It's almost 8pm and I just got home. It was a long and very hot day for racing. I will make a full report tomorrow when I am not so tired. Long story short. 2nd place on a sprint finish for my first 55+ Masters. Helen has some good shots of a few of us CCD riders so we'll deal with that later.

Report

Originally I had planned on Sunapee being the first road race of the season but I came across the Turtle Pond event scheduled for 4-25 and thought it looked like a good candidate. Pre-registration showed twenty-one 55+Masters so it would be unlike mountain bike events I am used to where 5 or 6 guys in your class is a full group. I was scheduled to start at 1:35 we left Newport at 10am and took our time getting there and setting up. I brought the Tarmac I built last winter set up with my light carbon wheelset. Once I had everything the way I wanted I grabbed a bottle and went to check out the course at 12:15 taking it easy I did it in about 30 minutes and got familiar with the corners and hills. We were going to do 3 laps for a total of 35 miles so I figured this would be my warm up lap. I think we were the last group to go out. Tim?s wife, Loren went out in the group in front of us. The first mile was a long climb and was neutral. I was the last guy out because I could not get my left shoe in my pedal. I was also the last guy to line up since I was on the other side of a stone wall taking care of my pre-race nervousness. Helen was a little concerned she could not see me and thought I was going to miss the start. I always start from the bushes. The group looked good, several looked really hard and fit while a few were not so serious. I knew this would be a hard completion. One thing I noticed was that most old guys have good bicycle equipment; there were some awesome bikes in this group. The first few miles were fine all the riders were clearly experienced and careful. I did not see one close call during the entire event. There were some other groups on the course and at times it was confusing as to who was in your group. At one point about halfway through the first lap our lead-out car was in front of another rider that seemed to be holding his gap from us and at times increasing it while the car stayed in front of him. There were 3 of us out in front of the main group talking to each other questioning if that guy was in our group, none of us were sure. Finally one of the guys said that there is only one way to find out so he took off to check out the number. He did that with me in his draft about a mile before the steep hill. This hill is about as short as the first section of Lear Hill but not quite as steep but still a stinker. As we started to climb he started to fade about 1/3 of the way up and you could see that the other rider we were chasing was cresting the hill a few hundred yards away. So I stood up and climbed the hill gapping everyone else in the group by a large distance. I knew we had a long downhill with curves and on my practice lap it was an easy 35mph+ run. So I did it as fast as I could and caught the other rider about a mile later. It turned out he was not one or ours but now I have this big gap on my group. What to do? I knew that it was really too early to try this alone but WTF. If I failed I could just hang with the group and try for a break later or sprint at the end. I felt that my climbing was good compared to others in the group so I went for it. I poured it on since it was mostly downhill to the finish for the first lap. Helen and Tim tell me that the gap was huge but the effort I expended getting there was considerable and I now had the long climb to do alone. This climb is about one mile long and maybe not as steep as route 11 coming out of Sunapee. I did it fine but knew the group would most likely be closing on it. After reaching the top I see one rider approaching and he is from our group. He tells me the others are about 100 yards behind and he wants to go and work with me. I take a look back and say that I am shutting down. So I go back into the pack after being away for about 5 miles. From this point forward I do as little work as I can coasting drafting and eating/drinking. I did not know this at the time but at some point during the second lap another rider broke away. I must have been napping in the group or something but I honestly did not see him go. So for most of the second and third laps I stay hidden. On the third lap I start cramping in both quads on any climb and I am very disheartened because I know the short steep climb is yet to come and the finish most likely is going to be a sprint. On the climb I am not strong and end up on the end of our lead group of about 8 guys. I alternate climbing methods to minimize the pain and save what there is for the finish. At the top they start really picking up the pace. I finally get back to them and hang on. I can see a few of the riders talking trying to setup their buddies. There are several very high speed 40+mph accelerations coming into the finish. I even did one breaking up someone?s plans then fell back into the group. As we came into the base of the downhill and transitioned to the slight uphill finish there was a sign telling us it was 200m to go. I was about 4 or 5 back and I moved to the outside left staying as best I could in their draft. I saw one guy go then another and another. I stayed tucked in knowing they really went too early. At about 75-50m to go I gave it all I had and pulled past all of them to the finish. It was the most painful hardest sprint I have ever done. At the time I thought that I was first place only later did I learn that first came in 10 seconds earlier. Oh well, I really can?t complain it was great fun and I learned a bunch. I didn?t have any mechanicals the bike worked wonderfully. I wish I had not exerted so much effort on the first lap had I not done that I maybe would have been able to do something on the second or third to breakaway. I won $30.00 too. The heat was hard to deal with being the first race and first hot day of spring. I was told that several riders DNF due to heat.
Dan

That's awesome Dan, great start to your season.
 
[img:7c60f52a7e]http://www.team-pinnacle.org/albums/bc_personal/120x90.png[/img:7c60f52a7e]

Dan ---

Excellent effort today, especially in the field sprint --- I look forward to the race report, and Helen's photos. Helen, myself and son (Kari) cheered on the TP-CCD racers - Dan, Loren, and others.
Congrats on 2nd place, Dan, not sure what place Loren came in???

I stopped by Jobs Creek Rd on our way home and did a run down the Prologue course, 11:17, its quite rolling with a couple of good uphills, I was expecting it to be flatter.

Tim

Jobs definately aint flat. Based on some of the times being tossed around, that sounds pretty good Tim.

Congrats Dan.

Ryan

Dan - way to go on your great result at Turtle Pond! You looked really fast when you went by in your group (smoking mine) - and it was really nice to hear you shouting encouragement - thanks!

Turtle Pond is a nice race. Nice course, well organized, good pavement. I went out to see just how out of shape I was, so I accomplished my race goal ( :) - I am very, very out of shape - good thing there was a 3/4 women's field and I didn't have to race with the big girls) . The women's 3/4 race held together until the first steep little climb about 2/3rds (? I think) of the way through, and then we got neutralized by the Pro men and all hell broke loose as is often the case when your field gets neutralized. I always have trouble keeping focussed when it gets really chaotic, and looked up from sucking in wind pushing up the climb to realize I had been soundly dropped from the main group and was left in a little follow-on group. I'd like to say it was a chase group... but we didn't really chase. I sat in and waited for the three subaru girls to organize a chase which didn't really happen (and I'm not complaining, we were all tired, and the heat was really hurting- at one point I distinctly remember thinking that I might need a defibrillator if it didn't get shadier or cooler soon). We did a slow 2nd lap, got passed by what felt like every field in the race but our own, then got our acts together, dropped a few girls and the remaining four of us picked it up and worked together to finish the race. I started cramping pretty badly halfway through the third (and final) lap, and was really happy just to be able to keep it together and finish with other women. It was a blast to be racing my bike again yesterday and just the motivation I needed. I am just so lazy about training on my own and I really needed to get out racing to get over that.
It was great to see Dan and his wife Helen, who I met before at one of the Pinnacle events, (and now I"m thinking she was also up on top of that climb on the Pinnacle double duatholon TT course - ? taking pictures too and that's also where I remember her from - ? is this true Dan?). And I had Tim and Kari (our four year old) as a cheering section every time we went by which makes any race a great one.

Today we went to the Quabbin Reservoir race and Tim raced in the 35+, I"m sure he'll write about this himself.
What a cool event and what a spectacularly beautiful spot!

I"m off to try spin out some of this lactic acid now.

Loren

Well done team! Looks like racing has started off on the right foot.

Well--Here it goes.............
Being really absent from the road scene for a couple of years has rude awakening for fitness and skills.
I entered the 35+ race as opposed to the 3s after deciding that because most of these guys have to show up for work on Monday it was saferer. None of that really mattered b/c after coasting down the long neutral zone at to my surprise 41mph with about 70 riders....we made the right turn on the course shortly after this was the first hill which can abruptly I dropped a chain, scrambling to shift it back on to no avail, I jumped off tried to get the wheel rolling and somehow the derailluer and spokes were squeezing the chain, after getting the problem fixed I got back on the group was cresting the top about 50-70m ahead. I knew I was doomed, but went as hard as I could and chased all the way down the hill to the next uphill, but as this point I was so exhausted chasing -- they were gone..........$35 training ride I thought, the course ended up being so hilly it was probably only a matter of time before I was dropped, as I caught up with others along the way. The only positive was I that I maintained an 18mph average over 63mi completing it in 3hr:30min

Tim

Tim, I feel for you.

My first ever road bike race sounded eerily familar. Sunapee Road race 2001, I think. Made it 1/2 way around the lake, and suffered a flat, after taking 10 minutes to get going ( I didn't know you could quit) I suffered 1 and 1/2 laps by myself. I got to the finish line, after taking a police officers gatorade, and found no finish line. Just the flatbed, no fencing, no spectators, no cars. Just my wife and Brian Currier. Man that was funny has hell when I think about it.

Great effort, great training ride.


See you on the 13th for the big one.

PJ

Hi All,

I thought this season would never get here!

I have posted photos from the Turtle Pond Race on Saturday. They are mostly of Dan and Loren. They both did a great job. Tim, Kari and I had a good time cheering them on despite the heat.

Hope you enjoy the pics:
[url]http://www.team-pinnacle.org/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=TurtlePond2009[/url]

Tim and/or Loren - If you want larger copies of any, just let Dan or myself know.

H
 
It doesn't matter where you go in life .... it's who you have beside you.

Too bad about the mechanical Tim sounds like the first lap was messed up for both of our races. We'll see you on the 13th if not before.

And yes Lauren that was Helen at the top of Loverin Hill last year. I looked at Her pictures of our race Saturday and you seemed to be having fun. I think we all learned some lessons this weekend.
Dan