|
|
Birthday Ride!
Gotten a little behind in the updates! Trying out a slightly different format for this one.
So today is/was my birthday! 34. Yip!
Headed out for a ride, planning to pull off a 30min Tempo. Felt good off the start. Kept an eye on my HR, it was in a good range. I've been hit with a 'low level' cold the last few weeks...my HR would really elevate riding at my EM pace..today it was down where it should be - yay!
Made my way out to Sidney the usual way, it was overcast with a threat of rain. Opted to ride the Ridley and take a chance..it was my birthday!!
Started my Tempo in the usual spot, and was tearing down Lochside, and at the corner just before the MacTavish construction, this huge, oncoming water truck crosses the road and into the bike lane and just STOPS THERE!!! WTF?? I manage to stop, although i was well over 30kph...i get around it, and pick up my pace again, and then i see what this truck was doing: soaking the road. WTFx2?! The road had been dry (very slight spitting), but this goof was driving along dumping water on the road.
I slowed down, as i don't want to get any more dirty/wet than necessary...summer bike and all. I look ahead, and there tons more water on the road. GAAH!! I'd gotten 17min into my Tempo, and was feeling GREAT. I've since checked my watts, and i had been averaging 270w. For fracks sake..
I pulled the plug there, if i were to keep going, i didn't know how much further the road was wet, and it's pointless to have a 5min break in the middle of this type of interval. Ahh well, here's the brief summary:
Ave Wts: 270 Ave HR: ~170 Ave Cad: 73 Ave Spd: 32.1kph
There was even a perfect headwind, so i wouldn't pick up too much speed downhill...gaah.. Not 100% on the HR, PowerTap head wasn't picking it up..
So one new feature of my entries will be GPS data! The Garmin Edge 500 i ordered finally came in, and has some pretty sweet features! I *love* having the big Lap/Interval functions and visual. The worst thing about the PowerTap head unit is that it only displays 3 items. I typically have Watts, Speed and Time (or Cadence.) Now i have all that data right there..hehe.. Unfortunately it can't connect to my wired PowerTap unit (what i have on the road), so no power data, but just about everything else is in this file:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/25415146
If you're non-American, click on 'Metric' in the top right to make sense of it all. ;)
Lots of neat stuff you can click around on...i love the mapping and elevation features. This will be even cooler when i get out on the MTB (esp. since it IS a wireless PowerTap.)
Today i also did another Mt Doug effort. Last time i went up was Jan 21st, did it in 8min flat, averaged 310w. Today did it in 8:08, but only averaged 305w.. On the Garmin link above, it's Interval #7, if you want to check out the elevation data.
So another thing i'm doing is posting ALL my wattage data, but instead of filling up my blog, i'm going to save it in Google Docs, so here's today:
http://docs.google.com/View?id=dgdbj3nx_15d6ndbwhq
You can see the Mt Doug effort, the Tempo, the Garmin section (the same period recorded as the Garmin) and the entire ride, which has me riding to the shop, and back home from there. (I don't really feel the need to include my home address. ;)
No major peaks, although my 1 and 2hr NP are pretty high, averaging 243w over 2hrs..that's a lot more wattage than i'm used to seeing over that period!
The other news: i've upgraded my Niner RIP9 mtb to the orange frame i've been lusting over for months:
It's significantly stiffer, and ORANGE!!! Hopefully will get out for a ride on Thursday...if not, Sunday. =)
Calling it a night, g'nite world! (I'll update the rest of my last week soon!)
=============
=============Labels: new bike, tempo, training
|
|
"We Don't Like You Anymore."
That's the latest from my quads...hahaha..
Looks like i'm going to have to listen, today's training session is definitely a sign that i'm over-cooking it... But first:
Saturday - OBB Ride
Another lovely day, broke out the Ridley once again... It kept civil to Mattick's, and from there things picked up with a rather surge-y rotating paceline out along the farmland...not sure why people were picking it up like that...or chasing down some of the people who powered away..haha.. Ahh well.
Got to Sidney, and another strong group left from there...kept it civil until past Land's End, then things started to get spicy as we approached the airport, and it carried through until close to W. Saanich, and then it eased up again until Interurban.
Good fast paceline lead-up to the sprint, but as Steve D (visiting in New Zealand right now!) reminded me, i allowed myself to get boxed-in, and so the sprint was a non-feature on my part...some of the other guys were cooking tho!
Went for the Overpass with Ryan, but a commuter just flew onto the trail without looking our way, and i had to brake to avoid a collision...ahh well! Carried through at a firm pace until Estevan where i turned off. All the gory details:
Entire workout (195 watts): Duration: 3:11:15 (3:22:57) Work: 2212 kJ TSS: 264.6 (intensity factor 0.915) Norm Power: 243 VI: 1.25 Distance: 105.686 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 1110 195 watts Heart Rate: 102 182 153 bpm Cadence: 25 126 90 rpm Speed: 0 67.2 33.3 kph
Fast. Actual watts HUGE. And an NP of 243w over 3hrs...wow. The TSS reflects this. I was cooked. The peak hour was 260w NP, and 37.8kph...that's summer speeds! And a new high for TSS. Ouch.
Sunday - Short Ride w/Climbs
My week's TSS value was well over 600, and i was feeling fried, so i opted for a short ride. I actually haven't ridden Mt Tolmie (at least in recent memory) so opted to swing by there, and do a couple out-of-saddle climb efforts, as well as to scout it as a potential training spot.
The south side (off Richmond) is pretty steep, about the same as Mt Doug i'd say, with a short flat section. Did it in 2'52 at 330w, 56rpm. 567m.
North side (off Cedar Hill) is much flatter.. Did it in 2'53 at 318w, 64rpm. I got 634m on that side. I think the starting elevation is a fair bit higher there too. Will know when the Garmin Edge 500 i order comes in...will be neat to include elevation data as well!
Getting more used to standing and climbing. From there i got up to MacKenzie, and crossed over to Caddy Bay, and rode the 'water' back, to the end and back to my place near OBB. Started cloudy, took the winter bike just in case, closed with some sun. =)
Entire workout (206 watts): Duration: 1:13:31 (1:14:26) Work: 904 kJ TSS: 96.1 (intensity factor 0.888) Norm Power: 235 VI: 1.14 Distance: 33.383 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 626 206 watts Heart Rate: 72 181 147 bpm Cadence: 32 114 86 rpm Speed: 3.7 65.7 27.4 kph
In hindsight, i went harder than i should have...
Tuesday - EM w/30min Tempo
Monday was a full rest-day, no climbing.
Headed out on the Ridley again (nice day - sunny but chilly), hoping to do a 45min Tempo in the same spirit as last Thursday, where i SMASHED it! 269w over 40mins, i think that's my best sustained-effort ever done. It was 4w short of my 30min PB (273w), and i held it 10min more...nice.
So, today.. Bad omen's all the way. Legs felt like hamburger. Poor output. Heart rate was waaay too high. Met up with Kevin out on Lockside just before Maddicks, and tried to figure out what i should do.... The smart option would have been just to do a 'ride', hold my EM pace, go for ~2hrs, and then focus on my interval on Thursday.
I decided to ignore my better advice, and began my interval on Martindale. Legs got the power up alright, and i felt okay... 10mins in, still doing okay, but legs were feeling it.
It's funny...i *felt* like i was pushing the watts i needed to, although it was an effort. It looks like the right watts are coming up on the screen....but alas, i must only be looking when they're high..haha.. I decided to just do 30mins, and it came out like this:
Ave Wts: 256 Ave HR: 178 Ave Cad: 74 Ave Spd: 34.8kph
Ouch. Watts were too low, and HR was insane for that effort! My 40min effort on Thursday at 269w was 177...!!
Crap. I overcooked it.
Lesson: figure out and use the Performance Management Chart in WKO. I know the basics, but i think it can be used to help prevent this type of meltdown... Keeping an eye on the TSB value (Training Stress Balance, or 'Freshness', good WKO jargon descriptions here.)
I think i need to manage my training to try and keep it a bit higher.. This will prolly mean shorter Tempo intervals...but i think it stands to reason that doing 30mins at the right wattage is better than doing 45mins at 10-15w lower than i should be at...and feel better doing it all as well!
Here's the whole ride:
Entire workout (200 watts): Duration: 2:21:56 (2:23:02) Work: 1699 kJ TSS: 161.6 (intensity factor 0.828) Norm Power: 219 VI: 1.1 Distance: 71.079 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 718 200 watts Heart Rate: 90 188 163 bpm Cadence: 25 118 85 rpm Speed: 4.1 56.9 30.1 kph
The average HR is HUGE. Even a hard ride should be 10bpm lower.
A'ight, that's it for now... Short climb at the gym tomorrow, and the OrganicAthlete Victoria AGM in the evening, and then for Thursday......i'll keep an eye on my TSB, if it's still pretty low, i'll just go for a ride. ;)
=============
=============Labels: tempo, training, wko
|
|
Call My Quads "Jack Bauer"
Call my quads "Jack Bauer", because they're gonna resist whatever torture i put them through...haha ;)
Part two of my recent updates here. I should also highlight that i've started an email list/discussion group called Vegan Power: http://groups.google.ca/group/veganpower
It's aimed at vegans who train with power, for inspiration and discussion, both about training with power, and vegan nutrition. It also features a spreadsheet that highlights all the power peaks of list members - we've got some really strong peeps on board, here's a direct link to the spreadsheet: http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=ptted2SfCAQ7-eg99loC-Kg
If you're a vegan who trains with power, please join us!! Doesn't matter if you're particularly strong, or particularly weak like me - everyone is welcome, and hopefully this will help inspire you to continue progressing. =)
Anyway, to continue with the regularly scheduled blog updates:
Sat (Jan 30th) - OBB Ride
It was a wet day, my Ridley streak was broken...a record of six consecutive rides!
I sold my 170mm Campy Chorus cranks to Emile, and finally swapped my winter bike over to 165mm Red cranks (why don't Force come in 165mm..??) I have had a lot of bad experiences with FSA, so they're out of the question. Nothing wrong with Red tho. =)
There's all the bits.....
And the bike is ready for them.
The new BB systems are so easy to install..love it!
Looks great!
Felt even better...the winter bike now feels 'right' when riding it. Why 165mm cranks you might ask? Stems from the track for me...that's the length most sprinters use, and it makes for a very smooth, efficient spin. On 175's, i feel like my legs are flailing around in circles. 170's aren't too bad, but still not 'right'. 165's also work nicely in crits, as you're much less likely to scrap the pedals in corners. And finally, they're great for your TT position, as you can get lower because your knees aren't coming up as high.
Anyway..enough about the cranks... Wet OBB ride, the regular mashers were out:
Just a little damp..
Good steady pace out to Sidney, and then we carried it through Land's End and back down the peninsula. Pretty tame past the Observatory, the group kept together for the most part.
Despite feeling good, i opted not to sprint: the chain on the winter bike felt pretty slack on the cranks..and i was worried that it might slip under power.. (I replaced the chain this week, it was quite stretched.) ProCity Tom was doing a strong pull up by Interurban Camosun, i was on his wheel...he was slowing up a bit, so i took over, and started picking up the pace. My target was the base of the final hill...blow myself up by that spot...
I put down my head and jam it...i crest the first hill, carry the speed over and barrel down..speed is great, up over 60kph. I get close to the bottom of the hill and pull over to let the sprint go... I sit up... No one's there...??!! I wait another few seconds, bracing...finally i look back, and the rest are just starting to reach me!! WTF!!
Turns out when i took over the front of the pack, there were a few people on my wheel that apparently just got dropped! That created a fairly significant gap that no-one wanted to close...so i just wheeled off totally solo..hahahaha!
Lesson: look back! Had i looked back fairly on, i could have stretched out my effort, and gone for the 'long bomb'....that day i might have actually succeeded..
Ahh well. Continued back into town. Scott challenged me for the King of the Overpass, but he was in too light a gear, and i managed to hold him off. ;) Which reminds me - the previous week Mike Elkink raced me for the KotO, and took it. That gave him 2nd in the sprint, and 1st there..hehe
Kept the pace up back into town with Tom Skinner and Scotty, and went out to Estevan again. Here's the finer details:
Entire workout (188 watts): Duration: 3:18:18 (3:26:49) Work: 2224 kJ TSS: 255.1 (intensity factor 0.88) Norm Power: 233 VI: 1.24 Distance: 104.458 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 1195 188 watts Heart Rate: 93 182 153 bpm Cadence: 26 222 93 rpm Speed: 3.7 64.6 31.7 kph
TSS a bit short from last week's OBB ride, but still a pretty fast ride considering the weather!
Sunday - 2hr EM w/Kevin
Was planning to MTB, but plans fell through, so hit the road instead.! Kevin and i went out to the Observatory. I was happy to get in another out-of-saddle effort up an extended climb.
Kevin went back down for a second go on the last portion.
The weather was pretty good...and the roads were dry..
But i brought out the winter bike instead...i was expecting wet roads. Ahh well, i'm enjoying riding this bike much more with the shorter cranks.
Entire workout (192 watts): Duration: 2:04:22 (2:35:01) Work: 1415 kJ TSS: 147.3 (intensity factor 0.847) Norm Power: 225 VI: 1.17 Distance: 58.079 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 743 192 watts Heart Rate: 90 191 148 bpm Cadence: 52 149 95 rpm Speed: 3.7 63.2 28.3 kph
And that concludes my 'easy-ish' week; back at it!
Tuesday - EM w/35m Tempo
Felt good, and thought i did a good job on the Tempo workout, but unfortunately the numbers weren't so good:
Ave Wts: 257 Ave HR: 167 Ave Cad: 71 Ave Spd: 33.9kph
Only 257w!! I tried something a bit different: i braked when the speed picked up, to ensure i kept under 75rpm..
Funnily, i don't think i can sustain power on the pedals and brake at the same time...i'd start to brake, and the power would just drop... Ahh well...
Good effort for the ride overall tho:
Entire workout (220 watts): Duration: 2:32:09 (2:36:03) Work: 1992 kJ TSS: 194.9 (intensity factor 0.88) Norm Power: 233 VI: 1.06 Distance: 79.431 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 840 220 watts Heart Rate: 94 182 160 bpm Cadence: 27 122 86 rpm Speed: 4.1 59.9 31.5 kph
Thu - EM w/40m Tempo with Chad
Chad made it out again, and i seem to have better Tempo sessions with someone in front of me, so especially happy to have him along. He motored off to do his own effort for the 40mins, but took a while to get out of my line-of-sight, so he was a carrot in front.
This time i didn't brake, and if my cadence got over 75rpm, so be it. I'd just maintain the intensity (trying to hold 270-280w.) And the result:
Ave Wts: 269 Ave HR: 177 Ave Cad: 75 Ave Spd: 36.4kph
Cadence was a tad high, but the power was AMAZING. That's the most watts i've held for one 'effort', that's for sure! (I've done 'harder' workouts, holding 300w for over 30mins, but there were a few 1min rests in there too.)
Pretty pleased with that. It was interesting to note that when my cadence got below 70rpm, my power just dropped.. As expected, lower cadences are killer for me.. I'm much better, but still not great. Also neat to note that Peak 20min was 270w, and Peak 30min was 269w, so it was pretty consistent.
Let's hope i can keep this up for a few more weeks...i was pretty smashed after this, and it'd be nice to get a few more solid efforts like this in. Will be aiming for 45mins after this...
Entire workout (210 watts): Duration: 2:43:09 (2:46:48) Work: 2047 kJ TSS: 204.9 (intensity factor 0.871) Norm Power: 231 VI: 1.1 Distance: 85.126 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 752 210 watts Heart Rate: 74 182 158 bpm Cadence: 27 124 86 rpm Speed: 3.7 61.4 31.5 kph
That's for tonight, gonna hit the hay, group ride tomorrow! Hoping the roads are dry and will get back on the Ridley. =)
=============
=============Labels: tempo, training
|
|
Ensuring A Dry and Warm Winter
I think i figured how to make the winter dry and warm in your area - load up on new cold weather gear, and grow a beard.
Well, that's about all that's different this year, yet it's been remarkably dry and warm! I've taken out my new Ridley Noah a record six consecutive rides before last Saturday..and twice this week so far. Got a ton of riding in through January as well - nearly 44hrs spent on the bike! That may actually top what i was riding some months last summer...feeling really great regardless.
Also made a new home for the Ridley, running out of potential spots to hang bikes in my pad:
Got some catching up to do, last week was an 'easy-ish' week, just did a few 'steady' EM-paced rides with no big efforts... Let's see where we left off - this will be a two-part blog.
Wed (Jan 20th) - Climb
Will just do just one summary for the climbing: had a couple 'rough' weeks, didn't seem to be progressing much...hands not feeling like they're really recovering.. Keeping at it, working on easier routes and doing some laps and climb-downs to try and increase strength. Still working mainly on 10c's & d's.
Thu - EM w/30min Tempo and Mt Doug
Went up Mt Doug again, did it standing up the entire way...seems like it's the way to do it....i went at it pretty hard, averaged 310w and got to the top in 8min flat. Cadence was so low, ~56rpm..i think standing is required. As far as what might be my potential fastest time... I should be able to average 340w, and that ought to get me closer to the 7min timeframe, but i doubt i'll be cracking 7mins.
Chad and i atop Mt Doug (actually that was on Tuesday, previous blog entry, d'oh!), continued out to Sidney, and did a 30min Tempo interval:
Ave Wts: 257 Ave HR: 169 Ave Cad: 72 Ave Spd: 35.5kph
HR was quite high for that wattage...so i suspected i'm in need of some rest, which prompted my easy-ish week.
Deets for the rest of the ride:
Entire workout (211 watts): Duration: 2:29:03 (2:36:01) Work: 1870 kJ TSS: 189 (intensity factor 0.875) Norm Power: 232 VI: 1.1 Distance: 74.281 km
Min Max Avg Power: 0 951 211 watts Heart Rate: 74 189 158 bpm Cadence: 28 122 82 rpm Speed: 3.8 58.1 30.1 kph
Sat - OBB Ride
Good solid pace from Land's End to Interurban, i somehow ended up on the front of the group on the climb past the Observatory....weird being on the front, but pretty much ensures i'll be in there for the end!
The sprint was a big group, and i was near the back in the final stretch...pulled out to move up just before the hill and then it exploded! Dan Skinner, Craig, Scotty and Mike E launch, and i'm hot on their heels, but can't make up the ground...still, 5th in that company isn't shabby.
Been riding a bit further as well, i normally turn off at Richmond, but instead continue around the water to Estevan. If i turn off closer, it's usually around 98km. This way i'm doing over 100. ;)
Entire workout (187 watts): Duration: 3:15:52 (3:37:35) Work: 2187 kJ TSS: 261.5 (intensity factor 0.898) Norm Power: 238 VI: 1.27 Pw:HR: -1.9% Pa:HR: 4.32% Distance: 105.65 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 1221 187 watts Heart Rate: 78 188 151 bpm Cadence: 24 128 89 rpm Speed: 3.7 66.3 32.5 kph
I think that's the highest TSS i've gotten for a Sat ride so far...we've really been moving. An NP of 238w over 3.25hrs is also HUGE for me. I'm feeling much stronger later on in rides, which is a big change for me. Normally i get progressively weaker and weaker through a ride...i seem to be gaining some 'depth'.
Monday (Jan 25th) - 1hr Ride w/Chad
Skipped riding on Sunday, pooped and rainy to boot. Talked Chad into joining me, and just did my 1hr Power Hour loop. Nothing too crazy, obviously went fairly easily, good way to start my 'easy-ish' week. ;)
Entire workout (160 watts): Duration: 1:17:55 (1:22:15) Work: 744 kJ TSS: 55.4 (intensity factor 0.656) Norm Power: 174 VI: 1.08 Distance: 34.926 km Min Max Avg Power: 0 496 160 watts Heart Rate: 67 152 121 bpm Cadence: 28 114 84 rpm Speed: 3.8 57.2 27.1 kph
Max of 496w - i meant business! ;)
We stopped at the top of King George Terrace:
Yep, it's teh suck to be in Victoria in January.
Tuesday - 1.5hr EM
A weird day....it was totally dry as i was getting ready to head out. Hop on my bike, the sun is shining, and it starts to sprinkle!! Drat!
Plan was to ride out the Goose to Lagoon Rd, and do that loop, but the further i got out of town, the wetter the trail...gah..so turned around by the hospital and took the water back in..just a steady pace.
Entire workout (199 watts): Duration: 1:38:57 (1:41:48) Work: 1172 kJ TSS: 103.6 (intensity factor 0.795) Norm Power: 211 VI: 1.06 Distance: 48.392 km
Min Max Avg Power: 0 589 199 watts Heart Rate: 79 171 143 bpm Cadence: 20 126 93 rpm Speed: 3.7 51.4 29.5 kph
Thursday - 2hr EM w/Kevin
Kevin was able to make it out, and we headed out along the water, and did the Lagoon loop. It's actually pretty nice, and we're taking the new paved Goose out to Colwood. I think this'll be a fairly regular ride for me if i'm not doing any intervals...nice change of pace.
Entire workout (197 watts): Duration: 2:04:47 (2:08:43) Work: 1465 kJ TSS: 133.1 (intensity factor 0.803) Norm Power: 213 VI: 1.08 Distance: 59.751 km
Min Max Avg Power: 0 890 197 watts Heart Rate: 74 173 146 bpm Cadence: 24 126 92 rpm Speed: 3.8 67.2 28.9 kph
Will pick up last weekend's OBB ride in the next post. =)
Happy February!
=============
=============Labels: tempo, training
|
|
Four Rides in Five Days
*phew*
Been a solid few days of riding! Got a little catch-up:
Monday (Jan 11) - Climb
Been slacking off in keeping track of my climbing...mainly working on the tougher 10c's and d's.
Tue - Ride w/30min Tempo
Just out of interest, looked back to last Feb/Mar to see what i was doing for my Tempo workouts, and i was holding ~255w. So up 10w a year later, not too bad!
Tuesday was MISERABLE - it held off until i got to Martindale, but when i began my interval, it just started to dump..it was weird, the rain splashing in my face was REALLY distracting!
I've managed to find a good 'loop' tho..basically following in the OBB route to the stop sign in Sidney, then turn around there and head back out Lockside, up through part of the old TT course, then turn around at the stop sign there. At my Tempo pace, it takes 20min to do a full loop...not ideal, but it works.
The Tempo effort this day was a bit lacklustre:
Ave Wts: 255
Ave HR: 163
Ave Cad: 70
Ave Spd: 35.4kph
Full ride:
Entire workout (218 watts):
Duration: 2:23:20 (2:35:01)
Work: 1859 kJ
TSS: 189.3 (intensity factor 0.894)
Norm Power: 233
VI: 1.07
Distance: 75.242 km
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 721 218 watts
Heart Rate: 67 175 155 bpm
Cadence: 30 120 86 rpm
Speed: 0 56.7 31.7 kph
Kinda strange, but it was a pretty fast ride, averaging nearly 32kph..
Wed - Rest Day
Opted to take the day off, climbing didn't work out. OA meeting in the evening too. Rest days are good.
Thu - Climb
Got in 2.5hrs, felt pretty good, improving on the climbs i'm working on.
Fri - 1hr Ride
Well, under an hour really... Day started awful, full rain, etc.. Afternoon got pretty nice. Didn't have a lot of time, but knew i'd feel gross on Sat if i didn't get out and work the legs a bit, so did a short ride when it was pretty nice:
Entire workout (204 watts):
Duration: 50:39
Work: 618 kJ
TSS: 68.5 (intensity factor 0.902)
Norm Power: 234
VI: 1.15
Distance: 25.029 km
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 1253 204 watts
Heart Rate: 73 189 158 bpm
Cadence: 36 222 93 rpm
Speed: 3.9 54.5 29.7 kph
Worth noting: did a couple short sprints, and nearly topped my 1sec and 5sec PB's!! I have no idea why my legs are still able to turn over this kind of wattage, but they're able to pull it off for some reason...i'm not gonna complain! ;)
Sat - OBB Ride
Bit of an odd day, it was pretty dry, so took out the Ridley on a group ride for the first time. Lots of peeps from the Burnside group turned out, kinda odd. I rode with many of them out to Sidney, a few good efforts in there. They didn't want to wait for the rest of the groups to turn up, so left..i opted to stay. Formed a 'firm' group to ride with, and continued on.
Oddly, when we got around the airport, we caught the BSiders, and there had been a crash.. Turns out Anatolli dislocated a hip...ouch..hope he heals up quick.
Our group continued on, and we were then in the 'front', so the sprint was our..haha.. Did a fair bit of work along W. Saanich to try and break things up a bit, and on Interurban...solo'd for a bit, as did Mike Elkink, although Scotty shut him down just before Camosun. Group was together for the sprint..
There were a couple peeps in front of me, leading the charge, i felt them slowing down as we hit the hill, so i swung out wide, got out of the saddle for a few pedal strokes to jam up the speed, and sat to get up the hill..crested the top, no one near me, so got out of the saddle and continued to huck it..odd being out there alone!! Line was closing, but then Mike and Scotty flew by w/15m to go...no was i was going to be able to pick up any more speed...bleh.... '3rd'.
Apparently i split away and launched pretty quickly..but couldn't hold those two smaller guys off, who have much favorable power-to-weight ratios going up that hill... Worth noting that i held 900+w pretty steady, for nearly 20 seconds...so i did *something*! haha
Turns out my 3rd was really 6th tho, as there was another small group that had taken off ahead of the BSiders before their crash. D'oh.
Entire workout (180 watts):
Duration: 3:08:52 (3:28:37)
Work: 2016 kJ
TSS: 242.4 (intensity factor 0.882)
Norm Power: 229
VI: 1.28
Distance: 98.904 km
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 1086 180 watts
Heart Rate: 79 190 147 bpm
Speed: 0 63.5 31.6 kph
Cadence magnet got bumped at start, so no readings. Peak hour NP was 253w, about normal.. I did a fair bit of work in our group.
Sunday - Hilly Ride w/Kevin
Managed to catch him before he headed out! Was supposed to go for a MTB ride, but it didn't materialize.. Kevin wanted to do the Up'n'Over (Ross-Durrance) so we headed out towards Saanich. Felt a hilly ride was appropriate if skipping the usual MTB ride. ;)
Roads were dryish, so took out the Ridley again. =)
Fun to do the U'n'O, it's been a long time since i last rode it, and it seemed much shorter and easier...how odd. Kevin started with a pretty firm pace, so i just stuck to his wheel...but as we were getting to the top his lack of time on the bike was oozing out, and i found myself powering away...unexpected, but it will likely be one of the few times this occurs!
Love that section tho, beautiful road and nicely enclosed in the forest. =)
Ripped back into town along Millstream and back on the Goose near Colwood (it's paved out there now, surprisingly!) Rode back in and around the water. Great day, and fun to spend it with Kevin.
Entire workout (194 watts):
Duration: 2:32:43 (2:46:41)
Work: 1772 kJ
TSS: 211.1 (intensity factor 0.913)
Norm Power: 237
VI: 1.22
Distance: 71.458 km
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 1191 194 watts
Heart Rate: 85 184 144 bpm
Cadence: 23 136 87 rpm
Speed: 3.7 52.9 28.2 kph
Interesting to note that my Peak 60min Normalized Power was 265w, which is actually higher than what i've got for my 1hr Threshold... I've suspected it's gone up, and of course Normalized Power isn't a perfect calculation...but i'm going to bump it from 260w to 265w...i think that's a safe bet.
Monday (Jan 18) - Climb
Rough night at the climbing gym...pretty knackered from the riding...hands just hadn't recovered...made the most of it, 2hrs out...
Tuesday - Ride w/35m Tempo with Chad
Gotta keep bumping my Tempo workouts up! Today Chad joined me. He pedalled on ahead to do his own workout, which was nice as i had a carrot in front of me to chase. We also rode up Mt Doug - i've been curious to see how much of it had been repaved...the descent is much improved, but near the bottom is still like a battlefield, having to dodge numerous potholes.
Solid effort today, managed over 34:56:
Ave Wts: 264
Ave HR: 167
Ave Cad: 72
Ave Spd: 35.9kph
Happy with that! It's such a weird workout, pedalling at 70-75rpm..legs get maxed out, but i'm hardly breathing any heavier despite the bigger watts.. It's funny because as i'm going, it looks like i'm in the 280-300w range a lot, but when you get it home and download it, it's another story.. Still, i'm holding 10w more over 35mins that i could last year in late Feb. That's pretty solid.
It was such a nice day, there was a steady breeze, but it felt WARM. 13C out, had leg warmers on, but just arm warmers, a jersey and vest. Very unusual for this time of the year.
Legs feel shot right now...mission accomplished!
Entire workout (211 watts):
Duration: 2:47:49 (2:57:50)
Work: 2109 kJ
TSS: 218.1 (intensity factor 0.886)
Norm Power: 230
VI: 1.09
Distance: 83.138 km
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 683 211 watts
Heart Rate: 81 176 151 bpm
Cadence: 32 122 82 rpm
Speed: 0 63.2 29.9 kph
That's a pretty long ride for me for a weekday! As i was riding home along the water, i actually felt like extending my ride...very unusual.. After 2hrs, i'm usually itching to get off the bike. I'm insanely happy with my Ridley Noah! It's really something else to ride. =)
So, that's four rides in five days...TSS is getting up there - hopefully i can sustain this, and when it comes to doing even harder workouts, i can maintain the through the summer...
Tomorrow, prolly a rest day. Thursday will be another Tempo session, maybe 40mins. Climb Fri, OBB Sat, and hopefully MTB on Sunday. Yip!
Have a great week! =)
=============
=============Labels: tempo, training
|
|
|
|
