Cypress

Hopped on Zwift to warm up for the 4:15 A race last night. Timing went like this:

3:30 - Realize I hadn't set my indoor stuff up in a while and it was scattered to the winds
3:50 - Inflate tires to 94 psi F/R because rollers
3:52 - Begin kitting up
3:55 - Pull bib straps off because I forgot my HR strap
3:59 - Start Zwift
3:59 - Turn fans on
4:00 - Calibrate power meter
4:01 - Begin warmup waaaaay later than I need for Zwift A-level crit race
4:05 - Something feels loose on the bike
4:06 - No really... Something is up
4:06 - Stop warmup and find hole in rear tire. The extra 20 psi I added and the deformation of the rollers has begun pushing Stans out of the hole, and all over my rear drums
4:09 - In my kitchen ripping another 700x28 tubeless tire off of my gravel bike.
4:11 - Installing tire onto road rim
4:11 - Stans is coating everything
4:12 - Run into bike room to grab CO2 inflator out of my saddle bag because the pump ain't doing it
4:13 - Slam wheel back into place
4:14 - Clip back in, continue warming up, rear end is loose because Stans is still all over the drums and the new tire
4:15 - Race begins. People are doing 10 W/kg for the first 15 seconds (?!). I'm trying to keep up, but my rear tire is peeling out and sliding side to side all over the rear drums. Instant separation occurs in the race.
4:16 - Sit my ass down and start rolling on power to try and claw my way up to the front (who is still doing 6 W/kg)
4:17 - I'm dragging the entire B field up to the A field at 6.5 W/kg on cold legs
4:17 - Realize that even if I catch the A field, I'll be on inflamed unhappy legs for the rest of the race
4:18 - Bail out.

It's only in hindsight that I realize I could have just slapped the entire rear wheel from my gravel bike into the frame of my road bike and not used the lower range of the cassette. It was a fitting end to a crappy day. I cleaned everything up, ordered 2 new GP5KTL's (one to have as a spare), made a salad, then watched 3 episodes on Star Trek TNG in my underwear.