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May 08, 2005
Time Trials
Today I did the Lillydale Time Trial. It was an interesting experience. I’ve seen time trials on TV but not in person and I’ve heard people talk about them. But now I got to experience one. Based on how I’ve been riding my friend Dan helped me set a goal for today, which was somewhere around 21.5 miles per hour average speed for the five miles. I rounded up to 22 mph. Somehow without really being able to tell while riding, my average speed ended up at exactly 22.0 mph. Given my current conditioning I don’t think I could have given it much more today. But now I have a benchmark for future training and racing.
I think there were about 115 racers there today all trying to go all out and test their own limits. Dan said, “In a time trial you try to get up to your pain threshold as fast as you can and then try to hold it.” I was in pain. Mostly my legs were burning, my throat was dry and my lungs felt like they couldn’t take in any more oxygen. Also, my hands started to go numb on the lower drop bars from the pressure. As far as the mental game goes, there were plenty of opportunities to refocus on what I was doing. My mind kept trying to wander and think about other things and I found myself slowing down. I pulled myself back to the present and pushed harder.
After the time trial ended, I waited around for the results and chatted with the other racers. That was fun and interesting. Now tomorrow night is the Beginning Racer’s Program class again, so I’m off to bed now to make sure I get enough rest tonight. I had an excellent day, with excellent results for my first Time Trial.
Posted by carl1236 at May 8, 2005 10:21 PM | Cycle Racing