Posted by Dan on 14. March 2011 19:28
What if Virginia Beach Wheelmen promoted a race and no one came? We'll never know, because this weekend's Sleepy Hole Smackdown provided perfect racing conditions for gobs of Virginia cyclists looking to collect some early BAR points. With temps closing in on 70 and all the sunlight our rickets-stricken bodies could want, a good breeze was the only natural obstacle we could complain about and barely anyone did. Celerity Cycling used this event to debut our new kit designed by the extremely talented and famous Phillip Robb of Cutaway Clothing.
No, that's not a professional model. It's Frank!
In the Cat 5 race, both Andrew and Anthony lined up to race for glory since the BAR Nazi says "No points for you!" The Cat 5 field ran for 30 minutes and did so without so much as an offroad excursion instigated by irregular lines through the few tight-ish turns. Andrew took a flyer early and after a few laps, the pack decided that probably wasn't a good idea. They slowly reeled him in and things returned to normal. On the bell lap, two riders broke free of the pack and duked it out for first, while Andrew led the main field in a bunch sprint.
Anthony and Andrew anxiously awaiting Gilbert's signal.
The Cat 4 race was halted for a spectacular crash requiring an ambulance and re-start. We hope Lindsay Honaker is OK. We admit we're a bit concerned about this weekend's upcoming Richmond International Speedway crit where Lindsay is registered for the Men's 3/4 race. Having watched last year's horrendous crash in the Cat 5 race (full of relatively inexperienced riders), I'm hoping the same doesn't happen in the 3/4 field.
Frank and I would try our hand at the Cat 3 race following the juniors. All the usual faces showed up along with a few new ones. I was pre-warned to watch for some guy named Steve on a yellow bike. New up-and-comer with some sort of gift. Gilbert Craven encouraged us to put in a better first lap time than the women did, which was 1:46. On his signal, I gave him a 1:12 lap and turned over pace responsbilities to someone else. 10 minutes into the race, Steve Mull said goodbye and took another lucky rider with him. Visions of all pre-race warnings I'd received came flooding back in dramatic Hollywood fashion. Tim Pope and John Gray were doing a great job of chasing. Tim pulled off and John waved me through. I had the lead two down to a 3 second gap, but had lost everyone but John. John and I traded pulls for a few laps, but Steve was pulling away from us, even as we opened our gap on the field. Eventually, John would go back to the pack and I'd be left on my own with no hope of bridging. I figured it'd be good time trial practice so I stuck it out, hoping to lock in third. After 20 minutes, the Wheelmen pulled me back. Shortly after that, Steve Mull lapped the field and moved to the front to graciously pull us around for the last five laps. Mickey Turner got a great jump on the back stretch to secure third and I duked it out with a few of those pesky Wheelmen, losing fourth to John Gray. Frank took 12th despite being forced into the grass by someone who thought finishing in the upper-half of mid-pack was more important than the safety of everyone on the course. Lesson here is you do not mess around when 3 BAR points are on the line.
Also, for what it's worth, please do not ever say, "Watch your line!" if you yourself don't know what a line is or how to hold one. Just sayin'. You know who you are and I have video if you're not sure.
The final race for us was the 1/2/3 race. Here's how it went down: Gilbert said "GO" and I immediately realized how tired I was. The pace shot up and I drifted backward, not even fighting for a good spot. Frank managed to squeeze in and hold his position in what amounted to a pencil-thin streak stretched out around the track. There were probably attacks, but from my nosebleed seat, I couldn't see anything. I spent way too much time closing gaps that continuously opened up, trading matches for coffin nails. When the matches were gone, I let go and wound up in free fall. The best I felt after that was attaching myself to a break of two. When one of them blew up, the pack surged in and I was once again relegated to the back, then off it. I finished that race two laps down. Frank pulled out, citing the need to preserve whatever he had left for the Dismal Dash Time Trial #1 on Sunday. Probably a wise move.
Me lampreying the break in my new kit.
As always, our thanks goes to the Virginia Beach Wheelmen for a great day of racing and their well-honed team tactics. Oh wait, not that last part.