MattCollins

I did it at Rockingham 2 weeks ago, no thanks to my stupid willingness to lead the pack around the oval whenever I had the chance. Still managed to bag a 4th place which was enough thankfully. Now the hard work starts.
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Good job!

It sounds like you've got a structured system there to move through the grades. A common grizzle here is that we see is riders moving up into the A & B grade peletons (often combined) before they've developed the automatic / instinctual racecraft to be there. It's not just about having the legs.

I rode a mass start a couple of weeks ago and because of my performance in one hill climb and one TT (where I finished with a very satisfying time that placed me in the top third of the A grade field) I was thrown into the combined A/B grade field. The C/D grade field is where I should have been just for the lack of recent experience.
Hanging in the rear half of the peloton, I quickly came to the realisation that there were at least a few riders who didn't belong there any more than I did. Some would have been chatted or sent to the back on a training ride before they brought down a dozen riders.

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