Tour of Bright Preperation

After struggling up the last climb in Dargo and walking, the one thing to help my Tour of Bright campaign is to increase my climbing and the more, the better. This meant more time on the usual suspects in the Dandenong's and trying the two longer climbs below for the first time. Next year if I plan on doing Tour of Bright again, I definitely plan to do one of the lead up camps which unfortunately I didn't get a chance to complete this year. For great detail write up on the climbs and most importantly the official start/finish points (to help time yourself for Strava), visit the Climbing Cyclist. Always bring a warm jacket as the temperatures vary around 10-15degC from top to bottom and descent is always cool. Plus always bring plenty of food and water and spares in case something happens as there is not a huge amount of traffic at times and phone reception can be non existent.  

Lake Mountain - 20.5km, 992m at 4.5% ( x 2)

 

	Lake Mountain is a great ride. The first 4km's is the toughest part requiring some quite a bit out of saddle work to get the job down quickly. But once this is over, the rest of the ride is easy sitting at the 4-5% allowing a nice steady rhythm with a couple of flat areas to recover on and even a small downhill section approaching the turn off. The first half of the descent is very smooth with nice flowing corners and be careful of the last k's back in Marysville which can be very quick due to the steep gradients.

Mount Donna Buang - 16.9km, 1001m at 6.5% (x 2)

Even though it is over 3k's shorter than Lake Mountain, it climbs the same vertical height with a steeper and very constant gradient making it in my opinion harder as there is no reprieve. The last km approaching the summit is by the far the hardest at around 8% making it a tough finish that seems to go on forever and ever and ever (destroying hopes of a quick top 20 Strava time). Again, the descent is quick and flowing making it a lot of fun to come down but be careful, I came across a motorbike accident with his bike well of into the trees and he was lucky to walk away.

2011 Stratford to Dargo Cycling Victoria Event - C Grade

This weekend I conquered a mountain, along with a few other climbs thrown in for good measure. To make it harder, the bunch was pushing it most of the way and the temperature was up in the mid to high 30's. It was my home club, the Wellington Cycling Club's annual Cycling Victoria event. Photos of the event can be found here at Aurora Photography. Some say this is the toughest event in the CV calendar and as it was my first, I would have to agree. C Grade had the largest field with 21 one registered riders competing as we rolled out at 9.40am. I am not sure everyone knew what was ahead of them with two riders breaking off the front just past race neutral. There was some discussion on weather to chase, but I said to the bunch to let them go as it was a bold move. From there it was fairly relaxed until Beverly's Road (a 15km stretch of undulating road) where the pace started to pick up as gap grew closer to 3minutes.

The first selection came on the climb just after the wooden bridge (which unfortunately took a victim whose wheel got caught in between the boards), where the race really started to heat up and a number of riders started disappearing of the back. By this point, I had already received my first cramp and consumed as much food and drink as I could before the first feed station at 60k's. This being my first CV event, as an after thought I packed a musette with food and drink which turned out to be handy as the bunch rolled through without stopping. After I reloaded, I had unfortunately got slightly off the back of the bunch and had to fight to get back on.

From there, we started descending with one great straight stretch on the Bairnsdale to Dargo Rd allowing myself to hit a top speed of 90km/h which smashed my previous personal best. Unfortunately this all came to an end with one last climb before Dargo.  The break was still clear with a gap over approaching 4mins and the hammer was down all the way up the climb. Unfortunately, I was on the verge of blowing up for quite a while and another cramp (coincidentally occurring as a rider broke off the front) saw myself lose touch with the bunch at the 85km mark just before the descent into Dargo. If only I could have held on a little further....

Riding into Dargo alone, I had backed off the pace of knowing I wouldn't catch the bunch and remembering what was ahead of me. I didn't stop at Dargo, dropping my first neutral water but I managed to hold onto the second and kept pedaling through with cheers of support from the Wellington club members volunteering on the day.  I knew this final climb was going to be tough gaining 870m over 11km with an average gradient of 8%. I climbed the first section no worry passing a few stray C graders. But it was the next part that killed me averaging 11-12% for what felt like an eternity (realistically it was around 1.5k's). There was no shade and  my Garmin was showing temperatures up to a whopping 38degC. I was starting to feel dehydrated and I may have stepped of my bike in a shady section not knowing there was respite about 300m up the road. From there on it, it was a matter of just getting to the line and as the gradient relaxed to 5-6%, I felt a little better with speeds starting to top a massive 12km/h.

 

(2011 A Grade Winner - Jason Spencer)

As I passed the 1km to go, it was just me and 'The Wall.' 500m of  road with gradients up to 19% and the the whole time you could see the finish line taunting you to keep pushing. By this point, everyone in site was walking and two simultaneous cramps didn't make it a hard decision to get off. With the pleasant walk over, it was time to get on the bike and roll the last 200m to the finish line in a time of approx. time 4hrs 10 minutes. It was over and I could not have been more relieved. Facts as per my Garmin 500 (ride details here):

Distance:	105.56 km
Time:	4:11:45 (to be updated once official results are released)
Avg Pace:	2:23 min/km
Avg Speed:	25.2 km/h
Elevation Gain:	2,282 m
Calories:	2,814 C
Avg Temperature:	31.1 °C

Overall, it was probably the single most toughest thing I have ever done and in the end finishing was an achievement in itself. Next year, I will be back with a compact group set (as a 39/28 combo made the last climb tough) and a lot more training (Inverness repeats essentially until you are forced to walk).

Torpedo 7 Bike 2 Stand Product Review

As I run two bikes at the moment (race and training) and live in a small place, storage is key. So I browsed all of the usual online shops and found this was the cheapest and gave it a go. I ordered it on a Sunday and by Friday, it was already ready to be picked up. I unpacked it and within 20 minutes it was up holding two bikes. Since then, I have had no issues with it (except for my girlfriend complaining about having my bikes in the living room) and would recommend it to anyone want a easy unit to hold two bikes. 

SKCC Crits - B Grade (Bike Force Race Points Series #1)

Today was the first race of the Bike Force Points Series which combined with the great weather meant there was a massive turn out of 70 riders (unlike just the hard men who raced the week before in the poor conditions). Two pre-race coffees and before I knew it I was on the starting line rearing to go. With the control lap completed, the race was on and it didn't halter all the way to the finish (normally there is lulls after 20mins after the start and one before the end). This was by far the quickest B grade race of the season with an average speed of 44km/h with one lap peaking at 49. Throughout the race there seemed to be a few issues with everyone rounding the first corner and riders being pushed out past the cones on a number of occasions.

An early break got away but with such a large field, it never had much chance and was eventually pulled in. The intermediate sprints helped mixed up the race but I was too far back and a bit cautious after a crash in the bunch. From here on in, I was on the back and working hard to keep my position while other riders dropped off. By the end, my lines in the last corner were a lot cleaner but due to the elastic band affect, I was still working very hard and content to finish another race safely in the peleton. Next time, my goal is to move up near the pointy end and make my life a lot more easier. Two more post race coffees, and I was ready to roll out a relaxed 40kms while the sun shined and my eye twitched. When I got home, I treated myself  to a nice mexican parma at the local to refuel for the week ahead.

A beginners guide?

I have been told that I should no longer call these words of wisdom a beginners guide. Not that I consider myself highly experienced or even that good, but I have learn't most of the basics. Sunday marked my 2nd completion of Around The Bay and this year I didn't train for it but used it as training. In fact, I did 2.5 hours in the Dandenong's the day before and the day after, rolled out 60k's of recovery.

 

(Slightly heavier circa 2008)

A lot has changed in the 1.5 years I have been riding a road bike. For example:
- My bike and parts collection is ever growing and my mountain bike is rusting out the back balcony
- I am a little too comfortable in Lycra
- I feel the need to constantly talk to strangers about my legs
- If I don't ride my bike for more than 1 day, I get frustrated and easily upset
- I have lost 20kg, but eat more than ever
- I log my ride data religiously and share my stats with co-workers
- Did I mention my legs?

(D Grade 2010)

I like to thanks my girlfriend for understanding, coming to races, taking photos and putting up with my leg hair in the bath. I'd also like to thank anybody I have ridden with that has helped me out while I learned the basics and still while while I hone my skills further in B grade. Thanks to Shane Dove and Nick Jehu for convincing me to start racing back in 2010 and making me join the Wellington Cycling job. Also to my coach of recent months for telling it like it is, and yes maybe I should drink less and not eat a family block of snack every night. Oh well, onwards ho to my two big Cycling Victoria events (yes it is C grade still).

 (My guns, present day)

SKCC Crits - B Grade (Wet'n'Wild)

After a couple of pre-race coffees thanks to the Soul Kitchen, I was amped for the race (pictures found here). The track was finally drying out as we rolled around for the warm up. Unfortunately, a few clouds rolled through and it began to rain lightly. The secret kind of rain (stealth rain) that doesn't appear on the radar. Blue skies were on the approach and the decision was made to start racing but under control. This lasted for 8 laps and as the track conditions got better, the race was started.

The pace was on straight away with a number of riders letting out their frustration on the pack stringing out the bunch. Everyone was cautious around the corners, but the pace was fierce on the straights. I was starting to loose my grip on the bunch, so I had to buckle down and get back in there while a few riders disappeared off the back. As the race developed, two breakaways got off the front but it was hard to tell  from the back of the main bunch with mud and water flying in your face.

In the final 3 laps, two group remained clear with a few key riders trying to reduce the gap but to no avail. As the main bunch shattered on the last lap due to a big increase in pace, I managed to stick with them and sprint to the finish with a large gap behind me to the rest of the field. Overall I felt good and was happy with my progression finishing just out of the top 10. I can't wait till next time (no racing next week for Around the Bay, please sponsor me) and ready to give it a go up the front.

Product Review - CycleOps PowerTap Elite Plus

Last week I purchased a PowerTap Elite built into a DT Swiss wheel. Within the hour, I had changed over cassettes (which I cleaned at the same time) and had the wheel speaking with my Garmin 500 head unit. From there, it was a little fiddly trying to calibrate (the wheel kept going to sleep), but with a little bit of help from Google I was out on the road getting power accurate to within +/- 1.5%, and boy is it fun. The Powertap Elite Plus is the bottom of the range wheel, but importantly to myself it is still wireless and affordable with the same power management as the more expensive models. Basically it has everything I could want in a training wheel (strong, sturdy, reliable) and realistically, power figures are not much use in a normal race (I was putting out like 2000w but I still got dropped).

(Picture from http://www.cycle-ops.com/)

Giddy with excitement, I planned to complete the AIS Power Profile test at my next training session (as covered by Cycling Tips here). I gave it my all in the prescribed intervals below to help build my Critical Power Curve: 6 sec, 6 sec, 15 sec, 30 sec, 60 sec, 240 sec & 600 sec.  

This test proved extremely painful (I almost threw up after one interval), but the 10min interval was especially testing as I got my heart rate to average 180bpm. It was worth it as I got some great data to review and will definitely complete this test again in a month to measure my progress (if any). Based on a discussion with Paul from the Velbourne Giant Racing Team, I downloaded the free Golden Cheetah software (found here) to help analyse the data (in addition to Garmin Connect and Strava). I found this blog by Cycling Musings website very useful in starting to understand the variety of different functions of the program. My favorite has to the Critical Power curve, which compiles all your rides and creates a personal best curve for each interval.

Over the coming weeks, I am going to have a lot of fun adding to this curve and I will use it as a benchmark for my training. I definitely need to have a real crack at my maximum power output and a figure >1000w being my first goal.