Half way to target weight and readyness...
There is one month left to get ready for the Cabot Trail, 300 kilometer, one-day, dawn-to-dusk ride. About six months ago I started riding again after a knee injury in October took me out of long distance riding, I thought, for-ever. Turned out, for-ever wasn't as long as I thought!
In January I was up to about 172 pounds, still not confident in being able to ride my bike, let alone for 30 kilometers. But I owed it to myself to try... so I got on Lynnda's road bike (I had given mine away)... and rode 16 kilometers to Jocotepec's best coffee bar... I call it JocoJo. I made it, sloppy in all ways, but pain free.
So, I started riding to Jocotepec every second day, for coffee. Most of the guys that I would meet on the road were on Mountain bikes. During the spring, I bought a mountain bike (one built here in Mexico by the Alubike company)... it is a KRBO all carbon fiber model seen elsewhere in this blog. I rode it, and crashed it and went back to Lynnda's aluminum Trek 2.1. It is smaller than I am used to riding (52cm) but I really like the aluminum frame... less stiff than my carbon bikes.
Then, Give to Live announced their 2015 ride... around the Cabot Trail... one of my favorite places to bike... big mountains with great descents. At first I registered for a 100 kilometer leg of the Trail. After I got information that Ron Allen, a friend with whom I had ridden on several grand tours, was planning to ride the 300 kilometers in the allotted dawn-to-dusk time frame. I re-evaluated my ability to take on the task... with 60 days left to train, and my weight at 168. I decided I needed to be at 150 pounds and in much better power shape. With that, I could ride the trail in one day... a Bucket List level challenge.
I took it on and researched fast-track training for power and weight-loss. I started first on the weight loss... stopped all alcohol intake. Stopped snacking... especially the cup or two of mixed nuts I was eating a day, and ice cream bars. Started a protein shake replacement therapy after riding each day. Then I found a strength and core stabilization program. I was on my way. The weight was coming off slowly, but my cycling was not improving.
The rainy season started... it isn't the rain that bothers me, it is the debris that ends up on the roads... I couldn't get a 70km ride in without a flat, no matter how careful I was in picking my lines. So, I started going to our club at La Reserva. They have two spinning bikes. I read about how to train better with them. Added more strength sessions to the planking exercises I was using for core stabilization... protein and carb shakes in the morning, supplements and so on.
Long story of hours on the bike, the spinners, in the weight room and I am now at 155 pounds, and riding 20% better times on selected 5 - 6% climbs. But really, it is about trying to be comfortable on the bike for 15 hours... I have scheduled a 150 and a 200 kilometer ride coming up to let my body know what to expect. there are four weeks left and the body will have a 300 km ride to deal with in Nova Scotia... surprise!
That's my update to myself... stay the course!
The rest of this update is about the fund-raising. I started with letters to friends early this week. We are now over $3,000 donated to the ride. My goal is $6,000 and I have some work to get there... looking forward to the challenge.
In January I was up to about 172 pounds, still not confident in being able to ride my bike, let alone for 30 kilometers. But I owed it to myself to try... so I got on Lynnda's road bike (I had given mine away)... and rode 16 kilometers to Jocotepec's best coffee bar... I call it JocoJo. I made it, sloppy in all ways, but pain free.
So, I started riding to Jocotepec every second day, for coffee. Most of the guys that I would meet on the road were on Mountain bikes. During the spring, I bought a mountain bike (one built here in Mexico by the Alubike company)... it is a KRBO all carbon fiber model seen elsewhere in this blog. I rode it, and crashed it and went back to Lynnda's aluminum Trek 2.1. It is smaller than I am used to riding (52cm) but I really like the aluminum frame... less stiff than my carbon bikes.
Then, Give to Live announced their 2015 ride... around the Cabot Trail... one of my favorite places to bike... big mountains with great descents. At first I registered for a 100 kilometer leg of the Trail. After I got information that Ron Allen, a friend with whom I had ridden on several grand tours, was planning to ride the 300 kilometers in the allotted dawn-to-dusk time frame. I re-evaluated my ability to take on the task... with 60 days left to train, and my weight at 168. I decided I needed to be at 150 pounds and in much better power shape. With that, I could ride the trail in one day... a Bucket List level challenge.
I took it on and researched fast-track training for power and weight-loss. I started first on the weight loss... stopped all alcohol intake. Stopped snacking... especially the cup or two of mixed nuts I was eating a day, and ice cream bars. Started a protein shake replacement therapy after riding each day. Then I found a strength and core stabilization program. I was on my way. The weight was coming off slowly, but my cycling was not improving.
The rainy season started... it isn't the rain that bothers me, it is the debris that ends up on the roads... I couldn't get a 70km ride in without a flat, no matter how careful I was in picking my lines. So, I started going to our club at La Reserva. They have two spinning bikes. I read about how to train better with them. Added more strength sessions to the planking exercises I was using for core stabilization... protein and carb shakes in the morning, supplements and so on.
Long story of hours on the bike, the spinners, in the weight room and I am now at 155 pounds, and riding 20% better times on selected 5 - 6% climbs. But really, it is about trying to be comfortable on the bike for 15 hours... I have scheduled a 150 and a 200 kilometer ride coming up to let my body know what to expect. there are four weeks left and the body will have a 300 km ride to deal with in Nova Scotia... surprise!
That's my update to myself... stay the course!
The rest of this update is about the fund-raising. I started with letters to friends early this week. We are now over $3,000 donated to the ride. My goal is $6,000 and I have some work to get there... looking forward to the challenge.
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