The guys were posing for this; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5DAX0LNtrE&sns=em
After being off the bike most of February with a chest infection and struggling to get over subsequent asthma issues through March, April swung by and I could feel the lungs clearing quite nicely so mid-April I emerged from under my rock and went onto the SPR website to see what everyone was up to. There on the blog page was Luke !’s post for the Goldfield’s Cyclassic. Ok I could be interested. I do need to put something on my calendar to motivate me back into training. I’ve never done a handicap race before. I’ve never raced greater than 75km before. I’ve never done a 2 day road race before. Sounds perfect right?
So I had myself 6 weeks to get from being dropped on a Main 2 ride to being able to knock out a 2 day race with the goal of hopefully finishing in contact with the lead group from my C Grade handicap. This wasn’t going to be easy but we set goals for a reason don’t we.
Week after week of a variety of stationary trainer sessions in the garage, SPR rides, Old Papa’s rides and the odd race here and there I could feel some form coming back. I wasn’t going to be back to where I was before falling sick but I was happy to be moving forwards rather than backwards.
Day 1: Kalgoorlie to Menzies
Having arrived in Kalgoorlie late Friday made it possible to get a very comfortable night’s sleep and prepare for the day’s race without too much pressure, even fitting in a relaxing breakfast at Dome.
I was racing in C grade for this event which had a handicap of 16 minutes to D grade on the road ahead of us, with B grade starting 10 minutes behind us, and A grade another 10 minutes behind them. Our goal was to catch D grade of course. B grade behind us was only a slim group of 17 riders so we anticipated they would only catch us if they managed to hold on to A grade on their way past.
The usual pre-race jitters on the start line had set in and were made worse by the ice cold air but soon we were off and rolling with a rather stiff tailwind. I soon forgot all about the cold. The first 30km brought on plenty of hurt, a combination of the group wanting to shake loose as many coconuts as possible and the legs and lungs not being properly warmed up yet. We clocked a 49.1kmh average for the first 30 minutes before things started to get settled. What was left of the C grade group got a really smooth roll through happening. There were many times I found myself spinning at +55kmh and flicking the lever for more gears only to find there were none. So the only option was to make the legs go faster! It was a sensational feeling to be flying along at such speed in a group that was rolling turns like clockwork. The legs were feeling good and the heart rate was at a high but manageable 170 average and we continued this way for another 70 odd kms until…
BAM!
At the 111km mark I stop pedalling to take a drink and my right quad locked up. I grabbed the back of my knee and forced my leg to unlock then buried myself to get back on the wheel in front. A bit of hurt and I was back on and safe again. Then as we hit a small rise, the group slows slightly, I stop pedalling and…
BAM!
My left quad locks up this time. I shout a few swear words, unlock my leg and proceed to bury myself again and manage to get back on but this time try to keep a little bit of distance to the wheel in front so that I can so keep pedals turning through the speed fluctuations but at the next rise…
BAM!
The same thing happens to the left quad again. I loosen it up but…
BAM!
There goes my right quad again! Bugger! I think that’s me done for today. I was left with no choice but to let go of the group and tap out a smooth tempo for the remaining 20km to the finish line. I was pretty disappointed at that moment as my goal had been to finish with the lead group in my handicap, but very quickly after crossing the finish line I reflected on what I had just achieved. I had just raced the fastest I had ever raced, the longest I had ever raced, and viewing the results which were literally published half an hour after crossing the line I was very pleased to see that I had only lost 6 minutes to the lead group for those last lonely 20kms. I finished the 130km stage with an average speed of 43.7kph. And then I realised I had to do all this again tomorrow!
Day 2: Menzies to Leonora
A bit more of a rush this morning as we had to transit from Kalgoorlie to Menzies for the race start. Breakfast was a quick hotcakes and syrup and McDonalds then we were on the road with heavy bouts of déjà vu as we retrace yesterday’s race route.
Menzies was deathly cold with an icy wind that cut through to the bone. And to make matters worse it was a cross/headwind today. Oh how nice!
The first 30km was very similar to day one. Very hectic, with copious amounts of pain, and clocking a 39.7kph average into the headwind. We soon settled into a nice roll through after we had shelled out more than half of the group (sorry guys, I was just following the leader), ensuring all the riders left in the group were working and no one was getting put in the gutter.
In wind conditions like this it became evident quickly that you either draw the short straw or the shorter straw. If you don’t roll through you end up sitting in the wind for a long time which will really wear you down. So you’re better off keeping your position in the roll through to receive that brief moment in the sheltered lane to let the heart rate drop and get some feeling to return to the legs, all the while aware it’s only a matter of time until you’re the one on the front pushing your painface into the wind, just hoping the guy next in line is tight on your wheel and is kind enough to not put a gap of 5 bike lengths in front of you before deciding to move across. It took a while for a few of the guys to realise that was of no help to anyone.
We soon had everything rolling tight and smooth again and the average speed was very slowly rising as we ticked off 40km, 50km, 60km. The average heart rate was lower than yesterday which was very encouraging! I was feeling good and it looked like I would manage to stick with the lead group to the end. We tick off 70km then…
BAM!
What was that! No it wasn’t the quad cramps this time, it was A grade scratch group thundering past. In a matter of seconds we went from being a tight group rolling through at 40-42kph to a strung out line of panic stricken souls pushed hard in the gutter and fighting to maintaining the 46-48kph average that had just been handed to us. You can guess where I was when this happened. Yes that’s right. I was about 4 or 5 riders from back. A few of our C grade group who were at the front managed to latch on to A grade and this ripped big gaps down the paceline. I stuck my nose out into the wind and almost gave myself a hernia trying to work my way up 1 or 2 riders at a time but after about 5kms of this I was totally spent and had no choice but to back off. I was on my own now. I did manage to pass a few more riders that had held on longer than me and in turn I was passed by a few others that had got some organization happening. I tried to catch their wheel but hadn’t recovered enough to give the acceleration needed to set the hooks in.
A few kms later a B grade group came past with Toby and Des in it. I received some shout of encouragement (I think) and put in a big effort to jump on their group with success…for about 500m. I was soon back to tapping out a smooth tempo to solo it to the finish just like yesterday.
Very much like yesterday I had that feeling of disappointment for not realising my goal of finishing with the lead group from my grade, and very much like yesterday once I had reflected on what I had just done I was very pleased with myself. Even after losing contact with the main group and having to solo 34km to the finish line I lost less than 11 minutes to them finishing the 105km stage with an average speed of 38.4kph.
I will definitely be back again next year and hopefully on the back of more than 6 weeks training. Many thanks to everyone who came out to race and even bigger thanks to those who came out to support us. You turned a race away from home into a most memorable weekend. It was great to be there to share many personal triumphs.
Well done SPR!
SPR Green, so hot right now.
Goldfield Cyclassic Race Report by John, Carol et al
Sat Day 1
Well, if Andrew thought the Grade D start was a bit slow, us Transitional and Main 3 race novices thought the pace was incredibly fast!
We – Group D entrants Sam, Rebekah, Jen, Brooke (who is now the poster girl for PIHCG), Ross, Liam and John – and Group E Carol, Greg and Judy – took the train up on Friday and were supported by Ross’s wife Jo who drove the hired bus on the race days.
This was our first race and a first ride of more than 80km. Carol, Ross and Jen were also committed to the Sunday race. For Rebekah, Sam and Liam, Ross and Jo this was a trip down memory lane as they had previously lived in Kal.
Group E commenced at 10.10 at a blistering pace of nearly 50kph! Carol’s crew formed their own peloton and supported each other for the next 4.5 hours. Damn sight tougher than doing it in 2.5 hours.
For Group D, we were on the front at the starting line but within 100 meters were overtaken by the other 40 cyclists. Brooke joined the peleton and manage to keep up for a while but then got dropped and cycled on her own for 60km – which must have been hard. The six of us, urged on by Jen, managed to reach mid 40kph but that clearly could not last. John had to have a comfort stop at about 20k (“it must be an age thing, I had no coffee and went just before the start – why do I need to go again?”) but caught the group up as the pace had dropped to a speed we are much more used to. Gradually the group splintered with John and Jen playing I-Spy to cope with the grind (Jen: two letter word beginning with C and E. Answer: cats eyes!! John: Jen there are no cats eyes – you’re hallucinating).
At 60k Jen eased up so John was on his own for about 40k but manage to catch up with our Group E buddies who advised him that Brooke was ahead. John and Brooke cycled the last 30k together and another chance to play I-Spy (“something beginning with T”: “tree” – got it in one!) to take our minds off an aching back, aching shoulders, and sore Achilles tendons.
Meanwhile Carol, Greg and Judy had been joined by Jen, Ross and Liam to come in 10 mins later followed shortly afterwards by Sam and Rebekah.
An amazing rise: well out of our comfort zones and out of our depth! But we all did it. I don’t know how Carol, Ross and Jen could do it all again on the Sunday.
Sun Day 2
Jen had booked a flight out of Leonora…so there was no option.. cycle together to Leonora. At the 30km mark the SAG wagon was right behind us .. by 50km I was ready to quit .no way I wanted to sit on the saddle for any more kms. Hell we had done 137km.. how can 103km be harder… well we had not factored on the wind… everything seemed like it was an uphill climb ..and pre-tenderised backside certainly makes for another level of pain. But Jo saved the day…. at 50km she suggested the only way to eat an elephant was in small pieces.. so every 10km thereafter Jo was waiting for us with food and encouragement….by the time we made it to Leonora the finish line was packed away….but we did make it under our own steam.. with considerable encouragement from the driver of the Sag wagon and Jo… I cannot say thank you enough.
John P. made the whole race seem easy…but he is used to such things – OK so he had not been on a road bike for 4 weeks… price one pays for a holiday.. and yes there was a little bit of work in there. Next time with some training it might be easier…. But then there is always the unpredictable wind. The race commentator did mention that the C grade was more like a B grade. It was tough for everyone and SPR was well represented..sticking together to help others through…that is the best thing
whoa! hard in very different way’s my man!
Great work Alistair and another inspirational write up. I will be setting this one in my Calendar for next year.
Great write up Alistair and sensational effort. Well done.
Awesome write up, Mate. Now I know what happened up the front! Awesome rides both days from you.