| 2007 january |
| Sunday, February 04, 2007 bike trail madness I'm looking forward to some rain just so I can have the bike trail back to myself. All I ask is November through March fer christ's sake. Maybe I'm antisocial but if you come across someone who is a mere acquaintance and they have headphones on, and are in the big ring, and riding alone, and nod to say hi go away, it's probably a clue that they don't want to be bothered. Also, don't give me shit about riding with headphones if you are braking the speed limit and riding in a pace line. He without sin chucks the first rock and all that jazz. I can't figure why bike racers have such an overinflated sense of entitlement. They ride the trail like it's a freeway, buzzing kids, old people and inexperienced riders like an SUV soccer mom drinking coffee talking on the phone and not bothering with turn signals. Okay, end of rant. I did three hours on a beautiful spring-like day and spun the rest of my pet virus into oblivion. Saturday, February 03, 2007 Hellyer pt.2 I dragged myself out of bed at 5AM and downed a bottle of Gatorade. My stomach didn't get squirrly so I made way way to the track for my second of three beginner sessions. Bummer I didn't feel so hot but I got the job done and I did manage to win a handicapped scratch race. Friday, February 02, 2007 shitty Literally. I caught another stomach bug. I got my bags packed for tomorrow's trip to the velodrome, we'll see how it goes. No wonder I still felt icky after a few easy days. I got my hooptie tuned up for the quickly approaching season. Hopefully no mishaps this year. Last year my carburetor sprang a leak on the way to the Madera Stage Race so I had to abort the mission. I'm dreaming of an Element, but for now the rattle trap is set to go another year. Say a little prayer, or bleed a chicken and do a little dance. Whatever gets it done. Thursday, February 01, 2007 spin to win Yada yada yada. Two hours in the 39x17 in 48 degrees fog. Pure fucking torture. I want to race. Day off tomorrow. Velodrome on Saturday. My tooth hurts. One more dentist appointment to go, I hope. Wednesday, January 31, 2007 feeling human again, well sorta Today was a nice and easy hour on the bike trail and I'm starting to feel human again, at least as human as a savage can. Man I was torched. Tomorrow is two hours in a 39x17 and Friday is off. I should have some snap at the track on Saturday, could be interesting. Tuesday, January 30, 2007 zoinks 2:20 at an endurance pace today in great weather. The rest of the program for today is couch time. I got to sleep in until 11 so I should be on my way to recovery, but for tonight I am tired to the bone. Monday, January 29, 2007 blah, yawn, blah, blah, blah As expected I walked like a zombie amongst the living today. Luckily, at my job, even if I'm only running at 70% I'm better than most. Sad but true. I sent off my race entries for Snelling/Merced and the Merco formerly McLane races, so it's official, it will be raining both weekends. Actually, I'm hoping for wind, rain I can do without. Two to two and a half hours at a conversational pace tomorrow. Should be a lovely day. Sunday, January 28, 2007 knackered Four hours. One hour at 182 watts, two hours at 220, and the last hour at 245. Close to 3000 calories again. So for the week we did 17 hours and burned 11,000 calories. The bright spot for the day was staying on top of the 53x15 near the end going into a bit of a breeze. I am so looking forward to a recovery week. I'll be doing about ten hours with the only effort coming on Saturday at Hellyer. So this is the end of my first training block. I was able to finish all of the prescribed workouts and am happy with my progress. We are definitely in uncharted territory. I'm looking forward to what the next block will look like. Maybe I'll get some other work done this week, like finish my damn website, catch up on laundry, get my car tuned up, and set up my new printer I've had for almost a month. Good grief. Saturday, January 27, 2007 okay, that hurt, lots RiverRide plus one hour tempo. I was in the hunt for both sprints but did not have the snap to make that final acceleration. On the way back I had to make a big effort to get a good wheel and then Hot Scott, always the first to criticize, sits up and drifts all the way across the highway, totally fucking everyone behind. When you take your pull and start to blow move out into the wind, NOT down the eschelon, put your hand up, hold your line, and keep pedaling. Oh well, I'll never see that guy at the end of a road race, or even at a road race come to think of it. Tomorrow is four hours on the road, three of which will be tempo with the last hour at 90% of LT. Gulp! I see a cheeseburger in my near future. Friday, January 26, 2007 oi, yoi, yoi Okay, today was my easiest recovery ride ever. 56 minutes, 12 mph, 254 calories. And I needed it. Two more days to go in my hardest training week to date. I can't believe how hard I'm training and how well I'm recovering. RiverRide plus one hour tempo tomorrow and four hours in hell on Sunday and then I get a recovery week. Of course I'll be stumbling around like a zombie until like Thursday... Thursday, January 25, 2007 sprint training I cracked a thousand watts 17 times. The legs feel great. I forgot how much I love sprint training. I felt like I could have kept going but ran out of real estate. Wednesday, January 24, 2007 okay, I'm tired I did the usual Wednesday SFR. Tomorrow is my first full on sprint workout of the new year. I love sprinting so even though I'm tired I'm looking forward to tomorrow. The real killer is going to be Sunday, another four hour tempo ride, yikes. Tuesday, January 23, 2007 tempo, for for hours, good grief Four hours, three thousand calories, 223 watts, and the average cadence...87...so pro, hee-hee. Let's see, I've had a double batch of oatmeal, 3 power bars and a homemade smoothie, I must be hungry, but I don't feel like finding food. Maybe I'll make another smoothie. Today is a good example of outrunning my appetite. I might be able to snarf another two thousand calories, if I can find something dense. What else to say? I'm knackered. Oh yeah, I can't wait to get back on the velodrome. Oh yeah, I got it bad alright. Sunday, January 21, 2007 holy singlespeeders catman I did the Foresthill loop from the Confluence today with my good buddy Brad Cole. We were Team Bianchi, he with his WUSS and me with my GUSS. He is a beast of a man, 5'9ish, 190 pounds, and riding a whole cog bigger than me. I had a 32x18 and he had a 32x17, that's like 2 and a half or three gear inches, and he dropped me on all of the climbs. But I was out to smell the roses and he is preparing for a solo 24 hour race, different programs. So, I spent the entire weekend on singlespeed bikes, how punk. Saturday, January 20, 2007 Hellyer? Hell yeah! Okay, I'm hooked, but we knew that going in now didn't we? The alarm went off at 5AM. I am NOT a morning person, yet I got up, had a bowl of oats and got on my way without a thought of going back to bed. This is a major MAJOR step forward in my racing "career." There have been sooooo many Saturdays where I woke up with sore legs and I thought "this is dumb, I could sleep 'til 9 and go do the RiverRide for free." Anyway, I got to the velodrome and did my first Saturday beginner's session and came away feeling great about my future as a track racer. I was surprised at how fast I got comfortable swooping off the rail and made a couple of huge efforts, put never got the nerve to go full gas. Yeah, I cracked 1000 watts a few times but it was totally controlled. It may be a while before I can jump and go with complete abandon, but it will come. I fully expect to be hitting 1600 watts by summer's end. I'll end by saying it was awesome to have Mary Maroon show up and give advice and encouragement. Thanks Mary, we miss you on the streets of Sacramento. Friday, January 19, 2007 recovery 13 miles in one hour. I think I finally mastered the recovery ride. 5AM call tomorrow for my first trip to Hellyer. I shoulda been asleep an hour ago. Anyway, work is finally a cake walk, I can do my job in my sleep now, luckily I have a great guy building bikes for me. We've been together two years now so it's pretty effortless. Adio. Wednesday, January 17, 2007 sfr (920 leg presses) So the Wednesday thing is drive to Newcastle and do some big gear repeats on Indian Hill. I am not a fan of car time and for those that don't know I drive a salvaged '73 Beetle. Otherwise known as my hooptie, or the rattle trap, depending on my mood. So it's four times up in the 53x17,16,16,15. That's four miles of climbing at 40 rpm. This is the equivalent of about 920 leg presses. To make sure I don't pull on the bars I rest my open palm on the hoodsand wiggle my fingers to stay loose. I keep my back flat and concentrate on pedaling circles. And no bobbing the upper body. I try to stay relaxed up top, like just cruising along to the Java Lounge. It's my least favorite day on the bike but it's the shit that will help me dominate. Speaking of domination, I've been re-watching Tom Boonen at the 2005 Tour of Flanders. That guy can fucking motor. Tuesday, January 16, 2007 Ridge Road We hit Ridge Road after two and a half hours which included two times over Baxter's Grade.....349 watts for 12:02. I attacked at the bottom and no one followed. 439 watts for the first 2 minutes was enough to get the necessary separation. I was very comfortable, my average cadence was 87 rpm. My breathing was labored, but deep and measured. My body is going through some pretty amazing changes. I went on to ride alone for another 45 minutes cracking off three 20 second sprints, each peaking at 1100 watts. I'm going to Hellyer on Saturday for my first session on the velodrome. Zoom-zoom. Monday, January 15, 2007 rest I'm feeling pretty good today considering the beating I took over the weekend. I had a little spring in my step that I haven't felt since well, last spring, hee hee. I'm going to Hellyer on Saturday for my first session on the velodrome and I am psyched. This week, while not a recovery week, is a little easier than last week. But the following week is gonna go even deeper. They put the Cherry Pie race back in the corporate park with the hill and there will be a 35+ 3/4 race. I ain't gonna taper but I'm gonna come with guns a blazin'. I can do three races that day if I chose. Hmmmm. Sunday, January 14, 2007 holy shit, he's trying to kill me Okay that was the hardest two days ever. All I can think about now is putting my feet up and calling it a night. Today I set a personal best for 4 hours. That's two personal bests in two days and they are on the opposite ends of the power curve. Are you getting the feeling that maybe Vince knows a thing or two about bike racing? I need some salt. Bona Sera mi Amigos. Saturday, January 13, 2007 close to the flame Today was the hardest day on the bike since last summer. It seems so long ago. I cracked off a personal best 10 seconds in my solo sprint for an imaginary line. The north wind was blowing and the RiverRide got blown to bits. I didn't bother fighting for position when it hit the crosswind on the big bend. I will never have to ride that hard in a cat 3 race so it just doesn't seem worth it. On the way out I put myself in a great position but got pinched into the gutter and blown to bits in the wind. It was pretty funny actually. It was down to maybe ten guys. Rich Maile was following Vince Gee and I was following Rich. Vince was riding in the gutter. If you know Vince you know that he can ride the gutter better than most. So what does Rich do? What he does best, he goes into the dirt and leaves me swinging in the wind, then before the sprint starts he sits up and lets it go. Whatever. When it goes that hard and there is a selection I always feel like I have a chance, but is was not to be. Four hours tomorrow will put me into the hardest week since last summer too. Boogaloo. Friday, January 12, 2007 cold front Skipped the recovery ride, as per the coach, because it never got much above forty degrees, not counting wind chill, which is blowing from the north with gusts up to thirty mph. It was a long busy day at the shop anyway, busy but not too difficult. It was great to see the boss make a three bike deal, complete with accessories. He even did the fittings. The coach popped into the shop and gave me a chain breaker and said merry christmas. All is right with the universe. I'm finally getting my swagger back, ten years later. I hope it lasts a little longer this time around. There was a year or two that I was invincible, back in the day, then came the fear. Once the magic leaves there is nothing left but fear, fear and loathing. RiverRide tomorrow. There is no where I'd rather be, I'm feelin' the love. Thursday, January 11, 2007 spin, spin, spin 90 minutes in the 39x17. This was the same workout as last week but on the bike trail rather than on the rollers. I was surprised to find that this weeks workout was significantly more stressful than last week. Must be the variability index. It as pretty windy out there today. I figured the roller workout would have accumulated more stress due to the fact that you never stop pedaling. Go figure. Tuesday, January 09, 2007 so much for the feel good theory I got up late, took a hot bath, and hacked up some creeping crud, then hit the trail. I think it might just be allergies and the dry air because the legs felt great, my snot is clear, and I cracked off top 10 personal bests for peak 1, 5, 10 and 20 seconds average power on a sprint at the end of a three hour tempo ride. I've never had all four line up on the same day, now if I can add one minute to the list and have it come on race day I'll be golden. I broke the ride into three one hour parts and got progressively faster as the ride unfolded. The first hour was 195 watts (a solid endurance pace), the second at 220 (on the border between endurance and tempo), and the third at 254 (a solid tempo pace). My threshold seems to be a moving target at this point, so I'm paying close attention to heart rate, breathing and the physical sensations in the legs. I'm really happy with my coach and am having fun just following his plan and watching in a state of detachment how the plan is developing. Monday, January 08, 2007 recovery day Today was a mandatory day off the bike and was much needed. My little scratchy throat thing has not gotten any worse so I will train through. Sunday, January 07, 2007 sore throat Argh, I just finished my first week of training and I caught a little sore throat virus. It's been going around the shop and doesn't come with any other symptoms so for now I'm training through. Luckily tomorrow is a scheduled day off. The mountain bike ride was good today, I'm finally starting to get on top of the gear and the skills are coming...slowly. I hope the learning curve on the track isn't so steep. Time to gargoyle, er, gargle, yuck. Saturday, January 06, 2007 RiverRide There was another big group out today and we were hauling ass, averaging 28 mph with accelerations to 33-34. My spider senses were tingling so it was heads up from the start. Not long after the first sprint there was a massive pile-up. Now, I'm all for pushing the envelope, but guys got to realize when they start going cross-eyed and their sugar supplies run low that they need to move back and try to just hang in. I didn't see what happened cuz I was at the back chatting it up with my cronies at 30 mph in a cross wind. The crash started near the front in the gutter and spread like wild fire. It's strange how some guys have a knack for being in the wrong place at the right time. Me, I use a lot of energy riding in the wind and leaving myself a way out, but I make my living on my feet, not on my bike. I totally botched my position in the last kilo and got stuck out front with too far to go, but I made some huge efforts so the workout was good and the tactic needs work. Well, actually I could have had a go, but my jump is more like a hop at this point, so when the big boys rolled through I couldn't get a wheel. Me and Little Jimmy did an extra hour at a brisk endurance pace afterwards. I'm knackered. Friday, January 05, 2007 recovery day 45 minutes easy and the legs feel great. I'm really happy with the coach at this point. It is such a relief to look at my schedule and just go to work. He's really good at the recovery game too, and that has been one of my worst limiters. Time to get some rest for the RiverRide tomorrow. Buenos noches. Thursday, January 04, 2007 rollin, rollin, rollin 90 minutes on the rollers in an easy gear today. 167 watts, 96 rpm, 138 bpm and I feel worked. The assignment was 90 minutes on the track bike in an easy gear but the weather was iffy and I dig riding the rollers with my iPod blasting heavy metal. I'm sorry I didn't get on the rollers a couple of years ago, you definitely get some bang for your buck. I can sorta see where we're going and I like it. I'm really looking forward to going fast on Saturday. Time for some salad. Wednesday, January 03, 2007 SFR (slow frequency repetition) Four times up Indian Hill. 53x19,17,16,16. Total workout, one hour. Average cadence 44, my new favorite number. 44 is my resting heart rate on a good day. Swish, swish. Willie McCovey wore 44, he was my childhood hero. I remember sneaking my little AM radio to bed and listening to games under the covers. Lon Simmons' deep baritone is always relaxing. I spent more time in the car than on the bike today, I suppose there will be a bit of that in the near future. I need more mobile devices; cell phone, three bike computers, laptop, iPod, camera and each one has it's own USB cable. I've turned into a squid head, a data freak. Give me more. Tuesday, January 02, 2007 and so it begins... Three hours on the tt-bike at 234 watts. That is the entire length of the bike trail in 3 hours. Ouch, I'm frizzle-fried. I'm pretty confident that I have a pretty good position on the bike as i have no twinges of overuse. We might do a little tweek here or there, but I'm definitely close. I felt surprisingly comfortable. Rock on. |
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