Sun 29 Jul 2007
This morning was the Lakewood Blue Claws race in South Jersey. Maybe I should have been representing at the Kingwood TT but a.) you never pass on a race in your backyard b.) I’m not a Cat3 and thus c.) the NJBA time trial cup does not pertain to me. Hmm, race in your backyard (10mins away) or TT for 20mins and drive an hour?
The crit in Lakewood is a great course. Wide and open, none of this double-yellow line monkey-business. If you want to crank it and pass everyone on the right, into the wind, by all means do it. I’m not stopping you.
15 laps, 1.2 mile each, flat, with a false-flat riser type thing into the wind about 1/3rd of the way around. About 5 right-hand turns, perfect for a breakaway, if you don’t mind the wind. Definitely a sprinters course…and a sprinter I am not!
The plan was to sit-in and not be stupid. Simple. Fair enough. Save the energy for the 2nd to last lap. I stayed near the front the whole time, avoided a few crashes and not ONCE did I allow the wind to smack me around from the front. Always protected and behind someone’s wheel. I pretended to ‘pull’ maybe once, and then jumped right back under cover.
A few guys attempted to break-away, or what appeared to want to break-away. A guy from Pro-Pedals specifically (guy must have weighted 200lbs easy, a monster of a neanderthal-looking dude just huge) kept attacking, or rather, jumping off the front. All those Pro-Pedals guys are monsters - it’s very difficult for me to distinguish between a dangerous one and a not-so-dangerous one. At any rate, he kept jumping off the front. I’m not quite sure what his intentions were, either. Maybe tire us down who knows.
Just once I managed to bridge up to him, alone, and just sat on his wheel. “What’s the plan now?” I ask. No answer. I let him pull and sat-in until the packed caught us. We managed a good half-lap around though.
The whole time around the course the mind was calculating every possible scenario, on every possible terrain change, on every imaginable riser/turn/curve. Like the nerd than I am, a computer non-stop. “Let’s see, if we’re doing 23mph over this little riser, I just need to keep it above 25mph when I’m alone to maintain the distance. And if we’re doing 26mph on this flat, I need to hold 28mph. If on this windy section we’re doing 22, then 23 should hold them off for a bit. And if we slow down to 20mph on this one section again then…”
WABAM!!! Here we go!!! And we’re off!!! 2 laps to go! I hit it along the left and push it on the slight downhill section, up and over the riser and holding. I’m hitting all the right mental checkpoints. Screw the wattage numbers Eric, you need to hit those speeds. Focus E! 30mph on the downhill, 26mph over the riser, 28mph on the flat and 24mph into the wind. So far so good. Don’t look back your doing good!
I come across with one lap to go and I can’t seem them from the corner of my eyes on the turns. Just one more time over the riser.
And just as fast as it had begun, just as quickly it ended. I make it over the riser and the pack just swallows me whole. There’s no point in sprinting, finished a few in front of the back.
I was upset and pissed, yet happy and proud at the same time. A mental battle of sorts. There was nothing else I could do. No one wanted to work or bridge up, they were happy with letting it end in a sprint. Not me. I told myself it was first or last - 2nd, 3rd etc are meaningless to me. I don’t want 2 upgrade points, I want the full amount or nothing. I had committed I would attack with 2 laps to go, stuck to the plan and learned a few lessons in the process.
Looking over my file - the attack from the outset should have been stronger. Much stronger. A measly 585 watts. Whipty-f’ing doo! Was I really going for it or just testing the waters? Well Eric based on that 585 watt jump you weren’t doing a DAM thing but riding in the park!
That first jump is very important I’ve learned. The idea is to get to cruising speed and fast, then hold strait TT mode. Hit them by surprise and don’t give anyone a chance to latch on. How they didn’t jump on my wheel I don’t know. Maybe because they were doing 20mph or they were tired. Who cares. Secondly, I need to take advantage on the downhill section. 30mph at 300 watts is not enough.
If you don’t get the distance it’s just not going to work. I kept looking at my power #s and thinking “don’t blow up just yet, you still have another lap to go.” The fact is…who cares if you blow up. If you don’t then you didn’t go hard enough. It’s first or nothing. Granted, I should have known what distance and time I could hold it for. 2.4 miles was a LONG ways, and a 350 watt average isn’t going to cut it. No way Jose! But this is part of the learning process.
I could honestly say it was my first real and actual attempt at a break-away. It was planned but not really, well sort of. 2 laps left and everyone slowed-up. You sit and think around too much and the opportunity can disappear in an instant.
Next time…who knows. Next time I’ll be prepared (train myself) to hold 400 watts for 4 minutes, hell, for 5 minutes. I can’t sit and say I would have attacked later, because an attack later would really be expected. The sprinters near the front, everyone is just waiting for it.
Anyways, the numbers and graph is below.
Decided to play with the find function and see what would come up. CyclingPeaks calls each of the little yellow sections a “Find”. Hunter and Coggan call them matches. For me: efforts above 400 watts anywhere between 10 and 20 seconds duration. Basically, wasted energy if you ask me. Hell…on one of them I even hit 1000 watts. Where I was sprinting to or going don’t ask. But it was NOT on the initial attack for the breakaway. Go figure.
Maybe I’m just an idiot when it comes to racing and I have a lot to learn. Or maybe I just needed a pair of 808s. =]
Race:
Duration: 42:53
Work: 623 kJ
TSS: 77 (intensity factor 1.039)
Norm Power: 288
VI: 1.19
Distance: 17.866 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 1032 243 watts
Heart rate: 118 201 171 bpm
Cadence: 28 136 90 rpm
Speed: 0 31.9 25.0 mph
Pace 1:53 0:00 2:24 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 253 64 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 928 225 lb-in
Find #1 (481w):
Duration: 0:10
Work: 5 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 364 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 195 676 481 watts
Heart rate: 169 180 177 bpm
Cadence: 66 118 106 rpm
Speed: 23.1 25.9 24.2 mph
Pace 2:19 2:36 2:29 min/mi
Hub Torque: 55 176 130 lb-in
Crank Torque: 250 492 375 lb-in
Find #2 (648w):
Duration: 0:11
Work: 7 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 440 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 254 1032 648 watts
Heart rate: n/a n/a n/a bpm
Cadence: 61 116 101 rpm
Speed: 24.3 30 26.3 mph
Pace 1:60 2:28 2:17 min/mi
Hub Torque: 69 253 158 lb-in
Crank Torque: 337 846 529 lb-in
Find #3 (610w):
Duration: 0:10
Work: 6 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 384 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 192 897 610 watts
Heart rate: 168 168 168 bpm
Cadence: 78 111 98 rpm
Speed: 23.4 29.5 26.3 mph
Pace 2:02 2:34 2:17 min/mi
Hub Torque: 54 229 153 lb-in
Crank Torque: 181 721 512 lb-in
Find #4 (643w):
Duration: 0:18
Work: 11 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 728 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 356 796 643 watts
Heart rate: n/a n/a n/a bpm
Cadence: 89 100 96 rpm
Speed: 22.6 31.4 28.0 mph
Pace 1:55 2:39 2:09 min/mi
Hub Torque: 104 195 152 lb-in
Crank Torque: 338 715 562 lb-in
Find #5 (636w):
Duration: 0:10
Work: 6 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 364 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 328 838 636 watts
Heart rate: n/a n/a n/a bpm
Cadence: 80 96 88 rpm
Speed: 22.9 28 25.1 mph
Pace 2:08 2:37 2:24 min/mi
Hub Torque: 95 217 167 lb-in
Crank Torque: 315 833 612 lb-in
Find #6 (533w):
Duration: 0:11
Work: 6 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 400 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 278 627 533 watts
Heart rate: 162 162 162 bpm
Cadence: 61 108 93 rpm
Speed: 21.4 26.5 23.8 mph
Pace 2:16 2:48 2:31 min/mi
Hub Torque: 86 175 148 lb-in
Crank Torque: 385 587 485 lb-in
Find #7 (575w):
Duration: 0:14
Work: 8 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 522 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 342 776 575 watts
Heart rate: 169 169 169 bpm
Cadence: 88 100 95 rpm
Speed: 25.2 26.7 25.9 mph
Pace 2:15 2:23 2:19 min/mi
Hub Torque: 88 194 146 lb-in
Crank Torque: 311 682 512 lb-in
Find #8 (719w):
Duration: 0:15
Work: 11 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 591 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 466 901 719 watts
Heart rate: n/a n/a n/a bpm
Cadence: 82 96 88 rpm
Speed: 23.1 29.3 26.2 mph
Pace 2:03 2:36 2:17 min/mi
Hub Torque: 133 243 181 lb-in
Crank Torque: 433 928 691 lb-in
Find #9 (651w):
Duration: 0:21
Work: 14 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 873 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 77 895 651 watts
Heart rate: 169 169 169 bpm
Cadence: 68 100 91 rpm
Speed: 25.1 30 28.0 mph
Pace 1:60 2:23 2:09 min/mi
Hub Torque: 20 206 152 lb-in
Crank Torque: 96 850 596 lb-in
Break-Away:
Duration: 3:56
Work: 81 kJ
TSS: 10.4 (intensity factor 1.259)
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 1.721 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 584 342 watts
Heart rate: 173 196 183 bpm
Cadence: 51 105 91 rpm
Speed: 20.8 31.9 26.3 mph
Pace 1:53 2:53 2:17 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 176 87 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 509 318 lb-in
Entire workout (212 watts):
Duration: 59:56 (1:06:08)
Work: 759 kJ
TSS: 96.1 (intensity factor 0.984)
Norm Power: 273
VI: 1.28
Distance: 22.548 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 1032 212 watts
Heart rate: 63 201 157 bpm
Cadence: 28 141 90 rpm
Speed: 0 31.9 22.6 mph
Pace 1:53 0:00 2:39 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 253 60 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 928 197 lb-in
Peak 5s (969 watts):
Duration: 0:05
Work: 5 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 207 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 921 1032 969 watts
Heart rate: n/a n/a n/a bpm
Cadence: 103 116 110 rpm
Speed: 26.9 30 28.6 mph
Pace 1:60 2:14 2:06 min/mi
Hub Torque: 204 253 224 lb-in
Crank Torque: 675 846 746 lb-in
Peak 10s (835 watts):
Duration: 0:10
Work: 8 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 427 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 792 895 835 watts
Heart rate: n/a n/a n/a bpm
Cadence: 89 94 93 rpm
Speed: 28.7 30 29.5 mph
Pace 1:60 2:05 2:02 min/mi
Hub Torque: 176 206 187 lb-in
Crank Torque: 720 850 762 lb-in
Peak 20s (717 watts):
Duration: 0:20
Work: 14 kJ
TSS: n/a
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 830 ft
Min Max Avg
Power: 223 895 717 watts
Heart rate: 169 169 169 bpm
Cadence: 85 100 94 rpm
Speed: 25.6 30 28.4 mph
Pace 1:60 2:21 2:07 min/mi
Hub Torque: 54 206 165 lb-in
Crank Torque: 190 850 646 lb-in
Peak 30s (605 watts):
Duration: 0:30
Work: 18 kJ
TSS: 4 (intensity factor 2.182)
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 0.233 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 895 605 watts
Heart rate: 169 169 169 bpm
Cadence: 70 100 93 rpm
Speed: 25.1 30 27.9 mph
Pace 1:60 2:23 2:09 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 206 142 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 850 551 lb-in
Peak 1min (411 watts):
Duration: 1:00
Work: 25 kJ
TSS: 3.5 (intensity factor 1.451)
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 0.47 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 212 582 411 watts
Heart rate: 183 184 184 bpm
Cadence: 84 103 94 rpm
Speed: 24.2 31.9 28.0 mph
Pace 1:53 2:29 2:08 min/mi
Hub Torque: 48 159 98 lb-in
Crank Torque: 196 509 371 lb-in
Peak 2min (369 watts):
Duration: 2:01
Work: 45 kJ
TSS: 6.2 (intensity factor 1.358)
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Distance: 0.924 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 584 369 watts
Heart rate: 183 196 187 bpm
Cadence: 51 105 92 rpm
Speed: 20.8 31.9 27.5 mph
Pace 1:53 2:53 2:11 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 176 90 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 509 338 lb-in
Peak 5min (315 watts):
Duration: 5:01
Work: 95 kJ
TSS: 11.8 (intensity factor 1.187)
Norm Power: 329
VI: 1.04
Distance: 2.217 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 936 315 watts
Heart rate: 172 185 181 bpm
Cadence: 81 118 92 rpm
Speed: 21.7 31.9 26.5 mph
Pace 1:53 2:46 2:16 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 206 79 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 732 289 lb-in
Peak 10min (289 watts):
Duration: 10:04
Work: 173 kJ
TSS: 21.6 (intensity factor 1.138)
Norm Power: 315
VI: 1.09
Distance: 4.274 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 895 289 watts
Heart rate: 163 196 177 bpm
Cadence: 45 109 90 rpm
Speed: 0 31.9 25.5 mph
Pace 1:53 0:00 2:21 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 206 74 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 850 270 lb-in
Peak 20min (252 watts):
Duration: 20:05
Work: 303 kJ
TSS: 39.3 (intensity factor 1.085)
Norm Power: 301
VI: 1.19
Distance: 8.482 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 936 252 watts
Heart rate: 157 200 173 bpm
Cadence: 39 118 90 rpm
Speed: 0 31.9 25.3 mph
Pace 1:53 0:00 2:22 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 243 65 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 928 235 lb-in
Peak 30min (244 watts):
Duration: 30:06
Work: 440 kJ
TSS: 55.6 (intensity factor 1.054)
Norm Power: 292
VI: 1.19
Distance: 12.527 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 901 244 watts
Heart rate: 157 201 171 bpm
Cadence: 28 133 89 rpm
Speed: 0 31.9 25.0 mph
Pace 1:53 0:00 2:24 min/mi
Hub Torque: 0 243 64 lb-in
Crank Torque: 0 928 229 lb-in