Beasty’s 2012 cycling pursuits ….

Beasty

So what will 2102 bring? I’ve now had 2 years racing, and feel my strengths remain TTs and on the track. However I feel as if I’m improving my tactical awareness on the road, and one of my 2012 objectives is to try and get a podium position in a road race.

I suspect I won’t get the same opportunities to race as regularly as in 2011 due to work and other commitments. Hence I’m not going to target any particular league in 2012, but will be picking and choosing my races in the vets TT and Road Race and Swords Leagues. I’ve taken out an A4 licence for 2012 (I’ll need it for some of my track plans), and will be interested to see if anyone puts on any “Over 50” races (which received approval at the recent CI AGM). I’ll also be looking to get down to Sundrive, particularly for the Autumn track league.

I’d like to improve my TT times for 10, 25 and 50 miles. I was within 4 seconds of 24 minutes in the 10 mile in 2011, and would at the very least want to try and break through that barrier. My best 25 mile time is 63m 32s, although I never had the best weather conditions over this distance. With one or 2 adjustments I would hope to get under 63 minutes. I’ve only done the one 50 mile TT, and if I try it again next year the time will be heavily dependent on conditions on the day – if decent I would like to get under 2h 10m. RobFowl has been promising to drag me up North to try some of their TTs – the roads they use are apparently much more conducive to fast times than those down here.

The plan is to up the distance over the next three months or so. I’ve been doing around 200km per week over the past couple of months or so, and will be looking to increase this to 250km (including road, track and turbo) to give me a solid base for the next racing season.

In terms of the track, I need to focus on starting to improve my times over the shorter distances, and will be looking for a more specialist pursuit bike given this is my strongest discipline. This brings me to one of my main objectives – I would like to defend my Vets pursuit title, and if they run them I would also like to attempt the European Masters Championships. If that goes well I would then like to give the Worlds in Manchester a go in October – it’s a bit of a busy time work-wise, so I would probably only be attempting the pursuit. I know a medal is well out of my reach in the Worlds (I’m about 25s outside based on my Sundrive time, but should be able to get closer on an indoor track), but I would like to see how close I can get.

One tool I’m looking to help with my track preparation is the Wattbike – a power measuring turbo designed in conjunction with Team GB. The only thing that’s missing is actual air resistance, but it does a good job of mimicking track riding very effectively. The only thing it can’t replicate is starting which is the weakest part of my track technique. However having used it quite a bit already it does allow me to practice pacing, particularly for the 2k pursuit, where it’s not easy to get a track to yourself to practice (I’ve only done 2 of these, both competitively in the IVCA championships)

... oh, and hopefully I'll have a new road bike in time for the racing season

levitronix

Im sure pick the right A4 race and a blast off the front will be enough to stay away

Beasty

An 8 day week to start the year;)

Started with a turbo session on New Year's Day, including a 71.5s kilo and 34.4s 500m. I then did a local spin on Monday, and was out for 90 minutes or so with some of the Swords guys for a nocturnal training spin on Tuesday.

Back on the Wattbike for an hour on Wednesday - including a 30m TT, where I managed 20.26km at 256w, which is about 350m and 12w down on last time, but I was much fresher then

A finally did a couple of commutes on Thursday and Friday, doubling uo the return journey to around 46km. I took advantage of a strong Westerly on Thursday mornin to improve my KOM on Feltrim Road, and recorded a few more Strava PBs on the return journeys

It all added up to 273km at 28.7kph, which is just about in line with my 250km per week target for the next few months

Next week should see a couple more commutes plus evening training, then back on the turbo for some late evening sessions, as I'll be home alone except for the kids ...

morana

from what I seen on the road a podium wasnt far off last december and based on that ride I should think you will get a sub 24 TT.

The Over 50's is a Northern idea but will be interesting to see if it spreads south.

Best of luck for 2012 in every aspect of sport except football!!!!!

kumate_champ07

Beasty wrote: »

An 8 day week to start the year;)

Started with a turbo session on New Year's Day, including a 71.5s kilo and 34.4s 500m. I then did a local spin on Monday, and was out for 90 minutes or so with some of the Swords guys for a nocturnal training spin on Tuesday.

Back on the Wattbike for an hour on Wednesday - including a 30m TT, where I managed 20.26km at 256w, which is about 350m and 12w down on last time, but I was much fresher then

A finally did a couple of commutes on Thursday and Friday, doubling uo the return journey to around 46km. I took advantage of a strong Westerly on Thursday mornin to improve my KOM on Feltrim Road, and recorded a few more Strava PBs on the return journeys

It all added up to 273km at 28.7kph, which is just about in line with my 250km per week target for the next few months

Next week should see a couple more commutes plus evening training, then back on the turbo for some late evening sessions, as I'll be home alone except for the kids ...

that's pretty decent tho standing starts on a stationary bike aren't realistic. if you can get down to Sundrive before the Summer you could pick a big gear and do a standing start every 2nd lap, slow down on the final staight out of the bend then blast it to the finish line!

when others were cooling down at the end of track sessions I would do a similar drill but more of a rolling acceleration from up high on the banking. every lap for maybe 10mins. noticed a huge improvement 2 weeks later!

you can do the standing start drills on the road but that can be messy

hope my advice doesnt come across as condescending as you have a few more years experience than me!

Beasty

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

hope my advice doesnt come across as condescending as you have a few more years experience than me!

Not at all - you've actually done quite a bit more track racing than I have, and I've only been road racing for 2 years

In terms of the Wattbike, the absolute times are not my main focus, it's more a matter of improving my times, and getting my pacing and gearing right. Having said that it is a remarkably accurate piece of equipment, except for the starting. I can practice that by turning the air and magnetic resistance up though

I've only ever done two 500m TTs and two 2km pursuits (in the last two vets championships), and it's clear from my Garmin records that I lose quite a bit of time in the starts, and I clearly need to work on this. I reckon that riders in my age category typically lose about 4s getting up to speed in the pursuit, and a bit less in the 500m. I'm losing around 5-6s in each discipline. Part of it's down to gearing though, and again I'm hoping the Wattbike will allow me to experiment a bit more ton establish my optimum cadence for each event. Interestingly in the pursuit the riders in the Masters typically slowed down towards the end, while I was able to maintain pace throughout in both vets championships, and I think my overall pacing was good

NB - I did experiment with some starts at Manchester recently, but was then castigated by the coach for going too slow!

Beasty

I managed to cram 200km on the road into the first part of the week, with extended commutes on Monday and Wednesday and and evening session on Tuesday.

Then it's been the Wattbike with 3 late evening sessions. Friday it was just really turning the legs over, then some speed work on Saturday when I managed to better my previous PB in the Flying 200 twice - my new best in 11.90s. On Sunday I focussed on endurance with my first attempt at the 4k pursuit. I'm happy with my time of 5m 29s, but know there is scope for improvement. I started steady and managed to increase power each minute. The average over each minute interval was 286w, 293w, 304w, 320w and 348w respectively, with an overall average of 310w. I know I can get up to over 350w on the road bike but that's when climbing. I'm not sure whether I can in a steady state. I was hitting 380w at the end, and feel I had a bit left in me, so think I can improve that time with better pacing

Total distance for the week was 285km in about 9hr 34m, with not a minute of daylight encountered

Next week will be disrupted due to business travel, with no commuting opportunities. I may get out a couple of evenings during the week, then it will probably be back to the turbo for the weekend

GlennaMaddy

Beasty wrote: »

.I would then like to give the Worlds in Manchester a go in October – i

Never mind the worlds, the big question is what group you're going to ride in the Swords league:D

Beasty

GlennaMaddy wrote: »

Never mind the worlds,

Just found out the Europeans are in Minsk:eek: The chances are the turnout will be low, meaning there's even more of an incentive to give it a go. Problem is it could well clash with holidays ...

GlennaMaddy wrote: »

the big question is what group you're going to ride in the Swords league:D

I'm nearly as old as the Lion of Fingal, so whichever group he is in;)

GlennaMaddy

I'm nearly as old as the Lion of Fingal, so whichever group he is in;)

The Lion isn't roaring 250 kms a week like The Beast of Fingal ;-)

RobFowl

GlennaMaddy wrote: »

The Lion isn't roaring 250 kms a week like The Beast of Fingal ;-)

Don't diss the Lion Ps its more Baron Beasty of Beasty manor (Baron of Fingal)

Beasty

GlennaMaddy wrote: »

The Lion isn't roaring 250 kms a week like The Beast of Fingal ;-)

Maybe I should be in the same group as RobFowl then as he's over 10 years younger than me

Anyway, first 3,000km of the week completed - unfortunately none of them on the bike - guess that makes it a "rest" day:rolleyes:

RobFowl

Looking forward to it TBH. Will hope fully be in good enough shape to ride hard and contribute.
I'd say start group 2 and see how it goes.
I don't go for the riding in the hardest group you can and just sitting on. I like to be able to contribute and I know Beasty does too. Sitting on is not his style...

Beasty

TBH in the League races I took part in last season there were perhaps half a dozen of us who worked hard whenever we turned up - 2 of them ended up in Group 3 with the League title and runner's up position between them. On the Bog of the Ring I could probably cope (and contribute) in Group 3, but would get crucified by those half my age and 80% of my weight on the hillier courses

The last thing I'd want to do in a CP is just sit in and let someone else do the work (until we get caught by the faster groups;))

Beasty

Quite a bit of business travel restricted cycling opportunities last week to an evening training spin on Tuesday, a Wattbike session on Wednesday, a local spin yesterday and another Wattbike session today. Total distance was 165km in just over 5 and a half hours, bringing the YTD to 723km.

Yesterday I was able to optimise the benefit of the expected 30-35kph (which actually turned into a 50+kph) Westerly on a couple of Strava segments. That resulted in two KOMs proving Accuweather really can be your friend;). In fact, on one of them my average speed was over 49 kph compared with a previous best of 42.9kph. Even a shaungil and his brother lead-out team on Tuesday only resulted in an average 35.2kph on that segment, although it was a lot calmer (and darker!) for that ride.

Turning to the Wattbike, I did my first 3,000m pursuit this afternoon, recording a time of 4m 1.63s. I reckon that translates to around 4:15 to 4:20 on Sundrive in the type of conditions we had for the last IVCA Championships, which I would be more than happy with. I also managed to improve my best flying 200 time from 11.90s to 11.80s. The Wattbike practice I'm getting is improving my technique quite a lot, although it is very difficult to compare the flying 200 time to what would happen in the real world. In addition to weather and track conditions the Wattbike assumes an aero position, which is not realistic in the sprint events, and does not reflect the effort required to get up to speed.

One thing I am building quite a lot of data on is cadence to allow me to try and work out best gearing for the track bike. That time of 11.80 would actually require something like 114 gear inches, which is entirely unrealistic for the event (for me anyway!) - the maximum I've ever used is about 98 gear inches, although I have felt a little undergeared in some events, and perhaps I do need to practice a bit with some higher gearing (certainly for flying starts, and perhaps also for the pursuit - getting up to speed is more of an issue for me in TT's - I need to work on starting technique to deal with that). I also recognse I'm more of a grinder than a spinner, and need to practice a bit more at high cadence.

That brings me onto "the OBREE way" - Graeme Obree's new training book, which arrived a week or two ago. He has chapters covering (amongst other things) breathing and pedalling. I've been trying to put into practice his suggestions on pedalling - the Wattbike is perfect to monitor the impact. I can see a better "spread" of power throughout the pedal revolution emerging. It does not seem to impact on the interaction between avearge power and speed, so I'm assuming the "efficiency" gains are more about being able to sustain a higher overall power output by evening out the effort.

Next week I'm hoping to get a commute in tomorrow, then it's over to Manchester until Thursday, with one track session booked. The ferry only gets back into Dublin after midnight on Friday morning, so I'm not sure if I'll get another commute in. Then I will hopefully get out for an hour or so on Saturday, with a Wattbike session on Sunday

shaungil

Even a shaungil and his brother lead-out team on Tuesday only resulted in an average 35.2kph on that segment, although it was a lot calmer (and darker!) for that ride.

Bloody hell you must have had a sail up for the Finnegans corner to Loughshinny segmen:eek:

Beasty

shaungil wrote: »

Bloody hell you must have had a sail up for the Finnegans corner to Loughshinny segmen:eek:

You need to get the team organised tomorrow evening shaungil. I did it on my own - a proper lead-out and you'll find it a doddle (it's only 1m 40s faster than we did it last Tuesday;))

Beasty

Back in Manchester this morning. I've been feeling a bit under the weather, so decided not to go full out for the full session. Instead I started my track accreditation process. I did get accreditation about 12 years ago, but it lapses if you don't do any Structured Quality Training at least every six months, and as my one and only such session was during the last millenium I need to start again if I want to do some of these sessions

The process is a bit more complicated than when I last did it, involving 4 different sessions to prove you are fit enough and safe enough to take part in the full training sessions and track racing. I hope getting to some of these sessions will help prepare me for the Masters events later in the year

Today was quite simple to show the very basic skills of line lapping - 20 minutes on the blue line (changing every half lap) followed by 4 laps at the very top of the track, perhaps 50cm or so from the fence (being so high on the track adds about 45m in length to the 250m track)

I started off warming up for 20 minutes or so - as I knew I wouldn't be pushing hard for the full session I took the opportunity to do a fast sprint, using the 45 degree banking to get up some speed. I did perhaps 2-3 laps at full pelt, and established a new personal record for the track - I don't think I've ever had my HR up to 184 on it before (only 2 bpm slower than my highest recorded) - I suspect it was something to do with a bug I seem to be carrying

Anyway, the formal bit of the session was quite straightforward, and I finished off with a few extra fast laps at the top of the track

Details of all the laptimes recorded via a transponder are here. I'm pretty sure the laps showing no 50 and 200m splits are those I spent mainly at the top of the track.

Beasty

Managed to get the 2 commutes in together with the track session on Thursday. I also got out for 80 minutes or so yesterday, and had an extended Wattbike session tonight. I also had my first gym session of the year on Wednesday, which is a bit of an improvement on last January when I spent 2 weeks in various hotel gyms around the world

I managed to do 251km in total during the week, bringing the YTD to 974km, and tomorrow's commute should get me past 1,000km for the month. I should be about 200km ahead of the distance I did last January, with a lot more work involved (particularly hill work), so everything's working out fine so far

I have another couple of track sessions in Manchester lined up for next week, and weather permitting I should get a couple of commutes in (if not, it will be back on the Wattbike - I'll probably be doing a couple of weekend sessions anyway)

Beasty

So after 23 years working for this company they finally decided to check out if I am likely to drop dead tomorrow, and offered be a health assessment. I certainly was not going to pass up the opportunity for a V02Max test paid for by someone else, so I've spent most of today in a BUPA hospital in Manchester

Numerous tests were undertaken. The flexibility test involved sitting on the floor, legs stretched out flat, and pushing a wooden measure as far forward as I could. After some initial stretching of the hamstrings in preparation I gave the test a go. I couldn't even reach the piece of wood - Fail! I wasn't too surprised given my previous back problems - 20 years ago I was told I had a particularly degenerative spine - probably more typical of someone who was my age now then! Anyway, I know this is definitely an area I can improve on, and I'm going to (finally:rolleyes:) make stretching part of my daily routine.

I was asked to move to another room for the hearing test. "Pardon?" was my response, and another fail ensued.

The grip strength test involved squeezing a scale as hard as I could. Now upper body is not my strong point - what really surprised me was my left hand is slightly stronger than my right one, despite being right handed, having broken my left wrist 2 years ago, and knowing I have arthritis in my left wrist!. Having said that, it came out normal overall for my age.

Then onto the lung test - basically exhale into a tube as hard as you can for 6 seconds. I ran out of breath after 2. It's very strange trying to exhale when you feel absolutely nothing is left to come out. Having said that, the biggest surprise of the day was that I apparently have a lung age of 26:D

Then onto the exercise bike, ECG electrodes attached. I was told they would take it up to 85% of predicted MaxHR. I enquired how they predicted this, and was told it was based on the 220-age formula, indicating a MaxHR of 169 for me, meaning I would just have to get the HR up to 144. I did point out that I hit 184 last week, but to no avail.

We then had to wait for the doctor to come in and supervise, in case I had a heart attack there and then. A bit strange really when I will hit over 144 when cycling alone on pretty much every ride I do!

I had to start off at 50w for 2 minutes. they said it would normally increase by 25w every 2 minutes, with the test expected to take 8-10 minutes, depending on how long it took me to get to a HR of 144bpm

After 2 minutes they actually increased it to 100w, and then 150w. They then applied 25w increments, up to 225w, when finally I hit 144bpm. I didn't break out in a sweat, and would question whether this was a true test of my V02Max, given other tests I have seen involve pushing yourself to the limit. Anyway the result was a "predicted" VO2Max of 44.2, putting me at the top of my age category. I know I can improve on this, if for no other reason than they weighed me fully decked out in winter clothing, with pockets weighed down with all sorts of shrapnel. I reckon that probably added about 2kg, which if adjusted would bring my V02Max up to at least 45.

These tests indicate to me there remains scope for improvement. My body fat percentage is 19% - perfectly healthy, but 16% would be equally healthy. I know that I could probably lose more weight just by cutting out crappy food. I have improved my diet considerably in the past couple of years, put there remains scope for further improvement. They estimated that at my current level of activity I need a calory intake of no more than 3,730 per day - I don't think I'll be starving if I can keep it below 3,500, and with a bit of luck I may be able to further increase my activity levels.

The tests showed that during exercise burns a higher proportion of fats as opposed to sugars (when compared to the norm) which indicates a decent aerobic fitness, and supports the view I am more of an edurance cyclist than sprinter

And so to the prognosis.

The bad news is I'm gonna die...

The good news is it's hopefully not gonna happen anytime soon, and United won, and City lost, and Chelsea drew, and no-one cares any more about Liverpool, as they're out of it (or more accurately were never in it)...

Dermot Illogical

Beasty wrote: »

and no-one cares any more about Liverpool, as they're out of it (or more accurately were never in it)...

I care, so here's an old joke for you..


Ferguson, Dalglish, Redknapp, AVB & Moyes sitting in a bar.........?

.
Harry buys the first drinks and Rednapp the second, AVB the third and Moyes the fourth. Kenny's turn, goes to the bar and comes back with 4 pints, one of his own and one for Harry, AVB and Moyes. Fergie furiously stands up and shouts"WHERE'S MINE?"To which Kenny replies, "Sorry Fergie, this is the fifth round and you're not in it."

Beasty

RT66 wrote: »

I care, so here's an old joke for you..


Ferguson, Dalglish, Redknapp, AVB & Moyes sitting in a bar.........?

.
Harry buys the first drinks and Rednapp the second, AVB the third and Moyes the fourth. Kenny's turn, goes to the bar and comes back with 4 pints, one of his own and one for Harry, AVB and Moyes. Fergie furiously stands up and shouts"WHERE'S MINE?"To which Kenny replies, "Sorry Fergie, this is the fifth round and you're not in it."

Track, Road, or TT - name the time and place RT66 ....

Dermot Illogical

Beasty wrote: »

Track, Road, or TT - name the time and place RT66 ....

Sure, once it's not the 18/19th Feb

Beasty

So after Tuesday's Health Assessment, it wa back on the track on Wednesday lunchtime and Thursday morning

Wednesday was disrupted when one of the older guys came off and they had to call an ambulance, meaning we were off the track for about 10 minutes. He was only going very slowly on the Cote D'Azure, but he had put a new tub on the front. You're supposed to rub them down with alcohol wipes before trying out new tyres on teh track - basically he had no grip.

Hence rather than pound it out for the full hour, I took the opportunity to try a flying 200 and a 1km TT. Conditions were far from ideal, as I had to navigate other riders on the track, and may have considered alternative gearing in race conditions. Anyway I averaged 44kph, hitting 47kph, over the full distance, which would give me a total time of 1m 22s. Aerobars, skinsuit and aero helmet would have made a difference, as would a clear track. My HR hit 181, which is a bit of a difference with the 144 I was limited to in the previous day's VO2 Max test (indeed it took me nearly 12 minutes to get the HR up to 144 on Tuesday, and less than a minute on Wednesday.

I averaged 52kph over the flying 200, which translates to around 13.8s, which is 0.8s faster than I did in the (outdoor) IVCA championships last year - I'm sure I can go a bit faster, particularly with higher gearing.

On Thursday there were 4 or 5 of us who basically formed a line, with 3 of us stsying on the track for the full hour, line lapping for the most part. It was particularly cold (indeed my feet were still cold at the end of the hour - I've been finding it warmer in the garage on the Wattbike. Hence it took some time to get warmed up. However once the chain gang was fully formed the pace picked up and we were averaging 43kph for the first 30 minutes. All but the two fastest riders eventually dropped off the line for a break - there was no chance I could keep the pace up with changes every 3 laps so I eased back a little also, before joining back in later on.

Overall I averaged 40.3kph, which wasn't too bad considering the previous day's efforts. Interestingly looking back at the Garmin records, I averaged 157bpm for the hour (159 for 50 minutes the previous day), but when I hit the front my HR shot up to around 167, dropping back to 157 when I was away from the front

In total I did just over 70km over the 2 sessions, at an average speed of around 39.5kph

Sr. Assumpta

Beasty wrote: »

So after Tuesday's Health Assessment, it wa back on the track on Wednesday lunchtime and Thursday morning

Wednesday was disrupted when one of the older guys came off and they had to call an ambulance, meaning we were off the track for about 10 minutes. He was only going very slowly on the Cote D'Azure,....

How annoying. Next time just roll/kick him off the track (potential spinal injury bedamned) to await his ambulance, and then carry on cycling; preferably leave him face up so that he can see you whizzing past. That'll teach him!!

Beasty

Sr. Assumpta wrote: »

How annoying. Next time just roll/kick him off the track (potential spinal injury bedamned) to await his ambulance, and then carry on cycling; preferably leave him face up so that he can see you whizzing past. That'll teach him!!

We stayed on the track for a few minutes while he was lying there, and they'd pretty much already rolled him out of our way. I think the problem was he's probably in his 70s, and they were concerned he might croak it and didn't want the rest of us to witness it (in case it put us off riding again), so they called us off the track. It's not even as if he'd spilt any blood or anything, so the track was perfectly rideable.

I personally think they should simply ban these old codgers. Basically anyone who's 20 or more years older than me really shouldn't be riding a bike.

Beasty

A commute on Monday followed by track sessions on Wednesday amd Thursday, and then the Swords mud-bath yesterday (and for anyone from that spin reading this, I was one of the few riders with a full rear mudguard:rolleyes:). Yesterday's spin was actually my longest in terms of distance for 18 months at 88km, and my first club spin since October. The climbing was going OK and I had a couple of opportunities to try out my TT'ing when three of us were slightly held up and had to get back on, and then with the usual sprints round the back of the Airport and back up past Swords

I finished the week off with a Wattbike session this evening, focussing mainly on sprinting, and recording a sub 12s flying 200. However the most pleasing thing was I hit a season best power output of 1,130w. I've only bettered this a couple of times last March, and it was only 44w (just under 4%) less than my best. Gven I've lost around 6kg (about 6.5%), I guess this is a PB on a w/kg basis (although given I used different powermeters, there's a chance that the relative calibrations could explain any apparent improvement). Hopefully there remains scope for further improvement

Total distance for the week was 233km, bringing the YTD to 1,207km

I'm travelling over the next couple of days, so will treat them as rest days. Hopefully I'll get on the Wattbike on Wednesday evening (jetlag permitting), and I may be able to get out on Thursday evening. The plan would then be to commute on Friday, with a couple more Wattbike sessions to finish off the week

Beasty

Training was skewed towards the back-end of the week following a trip to NY on Monday and getting about an hour's sleep on the flight arriving back on Wednesday morning

I held out for a Wattbike session on Wednesday evening followed by another on Thursday (after a drive to Belfast to pick up the new bikes), a commute on Friday and another Wattbike session last night.

On Thursday I did a 10km TT, improving my best time by 10s to 14m 24s and on Saturday I managed a 30 minute TT, covering 20.5km at 265w, which is only 100m down on my best. I know I could improve on that when fresh, and also need to get a fan for when I'm on the turbo, as I'm definitely getting overheated in these sessions.

I managed to get out on the road bike this evening. I'm not putting lights on the new Cervelo S5, and so was on the old (now officially "training" bike). It looks like it might be another couple of weeks before I get a chance to get out on the new bike

Total distance for the week was 180km, bringing the YTD to 1,387km

Next week will be front loaded, with a trip to the Europa League on Thursday and the Track World Cup on Friday, followed by a couple of days in Cornwall (I'll be taking 5 flights in 5 days, which will severely limit cycling opportunities. I'll hopefully get out or on the Wattbike on Monday and Tuesday evenings, and a commute on Wednesday.

shaungil

I was thinking it's been a few minutes see had got yourself a new toy. Beasty you will spend Europe out of this recession!!!!!

Beasty

Last week pretty much went to plan, with a Wattbike session on Monday, followed by evening training with Lusk_Doyle on Tuesday, and a commute on Wednesday.

In the Wattbike session I did a 3km prsuit in 3m 56s, a 10s improvement on my previous attempt, and only a couple of seconds outside my pacing in my best 2km, with the last 2 km being almost as fast as my best standalone 2km. I've said previously it's not so much the absolute time I'm interested in, given the Wattbike does not suffer the same inertia as a track bike, but being able to hold that pace over 3km improves my confidence over what I may be able to achieve in the 2km.

I managed to get out for my first spin in Cornwall earlier today, getting a couple of KOMs including a Cat 4 climb! (looks like Strava has barely penetrated Cornwall, making some KOMs relatively easy to get where they are already set-up - the main problem is finding them, so I'll probably have to make a few of my own up). Flat roads are difficult to track down in Cornwall, so I got a bit more climbing than usual in.

Total distance for the week was just under 190km, bringing my YTD to 1,577km

Tomorrow I'll be back on the track in Manchester for the second (of four) sessions required to get accreditation. I'll also be on the track on Thursday, and plan to get out on Tuesday evening and maybe getting on the Wattbike on Friday. Hopefully I'll be able to give "The Beast" her debut over the weekend

Beasty

Back in Manchester on Monday for my "Taster Improver" track session - basically the 2nd stage of 4 for getting track accreditation

There were about 15 riders in total looking to progress - I was slightly taken aback by the number of them that had done the session before - their lack of progression was perhaps an indication that getting a pass was not going to be straightforward

The first exercise involved creating a chaingang with changing from the back, and on the inside, with the group starting on the blue line and overtaking on the black line. My first error of the day was probably starting too close to one of the coaches who was riding in the session. We were told to stay close - between half and a full wheel behnd the rider in front. The exercise seemed to go well enough but we were informed after it that only 4 or 5 riders did it to a suitable quality, with too much closing the gaps quickly and then slowing down too quickly. I was one of the guilty parties, as I'd been more focussed on maintaining the "correct" distance from the rider in front, and the differing abilities of the riders made the pacing very erratic, making it difficult to keep it steady

The next exercise involved riding the blue line and changing every half lap, meaning there would be perhaps 3 or 4 riders moving back from the top of the track at any one time. The coach would be pacing us from the black line. I started at the back - the changes seemed very slow. By the time about half the riders had moved up the track I still had another 6 or 7 in front of me. Then one of the riders at the top of the track came off, sliding down into the bunch and taking out one rider, with the next one unable to avoid the carnage. I was the first rider not to fall, but after a couple more laps whiel they checked out the fallen rders the exercise was curtailed

The final exercise involved groups of 3 or 4 moving from the blue line onto the black line and picking up pace to take a lap on the field. I was in the back group - it was originally going to be a group of 2, but we were eventually joined by the first group (of 2 again) and formed a group of 4. Everything was so slow however that we obly managed to gain half a lap before we were all called off the track.

So to the results - a failure. In fact only 4 or 5 were passed, and I suspect most of those had done the session previously. There was a definite feeling of not knowing what was expected of you - a bit like taking a driving test without having had any formal lessons

I'll give it another go, but it's not a major issue if I don't get accreditation - I've no intention of doing open racing on the Manchester track - the main purpose would be to allow me to ride the vets Structured Quality Training sessions. Having said that, I thnk that for the type of racing I do want to do (pursuiting and TTs), the skills they train you are not so important. I do think I'll have a much better idea of what is expected next time.

I was back in Manchester yesterday and took in another taster session. It was not a session I normally do (last night was my first experience of competitive first-team football at Old Trafford on a Thursday night, making a daytime Thursday session viable;)), and there did not seem to be any "regulars" there, so I just did my own thing, which was basically an hour TT (63 and a half minutes to be a bit more accurate). I rode alone throughout and got minimal drafting benefit. I still managed 38.4kph for the full session, and 38.8kph for the hour ignoring the speeding up and slowing down laps.

The Strava record is here. If you go into the detailed analysis you can see the spikes in speed and elevation where I overtook the main bunch (not so much in the middle of the session when most of the riders left the track for a rest). Strava suggests an average power of 268w, which ties into the hike calculator for my overall average speed. That increases to about 285w for my "best hour". There will be an element of drafting benefit, but I spent at least 5% of the time on the hoods which would more than compensate for that, so overall I reckon that was my best ever 1hr power output

Beasty

In addition to the 2 track sessions set out above, I had my first race of the season today. In addition I managed a commute, and evening training session and yesterday's road test of the new bike.

Total distance for the week was 250km, bringing the YTD to 1,827km

I've been suffering a bit from a head cold/virus over the past couple of days, but it doesn't seem to have slowed me down too much. Assuming no deterioration, the plan will be to do a couple of commutes and evening sessions next week, and then getting out or on the Wattbike over the weekend

Beasty

The headcold has not limited my training much if at all last week. I'm still left with a bit of a cough, but am otherwise fine.

I managed to get 3 commutes in, together with a couple of evening training spins, and rounded off with a Wattbike session this evening, for a total of 262km in just under 9 hours.

I set a new PB for the 2k pursuit on the Wattbike, improving my previous best by just over a second - it now stands at 2m 34.49s. Hopefully I still have another 2-3 seconds in me, particularly if I manage to do a session when reasonably fresh.

My YTD total now stands at 2,090km, which is over 500km ahead of the same stage last year (and just about in line with my average weekly target of 250km up to the end of March). Not only that, but I'm about 1.8kph faster. Quite a lot of that is down to the fact that I'm getting more time on the track and Wattbike, but I'm also benefiting from the additional work I managed to get in towards the end of 2011. In addition I'm about 6/7kg lighter than last March, which is definitely helping with the climbing - I'm now regularly averaging 20kph or more on the Ardgillan Hill Climb, whereas last year it was very much the exception rather than the rule.

I also finding recovery easier - I'm often managing to get out for 6 or more days in succession. In previous years I would need 2-3 days recovery, but I'm now reasonably comfortable with a single day's rest.

Next week I'm hoping to get another couple of commutes in and an evening session, before returning to Manchester on Thursday. Hopefully (weather permitting;)) I'll then be able to get some time on the new bike over the weekend

Beasty

Training went pretty much to plan during the week. I got the 2 commutes in on Monday and Wednesday, plus a shortened one on Tuesday when I was dropping the car in for its service

I pretty much TT'd the track session on Thursday, recording an average speed of 37.6kph according to the Garmin, but it was actually a bit faster as I had the wheel circumference set too short - the actual speed was around 38.4kph over 61 minutes, but it was probably around 38.8kph when the first 2 or 3 minutes of speeding/warming-up are excluded.

I tried a 1km TT on the Wattbike on Friday, but after a good start I tailed off badly during the final couple of hundred meters to finish with a time of 1:11.69, just under half a second outside my PB. I reckon I'll improve that when I get a chance to try it when fresh though.

Then this morning I did get a chance to get out on the new bike, and with some careful planning the Beast has managed to get her first four KOMs, so no complaints there

Total distance for the week was 261km in a fraction over 9 hours, to leave the YTD total at 2,351km which is just under 600km more than at the same stage last year, and I'm pretty much keeping to my target of 250km per week.

Plans for next week are another 3 commutes plus a couple of evening session, and hopefully getting another spin in over the weekend.

Beasty

A week of commutes, with total distance of 275km over the 5 weekdays.

Having only been off the bike for 3 days since 18 February, I was getting tired towards the end of the week (still managed 6 KOMs since last Sunday though;)), and have taken a rest over the past couple of days.

YTD now stands at 2,626km at 29.7kph, putting me 640km ahead of the same stage last season.

Next week I'll be taking it easy with a business trip to London keeping me off the bike from Tuesday morning until Thursday evening. I probably need a bit more of a rest, and will stick to a commute after hopefully a decent spin tomorrow, in advance of the start of the Vets League next Sunday (assuming I'm not put down for marshalling)

Beasty

Bit of an odd week, after a longish spin on Monday, the lack of a car resulted in a 1 way commute on Tuesday, then a couple of days in London, with a commute home on Thursday evening, and back to work the following morning, picking the car back up on Friday afternoon. Then there was the vets DMS at Batterstown this morning.

A total distance of 210km for the week, bringing the YTD to 2,836km. That's over 700km more than at the same time last year, and over 450km more than the year before.

Next week will be a bit more of the same, with a trips to the UK on Monday returning Tuesday and Friday returning Sunday, so time on the bike will be limited making it another rest week I guess ...

Beasty

Not quite the rest week I had anticipated. I actually managed 211km, and increased my KOM count by 6!

Monday involved a short session on Manchester velodrome, then I managed to get out locally on Wednesday evening, when I managed my first couple of KOMs. Not only that, but I also improved my PB on the Ardgillan hill climb by 10s, dipping under 5 minutes for the first time.

On Thursday I hooked up with some of the Swords guys on the inward commute. I should have got a 2nd place in one segment, but due to the vagaries of Strava, Staro took it despite starting ahead and finishing behind me! I was somehow relegated to 41st place. Once I left the other guys behind I managed another KOM on the N32 Eastbound just before turning off to work.

Then last night I managed another 3 KOMs in Cornwall. Admittedly they were not the most popular of segments. Indeed I am the only one to have ridden one of them, but as it was an average 10% (peaking at around 21%), I'm happy to take it

Having flown back into Dublin this afternoon, I then went out for a couple of hours. The hills are clearly going well for me at present, as I managed another 8 PBs on Strava segments, a 2nd best time on the ascent of Snowtown. I also improved my time on the Ardgillan Hill Climb by another 13s, with my PB now standing at 4m 45s, about 30s ahead of my best times last year. I'm certainly benefiting from the weight loss over the winter. I also menaged to hit my highest ever speed - 72.6kph coming down Snowtown towards the Naul. So all in all everything is looking good for the racing season.

I've also now broken through the 3,000km barrier, with my YTD total now standing at 3,047km

Next week I hope to get out tomorrow evening, followed by a couple of commutes, and maybe a quiet spin on Friday, with a view to doing the vets race at Dundalk on Sunday.

Beasty

It's been a while since I posted a CP chart, so here's the one I've built up over the winter training, with the black line showing yesterday's ride:



It doesn't tell the full story, as it does not include any data from my Wattbike sessions (which would improve the "short end" of the curve, with a maximum power of around 1,130w, and filling out the dip a bit at the 1 minute mark. It also does not include any race data (I'm waiting for the Garmin Vector to come out which I could then swap between race and track bikes) - typically this data would help fill out the long end of the chart - last year my CP was at 269w, compared with only 239w on the chart above.

One thing it does show is my peak 5 minute power (which is pretty much the length of the Ardgillan Hill climb) is just over 370w, which is actually slightly higher than when I set my best time last year. I guess it's indicating I've lost the "right type" of weight (about 7-8kg, or 9% of my bodyweight) since then, as I seem to be maintaining pretty much the same power output. Hopefully it will also help instil a bit more confidence on the hillier race circuits.

Beasty

Beasty wrote: »

I should have got a 2nd place in one segment, but due to the vagaries of Strava, Staro took it despite starting ahead and finishing behind me! I was somehow relegated to 41st place.

Beasty wrote: »

filling out the dip a bit at the 1 minute mark.

Having dropped a car off at Airside this morning I had another go at the segment that Staro robbed me of second place last week. It was only a couple of minutes into the ride, and so I was in no way warmed up, but I still managed to beat Staro's time by a second, and filled in the dip in the CP curve a bit, with a 498w 1 minute interval in achieviing it:D

I then went on to establish my first 50+kph KOM on the N32 segment, imrpoving my average speed by 10%

Lumen

Your charted CP of 239W seems quite low, and your AWC of 40kJ seems quite high.

Taken at face value this makes you an appalling TTer and a great sprinter, but I'm not sure those figures are accurate.

I've read posts on the Wattage group from sports scientists who says that 20 is a common figure for AWC with 40 being the upper end of the range, although I've no idea what sort of cyclists they are talking about.

From what I recall you usually commute at around 250W average. Surely you're not commuting over threshold? Unpossible.

Maybe this suggests that your 10-20 minute efforts are submaximal. Your best efforts follow the theoretical CP curve all the way past the hour. Unless your pain system has an off switch I'd expect it to fall off long before that (mine does anyway).

Beasty

That's just the CP curve over the winter. I occasionally get up to 250w for the commute, but that would usually be over the summer (although checking back I have been not far off 250w for some of the winter commutes).

The long end of the curve was established in one of the Xmas races, when I was dropped from a group of 5 with a few km to go, but before that shared the workload with morana and a couple of other lads. I think it would have been quite a bit higher if I'd had a PM on the new bike's debut in the "ladies" race at Dundalk

I've been focussed on the short end more recently, and have pushed it up a bit, which hopefully means I am improving as a sprinter, but more importantly as a pursuiter (which for me is a 2m 40s or so event). I think the long end of the curve will head back up when I start doing some TTs again (the TT bike does at least have a PM). In particular my maximum 20 minute efforts have always been in 10m TTs (I think I was up to about 290w on the road bike with aerobars, and a little less, just under 280w, with the TT bike last year)

Lumen

Ah, OK. Doesn't that mean you should do the seasons xml thing or create season-specific rider profiles in GC? Mixing data up from different time periods is bad.

Beasty

I'm not mixing seasons - the underlying data just goes back to October 2011, and the "best" line is all from rides since 7 December

RobFowl

This discussion is going a long way to dissuade me from buying the new Garmin power meter......

Lumen

Beasty wrote: »

I'm not mixing seasons - the underlying data just goes back to October 2011, and the "best" line is all from rides since 7 December

Ah right, sorry I misread your post.

What I find problematic about the CP curve in GP is that (a) it gives you two numbers which ought to be extremely useful (CP and AWC) but they're totally dependent on accurate maximal test data without which they are completely misleading, and (b) there's no obvious way to see progress over time except by switching seasons or rider profiles.

The Metrics view, and specifically the Aerobic Power chart with Weeks selected and 1/5/10/20/30/60 Peak Power plotted, seems to give a better indication of training progress and encourages a good regular training mix. Which I don't have, and so that chart just mocks me silently and objectively, which (RowFowl) seems to be the main outcome of buying a power meter - documenting one's mediocrity. :pac:

Beasty

You can skim through the individual rides (black lines) using the CP chart, but I agree it's difficult to see the progress over time.

What I found useful were some of your previous comments about AWC. I see that as showing what I have in reserve when operating on or near the CP line. I actually suspect the CP line should be a bit higher and AWC a bit lower, but that only really comes out when I am pushing myself to the limit, which is typically in the Swords League (which are CPs rather than DMSs, and where I will push hard throughout the race)

... it's a pity the PM battery died today, but I should still have some interesting commute data to upload to Strava later on, even recognising the effect of the tailwind;)

Lumen

Beasty wrote: »

I see that as showing what I have in reserve when operating on or near the CP line

That's the theory. I actually went to the bother of tracking my "reserve AWC" on a second-by-second basis with a spreadsheet using some race data, and found that I didn't get close to zero despite being completely destroyed at the end of the race, which means either the model is wrong, the inputs were wrong or I need to HTFU.

Would be interesting to see "reserve AWC" in real time on a head unit, as long as the viewing angle was very small.

Beasty

A bit of a tailwind this morning - average speed on the inward commute was 38.1kph, compared with a previous best of 35.5kph - an improvement of 2m 23s. Icing on the cake was 7 KOMs:D

Lusk Doyle

Lumen wrote: »

Ah right, sorry I misread your post.

Two English men unable to understand each other. It must be a North / South thing!

Lusk Doyle

Beasty wrote: »

A bit of a tailwind this morning - average speed on the inward commute was 38.1kph, compared with a previous best of 35.5kph - an improvement of 2m 23s. Icing on the cake was 7 KOMs:D

Like athletics, records with wind assistance over 1.1 mph do not count. Keep trying!

Beasty

Lusk Doyle wrote: »

Like athletics, records with wind assistance over 1.1 mph do not count. Keep trying!

... well that's pretty much blown your chances of ever getting another one at a speed of over 0.2kph then ...;)