Failed once again 🙁
Massively disappointed in myself. At the end of the day i didn’t have ‘it’ whatever IT really is… But it wasn’t within me.
Looking at the Strava data, i guess it could be argued i went off to hard… maybe… but it was only a couple of % quicker generally than this time last year with Crust. One of the early segments for exmaple was 5:02 today and 5:20 with Crust, i was deliberately holding myself back and just taking things easy.
In the end it was cramp that got the better of me. https://www.strava.com/segments/1186388?filter=club&club_id=244094 This segement was the finish of me.. Gramps Hill. 1.2km long and an average of 9% incline… That just finished me off. When i got to the top i had cramp in my calf, thigh, back of knee on the outside and hamstring. I tried to stretch it out but when i tried one stretch it made me squeal in another area. The top of the climb is just on the Ridgeway and knowing that the locally infamous Chain Hill coming out of Wantage was on the cards and Apple Pie Hill in my village was also coming up… I bailed and Ridgeway’d it home. The event was about 130km after being shortened by them, i did 102km. Could i have completed it if i’d just dug in… The answer is NO.
I was a gibbering wreck when i got home and just fell on the floor and tried not to cry LOL.
So the question for me is, where did it go wrong.. I think the answer to that lies in Electrolytes and hydration being the clear answers. I forgot my SIS electrolyte tablets in the morning, the plan was to use them on fill-ups. Water/hydration, i only had 2 bottles… but i didn’t feel i wasn’t drinking enough. Over the course of 5 hours riding time i did 3.5L of water.. Which looking back may not have been enough, but the options are limited as you only have fluids at feed stations as no shops on the Ridgeway and in the little villages.
I noticed some of the CX riders, jeez on the flat they can get some power down and pace… But i then wonder, would i just fail again at a faster pace lol. Or would the lighter bike and faster rolling tyres be a good solution here. The Whyte worked well on the rough stuff, i even got a 10th overall on one downhill segment where i wasn’t really trying as such. Should i have ridden the 29er Ht… I don’t know.
Average speed was 19.8kmh which was pretty much where i set myself… This segment of 6.2km climb by Lambourn has a lot to answer for too… That’s not made for the fat fellas for sure.!
https://www.strava.com/segments/1655994?filter=club&club_id=244094
Al in all i’m sitting here feeling both knackered and mentally ‘flat’. I hate failing on events, but sadly, that’s what happened.