Just hanging on

May 13, 2009

What a difference a week can make. I did the Tuesday night training ride again last night. Once again, the “A” ride had over 30 riders. My goal was to sit in, hang on and try to survive for a few miles longer than last week. I felt really good and I had eaten a little about an hour and a half prior to the ride. The pace was a little more civil for a while, allowing for a good warm up before the hammer dropped. When it did drop, I saw 30-32 MPH on my computer. I gritted my teeth and held on. A few times during the ride I could actually breathe. As we got into a steady rhythm, I saw my heart rate come down to a descent, manageable number. Okay, this is going to be okay, I thought, I can handle this. The biggest obstacle to deal with was getting gapped due to other riders, in front of me, falling off the pace. This happened a few times and I really started to watch for it. When I passed the 15 mile mark, I had satisfied my short term goal. The miles clicked off, very quickly, because we were flying. I think the lowest speed I saw was 24 mph. Finally, at mile 34, a gap opened up as we rounded a sharp turn. I thought the rider at the front of the gap was going to kick up his pace and bridge. He didn’t and the gap started getting wider and wider. Two others riders and I gave chase. We pushed hard and made some progress for the next 2 miles, but the gap was too much for only 3 riders to close. We let reality consume us and we backed off a little on the gas. We knew there was no chance of catching such a group of strong cyclists. With only 7 miles left, we held a good pace of about 21-24 mph. 3 miles from the end of the ride we lost one of our three. He turned off to head home. I was on the front when I heard the other guy say he was starting to cramp. I backed off a little and we soon rolled into the parking lot. I was tired, but not totally spent. This had turned out far better than I’d expected. I’d held on for 34 miles and felt sure I could have finished with the group if I had been more attentive and not let them get away in that turn. I had stuck to my plan and sat in, taking no turns in the rotation in order to save my energy and maintain the pace. My average for the 43.5 miles was 23 mph. A few more times of sitting in and finishing with the group and I will start adding a few pulls in the rotation. This weekly ride is sure to get me in better form. The biggest deterrent I have is the 2 ½ hour wait I have after work before the ride starts. So many things run through my head that I could or should be doing at home. I just have to stick with it, stay positive and see results.