Training Log Archive: iansmith

Port Perry loop with Graham. We had great difficulty agreeing on pacing. In fairness, this was Graham's first ride of over 150 km; nevertheless, he religiously relied on heart rate data and refused to get above 140 bpm for the first four or five hours, which resulted in an average speed of about 20 kph. I argued that we should be moving faster, but nothing changed. I led long stretches and tried to push the pace, but once he hit his limit, he would get dropped. With a late departure, this resulted us getting to Port Perry at around 2:30p instead of my estimated 12:30. While it was a cool day, the extra hours in direct sunlight took a heavy toll. We stopped for pizza in Port Perry, then stopped again in Uxbridge for coffee and by Musselman's Lake for water. Over the last 50 km, we pushed the pace far beyond my target, hitting 30 kph for long stretches, resulting in one of the most bizarre pacing profiles I have seen.

Ultimately, I think we had different priorities. Graham saw this as a chance to do a leisurely long ride with stops at interesting attractions, while I wanted to push through the loop as quickly and efficiently as possible, with enjoyable but brief stops at Port Perry, for snacks, and for sunscreen. This is the nature of riding with other people; you have to compromise and adjust. Planning to start at 9a (and starting at 10a) was also a compromise, whereas I would have started at 4a if I was on my own.

While riding with people can be satisfying, I do not think I will do rides longer than about 120 km with other people in the future. There simply are too many tradeoffs with too little reward. I was gone for 11 hours (850a to 750p), whereas on my longer solo ride on June 19 (on which I suffered from not enough water), I took 9:10. In the Ontario rolling hills, the average speed during moving time should be at least 25 kph for me, and time spent not moving should be minimized.

Port Perry was charming, and the route was satisfying. I added some distance to the track from a section near Musselman's during which I forgot to start my watch and the bit at the end, when my watch died.

G Ross Lord Park loop with Petr, Conny, and Katie.

Two, two sets of core ah ah ah ah ah.

One set of core.