New Britain Criterium

[swawersik]

Drove down to just south of Hartford for this one, as it's a power rider's course - right in my wheelhouse. It's a 1 mile dedicated bike loop, with no sharp corners but quite a few pedal-through twisties. The course sits on a bowl, with the two ends of the kidney shaped oval a little higher than the center, giving about 15-20 feet of elevation gain each lap. This is enough to make you work a bit - I typically saw 5-6 second spikes of 500-700W at the bottom of the steepest section each time, which you feel after 20 laps. The biggest thing I noticed in warm up was the finish: you come down a swooping turn on a hill, into a long wide drag that's mostly downhill. This normally makes for a long sprint, but I noticed that there was a headwind today, so figured that staying on wheels as long as possible would be a good idea.

I felt OK for the first few laps - the heat made my legs feel a little heavy, but I figured everyone was suffering a bit, as we were lined out with nobody coming around and I was able to sit comfortably in the first 5 wheels. I avoided any actual work until the first prime was called at around 12 to go. Three strong guys rolled off the front and established a solid gap. Wary of them using this a a launch pad for a break, I started a bridge, and was joined by two others. We connected just after the prime sprint, but were hampered by rotation dysfunction - we need Smudger to give some "spelling about" clinics - and got caught. From there, I made a point to sit in but stay in the first 5-10 wheels unless a more substantial break formed. This is easier said than done, as when attacks came (and there were plenty, as the Expo Wheelmen team had numbers and were looking to animate the race) it's tempting to follow and be on the front. I had to remind myself NOT to do this, and found letting a couple of guys come around me, then latching onto those wheels to be an effective energy conservation method. I made one other (probably ill advised) effort to bridge to a 6 man break with about 7 to go, but they sat up just as I connected, except for a guy from Stampede! (yes, that's a team) who rolled off the front. He got a good gap, but I made the decision to let the teams (Expo & Mystic Velo) and any other suckers do the work to catch him and get ready for the sprint.

Chris P. and I had a conversation the other day about how a crit sprint isn't so much about all-out speed in the final 200 meters (though this matters). Instead, you have to think of it as 2-3 laps at VOmax where you give whatever you have left in the final 200 meters. I had this very much in mind as Expo and a few Mystic guys worked to reel in Stampede!, and was consequently more willing to put myself partially in the wind if necessary to hold position. As a result, I was sitting sitting in the first 5 wheels on the backside of the final lap when we caught the lone breakaway. I was on the right side as we went up the little hill, and the pack swung right, allowing a few guys to come through on the left, but I was still in the top 10-12 at the final turn. As we came down the hill on the final turn, a few guys lit it up, but as I predicted they went too early and flamed out. They did, however, create obstacles to make the sprint "interesting." I had to sit up for a couple of pedal strokes, as one of the Expo guys made a very, um, creative line choice and almost put me in the curb, but managed to finish 9th. I'm sure I could have done even better had it not been for the Expo guy (it was a very tight pack sprint and Duane Young-Kershaw told me he came off my wheel when I slowed and he finished 6th), but I'm pretty happy to have finally cracked the top 10.

On to Beverly!

[ahamilton]

Nice work Stefan. Sounds like you might have been battling for a podium spot if not for the "road furniture" dude.

[jraguin]

Great job Stefan. Sweet to get top 10 and sorry it couldn't have been higher.

[JeremyC]

Nice Stefan, you have great fitness and a higher confidence level. The only problem is your report is probably as long as the race :o

[Smudger]

SWEEEEEEEET

[PJ McQuade]

Nice dude.

[Len_E]

Very nice Stefan. Making lemonade out of lemons is usually what we do every weekend and a top 10 in these circumstances is damn good.
Next stop: podium.

[rusto]

Well done, Stefan!

[Jacob]

Great job! I signed up for Beverly -- maybe I can lend a hand.