Beasty's 2011 assault on the vets

Beasty

A bit late with this week's update, although there's not much to report compared with previous weeks.

I did the track league on Wednesday. I was hoping to sneak a podium in my category following 4 second places the previous week.

The first race was a hare and hound with my group (C) being given a half lap start over group B, with the race being over 10 laps.

A couple of us tried to keep the pace up, but it broke the line up and we dropped a number or riders. We were caught with about 3 laps to go, and I slotted 6th in line. I was surprised the faster group decided to keep up the pace, and it worked out perfectly for me with everyone taking half a lap, leaving me in a very good position with a lap to go. I managed to hold on to third place with only a couple of riders from the faster group ahead.

Next was a points race over 12 laps, with points awarded after 4, 8 and the final lap.

I got a couple of 2nds and a 3rd in the sprints, but one guy had got clear for the final 2 sprints to pick up the win. The guy who got the first sprint beat me in one of the others, and I ended up behind the 2 of them in 3rd place

The last event was a 1km dash - a bit short for my liking, and we split into 2 races with me going in the faster one, and again I took 3rd

The points I picked up put me 2nd in the group, but I've heard a rumour that I'll being given a go in Group B tomorrow, where I'm well behind Kumate_Champ07 who is leading that group, so I've no chance of taking the league. However it will be a good test, and hopefully will set me up for next year

Having given up on the vets TT league, I started my training for next year on Sunday, with a 40km spin taking in the Nags Head climb, to give me a comparison with the Swords guys who had done the climb on Wednesday

There was a deceptive head-wind, and I was a bit disappointed to clock almost spot-on 10 minutes, as that was 45s slower than in the club league last year. However my power output was about 5w higher, so given the lack of a competitive edge I can't really complain

This brings teh YTD total to 5,509km at 29.7kph

Beasty

For anyone who witnessed my performance at the track tonight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMFYs3gfgis

I got to the track to find my promised promotion had not materialised - a close escape;)

So I remained in Group C, meaning the first race was a hare and hound against Group A. This time despite our efforts we did not manage to get onto the back of teh scratch group - a few of us made a big effort, and probably halved the gap at one stage, but the A riders got their act together and pulled away

That left a couple of us having pulled away from the other "C" riders, although we were soon joined by a third in the 8 lap race. We were really pushing it, with an average speed of nearly 46 kph on the second lap, then dropping to between 43 and 44kph for the subsequent laps.

Alas it was to no avail and the scratch riders caught us with about a lap and a half to go. The other two held on for a while, but I knew the game was up - I was starting to feel sick and eased a little knowing the scratch riders would pick up all the points

Next it was a 1km handicap race - we were split into two races and I was in the faster one. 2 of us were given the toughest handicap, with a gap of probably 70-80m to the next riders, and probably getting on for 150m over the slowest

I pushed hard to try and close down, leading the other guy for getting on for 600m or so before accepting I would not bridge, but I had hopefully managed to give the other guy a chance. I eased up the track to let him through - he caught some of the others but did not manage to get into the points, and I rolled in at the back. There were signs I am improving my starting, as I manegd to get up to 50kph within about 180m

Finally it was the derney, and again I was in the fast group. After it settled down I found myself right at the back of 8 or 9 riders. Once the derny pulled off I started moving up, but the guy at the front had created a gap of around 10m or so. I managed to pull into the gap with a lap to go and closed him down by the start of the final bend. I was level moving into the final straight and pulled past him, but was had brought someone with me, and they sprinted past to take the victory. Still my second place in the race confirmed I had secured second place overall in the C Group and I was delighted to discover later on that I'd won a medal, as well as some prize money:D. Congratulations to Kumate_Champ07 who won the B Category

So that's it for track racing this year - I've thoroughly enjoyed it, and will definitely be back next year, although it will be tougher in the "B" group

Beasty

So with track and TT racing completed for the season, attention turns to what I'll be doing for the remainder of the year.

The next month or so I'll be focussing on another type of racing - the commuter variety. Basically I want to use some of the fitness I've built up to break some of my commuting PBs.

It started today with my first commute for over a month. I knew the wind was not too bad going in, with a very slight headwind forecast. As it was I think the impact of the wind was negligible and I managed to beat my previous best inward commute by 9s. The vagaries of the Garmin though means the average speed was 35kph, which is 0.2kph slower than my previous fastest time in June! Just need a strong Northerly when I'm relatively fresh and I would hope to improve the time further.

Coming home I had a tailwind, and although I did not set a record, I managed a time of just over 39 minutes, meaning this was the first time I have gone under 40 minutes in both directions on the same day. My overall average for the day was 34.6kph, compared to my previous best pb 33kph:D

I don't intend taking any break over the winter - I didn't last year, although I did spend a bit of time on the turbo during the bad weather. I'll slow down a bit when it gets a bit colder and I'm wearing the winter gear, with the intention of maintaining a base on whch I can build with more intense training early in the new year. I've not had more than a week off the bike over the past couple of years or so, and find I get a "break" by simply doing different things/disciplines - over the summer mixing up road racing, TTs and the track, and during the winter doing the commuting, getting on the Tacx VR when the weather's bad, and occasional trips to Manchester velodrome when United have home matches. I'm hoping to minimise the risk of burnout by easing off a bit, and varying what I'm doing.

insinkerator

I was starting to wonder If you did any cycling that wasn't racing... :P

Out of interest, what kind of turbo do you have? Im thinking of getting one for the winter and judging by the quality of your fleet of bikes and your cycling, I imagine any recommendation from you would be a good one

Beasty

insinkerator wrote: »

I was starting to wonder If you did any cycling that wasn't racing... :P

Only been racing since last year - with up to 5 races in a week this year I eased off on the commuting a bit;)

insinkerator wrote: »

Out of interest, what kind of turbo do you have? Im thinking of getting one for the winter and judging by the quality of your fleet of bikes and your cycling, I imagine any recommendation from you would be a good one

Tacx Fortius VR - never managed to do much more than 3 hours in a single session though:P

RobFowl

Beasty wrote: »

Tacx Fortius VR - never managed to do much more than 3 hours in a single session though:P

For once I can claim to have done more !!
Spent 4 1/2 hours on the turbo on a hot summers day last year watching the Vuelta (not even an interesting stage, up and down dual carriage ways!).

Possibly explains why I did feck all this year!

Well done on your successful and varied season Beasty

RobFowl

Beasty wrote: »

That's it - the assault is over.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uV8a0-cXzNs

Beasty

This week's riding comprised the final evening of the track league on Wednesday, followed by the "record-breaking" commute on Thursday and another commute on Friday

I then did another evening of nocturnal training on Sunday evening - I was setting off about 20 minutes later and probably had an extra 30 minutes or so of darkness which probably contributed to an overall slower speed but higher power output this week - I suspect I was on the brakes a bit more in the dark, although I also think it was a bit windier last night

I did the Nags Head hill climb again, knocking just over 30s off last week's time. There was another headwind, and the improved time was pretty much down to increased power output - around 15w higher than last week, to establish a new PB for most of the range between 6m and 9m 30s or so. It actually didn't feel as hard as last week - possibly down to better gearing and spending a bit more time in the saddle.

Total distance for the week was 150km, bringing the YTD total to 5,659km at 29.7kph

I'm hoping to do 3 commutes at the back-end of thsi week, and with a bit of luck I'll get out one evening over the weekend

Sr. Assumpta

Beasty wrote: »

This week's riding comprised ......... .....I'll get out one evening over the weekend

And I see you also cycled back in time,....... do you plan to tackle the past month differently second time around?? ..........

Beasty

I tend to refer to last week as "this" week, and next week as "thsi" week to avoid any confusion

Maybe we need to start a thread somewhere on Boards to establish what exactly is meant by "this" in "this" context though;)

Sr. Assumpta

*digging myself a big hole*

Actually, in my pedantic (read: being a smartass on the internet) way, I was referring to 'Update 05/08/11 ' that you posted on 05/09/11, thus gaining your self an extra month of Summer time...... but, you know, it's fine, really.
I have no idea which week is 'this' week, nor why a time such as 'half-four' means "half-an-hour-after-4 o'clock", and not "half-an-hour-before-4 o'clock", but hey, that's another day's work.

Lumen

Sr. Assumpta wrote: »

I have no idea...why a time such as 'half-four' means "half-an-hour-after-4 o'clock", and not "half-an-hour-before-4 o'clock"

I arrive at "half four" appointments at two o'clock.

On a related topic, why is everyone late to meetings? It's so disrespectful.

Beasty

A productive September on the commuting front with records falling faster than I can think them up

It started with my fastest return on the 1st - average speed 34.6kph.
The following day I completed my fastest 2 consecutive days - average 32.8kph (previous best 30.6kph)
Then tonight I recorded my fastest 3 consecutive days - average 32.1kph (previous best 30.6kph) and fastest 4 day week - average 31.4kph (previous best 30.6kph)

Current average for the month to date (9 commutes) is 31.2kph which is looking good compared to my previous fastest month (last September) when I averaged 29.9kph over 14 commutes (minimum 10 return commutes required for this one)

Plan for October - slow down a bit;)

Beasty

3 commutes w/e 11/09/11 - 136km at 29.9kph
4 commutes w/e 18/09/11 - 181km at 31.4kph

+ another 18km today, bringing the YTD total to 5,994km at 29.7kph

Hope to get another 3 commutes in next week, with a bit more in over the weekend

Beasty

So after struggling to average 28.5kph into the 24kph SWesterly this morning, tonight the wind was in my favour - 19kph SSWesterly - not exactly perfect as my best times are mainly set with straight Southerlies (or Northerlies in the morning)

I was held up at a couple of junctions, but knew I was still on for a good time, particularly when I managed to fly round the "worst" roundabout at full pelt. I also encountered slow traffic coming up to Lusk, but all in all road conditions were about as good as they get

I managed to clock 37m 50s or so at an average speed of just under 35.4kph - not only my first sub-38 minute commute, but over 40s inside my previous best time

Just need that perfect Southerly and good road/traffic when I'm relatively fresh - probably 30kph or so is about the optimum tailwind based on my own experience

Beasty

Three commutes over the past week - 136km at 30.8kph which means I'm now past 6,000 km for the year - 6,130km at 29.8kph. It's still about 1,600km down on the same stage last year, but it is about 0.3kph faster. That makes me think about a new target for the year - I'm going to try and average 30kph across all disciplines. Things do tend to slow down a bit over the winter, but setting myself a target like this will hopefully keep me pushing a bit harder. I'm guessing my total distance for the year will be something in the order of 8,500km.

The plan for next week is a commute tomorrow (forecast Southerly wind which should help with the home commute;)), then it's Champions League duty - no track time though as the GB Championships are taking place during the week. It looks like track opportunities in Manchester will be more limited over the forthcoming months as Team GB are using the velodrome a lot more in the build-up to London 2012.

Then Sunday should hopefully see my final racing "event" of the year...

Beasty

Today was my final race of the season. A vets 2-up TT of just over 34km starting in Batterstown. Teams had to include a minimum of 1 vet but your partner could be a vet or non-vet. It was handicapped - basically the team closest to their estimated time win the Sanyo Cup. No computers or watches allowed:eek:

I managed to get a ringer to partner me - he was wearing an Irish team skinsuit that he earned:D. The only problem was that he was less than half my age, and I was more than half as heavy again as him. He's also a good TT'er. Hence I was going to be the constraining factor here. There were over 20 other teams competing and we were off at number 11.

I had worked out that I had done the circuit during the course of my fastest 25m TT in around 54 minutes. We therefore went for a handicap time of 52m 30s. However they then moved the start from where I thought it was goig to be, perhaps adding another 500m or so the distance would be nearer 35km than 34.

We got off to a fast start - a very fast start. We caught our minute men within 1-2km! Having said that, one of those guys was older then the 2 of us put together. It was a very hard pace, but I was able to keep on my partner's wheel - moving out a little to avoid spray early on. It was way to fast for me to take a turn at the front though, and as soon as we hit some inclines my weight handicap started to show.

By half way we had probably passed 4 teams and had another couple in our sights, but the work done was starting to take a toll on me, and we had to slow down a little. If we'd taken it a bit easier in the first half we may well have recorded a faster time.

The last bit had little in the way of hills, and we were able to pick up the pace. By the time we crossed the line I was absolutely shattered despite not having spent any time at the front. It was as hard a ride as I had done - probably equivalent to a 10 miler but more than twice the distance.

Anyway, we managed to clock the 4th fastest time overall, and at 52m 14s we were within 16s of handicap, and won the trophy:D

EDIT - Team Beasty:

J Madone

Hi Beasty
Well done on your time,managed 52.59 mins today myself and Damian. I think the course was closer to 37km, its down as 24miles on the IVCA website.
So dont be so hard on yourself
Regards JM

Beasty

Well done J Madone - you guys did it without a professional to pull you along.

The course is definitely between 34 and 35km though - I've all the Garmin records from the 10m and 25m TTs I've done on it - it's 3.2km from the start of the 25 to the top of the hill just after the GAA club. I was reckoning 3km to the GAA club which is where the 34km comes from. However they moved the start probably 300m or more back, which adds another 600m+ to the distance

I think Phil had a computer in his pocket so hopefully he will confirm the distance in due course (I'm glad I had someone to pace me - cant't cope without all the gadgetry in front of me ....)

J Madone

Doctors differ and cyclists lie:0)
Hope my missus doesnt read this, She thought i was a great lad when i told her!:D

Beasty

A commute on Monday and today's vets TT was the main activity over the past week. Total distance was 105km at 34.6kph, bringing the YTD to 6,236km at 29.8kph

Total commuting during September was 589km at 31.2kph, a 1.3kph improvement on the same month last year which was my previous "fastest" commuting month. Normalised power was just under 260w, nearly 20w up on lasy year.

Racing is now finished and next week should see a couple of commutes plus a trip to Manchester velodrome on Thursday

Beasty

Sunday’s victory in the vets 2-up Sanyo Cup was a very pleasant way to bring the curtain down on my racing season.

In total I’ve taken part in 37 events over 1,222km, in TTs, road races and on the track. Last year I managed only 24 events and on occasions was absolutely shattered, vowing never to do 3 races in a week again. However it was very different this year. Mixing up the disciplines definitely helped, but it was the hard work over the winter that benefited me most, together with easing off a little when I felt it necessary. At one stage I managed 5 days of racing over an 8 day period.

TTs
13 races in total (378km)
Probably my most successful discipline with 2 handicap victories (each with trophies still to be collected!), a 2nd place and placing 6th overall in the vets handicap league. In addition I was second club rider in the Swords 10m championships and 4th in the 25 mile championships.

Road racing
10 vets races, 6 in the Swords league (774km)
I managed to pick up my first “extra” points in the Swords league, as well as getting in amongst the points in each of my final 4 vets races.

Track
6 track league nights plus 2 days of the IVCA C hampionships
My greatest achievement in cycling (and indeed sport in general) – the Vets 50+ pursuit champion and I also placed 2nd in the Autumn Track League (3rd Division)

Beasty

122km done in just under 4 hours last week, bringing the YTD total to 6,358km in just under 213 hours - the way the rounding works the average speed has now moved up to 29.9kph for the year.

I'm still feeling the after-effects of last Sunday's TT - in addition to sciatica in my right calf I think I have a slight hamstring strain. Hence although I don't anticipate cutting down the distance next week, I may have to ease off the speed and power a little to hopefully aid recovery. I'm therefore expecting the average speed to drop back a bit.

Beasty

One of the tools available on Training Peaks (and indeed Golden Cheetah) is the “Performance Manager”. Basically this shows the short term workload (Acute Training Load, or ATL), long term workload (Chronic Training Load, or CTL) and Training Stress Balance (TSB), which is basically a playoff between the 2 and reflects current form/fitness (more on these measures in the context of the Performance Manager here). CTL is basically a weighted average daily Training Stress Score over a 3 month or so period.

This is my Performance Management Chart since 1 April:



Basically it reflects the work I was doing in the build up to the season (averaging just short of 200km a week in the 3 months to March), to give me a CTL of around 63 at the start of the season

The CTL gradually reduced as I cut down on total distance and time in the saddle while racing, averaging nearer 150km a week during the racing season, and allowing time to recover between races. Essentially I was “cashing in” on the winter training (CTL), allowing me to maintain overall form over a very long season of 37 races – much more than I did last year when I struggled a lot more towards the end of the season. My best performances arose when I could get the TSB line moving up and in the 5-15 range, which reflected relatively low acute/recent work while eating into the accumulated CTL

With this in mind, and looking to next season, the plan is to try and get the CTL to a higher level at the start of the next racing season. Basically I will need to be averaging around 250km (8-9 hours) a week from January to March. That should give me a TSB of over 80, and hopefully a bit more in the tank for next season. To get there I’m planning to average 150km per week (just over 3 commutes) until the end of November, building up to 200km a week during December and increasing to 250km in January (by extending the commute and getting out a couple of evenings a week). That's the theory, at least ...

Beasty

Well the pain that I thought was a hamstring strain is, I'm pretty sure, caused by the sciatica. I've been suffering all week with pain down the back of my right leg through the back of the knee and into the calf.

The bad news is I struggle to walk on occasions, particularly after getting up out of a chair. The good news is it doesn't seem to affect my cycling much. I only did 3 commutes this week, but still managed to beat 39 minutes on the way home on Friday (34.5kph), with normalised power of 280w, which beats my previous best by a couple of watts. Normlised power remains more than 10% up on the same period last year.

Total distance for the week 135km, bringing my YTD total to 6,493km at 29.9kph. I need to "catch up" 32km to get up to an average of 30kph for the year.

Next week should, back permitting, see a bit more distance with another 3 commutes and hopefully getting out over the weekend.

Sr. Assumpta

Beasty wrote: »

..

:eek: Looks like you've failed a lie-detector test!!!!! Either that or you're having a heart attack.......

Beasty

Managed the 3 commutes plus the Swords spin yesterday and the Swords beginners spin today to total 285km, my highest weekly total of the year.

This brings the YTD to 6,779km at 29.8kph

Next week I'm aiming to get another 2 or 3 commutes in and should hopefully get out over the weekend again

BUACHAILL

Thats huge distances to be putting in for the week fair play !! Can I ask what did the beginners spin consist of and I know this will sound dumb but what is the standard like ? speed / mileage / terrain etc. I was thinking of possibly getting involved with a club in the near future to help me on but do not want to do anything before I am ready for it so curious to know.

sorry a little off topic I know.
What do you look for in your routes ? hills, flats for speed, or just a mix to cover all and get the miles in ??

Beasty

BUACHAILL wrote: »

Thats huge distances to be putting in for the week fair play !! Can I ask what did the beginners spin consist of and I know this will sound dumb but what is the standard like ? speed / mileage / terrain etc. I was thinking of possibly getting involved with a club in the near future to help me on but do not want to do anything before I am ready for it so curious to know.

sorry a little off topic I know.
What do you look for in your routes ? hills, flats for speed, or just a mix to cover all and get the miles in ??

There's a thread here on the introductory spins - we split it in 2 yesterday, with the faster riders averaging 27.5kph over 65km (with a fair few short hills, but nothing substantial) and the slower group doing around 23kph over 30-40km

If you can ride these sorts of distances on your own you will be fine in a group - it's all about getting people used to riding in a group - keeping two tidy lines, moving through, taking turns at the front, etc.

A couple struggled a bit in the faster group yesterday, but there were a couple of short cuts we could take to allow them a bit of a break before the others caught up

In terms of my own cycling, now the racing season is out of the way the "bread and butter" stuff will be commuting (it's 23km to work and I can make it longer on the way home). It's mainly on country roads with little stopping and starting, and I basically do each one as a TT - it's a quite flat route

Due to family commitments I rarely get out over the weekends, but we will be starting up some evening winter training spins in Skerries shortly - this will be a mixture of hill and flat work a couple of evenings a week

Beasty

3 commutes this week, then the Swords spin yesterday - I say the Swords spin, but it wasn't the usual "format". I was out a little early and one of the older club members who likes to get a head start came up the road out of Skerries, so I joined him to Balrothery, then waited for the rest of the group. Another vet who joins at Balrothery came along and after a quick chat he headed off to catch up the first guy.

A couple of minutes later I saw the peleton heading towards me and decided to head down the road, expecting them to catch me fairly quickly. I then thought what the hell and headed off to catch the other two - it took me a few minutes to bridge over, and by then there was no sign of the main group, so I gave the "old guys" a pull round the circuit - the main group must have had a mechanical or two as they never caught us.

I've just signed up to Strava and decided to go for a PB on the Swords to Blakes X segment, averaging 41.3kph to get 2nd fastest overall:). I then let the old guys catch up and we headed back up towards Balrothery as some of the regulars head up that route after the spin - just before we got there one of the old guys broke a spoke, so we were delayed a couple of minutes, but still no-one from the main group caught us. I then headed off home, taking in the "Balcunnin to Skerries" sprint - quite pleased with my 5th place on that one given the 2 fastest times were ridden in the Ras, and this was the end of an 80km spin for me

On the final stretch back home I passed some of the guys heading back into Skerries at the end of the spin - I would guess they must have had getting on for 30 minutes of delays for some reason

I then did another 36km today to bring my weekly total to 246km, and YTD past 7,000km, now standing at 7,024km at 29.8kph

I'll try to get out again tomorrow, then will be over in Manchester for a couple of days, with plans for some track time. I won't be back until Saturday evening, and will hopefully manage to get out again on Sunday.