leroy TT

The timing of my follow-up appointment worked out well to return to racing at the Leroy TT. The weather was great last night, and Jim had a big group turn out to race in mild temps and breezy conditions. The group was so big that we needed to start at 30 second intervals instead of the usual minute.

I went off from the starting line with a good out of the saddle effort. It was really the first time in a couple months that I cranked on the bars like that. I was really pumped up that it felt close to "normal", so I promptly discarded the conservative pacing strategy I had for the night and put the pedal to the floor.

Since we started the race with only a 30 second gap between riders, I could easily see the rider in front of me and noticed I was gradually closing the gap. I went through the corner and was pretty sure I'd catch him before the turn around.

I went a little too hard on the first part of the hill and paid the price on the flat section by the cell phone tower, but then I did a good effort on the steep section and caught him just as Kevin M caught me. That threw my concentration for a couple seconds. I sat up to catch my breath before the turn around, then the chase was on!

I caught up with them at the turn and went past with a little burst of power. I thought, I'd just keep the hammer down all the way to the line, but slowed a little around Brakeman Road. They both passed me again just as I was recovering, so I put the hammer down again and passed again. Once we were in sight of the line, I was pretty fried, so Kevin passed me again but I held on for a decent time.

I was surprised to get a 20:35, which is actually significantly better than my previous effort this season. I was also surprised to average 310 Watts (3.1 W/kg), although I tweaked my position on the bike this week, so my iBike readings probably are probably off a bit.

I think my strategy for next week will be to pace myself more carefully over the first 5 miles of the course, then go for broke the last two miles.