T -194 - Desaru Triathlon - Cycle- Sunday August 17th

I'd left my bike in a high gear which wasn't a good ideas as I had a short climb onto the road but in the end it helped as I had to power it up the slope and took two more people who were spinning there pedals up the slope. Once on the road all my concentration for the 1st K was spinning up to 90rpm and getting my gloves on without falling off. Quite quickly I was overtaken by Doctor Patrick in red trunks - he had his name on them and a bloke in a white shirt. Bad news. I was meant to be pushing on the bike so I upped the pace and followed them.

On the way to the first roundabout I kept up with them and then powered up the hill to the roundabout thinking that there was a downhill after the right turn. Whoops. no more uphill:) It did means that I overtook 3 or 4 more people at that stage and slowly on the cycle I concentrated on riding the people in front of me down. Dr Patrick went off into the distance - 50+ and like old oak - tough. White T-shirt settled in about 100 - 200m ahead.

Two young kids started drafting me which as I was interested in drafting anyone I didn't like. At the first hill I came to I used it to take someone else who had slowed down as I sped up and I lost them. The book was definitely right about pushing on hills and recovering on flats. I kept the same approach for the rest of the race.

About this time I started seeing people who had made the turn. there were about 30s to a minute ahead and then about 10 followed by the pack and I figured that I was about 45 on the approach to the halfway point.

I did the roundabout on my tri bars taking another couple and that was it for the easy kills. I'd been cycling with the wind at my back on the way out and didn't realise it. Aaah. White T-shirt was well in front of me but I slowly caught up with him and took him on the slope coming up to the first roundabout - out of the saddle. Then I starte dtrying to ctach Dr Patrick Red Trunks on the home stretch but I was struggling to get my rpm much above 75. I started losing power over the last kilometre or so and red trunks went off again and white T-Shirt overtook me. :(

Coming into T2 I was very fast and almost went over my handle bars as I braked too late whilst trying to do a speed dismount. That did for white shirt though :)