This was the third race of the California Mountain Bike Series at Vail Lake in Temecula. All the first three races were at this location but on a slightly different course layout. The final two races of the endurance series will be in Big Bear Lake.
At this one, I really had to follow my own race and stick to my planned power numbers. Because this was the last day of the last week of a big base training block for me. I was extremely tired.
This is the recurring theme of my 2021 season. I'm training for a multi-stage event so every race I do in the US this year will be done tired. They are all priority-C races for which I'm not tapering off at all and won't be able to perform. But the goal is to build up my multi-day endurance and be able to physically and mentally push through while tired.
It was difficult at this race because I ended up so far back at the start, I was then held back really bad by slow riders on the descent. Sometimes it can be strategic to push harder at the start to stay ahead, but I'm not sure that would have been beneficial in this case since I would have paid the price later. If anything, I think I started even too fast for the legs I had that day. I should have aimed for lower average power.
🏆 Race podium - Open Men
1st Brian McCulloch
2nd Tinker Juarez
3rd Brandon Baker
I finished 9th in 3:26:27 and moved up to 6th place in the series standings.
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Vail Lake Resort, Temecula, CA, USA
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