Can I get a freakin race report?
- Thread starter jShort
- Start date
Post rain wet early Saturday, foggy and wet on Sunday. By 10 both days, it was a sweat box, Sunday being worse. At noon, photo perfect weather and bluebird skies.
So the weather report for cx'ers was:
early morning Limus and PDX, followed by sporadic MXP. The remainder of the day will be Grifo and the occasional file tread.
qclabrat
Well-Known Member
nice work lining up for another race, seeing you grind it out week after week will eventually get me out to one of these
Do ALL the races.
vanseggern1
Active Member
Question for @SSmtbr ,@Magic and @taylor185 since you guys did Whirleybird and Nittany. Which course felt more slippery to you? My bike handling needs improvement to say the least but I had no issues with traction at Whirleybird on my hardtail. However I couldn’t pedal hard on most of the Nittany course riding the cx bike with what I believe were possibly the worst tires for the job (Bontrager CXO). I actually hit the deck 3 times and had several near misses and none of them were when I was going hard.
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Nittany was definitely more ‘slick’, likely from the dry time during the day and then the top layer getting sweaty from the overnight mist/fog. It’s that hard dirt with a layer of peanut butter on top. Whirlybird was a rain race and you would just sink in and mud bog through many sections, but there was also much more grass (and apparently poison ivy) mixed with that thick, deep mud.
Also, PDX’s.
vanseggern1
Active Member
SSmtbr
Well-Known Member
@vanseggern1 I used 40c Maxxis Ravager/Ramblers at Whirlybird having my mind set on it being a "grass crit" and never bothered checking the forecast - regretted that decision immensely and had a terrible time getting any traction turning or laying down power. Decided to just roll with PDXs as an all-arounder/mud tire for the foreseeable future and had a much better time at Nittany. When the time comes for a truly dry course (if that'll happen this season?) I may switch over to the gravel tires for a bit more cushion and the ravagers have aggressive side knobs for turning and leaning the bike over, but even then the PDXs roll faster, weigh less, and bite more aggressively so I may just run them every race and stop dreading tire choice until I actually figure out what I'm doing out there.
vanseggern1
Active Member
Thanks @SSmtbr. If I stick with using the cx bike, I would lean towards the pdx full-time as well. My buddy who races masters 1/2 in Oregon couldn’t stop laughing when I told him my tire choice. The pic below shows my tire on the left vs what I should have used. That being said, I plan on going back to the hardtail in the meanwhile while I figure things out. At least it will give me another excuse to be slow
Good luck at Bridgeton!
Good luck at Bridgeton!
vanseggern1
Active Member
agree with @Magic . the right tire choice would have helped at Nittany. I ran tubular PDX's at both races as was very happy. Only slipping at Nittany was user error. Whirlybird was a rainy, mudfest and I think one tends to set expectations that the course will be slippery as a default. In the case of Nittany, the early am conditions were surprising given no recent rain. This underscores the importance of a good pre-ride, looking for traction in the corners and (ideally) having a few tire choices.
It's also an unfair comparison between mtb and cross tires.
Unless you are a pro, races are not won or lost by tires that "roll faster." Races are lost by not having enough traction, either because your rear tire spins or beacause you crash in a corner. Always, always err on the side of more traction. When in doubt, PDX.
vanseggern1
Active Member
Thanks for all the feedback, guys. I guess I should have also clarified that it wasn't a conscious decision to use the CXOs (they came on a bike I recently bought). Since I've traditionally been a fair-weather mtb racer (literally and figuratively), I never paid attention to tire choice. In fact, I'm not even sure of what tires are on my two mtbs currently...I just know they're made of rubber
Guess it's time to start paying attention to these details...
Guess it's time to start paying attention to these details...
Jeffreywoliver
Well-Known Member
I also found Nittany to be a bit more slick. Probably mostly because there were areas where you could get significantly more speed and slippery ness was expected more at Whirlybird. I rode the same tires that I rode at Whirlybird and to the same result, but the mud at Nittany definitely didn’t clear as well for me at Nittany as at Whirlybird. I thought I was in 5th the whole race, but ended up third. Too bad I found out after I’d already missed the podium, LOL.
That was you that missed the 4/5 40+? Lol. I think you came up to us looking for the guy.
@vanseggern1 Good to meet you today. Thanks for the funny tasting sodas to drink my sorrows away. That was hard. Everything hurt and I was dying. Nice finish on your part!
Chris(NJ)
Well-Known Member
I pretty much did the same thing today, but had my extra tires with me. Changed tires in the parking lot an hour before the race and got a practice lap in on the new tires. Although really didn’t notice much difference. Ran a higher psi (+8-10) in the new ones so maybe why I didn’t gain much traction? I dunno. They were fine though. I was the problem
Either way, fun day. First cx race on a more cx oriented bike than the last (and only other) time I raced cross which was on my ss mtb 6 years ago. I Didn’t get DFL in the Cat3/4(b) group. I think I managed 4 spots up from DFL? And I believe we had about 51 people, so that was considered a win by all accounts.
I did get lapped at the end of the 4th/start of 5th lap iirc. So I should’ve only did 6 laps, but kept pedaling with the next group’s practice lap to make it a full 7 like the fast guys did.
Signed up for Bridgeton tomorrow but now calling for rain so I may not go if it’s a downpour. I don’t love cross that much to drive 2 hours, dfl in cat3 AND get soaked.
Town Hall: why hasn't someone smashed that hill flat?
Openers the night before were a bit, um, robust. Zwift effect.
Up early so I could park close and relax a bit before go time. Oh, and get some laps in. THAT part of the plan worked to perfection. Parked right on the start row super close to @MissJR and @Santapez. The OG Philly guys were there, too. D. Lowe and Kelly Cline. Harry "the hammer" Hamilton was across the lot. He's flying.
Get a pre-ride in with Harry and @Magic. Harry announces that he's gonna swap from a 42 to a 38 to make it a bit easier. I'm already on a 38 and my HR is effing pegged on the preride. I begin to get a bad feeling about this. See, there's this hill...
I love Town Hall. It's a great venue, run by Lamprey Systems, some super nice folks. They DO suffer from repeat-itis. It's a bit like Nittany, which is run by a lot of the Lehigh posse. It's the same, year after year. Which can be great, if you've got a memory disorder. Or you really liked it that first year. This year saw one big change - the loss of the lower ball field. There was some equipment that couldn't be moved off the course.
Which led to a very very climb-y course (1100 feet over our 7 laps) on grabby mud festooned with velcro grass.
The pre-ride was a bummer. The last time I raced this, I was 10 pounds lighter. It led to a straight-up brawl with @ChrisG, which remains one of my favorite race-within-a-race days ever. Every pedal stroke on the pre-ride presaged a death-march. I hate being right.
Since my rollers aren't working out for the warmups, I bullshitted for a bit and then started doing laps around the parking lot. Not super-focused. The stabbing quad pains from last night's idiot openers prompted me to drink some pickle juice to forestall hill-induced cramps. At least I got that right.
Watched @Magic, @Santapez and @vanseggern1 (on an MOUNTAIN BIKE! AND CRUSHED IT!) smash their heads against the hill.
Then @MadisonDan TNR taped my number to me, after giving everything a solid stare.
I slammed a bottle and then some of Nuun, ate a GU and got slotted in third row, being a Piscatello rider and D. Lowe. They're wicked good starters, so felt pretty good about getting through the first 100 yards without anything stupid happening. Beyond lining up that is.
Whistle blows and we're off. MUCH faster start than I'd anticipated, despite the soft ground the sticky grass. I blew a clip, but no big deal.
The fast guys were gone, of course, and I slotted into a solid group. The soft ground and constant hills had me on the limit early though. Still new to SRAM, I blew a shift on the big hill, which made for some chasing, but I was still fresh enuf on the backside to get back w/out burning any matches. But the pattern was developing: a blip of acceleration from Paul in front, and I'd go out the back for a moment, praying that the group would yo-yo enuf for me to pilot my way back in. Of the eight, I was the weakest power-wise, but by consciously staying off the brakes, I was able to stay in. Til we hit THAT FUCKING HILL the second time. The group began to blow apart.
Without that backside ballfield, there was NO place to rest. So f*ck it - embrace the suck. Coming into lap three, still no lap card. This made me sad. I tried to put that out of my head. It was warming up a bit, so the lines were changing a bit, but it didn't get faster. "The slow" just moved left or right a bit, but it was still "the slow" and there wasn't any way around it.
Lap four, I pass D Lowe on the hill. He's running with his bike over his shoulder and the rear derailleur flanging around on his hip. Smiling, which was great. I commiserate as best I can, sounding like a four pack a day smoker running a Turkey Trot.
At this point, it's a death-march with shifting and lycra. We finally get a lap card - three to go. This brings on the sads. OTOH, I'm so dumb that by the time I was on far side of lap five, I though Oh, Hey! It's almost over!
It wasn't.
I bled a coupla places, but put my head down and churned. D Lowe came blazing through on the last lap, seemingly effortlessly gobbling up the distance between me and the last mofo to have slowly pulled away from me. Lowe is deeply talented, and gracious. Despite giggling as he passed me.
Finishing this one was sweet. 53 minutes. Long one for old people. I never felt like I was racing. Hanging on for dear life has a different vibe. Still valuable, and hella hard, but unlike the second day at Nittany, there wasn't ever a moment where I thought, "I'll get him HERE!" More like "I'll try not to start sobbing HERE!"
18th. Lap times: 7:10, 7:24, 7:29, 7:44, 7:49, 7:48, 7:50. Stanched the bleeding on the last three laps. The Schwalbe X-One Cross tires were good today, but I think I'm still running them too high. Desperately afraid of burping. Racing tubeless is taking some getting used to. The @Delish specials are gonna be glued up with a set of Baby Limuses soon, which will be interesting. And mebbe a little less nerve-racking. I'm still not convinced I can lean the tubeless over and engage the side knobs the way I can with tubies.
Hanging out after, though, was SWEET! It's a lovely spot. Kids everywhere, dogs, beer, baked goods, burritos (meh, but still, BURRITOS!).
@Magic and @vanseggern1 beered me, which gave me happies. Hung out til the men's 123 was well and truly underway, with Roger being stalked by Mike Festa and some other fast dude. Looked like it was gonna be a rocking race, but the tired was hitting my bones, so time to go before the drive back became as trying as the race. Did another backroads tour, to avoid the 78/287 grind. It's still effing pretty out there. Always love racing in PA.
Was planning on Bridgeton tomorrow, but it's gonna be a long season, so taking the day to do house stuff and mebbe go birding with herself.
Next week: KMC and JorbaFest!
Openers the night before were a bit, um, robust. Zwift effect.
Up early so I could park close and relax a bit before go time. Oh, and get some laps in. THAT part of the plan worked to perfection. Parked right on the start row super close to @MissJR and @Santapez. The OG Philly guys were there, too. D. Lowe and Kelly Cline. Harry "the hammer" Hamilton was across the lot. He's flying.
Get a pre-ride in with Harry and @Magic. Harry announces that he's gonna swap from a 42 to a 38 to make it a bit easier. I'm already on a 38 and my HR is effing pegged on the preride. I begin to get a bad feeling about this. See, there's this hill...
I love Town Hall. It's a great venue, run by Lamprey Systems, some super nice folks. They DO suffer from repeat-itis. It's a bit like Nittany, which is run by a lot of the Lehigh posse. It's the same, year after year. Which can be great, if you've got a memory disorder. Or you really liked it that first year. This year saw one big change - the loss of the lower ball field. There was some equipment that couldn't be moved off the course.
Which led to a very very climb-y course (1100 feet over our 7 laps) on grabby mud festooned with velcro grass.
The pre-ride was a bummer. The last time I raced this, I was 10 pounds lighter. It led to a straight-up brawl with @ChrisG, which remains one of my favorite race-within-a-race days ever. Every pedal stroke on the pre-ride presaged a death-march. I hate being right.
Since my rollers aren't working out for the warmups, I bullshitted for a bit and then started doing laps around the parking lot. Not super-focused. The stabbing quad pains from last night's idiot openers prompted me to drink some pickle juice to forestall hill-induced cramps. At least I got that right.
Watched @Magic, @Santapez and @vanseggern1 (on an MOUNTAIN BIKE! AND CRUSHED IT!) smash their heads against the hill.
Then @MadisonDan TNR taped my number to me, after giving everything a solid stare.
I slammed a bottle and then some of Nuun, ate a GU and got slotted in third row, being a Piscatello rider and D. Lowe. They're wicked good starters, so felt pretty good about getting through the first 100 yards without anything stupid happening. Beyond lining up that is.
Whistle blows and we're off. MUCH faster start than I'd anticipated, despite the soft ground the sticky grass. I blew a clip, but no big deal.
The fast guys were gone, of course, and I slotted into a solid group. The soft ground and constant hills had me on the limit early though. Still new to SRAM, I blew a shift on the big hill, which made for some chasing, but I was still fresh enuf on the backside to get back w/out burning any matches. But the pattern was developing: a blip of acceleration from Paul in front, and I'd go out the back for a moment, praying that the group would yo-yo enuf for me to pilot my way back in. Of the eight, I was the weakest power-wise, but by consciously staying off the brakes, I was able to stay in. Til we hit THAT FUCKING HILL the second time. The group began to blow apart.
Without that backside ballfield, there was NO place to rest. So f*ck it - embrace the suck. Coming into lap three, still no lap card. This made me sad. I tried to put that out of my head. It was warming up a bit, so the lines were changing a bit, but it didn't get faster. "The slow" just moved left or right a bit, but it was still "the slow" and there wasn't any way around it.
Lap four, I pass D Lowe on the hill. He's running with his bike over his shoulder and the rear derailleur flanging around on his hip. Smiling, which was great. I commiserate as best I can, sounding like a four pack a day smoker running a Turkey Trot.
At this point, it's a death-march with shifting and lycra. We finally get a lap card - three to go. This brings on the sads. OTOH, I'm so dumb that by the time I was on far side of lap five, I though Oh, Hey! It's almost over!
It wasn't.
I bled a coupla places, but put my head down and churned. D Lowe came blazing through on the last lap, seemingly effortlessly gobbling up the distance between me and the last mofo to have slowly pulled away from me. Lowe is deeply talented, and gracious. Despite giggling as he passed me.
Finishing this one was sweet. 53 minutes. Long one for old people. I never felt like I was racing. Hanging on for dear life has a different vibe. Still valuable, and hella hard, but unlike the second day at Nittany, there wasn't ever a moment where I thought, "I'll get him HERE!" More like "I'll try not to start sobbing HERE!"
18th. Lap times: 7:10, 7:24, 7:29, 7:44, 7:49, 7:48, 7:50. Stanched the bleeding on the last three laps. The Schwalbe X-One Cross tires were good today, but I think I'm still running them too high. Desperately afraid of burping. Racing tubeless is taking some getting used to. The @Delish specials are gonna be glued up with a set of Baby Limuses soon, which will be interesting. And mebbe a little less nerve-racking. I'm still not convinced I can lean the tubeless over and engage the side knobs the way I can with tubies.
Hanging out after, though, was SWEET! It's a lovely spot. Kids everywhere, dogs, beer, baked goods, burritos (meh, but still, BURRITOS!).
@Magic and @vanseggern1 beered me, which gave me happies. Hung out til the men's 123 was well and truly underway, with Roger being stalked by Mike Festa and some other fast dude. Looked like it was gonna be a rocking race, but the tired was hitting my bones, so time to go before the drive back became as trying as the race. Did another backroads tour, to avoid the 78/287 grind. It's still effing pretty out there. Always love racing in PA.
Was planning on Bridgeton tomorrow, but it's gonna be a long season, so taking the day to do house stuff and mebbe go birding with herself.
Next week: KMC and JorbaFest!
Attachments
Nice job! I think Harry was right... a 42 was way too much, but who the fuck carries extra chainrings?