Oh wait. fuck. I forgot about bluetooth. nevermind, that just requires posting from my up-to-date computer and not the glorified paperweight I'm currently using.
Moving right along, I finally did a race at Floyd Bennett Field.
(race course in red, start/finish was actually by the parking lot on the right near the water)
Charlie Issendorf, the race director for Kissena, implored us to stay safe and reminded us of some rules pertaining mishaps and what to do should we get lapped by the PRO/1-2-3 field, which never happened. then we were off...
The First Lap
Right off the line the pace immediately jumped to 25mph+ and after the first turn we ran into a considerable headwind but stayed above 20mph. The first turn is a slow right at the apex of which is a very fast surface change, immediately after going over that the first time I heard "PSSSSSSSSSSSSSST.......awwww fuck!" from right behind me... rider out.
I got myself mixed in with the "lead group" when I chased down an unsuccessful break that was moving really fast in the slight tailwind that had battered us earlier. I had intended to bridge up to it so as to not get dropped from contention but that encouraged the peloton to move up too, so before long the group was tight on the front again. I pulled at the front for a minute or so and dropped back to catch my breath as we completed the first lap. Lesson learned: never attack in a tailwind.
Mid-Race
The next two laps were uneventful aside from people getting popped off the back, which was of no concern to me... I pulled once or twice more and decided that if I kept doing that, I wouldn't have any matches left for the inevitable speed-increase at the bell-lap. I sat in the peloton for most of the rest of the race and slowly moved up through the middle of the pack staying around 15th off the front.
I was surprised at how fast we were going; I was sitting up, pedaling at a comfortable pace and was being sucked along at around 30mph the whole time.
I've done pacelining before, and while you can certainly feel the positive effects of someone breaking the air for you, it becomes magnified when riding 40-50 people deep... While I don't want to be a wheelsucker, I think this Saturday I'm going to sit up mid-pack as much as possible and save everything I've got for the sprint.
At one point I got stuck fighting for myself on the windward side of the pack and had to really hoof it to stay in contact with the group.. I moved up through the field, and in retrospect, I'm glad I did because no sooner than I had gotten into position for the final turn of the third lap than I hear the grinding, scraping and thudding of a crash directly behind me. My first instinct was to turn around and look but I reminded myself that this was in fact a race and that their misfortune was none of my concern (this time). Later I discovered the guy sitting on my wheel slid out and took two others with him. Lesson learned: Love the draft, fear the wind.
Final Lap
As we started the bell lap, the pace remained relatively docile. I had assumed the pace would immediately jump 5-10mph upon hearing the bell but I couldn't complain, I had tried to establish my position at the front on the fourth lap and nearly cooked my legs trying to pull too long. I was sitting in roughly thirtieth place at this point.
I spent the majority of the last lap positioning myself for the sprint and quietly moved up to about fifth, letting the front of the peloton lead me out.
At the final turn I was in third position and with the finish rapidly approaching, I was surprised nobody had initiated the sprint. I'd watched enough races to know what to do; I dropped two cogs, stood, and took off...
Too soon. Two guys came around me on either side at full tilt and once fully ahead of me the guy at my 1 o'clock veered sharply into the guy at my 11 and I was forced to tap my rear brake (which can be a little frightening at 40mph) just a tiny bit. Hitting the brake forced me to scrub just enough speed that right before the line I got passed by several people and managed to finish about tenth (maybe ninth, maybe eleventh).
Concerning that near-crash, what the first rider did is a super novice move, you should hold your line at all times; even when you're swinging the bike around for leverage in a sprint, your wheels should be tracking a straight line. The offended rider rightly filed an official complaint with the organizer and the offending rider will likely be given a stern warning if he's not banned from racing there for a while. Lesson learned: stay off the brakes.
All in all, I had an awesome time at FBF... so much so that I've already pre-registered for two races this coming weekend: another FBF race of the same format, and a seven lap (25mi) race at Prospect Park on Sunday. Stay tuned for thorough reports from both this weekend
Ride fast...
