I raced the Wildcat Mountain Time Trial today.  When Mark and I arrived, we were disappointed to clouds, mist and cool temperatures. I was hoping that the sun would break through the clouds, but I would be disappointed.

I started at 10:05:30, and the climbing started immediately. I dropped down into the largest cog and still it was not enough. However, I refused to let myself shift into my granny chain ring. All too soon, my 30 second man passed me. I was breathing so hard I could not talk, but he could. Then my one minute man passed me. This started a ritual that happened all race long up to and including Mark passing me. He started five minutes after me.

After about two miles of really steep climbing, the grade lessened and we even saw some flats and short descents until the final climb to the finishing line. This was about as long as the initial climb, but not nearly as steep.

I finished at 59:09 with a 11.3 mile per hour average. I burned somewhere between 670 to 900 calories due to my average power output of 233 watts. Interestingly, I average 285 watts for the first five minutes and 256 watts for the first 20 minutes. This calculates to a critical power of 246 as per the calculator at beginnertriathlete.com.

I focused on working as hard as I could during the race, unlike my Marys Peak TT. For example, I average 190 watts on a 135 foot 1.4 mile descent.

In the end, I am happy with my effort. While it was hard, and cold, and wet, I did have fun.