Tom, Myself (Don) and Dr. Phil all represented at the Winfield Twilight Criterium.
This was a nice course and we all agreed that we enjoyed it, after it was over. It was pretty challenging with a nice sustained climb after turn one for a good three city blocks. The back side had a bunch of twisting decending turns that were fun. I was able to hang with the main group for three or four laps and found myself drifting away. Tom stayed on much longer and eventually ended up off the back at some point as well. I got lapped towards the end of the race (Tom was not lapped). There were around 75 that started Tom finished 27th and I finished 29th. I was in a group of about nine trying to catch back on for most of the race, and ended up second in that field sprint (trying to put a positive spin on it).
Dr. Phil shows to cheer us on and wasn't sure if he was even going to race. Those of you who rode this morning may remember who put the hurt on you on the bluff ride. Yes he rode this morning hard and then raced in the the 50 plus. Tom and I convinced him that he could race and promised him a beer regardless of how he finished. Well Dr. Phil did fine. In fact he seemed, in my opinion to be doing too much work up the hill. Every time around he was leading or near the front of his chase group. So anyway Dr. Phil did too much work and ended up fourth in his field sprint, after leading up the hill and all the way down till the last turn. He ended up 7th overall. Nice job Dr. Phil.
Tom finished second in his field sprint not too far behind the main field.
Overall not too bad. Tom and I are trying to stay away from the booze and will try to reload in support of the heavy hitters tomorrow. Let's go Tower.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Friday, May 30, 2008
Diva training day at the Velodrome
This is a bit late, but for all you diva Tower members with any ambitions on the track, check out the link below. This is a special event that is this Saturday at the Northbrook Velodrome. Sorry for the short notice, but if you ever wanted to venture out on the track this would be a great opportunity for you. Here is the link.
http://www.northbrookvelodrome.org/files/2008_Women_Track_Clinic_Flyer_0.pdf
They provide a track bike.
http://www.northbrookvelodrome.org/files/2008_Women_Track_Clinic_Flyer_0.pdf
They provide a track bike.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
My Poor bike.
Hey Team Tower,
Yesterday on my commute to work I was run down by one of Downers Groves finest.Using my MTB skills I was able to some how Jump off my bike and not end up on the hood or under the wheels the police cruiser.Just on first inspection my fork is shattered and my front wheel a taco.I will be so surprised if my 850 Gram frame doesn't have a crack in it somewhere.When the police took me to work afterwards all my empathetic less boss had to say was here's your work for the day get started.Wow in retrospect I should have let the police take me home because I still am suffering psychologically from the accident.I hardly slept a wink last night. Physically I suffered nary a scratch.It's really scary for someone to point there car at you and floor it.He said he never saw me.I guess the bright yellow vest might as well be invisible.I had an angel on my shoulder yesterday and if I was a cat there goes one of my nine lives.So as a cyclist you have to be double alert about whats going on around you because like I always say that's a war that we just can't win.I will let you know if there is going to be a service for the Lemond.Peace out.
Eddie b.
Yesterday on my commute to work I was run down by one of Downers Groves finest.Using my MTB skills I was able to some how Jump off my bike and not end up on the hood or under the wheels the police cruiser.Just on first inspection my fork is shattered and my front wheel a taco.I will be so surprised if my 850 Gram frame doesn't have a crack in it somewhere.When the police took me to work afterwards all my empathetic less boss had to say was here's your work for the day get started.Wow in retrospect I should have let the police take me home because I still am suffering psychologically from the accident.I hardly slept a wink last night. Physically I suffered nary a scratch.It's really scary for someone to point there car at you and floor it.He said he never saw me.I guess the bright yellow vest might as well be invisible.I had an angel on my shoulder yesterday and if I was a cat there goes one of my nine lives.So as a cyclist you have to be double alert about whats going on around you because like I always say that's a war that we just can't win.I will let you know if there is going to be a service for the Lemond.Peace out.
Eddie b.
Tower Racing starting to get noticed
As I usually do, I went to the Chicago Bike Racing web site today. I was surprised to see that some of our Tower race reports were quoted on the site. Along with mention of Dougs 2nd place finish. Check it out for yourself. Luke Seeman the site owner must go to all of the team sites and reads the posted reports. Kind of cool. Be on your best behavior.
Have a great day.
Gary
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Sign up list for Spring Prairie Road Race June 8th
Please leave your name here once you have official signed up for this race. I will be the organizer for this race. I will coordinate car pooling, weather conditions, prep meetings and any questions about the course or the race itself.
We are all signing up for the Cat 4/5 NON WI
Tower Racers that are going:
- Pat D.
- Jim H.
- Doug B.
- Case.
- Eddie E.
- Don H.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Twilight and ABR National Criterium Championship
Hi Mates,
I just wanted to let you know that this race series is one of the best of the summer.It usually brings out all the heavy hitters.I believe that the Sunday race is the last time I had a podium in a road race.Of course I was a beginner and racing citizen.I have never done the Twilight Crit on Saturday but always wanted to.Both races have a pretty big hill in them that is usually the key factor that determines who is going to win.Last year I won the prem sprint in the 50+ but right afterwards I was so gassed I got dropped on the hill.Fortunately I blasted down the back side of the hill and got myself back to the group.Some of you guys who can get away on a climb should do well in this race.If the group stays together the last time up the hill is a sprint. I'm just going to try to stay in Rons G's draft.
Eddie b.
I just wanted to let you know that this race series is one of the best of the summer.It usually brings out all the heavy hitters.I believe that the Sunday race is the last time I had a podium in a road race.Of course I was a beginner and racing citizen.I have never done the Twilight Crit on Saturday but always wanted to.Both races have a pretty big hill in them that is usually the key factor that determines who is going to win.Last year I won the prem sprint in the 50+ but right afterwards I was so gassed I got dropped on the hill.Fortunately I blasted down the back side of the hill and got myself back to the group.Some of you guys who can get away on a climb should do well in this race.If the group stays together the last time up the hill is a sprint. I'm just going to try to stay in Rons G's draft.
Eddie b.
Spring Prairie Road Race Sunday June 8th
The Spring Prairie Road Race is open for sign up. What category would you guys like to do?
https://www.sportsbaseonline.com/Item.aspx?item_id=2558 Sign up link.
https://www.sportsbaseonline.com/files_flyers/2558.pdf Event flyer link.
I would say the 30+ 45.5 miles goes off at 10:00 a.m. Or the cat 4/5 39 miles non WI rider going off at 12:05 p.m.
https://www.sportsbaseonline.com/Item.aspx?item_id=2558 Sign up link.
https://www.sportsbaseonline.com/files_flyers/2558.pdf Event flyer link.
I would say the 30+ 45.5 miles goes off at 10:00 a.m. Or the cat 4/5 39 miles non WI rider going off at 12:05 p.m.
ABD Memorial Day 30+ CAT 4 race
It was a glorious Memorial Day in beautiful downtown Batavia about 30 minutes from the Tower base camp for the ABD Memorial Day Weekend Masters Race. I immediately ran into Fran who just had an impressive 5th place finish in the CAT 5. Fran was kind enough to join me on a warm up ride along the banks of the Fox River and register for th CAT 4 race, to be my lone Tower Racing team mate.
The course is similar to the Downers Grove crit, uphill on one side and downhill on the other, with both left and right turns. The hill at Batavia was shorter but had a steeper pitch, with the finish line at the top. The 30 + CAT 4 took off at light speed and I rode tempo behind Fran trying to find good lines in the corners with 50+ participants. Every time we crested the hill, guys flew off the back and small gaps were formed in the pelaton. I remembered the words of my mentors “small gaps turn into big gaps, stay engaged”.
I dug deep on laps 4 through 8 as the race was "on”, as my heart rate monitor hit my upper limits every time we crested the hill. By lap 10 we had a group of 12 off the front and I was lucky to be a member. Guys traded places, but protected the front as we toned it down into a moderate tempo.
Much like the boys at the Great Race, I had a plan. Today’s strategy was to attack with a few laps to go to see if I could stay away. I could hear the announcer indicate ten of us would be in the money, so do I sit tight or go for a sprint at the end…as I only had to beat two guys? The dirty dozen included three guys I knew were major sprinters, who protected the front and kept slowing the pace down. As the sprinters kept looking over their left shoulder up the hill on the second to last lap, as the blood returned to my brain, I remembered my plan….ATTACK! Off I went up the right side of the hill, caught them all off guard and put a 75 meter gap on the group. As I cross the start/finish line the crowd was cheering, the announcer barking out “ we have rider attacking” I could see the pace car in front accelerate to clear the way as we were coming up on lapped riders. Two riders caught me by the time I was at the base of the hill on the final lap (this would have been a perfect time for a counter attack from another Tower rider). I burned all of my matches; the cranks could hardly turnover trying to crest the hill one last time.
I finished top ten (7th or 8th??), perhaps a bit better than if I just sat in. Day was concluded with a cup of coffee with Fran and Gary C (who rode out) on the banks of the Fox River.
Terry O
The course is similar to the Downers Grove crit, uphill on one side and downhill on the other, with both left and right turns. The hill at Batavia was shorter but had a steeper pitch, with the finish line at the top. The 30 + CAT 4 took off at light speed and I rode tempo behind Fran trying to find good lines in the corners with 50+ participants. Every time we crested the hill, guys flew off the back and small gaps were formed in the pelaton. I remembered the words of my mentors “small gaps turn into big gaps, stay engaged”.
I dug deep on laps 4 through 8 as the race was "on”, as my heart rate monitor hit my upper limits every time we crested the hill. By lap 10 we had a group of 12 off the front and I was lucky to be a member. Guys traded places, but protected the front as we toned it down into a moderate tempo.
Much like the boys at the Great Race, I had a plan. Today’s strategy was to attack with a few laps to go to see if I could stay away. I could hear the announcer indicate ten of us would be in the money, so do I sit tight or go for a sprint at the end…as I only had to beat two guys? The dirty dozen included three guys I knew were major sprinters, who protected the front and kept slowing the pace down. As the sprinters kept looking over their left shoulder up the hill on the second to last lap, as the blood returned to my brain, I remembered my plan….ATTACK! Off I went up the right side of the hill, caught them all off guard and put a 75 meter gap on the group. As I cross the start/finish line the crowd was cheering, the announcer barking out “ we have rider attacking” I could see the pace car in front accelerate to clear the way as we were coming up on lapped riders. Two riders caught me by the time I was at the base of the hill on the final lap (this would have been a perfect time for a counter attack from another Tower rider). I burned all of my matches; the cranks could hardly turnover trying to crest the hill one last time.
I finished top ten (7th or 8th??), perhaps a bit better than if I just sat in. Day was concluded with a cup of coffee with Fran and Gary C (who rode out) on the banks of the Fox River.
Terry O
Memorial Day Batavia Crit
Fellow Tower Racers,
I wanted to do the Monday Batavia Crit because it was so doggone close: a little more than 30 mins. from my house. The course is 0.8 mile loop that includes a medium grade hill that over time, has a cumulative effect of wearing one gradually down. It's steepest part was a 50 meter section just before the last turn home but really the hill comprised about 40-50% of the course and the hill started at the penultimate turn and then concluded at the very finish line.
Cat. 5 Race
The race was advertised as "5 Laps" and would go off at 9 a.m. As I rolled up to the starting line I was happily surprised to hear and then see that the race would be 10 laps. Unfortunately there were no other Tower Racers on hand to try to coordinate any team strategy. There were a couple of Apache riders there and one even asked if I was "Bob" since apparently Big Ring Bob has ridden with them several times Wednesday evening.
My strategy was simple: being alone, I would try to stay with the top 5 riders. The race began. The course takes an almost immediate left turn and then another sharply banked downhill left turn where the speeds quickly climbed. There were a couple of haybales "protecting" a lightpole on the right in case someone took the turn too aggresively and lost control. But since the street and we were elevated and there was a short concrete wall behind the lightpole, I thought "To hell with the lightpole! If one goes airborne here, you're going to land 25 feet or more below the concrete wall!" Fortunately no one tested my hypothesis and at least in the two races I was in, no one crashed here.
A couple guys attacked and the peloton soon enough reeled them back in. After about 2 laps, of the 40+ guys that started, only about 12-15 were still there. Each lap dropped a few more, though I didn't pay that much attention because I was maintaining my strategy of staying in the top 5.
At about the 8th lap I could see that there were only about 7-8 of us still in the lead group. On the 9th lap on the killer incline, Mike from Endure It! gave a quick push and Sebastian from ABD countered and the two had a slight separation. I quickly caught up at the beginning of the 10th lap, before the long downhill and tried to remember to "breathe" and coast. But the acceleration and the effort to bridge, had winded me.
Of course the speed picked up at the bottom of the hill and then the hard attack was on the steep incline. I stood up but didn't have the push left and watched not only the two leaders but 2 other riders slowly gain momentum past me on the incline to the finish after the last turn home. Nevertheless I easily took 5th on a course that was certainly challenging. Oh, and by the way, I came in ahead of the Apache riders.
The Cat. 4 Race
Terry O' had emailed me the day before and asked me to stick around for this race at 11 a.m. Ironically he parked right next to my car. And so we shared strategy on how to attack the hill & what I could do to help his cause. I felt a little tired since this was my 4th day of riding in a row and the race that I had just completed had a hill that was deceptively harder than you thought. Nevertheless I remembered the wisdom of Eddie B.: "you learn to race, by racing". And so there was no question that I would double up.
The race began and immediately the speeds were faster than the earlier race. Terry tucked in wisely behind me on the first 3-4 laps to conserve energy and to follow by now, my experienced line through the sometimes harrowing turns. By now we had dropped close to half the field in what seemed to me to be a somewhat blistering pace. We had been closing small gaps all along, but we were still strung out toward the medium-back of the peloton.
This was where I started to get a little winded. Terry noticed and spun ahead of me to bridge the next gap. I switched places and now hung on Terry's wheel. I stayed on Terry's wheel for a lap until the speed ramped up yet again on the by now "killer hill". Terry surged but I could not respond. I watched as he sped off while I sunk back with the last of the peloton.
We broke off & now it was 6-7 of us trying to just finish the ride. There were several times when I felt like quiting and peeling off. But I figured that if nothing else, it would be a good training ride and worthwhile to finish. Besides I was more than halfway into the 30 minute race anyway.
In the end, I finished ahead of the other 6-7 riders that comprised my small leftover group (probably 25), but the real excitement was on the last lap on the killer hill, we were finally being lapped by the lead riders. As the pace car zoomed past us, there in the 3rd position was my man Terry O battling valiantly. I whooped it up yelling at the top of my lungs "GO TERRY GO, GO TERRY GO!" as he crested the worst of the hill & then turned left for the finish out of my line of sight.
Now, you have to know that Ron Goode was in this race. Yeah the same Ron Goode with the killer sprint and massive power ratings. So Terry knew that if he had any kind of chance of beating Ron, it would have to come as a surprise to him.
Apparently on the next to last lap, coming off the killer hill, Terry attacked and established a 75 yard gap for himself at the start of the last lap. Two riders were able to bridge, but it created pandemonium in the group, stringing it out with the remainder hanging on for dear life. Terry kept the lead with the other two until that last turn. Unfortunately his breakaway attempt took more out of Terry than he had anticipated and just didn't have anything left for the last sprint. Terry ended up in 7-8 place.
Ironically Ron Goode came in 2nd and Mike from Endure It! (who came in 1st in my race) came in one place ahead of my man Terry. Had we at least one more Tower Racer, we probably could have placed higher had that other rider either attacked after Terry was caught or attempted to hold the other riders off when Terry attacked.
Nevertheless, at the end of the day, two Top Tens in two races at Batavia. All in all, a good day for Tower Racing especially when you consider there were only two of us there.
Fran
I wanted to do the Monday Batavia Crit because it was so doggone close: a little more than 30 mins. from my house. The course is 0.8 mile loop that includes a medium grade hill that over time, has a cumulative effect of wearing one gradually down. It's steepest part was a 50 meter section just before the last turn home but really the hill comprised about 40-50% of the course and the hill started at the penultimate turn and then concluded at the very finish line.
Cat. 5 Race
The race was advertised as "5 Laps" and would go off at 9 a.m. As I rolled up to the starting line I was happily surprised to hear and then see that the race would be 10 laps. Unfortunately there were no other Tower Racers on hand to try to coordinate any team strategy. There were a couple of Apache riders there and one even asked if I was "Bob" since apparently Big Ring Bob has ridden with them several times Wednesday evening.
My strategy was simple: being alone, I would try to stay with the top 5 riders. The race began. The course takes an almost immediate left turn and then another sharply banked downhill left turn where the speeds quickly climbed. There were a couple of haybales "protecting" a lightpole on the right in case someone took the turn too aggresively and lost control. But since the street and we were elevated and there was a short concrete wall behind the lightpole, I thought "To hell with the lightpole! If one goes airborne here, you're going to land 25 feet or more below the concrete wall!" Fortunately no one tested my hypothesis and at least in the two races I was in, no one crashed here.
A couple guys attacked and the peloton soon enough reeled them back in. After about 2 laps, of the 40+ guys that started, only about 12-15 were still there. Each lap dropped a few more, though I didn't pay that much attention because I was maintaining my strategy of staying in the top 5.
At about the 8th lap I could see that there were only about 7-8 of us still in the lead group. On the 9th lap on the killer incline, Mike from Endure It! gave a quick push and Sebastian from ABD countered and the two had a slight separation. I quickly caught up at the beginning of the 10th lap, before the long downhill and tried to remember to "breathe" and coast. But the acceleration and the effort to bridge, had winded me.
Of course the speed picked up at the bottom of the hill and then the hard attack was on the steep incline. I stood up but didn't have the push left and watched not only the two leaders but 2 other riders slowly gain momentum past me on the incline to the finish after the last turn home. Nevertheless I easily took 5th on a course that was certainly challenging. Oh, and by the way, I came in ahead of the Apache riders.
The Cat. 4 Race
Terry O' had emailed me the day before and asked me to stick around for this race at 11 a.m. Ironically he parked right next to my car. And so we shared strategy on how to attack the hill & what I could do to help his cause. I felt a little tired since this was my 4th day of riding in a row and the race that I had just completed had a hill that was deceptively harder than you thought. Nevertheless I remembered the wisdom of Eddie B.: "you learn to race, by racing". And so there was no question that I would double up.
The race began and immediately the speeds were faster than the earlier race. Terry tucked in wisely behind me on the first 3-4 laps to conserve energy and to follow by now, my experienced line through the sometimes harrowing turns. By now we had dropped close to half the field in what seemed to me to be a somewhat blistering pace. We had been closing small gaps all along, but we were still strung out toward the medium-back of the peloton.
This was where I started to get a little winded. Terry noticed and spun ahead of me to bridge the next gap. I switched places and now hung on Terry's wheel. I stayed on Terry's wheel for a lap until the speed ramped up yet again on the by now "killer hill". Terry surged but I could not respond. I watched as he sped off while I sunk back with the last of the peloton.
We broke off & now it was 6-7 of us trying to just finish the ride. There were several times when I felt like quiting and peeling off. But I figured that if nothing else, it would be a good training ride and worthwhile to finish. Besides I was more than halfway into the 30 minute race anyway.
In the end, I finished ahead of the other 6-7 riders that comprised my small leftover group (probably 25), but the real excitement was on the last lap on the killer hill, we were finally being lapped by the lead riders. As the pace car zoomed past us, there in the 3rd position was my man Terry O battling valiantly. I whooped it up yelling at the top of my lungs "GO TERRY GO, GO TERRY GO!" as he crested the worst of the hill & then turned left for the finish out of my line of sight.
Now, you have to know that Ron Goode was in this race. Yeah the same Ron Goode with the killer sprint and massive power ratings. So Terry knew that if he had any kind of chance of beating Ron, it would have to come as a surprise to him.
Apparently on the next to last lap, coming off the killer hill, Terry attacked and established a 75 yard gap for himself at the start of the last lap. Two riders were able to bridge, but it created pandemonium in the group, stringing it out with the remainder hanging on for dear life. Terry kept the lead with the other two until that last turn. Unfortunately his breakaway attempt took more out of Terry than he had anticipated and just didn't have anything left for the last sprint. Terry ended up in 7-8 place.
Ironically Ron Goode came in 2nd and Mike from Endure It! (who came in 1st in my race) came in one place ahead of my man Terry. Had we at least one more Tower Racer, we probably could have placed higher had that other rider either attacked after Terry was caught or attempted to hold the other riders off when Terry attacked.
Nevertheless, at the end of the day, two Top Tens in two races at Batavia. All in all, a good day for Tower Racing especially when you consider there were only two of us there.
Fran
Upcoming Races
With the racing season in full swing, there are 3 upcoming races which we should try and gear up for as a team...
1) June 1st -- ABR Crit championship...in Winfield. Cat 4's start at 11:45
2) June 8th -- Spring Praire Road Race...2hrs away. Great road race with a steep hill and great place for many of us to ride together
3) June 14th - Sherman Park Crit...downtown crit race. Cat 4's start at 12:50
Please reply and let everyone know your thoughts as we should aim to get a good group for at least 2 of these races...
Jim
1) June 1st -- ABR Crit championship...in Winfield. Cat 4's start at 11:45
2) June 8th -- Spring Praire Road Race...2hrs away. Great road race with a steep hill and great place for many of us to ride together
3) June 14th - Sherman Park Crit...downtown crit race. Cat 4's start at 12:50
Please reply and let everyone know your thoughts as we should aim to get a good group for at least 2 of these races...
Jim
Sunday ABR National Criterium Championship
I was just wondering about our participation in this event. We have two choices, the cat 4 race and the 30-40 race. We could do both.......... a little longer day. The 30-40 race would put us up against the best teams with some great riders. It looks like the weather will cooperate and clear up after saturdays rain. I would be up for both races if I had some teammates to hang out with, if not I am not sure which race I will do.
Again congrats to all the great racing this weekend, Terry O and Fran also had some nice results on monday.
Gary
Monday, May 26, 2008
TEAMWORK! The Great Race 2nd place Cat 4 open
TEAMWORK!!!
Tower Racers,
Waking up at 3:30am to the sound of thunder and rain almost put a damper on Memorial Day, but sunny sky and great teamwork prevailed in the end. Jimbo and I hit the road about 4 am and had a nice easy drive down to Bristol and were greeted with sunshine and light winds, At the race we met up with Pat had a brief warmup and talked extensively about tactics. We decide that at least one of us would be on the attack all race long. Many teams were well represented and several had much larger number of riders, but we stuck to our guns and started the attacking after the start. Jim went then Pat when he was caught them myself. At one point all three of were off the front. After the race settled down a bit Pat put in a serious move and was reeled back in by the other teams. One note on the course,road conditions were ok, but many of the corners had sand and rocks. Pat demonstrated some great bike handling skills when he hit a sandy spot on a tight turn.
Into lap #2 I was able to get away with Jim and another and we had a nice gap but were eventually reeled in. Then Pat went again , finally Jim and another rider were able to get away and work to create a good gap. I spent most of the second and third lap sitting on the front trying to slow the chase and covering all attempts to bridge. Jim ran into some bad luck by catching and then getting caught in the 40+ group. Only then after some serious work by
a few team was the group able to catch Jim with only 7 or 8 miles left in the race. after a few surges and small attacks the group settled down and headed for the finish. On one of the few small rollers on the course I decided to give another try. I crested the hill with a small gap and then started to hammer it as hard as I could. Only one rider was able to bridge and we agreed to work and try to stay away for the at 5 miles.
At this point Jim realized the situation and did a great job sitting on the front and slowing the group down!!!
The two of us realized we had a good gap and continued to bury ourselves as we counted the miles down. We drilled it all the way into the final turn and he was better in the sprint by 1/2 a bike length. after the race I talk to my breakaway companion only to find out he is a college student.
Lessons learned.
TEAMWORK- Several riders came up to Pat after the race and told him how much hurt we put on them by forcing the pace and attacking.
TEAMWORK- I would not have had a chance to get away and stay away if Jim and Pat were not attacking all race long!
Doug
Tower Racers,
Waking up at 3:30am to the sound of thunder and rain almost put a damper on Memorial Day, but sunny sky and great teamwork prevailed in the end. Jimbo and I hit the road about 4 am and had a nice easy drive down to Bristol and were greeted with sunshine and light winds, At the race we met up with Pat had a brief warmup and talked extensively about tactics. We decide that at least one of us would be on the attack all race long. Many teams were well represented and several had much larger number of riders, but we stuck to our guns and started the attacking after the start. Jim went then Pat when he was caught them myself. At one point all three of were off the front. After the race settled down a bit Pat put in a serious move and was reeled back in by the other teams. One note on the course,road conditions were ok, but many of the corners had sand and rocks. Pat demonstrated some great bike handling skills when he hit a sandy spot on a tight turn.
Into lap #2 I was able to get away with Jim and another and we had a nice gap but were eventually reeled in. Then Pat went again , finally Jim and another rider were able to get away and work to create a good gap. I spent most of the second and third lap sitting on the front trying to slow the chase and covering all attempts to bridge. Jim ran into some bad luck by catching and then getting caught in the 40+ group. Only then after some serious work by
a few team was the group able to catch Jim with only 7 or 8 miles left in the race. after a few surges and small attacks the group settled down and headed for the finish. On one of the few small rollers on the course I decided to give another try. I crested the hill with a small gap and then started to hammer it as hard as I could. Only one rider was able to bridge and we agreed to work and try to stay away for the at 5 miles.
At this point Jim realized the situation and did a great job sitting on the front and slowing the group down!!!
The two of us realized we had a good gap and continued to bury ourselves as we counted the miles down. We drilled it all the way into the final turn and he was better in the sprint by 1/2 a bike length. after the race I talk to my breakaway companion only to find out he is a college student.
Lessons learned.
TEAMWORK- Several riders came up to Pat after the race and told him how much hurt we put on them by forcing the pace and attacking.
TEAMWORK- I would not have had a chance to get away and stay away if Jim and Pat were not attacking all race long!
Doug
Sunday, May 25, 2008
ABD Masters Races 1 & 2
Happy Memorial Day weekend to all,
I have ventured out to wood dale, yesterday and today to take part in the masters 30+ cat 4 races. This is a great venue for a bike race. Easy if needed but challenging as well. The issue for both days was wind and no team. The first race had 47+ riders, the second was less, but made for a faster and much harder race. As always with wind it is find the right line, this was hard both days with the speed of the races. I managed to hang in there on the first race pulling myself up to 3rd wheel and eventually pulling for part of the second to last lap. I gassed a little and lost some important positions which left me a little farther back for the sprint in the first race. I managed to regroup and take 14th place, I was pleased with this effort. The team that won the race was represented well with 6-8 riders in the group.
The second race was much more challenging with less riders. It makes it tough to hide. I probably learned something here though. It is amazing what you can do when you are forced to do it. I found myself at the front of the race chasing down breaks and at one point leading the second group of riders. This is usually not my plan, but I will remember that I did these things and still managed to hang in there. In this race, a group of two got off of the front, a pony shop rider and a mack guy. The 2nd of three Mack riders killed us, he covered every attempt to bridge up. Without a team we would take a pull and the Mack guy would cover it. I sure wish we had a Pat, or a Jimbo, Terry O or someone in a tower jersey to take care of the Mack rider and someone else go off from the other side. Anyway it was chase and hang on for the rest of the race. I was in much better position for this sprint and finished in 8th place. I worked hard for this and am pleased with the result.
On a side note I fielded a lot of "where is your team?" questions. I think people are starting to know the team. That I thought was cool.
I tried my hard to represent myself and the team. I wish the group going down to indy tomorrow all the best. You certainly will have a strong group down there. Let them know there is a new group of characters on the scene. Have fun and be safe most importantly.
Gary
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Early Saturday Morning Ride 5:45 am
Early Saturday Morning Ride 5:45 am
I'm leaving from the Hinsdale Starbucks at 5:45 a.m. on Saturday (05/24) to do a double Bluff Rd tour. After the first Bluff Rd ride I'll head towards Western Springs on N. Frontage Rd to meet the 7:00 group. Please let me know if I should look for you.
I'm leaving from the Hinsdale Starbucks at 5:45 a.m. on Saturday (05/24) to do a double Bluff Rd tour. After the first Bluff Rd ride I'll head towards Western Springs on N. Frontage Rd to meet the 7:00 group. Please let me know if I should look for you.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
High Tempo ride Thursday 5/21 at noon
Going to do a high tempo ride of about 30 miles at (appx) noon on Thursday leaving from the Hinsdale Starbucks. Respond to this post or send me an email if I should look for you. I can leave between 12 and 1230.
Terry O
Terry O
Downer's Grove Signup
The Downer's Grove Crit online sign-up is back... https://www.signmeup.com/site/reg/register.aspx?fid=G32VBK7
Which race is everyone signing up for?
Looks like there is a Masters 30+ 4/5 or an elite 3/4...
Thoughts?
Jim
Which race is everyone signing up for?
Looks like there is a Masters 30+ 4/5 or an elite 3/4...
Thoughts?
Jim
Tuesday Afternoon Bluff Ride Report....
Yesterday Terry O and I did a high tempo Bluff road workout. Since Matteson is closed until late June I will be doing this ride on Tuesdays leaving from my house between 5:15 and 6:00 p.m. The time I leave my house will depend on what time I can get home from work. I will post to the Blog at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesdays what time I will be leaving for the ride. The traffic was relatively light yesterday, Terry suggested taking the forest persevere path along the river. What a beautiful way to get out to Bluff Rd. After Bluff Rd was conquered we took Frontage Rd to Madison then back into Hinsdale. This is a wonderful workout with two awesome guys; you should consider coming next week!
Status From yesterdays ride:
Average speed 21.5 mph
Distance 35.1 miles
Total Time 1:35.00
Status From yesterdays ride:
Average speed 21.5 mph
Distance 35.1 miles
Total Time 1:35.00
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
2008 ABR National Criterium championship
Hi everyone,
I cannot figure out how to get something on the calendar for all to see. So I am throwing this out there for your consideration. This is a long rectangle with a pretty wicked little climb, slightly steeper and a little longer than downers. All teams will have good representation at this race.
Take care
gary
Memorial Day RR
Wow, is that a strong group of riders going to this race. I have never been on a cycling team that has won a race. Could be....... If that is the case I heard Pat say something about a big bash at his house. Awesome!! Just remember I get the team car and podium girls with me in wooddale. You know gas prices and local sponsorship exposure.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Indiana Road Race Monday May 26th (Memorial Day)
Terry, I’ve been keeping a running count on the Tower Racers going to the Indiana road race. Thus far the following will be attending.
1) Pat D
2) Tony C
3) Jim H
4) Doug B
5) Terry O (hopefully)
6) Tom M (hopefully)
with any luck more of you will be able to go, it’s suppose to be a great race with a pretty strong field. I think the weather is going to cooperate with us as well, according to weather.com.
Pat D.
1) Pat D
2) Tony C
3) Jim H
4) Doug B
5) Terry O (hopefully)
6) Tom M (hopefully)
with any luck more of you will be able to go, it’s suppose to be a great race with a pretty strong field. I think the weather is going to cooperate with us as well, according to weather.com.
Pat D.
Memorial Day races
Who is racing this Memorial Day weekend? 2 races on Monday. A road race in Bristol IN (keep in mind they are on eastern time) and a crit in Batavia. I will attend one of these events. Great if we could have numerous riders at both events.
Terry O
Terry O
whh0000h00000
I am here! Hey tower gang. It is like a kid in a candy shop. A blog/web site to two things that I like the most. Cyclists and cycling!! I think we had a great weekend of racing plus an awesome ride on sunday. How about that strectch of trail we were on? Not bad.
A big thank you to all those who put together this outlet for the team.
Gary
Denzer, race report -- 3rd place finish
Tower Racers,
Early Saturday morning Pat and I were off to Denzer, a bit north of Madison for a
36 mile road race. We arrived early enough to register and get a good look at the course. We were greeted with sunny sky and a nice 20+mph wind out of the NW.
Lap 1
The race started at a reasonable pace into the headwind and headed for the first climb, a 2 mile climb straight up with no place to rest or recover, We figured it was 7/8% the whole climb. I stayed at the front and avoided a small pile up after one guy crossed wheel. At the top a sharp left then a flat flat for the next mile before a step descent the another climb. I managed to stay with the lead group tried to work as little as possible. After a huge descent and a rotating pace-line into the wind we were ready to start lap 2.
Lap 2
By now the group has gone from 40 or so down to 20 or so. On the big climb again groups start to form and the tempo picks up. Once over the climb, which by the way takes between 5-6 minutes to get up (Timberline x10) the group is down to about 10, After the climb on the false flat we drilled it and tried to drop as many as possible. A few very strong riders (Pat) were able to bridge up and help drive the pace. The descents were as hard as the climbs, if you hit the brakes you had little chance of catching back on into the headwind.
Lap 3/Carnage
On the climb for the last time. One guy is already up the road and the field shatters as soon as we hit the bottom. I stay on the front and soon I'm in a small group of 5 leading the way. The pace was hard but not ballistic. I decided to attack and see if I could get a good gap by the top. I took off and nobody followed. With still well over a mile to climb I kept my pace and stayed away. Here is where I made my one mistake of the race. I had a nice gap 60 to 70 yards to the group and close to the lone leader, but... i did not think that was enough to stay away so I played the numbers game. A group of 5 will catch 1, so I sat up and waited for the group to catch up. I did not realize that 60 to 70 yards on a big climb is almost 2 full minutes!!! After the regroup we drilled it and all worked together to stay away. After a few miles we realized no one was going to to catch us and all 5 of us shared the work, but the one guy up the road was gone for good. One big guy tried to get away on the big downhill but we kept him in check and headed for the finish. The sprint started into the wind from about 200 out and I was able to take second out of 5. Good for 3rd place overall. I was very happy with 3rd overall (just ask Pat), but soon realized I had a chance for more. All in all a great race and I have a small donation for Tower Racing with the result.
Lessons learned
-60 to 70 yards on a big climb is much different than on the flats or even the climbs we are used to.
-Teammates are a must, During the first lap I was caught out in the wind a no one would let me back in the pace line. I looked up and found Pat a few riders ahead, he was more than happy to let me in.
-Always stay at the front. I stayed out of trouble and saved energy by always being in the lead group never having to catch back on.
Finally- as long as the climb was, so was the descent later in the lap. After the race I checked my max speed and it read 51.3mph!!! YES 51.3!!! Even at that speed I had to pedal to keep up with some of the bigger riders. Also after the race Pat and I realized we raced the masters 30+, both of us were very happy to place ahead of many younger riders.
Doug Braun
Early Saturday morning Pat and I were off to Denzer, a bit north of Madison for a
36 mile road race. We arrived early enough to register and get a good look at the course. We were greeted with sunny sky and a nice 20+mph wind out of the NW.
Lap 1
The race started at a reasonable pace into the headwind and headed for the first climb, a 2 mile climb straight up with no place to rest or recover, We figured it was 7/8% the whole climb. I stayed at the front and avoided a small pile up after one guy crossed wheel. At the top a sharp left then a flat flat for the next mile before a step descent the another climb. I managed to stay with the lead group tried to work as little as possible. After a huge descent and a rotating pace-line into the wind we were ready to start lap 2.
Lap 2
By now the group has gone from 40 or so down to 20 or so. On the big climb again groups start to form and the tempo picks up. Once over the climb, which by the way takes between 5-6 minutes to get up (Timberline x10) the group is down to about 10, After the climb on the false flat we drilled it and tried to drop as many as possible. A few very strong riders (Pat) were able to bridge up and help drive the pace. The descents were as hard as the climbs, if you hit the brakes you had little chance of catching back on into the headwind.
Lap 3/Carnage
On the climb for the last time. One guy is already up the road and the field shatters as soon as we hit the bottom. I stay on the front and soon I'm in a small group of 5 leading the way. The pace was hard but not ballistic. I decided to attack and see if I could get a good gap by the top. I took off and nobody followed. With still well over a mile to climb I kept my pace and stayed away. Here is where I made my one mistake of the race. I had a nice gap 60 to 70 yards to the group and close to the lone leader, but... i did not think that was enough to stay away so I played the numbers game. A group of 5 will catch 1, so I sat up and waited for the group to catch up. I did not realize that 60 to 70 yards on a big climb is almost 2 full minutes!!! After the regroup we drilled it and all worked together to stay away. After a few miles we realized no one was going to to catch us and all 5 of us shared the work, but the one guy up the road was gone for good. One big guy tried to get away on the big downhill but we kept him in check and headed for the finish. The sprint started into the wind from about 200 out and I was able to take second out of 5. Good for 3rd place overall. I was very happy with 3rd overall (just ask Pat), but soon realized I had a chance for more. All in all a great race and I have a small donation for Tower Racing with the result.
Lessons learned
-60 to 70 yards on a big climb is much different than on the flats or even the climbs we are used to.
-Teammates are a must, During the first lap I was caught out in the wind a no one would let me back in the pace line. I looked up and found Pat a few riders ahead, he was more than happy to let me in.
-Always stay at the front. I stayed out of trouble and saved energy by always being in the lead group never having to catch back on.
Finally- as long as the climb was, so was the descent later in the lap. After the race I checked my max speed and it read 51.3mph!!! YES 51.3!!! Even at that speed I had to pedal to keep up with some of the bigger riders. Also after the race Pat and I realized we raced the masters 30+, both of us were very happy to place ahead of many younger riders.
Doug Braun
Would anyone like to ride with me tomorrow?
Would anyone like to ride with me tomorrow, I am planning on going out for a pretty hard ride after work. I want to leave my house around 5:30 and be back by 7:30. Please let me know if you’re interested…
Pat Dillon.
Pat Dillon.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Denzer Wisconsin Road Race
It was a beautiful day in Denzer for this classic Europe style road race. The sun was out and the temperature was in the lower 70’s. However, the wind was blowing strong at 20 to 24 mph. Doug Braun and I raced the 30+ 4/5’s; I would say our field had 40+ racers ready to pounce. Keep in mind this race is part of the Wisconsin cup series. I would say 95% of the racers were from Wisconsin and needed to do well at this race for the points to move up in the standings. This was a big time race for the Wisconsin guys. Let me also say that this race was run like clockwork. During the race we had a pace car out in front at all times plus a race official on a motorcycle constantly watching for any violations. The race was 35 miles long (3 lap’s total) with beautiful roads to ride on and the scenery was awe-inspiring. This race also favors the climbers; the course has some pretty challenging hills (think of the Horrible Hilly, same area) to ride. When you start the race you ride some pretty big rollers for 1 ½ miles to the big climb of the course. The gigantic climb go’s for 1 ½ to 2 miles at about a 7% grade (think of Madison slightly steeper for 1 ½ to 2 miles.) Once you reach the top you turn right take a drink of water and hopefully recover somewhat from the climb and then put the hammer down. Within 2 miles you start one of the first descends. This first descend about ½ mile long turns sharp to the right at the bottom straight up the next hill, your easily going 40+ mph on the descend. The next hill is about 400 yards long at about a 10% grade. This is pretty much what the whole course was like; you climb to a flat stretch ride as hard as you can and then descend. On one particular descends I reached 51.2 mph, yes I was white knuckled most of the time in this race.
I took 13th place, I was very pleased with how I rode and how I fleet when I finished. When I crossed the finish line I was completely spent. With that said I used energy management very well. On the last lap on the biggest hill on the course the 3 other riders I was riding with were fading fast. I was about 10 yards ahead on the big hill about 2/3 of the way up the hill I could have attacked with a big effort to the top and put a lot of distance between them and me, but then I would have been all alone with 2/3 of the course ahead of me. When I got to the top I drank water and even had time for some much need food. I rolled along at about 15 mph waiting for the 3 to catch up to me. I kept the pressure on the 3 other riders all the way back so I could set them up to loss to me in the sprint. When you come onto the main road for the finish line you hit a 20 to 24 mph head wind, this particular stretch of road is about 2 miles long into the wind. That’s why I waited for the other riders; I was afraid to fight the head wind alone and probably would have blown-up if I did.
Something else I didn’t know, on the big climb if a rider is 20 yards behind you when you reach the top you have a 1:00 to 1:30 minuet advantage by the time the rider 20 yards behind you gets to the top. With that said Doug was able to do this to me every time we went up the big hill. When I got to the top me and the 3 other riders would have to bridge up to Doug and the other racers with Doug. The efforts we made to do this were remarkable. On the flats we as a group would hit 29 to 33 mph for miles just to catch them. When we caught them we would all hi five each other!!! On the last climb however, Doug and his group were about 50 yards ahead of me and my group. Guess what, Doug finished the race 2:00 minutes ahead of me.
Doug you Rock! Congrats on the prize money as well!!!!
Pat Dillon.
I took 13th place, I was very pleased with how I rode and how I fleet when I finished. When I crossed the finish line I was completely spent. With that said I used energy management very well. On the last lap on the biggest hill on the course the 3 other riders I was riding with were fading fast. I was about 10 yards ahead on the big hill about 2/3 of the way up the hill I could have attacked with a big effort to the top and put a lot of distance between them and me, but then I would have been all alone with 2/3 of the course ahead of me. When I got to the top I drank water and even had time for some much need food. I rolled along at about 15 mph waiting for the 3 to catch up to me. I kept the pressure on the 3 other riders all the way back so I could set them up to loss to me in the sprint. When you come onto the main road for the finish line you hit a 20 to 24 mph head wind, this particular stretch of road is about 2 miles long into the wind. That’s why I waited for the other riders; I was afraid to fight the head wind alone and probably would have blown-up if I did.
Something else I didn’t know, on the big climb if a rider is 20 yards behind you when you reach the top you have a 1:00 to 1:30 minuet advantage by the time the rider 20 yards behind you gets to the top. With that said Doug was able to do this to me every time we went up the big hill. When I got to the top me and the 3 other riders would have to bridge up to Doug and the other racers with Doug. The efforts we made to do this were remarkable. On the flats we as a group would hit 29 to 33 mph for miles just to catch them. When we caught them we would all hi five each other!!! On the last climb however, Doug and his group were about 50 yards ahead of me and my group. Guess what, Doug finished the race 2:00 minutes ahead of me.
Doug you Rock! Congrats on the prize money as well!!!!
Pat Dillon.
Monsters of Midway -- Race Report & Lessons Learned
Race Fans,
Today, I raced Monsters of Midway -- Masters 30+. The course was a nice rectangle with two giant, long straight-aways (each .5 miles long), and wide/easy corners with no hills. The weather was a delightful 60 degrees with 12+mph wind down the 1st long straightaway. I'm not sure of the final stats, but as a guess, i think there were about 50-75 riders with 50% of them Cat 3 or better and the race itself was 40 minutes + 2 laps. This was going to be a fast race!
One of the guys that I used to ride with in my old group is a Cat 1 racer (and so far, he has won every race he's entered this year) and I saw that he had entered...so my plan was to be on his wheel, "white on rice" for the entire race. It was fun targeting someone and not worring about anything other than his wheel.
Well...he did not disappoint. After the first lap, he made an explosive move to the front and attacked. I went with him as well as three other guys. I was riding red-line for the first 22 minutes with this breakaway group and we managed to hold a 15 second gap in a rotating paceline. It was beautiful but HARD work....(I was on my max heart rate for over 10 minutes) it was so hard that I finally popped after about 30 minutes and was spit out of the back of the lead group and was quickly gobbled up by the peleton. For much of the Crit, I was pushing my big ring and the 13,14 rear cassette with an average cadence of 110. Ouch. After a few feable attempts to bridge back up to the lead group - my race was over and finished with the peleton, finishing middle of the pack.
The guy that I targeted won the race.
Stats: 46 minutes, 26.5avg. mph, 315 avg. watts with many stretches of 30+mph
Lessons: 1) Fitness is key. It was amazing the fitness that these boys had and how they were able to sustain such effort for such duration. Need more time in the saddle at harder/longer efforts.
2) Even Crit racing is like a Time Trial. As I learned in talking with my friend (who won) If you ride it right, you won't burn too many matches trying to accellerate all the time. Find a nice pace "on the edge" that you can maintain for just the duration of the race and hold. Accellerations burn too much energy.
3) Stop peddalling. After reviewing my power file, I spent 2% of the time NOT pedalling. To win, either you need superior fitness, or you need to find ways to save energy (not peddaling). The guru's say you should only pedal about 70-75% of the race...
4) Know thy edge. I clearly found how hard I am capable of riding. I cooked myself pushing myself over the edge where my body was not able to recover. Gotta ride on the edge, not over for long periods of time.
5) It's suppose to hurt. You can not ride in the comfort zone -- if you're not hurting, then it's likely others around you are not hurting. Gotta push the pain barrier...
6) The difference between the lead group and the peleton at the finish was 10 seconds. 10 seconds separated 40 riders. The difference in pace between the lead group and everyone else is 0.1mph. In my mind, it's not a question of if one can "hang" with the lead group, but a question of if one can "hang" with the lead group at the part of the race when it's necessary...
All-in-all a good day in racing. Not a great finish, but another great experience to grow on!
Jim
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