Respect

I have a new level of respect for the "roadies" at the pointy end of the field after that. It is a brutal event. There wasn't any part of me that wasn't aching as I crossed the finish line. Surprisingly the legs hurt least of all. The outsides of my feet were killing me from the constant weighting of pedals (you don't have to do too much of that on a road bike) and the wrists weren't in real good shape either.

The speed the elite guys travel at is just awesome. It's not just the fire trail either, these guys are sensationally fast on the single track and the descents! It actually surprised me how fast they were through those sections. You know these guys are super fit and will be fast, the technical skills were surprising and highlighted by Ant's entry where he was slowed down by top level roadies.

The single trail of Kowen and Sparrow Hill is just amazing. Stromlo may be good also but I was in too much pain to tell . The 4 Pines at the end was just superb .

Despite all the pain I'm pretty happy with my result. Total time was 5:38, net time 4:56. 302nd overall and 94th in Masters.

I'll get back to you on next year.....