Training Log Archive: Carbons Offset

16.2

Prairie View - Jewell Pass, plus an out-and-back on the first third of Razor's Edge, with Carbon and Annie.
Started and finished at Barrier Lake dam. I was dreading how hot today might be, especially for that climb, but it wasn't too bad. Held a wise pace up Prairie View and was done quicker and easier than I remember. Down the other side of Prairie View is still as rooty and rough as I remember but still good. Fun to ride some of Razor's Edge but it isn't everyone's cup of tea, made worse by the fact that at one point Carbon and I unknowingly hopped on each other's bikes after a stop. Carbon's bike rode well (but I was concerned that "my rear hub" was sounding different), but she didn't have a good ride on my bike. A funny mix up. Then down Jewell Pass which is a fast and flowy riot! Finished with a soak in Barrier Lake and a good visit with Suzy Buckley and Rick who came paddling by on their SUPs. A fun day followed by chilling out on the beach with drinks and snacks.

Got the distance from the Trailforks recording feature. Car to car time was 3:15.

C • Mix-up 2

15.9

A rest day at last, going to see Blue Rodeo this evening at an outdoor concert at the Banff Centre with Slice, Myka and others.

C • Sounds great! 1

17.0

warm up jog from our dirt parking lot to behind the biathlon range.
3 x (4 min, 3 min, 2 min, 1 min, with half as much time easy jog in between), 2 min easy between sets.
Kept it at a moderate pace as per Andy's direction, and the legs didn't feel like going fast in the beginning anyway (probably still tired from Tuesday's run). Legs felt better later in the run and felt good by the end. A hot night but it didn't feel too bad. Pizza at pub night at the Nordic Centre after.
avg cad 83 rpm

17.1

Distance is estimated. I really need to put a computer back on my bike.

A big group for the group ride tonight (17 of us?). A couple of people with different speeds but the group didn't split, so there were several long waits. Most people didn't mind the break on the hot evening and my legs were tired from last night's run. It was often fun to rip the downhill sections in a long train of riders. EKG, etc, blue coal chutes, out on Georgetown and down the loose trail beside the stairs by TransAlta. Lots of traffic merging from the multiple steep lines. I came in hot, had to brake hard for slower traffic ahead of me, and slid the front end. Got unclipped and was able to dab before going down gently and smearing myself with lots of dust on the rocky trail. No scrapes, just dirty. Back to the shop for beer and snacks and lots of visiting.

15.5

Trail Culture run
I got put in charge of the Caffeinated group. Only one person joined me. We were well matched. I was breathing hard to provide a good fast-group pace, and could hear him breathing the same; we were both good with it.
Ran Soft Yogurt, Devonian Drop, Orchid, EKG, Artistic Merit (staying high and traversing rather than dropping down Long Road to Ruin), down Blue Coal Chutes, up and across Long Road to Ruin, then jumped over to Baby Beluga back toward the daylodge where we picked up Dipped Cone to get to the parking lot in a total time of 57:30, perfectly avoiding any time penalties (the goal was one hour), unlike the other group leaders ;)
Then over to Tom and Heather's for a social and beer and snacks on their back deck and got to catch up with two Calgary folks I know who ran Western States, and heard their tales and struggles.

avg cadence 83 spm

C • Fun run! 2

Lake Minnewanka trail to the warden cabin and back, with Jenna, Caeli and Simon Lee.
Zero hikers past the bridge, probably because of the campground closures and all of the bear warnings. Only 3 pairs of bikers returning as we were heading in, and no one on the trail on the way back until we got to the bridge again.
Pushed a fast hard pace on the way to the cabin because this trail is fun to rip fast. Bike felt noodle-y/flexy. Took a nice long break on the beach by the cabin and didn't feel quite as strong on the way back. So nice to not encounter anyone on the return trip. Tried a different line down the rock after the bridge, looking for more challenge and succeeded in unintentionally dropping my front wheel into the worst tire trap there was. The front suspension did a big vertical pogo and I just managed to come out of it alive. At least I now know that I can ride any line off that rock including the very worst one, and still survive.
Probably my least busy ride on that trail. I think "bear scare" is now my favourite trail condition...
A hot day... jumped into Lake Minnewanka off the dock and it felt great.
Nice to get a ride in on this trail just before it closes to bikes for the summer.

Headed to the Nordic Centre with Carbon and Jenn but met up and tagged along with Greg and his buddy Andrew who were pre-riding the course for XCO Nationals. Got worked for the next couple of hours trying to keep up with these two xc racers but was matching the one guy later on the second lap as he faded. A couple of the harder technical drops are not the kind of thing I would want to be rushed through with other racers on my tail. I have ridden Eye Dropper before and bottomed out my suspension with a hard clunk; decided not to do it again. I haven't ridden Organ Donor and don't think I want to go off the 1-foot step in the middle of such a steep slope. These sections have been in previous races and even had to be removed after two bone-breaking crashes. That said, only the pros/elite will have to do the A-lines I think. The new B-lines looked fine. Thanks to hosting this race, they have built a couple new sections of trail (including a cool pump track where I expect some of the pros will show off some big air) and an over/under feature that will be permanent.