The OVW colours were on display in a road race today when I rode the Don Stoute Memorial RR. The race started 30 minutes late ( Barbados time) and prayers were said at the start and I was identified as 'a rider from Britain' to the 50- strong field! Thankfully we had a rolling road closure and an ambulance in attendance. It's a while since I have ridden a RR but you never forget your tactics, so I made sure I was near the front of the mixed field of Juniors ( Skittish), Men ( fast) and Masters ( Me). 6 of us got away and the rest of the field were left behind. We were a bit ragged so I had to give them all a chaingang - style telling off and then we worked together better. Then I began to realise I had a problem. I was riding with 2 bottles ( one more than usual!) and everybody else was getting a fresh one each lap. The temperature was 84 degrees and the humidity was high. I decided to quit before I got heat stroke which turned out to be a good idea as I really suffered on the ride back to the hotel. Will plan it better if I get the chance to do it again!
