Race at Swede hall

After a week of being sick I was a bit nervous for the weekends racing. Well I did ride once last week, Thursday and after 35min of tempo riding my legs suddenly lost all power…I eased of for a few minuets and continues my ride home. I took Friday of also, although I had initially planned a short ride to test my legs, but by the time I got home I decided it was better to rest.

Saturdays race was new course, which is always fun. When we arrive we lean that there are “two” hills on each lap…oh…I have to be careful… My goal was to hang is as long as possible, and don’t do anything crazy…to last to the end. I told myself that the goal of the race was to last as long as possible, and that getting dropped would be ok, if that was the best I could do. Deep down I know, that if I finish in anything but at least the main pack would be disappointed. No matter how sick or tired I am, I can’t relinquish the fact that I need to finish. Setting a team mate up for a good result would be perfectly ok, If I could make a difference to help somebody finish high up in the results that would be an acceptable goal. For our team to have a good chance, it would either be get a rider up in the break, or once our sprinter got over the last climb help get the pace up and take him to the front.
80 miles with 8 climbs… well I’d better start carefully and see how I feel. First climb came only a few miles into the race… it was fast, but not too bad I was ok… on the descent I somehow managed to drift to the back..(on a new decent and my first ride since September on my carbon rims).. when I suddenly realize that I’ve been here before…two years ago we had our training camp here…once I realize this, I remember the descent and the fact that there were no sharp hidden corners… and I’m a lot more comfortable and bomb down the rest.
A few brakes go up the road, Nathan is in a few but nothing wants to stay. I somehow get in a move or two…not on purpose really I just happen to be in the right spot and instinct takes over.
Second time up the big hill, I drift all the way back…ops…that’s not good, we have long way to go. I get over the shorter climb ok. Third time up I’m nervous, I make sure I start the climb right up front…. I do fine..and crest mid pack or so.. five riders are of the front as this point, but with the way I’m feeling I’m happy to fight it out for 6th. Going onto the final lap my legs are like jelly…I’m sure I’m not going to make it. I push those thoughts out as I start the climb in 5th wheel. I concentrate and try to relax, half way up a small group of six riders have a slight gap, I look up and decide that this could be it, I put everything aside, shift a gear and stand up, I surge up to the group and proceed in leading them over the top…I look back we have slight gap. Now being more comfortable on the descent I hit the front and go down it as fast as I can.
I’m slightly shocked…how did I do that?…go from being sure I wasn’t going to make it, to leading the split over top. Your worst enemy id self doubt. Nobody really wants to keep pushing it, we slow down . A little while later our group swells as most people catch back on. Pete is here, if he can just get over the last climb coming up in 10miles or so, we have a great chance of taking out the sprint.
Going into the climb I’m too far back, but my biggest misstate was I wasn’t committed to a plan. I told Pete I’d wait for him at the top, in doing this I hesitated slightly and let 12 rides or so get a gap at the top. I think I could have got up to them at the crest, but I hesitated because I didn’t want to get too far ahead of Pete… he would need all the help he could get to get back on. Over the top we (7 of us) are only a few seconds back… I drift to the back and look for Pete…halfway down there is no sign of him…I look ahead…the group ahead isn’t getting closer…They are going flat out to keep us from catching. We have a rival sprinter in our group and they don’t want to let him back on. The next five miles we are going as hard as we can, but just can’t close the gap. Only 4 of us are actively chasing, some more then others…with two miles to go I realize that it’s not going to happen… I attack to tray and shake some of the guys just sitting on. Finally we sprint in for 17th, I get passed by two riders and end up 19th.
I’m a bit frustrated at myself, I made a big mistake by not committing to either wait, or make sure I got with the front group….getting stuck in the middle was no use to anybody. Turns our Pete was cramping and me staying back to help pull him up probably wouldn’t have worked anyway…. This is why a clear plan is so important, or if I would have know early in the climb that Pete was cramping and there was no chance for him, maybe, just maybe I could have made it.