CTC - first effort

I wanted to do a "comfortable" pop at the CTC this month before really going for it. The challenge this month is 4 x 500m with 2 minutes rest - the slowest split to count.

I was not sure how to pace it but though that a 1:37 would do for the first rep. I muffed it slightly and pulled a 1:37.3. That became my target for the following two, I was going to go hard at the last one to see how it felt. Inevitably(?) I set off on the last one hard and then decided that I did not want that much pain. I eased off on that and finished in 1:36.9. Even though this was relatively comfortable (there were times in each row that I was easing off to keep the split on target) my legs are a little tired now so maybe it was harder than I thought.

HR before	500m time	HR after
87	1:37.3	172
127	1:37.2	177
134	1:37.3	182
137	1:36.9	184

I suspect that I will have a run at 1:36.0 next time - this is a power increase of 15 watts. It is a great challenge on pacing. And I feel ready now to start taking on the awesome lightweight Petr Oliva on some of his times again. He did a 1:37.0 and that is definitely in range.

I broke up today! 6 weeks and one day off. Lovely feeling. I sang "A lab of my own" (plagiarised from Joseph and his technicolour dream coat) to 600 girls. I am getting old. My eyesight is going so my lyrics were all blurry. Or it may have been my hand shaking from fear. It went OK. The staff entertainment was excellent this year. Dr Who theme, including teleporting a member of staff to Paris, which was very silly and very funny.

Metres today: 5,013