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
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