I'll start by saying I got 3rd in the 3/4 race. I HATE freakin' 3rd place. I know I should be happy I got third or finished "in the money" or that I didn't get caught behind that crash, and all things considered I am, but I'm really not because I really HATE 3rd place. I would probably have a different reaction if I lost because 2 guys broke away and I was left to win the field sprint, but I hate to lose when I'm right there up front at the end of the race and don't do what I have to do to get 1st place. HATE IT! And technically, if 2nd place is the first loser, then 3rd place is the 2nd loser, then that means I couldn't even win at losing!
On a more positive note, I loved doing Reston. The 3/4's got lucky because we didn't have to deal with a lick of rain. The last time I did this course was in 2007 as a Cat 5 and I came in 18th, so it was nice to come back to it. I didn't have a particular strategy going into this race either. I guess if you can call sitting in until the field sprint a strategy then I did have one. But I'm a better sprinter than anything else, so isn't this an appropriate strategy for me? Anyway's, having a strategy like that never makes for an interesting race report so I'll just skip to the end to say Win had a freakin' sweet leadout from his teammate and I should've went earlier than when I did. I didn't go as hard as I wanted through the last two turns because I had way too much air in the rear tire and those turns were giving me a little bit of trouble when I tried to power through them during the race. That gave Win and Greg all the meters they needed to stay ahead and come in 1st and 2nd respectively.
Later on, I attempted to do the 1/2/3 race. Attempted is the correct term because after about 14 laps, I was graciously pulled from the race. It was fast and it was furious. I just did not have enough left in the legs to hang on to the back of the train.
For the next couple weeks, the focus of my training will shift towards the hills. I refuse to be embarrassed at Coppi and Lost River by all the climbers out there like I was at the Tour of Washington Co.
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DJ, our guys hit some good hill repeats at Rock Creek on Tuesdays. If you want to get a glimpse of what Lost River will feel like... meet at broad and beach st. shortly after 6, we start promptly at 6:15.
ReplyDeleteWin Elliot won two days in a row. Strong. I hear he won't be upgrading for a long time though - something about wanting to ride all next year as a 3... Rumors are rumors though.
Tim, congrats to you on a pretty good season so far.
ReplyDeleteAccording to my calculations, Win should be getting his AUTOMATIC upgrade today. Of course, that is only if the refs are as quick at it as they were with Wahl. Here is what I have:
Fort Ritchie Crit - 1st place - 7 points
Poolesville RR - 1st place - 10 points
Reston Crit - 1st place - 7 points
RSR Crit - 2nd place - 6 points
Washington County RR - 7th place - 3 points
Carl Dolan RR - 7th place - 3 points
Tyson's Corner Crit - 3rd place - 4 points
That should equal 40 points and those are only the results and races that I am aware of. Of course, I could be wrong and I did assume that there were 50+ riders at the start of each race.
I'm confused by the interpretation of that "automatic upgrade" rule. I don't mind how he goes about his upgrade though. I like the competition. I'd like to beat him heads up before I see him go. But I'm sure him and I will have plenty of Road Race encounters next year in the 1/2/3's.
ReplyDeletewhy would anyone worry about someone else's "automatic upgrade"?
ReplyDeleteBecause some people like to worry.
ReplyDeletePersonally I could care less. I was actually quite pissed that they made Wahl automatically upgrade. I looked forward to racing against him again. In order to motivate myself I look for the strongest people in the category and try to beat them. He was the strongest while he was a 3 and that's why winning at RFK was so sweet!
ReplyDeleteThe reason I am "worrying" about all the Cat 3's upgrades is BECAUSE they (i.e., refs) made Wahl, MY TEAMMATE/FRIEND, upgrade before he could secure the BAR jersey, and he wanted the Bar jersey. He even tried to write and ask that his automatic upgrade be held until the end of the season so he could pursue the BAR jersey, but that didn't work. He is a stand up guy and a lot more polite than I am, so I'll do the public worrying for him. If an automatic upgrade is good enough for Wahl, it should be good enough for everybody else chasing that Cat 3 BAR jersey. Either the automatic upgrades should be held until the end of the season, or the BAR contest should go the way of the dinosaur.
ReplyDeleteIf people want to upgrade in the middle of the season and have no desire to race for the BAR category (e.g., Tim Rugg, DJ Brew), that is their choice and I am fine with it. However, for those that set the BAR jersey as their goal and are then forced to upgrade mid season is a bunch of BS.
While I know we don't live in a fair world, I like to try to make it as fair as possible.
Does that help with the "understanding"?
:-)
ReplyDelete