After my
last blog, I had two races left before I headed home from a couple great months
of tough racing in Spain.
The first one
was in Lakuntza, Navarra, part of
the Euskaldun Elite road series.
It went really well for me as I finished 6th after a long hard race
in the break. I was really happy with the result as it was a big improvement on
the elite races I did when I first arrived in July. It proved I could compete
with the top up and coming riders in Spain in top teams like Caja Rural.
The second
race was the four day Vuelta Valencia which I was really looking forward to. It
was super tough, over 50 pros and top ex pros competing. My best performance
was when I was in the break all day on the hilly Stage 2.
Lakuntza Elite Race
The Lakuntza
race was my last one day race of my trip and I was carrying really good form so
I was really gun ho on getting a good result.
It was warm
but nothing like 40 degree heat a few weeks back and it was high up, inland on
the Spanish plateau so it was much more exposed and windy than down in the
Basque Country.
The first 4
laps were fairly flat on poor road surfaces so it was very hard going. The race
then moved on to 3 hilly laps. Some of the climbs were a few kms long and
draggy, others just short and steep.
On the first
lap, a break of 6 got up the road really quickly while I was still working my
way up to the front of the bunch from starting farther back than normal.
During the
following lap, I attacked into the head wind & I broke away with another 3
riders when the bunch eased up and after a short lung busting effort we caught
the group ahead of us.
A few more joined to make the winning break and
we worked well, gaining minutes on the
bunch each lap.
After the last
flat lap went by, we hit the hills and immediately our group split in half as the
weaker riders struggled with Team Lizarte’s pace who had the numbers to push
on.
I felt good
and kept up with them over climbs, and stayed with them during the constant attacks
on the flatter sections of the course.
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| Couldn't find any pics of the race so here's one from a prevoius race. |
In the last
15 km I attacked and formed a new group of 6. However, our group split to pieces
as everyone was worn out from the race conditions and being in the break all
day. Caja Rural and Team Azysa missed the move.
In the last
8 kms I found myself chasing group of 4 riders 15 secs down the road. I was
holding them but not able to bridge back on.
A Lizarte
rider was on my wheel but didn’t need to work with me as his team mate was up
the road who was winning the race.
I managed to
beat him in the sprint for 6th. Dribs and drabs of riders came in
behind and main peloton was around 6 minutes back.
I was really
happy with my performance as I proved my ability to compete with the top up and
coming riders in Spain in Elite teams like Caja Rural.
Here’s a
link to a small report of the race: http://ibanmayoblog.blogspot.com.es/2012/08/santi-ramirez-tops-quality-field-in.html
Vuelta Valencia
The
following weekend, I had the four day Vuelta Valencia in south east Spain
before heading home back to Scotland.
I haven’t often
had the chance to do many stage races in the past. The only one really at senior
level has been the Tour Doonhame so I was excited about racing this.
All the
teams stayed in the same hotel in Valencia, put up by the organiser. My team,
Ibaigane Opel were among the youngest teams in the event, most others were
older having many pros and ex pros in them.
The first
stage started and finished in Valencia and was mostly flat with a few rises.
However it was very windy and hot, in the high 30’s. The level was very high
and I suffered in the heat a lot. I tried a few moves mid stage but no success.
I finished in the bunch, a minute back on the winner.
The next day,
it was really warm again but much more of a hilly stage. I wanted to make the
most of it so after 10 miles, I got myself into a large breakaway of around 20 and
then gained a couple of minutes up on the peloton.
Because of
the size, the group never really worked well together. Our pace was erratic. It
was really hard going as everyone was attacking, trying to form a more manageable
smaller group. So it then became a wearing down process on the legs.
I knew that there
was a big climb at the end so I wanted to get there before the bunch did, so we
eventually formed a smaller new break of around 5 of us. However, behind us, the
big teams like Gomur and Ayezes and Froize were working to pull us back, and
caught us just before the road turned on to the climb.
The info of
the stage didn’t reveal the severity as it ended up being the toughest climb I
have ever raced up!
It was nearly
6km long on a narrow bad surfaced road with many 16% and 17 % sections.
My legs were
pretty smashed from being in the break and I didn’t have much in me left for
it.
The peloton broke
up immediately with the top leaders like Belda and Duran fighting it out up
front. I finished mid pack but happy that I was up there in the tough end of
the race.
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| Teams prepare at the hotel before heading out to the start of stage 2 |
The fourth stage was like an 80 mile Kermesse style race. I unfortunately came off in the
first lap when two riders in front of me lost grip on the greasy surface after
the finish line. It took me a whole lap
to get back on to the peloton I kept in the pack and finished in the 30’s. Chuffed
to finish.
It was a
great experience to do this stage race; the level was really high and pushed me
all the way. I hope to do more of this next year. I would like to thank Team
Ibigaine Opel for letting me have the opportunity to race in Spain and to
support me while I was there.
Short video of early on in stage 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54aSZ1f_4Gw&feature=share
End of Season
After I came
back to Scotland, I was tired and decided to end my season and have a months break from training and have a bit of fun before getting back into to training for next year. Looking forward to using the new velodrome in Glasgow. I have been mountain biking a lot recently which has
been fun.
I want thank everyone at Team Herbalife LLB for their support this year. They have been really sound and
I wish them all the best next year.
I would like
to thank the Braveheart fund for their continued support this year. It has been
great help this season. I will be at the Braveheart Dinner and watch the
Thunderdrome so see you if your there.
Thanks for
reading
Robbie
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| Hotel Arantza in Igorre, my home for 2 months! |
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| A bit of mtbing at Laggan |
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