Training Log Archive: veinbusterIn the 15 days ending Jul 16, 2016:
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Saturday Jul 16, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 16:00 [1]
weight:79.9kg
53.6% water, 60.8 kg muscle
7 AM
Road cycle long (Smokie) 2:13:03 53.68 km (2:29 / km) +379m 2:24 / km
ahr:129 max:149 shoes: DMT road
Tour de Pierre stage 14a
Unexpected wet this morning and a bit chill at 13C. Radar showed no rain, nor did the forecast, so I went with the original plan to shoot up Wardem to Ravenshoe. The road was quite damp for the first 10km and then dried up some as I went north. By the time I made the turn back home other cyclist started to show up. There were probably 100 of them going north in various sized groups as I went south. I opted to extend the ride south a bit, which had me wait for a giant peleton to pass before I could cross Vivian.
At 44km I finally got some sun. Nice ride, but it might not have taken a big enough time out of the days Tour stage time so it is likely to be a long afternoon.
I was a bit surprised how low the heart rate came out. I'm pretty sure it was a good 15 bpm higher when I did this route last year on the Greenspeed. I think pace was comparable, though I did have a fair number of delays crossing intersection today.
Effort was easy enough to ponder the Bash equivalency: is there a daily elevation that would be equivalent to riding your age (in kilometres) daily.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind, 1/2 solo gi bar (quite good and easy to eat, though the coating is a bit sweet). And I gobbled an oatmeal raisin cookie while knitting up
Unexpected wet this morning and a bit chill at 13C. Radar showed no rain, nor did the forecast, so I went with the original plan to shoot up Wardem to Ravenshoe. The road was quite damp for the first 10km and then dried up some as I went north. By the time I made the turn back home other cyclist started to show up. There were probably 100 of them going north in various sized groups as I went south. I opted to extend the ride south a bit, which had me wait for a giant peleton to pass before I could cross Vivian.
At 44km I finally got some sun. Nice ride, but it might not have taken a big enough time out of the days Tour stage time so it is likely to be a long afternoon.
I was a bit surprised how low the heart rate came out. I'm pretty sure it was a good 15 bpm higher when I did this route last year on the Greenspeed. I think pace was comparable, though I did have a fair number of delays crossing intersection today.
Effort was easy enough to ponder the Bash equivalency: is there a daily elevation that would be equivalent to riding your age (in kilometres) daily.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind, 1/2 solo gi bar (quite good and easy to eat, though the coating is a bit sweet). And I gobbled an oatmeal raisin cookie while knitting up
12 PM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 3:33:00 [1] 64.7 km (3:18 / km) +224m 3:14 / km
ahr:113 max:145 shoes: DMT road
Tour de Pierre stage 14b
Today's stage was longer than I had expected by a good margin. At a bit over 100km for the day, my left calf started to heal quite heavy so I eased back and looped fairly close to home. As I approached the time mark for the day, I was getting very close to riding double my age. If the bathroom in this area hadn't been closed for construction, I probably would have added the extra few kilometres - it seemed kind of silly to go back out for 4 minutes after stopping at the house so that will have to wait for another day.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload, 1/2 solo gi.
Today's stage was longer than I had expected by a good margin. At a bit over 100km for the day, my left calf started to heal quite heavy so I eased back and looped fairly close to home. As I approached the time mark for the day, I was getting very close to riding double my age. If the bathroom in this area hadn't been closed for construction, I probably would have added the extra few kilometres - it seemed kind of silly to go back out for 4 minutes after stopping at the house so that will have to wait for another day.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload, 1/2 solo gi.
Friday Jul 15, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 21:00 [1]
weight:79.3kg
53.1% water, 60.0kg muscle
9 AM
Road cycle tempo (Goldie) 58:28 [3] 21.4 km (2:44 / km) +97m 2:40 / km
ahr:127 max:144 shoes: Specialized Comp mountain
Tour de Pierre stage 13
Short stage today so I started with some bike maintanance, including new pedals for the fixie, which seemed a good choice for the time trail stage. I went out thinking I could do Fabian's time and get back for the start of the yellow jersey.
The route I had planned on was closed, so I headed back for laps on the loop I first raced Flight on. The two full intervals on the 400m loop were decent for a bike with such low gearing and showed better leg speed than recently.
Nutrition: just water, but I had a full breakfast before going out
Short stage today so I started with some bike maintanance, including new pedals for the fixie, which seemed a good choice for the time trail stage. I went out thinking I could do Fabian's time and get back for the start of the yellow jersey.
The route I had planned on was closed, so I headed back for laps on the loop I first raced Flight on. The two full intervals on the 400m loop were decent for a bike with such low gearing and showed better leg speed than recently.
Nutrition: just water, but I had a full breakfast before going out
Thursday Jul 14, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 18:00 [1]
weight:79.4kg
53.5% water, 60.4kg muscle
7 AM
Mountain bike warm up/down (Big Unit) 1:44:00 [1] 27.5 km (3:47 / km) +129m 3:42 / km
ahr:107 max:142 shoes: Gekko
Tour de Pierre stage 12a
It was a bit of a game of chicken deciding when to ride today. I wasn't excited by the prospect of a five hour afternoon stage that could have heavy rain. I watched radar a bit, and ran predictions then put a rear fender on the big single speed and headed out in some rain rear.
Rain wasn't too bad to start, but it was hot and humid enough that I got wet inside even while keeping the rain out. Rain picked up pretty good about 8, then slowed to almost nothing just as I was heading home to watch the climbs, and hope to have enough wet time in that I can find a window for a dry 3ish hour stage this afternoon.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind with 100ml coconut water
It was a bit of a game of chicken deciding when to ride today. I wasn't excited by the prospect of a five hour afternoon stage that could have heavy rain. I watched radar a bit, and ran predictions then put a rear fender on the big single speed and headed out in some rain rear.
Rain wasn't too bad to start, but it was hot and humid enough that I got wet inside even while keeping the rain out. Rain picked up pretty good about 8, then slowed to almost nothing just as I was heading home to watch the climbs, and hope to have enough wet time in that I can find a window for a dry 3ish hour stage this afternoon.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind with 100ml coconut water
12 PM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 2:51:00 [3] 57.7 km (2:58 / km) +202m 2:55 / km
ahr:124 max:157 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 12b
A bit shorter than expected due too 100 km/hr winds on the top of the last climb. The afternoon ended up dry, but quite warm at 31C and very windy - flats into the wind got my heart rate up to 143 - on the low slung trike.
A bit low on energy in the last hour, perhaps in part the result of the snack I had saved a few days ago for today got unsaved.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload
A bit shorter than expected due too 100 km/hr winds on the top of the last climb. The afternoon ended up dry, but quite warm at 31C and very windy - flats into the wind got my heart rate up to 143 - on the low slung trike.
A bit low on energy in the last hour, perhaps in part the result of the snack I had saved a few days ago for today got unsaved.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload
Wednesday Jul 13, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 18:00 [1]
weight:79.8kg
53.4% water, 60.6kg muscle
7 AM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 3:47:00 [2] 76.4 km (2:58 / km) +229m 2:56 / km
ahr:118 max:155 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 11
It turns out the forecast 'Bent read for today was closer to true than the one I read. A very light rain very early left just a hint of dampness in a few spots. And the cloud cover moved out pretty quickly once I got out and the temperature shot up to 31C before 10am.
I was out well before the tour started and thought I had a good chance of doing what was likely to be a fast time in France in one shot. I thought going out for 3:30 was sure to get me back before the intermediate sprint and 3:45 was likely to cover the slowest pace likely on the Tour.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind with 150ml coconut water, 1 kewaza ball
It turns out the forecast 'Bent read for today was closer to true than the one I read. A very light rain very early left just a hint of dampness in a few spots. And the cloud cover moved out pretty quickly once I got out and the temperature shot up to 31C before 10am.
I was out well before the tour started and thought I had a good chance of doing what was likely to be a fast time in France in one shot. I thought going out for 3:30 was sure to get me back before the intermediate sprint and 3:45 was likely to cover the slowest pace likely on the Tour.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind with 150ml coconut water, 1 kewaza ball
Tuesday Jul 12, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 16:00 [1]
weight:80.1kg
53.5% water, 60.8kg muscle
Maybe I should have maintained the high protein diet on the rest day rather than my 'normal' one
Maybe I should have maintained the high protein diet on the rest day rather than my 'normal' one
7 AM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 3:02:00 [2] 62.3 km (2:55 / km) +199m 2:53 / km
ahr:120 max:153 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 10a
Legs felt pretty good after the rest day, though I noticed the leg speed isn't quite there. Good power when climbing or trying to push the speed up, but I didn't get very high cadence - I'll check closer tomorrow because this was just a feeling, not a numbers check.
I raced the train upstream today. I caught the tail while it was boarding at the north stop and accelerated so I was near my top speed when it pulled out. The train stopped at the next station with its tail about 50m in front of me. I would have needed a 20 inch tire instead of my little 16 to have kept up, or about 10 more rpm, which just wasn't to be had today.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind (tasted a bit sweet after the rest day), 1 kewaza ball (nice enough, but a bit of a chalky texture)
Legs felt pretty good after the rest day, though I noticed the leg speed isn't quite there. Good power when climbing or trying to push the speed up, but I didn't get very high cadence - I'll check closer tomorrow because this was just a feeling, not a numbers check.
I raced the train upstream today. I caught the tail while it was boarding at the north stop and accelerated so I was near my top speed when it pulled out. The train stopped at the next station with its tail about 50m in front of me. I would have needed a 20 inch tire instead of my little 16 to have kept up, or about 10 more rpm, which just wasn't to be had today.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind (tasted a bit sweet after the rest day), 1 kewaza ball (nice enough, but a bit of a chalky texture)
11 AM
Mountain bike long (Fatboy) 1:28:55 22.66 km (3:55 / km) +142m 3:48 / km
ahr:130 max:153
Tour de Pierre stage 10b
Only 1:20 needed for the afternoon session which seemed about right to take the FatBoy out to search for a path across the construction blocking the northern single track. I took the right branch along the hydro line this time instead of the left path'Bent and I had taken to the bridge. It led me to the edges of a large residential construction site, then up the Mt. Albert road. I took that around to the bridge site to look for a passage across, but there isn't one short of a detour of 2-3 km on the road.
It was a very hot ride at 35C. I did look at the endo creek crossing much more closely and there is an obvious tire trap about 8cm wide and 15cm deep.
Garmin died about a km from home. Ride time is adjusted to actual, other metrics are per Garmin.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload
Only 1:20 needed for the afternoon session which seemed about right to take the FatBoy out to search for a path across the construction blocking the northern single track. I took the right branch along the hydro line this time instead of the left path'Bent and I had taken to the bridge. It led me to the edges of a large residential construction site, then up the Mt. Albert road. I took that around to the bridge site to look for a passage across, but there isn't one short of a detour of 2-3 km on the road.
It was a very hot ride at 35C. I did look at the endo creek crossing much more closely and there is an obvious tire trap about 8cm wide and 15cm deep.
Garmin died about a km from home. Ride time is adjusted to actual, other metrics are per Garmin.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload
2 PM
Note
All the exercise has changed my blood levels - enough for my doctor to call as soon as the results from yesterday's test came in. I will be a complete vitamin K free zone for a couple of weeks. And now I know which direction the balance shifts - less likely to bleed out in the forest.
Monday Jul 11, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 18:00 [1]
weight:80.6kg
53.6% water, 61.2kg muscle
7 AM
weight training 38:00 [2]
Day 3 soloflex
10 AM
Note
Three hours getting 4 bikes tuned up and ready to roll. A new bell on one and swapped pedals on two. My shade is gone so I have to stop and give my skin a rest day from the sun.
Sunday Jul 10, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 12:00 [1]
weight:80.3kg
53.4% water, 60.9kg muscle
7 AM
Mountain bike long (Stumpjumper) 2:38:15 39.11 km (4:03 / km) +203m 3:57 / km
ahr:126 max:157 shoes: Specialized Comp mountain
Tour de Pierre stage 9a
I'll upload the Garmin later to show some new trail 'Bent and I found. We started south on the Nokiidaa Trail covering a route known to me - except for the part where my rear tire caught a tree root I missed and I had to make a quick grab of a decent sized tree to stay out of the river.
One attempt at a bit of trail just north of a seniors home that is probably better suited yo walking small dogs. The a brief visit to a small terrain park that has gotten overgrown enough that it is easy to miss some big holes.
We had a bit of spare time so opted to check for a north end trail that might have developed on the west side of the river - I thought I saw a girl pop out of there yesterday. The trail isn't especially well developed, but it certainly has potential for further exploration. Much of the surface was very mushy, enough so that I'll take the fattie back during the week. I'll also need a better plan for one creek crossing that brought my front end to a hard stop and gave me some endo practice - my somersault while clipped in is still solid.
I bit of a long session on a traditional bike. My legs were starting to feel a bit heavy the last 15-20 minutes. Still strong, but heavy.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind
I'll upload the Garmin later to show some new trail 'Bent and I found. We started south on the Nokiidaa Trail covering a route known to me - except for the part where my rear tire caught a tree root I missed and I had to make a quick grab of a decent sized tree to stay out of the river.
One attempt at a bit of trail just north of a seniors home that is probably better suited yo walking small dogs. The a brief visit to a small terrain park that has gotten overgrown enough that it is easy to miss some big holes.
We had a bit of spare time so opted to check for a north end trail that might have developed on the west side of the river - I thought I saw a girl pop out of there yesterday. The trail isn't especially well developed, but it certainly has potential for further exploration. Much of the surface was very mushy, enough so that I'll take the fattie back during the week. I'll also need a better plan for one creek crossing that brought my front end to a hard stop and gave me some endo practice - my somersault while clipped in is still solid.
I bit of a long session on a traditional bike. My legs were starting to feel a bit heavy the last 15-20 minutes. Still strong, but heavy.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind
1 PM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed ) 2:40:00 [1] 42.6 km (3:45 / km) +101m 3:43 / km
ahr:110 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 9b
It would have been easy to trade this session for a soak in a hot tub and a nap. I was pretty drained starting out, even though I didn't feel bad getting in from the morning session with 'Bent.
Once I got the legs moving I felt better about being out, but kept it at parade lap pace much of the time even when there wasn't much traffic on the trail. There was a ton of people out there today. As I finished up, everyone disappeared to watch the Euro Cup final so I did the last interval in the big gear, just to make sure it still worked.
The rest day tomorrow will be most welcome.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload - didn't really feel like eating anything, but I'll probably make up for that in a couple of hours.
It would have been easy to trade this session for a soak in a hot tub and a nap. I was pretty drained starting out, even though I didn't feel bad getting in from the morning session with 'Bent.
Once I got the legs moving I felt better about being out, but kept it at parade lap pace much of the time even when there wasn't much traffic on the trail. There was a ton of people out there today. As I finished up, everyone disappeared to watch the Euro Cup final so I did the last interval in the big gear, just to make sure it still worked.
The rest day tomorrow will be most welcome.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload - didn't really feel like eating anything, but I'll probably make up for that in a couple of hours.
Saturday Jul 9, 2016 #
6 AM
Note
weight:80.2kg
53.7% water, 61.1kg muscle
The apparent increase in muscle is a gamed number. The 12k steps getting to and from the concert last night, and quite a bit of standing during the concert combined with about 40% less recovery time over night trick my scales.
The apparent increase in muscle is a gamed number. The 12k steps getting to and from the concert last night, and quite a bit of standing during the concert combined with about 40% less recovery time over night trick my scales.
7 AM
Road cycle warm up/down (Greenspeed) 1:24:00 [1] 26.7 km (3:09 / km) +91m 3:06 / km
ahr:113 max:137 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 8a
A quick run up the path before the first climb of the day. Trail prep for the Rebbeca Run kept things pretty slow. The trail show a number of tree parts, so last nights storm was significant at times. It was still quite windy this morning - unusually windy for first thing in the morning. A fox jogged ahead of me for 20m or so before calmly stopping to look at me before taking off into the woods - far too quick to get on film - unless, of course, you happened to be running a GoPro on the front of the bike.
I risked missing the end of the first climb to take a quick run to the marsh to see if it had any water - none showed, but at least the mud looked damp.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind, not really required but I drank it on principle
A quick run up the path before the first climb of the day. Trail prep for the Rebbeca Run kept things pretty slow. The trail show a number of tree parts, so last nights storm was significant at times. It was still quite windy this morning - unusually windy for first thing in the morning. A fox jogged ahead of me for 20m or so before calmly stopping to look at me before taking off into the woods - far too quick to get on film - unless, of course, you happened to be running a GoPro on the front of the bike.
I risked missing the end of the first climb to take a quick run to the marsh to see if it had any water - none showed, but at least the mud looked damp.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind, not really required but I drank it on principle
12 PM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 3:40:00 [2] 69.7 km (3:09 / km) +224m 3:06 / km
ahr:116 max:141 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 8b
Sneak Attack
It was going to be a tough afternoon trying to get in more than 3 1/2 hours. I started north and last night's rain had created a mud slime about 3 cm deep under the northern most bridge - the one that leads to the woods. The Scorchers slide around a fair bit and then threw all the mud they collected in my face for a couple hundred meters. That made me decide to do shorter woods only loops for a third of the time - and only have to cross the mud once more. While up there I cleaned some of the tree parts from the trail - mostly to keep my front tires from pitching them up at me. I did a couple passes grabbing bigger pieces at speed, but after scuffing my thumb in the gravel opted for a sighting pace and tossing anything thicker than my finger into the woods.
Next third was the northern paved loop. As I was heading north, the first Saturday north bound GO train pulled into the Newmarket station. I took that as an invitation to race it to the next station. I charged while it opened its doors to let nobody off (there were four cars in the lot, perhaps on a later train). The train caught me about 2/3 of the way there, and passed. I kept the legs turning and sure enough I caught the tail as it slowed to a stop - quite prepared to declare that a tie. But it had to let several passengers off, and while it did I passed the front of the train and made my turn around before it was ready to leave. Winner.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload and my last home made energy bar
Sneak Attack
It was going to be a tough afternoon trying to get in more than 3 1/2 hours. I started north and last night's rain had created a mud slime about 3 cm deep under the northern most bridge - the one that leads to the woods. The Scorchers slide around a fair bit and then threw all the mud they collected in my face for a couple hundred meters. That made me decide to do shorter woods only loops for a third of the time - and only have to cross the mud once more. While up there I cleaned some of the tree parts from the trail - mostly to keep my front tires from pitching them up at me. I did a couple passes grabbing bigger pieces at speed, but after scuffing my thumb in the gravel opted for a sighting pace and tossing anything thicker than my finger into the woods.
Next third was the northern paved loop. As I was heading north, the first Saturday north bound GO train pulled into the Newmarket station. I took that as an invitation to race it to the next station. I charged while it opened its doors to let nobody off (there were four cars in the lot, perhaps on a later train). The train caught me about 2/3 of the way there, and passed. I kept the legs turning and sure enough I caught the tail as it slowed to a stop - quite prepared to declare that a tie. But it had to let several passengers off, and while it did I passed the front of the train and made my turn around before it was ready to leave. Winner.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload and my last home made energy bar
6 PM
Note
I thought 500 hours a year was a fair rolling target for retirement. I wasn't quite expecting to get there in the first week. I might need some pie to celebrate, maybe even toss in some ice cream.
Friday Jul 8, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 10:00 [1]
weight:79.2kg
52.9% water, 59.7kg muscle
First day the weight isn't down, but I'll have to come up with something to keep the muscle from dropping too much - might need a rest day.
First day the weight isn't down, but I'll have to come up with something to keep the muscle from dropping too much - might need a rest day.
7 AM
Road cycle tempo (Greenspeed) 2:49:00 [1] 57.9 km (2:55 / km) +101m 2:54 / km
ahr:113 max:139 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 7a
The rain that barely was.
A bit late getting out made me have to trade off front loading the day with watching the mountain climb in the real Tour. I pulled in a bit short and just caught the end of the warmup cat 4 climb.
Very light rain started at 7km, but it was 28km before it could truly be called rain, still pretty light though. Maybe a couple mm total.
I sewed the flags onto the pole last night so they weren't stolen by the trees. Today the low cluster of branches that liked to peal the Canadian flag off the pole grabbed the top segment of the pole and removed it and the three flags on it. I picked it up on the next loop and tried a bit harder to avoid some of the low branches.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind, my last Flight bite
The rain that barely was.
A bit late getting out made me have to trade off front loading the day with watching the mountain climb in the real Tour. I pulled in a bit short and just caught the end of the warmup cat 4 climb.
Very light rain started at 7km, but it was 28km before it could truly be called rain, still pretty light though. Maybe a couple mm total.
I sewed the flags onto the pole last night so they weren't stolen by the trees. Today the low cluster of branches that liked to peal the Canadian flag off the pole grabbed the top segment of the pole and removed it and the three flags on it. I picked it up on the next loop and tried a bit harder to avoid some of the low branches.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind, my last Flight bite
C • PVR 3
12 PM
Road cycle tempo (Smokie) 1:05:00 [4] 25.4 km (2:34 / km) +242m 2:27 / km
ahr:141 max:157 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage7b
The shortest race day yet meant I only needed 62 minutes for the afternoon session. It seemed like an invitation to set the legs free on the road bike for a bit. The problem with that was that traffic was horrendous trying to get east of the 404 where the nice roads are.
Slow and a bit scary to get over the highway. Only then did I notice that it has rained quite a bit more there than home - enough to throw up some road spray as I turned over the big gear for a bit. I really like pushing those 130 gear inches. I did the smallest interesting block: 5km icky traffic, 15km clear road, 5km slightly less icky traffic.
It was fun.
Nutrition: guzzled the 1/2 eload, diluted lemonade as I came in the door.
The shortest race day yet meant I only needed 62 minutes for the afternoon session. It seemed like an invitation to set the legs free on the road bike for a bit. The problem with that was that traffic was horrendous trying to get east of the 404 where the nice roads are.
Slow and a bit scary to get over the highway. Only then did I notice that it has rained quite a bit more there than home - enough to throw up some road spray as I turned over the big gear for a bit. I really like pushing those 130 gear inches. I did the smallest interesting block: 5km icky traffic, 15km clear road, 5km slightly less icky traffic.
It was fun.
Nutrition: guzzled the 1/2 eload, diluted lemonade as I came in the door.
Thursday Jul 7, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 17:00 [1]
weight:79.2kg
53.2% water, 60.0kg muscle
7 AM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 2:36:00 [2] 51.1 km (3:03 / km) +144m 3:01 / km
ahr:115 max:147 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 6a
I front loaded the nutrition today even though I planned a relatively short stage at 2 1/2 hours - so about what I would consider a normal ride. On the second loop into the woods I saw a flash of red in the middle of the trail - my Canadian flag conveniently placed where I could scoop it up on the way by. The US flag was nowhere to be found on the next two loops - until some of the regular runners started flagging me: the first said he had seen the flag north of the train station. The second said he placed it in the grass right by the path. A third placed it up in a tree branch - about eye level for an NBA player, but not where I had been watching for it. Still, I have both flags and will have to sew them to the pole - that had kept them in place for six years when I originally did it.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind, 1 Flight bite, 1 endurance tap - this was a real treat - I was expecting a maple flavoured gel, but discovered it was very thin when I opened it (and had to lick some off my fingers) - turns out it was just maple syrup with a bit of sea salt. I probably paid some stupid amount for it, but it was bloody brilliant as a treat.
I front loaded the nutrition today even though I planned a relatively short stage at 2 1/2 hours - so about what I would consider a normal ride. On the second loop into the woods I saw a flash of red in the middle of the trail - my Canadian flag conveniently placed where I could scoop it up on the way by. The US flag was nowhere to be found on the next two loops - until some of the regular runners started flagging me: the first said he had seen the flag north of the train station. The second said he placed it in the grass right by the path. A third placed it up in a tree branch - about eye level for an NBA player, but not where I had been watching for it. Still, I have both flags and will have to sew them to the pole - that had kept them in place for six years when I originally did it.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind, 1 Flight bite, 1 endurance tap - this was a real treat - I was expecting a maple flavoured gel, but discovered it was very thin when I opened it (and had to lick some off my fingers) - turns out it was just maple syrup with a bit of sea salt. I probably paid some stupid amount for it, but it was bloody brilliant as a treat.
1 PM
Mountain bike tempo (Stumpjumper) 2:08:00 [3] 40.4 km (3:10 / km) +102m 3:08 / km
ahr:131 max:145 shoes: Specialized Comp mountain
Tour de Pierre stage 6b
Hot but relaxed ride down the eastern most 20km of the Caledon Trail. I met Bash about 1/3 of the way there and had a nice chat about various things as we made our way to a drink stop. Bash is good to ride with because she knows all the places for treats, so there is a backup if the place you meant to stop at was out of business. It's a good thing we stopped because I finished the two drinks I brought about 3km before I got back to the car.
I was quite pleased that two hours on a traditional bike in my second session of the day didn't cause any undo stress. I did notice that my heart rate ran higher than it has on afternoon sessions on the trike at close to the same real effort.
Even milking the frequent shady spots on the way back it turns out that we made the turn around 2 minutes early, so I did a loop through the industrial section of Tottenham and found nothing of interest.
Nutrition: 1 eload, 1 soda
Hot but relaxed ride down the eastern most 20km of the Caledon Trail. I met Bash about 1/3 of the way there and had a nice chat about various things as we made our way to a drink stop. Bash is good to ride with because she knows all the places for treats, so there is a backup if the place you meant to stop at was out of business. It's a good thing we stopped because I finished the two drinks I brought about 3km before I got back to the car.
I was quite pleased that two hours on a traditional bike in my second session of the day didn't cause any undo stress. I did notice that my heart rate ran higher than it has on afternoon sessions on the trike at close to the same real effort.
Even milking the frequent shady spots on the way back it turns out that we made the turn around 2 minutes early, so I did a loop through the industrial section of Tottenham and found nothing of interest.
Nutrition: 1 eload, 1 soda
C • Tour 3
Wednesday Jul 6, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 17:00 [1]
weight:79.6kg
53.4% water, 60.4 kg muscle
7 AM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 2:59:00 [1] 55.9 km (3:12 / km) +98m 3:10 / km
ahr:110 max:131 shoes: DMT road
Tour de Pierre stage 5a
A bit slow starting this morning. The legs are starting to feel the effort - I'll have to try to roll them out a bit after the day is done. I didn't really feel like eating today, so I'll keep an eye on that, but for now will attribute it to Ben & Jerry's late yesterday.
I took a bit of a recovery stage today, which basically meant one less gear when the trail was clear and slightly exaggerated slow downs for bridges and traffic. This afternoon will be another 2 1/2 hours with the temperature already 30C when I finished the morning.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind, my last power ball, 1/2 picky bar (minus the chunk that fell on the ground)
A bit slow starting this morning. The legs are starting to feel the effort - I'll have to try to roll them out a bit after the day is done. I didn't really feel like eating today, so I'll keep an eye on that, but for now will attribute it to Ben & Jerry's late yesterday.
I took a bit of a recovery stage today, which basically meant one less gear when the trail was clear and slightly exaggerated slow downs for bridges and traffic. This afternoon will be another 2 1/2 hours with the temperature already 30C when I finished the morning.
Nutrition: 1 tailwind, my last power ball, 1/2 picky bar (minus the chunk that fell on the ground)
1 PM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 2:32:00 [2] 47.3 km (3:13 / km) +106m 3:11 / km
ahr:122 max:142 shoes: DMT road
Tour de Pierre stage 5b
The afternoon started out with an engineering lesson and a game of Fun With Flags. A couple of pre school boys wanted to know how the trike worked. They understood the 'like a bike' part of making it go, but really cared about how you steer it. Then their mom thought a flag test was in order: Canada, Florida(which I grant full points for to a four year old), Germany but missed France as Holland.
Then to the woods for a bit of my normal endurance pace, which was quite satisfying. I headed back south for the last hour and quickly discovered how much harder it is to put out an effort in 35C without a moment out of the sun. For the last half hour my feet begged me to cut them a break and cash in the spare minutes from earlier stages. Forgetting to take my salt tablets at the break might have played a part in dragging the last half hour.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload in watered down lemonade, 1 oat/date/berry bar
The afternoon started out with an engineering lesson and a game of Fun With Flags. A couple of pre school boys wanted to know how the trike worked. They understood the 'like a bike' part of making it go, but really cared about how you steer it. Then their mom thought a flag test was in order: Canada, Florida(which I grant full points for to a four year old), Germany but missed France as Holland.
Then to the woods for a bit of my normal endurance pace, which was quite satisfying. I headed back south for the last hour and quickly discovered how much harder it is to put out an effort in 35C without a moment out of the sun. For the last half hour my feet begged me to cut them a break and cash in the spare minutes from earlier stages. Forgetting to take my salt tablets at the break might have played a part in dragging the last half hour.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload in watered down lemonade, 1 oat/date/berry bar
Tuesday Jul 5, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 15:00 [1]
weight:79.8kg
52.9% water, 60.1kg muscle
7 AM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 3:26:00 [2] 65.9 km (3:08 / km) +156m 3:05 / km
ahr:116 max:154
Tour de Pierre stage 4a
I was expecting another 6 hours so biased the morning to the north end of the river in the woods. On the third lap, he indicated he was counting so I told him I was aiming for 10. On the fifth lap an old fellow that had joined him wanted to know if I thought Germany would win - clearly people assume my flags are about soccer. Until a woman mountain biker at about three hours who wondered if they represented my family.
A fast runner: doing about 6 minute km pushing two kids wondered how long the construction had closed the north end of the trail - working on the third year.
Got home to find SportsNet was tired of showing the Tour and thought yesterday's baseball would be more interesting.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind, 1/2 picky bar, 1 stringer gel
I was expecting another 6 hours so biased the morning to the north end of the river in the woods. On the third lap, he indicated he was counting so I told him I was aiming for 10. On the fifth lap an old fellow that had joined him wanted to know if I thought Germany would win - clearly people assume my flags are about soccer. Until a woman mountain biker at about three hours who wondered if they represented my family.
A fast runner: doing about 6 minute km pushing two kids wondered how long the construction had closed the north end of the trail - working on the third year.
Got home to find SportsNet was tired of showing the Tour and thought yesterday's baseball would be more interesting.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind, 1/2 picky bar, 1 stringer gel
1 PM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 2:05:00 [2] 40.8 km (3:04 / km) +128m 3:01 / km
ahr:122 max:142 shoes: DMT road
Tour de Pierre stage 4b
I felt that after 3 hours yesterday afternoon, 2 today shouldn't be a problem, so I let the cadence run up into the power band when the path was clear rather than sitting in the endurance band of about 70 rpm.
The trail through the woods was closed for tree trimming, but there was a decent amount of cloud so the sun wasn't too bad. Felt good enough at the end to make a last minute turn to a longer loop overshooting the time target by three minutes.
Nutrition: 1 eload. Bacon, eggs, chicken, toast and a few few chocolate covered blueberries at the break.
I felt that after 3 hours yesterday afternoon, 2 today shouldn't be a problem, so I let the cadence run up into the power band when the path was clear rather than sitting in the endurance band of about 70 rpm.
The trail through the woods was closed for tree trimming, but there was a decent amount of cloud so the sun wasn't too bad. Felt good enough at the end to make a last minute turn to a longer loop overshooting the time target by three minutes.
Nutrition: 1 eload. Bacon, eggs, chicken, toast and a few few chocolate covered blueberries at the break.
Monday Jul 4, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 19:00 [1]
weight:79.9kg
53.0% water, 60.3kg muscle
7 AM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 3:13:00 [2] 65.3 km (2:57 / km) +176m 2:55 / km
ahr:119 max:153 shoes: DMT road
Tour de Pierre stage 3a
I had to switch shoes today because at the end of yesterday there was some bruising on the top of my right foot. The old style straps spread the pressure very differently than the dual Boas.
I'm expecting three consecutive 5+ hour stages, so opted to start out on the trike today and see how I held up. While I planned a relaxed effort, I was quite surprised how low my heart rate stayed. A couple of women helped by stopping to chat for a break in their morning run: my choice of flags, gym recumbents versus outside recumbents, winter training. It kept me from logging enough ride time to be able to have a sub two hour afternoon (I'm guessing based on getting home with 80km left in the tour).
My water ran out at 2:45 elapsed time, and I noticed the need for an extra bottle with 10 minutes. I'll have to start carrying a spare in my bag. I felt like I could have done the full stage in one go today, but don't want to break from my program this early in the Tour.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind, 1 chocolate honey stinger - perfect time for what would normally be far too much sweet in one shot.
Edit: I should note that it is looking like the weak link in my plan might be the compression on my feet. Even on the trike, the swelling contained in the compression is noticeable and the compression can be quite abrasive.
I had to switch shoes today because at the end of yesterday there was some bruising on the top of my right foot. The old style straps spread the pressure very differently than the dual Boas.
I'm expecting three consecutive 5+ hour stages, so opted to start out on the trike today and see how I held up. While I planned a relaxed effort, I was quite surprised how low my heart rate stayed. A couple of women helped by stopping to chat for a break in their morning run: my choice of flags, gym recumbents versus outside recumbents, winter training. It kept me from logging enough ride time to be able to have a sub two hour afternoon (I'm guessing based on getting home with 80km left in the tour).
My water ran out at 2:45 elapsed time, and I noticed the need for an extra bottle with 10 minutes. I'll have to start carrying a spare in my bag. I felt like I could have done the full stage in one go today, but don't want to break from my program this early in the Tour.
Nutrition: 3/4 tailwind, 1 chocolate honey stinger - perfect time for what would normally be far too much sweet in one shot.
Edit: I should note that it is looking like the weak link in my plan might be the compression on my feet. Even on the trike, the swelling contained in the compression is noticeable and the compression can be quite abrasive.
12 PM
Road cycle long (Greenspeed) 2:48:08 52.84 km (3:11 / km) +117m 3:09 / km
ahr:124 max:149 shoes: DMT road
Tour de Pierre stage 3b
6 hours? Can you please try for a big, fast breakaway tomorrow.
I took it easy in the 30+C having noted a hint of a headache during the break. After about 90 minutes in the sun, I decided to see how the Greenspeed would manage in the woods trail and it was in pretty good shape so hung out there for a while, taking my lumps that the Garmin tend to read low under the trees - I'm just out for time anyway - which I have to remind myself frequently.
My bike computer stopped registering wheel rotation about 20 minutes out. It registered very low speed for a few minutes, then just stopped. I paused for one quick adjustment attempt and then opted not to fight it on the road.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload, 1 Flight bite, 1 of my oat/date/berry squares
6 hours? Can you please try for a big, fast breakaway tomorrow.
I took it easy in the 30+C having noted a hint of a headache during the break. After about 90 minutes in the sun, I decided to see how the Greenspeed would manage in the woods trail and it was in pretty good shape so hung out there for a while, taking my lumps that the Garmin tend to read low under the trees - I'm just out for time anyway - which I have to remind myself frequently.
My bike computer stopped registering wheel rotation about 20 minutes out. It registered very low speed for a few minutes, then just stopped. I paused for one quick adjustment attempt and then opted not to fight it on the road.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload, 1 Flight bite, 1 of my oat/date/berry squares
6 PM
Note
Loaded Garmin for the two road segments - Sat and Sun am, and today's afternoon segment which shows the limits of the Greenspeed friendly portion of the Nokiidaa Trail
Sunday Jul 3, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 18:00 [1]
weight:80.2kg
52.8% water, 60.3kg muscle
7 AM
Note
Planning to ride Mulock, north on Warden, east on Mt Albert, south on 48, west on Vivian, south on Kennedy, west on Aurora, north on Warden, west on St Johns...remainder left open to hit 120-150 minutes.
Road cycle hills (Smokie) 2:29:17 58.01 km (2:34 / km) +493m 2:28 / km
ahr:142 max:171 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 2a
Last day to ride Vivian before construction starts on one of my favourite road routes. I did the planned route and added an extra Vivian, Kennedy, St. John's loop to try and get close to have of today's Tour time.
I saw for riders in the first 10km and then nobody else until 30km. Legs felt pretty good starting out today and I happened to catch a satisfying 9:17 interval on a segment with only 10m net downhill. From there turned to the longest single climb in the area at a bit over 3 km - not very steep though, just a lazy climb up about 2/3 of the Morraine.
I went south on Kennedy rather than my usual north which meant I had to climb the Wall of Doom - the most visually intimidating climb. Looping north on Warden, I eased up to check my stats to plan a route home within my time target and got passed by a strong female rider. A bit of a downhill had my mass catch her, but I didn't pass because I was pretty sure I would just be in her way on the climb just ahead. Turns out I was climbing better today so had the edge both up and down, while she was quicker on flat. I was a bit surprised t find I wasn't the worst climber amongst real cyclists.
peletons started showing up at about 50km. By the last ascent of the Morraine I was thinking I would be ok with a red light.
Nutrition: 1/3 tailwind, 1/2 bonk breaker
Last day to ride Vivian before construction starts on one of my favourite road routes. I did the planned route and added an extra Vivian, Kennedy, St. John's loop to try and get close to have of today's Tour time.
I saw for riders in the first 10km and then nobody else until 30km. Legs felt pretty good starting out today and I happened to catch a satisfying 9:17 interval on a segment with only 10m net downhill. From there turned to the longest single climb in the area at a bit over 3 km - not very steep though, just a lazy climb up about 2/3 of the Morraine.
I went south on Kennedy rather than my usual north which meant I had to climb the Wall of Doom - the most visually intimidating climb. Looping north on Warden, I eased up to check my stats to plan a route home within my time target and got passed by a strong female rider. A bit of a downhill had my mass catch her, but I didn't pass because I was pretty sure I would just be in her way on the climb just ahead. Turns out I was climbing better today so had the edge both up and down, while she was quicker on flat. I was a bit surprised t find I wasn't the worst climber amongst real cyclists.
peletons started showing up at about 50km. By the last ascent of the Morraine I was thinking I would be ok with a red light.
Nutrition: 1/3 tailwind, 1/2 bonk breaker
12 PM
Road cycle warm up/down (Greenspeed) 1:53:00 [2] 33.2 km (3:24 / km) +127m 3:20 / km
ahr:118 max:157
Tour de Pierre stage 2b
Target for the day was 4:21. Mrs. wanted a bit of a ride so she headed out on the path with me. She tried sleeves and light compression tights to avoid the sun. She is going to need lighter sleeves. The 30C started to drag her down after about an hour, so I looped her back and finished up. It had been an easy ride so I tackled Jelly in the big chain ring and tore up at 90+ rpm while the hill was clear.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload was it other than sausage, eggs, toast and a cookie between sessions.
Tomorrow could be demanding with a 224km tour stage. I might be wise to make it a recumbent day.
Target for the day was 4:21. Mrs. wanted a bit of a ride so she headed out on the path with me. She tried sleeves and light compression tights to avoid the sun. She is going to need lighter sleeves. The 30C started to drag her down after about an hour, so I looped her back and finished up. It had been an easy ride so I tackled Jelly in the big chain ring and tore up at 90+ rpm while the hill was clear.
Nutrition: 1/2 eload was it other than sausage, eggs, toast and a cookie between sessions.
Tomorrow could be demanding with a 224km tour stage. I might be wise to make it a recumbent day.
Saturday Jul 2, 2016 #
6 AM
flexibility 12:00 [1]
weight:80.6kg
Weight a bit high because I ate and drank everything yesterday.
Didn't save other measures because I already had compression on and they cause widely false readings, including over 27% body fat.
Didn't save other measures because I already had compression on and they cause widely false readings, including over 27% body fat.
Road cycle hills (Smokie) 2:44:08 61.88 km (2:39 / km) +613m 2:32 / km
ahr:146 max:167 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre Stage 1a
It seemed appropriate to start the tour on the race bike (the bike, not the rider). I took a lap around the Oak Ridge Morraine: Vivian, hwy 48, Stouffville, Kennedy, St. John's, Yonge. I didn't see another rider until 25km and they started popping up in earnest at about 35km. The views on this route are very nice, especially from the crests of the Morraine.
Flight gave chase and spotted me about 10 minutes too much head start. I saw she was out as soon as I opened the door so retraced the route and met her about 4km back - we then took a short cut home.
Nutrition: 1/3 eload, 1/2 bonk breaker.
It seemed appropriate to start the tour on the race bike (the bike, not the rider). I took a lap around the Oak Ridge Morraine: Vivian, hwy 48, Stouffville, Kennedy, St. John's, Yonge. I didn't see another rider until 25km and they started popping up in earnest at about 35km. The views on this route are very nice, especially from the crests of the Morraine.
Flight gave chase and spotted me about 10 minutes too much head start. I saw she was out as soon as I opened the door so retraced the route and met her about 4km back - we then took a short cut home.
Nutrition: 1/3 eload, 1/2 bonk breaker.
12 PM
Road cycle tempo (Greenspeed) 1:31:00 [3] 28.8 km (3:10 / km) +109m 3:06 / km
ahr:132 shoes: Specialized SWorks road
Tour de Pierre stage 1b
Exiting the Union
I opted for the Greenspeed along the river, biased to the north end. There were quite a few families out on the trail, which was nice to see. It was all very civilized. At the very north end (Green Lane) an old guy admired my trike. When I came around for a second loop, he flagged me down to tell me one of my flags had come off. He told me it was in the grass on the left side. I thanked him and went slow enough to watch carefully along the side of the trail, not quite sure if I should look to his left or mine, so I biased to his. I took a glance at the flag pole and notice the second slot from the top was empty - then had a little laugh because that might have been England.
At the turn around I took a closer look at the pole to make sure I knew what colours to watch for and now the top two flags were gone - I had lost Canada. So back again, slow enough to monitor both side of the trail for a flash of red and white. Then I met two boys about 10, breathing hard. They grabbed their brakes and one of them handed me a fist full of flag - US. They had seen it fly off behind me and chased it down, then road as hard as they could to try and catch me. Awesome. I thanked them and asked if they had happened to see a Canadian one. Nope. They caught their breathe and we carried on in opposite directions.
I did another slowish loop of that section but concluded that one of the many people on the trail opted to give a nice flag a more caring home.
Nice ride and the modest pace left me feeling pretty good after burning 2000 calories. Came in one minute over the Tour stage win today.
Nutrition: just the bacon, eggs, toast, cookie and orange juice between segments.
Exiting the Union
I opted for the Greenspeed along the river, biased to the north end. There were quite a few families out on the trail, which was nice to see. It was all very civilized. At the very north end (Green Lane) an old guy admired my trike. When I came around for a second loop, he flagged me down to tell me one of my flags had come off. He told me it was in the grass on the left side. I thanked him and went slow enough to watch carefully along the side of the trail, not quite sure if I should look to his left or mine, so I biased to his. I took a glance at the flag pole and notice the second slot from the top was empty - then had a little laugh because that might have been England.
At the turn around I took a closer look at the pole to make sure I knew what colours to watch for and now the top two flags were gone - I had lost Canada. So back again, slow enough to monitor both side of the trail for a flash of red and white. Then I met two boys about 10, breathing hard. They grabbed their brakes and one of them handed me a fist full of flag - US. They had seen it fly off behind me and chased it down, then road as hard as they could to try and catch me. Awesome. I thanked them and asked if they had happened to see a Canadian one. Nope. They caught their breathe and we carried on in opposite directions.
I did another slowish loop of that section but concluded that one of the many people on the trail opted to give a nice flag a more caring home.
Nice ride and the modest pace left me feeling pretty good after burning 2000 calories. Came in one minute over the Tour stage win today.
Nutrition: just the bacon, eggs, toast, cookie and orange juice between segments.