Base I Recap (Weeks 5-8)

PHOTO OF THE MONTH: OFTEN TIMES LIFE IS NOTHING MORE THAN
A TWISTED WEB OF DECEIT, LIES AND HYPOCRISY.

What I did: Four weeks of level 2 solo rides, all at endurance pace with a few short tempo intervals into the wind thrown in. I rode more in my big ring after basically ignoring it for the first six weeks. I stretched my longest ride to 3 1/2 hours. My economy has improved, I've burned a lot of fat and now am ready to tackle Base 2 and the longer tempo rides and added force work. 


Total miles: 846


Total hours: 51.5


Weight: 131 pounds (59.5 kilos)


FTP: 226 watts


FTP/weight: 3.80


CTL: 65.7


Wallets found on the roadway and turned into the police: 1


Thoughts from the saddle: Contacted a virus a couple weeks ago that kept me off the bike a few days. ... One of the best things I appreciate about cycling and training is that when things go wrong in your life, you have an outlet to try and work out your problems and even take out your anger. Without going into details, I've needed that outlet recently. ... My FTP increased 3.6 percent (from 218 watts). ... I continue to make progress off-road at Markham. I'm riding all the trails (two laps, 17.8 miles) and doing it while staying aerobic. Even the short steeps are not stinging me. My speeds (between 10.5-10.8 mph) have been inching upward even though I'm not trying to go faster; it's happening naturally. Of course, the weather is still fairly mild out there. When the worm turns in the next month or two and the temps and humidity skyrocket, I'll likely see those speeds hold or go down. ... Beginning this week, I'll add a group ride on Saturdays. The one I'm thinking of doing, organized by an LBS owner, will fit my needs perfectly. Supposedly, it's tame and devoid of hammerheads out to inflict pain and suffering. There's a place for those rides; just not now. I'm planning on stretching that day's ride to four hours (riding solo before and afterward).

Lost in the mountains

OUT OF THE TUNNEL AND INTO THE WINTER:
THIS ISN'T FLORIDA; IT'S MT. PISGAH.

REAL ICICLES, NOT THE PLASTIC STRANDS
US FLORIDIANS BUY FOR OUR X-MAS TREES.

Asheville, N.C., is known as "The Land of the Sky,'' and every time I visit, I'm reminded why when I get on my bike. It's one long climb to touch the sky, but my inner sadist can't get enough.


I rode 130 wonderful miles over four days there last week. Thanks to a patient wife, I hit either the road or the dirt in the early, frosty morning hours and completely lost myself. 


Problems? 


What problems? 


Bills? 


What bills? 


Work? 


What's a job? Certainly not riding your bike here.


When we started driving home, it finally hit me this was all over and it was like awakening after one terrific dream. Even now, I can't believe how blissful the entire trip was. I keep reliving parts of it in my mind when lying in bed before sleep.


I rode the Blue Ridge Parkway three times; on the first day, with the temperatures hovering around 29 in South Asheville, I climbed on the Parkway, which was nirvana because parts of it were closed due to inclement weather, went south and didn't stop until reaching Mount Pisgah at 5,700 feet two hours later. I came out of a tunnel with the Mount Pisgah sign staring at me and the road went from damp to covered in snow and ice. So this is what biking in the North Pole must be like, I thought, while stopping to take a couple photos.


Like the true winter novice, when getting back on my bike, I slipped and fell on the ice, busting up my elbow pretty good. 


I probably looked like a doe trapped on the ice, legs sprawled.


On the subject of deer, on the way up I saw about five or six whitetails playing in the road, so I wasn't the only one seizing the day. 


Of course, what goes up, must come down, so I experienced a cool descent down the Parkway, which was unlike anything I've ever done because it was a closed road and could hog the whole surface. When I returned to our cabin, I clocked out at 3 hours, 15 minutes; 42.6 miles, 13.2 mph.


I took one morning to ride off-road at Bent Creek. I'm finally learning my way around and hit more trails than ever. I turned 21.8 miles in a little over two hours, getting on the trail at daybreak. A few of the climbs stung me (especially Ingles Field Gap), but I patiently stayed in the aerobic zone and scaled them. There's something a little unnerving about being all alone in the woods; there's also something about being totally at peace. That's something I experienced in those woods and on the Parkway. 


It's soul-cleansing. 


Ride the sky. 


I did. 

FOG OVER THE VALLEY OFF THE PARKWAY.

Base I Recap (Weeks 1-4)

PHOTO OF THE MONTH: I'M ON THE BIKE
AND THE WEATHER IS BEAUTIFUL.

What I did: Four weeks of level 1 and 2 rides, commonly going between 2 1/2 to 3 hours a day and riding six days a week. 


Total miles: 866


Total hours: 55.5


Weight: 135.2 (61.5 kilos)


FTP: 218 watts


FTP/weight: 3.54


CP6: 268 watts


CTL: 57.5


Turtles rescued from the roadway: 1


Thoughts from the saddle: I've been riding the past week in Asheville, a true cycling mecca. I'll have a post on that experience soon. ... I've never ridden as far as slowly as I did the past month. Throughout, I was concerned I might be wasting my time and wouldn't see much benefit. I was wrong. I increased my FTP 6.3 percent from last month and my CP6 8 percent. Because I didn't do any group rides or tempo work, I was pleasantly surprised. There might be something to this developing your aerobic system fully before addressing intensity. ... Girl Scout cookies, I curse thee. Super Bowl Sunday? I damn thee. And Fat Tuesday? Fat chance I wouldn't gain weight. Anyone know a painless way to sew my mouth shut with monofilament? ... A favor to ask: While I'm trying to rack up all these low-intensity miles and you're approaching from behind as part of a group, pass either on the left or right, but not on both sides. ... I've been listening to the new Van Halen album, A Different Kind of Truth, while on the bike. After being initially critical after hearing the first single, Tattoo (which is like audio Krazy Glue after hearing it a couple times), I have to say Ed and the boys delivered a vintage VH album straight from the '78-'81 glory years. Michael Anthony's backing vocals are definitely missed, but this album rocks, even if it is late-70s demos. Check out tracks She's the Woman, Big River, Honeybabysweetiedoll, and Stay Frosty. ... Continued riding once a week off-road at Markham Park. Recently included a couple additional technical trails, and I was able to ride them without going anaerobic. That was another sign my fitness is improving. ... I see ORAMM sold out. Man, that was quick. I'm all in, though.

Prep Recap

PHOTO OF THE MONTH: THE LONG ROAD AHEAD.

What I did: Two and half weeks of levels I and II endurance rides to reacquaint myself with cycling, ending this past weekend with a weigh-in and FTP and CP6 tests.


Total miles: 412


Total hours: 26


Weight: 138 pounds (62.7 kilos)


Functional Threshold Power (FTP): 205 watts


FTP/Weight: 3.27 watts per kilo


CP6: 248 watts


Chronic Training Load (CTL): 39.2


Thoughts from the saddle: I felt like I hadn't ridden in six weeks after that first ride on Jan. 14 because, well, I hadn't. That was my longest break ever. ... After about the first 200 miles, heartrate and RPE went down and power increased (110-115 watts), letting me know the training effect was taking place. ... I was holding back a lot after those initial miles, telling myself I have a long way to go and a long time to get there. Don't race. It's a hard habit to break. ... I rode once a week off-road, skipping some of the toughest, technical trails at Markham Park so I could keep a steady pace and get in a low-key 17-mile ride. ... I was really happy to get in that first three-hour solo road ride on Jan. 21. (The three-quarters-into-the-ride stop at Starbucks for a dopio was the carrot.) I was able to go two hours the next day, so I knew I didn't overdo it; I was comfortably tired. ... My FTP and CP6 tests were sobering. I paced both well and felt powerful -- until I looked at the average watts. Need to keep reminding myself I have a long way to go and a long time to get there. Maybe that should be my Base theme? ... Because I'm starting training much earlier than in the past, it's been really nice to ride in comfortable South Florida weather in the morning. I'm normally fighting high humidity in late May when I traditionally begin. This has been less taxing. So far.

Insane in the brain

Einstein said doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result is insanity. If that's true, I've been insane for the past five years.


After enjoying my best cross-country racing season in 2006, when I finished fourth in the state in the 40+ Expert class, I got lazy and cut back on my volume. Who needs all of those "junk miles''? Instead of patiently rebuilding my base endurance in the spring of '07 -- like I had done the previous three years -- I felt so good I began riding harder at the expense of long steady distance. I thought I had reached a level of fitness that no longer needed a lot of LSD. Consequently, a season that began with such hope and confidence ended in supreme disappointment. I didn't even finish enough state races to qualify for a top-five finish.


For the next four years, partly because of work and partly because of laziness, I continued shortchanging my base training. Fewer hours in the saddle, more time hammering. When I wasn't getting the results, I continually tweaked the intensity, thinking that was the answer. And guess what? I managed to get slower each year. With the exception of a nice finish at ORAMM in 2010, my race results were terrible.


After feeling sorry for myself and suffering a severe lack of motivation all things training and cycling in the latter part of 2010, I'm back to end the insanity and do something to make me feel good about my sport again. I'm beginning an ambitious base building plan that if I succeed will be the foundation of rebuilding my fitness to my '06 level and hopefully beyond. This coming after studying Arthur Lydiard's training principles, which has been like finding the key to unlock my potential. He seems to think building a giant aerobic engine with lots of LSD is a pretty good thing before even thinking about sharpening your high-end. I'm going to put this to the test.


After annually only allowing 10 weeks of base, I'm planning for 24 this year. Eight weeks of lower level endurance miles with a small amount of speed-play, then adding some tempo and force intervals in the next eight followed by adding a final eight weeks of mid-level threshold intervals. Then I'll focus on sharpening with anaerobic capacity and Vo2max intervals and selected fast group rides that will in effect be C-priority races.


Add it up and I'm hoping to get 12+ hours and 180-225 miles a week. Of course, my work schedule could kill the best laid plans. I'm planning on racing ORAMM in July, giving me a not-too-distant target to shoot for, leading into the Florida State Championship Series in September.


I will update my progress monthly so come along for the ride to see if I can reclaim my race fitness.


Or go mad trying.

FSCS 4: Perspective

Alafia River State Park is my off-road riding home away from home. I'm a Tampa native, so coming back to race is a highlight of this series.


Racing and riding at Alafia always brings back memories when signage, a paved parking lot and a bike wash station didn't exist.


The first time out here I encountered a gopher tortoise nearly the size of a treasure chest and a pack of wild boars carving some singletrack. I also remember getting lost and barely finding my way back to my truck before sundown.


I've never raced particularly well here. This is a difficult course with your heart rate at 130 beats per minute, let alone at 160. And every year the course is changed to keep you on your toes, which if you're not careful, will have you on your back. (More on this later.)


Anyway, I didn't have a great race Sunday. I was the last rider in my class to finish, but I did have a better start and overall raced better than in Gainesville. I still feel like I'm in way over my head and have to fight the mental battle not to quit. I had several riders from other classes pass me and that really gets me down.


Until I saw something else that left an impression.


Coming out of a very tricky section known as Rabbit Ears and feeling awful, I noticed a man in a wheelchair watching the race. Soon after, I stopped thinking about my pain and mentally took my butt out of the saddle and put it in that wheelchair.


Perspective.


Here I am upset at how slow I'm riding and I'm forgetting something more important.


How lucky I am.


I'm free to ride. To push the limits. To have full use of my body. To do the things some people can only dream of. Yeah, even to finish last. It's not that I felt sorry for the guy; he's out here on a wonderful day, surely being entertained by some crazies tear-assin' through the woods.


It's just ... damn, be thankful for what you have and can do.


"You better take a fool's advice, take care of your own. One day they're here; the next day they're gone. ...'' -- New York Minute, Don Henley.


Feeling better about my predicament on the final lap of three, all that good feeling came to an end with an endo and landing on my back. I keep a multi-tool in my middle jersey pocket and I landed on that denting me good at the waistline. Took me a few minutes to recover -- and another rider passed me -- but I managed to finish the race.


Perspective. At least I'm able to ride. At least I'm able to roll up to the starting line. At least I'm able to experience the good, bad and the painful.

FSCS 3: Blank!

It's October and the weather's slowly getting less oppressive, which means it's great to be on the bike. On Sunday, the weather was glorious for the third race of the Florida State Championship Series in Gainesville.


Then my 40-plus Expert race began and thoughts quickly went from glorious to gory.


Here's what went right:


















Here's what went wrong: Let's see, should said list be done alphabetically or order of importance? Never mind. I won't bore you.


If I was a horse, I'd been shot. I quit after three laps, completely broken by the demanding Hailes Trails. My poor effort has made me realize whatever I'm doing in training isn't adequately preparing me for the stresses of these races. I'm not sure if my volume and/or intensity is too low. Am I in such poor race shape that I need to give this more time to come around? I know I'm not overtrained. I go into all my breakthrough workouts fresh and ready to ride hard. This has been a problem in the past; on non-racing weeks, I ride four days a week, averaging 10 1/2 hours/160-175 miles.


But when the races begin, the pace feels over my head, incendiary. I have to cut my effort to avoid blowing up.


I've trained consistently since April, never missing a single workout because of sickness. My Functional Threshold Power is at an all-time high (245 watts). I'm lean (134 pounds).


But when I get on my mountain bike, I turn into Jelly. I'm likely not riding enough off-road (violating the specificity training principal) but that wouldn't completely explain my inability to compete to stay out of last place.


It's time to reflect and re-evaluate. At least the weather's turning and it's pleasant to be on the bike. Even if that bike isn't going very fast.


Addendum: On Friday, Joe Friel tweeted a line that I and others should remember when things aren't going as planned:


"Good or bad, you are not your last race. Let it go.''