Weekly Crit: One and Done

So much for the weekly crit until my time in Eugene is done. While it was a decent workout - albeit a short one - if I really want to make gains that transfer to triathlon, I need to look elsewhere.

From the get-go, I was pulling and chasing whoever tried to open up a gap. Those first 10 minutes hurt as I hadn't put up watts like that in awhile. Heck, the longest ride I had completed since Coeur d'Alene was 70 minutes and that was all soft-pedaling. All in all, I wasn't prepared for a crit with Ironman training under my belt. When the first prime came up, the pack started hammering and I had no response. I was off the back. Sure enough, I got back on. Second prime came up and once again, no response. I wasn't feeling particularly great, but not terrible either. I lagged a couple hundred meters behind the pack preparing to make my push to get back on and the race director stops me. Apparently they were trying a new format where riders in danger of being lapped were taken aside and set off when the pack came through again. Only they would have to pull out on the last lap. As I slowed to a stop, I voiced my disgust and left. Mentally, the stop threw me out of focus. Physically, my rhythm was gone; I didn't see a point to finishing. DNF.

Would I have gotten back on? Absolutely. I am strongest when riding alone, after all, that is what I train to do.