Imperial Winter Series - Race 6 - 31st Dec 2011

New Year's Eve! Surely the last race on the calendar? Maybe some racers on Boris Bikes in London later on in the evening take that prize. The training beforehand had been a bit interesting - one eighty mile ride with Rich from Durham (now living the dream working for Cycling Weekly) around the North Downs. I'd decided to take on all the big hills nearby: Leith Hill, White Downs Lane, Box Hill. That wasn't the problem so much as the wind and the long false flats into headwinds. Add in the fact that almost all my training has been indoor spin sessions, then this ride was a MASSIVE shock to the system. And on Thursday.

So again with Sophie in support, we made our way to Hillindon, knowing that there would definitely be a nearly full field. That meant that last week's not-so-genius idea was left at home, and this week's tactic was to see how I got on, let the race unfold, wait for the sprint, and hide from the seemingly eternal 10-14mph west/southwesterly breeze.

The race was a pretty normal affair, and even though the breaks often seemed pretty intent on getting away and staying away, they always seemed to come back within a lap or two. I still wonder whether it wouldn't be simpler for the bunch just to let the breakaways dangle for a bit longer, but it never happens. Usually the bunch decides after at most two laps that it's time to swamp the break away. If it's up the finishing straight then the whole field sprints flat out, and if it's down the back straight then half the field sprints while the other half freewheels, chin to handlebars. At some points there was a long line strung out as the pace went high, but the quality of the field has so far meant that there are strong riders throughout the line who make up the metres to form the bunch back up again. There never seems to any real danger of a full-on split - at least not purely on athletic terms.

Which brings us nicely to the decisive moment of the race. With various riders going down in previous racers, there was always some evidence of the risks of fast, bunch racing, but personally I'd never been too close to anything actually happening after from shouting and squeals of carbon brakes. It must've been seven laps to go, and as we came down the back straight there was a group of five off the front. Nick Baker from Zappi's - although I knew him better from his rowing days - had been active all day as usual, but the bunch was flying and looking to bridge the gap. As we flew into the bottom corner - fastest point of the circuit at the end of the longest, and gradually downhill, straight - two riders near the front (but not at the front) and in the very middle of the circuit came together. Classic case of the rider on the outside turning in, the rider on the inside not quite there yet, and everything follows from there. Both riders (I think) came together, wobbled, swerved apart, and fell away from each other. At this stage I was only one rider back from them and directly behind, so I had a pretty 'good' view (didn't feel very good at the time). Fortunately for me, and unfortunately for a lot of riders, by falling away from each other, there was a small gap between the two. Most of the riders who went down seemed to be collected from behind, especially those on the outside of the bend. So in fact most of the riders to go down probably had no idea and very little warning of what was about to hit them, except for the brief moment of unfamiliar scraping of bikes and people along the floor.

Meanwhile, I was full on the brakes and trying very hard to stay upright. I've only had two crashes - both on the same ride, one slow speed onto tarmac when two riders overlapped wheels in front and took me down, one fast when I misjudged the exit angle of a downhill bend and found myself unable to make it at that speed and landing in the soft verge. To be honest, in that split second all I could think off was what I should land on. There were bikes and bodies sliding everywhere, and as I came into the middle of them I was waiting for the inevitable crunch from one side to lay me flat out. But I must've used up all my remaining luck for 2011 because I just made it through unscathed.

The sprint was a fairly simple affair after that, and I was pretty happy to come in 11th overall since I didn't really have the legs to push for anything better. Still some series points, and driving home with my bike intact unlike quite a few of the walking wounded. Lucky that no one was as badly injured as in some of the previous races.

Here's a photo of me and Kat Broadbent, the current Vice-President of DUCC who had come down from Northampton to race at Hillingdon. Great to meet up and have Durham racing 'in force' at Hillingdon :)