2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Race reports
User avatar
rusto
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2455
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:51 pm
Location: Maynard
Contact:

2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by rusto »

Cat 5: Going in, I felt confident and strong, if a bit chilly and a little worried that I did not get enough sleep (daughter's sleepover friend had us up at 2 a.m.)

Lined up 2nd row.

Lap 1: Putzed along with everyone else, stayed in top 10 wheels. Nothing to report except the usual Cat 5 irrational sketchiness.

Lap 2: There were a coupla surges here and there, more sketchiness but surprisingly: no crashes. Had to be fairly aggressive to hold the wheels that I had as people kept coming forward on the inside and then assuming they could drift out to the left to take the wheel I was following. Still, 10-12 wheels back. BUT although I was heeding Jeremy's advice and staying off the front, I was dangling out in the wind much of the time...

Lap 3: Decent surge finishing off lap 2 had us moving pretty fast onto 138 but then slowed up again to 20mph. The front 1/3 finally started filling out across our lane and a couple times it seemed like I would get pushed out across the yellow line. Again, out in the wind a fair amount but thought I was getting behind another wheel pretty quickly.

Last turn onto road leading to the final climb, big surge of a lot of riders, stayed on Sparks wheel and held my position front-to-back in the field and was one rider inside of the yellow line as we started up. Just then everything slowed down and suddenly I was one of three guys on the front not going very fast.

Next thing I know, it's swarm city and I'm doing everything I can to stay in touch but it was obvious I would not as 18 guys rode away from me for the finish. Slogged my way in no man's land across the finish 19th about 50 yards behind.

Disappointed.

Lesson learned: "off the front" is not enough: gotta stay sheltered too. I guess sitting tight in the middle of a cat 5 field wigs me out a little and I felt safer where I was.
- Russ, MRC webmaster

#DONTRIDETHATRUSS
User avatar
onegeardoug
Chasseur
Posts: 973
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2008 7:01 am
Location: Marlboro, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by onegeardoug »

I lined up in the 4's with 6 other MRC racers and big expectations for the day; with a bit of luck and a lot of effort, I hoped to make the podium and upgrade to Cat 3. The first lap was uneventful, until the climb toward the finish. Sean Pantellere (Stampede) attacked with a Cambridge Bikes rider in tow. I was very near the front at this point, so decided to take a dig. Chris Pare had warned me to keep an eye on Sean, so I didn't want to let him go. After my dig, I flicked the elbow and moved to the left...but no one came through. I quickly decided that I could close the gap alone, but didn't want to tow the whole group so I attacked. When I got on the wheel of the Cambridge rider, I was okay but then he got gapped from Sean shortly thereafter and started going backward. I thought about it for a second, but decided to sit up and wait for the peleton. With 21 miles left to go, I figured we'd either pull him back or he was destined to win.

Sean rode away from us and we never saw him again. We made a few efforts on the front to get organized on lap 2, but it was to no avail. By the end of the second lap, I realized I was now racing for 2nd place. I had burned a few matches already, and knew that I need to ride conservatively for a bit.

Fast forward to the final lap, and the final climb: I moved up on the descent into about 12th place knowing that I didn't want to be too far back on the turn or at the start of the climb. As we started ramping up, I shot some gaps and moved forward. Chris Busick got on the front heading into the long-ish steep-ish section that is the penultimate ramp on the climb. He drilled it long and hard for nearly this entire section, thinning the pack in a significant way. After what must have seemed like an eternity for Chris, I was sitting in 4th place with virtually nothing left but the false flat and the final rise to the finish. My plan had been to attack somewhere in here, but I was honestly hurting a bit more than I wanted at this point and didn't think I could go from that far. Then, Kyle Welch (Junior?) from Bikeway Source moved past me on my left. He's a big boy and gives good draft, so I instantly claimed his wheel. He was putting in a big effort and pulled me for the next hundred plus meters through the false flat. It all of sudden got quiet behind me, so I looked back and saw that Kyle had ridden us off the front, and we had a gap of at least 2 bikelengths. Green sign, final ramp, 200m or so left....NOW! I attacked Kyle as hard as I could, out of the saddle, dying a hundred deaths, sprinting uphill. I don't how much gap I had, but I held them off and won the field sprint for second. Stefan had flatted and was spectating the finish at this point, and says that the gap was closing, but obviously what I had was enough.

I cannot overstate how important Chris Busick's effort was on the final climb and how surreal and "pro" the finale felt. Also like the pros, Chris went backward after his effort and finished around 25th, sacrificing his result for mine. Chapeau! I owe you!
User avatar
cbusick
Tête de la course
Posts: 1686
Joined: Fri Mar 09, 2012 7:42 pm
Location: Shrewsbury, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by cbusick »

Thanks Doug! I was so happy to see you taking advantage of my effort to get a great result.

I really wanted to be in a break (or I guess chase group in this case) after the second time up the hill. I was third or 4th as we crossed the line for the 2nd time and jumped into the pace line that formed. As I rotated back I saw that Doug was there as well. What could be better than having a teammate in a break? But then we started getting some non-quality people mixed in the rotation. Had they been on Sean Pantellere's team, I would give them credit for an amazing job at blocking. Non of them were Stampede! racers though, so I guess they are just idiots.

I managed to move up to, and stay in the top 10-15 spots for most of the race. But then as we turned onto 138 for the last lap there was this swarm of racers that started moving up and I got pushed back to mid-pack. I fought my way back up on the section of road after the last traffic light, but there were still a lot of guys around, and none were willing to push the pace on the hill. I started getting worried about all the slower riders I was going to have to pass as they blew up on the hill, and realized my race had come down to getting on the right train when it came.

Doug's pre-race comments came back to me "if the pace is really hard on the last lap, and uber-hard on the final climb..." actually just the words "uber-hard on the final climb". That wasn't the way things were going, and I finally understood what he was getting at, so I saw an opportunity and started my own train as soon as the road started to go up, hoping either Doug or Rob would be able to get on. It felt REALLY good to blow by the sprinter types who'd swarmed the front on the last lap! When I saw that kid take off by me with Doug in tow, I was psyched! I used whatever I had left to try and hang onto the lead group, but went back further than I would like, before taking back several spots in the last 200m.

I'm not all that concerned about sacrificing a result. If the pace had been easy until the green sign, then it would just be a roll of the dice if I got a good result or if I got boxed in, and I'd have been a lot more disappointed with my race if I played it safe and had nothing to show for it. Besides, getting Doug out of my category will reduce the competition!

-Chris
-Chris Busick
User avatar
cbusick
Tête de la course
Posts: 1686
Joined: Fri Mar 09, 2012 7:42 pm
Location: Shrewsbury, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by cbusick »

Doug, looking at Katie's pictures, you have more than a bike length at the line to the next guy. And, you are right, you didn't smile. :-)
-Chris Busick
User avatar
JeremyC
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2090
Joined: Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:04 pm
Location: Stow, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by JeremyC »

Nice OBD, upgrade goddamnit.

Chris, great teamwork, your next on the upgrade list. We need a monster Cat 3 team in order to make amends for today's debacle.
User avatar
Smudger
Tête de la course
Posts: 1278
Joined: Mon Nov 19, 2007 8:36 am

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by Smudger »

The cat 3 race can best be summed up in the words of Scotland's greatest poet and who Steinbeck stole the theme for his novel from.

"The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men Gang aft agley, An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,"

We had the ultimate plan with a, b,c, d contingencies laid out by Johnan Cratty. We were executing flawlessly until some numpty from B2C2 decides to look behind him at 30 mph, goes into the ditch, panics and throws himself into Cratty, Raguin and our protected ace Pare. I'm behind Chris at this point and veere hard left but can't avoid him so throw my bike down so I don't ride over his head. I hop across the road desperately. Trying not to hit the deck. Chris jumps up and is getting ready to go as someone else piles into him and slices his rear tyre in half. Raguin and me pull our wheels off our bikes for Chris mine is covered in Stans but is still inflated. I decide its better that he takes Raguins wheel. Jeremy and Chris take off, John and I get our shot together then chase for 3 laps never catching but staying away from the 40+ race.
User avatar
JeremyC
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2090
Joined: Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:04 pm
Location: Stow, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by JeremyC »

Chris and I take off, after being down for what seemed like an eternity but probably 1 to maybe 2 mins. We rotate and picked up a handful of riders up to 7 at one point. There was one problem, The Prez was tearing our legs off. Almost a lap above threshold and we hit the hill, already down to 4 guys I got dropped, then the 2 other guys. KoC goes it alone, he was flying and in my head he was going to catch the group. I drop the 2 guys determined to finish, complete another lap and see Chris stopped at the finish line. Yes I yelled at him, and the next thing I know he comes up behind me. We ride fairly fast to the finish, with Smudger and the Pirate close behind. No F@cking DNF. And no Boloco burritos either, BOYCOTT!!!!!!
User avatar
rusto
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2455
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:51 pm
Location: Maynard
Contact:

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by rusto »

Chris, the chief official, had a good laugh telling Kelly on the scorers table that Chris WAS NOT a DNF after his short chat with me and James Scitt.
- Russ, MRC webmaster

#DONTRIDETHATRUSS
swawersik
Chasseur
Posts: 863
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2009 9:48 pm

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by swawersik »

Smudger wrote:
"The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men Gang aft agley, An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,"
I didn't know Rod Stewart wrote that...

Sorry to hear about all the Cat3 drama. I'd have hoped my misfortune would have served as a sufficient sacrifice to the cycling gods: With a frustrating pffttt, I went from sitting in the front split of 10-15 with Chris, Doug, and Rob going over the top of the hill on lap two, to standing on the side of the road waiting for the SRAM car to pick it's way through the (very long) comet tail of suffering riders that was following.

I chased for 1 lap, but it took so long for the SRAM car to get to me that I had little hope. So I took the DNF, and I don't regret it. Just completing that race wasn't my goal, so I figured I'd rather watch the finish. Plus, getting to watch Doug dust the field sprint was awesome.

Also on the bright side: Between Chris' monster effort in the Cat4 race and the very PRO wheel hand-ups in the 3's, MRC showed how to race like a team. That's not something to be taken for granted.
User avatar
rusto
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2455
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:51 pm
Location: Maynard
Contact:

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by rusto »

I wish we could favorite or +1 posts here cuz ther are some gems in this thread.
- Russ, MRC webmaster

#DONTRIDETHATRUSS
User avatar
onegeardoug
Chasseur
Posts: 973
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2008 7:01 am
Location: Marlboro, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by onegeardoug »

JeremyC wrote:Nice OBD, upgrade goddamnit.
Already submitted. I'm sure Diane won't deny.
User avatar
pace21
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2370
Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 9:31 pm
Location: Franklin, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by pace21 »

Re: the team -- Very much worth mentioning that our guys were largely responsible for bringing the breakaway back, doing most of the work on that third lap. The other large teams werent represented in the break either but were nowhere to be found when it came time to make it happen. Very unfortunate, we had a lot of good legs today....

Jeremy had a good observation on the road too: "we WANT those guys in a break!" meaning having 2 of the strongest guys in the race off the front is not so bad assuming they blow and you catch them. Would we have caught them? Hard to say but I liked our chances since there were still 3 laps left and we had a fire lit in the MRC engine room.
User avatar
onegeardoug
Chasseur
Posts: 973
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2008 7:01 am
Location: Marlboro, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by onegeardoug »

onegeardoug wrote:Then, Kyle Welch (Junior?) from Bikeway Source moved past me on my left. He's a big boy and gives good draft, so I instantly claimed his wheel. He was putting in a big effort and pulled me for the next hundred plus meters through the false flat.
After reviewing Mrs. Busick's finish line photos on Facebook, I realize that Kyle Welch wasn't the Junior that pulled me through the false flat. That guy was on a yellow bike with a CLNoonen (?) kit. I think he was the only Junior in the race, but it appears that he blew up in the final meters and got 7th or 8th. Kyle Welch was in a Bell Lap/Bikeway Source kit and came around for 3rd. In case anyone cares...
User avatar
Robd2
Domestique
Posts: 196
Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2009 7:46 am

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by Robd2 »

Well done out there today guys. Seems like the 4’s race was summed up by 1) the one man break 2) Chris B’s monster pull the final time up the climb. That monster pull Chris pretty much asphyxiated everyone but Doug. I was dropped just a few seconds after you pulled off Chris.

Doug, very well done, there wasn’t anybody that could hold your wheel once you went. I have a feeling you will be kicking it like that for the rest of the year.

Glad everyone came through ok. Chris P, looking forward to seeing the video.
User avatar
pace21
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2370
Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 9:31 pm
Location: Franklin, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by pace21 »

Alas no video. At 100MB per minute I was only planning to record the last half lap.
User avatar
rusto
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2455
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:51 pm
Location: Maynard
Contact:

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by rusto »

Chris B making everybody else hurt:

Image
- Russ, MRC webmaster

#DONTRIDETHATRUSS
User avatar
rusto
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2455
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:51 pm
Location: Maynard
Contact:

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by rusto »

Jeremy celebrating... um, WHAT were you celebrating?

Image
- Russ, MRC webmaster

#DONTRIDETHATRUSS
User avatar
rusto
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2455
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:51 pm
Location: Maynard
Contact:

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by rusto »

- Russ, MRC webmaster

#DONTRIDETHATRUSS
User avatar
jraguin
Tête de la course
Posts: 1450
Joined: Sat Sep 12, 2009 5:27 pm
Location: Acton, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by jraguin »

My only comment is that was a real bummer. As we all said, that is racing, but it seems incredible that a crash which took out about 8 guys out of the field, happened to take out 4 of our guys. It shows how well we were positioned near the front of the field. I know I was there waiting for a signal that we had to start pushing the pace more to catch the break. But I am with Chris & others... the break guy was a solo and only 30 seconds ahead with still almost 3 laps of racing. I am sure we would have caught him.

@Doug & the 4s on Kyle Welch: I rode with him and Mike Harris recently. Kyle is a super nice guy and strong on the hills. He and I had some fun hammering on Sawyer Hill together. It won't surprise me if he upgrades soon too.
User avatar
JeremyC
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2090
Joined: Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:04 pm
Location: Stow, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by JeremyC »

I was celebrating our 1-2 finish. Wait, weren't we ahead of the field?
User avatar
JeremyC
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2090
Joined: Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:04 pm
Location: Stow, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by JeremyC »

Apparently everything in the world gets caught on video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R43AMg-cY3Y
User avatar
taudep
Chasseur
Posts: 968
Joined: Sat Jan 12, 2008 2:35 pm
Location: Brookline, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by taudep »

"Live by the gutter, die by the gutter."
I'm 20PoundSkull at cyclowhat.com.
User avatar
PJ McQuade
Chasseur
Posts: 769
Joined: Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:44 pm
Location: Millbury

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by PJ McQuade »

Outstanding teamwork, Doug and Chris, way to work together for a convincing podium slot.

I'll report from the last 3 laps/post-crash portion of the race. First of all, I was near the yellow line when the crash occurred, a little behind the carnage and saw nothing but white kits going down. I looked around for teammates and thought I was alone (didn't spot Len and Rich right away). The race definitely changed after the crash as there wasn't much organization on the front. To echo comments from earlier posts, the chances of reeling in the break seemed to die on lap 3 as it only grew more and more. Rich did A LOT of work on the front basically the whole race but especially during the second half. I can only imagine what this would have meant if we had the full squad in tact. He was attacking, chasing, and just hammering on people at the head of the race, and somehow kept enough stamina to throw down a huge pull up the final climb of the day (lap 6)! With Rich wearing people down and me and Len in the pack I figured the new plan would be to try and conserve, stay toward the front, find RIch's wheel on the climb and launch at the 200 m mark. Rich did a beastly final pull at the front on the lower half of the climb and wore down some of the sprinters and faded back, leaving nothing in the tank. Perfect...except when the road opened up at 200 meters (not marked, a sign or landmark would be helpful) a handful of guys cut across the yellow line and I got boxed in. The few moments of hesitation it took to find a hole blocked me from jumping across with the 8 guys who separated themselves for the sprint. Race over, just like that. I heard Chris's voice saying "don't get boxed in." I got 12th, but had a shot at a top 5 I think. It was a day of "what if's" I suppose. Ride of the day goes to Rich Quads Batten. I hope we get another shot at it with a big team (plus Doug) before the season's up.
To climb steep hills requires a slow pace at first.
-Shakespeare
User avatar
rusto
Maillot Jaune
Posts: 2455
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:51 pm
Location: Maynard
Contact:

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by rusto »

PJ: spot on about needing a landmark or something to indicate the 200 yard out location.

The head official let us know pre-race that that was the spot that it opened up to both lanes and I was thinking, "Where is THAT? How will we know when we get there?" Especially after he sternly warned us that yellow line violators would get pulled.

When I ran into James and Pete from BHCC after my race, it was the first thing I mentioned to them.

Yet, we could also see this as a recon fail. I'm making a note for next year to be sure and figure out where that spot is.
- Russ, MRC webmaster

#DONTRIDETHATRUSS
User avatar
jraguin
Tête de la course
Posts: 1450
Joined: Sat Sep 12, 2009 5:27 pm
Location: Acton, MA

Re: 2013 Blue Hills Classic 5/7/13

Post by jraguin »

I hate to say guys, I am not sure your complaints are valid. The spot is pretty easy. It is where the fork in the road happens and there are cones blocking the road on the left. That is where it became the full road. It is that way every year.
Post Reply