Sugar-Powered, Headwind-Hardened & Emotion-Fuelled: A Race for the Ones We’ve Lost 💔🚴‍♂️🍺 Christchurch, Canterbury ☀️

{"raceId":16371654917,"athleteId":2188545,"name":"Sugar-Powered, Headwind-Hardened \u0026 Emotion-Fuelled: A Race for the Ones We’ve Lost 💔🚴‍♂️🍺 Christchurch, Canterbury ☀️","description":"Today wasn’t just another race. It started on a somber note, livestreaming the funeral of a dear friend’s wife—someone I’ve known and admired for over three decades. She was only 55. Far too young. It hit me hard. But it also reminded me why we do what we do—because life doesn’t wait. So neither should we.\n\nWith misty eyes and a full heart, I kitted up, picked up the car from the mechanic, then rolled out to PMH. It was 28°, the sun blazing, a classic nor’wester nudging us along. A solid crew of 10–15 met up and cruised out to Lincoln where we merged with a bigger bunch—just in time for the weather to pull a classic Cantab switcheroo.\n\nBoom—wind shifts, temp drops to 23°, and we’re suddenly battling a cheeky little headwind all the way to Leeston. But honestly? I felt mint. Tried a new fuelling strategy: 100g of straight-up sugar in a gel bag I got off AliExpress—basically rocket fuel disguised as a dodgy jellyfish. And mate, it worked. No energy dips, no cramps, just that beautiful hum in the legs all night.\n\nThe race itself was punchy. The break stayed away, scratch nearly caught us, but not quite. In the sprint, one rider popped early. I chased—held solid right up to the final 50m when the youth brigade came storming past. Rolled in around 8th. Happy with that on a gritty night.\n\nPost-race debrief at The Lab turned into a cheeky two-pinter, as it always seems to do. Rode back with Greg Manson, talking about the mates we’ve lost from the peloton lately—Adam, Shaun, Brett, Gary McPherson… where are you lads?\n\nGot home, showered, kicked back… then realised: ya muppet, the car’s still at PMH. So back into the southerly I went for one last push. It was late, dark, and windy, but the heart was full and the legs still ticking over nicely.\n\nToday wasn’t just a ride. It was a reminder. A tribute. And a celebration.\n\nWeather Report: Clear sky, 16°C, and the wind was blowing 11km/h from NE\n\n😨 Overtraining warning\n🐶 Free Training (moderate intensity)\n🚵 Flat ground Ride\n🧀 Fat 58.6%, 🍞 Carb 41.4%\n🕯️ Matches 15.5\n🔋 Maximum discharge 80.7%\n\n\n--- Insights by Riduck ---\r\n-- myWindsock Report --\r\nAerodynamics: 0.206 CdA\r\nFeels Like Elev™: +118m\r\nWeather Impact™: -2%\r\nHeadwind: 40% @ 8.2 - 29.5 km/h\r\nLongest Headwind: 06h 39m 51s\r\nAir Speed: 30.2 km/h\r\nTemp: 15-26 °C\r\nPrecip: 0% @ 0 Inch/hr\r\n-- END --","primaryImageUrl":"https://d35tn3x5zm6xrc.cloudfront.net/SsrdXRsAiCChGt1Fi2lbJ2m6mvY-t0_vjKvJxwX61wo/thumbnails/SsrdXRsAiCChGt1Fi2lbJ2m6mvY-t0_vjKvJxwX61wo_600x600.jpg","distance":135209.0,"elapsedTime":47624,"totalElevationGain":74.0,"type":"Ride","sportType":"Ride","workoutType":11,"startDate":"Nov 5, 2025, 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