Swords league race 21/07/10 Bog of the Ring

English Bob

Hi guys,
I'm not gonna manage to race this weds as I've a chest infection:(, so, If anyone wants to swap marshalling duties that'd be great?
I'm scheduled to marshal the Garristown race on 28th so would be great if anyone wants to swap and I'll marshal this weds and be able to race (hopefully) the garristown circuit?
Was looking forward to this weeks race as Bog of the Ring is a really fast circuit which is a welcome change from the previous few weeks!!
Good luck everyone.:)

Homme Enigmatique

It's probably a good idea to go to the race anyway & help out even if you are not up to racing as help regarding marshalling is always appreciated & there is a post on the club website looking for marshalls. You probably will be able to get a swap on the night itself, speak to who ever looks after the sign on.

DirkVoodoo

English Bob wrote: »

Hi guys,
I'm not gonna manage to race this weds as I've a chest infection:(

There is one going around. As much as I like seeing people help out with their club duties, standing out in the rain (probably) for an hour and a half with a chest infection is not a good idea.

Stay in bed and get well soon. And drink plenty of fluids.

Sorry for straying OT.

Good luck in the race everyone.

Beasty

Pah! You English - wimps the lot of ye (and Dirk), with your "little coughs" "bad backs" and the like:D

Anyway, I'd rather go down the Bog than up Ardcath any day, so I've sent you an e-mail Bob;)

07Lapierre

Thanks Guys, yes we're always looking for Marshals. We have 10 Marshals for wednesday, but I still need marshals for the remaining League races (No. 16,17,18,19 and 20) and the Swords Grand Prix on August 8th.

So I'd like to appeal in particular to non-Swordscc "Visitors" who have raced this year to help us out. If you have a few hours free we would really appreciate your assistance. you can put your name down here

Remember. we can't run a safe race without marshals. Thanks

P.s. Full training, Hi-Viz Jacket and Red Flag provided F.O.C. !

English Bob

Cheers guys,
I'm just not use to these wet summers as (of course) the sun always shines in the UK!!!
Dissapointed about missing the race as this is a great circuit.
Thanks Beasty for swapping.

Beasty

So thanks to Bob I should be racing the Bog tonight. Not expecting much, given I also had a vets race last night - it will be interesting as I've never done more than one race in a week before, never mind on consecutive days

Could be some rain, but forecast is for only light winds

Who else is in?

shaungil

Can't wait love BOTR. Hammerfest. Might go scratch again to see how much pain I can take. Will decide later when I see who turns up.

RobFowl

shaungil wrote: »

Can't wait love BOTR. Hammerfest. Might go scratch again to see how much pain I can take. Will decide later when I see who turns up.

There's a new guy the a Sean Kilbride was first A4 on Sunday. I'd keep an eye on him if I were you.....

kennyb3

Going to miss this one, so best of luck lads.

shaungil

RobFowl wrote: »

There's a new guy the a Sean Kilbride was first A4 on Sunday. I'd keep an eye on him if I were you.....

Sounds like a lovely fella, quiet though.......

sh100

I heard he is a very quiet chap

RobFowl

shaungil wrote: »

Sounds like a lovely fella, quiet though.......

I heard he was a hairy fecker...

Staro

Some say he is quiet others say he is not all I know is he doesn't fill the club car after using it :-)

chakattack

I'm in for this tonight.

Hammerfest you say? What sort of average speed?

What condition is the course in?

Beasty

chakattack wrote: »

I'm in for this tonight.

Hammerfest you say? What sort of average speed?

What condition is the course in?

Last time I did it we averaged 37 kph in Group 2, having been caught by the faster groups on the last lap

There is one stretch with very patchy road surface, otherwise the course is generally good by Fingal standards, but a bit narrow in places if a large group forms

sh100

Others say it was high octane unleaded so he drank it and was seen leaving Skerries screaming hammerfest with a trail of flames behind him

RobFowl

Staro wrote: »

Some say he is quiet others say he is not all I know is he doesn't fill the club car after using it :-)

Others say he ate the car as recovery food....

shaungil

Others say he has such bad memories of that car from RAI that he got rid of it as soon as he could.

Oh the memories curl into foetal position icon

Beasty

The holiday season seems to be reducing the numbers racing at present, but there was still a fair number of boardsies out tonight. Cadex, bcmf and English Bob were amongst the marshalls - thanks for making sure we all got round safely guys. Group 2 included the newly promoted Ryaner, chakattak and at least a couple more, and there was a fair sprinkling across the other groups

Group 1 had a 6 minute start on us, and I think the subsequent intervals were something like 3 mins, 2 mins and 2 mins respectively. Group 1 remains much larger than earlier in the season, and their recent performances suggest the handicaps need revisiting.

We set off after them at a fair pace, but were never able to hunt them down. With about 8km to go someone shouted they remained 2 and a half minutes ahead. Group 2 had worked as well as I have experienced before, with virtually everyone taking their turns. With about 4 or 5km to go I managed to get myself stranded at the back, and resigned myself to being dropped from the group. However I managed to keep them within my sights, at a distance of perhaps 50m or so, which I closed to around 20m at the last corner. Then chakattack came to my rescue by trying to take a wrong turn, causing a couple of riders to divert also, and in the confusion I managed to get back on.

With around 500m or so to go, I pulled alongside Ryaner at the front - the race had already gone, as we had been unable to catch the first group. Ryaner picked up pace and I matched him until we came to the final hill, when a number of riders came by and I sat up.

We managed to keep up a speed of just under 37 kph, which was virtually identical to the last time I did this course. But then we had been caught by the 3rd Group who had picked up the pace on the last lap, so overall, even though there were less of us, we worked a bit harder and managed to keep away from the faster groups.

I'll put my stats in the training log, but I do have some data from the "hairy fecker" referred to above that I can share here. He is the typical "all the gear but no idea" type - he uses the power meter, but doesn't know how to analyse it. Hence I have reviewed the data using a number of software tools, and a simple and consistent message comes across from them all - Lose some weight fatty

His average speed (not sure if he was in Group 4 or scratch) was just under 40kph, and average power 334w, 363w pedalling, and 365w normalised

chakattack

Beasty wrote: »

The holiday season seems to be reducing the numbers racing at present, but there was still a fair number of boardsies out tonight. Cadex, bcmf and English Bob were amongst the marshalls - thanks for making sure we all got round safely guys. Group 2 included the newly promoted Ryaner, chakattak and at least a couple more, and there was a fair sprinkling across the other groups

Group 1 had a 6 minute start on us, and I think the subsequent intervals were something like 3 mins, 2 mins and 2 mins respectively. Group 1 remains much larger than earlier in the season, and their recent performances suggest the handicaps need revisiting.

We set off after them at a fair pace, but were never able to hunt them down. With about 8km to go someone shouted they remained 2 and a half minutes ahead. Group 2 had worked as well as I have experienced before, with virtually everyone taking their turns. With about 4 or 5km to go I managed to get myself stranded at the back, and resigned myself to being dropped from the group. However I managed to keep them within my sights, at a distance of perhaps 50m or so, which I closed to around 20m at the last corner. Then chakattack came to my rescue by tryaing to take a wrong turn, causing a couple of riders to divert also, and in the confusion I managed to get back on.

With around 500m or so to go, I pulled alongside Ryaner at the front - the rave had already gone, as we had been unable to catch the first group. Ryaner picked up pace and I matched him until we came to the final hill, when a number of riders came by and I sat up.

We managed to keep up a speed of just under 37 kph, which was virtually identical to the last time I did this course. But then we had been caught by the 3rd Group who had picked up the pace on the last lap, so overall, even though there were less of us, we worked a bit harder and managed to keep away from the faster groups.

I'll put my stats in the training log, but I do have some data from the "hairy fecker" referred to above that I can share here. He is the typical "all the gear but no idea" type - he uses the power meter, but doesn't know how to analyse it. Hence I have reviewed the data using a number of software tools, and a simple and consistent message comes across from them all - Lose some weight fatty

His average speed (not sure if he was in Group 4 or scratch) was just under 40kph, and average power 334w, 363w pedalling, and 365w normalised

I hate myself

Was going expecting to go left and expected to see the marshal waving us round to the left but saw no signal, panicked and went straight. Sorry lads. My brain doesn't work when my heart rate is rocketing.

This handicap business is tough, think we worked well in group 2 (pleasantly surprised from a safety perspective how gingerly we were cornering) but were fighting a lost battle.

Have cured my fear of racing in wet conditions now.

Nice to meet you beasty.

Beasty

chakattack wrote: »

I hate myself

Don't worry about it chakattack - no-one got hurt, and we all learn lessons from such incidents. I reckon you won't do that again, but it doesn't mean that someone else won't.

One thing I do, particularly if I have not ridden a course before, is to ride or drive round it, checking for potholes or other hazards, and to make sure I know where I'm going.

I even rode round most of the course tonight before the race - I managed to drop the chain going up the slope just past the cricket club - in the race I made sure I dropped onto the small ring a bit earlier when I wasn't putting much pressure on to minimise the risk of it happening again.

I was a bit concerned that those storm clouds were going to open up, as I have not raced in particularly wet conditions. In the end, although there was some rain, the road surface was not too bad - I was probably one of those taking the corners most gingerly though.

chakattack

Yeah I didn't get a chance to check the route last night but by the 4th lap I should have known better!

Who was first from our group? Was there a sprint - purely for the craic?

LDB

Beasty wrote: »

and their recent performances suggest the handicaps need revisiting.

shush, the handicaps are just fine

Beasty

chakattack wrote: »

Who was first from our group? Was there a sprint - purely for the craic?

There was definitely a sprint, but I sat up as about 3 or 4 swept past me. I am sure Ryaner was in the mix, but don't know who got there first

Beasty

LDB wrote: »

shush, the handicaps are just fine

One thing I would say LDB is you seem to be a common denominator here - perhaps you need promoting to help us out in Group 2

How did it go in Group 1 by the way? Did it split up much towards the end, and where did you finish?

LDB

Beasty wrote: »

How did it go in Group 1 by the way? Did it split up much towards the end, and where did you finish?

I think we all stayed together for most of the race (couldn't shake some non contributors!) then 3 of us broke away on the last lap after those 2 round a bouts. I killed myself to make sure we kept our gap, as did the other two I'm sure. Got 2nd in the end. Delighted with that.

kennyb3

LDB wrote: »

I think we all stayed together for most of the race (couldn't shake some non contributors!) then 3 of us broke away on the last lap after those 2 round a bouts. I killed myself to make sure we kept our gap, as did the other two I'm sure. Got 2nd in the end. Delighted with that.

fair play ldb, great result. i agree sushh about the handicaps beasty. gutted i missed it, bloody tyre i needed never arrived but ended up getting caught in work anyway.

Beasty

kennyb3 wrote: »

bloody tyre i needed never arrived but ended up getting caught in work anyway.

If you ever have a problem like that drop me a PM (or see me at sign-on) - I normally carry a couple of spare wheels and have a complete toolkit in the car - it would be no problem if someone wanted to borrow a tyre for a race

Beasty

LDB wrote: »

Got 2nd in the end. Delighted with that.

Congratulations on a great result LDB - I can see why that husband of yours is steering clear of racing against you now:)

Dave11

I still have the biggest smile on my face!

I'm getting better as this racing lark! Stuck with my new plan of arriving nice and early and getting out for good half hour warm up and and it really seems to be paying off. The thing I noticed earlier in the league was how quickly it went from 0-40k and it was some shock to the legs! The proper warm and a gel before heading off seems to be making a massive difference!

Headed away in Group 1 and I think there were about 12 or so maybe more and from the off we worked ok as a group. Lap one I thought we were travelling a bit slow to be honest but knew there were some experienced lads there so did my work at the front and carried on! Lap two things picked up a bit and I did quite alot of work at the front trying to push the pace up a bit. I thought I have probably ruined any chance of doing anything by pushing to hard but my legs felt great! Lap 3 the pace slowed right down again as I think lads were beginning to get tired and some were not to keen on coming to the front but thats there call!! Coming around on Lap 4 I sat out the front for quite a bit and really tried to push it on thinking that for sure were gonna get caught. After the M1 flyover I decided to get up out the saddle and go for it up the little drag and see who comes with me. Laura and Emma (I think thats her name, sorry if it not) came with me and I could see there was no sign of anyone else. We hit the long stretch back to the finish and worked well to stay away! There was a shout then that the others were cathing and I thought 'You f'in kiddin me....not this close....f**k that' so I gave it everything I had and at the bottom of the flyover got out the saddle and just went a mad man.... My legs were jelly and I thought I was actullay just gonna fall over but they got me there. The whole time I was looking to my right thinking 'please god....don't let me see a wheel appear to my right' and none did!!! I came across the line swinging and with my heart rate at 192 which is the higgest i have ever seen it!!

The feeling was deadly.... I know some of ye might laugh and think sure it's only a league race but my god did I feel like a child!!!

Fair play to Sam for filling in for Joe, Bernie for doing sign on, the marshalls and bikers and Laura and Emma for 2nd and 3rd!!

Time to head out for a short spin and get the aul legs moving!!

Ryaner

My report. Congrats to all too. Very well marshalled last night and the groups worked very well together.

Race 2, starting in group two from the result from last week. And not being a fan of the flats I thoroughly expected to get shot out the back on the first lap. Luckily for me the corners were taken slow due to the rain allowing everyone to bunch up again. And the is two slightly uphill sections which I could recover on. Yes I recover on uphills!

Right from the off the group worked well with almost everyone taking their turn. The few occasions where I looked back to see if the last guy was going through, the person a head of me went through. The guys not taking turns started burning off too. Overall though it held together nicely and we kept a steady pace of near 40km/h on the flats. I did think I was in trouble during the second lap when my heart rate spike up above 180bpm but looking at the garmin, it was at the top of the fly-over that I went too far over.

By the last lap guys were shouting at we were 2 minutes down on group 1. By the last corner however it has somehow grown to 2:40? That was enough to slow things down a bit, at least in perceived effort, the speed was higher for that lap, although possibly due to the sprint at the end.

The final sprint wasn’t as fast or well what I expected. Along the straight to the sports clubs, about 5 guys moved to the front to take positions. I moved my way up and ended on the front as we passed the first corner. Things slowly starting winding up around this and I kept it calm waiting for the jump, a jump that didn’t come? About 100-150m from the line, I clicked up and just went for it. No point in dragging everyone to the line. The speed went up and people beside and behind me starting falling off, all the time I was looking out for someone else to start sprinting and come around. It wasn’t until the last 20m that someone did and he came by much to far to my right for me to grab his wheel, ending the group sprint with him crossing first followed by myself.

The Stats:
Distance: 40.89km
Time: 1:06:50
Avg Speed: 36.7km/h
Calories: 1010
Avg Power: 253watts
Normalised Power: 303watts

Raam

The gaps that people shout can vary depending on who is taking them and how attentive they are. Don't always believe them.

Beasty

Dave11 wrote: »

I still have the biggest smile on my face!

Congratulations Dave - a great result - hopefully you'll get the chance to join Group 2 up Ardcath next week:)

kennyb3

Beasty wrote: »

If you ever have a problem like that drop me a PM (or see me at sign-on) - I normally carry a couple of spare wheels and have a complete toolkit in the car - it would be no problem if someone wanted to borrow a tyre for a race

Just seen your post beasty, thanks appreciate the offer. no doubt i ll be stuck again at some stage for something

Homme Enigmatique

:DGood Race. Nice to see the ladies get placed, they sometimes can get a bit swamped in a sprint finish with a large group. Roads were a bit slippery & may have helped the first few groups.

abc_xyz

Second attempt at group three (despite Andres's attempts to get me join him in down grading to group two:) this evening and main aim was to last longer then last week's lap and a half. Were about 10-12 in the group which worked very well together, including on the small rises. The pace seemed fairly fast with a guy in blue (num 120) and a guy in red (no num) keeping it high. It looked to me like we might lose a few people including a guy in yellow(177) and myself in the early laps but apart from a puncture (on the second lap, great excuse for stopping) I think we only lost one person on the third lap. Red and Blue kept us pushing along, usually holding each other's wheel so close they could have been on a tandem. We got a couple of time checks but didn't seem to me that we were making in-roads quick enough to have much chance of catching the groups ahead (not on our own anyway). Nearly lost the group on the left turn at the staggered cross-roads as took the corner too slowly on the second lap. Next time around was nearer the front of the group and got a lesson in taking that corner watching red (ie. start out wide). On the fourth lap the group cohesion was starting to fracture with Red and Blue keeping the pace going, a couple of others, including Yellow (so much for my thinking he looked in trouble earlier), kept the up and overs going with pulls from the back to the front of the group. Nearly lost the group again on the rise just after the main road (have to work on gearing on hills - get caught grinding up short hills too often). Coming into the staggered cross roads again I took the corner properly (ie. branches on the right smacking off my shoulders for the left turn) and came out of it slightly ahead of the group. Since we didn't have a hope of catching groups 1 & 2 at this stage I gave it a go to see how long I could stay away from the the rest of the group. Not long but got about 50m on them and caught a guy from the group ahead before they pulled me back. Couple of us had a go for the sprint finish and a few of us died on the way up the hill, me included.

Good fun, lots of pain and nice to finish with the group this time. Must wok on gearing on corners and going up short hills though.


Since people seem to like stats, here's mine from the Garmin.
Avg: HR 173, speed 38.5km/h
Max: HR 190, speed 52.8km/h
Total: Time 1h03m18s, distance 40.57km

LDB

Well done Dave11 on your win. You broke away at the perfect time and I'm glad I followed!!

RobFowl seemed to be flying too. Did you place in the end?

I'm on hols for the next couple of weeks so will unfortunately miss the next couple of races

RobFowl

LDB wrote: »

RobFowl seemed to be flying too. Did you place in the end?

Felt dead TBH, I just shout a lot :rolleyes:

Thought you rode a very good race. I felt it was the ideal way to race that circuit. Ride steady with as many working to try to stay away until the last lap then every man/woman for them selves in the last few miles.

I came in a group just behind you was sprinting for 4th but realised I was beaten so sat up. Rolled over in 6th or 7th.

Am just getting over an illness but was quite happy.

I don't have a power meter but then Garmin stats were similar to group 2 in the last race's on the Bog circuit although the average speed was 35.9 as opposed to 37.2 my average HR was similar possibly because I was doing more turns.

I thought thought that there are really 3 levels of ability over the first 2 groups. Possibly should be 4 instead of 1/2/3 with smaller gaps between.

The jump from group 3 to 4/5 is a huge one though.