Crit madness (RR report)

DeF said:

I did my fourth crit with the WCMCC this
Sunday and ...

slacked off at the back of the bunch.

Quoted message said:

... With two laps to go,
I make my way slowly towards the front with a view to an
attack. As I move up, riders are spread out across
the road and an attack goes up the middle. I try to tag
onto the back of it but get squeezed from the left by
another rider. Riders to the right of me are keeping
their line. I grab lots of brakes and yell but there's
nowhere to go and my front wheel contacts another riders
left pedal. There is a load 'RRRRR' sound as my spokes
clatter over his pedal. Amazingly, I stay upright and
keep riding. I do a quick rolling inspection and realise
that I've lost a wheel magnet and the wheel is buckled.

Could have been much worse.

Quoted message said:

There is a 'click-click' sound coming from the front wheel.
It turns out this is my other magnet hitting the sensor on
the left hand side of the wheel.

You have 2 wheel magnets? Is this so you can go twice as fast?

Quoted message said:

I decide to err on the side
of caution. I'm not sure if the wheel is up to some hard
cornering and sprinting so pull out of the race with 1.5
laps to go. Damn. Closer inspection shows the wheel has
4 damaged spokes and one nipple has had a big chunk taken
out of it. Rim seems to be OK so it should be pretty
easy to get it fixed.

Lucky

<snip>

Quoted message said:

Just a bit [censored] of that I'd ridden the race as
I'd planned it and didn't get to finish it!

Wait till something like that happens 500m from the end of a 55km road
race and you end up riding in a roadside ditch... ;-)

Quoted message said:

I won the first
C-grade I rode and am yet to get amongst the money in B-grade.
Maybe next time.

Chalk and cheese. No-one wants to chase in C grade so you can get away
much easier. Everyone's a hero in B. Anyway, you've only had 3 races
in B grade! Pah! I had 5 races IN A ROW last year where I finished last
or second last if I managed to finish at all. Keep it up, you'll get
there. Just follow the big old guys around and you'll do better.

Quoted message said:

Moral? Ride a bit more conservatively, it's only a bike race
and it's not worth losing a layer of skin or breaking some bones
for.

Or use your head like McEwan to maintain your space. I too learned the
hard way that if your handlebars are behind the other rider's, you don't
have control over that spot on the road.

Quoted message said:

PS Gumby, an occasional a.b'er got second in C-grade so well
done him!

Hey Gumby! Did you get any money? I see the results say (Not a Member)
next to your name.

--
BrettS

BrettS said:

DeF said:

I did my fourth crit with the WCMCC this
Sunday and ...

slacked off at the back of the bunch.

....which is a mixed blessing - lots of surging and with all
the zigging and zagging, hard to get a rhythm.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There is a 'click-click' sound coming from the front wheel.
It turns out this is my other magnet hitting the sensor on
the left hand side of the wheel.

You have 2 wheel magnets? Is this so you can go twice as fast?

Being a bling victim, I have an Ergobrain and a polar CS100 so
two pick-ups and two magnets. I'm the first to admit this is
OTT.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I decide to err on the side
of caution. I'm not sure if the wheel is up to some hard
cornering and sprinting so pull out of the race with 1.5
laps to go. Damn. Closer inspection shows the wheel has
4 damaged spokes and one nipple has had a big chunk taken
out of it. Rim seems to be OK so it should be pretty
easy to get it fixed.

Lucky

Yeah, at Parkers at the moment. 4 new spokes at $10 each
plus installation. Still cheaper than new wheels and any
time in hospital.

Quoted message said:

<snip>

< snip snip>

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

PS Gumby, an occasional a.b'er got second in C-grade so well
done him!

Hey Gumby! Did you get any money? I see the results say (Not a Member)
next to your name.

He did get the money and he's now put some down for his license.
He was hopping around like monkey on Benzedrine after his race.
Couldn't take the grin off his face. One of the funniest moments
was after the presentations, we drove around the course looking
(vainly) for my lost magnet. On one of the corners, he was mentally
still on his bike and took a racing line ending up on the wrong side
of the road. It was several seconds before he realised....

He wants to try B-grade next. I reckon he should wait until they
put him up.

Quoted message said:

--
BrettS

DeF

--
e-mail: [email hidden]
To reply, you'll have to remove finger.

Monkey on benzedrine here
glad they didnt urine test me, though the porta potty the wcmcc used
didst run over....not nice
c grade a 5th and a 2nd, got the grand total of $30, $130 of which is
now winging its way for membership.
I am quite happy to stay in C, I just want to feel the difference in
speed and stamina.
Might leave the HRM off though, it got to 200 on my breakaway and 190
in the final sprint, I think I would rather remain ignorant.
Steven