| Ride Stats |
|
Distance:
60.63 miles
|
Altitude Gain:
3,130 ft
|
Avg Speed:
17.25 mph
|
|
Route:
Ride with Rotary
|
Avg Grade: 0 %
|
Max Grade: 0 %
|
|
Max HR: 148 bpm
|
Avg HR: 132 bpm
|
Terrain: Road: Rolling
|
|
Bike: Look Blade RS 795 Iconic Ltd Road
|
Club: Schuyler County Cycling Club |
| Weather Conditions: Sunny 75 F S wind @ 6 mph |
|
Today's metric century was in Front Royal, VA. Weather looked great with temperatures in the low seventies and a light south wind. Course would be best described as rolling with only three or four short steep climbs that came in the first half of the ride. Thought it would be a fairly easy course. There were only around sixty riders at the start with forty registered for the full metric. Talked with the organizers and they said that was their average turnout. Wasn't really psyched up for the ride and mainly wanted to get it over with and head home as the legs were getting fairly worn. Ride started slow and soon found myself riding with two other faster riders that separated from the sparse group. First few miles were a roller coaster with fairly short continuous humps of three or four percent. Soon found myself struggling to stay up with the others and saw that my heart rate wouldn't rise. Tried to push a couple of the rollers to jump start my heart but it didn't help. Saw I wouldn't be able to stay with the front guys as they looked relaxed as I was struggling, so I threw in the towel and quickly faded away after only a couple of miles. Tried to relax and hopefully recover before being overtaken by other riders but that was just another thing that didn't happen. Chest started to tighten up which I thought could be an oncoming heart attack but was hopefully just anxiety. Heart rate would only go up to eighty percent but appeared to be able to hold that comfortably. Was able to maintain an eighteen mile an hour pace but couldn't seem to go any faster. Kept hoping I might catch sight of the riders up the road if they got delayed by traffic at intersections but never saw them again. After ten miles stopped along the road for a nature break that sometimes is refreshing and thought I might get caught as lost a couple of minutes. Dropped into my small chainring on a couple of small climbs that peaked at eleven or twelve percent. Didn't have the leg strength to come out of the saddle and charge up them. On the second of them I was passed by a rider in yellow that spun by me over the top. Only lost a few lengths and was able to catch him on the backside of the climb. Drafted him for a bit and then went by him on the next gentler climb. I gapped him and opened up a wider margin on the next downgrade. He didn't seem to try very hard to close and seemed content to stalk me. We spent the next twenty miles with me trying to drop him and him trying to maintain a gap. Talked with him after the ride and he was quite friendly but said he likes to ride alone although I made a nice carrot. Course went mainly through woodlands and farmland, but we did pass through one city on the way out. Riding wasn't unpleasant as the second half of the course was a bit flatter and had good mountain views, miles of stone fences and one small town that looked like it was from the nineteen-thirties but very well maintained. Being pursued helped me focus on keeping some pressure on the pedals. I would see the gap to the yellow rider occasionally when I made a turn and found I was very gradually opening it up. Wind started to pick up as the day warmed and of course the last twenty miles was straight into it. Tried to pick up the pace as the wind would be in the double digits on the third hour of the ride and wanted to minimize the headwind as much as possible. Pace started to slow down in the wind and started dropping below my eighteen average. It was harder on the yellow rider as he soon disappeared from sight. Saw a group of five or six riders up the road and hoped it was one of the later starting groups, and that we might be sharing the course on the way back to the start. I caught them at an intersection and of course they went straight and I had to make a right. Wind picked up as predicted on the third hour and my speed dropped considerably after the fifty-mile mark. Ended up just spinning the last few miles. Made a couple attempts at rallying but the legs weren't having it. Enjoyed the last half of the course but was not really pleased with my performance. Should have been able to ride the course alone at eighteen and over twenty with a group. Anyway, my second southern tour was over, and it was time to head home.
0 member views | 11 total views
report problem |
|
|
|
|
more...
