Here in Lansing, the wind has been steadily blowing from the west 15-20 mph more days than not this summer. Great for the ride into town on my commute or to meet up with a group ride, soul-sucking when going back home. To add insult to injury, the road condition is awful and the grade going from east to west easily averages 1-2% over rolling terrain, often hundreds of yards of climbing followed by a short and much-appreciated dip before going back to climbing. The distance I have to head straight west is usually about 9 miles.

I'm already wearing race cut jerseys and riding in the drops, so I'm about as aerodynamic as I can get. You can't shift down and spin up a headwind like a hill. Do any of you who deal with similar situations have some good MENTAL preparation tips? I find it extremely demoralizing to be putting out over 200 watts for miles only to creep along at 11.5 mph. (If you don't believe that's possible, start monkeying with the numbers http://www.kreuzotter.de/english/espeed.htm).

I've noticed the same thing in fast group rides - no headwind, I can get out and pull for several minutes easily at 18-20 mph. Ask me to go into a headwind, though, and the second I get to the front I start dropping pace. And it's not physical, it's mental. Fighting the wind makes me want to get off the bike and hitch a ride home. I had the same problem in track FWIW.

Any tips besides "Get a skinsuit and time trial helmet" and "embrace the suck" would be really helpful.