Graham Vines
I found this picture today whilst searching for something else. It was taken in 1958 that fellow looks rather sharp.
North, East, South, West. Not necessarily in that order. In my long ride base training after cross for Paris Roubaix I've ridden out to Essex (bad times), North London (muddy good times) and on Sunday I rode South to Kent (hilly sunny times).
So next is the chocolate cake ride to Windsor (hmmm) and then I'll be done. All points covered.
Cobbled Theory
From memory the cobbles are 2-5 minute sections where by high effort is needed and greater power. When you hit the cobbles it feels like your fighting against someone dragging you back.
The cadence you're spinning instantly drops. It feels like 85rpm down to 60rpm.
So.... with that in mind I decided to do intervals. There are two weeks to go until PR, doing intervals on my next 5 rides would be the final tune up.
Start the interval in a bigger gear than normal. Only by 1 or 2 cogs. This would mean that the spin up to greater speed and heart rate would be against a resistance.
In theory like entering the cobbles and trying to maintain speed before one gets a feel for effort needed and shifts to accomodate without too much loss of momentum.
In Practice
Every 20-30 minutes I rode for 5 minutes in Zone 5 . Heart rate was roughly 185 - 191.
The 20-30 minutes was is a wide band of time because the Kent route was fairly hilly so one had to just judge the land so not to begin an internal on the approach to a descent.
I perhaps shouldn't have chosen a hilly route as mid way through I ran out of puff and so just rode at tempo. To get through so of the little troughs and I wasn't sure how hard the big final climb would be.
I've highlighted the intervals in green.
I followed the Hell of the Ashdown route down to Cowden and then turning right onto a lane that bisects the loop. Rejoining the route just south of a place called Chiddingstone Hoath. Then I followed the route back to the a place called Knockholt Pound inside the M25.
iPad 2 being used on the train headed south of the river. 67.23% chance you will get attacked.
Went on the London eye last night at sunset. It was good. I've been before, a couple of years ago but it's always nice to take in the views of London and check out the new landmarks that have arisen.
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You can't fault it
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I've never attempted to use a Garmin 705 (the one with maps) properly. Usually I know the route or I have a map but know most of the route. So I merely record my speed, HR the usual stats (an Edge 500 is better for this).
So I decided that I should use it the way Garmin intended - to navigate. I exported my ride data from the 2010 Rapha Hell of the North to the unit as a course (simple function within Garmin Connect website).
I chose HOTN because it's north London and I never ride there plus there are off road sectors and you need a Garmin to tell you where to go at bridlepath forks and when to turn off from the normal country lanes.
On Sunday we all met at Condor. No one else on the ride had ridden the route previously and no one had a map. All riders were south/west London based and thus usually ride in Kent, Sussex and Surrey. So there was complete blind faith in the Garmin getting us around a 50 mile loop.
So....
We made it! 75 miles all in all. That's from my home in south London around the loop. Back to Look Mum No Hands for a late lunch and coffee before home.
There are a few times when we were chatting or our heads were down and we missed a turn off for a sector of 'pave' but otherwise couldn't fault it. 3hrs 20min for the HOTN loop which is 13mins off my 2010 time. So the Garmin didn't cause a huge drop in speed.
It was a beautiful day and quite a tough ride. Sammy broke a spoke and I just got a bit tired at the end (read overtired like a toddler).
We sat in Look Mum, starring at our muddy shins and dirty bikes content, we'd made it and the navigation wasn't even an issue. I'm flipping surprised.
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So I decided that I should use it the way Garmin intended - to navigate. I exported my ride data from the 2010 Rapha Hell of the North to the unit as a course (simple function within Garmin Connect website).
I chose HOTN because it's north London and I never ride there plus there are off road sectors and you need a Garmin to tell you where to go at bridlepath forks and when to turn off from the normal country lanes.
On Sunday we all met at Condor. No one else on the ride had ridden the route previously and no one had a map. All riders were south/west London based and thus usually ride in Kent, Sussex and Surrey. So there was complete blind faith in the Garmin getting us around a 50 mile loop.
So....
We made it! 75 miles all in all. That's from my home in south London around the loop. Back to Look Mum No Hands for a late lunch and coffee before home.
There are a few times when we were chatting or our heads were down and we missed a turn off for a sector of 'pave' but otherwise couldn't fault it. 3hrs 20min for the HOTN loop which is 13mins off my 2010 time. So the Garmin didn't cause a huge drop in speed.
It was a beautiful day and quite a tough ride. Sammy broke a spoke and I just got a bit tired at the end (read overtired like a toddler).
We sat in Look Mum, starring at our muddy shins and dirty bikes content, we'd made it and the navigation wasn't even an issue. I'm flipping surprised.
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When you are the moon...
"And he got munched down like an kitkat"
"grate off a portion of me head and it tasted like baby sick"
"as he came past, i licked his back, he don't know i licked his back, all on his yellow suit"
"buzz alrin walking on my face"
"when you look at the moon you go mad, patrick moore he's been looking at me for years. and the other day I saw him do a shit on a salad"
On Tuesday I spent the day with Deano and Brigga. Johnny Boy Herety and people from a mag.
We chatted about 2011 season then we went riding. I ran in the morning for about 40mins before getting ready for the appointment.
It was clear that the lads from the mag didn't want to give RCS an easy ride.
As we completed the loop it was clear a sprint for a sign was coming.
I saw D&B make some silent telepathic contact about where to be and what they were going to do.
Blammo - the sprint started and two black silhouettes shot out. Deano getting rolled by Brigga.
Good ride, I was complaining but I needed a fast boy pace, a sprint and hills.
I also absorbed as much of D&B's ready for racing motivation as I could. They never stop. We had tapas.
One thing B did say to me which makes him a ledge was
"'ere Claire, how many cakes, you had in a day?"
"I dunno maybe like four different types."
"yeh me too."
We're on the same page
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We chatted about 2011 season then we went riding. I ran in the morning for about 40mins before getting ready for the appointment.
It was clear that the lads from the mag didn't want to give RCS an easy ride.
As we completed the loop it was clear a sprint for a sign was coming.
I saw D&B make some silent telepathic contact about where to be and what they were going to do.
Blammo - the sprint started and two black silhouettes shot out. Deano getting rolled by Brigga.
Good ride, I was complaining but I needed a fast boy pace, a sprint and hills.
I also absorbed as much of D&B's ready for racing motivation as I could. They never stop. We had tapas.
One thing B did say to me which makes him a ledge was
"'ere Claire, how many cakes, you had in a day?"
"I dunno maybe like four different types."
"yeh me too."
We're on the same page
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Adidas Original by Jeremy Scott - The Panada Bear Sneaker.
What did I say in my blogpost before I went ski-boarding. Oh yeh, I'll get right on that cycling stuff. So I did and it was one of my most miserable rides ever.
I don't consider myself to be a novice and yet on Sunday so much stuff just went wrong, I shouldn't be allowed to get on a road bike.
So went out for a '50 miler' around Essex. Met at Condor for 9am.
Its dry and there is a mild amount of sun. I'm wearing a long sleeve baselayer with long sleeve jersey. Roubaix 3/4. Overshoes, defeet socks, windstopper gloves. (Basically not enough clothes if its rains).
I was thinking on the way out to the meeting point, hmmm, rather alot of clothing.
Wrong. Soon as we got into the lanes. Rain and then the rain kept going. I was cold and I stayed cold.
Then someone fell off on a greasy bit of wet road. (Not me)
Then we stood in the rain just recovering.
Then we rode quite slowly because my muscles wouldn't work and Sammy's hip was bleeding a bit
Then we stood in the rain to change a tube.
I opened my 'in date' energy bar to find it had weird furry mould on it. The boys advised me not to eat it.
I opened another to find the same thing.
Then we stood in the rain to change another tube. (Sammy had hands like a chimney sweep after)
Then we arrived back in Walthamstow.
Sam and I headed straight for the train to London town.
I ate a Mars Bar so fast, I might have also eaten the wrapper.
The garmin read 120km. and 5 hours and something.
I didn't factor in the 16 miles from home to Walthamstow (via Condor) and the return.
My feet were numb and cold and I couldn't clip in because I couldn't feel the pedals. This happened in the last 2 hours of the ride.
I put my bike in a garage, made an angry face but I thanked it for its mud-guards.
Climbed into the slanket at 4pm and watch 2 episodes of Murder She Wrote.
There are few days that your on the bike and hating it. This was one of them. Pity it was my first proper after my break from cycling.
Next weekend I'm riding the Rapha Hell of the North route from last year.
Note to self - open energy bars before leaving house to check they are not moudly.
Note to self - OVERDRESS
