Spring series April 2/3

[Andrew]

What a weekend!!!
Juniors did well, the ladies were impressive and the Quail put on a show of strength that was truly impressive!

I will wait for the posts from those in attendance before I send my impressions. Congrats to the whole team on an excellent effort!

[SimonC]

Swabby went down for the Sunday RR to ride in support of the crew that were doing the stage race.

As many of you heard, the Quail soloed to victory. This was a well deserved win and a gutsy effort from the Quail !!!

From a tactics perspective ... We controlled the race from the gun. BPR was represented in every major break and was present as a “guest” in all the pathetic attempts by other teams to chase. We also had good representation at the front of the race ALL day and controlled the pace of the pack while Quail just simply rode away. There was no real organised chase from the pack which blew my mind as there were a couple of teams not represented in the break. The gap held at 1:00 for the longest time and the rest of the teams were prepared to race for 3rd. The rest of the BPR crew rode upfront and we were allowed to control the tempo So not only did we have our strongest rider in the break, the pack let us dictate the pace of the chase Swabby was able to ride upfront and blow kisses at the pretty ladies at the finish line ... suhweeeeet. There was one especially cute spectator that caught my eye ...   Even if the Quail’s break was caught, we had enough strong guys to launch another winning move. It was inevitable that if we rode smart, we would win this race. The only flaw in our plan was not delivering the Horn to a podium finish. In retrospect, we needed to get to the front earlier lead out Matt (4 km's earlier). Swabby takes the blame for this as I should have organised you guys better ... Bad Swabby. Although it was VERY difficult as the Jr's clogged the pack and rode very sketchy ... it was tough to get thru the KAOS. It would have been safer if all three of us got to the front and started the lead out. We will work on ...

Swabby is very proud of how the team worked and anyone of us could have won the race. Great work by Horn, Guardian and Dave for laying it down. The key was that we controlled the race and dictated the outcome ... It is OHHHH SO Suhweeet when that happens !!! It was also nice to get Kudos from the other Vancouver and American teams for our Dominating Performance.

Swabby

[StephenU]

Great Teamwork was the theme.  I am writing this between tasks at work, it's not affecting my productivity...  I promise Boss!!

Saturday started out in a rush as the Horn and Quail express was slowed by a massive snow storm on the Coquihalla and Connector.  We made it to the Crit course in langley with 15 mins the spare.  Tanille helped us get our bikes ready etc, even though she was riding in the same event.

Matt, David, and I set out to ride the crit conservitively but aggressively enough to stay near the front.  Tanille also took to the start to get some experience riding in an explosive event such as this.  It was a super aggressive race from the start, with attacks, and a high pace throughout.  BC's fastest juniors were in the field and eager to show what they could do and win spots on the BC Team.  There was also a fairly large contingent of guys up from the states who were obviously very good crit riders.  With no warmup it was on the bike and over to the start line..yes!  the first 15 mins hurt alot because of the lack of a warmup but things felt ok after that.  The course was tight and quite hard to move around on so making up spots took the effort of riding down the side and often into a headwind.  I tried one attack half way through the race only to , as David put it, blow the carbon out of the engine..  After a couple of laps I was back in the main group recovering and felt MUCH better for it.  I was planning on getting Horn near the front on the second to last lap but it was not happening on the tight course as everyone else had the same idea... It all went haywire and we could not get anywhere near where we needed to be..  Oh well!!  The best I think I could ever manage in a race like this is a top 10. As smaller, lighter rider, I know 100% I am lacking any kind of sprint.  Crit riding is an artform in itself and I think it takes a while to master it.  if anyone wants tips on how to race a crit, ask David Nelson..  he rode super strong and was seemingly always in a good position. 

12 kmTime Trial out and back..  flat and with some wind.
I had been practicing my TT riding since January so I had some expectations of myself.  (I had done some good TT's in the past so I wanted to prove it was not a fluke and maybe I could get even better)  I wanted to do a good race.  As as smaller rider with not as much wattage as a lot of the good TT riders, I need to be compact and aero on the bike and stay committed to keeping my form, breathing, and Heart Rate under control.  If climbers like Levi Leipheimer and Contador can ride a great TT, why can't the quail?  So I started at around BP for the first 2 mins and ramped it up to around 185-188 HR (bp +10-14) for the rest of the race.  Resp rate was around 28 I think and cadence of around 100.  ( I am guessing this info by feel)  head steady, shoulders tucked, and just Hammer Away..  Nothing to it! nearly 44km/ average speed 3rd in the B and 7th overall I believe among all riders including A's.  Super Proud of this !
Thanks Simon for the tip of using speed as the primary marker in the TT as well.  It is very motivating trying to push the number higher and higher..

110 km Road race.
Our plan was to ride conservatively as a team in the first half of the race and cover dangerous break attempts and also keep The Matterhorn protected.  I will let the others explain their own races.  I watched Captain and Guardian go in an early break.  I think some other teams were motivated to pull it back with two BPR racers in it. (I overheard some people talking about us!!!)  More stuff was happening as I rode the first 5 laps in the pack near Horn.  A rider from team Fanatik pulled off the front and so I jumped and chased hard..  Soon after a Escape Velocity rider joined us and we powered away to a 1:30 gap.  I was on my limit the whole time, as were the other two but we worked well together and kept it smooth without hurting one another by pulling through to hard.  Very harmonious! So half a lap goes by and I see the 8 at the start/finish..  oh man, 8 laps to go and nearly 70kms.  In no way did I think we would make it so at very least it was giving my team a break as they had zero obligations to chase.  The gap was staying around 1:30 to 1:45..  The Fanatik team rider popped at around 30km to go I think so that left two of us to share the work..  we worked as a team, even though we both knew it would maybe come down to a duel at the end if we made it..  So strange...  you ride like your are friends because you need each other, and then you try and break each other??  As i mentioned to the guys at the finish, I was able to drop him on the last lap in some tight corners as he was not very good in them all race.  I took advantage of this and hit the gas (whatever was left after riding at or above BP for 2 hours) coming out of them with a good gap.  I just kept hammering all the way to the finish in disbelief...I did it!  A true team effort as I my mates were patient with me as i was away and were hoping to launch matterhorn to the line for a good placing...
Not much physiologic information to relay other than during the breakaway, I was at or near BP the whole time, even though the legs were in  incredible pain but they kept turning over somehow...  no idea how!
Fueling was done with two bottles of eLoad product..  Two scoops each of eFly and eLoad and a bottle with coke provided by Tanille on the last lap.  That is all the fuel The Quail needed.  No cramping, no bonk!  Magic..  this was the ultimate test of eLoad product for me and I am truly impressed..

Thanks for reading!

[StephenU]

PS - Swabby is dead, THE CAPTAIN is BACK!!!!!!!!!!

[Andrew]

It was a great learning experience to finally have the opportunity to race with a team, with a definitive plan. The cold weather and wind made for a bit of a rushed team meeting, but we all basically knew our roles. B group riders were to be a part of every break, with The Horn sitting in until the final sprint and the Quail staying vigilant if a winning move looked possible. C group was to be as conservative as possible with the Juniors focusing on completion rather than competition.

I was really proud of the efforts from everyone. But especially of David, with a breakthrough crit the day before, Tanillem for a solid TT, and Scotty for sticking in till the end in the Road Race. I believe everybody raced to their potential in each race, and came away from the weekend stronger and wiser. Special thanks to Monica for keeping an eye on the Juniors. I will look forward to hearing her feedback on how she and the two younguns raced.

For me, lots more learning and experience will help...I bridged up to an early break with Simon and two others, which felt good. I mainly wanted to get out of the stop and go feeling of the pack as the braked into the corners and sprinted out like a 40 minute crit. In hindsight, being the second BPR in the break probably meant it was doomed to get pulled back quickly, which was disappointing, and never gave Simon a chance to really get away.

I suffered at the back of the pack after being pulled in, which made the corners even tougher, and I was with Tanille just before she pulled out. David was GREAT to lend some advice and encouraged me to get back to the front to avoid the challenges I was facing just staying with the pack at the back, and kept talking to me until I was in good position. I know he dropped out soon after that, but his advice saved me from a similar fate.

Back at the front the endurance training that BPR is getting know for was obvious. Captain looked fully in control and The Horn looked strong. I felt better the longer we went, and could feel the pace of the pack losing it's momentum. It was only then I learned the Quail was in a break and I could really wait and enjoy the race until it was time to deliver The Horn to the line.

It looks so easy on TV. Just put your head down and bury yourself for the team, delivering the Rocket to within spitting distance of the line. The hard part is organizing at full speed. I knew where I had to be, but didn't know how to collect The Captain and the Horn. A few more mates on tue final push would have helped, and I missed David and wished Peter W was feeling better. In the future we will have more Juniors to lead out, and each race we do as a team will help us do better.

I ended up pulling the pack along the back stretch and burnt out long before I could help thin down the group through some of the late corners. Had we communicated better, The Captain and I could have pulled the peleton through the bends and shed some of the young guys, and left Matt with a better path to the line, but that will have to wait for crit night...

Physiologically, I was able to adapt some of the respiratory ideas towards the end of the race which really helped. Fueling was great with my mix of E-mend and E-fly, and really my progress is only limited by my lack of training hours and my limited race experience.

So I am REALLY looking forward to leaving for Mallorca tomorrow, and toeing the line with the team on my return!

From the proud coach.

[SimonC]

Hey Quail ...
Where is our cut of the prize money 
 
Capt'n

[StephenU]

Capt'n!  I am figuring they owe us $105 for a 3rd, 1st, and the overall... Should I be waiting for them to mail me a cheque??  or should I ransack the escape evolution trailer next time I see it at a race???
Payment in PB's for Capt'n right?
Horn will take Chocolate covered Almonds and macaroons?
Guardian will take White Chocolate and Waffle mix??
David will take McDonalds gift Cert??

[ScottH]

A  muuucch better weekend for myself. Just  super duper because I learned many things, and I met most of my goals.

I raced C in the crit and was a little nervous starting there because of my last week’s poor performance. I had an interesting talk with Mr. Nelson on the drive down (thanks for the ride and advice!) regarding warm up. A key part of performance I have left out of many of my races. I was determined to get a good warm up in and see if that would help. With a 15min spin I was sweating early. Another 5ish minutes later I followed Dave’s modest advice of getting up to balance point, which I probably had never done before as I would always think about rest. During this warm up I was also trying to consider fueling so I was sipping a bottle of Eload to stay hydrated.

It was interesting how after I clipped in to race, all of the nerves, butterflies, and stress had been thrown away as I got in da zone and was ready for a fun, yet very painful time. Something I learned right off the bat was how important, in such a quick race, the positioning at the start line. Starting near the back with Monica I saw a huge line of riders begin to form and I thought " this is not the front 15". So next time I'll start with a bit more confidence and move up early. The game plan had been to stay on Monica's wheel, but in the 30 seconds it took to get to balance point and clawing forward to the wheel in front of me, the plan was quickly forgotten. After 3 laps or so I was totally red lining it and I was on the very back of the lead group being slinkied in every corner. I looked back and saw there was a second group and slowly dropped back to them as I figured Monica and Peter would be there. This was one thing I regret now, saying I couldn’t maintain pace  even though something I planned to stand by was to never let a wheel go by decision. Turned out I would not see my team mates till the end of the race as a group of 8 picked me up. Seeing my heart rate not get below bp plus 15 I would only ever pull for around half a lap. With 5 laps to go I had started to feel really good and even considered playing with going off the front, but instead I let some strong riders do all the work and fit myself in nicely in 3rd  position on the 2nd lap.  One guy ramped it up and pulled the last two laps. On the last corner it seemed like we would be content to just ride through without even standing up, so instead of waiting, I went right out of the corner. Following suite was at least 3 other rides, that’s all I saw, and for 50m or so this one other junior and I were neck and neck. At the finish line it was super close but I’m gunna say I destroyed him by an inch with my bike push. I was mostly content with that race just because I had a lot of fun, and except for joining the chase group, I really left it all out there.

 
With the main focus of my weekend being the road race, a chat with Andrew, and my hurting body, the decision was I would skip the TT. Showing up to the course and watching everyone rip it up, I totally wanted to do the same but knew it was smartest to rest. Congratulations to the rest of team for their strong performance and even more congrats to Quail for a wicked placing.

The road race had a super exciting start. After my new found warm up, gear change, and chat with Andrew I was at the start line, in the top 15. Taking a few deep breathes to calm to down. Reached down to grab a sip and my hand felt an empty bottle cage. Oops I said. There was probably 2 minutes till we started. Excuse me, sorry, excuse me, ya I just need to get water, hi excuse me I’m a newb, sorry comin through.  Added to my solid warm up was a nice long sprint to the car and back to watch the B’s roll out. From there on it was pretty smooth sailings.  Stayed near the front determined to not get dropped like the last race. As soon as there were 20ish riders in front of me, I would try and move up. Often just darting on to sneaky Monica as she seems to be able to get where ever she wants, with ease, and not pissing anybody off. Amazing.  My instructions were to work as little as possible. And I found myself at the front a few times but was able to do a short pull and then find a wheel. Monica looked really strong and was excellent to have there. Peter looked as if he was barely working. It’s unfortunate his hip flexors weren’t feeling the same. A question for the more experienced... If I’m behind the wheel of someone who is trying to break away, and don’t want to follow, what do I do? Because if I move out of the way, the people behind me who may want to go that speed will now have 10ft to make up..

When I saw the 4 laps to go a small wave of panic hit me as my legs were already screaming up that rise. After that I did my best to drink my bottle of fuel, which had a scoop of Eload and some protein. I found I didn’t really have the chance to eat a bar. With 1 lap to go, I felt much better and in a good rhythm. I have learned that fueling will play a huge part in my training and racing, unlike some people who seem to live off water.  On the one lap to go I saw Cougar Stickley roll past and I hopped onto her wheel. With about 3km she was at the front pulling and says “ slingshot.” I felt cool to go a long with it, but didn’t really know how long she’d hang in there for. I considered once again about going early but knew I wouldn’t make it. She pulled off and I smiled as the sling shot turned out to be more of a rest shot. I kept myself around 3rd position into the last corner, and saw a big guy get his own sling shot. He started sprinting, and it didn’t feel right to keep my butt planted, so even though I knew it was a little early, stood up and hammered. I quickly passed the few in front of me, and then quickly died with 50m to the line. In fact, I died so much that by the time I hit the line was I was experiencing tunnel vision. A little creepy but proud to have dug that deep.  Over all I was once again happy with my race just because I had a lot of fun. Next goal will be to hang on to front on a hilly course.

Proud to be member of BPR and excited for the future. Well done everyone.
Scott

[Peter O'Brien]

A disappointing, yet somewhat anticipated weekend for me. It would seem that all of the slow, steady, structural training all winter has left me with a weakness... My legs.

Saturday's Crit was an excellent learning experience. David's advice about warming up was passed on by Scott, as we rode the quiet streets around the course, catching glimpses of the "Novice" group racing. It was a chilly, damp morning, and I never really warmed up. I raced C group with Scott and Monica, which was commenced by a rolling start. I cut to the very left-hand side to sneak up front, but quickly got shafted; everyone seemed to have locked their sights on a wheel, and quickly left me at the back of the pack. It was a mistake, but at the time seemed like a good idea! The pace picked up right from the start, and the slingshot effect from near the back of the 30-some man pack was horrible. I moved as quickly as I could, trying to get up into the front of the group, without success. Before I knew it, I was a straggler, and my chances of winning were over. This is where my weakness became apparent. My POLAR HR monitor was forgotten on my TT bike back at the hotel, but I could tell my heart was not working hard at all. If I were to guess, I'd say my average HR was ~LBP-10. My respiratory and peripheral systems were in the same boat, yet my legs were BURNING. It seemed I could push so hard, yet the only things which suffered were my Hip Flexors. Monica, myself, and about 6 other riders congregated to form the third-place group. Scott ripped by us with a few minutes to go. It was so great to see him do well, yet I felt angry with myself; I could have been up there racing with him, if my start hadn't been so poorly planned. The second mistake made was not realizing which lap was the last. Jeff had mentioned that after being lapped, a group would stop at three laps to go. We did not, so I became confused. On top of that I didn't really keep track of the laps counting down, and clued in that it was the final lap with about 150 feet left. As short as my sprint was, it felt great, and moved me forwards 4 places.

Warming up for the TT, I felt great. I did a little out-and-back, averaging 30 km/h at LBP - 25. This excited me, thinking my race would produce just as promising results. I was wrong. The first 3 minutes of the race I was holding 40 km/h at LBP just fine, but very quickly my performance dropped. Same as in the Crit, my Hip Flexors were limiting me. My HR dropped to LBP - 25 at one point!!! It was so ridiculous to be sitting there, pushing as hard as I could, and not feel like I was pushing anything but my legs. It started to rain on the way back, which I loved. It gives TT'ing such a cool secluded feeling. Overall terrible performance (I think somewhere along the lines of 35 km/h) though it was the perfect training for my limiter.

The road race was a great learning experience. We started off at what seemed like a slow racing pace, but I was weary to push to save my muscles. This time I was sure not to get left at the back, quickly moving up to beside Monica and Scott, some five positions from the lead. The sketchy-est part was the corners; everybody seemed to slow excessively, and commonly went through three by three. Scott always seemed strong, staying conscious of his position in the pack. Two or three laps in there was a crash mid-pack. It sounded worse than it turned out to be, because all I heard was *CRACK* "AAAAAAAAGH".

With two laps to go, my Hip Flexors had begun to limit me immensely. Just like before, my HR started to drop, yet those pedals just would not turn! I was dropped going up the hill by the finish, and rode half the flat section, pushing as hard as I could, watching the group ride away. I fueled properly the whole time too, having two bottles of water: one filled with ELOAD, the other filled with water. I also ate three ELOAD gels, so I knew I had had plenty of resources.

My pelvis seemed to "collapse" when very fatigued, which reminded me of the importance of core work. It has been forgotten since last summer, but will be an essential part of my training regime from now on. My ride yesterday further proved to myself that it was a strength issue; I rode an hour and a half at high cadence, with no issues. The moment cadence slowed, it became a more strenuous ride.

What a great weekend of learning and understanding. It has given me much to ponder for training.

[kiwichris]

Great to hear all of the tales from a great weekend of racing. It finally puts an exclamation mark on the fact that the team is working hard and achieving all that we can.

From tactical work - to sheer conditioning - WELL DONE TO ALL THAT RACED!

Look forward to the next few weeks as we focus on recovery between events and letting the stimulus from racing be of benefit!!

Another proud coach,
Chris

[MartinC]

Great read everyone! Congratulations on your teamwork and performances. I am totally inspired to get riding now it seems triathlon is out for the season for me. See you on the road!

[tannille]

"COUGAR STICKLEY!" - Scott, your the best! I'm praying this nickname doesn't stick

My response will be posted tonight!

In the meantime, Martin, you in for Barry's this weekend?

t

[Matt]

Great race everyone - it was a lot of fun to have a whole team to race with!

The Crit:
My plan for the crit was to stay near the front, not do any work, and then sprint for the podium at the end.  In such a short race, I focused on trying to keep my cadence high and avoid mashing, and control my breathing.  I didn't wear a HR monitor.  My experience has shown me that I have other biomarkers that will signal my impending explosion long before my HR does! 
The race started fast, and stayed that way.  I followed David and Stephen and they did a good job of staying up front.  The juniors who were riding in the B group did a great job of being aggressive and keeping the pace high.  I avoided making any efforts until Stephen got away with a small group with 15 minutes to go.  I followed a wheel halfway up to his break, then did a little work myself to close the gap.  That was likely a mistake because as soon as I went, the rest of the group shut down the break – I should have let someone drag me up there.  I put myself in good position (top 10 wheels) for the finish, but was on my limit and didn't have a sprint. 
Physiologically I didn't have any real issues - my respiratory rate was under control and cadence was good.  I lacked a sprint at the end, but I was on my limit anyway.

TT
I didn't have any clip on bars, or a TT bike -just an old school set up!  I flatted 5 minutes in. 
In hindsight, it was good to get some extra rest; after looking at my average speed compared to the fast guys, I wasn't even close!

RR
My job was to sit in and contest a sprint at the end.  Quail road like a demon and got away early, which made my job the easiest of anyone.  David, Andrew, and the Captain animated the race early, and then covered every move from then on.  I just sat in, and enjoyed the ride! 
My main focus was nutrition.  I had cramped up on this course after 2 hours during the last race.  This time I had enough eLoad Endurance formula in each of my bottles, and stuck with my hydration/nutrition plan.  I also was able to experiment with some of the breathing patterns that we worked on last training session.  It seemed to make an impact during the race - especially dealing with the accelerations out of corners.  Again, I had no HR data as it wasn't very useful for me during the race.  It would be interesting to look at after however.  I think I'll be setting the Polar HR monitor up asap.

After Andrew drilled it, I was able to hit the last corner in the top 10 wheels again, with Simon just in front of me (he flew through the last corner like a demon!), hoping to contest 3rd place behind the Quail.  He led me out and I stood up to sprint and cramped severely.  Massively frustrating!!  I dialled my nutrition, so I believe adding some more explosive workouts focusing on muscle tension will help address this.
All in all, from a racing perspective it was a great weekend, with some great team results - (Stephen was the overall stage race winner for the B's, 10th in the Crit, 3rd in the TT, and 1st in the Road Race!) and I saw some definite improvement in my performance since the last race.
I'm looking forward to getting better as the season progresses. 
Thanks again to David, Quail, Andrew and the Captain for doing all the hard work on Sunday!

M

[Majo]

Impressive work for all of you!  I am reading your posts and learning about all the positioning strategies, etc.  Very interesting.  On my side, my attention is still so much centered on all the technical aspects at my "novice" level!  Anyhow, I wanted to offer you all a good deal!  I wish to invite you try the Soft Tissue Release hands-on techniques I was taught all last weekend - I need different bodies to work on to become more and more experienced and excellent at it.  Soooooo, you can contact me and we'll plan a session (at no charge).  You can check out this following link to learn about STR and the workshop I went to:  http://www.softtissuerelease.ca/what_is_str.html
THANK YOU.
Majo
majorielauzon@yahoo.ca

[PeterW]

OH! Dibs!!
Will contact you soon Majo!