The Best month of the Summer!

7/7/13
Brad Lewis Memorial (Boat St) Criterium and State Championship

This year they decided to have the State Criterium Championship at the Brad Lewis Memorial (Boat St). Last year the race was up in Bellingham and that course was good but coming into the fastest corner there is parking meters on the outside every 10 ft with no protective cover over them. Most crit courses will bring in hay bales to cover poles and signs or some form of padding etc... but for whatever reason Bellingham didn't do that and I don't see it on the calendar for this year.

With that said Boat St has some of the worst pavement on the start/finish line. There are cracks in the concrete that run parallel that are 2-3 inches wide. Easily large enough for our little tires to get stuck in. The way they decided to fix the road was to spray paint the whole front straight away with bright orange paint. I guess that is better than nothing but I hope next year they repave that part of the course. Even driving a car on that section of road is hazardous. As a couple of us from the team arrived an ambulance was parked at the start/finish line loading a guy on a stretcher with a neck brace into the back. Dang. Not something you want to see when arriving before your race. The two gentleman who crashed that were taken away were pretty beat up with broken bones and even a couple broken vertebrae. Thankfully they both with heal but it will be a long journey back.

There was a break of 3 that got away and my teammate Chris was able to come through in 6th place and I finished in 10th. We had a few crashes as well and a few people when down on the straightaway. Again I hope all heal fast.


7/13/13
Redmond Derby Days
 

After a 2 year hiatus from this race due to losing some precious skin (see here) I decided I should give it another go. We had a strong squad showing up with Aaron G, Richie S, Dave R and myself. I decided to give racing 2 crits in a day a try; after all, it was my birthday weekend. The Cat 3 race post the below race I could only managed 10th but still earned $30. The first race was and better of the two was the Masters (35+) Category 3/4 field for 40 minutes. My goal for this race was to win some $$$ because who doesn't like cash? The race had some very nice pay outs with 1st getting $250 and 2nd $100 plus all of the prime laps that they offered. The race started fast with Cucina Fresca holding the most teammates with a staggering 9. They kept the race fast and always strung out with one teammate attacking after the other. We came by start/finish and they rang the bell for a prime lap of $20 cash. I moved into position on the outside and when we got to the back straight the pack slowed just enough and I decided I needed to go. I put in a big dig for a few seconds then hit the corner full gas. I heard my Cat 2 teammate Jeff who was watching yell at me so I got out of the saddle and sprinted again. As I came around the last corner I took a peek behind me and didn't see anyone so I sat up to take the prime and the cash.

Yes, those are pink socks. Easier for Lindsay to spot me in a crowd and I'm also admittedly a shoe and sock guy as you can see, I like em bright. So $20 dollars richer I sat up and tried to recover as much as possible before melting into the peloton. After that it was a great showing from SCCA/Starbucks team. Aaron went off the front a couple times as soon as the field slowed and covered moves and helped keep the pace high. Then with a few laps to go Richie moved to the front and strung it out single file. This allowed me to maintain my position in the top 5 and not be swarmed from behind when the speed slowed down. Coming into the final corner I am in perfect position and as we go through the corner everyone starts their sprint. I had to hesitate as the person in front of me moved over just a little bit but I had to adjust my line. Once I had the proper line launch was confirmed and I was off. Great pictures from the sprint from Woodinville Bicycle and Tawny Strong. 2nd place and a great team effort especially the last 5 laps. 27 mph avg.

 

Great to have Lindsay and Ridlee there. Teamwork!

 

 

7/18/13
Seward Park Cyclefest

What a fun night. We had a strong squad as mentioned. The plan before the race was to practice getting together for a lead out. I really feel having a team meeting prior to each race to discuss tactics and a job is important to being successful or even more successful than we currently are. The hardest thing to do in crit racing is get a proper lead out from your team. That team has to be strong and have riders that can put the pedal to the floor and get the job done several laps prior to the finish. United Health Care team comes to mind. They dominate in the US when it comes to crit racing and their famous lead outs. Our Cat 3 squad is starting to put the puzzles together after the last couple crit races. I will send out a recap of Derby Days Masters 3-4 and Cat 3 later.

From the gun Todd was at the front setting pace and keeping things animated. He would go off the front and 2 laps later he would win the prime, great timing on all of his attacks. Aaron and I hovered around the front and marked a few people every time Todd was off winning cash and a drawer full of new socks. I was just telling myself I needed to move up front and was kicking myself for falling back when I saw 3 laps to go but I found myself next to Jesse and told him, "its time to go". I moved over and get on his wheel and he promptly took me right to the front of the race just before the downhill section. The picture link below has a good shot of the action. Coming around he almost got himself a new pair of socks as he reeled in the solo break but missed it by half a wheel. Stunning work as he faded back into the field, Aaron came up to the front just after the downhill to take over and I got on his wheel as he towed everyone around. Then Todd made his way back up to the front and moved in front of me for the final lead out. He took me down the hill while Aaron sat on my left to protect me from any wind and kind of block me into the inside which allowed us to control the front more and only allow attacks to come from the long way around. It really was a great tactic as nobody came by us. Todd got me halfway up the hill and then I heard a deep yell that sounded like it came from Aaron but wasn't sure as it may have come from his legs. Scared I was about to be eaten by the pack of crazies behind me I went to the left of Todd and started my sprint up the hill. I told myself as I got to the top to slow down a bit as I knew I would need to sprint again from the corner. I took the turn full gas, picked my optimal line that carried me out to the curb and then immediately got out of the saddle and sprinted again. My legs started to scream as my mind told me to sit down and go easy. After sitting down and listening to my head, I was able to re-convince myself that I needed to put in 1 more sprint and not fail the guys. Up and out of the saddle I went one more time and my legs stopped just before the finish. 1st place was so sweet. I coasted around waiting for the guys to thank them as several teams came by and gave us kudos for our racing. We were off the front or at the front the whole night and finished at the front. That was a proper lead out. So proud to bring home the "W" for the team and exciting by how we have come together in our crit racing. As Jeff always says, make it fast.

 

Some good pictures from the race.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/micahchanphotography/sets/72157634704961671/with/9324250792/

 

7/28/13

Georgetown Criterium

Well crit season is over and I think we did very well as a team in the Cat 3’s. I am sad to see it go but also excited for next year as we know what areas we can work on.

There was a lot of talk about how bad the course was and I must say KR did a great job getting it ready. The hole in turn 2 was nonexistent in the race as they patched it and put tape over the creases in pavement. There was only 1 hole that you moved around or bunny hopped and it really wasn’t even that bad, I would compare it to the hole on the front straight at Ballard Crit. The last corner was more of a kink and you could take it very fast but it tightened up as you exited and that is what happened to the Cat 4/5 race where a major pile up happened. There were a few times I was pushed out wide by guys on the inside and came very close to touching the garbage cans or the cone. I really enjoyed this course though and found it to be a lot of fun. I hope it is on the calendar again for next year. Having the beer garden and the fans was great too.

We had Sam, who did an easy 80 mile leg opener on Saturday to get ready for our race, Aaron and I going to battle for the team. We had a decent size group for a first year crit and there were the notable sprinters that showed up. Our plan was for Sam and Aaron to go for a prime and I would take up the mantle for the finishing sprint. I took my time moving towards the front changing my lines and seeing how easy it was to pass. As is with most crits everyone wants to pass people in the corners or right before them so this always creates difficulty holding your position in the field. Of course being at the front is the best place to be in order to avoid that. An Audi guy had a good size gap on the field at one point with I heard, a 20 second lead but that is debatable. Aaron went to the front and put in some good pulls and even got a way for a lap. Then Sam was up there as well and we could see the Audi guy coming back. I mentioned to Sam you should attack when he comes back if you wanted to. My thought was that Sam would get away and take a prime. The solo break came back and a lap later Sam rode off the front for two laps and just as the pack caught Sam they rang the bell for a prime. Dang it. I was already up at the front while Sam was away seeing if anyone would try to bridge and decided if I wasn’t swarmed in any of the corners I would go for the prime. I was 2^nd wheel on the back straight when RAD Racing jumped. I moved over to get on his wheel and was able to come around him for the prime, goal #1 done; now we need to get ready for the finish. The last couple of laps were really hard to move around and hard to hold my position. The pace had to be super-hot to keep the dive bombers at bay but Sam and Aaron were also having the same problems I was. I sprinted on the back straight on the last lap to close a gap and was able to move up towards the top 15 or so but that is not where I needed to be. I knew that you had to be top 3 coming through the last corner in order to have a chance of winning or even getting on the podium. My pace through the last corner was fast and I felt my tires sliding as they screamed for grip and was able to do a toe tap on the cone for good measure. This still wasn’t enough and I was only able to get 8^th place. What was really good was to have Tony our Cat 2 there to provide us instant feedback.

Crit, Endurance race, Crit

Tacoma Twilight Criterium

SCCA/Starbucks came into this race with a good squad, we had Aaron G, Sam, Richie, Anthony, Sarah (Anthony's wife who is a cat 1 who raced back to back) myself, and Chris A (who raced masters and cat 3's back to back). This would be our first crit race all together with the updated Cat 3 squad. Jeff Reed, Tony Blazejack, Mike (faster) Foster, and Peter all upgraded to form our first Cat 2 squad. Congrats to them and it’s awesome to watch our guys fight it out with the pros.

The plan was to have one of our guys go off the front with 2 laps to go and let the field chase them back. Then we would send another and then sit in for the bunch sprint. Plans are always good to have going into races but most the time they don't work especially in short criteriums. This course doesn't really allow you to do a lot of moving as the straights are only 2 blocks long, and the course is fast. I stayed at the front the first half of the race and at one point went exploring on my own. We just brought a guy back that was off the front so I decided I would go next and 1.5 laps later I sat up and melted back into the pot of cyclists. It felt good to be off the front taking the corners alone and picking my line however when I re-joined I let too many people in front of me. For the second half of the race I tried working my way back to the front. Sam performed his duty with 2 to go and strung the field out. Aaron G moved my up to about 15th wheel on the last lap and I was able to finish 13th in the sprint. Chris was a monster and was off the front several times in our race. He finished 6th in Masters as well as 6th in Cat 3's. Good showing by the team as we always kept it animated.

Avg Speed 26.6 mph.

Chris and myself pic via Tawny Strong

 

Lovely to have Lindsay and Ridlee there cheering us on.

Little 150

My teammate Travis has wanted to put on a race for a few years now. We were co-captains at Cycle U and both moved over to SCCA/Starbucks this year. He had a great opportunity to rent Pacific Raceways for a day and jumped at the chance. The little 150 was born based on a similar race known as the Little 500. Read about it here. The Little 150 would be on the flats course at Pacific Raceways which is 1.9 miles long and we would be doing a total of 150 miles. This event was pretty different to the one that the idea grew from but the concept was similar. For an inaugural event I think we had a good turnout. Especially since endurance racing on a racetrack is not a common event in cycling. I did several of these when I was racing motorcycles and they were always a great time. It was a long (5:45 hrs) and hot day with an average temperature of 97 degrees. I could feel the heat through my shoes and we stuck to each doing 1 lap for most of the day, then drinking as much water as possible. We lost a teammate earlier in the day as he was heading out to catch a flight later that evening so it was down to 3 of us for the last 30 laps, Jesse, Francis and myself. Our team lost touch to the top 3 teams but we clawed our way back to catch the 5th place team with a dozen laps to go. Our plan now was to sit in and rotate with the 3 other guys until the end. Our plan was to have Jesse do 2 laps, come in, and rotate with Francis who would do 3 laps. Then I would take over for the finishing sprint and hopefully moving us up to 5th place. As we came around I was in perfect position with 2 other guys in front of me. Chad from Hagen’s Berman is a fast guy but was left on the front with about 300 meters to go so he was forced to start his sprint. I sat behind the guy from Cucina Fresca who was behind Chad. He started his sprint and it was the perfect lead-out for me. I was able to come around him to take the bunch sprint and move us into 5th place. We almost caught the 4th place team who was 10 seconds ahead of us. This was a great event. The tactics are so different than normal racing and it was a lot of fun. I look forward to next year’s race. For only each racing 40-50 miles we were all destroyed following the race and consumed a few adult beverages thanks to the promoter. With an avg speed for 150 miles of 26.9 mph it’s no wonder we were exhausted.

The teammate exchanges to place in the pit lane and we had to ride next to our teammate who was going out for it to count as an official exchange. pic via Tawny Strong

All by myself, working on closing the gap to 5th place. pic via Tawny Strong

Giving the 1 more lap to my teammates before I come in. My glorious Fuel gloves. pic via Tawny Strong

Joe Matava Crit (Burien Crit)

This is my home race with it only 1.3 miles from our house. The course is downtown Burien and it follows a portion of the route the parade takes later in the afternoon. Last year I was caught out behind crashes and finished in the pack. Short read here. This year I was determined not to let that happen and I had the support of my teammates who were there to assist. We all met at the house and Lindsay put together some go fast food for us. It was nice to all warm up in the garage then ride down to the course. Our plan was formed in the garage. We would all get together with 10 laps to go or when the official moved the timing to laps. Again we had a very strong team with, Todd, Aaron G, Jesse, Cameron, Wes, and me. As is almost customary for this team, Todd went off the front in the beginning and was able to collect himself a prime. Wes also was off the front for a bit too. There are always crashes in criterium racing and this day was no different. I was able to miss the first crash that happened towards the front of the race which post-race I found out it took up most of the back straight. As we came around for the next 2 laps there was a steady stream of riders joining us, some with bloodied elbows and knees but getting back in the fight. Its good to see them getting back in but not so cool getting behind one of them with half their butt showing. It is like walking on a tight rope when you are crit racing. I was on the front when a guy was moving past me on my left but decided he was ready to move over before he was clear of me. Standard procedure of yelling at him and hanging half my body off my bike to keep my balance as my front wheel was rubbing on his rear wheel. Thankfully I stayed upright and decided this dude should be behind me and promptly got back in front of him. There was another crash in turn 3 but thankfully I was in front of it but could hear the carbon snapping and bodies hitting the ground just another reminder to always stay at the front.

 

When the official switched to laps with 8 to go, Jesse came up to the front to do his work. It was awesome to get on his wheel and be 1-2 for the next 3 or so laps as he pulled the pack around single file as the picture below shows.

 

It was stagnant for a lap after Jesse was done throwing it down. I was starting to worry as I was sitting on the front and started to be swarmed. Then out of nowhere, its a bird, its a plane, no its a rocket, close, its Aaron G hauling a$$. I jumped on his wheel as he put the field back in its place of single file behind us. Aaron held steady for 2 full laps on the front and with 1 to go he pulled off. The junior team of RAD racing took over at the front and I promptly jumped on their wheels. I was sitting in 3rd place on the back straight when I heard a loud clanking; stuff breaking and my rear wheel get a bit loose. It felt like my wheel was coming apart but as I looked back it was the guy directly behind me whose front wheel was totally destroyed. He apparently road into my rear skewer (axel) which ate up his spokes like the cookie monster would if you place a freshly baked cookie in front of him. That hesitation on my part was the exact moment a handful of guys went around me. Ugghh... I stood up and sprinted to get on their wheels but that was my chance at victory or a podium. I finished in 7th place so a respectable finish but with all the work the team and how we controlled the last 10 laps it was a little frustrating to lose the race 500 meters from the line. The positive thing we showed in this race as a team is we can get together in a crit in the final laps and really put our stamp on the race. I look forward to the State Criterium Championship this coming weekend at Boat Street (Brad Lewis Memorial).