Not quite to plan...

... Alas this December's training is not going as I had hoped.  The sole reason being my elf, (christmas joke, boom boom).

My first club run of the month was not unexpectedly cold but the cold air had me completely out of puff and struggling to keep the pedals turning let alone keep up with the group, let alone stay in my usual position just off the back of the group.

I abandoned the ride just ahead of the halfway mark and headed back and popped in to see Mum a bit earlier than expected.  A subsequent Dr's appointment resulted in a diagnosis of Asthma, where my Peak flow lung capacity was half what it should be!

At least with the quick diagnosis and an inhaler I have noticed the difference when training on the the turbo trainer.  Its been easier to breath! My heart rate isn't as high as it was on high rate work outs.






Alas the next medical mis adventure to befall me was a bowel twist...again (it happened once last year).  This was only last week.  I was a bit squiffy on the day of the work Christmas do and by 8.30 that evening was in A&E bent double with abdominal pain.

The good news is that the Dr's reckon that with all the wretching I heimliched myself and the bowel untwisted.  I was only in for 36 hrs before being discharged to rest at home.  Its amazing how much is taken out of you in such a short time.

So not much cycling this month and with a Christmas holiday starting next week probably not much this month!

It is B @'&$--" Cold!

I am sure I have not been alone in noticing the plummeting temperatures and the scenery changing to a beautiful powder white?  On the roads it is more a muddy brown or slushy grey and definitely the chosen terrain of the Steel Chariot!

 Isn't she beautiful?  Perfect for these and wet conditions.  alas it isn't very clear in the picture, but take my word for it, the handlebars are a hideous apple/mustard blend green.  My only disappointment was missing out on the chance to win a pair of pink tyres in the Road cycling UK forum.  The whole ensemble wold have clashed perfectly.

The good thing is that this bike is heavier than what I plan to ride on the Etape so should be good training.

Now briefly back to the title of this post it has been rather cold,

hence my ridiculous outfit.  Its not a good look but its only for a few months!

November Round Up

A good months riding, I hit my targets, set at the end of October to complete another at least another 300 miles and to maintain an average speed of 16mph

November Roundup
Total Miles	365.3
Total Time	22hrs 42m 36s
Average Speed	16.09

My target for December is going to be more focused on not getting dropped out the back of the club rides,  As soon as a gap forms I need to try and bridge it.. it'll be a challenge especially on the hills.

Changing Position

So I had my Bike fit this weekend, Saturday morning to be precise and every aspect got a tweak or two and so far so good but no doubt a few miles in the new set up will reap rewards. 

I had my bike fit done at Sigma Sports new store in Hampton Wick, a fantastic place to leisurely browse and lust over all the shiny new toys and bike bits...  

I had to chuckle to myself on overhearing a wife say to her husband, 'how long are we going to spend in here, you can't possibly need anything!'   How many times have I or most men said that to their wives on entering the umpteenth shoe/clothes shop!

Onto the fitting, my bike was taken up to the 3rd Floor (yup 3 floors of cyclist heaven) and set up in a consult room on a turbo trainer.  A quick run through my medical/cycling history and where I get my aches and niggles on the bike. I gave the pedals a few spins whilst Jimmy took some initial measurements.  The Seat went up, a few more revolutions, the seat went forwards, then up again, the cleats moved on my shoe, level the saddle a bit.  

A few more measurements either side with a TV aerial like device, checking the angle of knee bend.  Out came the plumb line and the angle of my knee over the pedal resulting in a couple more tweaks of the saddle position.A few more pedal spins all looked good and my back end was set!  A total increase of 18mm in saddle height and not far from that on the saddle direction. 

At the front end my handlebars were raised up with a new angled Stem, thus allowing me to be more comfortable on the drops and more importantly better access to the brakes!The rest of my cycling weekend consisted of gentle riding getting accustomed to the new set up which overall feels more comfortable and a more economical balance of effort to output.

Looking forwards to my physiological testing in a couple of week’s time! 

Bike Before

Bike After

Booked the Flights!

I booked my flights yesterday, La Fuga sent through all the details about the Etape trip so its becoming more real.

Modane is quite close to the Italian Border and part of the 2011 tour will actually venture into Italy.
The Hotel where I will be staying is near Turin and we will be shuttled to the Start and back from the Finish. 
I fly from Heathrow to Milan and then 3 days later Turin to Gatwick.. 4 Airports in 3 days, Euro Jet Set!!

Richmond Park

I was back on the bike today after a week off.  I felt so rough after last Saturdays ride, it was good to have the rest.

This morning I rode to Richmond Park and met up with Jamie (Kingston Wheeler) and we lapped the park clockwise for a couple of hours.  In total I clocked just under 45 mile for the ride, averaging 16mph.

It took a while to warm up the legs but once I got into my stride it felt pretty good.  There is still a long way to go with the training and I hope to start focussing on hill repeats on forthcoming Saturdays.

La Fuga/Sigma Sport Club Run

Today I rode in the Sigma Sport/ La Fuga Club run.  This ride was organised to commemorate the opening of the new Sigma Sport Cycling shop in Hampton Wick and the relocation the La Fuga Tour operators to offices within the shop.  (I will be participating in the Etape through a La Fuga package.)

The New Sigma Sport Store

The new store is fantastic, spread over 3 floors and everything you could possibly need and plenty of stuff you probably don't!  The store is not surprisingly very bike/cyclist friendly with an internal bike racking system where you can securely leave your bike whilst you browse.

The Cube on the rack.

The ride was 'supported'  (more on that later) and started with a briefing outside before the departure.  There were 60 riders in total split into 3 groups and the groups were guided by members of the Sigma Sport Pro Cycling Team.

The route I took was slightly different to the scheduled route and you can see it here  http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/west-molesey/132128966620373130
I seem to have developed an allergy to inclines!  I staid with the group all the way up to Hungry Hill and then started to go backwards.  I was last up Hungry Hill.  As I mentioned earlier this was a supported ride, meaning that there was a support vehicle as well as the ride guides.  The support vehicle came past me on the hill and said they would be waiting at the top.  The Car was the group was long gone!
I rode alone through East Clandon and was then was caught and dropped by the next group!  It was a good job I knew roughly where I was.

I caught up with the group when we got to the T stop at Peaselake.


Another Hill out of Peasleake up the Radnor Road, my pace picked up on this Hill and was more to do with the Sigma Pro riding alongside with his hand on my back.  Oh well it wasn't my day today.  A good thing though was that I made it up White Down Hill un aided, although I was hacking like a 20 Cigar a day man by the time i reached the top and my Heart rate was topping out at 176 bpm....not good.

Unsurprisingly despite a short rest at the top I was quickly dropped again for the 3rd time.  Again a good job I knew where I was as I spent the next 40 or so minutes riding back by myself no surprise I missed the turn everyone else had taken.  I stayed on the route I knew back through Cobham and was caught up by the group again on the Portsmouth Road towards Esher.

When we got to the finish back at the store we were given a goody bag full of energy gels and drinks and lots of other bits and pieces and I also got a Team Sky cycling cap.

In Summary, I finished the ride and didn't need to stop on the White Down hill, so I'm happy about that. I was a bit disappointed with the lack of route guidance, for the moments when I was riding alone.

I feel rough now with a real hacking cough, so I'll be taking a few days off the bike.

A Wheely Good Weekend

I have had a great weekend on the bike, lots of training miles and evidence of progress.  I think those turbo training sessions are starting to pay dividends.

Saturday:

I wanted to ride on Saturday so joined the Kingston Wheelers Saturday group. We had a great ride through the Surrey Hills.  The weather was fantastic a little on the cold side but once we got moving I warmed up.  The scenery was spectacular with all the oranges, yellows and reds of the leaves.  The downside to the leaves was that they were slippy and affected traction on the hills.  Never thought I'd get wheels spin on a bike.

It was a small group, approx 16 of us so we could ride at a gentlemanly pace and have a chat.  I really enjoyed the ride and meeting a few more new faces from the cycling club.
Ride time was 3:59:11 distance 62.40 m av speed 15.6mph

Sunday:
I headed out to the usual meet for the club ride and got there on time as opposed to early.  As always loads of people showed up and routes went in all directions, 3 Hills, Windsor, a 75miler, up and over Box Hill and the fast training group, (we saw them come past us, averaging 18/19mph for their 40 mile route......one day I might ride with that group.

I did my usual Box Hill group and it was a great ride.  My legs felt good and I was holding my own in the group comfortably.  I had mental images of flying up the hills, dreams were all these were.  I still went backwards on the inclines, my one sign of improvement was not resorting to the smallest chainring for Box Hill!!

Ride time - 3:07:12 distance 47.80 miles av speed 15.3mph

The bonus of the Kingston Wheeler club rides is that they start and finish at Laithwaites car park on the Portsmouth Road meaning that I can go and see Mum on the way back after the ride.

November

November training started yesterday with a session on the turbo trainer thats all set up in the shed.  Its not as cramped as it sounds.

I have accepted the inevitable of spending quite a bit of time in the shed over the next few months in order to clock up the miles and build up my legs and endurance.  So I have found some training programmes online at http://www.turbotraining.co.uk/ , various interval programmes and challenges are available.  The site scrolls through the various intervals of the programme... I won't go on it sounds a bit nerdy safe to say it makes it a bit more interesting than staring at the lawnmower and the spade!

steel chariot

The turbotrainer is good for wearing through tyres.  so I shall be taking 'The Cube' off and putting the 'Steel Chariot'

I covered 12.79 miles in just under 41minutes. It felt good (as good as dripping in sweat and burning muscles can)  and I credit taking the weekend off and recharging down in Cornwall and also having a massge.   Apparently I have a lot of knots in every muscle South of my head.

I

work stand

October Round Up

Well its been a busy month, on the cycling front.

I launched my challenge to ride the Etape du Tour 2011 and cover a total of 5,745Km in the process, (3,750m).

October Stats
Total Miles	395.68
Total Time (hrs)	25hrs 42m
Average Speed	15.4mph

I am still awaiting confirmation of my entry into the Etape part I - Modane - Alpe D'huez on 11 July 2011.

A total distance of 109Km (67m) ...with a lot of it uphill!

The target for November is to cover 300 miles of training and increase my average speed to 16mph

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

First Sportive!!!

My first sportive and I went so fast I set off a speed camera!....Ok I was in the car on the way to the start, oh bother.  When I unpacked the bike I found that I had lost a knut from the rear wheels quick release skewer, not good. fortunately the lovely people of Evans gave me a replacement at no cost.

I took part in the Evans ride it Gatwick Sportive today.

The start..in an industrial Estate

I rode a total of 64.4 miles through the South Downs,  it was a great ride really scenic but alas I was wearing full finger gloves and I couldn't  take any more photos because my touch screen camera wouldn't register gloves.  So alas this is my only photo.

The ride was 64.4 miles and I covered it in 4hrs 14min so an average of 15.1mph.  The ride broadly followed the following route with a few minor amendments.  

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/crawley/973128585394593601

We started well leaving just after 8.30am.  The weather report was clear and sunny but layers was the dress code for the day.  I wore my bib leggings (padded) a pair of running leggings and one long sleeved base layer, one long sleeved cycling jersey and one long sleeved cycling jacket, a pair of long fingered gloves and some sort of neck ruff thing that came free in a magazine.  I didn't strip any layers. I'd be surprised if the temp ever went over 10 degrees.  My one regret was not having any over shoes (like spats) to keep out the cold so i'll be looking on Ebay for those.

The first part of the ride was nice and relaxed, I stayed with the group I started with and we covered the first 10 miles at about 17mph and I really felt the benefit of riding in a group, making the ride easier.  It took those early miles for my legs to warm up.  They felt good for the first climb, drop the gear and away, I felt like Shleck and dropped my group in that climb.  

I forged onto the next group of 3 riders and we spent the next 40 ish miles together. It was a good group we had a good natter.  

I was a bit perplexed as some of the hills we covered I would be dropped and catch up with everyone on the descent or a bit further or I would spin up them with indifference.  No rhyme or reason. 

I really enjoyed the group, there wasn't any real organisation (taking turns at the front) and we spent most of the time riding 2 by 2.

The last 10/12 miles I rode solo.  I really start to feel it in my legs after the first feed station and I admit to worrying I would be late for lunch! (priorities)

Vicks and I had arranged to meet her parents for lunch in a pub in Michelham, I had calculated that if I finished the ride by 12.30pm (4hrs) I would be able to have a quick wash and then get to the pub in time.  I finished the ride just after 1pm and had to get to the pub in (new location) Betchworth for 1.30.  So the jeans and shirt went over the leggings and long sleeved T and off I went and made it to the pub at 1.40 and my pint of Guiness!!

The event was really well organised, excellent help at the start, simple registration and then a marked route.  The feed stations were brilliant, I could top up the bottles with Lucozade equivilant and take on a few more Go bars. If I had anything I could alter it would be the route markers.  They were black arrows on pink card post card size.  At 18-20mph a post card is hard to see....... but then I didn't see a speed camera at 30ish so who am I to talk!!!!!

Etape Announced

The Etape route, of for a rare occasion this year routes, were announced on the 20th October.

For the first time ever there are 2 choices for the Etape.  Either the Alps or the Massif Centrale.

The first up will be the Alps on 11th July (My preference) 

A 109km route starting in Modane and summiting the Col du Telegraph, the monumental Col Du Galibier and then finishing atop the infamous Alpe D'huez.

In a recent interview Mark Cavendish said this about the mountains in this years TdF including the Galibier, "We go three times over 2,500m - you can't breathe when you're sleeping at that level, let alone ride your bike." .....Great!


I am just waiting for confirmation of my place in next years Etape.

Power

POWER!!... A phrase commonly quoted by Mr. Clarkson in nearly every car review on Top Gear and something I think is missing from my legs.

Whilst riding to Brighton Dave suggested that I should ride in a harder gear at times, so that I had something left to help me up the Beacon.  If you read the previous post you'll read how that went.  Another thing that got me thinking about Power was today's announcement of the Tour routes and looking at the profiles of the possible stages that could be the Etape.  They turn the Beacon into sand pit architecture.

Hmm so Power, how to get it. Having looked at some pics and read lots on the internet.  I have 2 options.

1. Weight - apparently World class climbers generally have less than 2 pounds of body weight per inch of height.  apply that to me and the calculation goes like this: Current height 6ft 3in (75 inches) x 2 so ideal climbing weight would be 150lbs (10st 9lbs). 
2. Bigger legs - I need to transform my Quads and Ham Strings into real turkey drummers that Bernard Matthews would be proud of.

Am I going to try and lose another 3 1/2 stone...NO!  BM legs it is then.   

I have changed my focus on the turbo to intervals.   5 min warm up chain on the middle cog at the front and middle at the back.
My intervals are 2mins in my hardest gear, biggest cog at the front and smallest at the back. Then 3 mins
spinning the pedals, biggest cog at the front and a couple of cogs off the bottom.

Surbiton 2 Brighton!

Today I have covered 75.8 miles and as I write this my legs are starting to feel everyone.

I rode over to Dave's this morning for our 9 am departure and departed bang on time.  (Jack pulled out last night so it was only the 2 of us).
Our goal was to average 15mph over the whole distance.  It wasn't the warmest start to the day but we were both kitted in our winter kit layers and leggings. As we left i specifically asked Dave whether he had his keys, wallet and phone,  "Yeah Yeah lets go"...more on that later.

Once we were moving we it was easy to roll along chatting and it didn't feel too cold.  We headed from Surbiton through Esher to Cobham and through to Leatherhead.  The road from Cobham to Leatherhead goes up past the Woodlands park Hotel and has on it a slight rise.  The first sniff of an incline and I started to slow.  What was going to happen when I reach the foot of Ditchling Beacon.

Before we got to the B roads we had to experience the cycle lanes of the A24 and they are awful.

However once we got out onto the 'lanes' with blissfully little traffic we had views such as this one all around us and with the sun coming through it made the riding a lot easier.

Annoyingly we had to add a few extra miles to our original planned route as my navigation was up to its usual standards and I couldn't find a road that was supposed to be directly opposite us.  This brief chance to stop allowed Dave to identify he didn't have his house keys. Doh!










Getting to the foot of the beacon we were making good time, all ideas of flying up a la Contodor were quickly left behind as my legs burned, burned, burned.  Clearly not enough 'Steak' in my diet at the moment.  Alas I had to admit defeat a couple of hundred meters from the top and push the bike.

conquered the beacon (ish)

The Beacon took a hatchet to our average 15mph.  But thankfully the rest of the route to the Pier was all down and we could make up the lost mph.

We Completed the whole route, 63miles in 4hrs 10m.  Then had a beer before grabbing the train back.  Cycling back from Surbiton station added the last few miles to my ride today.

Thank You!

Thank you to...
Mark, Mel & Colin, Lidia & Mike, Christina, Chris, Damian, Mandy, Phil, Lisa Jonathan and Ed.
We have raised £272 so far, thank you.  Alas I have only covered 182 miles todate but I feel spurred on by the support and hope to take the lead over the weekend.  Tomorrow I will be riding to Brighton for lunch with Dave and Jack, Am hoping to still have some legs for a Club Run on Sunday.

Tail End Charlie

Just completed another Club Run with the Kingston Wheelers, down to Box Hill and back.  45 miles in 3hrs 7 m.

This is me at the start, in my Alz Society top, felt it was time to get one pic in.

Mark came along for the jaunt and comfortably kept up with the front of the group whilst I maintained 'guard' at the rear.  One advantage of being at the rear of the group was being able to get a couple of pics as we went along.

Plough Lane

Maybe not the best average speed but I felt more comfortable this week.

 Heading up Zig Zag Road, Box Hill.  As you can see this quickly became a solo effort.  At least there was respite at the cafe at the top.

Alas on the route back I punctured and thanks to Mark for coming back from the group, a bit peeved that the rest of the group didn't wait.  Nevertheless I'm sure with practice I'll spend more time with the rest of the group!

Self Portrait!

The Weekend!!

In an earlier post I calculated how many miles I would have to ride a day to complete my target mileage.  in reality the weekends will see the most mileage efforts so that I shouldn't be so hard pressed during the week.So this weekend started with a quick spin on the Turbo 12.8 miles in 40 minutes - 17.9mph  Dave then came over to help plan some longer rides.  We'll be starting with Surbiton to Brighton, not quite the London to Brighton, nevertheless the planned route will cover 58 and involve a climb up Ditchling Beacon.  The finish line will be at the Pier and we shall no doubt have a beer at the nearest bar.  Take a look at the route.
www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/esher/232128664289989094  We are aiming to go on Saturday  16th so I hope to put up some pics and news soon after.

Tomorrow I shall be partaking in the Kingston Wheelers Club Run again and have recruited Mark to the task as well.  I hope not to be shell out the back as often!

10 days until the Tour and  Etape routes are announced.

I Introduce..... The CUBE!

Another Evening on the Turbo Trainer, 18 miles in 1 Hour.

Turbo Training

I set my Turbo up this evening and covered 17 miles in 50 minutes so an average of just over 20mph.  I did have a little 15 minute break in the middle, stopped all the clocks.  I got a puncture on a turbo trainer!!!

Sudden thought... must take more pics for evidence.

Training Plans

One thing has led to another and I have not been out on the bike since Sunday. It has also crossed my mind that 3570 miles is rather a long way and I have only chipped 48 ish miles off that, so still 3522 to go and approximately 9 months until the Grand Depart!  So.  391.3 miles a month, 97.8 miles a week, 13.9 miles a day. Hmmm

Having spent some time over the past few evenings researching training plans for Sportives (the bike equivilant to a Marathon) and especially the Etape. Google reveals a plethora of advice on nutrition, lactate thresholds, V02 maxes and wattages per kilo.  Condensed I have to be able to a long way in a group up a hill and not get shelled out the back...too often.

So I shall be focussing my traing in 4 areas:

1. Distance
2. Speed
3. Hills
4. Group riding

1. Distance- I will keep riding the club runs each week and will also plan a few long distance rides.  I have entred 3 events organised by Evans bike shops each of about 60 miles and hope to add a ride to Brighton and when the weather gets better to Dorset.
2. Speed- I have a Turbo Trainer (a rolling road that fixes to the back wheel), and will be using this to train my legs to become comfortable with spinning the pedals at a high cadence.  I have attached an old cycle computer to the back wheel so that I can clock the static' miles.
3. Hills- I have the Surrey Hills practically on my doorstep and I will do a lot of road miles there, becoming familiar with the likes of White Dow, Leith Hill and Box Hill.  I shall also attempt a venture into the Malverns or Brecons when the weather is better.
4. Groups- The Club runs will be the main source of this practice and wishfully I can drum up some company for some of my longer planned rides.

    

1st Training Run!

Hi there,
I have completed my first official training ride.  I have attached a link to the route so if you want to copy it into the address bar you can see where I went.

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/staines/529128567546678626

48.77 miles in 3hrs 29min average speed 14mph
I have found that a local cycling club, Kingston Wheelers, meet up in Surbiton and go from there every Sunday at 9.00am  so I tagged along.

It was a bit overcast but not raining...yet.  by 9 a gathering of about 20 riders had assembled and I was put in a smaller group of a dozen off to Box Hill.

Riding side by side with Terry and having a chat.  It was all going rather well until we reached the Country back lanes of Cobham and I was dropped by the Peleton of Carbon Fibre.  Nevertheless there all thoroughly nice chaps and were waiting a little further down the road in Ockham.

As we began to approach Dorking and the road was getting lumpy I assumed the rear guard position and the others were waiting for me.  Terry dropped back and asked how I was finding and how my legs were.  Legs 1&2 were fine but I was quite concerned the I had no sensation of the third!!  A brief panic and then Terry suggested standing out of the saddle, blood flow restored and panic over.

Up to the top of Box Hill I started second in the line and swiftly went backwards, by the time I made it to the top the rest were already tucking into cups of tea and cake at the cafe.  a brief respite for me to top up the water bottles and don the wet weather gear.  It was constant heavy rain all the way home.

I successfully survived my first Kingston Wheelers Club Run.  More again next weekend.

The Memory Walk

I'm not counting this as 'training' miles but I'm sure the fresh air did me the world of good!

The walk was 5 miles from Worcester Park to Emberbrook, (Residential Care Home).  The walk was organised by a lady named Dianne and my Clare found this out via Emberbrook and so Helen and I tagged along for moral support.

There were 21 people in convoy and our little group consisted of Helen, Clare, Mum, Anna and myself.

Here we are having completed the walk, Clare is presenting Mum's Certificate!

The Challenge

This challenge is born out of a renewed obsession with cycling and wanting to support The Alzheimer’s Society.


For those that know and those that don’t my Mum has Alzheimer’s. 
I haven't yet found words to adequately describe my experiences of this disease.  However through sadness, anger and laughing at moments when I probably shouldn’t, I have been able to rely on information and support of the Alzheimer’s Society.


To find out more about the fantastic work that the society does please have a look at their web site  www.alzheimers.org.uk/



Now for the moment of madness and my Alzheimer’s cycle challenge. 

My goal is to enter and complete the Etape du Tour 2011.  The Etape du Tour allows amateur riders to tackle a stage of the Tour De France under tournament conditions, usually in the mountains of the Alps or Pyrenees.  The Etape takes place in July and the riders get to ride the route a couple of days before the pro's arrive.
I have read quite a bit about this event and a little bit of training is well advised.... between 2000 and 3000 miles!!   A little bit more reading and I find that the longest ever Tour De France was competed in 1926 over a distance of 5,745km (3,570m). 

The culmination of this will be one day in July at the Etape du Tour 2011.

My  target is to raise a minimum of £5,745, £1 for every kilometer.   I would be grateful for any donation you are able to make to the Alzheimer’s Society on behalf of this challenge.
www.justgiving.com/Ashley-Glover