Training Log Archive: Bash

Happy Mother's Day!
Around our place, it was also "Clean up all your muddy gear" Day.

Storm the Trent - Trek Elite
Warsaw, ON

Great to be back at Storm again! 'Bent and I had a yummy pre-race dinner at the Ashburnham Ale House in Peterborough then visited Wild Rock Outfitters, the excellent local outdoor store where Wokitoki was shopping too. Back at the motel, we chatted with Arthurd, Olga, Browner, Mr. & Mrs. Gally, and Patty.



We'd planned to come early to visit the Canadian Canoe Museum but 'Bent went to the doctor instead to confirm that his eardrum is perforated - arggh. He really wanted to race and got permission as long as he used a silicone ear plug to keep water out. Unfortunately, he woke up this morning with chills, mild vertigo and upset stomach so we weren't sure how far he would get.

We saw many familiar, friendly faces around registration and at the bike/boat drops before taking a bus to Warsaw Caves Conservation area. Joe was one of several Americans visiting from blue states and I wondered whether they were all planning to go back. ;)

One member of each team started with a 1.75 km orienteering scramble to find three poker chips, then we headed off on a 10 km trek to find 6 CPs. I was racing solo so I got to do it all. :)

It had rained overnight and the rocks were slippery so I was glad to be wearing Salomon XA Pros instead of the AR bike shoes I wore last year. It meant I had to carry them around for the rest of the day in my backpack even though I never wore them again but that will just toughen me up. :)

Leaving CP24, I met 'Bent coming back to find it with several other racers. "Mistakes were made," he said.

They were. Here's my track in this area:



And this - with his permission - is his.



I felt slow during this run; lots of bikes were gone when I got to CP1. I ran into Arthurd near the end with one CP to go.

The next section was the first big test of my new bike, which had only been ridden on dry, familiar trails so far. I was tentative, unsure of what the bike would do in deep puddles, goopy mud or clusters of slimy rocks. A tire had gone flat this morning when I tried to pump it. The wheels have short valves and can be finicky about getting air in. So I wondered if it would be rideable when I got to the CP. It was.

I rode on paved and gravel roads toward CP2 and passed a few people while beginning to appreciate the benefits of 29ers. Rain started. The morning forecast had improved so I'd brought a lightweight windproof jacket rather than a Goretex raincoat. I'd also worn a long-sleeved tech shirt instead of a lightweight thermal shirt. Big mistake. Today's layers would have been fine for running in light rain but riding in the wind, I started to cool off. I put on the jacket at CP2.



We hit our first ATV trail with long, deep mud puddles that my bike ploughed through. It was my first time riding the Pivot on wet roots, rocks and mud and it handled really well. What a relief! I passed Olga on this stretch then we rode a little more gravel to get to a major paved road. I was chilly and debated stopping to change but I just wanted to get that 6 km over with and see if it would be warmer in the forest.

It wasn't. Shortly after CP3, I pulled off the trail to get a dry polypro top under my wet top layers and a Buff under my helmet. My dexterity was poor and the GPS track shows me stopped for 7 minutes (!!) including a snack and quick washroom break. About 8 people rode past. Next time I should put on the polypro top earlier and bring a real raincoat unless the forecast is bombproof.

This was near the start of a 10 km ATV trail ride that threw a little bit of everything at us in today's wet conditions. Over the first few kms, my confidence in the bike grew and I started having tons of fun. I love my bike! It's perfect for races like this.

We rode over to CP4 where we dropped our bikes to run around a tract of the Otonabee Region Agreement Forest and pick up a few more CPs. As I went in, 'Bent was finishing up looking reasonably healthy.

We rode another section of ATV trail on our way back. The CP was at the beginning of a 15 m long swamp wade. I got up to chest deep as I carried my bike and tried not to slip. After emerging from the water, we all stopped to pull grass and other vegetation from our gears, derailleurs and brakes. My bike had definitely lost its innocence.

We headed to the bike/paddle TA. It felt great to be in a fast kayak for the first time in 7 or 8 months and I couldn't stop smiling during almost 10 km on the beautiful Indian River. On the return portion of the out-and-back, the flow of racers coming toward me stopped but I knew there were friends I should have seen. Then I remembered the 4:30 p.m. cut-off to start paddling - uh oh.



It was great to see 'Bent and the Gally family as I took my boat out of the water, then I ran to the finish line inside the arena. (What a great idea!)





The Gallys crushed it, finishing as the top team and 3rd overall, I think. Wokitoki won overall.



'Bent was 2nd male masters and I was the top female solo, followed by Arthurd and Olga. Several other friends had great races and there were excellent prizes. I came home with a nice Storm shoe bag full of cider.





Thanks as always to Storm, Browner and the terrific team of race staff and volunteers!

Post-race... :)

For my last real ride before Storm the Trent, I went to Albion Hills to try familiar single track and see how the Pivot responded in different situations. Conditions were fantastic and it went well. Some things were easier on the 29er and nothing seemed harder, other than the need to be more attentive on corners and lean into them. I worry about clipping my wider handlebars on trees but so far, so good. It's becoming fun! I'm still uncertain about how the bike will behave when things are wet and muddy but I'll know a lot more about that after Saturday.

On one stretch of single track, I saw a very fit-looking man dressed in athletic clothing walking on the trail ahead. I wondered what had happened to his bike. It was Biker Rob cleaning up the trails! I took a long break to chat. Great to catch up. :)

When I got home, I did some final pre-race tests: I attached a map board and switched to my AR biking shoes. I rode around our yard and declared the Pivot officially ready to try its first race. I'd better get some photos first while it's still pretty.

We all need sources of motivation for our training. Today I was inspired to return to the Hockley Valley because the forest was so beautiful on Sunday.



Just kidding. I went back because I'd paid for a box of chocolate shortbread cookies and forgotten it on the counter of the Hockley General Store.

It was a good excuse to plan a short hill training session from the 5th Line parking lot south of Hockley Road. I recorded three tracks of different hill runs to/from the car so I can use this info later if I'm trying to climb a certain number of meters in a session. This first track is from the parking lot up the Hemlock Ridge Side Trail to the main Bruce Trail and east into the old ski club. I turned around at 2 km since the biggest climb was done - also because an approaching dog was sounding angry.

The forest really was spectacular in its spring finery!

Second hill - 5th line parking lot to Sally's Pinnacle via Hockley Heights Side Trail, then west on main Bruce Trail to 5th Line, then south on 5th Line to the "Share Road" sign at the top of the hill. Then back down.

Up and down Sally's Pinnacle from the 5th line parking lot. Short but steep.

I took my bike out for a short ride to make sure everything is fresh in my mind when I take it for its mini tune-up tomorrow. Also, I wanted to return to the first section of single track I did yesterday that felt so difficult then. I was hoping it would feel easier now that I'd worked on my 29er skills.

The tight turns and uphill banked curves were fine. I rode them without any problem - and that's not always true on my 26er. But once again I was defeated by the short, steep climb with off-angle roots and a bend at the top between trees. I didn't like to leave it that way so I went back down and tried again. And again. Etc. I think it was the 9th time that I finally got up the stupid thing and I don't think it will be any easier the next time.

So that's disappointing; I would usually get up that hill the first time on my 26er. There were two things happening: (1) I needed more speed and momentum to get up, and (2) the tires didn't seem to be gripping as well as I'm used to. I'll see if lower pressure helps.

Other than that, it was all good except for the noisy brake.

In case you missed it on Trav's log: a great article about senior running rock stars Ed Whitlock and Earl Fee, and what we can learn from them about running and aging. Earl Fee is a regular at our C3 banquet.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fit...

The local trails are almost entirely dry after all the rain so I finally got out for a real ride on my new bike! The first time I entered some twisty Palgrave single track, the trail spat me back out immediately. I missed the first tight turn, swerved the other way to miss a tree and retreated to the double track. Hmm...

I've been reading about some of the differences in riding 29ers vs. 26ers. Some riders don't notice much change but many of us do. Here are some of the things I'd heard:

- "The 29er is faster when it's rolling." Agreed. It deals well with any problem that can be solved by momentum.

- "Turning the bike involves more leaning and less steering." True, that's what got me in trouble on that first tight turn. It didn't take long to make the adjustment though, and there is still plenty of steering to do.

- "You don't need to spend as much time choosing good lines; you can just ride straight over stuff." I don't plan to give up riding good lines but I had fun today riding over stuff just to see how it went. (Pretty well.)

- "The 29er isn't as good at climbing." Conversely, I'd heard from a female friend that it made climbing much easier for her. By the end of the first hour, I felt the big wheels didn't make me a better climber on rolling Palgrave trails but they didn't make me worse either. I'll be interested to try some bigger hills. I made it up most of the climbs but there were a couple of rooty ones I will need to practise. I think good lines still matter when riding uphill over obstacles with big wheels - maybe less of a problem for stronger riders.

The 1X12 gear range seems fine. I reached for one more gear on the road but when it wasn't there, I just increased my cadence. One advantage of a front derailleur, I now realize, is the ability to drop a lot of gears quickly. I need to anticipate things better on a 1X.

I feel like I'm sitting a lot higher up (and thus have farther to fall) so I got out a measuring tape and learned that my seat is only 1" higher compared to my 26er: 40" vs. 39". That made me feel less nervous but my pedal is about 1.5" farther from the ground, which is why I feel high. When I need to put my foot down in an emergency, it isn't as quick.

I fell once today and it would have been just as bad on a 26er since I tipped over toward the steep downhill side of a trail into a bunch of pointy sticks. Fortunately, instead of skewering me, they caught me in a big nest. My bike landed on top of me and my first thought as I lay there was, "Aack! I'm not supposed to turn the bike upside down because of its hydraulic brakes!" My second thought was, "How am I going to get untangled?"

So... progress. The rear brake is making an awful noise (not caused by the fall) so I tried not to use it too much until I can get it looked at. I think I'll be brave enough to try riding it at Storm the Trent this weekend although the trails are going to be mucky and I don't have good instincts for the tires yet.

Lots of learning today and that's always good!
(Bike computer distance)

Caron's class. Many Achilles-stretching moves - perfect.