Sunday's D Grade Crit at Bentley Tech Park

[JB]

Good race - no spills, sizable peleton.
http://youtu.be/YcOytnnfQAI

[Bluejay87]

Looks like a fun, competitive d grade race! Anyone know of any similar d grades in Sydney? Heffron and Newington don't have any d to speak of, which is annoying as I had to try C where I got lapped.

[JB]

Might have to post that question in the General forum...

[jonhanson]

Love your work JB. I'm on there yellow Pinarello. Struggled on the last lap. Chee Lai who won will go back to C Grade next time. He was injured last week and dropped down to D.

[JB]

no worries jonhanson,

the camera man (boy) is moving up to C next week too under coaches orders.

downside is we may not see as many riders if he has the camera rear facing

[Dirty32]

Thanks for posting (again!) JB.

Actually got down there to watch D grade this weekend.
Was good. A pretty big field. Some of the younger guys appear to do pretty well too!

I am pretty sure that Chee (the winner) was out on an SPR ride on Saturday morning.

Were you in a full SPR kit jonhanson? I think I was sitting behind you on the bank, after you'd sat down after your race and while the C grade race was on. I'll say Hi if i see you down there again.

If the planets align and I can get down there, might even join in for my racing debut come Sunday. We'll see anyways... Not expecting much but to learn and hopefully get a bit more involved this time next year. Anyways, we'll see.

[JB]

D Grade is a great grade to start in with the crits.
no shame in pulling out early either as racing is quite different to going for a group ride - it takes some getting used to (constant changes in speed etc).

[chee]

Ears are burning!

I remember seeing the rear facing GoPro, didn't think I would get to see the footage though! Thanks for sharing.

My first actual race. Should have started in C as Jon mentioned, but I decided I should take it easy after 2 weeks in Bali and a spill on the bike a few days before. Unfortunately I won't be able to do this weekend's race due to other commitments, but there's lots of options for racing (e.g. twilight crits in Claremont)

Definitely recommend starting in D. Was great to get an understanding of what was happening at a reasonable pace, rather than doing it in C grade and worrying about holding on for dear life.

[Dirty32]

Nice one, Chee!
Not a bad way to kick things off.

Were you riding with SPR on the Saturday?

[jonhanson]

Yeah Dirty32 that was me. Come say hello next time.

[chee]

Thanks Dirty32.

Indeed I was on M2. Say hello next time!

Also, were/are you on antilag?

[Dirty32]

I will do... You just held me to the line on the Riverside Dve Sprint at the end of the M2 SPR ride on Saturday.
Thought I might have caught you, but alas.

I am on Antilag, yeah!
Only get on there every so often nowadays, but used to be a regular on there.

[Magnum9]

What is the distance and average speed for one of those races?

[chee]

I remember! Considering how much taller you are, I was always going to have the aerodynamic advantage

[jonhanson]

Distance was about 14K - 20 minutes plus two laps for D Grade. Average speed was about 35kph

[jonhanson]

The good news is there is now a D Grade for men at next Wednesday nights Crits 7 January at Claremont Showground. 6pm start - 20 minutes plus one lap. Let's have a good turnout. Or just come and watch. Racing goes till about 8.40 with the A Grade men off at 8pm.

[Dirty32]

Is it the same deal as far single day 'pay to race' licencing, and not having to be a race member of any particular club Jon?
Only the 7th of Jan, or is it a weekly series again?

[dmwill]

Might wonder down to Claremont to watch.

What entry/gate do we need to get through?

[jonhanson]

Well last night was an absolute beauty. Enter through Gate 5. It's on for the next few wednesdays. Well worth a trip down for a look even if you're not racing. D Grade starts at 6pm then the women, then c, b, A. Great atmosphere. Bring a blanket and sit on the grass and watch the racing. Best night out I've had for a while. I was dropped by D Grade but stil enjoyed it. If you're not a member of Cycling Australia or a club ( same thing really) then just pay for a one or three day pass on the night. $20 when you turn up for entry into the race. Come and ride or come and watch.

[jonhanson]

So Wednesday night crits are on for the next 7 weeks. New lighting tower. New drain covers. New route at the top so less bumps. What could be more exciting ! BYO picnic and the kids to watch. Starts 6pm with D Grade. Come on fellas.

[JB]

son did it last night (C grade). lighting still a bit of an issue i suspect.

good to see so many out there.

few silly riders taking risky moves resulted in a couple of crashes.

ambulance picked up one from the womens race.

very tight course with few overtaking opportunities - but if you're strong they are there of course

i think bentley is a bit more open and allows for more overtaking - possibly safer as well.

well run event, kudos to organisers.

av speed for C grade was approx 37.5 kmph

[Parker]

Two crashes in the women's A and B race, I managed to avoid them, great course, will make you stronger as well

[jonhanson]

Average speed for D Grade was about 35kph.

[chee]

Saw your young fella out on Wednesday night JB, he was doing well! I gave the Go Pro a bit of a wave when I was sitting on his wheel. The footage any good?

I finished 6th, but quite happy overall. Was a better performance than the week before. Field was bigger and stronger this week. Few people needed to be told to hold their lines. Lot's of pedal striking on the little hill section.

Averaged 38.1km/hr.

[JB]

would you believe we forgot to turn the gopro on!! doh!!