September 26 - Oakland Grand Prix

CTL: 115
TSB: 10

Warmed up for this by doing the Central Coast Cyclocross race in the morning, almost made it through that unscathed but managed to slide out on the last lap and show up for this race with some road rash on my right leg.

Took a few laps to get used to the ebb and flow of the pack on the course but felt comfortable enough to move up on different sections of the course. Never felt confident enough to attack - seems like I would move up to near the front on the straights and not have enough energy or space to move up farther by the time we got to a corner. The lap cards went into single digits and then we had a pretty bad crash coming out of the hairpin, I was behind it and caught back up to the group but we were neutralized to permit an ambulance to treat a downed rider.

We got restarted from scratch with six laps to go. Was thinking more about safety versus finishing position and could not get myself to commit to a move that would better my position so just finished with the group.

2010 Oakland Grand Prix E3 - until neutralization from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 49:28
C: 104
S: 38.7
Pavg: 196
Pnorm: 203
Someone else must have an identical ANT+ heart rate ID because my maximum heart rate is not 238.

September 10-12 - Folsom Cyclebration Omnium

CTL: 122
TSB: 26

Got in two short easy days on the TT bike to try to make up for not riding it much at all this season, got a decent race, but really need to ride the TT bike more prior to a event. This is equivalent what I can do the second or third time up OLH including this Wednesday so I should be able to do better than this if I am fresh. On the other hand this is the best TT performance I've had this season, faster than last year, had something in the tank at the end, might be able to make up that minute deficit to first place next year.


T: 24:30
S: 42.3
C: 81
H: 186
Pavg: 227
Pnorm: 230





First flat criterium in a long time that was faster than I could time trial. Tried a few moves but too many people interested in a sprint finish. Should have attacked more, had a lot left in the tank at the end. Got caught behind accident with two to go and still moving back up to the middle of the pack by the time the sprint was engaged.

2010 Folsom Cyclebration Challenge Criterium E3 from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T:48:20
S:43.4
C:97
H:170
Pavg:168
Pnorm:204





Circuit race was slightly rolling. The uphill portion was relatively easy to float onto the back of the group but I kept losing position out of the hairpin onto the downhill. Didn't think the race was that hard but then made contact with another rider going into the uphill hairpin with two to go and stopped, it was hard enough that I blew when I caught back on just before the downhill, got pulled on the last lap.

2010 Folsom Cyclebration Two Bridges Circuit Race E3 from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 36:40
S: 40.2
C: 101
H: 169
Pavg: 174
Pnorm: 216

September 6, Giro di San Francisco

CTL:126
TSB:16

Originally registered for the E4/E5 and 35+ 4/5 races and just switched the categories when I upgraded. Probably should have done only one race instead. Same course for last five years, small hill, rough pavement in different spots, old trolley track crossing, though the new potholes this year destroyed lots of carbon fiber wheels. I broke out the $80 Bike Nashbar front wheel for this race.


First race up was the master 123's. Went out conservatively and managed to be in front of Larry Nolan (since he started on the back of the field) for three laps and I saw him go to the front on Chris Phipps' wheel and that was the last the whole group saw of Larry until the finish straight on the last lap where he pulled out the win. I pulled out on lap eight. The pace was not that bad, about threshold for me, just had some doubt in my mind about whether or not I could do this effort twice for 24 laps.
35+ 123


T: 14:13
S: 43.1
Pavg: 205
Pnorm: 243
H: 177
C: 103



The E3 race had about 90 starters and was a little less smooth and slower than the masters race. It felt hard but ended up being a little easier than the relatively short time I was in the masters race in terms of normalized power. Possibly the heat and some fatigue caught up with me, just not fit enough to do two races twice in day, though other riders were capable of this.

One big difference is that it seems like the E3/M123 races were significantly less negative than most E4/M4 races, I could essentially take it easy during a lot of E4/M4 races with big fields until the last five minutes, versus having to try hard for the whole race to stay with the pack it seems with my current fitness in the E3/M123 races.


T: 42:47
S: 41.2
Pavg: 183
Pnorm: 229
H: 182
C: 106

August 29 - Vacaville Gran Prix

CTL: 131
TSB: -5

Wasn't sure I was going to make it to this after both legs cramped up yesterday but felt fine this morning.

We had a pretty big field in the E3's so the yo-yoing was going to be pretty bad at the 120 degree turn if one wasn't near the front. Just didn't have the legs after yesterday to move up, ended up tailgunning the whole race and lost touch with the field on the penultimate time down the hill.

I would probably do a lot better if I didn't do Winters the day before!

2010 August 29 Vacaville Gran Prix E3 race from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 45:41
S: 40.5
C: 99
H: 171
Pavg: 193
Pnorm: 238

August 15, Suisun Harbor Criterium

CTL: 133
TSB: 0

To make for yesterday's total lack of using my fitness, I keep telling myself to spend as much time as possible in the wind, no point in building up fitness all the time and not use it during a race.

The course is a long rectangle, reversed in direction from previous years - a traffic control device blocked one lane on the old finish line, and it's convenient to use the same block to store the stage for the finish line because the block is vacant, just a different street. So instead of being like racing on the velodrome, it's more like the reverse polish notation version.

The winds that abandoned Dunnigan come back to Suisun City, it feels like a crosswind or headwind in every direction on the course.

Told myself I wasn't going to attack from the gun so I slot behind the guys who do surge first, and when they soft pedal after half a lap, I figured that was a long enough wait so I put in a tiny acceleration there. This is enough to get me off the front for two laps solo (each lap only takes about one minute so not as impressive as it sounds). On the third lap I take a look back and see someone gaining and ease up and then dig deep to grab on when Andreas from Bicycle Planet passes.

For the next fourteen or so laps Andreas takes the majority of the pulls. We get out to fifteen seconds maximum but I can see some of the teams in the race are organizing a chase. At one point a rider in black kit joins us, then drops out. Then a rider with a teammate in the pack joins us when the lead drops to ten seconds. It goes back up for a little while with fresh legs but inexorably the pack brought us back.

Glad I tried, a couple of times I considered dropping off the break but it just felt hard, wasn't really that hard, the fifteen minutes off the front was just at threshold. Rest of the race sat in and tried a few surges but some people just wanted a pack sprint and we were all together on the bell lap. Started from way too far back and moved from tenth in the final corner to fifth.

2010 Suisun Harbor Criterium 35+ 4 from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 41:06
S: 39.2
C: 84
H: 176
Pavg: 202
Pnorm: 223

July 17 - Watsonville Criterium E4

CTL: 125
ATL: 5

Thirty plus riders today, with the one fellow Cameron who has won five of his last six races being the odds on favorite. The small hill is not enough to break up our group as we surge up it and ease up, the stiff headwind leading into the final turn giving pause to anyone going off the front. The first few laps feel hard so I was hesitant to try attacking all the time like the races at Atwater, but it eased up so I should have just gone with my initial reaction. Cameron went a few times but guys would bridge then just sit on his wheel. Kind of surprised other teams didn't try anything.

We would surge then slow up so much that it felt a little dangerous with all the swarming so with three to go I just went for it on the hill. Didn't get much of a gap and was slowly reeled in by the next time up the hill but no one wanted to pull through. At this point since I knew Mitch was still there but not behind me, I just got as small as possible and tried to string out the group for as long as possible which turned out to be one more lap. On the bell lap there was another big surge, I got gapped and I almost got back on to lead group of fifteen or so just as they sprinted out of the last corner.

Felt ridiculously fresh at the end and wishing I had tried attacking more often to split the group up, the pack really didn't break up until there was a crash with two to go way behind me. We went almost a mile an hour slower this year, not having junior phenom Eamon pulling us around for the whole race made a huge difference.


T: 42:02
S: 37.0
C: 99
H: 177
Pavg: 191
Pnorm: 223

July 5 - Big Creek Lumber Atwater Criterium

CTL: 118
TSB: 4

My arms are still sore from Leesville and the blisters on my hands haven't healed, this puts me in a little better shape than Xeno, who says his whole body is still sore!

The course is D shaped with the two 90 degree corners being the last two turns before the 260 meter dash to the finish line. The next to last corner as a big pot hole and this is patched just before the start of our race, leaving a bit of gravel there.

We have sixteen riders in the 4/5 race. Anything less than about thirty riders means the race is going to be super hard and this holds true to form as riders attack continuously trying to get away.

Sometimes I go with an attack and sometimes I let them go and let others bring them back. One time through the loose gravel a rider almost loses it by braking in the exit of the turn and locking up his wheels in front of me and he just saves it. This is enough to make one rider set out to determine his own fate. If I'd have known it was this guy, I would have gone with him but given the success of the prior moves I sat back. He got out of sight within a few laps but then when we closed the gap to about ten seconds people started attacking out of our diminished group. The rider off the front disappeared and we had two, Adam and Eric? slightly off the front. Now I started to work in earnest just to catch these two. I had a lot of help from the LGBRC rider and got to within about 100 meters, but then, the rider off the front lapped us! LGBRC didn't know we could draft off of the leader and gave up but I just kept following him. He was clearly the best rider in our group, confident in the turns and very steady.

He easily brought back the last two riders off the front and the four of us sprinted for the end, even the guy +1 laps, I got second in the field sprint for third overall, because I stopped pedaling before the finish line when I didn't realize Adam was on my wheel and he pipped me at the line!
T:47:00
S:39.1
C:84
H:173
Pavg:197
Pnorm:222


Twelve riders for this race. Temps started getting into the 90's. Adam said he was going to try and break away again, so I tried to keep an eye on him. Mid race there was a $10 prime and since I was second wheel I could not resist the temptation to sprint and unlike the first race, I sprinted to the finish line and won it. This took a lot out of me. Three laps later I was still panting when Adam attacked and got a nice gap, joining a couple of other riders. Two riders I thought I could bring back, three, that would take some cooperation and work, and it turned out we didn't do enough. We kept them in sight on every straight for the rest of the race, getting closer by the 3 lap to go mark but then we started jockeying for sprint position with 2 to go, so the first three positions were off the table and sprinted for fourth, I came in second again in the field sprint.
T: 39:41
S: 37.8
C: 89
H: 181
Pavg:196
Pnorm:229

June 27-28 Chico Stage Race

CTL: 118
TSB: 6

Paskenta Road Race
This course is interesting, not really a flat section anywhere. Starts off with some very gentle grades going up/down for a good hour at race pace, then enters a roller coaster section similar to Madera, then a right turn, and more rollers but longer, and at the thirty mile point, a gravel road section that consists of more rollers for five miles! This section ends with about three miles of road to go, with a couple of gentle climbs, the last one ending about 700 meters from the finish. But the most difficult part of the day was the heat, even if it was a dry heat, at 10AM it was 85, and by the end of our race it was 107.

Field of 33 and pretty spirited start with lots of attacks, even I spent five minutes off the front testing the legs. This happens every race because we're all fresh, but this was also the least challenging part of the course for those unaware of what was coming. When we hit the roller coaster section the field split up immediately. Was sitting about tenth going up the second hill when my front wheel felt deflated, just like my chances in the overall were about to be. Luckily I had placed wheels in our follow vehicle. It took a minute for the vehicle to reach me since our field was so shattered, and I started a pursuit of the pack. Caught ten riders, then Jeff from Chico confirmed that the neutral feedzone was closed and we might have to do the last 17 miles without additional water. Kept on pushing until I threw up, then I had to settle down and nurse my last half bottle of hot energy drink for the rest of the race, only able to catch a glimpse of some other riders on the last hills ahead, at least I was able to flag down some vehicles to get some much needed hydration for survival.
21/34

T: 2:24
S: 30.0
C: 88
Pavg: 138 (with pack for about an hour before the flat, didn't go much harder after the flat)
Pnorm: 174
H: 173 (minus the missing parts - looks like when I stopped to change wheels the HRM transmitted stopped getting enough perspiration to work)


Agua Frias 10 Mile TT
Since I technically didn't go that hard yesterday except for the heat stress, had high hopes for doing well in the TT. Placed 20 minutes back of the lead pack so only racing for pride today in this stage. Have a decent outbound leg, get close to my threshold power, but completely blow the inbound leg, fool myself with the high average speed and barely break into L3 territory. Either that or the bag of ice I slipped into my skinsuit was super effective until it melted away.
5/~30

Outbound into wind
S: 40.3
Pavg: 232
Inbound with tailwind
S: 41.0
Pavg: 207


T: 23:50
S: 40.7
C: 86
Pavg: 219
Pnorm: 224


Chico Downtown Criterium
Same course as last year's separate criterium event, going around the fountain and plaza in downtown Chico. The fountain is very refreshing, though it's disconcerting how quickly the water evaporates from your bare skin in the 100+ degree heat.

First six laps attack after attack, sometimes including me. I take a break for the next six, but stay close to the front. Jeff from Chico goes off the front, I briefly consider joining him but decide to let him have his hometown glory. Another rider joins him and by the time I think I should have gone, too, he's already almost up to Jeff. They get a sizeable gap that stabilizes at 30 seconds according to the announcer. I work to bring this back, I have a teammate Josh in the pack so it won't be in vain if we catch. With about eight to go, Jeff starts fading back to the pack but the lead isn't falling quickly enough. Soon it's just me, Josh and Mike working and that guy off the front is earning a well deserved victory because we can't close the gap from 25 seconds, and with three to go I decide to save it for the sprint.

With two to go, Josh and two others get a small gap, so I soft pedal on a straight, others pick this up pretty quickly and chase back, I made a tactical error here, should have countered right away, instead just slot in at about tenth which is way too far back on the course - the finish is only 150 meters from the last turn. This is what happens when you think about surviving a race instead of trying to do as well as possible. End up staying there until the last turn and I moved up to seventh in the field sprint.
7/25

T: 43:51
S: 39.3
C: 90
H: 177
Pavg: 170
Pnorm: 181

June 6 - AT&T Pacific Grove Butterfly Criterium

CTL: 118
TSB: 8

Missed this race due to a scheduling conflict and now that I've done it once, sorry to have missed it. A challenging, technical course, hills, high speed descents, and my favorite, and uphill sprint into the wind.


First up is the 35+ 4/5 race. We have about 40 entrants. This is the borderline number where the race can be really negative - where it's easy to sit in because someone is chasing down every single break, even if they have no teammates or no sprint, or it can be a positive race where it is strung out and we're shedding people every lap. Several people put in attacks early. I go with a few. Nothing sticks. Then Josh from LGBRC goes solo as we reel in another break, and gets a huge gap initially. Since I don't have teammates I figure if he wins solo he deserves it and just wait. He stays out there for about ten laps! but finally he comes back and then pace eases significantly. I just try to move up and avoiding the riders with suspect pack handling skills, with two to go I am about fifteen back working my way to ten, when there is a crash out of the last corner, going uphill. See a gap between crash victims and try to squeeze through but a rider that is going down falls over onto my front wheel as I pass. This tacos the front wheel so I can't even turn it or try to ride to my spare wheel only 200 meters away, decide to call it a race, regroup for the E4 race.
T: 35:18
S: 37.2
C: 101
H: 172
Pavg: 183
Pnorm: 231


After the debacle that was the 35+ 4/5 race (for me), decided to string things out no matter what, even if I get dropped, to keep it safer. Unlike the first race, after I pull over, multiple people are willing to share the load, even though we have a smaller field. By the half way point we had dropped more than half the pack. I was barely hanging on and had to resort to motivating myself by saying just one more lap, just one more corner. Then there was a pause for a lap, I could see the eventual winner and his teammate start moving up, and the attacks started up again and this split up the field even more - there were three or four riders up the road, and the other ten of us trying to catch back up. We got closer, and closer, and closer until the last two laps when individuals were able to split our group up, on the last time up the finish straight, the four in my group could see the seven ahead sprinting for the line as we started our sprint, ended up getting ninth.


We had less riders doing the work and we ended up going a full mile an hour faster.
T: 38:59
S: 38.5
C: 107
H: 181
Pavg: 193
Pnorm: 238

April 18, Santa Cruz Classic Criterium

CTL: 110
TSB: 11
Had an easy week in an attempt to get out of the funk, seemed to work mostly. Last year I did this race while a little sick and couldn't keep up with the pack for more than a few laps. Hoped to do a lot better than that, but the only times I've done well on this hilly course, my FTP was ten percent higher than what it is now.

The E4 race seemed manageable as I just tailgunned it and made sure to not get stuck behind anyone that was getting dropped too far behind. There was an accident in the hairpin on the second lap, so this made the pack come almost to a complete stop for a good five to six laps, followed by an extreme acceleration. Was starting to get comfortable when on the eleventh lap of twenty, I had a mechanical and had to retire. At least I did not get dropped due to lack of fitness or illness this year...

2010 April 18 Santa Cruz E4 Criterium, first ten laps from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 21:55
S: 36.5
C: 102
Pavg: 192
Pnorm: 243



Last year the masters race was much harder than the E4 race but that did not happen this time. It seemed easier than the E4 race, but that is probably because I did not have to jump from a dead stop in the hairpin and avoid a body in the road a bunch of times. There were a couple of close calls in front of me in the last few laps so I had to burn all my matches to keep up with the pack, and did not get into good position for the last lap, started the last corner from about 30th so just rode in with the pack.

T: 28:43
S: 37.1
C: 101
Pavg: 180
Pnorm: 243

March 21 - Grassroots Salinas Criterium

CTL: 119
TSB: 10

Small field of fourteen, windless, foggy central valley morning race. Three teams make up the bulk of the racers.

Attacks start going every lap after the first. Cover most of them. The problem with being low on the bike is that one has to stick one's nose into the wind to see around the other riders - at about the mid point of the race a break gets a huge gap while I am behind someone. It looks like someone is going to pull us back so I hold back, we get pretty close, then the elastics snaps and they start pulling away.

I take a lot of pulls but Josh and the other LG rider are the only ones working and we don't get organized so the break of three stay away. I keep trying until two to go in order to get a decent workout in today, and then it starts to get tactical. I sprint a little late and then the guy in front of me almost falls down solo, so not much of a sprint for me in the end.

2010 March 21 0 Grassroots Salinas Criterium E4 from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 36:30
S: 37.8
C: 91
H: 169
Pavg: 202
Pnorm: 232

2009 September 20, Chico Downtown Criterium

CTL: 114
TSB: 19

If I'm going to drive 200 miles, I'm going to stay an extra day to try a race I've never done before... It's a flat L, the course is different from prior years due to construction with a very short final straight so position in the last corner is pretty much everything. The main difficulty today is the heat, it's pretty oppressive after ten AM. Next time I need to bring an ice chest to sit in...

Was originally going to do the 4/5 and the 35+ 4/5 race, but my teammate Mark emailed me and asked if I was in Chico so I switched to the 3/4 and 35+ 3/4/5 races so I could race with someone, always more fun with someone you know.


Skipping the 4/5 race turns out to be a stroke of good fortune since half the field is crashed out and DNF's. This also delays the rest of the AM races and shortens our 3/4 race by fifteen minutes.

I am just going to try to help out where I can, Mark is already pretty good at positioning himself and sprinting so my primary help to him was probably over when I rented a hotel room!

The race is pretty hard from the gun and we drop quite a few folks, almost half the field. It's strung out for most of the race. There's a lull towards the end and I see Mark sitting around tenth instead of his usual fourth or fifth so I move up towards the front to up the pace a bit and he moves up to, it turns out the rest of the race will have no more lulls. In fact I am last in the pack at about 20th and we go so fast into the final turn I ease up because there's no point in sprinting and it's much faster than I would have considered going into it! But it's all worth it as Mark get's second, he said he entered the last turn in second and sort of boxed himself in against the rider in first and could not accelerate until it was too late.



T: 34:47
D: 24.8 km
S: 42.7
C: 92
Pavg: 202
Pnorm: 219



We have a long three or four hours until our second race. I probably spent too much time outside because I felt exhausted by the time we started. This race felt much harder than the first and Mark confirmed this but the data shows it as about the same or a little easier so the heat took a toll on both of us. Three riders escape mid race. I feel miserable and consider quitting but will soon find out what miserable is. Didn't realize the riders were off the front until it was too late.

We drop almost half the field in this race, too. Lap cards come out and I just hang on for dear life at the back of the pack. One disadvantage to being lower on the bike than most of the riders is that one's view is limited when a larger rider is directly in front of you. This lesson is served up when I have about one second of braking time when the rider in front of me swerves abruptly to avoid an accident and I brake hard but am unable to stop in time and hit Gino who has stopped for a rider who crashed in front of him. I guess that's what I get for making fun of people who run into the back of me at full speed...On the plus side this gives Gino a genuine reason to get a free lap since I can vouch for him. I am not too badly hurt, it does take four weeks for my elbow to fully heal, but I join Gino near the start finish for my free lap and we rejoin with six to go.

After a few laps we catch Todd Manley who was off the front in the break, leaving two others still off. I counter with three laps to go. At first I just accelerated to get to the front and up the pace but no one responded so instead of braking I just kept going, at least someone else would have to chase me and Mark would get a free ride. Unfortunately I only lasted two laps so the pack gobbled me up but Mark did great again in the finale and got third for his second podium on the day.




T: 40:45
D: 26.8 km
S: 39.4
C: 86
Pavg: 184
Pnorm: 209

2009 September 12 Folsom Cyclebration Challenge Criterium 35+ 4/5 B

CTL: 119
TSB: 20

It turns out that only three of us from the time trial are racing the criterium today. The other two riders got first and second in the time trial so I am about ten points behind. Half of the primes are for omnium points and the other half are for cash and prizes, and of course only the three of us planning on doing all three events are interested in the omnium points. I have a huge advantage literally and figuratively in that Peter shows up to do this crit and a later crit, we take turns leading each other out for primes, and Peter takes one solo and we end up winning all of them. The field is pretty small at twenty three so it's pretty easy to change position, I thought I had enough in me to lead out the last lap and a quarter (just to keep things reasonably safe) but only lasted a quarter lap, faded, then followed Anthony to move up a bit and thought I had beat the other two contenders for the omnium when I got pipped at the line by the first place finisher from yesterday for ninth and ended up tenth with the second place tt rider, Rich, finishing in eleventh. Oh well, I still made up ground on both riders to make things close



T:40:46
S:40.2
C:83
Pavg:196
Pnorm:261

2009 Sept 7 Giro di San Francisco

CTL: 120
TSB: 1
Strictly by the numbers I should be in great shape for this race but I feel pretty sick. But I preregistered so off to the city I go.

Or I should say I thought I preregistered. When I get home, the race registrations for today's crits are still in my shopping cart from three months ago...

Show up and get the last open spot in the 35+ 4/5 race and waitlist myself for the E4 race. The race is pretty easy so I wait for the last couple of laps to move up. While I am passing one rider, he accelerates, and when he moves to the inside on a turn I make the mistake of drafting too closely and not anticipating his next move which is to swerve out of the apex, from watching the video he boxed himself in a small area next to the curb and when he swerved out I got pushed to the outside and slowed and this was enough change for the rider behind me to run right into me. I still think I could have done well except at this point I was dragging a riderless bike behind me in my rear wheel. Pretty frustrating, sick and still in it till one and a half laps to go. Oh well.




T: 40:46
S: 40.3
C: 100
Pavg: 180
Pnorm: 216




Wait patiently at registration area for the waiting list to get called up and I don't have high hopes as I am 17th. But I get the last number! This gives me about two minutes to warmup, or in reality, about quarter of the race. There is a big crash halfway through, I bridge solo from behind the crash. This turns out to be a waste since they are unsure about when they can get the injured riders off the course, our race is stopped and restarted. Two riders off the front before the crash get a little bit bigger lead, but no matter, probably wouldn't have changed things much. With two laps to go help move Jay up a bit from the back but maybe a little too early? Anyways we are top ten going into the next to last corner when there is another accident in the middle of the corner, I touch the brakes and start sliding right towards the riders, should have just aimed for the hole shot, and have to slow considerably to avoid becoming a crash victim. At least I got close to finishing.



T: 43:05
S: 40.3
C: 99
Pavg: 183
Pnorm: 228

2009 August 30 Vacaville Gran Prix 35+ 4/5

CTL: 125
TSB: -2

Feel decent after a long day in the sun yesterday at Winters, but takes a long time to get comfortable. Two riders get off early. I lost track of them so I asked around and people said they got caught so I didn't worry. Huge mistake. Late in the race I could hear the announcer talking about their lead. Racing for third at this point, and the teammates of one of the riders are sitting on the front dutifully doing tempo so I start trying to up the pace, too little too late. At least keep it safer than it was, saved too much at the end on the hill, should have surged again once I caught the leaders of the pack, instead got swarmed on the descent, ended up tenth in field sprint.

2009 Vacaville Gran Prix 35+ 4/5 from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 45:23
S: 38.4
C: 101
Pavg: 187
Pnorm: 234
D: 29.1 km

2009 Timpani Criterium E4

CTL: 122
TSB: -9

The four corner industrial park course with two long and wide front and back stretch and shorter, narrower straights between turns one and two and bewteen turns three and four.

Very big field. I'm supposed to sit in and help out at the end. This goes well except for a few unfortunate accidents along the way, including one which requires an ambulance so we neutralize for a few laps and finally have the officals stop and restart us for the last nine laps. Everyone on the team is still in it. At one point I mistake Darren for Josh and offer to help him move up, oops, at least I helped a teammate! Then with 1.5 laps to go, the rider I was there to help out has to stop for a crash but I miss this and have to improvise. I can see a train of teammates on the front about four rows ahead so just sit back and watch. Then they get swarmed and it's a bit chaotic - at this point I just want to finish upright and am closer to the front than the back so just start moving up.

With two turns to go, Eddie from SJBC goes for it. The last part of the race is just foobar because I can see I have to ride the brakes but can't move up because it's rider to rider around me, so we have a little more chaos to top off the day as one rider clips a pedal and the rider behind him start tumbling across the road in the corner. I have to tap the brakes and start steering away - this is enough to separate the front eighteen from us that are caught behind the accident and that's the race. Start sprinting just to get back up to speed and finish the race.

2009 San Rafael Twilight Criterium E4

CTL: 117
TSB: 5
Gave myself an extra hour to travel to San Rafael through San Francisco traffic and it turned out to be not enough, started worrying a little bit when I had thirty minutes to show up at the race and was still on the Golden Gate Bridge. With five minutes to spare, change into the cycling clothes, and get to the course, Josh helpfully pins the number on so I don't have to do it during the race and my warmup consists of the first twenty minutes of the race where I get to consider the sin of not warming up and struggle to hang in the pack. The course is the same one used for the *daytime* San Rafael Crit, a long, slightly uphill drag for the start /finish, a short hill (the steepest section of the course) between turns one and two, a long, slightly downhill drag between turns two and three and a short hill between turns three and four to the finish straight.

I try to help our designated sprinter move up in spite of struggling to hang on while wheelsucking most of rest of the time. We get to three to go and I see a teammate closer to the front and move up to join him. With two to go I am on his wheel and then when there is a surge on the backside, I let it go, but others close the gap by the turn. On the last ascent of the steep hill I pedal as fast as I can but am somewhat disappointed to find myself only keeping even with the ten to eleven riders around me. Do not have anything left in the legs after this and roll in for somewhere around tenth to twelfth.

On the plus side this is the hardest I've gone in a crit since I got sick in February so slowly getting back in the groove of racing.

2009 San Rafael Criterium E4 front view from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 38:39
S: 40.7
C: 109
Pavg: 196
Pnorm: 237

2009 San Luis Obispo Criterium

CTL: 117
TSB: 9

This course is in downtown San Luis Obispo. It passes through the brick *sidewalk* in front of the Mission there. It's wide so it's not too bad but there are some short brick walls on either side that tend to push riders in the gutter back to the center. Besides the sidewalk section there is a short, one block hill from turn one to turn two, a little more rise to the sidewalk, then a long gradual rise after the sidewalk to turn three, a very short straight, then turn four.

I am here to help my teammate, but I have a lot of trouble doing this - he is on the front of the field for most of the race! Not sure how to help. :) The course gives me difficulty in that I move up a few spots on the long gradual hill but lose them right back on the descent/finish straight. I try to minimize the amount of work I am doing to advance but I end up moving up one steps forward/one step back the whole race and staying about twentieth out of seventy - the twenty guys in front of me have the same plan and are as strong as I am or stronger. When it becomes apparent on the last lap and a half I am not going to move up from twentieth or so I ease up to reload for the next race.





T: 43:19
S: 41.3
D: 29.9 km
C: 106
Pavg: 186
Pnorm: 207



For this race our team plan is to just stay safe since my teammate won a prime and placed in the first race (weekend mission accomplished) and even at the front of the field it was sometimes dangerous. I just sit in tenth to twentieth wheel. I didn't think it was possible but there were more close calls in this race than the first, and I'm only responsible for a few of them. :) Towards the end I think I might be close enough to the front to help out so when there is a lull in the pace with two to go I make a move to the front. Go a little too hard and find myself off the front, and figure I might as well go for it. There is a determined chase behind me, normally I could go this hard for about two laps of this course but looking back is can be fatal to motivation in these circumstances...so I am caught near the sidewalk section. My teammate counters. I hesitated and figured, he should do well, and ease up but I should have gone with the people who chased after him because he was really fatigued from being on the front in *two* races and faded before the finish. Gotta always be on your toes and react and not overthink in these situations.

2009 July 5 San Luis Obispo Criterium 30+ 4/5 from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 40:13
S: 40.8
C: 106
D: 27.4 km
Pavg: 181
Pnorm: 215

June 28 - Burlingame Criterium

TSB: 8
CTL: 117

Feel so much better today, but when I get to the race and get ready, realize I forgot the jersey at home! Luckily Michael H. has a *spare* so he lets me borrow it, and I don't have to pull a snokrashe and race in my t-shirt.

We have so many riders in this race that I am assigned to keep the pace up so the front of the pack is safe for our sprinter so I trade off pulls for as long as I can go or as it turns out about half the race. This is much harder than just sitting in but more fun and I am highly likely to be successful. :)
rear view
front view
E4
T:40:02
D: 27.8
S: 41.5
C: 98
Pavg 199
pnorm: 233


35+ 4
Pretty much the same plan for the next race for me, we do not have a neutral first lap though, and some folks are confused about this, so when I get my usual quick start, and don't see anyone behind me, keep going for two laps, when the pack starts to get interested I ease up and get back in the routine of trying to get off the front again.

View from the front

2009 Burlingame Criterium 35+ 4 rear view from Steven Woo on Vimeo.

T: 40:14
D: 27.8
S: 41.3
C: 93
Pavg: 187
Pnorm: 214

June 27 - Benicia Criterium

CTL: 116
TSB: 8

I thought I might have a bad day on the bike because after standing around for six hours at the Hellyer AVC my legs and back were still sore in the morning and only got four hours of sleep. Was looking forward to the post race snooze. The course is a figure eight with a lot of small undulations, maybe at most ten to twenty feet over the course of a block with the finish on a long uphill drag.

E4
Hang out midpack, feels like I am struggling. Half way through the race there is an accident and a gap opens up in front of me. I know some folks behind me so I pull to get us close to the pack and am really not feeling good at all and just quit. The data shows the race was not that hard. Hmmm...


T:19:46
D:12.45km
S:37.7 kph
C:101
Pavg: 202
Pnorm: 225


35+ 3/4
I feel a little better during this race. When I try to move up the legs are not responding so I am not going to be able to help anybody out. I can just hang in the back just to finish but since I am racing tomorrow, don't need to just finish for the sake of finishing and pull out again...


T:22:42
D:14.4
S:38.1
C:104
Pavg:179
Pnorm:216