#theraceday

Lyngby CC Sørgenfriløb

How I chased the winning break but got dropped like a bomb. Picture: Full speed ahead. Credits: Simon Ebbe Hastings Hedman

Date Location Discipline, club Result 2016-09-12 Trørød, Denmark Linieløb, CK Ringen 23/38 щ（ﾟДﾟщ）

Pre-pre-race

Last race of the road season. Yup, last. First, changed Båstad GP for Soigneur CX, then change Soigneur CX for this. Best ... decision ... EVER! Week plans [and reality] - Monday, rest [feel like shit, everything hurts, I feel sick, feverish, fuck] - Tuesday - Musette ride, fast group (get some bang, bang) [nope, changed to chilling in a park and half-ass a gym session, drank a beer] - Wednesday - Seasong finale of Onsdagsspurten [that went well, used it as a practice, did well the ones I wanted, skipped the afterbike] - Thursday - Romantic dinner with Juhlia [Romantic dinner with Juhlia, includes minute quantities alcohol] - Friday - Some laps on Sibbarp course (hangover laps on the CX course, set PB, then got drunk AF) - Saturday - easy distans [hangover whole day, cycle to office get laptop charger] So, week totally according to plan. Awesome. Also, fun fact - my pump shows cca 1-1.5 bar less than actual pressure, so all that time I was complaining the 28 Vittoria Corsa Graphene on my Fulcrum Racing Zeros are bouncy and slow - well, there you have it, I was running like 6.5 bar in a 28 tire. FUCK YOU PUMP, FUCK ... YOU!

Pre-race

Samling at klub kl. 11, I arrive 15 min early, then Emil and Thomas, one after eachother but totally clueless they were coming together, 10:59 Christian arrives, on time. Good job, Christian! Get into the bus, drive to Denmark I'm just gonna say Thomas has a particular way of driving (he calls it Italian), which is kinda cool, reminds me of my style. The other thing I noticed is that (also similar to me) when things don't go as planned (I think we were a bit ... a tiny bit ... lost at some point) he starts flooring it. Just power through, show dedication, never show weakness Well, we arrived to the venue with plenty of time, so all good. Except Emil was sick from driving. Sign up, meet Glenn, Jonathan and Marcus, discuss strategy: attack, counter attack, control position, work, work, work, leadout Emil or me for sprint. OK Change clothes, warmup. Talk to Daniel and Fredrik - Fredrik says to be active, not re-active, Daniel says I look strong. BOOM, peppad. Simon shows up, was late because caught up behind Kongevejsløbet 2016 or, DM rulleski, lang distance, fri og klassisk stil

Clothes, Equipment, bla bla bla

Whatever, clothes are getting worned out, so is equipment, it's gonna cost millions to fix for next season. I puts some TheRaceDay Pre-Race shine on, BOOOM, instant pro look, also, flies stick to me like I'm glue. I'm getting tired ...

Track

11km lap, half of it downhill, half of it uphill, about 70m vertical over 5km, some punchy sections but nothing serious (yeah, wait 80km of racing and say that again). Seemed way more epic when the official route shown the vertical number 200 -> 10x200m = 2000m of climbing. FUCKING EPIC. It was feet. FEET.

Plan

Either make Ringen win or ruin it for everyone else, I guess. AARRGGHHH.

Race

First lap I am all over the place, front, back, left, right, ufa, ufa, ufa Second lap, a break is going so Ringen forms a chasing group up front I overhead: 10s delay We pull, we work, we change, boom, fucking Sky yo! It is not THAT hard, but we chase HARD Jonte makes an appearance, then not anymore After a lap of chasing I overhear the announcer: 13 seconds FML The bouncy Amager dude joins in, at some point ends up on cycle path, rejoins Get told off by Emil because he's always accelerating when taking lead About a half lap later in the uphill we kinda give up (also, Christian takes a monster pull up the hill as Glenn shouts: Vi har 7 mil till för helvete), drops everyone, hehe I think to myself fuck, I'm dead, this will not end well We calm down, everything calms down so Emil goes BOOM, ATTACK He's chasing the break, he dissapears in the distance For us, business as usual: either control the front, or chase down attach attempts and try to kill them After a lap Emil is caught, he says he thought the guys were closer, he thought he saw them up front, but he actually caught some Juniors, then gave up I somehow end up about 3s in front of the peloton with a dude from Christiania, he's not very useful, but I notice he has headphones in his back pocket (funny thought: haha, team radio must be playing reggae) At some point Glenn moves to the side and says: HA, 25e är också en placering! while waving his hand dramatically I go back to talk to Glenn and ask - hey, what do we do? He says (mellowed down for PC): well, we got Simon and Christian up front killing eachother and being silly boys (be boys), so we just sit back and try to control the rest of the race I look up front: Simon is doing monster pulls, Christian as well, and well, they are kinda doing a good job at tiring eachother out while everyone else is just sitting on their wheels Mhm, let's just control the race BTW, Where are Jonte and Marcus? Theory intermezzo My theory on how to defend and control: Hang about 5-10 spots down from the lead observing cyclist how they move. If you see one kinda preparing to go, stick to his wheel and follow. You should not be in the middle of the pack, of course. When the cyclist goes, you follow, so long that he gets tired, asks for a shift and you go - naaaah, not gonna happen. Then you slow down and you're cought by the peloton. Accelerate to maintain position, repeat exercise. - Problem 1 - you can't chase them all down, so your teammates are supposed to do the same, especially if you're just at the front recovering and pacing the peloton. - Problem 2 - you cannot chase if you're in the middle of the pack because you have nowhere to go - Also - one cannot counter from the head of the peloton, you just don't have the speed, one MUST FOLLOW AND ANTICIPATE THE ATTACK End of intermezzo Pass a parked marshall car, people taking care of a girl who was ... hit by a bike? At some point going uphill I am caught in the middle of the peloton and the bouncy Amager dude goes, with another strong dude following AND THERE IS NO RINGEN FOLLOWING FUCK FUUUUUCK RINGEN, WHAT ... THE ... FUCK???? Eh well ... #fail Thought - Where is Jonte and Marcus? Moments later, back at it - I follow a cyclist's attack (I am not sure which club, but I could totally see his butt cracktrough his bibs #nohomo) and at some point he gives up, I kinda push a bit more and BOOM, I have a gap and an ABC dude shows up and says - hey, wanna go? SURE! MHM, YEAH, IDK 30 seconds later - Sorry, my legs are dead, not gonna happen I look back - NOBODY IS CHASING about 5 lead and NOBODY IS CHASING? WAAAAIT FOR ME, I AM COMING enter 10 minutes of PAIN, FUCKING PAIN We are chasing the Amager dude and another one (who almost took me down going from the peloton, stupid fuck) OMG, THE HORROR, IT ... HURTS ... SO ... MUCH ... SLAYER ... Just following the dude I am spending about 300-350 wats - TAKING HIs FUCKING WHEEL Anyhow, I do my share of work (his comment: a little is better than nothing ;) ;) ;) We are gaining on the two guys, MUST DO THIS, THIS IS IT, I AM IN A BREAK, WWOOOOHOOOOO Going uphill he says - hang in there, I need you on the downhill (ha ha) By the end of the climb a minor cramp, and another ... start fading back ... noooooo PUSH PUSH PUSH FUCKING GOOOOOOO .... nope My head says GO, but my legs say NO With about 30m to the break I am dropped like a bomb ... woop wooop wooooop He joines the break, I contemplate the weather, will it rain? It does look like rain ... (There they are, the break that got away - 1st, 2nd and 3rd place of the race) Credits: Simon Ebbe Hastings Hedman Fade back, try to see if there is a peloton coming by anytime soon Two kids come flying by, I join Again, the dude with transparent bibs FML I try to contribute (every 3rd turn), after about 3/4 of the lap I give up, I have NOTHING IN MY LEGS, NADA, ZERO, NULA Fade back, get passed by another small group Another group comes flying by Then the peloton comes by, I join the fun Pass start/finish line, see Simon and Emil standing on the side, think - oh, I should drop my bottle, you know, last lap and shit, and they are there so what better place to do it than now - BOOM, bottle flys to the left, hits Emil in the ankle 5 km later - fuck, I am thirsty, that bottle was NOT empty, WTF did I do that for? Anyhow, last lap, attacks, chasing, I mean, we're fighting for what, 25th? Glenn says he'll try to position and lead me out if he has the legs Glenn tries first time, cramps, recovers, tries again, cramps again Glenn has no legs Ok, I still got Christian, let's see how it goes BTW, where are Jonte and Marcus? Christian does a monster pull up the hill, kills himself like 1km to go WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU DO THAT FOR, CHRISTIAN? Anyhow, kinda follow on the 8th wheel, get blocked in the last turn, lost all speed, sprint but not really, whatever Eh well ...

Post-race

Chit chat, tell the ABC guy - next time, next time dude! (Later I learn he won, with the Amager dude 2nd) Learn I I was dropped from the winning break FML

Summary

The good - It was a good day for racing bikes The bad - I need to work on my breakaway / chasing / digging deep / hurting like never before for longer periods of time stamina. Also, I think the hangovers did not help, na ha The ugly - The season is OVER, (Christian: only 7 months to next race), nooooooo

So, what did I learn this time?

I WAS DROPPED FROM THE WINNING BREAK Let that sink in ...

I WAS DROPPED FROM THE WINNING BREAK And, obligatory DON'T GET WASTED AF BEFORE RACES ... STUPID ... FUCK!

ABC Løbet, Sengeløse, Denmark

How it took me a lap to remember I've been here before - sweet flatish race with 5 long laps and moderate(ish) sidewinds, all the time. Picture: Wait, do I SMELL PULLED PORK???. Credits: Tommy Kjærulff Eriksen

Date Location Discipline, club Result 2016-09-11 #neverforget Sengeløse, Denmark Linieløb, CK Ringen 27/38 ヽ(´ー｀)ノ

Pre-pre-race

See Tissø race

Pre-race

Ok, here we go again, first race in C Team mates: Glenn, Simon, Emil, Christian, Andreas (Jonte out due to inflamation of his jaw) (our comment: Yeah, that's because he talks too much) Big breakfast consisting of: polenta, eggs, pasta, coffee Meet Emil on the road to the club, the rest of the gang at the club including the #tiomilklockantio gang heading out Pack the klubbuss, wait for Christian because he's late, again, head out I mention I did bring a speaker this time (klubbuss radio is kaput) but no-one shows any interest Driving to location notice strong kantvind, like, serious kant and head wind. Like totally serious winds. We arrive and parking is the most metal parking spot to date: Kæledyrskrematorium Conversation: What ... the ... fuck is kaled...krematorium? House pet crematorium. WOAH, METAL \m/ Cycling to indskrivning pass Anders lying in the grass, collectively say 'Hi Anders' and think to myself: fuck, that does not look good Sign up, notice I cannot sign up, talk to the marshall, after some back and forward (aaaaa, a ZETA K, yes, ZIII, ZETA ... ZIIII whatever) sign up for C, boom! Anders comes by, says Hi! and that it's kantvind all around, nowwhere to rest, just work ... ehhh FML Change clothes, try to make someone warm up, nobody actually interested Discuss tactics - attack, counter attack, chase, work if nobody is working, chase, lead-out Emil in the sprint. Got it! Wait, what does Simon do? Simon is a free agent. And takes a picture from time to time :P Side note: Emil is picked to be the sprinter because he 1. is former elite and 2. he has 12hundra watt sprint. Put some browning warmup thing from Glenn on my legs to feel more #pro Go and warmup, windy as hell, pedal up and down, get some feeling into legs, notice bike is bouncy Realize the back wheel is seriously off ballance (sealant, yes?), Go to van, change tube - best warmup ever, changing tube under pressure with 20 min to start Cycle some more, go to the start, not really knowing what to do with myself I kinda hang around team support cars waiting to ride behind A and B Calm down, concentrate, Listen to nice, calm interview coming from the stereo SCREAMING LOUD ANNOUNCER TELLING IT'S LESS THAN A MINUTE TO B START Calm, sooothing interview continues, breathe, repeat the plan, breathe, focus 10 SECONDS TO GO, NIO, O&A, H###U, SEX, FEM, FJ$#A, TREJ, TVOÅ, KÅÅØØØRR Smooth sexy danish voice taking about childhood (fuck I know, I don't speak danish) B goes, We line up C KLASSE #@##@##@ START The announcer sure is agressive today Notice the announcer is Simon's girlfriend Eva, all shy and timid Line up for start, make funny faces to Eva while she's shouting at us Sebastian from Klubben Cyklisten touches my shoe with his front wheel I say OPA, he says - yeah, at least a watt right there - I say: nah, just looks bad on pictures ;) Somo more funny faces and wav@@#$#@ C KLASSE #@##@##@ STARTing and off we go

Clothes

Ringen kit, elastic on legs getting looser and looser, still, I washed it like fucking sensitive silk setting, colorful socks I won at GBH cross last year ... Wait, maybe my legs are getting smaller? Well, jsut pull bibs more up, show some more thigh, make legs look longer

Equipment:

Merida with FFWD wheels, 8 bar front & back Continental GP 4000 II, just washed and lubed. Notice tires are giving in, some weird cracks and patterns on the side, some cuts, flattish center section shows a whole season of racing. It's gonna hold, yolo 2 bottles of my own energy drink - half scoop maltodextryn, half of magnesium pill, pinch of salt, small scoop of aminoacids, coffeine tablet. 3 Zipvit gels in the pocket to be taken at km. 20, 40 and 60

Track

Mostly flat 17km lap with 3 long motvind / kantvind sections, some narrow roads where attacking could be good, some wide open medvind sections for all-out peloton stretching and echolons. Yup, No rest for the weary.

Plan

Attack, chase, defend if our guy is attacking, counter, work, work, work, leadout Emil. Basically, think of Astana at Vuelta 2015, yeah? Also, keep an eye on the winner from Tissø (bouncy Amager dude), FBL nr. 77 (or maybe 21, I dont remember). If they look strong - chase them down.

Race

We start and after the first straight - hmm, this looks familiar Keep to the front, be aware where my teammates are First couple of corners - yup, I've raced this course before Ok, Glenn is there, Emil is there, falling a bit back, accelerate First kantvind - fuck yeah I rememmber this from last year, it's the race where I was dropped hehehehe Remember everything from last year as it was yesterday --- Notes from last year --- Second race of the weekend and the legs were sore at the start. It was very windy, so it was clear sidewind will be a problem. In D it was Markus and Ola with me, plan was again top 15. Keeping to the front of the peloton was a priority because of winds and breaks which I managed OK. But there was a break at some point that I haven't noticed and the peloton split in 2. After that, I tried a couple of times to successfully come to the front of the peloton, but I also managed to stay there too long and end up pulling the group. This was not good, because nobody wants to help you pull at a race. So the last lap I really pushed to the front before the first windy section, which was good but then ended being up in front directly into headwind, which was bad. The same happened on the second, fast, uphill windy section and again I ended up pulling the group. This killed my legs and most of the guys accelerated and passed me. I tried to re-join, but I had nothing in my legs, so I just cruised to the finishline. "If peloton breaks, the group will probably not want to chase the peloton --- Lessions learned from last year --- If you want to chase the peloton or break, you have to do it yourself Don't pull the group, let other people do the work Again, you have no friends in the peloton Stay in the front, but not too in front --- Ok, with that total recall, it's time to GET IT ON DISCLAIMER: I might have the order of some events wrong because is was action packed all the time, but everything totally happened ... Glenn goes on an attack, a couple follow Hold back, see what happens Some more start going, everyone starts going, accelerate Keep the pace high, drop the pace a bit, Emil goes Pace peloton, some go, Simon goes WTF? Everyone goes, accelerate Some weird movement in the peloton while I'm passing on the left and I get run off the road, keep it steady, oooopala and we're back on the road, yeah, #crossiscoming Kantvind section - chase millimeters of asphalt, don't get dropped, don't get dropped This was easier than expected A couple more attacks, slightly fallen behind, work on moving up Just before the finish of first lap Emil attacks, no one goes Emil keeps going into the long kanvind section, I think FBL (might be some other dudes) counter, Emil is cought by the end of straight We almost hit a van coming around the corner Kantvind section small gaps form, so I have to pass some people, offer Hanna a ride along (Glenns pro superfast girlfriend) Where is Christian? Entering into narrow roads I sit like 5th in the bunch, with Glenn 1st when I see an Amager and an ABC dude attacking up front We pass a guy standing by the side of the road - he reminds me of my father I see an Amager and 2 ABC dudes blocking the peloton behing Glenn Wiggle my way to the left trough the opening behind one of them and GO GO GO ATTACK ON THE LEFT I GOT THIS, I WILL BRIDGE, I WILL MAKE IT INTO THE BREAK AND IT'S FUCKING WINNING TIME YEEEAHHHH Shit, this is not going as fast as I thought SHIT, THIS HURTS, ah, good, after this turn there will be medvind left turn FUCKING KANTVIND NOOOOO OK, you started this, YOU FUCKING FINISH THIS, NO BACKING DOWN also, the whole peloton is watching you fail, lol DIG DEEP, DIIIIIIG, SLAYER, SLAYER Watts are high, watts are ... dropping? FUUUUUUCK MADE IT, YES, FUCKING YESSSS I'm dead FML Can't take the turn, can't take the second turn Receive trash talk from the Amager dude which I translate to: asshole, you come over here, join our break and then don't share work (answer in my head): D'OH, I JST FUCKINNG BRDGED AN I AM DEAD AND HSIT, YOU FKIN TRY BRIGDING LIKE THIS BRO YEAH actual answer: shake head Next turn I'm good, so I contribute Same dude says (my interpretation): I am sorry kind sir, I did not mean to be rude before, it's just I am under a lot of pressure right now, my teammate won yesterday so I am trying to do the same, you contribution is well appreciated. My answer: shake head Turns out they are not really well coordinated, take monster pulls, I look back - we're NOT gaining ground while the peloton seems to be chillin' Eh, fuck this, I'm not gonna kill meyself over this, think of the team, think of Emil's leadout Fade away, rejoin the peloton Receive kudos from teammates: Good job! ... Nice bridging! ... That looked awesome ... Come, follow, don't fade Fuck fuck fuck need to pickup speed Sebastian from Klubben Ciklisten: So, you guys have one in the utbrytning? Nah, he's right here. YEAH, I missed you guys too much 10 min later the peloton absorbs the breakaway Pass the dude that looks like my father, now shirtless? Turn into medvind and it's attack, attack, attack I chase, bridge, realize I chased down Emil, apologize, join the attack There is some shouting I interpret as GOOOOO so I just keep going hard, yolo We don't achieve anything Andreas makes one or two strong apperances BTW, where's Christian? There is some attacking and chasing later on, including Simon chasing Emil and Andreas chasing Glenn and me chasing Andreas I think lap 4/5 is the same, attacks in kantvind, mellow down in motvind, random accelerations here and there, just keep it up in front, don't let anyone go Sebastian from Cyklisten goes, nobody follows He's cought about 10 min later, strong effort Also, Simon does a monster pull (later comments: yeah, no heavy pulling, #neverforget Roskilde?) We lap Christian (later tells he had a puncture from hitting a hole, also that I've junxed him because I've pointed out some cracks in his tire. But seriously, he hit a hole, I do not have magic puncture powers ...)

Enter last lap

Photo credits:Tommy Kjærulff Eriksen About 1/3 into the lap a dude goes, nobody chases (thinking - he has no chance) About 5 min later a FBL dude goes, nobody chases (thinking - he also has no chance?) There are some attempts of chasing about 10km to go, but we're not really gaining anything Enter small roads about 8km to go and I decide - ok, that's it, FBL dude is mine 2 min later I catch up to him I mark to change, nobody wants to chase the OTHER dude Ok, seriously, NOBODY? THERE IS A DUDE UP FRONT and WE'RE NOT GAINING ON HIM ... PIIIIIIIZDA RINGEN! Enter into big roads 5 km to go and I WORK, I PULL, I AM A DIESEL, SLAYER Glenn gives a solid pull, but that's pretty much it, nobody else ... I get the turn again, puuuuul, 400W, 450W, keep it up, minor cramp left calf, 400W MUST ... CHASE ... DUDE ... NEED TO SERVE THE GREATER GOAL ... Everytime anyone else takes the lead we slow down and they're not even teammates, WTF? Anyhow, by now it's clear we're not gonna catch him (or at least no one wants to catch him) Enter finish straight - find Emil, give shelter Emil says: I got your wheel Good! Shelter Emil on the left, see Glenn up front, think - maybe if we move a bit, I take Glenn's wheel, he goes, I go, he moves, I continue, I move Emil goes ... Emil passes me on the left and moves up. HM, OK? Ok, this does not compute, I move up to the front on the left and think - well, there is the Lunedi dude, and the Amager dude, now I sure can't leadout Emil from here, but I can try and mess with the two dudes, start the sprint early, Glenn has Emil, all good ... Move to the front and accelerate Pull as hard as possible and when legs give out, move away to the right Glenn rolls to my side - oooops Cruise over the finish line, close the zipper on jersey, hands off the handlebars, feeling pround of a job well done Except maybe for the leadout ...

Post-race

Tell everyone this was the BEST ... RACE ... EVER, receive weird looks High5 fellow C riders while unwinding legs Try to get some pulled pork, no cash ... FML Change clothes, pack up and go home Now the buss wants the speaker, so we listen: Swedish hip hop, Dillon Francis, The Weeknd, Grimes, some more Swedish hip hop and just as we drive to border control I play some Smoked pork and Body Count's in the house by Body Count. Decide to race C next weekend as well, CX can wait THIS IS TOO MUCH FUN, THIS IS THE SHIT! Have a well deserved beer on the balcony

Summary

The good - I can race and finish in C The bad - I totally messed up Emil's sprint leadout The ugly - not this time, baby, not this time

So, what did I learn this time?

Racing as a team is awesome Talk more to the teammates, there were some things off due to lack of communication Bridges and breakways hurt like a motherfucker. There is no nicer way of saying it.