So new shorts, jerseys, tights and skin suit am I all sorted out in full Glendene Regalia! whoop!
A feeling of acceptance and assurance from the team is exactly what I needed, and in return I was going to explore new boundaries and limits in this race to say thanks.
Training
So my training leading up to this race was consistent as always even with the shite weather we have been having. Doing speed work in 30mph headwinds was not exactly easy but it did mean my strength was forever increasing. Adding the resistance training I had prescribed my self since October my legs in February became increasing ripped and a lot larger, thus leading to hypertrophy which was the desired effect however knowing that would effect my frontal surface area I eased off the headwind 'eff my self up' efforts that I begun to call them and decided to mount to turbo to get my legs spinning fast and powerful with a gentle breeze coming through the veranda.
The Crest!
Cold start to the day, no change there for this year. so the choice of clothing was always going to be tricky. I was willing to work hard so staying warm was never going to be a problem, keeping cool would be. Changing my mind at the last moment worked out to be a great move.
Rolling out thru the neutralised zone was a new experience, as you read that will be the first of many new experiences in this race :/
Fat blokes on expensive carbon bikes pushing there way to the front and the race hasn't even started yet. One guy particularly in mind (wont name and shame the team to save embarrassment) over took me crossing the white line of death and hit every single cat eye for about mile after on carbon wheels, sounded horrific that poor bike. think it was a drug dealers bike (trek) so didn't care too much but eased up because I didn't want to be any where near him if came off because it would be a complete catastrophe!
Race starts and off we go
5 or six guys go flying up the road straight away, Dan Young chases and so do I, two strong guys from Glendene in the break cant be a bad thing.
I get across to the front two and so does one other guy and we are off, Dan doesn't make it across chases but fails. A lap and half we have 2 minutes on the peloton great im doing alright here.
4 laps in lets have a gel, bollocks wrong place to have one! and I end up getting dropped, second experience to learn from. Ride for a whole lap on my own and three guys come across to me and I wanted to get back to the leaders.
Organising this lot was going to be a bloody hard task, half fit old boys that didn't want to do anymore work. FML.
Lap later two guys come across and pull us along the useless bugger an' all. so taking turns, rolling thru and on at the front we make ground quickly and start closing time on the front three. I need more food bar a gel I choose to have, see off the gel and start with the bar. Telling the stronger blokes i'm feeding they allow me to miss a turn but the useless buggers don't come thru so small gap opens, mouth half full with bar in hand I try to sprint to bridge the gap but I'm all over the place and cant get a decent mouthful of air because its full of food. The other guys do fuck all. Dropped again. doubleFML. the two guys that left us eventually get up to the front and over take to get 1st and 2nd. Sods law.
I pull us along and catch with a guy from Essex Roads that was in the original break and he catches on to us on the last 5km, No one wants to work and we cant even see the finish and the peloton start to close in.
The finish is quality, I love a up hill sprint and the Crest provides a cracking finish. nice and lumpy with about a 120m straight uphill, I pull us thru and kick and win the bunch sprint.
6th Place, ill take that.
video of the finish
Photo of Harry Paine who raced at cyclopark that day, Dan Snow and Myself
NEXT INSTALLMENT
A sentimental blog about my inspiration and motivation into becoming a professional.
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