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Team: Petro Hizalev, Greg Drake, Brian Peterson
Placing: 1st in Pro 1/2; Petro 1st in Cat. 3s
Course: 18 miles total (6 miles flat, small rollers-> 4 miles rolling uphill-->3 miles at 5-6 percent w/ flat section and a short downhill-->approx 2 miles at 5-6% w/ some rollers--> 1.5 miles of 15+% to the finish) 'Epic' indeed describes the day. I have to thank Brian Peterson for suggesting that I participate in this race/charity event. What John Peckham's mother, Mary Ann, did on behalf of Alto Velo was both magnanimous and truly inspiring. Brian's eloquence brought tears to more than a few people's eyes. I wasn't the only one teary eyed.
Back to the ride.
After putting the finishing touches on arm twisting Greg Drake into coming this morning, we both met at Brian's house and hit the road at 5:40am. We arrived with plenty of time to do a decent warmup and even enjoy some freshly brewed Peets at reg. Along with the ten porta-johns replete with wash stations, this clearly was going to be a special day.
Because of the small field numbers, Cat 1,2,3, 4 all started together. This meant that Brian, me, Greg, and Petro were all racing together. Brian had told us from the get-go that he'd set tempo in order to keep things strung out until the bottom of the climb. Luckily a 2nd, Rocknasium rider also had the same thing in mind and the pack was strung out single file until the climbing began. Brian kept pulling strongly until the road finally kicked up in earnest. Next, after a few small attacks by random riders, it was Greg's turn to set a vicious tempo which kept the pace high. Almost three miles later, the road kicked up more and Petro launched one of his high cadence flying attacks. I stayed on David Galvin's (BMC) wheel as he was forced to keep Petro in check. After a mile or so, we caught Petro and I countered. There was no response and I kept pressure on the pedals. With no one to chase, I was feeling a bit isolated out there, but knew I was giving Greg and Petro a free ride, which would also keep the bunch of independent riders from forming a cohesive chase over the flatter sections. I figured that if I had a decent gap by the steep section, the speed differential wouldn't be so great, and I could probably stay off depending on whether I imploded or not. I was a bit taken aback by how steep the steep section was, and found myself groveling badly in my 27, wishing for the first time that I had a compact crankset, as I nearly succumbed to the paperboy. Luckily the finish came into view, and I was able to happily tell my teammates that all had ended well for us. Today was neat because all of us contributed equally to the end result.
Most difficult moment all day: Greg "double-century" Drake tearing my legs off on the flats, on the way back to the start. Go figure.
-Ted
Placing: 1st in Pro 1/2; Petro 1st in Cat. 3s
Course: 18 miles total (6 miles flat, small rollers-> 4 miles rolling uphill-->3 miles at 5-6 percent w/ flat section and a short downhill-->approx 2 miles at 5-6% w/ some rollers--> 1.5 miles of 15+% to the finish) 'Epic' indeed describes the day. I have to thank Brian Peterson for suggesting that I participate in this race/charity event. What John Peckham's mother, Mary Ann, did on behalf of Alto Velo was both magnanimous and truly inspiring. Brian's eloquence brought tears to more than a few people's eyes. I wasn't the only one teary eyed.
Back to the ride.
After putting the finishing touches on arm twisting Greg Drake into coming this morning, we both met at Brian's house and hit the road at 5:40am. We arrived with plenty of time to do a decent warmup and even enjoy some freshly brewed Peets at reg. Along with the ten porta-johns replete with wash stations, this clearly was going to be a special day.
Because of the small field numbers, Cat 1,2,3, 4 all started together. This meant that Brian, me, Greg, and Petro were all racing together. Brian had told us from the get-go that he'd set tempo in order to keep things strung out until the bottom of the climb. Luckily a 2nd, Rocknasium rider also had the same thing in mind and the pack was strung out single file until the climbing began. Brian kept pulling strongly until the road finally kicked up in earnest. Next, after a few small attacks by random riders, it was Greg's turn to set a vicious tempo which kept the pace high. Almost three miles later, the road kicked up more and Petro launched one of his high cadence flying attacks. I stayed on David Galvin's (BMC) wheel as he was forced to keep Petro in check. After a mile or so, we caught Petro and I countered. There was no response and I kept pressure on the pedals. With no one to chase, I was feeling a bit isolated out there, but knew I was giving Greg and Petro a free ride, which would also keep the bunch of independent riders from forming a cohesive chase over the flatter sections. I figured that if I had a decent gap by the steep section, the speed differential wouldn't be so great, and I could probably stay off depending on whether I imploded or not. I was a bit taken aback by how steep the steep section was, and found myself groveling badly in my 27, wishing for the first time that I had a compact crankset, as I nearly succumbed to the paperboy. Luckily the finish came into view, and I was able to happily tell my teammates that all had ended well for us. Today was neat because all of us contributed equally to the end result.
Most difficult moment all day: Greg "double-century" Drake tearing my legs off on the flats, on the way back to the start. Go figure.
-Ted
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