I found this and thought it was interesting.
Eventually, your muscles can no longer get enough oxygen. It’s an immutable physical limit that kicks in during any sustained physical exercise and tells your body: “This fast – but no faster.”
At least, that’s the theory we’ve been working with since 1923. But a controversial new study from researchers on three continents suggests that the famous “VO2max” – the maximum amount of oxygen that you’re able to deliver to your muscles during hard exercise – isn’t really a maximum at all. Your heart and lungs don’t call the shots after all; your brain does.
When is VO2max not max?
The concept of VO2max was first introduced by Nobel Prize-winning physiologist A.V. Hill, who found that the amount of oxygen consumed by his muscles increased as he ran at a steadily increasing pace – up to a point. Eventually, his oxygen consumption would plateau, even if he continued to run faster and faster until he reached exhaustion. That plateau, he argued, represented his body’s “maximal oxygen uptake,” or VO2max.
In the decades since, VO2max has become a standard tool to assess aerobic fitness. Researchers measure it using an incremental test to exhaustion: On a treadmill or exercise bike, subjects start at an easy pace, and get faster every minute or so until they’re unable to continue, having reached a plateau in oxygen consumption shortly before failure.
So what causes this plateau? In the conventional view, there are three possibilities, according to Fernando Beltrami, a researcher at the University of Cape Town in South Africa.
“One is that the heart can’t pump any more blood,” he says. “The second is that the muscles are unable to extract any more oxygen from the blood. And the third is that the lungs can’t extract any more oxygen from the air we breathe.”
Over the decades, debate has raged among physiologists about the ultimate location of the bottleneck: heart, muscles or lungs? But the new theory, proposed by physiologist and author Tim Noakes (who is also Mr. Beltrami’s university adviser), suggests that the limit may not be physical at all.
In Dr. Noakes’s “central governor” theory, your decision to slow down or stop during self-paced exercise isn’t the result of an absolute physical limit. Instead, your brain applies the brakes proactively to prevent you from reaching these limits. After all, if you really did run to the absolute edge of your physical limits, Dr. Noakes is fond of pointing out, you’d be dead.
Last month’s issue of the British Journal of Sports Medicine contained eight different studies that, in various ways, offered support for Dr. Noakes’s still-controversial views.
The most significant was a study led by Mr. Beltrami, with collaborators in Norway, Britain and Australia, that turned the standard incremental VO2max test on its head and used a “decremental” test instead.
Mr. Beltrami’s 26 volunteers started by performing a conventional incremental VO2max test. Then, on a separate day, half of them repeated the incremental test while the other half performed a decremental test. After a brief warm-up, the decremental test ramped immediately to a speed higher than the maximum speed reached in the previous incremental test. After about a minute – just before the subjects were about to fall off the back of the treadmill – the speed was decreased by one kilometre an hour. This process was repeated over and over, with the speed being lowered just before the subjects reached failure.
In the group that did two incremental tests, VO2max scores remained the same; but in the decremental group, VO2max scores increased by an average of 4.4 per cent. In other words, the subjects were suddenly able to transport more oxygen to their muscles, simply because the test structure was altered – a clear indication that it wasn’t a fundamental property of the heart, lungs or muscles that created the initial plateau.
The researchers reasoned that, since the subjects knew that the decremental test would become progressively easier, their brains would be less likely to pre-emptively apply the brakes in self-defence. Since emotional stress can affect blood flow and metabolism, that knowledge alone could alter their physiological response to exercise.
There was one further surprise: When the subjects did a final incremental VO2max test at the end of the experiment, the group that had previously performed the decremental test maintained their new higher max – a result that left even Mr. Beltrami puzzled. Whatever additional exercise capacity was unlocked by the novel decremental protocol somehow persisted.
For now, the study raises more questions than it answers. But it suggests that some of the limitations we encounter during hard exercise may actually be self-fulfilling prophecies – and that knowing your VO2max is less important than believing that you can go a little faster or a little farther.
Alex Hutchinson blogs about research on exercise at sweatscience.com. His new book, Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights?, is now available.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Valley of the Sun Crit
The Cat 2's had a fairly late start to the day with our race going off at 12:56 PM. This meant eating light for breakfast and just snacks until lunchtime. I arrived downtown at about 11:30 with plenty of time for a warmup. I found a great parking spot just North of the last turn which was turn 8 on this figure 8 course.
I set the trainer up next to the car in the shade of a large palm tree and started the warmup. The legs were feeling fairly good after 2 days of racing and were loosening up nicely after about 20 minutes.
I packed everything back in the truck and rolled down to the start finish area just in time to see the finish of the 3's race and then roll out to the start line for a position centered on the second row.
After giving a few last minute updates on the race duration of 55 minutes the official stood back and drew the starting pistol. Ready! Bang! We were off and racing, I had a great start and was in about 10th - 15th place by turn 2. The whole field was strung out in a long line by a couple of guys driving things at the front. This lasted for about 4 laps before things calmed down a little. There were a number of Primes being offered to spice things up and keep the field on its toes.
I never saw the first crash as it was behind me somewhere but a couple of laps later a rider was back in the field with blood running down his leg.
My goal was to stay in the top 10 - 20 riders for as much of the race as possible. If I started drifting back I would put in extra effort and move my way back again. Things were fairly uneventful up until we got the 5 laps to go signal, then riders started to get nervous and people were all trying to maintain position or move up. You could feel the change in the way guys were riding and it got a little more aggressive.
I was loving every minute of it, moving around in the front of the pack and weaving through into gaps that were left open. I didn't see the next crash that actually happened a few riders ahead of me, the first thing I saw was a guy spinning around on the ground instead of sitting on his bike. Everyone else managed to avoid him and the pace picked up again.
Another crash that I missed was when Raffi's front wheel fell out as he was trying to move up with a couple of laps to go. Apparently he hadn't tightened the skewer enough when he put the wheel in before the start. He wasn't injured but didn't manage to finish. Losing a front wheel with 2 laps to go in a Crit seems about as bad as it could get for a racer.
I'd drifted back a little in the pack and hesitated to move up wondering how crazy things would get on the bell lap but then made a last minute push after the bell to get in a better position for the final turn. At 250 meters, the position you came through the final turn was probably going to be the position you finished in. I went to the outside on turn 7 and came around a few people before turn 8 and we started the finish straight. At about
It 200 meters I heaved on the drops and started my sprint. I don't remember fading before the line and had a fairly clear run on the wide flat straight to the finish. This was great! I was actually sprinting at the end of a Crit. I hadn't done that in years. I came across the line in 20th place very happy to have stayed upright and actually being able to do what I wanted during the race.
I was certainly a bit rusty with my tactics but being able to ride most of the race in exactly the position I wanted to be in gave me a lot of confidence for the next one. If I'd had been more confident going into the last few laps I would have moved up more and really held my position at the front instead of slipping back.
This was a great event and a full weekend of fun racing. I'd love to be able to go back in 2013 for another go.
Immediately after the race I picked up my spare wheels from the pit, got changed and jumped in the truck for the 12 hour drive home. I drove straight through only stopping for fuel and snacks, arriving at my door at exactly 12:59 AM.
Video of the 2012 Cat 2 Crit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oQ6N6W8rHU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
I set the trainer up next to the car in the shade of a large palm tree and started the warmup. The legs were feeling fairly good after 2 days of racing and were loosening up nicely after about 20 minutes.
I packed everything back in the truck and rolled down to the start finish area just in time to see the finish of the 3's race and then roll out to the start line for a position centered on the second row.
After giving a few last minute updates on the race duration of 55 minutes the official stood back and drew the starting pistol. Ready! Bang! We were off and racing, I had a great start and was in about 10th - 15th place by turn 2. The whole field was strung out in a long line by a couple of guys driving things at the front. This lasted for about 4 laps before things calmed down a little. There were a number of Primes being offered to spice things up and keep the field on its toes.
I never saw the first crash as it was behind me somewhere but a couple of laps later a rider was back in the field with blood running down his leg.
My goal was to stay in the top 10 - 20 riders for as much of the race as possible. If I started drifting back I would put in extra effort and move my way back again. Things were fairly uneventful up until we got the 5 laps to go signal, then riders started to get nervous and people were all trying to maintain position or move up. You could feel the change in the way guys were riding and it got a little more aggressive.
I was loving every minute of it, moving around in the front of the pack and weaving through into gaps that were left open. I didn't see the next crash that actually happened a few riders ahead of me, the first thing I saw was a guy spinning around on the ground instead of sitting on his bike. Everyone else managed to avoid him and the pace picked up again.
Another crash that I missed was when Raffi's front wheel fell out as he was trying to move up with a couple of laps to go. Apparently he hadn't tightened the skewer enough when he put the wheel in before the start. He wasn't injured but didn't manage to finish. Losing a front wheel with 2 laps to go in a Crit seems about as bad as it could get for a racer.
I'd drifted back a little in the pack and hesitated to move up wondering how crazy things would get on the bell lap but then made a last minute push after the bell to get in a better position for the final turn. At 250 meters, the position you came through the final turn was probably going to be the position you finished in. I went to the outside on turn 7 and came around a few people before turn 8 and we started the finish straight. At about
It 200 meters I heaved on the drops and started my sprint. I don't remember fading before the line and had a fairly clear run on the wide flat straight to the finish. This was great! I was actually sprinting at the end of a Crit. I hadn't done that in years. I came across the line in 20th place very happy to have stayed upright and actually being able to do what I wanted during the race.
I was certainly a bit rusty with my tactics but being able to ride most of the race in exactly the position I wanted to be in gave me a lot of confidence for the next one. If I'd had been more confident going into the last few laps I would have moved up more and really held my position at the front instead of slipping back.
This was a great event and a full weekend of fun racing. I'd love to be able to go back in 2013 for another go.
Immediately after the race I picked up my spare wheels from the pit, got changed and jumped in the truck for the 12 hour drive home. I drove straight through only stopping for fuel and snacks, arriving at my door at exactly 12:59 AM.
Video of the 2012 Cat 2 Crit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oQ6N6W8rHU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Location:Downtown Phoenix, AZ
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Valley of the Sun Road Race
I'll be perfectly honest I woke up very nervous for this leg of the race after a less than seller performance in the time trial. I was wondering how this one would go. My legs felt tired and my throat was sore from being so dry the day before.
I arrived an hour before the start and got everything ready. I needed to sign in and put a set of wheels in the wheel van. The race started on time with a neutral rollout until after the cattle grate at turn 1. Everyone made it safely and started the downhill section flat out.
Lap one seemed to start out fast and I was sure that 5 laps at this pace was going to make a few people suffer.We made the turn onto 387 in a big group and started the first part of the climb. Is not really a climb by NorCal standards as it gains about 350 feet in 3 miles. This wasn't even as steep as Sandhill Road. Everyone was in the big ring and we were doing 22 mph all the way up. It gets a little steeper for a couple of hundred yards but still nothing that really causes pain. This was going to be a race for the big guys as they wouldn't get dropped on this climb.
We went through the feed zone and then the road flattened out for about 1/4 of a mile before the finish line. There was no way this wasn't going to be a sprint finish perfect for the big guns.
We went through the finish and started the downhill section to turn 1. About half way down the follow vehicle came up alongside the field and started to tell everyone that we were being neutralized. At this point no one knew why, we weren't being caught by the 3's and we weren't catching the Pro field so it seemed weird. We rolled to a stop at the registration/start line and found out that there had been a big crash at turn 1 in the Pro field. Apparently it involved a number of riders and a car.
Everyone found a shady spot and relaxed as they told us the road was completely closed and it would be that way for a while. As we waited the story of what happened unfolded. A car had got onto the course at turn 1 just in front of the field, as the racers went around the car the driver panicked and slammed on the brakes. 9 riders went down and 1 went through the back window of the Toyota sedan.
We sat for over an hour before hey told us that they would restart the race with the fields going off at 5 minute intervals. Our race would be cut by one lap, so we only had about 55 more miles to race. There was one guy off the front of our field and he was given a 20 second head start before the main field was allowed to chase him down, and chase him down we did. This first lap after the restart would be our KOM lap which meant the pace up the climb should be ballistic this time around.
When we got to the base of the climb the pace picked up but nothing too bad, a small group hung off the front of the main field and they took the KOM about 5 seconds ahead of us. I was tucked in the back of the field well away from the wind at this point.
The next couple of laps were fairly tame until we passed through the finish for the final lap. There was a break of 3 up the road and the teams with GC contenders were trying to bring things back. I moved to the front of the field and maintained a position in the top ten all the way around until we passed the feed zone and started the flat section before the finish. At this point people started to swarm around us and then the field almost came to a complete stop as we slowed before the 200 meter banner, at this point it seemed like a sprint from almost a standing start, I maintained my position in the group and maybe lost a little ground but came in only a couple of seconds behind the winner.
I heard there was a crash with about 5K to go because when I went to the wheel van to get my wheels back they told me that someone had my front wheel. It was returned quickly and I rolled down to the truck to get a drink and start packing for the drive to the hotel.
I'd finished and felt fairly good. I have nowhere near the power needed to contend this sprint but I was in the game anyway.With everything ready for the Crit on Sunday all that was left to do was go get some dinner for recovery.
Food or the day:
Breakfast. 2 turkey cheese tortillas, 2 bananas, banana nut muffin.
Race. Tortilla and almond butter, 4 gells.
I arrived an hour before the start and got everything ready. I needed to sign in and put a set of wheels in the wheel van. The race started on time with a neutral rollout until after the cattle grate at turn 1. Everyone made it safely and started the downhill section flat out.
Lap one seemed to start out fast and I was sure that 5 laps at this pace was going to make a few people suffer.We made the turn onto 387 in a big group and started the first part of the climb. Is not really a climb by NorCal standards as it gains about 350 feet in 3 miles. This wasn't even as steep as Sandhill Road. Everyone was in the big ring and we were doing 22 mph all the way up. It gets a little steeper for a couple of hundred yards but still nothing that really causes pain. This was going to be a race for the big guys as they wouldn't get dropped on this climb.
We went through the feed zone and then the road flattened out for about 1/4 of a mile before the finish line. There was no way this wasn't going to be a sprint finish perfect for the big guns.
We went through the finish and started the downhill section to turn 1. About half way down the follow vehicle came up alongside the field and started to tell everyone that we were being neutralized. At this point no one knew why, we weren't being caught by the 3's and we weren't catching the Pro field so it seemed weird. We rolled to a stop at the registration/start line and found out that there had been a big crash at turn 1 in the Pro field. Apparently it involved a number of riders and a car.
Everyone found a shady spot and relaxed as they told us the road was completely closed and it would be that way for a while. As we waited the story of what happened unfolded. A car had got onto the course at turn 1 just in front of the field, as the racers went around the car the driver panicked and slammed on the brakes. 9 riders went down and 1 went through the back window of the Toyota sedan.
We sat for over an hour before hey told us that they would restart the race with the fields going off at 5 minute intervals. Our race would be cut by one lap, so we only had about 55 more miles to race. There was one guy off the front of our field and he was given a 20 second head start before the main field was allowed to chase him down, and chase him down we did. This first lap after the restart would be our KOM lap which meant the pace up the climb should be ballistic this time around.
When we got to the base of the climb the pace picked up but nothing too bad, a small group hung off the front of the main field and they took the KOM about 5 seconds ahead of us. I was tucked in the back of the field well away from the wind at this point.
The next couple of laps were fairly tame until we passed through the finish for the final lap. There was a break of 3 up the road and the teams with GC contenders were trying to bring things back. I moved to the front of the field and maintained a position in the top ten all the way around until we passed the feed zone and started the flat section before the finish. At this point people started to swarm around us and then the field almost came to a complete stop as we slowed before the 200 meter banner, at this point it seemed like a sprint from almost a standing start, I maintained my position in the group and maybe lost a little ground but came in only a couple of seconds behind the winner.
I heard there was a crash with about 5K to go because when I went to the wheel van to get my wheels back they told me that someone had my front wheel. It was returned quickly and I rolled down to the truck to get a drink and start packing for the drive to the hotel.
I'd finished and felt fairly good. I have nowhere near the power needed to contend this sprint but I was in the game anyway.With everything ready for the Crit on Sunday all that was left to do was go get some dinner for recovery.
Food or the day:
Breakfast. 2 turkey cheese tortillas, 2 bananas, banana nut muffin.
Race. Tortilla and almond butter, 4 gells.
Location:Phoenix, AZ
Friday, February 10, 2012
Valley of the Sun Time Trial
I loaded up the truck around 11:00 with both bikes ready to drive to the TT start.
Both bikes ready to race.
I arrived at the race venue and bumped into a guy from home who had just finished his TT. His advice was to take it a little easy for the first mile or so and ease into it as the return leg was into a head wind.
About 30 minutes before my start I jumped on the trainer to start my warmup. I got my HR up to 180 for a minute and was feeling good.
Ready for warmup.
I rolled over to the start and noticed that I was by far the oldest guy rolling around for the warmup. I was going to be the 4th guy on the road for the Cat 2's.
My goal was to get my HR to 185 and hold it there for the entire 14 miles.
I took my turn on the ramp and watched my 30 second man go, then it was my turn. 12:54 and I was ready to go.
5.. 4.. 3.. 2.. 1.. Weeeep! I literally launched off the ramp with a wheelie that lasted half way down. I managed to get the front wheel back on the ramp just before I hit the Tarmac and I was off. So much for an easy start, hopefully I'd be able to calm down and ease into it.
Within about 2 minutes I could see I was catching my 30 second man and it looked like I was also gaining on the guy in front of him. Just as I caught him I was also caught by my 30 second man. Two more guys came past me before I got to the turn around. I'd managed to hold my HR at 185 all the way out and was feeling relatively good. I was comfortable on the bike, more comfortable than I'd been on any TT bike in the past. I was suffering but feeling good doing it.
On the return leg I was pushing hard into the head wind and maintaining my speed and HR of 185, I wasn't fading but I also wasn't going any faster or slower.
I was gaining on the guy in front of me and with 1K to go I'd almost caught him. I'd caught 202 and 201 but been caught by 204, 205 and 206. It didn't seem too bad.
I gave everything I had on the last few K's and was completely spent when I came across the line, coughing and unable to swallow as my mouth was so dry. Id pushed my HR up o 187 at the end and was happy with the effort id given. I'd stashed a bottle near the start and went straight to it. I was parched in the dry air and could barely swallow.
After picking up another bottle at the car I spent another 30 mins rolling around trying to loosen up the tightening ham strings. It felt like they were being sucked up my ass like spaghetti. I put the bike away and walked over to the start to find the results. When the results were posted I wasn't on the first sheet, it wasn't till they posted the second sheet that I found my name in 71st place.
The big question I was trying to answer was if a 46 year old Cat 2 could get enough points to upgrade to a 1. The race of truth was showing that this was going to be much harder than I remembered. I'd spent many years racing Pro/1/2 and the only Cat 2 race I'd ever done was the Visalia Road Race in 2000 and that doesn't even exist anymore.
This was my first stage race for over 10 years and I'd been back seriously training since October. Obviously not long enough at this point. It's hard to think that I'd placed 11th in a State Time Trial back in 1996. Looks like I have plenty of work to do but 71st is a long way off where I wanted to be. I guess a national level race like this is a hard place to start the comeback. I eed a lot more power if I'm gona do this.
I picked up a burrito on the way back to the hotel and went back to start the recovery process.
Tomorrow is the road race and everything is ready to go. Even the DODOcase jersey is pinned up with numbers. It's going to be hot so I'm going with the white jersey.
The DODOcase jersey ready to go
With a 95 mile road race and tomorrow I have nothing to lose being 71st on GC. I'm going to have to get back to bing the crafty bastard that got me where I am today. Let's see how it goes. I'll sit in and conserve everything I have for the end and see if I can squeeze my way to the front.
Food for the day
2 bagels with cream cheese
Muscle Milk
Caffeinated gell 30 mins before start.
Both bikes ready to race.
I arrived at the race venue and bumped into a guy from home who had just finished his TT. His advice was to take it a little easy for the first mile or so and ease into it as the return leg was into a head wind.
About 30 minutes before my start I jumped on the trainer to start my warmup. I got my HR up to 180 for a minute and was feeling good.
Ready for warmup.
I rolled over to the start and noticed that I was by far the oldest guy rolling around for the warmup. I was going to be the 4th guy on the road for the Cat 2's.
My goal was to get my HR to 185 and hold it there for the entire 14 miles.
I took my turn on the ramp and watched my 30 second man go, then it was my turn. 12:54 and I was ready to go.
5.. 4.. 3.. 2.. 1.. Weeeep! I literally launched off the ramp with a wheelie that lasted half way down. I managed to get the front wheel back on the ramp just before I hit the Tarmac and I was off. So much for an easy start, hopefully I'd be able to calm down and ease into it.
Within about 2 minutes I could see I was catching my 30 second man and it looked like I was also gaining on the guy in front of him. Just as I caught him I was also caught by my 30 second man. Two more guys came past me before I got to the turn around. I'd managed to hold my HR at 185 all the way out and was feeling relatively good. I was comfortable on the bike, more comfortable than I'd been on any TT bike in the past. I was suffering but feeling good doing it.
On the return leg I was pushing hard into the head wind and maintaining my speed and HR of 185, I wasn't fading but I also wasn't going any faster or slower.
I was gaining on the guy in front of me and with 1K to go I'd almost caught him. I'd caught 202 and 201 but been caught by 204, 205 and 206. It didn't seem too bad.
I gave everything I had on the last few K's and was completely spent when I came across the line, coughing and unable to swallow as my mouth was so dry. Id pushed my HR up o 187 at the end and was happy with the effort id given. I'd stashed a bottle near the start and went straight to it. I was parched in the dry air and could barely swallow.
After picking up another bottle at the car I spent another 30 mins rolling around trying to loosen up the tightening ham strings. It felt like they were being sucked up my ass like spaghetti. I put the bike away and walked over to the start to find the results. When the results were posted I wasn't on the first sheet, it wasn't till they posted the second sheet that I found my name in 71st place.
The big question I was trying to answer was if a 46 year old Cat 2 could get enough points to upgrade to a 1. The race of truth was showing that this was going to be much harder than I remembered. I'd spent many years racing Pro/1/2 and the only Cat 2 race I'd ever done was the Visalia Road Race in 2000 and that doesn't even exist anymore.
This was my first stage race for over 10 years and I'd been back seriously training since October. Obviously not long enough at this point. It's hard to think that I'd placed 11th in a State Time Trial back in 1996. Looks like I have plenty of work to do but 71st is a long way off where I wanted to be. I guess a national level race like this is a hard place to start the comeback. I eed a lot more power if I'm gona do this.
I picked up a burrito on the way back to the hotel and went back to start the recovery process.
Tomorrow is the road race and everything is ready to go. Even the DODOcase jersey is pinned up with numbers. It's going to be hot so I'm going with the white jersey.
The DODOcase jersey ready to go
With a 95 mile road race and tomorrow I have nothing to lose being 71st on GC. I'm going to have to get back to bing the crafty bastard that got me where I am today. Let's see how it goes. I'll sit in and conserve everything I have for the end and see if I can squeeze my way to the front.
Food for the day
2 bagels with cream cheese
Muscle Milk
Caffeinated gell 30 mins before start.
The Trip to Phoenix
The plan was to start driving to Phoenix for the Valley of the Sun Stage Race as early as possible on Wednesday afternoon. I ended up managing to leave the office around 5 pm and made a quick stop at home to have dinner, load the truck and kiss Hailey before I left.
I started the drive just after 7 PM and managed to avoid most of the heavy traffic. I was heading to Bakersfield and planned to sleep in the back of the truck once I was the other side of the City. I went through Bakersfield around 11 PM and was in the mountains around 11:45. I found a great spot at about 3500 feet that was just off one of the exits. This exit didn't really seem to go anywhere, both directions went about 100 yards and turned into dirt parking lots. I parked on the South side of the highway well away from the road and made space in the back of the truck for my sleeping bag. It was a big full moon and I didn't need any lights while I put everything together as it was so bright out. It seemed really warm but I expected it to cool off at this elevation before morning.
Somewhere to the south there was a railroad track as you could hear the trains but they were far enough away that it wasn't disturbing.
I had about 6 hours of good sleep and woke just as it was getting light. It had got really cold over night and there was frost on the roof when I got out of the truck. I'd had to pull the hood up on the sleeping bag to stay warm.
Sunrise at the camp.
My route from Bakersfield to highway 10 wasn't the best, I ended up too close to LA and had to deal with rush hour traffic, but once I got onto Interstate 10 it was smooth sailing if a little dull for the next 7 hours.
I decided that as I was going to pass the TT venue I'd take the bike out for a spin. I was there at the same time of day as the race start would be and found that the wind was blowing but it was nice and warm. The course was mostly pancake flat with some small rollers.
It was a good spin and just what the legs needed after a long drive. Driving to the hotel I found a Chipotle, bought a big burrito and continued to my hotel that was only about 10 miles further on.
I checked into the hotel and decided to try to drive to the Landis Cyclery to pick up my race packet. The shop was only about 15 miles away but the crazy rush hour traffic made it take nearly 2 hours. It was a total waste of time and I should have just picked the packet up on race day.
I returned to the hotel to get everything ready for race day. About half way there the front tire on the TT bike that was in the back of the truck started to hiss and went flat. I checked the tire back at the hotel and found that there was something wrong with the rim strip. I changed the tube and adjusted the rim strip to hopefully avoid a repeat the next day.
After a shower and a quick massage I was in bed around 10:00 and slept well.
I started the drive just after 7 PM and managed to avoid most of the heavy traffic. I was heading to Bakersfield and planned to sleep in the back of the truck once I was the other side of the City. I went through Bakersfield around 11 PM and was in the mountains around 11:45. I found a great spot at about 3500 feet that was just off one of the exits. This exit didn't really seem to go anywhere, both directions went about 100 yards and turned into dirt parking lots. I parked on the South side of the highway well away from the road and made space in the back of the truck for my sleeping bag. It was a big full moon and I didn't need any lights while I put everything together as it was so bright out. It seemed really warm but I expected it to cool off at this elevation before morning.
Somewhere to the south there was a railroad track as you could hear the trains but they were far enough away that it wasn't disturbing.
I had about 6 hours of good sleep and woke just as it was getting light. It had got really cold over night and there was frost on the roof when I got out of the truck. I'd had to pull the hood up on the sleeping bag to stay warm.
Sunrise at the camp.
My route from Bakersfield to highway 10 wasn't the best, I ended up too close to LA and had to deal with rush hour traffic, but once I got onto Interstate 10 it was smooth sailing if a little dull for the next 7 hours.
I decided that as I was going to pass the TT venue I'd take the bike out for a spin. I was there at the same time of day as the race start would be and found that the wind was blowing but it was nice and warm. The course was mostly pancake flat with some small rollers.
It was a good spin and just what the legs needed after a long drive. Driving to the hotel I found a Chipotle, bought a big burrito and continued to my hotel that was only about 10 miles further on.
I checked into the hotel and decided to try to drive to the Landis Cyclery to pick up my race packet. The shop was only about 15 miles away but the crazy rush hour traffic made it take nearly 2 hours. It was a total waste of time and I should have just picked the packet up on race day.
I returned to the hotel to get everything ready for race day. About half way there the front tire on the TT bike that was in the back of the truck started to hiss and went flat. I checked the tire back at the hotel and found that there was something wrong with the rim strip. I changed the tube and adjusted the rim strip to hopefully avoid a repeat the next day.
After a shower and a quick massage I was in bed around 10:00 and slept well.
Location:Phoenix, AZ
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Early Bird #4
I was supposed to do the whole Early Bird series this year but for one reason or another, including the coast ride and work, this was the first and last one that I'd get to do. I rode over with Billy, Jordan and Drew, we added Dylan Casey on the way. We left Palo Alto around 2:20 PM for the 40 minute ride.
My legs weren't feeling too bad after the Grasshopper but there was certainly a bit of soreness deep inside.
The first few laps were fast enough with the Specialized guys trying to get a group away. About half way through I made my way to the front and found myself on Dylan's wheel, he looked like he was moving up with a purpose and about 15 seconds later he attacked, I went straight after him and got on his wheel. About half a lap later we had 5 other guys and were opening up a large gap. This was looking great! I did some big efforts and we had a good group rolling through, then something went wrong.
An argument started between Dylan and a guy on the Safeway team, I have no idea what caused it but most likely it was over how hard Dylan was pulling through and how little work the Safeway guy was doing. This caused everyone to sit up and our momentum was lost. About a lap later we were caught.
A few laps later another big Specialized attack went and that was it, there was no way the remaining teams were catching that group of ex/current National and World champions. From that point on I just sat in and rested.
With 2 laps to go I moved to the front and found Drew's wheel, Billy was also moving up to have a go in the sprint. I waited for Drew to launch but he never went so I rolled around him and found some clear ground. I was close to the front but didn't contest the sprint. It was a no points EB race and not worth the risk. I was happy with where I ended up considering how big a weekend it had been.
We rode back to PA in a big group and I got back to my truck just before it got dark.
It was a good finish to a great weekend of racing. Now it's a rest week and time to recover before the Valley of the Sun Stage race on Feb 9th. Time for some bike cleaning and ceramic bearing upgrades on my race wheels.
Old Caz Grasshopper
The Old Caz Grasshopper is becoming a bit of a tradition as this is now the 3rd year that I've done the event and it just keeps getting better. I drove up to Occidental with Billy and Cyrus, we left PA around 6:40 AM and after a brief stop we arrived at registration around 7:30. A full hour and a half before go time. We met a few old friends and chatted to the new Sag Monkey guys before getting registered and geared up for the event.
The roll out was at 10:00 and would start with a climb up Bittner Rd to Joy Rd and then onto Coleman Valley road before we got to the dirt descent on Willow Creek. As we were coming into the base of the first climb Barkow was riding across the yellow line when an oncoming car caused him to swerve back into the group smashing into my left arm and nearly taking down a bunch of riders, fortunately everyone stayed up but this caused a shouting match between Barkow and another guy.
As we hit Coleman Valley Road I lost contact with the lead group, I was in total shock with my heart rate at 190 within 10 minutes of the start without a warmup. Some guys with some major horsepower caused a split in the front group and I was drifting backwards. I just don't seem to have the horsepower to match the big guns early in the race but end up in a much better position once their edge has worn off.
I was now in the 3rd group on the road as we hit the dirt descent but dropped the rest of the bunch fairly quickly. I was catching a rider from the group ahead when he washed out on a bend and went down hard, his bike spinning across the wide fire road in front of me. I managed to avoid the riderless bike by going off the trail a little but that was no problem on a CX bike.
I caught the group in front of me near the bottom of the descent and we all worked together to catch the next group on the road just after the turn onto Hwy 130. The newly formed group was about 25 - 30 strong and working hard to catch the 10 guys who were up the road in the new lead group.
As we worked together we set a good pace on Hwy 130 to Duncan's grade. The start of Duncan's grade is really steep and I hit the bottom of it in the first 10 of our group. On the steeper climb I started gaining ground on the people around me and ended up in the top 5 with a gap opening up behind us. I was feeling good and holding my position even with some little surges. We started the descent and a there was no one behind us, even with the twisty little roads it seems we maintained our gap through the neighborhood onto the next climb.
We started the Old Caz climb and picked up a couple of riders from the front group and how had about 10 people riding together. As we got to the feed station near the top I pulled over to get a bottle but it appeared that someone had taken it. I just dropped my empty and started the chase back to the small group. I caught them just before the descent on the dirt to the creek but was held up behind some slower descenders. By the time I got around them and started to gain ground the rest of the group were out of sight.
I hit the creek crossing alone but could see the rest of the of the group about 20 seconds up the road. I chased them on the climb and the road descent, but didn't end up catching them for another few miles. Once I got up to them we were about 12 people and someone said that there was about 10 up the road in the next group. We started a good rotation with everyone taking part and had a good pace going. No one else was coming up from behind and we had no idea if we were gaining on the next group. We got back out into Hwy 130 and were pulling into a bit of a head wind. I noticed that 1 by 1 the group was getting smaller. By the time we hit the left turn onto the dirt of Willow Creek there were only 7 of us left.
I was rolling through staying in the top half of the group until the road started to go up, it was then I noticed that a gap had opened between 4 of us and the other 3 in the group. We kept it rolling and were now on our own. At this point I went over a rock or root and I could feel the rear tire bottoming out!! Then it happened again. I had a soft rear tire, I'm not sure how long it had been like this but it was defiantly a problem and was getting worse by the minute. My 3 companions started to pull away from me and I decided that it was time to pull over and fix the tire. Three more guys came past me and commented on my obvious bad luck. To get a flat at this point in the race just sucked. I was in the top 15 with only 3 more miles to go.
The tire wasn't completely flat which meant that it was a slow leak so I decided to just re inflate it with a CO2 and see how far that got me. I started off calmly and began to gain ground on the guys who had just passed me. I'd probably lost around a minute or so.
I passed two of the guys and one of them tried to go with me but only hung on my wheel for about 30 seconds before drifting back. I was alone again and feeling good on this section of the climb. The tire was holding up well so who knows how long it had been going flat.
I got onto the flat section of the climb and was spinning along when I could hear another rider coming up behind me. He was flying and there was no way I was going to stay with him so I let him go.
I could see the finish line ahead of me and it looked like a small crowd at this point. When I crossed the line I asked how many people were ahead of me and they said I'd finished in 11th place!! This was fantastic news, I'd never done that well in a Grasshopper and felt that good. There were a bunch of young kids in front of me and Scott Widoff came in just behind me. Barkow was next at about 5 minutes. We waited a long time for Bill and Peter Durham but they were no where to be seen. Jim and I rolled back to the cars and waited there. Bill came in about 45 minutes later and was hurting but happy he finished. He'd had a great day out. Cyrus was a little later. He'd had problems in the mud on his road tires and road cleats and at one point couldn't even unclip.
All in all this was a great day out and super fun fake racing. I felt really good and only lacked a little strength at the start. After that I was doing great and was solid all the way to the end. My whole mantra for the day was spin and save the legs. It worked!
Food for the day:
Breakfast: Two slices of Amicis Pizza - Probably not so good on the first climb
On the Ride: 5 gell packs and two regular bottles of Cytomax.
I could have done with another bottle for the 50 miles but someone took it.
Results
http://www.grasshopperadventureseries.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Old-Caz1.pdf
The roll out was at 10:00 and would start with a climb up Bittner Rd to Joy Rd and then onto Coleman Valley road before we got to the dirt descent on Willow Creek. As we were coming into the base of the first climb Barkow was riding across the yellow line when an oncoming car caused him to swerve back into the group smashing into my left arm and nearly taking down a bunch of riders, fortunately everyone stayed up but this caused a shouting match between Barkow and another guy.
As we hit Coleman Valley Road I lost contact with the lead group, I was in total shock with my heart rate at 190 within 10 minutes of the start without a warmup. Some guys with some major horsepower caused a split in the front group and I was drifting backwards. I just don't seem to have the horsepower to match the big guns early in the race but end up in a much better position once their edge has worn off.
I was now in the 3rd group on the road as we hit the dirt descent but dropped the rest of the bunch fairly quickly. I was catching a rider from the group ahead when he washed out on a bend and went down hard, his bike spinning across the wide fire road in front of me. I managed to avoid the riderless bike by going off the trail a little but that was no problem on a CX bike.
I caught the group in front of me near the bottom of the descent and we all worked together to catch the next group on the road just after the turn onto Hwy 130. The newly formed group was about 25 - 30 strong and working hard to catch the 10 guys who were up the road in the new lead group.
As we worked together we set a good pace on Hwy 130 to Duncan's grade. The start of Duncan's grade is really steep and I hit the bottom of it in the first 10 of our group. On the steeper climb I started gaining ground on the people around me and ended up in the top 5 with a gap opening up behind us. I was feeling good and holding my position even with some little surges. We started the descent and a there was no one behind us, even with the twisty little roads it seems we maintained our gap through the neighborhood onto the next climb.
We started the Old Caz climb and picked up a couple of riders from the front group and how had about 10 people riding together. As we got to the feed station near the top I pulled over to get a bottle but it appeared that someone had taken it. I just dropped my empty and started the chase back to the small group. I caught them just before the descent on the dirt to the creek but was held up behind some slower descenders. By the time I got around them and started to gain ground the rest of the group were out of sight.
I hit the creek crossing alone but could see the rest of the of the group about 20 seconds up the road. I chased them on the climb and the road descent, but didn't end up catching them for another few miles. Once I got up to them we were about 12 people and someone said that there was about 10 up the road in the next group. We started a good rotation with everyone taking part and had a good pace going. No one else was coming up from behind and we had no idea if we were gaining on the next group. We got back out into Hwy 130 and were pulling into a bit of a head wind. I noticed that 1 by 1 the group was getting smaller. By the time we hit the left turn onto the dirt of Willow Creek there were only 7 of us left.
I was rolling through staying in the top half of the group until the road started to go up, it was then I noticed that a gap had opened between 4 of us and the other 3 in the group. We kept it rolling and were now on our own. At this point I went over a rock or root and I could feel the rear tire bottoming out!! Then it happened again. I had a soft rear tire, I'm not sure how long it had been like this but it was defiantly a problem and was getting worse by the minute. My 3 companions started to pull away from me and I decided that it was time to pull over and fix the tire. Three more guys came past me and commented on my obvious bad luck. To get a flat at this point in the race just sucked. I was in the top 15 with only 3 more miles to go.
The tire wasn't completely flat which meant that it was a slow leak so I decided to just re inflate it with a CO2 and see how far that got me. I started off calmly and began to gain ground on the guys who had just passed me. I'd probably lost around a minute or so.
I passed two of the guys and one of them tried to go with me but only hung on my wheel for about 30 seconds before drifting back. I was alone again and feeling good on this section of the climb. The tire was holding up well so who knows how long it had been going flat.
I got onto the flat section of the climb and was spinning along when I could hear another rider coming up behind me. He was flying and there was no way I was going to stay with him so I let him go.
I could see the finish line ahead of me and it looked like a small crowd at this point. When I crossed the line I asked how many people were ahead of me and they said I'd finished in 11th place!! This was fantastic news, I'd never done that well in a Grasshopper and felt that good. There were a bunch of young kids in front of me and Scott Widoff came in just behind me. Barkow was next at about 5 minutes. We waited a long time for Bill and Peter Durham but they were no where to be seen. Jim and I rolled back to the cars and waited there. Bill came in about 45 minutes later and was hurting but happy he finished. He'd had a great day out. Cyrus was a little later. He'd had problems in the mud on his road tires and road cleats and at one point couldn't even unclip.
Billy Post Race
All in all this was a great day out and super fun fake racing. I felt really good and only lacked a little strength at the start. After that I was doing great and was solid all the way to the end. My whole mantra for the day was spin and save the legs. It worked!
Food for the day:
Breakfast: Two slices of Amicis Pizza - Probably not so good on the first climb
On the Ride: 5 gell packs and two regular bottles of Cytomax.
I could have done with another bottle for the 50 miles but someone took it.
Old Caz 2012 Route Card
Results
http://www.grasshopperadventureseries.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Old-Caz1.pdf
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Coast Ride - End of Day 3
The third day was rough in so many ways. It's was an early dark wake up call and the coldest start so far. There was no coffee shop near the hotel so the plan was to have the group roll out into SLO and make a quick stop for breakfast. Hailey and I had already had breakfast in our room so we weren't really interested in stopping. For some reason the rest of the group must have been really desperate for coffee as they rolled out at about 28 mph. At one point it was single file and a couple of guys nearly got guttered into a guardrail, all on the name of getting the morning brew. It was madness.
After breakfast things mellowed for a while but on the ride across the valley floor, on the way to Lompoc, the action really started. There was a tail/cross wind that had the group strung out at 32 mph, people were popping off the back left and right. I managed to keep Hailey in the group with a combination of good drafting, pushing and just plain screaming at her to close the gap. She didn't like the Ast art very much.
This may have been the fastest she had ever been in a group and when things slowed down for a quick bottle refill she had a stunned look on her face. After the bottle stop things only got harder. The road started to roll and the wind turned to more of a cross wind until we turned on Vandenburg Airforce Base, where the road started to go up hill and almost directly into the wind.
At this point I was still in the lead group and giving Hailey healthy pushes to keep her in contact, but all this took its toll on my legs. As the road started to go up for the first big climb of the day I popped off the back and ended up rolling the next 15 miles into the lunch stop with just 2 other guys. My legs were toast. I'd done a lot of pushing and riding into the wind and used way more energy than I should have, especially after all the work I did on the previous day.
At the lunch stop I followed Drew's lead and headed straight to Wendy's for some fries and a drink. I needed something to refuel me as we were only half way through the day and still had another big climb to ahead of us. Hailey rolled in about 10 minutes back and immediately hit the little Thai restaurant for some curry. I couldn't believe she decided to eat a curry in the middle of a 125 mile ride. She insisted it was the right decision and I was certain that she would puke half way up the next climb. Unfortunately I wouldn't get to see it happen.
We rolled out to the climb at a moderate pace and I was making sure Hailey was tucked well out of the wind, when my good buddy Silent Jim Barkow (SLJB) got a flat rear tire. It's was about a mile from the start of the climb and just as things were about to get exiting.
I stopped to help Jim and it took about 7 minutes to change the tube and check that nothing was still stuck in the tire. We got back on the road and started the long chase back to the group. We passed a lot of people with Jim pulling like a train at the front. I didn't actually do any work in the wind for about 10 miles until we hit Highway 101 South. At is point Jim was tired enough that I was actually able to pull through and give him a little break. Up until that point there was nothing I could o but slow him down.
We were intent on chasing back to the group regardless of the cost on our legs. We were flying past small groups of riders and eventually came up behind Hailey and my good friend Mike Foley. I yelled Hi Babe as we stormed by but apparently she didn't hear me as I got an ear full back at the hotel about how rude I was for not saying anything.
Unfortunately we never made it back to the group, I have no idea how far ahead they were at the end as I had to pull off the main route to go to the airport and pick up the rental car we needed to get home.
I met up with Hailey and Drew at the finish hotel and we wasted no time loading the enormous Nissan Armada with our bikes and gear then set off in search of food. We found a great taco shop about 100 yards up the road and loaded up for the 5 hour drive back home.
We were home by 8:30 PM having clocked up about 375 miles in 3 days.
Food for the day:
Breakfast: Banana, packet of almond butter, pecan pie.
Ride: 2 tortillas, 3 Honey Stingers, Large Wendy's Fries, 2 curried potatoes from Haileys lunch.
After breakfast things mellowed for a while but on the ride across the valley floor, on the way to Lompoc, the action really started. There was a tail/cross wind that had the group strung out at 32 mph, people were popping off the back left and right. I managed to keep Hailey in the group with a combination of good drafting, pushing and just plain screaming at her to close the gap. She didn't like the Ast art very much.
This may have been the fastest she had ever been in a group and when things slowed down for a quick bottle refill she had a stunned look on her face. After the bottle stop things only got harder. The road started to roll and the wind turned to more of a cross wind until we turned on Vandenburg Airforce Base, where the road started to go up hill and almost directly into the wind.
At this point I was still in the lead group and giving Hailey healthy pushes to keep her in contact, but all this took its toll on my legs. As the road started to go up for the first big climb of the day I popped off the back and ended up rolling the next 15 miles into the lunch stop with just 2 other guys. My legs were toast. I'd done a lot of pushing and riding into the wind and used way more energy than I should have, especially after all the work I did on the previous day.
At the lunch stop I followed Drew's lead and headed straight to Wendy's for some fries and a drink. I needed something to refuel me as we were only half way through the day and still had another big climb to ahead of us. Hailey rolled in about 10 minutes back and immediately hit the little Thai restaurant for some curry. I couldn't believe she decided to eat a curry in the middle of a 125 mile ride. She insisted it was the right decision and I was certain that she would puke half way up the next climb. Unfortunately I wouldn't get to see it happen.
We rolled out to the climb at a moderate pace and I was making sure Hailey was tucked well out of the wind, when my good buddy Silent Jim Barkow (SLJB) got a flat rear tire. It's was about a mile from the start of the climb and just as things were about to get exiting.
I stopped to help Jim and it took about 7 minutes to change the tube and check that nothing was still stuck in the tire. We got back on the road and started the long chase back to the group. We passed a lot of people with Jim pulling like a train at the front. I didn't actually do any work in the wind for about 10 miles until we hit Highway 101 South. At is point Jim was tired enough that I was actually able to pull through and give him a little break. Up until that point there was nothing I could o but slow him down.
We were intent on chasing back to the group regardless of the cost on our legs. We were flying past small groups of riders and eventually came up behind Hailey and my good friend Mike Foley. I yelled Hi Babe as we stormed by but apparently she didn't hear me as I got an ear full back at the hotel about how rude I was for not saying anything.
Unfortunately we never made it back to the group, I have no idea how far ahead they were at the end as I had to pull off the main route to go to the airport and pick up the rental car we needed to get home.
I met up with Hailey and Drew at the finish hotel and we wasted no time loading the enormous Nissan Armada with our bikes and gear then set off in search of food. We found a great taco shop about 100 yards up the road and loaded up for the 5 hour drive back home.
We were home by 8:30 PM having clocked up about 375 miles in 3 days.
Food for the day:
Breakfast: Banana, packet of almond butter, pecan pie.
Ride: 2 tortillas, 3 Honey Stingers, Large Wendy's Fries, 2 curried potatoes from Haileys lunch.
Location:Home in Bed
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Coast Ride - End of Day 2
We started the day just as it was getting light, we'd had a good breakfast and had dressed warmly for the cold start.
The ride rolled out at a fairly mellow pace, there were a couple of short, sharp climbs to get the legs warmed up but nothing too bad.
Things broke up a little on the way to Big Sur with a fairly large group still together over the initial smaller climbs to the first rest stop. I rolled into the rest stop with the lead group and we quickly refilled our bottles. The scenery had been fantastic and there was more great riding to come.
As we left Big Sur we started the climb with a fast group of about 20 people. Hailey and her friends Beth and Katya started to drift back and eventually started to drop off the back. I started pushing Hailey to keep her in touch with Beth but we were losing ground.
Jim Barkow was with me for a while but had to leave and bridge up to the group to avoid getting left behind on the descent.
We started the descent and I picked up Beth and Katya and started another long bridge back to the group. We flew down the descents and I tried to keep things rolling on the smaller uphills. We rolled up on two other riders but it seems that they were tired and sat on while I pulled for a while.
After about 20 - 30 minutes I could see the group about a minute ahead of us on a short climb. We didn't catch them on this climb but after bombing another descent we could see we had halved the gap at the start of the next climb.
I led the group half way up the climb until most of us were in easy striking distance of the back of the lead group. Everyone made it on except Hailey who had been dropped off the back again with the acceleration to bridge up.
I drifted back to help her again and gave her another push up the next climb and on the next descent. As the road flattened out we made it onto the back of the group to cheers from Drew and Barkow. We stayed in this group to the next rest stop at Lucia.
After the stop at Lucia the group was in a different mood with attacks and hard riding on all the climbs. The group was whittled down to about 15 guys and they were obviously looking for Strava points. On a number of occasions a couple of guys would roll off the front only to be brought back by a hard tempo on the next climb. I was hanging with the lead group, suffering but not in trouble until we reached the top of what was to be the last climb of the day. I fell off the back of the lead group of about 10 guys by about 20 yards. I pushed on the descent but could only maintain, not close the gap. I was in luck though as in another 1/4 mile we hit the lunch stop at Ragged Point.
We were 80 miles into the ride and the last 20 had been hard. Getting Hailey and her friends back to the group had cost me more than I thought and I hadn't had the energy to close the gaps on the final climb. I probably needed something easier than a 23 tooth cog on the back too.
Team DODOcase at lunch.
The girls left the lunch stop about 10 minutes ahead of us thinking we would easily catch them during the remaining 45 miles of the day. We had a small group on the road and after about 25 miles we still hadn't caught up with the girls, but we were caught from behind by a large and fast moving group. We eventually caught the girls and had about 30 people now and we were flying.
The last 15 miles flew by as we rolled into Morrow Bay with a total of 125 miles and about 8000 feet of climbing. Once we'd found the hotel we didn't even check in, Hailey and I went straight to the convenience store and bought protein shakes, then hit the Taco shop across the street for some fantastic tacos and chips which we demolished in short order.
After that it was back to the hotel for a shower and a nap. The only thing I wanted to get up for was more food.
Food for the day.
Breakfast: Egg sandwich, cinabun and OJ
Ride: 2 Tortillas, 2 Honey Stingers, Bag of Lays chips, handful of French Fries, 4 bottles and one Curly Whirly from the UK.
The ride rolled out at a fairly mellow pace, there were a couple of short, sharp climbs to get the legs warmed up but nothing too bad.
Things broke up a little on the way to Big Sur with a fairly large group still together over the initial smaller climbs to the first rest stop. I rolled into the rest stop with the lead group and we quickly refilled our bottles. The scenery had been fantastic and there was more great riding to come.
As we left Big Sur we started the climb with a fast group of about 20 people. Hailey and her friends Beth and Katya started to drift back and eventually started to drop off the back. I started pushing Hailey to keep her in touch with Beth but we were losing ground.
Jim Barkow was with me for a while but had to leave and bridge up to the group to avoid getting left behind on the descent.
We started the descent and I picked up Beth and Katya and started another long bridge back to the group. We flew down the descents and I tried to keep things rolling on the smaller uphills. We rolled up on two other riders but it seems that they were tired and sat on while I pulled for a while.
After about 20 - 30 minutes I could see the group about a minute ahead of us on a short climb. We didn't catch them on this climb but after bombing another descent we could see we had halved the gap at the start of the next climb.
I led the group half way up the climb until most of us were in easy striking distance of the back of the lead group. Everyone made it on except Hailey who had been dropped off the back again with the acceleration to bridge up.
I drifted back to help her again and gave her another push up the next climb and on the next descent. As the road flattened out we made it onto the back of the group to cheers from Drew and Barkow. We stayed in this group to the next rest stop at Lucia.
After the stop at Lucia the group was in a different mood with attacks and hard riding on all the climbs. The group was whittled down to about 15 guys and they were obviously looking for Strava points. On a number of occasions a couple of guys would roll off the front only to be brought back by a hard tempo on the next climb. I was hanging with the lead group, suffering but not in trouble until we reached the top of what was to be the last climb of the day. I fell off the back of the lead group of about 10 guys by about 20 yards. I pushed on the descent but could only maintain, not close the gap. I was in luck though as in another 1/4 mile we hit the lunch stop at Ragged Point.
We were 80 miles into the ride and the last 20 had been hard. Getting Hailey and her friends back to the group had cost me more than I thought and I hadn't had the energy to close the gaps on the final climb. I probably needed something easier than a 23 tooth cog on the back too.
Team DODOcase at lunch.
The girls left the lunch stop about 10 minutes ahead of us thinking we would easily catch them during the remaining 45 miles of the day. We had a small group on the road and after about 25 miles we still hadn't caught up with the girls, but we were caught from behind by a large and fast moving group. We eventually caught the girls and had about 30 people now and we were flying.
The last 15 miles flew by as we rolled into Morrow Bay with a total of 125 miles and about 8000 feet of climbing. Once we'd found the hotel we didn't even check in, Hailey and I went straight to the convenience store and bought protein shakes, then hit the Taco shop across the street for some fantastic tacos and chips which we demolished in short order.
After that it was back to the hotel for a shower and a nap. The only thing I wanted to get up for was more food.
Food for the day.
Breakfast: Egg sandwich, cinabun and OJ
Ride: 2 Tortillas, 2 Honey Stingers, Bag of Lays chips, handful of French Fries, 4 bottles and one Curly Whirly from the UK.
Location:Days Inn Main Street Morro Bay
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Coast Ride - End of Day 1
What a great day of riding. A fast 126 mile blast straight down the coast with only a slight headwind to hold us back.We stopped just north of Santa Cruz for lunch with a lead group of about 20 people. I was in this group earlier but dropped back to see Hailey as we went down into Pacifica. We both ended up in the 3rd group on the road and about 2 minutes back on the leaders as we came into the main town of Pacifica. At this point I told Hailey that we needed to move up. I took the lead and we started the 15 minute bridge up to the next group. I dropped Hailey off into the 2nd group on the road with her friends Beth and Kataya right at the bottom of the climb up to Devils Slide, and then proceeded to try and bridge the gap to the front group. Both Drew and Barkow were in this group. They had about a minute lead and after a while the only other guy trying to bridge up was a friend of Drew's named Jonathan. I could see them a few hundred yards ahead. As we crested the top of the hill they still had 10 - 20 seconds and it felt like Jonathan was easing up. At that point I decided it was now or never and hit the descent hard, using the "caravan" of cars lined up behind the lead group to help me bridge the gap. As the road flattened out at the bottom of the descent I made it onto the back of the group but Jonathan was nowhere to be seen. If I'd had waited any longer it would have been a rough case back on the flat that wouldn't have been good for the legs.
Jonathan eventually caught back on about 20 miles later with a bunch of the Fusion team. I apologized for leaving him on the descent.Here is Hailey taking a lunch break with chips and a coke as usual. She was a little frazzled when she arrived but recovered quickly ready for the second half of the day. I guess the coke really works.
Barkow, Hailey and I at the lunch stop. Love the DODOcase kit today.
After lunch we took a little detour through Santa Cruz on what Drew liked to call the scenic route. It took us past all the great surf spots but added about 6 miles and a whole bunch of time. The main group was going straight through town. When we got back onto the main route we came out right behind Hailey and 3 of her girlfriends. We ended up riding the rest of the way with them, protecting them from the headwinds as we crossed the open fields of the Monterey Peninsula. The last 20 miles were windy and not very interesting.
As soon as we arrived in Seaside Hailey and I took a quick shower and went straight out to find a protein shake and some instant food. We found Muscle Milk at Safeway (love our new sponsor) and I then went straight to Burger King for a chicken sandwich and some very salty fries. I even came away with some extra salt for later.
There was a package waiting for us at the hotel from 3GO Magazine full of a bunch of new products for Hailey to test, including a really nice Rudy Project helmet and sunglasses as well as a bunch of clothing and food stuff. Its all really nice gear but there in nowhere for us to put it right now. We're going to have to borrow an extra bag from someone.About an hour later we went out for dinner again with the Barkow's and Drew to the Chilie's that was right behind the hotel. Exactly what we needed.Sunday, day 2, is probably going to be the biggest day, there are a few climbs and not much flat riding on the way to Morrow Bay. It'll be another 125 miles.Now we're relaxing back at the hotel. The bikes are all cleaned, chains are lubed and ready for the road tomorrow. I also inspected all the tires for cuts and embedded glass but they all look good right now. I took some time to enter the VOS stage race this evening so it's official, I'm racing in AZ in February.
Ride food for the day:
Breakfast - Assiago Bagel with cream cheese and a banana
On the ride - 4 Totillas, 4 Honey Stingers, chocolate bar, 1 packet of Almond Butter. 1 bag of chips for lunch.
Jonathan eventually caught back on about 20 miles later with a bunch of the Fusion team. I apologized for leaving him on the descent.Here is Hailey taking a lunch break with chips and a coke as usual. She was a little frazzled when she arrived but recovered quickly ready for the second half of the day. I guess the coke really works.
Barkow, Hailey and I at the lunch stop. Love the DODOcase kit today.
After lunch we took a little detour through Santa Cruz on what Drew liked to call the scenic route. It took us past all the great surf spots but added about 6 miles and a whole bunch of time. The main group was going straight through town. When we got back onto the main route we came out right behind Hailey and 3 of her girlfriends. We ended up riding the rest of the way with them, protecting them from the headwinds as we crossed the open fields of the Monterey Peninsula. The last 20 miles were windy and not very interesting. As soon as we arrived in Seaside Hailey and I took a quick shower and went straight out to find a protein shake and some instant food. We found Muscle Milk at Safeway (love our new sponsor) and I then went straight to Burger King for a chicken sandwich and some very salty fries. I even came away with some extra salt for later.
There was a package waiting for us at the hotel from 3GO Magazine full of a bunch of new products for Hailey to test, including a really nice Rudy Project helmet and sunglasses as well as a bunch of clothing and food stuff. Its all really nice gear but there in nowhere for us to put it right now. We're going to have to borrow an extra bag from someone.About an hour later we went out for dinner again with the Barkow's and Drew to the Chilie's that was right behind the hotel. Exactly what we needed.Sunday, day 2, is probably going to be the biggest day, there are a few climbs and not much flat riding on the way to Morrow Bay. It'll be another 125 miles.Now we're relaxing back at the hotel. The bikes are all cleaned, chains are lubed and ready for the road tomorrow. I also inspected all the tires for cuts and embedded glass but they all look good right now. I took some time to enter the VOS stage race this evening so it's official, I'm racing in AZ in February.Ride food for the day:
Breakfast - Assiago Bagel with cream cheese and a banana
On the ride - 4 Totillas, 4 Honey Stingers, chocolate bar, 1 packet of Almond Butter. 1 bag of chips for lunch.
Location:Monterey Peninsula Recreational Trail,Monterey,United States
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