Two weeks ago, I did 23.7 mph at 231 watts on a 40 kilometer (24.8 mile) course that was dead flat with just a little wind. This week, there was a sustained head wind on the way out and a decent 3/4 of a mile climb just before the turnaround on a 17.5K (10.9 mile) course. My numbers were 23.9 mph at 254 watts. A lot more wattage for just a bit more speed.
I was much better about my pacing this time. For the first 3 miles, I held back a bit, knowing that there was a lot of wind and a climb still ahead. I focused on keeping my head down and into a solid aero tuck.
I knew the guy who started 30 seconds behind me (Greg). Once he caught me, he got about 50 yards in front of me... and I held him there. I dug as deep as I could to keep myself from losing ground to him, but not so deep that I burned out.
The first (and only real) turn was a little nasty, with some bumpy pavement. I took it way to fast (22 mph) and almost went into the grass. Luckily it was a left-hand turn, so I had a slightly larger radius to take the turn. I didn't learn...
The rest of the course was just a straight grind to the turnaround. The wind was probably around 10 to 15 mph, but when it's straight into your face and you're already doing 23 mph, that's a stiff wind.
At the turnaround, Greg was only about 15 seconds ahead of me. I took the turnaround as fast as I could. Maybe I can catch him on the way back...
He was still about 50 yards ahead of me when we hit the descent. We were pushing 32 mph. I tried as hard as I dared but couldn't bring him back. By this time, we were starting to pass a few people who had started ahead of us. I think bringing them back was driving Greg as I was trying to bring him back.
As we can towards the turn, I felt like I was gaining a little on him. I roared through the turn, forgetting (a) that it was a right hard turn on a narrow road and (b) the pavement sucked. I hit the turn at 25 mph. I bounced enough to lose traction and started to skid into the other lane as I heard the course marshal say something, but I know I heard the word "...car....". I looked up to see an SUV coming toward just as I crossed the yellow line and missed a couple cones. I jammed on the brakes, suddenly realizing that I had not closed my rear brake. As a result, my front brake was far stronger than the rear and I felt my back wheel start to come off the ground.
By now, I had straightened out my line of travel. I let go of the brakes and leaned hard to the right, dodging the cones, and getting back to my side of the yellow line. I missed the SUV by about 5 feet. One thought crossed my mind: Where's Greg?
I looked up the road to see that he had gained probably another 20 yards on me while I was busy playing in traffic. So much for catching him... I settled into a rhythm, knowing that I only had 2 miles left.
When I saw the 1K to go sign, I poured all that I had left into the pedals. Looking at the download, I averaged 26 mph for the last minute of the race.
I saw that Shelli was a little past the finish line. I tried to keep my pedaling up for a few extra seconds so she could get a couple of extra pictures :-)
Given the hill and the wind, I was aiming for about 28:00. I got 27:24. I was quite happy.
The numbers:
Total Distance: 10.9 miles
Time: 27:24
Average Speed: 23.87 mph
Average Power: 249 watts (254 normalized)
Average Heart Rate: 163 BPM
One more time trial and then the season is over!
