Tuesday means race day, and right now I’m taking part in the April series from Zwift Racing, which sees us tackling the cobbled routes.
For today’s race we took on three laps of the Zwift Paris map, rocking the Lutece Express route, which is the reverse circuit of the Champs-Élysées route.
I think this is the first time I’ve done a race on the Paris map, and this was a fun introduction. Last week’s ride had a few of the riders complaining that the pace wasn’t strong enough. No one said that today.
The challenge came from the front runners. There wasn’t much of a let up.
With this route there’s a long drag uphill, then a flat bit as we go around the Arc de Triomphe, downhill for an equal (but much faster) reverse of the uphill bit, then the next part of significance is the underpass.
It was obvious even from the first lap that the two points of action would be the underpass and then the drag up hill. I was hoping the first lap’s pace up that hill was just a burner to tire the legs, but it repeated every lap. Basically I knew that I wouldn’t be able to keep up in the final lap’s push, so it was all about getting into the best possible position and then clinging on for whatever I could hope to salvage.
What it felt like today, for me at least, was quite a tactical race. We had the Burrito and Ghost power ups on drop again. It’s a while since those two have shown up. I don’t think much of Ghost, it’s a bit pointless for me, but the Burrito is a game changer.
When using the Burrito you become temporarily undraftable. It’s pretty useful to use if you’re about to put in a dig, and you don’t want the person behind to get a free ride off all your hard work.
It’s also lethal in a group. When you see the Burrito above someone’s head, you can see the person or people behind slowly start to drift backwards, unless they ramp up their power output. What that can mean is you either have to work hard, or you end up with a split of the group as a bunch of riders continue drafting the person behind the Burrito who is now no longer getting the benefit of the pack in front.
It really spices things up.
Anyway, as above, the main things I learned today were step on the power as you head into the downwards part of the underpass. If you can get a decent whack of speed on the down hill, you can carry that into the uphill and generally come out with the bunch.
And save yourself, as much as possible, for the long drag up hill. It comes in stages, with a little lift, then a lull, then another, then a lull, and then a final surge. If you’re not with the front when they surge, you’re not getting back on.
Which, unsurprisingly, is exactly what happened to me on the final lap. I knew it was coming. And I tried to dig deep. But we were still over 2km from the line and I knew if I pushed, I’d blow. So with a tinge of sadness, and a large pinch of inevitability, I watched the pack drop me and it became about fighting for the crumbs.
I feel I finished alright today. I tried my best and don’t feel like I left much in the tank. I didn’t kill myself, but I was well worn after crossing the line.
Looking forward to a recovery week now. Get the hard stuff out of the way early doors, then chill until next Tuesday.
