vlad said:

For those keeping score,

You can be sure that we are.

Who's that to left of Ian and I?

That is such a badass picture - not only because of the RKO guy lookin' left - but also... can you imagine who much John is going to win when he finally gets his front wheel straightened?

Jules said:

That is such a badass picture - not only because of the RKO guy lookin' left - but also... can you imagine who much John is going to win when he finally gets his front wheel straightened?

Torque baby, torque. That's pure diesel power that would bend the subframe of lesser riders!

Ha!  Almost everyone is staring at Hulk in that pic.  Rko dudes, guy in neon green, dude next to him, guys behind him... they knew it was coming and there's nothing they could do.  #smashysmashy

No Brinkerhoff for me this weekend. Wife is still away until Saturday and I can't abandon the kids. I'll look to do the last one though. 

Stacked field again. Eff.

vlad said:

Stacked field again. Eff.

Consider perhaps doing a training ride that day instead? So here's the thing:

There is absolutely value in now and again, going out and beating your head against a brick wall in a challenging race. I did it at Grant's Tomb, for example; I needed the gut check. But at some point, it's more valuable to take a step back from pinning on numbers and get in some good training. Or if you have the option of racing an easier field, then that may be an option. Because not only do you risk not getting in enough actual physical training if you are getting dropped too early in a race, but the negative effects of a mental beat down is not to be minimized in the big picture of your season.

I'm not saying that this necessarily applies to Vlad, or you or you or you. But it might. And Vlad's comment made me want to share this perspective.

Vlad, switch fields and save yourself the experience of being turned into steel cut Canadian bacon, or pwned by this punk: http://www.bmcracingteam.com/index.php?id=276

I'm not backing out now, though I may switch fields mid-race if you catch my drift (or rather I yours, though only to tailgun). Because fuck it, it's supposed to be hard. I've done it. I'll keep doing it.

But the 3/4 is so horrorshow, and you won't be all on your oddy knocky!

As if the race wasn't going to be hard enough, the weather forecast is for temps in the 30s and 70% chance of snow and rain showers in Coxsackie on Saturday morning. Should warm up in the afternoon but they are predicting high winds. Belgium anyone?

... having a hard time figuring out how to dress for this one.

Vlad, 40s and raining is just cold and unpleasant. Reminds me of summer in Belgium. Almost nothing you are going to wear is going to keep you dry. It almost doesn't matter. Shorts, leg warmers, a thicker than usual long sleeve jersey. Maybe a plastic wind vest to keep your core a little dryer for 15 minutes longer than without. Neoprene booties (once they soak through, water gets trapped in there, creating a warm "wet suit" like effect. My best advice is neoprene gloves if you have them, bring a towel and plenty of dry clothes to jump into after your race.

Any reports?

sucked

Back in the good old days, when I was in shape, I still wasn't exactly competitive with best elites and pros. And so when I stepped up to the plate and raced over my pay-grade, I adjusted my goals and expectations accordingly.

Words of wisdom Marc. It's an honor just to be able to line up with these dudes. There's no delusion here. It's a good gut check.

3/4
With 20 miles to go there are three strong guys up the road @ 1 minute, working well. Ian is out with a mechanical, Aaron is hanging tough in the pack. Patrick has already taken a shot at bridging with another guy the lap before, making it half way across and bringing back the gap back to about 40 seconds. The bunch brings Patrick & co. back and then solo counters follow.

The chasers in the pack are getting frustrated, there are teams which aren't represented blocking. I weigh the positives of either tucking in and sprinting for the 3 remaining places, or trying to organize a chase/bridging party. I go with the latter. In the tale wind we make inroads, the carrot dangles at 30 seconds at the bell — 12 miles to go. After surviving the attacks in echelon along the bottom of the course I go hard into the headwind and realize I'm off the front, take aim at the front trio and try to settle into what I gauge is going to be a grueling 7-10 minutes TT. Get low, pull in your elbows, cadence high. Got to catch them before the two punchy climbs up onto the main road (my power to weight is not helping me here). If I can just get to them at the bottom of the climb in 3km's I'm golden.

At the bottom of the climb I'm close enough to hear them changing gears, but I've gone over threshold to get there, and that's how the race was lost. Breathing like an asthma attack, power falls off cliff, I try to recover before the catch. Back in the group, I decide to go all in to try and bring it back in the hopes that I get a little time to recover and then sprint for the win.

We're powering into the headwind up to the top of the course, Aaron appears and does a full minute pull, burying himself into the final short small chain ring climb. As we enter the corner the three escapees are rolling over the top 150m's away, one of them is OTB. I'm focused on keeping it rolling, but it's tailwind now the whole way and riders are starting to hedge. Catch OTB guy, now it's a sprint for third. The two guys off the front dig deep and are holding us off, very impressive. It's 750 to go and a Arc guy attacks I try to get his wheel but am blocked by a rider pulling off. In limbo, I reel him in but then Arc guy messes up the final corner and pushes me out wide for the tail wind sprint. I'd planned to go full gas pedaling through the corner to create a gap, but now I now have a 6/7 guys lined up on my wheel. Too late to do anything I launch, hoping I can hold on, two guys come around me and then another and and then I'm gassed, I stupidly let up 20m's short and there's a flood of eager riders passing me.

This course reminds me of racing out in the wop bops of NZ; nice people; smaller fields; awesome and challenging circuits; always blowing a gale. Thanks to Ian for the lift and Vlad for whatever was in that drink bottle. Last race is next week and only $30. Sign up already!       

John I have a provisional hall pass for the next (and last) one...!

I will be there also.

I hear through the rumor mill that they are thinking about a fourth race. They are considering the Saturday after Battenkill (4/12).

Ian, I'd venture to say people would attend a much longer series if it was offered.

Agreed. They should start it earlier and have it finish in time for battenkill.

See you guys up there. I'm opting to do the 4/5 field.

The weather does not look too good for Saturday, I'm on the fence.

@Thierry Right now I see sunny, warm (13 degrees C) and rain late afternoon. You'll be home and hosed.

I has a sad

Jules, That's a bummer to hear about your incident, I was looking forward to race together. Some other time...