Connecticut Coast Criterium

Placed 2nd. My first podium in the 4's. I shoulda started doing the 4 only races earlier!

Report:

Started the race with legs a little hesitant, so I attacked a bit and worked to bridge and bring back a few breaks in the first half of the race. When the pistons were firing, I backed off and just sat in a bit.

Biggest rookie mistake of the day was dropping a bottle...
I was drinking with my left hand with the right hand on the tops, someone slowed and I tried to brake with my left hand with a bottle and it didn't work, so I tried putting the bottle in my mouth and braking. I dropped the bottle, got yelled at, but managed to stop before hitting someone. That's not happening again.

The first bit of the race is a blur. I didn't go for any primes since I wanted to win.

With 5 to go, I start moving up again and making sure I'm at the front. I always go up the outside on this course but today I decide that I want to move up the inside at the sprint.

Last lap, I move up the inside. A guy from kissena is in front of me. I figure he might be a trackie and have a bit of a jump, so I stick on his wheel. He stands and starts going backwards. Oh well, there goes my chance of placing.

Wait! He found a gap on his right. It's now or never because the opening on the right is tiny. It's a long way to the finish, but I jump with sprinters 10-15 meters ahead of me.

I. Want. To. Win.

I push and push till the hill becomes a little steeper. In a last ditch effort, I stand and push harder. I'm closing in on the last guy ahead of me. Just a little more.

Damn, there goes the line...

I was closing on the guy who won and I woulda had him in a couple more seconds. Coulda, shoulda, woulda.

I'm ecstatic that I managed to see the opportunity the second it presented itself.

My final move was 33 seconds at 680 watts with a max of 1002 when I stood up to sprint. Given that I had absolutely no leadout for the sprint, I'm pleased.

Won 80 bucks. And I used my race winnings to do the 3/4 race.

Also, 20 min NP was 299W. Wowza...






You can see me on the left most line. I'm the 2nd guy back. That's where the sprint started for the guys at the front. I started sprinting about 2-3 seconds after that and still managed to close that gap for 2nd. Not a bad day at all!





I'm not sure if the pictures were out of order, but I think this is my sprint. I just went and kept going!
Actually, just realized it's not the sprint. I still have my bottle attached
I think I was chasing down a break here. It's early in the race since I have most of the water in my bottle.

3/4 Race:

Nothing to report really. Felt good during the entire race and wanted to have another go to try and get a top 10. Told my teammate I was behind him with 3 to go. He started chasing after a break, and caught it. But he burnt his last match in the process.

Coming up in the final lap, he isn't really advancing fast enough but for some reason I stick on his wheel and don't jump or grab another wheel. I came around him up the hill but it was way too late. He still pulled me to the front of the race so he did his job. I just failed at mine.

Position, position, position. Needs work. That's what the weekly training crits are for. I'm going to try winning them every week from now on.