Joy of Cycling Moments.......and others: All American Road Race--No Joy Here

Sunday, April 22, 2012

All American Road Race--No Joy Here

This is just a short post from my first official USA cycling sanctioned road race.

I decided to do some road races this year to see what it is like and gain some experience. For this race Cat 5 had a masters division so good for me and fewer young guys that don't know how much it hurts to wreck.

My strategy was simple. Ride smart, learn, and not wreck. I accomplished all of the above but in hindsight maybe I should have been more aggressive. Overall, for Cat 5 we did two 8-mile laps and we had about 40 people in the race. The rules stipulated no crossing the centerline and with this many riders, no one making any breaks, we just did the race in a peloton. The only time the race broke-up was in the corners when the pack would fracture a bit but I was always able to get back in to the pack but had no chances to move-up and pass.

Holding my line

Anyway, after the last turn with .5 mile to go the pack fractured a bit and as i sprinted to catch-up about 6 riders crossed the centerline to gain an edge for the bunch sprint and surge to the line. The race official on a motorcycle accelerated, honked the horn, flashed the lights, and this led to a panic of the riders across the line in fear of a penalty. They pushed to get back over the line and in a second 5-6 riders were down in a big wreck.

I was able to tap the breaks, avoid the down riders, and when I swerved another rider clipped a down rider and he crashed in to the ditch. When he fell his bike bounced in the air and his wheel smacked my left hand.

BUMMER...............................................Instant pain and swelling in 30 seconds as i rode to the finish.

Before Emergency Room Visit

After the race I spoke with my teammate and believe the official caused the panic. If he had just taken the number of the riders and assessed penalties after the race we probably would not have had the crashes.