Universally challanged

Another couple of outings at the weekend making the first back to back racing which always leaves you with a "And why did I do that" moment but it has to be done sometime as I feel my training moves onto another level once you can do two hard rides in a row but just now I only have the feeling of Ouch! that hurt.
On the Saturday afternoon I rode the Ashfield RC 2Up '25' with Mark White of the Leicester Triathlon Club we have ridden this one before so were pleased to get alternative weather conditions of sun & light wind at the two lap Gryffydam course NW of Leicester is noted for its unique weather patterns making it (usually) one tough sod of a course. We did a lap to warm up and I had a bit of a sweat on as the last 4 miles of the circuit is mostly uphill and I'm still nearly half a stone over my race weight, Mark's first race proper, apart from two cross country marathons both of which he was leading until he went in the wrong direction, he said he should know better (Ex Marine - pride of the forces and all that) I tried to be sympathetic until he told me he had done the same the last two years so I told him not to make any executive decisions in the 2 Up and follow my back wheel. He has a lovely new deep section front wheel so I thought I'd better put in a disc (I had been going to ride training wheels) and give ourselves a chance of doing it justice.
Downhill for the first 4 miles we just kept it 'clean' as I said I wanted two even laps (within 20 seconds) and not to go too hard and leave something for the hill (so he can drag me up it!) first lap went by in 29 minutes and shortly after we caught Ex international track man and all rounder on comeback trail (like myself) only with less fitness Rob Muzio and Daryl Webster, half the National team pursuit squad from 25 years ago, anyway we gave them a couple of miles to settle in before passing them and then a couple of other teams at the same time making it look like a road race all spread over the road while trying to keep with my partner, blow me if the 80's throwbacks didn't come back past us on a long decent Muzio Sans aerobars going like a train. We has a bit of a 'battle' up to the start of the hill where I made a big effort to drop them and only succeeded in dropping Mark who had been using a big gear and not able to change his tempo. After a brief wait to compose ourselves we dropped the interlopers (Daryl needing to find his climbing legs also) and finished with 58:11 to give us 3rd place and a very even paced race. Charles Taylor and Chris Storer (S Pennind RC) winning it with 56:11 from Chris Ball (Sigma Sport) and Duncan Shea-Simons (Sigma/Leic Tri) 57:23
On the Sunday I rode out to the Melton Olympic CC Hilly '20.5' on the very undulating B6047 between Gt Dalby and the A47 (Tilton), not a flat bit of road along here the motorbikes love it as they tour the Midlands looking for thrills and give the 'bikies' some heart stopping moments on the one day we want to use this pretty road up to the highest point of the E Midlands (& this side of the Urals apparently)
I had ridden some stiffness out of my legs but I could still feel the effort from yesterday deep down and once I started racing my heart rate would not go near where it needed for this type of effort, dropping down to Twyford at 45mph and then the long drag up the other side I'd done last week in the Leicester RC Hilly but then the killer blow up to Tilton and I was under 10mph even though I'd caught my minute man and it was hard to get going down the other side to the A47 where the climb up to the Billesdon crossroad seemed to go on forever and I had to make a superhuman effort to get up to 18mph into the wind.
The return is a real rollercoaster of lumps and bumps which see you up and down the gears, I passed a horsebox at one point and a coach trying to negotiate a humpback bridge as I sped along through the narrow gap. I had been caught by my MM but he was descending using his brakes on the corners while I (Cancellara style) kept it 'aero' and dropped him over the final climb to Thorpe Sachville and finished 20 seconds in front
I'd gone back over a minute on last year but 53:36 no disgrace for 15th, the winner once again James Perkins (Zenith CC) 48:05 from Scott Walker (i-ride) 48:55 and 55 year old 'supervet' Geoff Platts (i-ride) 49:04
All that remained was for me to ride home with a large group of spectators and other riders returning to Leicester with a favourable wind and the sun on our back, last year the weather for this event was good and again excellent but only a field of 45 when the HQ was full with spectators, I just wish the organiser had a bigger field for all his & his club's effort. Rob Muzio pushed off, no mean feat on a course where you need to have your brakes on to stop rolling off (the wrong way!)