Free Web NovelChapter 66: Chapter 66: Come-from-Behind Overtake, Crushing Gold Medal
The race entered the final 10 kilometers. After a brief anaerobic sprint, what lay before Huang Chong was a long, 5-kilometer return downhill section with a -2.5% grade.
Seizing the opportunity, he glided down the road at high speed while pulling his water bottle from its cage. Keeping his upper body perfectly still in a highly aerodynamic tuck, he began to replenish the energy lost during the anaerobic sprint with the electrolyte sports drink the system had rewarded him with earlier.
In the support area, the coaching staff and other racers from the team were watching the event with intense focus. They could all see him drinking on the live feed from the camera moto, and incredulous expressions appeared on their faces.
This was because every single technical detail he displayed seemed more advanced and professional than any other rider’s.
"This rider, Huang Chong... how is every one of his techniques so professional? Does he race both mountain bikes and road bikes?"
"I think so. Look, he dared to drift through the U-turn to maintain maximum speed. That’s gutsy!"
"Exactly. And it’s raining, with road conditions this bad, yet he’s not worried about making a mistake and getting torn to shreds. It just shows he has absolute confidence in his cornering technique."
"Impressive. Truly impressive!"
But while the coaches were carefully analyzing Huang Chong’s technique, the other racers’ comments were a lot more blunt:
"Damn, this guy is unreal! Not only is he showing off with that corner drift, but look at him drinking! He’s staying in his aero tuck just to reduce that tiny bit of drag!"
"He’s so obsessed with the details. It’s like he’s trying to be a Tour de France rider!"
"I’ve never seen anyone drink like that during an ITT. I just grab the bottle and sit up straight to drink."
"No wonder we can’t keep up with him. It’s not just that his power output is higher, even something as simple as drinking water, he does it with more precision than us."
"Shit, after the race, I’m definitely getting the footage from the organizers. I need to study it so I can try to close the gap between us in future national competitions!"
...
In the support car, Chen Junyi, whose heart had been in her throat watching Huang Chong drift smoothly through the turn, finally let out a long sigh of relief.
She truly hadn’t expected Huang Chong to dare to use mountain biking techniques to push for maximum cornering speed.
’He didn’t listen to a word I said!’
However, she was, after all, a highly-educated talent who had returned from abroad and had seen a great deal.
During her time in the United Kingdom, it wasn’t as if she had never seen top-tier mountain bikers perform.
So, after seeing Huang Chong’s technique firsthand, not only did she not criticize him, she didn’t even try to dissuade him.
Mastering mountain bike handling skills is, by its very nature, for increasing speed and ensuring one’s own safety.
Any discerning eye could see that Huang Chong’s silky-smooth drift wasn’t some bold, spur-of-the-moment experiment, but a muscle memory response honed through countless hours of practice.
Besides, a high-difficulty technique like locking up the rear wheel to initiate a drift isn’t something you can just pull off on a whim.
That kind of skill can only be built through arduous, day-after-day practice.
"How does this kid know mountain biking techniques, too? Did you hire someone to teach him that in the last three months?"
This was the first time Zhang Guowei realized Huang Chong was skilled in both mountain biking and road cycling.
Zhang Yi had never mentioned this to him before, so he subconsciously glanced at Chen Junyi in the passenger seat.
However, she just shook her head and said bluntly:
"Uncle Zhang, I knew nothing about this either. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have just had a heart attack watching him.
I guess he must have been into mountain biking back when he was in school. Then, seeing road cycling get popular in the country these past couple of years, he switched over.
But actually, that would explain why his cardiopulmonary data is so high.
After all, mountain biking is no easier than road cycling, and the endurance demands are just as high, if not higher."
Zhang Guowei found Chen Junyi’s wild guess quite plausible, so he nodded and didn’t ask any more questions.
In any case, the more versatile Huang Chong’s cycling skills were, the happier he was.
You can never have too many skills, after all.
Besides, with such top-tier mountain bike handling skills, maybe there would be a chance for him to compete in some mountain bike cross-country races in the future.
If he managed to snag a medal in mountain biking at a major international event, wouldn’t that be a fantastic bonus?
After all, one of the core members of the current National Team, the rider Lü Xianjing from Yunnan, also races both mountain and road bikes.
He competes in both disciplines and has achieved excellent results in each, so it’s not some bizarre phenomenon.
...
"Only 1 kilometer left in the race! Keep going, Huang Chong! Hold on!"
...
"Maintain your current average speed to the finish, and you’ll be first. You’ll take the gold medal by a huge margin."
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"Your mission now is to see if you can break 40 minutes for your finish time. If you can hit that, you’ll be at the level of a top-tier national rider!" frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓
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Chen Junyi continued to feed Huang Chong data-based prompts over the radio.
But she had stopped giving him real-time updates on the second-place rider’s performance.
It was pointless now.
The rider currently ranked second by average speed was the contestant who had started just one position ahead of Huang Chong.
But that rider’s figure, struggling desperately against the wind and rain, was now directly in her and Zhang Guowei’s line of sight, only a few dozen meters ahead of Huang Chong.
To be honest, this rider from the Hangcheng Team was actually quite strong.
Over a 30-kilometer ITT course, he could maintain an average speed of around 42 km/h, putting his final time somewhere between 42 and 43 minutes.
If it weren’t for the rain, on a clear and calm day, his average speed would definitely be even higher.
He would certainly reach the standard of a Level 1 Road Cyclist in the country.
A Road Cyclist like Huang Chong, who could push for a sub-40-minute finish even in the rain and thus reach the level of a national Athletic Champion, was just too rare.
He was a complete dark horse, a talent as rare as a phoenix feather.
But what made the second-ranked rider feel utter despair and agony was that, just as he was about to reach the finishing arch, with the roadside sign showing less than 30 meters to go—
a figure suddenly shot past his side.
Then, as he watched in complete and utter disbelief, this figure began to rock the bike wildly, mercilessly overtaking him.
After 30 kilometers of riding at a grueling threshold pace, his legs were completely flooded with lactic acid. He was powerless to respond.
So, he could only watch helplessly as Huang Chong, who had started after him, overtook him and was the first to cross under the square arch of the finish line.
’Son of a bitch, how is that possible?’
After struggling across the finish line, Wang Bao—ranked second overall with an impressive average speed of 42 km/h—couldn’t help but curse viciously in his mind, even as his lungs felt ready to explode in the cold air.
That’s right. He was the second-place finisher in this ITT, the silver medalist.
But he was also the only person—out of all the competitors in the four ITT groups on the first day of competition—to be overtaken by a rider who started later.
This meant the other rider’s finishing time was at least three minutes faster than his.
What kind of gap was that?
It was as if his opponent had pinned him to the ground and rubbed his face in the dirt, cruelly snatching away the provincial games ITT gold medal he had dreamed of winning with utterly crushing strength.
But this was sports. A loss was a loss.
And he had been defeated, completely and utterly.
