Yup, 2x20 min. I started out feeling like a rockstar and pushing too hard: having forgotten the lessons of the powermeter, I rolled with it for a few minutes. I then settled into a reasonable pace, but felt the pain of my bad decision towards the end. I ended with 264W, still not anything to be ashamed of.
Interval #2 was a different story, I started out at what I thought was a reasonable pace but it quickly turned into 20 minutes of torture. I thought about bailing halfway through, but that little voice in my head kept reminding me that nationals is only 8 weeks away and I can't wimp out. I also remembered how much fun it is to be fast, so I put my head down and pushed through. 244W, so that's the hole in my fitness. My FTP slid, and that explains my not feeling as fast or not feeling I can last in a break as I have earlier in the season. Now that I found it I can get it back!
The moral of the story is to do your LT work kids! And then drink chocolate milk, because it tastes good and is great for recovery.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
TNWC p/b Tibco
Jeff brought his team of pro bike racing women to our little playground and they made things lively. I'm still riding a little bit anonymously, but did manage to get in on 2 breaks that died quickly. Ladd tried to organize the first one, but we couldn't get cohesive and were brought back.
It was fast for sure, I've got an avg speed of 26.4 which is faster than I've ever seen. Racing with a bunch of powerhouse women like that was really cool, always nice to mix it up with some pros.
It was fast for sure, I've got an avg speed of 26.4 which is faster than I've ever seen. Racing with a bunch of powerhouse women like that was really cool, always nice to mix it up with some pros.
2009 Roswell Crit
Roswell is an hour drive from Athens so I stayed overnight at Kyle's house drove to the race in the AM. Only problem, church traffic turned it into a 90 minute drive. So I missed the 3/4 reg and settled for the 4/5. I was slated for both, but oh well. I staged in the back, and when the field is +100 deep with some tricky turns, well that is no good. I spent 30 minutes hopping from dropped rider to the next chasing the field down. After 30 minutes of sprinting out of 3 of the 5 corners I fell back and told the moto ref I was done. #Fail
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
2009 Athens Twilight Qualifier
My morning started at a very early 3:45AM so I could make my 8:45AM Cat4/5 start time. I arrived at the Jittery Joe's Roaster with no incident and got my stuff in line, slammed a shot of Jittery's espresso, and headed to the course. My coach had told me that staging is vital in this race and I got a spot in the second row, not the best, but I could have done worse for sure. They sent us out and mister Keo pedals in front of me missed his clip in, so my good position just went down the drain. With an eager field of 75+ the opportunity to move up early on was dicey. About 400m from the Start/Finish on lap 3 there was a crash that went from curb to curb. I managed to stop, but then had to walk by bike through the mess. My race was over, and then I saw Ron Williams on the side of the road. Ron is the captain of the US Paracycling team and is definitely a guy I look up to. He told me to catch back up and that provided a lot of motivation. I put my head down and went into TT mode. I was riding through the groups of dropped riders and rode part of the way with another guy who looked strong. As the laps ticked down I realized I was catching the field. Coming around the last turn the catch was made, but it was too late. No night race for me. NP for the 26minuterace was 270W, and I spent 18 of those in chase mode. Not a bad effort in that I can chase down a group from behind.
Athens is a fun race, I enjoyed the handcycle race since I know half the field. Alejandro Albor got his big gear (58T chainring) would up and powered away from the group to take the sprint.
The pro races were pretty cool, and fast! I hung out with Ron, Alejandro, and Oz Sanches (another paracyclist). I'm looking forward to seeing these guys later in the summer.
Athens is a fun race, I enjoyed the handcycle race since I know half the field. Alejandro Albor got his big gear (58T chainring) would up and powered away from the group to take the sprint.
The pro races were pretty cool, and fast! I hung out with Ron, Alejandro, and Oz Sanches (another paracyclist). I'm looking forward to seeing these guys later in the summer.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
TNWC 4-21 edition: Brutastic!
My first hard ride in 16 days. There was a nice headwind blowing up the back stretch which promised that there would be pain. We started and when the pace picked up the suffering level went right along. I attempted to go with some moves but I knew I didn't have the power for most of them. I was in the front a good bit, butr I also spent time tail-gunning. I hate seeing races from the back.
I saw the winning break go and had nothing. Then half a lap later I saw Ladd start bridging, I tried to get to him but that turned into a big fat FAIL. I sat up with half a lap to go having burned through all my matches.
Upon reviewing my power files from this and previous Tuesday crits I realized this was the hardest I've been to by a long shot. Everything from max 30sec-max 10min power were way higher. That's nice, but I want my fitness back!
I saw the winning break go and had nothing. Then half a lap later I saw Ladd start bridging, I tried to get to him but that turned into a big fat FAIL. I sat up with half a lap to go having burned through all my matches.
Upon reviewing my power files from this and previous Tuesday crits I realized this was the hardest I've been to by a long shot. Everything from max 30sec-max 10min power were way higher. That's nice, but I want my fitness back!
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Take It Away
Deprive someone of a major part of their life, watch the reaction, then judge what role it plays in their life.
For 10 days I could not ride a bike. The Deprivation part.
My reaction was actually a lot better than I would have hoped, from the moment someone told me my bike was broken, to the advice of the doctor not to ride, through the healing process.
Back Story: I was laying beside the road waiting for the EMT and someone said, "dude, your bike is F***ed!" My response was "guess I need a new one".
So the news that my bike was trash went over really really well. The news from the doctor that I'd be out of commission for 10-14 days was met with the idea of healing as quickly as possible. And I did not lose my head while off the bike. Now something you may have picked up on is that I'm a bit obsessive and neurotic, which I feel are my biggest character flaws. At a mild level I think these traits can help in being a good athlete, but if taken too far are just plain annoying and worse. Throughout this whole ordeal I think I have managed myself pretty well. I never freaked out about missing training, I just focused on getting back to it.
As for what role the bike plays in my life. There have been times when I wonder if I really like riding or if the bike just serves as a means to an end. In all honesty, I just like a good challenge and would probably be happy doing a dozen different sports. I like training, I like competing, and I like seeing what I can do (a lot to do with having CP).
Yesterday while I was out riding the MTB I was just haveing FUN. I realized that I really do like riding a bicycle. It was late afternoon and the long shadows cast by the sun against the dirt and trees looked really cool. Now that's not to say I don't like training. I'm ready to get back to it and see red, and break power records and go fast, because going fast is fun. Oh yeah, and win a race. It's about time I get around to doing that.
For 10 days I could not ride a bike. The Deprivation part.
My reaction was actually a lot better than I would have hoped, from the moment someone told me my bike was broken, to the advice of the doctor not to ride, through the healing process.
Back Story: I was laying beside the road waiting for the EMT and someone said, "dude, your bike is F***ed!" My response was "guess I need a new one".
So the news that my bike was trash went over really really well. The news from the doctor that I'd be out of commission for 10-14 days was met with the idea of healing as quickly as possible. And I did not lose my head while off the bike. Now something you may have picked up on is that I'm a bit obsessive and neurotic, which I feel are my biggest character flaws. At a mild level I think these traits can help in being a good athlete, but if taken too far are just plain annoying and worse. Throughout this whole ordeal I think I have managed myself pretty well. I never freaked out about missing training, I just focused on getting back to it.
As for what role the bike plays in my life. There have been times when I wonder if I really like riding or if the bike just serves as a means to an end. In all honesty, I just like a good challenge and would probably be happy doing a dozen different sports. I like training, I like competing, and I like seeing what I can do (a lot to do with having CP).
Yesterday while I was out riding the MTB I was just haveing FUN. I realized that I really do like riding a bicycle. It was late afternoon and the long shadows cast by the sun against the dirt and trees looked really cool. Now that's not to say I don't like training. I'm ready to get back to it and see red, and break power records and go fast, because going fast is fun. Oh yeah, and win a race. It's about time I get around to doing that.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Healing
The stitches come out tomorrow! And I'm getting on the trainer for the first time today, not tomorrow. I think I have the necessary ROM to get through a pedal stroke and it is time to be riding again. I was really able to see how much of my life was the bike while not riding.
I got a new frame, not new, but new to me. It's a Cannondale CAAD8 or 9 from the Healthnet/CoFA stable. I liked my six13 enough that I wanted to stay with the same family and geometry.
I discovered that rowing with one leg is a challenge, but will really work your hip flexors, glutes, and hams. Not a bad way to cross-train and keep the ticker from getting lazy.
I got a new frame, not new, but new to me. It's a Cannondale CAAD8 or 9 from the Healthnet/CoFA stable. I liked my six13 enough that I wanted to stay with the same family and geometry.
I discovered that rowing with one leg is a challenge, but will really work your hip flexors, glutes, and hams. Not a bad way to cross-train and keep the ticker from getting lazy.
Monday, April 6, 2009
How to Break a Bicycle
For me, the Rock Hill Road Race is personal. I got dropped inside of 15 minutes last year and rode alone for nearly 2 hours. Talk about a swift kick in the pants to show you that your fitness sucks.
This year was different and better until the very end. I was sitting midpack at the start and when I saw the first crash about 5 minutes in I knew my place was at the front. So that's where I went and stayed for the whole race. The first hour was attack after attack. An attack would go, it would get some leash, then the front group would do a fast rotating line to make the catch. The only time I played tail-gunner was after this one super steep hill. I realized out that 53-23 was not a small enough gear and blew my quads out. I recovered at the back for about 3 minutes and made my way back up front. The last 10 miles were super boring, it was established that a break would be given no leash. As a result we just rode in.
We turned onto the home strech and 3 guys jumped. I went with them, it was too early. As I was getting passed the road was getting full of bikes and bodies. We ran out of room and I ended up going down. As I was lying on the ground after coming to a stop I saw a Carolina Cyclones Junior go flying over my head. I'm pretty sure that's how I trashed my '"new" custom, one of a kind 6-13 frame'. I think Cyclones used it as a launch pad. Well that really sucks, I really liked that bike and I felt bad about calling Rich to tell him. But I guess that's racing.
As for fault. Maybe mine, maybe the very large guy in a green kit I bounced off of, maybe someone else for crowding him. In retrospect I would not have done anything differently if I was in that exact same position tomorrow. Although I do think I'm up for some bump drills once I heal up.
The damage to me is vast amounts of Road Rash, and 4 stitches in my right knee. I am under orders not to ride or bend my knee for 7-14 days.
I am searching for a new or new to me frame. I'd rather not spend a lot of money, so I'll probably be on Aluminum again. If anybody knows of anything with an effective Top Tube about 54cm please let me know. If all else fails I do have my old Trek, but I'd rather not go back to that.
This year was different and better until the very end. I was sitting midpack at the start and when I saw the first crash about 5 minutes in I knew my place was at the front. So that's where I went and stayed for the whole race. The first hour was attack after attack. An attack would go, it would get some leash, then the front group would do a fast rotating line to make the catch. The only time I played tail-gunner was after this one super steep hill. I realized out that 53-23 was not a small enough gear and blew my quads out. I recovered at the back for about 3 minutes and made my way back up front. The last 10 miles were super boring, it was established that a break would be given no leash. As a result we just rode in.
We turned onto the home strech and 3 guys jumped. I went with them, it was too early. As I was getting passed the road was getting full of bikes and bodies. We ran out of room and I ended up going down. As I was lying on the ground after coming to a stop I saw a Carolina Cyclones Junior go flying over my head. I'm pretty sure that's how I trashed my '"new" custom, one of a kind 6-13 frame'. I think Cyclones used it as a launch pad. Well that really sucks, I really liked that bike and I felt bad about calling Rich to tell him. But I guess that's racing.
As for fault. Maybe mine, maybe the very large guy in a green kit I bounced off of, maybe someone else for crowding him. In retrospect I would not have done anything differently if I was in that exact same position tomorrow. Although I do think I'm up for some bump drills once I heal up.
The damage to me is vast amounts of Road Rash, and 4 stitches in my right knee. I am under orders not to ride or bend my knee for 7-14 days.
I am searching for a new or new to me frame. I'd rather not spend a lot of money, so I'll probably be on Aluminum again. If anybody knows of anything with an effective Top Tube about 54cm please let me know. If all else fails I do have my old Trek, but I'd rather not go back to that.
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