A4 only race added to calendar

fondriest

Check out www.wexfordcycling.com there are details of an extra a4 only race added to the calendar on the 8th of may

Toblerone1978

fondriest wrote: »

Check out www.wexfordcycling.com there are details of an extra a4 only race added to the calendar on the 8th of may

Racing on a Saturday. That's what I'm talking about. Scrap everything I said in the last week or so, this is defintely my last race of the year... Sportives thereon in.

Diarmuid

What's with the the 5pm start though? Anyone find the route details promised on the poster?

fondriest

Diarmuid wrote: »

What's with the the 5pm start though? Anyone find the route details promised on the poster?

Dunno what the idea of the 5pm start is and afaik the route is using the same lap as the Betty Darcy memorial race from last year,which is on the old dublin rd between arklow and gorey.

shaungil

From my recollection of this road before the motorway opened this was a decent enough road wasn't it?

Is it flat, sheltered?

thx

shaungil

Route details on website now. Looks v flat, me likey.

http://www.mapmyride.com/route/ie/inch/603127235384798723

Ryaner

shaungil wrote: »

Route details on website now. Looks v flat, me likey.

http://www.mapmyride.com/route/ie/inch/603127235384798723

That route is only 18 odd km. Is it laps?

fondriest

Route is not too bad a few drags but nothing steep and there isn't a pothole in sight. I think its 4 laps with a good wide safe finish

Kebel

I raced this circuit a few times last year, (alongside Fondriest), and I agree it's practically flat other that the few drags already mentioned. Nothing technical other that the two roundabouts at each end of the curcuit, which will make make for a good fast race.

shaungil

So anyone planning on doing this?

King Kelly

shaungil wrote: »

So anyone planning on doing this?

I plan on ensuring your safety by waving a red flag at one of the roundabouts!

Understand from the organiser theres a lot of interest in race.

shaungil

did a reccie when down with the outlaws in Wicklow last week. Great roads and pretty flat.

@ King where is the finish line exactly?

King Kelly

As far as I know the finish line is just past the sign on area (Toss Byrnes pub, Inch on the old N11) on the drag heading towards Arklow. Double check when signing on tomorrow though - I don't want you to losing 6 A4 ranking points due to incorrect info!

Apparently a big crowd expected for race but its on good wide roads not the bohreens. Some very fast sections on the downhill if this wind stays up.

Lumen

I may well be doing this, subject to the outcome of an ongoing domestic negotiation.

So if anyone wants a lift from Clonsilla at 3pm let me know.

Lumen

Shaungil 3rd. The Crunch 4th. Good show by the boardsies!

Fairly long race for A4s, 74km @ 37kph, just under 2hrs.

I had enough left in the tank to participate in my first sprint finish, helped significantly by a crash just in front of me before the run in, and set some new peak power PBs in the process (e.g. 807W for 5 seconds).

Not sure where I finished, felt like somewhere around 10th-15th place.

Pace was a bit slow, not helped by a strong headwind on half of each the lap, but very enjoyable nonetheless.

Other stats: 168bpm, 1294kJ, 478m^, 88rpm, 180W. Average power seems very low.

fondriest

Did this one also. same as lumen thought it was a bit slow at times but the strong headwind on one half of the lap stopped most people thinking about breakaways. Think i got about 7th or 8th. avg power for race 201 np 257 not including warm up. so not overly high.

rubs

Yeah I was caught up in that crash at the end...in fact three of us from the one club got mixed up in it, a clipped wheel, screeching brakes...pile up.

Good race besdies that, the wind really dictated that no-one was going to get away, despite a very brave effort from a Dungarvan rider. It was really strange, half the race was full on and then into the wind it virtually came to a standstill!!

Great surface it has to be said, wide roads and not a pothole in sight...

Kebel

As already mentioned, good route, and thanks to the organisers, marshals etc. All of the Wexford clubs were involved in some way or another.

I got caught in that crash as well, managed to slow a good bit, but locked up and rode into one of the lads on the ground - sorry !!!!

I came away lightly compared with some of the others - nothing here other than some bruising - no need however for a crash there. While people were well behaved for most of the race, there was some very silly and inconsiderate riding after we turned at the roundabout for the last time. I observed a couple of guys switching all over the place, so in a way I'm not overly surprised that there was a crash. Given the speed we were moving at it's lucky that nobody suffered anything other than road rash and bruising. There have been a couple of very nasty crashes around the country so far this year, a lot of them I believe caused by guys doing silly stuff. Tonight we were on a good wide straight road so there was no excuse for the amount of switching that was going on. Lads most if not all of us have to work on Monday, so please relax and remember before you swing right or left that you are in a bunch, and that there are other guys to your right and left and behind you, and that you need to ride with consideration for them - I know that it can be hard to move up the bunch, and I am as competitive as the next man but we all want to get home in one piece, so just remember that your actions can have nasty consequences.

To all those who crashed I hope you are not feeling too bad tomorrow.....

K

shaungil

Strange one this for me. 70km is pretty long for me to rce and was the only Swords guy there so was planning on keeping a low profile and seeing how it panned out. 4 laps so was going to sit on for first two and go with anything that looked handy otherwise sit on. Did not recognise many faces (Lumen and Crunch only)and the southeast clubs had a huge turnout and dominated most things.
First lap into the wind was unbelievably slow and I was getting bored so I did a few stints off the front and got the legs warmed up better. There were a few half hearted attempts to get away but the headwind and up and down same road route did not encourage breaks at all. I tried to get into a few but wasn't prepared to put work as wasn't sure how how legs would fare later. So for most of the race sat in top ten to see what was happening did a few stints into the wind and waited.
Lumen had plenty of stints on the front and if he had got in a break with other lads might have stayed away depending on what teams were in the break. TBH the pace meant I had too much time to think and my head was a bit fried. Lumen made a break 3 km to go and though I followed him I then slowed up to see how he'd fare but could see his pace drop as soon as he hit the headwind.
800 m two comeragh lads attacked there was a bit of panic and some atrocious riding so two lads down. Weird as it sounds you need to be patient I think. So some evasive manouveres around two bikes on ground and one moron sitting up and looking back and veering right across the road. Two lads were a good bit away at this stage and had no idea if I was on a decent wheel. Probably wen from 12th to 3rd in last 100 m and only a yard or two behind winners. Nice trophy which kids were highly impressed with.

Some atrocious riding in this race lads cannot keep a straight line and regularly veer. Whenever I was back in the pack there was incidences all over but luckily only one crash. Interesting I saw three instances of tips between lads of the same club.
Bit dissappointed in some of the clubs with lots of riders weren't prepared to attack it a bit more. a break of 6/8 working would have stayed away. There were plenty of experience.
Pace was so slow and lads in pack were constantly giving out about how slow the pace was,but wouldn't go and do any work

henboy

Done this one my self yesterday, the distance suited me . Felt a good bit better then I had in weeks so I was up for this one. Nice circuit not one shout for a pothole . 76km Avg 36.6kph 2 of my club mates hit the deck in the lask 1km . Lots of silly things been done on the last lap, lads all over the place .

Tried a break away me self but was brought back by one of my own team mates (WTF). Some people need to watch a few races on the box and see how it works ( As these are races and not training spins ).

Explosive_Cornflake

I missed this race, when's the next A4 race?

zzzzzzzz

Explosive_Cornflake wrote: »

I missed this race, when's the next A4 race?

there's a separate A4 race next week in Roundwood:

Hammond Memorial Races
Sunday 16th
Sign-on in Roundwood GAA club from 9:30.

Under 12/14/16 starting at 10:45;
A1/A2 starting at 11:30, run over 5 laps/93km;
A3 starting at 11:35, run over 4 laps/76km;
A4 starting at 11:40, run over 3 laps/59km.

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/ireland/roundwood/128127298788510916

Explosive_Cornflake

aidan.offbeat wrote: »

there's a separate A4 race next week in Roundwood:

I'll make more of an effort to attend this, thanks!

Lumen

Ripped from twitter...

The Crunch

First proper placing this year so thrilled with that. The race was very well run, plenty of marshals and cars etc. and it's a very safe course in as much as cycle road racing can ever be described as safe... It was a bit of a weird race, alright. Because it was a straight out and back course connected by roundabouts there was a stiff headwind for one half and hurricane Edna up our asses for the other. I saw 22km/h on the dash at one point and about 62km/h on the same stretch of not terribly steep road going in the other direction a few minutes later... The group was probably less likely to split because there was never any crosswind to isolate people. The fact that the road was so open and straight also made it difficult for anyone to get out of sight. There were a few flurries up the road but there were a couple of clubs very heavily represented and for one of the clubs in particular, if their guy wasn't in the move, several of them seemed to get together to chase. I tried jumping across with Shaungil to a move that contained one from each of the clubs but that didn't have any legs (and neither did I) so I battened down the hatches and saved it for the gallop. I'm not much of a galloper but I timed it pretty well and found the gaps okay on the short ramp to the line. However, the Comeragh duo's late attack worked and fair play to them. They had to be really strong to do that. Fair play to the guy from Dungarvan who was out on his own for about 20km. There are probably too many guys who go up and over at the front setting a tempo without attacking full bore to get out of the group. At higher levels of racing it's just attack, attack, attack regardless of whether anyone is away or not. A1 races usually split into a number of groups on the road, sometimes come back together but rarely stay together to the finish. That's because guys just want to get out of the group and up the road even if it's to get across to a move. Of course it's different in handicap races where everyone should go up and over as best they can to stay away or to chase the group in front. Scratch races should be a war right from the get go, in fairness, not as someone said in an earlier post, a training spin... Still, I stayed upright and got a pot! All good. Shaungil and Lumen are very strong lads and gave it a good go. I reckon Shaungil could be a hell of a track man if he gave up on that rugby lark and shaved his legs. Lumen's punt for glory 5k from the line was definitely worth a go and he still had some legs for the gallop which was very impressive.

blorg

Well done The Crunch!

shapez

Well done to all who competed. Comfortable size of a racing bunch with possibly the best racing surface I've been on this year so far. As mentioned, serious headwind for the one way and tailwind the other. Nobody was taking any chances on the drags so easy pace up them.

I agree in saying, is there were a couple of instances where riders weren't holding their line going round the roundabouts. In one instance I was pushed towards the kerb & grass margin nearly ending my race. Managed to stay upright and fight on.

A few of my clubmates including myself made attempts to get away, but anyone who followed just sat on our wheel. So, nothing was going to work. A break of 2 riders did get away and their max was 30 secs. But going into the last lap no one seemed bothered with trying to catch him. Had to work hard with about 3 others to claw back the breakaway rider.

At about 2k to go, I committed myself. Stringing out a few people with me but most important having my clubmates onmy wheel. Had nothing left after a minute of agony. My clubmates went and I sat up. Before they knew it they had about 10 bike lenghts. Couldn't believe it. A Comeragh CC one/two. Delighted for them. And was happy my work paid off.

Just before turning the last roundabout there was a crash. I didn't see or hear anything of it until after the race. But, 2 Comeragh riders went down as well. The worst was a suspected broken nose. Lots of cuts and bruises back in the car park after which reminded me why everyone should be fully aware of their presence in a group and think and look before you do something.

Once again, well done to all. Also, thank you to Team Wexford for hosting this event and the very best of luck to you in the RAS 2010.

Onwards and upwards. See you in Whitechurch on Sunday.

RobFowl

Wexford 50kms for A4's only
Inch, Gorey, Co. Wexford,

1. Barry Griffin (Comeragh CC);
2. Shane O'Donoghue (Comeragh CC);
3. Shaungil (McNally Joinery/Swords CC);
4. Declan Quigley (Dundrum Town Centre/Orwell Wheelers CC);
5. Gianni Ponji (Wexford Wheelers CC).

http://www.irishcycling.com/publish/news/art_4851.shtml

Lumen

shapez wrote: »

A few of my clubmates including myself made attempts to get away, but anyone who followed just sat on our wheel. So, nothing was going to work. A break of 2 riders did get away and their max was 30 secs. But going into the last lap no one seemed bothered with trying to catch him. Had to work hard with about 3 others to claw back the breakaway rider.

I did a bit of chasing and sitting. I'm not really sure why, I think it was just to make sure that if a break went away I'd be in it, but the net result is that no-one stays away and breaks are discouraged.

I think as The Crunch said above, it's better to just attack/jump rather than chase. Helping drag the bunch back to a break is pointless and negative. Note to self: "off the front, not on the front".

That said, it takes so much effort to catch a break that you can't expect people to work for the first couple of minutes once they arrive on your wheel - they're likely to be too shagged.

shapez wrote: »

Just before turning the last roundabout there was a crash.

The pace really dropped on the drag up to that roundabout, probably compressing the bunch. That's how I found myself off the front - it wasn't really a serious bid for victory, I just safer going round on my own and thought it might inspire others to join me. One did zoom past as I was going backwards into the wind, but too fast for me to grab his wheel.

That DCC lad looked as strong as an ox, I think he just went too early.

shapez wrote: »

Couldn't believe it. A Comeragh CC one/two. Delighted for them. And was happy my work paid off.

I think The Crunch said to me on the first lap "if anything happens, it'll have some of those [Comeragh] lads in it". Bonus points for a correct prediction.

uberwolf

The Crunch wrote: »

and shaved his legs

this.

are there many with the fur still on in the A4 bunch?

shaungil

I've said it before and I'll say it again. If I have to shave my legs then my missus will expect me to shave my back, shoulders and back of arms etc etc.

Starts with the legs and where does it end.

and yes there's fur everywhere in A4 and a fair bit in A3 too.

uberwolf

that's one less barrier to entry for me so.

always wondered where it stopped. Always amused by the lads wearing hair shorts. If the purpose is for massage / road rash then shaving to an inch above your shorts is pointless...

shapez

I was up at the Shay Elliott last weekend doing support car for the A1/A2 race and I spotted 2 riders with unshaved legs just before they set off from Bray. Maybe it's coming back in fashion, who knows!!

blorg

Too much hassle IMO.

Lumen

blorg wrote: »

Too much hassle IMO.

Only the initial shearing, which is admittedly a major hassle. After that it takes no time at all to maintain an acceptable level of smoothness, perhaps a couple of minutes a week.

Chips Lovell

Lumen wrote: »

Only the initial shearing, which is admittedly a major hassle. After that it takes no time at all to maintain an acceptable level of smoothness, perhaps a couple of minutes a week.

+1 The initial post winter sheer is a pain, but made easier if you have an electric shaver. After that, it's a few minutes before a shower once a week.

blorg

I am not shaving my legs lads.

Lumen

el tonto wrote: »

+1 The initial post winter sheer is a pain, but made easier if you have an electric shaver. After that, it's a few minutes before a shower once a week.

I personally find it easier in the shower. You don't even need shaving foam.

Chips Lovell

Lumen wrote: »

You don't even need shaving foam.

Having seen the amount of nicks on your legs at times, I think you do.

Chips Lovell

blorg wrote: »

I am not shaving my legs lads.

We'll continue you snigger at you behind your back so. At least until the next time you're drunk and we hold you down and shear you..

shaungil

blorg wrote: »

I am not shaving my legs lads.

+1 I am not shaving Blorgs legs.