Strava: http://www.strava.com/activities/103062355
It's been a while since I've blogged about the team, but that's mostly because I've been doing mostly solo rides during the last 2 weeks of the year. Who wants to read about my solo rides, right? I did get out with Adrian on the 12-21 where we did an 80 miler together going down to Carlsbad and back, but other than that it's been mostly solo rides.
My ride down to Carlsbad and back with Adrian was rather interesting. Adrian came along for the ride while I got some TT training in, so the plan was that he was going to stay behind me for most if not all of the ride. I was perfectly fine with it given I was on my TT bike while he was on his road bike albeit with aero bars installed. My plan was to manage my power so that I can translate that to when I work with the team for our race in January. I figure if I don't drop Adrian at any point given I'm on my TT bike, I'm doing okay. This worked out great to the half way point where we stayed together and managed a 20.8 average on the way down. This was despite some headwind we experienced on the way. On the way back, I felt the tail wind behind us, so I knew it was going to be a fast return trip. We did stop to get Adrian some Coke at a gas station some where in Oceanside, but after that it was just a straight shot home. He managed to stay on for most of the way back, which was no easy feat since we were likely doing 23+ mph average on the way back. He only dropped a couple times but not by much, and in the end we finished the 80 miler with a 22 mph avg (21.9 if you want to believe Strava). I thought it was rather impressive of Adrian to stay as long as he did at that pace, but I assured him that given that he was, he's definitely set for the Stagecoach in January.
I did get some solo rides out after that, but the notable one was my solo TT down to San Diego and back for a makeshift century trainer. I had two guys latch on and stay in my draft for a bit ask me what I was training for, so I told them about the TTT in Ocotillo. They were rather impressed at the pace I was holding and wished me luck, but what they didn't notice was how I was a little uneasy about saying I'm training for a TTT whereas I didn't know what to say if they had asked where the rest of the team was given I was solo. Thankfully, that never came up and they just enjoyed sitting in the draft behind me. One guy pulled ahead from a stop light that we were sitting in only to experience the ridiculous headwind that I was pushing through on the way back. It didn't take long before I caught and passed him only to have him jump back on my draft. It was definitely a wicked headwind, so I got pretty beat up where I had to do a lot more active recovery than I wanted just to get back. I was hoping to do a solo sub-5 elapsed time century, but there were too many lights and too much wind to make that possible. In the end, I only managed a 20.4 mph average with a move time a few minutes under 5. Good enough I guess.
While I touched on the subject of solo TT training for a TTT race in January, I will say that I'm sure the other guys are doing what they need to do to get the job done. It reminds me of a management class I took where they gave us a personality test and showed that despite different approaches to a common goal, people still get it done. I think with the mentality of the guys on the team, I have no doubt that we'll put in a good showing at the race. I just need to worry about myself and make sure I'm able to contribute as much as I can to the team. So there you have it.
Looking back at 2013, I will say I don't think we've done as many events as we've done in the past, but that's probably mostly my fault given I wasn't able to participate as much. I hope that changes for 2014, but I do think I need to find a way to excite the others to want to do more on the bike to represent the team. For me, it has and will always be about the team. I wear my BRCM jerseys pretty much of the time (unless Lisa falls behind in laundry - ahem) because they mean something to me. They show that you can take some guys who like to ride and turn them into ones people recognize as legit riders. Isn't that what it's all about?
Happy New Year, and here's to hoping for more to come in 2014!
It's been a while since I've blogged about the team, but that's mostly because I've been doing mostly solo rides during the last 2 weeks of the year. Who wants to read about my solo rides, right? I did get out with Adrian on the 12-21 where we did an 80 miler together going down to Carlsbad and back, but other than that it's been mostly solo rides.
My ride down to Carlsbad and back with Adrian was rather interesting. Adrian came along for the ride while I got some TT training in, so the plan was that he was going to stay behind me for most if not all of the ride. I was perfectly fine with it given I was on my TT bike while he was on his road bike albeit with aero bars installed. My plan was to manage my power so that I can translate that to when I work with the team for our race in January. I figure if I don't drop Adrian at any point given I'm on my TT bike, I'm doing okay. This worked out great to the half way point where we stayed together and managed a 20.8 average on the way down. This was despite some headwind we experienced on the way. On the way back, I felt the tail wind behind us, so I knew it was going to be a fast return trip. We did stop to get Adrian some Coke at a gas station some where in Oceanside, but after that it was just a straight shot home. He managed to stay on for most of the way back, which was no easy feat since we were likely doing 23+ mph average on the way back. He only dropped a couple times but not by much, and in the end we finished the 80 miler with a 22 mph avg (21.9 if you want to believe Strava). I thought it was rather impressive of Adrian to stay as long as he did at that pace, but I assured him that given that he was, he's definitely set for the Stagecoach in January.
I did get some solo rides out after that, but the notable one was my solo TT down to San Diego and back for a makeshift century trainer. I had two guys latch on and stay in my draft for a bit ask me what I was training for, so I told them about the TTT in Ocotillo. They were rather impressed at the pace I was holding and wished me luck, but what they didn't notice was how I was a little uneasy about saying I'm training for a TTT whereas I didn't know what to say if they had asked where the rest of the team was given I was solo. Thankfully, that never came up and they just enjoyed sitting in the draft behind me. One guy pulled ahead from a stop light that we were sitting in only to experience the ridiculous headwind that I was pushing through on the way back. It didn't take long before I caught and passed him only to have him jump back on my draft. It was definitely a wicked headwind, so I got pretty beat up where I had to do a lot more active recovery than I wanted just to get back. I was hoping to do a solo sub-5 elapsed time century, but there were too many lights and too much wind to make that possible. In the end, I only managed a 20.4 mph average with a move time a few minutes under 5. Good enough I guess.
While I touched on the subject of solo TT training for a TTT race in January, I will say that I'm sure the other guys are doing what they need to do to get the job done. It reminds me of a management class I took where they gave us a personality test and showed that despite different approaches to a common goal, people still get it done. I think with the mentality of the guys on the team, I have no doubt that we'll put in a good showing at the race. I just need to worry about myself and make sure I'm able to contribute as much as I can to the team. So there you have it.
Looking back at 2013, I will say I don't think we've done as many events as we've done in the past, but that's probably mostly my fault given I wasn't able to participate as much. I hope that changes for 2014, but I do think I need to find a way to excite the others to want to do more on the bike to represent the team. For me, it has and will always be about the team. I wear my BRCM jerseys pretty much of the time (unless Lisa falls behind in laundry - ahem) because they mean something to me. They show that you can take some guys who like to ride and turn them into ones people recognize as legit riders. Isn't that what it's all about?
Happy New Year, and here's to hoping for more to come in 2014!
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