2013 Copperopolis RR - Pro 1/2

Race: Copperopolis one of the true NorCal classics!

Result: 10th (good enough for a coveted teeshirt), 22nd or so for Lee and Kurt/Matt sacrificing themselves early.

Course: 21+mile loop x 5 yes 5 so that makes about 110miles and almost 9000ft of climbing on fair to bad pavement.

Report: You can find the general NorCalCyclingNews coverage here.

But here is how it went down from a SquadraSF perspective. We had Kurt, Lee, Matt & myself. Tim Larkin has won this beast of a race so we asked him for some advice and team strategy for our small but strong squad. The plan was pretty simple Matt and Lee would cover early moves just to take off the pressure a bit for Kurt and I to save our energy for the later selections. Kurt came down with the stomach flu early in the week and was on the mend by late in the week but he wasn't sure how the legs/stomach would be race day so we had to play that one by ear.

The field was stacked. ~6 from CalGaint, ~8 from TMB, ~8 from Marc-Pro,~5 from Bicycles Plus, and several other big names such as Kirk Carlsen (ex Garmin pro-tour rider), Phil Mooney (pro/local legend), Eric Wohlberg (ex Pro & Optum team manager), Logan Loader, and so on. Our goal was a top 5 which in this field would be a big task (but we gotta aim high) and we would be happy with a top 10.

Lap 1: Almost immediately a Yannick (CalGiant) jumped. Matt and I were near the front so Mat jumps with it before we even reach mile 1. This group swelled to include several heavy hitters including Kirk Carlsen, Chuck, 1 MPS, Riggs (TMB), Tim (BearDev). Kurt and Lee were monitoring the front.

Lap 2: Starting the first climb lap most of Matt's group was brought back, shortly after a counter went towards the top of the first main which shot some more big guns up the road, but the pack was still fired up as it seemed most teams didn't like the odds yet.

Lap 3: At the start of lap 3 Kurt attacks and is joined by Adrian Costa, Keith (MPS), Riggs (TMB), and a CalGiant rider. Lee turns to me soon after and says that is a "Money Break."  As we were cresting the main climb, Kurt get re-absorbed. There was a little bunch up on the undulating first climb, Kurt and Matt had to unclip right as the grade got pretty steep and pace quickened. I had been riding near Kirk Carlesn and Logan Loader with a plan to wait it out a bit assuming they would bridge and jump on that train of pain, but soon after they disappeared apparently both having flats. The odds were now against us, we just had to hope that more riders would pop since we still had like 60miles to race. TMB and Marc-Pro now like the odds and start riding false tempo at the front Plan changed to simply pay attention to any bridge efforts and keep the momentum in our group going without wasting too much energy. Between the two main climbs Lee and Matt kept me protected near the front and tried to keep the pace going just a bit. We were not pulling everyone around but at least we would come through when the pace slowed to keep the miles ticking away.

Lap 4: Lee tries to get some life back into our group and attacks across the finish line, a group of 5 or so go clear with another 20 behind. The group includes Teeter (MPS), Eric W., Cal Giant, and maybe Bicycles Plus. TMB misses the move and seems that only Roman is left in the break as Steve Palez yells at our group this time up the climb trying to instigate a chase. Steve O'Mara (TMB) hits the climb pretty good our group shrinks and riders continue to hit it along the reservoir. Before the 2nd climb Lee and a few others from his break were brought back. The pace was pretty aggressive on the climb prior to the decent and we lose a few more riders.

Lap 5: There were at least 10 riders ahead of the "field" of about 20. We started to catch another field on the main climb and re-absorbed all the riders in no mans land so Phil Mooney convinced the group to ride it easy on the climb then take a pee break at the top. After our little tea break Phil called game on and now that we were on the flat/rolling sections he started attacking. From here until the finish line attacks were flying all over the place. Half way through the final lap a group of 7 or 8 separated ourselves from the remaining 15 or so in the "field" if you can even call it that at this point. On the final climb there was some cat and mouse, CalGiant attacked, then I attacked over the top of the climb, shrinking our group down to 5, 2 CalGaint, Joe (MPS), & Josh (Bycles Plus).

The Finale: At the bottom of the descent, Phil had caught our group and it was now going to be a sprint of 6 for 8th on the day. I opened up the sprint first, but the 2 known sprinters in the group Joe and Josh came around me. I held on for 3rd in our group which was good enough for 10th Place and the coveted VeloPromo Copperopolis T shirt. 8th would have been nice, but I gave it all I had at 110miles and 5hrs of racing.

Summary/Lessons Learned: In the end I think we rode the race well with the small but strong crew. Personally it was really fun racing with a team in a race like this, makes everyone a little less nervous but also makes you dig deep since others are counting on you. The field was stacked and this race is one hell of a race so I am happy with our 10th place, yes double digits but good enough for a T shirt. This was our first real race as a team after some bad luck at Snelling. When Kurt went with the big move on lap 3, it was clearly the move to be in, so it was prefect that we were represented in that move. If I were to race this again next week I would be more careful about my position on the climbs and being in a good spot to mark the attacks from the big names that got away on lap 2 on the main climb this was the only significant move we missed. That could have worked out OR it could have burned up all our matches and we would come home with nothing. So we played it a little conservative based on the quality of the field and how hard/long this race is. It was clearly a day for CalGiant (2 in top 5) and MPS (3 in top ten) while TMB, Bicycles Plus, SquadraSF put 1 rider in the top ten.

Strava File: http://app.strava.com/activities/46565541

Battered and beaten but we got a TeeShirt, now we just need to split it 4 ways. And yes there is tar/black asphalt everywhere including our teeth and it even penetrates jersey + base-layer to reach Lee's chest hair!

Data Geek Info:

kJ = 3439

Norm Power = 225w

Time = 5hrs 10min

Distance = 110mi

5sec Power = 893w in final sprint