Astwood 10 8/5/13

I really didn't feel at all enthusiastic about this event. A weekend away in Brussels for family reasons had left me tired and a little jaded. This, coupled with all my lack of training, clearly foreshadowed a pretty poor performance. But of course avoiding club events is never going to help me recapture form, so I resolved to give it a go. I rode up to Astwood under darkening skies and with pretty strong winds. Fortunately it wasn't anything like as windy as last time on this course! The event itself was pretty uneventful, though my lack of 'practice' at handling the time trial bike left me rather over-cautious on the more exposed and gusty parts of the course. Despite trying as hard as I could, I finished with a lamentable 25:39. I had as usual been riding to heart rate - and as I write this report a few days after the event and while suffering from a cold, I wonder whether this was beginning on the day of the race. Full results at the NBRC website.