I had a little 3-4h loop to NOTL in mind but when I got outside it was too cold to be spinning easily for that long. I knew I had to stop at the bike shop anyways to get some tubular glue so I took the long way to Clarkson's. From there I went to the Locks climb where I descended slowly to try and stay warm. It was too cold and the tailwind was too strong to go slow at the bottom so I climbed as fast as I could and finished it off with a big ring sprint to get started on a tempo pace.
From the top of the locks to home I put the hammer down. Most of the way was the canal path and with no one to share it with I didn't have to slow down to get by anyone at all. I started to feel it when I got some big crosswinds on Port Robinson but still kept the effort strong.
I was pretty cooked after just over 2 hours, which makes a 24hr six-day stretch. Not bad, this was the biggest week I have ever put on the bike and rest is surely needed. The weeks keep getting bigger in my Base 2 block.
Gluing the tubulars was delayed a day, tomorow the tires will be mounted.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
And then there were two...
Waking up this morning was a little delayed, as was getting ready to head out. Debated on taking the cx bike with the road wheels, but once you get a feel for an actual road bike there is no going back until November.
I finally met up with the St.CCC crew at the Tim's in Smithville as they were heading out. The plan was to get in 3-4hrs before the big Club Champlain beer league championship hockey game at 3. On the way out of Smithville Noah and I had a discussion about why I don't use a HR Monitor, PowerTap or even a simple bike computer, it's not that I don't like technology, there's more than one reason for this. I'm defenitely not saying that all that stuff is useless, there are many guys much faster than I am that gauge their fitness by numbers, but this is just my opinion.
One is that people spend way too much time looking at their numbers on a ride and this takes away from the whole experience of a ride. You don't want to be looking at a computer screen like you would be doing at home, it's a time to get away from all that. Two is that I feel that your body will tell you everything you need to know, this is where Noah told me that is how the Belgians do it as well. You don't need a heart rate reading to tell you that you are feeling tired or pushing too hard. You don't need a PowerTap reading to show you (in Watts) that you are putting the hammer down and you don't need an average speed to tell you that you rode fast.
I used to use a CatEye to gauge how long/far I rode but I often found myself looking at the screen every 3 seconds to see how much distance I've gained or hoping to see a higher current speed displayed then the last time I looked. I use my cell phone now, check it when I leave the house and everytime I stop I check it to substract the time I stopped for from the total ride time.
Again, this is just my opinion. Whatever works for you, go for it. There is no right or wrong way to do things so long as you get out there and RIDE. Since getting rid of a computer I've started to enjoy my rides more, some people get too caught up in the numbers and forget to just enjoy the ride. That is why we get out on our bikes in the first place, because we enjoy it; the pain, the suffering, the scenery, the wind, the speed, the adrenaline rush you get when ripping down your favorite descent. You don't need numbers to tell you that you've had one hell of a ride.
The discussion sort of led in to figuring out a way home since I had followed the group that lives the furthest away from me. We ended up in Port Dalhousie so Noah led the way to the locks climb where we parted ways halfway up, he had already ridden 150km. I picked it up to tempo pace for the rest of the climb and through the headwind on the way home to make sure I wouldn't be late for the big game. Got home with 4hrs of riding and I was pretty cooked, hockey was tough but the massive amount of food I ate afterwards at the end of the year party made up for it.
Tomorow is the last day of my Base 1 block before a rest week/taper for the Good Friday RR. It is also the day where I mount my tubulars after a three-day process. Mountain biking is out, maybe a NOTL ride.
I finally met up with the St.CCC crew at the Tim's in Smithville as they were heading out. The plan was to get in 3-4hrs before the big Club Champlain beer league championship hockey game at 3. On the way out of Smithville Noah and I had a discussion about why I don't use a HR Monitor, PowerTap or even a simple bike computer, it's not that I don't like technology, there's more than one reason for this. I'm defenitely not saying that all that stuff is useless, there are many guys much faster than I am that gauge their fitness by numbers, but this is just my opinion.
One is that people spend way too much time looking at their numbers on a ride and this takes away from the whole experience of a ride. You don't want to be looking at a computer screen like you would be doing at home, it's a time to get away from all that. Two is that I feel that your body will tell you everything you need to know, this is where Noah told me that is how the Belgians do it as well. You don't need a heart rate reading to tell you that you are feeling tired or pushing too hard. You don't need a PowerTap reading to show you (in Watts) that you are putting the hammer down and you don't need an average speed to tell you that you rode fast.
I used to use a CatEye to gauge how long/far I rode but I often found myself looking at the screen every 3 seconds to see how much distance I've gained or hoping to see a higher current speed displayed then the last time I looked. I use my cell phone now, check it when I leave the house and everytime I stop I check it to substract the time I stopped for from the total ride time.
Again, this is just my opinion. Whatever works for you, go for it. There is no right or wrong way to do things so long as you get out there and RIDE. Since getting rid of a computer I've started to enjoy my rides more, some people get too caught up in the numbers and forget to just enjoy the ride. That is why we get out on our bikes in the first place, because we enjoy it; the pain, the suffering, the scenery, the wind, the speed, the adrenaline rush you get when ripping down your favorite descent. You don't need numbers to tell you that you've had one hell of a ride.
The discussion sort of led in to figuring out a way home since I had followed the group that lives the furthest away from me. We ended up in Port Dalhousie so Noah led the way to the locks climb where we parted ways halfway up, he had already ridden 150km. I picked it up to tempo pace for the rest of the climb and through the headwind on the way home to make sure I wouldn't be late for the big game. Got home with 4hrs of riding and I was pretty cooked, hockey was tough but the massive amount of food I ate afterwards at the end of the year party made up for it.
Tomorow is the last day of my Base 1 block before a rest week/taper for the Good Friday RR. It is also the day where I mount my tubulars after a three-day process. Mountain biking is out, maybe a NOTL ride.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
3x3
Got a later start on today's ride, rode to the top of the shorter/steeper DeCew for 10:45 and spun around til 11 when De Cal arrived after a flat tire. Thought we had a third guy to ride with when we thought we saw Etzl headin for the descent, I called out "Etzy" and he came over to us. Wasn't Etzl. We took off on what would become an epic 5.5hr day on the bicycles.
The wind had us riding at a quick pace in to Smithville where, strangely, we saw the real Etzy. Then some crosswinds as we headed North to Grimsby. As we were approaching the first of the three climbs, Woolverton, I was getting a little nervous for the descent. Some flashbacks of last years mishap where I ended up in the guard rail were going through my mind. After some reassurance and sick tips from De Cal I was having the best descents I've ever had. Man can that guy go down a hill in style.
The plan was to do 3 reps of each of them then head home. The first one was tough, but the second and third were a bit easier. I was digging pretty deep to try and keep him somewhat close. After the third climb I was done with Woolverton as well as my first bottle. Next was Fifty which is in the outskirts of Hamilton/Stoney Creek, the three reps there went by pretty quick since it is the easiest of the 3. I was getting more confident with descending everytime I went down, using the brakes less and less, still nowhere near De Cal.
We rode the top out to McNeily and I had a pretty sketchy descent, just missing the outside guard rail. I wasn't confident going in to the super steep and sketchy U-Turn as the result showed. After the first climb I was pretty pooched, this is the funnest one to go down making it the toughest one to go up. My second climb up it ended up being my best climb of the day, reassuring me that the next climb would be even better. I pushed hard and as I made the final U-turn I raised my hand as climbing intervals were over, as was my bottles.
We rode out to the convenience store (after De Cal decided to do one more rep up Woolverton) and refilled our bottles and our tummies. The ride home was pretty tough, at times I was battling the headwind alone and others he would drop back and tow me for a whlile. There were a few more climbs as we had to get over the escarpment, but nothing big.
A detour led us to a pretty good leg burner up Ninth and we parted ways shortly after that. I was contemplating either riding out to DeCew and taking a longer but easier climb then having to deal with some rollers on Cataract OR taking more of a band-aid rip approach and climbing Saylor's. Band-aid rip it was. As I got some more fuel in and mentally prepared for it I realised that I could take Sawmill or Sixteen and have a flat ride home. But no, once you start preparing for the rip, you're going through with it. I was pretty cooked at the bottom but once I got to the top climbing was done for the day, and so was I.
After taking a layer off and lying down on my driveway for a little nap and to soak in some sun I realised how fortunate I was to ride with a guy as fast as De Cal. To get faster you have to ride with faster people, they make you find limits you didn't know you had, they push you to a point you never thought you could make it to. On a solo day I would have probably opted for an easy ride out and climb them each once and thought that I had put in a big day.
Tomorow is either going to be the St.CCC club ride or some mountain biking. It's not supposed to rain until the afternoon.
The wind had us riding at a quick pace in to Smithville where, strangely, we saw the real Etzy. Then some crosswinds as we headed North to Grimsby. As we were approaching the first of the three climbs, Woolverton, I was getting a little nervous for the descent. Some flashbacks of last years mishap where I ended up in the guard rail were going through my mind. After some reassurance and sick tips from De Cal I was having the best descents I've ever had. Man can that guy go down a hill in style.
The plan was to do 3 reps of each of them then head home. The first one was tough, but the second and third were a bit easier. I was digging pretty deep to try and keep him somewhat close. After the third climb I was done with Woolverton as well as my first bottle. Next was Fifty which is in the outskirts of Hamilton/Stoney Creek, the three reps there went by pretty quick since it is the easiest of the 3. I was getting more confident with descending everytime I went down, using the brakes less and less, still nowhere near De Cal.
We rode the top out to McNeily and I had a pretty sketchy descent, just missing the outside guard rail. I wasn't confident going in to the super steep and sketchy U-Turn as the result showed. After the first climb I was pretty pooched, this is the funnest one to go down making it the toughest one to go up. My second climb up it ended up being my best climb of the day, reassuring me that the next climb would be even better. I pushed hard and as I made the final U-turn I raised my hand as climbing intervals were over, as was my bottles.
We rode out to the convenience store (after De Cal decided to do one more rep up Woolverton) and refilled our bottles and our tummies. The ride home was pretty tough, at times I was battling the headwind alone and others he would drop back and tow me for a whlile. There were a few more climbs as we had to get over the escarpment, but nothing big.
A detour led us to a pretty good leg burner up Ninth and we parted ways shortly after that. I was contemplating either riding out to DeCew and taking a longer but easier climb then having to deal with some rollers on Cataract OR taking more of a band-aid rip approach and climbing Saylor's. Band-aid rip it was. As I got some more fuel in and mentally prepared for it I realised that I could take Sawmill or Sixteen and have a flat ride home. But no, once you start preparing for the rip, you're going through with it. I was pretty cooked at the bottom but once I got to the top climbing was done for the day, and so was I.
After taking a layer off and lying down on my driveway for a little nap and to soak in some sun I realised how fortunate I was to ride with a guy as fast as De Cal. To get faster you have to ride with faster people, they make you find limits you didn't know you had, they push you to a point you never thought you could make it to. On a solo day I would have probably opted for an easy ride out and climb them each once and thought that I had put in a big day.
Tomorow is either going to be the St.CCC club ride or some mountain biking. It's not supposed to rain until the afternoon.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Masking the pain
Today would have been a great day to not allow your facial expressions to give away how tired you really are because the wind was so strong and cold that my whole face went numb in the matter of a minute.
Left the house at 9:15 and headed towards Fenwick to meet up with Max, it took an extra long time to get ready this morning because I completely fell out the routine of putting 3 layers on. We rode into Wainfleet with some big crosswinds and then turned to go North into Smithville and take the wind head on. The road seemed to go on forever and every 2-3% incline felt more like a Hydro Hill type of climb. We were always in the second or third smallest gear and trying to keep a smooth cadence, just like climbing a long hill.
We stopped and Tim's for 5min, literally, to thaw out. By the time my gloves were off and food was eaten it was time to go. We took a few roads around Silverdale to get home and parted ways once we arrived back in Fenwick, ride time was getting close to 4 hours so I decided to finish the ride with a loop down by the Welland river. Took a quick stop for my third urination of the ride then kept heading South until I saw water. Usually this way would add 20-25min to a ride in the summer-time but today it was more like 45. Finished with 4.5hrs of riding but it felt more like 6.
Nothing left to do now but eat a lot of food, drink a lot of water, and sleep to get set for tomorow's ride to the Big Three (I got tired of re-writting all three of their names over and over again) with De Cal. Last time I did this ride with him I bonked with about 2 hours of riding left, let's see how this one goes.
Oh yeah, and today I rode on the cross bike with road tires again for some reason. It would have been a beauty day to take out the road bike, most of the salt is all pushed to the side thanks to the rain. It will feel good to take it out for my first time this year tomorow.
Left the house at 9:15 and headed towards Fenwick to meet up with Max, it took an extra long time to get ready this morning because I completely fell out the routine of putting 3 layers on. We rode into Wainfleet with some big crosswinds and then turned to go North into Smithville and take the wind head on. The road seemed to go on forever and every 2-3% incline felt more like a Hydro Hill type of climb. We were always in the second or third smallest gear and trying to keep a smooth cadence, just like climbing a long hill.
We stopped and Tim's for 5min, literally, to thaw out. By the time my gloves were off and food was eaten it was time to go. We took a few roads around Silverdale to get home and parted ways once we arrived back in Fenwick, ride time was getting close to 4 hours so I decided to finish the ride with a loop down by the Welland river. Took a quick stop for my third urination of the ride then kept heading South until I saw water. Usually this way would add 20-25min to a ride in the summer-time but today it was more like 45. Finished with 4.5hrs of riding but it felt more like 6.
Nothing left to do now but eat a lot of food, drink a lot of water, and sleep to get set for tomorow's ride to the Big Three (I got tired of re-writting all three of their names over and over again) with De Cal. Last time I did this ride with him I bonked with about 2 hours of riding left, let's see how this one goes.
Oh yeah, and today I rode on the cross bike with road tires again for some reason. It would have been a beauty day to take out the road bike, most of the salt is all pushed to the side thanks to the rain. It will feel good to take it out for my first time this year tomorow.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Large double double to go please
The first 2 hours of the ride was outside and the second 2 was inside, here is out it played out;
Fueled up with a big hearty breakfast before heading to class, hit the bike shop on the way home, got home and topped up the tank. While waiting for my food to digest I took up my grips that were sliding off on the beater mtb and replaced it with a hagered bar tape job, nothing some hockey tape can't fix. I find it very comfortable, was inspired to do this by De Cal who opted for white bar tape on his mtb... I might do it to my race bike seeing as I still have a whole roll and then some, of black bar tape that is.
Geared up and stepped outside to very little wind and even a bit of sun, stripped off a layer and I was on my way to Port Colborne. It had drizzled a little bit earlier but it didn't seem like enough to get the trails soft. I got into Mud Lake and headed right until a massive wet patch and turned around to see how far I could make it the other way before I had to turn around. It ended up being about the same distance, I was very disapointed to see not one but multiple (they seemed to be fresh) tire tracks. Shame on you. I hoped that I would have better luck in The Hood, same story, rode until things got too soft and AGAIN there were about 4 fresh tire tracks going through some very soft parts. Who likes to ride in the mud when it's freezing cold out anyways? Oh yeah, did I mention that once it started raining again the temperature dropped about 5 degrees. Now I was way under dressed and pissed off that people would actually ride through that shit, time to head home. I opted for the longer way home and included some mediocre iso-leg stuff. I had only been out for 2 hours and I was freakin starving.
Refuelled and swapped a tire while I digested the food, followed by a patch job on the tube I seem to have puctured while swapping the tire. The sticky patch actually worked, I put the road bike together and got on the trainer. The workout went like this;
-30min warm up (not really need having previously rode)
-12x5 min build up to max cadence *hold for 30s*
-spin to loosen the legs a little
-20x45s iso-leg (10 per leg, 15s spin before switching legs)
This added up to exactly 2 hours, I spun the legs a little to clear some lactic acid before heading upstairs for some grub.
Pretty solid day on the bike, some people have some explaining to do to the SHCC on why they like to destroy trails, but that's none of my business. Tomorow is looking like a flat day, if it's nice enough I'd like to do the century route on my road bike. Saturday is Woolverton !
Fueled up with a big hearty breakfast before heading to class, hit the bike shop on the way home, got home and topped up the tank. While waiting for my food to digest I took up my grips that were sliding off on the beater mtb and replaced it with a hagered bar tape job, nothing some hockey tape can't fix. I find it very comfortable, was inspired to do this by De Cal who opted for white bar tape on his mtb... I might do it to my race bike seeing as I still have a whole roll and then some, of black bar tape that is.
Geared up and stepped outside to very little wind and even a bit of sun, stripped off a layer and I was on my way to Port Colborne. It had drizzled a little bit earlier but it didn't seem like enough to get the trails soft. I got into Mud Lake and headed right until a massive wet patch and turned around to see how far I could make it the other way before I had to turn around. It ended up being about the same distance, I was very disapointed to see not one but multiple (they seemed to be fresh) tire tracks. Shame on you. I hoped that I would have better luck in The Hood, same story, rode until things got too soft and AGAIN there were about 4 fresh tire tracks going through some very soft parts. Who likes to ride in the mud when it's freezing cold out anyways? Oh yeah, did I mention that once it started raining again the temperature dropped about 5 degrees. Now I was way under dressed and pissed off that people would actually ride through that shit, time to head home. I opted for the longer way home and included some mediocre iso-leg stuff. I had only been out for 2 hours and I was freakin starving.
Refuelled and swapped a tire while I digested the food, followed by a patch job on the tube I seem to have puctured while swapping the tire. The sticky patch actually worked, I put the road bike together and got on the trainer. The workout went like this;
-30min warm up (not really need having previously rode)
-12x5 min build up to max cadence *hold for 30s*
-spin to loosen the legs a little
-20x45s iso-leg (10 per leg, 15s spin before switching legs)
This added up to exactly 2 hours, I spun the legs a little to clear some lactic acid before heading upstairs for some grub.
Pretty solid day on the bike, some people have some explaining to do to the SHCC on why they like to destroy trails, but that's none of my business. Tomorow is looking like a flat day, if it's nice enough I'd like to do the century route on my road bike. Saturday is Woolverton !
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Time Management
For the first time in while I had to miss a day of riding for school work. I have known for the past 2 months about the 4 big assignements that were all piled together 2 weeks apart. Two months ago it seemed like I had lots of time, same with last weekend, but when you have 2 assignements left to do for the next day and you havent started either of them... There isn't so much time anymore. So Monday and yesterday were days off, although tuesday was supposed to be a rest day anyways so I only ended up missing one ride. I could have avoided staying up very late (well early seeing as it was way into the am hours) by doing one of the assignements today, but that would mean 3 days off in a row. Like that European guy from Family Guy would put it: "Dehr's no hway." So I pushed through and got it all over with, nothing to worry about now until the finals in less that a month.
Today's ride had alot of fast paced climbing, met up with Max Csikos from the St.CCC in Fenwick and from there we went in to Jordan where most of the climbing took place. Not sure what the names of the streets were, they all seem to be named after numbers. After some good tempo back into St. Catharines we climbed DeCew and then headed into North Pelham for some more climbs. From there, yes you guessed it, it was Saylor's Hill. I climbed up as hard as I could before calling it a day. 3.5hrs of riding, not bad.
On another note, De Cal is back from the OCA camp. Now I defenitely need to get the road bike out for this weekend's plan to Woolverton/McNeily/Fifty roads. Tomorow will be mountain biking, apparently the trails in the south are already dry... beauty.
Today's ride had alot of fast paced climbing, met up with Max Csikos from the St.CCC in Fenwick and from there we went in to Jordan where most of the climbing took place. Not sure what the names of the streets were, they all seem to be named after numbers. After some good tempo back into St. Catharines we climbed DeCew and then headed into North Pelham for some more climbs. From there, yes you guessed it, it was Saylor's Hill. I climbed up as hard as I could before calling it a day. 3.5hrs of riding, not bad.
On another note, De Cal is back from the OCA camp. Now I defenitely need to get the road bike out for this weekend's plan to Woolverton/McNeily/Fifty roads. Tomorow will be mountain biking, apparently the trails in the south are already dry... beauty.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
So now you decide to show up
An extra hour of sleep was needed this morning in order to face the crappy weather, I guess it was inevitable. I took off from my house at 8:15 and did a short loop before meeting what was supposed to be the St. Catharines CC. After waiting around for 5 minutes I started riding up and down Canboro to see if I can see them. I know I didn't miss them this time... What was the hell is goin on ??? Where are those hardcore, ride in any type of weather, nothing can keep me off my bike kind of cyclists ? I'm sure there was a reasonable explanation, but today of all days, come on...
So I thought it was going to be another solo ride into the abyss but on my last pass on Canboro I met up with Max from the club and we waited another 5 minutes before heading out to Smithville. After a little while I started to feel a little bonk coming on, I didn't realise that 3 hours had already passed and I only drank a quarter of a bottle. I took a banana to hold me off until home. Got in just under 4 hours of ride time and half a water bottle down. We did pretty well for two guys who put in big rides yesterday considering how windy and shitty it was.
By the end of the ride my toes were going numb, I've to come up with a new way to keep my booties from falling apart before I head out next time because the electrical tape tightens up after 3 hours of cold and has absolutely no give.
The title is not about the riders but about the sun. Once I got home and thawed out, I looked outside to see the sun shinning somewhat bright and the rain had stopped. Nice.
We talked about a race goin on in Oakville called the Tour of Bronte, gonna check that out. Might go on the race schedule the weekend before P2A. We'll see...
So I thought it was going to be another solo ride into the abyss but on my last pass on Canboro I met up with Max from the club and we waited another 5 minutes before heading out to Smithville. After a little while I started to feel a little bonk coming on, I didn't realise that 3 hours had already passed and I only drank a quarter of a bottle. I took a banana to hold me off until home. Got in just under 4 hours of ride time and half a water bottle down. We did pretty well for two guys who put in big rides yesterday considering how windy and shitty it was.
By the end of the ride my toes were going numb, I've to come up with a new way to keep my booties from falling apart before I head out next time because the electrical tape tightens up after 3 hours of cold and has absolutely no give.
The title is not about the riders but about the sun. Once I got home and thawed out, I looked outside to see the sun shinning somewhat bright and the rain had stopped. Nice.
We talked about a race goin on in Oakville called the Tour of Bronte, gonna check that out. Might go on the race schedule the weekend before P2A. We'll see...
Saturday, March 20, 2010
First official spring ride
It seemed as though I would be slacking today when I slept past my 6:30 wake-up by 5 hours. I was going to ride with the St.CCC, but today was not a day to be on the road bike. I got word on the SHCC forum that the trails in Port are dry, by 1:15 I was on my way.
I started with a nice loop around Mud Lake before continuing towards The Hood. I was planning on doing some Freezer laps and see where it goes from there, I found 2 trails that weren't rideable but easily by-passable. I must have ridden some trails 5 or 6 times, most notably the Cliffhanger trail. The bottom was flooded so I rode the top part at least 6 times. There was a steep gravel hill that wasn't part of any races there but it was part of a by-pass of the lower Cliffhanger trail, I did a good 5 reps on that hill.
I was only down 2-3times, one of them was a pretty good superman. I'm surprised at how well I was able to handle the bike today (for me anyways) after being away from the trails for a while.
Each time I started off for a modified loop I had a different objective. One time it was to stand and power through every climb, another it was to continue pedaling at a steady cadence and make use of the gears. The trails were just insane, summer-like conditions I'm tellin ya. Completely different than what's goin on in the North. It was around 5 degrees out today but in the trails it felt more like 20. I felt it on the way home though, nice big headwind all the way home to end a sick ride.
Got in about 5h today, 4 of which was on the trail.
Just gettin in as much fuel as my body will take right now to see if I can wake up in time to ride with the St.CCC, always a quick pace on those rides. That would make a good 4-6h day. Hopefull the rain will hold off just a little bit longer so I can squeeze out one more trail ride from this crazy weather.
I started with a nice loop around Mud Lake before continuing towards The Hood. I was planning on doing some Freezer laps and see where it goes from there, I found 2 trails that weren't rideable but easily by-passable. I must have ridden some trails 5 or 6 times, most notably the Cliffhanger trail. The bottom was flooded so I rode the top part at least 6 times. There was a steep gravel hill that wasn't part of any races there but it was part of a by-pass of the lower Cliffhanger trail, I did a good 5 reps on that hill.
I was only down 2-3times, one of them was a pretty good superman. I'm surprised at how well I was able to handle the bike today (for me anyways) after being away from the trails for a while.
Each time I started off for a modified loop I had a different objective. One time it was to stand and power through every climb, another it was to continue pedaling at a steady cadence and make use of the gears. The trails were just insane, summer-like conditions I'm tellin ya. Completely different than what's goin on in the North. It was around 5 degrees out today but in the trails it felt more like 20. I felt it on the way home though, nice big headwind all the way home to end a sick ride.
Got in about 5h today, 4 of which was on the trail.
Just gettin in as much fuel as my body will take right now to see if I can wake up in time to ride with the St.CCC, always a quick pace on those rides. That would make a good 4-6h day. Hopefull the rain will hold off just a little bit longer so I can squeeze out one more trail ride from this crazy weather.
Friday, March 19, 2010
The 2 week countdown
After working from 8-3 on the farm I still managed to pull off some sort of spin-up/iso-leg workout on the trainer. Damn, and it was soooo nice out today to. I defenitely could have gotten the workout done outside. Why did I opt for the indoors ? Maybe subconciously I am still in winter mode so when starting a workout at 5 it is either going to be with the lights or the trainer. I wasn't feeling too good today, I'm pretty sure it's from work more than anything.
The Good Friday road race is exactly two weeks away ! I don't have my race license yet, I haven't glued my tubulars yet, I haven't taken my road bike out yet, and my cassette on the clinchers still needs to be swapped over to the carbon tubs BUT the engine is hot and ready. In the end, that is the most important part. Next week will be a pretty big week, then the week of the race is my R&R week and the last week of my Base 1 block.
Just finished reading Dan Dakin's new Canadian Cyling Magazine and I must say it is pretty sick. It was cool to see a letter to the editor from our very own Rob W. Can someone please tell me where that mistake is ? Apparently there is a mistake in the magazine that was pointed out to Dan numerous times during their trip to South Carolina.
The Good Friday road race is exactly two weeks away ! I don't have my race license yet, I haven't glued my tubulars yet, I haven't taken my road bike out yet, and my cassette on the clinchers still needs to be swapped over to the carbon tubs BUT the engine is hot and ready. In the end, that is the most important part. Next week will be a pretty big week, then the week of the race is my R&R week and the last week of my Base 1 block.
Just finished reading Dan Dakin's new Canadian Cyling Magazine and I must say it is pretty sick. It was cool to see a letter to the editor from our very own Rob W. Can someone please tell me where that mistake is ? Apparently there is a mistake in the magazine that was pointed out to Dan numerous times during their trip to South Carolina.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Nope, not yet anyways
I was in a hurry coming home from class this morning to fuel up and get dressed quickly to squeeze in a 4hr mtb ride in a 6 hour break. At 11 I headed and my class started at 6.
I started off by riding to Cataract and following the ATV trail back towards home to see where it lead to. It took me right into the Pipeline trails in Fonthill, I got into a trail but when it got shaded it was way too muddy. I took a very steep gravel climb back up and headed towards St. Kitts. I took Wiley Rd. to see the if the Short Hills were any good from that entrance, no go. I made my was to the DeCew Mill trail and it was prefect up until the trail after the long gravel stretch along the bay. I like the trail from this way better anyways.
I bombed down the twisty hill on DeCew to check out the 12 mile creek trails, once in the shade there was no way. Same deal for the Short Hills entrance across the street. I didn't mind retracing my steps and having to climb alot, I was climbing pretty well today and managed to keep a good cadence in the big ring when in the headwind. On my way over to the end of DeCew where the bridge is out I couldn't resist another out-and-back on the Mill trail because the trail really gets the heart pumpin. So far this was the only rideable trail and it was nearly perfect.
I by-passed the bridge with the L2L stretch and Merrittville. I decided to go to the old Dump and do a lap of the old St.CCC monday night youth dump races. As I pounded away at the first climb that takes you right to the top of the site I was having some flashbacks of bumpin shoulders with good buddies that I haven't ridden with in a while.
I took the sick descent on the side of the escarpment that takes you to Glenridge then climbed the rest of that road at race pace. I looked at the cell phone and was satisfied that I had been out for 3.5hrs and was still 45 minutes or so from home. I took the L2L stretch all the way into Welland and didn't have enough time to check out those trails along the canal. Oh well, it was a great ride.
I might be forced indoors for the first time in a while, one day this weekend will be for sure for the spin-ups and iso-leg day of the week. If it is cold I can deal with the L2L stretch, maybe even to Port or some reps of the Mill trail. If it rains then trainer it is.
The birds left the barn today so at 8am tomorow morning the shit shoveling will commence.
I started off by riding to Cataract and following the ATV trail back towards home to see where it lead to. It took me right into the Pipeline trails in Fonthill, I got into a trail but when it got shaded it was way too muddy. I took a very steep gravel climb back up and headed towards St. Kitts. I took Wiley Rd. to see the if the Short Hills were any good from that entrance, no go. I made my was to the DeCew Mill trail and it was prefect up until the trail after the long gravel stretch along the bay. I like the trail from this way better anyways.
I bombed down the twisty hill on DeCew to check out the 12 mile creek trails, once in the shade there was no way. Same deal for the Short Hills entrance across the street. I didn't mind retracing my steps and having to climb alot, I was climbing pretty well today and managed to keep a good cadence in the big ring when in the headwind. On my way over to the end of DeCew where the bridge is out I couldn't resist another out-and-back on the Mill trail because the trail really gets the heart pumpin. So far this was the only rideable trail and it was nearly perfect.
I by-passed the bridge with the L2L stretch and Merrittville. I decided to go to the old Dump and do a lap of the old St.CCC monday night youth dump races. As I pounded away at the first climb that takes you right to the top of the site I was having some flashbacks of bumpin shoulders with good buddies that I haven't ridden with in a while.
I took the sick descent on the side of the escarpment that takes you to Glenridge then climbed the rest of that road at race pace. I looked at the cell phone and was satisfied that I had been out for 3.5hrs and was still 45 minutes or so from home. I took the L2L stretch all the way into Welland and didn't have enough time to check out those trails along the canal. Oh well, it was a great ride.
I might be forced indoors for the first time in a while, one day this weekend will be for sure for the spin-ups and iso-leg day of the week. If it is cold I can deal with the L2L stretch, maybe even to Port or some reps of the Mill trail. If it rains then trainer it is.
The birds left the barn today so at 8am tomorow morning the shit shoveling will commence.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
It was almost too easy...
Getting ready to go out and ride is now pretty much part of my everyday routine (well 6/7 days) but today I felt like I cheated Mother Nature when I went out for this one. Just over 5hrs ride time, it was.
I had initially planned to hit up the circle route and have fun trying to find a way home from Fort Erie, but I felt like climbing. I started off by going South to the river then North to Rockway, put the hammer down to chase down a cyclist just up the road. His name was Greg, good guy. He went right and I made a left to do a loop along some golf course, on the other side the road comes to a dead end, this time I dismounted and crossed the train tracks to finish up the loop. The climb that starts/finishes the loop is pretty sick.
Then I backtracked and went further West to Jordan, took a few roads out as far North as I can go. It's a service road along Lake Ontario. The view was amazing; not a cloud in the sky and not a ripple on the lake. The sound barrier between me and the highway made for a pretty peaceful stretch. I took that as far as it goes and ended up on Lakeshore. That took me through downtown Port Dalhousie where I got lost for a bit. The bars were jam-packed and it was a pretty sweet ride through the town, minus some douchebags at the bar that were slurrin some comments my way. Not too sure what they said, I think I heard "I love men" or something like that.
I followed that to the Parkway and climbed up to the Brock Monument. It wasn't part of the route, but why would you ride out to the bottom of the climb and not do it ? It just doesn't make sense, the descent makes the pain worth while. I went through downtown NOTL for some motor pacing and felt really good after the first stretch that I pulled a U-Turn and drafted a car back towards the lake then another car on the way back. This sure got the blood pumpin and I had to ease off for a bit and get a some fuel in me.
The stretch coming in to St. Catharines was pretty peaceful until some guy decided to try and run me over. There was nobody but me on the road coming his way, my white socks, baby blue helmet and bright yellow freakin jersey make me pretty visible... Especially in the day time! He still manages to pull out of a driveway and I had to ride into a ditch to avoid it. I'm very surprised about how much grip I got from the road tires when I was on some loose dirt/grass.
After 4.5hrs I started the climb up the locks and had one gulp of water left. I told myself I would take it when I get to Cataract. I was pretty pooched fighting the headwind on the way home, but still kept a good pace. I took all the climbs at a pretty good clip and stayed in the big ring for most of the ride. I felt good today, probably the best I've felt this year.
Tomorow is going to be mountain biking fo sho. Somewhere in the 3-4h range.
I had initially planned to hit up the circle route and have fun trying to find a way home from Fort Erie, but I felt like climbing. I started off by going South to the river then North to Rockway, put the hammer down to chase down a cyclist just up the road. His name was Greg, good guy. He went right and I made a left to do a loop along some golf course, on the other side the road comes to a dead end, this time I dismounted and crossed the train tracks to finish up the loop. The climb that starts/finishes the loop is pretty sick.
Then I backtracked and went further West to Jordan, took a few roads out as far North as I can go. It's a service road along Lake Ontario. The view was amazing; not a cloud in the sky and not a ripple on the lake. The sound barrier between me and the highway made for a pretty peaceful stretch. I took that as far as it goes and ended up on Lakeshore. That took me through downtown Port Dalhousie where I got lost for a bit. The bars were jam-packed and it was a pretty sweet ride through the town, minus some douchebags at the bar that were slurrin some comments my way. Not too sure what they said, I think I heard "I love men" or something like that.
I followed that to the Parkway and climbed up to the Brock Monument. It wasn't part of the route, but why would you ride out to the bottom of the climb and not do it ? It just doesn't make sense, the descent makes the pain worth while. I went through downtown NOTL for some motor pacing and felt really good after the first stretch that I pulled a U-Turn and drafted a car back towards the lake then another car on the way back. This sure got the blood pumpin and I had to ease off for a bit and get a some fuel in me.
The stretch coming in to St. Catharines was pretty peaceful until some guy decided to try and run me over. There was nobody but me on the road coming his way, my white socks, baby blue helmet and bright yellow freakin jersey make me pretty visible... Especially in the day time! He still manages to pull out of a driveway and I had to ride into a ditch to avoid it. I'm very surprised about how much grip I got from the road tires when I was on some loose dirt/grass.
After 4.5hrs I started the climb up the locks and had one gulp of water left. I told myself I would take it when I get to Cataract. I was pretty pooched fighting the headwind on the way home, but still kept a good pace. I took all the climbs at a pretty good clip and stayed in the big ring for most of the ride. I felt good today, probably the best I've felt this year.
Tomorow is going to be mountain biking fo sho. Somewhere in the 3-4h range.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Didn't finish this ride with Saylor's
A very rare thing when I make my way to the north, as Jeff pointed out. Yesterday I had intentions on going through St Kitts then making my way to NOTL. Once I climbed Decew (and seen a massive flood on the 8x12) I decided that I wanted to climb a bit more. I headed into Jordan and kept going til I ended up in a township called Tintern, pretty sweet little place. Then from there I didn't know at all which roads to take but I knew which direction to go, I kept going south until I got to the Welland river. I followed that away from home and out to Wainfleet then crossed the bridge and made my home on the other side.
I knew that O'Reilly's bridge was out so it would be a little detour but I still had 45 min to go so that was cool. I didn't realise that the next crossing was going to be all the way back in Welland south. The last 15min of the ride was going through my beautiful hometown. Lots of big names in hockey from here (Paille, Clutterbuck, Bissonette to name a few). Hopefully in a few years we can say the same about cycling.
Just over 3hrs ride time. There were black clouds in the sky but it didn't rain, the wind is still very cold, I was a bit over-dressed in the tailwind and a bit under-dressed in the headwind.
Today is a rest day and the weather is looking primo for this week, tomorow is going to be a circle route and thursday I will be climbing. Hopefully the trails are dry by this weekend, the birds are leaving the barn so my 3-day weekend will be shovelling shit by day and, hopefully, riding by night.
I knew that O'Reilly's bridge was out so it would be a little detour but I still had 45 min to go so that was cool. I didn't realise that the next crossing was going to be all the way back in Welland south. The last 15min of the ride was going through my beautiful hometown. Lots of big names in hockey from here (Paille, Clutterbuck, Bissonette to name a few). Hopefully in a few years we can say the same about cycling.
Just over 3hrs ride time. There were black clouds in the sky but it didn't rain, the wind is still very cold, I was a bit over-dressed in the tailwind and a bit under-dressed in the headwind.
Today is a rest day and the weather is looking primo for this week, tomorow is going to be a circle route and thursday I will be climbing. Hopefully the trails are dry by this weekend, the birds are leaving the barn so my 3-day weekend will be shovelling shit by day and, hopefully, riding by night.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Gee Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore
Wouldn't someone who woke up at 6:30 on a Saturday morning to go riding deserve some sort of compensation ? Me too. But of course not, it just doesn't work that way. So where to begin, how about with waking up at 6 freakin 30 in the morning ! It took me a good hour to get ready and be awake enough to ride a bike. I was on the road by 7:45 on the way to St. Catharines to meet the StCCC for a hilly ride. I was at Third St. by 8:21, 6 minutes after their departure from the chip shop. I rode out to St. Paul expecting to see a hardcore group of cyclists braving through the cold, winty, rainy, just plain shitty morning. But of course not, it just doesn't work that way.
I turned around and pedalled around for 15 minutes to try and figure out what I would do. I decided to try and make my way to their meeting point in Jordan, the only problem was that I didn't know how to get there. The hammer was down at this point to try and catch up, I climbed into Rockway and saw a sign that said Jordan was to my right. I climbed the back of the escarpment and coasted by a girl walking a dog who let me know downtown Jordan was behind me. I descended into downtown Jordan and ended up exactly where the meeting point was. A photographer let me know that that the group was there 4 minutes ago. Oh shit, the chase was on now ! I put the hammer down for a good hour following the route by flashes of memory from doing the ride twice last year. I saw Cherry Ave. and kept on going, for some reason I decided to ignore my instincts because it felt like they were just up the road. A U-turn after a few km's and I was climbing Cherry.
I took a few turns and ended up on Yonge St., the road I couldn't find on Thursday's ride. At this point I was looking for the Tim Horton's that they stop at in Smithville. I got a big whiff of chicken manure and knew I was close. Once the smell was gone I found myself in Grimsby, almost in Stoney Creek and realised that I was a little too far North. I took some road south and then headed back the way I came. I passed by that Tim's on Thursday so I knew I had to get on Hwy. 24. I passed by a lumber yard, wait a second... The lumber yard ! I was on track now, this was the lumber yard I didn't make it to on Thursday. A few turns later and BAM I was at Tim's. Some guy in the parking lot gave me the good news that I missed them by 4 minutes.
The hammer was down once again, I sort of knew the route from here. By the time I got to Mountain rd. I just didn't feel like chasing anymore. I was back on my Silverdale route again and decided that I would finish with Saylor's Hill. After 4 hours of riding I started the climb, damn I just realised how long this story is... sorry. I climbed it pretty damn fast and made the descent back into Welland, after some motor pacing with a big Chevy Silverado.
4.5hrs of ride time, none-stop, pretty quick, on a shitty day, by the time I would normally be having breakfast... I'll take it.
I turned around and pedalled around for 15 minutes to try and figure out what I would do. I decided to try and make my way to their meeting point in Jordan, the only problem was that I didn't know how to get there. The hammer was down at this point to try and catch up, I climbed into Rockway and saw a sign that said Jordan was to my right. I climbed the back of the escarpment and coasted by a girl walking a dog who let me know downtown Jordan was behind me. I descended into downtown Jordan and ended up exactly where the meeting point was. A photographer let me know that that the group was there 4 minutes ago. Oh shit, the chase was on now ! I put the hammer down for a good hour following the route by flashes of memory from doing the ride twice last year. I saw Cherry Ave. and kept on going, for some reason I decided to ignore my instincts because it felt like they were just up the road. A U-turn after a few km's and I was climbing Cherry.
I took a few turns and ended up on Yonge St., the road I couldn't find on Thursday's ride. At this point I was looking for the Tim Horton's that they stop at in Smithville. I got a big whiff of chicken manure and knew I was close. Once the smell was gone I found myself in Grimsby, almost in Stoney Creek and realised that I was a little too far North. I took some road south and then headed back the way I came. I passed by that Tim's on Thursday so I knew I had to get on Hwy. 24. I passed by a lumber yard, wait a second... The lumber yard ! I was on track now, this was the lumber yard I didn't make it to on Thursday. A few turns later and BAM I was at Tim's. Some guy in the parking lot gave me the good news that I missed them by 4 minutes.
The hammer was down once again, I sort of knew the route from here. By the time I got to Mountain rd. I just didn't feel like chasing anymore. I was back on my Silverdale route again and decided that I would finish with Saylor's Hill. After 4 hours of riding I started the climb, damn I just realised how long this story is... sorry. I climbed it pretty damn fast and made the descent back into Welland, after some motor pacing with a big Chevy Silverado.
4.5hrs of ride time, none-stop, pretty quick, on a shitty day, by the time I would normally be having breakfast... I'll take it.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Am I lost, ? Nah I'm good, wait a second... shit I'm lost
That's pretty much how today's ride went down. Last night me and The Coach mapped out a ride into Smithville then back into Rockway. I was good for the first hour, a couple wrong turns later and I was way off. That tiny paper in my jersey could not help me anymore. Just me against, well, myself. Made a few more wrong turns and after a quick stop for directions confirmed that somehow, someway I was back on track. "It's just up there past the lumber yard". Sounds easy enough, 20 minutes later I realised I was on my way to Niagara Falls. Luckily I took a complete guess and ended up on Hwy. 20 then I was able to take Twenty Mile rd. to join up with my Silverdale loop.
Spinning felt weird at first, I could feel my knee swaying outwards like it used to when I had the paletofemoral syndrome. My IT Band started to get really stiff on the left side, a quick yoga-pose stretch on the go and I was golden. The wind did a nice little u-turn for me when I got to Silverdale so that I can be lucky enough to have a headwind on the way back as well. Everything went well in the end, got in 3.5hrs ride time.
I got the spin-up/iso-leg workout overwith yesterday since it seemed like the worst day this week for what they are calling for. I find the trainer to be much more effective for those. It was pretty much identical to the last one, but having to switch the movies myself through me off a bit for ride time. Somewhere in the 2.5-3h range. Twas like this;
- 1h high cadence warm-up
- 8x5min build up to max cadence for 30s
- spin for a bit
*change movie*
-spin for a little longer
- 10x30s iso-leg
- spin till you get tired of watching a movie you've seen 12 times
The first movie was Up, yes it is a kid's movie and yes it was awesome. The second was Fool's Gold, good stuff.
Spinning felt weird at first, I could feel my knee swaying outwards like it used to when I had the paletofemoral syndrome. My IT Band started to get really stiff on the left side, a quick yoga-pose stretch on the go and I was golden. The wind did a nice little u-turn for me when I got to Silverdale so that I can be lucky enough to have a headwind on the way back as well. Everything went well in the end, got in 3.5hrs ride time.
I got the spin-up/iso-leg workout overwith yesterday since it seemed like the worst day this week for what they are calling for. I find the trainer to be much more effective for those. It was pretty much identical to the last one, but having to switch the movies myself through me off a bit for ride time. Somewhere in the 2.5-3h range. Twas like this;
- 1h high cadence warm-up
- 8x5min build up to max cadence for 30s
- spin for a bit
*change movie*
-spin for a little longer
- 10x30s iso-leg
- spin till you get tired of watching a movie you've seen 12 times
The first movie was Up, yes it is a kid's movie and yes it was awesome. The second was Fool's Gold, good stuff.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Smells like spring
You know that smell? The mixture of mud, grass, and all sorts of animal shit thawing out after a few months of preservation. That is exactly what I smelt today on my 3.5h ride. I rode along the Welland river, then north out to Silverdale, east through Lincoln, St. Catharines, and Pelham. After just over 2h I found myself gasping for air on Saylor's Hill. Once at the top, I still had a good hour to go so I decided to do a lap of the Niagara Classic loop and then take the long way back home through Fenwick.
Today was the start of my Base 1, so I decided to shed the wool socks and heat shell. Just thermal gear under my bibs and jersey and it was perfect. I was only a bit cold on the downhill into Rockway that is shielded by the sun. The wind was pretty cold, but not a single cloud in the sky made up for that.
Oh and I've been itching to get this rant into writting for a while. It has been written countless times "I broke my leg but good thing my bike isn't damaged". To me, this defeats the whole purpose of training in the first place. Why do we train ? To get our BODIES to perform the best they can. How the hell are you going to that when you're not even able to ride. If I was about to get hit by a car, I would throw my bike in front of it over myself any day. I don't care if I was riding a beaut with full Dura-Ace Di2 or my dad's 1970 Sierra mountain bike with all original parts including chain, tubes, and tires.
There, I wrote it. Feel's good. Long lonely rides tend to let the mind wander.
Today was the start of my Base 1, so I decided to shed the wool socks and heat shell. Just thermal gear under my bibs and jersey and it was perfect. I was only a bit cold on the downhill into Rockway that is shielded by the sun. The wind was pretty cold, but not a single cloud in the sky made up for that.
Oh and I've been itching to get this rant into writting for a while. It has been written countless times "I broke my leg but good thing my bike isn't damaged". To me, this defeats the whole purpose of training in the first place. Why do we train ? To get our BODIES to perform the best they can. How the hell are you going to that when you're not even able to ride. If I was about to get hit by a car, I would throw my bike in front of it over myself any day. I don't care if I was riding a beaut with full Dura-Ace Di2 or my dad's 1970 Sierra mountain bike with all original parts including chain, tubes, and tires.
There, I wrote it. Feel's good. Long lonely rides tend to let the mind wander.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Where the hell are those golden arches ???
Just got in from work, I've been home for 1h since 10:15 this morning. Got back from the ride (more on that below) at 4:30 with enough time to refuel, rehydrate, and unstinkafy only to go wash dishes for a while and restinkafy myself.
Was late to get ready again this morning, paps drove me out to Beaverdams so I wouldn't be late for an 11 oclock start chez De Cal. The ride started on a good note when I anticipated AD's turn and when he braked suddenly I tried to do the same. Underestimating my super-human strength, I pulled the cable right out from the "thing that holds it". A quick adjustment back at his house and this time there was no looking back.
Got through NOTL like it was nothing, but the climb up Queenston did hurt quite a bit since I was trying to follow a guy who just came back from climbing in Georgia. I had road tires and he had cross tires though, so it was all good. When we were out in Niagara Falls he told me his legs were hurting a little, no pain had set in for me yet. Maybe the previous week was catching up to him ? NO, the only thing I can do once we got into Fort Erie was stay glued to his back wheel and hope that I catch a glimpse of some god damn golden arches. We stopped for a quick stretch at some bakery, when who do we see ? The same ass hole who drove real close to us and yeld something, I know, a real tough guy. When his hot girlfriend pulled in I could do nothing but smile and look at them. When he tried to give me the good old stare down I gave a friendly wave. He said a few more words that were half english and half high school dropout then headed off.
A few wrong turns later and we ended up in Niagara Falls again, only the outskirts, and took Netherby road right into Welland. Went under the stinky tunnel that reaks like sulfur from a mile away and the 85 sewers and cars going by an inch away at mach 10 made it an even better experience. I started to get a little second wind (leading for 1% of the time will do that). We parted ways in with an unfinished discussion of the Good Friday road race plan.
Was on the bike since 10:30 and home at 4:30. Somewhere around 5h ride time, couldn't ask for a better day to ride in the winter. Tomorow's plan is to get a good ride in before hockey at 3. Let's see if I can get my ass up in time for that.
Was late to get ready again this morning, paps drove me out to Beaverdams so I wouldn't be late for an 11 oclock start chez De Cal. The ride started on a good note when I anticipated AD's turn and when he braked suddenly I tried to do the same. Underestimating my super-human strength, I pulled the cable right out from the "thing that holds it". A quick adjustment back at his house and this time there was no looking back.
Got through NOTL like it was nothing, but the climb up Queenston did hurt quite a bit since I was trying to follow a guy who just came back from climbing in Georgia. I had road tires and he had cross tires though, so it was all good. When we were out in Niagara Falls he told me his legs were hurting a little, no pain had set in for me yet. Maybe the previous week was catching up to him ? NO, the only thing I can do once we got into Fort Erie was stay glued to his back wheel and hope that I catch a glimpse of some god damn golden arches. We stopped for a quick stretch at some bakery, when who do we see ? The same ass hole who drove real close to us and yeld something, I know, a real tough guy. When his hot girlfriend pulled in I could do nothing but smile and look at them. When he tried to give me the good old stare down I gave a friendly wave. He said a few more words that were half english and half high school dropout then headed off.
A few wrong turns later and we ended up in Niagara Falls again, only the outskirts, and took Netherby road right into Welland. Went under the stinky tunnel that reaks like sulfur from a mile away and the 85 sewers and cars going by an inch away at mach 10 made it an even better experience. I started to get a little second wind (leading for 1% of the time will do that). We parted ways in with an unfinished discussion of the Good Friday road race plan.
Was on the bike since 10:30 and home at 4:30. Somewhere around 5h ride time, couldn't ask for a better day to ride in the winter. Tomorow's plan is to get a good ride in before hockey at 3. Let's see if I can get my ass up in time for that.
Friday, March 5, 2010
The Big Move
My family is peacin for the week to go to some place hot, so I'm movin in with my other family; The Coach and his boss (I've had questions about this, The Coach is JF Bérubé and his boss is Natalie Labre, former Lake to Lake champion). Gonna be an awesome time. I just finished making the best pasta salad ever that they tought me how to make, the fridge is completely stocked, and I'm ready to start my Base 1.
Yesterday was a day off.
Today I was planning on riding out to Port, doing a couple laps of the Frostbike then retrace my steps. I kept a good speed with the tail wind on the way out. Once on the canal path my speed dropped to about 5km/h. Pretty much unrideable, after 20 minutes of battle I looked back and had only travelled a good 3km. Turned around and the tail wind made it a little worse. Took a nice spill when my left grip popped off for the 4965th time, gonna have to use the De Cal bar tape method. I was unsatisfied with my 1.5h ride so I went for a run, not a jog, a run haha. Felt the left leg get a little stiff so I slowed down and got a couple sets of push ups before heading home.
Just got an email from De Cal, looks like tomorow will be the circle route.
Yesterday was a day off.
Today I was planning on riding out to Port, doing a couple laps of the Frostbike then retrace my steps. I kept a good speed with the tail wind on the way out. Once on the canal path my speed dropped to about 5km/h. Pretty much unrideable, after 20 minutes of battle I looked back and had only travelled a good 3km. Turned around and the tail wind made it a little worse. Took a nice spill when my left grip popped off for the 4965th time, gonna have to use the De Cal bar tape method. I was unsatisfied with my 1.5h ride so I went for a run, not a jog, a run haha. Felt the left leg get a little stiff so I slowed down and got a couple sets of push ups before heading home.
Just got an email from De Cal, looks like tomorow will be the circle route.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
I can see the light
Got in a good 45 minute spin before class yesterday. At my 2 hour break I couldn't decide between a trail run or weights. I headed out for the trails and thought I would be back in 20 minutes and then lift weights. I was having such a blast in the deep snow, running trails that I have rode many times and a good grueling climb up Hydro near the end. It ended up being an hour and the sauna afterwards really clears up the sinuses.
I was up early this morning because I had to drive my sister to school who missed her bus. I figured while I was up I'll get a good core workout in. After an hour I was toast, had enough time to do the laundry and dishes and refuel before going to class. It was so nice out today, but it's hard to get a good spin up workout outside. Went something like this;
- 1hr warm-up (90-100rpm)
- 8x5min build up to max cadence for 30s
- spin til 2h
- 10x30s iso-leg
- spin til 2.5hr
Felt pretty good, watched Polar Express because I pretty much tore through anything I can put in the DVD player in this house. Hopefully tomorow is the last day on the trainer for the season. Today's session will be if tomorow is as nice as it was today.
I was up early this morning because I had to drive my sister to school who missed her bus. I figured while I was up I'll get a good core workout in. After an hour I was toast, had enough time to do the laundry and dishes and refuel before going to class. It was so nice out today, but it's hard to get a good spin up workout outside. Went something like this;
- 1hr warm-up (90-100rpm)
- 8x5min build up to max cadence for 30s
- spin til 2h
- 10x30s iso-leg
- spin til 2.5hr
Felt pretty good, watched Polar Express because I pretty much tore through anything I can put in the DVD player in this house. Hopefully tomorow is the last day on the trainer for the season. Today's session will be if tomorow is as nice as it was today.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Ass, meet saddle
Got the indoor training centre set up, with Super Mario for Wii and all. There is no game better than that one. I was feeling real good for the first 30min, but my ass reminded me how long it has been away from such a tiny seat. After 2 hours at a high cadence, I moved on to some core and plyometrics for a bit. Felt good.
The next four days are going to be indoor, hopefully give the roads enough time to completely dry up so I can ride the cx bike with road tires. If all goes well, I should find myslef in Grimsby/Hamilton to see what Ol' Woolverton and McNeily have been up to.
The next four days are going to be indoor, hopefully give the roads enough time to completely dry up so I can ride the cx bike with road tires. If all goes well, I should find myslef in Grimsby/Hamilton to see what Ol' Woolverton and McNeily have been up to.
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