Last Sunday, I launched my 2010 racing season with a ride in the Frostbite Time Trial in Everett. Since it was only the end of February and I had only decided to do the race about a month before, I wasn't too sure what to expect. With 64 riders in the cat 4/5 field, I certainly had lots of company to compare to.
The course is a fast, dead flat nine mile trip on good pavement east of Everett. The weather was about as good as you could hope for in late February with sun, little wind, and temperatures pushing 50 at race time. I started well and quickly found my rhythm in the familiar sensations of a maximum effort against the clock.
At this race, instead of start times grouped by category, the entire start list was randomized so you had no idea what level of riders were just ahead or behind you. In a lot of ways, it eliminated the distraction that other riders can cause to my focus as if you caught someone you had no idea if it was to be expected or not and the same was true if you got caught. As it turned out, I only passed one rider, just after the turnaround, and was passed by one rider just before the finish.
The race passed rather uneventfully for me. I was able to ride full throttle the whole way without any fading in my effort towards the end which was encouraging for so early in the season. My time of 22:01 was nothing stellar, but I felt it was a solid time for where I usually expect to be at the beginning of my season (usually April!). It was good enough for 24th in the cat 4/5 field. As a bonus to my day, I won a professional bike fit from Herriot Sports Performance in the post race raffle. All in all, a very successful launch to my 2010 racing season!
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