Author

Brian Morrissey on May 9, 2009

Race name: ABD 2 Man Team Time Trial Race date: Saturday, May 9, 2009

Would like a do-over on this one. I had a great time riding with Stocky, but I think we were both in agreement that we could've gone harder. Speaking for myself, it was hard enough, but yes, I think I kept too much in the tank. I'll chalk it up to inexperience in a new event, and an ungodly headwind - a ferocious 25mph plus on the return trip.

We finished strongly - thinking at the time that we'd put a pretty good time in of 59' 13", but rolling back to the parking lot, we were met from behind by Mike Jones and Jim Host who'd completed it in under 54 minutes. With a dropped chain that they'd needed to stop to fix.

Upon reading Newtron's race report this morning, I could tell that where I was mentally on Saturday morning, his and Randy's time of 55' flat would've been out of reach, quite frankly. I don't think I went much past 90%, and with the length of the course and the headwind, I was too afraid of blowing up in that wind to push myself any harder.

I was indeed pegged the entire ride at least 87% and ran a normalized power of over 300 watts. My nose was a clotted mess of snot and sweat and I had a very hard time staying focused and controlling my breathing. The latter is a problem in much more than just bike racing; the former only during blind dates and job interviews. In retrospect however, I believe that had we been a little more prepared to suffer that extra bit, had we pushed it just a little more, closer to 94 -95%, communicated better on our pulls, and taken turns that much more confidently, we could've finished as much as 90 seconds faster.

There's a first time for everything, however, and if anything, I'm a patient learner. The biggest lesson learned was that I can't wait to do this again, hopefully with Stocky, so we can learn from our mistakes together. Equipment wise, I'm set. My Max Lelli bike is a great TT bike with the clip-ons, and how can you beat the HED Stinger 60s for a more versatile aero set of wheels? I have a brand new Rudy tear drop helmet, as well. While I've never been much of a gear whore, I realize quality the likes of all that helps save precious watts and seconds.

In preparation for the 50K edition of this event - July 12 - I will be much more ready to suffer, will bring a tigher focus - starting with my 20 minute x 2 intervals this Wednesday.