VOS – very long
Posted on February 16, 2009
Not really sure where to start. Alright…
Left early friday morning and got there with plenty of time to prepare myself PROPERLY for the TT. Had plenty of time to warm-up, stretch, drink up, feel the wind, etc, etc.
TT
Got to the gate on time, everything was perfect. The start had a bit of a tail wind so I was moving pretty good. Kept telling myself to slow down just a tad so that I could finish faster. I did pull back a bit. Caught my 30 second man in the first 10 minutes then my minute man AT the turnaround. Before I got there though, the wind had shifted and going out it went from tail to side to front. Very strange.
Turn around and tried to keep the pace. I was actually only looking at my speed and time. no HR, no power, no nothing. It was a TT done purely on perceived effort. I kept pacing myself and looking at markers to see how much more. The pain was setting in and I would go in and out of it. A guy on a regular bike passed me and he was hurting even more. Did no phase me, I know I wasn’t going to win.
I kept up with him and pulled him back. I was his 30 second guy. Speed creeped up again as we hit the slow downhill. I crossed the line in 34:25. I think the same time as last year, maybe a tad faster. Good (or bad) for 47th. Shitty result.
RR
Prepared myself for the start and everything was smooth. On time, ready. Race was on and the pace was pretty mellow. Nothing really to write about. Probably the easiest VOS RR I have done. the KOM climbs did push it though and it got stretched out pretty good. I never redlined. I mean, I am sure I hit high HR, but I never felt like I would get dropped, but then again I never saw that much wind either. Breaks went up the front, but they all go reeled back in.
What was really bad were the two crashes. Lap 3 I think, a Waste Management guy did a front flip and according to witnesses it was a really bad crash. It happened behind me so i have no idea what happened. One thing I DO KNOW… these WM guys have had issues with their feed in EVERY race I have been with them. They are so strong and ride really hard, but they cannot take bottle to save their lives.
The other sour note was the sprint crash. A huge pile up on the flat section leading to the finish line. I was probably 10 back when we started to sprint and as it developed I kept going to the left and all of the sudden a big group of guys on the right hit the pavement really hard. Not sure how fast we were going, but I could see people bouncing on the pavement and they looked like they were out.
All I know is that Steve had some serious head injuries and broke several bones. Carlos also sustained several injuries. The crash was so bad that they told the CAT 2 and the Pro fields to end their race and completely wrote off the stage. I hope these guys recover quickly. This is one aspect of bike racing that I hate. Makes me want to quit.
CR
Got to the course and it hit me right away. I am not sure if I want to do this. Unbelievably technical course. People in the previous races were coming of the back, left and right. It looked horrible.
I lined up at the second row from the start and as soon as the whistle blew I sprinted to the front. I was sitting pretty good and in excellent position. The crit was really quick and the course ended up being great. MUCH safer than it looked. The thing was though, big hill in it, or enough to zap the legs. Slowly I was loosing positions and I was redlining every time up the hill. The guys in the race were so strong, unreal. Started in 5th place and in 5 laps I was almost riding the tail end. I think half the field might have gone by now. I could not hold it any longer. The next time up the hill my legs seized… i QUIT.
So this year I DNF VOS. I was sitting 40th and would have moved up if I had only finished the crit course.
Dissapointed, yes… very and at myself. Great trip though.
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