Tuesday Night Bloodletting Part II

To further reinforce how serious Pete was, one only had to look at the rest of my training surrounding the ride. Monday - a 45' EZ swim. That's all. Also there was no transition run off the bike. He clearly didn't want anything to distract me from the effort. Anyone who has been lucky enough to have Peter Reid coach them will understand how rare this is. It is his philosophy to run off the bike after almost every ride, even if only 10-15 minutes. Tuesday's schedule had one entry - the Bloodletting, nothing else.
I showed up on time. There were a dozen riders already there and riders were converging from every direction. I saw mostly familiar faces and a few new one. They all looked fast. I also saw more than a few sets of 404s!! I was filled with fear.
At 5:05 we rolled out, 23 strong - very strong.
The group rides in double pace line formation, wheel to wheel. One of the great things about these guys is that fact that they don't display the brutal hostility that so many roadies take pride in possessing. If your pack riding skills are wanting they'll patiently work with you and explain that tapping your breaks while ensconced in a pelaton cruising along at 43 kph is a habit that is frowned upon.
The pace to start with wasn't so bad. I was having no real problems hanging in.
There are a few key points along the ride where you can expect trouble.
King George Terrace is the first little bump on the ride and comes about 15' into the ride. In times past, I've been dropped here and been unable to catch up - even though the climb takes about 20" to climb!!
Today I held my position but it took a pretty high HR to do it. Still, I felt okay. I knew that this would be a key-point to key-point ride for me.
The next KP was the golf course - a gentle slope that takes about a minute to crest. After that was the Caddy Bay hill and then the big one - Ten Mile Point. In the last two years I'd never made it past Ten Mile point with the group. I held no illusion. It was going to be a challenge. We were keeping it steady, just south of 45 kph and my heart rate was on the north side of zone 3.
We pulled into the Ten Mile point suburb, a windy affair that takes about five minutes to negotiate before you hit the hill - maybe a two minute climb and a steep one. I stayed with the group through the twists and turns and even managed to put myself up at the front of the pack as we hit the hill. Slowly the pack enveloped me and moved past. I started to panic. I was going to lose them. My friend Jamie Duncan wasn't far in front of me and a few other guys were struggling in front of him. My momentary desperation disappeared. Jamie wasn't as fit as he could be but he'd be a freight train on the flats. The pack wasn't too far in front of us so I knew we could work together and regroup in no time.
I pulled a Sean Kelly on the descent, caught Jamie and rocketed to the base. For the last 4 years the group has turned right off the 10 mile hill and done a little loop through Queenswood. I didn't even look up. The group was only seconds in front of me so laid the bike over and launched into Queenswood. A few seconds later I heard Jamie shout my name. I looked up and saw no one. The pelaton had skipped the woods and gone straight. I was done.
I turned around and hammered for all I was worth. It took me about five minutes to catch up to Jamie who was also working to catch the group. We took turns pulling and after about ten minutes we managed to regroup but only because the gang had pulled up at Mt Doug park for a breather. We were told they only "just" got there.
From Mt Doug headed out to the farm land. This was uncharted territory for me. I'd never been this far before. The pace stayed high as the sun began to set.
Along Lochside drive ride originator (and current sponsor of club - Avia West) Jim Pearson decided to engage in some shenanigans. He attacked and I went with him. When he pulled off I took a little pull. After a half a minute or so I glanced back and saw there were a few people inches behind me, Pearson had stayed on and Johnny "Strawfire" Fokkema was there as well. I ran out of juice and we all sat up.
Johnny rolled up beside and me and said the magic words - "You split the group." I split the group. Not really but it was fun to hear him say it. The "split" group was back with us in about 1.8 seconds and away we went. I stayed on until my clock read 1:45 and the sun was starting to set. I was at least 20 minutes from home and without lights so I peeled off and soloed home.
I can honestly say, it was one of the finest rides I've ever had.
This morning I woke up feeling like I'd raced the day before.
I left it all out there.
I can't wait to do it again.

And on another thought - Heather Wurtele is fine - nasty bruise (and I mean nasty) but she's already back out there. Tough chick!!