Hi All! Well, another weekend of solid training is in the books. Nothing out of the ordinary, so here we go...
Yesterday I drove out to Palomar Mountain, straight up South Grade Road, and parked at the summit next to Mother's Kitchen. The plan was to meet my friend Rogelio there at 8am, and get some good solid climbing in, in the form of repeats. Yes, I said repeats on Palomar! 8am came and went, and no sign of Rogelio, so I got dressed threw the bottles on the bike, and as I went to mount my Garmin on the handlebars, it was then I realized I forgot it at home! For those of you who train with a computer, (most), and those who train using heart rate, not having a computer can really be a bummer. I decided not to let it ruin my ride, after all, I knew exactly what the workout was going to be, how long the climbs were, and how much elevation gain I'd get for the day. Of course there was more to it then that!
I decided to start by descending South Grade Road all the way to the market at the junction of Highway 76 and Valley Center Road. I'm not fond of the climb up Highway 76 to South Grade, but I figured it was better to do it while it was early in the morning and the traffic was light. When I reached the market, I stopped for a quick restroom break, hopped on the bike, and began the climb back to the summit. I decided not to push the pace too hard knowing that I had a lot of climbing planned for the day, and the goal wasn't to see how fast I could do the climbs, but rather to get some serious elevation gain.
I reached South Grade Road and settled in for the remaining seven miles to the summit. About three miles in to the climb, Rogelio came descending by me on the other side of the road. I decided to turn around and follow him back down to the intersection of South Grade and 76 where he was going to start climbing.
When we reached the summit we shot down East Grade Road to Highway 76, turned around and began climbing back to the top. About two miles in to the climb, I drank the last sip of water in my bottles, and it was then that I realized I made a huge mistake by deciding not to refill my bottles when we were on the summit. It was hot Saturday on the mountain, 90 degrees at the top, and 101 at the bottom! I knew I had a little over nine miles left to reach the summit, and I was already extremely thirsty.
After what seemed like forever, I finally reached the top, and went straight to the market to buy some Gatorade and some water for my bottles. I downed the Gatorade and some potato chips, filled one bottle with water, and then back down South Grade Road we went to Highway 76.
As we started up South Grade Road for the last climb of the day, I could feel the fatigue setting in my legs. My first ascent up the road earlier in the day, was much quicker then what I was holding this time. I was taking frequent sips off my bottle, and even resorted to pouring some water over my head occasionally. About three miles from the summit, the muscles in my inner thighs began to quiver. I knew what this meant. Cramps were sure to follow. I began alternating between climbing while seated and standing, to see if using different muscles would help ward off the cramps. Two miles from the summit, the cramps hit! I was no longer able to pedal, every time I would bend my legs, the cramps would strike. All I could do was pull over and straighten out my legs. I slowly walked my way up to a shady spot on the road, and just relaxed.
About five minutes later, Rogelio came pedaling up to where I was. I told him I was cramping, and asked him what time it was. A little after 1:30pm he said. No wonder I'm cramping! I've been pedaling for over five hours in this heat, and only drank three bottles! This is when I realized just how valuable my computer is when riding. I always have it set on "time" mode, so I can see how long I've been pedaling, and to remind myself when to drink. A bottle an hour at minimum is what I shoot for, more if it's really hot out.
Eventually I made it back to the car. 68 miles, 34 of them climbing. 11,300ft. A little over 5 hours. I was tired!
Today...four hours with John Bailey and Warren, up Highland Valley Road to Ramona, and back home. 65 miles, 4500ft, and 2000 calories. I got dropped more times then I can count! That tends to happen when you ride with a Cat 1, and an extremely strong Masters racer, especially if you just did Palomar repeats the day before!
Hope everyone had a great weekend! Until next time...
Hi All! Well, it's official, I just registered for the 25th anniversary of the
Mt. Charleston Hill Climb! This event truly is my favorite race of the season, although I have a sneaking suspicion that the Death Valley Stage Race may take its place on my list, we'll see. If you've never raced in this event, I highly recommend it. It's very well organized, and the ride and scenery itself is just awesome. I will say though, if you really despise climbing, avoid this event at all costs! 17.5 miles of all climb, starting at the base of the mountain on the desert floor, and climbing up to the ski resort at the top. The goal this year?
To WIN of course! The last time I raced Charleston, was in 2008. Unfortunately something prevented me from making it to the event last year, can't remember what it was, but I do remember being really bummed. Back in 08', I finished 6th in my category (4), and as usual Matt Sheremeta from Celo Pacific won. I believe he's won the event since 07' as far as I know. This year I hope things play out differently.
Both years I've raced this event, the race played out the same way. The whistle was blown, and the leaders took off immediately, setting a hard pace, shedding the rest of the field in the first few miles of the climb. In 08' I stayed on their wheels as long as I could, but eventually couldn't hold the pace, fell off the back, and settled in at my own pace, (which is really all you can and should do while tackling a long climb). I was able to stay away from the rest of the field for the 6th place finish. This year however, I'm twenty pounds lighter then I was in 08', and have been training with much more purpose, discipline, and focus then I ever have. After last months San Elijo Time Trial, where I finished 2nd, just sixteen seconds behind Sheremeta, I'm convinced my chances of a win this year at Charleston are much higher.
As for the Death Valley Stage Race, I really don't know what to expect in the way of a finish, but after seeing the Cat 4 field was just four riders this last June, I'm pretty sure a win isn't out of the question. I really believe you have to visualize having a good result, before you can actually have one. I've heard too many racers over the years, talk themselves down during their training rides, and some even telling themselves and everyone around them at the starting line of races, that they're going to basically have a low finish before the race even starts! Why bother lining up?
Anyhow, hope all is well out there, and hope everyone is able to get out and hit the roads this weekend! Until next time...
Hi All! Well, check another goal off the list. Today was one of those training rides where everything just falls in to place perfectly. I wasn't sure exactly where I was going to ride to when I woke up, but eventually decided on heading out to Palomar Mountain. I left the house about 8am, and made my way through Escondido, eventually winding up at the base of Lake Wohlford Road. It was at this point that I decided to really turn this ride in to something big. My goal for the day, something I've been wanting to do for awhile, but for some reason or other, never got around to doing. 100 miles, with 10,000ft of climbing.
Knowing this, I wisely decided not to push the pace too hard for the majority of the ride. A ride this difficult, especially when you're alone and it's hot out, should always be ridden at a pace you know will get you back home! I made my way up Wohlford, down Valley Center Road, stopped at the market at the base of Palomar for a restroom break, Gatorade, and a gel, then began the long slog up Highway 76 to South Grade Road. I didn't concern myself with my time up the mountain, again, just holding a nice steady pace to the top.
I reached the summit, stopped in the market for another Gatorade, and downed a Clif Bar, hopped back on the bike and started down East Grade Road. As soon as I reached the bottom at Highway 76, I stuck the Oakleys in the helmet, unzipped the jersey, turned around, and started back up East Grade.
I was holding a nice, steady pace, and reached the summit in about an hour, but feeling pretty hungry. I decided to stop in at Mother's Kitchen and order a Fried Egg sandwich. I spent about fifteen minutes inside eating, filled the bottles at the soda fountain, hopped back on the bike, and made my way down South Grade Road.
My least favorite part of this ride is always the climb back up Valley Center Road. It's not that the climb is hard, it's because the road is in terrible condition, and there's not much of a shoulder to ride on. Today was no exception, although I will say the climb back up was a bit more difficult then usual given the fact I had just climbed both South and East Grade Roads, and the weather was on the warm side.
Eventually I arrived back home, after 6 hours and 45 minutes of pedaling, 100-miles, and 10,006ft of climbing! Excellent!
Tomorrow? A 4-hour, Cat 1 tempo pace ride with John Bailey and Mark Palmer! We'll see how long I last! Hope all is well! Until next time...
Hi All! Well, the San Elijo Time Trial is in the books. What a great event, especially considering it was the first time it's ever been held. The promoter did an excellent job of organizing and promoting the even, even getting a nice write up in the San Diego Union Tribune this last Thursday..San Elijo TT article
I showed up to the parking lot at San Elijo Elementary School about 6:30am, and set up the trainer, and went through the usual check list of getting ready for a race. After getting my race number and timing chip, I hopped on the trainer around 7:15 and began warming up. I had planned to ride the trainer for a good hour, getting really hot for the race, considering it was only 3-miles in length, but due to the high humidity and early morning heat, thirty minutes was more then enough!
Right on time, at 8:15, I was out of the starting gate. The course started slightly downhill, making it's way towards downtown San Elijo, where we made a hard right hand turn on to San Elijo Road, where the pain began.
I started out in the big ring, not wanting to lose any precious seconds at all on the easiest part of the course. As soon as I made the right hand turn on to San Elijo Road, I immediately put the bike in the small ring, and attempted to settle in to a rhythm for the remaining 2.5 miles to the summit of Double Peak Park. This proved to be not so easy.
Even though I'm a pretty good climber, I fair much better on longer steady climbs then I do on shorter climbs that require an all-out effort, (such as an uphill 3-mile TT!). I had set my bike computer to show only my heart rate, heart rate max %, and time. My heart went to 175bpm within no time, and I knew I had to keep it right there, no higher to survive to the summit.
I passed quite a few riders as I made my way up San Elijo Road, all the time thinking about my pace, concentrating on my heart rate, telling myself I needed to save something to make it up Double Peak Road.
After about 8-9 minutes, (I can't remember through all the pain!), I reached the left turn at Double Peak Road, where I was immediately greeted by a nice 8% kicker. I remained in the saddle, trying to conserve any power I could for the 16% grade that awaited around the corner. All too soon, I rounded the corner, and there it was.
About halfway up the 16% grade, I felt a sensation I've never really felt before in a race...my legs went completely numb. The effort I was putting in the pedals was so intense, I lost sensation. I guess that could be looked at as a good thong, but in this case it worried me for second. A thought crossed my mind that I might not be able to make it to the top, but as soon as that thought entered my mind, I immediately pushed it out, knowing that family and friends were waiting around the corner to cheer me on. There was no way I was going to let them down!
Part of the difficulty was due to the fact that on my training wheels, I run a 12-27 cassette in the back, and on my racing wheels, I run a 12-25. Although I have a climbed to the summit numerous times while dong my hill repeat workouts, I had never climbed to the top with a 25-tooth. I figured before the race, that I've always ridden stronger in races then I ever could in training rides. I'm sure it's that way for most racers. The combination of excitement and adrenaline, seems to propel you faster then the usual training pace. That's exactly what happened in this case.
I pushed on, out of the saddle, the only way I could turn the cranks over on that steep a grade. I heard people shouting my name, but there was no way I could make out who it was through the suffering I was experiencing at that time. Just past the large water tank where I told my family and friends to watch from, (the last steep section, where they could see the most pain!), I knew the road leveled off a bit, so I grabbed two gears, stood up again, and gave one last push for the finish line.
It was about this point that I thought I wasn't quite sure where the finish line was, a right around the area of the water tower, there was quite a large gathering of people, so I looked back to make sure I hadn't just crossed the finish line, and was suffering for no reason. Kind of a stupid move, because just that little lapse of concentration, may of cost me a few seconds, not something you want to give up in a time trial, especially one so short.
I didn't notice anything, so I kept pushing on. Sure enough, right around the bend, there it was! As I crossed the finish line, I could hear the buzzer ring, tripped by the timing chip on my ankle. It was then, I knew the pain and suffering was over!!! How did I finish???...
2nd in my division (38-47 years old). 5th overall out of 69 riders. 14:12 for the 3- miles. Who won my division? Matt Sherameta from Celo Pacific, with a time of 13:56. Overall winner's time...13:46. Close race!!!
Next up, the Mt. Charleston Hill Climb. My favorite race of the year! September 25th, I believe. Plenty of time to get ready. Hope all is well! Until next time...
