Well this race just re-confirmed what I discovered in June. I lost tons of power since last season.
Near the top of the first climb I just couldn't hang on, so I just backed off and settled in to a comfortable pace. After that it was just a game of rabbit: see a rider pick up a pace a bit, pass, keep pedaling. The interesting thing was that at the end I still felt strong as last year I was turning squares. At the finish line the official said I was 20th, but that couldn't be right. Will see what the official results will say.
UD