On 16th February 2008 I took part in the Munich 30min erg race. There were 20 race machines set up on two levels, with the race screen behind. Here I am on erg 14 just prior to my race (after sitting there for 20mins waiting for the race to start!):
I have only raced 5k twice before, with the majority of my erg racing experience being 2k races. We had the same race information on the monitor in terms of distance ahead the behind your nearest competitors, but equating this to a much longer race is difficult unless you get your mind around it before. Here I am somewhere mid race:
At half way I was comfortably in second place, with first 60m up, and 3rd about 50m down. I settled at this point into believing that I wasn’t going to change position in either direction, because 60m in a 2k race would be a long way. With a reasonable finish though I pulled the lead down to 29m, with my result being 8580m, or 1:44.9 pace. The winner managed 1:44.5, so well within sight really, and a pace I was certainly capable of on the day. Of course he could have been cruising knowing I was a safe distance behind, and may well have had lots in hand.
I’ll know if I race a 30min again though that a big lead can be overcome over that duration (or I’ll just try harder from the start!).
