It was 2 a.m. when I got up on Saturday heading north to FengYuan/豐原 for the bus ride with the team. It was the first time I traveled with the team for a race so it was somewhat interesting. Not being much of a person with good sense of directions, I made triple sure I knew the way to get to our team headquarters in FengYuan the night before. I was happy once I got there without getting myself lost. Thanks to
Lv DaShuai/呂大帥 and a couple of young guys on the team for loading all the bikes into the bus. With only 15 of us on the bus (the teammates in ZhangHua/彰化 and YuanLin/員林 managed to drive on their own), I got to have both seats to myself for a nap up to JinShan/金山. By the time I woke up, it was just after 5 a.m. Just the right time for my breakfast and what not for racing at quarter of 8.
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| A photo before the race started with my teammate, Lin YingFan/林盈汎, who finished No.2 and Li BoFang/李伯芳, who finished No.5. Good job, girls! (Photo courtesy of A-Fu/ㄚ福, BoFang's husband.) |
I knew this race wasn't going to change my overall standing for the year no matter what so I wasn't all that nervous at all. However, I did make up my mind that I would stay with the pack the entire way before the climb. Even though staying with the pack wasn't all that hard for me last year, it was a push with the way I'd been dropped on almost every group training ride.
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| Completely calm knowing the race results would not change my standing for the year. |
So I did! I stayed with the pack for the 38 kilometers on the flats before the climb with:
- Average speed: 37.2 kms/hr
- Max. speed: 60.6 kms/hr
- Average heart rate: 161 bpm
- Max. heart rate: 180 bpm
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| Not getting dropped on the flats was quite comforting for me. |
I thought I did pretty good considering how I was dropped at the ascent right before we made a U-turn in the same race last year. From the way my heart rate showed, I wasn't really cutting myself much slack either. But then I saw everyone leaving me behind once the climb began. Yikes! I thought my climbing improved a little after moving to Taizhong, but it felt not much different from last year seeing the way everyone leaving me behind. I hustled a little, though not much, trying to climb the last 18k. Not until I saw Li BoFang/李伯芳, the Taiwan Cycling Queen of Mountains, passing me, before I really started to take it easy. I couldn't believe she worked herself up the climb after struggling on the flats all the way off the pack in the back. I had to just hand it to her. She did well! I had my iPod with me so I wasn't lonely for the climb alone at all after BoFang and I exchanged, "Jia-You/加油" wtih each other.
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| The climb was quite a joy once I stopped hustling. |
How I did on the 18k climb was pathetic but what was I gonna do? I am just not cut out to be a climber.
- Average speed: 12.4 kms/hr
- Max. speed: 37.0 km/hr
- Average heart rate: 157 bpm
- Max. heart rate: 169 bpm
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| Suffering, but apparently not enough. |
Once the results were out, it was quite embarrassing. It wasn't quite an honor going up on the podium if you ask me. It wasn't really happy moments for me to finish No. 6 either. Not to mention the fact that I was passed by people who had a flat, passed by BoFang and finished 15 minutes after her. I wish I hadn't had to to go on the podium at all.
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| (From left) Li BoFang/李伯芳, Li BiMan/李碧滿, Lin YingFan/林盈汎, Liu XiuLian/劉秀蓮, Lin LiWen/林莉雯, me, and Wei HuaXuan/魏華萱. |
But all and all, I was very glad the season had officially ended. Though I still have an ITT in ZhangHua/彰化, a relay Ironman in KenDing/墾丁, a couple of races with NeverStop I might do for training purposes, I felt it would be a new start for me. I felt if I wanted to get better results than always #4, 5, 6 finishes, I had got to be more disciplined with my training.
THIS, IS A FRESH NEW START RATHER THAN AN END!
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| Some nice gentleman offered me a Coke at the finish line while Penny on Taiwan Team Spinning Girls took my photo. Thanks guys! |
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| A photo after the award ceremony with ShiLin Cycling Team/仕林車隊 (Photo courtesy of A-Fu/ㄚ福). | |
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Special thanks to:
- My team, Centuple/ 綠油精 千沛車隊, for all the help, supports, and taking me on board this year.
- Team Spinning Taiwan Girls, their support crew, and Rex, for being there for me all the time. It was quite an honor racing for you on Stage 1.
- The super photographers for all the memorable racing moments you captured for us. A-Fu/ ㄚ福, you know you are one of them. THANK YOU!!
- Thank you, Lv DaShui/呂大帥, for unloading all our bikes from the bus in the pouring rain when we got back to FengYuan. There were a couple other teammates that I didn't get your names. Thank you!
- Thanks, Keith, for your sponsorship and the most wonderful paint job you did in July. There wouldn't have been any podium finishes without this most trusty Keith you gave me. It looks like Keith and I are going to put up some good fights for the upcoming season. I can hardly wait!
- Thanks to my family for their support and understanding. Especially my husband. Thanks for supporting me in everything I put my mind to.
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