Krugers Kermesse Race Report

This by Charlie:

"Brotha Corndog finds fellow cyclisme riders Greg & Jeff. They're doing master B's, I'm racing the single speed class. With 15 minutes before the master B gun, I nip over to registration and give them $5 and join my peeps for the race. Two races is twice the fun right? At the start the peloton rolls in a dusty sprint. The course has room to pass along its entire length and my warm up consisted of pushing Ben around the kiddie course a few hours prior so I floated to somewhere mid pack. I could see the checkered energy ahead. I used the first lap as a warm up, staying out of the wind. After the first corner the dust has a similar effect to ultra dense fog. We're all bombing through some dusty fluffy bumpy crap and all you can do is keep the body loose and accept the brutality of the section. My strategy for the race was efficiency, staying out of the wind and jumping from group to group, picking off riders. There was also a particular rise right before a flat and then a downhill where I could gain many spots by doing a ten second out of the saddle sprint. If felt good to be hanging near some guys and then explode with power and just be gone. Some of these guys would find me on the long sustained climb but it was a good tactical move. I repeated this every lap. The downhill made for a great recovery.

Somewhere mid-race I gained on GoBrian as he was drafting a small group that was losing ground to a larger chase. I told Greg to jump on my wheel and I domestique'd his ass up to that group. I thought it was pretty cool to be able to execute some tactics on dirt. I kept my strategy of moving from group to group getting somewhere near the lead group but never in the hunt for a prize. Unknown to him, I drafted Gerwing for a few meters but faded relative to his velocity and while he was in sight for much of the time, I never passed him. All told, I think I was probably top quarter. I had fun.

I gave myself the fifteen minutes between races to decide whether I was going to roll the single speed race after such an effort. I bought a water and, with seven minutes to the start, I was mentally ready for another bit of suffering, ten minutes longer than the first race... fifty five minutes. Puke. My strategy was survival. I'm not some badass rider that should be racing two, just one that had the time and just enough insanity to give it a go. With no internal pressure to deliver, I rolled out without pre-race butterflies and just settled in and felt kinda strong. I wasn't leading but I wasn't spat out the back either. All of this changed as I read the timer at the start/finish. It read 40 remaining. It all fell apart then. I dropped the pace slightly in hopes that I wouldn't limp home fully cracked. Standing to sprint for the descent told me I was on the verge of cramping. My pace slowly degraded from that point. I've passed super slow riders wondering what they're doing in a B race or SS race and now I'm that rider. I get blasted by A's and other Single Speeders. At least the women would pass me at a civilized pace but they did pass me no doubt.

While I decidedly cratered for the second race, I'm really glad I did it. Given my work week and unrelenting family responsibilities, it was awesome to just completely drain the legs of all fuel. It turned a dark dark mood into a happy one. I have a small dream that doing the double will somehow make up for my lean training schedule.
-Brotha Corndog"

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My own take is pretty short. Jeff got a rocket of a start, and applied pressure up the slight rise on every lap, ending with an excellent 3rd place finish. Charlie's a stud, pushing the big single speed gear to a top 10 finish, AND racing the SS immediately after. I flogged around the course, didn't crash and finished. "nuff said!

Greg

Cyclisme Beginners Cyclocross Clinic 9-7-07

Event: Brentwood/Darlington Park Cyclocross Clinic

Who: Cyclisme Cyclo crossers Chris Cross and Brotha Corn Dog
will host Veloshop's Euro Cyclo Star Molly Cameron to
headline this beginner cyclocross clinic.

Date/Time: Friday September 7th 6:30PM

Where: Brentwood/Darlington Park - SE 62nd and Ogden -
Park, between Duke, Knapp and 60th and 62nd. South side of
the park.

Driving directions: From the south Take I 205 north to
Johnson Creek Blvd exit, or from the north, go south to Foster.
(Duke is smack in the middle of both exits)
Better yet, ride your bike...

What: This is a beginner's cyclo-cross clinic.
We will address the mount and dismount, we will apply
cyclocross-useful intervals of effort, and even
create a little practice race.

How: You need to bring your own bicycle but on this flat
easy pitch, even road bikes will have fun.

How much: We will be asking for a $2 donation that will go to support
the cyclocross career of up and coming Euro racer, Molly Cameron.

Support this fine Oregon grown racer, and give
yourself a leg-up on cyclocross.

Friday September 7th, 2007 in SE PDX

Questions call:503-860-1711
or email:
begofosite@gmail. com