My race report from the vets group is a bit boring...
The first half of the race was a tad too easy, which made the attacks in the second half really sting. Third lap the multi-pitch climb was hard from the bottom. The final 5min we were pushing over 400W single file through the feed zone going 37kph with okes trying to grab bottles while gaps are opening. I remember looking at my heart rate of 182 thinking this is good, I'm hurting but I can manage this and others are hurting too. Then the attack came and I had to drop 800W to follow, redlining 187bpm for the final 1min40s to get over the top. At this stage we're approaching mid 30's so the heat is playing a factor, there's still a break up the road and the team dynamics and having two cats in one race are disrupting our cohesion. I did some work and I threw some attacks just to keep things moving along. Felt like I was playing my cards right, but on the second pitch of the last lap I couldn't do the required over 400W anymore and was reduced to zone 3 Watts at zone 4 HR. Finished with one other guy 3 odd minutes behind the bunch.
Somewhat disappointing, but sometimes that's just how racing goes...
