For the last three weeks I have been slowly increasing the amount of effort I put out at the weekly endurance ride.  What I do is sit in front for the first hour of the ride and pull.  I do this so I get one hour unsheltered .  Most of my events I ride/race in I don’t have the benefit of drafting behind other riders. It’s important for me to get time in the wind whenever I ride with groups.  You will notice my Normalized Power increases from 220, 235, 241 watts or 3.23 w/kg, 3.45 w/kg and 3.54 w/kg, respectively, for a 60 minute period.  The first hour of ride is generally uphill.