Thanks Rick! It was one of those rare days where just about everything went perfect. Sorry to hear about your misfortune, I'm sure you'll return next year ready to set things straight.

Regards,

Mark,
Looks like whatever strategy you got , worked for you, 6th place, nice job!
I on the other hand, have the honor of probably being the only person to crash going up hill in the race! :oops: I blew up chasing the lead guys on the first climb, then was not paying attention and caught my wheel in some dirt on the left side of the road and went over. :oops: :oops:
I was able to get a second wind and pass a bunch of guys at the end, but was pretty disappointed. Oh well , thats racing. Great event, I plan to do it again next year

Rick,

Good luck to you also! It's a great climb, hopefully the fog will clear, the views are out of this World.

I'll be there with three teammates, stop by and say hello if you see us.

Mark,
I'll be in the same race as you, I'm 47. This will be first time doing the race and I've never done the climb, I'm up in the foothills. Good Luck!

Rick Kalb

Thanks for the comments guys. I'd already entered the 45+ when I posted, but the Elite 3's do look like a good choice - maybe next year. I've only done one 45+ this past year and entered the 45+ at Tam to get a feel for where I stand with several riders I've raced in the past.

I'm not thrilled with the 80+ field, but the climb should thin that out pretty quickly!

I plan to run a 39/25 and turn myself inside out to hang with whoever is in front of me.

Reaching the foot of the climb in a good position is key. Last year my position was really bad and I paid the price. I ended up getting stuck behind a lot of traffic and played catch up for the first 1/4 of the climb. And always remember to save something for the Sistas!
Best of luck.

If you look at the pre-reg list you'll notice that there are 14 guys from Zteam entered in the 35+ Cat 4 race (who race with the 35+ 1/2/3's). I'd be willing to bet that many of these guys will be there only to help set a fast pace on the flat first 4 mile section, so if you want to get a fast time, this would probably be the best race for you to enter.

I plan to use the same gearing I use for most races, which is a compact 50-34 with an 11-23 cassette.

If you have standard 53-39 chainrings, I think either a 12-25 or 12-27 would work.

Even if I had a power meter and knew what power I could maintain, I probably would not use it since I prefer to just do races like this by feel, and race for place, not for time. But if you're going for a PR it might be better to use it.

I don't know if this helps any, but I have 2 strategies based on the 2 times I have raced this.

1) If anyone is going faster than you think you can go, hold on to their wheel for dear life as long as you possibly can.

2) If you think you can go faster than the pack is going, move to the front and try to set a faster pace to drop guys.

If you want to pracitce I'll be out there with a large group tomorrow, leaving from the start at Stinson at around 9:20-9:30 for a dry run of the course. We'll go fast as a pack for the first 4 miles, then break up as we climb.

I'll be riding from the GG Bridge at 8AM, and meeting more riders at the Depot in Mill Valley at 8:30 to ride over to Stinson.

Chris

Mad Axeman wrote:Break it into 3 sections.

Section #1, go fast.

Section #2, go really fast.

Section #3 go really really fast.

Or, you could race it this way:

Section #1, go fast.

Section #2, go really fast.

Section #3 blow sky high on the 7 Sisters and limp home at 6mph.

Break it into 3 sections.

Section #1, go fast.

Section #2, go really fast.

Section #3 go really really fast.

If you are going for best possible time you might want to go with a bigger group so you have plenty of people to draft off of during the first few miles that are flat. Generally it takes a well organized lead out train to really hammer the flat section of the race to produce a record time. While you probably are not shooting for a record time you might have a better chance of getting a personal best time by going with a larger group that will go faster and provide a bigger draft on the opening flat section.

How about the best strategy for a Cat 3 45 to choose a category. 45's already have 44 (+17 more 55's), the M35 1/2/3 have 11 (+38 35 4/5), and the E3's only have 9. Great.

If I am going for a time only and don't mind getting my ### kicked, it looks like I need to be a 3 :roll: . If I love large fields, the M45 or M35 would be the way to go. When I got to 45, all you guys were supposed to have moved on to things other than bicycle racing! :lol:

Jim L

I think it depends on your fitness and what kind of rider you are. If you're more of a natural climber, and you're carrying some late season fitness, then it makes sense to hold on to the instigators as they hit the steeper slopes at the beginning of the climb. If the pace is too much for you, you can still back off, recover a bit, and then proceed at your own pace. It makes sense to take anvantage of the pacing and the draft, but not if you're going to blow and be unable to recover.

However, if you're not in great shape right now, or you're not a fantastic climber, it makes a lot more sense to let the goats go on the beginning slopes and just ride your own pace, or if you're lucky, find someone riding at or just above your solo pace so you can draft them.