Plan2Peak: Buffalo Time Trial
First Place 1/2/3
Goal: Get my fastest time possible by pacing myself and making sure I had no regrets, shouldas, or couldas after the finish.
Report:
We stayed at host housing with a man named Rob and his partner Lisa. They were fantastic. I got to sleep in a camper in the driveway and I loved it because the windows were all unzipped and I had fresh air flowing over my face all night.
I woke up on the morning of the time trial feeling a little groggy. But that was nothing a little coffee and journaling didn’t solve. I had been in a little summer depression for a little while and was upset about something all throughout the previous week. I almost didn’t go to the race but my teammate Cormac convinced me to. Thank you Cormac! Whenever I am feeling like that I try to remember a song that a local hero of mine, Kurt Keuhnel, sent me a long time ago when I was feeling a similar way. “Get Rhythm” by Johnny Cash. It’s funny how if you just take the first step you can get going. At least temporarily. So I was happy Cormac helped get me there. It was time to get some rhythm.
The race course was very fun. It was a real prologue. Short, flat, twisty, turny. It was like time trialing a criterium course especially since time trial bikes weren’t allowed. It was a very unique race.
My pacing strategy and thought process behind it was too long to type so I made a video. Check it out if you like.
What did you do well?
I think that my pacing strategy was perfect for me. The only number I looked at during the race was my time at every half mile interval for the first couple miles. I knew that if I was at 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 miles at 1, 2, 3, and 4 minutes then I was on the right pace. I was hitting those times so I stopped looking at them. I knew at that point that I was on pace and it would just be a matter of a few seconds one way or the other at the finish line. I needed to stay aerodynamic and then go above 100% for the last bit. I ended up winning. I accomplished my goal of going as fast as I possibly could. Looking back I don’t think I could’ve done anything to go any faster. No regrets.
What did you not do well?
Before I started my race some other riders in my category were finishing. The officials really messed up, because when there would be a no show at the line they would let the following rider start early. So if a rider was to start at 10:00 am and they didn’t show up they would let the rider who was supposed to start at 10:01 am start at the 10:00 am slot. So there were riders coming in and the announcers were saying they went a minute faster than they actually did. At the time that I started the fastest time was supposedly 7:21. Last year’s winning time was 8:28. The rider who set the 7:21 was up on the stage being interviewed about his ride. I was thinking who is this guy? Wout Van Aert? I was 100% positive he didn’t do 7:21 and it must’ve been 8:21. I thought “didn’t he see his computer say he did 8:21 and not 7:21? Why isn’t he telling the officials and talking like he really did 7:21?” That could’ve messed with my head before my race but I did a good job of truly just letting it go. It didn’t matter what anyone else’s time was. My goal was to get my fastest time. So that is another thing that I did well.
However! After I finished I didn’t need to focus on my goal anymore. It was done. When I found my teammates I vented my frustration with them. I wasn’t loud or using bad language but it’s just not a look I want to portray. I don’t want to complain to my teammates. I don’t want to represent my jersey in that way either in case anyone walking by can hear me. The officials and time keepers obviously made a mistake and we would protest. Things would turn out right in the end. So after complaining for a few minutes I did chill out.
The funniest thing was that when they posted results the announcers said, “results are posted and podiums are in three minutes!” I thought, “okay what happened to the 15 minute protest period?” When we went over to check them I wasn’t even in results! I said to the official, “Excuse me who can I speak with about protesting the results?” He just looked and walked away after I asked him. So we had to find another official.
Long story short it was a cluster. Overall we reacted really well. But Marcus Aurelius wrote in his journal to not let anyone hear him complaining, including himself. That doesn’t mean to not act. Complaining is an idle thing. What’s the problem? What’s the solution? Complaining about it? Or taking action?
For me the first step to action should have been patience but I went right to complaining.
What will you do differently in the future to be better than today?
I will try to be more patient and cut my complaining time down.
