Norman, Oklahoma's own Andrea Ratkovic has returned with her new TDS cycling team from Mallorca, Spain, and she's keeping us up-to-date on the day-to-day life of a professional cyclist. She'll provide an updated journal periodically on the RTN web site.

Read journal entry #9

The racing is hard out here in Minnesota at the Nature Valley Grand Prix. The first day was a 5.5 mile prologue. I rode a time trial bike that I'd never ridden, and I rode it with training wheels, so my 45 seconds behind the leader wasn't bad considering... More or less I rode the Salsa time trial bike to give them feedback on their bike. I will NOT be doing the time trial at nationals without a disc, however, because it is impossible to be competitive without one. Yes, a disc is THAT important. John Cobb told me that it takes about 15 watts of power to push a disc as opposed to 30-40 watts to push a 32- spoked wheel. Think about the energy output there, and that's not taking into consideration any aerodyamic factors. Optimally, you should ride a 3-spoke or quad spoked front wheel. These are better than deep dish wheels with more spokes.

The next day was an 80-mile road race over treacherous roads. Once you entered the circuit at the end you could stop and get the same time as the top finishers. I stayed in because my two sprinters were still in. At the end, though, they got caught up, and I was caught up behind a horrific crash during the final sprint. That crap happens, and I just hate it.

The third day was the criterium originally scheduled to run 40 minutes but shortened to 30. If you made it through 15, you could pull out and start the next day. Up for grabs were money placings for the top 20. The race organizers did this because a vicious storm blew through and was threatening to unleash another round of rain and lightening. I pulled out because of a crash that happened, where else, right in front of me. Dammit!!

The fourth day we did another 80 mile day. It was hot and windy. I did a lot of work early and throughout the race but was unable to recover properly and was ultimately spit out the back during the last 7 miles. It was frustrating and disheartening. My month long flu/bronchitis bout has left me with little endurance. I can go hard for short periods of time.

My legs are sore and tired, and I'm feeling dejected. All I wanted to do was go for a run after the race to calm myself and get recentered. Of course I didn't do that, but I wanted to...

Andrea