Training 1 June 2008

With 100 km under my wheels from the previous day, I met Steve for a late morning blast to Malpas (near the Welsh border) and back (46 km). I was very apprehensive about going for the ride, half expecting my legs to seize up, my body to run out of energy, and my backside to feel like a pincushion. I needn't have worried as I felt pretty good for most of it, just a little sore (backside again!) towards the end. This was all good news as it meant that stringing day after day of 100 + km is definitely possible with good planning. Steve was clipping along well, working on cadence while monitoring his heart rate. It sure jumps going up those long hills. Look out for the suicidal bunnies though! Just out of Malpas, the skies became very heavy and dark. We decided to b-line back to mine for coffee and cake (strawberry mmmm, thanks Maile!).

I spent the rest of the afternoon de-gunking my chain. This is necessary job but I am learning to really really hate it.

Chuck

Training 31 May

Piling on the mileage. This past Saturday (with Steve away with family commitments) I had made my mind up to cover some longer distances. During our ride across England we will be covering well over 100 km (62 miles) per day. With our comfortable and normal speeds of 20-25 km/hour we can expect to be 'in the saddle' for 5-6 hours per day. I figure we will be using about 600 kcal per hour, which adds up to a whopping 3000-3500 kcal per day. A person will need about 3000 kcal per day, with little or no exercise just to exist and maintain and even weight. With a good breakfast lunch and dinner, there will still be a shortfall. It would be great to lose some weight, but this a very unhealthy way to do it! We do not want to have an energy crash and run out of glycogen 2 days into a 7 day ride. With this in mind, I have been looking at nutrition during the ride. Assuming 3 good meals a day, with low fat, some protein and high carbs (beer?), we will need to have several hundred kcal on the bike. This can be in the form or simple sugars (i.e. glucose, fructose) and complex carbohydrates (i.e. maltodextrin).

I have been taking energy drink with me on my rides. It is a bulk product which I make up in one of my two 750 ml water bottles. Each bottle has about 200 kcal (with electrolytes). It tastes awful! A bit like soapy water. The main problem is that the drink contains protein (which makes more amino acids available for fuel and saves your muscle protein from breaking down) which does not dissolve. This means you have to give it a good shake before drinking/eating it. But, it is a very easy method to take in energy on the fly. My wife Maile has been busy experimenting with home-made energy bars. She has been combining oats (complex carbo), whey (protein), peanut butter (protein and fat), and syrup (simple carbo). Her first batch produced a bar that tasted very sweet and had the consistency of poo. It was a mess, especially after sitting in my nice warm jersey pocket for a few hours. After a bit of work and brainstorming, she now has a bar which looks, and tastes, the business (and doesn't turn to mush in my pocket). I can expect about 300 kcal per bar. Now we just need to figure out home much to take on each ride.

With all this in mind, I set off from Nantwich with food, water, map and spares for a long day in the saddle. I managed a long jagged loop right along the edge of south west Cheshire. With the sun on full, I passed near Chester, through Malpas, Marbury (near Whitchurch), then past Wrenbury and Audlem before heading back to Nantwich. About 90 km in, I was feeling completely drained. My legs were moving but the muscles were working hard to keep the wheels just spinning. I didn't feel out of energy, just tired (should improve with fitness). My dilemma was, do I manage another 10 km to make a metric century or head home and count costs. Those of you that know me, already know the answer. So there was silly me doing laps around the block just to get to 100 km! Well, I did make it. 100.6 km in 4 hours of saddle time, my first metric century. After a proper meal, I didn't feel too bad, so I must have taken about the right amount of food and water. 100 miles next time??? Watch this space.

Chuck

Low2Le Logo

Hope you like the Logo we have come up with for our Lowestoft to Land's
End charity ride. If you look carefully, you can make out the 'low2le'
---somewhat stylised, but it's there ---Honest!! If you have a really
good imagination and squint, you can also see a stylised rider on a
bike--or is that just me? Not quite 'magic eye' picture but we like it!!

Training 10-11 May

This weekend we had some fantastic weather. Long, warm and sunny days without a wisp of wind. Perfect cycling weather! I was joined on a 50 km (31 miles) ride on Saturday with a very good friend of mine (Mark) whom also has caught the cycling *bug. Mark brought his brand spanking new Kinesis road bike. A sweet looking ride with relaxed compact geometry and Tiagra groupset. He let me have a spin on it just outside Wrenbury. I was quite impressed, much faster and more responsive than my old beater. The bike also felt more comfortable, but that could be due to it being a slightly smaller frame than I’m used to, causing my posture to be more upright.

While Mark was visiting, we fitted his seat height using the 109% and LeMond methods. Using an average of the two methods, we found his seat to be quite a bit low (4 cm). By raising his seat up, Mark looked pretty comfy in the saddle and I think he mentioned getting a bit more power out of the cranks. In addition to the fitting, our wives went to Aldi to get some of their über-low priced cycling gear which included a computer for Mark for £5, bargain.

On Sunday, Steve joined the two of us for an out-and-back from Nantwich to Malpas, which is about 43 km (27 miles). Steve couldn’t make it on Saturday as he was travelling back from Athens for work. The day was a warm one in which we quickly ran out of drinks. As we were riding through Wrenbury we passed a watering station for some type of race. We were not sure if it was a running or bike race. Anyway, as we flew past, the volunteers offered us bottles of water, which came in handy. Whoever you were “Thanks”! It was a good ride with some mixed riding styles; tight grouping for drafting, sprints, and our all time favourite pootling. Nice to see three old farts out having fun in the sun.

Chuck

*Chalk up another disillusioned wife. “You spent how much!”

Training 3-5 May 2008

We had some good weather over the bank holiday weekend, finally. With the rapeseed in full bloom, the two of us managed to cover most of South Cheshire with rides out to Peckforton, Marbury, Wrenbury, Crewe and Church Minshall. Saturday was a particularly wonderful day as a great ride was followed by an ever greater football match. It was Nantwich Town FC vs. Sheffield FC for promotion to the Unibond Premier Division. Nantwich won 4-1 on penalties after a 2-2 draw and added extra time. Nerves were stretched to the limit. Well done you Dabbers!

Our fitness levels have been getting better. We are not so concerned with our legs managing to go 60-80 miles a day. Instead we are concerned that our backsides won’t be able to handle it! Bungee strap a pillow to the seat? Stand half of the time? We are open to suggestions! The forecast for this week looks great, so at least one of us will be riding as Steve (The One Man Peloton) is off to Athens. Maybe he will find Cyclus, the Greek God of Cycling, who can offer some wisdom.

Chuck

Training 26 April 2008

Steve and I did a nice little run through Wrenbury and Marbury this past Saturday. The weather was cloudy and mild, with no rain. We managed a whole mile before one of us had a puncture (Steve this time). It turned out to be a failed patch with a bit too much pressure on it. A quick tube replacement and the rest of the ride was uneventful. We ended the ride with a sprint down a slight grade near Ravensmoor. I managed to finally break my top speed at that spot with a dizzy 61.5 km/hour (38 mph) with Steve right behind. A modest 30km (18 miles) covered during the ride followed by coffee and flapjacks.

After the break, I went with my wife Maile for a test ride on her newly acquired used bike. We made a short 12 km loop just outside of Nantwich. With the weekend ride and my three mid-week rides I managed to total up 120 km (75 miles). I am looking forward to next weekend with a long ride planned.

Chuck

Training 20 April 2008

Should have stayed home. Since both team members are in the same county, it seemed a good idea to go for a ride together. I picked up Steve on Sunday morning, with my car, for the short drive to Nantwich. Upon getting to my house Steve found he was one cycling shoe short and one training shoe too many. He blames his cheeky granddaughter for the mix-up; I’m thinking that ‘vino tinto’ might be the cause. So, quick drive back to Steve’s to pick up his shoe. A less than auspicious start, the first sign we should have stayed home.

We finally set off by late morning, making sure we had all our gear. I even had a spare tube, just in case. As we pulled out of the drive, the rain was persisting down. It was that light yet determined rain which seemed to fill your shoes with water then work its way up until you are as wet as some really wet thing. Another sign!

We managed to get a few miles out of Nantwich when “Pttttisssss”. Puncture, oh bugger. With the cold rain now falling directly down my back, I managed to find a finger sized hole in my tube. “No problemo” I thought. I’ll put my spare tube on. That went great until the Presta Valve broke off, Nooooo! Now I had to patch the original tube with the hole from hell. After fitting a very big patch (can’t feel my fingers at this point) we managed to get the wheel back on the bike and pumped up. We were off! Managed to go maybe another mile or two when “Ptttisssss”. Steve saw that puncture happen from behind and remarked at how dramatic it looked. Dramatic my ass, I was thoroughly pissed off by this point! Do we send someone back for the car or try yet another repair. I was so wet and cold at this point I though, “let’s just get it fixed and head straight for home”. Another duvet sized patch was fitted and the tube inflated to a point with just enough pressure to make it home.

We limped into Nantwich Canal Basin and stopped at the Waterside café for a coffee and scone. The coffee there is top stuff. I enjoyed the snack, even with the small lake forming at my feet as my shoes emptied themselves of rainwater onto the floor. I won’t tell you how far we managed to cycle but let’s just say it was longer than a stones throw. It was only when I was washing the five pounds of mud off my bike when I found the cause of my problems. I must have hit a very sharp stone which punctured my Continental Ultra Gator Duraskin sidewall that, according to the manufacturer, has “a reinforced form and external protective shield over the entire casing to prevent cuts, punctures and abrasions”. Yeah right.

Better luck next time, I hope.

-Chuck