This is the last pre-race blog. I'm starting to pack, distributing cool gifts to my crew (shirts and CREDIT CARDS)and doing easy rides after work while avoiding massive thunderstorms.
I leave Bozeman on June 3rd, my birthday, to arrive in Oceanside by Friday. Tonight we are having a last training run for my crew to implement the changes made since the previous training ride. On Tuesday I'm driving with the bikes, Wednesday the crew is flying down to 1) Oceanside or 2)Albuquerque to pick up the RV. I haven't gained as much weight as I would like before the race. It just makes that much less to haul I guess.
That's it. Now there is just time to fret, fret, fret and then ride, ride, ride.
ChrisM
Friday, May 30, 2008
Monday, May 26, 2008
Moving, not pedalling
I spent a meterologically horrible Memorial Day week-end moving house. I didn't do any riding but I did do a lot of heavy lifting using my quads and my lower back (ouch). I did get some stationary bicycling done early in the week. Mostly this week has not been so much a taper as a plummet. Still, I feel great. My resting pulse has been at 50 all week. Apparently lifting furniture and boxes of books is not a cardiovascular work out.
Now the clothes are back in the drawers, the pictures are hung and long baths have been taken. No more reasons to not get out and do some toner upper rides this week. My new home is only two miles from work. The road is hilly and narrow so if I vary my pace I can go easy or get a brief intense work out. I think at this point easy is the recommended way to go. I'm SO disappointed.
Thirteen days out and I'm healthy, rested and living in the shadow of a growing terror. What else is ultramarathon racing about?
ChrisM
Now the clothes are back in the drawers, the pictures are hung and long baths have been taken. No more reasons to not get out and do some toner upper rides this week. My new home is only two miles from work. The road is hilly and narrow so if I vary my pace I can go easy or get a brief intense work out. I think at this point easy is the recommended way to go. I'm SO disappointed.
Thirteen days out and I'm healthy, rested and living in the shadow of a growing terror. What else is ultramarathon racing about?
ChrisM
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Top of the Hill
This past week-end was the last of the big training rides. Saturday I did 60 miles on a gorgeous day. That route was quite hilly, finishing with a moderate climb that ends at the local ski resort. Moderate in this case means 1500 feet up in about sixteen miles. This was the check ride after the last tune up at my local bike shop. They adjusted derailleurs and changed tires and cables. The new vented seat cover I put on Kelson works fine.
Sunday I did 107 miles in 6 hours, 20 minutes. What's to say? I felt good. The chief benefit of long rides seems to be brutally enforcing the rules to 1. Eat and 2. Drink. Even working on it I was getting dehydrated. The next plan is to put a water bottle in a chest pack of some kind so drinking is easier. Imbibation is definitely my weak spot, aside from legs.
I've decided to leave the Easy Racer Javelin home. The complications of spare parts and travel space were getting to be too much. I love the springy ride...alright, maybe I'll throw it on the roof of the car. But then there are more lights, tires, tubes and, let's face it, a heavier bike. I think it will be an all Seiran race.
This week is a good time to taper because I'm moving into our new house. It's only a couple of miles away, so there will be many small trips and one day with a rented truck. For once the stress of moving is less than the stress of something else--the training.
I'm getting a new helmet too. Who knows what the equipment inspectors inspect?
ChrisM
Sunday I did 107 miles in 6 hours, 20 minutes. What's to say? I felt good. The chief benefit of long rides seems to be brutally enforcing the rules to 1. Eat and 2. Drink. Even working on it I was getting dehydrated. The next plan is to put a water bottle in a chest pack of some kind so drinking is easier. Imbibation is definitely my weak spot, aside from legs.
I've decided to leave the Easy Racer Javelin home. The complications of spare parts and travel space were getting to be too much. I love the springy ride...alright, maybe I'll throw it on the roof of the car. But then there are more lights, tires, tubes and, let's face it, a heavier bike. I think it will be an all Seiran race.
This week is a good time to taper because I'm moving into our new house. It's only a couple of miles away, so there will be many small trips and one day with a rented truck. For once the stress of moving is less than the stress of something else--the training.
I'm getting a new helmet too. Who knows what the equipment inspectors inspect?
ChrisM
Monday, May 12, 2008
Miles
The snowstorm today, May 12, has interfered with my internet access so I'll see if this posting will go through.
This past Saturday, two days ago, I did 150 miles in nine hours. That seems pretty good until I mention the 15 mph tailwind I had at the end. I did 50 miles in just under two hours. It was the most fun I've had in years. I spent an hour and a half moving between 30-35 miles per hour just steady cruising. Also the road was following the Madison river and was trending downhill the whole time. I admit the downhill and the tailwind but it was still a blast. The only reason I didn't continue to 200 miles was that my crew was ready to go home.
It was my fault. I miscalculated the distance and gave a destination as the endpoint, not a distance. My calculations were 40 miles short (how did that happen?). So when we reached the announced end they were ready to quit. I have spent a lot of time getting these guys together and they finished the day feeling good. So we stopped.
The part of the day that didn't have the tailwind was doing a loop west from West Yellowstone, over the continental divide twice and back. I did that 65 miles by myself, then met my crew back in West Yellowstone where I repeated the first half of the morning ride, over the passes again. The fastest speed of the day was just before the end, coming into Norris, MT. There is a considerable hill there. As I came down the descent I hit 45 mph, which was when I started touching my brakes. The former tailwind was rather squirrelly in the canyon and I wanted to remain upright.
The West Yellowstone ride was organized by the local Chamber of Commerce and had bikes of all sorts, and me on a recumbent. This was the first time I have actually ridden the same route at the same time as upright bikes and all the predictiions were true. I was moderately slower going uphill and just smoked them all going down. The last rider I past was a real natural athlete. At over 30 mph he could lean to the right, press a nostril and shoot snot well out into the grass. After I passed him I never saw him again but he has set a standard for personal hygiene I will never equal.
This week is the peak week, then start tapering next week. At least the race dreams have stopped for now. Last night I dreamed I was watching home movies with Pete Townsend and the Who. Did he have braces in real life?
This past Saturday, two days ago, I did 150 miles in nine hours. That seems pretty good until I mention the 15 mph tailwind I had at the end. I did 50 miles in just under two hours. It was the most fun I've had in years. I spent an hour and a half moving between 30-35 miles per hour just steady cruising. Also the road was following the Madison river and was trending downhill the whole time. I admit the downhill and the tailwind but it was still a blast. The only reason I didn't continue to 200 miles was that my crew was ready to go home.
It was my fault. I miscalculated the distance and gave a destination as the endpoint, not a distance. My calculations were 40 miles short (how did that happen?). So when we reached the announced end they were ready to quit. I have spent a lot of time getting these guys together and they finished the day feeling good. So we stopped.
The part of the day that didn't have the tailwind was doing a loop west from West Yellowstone, over the continental divide twice and back. I did that 65 miles by myself, then met my crew back in West Yellowstone where I repeated the first half of the morning ride, over the passes again. The fastest speed of the day was just before the end, coming into Norris, MT. There is a considerable hill there. As I came down the descent I hit 45 mph, which was when I started touching my brakes. The former tailwind was rather squirrelly in the canyon and I wanted to remain upright.
The West Yellowstone ride was organized by the local Chamber of Commerce and had bikes of all sorts, and me on a recumbent. This was the first time I have actually ridden the same route at the same time as upright bikes and all the predictiions were true. I was moderately slower going uphill and just smoked them all going down. The last rider I past was a real natural athlete. At over 30 mph he could lean to the right, press a nostril and shoot snot well out into the grass. After I passed him I never saw him again but he has set a standard for personal hygiene I will never equal.
This week is the peak week, then start tapering next week. At least the race dreams have stopped for now. Last night I dreamed I was watching home movies with Pete Townsend and the Who. Did he have braces in real life?
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Best laid schemes
I think the snow has stopped. The weather has been atrocious. Have I let it stop me? You Bet! I have another century and various shorter rides done but nothing on the scale I had planned. Am I getting scared? Y ou Bet!
Then this week the house we are renting sold. We have thirty days to move out. Last week end we spent house hunting and this week end was spent house buying. I have to hang around to sign offers for houses, sign counter-counter offers. Sign offers for the second choice. Training for races is right out the window. The bright side?
We have given up. If our last offer is not accepted we move into another rental and stop worrying about it. The good news is that the weather has improved and I have a week off next week. The plan is to do some training centuries, then a double century. Conveniently, from my present house it is exactly 100 miles to a conspicuous landmark in Helena (the Wendy's near the freeway). Food and a bathroom at the turnaround, what more could I want? An early start, lunch at the turn and home by dark...sounds simple. I might go to ski areas to practice long, hellish climbs. I have Bogus Basin in Boise, Idaho in mind.
I'm rotating the bikes through a local bike shop (Bangtail) for tune ups. The Javelin (Thagamizer) is in now, to be followed by the OSS Seiran (Kelson) the USS Seiran (Taranaki).
I have bought the lycra, scheduled the logo manufacture and continue to test the food. The race dreams have started, almost all of them dealing with getting lost. The worst one was the dream of a time station that happened to coincide with a check point for a large cross country cycle tour. There were hundreds of bikes and tables but none of them were mine.
And Tim Woudenberg. He is a competitors nightmare except he's real.
Jolly times. Off to another long ride today.
ChrisM
Then this week the house we are renting sold. We have thirty days to move out. Last week end we spent house hunting and this week end was spent house buying. I have to hang around to sign offers for houses, sign counter-counter offers. Sign offers for the second choice. Training for races is right out the window. The bright side?
We have given up. If our last offer is not accepted we move into another rental and stop worrying about it. The good news is that the weather has improved and I have a week off next week. The plan is to do some training centuries, then a double century. Conveniently, from my present house it is exactly 100 miles to a conspicuous landmark in Helena (the Wendy's near the freeway). Food and a bathroom at the turnaround, what more could I want? An early start, lunch at the turn and home by dark...sounds simple. I might go to ski areas to practice long, hellish climbs. I have Bogus Basin in Boise, Idaho in mind.
I'm rotating the bikes through a local bike shop (Bangtail) for tune ups. The Javelin (Thagamizer) is in now, to be followed by the OSS Seiran (Kelson) the USS Seiran (Taranaki).
I have bought the lycra, scheduled the logo manufacture and continue to test the food. The race dreams have started, almost all of them dealing with getting lost. The worst one was the dream of a time station that happened to coincide with a check point for a large cross country cycle tour. There were hundreds of bikes and tables but none of them were mine.
And Tim Woudenberg. He is a competitors nightmare except he's real.
Jolly times. Off to another long ride today.
ChrisM
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