I love Strava.
As a tech geek and a cyclist I have an appreciation for the sheer genius of it. There are plenty of imitators out here but Strava seem to have the lead on them all.
Usually the first thing I do after a ride is hook up my garmin to the mac, upload my ride and eagerly await for the results to process. Have I set a new PR on the Frocester Hill segment? What was my average speed on the Tetbury Road Sprint segment?
As a motivational tool it can't be beat. You get to measure your performance, not only against yourself, but also against thousands of others. Well, in some of the Californian rides it is thousands. Over here it is not so well known or used and even the most popular segments only involve a few dozen riders. I expect that will change as more riders sign up. But for now there is still a chance that you can be the King of the Mountain on a segment for a short while. That is until some cocky young pretender happens to breeze by your time when they discover a new unconquered segment to add to their tally.
The downside to all this competitiveness is that every ride becomes a time trial. Riders know where a segment starts and their heads go down and legs start thrashing automatically as they get into a Strava zone. There is no more leisurely rides through the dales. Every hill has been marked out so you definitely can't dawdle up those.
Then there are the times when you may not even know you are on a segment and stop to take some refreshments as precious seconds tick by. Only when you get home and plough through your results do you realise that you were fifteen minutes slower than everyone else on a segment but you have no way of telling everyone: "Hey!, I didn't know it was a Strava segment. I was taking a break".
Strava has joined all those other apps that we can't get away from that break down every minute detail of our lives for analysis. You can either choose to ignore it or immortalise yourself with a KOM on a hill that no one else will ever bother going near.
Disclaimer: At the time of writing I hold the KOM for Tanners Hill in Sherston (http://app.strava.com/segments/882653) a mighty 300 metre long climb that gains all of 17m of elevation. I'd like to see Bradley Wiggins beat that time!
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
The Castle 100
This was a chance to ride a longer distance with some of the guys that I would be on the Etape with.
There were five of us riding together. As we were late in assembling we all decided to do the shorter 70 mile route. I was hoping to test my body and bike out with a longer ride but it was more important to hang out with the rest of the guys I would begin the Pyrenees with.
My friend, Gary, is experienced in tuning bikes and made some adjustments to mine that were really helpful. The angle of my bars were raised and more importantly I ditched my Shimano cleats for Look Keo cleats and they were far superior.
It was the first time I had ridden for a long period of time in a peloton and it was a great experience. We were able to keep up a frenetic pace with minimal effort ( as long as you were not at the front!).
The route was mostly along winding country lanes through the heart of Hop country, very scenic. There were no major hills to tackle, they seemed to be reserved for the longer ride.
At about 80K I started to flag a little and found it increasingly difficult to stay up with the group, especially as the terrain was more hilly. Luckily for me Gary's gear cable snapped and he was stuck riding the last 30K in low gear. This meant that I had lots of time to recover waiting for him at the top of hills as he started to struggle to get up in what was now a fixed-gear bike.
We picked up the pace again for the last 5 miles and raced into the Castle grounds at Tonbridge to the finish line.
I was surprised when the results came in to find that we were the 14th and 15th fastest finishers in the 100K. I guess riding in a peleton makes a huge difference.
The training is starting to feel like it is having an effect as I felt comfortable for most of the ride and could have managed a further 30 miles quite easily.
Now for six weeks of hills......
There were five of us riding together. As we were late in assembling we all decided to do the shorter 70 mile route. I was hoping to test my body and bike out with a longer ride but it was more important to hang out with the rest of the guys I would begin the Pyrenees with.
My friend, Gary, is experienced in tuning bikes and made some adjustments to mine that were really helpful. The angle of my bars were raised and more importantly I ditched my Shimano cleats for Look Keo cleats and they were far superior.
It was the first time I had ridden for a long period of time in a peloton and it was a great experience. We were able to keep up a frenetic pace with minimal effort ( as long as you were not at the front!).
The route was mostly along winding country lanes through the heart of Hop country, very scenic. There were no major hills to tackle, they seemed to be reserved for the longer ride.
At about 80K I started to flag a little and found it increasingly difficult to stay up with the group, especially as the terrain was more hilly. Luckily for me Gary's gear cable snapped and he was stuck riding the last 30K in low gear. This meant that I had lots of time to recover waiting for him at the top of hills as he started to struggle to get up in what was now a fixed-gear bike.
We picked up the pace again for the last 5 miles and raced into the Castle grounds at Tonbridge to the finish line.
I was surprised when the results came in to find that we were the 14th and 15th fastest finishers in the 100K. I guess riding in a peleton makes a huge difference.
The training is starting to feel like it is having an effect as I felt comfortable for most of the ride and could have managed a further 30 miles quite easily.
Now for six weeks of hills......
Friday, May 18, 2012
Frocester Hill
With less than eight weeks to go before the ride I decided to switch gears and focus on hill climbing.
This entails driving out 12 miles to the Severn escarpment to Coaley Peak view. From the car park I have bounteous options of inflicting pain on my body with Selsley Hill, Frocester Hill and Uley all within a 3 mile radius.
I picked out a route that starts along Selsley Common and plunges down Selsley Hill over the cattle grates and turns sharply back up hill two thirds down Selsely Hill. So sharply in fact that I could not change gears in time and had the option of hitting the car waiting to turn or rolling over on my side with the cleats still engaged. I went for the latter more humiliating option.
The route winds down into King's Stanley and through Frocester before the winding route up the hill looms into view. Scary to think that this hill is only one tenth of the size of the Tormalet. It is a steeper gradient than the Tormalet though which is one tiny saving grace.
It was not as bad as I anticipated which means that perhaps this training is starting to pay off. At the top I paused for a drink before ploughing on to Uley.
There is a steep descent into Uley and then it is back to grinding away in the highest gear again up Lampern Hill. Parts of this hill reminded me of Tunitas Creek in the Bay Area - bloody steep! Gasping at the top there was no time to take in the scenery as I was in race position heading down to Nailsworth.
The route out of Nailsworth up to the wind turbine via Forest Green is short but steep: a recurring theme on this loop. Once the summit is reached there are about four miles of gentle uphill left before returning back to Coaley Peak.
The loop is about 30K and 800m of climbing. A great ride for the work week when time is limited. I managed some decent middle of the pack times according to strava so things don't look so bleak for July. This Sunday will provide a good marker when I tackle the Castle 100.
This entails driving out 12 miles to the Severn escarpment to Coaley Peak view. From the car park I have bounteous options of inflicting pain on my body with Selsley Hill, Frocester Hill and Uley all within a 3 mile radius.
I picked out a route that starts along Selsley Common and plunges down Selsley Hill over the cattle grates and turns sharply back up hill two thirds down Selsely Hill. So sharply in fact that I could not change gears in time and had the option of hitting the car waiting to turn or rolling over on my side with the cleats still engaged. I went for the latter more humiliating option.
The route winds down into King's Stanley and through Frocester before the winding route up the hill looms into view. Scary to think that this hill is only one tenth of the size of the Tormalet. It is a steeper gradient than the Tormalet though which is one tiny saving grace.
It was not as bad as I anticipated which means that perhaps this training is starting to pay off. At the top I paused for a drink before ploughing on to Uley.
There is a steep descent into Uley and then it is back to grinding away in the highest gear again up Lampern Hill. Parts of this hill reminded me of Tunitas Creek in the Bay Area - bloody steep! Gasping at the top there was no time to take in the scenery as I was in race position heading down to Nailsworth.
The route out of Nailsworth up to the wind turbine via Forest Green is short but steep: a recurring theme on this loop. Once the summit is reached there are about four miles of gentle uphill left before returning back to Coaley Peak.
The loop is about 30K and 800m of climbing. A great ride for the work week when time is limited. I managed some decent middle of the pack times according to strava so things don't look so bleak for July. This Sunday will provide a good marker when I tackle the Castle 100.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Santini Cotswold Spring Classic Sportive
I was feeling under prepared for a long ride through the Cotswolds after an almost two week layoff. I signed up with the intent of doing the longer 170km route.
The day was wet and windy and got progressively worse as the day wore on. About a third of the riders who signed up did not show for the start, including the two who I was supposed to ride with. The Cotswold sportive is not as hilly as some. There is a minor climb out near Bisley (Limekiln lane) followed by 40 or 50 km of gently undulating terrain around the Cotswold Lakes.
There was a food stop at Poultney after 60km. The riding got progressively harder after this point as the head wind kicked up and the rain poured down. My lack of endurance started to tell, especially on the 1km climb at Withington, near the 90km point. As the ride wound back to Cirencester it was an easy decision to cut out the extra 70km and head for the finish. I suspect a lot of the other riders felt the same way as the final results did not show too many long course finishers: (http://www.veloevents.co.uk/csc/riders.php).
As a gauge for the etape in July this was a wake up call that I have a lot more training to do. This ride was half the distance and one quarter of the climbing and I found it tough. More disconcerting is that about thirty km from the finish I developed a pain in my lower back on the right side. By the time I finished it was close to debilitating.
I need a lot more 100km+ rides in the next three months. Time to step up the training to 150-200km per week.
The day was wet and windy and got progressively worse as the day wore on. About a third of the riders who signed up did not show for the start, including the two who I was supposed to ride with. The Cotswold sportive is not as hilly as some. There is a minor climb out near Bisley (Limekiln lane) followed by 40 or 50 km of gently undulating terrain around the Cotswold Lakes.
There was a food stop at Poultney after 60km. The riding got progressively harder after this point as the head wind kicked up and the rain poured down. My lack of endurance started to tell, especially on the 1km climb at Withington, near the 90km point. As the ride wound back to Cirencester it was an easy decision to cut out the extra 70km and head for the finish. I suspect a lot of the other riders felt the same way as the final results did not show too many long course finishers: (http://www.veloevents.co.uk/csc/riders.php).
As a gauge for the etape in July this was a wake up call that I have a lot more training to do. This ride was half the distance and one quarter of the climbing and I found it tough. More disconcerting is that about thirty km from the finish I developed a pain in my lower back on the right side. By the time I finished it was close to debilitating.
I need a lot more 100km+ rides in the next three months. Time to step up the training to 150-200km per week.
- 107.1kmDistance
- 1120mElevation
- 04:28:11Moving Time
- 2,038Calories
Bike adjustments
After two weeks of training on a different bike in California it was immediately apparent on getting back on my own bike that it did not feel right. I was used to a certain position and when I got on my bike I had to reach a few centimeters further forward to reach the bars.
I ordered a new handlebar stem eXotic that reduced the reach by 30mm. That seems like a better fit.
I ordered a new handlebar stem eXotic that reduced the reach by 30mm. That seems like a better fit.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Return to Kings Mountain
Back in England the will to get out and train in near zero temperatures was seriously sapped. I managed two rides in five weeks.
Luckily another trip to the Bay area resuscitated my enthusiasm and got me back on track.
On arrival on Monday afternoon I immediately headed over to CyclePath in San Mateo and picked up a bike. I was fortunate to have a training partner in tow (Paul Hilliar) for the entire two weeks to prevent me from slacking.
The next morning I was wide awake at 2am and pottered around until 5 and then headed out to Canada Road in a rented truck to the start of the ride.
That was pretty much the pattern for the entire trip.
In the ten days out in California I managed eight rides and they all included an ascent of Kings Mountain.
Total distance covered was 400K+ and almost 8K of climbing.
Luckily another trip to the Bay area resuscitated my enthusiasm and got me back on track.
On arrival on Monday afternoon I immediately headed over to CyclePath in San Mateo and picked up a bike. I was fortunate to have a training partner in tow (Paul Hilliar) for the entire two weeks to prevent me from slacking.
The next morning I was wide awake at 2am and pottered around until 5 and then headed out to Canada Road in a rented truck to the start of the ride.
That was pretty much the pattern for the entire trip.
In the ten days out in California I managed eight rides and they all included an ascent of Kings Mountain.
Total distance covered was 400K+ and almost 8K of climbing.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Kings Mountain
The final ride of my stay in San Francisco was a chilly morning ride up to Canada road and then continued upwards on Kings Mountain Road.
These last three rides were with Paul Hilliar who, being fitter than me, provided a hare to chase. He got plenty of rest at the top of ascents waiting for me to catch up.
Similar to the La Honda ride this one starts with the smaller climb up Ralston Avenue with a 11K flat section along Canada road which at this time of the year is a good deal colder than the lower peninsula. Once the digits were firmly numbed it was time to wind up Kings Mountain road. This is a Cat 2 7K climb.
Needless to say everything had thawed out within a few hundred meters of ascending.
The climb is comparable to the last section of Mount Hamilton and about one third of The Tormalet distance.
Once on Skyline Blvd there is a few more hundred meters of climbing before the long ascent down Skyline, La Honda and then Woodside for a total ride of 75K before breakfast.
A nice finish to the trip and a good base this early in the season to build upon.
These last three rides were with Paul Hilliar who, being fitter than me, provided a hare to chase. He got plenty of rest at the top of ascents waiting for me to catch up.
Similar to the La Honda ride this one starts with the smaller climb up Ralston Avenue with a 11K flat section along Canada road which at this time of the year is a good deal colder than the lower peninsula. Once the digits were firmly numbed it was time to wind up Kings Mountain road. This is a Cat 2 7K climb.
Needless to say everything had thawed out within a few hundred meters of ascending.
The climb is comparable to the last section of Mount Hamilton and about one third of The Tormalet distance.
Once on Skyline Blvd there is a few more hundred meters of climbing before the long ascent down Skyline, La Honda and then Woodside for a total ride of 75K before breakfast.
A nice finish to the trip and a good base this early in the season to build upon.
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