|   Race Report - Vail Lake | Motivated
Jan 6, 2003 4:55 PM | | The first of a 3 race series at Vail Lake (near Temecula, CA) was held on Saturday. Since so many of you live in cold environs and/or are focused on base training I thought you'd appreciate a race report (or my lame attempt at one).
I raced beginner men age 26-34. At least 100 riders were behind me on the start line as I was on the front row. I chated up a guy on a Racer-X next to me and felt very relaxed. This was my 6th race and I'm glad to say I'm much more comfortable at the start now. I had selected too low of a gear and droped back just a little, but made it up quickly and was in 3rd place for all of the climb, then took 2nd just as we entered the singletrack. Before prior races I did 15-20 minutes of warm-up, but I had decided to only do about 5-10 minutes today, so the fact I was in third and just getting my blood pumping was a big mental boost. As soon as we dropped in the singletrack we started passing sport class women who started 2min ahead of us. Seemed like I was constantly yelling 'on your left/right'. The leader, on the Racer-X, was disappearing and I was being very aggressive in passing. Unfortunately I got tangled up with one woman and crashed. No biggie for me, but I truly felt bad for her. Then her friends arrived on the scene and I thought it best to get the hell out of there. The rest of lap one was an even mix of pushing hard and passing slower riders. I was hauling ass coming into the infield section and botched a few turns. On the second lap at the top of the climb entering the single track I caught the leader, passed him and made the mistake of cheering him on. He then re-passed me and took off. My legs and lungs were feeling great and I was pushing pretty hard trying to catch him. Having followed Formula 1 for years I tried hard to pass as efficiently as Ayrton Senna, and think I did a pretty good job. I never saw the leader until after the finish line dispite the fact he beat me by only 18 seconds. Next race is Feb 1 and my training in the interim is totally focused on those 18 seconds. |
| re: Race Report - Vail Lake | Androsss
Jan 6, 2003 7:20 PM | | Hey, I was there too. I really thought it was a well done race. It was the perfect off-season event to keep morale high without being too crazy. Registration was oh so easy, there was a band for our fans (thanks mom!), for winning my sport race I got a $20 gift certificate, its easy to get to. I really cant say enough things about it (maybe cause i got my first win). Andross |
| except for one Damon Hill pass ; ) | Kleinadian
Jan 7, 2003 10:14 AM | | Sorry couldn't help it. You mentioned you passed like Senna. The pass where you crashed with that girl would be a Damon Hill pass ; )
Thanks for the race report. There's lots of snow here now (near Ottawa Canada) so that was a good read.
Keep in mind, the winner would have pushed harder if you were on his tail. Sounds like you guys are ready for Sport class. |
| How many miles was the race? | clownee
Jan 7, 2003 10:30 AM | | Thanks for sharing your race report. I'd like to get into racing in the beginner class and would like to know the distance of the race. Btw, what was your time? |
| Job well done-how was the course? nm | free-agent
Jan 7, 2003 10:55 AM | | nm |
| I'm definitely not Senna | Motivated
Jan 7, 2003 11:50 AM | | Taking out that woman was a bonehead move, certainly not Senna-like. Maybe like Damon Hill or de Cesaris.
I'm moving up to sport class after this series. It's tough to know what class to choose, but I'm glad I'm getting experience at the front before cat-ing up. My previous best finish was 7th.
Event info at www.y-events.com. There are also excellent races in Fontana: www.southridgeusa.com. Sadly, none in San Diego.
Course was in good condition due to rain over Xmas, but I expect it to get very dry over the next 2 months. |
| re: Race Report - Vail Lake | mfrizza
Jan 10, 2003 8:20 AM | | Thanks for your post. I just moved to San Diego and am going to enter that Feb 1 race in beg 27-34. I'm not very fast, but I would like to start racing again so I have something to train for.
Is the course available before the race to pre-ride? How about several weeks before?
Also, wondering if you or anyone else could offer a bit of advice. Assuming I've been slacking through the holidays, but generally have decent riding legs, what would a decent training regimen be w/ 3 weeks until Feb 1. I lift weights 3x a week, using splits (1 day chest/back, 1 day legs, 1 day shoulders/bis/tris). Basically, how many days a week should I try to ride, and at what intensity, how would I incorporate intervals, etc.?
If the question is too detailed, do you know any good resources on the web where I could find some info on training plans?
Thanks and good riding. |
| re: Race Report - Vail Lake | Motivated
Jan 10, 2003 9:17 AM | | A good weekly schedule for me is:
1 long, hard ride - 2+ hours saddle time, 20+ miles. You should be totally wiped at the end.
1 shortish intense climb - ~1 hr out and back, 500+ft vertical
1 or 2 medium rides - ~ 1.5 hrs each
1 or 2 easy rides with short intensity - ~45min, focus on handling skills, bike setup, etc. These likely serve as a recovery ride.
Do a light ride the day before the event and take the 2nd and maybe the 3rd day off before the event. Eat a big breakfast 2.5+ hours before start time. Hydrate like hell starting right now. Get some Gu and follow the instructions.
Try to balance the harder days and weight training. I don't enjoy intervals, so I don't do them - I just try to climb everything, every ride as fast as I can.
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The course map is available, but the location is private and not available for pre-ride. The most important things are that the course is fast and the singletrack has many sandy areas.
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Since you are new, here are good places to ride in SD (get the SD Mountain Bike Guide by Greenstadt):
-Mission Trails - don't overlook Cowles Mtn
-Elfin Forrest
-Noble Canyon
-Lake Morena (the Sagebrush Safari on 3/30 is held there)
-the road. |
| re: Race Report - Vail Lake | mfrizza
Jan 10, 2003 10:42 AM | | Thanks a lot for your informative response. |
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