Gippsland ITT Champs & Blackburn CC Kew ITT (June 25-26th 2011)

Guns and Time Trials - ACE!

Another two-up TT weekend, my 17th and 18th TT for the year. Gippsland ITT Championship titles at Cloverlea and Blackburn CC hosting Round #2 of the Bikes DeVer ITT Series at Kew. After a week of indoor intervals thanks to the rain, I'd be under done or well tapered. The weather gods were on our side again, with two days of sunshine and a little bit of wind.


 

Gippsland ITT Championships 2011 - June 25th 2011

Hosted by Warragul CC. Elite was three times around the 11.33kms around the Cloverlea circuit, 34kms all up. As an 'outsider' I was allowed entry but not allowed to contest the title (Gippsland clubs only). This was fair enough, I wish the state titles would run the same way.... The course was brilliant. A rolling hills section for a few kms, mixed with some long straight flat sections. It had something for everyone. Including the sweet organic smell of cow shit and small yappy dogs running on the road. Thankfully Mr Yappy got out of my way before being introduced to Mr High Pressure Tubular.

I was off 2nd off in Elite, #1 was 30 seconds ahead and caught and passed 900m in. My catch-and-release race strategy was thrown out the window early on with nobody up the road for the next 20kms until I started hitting the later starting Masters grades. Kane Walker (Genesys) was the only name I knew on the Elite start list. Nothing like a National Road Series rider 11 years my junior to make sure I kept my head down for the whole 34kms!

Three consistent laps, 46:07 44.2km/h, it was a quick course. I rode the fastest time of the day, with Kane Walker in 2nd with a 49:24 and taking the Gippsland Elite ITT title. Another great event by a country club, everyone was keen for a chat, trash talk, and a laugh. Apart from the cows, it was a nice part of the state I hadn't raced before.

Results - Elite (I'll update when they're published)
1. Shane Miller (Kosdown) 46:07
2. Kane Walker (Genesys)  49:24 - Gippsland Elite ITT Champion 2011
3. Jim Timmer-Arends      49:42
4. Simon Baxter           53:37

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Blackburn CC Kew ITT (Bikes DeVer) - June 26th 2011

64 pre-entered so the numbers were good even though it was 'Cycling Sunday', clashing with the Preston Handicap (CV) and Melburn-Roobaix (FYXO). Tim White (HCC) was my main concern today. He was meant to start 30 seconds ahead of me, but made it to the start line a handful of seconds late, meaning I was closing on his wheel at the 5km turnaround. A northerly wind usually suits this course, but it was a little too gusty today, blowing us around and very wide on some of the corners. There isn't much more to recall, just pedal hard, hold on, and hope it ends soon!

Results - A Grade
1. Shane Miller (Kosdown) 30:18
2. Tim White (HCC)        31:49
3. Martin Lama (BBN)      32:15 
4. Ciaran Jones (CCCC)    33:18
5. Cam Parlevliet (BBN)   33:19



Full results HERE

To answer James and Andrew who asked me today after the race, today was #17, and I'm still having fun!

Leanne Cole was at Kew taking some 'pain face' shots. Pic Link

Cycling Victoria and Geelong CC ITTs - Paraparap. June 18th 2011

Pic (c) http://thebellevelo.tumblr.com

Round #2 of the 2011 Victorian Masters IRTT series was hosted by Geelong CC on Saturday in typical wintery conditions. Geelong CC run a number of time trials throughout the year that I've competed in before, so finding 'Paraparap' wasn't a problem, and I was familiar with the out-and-back (but not back to the starting point) Forest Rd course. 9:30am was the 28km Cycling Victoria Open ITT event, with a club holding a TT on the same course at 1:30pm. I originally thought the second TT was going to be a slightly shorter 20kms, but this wasn't the case. On the menu was 2x 28km. Thinking I'd bitten off more than I could chew, I'd put everything into the first one and see what was left for the second.

All familiar faces at the rego desk, Cycling Victoria officials from last weekend at the Three Day Tour, and also Shaun O'Callaghan. Last weekend Shaun was ripping it up in the 3DT, taking out the yellow jersey in C Grade, this week he was out at Paraparap doing his bit for the sport on the other side of the table. Great to see.

There was a little drizzle about on the course so the roads were damp. The wind was 30km/h westerly. This meant a 3km head wind, into a side-ish wind on the out and back section. John Cain (TFM-Celtic) was my target for the day at one minute up the road. A few of the Masters riders in contention for the four-race series were DNS which means a major shuffling of the series as riders have to compete in all four.

I was out of the gates at exactly 10:21am, into the headwind, and chasing TT arch rival John Cain. It took a while to get John in my sights. At around 8km I was pegging him back, slowly, all while getting covered in road filth from passing cars near the quarry entrance off Forest Rd. I was only a few lengths off his wheel at the 15.8km turnaround point. John took off like a rocket from the turnaround opening up a gap that would take me another 3-4km to close and pass him (thanks to the hills!). John pegged me at about 10 seconds up the road for the final 10kms. The final km is a quick run to the line. I clocked 38:49, a happy power number for a 28k-er, and a heart rate that proved I was working hard to keep John behind me!

We had to wait for the presentations to find out the final results. Andrew Weightman (Cycling-Inform) had just nudged out John at the Vets ITT Champs a few weeks ago for the Gold in the MMAS4 category. Results in - I took out the win, with Weightman in 2nd, again just ahead of Big John in 3rd. No stress from John though, I hear he will actually start training this week.

A Grade - Cycling Victoria Paraparap ITT

1. Shane Miller (Kosdown)     38:49
2. Andrew Weightman (Cycling-Inform) +1:08
3. John Cain (TFM-Celtic)        +1:14
4. Martin Lama (BBN)              +2:00

Full Results
Photo Gallery: By @thebellevelo

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Geelong CC 28km ITT

Lunch eaten, bike cleaned, warm up v2.0 done, back to the start line. John Burtt and Rudy Schmidt running the show this time around, much less stress involved. No sheep stations up for grabs at a club TT, just glass trophies, the kind that remind me of what Nana Miller used to bring home from the Jeparit Golf Club when she had a good day out. Geelong CC riders also battling among themselves for aggregate points for the road season.

After a few laughs on the start line, and a generous gap of three minutes to my 'minute man', I was off again. The legs were feeling good for the first 5km but I backed off just a little as there was still another 23km to go. Filthy conditions again, wet road, and the wind was still blowing. 10kms in I finally caught my first rider, from the non-aero category. I can't hear a lot with the TT helmet on, but I do recall some interesting language describing the speed differential as I came past this guy. From there onwards riders were evenly spread up the road from both aero and non-aero categories. The final 5kms were the toughest of the day, slogging into the wind and seeing how close I could get to my earlier time of the day. Across the line with 39:31. 42 seconds slower, but only 6W down in power. Lots of interesting data to review and compare from the two events.

Results:

Aero Category
1. Shane Miller (Kosdown)   39:31
2. Stephane Vander Brugg   +06:50
3. Mick Sheehan                  +08:51
4. Bob Gartlabnd                 +08:56
5. Nick Lanham                   +09:12

Non-Aero Category
1. Simon Masters (Geelong CC) 47:45
2. Daryl Suter                              +0:57
3. Erik Holt                                +01:43
4. William Key                          +01:54
5. Dennis Wright                       +02:17

Full results, write up, and pics over at Geelong CC.

John holding, Rudy keeping an eye on the cows.

Started two TTs with a clean bike. Finished two TTs with a filthy bike.

Next up, two more TTs next weekend. Gippsland TT champs on Saturday then back to Kew on Sunday for the 20km roller-coaster TT. 15 road TT wins clocked up in 2011, new goal is as many as I can keep doing. The secret (and not so secret) lists of things I need to upgrade/improve is growing after every event. The obsession continues.... 



Supporting the Supporters

Cycling Victoria - I'm thanking these guys a lot these days, but for good reason. Making the TT series a reality, having commissars show up early on weekends to run the events, pushing out results / write ups / and entry reminders on the Internet. All very handy.

Geelong CC - John, Rudy, Simon (webmaster), and everyone involved all day Saturday. Also for the free food from Bakers Delight, the BBQ, the accurate timing, and for always welcoming riders from other clubs to their events. I'll always be on the start list if I can get down that way when they're running a TT.

Paul Ambry - For sorting out a horror tubular tyre situation I was in. Tyre glued, race won on it. Ace!

Team Kosdown - In particular the team boss, Kos Samaras, who after putting in some long hours this week with a new team website launch, ended up with a broken collarbone today while racing a Vets crit race. All the best with the healing Kos!

Northern Combine 3 Day Tour 2011 - Post Tour Wrap

Over for another year, already! Hot on the heels of the Queen of the Classics out at Balliang, the Three Day Tour around the Macedon Ranges was a huge success. If you were not shuffling around with sore legs on Tuesday morning, you would be in the minority (and you didn't go hard enough!). We've had a few days to rest and recover, and now it's back to training. The photographers have all uploaded their goods, blogs and race reports are popping up, and the anonymous forum posts about the tour are still not worth mentioning...

I thought I'd put together a list of the goods, the bads, and the links. Maybe you've seen the pics and read the blogs, but if not, enjoy!

The Good:
- The weather. Amazing.
- The racing. A Grade was hands down the best tour/GC racing I've competed in.
- Bunch sizes. 40 riders was perfect for the country roads we were on. No 100+ riders fighting for road, crossing white lines, etc. Bunch sprints/kicks were safe!
- The courses/routes. All challenging. The TT was a little short, but still proved to be a good battle. No major bergs either (Mt Macedon ascent next year!?)
- Event coverage/promotion by Cycling Victoria. My daily A Grade reports were popular (thanks for reading!)
- The atmosphere. Simon who was following Womens B Grade ringing a cow-bell as A Grade ripped past on Stage 3. Previous stage DNF riders out on course switching to spectator mode and cheering the bunches on. The photographers snapping away.
- The presentations. MC Mr Elliott did a great job, making all the typical 'dad' style gaffes....."HSC study".. Interviewing the sponsors before they handed out the prizes, and interviewing some of the riders too.
- Event sponsor, Griffyn, from No Limit Cycle Repairs dominated in the marketing/PR department all weekend. I spoke to him a few times, and I watched him fix bikes on the spot in no time at all - The guy had energy.
- Lisa walking around with a tub of lollies for D Grade... which I did a handful of damage to.... nom!

The Bad:
- Timing system issues in the TT and road stages. A number of contested placings ended up with interesting results, not just mine.
- No finish line cameras. Essential for disputes. Wireless chip theory is good, but visuals are a lot better.
- Results being published on another site before the official 3DT site. Many people couldn't find them. One site, one location, all the information. Stick sponsors names/images/links all over it, but distributing the info across sites meant people had to go on a click-hunt session.
- One of the sponsors missing at the presentations, awkward for them. 100+ racing cyclists in one room? A marketing/branding/PR opportunity missed guys!
- Three days isn't long enough. Lets race for a week! :)

The Links:
Photos by Brian Mangano - All Stages
Photos by Robert Groom - (Stage 4)
Photos by Ash Milne - (Stages 1,2,3)
Video by Kathryn Feldmaier - http://vimeo.com/25014573 (Linked to in my last post)
Blog by SoulDevotion: http://staytruecycling.blogspot.com/ (A Grade)
Blog by Brendan Bailey: http://thenewtimer.blogspot.com/ (A Grade)
Blog by Dave Anderson: http://gobravedave.wordpress.com/ (His weekly wrap ups are great.)
Blog by TDR Racing: http://tdr-melbourne.blogspot.com/ (C and D Grade)
Blog by Andy Christie: http://achristiecycling.blogspot.com/ (A Grade)

Three Day Tour Sponsors List: http://www.3daytour.org/sponsors.html


My Thanks:
- Everyone involved in running the show from start to finish. Lots of people behind the scenes, their work very much appreciated.
- Team Kosdown and our sponsors. The guys rode hard, rode smart, and the results followed. 2 stage wins, a 2nd, a 4th, and 2nd on GC. And 3rd in the KOM battle.
- Cycling Victoria again for their re-Tweets and Facebook link sharing of my race reports.
- The StKilda Womens Dev Squad - For finding great accommodation, and providing amusing stories from the Womens B Grade race over the weekend.
- Raoul from Luescher Teknik - The shoes are going strong! So is the carbon repaired frame I rode in stages 1,3,4.
- My Chiro, Dr. Elizabeth Walker at absolutebodyhealth.com.au... essential when riding a TT bike all the time.

So what's up next.....? Four time trials in the next two weeks. Back to pure TT training and forever chasing those one-percent advantages in between..... get on board, hold on! 

55.2km/h ave on the stealth bike... 1st place Stage 2 ITT

Northern Combine 3 Day Tour 2011 - Day 3. The decider.

The third day of sunshine today for Stage 4... Global warming a problem? No way. Burn more oil, this makes for perfect weather for racing bikes in winter.

First up Stage 2 report redux. Very late last night the numbers were crunched and TT times were posted for the TT and Stage 3. Phew... the show was back on the rails. I'd got the TT stage win and a few small gaps had opened up in the GC battle. Nick 'The Beard' Bensley (SoulDevotion) didn't have a bad TT after all with 6:31, and was now on our GC hit-list for Stage 4. Tim 'Chain Twister' White (Hawthorn) had ripped a 6:29 for 2nd place in the TT, but was an unfortunate DNS for Stage 4.

Stage 4 - Pastoria Loop x5 (100km)

80km on the #NC3dt website, 100km in the official program.... so it was 100km we'd be doing. I was only 4 seconds down on Nathan 'E Dog' Elliott (Search2Retain) for overall GC at the start of the day. In all honesty that is a huge margin against someone who's in form and flying up hills at the moment. I was looking to fight to hold that 2nd spot, and if the opportunity popped up, I'd have a dig at some bonus seconds if I was there at the end. 

Roll out was somewhere out the road, we managed to get there on time and rolled off after being wished luck by Klaus 'The Godfather' Mueller (Cycling Australia). A ripping southerly wind again today, which ironed out the climbs nicely. All day we were pushed up the exposed/moonscape climb and over to the rolling hills on the back of the course. Kos 'The Smurf' Samaras (Kosdown) and Aaron 'Teh Kitteh' Christiansen (The Big Ring) were allowed up the road and were kept at a 25-45 second margin for a lap or two. The bunch was happy to let them sit there, team work-horses keeping the pace. After a dash for hill points, Andy 'KOM Kid' Christie (Lawson Homes) and Marc Loecherer (Italo) tip-toe away from the bunch and set off towards Samaras and Christiansen. The two pairs off the front in sight at all times. When they combined it was noted by the bunch and the pace driven higher by the assigned work-horses.

Christiansen was the first to drift back to the bunch before the next Bald Hill climb, with the other three getting reeled in over the next 15km with perfect precision. Not too fast, not too slow. The reel-in was done by Elliott's team mate, Tom 'Motor' Donald (Search2Retain), with a massive pull on the front. Christie was back in the bunch and no longer a threat to Elliott's GC. David 'Attacking' Abraham (Lawson Homes) who was well down on GC launched a few solo attempts off the front coming into the final lap. He was left to dangle, no chase was on, but he was swept up each time as the pace of the bunch lifted towards the final kms.

The bunch was together leading into the final rolling hills towards the final ascent of Bald Hill. Conor 'Way too many Wheatbix for breakfast' Murtagh (Quick Cycle) made life hard for us with a few punchy attacks off the front. At one point getting a gap with Elliott that had me and Gabe 'The guy who's name I now know' Carey (LSDSports) chasing, swinging elbows, and wishing someone else would help out. Shannon 'MotoGP' Johnson (Bike'n'Bean) and Luca 'GC protector' Giacomin (Kosdown) offered the assistance we were looking for and closed the two down.

The finish was only a km or so downhill from the Bald Hill KOM, so whoever made it over the top would contest the stage, and possibly GC. Just as we hit the base of the climb, Murtagh attacks. Elliott goes with him and jams it on the front. Only seven survive over the top.... six of them being the top six GC contenders! The pace was up on the run to the line. I sat at the rear of the group as a few attacks were quickly closed down. Line in sight, one last attack went, I can't recall who it was. Christie on his wheel, me third wheel on Christie. The sprint opens up. Bensley smoking it and hitting the front, I rip up the windy side on the rough-as-guts run to the line. Elliott on my right and closing. A drag race to the line. Bensley taking the win, I threw at the line and saw Elliott's yellow jersey beside me on the line.

No stage win for me and no riders between Elliott and I, so no change to our 1-2 on GC, Elliott taking the well deserved overall. I claim "second or third" to the claims judge, they asked if I wanted to contest it. Sure, why not. Nothing to lose. It'd only mean the difference between Elliot winning by a few seconds less. Christie listed as claiming 4th on the stage. Somehow in the wash-up I was given 4th..... I don't know how a close battle for 2nd ends up with 4th?.... did anyone get a finish line photo? Arh well, no change to my GC position and I'm bloody happy to have mixed it up so well with a field of quality riders over the 100km Stage 4.

Update 1: I got the photo! Stage 4 finish line.....

Bigger resolution version: Here. Thanks to http://robertgroom.com.au!

Update 2: Ripper finish line shot by Brian Mangano...

63km/h and 2m from the Stage 4 Finish Line. And I'm on the hoods!!??   Photo (c) Brian Mangano.

As I've mentioned in previous posts, Elliott is a good mate, and a bloody classy bike rider. He rides hard, rides smart, pulls monster turns in a break when it counts, and attacks like there is no tomorrow. I've spent the at least 7hrs this weekend either on his wheel, not sticking him in the gutter when he is on mine, and responding to his attacks. To see him in yellow from day one and keep it through to the end - in words he would use himself, "I rate that'.


A Grade Overall GC

1.  Nathan ELLIOTT (Search2Retain)  7:01:52
2.  Shane MILLER (Kosdown)              +10
3.  Andy CHRISTIE (Lawson Homes)        +26
4.  Nick BENSLEY (SoulDevotion)         +27
5.  Gabriel CAREY (LSDSports)           +40
6.  Conor MURTAGH (QuickCycle)          +57
7.  Thomas DONALD (Search2Retain)     +1:01
8.  Luca GIACOMIN (Kosdown)           +1:02
9.  Dean SANFILIPPO (RapidoCycles)    +1:06
10. Trent WILLIAMS (Bikes Direct)     +1:29

Full Results HERE

I'll gather a list of photographer links and things over the coming days and post up. Heaps of happy snappers out there on course getting great shots in the sunshine, one being Kathryn Feldmaier who made the awesome video below. I make an appearance at 1:21, TT hurt box. Watch it in HD and full screen for best viewing.

Northern Combine 3 Day Tour 2011 - Day 2. Team Kosdown FTW!

E Dog in yellow!

6:25am alarm, punching myself in the face putting arm warmers on, and a balmy 7 degrees outside - An almost perfect start to day 2 at the #NC3dt.

Stage 2 - 6k Time Trial
Everyone who'd glanced the route on CyclingProfiles thought it was downhill. Devil was in the detail, the actual scale indicated 30m drop over 6km. Even an unattended shopping trolley with ceramic bearings wouldn't ghost away from you on that kind of gradient. However the wind would ensure it'd leave one hell of a dint in your Datson 180B in the car park! 25-30km/h southerly wind, not too gusty, pushing us along the entire route. An atypical starting order, A Grade first in number order, not reverse number order. So we were off really early before the wind really started picking up.

Not much to report for a 6km TT - Peg that power number, then exceed it a little, then a bit more. I caught my 30 second man who was cranking on a road bike, no TT bars. No sign of Nathan Elliott (Search2Retain) who was my minute man. I was hoping to at least pull him back into sight, but with the tail wind and short distance, there wouldn't be much separating us anyway. I ended up with a 6:24, 421W, 55.2km/h average. I swung back around and Elliott's mum tells me the recorded time, 6:24, spot on! Elliott did a 6:30. So with his 10 second advantage at the start of the day, he would retain the yellow jersey for Stage 3, assuming nobody else came stomping in with a better time. No more results were spied from the officials, so we eagerly awaited what Nick Bensley (SoulDevotion) had done and some of those fast-spinning U19/U23 kids would rip out. Bensley wasn't too happy with his ride, somewhere around 7mins he thought when I had a chat with him. Official results will be more accurate than car park chatter - so we waited for those. And waited for those.... and waited for.... and waited.... and.... Oh look at the time, Stage 3 starts in 10 minutes.

There is talk of 'timing issues' for this stage. Mine was reported to me independently, and it was correct. I don't know the full detail. Maybe they sent riders off at the wrong times? Surely something that is sorted out with manual time keeping.... At the track there is the electronic system, plus three hand timers. A road TT being a little harder to administer with the finish being 6kms away.... but still... all too late now. Rumor has it the stage could be scrapped. I'll refrain from posting my opinion on that and what it means for GC and how it reflects on the entire tour..... no guesses I'd light it up with words that'd have that raggedy haired dude on SBS' Letters and Numbers consulting his monster dictionary for an epic offensive word-score!

A Grade - Time Trial Results

TBA. If the stage is scrapped I'll be asking for riders to submit their own times, honesty system, because the first rule of TTs is "TIME YOURSELF"....

Stage 3 - 70km Kyneton-Sutton Grange and back again.

SoulDevotion stomping! Bensely ripping it from the start. The TT friendly tail wind also became our friend for the first half of this stage. 41km/h+ average at a quick guess, with Bensley up the road on a solo mission from hell. Lots of friendly chatter in the bunch today, a few people had read my report from Stage 1, thanks to the promotion of it by Cycling Victoria. People seem to know who I am, I'm getting to know the other riders, and remembering names, such as the 'guy in LSDsports kit', Gabe. Handy to remember these things, who's who, etc. A Grade doesn't really suffer from any bitching and moaning I'm hearing from other grades, there is a level of respect we have for each other. No (intentional) wheel chopping, no (intentional) dodgy moves, no throwing people in the gutter and off the road. Just bloody hard racing 'when the shit goes down', and everyone looking out for each other. Potholes, cars up, cars back, all communicated well throughout the bunch. No psych outs, no shit talking, a few laughs here and there. The A Grade race results are all legs, lungs, luck, and a few tactics thrown in. Racing as it should be.

Back to the race.... A quicker than expected return trip as team work-horses got on the front for their protected riders. Bensely was soon back in sight. Tim White (Hawthorn) had a nasty mechanical on the way back, dropping his chain then somehow twisting it beyond a usable state. That was a loss, he's a fair unit with a good motor who'd kill it in the head wind. The hammer was down up the final climb around 12kms from the finish. A few attacks being launched but nothing getting away. Bensely was swept up after a huge solo effort, I had my fingers crossed for him, it would have been a gutsy ride had he survived. In amongst all the attacks and chasing 'the right' combination of riders split off the front. Three or four riders it looked like, with almost every team represented and no GC riders spotted in the mix. A few more were allowed to bridge across as the bunch watched, tapped away, and kept them just out of striking distance.

Elliott was a little nervous of the time gap and lifted the pace to minimise the finishing time as we came into the final few kms. The group up the road battled for line honours and the time bonuses on offer as the bunch scrambled for that coveted billionth place sprint (damn sprinters!), a lot of us sitting up and not risking the battle, a few crossing the center line for their run to the line..... Right where the officials were watching! We were told to keep rolling back into town. Um, what about claims....? Electronic timing should cover that...

So who won? Cam McKenzie from Team Kosdown. Hell yeah! Cam was taken out at Calder Park only a few weeks back, now he's back and ripping A Grade wins. He'd slipped into the break late in the race and hit them perfectly in the sprint. The smile on his face for the next hour was only matched by team boss Kos Samaras who'd seen it unfold from the chase bunch. The Milky Bars are on us! No change to GC that we're aware of. Tomorrow might shuffle a few things. Though having the TT results would shuffle things into correct order before that battle begins.

Klaus Mueller - Godfather, Cycling Australia.

A Grade Results - Stage 3 (from memory, I'll update when official results are out....)

1. Cam McKenzie (Kosdown)
2. Peter English (SoulDevotion) st
3. Tom Donald (Search2Retain) st
4. Gabe Carey (LSDsports) st


A Grade GC - After Stage 3

We don't know. Elliott in yellow we think.


Random Mechanicals.....

Too much power Tim!

Northern Combine 3 Day Tour 2011 - Day 1. Every E-Dog has his day.

Sunny skies, stiff wind, and a great showing of 40 top Northern Combine riders this season at the start line of A Grade today. 90kms around the Lancefield loop, a route with a few memorable sections we've all been dropped on at one point in our cycling careers. Dons Rd, the Newham pincher, Rochford long-drag, and the epic downhill and super-fast few kms back into town. Today was no different, each of those sections determined who'd be fighting out at the end.

A nervous bunch at the start, all tapered, all ready to race. Everyone had an idea of what the teams would do, the solo riders would be in a position to benefit from that if they jumped on the right moves. Easy pace for the first few kms until Kosmos Samaras (Kosdown) puts down the first attack of the tour. Nobody responds and Samaras is dangling 400m up the road for a while. Andy Christie (Lawson Homes) is allowed to jump across, and another rider almost made it before drifting back. Ross Muller (Brunswick) was also allowed a shot at reaching the break but was brought back to the bunch on the road toward Rochford when the pace picked up.

There was 50 seconds gap to the two leaders as we started lap 2. Samaras and Christie were still in sight. The guys from SoulDevotion had not made the break but Nick Bensley and their boys were keen to keep the breakaway in sight. And that's exactly what they did. With the help of Shannon Johnson (Bike'n'Bean) they kept picking up the pace to keep the break in sight for most of the race. SoulDevotion are the kind of guys I like racing with. All happy for a chat, understand tactics, all race hard. Great way to represent their team and sponsors.

On the final lap the break were out of sight with over a minute advantage. The pace dropped on the head/side wind section of the course, I'd have put all my money on Samaras and Christie taking 1-2 with the bunch rolling in a few minutes down. Unfortunately there is always one thing that 'easy racing' means, it'll be followed by all out HELL. Elliott and Bensely attacked up Dons Rd towards Newham. I latched onto the move, but the bunch was soon back together. This hurt a few legs and when Tim White (Hawthorn) and Cam Clamp (Hawthorn) attacked again from the Newham corner the bunch was stripped down to only 15-20 riders. The pace was kept high towards Rochford. We could now see Samras and Christie up the road and we were pulling them back. The chase bunch was hectic, all trying to pull turns, a few wheel chops in the wind, lots of suffering. Elliott attacked at the base of the Rochford and strung out the field. This is best defined as 'when the shit went down'. This involves a lot of suffering, drool, and hanging on to the move with everything you've got. Elliott and Gabe Carey (LSDsports) gained a 20m advantage on what was left of the chase bunch. Bensley putting in a monster turn before I got on the front, telling him to get on! Crank crank crank, still nothing gained on Elliott and Carey. I swung my elbow at Bensley, nop, he was in the hurt box so I kept my head down. Elliott is too dangerous to let go. Conor Murtagh (QuickCycle) ripped past us, I dug into the reserves and went with him. We made it across to Elliott and co at the KOM point. Spent, but looking back the bunch had exploded. The hammer was down back into town as we swept up Samaras and Christie. So this was it. Lead group of 7-8 riders, 4 km to go, bunch spread back up the road. Time gaps were showing!

Myself and Elliott had 1-2'ed the Hell of the West last weekend, and as I've said in that report, he's a good mate. And a bloody good rider. He proved this to me again when he hit our lead group with a solo move off the front, 2kms to go. With #1 on his back, surely they wouldn't let him go? The chase was on, but put a TTer off the front with a massive tail wind, they'll ride "with the power of 10 men" (thanks to Phil Liggett for that quote). The bunch hesitated for a few seconds and Elliott wasn't going to be caught. Into the final corner there wasn't much in it, but it was a race for 2nd, Christie had held on and contributed to the Elliott chase and was about to lead through the corner before it came up faster than I thought.... "Shit... Inside!" to let him know I was carrying more speed than I expected, and he let me though. If I didn't jump them now I'd be leading them out for a sprint, so I kicked early and TTed towards Elliott. Team workhorse, Luca Giacomin (Kosdown) was in the mix at the end but was pulling away from them for a comfortable 2nd a few seconds behind the well deserved win by Elliott.

Hard-men effort of the day goes to Samaras and Christie for battling it out for almost 80kms together. Elliott taking the win was all class today. Only one team mate to help him out, making 'the race defining move' by hitting the bunch up Rochford, then hitting them again for a solo win. Awesome.

Tomorrow morning - The Time Trial. Bring it!

A Grade Results (unofficial, I'll update these when posted)

1. Nathan Elliott (Search2Retain)
2. Shane Miller (Kosdown) +3 sec
3. Andy Christie (Lawson Homes)
4. Luca Giacomin (Kosdown)


Random Visual

The place we're staying is ace. Massive old house, lots of exploring to do, and recovery sessions with my friends.....

Northern Combine 3 Day Tour 2011 - Day 0

Team S. S. Minnow.

Hopefully I'll be in a position to report on the daily action from A Grade. Team Kosdown have a great line up this year, a few of us have the form to aim for a podium spot.... and after our win at the "Hell of the West" one day classic, we'll be closely watched by the other teams/riders. Snagging the win at the HoW has taken some pressure off me coming into the 3DT, no questions about form, it was enough to win last weekend, so should be good enough to mix it with the top hitters this weekend. If not, I'll switch to work-horse mode and go for a gallop in the TT.

There's a fair amount of luck involved in a four stage, three day race. And I may need it after the saddle at the Metros and rear spoke at the HoW..... There is a follow car with spares, but as a GC contender there isn't much hope of getting back on post a wheel change. This isn't the ProTour, and I'd expect the challengers to hit the front and hammer it if any contenders are sidelined. Anyone not considered a GC threat can slip up the road and gain a few seconds on the bunch too. Back in 2009 a 52 second lead by two riders on Stage 1 was enough to secure them both podium places. A rider who missed his TT start also soloed away for a 5min stage win in Stage 3 as well, with no impact on overall GC. Two examples of how a tour is a lot different to a one day race. Time bonuses down to 5th place means any bunch sprints on 1/2 roads will be dangerous as hell.

Stage 1 is around the well worn Lancefield loop tomorrow, hopefully something interesting will unfold. We're ready for anything and our plans could change in a second depending on how things end up. My main aim is to stay out of trouble, grab any opportunity that pops up, but my focus early on will be Stage 2, the Time Trial. 6kms isn't an ideal distance for a time trial, it will be over in a few minutes. I know what power I can hold over that distance, so the plan is simply to peg that number and fight it all the way. No tactics, equipment is sorted, position is sorted, no stress, just watch the Watts on the SRM. This will be my 14th time trial for the year, not including track pursuits, so the prep is automatic. (TTs #15 and #16 are in Geelong next weekend).

Carbo loading is done, blerk, after a quick 45mins on the Richmond boulevard on the TT bike.... where I had another encounter of the wheel-sucking kind. 1km from finishing my last interval Mr High-Helmet-BMC spots me approaching, but doesn't swing over to the left to let me pass. He swings wide, right in front of me, then gets out of the saddle to latch onto my wheel as I swerve to the wrong side of the road to pass him, or more accurately, to avoid hitting him. I'm not a rolling TAB, I've no idea why I attract so many rolling punters. Thanks for the motivation to crank that final section buddy!

3 Day Tour Info Links:

Official Website: http://www.3daytour.org/
Official Program: 3-Day-Tour-Tour-Program-2011.pdf  (that isn't on the official website..........)
Somewhat Official Facebook Northern Combine Group: Facebook

I'll try tweet out anything of note, results, etc, if/when I can. But for now...... Let's race!

Lab Test Llama.......

V02, Lactate Threshold, face masks, blood sampling, pain, all on an indoor bike. Fun? For the most part, yeah! I got into the sport of cycling later in life, wasting those early years of athletic potential tapping keyboards, learning about the Internets (yeah, before EVERYONE knew what it was), chasing IT industry certifications, all things that would lead me to a life of crime... I mean.. a professional career in IT security.


Riding bikes was initially a bit of fun, it became a little more serious when I started racing, then stepped up a notch when I started doing alright in a few races. There have been a few setbacks along the way, collarbones snapping like twigs (x3) and a hip that wasn't up to the task of holding together when slammed into the road.... but the upward trend has continued... Power is creeping up and I'm still hitting PB's on some old Cycle2Max climbs. Throw in an obsession with equipment, being wind tunnel 'tested', chasing TTs all over the place, racing and beating a few pro riders over summer in our local crits.... the question was always there, I wonder how far I could have taken this? (Note, past tense, I'm 33 in a few months, stop asking me if I'm going to ride the Tour mum!)

After competing against me in the recent YarraTri TT and again at the Kew TTs, Dr Stephen Lane from HPTech offered to get me into the lab to see what I was made of. (so to speak, no muscle biopsies yet, phew!) I've been offered a lab testing session a while back, but never went though with it. I didn't want to know my genetic limiters, I didn't want to be told I'd never make it, I'd have only obsessed about the test and trained specificity for it. Probably a good thing I didn't do it. But the timing of Stephen's offer was perfect. I've been racing well for the last 6 months, I'm in pretty good form, so why not? Hook me up to the system lets go!

We've all seen pictures of athletes in the lab. All hooked up, it's exactly what you'd expect. The mouthpiece isn't as bad as it looks, it is also your friend, it's the only way you'll suck in oxygen once the nose clip is on. 

The test consisted of a warm up, then the power required to turn the cranks being stepped up every few minutes, through to exhaustion. The first few minutes are easy, the middle is hard work, the end is hell. I had the numbers on the screen next to me so could see the indicators of 'system overload' before my legs wouldn't cooperate any longer. Blood tests were done through every interval to check lactate levels. Usually when I finish an effort on the bike I look back and think "I could have lasted a little longer"... but not in this instance. That was all I had today. Totally spent.

"The numbers, what were your numbers!?!?!". Well I won't be riding the Tour, and mum, you're to blame! We gained some insight into why I'm doing well in time trials and races with repeated efforts (Kew Crits). That's all I'll give away for now. I have some data to go over, a few things I can add to my training schedule to maximize what I'm working with.

If you're keen to know your own limiters, I'd recommend getting into a lab and going through a little bit of pain. Head on over to the HPTech website and get in contact with Stephen if you're keen to get tested as part of his research projects.

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Supporting the supporters!

Dr Stephen Lane from HPTech http://www.hptek.blogspot.com/ for the lab test and helping identify some areas I can work on.










Cycling Victoria - In particular Paul Lumsden their new Communications Manager. Paul has been reporting club races/results/photos via Twitter, Facebook, and the CV main page. I've sent Paul and Kipp a thanks already for this, but I wanted to point out their good work on here too, no doubt you've seen the increase in reports they're posting. This helps promote clubs, their events, the riders, and the sponsors of both. In turn, getting more people into competing and more people interested in following the sport (sponsors, etc).

Footscray Cycling Club ITT Championships 2011

Footscray CC allowed members from other clubs to compete in their ITT championships on Sunday, so the alarm clock was set early, and I was headed out west, only a few kms away from where we'd raced Saturdays Hell of the West. Going over the West Gate Bridge, the massive flags were a good indicator of the wind, a killer north westerly... this would make for an interesting 40km TT!




This was my first Footscray CC event, and I think I've said before how much I enjoy club events. Here is why:

- Online pre-entry via the web for this TT.
- They sent out an SMS the day prior informing entrants of the start lists being posted.
- Map and start list printed and provided when signing in for race.
- Corner marshals, and marshals on blind hills to warn of oncoming traffic.
- Spot on accurate timing, and lap splits for A Grade (the only grade doing two laps).
- Prompt results, presentations, and awarding of medals across grades, and a sash to the club ITT champ.
- $15 entry fee and generous prize money was a bonus too.

As a visiting competitor I was warmly welcomed by their members and officials. Top stuff. So onto the race, summed up in a Time Trial Flowchart.....

Of course there is a lot more than that...  I won't bore everyone with a blow by blow (did I mention the wind?) of solo riding..... back to dot points for the race summary:

- First 6.5km was into a head/side wind and up a gradual rise, topping out with a few pinch hills.
- The next 3.5km were downhill, into an epic cross wind. Passing cars meant being sandblasted.
- 10km-17km was done at 60km/h, front Zipp 404 singing loudly with the tailwind coming straight from Hell (of the west).
- A few kms of cross wind and lap 1 was complete.
- The wind picked up for lap 2. Many riders opting not to ride on their TT extensions.
- More sandblasting, falling bits of tree hitting me on the head.
- Visions of Raoul Luescher shaking his head whenever I wasn't holding proper TT form....
- Actually being scared for the first time in a while as a gust almost knocked me off the road at 55km/h.
- Finish line in sight, crank it, done! 56:05.

The cool down was a little eerie, we'd been fighting the wind for close to an hour, and all of a sudden everything was quiet.... the silence soon broken with people recounting their battle stories.

A Grade Results:

No. Name.              First Split. Final Time.
1.  Shane Miller (Haw) 26:52:64     56:05:68
2.  Adam Murchie       27:03:09     56:46:79 (Footscray ITT Champion 2011)
3.  Ben Johnson        27:13:06     57:21:99
4.  Lachie Doak        27:32:66     57:50:18
5.  Daniel Hopper      27:57:04     58:36:39
6.  Dom Dudkiewicz     28:26:43     59:50:02
7.  Matt Bailey        28:55:68     60:46:31
8.  Chris Pescott      30:17:37     63:19:68
9.  Adam Trewin        31:25:59     66:04:79
10. Ben Douglas (Haw)  29:57:89     DNF (puncture)

Full results: http://www.footscraycc.com.au/uploads/media/ITT_05-06-11.pdf

$130 for 1st place, a nice surprise for an hour racing. I was aiming for 10 TT wins this year, my tally is currently sitting at 12. There are 20+ on the TT calendar through to the end of the year, so my current TT bike is on shaky ground. The urge to upgrade and keep putting everything into these next TTs is strong.... but this weekends prize money is already allocated to a chain, saddle, and a fixing broken spoke in a rear wheel (broken at Hell of the West, happy it held to the end!). Upgrades may be put on the back burner. As Lance once said, "Where the f'ck is my left nut!?"... no wait, wrong quote... "It's not about the bike". (much)

Northern Combine: Hell of the West - 2011

The 'one day classic' of the Northern Combine road season. Run by Melton CC, the race is now a scratch race, and no longer finishes at the top of the epically steep berg that makes everyone switch cassettes for the day. This year featured 3km of dirt/gravel, a nasty side wind, and the epic berg ascent half way into the race. The actual location of Balliang is still somewhat of a mystery, with the GPS devices taking people a number of different ways, and dumping them somewhere within 10kms of the Balliang hall, making them stop on the side of the road and wait for a car with bikes mounted to go flying past at an authoritative-I-know-where-it-is 120km/h. We counted five or six GPS trusting victims as we made our way there.

A Grade got underway with 30 or so starters. In the pack were a mix of solo riders, NRS teams (John West, Search2Retain, LSDsports), and local teams (SoleDevotion, Bike Gallery, Fitzroy Revolution, Bikes Direct, Rapido, and Kosdown). A start line attack was instigated by a rider, the outcome of this move was outlined in the Road Race Flowchart I created the other day. A few km down the road Kos Samaras (Kosdown) goes solo up the road and dangles a few 100m off the front. More than 80kms from the finish line, nobody was too keen to spend energy chasing him down. Up over the first few hills, the 3km dirt section flew by..... literally... it flew by on our left.... the corner wasn't marshaled. Lindsay Tunbridge (Kosdown) drove the course before the race and knew we were lost. A bit of confusion hit the bunch as Samaras pulled up after hitting the main road. Yep, A Grade were off course, and a little confused.

Being up near the front I thought I'd take the initiative and organise a turn-around. We'd let Samaras get his 20 second advantage he had before we came to a halt, then we'd continue racing (and take the correct turn). Everyone ok with that? Yep.. no.. wait... we have a protest! A rider wasn't happy with giving Samaras back his 20 seconds advantage. I was busy being loud and trying to communicate to everyone what we'd do to correct the situation - but someone wasn't happy. I didn't quite get the reasoning but it was something to do with 20 seconds being different or harder now we turned back into a head wind. What? We had no time for a mediation session, I got fired up. Kos was up the road. So I called "race on", in words to that effect, and took off angry. We almost got a break going at that point too.... but we were all back together at the turn off to the dirt section. I passed the protesting rider on the dirt and let him know it wasn't my intention to piss anyone off, I just wanted to get back to racing, in the fairest way. All good, we were cool, and we were back on the (correct) course and racing.

Dirt section lived up to the hype, it was hell. Follow a wheel and hold on. The wind was coming from side on so there was no easy sit no matter where you were, and the rolling resistance of dirt isn't ideal. Nathan Elliott (Search2Retain) was chopped onto the shoulder... but he didn't stop there... he ventured out a good three meters ripping it agricultural style on 23mm tyres. We all thought he was heading for a front flip right into an Ambo ride home, but the wiley fox kept it upright, and somehow made it back to the road. Mad skills and a lot of luck! Then he had the nerve to hit the front and drive the speed..... and why not? It was his lucky day! We all suffered through with two or three riders getting dropped as we hit the safety of the bitumen.

The next 20kms were side-wind hell. A group of four getting away, one echelon chasing, and everyone at the back chewing their handlebars. It took the race smarts of two Kosdowners to start working a second echelon before things became a little easier on the legs (cheers guys!). We saw the front group of four split up and disband their breakaway efforts at the turn off the main road, 10kms before he main climb. The road leading to the climb was done at a pedestrian pace. A few riders making moves off the front, never far from view. One did manage to slip away, being caught well after the climb.

"The climb" was hell. But that isn't anything new, it's always hell. Elliott made it over first from the bunch, an LSDsports rider not far off, and I came rolling through on them both as we picked up the pace into the headwind. A Soul Devotion rider bridged across and we were soon on the 'other' side wind section of the course. This group of five should have been the break that stayed away. Not to be. A group of four or five were back on. The front bunch was now 10 riders at the 70km mark.

For the next 15kms it was attack, chase, bunch ride, repeat, frustrating as hell. A number of riders willing to attack, a number of riders willing to chase and sit. At one point I counter attacked myself twice just to make them chase over and over again. Elliott was active off the front a few times, along with a Trent Williams (Bikes Direct). Nothing staying away as the bunch looked like they wanted a sprint.

10kms to go people were dropping wheels mid bunch. Then they'd chase like mad when an acceleration went around them to close the gap. This happened three or four times and was putting everyone into the hurt box. 7km to go Elliott and I got off the front. No more hills, a tail wind after the next corner, and two riders who like a time trial. Perfect! We pulled some hefty turns as the bunch tried, once again, to pull us back. Luca Giacomin (Kodsown) bridged across to Elliott and I by himself but soon drifted back to the chasing bunch. The finish was now only 5kms up the road, the chase bunch drifting backwards at 100-150m and the gap was growing. At 1km to go we knew we had it.  A 1-2 in any order is a result we'd be happy with.... but we're both racers, so no gifts! No cat and mouse, we'd sprint from wherever we were. At 800m to go I was on the front, 300m out Elliott starts the charge, pulling beside me then 1/2 a length in front. Side by side drag race! I slowly pulled him back then pull away and took the win. 20kms earlier I was ripping suicide attacks thinking the day would end up in a bunch sprint, not knowing it'd end up in a two up TT smash session with a good mate, and the win! Happy days!

Finish line salute going up! (Pic by Peter O'Callaghan)

A Grade Results:
1. Shane Miller (HCC/Kosdown)
2. Nathan Elliott (Brunswick/Search2Retain)
3. Trent Williams (Bikes Direct)
4. Dean Sanfilippo (Brunswick)

Full results HERE

Andrew Blake has a huge set of photos from the race up on Flickr - Capturing almost every rider up the hill, and finishing line shots. Have a look at them, fantastic shots: HERE

Yep, happy days!

Road Race Flowchart.....

It's no secret I love a time trial, crit races are also fun on two wheels, but we're now into road season! In winter, racing cyclists are fed on a diet of long road races, aka scratch races. Where the only tactic is to finish in front of the people you start with. Simple? No. Road racing is complex, add in teams, mates, and seeking in-race revenge on that prick that pulled the field back to your wheel when you went up the road, it can get a little busy. I've come up with a very high-level flowchart of how road racing unfolds, not taken from any coaching book, not made up on the fly, but put together while twiddling my thumbs... in a road race.

This should explain the workings of what happens in a typical club/combine road race, with no focus on result, just lasting the distance. I've got a few more charts for crits, TTs, and commuting, they'll be posted up once I've verified the information they contain is UCI certified.
 

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Supporting the supporters!

Another section I'll add to the blog when applicable, like the random visuals. I'll use this section to mention the people/products/companies who've recently helped me in some way or I've been involved with. The big players get a logo posted up on the right. I'm happy promoting those who get behind me.

BikeForce - Heath Jackson, Marketing Manager from BikeForce roped me into their latest TV ad shoot down in Altona. I was happy to rock up and help out, in my undercover-plain kit. You won't even notice me... except if they use the take where I missed the pedal at the start. Not pro! Thankfully it's a move away from their last memorable ad..... the 7am start was freezing but the breakfast and coffee after was superb!

I got my bike..... I got my bike...... v2.0  aarhhhhhh!!!! :)

Total Rush - Luke McKenzie read about my saddle snapping skills at the Metro champs and has offered me a loaner Specialized Romin saddle to try out for the next few weeks. I also saw the new Shiv TT bike while I was at Total Rush, it looks nice and quick.... but... it didn't follow me home, so I'm still hunting for one of these next-gen TT frames.....

Hell of the West should be a good saddle testing race.

Capilano Honey - Honey Shotz - Emma from Calpilano Marketing & PR is a reader of the blog and has sent me a box of 100(!) Honey Shotz energy gel-thingys. At 7g per shot they're a little inefficient to use on the bike (you need 4 of them for an equivalent carb-hit to a standard gel). But I've still managed to finish half a box of them - They're pure honey so they go well in hot drinks too! A 600g squeeze bottle would be better for in-race energy, if you can stomach that much honey at once. Bzzzzzzzzzz!