Masters Track

Always feels like a week off and a bit of a holiday but in reality track racing at this level is the most stressful type of racing that I do, I'm in the twilight of my years in the 'D' (45-49) age group so it's been getting tough the past couple of seasons, falling on my head last year didn't help matters so this year the target is to get in the top 6 and avoid anything nasty of the ripped skin suit/damaged body variety.
First up the 15KM Scratch race, DNS last year as I preferred to hang out at Newport A & E with all the drunks and teenage mothers in flip flops, but this year we have to ride a preliminary round as there are more entered than the track will take (26) but at the eighth hour they relent and all 28 who sign on find our self up first. I forget to put my gear up thinking I will have a nice 'ride in'  on 90" but the race is run off fastest of all the finals 19:16 (slightly less than 30mph) and I find myself under geared, no chance of getting up in the sprint on this I think and with two away with 10 to go but I (and many others) think a break of three still away and nothing to go for so I surprised myself to get up for third in the bunch sprint with a bit of elbows and a switch inside as the front of the bunch fan out I nip on the inside but its as far as my legs will take me and I end up 5th, Winner is Steve Clayton (Litchfield RC) in an all new white strip instead of the usual blue and yellow so nobody knows he's up the road and Jeremy Greengrass (Vortex) a new name to me taking the Silver and Trevor Burke (Finchley) the Bronze to match his third that afternoon in the 750m TT.

The next morning we have the 3Km Pursuit and again have to go early just after 9.00 to make way for Points race heats after lunch (you guessed it straight to final) so I find myself up against 'in form' Ian Greenstreet (Newbury RC) in the third last heat so at least the judges rate me top six but you still have to do the ride and with my form I'm not confident. on 96" gear (put up 2" that morning but somewhat less than the 99" 'experiment' last year) I'd practiced my starting the previous Sunday (x12... Ouch!) to improve something which you basically only do 2 or 3 times a year, so all that you have learned you forget in the intervening winter, I'd watched one of our Olympic Track Champions Joanna Rowsell (Horizan Fitness) in our club '10' going away like a metronome a couple of months ago and decided I could improve. To be fair if you have time to look across the track you're either not trying or so good like the defending Champion Tim Lawson (SIS) who had just sold his company (SIS) for 7M the previous week, I hope he was celebrating because with a broken hip courtesy of a 'crit' crash he was not defending which left the field wide open for the mere mortals Anyway I was into my ride trying not to pass out under the stress of it all while still keeping composed and a reasonable line. I was clock/lap watching from half way as the tourniquet of pain that is the Pursuit starts in the legs and gradually moves up through the body until the brain is like an ice cream dropped into a hot pan almost certain to turn to liquid in an instant, with two to go I got a sight of Greenstreet entering the straight which put me two seconds up and I thought I was doing badly, Adrian my man on the line had been a blur and I'd not got any of the message that I was up from the start and only pegged back a bit at the end. I felt better for I was sure Ian who has been banging out 20 minute 10's would beat me easily, in fact I had him down for a medal but in the end the Gold went to Last years Bronze Peter Georgi (Giant RT) 3:37:069 Trevor Burke was up place in Silver 3:37:331 and Peter Ettles (Sandy Wallace) 3:38:863 My 3:43:014 was good enough for 5th just behind the Ex Scottish hour record holder Stephen McCaw (West Lothian Cl) I wonder who holds that now?
The final event of the weekend and my personal favourite the 20Km Points race, 80 laps of wheeling and 'dealing out' the tracks very own justice. You make the race hard and everybody will know they have been in a race, a bit of pain adds to the frisson of danger that make for a good race. Sprints every 10 laps (5,3,2 & 1) but gain a lap and it's 20 so choose a strategy that suits, 1's and 2's could settle this one if you want to stand on the podium and with so many good riders in my age group it was looking a tough prospect.
The first couple of sprints always a bun fight so I usually sit them out but a group of six away and two riders bang inot each other and fall from the top of the track, Philip Watkins (Ex Old Ports & first time on a 250m track!) goes down the track to avoid them, and what do you never do on a banked track? Never try to go under a falling rider, Phillip went straight over the top and crashing heavily. To be fair he got straight up but the Cardiff Jiff rider with the 'right angle' disc wheel did not come off so lightly, the race was neutralised for what seemed like an age but we did eventually get going with the break sneaking half a lap in the process. The result of this delay was the break were gifted a lap by the judges and the rest of us now had to play catch-up. I picked up 3 points at the next sprint and went on the attack but Greengrass who nabbed the win from me was less inclined & sat up, I continued for six laps on my own getting half a lap until a group of four got up to me but I was blowing hard and had to use all my reserves to 'get on' but a couple of laps later I was taking the sprint win and getting my reward for being out in front but it was hard won. We were eventually pulled back and the same two Ettles & Greenstreet with Watkins and the only rider from the first 'break' Tony Nash (Scunthorpe Poly) taking a lap in the next sprint. On the penultimate sprint  I got up for another 2 points, Greengrass beating me again! while McCaw away on his own and then the final sprint was again fast and dangerous with me using my elbows but nothing doing but it always pays to get up in the finale as on equal points position counts. I knew I would be well out of it with at least ten getting a lap, but old habits die hard
Nash was the clear winner with two laps gained but the first group had gained their lap without a sprint so none had gained any points and hardley any in the race, so it went with the smaller second group that took a lap to take the placings Ettles & Greenstreet, I was happy for them as they made the race when it was looking bleak and the riders who profited from the sloppy judging got nowt! I was 10th with 10 Pt's. enough to usually get you a medal but not on this occasion.
So a good weekend of recreation, I'd come through unscathed and with 28 BC points enough to retain my 2nd Cat licence, so not all good! Next year I go up a category......................................Phew!

Results here

Testing Track and Taking Time

After a difficult couple of weeks racing which saw me visit the Newport casualty department on Saturday night (think ER meets Gavin & Stacy!) to have my head examined after taking a tumble and banging my head (No Hat!) on the roads while warming up for the British Masters 10Km scratch race. My 'over the bars' incident saw me sitting out the afternoon race while my track 'buddy' Adrian Ward (Shaftsbury CC) did an fantastic ride and just missed winning in a blanket finish but the title went to local rider Courtney Rowe (Cardif Jif sic), Trevor Burke (Finchley RC) the bronze.

I was deemed not to have suffered concussion but it was after 10.30 before we got away and after super gluing a head wound and giving me a tetanus the nurse instructed me "Don't do anything strenuous for 48 hours" I proceeded the next day to ride a 3000m pursuit for which I managed a PB 3:40:911 but only good enough for 6th place (same as last year) won by graduate to the 44-49 group Tim Lawson (SIS) in new record time 3:30:260 from last years champion (& ex-record holder) Peter Ettles (Sandy Wallace) 3:37:861 'roadie' Peter Georgi (Epic) 3rd 3:38:350
Then later on the Sunday a hotly contested points race which saw some full blooded racing and me ride over William Fotheringham (The Journ'o in the Halesowen C &AC) at 30mph with one foot unclipped, I used him as a handy footrest but Adrian Adgar not so lucky and there were several other incidents it left everybody a bit nervous and I could only manage 8th. Georgi the winner from Ettles & Lawson So I returned home to lick my wounds and prepare for the National '100' the next weekend in Suffolk.
I did not do the ride I thought I might and I could only manage to scrape inside four hours by a second after a promising morning was disrupted by windy conditions and I found I could not keep up with my early pace and I faded in the second half. Not that this stopped Michael Hutchinson (In Gear) who won the event and made a clean sweep of all the National 'distance' TT for the second year running, his 3:23:04 less than a minute outside competition record was a truly amazing ride on a tricky morning on the A11 between East Harling and Browick just outside Norwich covered four times. Second was Julian Jenkinson (UTAG) 3:38:54 and third Andy Bason (Team PR) 3:39:32 a long way back.
The National '100' was tough going

Photo - Dave Jones
National '100' Result Here

Masters Track Results Here