Serving It Up (Bicycles Plus Early Bird Crit)

Before I go into the gory details of how my second –ever- road race went, I wanted to say a few words about how the Bicycles Plus Early Bird Criterium was run. I would like to begin by thanking John and his “Crew” (sorry, pun was too easy but I have to get them in where I can). This was by far the most organized and enjoyable racing event that I have attended in quite a while. It was apparent that the two word (plus conjunction) mission statement of this even could have been “Fun & Safe”.




I'm thanking John Crews for a great event.

 The announcers did a great job keeping us informed as racers and spectators. They really knew a vast majority of the racers by name which was a nice touch. They spiced up the action by giving out great words of encouragement and advice when appropriate and their inclusion of the crowd with the “Crowd Primes” trivia challenges -with prizes- was a great added plus.

The officials, mentors, medics, the “pit crew”, the score-keepers and every other hidden but essential “gear” in this events machine were efficient and well-oiled. I want to thank all of those folks for their hard work and dedication. Bicycles Plus should be proud of the way they were represented.

I could go into enormous detail about how impressed we were with how this race was handled –my only constructive criticism would be to add more up-tempo, blood-pumping music selections- but I am eager to share with you how my race went so let’s pull our chairs up to the table and dig in.

Talking strategy before the race.

After finishing in the back of the pack at the Cal-Aggie Crit a few weeks ago, I was determined to serve up a Body Concepts “Grand Slam” breakfast to my competitors and make sure that our team finished in the front of the pack this week. We had worked out a plan earlier in the week that had me as the sprinter for the finish with Todd and Patrick pulling me.  Of course, plans can get blown up during the course of a race so that was no guarantee that I would be there. The one constant question I had in the back of my mind was: Could I pull it off?

The order of the races had my category riding first at 8 am.  The bad thing about riding first is that it was extremely cold!!!  I think Todd said that it was 41 degrees when we got there.  The nice thing about being first up is that we were able to ride the course to warm up.  That gave me about six more laps to get familiar with the course.  By the time the race started, I felt very comfortable riding the course and I had stopped shivering like a Chihuahua. The stove was lit and we are all fired up to start cooking.

Making sure we start off ahead of the pack.

 During the Body Concepts Skills Clinic a week ago, Rob stressed doing what you need to do to be at front of the line for the start of the race.  To make that happen I finished warm-up slightly early and as soon as I saw some riders gathering at the line for the start, I got up there.  Due to a car being parked on the course, the announcer suggested that everyone clear the road and ride another lap. There was no way we were risking losing our placement so instead of riding another lap, we just moved to the side of the road.  Besides, Linda was there watching us like a hawk and no one wanted to face her displeasure; safer for all of us to make sure we heeded Rob’s advice.  A good chef never leaves the kitchen just before the meal rush.

Linda of Body Concepts keeping a close eye on the race.

With this being an early bird crit, the mentors had everyone take a practice lap while they gave us instructions.  At the end of the practice lap I zeroed in on an opening at the front of the line and got back there.  Sticking to the recipe: we were happy, Linda was happy, everyone was happy. Throwing some butter in the pan.



As the race got started I had it as my mission to stay on Todd's wheel as much as I could.  He is the final lead-out for my sprint and the guy I was going to ask for help if I needed to chase any breakaway attempts down.  At times we would get separated but, unlike last week, I was aggressive about holding my position in the group.  A few times I needed to work my way back to his wheel and one other time it made more sense for me to over-shoot and then wait for him to work his way back up.  Over-all, I was able to stick to that part of the plan and we began whipping up some eggs.

Even the best of chefs can drop some eggshell into the mix and along those lines we had a bit of a miscommunication with Patrick.  We wanted to stay towards the front, but not in the first three riders, which is where Patrick was.  Patrick was too far ahead for me to call back and I didn't want to burn the energy to catch up and relay the message.  I do have to say that Patrick did an outstanding job holding the front -while not doing much pulling himself- and managed to stay towards the front until the final lap. I am sure that next time we will be better coordinated and he will be a valuable addition in our next race together. Okay, so no bacon in the omelet this time, no problem.

I was determined to make sure I spent more time in front this race and I think that paid off at least once.  I was in a situation where I was falling back towards the middle of the group and things were getting dicey.  A lot of riders were wobbling and there were a few close calls. (Riding in a Cat 5 category race is a bit like hanging out in a room of full of rocking chairs amidst a crowd of long-tailed cats.) I decided to charge back ahead towards the front in the hopes of finding a safer position.  Shortly after clearing the group and getting back towards the front I heard the sound of a rider going down not too far behind me. Whew! I survived, just missing the action and raced on.

 

As the laps were counting down -and my wife’s voice started to go hoarse from her screaming of encouragements- I made sure to stay as close as ever to Todd’s wheel. I was teflon and he was the pan and together we were determined to break a few of these eggs and make one hell of a victory omelet!

On the final lap, that paid off as we were in great position to start moving up to get me in on the final sprint.  The only issue is that we weren't sure where Patrick was, so that left a lot on Todd to get me there.  Todd pulled hard and got me close to the final turn but I sensed he was starting to run out of gas and we weren't making progress up the line anymore so I went around him on the outside (decided to go with Randy's suggestion of staying out of trouble by riding up the outside the turn). The eggs are cooking up fluffy and have flipped nicely. All was going well until, just as I was clearing the last turn, I heard the sound of another rider going down. 

Man down in the final sprint!

That second rider going down brings me to the big lesson I learned in this race.  DON’T GET DISTRACTED!!!  I was about to sprint, prepping to fold this omelet and add the cheese, when that rider went down.  That broke my focus and I took a brief glance to the side. Note to self: when cooking, never take your eyes from the pan. I quickly turned back ahead and tried to regain focus on the sprint but I didn't get my mind fully back into it.  A chunk of our perfect omelet broke off and fell onto the stove. SPLAT! Like any good chef who’s “serving it up” I recovered as quickly as I could and made my final presentation with a thrust of force that helped me salvage the meal and placed me sixth out of a field of fifty competitors. We may not get our own show on the Food Channel but I ended the race a bit wiser and a lot hungrier for a first place finish I see just within our reach.

Whether I am the Head Chef or the Sous for our next race, I feel good about what Team Body Concepts is serving up at the next race.

...and in the end, I got the girl...

Be sure to visit our full photo gallery of the BP Early Bird Crit!