Manda Madness

In the wake of Hotter Than Hell, I began reevaluating my form and decided it would be fun to support our buddy Andrew Willis of Holland Racing, and register for the road race stage of the Tour of Austin which he put on this weekend.
This race was held on remnants of the Ronde von Manda course which most guys had raced earlier in the season and I had heard it was a pretty straightforward 12.75 mile loop over rough, flat, exposed roads with only a few false flat sections and some tricky crosswind stretches to worry about.
What I hadn't expected was the rain which fell over the first 2 laps of our 4 lap race and made some of the turns pretty treacherous. It was a weird rain because it fell only over about a 1/3rd of the loop while the other 2/3rds remained dry. The rain and overcast skies along with our 8 am start time kept the temperatures down which was the only bonus to the elements.
Kelly "Kookie" Orr, Brian Griswoldo and myself discussed team strategy on the way to the race, and decided to do something unheard of in Team Wooly Mammoth history: sit in for the majority of the race and wait for the last 5k to make any moves.
Well, I should say Kookie and Griswaldo agreed to wisely sit in while I promised to hang out up front and get into any breaks which looked promising. I also agreed that if the bunch was together with 7-8 k to go I would attack the field first to mix things up. If I was to get caught Griz's job was to immediately counter while Kelly waited for the sprint and made sure he was in a good spot for the finale.
A break of four snuck away with around 15 miles to go, and AT&T Brain and Spine had a guy in it and managed to plant three of their riders along with another teammate of a guy up the road across the front of the peloton to"block" so the break could get established.
Since the centerline rule was in effect and guys were getting relegated if they crossed it, this CAT 5 tactic succeeded, as the four riders on the front softpedaled and the gap to the break opened up. Once up the road the breakaway rode well together and the wind discouraged any bridging attempts that tried to follow.
Sticking to our decision to rest and conserve until the end, and with only three of us racing, we figured the teams with five or more riders who did'nt have representation in the break would put their heads together and figure out they'd better go to the front to chase. As we sat near the front taking turns in the wind and pulling when we needed to, it became evident the group was not organized and the break was more than likely going to stick.
So, with around 5 miles to go I watched Casey Crosby riding in his San Jose kit jump up the road, and realized he was who I wanted to get in a break with. I sprinted clear with a young San Jose-er on my wheel and as we got halfway across to Crosby, I pulled aside and made him drag me the rest of the way to him.
Once we made contact it was full speed ahead as we took quick pulls and I realized I was in the red and wondering if I could hang on for what would be a likely seventh place finish. This is when the agony and suffering takes over, and your legs are screaming and you begin to question why you do this to yourself and why you pay for this sort of torture week in and week out. The answer is only realized when that move either succeeds, or when what happened to me next occurs.
At around 1.5 miles I noticed Crosby sit up, and all of a sudden I knew we were caught. The disappointment is enormous, but like clockwork as the peloton came charging by I watched Kookie followed by Griswaldo charge off the front and up the road.
Any irritation and anguish at knowing my race was all but over was replaced by pure adrenaline and excitement for my teammates who were now sitting in good positions with only a few minutes left to race. The rush you get from watching your teammates attack, succeed, and finish well is almost as thrilling as when it's you stepping onto the podium after a good finish.
Coming into the final 500 meters, Griswaldo was still away, and Kookie was sitting near the front and waiting for the opportunity to sprint for some points. Griz was reeled in as the sprint unfolded, and Kookie surged to a third place finish in the field sprint leaving him at seventh on the day. Griz finished in the pack and I cruised in just off the back.
We were all happy with our ride, and although seventh place isn't a great result, we did the best we could under the circumstances and stuck with our plan and delivered a guy to a top ten result.
The answers to the questions you always ask yourself after a race where the break sticks and you don't have a rider in it are hard to live with most of the time, but when you enter a race like we did with only three guys, you can't chase everything that goes up the road. When the parcours are filled with crosswind sections, and it is as exposed as that area is, bridging to a break like that is extremely difficult. If we'd have gone to the front and chased the three of us could have accomplished what none of the three teams in the race with over five team members were able to, and I know we would have caught the break. But what for? We would have been too tired to take part in the chaotic field sprint which would have followed with 60 guys mixing it up.
So, all in all, I think we made the right tactical decisions and came away with a decent result after a tough day in the saddle. You live and you learn I guess.