Dana Ravenburg was the lone Cheshire Cycle racer out for the always popular Jamestown Classic.
Here is his recap of the action there:
"Here is a race report for the Jamestown Road Race I did on Monday, 14 Oct 2013. I raced the Masters Category 1-4, age 45+. I started riding last year, did some crits, upgraded to cat 4 this year, and decided to give a Time Trial and some road races a try. This is my third road race.
Race day: The morning was perfect. Sunny, not a cloud in the sky, cool, and a very light northeast wind. It was just cool enough to consider a light base layer or arm warmers, but decided against it. I figured it would warm up soon enough. I spent about 15 minutes warming up, called it good, and made my way to the start line. I got a good position near the front on the downwind side. I was already doing better than my other two road races (Quabbin and Tokeneke). I was feeling comfortable, but wondering how a master's race would go. The race official gave his safety and rules briefing. He said if you got dropped, you could not pick up with the group launching behind you. Bummer, I thought. That just blew a hole in my back up plan with the cat 4's.
30 seconds, strava is on, I notice that my heart rate is already at
124, and then it is Go time. Everybody clipped in, and politely started
moving towards the first small hill on the east shore. It started at a
gentlemenly pace, which I was not expecting. After a few minutes, I
started to wonder if I had
entered a local
"B" shop ride. I started to get a little antsy for some action. I
thought to myself, "Is there not a Joe Kubisek among us to kick us all
in the balls with some early threshold work?" I determined that there
was not. After a few miles, I am about mid pack, and I notice 3 guys
about 100 meters off the front. I also notice that the peloton is not
reacting. I make my way towards the front. Then I reminded myself not
to do anything stupid for the first 19 miles. Who knows, maybe these
old guys know something that I don't, so I settled back down, still
irritated that the break was being permitted to slowly move ahead.
As we started southwest off of Summit Ave, I noticed the pace picking
up. As the terrain undulated, and as we spun past Zeke's Creek, I could
not help but notice what a
fantastic day it
was to ride. The temperature was perfect, the sun felt good, and I was
advancing easily on the uphill segments. Beavertail Park was
beautiful, with a number of spectators to cheer us on. Northbound out
of Beavertail, I did not yet feel hungry, but figured what the heck.
Time to eat. As I took my last bite of Clif Bar, I inhaled a chunk of
it. As it rattled around my windpipe, I desperately tried to cough it
up or wash it down. It would not clear. After a few minutes of
wheezing breath, it progressively got better, but reminded me that the
smallest of things could change the outcome. Maybe I will get the gel
to eat next time.
Things started to pick up at the top of the Hamilton Street climb, and
at the top of the climb, the speed made a decidedly different shift.
Maybe it is the sound of
cowbells.
Maybe it is the thought of having loved ones watching you ride really
fast. Either way, it felt awesome blowing by the downtown area at about
40 mph.
The next lap around the island was definitely faster. Even with the
full stop that the group had to do for the truck turning around in the
road, it still picked up steam. I felt the hill work was still a little
reserved. I was hoping that the front half of the peloton could shake
out some of the chaff on the hills, but not yet. As we crossed the
causeway and started the climb towards Beavertail, I could tell some
were starting to feel the suffer score. Another beautiful pass by the
lighthouse, I just did not have as much time to enjoy it for the last
lap.
I started to test the
left and right
sides of the peloton to see which side would be easier to pass and
improve my position. I like the left, but opposite traffic made it
risky. The guys on the left seemed a bit more disciplined with wheel
position, and did not really like letting anyone back in. The right
side seemed easier, but I did not like the breaks in the pavement at the
edge, nor the occasional sand trap. About a mile north of Beavertail, a
couple of guys meshed pedals and spokes immediately to my right. As
they fell out tangled by the right, I shifted left and decided to stay
left. As we are coming down the hill towards the causeway near the
beach, I made a move on the outside left and advanced. I let the aero
bike do its work on the downhill, and I got to the front third. As the
terrain leveled, the guys in the group were happy to let me flap in the
breeze, and not let me in. I found an opening right before the
Hamilton Ave climb. It was kind of a bad move, as for some
unexplainable reason, some people braked around the corner as we started
the climb. On the climb, I notice that my heart rate is at 184, but
the legs are still moving. Then there was a collective groan from the
peloton as some guys at the front cracked and slowed the back half.
Some guys peeled off the left, I found a way around and mashed it. I
knew that I needed to be well positioned at the top
of the hill, and the front half of the group were starting to slip
away. At the top, I was a little in trail of the front group. I mashed
it harder and started to close the distance with the front group. I
noticed a tinge of puke taste in my mouth, and smiled, because I knew
that I was approaching the appropriate level of effort. The last 90
degree turn, I am catching some of the trail guys of the lead pack. The
last
200 meters I passed three more guys, and then the finish line as I am
gulping for all the air that I can. Great race with the following
stats. "
Sold out field of 75.
66 finished.
I placed 35, which was 6 seconds behind the winner.
38.8 miles
1:31:36
25 mph pace
 |
| Dana, drilling it to the very end. |
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| Now here's a nice way to close out the season. |
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