2019 Race Report #13: 4-Person 35 KM Team Time Trial

My 13th race of 2019 was the 4-Person 35 KM (21.5 mile) Team Time Trial. The course was an out-and-back route over local roads in Harvard, IL. This was the site of two previous races: Race #2 (May 12) and Race #8 (August 3). The two previous races were 12 miles in length, while today’s race was the longer 35 KM (22 mile) version.

The weather was pleasant under sunny skies. Temperature at our start time was 64 degrees with 83 percent humidity. The wind was from the south at 6 mph, creating a headwind outbound and a tailwind inbound.

My three teammates were competitors in my age group. This was the first time we had ever raced together. We used a couple of laps of a nearby industrial park as an abbreviated warmup and paceline familiarization. The key to a team time trial is not to ride faster than the slowest teammate. We knew each other’s capabilities, so we focused on a 20 mph average pace that our slowest rider could maintain.

If we had had any competition, we would have ridden faster, leaving our slower teammate to finish on his own. Our finishing time would be recorded when the third member crossed the finish line. We agreed to finish together. Our time was 1:01:55 (20.8 mph average). We did increase the pace in the final mile of the course, hitting over 29 mph.

Race replay: 4-Person 35 KM Team Time Trial

My final race of the season is a 10-mile time trial next Saturday, September 22, in Maple Park, IL, 60 miles west of Chicago.