The kids were due to fly in on the late flight last night so I could only assume they were all safe and soundly asleep when I got up this morning. There were suitcases in the hall so things were looking good. They've been gone way too long and I'm already looking ahead to the end of today's training and spending time with them all.
Yesterday was a long, long day, so the plan was to do a shorter session today. More importantly it was the second time trial today. The idea being to do the same 10km climb we did 6 weeks ago and to see how much we had improved. Because of that, Commander Curry had instructed everyone to do no more than an hour's riding before the meet at 7am, so we got the benefit of an extra hour in bed....luxury!
But that's where the good news stopped - a quick step outside and it looked like the weathermen were right. Judging by the way that the sunloungers were being picked up and whipped around the garden by some invisible force, it seemed the wind was even stronger than yesterday. Either that or we need the services of an exorcist! Rather than trust my own eyes, I actually went online and checked the weather sites to be certain.
One thing was for sure - the time trial was going to be tough today - trial by name and trial by nature. The weather combined with the lead that seemed to be filling my legs from yesterday suggested that a miracle was needed if I was going to get close to my previous time. In my head I already knew that a 10km sprint was nothing to do with a 2,000km challenge, and beating my time would be a "nice to have" rather than an essential part of the preparation. But it was a target, there to be beaten just the same!
Arriving at the briefing, I hear 35 minutes is the 'target' in the prevailing wind conditions and 30 minutes would be a good time as the wind will be against us all the way up the hill to Rabat. So I set my sights on anywhere between my previous time of 27 minutes 40 seconds and 30 minutes. We set off in the order we finished last time, starting with the slowest first. I'm somewhere in the middle, off in 17th spot, and get a decent start but can really feel the wind pushing me backwards.
Dan - faster than me last time - is right behind me, following 10 seconds later. It's weird but knowing someone is behind you, without knowing how close they are and whether they're gaining ground constantly plays on your mind. Even when the race is really against your previous personal best, you can't help thinking about it.
About 5km in, I see a shadow and hear someone on my shoulder. Evan and Ian blaze past me up the Attard hill. Where did they come from? How far behind Dan were they? In the first trial we didn't set off in any order, and I actually overtook a few people on the way up - it gives you a real sense of moving forwards and lifts you. But being overtaken has the opposite effect multiplied by a factor of 10, even when you know you should expect it, nothing quite prepares you for it. After all, the reason they are behind me is that they were faster than me last time, so why wouldn't they be this time?
Dan then edges past, although I manage to keep up close to him and even start to close again. Then I hear beeping. Regular, incessant beeping. "Beep-beep. Beep-beep. Beep-beep. Beep-beep."
I KNOW that noise! All of a sudden I see myself as Captain Hook in Peter Pan with THAT crocodile circling. It's Lee and his heart rate monitor. I think he has it set to alert when his heart rate reaches a threshold he wants to avoid, yet I still hear that noise up almost every hill as he pushes himself on!!
The crocodile swallows me whole and starts to close on Dan. Soon Dan is croc lunch too.
I've also noticed something about Dan in the last few months. Dan is half greyhound / half excitable puppy. We can be drafting together for km's on end and it's like an effortless machine working perfectly together. And then it happens. When Dan sees a cyclist in the distance it's like a greyhound seeing the rabbit, and he's off. His sole mission in life is to catch that rabbit and he won't stop until he does. His pace lifts instantly and I have to drive myself forward to keep up. It's great for pushing the pace in training usually, and it definitely keeps you on your toes! But, today as he sets off in pursuit of Lee, I don't have it in me and they both head off into the distance.
By the time we reach Dingli at the top, I've managed to catch Alex while Dave, Steve and one or two others have also come past me. My original time has also passed me by and I cross the line in 30 minutes and a couple of seconds - 26th place in a field of around 40. Not bad in the circumstances, but I'm guessing most will have beaten their previous times.
Todays Time Trial Stats
My family are all at home, It's been a long week - 8 days riding without a break - and I finally head back with 65km on the clock. Ideally I'd have done another 15km but most of them would have sapped my energy even further so the draw of home, combined with the need to have something in the tank for tomorrow are enough to convince me that I'm good to go.
By 11.30am we're all in the pool. Thoughts of the last big week of training can wait.
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