You would think I would be used to it be now, I just didn't have it in me the first time over to keep pedalling.

Thanks Lee, my 5 min power has really come on in the past couple of months.

I think so. 😀 So many times I wanted to drop from the group to stop the pain and it was touch and go through the desert as the As finally broke away. I was able to recover and went for a longer effort. I like camera 3 for judging momentum, but had no idea how close you were until you came roaring past before the finish line.

yep, I did too. One slipped away with the front As early on, but we bought him back at some point.

I hope so, I mentally gave up around that bend thinking we had we had 300m more climbing to come and I might be able to recover enough to power through the banner. If I had taken note that the road dipped down to -4% around that corner I think I would have found the watts to stay attached,

it certainly cost me some places. I was able to bridge when we got back to the flat and caught some stragglers for 11th, but it was all fairly needless. "Shut up legs" 😆

thanks, a couple of laps too many for me to hold on. Watching it back, it looks like I just needed one more push to stay in the group, but I just couldn't find it.

yeah, hadn't noticed the differential was that big. It could be the updated physics reacting to my gear selection and cadence, I started the sprint mid ~85rpm and wound up to 115rpm. I also had nice draft when I applied the torque

@@stevej_on_your_MTB yeah you definitely had better draft benefit when you accelerated, I was relying on the single wheel in front and a bit far off it

He was using the crest of hills and sprinting hard over the top to pick up speed. But the route is so punchy its not too hard to bring solo riders back on the next small climb.

Thanks, Paul. He really was. Van Caenegem also held 5.8wkg for the race but not in ZP

Thanks Luke, good to see you racing B again. Think you were in Cat A for a while. I wasn't expecting that to be so relentless. We had a nice selection and it didn't ease up. Great effort getting off the front, its hard to stay away solo from the chasers up the bumps.

@@stevej_on_your_MTB I had ONE good climbing session in a race 90 days ago, and got kicked right into the A category. Ha! Took a long time, and string of very humbling races in the A's, before Zwift realized who I truly was, and sent me back where I belong. Honestly, I find the B races harder. Much more attacking. In the A's, it's more set it at 5 wkg and slowly everyone falls off. Way less exciting. Not to mention, each B race has 50 people, when you're lucky to get 10 in the A. Anyway, all this is to say, happy to be back racing alongside and against you!

Good idea. I can give that a go.

Thanks, Racing on Zwift as it was the first platform I used, and I value the race field sizes, community, and zwiftPower stats. I would definitely race some more in organised IV events. I would like to see elite sterzo integration to make the most of steering.

I've got some fond memories of the Mech Isle climb from my Cat C days and when the gravel bike made a larger difference. 8x in one race is a bit much though.

Thanks, Adam. I did hesitate when you went early. I was trying to get further back so there was a bit of a gap, but I thought I might have left it too late. The ice-cream/food stand on the right was my marker.

I wasn't sure if I would cause a split there, but was also aware someone else might try something on the last lap so I thought I would put the pressure on early and recover back in the pack. You, Jon, and Adam marked it excellently.

Thanks, Rob. The rolling profile is great for me, the climbs are just within my power range. Although I was worried when we were chasing As again and there were a few dicey moments.

Thanks Thomas after getting dropped I decided to try and record a PB. Starting the dirt climb in the village on lap 1 was too much. I got to the lake and needed to release some pressure on the legs which scrubbed loads of speed and that was that. I need to build my 5min power up a bit more in races.

Thanks Joe, I really hope so. I can't hang with the front at the moment. I've put in the work so hoping my 5 to 20min power comes up a bit. Always with hindsight, I think I should have pushed through instead of taking the breaking mid climb

@@stevej_on_your_MTB Yeah, that could be the case. From the vids I've watched, it seems you do the same as me and like to take risks by hanging as far back as you can. Sometimes that pays off, but sometimes we get caught out.

I've watched this back a few times now. I think losing Stephan's wheel as we entered the tunnel cost me too much speed, and then I just got swamped by one rider after another coming over the top of me. I fought back for pack position and was too gassed to carry on chasing when we came out of the ramp.

@@stevej_on_your_MTB Have you considered - at times of maximum stress - just riding at your TT power output? I find when this happens that a few people come over me but I slowly accelerate in whatever draft is available and eventually slot in to line *without* the leg-crushing metabolic cost of the vo2/lactic surges so that once I'm in line I can actually stay there. Sometimes it means I miss a split as I've just got my head down so to speak, but it means that I'm not fully dropped. Those surges just look vicious and sub-optimal me, nothing I know about exercise science / human physiology predicts your power graph is the proper way to stay in a group...

@@MikeHardyiest yep I think its a good observation. At first I was feeling strong so went with the initial attack. I then panicked as those riders came over the top and I began fighting to regain pack position. You can see it becomes more and more unstable as I oscillate between surging and recovery. Your suggestion of riding at TT power was what was needed here, I need to learn to relax more and hold a stable power. At the time, I thought I might be able to weather the storm by forcing the power, but the push lasted a lot longer than I was expecting.

Taking that micro-rest before the surge cost me. I got swamped from behind and then the power wasn't enough.

Thanks Joe. I find the view better to gauge acceleration of the other riders. You only miss what is going on behind you.

​@@stevej_on_your_MTB It also seems to show gradients in the road way better! And I'm just seeing your username here! How's the MTB riding near you?

no you weren't. Those orange numbers were convincing enough and then you didn't back off below 4wkg. I thought about getting across but there was a lot of jungle climb left.

Thanks, climbs less than 3 mins I can punch my way up. Re-joining the As didn't help as they started the Epic climb before the bridge 😆 My head dropped when you started sprinting so early, I almost didn't react. I also nearly lost you on the rope bridge, but got lucky you didn't push over the top.

Cheers, Mark. We both found our sprints today. Here's to a week free of climbing. 😀🍻

@@stevej_on_your_MTB I'll drink to that! 🍻

Thanks Michael, I love those high speed finishes. Those multiple attacks made it really dynamic and exciting.

Thanks, Mark. It was great to ride with you. Sorry, I couldn't have stayed with you for Box Hill. I'm going to have to learn to climb at my own pace on these longer climbs rather than try and chase anyone down. 😆

I think that's a good idea. We get a nice week off before the next series. Time for those adaptations to do their thing.

Thanks, Peter. I've had a good run of form, and hope its helpful to share both the highs and lows of Zwift racing. This is definitely one race I'll be glad to put behind me.

Yep, the mechanical was my legs giving way. Its painful to watch back now and wonder why I didn't just hold a bit more of a steady cadence for those last few hundred meters

Thanks DG, wait till you see today's disaster though. 😆

@@stevej_on_your_MTB looking forward to it. Love seeing a disaster 😂

ha ha, yes and AdZ on Friday. I saw you had a great result again yesterday!. 💪 I'm not looking forward to today's Triple Loops.