Sunday was effectively this year’s opening day for Seattle-area cycling.
There were three great choices on offer:
The Cascade Bicycle Club‘s Chilly Hilly is an annual ritual for thousands of local enthusiasts. If you’ve never done the Chilly Hilly, it’s worth doing if for no other reason than to ride a Bainbridge Ferry loaded with hundreds of very expensive and exotic road bikes. The ride itself is just a tad congested, but the camaraderie and sense of community make it a classic kick-off to Seattle’s cycling season.
The Seattle International Randonneurs‘ (SIR) Spring Populaire 100K is also a classic annual event that attracts riders who abide by the Randonneuring spirit, many of whom have some very long rides (up to 1200 km) in their calendars later in the season. If you have an interest in long distance cycling, the Populaire is a great opportunity to connect with the Randonneurs in a context that doesn’t involve sleep deprivation.
Members of the CycleU Road time in formation during warmup. Check out that new team kit.
Still recovering from injuries, this year I ventured out to watch the Frostbite Time Trial with Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA)/Starbucks teammate Dr. Scott Ramsey. Scott hit the deck about a month after my wreck and suffered a broken clavicle and scapula that required over seven hours of surgery and significant hardware to repair. Together we shuffled around the race area with the characteristic gait of the walking wounded.
With bragging rights at stake, the timekeepers at the finish line have the daunting task of recording competitor’s finish times.
With El Niño in full-force, conditions were perfect Pacific Northwest cycling weather: Temperatures in the mid to high 50s with sun breaks.
The Frostbite is held on the Lowell-Snohomish River Rd. near Everett, and this year was hosted by IJM.org/Thumbprint Racing and FootWorks Cycles. The-out-and back course covers a bit over 9 miles and includes a “retro” category for riders on conventional road bikes (as opposed to those sleek aerodynamic time trial bikes with disc wheels). This year’s finish times ranged from about 18 minutes to about 32 minutes.
The time trial format is simple: Racers go off in regular intervals (30 seconds in this case) in a race against the clock. At the start, someone usually holds you on your bike in a “race ready” position as the starter counts you down to the start time. Then you are off. No drafting is allowed.
Of all the racing sub-disciplines, time trialing may well be the most intimidating because there isn’t anything to distract you from the pain and mental ups and downs that you experience during the race. You ride alone pushing yourself as hard as you can. You ride alone with your misery. The only way to end the misery is to cross the finish line, preferably sooner than later.
Wes Wahlin mentally focused as he revs up to cruising speed.
While the concept of a time trial may be intimidating, time trials may also be the equivalent of a gateway drug for bicycle competition. For one thing, they are a relatively safe form of competition since you don’t have to worry about other riders or riding in tight quarters at high speed. Time trials are also a great way to get an intense workout; competition has a way of making you feel like you have no excuses to leave it all on the race course. A time trial will make even a difficult spin class seem like a cool-down.
Many riders think of time trials as a physiology experiment: How hard can you push yourself for 20-30 minutes? What are your physical and mental limitations? What can you do to push beyond those limitations?
Even if you don’t consider yourself a “racer,” a time trial might be an interesting experiment for you.
The next time trial of the season is the Icebreaker on Saturday March 6 at East Green River Park.
