5/20 - 23/09: Big Training Block

"Big" for me, at least. After three weeks of sub-par training due to some bronchial crap, I felt a ‘mini-Tour’ was just what was needed to get me back on track. The goal was to put in somewhere between 18-20 hours over 4 days, with a bunch of climbing thrown in for good measure. The PowerTap would serve as an invaluable tool, letting me know just how good my performance ended up being.

I had the luck and luxury of having Greg Ross join me the first 3 days and Ben Buxton join me for the last day, which made doing this much more palatable. Each day started and ended at my home in Lafayette.

Wed, May 20th
84 miles in 4:35. Magnolia to Eldora (this year’s Mike Horgan HC course on June 21st), then down to Nederland and over to Ward before descending to Hwy 36. Finished up by heading north to Nelson, east to 75th and home. This was one of those suck-ass days in the saddle. From the first pedal strokes, I knew the ride was going to be sub-par. Unfortunately, you don’t know just how much or little the extra suffering will be until you get into the ride. This ranked up there with the most challenging (not in a good way) rides I’ve done. Nearly a visceral experience. And it didn’t help that Lil’ Greg was riding away from me with a cup of tea in-hand. Not really, but he was definitely gliding up the climbs.

I couldn’t eat a thing for 3 hours afterwards, I was so messed up. I couldn’t imagine 3 more days of this shit. I guzzled water and literally force-fed myself the rest of the day until bedtime. What I DID realize is that I needed lube on my chain and rear cogs. The bike shop had cleaned my drive train a few days earlier, but for some reason there was undue friction. While not the entire cause of this lackluster ride, it certainly didn’t help any. I drenched the chain in lube and ran it through all the gears. I wasn’t going to allow myself any excuses tomorrow.

Thurs, May 21st
108 miles in 5:20. After the sleep of the dead, I woke up actually feeling refreshed. The legs were tired, but did not feel like cinder blocks. I had a spring in my step. Which is a good thing, because today was going to be the longest day of the bunch. I met Greg out front, but didn’t say a word about how I felt. I didn’t want to jinx anything before I even rolled out my driveway.

We headed straight out north to Hygiene, then hit Carter Lake, Big Thomson canyon to Estes. From there we descended to Lyons, back east to Hygiene and home. As we approached Hygiene on the way out, I told Greg my legs were definitely feeling more spry and I was ready for a hard ride. We pressed each other hard up Big Thomson, hitting a PR for the climb at 58:30. After refueling in Estes, we started the roughly 4-mile climb out of Estes before starting the gradual descent to Lyons. I hit a spot of trouble here and it was all I could do to stick to Greg’s back wheel on the 2 small rollers between mile markers 11 and 12 on the way down. By the time we hit Lyons, I felt strong again and powered it home the final hour-plus, attacking the rollers like the end of a race. The legs felt great and the watts were high for being 4.5+ hours into a ride.

Finished the day brimming with confidence and looking forward to the second half of the mini-Tour.

Fri, May 22nd
64 miles in 3:40. An easy/mod day, what would normally be considered junk miles. Watts were immaterial; the goal was to keep the HR aerobic. The watts would be what they would be. We hit Old Stage to Lefthand, then climbed to Ward before heading south to Nederland and down. The legs were a bit sore, but ‘had good sensations’ as the pros say. So, climbing was going to be OK today. I kept my HR below 150, even going up Old Stage. Greg had decided to race on Sunday, so I told him to push if he wanted to; I was going to stay aerobic.

We hit Ward in just under 2:10, which pegs the climb at about 1:10. I was surprised at how fast we got back to my house from Ward (just over 90min). The legs felt better after this ride than before it, another great sign and a perfect set-up for tomorrow. Ben and I had yet to decide where we would ride, but I knew I would throw everything I had left into it. After a dinner of mongo fats – bread with slabs of butter, guac and chips, and a burger with cheddar & bacon and fries on the side – my stomach protested the rest of the night. I decided against sticking my finger down my throat (seriously), hoping my stomach would settle and that the calories would do me some good come tomorrow morning. We were getting an early start at 6am, so no time for a pre-ride meal.

Sat, May 23rd
95 miles in 4:50. Woke up feeling fine. Dinner had been processed and I was pretty hungry upon awaking. The muscle glycogen was topped off, so I resisted the urge to eat (besides a gel right before taking off on the ride). As Ben and I rolled out of the neighborhood, we decided to hit Peaceful Valley. Ben had to be home around 10, so we agreed to split up on the descent since I was going to add some time on to the ride.

We hit Lyons then took the southern canyon up toward Allenspark, through Raymond and on to Peaceful Valley. Stringing these jogs together, the climb up to Peak to Peak Highway from Lyons is typically over an hour in length. My goal was to build into the climb, hit Peak to Peak above Peaceful Valley at max and keep going until I hit a solid hour to see how the body responded.

I felt incredible on the climb. At 30min, my HR was in the low-150s and I was averaging 265w. Time to turn the screws on myself. By the time I hit the hour mark, my average watts were up to 276 (so, 287w for the 2nd half of the effort). This was a new PR for a straight hour of output during a training ride, another great sign. I eased up for Ben to catch up and we continued on south toward Ward, where Ben descended while I continued on to Nederland before heading down.

The legs were feeling great, as was my entire body. I wanted to keep it going, so when I hit Boulder, I climbed up 9th Street to Baseline and turned west to climb Flagstaff. I made a deal with myself. If I averaged better than 276w up Flag, then I would turn around at the Amphitheatre turn-off; otherwise, the punishment would be to go all the way up – another 15min up the steepest sections of the climb. Not fun. Right away I knew there would be no punishment. I finished the climb in 15-flat, at 290w average. For me, a great effort at the tail end of the ride and at the tail end of the 4 days.

I descended Flag and cruised home, ready for the recovery period to follow and anticipating the resultant bump in fitness I would experience. Now that my health is back in order, the next climbing races should certainly be more fun to do.

Ride safe,
Nate