BVC Friday Racing - 2x1sts

Three races: 20 lap Scratch, Elimination to 5 lap Scratch and 5x10 Points. Finally have the Zipp Disc back with a new Vittoria Pista Evo CS...

I managed a nice lead out to the beginning of the 20 Lap Scratch. I was hoping to pull the speed up to about 48 over 3 laps and then pull up and find an hole about half way back in the group. There was a large number of starters (17 or 18). So I didn't really want to end up at the back in such a short race. Unfortunately there was no good spot to move back in and I ended up at the back. 

Trying to move over the top to get to the front with about five laps to go, I managed to get about half way across when there was a small jump at the front and some less confident riders moved up in front of me and slowed down, making me move up to the rail... By the time I got around we had less than four laps and the small front group (7-8 riders) where almost a half lap away... I managed to bridge over, but just caught onto the back as they got the bell.. No chance of getting any where near the front.

The second race was an Elimination to Five Lap Scratch. Eighteen starters with nine eliminations. I jumped to the front at the beginning and lead the group out with enough speed to keep most people working hard enough to stretch out and not be interested in challenging me for the lead.  

Started at about 47km/h and gradually moved the speed down as we went. Overall did about 14 laps with overall averaged speed of 45.8km/h. With two eliminations to go Stewart Bowner came over me and pushed the speed up to about 48km/h for the next four laps. After the last elimination he waffled a bit moving up track pulling me with him.. Which was not where I wanted to be.  I had to jump under him (apolgies to Anselmo who was below us...) and managed to get a nice gap and carried through for the last three laps to take first.

This started out with me at the back and some of the younger guys pushing the pace into the first sprint... Shortly after that there was a small break away, two people getting off the front. They took the second sprint. I had managed to get gapped (behind the wrong people) so had to do a big effort to bridge up. I did that just after the second sprint hoping that the front group would slow down a bit. 

That worked and I got to the front. Found another rider to work with  and took the first in the next two sprints. The follow on riders managed to catch us about then.  And after some jockeying around Stewart Bowner and I ended up high over the blue with about four laps to go. He jumped. I followed. I almost got over top of him in the last corner, but he is a sprinter and had enough in reserve to take the 1st by a half wheel... (well almost ... at least a tire width or two, Jeremie took a few seconds to think about it before giving it to Stewart...)

But I still had enough points to get 1st overall, 14 points to Bowners 12.

It felt nice to have the Zipp Disc back. It had a flat back in late November and it took me a while to get some tubulars ordered... Decided to try some less expensive Vittoria Pistas, 220 TPI, about $35 Cdn from Probikekit in the UK (free shipping...) Then took a while to get one prepped and glued on.. Then after getting it on the disc, the last step is to pump it up... discovered that the stem was double length and while it "fit" into the disc hole, there was simply no way to get the pump "hash pipe" onto it. So I had to rip that one off.. Very annoying, neither Vittoria or the Probikekit site specified the stem length, so I had just assumed it was the standard length.

Then had to order some of the better Vittoria Pesta Evo CS (about $65Cdn) 290TPI tubulars. Those arrived last week, but too late to get glued on. So tonight was finally back to normal.

Subjectively at least, I think this certainly makes the long endurance type leadouts (like the Elimination tonight) easier. It probably adds a 1km/h to those types of efforts (for the same power output) compared to the training wheel (simple 32 spoke, narrow Mavic rim with mid-range Tufo..) Better aero and better CRR.

Finished the night with 20 minutes L3/SST type effort.