This Ride: 9.3 miles
Month: 650.9 miles
2011: 2,858.4 miles
Total since 1/1/2010: 8,978.1 miles
In spite of overnight company, I decided to get out early and put in a few miles. I tried to keep the speed and effort down, ride easy, and figure out the cause of the hand numbness I’m experiencing. All that was mostly accomplished, but add to that the execution of a kamikaze chipmunk. It ran under my front wheel while I was riding hands free, trying to take me down.
I survived. Chipmunk didn’t.
The Garmin was in the guest bedroom, so I relied on imapmyride for the distance and time.
This Ride: 129 miles
Month: 641.6 miles
2011: 2,849.1 miles
Total since 1/1/2010: 8,968.8 miles
Half the rides to my R-12 are in the bag!
Four riders (Ben, Jeff S. Dave & I) planned to ride the “Sailing Down to Solomons” permanent route on what is both my wedding anniversary (33 years) and anniversary of my ordination (21 years). The 6 am start was early, to beat the heat. Frankly, I didn’t sleep well the night before the ride. I chalk it up to a late in the day prep of the bike and gear needed (finished at 9 pm) and the frustrations of a car that had to go to the shop. I was awake at 3:45, got up at 4:15, and left the house close to 5:00. The temperature at the start was 70° F for what would prove to be a warm day.
We pushed off promptly at 6:00 am, and made comfortable speedy work of the first 25 miles. I was feeling good in my new saddle position and we were getting the group dynamics worked out. As we moved along, Dave hung with me (as he describes it, he settled into my pace knowing I was the slowest rider of the group) while Ben and Jeff were often seen a quarter of a mile ahead. They both surged ahead most of the ride, then found themselves waiting at key intersections for us to catch up. That had to be frustrating for them, but they just couldn’t hold back either. It took Dave a while to settle into my pace. He would draft me, and then as I fatigued we would ride side by side. If I drafted off him the first half of the course, he would gradually slow down to under 16 mph and I would move along side him to reestablish the pace. This wasn’t much of a problem except that some 20 miles outside of Solomons, we were moving into an increasingly stronger headwind, and I just couldn’t seem to get a break from the wind. I was struggling by the time we got to Solomons, feeling very fatigued. I had payed attention to nutrition and hydration, but still was struggling. From the beginning I was eating every 30-45 minutes. I was taking an e-cap every 30 minutes like clockwork. I wondered how the rest of the ride would go, especially as we started the climbs and rollers of the last half of the course.
We lingered longer than I expected to at the Control in Solomons, then stopped at the 7-11 for some fluid replenishment, food, and potty stop. Again, this took longer than it needed to, but maybe the rest was good for me. From that point on, I was quicker for each 5 mile segment than my last Sailing Down to Solomons 200k, although, truth be told the tailwind this trip vs the headwind last trip may have also contributed to the speedier trip back.
The pattern of Jeff and Ben riding ahead continued most of the way back. Sometimes they would be seen waiting at an intersection. Several times they rejoined us when I hadn’t seen them. This pattern eventually led to a miscommunication that could have had serious consequences. As we approached Chesapeake Beach, Jeff and Ben were waiting before the businesses with a plan to recommend a stop at a convenience store to reload the Gatorade. Dave and I rode by, headed to Sweet Sue’s. My internal goal was to reach Sweet Sue’s by noon. We made it. But Ben and Jeff were low on fluids and knew that Sweet Sue’s didn’t have Gatorade. They had expected us to stop and consult with them before entering this open control area, even though that would have been a complete change in the pattern that was already established. Their backup plan was to stop down the road at the store across the street from the resort, but I told them that the previous month that store was closed for remodeling. Finally, they decided water would be sufficient over the next 20 miles, the only other convenience store along that stretch. The store across from the resort was indeed closed for remodeling. They were glad they had filled up with water at Sweet Sue’s.
The Sweet Sue stop was again longer than I anticipated. Several strawberry smoothies were consumed. I had a gluten free chocolate chip cookie that was the best gluten free cookie I’d ever eaten. (My daughter has celiac disease, so I’ve had my fair share of gluten free products.) We learned that the staff of Sweet Sue’s is anticipating the SPP ride there on Monday. Soon we were on our way into the part of the course with the longest climbs and most frequent rollers, and not only the most familiar but also the favorite of a lot of SPP riders. Jeff was frustrated with my lack of speed on the climbs. I struggled some and tried to keep my heart rate below 155 on these climbs. I still was riding these stronger than I had ever ridden them before. I could see and feel the improvement. By this stretch, Dave was very good company. It was along here somewhere that we realized we were really riding well. Our average rolling was above 17 mph, which was higher than Dave thought it would have been. Being out of sight of the leaders made it feel slower than it was.
Having not partaken of one of those ice cold smoothies at Sweet Sue’s, I was hankering for something cool and sweet. When we got to the gas station 15 miles from the finish, I wanted and got ice cream. Again, this stop was longer than expected. I don’t think I was the hold up.
The rollers continued. Then, on one of the climbs, I got a pretty severe leg cramp in my upper right leg. It was 90°F, the consistent e-cap and water regiment had slipped some. It happened on my least favorite hill. There was only one option available to me. I popped two e-caps into my mouth and bit down hard, chewing them and chasing the nasty taste with some Gatorade and water. E-caps are not very palatable that way. But in about 10 minutes, the cramps were a fading memory. We didn’t see Jeff after that stretch. He motored on, finishing about 15-20 minutes ahead of us (we think).
The three of us were a little grumbly about the course during this last stretch. Rollers at the end. An added loop just to keep us off a busy highway. We were tired and hot. Unfortunately Crista (the route owner) felt more like a dominatrix than the gentle soul she really is. I wonder if she knows that people love her course and also curse it at the end?
Soon, the home stretch. We hit nearly every traffic light red in those last couple of miles. Soon we found ourselves in line at the 7-11 to get the control cards signed. We wasted no time in getting bikes loaded and all going our separate ways. There wasn’t a desire to linger and re-hash the ride. Besides, I had an anniversary dinner date to get cleaned up for.
Accomplishments? This was my fastest 200k to date. Not only was my average rolling speed 1.2 mph faster (27 minutes), but there was less time stopped also (total 1 hr, 12 minutes). I know this isn’t a race, but it is nice to have a faster rolling time, especially when our goal going in was to keep moving. Elapsed time was 43 minutes faster than before. Fastest speed on a bike now is 42 mph on a short downhill.
I do have some residual numbness in my left hand. Right hand is fine. Seat position worked well.
The next 200 k is going to be a challenge to include. There are only 5 days in June where I have the option of riding a 200k because of other commitments, but in reality most have that kind of narrow window because they are timing their 200ks for weekends and around family schedules. If I were restricted to weekends, there is only 1 date possible, and that is the day before I fly cross country, a scenario which could lead to deep vein thrombosis or severe dehydration if not managed properly. I’ll probably try to squeeze another Sailing Down to Solomons in a couple of days before going to California for the start of RAAM.
Up in the next 6 days, two long rides:
- SPP Memorial Day Ride (65 & 100 mile options). I haven’t yet decided which I will ride. The forecast is hot! I don’t know how much recovery I need.
- My fundraiser ride to Ocean City (115-120 miles) on Thursday. Too bad this won’t count for a 200k.
This Ride: 21 miles
Month: 512.6 miles
2011: 2,720.1 miles
Total since 1/1/2010: 8,839.8 miles
There were two things that got me out this morning, and two things only. (1) Mike B said he was riding. I like riding with Mike. (2) I decided to try the morning ride with the saddle level to see if it helped hand numbness and whether or not I could ride with the saddle in that position on the 200k tomorrow. Originally I wasn’t going to ride so that I had a rest day. I guess I’ll get some rest over the weekend.
The morning was warm (71°F) and humid. We had about a dozen riders out, and at least 4 of us took a leisurely pace, skipping the hill in Round Bay and simply holding our own pace, even when challenged by the other faster riders. The experiment went well. I have a little residual numbness in my hands remaining from yesterday, but it didn’t get worse. No problem with the man bits. My rear end does need to get accustomed to this new seat position, but that shouldn’t take too long. My rear end feels like it did when I switched saddles a few months ago. When did 17 mph avg. get to be a leisurely pace?
Today, among the other tasks is to prep the bike for tomorrow’s ride. It looks like we will have 4 of us riding. It should be a good day. One rider thinks I’m crazy. I’ll ride the 200k, and then, since it is my wedding anniversary tomorrow, I’ll get off the bike, get showered, and then Lori and I will go out for dinner in Baltimore. After all, it is only a 200k, right?
Monday afternoon I rode to Bike Doctor for a professional bike fitting. While I’ve ridden this bike over 8,200 miles, I had only had it “eyeballed” for fit. I occasionally get numb hands, and in pictures I look like the bike just doesn’t fit.
Steve, the owner of Bike Doctor, takes 45-60 minutes to measure leg angles and carefully watch the body position on the bike to optimize the fit. There are two options for this (as I understand it). One uses a computer, the other uses Steve’s expertise. I chose Steve (and the cheaper option).
We set my bike up on the trainer, I climbed aboard, and the process started with me pedaling and getting into my routine position. As we moved through the major points of adjustment, tweaking began. First, the seat was raised about 1 cm (a pretty significant distance) to get my legs in the proper position. This included the hip to knee to ankle angle measurements. Steve wanted to raise the seat just a little higher, but I resisted because I was already feeling as though I was reaching a bit on the pedal stroke. Now, the nose of the seat needed to be leveled. It was pointed slightly downward, and was probably the source of the numb hands. When the seat was leveled, I felt uncomfortable pressure in the front of the saddle. We backed it off one notch for now. I’ll likely have to try to ride with it flattened again after I’m accustomed to this seat height.
Steve then carefully suspended a weight on a line from my knee to just above my foot, to determine the proper seat position, front to back. The seat was adjusted about 1 cm back on the rails. Moving me up and back now meant I was reaching quite a bit forward. Steve removed my 90 mm stem and replaced it with an 80 mm stem. At the same time, it looked like he dropped a 5mm spacer off the headset. He would have liked to use a 70 mm stem, but believed that changed the cockpit configuration too much and would impair handling. As it is, I can just barely see the front hub over top of the handlebars as I’m in position, so I’d have to agree with him.
Steve cautioned me that these were big changes to the fit and would take some time to get accustomed to them. He urged me to get some miles in before my 200k on Friday, and in fact, seemed hesitant about my riding the 200k. I assured him that I’d get some miles in.
Riding the bike back home, I could feel the difference in the fit. Certainly the pedal stroke felt longer. There is a little bit more of a reach for me, which as I’ve ridden now about 70 miles in this configuration, I notice that I’m likely going to need to use some lube in my shorts, especially on the 200k. Balance is fine. After my first 20 miles, I had some tired muscles in areas that had never really been stressed before.
But the thing I notice most is the increase in speed. I’m estimating that it has boosted my speed by as much as 1 mph. Is this just in my head? Maybe. But I’m going faster with the same amount of effort. Others have commented on the increased speed too. The jury is still out on the hills, unless we are talking about the “rollers”. This morning, I was 2 mph faster on my test hill than I’ve gone before. Several weeks ago I was struggling to make 16 mph all the way up the hill. Last week, I had increased that to 19 – 19.5. This morning I was 21.5 mph up this same hill. Yes, I’m working on strength training and I’m riding regularly, but this jump is quick and noticeable.
Unfortunately, I’ve got hands that are going numb more quickly with this set up. I’ll see how I do on the 200k with frequent hand position changes. I may have to put the nose of the seat up the one notch, or go visit Steve again to find a solution to this.
This adjustment has been good. I think with a couple of little tweaks for hand numbness, I’ll be calling this money well spent.
Tuesday Night Pizza Ride
This Ride: 31.4 miles
Month: 468.8 miles
2011: 2,676.2 miles
Total since 1/1/2010: 8,795.9 miles
The forecast all day Tuesday was for a chance of thunderstorms early evening. True to form, as the front moved closer to Severna Park, it broke up, and the rain went around us. It made for a warm Tuesday Night Pizza Ride with 85°F temps and a steady southerly breeze. We had seven out to ride. I wasn’t sure what I had in my legs because of a fast morning ride, but as we pushed down the trail, my legs seemed to warm up and were ready to ride. We kept a reasonable pace until we got to Holly Drive. Janet kept going, she knew what would happen on Holly Drive. We were soon in a tight pace line and were moving fast. We kept the speed between 20 and 25 through the neighborhood, slowing only for sharp curves and one pre-teen girl who was wandering down the road clueless as to what was coming from behind her. Alex met us at the southern end of Hwy 2 and joined us back to Severna Park. We had some spirited sprints on the trail on the way back. I know I saw 31 mph briefly on my Garmin as I sprinted past some of the guys. Jane joined us for pizza after the ride. It was a nice ride with good friends. That’s two days of vacation with two rides each day. Not bad!
Wednesday Morning
This Ride: 22.8 miles
Month: 491.6 miles
2011: 2,699.0 miles
Total since 1/1/2010: 8,818.7 miles
I woke up tired. Yesterday’s fast miles were weighing on me. I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to keep up with the “big boys” on the morning ride. I had a fall back position though, since two riders announced they were not going to ride the fast ride this morning. As it was, I was caught in the middle. We had a big group out this morning. Easily a dozen riders. This was a clear morning. There were no clouds and the pavement was dry. That’s a break from what we’ve been having recently for these morning rides.
The leaders set a quick pace, but not one that was unreasonable, so I hung with the group all the way through to the hill in Round Bay. That hill was not attacked hard by the front riders, but it is where we started to be stretched out. We settled into about 3 smaller groups there, and continued the ride in the smaller groups (sometimes merging together, sometimes splitting apart) for most of the rest of the ride. I again found myself leading with a rider or two drafting through the southern part of the trail. I felt good and strong on B&A Blvd coming back, and we hit the rollers after Jones Station Road pretty quick. My test hill was ridden at a full 2 mph faster than ever before (21.5 mph), and that was not really drafting, although I was in a stretched out group at that point.
Once we got back to Jennings Road, I had nothing left in the legs. The hills on Jennings could have been mountains for all I know. I had considered stretching the ride to around 30 miles, but once I hit that hill, I knew I was done for the morning. This afternoon, who knows?
Over the past 25-26 hours, I rode 3 times, never less than 20 miles and never less than a 17.5 mph average pace. Wow!
I’ll have some observations in another post later today that might explain some of that.
This Ride: 21.9 miles
Month: 437.4 miles
2011: 2,644.9 miles
Total since 1/1/2010: 8,764.6 miles
Day two of my vacation and I awoke disoriented. I had to ask what day it was. I don’t even know why I needed to know other than the fact that my schedule is absolutely crazy busy.
The ride on tap for the day was “Terrible Tuesday”. It is generally a fast pace. I had conflicting “tasks” all morning so I wasn’t sure how fast I was going to go. Bryan was out for a recovery ride after his first 400k last Saturday. Jim was out for only the second or third time this year. This was my first real ride after the bike fitting yesterday. I also wanted to ride fast. Mix all that together and you have a very confused man on a bike.
There was no rain overnight. There was a line of rain showers headed toward us, with an expected arrival time of around 7:00 am, so it looked like we would be dry. This was also the warmest morning of the year so far, about 70-72 degrees. Six met at the Rusty Bridge and Ben joined us along the way. We had a reasonable pace for the first few miles, and it gradually accelerated. I opted to ride with Jim and avoided the hill in Round Bay. By then, Dan and Bryan were well off the pace, creating three distinct groups. I slowed considerably to ride with Jim as he was struggling up the hills on Old County Road, and we were passed by the fast group before we got to the trail. On the trail, I picked up speed and Jim is experienced enough to hang on to a wheel, so away we went, up to about 24 mph along the trail. He later told me that his heart rate was above 160 while drafting. Mine was there too, pushing against all that wind. We eased it off some on the way back, at least until B&A Blvd where I again set the pace, this time with Jim and Bryan in tow.
It was a good fast ride. It was in fact, my fastest ride on the 5:45 route this year with an average of 18 mph over the course of the ride. (Count that toward increasing fitness or my bike being dialed in … or both.) I was tired by the end of the ride, so I pulled up a few miles short and headed home. I’ll try to get out again later today for either an easy ride or the Tuesday Pizza Ride, depending on what the weather looks like.
I am noticing my muscles working a little differently with the cockpit reconfiguration. I’m working some parts of some muscles a little more, and some a little less. I did have some mild numbness in my hands, but that could be due to the fact that in dialing in the bike, I asked that the seat nose be dropped one click. I was concerned about numbness in my man bits when the seat was level since I felt more pressure than I like as we were making the adjustments. I also notice two things when standing in the pedals. First, that’s when I notice the handlebars being back a bit. The balance is a bit different. Second, when I go back to the seat from the standing position, I glide back more than I sit “down”. Who would have thought that 1 cm would make that much difference that is is noticeable? But then, I do have over 8,000 miles and hundreds of hours in one position on the bike, so muscle memory will be strong. So far, I’m feeling good about the adjustments and am glad that I got it done at least a few days before the 200k.
A quick RAAM update.
Today I received my airplane tickets for the trip out to California. I’ll be leaving early June 12th. That puts us in California a few days before the June 15 start of the race.
We hope to be back in Annapolis June 25th.
These Rides: 46.9 miles
Month: 415.5 miles
2011: 2,622.9 miles
Total since 1/1/2010: 8,742.6 miles
What is the best way to start vacation? Get up at 4:45 a.m., ride bikes with friends, come home to see the spouse off to work, go for another ride and later ride once more to get a professional bike fitting. I think I’m done riding for the day.
This morning’s ride was deja vu all over again (that’s redundant, isn’t it?). We had showers roll through after 3:00 a.m., but by 5:30 the rain had stopped and we had another dry ride. Five of us were out, and it was a pretty easy pace. We saw Mike B. on his commute to work. He was going in much too early. I hope he dodges the weather later today … thunderstorms are in the forecast. Clif filled us in on the 400k he rode Saturday, and Dave filled us in on his 200k ridden yesterday. It was a nice morning, and only 1 near squirrel incident.
I stopped back by the house to see Lori off to work and grabbed a quick bite to eat before pushing off once again. I decided to ride a few hills, so I went into Round Bay and climbed Asquithview three times, then traveled down to Ben Oban for one loop. I was getting bored, so I proceeded back home, and got there by 9:00 a.m.
I had a 1:00 p.m. bike fitting appointment with Bike Doctor, so I rode the 3 1/2 miles there. In about 45 minutes, I had my leg angles measured and the bike adjusted. My seat was raised about 1 cm. I had a new stem put on that was 1 cm shorter than the one I had on the bike. My seat was moved back 1 cm. Steve took the time to make sure that it was all done right, and that I felt comfortable. He was willing to adjust the nose of the seat and the angle of the bars different than he thought was right, based on my comfort level and feedback. As I rode back home, I could tell that something was different. It tweaked my muscles a little differently, and believe it or not the 1 cm height difference is noticeable. I’ll need to definitely get some miles in before my longer ride at the end of this week, or I could be suffering.
I am now terribly far behind in miles for the month and not where I want to be for my miles for the year to date. Two weeks off the bike in June is going to hurt me further in these goals. I need 200 miles by the end of the month to hold my own for my annual goal, and 385 miles to meet my monthly goal. I can see 360 being possible, so maybe I will come close. June simply will be a bust, and I’ll have to catch up during the rest of the year.
My plan is a 200k on Friday. We have our annual Memorial Day ride to Sweet Sue’s on Monday on which I can get another 100 miles riding from my house. June 2nd I’ll be riding to Ocean City. That’s a full week of riding!
This Ride: 23 miles
Month: 368.5 miles
2011: 2,576.0 miles
Total since 1/1/2010: 8,695.7 miles
In the movie “Groundhog Day” the day repeats over and over for the main character. That’s what this week feels like. Rain overnight. Wet pavement for the ride. No rain but 100% humidity. Puddles everywhere. Oh, and I almost forgot. A good ride.
I skipped yesterday’s ride, feeling exhausted from my work schedule. I missed riding in hub deep water. Today, the 7-8 (it varied) of us skipped that part of the route not wanting a repeat performance. Clint suffered another flat (front) on Jennings Road. We think it was a faulty valve. But it was a good day to be out, with lots of good conversation and a pretty easy pace. A 200k is being planned for May 27th that I’ll ride.
I’ll miss riding tomorrow. It is bike to work day, with events planned in Annapolis, but I’ll be attending graduation ceremonies at Georgetown University for my daughter (PhD) and son-in-law (Master’s). It will be an all day affair, with a very early commute into Washington, D.C.
Stephanie loves her red headlight!
- Gathered around for the start of the night ride. Those vests really reflect!
The follow van is its own warehouse, bike shop and convenience store. Randy wants it ... it is here.
Gearing up for a chilly night ride.
Checking out the radar for approaching thunderstorms. Troy, Richard, Rand.
A few Twizzlers at dawn.
The long and lonely road
He can sleep anywhere
Suzie says, who pee peed in the RV?
Rev Rider 