Taking One For The Team

and had it not been for the team I might have pulled out of the race, thereby ending my 'never not finished a race I've started' record. Even being for the team it was a close call. Every step tonight was painful - and I really do mean every step. My quads are destroyed. I'm not sure I'm even going to be able to hobble tomorrow let alone walk.

Being a team race - and the fact that I don't do giving up, even when part of me wants to - I dug pretty much as deep as I've ever had to. I was losing ground pretty much the entire run but somehow managed hang on in there. From 3k out I was hurting. By 7k I was preying for someone to shoot me - no one did. And some bastard even had the affront to try and close me down with 500m to go - well I wasn't having any of that. Legs buckling and in pain I wasn't giving away any more race positions. I flipped on the after burners for a final surge to the line and held.

With ten to score per team I'm happy to report I was ninth so all the blood, sweat and tears - without the tears - was worth it. In the circumstances, my time of 40:51 was highly surprising on the just under 10k road course. Really quite pleased with that - despite the fact I might need a wheel chair tomorrow...