Is it possible to forget how to cycle? I was beginning to ponder this question as my mind drifted momentarily away from exam preparation. I am not entirely sure what cabin fever is but I am certain that isolation and excessive study are not good race preparation. I began the Charleville two day stage race twenty four hours after my last exam and absent from structured training for almost two weeks.
The shorter stages were a blessing and disguised, to a large extent, my lack of conditioning. Stage one was a 80km; the course was mostly flat but had about five hundred meters of road that made the surface on the pave sections in the Cicle Classic appear well paved. I conspired against myself to miss an early break that went clear containing most of the race favorites. On the last lap it was apparent that this break was not going to be caught with over a minute of an advantage. I kicked hard out of a corner and gave it gas on the 'off road section' and made the junction to the front group along with Steven Franzoni. I did not have much left in the legs for the sprint and crossed the line in 7th position.
The aptly named 'race of truth' folded my house of cards. Stage two was a flat 6.4 km time trial which should have suited me. However, as soon as I attempted to put the power down my legs started sending emergency signals to my brain - system overload! I placed a disappointing ninth in the test against the clock.
Heading into the afternoon stage I was lying in 7th place in the general classification; a mere twenty seconds adrift from the race lead. Stage three contained a challenging climb and my plan was simply - to make a heavy tempo up the climb in an attempt to burn off some of the six better placed riders. An early break went clear but I decided to stick to the pre-formulated action plan. The pace was hot and fast on the lower sloops of what must have been a fifteen to twenty minute climb. Only about seven riders managed to follow the pace and none of them were better placed than myself on the general classification. The group did not work well together and squandered a chance to make contact with the break after the climb. At one stage the gap was less than ten seconds but in the end this would grow to in excess of thirty seconds. The disjointed efforts of our chase group were punished in the closing kilometers as we were caught from behind by a group of ten riders, most of whom were ahead of me in the general classamend (in my best Sean Kelly accent). I placed 9th on the stage and remained in 7th position overall.
The old proverb tells of how the grass is always greener on the other side, from my experience the grass is greenest when your not buried in books and have ample training time.
I am looking forward to the rest of the racing this season. Next weekend I will race the Lenister Track Championships and the National B Championship Road Race before I travel to Canada on 14th September.
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