I'm sorry that things have been so quiet around here lately, but there's been little news to deliver. Last week's bad weather and time constraints meant that it was characterised by three absolutely epic, leg-destroying back-to-back gym sessions in the week and a long, restful weekend.
After getting back into Glasgow at about midnight, I failed to respond to my 4.30 morning time-trial alarm with anything more than an entirely sub-conscious hammering of the "dismiss" button - a situation that I wasn't aware of until another alarm sounded off at gone 7. With the danger of hitting rush-hour, I elected to doze for a while, then set-up some work remotely and do my run after the worst had passed.
It would have been a good plan - the roads were quiet enough, and the weather perfectly warm and still - but for the hyperactive traffic lights that conspired to mar my progress. There wasn't a set that didn't stop me - even the pelican crossings got in on the action in some cases. Moreover, my heart rate monitor chose today as the day its battery finally died, so I was riding on Rate of Perceived Exertion only - something I'm not used to when I have legs this fresh.
Excuses aside, I felt brilliant. The whole ride, I felt like I had a following wind, and it was almost laughable how easily I blew aside my old PB. I still felt fresh as I arrived home. That, of course, was the problem.
That I've improved clearly can't be doubted. Whether I'm capable of 35kph is a little more uncertain. I'll hopefully try again on Thursday morning, weather permitting, but 1.9kph is a lot to make up. Things couldn't really have been any better than this morning, but my time-trialling just wasn't up to scratch.
It's not actually just fitness. My inability to accurately judge my exertion meant that I peaked-and-troughed over a scale of minutes, and on a sub-second scale my laziness with gear changes meant that my cadence frequently dropped below 90. The rhythmic surges of power being put down on the flat sections, followed immediately by gaping, silent dead-zones, would be enough to make a person sea-sick. I was mashing. Whilst I was pleased with my descent into Strathblane, my overall technique left a lot to be desired.
Whilst I'm generally at best ambivalent towards the idea of electronic shifters, I can't deny that they have a place when time-trialling. The long throw of my sora shifters, and the necessity to jump to the hoods to knock the chain back down the sprokets, played a large part in my poor leg speed. Nevertheless, I can't blame them - I must just use them better.
Another 10 days or so to beat my 35kph target.
Good trails!
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