NBX GP of Cross - Day 1

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strat
Peloton
Posts: 355
Joined: Tue May 03, 2016 11:44 am

NBX GP of Cross - Day 1

Post by strat »

Preparation is everything for most things in life...probably true for CX racing too??

A summary of my pre-NBX blunders:

1. Should have got gas the night before (-10 mins)
2. Arrived at Goddard SP, went walking in search of registration...got half way and muttered, "Bloody hell this is a long way, I should go back and get my bike!" (-15 mins)
3. Got number, pre-rode, back at car to warm up...tried some un-tested double sided tape on the number (to save the speed suit contortion ritual) but it failed...bugger...now I have to try and pin this thing on. Managed to get 3 pins in, now it's 7:40 (race starts at 8) and I haven't warmed up. Throw bike on trainer and then Robbie Raymond walks by to save me by adding the 4th pin (still -10 mins)!

Had front row on the grid and it's a mixed field with juniors, 40+ and open 4/5. Got a decent start but I'm just not feeling it and 4 or 5 guys pass me before we feed onto the course proper. Lot of roots in the wooded sections and some loose bark chips thrown into the mix in places. During the first lap I'm completely out of sorts and have no real idea what section of the course is coming next...all I know is that I'm dreading the slog through the sand on the beach!

I probably loose another 4-5 places during the first lap. I dislike getting off the bike at the best of times so the 100 yards on the beach felt like an eternity! The second lap begins and I start to piece some flow together for the course...there's the flat power sections, the sandy bit near the pits, the 2 wooded sections, the beach and also the steps near the reg building...all out of order of course! Things settle down a little bit and I make up a few places on the flat power sections only to give these up in droves on the beach. Feels like I'm sitting about 20th as I pass under the finish line and see only 1 lap to go (usually do ok in the shorter races but for some reason this one feels choppy and I haven't found a rhythm).

Bell lap and I'm starting to feel like I'm warmed up...best I can do is keep it clean and try to make up a few places. I glance behind me and see a decent gap but for some reason it seems like people come out of nowhere on this course! I'm able to pass a whipper snapper on the flat section but he then disposes on me on the beach - I never got this right...should have dismounted before hitting the sand rather than trying rolling in to try and save a few steps. Couple of turns before the line some other guy appears out of nowhere and passes me (are they hiding in the woods?!). I'm pretty sure I can reel him in but then I'm on the finish straight and the race is over...quickest 30mins in history!

First year doing this one for me. Great venue and a fun course but hated the sand. Should've arrived 30 mins earlier but...

I ended up 19/103 or 5th in the 40+...why call out a 40+ category if it's not scored separately?!

Put in for my upgrade to cat 3 so that I can have more time next year!
ppereira
Domestique
Posts: 150
Joined: Fri Jan 19, 2018 5:26 pm

Re: NBX GP of Cross - Day 1

Post by ppereira »

Mixed bag day for me, was a super fun course, but I entered a little too cautious of the roots and it definitely affected my performance and was way less aggressive than I should have been. Also, I think getting caught behind a crash at the start set me back a bit as well (who the heck crashes 2 seconds in, I don't know). Then my chain came off when shifting down (need to figure this out, it was coming off on the outside I think, I have a chain catcher for the inside) so I lost way too much time and position but managed to get back spots along the way.

It's tough to compare power race to race, but generally my IF is .8-.85 when I race, and for this it was .73, so definitely a lot of effort left on the table. One neat thing is I hit 907w at one point during the last couple of mins of the race, with my finishing sprint hitting 861w, high for me, I don't think I've ever cracked 1000 so maybe next year (and maybe it can for more than 1sec lol)!

Anyhow, finished 69(giggity) of 103, although I thought earlier results said 77/116, whatever, I didn't usable crossresults points to wrap things up like I had hoped. Should have been top 50 based on my usual peers' performances. But I had so much fun being out there this season and racing with such a good group of folks. Hopefully i can be more of active fixture on the road scene this spring,didn't get into road as much as I had hoped last year.
J.Brodie
Autobus
Posts: 75
Joined: Wed Mar 30, 2016 8:49 pm

Re: NBX GP of Cross - Day 1

Post by J.Brodie »

Day 1 Cat 4/5

Started off way in the back and immediately went to the inside line. Good choice as there was a giant pile-up about 50 feet into the race. Like Phil said, I have no idea how that happened but found a hole to move around that and then there was another crash on the outside of the first turn after the dip. Maintained the inside line and sprinted through an opening. This gave me a great position to head off into the woods and roots.

Partway through the first lap things settled in for the most part, lost a couple places but then picked up a few spots throughout the race. I was with a group of UVM kids and ended up racing with them for the majority of the race. I've been going through the base training program on Trainerroad and after a couple weeks of that I definitely felt stronger in this race and that I could maintain a good pace. I'm getting more used the handling of the cross bike too and while I still think I can pick up a ton of time through corners and tech stuff, I'm keeping the pace higher through those sections which feels awesome.

The beach was interesting, and really the only time I had to dismount except for the barriers and the short punch climb right after the beach that I could never carry enough speed into. On the first time going down to the beach I saw someone a few in front of me go OTB on where the grass met the sand. The person right in front of me dismounted at the top of the little hill and ran down. I tried doing the same which felt way faster than trying to ride down and hitting the sand.

Side note, after watching video of the UCI Elite's, they carry lots of speed (amazing amount of speed) into technical areas and punchy climbs to keep the pace up. For sure making note of that for next time.

After the first lap, the second and third were nearly identical in time. Consistency!

Initial results with the full fields I placed 56th, then crossresults separated out the juniors so I ended up 49th. Still top 50% which I'll take!

Bummed this is likely the last one for this year, but definitely looking forward to getting in a few more races next season!
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