Race Reports for 2-6 July

Fitchburg Longsjo Classic (NRC)
Massachusetts
Who raced: Bill, George and Ian

U.S. Masters National Championships
Kentucky
Who raced: Ken and Sean (in different age divisions)


George's Race Reports from the Fitchburg Longjo Classic:
NRC Pro 1 Stage Race
Fitchburg Classic Stage 1
Date: July 3rd, 2008
Place: Ian 41st, George 49th, Bill 116th
Course: 6.55 miles, uphill with a few dips and last mile downhill
Starters: 145
The race: We all rode solid, Ian and I were 11 seconds apart, it was definitely a course that favored climbers and you definitely were at an advantage if you knew the course REALLY well. Tough to dose your effort. I think we all felt we over cooked it a bit at the start.
Fitchburg Classic Stage 2
Date: July 4th, 2008
Place: Ian 32nd @1:08, George 68th @ 3:23 , Bill 111th @ 10:43 (GC Ian 32nd @2:00, George 63rd @4:23, Bill 111th @ ~12:15)
Course: 104 miles, 9 lap circuit race with several rollers and a long stair step climb each lap + 60mph downhill, finish was on a 5km climb up to a ski lodge
The race: We decided that we were all riding for Ian today and the goal was to try to stay together for as long as possible and give him a hand where we could. Unfortunately, someone clipped his rear wheel on the first descent about 3 miles into the race and he went down. It was fairly close to the front of the field and I didn’t see it, but Bill did and he was able to help Ian get back up to the front once he got things sorted out. The first 2 laps were really hard so we didn’t get to do too much diagnostics at first, just tried to stay in. On lap 3 things let up enough, (still hard, but much steadier), that we could sort things out. He had a little road rash but the major issue was his shifting was messed up and he could only get a 19T cog on the rear and not every time. I rode behind him and tried to see if there was anything we could do, but it was clear the hanger was bent and we were concerned about messing it up more if we pulled over and had support fix it and there was nothing either Bill or I could do to help him (doing 70 miles on a wrong sized bike is not good). Ian decided to just roll with it and we toyed with trying to get in an early break to maybe get a little more “steady” ride up the hill each lap, but that didn’t last long, I made one short lived move and Ian got in a more promising one, but didn’t work out and we opted for hanging in there. About lap 6 Ian had another mechanical and dropped his chain. He couldn’t get it back on so had to get off. Since he was already stopped he flagged down the neutral support and tried to get a spare bike, no dice but they did try to sort out his derailleur, but they couldn’t do much. Ian didn’t panic and worked back through the caravan and made it back in. On lap 7 and 8 they started to hit it harder at the front and Bill came off on the second to the last time up the hill and cruised in to finish well under the time cut. Ian and I both made it through to the base of the last climb, Ian with the main group, me in a chase group about 10 seconds behind. The race, of course, exploded at that point. Ian hung in tough for a very respectable finish considering what happened and the field quality. Overall this was an awesome day, I think we rode really well as a team with Bill and I trying to help Ian out as best we could and staying fairly close to each other, communicating well, keeping up with nutrition, and not doing anything stupid but keeping close together. I think Bill and I both gained a lot of confidence seeing we could ride at this level on such a tough course and to get a hard road race like that in. Honestly, I think my biggest issue at the end was mental and less physical and I kind of checked out at the base of the climb which may actually be good for tomorrow if I can recover. I have to give big props to Ian. I have ridden with him for 3 years now and this year he is at another level in terms of experience and fitness. Its clear he really took advantage of his WCAP and really is at that NRC/UCI level in terms of competitiveness. No panic or complaining when the mechanicals happened, he just dealt with it and pushed through, plus the physical performance was impressive given everything that happened and the lack of gears given all the climbing.
Fitchburg Classic Stage 3
Date: July 5th, 2008
Place: Ian 13th @ winner’s time, George 73rd @ 2:58 , Bill DNF (GC Ian 27th @2:15, George 58th @7:38) Avg speed was over 29.2 mph!!
Course: 78 miles, 25 lap circuit race with several with one steep climb each lap + hard twisty downhill and uphill finish
The race: The race was fast and hard from the gun and stayed that way, lots of attrition, even the pros were saying it was one of the hardest races they have done on the year. I’d like to say Bill and I helped Ian out today, but we didn’t do much except occasionally be around for morale. Survival and being fresh for late in the race was all about positioning today, of course you have to have the fitness to get and keep the position. You had to be fairly high up going into the climb and then keep that position through the climb so you could be at the front and avoid the “snap” on the corners on the downhill or you were on the rivet for about half the course and then tired going up the climb the next time which just made it worse the next time around. Unfortunately Bill and I weren’t quite as good at the positioning thing with Bill coming off about half way through the race (he wasn’t the first or the last though). I made it to about 5 laps to go and then had a bad patch and came off as well on the downhill, I fought and almost got back on next time up the climb but couldn’t quite make it and got completely destroyed on the fast section and rolled into the finish with other folks who got popped. Ian confirmed today by getting a very strong 13th on the stage in the sprint up the climb and moving up to 27th on GC and into the NRC points. Awesome. Tomorrow is the final crit.
Fitchburg Classic Stage 4
Date: July 5th, 2008
Place: Ian 24th @ winner’s time, George 103rd @ 2:07
Final GC: Ian 27th @ 2:15 (5 NRC points), George 63rd @ 9:45)
Avg speed: 27 mph for stage, 26.3 mph for entire race
Course: 50 miles, 55 lap 3 corner downtown criterium
The race: After yesterday I think everyone in the field was a bit tired and the course and pace was a little more forgiving although still pretty quick. The primary goal was to keep Ian from losing any GC but also take advantage of any opportunities that might pop up for breaks. I got in a couple of little groups early just by following wheels, and Ian was in a few more throughout the race, but it was pretty obvious it was going to come down to a field sprint so we sat in for the most part. I found myself on the wrong side of a fairly big crash with 5 laps to go (needless to say free lap had just ended) I didn’t go down but had to stop, clip out and restart. I chased onto the back of the field but by the time I got there, the pace had ramped up and the “back of the field” was actually “off the back”. I kept rolling just to finish and they pulled me and a bunch of others with 2 laps to go and prorated our times. Ian hung in tough and finished 24th on the stage. All and all a good 4 days of racing. The community was very supportive with a huge crowd out on all the days and it was just a good experience. Ian’s ride was impressive, I know we like to tease him a bit about his magic formula that says where we would finish if this or that didn’t happen, but I can vouch that he was a serious contender for at least a top 15 finish on GC without the mechanical issues on Day 2. For Bill it was great to get some NRC experience and he has progressed a lot since his early season injuries. For me it was good to remember what’s needed tactically, mentally and physically to compete in these long hard races. Hopefully it will pay off and we can give Ian more of hand down the road. Fortunately CISM and Nationals are not stage races, I think I can be good for going “all in” for one day.

Ken's Report from the U.S. Masters National Championships:
U.S. Masters (30-34) National Road Race Championship
Date: 2 Jul 08
Starters: 60+
Place: 8th
Course: 65 Miles
Weather: Very Nice
The Race: I really felt good about this race on the back side there was a little climb that had a switch back and lasted about 1 minute or so and the front side had two climbs including a run up to the finish line. I was active early staying right near the front. I went with an early move that looked good. It did not last and when we came back the winning move of three went up the road. With about three laps to go there were about 30 or so left in the field and when we hit the hill on the back side I attacked as hard as I could. I got clear with another rider and when we crested the hill we were gone we started to work together. We stayed clear for about 4 laps then got caught and a move of 4 countered us. I stayed in the field and when we hit the hill I went as hard as I could for the last 400 meters to hold of the remaining field of 15 or so for 8th place.
U.S. Masters (30-34) National Criterium Championship
Date: 6 Jul 08
Starters: 50+
Place: 2nd
Course: very small .5 mile course with 4 corners and a chicane.
The Race: I had three club team members and the plan was to keep me protected the whole race. The team was completely commited to doing everything they could to get me the jersey and no one cared about finishing they all had a job to do and did it better then I have seen in a long time. I felt I was the only one that did not deliver. There were many moves that looked good and I bridged to a few but nothing was staying away. After we got brought back a counter of two guys went up the road and put 14 secs into the main group. We missed the move so my teammate Josh went to the front and drilled it until it came back. His day was done. My other teammate took over and drilled it for the last 8 laps keeping it single file. With two to go I moved to 4th wheel and pushed my way in. A big surge came with 1 1/2 lap to go I jumped in 5th wheel and sat through the bell on the back side with about 400 meters to go I jumped very hard and rode Marco Aledia and Ward Solar off my wheel. A guy from Texas Road House got on my wheel. I went through the 2nd to last and the last turn first and overcooked the last turn. I ended up in the grass. I got my bike upright and sprinted in for 2nd. We were really happy with the result even though the jersey would have been great.

Sean's Report from the U.S. Masters National Championships:
U.S. Masters (40-44) National Road Race Championship
Date: 3 Jul 08
Starters: 60+
Place: 17th
Course: 55 Miles
Weather: Very Nice
The Race: Ken and I rode the course several times leading up to the road race and knew that the two climbs on the course are where the selections would be made. I felt very comfortable with this kind of race as the climbs where no bigger than what I have in Florida, maybe even a little smaller. The race started fast and after two laps quite a few riders where dropped. The race slowed down on lap three to a crawl with everyone waiting for someone to make the first move. The attacks came at the end of lap 3 and the field started to get strung out. Shortly after the attacks subsided I launched an attack hoping to draw out some strong riders but no one responded so I kept going and managed to get out of sight. This move only lasted about five miles as the field caught a glimpse of me on the climb with about a minute advantage and chased me down before the feed. I knew what would happen next and a counter move went off of my solo effort and 4 riders went up the road and the another four quickly made it across as I tried to get in some recovery for another move. The break of eight riders stayed away for the next several laps and it looked as if they would not get caught. On the last lap there were several hard efforts made to bridge the gap and I helped as well. Just as soon as I though it was game over we come around the corner and the break was caught but I was done and jumped from wheel to wheel trying to maintain position but finished 17th. I felt that I was one of the strongest riders there but just got over anxious and made some bad moves early on and it cost me the later in the race.
U.S. Masters (40-44) National Criterium Championship
Date: 6 Jul 08
Starters: 60+ largest field of the day
Place: 10th
Course: very small .5 mile course with 4 corners and a chicane.
The Race: I went wearing the AFCT skin suit and it might has well been a national championship jersey. On rider commented after the race "I don't know who you are but when I see someone going up the road wearing USA shorts with and red, white and blue all over him I am going to chase." This is one of those races that I rode as best as I could and not regret anything. I stayed back for the first third of the race and stayed with the riders I had marked as being possible winners. One of those riders placed 6th at last years elite race so I had to stay with him from the start. After a bunch of attacks and some splits that looked dangerous I stuck to my game plan and shadowed the riders I needed to watch. Eventually a group of 4 riders went clear and started to open a sizeable gap. I wanted to jump but waited for my marked rider to make his move and like clock work he jumped. I was in a perfect position when he jumped and caught a free ride almost all the way across to the break. I helped closed the rest of the gap but with one more rider in tow. We worked together well for a few laps but some of the earlier breakaway riders stopped pulling through as they could see that our group was a lot fresher. Then the rider who caught the free ride attacked and caused a string of attacks that allowed the field to get close enough to have 8 more riders jump across to our breakaway group, but that was as close as the field would come. The lead group now had 15 riders and started to work together to lap the field. Once we were half way around on the field a couple of riders who didn't appear to be a threat rolled off, myself and a couple off other guys watched. That group would not be seen again as they lapped the field and then on the next lap they pulled the field as we watched from about :15 seconds back. Another group soon rolled off and after another :10 second gap to the second chase group I made a hard attack and bridged up to the 2 group but was immediately countered inside 3 laps to go and could not respond. I rolled in for 10th as the field was now shattered and the breaks rolled in with the original 3 out front then the 4 riders that countered me and what was left of the lead group of 15.