First 15km Time Trial: My Inner Lance Armstrong

Joy here...Last week was my final 10km Time Trial of the Ottawa Bicycle Club's annual women-only Time Trial series that runs from May to August.  This week the distance jumps from the manageable 10kms to a frightening 15kms.

Now that might not sound like much of a jump, but, trust me, it is.

At the 10km Time Trial distance, I can be riding, giving my all, feeling like I'm going to puke, but then I can look down and see that I've completed 8kms, and will myself onwards to the final 2kms.  But now for the 15km Time Trial distance, I will be riding, giving my all, feeling like I'm going to puke, and then I will look down and see that I've completed 8kms, and I will want to die, because I'll only be halfway through!  

So as we drove to the new starting line for the longer distance, I was feeling a little apprehensive.  I didn't really ride last week (only Tuesday's 10km Time Trial and then Sunday's ride in the park with the bear), and so I was feeling a bit lazy and out of shape on top of being nervous about the demands of the new distance.

But as I started warming up on my stationary trainer, I began to feel better and better.  I decided that I would just ride this Time Trial like Lance.

What I look like in my head.

Lance Armstrong - 7 time Tour de France winner - at age 40 has just taken up professional triathlons again (he used to be a triathlete in his teens).  He did his first-ever half ironman triathlon in February and placed 2nd.  He's been in the top 10 in the following 4 half ironmans that he's competed in, winning 2 of them.  And how does he win?  He uses his strength on the bike and just powers away from the rest of the field, forcing them to chase him for the final leg of the event - a half marathon finish after riding the bike for 90kms - and for both the Florida and Hawaii events, no one was able to catch him!

So as I rolled my bike over to the start line to get ready with the rest of the women, I just wanted to be like Lance - high cadence, full confidence, impressive results - and didn't let my nervousness about the new 15km distance overwhelm me.

Out there on the course, I got a wobbly start, and then my computer didn't kick in right away, so I knew that my time and my distance would be slightly off, so I couldn't really count on reliable data from my computer.  All I could do was ride by feel - keeping my breathing rhythmic and trying my hardest to keep my legs spinning fast.  I would check my power every now and then to make sure I was riding at around 200watts and that my speed was somewhere in the neighbourhood of 35km/hr.

Me warming up.

I shouted "on your left" each time I had to pass some unsuspecting commuting cyclist out on the course (and, of course, without fail each time I passed a guy, he would try to speed up and race me...can you say fragile male ego???).  And if I was passing someone who was competing in the Time Trial - like this amazing 80 year old who competes each week - I would shout encouragement:  "we're almost done!" and usually give a thumbs-up.  You never know when someone needs just that tiny bit of a boost to keep on going.

As I tore through the finish-line with no idea of my average speed or time because of my little computer mishap off the starting line, I had no idea how I did.  I cooled down amongst the other riders, and when one of the women asked "how did it go?" all I could say was, "15 is much harder than 10!" to which she heartily agreed.

Then we gathered around the time keepers to find out how we did, and I'm happy to report that I finished within the top 10 of my first-ever 15km time trial.  My average speed was 34.97km/hr, and I averaged just under 200watts for the whole duration.  I finished in 25:44...next week let's hope I can get closer to 25 minutes flat.

Or even break 25 minutes.

That's what Lance would do.

Over and out,
Joy