Last Sunday was round 2 of the Bontrager Summer Sprint Series. All the results, Dino's race report etc are up and I've done half the videos and need a break from editing videos! So a little time to write my report on how I went at last!

The day starts early, I do a light warmup set of squats (12 x 20kg, 8 x 60kg, 5 x 100kg) then some hang cleans (12 x 20kg - I did say it was light!) then Alex picks me up and we load his car with tonnes of junk for the day.  Everyone pitches in and the track, video, signs etc are all up by 11am, excellent!

I'm not sure what to expect from myself this round, the last fortnight's been very disrupted and my training has been intermittant, I've had a few days off with hayfever etc ... Anyway, here we are and it's time to do my best with what I have.

On goes the disk wheel and the Bonty front wheel.

Warmup on the track, the usual, roll around for 10 laps or so then do a couple of entries (wind up and accelerate to sprint pace then back off immediatly). At 11:30 I have a drink with caffeine in it (I don't normally drink caffeine).

I'm the first to do my F200 so I can get it out of the way and commentate for the rest. It's quite windy, a gusty and swirly northerly is blowing around 10 knots or so. 12:00 on the dot and I roll out of the infield onto the track...

I wind up, hit the accelerator into the headwind up the finishing straight, then take the J-line.  It feels reasonably quick, I find it hard to keep in the lane at the bottom corner (windy ...).  13.44.  13.44?!  Wow! 53.57km/h.  My season goal was a 13.5 outdoors at Blackburn, that's beaten it. Woot! My previous PB was a 13.88 at round 1. That's almost 1.5km/h faster! Good .. Very happy with that. I'll have to reset the goal now ...

Anyway ... on we go, and everyone's lifted except A grade.  Dino does a 13.32, I've qualified second fastest in B grade, with Jason Plowman the only B grader who went faster (13.41).  B grade F200 times are : fastest - Jason Plowman with 13.41, slowest, Mason Austen, 13.56. It's going to be very hard to win a race today, we're all within 0.2 of a second.  B grade this round is about half a second faster that last round.  A middle-field B grade time from last round (like mine, 13.88) would be C grade today.

Ok ...

First up and I'm racing Jason Plowman. The draw hasn't worked out how I'd want it (the fastest two aren't supposed to meet unless there's low numbers in the grade) and we're the fastest two qualifiers.  Jason goes from a long way out, he's done his homework and knows that I take a while to get wound up and he's a good enduro rider. He wins by 10 meters or so.

Round 2 and I'm paired with Mason Austen.  Mason's been training for the Warny, and may have lost some of his kick, but not a lot, I know he's a talented sprinter.  We have a very close race, I come off his wheel a fraction too late and he wins by a wheel rim.  Neither of us knew who'd won it was that close. The photo tells the story, as does the video.

So, after that effort .. it's round 3.

Martin Lama.  Martin's a very good time trialer, an enduro.  But, he's been improving his sprint a lot - in the practice day I got the jump on him and he never managed to get past me, but he's no bunny, he's smart and fast and fit.  He did a 13.48 F200, so we're equally fast today. He kicks early but I'm alert and get onto his wheel, and almost run up the back of it coming into the clubroom bend, I make the mistake of backpedaling to hold position rather than passing with momentum, then when we hit the 200 line he kicks .. Where'd that come from?!  Argh! I was complacent with the sit and expected him to lead out, but he had an extra kick and used it with rutheless efficiency. I didn't expect it and didn't react fast enough, and Martin won it by miles in the end.

So that's my racing for the day.  One very close result, two canings and a PB (and season goal). No wins against live opponents - I know why - I didn't once take the initiative, and never had control of any of the races. Martin went on to win B grade in a thriller against Jason Plowman, and Dino, with a huge heart, got 3rd in A grade in the end.

Yesterday afternoon I ran an opportunistic training session at DISC for a few of the crew, and we worked on standing starts from the starting gate and a few motorpaced efforts.  Said g'day to John Beasley and the Malasian sprinters who were finishing up when we got there.  I didn't ride except for the motorbike, I had a swim in the evening though, and felt good, a strength week for me now, round 3 is the 7th of December. I'd like a couple of wins this time!