And indeed it still is.
It’s easy to think that once September rolls around the wintery chill returns immediately. But that is rarely the case. Right now we are bathed in 27c sunshine, which actually didn’t feel that crazy hot out there today.
Just right.
Just right, that is, for an impromptu on-road FTP Test. Because why not?
Well, it was either that or stay indoors and sweat it out doing an SST session. I figure this may well be one of the last few realistic outdoor riding weeks before the usual wet weather returns, so may be out more than in this week.
Anyway, heading out I knew I ought to do something fairly strenuous today. Tuesday is my regular SST day so I wanted to get in something of equivalent intensity. It’s hard to do an SST session outdoors, simply because maintaining targets without ERG is a big ask.
It’s easier to do a 20 minute effort as that just about maps to the road length I have available, for my current ability.
So I picked my usual local ‘hot lap’ route and went at it.
I was regretting my life choices fairly early on, which is saying something as the route I use for this kind of thing starts off with a long and gradual down hill. It’s on the way back, the second half of the ride, where you earn your money.
Unfortunately today my route was compromised by a road closure. That accounts for the ~10 second dip where I had to do a 180 and head back the way I’d come from. Fortunately this wasn’t hampered by cars, and as I know the route well by now, I’d already mentally picked a suitable spot to do this.
Even so it took a good 5w off my first 10 minute average pace.
I wasn’t expecting to claw that back, but somehow, gradually, not only did I pull it back but I exceeded it.
If you discount the fact that I was extremely hot, very thirsty, sweating profusely, covered in flies stuck to my sun-cream, and panting like a dog, my second problem was that I was rapidly running out of road.
As I got back to my expected start / finish marker I still had a good 3 or 4 minutes left before I maxed out at the 20 minute marker. I can’t remember exactly how many minutes remained, but it was more than 2.
So I kept at it.
And fortunately I had a left turn that would then take me out onto the A6 towards Garstang and that would be more than long enough to see me out.
That all went fine and I finished off pretty much 20 minutes on the nose.
I wasn’t able to immediately see an FTP change as I’d have needed to end the ride there and then for that to happen. Instead I tried not to collapse and began a soft pedal back towards home. Another 180, this time on a vastly more busy A road. Fun times.
When I finally did get home I was a bit disappointed with the result:
I definitely thought I’d done better than that. But it does go to prove my existing theory that my fitness and ability has declined over the last 3-6 months, and I am where I am.
Anyway it was a good marker and an early insight into what to expect when I do the test properly later this month.
The main thing is I got through it and didn’t quit. My last FTP test was an absolute disaster. I feel like this at least reassures me I still have what it takes to see through a 20 minute ‘max’ effort. Hard to give it the full consistent beans on the open road, but I tried my best today.
Tired again now.
