My doctor would not have given me a tentative "go ahead" on this plan unless the clot was almost dissolved and was no longer at risk for breaking free. So this also means that I should be off of the medicine and back out on the roads for good very soon!
In the meantime, this is my new definition of riding outside :)
The race this weekend will be my first since Dallas PanAm Cup at the beginning of June. I missed the Magog race I was hoping to attend roughly a month ago due to the clot. I've been following my workout plans that my coach, Bryant laid out at the beginning of the summer, with race simulations and multiple computrainer sessions per week. I'm the strongest I've ever been and the internal pressure that builds up before races has been driving me to push myself even harder in workouts and I can't wait to unleash it in Canada next weekend.
There are some strong athletes on the start list, with both swim and run specialists in attendance. This could prove to be a different dynamic than most Continental Cup races because the course has a decent hill in it, and from what I can tell, is a loop rather than an out-and-back. This means that there are less opportunities to see your competitors on the bike, and some may be planning a breakaway, hoping to capitalize on the concept of "out of sight out of mind." The hills means that athletes who haven't spent much time on the bike may struggle. In the past, strong swimmers have sometimes been able to get a gap on the field coming out of the water and maintain it throughout the race. This will require me to be very vigilant during the early stages of the race and be willing to risk a blow-up to stay with the leaders. Olympic distance racing is all about pain threshold and efficient/intelligent use of bursts of energy. At the end of the day, it will come down to how well I'm able to execute my run, and I'm confident in my preparation to put down a fast split.
