Last but not least
so i took to the track today but this time in B-Grade. as i always promised to myself i would go up if i placed. honestly i was in two minds about the decision but there was no way i was going to backout. the stragety was i would just “feel” it out see what the pace is like, understand how they ride and take my time to stay upright.
i hadn’t been feeling 100% fitness wise. i didn’t get to ride to work all week due to aidan and his horrible chicken pox. because of this most nights this week i only had a few hours sleep. i had been lazy and not done any of my core work or stretching either. the race was never going to be a winning effort in an shape or form.
i arrived solo, registered and took to setting up carbo. i set out for a couple of warm up runs and still felt it best to just lay low today it wasn’t going to be a fast day in the saddle. after the climb to the tower over v-ditch and through the garden i knew carbo was ok but not perfect. i dropped down through the ess’s and nearly dropped the front. it didn’t feel right and it wasn’t until the bottom before the right into max’s bridge that i realised i had a front fat. bah! i had to walk back up to the transition area and then search for a tube. i knew i hadn’t brought one with me which was very unlike me.
lynchy hit up the PA asking for a spare tube and thank fuck some nice guy lent me one. i was stoked as i was about to drive back home to grab one. then, as i started to change the tire i realised i had also dropped a bottle. WTF! i never drop bottles. so once again out on the warm up rolling again looking for it.
thankfully i found it and made my way back realizing it was going to be “one of those days”. i lined up at the start with just the one bottle – in the front holder – thinking back now it was a stupid thing to do. needless to say i dropped that bottle on the first 1/4 of the first lap. idiot maneuver and i should have known better. the rest of the race when i had bottles i placed them in the seat post holder.
the race began and i was pushed back a fair bit off the front straight up. i wasn’t that keen to be aggressive anyway so i just took the first lap as it came. i was stuck behind a guy for a long time and didn’t bother asking to pass. another rider passed us both about half way through the lap and i was really stupid and didn’t past the guy in front at the same time.
the rest of the race was just a sit back and ride. i stopped a few times to take on drinks, i pick up my dropped water bottle on the third lap and the rest was a general nothingness whilst racing. i actually made it up and over every technical section without as much as a balk which was awesome.
carbo was running ok but needs a serious tune up because the cable stretch was insane by the end of the final lap. i am also keen to give the monorail a run up front. the raching ralphs didn’t feel as good today.
i checked my times and my first lap was a 24.40. doing my usual -hypothetical/mathematical- equations if i had keep that pace [i think that is slower than my best pace on a good day] i would have finished top 10. but… at the end of the day i finished 15th, with 16 finishers and 20 starters in total. almost last.
in all i am pretty happy. i am now in B-Grade for good. i need to work more but that is perfect. a more intense training program and further away goal is great to try aim for. checking my first lap against my old C-Grade it was the right move to go up a grade. now i just have to try and get some serious KM in before the highland fling and stop eating shit food, and more core, and more hills…. and blah blah blah