Well the Title really says it all. I found myself once again alone in the heat and wind of west Texas. It's a lonely road when you are all alone and made worse when those who you can ride with are in a group going faster than yourself.
The "Roll for the Cure" had 4 rides associated with it. The 100K competitive, 100k non-competitive, 50k and 25k non-competitive rides. Without a doubt I would ride the 100k competitive course. With a mix of Cat1 to Cat5 racers we were honored to have former pro cyclist and announcer Chad Patterson in the peleton.
We rolled out of the start area at exactly 8:06 am with the temperature sitting comfortably at nearly 26ºC. From the NM Junior College we rolled north along the Lovington Hwy to our first turn at Alabama Street heading East. This was the longest straight that was 6 to 7 miles long. We rolled casually but still turning over 20mph. I personally met a couple people and conversations were heard throughout the pack.
A couple miles up Alabama Rd we came across a small heard of horses in a field. As we passed the herding instinct must have kicked in because they ran with us for a few hundred meters. I love these moments because they are not something everyone gets to enjoy and they don't come around everyday.
3 miles onto Alabama we came upon our first obstacle. A corner official. As we neared the intersection of Alabama and Dal Paso a guy in a yellow vest jumps out into the road and starts waving us to the right. Like an over caffeinated 3rd base coach his left arm straight while his right rotated like a Pete Townshead solo we nearly took the turn for the 25k course. Yells from the pack kept us straight and together. But not for long.
The end of the road was near. The pack was going to turn. Murmurs throughout said we were to turn left on to State Line Rd and then an immediate right. There were no arguments so I looked ahead at what to expect. I saw that the road we were to jog over to kicked up for a short 200 yard hill and these are my downfalls. As big as I am I am not the King of the Mountain. I needed to be in the front at the turn to stay with the pack as they crest the hill or I would be spit out the back.
The left hand turn came and I was in 2nd or 3rd. Looking up to see the Sheriff deputy's car blocking oncoming traffic I made a run for the right hand turn, just 20-40 yards away, and jumped out of the saddle. Now there are two problems with this tactic. First of all is that the group sees it as an attack and they react, flying up the hill and popping me out the back. Second is that the corner marshals are not doing their job and I take a wrong turn with the rest of the peleton leaving me high and dry. Two guesses which happened to me.
I was about 50 yards up this small hill when I noticed yelling from behind. A quick look and I watched as the peleton sped away, continuing north. My reaction was quick and decisive, I found and used as many curse words as I could think up in a matter of a few seconds. As I made my U-turn I rolled slowly knowing the road from here to be a long and lonely one. In the next second I decided to chase.
Moving into the drops, sliding myself forward in the saddle I dug in and pumped my legs. The next 4 miles was downwind and the Peleton was in sight. My heart rate jumped to 175bpm and that is where I stayed. A turn back to the East and into a cross wind I pumped hard to make the catch before the right-hander into the wind. This was a valiant yet fruitless effort as my 2 minute deficit would slowly grow to the ridiculous.
At some point the pack split and I set my sites on those who dropped from the main pack. 30 minutes later I was still pumping 175bpm and passing slower riders. What I was looking for was someone who I could catch and work with to increase our speed. Unfortunately those who get sucked out the back are usually going slower than I want to go and they are riding at or above anaerobic capacity and just can't keep up a solid pace. Don't get me wrong, I am not insulting these guys because I have been in that predicament many times. If I hadn't set my sights on catching the peleton I would probably have slowed enough to have a leisurely ride back to the finish with one or more of these unfortunates, creating our own Autobus.
So I kept hammering at a vicious 175bpm. Somewhere around mile 34 I had to give up. My body couldn't hold on and I was making no progress. Uphill and into the wind knocked it out of me. Also my left hamstring was tightening to the point I started favoring my right leg quite a bit. To the point of hurting and calling my wife to come get me. She, however, was nowhere near and I trudged on. At the second to last water station I pulled over and a wonderful woman, whose name I forget, rubbed my hamstring and said there was probably no damage. She also filled my bottles and gave me food. Revitalized I sped off in the now 35ºC heat for the final 10 miles to the finish.
I finished in 3 hours 34 minutes (add 2 minutes on my GPS for rolling to the family) which is 4 minutes off my goal. In the end my Heart rate really tells the story. 37 minutes above 172pbm with a max of 181. 46 minutes between 167-171bpm and averaging 160bpm for the three and a half hour Odyssey. If you don't think Hobbs is a flat area of the country and there is wind consider that in 60 miles I climbed 248 feet and only averaged 16.8mph. I was alone again in the heat and the wind.
Here is a link to my graphs an the map. And you can see the little tit where it all went wrong in the left hand turn just before mile 15. I was miserable for most of the day but would have it no other way. We supported the fight on cancer and that was my driving force for the last hurtful miles.
Roll for a Cure
If you are interested in donating to help fight cancer I do have a donation page setup as I set my sights on The Livestrong Challenge in Austin in October. austin2010.livestrong.org/mpatrickmitchell
