Power-less

I went out for a ride on Monday to enjoy the weather, and well the power-tap wasn't agreeing. Possibly cause it's 4 1/2 years old? Literally the rear hub froze solid on me. I'm dropping it off and the GBC and let them rebuild the hub or it may need whole new axle. If it's anything excessive, buh-bye. My road bike is essentially used for training and it's showing it's wear. The durace (yah i know it's dura-ace, but its fun to say dur-rachi) is 5 + years old and the thousands of miles on the salty roads of upstate NY winters have me basically working with a front brake, and a "kick-shift" front der. I'll ride her till she dies.

In the meantime the paragon is fully set-up to handle all the necessary duties for road and off-road riding. I may never go back to the road bike if the ergomo returns. I may even end up with one of these. All depends, but most likely will. So in the meantime it's down to some Perceived exertion and manual TSS.

This weekend kicks off the Rochester Giros Spring Training Series. Guess who won't be showing up as you need a GVCC membership? $20 to race, plus another $60 for GVCC membership, plus $150 UCI license????? And it's now on the west side of Rochester, ya F that. I'll get better training on my own time rather than the 2.5 hours spent in the car.

Looks like a nice day out there, better get back to work so I can take a long lunch and sneak a few hours in today....

Oh Almost Forgot!! NYSERS site is now live and running!!

Currently playing in iTunes: Star Of Bethlehem by Angels & Airwaves

Solo Weekend

Spent the past weekend on some solo adventures. All in all a great weekend of training. Would've liked a bit more time on Saturday, but the Ol' man winter had made up his mind.

Saturday, I put in just over 2 hours of brutality. It was 30 degrees with 30mph winds. Pretty much every backroad that ran North-South was insane. With the winds blowing so fierce they were creating massive snow drifts across the roads in unprotected sections. I'd say I crossed about 50 snow drift, some up to 100 meters long or so. I was forced to walk one, as the wind pushed me around so much I couldn't stay upright in the snow. The good news is I didn't crash in any of the others and after negotiating a few difficult ones, they became fairly easy as you just found a good line and cruised. If there was no line, I just hit the gravel off the shoulder and it provided decent enough grip to stay upright. The last few mile, though the snow picked up pretty heavily and became difficult to see more than a few hundred meters. Naturally, after I get home and clean up the sun comes out and all is good.

Sunday, was a great day 35 and sunshine all day. Light winds, but nothing major. I decided I would just give it a good day on the bike. I headed south into the rolling hills of Seneca Lake Wine Country and put in 142k circumnavigating the lake. I felt pretty good for the 1st 3 hours or so, but by the time I climbed out of Watkins Glen, I could tell that my meal from the night before didn't prepare me well enough for the ride. I'd eaten well on the bike, and prior; but not enough for dinner. I can pretty much tell how much an effect a meal or even certain foods now has on my training. I didn't expect I'd put in such a big day, but then who can argue when the sun is shining and its a nice day. If there wasn't snow on the ground I'd have thought it was June. The last 20k of the ride I suffered a bit, but suffer now and feel good come race day!

I was suppose to ride this morning with Mark and Suzanne, but I bailed for more sleep after yesterday. However right now, its 47 and the sun is shining. Yah, I have a "appointment" around 3pm ;) ..... gotta take advantage while I can!!

Rollin with the Crew

Yesterday morning was an unbelievable day for mid-Feb in Upstate NY. Temps were near 50 and the sun was actually shining. Headed out on the road with Mark and Suzanne Hartman for a nice early am ride. I was on the roadie (as that's where the power meter is) while Mark and Suzanne were rockin' their respective 29ers.

We headed out pretty much right into the wind and hit a few nice hills. Steep, and short, but long enough to make you suffer. I've not really done any super hill work or anything steep as of yet, so I wanted to see how the engine was running. Figured the few hills would be a good test, but not wear me out too much. Besides the small ring shifting isn't really working. (Yup, I do zero maintenance on my road bike, you can tell by the water bottle bolt replaced with wrapped duct tape). So I was forced to grind up the hills and actually felt really good. I was suprised to feel as good as I was considering the past few days of training.

Hopefully Mark will get some nice pics up as he had his helmet cam, maybe even a video.

In the meantime, enjoy The Champ's latest Video

I'll take the next few days off here and recover. The weather is shaping up for a nice weekend, so I'll be back on the bike Thursday. (probably hitting the dirt). Hopefully, It'll stay as is and I can put some huge miles in this weekend and maybe even get down into the hills in Naples.

Currently playing in iTunes: Walcott by Vampire Weekend

Solid Block

Past few days have been a big block of training. Weather has been tolerable enough to get out there and get things done.

Thursday, I busted out the skiis and did some am xc skiing at the local golf course. It was a bit chilly, but tolerable and managed a quick hour prior to work.

Friday, temps were good enough to get out for an hour and a half and pound out some tempo on the road.

Yesterday, I pulled out the paragon and headed over to glenwood with Lizzy. I hit up the GBC before hand and picked up a new drivetrain for the roadie and some more winter clothing. Over at glenwood, the snow was a little bit deeper than I thought it was. Luckily, marky had gone out in the morning and laid down some tracks. There was also a few walkers who packed the trail in nice. After a few laps that felt like pedaling through quicksand, it was some good riding.

This morning I pulled out the roadie and challenged the coming rain. Weather was forecast to be quite a bit windy in the morning with some rains coming in the afternoon. I headed out the door and got some good time in. I suffered like a dog for 20k heading south into the brutal headwind. Pretty much felt like I was going nowhere for quite a while. To top it off the rain came in near the end of those last few k's. Even with the warmer temps, I was forced to take a turn and head home. The roads were quite wet and I was starting to get cold from the strong winds. It did manage to be a good ride overall.

Note the few spots where my speed just jumps up from having a huge tailwind

Hopefully, I'll be able to get out tomorrow in the am and put a few more hours in and top of this nice little block of training.

Snow is coming

Winter is back with a nice little treat these next few days. Guess it's time to bust out the ski's possibly the next few days. I'm actually excited a bit about a little bit of a change of pace. I hope the rain holds off though......

Not that things are getting tough, but It's winter, and I like to xc ski. Things are actually going good. Last night I even busted out the rollers for a little go. I've still got it; Yup I can ride no handed with 1 leg. That's smooth baby, smooth... One thing that frustrated me though is the power-tap torque values were a bit off for the first 25 minutes of my ride. I'm freaking busting my ass doing 1 minute intervals at 250 watts. I thought maybe the trainer was just on a little bit harder, but 250 is tempo, no AE!! Once I re-calibrated the torque all was well, but now I gotta figure out how to adjust 25 minutes of power data to sensible numbers (anybody wanna help me ?)

I also did manage to get out for about 3 hours this past weekend and just do some light tempo. Unfortunately, I worked Saturday and Sunday and was forced to shorten the ride. It would've been nice to pull of 5-6 hours of tempo. Hopefully I can catch a break this weekend and put in a nice loooong day.

I've got a new mantra also; taken right from Team CSC at last year's Tour. Go Here for what it is (NSFW).

Also, I re-enabled comments on my page, so feel free to drop me a note!

Lunch time getaway

It was darn near 50 degrees today, unfortunately I slept like crap last night so I never managed to wake up early and put in a decent ride. I decided I would try to milk as much sleep as I could. As a result, I took an extended lunch and headed out for a ride.

Seeing as I only had an hour I just went out and slammed it. Pushed it in the upper tempo zones and really worked it on a few climbs. I really felt great on the bike today. 10 minutes into my nice 50 degree ride it started raining and raining good.

I was pretty good and soaked to the bone, but I was damn near loving every moment of it. Thankfully I decided to wear full leg warmers instead of knee warmers. The fenders worked great in keeping my ass and back dry, but my feet still got wet.

For some reason, when the weather is nasty I really love to go out and just push myself as hard as I can. I love riding in the rain (I just don't like starting in it). Some of my favorite races and best performances have been in rainy/muddy conditions. I can't pinpoint what it is but it just feels a little bit primal...

Todays power file...

Well looks like its going to get nasty again the next few days. Probably will be forced onto the trainer unless the ground freezes one of em.....blah

Currently playing in iTunes: Back Out On The ... by Broken Social Scene Presents Kevin Drew

Crappy weekend

The weather this weekend was downright horrible. It snowed a bit friday and then turned to sleet/rain. The ground right now has a nice covering of snow and ice. It's odd though as its mid 30's or so so the stuff is kinda melting, but freezing up at night. I refused to ride the trainer so yesterday, I just went out and decided, I didn't care if the roads were wet or covered in ice (although on a few downhills I was damn scared). I pulled the road bike out and just went out and nailed it for an hour getting a few good sprint efforts in up some light hills. Managed to stay nice and dry though with the fenders! Those things rock, what have I been thinking for the past 6 years or so riding the wet roads in the winter with no fenders. I don't care if they look gay or not, my ass and my feet are dry and warm!

Today, the ground was nice and frozen so I was gonna head over to glenwood and let lizzy run around. The plan was to just nail it for 2 hours and have some fun riding the paragon. I just put a new chain/cassette/cables on her so was going to give it a good breaking in. Well, I went to adjust my saddle and the seat binder bolt broke in half. I couldn't get the one end of it out, so I was forced to pack everything back in the car and head home to hit the roads. I revised the workout and decide to just ride some tempo for 2 hours just keeping the wattage steady and giving it a good go. The route was predominately flat with a few risers here or there, but no major climbs of any sort.


Keeping it nice and steady

Currently playing in iTunes: Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa by Vampire Weekend (FYI: this album is awesome!!)

Full Weekend

Managed to put in some decent time this weekend. Not as much as I would've liked, but I'll take anything right now as the temps are getting slightly better.

Saturday I took Lizzy out and headed over to Dryer Rd. Put in just over 2 hours in the snow and dirt. There was a light covering of snow on the ground making it a bit sketchy in a few parts, but there had been a few riders out and after some laps I had it packed in real nice. It was fun to get out there and just hammer a bit. I went out and just pushed it as hard as I could for 2 full hours and was pretty whipped by the end.

Sunday, was nice enough to get out and hit the roads. Light winds out of the south and low 30 degree temps and clear roads means pull out the road bike. It was a nice ride on a lightly rolling route. I was having fun and staying warm but around the 2:15 mark or so I flatted after a good stint on some back dirt/stone roads. I changed the flat with my 4inch mini pump (aka 400 strokes), but by the time I got back going again the gloves were cold and wet from sweating so I just finished my ride up and headed back home. I kept it mostly light tempo, with a few efforts here and there. I'm feeling really good putting in the hours and laying down the tempo, I just lack my climbing legs. They will come in due time though as I usually purposefully hold myself back on the climbs this time of the year. Mid to late next month I'll start adding some longer climbs to bring up the intensity. I'll add a few race efforts at the Giro's in the spring for sure.

Today, I'm gonna sneak out of work here in a few hours and see if I can't "raise the roof" with a few vo2 max efforts, and test how the legs are after 2 days of good rides.







This video is great! Found it over on Drunk Cyclist

Another Cold Day this time at the Hollow

Yesterday was cold; 10 degrees F and 30 mph winds. Headed down to the Hollow to hit the trails, managed around 2 hours of ride time. Loads of fun with everyone. All fingers and toes are accounted for.

Loads of pics in the slideshow below:

Frozen toes

Hit up the Geneva Bicycle Center for the Winter sale this past morning. Picked up a few essential supplies. Usual tubes, lube and food, etc.

After that grabbed lizzy and headed over to Dryer Rd in Victor for some riding on the Supercaliber. Ground was nice and firm as it was brutally cold with a nasty wind. Still some snow out there on the trails, but for the most part was dirt. Managed an hour before I couldn't feel my toes anymore. My core and hands were plenty warm, but the toes just weren't staying nice and toasty.

Ergomo doesn't lie

Lizzy Surveys the scene

Climbing up thru Moon Valley

Hope no one was sitting there!!

Last of the decent weather days

Got out for plenty of ride time this past weekend. Weather was fairly decent here these past two days, so I had to take advantage of it. Unfortunately, it's not sticking around and snow and colder temps are due to return. Maybe I'll pull out the mountain bike if the trails freeze up.

Yesterday, I put in a few hours. I rode the same route as this past tuesday. I was quite amazed at the power file after I reviewed them both. Time, TSS, and avg power were nearly identical, the major difference was that my hr was quite a bit lower than the Tuesday ride. I was pretty psyched about that as lower hr over the same power is a good indicator of improvement in fitness.

Today I headed south down to Penn Yan get some rolling hills in. Ended up with just over 4 hours total time. I'm not climbing as I'd like to yet, but there plenty of room for improvement. On my way home I noticed that my front tire was getting soft, I pulled out my spare and realized it was no good, doh! I emptied my co2 into the slow leaking tube and it held up.

Good news is I put a pretty good bump in my CTL this week!

Currently playing in iTunes: Intervention by The Arcade Fire

Early Morning Ride

Another Beautiful day yesterday. Meant another opportunity to get out on the road and put some more miles in. Got out early am with Mark and Suzanne, enjoyed the warm weather and a nice sunrise.



Beautiful early morning skies




Sunrise, Sunrise...



Rolling Along enjoying the Winter Warmth



Mark descends Earl's Hill

Rare sighting of cyclist captured!

Ok, so It's been a little bit since I've been on my blog. What can I say, the holidaze were here and basically I was not in a position to type up anything, plus I went to Ohio a few times for work.

But, the weather has broke the past few days and is going to be great here for the next few


I got out to glenwood saturday am with lizzy while the ground and trails were still frozen. I didn't feel all that bad, and technically I'm still really strong at that aspect. Yesterday, I hit the road for a few hours.

Today, I sneaked out of work for an extended lunch and put some time in. But don't tell my boss!!

Rolling along on the wheelman route

It was crazy warm though and I peeled the layers off as the ride went on




Still some snow out in the country though...

Hoping to get out tomorrow am for a few hours before work


Currently playing in iTunes: Today Is The Day by Apollo Sunshine

Bustin out the XC Skis

Snow is coming down outside just a little bit ;) 5-9 inches or more expected, with the possibility of a Nor'easter this weekend!

I did manage to get out on the bike on monday for some night riding at glenwood. I rushed home and put the supercaliber back together and headed over to the trails with Mark and the dogs. Temps were hovering right around freezing, but it was warm during the day. This meant that the exposed parts of the trail were nothing more than mud and muck. I managed to get close to an hour in then we called it quits.

So it's snowing out pretty good today. Looking like it's going to be a good night for some xc skiing. Road conditions are probably going to be too poor to head anywhere, so most likely going to end up over at glenwood. Lay some tracks down and can most likely get it worked in for the bikes possibly over the weekend.


View outside my car at lunchtime today!

Currently playing in iTunes: Velvet Snow by Kings Of Leon

Glenwood Snow Riding

Hit up glenwood yesterday with Mark, Burt, Cadence and Lizzy. It was great to get out on the trails and ride around on the snow. Decided to pull out the camera and take a little video. Edited it up just now and posted it here for you. Yes, the whole video was taken with me riding 1 handed!! on my Paragon!!... Not an easy task, there are quite a few logs that took me out and you'll notice me hitting the snow/dirt near the end of the video as I tried to navigate a v-ditch.

On a side note, I'm now a Sergeant Grade 1 in Halo 3!! Umm, yah I still suck as my kill to death ratio is .69 (but hey it was .13!!)

Currently playing in iTunes: Down Boy by Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Snow

Mark, Suzanne, myself and the pups made an attempt to ride over at Glenwood this morning. We got a few inches of snow last night and figured we'd head out and pack in the trails, and run the pups a little bit. Unfortunately, the snow was a little deeper than we thought making for a tough romp through the trails. We made it down one trail and after a bit of sliding, crashing and walking (well, Mark had no issues as usual) we decided to head home and just pull out the skis. On the way home the rain came down and we had to bail because the snow sucked. So basically we were out and just decided to stick home for the day and chill.

Oh well, try again tomorrow.

130.7 MPH on a mountain bike!?

EDIT: NOW HAVE THE VIDEOWired Blogs: Gadget Lab: "33 year old Austrian Markus Stoeckl has smashed the World Speed Record for series mountain bikes. Stoeckl, nicknamed "Hercules" because of his 6'4", 220 lbs. frame, broke the 8 year old record by 14 mph on a 2000 meter, 45 degree run in the Chilean Alps. Because of the extreme cold, Hercules had to hold his breath for the 40 second duration so his helmet didn't fog up."

Think you're ready for the winter season? Maybe we should hop on board this guys training plan!! You'll be fast that's for sure!!

Course Creator

I just came across this a few moments ago and it looks really cool. It's called Course Creator. Just sign up for an account and right away you can start mapping out distances, elevation, and if you have a garmin gps you can get waypoints for your ride. This looks real cool and I'll be playing around with it a bunch for sure.



Ol' man winter looks to possibly be coming back tonight and tomorrow ; Really sucks as all the snow right now is pretty much gone. It's been real cold overnight so I'm hoping to hop over to dryer rd and maybe get a mt. bike ride in this evening before the snow comes. As far as tomorrow goes, I'm probably going to have to suck it up and do a little ski time and trainer time. I hope by Sunday they can get the roads cleared back up and I can head out for the gvcc giro.



I'm sure a few people are caught up in this weekend's training dilemma, How do I train and still celebrate St. Patty's Day?? Well don't have an answer for that one. Check back Monday for a wrap-up and see how I rolled. Will I be good or bad??



Back to work....

Sundays planned ride...

Weather is changing! Tomorrow is the GVCC Giros and sunday will be a big day!

this is our planned route




click here for full size image

Car trumps bike...everytime

For the first time ever, I was hit by a car on my bike. Luckily nothing major, no bike problems, no injuries and nothing really to report other than a little soreness of my right knuckles.



This past Saturday, weather was decent (mid 30's and windy) and it was time to get out for a nice long ride. I headed out of town via my usual route of down Main St and then head South via 444. It has some nice gradual climbs that are perfect for getting warmed up on. I was in the left hand turning lane behind the 3rd vehicle. I made sure to sit far enough out that the driver could see me via her side mirror and rearview mirror. I could hardly be missed as I was wearing a bright yellow jacket. As the driver rounded the turn I stayed about 10 yards back in the same position, just off the right quarter panel of the minivan. I was accelerating standing up at an even pace with the vehicle. The driver slammed on her brakes and makes a quick right hand turn into the very first driveway on the right. Well as I'm on the right hand side of the road and had just finished accelerating, that puts me in a little bit of a bind! I had my hands on the hoods and was just staring at a big ol side of a vehicle in my path. I slid back on the seat, squeezed the brakes turned to the right a little bit, and BAM! smacked right into the rear quarter panel with my left hand. Luckily, I didn't even go down! No pavement action for me. I had shielded the front wheel perfectly and absorbed the impact with my right hand and a little bit of the right shoulder. I had vision of a tire crushing me and my bike, but never went down like that.



After some calm exchanges of words and apologies, the driver admitted she had seen me and it was her fault. No damage done to either party and we parted ways. I continued on my ride and managed to get some good mileage in for the day (~ a little over 4 hours or so) before I the wind took over and I had to take shelter inside.



After that I was a little more cautious than usual in giving vehicles space...



Saturday night was a blowout at Mark and Suzanne's. I had a short lived but good time...(note to self, don't eat so many damn brownies!). There was some good chatter about doing a double highlander, which amounts to about 200 miles and 22,000ft of climbing! We'll see how that one shakes out..



Sunday was recovery from the party, the crash and the end of a recovery week for myself.



Hopefully this week is the last of the deep freeze and can get out to the Giro's and some xtra time!