Rough day at the office.
Bethel M45+, low 30's, 10-15mph wind, 15th. After struggling with my warmup I was more than a bit concerned about this race, although in the past I've had poor warmups and great races. The pace was up and down all over the place. All attacks were chased down. At around the halfway point I started to struggle getting up the hill. Normally I am able to crunch a good sized gear at 90rpm or spin my way up in the 53/23. Neither tactic worked, so I had to fight my way back after losing spots on the hill. Towards the end a solo rider got away with two chasers. I was still making my way up to the front, but I was hurting pretty bad. I felt that if I crushed it to try and bring it back I would last until the hill and then go off the back, so I gave it all I had for the sprint, which wasn't much.
Bethel P/1/2/3, DNF. The attacks started at the *** and strung everything out. I fought for wheels and shelter but had a hard time staying mid-field. On the second lap I had to close a gap to stay on. Hit the hill, and lost more position. Then another gap opened and I had to bridge again. Hit the hill again, and now I'm on the back. Guy blows up in front of me, I close the gap again, but as I start to go up the hill I fall off, and pulled the plug. I had nobody to work with, and they were pulling riders quickly. Some days you just have to throw in the towel.
It's way too early to determine whether this is a trend. I'm not used to being non-competitive. Definitely an eye-opener. Next week, new course. Try again.