Armidale club championship round 2 TT

[drubie]

The clubs round 2 championship race was a 15km time trial over half the usual road course we use. Cycle the 15k out to the start, then starting back into town at 15 second intervals in slowest to fastest order. C grade was again heavily under represented with just three participants. Just showing up is excellent strategy in C grade here, but I felt I had something to prove after winning round one.

Lemmiwinks started 15 seconds behind me as the first B grader, I had the other two C graders in front of me - one guy I didn't know and a vet who spanked me in my very first road race.

I belted out of the blocks determined that I would give lemmiwinks something serious to chase, caught the second starting C grader inside of 3 km and felt awesome only to see the winks blowing past me with his feet on the handlebars. I panicked and redoubled when I realised I was getting slaughtered by the first C grader. I was desperate to stay with the other C grade rider who just happened to be wearing what I thought was the same jersey as lemmiwinks. Blue, or at least I thought so. Dammit, I wanted to win and do it coprehensively and some bastard in a blue jersey was pulling out an unbeatable lead!

I tore myself a new one down the hill chasing that vanishing blue jersey thinking I'd blown a golden opportunity for more unparalleled C grade glory, thinking I glimpsed it further and further off, forcing me to go faster and faster. Then, suddenly at the start of a climb out of the gully at the 7.5km mark I come up to a blue jersey struggling up monument hill.

I figured it was lemmiwinks with a gut full of fairy bread and I had fallen further behind the other C grader! That rider said something to me I can't remember as I pulled past, but I could only muster a grunt in reply, facing the climb up monument hill which I attacked. It hurt. Usually I back off when it hurts (heh, that's why I'm in C grade I suppose) but not this time. It must have looked comical, but I busted a gut and tore shreds off myself, the bike and the hill hoping for a glimpse of blue.

Where the hell was he? I saw nothing other than the faster riders overtaking me in a steady stream. I was really hurting by this stage lungs on fire, cramps, but I gritted through it looking for every ounce of speed I could strip from my sorry carcase, whipping up to high cadence and shifting early and often as I hit and crested the rolling terrain, blowtorch to a rapidly melting candle of power.

All I could think was "blue jersey" as I ground out the last two kays, winding up and torturing myself, hiitting 55 over the line desperately thinking i had to be inside the 30 seconds start that blue jersey had on me. The urge to vomit was strong, but I hadn't the energy to stop and coasted for a couple of hundred metres after the finish trying to catch my breath and berating myself for not being able to catch that jersey!

Of course, I was wrong - lemmiwinks had finished minutes in front of me at a stunning second in B grade and the blue jersey I had been chasing I had overtaken half way through the race, mistaking him for lemmiwinks, handing me another C victory! I remember seeing the A grade winner blowing past me like I was standing still and I came pretty close to stone motherless last, but it was still pretty sweet.

Two down, four to go, sadly two of which are crits.

[Hebden]

Great work drubie! That was a fantastic effort and highly entertaining race report.

[lemmiwinks]

Excellent report mate, the Mrs especially loved it

It took me 3 or 4 goes to clip in after the start But in the grand scheme of things I don't think it made any difference. I was second across the line, was really hoping for first past the post (not that it really signifies anything, it just would have been nice to cross the line first for once) but got caught a couple of km from the end and had no response. Probably not surprising when you consider the guy had made up 4 minutes on me! Third in B grade, finally scored some points

[drubie]

Was that John Scott-Hamilton? He was on a mission when he went past me (I recognised his bike rather than him). What I'm struggling to understand is just how he (or you for that matter) manage that turn of speed. I'm turning myself inside out in the club champ races and still getting passed like I've got the basket full of barbies attached. If any of the decent C graders show up, I'm toast.

Today I'm walking around like my legs have been savagely beaten by a group of bamboo wielding ninjas while I slept, there was no way I was even touching the bike today. I need a serious re-think of the rather haphazard training I do. HTFU just doesn't seem to be enough.

Big score on the B grade points though - although now you've got no excuse for getting dropped in the road races Swannie said the crits are run in grades exclusively, so I'll be able to see you win the sprint!

[lemmiwinks]

Yep, it was John Scott-Hamilton. He just motored past me like it was nothing. As for the turn of speed, I don't really know but I'd assume that these guys have been doing it longer than me (or you), a lot longer in some circumstances. I'm hoping to get faster as time goes on but I think it's a slow process.

I wasn't sore on Sunday but I made it a bludge/maintenance day since my chains were way overdue for a clean. As for your training, head for the hills young man! If you can make the terror that is Rockvale Rd on a Tuesday night (5:30pm from the speed signs) I'd recommend it.

I've always got an excuse for getting dropped - I'm not much good. As for the sprint, I doubt I'll win it with my mighty 55kph top speed