Phoenix Cycling Club
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4 April: Ahagallon Cup (Bartin's Bay), by Andy Flannery
Sun: Barton's Bay, and I'm getting 6 minutes on the main 2nd cat and vets group, plenty of fire power back there anyway, but this 3rd Cat number is really a good thing, a genuine re-introduction to racing again after a period away is a great way of getting back into it.
That morning I kept trying to test my legs, running up stairs and all, I really wasn't sure how they had recovered from yesterday, so it would be interesting, if worse came to worse on this small circuit you can get back on for some more training.
This was a strange group mind you, we had vets over fifty 3rds, ladies and juniors, could be turmoil could be silly. It started off as usual just a few riders coming through, Slaners guys, Con Short and a few others, it's mighty frustrating and the first couple of laps we spent ridn through and trying to get rid of the rest. After two laps some more lads started to ride through and things started to look really promising, 6 minutes is a long time to a 2nd cat bunch over 50miles, if we kept this up we'd stay away for sure.
Off-Course things can only get worse, so when Hall pointed out my flat tyre on the 3rd lap I thought he was taking the mick, but alas, I rode for about 1/2 mile on the flat to a corner where a junior had a 9 sp Shimano back wheel, I wasn't sure if it was gonna work with my 10 sp but I think I only used two cogs, quick and quicker. I was raging, I was Vcomfortable in that group and I was coping with all the little surges over the crappy bits of road our very own Flanders cobles. So luckily it was near the start of the race I had plenty of time to get the wheel and roll on up the road before the scratch came up.
I never even thought for a moment to chase on my own, Betini maybe, me, no way. So I was slightly surprised to wait for a few minutes for a small group to come up, Denis Cormican, Jim McConnell an Apollo rider, a Newry man, Richard from Orchard, happy days this will be a good test of my legs from yesterday, although it would be a bit more intensive than the 3rds. So after getting up to speed I worked through with the rest of em, time gaps where encouraging we where definitely catching my former group, but worringly the main bunch was at 30 seconds for some time, I can assure you that we where not hanging around.
This was tough as I rode through I could feel the leg strength or rather lack of it, a definite hang over from yesterday, but this would have been tough even if I'd have been fresh. We soldiered through until about mid-way through the race when we where joined by Davy Mccall, Lennie Kirk and Shaun Gray. This was the end of the scratch bunch as our gap started to open the gap and we started to make serious in roads into the 3rds. The 3rds and vets had obviously been smashed all over the road and I was sure that the guys that I had been riding with had done the damage and where probably riding very well together. I met various phoenix guys at various stages on the road as we caught and passed small groups. I was very sursprised at the groups that we managed to drop while riding up to the limit men, having tried to do it myself in a couple of races this year, it seemed that McCall, McConell and co made it look comparitively easy.
About this time my survival instincts kicked in, I have never shirked work in a group this season yet, but now I decided I wasn't gonna ride through anymore, I would never last the pace especially now. At first I felt guilty then resigned but since over the remaining laps first Denis, then the guy from appollo then the guy from Newry where dropped I thought my caution was well founded.
With about a 30 second gap to the leading trio two laps to go, McCall made a couple of moves first on the hard Flandrian part of the circuit then again in the fast tailwind section, McConnell got onto him with Lennie Kirk from Ards, I came round Gray but I just didn't have the strength to bridge it up to Davy and the others. I fell away from the pace of Gray and another who we'd picked up on the circuit, how was I to know the other would get 1st unplaced 3rd but I let 'em go. Hall came up behind me and the two of us rode in to the finish giving me another chance to polish my sprint again. I made top ten.
There where a load of guys there from the club and I saw them at various stages on the road, CMC sen seemed best placed of the rest and he was riding through, I saw Mert come in with the remainder of the 2nds, I guess their race was over when McCall and Co left the group, Leon and Finbar pulled in to watch the finish, Zuelle rode well and hung in with our break for a while. McCall looks ominously strong two weeks in Majorca obviously doing him good, club racing will be hell, especially if the full compliment of Maryland racing men ever turned up.
Had I not have punctured, who knows, but sure the training was good, Tommy and Marrion surprised me with my prize money from the Surgenor.
In general for me a brilliant weekend of racing, I will recover ok for the TON, but god only knows how I'll cope with 4 days in the saddle. The Surgenor was the longest race I've done this year with a lot of the races being handicapped and 50 milers. I had been suffering from cramps near the ends of the races but I seemed to be ok this weekend, rather sore legs instead. So roll on next weekend for the TON and then I think another rest week. Just a shame the Lakeland GP is cancelled, that was my peaking race when the calender came out so I've gotta look for a decent 2nd Cat race mid May to make my mark :-)
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