twoyacks said:

* 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!

I know I'm late to this but hell yeah. And boys (and girls) *this* is how a race report is to be written.

The gauntlet has been thrown. 

for now a power file from tonights race....Patrick was with me...report to come later...Yacks busy hitting himself in the junk with a torque wrench for getting boxed in before the sprint...
https://www.strava.com/activities/695044305?fb_action_ids=10209293893999760&fb_action_types=fitness.bikes&fb_source=other_multiline&action_object_map=[911910818913153]&action_type_map=["fitness.bikes"]&action_ref_map=[]

Last Tuesday night race..with extra super bonus points to attract competitors.  I hitched a ride with Patrick and we cut through the Rockaways to dodge the traffic.  We had time to register and slap on some chamois cream...and we were off !!!  Weather was picture perfect with the temps in the low 80's.  1st lap was a parade lap...2nd lap was a rushed parade lap followed by two dudes who clearly decided they wanted to race their bikes,going up the road.  A 2 man break with 8 to go ?  Meh...too bold for Yacks.  Now they got a nice gap without anyone really panicking...alas fortune favors the bold and we all heard the sound of Karl's Ditterbrandt's motorcycle coming up on us = shit we've been caught by the 1/2/3's and are about to be neutralized.


Now Karl's moto sat on us for a good 1/2 a lap before we saw the 1/2/3's = Que pasa ese?

So those 2 dudes had some time to put in some time...(see what I did there?)
Now Karl started holding out what appeared to be different colored ping pong paddles...which nobody could understand...one was orange

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past...wait what?
We chased..at a medium pace for the next 6 or so laps with little drama...save for Yack hitting a pothole so hard my dentures fell out

Oh and some dude attacked wide with about 3 to go...not sure how he did it, but he totally ate shit and slid for about 20 feet on Floyd asphalt...There Will Be Blood..and skin removed

Now during all this....and what can be described as the height of gluttony...James Joseph chased all the sprint points...I think he won all the jerseys (overall, sprint, masters)...not sure this is really in the spirit of the inter competition competitions (see I did it again).  

2 laps before the sprint, Yacks started thinking "positioning".  Its been years since I've really contested a Floyd sprint & I just couldn't figure the best position to be in.  By the time we approached the last turn I had tried more positions than the Kamasutra

I set up behind a strong looking dude from Mineola before the last turn...I'de been taking the inside all night...but here...at the most crucial point..Mr. Mineola soft pedaller SLAP CHOPS my front wheel !!!

This was bad enough...but he proceeds to not pedal into the turn and lets a gap open...1,2,3 seconds    Yacks finally finds a way around and opens up his sprint (around 1100 watts)...I was closing on the sprinters but ran out of road.  This was all fine...these are training races and I kept it upright and was able to test my legs in the sprint.  Oh if it seems like I'm everywhere in these races...it's cuz there are apparently 2 of me...







Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on your proclivities) a tranny prostitute did not proposition me after this race (I'm looking at you sir or mam who was sitting on that park bench outside Prospect Sunday morning).
Winter is here....now everyone go silly about cyclocross and how rad it is and what kind of tubular glue you are using....Le sigh
Yacks signing out vato's

This great race report made me miss racing at Floyd.. 

SLAP CHOP!

twoyacks said:

Winter is here....now everyone go silly about cyclocross and how rad it is and what kind of tubular glue you are using....Le sigh
Yacks signing out vato's

Just to clarify, it isn't about what tubular glue you're using, it is what flavor of tubular glue you're sniffing. I like the more heady high of the Continental carbon tubular glue rather than the Vittoria's more deep stupor kind of high.  

A quicker way to mainline is a tubular tape enema...goes on smooth

But gettin it off can be a problem...

This series left a bad taste in my mouth..

How so? 

That's where I crashed and broke my arm. 4/5 race.

If you haven't crashed at Floyd and wound up at Coney Island Hospital = you ain't trying
(been there...done that)

I'm gonna sign up for race #1 on the 6th (4/5)

FBF race is cancelled tonight  :'(

going to try to race this Thursday night if it don't rain. anyone else going?

I'll do some of these when the weather gets hot. Sadly Thursdays work better than Tuesdays for my work schedule. 

Not playing this time, will definitely be racing FBF tomorrow night. Boss is out of town. Booyeah

is the best strategy to start sprinting as soon as you pass the last curve / turn??? 

All depends on the wind Greg. If its howling behind you maybe shortly after and you might not have to get our of the saddle, if its a cross or in your face, i would wait, a while.

in my face. thx sean

horrible race for me. let off the gas for a minute on lap 2 and got dropped. sprinted for a full lap and just about caught up, but got spit out the back just as I was grabbing on. a couple dudes held my wheel for the last three laps and didn't do any work. then one of them sprinted past me at the finish. that was a wtf race. clearly I'm doing something wrong. 

greg, sounds like a typical floyd race. beware the wind!

in races where i was successful at floyd it was because i conserved energy until the end.  you'll feel lazy during the race but then just sprint around everyone at the end using all your conserved energy.  you have a sprint and should use that to your advantage.  hide in the pack and let others savor the lovely jamaica bay breeze

if you have video from the incident try to figure out why you got dropped on lap 2. maybe you were eating too much wind for too long.  at the beginning of a race it is easy to go too hard for too long.  your adrenaline is up, your heart isn't used to the effort, everything's a little wonky.  easy to accidentally sit on the front for way longer than appropriate

@Brendan Rigby you basically described my race. you are a wise man. I was out front for the first lap and a half. eating wind the whole time and basically picked the wrong dude to start drafting off when I realized it wasn't sustainable. saw the gap widening and by the time I got off the saddle to catch back up, they were gone. I was at threshold for a lap trying to catch up. 

your advice is well recieved. I think i learned a lot about what not to do at floyds today. it was pretty embarrassing. will get it next week...maybe

btw just so everyone knows, the Thursday night races will have later start times going forward double check the website, but CAT 4/5 will go off at 6:20 and 1/2/3 closer to 7.

  Floyd 

Floyd will put hair on your chest

With Brendan on this one. While I wouldn't advise tailgunning the best finish I ever had at Floyd I just hid/tailgunned. Moved up with a lap to go. Took the inside line on the last corner and would up 7th or 8th in the 3/4 field. Obviously this is terrible tactics if a break ends up getting away and you want to be in it but sometimes it's worth the risk. 

yeah sean's right, the wind at floyd can quickly turn a small gap into a faraway break

Hiding and then moving up on the bell so you can shop the sprint on your own is OK if you have a big sprint like Sean. We should also sort team goals and strategy pre-race (taking onto account individual rider abilities and the competition on the night). Pick an experienced rider to captain and ride a lap to discuss and identify the riders to mark so you can react to the danger. If we're not racing for a jersey, or a prime prize, then make a plan to get a teammate in the money for a beer afterwards. In my experience the best tactics are:

#1. Breakaway after the second sprint prime (highest chance of success on a windy night). The second prime is usually 2/3rds into the race, a lot of people have burned their matches and everyone is on the limit. This is when the strongest and most experienced riders go for the kill. Ask anyone who's ridden these races and you'll hear "I knew what I had to do, but just watched the gap open and the race ride away". If that break somehow gets brought back and your teammate was in it, you have to, have to, have to launch an immediate counter attack. Repeat the counters until another one sticks or finish line appears. I've seen 2nd prime breaks succeed countless times, but if a Kissena is in one and gets brought back, teammates resting in the bunch really need to take the R on immediate counter attacks.

#2. Save it for the sprint Saving it all for the end is always sketchy and IMO not in the spirit of the sport, but a lot of riders use this race like an ATM this way (see James Joseph). If you can get to riders on the wheel of the fastest sprinter you have a good chance of staying upright and placing in the money. If you want the team to dictate the sprint, be warned, you need mega big motors to string it out from 1km to 200m.

#3 From the gun If you have the skills to clip in and are warmed up properly, line up at front, clip in fast and attack from the gun. You're pretty much guaranteed a 30 second gap and if there are two or more of you (from different teams), it's possible to make it to prime 1. Sure it's a long shot, but you'll make the opposition burn matches. You'll also do your teammates a solid by giving them a free ride and shake loose some of the inexperienced riders.  

#4 Attack in the first 3 laps Unless you're state TT champ or Dave Anthony, don't bother, everyone's hopped up and setting 5 minute power records because they feel awesome, join in the fun and you're just throwing away resources. 

Conditions should decide the tactics: windless=guaranteed bunch sprint, wind=breakaways. Whatever happens, be aggressive, there's nothing worse than negative racing—think of it as prep for the 123 field where the attacks do not stop until a break is formed, really, they just don't stop.