yet and no other races were in progress. When we did line up, we didn't see anyone else we knew so the plan was mostly to just survive the race...especially after hearing about last week's crash at the Red Trolley. I'm not too sure the warm-up lap we took really bought us anything in terms of course familiarity but it was better than nothing.
When the race took off, Shannon and I didn't really stay together as we were both trying to find our lines and feel the rhythm of the race. I had been taking more of an inside line for most of the race thinking it would be ideal, but it ended up actually making it difficult to keep any kind of rhythm. It was hard to get in a good position, which I didn't really attempt early on, but when I did try to gain in position, I would probably lose everything I worked for getting pinched in the corners. I got by Shannon at one point in the course, but I lost sight of him after that. I also saw Jeremy and Vin and I was thinking of riding with them for a bit, but ended up getting squeezed out in a turn where the next thing you know, I saw Jeremy up toward the front. I tried to figure out a way to make my up, but I just didn't know how to do so. Shannon had found a way and was able to push up on the last lap or so and had gotten 4th place as a result (woo hoo, congrats!). That's will right there. I still kept struggling to find position even on the last lap where it was so jerky that I only managed 19th after making some last second passes on the final stretch. Jeremy mentioned he had gotten 9th while Vin finished behind me at 21st or so. Good job, gents!
Since Lisa came with me, we decided to get something to eat and actually ended up going home. I guess I was a little tired as I passed out in bed and managed to have a nice little nap before heading back to the 2nd race. I was a little disoriented when we left and almost forgot my bib and a towel to change in, but fortunately I remembered just before driving off. Of course, when we were on the road again, I realized I brought nothing to drink. Oh boy. After a quick stop at a Ralphs near the event, I was ready to go. If Lisa didn't go with me, I'd be sitting on the sideline watching the next race rather than being in it. Thanks, babe!
Shannon had texted me about some crashes he saw after our race, so that didn't really sit too well when I found out. They actually had to stop the 45+ race all together I think after the 3rd crash that occurred. I'm not sure what those guys were doing, but the race coordinators reminded our class when we lined up that we need to be safer out there. I think that made people think a little more, so we managed to have a good race that was uneventful in terms of injuries.
There was no warm-up lap on the course when we got there and we lined up right away. I had warmed up beforehand on my trainer while Shannon did a couple laps on a separate block. I may have warmed up a little much given I was sweating pretty good before the race, but better warm than cold I say.
Unlike the first race, which was only 25 minutes, this second race was 15 minutes longer so I wondered how the pace would be. However, it still seemed pretty fast despite more laps, but the good thing about this race was that I was going to ride with Shannon for the length of the race rather than trying to figure it out on my own.
I stayed with Shannon for several laps, and we weren't pushing it too hard because 1) he showed me a much better line and 2) we figured we can save it for when it mattered. Lisa admitted to me she was a little worried because we were actually at or near the back for a good number of laps, minus some who dropped off, but I never worried since I was with Shannon playing his wingman. Here's a video Lisa took of us in turn #4 early on. Yes...we're toward the back.
About 6-7+ laps out or so, Shannon started to pull up toward the front and actually started to break away on the back half of the course. I was a little stuck, but I wasn't going to let him not have any help. I found an opening and started to give chase. He had drawn a 3-4 guys behind him, but he was still up and away from the rest of the peloton. It was during the climb leading to the front straight of the course that he turned it on more and ended up dropping those behind him. I had just arrived at the wheel of those guys after breaking away from the peloton also, so there wasn't much time to rest and I just took off from behind those guys to chase Shannon and give him some support.
As I approached him, I called out to let him know I was coming so that he was able to latch on as I passed. Although there was one other guy who had broken away ahead of us, it was just Shannon and I at the #2 and 3 spot trying to maintain the breakaway. When one guy finally caught us, both of us were working to recover and knew that it wouldn't be long before we were swallowed back up by the peloton. We kept the breakaway for almost 2 laps though, but there just wasn't enough of us to keep it.
 |
| Shannon making his move |
 |
| Going into wingman mode |
 |
| The following lap still trying to keep the gap |
 |
| Just when we think we're doing okay... |
 |
| ...we see the peloton coming up quick behind us |
When we got back in the peloton, the group was still pretty large so it didn't take much to get back on. The teams who were racing in this class were definitely a lot more organized for this race, so they started planning for the finish. Attempting another breakaway at that point would have probably gotten a faster response, so we stayed in the pack and tried to plan for the final lap.
During the final lap, we tried to get into a better position but it was a bit chaotic at that point. We started sprinting two corners out, including up the final hill, but Shannon got blocked in where I found a line outside to pass and have him follow me in. Unfortunately, it was not enough to really contend, so we ended up getting 20/21. This was probably back from 39/40 though when we hit the 2nd to the last corner.
Here are some final sprint action shots:
What a day of racing. Shannon and I got to share a couple beers after the 2nd race, which is why we do this stuff for, right? I'm already signed up for next week's race with Shannon in Dominguez Hills (two again), so I'm looking forward to the drinking after, I mean, more team BRCM racing for sure.
All the pics Lisa took for today can be seen here: http://s13.photobucket.com/user/rlaureano/library/Brea%20Crit%202014?sort=3&page=1.
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