Maxed Out

I justified my new HRM as tool to help re-tune my body for the back-to-back all-day rides we'll be doing on DtM.

It arrived last week. I immediately strapped it on and laid on the couch watching to see how low my HR would go. I got it down to 44. With some Pink Floyd and a glass of Glenlivet I'm sure I could get closer to 40.

Anyway that was entertaining for about 11 minutes, and the burning question still remained about how high I could get it. So today when Sebastian, MikeY, and I headed out into some sketchy riding conditions, I would get my chance to find out.

I had my first shot at the bottom of the Sole Trail. I sprinted up the access road until my heart was ready to explode. I glanced at the HRM and it said "NOREC"... WTF??? No idea what that meant, but the box said this thing would register peak HR so I figured I would sort it out after the ride. One more sprint through the horse farm. I glanced down at saw it peak at 176 before I exploded.

Are we having fun yet?

Once home I opened the manual and learned my peak HR was reportedly 180. I will re-evaluate on my next ride, but for now it looks like my aerobic range is 99-135. I think it will be difficult to keep my HR down that low but at least I have a plan now.

Scotch or Seltzer?

Tuesday. An early business dinner. And a snow storm. What to do?  A glass of scotch and dinner then head home to the couch?  Or a glass of seltzer and then head out for some snowy single track?

"Seltzer with a twist of lime please"

Ride conditions were, well, outstanding. When we rolled at 8:00pm, we had about 2" of the white stuff, temps were in the high 20s, and tires hooked up well in the wet snow. Downhills were a different story. To say the Yo Eddy trail was "sketchy" is an understatement and the price of a dab was compounded by snow-clogged cleats. And with so much snow in the air, head mounted lamps were blinding so we just used the bar lights.


By the time we wrapped around 9:30 there was 3-4" of snow in spots and there was no evidence of trails anywhere. The pedaling was pretty tough...and we were fried...but it was the sweetest misery you can imagine (and imagine you must if you weren't out there).

Chris

Review - Performance Windstopper Gloves

ITEM: Performance Windstopper Gloves
PURCHASED at Performance Bicycle in 2007
PRICE: $20 on sale
RATING: Excellent

My existing pair of insulated gloves were too hot and too tight fitting, and I found it difficult to taker them on/off during rides when I wanted to take a picture or otherwise needed some dexterity. So when I saw these gloves on sale I grabbed them, and now they are the only gloves I wear in the winter. If riding in the low-mid 20s my fingers will be a little cold for the first 10 minutes but then they adjust and I am totally comfortable. They are loose fitting so easy to take off/on.  In the teens I will also wear a pair of thin wool inserts but honestly I don't think it makes much of a difference.

I have enough dexterity with these gloves to turn my light on/off and I don't notice any problem shifting with these gloves. There is no padding in the palm area but I don't miss it. The gloves are showing some wear after 3+ years of winter riding, but that is to be expected.

These gloves are $40 at local Performance Bicycle store, when they go on sale I will probably nab another pair.

STRENGTHS: Warm, Durable, Easy On-Off
WEAKNESSES: No padding

Things Are Shaping Up

I've spent some holiday down time reading and web surfing regarding training and conditioning. The amount of material out there is intimidating but I've been able to distill three key concepts that I think we need to understand AND USE to prepare for Colorado this June:

• Heart rate. Yes, it's pounding out of your chest at the top of the Quarry Climb (that's probably your max heart rate), but it turns out that number is critical for training purposes. You need to know that number and how to take your pulse. More in a moment.
• Periodization explains why I make little progress riding at Marsh Creek. I have my favorite 1 hour loop which I ride 3-4 times a week in the spring. I've even done it 2x in a day. With the amount of miles and hours I have logged over there, I should be on the podium every year. But I'm not, ever. Every program on bike training uses periodization, which explains my lack of progress. More on this coming...
• Diet. As we computer geeks like to say, garbage in garbage out. And when you are stressing your body with a training program, it's even more important to feed it the quality calories it needs.  

So now I’m going to go deep enough on these topics to make us dangerous. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how deep to go. Too much and it becomes overwhelming, fast.  Too little and you're unable to apply it to get results. So here we go...

Pipsqueak

Damian climbing aboard

This may be the only blog post you will ever see here featuring an L39. Why am I blogging about a Czechoslovakian military jet aircraft? Well this particular one - nicknamed Pipsqueak - is the reason I missed the ride this morning. You see, I got a call last night from my neighbor Damian who was scheduled to fly Pipsqueak today, and he had lost his videographer and was wondering if I would step in. Which I did. Gladly.

So needless to say, it was a pretty amazing day. After Damian completed his aileron rolls, barrel rolls, and a 5G loop over the Chesapeake bay, we poked around the airport hanger to lay our hands on an operational Mig-21 and an almost operational Mig-23. Amazing machines. And sobering when you think about the history of those aircraft.

Sunset ride by the lake

So it was quite a day, but even after all that, I managed a one hour sunset ride and Marsh Creek. The contrast between the L39 and my hard tail mountain bike was striking, but it always feels good to saddle up, elevate the heart rate, and get a little dirty even if it's on 200 year old technology rolling along the ground at about 8 knots.

Chris

MO7S Gear

Santa brought me some official MO7S gear that I never knew existed.

One of a kind.

Can't wait for warm weather.

Go West Old Men

ep·ic [ep-ik] noun - an episode in the lives of men in which heroic deeds are performed or attempted: the epic of Scott's expedition to the South Pole.

Agreed "heroic" may be pushing it, but for half a dozen middle-age dads on the east coast who spend much of their lives behind a desk or shuttling kids to lacrosse practice, June is looking pretty damn epic. That's because 164 days from now we head west for five days of mountain biking and camping under the stars in the rocky mountains.

The idea has been germinating for a while, and with my 50th birthday staring me in the face took on a sense of urgency last summer. We looked at over 20 itineraries from 7 different tour companies, and settled on a custom trip from Hermosa Tours. We chose Hermosa because the fit felt right, we liked the camping format (versus hotels), the point to point itinerary, and the van support which allows us to focus on riding while Hermosa focuses on humping our gear from place to place. Oh and the food - Hermosa has clearly put a lot of thought into this.

We designed a five day itinerary that starts in Durango Colorado and ends five days later in Moab Utah:

1. Options include advanced singletrack on the Colorado Trail or intermediate on Hermosa Creek Trail. Day ends with downhill into camp. Mileage 30-50 miles.
2. A very pretty 40-ish miles past the Lizard Head Wilderness into Uncompahgre National Forest and our camp at Miramonte Reservoir.
3. We work our way along the rim of Paradox Valley and then into Utah near day’s end.  As we enter Utah we’re be making our way up the east side of the La Sal Mountains.  Mileage is about 35.
4. We continue climbing up the east side of the La Sal Mountains toward Geyser Pass.  This is an underrated part of the route for no other reason that people just don’t go here!  True solitude.  We end the day high in the La Sals ready for a big day 5.  About 30 miles.
5. The Whole Enchilada.  28 miles of some of the best mountain biking in the world.  High alpine singletrack all the way to the Colorado River 7000 feet below.  Must be ridden to be believed.  Shuttle back to Durango after the ride.

The ride will be physically demanding for us east coast flat-landers. Six to seven hours and 30+ miles is more that we have done on a mountain bike, and we will be doing that on five consecutive days.  And the altitude (day one takes us through 11,000 feet) adds a huge wrinkle.

Little know fact: There are 40% fewer oxygen molecules per breath at 12,000 feet than at sea level.

So we have loads of work to do and my new beater bike will be a big part of that. Training will be a big part of the next 164 days, and my blog posts will turn towards things like conditioning, outfitting, nutrition, altitude sickness, and tour operators instead of the usual drivel about local trail conditions and biking mishaps.

"It is the most selfless way to see the world around you. There is no gasoline, no power steering, and no seat belts. You move forward as one should move through life: by sheer will and determination."
     -- author unknown