My last post was called Motivation....so is it appropriate to follow it with a post called Disappointment? ......
Tonight raced at Latrobe City in the annual Mallard Handicap 34km handicap.....There were 4 grades racing and I was in B grade. Well to cut a long story short, the little hill at the start covered with gravel is a bit scary for me and so I was dropped at the start and 200m into the race we turned Left into a roaring headwind.....bunch of 10 working together and me 200 metres behind trying to catch....just doesn't work.....
I ended up racing the whole race on my own, A grade passed me about 10 km into the race, on a slight downhill they were flying I tacked on for a minute and they were doing 61kph and it was a bit tough so I ended up losing touch with the wheel. One of the tailed off A graders (it was a handicap) caught me with 10km to go and we rode together which was much more fun. It was very windy and my computer says:-
Ave speed 32.1kph
Top speed 62.8kph
Lap 1 - ave speed 32.7 (I was chasing for hard for about half of this lap)
Lap 2 - ave speed 31.2 - Think I was resigned to the fact that this had become a training ride
Lap 3 - Ave speed 33. I was working with someone here...sitting on at least
So I was disappointed in not really getting a chance to see how long I would have hung on to the B graders.....I think I would have gone ok seriously, they averaged 38 according to one of them, I would have just sat on for most of the first lap and then made a decision depending on my legs.
The C graders won the race and had a 9 minute start on us. I raced C grade about a month or so ago and won it (the difference between B and C is huge at the moment). I think being mainly on my own I was still quicker than C grade (yes I know I got some help on the third lap)...
I have to practice my starts, I am quite vulnerable for the first 15 minutes and so need to warm up and just get used to gunning from the start. Mum and dad didn't make it to watch (no surprises there, they have been living with me for four months and even though I have raced 5 times, they have had reasons not to come which is also very disappointing given that I love my bike.....but parents are parents and I am sure we all have stories about mum or dad or both! )
Thanks again for the nice comments about my post yesterday...it reinforced where I get my motivation...ps my boyfriend raced A grade and came 5th in the bunch sprint and he was pretty happy with that as he mainly raced tonight to support me and unfortunately my race went a little pear shaped....Sunday is a crit in Melbourne.....and I will be fired up!
4 comments:
Gravel at the start of a race is harsh. I think you still rode pretty fast for going it solo most of the way. I'll be interested to see how you do next time.
Not a bad time for strong winds. Ghee, I better get done and over with my Glandular Fever soon otherwise I'll get my ass whipped by you in Bright ... LOL
Sad that your parents haven't managed to see you racing. Maybe explian to them how important it would be for you? They might not know and we can't just assume that parents should know everything.
Thanks Mike J and Groover....I was happy with my effort but trying to stay with the bunch would have been good...
Unfortunately that was the last evening race on that circuit as Daylight Savings ends soon and so it will be dark too early....
Daylight Savings is in some states of Aust where you move the clock forward an hour or back an hour so you effectively get an extra hour of daylight over spring/summer and then lose it in winter......you Queenslanders dont do it and I am on the fence as to whether I think it is a good or bad thing
Sorry to hear about the rough start but still seems like you are improving ok. About the previous post. I think you will do well in the better grade it will just take time to come up to speed. Better than sandbagging in an easier field.
As far as riding and training with the guys that is a good thing. All successful athletes remember training and playing in a level that was a step above. It was what made them better in the long run.
Keep up the good work.
-B
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