Training Log Archive: Carbons Offset

Unfortunately Carbon stayed home today because she was feeling headachy and didn't sleep well last night after we poisoned her by towing her behind the very stinky nasty two-stroke snowmobile yesterday.

I really should log some of this as a strength workout. Getting towed behind a snowmobile, especially when you get launched over bumpy trail and have to brace and catch yourself is a killer workout on the quads; the quads were screaming at the end of yesterday's tow out. Isometrics, plyometrics, everything all in one; Sledometrics. Killer.
Today, I think Cousin Larry did a great job of finding smoother trail for us (lots of hunting along the edges in fresh snow), we brought the speed down a little so that you could flow over the bumps rather than launching, and I think I relaxed into it a little more so the muscles weren't tensed the whole time. Either way, it's a bit of a workout getting towed in and out, but today was significantly easier.

We figured we would get more skiing in today because we had the systems a little more sorted out, we now knew how to hit the access road for skiing in, and we had most of our uptrack in place. Still, we didn't start skiing in until 12:15 again, this time because a minivan drove one of our trucks and trailers off the road on the way up to the Jumbo trailhead so we had to get him out, and then the borrowed ghetto sled took about 100 pulls to get the engine moving and get it to fire. With 3 unlabeled switches on the homemade control panel, we were starting to doubt ourselves in terms of engine cut-off switches, chokes, etc. Various permutations and combinations, but mostly lots of pulling the cord to turn the engine over many many times and get it ready to fire up.

More helicopter activity right in the valley we were skiing today. As we pulled our skins off at the top, one landed on the pad just above us. Four of us (Larry, Big and Little Fish, and I) were already on our way down while Invermere Greg messed with getting his GoPro going. Apparently the heliski guide rushed over to him in such a manner that Greg thought he needed help. Instead, helpful Greg was treated to a tongue lashing about how we should be more creative about where we ski instead of in the heli ski terrain. Personally I think I could get more creative with a helicopter at my disposal but maybe they are challenged for options right now? Anyway, unfortunately the guide was more of a jerk than necessary; a friendly chat about working with him so that his client can have untracked terrain would have gone a lot further. Greg has it all on his GoPro... I'd be interested to see it. (as for being creative: when we climbed up the second time, I noticed that the guide took his clients down the same line that I just took... maybe he should get more creative.... it's not like I had poached the premium line, I intentionally took a line into the trees that had space for two or three people, rather than putting a line on the main open run. We could eventually hear them below us, maybe he was pushing the pace so that he could catch us at the bottom. Man, would he be surprised when we didn't arrive... we must have seemed like we were really going out of our way to be evasive)

At the top, Larry and I had done some calculations and figured we only had time for a lap and a half if he wanted to be back in town before dark with his light-less trailer and not be an obvious candidate for a ticket. On our second lap, we wanted to traverse the top and do our last run down a line that would take us closer to the bridge across Leona Creek, so we decided our half lap would be of the upper section on the skier's left, followed by a full lap down the skiers' right to the bridge. That turned out to be a great strategy because we had great snow on the upper 3/4 of the runs, the bottom quarter of our last run was a little tougher with firm snow and tracks. Lots and lots of little bumps to jump off of, you didn't even have to look for them, it seemed like every second or third turn lined you up with a great little kicker and a good landing - a bunch of us were in the air on every second or third turn. In the trees, I ended up on what was a big buried deadfall log that I managed to ski and rail slide all the way down until I had to huck off the end - super cool, and even had Larry stopped below to witness it (cool moves are way better when some sees them!).
Descended 260m on our first half-lap, and then 630m on our final run.

On our last run down through the trees, the trees started to tighten up. We cut left to get back toward an open run, but big Fish went on his own and continued down. When we got to the bottom, we couldn't hear or see him, waited and called and yelled for almost half an hour. Too bad he never turns on the radio that Wakana puts in his pocket. Sigh. Especially too bad that he doesn't pair up or keep closer tabs on where everyone else is. Then Larry and I started building a search plan where he and I would climb back up about 200 metres to the point last seen and follow his tracks down. Meanwhile Little Fish and Greg would wait below where Big Fish would probably come out, and we would both have radios so that they could tell us to stop searching if they saw him. Skins on, first aid kits swapped, ready to go in and expecting to be skiing and sledding out in the dark, Larry and I were about to start climbing up when Big Fish popped out.

Got back to the sleds on about the same schedule as yesterday, had an uneventful ride out and it was easier on the legs thanks to smoother lines and lower speed. Driving back to the house, we passed a cop going the other way in the dark when we were almost home... he didn't come after us.

Man, sledding in (especially with towing and creek crossings, etc.) is a lot of work and fussing and takes a bunch of time.

When we finished today, I noticed that Little Fish was driving the other sled! Way to go, Sledneck Little Fish! That girl is up for anything. I hadn't realized she was also up for trying being towed - she's never had the chance. Had I known that, I would have given her my spot and taken a break from being towed. She's such a strong skier, she'd probably enjoy it and not just be trying to survive.

C • Bad Fish 2

Adventure day, courtesy of cousin Larry.
It started last night: needed a 2 inch trailer tongue to fit in Larry's receiver. Finally found one to borrow from a neighbour. However, needed a different size ball. Asked the roommate downstairs of the place we are staying (Kiwi Rob's) if we could steal his off his truck. Yep. Tried to find the tools we needed in Rob's house. Not much luck. We really needed a pipe wrench but couldn't find anything like that in Rob's tools. After looking everywhere, Larry realized he had one in his vehicle because he had just bought it but was going to return it. Grabbed it, it fit the nut on the roommate's ball, but then the ball would just spin. Needed another wrench. Then I discovered Rob's tongue (too small) and ball in his house. Again, needed a second wrench to remove the ball. MacGyver'ed something with some big c-clamps. Got the ball off, put it on the larger tongue and installed it on Lucas's truck. Phew. The next morning, snuck through town with no working trailer lights. Gassed up the snowmobile. Larry forgot to gas up his empty truck.
Then we learned that the frame of the snowmobile trailer might be breaking. When we got to the trailhead and unloaded the snowmobile, we flipped the trailer on its side, hammered in a big piece of pipe as a new spine, and secured it in place with a bunch of big pipe clamps. Definitely looked like the ghetto crew, versus the two fancy Albertans who showed up with a nice truck, nice trailer, two monster sleds and ski rack for just the two of them (versus 6 of us and two sleds and a bunch of tow ropes). Larry's truck is almost out of gas.
12:15 pm, finished towing in, ready to start skiing. From where we parked the sleds, we missed our destination road by about 15 metres because we got distracted by another trail almost beside it. Followed that trail and soon we were traversing through super dense trees. Did this for two hours and then bailed and battled our way down to the road below. Eventually made our way over to the heli ski runs we intended to poach, had time for one run, then back to the sleds. Got back to the sleds at 4:45 pm. On the way out, I got pulled off line (I was in the middle of the tow line, between the sled and BigFish on the towline behind me) and through a downed tree that the sled and driver had just gone around but when the rope went taught again it tried to pull me right through the tree. I managed to let go and dive over the tree, taking the hit just below the knee on one leg but didn't seem injured. Phew. Then continued the leg pounding downhill tow back to the vehicles. Stashed one sled in the trees for our return tomorrow, left the light-less trailer, and Larry made it to town with no gas.
Adventure....

C • Are you sure 4

15.8

Was going to attempt the lactate-clearing training workout from our homework on TrainingPeaks, but the legs were a bit shot from Tuesday's spin class and yesterday's run, so I just kept it to E3.

Loop from the office to Shouldice bridge. Followed the south side Bow River path all the way to Edworthy bridge, came back on the north side to the Peace Bridge. Ran alongside the pavement for parts of it, on packed snow and ice.

Average cadence 85

16.2

It's February, so lots more MAP. Tonight was all about MAP sets.

4 x (3 min MAP, 2 min easy)
5 min rest (including the 2 minutes at the end of the last set, so just 3 minutes more)
4 x (3 min MAP, 2 min easy)

11 min easy

8 x 2:30 (2:20 E3 (target was lower third of E3 zone), :10 sec attack in hardest gear and +6 slope)

avg cad 99 rpm
E1094
1:25:30 below 170W
:16 min 170-210W
:28:19 above 210W
average 138W
max 482W

16.4

Finally got around to logging the ski trip Jan 16-22. Much of it resembles Revy's log, as that is where a lot of the info was taken from (with a few of my own insights)

Montane trails with Myka and Carbon. Great to see Myka again, we haven't seen her in quite a while due to getting wrapped up in backcountry skiing, now that the season is here :)
Trails were icy. Carbon and I did okay thanks to our studded shoes. Myka didn't have studs or spikes but insisted on pushing through. Tough gal and it didn't seem to slow her down much. Nice temperature for running, lots of chatting and catching up while running, and now there is nice daylight right through the end of our run.

C • Fun run... 2