First TT of the season

Last Sunday was the first chance for me to see how the winter training has gone. I went into it feeling pretty upbeat as I had  recently pushed out a new ftp highest value on TrainerRoad, and I had also dropped 4kgs. The event was the Kingston Wheelers’ Sporting 14. A two lap event that took in the Hungry Hill road just outside Ripley. It’s a steady, long drag rather than a hill and a felt that I should be able to power myself up and over it fairly well and with Simon starting 2 minutes behind me I thought that I should be able to keep him at bay fairly easily. Factoring in the last time I did this event a couple of years ago and the improvements that I have made since then, I thought a long 35 should be manageable.

I didn’t work out that way. I ended up riding 37:57, a long way from what I thought I would do. I can’t really explain it. I did have some mechanical issues with my shifting not working properly, but other than that I was just a lot slower than I should have been. Simon is probably a good 7-8 kgs lighter than me so I would have expected him to take some time out of me up the climbs, but when he overtook me halfway through the second lap, he kept pulling away from me on the downhills too. I just wasn’t generating the power tha5bi had been in training and it was very frustrating. Oh well, it’s only a hobby and it’s a very long season, so plenty of time to get my legs fired up again.

In other news, Mrs Wheezy and I have joined a gym. While I have been regularly bashing out 8-10 hours a week, Mrs Wheezy has been holding down a career and doing the vast majority of the childcare while I have been out riding my bike with my mates. We thought it was time that she had the opportunity for some health and fitness stuff and as our children are older and can look after themselves for a few hours,  joining a gym and doing a few things together seemed like a good idea.  So far, it’s been great. A 25m pool that’s usually deserted and has a lot less chlorine than other pools; watt bikes for me to do some interval sessions on, and some very funky treadmills, which hopefully will mean I can get back into some gentle running. Mrs Wheezy loves the pool and the cross trainers  so it mean we can do a few bits together, which is a bonus. It almost means that I’m a triathlete again.

Winter; do one.

The lurgy’s hit hard, after I did a 60 miler at the weekend. Two days off work feeling sorry for myself but it’s the first time I have beenproperly ill in a long while. The said 60 miles was good fun, low speed, low stress on a Phoenix Sunday club run. I had a couple of friends come out to join us and one has even ended up joining the club as a result.  It never ceases to amaze me, the shear number of cyclists out on the road every weekend. Most look like bunches of mates but with quite a few clubs thrown in the mix too. There’s the whole debate about waving when you see other cyclists. Quite a few don’t, and it’s cool when others do. I am an ardent waver, it just seems a good thing to do, minimal effort and a shared camaraderie. I’d like to think that I would never be ‘too pro to wave.’

I have to say I’m done with Winter.  I don’t mind being cold but the constant low cloud, drizzle or heavy down pours are starting to become a bit of a bore. I can’t wait for some warmer weather and the chance to get rid of snoods, leggings and winter tops. I dream of Majorca and Sa Calobra,  it it’s going to be a while before I see them again.

Pleasantly surprised 2

So Simon and I did the 4th cat. racing training, and despite the absolutely awful weather (2 degrees above zero and persistent rain) it was really useful. It was run by Paul of PB Coaching. He’s a pretty experienced 2nd Cat rider, mainly on the continent. We had a rectangular loop set out on the South of England Showground at Ardingly, which was only a 40 minute drive away. The loop had quite a few hazards; potholes, narrowing of the track, gravel etc although Paul and his assistant Tim had swept the course before. That said, it gave a more realistic feel to what we might encounter on the road rather than it being a completely sterile track with no real hazards.  There were 40 of us, most from clubs but also quite a few BC members. A small handful of the riders had already done some racing but most had not and there were about 10 ladies, which was really good to see.  

We started with a quick briefing, mainly focussing on cornering; correct weight distribution, vision, braking technique etc.  With the weather so bad (it was only just above freezing and incessant, light rain) these points were particularly important and hammered home. 

So out on the bikes for the first time we just orbited the track on our own,  getting used to the hazards and corners. Paul told us we all had to stay in the small chainring to get our legs spinning quickly and to avoid people getting carried away in the first 10 minutes. After that, it was a succession of drills to get us used to riding in larger and larger groups. Basically, the order was as follows;

Ride in pairs, focussing on good vision and awareness through the bends.

As above, but in fours, keeping within 1 meter of the wheel in front. (Closer if confident).

Ride laps with your hand in your partners shoulder, they had there hands on their head, then swap on the next straight.

This next drill was the one that was really good fun and really got you thinking about your positioning but the main focus was on communication, both verbally and by a gentle touch on the back or arm.  We lined up in 10 rows of 4, and the four riders at the back had to come through the three channels and make their way to the front.  It started off quite easily but as you can imagine, after a few minutes it got quite chaotic! It was all about calling your position and letting the rider in front knowing where you were and what your intentions were. I have to say that I really enjoyed it.

after a break to warm up and another quick briefing, we were back out, but this time we were working in groups of 8. We self seeded so there was a faster group going down to a slower group (that said, none of the activities we did were carried out at speed. Tim was always at the front controlling the pace and it was very gentle. The focus for the whole day was safety and enjoyment). This time we learnt about pacelines and chaingang riding and focused on that for half an hour. 

We had a final talk session from Paul in the clubhouse which focussed a little more on race specific tactics and some basic training principles.

Although a fairly experienced rider, probably like a lot of us I like to ride with my mates who I know and importantly, I know how they ride. I have been sat behind Simon for so long, I can often pre-empt what he’s going to do before he does it. As a result, thankfully, we’ve never had a crash. It’s a very different kettle of fish when you are riding with people that you don’t know and I think the big takeaway from this course was that if we are all basically riding the same way with really good communication than our safety is going to be much greater. I went from being very sceptical about the riders around me (and I’m sure they felt the same about me) to trusting them within a very short space of time. How often can we say that about the people we sometimes end up riding with or encountering on the road?

My ego's writing cheques.......

my body can't cash.

Possibly the greatest line from Top Gun, and very pertinent to this post. Last post I was crowing about my very healthy increase to 263 watts from my last ftp test; a personal best. This has proved to be a false positive. I did a couple of TrainerRoad sessions and it was impossible for me to attain the numbers needed in each set. I would get a couple of reps in and my legs would be absolutely shot, with no way back to complete each session. When I took the test I had to use a higher than normal gear as the other gears were slipping so I was working on a much lower cadence. Somehow, this has given me a false result and I have had to suffer the ignominy of lowering my ftp. The good news is though, not by much; down to 256 watts and this has made all the difference.

So on Saturday, I'm trying something new.  I'm heading off to Ardingly to do a 4th category training session so that I can take part in the Surrey League Road Racing events.  To be honest, I'm actually pretty nervous. I have managed to get to 47 years of age without breaking any bones (despite coming off a motorbike (twice) and falling out the sky in a hang glider) I have therefore led a fairly charmed life. However, it seems that putting 30 or so MAMILS in very close proximity to each other, all thinking they might be the next Cav, could well end up in shattered carbon, aluminium and bones. Because of this, the Surrey League, very wisely, introduced compulsory training, which all riders have to attend. It basically ensures that all riders understand basic group riding skills so that they can be as safe as possible and it also covers racing techniques. My hope is that even if I don't race it will improve my personal skills when Group riding. Simon and I are riding down, doing the session then riding back. It could be a very long day in the saddle.

Pleasantly surprised

Despite the January and back to work blues, this is usually an exciting time of the year as I'm formulating the racing season to come and starting to get into some more meaty training.  I have some very good news. Yesterday I did another ftp test after completing the latest Trainerroad sweet spot base training block.  My last test was a little disappointing with a very modest 4 watt increase, and it was partly due to this that I decided to complete two base blocks.  I really went for it and I was a blubbering mess at the end. So my ftp result was 263 watts; a new power pb and some 30+ watts more than this time last year. This is a significant improvement and I'm thrilled that I have this power base to work from. That said, I also weighed myself on January 1st and that's an all time high too. 77kgs, which is the heaviest I have been in a very long time. So the plan is to get this down to 70kg by June and that should see my power/weight ratio get within striking reach of the magical 4w/kg.

I've started entering a few events, most notably the Gill Jessop Sporting 14 time trial organised by the Kingston Wheelers. It's in February so it's always a cold one but it's a good, no nonsense season opener, with excellent cake. (Although that's currently banned from my diet). I have also entered the National 12 hour TT on the same course as my failed 12 hour last year. The aim here is to hit 240 miles minimum and if Simon and Dale enter, which they probably will, and the day is a good one, I am sure we will have a crack at the Phoenix 12hr team record.

However, for the next month it's all about the turbo, with a long ride at the weekend.  I've got an ftp value to improve on.

Next year

As I write, I am 8 miles from having ridden 6000 miles this year; by some distance the most I have ever ridden. To the purists, the fact that a big chunk of this has been done on the turbo may be a problem, but I'm pretty chuffed with having done this. I just need to tick off those 8 miles, or a few more within the next six days.  Also as I write, I have a streaming head cold, which is my first for quite a while. Just in time for Christmas; magic! So maybe a bit more miles next year would be good. 7000 miles would mean 135 miles per week. Which just means one slightly extended commute each week. I reckon I can do that.

Next season is starting to take a bit of shape.  My aim is to mix it up a little bit more. The Kingston Wheelers Audax series will give me some long distance events to focus on as a practice for qualifying for Paris-Brest-Paris in 2019, but I'm going to have a little dabble with some closed circuit road racing.  To be honest, I feel like I will be far too long in the tooth for it but there are some training days next month which I have booked up for which are compulsory for novices and 4th cat. riders to race in the local cycle league. If nothing else, it will give me some VO2 max workouts which will be useful sessions for the shorter time trials. I am either going to really enjoy it or really hate it. We shall see.  The other target that would be awesome is a sub 4 hour 100. I'm not sure that I've got it in me but maybe on a good course on a good day I might be able to get close.

Kingston Phoenix stuff has kept me very busy lately. Trying to ensure that we have a club run out every Sunday has been hard work. I have always been used to meeting Simon and getting a ride done by 10am, but the needs of the club has meant a later start.  It's been good to ride in a group and we are putting together a great little training group, which we hope will help to encourage new riders and develop the club.  That said, I do miss the solitude of riding sometimes, just being on my own or with one or two close friends, chewing the cudd, talking arse and taking in the scenery.


I'm also promoting my first Open time trial at the end of the season which is quite a large responsibility as we are using it to raise money for charity in light of the deaths of three of my club mates. I want to make sure that I do it right.

Winter.

I'm trying to get some serious turbo action at the moment. I spent a bit of time looking back at my TrainerRoad history and the obvious thing is that if I maintain 250/300 TSS consistently, then my ftp takes a nice lurch upwards. With the weather being cold and icy it's making it easier to focus on my turbo work.  I want to try to get my ftp up and over 260 watts by the time we get to May, as that should set me up for some good performances. The Kingston Wheelers have their Audax series which will be my aerobic events to focus on next season. At the moment, it's turbo and coffee drinking at the weekend.

I've also treated my self to a Garmin 800 to help me plan and discover some new routes in the Surrey Hills and beyond. Looking forward to it.

A bit of Ballbuster

I had entered the Human Race Ballbuster a few months ago and almost immediately got injured. I was only going to ride out and spectate but I ended up being drafted into one of the Epsom Tri Club teams as their bike rider. We had Phil running the first leg, who had competed in Kona just the month before and Gary running the glory leg; a pretty decent runner. I had the Van Nic with full mudguards and winter gear on, so not exactly in race mode.

It was actually quite a lot of fun as most competitors were doing the full event so were saving themselves on the bike and was able to go past quite a few. I didn't really hammer it but kept a pretty good tempo throughout and was only overtaken by 2 other relay teams. We ended up as 7th overall with a combined time of 3:07. Most importantly, I got one of the infamous Ballbuster hoodies.

Gary, Kona Phil, yours truly.

I've finished my first TrainerRoad block and just about to start to repeat it as I am planning to get a bigger base for next year. My weeks have been bulked out with a couple of rides of 20 miles on the way home, which are just steady recovery rides. I haven't started the really hurty stuff yet. That's next month.

Big week

The last month has just been about establishing a regular routine again with my training, which has been 2 or 3 Trainerroad sessions in the week with a long ride at the weekend. Last week I was on half term break so I was able to get a pretty big week in, with 250 miles ridden, including a long 90 miles on the first Monday, taking in some new lanes up and over the North Downs. I had not realised just how steep a few of these climbs would be. I based my ride around the Battle of Britain, taking in a Hurricane crash site, the White Hart Pub where Biggin Hill pilots would have a few beers in the evening, followed by skirting around the old aerodromes at Biggin Hill and Kenley. It was a slow, relaxed ride and I was out most of the day before it started to rain in the last hour.

Crash site and memorial of Sgt. Fenemore's Hurricane in South Godstone

Memorial at Kenley Aerodrome

RAF graves in St Luke's Church, Whyteleafe

Next week is the Ballbuster duathlon. A classic event in the multisport calendar that I have never done. I'm going to register and start the run but I have absolutely no idea if my foot is going to last and it might be a very early dnf for me. If nothing else, I will get a new hoodie out of it.

Back on the horse

The last few weeks have just been about getting back on the titanium horse.  Lots of short commuting, doing my best to avoid the numptys driving while on their phones, with the odd longer 20 mile ride home as a special treat on a Friday night. Also getting back into regular Trainerroad sessions and I have gone back to the Sweetspot base plan, but this time I am doing the low volume plan.  This means three interval sessions per week but I will bulk that out with a longer weekend ride and the longer commutes already mentioned for the recovery and endurance rides.

I am meant to be doing the Ballbuster next month, but this is looking very doubtful. My left foot is still very achy at times, despite stretching and manipulation. I think another 2-3 weeks off and then I might give a gentle run a go. In the meantime: bike!

A change of heart

The fact I have not blogged for a month tells its own story in that this month has been a relaxed and lovely time with very little training. After the Outlaw I started some regular, easy running  only to get injured a couple of weeks ago. At the time it just seemed like a gentle Achilles strain but it soon got quite bad, not helped by the fact that we were doing a lot of camping and walking so I never really rested it properly. I cycled gently into work last week and it even hurt doing that, so I just put my bikes away and forgot about cycling and training for a while.

This two weeks though has given me a lot of headspace about what to do and how I want to do it. Another Ironman? Sub 53 for 25? Sub 1:55 for 50miles? Sub 4 hours for 100 miles? All good goals and all achievable with a lot of work. The thing is, my cycling has been all about one performance goal after another and all the training that they require, and somewhere along the way cycling has turned into an increasingly joyless affair, with me being more concerned about power outputs and CdA coefficients rather than the landscape I'm cycling through and the sheer enjoyment of turning a set of cranks.

As part of my time trialling targets I have been seeking out faster and faster courses, and this usually requires dual carriageways, with a net downhill, and fairly high traffic flow to push one along.  Not the nicest environment to be cycling on and an increasingly dangerous one. Two months ago, a club mate and friend was killed on the F11/10 course after being struck by a vehicle. It made the National news and our club is still in mourning.  A few weeks before, during my 50 TT where I set my pb, I had my closest ever pass by a van that left me shaken for some time after and in the same event a rider who finished only 20 seconds after me was hospitalised for a week after being hit by a car as he crossed the finish line. I guess you could say that I have lost my bottle, but the more I put myself in harms way, the more likely some idiot is going to hit me and at the moment, that's not a risk I am prepared to take. It's not a case of not time trialling any more, but I do intend to be a bit more selective as to what and when I ride a TT. I want my time trialling to be fun again rather than the feeling of being in some arms race, where I have to find the fastest courses, most areo helmet, buy the latest TT frame just to keep up.  I am just an average MAMIL after all and no one really cares if I I knock 30 seconds off my 10 mile time. Increasingly, I am becoming less bothered too and as I get older I'm going to have to put in significantly more work just to stay still.

So I want to change the way I ride and why I ride and I think I have found it.

 Audax.

 What on Earth is Audax? Well, to be honest, I'm not entirely sure.  It's described as something between touring and a time trial; a kind of long distance touring ride event with time requirements in order to get to the control points by a designated time.  They are usually fairly long with 100, 200, 300, 400 and even 600km events. The fact is that they are on more picturesque, quiet, hilly routes and they seem a bit more sociable. Not that the people I have met and competed in in time triallling are not sociable, just that when actually riding it. time  trialling is by its very nature an individual experience.

Every four years the premiere event in the international audax calendar takes place, the Paris-Brest-Paris audax and the next one is in two years' time. It's 1200kms long, which in anyone's book is a very long way. That's quite hard.  The other hard bit is that to qualify to ride it by ridding a 200, 300, 400 and 600km event in the run up to PBP. So a big goal but one I can do at a more sedate and sociable pace. The drawbacks? It seems that the most essential bit of kit an audax rider needs is a beard and I have always found one quite difficult to grow. Still, I've got a two year head start..

Outlaw Triathlon

Nice socks

Another go at an iron distance triathlon after my first and last attempt at the Forestman back in 2011. The fact it had taken me six years to summon the energy to give it another go speaks volumes about how hard that day had been. Until recently I had harbored thoughts of going under 11 hours, but as the months had progressed towards the Outlaw I had spent more and more time in the saddle and less time running and swimming. My focus for this race, quite simply was to enjoy it and come away having had a good experience, as I felt that this would be my last go.

I had forgotten how much kit and preparation doing a triathlon takes, but Simon and I enjoyed the buzz of the day before, mooching around the expo and eating lots of carbs before the rain came.

Swim

The Outlaw swim is as easy at it gets, at least in terms of sighting. Quite simply, one mile up the rowing lake in a straight line, a 200 metre leg across the top and then swim in a straight line back. I love a mass swim start; you can literally feel the energy in the water as everyone sets out, finding their own space. Simon and I seeded ourselves at the back of the second pen and that seemed ok as we had clear water for the first 300 meters, but then the swimmers for the other two pens to our right came across and there was a couple of minutes of breaststroke and  biff before it settled down again. I swam the entire leg on my own as I couldn't find any feet swimming straight, so gave up. I exited the water in 1:15:xx which was pretty much what I expected.

T1

 Saw Simon in transition, he had exited just 6 seconds before me. Lots of vaseline on my feet. I wore my one piece tri suit but put my favourite cycle shorts over them for extra cushioning and I wore compression socks for the first time. The weather forecast was for rain later in the bike so I wore my Kask helmet but without the visor. 7.5 minutes.

Bike

So this was going to be my strongest discipline but the plan was to bike really steadily to at least give my legs a chance to run afterwards, so the plan was to sit on 20mph which should give me a 5:35 ish bike split. Basically, that's exactly what happened and I ended up rolling back into Holme Pierrpoint in 5:38:xx. I really, really enjoyed it, but the first 40 miles were hard for a very different reason as basically everyone went past me and it took a lot for me to keep my effort reined in. Simon had mounted his bike at exactly the same time as me and he was off like a scalded rabbit and I was not to see him again for another 7 hours. From about 40 miles I started to steadily overtake other riders and as the miles went on I overtook a lot of people, many of them who I had seen go past me a couple of hours earlier. (I checked the results splits and in the end I moved up over 170 places).

As well as keeping to my planned easy pace, I was also conscious of ensuring that I was eating and I had a bit of an epiphany with this. I like simple, so I formed a simple plan. I filled up my top tube bag with 800 calories' worth of food, mainly crisps, jelly babies, crackers and snickers bars, so all I had to do was keep chomping on the items in there for the first 4 hours which would be my 200 calories per hour and then for the last hour and a half I would switch to High5 energy drink, so that I would not be consuming solid food immediately before starting the run. It worked a treat, although I would have liked more savory food. The crisps and crackers soon turned to dust and I was trying to scoop the remnants out although they coated the jelly babies well enough, so I had a ready made sweet and savory mix.

The big thing that time trialling has taught me has been to keep aero and I stayed on the bars pretty much the whole way. When the wind got up later in the morning there were a lot of riders on very expensive tt bikes sitting bolt upright in the wind, gaining no benefit from their machines at all, which just seemed completely daft. The course is very flat although there are a few very gentle rises over bridges and the like, but every time the road went up I put my chain onto the small chainring and increased my cadence. I really did try to defend my quads at every opportunity and I had no qualms about it. The last few miles I took it easy over the rough road back into Holme Pierrepont and started to mentally gather myself for the next 26 miles.

T2
Jelly legs getting off the bike, socks off, vaseline on my feet, socks and trainers back on. 7.5 mins

Run
I am used to that feeling of feeling great for the first few hindred metres of a triathlon run when ones legs haven't quite worked out what they are now doing and feel all light before the run muscles start to protest. Again, this happened, but weirdly, they didn't protest for another 13 miles. I set off feeling pretty fantastic actually, and by the time my Garmin found a satellite about 90 seconds later I was running 7:30 miles which was way too fast yet felt completely effortless. I had the common sense to immediately throw out the anchor but 8:15 miles felt about right, although still considerably faster than my 9 minute miles that I was expecting. So the plan was walk the aid stations and keep feeding little and often and just wait for the wheels to fall off and then do as little walking as I could manage. The first half felt really good and I kept to 8:15-30 miles depending on the spacing of the feed stations. When I gor to halfway and collected my second band the gantry clock was on 9:01, so amazingly a sub 11 finish was still quite comfortably on, but I could feel my legs and in particular my quads tightening. I was really chuffed that I had done everything right on the bike and I had started the run feeling very fresh, but ultimately I did not have the run conditioning in my legs to keep the pace going as cramp and muscular fatigue set in.

About half way around the second loop at 16 miles by Trent Bridge I caught Simon and this coincided with my first really bad spell. I took some coke on board and my stomach didn't like it, so I had a bit of a power walk while it settled, then started running again. As my quads tightened it just got harder and harder to get going as my legs were really painful before I settled into my shuffle, but I felt better as I was heading back to the lake and the final two laps of it. At 20 miles I had my worst part and I was in my biggest hole mentally. Everything hurt now and it was all I could do to keep my shuffle going between aid stations and I had to stop for a pee break and I tried to gather myself for the last 10km. I think by this stage it was getting a bit hotter and maybe I overheated, but I was feeling quite shaky, but a few handfuls of crisps, coke and electrolyte drink seemed to sort me out. Back to the shuffling.

As is the way with these things, I managed to pick up the pace a bit towards the end and even managed to finish with a 9:30 min mile. The finishing chute was very welcome and I stopped the clock at 11:28:09, a whole hour  less than the Forestman. Much more importantly than that, I had a real blast.

Taper time

So the Outlaw's at the end of this week, and I have finally got that big event feeling of excitement and anticipation. Up until now, the thought of doing a long course tri again has left me feeling a bit 'meh'. Even two weeks ago, I was talking to Suzie, a clubmate from Phoenix as she was feeling the same, although she was tackling Ironman UK in Bolton. It was as she was preparing for that event and I was following a few threads on Tritalk with many first timers excitedly building up to it that I started to feel something too. Then realisation hit; I had not done an open water swim since August 2014 when I did the Alpe d' Huez tri. Yikes; so over the last few weeks I have been down to Shepperton Lake to get a feel for open water again and see if I could get around 3.8km. Last Saturday I met up with Simon and we did 3.2km, so near as damn it, and while not fast, it was pretty comfortable and brought a smile to my face, although my sighting and swim lines were woeful.

So Sunday was spent fairly glued to the laptop, tracking those people I knew at Bolton, in particular Suzie. She had a blinding swim and bike and actually dismounted as second in her age group and therefore in a Kona slot, but she had a torrid time on the run and her lack of run training came back to bite her. 5:15 for the run when I think she did 4:30 last year. A few of the Tritalk guys had similar stories; feeling great on the bike and then hitting a brick wall on the run. I know this feeling all too well from the Forestman and while an IM marathon will never be easy, I am hoping that I can run off the bike. Is that likely though?

So here's the thing; I am probably in the best shape of my life on the bike. I am considerably faster now than I was six years ago ans I have consistently put in some big miles, including 4 century rides and many more over 60. I should, in theory, be able to get off the bike and have fresher legs than I have ever had before, if I pace it right. I could go out and smash it and probably be around the 5 hour mark and yes, this would be monumentally stupid. My last long ride at the weekend was 85 miles in just over 4 hours and I felt really good afterwards. This would be a 5:15 bike but that would still be far too fast. 5:30 pace would be a good target to aim for and hopefully leave me something in my legs.

I would love to run a 4 hour marathon off the bike but with so little running, this is unlikely. A 4:30 marathon would be more likely, but to be honest, it will be what it will be. Ultimately, my run will be dictated by the first 50 miles of my bike. So my mantra for Sunday will be 'Bike slow / run fast (ish)'

The best news is that the forecast weather looks almost ideal with 19 degrees and scattered cloud; compared to the 30 degrees at the Forestman, this is Utopian. If any of my 6 readers can be bothered, I'm number 887 and there's a tracker. It might make Sunday afternoon more entertaining.