Aug 25, 2013 at 05:56 PM
also, @mugwump + clifford, it wasn't svenn on the tandem. i asked him
CRCA Master's throwdown 8/24 plus M3/4 and W4
Aug 26, 2013 at 11:53 AM
video of the men's 3/4 is up: 
http://youtu.be/R8It75hwvhk
http://youtu.be/R8It75hwvhkunrelated comment: for those who haven't raced CP, know that the men's bathrooms (i didn't explore the women's) have no doors on the stalls. this is no way to begin your morning. plan accordingly.
Aug 26, 2013 at 02:58 PM
Brendan, MTFU.
I've seen plenty of heroic early morning CP racing characters use the facilities to full effect, no door. Dudes impressed me and put me on the back foot without a single pedal stroke having been turned. If they're willing to shit in front of everyone (I mean everyone, at least 75% of all fields file past the door to take a piss at least) what would they do in the race, which is the actual competition...
To show your prowess and prove that you have learnt from your first CP race, I insist that you endeavour to use the open-door toilets for your pre-race dump next time. Go Pro optional, although, would be absolutely classic. Would be the same POV as in the race, as in "pilot's-eye-view" but would get hundreds upon hundreds of wonderful facial expressions as the peloton assessed your dedication.
Aug 26, 2013 at 03:22 PM
What is manliness?
Adam says showing yourself.
(He just likes to watch)
GoPro in bathroom
Secretly filming others
Soon, police arrive
Aug 26, 2013 at 10:31 PM
Not much to report for the women's Cat 4 race. Moderate 4 laps (22.1mph) in a field of 23 women, with some of this season's strongest riders absent/upgraded, and no team having more than 2 members present.
It was a rough day for momentum. We were neutralized on our first Harlem Hill climb, and then again along the rollers, and then again around horseshit alley (maybe just before, maybe slightly after... by this point, the ladies were annoyed, bored, and chatting).
The ladies of Long Island's Live Love Velo attempted some attacks along the rollers in laps 2 and 3, but nothing stuck. Anastasia Yanchilina of Houlihan Lokey (a strong but somewhat reckless rider, in my experience) lead an attack on Harlem Hill during lap 3, which resulted in a short-lived break consisting of me, Fanny Bourdais of Dave Jordan, Erica Berthou, and one of the Long Island ladies... rest of the field caught up before the Reservoir. Pretty tame otherwise, save a couple gasps on lap 2 when Berthou split the double paceline and took my hand with her.
I found myself at the front coming up Cat's Paw on the last lap, and coasted back a couple wheels before the sprint, but was a bit late on the jump and out muscled by the women coming up behind me. Finished 13th, but I felt strong and managed to stay near the front for the field for the entire race. Finish aside, it was a good day for me.
And, of course, it was excellent to meet Marc & JP!
Aug 26, 2013 at 10:49 PM
Brendan Rigby said:video of the men's 3/4 is up:unrelated comment: for those who haven't raced CP, know that the men's bathrooms (i didn't explore the women's) have no doors on the stalls. this is no way to begin your morning. plan accordingly.
lol at the foundation rider crashing himself out at 1:21.50 on the left side cones.
Aug 26, 2013 at 11:51 PM
Erika, you are already on your way to some nice results by a) having the legs to be there at the end of the race and b)knowing your competition. I'm impressed. (I'm still trying to figure out who 2/3 of the men's players are after 10 years of racing around here!)
Aug 27, 2013 at 12:59 AM
@Erika, We often speculate on what is (or what is not) going on in the women's field. From the outside, it seems like a lot of rather negative racing. Hopefully with a teammate or two, you can work to change all that. Tough/impossible to do it on your own, however.
Aug 27, 2013 at 03:28 PM
@dstokes, After the Master's Throwdown, Marc mentioned that the women seem more concerned with losing than winning, and, in general, I'd have to agree. My guess (and I only have one season and half a dozen races under my belt, so take this with a grain of salt) is that 1) there are fewer women's races, so getting dropped hurts a lot more; 2) depending on the race, a "well represented" team might mean 3 or 4 women, so you're pretty limited when it comes to team strategy...and who wants to put their neck out there without backup? and 3) at Central Park, if you're not a star sprinter, then just finishing with the main field is an accomplishment.
CRCA Central Park races a mix of new/first-time riders as well as a lot of very strong, very experienced women who've just never upgraded. There're horrible for women's cat 4 upgrade points. Rarely is there a field of 30 or more women (except the spring women's clinic, which attracted a record 50 riders this year) and several races this season were just under the necessary 25 miles. The cast of characters typically consists of serious women who are about to upgrade and are using Saturday morning's park race to warm up for Saturday afternoon's out of town race, serious women who have been racing for years and years but aren't going to upgrade, new (hopefully serious, often timid) women trying to get as much experience as possible, and some knucklehead who is continually doing something horribly dangerous despite lots of grumpy hollering.
(Aside: My favorite knucklehead story of the season involves an incredibly strong triathlete who decided Harlem Hill was a feed zone and had her husband toss her a bottle from the jogger's lane.)
In terms of the attitude of the field, it seems we're far less chatty than the men's fields (but that's probably expected given there are fewer of us and we're racing a shorter distance, so Central Park always feels like a slow crit.) Out of town races are a bit more... I guess the words that come to mind are competitive, gentle-womanly, and fun.
Aug 27, 2013 at 04:29 PM
FWIW, that was JP that said the thing about more concerned with losing than winning. I would never presume to know what's in the head of women, in general.
Aug 27, 2013 at 04:33 PM
On thing I can say for certain, there certainly is a lot more hugging after a women's race. JP never hugs me.
Aug 27, 2013 at 05:22 PM
It's ok @Erika, people mistake these two all the time.. ;-)Marc Bertucco said:
FWIW, that was JP that said the thing about more concerned with losing than winning.
Congrats on finishing the race!
Aug 27, 2013 at 06:32 PM
Aug 27, 2013 at 06:58 PM
@Erika-- I'll definitely dish out the hugs.
Aug 28, 2013 at 02:25 AM
That might be the most awesome Feed Zone faux pas I've heard about. Better even than when Adam threw a full bottle at a child who was trying to helpErika Tarte said:(Aside: My favorite knucklehead story of the season involves an incredibly strong triathlete who decided Harlem Hill was a feed zone and had her husband toss her a bottle from the jogger's lane.)
Yes, for years I have wondered what transpires within the women's peloton as if it were some sort of alien pod of inscrutability.
And yet... it sounds exactly like the men's peloton except with different team names; sandbaggers, people who have absolutely no business riding in a bunch and people whose main goal is to finish "not last." Figures!
Your results for season 1 of racing are great; after a solid winter you should be ready to stomp the spring out of town races in true KCC style.
Aug 28, 2013 at 02:28 AM
I expect you to be ready to outsmart the in town races as well.Jules said:Your results for season 1 of racing are great; after a solid winter you should be ready to stomp the spring out of town races in true KCC style.