Posted by Paul on Tuesday, May 06, 2003 at 3:58 PM
Gila Monster Road Race
(Sunday's stage)
Description:
The last, final, crowning, finishing, terminating, conclusive stage. The end, the very end. The course for today was basically the reverse of Friday's stage but only 70 miles. We went towards the Santa Rita mine, over the rollers, up the other side of the climb, then a little detour through San Lorenzo. Then the long trek through the Mimbres Valley, which would surely be fraught (fought?)with much wind. Then at mile 51, we go up the gnarly Sapillo descent that we came down on Friday. The grade starts with a nasty but brief introduction at 17% but then eases up gradually all the way up the White Horse Mesa after 3 miles. From there it's still a slight, big ring uphill grind and then a few more stingers until you get to Meadow Creek. Then a mostly straight, screaming descent, followed by some rollers, and then a tough slugfest for the last mile or so to the finish in Pinos Altos.
How It Went Down:
Vaughn still wasn't feeling too good, so he told me that if he had the jimmy legs again he was going to pack it in. I wanted him to finish, but riding through the windy Mimbres Valley alone or with a small group would . . . well, suck and blow. We did some weird neutral start with the Pro's where we let them ride away, waited a few minutes and then we were given the go ahead to start racing.
We had a tailwind which was pretty cool. Still though, guys were attacking from the first moment. Once again, my legs didn't feel all that fresh, but the trend has been that they warm up after 20-30 miles. After a few efforts put me in some stress, I was pretty sure Vaughn was going to hit the showers early (I was right). Even with the tailwind, things were getting difficult. After a few rollers and a few 50mph+ descents, we chugged up the Santa Rita climb and then back down to San Lorenzo. It's too weird to even explain the little San Lorenzo detour we did on Friday and today.
So then we make the turn to whatever road it is that takes you up the Mimbres Valley. I think someone was having a good time with us. Had to be. Because at that very moment when we turned onto the road that for the next 25 miles would take us through the Mimbres Valley - yes, say it with me: "twenty-five miles", the most wickedest, gnarliest, epical, Noah's Arc, Biblical-style wind gust blasted across the group. In the words of Dave Barry, "I am not making this shit up", or something like that. Anyway, through the dust cloud that now surrounded us, I could see some guys were now doing track stands on their bikes. Others were at curious 30 degree angles from vertical trying to maintain their balance while compensating for the wind.
Here I was at the back of the group - the worst place to be. The best thing to do in this situation is to get to the front of the group as soon as possible. I managed to get near the top 20, but was still hanging in the wind. Like George and Weezie, I'm moving on up. In no time, I've got decent position - still in the wind, but not completely. Now we start this erratic stop/start kind of ride. Everyone is fighting for position now so people are hitting their brakes as the pack shifts and churns. We do this for a few miles, but the wind dies down for the most part, gusting occasionally.
Eventually, the trip through the valley mellows out. It's very windy, but at times a straight headwind, which just means that sometimes we slow to a walking pace of 15-18 mph. I'm trying to just conserve. At some point, a break has gotten away and gotten a few minutes on the field. I've never felt like I've had the extra resources to have a go, so I just shake my head and sit in.
My one goal as we approached the gnarly Sapillo climb was to be near the front. The moto was giving us time gaps of 6 minutes to a breakaway group - but the race leader didn't seem to care. Oh well. And I was able to easily move to the front for the base of the climb. I was in perfect position. I knew it wouldn't be long before people starting coming around me, but at least I could chase from the front rather than the back.
The first few minutes of a climb like this are always the hardest - I didn't even look, but I'm sure I was over 170 bpm. Nathan K accelerated a few times. Ouch. The race leader came past me looking strong. This was another situation where I didn't have to stay with the leaders, and it was clear I probably wouldn't - today, this one doesn't go to 11. But it's only a 3 mile climb and there are around 15 miles after that before the finish. The last time I did this stage ('96), I got dropped on this climb, eventually formed a group of about 12 and we caught and passed the leaders near the finish. So I just needed to ride a good tempo.
Soon there were about a dozen of us. We weren't working together so well - whoever felt good went to the front and rode hard. It was a little gusty up there, so people were happy to have someone out front. We got up to Wild Horse Mesa ok, but it wasn't exactly flat when we got there. It was more of a big ring grind. Soon, this group broke up as well.
There were about 3 of us when we got up to Meadow Creek. This is where the long descent starts. We weren't too far behind, but would have to work to close the gap. It was windy up there too. I sat on the back, a little tired after pulling our trio over most of the last few rollers. I let a gap open up on the descent and it widened quickly. I'm not a great descender, I was tired, and just not paying attention. So, I got dropped and was soon riding by myself. It was windy, so even though the descent was fairly straight, the all-out, superman, don't-tell-my-wife-I'm-doing-this-cause-she'll-freak-out tuck wouldn't do much - you still had to pedal hard. I had to shift down to the 13 or 14 tooth to really get going. No rest for the weary.
3 miles to go. I could see the two guys who dropped me and the group ahead of them in the distance, but I didn't think I would close it. Shit.
2 miles to go. Into some rollers now, I've completely given up on catching them. Now I'm solo. No familiar hum of the moto, no sag wagon behind me - I'm in no man's land, just trying to make it look good.
1 mile to go. I hear someone heckle from the side of the road: "You're losing" Ouch. Vaughn and I bought Oreos and now I was getting pumped up for some PHSO goodness (Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil) after the ride. Yummm. The turnoff to the finish was one last steep mofo. At this point I've resolved to do only downhill races, with a tailwind all the way and bubblelicious Hooter's girls on motorcycles pacing me. It was that ugly. At 200m to go, I still can't even see the finish line, but I chunk it down to a good gear, stand up, and go as hard as I'm able to the line. Done!
I dropped 3+ minutes to the group for 27th place on the day. This slipped me back to 23rd overall on GC. Ouch - I dropped 10 places in one stage. I was actually more surprised I didn't end up here sooner. I guess it means most of the climbers can't time trial as well as I can and it took them two climbing stages to take back the time. Oh well.
Thanks to the both of you for reading. We'll try to keep this going for each race we do. Enjoy . . .
Posted by Paul on Monday, May 05, 2003 at 12:00 PM
Downtown Criterium - Saturday, May 3, 2003
Distance: 20 laps; 1.08 mile/lap
Conditions: 70's, sunny
Location: Downtown Silver City
Description:
Even though it's a criterium - it's still hilly. With 80 feet of climbing per lap, this stage will have another 1600 feet of climbing - that's roughly like climbing to the junction at Mount Diablo.
The course is a rectangle. From the start/finish line to turn 1 is pretty flat. The short leg to turn 2 usually has a headwind. From turn 2 along the backstretch there is a short steep stinger of a climb - about 35 feet. Then you quickly drop 30 feet, then climb (usually coast) another 10 feet to turn 3. Then you descend 55 feet to turn 4, where you're usually moving at 35 mph. The distance from turn 4 to the finish line is about 400 meters and there's also another 25 feet of climbing to get there.
How It Unfolded:
My goal (and Vaughn's) was just to cruise. I wasn't up for any brake lever ass prodding at 35 mph in turn 4 with 90 of my closest friends. So Vaughn and I sat in and tried to take it easy as much as possible. I sat in the middle third for most of the stage. My legs felt a little stale (how many times have I said that now?), but my heart rate didn't get over 160 until the last two laps. But that may be a different issue.
Anyway, the race was pretty safe. There was one cheesy crash coming out of turn 3 before the descent. I think both guys got back on their bikes right away. Vaughn and I ended up finishing somewhere in the top 35 or so and were glad to have it over with.
Afterward, I went over to neutral support because I was having a nasty little creaking coming from my bottom bracket. The mechanic tried all these things to fix it until he eventually pulled out the entire bottom bracket, put some anti-seize goop on it, and put it back in. All for free. How awesome is that?
Tomorrow is the Gila Monster Road Race, which is basically Friday's stage in reverse. It finishes on a climb, though. I hope the legs are there - I'd really like to crack the top 10 GC.
Distance: 20 laps; 1.08 mile/lap
Conditions: 70's, sunny
Location: Downtown Silver City
Description:
Even though it's a criterium - it's still hilly. With 80 feet of climbing per lap, this stage will have another 1600 feet of climbing - that's roughly like climbing to the junction at Mount Diablo.
The course is a rectangle. From the start/finish line to turn 1 is pretty flat. The short leg to turn 2 usually has a headwind. From turn 2 along the backstretch there is a short steep stinger of a climb - about 35 feet. Then you quickly drop 30 feet, then climb (usually coast) another 10 feet to turn 3. Then you descend 55 feet to turn 4, where you're usually moving at 35 mph. The distance from turn 4 to the finish line is about 400 meters and there's also another 25 feet of climbing to get there.
How It Unfolded:
My goal (and Vaughn's) was just to cruise. I wasn't up for any brake lever ass prodding at 35 mph in turn 4 with 90 of my closest friends. So Vaughn and I sat in and tried to take it easy as much as possible. I sat in the middle third for most of the stage. My legs felt a little stale (how many times have I said that now?), but my heart rate didn't get over 160 until the last two laps. But that may be a different issue.
Anyway, the race was pretty safe. There was one cheesy crash coming out of turn 3 before the descent. I think both guys got back on their bikes right away. Vaughn and I ended up finishing somewhere in the top 35 or so and were glad to have it over with.
Afterward, I went over to neutral support because I was having a nasty little creaking coming from my bottom bracket. The mechanic tried all these things to fix it until he eventually pulled out the entire bottom bracket, put some anti-seize goop on it, and put it back in. All for free. How awesome is that?
Tomorrow is the Gila Monster Road Race, which is basically Friday's stage in reverse. It finishes on a climb, though. I hope the legs are there - I'd really like to crack the top 10 GC.
Inner Loop RR - 76 miles
(Friday's stage)
Another day, another stage. This stage has 5000 feet of climbing total - a bunch of it early, and then more of it late. I thought today might be a good day for a long breakaway if I had good legs. I didn't sleep too well last night, again. But I felt ok when we got up for breakfast.
The stage didn't start until 10 am which meant we'd be in for a warm finish. Another short neutral roll out and we were on our way. The first climb was a Cat 3 climb up to Pinos Altos. My legs didn't feel so fresh but I managed to stay with the front group. Then we started the first of 3 technical, twisty descents.
This first descent was a little sketchy because we had a such a large group. One guy in front of me overcooked it a little in the first tight turn and locked up his rear wheel. That woke me up!
So before you know it - we're climbing again. The end of this climb is the highest point of the stage. There were a few rollers and then a long straight climb the last part of which is the feed zone. It's tough mentally because you just see a long straight uphill road in front that never seems to end.
The new race leader, who won yesterday's stage to take the lead, didn't look too much older than Ben. Vaughn told me later that he heard that this kid was Jonathan Vaughter's new protege. He can sure climb.
Anyway, it was towards the end of this climb where I was, in the words of Phil Liggett, "put in difficulty". The climb was just so long, there was a large group and we were really moving. I knew roughly where the top was because Vaughn and I had scouted it out. But I was suffering like a dog. I opted for the little granny gear and tried to get my spin mojo workin' for me. It worked, as a group of about 30 of us crested the highest elevation point of the stage.
Then we started another descent. I white-knuckled it down 3rd or 4th from the back. There were a few more rollers to contend with, and then the last, supposedly most dangerous descent. Again, I sat near the back, and white-knuckled it all the way down. It was actually a pretty safe descent - there were lots of course marshals warning us with bullhorns, flags, etc.
Now we had a long ride through the Mimbres valley. Up over the Continental Divide (for the second time, since we crossed it near Pinos Altos as well) down to San Lorenzo, then up the last Cat 3 climb past the Santa Rita mine. It was mostly uneventful through here. I refuelled on gel and Accelerade as much as possible and tried to rest. It felt like me legs were coming back to life a little.
Vaughn and I scouted the last climb up past the Santa Rita mine. The one thing that I remembered was that it didn't really have a definitive beginning or end, it just seemed to keep going up and down, up and down. At the base of the climb was the last feed zone. We didn't have anyone to feed us, but I thought I might get a neutral feed. It didn't work out, so I had to make due with what I had for the last 16 miles.
The climb was windy the whole farkin' way. Swirling all over the place. And as I remembered, it didn't really have a definitive end. There were some resting points where it went down hill for a little, but it always seemed to go back up again. I was anxiously groping for wheels and trying to spin a little gear to keep the legs fresh. I was really starting to feel fatigued now, but I'm sure we all were. At the 10 mile to go mark, I drained my last of 3 water bottles. Bummer, since it wasn't getting any cooler.
With 2 miles to go, things starting heating up some. I tried to stay near the front. The last time I did this stage, I got 3rd so I was hoping for another good finish today. I was in the wind for part of the final run in, but wasn't working too hard and was holding my position. I figured that you wanted to be on the right for favorable wind in the sprint. But, I quickly got pushed to the left at this point. At the 1k to go sign, I had good position, even if I was on the left. We went through one final sketchy cattleguard-chicane to the finishing straight.
I had a clear line to the finish at the 500m sign. I knew it was too early, and I knew I was on the wrong side for the wind - so I went anyway. I guess the lactic acid was clouding things for me mentally. I was 3rd as we ramped it up. One guy dropped off, but another took his place. With 200 meters to go I started to fade badly. Another guy came past me with good speed at 100m. I got punked by one more at the line and managed 5th place.
No change on GC. Tomorrow is the crit - I really just want some time to recover. Although I do feel like I'm riding myself into form, I think an easy day would do wonders.
(Friday's stage)
Another day, another stage. This stage has 5000 feet of climbing total - a bunch of it early, and then more of it late. I thought today might be a good day for a long breakaway if I had good legs. I didn't sleep too well last night, again. But I felt ok when we got up for breakfast.
The stage didn't start until 10 am which meant we'd be in for a warm finish. Another short neutral roll out and we were on our way. The first climb was a Cat 3 climb up to Pinos Altos. My legs didn't feel so fresh but I managed to stay with the front group. Then we started the first of 3 technical, twisty descents.
This first descent was a little sketchy because we had a such a large group. One guy in front of me overcooked it a little in the first tight turn and locked up his rear wheel. That woke me up!
So before you know it - we're climbing again. The end of this climb is the highest point of the stage. There were a few rollers and then a long straight climb the last part of which is the feed zone. It's tough mentally because you just see a long straight uphill road in front that never seems to end.
The new race leader, who won yesterday's stage to take the lead, didn't look too much older than Ben. Vaughn told me later that he heard that this kid was Jonathan Vaughter's new protege. He can sure climb.
Anyway, it was towards the end of this climb where I was, in the words of Phil Liggett, "put in difficulty". The climb was just so long, there was a large group and we were really moving. I knew roughly where the top was because Vaughn and I had scouted it out. But I was suffering like a dog. I opted for the little granny gear and tried to get my spin mojo workin' for me. It worked, as a group of about 30 of us crested the highest elevation point of the stage.
Then we started another descent. I white-knuckled it down 3rd or 4th from the back. There were a few more rollers to contend with, and then the last, supposedly most dangerous descent. Again, I sat near the back, and white-knuckled it all the way down. It was actually a pretty safe descent - there were lots of course marshals warning us with bullhorns, flags, etc.
Now we had a long ride through the Mimbres valley. Up over the Continental Divide (for the second time, since we crossed it near Pinos Altos as well) down to San Lorenzo, then up the last Cat 3 climb past the Santa Rita mine. It was mostly uneventful through here. I refuelled on gel and Accelerade as much as possible and tried to rest. It felt like me legs were coming back to life a little.
Vaughn and I scouted the last climb up past the Santa Rita mine. The one thing that I remembered was that it didn't really have a definitive beginning or end, it just seemed to keep going up and down, up and down. At the base of the climb was the last feed zone. We didn't have anyone to feed us, but I thought I might get a neutral feed. It didn't work out, so I had to make due with what I had for the last 16 miles.
The climb was windy the whole farkin' way. Swirling all over the place. And as I remembered, it didn't really have a definitive end. There were some resting points where it went down hill for a little, but it always seemed to go back up again. I was anxiously groping for wheels and trying to spin a little gear to keep the legs fresh. I was really starting to feel fatigued now, but I'm sure we all were. At the 10 mile to go mark, I drained my last of 3 water bottles. Bummer, since it wasn't getting any cooler.
With 2 miles to go, things starting heating up some. I tried to stay near the front. The last time I did this stage, I got 3rd so I was hoping for another good finish today. I was in the wind for part of the final run in, but wasn't working too hard and was holding my position. I figured that you wanted to be on the right for favorable wind in the sprint. But, I quickly got pushed to the left at this point. At the 1k to go sign, I had good position, even if I was on the left. We went through one final sketchy cattleguard-chicane to the finishing straight.
I had a clear line to the finish at the 500m sign. I knew it was too early, and I knew I was on the wrong side for the wind - so I went anyway. I guess the lactic acid was clouding things for me mentally. I was 3rd as we ramped it up. One guy dropped off, but another took his place. With 200 meters to go I started to fade badly. Another guy came past me with good speed at 100m. I got punked by one more at the line and managed 5th place.
No change on GC. Tomorrow is the crit - I really just want some time to recover. Although I do feel like I'm riding myself into form, I think an easy day would do wonders.
My Happy Place
Mogollon Road Race
(Thursday's Stage)
This stage is pretty straightforward. It's 70 miles. 63 of those miles are mostly flat with some rollers, then there's a 3 mile gentle warm-up climb, then put it in the granny gear, find your happy place, and get to the top. Oh yeah, the other thing is, it's a point to point race - so you end up 70 miles from where started. So it ends up being kind of a stressful day since you've got to coordinate a ride home as well.
We started with an uphill neutral rollout to the main highway. I think the guy/gal driving the neutral rollout vehicle had too much coffee, because that neutral rollout felt like a time trial. Neutral rollouts are supposed to be really slow, especially if they're uphill. This one wasn't. Vaughn and I were fighting to stay on. It was at this point I noticed my legs didn't feel so fresh. But I still had another 3 hours before the difficult climb started to actively recover. Do you believe that explanation? I'm not sure I did!
The first 63 miles were pretty uneventful. I did get a yellow line warning. Oh well. Meanwhile, my legs still weren't feeling that fresh.
As we approached the climb, I started trying to move near the front - no use starting a difficult climb like that at the back of the group if you don't have to. We went pretty hard up the first gentle 3 miles or so up to White Water Mesa and I was really surprised because we were still a pretty large group at this point - lots of good climbers. At this point my legs were feeling a little fresher - guess I needed a 63 mile warm up.
It's about 1 flat mile across White Water Mesa. So - time to recover. Because the last 3 lung-searing, quad-burning, heart-pounding miles are brutal. But of course that didn't happen. Someone threw down a pretty good attack to string out the group thinner than Britney Spear's lace top and send everybody anxiously groping for . . . uhhh . . . wheels. Damn. No rest for the weary. I hung tough in the top 15 or so, and then noticed the road turning skyward.
It gets steep pretty quickly. I think that on these climbs you want to pace yourself - if you can hang with the lead group, then you should, but if not, accept it, put it in the granny gear, find your happy place, think happy thoughts and get through it. This was my strategy. I'm still in the hunt for GC, and it doesn't matter what place I get, just how much time I lose/gain on everyone else.
I brought the 25 tooth gear for this stage, and probably could have used a 26 or 27. So I put it into the 25, and got my spin mojo happenin'. I was with the lead group at this point, but things were getting strung out quickly, as expected. There was a little "rest" section, where the grade was 5% - honestly, it felt downhill to me! Then was the hardest, steepest section.
Man, I lost it somewhere in here. I had no power in my legs. I was runnin' on fumes and thoughts of the massive quantities of partially hydrogenated vegetable oil that can only be found in Double Stuf Oreos. Oh man, it was ugly. I got passed by a few people, but we were all hurtin' campers.
There was another rest (only 6% grade!) at about .5 miles to go. I seemed to pep up somewhere around here. I was riding with the race leader at this point, so that was kind of a good feeling. I started working my 25 again and spun away from him and caught 2 more guys right near the finish.
I finished about 3 minutes back, in 32nd place. Vaughn had a pretty rough time and finished about 8 minutes off the winner. The good news - I moved up one spot on GC to finish 13th. If I could have just had an average day, I could easily be in the top 10. Damn.
On the way 70 mile ride back we got a ride with some of the old Albquerque homies: Dan Doornbos and Bill Rucker. We got caught up with all the gossip. Dan brought PB&J sandwiches - we all partook. Yummy!
We got back to Silver City and then went to have our first lunch/dinner at about 3:30. Then at 7, we went for another. Ahhhh, the joys of being a cyclist - good food and lots of it.
Tomorrow is a 76 mile road stage. It's got a lot of up and down to start, including 3 tricky, dangerous descents. Then a long section of just narrow roads, then one more climb and then a mostly flat finish. Vaughn and I have scouted this course extensively (thanks to Vaughn's mishap) and I think it could be a good stage for a long breakaway attempt. We'll see how I feel tomorrow.
Kisses to Ben, Emma and my wife. I miss you!
Mogollon Road Race
(Thursday's Stage)
This stage is pretty straightforward. It's 70 miles. 63 of those miles are mostly flat with some rollers, then there's a 3 mile gentle warm-up climb, then put it in the granny gear, find your happy place, and get to the top. Oh yeah, the other thing is, it's a point to point race - so you end up 70 miles from where started. So it ends up being kind of a stressful day since you've got to coordinate a ride home as well.
We started with an uphill neutral rollout to the main highway. I think the guy/gal driving the neutral rollout vehicle had too much coffee, because that neutral rollout felt like a time trial. Neutral rollouts are supposed to be really slow, especially if they're uphill. This one wasn't. Vaughn and I were fighting to stay on. It was at this point I noticed my legs didn't feel so fresh. But I still had another 3 hours before the difficult climb started to actively recover. Do you believe that explanation? I'm not sure I did!
The first 63 miles were pretty uneventful. I did get a yellow line warning. Oh well. Meanwhile, my legs still weren't feeling that fresh.
As we approached the climb, I started trying to move near the front - no use starting a difficult climb like that at the back of the group if you don't have to. We went pretty hard up the first gentle 3 miles or so up to White Water Mesa and I was really surprised because we were still a pretty large group at this point - lots of good climbers. At this point my legs were feeling a little fresher - guess I needed a 63 mile warm up.
It's about 1 flat mile across White Water Mesa. So - time to recover. Because the last 3 lung-searing, quad-burning, heart-pounding miles are brutal. But of course that didn't happen. Someone threw down a pretty good attack to string out the group thinner than Britney Spear's lace top and send everybody anxiously groping for . . . uhhh . . . wheels. Damn. No rest for the weary. I hung tough in the top 15 or so, and then noticed the road turning skyward.
It gets steep pretty quickly. I think that on these climbs you want to pace yourself - if you can hang with the lead group, then you should, but if not, accept it, put it in the granny gear, find your happy place, think happy thoughts and get through it. This was my strategy. I'm still in the hunt for GC, and it doesn't matter what place I get, just how much time I lose/gain on everyone else.
I brought the 25 tooth gear for this stage, and probably could have used a 26 or 27. So I put it into the 25, and got my spin mojo happenin'. I was with the lead group at this point, but things were getting strung out quickly, as expected. There was a little "rest" section, where the grade was 5% - honestly, it felt downhill to me! Then was the hardest, steepest section.
Man, I lost it somewhere in here. I had no power in my legs. I was runnin' on fumes and thoughts of the massive quantities of partially hydrogenated vegetable oil that can only be found in Double Stuf Oreos. Oh man, it was ugly. I got passed by a few people, but we were all hurtin' campers.
There was another rest (only 6% grade!) at about .5 miles to go. I seemed to pep up somewhere around here. I was riding with the race leader at this point, so that was kind of a good feeling. I started working my 25 again and spun away from him and caught 2 more guys right near the finish.
I finished about 3 minutes back, in 32nd place. Vaughn had a pretty rough time and finished about 8 minutes off the winner. The good news - I moved up one spot on GC to finish 13th. If I could have just had an average day, I could easily be in the top 10. Damn.
On the way 70 mile ride back we got a ride with some of the old Albquerque homies: Dan Doornbos and Bill Rucker. We got caught up with all the gossip. Dan brought PB&J sandwiches - we all partook. Yummy!
We got back to Silver City and then went to have our first lunch/dinner at about 3:30. Then at 7, we went for another. Ahhhh, the joys of being a cyclist - good food and lots of it.
Tomorrow is a 76 mile road stage. It's got a lot of up and down to start, including 3 tricky, dangerous descents. Then a long section of just narrow roads, then one more climb and then a mostly flat finish. Vaughn and I have scouted this course extensively (thanks to Vaughn's mishap) and I think it could be a good stage for a long breakaway attempt. We'll see how I feel tomorrow.
Kisses to Ben, Emma and my wife. I miss you!
