Maybe a little less posing for the fans... or is he ordering a beer?
Hmmmm... maybe it's something the whole team needs to work on?
Millport 3/4 Race ... okay, the race is over (and I think Keith is still griping that Matt's not blocking enough wind in the cool down lap) Photo courtesy of Phil Fox. check out the rest of the photos here.
Matt's cleaning his bike, getting ready for the Millport race today. So I thought I would do a quick post about what I've learned over the last few years attending amateur bike races.
First, winning is hard. So hard that you need to be sure that you've already laid the ground work for when you don't win.
Some good pre race excuses:
Man, it's hot and muggy today. (any weather related issues are handy here... rain, cold, heat, etc).
I think I over trained on Thursday at the Great Valley Crit trying to grab Kincaid's wheel.
I raced this morning, and I'm not sure my legs are strong enough for a second race today.
I'm not well hydrated.
I think I'm getting a cold (this will also work as a training excuse: I've had a cold this week, so I didn't get to train much).
man, my allergies are bad today!
My hamstrings are tight.
Okay, now here's mid race strategy:
be sure to do one really hard effort at the front or bring a team mate back. This shows that you have good form and are a "team player"
when you drop out, immediately check your bike... either the chain or the back break (this will give the impression that you had a mechanical issue... and look how long you stayed on while the back brake was rubbing!)
However, it's all about the post race talk. Every rider loves to stand around and talk about what they should've done in the race. Where they should've attacked, how they grabbed the wrong wheel: "he looked strong, but he gapped at the first hill!". The hydration issue comes in handy here too... "I lost one of my bottles on the first turn!". Oh, and always make sure that you think the guy that won is in the wrong cat..."man, he's sandbagging, he's a former mountain bike champion and should be a Cat 2!"
In full disclosure, I've heard every single one of these comments.
Keep an eye out for my "favorite races to attend"... meaning the races that have flush toilets available!
I accidently took a video of the men's pro race at the crit (who knew my camera could do that?). These guys are fast!
PHOTO UPDATE: I took a bunch of photos at the race. I put them up on Flickr just to make it easier.
Iron Hill Twilight Crit Click on photo for more pictures
I have to say it was a great day for racing. The day started with the men's 3/4 race and it started off fast. Guys were getting dropped on the first lap. With a starting field of 80, only 20 made it to the finish (you got pulled off the course pretty quickly, as it was going so fast). Iron Hill had a great day with 5 riders in that finishing pack. The guys rode hard (and you can thank Jim for that hard start). About half way thru, a solo break got away and it stuck. He had a great gap averaging about 20 seconds and he just kept a strong tempo the rest of the race.
Matt finished in the pack, one place shy of a payout (but better than last year) and he looked great in the race. Marty finished the highest and congrats to Keith for his finish (Keith crashed on the first turn last year). Kyle and Jason also made it to the finish with great finishes! Great job guys!!
We caught the end of the women's pro race and I understand there was a pretty bad crash in that one. By the time we caught the race the field was down to about 15 riders (and I think they started with about 50... haven't verified that tho'). A lot of attacks on that one and it was a very exciting final couple of laps.
The men's pro race also got off to a very quick start and watching them race as the sun slowly set was fabulous. Those guys even warm up fast! Again, the pace started high and the pack got thinner and thinner as the sun was setting. A two man break got away and it stuck with a final move on the final straight... a perfect strategy. A stunning, exciting race. I actually tried to get photos of the men's race, but due to the speeds, the photos all came out blurry (which is how I accidently got the video).
Everyone was beat by the end of the day, and my throat is a little gruff from all the cheering, but it was a fabulous time. Great job by the Iron Hill Brewery for hosting one of my favorite races (to watch.... glad I wasn't racing!)
