The Thursday event goes rain or shine so show up and get series points. John Hannon comes every week and rides or volunteers. He now is just  off second place overall.

The latest addition to MIVA membership list is Wendy Woodworth. She is the sixtieth person to join the new club.

Boxwood Circuit, May 31^st.2011 30 laps

Tonight, there were three women starters. They had no trouble

staying with the main pack for the neutralised laps, but, as soon

as the green flag dropped, they immediately slowed. Janna Gillick

could have stayed with the men but dropped back and then,

realising her error, time trialed behind them and wasn't caught by

the leaders until lap eleven. Then she stayed with the main bunch

until the end of the race. Both Cheryl Morch and Glenda Harling

also were able to stay with overtaking groups for a while but got

dropped as they accelerated out of the corners..

In the men's event, Warren Muir and Robert Russell established an

early break and eventually built this to fifteen seconds by the eighth lap.

At this point, last event' winner, Ian Smith, decided that the break

looked serious and within a lap had bridged to join the leaders. The

next lap saw the first prime, with Muir just edging Russell and Smith.

Back in the bunch Lionel Space and Everti's Mike Sevcov also realised

that the break looked dangerous and they too bridged to join the lead trio.

When the bell went for prime number two, Smith and Muir accelerated

away from the break but by the line, all five were again together, with

Smith just beating Muir for the money. The main group, well over half

a minute in arrears were given a lap 17 prime of their own to get them

moving and this was taken easily by Shawn Boyd, who simply rode away

from the disinterested pack. the And that's the way it stayed.

With three laps to go Ian Smith took the final prime but Warren Muir

again came from behind tat the finish to take the win from him, with

a wily Lionel Space snatching third from Sevcov. Robert Russell cruised

in at five seconds for fifth place.

Meanwhile, the main group had stayed pretty much together, picking up,

first Janna Gillick and then Cheryl Morch who were now developing the

savvy to stay with the men through the corners. In the bunch sprint , Kyle

Waring beat challengers Ian Hay and Frontrunners' Normon Thibault,

who had dusted off his road bike for the occasion.

Thanks to Rob Bau's daughter for looking after the bell, to Mike and Wendy

Woodworth, marshaling and cone pick-up, and to Ian and Brodie Hay for

course set up. Kit McCaffery looked after the registration as usual and also

managed to sell clothing and memberships.

Next week, there will be a clinic before the race to explain to the newcomers the basics of criterium racing.

The strongest riders in a criterium don't always cross the line first. To do well in this kind of cut and thrust racing, you need to be smart and use your energy sensibly and where it counts. Think about starting the race with a full bucket of water as your energy supply. Every time you expend some energy, it's like spilling some of the water. The trick is to have some energy left for the final sprint to the line.. To improve your placings and work towards those wins, you want to be careful about your efforts so you don’t spill all your water and watch the bunch disappear up the road before the last lap. When you first start to ride criteriums, you may think that the place to be is in the draft at the back of the group. However, this is in reality the worst place to be as the bunch spreads out round every corner, like a concertina and the tailgaters have to constantly sprint harder to catch up. .Everyone suffers in criteriums but if you ride intelligently and ration your energy supply, you will get to the finish with enough in your bucket to produce a good sprint. So, how are you to do this?

1. Warm up well

Get to the race early enough to look after registration, change into your race clothing, and do a pre-race warm-up of at least thirty minutes. In a local event like the Boxwood criterium, use your ride from home as a warm-up. Don't just idle along thinking you are saving yourself for the race – ride at 75-80 percent and put in a few hard intervals. This will elevate your heart rate and get you to the line ready to go from the gun as most criteriums start FAST..

2. Where to Place Yourself

As already mentioned, don't leave yourself dangling off the back of the group. A good position is about a third of the way back in a small bunch. Know who the squirrelly riders are and avoid them. Pick a good, safe rider to draft behind and keep close - about twenty to thirty centimeters behind is good as you will get the maximum shelter and save energy. If you notice riders passing you  and find yourself drifting back through the group, speed up a bit and get back up to the top third - it's easier there as the braking and acceleration through the corners are not as severe.

If there is a good pace line, with the riders taking turns at the front, go through when it is your turn. If you are feeling at your limit, pull off almost as soon as you hit the front but do maintain the speed as it is important for the pace line momentum to be maintained. Whatever happens, keep your place in the group as fighting to regain a lost position uses much more energy than staying in that top third of the bunch..

The Finish

You have saved energy by keeping well-up towards the front of the group and by drafting behind strong, safe riders. As you get to the final few laps, you need to position yourself for the final sprint. Know who is serious about crossing the line first and choose a fast finisher who will lead you to the line. It's worth using some of our remaining energy to fight for that helpful wheel. At the Boxwood races, you need to be in a good position by the time you reach the final corner. If it's windy, move up on the sheltered side as it's

much easier to gain a few places that way. Once you make the commitment to go for the finish, don't bail out – give it all you've got until you are over the line; countless races have been lost because riders have eased up before the line, thinking that they are clear of their opponents.

Practice.

Use these tips in every criterium you ride. You will not always finish in the top few but you will increase your chances of finally winning a race dramatically if you enter each event with a strategy to maximise you chances. Oh, and don't be afraid to ask for advice; you can learn by doing what the winners do.

MIVA's Boxwood Criterium is getting more popular! At the last race we had nineteen starters. Be great to get twenty plus. Special event for the ladies if we get four or more out.