The time had finally come for me to do a major race again after the drama of Coast to Coast 2016 and the following heart surgery. The last time I competed in this event was roughly 2009 so I was looking forward to going back for a 35km hit out before Tekapo 10 in a couple of weeks.
The one thing I could remember from this race was a fast road start and this year didn't disappoint. The fast start was made even more interesting when no one was expecting the hooter, including the marshal standing in front of us! I managed to get myself positioned well in the front group and waited for the rapidly approaching climb to see what the next move would be.
As the climb really started to kick up in gradient I soon found myself slipping off the back as I wasn't willing to put in the power that the others were. I pushed hard in the following descent to try and pull back lost time but a very sketchy moment where I'm amazed I didn't break my rim or myself blew my confidence to attack the descent further.
Leading into the next climb was where my earlier decision to back off the power really started to pay dividends. I've recently put a power meter on my mountain bike and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is considering doing so. My conscious decision to slow down earlier meant I was still pushing out the same amount of power and was beginning to reel in those who were feeling the pace up front (and the heat).
In the final few k's I managed to pass a few more people but it was too little too late to achieve a top result. Still, realistically, achieving a top 10 can be considered a great result after the events of the last year and really only beginning training again in September last year. It was great to get out there though and encouraging to know that with my new training tools I can pace myself effectively for future races.
The one thing I could remember from this race was a fast road start and this year didn't disappoint. The fast start was made even more interesting when no one was expecting the hooter, including the marshal standing in front of us! I managed to get myself positioned well in the front group and waited for the rapidly approaching climb to see what the next move would be.
As the climb really started to kick up in gradient I soon found myself slipping off the back as I wasn't willing to put in the power that the others were. I pushed hard in the following descent to try and pull back lost time but a very sketchy moment where I'm amazed I didn't break my rim or myself blew my confidence to attack the descent further.
Leading into the next climb was where my earlier decision to back off the power really started to pay dividends. I've recently put a power meter on my mountain bike and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is considering doing so. My conscious decision to slow down earlier meant I was still pushing out the same amount of power and was beginning to reel in those who were feeling the pace up front (and the heat).
In the final few k's I managed to pass a few more people but it was too little too late to achieve a top result. Still, realistically, achieving a top 10 can be considered a great result after the events of the last year and really only beginning training again in September last year. It was great to get out there though and encouraging to know that with my new training tools I can pace myself effectively for future races.
Comments
Post a Comment