EMC2/Vellum Criterium - Pro 1,2

While the rest of the guys were finishing up the battle royale in Hood, I headed over to Pleasanton for Sunday's EMC2/Vellum Criterium Pro 1,2 race. Clearly I wasn't needed earlier in the day as Larry spanked both the M45 and M35 fields. How the hell does he do it? Don't they see it coming, week after week?

We kicked off at 3:30pm or so for a 75 minute speedway race. Super fast course with wide streets and gentle corners on glassy pavement. Stiff crosswind, 70+ dreamers. What more could you ask for?

All the usual players were present. I was happy to see teammate Billy Innes as we got rolling, thinking maybe we could mix things up a bit. Pace was refreshingly FAST! No dicking around today. The wind meant that breaks were painful but the course made them so tempting. It was pretty easy to get a 5-10 sec gap if you just waited for the field to stretch out for a lap or two, then take a few hard pedal strokes into the headwind after the inevitable pause and you were gone. Problem was, nobody else picked up on the trick and you really needed 4-5 guys to keep it rolling. I got away with a monster from Starberries and we rolled pretty good for 3-4 laps or so. But when your recovery takes 5 seconds longer each rotation and nobody's bridging up, forget it. You better have more than a weekday commute in your legs if you want to play in that sandbox.

Despite every other race breaking up, it really looked like things might stay gruppo compacto. Of course, as soon as I decided that was the case five guys got out there, compared notes and put the hammer down with 20 mins to go. They got 10 secs and the field couldn't figure out what to do about it. Go fast? Go slow? Cross the chasm? As we got into the lap counter with 5 to go they stretched it out to 15 secs, then 20. You could look across the course and see them hurting each other, but they were moving - fast. Luckily with 2 to go they started coming apart at the seams and the gap came back to 15 secs. It started looking like it might turn into a bunch gallop. Billy got up there and did his part, and coming into the final lap we were only about 10 seconds behind the 3 survivors who were still rolling good. I had good position behind Briggs, who also provided much entertainment barking into his FBI collar microphone at his teammates. Then we hit the backstretch at a half lap to go, the engines at the front stalled out, and 20 guys passed on the outside. I can't figure out why these guys can go so fast during the race but can't decide what to do in the last half lap.


The one thing about this race - as in many crits - is that the race is actually to the last corner. You can hit it at 35mph, spent, get 2 seconds rest, and it's 15 pedal strokes to the line. And while people always say they know that trick, they almost never really commit to it. I could sense that pregnant pause on the second to last stretch, and it was a piece of cake to repass the 20 guys who passed me plus pick off a few more to finish in the money. The three stayed off for the V.

Good times. Anybody for Nez?