Racing Season 2008 is Here

Five months of preparation. 4000 kilometers of training. 130 hours of sitting on the bike plus the 100s of hours spent preparing the bike for rides, cleaning it after riding through the sleet and slush of spring here. 2 sets of tires, 2 chains 2 sets of handle bar tape and on and on and on.....and 13 of those weeks spent working in Norway through a long, dark winter.

This week is the beginning of the racing season. Cologne got snowed out but Frankfurt is unlikely. May 1st is the first real challenge of the 2008 season. After my recon of the course 2 weeks ago I have gained more confidence that I can handle this course. It still remains to be seen if I can make the cutoff point at about 60K. It has been published that one must pass that point before 11.10am. The race begins at 8.50 so this leaves 2H20 minutes to pass the check point. Between the start and that point are over 1000 meters of climbing to also be completed. If one doesn't make the cutoff then they will be sent the short way back to the finish as the pros are on their way to the city for their finish too. This is my biggest challenge.

Today, Sunday was my last long ride before race day. I went out for 3 hours and really enjoyed my first short/short day of 2008. Short/short means I wore shorts and a short sleeved jersey. The temps were around 22C and just enough sun coming through the clouds to make it really nice. After 80K of riding I was happy that the bike was set up just right and ready for the date on Thursday. One more short jaunt on Wednesday to test the legs but now it is time to rest. Luckily there is no travel this week and I can control the diet too which is an important part.

Bring it on! I am excited. 4000 bikers will be there at the start. I will not be the last!

Parrothead