Race Day Secrets of Gruppo Sportivo (VI)
A guide to racing the GFNY Championship NYC course, by the ride leaders and ambassadors that know it best.
by Chris Geiser
Keeping Your Focus – What’s the Strategy Back to 9W?
Descending Cheesecote into Ramapo will provide an excellent chance to recover and pat yourself on the back (don’t do that while descending, really, mentally we mean), for a job well done in getting through the longest and most difficult climbs on the course. With roughly 35 miles to go to the finish, it will be time to maintain your focus. With several ups and downs, and quite a few false flats, it is a mentally tough section to keep your speed, cadence and effort to a level you need to meet your goals. But don’t worry, this is a great chance to catch on with another group. The course will not feel as difficult as it has, and there is pizza waiting for you in West Nyack. If you are hungry, grab a slice, and keep moving. As you roll through to the rail trail, and come out in Piermont/Sparkill, you will start to recognize your surroundings. Soon you will be back on 9W and returning through Alpine to the finish line.
The hardest part for me is Strawtown Road into West Nyack. Not lingering too much at the aid station. On Western Highway there is a short but painful climb, before the rail trail, it’s something that you have to get over to get to the home stretch.
Out of West Nyack, there is that short last little climb before you hit Blauvelt. When you finish that little climb, you go another ¾ mile – that is the new section of rail trail. You now have several miles of mostly flat and you can really tear through that section. The Rail trail is a push, push, push section for me, and then you go into, the notable state line climb.
At this point I am thinking about why I ride and getting home. Seeing my family at the finish line.
Steady ride from Cheesecote – not so challenging in this section, every once in a while, folks are handing out water. I like South Mountain, it’s a little undulating, but you can catch momentum. Once you make the right turn and head toward West Nyack the road is relatively flat, but if you have managed well, and stayed hydrated, you should be feeling good here. You might be fatigued but you should be feeling the effort. Mentally and emotionally you should feel good about where you are and that should carry you through the rest of the day.
I try to bring strong energy here, and make sure that I maintain my focus getting back to the State Line.
Getting to Ramapo, is steady effort. I usually greet my family there. They want to see how I am doing, take a quick photo, and they tell me where my teammates are, and then encourage me to keep moving. The segment from Ramapo to West Nyack is the toughest to get through. It’s a mental game of what seems like an endless flat stretch. It’s easy to lose focus. Your mind starts to wander. The flats have never been my strong-suit so I work on my speed and my energy. Catching a group, to keep going together and power through it is the best way. Just keep working.
After zipping along South Mountain Road adrenalin is pumping but what gets me home is knowing there is cake and pizza at the final rest stop – I ALWAYS stop. I only need one water bottle and there’s no need for any more nutrition, so my jersey pockets are empty. Ease out of the West Nyack rest stop and take a moderate pace and raise it to 30 km/h. Then I look for a group to pass me… and jump on.
Don’t lose focus. The GS-GFNY will be doing everything they can to either catch a group, keep a good cadence, but to make sure that they are not losing focus. With some little kickers and false flats, it will feel like you are working very hard at times. Find a group and share the work if you can. Give yourself a chance to use that last bit of energy on the climbs back up 9W and over to Alpine. With the last segment of the race coming, staying tough here will make a difference in not giving up any time.
Editor’s Take: I am hoping to use my time trialing skills to make a go at making up some time here. But that will mean preserving my energy and recovering from the climbs effectively. It will take a bigger gear and as high a cadence as I can generate, and I will look to push on everything that pushes up hill. The kickers in this section are short enough to stand through most of the effort, so I will look to make up time by starting to leave energy and power behind. If I have momentum, I will wait for the finish line to look for pizza.