Coming
into K2 this year I was feeling a little underdone but still optimistic that I
could get a good result and with a bit of luck maybe sneak a Sub 7hr ride. We'd
had a 3 week family holiday to the USA in September which was great and we had
an excellent time, but it only really gave me 2 weeks of training (plus one
week of taper) once we arrived back home to try and get some fitness before K2.
The weather forecast was looking really good for
the day (dry, warm and calm) but if anything a little too hot for my liking.
The spring winds that have been relentlessly blowing for the past few weeks
were predicted to drop, which would be a blessing. The day itself dawned
exactly to forecast, dry warm and calm and around 14 degrees at 8am.
I set off in group 7 (6.20 - 6.30) and
deliberately sat right on the back of the bunch on the flat section to Kopu. My
number one aim on this year’s ride was to NOT start too hard which has been my
undoing on multiple occasions, including last year. The pace was easy enough
and even on the start of the Kopu climb, the tempo was reasonable but a couple
of guys broke away. I could see Mike Page near the front of the group and I
thought he'd be a good guy to follow as I knew he was riding for a couple of
friends, pacing them around (as he usually does). The bunch did split in the
steeper upper sections of Kopu but I kept my discipline and didn't try to jump
across any gaps or put myself into the red. Unfortunately Mike Page was about
30 seconds ahead of me as we crested Kopu but I knew there was plenty of riders
behind me that I could ride with so didn't chase Mike (but didn't see him again).
The other thing to note was the wind had really picked up at the top of the
climb, it was cross-tail at this stage, which was helping now but I thought
this could be nasty later...
For the rolling section after Kopu, I sat up,
rode at my own pace and waited for a bunch to catch me, which they did around
the Whangamata turn off. Leading this bunch was Roman Van Uden! (ex pro cyclist
and former winner of Lake Taupo CC, at least once). I found out later Roman was
pacing a couple of ladies around, whose son was coached by him and somehow
they'd talked Roman into being their domestique for the day). RVU was setting a
great pace (not too hard) and before long the group had swelled to around 20
rides all sitting in his wheel. When we hit Tairua my average speed was 29.3kph
so pretty much bang on track for a Sub 7hr ride (from my calculations).
It was pretty obviously now that if I could
climb as well as the 2 ladies that RVU was pacing around that I could get a
sweet ride sitting in on the flat sections.. so that's exactly what I did. Up
Pumpkin, then the Coroglen bumps, Kuaotunu hill and then Myundermans all when
the same way... me climbing just ahead (or just behind) those ladies, then
Roman returning to the front on the flats towing the group along (he did get a
little help here and there.. but not from me). The section from Hot Water Beach
turn off to Coroglen, which is usually fast and flowing, today it was anything
but... the wind was right in our face and it was hard work, even sitting
in the wheels. The other thing of note was the heat.. I was pouring water over
my head and onto my legs from Pumpkin hill, trying to keep the body temp down.
On the plus side I was keeping up with my hydration and nutrition and I was
feeling comfortable.
After Gentle Annie the ladies in the bunch were
starting to struggle up the climbs and I found myself drifting further ahead of
them, but was thinking Roman will soon come past, towing the group at any
moment.. but as we got nearer to Whangapoua they hadn't come back, so I decided
to press on, not pushing hard but certainly doing more work than I had sitting in
the bunch. I was still climbing OK, and got up Whangapoua, Mania and Kereta at
my own pace but I was always expecting a bunch to catch me but it never came.
The only guys that did pass me were K1'ers that were going way too fast. When I
got to the bottom of Whangapoua my ride time was just under 5hrs, that gave me
2hrs to get to the finish, so I was still in the hunt.
My thought process now became, "once over
Kereta any bunch that comes past I'll jump on and hang in as long as I
can", and actually some guys passed me in the Kereta saddle so I sat on
their wheels on the descent and a bunch of 4 formed on the flats. I basically
needed to average around 31kph for 30kms... and the first 10kms went well but I
was starting to struggle, cramp was starting to set in and I couldn't stomach
any more food or drink (and didn't have any gels either, which I usually do). I
lost that group but then I must have got on a least 3 or 4 bunches, but the
time I could hang in with each was getting shorter and shorter and when I was
riding on my own into the wind, my speed would drop to below 25kph. It was
painful to watch the avg speed creep up towards the required 26.5kph but it
just wasn't enough and I finally blew completely at about 177kms.. then
grovelled in to the finish. Official time 7:03:31 (avg speed 26.2kph)
Overall, I'm pretty happy with the ride.. I
stuck to my plan and didn't go too hard too early.. I didn't blow up or cramp
on any of the climbs.. and I enjoyed it for most part (until the last hour). I'll definitely remember to take an emergency gel or two (as I usually do but didn't on this ride) as running out of energy in the last hour wasn't fun. And for the record, Roman and his group came in 3 minutes after me.. so if I
had stuck with them I wouldn't have gone under 7hrs either.
