Racing kicked off in the City Club Winter Series on an unusually warm day. Winds were exceptionally strong which made for plenty of gutter time. Alan Williams scored a win in the A grade while fastest women was Laura Thompson racing in C grade.

The fat trackie wasn't on good form in C grade and was fair swinging for most of the race. Didn't help when people were not using the whole lane and others were parking themselves 5-7 riders back and not rolling through.

A grade blew to pieces with a definite split between the guns the wannabes and the dreamers. 1:00.30hr for the win. B grade was 1.05hr and C grade 1.09hr. 43kph in those winds is fair hauling!

[quote="
The fat trackie wasn't on good form in C grade and was fair swinging for most of the race. Didn't help when people were not using the whole lane and others were parking themselves 5-7 riders back and not rolling through.[/quote]
It helps to remember there is a very broad range of rider abilty and experience in C grade. For some people sitting in is their only way to arrive at the finish with half a chance of placing or simply arriving with the front bunch. Some of the experienced racers should have spent more time trying to coherently organise the group instead of shouting random abuse. That said, it was great race and I was hugely impressed with a select few for pushing the pace up front - not easy in todays conditions.

Parking yourself that close to the front and not rolling through doesn't help matters. When we did get it organised the bunch ran very smoothly then someone would leave a gap and it would all shut down.

I agree, it rolled along really well when enough riders took their turn. But that is where the experience and ability comes into the picture. Whether it be self doubt or lack of fitness some riders are only capable of maintaining 2 or 3 roll throughs before they're at their limit. They can't be criticized for managing their race the way they see is best for them. You will always have these people in any race so I choose to worry more about what I'm doing and not others. However, it's damn impressive being part of an organised group that works together.

That's what we were trying to achieve. The problem was riders parking themselves near the front and not lapping through. That and not using the whole lane. Then we all take turns, all improve technique, all get stronger, all learn to race rather than to just hang on a wheel. Although considering my fitness that was all I was good for today

fuck lapping through, just attack attack attack or sit on

if u were sik of people sitting on why didn't u sit on the front and hit it with your 'track power' for 2min and smash the bunch to pieces???? cross-winds = most fun you can have with a bunch!

Al's a Burglar. He should be riding in a grade all on his own

Lozz wrote:if u were sik of people sitting on why didn't u sit on the front and hit it with your 'track power' for 2min and smash the bunch to pieces???? cross-winds = most fun you can have with a bunch!

I don't care if people sit on, just do it at the back. Heh, I used my track power to bring back one of the U17s who had been sitting in and jumped near the finish.

Kudos to the guy who stayed off the front.

I don't and never have ridden bikes other than my flash chopper with the cool flag on the back when I was 10 which I was very proud of, BUT even I know what Hamish is saying. The hanger ons were blocking the lapping, through being up too close and covering the whole riding lane near the front. Let all the better fitter riders in your group do all the lapping up front and don't be cheeky and try and beat them. That's fair isn't it?

Even I understand this.

And before someone jumps on me for not being a rider, My son's taken it up which has sparked my interest in cycling.

Fergie wrote:Racing kicked off in the City Club Winter Series on an unusually warm day. Winds were exceptionally strong which made for plenty of gutter time. Alan Williams scored a win in the A grade while fastest women was Laura Thompson racing in C grade.

The fat trackie wasn't on good form in C grade and was fair swinging for most of the race. Didn't help when people were not using the whole lane and others were parking themselves 5-7 riders back and not rolling through.

A grade blew to pieces with a definite split between the guns the wannabes and the dreamers. 1:00.30hr for the win. B grade was 1.05hr and C grade 1.09hr. 43kph in those winds is fair hauling!

Can I join this when I come over in august? A or B grade?

We hook back into Club racing by then and you are more than welcome to join in. Sure a Dutchman would have loved yesterdays racing. Pretty much in the gutter the whole way.

Te Rauparaha wrote:I don't and never have ridden bikes other than my flash chopper with the cool flag on the back when I was 10 which I was very proud of, BUT even I know what Hamish is saying. The hanger ons were blocking the lapping, through being up too close and covering the whole riding lane near the front. Let all the better fitter riders in your group do all the lapping up front and don't be cheeky and try and beat them. That's fair isn't it?

Even I understand this.

And before someone jumps on me for not being a rider, My son's taken it up which has sparked my interest in cycling.

Yeah...cheers for your input. I also understand what Hamish is saying and completely agree with him. I'm fully aware that I'm out of my depth when trying to debate tactics with him (even when the course contains right hand corners ). The point I was trying to make is that in a C grade race there are a contingent of riders (yes me) who aren't aware of even, what may appear to some, the basics of road racing tactics. These people don't need to be called f@#*ing c@#ts etc (as was often the case) to get them to play the game. A & B grade I could understand as the experience level should be a lot higher. Just a quiet word in the riders ear, when the pace has calmed, would have been far more beneficial to everyone. It took me a couple of roll throughs to realize what using the whole road meant in regards to protecting riders from the wind. Pretty obvious in hindsight, but all it took was for another rider to give me some quiet advice on the way through (cheers Aaron?) and I began contributing more effectively to the pace. If you get that worked up about things then I suggest you go and race with the big boys to get some perspective. Speaking of which, I hope some others, like myself, are aiming to have a crack at B grade before the season is out as there are some really solid riders out there in C.

good stuff mr swine
strange thing about starting out in cycling is you are expected to know everything from the get go... or face much loud abuse

roaringswine wrote:

Te Rauparaha wrote:I don't and never have ridden bikes other than my flash chopper with the cool flag on the back when I was 10 which I was very proud of, BUT even I know what Hamish is saying. The hanger ons were blocking the lapping, through being up too close and covering the whole riding lane near the front. Let all the better fitter riders in your group do all the lapping up front and don't be cheeky and try and beat them. That's fair isn't it?

Even I understand this.

And before someone jumps on me for not being a rider, My son's taken it up which has sparked my interest in cycling.

Yeah...cheers for your input. I also understand what Hamish is saying and completely agree with him. I'm fully aware that I'm out of my depth when trying to debate tactics with him (even when the course contains right hand corners ). The point I was trying to make is that in a C grade race there are a contingent of riders (yes me) who aren't aware of even, what may appear to some, the basics of road racing tactics. These people don't need to be called f@#*ing c@#ts etc (as was often the case) to get them to play the game. A & B grade I could understand as the experience level should be a lot higher. Just a quiet word in the riders ear, when the pace has calmed, would have been far more beneficial to everyone. It took me a couple of roll throughs to realize what using the whole road meant in regards to protecting riders from the wind. Pretty obvious in hindsight, but all it took was for another rider to give me some quiet advice on the way through (cheers Aaron?) and I began contributing more effectively to the pace. If you get that worked up about things then I suggest you go and race with the big boys to get some perspective. Speaking of which, I hope some others, like myself, are aiming to have a crack at B grade before the season is out as there are some really solid riders out there in C.

So did you get abused or told quietly how to ride first (by Aaron)?

Every club has it's bullies. They need a clip, I mean abuse right back at them.