A Busy Week - #Agg100, #YorkCycleworks Elite Road Race, Last Wednesday evening Summer CX race

This is a long blog today, apologies if you fall asleep along the way.

 The last week of a busy few weeks of racing, training and recovering but what a way to finish!

Volunteering at an Elite Road Race

Sunday saw me giving back some time to a sport that gives me great pleasure.  As with all good things in life cycling is organised and run by a few people for lots of participants.  I am guilty of not volunteering enough to help behind the scenes so as the opportunity came up with my girls away for the weekend I was happy to put my name down to help out.  I have done some marshalling before and expected to be donning a bright yellow tabard, perhaps armed with a red flag to point, direct, applaud riders and stop, persuade, explain to members of the public who simply cannot wait for one minute to let 60 riders hurtle past at 40mph.

To my surprise Fraz asked me to drive a support car.  At this level there are 4 or more cars that drive either in front of the race, behind groups or the peloton and at the rear.  The idea is to monitor the race, allowing the race commisaires to have an overall picture and keep the riders safe.  As I had not driven before I was to have the top dog commisaire in my car - now known as comm1.
I was handed a radio, aerial and big magnetic sign for my car roof.  I duly put all the kit on, in and turned the radio on.  After a quick briefing and introductions we were off.

I was positioned behind the main peloton from where comm1 called other cars, neutral service van or medic car to different positions in the race convoy.  The race speed alternated between 10 mph up the climbs and 50mph on the downs through villages and those are the range of speeds I had to drive at.  At certain times I would be asked to move ahead of the peloton to stay with a break away and had to drive past them hand on horn to warn them.

During these races the roads are not actually closed and public can simply drive along as they see fit.  Marshalls do their best to hold cars or other road users in safe positions as the small race convoy go past but sometimes the public exert their rights and continue on regardless.  This race saw a couple of horse riders ignore the pleas of marshals.  I think they may have regretted this as the peloton and cars came hurtling down the hill on the other side of the road.  Although all riders slowed as best they could the horses were not happy and came close to becoming part of the peloton.  The rather pompous riders got the scare of their life as well.

The end of the race with me following

I really enjoyed the day, the riders were truly grateful for the organisation of the race and I feel that I have given a little bit back.

Final Wednesday Evening Race of the Summer CX league

Wednesday saw me driving to Huddersfield for the last evening race this summer.  To be honest I am quite glad, I have found these to be really difficult to perform at my best in as I usually arrive too near the start for a good warm up and start the race in the wrong mind set.  As always I enjoyed the ride, but came away with my worst result this year.  It was a great course that I knew from previous races and I should have done well.  I just made poor tactical choices at key places, but stupidly repeated these mistakes on future laps.  One more race this series, Scarborough on a Saturday, then I can look at my overall position and see if I'm in the money spots.

@aggregate100k gravel race by Kinesis

As I have said before I entered the first edition of this race based in the North Yorkshire Moors. I am taking this opportunity to write about all aspects of the day, I believe this is a way forward for cycling and want to help the organisers who I hope will read this, so sorry about any negative sounding bits.

Firstly this was not a cheap event to enter, in fact it cost in the same league as 3 Peaks and Etape du Dales, both of which contribute much of the takings to charity.  Not so this one, it had better be good.

Furthermore, as the event date closed in the organisers chose to attract more riders by reducing the cost to enter "on the day" to below that of pre-entries.  Hardly seeming fair, why would anyone ever pre-enter again?

So it was with some scepticism that I met up with my fellow mini-team riders on a near perfect morning in a field with a luke-warm coffee making man to prepare for the ride.  I was excited.  This is my perfect type of event.  I wanted to ride well.  I wanted it to be good fun, no I needed it to be brilliant fun.

A small field of riders made themselves ready and we were off.  The format of the day was simply brilliant.  100km of riding in total, mostly sportive riding with 4 timed segments (think enduro racing or rally special stages).  Timed segments would take about 20 mins to compete. The times would be added together to give a total time and hence a winner.


Segment 1 was the wildest with best views as well - climb Rudland Rigg to the top and then descend Monkett House.  The climb is not steep, but plenty enough to hurt if you go too hard and the descent claimed several riders with punctures.  Local knowledge informed me well and I kept myself just out of the red going up and knew to trust my tubeless tyres on the way down.  I also knew some good lines that kept me clear of real nasty bits.  As I rode over the timing mat at the end I felt good.  What a rush, just under 20 mins of effort and a big smile.  I had passed my friend and coach Tom on the way down, he had suffered the first of several punctures through the day.


I waited for the rest of the guys to reassemble and off we went to climb Blakey Bank, a climb I had never cleared before.  Today was different, cleared easily seated all the way.
Some more riding along disused railway to descend over Spaunton Moor and then into Cropton Forest.


Segment 2 was making use of forest roads, gravelly,hardpack and dry these were fast to ride but the uphill nature of the segment made it hard going.  I worked as hard as I could and was pleased to cross the final timing mats with a loud beep.  Food stop was there!  Really well stocked, whisky for those mad enough. A welcome rest and sharing of experiences so far with other riders.  And guess what, I was faster than coach Tom again as he had punctured again.

On we went at a leisurely pace to find segment 3.  After some disorientating signage we finally got to the start and off we went again.  I absolutely buried myself in this one, running through boggy sections and driving hard on the good roads.  A fully stood up sprint finish took me over the timing mats.
But wait.
Something missing here.
No noise.
I jumped on the mat, still no noise.
Nobody else had heard a noise either.
A man turns up, looks at the box of tricks and turns it on. Not happy. 
Tom was even less happy as he had really beasted this segment.

On we go again, we eventually get to where I believe segment 4 will be, but no start mats?  A lone marshal there informs us that this segment has been removed (never put in).  We take the path and are glad it is not a timed segment as it had very little to do with riding and more to do with carrying/pushing.

We complete the ride and semi collapse in the field.  100km is not far, but 100km off-road is pretty far as you use different muscles to absorb shocks as you plummet over the stones.







FEED ME NOW!
Hoping that some post event food is included in my entry fee I go and see the food man.  It is not included....... and whilst good food, not cheap either.












I have put some thought into my overall opinions of the day:  

• Yes it was expensive to enter, some food thrown in at the start/end would have helped.
• The concept for the day was brilliant and in my opinion one way forward for gravel racing in the UK.
• Expensive, important equipment that the day is based upon should be looked after and monitored by humans all day.
• Signage in forests is really important, a bit like proof reading have somebody who does not know the route follow the signs as they are put out.
• The route was great.
• The smiles I had were brill.
• Overall I really enjoyed the day and will look for similar events in the future.

I really wish Emma and Kinesis all the best with this format and event, I do accept first time glitches and hope to see it again, but better.  Thanks for a great day.

Have I said how much fun the riding was?

Oh, and I placed 6th overall - WHOOP WHOOP!

Of I go to search out some bigger gravel tyres...........

A big ride in the Dales, planning and leading a group ride

Last weekend saw me leading group of riders from Selby Cycling Club around 124km of Dales roads.  We took in some of the remotest and most beautiful areas of the area along with over 2000m of famous climbs and descents. 
Such a venture is not without challenge when alone or a pair, but what about when you invite a group along?
I have planned and led several of these rides and this is what I have found out.

Planning a Route

Buttertubs Pass

I always start my ride planning with a few key highlights - good climbs, cracking descents, fabulous views etc.  I use personal experience of rides in the area and books such as Simon Warren's excellent series of "Climbs" books to help.  Then I sit with Ridewithgps.com and plan the route as best I can.  It is usually now that I start to consider the best start/finish point if it is a drive and ride day.  I will endeavour to avoid major roads as much as possible.  The route length and climbing severity will evolve with the planning.  The ride needs a focus.  This latest ride was focussed on my favourite descents in the area and I chose 4 brilliant extended descents that always make me smile.  I just had to join them up.  I wanted to descend fro Birkdale Common to Nateby, from Tan Hill to Keld, Buttertubs heading north and down Whipperdale Bank to Leyburn.

The café stop is really important.  It needs to be between 1/2 and 2/3 way through the route and ideally a good few km from the next hill as you do not want anybody to be seeing their lunch again on a 15% gradient.  I always look for quality, it is after all a highlight of the day.  For this ride I did some extensive searching online and came up with a suitable pub half way around called the Moorcock Inn.

Timing the Route

Whatever time you think the group will accomplish the ride in, add 20% for first 5 riders, then 10% for each extra 5 riders and that will be nearer the truth.  This extra time is generated by waiting to regroup, waiting for food in the café, mechanical problems and general faffing that occurs with groups.  It is always better to over estimate the time for the ride as this keeps fellow riders in the good graces of their families at home.

Announcing the Ride

Different groups will have different vehicle to announce such rides, SCC use Facebook pretty effectively.  I will post an invitation on the Facebook page some 4-5 weeks ahead stating date, length, climbing, area and a link to the planned route so people can make an informed decision about joining the ride.  I will also be clear about the required speeds and abilities that I will expect from participants.  I try to be as fair as possible to all, I do not want riders to be too different in abilities as this is no fun for faster or slower riders.

Ride Rules

When I announce the ride I will always state the ride rules.  These will be repeated in posts nearer the date of the ride.  My rules are simple and, I think, there for clear reasons:
The group climb and descend at their own pace.  The group will regroup at the top and bottom of every hill.
The group try to stay together along valleys riding at an appropriate pace for all.
Safety and enjoyment are paramount, no rider will put others or themselves at unnecessary risk (eg descending on cross bar) as we will probably be out of phone coverage.

Changing the Rules as you go along

Sometimes it becomes clear that the ride rules need to be adjusted.  In the case of my last ride it was clear that stronger riders needed to be sent down the road to ensure their enjoyment whilst other riders needed to be allowed to set their own pace, once again to ensure their enjoyment.  A meet point was set (lunch café) and the break allowed.  Over lunch, adjustments were made to the route for all and suitable decisions were made for the remainder of the day.  These situations are not uncommon, especially when riding with riders for the first time.

Group Ride Mind-set

If you are riding in a group over challenging terrain such as this you have to change your mind-set.  You may be used to riding at a set speed, looking good in 2 nice lines all nicely spaced wheel to wheel.  This is going out of the window as soon as you get to hills.  The bunch explodes as each claw their way up the slope.  Descending is spaced for safety reasons as confident/competent riders exceed 35mph easily.  All riders need to exhibit more tolerance of other riders, smile when waiting again and be willing to spend more time than is usual chatting whilst stood still.  Enjoy the view and encourage others in the group.
As ride leader I will happily ride at the front, middle or back of the group.  On this ride I was the one who waited for others and tried to ensure that all were enjoying their day.

Safety briefings

At certain points in the ride I impart whatever safety knowledge I know to all participants.  On this ride this included a ford to cross, some steep hairpin bends on a descent and in one case I rode ahead to stop and flag a particularly nasty bend coming off Buttertubs which has claimed lives in the past.  It is of course down to individuals to assess personal risk, but it is my responsibility to warn of every known danger to inform personal decisions.

Another Successful Day

The ride was a success.  We had one fall and broken bike which meant one retirement and a volunteer to assist with transport.  I am very grateful to this volunteer as I could not really leave the ride as leader.  We only went off course once and I seamlessly took us back on course.  Lunch was acceptable, though not up my usual standards and the weather played nice. 

Where shall I go next?

The Evolution of MY Gravel Racer for @aggregate100k

Section of Aggregate 100 Route above Rosedale

Following the bitterness I felt after my repeated failed entry into #3peakscxrace (did you know that I have been refused entry two consecutive years now?) I have entered a local gravel race.  Well gravel race in the UK sense of this kind of event.  #Aggregate100 is run by Kinesis Bikes and will involve (surprisingly) 100km of riding, mostly off road, across the North Yorkshire Moors and through forests therein.  It is not going to be to the same scale as Dirty Kanza 200 or others of such grand scale in USA as we are clearly a smaller place with far fewer unmade roads.

Dirty Kanza 200 Gravel Race

The biggest difference though is that most of the event is run as a sportive and the race part is over 4 timed sections.  I guess this is because of our strict laws on racing bikes on public byways that we have in this country.

My take on a Gravel Bike

I have gone for the simplest option with regard a gravel bike.  I have just taken what I have and made it work.

So I start with a Kinesis Pro6 aluminium cx frame - disc brake only, and as seen in the pictures utilising my own weight saving paint job in key areas.  This frame doubles as my winter bike when mudguards and road wheels are added.

Add to this tubeless clincher wheels.  In my case 29er Stans mtb rims built up by Hope, running Vittoria xg pro tubeless tyres.  A combination that I have used on previous 3 Peaks and Scotten 100 rides.

Drivetrain is 10 speed Sram Rival, 44/34 chainrings with 12-32 cassette give plenty range of gears (Too big a range, but fickle UK weather could dictate the whole ride in small chainring or whole ride in large chainring)

Brakes are Avid BB7 cable pull with added "chicken" levers on the bars.

Bar tape is Zipp Service Course CX - works really well in wet and mud and is bit thicker than usual.

Pedals are Time mtb pedals as normal for cx.

Special touches to make it all work better as a gravel bike

From my experience the two most frustrating aspects of off-road riding on a bike like this are forearm/hand comfort and keeping bottles on the bike.

Arm/hand comfort is best addressed using a variety of positions.  When cx racing I stay continuously on the hoods.  For gravel riding I will ride on hoods for climbing and along fast flat sections.  Descents can be taken on tops, hoods or in drops.  If I am carrying speed I will use the drops as this gives the best braking and also the most bump absorption before the hands.

A bit of grip tape on the drop brake levers ensures my fingers do not loose connection whilst bouncing over rocks on the hoods with wet, muddy hands and levers. 
In the past I have used gel pads on the bars, this bar tape is thick enough ridden with padded gloves and varying hand position.

Bottle cages are "reinforced" with strips of inner tube tied between the two halves and more grip tape stuck on the inside to hold those bottles in.

The addition of second set of brake levers gives another possible safe hand position whilst riding.

Tell us about Tyre Pressure

All cx riders love to talk about tyre pressure, preferably whilst squeezing front tyres with knowledgeable nods or frowns.  It is an entirely personal thing, I ride much lower than many of my fellow riders (perhaps due to mtb heritage rather than road) but it works for me.

During my recent test recce of parts of the course I rode with 40psi front and rear, about 15psi more than I would use cx racing these wheels and tyres.  This gave enough solidity for road riding and good grip over gravel.  I might try a little more as some of the bangs I managed to achieve smacking the rims on rocks were a little alarming.  There is a reason that mtb tyre have such large volumes.

How does it feel?

I love riding off-road.  The course is simply old school mountain biking - from a time before Dalby Forest had a bike park when 1.5inch tyres and steel rigid forks ruled.  It can be ridden fast on this bike, stronger riders could ride it even faster.  I have found this setup to be fast up, fast along and as fast as I dare down.

Ride light

Is a phrase that I was told by a good friend many years ago when I rode mtb and he came out on a cx bike.  He managed to keep up with us over rough ground (who am I kidding - he was loads faster) and did not puncture. 

I asked him how?
He replied that he simply rode light.  (Down towards Sheep Wash Mr. Streeton)

I have tried to do this ever since.  My understanding is to encourage the bike to float over rough sections.  Not a full on bunny hop, just ensure that your feet are not pushing down on the pedals and arms are absorbing as much as possible.  Modern mtbs encourage riders to hit most obstacles as forks and big tyres do the work for you.  Each crash from a wheel hitting a rock full on is a potential disaster, yet speed is still your friend.  At speed a 1m lift of the bike becomes a 2m lift and your ride can become nearly silent as you glide over the terrain.

I do suffer with aching legs though.  All that standing whilst barrelling down through rock gardens takes a real strain on the lower legs no longer used to such abuse.  I have worked hard to protect my hands, little I can do for my legs.

I am looking forward to this new event.  It is undoubtedly part of the future of cycling in this country, how it can be made more competitive for longer distances without going to Kielder or Scotland is the question.

As always, thank you for reading and happy cycling

Sunset over Farndale

Race, Recover, Race again. #3peakscxrace update and Reasons to Love your LBS

Cyclocross

A busy few weeks (strangely) for a cyclocross racer.  Cyclocross, being a winter sport, leaves the summer for other forms of riding.  In Yorkshire we have a summer cx league and smaller local series that squeeze in during spring and autumn as well so that means it is possible to race pretty much all year round.  In recent week I have raced at Nunroyd Park, Leeds and Pateley Bridge, squeezing some quality hard sessions and recovery in between.

Nunroyd Park is another fast course, I averaged over 22kmh which is fast for me (winter speeds can be down to 16kmh).  It was a good race,  I showed good power on a long drag climb and kept good speed although I kept fluffing up a few off camber corners.  I must commit more and be more aggressive with the front tyre.  My finish position of 65 was good in the field of 130, 15th in my age group.

Pateley Bridge was much more to my liking.  A more technical course with lots of off camber tight turns followed by short, sharp steep climbs.  A bit of sand and an even bigger wheel of doom made it a fun (in my eyes) course. 
A little moisture in the ground and in the air meant I opted for mud tyres which gave me plenty of confidence for the corners.  A good choice! 
The nature of the course brought the average speed down (I averaged just over 17kmh) which also played to my strengths.  Don't get excited reading this, I did not win but came in 52nd, 12th in my age group which with an influx of strong "Sunday only" racers was really pleasing.

Recovery between these really hard efforts is really important.  I have worked with coach Tom to try to coordinate three elements:  "Do nothing" rest, active recovery exercise and nutrition.  It seems that we are getting the combination somewhere near effective and I can bounce back from hard efforts much quicker.  If I could make myself behave more during active recovery and ignore Strava bleeping at me on my Garmin I could recover even quicker!

#3peakscxrace

As I mentioned in an earlier post I have been unsuccessful in my entry to #3peakscxrace for the second year running.  I have been in email contact with the event organiser who has explained the selection procedure.  I hope that he does not mind me reproducing it in part below for all readers to understand:

  We check experience from a safety perspective.  There were very few entries removed this way, mainly those who left the experience box blank.

2.       Guaranteed entries are put through.  This includes marshals from the previous year and the top 10 riders from each category.

3.       Rider quotas are established to ensure the field is balanced.  These quota’s are balanced against the number of entries in each category (i.e. if 40% of the registered entry is V40, then 40% of the paces are allocated to V40).

4.       The entry list is then subject to a random sort using Microsoft excel – the resulting sheet forms the list from which entries and reserve list are drawn.

 

The popularity of the race is the problem – particularly since 2012 when numbers surpassed 650 for the first time.  The landowner for P-Y-G allows an entry of 650 which means that one third of applicants are unsuccessful.  This year, there are so many well qualified entries who have a place, such as yourself, and it is also disappointing for us to see these turned away.  An alternative approach would be for us to just select riders we liked from the list although they would clearly be unfair! 

 

As a mathematician I cannot see any aspect of this procedure that is anything other than very fair and I have to live with the disappointment, hoping to get in off the reserve list.  Next year.........

 

I Love my LBS

As you will know, my LBS is York Cycleworks.  There are nearer bike shops to my home, but this is the one for me.  In this time of internet shopping and price matching I would like to share my reasons and my own rules with regard to purchasing bike related stuff.

#yorkcycleworks will always help me out.  If I need a cup of tea during a ride, mechanical assistance or advice they will always provide it.  As an example, I dropped in the other week and top lad Liam fixed my poorly maintained rear road wheel.  It needed some work after 6 years of none.
He could have sold me new freehubs and all sorts, but no.  He stripped it, replaced only what needed replacing (bearings), cleaned it and gave it back nicely greased and as new.  All at a brilliant fair price.
As a clever bunch of chaps and chapesses #yorkcycleworks are fully aware of the internet and the low prices that can be found.  My personal rules are these: 

• I will never ask my LBS to match a ludicrously low price, it is unfair to expect them to sell at a loss.
• I do use internet providers for some stuff just because the price is right and I have the ability to maintain/build my own bike at home.
• Items that may go wrong (Garmin, wheels) I will buy from my LBS as it would be unfair of me to ask for support with an item bought elsewhere.
• If I find a good price I will ask about price matching, if my LBS get close I will go LBS.
• I love the fact that they will help me if I drop in, but fully understand that if they are busy I have to wait and drink tea.
• I will buy them biscuits/cake/beer in gratitude for their help.
• I will always race in their colours (even though I am not very good) because their colours are ace.

I will always be an advocate for #yorkcycleworks as we have built our relationship over nearly 20 years.  I would not enjoy my cycling as much without them.

 

My love is undiminshed, so why does #3peakscxrace not return my love?

June 1st saw me once again make my annual web based pilgrimage to the 3 Peaks Cyclocross Entry pages. 
I duly checked all my details and filled in as truthfully as I could details of my past performances, current relevant competitions and expected finish time.

I then sent this off and waited patiently, feeling fairly confident that this year I would get the opportunity to spend a day with my love as last year she had refused to meet me.



Off went my form to the #3peakscxrace dating agency who would put my profile to the panel for possible compatibility potential.  Such a worthwhile partner does of course have many suitors, some searching for long term relationships and some looking for a quick fling to see what the fuss is about.  I felt that I had met often enough on the last Saturday of September  to have some kind of "understanding" between us, I knew that we were not exclusive, but come on, I had stayed with her in the rain and wind of 2012 which had reduced her number of admirers that day considerably.

So I waited for a reply, checking each hour for the email.

Finally it has arrived.

 

 

Oh, but how she teases, am I just a mere muse to her? 

 

My confidence was still high, surely she would return my love and devotion.  I had specific training workouts ready to schedule into my ongoing training plan.  These must impress her.

 

 

Then I received the second email.  I open it and read with disbelief.

 

I read it again and again and again.  What does this mean? 

 

 

Why does she reject me so?

 

Am I not manly enough?

 

Do I not show her respect?

 

Should I have included a photoshopped image of myself in my profile and exaggerated my achievements?  Perhaps if I said that I would finish in 2hrs 30?

 

 

I know that this is a race and the best entrants must be on the start line.  It is not a sportive.  All entrants are expected to be there to hurt themselves in order to finish as quickly as they can.  I get it.  I enjoy that aspect.  I am competitive.  I do not finish at the back, in fact I finish nearer the front than the back.  So I do not understand what I have done wrong.

 

 

Rejected two years running?  My fragile riding ego is shattered, I see no fun anymore in riding intervals.  No fun in planning customisations to bike set-up.

 

 

 

I wish I could simply move onto a new infatuation, friends of mine who hold similar feelings for London Marathon simply move onto Paris or Edinburgh or many other eligible marathons, but there is only one #3peakscxrace and she does not seem to love me. 

 

 

 

 

I know that #3peakscxrace is not gender specific, I am simply happier applying a sexual orientation for the sake of this piece of writing.

Two Races in 3 Days and Will Strava ruin my life?

A double whammy of ramblings this time around.

Race Reports

First up is my continued efforts in the Yorkshire Summer CX league.  Sunday and Wednesday saw races at York and Killinghall, Harrogate.  The weather at both was fine, dry and not windy either.  Not my ideal conditions as this makes for fast paced racing with few technical challenges.

York, being my local race organised by York Cycleworks is very important to me.  It is the flattest, most featureless course you could dream up for cx racing but the twisty, turny nature of the design and lack of recovery sections makes it probably the hardest course in the series as you are at full gas 100% of the time. The circle of doom is huge and seems to take forever to go in and come back out again.
I raced hard with a fairly good start and aggressive first lap to hold my position.  As the race progressed I was quite literally seeing stars as the effort ramped up and I tried to maintain speed. 
The end came and I replaced the lung that seemed to have fallen out earlier in the race.  My vision returned and I handed in my timing chip from my leg which was, surprisingly, still attached.
I had finished well (for me) in the standings, 6th in my age group.




Wednesday came around far too fast for my aching legs.  A couple gentle days between had not cleared the muscles of all the pain incurred Sunday. 
Oh well, we can but try. 
This was an evening race which of course means some juggling with kids, Annabel, traffic etc.  As always the family helped as best they could and I got to the course with 30 mins to sign in and warm up.  Unfortunately the junior race had started so I could not ride the full course but had "the back half" to warm up on.
This course is one of my favourites.  It has elevation change, fast bits, tricky bits, trees and another massive circle of doom to ride in and get lost for a while.
At the start I was feeling pretty good and as the whistle went I surged forward.  Again a great start, perhaps too aggressive in some early corners as I locked the rear wheel a few times and had to use other rider to "rest upon" going round.  All good fun and perfectly legal.
I was ahead in my own private battle with friends Sven and Steve.  Couple laps in and Steve seemed some way off but Sven was right behind and soon passed me.  Couple more laps and Steve also went by and on to catch Sven and win our little battle.  Things were not going great for me.
Another good friend Sam came past me on a corner and my rear wheel slid a bit much, losing air as it burped.  I had to finish the race with a half inflated tyre.  I managed to keep speed on the straight but corners had to be taken a little more gingerly so as not to cause more problems.  A few more riders cruised by on the many corners.
This race saw me finish 14th in my age group which I was grateful for.

Will Strava ruin my life?

Strava is a magical thing that lets you know how fast you were on segments of road, trail, race course etc.  It works via gps and a magic website.
I am still fairly new to Strava and the gloss has yet to fade a little.  I enjoy looking at my segment results and have some favourite local segments.
My problem is that I find it hard to ignore them.  As I ride along on my gentle recovery ride my computer suddenly shouts at me the next segment challenge.  As the distance countdown continues to the start of the segment I am also confronted with the name of a friend who is a bit quicker than me on that segment, personalising the challenge even more.
This gives me about 30 secs to try to ignore the challenge and continue riding at my gentle pace. 

Can I do this? 

Can I 'eck!

Before I know what is happening I am "giving it a go, nice and gently" which of course becomes "full gas, go, go, go"

Bang goes my recovery. 

I know I should ignore it. 

I know it is not helpful to good training. 

I know, I know, I know.

Turn it off you fool.

Nutrition Timing

 

OK, so I see myself as quite an intelligent person, well read in stuff that I am interested in.  It is clear that I am interested in performance on a bike (or running) so that is what I read about - a lot!

But a simple conversation with coach Tom this week turned a stone revealing information that has led to an immediate improvement in training.

 

A bit of background:  I have been struggling with turbo sessions in a big way, really struggling and feeling pretty low about these sessions.  Weak, much lower output numbers than targeted, not enjoying them at all.  In contrast my "big rides" outside have been going really well.  Why is there such a discrepancy?

My nutrition is pretty good.  I look closely at what I eat and my wheat free diet means that I monitor things more closely than most and do not eat many processed grains (pasta/bread).  I know roughly how many calories I consume each day and I know details at the macronutrient level as well (amount of carbs, protein etc.).  I try to plan my eating to ensure that I get the right amount of what I need to perform.

Turning the stone:

Coach Tom said "I know you eat well but have you looked at nutrition timing?", "I think so" I replied.  "Grazing is good" said Tom.  I thought "I do graze - breakfast, snack mid morning, lunch, snack afternoon, tea, supper".  BUT then Tom asked "Do you eat before your turbo session if you are doing it at 4?". 


He carried on "There is too long a gap between lunch and your hard turbo session, eat a banana about an hour before."


On came the light bulb!




So this week I have eaten a banana about an hour before the hard turbo sessions and bingo - much better performance in outputs, alertness, confidence.

Lesson: 

Plan nutrition for all training sessions, you need to be fuelled correctly for an hour at high(est) intensity just in the same way as 3 hours tempo on the road.

When things are not working well, talk to somebody who knows stuff.  A conversation is actually better than an email as well as it can drift around the issue.

Thanks Tom, another gain in my training.