SuiSun Crit: Out with a bang in with a whimper

After winning my last crit as a 3 I upgraded and this was going to be my first race as a 2. I knew coming into it guys were going really fast right now and I have been clutching onto what little form I have since January. After another crash 2 weeks ago and being on the TT bike for Esparto last weekend I really couldn't get over the sketchy feeling around corners. I wasn't very comfortable before the start. Most of the p/1/2 field was rolling on the course before the race since there was suppose to be a kids race but nobody signed up.

Rolling past the start/finish I hear "10 minutes to the start" so we keep rolling. A couple more times through and I know it must be getting close so I'll stop on the next lap cause I want to start at the front.
As I round the last corner I see a wall of riders in front of me. Starting dead last.

Goals for the race:
Don't get dropped
don't crash
Don't get dropped
Oh and Don't get dropped

The race starts and it is strung out from the whistle and it hurts already. 72 laps to go. Don't get dropped. don't get dropped. I accept my fate as a tail-gunner for now since I am really uncomfortable and don't want to advance on the straights just to slow riders in the corners. Observations: The poor riding doesn't stop in the 3's its just faster in the 1/2. Biggest change isn't the speed but the duration that they maintain the speed. It wasn't much faster that the fastest times in a 3 race but instead of it being ballistic for a lap or two it was on for 71 of the 72 laps. I saw some stupid stuff that just defies logic. Also, you hear a lot of "hold your line","on you right","slowing" etc in a 3 race and none of that in the 1/2. You do hear and extreme amount of F-Bombs though

Well, the rest of the report is about the same. I just suffered greatly and finished with one of the most rewarding pack finishes I've had. I know I would have spent much less energy in the thick of the pack or off the front pushing for a break

Esparto TT

Well, after crashing last weekend and getting swamped with work I came into the TT with a whole 4 hours of riding this week and none of it on the TT bike. Great way to build up for my first 1/2 event, huh? I was relying on suffer memory. Just head down and push till its over. The course was 18 miles of flat to rolling with some wind and rough pavement. It was a small field so I knew it would be a top 15 finish so long as I didn't flat. I also knew Eric Wholberg from Symetrics was signed up so the winner was decided. Given my current state of fitness and sore backside I set a number of about 320w as a target. I went out to hard(like always) but was suffering along and keeping my minute man at around 40 seconds. I hit the turn around and was destroyed. Suffer home for 7th. If I was on good form like at districts I'm pretty sure I would have gotten 3rd or 4th.

Racing under the lights. So outclassed

So I was planning my races for the rest of the season and saw the invite only San Fransisco Twilight crit is also letting 1/2 riders apply for a spot. I contacted out Elite team leader and he knows the promoter and will reserve me a spot. Oh yeah, 100+ of the fastest guys in the country on a tight course in the dark. Good Times. This is the second to last round of the USA Crits series with the final being next month at Interbike which I'll be racing the 2/3 crit and the Industry Cup race thanks to the fine, fine guys at Fair Wheel Bikes in Arizona.

Hippster

No, I'm not getting a fixed gear with a pad, doning some chick jeans and chopping down some flat bars. I mean the other kind of hippster. Yet another crash. It really is becoming comical at this point. Every time I have a desent string of results or form its met with another make-out session between the tarmac and I. In a race? Someone else crashed? Hell no. I crashed on a freakin Saturday training ride hitting a tiny patch of water in a roundabout. The resulting bellyflop took out the three guys behind me. Fortunatly they are seasoned racer and understand that this shit just happens but didn't make me feel any better about the situation.

I'm really getting tired of changing bandages and peeling VAC off this year.