Training Log Archive: iansmith

Circumnavigation of Lake Simcoe; a delightful if unremarkable effort. You don't ride 300 km without some suffering. My Garmin died after 8:03 and 207 km, so the remaining time is from my phone and distance is from gmapspedometer. If I had realized I was only 2.3 km from 200 miles, I would have biked a small circuit, if only to satisfy the imperialists.

Plans for such a trip occurred to me as early as 2018, after my department's one-day ride from Newmarket to Geneva Park. This trip required more of a commitment, as there were no public transit options back to Toronto for the middle third of the route (between Barrie and Beaverton). I brought my usual accoutrements - maintenance kit with two tubes, a sandwich, 3.75 L of weak gatorade, one sleeve of shotblox, eight granola/candy bars, and 100g of goldfish. Unusually, I brought a thermal undershirt, a windbreaker for rain, and a buff for cold, though I wasn't wearing any of these when I started.

I was quite cool when I set out at 11p from my apartment - 17 C in Toronto, temperatures down to 12 C in Orillia. I was unenthusiastic when I started as this has been a difficult week, but I resolved to execute my plan. Two hours and 50 km into the trip, my mood had improved from the joy of cycling when it started to rain. Of course I had checked the forecast, but the probability of rain seemed sufficiently small; unfortunately, I was caught in a steady downpour for about 30 minutes. I stopped at 2:25 to put on more clothes, though it was difficult to peel my soaked jersey off my skin.

At this point, I was both wet and cold, and my enthusiasm had dampened. I was also concerned that my rim brakes would struggle on the intermittent hills in the wet, so I resolved to turn around at Barrie (after considering turning on the spot), 90 km in. However, when I reached Barrie, the weather had improved enough (15 C, clear) that I decided to continue. I stopped for my second fueling break before continuing. Ominously, I was shivering during my stop.

I had ridden the first 45% and the last 30% of this route before - on the trip to my department's retreat, and last weekend respectively. Yet, I managed to get lost twice on the way to Orillia - once at 94 km, when I was traveling north instead of northeast, and at 120 km when I was suckered into traveling out onto a peninsula. The first cost 3 km and the second 5 km. I finally made it to Orillia at 5:25 and 139 km, with about 6:00 real time elapsed. I stopped for another fuel break and shivered a bit more despite putting on my jacket.

The 70 km between Orillia and Beaverton were new terrain, and I enjoyed the largely empty vista as the sun came up. Curiously, even though I wasn't bonking, I started feeling very sleepy. I imagine this was a consequence of being rained on and cold so early in the trip. I took a 15 minute break in Kirkfield at 180 km to finish my sandwich and fail at recharging my Garmin. This stretch was the low point of the trip.

I made another small navigational error in Beaverton, though I did thus get to see the heart of the quaint village. After another 12 km, I reached my route from last weekend, and I stopped at a convenience store for a coke, a bag of chips, and sunscreen application. I trucked along for another 55 km, where I stopped in the Goodwood community centre parking lot to fuel, drink my other coke, and take a 10 minute nap. I felt invigorated when I rose again, and resolved to press on at my best sustainable rate. I actually felt quite good on the last 50 km; I ate the shot blox and I only ran out of water in the last 10 km.

Obviously my legs are a bit tired now. The seat was comfortable enough for the duration, and I used my aerobars much more on this journey than on previous ones - especially on flats or when I traveled west into the headwind. My outer right glute started to ache. The total elapsed time was almost exactly 15 hours for a disappointing amortized speed of 21.3 kph. Surprisingly, the 3.75 L of water lasted the whole trip, supplemented only by two cokes; I suspect being cold and wet early on reduced my need for fluids. I have more ambitious plans, but this trip seems to show that I am not yet ready. Whether that keeps me from attempting them remains to be seen.


Blue skies, smiling at me

The southern fringes of the Canadian shield in the predawn light.

Barrie at night.

C • Wow! 8

It has not been a good week, but I decided to go out for an easy ride to clear the mind and awaken the legs.

Trip to Chipotle. Red lights still suck. Total elapsed time to 200 km was 8:20 (4:16 to 12:36) and 7:31 of bike time.

For my third 200+ km effort, I decided to reconnoiter the sector northeast of Toronto near Lake Simcoe. I did my usual set up - backpack with 200g of goldfish, 5 assorted bars, 1 sleeve of shot blox, 3.75L of weak gatorade, and my frame bag with the standard set of tools and spares. Having all that stuff live in my frame bag simplifies logistics, as basically the only things in my backpack are food and water.

I planned to ride this aggressively, and I specifically wanted to finish 200 km in less than 8 hours total elapsed time. The Niagara trip - on which I blew up a bit during the headwind - took about 16 hours for 300. I modified my usual rest schedule by taking breaks roughly every 50 km; at each break, I would eat a bar plus goldfish and load a second bar into my pocket, so that over the 50 km (1:45 - 1:50), I would take in about 500 calories plus gatorade. This worked ok, and I made it to 100 km in 3:38 at a 27.5 kph average speed. I stopped longer at 100 km to put on sunscreen, somewhat ineffectually; total stoppage including that point was about 22 minutes. The dawn was misty, shrouding the hills and forests with ethereal clouds. It was magnificent, and reminded me of what I think Ireland looks like.

I biked along the lake for a bit; Lake Dr was particularly delightful. Just as I stopped at 125 km for a quick bite and photo, I encountered a group of about 20 time trialers, some of whom had bikes that looked more expensive than my car. As they were milling about, I made sure to sneak through them to get on the road ahead of them and avoid the inevitable traffic jam. Warden Road was all about staying in the saddle as much as possible. The sun was up, the temperature was rising, and I finished my 3L bladder at about 150 km. I had planned to reward myself at 150 km with a 5 minute stop at a convenience store, but there were no stores on Warden. I could easily had moved over one road to find one, but I wanted to see how long I could keep pushing. At 170 km, I noticed that I was on my little tempo course from earlier this week which was pleasantly familiar.

I ran out of all fluids at about 175 km. Returning on the pleasant Rodrick and Pharmacy, I seemed to hit all the red lights in Toronto. As 8 hours started to slip away, I broke down and decided to stop at 191 km to get a drink. The remaining 15 km to Chipotle were a relaxed effort.

Absent any red lights, 8 hours and 27.5 kph average was very attainable. I may need to add another bottle cage; 3.75L can only take me 150-175 km or so, and refilling is somewhat harder in the COVID era. The sector northeast of Toronto near Simcoe is unsurprisingly similar to the northwest quadrant near Barrie; lots of small rolling hills, acceptable roads, and minimal early morning traffic. I used my aerobars occasionally, but not for more than a few minutes at a time - I am much more wobbly than on the hoods. I am hopeful that traveling 100 km every 4h will be a sustainable pace; it raises the exciting possibility of traveling 500+ km in a single day.