Via HenryJ
http://cyklonovinky.cz/Reportaze/Mistrovstvi-CSSR-v-cyklokrosu-10-1-1976-Mlada-Bole.aspx
check it out (i'm not sure how to embed it so i'm not going to try - go watch)
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
couple more w/o much annotation
RW Daily with a great counter point to the NY Times article about snacking and eating. Turkey Leg and giant jelly bean and the "Hershey miniatures worn across chest, bandolier-style" funny.
Alex also weighs in on it in a more serious manner here (also at RW but formerly sweat science)
Now for some cringe worthy stuff you find on the internet. Sure, I've certainly f'd up and used a w/w (wrong word as my teachers used to write) now and again and I try to make sure I at least get the heading words right. And I'm not monetizing this shit or trying to make it look professional (can you tell) so for me it is just pride when I screw up, (notice i said when, not if - because god damn i do screw up plenty).
Check this out. The title got me because I've been watching a pile of Kung Fu on vacation. Bruce Lee's Fists of Fury was good. So good. Not a fan of the ending though, mostly because I was hoping the firing squad would take out the consulate standing behind Lee when they shot.
Here's just a small part (in case it gets edited, but it has been commented on already w/o change):
Really.
Waist? and then Wast?
Not to mention the encase without a link.
sort of funny in a "are you serious?" kind of way.
Now Cake. You can eat your cake and lose weight too? Some grumpy older dude than me likes to remind me that it is mostly bike racers reading this crap i'm trying to write and the point being y'all ain't the problem as far as being at a healthy weight. So it is silly but worth dumping into this post:
http://www.globalnews.ca/health/health/6442576407/story.html
I would like to highlight the fact that they added cake in addition to a normal low sugar/sensible breakfast. At the END of it. You satisfy the physiological cravings with the protein and the other signalling stuff with the cake.
But cake is different. Cake has eggs (or suitable vegan substitute) and fat. It isn't a big glass of orange juice, or a bowl of frosted flakes covered in skim milk.
You are also attenuating the absorption eating it after a "sensible guilt-free" breakfast.
Big day tomorrow.
Lots of pedaling. Lots of calories burned. I'm not going to follow the NYTimes advice and not eat because I'm doing something more than an hour of exercise. I'm going to eat. And pedal my ass off.
All.
Day.
(and it makes me happy thinking about it)
heddwch
G
Alex also weighs in on it in a more serious manner here (also at RW but formerly sweat science)
Now for some cringe worthy stuff you find on the internet. Sure, I've certainly f'd up and used a w/w (wrong word as my teachers used to write) now and again and I try to make sure I at least get the heading words right. And I'm not monetizing this shit or trying to make it look professional (can you tell) so for me it is just pride when I screw up, (notice i said when, not if - because god damn i do screw up plenty).
Check this out. The title got me because I've been watching a pile of Kung Fu on vacation. Bruce Lee's Fists of Fury was good. So good. Not a fan of the ending though, mostly because I was hoping the firing squad would take out the consulate standing behind Lee when they shot.
Here's just a small part (in case it gets edited, but it has been commented on already w/o change):
Really.
Training harder with poor position is a waist of time
You can work on training your body to become more efficient through drills and experience. If for example your saddle is too high you will not see the improvements you would see if you first had a professional bicycle fit and then worked on the drills. You will certainly see improvements but you are improving at a position that is bio-mechanically inefficient.
Don’t wast your effort with a poor position
A professional bicycle fit is the first step in becoming more efficient. Greater efficiency means that you use your power more effectively and in have a better overall cycling experience. Think of Kung Fu master Bruce Lee with his one inch punch. (encase you are wondering here is a link) the next time you go out for a ride and ask yourself if you are in an efficient position and using as little energy as possible to ride your bike.
Waist? and then Wast?
Not to mention the encase without a link.
sort of funny in a "are you serious?" kind of way.
Now Cake. You can eat your cake and lose weight too? Some grumpy older dude than me likes to remind me that it is mostly bike racers reading this crap i'm trying to write and the point being y'all ain't the problem as far as being at a healthy weight. So it is silly but worth dumping into this post:
http://www.globalnews.ca/health/health/6442576407/story.html
I would like to highlight the fact that they added cake in addition to a normal low sugar/sensible breakfast. At the END of it. You satisfy the physiological cravings with the protein and the other signalling stuff with the cake.
But cake is different. Cake has eggs (or suitable vegan substitute) and fat. It isn't a big glass of orange juice, or a bowl of frosted flakes covered in skim milk.
You are also attenuating the absorption eating it after a "sensible guilt-free" breakfast.
Big day tomorrow.
Lots of pedaling. Lots of calories burned. I'm not going to follow the NYTimes advice and not eat because I'm doing something more than an hour of exercise. I'm going to eat. And pedal my ass off.
All.
Day.
(and it makes me happy thinking about it)
heddwch
G
salty bread
Do you normally think about bread being salty? Probably not, most people don't. Heck I'm a big fan of putting putting some nice unsalted butter on toast and then sprinkling some salt on top.
But bread is f'n salty.
Cool article/report I saw this morning talks about how to cut the salt w/o cutting human satisfaction.
Now, as always, the jury is still out for the general public (trending on the basis that most people get too much) but most training athletes don't need to worry too much about salt if they sweat on a regular basis.
I'm reading the article as saying "we make salt bigger, can use less, consumer tastes it more." One issue I have is the use of 1000 and 2000 µm. Really? 1000 µm? Are you deliberately trying to mislead? Why not say 1-2 mm? Lost of people know that they are equal but it doesn't change the initial impression. Wasted characters.
So, skip the fine salt, use coarse salt and you will need less for taste. Esp when making bread. Bread and baked goods are one of the higher sources of sodium, even home baked bread recipes call for quite a bit of salt. Again, good for fighting cramps and replacing sodium from sweat loss and extra fluid consumption/evacuation.
Primary source: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0733521011002256
Finally. This give a clue as to how people can have huge sodium consumption numbers without thinking anything of it. The finer the salt the more you can consume without realizing it.
Yes it does brighten the whole palate and enhance other flavors, without salt most foods do taste pretty bland. But is that because of the salt stimulating your taste bud neurons ala squid helping all the less sensitive taste buds react faster/better? Yes there are salt specific ones and the larger grain size might act in a nice gradient way and we will perceive a more salty response when only some of the salt receptors are activated instead of all of them evenly. Larger chunks of salt probably do that.
Soy Sauce is salty but also, has a bunch of amino acids and other stuff that give it the desired umami. Granted that's assuming that the soy sauce is dark from the process, not coloring and additives to make some salty water look like soy sauce.
I know and recognize that there are a limited number of my friends (people who read this at least) that need to worry about salt, or calories, or food. Education though.
Never stop. Can't stop Won't stop as myerspace says. Learning, reading, sharing information.
Truly: "The More You Know." The less you'll sound like a bloated wind bag like many politicians working on getting some exposure right now.
heddwch
G
But bread is f'n salty.
Cool article/report I saw this morning talks about how to cut the salt w/o cutting human satisfaction.
Now, as always, the jury is still out for the general public (trending on the basis that most people get too much) but most training athletes don't need to worry too much about salt if they sweat on a regular basis.
I'm reading the article as saying "we make salt bigger, can use less, consumer tastes it more." One issue I have is the use of 1000 and 2000 µm. Really? 1000 µm? Are you deliberately trying to mislead? Why not say 1-2 mm? Lost of people know that they are equal but it doesn't change the initial impression. Wasted characters.
So, skip the fine salt, use coarse salt and you will need less for taste. Esp when making bread. Bread and baked goods are one of the higher sources of sodium, even home baked bread recipes call for quite a bit of salt. Again, good for fighting cramps and replacing sodium from sweat loss and extra fluid consumption/evacuation.
Primary source: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0733521011002256
Finally. This give a clue as to how people can have huge sodium consumption numbers without thinking anything of it. The finer the salt the more you can consume without realizing it.
Soy Sauce is salty but also, has a bunch of amino acids and other stuff that give it the desired umami. Granted that's assuming that the soy sauce is dark from the process, not coloring and additives to make some salty water look like soy sauce.
I know and recognize that there are a limited number of my friends (people who read this at least) that need to worry about salt, or calories, or food. Education though.
Never stop. Can't stop Won't stop as myerspace says. Learning, reading, sharing information.
Truly: "The More You Know." The less you'll sound like a bloated wind bag like many politicians working on getting some exposure right now.
heddwch
G
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Velosprints
Every other monday I've been heading down at lunch to get some spinning on. My times have dropped down to 21.82 for 500 meters. And that 21.82 was actually the most effortless of any of the runs.
Usually I can get a couple runs in over lunch between meetings and what not. Managed to get three in yesterday, negative split each one.
That last one was odd, felt strangely good. Often the last one leaves me cooked and unable to walk. It is surprising how just over 20 seconds of effort can leave you helpless. But that 21.82 was fine. I did a few things different and wow what a difference. But what did I do? I'm going to see if I can use the same technique again for similar results, and until i can repeat it, i'm not speaking about it.
So what are velosprints? Some people call them bold sprints or open sprints or roller races. Although these aren't roller races where you bring your own bike and run your own gear. These are fixed gear Masi track bikes bolted down to a Fork mount on some Kreitler rollers. The 2.75" ones. There's a pick up on each roller and the computer tracks and displays your progress.
The gearing, tires and everything is identical between the two bikes. They are set up with a 48t front ring and a 15t rear cog. Fixed.
Toeclips (short ones so i'm using my toes mostly to pedal).
You get on, check that the computer is seeing you turn the pedals.
You come to a complete stop. Poised ready to go.
There is a count down from 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 GO
And you go as fast as you can until the computer says you've gone 500 meters.
I've given you enough information to go over here and calculate cadence (assuming my friends who are reading this can figure out how to convert a given time it takes to go 500 meters into a speed value).
So yeah. #1 get the pedals up to max cadence as fast as possible. #2 hold that cadence until you hit the 500 meter mark.
Sort of like this:
Usually I can get a couple runs in over lunch between meetings and what not. Managed to get three in yesterday, negative split each one.
That last one was odd, felt strangely good. Often the last one leaves me cooked and unable to walk. It is surprising how just over 20 seconds of effort can leave you helpless. But that 21.82 was fine. I did a few things different and wow what a difference. But what did I do? I'm going to see if I can use the same technique again for similar results, and until i can repeat it, i'm not speaking about it.
So what are velosprints? Some people call them bold sprints or open sprints or roller races. Although these aren't roller races where you bring your own bike and run your own gear. These are fixed gear Masi track bikes bolted down to a Fork mount on some Kreitler rollers. The 2.75" ones. There's a pick up on each roller and the computer tracks and displays your progress.
The gearing, tires and everything is identical between the two bikes. They are set up with a 48t front ring and a 15t rear cog. Fixed.
Toeclips (short ones so i'm using my toes mostly to pedal).
You get on, check that the computer is seeing you turn the pedals.
You come to a complete stop. Poised ready to go.
There is a count down from 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 GO
And you go as fast as you can until the computer says you've gone 500 meters.
I've given you enough information to go over here and calculate cadence (assuming my friends who are reading this can figure out how to convert a given time it takes to go 500 meters into a speed value).
So yeah. #1 get the pedals up to max cadence as fast as possible. #2 hold that cadence until you hit the 500 meter mark.
Sort of like this:
like a button
Just started reading it - a few paragraphs in before being distracted by something shiny or important.
And I get to this line
"The Declaration of Independence affords us the right to "the pursuit of happiness," not pleasure. "
And like a button, switched to contemplative melancholic mode.
I don't like it.
The article is really good.
Turn off pleasure, and you turn off the will to live.
But long-term stimulation of the pleasure center drives the process of addiction. Rich people are addicted to money, power, gambling; middle-class people are addicted to cocaine, amphetamine, caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, heroin. The poor, well, all they've got is sugar.
Pleasure is exciting. Happiness is transcendent. More importantly, pleasure is dopamine. And happiness is serotonin.
But it doesn't make me happy.
It gives me hope, something to think about, but also points out, I haven't been the happiest person around in a while. I have no reason not to be though.
Something to think about I guess.
Maybe I'll just watch some more Kung Fu movies on free Hulu tonight instead.
So good
Oatmeal (rolled this am) cooked in whole org milk (yes omg i had milk) with 3-4 tblsp of this wicked most awesome chocolate peanut butter.
WF has those peanut grinding machines right? Well they have one of them with peanuts and dark chocolate chips in it. OMG SO GOOD
NOMNOMNOMNOMNOM
^--- meme reference i suppose
Not sweet like nutella and has that nice peanuty crunch and texture that the hippie peanut grinders in the store give you.
Mixed into oatmeal and wow - post commute fuel with coffee? soooo good.
I've been doing the peanut butter anytime I eat the oatmeal mostly because it seems to keep me full longer, and attenuates the insulin spike pretty well. So good.
That is all
heddwch
G
WF has those peanut grinding machines right? Well they have one of them with peanuts and dark chocolate chips in it. OMG SO GOOD
NOMNOMNOMNOMNOM
^--- meme reference i suppose
Not sweet like nutella and has that nice peanuty crunch and texture that the hippie peanut grinders in the store give you.
Mixed into oatmeal and wow - post commute fuel with coffee? soooo good.
I've been doing the peanut butter anytime I eat the oatmeal mostly because it seems to keep me full longer, and attenuates the insulin spike pretty well. So good.
That is all
heddwch
G
Monday, February 20, 2012
another weekend in the books
A glorious one at that.
How much riding did I get in? Well pretty much zip. Nothing on Saturday. Sunday's plan to get up and ride early before helping John with his TDI fuel pump, sort of turned into getting up, feeding the dog and going back to bed.
Managed to wake up in time to catch the second half of the Oostmalle race, make some coffee, shower and head over to play with cars.
No riding.
How much riding did I get in? Well pretty much zip. Nothing on Saturday. Sunday's plan to get up and ride early before helping John with his TDI fuel pump, sort of turned into getting up, feeding the dog and going back to bed.
Managed to wake up in time to catch the second half of the Oostmalle race, make some coffee, shower and head over to play with cars.
No riding.
Friday, February 17, 2012
nice days
Are certainly harder to get through when I'm sitting in front of a big window looking at the sun and blue sky vs down in my dungeon with no windows and no clue what is happening outside.
Catching up on the reading though. Sadly few people are writing, people are resharing (stealing) content and bombing each other with tumblr and other image memes and my old laptop here at home stack dumps into a blue screen if I open more than 5 pages at once (open tabs). Oh well. Stack dumps don't change the fact that there is much less to read.
And Podcasts. Fucking podcasts. If I was driving everywhere maybe I'd get into them (but probably not). People talk to slowly on them. Write your shit down. Let me read it. I read faster than the average wookie and can chew through a page of text very quickly. Far far faster than someone talking at a theatrical pace in a podcast.
Here's some reading a post with some thought provoking ideas... more later? we'll see. Sick day, daddy nurse, may pull out the trainer and pedal a bit but it might be just be scour for new reading while watching PRseason5 for the umpteenth time.
Catching up on the reading though. Sadly few people are writing, people are resharing (stealing) content and bombing each other with tumblr and other image memes and my old laptop here at home stack dumps into a blue screen if I open more than 5 pages at once (open tabs). Oh well. Stack dumps don't change the fact that there is much less to read.
And Podcasts. Fucking podcasts. If I was driving everywhere maybe I'd get into them (but probably not). People talk to slowly on them. Write your shit down. Let me read it. I read faster than the average wookie and can chew through a page of text very quickly. Far far faster than someone talking at a theatrical pace in a podcast.
Here's some reading a post with some thought provoking ideas... more later? we'll see. Sick day, daddy nurse, may pull out the trainer and pedal a bit but it might be just be scour for new reading while watching PRseason5 for the umpteenth time.
so cool
Jacob Sutton’s L.E.D. Surfer on Nowness.com.
i'm in a 'not going to write if i don't have anything positive to say' mode at the moment
this is cool... so very cool though
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Not just 'my' bike path
Syl posted a blog entry about our bike path.
I don't do as many intervals as he does on it with dedicated purpose of just riding, but it is my highway, and you've probably noticed I take a few pictures from the path. The lighthouse, sunsets, ships, birds...
Good stuff in there, deeper meaning of life and all that...
i'm not going to compete with it
I don't do as many intervals as he does on it with dedicated purpose of just riding, but it is my highway, and you've probably noticed I take a few pictures from the path. The lighthouse, sunsets, ships, birds...
Good stuff in there, deeper meaning of life and all that...
i'm not going to compete with it
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
BtB II-17
I'm sure everyone has seen it already.
To be honest, as much as I am a JPOW fan, sam's stretching a bit to get a full 20 minutes. I think half the stuff is inside funny stuff that makes him laugh that most of us don't get.
Still, it is well shot and gives a [seemingly] honest glimpse into the life of a wicked popular Pro CX racer. Worth watching. But still hoping and looking for some new/old magic on the next one.
To be honest, as much as I am a JPOW fan, sam's stretching a bit to get a full 20 minutes. I think half the stuff is inside funny stuff that makes him laugh that most of us don't get.
Still, it is well shot and gives a [seemingly] honest glimpse into the life of a wicked popular Pro CX racer. Worth watching. But still hoping and looking for some new/old magic on the next one.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Monday, February 13, 2012
weekend has come and gone
The weekend flew by, and after not touching the bike since Wed night when I hauled the 30# bag of dog food home I had to ride on Saturday. Had to.
If it had been snowing I probably would have gone outside. But it was sort of raining/snowing, but importantly it was wet. Roads/path/wet. Not going to do it.
So I fired up the old Paramount and turned on some PBS and watched something before Secrets of the Dead came on and I learned a bit more about the German's invasion of Russia. A local connection on the interview was pretty cool to see. Learned a bit, got some varied intervals in just to screw around and have some fun. Nice long 15 minute standing 70 rpm cadence interval (what's the point, I know, just because m'kay?). It worked to get my heart rate way up. I did a 6 min 130 rpm interval a few minutes later, that hurt but in a different way.
If it had been snowing I probably would have gone outside. But it was sort of raining/snowing, but importantly it was wet. Roads/path/wet. Not going to do it.
So I fired up the old Paramount and turned on some PBS and watched something before Secrets of the Dead came on and I learned a bit more about the German's invasion of Russia. A local connection on the interview was pretty cool to see. Learned a bit, got some varied intervals in just to screw around and have some fun. Nice long 15 minute standing 70 rpm cadence interval (what's the point, I know, just because m'kay?). It worked to get my heart rate way up. I did a 6 min 130 rpm interval a few minutes later, that hurt but in a different way.
Friday, February 10, 2012
notes on paper
I should really take a picture instead of transcribing them...
but i'm going to type them out... replicating the lines no edit
but i'm going to type them out... replicating the lines no edit
pondering stuff about food
It isn't really a very well kept secret that I'm sort of focused on food and what the impact it has on the human body, focused on what really is needed, how things can be improved. Drawing exception to things like a major juice brand owned by the Soda company (minute made, tropicana, coke, pepsi whatever) using Givaudan flavors (naturally derived from oranges sourced somewhere completely different than the juice in most cases) because is it really juice if the primary component of what you're tasting is not from the juice squeezed but from an essence extracted by some means from the perfect orange and the organic chemicals that make up the very specific taste are always combined in exactly the same way, every single time.
No isomers.
If you've had organic chemistry, you may remember that reactions with carbon stuff don't create identical components. Esp if you let it all go and happen in nature. Isomers happen. But in the lab, when you are extracting components, you can't have those isomers in there, you need specifics.
Why choose an analog instrument when a computer and a synthesizer can make a pretty close approximation?
I didn't intend to start off about the infamous twitter juice wars, bringing back that blog post from the summer.
Juice, like sugar, has a place in the endurance (cycling/running for example) athlete's diet, because it offers a super concentrated does of sugar. The problem is, if you aren't consuming it in a sugar window (using Coach Kurt P's term) you're not doing yourself any good. Juice as alternative to soda isn't really doing the kids any help either. "But it has vitamins" yeah so does a carrot. Juice does basically the same in terms of insulin spike, making them fat, as Coke/Pepsi/soda stuff. If you strongly believe fruits are the secret, eat them.
Drink vegetable juice (that you made yourself - V-8 is just fruit juice, tomato fruit but same thing). That Lim guy's pre-race/training juice is a solid idea.
The sugar issue got me thinking...
No isomers.
If you've had organic chemistry, you may remember that reactions with carbon stuff don't create identical components. Esp if you let it all go and happen in nature. Isomers happen. But in the lab, when you are extracting components, you can't have those isomers in there, you need specifics.
Why choose an analog instrument when a computer and a synthesizer can make a pretty close approximation?
I didn't intend to start off about the infamous twitter juice wars, bringing back that blog post from the summer.
Juice, like sugar, has a place in the endurance (cycling/running for example) athlete's diet, because it offers a super concentrated does of sugar. The problem is, if you aren't consuming it in a sugar window (using Coach Kurt P's term) you're not doing yourself any good. Juice as alternative to soda isn't really doing the kids any help either. "But it has vitamins" yeah so does a carrot. Juice does basically the same in terms of insulin spike, making them fat, as Coke/Pepsi/soda stuff. If you strongly believe fruits are the secret, eat them.
Drink vegetable juice (that you made yourself - V-8 is just fruit juice, tomato fruit but same thing). That Lim guy's pre-race/training juice is a solid idea.
The sugar issue got me thinking...
Thursday, February 09, 2012
percolating
Like coffee, percolating ideas sometimes isn't the best. But sometimes that's all you can do.
I started writing last night, got interrupted, i forget what I did over lunch today while eating, but it wasn't going back to finish that writing.
Many ideas have been popping up, and on the fridge here at the house i've been writing on those magnetic pads. I have three pads going, front page on each has a totally separate idea that i want to write about. For me. To get it out of my head.
To flush or flesh it out. I had a few moments here and there on the tubes today, but there's gotta be a focus to write. Hard to believe I know. Fuckin hacktastic writing here.
Been doing better at keeping more positive lately. But i feel the need for a long hard ride. Riding and a few other things have been working to keep on the positive side of things. How effective? I dunno but riding is pretty low cost therapy.
So is writing, sort of. Sometimes.
heddwch
G
I started writing last night, got interrupted, i forget what I did over lunch today while eating, but it wasn't going back to finish that writing.
Many ideas have been popping up, and on the fridge here at the house i've been writing on those magnetic pads. I have three pads going, front page on each has a totally separate idea that i want to write about. For me. To get it out of my head.
To flush or flesh it out. I had a few moments here and there on the tubes today, but there's gotta be a focus to write. Hard to believe I know. Fuckin hacktastic writing here.
Been doing better at keeping more positive lately. But i feel the need for a long hard ride. Riding and a few other things have been working to keep on the positive side of things. How effective? I dunno but riding is pretty low cost therapy.
So is writing, sort of. Sometimes.
heddwch
G
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Clint... who's not a fan?
I missed this on Sunday I guess. Missed pretty much all of half-time being away from the TV. I'd heard mention of the "Clint" add but until I saw the recent political cartoons my interest hadn't been piqued enough to seek it out.
I think it is even better pulled away and separated from the game. With distance the message makes more impact. I find it apolitical, but no question the impact is political, I think more along the lines of we need to do something besides bitch and moan.
Enough editorializing. If you saw the commercial before, give it another look maybe. See if it rings any differently away from the big game. (It really works best in full screen high res and with the sound up).
I think it is even better pulled away and separated from the game. With distance the message makes more impact. I find it apolitical, but no question the impact is political, I think more along the lines of we need to do something besides bitch and moan.
Enough editorializing. If you saw the commercial before, give it another look maybe. See if it rings any differently away from the big game. (It really works best in full screen high res and with the sound up).
Tuesday, February 07, 2012
more sunsets
I hit the bike path as the sun was setting, bright orange ball setting. But there were trees and trunks and I didn't want to take a snapshot through them tonight. But by the time I got the camera out of the jersey pocket the sun had dipped below the horizon and I was left with this.
I really liked the layers and snapped an image with a vertical aspect...
It is my favorite time of year, riding home with the sunset. The timing is such that it is like Cyclocross season, never long enough, soon the sunset will be later than my trip home, and then there will be the time change... it is what it is, and man do I appreciate those sunsets over the bay.
I really liked the layers and snapped an image with a vertical aspect...
roller sprints
US Open Cycling Foundation has been putting on a few "VeloSprints" this winter. Every other Monday from 12-2 and 5-10 they set up at a bar/restaurant and people can stop by, make a donation to the foundation and race each other or the clock.
Durishin has been doing these for a couple years now, I had talked with him at the inception and until this year when he opened up over lunch, hadn't made it down to give it a go on his Masi's bolted up to the Kreitlers. Yeah. Fork mount. Kind of cheating when you're old and remember roller races being rollers and you brought your own bike. I'd be kind of screwed though. I don't own a track bike. I'll be blunt. I'm a track virgin. By the time I had heard about Marymoore Velodrome I'd moved from Seattle. Just as they got the track together in Michigan the commute sucked the cycling out of me. And there isn't anything reasonably close to PVD to give it a whirl even on a rented bike. Total pipe dream of mine to set up a high banked indoor track locally.
So anyway enough track dreaming. Fixed gears don't have much draw to me once you take them off the track. Maybe i'll have to head to NH to give it a try up there one day.
Yesterday I headed in. Took it easy but not as easily as I did today. At noon I hopped on the Croll and rolled down the hill. Handed over my cash and took my thompson post out and got the saddle high set up on the Masi. The bike is too small, the cranks are wicked short, and the seatpost is about 2" past the max where i need to be. First time I tried it I just pedaled with short legs. Second time after the first run I brought my bike in and took the seatpost/saddle and did a second run. Yesterday I just brought the bike in and did both runs with the seatpost at a decent height. Would be nice if there were clipless pedals on there, the toe clips are wicked tiny so i wind up pedaling with my toes essentially. And that kind of sucks but it is what it is. It is Durishin's show not mine. Saddle/post I can deal with easily.
Did the first run and Cameron was freaking neck and neck with me at the halfway point and i'd been a half second or more faster than him in the past and I found a bit of a kick to get a gap in the second 250 meters. Wound up with a 22.7 something for 500 meters (48x15 gearing - you do the math).
That one hurt all the way up to my throat. Saw this quote today: "Interval minutes are like microwave minutes. They take longer than normal minutes." These didn't feel like 23 second long sprints. They felt long. And take a bit to recover. At least if you dig and go 100%. Which for me? yeah whatever still MY 100%, i may not be a gifted athlete but it doesn't mean I'm not trying my hardest.
I just kept pedaling circles for a bit. Rubbery legs... Ahhh the burn. Not that I've been on the winning side of many crits but Yehuda Moon's strip here is about right.
Soon a few more people showed up and a woman who'd never done this before climbed on the bike next to me. Her group had just watched me and Cameron go head to head in a furious match. And in her words "racing you is great, there is no pressure." So run number two wasn't so much an attempt to beat someone as a chance to beat my first time.
And I did. 22.49. 500 meters. Ouch. It took me a few minutes of pedaling before I could even contemplate getting off the bike. And then it wasn't easy walking. But I had to get back to the office for an afternoon meeting. No lunch. And I still had to ride up the hill. 17% hurts. But it is short. The 9-10% grade later? THAT is what really hurts.
Got the meeting done and headed home. Of course as soon as I pull on the Waterman, two blocks ahead is a commuter with one pannier. And he turns on the street that means he's heading to the bridge. Well damn. I have a rabbit now.
Chase is on.
There is one little issue. I'm towing the trailer and we have a 20+mph wind. A slight cross headwind if you will. Sure enough I gain a bit of distance, just enough to mark that he's indeed heading on my route.
Oof the little rise up along side the parkway hurt. He slowed down a bit but I was near my limit matching his pace up it and still 50 yards behind. We hit the top part and he just cranked out 22mph or so. It didn't look like he was at his limit but he didn't look like he was going easily (based on pedaling motions from what I could see). I pulled him back but I was solid zone 5/5 on the HRM. No way could I pull past him. But then he stopped to turn his lights on just as we take the down hill past the construction and before the climb up to the hospital. Now there's no way I wanted him to catch me on the hill. And I unloaded there. Eyes popping by the time I got to the stop light. Then tried with everything to peg it into the wind at 20mph. Got onto the path, and started my recovery. No sign of him until I entered the Forest of Arnenberg section. Oh there he was. But. After all that. And the day. I was in 100% recovery mode. Rabbit caught, chewed up and spit out. I was smashed.
He came rolling past, pulled down his balaclava (it was 50°F when i left the office) and said "Ahh, nice to be on the bike path." And he pedaled on past.
And I let him go.
This morning was positively slow. 10mph maybe. HR even on the hills was kept under 110 today. nice spin, nice recovery. Let whatever stress I induced heal and build on what was there before.
I definitely need to get on the bike to BOS again. Maybe a trip to Firefly and then a second destination before returning to PVD. Better check the weather against the schedule. Really not sure I want to try it during minivan week with the likes of Chocolate Chip driving kids around during Winter break (just messing with ya Chip - I trust you - i think).
That's Lunch.
Catch y'all later
heddwch
G
Durishin has been doing these for a couple years now, I had talked with him at the inception and until this year when he opened up over lunch, hadn't made it down to give it a go on his Masi's bolted up to the Kreitlers. Yeah. Fork mount. Kind of cheating when you're old and remember roller races being rollers and you brought your own bike. I'd be kind of screwed though. I don't own a track bike. I'll be blunt. I'm a track virgin. By the time I had heard about Marymoore Velodrome I'd moved from Seattle. Just as they got the track together in Michigan the commute sucked the cycling out of me. And there isn't anything reasonably close to PVD to give it a whirl even on a rented bike. Total pipe dream of mine to set up a high banked indoor track locally.
So anyway enough track dreaming. Fixed gears don't have much draw to me once you take them off the track. Maybe i'll have to head to NH to give it a try up there one day.
Yesterday I headed in. Took it easy but not as easily as I did today. At noon I hopped on the Croll and rolled down the hill. Handed over my cash and took my thompson post out and got the saddle high set up on the Masi. The bike is too small, the cranks are wicked short, and the seatpost is about 2" past the max where i need to be. First time I tried it I just pedaled with short legs. Second time after the first run I brought my bike in and took the seatpost/saddle and did a second run. Yesterday I just brought the bike in and did both runs with the seatpost at a decent height. Would be nice if there were clipless pedals on there, the toe clips are wicked tiny so i wind up pedaling with my toes essentially. And that kind of sucks but it is what it is. It is Durishin's show not mine. Saddle/post I can deal with easily.
Did the first run and Cameron was freaking neck and neck with me at the halfway point and i'd been a half second or more faster than him in the past and I found a bit of a kick to get a gap in the second 250 meters. Wound up with a 22.7 something for 500 meters (48x15 gearing - you do the math).
That one hurt all the way up to my throat. Saw this quote today: "Interval minutes are like microwave minutes. They take longer than normal minutes." These didn't feel like 23 second long sprints. They felt long. And take a bit to recover. At least if you dig and go 100%. Which for me? yeah whatever still MY 100%, i may not be a gifted athlete but it doesn't mean I'm not trying my hardest.
I just kept pedaling circles for a bit. Rubbery legs... Ahhh the burn. Not that I've been on the winning side of many crits but Yehuda Moon's strip here is about right.
Soon a few more people showed up and a woman who'd never done this before climbed on the bike next to me. Her group had just watched me and Cameron go head to head in a furious match. And in her words "racing you is great, there is no pressure." So run number two wasn't so much an attempt to beat someone as a chance to beat my first time.
And I did. 22.49. 500 meters. Ouch. It took me a few minutes of pedaling before I could even contemplate getting off the bike. And then it wasn't easy walking. But I had to get back to the office for an afternoon meeting. No lunch. And I still had to ride up the hill. 17% hurts. But it is short. The 9-10% grade later? THAT is what really hurts.
Got the meeting done and headed home. Of course as soon as I pull on the Waterman, two blocks ahead is a commuter with one pannier. And he turns on the street that means he's heading to the bridge. Well damn. I have a rabbit now.
Chase is on.
There is one little issue. I'm towing the trailer and we have a 20+mph wind. A slight cross headwind if you will. Sure enough I gain a bit of distance, just enough to mark that he's indeed heading on my route.
Oof the little rise up along side the parkway hurt. He slowed down a bit but I was near my limit matching his pace up it and still 50 yards behind. We hit the top part and he just cranked out 22mph or so. It didn't look like he was at his limit but he didn't look like he was going easily (based on pedaling motions from what I could see). I pulled him back but I was solid zone 5/5 on the HRM. No way could I pull past him. But then he stopped to turn his lights on just as we take the down hill past the construction and before the climb up to the hospital. Now there's no way I wanted him to catch me on the hill. And I unloaded there. Eyes popping by the time I got to the stop light. Then tried with everything to peg it into the wind at 20mph. Got onto the path, and started my recovery. No sign of him until I entered the Forest of Arnenberg section. Oh there he was. But. After all that. And the day. I was in 100% recovery mode. Rabbit caught, chewed up and spit out. I was smashed.
He came rolling past, pulled down his balaclava (it was 50°F when i left the office) and said "Ahh, nice to be on the bike path." And he pedaled on past.
And I let him go.
This morning was positively slow. 10mph maybe. HR even on the hills was kept under 110 today. nice spin, nice recovery. Let whatever stress I induced heal and build on what was there before.
I definitely need to get on the bike to BOS again. Maybe a trip to Firefly and then a second destination before returning to PVD. Better check the weather against the schedule. Really not sure I want to try it during minivan week with the likes of Chocolate Chip driving kids around during Winter break (just messing with ya Chip - I trust you - i think).
That's Lunch.
Catch y'all later
heddwch
G
Monday, February 06, 2012
Support your local bike shop
I like Kent's blog entry that's up right now.
So True:
Stop in and ask them what they think about the Contador ruling (they will either care passionately or not give a shit and be happy to tell you why). Ask them about what new pre-season bikes they just built up.
In other words. Be social.
When you come back in the middle of the July rush your bike is likely to be recognized, your face elicit a touch more patience than the crowd you are in waiting for a flat fix, evaluation, sale.
So True:
I do my best on every bike that comes my way, but honestly the bikes in winter get more attention because I just plain have more time per bike. I have more time per customer. If you want me to show you how a barrel adjuster works or give you advice on toeing in brake pads or you want to debate the merits of various tires, I'll be happy to do it year 'round but I have much more time to chat on the dreary days. In July you get the Clif-Notes version, in February you get the Post-Grad thesis version.I'll push this advice a bit further. Stop into your local shop, or shops. All of them. Say hello. Give the mechanics and sales staff a break from the tedium of all the organizational crap they are doing. Or at least a break from the internet.
Stop in and ask them what they think about the Contador ruling (they will either care passionately or not give a shit and be happy to tell you why). Ask them about what new pre-season bikes they just built up.
In other words. Be social.
When you come back in the middle of the July rush your bike is likely to be recognized, your face elicit a touch more patience than the crowd you are in waiting for a flat fix, evaluation, sale.
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