Sprint Into Spring 2010

I tripled up this Sunday. I was the promoter for the Sprint Into Spring and I planned on racing the women's 40+ race and the 1/2/3 race.

After a rough start the day turned out to be awesome.

After getting my daughter out the door with her dad at 0530 for her State gymnastics meet. I loaded up the truck and headed to the course. I was awake and figured what the heck. That was my first mistake, I should have eaten some breakfast at the house. It had rained sometime Saturday night and the roads were damp I started got a little concerned when the 100 mile hour tape wouldn't stick to the ground to mark the start finish line, because the CAT 5 was the fist event of the day.

We barely get the CAT 5 started and there's a crash. In the second lap a kid (turns out he was 21) went down very hard and non of us can figure out why he went down there. It took a long time to get him loaded and the course cleared. Turns out he was combative with the EMT guys, probably because of how bad he was hurt. We finally get the CAT 5's going and there's a crash in the last turn with ONE to go..
Not the way I wanted to start the day.

TWO junior’s races and a kid’s race and with NO warm-up, its time for the first women's race. I sit in for the first two laps, but my legs feel heavy so I attack to open them up and win the fist prime. Mistake TWO I let TOO big of a gap open up after winning the Prime and have to chase for several laps to get back on.
Make a quick deal with a gal I ride / race a lot with from a different team and she gives me a great lead out. She pulls me to the 200 meter mark like a pro, thanks Maria. I open up a gap win with a good 3/ 4 bike length on the field for the win. My first out right win, not just being the first in my category in a women's open race
The 1/2/3 race was a completely different story, tried to work do a little work but the first sprint for a prime and I pop. I'm off the back and riding solo... The field comes around and I jump in and sit in... I do manage not to come in DFL.

The rest of the day went very smooth. Thanks to all the cyclist that came out to race and a special thanks to my teammates and friends that helped put on a great race. If you missed this race because you thought it was going to rain.. You missed a great race. Put it on your calendar it is a must do race if you live anywhere around the State of Virginia.. But that's just my opinion. Check out Kevin Dillard's photo's at http://www.demon.myimagebox.com/#/velophotos-2010/4538175313 if you don't believe me.

Doubling UP

Sunday May 2nd I plan on doubling up at the Bunny Hop. There is a women's Master's race and a Women's Senior race.
Of course the weather man is calling for the first real warm weather that we've had all season on Sunday.
I felt really strong last night on our training ride, at times Mark Pye had us smokin' at 30 mph I just hope that translates into a great day of racing. Time will tell

Tour De Moore, Southern Pines, NC

There wasn’t a race on either the VCA or MABRA calendar this weekend, so I decided to head a little south to do a road race. The race was only about 3 ½ hours from my house, it was a road race and a women’s 3/ 4 field. I convinced Maria from TNP to go with me, so loaded up the big red truck and headed South on I-85.
Getting to the race site was uneventful, we drove through a couple of rain showers but actually found the parking lot fairly easily. We did wander around a little to find registration; a couple of signs would have helped. Once we get our numbers we walk down to the Finish line to check out the final 200 meters or so and as described it is a nice uphill finish, but the pavement is smooth and we talk about where we want to be in the race an because of the uphill finish if it turned into a field sprint where we wanted to be and when we should start our sprint.
Back at the truck we start getting ready; it was still overcast and a little humid but nothing real bad. It did act like it might rain, so there was a little discussion about what to wear. Finally, we warm up and head over to the starting line, which is different than the finish line. The CAT 5’s are scheduled to go off ahead of the women, we were scheduled for a 1050 start time.
1050 came and went, and now the sun is out, we’re doing little loops to keep the legs moving and still no sign of the official. I’m not sure what time we eventually went off all I know is that we hung around there long enough that I had to go to the bathroom and there wasn’t porta potty to be seen. I have no problems “going” in the woods, the Army has trained me to do that, but we were in a residential neighborhood and unlike a couple of other cyclist I will not “go” in someone’s backyard.
The race finally started, we rolled out at a decent pace and I’m thinking need to be near the front but not on the front. The yellow line was being strictly enforced so I kept hoping for the left side to open up. I looked down at my computer and notice we’re only 8 miles into the race, so I relaxed knowing I’ve got time to move up. Mean while the pace is like a yo-yo, don’t understand why folks just won’t ghost pedal instead of grabbing break. We had a car in front and a car behind and oncoming traffic was actually really good about getting off the road and waiting until we rolled past but every time we passed a car the peloton would slow up. I am thinking this is going to cause a wreck in the field, I gotta move up. My friend Maria made it up a few spots so she’s to my right front I’m sitting about mid-field but still hanging out near the left. The crash took about several folks, heard later that a gal flatted, panicked ensued and several folks went down. As the field spread wide to go around the carnage, I move left, bunny hopped a gal going down in front of me, CX’d a little then saw the front of the field ATTACK..
There went my race. I know when a crash happens the adrenalin kicks in, but if it happens behind you and you just keep riding and don’t rubber neck why folks have to attack. So I’m pissed I know this is my race I bury myself trying to catch back up. I’m so focused on trying to catch back on that I don’t even notice that I’m pulling a couple of other gals with me. Now I’m really pissed, if they had just worked with me instead of sucking my wheel we would have been able to close the gap. We ended up with a small chase group of 6 gals, that none really knew how to do a rotating pace line. They’d take hard long pulls and then dork up the pace line…
So long story short, finished the race, loved the course, would do it again. But need to work on my skills to move up in a pack. I know how I ride during group rides and letting folks take a wheel or slide in is not necessarily the best way to race. I also learned that I can see a crash, not panic, bunny hop and CX my road bike and stay up right; I just gotta work on my fitness to CLOSE the gap / bridge up.

Idiot at West Creek

I love cycling and when I’m out on the road and I see someone else out on a bike I try to always say HI, nod, wave, something to acknowledge a fellow cyclist. Last night I found an exception to my rule.

West Creek is usually a very safe place to ride. Several of us use West Creek as a great place to ride our TT bikes or work on specific bike drills as a team. You’ll see ALL kinds of cyclist out at West Creek, folks on TT bikes, parents with kids, or just folks pedaling around. There are also runners out there that for safety reason run against traffic. Runners are the only ones that should be going against the flow of traffic.

Last night West Creek was not a really safe place to be.
1) I think because of the DULATHALON this weekend it was crowed, there were more folks out there than I had ever seen.
2) BUT, the real reason was because there was an idiot riding against traffic. ON no less than two occasional I saw him almost cause an accident. Because he was riding against traffic, riding in the LEFT lane and cyclist and runner were occupying the RIGHT lane. As cars passed the cyclists in the right lane they were forced to slam on their brakes to avoid hitting this guy head on.
When I saw this guy the first time as we road past, I said hey, you’ll be safe riding with traffic. He yelled back that he was a certified something, I didn’t catch the last part and I really cannot understand what being certified in anything has to do with riding against traffic.
I am not sure why anyone would insist on riding against traffic, so if you know who this dude is please convince him to ride with traffic. I really don’t care if he wants to become a hood ornament or not. I just don’t want him to take out me or my friends because he’s an idiot.

Three and 1/2 hour drive for a 27 mile RR

I bailed on Jeff Cup this year because of all my travel related to work and I just didn't feel I was even close to being in shape to race in the women's 1/2/3 field and there wasn't a women's 40 + race for me to enter.. SO I skipped JC.

There isn't a local race this weekend, but I can travel to Fort Bragg, NC which is about 3 1/2 hour drive from my house, due South on I-95.

Righ now I haven't convinced any of my teammates to go, but I want to race.. so I guess I have to decide...

What's a gal to do

Yes Ma'am

Two races this weekend, a TT on Saturday and a Crit on Sunday, I relearned a lesson I thought I’d learned a year or so ago.

I was absolutely ecstatic about my TT on Saturday, faster than last year, a negative split and second place in the women’s Master’s race. I was psyched. So head home, repack the bag, switch bikes etc and try and get off my legs as soon as I can, which my family still doesn’t understand..

Wake up at 0330, got to go which I take as a good sign that I am hydrated, I don't ever drink enough water. Wake up again at 0730; tackle a couple of house chores, walk the dogs, make cinnamon rolls for the family, put the last of my stuff in the truck and head to Langley for the crit. Get there early, snap a few photos of the men’s CAT 4 race, eat a little and then start getting ready to race. My team captain comes up with a great plan, because we know how the race is going to go when Laura and Ali show up (great race ladies). The race unfolded just like we thought the two VK gals go off the front and the field cannot get organized to chase them. This is a new situation for most of us in the field; the ladies are a lot stronger than in years past and if we organize better we just might chase them down.

With 10 to go my team captain reminds me of where I’m supposed to be. I say OK… I’ll get there…. 5 to go.. I’m told to get on Jules wheel.. I say. “It’s too early”…. well it wasn’t TOO early and I should have just done what I was told.. my teammate Jules was hammering and was in great position to give me a lead-out, but I wasn’t where I was supposed to be… SO my teammate looks up. I’m not there, she shuts it down.. not going to give a lead-out to someone else… I look for an open space, there’s not one.. I try to go inside.. but it is tight.. and I don’t want to cause a crash… so I’m not sure where I finished overall; I did manage to finish 3rd in the Women’s Master’s.

But from now on I will do as I’m told and just say “yes Ma’am.”


here's the link to my pictures
http://colonelsharon.smugmug.com/Sports/Langley-Crit-2010/11804834_5LBPp#833967975_dpKh2

The injured reserve list

There’s not been a lot of racing lately by the gals on the Rostello team. We are collectively coming back from the injured reserve list. Between all of us, we’ve got two bad hips, one gallbladder has been removed, and one messed up tibia, several worn out crunchy knees… and countless other worn out parts that come with running and playing "war games" for a couple of decades. Needless to say if you took all the good parts from all of us you might have enough good parts to make one entire cyclist.

So we’ve passed on the last couple of races knowing that this is still early race season and we want to be able to race into August and September. The next race on the agenda for most of us is the Conquer the Canal TT and a couple of will toe the line at Langley and I might even hang around and do a track race or two. Hopefully the PT will have paid off and most of us will be closer to 90% than we have been in a long long while.