May 13, 2012 – The US Speedweek Crits finished last weekend on May 6 with the Global Imports Sandy Springs Cycling Challenge in Sandy Springs, GA. Several Canadians were racing through the week including Ed Veal and his Realdealracing.com/La Bicicletta squad. Here’s his Spartanburg round #5 and Electric City Circuit #6 reports to give readers an inside look at these uber-fast crits.

Spartanburg Regional Classic
Spartanburg was a party. Picture a 4-corner crit in the middle of a circus.  The place was rammed with people and once again the atmosphere was amazing.  Bouncy castles, climbing walls and tons of food and beer.  I wish just one of our races back in Ontario had the same kind of feel. The streets were lined with people. Everyone was out with their families having a blast on a Friday night.

I would have liked to have been there with mine. My son Evan would have loved to have watched the race with some cotton candy while my mom watched in horror. My dad would try to calm her down and tell her I would be ok plus make sure to get his cut of Evan’s candy. Being away racing is cool but being away from them does start to wear on me. I get home sick in less than a week. It’s pretty sad. This race didn’t start till after 8pm. It was already dark out to start.  As always there was a preem on the first lap and I thought why not?

I had wanted to go for this the last few races but just could not get close enough to the front to sprint for it.  Once again the group clipped in and was gone!  It’s a cool little feature of this series to get everyone up to speed and racing right from the gun but I could just not contest for it.  Spartanburg was a very fast course and the entire race was getting into corner 3 first.  It would be strung right out the entire lap and then swell as people fought to get into corner 3. A total of 70 riders would hit the corner at the same time right across the road and hit the brakes as only 3-4 wide could go through at a time.

You would file into your spot as you slowed a bit and then hit the gas out of corner 4. The long straightaway was pretty tight and if the pace wasn’t high enough we filled the entire laneway from side to side.  I found this race one of the easiest of the series. I stayed about 50 back the entire race and was never really in distress until there was a swell on this straightaway and a guy in front of me hit the barriers to the right.  The pace slowed and the group came over him as they had nowhere to go.  I also had nowhere to go.  A whole group of us went down.  I hit the deck but wasn’t hurt.  I looked around and there was a ton of us, maybe 15 crashed and then 30 + more were held up by the crash.

The group was neutralized and we got a restart.  I never really got my mojo back after that.  I could ride around 50 back and out of trouble and that’s what I did.  There were a few more crashes and Ken and Logan got caught up in a few of them.  There was a bad one on the back stretch and we had to ride by a rider laying on the road lap after lap after lap while he was attended to.

I was being lazy and not taking any chances. I moved up with a few to go but really wasn’t interested in fighting for more tonight.  I finish 26th my worst finish of the trip and I finished pretty angry with myself.  Right away I broke it all down in my head and knew it was all mental. I felt great and rode strong all night.  I crossed the line barely out of breath and had so much more.

My mind wasn’t willing to let my body enter into those battles in the corners. I just couldn’t put myself in the tornado of riders fighting for the lead. That 3rd corner just wasn’t coming easy for me.  I had my fall and I had many close calls that I felt lucky to get away from it.  Every time I got into the top 20 I was dealing with so much danger, danger I normally love and embrace.  But not tonight.  It was chaos out and I just wasn’t willing.  I was pretty angry with myself.

Fear got the best of me.  I’m fearful how mad I will be if I let it happen again at Anderson for the Electric City Circuit. Stuff like this doesn’t happen to often for me so I don’t expect it to be a problem going forward. For anyone that has fear in the corners or fear battling in tights spots I share this because it happens to the best of us.  I put this out there because I’m not giving up on myself.  I’ve worked really hard to become the bike handler I am today and I just have to put myself in those situations again and again if I ever want to be comfortable there in the mix at the end. I’ll keep working on it and I hope you do too.  2 to go

Spartanburg results here.

Electric City Circuit – Anderson
Showing up to this course was a bit of a let down. After all the street parties and thousands of people around the course at each event, Anderson just didn’t fit.  This place was dead. It was a wide open field with a paved road around it.  At first glance it looked to me like it could have been a trailer park in the past. All the event staff, all the riders and their support crews were there but that was it.

There was a hot air balloon crew there but there was maybe eight of them. Not the crowd I was getting used too. This was unusual for this series. Different isn’t bad, it’s just different. We parked beside the United Health Care guys and got ready. This course had really no protection from the wind.  It was a big horseshoe shaped loop with minimal elevation. You could see right across the course at all times so if anyone got off the front there was no hiding it.

The weather has been incredible this entire trip and I have no complaints but today seemed to get to me. It was the hottest day so far. It was also the first race during the day. Racing down town it was easy to find shade. Racing at night also helped a bit with the heat. Anderson started at 3:15pm and the sun was out in full force with no shelter.

I knew I would be dealing with the heat but I was cool with that.  I love the heat and regularly describe myself as a sun worshipper.  When there are extreme conditions I really do feel I can handle it better than most.  I had this feeling at the line as I looked around at the group. I had the feeling that some were there but already checked out.

It didn’t take too long to lose some riders.  The race started fast and it seemed like we lost 20 or so in the first 10 laps.  I had had a tough time the previous night dealing with being scared at Spartanburg and decided today I was going to ride with no fear.  I was going to hang tight for the first half and then let loose. I had watch a clip before bed that had the rapper and actor Ice-T explaining how people obtain success.  He talked about taking calculated risks and not so calculated risks. Sometimes you just have to say “f**k it”.

He repeated a bunch of times and it just stuck with me.  Ken and I promised each other we would hit the mid-race point and then “f**k it”.  I heard the call for the mid-race preem and I knew it was now or never.  I saw Ken in the field and yelled to him. I came around the back stretch and lit it up. I sprinted right to the front and into the lead.  I hit the start finish and saw a few riders up the road.  No preem for me but I had a pretty good gap and I decided to get across to them.

I didn’t waste any time and gave it everything I had to reach them as soon as I could.  I got there quick and yelled to them as I bolted right by them. I held the pace and the three of them jumped on my wheel. Through the start finish we started rolling and I was now away. The four of us rotated a few times but after my next pull I looked back to see the strung out group.  Only two laps into this and it was being pulled back in a big way.  It felt great to be off the front but I was now only 100 feet off the front. I went with the first counter attack but it didn’t get too far away.

I was swarmed and now sitting top 10 at the front of the group. I had burned a match but it renewed my inner belief.  I needed to remind myself that I was able, but was I willing to continue going forward – the was key? I fought at the front for the remainder of the race. It is exhausting how aware you need to be at all times. Gain two spots in the corner, lose one on the straight. If you are not fighting forward, you’re going backwards quickly.

With a few to go I was right where I wanted to be – top 20 and trying to move into the top 10. Brandon was doing a great job of being up at the front all race too.  He even yelled to me to get on his wheel at one point. Very cool moment!  This kid wanted to take me to the front.

It was amazing having a teammate in the mix down the stretch and it fuelled me. I moved up and would be there for a second and then I would be swarmed and lose 10 spots in one corner. I would break out and fight back up the side and then lose it all as I got pinched on the left. On the last lap it was all out from start to finish. It was single file and I only passed a few people on the way to the line. As I crossed I was very happy.

I thought for sure it was my best result of the week and was convinced I was 12th or 13th.  I had got a top 15.  I had followed my plan and I had rebounded from a poor performance the day before. It wasn’t till I got back to the hotel that I saw my result. I was 19th and it just didn’t have the same ring to it. The result I saw on the screen didn’t equal the feeling I had when I crossed the line.

When I crossed the line I was happy with myself.  I followed through and raced a smart race and left it all on the road.  Later when I saw 19th I forgot all those feelings and was upset. It was wild how my outlook had changed. I have felt this before and did my best to think about all the positives. There really weren’t at lot of finishers today.  The heat and the pace had quite a few deciding they weren’t interested. I tried my best to turn my veiw around and I guess it made it a little better.  It made it a little better that I stuck it when half the field quit but it wasn’t enough – 19th sucks.

There is no other way to describe it. I can be ok with a result if I give it 100% and never quit BUT I will never be truly happy with my result unless I’m standing on a block and earning a little gold medal. It’s sad but true.  I just have to remember the feeling I had as I crossed the line.

I killed it today and left it all on the road.  One of my best efforts of the week got me my first top 20th at this level.  My feeling right after the race doesn’t match the result at all but thats just the way it is. This is bike racing, the result doesn’t always tell the entire story.  I hope you have enjoyed my reports from Speed week.  6 down – 1 last one to go.

Electric City Circuit results here.