I wasn’t sure if it was my kind of race. It’s uphill –good. It’s short – bad. It didn’t take Ainhoa long to give me the answer to my question!

It was NOT my kind of race.

I lost by 20 seconds.

So you might think, not too bad. But not when I tell you I lost 20 seconds on her in eight tenths of a mile! (For clarification, no, I did not walk it!)

So how could I possibly justify 20 seconds on a 0.8 mile race? I ran through my head all the well-established and proven excuses but realized soon: There was no excuse!

When I pre-drove the course, I was intrigued. The start was on the 18% grade then flattens out a little, then kicks up again and flattens out at the end.

Yeah, apparently my strategy of going hard right from the start didn’t quite pay off, because my legs felt torn…. I guess that would be the condition one level higher than burning?

In addition to my rather lamentable look for the spectators, I couldn’t get my breathing right so I hyperventilated my way up and felt sorry for anyone who had to listen to me. It took me entire 4min and 39 seconds to get to the finish!

So…..Ainhoa who won with a respectable 20 second advantage (and broke the record) has just made my winter a little harder.

No screwing around anymore. I think it’s time to actually have a training and racing plan. My previous motto, do as many group rides and races (counting 55 as of now) as possible, doesn’t fly anymore.

However, before I can start working on my list of weaknesses in the off season, finishing the racing season takes priority.

I am probably the last person who found out but one good news I got today is I am VA State Champion… I take that!