SpokEasy

August 2019

Excelsis?

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Can I reach excelsis? It seems reasonable to ask, when will I be at my best? How long can I continue to improve? Is there an upper  limit? To complicate matters, we must factor in the age at which a cyclist began riding. One who begins as a kid and keeps riding steadily through the years until attaining pro status, might peak in the late 20s-early 30s. A rider who began well into adulthood, as I did, likely has a \”peak\”, too. But when will I hit my peak? Have I already reached a plateau beyond which I can\’t improve? I\’m delighted that I can now reach 20 mph more often than I used to. On the other hand, my general cruising pace seems stuck at 12-13 mph! A month ago my legs suddenly began to feel heavy and tired, I didn\’t seem to have any stamina, and then thanks to Barry I had several days when the only \”riding\” I could do was pedaling in the trainer. I have a hard time tolerating more than 20 minutes or so of that at one time. So it\’s hard to say whether I\’m at excelsis, or not. Either way, I can still enjoy riding!

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Chuckwagon

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Chuckwagon? Since when do Grand Tours have a chuckwagon? Don\’t they just hand out musettes in the feed zone? OK, they do; but I wonder, does a Grand Tour rider fantasize about such fancy spreads as this while racing around France? Or Italy, or Spain? Even if they do, it seems quite apparent that they won\’t be getting it while on the bike. Article after article states that a rider in the TdF burns up to 8000 calories per stage; more in the mountainous stages. While riding hour after hour, however, the riders need food that\’s easy to handle on the bike; that goes down easily; and digests easily. Let\’s not forget, it needs to be palatable as well. For the recreational rider, 8000 calories is several days\’ worth of food. This video, in fact, makes me wonder whether I actually eat too much during my weekly long ride! This article has a similar effect. Half a Clif Bar and one GU-Gel per hour is about what I take in, although I don\’t down a full bottle of electrolyte drink per hour. On a hot day, I down about one liter of water per hour. The feed zone of a bicycle race is the equivalent of a chuckwagon. While out on my long rides, I must take my food and drink with me. There\’s no feed zone where someone will hand me a musette, and no chuckwagon following me around. So, do they have a chuckwagon at bicycle rodeos? I\’ll bet the kids would get a kick out of it.

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Playing Dental Assistant?

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Am I playing dental assistant? Two or three Tours de Cure ago, I had a checkup with the dentist shortly afterwards. Before I actually saw the dentist, the oral hygienist was chatting with me. I told her about the ride, and how there were rest stops with snacks and drinks, and how good a shot of dill pickle juice was after an hour or so of riding in the hot sun. She was quite astonished, and wondered aloud why we\’d drink pickle juice. I said, probably for the sodium. Enter the dentist. The hygienist told him about us cyclists drinking pickle juice; and he told us about finding dried-up pickles in the fridge because his beach volleyball-playing son drank the juice, saying it helped his cramps. A week or so ago I got a box of Pickle Juice Shots. I thought that drinking one halfway through a long ride might help keep the post-ride orthostatic hypotension at bay. This past Sunday, I tried it. I\’m not quite sure how much it did help,  because I\’m taking medication for low blood pressure, too; but the \”OS\” didn\’t seem as bad as usual. For some reason that exchange with the dentist re: pickle juice stuck in my mind; goodness only knows why. Today I had a follow-up with the dentist for my implant work, and I brought the empty shot bottle with me. I asked the dentist whether his son still drinks the pickle juice, and the dentist said, yes. Voila! I presented the shot bottle for him to take home to show his son. Maybe now the dentist won\’t have dried-up pickles, and my playing dental assistant will let me wear a Dental Assistant badge!    

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Rides that go ON!

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Rides That Go ON Some rides go on; and ON, and ON!! Want to ride really, REALLY long? Think a century is too easy? Maybe World UltraCycling Association is for you. Those are rides that go on. An on, and ON! Just look at their calendar of events. Distances up to 3000 miles! Think PBP. Think RAAM! For events such as those, conditioning the body (including the gut) isn’t the only thing that must be done. The prospective participant must figure out how to get a couple of hours’ sleep out of every 24, and still make the cut-off time. There must be times when riders feel like they’re sleepbiking. PBP, for example, is 1200 kilometers (744 miles). A solo rider must finish in 80 hours. That might sound like a lot of time, but think about it. Three days and eight hours to cover that distance. It’s like a double century every day for three days in a row, and then some. They say, make time for sleep by making time on the bike. That means, you need to be able to ride at a decent pace if you want to make checkpoints in time. Those 744 miles divided by 80 hours comes to 9.3 mph, an easy pace on flat ground. But take a look at the ride profile! Looks like there’s a lot of climbing involved. Besides, riding at an unvarying 9.3 mph would mean never having enough of a time cushion to take a break. In fact, riders need to work to “get ahead” earlier in the ride, so they have that bit of extra time to catch a few winks. And then they can ride on.

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Sirius-ly?

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Sirius-ly? Isn\’t the word \”seriously\”? Oh, those dog days that seem never to end. It\’s been miserably hot and humid for several months, and by this point even I — who have always felt the cold easily — am more than ready for a stiff cold front. Why are they the \”DOG\” days? It\’s because Sirius, aka the Dog Star, rises and sets with the sun during this period. But we can\’t skip the rides because it\’s hot, can we? Well, of course we could, but at a high cost to our hard-won fitness. There are ways to cycle indoors: rollers and trainers, for instance. Using them would mean getting in your pedaling without going out into sweltering heat, with the risks it brings: overheating, dehydration, etc. On the down side, indoor pedaling is SO-O-O BORING! While the Tour de France is running — sorry, that\’s ROLLING — I feel sorry for the riders, who have hours of blazing along in that blazing heat. Sirius-ly, it can get into the high 80s during the TdF, and those guys are pedaling at 20-some mph. Preventing heat illnesses must be a constant concern. Shoving a chilled water bottle down your jersey front sounds like a good idea, supposing you can get one. Then, for a fact, there are times when the TdF runs into hail. That\’s likely more cooling than they want! Between trying to stay cool enough and trying not to freeze, things seem to be quite serious. Or do I mean Sirius?

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Bike Path As Laboratory

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A bike path as laboratory? Sure! Sometimes I get curious, like a kitty; and a Sunday long ride is a good time to experiment with new things. It seems that they\’re always saying that a cyclist\’s cadence \”should\” be between 80 and 100 rpm. Mine tends to average in the 70s. I also tend to ride the big ring quite a lot. Would riding on the small ring make a difference? Today I kept switching from the small ring to the large ring, shifting about every 2.48 miles. Each time I switched rings, I pressed my cyclocomputer\’s lap button. Post-ride, I checked the data on my Garmin. My average cadence was about 75 rpm no matter which ring I was using. So, do I need to work at increasing my cadence? Get Fast! has this to say about cadence (p. 8): \”Your optimal pedal cadence depends on myriad factors … muscle fiber composition … gear selection, and even your age.\” And, on p. 19: \”But I\’ve never been convinced that it\’s always beneficial to spin like a hamster in a wheel…\”. I\’ve been so prone to post-long ride orthostatic hypotension that I took along a shot of Pickle Juice to drink at my turnaround point. I thought it might help prevent that irritating lightheadedness. In addition, I slowed down about four miles before I got home, and tried to keep to an easy gear. My head still began to feel weird about an hour after I got home. Today I tried a SIS GO Isotonic gel. It has a thinner, lighter texture than GU-Gel does, and the flavor doesn\’t seem as strong. If I were doing a hard, day-long ride, I think I\’d want a SIS gel rather than a GU, especially later in the day. This was my first long (OK, not so long at 32.2 miles) on my new saddle. I like it! I think I can call that experiment a success. It\’s so nice to have the bike path as laboratory.  

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Far-Reaching Subject?

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What\’s this far-reaching subject? \”Reach\” is an important aspect of bicycle fit. You don\’t need to  be all scrunched up because you\’re too close to the handlebars. It seems to me that this would mean being unable to pedal efficiently, or use your arms freely;  and to be unable to breathe fully and deeply. Neither do you want to have to reach too far. I\’ve found out that reaching too far puts strain on the back of my neck, and on my lower back; and has an adverse effect on handling. Therefore I was surprised to read this about top tube length. Maybe I shouldn\’t have been. What do I really know about bicycle measurements, after all? I think I had the notion that, if you\’ve got the correct frame size, everything else sort of falls into place. Maybe I\’m not so far off. I\’ve learned a bit about the various frame geometries, though; that some are more \”aggressive\” than others. For example, a time trial bike\’s geometry is aggressive to allow the rider to get into the most aerodynamic position possible. A time-trial looks to me rather like trying to pedal while standing on your head! I bet that would make me dizzy. My own road bike has a more \”relaxed\” geometry; the kind that puts the rider in a more upright position. It\’s called an \”endurance\” bike. If it weren\’t properly fitted to me; if I had to reach too far to the handlebars; long rides would be uncomfortable. So yes; I say that bicycle fit is a far-reaching subject.

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Not the Sandwich

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Not the Sandwich This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” It’s not the sandwich; it’s the Giro! Yes, that’s G-I-R-O; not G-Y-R-O. Okay, okay, but I’m hungry! Let’s munch on our gyros while we learn a bit about the Giro. Like the Tour de France, it was begun as a way of increasing sales of a newspaper; an advertising gambit, if you will. The first TdF was held in 1903, and the initial Giro was in 1909. H’mm. Did Italy get the idea for the Giro from the TdF? Also like the TdF, the Giro is three weeks long. There are time trials, flat stages, and mountainous stages. Again like the TdF, the Giro riders must deal with less than ideal weather conditions at times. Riding in cold and rain is miserable, especially without wet-weather gear. I’ve gotten caught in caught in cold and rain often enough; and it saps my energy. That, when I usually have about six miles to ride. Imagine pedaling through it while racing for miles up the side of a mountain! With weather like that, I’ll bet the riders are all glad when the race is over. But if I ever rode the Giro, I’d love to win that pretty pink jersey. And even though the race is not the sandwich, I’d love to chow down a gyro to celebrate. ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Roadie Again! January 5, 2024 Pomp and Circumstance January 4, 2024 I Bee’d Lucky January 3, 2024 Sunblock Day January 2, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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The Stuff of Legend?

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Every field has its own set of beliefs. But are they all true? Cycling, for instance. It\’s a bit odd to think that there\’s not A champion in cycling. There might be a champion sprinter or a champion climber, but not one overall champ. It seems logical, actually, that pro cyclists are not whizzes at bicycle maintenance. They\’ve got to spend their time training, or recovering from training. Or racing. If they\’re anything like me, a session to learn, let\’s say, derailer adjustment, will be quickly forgotten. The only way to learn that stuff is to do it. And do it again. And again and again. Trying to win Le Tour? I\’ve no doubt that some cyclists dream of it, but don\’t look at me. I know I\’m nowhere near being able to ride Le Tour, even if to barely hang on to the back a la Lanterne Rouge. Shorn legs? They say that un-hairy legs make massage easier, and that they heal better from road rash. I can see the logic in that. If I were a pro cyclist I might well want the best equipment, but would I get it? Would I be allowed to use it even if I paid for it myself? I\’m glad I can choose what equipment I want to use. There are a few advantages to being a non-pro! Long rides all the time? Yeah, it\’s easy to think of pro riders as spending many hours every day in the saddle. When I think about it, I see that it wouldn\’t be a good idea to do that. Pros aren\’t immune to burnout. Ride only to win? That seems like sheer instinct for anyone in a race, but most riders in Le Tour are there to help their team captain win, even though they may harbor thoughts of winning the yellow jersey for themselves. Who knows, though. Maybe one day they will snag that maillot jaune, and become the stuff of legend.

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Mystery

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A mystery often sounds like something eerie. This one isn\’t creepy, but I always wonder about such things. Today I seemed able to pedal more strongly than usual. I\’m not going to argue with that, but what made the difference? Last week I did minimal riding, because my changed position on the saddle was causing a lot of strain on my hamstrings. Maybe the rest did me good. On the other hand, with the new saddle I\’ve got my sit bones properly supported. My overall position on the bike seems improved. Maybe that lets me \”brace myself\” for harder pedaling? So far I really like the new saddle. I think that part of my problem with the old one went way back to when I was first getting the hang of a road bike. When starting, I wasn\’t secure enough to take the time to get myself into the best position on the saddle, and just got on there any old way I could. And then I wasn\’t sure enough of my ability to control the bicycle to wiggle myself around to where I ought to be sitting. Come to think of it, I never really paid attention to whether my sit bones were supported. I vaguely assumed that they were. Guess what. They weren\’t. If I hadn\’t gone for that re-refit, I might never have found out! That\’s one mystery solved.

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