OUCH

Every Tuesday night (6pm) there is a mid-week crit in Long Beach. The El Dorado (Eldo) Park crit had been going on for something like 20 years. There are 3 categories that race. First the masters 35+, then the 4/5 group, then the pro1/2/&3's. The course is a big square about 1.7 miles long. The 3 groups are all on course at the same time. The pro race usally catches the masters and the 4/5 group at least once, and sometimes twice.

So last night I was all kinds of pissed about the weekend disaster and decided there would be a break-a-way, and I was going to be in it. So after 12-15 minutes of the 60 minute race, I launched really hard. The course is pretty much dead flat, but there is a small rise on the back side. I drilled it before the rise, and once at the rise, i was out of the saddle and crushing it up the rise. I looked back and the devestation was apparent. The group did not like that pace, and there were guys at the front no happy. Gaps opened to wheels and just like that me, Tommy, and a few other guys had a lead. After about 1/2 a lap Jamie Palonetti came up and went flying past us. We all got on his wheel. He had dragged a couple guys with him too, so there was 7 of us. Tommy rode well and was able to maintain a good pace, I was able to increase and hold when I pulled, and Palonetti tried to kill us all. The rest of the group sucked. If I came off the front at 29 they went into the wind and dropped to 27. You can't survive like that. So it was Jamie, Tommy, and I who did all the work.

With 3 laps to go the peleton was getting closer, and 3 guys managed to bridge across. They were able to do some pulls and we held the gap to the finish. With a little less than half a lap to go I jumped really hard trying to get away. It caused us to loose 3 guys, but the big boys were still there. The hard jump cost me, and in the end I could not muster a big sprint and got 5th. Tommy got up there for 3rd, and could have won, had we not caught the masters for the 2nd time that night at the finish line. We had to sprint through their group which sucked and was little dangerous, but not a big deal.

The best part was the team rode really well and the boys in the bunch did a lot of work to make sure we stayed away. It was a good night after what was a terrible weekend.