The original plan, several months ago, was to repeat last years support of Dean.  Unfortunately, Kim booked their vacation over this weekend.  My buddy Dave Lofstead agreed to give it a shot but came down with strep throat.  Allen was acting as transportation commander and wasn’t real sure he wanted to go but I talked him into it:-) .  The course was moved yet again from Woodland,WA to Perrydale near Amity, OR.  There’s a 2.5 mile neutral rollout to the 12.5 mile course, finishing up on the 2.5 leg at the end.  The course profile is mostly flat, with a couple rollers and one small power climb.  You never leave the big ring for 54 miles. 

The weather definitely didn’t look good on the forecast and didn’t disappoint upon arrival.  At registration, there were 19 riders in my category and 11 in Masters 40+  123. 

We headed off at 1:30 with around 30 riders and, to our delight, it absolutely POURED for the first 30 minutes.  Between the wheel spray, the heavy rain and 15-20mph SE winds, visibility was terrible.  The rain did stop around lap 4 but the wind never did.

The group was plenty motivated on the first 12.5 mile lap.  4 riders went off the front almost immediately and had teammates (Pacific Blue Sky and Rose City)blocking despite us cruising along at 28mph.  I was about 10 riders back and totally boxed in, not going anywhere forward.  Watching them increase their gap was really frustrating.  The pace was still plenty high and near the end of lap 1, I got in a bad place after rotating through the front.  I was on the wrong side of the wind to draft and couldn’t get back into line.  HR was climbing and suddenly, I was off about 20-30 yards.  2 riders went by and I gave it full gas (such as it was) to get on the last wheel.  We turned along for about 1/2 a mile like that and then the main group let up.  That was close and a rookie mistake that I know better not to do.

After Lap 2, things calmed down considerably.  So much so that on Lap 3, we were doing 15-16mph at times.  It was so windy that attempts to jump off the front just couldn’t make it stick and there were few volunteers to pull.  By Lap 4, there were 2 attacks which I went with each time but by then, my legs were on the severe fade. 

The breakaway had faded to 3 riders but they did an excellent job of working together plus having teammates chasing down attacks or blocking.  I don’t know their lead but it was many minutes at the end.  We had the normal bunch sprint with 15 or so riders, I ended up 16th overall.  They opened up the finish straight to both lanes but had let a car through heading towards the sprinting pack and equally scared the older lady driving as well as the riders.  Thankfully, no issue there ultimately. 

In Cat 4, Ryan Elting made his NRR debut, finishing 25th in the bunch sprint.  Allen rode with the Masters 123 but having done LT intervals the day before plus the rather high speed of his group meant an early exit.   

Overall results are here:

http://list.obra.org/events/15773/results

Gary Watts

Allen Kraft, Joe Cipale, John O’Brien and myself carpooled to McMinnville for the 3rd TT of the series.  Thanks to Allen for supplying the transportation.  Weather was very cool in the early morning, near freezing but soon warmed up to an absolutely perfect day.  Temps in the mid 50’s, sunny and NO WIND. 

We drove the course beforehand with John O giving the play by play since he’d done the first 2 of the series.  I had been pouring over the profile I plotted on ridewithgps.com for most of the previous week.  It is always so different to actually be there than look at gps data.  http://ridewithgps.com/routes/27973#

The course is demanding but in different ways.  They slam you with a 1/2 mile climb 300′ from the start line.  It’s virtually never flat with a constant series of ups/down, turns, changes in pavement quality etc so you really can’t get into a steady effort like a flat TT.  You also get to reclimb that just before the finish.  The downhill finish was fun, hitting 44mph while in the aerobars. The second picture below was taken at that speed.  There’s around 700′ of climbing for a 12 mile course.

I didn’t have high hopes as my legs were a bit sore from earlier in the week and climbing isn’t my forte’ (understatement).  I had considered using my road bike as climbing on the TT bike is less than optimal for me usually.  That would have been a mistake because there are some fast sections that would have eaten more time than I might have saved on the climbs. 

I finished in 32:03, good enough for 9th in the 50+ category and the top 1/3 overall.  Congrats to John O for winning the series in the Masters 50+. 

Poor Allen had a sudden, severe neck pain and had to sit up on the return. 

Here’s a few pictures from a local photographer. 

Well, it almost went as planned….  We had a very surgey (is that a word..?) race. The Pacific Power guys had assigned a couple riders to mark the Sunset Cycles rider who was in first place in the series. Every time he would attack, at least one PP guy was on his wheel and then the whole pack would accelerate too. Then we would slow down after the break stopped trying to get away. I lost count how many times this happened. Between my cold and the constant surges I was starting to wear down on the last lap. Everything felt good except my legs. They had started to cramp a bit on the back side and I’d already finished a bottle of water and a bottle of Cytomax along with half a Clif bar. That should have been enough…  On the last time up the big hill I didn’t feel too bad so I figured I’d try the plan I had been thinking about. About 3/4 of the way up the next hill, I attacked. I didn’t get away, but I had everyone lined out along the flat spot before the long downhill going into the little finish stretch. A guy pulled ahead of me going down the hill so I at least got a little recovery. I pulled back up front as we made the right hander over the bridge and as soon as we hit the rise going toward the 200 meter mark I drilled it again. About half way up that hill my legs had had enough and both of my thighs just cramped up. It was like I threw a parachute out the back and 9 guys came flying past me. I managed to limp across the line in 10th. I’ve cramped in my last 2 races and I’m not sure if it’s due to my cold or losing 6 pounds in 2 weeks. I’m guessing it’s a combo. As it turns out, I managed to finish 5th in the series  4 points out of 3rd.

I also found out that I do not have enough points for an upgrade, so my next race will be King’s Valley as a 4. At least I have 3 weeks to get healthy and get more training in my legs.

Okay so Ivan & I were talking during the week and I was saying that the only way to get away from that field we ride in is attack constantly. If the pace slows, go to the front & attack.

 So, we pulled out of the parking lot and sure enough, I went right to the front as we went up the first short climb on the course, putting my HR right on up there near max. The other guys were having no part of it and by the time I got to the top, others where coming around me. Perfect, as I wouldn’t want to be on the front unless it’s going to play into my race plans anyway. However, as it turns out, several of the other racers had the same plans and ideas as I did and the race proceeded attack after attack after attack. Most of the time the attacks where on the climbs but Phenney and Ivan were attacking even on some of the flatter sections, of course, along with several of the other guys. 

One would think that after this kind of racing, the pace would slow a bit. But, it never did  and guys were constantly trying to break the peleton off and get away in an effort to steal the race. I’m quite sure we did destroy several of the guys, but the lions share, at least those that were anybody to contend at the finish, were having no part of it. 

First lap down, 27 minutes and change and I remarked to Bill, the series leader at this point, that was a 27 minute lap Bill. He goes dang, is that fast? I say yeah, we’re usually around 28ish, and we keeping going at this breakneck pace (for our small field anyway). By the time lap three came around, we slowed slightly but not much and at the beginning of lap four, we passed the field that started in front of us, the Master’s 4/5 field. I do not recall ever passing another field at this Banana Belt Series. The women cat 4, that I drove lead for in the morning, almost always get neutralized, as the men pro 1/2 or cat 3 men will usually come by (another story on that in a moment).  

Lap four was not much different than the other laps as we ascended the short climbs, attacks would flare. Toward the middle of the lap, a group of six guys got away with a smaller, yet determined group (me included), worked to bring them back. In a moment or two, a bunch more guys had caught us and they were all quite meaningful in wanting to bring back the breakaway of six riders, Phenney and Ivan included. 

With about 4Km to go, we caught the group of six. There’s a tough little climbs at this spot on the course and I was the last one, left in the lead group, up the climb and I thought I was going to be toast. I think there was maybe 20 of us left in the peleton at this point. However, I made sure I got back in and by the time we reached the 1Km sign, I was sort of recovered and began positioning myself for the finish. Other guys were doing the same, but like I said, this was one tough race and guys were just freaking tired. So, as a guy mounted an attack, a bit too early, a ways before the 200 meter sign, I came back around him and just started putting everything down I had. I didn’t have enough for the win but I though I had 9^th and then Ivan came around me just at the line. So, if my count was correct, Ivan got 10^th & I got 11^th. I’m happy with that this year. I’ll try some better finishes later in the year. Suffice it to say though that there are quite a few riders in the field this year with very good fitness. They’d have to be fit to stay in contention in racing contention like todays. Whooooaaaa! 

Oh yeah, I promised a Cat 4 women’s story. One lone rider from the women’s cat 4 field (a Veloforma girl) got away from the peleton on the 1^st lap (they do three laps). Another gal, an Ironclad girl, tried to bridge to her and failed. The gal, solo in her breakaway, was cruising up some of those climbs almost as fast as we (older but still strong) guy did. In fact, the field got neutralized at the Cat 3 men came rolling though. But this time, that Ironclad gal had finally bridged to her so now there were two off the front of the main field. So, as the cat three men proceeded, these two cat 4 women almost caught them several times. There were going up the hills as fast as they were and at one point, I got on the radio and told Jordon, dude, these two girls are going to catch your guys. We chuckled but really, there two girls were very, very fast. Great job girls! I’m guessing those two will be racing with the Cat 3 women very soon.

I’m going to begin this with my excuse. I woke up Friday with a cold. My eyes and nose were running, my sinuses were packed up and I had a headache…. I worked from home and tried to get better. Saturday, I layed around the house napping, drinking fluids and blowing my nose. Sunday rolls around, hey! let’s go to a bike race!!!  In all honesty, had I not finished so well last week I would have stayed home and watched cooking shows on the Food Network, but I felt like I had to go and defend my place in the series.  My hope was that it would be a slowish race and I could just hide in the pack until the end and sprint uphill for a top 10 finish.  It was not to be…

I met Allen at our usual spot and we drove up there while I drank some coffee and blew my nose. Got there, registered, set up our stuff and started warming up. I actually felt pretty good except my nose was runny and my chest was tight. I took some Dayquil hoping it would stem the tide of my nose and headed up to the line. It was a smaller group and in my experience, that usually makes for a faster race. It started out just the way I wanted it, but as soon as we got over to the backside, it ramped up. There were 5 or 6 Pacific Power guys there and they worked well as a team this week. They kept sending guys off the front and some big motors weren’t going to let them get off, so the speed stayed high. The guy who won last week went on a couple of breaks and one of them contained Nick (BikeTiresDirect) and a guy from Pacific Power. I was pretty nervous about that one, but some guys got up front and strung us all out and we eventually caught them. This was all starting to take its toll on my un-healthy body and the last time up the big hill off the dam (remember, we are going counter-clockwise this time) my legs started to cramp up a bit. I knew this wasn’t going to be good…. With about a quarter lap to go, we were all packed up and I was trapped against the yellow line and I was too far back. Damn… I didn’t have much choice but to wait until the 200 meter mark to get out and around. It was an uphill finish and the initial plan was to not commit too much energy until I had too. Unfortunately, I had to go as soon as we hit that line or I wasn’t going to be far enough up to get points. So, off I went and I made up quite a bit of ground until about 100 meters when guys started coming around. I managed to stem the tide and finished off 12th. I think I managed to keep my 3rd place series standing, but I’m not sure and if I did, it’s not my much….

Now I just need to get healthy for BB3.

Out at Haag Lake, today’s race was run counter-clockwise. The race is a bit harder this way as the climbs are a bit steeper than when run clockwise. The biggest climb on every lap is the climb coming off of the dam, short but steep, this climb, normally breaks up the peleton as people’s climbing legs get tested.

From the first lap on, I made sure I was at the front of the field so I could cover any attacks that came on the dam climb. My hope was that I could (worst case scenario) fade back as the climb progressed. However, I found that I didn’t fade and was able to stay near the front of the field, albeit pressing to near max heart rate on every lap.

As anticipate, this was a different race than last week’s and the peleton was not letting anyone escape their grasp. Each lap we tested the pack and each lap, the pack stayed there after the climb. The closest we came to breaking the pack off was on the 3^rd lap when four guys were up front, Phenney and Ivan two of them, and three guys following, me being in that group.

They had me on the rivet for sure on that lap (in a spot of bother as Phil Ligget would say) and the pressing to max HR on each lap was taking a toll on my legs.  One of us three was fading and the guy jumped to bridge to the four ahead of us. I went with the jumper and when we bridged, we still had a fair gap on the field. I expected Ivan and Phenney to keep the hammer down.

What a beautiful day for a race. I miscalculated how long it would take to get there, so I showed up at 9:30am for a 12:35 start… oops… I decided to walk up and watch the early races go by. I was standing there and the cat 3 group came rolling by with a bunch of stragglers coming up after the main pack. It seemed odd to have so many guys trickling through, but I figured “oh well”.. Then John O’brien came up and I started pitching him some crap until I noticed he was holding his arm funny. Turns out there was a massive crash at the start/finish line and John was caught up in it and went down re-injuring his shoulder. I stood there for a while watching the carnage roll up and eventually walked back down and gave John some Advil… There was at least a broken collar and a broken wrist along with all the other road rash and destroyed equipment. Here’s hoping everyone heals fast…

 So, my race. There were about 40 starters or so and a couple of teams had 4 or 5 guys in the race so I figured I’d sit in and see what they did. For the first couple of laps it was pretty much business as usual. Then part way around the second lap a guy soloed off the front. I figured he wouldn’t last out there for 2+ laps so I wasn’t too worried about it. I’m guessing everyone else thought the same ’cause we all just let him go. We were told that he had a minute on us starting the last lap. Since I was riding solo, and there were a couple of teams with numbers, I was determined to let them do the chasing, unfortunately none of them did. Nick (Bike Tires Direct) tried a solo bridge, but no one was letting another break get away and he was eventually reeled back in.

As we were approaching the big hill for the last time, I was trying to position myself up near the front to cover anything that might go on the hill. Sure enough, Nick and his teammate fly up the left hand side and go. Another guy took off with them and four of us were trying to catch them. We crested the hill not too far back and started heading down to the next little right hand climb. I got on the front of our group just about as we caught the initial break and we all climbed up that little hill together. It started to slack off a bit when we hit the flat up there and I figured no way am I going to let up now, so I got on front and drilled it as hard as I could. Part way down the final descent a guy came up past me and pulled in front. Iwas pretty thankful for the rest and was able to recuperate a little bit. Just before the right hander across the bridge, a couple of guys started coming by on my left. I swung around the guy ahead of me and was with those two as we hit the last little kicker up to the 200 meter line. We gave it everything we had up the roller and then whatever I had left down to the finish. I kept waiting for guys to stream past me, but no one did. So, I ended up 3rd in the field sprint and fourth overall. The guy who won the field sprint took his hands off the bars and saluted as he crossed the line, but I think they’ll just warn him. He didn’t seem like he was doing anything dangerous to me, but who knows. 

They’ve fixed some pavement out there and they are planning on racing in the opposite direction for BB2. I’ve never raced it going the other way, so this should be interesting.

Edit:  It looks like we caught the solo breakaway and I just didn’t know it. So I ended up third after all… :) 

Dean