Like Alex and Sabrina have already said, it was a great showing by Cycle U! We made a rainy slog up that hill, and everyone was better for it at the top.
Regarding training, I'd been preparing for this event for around eight weeks. I didn't have a plan per se, but revived the Tu/Tr morning (6a sharp @ the Husky) hill repeat ride that Ryan and Nelson had started in preparation for Wenatchee back in April. There was a consistent group of 3-4 Cycle U'ers, and each day we chose either Interlaken to Volunteer Park, Madrona, or Queen Anne via 3rd Ave from the North. We would do between 4 and 6 repeats, grab coffee, and go to work. On most of the workouts I did as much as I could in the big ring. I think this contributed to my climbing ability more than anything.
In addition to twice-weekly repeats, I continued my daily 15 mile RT commute, and threw in a few crits and medium-distance weekend rides for good measure. I also had the chance to ride the Zoo climb about 6 times this year; 4 of those rides were with the power meter I purchased a few months ago. I have a barely-functional understanding of training with power, but I was able to look at those 4 rides and have a reasonable idea of the power I could sustain on the climb (~400W for 14 minutes). This turned out to be invaluable: I started the TT feeling great, and riding at what I thought was a sustainable pace. I checked the power meter, saw that I was over 600W (a level I could not maintain for long), and backed off to my target wattage.
My other major training component was weight loss. I raced Wenatchee at around 210lb, and it was a lonely, painful trek up that 9 mile climb in the RR. At the Cougar TT I weighed in at 185lbs (204 with bike). I didn't have a power meter at Wenatchee, but I don't think there was an appreciable drop in power output. And I'm not much of a weight weenie when it comes to bike components, but 25lbs of body mass had a huge impact on uphill performance.
Results
The Emo Part
All donations for the race go straight to charity. This year, it's the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. Things hit particularly close to home for me and my family: 4 years ago my younger sister Katie was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. It was a long, hard fight, and she won. The operations and chemo made the possibility of her having children uncertain. On Saturday, when I was pouring my guts into that climb, Katie was in labor. She gave birth to Iris Tagan Wood - a healthy little girl - at 10:45a that morning, just a few minutes after I finished. To say that I was riding for my sister would be an understatement.
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