Round 14 – Drumaroad Road Race

by Rich · July 4, 2014

At the start of the week the Groups are put up in advance so that people have the opportunity to upgrade themselves to the correct Group. Just to clear up a term that you may have heard only at Road Races –

Sandbagging: hiding the strength, skill or difficulty of something or someone early in an engagement

Thankfully we have our very own Gary B who has taken up a new role of shaming people into the correct group. Getting the groups right is only part of the skill as getting the handicap’s just right is more an art than a skill. This reporter got a quote from the handicap UCI independent fairy who tells me that road conditions, weather conditions, people’s improved riding, a reduced scratch group size, an increased group 4 size & magic dust have all been considered and these handicaps have been set so that everyone comes together with 500m to go.

Group 1 & 2 decided to start together so at least they could work in a big group which I am hopeful was more enjoyable for everyone. Group 3 had been recruiting a few new faces even sneaking in with a Northern Ireland Fell Running Champion. Group 4 was also recruiting with Ryan C back out on the bike(a comeback on the cards??) and Zak Hanna joining.

When the race started Group 4 moved straight into race mode and had made up more than a minute on Group 3 but it took until Lap 3 until we had a large group with Scratch not far behind. When groups merge it can be quite dangerous due to different speeds and tired legs. No doubt a few words of guidance are passed between members just dont take them to heart.

With a few attacks of the front it came down to the final sprint with scratch just getting to the back of the group as the sprint started (kudos to the handicap fairy). With a tough head wind it was the ‘wiley’ Stevie W showed all his experience to take the win, Tommy D a super second place with our very own Fell Running Champion Stephen C taking the last podium place(and his last time in Group 3 – congrats on the upgrade).

You will notice that this race passed off with little incident and that everyone enjoyed their night even if they did moan about not having enough training. This cannot happen without the Safety Risk Assessment, The Handicap Fairy, Time keepers, Lead Cars, Marshals, Tea/Coffee makers & Martin keeping us all right. Feel free to put your own thanks on the forum as they never get enough. If you are one of those peopl then give yourself a large pat on the back as you did a great job.

Photos of the night can be found here

Full results are here: