bobinski
Legendary Member
- Location
- Tulse Hill
Monte, sounds awful-get well soon mate.
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
I haven't had much to say lately -- still hitting the turbo, but not much to say and work stuff has been pretty intense the last couple weeks.
I have noticed that on multi-lap races, particularly those with climbs, my times for lap #2 and any subsequent laps are far slower. I'm charging out and hanging with the lead or 2nd group. I get dropped severely on the climb and never have a large group again where I can hide in the draft. As a result I'm fatiguing badly and can lose minutes on subsequent climbs. Probably a signal I should back off a bit at the start to have more in the tank near the end -- but that's always been damn hard for me.
Looking at the data, my climb times for box hill are consistently improving over time, but the gap from first to second climb has been consistently around 3 minutes. So I made a real effort in Tuesday's race to still ride hard on the first lap, but also maintain a better pace on the second lap, particularly the climb. And I only dropped 1:56 on the second box hill climb. Clearly more work needed here though.
Wed was a shorter race. Can't remember a damn thing about it other than I thought I ought to have been able to go out harder and sustain it better given the shortness. Not sure what happened. Maybe poor sleep due to work stuff keeping me up late.
Thu had multiple laps in watopia. Sadly I didn't focus as well on keeping up a good pace and the lap to lap gaps didn't improve. However, I had good 5, 20 & 60 efforts according to golden cheetah, so I guess it was a better race than I realized.
Fri my legs were pretty beat. First lap was respectable. Drafting with one other rider on the second lap -- he was clearly stronger and took longer pulls. I cooked it too hard and long on one pull and wasn't able to latch on when he past by. Lap #3 hurt and I can safely assume was dog-slow. Lap #4 was an exercise in survival -- I latched onto a random rider just to save some effort to ensure I'd finish.
Will take tomorrow off, or at most tool around for a bit just to get the blood flowing.
I have noticed that on multi-lap races, particularly those with climbs, my times for lap #2 and any subsequent laps are far slower. I'm charging out and hanging with the lead or 2nd group. I get dropped severely on the climb and never have a large group again where I can hide in the draft. As a result I'm fatiguing badly and can lose minutes on subsequent climbs. Probably a signal I should back off a bit at the start to have more in the tank near the end -- but that's always been damn hard for me.
Looking at the data, my climb times for box hill are consistently improving over time, but the gap from first to second climb has been consistently around 3 minutes. So I made a real effort in Tuesday's race to still ride hard on the first lap, but also maintain a better pace on the second lap, particularly the climb. And I only dropped 1:56 on the second box hill climb. Clearly more work needed here though.
Wed was a shorter race. Can't remember a damn thing about it other than I thought I ought to have been able to go out harder and sustain it better given the shortness. Not sure what happened. Maybe poor sleep due to work stuff keeping me up late.
Thu had multiple laps in watopia. Sadly I didn't focus as well on keeping up a good pace and the lap to lap gaps didn't improve. However, I had good 5, 20 & 60 efforts according to golden cheetah, so I guess it was a better race than I realized.
Fri my legs were pretty beat. First lap was respectable. Drafting with one other rider on the second lap -- he was clearly stronger and took longer pulls. I cooked it too hard and long on one pull and wasn't able to latch on when he past by. Lap #3 hurt and I can safely assume was dog-slow. Lap #4 was an exercise in survival -- I latched onto a random rider just to save some effort to ensure I'd finish.
Will take tomorrow off, or at most tool around for a bit just to get the blood flowing.
Did the WBR Flat 4 Lap race yesterday at 6.05 and enjoyed it. Many of the riders hadn't put their race category in their name so it was hard to know who to stay with at the mass start. A group of about 15 got away and I found myself alone for a while until I tagged onto a couple of non racers. I waited for a racer who I saw was catching me and rode with him until the end.
I had an “aero” power up and my plan was to stay with him until the final downhill mile and then give it everything, using the powerup. As we made the final climb, he attacked and got 7-8 seconds ahead of me which I should really have covered better. We crested and with just under a mile to go I put the hammer down and gave it everything. The lead came down and I hit the powerup and it came down to 2 seconds with not far to go. I carried on pushing and was really feeling it now. I got very close but couldn’t quite catch him but I’d really enjoyed the race.
Turned out I came 2nd in Cat C and he came first (he didn't have (C) in his name.
I did my best ever hour power of 226 watts so was quite pleased.
May try the Masters next Tuesday.
Martin
I had an “aero” power up and my plan was to stay with him until the final downhill mile and then give it everything, using the powerup. As we made the final climb, he attacked and got 7-8 seconds ahead of me which I should really have covered better. We crested and with just under a mile to go I put the hammer down and gave it everything. The lead came down and I hit the powerup and it came down to 2 seconds with not far to go. I carried on pushing and was really feeling it now. I got very close but couldn’t quite catch him but I’d really enjoyed the race.
Turned out I came 2nd in Cat C and he came first (he didn't have (C) in his name.
I did my best ever hour power of 226 watts so was quite pleased.
May try the Masters next Tuesday.
Martin
Slightly larger than usual group of B & C riders joining the KISS first base race today. It's supposed to be a D race, but as usual there's other classes of riders that show up. The race occurs at a good time for me and I've found that I'm usually competitive due to the smaller/weaker field within the C group. Flat course with 4 laps through the volcano, generally a good course for me.
Group didn't start off like a bat out of hell, so I didn't have to dig too deep to stay with the leaders. Then I see a message on the laptop -- battery nearly dead, damn I forgot to plug in. With < 10% remaining there's no way I can get through the race. So I jump off the bike and frantically plug the damn thing in. Jump back on, clip in and pedal like a madman to catch the lead group. Thankfully nobody thought to hit the gas when I caught them or I'd probably have been toast. It was early enough that it probably didn't make sense to jam hard just to drop a single rider.
Tried to recover as best as I could up through the end of the first lap with reasonable success. One rider in our group hit the gas early on the 2nd lap and flew off the front of the group. There didn't seem to be any interest in hard chasing, and we reeled him in near the end of the second lap. I didn't recognize any of the names in the group, but felt I was competitive with the stronger members of the group. So I tried something I'd never done -- I launched off the front during the short climb on the 3rd lap. Not entirely sure it was the right thing to do for me, but WTH. Two came along from the onset with a small group of 3 joining us near the end of the 3rd lap. I had a bit of trouble keeping the pace through the 4th lap and fell behind a bit and didn't have a real sprint in me at the end though I did close the gap that had opened. 3rd in group, 6th overall -- but we did finish well ahead of the other 5 that we dropped at the start of the 3rd lap.
It looks like my w/kg was well under the leaders, so breaking the group up was probably a mistake. I should have left that to someone else and instead tried to conserve energy in the draft so that I could hang on as the pace increased on the last lap -- moving to and staying at the front of the pack so I could better respond when the inevitable acceleration occurred.
KISS EUR tomorrow. Going to try and meter out the effort on the first lap better and have stronger laps #2-#4 than I saw on the course last time.
Group didn't start off like a bat out of hell, so I didn't have to dig too deep to stay with the leaders. Then I see a message on the laptop -- battery nearly dead, damn I forgot to plug in. With < 10% remaining there's no way I can get through the race. So I jump off the bike and frantically plug the damn thing in. Jump back on, clip in and pedal like a madman to catch the lead group. Thankfully nobody thought to hit the gas when I caught them or I'd probably have been toast. It was early enough that it probably didn't make sense to jam hard just to drop a single rider.
Tried to recover as best as I could up through the end of the first lap with reasonable success. One rider in our group hit the gas early on the 2nd lap and flew off the front of the group. There didn't seem to be any interest in hard chasing, and we reeled him in near the end of the second lap. I didn't recognize any of the names in the group, but felt I was competitive with the stronger members of the group. So I tried something I'd never done -- I launched off the front during the short climb on the 3rd lap. Not entirely sure it was the right thing to do for me, but WTH. Two came along from the onset with a small group of 3 joining us near the end of the 3rd lap. I had a bit of trouble keeping the pace through the 4th lap and fell behind a bit and didn't have a real sprint in me at the end though I did close the gap that had opened. 3rd in group, 6th overall -- but we did finish well ahead of the other 5 that we dropped at the start of the 3rd lap.
It looks like my w/kg was well under the leaders, so breaking the group up was probably a mistake. I should have left that to someone else and instead tried to conserve energy in the draft so that I could hang on as the pace increased on the last lap -- moving to and staying at the front of the pack so I could better respond when the inevitable acceleration occurred.
KISS EUR tomorrow. Going to try and meter out the effort on the first lap better and have stronger laps #2-#4 than I saw on the course last time.
bobinski
Legendary Member
- Location
- Tulse Hill
Nice write up there
Not racing but there is an impromptu zsun pretzel at 6-45pm I will jump into if I get back from work in time. 2.5-3w so a decent pace but not ball breaking!
Not racing but there is an impromptu zsun pretzel at 6-45pm I will jump into if I get back from work in time. 2.5-3w so a decent pace but not ball breaking!
bobinski
Legendary Member
- Location
- Tulse Hill
Andy, I finally started using my trx copy resistance straps and they have been a revelation! Using for deep squats and my right kne is hugely improved and I feel like I got some power back. The bands allowed me to force through resistance in knee on squats which is probably about where the ITB band sits. I have matched or almost matched my best Zwift sprints using the pro! Hurrah! I mention this because they do allow a degree of control in squats and lunges etc this ageing body would struggle to replicate allowing me to go that bit deeper and further. Highly recommend.
Cheers Bob, good to know you're seeing some positive progress with your knee. I used elastic straps when I was recovering from my Calcaneus break, they helped a lot in the early stages. I have a squat rack with barbell/weights. My objective is to get back upto full body weight front squats over the winter. Caution and good form needs to be adhered to when using heavy weights. I used to be able to squat twice my own weight in my youth-not alot compared to serious weightlifter. Those days long gone, chuffed if I could get body weight
bobinski
Legendary Member
- Location
- Tulse Hill
Blooming heck- that is serious squatting there Andy
You , Dean and I anyone who wants to join us need to have a joint Zwift ride or join a race. Not that Dave- he would muller us on one of his recovery rides
You , Dean and I anyone who wants to join us need to have a joint Zwift ride or join a race. Not that Dave- he would muller us on one of his recovery rides
So as I noted, the goal for Tuesday was to ease off a bit on the first lap, but ride stronger on the subsequent laps. While my laps did get slower today, the slowdown was not as drastic. This can be seen in the power data as well -- I had my 2nd best 60 minute average power this year, but my 20 minute power didn't even register in the top 10. I don't have the lap times handy, but what was showing up in the zwift leaderboard during the race was encouraging.
As for the race itself, no major technical goofs. I let the fast boys go at the start and settled in with a slower group. We dropped some from our group from time to time, but were also picking up stragglers that couldn't keep up with the pace of the faster groups. I fell off the pace on the 2nd climb, but was able to catch the group before the downhill started. 3rd climb I seemed to have more in the legs than the rest of the group and with encouragement from Breedon climbed well on the 3rd lap. Pace picked up on the last lap and broke up the group, particularly on the climb. Had two other riders with me as we approached the last mile. Nearly started my sprint too early -- gearing wasn't right anyway. Dropped down a gear cranked up the cadence for the sprint and pipped my competitors by 1 and 5 seconds respectively. 10th within the group, which I was real happy with given the total amount of climbing.
I must have been sucking wheels like a madman today. My w/kg were lower than the next 8 competitors, in some cases considerably lower (.55 w/kg).
As for the race itself, no major technical goofs. I let the fast boys go at the start and settled in with a slower group. We dropped some from our group from time to time, but were also picking up stragglers that couldn't keep up with the pace of the faster groups. I fell off the pace on the 2nd climb, but was able to catch the group before the downhill started. 3rd climb I seemed to have more in the legs than the rest of the group and with encouragement from Breedon climbed well on the 3rd lap. Pace picked up on the last lap and broke up the group, particularly on the climb. Had two other riders with me as we approached the last mile. Nearly started my sprint too early -- gearing wasn't right anyway. Dropped down a gear cranked up the cadence for the sprint and pipped my competitors by 1 and 5 seconds respectively. 10th within the group, which I was real happy with given the total amount of climbing.
I must have been sucking wheels like a madman today. My w/kg were lower than the next 8 competitors, in some cases considerably lower (.55 w/kg).
Last edited:
Breedon
Legendary Member
- Location
- Long Eaton, Nottingham
Glad I helped JLaw.
Some times it pays to stay at a comfortable pace I do like your write ups.
Some times it pays to stay at a comfortable pace I do like your write ups.
Felt really crap after 2hr trainer-road workout. Shivering and felt like I was going to puke. 
I hit the wall 5 mins before the end of session. Using lower cadence certainly knackers me out, well it does currently.
Day off, sprint repeats followed by squats Friday. Club run Sunday-weather dependant.
Been good with food this week
lost a few pounds which will be mainly water.
I hit the wall 5 mins before the end of session. Using lower cadence certainly knackers me out, well it does currently. Day off, sprint repeats followed by squats Friday. Club run Sunday-weather dependant.
Been good with food this week
lost a few pounds which will be mainly water.
Breedon
Legendary Member
- Location
- Long Eaton, Nottingham
Been keeping up with the squats, im starting to do more training now after DD.
