Nicole reports on her first track meet...
Having raced track to a fairly good level “in the 90’s”, I think Vikki had been secretly looking to make a return to track ever since her comeback to road racing a few years ago. So when news of Velojam was announced, I said I’d give it a go with her. There were 3 categories on offer – A for experienced track riders, B for novice track riders, and C for novices to racing altogether. Having ridden on a track on 3 previous occasions, and never raced, I firmly belonged in Cat B. The experienced Vikki entered Cat A, which had a large and impressive field.
Being of similar stature, Vikki leant me her spare bike, a retro 90’s steed, pimped up with new pink bar tape, and also provided rollers for us to warm up and cool down on – having also used them on 3 previous occasions, I was an expert now. First up was a 12 lap scratch race. Ours was quite civilised; we all pretty much rode around together in what was for many, our first race. I found myself on the front with a lap to go, and having no idea of what I was doing, decided to start winding it up... unfortunately not hard enough, and got pipped on the line to finish 3rd. I was thanked afterwards for a good lead out.
Next was the points race, which was pure evil. I’m used to sprinting once in a race, and then stopping, not once every 3 laps. On the second last lap I said to Tessa from Dynamo that I thought I was going to vomit. However, I managed to pick up some points in each of the sprints and finish 2nd, but was walking like a cowboy afterwards.
After a quick two lap dash heat (safely though), it was time for the Devil race, probably the most technical of all the races. I saw what Laura Trott did in the World cup earlier in the year, but since repeated sprinting seems to make me want to vomit, I decided just to stick around near the front. All was going well until about halfway through the race, when a girl behind me ran into my wheel, my left foot unclipped, and from there it was all over. Three of us went down fairly heavily. So many thoughts go through your head when you crash, all in a short space of time… “Where’s my bike, I need to get back on the group (then realised I was on a track and not in a road race!). My wrist hurts, my bum hurts, my ankle hurts. Will they restart the race? I need to finish the Omnium, I’m coming 2nd. There are good prizes on offer”. Then I saw my bike. Both wheels had buckled so there was no way I was going to be able to continue on it.
Vikki kindly offered me her other bike, but said that if I crashed this one, she probably would cry. That makes two of us. I jumped back in for the restart, before I could think about crashing again, and managed a 4th. The last event was the two lap dash final, where I decided I’d just get near the front and stay out of anyone’s way. Clare from Dulwich Paragon beat me in the sprint again (for about the 5th time today), I just didn’t have the speed to get round her. So, 2nd overall in the Cat B Omnium, and yes, the prizes were good! And as a bonus, I was awarded the “Badass” prize, which was an awesome pair of Fast Jacket Oakleys. I couldn’t hide my excitement!
Thanks to Mule Bar Girls for organising such a fantastic event. It was great to see so many women take part (>50), with all standards catered for. Not sure if track racing is my forte though (I favour a 2hr race minimum), but it’s good speed training, and I’ll definitely give it another go at some point. Perhaps after I get Vikki’s bike repaired…
Vikki's thoughts on the day...
When I saw the start sheet for the A cats of Velojam, I thought that there must be some mistake and I had entered the National Championships. Such a huge, experienced field! Once on the start line I tried to forget about everyone else and ride safely without getting dropped. The first race was a scratch race, 15 laps. I felt quite good, didn't get dropped (unlike some of the field, who were lapped) but was not able to feature in the top 6 of the bunch sprint, so no omnium points. The next race was a points race. I used to be quite good at these (in another life), it was all I could do to keep up, no points... again... On to the two lap dash, didn't quite make the final. Finally: the Devil, lots of fun but again no omnium points. Loved it, apart from seeing Nicole on the deck (again) in her B cat devil. I'm sure that she's got a lot to say about that... I think that I'd like to do more track. Wonder if I can fit it in...
No comments:
Post a Comment