Today in RPM we rode the Iron Man Switzerland course, a 37.33 mile course with 4 major climbs (6% or steeper) and a lo-o-o-o-o-o-ong 10 mile flat stretch at the end. I've always done pretty well on this course, even though I'm not a great climber. I am a decent time trialist and can really move on that last flat part. I knew today was going to be tough riding with a really strong bank of riders.
In the first few miles, the group formed up: Kevin, Rob, Kacy, and me. With that group, the pace was going to be high. Kevin made a couple attacks. I immediately responded, making sure that he know I was watching and if he broke away, I was going with him. Mike, another strong rider on the team, quickly made it apparent that he was taking it easy today. I was kind of disappointed since he has beaten me a couple times and I'm always game for a rematch. As we move into the racing season, I'm betting that Mike and I will be working together in a lot of races. Our power levels are pretty close and he's a decent guy (if he reads this, he'll probably fall over from the shock that I said something nice. I gave him crap the whole ride for taking it easy today).
When we hit the first climb, just 10 minutes in, I gunned it as hard as I could. I had a gap almost immediately and rode away from the rest of the group. Once I had about 200 feet, I slowed down to a comfortable pace. It was early and I didn't want to burn out early. Rob and Kacy caught me before the top of the climb. Kevin was off the back and losing ground fast. I drifted to the back of the pack and drafted Rob and Kacy.
We rode together pretty calmly until the next climb, when I made a move again. Once again, I got about 200 feet ahead, then matched or slightly exceeded their speed the rest of the way up the hill. When I reached the top, I had to make a decision. Did I think that I could hold off Rob and Kacy for another hour and twenty minutes? I decided not to take the risk. I held a decent pace on the descent, but didn't push too hard so they would have to work harder than I was if they wanted to catch me. Once they caught me, I drifted back into the draft and took it easy.
On the third and fourth climbs, I did the same: shoot away at the base of the climb, slow down at the top, and wait for them to catch me.
As we approached the 10-mile flat road, I started planning the rest of the race. I figured if I attacked, one of two things would happen:
Option 1: Rob would sprint after me, leaving Kacy behind. I'd have to either shake Rob off on the road or outsprint him at the line. Not knowing his fitness level, this was pretty risky. Rob is a track guy, so I'd rather not try to outsprint him at the finish.
Option 2: Rob would stay with Kacy. This was risky for me because I wasn't sure if I could hold them both off for 10 miles. If I cracked and they caught me, I may not have the energy left to stay with them.
I know Kacy is strong, but I didn't think she would be able to bring me back if I attacked.
My average power up to this point was pretty low, at 241 watts. Since I'd been hitting the 250's lately, I figured that meant that I still had a lot of energy to burn. It was time to throw down.
I jumped out of the saddle, accelerating from 22 to 27 mph. I stayed out of the saddle until I had ridden them both off my wheel. Rob wasn't countering. Crap. That meant I had to worry about burning out alone on the road. When my lead reached 100 feet, I sat back down, but kept the pace at about 23 to 24 mph.
For the next 10 miles, I had one mission: match or exceed Rob and Kacy's speed. As long as I could keep them a few hundred feet behind me, I would have some time to react if they started getting close. Once my lead reached 500 feet, I figured I was pretty safe, but I still kept an eye on them.
I was safely pulling away almost the entire time. At one point, it looked like they picked up the pace to about 25 mph and started pulling me back. I accelerated to 26 mph and held it until I had gained another hundred feet on them.
All the way to the finish line, I kept watching their speed and mine, paranoid that if I let my attention drift, they would catch me.
It never happened. By the time I hit the finish line, I had about a third of a mile (1760 feet) lead on them, which at that speed translated to 49 seconds.
By the time I hit the finish, my average power had increased to 254 watts. To increase my average power by that much that fast, I must have been doing about 280 to 290 watts for the last half hour or so. I was kind of surprised. It felt like I was working, but not nearly that hard.
The big surprise for me was how long I waited to make my move. It's not like me to be patient in a race. I always want to crush people right at the starting line, even though I know that I'm not strong enough to do it.
After the ride, my shoulder was pretty sore. I got a new tattoo started on my shoulder on Thursday and my bib shorts were digging into it quite a bit. Another day or two and it should be OK, but today and tomorrow's RPM rides will be a little less comfortable because of it.
I'm usually stronger the second day of RPM. Tomorrow I'm really hoping that I can hit a new record. I want to hit 260 watts for my average.
