Odd Down Circuit Race, 6 Jun 2021

For the first time in a while I had to pull out of a race. It was a really tough decision to make which in itself is positive as 6-8 months ago I was always pulling out of races!

The journey was stressful - it was a long way to go and there was a lot of traffic on the motorway. I was anxious that I wouldn’t get to the race on time. In the end I did get there just in time, but not with enough time for a proper warm up - I only managed about 15 mins. The warm up felt fine, no indication that my legs were tired at this point.

I got to the start line and we went off. I couldn’t clip in at first and my foot slipped so had to sprint to catch the bunch - not a great start. I stayed with the bunch for a while but after the first lap I noticed my legs were absolutely screaming.

I was forced to the front and took a big turn. I think this tipped me over the edge and shortly after I was dropped. Every pedal stroke hurt me and after twenty mins I made the decision to pull out of the race. This was upsetting as it was something I really didn’t want to do and after travelling so far too.

Looking back at the week I’d had a big week on the bike (having had a week off work and doing some long rides) and over the past 7 days I’d ridden over 20 hours and finished off with a race! Not the best decision but it was a big learning point. I don’t think I’d fuelled as well as I should during the week either and I’d lost some weight. All of this contributed to feeling utterly depleted on Saturday.

Although it seemed to be a bad experience there is always something positive to take away.

Laura Powell