It's been about 9 weeks since my last test. My power numbers through January were good, but a little lower than I wanted. My previous test I hit 282 watts for 20 minutes and I was ecstatic. It was the best 20 minute power I had ever seen in my life. Given my records for January, I thought I might be able to hit 275 to 280.
Like all my tests, I do them on the Computrainer for consistency. I want the exact same conditions and course. If I did them outdoors, a warm or cold day or a change in wind (or a freak rain or snow storm) could completely ruin the value of the test.
I did my normal warmup, about 30 minutes on a varying course with some short climbs, some short descents, and some flats to get me thoroughly ready.
At the end of the warmup, I recalibrated the Computrainer in order to make sure that the readings were accurate. As it turns out, they were way off. Without going into the details, the values were off in a way that would make all my power numbers lower than they actually were. I was really focused on the test, so my brain didn't quite register the significance of that.
I try to pace the 20 minute by breaking it into quarters, usually going hard the first one, backing off a bit, and then gradually increasing throughout. Watching the average power over the course is abit strange because usually the average is increasing the first 5 minutes, dropping the middle 10 minutes, and then either gaining or holding steady for the last 5. This lets me practice the way I usually try to race as well, starting off strong, and then settling in a rhythm that lets me slowly gain speed throughout (instead of starting out too hard and burning out).
At the end of the first 5 minutes, my average was at 298 watts. I was worried that it was a little high, but I felt good and kept going.
At the end of 10 minutes, my average was at 294 watts. At that point, I was pretty sure that I could beat my old record. As long as I did not completely crack, I should be able to hang on for at least 290. That was quite a challenge, since I was already giving it everything that I had. I was breathing hard and my legs were burning.
At the end of 15 minutes, my average was at 291 watts. It annoyed me. Somehow, I had decided that I wanted to hit 292, not 291. My legs were starting to really ache and my breathing was really hard. Still, I dug as deep as I could.
With a minute to go, I saw the average power tick back up from 291 to 292. Just hang on.... I thought. I picked up the pace just a little more, to be safe. I saw the power tick up to 295 to 300 watts. Just another minute...
I felt the resistance from the trainer shift under my legs, telling me that the test was over. I looked at the average power: 292 watts. A new personal best by 10 watts.
To see the graph for the workout: http://www.trainingpeaks.com/av/QV4ENHSVE6BOQYJ7VO7NIO4KUQ
Over the next few minutes, as oxygen returned to my brain and I could both breathe and think at the same time, I realized the significance of my calibration being off. For the last month, I thought I was putting out less power than I actually was. I thought I was doing well, but I was actually doing even better. The trainer was reporting lower power numbers than I was actually generating. Most likely, I never reset it after one of our power outages.
The significance of the new power number goes even deeper when you consider that I lost 8 pounds since the last test. Watts per kilogram is a major metric for cyclists. Comparing the two tests:
| Watts | Weight (lbs) | Watts/kg |
| 282 | 178.0 | 3.49 |
| 292 | 170.0 | 3.78 |
That's an 8.4% increase!
I'm also starting to see races show up on the calendar. It looks like my first race could be the Readington Time Trial in New Jersey, a 9 km (5.6 mile) time trial. It's short, but will be a good time to see how well my position on my bike is working and how well I can do under race-day pressure.
A while back, someone asked me what my goal was. Kind of kidding, I said 300 watts for 20 minutes. Now, I think I might just get there.
