So a good week of training and it looks like I am back on track as I enter the all-important 'peak' phase.
The highlights last week must be the Club Handicap race and then the 'King of the Downs' 115 mile sportive.
On Friday evening I managed to escape from work to be up at Southwater Country Park by 7pm. My handicap of 10mins, felt a little severe but I was just happy to have an opportunity to race and wasn't too worried about getting a top 5 spot and potential cash prize.
I started with two other triathletes that were certainly faster than me on the open-water swim so my goal was simply to tuck in behind them to benefit from a draft. After about 100m they pulled slightly ahead so my focus went to sighting properly to try and execute a straight swim across the lake. I was pleasantly surprised with my speed and direction and as I pulled myself up on the pontoon I was not too far behind the other swimmers.
My transition was relatively good, deciding to exclude socks as it was such a short race (supersprint distance), however I had a bit of fun and games clipping in. The bike leg was decent and I managed to pass a number of fellow Club mates. There was a bit of healthy competition from Sarah, who is one of the strongest female cyclists in the Club.
Another quick transition and I flew into the run secion at full speed. During the 2 laps I maintained a sub 4 min per km pace and was able to pass a few more people. I sprinted to the line to receive a third position place and a cash prize of £6 - result!
After my success on Friday evening my attention turned towards the long and hilly sportive on Sunday, which started at Evans Cycles head office in Crawley.
Six HAT Club members met for an early start and by around 7:30am we were in the saddle for a loop of the North Downs to include Leith, Pitch and Box Hill. Over the full 115 mile distance we were expecting 9,000 feet of climbing. The pace was respectable although we were very wary of the distance and the thought of over 10 massive climbs. The food stops were very welcome and I almost felt guilty for eating so much, however it was going to be a long day.
The 2nd half of the ride started again near Crawley and headed out towards Ashdown Forest. This was my first time cycling in this region but I aim to go back. It was very picturesque although the hills kept on getting steeper, so much so that a number of cyclists were getting off their bikes and walking to the top of a few. I was fortunate to have a 29 cog on my rear cassette, which helped me to make it up the steepest of ascents.
The distance from the half-way point to the 3rd stop (approx. 90km to 145km) seemed to go on forever and ended on one of the steepest climbs I have ever had to get up. From there our part re-grouped and we tried to spin out the remaining 40km to the finish to log near 8 hours in the saddle.
All in all a great event, very reasonable priced, good food and re-fueling stops, albeit hard on the legs.
Monday will defintely be a recovery day.
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