The West River Time Trial has been a regular event for me for years. It's an 8.35 mile, out-and-back time trial on flat roads (that are closed to car traffic) with a couple short rises that are little more than speed bumps.
For many people, 20:00 is a goal time. It's a nice round number that is just a hair faster than 25 mph, so it requires a fair bit if fitness but you don't need to be a professional cyclist to do it (those guys are going it in 17:00 or less (30 mph)).
The last time I was under 20:00 was 2006, when I did it in 19:42 (25.4 mph). I really want to get back to that kind of speed and maybe even better this year.
I've been training like a mad man focusing on time trial efforts specifically. I moved my handlebars a tiny bit lower, which made me much more comfortable and (apparently) more efficient as well.
After last week's longer time trial, I had a better idea of what numbers to aim for today. Time trial strategy is normally to hold back a little in the first half and then go harder the second half (and even harder yet in the last quarter).
It was kind of a gray, windy morning with the winds blowing strongly from behind for the first mile on the way out and then from various directions once the road starts to bend around. Unfortunately that also meant that for the last mile coming back, the wind would be completely against us.
Days like today are when the power meter really helps me to stay on target. With the tail wind, I was holding about 26 to 27 mph the first couple miles. Psychologically that feels way too fast when I'm aiming for an average of 25 mph. The number I was really aiming for was a power average of 245 to 250 on the way out. At that power and with that tail wind, I was just at the right speed.
The way back was the same. I knew that I wanted to average 260 to 270 on the way back. With the variable direction winds for the first three miles, that meant my speed was all over the place, but I knew I was holding the right power output.
The last mile was every bit as brutal as I expected. My speed was down to 22 mph and I was going as hard as I could. I knew it would going to be close.
I looked down at my power meter as I crossed the line: 20:01. So Close!!!
One lousy second over.
Where could I have made up a second? Almost anywhere. I could have gotten clipped in a little faster on the start. I could have cut the curves in the road a little tighter, taking a few feet off the course. I could have turned around just a hair faster. I could have watched my power a little closer and avoided the couple times when it dropped as I was coaxed into a false sense of achievement by the high speeds from the tail wind. I could have sprinted just an instant earlier for the finish line.
Sometimes I get so focused on pedaling as hard as I can that I forget about the little things that can cost me time.
The joys of time trialing....
A few numbers:
Total Distance: 8.35
Total Time: 20:01
Time to turnaround: 9:38
Time back: 10:23
Average Speed: 25.03 mph
Average Power: 260 watts
Morning weight: 179.8
Body fat percentage: 19.6%
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
From the Belly of the Beast
I'd bet not too many people can say that they've ridden their bike inside a plane, let alone out the back of one.
Today was the C-130 time trial in Dover, DE. It starts in the cargo bay of a C-130 cargo plane. I roll down the ramp, through a few tight turns, then I'm off the airfield and onto a very flat, straight road. It was 11 miles out and 10 miles back with pretty strong (15 mph) winds against me the whole way out and with me the whole way back.
In other words, it was a blast!
The way out was definitely a challenge. I had to keep reminding myself not to go too hard. With a strong wind and only seeing about a 22 mph average, it was all I could do to restrain myself. Especially once someone passed me.
Part of the fun was playing cat and mouse with a guy who had passed me about 7 miles out. I caught him before the turnaround and pulled ahead. We went through the turn almost together, then he pulled ahead of me again right after.... for now...
The turnaround was among the coolest I've ever done. Instead of just a cone in the road that you have to slow down to a crawl to get around, the turnaround was at the split of a fork in the road. We went slightly past the split (maybe 50 yards) then turned left onto a very short road, then left again to go back the way we were coming.
Once out of the turnaround, I picked up the pace just a little. I still had 10 miles to go and didn't want to burn out. With the tail wind, the speed was much higher, seeing speeds consistently around 26 to 28 mph. I kept the guy who had passed me in my sights, about 15 seconds in front of me.
With six miles to go, I decided to go for it. I shifted up two gears, accelerated, and roared past the guy in front of me. I never saw him again. My cadence was a little slow, but I always loved mashing a big gear like that. With the tail wind's help, I held around 30 mph.
With just a mile to go, I was hurting. Almost 50 minutes in, my legs and lungs were just on fire. I pushed a little harder, trying to get just a little more speed as we came around a curve and the wind turned against me. It was in my face but I still kept on going.
I crossed the line, 52:09.
Some numbers:
Total time: 52:09
Total Distance: 21 miles
Avg Speed: 24.1 mph
Avg Power: 245 watts
Avg Speed out: 22.1 mph
Avg Power out: 240 watts
Avg Speed back: 27.1 mph
Avg Power back: 252 watts
Rather interestingly, my speed and power were identical to the West River Time Trial last weekend, where I also averaged 24.1 mph and 245 watts, but for only 8.35 miles. I need to pick up the pace a little there!
P.S.: I placed 12 out of 22. I'm not a great time trialist, so I'm happy with that result. The guy I was alternating got a time only 3 seconds better than mine in the end (remember, he started 30 seconds behind me, so I pulled ahead of him by 27 seconds in 6 miles). If only I'd gone just a bit harder!
Today was the C-130 time trial in Dover, DE. It starts in the cargo bay of a C-130 cargo plane. I roll down the ramp, through a few tight turns, then I'm off the airfield and onto a very flat, straight road. It was 11 miles out and 10 miles back with pretty strong (15 mph) winds against me the whole way out and with me the whole way back.
In other words, it was a blast!
The way out was definitely a challenge. I had to keep reminding myself not to go too hard. With a strong wind and only seeing about a 22 mph average, it was all I could do to restrain myself. Especially once someone passed me.
Part of the fun was playing cat and mouse with a guy who had passed me about 7 miles out. I caught him before the turnaround and pulled ahead. We went through the turn almost together, then he pulled ahead of me again right after.... for now...
The turnaround was among the coolest I've ever done. Instead of just a cone in the road that you have to slow down to a crawl to get around, the turnaround was at the split of a fork in the road. We went slightly past the split (maybe 50 yards) then turned left onto a very short road, then left again to go back the way we were coming.
Once out of the turnaround, I picked up the pace just a little. I still had 10 miles to go and didn't want to burn out. With the tail wind, the speed was much higher, seeing speeds consistently around 26 to 28 mph. I kept the guy who had passed me in my sights, about 15 seconds in front of me.
With six miles to go, I decided to go for it. I shifted up two gears, accelerated, and roared past the guy in front of me. I never saw him again. My cadence was a little slow, but I always loved mashing a big gear like that. With the tail wind's help, I held around 30 mph.
With just a mile to go, I was hurting. Almost 50 minutes in, my legs and lungs were just on fire. I pushed a little harder, trying to get just a little more speed as we came around a curve and the wind turned against me. It was in my face but I still kept on going.
I crossed the line, 52:09.
Some numbers:
Total time: 52:09
Total Distance: 21 miles
Avg Speed: 24.1 mph
Avg Power: 245 watts
Avg Speed out: 22.1 mph
Avg Power out: 240 watts
Avg Speed back: 27.1 mph
Avg Power back: 252 watts
Rather interestingly, my speed and power were identical to the West River Time Trial last weekend, where I also averaged 24.1 mph and 245 watts, but for only 8.35 miles. I need to pick up the pace a little there!
P.S.: I placed 12 out of 22. I'm not a great time trialist, so I'm happy with that result. The guy I was alternating got a time only 3 seconds better than mine in the end (remember, he started 30 seconds behind me, so I pulled ahead of him by 27 seconds in 6 miles). If only I'd gone just a bit harder!
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