I may go to heckle you guys and drink beer....

I'm gonna get some Floyd 

Tuesday night?  Yes please.

I'm racing the 3/4 field Tuesday. Let's get a little squad together and go for a win.

What time do the 3/4's go off?

6:50

See you dudes there. Still in the fives though. Any other fives coming? meet at GAP 5:15

* Whitey takes 5th after escaping in an early break *

It was the best of times...it was the worst of times.  The race started slow with a creepy little move drifting off the front...followed by a catch and all HELL BREAKING LOOSE !!!  SHOTS FIRED SHOTS FIRED !!!!
Yacks goes catabolic, then cross eyed and almost goes pop...but I don't
When the smoke cleared, the break of unknown origin & size was off.  Yacks can't see very well anymore but I could see something day-glow orange bobbing off towards the horizon
Switch fazers to "block"

I proceed to spend the next 8 laps patrolling the front...chasing bridge attempts and doing my best soft pedal routine at the front.  Would have been nice to know my power #'s but the Lezyne computer (which PROMISED me it had 53% battery left) shut down around lap 3.  Lately it has been adding phantom mileage, screwing up my watts when transferring files, switching to Kilometers, forcing me to resynch my power meter at start up and all around fucking with me...The Cateye goes back on the Spooky tomorrow...Bonsoir Lezyne...you "Super" suck

Still it was a beautiful night to race at Floyd

During the chase the Yacks came under verbal assault.  Seems folks did not appreciate the fact that I weren't chasing my own teammate. This occurred around the time the break was gone for good and people be hating.  A Mineola Bike guy said some very mean spirited things to Yacks such as; "You're under-geared" "Stay the fuck out of the race" "Go watch a bike race on t.v.".
Yacks said nothing...Then a 2nd guy chimed in...Yacks said nothing...Then a 3rd guy decided it would be smart to pile on...MISTAKE...Line crossed
I said some things at that moment that would make a pirate hooker blush

Between my salty verbiage...I explained to these chaps that...1. I would not be bullied   2. they were just disappointed to have missed the break
Now I could have stopped there...but I didn't...Yacks went all old curmudgeon and dropped this zinger on them, "Don't tell me how to race my bike...I was racing out here when you dicks were still at home shitting in your diapers".  
All quiet on the Western front after that diatribe.  A few laps later i did have someone ask me if I had a teammate up the road...when I said "yes"...I got a "great job" in response.
All that was left was to out sprint every shit bird who messed with me...which I did
I'll let people yell at me in a race...even insult me...but cross that line and...YOU'RE GONNA DIE CLOWN!

Whitey with the results!

And Yackitori with the entertainment!

<333333

Huggies were a big seller back then

While I can’t match the Yacks in words or pacing or blocking abilities, it was an experience like non-other for me at Floyd.  Stoked to see Whitey winning munchkin money, and great to be in a race with Yacks and Patrick for the first time. 

After the first turn and headed into the wind the group slowed … then a crack, they’re off!!  Like yacks, I’m going cross-eyed, sticky spit, a dark place, just trying to hang on.  And hang-on I did, until the end of the 3rd lap, demonstrating my rookie / endurance / threshold / skills.  I slowly retreated from the chase group.  Time trial for the remaining laps was on the menu.

Patrick picked me up on the 4th, and he and I swapped pulls together to just keep it fast, but that was enough as well.  I drifted away from his pull and spent the rest by myself.  I managed to take in the rising full moon, sunset, and impending lightning storm in the distance (and lollygag I didn’t, setting new 20 minute and 60 minute power numbers).

May the next Tuesday Floyd will yield better results ... a night like last night (early drop, weather, and Kissenas) wakes up the Barney in me. 

Yacks at home in his office...

Fear and loathing at Floyd Bennett Fields.

Floyd elicited a range of stirog emotions last night - and not just the back and forth between Yacks and the other chasers. 

I did not leave home early enough and ended up in bad traffic on the belt parkway which meant zero warm up for me. This was my undoing. There was lots of crosswinds which meant it was super critical to stay near the front at the start - which I did until my eyes crossed and a gap open on the headwind section. I felt like I was riding backwards even as I dug as deep as possible. Not only had I lost touch with the front but I was off the back. Fudge. Rookie mistake

At at that point I went into TT mode. For the first few laps I was able to find guys to work with: Scott, a tall Kissena whose name I don't know, and a dude named Miguel. I was hoping to catch the 3-4 field when it got neutralized by the 123 field. We got tantalizingly close. The field was visible but I was doing a majority of the pulling and couldn't close the gap. The chasers dropped off one by one until I was dragging Miguel for most of the each lap. 

I came here here to race but given that it was not going to be my day I at least was going to get a good workout and finish the race. I was at FTP for an hour. That should do it. 

Was stoked to see Jeff place and Yacks do well in the field sprint. Spoke to the Mineola guy who fought with Yacks and he ended up apologizing for losing his shit. Lots of emotions spilling out everywhere. 

I love floyd 

This was on the crosswind stretch just after the first few moves were coming back on Lap 1. Right after this I rode up the wind-shaded gutter on the right, poked a big Bold Racing dude on the hip with my finger as I went by and countered up the road.


I looked back and we were four. The fifth is bridging. This was really, really, really hard.


This was really, really, really, really hard. I started telling the guys I had four teammates blocking in the field and one of them was probably the strongest in the race (Yacks I guess? I was just trying to be persuasive). I didn't want them to drop me, as I was dying.


Note the crosswinds. They, in combination with the heat/humidity, were decisive. This part was hard.


The Wafels guy was really strong and took very solid, smooth pulls. By this time the break had swelled to seven, as a group bridged up to us. His downfall was with two to go as we were neutralized to let the 1-2-3 field through. For about two minutes the break was sitting right on the bumper of the marshall car. When Alan waived the "race is on" signal, there was the biggest attack of the race. Wafels never made it back. NOTE TO NEW RACERS: Neutralizations are the least-neutral part of any race. The racing is most fierce during neutral starts, neutralizations, or anything that tends to contain the word "neutral." You use this time to defend, advance, even "attack" as long as you are also being "neutral." IT IS NOT A TIME TO RELAX.


The finish of the race was pretty much the members of the break standing in a circle taking turns punching each other in the nose. I didn't play it so great and took 5th out of the 7. Many lessons learned.


The little kid in the yellow kit won. He was so bad at working with the group we let him sit on the back the whole break. Good for him.

I think you were the strongest guy in that race.  I've learned over the years it takes a good 3-4 back-to-back weeks at Floyd to get acclimated to the effort.  I have good Prospect fitness...but Floyd fitness is something completely different.  The adage is true...if you don't race at Floyd you are not a real NYC bike racer.  3 times in that race I came close to being unglued & it's a 1 hour race.  The effort is constant.  You pull into a windy section, turn the corner and guys are jumping out of the saddle with a  tailwind = no relief.  It's like somebody having you in a chicken wing and pulling up on it for an hour.

6:30 start time this week. I'll be leaving GAP at 5:15.

Jeffrey White said:

6:30 start time this week. I'll be leaving GAP at 5:15.

I wish I could, but I've got a slight muscle pull in my hamstring ... want to stay well for GMSR. 

Enjoy the festivities and give 'em hell again!

Meeting friends for drinks this evening...good luck...careful racing with all those mean girls...especially these three...

that gif was runner up

Want to feel old? That movie came out in 2003.

2003 was 13 years ago.  13 years ago I hadn't ridden a bicycle in 12 years and it would be another 5 years until I did again.

/digression

Give 'em hell, Whitey.  This time don't let the little dude suck wheels.

Anything doing yesterday?

Nah, everyone was super-motivated to make sure James Joseph would beat them in the sprint. They succeeded.

LOL sad trombone.

Who's going to race Floyd tonight that I could ask a favor of? @PatrickG is graciously willing to loan me his TT helmet for Green Mountain Stage Race, but because of my work schedule today, the surefire way to make the exchange would be through an intermediary at Floyd, where he's racing tonight. We just need a volunteer. After the race Patrick hands off the helmet to a teammate headed back to BK, and by then I'll be able to leave work and meet you, dear clubmate, somewhere in Brooklyn or Manhattan. For helping me out, I'll bring you a post-race snack (or buy your coffee-and-pastry on the next group ride we go on together). 

I might be able to race tonight and could help you out, Max.
What time does the Cat 5 race start? I have never done this race before. 

Car 5 race goes off at 6pm tonight 

I will try and make it, in which case I can grab the helmet. Max, I live in Park Slope.

Thanks Greg. 

If Greg can't make it, but somebody else reading this can, text or call me at 479-841-8562.