Monday 11 March 2013

WCMCC Age Division Criterium Championships :: 10th March, 2013

The last time I raced a criterium down at Rockingham was the same event for 2012 - the WCMCC Age Division Criterium Championships. Last year was a very hard ride amongst a 40-44 year old field loaded with A graders. This year, there were 15 riders scheduled to make a start in the same division with half the riders being A graders, including Doug Steward and Roger Knight to name a few. However, this time around I would be among team mates in Paul Foxwell (great rider) and Craig Pennell (strong TT rider). I went down to Rockingham with a race plan but would also wait to see what Craig and Paul had planned.

I arrived at the course to see Chris Roberts (HCT) mid-race and looking strong among his field (45-49 year old division) and he finished in second place. This was followed up with Chris Singleton (HCT) placing second in his 50-54 year old division, which also ended up being the largest field for the day. Emma Gillard (HCT) (40-44 year old women's division) and Dave Ellis (55-59 year old division) also finished second respectively.

As I was down to Rockingham early, I had plenty of time to warm up and get the legs working. I also had some time to chat with Craig and Paul before our race in order to check in with them on any race plans. They asked if I could cover any breaks to ensure any dangerous riders didn't get away and look to cover Paul if he managed to get a break going himself. This worked OK for me as it would still fit with my original plan to consider going for a break at around the half way point of the race as I strongly doubted my chances in an all out sprint finish for the line against the strength of Doug Stewart. However, if it came down to a sprint, I would be happy to act as a lead out for Paul.

With all of the other racing complete, bar the 55-59 year old division already on course and our age division, we were called to the marshaling area and prepared for a start. Our division was only down one rider in Paul Claessen who did not arrive so a 14 strong field would make it competitive without being a brutal slog that can happen with smaller fields, as Simon Verona found out in the 35-39 year old division.

As we were released onto the course, I didn't really anticipate anyone wanting to jump early and I was right as the pace of the first lap was not high but that did change once we entered our second lap and the attacks started. First one came from Roger Knight and he went pretty hard as we passed through the roundabout and into Pickard Ave. I immediately covered this attack and jumped onto Roger's wheel and stayed put, not offering to come around at all which prompted him to sit up and let the field drag him back.

A couple of half-effort attacks followed, some of which I ignored as they came from riders I was not concerned about and were not followed by anyone else to offer assistance. These attacks were brought back within minutes but were usually followed with another counter attack including another from Roger. Once again, I covered his attack by going with him and the main field was right on my wheel which again prompted Roger to sit up and be brought back.

The next attack came from Paul Foxwell and I let him go in the hope he would get a decent gap on the field. Craig had come to the front of the bunch at this point and we both sat in and offered nothing to the chase, however this did not deter others from wanting to go and bring Paul back into the field and he was back with the bunch within a few minutes.

I was sitting second wheel for a while when Lee Potthast launched an attack but I decided not to go with him as no-one else seemed concerned about his jump. As there was no sign of me looking to cover the attack, a couple of other riders eventually came around and began to bridge the gap to Lee. This prompted a few more to go, including Paul and again I waited to see what would happen with this but they too were brought back into the field.

We caught up with the 55-59 year old race as it was drawing toward the end of their allotted time and we were within earshot of them as they were given 2 laps to go and we were asked to keep our distance. This seemed to spark yet another attack from Roger Knight but this time I was caught on the inside of the bunch and couldn't go with it. No-one else went either as I think there was concern with interfering with the other race so he managed to get away although this time it didn't seem as though it was with much determination as the gap did not increase as rapidly as the last time he jumped. It looked as though he might be tiring which meant he may not last too long on his own.

Roger managed to get around the 55-59 year old field and separated himself from the rest of us and that race was now in it's last lap. I figured we would drag Roger back into the bunch soon after the finish of that race but it seemed he decided not to interfere and allowed himself to fall back to us and let the other race finish unhindered.

With our race being the only one left to finish, we approached the half way mark of the race with 20 minutes elapsed and I began to consider my options. I had already done some significant work in covering breaks but I was still feeling quite strong and felt I would have enough energy in reserve to go on the attack and hold it if the opportunity arose. At that point, Paul Foxwell jumped again and launched another attack. Again, I let him go and a few other riders decided to go with him, including Roger. There had been no sign of Doug Stewart by this stage of the race so I knew he was holding as much in reserve for a sprint finish as he could and was not interesting in chasing down a break unless it seemed threatening.

Paul and about 4 other riders managed to get a bit of a break but it seemed disorganised and no-one was interested in working to increase the gap and once again they were slowly brought back into the field as we rounded the sweeping bend at the top end of Smeaton Way. I noted that Roger had been caught on the inside of the course with a number of riders surrounding him and as we closed the gap on the break, I was just to the outside of that small group and saw an opportunity to counter attack and put some sting on the field.

I launched as soon as the small break group were caught and came around the outside of them. I heard either Paul or Craig yell "Go Charlie!" which gave me all the encouragement I needed to put the hammer down and get as much of a break on the field as I could. I had initially expected to take one or two riders with me but as I reached the roundabout at Pickard Ave, I glanced back to find I had put a 5 second gap on everyone. I kept the power on and by the time I had completed my first lap since the attack, I had put another 5-10 seconds on the field and there was no sign of anyone wanting to chase so I kept the pace up.

With yet another lap completed with no sign of anyone else attempting to bridge a now significant gap, I felt I was capable of keeping the pace up (now well over 40 km/h for my solo effort) and staying away. After 3 laps on my own, I glanced back as I was about to leave Tesla Rd at the back of the course and noticed that a sole rider had broken away from the bunch in an attempt to bridge the gap to me. This would be welcome assistance if he was able to get across unchecked and the two of us might be able to complete the race unchallenged.

As I looked around again, I noticed the rider was Doug Stewart. I assumed that this meant he considered my gap a significant threat and decided he would not let me go unchallenged. He successfully bridged the gap leaving the main field still some 15-20 seconds back and he came around and jumped in front of me to take some of my work load off. Nothing was said between us but we both knew that we were now in a chance to be able to hold the main field off if we were able to keep the pace up. To have Doug assisting like this was a big boost to my chances of gaining a podium position and I was more than happy to work with him.

We quickly got ourselves into a rhythm and rolled turns where we would trade places every half a lap. This was much longer than the usual 30-40 second efforts Brad had always encouraged us to do but it didn't seem to be causing me any dramas and I was happy to continue with this rotation as I was on the front with the wind. Unfortunately, after a few laps of this, the wind seemed to change and I was now taking turns into the wind and it began to cause some significant fatigue but I was keen to hold on and keep going with Doug.

I think Doug sensed I was tiring a little with about 5-6 minutes left before entering two laps to go and he backed off a bit to allow me to recover. A very sportsman-like gesture and indeed, it did allow me some respite and I was able to begin rolling turns again after a bit over half a lap which put a slight shift on the points at which we would rotate. Doug began encouraging me to keep strong and fight for my place in the race and to work hard to hold off the main field. I had heard we had put 30 seconds on them at one point but by the time we entered the two laps to go, they were gaining and another rider was attempting to bridge across to us.

As we rolled past the two to go sign, I was working incredibly hard and Doug kindly offered a friendly push as we approached the roundabout. I was very grateful for the "shove" as it seemed to allow me to dig deeper into my energy reserves and I kept the pace up over 40 km/h, where it had been since I started my attack. The bell lap could not have come at a better time and I glanced back to check the main field. There was still a rider out in chase but the gap would be too great to close so I knew it would come down to Doug and myself.

Doug would have the sprint on me and noted that for the last lap he decided not to come around for his turn on the front but was still encouraging me to keep pushing hard. As we rounded the sweeping bend on Smeaton Way for the last time I was out front and did not want Doug to "gift" me the race as it would have been a hollow win and I was happy to see him come around me and charge for the line. In what was probably a token effort, I got out of the saddle and attempted to go with him, but the energy reserves were spent and there was no point in trying to out-sprint him. I was happy to take silver with about 10-15 seconds over 3rd place getter, Richard Kelly.

I crossed the line very happy with the effort I had put in and I rolled back up to Doug to thank him for his encouragement and assistance through the last half of the race. As I came back into the finish line after my warm down "lap of honour", I climbed the kerb and dismounted my bike to find my legs were completely shot and struggled to keep my body weight and I had to use the bike for assistance. After some congratulations received from team mates and spectators, I promptly and willingly collapsed on the grass and awaited some kind of sign that I had enough energy to get up again.

Paul Foxwell managed to place 4th and Craig Pennell came in 6th to complete some great weekend results for Hall Cycling which included additional results at Technology Park for the last race of the SPR/RCCC Summer Series Criteriums. Congratulations go to Luba Kovalenica (3rd, C Grade women), Mel Robinson (5th, B Grade women), Anthony Minchin (1st, B Grade mens - an inevitable win) and Leonie Burford (1st, A Grade women).

Specific kudos to Simon Verona for his ride in an incredibly difficult 35-39 year old division including some quality riders in a field of only 6 starters. Simon was going to be up against it from the starter's whistle and the attacks came thick and fast which increased the pressure on trying to keep up with it. While Simon opted to pull out, he would have ridden hard for the duration as the speed was pretty furious.

Thanks for reading.

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