Nith River Road Race 2011 - Ontario Cup #4



Nith River Road Race 2011 - 2nd Master 3

 Patience was the order of the day today.  After being a little overzealous last week in the final at Bike the Bruce, today I was going to change my tactic and let the final play out.  The tactic worked out in the end.

The day began very early, woke up at 3am to begin my journey to Wellsley, Ontario and little town east of Kitchener/Waterloo.  Fortunately, the temperature on this May long weekend was on our side with a projected high of 16 degrees.  Rain and thunderstorms were called for later in the afternoon but there was a possibility of rain in the morning.

I arrived at Wellsley ahead of schedule.  The 2 ½ hour drive was just shy of 2 hours and it gave me plenty of time to drive and review the 16.4km course.  I was a little apprehensive of this race was I was told it was a rolling course with little to no flats.  Although my racing and progression have been going well, continuous hill efforts over 64kms left me worried.  Driving the course, I was reassured that my concerns were nothing to worry about.  If anything, the course suited my style.  The final especially was in my favour as it was somewhat technical with a few sweeping turns and undulating terrain with a slight downhill to the finish.  In my mind, I knew this race was for me!

With the registration open at 7am for our 8:30am start, there was ample opportunity to get ready which was a nice change from the previous few races.  My dilemma was the temperature.  It was cool enough to warrant a long sleeve jersey yet warm enough to forgo it all together.  If the humidity increased, I may find myself overheating yet if it rained, I would be cold.  In the end, I decided to wear the long sleeve jersey as it has a full length zipper on the front that could be unzipped to provide some needed circulation.

As I was warming up on the rollers, my legs felt tired and heavy.  It wasn’t a surprise as on Friday I assisted with my son’s Track & Field meet at school and was responsible for raking and measuring at the standing long jump competition.  What you don’t take into account when volunteering for such an event is the exertion required squatting up and down all day to take measurements.  I added some additional higher cadence intervals in an attempt to loosen them up.

By 8:15am, we were summoned to the line by the race commissarie.  The race would start from the parking lot and be neutralized until we reached Gerber Road.  With the race beginning downhill, I had a feeling the race would begin at a considerable pace.  I made sure I was towards the front.


Nith River Road Race - Course Map



Nith River Road Race - Course Profile

Nith River - Main Peloton

With the race now underway, it did not take long for the attacks to begin.  A single cyclist from Vitess went off the front in what I would consider a doomed attempt.  Although the winds were not a strong as last week, a cross wind would be felt on the majority of the course.  The peleton kept him within easy reach.  Into the second lap, a second cyclist launched an attack to bridge up to the lone Vitess cyclist.  Now with two up the road, if they cooperated, there’d be a chance they would make something of their efforts.  Obviously I was not the only one to think that and shortly, the two were soon caught.  All other breakaway attempts throughout the race were quickly neutralized which suited me well.

Mid way through the second lap my legs were again very tired and heavy just as Jeff Murphy (Team Bike-Fit) and Nick Schwertfeger (Newmarket Eagles Cycling Club) began pushing the pace.  Although I was never in any concern during the race, I could just follow.  I spent more time hydrating myself and spinning the pedals uphill to keep the legs loose and roll along in bigger gears when going downhill.  It seemed to help as into the third lap, I was beginning to feel better.

Mid way through the third lap, the anticipated rain really began to fall.  It had been spitting earlier.  Making our way down Regional Road 107 there’s a descent with a right hand turn at the base taking us onto Perth Line.  As the roads were now as slippery as ice, one cyclist slid out on the turn which alerted us all to the likelihood of more crashes.  For the remainder of the race, more caution was taken.

Into the final lap, the pace remained constant and the jostling for position began along Perth Line.  An attack was made up the left of the road and over the yellow line by Edmond Mellina (Lapdogs Cycling Club) resulting in his disqualification by the race commissaire.  A few others drifted across the yellow line but this was more a result of the switching that was taken place as positions in the peleton were being fought for.  At this point I was sitting mid way through the peleton on the left.  I had expected on the hairpin corner leading onto Gerber Road, there’d be some crashes and I wanted to ensure I was well clear of them.  In the final along Gerber Road, the yellow line rule would not apply allowing us the full use of the road.  Riding on the left provided me with ample space to set up for my sprint.  As I mentioned earlier, I was going to let the final play out and not take any risks or initiative.  That tactic worked in my favour as the sprint started well in advance of the finish line.  I was positioned well, again nicely sheltered from the crosswind and while still seated, raised my cadence and speed and quickly made ground within the peleton.  With the finish line in sight in what seemed to be less than a hundred meters, I began my sprint.  I felt as I was able to effortlessly overtake everyone and as I threw my bike at the line, with the front wheel actually coming off the ground, looking to my right I knew it was close.  Jamie Saavedra (Independent) would go on to claim first with me coming in second by less than three inches!

Nith River Road Race - Master 3 Final




Nith River Road Race - Master 3 Final

  Overall I couldn’t have been happier.  With the initial reservations about the race and course, the tiredness and heaviness I was experiencing before and during the race, and the tactic which I followed to the end, it was a great race.  If my calculations are correct, I am leading the standings in the Master 3 – Ontario Cup Standings with my 7^th at Calabogie, 2^nd at Springbank and 2^nd here at Nith River.

Master 3 Men Results - 65.6 km - Average Speed 37.5 km/h

1 SAAVEDRA, Jaime   INDEPENDENT                 01:45:01 
2 CUMMINGS, Killian INDEPENDENT                 st.
3 PITTS, Martin     RACER SPORTIF/MATTAMY HOMES st.

Complete Results click here