Thrills and Spills at the Friday Night Races

Managed to take the sprint for 2nd place with a bike throw at the line in the B race last night. There was a nasty crash in the B race. Two riders touched wheels. The rider behind fell hard and the rider behind ran into him then went over his handlebars. This happened right in front of me and I had to lock-up the brakes to avoid it myself. A couple of us stopped to make sure they were okay. They both remounted but left the race after the next lap. Those of us who stopped started to chase back to the group. They had slowed down to wait for us and we caught back on after two laps. It turns out that one rider didn't wait and he went on to win the race. Of course there is no rule that says you have to wait for riders after a crash but it is kind of questionable sportsmanship to benefit in a situation like that. There were also two crashes in the A race, one of which resulted in a possible broken collarbone. So a bit of a bloodbath at the races this week. On the plus side, second place is my best result so far in any race!

Nice 50-mile spin this morning to recover. Met up with the group at Brands and did the first 30 miles with them. Then went off to West Hills and back home.

"Hypersonic"

Pyzahl described today's EB ride as "Hypersonic" in his blog. It was a fast ride, but, then again, it ALWAYS IS! As usual, thanks to Pyzahl for ride stats and photos.

Here is a photo of the big EB group stopped for a minor crash. Rider was okay. (I'm on the left edge next to the rider in the VT jersey)


Here is the speed distribution for the ride.



Saturday was a Brands ride. Went away with two other riders for a fast section, then solo, through West Hills. Caught back up with ride on the way back.

July 6 Race Results

Here, from Kreb Cycle website.

Gold Coast is in the books!

Pyzahl's Photos

Pyzahl's Ride Stats

Rode the Huntington Bicycle Club's Gold Coast Century today. This ride has the reputation of being on of the hilliest on Long Island. Weather today was hot!

I started out in a large group of about 20 riders. At the 50-mile rest stop, most decided on doing the 70 mile route. Myself and six others went for the full century. It was a good, strong group and we finished with a ride time of 5 hr 22 min, elapsed time was 6 hr 30 min. I went through 5 bottles of sports drink, 2 bottles of water, 1 1/2 PB&J sandwiches, one power bar and half of an orange on the ride.

Pyzahl was in the 100-mile group and he took lots of photos so I will put up some links when he posts them.

Epic Night at the Races!

Tonight's race schedule included a 1-lap Time Trial, followed by a traditional circuit race. Things were made even more interesting with the weather!

I was one of about 30 riders who signed up for the time trial, which consisted of one lap of the usual circuit course. I also had the honor of being the first rider in the TT. We left at 30 second intervals. The weather was a factor as I rode in the middle of a downpour. It was the same for the first 8 or so riders, then things started to clear a bit. At least, the rain tapered off. I finished with a time of 4 min 14 sec. Not sure where that rates out of all the riders. Results should be on the Kreb site in a couple of days.

On to the circuit race. I rode with the "B" group which had about 13 riders tonight. There were 2 primes and I pipped another rider on the line to take the second prime, my first. The two hard accelerations for the primes split the field and I ended up in a six man breakaway, which was eventually whittled down to four riders. I put a lot of effort into helping the break stay away, probably more than I should have. As a result, I finished fourth in the race. But still, my BEST finish! My payday, at least covered my entry fee and gas money! A really satisfying outing, especially with the difficult conditions. And we finally got a break to stick in the "B" race.

Wish I had some photos! Probably recover with a short ride tomorrow morning, and looking forward to a challenging, hilly century at the Gold Coast on Sunday!

Sunday EB Ride and Tuesday Solo Ride

Great fast EB South on Sunday. Here is Pyzahl's blog entry and a link to his GPS track, if interested. The highlight, for me was when Joe C. flew up the left of the peloton and told me to get on his wheel. He took me straight up to the front and later said it was "payback" for my closing some gaps on the last EB ride. That was cool.

Today, got a late start but did the "usual" route. Perfect weather again!