We rolled to Kansasville, WI at the butt-crack-of-dawn for the 30K Bong and a half - sure to be enormous fun as always. The Bong course is one of my favorites - a few turns, small rollers, a small rise on one side, downhill a bit opposite the rise and usually some wind. Today was fantastic weather-wise: temps in the 60s and sunny skies at go time. I had a solid warm up, not great but good enough. While I was feeling okay I can't say I was terribly confident - I've always had problems with early morning performance and today was no different. I was somewhat dehydrated, didn't plan my pre-race nutrition well and I paid for it.
After about the halfway point it was clear that I was not on a good day. I definitely went out too hard and never felt like I got into a groove. I found myself searching for the right gear, the right cadence, the right mindset - nothing felt smooth and it was a fight the entire time. In fact, at one point I felt like just getting off my bike and lying down on the side of the road. I suffered a lot - mentally and physically - and was very frustrated with my effort today. Retrospective review of my file shows that my average power was off by about 12 watts. There you have it.
So I ended up as first loser to a much better rider today, for the fastest time on the day anyway. Fortunately my time was good enough to win the women's open category - just not the overall. While it burns my ass to lose it also lights a fire under it to get my act together and be more disciplined, especially when it comes to recovery. Really, I ride a bit too much and too hard without enough rest - it caught up with me today and I just plain sucked. So it goes. A few of the PACT/Dishnetwork guys also posted fast times today though I don't know how they placed - turnout was big and a lot of strong riders showed up. We left before all the times were posted. I also have to throw a shout to Mike Wakeley and Tim Glinski - nice work! Update - thanks to Mike, here are some team results (way to go, boys!!):
Bob Burke 4th in 55+, 10th in Cat3
Jim Host 4th in 50+
Mike Jones 2nd in 50+, 4th in P1/2
Andy Tschampa 7th in 40+
Next up, I think I might do a criterium next weekend. There are a couple more TT's to do before nationals so the plan is to have solid performances in Harvard and Paw Paw, be smart and rest so I can be ready to go on July 1.
I just started reading 'The Great Mortality' by John Kelly. It's an intimate history of the black death and while it's morbid and gross, it's also fascinating.
Arriba!!
After about the halfway point it was clear that I was not on a good day. I definitely went out too hard and never felt like I got into a groove. I found myself searching for the right gear, the right cadence, the right mindset - nothing felt smooth and it was a fight the entire time. In fact, at one point I felt like just getting off my bike and lying down on the side of the road. I suffered a lot - mentally and physically - and was very frustrated with my effort today. Retrospective review of my file shows that my average power was off by about 12 watts. There you have it.
So I ended up as first loser to a much better rider today, for the fastest time on the day anyway. Fortunately my time was good enough to win the women's open category - just not the overall. While it burns my ass to lose it also lights a fire under it to get my act together and be more disciplined, especially when it comes to recovery. Really, I ride a bit too much and too hard without enough rest - it caught up with me today and I just plain sucked. So it goes. A few of the PACT/Dishnetwork guys also posted fast times today though I don't know how they placed - turnout was big and a lot of strong riders showed up. We left before all the times were posted. I also have to throw a shout to Mike Wakeley and Tim Glinski - nice work! Update - thanks to Mike, here are some team results (way to go, boys!!):
Bob Burke 4th in 55+, 10th in Cat3
Jim Host 4th in 50+
Mike Jones 2nd in 50+, 4th in P1/2
Andy Tschampa 7th in 40+
Next up, I think I might do a criterium next weekend. There are a couple more TT's to do before nationals so the plan is to have solid performances in Harvard and Paw Paw, be smart and rest so I can be ready to go on July 1.
I just started reading 'The Great Mortality' by John Kelly. It's an intimate history of the black death and while it's morbid and gross, it's also fascinating.
Arriba!!
