Training Log Archive: Yvonne

2 easy laps around neighborhood -- made it into a Garmin Connect course to test my 910XT's course functions (that I have only used once before so obviously am not very familiar with them). DUH - I didn't know this when I bought the watch a few years ago, but this unit has very poor capabilities in this area (IMO). Very rudimentary, no turn by turn, but better than nothing.

Trash/recycle hauling.

Around the neighborhood: Hwy D right of way, Callaway Fork Rd. to Hwy F x2, paved subdivision roads. Such a glorious morning -- cool misty woods, dappled sunlight, plentiful wildlife. 20 mi.+ on Callaway Fork Rd. but still 0 cars. 8 very refreshing creek crossings (4 on bike, 4 off). Doesn't get much better!

Last night, I removed the trainer tire from my road bike and put a real tire on. This bike has only been outside 3 or 4 times in its life (its a 2002 model!) but has seen many, many hours of trainer time. Well, it saw the light of day today. I had to make another trip to Subie dealership for (car) tire swap. From dealership, back roads to Lakeside 370 trail, couple windblown laps around the lake, and back (in the driving rain). I forgot how fun a road bike is.

THEN -- on the way home, stopped by SwimBikeRun O'Fallon (where the cross bike is getting a thorough once-over) to get hands-on lessons from their mechanic on converting the bike to a singlespeed, a few quick-link tricks, tips for adjusting inner and outer brake pads, etc., etc. I did it all myself under his watchful eye. Sooo beneficial!!! Very grateful that Mike B. set it all up.

Hip strengthening/flexibility.

Trainer spin. Not very inspiring.

Trainer spin w/ some intervals.

- 12 pushups; x5
- 60 sec plank; x3
- hip strengthening/flexibility routine

Trash/recycle hauling plus a little extra. Lower legs were SORE from running a measly 3.5 mi. in minimal shoes on Sat. Rather humorous, actually -- 130 mi. on a bike is no big deal, but running a few miles kills my legs! Sheesh.

C • don't forget biking is larg... 2

Dropped car @ Subie dealership for an oil change and decided to take advantage of the rare kid-less downtime and went for a run. 70 N outer road, down into floodplain, made it close to 370 Lakeside Pk. b4 turning around. Not the best shoe choice but they worked OK. Legs felt pretty bad for the first quarter mile, then pretty good.

Jeepers -- still not done w/ the car. So why not a little strength stuff?

- 15 pushups x4
- 60 sec plank x3

In the grass behind some new cars.

Scrambled the entire week @ work to be able to take the day off and get a good (albeit mind-numbing) long ride in. Longest ride to date! 100 mi in the Busch area plus 2 laps of the Hamburg/Katy/Greenway loop -- so about 124 gravel mi. and 6 paved. Beautiful, beautiful morning in the Busch area -- cool, drizzly, everything looked so green. I saw a Scarlet Tanager! That was pretty thrilling. A little gooey in spots but no dust whatsoever - good trade-off. Jim H. joined me in the afternoon for 30 mi. so it was nice to ride w/ company for a little while. Had to stop @ work towards the end to approve timesheets and address a couple other things so not exactly a "day off". Whatever - pretty much normal and I'm good w/ it. Only moving time logged. Kept the stops short (except for the work stop - that was 40 min. +).

Really only one physical issue - belly cramp @ mi. 85 that was unpleasant but eventually worked itself out. It was right after Jim started and I think it was because he pushed the pace just a bit w/ fresh legs and I was working a little harder than I should have. Good lesson for 2 wks from now.

C • Great job! 3

Empty trash/recycle bin hauling plus a short lap around the yard.

Early trainer ride. Abs STILL sore from all the Power Wheel work in HB class on Sat. Evil little contraption.

Trash/recycle hauling.

Early trainer ride.

Don't pack away the winter cycling gear just yet! About 40F at the start. From Mound, Hamburg to Lost Valley doubletrack to Katy to Matson Hill Rd.

Matson Hill Rd. repeats to Duke and back - x5. OK - that was hard. Heavy MTB! But the gears/chubby tires were nice to have and they made it do-able. Back to Mound.

Heavy bag and KM classes. Gun defense in KM -- how to quickly disarm someone sticking a gun in your back. Not that good at it. In general, KM technique does not come easy to me but I haven't given up yet!

Hike w/ daughter around neighborhood -- included hwy ROW, gravel roads and nearby subdivision. Hiking interspersed w/ jogging when she felt like it - prob about 25% of total dist. Logging half time.

Another evening trainer session in the hot chicken room.

Hip strengthening/flexibility routine.

Evening trainer session in the rec room that is now shared w/ our 3 wk. old chicks and their heat lamp which makes the room quite toasty. On account of them, I didn't feel like I should have the ceiling fans blazing, so it was a hot, hot session. Heat acclimatization!

Planks: 60 sec x3
Pushups: 12 x4
Static stretching

Trash/recycle bin hauling plus a little extra.

Hip strengthening/flexibility routine.

Event: Cedar Cross 112 Mile Gravel Event
 

Cedar Cross

Time logged is total time. I have no idea what my moving time was. Rode this event mostly alone but enjoyed some nice chitty chat w/ fellow riders now and then. I relied on cue sheets and an overview map which thankfully worked well but wasn't terribly efficient (lots of quick stops to verify roads/turns,especially during the last half). I had a couple wrong turns. My garmin said 7790' climb which is clearly too high, so I just put 5.5K.

Going into this event I knew it would be a huge challenge due to the singletrack -- appropriately named "SHingletrack" by the organizers. According to AP, I have had a whopping total of 4 MTB outings since 2013 (MTB in CW8 2013 - 2015, and a single lap of Lost Valley in 2014) so my skills were definitely lacking, especially on the cross bike. Walked a ton and when I rode, expended major energy in order to not crash or destroy my bike. Gave a kind stranger my multi-tool w/ chain break as a potential remedy for his busted derailleur. Met up w/ Jeff and Carrie a couple times which was a real boost mentally. I was SO thankful for the end of the trails @ mi. 50. Sad to put that in writing since I so love being in the woods!

The next 25 were generally OK -- not great though. I hoped I would recover from the singletrack but the heat was starting to kick in and despite drinking tons and staying up on electrolytes, I started having that "yuck" feeling. I decided to stop at the Red Wheel guy to fill my frame bag bladder. He had a grill going and somehow I got lured into eating half a giant hot dog on a full bun. I really have no idea why because my track record w/ tolerating real food during endurance events is generally not good. Plus I don't even like hot dogs. Well, its salty goodness tasted absolutely amazing and basically made me feel like a rock star. I didn't even bother stopping at Ham's -- 100 oz. of water and a hot dog in my belly, why bother?? Just blew on through. A flat soon after didn't phase me at all -- successfully found and removed a small thorn and carried on.

It was somewhere around mi. 85 that things started to go south big time. Major hot dog rebellion! Deviating from my tried and true formula of easily digestible calories in frequent tiny bites was a very poor idea, especially in the heat. I got one of my dreaded abdominal cramps that makes it hard to breathe and that became the focus of my being. Pace plummeted. Groaning and pity parties ensued. A few sobs were choked back. Let the death march begin. Even...hills were walked!! Especially the excessively large ones in the last 12 miles. Total misery.

But I finished! And I was very proud of that. I immediately went to my car to lay down -- and promptly fell asleep for 20 min. When I woke up I felt tons better. For various reasons, I had extremely minimal sleep (1.5 hrs.) the night before so the nap did wonders.

I absolutely loved the vibe of this event! And I definitely see the appeal of combining multiple types of terrain on one race course. It was truly an adventure.

C • You're awesome 3

KM level 1 and 2 classes.

Jogging w/ trash/recycle bins (one in ea. hand) back to house. Looked silly I'm sure.

Early trainer spinning.

Trash/recycle hauling plus a little extra.

Hip strengthening/flexibility.

Early spin class. Not enough sleep, but I made it there and put in a good effort.

Late trainer ride.