Last week I finished up with some good rides. I was able to log another 15hrs and almost 250miles. Could be better but not bad.
Friday I did some form sprints. Eight of them fifteen seconds each. The first two were a bit wild but by the last one I was able to get smoother. In that 15 secs I was able to accelerate from 20mph to nearly 30mph.
Saturday, rode with Brady, Mike, Mike, and John. It was basically the Wed. night Trek Store ride. We set a good pace on Hiway 36 and on Omaha Trace. I spent about 15 minutes in zone 4 and about 46sec into zone 5a. It was a great ride until I broke my derailleur.
Sunday, an easy ride with Mike and the gang. I did some bonus time to get close to 4hrs.
Tonight I will probably sit on my trainer and do cruise intervals. It doesn't sound like fun.
Many thanks to mike for the derailleur and the expertise!!
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Build 1 Week 2 continued
Rode with "The Bike Way" guys last night. For me it was a text book Group Ride according to the "Training Bible".
There were several times that I was in my zone 4 for 8-10min. we had some hill sprints where I made it up to zone 5b. Another time Bryan Tangen and I were working together into the wind. I wasn't trying ride him off my wheel but I did pick up the pace right before the turn around.
Dan Ertz and I mixed it up a bit. While Dan & I were battling each other Craig sat in and blew us both away in one of the final sprints. Oh, I got another flat. That makes 3 rides in a row that I somehow got a flat. This time it was defiantly rocks.
A very fun ride!!
stats - Distance 40mi, Duration 1:50, Avg Speed 22mph
I also did a spin class in the morning for another 1:00hrs.
=========================
Todays schedule call for the Group ride. So I swap yesterdays schedule for today. On tap, 4hrs in zone 2. I was able to meet Rich on the trail at Culver's. We headed North up the trail from there. Straight into the brisk wind. It felt like a Janurary day with out the frozen water bottles.
Well I only got 3 but it was a great ride too. Most of the time I was in my zone 2. There we times I was up into zone 3. Rich was keeping the pace high into the wind.
stats - Distance 53, Duration 3:10min, Avg Speed ~15mph
There were several times that I was in my zone 4 for 8-10min. we had some hill sprints where I made it up to zone 5b. Another time Bryan Tangen and I were working together into the wind. I wasn't trying ride him off my wheel but I did pick up the pace right before the turn around.
Dan Ertz and I mixed it up a bit. While Dan & I were battling each other Craig sat in and blew us both away in one of the final sprints. Oh, I got another flat. That makes 3 rides in a row that I somehow got a flat. This time it was defiantly rocks.
A very fun ride!!
stats - Distance 40mi, Duration 1:50, Avg Speed 22mph
I also did a spin class in the morning for another 1:00hrs.
=========================
Todays schedule call for the Group ride. So I swap yesterdays schedule for today. On tap, 4hrs in zone 2. I was able to meet Rich on the trail at Culver's. We headed North up the trail from there. Straight into the brisk wind. It felt like a Janurary day with out the frozen water bottles.
Well I only got 3 but it was a great ride too. Most of the time I was in my zone 2. There we times I was up into zone 3. Rich was keeping the pace high into the wind.
stats - Distance 53, Duration 3:10min, Avg Speed ~15mph
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Cruise Intervals - My favorite!
Not really my favorite but I did them. Last night I was going to ride outside from work but I forgot my shoes. So I had to go home. I spent some time looking for my headlight charger but could not find it.
I was running out of time for a longer ride and the thought of riding the trainer was very unappealing to me. I felt like skipping the workout but decided to hop on the trainer instead.
The intervals went well. The first 2 intervals I fell short of the desired 6min. This happens no matter how much I warm up. I think the next time I do intervals, I will do a couple efforts into zone 4 before I start my interval workout. The 3rd interval I was right at 6min and mid zone 4. Then I did 2 more efforts that were 7min long and I was able to hit zone 5a for a bit on the last one. Finished out the 1:30hrs back down in zone 2.
I wanted to go longer but had to teach spinning early in the morning.
Stats - Avg HR 149, Max HR 178, KCals 1270, Duration 1:30hrs, Z4 time 23min
I was running out of time for a longer ride and the thought of riding the trainer was very unappealing to me. I felt like skipping the workout but decided to hop on the trainer instead.
The intervals went well. The first 2 intervals I fell short of the desired 6min. This happens no matter how much I warm up. I think the next time I do intervals, I will do a couple efforts into zone 4 before I start my interval workout. The 3rd interval I was right at 6min and mid zone 4. Then I did 2 more efforts that were 7min long and I was able to hit zone 5a for a bit on the last one. Finished out the 1:30hrs back down in zone 2.
I wanted to go longer but had to teach spinning early in the morning.
Stats - Avg HR 149, Max HR 178, KCals 1270, Duration 1:30hrs, Z4 time 23min
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Build 1 Week 2
Today is my first day to work in Week 2 of my Build 1 phase. I was going to get up early for an hour tempo ride but could not find my headlight charger last night. So, it just going to be Hill Cruise intervals. I brought clothing for 40 degree temps but The Weather Channel is reporting a feels like temperature of 28degrees. I may have to get warmer clothing from home.
I feel good after a day of rest and am ready to push my limits again. We'll see how it goes tonight.
I feel good after a day of rest and am ready to push my limits again. We'll see how it goes tonight.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Week in Review
Finally, I was able to get a respectable build week. The nice weather was a big help. I spent a majority of my time on the bike.
I feel good and am ready to move on to build 1 week2. Having a race under my belt I know better what race pace should feel like. On my hard days I will try to replicate that feeling. More hill work for me too. Sunday I road to Ft Calhoun there are a couple nice long hills I can do my hill repeats.
Last week, some stats - Ride time 16.5 hrs, Mileage 250+ miles, trainer time "0", Spinning time 1:00hr
I feel good and am ready to move on to build 1 week2. Having a race under my belt I know better what race pace should feel like. On my hard days I will try to replicate that feeling. More hill work for me too. Sunday I road to Ft Calhoun there are a couple nice long hills I can do my hill repeats.
Last week, some stats - Ride time 16.5 hrs, Mileage 250+ miles, trainer time "0", Spinning time 1:00hr
Sunday, March 22, 2009
A Mixed bag
Overall I had a good weekend. I was able to race on Saturday (thanks Kim for sub'ing!) and I rode another 55miles of riding Sunday. Now for the bad news... two flats. One during the race and one at the end of my ride Sunday.
The Race(Twin Bing RR) - I rode the A race which included category 1s, 2s & 3s. My race started at 10:00am. At 9:30am it was still chilly when I started getting into my race clothes. So, I put a skull cap for my head, leg warmers, and a vest. After a brief ride it seemed to be much warmer. Off with the vest for sure and I used Rich's knee warmers instead of my leg warmers. I removed the skull cap while at the start line.
The race started and I found myself immediately on the front end. Usually not the place to be but I just went my own pace. I was really nervous about the first hill which happened to be the finish line. I stayed up front. On the front you can set the pace up the hill. If you are going to slow the pack will come around but that usually takes a few precious moments to for them to realize. Nobody came around and I was still on the front. Surprising! I kept going on the front, still a comfortable pace. I had a gap... wow! Not for long though. Kevin Limpach came around me but he is crazy so I didn't chase.
After a couple miles some people in the pack decided it would be nice to get in an early break with Kevin. I remember seeing Bryan R., Devin, and maybe one other get up into a lead pack. With the peleton I gave chase too. A rookie mistake. I was on the front of the chase group reeling in one of my own teammates Devin. I got caught up in the action and wasn't thinking. It was gruppo compacto the rest of the first lap 22.2miles.
I was happy to survive the first lap. None of the hills seem to trouble me. I was able to get a good effort chasing a break away. All is good, so far! That was only the first lap of 3 which is usually tame.
Lap 2 - The first hill of the course was staring at me again. After seeing the rest of the course this hill was easily the most difficult. I was ready to dig deep into my "suitcase of pain" to stay with the pack over this hill. Then I heard a pop like a firecracker. It was me, I had a flat. Another mistake, no wheel in the wheel truck. I brought them but was too lazy to mark them and put them into the truck. Luckily, it was only 1/2 mile back to my truck.
Now my race turned into a training ride. I replace the flatted wheel. Made a bathroom stop and was on my way. When I made it to the top of the first hill I looked back to see if the B race was close and they were. Just riding through town. New Goal... stay ahead of the B race. I worked hard. Hammering up the hills and keeping a high speed on the flats. I was able to hold them off for a long time but they caught me about 15miles into the second lap. I let them pass and put a good gap behind them. Then I started to work again. They must have slowed down because I caught them. They were going slow. I decided to pass them. It was almost the end of the race and the official didn't want me to get in the way of the finish. So he asked me to hang off the back of the pack. That was ok with me. It was a headwind section. He allowed me to draft off the group. There was only about 16 of 76 left in this group. In the final stretch I let the group and official's car get about 1/2 mile in front of me and watched them finish up the hill.
Lap 3 - One more lap to go. This lap I just maintain a good tempo pace. HR about 160+. Speed was good and still had good energy. I was in the drops a lot and my lower back was squawking at me. Overall I was happy with my performance.
Some race stats - Speed 19.7mph, KCals 3499, time 3:30hrs, distance 68miles, 20th of 26
Sunday - Met some guys with Velo Veloce for a LSD ride. They went out for a couple hours and I continued on for another 1:30hr until I flatted again. Mistake 3... no repair kit. Called Christine for a rescue. Still was able to ride 51 miles.
The Race(Twin Bing RR) - I rode the A race which included category 1s, 2s & 3s. My race started at 10:00am. At 9:30am it was still chilly when I started getting into my race clothes. So, I put a skull cap for my head, leg warmers, and a vest. After a brief ride it seemed to be much warmer. Off with the vest for sure and I used Rich's knee warmers instead of my leg warmers. I removed the skull cap while at the start line.
The race started and I found myself immediately on the front end. Usually not the place to be but I just went my own pace. I was really nervous about the first hill which happened to be the finish line. I stayed up front. On the front you can set the pace up the hill. If you are going to slow the pack will come around but that usually takes a few precious moments to for them to realize. Nobody came around and I was still on the front. Surprising! I kept going on the front, still a comfortable pace. I had a gap... wow! Not for long though. Kevin Limpach came around me but he is crazy so I didn't chase.
After a couple miles some people in the pack decided it would be nice to get in an early break with Kevin. I remember seeing Bryan R., Devin, and maybe one other get up into a lead pack. With the peleton I gave chase too. A rookie mistake. I was on the front of the chase group reeling in one of my own teammates Devin. I got caught up in the action and wasn't thinking. It was gruppo compacto the rest of the first lap 22.2miles.
I was happy to survive the first lap. None of the hills seem to trouble me. I was able to get a good effort chasing a break away. All is good, so far! That was only the first lap of 3 which is usually tame.
Lap 2 - The first hill of the course was staring at me again. After seeing the rest of the course this hill was easily the most difficult. I was ready to dig deep into my "suitcase of pain" to stay with the pack over this hill. Then I heard a pop like a firecracker. It was me, I had a flat. Another mistake, no wheel in the wheel truck. I brought them but was too lazy to mark them and put them into the truck. Luckily, it was only 1/2 mile back to my truck.
Now my race turned into a training ride. I replace the flatted wheel. Made a bathroom stop and was on my way. When I made it to the top of the first hill I looked back to see if the B race was close and they were. Just riding through town. New Goal... stay ahead of the B race. I worked hard. Hammering up the hills and keeping a high speed on the flats. I was able to hold them off for a long time but they caught me about 15miles into the second lap. I let them pass and put a good gap behind them. Then I started to work again. They must have slowed down because I caught them. They were going slow. I decided to pass them. It was almost the end of the race and the official didn't want me to get in the way of the finish. So he asked me to hang off the back of the pack. That was ok with me. It was a headwind section. He allowed me to draft off the group. There was only about 16 of 76 left in this group. In the final stretch I let the group and official's car get about 1/2 mile in front of me and watched them finish up the hill.
Lap 3 - One more lap to go. This lap I just maintain a good tempo pace. HR about 160+. Speed was good and still had good energy. I was in the drops a lot and my lower back was squawking at me. Overall I was happy with my performance.
Some race stats - Speed 19.7mph, KCals 3499, time 3:30hrs, distance 68miles, 20th of 26
Sunday - Met some guys with Velo Veloce for a LSD ride. They went out for a couple hours and I continued on for another 1:30hr until I flatted again. Mistake 3... no repair kit. Called Christine for a rescue. Still was able to ride 51 miles.
Friday, March 20, 2009
About Last night
Rode for about 2:00hrs last night. I had planned to do Aerobic intervals but decided to do some Jumps - hard short sprint like efforts. Not sure if I was doing them right. I started off at a good speed HR in zone 2/3 and then kicked it in for several pedal strokes. Rest interval between sprints was about a minute. Then about 5 minutes between sets.
Today I am schedule to do form sprints. These sprints are suppose to be zone 5b efforts but since I am racing tomorrow I may hold back a little on intensity.
I am looking forward to the race tomorrow. I don't have high expectations, I will do my best to hold onto the lead group. We'll see.
Today I am schedule to do form sprints. These sprints are suppose to be zone 5b efforts but since I am racing tomorrow I may hold back a little on intensity.
I am looking forward to the race tomorrow. I don't have high expectations, I will do my best to hold onto the lead group. We'll see.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Hanging in there
After riding for about 1:30hrs I met up with the Bike Masters ride which included a bunch o' KAOS riders. I worked in the pace line with them for a few miles... it felt good but my HR was into my zone 3 so I decided to let them go. When the second wave of riders caught up with me I stayed with them. Unfortunately they wanted to turn around. Since I had some time left in my workout I kept going.
Up ahead for some reason the fast group slowed down and I caught up with them. They slowly turned up the heat and I decided to stay with them. I get a grade of an F for self control... it was suppose to be a rest day! I stayed with them for about 3miles until they turned around. I was happy with my effort. I finally got up into my zone 5a and I did well on a hill. Still lot of work to do for me.
Up ahead for some reason the fast group slowed down and I caught up with them. They slowly turned up the heat and I decided to stay with them. I get a grade of an F for self control... it was suppose to be a rest day! I stayed with them for about 3miles until they turned around. I was happy with my effort. I finally got up into my zone 5a and I did well on a hill. Still lot of work to do for me.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Cruising
My cruise intervals last night went well. I was able to do 3 x 7min and 2 x 10min intervals. My goal for each interval was to hold my HR to about 174bpm but I fell a bit short of that at about 169bpm. I was able to get to 174bpm in the longer intervals. I need to do more of these.
Today, I did spinning class this morning and I have a 3hr ride tonight. Todays scheduled options are a E1(recovery) or E2(aerobic endurance). I feel rested enough for a E2 ride but will probably do the E1.
Today, I did spinning class this morning and I have a 3hr ride tonight. Todays scheduled options are a E1(recovery) or E2(aerobic endurance). I feel rested enough for a E2 ride but will probably do the E1.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Primed for cruise intervals tonight
I am ready to go for some cruise intervals tonight. I am going to head out west from work to Q street and start doing the intervals on the flat section near Two Rivers State park. Then finish up with some hill intervals on my way back home. I hope to get at least 40mins of zone 4/5a time.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Ready to go.... Again!
It has been awhile since I have posted anything and a lot has happened. 2 weeks ago after my cruise intervals I got sick again. Not good since I had a race that weekend. I recovered enough to race but my performance was lacking.
Last week was a wasted week. I was still a little under the weather but was able to get in a couple of rides. In particular I rode with the fast group on Saturday. I was ok for awhile but when we hit the first hill I fell off. Disturbing! I have to work on that. I feel like I am no mans land as far as my fitness. Not really a cat 4 and not really a cat 3.
Yesterday it was back in the saddle for a 3:30hr distance ride. I was able to hold a good pace for at least 3:00hrs.
Anyway, I put myself back into build 1 phase. This should allow me to peak for the Norfolk Classic RR and crit. This week I will focus on Hills, LT work, and one Distance ride. Every other day will be some sort of recovery ride.
Last week was a wasted week. I was still a little under the weather but was able to get in a couple of rides. In particular I rode with the fast group on Saturday. I was ok for awhile but when we hit the first hill I fell off. Disturbing! I have to work on that. I feel like I am no mans land as far as my fitness. Not really a cat 4 and not really a cat 3.
Yesterday it was back in the saddle for a 3:30hr distance ride. I was able to hold a good pace for at least 3:00hrs.
Anyway, I put myself back into build 1 phase. This should allow me to peak for the Norfolk Classic RR and crit. This week I will focus on Hills, LT work, and one Distance ride. Every other day will be some sort of recovery ride.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Wiped out
After doing the cruise intervals in the morning I was wiped out. In the evening my HR was still high. So I skipped the evening trainer work out and I went to bed early. Yesterday raised an interesting question. It only took me about an hour to do the Cruise interval workout. What do I do with the rest of the scheduled 3hrs? The Training Bible doesn't really say. I suppose next week I will save my cruise interval workout for the evening and do a tempo or an aerobic workout in the morning.
This morning I felt better and was able to ride the Spin bike for an easy 2hr workout. Tonight more of the same.
This morning I felt better and was able to ride the Spin bike for an easy 2hr workout. Tonight more of the same.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Cruise Intervals ReDux
Last week was the Recovery week of my Base 3 period. I was able to get in 7hrs training. I did the LTHR test again on Friday... my avg hr was 176bpm. I think that is high but I am going to use it.
Got up early this morning for some Cruise Interval Bliss. I did 5 x 12min intervals. The first couple intervals I max my HR out at 170 (blame it on early morning). The rest of the interval I was able to get my HR up to 173. The workout called for time in zone 5a, unfortunatly I was not able to get up to that zone. I was about 3 heartbeats shy. I will work on that. Overall I am happy with the workout.
Got up early this morning for some Cruise Interval Bliss. I did 5 x 12min intervals. The first couple intervals I max my HR out at 170 (blame it on early morning). The rest of the interval I was able to get my HR up to 173. The workout called for time in zone 5a, unfortunatly I was not able to get up to that zone. I was about 3 heartbeats shy. I will work on that. Overall I am happy with the workout.
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