I found this great article this weekend after noticing that my resting heart rate was over 70 bpm the night before the race. I know my RHR is normally higher than others but I'd expected to see something between 50 and 55 not 70! Work has been crazy stressful lately so I'm sure that's partly to blame but either way I need more recovery.
Dr Mark Jenkins wrote this and it really explains the situation well. As I suspected it's time for a break.
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Overtraining Syndrome
It is no secret among athletes that in order to improve performance you've got to work hard. However, hard training breaks you down and makes you weaker. It is rest that makes you stronger. Physiologic improvement in sports only occurs during the rest period following hard training. This adaptation is in response to maximal loading of the cardiovascular and muscular systems and is accomplished by improving efficiency of the heart, increasing capillaries in the muscles, and increasing glycogen stores and mitochondrial enzyme systems within the muscle cells. During recovery periods these systems build to greater levels to compensate for the stress that you have applied. The result is that you are now at a higher level of performance.
If sufficient rest is not included in a training program then regeneration cannot occur and performance plateaus. If this imbalance between excess training and inadequate rest persists then performance will decline. Overtraining can best be defined as the state where the athlete has been repeatedly stressed by training to the point where rest is no longer adequate to allow for recovery. The "overtraining syndrome" is the name given to the collection of emotional, behavioral, and physical symptoms due to overtraining that has persisted for weeks to months. Athletes and coaches also know it as "burnout" or "staleness." This is different from the day to day variation in performance and post exercise tiredness that is common in conditioned athletes. Overtraining is marked by cumulative exhaustion that persists even after recovery periods.
The most common symptom is fatigue. This may limit workouts and may be present at rest. The athlete may also become moody, easily irritated, have altered sleep patterns, become depressed, or lose the competitive desire and enthusiasm for the sport. Some will report decreased appetite and weight loss. Physical symptoms include persistent muscular soreness, increased frequency of viral illnesses, and increased incidence of injuries.
There have been several clinical studies done on athletes with the overtraining syndrome. Exercise physiologic, psychological, and biochemical laboratory testing have been done. Findings in these studies have shown decreased performance in exercise testing, decreased mood state, and, in some, increased cortisol levels -- the body's "stress" hormone. A decrease in testosterone, altered immune status, and an increase in muscular break down products have also been identified. Medically, the overtraining syndrome is classified as a neuro-endocrine disorder. The normal fine balance in the interaction between the autonomic nervous system and the hormonal system is disturbed and athletic "jet lag" results. The body now has a decreased ability to repair itself during rest. Heaping more workouts onto this unbalanced system only worsens the situation. Additional stress in the form of difficulties at work or personal life also contributes.
It appears that there are two forms of the syndrome. The sympathetic form is more common in sprint type sports and the parasympathetic form is more common in endurance sports. The results from various measurements taken during exercise physiologic testing differ between the two forms, but decreased overall performance and increased perceived fatigue are similar. In the parasympathetic form there may be a lower heart rate for a given workload. Athletes training with a heart rate monitor may notice that they cannot sustain the workout at their usual "set point." Fatigue takes over and prematurely terminates the workout. Regulation of glucose can become altered and the athlete may experience symptoms of hypoglycemia during exercise.
I won't comment on all of the differences between the two forms, but one example is resting heart rate. In the sympathetic form, the resting heart rate is elevated. In the parasympathetic form, however, the resting heart rate is decreased. If this sounds confusing, then you are not alone. There is very little agreement in the literature about abnormal laboratory findings. Additionally, it is possible to have the overtraining syndrome, but have completely normal physical findings and biochemical tests. At this point, there is no single test that will confirm the presence of overtraining. The overtraining syndrome should be considered in any athlete who manifests symptoms of prolonged fatigue and performance that has leveled off or decreased. It is important to exclude any underlying illness that may be responsible for the fatigue.
The treatment for the overtraining syndrome is rest. The longer the overtraining has occurred, the more rest required. Therefore, early detection is very important. If the overtraining has only occurred for a short period of time (e.g., 3 - 4 weeks) then interrupting training for 3 - 5 days is usually sufficient rest. After this, workouts can be resumed on an alternate day basis. The intensity of the training can be maintained but the total volume must be lower. It is important that the factors that lead to overtraining be identified and corrected. Otherwise, the overtraining syndrome is likely to recur. The alternate day recovery period is continued for a few weeks and then an increase in volume is permitted. In more severe cases, the training program may have to be interrupted for weeks, and it may take months to recover. An alternate form of exercise can be substituted to help prevent the exercise withdrawal syndrome.
All of the medical studies and advice on overtraining have involved single sport athletes. For triathletes and other multi-sport athletes the recovery process may be different depending on the circumstances. If it can be identified that the overtraining has occurred in only one discipline, then resting that discipline along with significant decreases in the other sports can bring about full recovery. It is vitally important not to suddenly substitute more workouts in one sport in an attempt to compensate for rest in another. The athlete that does this will not heal the overtraining, but will drive him or herself deeper into a hole. Overtraining affects both peripheral and central mechanisms in the body. Resting from overtraining on the bicycle by swimming more will help a pair of fatigued quadriceps, but to the heart, pituitary, and adrenals, stress is stress.
As with almost everything else health related, prevention is the key. Well-balanced gradual increases in training are recommended. A training schedule design called periodisation varies the training load in cycles with built in mandatory rest phases. During the high workload phase, the athlete alternates between high intensity interval work and low intensity endurance work . This approach is used by a number of elite athletes in many sports.
A training log is the best method to monitor progress. In addition to keeping track of distance and intensity, the athlete can record the resting morning heart rate, weight, general health, how the workout felt, and levels of muscular soreness and fatigue. The latter two can be scored on a 10 point scale. Significant, progressive changes in any of these parameters may signal overtraining. Avoiding monotonous training and maintaining adequate nutrition are other recommendations for prevention. Vigorous exercise during the incubation period of a viral illness may increase the duration and severity of that illness. Athletes who feel as if they are developing a cold should rest or reduce the training schedule for a few days.
In conclusion, the prevailing wisdom is that it is better to be undertrained than overtrained. Rest is a vital part of any athlete's training. There is considerable evidence that reduced training (same intensity, lower volume) for up to 21 days will not decrease performance. A well-planned training program involves as much art as science and should allow for flexibility. Early warning signs of overtraining should be heeded and schedule adjustments made accordingly. Smart training is the path to faster times and good health.
Copyright©1998 Mark Jenkins, MD
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Wente Road Race Pro/1/2
After Snelling this was going to be the biggest race of the year so far, it would be about 85 miles with over 5K feet of climbing over 5 laps. It was a big field with all the top local teams well represented. It was cool for the 8:00 start but it would soon warm up. We would end up doing the climb 6 times. I only ever remember doing it once when I last did this race as I think I was dropped on the first lap and pulled out.
There was an attack right from the gun with a bunch of guys getting up the road early. The first time up the climb seemed very relaxed. I was well positioned in the first part of the field and didn't drift back at all over the length of the climb. After the main climb there were a few rollers and then a really fun corkscrew descent. With the yellow line rule being strictly enforced on this open to traffic course everyone was crammed onto a narrow piece of tarmac.
As we came though the start line and towards the bottom of the climb marshals and spectators we're telling us that the break had about two minutes on us. This wasn't good news as the field was going to try and take out a bunch of this time on the climb.
I wasn't disappointed this time up the climb, the field upped the pace and now gaps were opening. I saw Drew ahead of me slowly drifting back through the field and I didn't have enough breath to say anything as I was maxed out just holding my position. As we came across the flatter section in the middle of the climb I was starting to lose places and Drew comeback past me as I popped off the back of the field. There was nothing I could do to close the gap and I watched as the field disappeared up the second half of the climb and onto the rollers. I took a deep breath and kept pushing as hard as I could.
I came up on a couple of other riders that had been dropped just after me and we started to work together to see if we could catch back on. Just after the descent another couple of strong guys came up behind me and I jumped on the back of this new group as we started the chase back.
Two of the riders were really strong on the flats and small rollers doing enormous pulls into the wind. Russell White with pulling like a train as well as Brian from the AV team. With about 8 miles from the bottom of the climb we managed to catch onto the back of the group. I tried to recovers best I could ready for the climb again but my legs were hurting bad from the chase.
Spencer rolled up along side me and said hi. He was telling me that the race had been strange up to that point. I agreed but probably not for the same reasons.
This time up the climb the pace was high again almost from the very start, gaps were opening and I tried my best to stay with the group. I stood up on the pedals and my legs were like lead. I was off the back and it wasn't looking good to get back on this time. I kept going as hard as I could and again started to catch other riders that had been dropped. I was passing guys who had beaten me at the Chico Stage Race and I was determined to keep going and either get back onto a group or finish solo.
I had 3 laps to go and 3 more times up the climb to suffer through before the finish. One big mistake I'd made was assuming that there was neutral feed, there was no neutral water at this event and I only had 2 bottles. It didn't impact the fact that I was dropped but it would impact how bad the rest of the race felt.
I rode the whole next lap by myself and just before the bottom of the climb I came up on another rider from the Pro/1/2 field. He told me his hamstring was hurting but would ride with me anyway. I kept pushing on and he hung behind me until the top of the descent. I hit the descent really hard and never saw him again after that. On the rollers I was caught by the Cat 3 field who were on their first lap.
I rolled the rest of the lap again by myself and passed some more dropped riders from my field including more string guys from the Top Sport race. I was still pushing as hard as I could and none of these guys wanted to carry on at that pace. Not that it was fast but they were more cooked than I was at this point.
As I came towards the bottom of the climb I could see the finishers from my race rolling back to the parking area. I was going to be finishing about 15 minutes back on the field. I kept going but was out of water, I got to the bottom of the climb and did my best to look strong as I crawled through the feed zone. Fortunately the feed zone had emptied out a little and not many people were taking notice of me. I got to the finish line and was a little worried that they'd all gone home. Fortunately they were still there and recorded my finish as 50th place.
I rolled back to the car and met Drew, turns out his 2 teammate hadn't finished. Looking at the results it seemed that 20 people dropped out but I'd managed to finish. Not my best day on the bike recently but still a finish.
The good news for the day was that Spencer finished in 2nd place with a drag race to the uphill finish. This was a BIG result for him and hopefully I'll still get to train with him more often.
I get the feeling that I'm fried at this point and need a bit of a break. The legs are like lead and have no snap. I shouldn't have been dropped the second time around so something is up.
Race day food.
Breakfast - Bananas on toast, banana, Crank Gel.
Race - 3 Crank Gels, tortilla, 2 bottles of Cytomax
Results:
Wente 2012 Results
Strava: Wente 2012
There was an attack right from the gun with a bunch of guys getting up the road early. The first time up the climb seemed very relaxed. I was well positioned in the first part of the field and didn't drift back at all over the length of the climb. After the main climb there were a few rollers and then a really fun corkscrew descent. With the yellow line rule being strictly enforced on this open to traffic course everyone was crammed onto a narrow piece of tarmac.
As we came though the start line and towards the bottom of the climb marshals and spectators we're telling us that the break had about two minutes on us. This wasn't good news as the field was going to try and take out a bunch of this time on the climb.
I wasn't disappointed this time up the climb, the field upped the pace and now gaps were opening. I saw Drew ahead of me slowly drifting back through the field and I didn't have enough breath to say anything as I was maxed out just holding my position. As we came across the flatter section in the middle of the climb I was starting to lose places and Drew comeback past me as I popped off the back of the field. There was nothing I could do to close the gap and I watched as the field disappeared up the second half of the climb and onto the rollers. I took a deep breath and kept pushing as hard as I could.
I came up on a couple of other riders that had been dropped just after me and we started to work together to see if we could catch back on. Just after the descent another couple of strong guys came up behind me and I jumped on the back of this new group as we started the chase back.
Two of the riders were really strong on the flats and small rollers doing enormous pulls into the wind. Russell White with pulling like a train as well as Brian from the AV team. With about 8 miles from the bottom of the climb we managed to catch onto the back of the group. I tried to recovers best I could ready for the climb again but my legs were hurting bad from the chase.
Spencer rolled up along side me and said hi. He was telling me that the race had been strange up to that point. I agreed but probably not for the same reasons.
This time up the climb the pace was high again almost from the very start, gaps were opening and I tried my best to stay with the group. I stood up on the pedals and my legs were like lead. I was off the back and it wasn't looking good to get back on this time. I kept going as hard as I could and again started to catch other riders that had been dropped. I was passing guys who had beaten me at the Chico Stage Race and I was determined to keep going and either get back onto a group or finish solo.
I had 3 laps to go and 3 more times up the climb to suffer through before the finish. One big mistake I'd made was assuming that there was neutral feed, there was no neutral water at this event and I only had 2 bottles. It didn't impact the fact that I was dropped but it would impact how bad the rest of the race felt.
I rode the whole next lap by myself and just before the bottom of the climb I came up on another rider from the Pro/1/2 field. He told me his hamstring was hurting but would ride with me anyway. I kept pushing on and he hung behind me until the top of the descent. I hit the descent really hard and never saw him again after that. On the rollers I was caught by the Cat 3 field who were on their first lap.
I rolled the rest of the lap again by myself and passed some more dropped riders from my field including more string guys from the Top Sport race. I was still pushing as hard as I could and none of these guys wanted to carry on at that pace. Not that it was fast but they were more cooked than I was at this point.
As I came towards the bottom of the climb I could see the finishers from my race rolling back to the parking area. I was going to be finishing about 15 minutes back on the field. I kept going but was out of water, I got to the bottom of the climb and did my best to look strong as I crawled through the feed zone. Fortunately the feed zone had emptied out a little and not many people were taking notice of me. I got to the finish line and was a little worried that they'd all gone home. Fortunately they were still there and recorded my finish as 50th place.
I rolled back to the car and met Drew, turns out his 2 teammate hadn't finished. Looking at the results it seemed that 20 people dropped out but I'd managed to finish. Not my best day on the bike recently but still a finish.
The good news for the day was that Spencer finished in 2nd place with a drag race to the uphill finish. This was a BIG result for him and hopefully I'll still get to train with him more often.
I get the feeling that I'm fried at this point and need a bit of a break. The legs are like lead and have no snap. I shouldn't have been dropped the second time around so something is up.
Race day food.
Breakfast - Bananas on toast, banana, Crank Gel.
Race - 3 Crank Gels, tortilla, 2 bottles of Cytomax
Results:
Wente 2012 Results
Strava: Wente 2012
Location:Livermore, CA
Chico Stage Race Pro/1/2 Crit
After and epic road race on Saturday and a fast flat TT on Sunday AM it was time for the Crit stage. I'd finished the RR in 25 and the TT in 35th so I was sure I'd lost a few places on GC even though the road race gaps were fairly large.
I took a nap in the truck before the race as I had over 3 hours between the TT and the Crit start. I'd eaten a couple of bananas and had a Muscle Milk right after the TT finish to help kickstart the recovery process.
I'd found a good parking spot downtown and set up the trainer right behind the truck and an hour before the start I jumped on for a warmup. I did the usual 20 minute easy spin then added a few 1 minute hard efforts to get the blood flowing. I rolled over to the start with my spare wheels and dropped them in the wheel pit. We had time to roll a couple of laps before the start and I took this time to check out the corners. Some of them were interesting with curbs that stuck out into the road. There was one corner that you could catch some air on if you took the inside line.
The overall GC race was very close with the top 20 guys only separated by a few seconds, this was going to be an attacking race as people would try to get away to gain time. They announced 2 time bonus primes which would also stir things up.
The race started with a number of attack, the whole field was struck out in a long line for at least the first 20 minutes of the 70 minute race. There was a brief let up as the early breaks were brought back but then a group of strong guys escaped and we're pulling away from the field. As the teams that missed out went to the front to try and pull things back the pace picked up and the field strung out again. This time the pace was so high that small gaps started to open and people were dropping of the back shrinking the main group significantly over the next few laps. When the pace let up the next time it was noticeable how many people had got dropped and been pulled out.
People who had finished ahead of me in the RR and TT were now standing at the side of the road and spectating 30 minutes into the race.
This always makes me wonder where my strength lies, I can hang in a Crit almost regardless of how hard the effort is but can't TT to save my life. I'm guessing I'm just very efficient in a group and when things get technical.
Id decided before the race that id just sit in and see what happens closer to the end. If I felt good I'd try to mix it up with a sprint but there wasnt much change I was going to make on GC. With a couple of laps to go the break was still away with at least 5 guys up the road. Small groups were still trying to get away but the field wasn't letting anything go. It was really just a matter of sitting in and finishing up the race. I could also see my friend Josh just off the front of the field. He was in the top 10 after the TT and needed a couple of seconds to try and move up. He was dangling off the front of the field and holding them off. The sprint came and Josh had managed to hold off the main field by 2 seconds that held his top 10 place.
I took a couple of cool down laps and then went back to the car to get changed and cleaned up. I found a great little Taco Shop downtown just a few blocks from the course and had some lunch before starting the drive home.
The results came out a couple of days later and amazingly I'd managed to move up to 24rd place on GC and the 11th Cat 2!
Race Food:
Before - Tortillas, Clif Shot 2x Caffeine Gel
During - Crank Gel
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I took a nap in the truck before the race as I had over 3 hours between the TT and the Crit start. I'd eaten a couple of bananas and had a Muscle Milk right after the TT finish to help kickstart the recovery process.
I'd found a good parking spot downtown and set up the trainer right behind the truck and an hour before the start I jumped on for a warmup. I did the usual 20 minute easy spin then added a few 1 minute hard efforts to get the blood flowing. I rolled over to the start with my spare wheels and dropped them in the wheel pit. We had time to roll a couple of laps before the start and I took this time to check out the corners. Some of them were interesting with curbs that stuck out into the road. There was one corner that you could catch some air on if you took the inside line.
The overall GC race was very close with the top 20 guys only separated by a few seconds, this was going to be an attacking race as people would try to get away to gain time. They announced 2 time bonus primes which would also stir things up.
The race started with a number of attack, the whole field was struck out in a long line for at least the first 20 minutes of the 70 minute race. There was a brief let up as the early breaks were brought back but then a group of strong guys escaped and we're pulling away from the field. As the teams that missed out went to the front to try and pull things back the pace picked up and the field strung out again. This time the pace was so high that small gaps started to open and people were dropping of the back shrinking the main group significantly over the next few laps. When the pace let up the next time it was noticeable how many people had got dropped and been pulled out.
People who had finished ahead of me in the RR and TT were now standing at the side of the road and spectating 30 minutes into the race.
This always makes me wonder where my strength lies, I can hang in a Crit almost regardless of how hard the effort is but can't TT to save my life. I'm guessing I'm just very efficient in a group and when things get technical.
Id decided before the race that id just sit in and see what happens closer to the end. If I felt good I'd try to mix it up with a sprint but there wasnt much change I was going to make on GC. With a couple of laps to go the break was still away with at least 5 guys up the road. Small groups were still trying to get away but the field wasn't letting anything go. It was really just a matter of sitting in and finishing up the race. I could also see my friend Josh just off the front of the field. He was in the top 10 after the TT and needed a couple of seconds to try and move up. He was dangling off the front of the field and holding them off. The sprint came and Josh had managed to hold off the main field by 2 seconds that held his top 10 place.
I took a couple of cool down laps and then went back to the car to get changed and cleaned up. I found a great little Taco Shop downtown just a few blocks from the course and had some lunch before starting the drive home.
The results came out a couple of days later and amazingly I'd managed to move up to 24rd place on GC and the 11th Cat 2!
Race Food:
Before - Tortillas, Clif Shot 2x Caffeine Gel
During - Crank Gel
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Downtown Chico, CA
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Chico Stage Race Pro/1/2 TT
Stage 2 of the Chico Stage Race is the time trial. It's a pancake flat 10 mile loop just to the West of town. I arrived very early and set up the trainer for a good warmup. I span for about 30 minutes then did 3 one minute hard efforts to get the HR above 160. As always the first one sucked but the next 2 got easier and easier as the legs and lungs warmed up.
My start time was 8:07:30 and was based on the previous days finish order in reverse. I had 2 fast guys right behind me as they were the guys who dropped me with 500 meters to go. They both caught me about 2 miles from the finish and gave me something to chase. I caught 2 guys who were riding road bikes but other than that it was fairly uneventful. I can't imagine I moved up on GC, I just hope I didn't drop back any.
I rolled back to the car for a warm down on the trainer and grabbed some food to recover for the Crit that was now three and a half hours away.
Food:
Breakfast - Egg McMuffin, bottle of Cytomax, Half double expresso Clif Shot
Garmin time: 0:23:40
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
My start time was 8:07:30 and was based on the previous days finish order in reverse. I had 2 fast guys right behind me as they were the guys who dropped me with 500 meters to go. They both caught me about 2 miles from the finish and gave me something to chase. I caught 2 guys who were riding road bikes but other than that it was fairly uneventful. I can't imagine I moved up on GC, I just hope I didn't drop back any.
I rolled back to the car for a warm down on the trainer and grabbed some food to recover for the Crit that was now three and a half hours away.
Food:
Breakfast - Egg McMuffin, bottle of Cytomax, Half double expresso Clif Shot
Garmin time: 0:23:40
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Chico, CA
Chico Stage Race Pro/1/2 Stage 1
With a very relaxed 9 AM start I didn't have to get up too early from my hotel in Willows To be at the start in plenty of time. When I arrived there was still plenty of parking near registration. I found a good spot behind Scott Witoff, as I pulled off the read I noticed that a large ditch hiding in the grass and made a point to avoid it. I jumped out of the truck and rolled down to pick up my number. As
I came back to my truck someone had pulled in behind me but hadn't managed to avoid the ditch that was hiding in the grass. His trucks front wheel had gone straight down the 6 foot hole and tipped over.
This was going to be a bad day for someone. I offered up the tow rope that I had in the back of the truck and the owner found someone with a big AWD truck to try and pull the truck back onto its wheels. Within a
minute or 2 he came back with the tow rope in 2 pieces. They then went to find a "proper" tow strap.
They eventually got the truck out of the ditch and back on its wheels. It's started right up and drove off to find a better parking spot.
I rolled down to the start ready for the 90 mile two lap race with two passes over the famous Paskenta gravel section.
We rolled really easy for the first 30 miles with only a couple of attacks that didn't go anywhere. The gravel section started at about mile 36 and at 6 miles out people became very nervous. Everyone was fighting for the first few rows. It was getting quite rough but I managed to stay up there ready for the pack to hit the dirt. As we came off the pavement onto the gravel we found that it was very, very soft. The recent week of rain had softened what would have been the clean line causing the wheels to sink in.
There wasn't much difference between riding on the lose gravel and riding on the dirt, they were both slow, but there was a 3" wide strip at the transition between the mud and the gravel that was much firmer but in a group it was very hard to hold onto this strip. I was with the lead group until about 3/4 of the way across the gravel section where the road really kicks up for about 150 yards. The pace picked up and a few of us fell off the back. I was doing my best to chase back on but I wasn't gaining any ground. As I came towards town a small group of about 8 guys came up behind me and I jumped on the back and worked with them to catch back onto the lead group.
We caught them about 5 miles later as they eased up in the headwind. There were a few more attacks in the cross/headwind that caused the group to split into 3 at one point. I was in the front echelon and having no trouble staying there but there were groups a long way back. Eventually we all came back together and it really stayed like this until about 3 miles out from the dirt. Things were rolling along very easy and then the fighting for the front rows started again. Just like the last lap I made my way forward and tried to stay in the first few rows. As we hit the gravel the pace this lap was very different. After 80 miles of racing everyone was very tired and the pace was slow for the first 3 miles. As the road kicked up about 3/4 of the way through I dropped off the back of the group again. I need that extra power that can keep me in the group when the big guys kick it up a notch.
This time there wasn't a group behind me to work with, but I did come up on 3 guys who also got dropped and we started working together to minimize the time loss to the front group.
We could see the group ahead of us and it looked like they stayed intact to the finish. We lost one guy from our group of 4 and I lost contact with the other two stronger guys with 500 meters to go, but the main group was still in sight and I'd only lost about a minute on the leaders. I was the 3rd rider off the group and fairly happy with the performance. I need a lot more horsepower but there isn't much I can do about that right now.
I drove back to the hotel and hit the Mexican restaurant next door for one of the biggest burritos I've ever had.
A great end to a good day.
Food:
Breakfast - 1 Egg McMuffin half a hash brown.
Race - 4 Crank Gels, 2 bottles of Cytomax
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I came back to my truck someone had pulled in behind me but hadn't managed to avoid the ditch that was hiding in the grass. His trucks front wheel had gone straight down the 6 foot hole and tipped over.
This was going to be a bad day for someone. I offered up the tow rope that I had in the back of the truck and the owner found someone with a big AWD truck to try and pull the truck back onto its wheels. Within a
minute or 2 he came back with the tow rope in 2 pieces. They then went to find a "proper" tow strap.
They eventually got the truck out of the ditch and back on its wheels. It's started right up and drove off to find a better parking spot.
I rolled down to the start ready for the 90 mile two lap race with two passes over the famous Paskenta gravel section.
We rolled really easy for the first 30 miles with only a couple of attacks that didn't go anywhere. The gravel section started at about mile 36 and at 6 miles out people became very nervous. Everyone was fighting for the first few rows. It was getting quite rough but I managed to stay up there ready for the pack to hit the dirt. As we came off the pavement onto the gravel we found that it was very, very soft. The recent week of rain had softened what would have been the clean line causing the wheels to sink in.
There wasn't much difference between riding on the lose gravel and riding on the dirt, they were both slow, but there was a 3" wide strip at the transition between the mud and the gravel that was much firmer but in a group it was very hard to hold onto this strip. I was with the lead group until about 3/4 of the way across the gravel section where the road really kicks up for about 150 yards. The pace picked up and a few of us fell off the back. I was doing my best to chase back on but I wasn't gaining any ground. As I came towards town a small group of about 8 guys came up behind me and I jumped on the back and worked with them to catch back onto the lead group.
We caught them about 5 miles later as they eased up in the headwind. There were a few more attacks in the cross/headwind that caused the group to split into 3 at one point. I was in the front echelon and having no trouble staying there but there were groups a long way back. Eventually we all came back together and it really stayed like this until about 3 miles out from the dirt. Things were rolling along very easy and then the fighting for the front rows started again. Just like the last lap I made my way forward and tried to stay in the first few rows. As we hit the gravel the pace this lap was very different. After 80 miles of racing everyone was very tired and the pace was slow for the first 3 miles. As the road kicked up about 3/4 of the way through I dropped off the back of the group again. I need that extra power that can keep me in the group when the big guys kick it up a notch.
This time there wasn't a group behind me to work with, but I did come up on 3 guys who also got dropped and we started working together to minimize the time loss to the front group.
We could see the group ahead of us and it looked like they stayed intact to the finish. We lost one guy from our group of 4 and I lost contact with the other two stronger guys with 500 meters to go, but the main group was still in sight and I'd only lost about a minute on the leaders. I was the 3rd rider off the group and fairly happy with the performance. I need a lot more horsepower but there isn't much I can do about that right now.
I drove back to the hotel and hit the Mexican restaurant next door for one of the biggest burritos I've ever had.
A great end to a good day.
Food:
Breakfast - 1 Egg McMuffin half a hash brown.
Race - 4 Crank Gels, 2 bottles of Cytomax
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Paskenta, CA
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Copperopolis Pro/1/2 or Where's Cyrus?
The Copperopolis Road Race starts at 8AM and its at least 2 hours away, which meant another early wake up call. At the last minute on the Friday night I'd arranged to carpool with Cyrus and Josh from the Form Fitness team. I think this was going to be Cyrus' second Pro/1/2 race, the first being Snelling which from what I hear was a harsh introduction for him.
The plan was to meet Cyrus at Josh's house at 4:50 meaning I had to leave home by 4:30 at the latest. I was there exactly on time and a minute or two later Josh came out of his house with all his gear ready to load into the car. We stood on the sidewalk chatting and by about 5:05 we were wondering if Cyrus was going to show up. Josh texted him and a few minutes later the phone rang. "Sorry guys I slept through my alarm! I'll be there in 15-20 minutes. Josh and I made the decision not to wait and loaded my truck up for the drive.
We arrived at the after a couple of brief stops for breakfast and gas to find Cyrus was already there. After busting on him for a few minutes we signed up and got our gear together for the start.
Copperopolis is affectionately called "The Hell of NorCal" due to the very poor state of the roads it is raced on and that it happens around the same time as Paris - Roubaix. The roads are rough, torn up in places and full of potholes just waiting to eat a tire. The side of the road is even worse. Even the race flyer recommends strong wheels, new tires and a complete bolt check before the start.
I'd decided to use a pair of 25c tires instead of my usual 23c in the hope of having a more comfortable and flat free day. Josh and I rode to the start line with a spare set of wheels for the wheel van only to find that there was no wheel van for the Pro/1/2 race.
The course is a 21 mile loop with about 1600 feet of climbing per lap coming in 2 chunks. The first is about 1300 feet over 3 miles and the second is about 300 feet over a mile both averaging about 4%.
The race started and within about a mile we heard the first flat tire as we rattled and banged over the rough road. The feed zone was a couple o f miles from the start and as usual I immediately started to move up the field to be near the front for the first climb. It was at this point that I was beginning to feel like I'd had too much breakfast but I was sure that would go away within the next 5 hours.
As the main climb started there was a small group away by about 15 seconds and the pace was kept high by the guys at the from to stop the gap growing too much. With well over 100 guys in the field there was a lot of shoulder leaning as the pack climbed the stair steps of the narrow road. The pace was hard and I was suffering along with everyone else but maintaining my place in the front of the group. Near the top the pitch kicked up and the pace stayed the same until we finally crested the top of the climb and made it to the plateau. I was comfortable and happy having now gone further than I'd gone at Copperopolis the last time I raced it more than 10 years ago.
We caught the break and the pace picked up as other little attackers stretched the field out. I had the sense that the pack had got much smaller and after drifting towards the back noticed that we'd lost Cyrus although Josh was still here and looking very comfortable.
We hit the second climb and cruised over the top before hitting the crazy fast and rough descent towards the finish of the first lap. I was loving the 25c tires as they just seemed to float over the bumps. I was flying on the descent with the bars bouncing all over the place, passing a lot of people before ending up back at the front of the group by the bottom of the hill.
We came through the finish line and things relaxed as we came towards the feed zone to start the main climb again. I was managing to hold my position but starting to suffer a lot more this time around. I'd been very conservative on this lap knowing that this time up would be hard but by the time we reached the steepest pitch I was beginning to lose contact with the back of the main group. I looked behind me and could see another group way back but didn't give up on my goal of getting back onto the front group. As I came over the top of the climb I could see the found group strung out way ahead of me with a couple of stragglers in between. I was head down and in TT mode trying to get back. I know that there were a bunch of people dropped and all we needed to do was get together. Eventually a large enough group would form to make a chase group.
By the time we got to the base of the climb for the third time there was about 12 of us and we picked up another couple of people on the way up. I was feeling much stronger in this group and was encouraging everyone to work together hoping we'd be able to catch what would be left of the field after the inevitable break got away.
There were a number of guys in this group who were obviously suffering way more than me. About 4 other guys and myself were doing the majority of the work. About half way around the lap a photographer at the side of the road told us we were only about 90 seconds down on the lead group this spurred everyone on and got the whole group working together.
We rode to the top of the second climb and a group although a little strung out. I was the second wheel as we started the descent, in front of me was a powerhouse from the Fremont Bank team. He was riding so strong I have no idea how he got dropped in the first place. We attacked the descent and were absolutely flying, passing dropped riders from other groups like they were standing still. By the time we reached the small hill to the finish there were only 5 of us left, we'd dropped 10 guys on the descent!
We flew through town and the feed zone ready for the climb again. The group separated on the climb into a pair of riders about 10 seconds up and then 3 of us suffering a little more this time. The 3 of us decided to work together for the final lap and a half before the finish.
I was riding well and the 3 of us were working well together. I was by far the smallest rider so I have no idea how much of a draft I was giving them.
As we came around towards the start of the second climb we were to the right side of the road with the wind coming from left. I was at the back and had just grabbed some food. The rider in front of me moved over to his right and my front wheel was to the right of his rear wheel and suddenly I ran out of road. The edge of the road was very ragged and broken up and I went off the tarmac and into the ditch that was loosely described as the shoulder. The bottom of the ditch was full of small jagged rocks and at 20 mph I was bouncing along just trying to stay upright. After about 20 yards I managed to get the bike back onto the road and was regaining the back of other 2 guys when I could hear the hissing from my rear tire as it went flat. I'd pinched the tube on the rocks in the ditch and my race was over. I'd ridden 80 hard miles with only 25 remaining and was determined to finish the race. There was nothing I could do now but get off the bike and wait for the sag van to come pick me up. There was no wheel van for the Pro/1/2 race and I wasn't carrying a patch kit.
The van came quickly and I loaded the bike on the back. We're we're driving past riders who had obviously quit and as we came through the finish line there were a bunch of the Pro/1/2 field that had dropped out. All you had to do was finish this race and you could have placed well.
I'll be back for this race next year. It's rough and hard and deserves its name as "The Hell of NorCal". I loved it!
Food for the Day
Breakfast: 2 Egg McMuffins. Probably one too many :)
Race: 4 Gels, 3 bottles of Cytomax. Could have used more food but hadn't bonked.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
The plan was to meet Cyrus at Josh's house at 4:50 meaning I had to leave home by 4:30 at the latest. I was there exactly on time and a minute or two later Josh came out of his house with all his gear ready to load into the car. We stood on the sidewalk chatting and by about 5:05 we were wondering if Cyrus was going to show up. Josh texted him and a few minutes later the phone rang. "Sorry guys I slept through my alarm! I'll be there in 15-20 minutes. Josh and I made the decision not to wait and loaded my truck up for the drive.
We arrived at the after a couple of brief stops for breakfast and gas to find Cyrus was already there. After busting on him for a few minutes we signed up and got our gear together for the start.
Copperopolis is affectionately called "The Hell of NorCal" due to the very poor state of the roads it is raced on and that it happens around the same time as Paris - Roubaix. The roads are rough, torn up in places and full of potholes just waiting to eat a tire. The side of the road is even worse. Even the race flyer recommends strong wheels, new tires and a complete bolt check before the start.
I'd decided to use a pair of 25c tires instead of my usual 23c in the hope of having a more comfortable and flat free day. Josh and I rode to the start line with a spare set of wheels for the wheel van only to find that there was no wheel van for the Pro/1/2 race.
The course is a 21 mile loop with about 1600 feet of climbing per lap coming in 2 chunks. The first is about 1300 feet over 3 miles and the second is about 300 feet over a mile both averaging about 4%.
The race started and within about a mile we heard the first flat tire as we rattled and banged over the rough road. The feed zone was a couple o f miles from the start and as usual I immediately started to move up the field to be near the front for the first climb. It was at this point that I was beginning to feel like I'd had too much breakfast but I was sure that would go away within the next 5 hours.
As the main climb started there was a small group away by about 15 seconds and the pace was kept high by the guys at the from to stop the gap growing too much. With well over 100 guys in the field there was a lot of shoulder leaning as the pack climbed the stair steps of the narrow road. The pace was hard and I was suffering along with everyone else but maintaining my place in the front of the group. Near the top the pitch kicked up and the pace stayed the same until we finally crested the top of the climb and made it to the plateau. I was comfortable and happy having now gone further than I'd gone at Copperopolis the last time I raced it more than 10 years ago.
We caught the break and the pace picked up as other little attackers stretched the field out. I had the sense that the pack had got much smaller and after drifting towards the back noticed that we'd lost Cyrus although Josh was still here and looking very comfortable.
We hit the second climb and cruised over the top before hitting the crazy fast and rough descent towards the finish of the first lap. I was loving the 25c tires as they just seemed to float over the bumps. I was flying on the descent with the bars bouncing all over the place, passing a lot of people before ending up back at the front of the group by the bottom of the hill.
We came through the finish line and things relaxed as we came towards the feed zone to start the main climb again. I was managing to hold my position but starting to suffer a lot more this time around. I'd been very conservative on this lap knowing that this time up would be hard but by the time we reached the steepest pitch I was beginning to lose contact with the back of the main group. I looked behind me and could see another group way back but didn't give up on my goal of getting back onto the front group. As I came over the top of the climb I could see the found group strung out way ahead of me with a couple of stragglers in between. I was head down and in TT mode trying to get back. I know that there were a bunch of people dropped and all we needed to do was get together. Eventually a large enough group would form to make a chase group.
By the time we got to the base of the climb for the third time there was about 12 of us and we picked up another couple of people on the way up. I was feeling much stronger in this group and was encouraging everyone to work together hoping we'd be able to catch what would be left of the field after the inevitable break got away.
There were a number of guys in this group who were obviously suffering way more than me. About 4 other guys and myself were doing the majority of the work. About half way around the lap a photographer at the side of the road told us we were only about 90 seconds down on the lead group this spurred everyone on and got the whole group working together.
We rode to the top of the second climb and a group although a little strung out. I was the second wheel as we started the descent, in front of me was a powerhouse from the Fremont Bank team. He was riding so strong I have no idea how he got dropped in the first place. We attacked the descent and were absolutely flying, passing dropped riders from other groups like they were standing still. By the time we reached the small hill to the finish there were only 5 of us left, we'd dropped 10 guys on the descent!
We flew through town and the feed zone ready for the climb again. The group separated on the climb into a pair of riders about 10 seconds up and then 3 of us suffering a little more this time. The 3 of us decided to work together for the final lap and a half before the finish.
I was riding well and the 3 of us were working well together. I was by far the smallest rider so I have no idea how much of a draft I was giving them.
As we came around towards the start of the second climb we were to the right side of the road with the wind coming from left. I was at the back and had just grabbed some food. The rider in front of me moved over to his right and my front wheel was to the right of his rear wheel and suddenly I ran out of road. The edge of the road was very ragged and broken up and I went off the tarmac and into the ditch that was loosely described as the shoulder. The bottom of the ditch was full of small jagged rocks and at 20 mph I was bouncing along just trying to stay upright. After about 20 yards I managed to get the bike back onto the road and was regaining the back of other 2 guys when I could hear the hissing from my rear tire as it went flat. I'd pinched the tube on the rocks in the ditch and my race was over. I'd ridden 80 hard miles with only 25 remaining and was determined to finish the race. There was nothing I could do now but get off the bike and wait for the sag van to come pick me up. There was no wheel van for the Pro/1/2 race and I wasn't carrying a patch kit.
The van came quickly and I loaded the bike on the back. We're we're driving past riders who had obviously quit and as we came through the finish line there were a bunch of the Pro/1/2 field that had dropped out. All you had to do was finish this race and you could have placed well.
I'll be back for this race next year. It's rough and hard and deserves its name as "The Hell of NorCal". I loved it!
Food for the Day
Breakfast: 2 Egg McMuffins. Probably one too many :)
Race: 4 Gels, 3 bottles of Cytomax. Could have used more food but hadn't bonked.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Milton, CA
Sunday, April 1, 2012
The final stage. TopSport SR Stage 3 - Circuit Race Pro/1/2
At the end of the TT I had 2 hours until the start of the final stage of the 2012 TopSport Stage Race. This was enough time to get food, drink and take a quick nap in the car before getting back on the bike to warm up.
I'd gotten cold on the ride back to the car and it took a while with the heater on full blast again before I started to warm up. Slowly the sun came out and the roads started to dry out.
The circuit race was a 5 mile out and back course on a fully closed road with a short loop through the center of town over some cobbled crosswalks. These were not Belgium cobbles but more like rough pavement, nothing to worry about in the dry.
As I started my warmup I took down a double caffeine Clif Shot and began to spin on the trainer. The legs were a little sore but I was hoping that this was the same for everyone else. I'd gone as hard as I could in the TT and hoped it hadn't taken too much out of me.
The race started with a fast lap as the MarcPro-Starva team and the Fremont Bank team both tried to get people up the road. There was another head/cross wind section on the slight incline out of town. This caused small gaps to open that were painful to close on the first couple of laps as I tried to get warmed up and into race mode again. There were an number of good attacks that had the field strung out but things seemed to bunch up after a short while as nothing was sticking. At the far end of the course there was another turnaround with a cone placed in the middle of the road. Just like Saturday the whole field would slow to a crawl as we rounded the cone and then had to sprint like crazy as things were strung out.
The turnaround cone was about 5K from the finish line with a couple of small rollers in between. After a few laps I realized that you needed to be in a really good position coming into the turn if you were going to be able to hold that position for the sprint. I made up my mind that on the final lap I would fight my way into the top ten before the cone and then do what I could to hold it to the 200 meter marker.
As the bell went for 1 lap to go I was still near the back but after the twisty section through town the group hesitated a little and I started my move to the front. About 1/4 of a mile before the turn I was in the top 10 and holding my position. We came around the turn and the lead group sprinted a little to string things out a bit, but everything bunched up again with about 3K to go. I was still near the front but not close enough. I started to move up again and was doing well as the pace picked up. With 1K to go I was back in the top 15 but still hiding out of the wind at the pointy end of the race.
Things were getting a little crazy but this was why I was here, I kept telling myself that this is why I do sprint training each week. At about 300 meters I saw one of the MarcPro-Strava guys launch his sprint on the right side, there was no immediate reaction but as the seconds ticked by the pace wound up until at 200 meters we were at full speed on this flat run in to the finish. I gripped the bars tight and started my sprint making my way through the crowd as the front of the race spread out across the road. I was gaining on two guys in front of me with nowhere to go as we crossed the line. I had to back off a little to avoid running into the back of them. I felt great! I hadn't sprinted like that in many years and loved every minute of it. Turns out I placed 11th in the final stage of a Pro/1/2 Stage Race against some really fast guys.
It had been a great weekend of racing and all that was left to do was to drive home and spend the evening with Super Supporter Hailey, watching the Tour of Flanders that she'd recorded for us in HD!
The GC results were not posted by the time I left so I'll have to wait till they send them out to find out how I placed on GC. I'd been 21st OA and 12th Cat 2 going into the TT but must have lost some places. Everyone finished on the same time in the circuit race so there would have been no changes in GC after that.
Food:
Race: 3 crank gels and a bottle of Cytomax
Pre Race: muscle milk, banana, tortilla and almond butter
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I'd gotten cold on the ride back to the car and it took a while with the heater on full blast again before I started to warm up. Slowly the sun came out and the roads started to dry out.
The circuit race was a 5 mile out and back course on a fully closed road with a short loop through the center of town over some cobbled crosswalks. These were not Belgium cobbles but more like rough pavement, nothing to worry about in the dry.
As I started my warmup I took down a double caffeine Clif Shot and began to spin on the trainer. The legs were a little sore but I was hoping that this was the same for everyone else. I'd gone as hard as I could in the TT and hoped it hadn't taken too much out of me.
The race started with a fast lap as the MarcPro-Starva team and the Fremont Bank team both tried to get people up the road. There was another head/cross wind section on the slight incline out of town. This caused small gaps to open that were painful to close on the first couple of laps as I tried to get warmed up and into race mode again. There were an number of good attacks that had the field strung out but things seemed to bunch up after a short while as nothing was sticking. At the far end of the course there was another turnaround with a cone placed in the middle of the road. Just like Saturday the whole field would slow to a crawl as we rounded the cone and then had to sprint like crazy as things were strung out.
The turnaround cone was about 5K from the finish line with a couple of small rollers in between. After a few laps I realized that you needed to be in a really good position coming into the turn if you were going to be able to hold that position for the sprint. I made up my mind that on the final lap I would fight my way into the top ten before the cone and then do what I could to hold it to the 200 meter marker.
As the bell went for 1 lap to go I was still near the back but after the twisty section through town the group hesitated a little and I started my move to the front. About 1/4 of a mile before the turn I was in the top 10 and holding my position. We came around the turn and the lead group sprinted a little to string things out a bit, but everything bunched up again with about 3K to go. I was still near the front but not close enough. I started to move up again and was doing well as the pace picked up. With 1K to go I was back in the top 15 but still hiding out of the wind at the pointy end of the race.
Things were getting a little crazy but this was why I was here, I kept telling myself that this is why I do sprint training each week. At about 300 meters I saw one of the MarcPro-Strava guys launch his sprint on the right side, there was no immediate reaction but as the seconds ticked by the pace wound up until at 200 meters we were at full speed on this flat run in to the finish. I gripped the bars tight and started my sprint making my way through the crowd as the front of the race spread out across the road. I was gaining on two guys in front of me with nowhere to go as we crossed the line. I had to back off a little to avoid running into the back of them. I felt great! I hadn't sprinted like that in many years and loved every minute of it. Turns out I placed 11th in the final stage of a Pro/1/2 Stage Race against some really fast guys.
It had been a great weekend of racing and all that was left to do was to drive home and spend the evening with Super Supporter Hailey, watching the Tour of Flanders that she'd recorded for us in HD!
The GC results were not posted by the time I left so I'll have to wait till they send them out to find out how I placed on GC. I'd been 21st OA and 12th Cat 2 going into the TT but must have lost some places. Everyone finished on the same time in the circuit race so there would have been no changes in GC after that.
Food:
Race: 3 crank gels and a bottle of Cytomax
Pre Race: muscle milk, banana, tortilla and almond butter
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Copperopolis, CA
Where's the start? TopSport SR Stage 2 TT Pro/1/2
The alarm went off at 5:30 AM. I was staying in Lodi, CA with family and had been woken multiple times during the night by the neighbors dog barking. I looked out the window and it as dark but dry. There was a breeze blowing the trees but nothing like the winds we had the day before.
I packed the truck and swung by the local McDonalds for an egg McMuffin before driving east on Hwy 4 to Copperopolis, the old civil war copper mining town.
I went to the town square and found the GC results. I was 21st on GC and the 12th cat 2 with 6 minutes down on the leader. Only 1 cat 2 was on a different time than me, all the others were on the same time.
I broke out the trainer and started my warmup an hour before my actual start time of 8:14:30. I added 4 hard efforts to get the HR over 160 and really warm things up. The first hard effort felt horrible but each subsequent effort felt a little better.
At 8:00 I jumped off the trainer, pulled on my arm warmers and headed to where I thought the start was but I was wrong. I asked a couple of people and they told me it was about a mile up the road. I had 7 minutes before my start time so I started my TT early making sure I made it to the start just in time. Note so self, read the race bible more carefully next time.
I had 5 people lined up in front of me as they counted down the seconds. I looked up the road and it looked like it was starting out up hill. We were told this was a rolling course and I'd describe it as hilly. In the first few miles I was feeling fairly good, better than I expected considering how the race ended yesterday.
I passed a couple of people and was passed by one guy who stared a minute behind, he caught me within the last 3K. My 30 second guy never caught me. My time was 28:39:00 according to my Garmin. The results showed I was 36th OA which was a little disappointing really. Still a lot of work to do on the TT'ing.
I rolled back to the car and started the recovery for the 3rd stage. This would be a 90 minute circuit race and the wind was picking up again.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I packed the truck and swung by the local McDonalds for an egg McMuffin before driving east on Hwy 4 to Copperopolis, the old civil war copper mining town.
I went to the town square and found the GC results. I was 21st on GC and the 12th cat 2 with 6 minutes down on the leader. Only 1 cat 2 was on a different time than me, all the others were on the same time.
I broke out the trainer and started my warmup an hour before my actual start time of 8:14:30. I added 4 hard efforts to get the HR over 160 and really warm things up. The first hard effort felt horrible but each subsequent effort felt a little better.
At 8:00 I jumped off the trainer, pulled on my arm warmers and headed to where I thought the start was but I was wrong. I asked a couple of people and they told me it was about a mile up the road. I had 7 minutes before my start time so I started my TT early making sure I made it to the start just in time. Note so self, read the race bible more carefully next time.
I had 5 people lined up in front of me as they counted down the seconds. I looked up the road and it looked like it was starting out up hill. We were told this was a rolling course and I'd describe it as hilly. In the first few miles I was feeling fairly good, better than I expected considering how the race ended yesterday.
I passed a couple of people and was passed by one guy who stared a minute behind, he caught me within the last 3K. My 30 second guy never caught me. My time was 28:39:00 according to my Garmin. The results showed I was 36th OA which was a little disappointing really. Still a lot of work to do on the TT'ing.
I rolled back to the car and started the recovery for the 3rd stage. This would be a 90 minute circuit race and the wind was picking up again.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Copperopolis, CA
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