Race Report - Bolsover & District 10mile TT

A week after my success at the Sledmere race I was keen to get back out and see what I could do on a course that was more suited to my skillset a flat power course... but apparently I may not have paid enough attention about the course....

The course was the O10/5 which is down near Retford, I have always done this race however it is normally on the flat O10/1, but having had a look at the profile it seemed relatively flat, but as i arrived at the HQ there was rumblings of this being a Sporting course (SPOCO) or in other words not flat!

I met a chap from Team Swift who kindly let me follow him in the car to a parking place just by the finish, this was ideal as I could leave all my stuff get a good warn up and after the race be right back at the car for the dash home.

I started to unpack the car and the first thing I noticed was how cold it was, there was a steady northerly wind and it was really biting, I was prepared for this and had legwarmers on  courtesy of York Cycleworks, but even with these it felt chilly, I also knew this was a North South course so the first longer leg would be into a headwind, but I would get a nice tailwind back.

I had a speed in my head that I think on any flat course I should be able to sustain this year, that being 30mph, its a big ask but I am hopeful, needless to say that went out the window pretty quickly, setting off you go down a descent with junctions and cross roads, its not a great way to start a race, but it get the heart going, from that point onwards it rolled all the way, at the turnaround point I had averaged 26mph, which meant I had a lot to do.

One thing that is always a part of time trials is the other people in the race, setting off 60secs apart there is always an element of "chasing" down and im not going to lie, catching people who started in front of you is satisfying, depending on the field and the race somedays you may not catch anyone, in this race I could up to my 6 minute man, something I have not done for a very long time, while pleasing they are not really the competition as the seeded riders tend to be set off 10min or 5mins apart again depending on the field, so you never know how folk have gone until you get back to HQ, this race was pretty much full 120 racers, some big names, this was not going to be easy.

Despite the now tailwind I was in a world of suffering on the way back, straining to maintain speeds in excess of 26mph to do anything to get the average up, about a mile from the end the legs started to empty and there was an element of refusal, but knowing I was so close to the end I dug in and pushed, this is were the mental side of TTs comes to bear, your body is screaming to stop, lactic acid seem to have replaced all the blood in your legs, your lungs are burning and your heart is beating out of your chest, each gulp of air doesn't feel like enough... but somehow you convince your body this is okay, blanking it all out and focusing on the sprint for the line.

Crossing the line suddenly you lift off the gas and all that pain comes to the fore, in a lot of 10 miles TT's I used to be sick, now that tends to come after the finish line, the extreme effort and the sudden release of pressure just seems to do odd things to my stomach, not sure why, as i wobble down the road trying to focus and not get run over I stop the Garmin and check out the time, oddly I have no reference point, is it good or bad?  I just dont know.

I turn around and head to the car, chatting the the Team Swift chap again he tells his story of the race and his time, I have put over 2mins into him, but I still have no reference.

Quick recovery drink, fight may way out of my skinsuit, load the car and off to the HQ.

Back at HQ I am pleased to see that I am, at that point, winning with a time of 21min55sec, which seems okay but secretly knowing that it wont last.  Grabbing some coffee and cake (there will be a common theme of post time trial "recovery" protocols) I chat to a few folk before heading off, going so early (number 40) it would have been a log wait for the final result.

As it was I was 6th overall, but luckily (depending on your perspective) I was beaten by some old blokes (who may or may not read this) which means I was 2nd Senior, beaten by Dan Taylor, kind of a nemesis who pipped me a few times last season as well... I must try and get one over on him soon!

With that its back to normal life of working, being a dad and husband, as well as fitting in 4 weeks of solid training somewhere.  My next race is a return to the V910 which was my first race of the season so taking the time to reflect on what I have learnt from these races and see what I can improve for the next, with any luck I will be faster next time out.

Race Report - Malton Wheelers Monuments Time Trial

Its race time again, 2 weeks after my last race it was time for a hilly Time Trial, which truth be told is not my sort of thing, I like going down hills but not so much the coming back up, and this course is 50% down hill on the way out and 50% uphill on the way back, it could not be more evenly split and you know full well that its going to hurt.

This event was an afternoon race, my start time was 1435 which gave me plenty of time to mill around and get myself worked up, last year I had a nightmare at this race, I got the the start to find my rear brake was binding quite badly, without the time or tools to fix it I set off knowing that I was not going to go well, which broke me mentally, so instead of giving it my all i pottered round muttering to myself about the bike and how I needed to have a stern word with the mechanic (which was also me).

This year I knew that without the brake issue I could go faster, I did a 26:45 last year and I would be pleased this year to go into the 25's.  The field was pretty stacked, some strong riders including Phil Graves, Mark Wolstenholme, Joel Wainman and Jonathan Wears.

I had also not planned to taper much for this race, although Coach Rob had made the back end of the week slightly easier so that I was not totally burnt for the race, I made the decision not to taper because it was hilly so I knew I was likely to be beaten by a number of lighter and better climbers.

Standard pre-race prep, get to the sign on about 60mins before I start, get my number and get suited up, warm up begins with the "battle of the Velotoze"  for those that dont know they are cover that goes over your shoes, made from the same material as swimming caps they offer aero benefits (marginal gains and all that) and the added benefit of HR increases through the pure physical battle to get them on!!

Quick kiss for luck from the wife and the little one and off on my warm up.  Now my warm up is usually 20 mins or so, 5 mins steady pedaling into a build to flat out, a 2 min recovery and then 6x6sec sprints before hitting the start, this time though I didnt quite get it right, the undulating nature of Sledmere meant that I was either going too fast or grinding out too slow, so come the start I felt under prepared but happy to get the effort into the legs, speaking of legs it was sunny and "warm" so legs shaved and time to get them out!

As I mentioned the out leg is pretty much down hill so you know its going to be fast, and really you need to make the most of that to be able to get a good time, or at least I do, so my plan was simple make, make the most of my "gravitational advantage" on the way out and hang on as long as I can on the way back.

Heading out I actually felt pretty good, much better than expected, at the fastest part of the course I was overtaken by 2 cars that then preceded to hold me up, this is part of racing but it is frustrating, so at a point where I should have been doing 40mph I was doing 30-35mph and having to brake, not ideal, but I used it as recovery time.

At the turnaround point which is pretty much exactly half way I had averaged 30mph, now how much of that can I hold?

The way back is a gentle climb with 3-4 kicks, the gentle climbs are fine, I can focus on powering through them, but the kicks are brutal, you are already on the limit lungs and heart trying desperately to escape to freedom, eyes on stalks but you know you need to dig just a bit more, without changing gears I was out of the seat and stamping on the pedals, its only short lived, its only short lived, but its not when you crest the kick you need to get back down to business so the reality is you dont really recover from the effort until you cross the line!

 Photo by Craig Zadoroznyj

3 miles from home, snot & spit all over my face I can almost feel the finish line, 2 more kicks to go and Im there, then dropping down into one of them a tractor causes traffic in front of me to stop, Im doing 30mph+ and hoping to use the momentum to drive up the kick, sadly that was not to be, on the breaks practically coming to a stop, again it racing, but it is frustrating.  

The biggest issue is that I am in totally the wrong gear now for starting off, let alone climbing, but with the support of the crowd and marshalls at that point I grind may way off up the hill.

Thinking thats the race gone I am frustrated but keep my focus and work hard to the line, my frustration is short lived when I see my time 24:35 on the Garmin, thats 2mins:15 faster than last year, thats not too bad at all!!

 Photo by Craig Zadoroznyj

Back at HQ I get some cake and sausage rolls (essential recovery fuel I think you'll find), and then start chatting to the others, I am not taking much notice of the results board until someone says I have 3rd place overall... To say I was surprised was an understatement, i nearly choked on my coffee cake.

So what seems like reasonable early season form is proving so, and the work that Coach Rob and the support from York Cycleworks is clearly having an impact and I am hoping that I can maintain the form for the season.

Next weekend I have a course more suited to me, flat and fast (so I will probably have a nightmare!!!), with confidence up I am hoping for a fast time!

The art of suffering....

So the first race of the season is out of the way, the build up to it was not ideal, 2 weeks ago i had a cold which stopped me from training, then last week I had really bad toothache that was keeping me awake at night, so as the race day came closer I was even more unsure of my form and in a strange way you kind of start to lose a grip mentally, you think that all the hard work will be undone by 2 weeks of no or inconsistent training and that come the start you will forget what to do and head off in the wrong direction.... or get lost.... So despite the fact I know the course well I still check it out on Google Maps just to be sure.

Those who know me are aware that I am a stickler for punctuality, so I with a start time of 1053 I wanted to get there at least an hour before I was due to head off, loaded the bike and kit into the car and left at 0900 for the 46min journey, so in typical fashion I got the HQ at 0940, no speeding involved (I drive a 16 year old Rover 45 1.4 , the list of things its faster than is short).

There was one other thing that had been playing on my mind and that was the fact I had replaced the rear mech, front mech, chain and all the cables on the TT bike as it had all seized up, and I had not ridden it since, there is a story here about when I first built the bike and various parts fell off each time I rode but thats for another day.

Signed on and number picked up, I headed off towards the start, 30mins or so warm up to get the HR up and the legs firing, but first I have the pre-warmup of getting my VeloToze overshoes on, I am really hopeful they deliver big watt gains as they are a pain in the neck to get on!!

My warmup consists on a slow build from resting to Zone 5, followed by 6 sort 6-10 second sprints, then a pedal the start. 

Now, its time to get in the zone, 20mins or so of focused pain and suffering with a gallon of snot for good measure....  but first the pleasantries with the chilly looking start team and then its "30 seconds" and the push off person grabs the bike, time to clip in, "20 seconds", "10 seconds", rear brake off, "5 seconds" front brake off "4,3,2,1..." and away we go.... for about 20 yds where I then have to stop at the first roundabout, not the best start, but time to get my head down.

Uphill most of the way out on this course, mild headwind as well for good measure... ohhh a tandem.... wait, what, focus man, suddenly 120rpm and not on plan, higher gear and on we go, feeling okay.... have to stop again, another roundabout another load of traffic... nuts. ah well its only an early season race, back on it focus.... ooooo a load on motorbikes, bet they are cold... 

At the turnaround point quick recovery as we go around the roundabout, then back on the TT bars and power back on, with a mild tailwind speeds are up and feeling good, heading for the finish.... oh, theres Craig Zad the photographer.... dammit man, mind on the race.  

Annnd across the line,  so managed to get around but I need to get my race head back on, for some reason I was not able to keep focused on the task in hand, I need to remember the art of suffering for the full race distance without losing focus, it will come with more racing.

Back to HQ time to look at the numbers and see whats what, oh and have some banter with everyone, and cake... its mainly about the cake.

So taking a comparison from last year, I was quicker, 37 seconds quicker and 1 place higher, taking 5th overall, which all in all is pretty pleasing, without the traffic I may have picked up 4th or 3rd but thats racing.

So, back to the training, 2 weeks until the next race, a hilly race that is more for the training as its not my sort of course, bring it on!

Photo Courtesy of Craig Zadoroznyj