SpokEasy

SpokEasy

Author name: CAL

Is That So?! #2

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Is that so?! #2 This kind of thing has happened before. Yesterday I got a crazy high maximum heart rate reading from my Garmin. This morning, my blood pressure meter gave me a crazy low resting blood pressure reading: 87/58! My resting pulse was 50 today, but it\’s been as low as 46. So what\’s going on here? Did yesterday\’s hard efforts set off some kind of reaction? Fatigue from having gotten to bed an hour late last night? I had thought of doing some force exercises today, but felt too tired. In fact, I did only a very short, slow ride; not even four miles. I got to see the supermoon, my main motivation for riding today. Unfortunately it was too high in the sky to be really impressive. It actually looked better yesterday, even though it wasn\’t quite full then. I couldn\’t keep track of my heart rate during the ride because I forgot to put on my chest strap; something I didn\’t even realize until I switched on the Garmin and saw that there wasn\’t a HR reading. I decided I\’d skip the chest strap for a change. We all need to unplug now and then, they say. Do you find it so? Besides, sometimes I don\’t feel like getting is that so?! #2 — or number anything.

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Ergogenics

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Ergogenics is a touchy subject, I\’ll admit. Performance-enhancing substances in general have gotten a bad rap, as have some athletes who have used then. I personally know almost nothing of ergogenics; but of course I do know that some of the things that some athletes used was nasty stuff. I\’m glad I can skip all that! Want one that is legal? Caffeine! I don\’t drink coffee, which I suppose makes me an anomaly among cyclists. Many a group ride concludes with a visit to a coffee shop; or has a coffee stop mid-ride. My caffeine kicks come from Diet Coke. It\’s not good for me, I know; but that\’s another story. Get Fast! mentions something called The Track Stack (p. 159), consisting of caffeine, baby aspirin, and beta-alanine. I\’ve never tried it, so I can\’t vouch for its efficac; and actually, I\’m nervous about taking it at all. I\’m already hooked on Diet Coke, and would rather not get into the habit of taking The Track Stack. As usual for something new, don\’t take it for the first time right before an important event. So there it is. If you\’re into competitive cycling, and are interested in ergogenics, be sure to do your research. I wouldn\’t want to see anybody disqualified for unwittingly taking something that\’s verboten! An interesting aside about coffee: there was a time when the Turks were trying to conquer Vienna, which at the time would have given them access to all the Western world. The Turks didn\’t succeed in taking over Vienna — but their coffee did; something that J.S. Bach caught on to.

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Is That So?!

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Is that so?! I sure that my average speed this morning was not 14+ mph. I hit a max that was a speck over 19 mph (nice tailwind!); but I\’m certain that my average speed for my total ride was not what this screen shows. And a maximum heart rate of 171? That\’s a record, by quite a wide margin. As I remember, my previous record for max HR was something like 164 bpm; and I find it hard to believe that I really hit 171 bpm. On the way out this morning, I had the tailwind. It enabled me to average well over 14 mph then; but naturally a following breeze when out-bound meant a headwind on the way home. That pushed my ride\’s overall average speed down. They say that working hard against the wind is one way to increase strength, so I practiced pushing hard for 30 seconds at a time. That must be when I reached my max HR, but it was hard to keep an eye on the Garmin screen and watch where I was going. It was even harder to read the screen when I got down on the drops. Not only was it still dark; but the wind made it hard to ride straight. I kept weaving all over the place. Spring is about to, well, spring; but it\’s gotten chilly again. It\’s Spring? Is that so? At least we\’re having clear weather. Great for supermoon sightings!

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Music for Riding

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How about some music for riding? As I\’ve said before, I\’d rather not try to listen to music while cycling. For one thing, to really LISTEN requires one\’s full concentration. Therefore I can\’t listen to music and ride a bicycle at the same time! But if I did want to have music for riding, which pieces would it be? The classical repertoire has many to choose from! Something fast and vigorous? A slow piece? A work with a mixture of tempi and moods? How about this? If I were trying to spur myself on when my energy and stamina were running low, it just might do the trick! I fact, it makes greased lightning look like a mighty lame snail. Oh, and to be an \”exhibition\” cyclist. I think I\’d have a lot of fun working out the routines! \”Eljen a Magyar\” is marvelous just to listen to. I love that fieriness; that sparkling brilliance with something poignant just underneath. It would be great to ride to, and another good spur late in a long ride or race when fatigue is setting in. But I\’m not going to ride with earbuds in. I\’ll think the music in my head, and wait to get out the CD player until I\’m back home.

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Weathering the Weather

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Weathering the weather is part of being a cyclist. I get pretty tiresome with all my gripes about the weather, don\’t I? I complain about cold; and about wind; and about rain. But I don\’t want to become a \”fair weather cyclist\”, so I have to pay attention to it. How do I go about weathering the weather? It\’s often said that there\’s no such thing as bad weather; only bad clothing choices. Unfortunately even the best clothing choices won\’t keep a cold wind from making my nose run! Well, what all clothing is out there? When it\’s really cold, you can start with a base layer.  I have an undershirt for the coldest days. Next comes either a jersey or a long-sleeved blouse. The main body of my old cycling jacket is my vest; and over that goes my cycling jacket. Some days, such as when it\’s below about 45 degrees (especially if it\’s also windy), I wear yet another jacket. That one has a hood, which I can use to help protect the back of my neck. Are my leg warmers meant to be a just base layer? On some cold days they aren\’t warm enough; and then I wear an old pair of slacks over them. Or should I try embrocation cream? Oh-h-h, and my feet are cold! Not even double socks can keep them warm for more than a few miles on a frigid day. How about shoe covers? I tried toe covers several years ago. They helped keep my toes warm; but the strap thing that ran across the sole of the shoe got all torn up from my attempts to get clipped in. And there are gloves, and  helmet liners … at this rate, I\’ll be too bundled up to be able to move!

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Multitasking?

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These days \”multitasking\” often seems to be THE thing: trying to do  two, three, four, or even more unrelated tasks simultaneously. Riding a bicycle might be called multitasking. Think about it. We\’re pedaling. We\’re also balancing. And keeping that bicycle on a (more or less) straight line. So there you are. Three tasks at once. That\’s even before adding in reaching for a water bottle, group riding, or racing. I guess that participating in a bicycle race is mega-multitasking, especially in  such an event as the Tour de France. There they are, pedaling at 25 mph and more. As if that weren\’t enough, they\’re in a large pack and riding almost elbow-to-elbow. The riders\’ concentration levels must be beyond intense. And what of the stages that go over cobbles? Or over steep mountain passes? Yet another layer added to the multitasking. I\’m glad I don\’t have to do that! We haven\’t even gotten around to weather conditions yet. In past Tours de France, those riders have been racing over cobbles in the rain! I find it hard to ride in rain and wind, and that on flat ground. On cobbles I\’d probably be down in a flash, even without rain. Since today is Saint Patrick\’s Day, maybe we can throw in the additional task of chasing down that leprechaun for his crock of gold. The riding that I do is multitasking enough for me. I think I\’ll leave it at that.

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Top o\’ the Mornin\’!

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Top o\’the mornin\’ to ya! Happy St. Patrick\’s Day, everyone! Today everybody is Irish, regardless of actual ancestry. If I go out later, I must remember to wear green. In fact, I remember a cruel custom in grade school: on St. Patrick\’s Day you\’d better wear something green, or you\’d get pinched! Just now, however, I\’m pretty tired; and maybe I\’ll stay home. Today\’s ride was a tough one. The wind was 15 mph for a good portion of the ride; and, as usual, seemed to be a headwind most of the time. My Garmin wasn\’t fully charged, but I thought it had enough juice in it for a 40-mile ride. Not so. It gave me the Low Battery warning when I was still about 3.5 miles from home. I switched it off rather than risk losing my ride data. I knew I\’d be able to calculate my mileage by doubling the distance between home and my turnaround point. If only it had been that easy. I still had a mile to go when along came a freight train, heading westwards to my eastward track. I came to my usual crossing, and stopped to wait for the train to clear the crossing. Wouldn\’t you know, the dratted thing stopped. And it sat there. I had to take a detour of two miles or so to get home, because the next-closest crossing was also blocked by the train. I guess that thing was a mile and a half long! Last Sunday I rode only 29 miles, and maybe jumping up to 40 was too much too soon? But I did at least one 50-mile ride in January. One thing is becoming clear: I won\’t be ready to do a century next month. At any rate, Top o\’the mornin\’ to ya!

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Remedial Reading?

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I\’d need plenty of remedial reading if I wanted to enter races. Among other things, the would-be bicycle racer must learn to \”read the race\”. I guess I need this book, because in this area I\’m completely illiterate! Bicycle races, I hear, are about far more than who can pedal the fastest; and in fact, bicycle racing has been called \”chess on wheels\”. It\’s about tactics as well as speed. I know there\’s something called \”legal blocking\”, although I have no idea how it works. Racing is about knowing your competition, and about knowing the course; if you can, ride it ahead of time. At the very least, study its profile. You\’ll want to know when in the race you\’ll need to conserve energy; and when you can let yourself go harder. Yes, I do know those few facts; but if you put me on a bike and thrust me into a race, I\’d be completely at a loss. At best, I\’d be tossed off the back right away. At worst, my inexperience might bring down the entire peloton; and the other riders would not appreciate that. I don\’t even  know how to draft! If I did all the remedial reading in the world; i.e read every \”how to bicycle race\” book there is, it won\’t help me much. Trying to remember what you just read about how-to-do, while trying to DO that thing, doesn\’t work very well. Not for me, at least. In a way, reading the race is like reading text, I suppose: We Learn By Doing!

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Grab While You Can

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Grab while  you can! And keep on grabbing. The salvage store still has its make-your-own-grab-bag deal going; and as long as it lasts, I\’m going to take advantage of it. The store provides Zip-lock bags: a small bag is $3, and a large one is $5. If I choose compact items and pack carefully, I can fit up to 18 things in a small bag and still get it to zip shut. (That\’s the only rule: the bag must be able to close).Today I got eighteen items that usually cost $1.29 or more apiece, and for three bucks! That\’s quite a bargain. Carpe saccus! It\’s rather the same way with cycling. When the forecast is for nice weather, carpe diem! It\’s wonderful to get out and ride in no wind for once, and under fair skies; and when it\’s warm enough for no leg warmers, but still not hot. Such days are a rare treat, so I don\’t like to let them get away from me. For long rides, I need a grab bag of a different sort. It\’s called a top-tube pouch, and I use it to hold the \”bites\” that I need to keep myself fueled. Grab while you can! Such a bag is especially important when I use a large Camel-Bak on long rides, and my jersey pockets are covered up. Oh, and one last thing: don\’t buy a pig in a poke.

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A-440?

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What\’s A-440? That’s the note the principal oboist plays when it’s time for the orchestra to tune up just before a concert begins. My bicycles don’t play it; but whenever one of my bicycles gets a tune-up, I think of A-440. It would be nice if such a tune-up could guarantee that my bike will never get a flat. (That’s sort of a musicians’ in-joke)! Before I take the road bike to the shop, I unship the under-saddle pack; and wow, does my bike feel lighter without it! The loaded pack* probably doesn’t weigh over 2 pounds; but it really makes a difference. I could easily get spoiled by not having it on my bike, but I need to have it when I do long rides. That means I’d better train with it every day! Similarly, on Sunday long rides I wear the full Camel-Bak; and also stuff the cable lock; tube of Chamois Butt’r; and cell phone into its pockets! It\’s a good idea to train loaded up like that. Then, if I go on a supported long ride that means I don’t have to lock up my bike, I can leave the lock home. I’ll be riding a pound or two lighter than I was during training, which will be helpful. I ride the hybrid when the road bike is at the shop; and I’m amazed at how slow, heavy, and clunky the hybrid seems now. Yep, even with that saddle pack to add weight, the road bike has me spoiled rotten, whether it\’s tuned to A-440 or not. *multi tool, two CO2 cartridges with nozzle, spare tube, tube of sunblock, bandaids in case of a crash.

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