Geneva Grand Prix (Superweek), Geneva, IL, July 9, 2011

Wow, I am long overdue in writing up this report. I can’t really explain or justify the delay, since I did reasonably well in this race…at least, to a point. Do you remember that old Kellogg’s commercial where a bunch of wind-up toys are shown winding down, and Wilt Chamberlain (I think) cautions kids that the same will happen to them if they don’t eat a nutritious breakfast? Well, today I was one of those wind-up toys.

This was one of the early Superweek races, sponsored by none other than Bicycle Heaven. It was a challenging, one-mile technical 8-corner course that featured a very tight right-hand turn coming out of a brief downhill, along with several “kicker” hills along the way.

Since my team was the title sponsor, I did some volunteer work in the morning before my afternoon race. I was at the course early to help set up barricades and put cones in people’s driveways (so they wouldn’t go driving out onto the course). Then I spent some quality time as a corner marshal.

What I saw as a corner marshal wasn’t heartening. I watched the Cat 4 race get blown apart within the first 2 laps. The field absolutely shattered very early on, and it was clear that it would be critical to stay at the front of this race. The riders who could get through the tight downhill & right turn at close to full speed could just drill it while the unfortunate saps at the back would have to hammer to maintain contact.

After my corner marshaling duties were over, I headed to the parking garage to get in a good warm-up in the shade, and then it was go-time. The Masters 35+ 4/5 field had five Bicycle Heaven riders in it, and since we were sponsoring the race we got individual call-ups to the line. I even had a small cheering section…Stephanie brought Ethan over to witness his first bike race, and her parents and sister followed along.

Our field was relatively small, with fewer than 40 riders. We were scheduled for 20 laps, and as soon as the whistle blew we strung out with Bicycle Heaven leading the charge for about the first three laps. Bryan hammered away at the front, and I stayed glued to his wheel. The pace was fast, but I was feeling good. The corner after the downhill was pretty challenging…in addition to the road narrowing down, the pavement was less than stellar. You really had to hold a tight line and hope that no one pushed you into the curb.

I was feeling good for most of the race. The hills weren’t presenting too much of a challenge, and I was able to hold good position. The long start/finish straightaway was a good place to gain any ground that was lost, and I took advantage of this several times. Plus, I received some good motivation from the cheers of my adoring audience. Although I’m pretty sure that Ethan was just looking at the pretty colors.

But, as has happened far too often this season, at some point my body just decided to clam up and shut down. Today, it happened after 13 laps. There was a brief uphill leading into turn 8, and it was here that I found myself going backwards at the end of the 13th lap. I lost contact with the field, and despite a valiant effort to grab onto that last wheel, I ended up by myself for the remainder of the race.

The good news is that I was still able to push hard enough that the field never caught me. I rode out the remaining 7 laps alone, but never suffered the indignity of hearing the pace car lapping at my heels or getting whistled off the course by the officials. And when all was said and done, I took 22nd out of 28 finishers.

So, I didn’t get the results that I wanted, but I finished the day with my dignity (and skin) intact. Lots of racing still left this year…

Superweek Bensenville...sittin' this one out.

Today's crit in Bensenville was the last of four Superweek Masters 30+ 4/5 races that I had registered for. This morning I had to make the difficult decision to eat the entry fee and sit this one out.

As you know from my last post, I went down pretty hard yesterday at Arlington Heights. I sustained no major injuries, but am sporting a fair amount of road rash along the left side of my body. Last night I was full of "sure, I can still race tomorrow" bravado. But then a restless night of uncomfortable sleep dawned on a morning of bone-deep achiness. Despite some early-morning Advil, just hauling the garbage out to the curb was a very painful experience for my left shoulder. A few trips up and down the stairs of my house made it clear that the ache in my left hip would make it extremely hard to generate the sort of power needed to accelerate my body up to race speed for 45 minutes. I know that the pros race through this sort of pain (and worse) all the time...but, unlike them, I don't get paid to do it.

So, despite having already paid the entrance fee, I have determined that attempting to race today would just be a waste of time and energy. Further, the fields in the past three races have been a lot more squirrely than I had hoped they would be by this point in the racing season...the thought of crashing on pre-existing wounds is a risk I'm just not willing to take. Still, this was a very hard decision to make. Aside from the "I feel like a sissy" factor, I also hate to not be there for my teammates. I wish them the best of luck (and safety!) today.

I should be in good enough shape to get my race legs underneath me again at the Matteson Tuesday night crits next week, and then it is the Chicago Criterium on July 26. But for now, as the Dead once sang, it is just time to "sit down and patch my bones."

Superweek Arlington Heights Criterium, Arlington Heights, IL, July 14, 2009

Picture, if you will, one of those wipe-board signs sometimes seen in the workplace that says something like “Accident Free Since 2006” or “472 Days Since a Work-Related Injury.” Now picture one of them that says “Crash Free Since September 2004.” Lastly, picture Stephen slowly and sadly erasing “September 2004.”

As Sam Elliott once said in The Big Lebowski, “sometimes you eat the bar, and sometimes…well, it eats you.” Today, I got eaten.

The course was a technical, mile-long, 8-corner course…a rough “figure 8” where the top half of the “8” stretched out for two long blocks, and the bottom half was a small square around a park. The weather was sunny and warm with a pretty stiff breeze going south for those long blocks after Turn 2.

Kev, Chris and I rolled to the line with about 40 other riders to do battle for 22 laps. Even after my hard effort yesterday, I felt good during my warm-up and was confident that I could post a good result today. However, it became clear after the start that today was going to be a struggle. The field almost instantly strung out, and the pace was hot…close to 30 mph. I was pretty far back in the pack, and was subject to the whiplash braking and accelerating through all eight of those turns.

The worst part for me was the acceleration out of Turn 8 and onto the long Start/Finish straightaway. The strung-out riders at the front could take that turn at full speed and mercilessly hit the gas, while we bunched-up riders at the back lost a lot of momentum in the turn and had to accelerate extra hard to maintain contact with the front riders. A few laps in and my legs were already screaming on that particular segment. I fought to maintain position, and moved up if I could. I did my best to hang onto Chris’s wheel, as he appeared to be riding strongly.

About 7 laps in and I was already starting that fatalistic “am I gonna be able to finish this thing” kind of thinking. Chris asked how I was doing, and I let him know that coming out of Turn 8 was killing me. He advised that I take the turn in a lower gear, spin through it, and then shift to a higher gear after we're already out of the turn, rather than pushing the high gear through the turn. I take this advice to heart for the next few laps.

I recall coming around to the Start/Finish and seeing that there were 12 laps to go. I think to myself “OK, almost halfway there, you can do this…” And then came Turn 8.


We were strung out, so I didn’t have to brake because of anyone in front of me braking. I remember pedaling through the turn to maintain as much momentum as possible. I was upright one moment...and then the next moment I was sliding across the pavement on my left hip and elbow. I saw Chris hitting the pavement in front of me. I remember apologizing to Chris for taking him down, as I was still sliding across the pavement. And, sure, there was probably some profanity in there, as well. I also remember mentally bracing for the impact of other riders hitting me, but fortunately that didn’t happen…I had slid out far enough to the right that anyone behind me could steer to the left and avoid running into me.

Fortunately, Chris only sustained some road rash on his elbow, and no damage to his bike. He was able to make it over to neutral support and get back in the race, where he finished with the field. As for me, my day was done.


Other than my front wheel getting popped off during the crash, and having both of my brake levers turned inward into the bars and getting scratched up, there was no real damage to my bike, either. My body…that is another story. The emergency crew was on me within seconds, checking me out and making sure that I wasn’t seriously injured. I was a bit shaky (that adrenaline was still pumping like mad!), but was pretty sure that my injuries were merely superficial.



I walked over to the support truck, where two EMTs checked me out, cleaned my wounds, and bandaged me up. I sustained some good road rash on my left elbow, the outside of my left knee, almost all the way down my left shin, my left hip, and some “road burn” behind my right knee. I count myself very lucky that there was nothing broken, nothing sprained, and that no stitches were needed anywhere. My shoulder is a little sore right now, and once the Advil wears off I’m sure I’ll be hurting elsewhere, too.


So, the million dollar question was “how did it happen?” It occurred so quickly that I couldn’t tell whether I had been bumped by another rider, or whether I went in so fast that my wheels just went out from underneath me. Turns out, it was neither…in the turn was a rough bit of pavement that formed a “lip.” I hit that undulation in just the right spot, which bounced my wheel as I was leaning into the turn at about a 30-40 degree angle, and thus ended my day.

The worst part (other than having crashed my own teammate) was finding out that there had already been several crashes in that exact same spot. In fact, Kev and I were speaking with a police officer afterward and she stated that she had pointed out that very spot to the race organizers and requested that they paint it with bright orange caution paint. The painting of such spots is de rigeur for our sport, so that we can quickly identify problem areas and stay away from them. However, when she pointed this out to them, they pooh-poohed it, saying “oh, that won’t be a problem!”

So now I begin the process of healing. As the Black Night said in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, “it’s just a flesh wound...’tis but a scratch.” I’m really wishing now that I hadn’t pre-registered to race tomorrow. We’ll see how I’m feeling, and how the weather holds out. Storms are predicted, so if I wake up and it is raining, I’m just going to go back to sleep and eat the entry fee.

STATS: I have none, because my Garmin apparently crapped out in the crash. All I know is that I got in about 11 miles of racing, and that we were often going at close to 30 mph. I would be curious to know what my heart rate was doing, but c’est la vie…

Superweek Richton Park Criterium, Richton Park, IL, July 13, 2009

Today was the second of four Superweek races that I had registered for. The weather was sunny and warm, with light winds. Joined by WheelFast Racing teammates Kev and Chris, we were scheduled to race for 25 miles around a 0.7 mile course in a residential area around Pierce Park. The course was a rough oval raced counter-clockwise, with three 90-degree turns and one sweeping turn. The pavement was mostly good, but with some cracks and patched areas.

With today being a weekday, the field was a little smaller than Saturday’s race…only about 40 riders rolled to the line. Again, there was a huge presence from Beverly Bikes/Vee-Pak, and decent showings from South Chicago Wheelmen, xXx, and WDT/Allvoi.

The lap counter showed that we would be doing 30 laps, so it was apparent that our race had been shortened from 25 miles to about 21. I really didn’t mind. Again, my goal was to sit in near, but not at, the front. I wanted to conserve energy, yet not be subject to the constant slowing and acceleration that plagues the back of the field.

The pace started off relatively mellow, but quickly accelerated to about 27 mph when two riders took a flyer off the front. Come on, guys…first lap? Really? They were quickly reeled back in, but the pace still stayed pretty high. Because the course was shorter than Saturday, and because we didn’t have long, six-block straightaways, we didn’t quite accelerate up to the speeds that we were hitting on Saturday.

About 10 laps in, a group of 5or 6 riders escaped and got a solid lead on the field. All the major teams were represented in the break, so this was a serious threat. A chase group took off to reel them in, and Chris was a part of this group. I saw him move up the right side to join the pursuit, and although the legs felt good enough to join the chase, I was completely boxed in and couldn’t grab his wheel. They slowly closed the gap, and eventually the rest of the peloton caught on and we were gruppo compatto once again.

Now that we were all together, I took this as an opportunity to gain some ground. I moved up toward the front of the field, and when the lead rider pulled off I found myself alone at the front. As we came by the Start/Finish with 15 laps to go, I was hoping to hear my name called out by the announcer (hey, I’ll take my moments of glory whenever I can get them). No such luck. I led the entire lap, despite having slowed down the pace a bit (into the low 20s) and moving toward the right side of the road after what I felt had been a decent pull. It seemed that the field was happy to let me hang out and expend more energy than I really cared to be expending at the time.

So I was still at the very front as we came around with 14 laps to go. Again, I hoped for some shout-out love from the announcer to make my effort somewhat worthwhile, but the guy was pretty tight-lipped. I led the field around for another whole lap before a Tower Racing rider jumped in front. Thinking he might be making a break that I might like to be a part of, I instantly jumped onto his wheel. But no breakaways here…he just rode tempo. Soon more riders surged around me and I let myself be swallowed up by the protection of the peloton.

With about 10 laps to go, I drifted back to Hammer, and he let me know that we were now at the back of the field. Huh? I didn’t see all that many riders in front of us…we must have shelled off a good number of riders. Unfortunately, by this point I knew that Kev was one of those popped riders. We lapped him, but he did manage to finish.

As soon as Chris let me know of our rearward positioning, I started to move up. Right in the middle of the next turn, however, my day nearly ended. A couple of South Chicago riders, and perhaps some xXx riders (Chris recalled seeing a few white jerseys) went down right in front of me. But for mere inches, I too would have been taken down. However, I hit the brakes just right (not too hard, not too soft), and my rear wheel bounced about two feet to the right. Not only did this keep me from stacking into the carnage, but it also positioned me facing perfectly down the street. I hit the gas and managed to catch onto the inevitable post-crash surge. Chris, too, managed to avoid the wreckage, and on we went.

Coming through the Start/Finish right after the crash, I started to get the sensation that my rear tire was either going flat, or that I had loosened up my rear wheel with my rightward bounce. We were still within the time allowed for neutral support, so I could have gotten a fresh wheel and been shoved back into the field. However, that can really screw up your momentum, and isn’t the ideal situation. So I made a few quick glances downward, and determined that a) my rear skewer was still firmly in place and b) my rear tire still seemed to be fully gassed. I shook it off and rode on. It turns out that it was just some rough, undulating pavement…Chris had encountered the same sensation in just about the exact same place.

The next few laps passed by without too much incident. Some of the corners were dicier than they should have been, and there was a fair amount of (mostly unjustified) yelling in the pack as to who was not holding their line. I managed to keep my position near the front of the field the whole time, and was happy that my legs hadn’t been fried by my two laps at the front. I hoped that my legs, lungs, and heart would all still be cooperating when we hit the last lap.

And how was that last lap? Shortly after we passed the Start/Finish, an ABD rider took a vicious flyer off the front. The field cranked up the speed to reel him in, and fortunately I still had enough gas in the tank to maintain my position. So, sitting in about 10th position, we negotiated the final turn and sprinted for the line.

I maxed out at almost 32 mph in the sprint, and managed to mostly hold position. Through squinted eyes and clenched teeth I eyeballed about 10 riders in front of me. I could see Chris moving up the right side of the field, but was more concerned about staying in front of the rider immediately to my right.

Prize money for this race went to the top 12 finishers. As I hit the line, I knew that I would be either just in the money, or just out of it. And I was spot-on correct…but on the “just out” side. I took 13th, but since it was Chris who took that 12th spot (netting a check for $20), I didn’t mind at all. I was just happy that, despite leading into the wind for way too long, I improved upon Saturday’s result by four spots…so if I can repeat that feat tomorrow, I’ll be in the top 10!

STATS:
Race time: 53:49
Distance: 21.47 miles
Average pace: 2:30/mile
Average speed: 23.9 mph
Max speed: 31.9 mph
Average HR: 172 bpm
Max HR: 186 bpm

Superweek Blue Island Pro Am, Blue Island, IL, July 11, 2009

Today was the first of the four Masters 30+ Cat 4/5 Superweek races that I had signed up for. The course was a long rectangle…two long 6-block straighaways and two 1-block legs. The course was one mile in length, and we were scheduled to ride 20 laps. The roads and corners were nice and wide, but there was some sketchy pavement…lots of patched holes and manhole covers to avoid.

My goal was to sit in near the front, but not right at the front. I learned my lesson a few weeks ago at Cobb Park…I did too much work at the very front, and had nothing left in the tank for the final lap. Prize money for this race went to the top 12 riders, so there was a lot of motivation to grab one of those spots…if for no other reason than to recoup my entry fee!

I experienced a brief sense of foreboding during my warm-up on the trainer. I realized that this was going to be my 13th race of the season…10 “official” races and three Tuesday nights at Matteson. Would 13 be lucky or unlucky for me today?

With mostly sunny skies and temps in the low 80s, about 50 riders rolled to the line. Beverly Bikes/Vee-Pak had a huge presence, along with a good mix of South Chicago Wheelmen, xXx, and numerous other teams. WheelFast Racing was well represented by myself, my brother Kev, Chris Hammer, and John Mahr.

The whistle blew and we gunned it right from the start. Coming through the Start/Finish after the first lap, I looked down at my computer and saw that we were doing close to 30 mph. At this point I was sitting about 2/3 of the way back through the field. Despite the wide-open corners, there was a lot of unnecessary braking, which in turn led to lots of sketchiness. Knowing that things at the front would be a lot smoother, I started making my way up through the field. Two laps in, I came up alongside Kev and asked how he was feeling. He made a somewhat noncommittal answer…not a good sign. I was feeling pretty good…thanks to the long straightaways, I was able to avoid the dehydration issues that had plagued me at Cobb Park. I made it a point to grab a drink every other lap, and my body thanked me for it.

There was a sudden surge along the backstretch, so I hit the gas and moved up the left side of the peloton. I inserted myself near the front of the field, which by this time had really started to string out. Things were much smoother up here, and we negotiated the turns with minimal braking. The speed slowed down a bit after about five laps, but this was pretty short-lived. Soon after we were flying again, averaging about 26 mph.

This was one of those races where the first 10 laps lasted forever, but the 2nd half of the race flew by. There were random attacks here and there, but nothing stayed away…all the attacks did was to keep the pace high and shell riders off the back. Unfortunately, Kev and John were two of those riders…about 12 laps in, as the field was bombing down the backstretch, I saw the two of them alone and working together. Kev saw me and yelled out some encouragement.

With about 6 laps to go, two riders (Beverly/Vee-Pak and a team I couldn’t identify) took a flyer and got about a 3 block lead on the field. The peloton cranked up the pace and quickly reeled them back in. The rest of the race was a constant battle to maintain position. One moment I would be in the top 5, and then there would be a surge and I would find myself suddenly 15-20 riders back. However, my heart, lungs, and legs were all feeling good, and with minimal effort I could easily move up the side and insert myself right back in at the front.

With two laps to go, as we exited turn four and started barreling down the Start/Finish stretch, I heard the horrible sound of a crash behind me and to the left. This was the third crash of the day…there had been another large crash about halfway through, as well as one rider going down alone in a turn (he was apparently new to the sport and had simply gone in too hot).

With one lap to go, the pace was furious. Moving up along the Start/Finish stretch, I got myself positioned at the front in 3rd position, and held this until about halfway through the back stretch. At this point there was a small surge, but I kept pace and now only counted six riders ahead of me. The legs still felt good, and my heart rate was pretty relaxed. I was confident that I could use the wide road to gain position and move up in the final sprint.

Unfortunately, as we cleared turn 4 there was still carnage in the road from the crash, along with an ambulance (never a good sign). I could hear the officials whistling at us, but I couldn’t tell whether they were neutralizing the field or not. I eased up on the gas ever so slightly, which turned out to be a mistake. Other riders around me simply hit the gas and I had to expend some extra energy getting back up to speed. It didn’t help that a rider in a blue kit moved all the way from the left side of the road to the right without even looking, barely missing my front wheel by about an inch. I didn’t recognize the team kit, but clearly recall seeing “endureit” across his backside as it passed inches from my eyes. A rush of adrenaline took control over my tongue and I screamed “gosh darnit, endureit!” But, much like Ralphie in “A Christmas Story,” I didn’t say “gosh darnit.”

I continued to fight to the line and estimated that I finished somewhere in the 20s. However, when results were posted I was pleasantly surprised to see that I took 17th out of 42 finishers. I was a few spots out of the money, but top 20 in the first Superweek race is pretty good! I have three more races in the coming days to (hopefully!) improve.

STATS:
Race time: 47:32
Distance: 20.07
Average pace: 2:22/mile
Average speed: 25.3 mph
Max speed: 31.2 mph
Average HR: 172 bpm
Max HR: 188 bpm