VOS 2006, Day 2: TT
Time Trial day started alright. it was going to be good to depart from the Super 8 and head out for the time trial. the start is about 45 miles west of Phoenix and we decided we were going to get there early. Jesse was relieved to find out that i am as obsessive as he is about arriving to the race site nice and early and not having to put up with 3 hours of harassment like going to races with Flynnard. so, mission 1 of day 2 was to find a $tarbuck$. but first, all of the salt needed to be washed from the bikes. so we looked around the front of the Super 8 to find a hose and sure enough it was right at the front of the parking lot. we must have looked pretty interesting in a hotel parking lot spraying off our bikes, but after day 1 travel, we didn't even care.
Phoenix and Tempe have a big problem. there are not enough $tarbuck$, and when there is one, you don't have a gigantic sign you can see for miles. for some reason my coffee-radar was not on the top of its game and we didn't find it for about 30 miles from the Super 8. race day had truly started once i sat down to drink a 5-shot tall americano. start times: Jesse 3:34:30, Dave 4:00:00. we were sitting at the $tarbuck$ in Avondale at 11:15:45. we decided we should arrive at the TT start at 12:30, a comfortable 3 hours early. find a spot on the side road just down from the sign in tables, walk down trying to look cool and checking out all the TT equipment without looking like i'm looking at it,sign in and get some numbers, drink some more water, walk back to the car. so now it's 12:45 and i've still got 3:15 before take-off.
Jesse and i know that TMac and one of the guys he coaches are going to be racing and so we decide to give them a call to find out where they are parked. while i'm dialing i think it would be really funny to give them a hard time about the schedule if they weren't already at the venue. so TMac answers and i ask him where he is...it's only 3 hours until his start time! he laughs and says they have plenty of time. they are 45 minutes away and Clint Carter doesn't start until 12:30 or so. i say you're going to be late because it's 11:45 (i may be wrong on exact times here, but you get the idea). he says no way, that it's 10:45 and that AZ is an hour behind Utahr. he and Clint asked someone in Mesquite and they told them the time in AZ. so i tell them they had better put the lead on. unfortunately, even with lead, Clint gets a 15 minute or so late start. you'd think riding to the race with your coach that there'd be no problem...just working you over TMac. as a side note, TMac and Clint were plenty early for the road race and criterium later in the weekend.
so we've had our entertainment and it's only 1:00pm. i still have 3 hours, but Jesse's start time is fast approaching, only 2.5 hours left. Jesse's parents, the stalwarts of following their traveling son, show up and are ready to offer whatever service they can provide. these guys are great...always a bag of candy bars and soda at the ready right after a race finish. also, Jesse is a great guy to travel with...very mellow, keeps his cool, and when you're at an out of state race, is always ready to throw down for Team Utah. the numbers are pinned on the skinsuits and we begin to extract TT equipment from the vehicle. TMac is loitering around and giving us a hard time for getting ready so soon. i know he is super excited about throwing down for the TT, TMac's favorite event. it is now within 2.5 hours to my start time and i begin to turn inwards...preparing to relish in the pain that is the TT. the course is longer this year than last. i really wanted to get a feel for where i'm at this year by comparing to last year. oh well, the conditions are different any way this year. last year we were rained on for the TT and the road race and this year we're relishing in approx 65 degree weather for the TT and an expected 70 degrees for the road race tomorrow.
Jesse brought his trainer and he is trying to focus on a strong warmup and i get the tires inflated and make sure everything looks good on the bike and climb on for a long crescendo of a warmup. #1 gave me a warmup routine a few years ago specific to the TT and it is great. it helps me focus and concentrate on how i'm feeling. soon i am within 35 minutes of starting and Jesse is ready to rumble. i finish up my warmup and head to the start house with about 15 minutes to spare...again, another #1 instruction. i've made about 25 trips to the port-a-john since arriving thanks to the quintuple americano, but i'm now sufficiently aggravated and ready to throw down my best. i climb up onto the start ramp...my minute man goes, 30 second man, and then i'm getting 5, 4, 3, 2 1...go. from there it's a blur other than i'm feeling fast and there is pain. this is truly the first visit of the year to the pain cave. with a K to go, i'm thinking my time will be a good one and i start to bury it with the 55/11. i can feel my left gastrocnemius ready to explode and throw my last hard pedal stroke i have left as i cross the line.
now the race blur is over and i transition to the post-event blur where all i can think of is not throwing up. eating does not even seem like an option at this point and i wind myself down carefully, spinning for a while down the road i used for warmup. i decide that no matter where my time falls i will be satisfied because i put in a serious effort. i'm trying to find some of the guys i know who i think will post good times and i'm still hazy on what i really want to do and who i'm trying to find to talk to about their start times. finally, i make my way back to the car and talk to Jesse. he felt like he was going really good until he got a nasty side ache that blew his concentration for a few. come to find out, he still posted a top-25 time. nice job! so we load up the gear and head out. interesting facts at the TT: someone rode a cross bike with road gearing and it wasn't Ryan Trebon; there was at least one "funny-bike"; the Claw wasn't there to throw up post race because he turned himself inside out like at the RMR; and the winner of the TT won by nearly 30 seconds!
so we find the $tarbuck$ in Avondale on the way back so we don't have to deal with I-10 traffic and then hit a taco place. we bagged the Super 8 in favor of a Motel 6 in Tempe. i'm still kind of spent as we arrive at the Motel 6 and semi-concerned if we are going to have better luck with the room. we still don't know what are times are or where we placed and i'm anxious about that too. the room turns out to be great and then #1 calls to give us details on the results. Jesse in 25th and i'm in 9th. i knew it felt like a good TT, but i was beyond excited to make a top 10. so we immediately head down to the bike shop to figure out time gaps and develop a plan for the road race. we spend the entire drive trying to scope out a $tarbuck$ and are unsuccessful.
VOS 2006, Day 2 has turned out to be quite successful. VOS 2006, Day 3 report to come. Highlights: the race is neutralized for about 20 minutes so a emergency helicopter can land to pick up an injured racer in the womens PRO/1/2 race, 2 disqualifications, and a pile-up right in front of me with 250 meters to go at the finish!