Kicking My Own Ass

I faced up to my fears Tuesday night by entering a 10 mile Time Trial near Lone Tree... Monika's Time Trial Series #3....  I was pretty certain I wasn't riding quite as strong as I was last year, especially with respect to time trialling, so it took much deliberation to ultimately decide to grin and bear it.

I don't use power meters, heart rate monitors, etc.  but I do record any time trials that I race or train, which gave me an indication that I wasn't quite up to speed this year...  So, what do I do?  I decided to check my ego at the door and possibly subject myself to a less than stellar result by entering the race.  I figured I needed to verify my suspicions, and more importantly, get things back on track.  Time trialing isn't about prize money, big crowds, etc... it is really about setting fitness goals and then maximizing my physical potential.  Preparing for and then racing in timed events really helps bring me to a peak condition, while providing me with more workout options to break up the monotony.

This course has quite a few 90 degree turns, so it isn't really suited to busting out impressive average speeds, however it doesn't have any major inclines and is relatively short.  I hit the first 1 mile hard... blew up a bit, but was still on pace for my goal as I approached the turn around point.  In this race against myself, I still had ME in my sights.  I wanted to finish just under 22 minutes, like I did last year on this course.   I looked down at my average speed after I straightened up from the turn around to see that my goal time had slipped away... crap.

I sort of 'got dropped' at this point, as I was hoping to finish stronger than I started... Chad Bishop2010 was pulling away from Chad Bishop2011...Once I saw the gap form between my goal and the reality,  I got discouraged and briefly let up on my effort. Why was Chad Bishop2010 stronger than me?  His 2010 time of 21:54 didn't seem within my reach today.
Luckily, I mentally recovered, reminding myself that I was putting 'fitness in the bank' for the rest of the season.  I ramped it up the last mile and felt rewarded by the realization that I hadn't pushed myself that hard all year during solo efforts.  My time wasn't what I hoped for, but enough to win the event... 22:31.

So, now I have some data I can use to make some decisions about my racing/training.  I am seriously contemplating doing some duathlons once the road race season starts to draw to a close, as I really don't have much road racing left on my calendar. Regardless of how things pan out, I am determined to avenge my loss to Chad Bishop2010.  That cocky bastard needs to be taken down a peg... who the hell does he think he is?  I can't wait to nip him at the line.