I felt pretty tired for most of this week. I've been riding a lot through July and August, and the CX race wrecked my legs on Saturday. My legs weren't too snappy when I did my warm-up lap for the Leroy TT, but once I cranked it up a couple of times, I started to feel pretty comfortable.
The race for me this week was all about the false flat section on the hill. I finally figured out my problem with that section. I typically shift down a couple of times on the first part of the climb, then wait until I'm over the first little crest to shift up again. For some reason, that causes me to blow up and slow down for a few seconds. If I keep the pressure on my legs, I'm fine, so I need to shift up just before the crest.
So that's what I did. Last week, my power output on that section dipped down into the 200s. This week, there's still a noticeable drop-off in the power, but not too much.
So for the numbers. I averaged 350 Watts over 20:04. That's 420 kJoules (~1.6 snicker's bars) in just 20 minutes. I'm pretty sure that's my best power output over that duration for as long as I've been keeping track. That corresponds with threshold testing I've done over the years but it's the first time I've managed to do it on a real ride. I don't think I left too many seconds on the course tonight.
I've got a couple of chances left to break the 20 minute barrier. I think my best bet is to turn on the afterburners a few hundred meters earlier than I normally do at the end of the course.
2 comments:
Boy, I wish I could turn that kind of power. I am no where close.
I really liked the way you related the kilojoules to a Snickers bar. Too bad more people in this country don't understand it.
I'm feeling the hangover from that effort today.
I think I need to work on getting a more aerodynamic position that doesn't restrict my breathing.
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