First Solo Circuit

Well, you have to start somewhere, right?

Having taken the soft option things went pretty well on Saturday.

It's very nice to wake up at home, have a nice hearty breakfast then tootle over to the race circuit (albeit an hour-ish drive away).

Had expected the 12 hour guys to be well into their laps by the time I arrived but seems that the first lap was only just finishing. And although there was a 12 hour race on at the same time as the GP this felt really odd to me. This was partly because I'd never ridden a circuit race solo before, and partly because of my late arrival had no idea who was doing what down at Camp NoBMoB - everyone there seemed very focused but I didn't know what on!

I wasn't going to bother with qualifying but then found out it was only a 1 minute sprint so went ahead and fell into 7th spot on the start line. Think this means I started 3 mins behind pole (well - that's the timing difference between what I made the first lap and the race time).

Being new to this solo stuff I didn't have a plan. And what with this only being a 4 hour race didn't think I needed one. Figured I'd ride for a couple of hours the stop for a snack then ride some more, which is pretty much what happened. The course was a claimed 7 kays so set myself a 7 lap target (just under 50Km) and actually managed 8 so all good.

I'm quiet happy with laps 1-5 which were (by my count) nice and consistent at: 26:16, 27:22, 27:17, 27:05, 27:21.

They all felt good, the track was in great condition and the GP course had no hills or challenges of any note (I didn't use granny all day and didn't unclip anywhere on the course). The Rush is being serviced so was riding the Yeti with it's 2.35 'grip central' tire setup. Loved this - was able to really pull away from people in the faster flowing sections. Once I came by transition as Whisperer was pulling out and stuck on his tail all the way down to where we split off (GP course turned left, and 12 hour right) - very nice

Anyhow, after 5 laps I had to stop for a nature break and some food (few nuts). Next lap stopped to adjust the rear cassette (which I'd been having problems with and now has a spacer - doh!) so these two were slow. Then finished up with a 29:12.

Although the last lap was completed with time for one more (actually 7 minutes inside cutoff) decided 8 was enough and called it a day. Happy with that looking at the results as an extra lap wouldn't have done me any good at all

Average HR for the (just under) 4 hours of riding was almost 160BPM which for me is just about on 80% so am happy with that too.

That said - didn't feel so good at the end of the race but probably because hadn't really eaten much (erm - anything but the nuts!). In fact, by 4pm the 'hearty breakfast' from 7:30 that morning was a distant memory for the stomach so had to force down some pasta I'd brought along. Was also getting chilly on the last lap though and felt I should rush off and get a hot shower - apologies to the 12 hour guys. Dunno how you camped there 2 nights in a row - must have been freezing!

All in all a top, slightly unusual day with perfect timing and weather for the ride.

Garmin jobbie here: