These are the last of the photos from the weekend: a few of me in the crit, and per request, some photos of me, Will (2nd) and Steve (3rd) on the podium. These photos are courtesy of teammates Katie Lovejoy PhD '09 and Zuzka Trnovcova '09. Enjoy!
Showing posts with label fitchburg. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fitchburg. Show all posts
2009-07-11
Digital Fitchburg
Winning the Fitchburg race meant a lot to me, so I contacted the local television station, FATV, for their footage of the race. I have their express permission to use clips of the video on this blog! I present the first five minutes of their coverage, including the call to the start. Unfortunately, it doesn't have the awards ceremony.
These are the last of the photos from the weekend: a few of me in the crit, and per request, some photos of me, Will (2nd) and Steve (3rd) on the podium. These photos are courtesy of teammates Katie Lovejoy PhD '09 and Zuzka Trnovcova '09. Enjoy!
These are the last of the photos from the weekend: a few of me in the crit, and per request, some photos of me, Will (2nd) and Steve (3rd) on the podium. These photos are courtesy of teammates Katie Lovejoy PhD '09 and Zuzka Trnovcova '09. Enjoy!
2009-07-05
Glory
I am the 2009 Category 3 overall race winner for the 50th Annual Fitchburg Longsjo Classic.
At the start of the Fitchburg race, I wanted exactly two things. One, I wanted the rain to stop - it had been raining for an entire month! Two, I wanted to earn enough upgrade points to be a Cat 2. Nothing more, nothing less.
I was lucky to have a strong time trial performance, strong enough to gain some time on the field. I was just as lucky to maintain my lead through the circuit race, not get dropped on the road race climbs, and not fall victim to the two crashes in today's criterium. With that, I took home the leader's jersey, and the stage race win.
Nothing comes easily, and I wanted to make certain that I held my lead. I wrote numbers on my bike, calculated times, reviewed results, scrutinized the courses, and spent hours tuning three race bikes. I made sure that no breaks stuck, and did much of my own work. For this, I gained some respect in the field.
Winning the Cat 3 overall, with a few other placings, ought to be enough for my Cat 2 upgrade. I look forward to racing at the next level.
My heartfelt thanks go to the City of Fitchburg and the Fitchburg Cycling Club for organizing such a fantastic event; to the MIT Cycling Team (and headline sponsor FXDD) for helping me to race at this level; and to the good men in the Cat 3 field, who made it a good, fun, and (mostly) safe race.
(Photos and final results will be in a later post.)
At the start of the Fitchburg race, I wanted exactly two things. One, I wanted the rain to stop - it had been raining for an entire month! Two, I wanted to earn enough upgrade points to be a Cat 2. Nothing more, nothing less.
I was lucky to have a strong time trial performance, strong enough to gain some time on the field. I was just as lucky to maintain my lead through the circuit race, not get dropped on the road race climbs, and not fall victim to the two crashes in today's criterium. With that, I took home the leader's jersey, and the stage race win.
Nothing comes easily, and I wanted to make certain that I held my lead. I wrote numbers on my bike, calculated times, reviewed results, scrutinized the courses, and spent hours tuning three race bikes. I made sure that no breaks stuck, and did much of my own work. For this, I gained some respect in the field.
Winning the Cat 3 overall, with a few other placings, ought to be enough for my Cat 2 upgrade. I look forward to racing at the next level.
My heartfelt thanks go to the City of Fitchburg and the Fitchburg Cycling Club for organizing such a fantastic event; to the MIT Cycling Team (and headline sponsor FXDD) for helping me to race at this level; and to the good men in the Cat 3 field, who made it a good, fun, and (mostly) safe race.
(Photos and final results will be in a later post.)
2009-07-04
More Of The Same
So: Take yesterday's circuit race course. Scale it by about 500 percent. That's right: make it five times longer, and five times taller. (Only make it last for three times as long.) That's about what today's road race was like.
The brutal winter of 2009 convinced the State of Massachusetts to bury some power lines near the road that climbs Mount Wachusett, so the Longsjo race's notorious climb was not a factor. Points became incredibly contentious, as racers dueled for points every single lap. After two laps, I was able to pick out who were the good climbers. I made sure to keep them in check.
The weather was fabulous for bicycle racing, sunny and in the 80s. The race course, running through the woods, shielded us from the worst of the sun and wind. The big climb was exposed to both, so I compensated by pouring about 500mL of water over my head each lap.
I entered the race with the leaders jersey, and I wanted to hold on to it! I made certain that happened, by staying at the front of the pack and covering the few attacks that happened. The consensus was that I worked quite hard in the race, which is unusual for a race leader. Old habits die hard.
Michael, the other MIT Cat 3 in the race, did not finish. This means I don't have any teammates tomorrow! I was able to make a few friends today, including a tall gentleman on a black Soloist, who helped me stay toward the front. Thank you.
Our field was neutralized three times, and even stopped one of those times, to allow the juniors and the masters to pass. I guess young boys and old men are more feisty than the Cat 3 crowd.
At the finish, I decided to conserve my energy and not duel for the big stage win. I may have lost a few seconds doing so, but I'm still in yellow.
My goals for tomorrow's crit: don't crash, don't get dropped, and finish with the pack. I don't want points or the win. I want to keep my leader's jersey, and I want my Cat 2 upgrade. I hope everything goes smoothly tomorrow.
Now, where did I put that ice cream? Ah yes, here it is. Delicious.
The brutal winter of 2009 convinced the State of Massachusetts to bury some power lines near the road that climbs Mount Wachusett, so the Longsjo race's notorious climb was not a factor. Points became incredibly contentious, as racers dueled for points every single lap. After two laps, I was able to pick out who were the good climbers. I made sure to keep them in check.
The weather was fabulous for bicycle racing, sunny and in the 80s. The race course, running through the woods, shielded us from the worst of the sun and wind. The big climb was exposed to both, so I compensated by pouring about 500mL of water over my head each lap.
I entered the race with the leaders jersey, and I wanted to hold on to it! I made certain that happened, by staying at the front of the pack and covering the few attacks that happened. The consensus was that I worked quite hard in the race, which is unusual for a race leader. Old habits die hard.
Michael, the other MIT Cat 3 in the race, did not finish. This means I don't have any teammates tomorrow! I was able to make a few friends today, including a tall gentleman on a black Soloist, who helped me stay toward the front. Thank you.
Our field was neutralized three times, and even stopped one of those times, to allow the juniors and the masters to pass. I guess young boys and old men are more feisty than the Cat 3 crowd.
At the finish, I decided to conserve my energy and not duel for the big stage win. I may have lost a few seconds doing so, but I'm still in yellow.
My goals for tomorrow's crit: don't crash, don't get dropped, and finish with the pack. I don't want points or the win. I want to keep my leader's jersey, and I want my Cat 2 upgrade. I hope everything goes smoothly tomorrow.
Now, where did I put that ice cream? Ah yes, here it is. Delicious.
2009-07-03
An Unimpressive Finish, But Still First
Logistics were delayed this morning, as I needed to pick up my leader's jersey, and then spend a long time pinning numbers to it. I know, I know: cry me a river. I like to have these little things done before leaving!
Today's circuit race was as I expected. It was an overgrown crit, with a long, shallow downhill and a sharp uphill finish. The race was unremarkable: my goals were to stay upright and finish with the lead, and I did just that. Racing was a little dicier than I would have liked at the end, so I finished far from the front. Meh. At least I get to hold on to the leader's jersey - which means I don't have to do any more pinning tomorrow!
As one of the race leaders, I had to do the whole (mandatory!) interview and podium procedure. The announcers asked me what I thought of the race (I'm glad there were no crashes), and how I thought I would do tomorrow (we'll see - I'm not a super climber). I even had my ceremonial podium moment, complete with photos.
Maybe this is why Lance enjoys winning?
Today's circuit race was as I expected. It was an overgrown crit, with a long, shallow downhill and a sharp uphill finish. The race was unremarkable: my goals were to stay upright and finish with the lead, and I did just that. Racing was a little dicier than I would have liked at the end, so I finished far from the front. Meh. At least I get to hold on to the leader's jersey - which means I don't have to do any more pinning tomorrow!
As one of the race leaders, I had to do the whole (mandatory!) interview and podium procedure. The announcers asked me what I thought of the race (I'm glad there were no crashes), and how I thought I would do tomorrow (we'll see - I'm not a super climber). I even had my ceremonial podium moment, complete with photos.
Maybe this is why Lance enjoys winning?
2009-07-02
So I Won The ITT...
I've been looking forward to the Fitchburg race all week, nay, all month. I've been fiddling with bikes and doing lots of mental preparation. So, it's really encouraging that I did well in today's Men's Cat 3 ITT stage.
The TT bike received new, chicane-extension aerobars, and a wheel upgrade. Today, I used a Zipp 808 clincher front wheel (heavy!), and the usual Zipp 900 tubular disc in the rear. I had a 404 tubular, but I figured faster was better than lighter. I was right!
I looked at the junior's and master's results at work today. It looked like 19 minutes was the time to beat to place in the top 3, so I made that my goal. Although I passed four people (we were spaced at 30 second intervals), I failed to meet my personal goal by 5.40s. The 19:05.40 was still good for first place in the Cat 3 field, though. I voraciously consumed 100 grams of chocolate ice cream in celebration.
Tomorrow brings the 28 mile circuit race. It's a 3 mile loop, really an overgrown crit or something really similar to a Prospect Park race. My goal is to stay up and stay toward the front, trying to hold on to my lead. Of course, I have to wear a (mandatory!) leader's jersey, so I'll be a marked man. (At least I get a free shirt out of it.)
Thank you and goodnight.
The TT bike received new, chicane-extension aerobars, and a wheel upgrade. Today, I used a Zipp 808 clincher front wheel (heavy!), and the usual Zipp 900 tubular disc in the rear. I had a 404 tubular, but I figured faster was better than lighter. I was right!
I looked at the junior's and master's results at work today. It looked like 19 minutes was the time to beat to place in the top 3, so I made that my goal. Although I passed four people (we were spaced at 30 second intervals), I failed to meet my personal goal by 5.40s. The 19:05.40 was still good for first place in the Cat 3 field, though. I voraciously consumed 100 grams of chocolate ice cream in celebration.
Tomorrow brings the 28 mile circuit race. It's a 3 mile loop, really an overgrown crit or something really similar to a Prospect Park race. My goal is to stay up and stay toward the front, trying to hold on to my lead. Of course, I have to wear a (mandatory!) leader's jersey, so I'll be a marked man. (At least I get a free shirt out of it.)
Thank you and goodnight.
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