Individual Pursuit 10/1/2010
Friday afternoon was the individual pursuit, but my legs weren't feeling as good as they were the day before. I had a pretty good start, and I floated the second and third laps just like I planned. Then I thought my legs were feeling pretty good, so I upped the pace and did a couple of sub-19 laps, but unfortunately I couldn't hold it for long and ended up fading by the end, though I did still pass my opponent. I clocked a 4:01.298, which is a PR, but I had been hoping to break 4 by a few seconds (it was only my second pursuit ever). I was in the first heat, so I had to wait for everyone else to finish to find out if I'd made the finals or the podium. Unfortunately for me, another unknown showed up in the 3rd heat and beat my time by one second, then all four ladies in the last two heats beat her, so I ended up 6th. Haley and Andi both put in solid performances: Haley did her first ever Individual Pursuit (11th!), and Andi improved on her 3k time from Elite Districts.
Points Race 10/2/2010
The Points Race was on Saturday afternoon, and the first thing I had to do was race in a qualifying heat. The heat was 40 laps, with sprints every 10 laps, and the top ten qualified for the final. We only had 13 starters, so most of us would advance. My goal for the day was just to make the final. The heat started and we went fast! I think it was the fastest track race I'd ever been in, since I've pretty much only raced with the B men at Hellyer. I also found out quite quickly that although I was energetic and excited before the race, my legs were rather tired from all of the pursuiting. Fortunately I was able to get near the front on the last lap and got one point on the last sprint, which was enough to qualify me for the final. Then I got to wait 2.5-3 hours for the final, which was good actually, since my legs needed time to cool down, rest, and warm up again. It was also enough time that I could eat some food.
Since I was still feeling fairly tired, and I also have very little experience doing points races (especially in a fast field), my goals for the race were simple: don't get dropped and get at least one point. The final was 100 laps, sprints every 10 laps. The pace was fast, but it seemed less frantic than the qualifying heat, maybe because it was a longer race. I also had a bigger gear, so it may have been just as fast but I got used to it and wasn't spinning quite so fast. In any case, I was conservative for the first 50 laps, since I wasn't sure of my legs and also needed a bit of time to get comfortable racing in a pack of fast-moving women. With 50 laps to go, there was actually a crash on the home stretch, but luckily I was far enough behind that I could go up and over. I'm not sure how many people went down, but the race was soon neutralized and we were allowed to stop (and get water). Two girls were injured enough that they didn't restart, but several ladies who did go down (including Beth Newell) got back in when we restarted.
I was feeling a little less tired in the second half and started being a bit more active in the race, going with a couple of breakaway attempts, but nothing stuck for more than a lap or two. I still wasn't great at moving up through the pack, but when I did get near the front I responded to several attacks. Luck was with me in the last few laps, because when Cari Higgins and Hanan Alves-Hyde went off the front, I had the opportunity to bridge when the girl in front of me decided to go for it (otherwise I was blocked in). I made it to the front group, though we ended up with almost no separation. There ended up being five of us strung out in front of the pack, which was close behind but so strung out that they weren't about to overtake us. Cari and Hanan were taking good pulls, but the other two girls pulled off after half a second on the front, so I took a good fast half-lap pull to keep us out there. I can't remember how many laps we were out there, but with about a lap and a half to go all I remember was trying to hang onto Hanan's wheel as she and Cari accelerated. She pulled away from me very slowly and I just kept fighting to stay on her wheel, having no idea who was behind me or how far they were, just knowing that this was my last chance to win any points. Luckily, I think everyone behind me was suffering just as much and I got 3rd in that final sprint, netting myself 2 points. I got 12th in the race, which I think was pretty good for a beginner like me.
It was a great race to end the season, and I'm already looking forward to coming back next year and hopefully doing even better. Many thanks to Coach Dan for coming down to support us - he acted as Director Sportif, Coach, Mechanic, Driver, and Photographer!
--Jane
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