SAN DIEGO, CA
Guten Tag!
I just got back from a two week business trip to Germany. Unfortunately, I couldn't bring my bike along for the journey. This prematurely put an end to the first half of my 2012 season since those two weeks were effectively my transition period. And to make things, umm... more "complicated," I have the last stage in the King of the Mountains Challenge, The Heartbreak Hundred, in a few days.
The trip forced me to miss the second stage, Breathless Agony, in Redlands, California. Moreover, since I missed that stage, I am disqualified in the GC (general classification) for the King of the Mountains Challenge. However, I'm sure if I didn't have to go on the trip, I would still be close to peak form for Heartbreak. But after a nice and easy training ride this week, I can tell that I lost a lot in those 14 days. My power output in heart rate zone 2 has dropped by 20-30 watts. It's really quite shocking how much fitness you lose, but I'm ready to start building it back up for the second half.
Back to the race! Heartbreak isn't as grueling as Mulholland or Breathless. Exactly 100 miles with 9,500 ft of climbing. It still is a substantial amount of climbing, but nothing like the 13k and 12k found in the previous two stages. Furthermore, the climbing is more gradually distributed along the course with a long, 20 mile section of road that stays at a 2-3% gradient, but I'm nowhere near peak form, so it's still going to sting the legs quite a bit.
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| Heartbreak Hundred Elevation Profile |
I've decided to ride Heartbreak more like a training ride rather than a race. After all, it won't do me any good to race it only to have my legs explode at mile 50. I mean, I do "enjoy" torturing myself, but not to that extent. Time to punch my ticket for the autobus and enjoy my ride to the top.
My race tactics are pretty simple:
1. Find a moderately paced group
2. Make a friend in the group
3. Talk his ear off to help keep me distracted from the climbing
That's it! Nothing fancy. No breakaway, no attacks, no nothing. Now let's see if I can actually follow my own advice...
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