Last year, I lasted 15 minutes in the Pro race, so this year I decided to race the Cat. 2/3 race and try to hang the full distance. I am not a fan of the hill, especially when I'm still having problems with my respiratory system. I didn't talk much about it in the Anderson blog, but my sinus/respiratory infection is still kicking my butt. I actually think it was worse yesterday. The junk in my chest is breaking up with ease now, meaning breathing hard is enough to loosen things up. I had to clear my airway more often yesterday, which attributed to me falling off the pace in the middle of the race. I was still coughing a lot today as I sat on the trainer for my warm-up. I tried to cough up as much mucus as possible before the start, but it seems to be an endless flow.
The threat of rain was higher today. Dark clouds could be seen in the distance, but the rain stayed to the west all day and left us with dry racing conditions. It was another warm day, topping the thermometer out around 89 degrees. Again, there was a nice breeze to keep things from getting too hot. The breeze provided a tailwind up the climb, which was nice since it was the most exposed area of the course.
Cat. 4s on the hill with a few laps to go
I lined up about 2/3 of the way back in the group of about 80 riders. I was farther back than I wanted to be, but I felt good warming up and was confident I could move up as the race went on. The ice bath must have helped with recovery because my legs were great. The pace was fast early on, as usual. It was single-file all the way around the course the first 5 laps of the schedule 40 lap distance. I just stayed patient, even though gaps began happening the second time up the hill as riders couldn't hold the pace. I worked my way up through the group, passing a few riders each lap at the top of the hill and then getting by a few more through the corners on the descent. To my surprise, I was having no difficulty getting up the hill.
Cat. 2/3 Men
A break of three tries to form in the early laps
Turn 2
Me, in the orange, stuck back in traffic
I had put a lot of riders behind me by lap 7, but the gaps were now starting to appear well ahead of me and it seemed as though nobody could close them. I was left to do all the work alone, closing big gaps each lap after the climb. I had to really hammer three laps in a row, both on the hill and descent just to close all the gaps. The pace didn't slow and my heart rate caught up with me. It was the same old story as the past two weeks. I can only hold 180 heart rate for a few laps and then I'm toast. My legs felt so good, but my heart said no more. I was coughing a lot and it seemed as though I couldn't get in enough air to help out my heart. It was frustrating to get dropped only 12 minutes into the race, especially when I had great legs. I really felt like I wasn't going hard, but my body just wouldn't let me go harder.
Shot from the stem cam
Riders coming off turn 2
There were only about 40 riders left in the main group, so I kept the hammer down and chased by myself for a few laps before getting caught by a chase group of 7 riders. We lost ground for a few laps, but then began to gain time on the group ahead. We were all taking turns and cut the gap down to 23 seconds, then to 20 seconds. We were just about 1/4 lap behind and in no danger of getting lapped, so I was surprised when the officials told us one more lap and then we would be pulled. I thought it was a load of BS, because all it would take is a crash or slowing in the group and we would catch back on. I was on the front when they said one more lap. I didn't care about sprinting for 40th, and I was mad, so I just tried to light up the last lap and get in the best workout possible. Of course the rest of the group sat on me and then sprinted by me at the end, but who cares. Getting pulled at 22:30 into the race was a failure no matter what place I ended up finishing. I don't understand why the officials pulled us. I know they don't want to keep up with us, but we were still in contention. Back to what I said yesterday, we all payed a high entry fee and drive from far away. Getting taken out when you are in no danger of getting lapped is just ridiculous. They seem to be happy just taking your money and getting you off the course.
Still on the back of the group here
Me now in the chase group
I ended up 46th on the results. Of course, they only listed 46 riders so it looks like I got last. I guess they forgot to record the other 35 riders that started. My stats for the race were: Average heart rate of 173, Max heart rate of 183, and Average speed of 25.1 mph. I thought that was a fast average speed considering the difficulty of the course. My heart rate is still puzzling me. I'm hoping that it's just being sick that is making me unable to hold the higher heart rates. I'm not even breathing hard, but I can't push myself past 180 for more than a few seconds. I looked back at past races and saw that I was hitting 189-190 at each race this year prior to getting the stomach virus. I even hit that several times near the end of Snake Creek Gap when my legs were smoked. Since then, I have only gone over 183 one time and that was 185 at the morning qualifier in Athens last week. My legs are more than strong enough to be at the front of these races. Hopefully the heart will follow soon.
We hung around and watch the Pro events before making the drive back to Tennessee. I did some more filming with the GoPro. I'm hoping to make a video of Speed Week shots set to music. It may take me a while though as I have limited time with working and training so much. I worked on a lot of editing during the car ride home this week, so all my videos from this race are already posted (thanks Shannon for driving!).
Pro Men in turn 6, about to start the uphill
Pro peloton on the hill
United Healthcare on the front in the late stages of the race
4 to go
Ivan Dominguez attacked with just over 3 laps to go
The gap from Dominguez to the peloton with 2 laps to go
The UHC train trying to run down Dominguez
Team Exergy's Carlos Alzate capitalized on United Healthcare using all their strength to catch Dominguez. He took the sprint win in Sandy Springs and the overall title for Speed Week.
Below are a few videos. The first is of clips from all the Sandy Springs races. The second is the full race video from my race. I mounted the GoPro on my stem for this race. It was a cool view. You can see my hands working the brakes and shifters. Most of the pictures came from my lovely wife. She has been tearing it up with the camera lately!
Video clips from the races in Sandy Springs
Video from the camera mounted in my stem during the Cat. 2/3 race
We have been resting up this week in preparation for another 3-day race weekend. This time we will be traveling to St. Louis for the Tour de Grove weekend. We start Friday night with a race under the lights and then finish off with two day crits that are part of the National Criterium Calendar. Shannon and I went out for a light spin yesterday after working around the house for a few hours. My legs are still feeling great, but the respiratory funk is still hanging on. It was there on my ride today as well. I'm praying that it'll go away by the weekend and let me race to my full potential.
Shannon riding off into the sunset
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