TTT - Team Time Trial
Well Race #1 for the season was definitely a Team event, not just the format of the race but the format of the preparation.
Prom a personal point of view it was a team effort getting me to the start line as much as the finish line. When I joined the Wheelers this year, I didn't join a club, I joined a team! I still know nothing about bikes or equipment but I am slowly learning from the more experienced riders. Enough that I managed to rebuild my bike from the bare frame and a bunch of components of the garage floor. It took me 3 nights right enough but with some helpful comments and tips from Facebook and SMS, I managed to make it to the start line with at least 11mins to spare.
My top 3 balls ups were:
1 - Ordering a disc wheel at considerable expense with a Campagnola freehub instead of Shimano (which until recently would have meant nothing to me). I got some workaround ideas and the offer of another member's disc wheel but on the day I decided to play safe with my original wheel and clincher.
2 - I got the bike assembled and decided a road test would be in order, 41 seconds later I had dismounted the bike with a broken chain. I thought it looked a little on the worn side as I was rebuilding but didn't have anything else available. Glad that broke on Saturday instead of Sunday. New chain and cassette purchased and fitted on Saturday night.
3 - Sunday morning came and I checked and double checked I had everything before heading out to the van. About 10 miles down the road, I was reflecting on some advice the captain had given when I realised I'd left my cycling shoes. I pulled a U-ey on the next roundabout and nipped home to get them.
Even getting to race headquarters was an effort as I had to phone another member to get step by step directions. That's the thing with the Wheelers, always on hand and always willing to lend a hand.
As for the race itself, well it was a rolling lumpy exposed course with a nasty cross wind, not tailor made for the best times. I was a bit worried about my bike actually making it all the way round but moments before I set off, Lee advised me just to have fun and enjoy it which took the self inflicted pressure off.
I set off but had no real idea how lumpy the course would be and I'd never ridden a 25m TT before so had no real idea how to pace myself, so I just set off fairly hard and tried to maintain it just below threshold. This seemed to work fairly well and I was pleased not to have been passed by any riders by the time I hit the turn. On the way back, most of the hills were in my favour so I clicked it up (and by "up" I mean down the cassette into a higher gear) a couple of gears and spun home. The cross winds and the unproven tri-spoke wheel on the front meant that I struggled with the confidence to put down the full power as I was constantly trying to compensate for the gusts. With about 2 miles to go the confidence began to grow as the wind switched round to my back and I got the speedo nearing 40mph on some of the short descents. As I crossed the line I called out my number, "30" to make the time keepers job a little easier. I was instantly relieved that the bike had made it round, then I became happy that my time of 01:00:08 was fairly respectable given the conditions and experience. Within 90 seconds Lee crossed the line in 57mins with Brendan (who seems to detest hills almost more than me) shortly after in 59mins. I missed the hour but I was happy that there is room for improvement. Thanks to Brendan and Lee's phenomenal efforts the Wheelers managed to beat the closest team by a margin of around 3 minutes, and so regained the Massie Shield for the first time in what is believed to be around 30-40 years. The photo above is, from left to right: Me, Brendan and Lee.
My next endeavour will be a 10m TT this coming Sunday. Hopefully the weather will play ball and we'll all get an honest run, as I'd like to know if I'm getting closer to this years goal...
Well Race #1 for the season was definitely a Team event, not just the format of the race but the format of the preparation.
Prom a personal point of view it was a team effort getting me to the start line as much as the finish line. When I joined the Wheelers this year, I didn't join a club, I joined a team! I still know nothing about bikes or equipment but I am slowly learning from the more experienced riders. Enough that I managed to rebuild my bike from the bare frame and a bunch of components of the garage floor. It took me 3 nights right enough but with some helpful comments and tips from Facebook and SMS, I managed to make it to the start line with at least 11mins to spare.
My top 3 balls ups were:
1 - Ordering a disc wheel at considerable expense with a Campagnola freehub instead of Shimano (which until recently would have meant nothing to me). I got some workaround ideas and the offer of another member's disc wheel but on the day I decided to play safe with my original wheel and clincher.
2 - I got the bike assembled and decided a road test would be in order, 41 seconds later I had dismounted the bike with a broken chain. I thought it looked a little on the worn side as I was rebuilding but didn't have anything else available. Glad that broke on Saturday instead of Sunday. New chain and cassette purchased and fitted on Saturday night.
3 - Sunday morning came and I checked and double checked I had everything before heading out to the van. About 10 miles down the road, I was reflecting on some advice the captain had given when I realised I'd left my cycling shoes. I pulled a U-ey on the next roundabout and nipped home to get them.
Even getting to race headquarters was an effort as I had to phone another member to get step by step directions. That's the thing with the Wheelers, always on hand and always willing to lend a hand.
As for the race itself, well it was a rolling lumpy exposed course with a nasty cross wind, not tailor made for the best times. I was a bit worried about my bike actually making it all the way round but moments before I set off, Lee advised me just to have fun and enjoy it which took the self inflicted pressure off.
I set off but had no real idea how lumpy the course would be and I'd never ridden a 25m TT before so had no real idea how to pace myself, so I just set off fairly hard and tried to maintain it just below threshold. This seemed to work fairly well and I was pleased not to have been passed by any riders by the time I hit the turn. On the way back, most of the hills were in my favour so I clicked it up (and by "up" I mean down the cassette into a higher gear) a couple of gears and spun home. The cross winds and the unproven tri-spoke wheel on the front meant that I struggled with the confidence to put down the full power as I was constantly trying to compensate for the gusts. With about 2 miles to go the confidence began to grow as the wind switched round to my back and I got the speedo nearing 40mph on some of the short descents. As I crossed the line I called out my number, "30" to make the time keepers job a little easier. I was instantly relieved that the bike had made it round, then I became happy that my time of 01:00:08 was fairly respectable given the conditions and experience. Within 90 seconds Lee crossed the line in 57mins with Brendan (who seems to detest hills almost more than me) shortly after in 59mins. I missed the hour but I was happy that there is room for improvement. Thanks to Brendan and Lee's phenomenal efforts the Wheelers managed to beat the closest team by a margin of around 3 minutes, and so regained the Massie Shield for the first time in what is believed to be around 30-40 years. The photo above is, from left to right: Me, Brendan and Lee.
My next endeavour will be a 10m TT this coming Sunday. Hopefully the weather will play ball and we'll all get an honest run, as I'd like to know if I'm getting closer to this years goal...
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