Race of truth

It's probably not hard to guess, but I decided to man up and do the Time Trial today. They call the TT "the race of truth"...just you against the clock. Not to oversimplify things, but the secret/s to a successful TT are A) try and catch the riders who went before you, and B) try not to get caught by the riders behind you.
The turnout for this month's TT was small compared to last month, but there were still 15 or so riders out there to test their legs against the clock.

This is only my second TT, and being new to the whole roadie and TT thing I've not been too concerned with how well I do compared to the other riders out there. My plan was to use the TT to gauge my fitness. Last month I rode the 10 miles in 26:22, so obviously I wanted any time lower than that. One of the worst things you can do in a time trial is to take off too hard...something that the guy who went before me found out the hard way. I got a good solid start and ramped it up over the first 5 miles, so that on the return trip I was zoomin'. I knew I was doing well when I past both my 1,2 & 3 minute men. I came across the line with a time of 25:44. I was hoping to shave a few seconds off my previous time, but I wasn't expecting to go below 26 minutes since I don't have aero bars or any of the usual TT accoutrements. Even more surprising was the fact that I ended up with the fastest time of the day!
Of course, it doesn't mean a whole lot as the two fastest guys weren't in attendance today. I am pleased though. I've only been riding a real road bike for about a month and a half, and in only my second TT I go home with the fastest time...beating riders using aero equipment.

Since I couldn't say no to some competition and went ahead and did the TT despite my initial hesitation, it is safe to say that today WAS my last hard effort before the race. I'll chill out on Friday, pre-ride the course on Saturday, and then it's race time.

Ohh, I almost forgot. After the TT I went with a couple of my buds for a little mtn bike time. I figured it'd be good to get time out in the woods. That too went well... right up until I realized that a damn stick broke a spoke. So, what does Sean get to do tomorrow? Take his wheel to the shop to get a new spoke put on. Drat!

I'm beat, I'm goin' to bed...later.