13 March 2008

Swanton time trial

After work, I got home and changed. It had rained early in the morning, but it had been sunny and warm all afternoon, so I headed out without a wind-breaker and no leg warmers. At first, I kind of wished I had the wind-breaker, since it was a little chilly in the shade, though still warm in the sun.

The ride out to Davenport along the coast had a stiff headwind. I didn't want to work too hard, but I also didn't want to get there too late and have to start so late that it would be dark before I got back.

I wound up starting 22nd, which it was going to be pretty late when I got back. The sun was also setting, and the wind was chilly, so I was shivering while standing around waiting to start. After starting, though, the cold was not an issue. At first, I was afraid I went out a little too hard, but then I stopped worrying about that. About half way out, the guy who started a minute after me went by. About 2/3 of the way out, I saw the fast riders who started earlier headed back. More riders zipped by on their way back. Finally, I got to the climb, and there were more riders descending. I shifted into the small ring and huffed up to the turnaround. It was hard, but I felt pretty good, considering. The road still had wet patches, so I took the descent pretty conservatively. The tailwind kicked in at spots on the return, but mostly, the wind was blocked by the hills. Coming out of the sharp right-hander, the guy who started 2 minutes after me went by. Then it was time to hammer back to the line. The time of the guy just ahead of me was 33:11, so my time was around 35:20-35:30.

After a few minutes of catching my breath, I headed home with the tailwind as the sun set. It was twilight by the time I headed up Western.