I completed a club ride today that went 111 miles with 12,500 feet of climbing. That is about as many feet of climbing as you will find on any training ride and approaches the number for some organized cycling events that are know for the climbing aspect. The Climb to Kaiser event is 13,500 feet (and 155 miles) and the famous Death Ride is 16,000 feet (and 126 miles).

The legs felt a bit weak since it has been only a week since the Devil Mountain Double but I was able to stay up with the front group. When climbing up Highway 9 I mentioned to Russ that I am getting too old to go up at that pace. He replied that is true only if I think it. It made me contemplate about how much we cut back because we think we are getting too old. Even though I turned 60, I have done better this year than in any prior year in terms of my finishing times for the two double centuries I have ridden. It was not until I was 58 that I was able to run a marathon fast enough to qualify for Boston. So in many respects I have not slowed down because of aging. That is not to deny the fact that aging is a factor we all deal with, only that there are other aspects that may have a great bearing at this time in my life.

Even though it is May, the weather was cool, even what I would call cold in some spots. I was keeping my heart rate up around 160 for the first climb, up Highway 9. That takes you to 2,500 feet elevation. That is a bit high for a sustained climb but it didn’t seem to affect me for the remainder of the climb. During the last climb of the ride, I did feel weak and had to lower my heart rate in the 140’s. Some hills had very steep grades and the gearing I had meant I had to really torque the pedals to keep moving.

I developed a formula for what I classify as an Ultra Distance Cycling event. I use the miles plus 4 for each 1,000 feet of climbing. If the combined number is equal to 150, then I call that an ultra distance event. Today’s training ride comes out to 161 using this formula, a similar result as the Mt. Hamilton Challenge. I am not sure that each 1,000 feet of climbing is equivalent in effort to riding an extra 4 miles, but it seems to be a workable approximation. By comparision, the Devil Mountain Double comes in at 206 miles + 4 x (18.6) = 280. The Solvang Double Century is 193 miles + 4 x (7.5) = 223.

Look at the events on my website where I associate a difficulty rating. Solvang gets 2, DMD gets 5 squares. I am using something like this for the total score computed:

• Less than 175 : 1 square
• 175 - 225: 2 squares
• 225 - 250: 3 squares
• 250 - 275: 4 squares
• 275 - 300: 5 squares
• Greater than 300: 6 squares

Categories: Training Log, Uncategorized
No Comments »

It is the final countdown to the Devil Mountain Double, which I will ride on Saturday. At this point all my training needs to be finished and what I do this week is more about tapering and trying to keep the edge. Yesterday I decided to not do the long distance training ride with the club because it would have been back to back 100 mile days and I felt it might do more harm than good. So instead I did the normal ride out of Sunshine Bicycle store with my friends who live in the area.

Because of the visit from John and family, I was not able to get in as much biking for a week. I mentioned in my last entry about doing a hot ride the day after they left that had a lot of climbing and miles. I continued to ride a lot during last week, including doing the Tierra Bella Century on the tandem on Saturday. It was not quite the most miles I have ridden in a week, but close. With the week being bookended with long rides, I ended up with 483 miles and 30,000 feet of climbing. This keeps me on plan for both miles and feet of climbing for my training program. The total miles I have put in is slightly above my training plan but well above what I did last year.

When looking at the feet of climbing, something more important than just miles when training for the DMD, I am well ahead of both last year and my training plan I established.

One aspect I hope will pay off is the training I did last week. In 2008 that week was spent in Atlanta to watch the Tour de Georgia. We went there after running the Boston Marathon. When I returned to California I tried to jam in some ridding, and maybe did too much the week of the DMD. This time I have a full week to recover. In 2007 you can see I biked over 400 miles the week of the DMD, which means 200 miles the days before the DMD. That was too much. This time I have moved the extra miles a week earlier.

It is a similar story with the feet of climbing.

All of this is mainly to give myself some confidence. I know that doing the DMD is going to be most difficult, no matter how much training I have done. It is a long ride with a lot of climbing. Last year I measured 206 miles with over 18,600 feet of climbing. I think it is the most difficult double century in California.

Last year I did the 206 miles in a total time of about 18 hours and 15 minutes. I looked at last year’s heart rate chart to see how I did at the midway point. At 103 miles, I had biked half the distance and more than half the climbing and had reached that at 12:10 pm, about 7.2 hours from the start (we started around 5:00 am). So if I was able to keep that pace for the second half I should have finished in 14.5 hours. Since I took nearly 4 additional hours, it is clear why I felt I did so poorly. Click on the graph to enlarge.

During the first half my average heart rate was 145, but you can see from the above chart I let it go into the red zone too often on some of the clmbs and even some of the flatter sections where I was trying to keep up with a paceline. I need to be smarter this time about monitoring my heart rate and drop off the pace line if necessary. I feel that if I keep hydrated, watch my heart rate and eating, I should be able to finish within 15 hours. That might not be a fantastic time, but more than 3 hours faster than I did it last year.

Categories: Devil Mountain Double, Training Log
1 Comment »

Because of our trip to San Diego last week, I needed to get in a good long training ride today, especially considering the Devil Mountain Double is coming up in 2 weeks. There was no scheduled ride that had both the miles and the feet of climbing that I wanted so I ended up combing parts of one ride with another. At 5:30 am, I started biking in the dark (and a bit cold) to meet up with the Tierra Bella worker’s ride. They were doing the 200K route. Initially I was just going to do that ride but it was too short on miles (only 122) and the climbs were not tough enough for what I wanted. But I rode with them up Uvas, then down Bailey and back to Morgan Hill. The timing worked out great because I arrived in Morgan Hill just on time for a Nightriders ride that started at 8:00 from there. We planned to do a triple crown ride and four other riders joined me for that.

We biked up the bike path, then climbed Metcalf. After going down the backside and then San Felipe, we made our way over to Quimby for our second major climb. It was now getting much warmer and I could feel the heat as we were nearing the top of Quimby. Quimby is a very steep hill and with only a double crankshaft, I was really torquing my leg muscles. Doug and I got to the top quick enough to have time to go down the East side and climb back up to the summit. Two of the guys had done a mega mountain bike ride the day before and it was too much for one of them, who headed back after reaching the summit. The four of us then descended down the East side and then up Mt. Hamilton Road to the summit. It was getting very hot now.

Only two days earlier I had climbed Mt. Hamilton with John, but today it seemed much more difficult. I was glad to reach the summit where we had a break for awhile. Since the summit is over 4,000 feet, the temperature there was pleasant, but still warm.

As we descended back down, we could feel the heat and as we climbed back up the East side of Quimby it was getting into the 90’s. We were lucky to have a tail wind on the way back, but I couldn’t seem to keep hydrated enough. Drinking hot water is not something I am anxious to do. By the time we got back to Morgan Hill I was very tired. Chuck gave us something to eat at his house and then I jumped back on the bike to return home. I ended up with 138 miles total and over 10,000 feet of climbing. In many ways I felt worse than after the recent Solvang Double Century. I guess it was the heat, which hit the mid 90’s during the later part of the ride.

Categories: Cycling Group Rides, Training Log
No Comments »

After yesterday’s long 101 miles, I didn’t want to put in another long ride. Since I can’t ride tomorrow, I thought this was a good time to another speed workout. I did the same 20 mile course and after a warm up I did 7 minutes hard, then 3-4 minutes easy. I made a slight adjustment to the easy segments so the 7 minutes would be all without any need to turn a corner or come to a stop.

I clearly have improved. This is a mostly circular course so the effect of the wind should balance out when looking at all the legs.

Averaging the four legs, today I went 22.4 mph compared with 21.3 mph last month. Both times my average heart rate during the intervals was 153. It may not sound like a lot but 1.1 mph improvement at that speed is a lot considering the increase in average speed was only a 5% improvement. But with cycling the effort, as measured in watts, is not linear. Using a formula to calculate, last month I was averaging 170 watts to get that speed while today I had to put out 193 watts, a 14% increase, while keeping the heart rate the same. In any sport a 14% improvement when you are basically pushing towards your limits, as a big deal.

Here are the splits for today, April 4th, 2008.

These are the splits from my last workout on March 13th, 2008.

Categories: Training Log
No Comments »

Yea, so I turn 60 years old today. I could sit back in my rocking chair and watch the world go by like some others choose to do. I could make excuses that I can no longer take on the tough physical challenges, or than I need to slow down going up the hill because I am getting too old. Although age will eventually take it’s toll, I want to make sure that I am not accelerating that process mentally. A couple thoughts that were on a b-day card I received from the California Triple Crown (doing three double centuries in one year).

“It is not the critic who counts
The credit belongs to the man
Who is actually in the arena
Whose face is marred by dust, sweat, and blood

Who, at best, knows the triumph of high achievement
And who, at worst, if he fails, fails while daring greatly
So that he should never be with those timid souls
Who never know either victory or defeat”
Theodore Roosevelt

“The best thing you can do is to keep going.
Rust never sleeps.”
Pete Penseyres

Categories: Training Log
No Comments »

I love to both cycle and run and consider myself lucky to be in good enough shape to be able to do both, especially considering that I am turning 60 years old this week. I have been running for 30 years now and many of my running buddies from many years ago have given up the sport, some because their knees can’t handle it anymore. As I saw that happening to others, about 7 years ago I took up cycling for cross training so I could reduce my miles running and still get in the same total exercise. During these past 7 years cycling as over taken running, but I still enjoy both and feel they complement each other.

Running has these advantages

• It is easier to do in the winter, even in California. I have often run outside when the temperature is freezing, something I would never do on a bike.
• It is much easier to do in the rain. I never mind running in the rain, when the temperature is moderate but like most others, I dislike cycling in the rain and usually only do it when I get caught and need to get to the end.
• Running provides impact and is beneficial for strengthening your bones. You do not get that benefit from cycling or swimming.
• It is a highly time efficient. I can burn more calories per hour and I most always just run from home so I don’t spend time traveling to some ride.
• It is something I can just as well do alone as with others.

Cycling has these advantages

• My total workout can be much greater. Unless I am training for a marathon I rarely run more than 10 miles at a time. In terms of calorie consumption that might be around 30 miles on a bike. And yet I can ride for 100 miles, or more, most Saturdays. That is the equivalent, in terms of calories, of running a marathon, but without the pounding on the body.
• Recovery from cycling is much faster. I can do a double century ride and ride the next day. After doing a marathon, I would have a difficult time to run the next day, or even for a few days.
• Cycling has a very social aspect for me. I like to bike with others. It is not only safer to ride with a group, but a lot more fun.
• Cycling lets me see the world. I run on pretty much the same courses, never venturing more than 10 miles from my house, even when I am doing a 20 mile run. On my bike I have seen places I would have never seen before.
• Cycling has more thrill to me. I love to climb. Today I will be climbing up Henry Coe for the 5th time this week, somewhat of a record. That is 3,700 feet of climbing each time. I love to descend back down the hill and find it a greater thrill than any ride at an amusement park.

The Best of Both Worlds

By having these two sports, I feel I really do have the best of both worlds. When it is colder or raining, I can switch to running. When I have more time I can focus on cycling. I tend to do both every week so I am less likely to get burned out, either physically or mentally. If I am traveling where I do not have my bike, I can always run. I have run in many places around the world, include some very congested big cities that I would never be able to cycle through. When I travel and can take my bike, I get to see places I would not otherwise.

My Training Log

I have kept a detailed training log for many years. One use of the data is to create a lot of charts, such as the accumulated miles cycled so far in any year. The years when I was doing a Spring marathon shows a lot of miles running in the early months. Take a look at this graph that shows my accumulated running so far this year compared with prior years. In 2007 I was training for the Boston Marathon and in 2005 I was training for the Salt Lake City Marathon. Both of these were in April. But in 2006 I ran the St. George Marathon which was not until October. So how am I doing in 2008? So far this year my running is about on par with those years when I ran a fall marathon. You will need to click the graph below to view in enlarge.

Now look at a similar chart that shows accumulated miles biking so far this year compared with prior years. More so than in any prior year I am focused on training for a difficult double century, the Devil Mountain Double. It was a ride I did last year but did poorly, since my training was more focused on getting ready to run the Boston Marathon. But 2008 is really the year of the bike for me. There has never been another year for me where I cycled in the first 3 months of the year. Click the graph to view enlarged.

So with running less and cycling more, what is the total picture? I have several ways to use my training log to view equivalent exercise. This chart tries to equate the two sports in turns of calories burned. I use data from my Polar Heart Rate monitor, if entered, or formulas built into my training log, if not. For 2008 the total is similar to last year but higher than years before 2007.

Categories: Cycling, Running, Training Log
1 Comment »

I have finished my last week of biking training for the Solvang Double Century, which will take place next week. My main focus is on the Devil Mountain Double Century at the end of April, so my training program has been geared to prepare for that. I have doing well on the training, although this week was a bit below plan. I will climb Henry Coe 5 times this week so I am getting a lot of climbing in.

This chart show my weekly miles this year compared with last year and against my plan.

But my climbing is doing well.

See all the charts here.

Categories: Training Log, Ultra Distance Events
No Comments »

I modified my article on the Big Climb, training for the toughest double centuries.  I added in this section:

The Mental Challenge

Any very difficult ultra distance event will challenge you not only physically but also mentally. When things do not go quite as expected, such as warmer weather than you trained for, overcoming the mental challenge will make the difference between two riders, who who decides to DNF (did not finish) and one who finishes the event. Of course there are times when the smart thing is to stop, but when things get rough it is a great temptation to say the smart thing is to quit when we have the ability to go on.

I once had trained for a marathon that was known for his long downhills. Unlike cycling where the downhill is a chance to rest and recovery, in running it gives your legs a real pounding. I thought I had trained for the event properly, including some long downhill training runs.

At about mile 6 of 26.2, I felt my legs starting to cry for mercy. I was frighten on what to do since in my training runs I never had such an issue so early in the run. How could I possibly run another 20 miles like this? The thought came to me that I had worked too long and too hard to stop now. I had to decide between letting the situation cause me such grief that I would slow down or stop, or I could decide to just ignore the legs and hold the pace. I choose the later and was able to not only run strong but have a very strong finish. The difference for me for this marathon was overcoming the mental challenge. During your training you will have some chances to practice overcoming the mental challenge. If you find yourself quiting during uncomfortable training sessions, you might question what you will do when you face a significantly greater mental challenge. If you are not prepared to overcome the mental challenge, then the Big Climb may not be the right event for you.

Categories: Training Log
No Comments »

After doing a 4.5 mile run this morning I decided to do an interval workout on the bike. After I cycled enough to warm up I cycled as hard as I could for 7 minutes, then rode easy for about 4 minutes. I repeated 4 times. This graph shows my heart rate during the four intervals. For each of the four intervals I was able to take my heart into the anaerobic zone but could not push it higher than 161. When I climb a hill like Metcalf I can take my heart rate up to above 170 for more than the 7 minutes I was using for each interval. I am not quite sure why I can’t seem to get my heart rate up as high cycling on a flat course.  Click each image to enlarge.

And here my splits for the 7 minute intervals. I remove the recovery splits for clarity. The terrain was mostly flat but there was enough variation with the grade and the wind to effect the speed. Except for the first interval I was able to keep the speed above 20 mph and my average heart rate above 150.

Categories: Training Log
No Comments »

I was finally able to get my time to climb Metcalf down below 14:30. I had to take my heart rate up above 170. I guess it was chasing Joe Farinha that I needed to get me to push so hard. (click graph to enlarge).

Categories: Cycling Group Rides, Training Log
No Comments »