It’s been about 3 weeks since our last Tuesday night training… maybe only two…but feels like four.
About ten of us tonight. No warm-up speedsters so we could warm up at a good pace and not worry too much. I managed about a ten kilometer warm-up before everybody arrived. Warm-ups are GOLD!
There was a new guy and one other person I didn’t recognize. When the pace picked up I got dropped as usual after doing a long pull and on the hill. I’ve learnt not to panic and keep spinning and putting in little bursts of power to bring myself back to the front bunch. This happened about three times tonight. I really hate it and have to learn to stick with the pack no matter what. This is obviously a weight problem. Always getting dropped where the lighter guys have a slight advantage. I always get back to them where a heavier rider has an advantage but it is not that equal. In theory they shouldbe able to burn me off once and leave me for dead.
With two laps to go, one of the new faces launched an attack and I followed. It took me about 1.5km to catch him and when I did we had the benefit of drafting behind a car. We must have opened up about a 200m gap but I wasn’t feeling strong enough to pull him faster than the group behind us. With 2km to go I could see them coming fast and they got back to us on the hill. Again I found myself at the back. Probably about eight left now. At the top of the hill I sped around the corner and knew I would rejoin them and at that moment I knew I had the cat in the bag. All I had to do was watch and wait. The last stretch the pack picked up the pace and I positioned myself a bit wide with my eye on the S class rider who I knew would go first. I just followed him and put the gas down with about 20m to go crossing the line in poll position.
I saw somewhere the other day… possibly on Twitter ‘Quitters Never Win and Winners Never Quit’. I know the feeling. Rather than quit when the going gets tough…I just need to listen to my heart give it a few moments to recover…spin in a high gear and not panic. It’s very easy just to give up. It’s also very easy not to give up too. It’s my choice.