trplay
Zen MBB Master
It didn’t start that way, but what began as a slow sign-up for our weekly Team Time Trial quickly turned into a battle worthy of the Cruzbike Virtual Hall of Fame. At first, it looked like it might be a dreaded "no-show" week for Low Drag . But as race day approached, racers began trickling in, one by one. By the time it was done, High Speed had assembled what could very well be the fastest team in Cruzbike history. With Otto W, Larry OZ, Cliff F, John C, Laura C, and Connie S all on the roster, it was clear: Low Drag, get ready for a serious beating.
Meanwhile, Low Drag was watching the sign-ups with only a brave (but incomplete) two-man roster. Greg and I were prepared for a DQ, but we still held out hope that reinforcements would come. I thought to myself, “The recumbent boards are bare. I need to look elsewhere for racers." And then, bam, there he was: Hawkman, the Rehab Ranger himself. He joined our squad, and just like that, Low Drag was back in business. Not only were we back in business, but we were ready to fight.
The race began at a blistering pace, with Low Drag being the first of 13 teams out of the gate. By the 8 km mark, none of those teams had passed us. This isn't normal, we had a good pace. Meanwhile, High Speed started with five teams between them and us. By the 8 km mark, they’d already passed two teams and gained two minutes on us. With 22 km to go, we still liked our chances.
But by the 8 km mark left in the race, High Speed's relentless pressure had paid off. They’d closed the gap and caught us. However, Low Drag had a plan. Surely, High Speed had a weak link in their train? The Cruzbike rules state that to beat Low Drag, High Speed can’t just finish ahead—everyone of their riders must beat all our riders, which is far easier said than done. The plan was simple: pick off any frail High Speed riders and ride their wheel to the finish then pick them at the line.
High Speed surged past, and sure enough, one of their riders had fallen behind. The Low Draggers pounced. All three riders clung to their wheel, radios buzzing with orders to hold on at all costs. It was working—until High Speed’s radios buzzed, too. “Larry, go back and get them. We’ll wait.” Sure enough, we saw Larry dropping back as the team slowed to regroup. Larry caught up, and the pace picked up again. We hung on as long as we could, but not long enough. One Low Dragger dropped off. Then another. Once the rescue operation was complete, only one Low Dragger remained: Hawkman, with 7 km to go. Six riders against one. It was valiant but hopeless.
High Speed wasn’t cruising; they were fighting too. Everyone could feel it—"Got to do more interval training I thought!" The race came down to the final 500 meters. Cliff dropped back to Hawk, and with his team moving in front of him, Cliff sprinted with everything he had, opening up a small gap from Hawk. His effort created a sling shot effect for the rest of the High Speed team, and they surged ahead. The gap they needed to deny Hawk the victory as he could only watch them pull away. High Speed crossed the line in tight formation, racing what could be considered a perfect team time trial.
Low Drag fought tooth and nail, using every fair and unfair advantage at our disposal to make it competitive. But the truth is, the only real solution for us is we must have more racers. We’ll keep looking. For now, Low Drag still leads the series 4-3 with High Speed holding all the MoJo!
Meanwhile, Low Drag was watching the sign-ups with only a brave (but incomplete) two-man roster. Greg and I were prepared for a DQ, but we still held out hope that reinforcements would come. I thought to myself, “The recumbent boards are bare. I need to look elsewhere for racers." And then, bam, there he was: Hawkman, the Rehab Ranger himself. He joined our squad, and just like that, Low Drag was back in business. Not only were we back in business, but we were ready to fight.
The race began at a blistering pace, with Low Drag being the first of 13 teams out of the gate. By the 8 km mark, none of those teams had passed us. This isn't normal, we had a good pace. Meanwhile, High Speed started with five teams between them and us. By the 8 km mark, they’d already passed two teams and gained two minutes on us. With 22 km to go, we still liked our chances.
But by the 8 km mark left in the race, High Speed's relentless pressure had paid off. They’d closed the gap and caught us. However, Low Drag had a plan. Surely, High Speed had a weak link in their train? The Cruzbike rules state that to beat Low Drag, High Speed can’t just finish ahead—everyone of their riders must beat all our riders, which is far easier said than done. The plan was simple: pick off any frail High Speed riders and ride their wheel to the finish then pick them at the line.
High Speed surged past, and sure enough, one of their riders had fallen behind. The Low Draggers pounced. All three riders clung to their wheel, radios buzzing with orders to hold on at all costs. It was working—until High Speed’s radios buzzed, too. “Larry, go back and get them. We’ll wait.” Sure enough, we saw Larry dropping back as the team slowed to regroup. Larry caught up, and the pace picked up again. We hung on as long as we could, but not long enough. One Low Dragger dropped off. Then another. Once the rescue operation was complete, only one Low Dragger remained: Hawkman, with 7 km to go. Six riders against one. It was valiant but hopeless.
High Speed wasn’t cruising; they were fighting too. Everyone could feel it—"Got to do more interval training I thought!" The race came down to the final 500 meters. Cliff dropped back to Hawk, and with his team moving in front of him, Cliff sprinted with everything he had, opening up a small gap from Hawk. His effort created a sling shot effect for the rest of the High Speed team, and they surged ahead. The gap they needed to deny Hawk the victory as he could only watch them pull away. High Speed crossed the line in tight formation, racing what could be considered a perfect team time trial.
Low Drag fought tooth and nail, using every fair and unfair advantage at our disposal to make it competitive. But the truth is, the only real solution for us is we must have more racers. We’ll keep looking. For now, Low Drag still leads the series 4-3 with High Speed holding all the MoJo!
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