Bike - Patience, Power, Control

I rock through transition in about two minutes. My heart is racing but I feel great. Not even a hint of the lightheadedness that normally arrives as I leave the water. Many volunteers comment on my wall-to-wall grin. I am loving life and notice that there seem to be quite a few bikes still in the lot. I mount the UKMÔ (ultimate Kona machine) and head up Main Street. The crowd is making a lot of noise and I look for my brother. Can't find Chuck but know that he is there. A few pumps of the fist and I am down on the bars.

Another favorite IM sensation of mine is when you start to ride and realize that your legs have not disappeared due to the taper. I am quickly reeling in competitors. In the first five miles or so, people are coming back to me so quickly that I start to worry that I am going out too hard. I feel good but my HRM is reading a little high. I back off a touch and soon have settled into race mode.

After twenty minutes or so, a few competitors come through and they are hitting the bike pretty hard. I decide to stay with them and see what happens. I surprise myself and easily ride with them. Many people come through and immediately die when they are out front. There is a little bit of leapfrogging going on but it is mostly legal. A few of the guys are sitting in and I make a comment to one guy who backs off. Overall fairly clean. Exiting Oliver, an Aussie guy goes crazy on us, swearing and saying that we are the worst *#!?ing guys he has ever raced with. He then drops the hammer and speeds off. He soon dies and we reel him in. A pro and I are swapping the lead, we smile at each other and drop our psycho mate - never to be seen again.

Soon we are at the base of Richter and the air is perfectly calm. Excellent crowd support on the way up and I see that more than half of the guys around me are male pros. I get a kick out of this but also see that I am in some fast company. Part of me asks if I am worthy to be riding with these guys. Another part answers, "yes, just ride your own race." A guy in my age group (AG) is really hitting the hill hard. I go with him and leave the guys behind. Without thinking about it, I have just dropped five pros. One moment they are there, the next, nothing.

I ask a spectator how much time Lori has on us and he tells me that she hasn't appeared yet. This is the first time I acknowledge that I am having a very good day. I know that Chuck is at the top of Richter filming. I crest the top and see Chuck, Dennis and some other pals. I am loving life and shout hi to everyone. Soon I am racing down the Richter-bahn - 53/11 - full aero. I pass my AG rabbit and power into the rollers. My strategy is to hit these rollers hard and survive to the finish. Time to execute the strategy. I see the lead female car for the first time and power past. Up ahead, I see... nothing. There is no one left to pass. Once again I am in no-man's-land, this time between the lead group and the chase group. My self-image is still "slow" so I get a real hoot out of being in this position.

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