Today was one of those perfect days on the bike. Racing a bike is oftentimes a difficult and frustrating endeavor where a couple of hours of hard work and suffering only results in a mid-pack finish. One of the reasons I do time trials is that I control just about everything that happens in my race. There are no team tactics, blocking or positioning issues. My strength is my result; my suffering translates into my win. The downside to time trialing is that the preparation, suffering and either defeat or victory are generally held alone. The one discipline that transcends both the aloneness and the capricious nature of bike racing is the team time trial. In amateur races it usually involves four riders on one team all racing together to set the best time as a team. We race alone against the clock but the effort and pain is shared.
Today was just such a day. Our team colors are blue and white so we sometimes go by the name "The Blue Train." This is especially true when we participate in a team time trial. Over the last two years we've won just about every event we've entered including the State Team Time Trial (TTT) Championship last year. What distinguishes the TTT is that everyone still has to work together. The time for the race is usually taken on the second rider and four guys go a lot faster when everyone is working together. Since we all ride together a lot as a team and we train together over the winter and spring we've learned to ride fast together. There is a trust in the other guys. You know they'll suffer for you just as you suffer for them. You know they'll make you suffer so that you can get better but they'll never hold it against you when they crack you.
Today was maybe the last TTT for the Blue Train. Our primary sponsor, Security Bank, was shut down by the FDIC and sold to another bank. We don't know what our sponsorship prospects are for next year so even though we're pretty committed to racing together, it may be under different colors and in different circumstances and it mostly likely wont be in blue and white kit. It was a sort of bittersweet time as we starting gathering together for this last TTT in the uniforms that have made us respected and just a little feared around the state.
Today Robert, Trey, Jeff and I came together to lay down the law one more time. For me the event started with my typical warm-up. As we gathered, we were loose about the ride. No stress as the trainers were set up and the bikes set to spinning. I felt surprisingly good for a warm-up on a hot, muggy morning with no breeze. As worked my way through the iPod playlist my legs responded to every increase in intensity I asked for. I had rhythm in my head but more importantly, I had it in my heart and legs. As we spun over to the start line I was feeling strong and motivated. After a few instructions and a prayer from Trey, we lined up and got our countdown. I led us out and got us up to speed for the first minute and a quarter. As I pulled off, everyone was in line and looked good. I tucked in at the end of the Train and my teammates took over driving things. Each sat on the front for the time they could hold a high speed and then they too pulled off to let the next in line set the pace. When I got back to the front we were four minutes in and I was beginning to think this was going to be good. We were smooth and fast. I could tell that we were all working at the same level. I wasn't just coasting in the draft and there weren't gaps opening up when I new rider was on the front.
Today we were amazing...maybe the best I've ever seen. We hit the 9 mile mark at 19 minutes. We were rolling at over 28 miles an hour or 46 km/hr. When we hit the second, harder half of the course we didn't unravel either. We kept it together with everyone pulling through. I was on my limit and suffering like a dog but so was everyone else. We were four guys united in a goal and in the sacrifice and suffering it would take to achieve that singular goal. We had caught our 2 minute team at five miles and we caught our 4 minute team at 15. At 17 miles, Trey finally popped but Robert, Jeff and I continued to power along. With one kilometer to go, Jeff finally blew up and Robert and I finished together in exactly 42 minutes. 19.61 miles in 42 minutes gave us a speed of 27.5 mph or 44.5 kph which ain't too bad for a bunch of old guys. Jeff rolled in only 10 seconds later and Trey came in a minute after that.
Today I suffered and it felt good. I haven't hurt after a ride like I did after this one since the State Championship and yet it was so much better in a way. There I was racing for a jersey; here I was racing for my teammates. Several times I thought that I might have to let up or maybe even let go but each time Jeff would pull off the front and turn the train over to me to drive I would somehow find enough strength to pull hard for another 1 minute effort. And when I would pull off to let Robert drive us on and struggle to latch back on at the end of the train I would find the extra something to get me back into the slipstream so that I could recover just a bit until it was my turn again.
Today we won our category and had a former pro who is without a contract for a moment not brought a ringer team we would have won the entire event. We only lost by 42 seconds to the elite ringer team and we crushed the rest of the field, beating our nearest rivals by over two minutes. We were strong in our pain and dominant in our solidarity. Today the Atlanta teams were crushed by a team from the "sticks" of central Georgia that has learned to ride together.
Today was the day the Blue Train left the station for one final trip and I was proud to be on board. Thanks to DHo, Grasshoppa and Stoney for letting come along for the ride. It is a memory that I'll always cherish.
