B race (Cat3/4)
It seems silly to say that I focused on eating this past week, but after a very poor showing on the Franklinkill ride fueling became a high priority. Even still, I needed to sort out some pain in my right leg. After a busy week of work I finally had some time on Friday to do a workout, but I was thoroughly freaked out when I found that I simply couldn’t sustain any power. Well, there was one day left before the race so I just followed a routine and hoped for the best.
Saturday morning, day before the race: I got up early enough to make sure I was able to eat 4 hours before my planned ride. One cup of oats, chia seeds, flax seeds, hemp seeds, a banana, cranberries, almond milk, 2 eggs and 2 slices of multigrain toast. It took some effort to get that all down. Luckily the discomfort eased well before the ride. Only one person showed up for the regular Saturday morning ride so we set out. Just an easy spin with some VO2 max efforts. I felt great. Certainly boosted my confidence after a sketchy week.
Race day weather didn’t warm up like I hoped but I spent a lot of time outside this winter so I wasn’t bothered by it. The wind was something though. This was my first ride this year on my deep carbon wheels and a gust of wind scared the piss out of me during a preview lap. Last minute piss had me at the starting line with little time to spare. Ditched my jacket and I was ready to go.
The race was rather uneventful. No major attacks and only a small break (2 or 3 guys maybe) got away towards the end. I stayed mostly 10-20 back so I could get some shelter but not be effected by the accordion through the corners. My plan was to ride very conservatively for the first half and see how it goes.
Mostly there were some early moves that all got sucked back in. In about the last 1/3 of the race I found myself in the right position to join a break attempt, but ultimately the attempt failed. With 3 laps to go I joined another break attempt but this one went nowhere fast. The lead rider flicked and suddenly I was in the front where I did not want to be. I tried to position myself in the top ten but going into the last lap, with the field so wide, I wasn’t there. Still had plenty of gas and sprinted for the finish. 21/53.
Considering how last year went, this is a major improvement!