The Velodrome- a love story

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If you know me as a cyclist then you may know my mild hatred of
the Track or Velodrome.
In cycling the track is a torture chamber. A controlled environment in which one
can truly push themselves beyond their limits. Oxygen Deprivation and VO2 max
are commonly used terms and easily witnessed on the track.
But the flip side is that it's super fast, extremely aggressive and wildly fun.

In China I'm scheduled to race two events on the track, a 1 kilometer solo time trial
and a 3 kilometer individual pursuit. These are done from a standing start held in a
electronic starting gate. Fastest time advances or wins. This is where the fun or racing
is replaced by serious suffering.
To prepare I went to the 7-eleven Velodrome here in town for the week night races.
After adjusting my bike for longer than I hoped I raced and made it into a 4 man two lap final.
Each of us were held on the line and rolled easy waiting for the attack. The attack came from me with one full lap to go. I jumped using my warmup gear on and held the small pack off.
These are full efforts - like running a 100 meter.
To let some of you know - a track bike is a fixed single geared bike. (no coasting allowed)
with one gear it is important to know the gear you need because to change it requires you to physical remove and replace the chainring/cog. The last thing is that the bikes do not have
Brakes.