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February 27, 2007
Diet... : - (
So probably the hardest thing over the past few weeks has been managing my diet. I started to fall apart after the CSC Training Camp. I think I got used to riding the high mileage and being spoiled with the never ending supply of food. Then of course I went on vacation to Mexico which did not help the cause, and now I just seem to want to eat, eat, and eat. I would not be so concerned except that I am slipping on my swearing off of no candy, donuts, etc...
My fitness feels good and I know it would feel even better if I could shed that extra couple of pounds. I have about 6 weeks until the first race, so I have some time.
I am scheduled to do a power test this weekend and I will be very curious to see if I have improved at all.
Posted by kermisch at 10:45 AM
February 26, 2007
CSC Training Camp Day IV
So day four of the training camp was the pinnacle day. We decided to skip the ride with Team CSC and just head out on our own for a 100+ mile day. The riders were Kevin, Brian (ZIPP), and Ian (Local Rider), and myself. Ian was our tour guide so to speak and we headed out about 9 AM. The weather was perfect, not too hot and sunny. We headed out of the hotel and onto a road called Heckler Pass. It was about a 30 minute climb and once over the top we had about a 4 mile descent down a nice and windy road. I broke 42 mph and was just having a blast. You could see straight to the ocean from the top of the hill. Once we got to the bottom we actually started to work our way back towards the mountain range we just came over. The plan was to ride Eureka Canyon road. This is about a 10 mile climb that was not too steep, but had a couple of challenging sections. My goal was to ride within myself and just slug up the mountain. Some of the other guys took off and rode their pace, but we all met up again at the top. The ride up was gorgeous as the rode was lined with large redwood trees and had almost no traffic accept for other cyclists. As we got up towards the top the roads really deteriorated as there had been some mudslides a while back that had not been really repaired.
From the top we had about a 40 minute descent towards the ocean. Originally we had thought we would take it easy, but once we got onto the main road that would take us to the ocean, the road was too nice not too open up the legs and just bomb the hill. As we were driving down the hill at about 45 mph, these three motorcycles came blazing past us on a long sweeping right hand turn at about twice the speed we were pulling. For some reason, I felt a bit of two-wheeled vehicle camaraderie with them. The best part of the descent is that we pretty much were able to own the road as we were going the same speed of traffic.
We ended up in a town called Soquel for lunch after about 3 hours on the bike. We were 60 miles into the ride at this point and we were all hungry and ready for a bit of a break. The town was right on the pacific and had a great pizza place that sold it by the slice. Kevin and I grabbed some pizza and for the first time in probably 10 years I had a large regular Coke. We all ate along the boardwalk watching the waves of the Pacific hit the shoreline. After about a 1/2 our legs started to get a bit stiff and we were all itching to get back on the bike.
Ian had some extra energy and really started to push the pace heading back to the hotel. We had 40+ miles to go and we had to go back over the same mountain range as we did in that morning. We headed down the coast towards Sunset State beach and then we turned east towards the mountains. We did some echelon work on the way back and were clicking along at 22 mph. As we hit the hills, I started to fade and the group as a whole slowed so I could get back on. Kevin was great and constantly dropped back for me. Little did I know I would have the biggest challenge ahead of me.
We were only about 20 miles from the hotel when we hit a road called Mt. Madonna Road. It turned up at a constant 10% grade for about 3 miles. I started out strong and was leading the group knowing that at some point I would fade to the back. I got about 1/2 way up when I lost my rhythm and really started to struggle. There was absolutely no respite on the climb and my legs were having to pull and push with every pedal stroke. 3 times I actually pulled over to the side of the road to catch my breath, let my HR go back down, and give my legs a breather. I never walked the bike and that was my goal. The group was about 3 to 4 minutes ahead of me. I was really jazzed to get up and over the hill in one piece after such a long day. A 6 mile descent was ahead of me and I learned a big lesson over those miles. That lesson was that no matter how tired your body and mind is, you have to muster the strength to stay mentally and physically alert on a fast descent. About 1/2 way down my body started to recover from the hill effort and I was able to match the pace of the group. I think everyone was ready to end the day after 6 hours on the bike. Personally I felt a huge sense of accomplishment. I had just ridden what was probably the hardest 100 miles in my cycling career. Growing up in areas with few mountains, most of my 100 mile efforts were on rolling hills vs. mountains. I gained a ton of respect for those with capabilities to fly over the hills. I also gained a lot of knowledge on how to train with power. Throughout the day I made sure I was trying to stay below my threshold power limits to conserve energy and I found that it worked very well.
When we got back to the hotel we did a bit of an extra spin to get the juices out of the legs and do a proper cool down. Once I got back into the hotel I was dead! My legs, body and mind were just tired, to the point that I could not just lay down and fall asleep. I had to pack as well and remove the power tap from the bike and return the bike to the CSC mechanics. After an hour of clean-up we all headed out to a great local mexican joint for a huge burrito and a couple of beers! It was the perfect end to a great week of training!
That was the camp, the best 4 days of riding I had gotten in in years and it gave me the itch to try and do something like this every year, even if it is not via the CSC training camp!
Posted by kermisch at 9:04 AM
February 25, 2007
CSC Training Camp Day III
Day three found me looking for some bigger hills. The past two days had some rollers and a few short and steep efforts, but I wanted something that would take 20+ minutes to climb if not longer. I also wanted something that would let me descend at over 40 mph. The usual crowd gathered just after breakfast and we headed to the hills. The night before I had hopped onto Google Maps with the satellite image turned on to scout some hills. What I had scouted turned out to be decent roads and good hills. After about 8 miles of riding, the road turned up. The climb probably was around 6% and had two great u-turn bends in the road before topping out. It was about a 20 minute effort and Kevin pushed a strong temp pace for me. After coming over the top we descended and climbed through a canyon road for a few more miles. We then had to turn around to amke it back to the hotel to head out with the team.
When we got back to the hotel, we had about an hour of down time before we ended up heading back out. That was the bummer, but the course was good. We ended going back to the same hills we rode in the morning, just doing the reverse direction. We ended up climbing a better hill to the top, that was a bit longer and steeper. What was ironic was to see the likes of Carlos Sastre and Frank Schleck pushing up guests faster than I could ride up the hill. What would happen is that Carlos/Frank would put their hand on the lower back of the guest rider and start pedaling a bit harder. The guest rider would start to get up the hill a bit easier and Frank/Carlos got a better workout. About half way up the hill, I struck up a conversation with Carlos. He is a very friendly guy and though quiet will always answer your question. What amazed me was I was working pretty hard up this hill and Carlos did not seem to be exerting himself at all. I don't even think he was sweating. After we topped the climb it was a pretty long descent with some rolling hills mixed in. We ended up decending the steep climb we did in the morning, coming around the u-turns was fun. It makes you appreciate the long descents these riders due during the tour.
As I came off the hill, I was out in front with just two other guys including Frank Schleck. All of the sudden another rider came up to say there was a crash. As we all turned around, a guest rider ran into Schleck almost making him fall, Frank held his line and then we all turned around to give assistance. When we got to the crash scene, the downed rider was a guy from Zipp Wheels, the engineer to be exact. He was pretty scraped up, but ended up getting back on the bike to finish the ride.
We all got back on our bikes and met up with the other group a couple of us decided to turn around and ride the same rode in reverse again (I was getting to know these roads well!). One of the guys in our group was Brian Walton, an ex-pro who rode on the notorious 7-11 Team with the likes of Sean Yates, Bob Roll, Norm Alvis, Eric Heiden, Alex Stieda, and Frankie Andreu. From 7-11, Brian became a teammate to Lance Armstrong with Team Motorola, and subsequently went on to be the team leader for Team Saturn. Brian was a great guy and led us on the way back to the hotel. As we hit the first climb on the way back (the same one the other rider crashed on) my legs just gave up. I ended up just riding up on my own pace, about 90 seconds behind the leaders. We all got back on at the top and stayed together. We had one more big climb to go and we pace lined it up to the top. We pushed a hard pace, taking 15 - 20 sec. pulls. It was amazing to really see the benefit of team work. On the descent down I was following Brian and a few other 'bombers' trying to keep myself up right. I ended up crossing over the yellow line and my back wheel hit one of those famous California in road reflectors. My back wheel skipped across the road, but I kept upright and continued down the hill. At the bottom, the road stretchout pancake flat for about a mile. The three guys off the front turned it up a notch and I tried to hang on. We were pushing over 40 mph and the group kept accelerating. I just couldn't hold it. We hit a stop sign and then made a relaxed pace back to the hotel. This was probable the most fun ride of the week so far. My legs ached and I was tired, but I had a huge smile on my face.
Back at lunch Kevin and I and a guy from Zipp were talking about heading out for a 100 + miler the next day. We wanted to hit some good hills and head to the ocean at the same time. A local rider by the name of Ian (I think that is right) gave us some great pointers and I went up to my room and pulled up google maps. I ended up jumping in my rental car and driving most of the route that afternoon/evening. The roads were classic, narrow and through the trees with some great climbing and fast descents. One climb, through Eureka Canyon was going to surpass an hour, but once you got to the top it was a 12 mile drop to the ocean. I was excited and nervous as I had not ridden a 100 miles for a year and I already had some crazy miles in my legs. I went to bed early that night dreaming of a great day in the saddle.
Posted by kermisch at 4:13 PM
CSC Training Camp Day II
Day two of the training camp started with me rolling down to breakfast about 7:40 or so. I sat with Kevin who informed me that he and a few others were heading out for a two hour ride in about 10 minutes. So I wolfed down my breakfast of eggs, oatmeal, fruit, cheese, and coffee and then went to grab my bike and head out. There were four of us and we headed out to find some hills. We got lost and hit a couple of dead end roads, then we back tracked to where we rode the day before and found some decent roads. We rolled along at an easy pace until we came upon a super steep, short hill that we rode to the top and then back down before continuing our ride. We double backed and hit that same hill again. This time we continued through the neighborhood which was full of some huge houses a few more super steep hills. Once we topped out, we were able to coast downhill pretty much back to the hotel where we met up with the team for the days ride.
Once again, we headed back out towards the same roads but this time we were with the team! We had two cars following us. One was the official photo car and the other the support vehicle. We broke up into two groups just because we were about 50 + cyclists in total. The first part of the ride was over some decent hills and was at a much faster pace than what I remember last year. We were cruising along at about 20+ miles an hour. We stopped briefly for a bladder release about 10 miles into the ride. As we got going again, Bjarne gave me a nice push off.. Not a word was said (as Bjarne does not talk too much), but just a simple smile. You can tell he just loves being on the bike. Not long afer we stopped, maybe 10 miles later we were held up by some construction. There was a triathlete that was also stopped, and she must have been surprised to see such a large group of cyclists, all with the same kit, speaking multiple languages, and generally goofing off. After we got going again, the pace was pretty high and I was just sitting on the back of the firs group. My rear brake was giving me a lot of problems, so I pulled over reluctantly to fix it. Luckily just about when I was done, the second group rode by. I hopped on my bike and the support car dropped back, told me to stick to the bumper and then they pulled me back up to the group. It was so cool, as I felt like I was in a race getting pulled back up to the peleton. About 5 miles later we all stopped. This was the turn around point for the 'guests' and the team was going to head out for a few more hours. The ride back to the hotel was at a nice clip, but nothing too hard. We finished in a total of about 2.5 hours which gave me a solid 4.5 hours in the saddle that day.
Back at the hotel, it was a shower and then off to lunch. After lunch I just relaxed and took a nap before a dinner event which had us off to a local winery, Clos LaChance. We got a chance to taste all of the wines of the Clos LaChance and to mingle with the Director Sportifs of CSC. I spoke quiet a bit with Jørgen V. Pedersen. He is an ex-professional that raced during the days of Greg Lemond and had won stages of the Tour de France. He was a very nice guy and could cruise along the bike quite well. I purchased two bottles of wine and before long were were back at the hotel to call it a night!
Posted by kermisch at 1:26 PM
February 23, 2007
CSC Training Camp
For a second year in a row, I was invited to go to the CSC Training Camp. Last year it was in Solvang, this year in Gilroy, CA. I joined the first day of the camp on 1/31 and stayed until 2/4. I had 4 days of solid riding in sunny CA and used the time as a mini-training camp for myself.
This year I went out on my own, but hooked up with the Kevin, the owner of Gear West who was out there on behalf of another sponsor. It was great to have Kevin there, as I was able to tag along with him and his group for most of the rides.
Day 1
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The first day found me arriving in CA around 11:30 and I had about an hour's drive from SF to Gilroy, which is south on 101. Gilroy is literally right off of HWY 101 and does not hold a candle stick to the landscape of Solvang, but did have quick access to some great roads.
When I got to the hotel, the first thing I got to see as I was walking up to the elevators was Bjarne Riis and his PR guy chatting... Just being around a TDF winner is cool! After I got settled into the hotel, I went looking for my CSC contact (Lynn) who would set me up with my Cervelo bike.
While my bike was being set-up I bumped into Frank and Andy Schleck. Frank reached out and said, "Hey, I am Frank and this is Andy". All I could say was, I know! Congrats on Amstel Gold and Alp d'Huez. At that time, the CSC team was gathering to get their bikes, that the mechanics were frantically putting together (remember, this was the first offical day of the training camp). I sat outside and simply watched the riders check their equipment out. JJ Haedo rode by, Stuart O'Grady, Frank Schleck, Carlos Sastre, Bobby Julich, Dave Zabrinski, Jens Voigt, Lars Bak, Fabian Cancellara, and Christian Vande Velde. The team then headed out for a ride!
By 3:30 I was setting up my powertap wheel and speedplay pedals on my Cervelo Soloist. By 4:00 PM I was heading out for a ride.
About 5 miles into the ride, I was cruising down the road and saw a bunch of people ahead standing on the shoulder of the road. I assumed that maybe this was a local bike club that I could hook up with. As I rolled towards the group, who did I see, but Kevin from Gear West smiling back at me. He was with his hosts and out for a ride. So I was able to tag along. We rolled through some great hill country and around a reservoir. The temps were cool, but much warmer than back home. On the run into town, the speed picked up and I found myself leading out the group pushing a hard temp pace. Next thing I knew it was just 2 guys and me off the front. As we hit the bottom of the last hill before the hotel, my legs gave out. Part of the push to get home was that the sun had set and it was dark. I fell off the back of the pace and came into the hotel alone. I was in heaven. 2.5 hours of riding, some great hills, a couple of strong efforts.
After about an hour of rest, I rolled down to the dinner area, where the CSC team was putting away pounds and pounds of food. The hotel had a buffet of carbs, protein, and fiber. This was represented with rice, pasta, cheese, fruit, chicken and fish. The dinner menu for the week is pretty much the same as is the breakfast and lunch menu. Not a lot of variety for the riders, but the food was plentiful and provided the necessary fuel.
Once dinner was complete, there was a panel discussion with Bjarne, Carlos, Bobby, Jens, and JJ. Questions were asked and they answered. There were only about 15 audience members. The weirdest question asked was by a CSC Fan Club member who had won a contest to attend the camp. The question was to Bjarne about how he uses the team web site to engage the team's fans. Bjarne gave him a pretty blank stare, as did the rest of the audience... My favorite question was one for Jens, "Are fans annoying or beneficial". I asked Carlos how he stayed motivated when riding 3 grand tours in 2006 and a total of 5 over the past two years. His basic answer is he was motivated by the confidence shown in him from the team and the desire to drive towards a podium spot in the grand tours. He eluded to extra motivation for the team based off of the Basso situation last year, but did not ellaborate too much. Once the QA and session was done, it was off to bed as the next day I was getting up at 7 am to head out for an 8 am ride with a couple of the guests and then hooking up with team CSC for a two + hour ride with the Pro's.
Posted by kermisch at 10:56 AM
Hill Simulations
Did a simulated hill work out on the trainer today. Ride was a short 45 minutes, but it was coming off two prior days of hard efforts. Started out well with a warm-up and got the juices flowing with some seated 30 second accelerations around 270+ watts. Moved into 3 efforts of simulated hill climbs at 5 minutes each. Started in the 53x15 and shifted down every 90 seconds, with the last 30 seconds of the 5 minute effort being the hardest. The goal was to keep the RPMs over 70. Legs felt good all around and extended the third effort to 6 minutes with the last minute standing trying to keep the cadence over 70. I posted my power profile for anyone who is interested... You can see the hill efforts, as they are distinct. You can also see how my cadence starts to slow as the hill effort gets harder. I love training with power!
Power is in Pink, Speed in Blue, Cadence in Green, and Torque in Black
Posted by kermisch at 10:06 AM
February 22, 2007
Training Update
So far this year, training has been going well. I completed my base phase last week, with a well deserved week off of core training. I started my build phase this week and have already felt the challenges that are ahead of me. Yesterday I did a 1:45 trainer session that was supposed to have a 60 min tempo session with 5 x 30 sec all out sprints. I started my sprints 15 min into the tempo session and by the 2nd sprint thought I was going to loose my cookies. My stomach really felt terrible. By the 5th sprint, I was in serious delusion and ended up spinning out to a full hour and hoping off the bike to lay on the floor for ten minutes. I then reluctantly got back on the bike and finished out the remaining 45 minutes simply spinning in an endurance/recovery zone. Luckily I had a riding buddy along side to chat with. I think what led to my issues was having a late day snack too close to the workout and having so few max-out sessions during my base phase. I have another challenging workout tonight so we will see if I have recovered at all.
Posted by kermisch at 10:48 AM
It's been a long time
So I have not posted in a while as I have not had a lot of time, but more importantly not a lot to say. So, in thinking about how I might use my empty blog again, I have decided to restructure the site into two parts, the main blog will be focused on my core hobby of cycling. My training efforts, my races, and cycling in general. The second half of the site will simply be my personal photo gallery (if I can ever get it to work again)!
Posted by kermisch at 10:03 AM