So Sunday was the mark of 6weeks post crash, and the minimal
time doctors wanted me to stay away from accidents to let the facial bones
heal. Turns out that KW Classic was scheduled this exact day, how perfect! The
course was the same as last year, rolling hills with one longer gradual hill
with a nice steep down section that saw me hit over 70km/h at some point in the
race. The weather was nice and warm, but super windy. Seemed like every road
had a head or crosswind. Having not been on the racing scene for a while I
wasn’t sure how this was going to go...
 |
| Recovery post race |
 |
| Elite 4 sprint finish, Midweek wins! |
 |
| Before the start of the junior/E3 race |
 |
| And we are off! |
Right at the beginning of the race, a strong break of around
8 riders got away including many of the favourites: Bruce Bird, Brandon Etzl,
Jack Burke,Yuri Hrycaj… I definitely didn’t have the legs to bridge up to them, so I tried
to stay hidden from the wind in the peloton. The gap grew quickly over the
following laps, and before I knew it the gap was over 3mins! At one point I
went to pick up the pace on the hill but no one came with me except one DEC
express rider who was covering my “move”. I knew I couldn’t catch that group,
too much fire power, so I took it easy and let the group reel me in over half a
lap. I knew that would be easier for me than having to put up with some surges
in the group.
 |
| Things are just getting started, first corner onto the course. |
After about 7-8 laps I was really starting to feel it
(80-90km in). My legs were toast and every surge felt like I was about to pop
off the back. Could have been a training issue, or possibly nutrition. I think
the crash had helped boost my pain threshold as I kept finding a way to dig
deep and catch back on. With 2 laps to go, a small group of riders broke off
the front, and I knew I should have chased on to them, but I had to give it
everything I had to just stay on the pack, let alone surge up and bridge a gap.
 |
| The breakaway finish, Etzl making it look easy. |
They cut our race a lap short from the tech guide, which I
was more than happy with. I was suffering so bad I started hoping of ways that
we could end earlier like lightening, or getting lapped by the break. This
early end was a gift from the cycling gods. Coming into the last lap, some
people were popping off on the climb (at least I wasn’t the only one that felt
terrible!), but I managed to keep on. A big surge on the backstretch saw 2 more
riders come loose and I bridged past them onto the back of the peloton. Just
before the last left onto the closed road, 2km from the finish, there was a
slight hill. The group slowed slightly and I put in a little effort to move
from the back to right near the front. I stayed on Andrew House’s wheel (who
had shown great form today!) and he definitely didn’t want to be at the front.
There was an abundance of DEC express guys in the pack still, which made things
hard. One attacked while another one used it to get a good position for the
sprint. I scrambled to stay with House, as my legs felt like they were about to
explode. I started my sprint a little early and ended up dying at the top of
the finish hill. I tried to hang on to it as it flattened out but two riders
were able to get by me. I finished off 13
th, finally earning my first
upgrade points in the Elite ½ field, and feeling demolished.
 |
| Cresting the hill into the finish. |
 |
| Sprint for the line! Trying to not lose too much ground. |
I am happy with the result after racing against guys who
have been able to get into racing condition, while I was left to training on my
own or in a small group. A few tips from some local guys helped me prepare for
this, and without that, it would have been a much different go. My coach Jeff
Kehler also helped getting my training right to recover from the concussion.
The great news is that no crash related health issues came up, bad news is that
I am not very photogenic with a few teeth gone, and one discoloured.
Not sure what is next for me. Toying with the idea of
nationals, and before that maybe Kitchener twilight crit, and Tour de Waterloo.
Garmin data (sorry no power and forgot heart rate monitor at
home):
here
No comments:
Post a Comment