8 mile TT and 24 mile circuit race on saturday followed by a 91 mile road race on sunday.
8 mile TT
Course was a "relatively" flat for the Berkshires out and back. This meant 2 miles down and 2 mile up turn around and do it in revers. My ride was OK but I saved a little on the downhill after the turn so I would have something left for the climb to the finish. I had a sprint left for the line which tells me I left something on the road. Still managed to get me 9th out of 75
but 1:03 down and a couple of guys sitting 2 and 4 seconds behind. 
(need to do some more TT'ing)24 mile circuit race
The start came around a lot quicker than expected (legs weren't quite the full bag of spanners but were definitely feeling rough). It's amazing what 8 miles can do to you . Although it was classed as a circuit race it was pretty much a crit with a 3 mile triangular course including points and time bonuses for "king of the hill" on laps 2,4,and 6 and the same for a sprint on laps 3,5 and the final lap 8. Race start was neutral to the finish line but the pace remained pretty tame over the hill and down to the 2nd corner where we crawled round cause it was an awkward slightly off camber 90deg turn. Rather than rolling round the guy in front of me does a complete 90deg turn and takes out my front wheel. I hit the ground. Fortunately no damage cause I was going so slowly. I bounce up get back on the bike and catch back on pretty much instantly but am at the back of the pack. I manage to get back into the middle of the pack as we finish the 1st lap but the pace picks up heading to the corner before the hill. I had planned to give the 1st hill a go to check out the legs but I was too far back so just kept in touch with the front of the race. As I missed the 1st hill points I decided to go for the sprint on lap 3. I was working my way through the pack when a group of 4 got a little gap as there was still 1 point and 1 second available for 5th I jumped got a gap and took the point. This turned out not to be too smart. With only 0.25 of a mile to recover before the next king of the hill I was hanging on to stay with the lead group over the top. Decision was made not to try again until the last king of the hill. I let 6 guys jump early and left my effort to late. Caught 1 but wasn't going to make it in the top 5 so sat up. All that was left was the finish sprint. A BRC rider made a bold move with just over a lap to go and stayed away but we were catching him. I got into a good position on the inside about 6th wheel going into the last corner following the yellow jersey thinking he would go for the points but he sat up I was blocked in the middle with people sprinting on either side. I jumped out and was pulling up through the melee but only made 15th crossing the line. All this cost me 1 spot in GC but 1 second closer at 1:02
91 mile road race
I still cant come to terms with what happened in this race. After a great nights sleep in a YMCA summer camp dorm (truly it was a great sleep) my legs actually felt good warming up. As expected the pace was pretty gentle to start as everyone was thinking about the 91 miles and the horrendous weather forecast. The race director had warned us about rough pavement as we crossed into MA. Towards the end of this section I hit a pot hole that ran along the road. I didn't think too much of it though cause I didn't hit it hard. 2 mins later front goes ....PSST....damn.... but at least I had wheels in the van. Got it changed after waiting on the van cause someone else had already flatted. I jumped on the bike as an English guy I had been chatting with the day before comes by. I still won't cheer for them in the World Cup but he was a great wheel and both of us were able to get back into the group after about 5 miles. I actually felt good for the hard effort. About 2 miles after getting back into the pack.... PSST...back flat. How unlucky is that. Must have been a double pinch flat from the pot hole that just took a while to loose air. Wheel van was again slow getting to me as he was dealing with another flat. I got the wheel changed and this time I had to solo back. Again I felt pretty good TT'ing and caught the group in another 5 miles or so. OK my luck has to improve doesn't it.......NO......The weather changes from a gentle downpour to rain of Sterling proportions. I am however OK sitting in the front half of the pack and legs feel great.....BANG PSST...it cant be me...oh yes it can!!!! back is flat and no wheels left. The van pulls over so I just grab the 1st wheel I see check the number and plan to thank #22 when I get back in the group. I'm getting good at this now so I get my head down and start to work my way back again. I'm thinking about the awesome Jens factor this race is going to have when I get back to the group and take out the sprint but the road is a grinding wide open climb and I'm starting to feel the burn. The traffic is slow cause of the tale back behind the race I look over and see a car full of young girls. I wave at them and signal to them to roll down their window. They ask what's wrong and I say I need a car to hold onto. They say isn't that cheating and I say not really all the pro's do it. So I grab onto the door frame and in good pro style get a little "assistance" to the top of the rise. I let go and manage to jump through the traffic to get back to the wheel van but it's a little behind the race now. I pass it and then it passes me. I have my head down but keep it in sight. I see a 10K to go sign and realize the race will be speeding up for the mid point sprint which is followed by a king of the hill sprint. My hope is that the pace will relax after these and I will get back. I'm still following the wheel van at a distance and then I see a sign saying " Welcome to Winstead". I start to scratch my head. I have ridden at least 10K and I know I should be in Colebrook for the sprint not Winstead. The wheel van disappears as the traffic lightens up. I pull into a shop and ask if a cycle race has passed this way? They give me a very strange look, which I can't understand, and shake their head. My race is over. No Jens factor today. I get directions to Colebrook and ride back. Turns out the wheel van got totally lost and left a number of guys stuck on the side of the road. Also turns out the lead car went off the course in the 3s at the same point and the pro race did 120 miles instead of the 91 because their lead car got lost somewhere in MA. Think it had to be down to the limited visibility due to the torrential rain.
Just to rub insult into injury when I was chasing back on the 1st time my new Rudy glasses flew off the back of my helmet
All in all a VERY disappointing day. Stage racing however is a lot of fun and pretty interesting but difficult to do on your own. Need to pick one and get a team together next year.
