January 12, 2014, Not So Underground Criterium   50+
Phoenix, AZ   30 minutes

Report from Lionel Space, Phoenix AZ
Many thanks to Noel Space for the photography.
(Images can be clicked on for a larger version)

Racing for 2014 began a week earlier this year. There were lots of races available and I picked the 50+ as my primary race, to be immediately followed by the 60+. I wore my traditional all black skin suit, so it was easy to pick me out. There were no new names at the start this year, with Keith Brodhagen being the strongest contender who had just won the 45+ race earlier in the day and dressed in a red jersey. Brian Lemke was back again; he was second last year with an early jump for the sprint where I was able to pass him after the last corner and win; Brian was wearing a Green and White jersey with white arm-warmers, so he was easy to spot.

The weather had calm winds, with a slight headwind down the back stretch. Temperatures were in the upper 60s, so no extra clothing was required. We had 21 starters at the line with a late start time of 3:30, which allowed us to have the warmest part of the day.

At the start of the race, I kept in the top 6 or so, but soon I moved back and got on Lemke's wheel to see how he was doing. He seemed to need to get out of the saddle on the slight climb. He did make one attack on the back stretch about 10 minutes into the race, where Steve Cullinan followed him and I slotted in behind Steve. But the speed wasn't impressive and Brian soon gave up, so he didn't seem to be much of a major threat.

 
Finish of lap 2. Watching the front.
 
 
Finish of lap 3. Watching Lemke (green and white).
 
 
Leading lap 4 with a bit of pressure to see if a break will happen.

So I moved further back to watch Brodhagen. Apparently everyone else was too as Keith would often end up at the front and nobody would come through for a pull. Since I was frequently on his wheel, I occasionally took an easy turn at the front, but it was real easy. So the bunch seemed content to watch to see if Keith or I would win the race and settle for scraps.

 
Lap 8, monitoring Keith in red.
 
 
Taking an easy pull on lap 11.
 
 
Everyone content to let me set a slow pace on lap 13.
So average speeds per lap dropped down to under 24, which works well for me to rest up for the sprint. I was keeping Keith in close proximity and looking over my shoulder as to who else may be sitting on my wheel. With one to go, we started to pick up pace a bit, but most were still watching Keith and me and this 17th lap only averaged 22.9 mph. I probably should have planned an early attack for the sprint, but I was caught behind Keith, the curb on the right and some riders on my left. At the same place as last year, Brian made an attack on the left side and I didn't have room to jump onto his wheel. Keith however did and I got on Keith's wheel. As we approached the penultimate corner, I swung wide to take the corner on the inside with the plan to pass both of them between the two final corners. As I started to swing in and prepared to accelerate earlier than the two in front of me with my kick, Keith lost traction on his rear wheel and slid out onto the ground. I saw his body in my path and thought I was going to have a huge obstacle to hit, but he kept sliding and I calculated that his splayed out hand would put his wrist right in my path. If only I had planned to take a bit tighter turn, I could have avoided him, easily caught Brian, and won, but I did not want to hurt Keith and did a hop over his outstretched arm. In order to do that, I had to straighten my path, which meant that I could no longer complete the corner and I had to then hop the curb onto the dirt and essentially abandon the race. I was able to stay upright, but suffered a puncture on the front from a thorn. Brian ended up winning by a large margin due to the clearing behind him. I wasn't sure if any other riders went down as I had to quickly get to the start line to prepare for the 60+ race with a fresh front wheel.

It was good to know that I felt in good shape. I had no problems with any accelerations or climbing and I should have been able to take the sprint. So a good start to the season.
Summary
Start
Time
Distance
(Miles)
Starters Duration Weather
(Deg F, mph)
Speed avg
(MPH)
Speed Max
(MPH)
3:30 pm 13.6 21 35:21 69, Light from West 23.1 32.6

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