I set the trainer up next to the car in the shade of a large palm tree and started the warmup. The legs were feeling fairly good after 2 days of racing and were loosening up nicely after about 20 minutes.
I packed everything back in the truck and rolled down to the start finish area just in time to see the finish of the 3's race and then roll out to the start line for a position centered on the second row.
After giving a few last minute updates on the race duration of 55 minutes the official stood back and drew the starting pistol. Ready! Bang! We were off and racing, I had a great start and was in about 10th - 15th place by turn 2. The whole field was strung out in a long line by a couple of guys driving things at the front. This lasted for about 4 laps before things calmed down a little. There were a number of Primes being offered to spice things up and keep the field on its toes.
I never saw the first crash as it was behind me somewhere but a couple of laps later a rider was back in the field with blood running down his leg.
My goal was to stay in the top 10 - 20 riders for as much of the race as possible. If I started drifting back I would put in extra effort and move my way back again. Things were fairly uneventful up until we got the 5 laps to go signal, then riders started to get nervous and people were all trying to maintain position or move up. You could feel the change in the way guys were riding and it got a little more aggressive.
I was loving every minute of it, moving around in the front of the pack and weaving through into gaps that were left open. I didn't see the next crash that actually happened a few riders ahead of me, the first thing I saw was a guy spinning around on the ground instead of sitting on his bike. Everyone else managed to avoid him and the pace picked up again.
Another crash that I missed was when Raffi's front wheel fell out as he was trying to move up with a couple of laps to go. Apparently he hadn't tightened the skewer enough when he put the wheel in before the start. He wasn't injured but didn't manage to finish. Losing a front wheel with 2 laps to go in a Crit seems about as bad as it could get for a racer.
I'd drifted back a little in the pack and hesitated to move up wondering how crazy things would get on the bell lap but then made a last minute push after the bell to get in a better position for the final turn. At 250 meters, the position you came through the final turn was probably going to be the position you finished in. I went to the outside on turn 7 and came around a few people before turn 8 and we started the finish straight. At about
It 200 meters I heaved on the drops and started my sprint. I don't remember fading before the line and had a fairly clear run on the wide flat straight to the finish. This was great! I was actually sprinting at the end of a Crit. I hadn't done that in years. I came across the line in 20th place very happy to have stayed upright and actually being able to do what I wanted during the race.
I was certainly a bit rusty with my tactics but being able to ride most of the race in exactly the position I wanted to be in gave me a lot of confidence for the next one. If I'd had been more confident going into the last few laps I would have moved up more and really held my position at the front instead of slipping back.
This was a great event and a full weekend of fun racing. I'd love to be able to go back in 2013 for another go.
Immediately after the race I picked up my spare wheels from the pit, got changed and jumped in the truck for the 12 hour drive home. I drove straight through only stopping for fuel and snacks, arriving at my door at exactly 12:59 AM.
Video of the 2012 Cat 2 Crit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oQ6N6W8rHU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Location:Downtown Phoenix, AZ
sick racing mark. sounds like a sketchy race. are you heading back out for tucson?
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