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Conference noted::bicycle

Title:	Bicycling
Notice:	Bicycling for Fun
Moderator:	JAMIN::WASSER

Created:	Mon Apr 14 1986
Last Modified:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:	3214
Total number of notes:	31946

1224.0. "'Tour of the Adirondacks' race" by SVCRUS::CRANE () Mon Jun 26 1989 23:18

                       Tour of the Adirondacks

                               Stage 1
                         Malone to Tupper Lake


    The weather was nice at the start, about 85 or so degrees and not to humid.
the Vets were the first group to go followed by jrs and then the cat IV's.
They sent the cat I and II race off about 10 minutes before us and then last
but certainly not least were us cat III's.  The television coverage was 
impressive they had interviews with random racers before the start. (dam not
me) there was a camera on a boom taking good shots of the start, there was a
motorcycle for almost each group and they even had a Helicopter that took shots 
of the various groups all through the race. The clouds rolled in just before the
start of my race but the temp was still very comfortable and there was no wind.
   The Mayor of Malone got us started and we off !!

   The start was easy and there was no pushing and shoving for position. the
distance of the stage was 78 miles and the info sheet that was mailed out to
everyone before the race advised using a straight Block. (Boy am I glad I didn't
listen to that) 10 miles in just as things were beginning to pick up we hit a 
climb of about 3/4 of a mile that put right into my 21. On the hill was the 
first crash as someone just rode right of the road into the trees. (why, I don't
know). The climb was not to fast and I went up it rather easily although after
the race my wife who was following at the time said that we blew about 15-20
people off the back by the top. There was one more short climb and then off
we went on the flats for the next 50 or so Miles. We went through a 20 minute
rain storm at 1 hour but the roads soon dried and the pace never even slowed.
   After about 2 hours I moved up to the front before we hit the narrow roads
and short climbs heading into Lake Tupper. The pace was very fast as began to
set up for the sprint. There was one person off the front who was able to stay
out and take the stage. the finish was up a short very steep hill and since I
made the mistake of staying on the 53 I went from a respectable tenth at the
bottom to a less than spectacular 69th by the finish, But who cares this is 
a stage race and there was a still one more tough road stage to come.

   On a general note. The race was very well organized. Everything went off on
time and there was good on the road support as well as excellent Marshaling by
both pedestrian and motorcycle marshals. 5 or 6 people were disqualified for
yellow line violations. I was happy to see this rule enforced ! Crossing the 
yellow line the way some riders like too do is a very dangerous Practice!!

   The results were posted by seven O'clock and I heard very few complaints
of moans about the race. So Far So Good. Tomorrow Stage 2 Ticonderoga to
Elizabethtown 77.2 Miles and Hilly.


                        More_to_come
                          JOhn C.

T.R	Title	User	Date	Lines
1224.1		SVCRUS::CRANE	`Wed Jun 28 1989 14:10`	78
	Stage 2 Ticonderoga to Elizabethtown Everybody was gathered at a shopping mall in Ticonderoga at the intersection of routes 74 and 22. The temp was about 85 and still rising and the sum was out in all its glory threatening to roast everybody on todays 77 mile stage. The starting order was a bit different from yesterday with the Jrs 1st then the cat IV's vets and women. They went off in a defferent direction then the cat I, II and III course. I felt sorry for these people because less then a mile into the race they were hit with a very tough 3 mile climb out of Ticonderoga. The I's and II's went before us and then 15 minutes later we were off. The race organizers had disqualified a few people for yellow line violations and that seemed to calm things down in the pack for most of the race and there were no real problems during the race. I noticed a lot of people complaining of sore legs as they made that first leg swing over the top of seat to get on the bicycle. Very soon the people who hav'nt been training regular would feel the hills of N.Y. pulling them backwards. The start was slow and easy and I took a short warmup flyer with one other guy that lasted about 5 minutes and was really very enjoyable. The road was clear and I did not have to worry about cars at all as I cruised down the middle of the lane enjoying the day before the racing got started. Once we were caught things picked up a bit but not even close to the previous days 26-27 MPH avg. The first serious attack of the day came at the 10 mile mark and gained 2 mins before we chased them back. Soon after that 2 more guys went off on another attack that also gained 2 mins but lasted only 5 miles. We spent the first 20 miles going mostly down into a valley and only hit one tough climb but that climb spread things out quite a bit. I was able to keep the front of the race in sight and never let myself slip very far back. There was a feed zone at 42 miles and thing heated up just before we got there. as a matter of fact it heated up enough so that when we got to the feed zone a lot of people including myself were forced to make emergency manuvers just to get over to that side of the rode. My wife was at the beginning of the zone with my water bottle and just as I went to grab the bottle I was hit from behind and forced away from the handup. This later turned out to be my undoing as the temp was now up to 90 and the feed zone was at the bottom of the toughest climb on the course. I still had one full bottle left but it was not going to be enough with the crucial parts of the race still to come. I moved up a bit on the lower part of the climb and then stabilized my position and settled in for what was a pretty tough climb. I was in a 42-21 for most of the climb, after getting to the top there was a short downhill section then a left onto a road that was described at hardpack cinder. There were sections of deep sand that almost took out a couple of people (myself included) but the 1.3 mile stretch was negotiated with no major mishaps. The road turned into a twisty downhill screamer of a desent and then into a series of short rythym breaking climbs that claimed alot of people. The lead pack was now down to about 75 as the course began to level out some. I started to move up here with 20 miles left to go and funny things began to happen. I go by 5 or 6 people ride for a while, turn around to look and they were gone. This went on for the next five miles until the pack was down to 60 people. The wheel van and motorcycle was right behind us and haunting the back waiting for people to drop back just so they could move in front signaling the end of your chances. This happen to me once. going up a small hill the dehydration began to affect me and I fell of the back and the motorcycle and the van went by me. I refused to succumb though and summoning every once of stenght I had left in my legs I chased back and grabbed on the end of the Peloton. By now I had stopped sweating and my mouth was completely dry, I was also experiencing some chills. All the signs of dehydration were there and I only hoping to hang on till the end of the race. But alas this was not to be the case as I looked up to see a gap form between the 5 guys I was with and the pack. I chased with what little I had left but was not able to catch back on. I did drop the people I was with and catch 2 guys that got dropped right after I did but everyone was to burnt out to work and ended up doing the final 10 miles on my own. That was probably the longest 10 miles I have ridden In a long time. I finaly arrived at the finish loosing 10 minutes to the pack and finishing 57th for the stage. This moved me up to 54th overall. Tomorrow the third and final Stage - the Lake Placid Criterium JOhn C.
1224.2	good race results	USMRM5::MREID	`Thu Jun 29 1989 20:50`	5
	Excellent description of the race! Keep the action coming! Mark
1224.3	better late than never	SVCRUS::CRANE	`Thu Jul 13 1989 14:29`	44
	Stage 3 Lake Placic Criterium The weather was nice aobut 80 degrees or so. The course is very technical. the start is slightly uphill. The course has 8 corners and no flat stretches. The organisers increased the length form 45km to 60km the day of the race. I think this was an attempt to spread out the final results and make the final classment easier to figure out. I am not much of a Crit racer because it can take a good 15 miles before I get warmed up and find the rythym of the race. with this course I new I would be in trouble if I did'nt get a real good start and find a comfortable position up front. Well, I did the first half of that pritty well but was never able to get comfortable. On the 5th lap there was a crash involving 4-5 riders and was caused by a rolled tire. 5 laps later there was another crash I'm not sure what caused it but I was able to get around it. both of these crashes had spread the pack out quite a bit and the race officials began pulling any rider that was more than about 20 behind the leader. By the 10th lap 30 guys were already pulled and they were still at it. I was still on the tail of the main pack when I was pulled with 5 other riders. I was a little unhappy being pulled when I was'nt even dropped, but I had the feeling that I would'nt have lasted a whole lot longer had I stayed in. I watched the race until the officials had effectivly cut the race down to about 35 riders. I never stayed to the finish because of the 5 hour ride home. Overall the race was very well run. The organizers are to be complimented on the way they marshalled the course and controled the riders on the road. The television coverage seemed pretty extensive and will be on The Sports Chanel (at least in Boston) on Friday the 21st at 11 P.M. I have someone taping it for me so that I can search all of the footage and hope for a quick shot of myself riding. I gotta admit I'm really excited about the prospect of being on T.V. in a Race, Here's one to bore the family with at get-togethers and maybe even show the grandchildren in another 100 years or so. My Placing going into the Crit was 54 out of 125 starters so I'm using that as my final placing. Maybe next year I'll finish the Crit. More training and Intervals I guess. JOhn C.