Two Wheel Blogs

Route: Belk Park Loop (backwards)
Time: :57.2
Miles: 17.5
Pace: 18.2

Riding Tunes: Afro-Celtic Sound System

I thought I had it. I really thought I had it today.

I've been kicking myself lately. The past two Tuesday nights, I've not tried to ride with the fast pack on the Whitesides Hill workout. Knowing my fate is to be dropped, I've just ridden out to the SIU-E campus and done the climbs on my own. I know they'll pass me, and I'll wish I could keep up with them, but I know I can't, so I just do my climbs and ride home. But by not even trying, I'm not getting all the workout I could. I get the climbs in, but I back off too much on the recovery loops, whereas the pack pretty much hammers it nonstop. It would do me good to ride harder between my climbs, and trying to ride with them would force me to do that.

So I've been a little down on myself lately. It's been a while since I've had a really good ride on my Belk Park Loop, so I thought I'd hit it hard today and try for a new PR. As I left home, I was unsure how bad the wind was or which direction it was coming from, so I decided to ride the loop opposite my usual direction. If the wind was going to break my heart, I wanted it broken early in the ride, not at the end.

Mid-day traffic on 143 was light, so I got out of town and out to Drda with ease. The stretch from Drda to the Belk Park entrance, I've decided, is the hardest part of the route. The road twists and turns, rises and falls. By the time I entered the park, approximately the halfway point, I'd gotten my average pace up to 17.5. Okay for a start, but I knew I'd need to average over 18.1 for a new PR.

Coming out of the park, I pushed it hard down Buchta Road, then turned onto Moreland to face its climbs. Here, I suppose, is where the Whitesides workouts paid off. Granted, Moreland's hills are speed bumbs compared to Whitesides. But I'm trying to keep my pace up as I climb. Today, I was able to climb seated with good leg turnover -- and without losing too much of my pace. As I rolled down the last hill, a favorable stoplight at the intersection allowed me to zip across 143, then I topped the Wanda Road hill and rolled down to the Watershed trail. As I made the turn onto the trail, my average mph was 18.3. I had about five miles -- and one more climb -- to go. Could I protect my pace?

I hit the Watershed Trail with all I had. I knew that, if I could keep my speed above 18.3, I would have my new PR. I worked it hard, and I still had my 18.3 when I turned off the trail, stood in the pedals, and started the final climb up Union. Once at the top, I turned for home and sprinted with everything I had left, which wasn't much. Or enough. As I rolled to a stop, my Cat Eye showed an average pace of 18.2, which translates into a riding time of :57.24.

I was hoping I'd go sub-57 today. And I almost did. And, as I checked my log, it's been a while since I've done a :57 on the loop, so I can be happy about that. But I thought I had it today. I really did.