second road race - randsfjorden rundt (looong)

("rundt" means "around", a lot of road races in Norway are something-or-other-rundt :) )

So today was my second road race ever, and a somewhat surreal experience it was. This was a race my workplace team picked out as a suitable goal for the 6 of us, being fairly flat, not too far away from Oslo, not too long, and at a good time for the ones on our team doing other races with other clubs. Our training together was patchy at best - we managed two training rides together before one guy quit to work someplace else and another one had to stop race training because of moving. But we recruited a 5th guy at the last minute, and just settled on doing this as a social ride/race where we'd all stay together and let the weakest link decide the pace. And we elected our presumed strongest rider as captain, to make on-the-fly decisions.

The race was 150 km long (94 miles) and we entered in the 4,5-5,5 hr group. About 150 riders, dominated by a large team in front training for Lillehammer -Oslo with the rest of us hanging on doing nothing much but braking, free-wheeling, and the occasional dash to close a gap... for 90 km... bizarre.

After 90 km we stopped at a drink station to refill our water bottles (it was HOT), "the train left", and we were left to our own devices with handfuls of other riders here and there. We decided to just go for it as best we could and captain and I set off, promptly dropping the other 3. When we re-grouped, after a fair bit of yelling about who said what and why, it transpired that our 5th last-minute guy wasn't feeling well, and wanted to slow way down. Short discussion, where we decided we could leave him (as he wanted), he'd be fine, and he hadn't been part of the "wait-for-the-weakest-link"-deal anyway.

A few km further down the road our captain is pulling us, our next-strongest rider bursts forward to tell him, in his usual brusque manner, that he's ready to pull. He's so brusque that captain misunderstands it as a demand that he "abdicate" and get to the back as he's slowing us down... heated words fly, and next-strongest rider explodes and leaves the team to fall back and join our 5th guy...

From there us 3 remaining teammembers worked our way in, the 2 strongest doing all the pulling. Did a respectable job and finally came in after 4 hrs and 40 min.

So I guess I had a good day, felt strong, and had a decent ride. But boy oh boy! All the b*tching! The arguing! The weird situations and the communication problems! :eek: and the bizarre feeling of sweeping down the road behind a large group hardly working for it! Had we had one water bottle more apiece we'd have been able to "hitchhike" on the large team all the way in, finished with a better time AND scarcely broken a sweat. Figuratively speaking. And instead we got to argue and gripe and work hard and finish tired and argue a whole lot more. Next-strongest rider came in half an hour later practically spouting fire. Turns out he hadn't heard any of the discussion prior to us dropping 5th guy and thought we'd just summarily dumped him.

I find this racing thing very very weird. I think I prefer either riding with a larger team where I have a job to do, or on my own where I can do anything I darn well please. I finished 5th in my age group again, but I only carried my own weight for 1/3 of the race so it doesn't really mean much :confused:

Interesting story. I'm glad you did as well as you did. sounds like the other guys in your group were not as well conditioned as you (why else would they have been so irritable!)

I guess you learned something about what it's like to ride with them.

Congrats on your rating though!

You guys need a coach! Sounds like a hockey match was going to break out!

Don't get discouraged just yet. Your team is new. You'll develop a race rapport in time. You guys still did really well! Once you iron out the kinks, you're going to get even better.

It sounds like the team plan didn't use everyone as well as it could have. Rather than have the 2 strongest guys do all the pulling, wouldn't it have made more sense to let everyone do some work up front? You felt like you got a free ride. You shouldn't feel like that after a race! You had more to give.

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Originally Posted by redrhodie

Rather than have the 2 strongest guys do all the pulling, wouldn't it have made more sense to let everyone do some work up front? You felt like you got a free ride. You shouldn't feel like that after a race! You had more to give.

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Oh, I was one of them :) When there were only 3 of us left we managed to work well (less people to argue with :rolleyes: ), and set a pace that the "weakest-link" managed to just keep up with. He had a blast, and won his age group. Re free ride: I was thinking about tagging onto a large group. I spend so much energy just braking and making sure I don't run into anybody, and hardly any actually pedalling...

But what with the somewhat explosive personalities on board, I don't think we'll be doing many races together. Unless we can recruit 2 or 3 more people at the same level to even things out.

I've read the report... and noted your own desription of - and the responses from Mimi and RR... of the team synergy

But I am still stuck on this...

Your second race EVER and it was 150km long!!!
You rock... my longest race to date has been about 60kms... and it wasn't my second ever race.

Keep at it LPH - you have what it takes

aaw, thanks Raven, I appreciate that :)

But I may be using the term "race" a little wrong. The Norwegian term translates to "tour-race", and I've been too lazy to try to find an English equivalent. Most road races here appear to be this type and length. In theory people can enter it just as a casual organized ride, with stops where you can refill water bottles and grab a bite to eat, but in practice most people enter it as a race, stop as little as possible if at all, jockey for position, care about their finishing time... so I don't quite want to call it just an organized ride. But as our times show, we're scarcely setting any records :) But the "elite group" which starts first is very competitive and aims to beat the previous best time for the course.

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Originally Posted by lph

Oh, I was one of them :)

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You're so funny, and too humble! If it were me, I would have started the thread with something like....as one of the strongest riders on the team, I of course did most of the work :D ;)

LPH... I ride those organised race/social events too. I never ride with the "elite"/fastest riders, but never-the-less treat my ride as a race - against myself and against those of similar ability to me.

I think its fine to call it a race if that is how you/your team ride it.
And, you know... I don't think there is a word in English to describe that typr of race/ride... mebbe we need to make one up!?!

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Originally Posted by lph

The Norwegian term translates to "tour-race", and I've been too lazy to try to find an English equivalent. Most road races here appear to be this type and length. In theory people can enter it just as a casual organized ride, with stops where you can refill water bottles and grab a bite to eat, but in practice most people enter it as a race, stop as little as possible if at all, jockey for position, care about their finishing time... so I don't quite want to call it just an organized ride.

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Sounds like here. Organized rides and charity rides are constantly harping "it's a ride not a race" but there's always the racer element. It's fun to go fast or beat a PR but not at the expense of the ride itself or friendship.

If I'd have been there I'd pop off the back and say "see ya!". I've learned it never benefits me to race to catch up with a perceived draft or someone I should be able to pass. That comes back to bite me at the end. Just ride my pace. :)

Sometimes the longer the ride is at the end I spin in with folks who blew themselves up passing me earlier.