MLK Race report

Martin Luther King Memorial Day Crit:

Well the first race of the season already under my belt.
The course was just off of Crenshaw Blvd in La. It was a 6 corner course with a long downhill stretch going into a fast corner and then a couple of sketchy turns uphill back toward Start finish. By sketchy I mean broken pavement, water, a couple pieces of glass, and roots pushing asphalt ajar into almost quasi natural speed bumps.

Thanks to traffic on the 405 and long check in lines my warm up was a lap around the course and a puff off the inhaler. It was about 30 degrees and I kept thinking the sun is going to come up and it will warm up... Well the sun did start to come up but it didn't really warm up much.

It seemed like riders were crashing to the left and right of me pretty much the whole race. The pace was extremely surgy and no primes were offered. I rode pretty much toward the front the whole race but never really into the wind. The field was too big and the course too narrow. Especially around turns 4 and 5 which happened one right after the other. It was probably the least exiting race I have ever been in. almost like a short piano cruise with a couple minor efforts. The thing about the 4/5's though is their were enough strong riders willing to chase anything and everything down like their very lives depended on it. That's were the surge's came in. I burnt a couple matches trying to maintain position when the pace would slow and the mob would swarm right into a sketchy turn but never really had a chance to really push the gas. I ended up around 10Th I think(didn't stick around for results as I had to scurry back to SB to Work a 6 hour night shift). I didn't even really brake a sweet and was just starting to warm up when the race ended.

One Good lesson learned: sleeping that extra 15 minutes is not work missing that warm up for a race that only last 40 minutes.
Awesomeness factor: I now have 7 mass starts under my belt.
Things I would've done differently: Attack Attack Attack Attack, and then Attack some more - I dont care if hangin in the front to middle out of the wind is the smart thing to do- its boring, plus I don't think its my style.
Observation made: SST and FTP training don't help too much for the max power surges of Crit races.
Thankfulness factor: a) My rubber stayed down and thanks to all the group rides I've been doing my cornering was solid and I felt comfortable and calm in the pack- like I was in control of my bike. b) I managed to stay up right despite several crashes right in front, behind, and to the sides of me.