Overheating

So, I'm not really in that much pain from Bobbin Head.

A bit tired, but no cramping or anything.

My biggest issue is overheating.

I seem to be struggling with regulating my heat.  Especially while I'm sleeping.

(It could also be the Sydney weather at the moment, wavering between sticky humid and thunderstorms).

I googled it a bit and it sounds like muscle repair might be generating some heat.

Until it calms down, lots of heat nightmares for me!

(thewackydeli.wordpress.com: 

the smoke monster turns out to be the ghost of pigpen from Peanuts)

Bobbin Head Classic - My First 80km

I did it!  I did it!

You did it! You did it! You said that you would do it,
And indeed you did.
I thought that you would rue it;
I doubted you'd do it. But now I must admit it
That succeed you did.
You should get a medal
Or be even made a knight.
All alone you hurdled
Ev'ry obstacle in sight.

I conquered the 80km Bobbin Head Classic!!!

It was difficult, but I did it!

I didn't fall off the mountain into the river either!

So, I started off at the back of the combined 80km / 104km start group.  I was in the middle but I didn't really like the vibe (a bit too blokey for me) so I decided to go to the portaloo before we started (kinda glad I did) and by the time I got back, most of the group was gone.

I bumped into a lady that I have ridden with on a few of the local rides so it was good to see a friendly face.  However, I rode off because I thought I should try and speed up if I could, as it's nice to get the ride done before the day heats up too much.

This is what my 80km ride looked like (map and elevation):

To put it into perspective, this is what the 35km Saturday La Perouse rides look like (map and elevation):

So yeah, the sharper the diagonal lines going up are, the more pain there is..

So Bobbin Head was ok, like a long hill that I'd already done.

Akuna Bay on the other hand..

I went to the portaloo at the bottom of the climb - I find it pretty uncomfortable cycling with a full bladder and wanted to ensure the best possible situation for the climb.

However, if anyone can work out why knicks / shorts feel so awkward when you pull them back on once you sweat in them - I'm not sure what it is, whether it's just the sweat that makes it feel yuck, or stuck - but once I pull knicks back on from a toilet break, it just feels so awkward, like they're sitting wrong but I can't work out why / how.  I spent the first part of the climb moving my legs like the chicken dance, trying to stretch out the knicks into a more comfortable

So I geared right down and just kept spinning.  I went into my zone where I breath rhythmically in 4's - 1, 2, 3, 4 - and breath 2 breaths out, 2 breaths in - and was doing about 9km/hr.

I passed a number of people who seemed like they were struggling (at least didn't look like they were in a zone).  My husband has since explained that other cyclists might not have had the lower gears that I have, so it may not have been possible for others to spin.

I came across a lovely man on the climb who exclaimed "WHAT A LOVELY DAY FOR IT!" and I responded "Yes, thank you, I keep forgetting!".

Later on when I was passing people on the steepest bit - I thought I looked like I was struggling more than them, but I was keeping my cadence - he said, "OH, YOU AGAIN? WHY ARE YOU GOING SO FAST?" and I said "I need to keep going or I'll roll down the hill!"* and his friend said to him "Why are you going to slow?".

*my other irrational mountain fear of rolling backwards down a hill.  I think it's actually impossible to do this on my bike..

It was nice to have a bit of humour on the climbs.  It broke up the unrelenting-ness.

Speaking of which, oh my gosh, the rolling hills of the North, bleagh.  All these downhills and uphills were interesting at the start but afterwards, were just annoying because I couldn't sprint the uphills any more, so at each downhill, I would zoom down at 50km/hr and then have to pace myself back up the hill at 9km/hr.

I really struggle when I can't keep my cadence.

So, I felt like my casual "training" for the Bobbin Head ride sort of worked.

I say casual because I didn't really focus too hard on it.

I did a bit of resistance training by cycling the last few weeks in a harder gear than was comfortable.

I also trained by climbing at a "I can do this all day" pace, rather than "How fast can I get up the hill" pace.

It's interesting - I'm glad that I did change my tact (see previous post), because I think it really helped me today, my husband just said "conditioning is invisible".  1 month ago, I would have just attacked the climb and I would have just cracked so early.

It felt just so unrelenting and just steep curve after steep curve.

At some point I passed a guy who was walking up the slope and that really shook me mentally that it was difficult enough for someone to get off and walk, so I had to ignore him.

I focussed on my rhythm.

At some point I started shouting at myself - other people shouting at me works, so I figure, I can do it to myself, right?

Things I shout at myself when I'm trying to achieve something:

• C'MON (quite easy to exclaim on an exhale)
• FARK
• FFS
• You got this (inspired by one of the MC boys) - I like this one because it's very affirmative.

Some of them are more constructive than others..

So after the climb, I couldn't really gather up much energy and the remaining kms were quite slow.

But overall, I'm really happy that I survived and didn't have to get off and walk, so that's a pretty good achievement.

21km/hr average speed (including climbs and descents) is pretty impressive and gives me a good number to work on.

(image via www.coetail.com/kjwilson)

P.S.  After crashing (in energy) badly after my long rides and needing naps, I asked some cycling friends for tips and they suggested eating well soon after finishing the ride.  I'm guessing I might need to rethink my post-race chips and gravy..

P.P.S.  I got the shivers a few times and thought I was bonking, but I think I just need a base layer to wick away the sweat so I don't get too cold when I'm descending..

P.P.P.S.  I need to learn how to ride the drops (the lower handlebars) because braking on the hoods (the higher handlebars) is really awkward (and strenuous on that muscle on your inner forearm) when you have to grip it really hard for 5 minutes (I got stuck descending behind a group of cyclists, behind some cars, behind some people who were descending very very slowly).
I did try it on one corner and I wasn't very good at controlling the turn, so I decided it wasn't the greatest time to try it.  :)

The night before Bobbin Head

So, a quick post because I have to be in bed by 10pm to wake up at 5am (any variations cause issues in my morning prep..)

I have been having quite a number of nightmares about Bobbin Head.  I think due to my fear and apprehension.

My training was sub-optimal, it rained the last few weeks when I had planned to do a rehearsal cycle out there so all I managed was a drive so I could at least sight what I would be cycling on.

I have an irrational fear that I'm going to descend off the mountain.  Yep, somehow cycle off the road, and as the MC boys put it, bounce off the barrier, over the trees, 200m out and then plunge into the river?

Yes, I did already mention it was irrational.

My nightmare last night was about rushing somewhere along a route I was unfamiliar with, and I couldn't stop and work out where to go or how to get there, I had to go go go.

Despite all.. my rage I am still just a rat in a cage - I don't even know what that song is talking about..

Despite all the fear and apprehension, I know I can do it.  I just need to focus and pace myself and not go in the red zone and just keep pedalling.

I know I haven't done this ride, but I know that I have done enough types of cycling to know what I need to do.

See you on the other side!

Let's look after each other

Thank you to all the people who reached out to me and my husband to check we were both ok after hearing about this morning's Eastern Suburbs cycling incident.

We've just heard that everyone is ok.

UPDATE ON CYCLE CRASH THIS MORNING INVOLVING MEMBERS OF THE EASTERN SUBURBS CYCLING CLUB. 

The crash which occurred at about 8:30 this morning involved the 6am ride from Albion Cycles to Watson's Bay, Lapa and out to Dolls Point.
There were 7 riders involved, 6 of which were taken to hospital. One has since been discharged. Those still in hospital have varying degrees of injuries, thankfully none are life threatening.

As Katherine Bates (World Champion and Olympic cyclist. Sports reporter and TV host.) put it:

Let's look after each other.

Lull aka training for another discipline

So after a bit, I realised that my lull in achieving my small goals was because I had turned my training tactic to finding my comfortable pace.

Instead of attacking up hills as fast as I could, I'd been pacing the hills to find the "I could do this all day" pace.

So I attacked a few times this week and got some icons through Strava.

Made me feel a bit better.

GAMIFY EVERYTHING!!

(via five-steps-to-enterprise-gamification)

Husband and I might head to Akuna Bay / West Head tomorrow.

I might just do Akuna Bay and see what it's like.

1 week left until 80km Bobbin Head!

It's funny, I've met lots of girls who have signed up for it but it sounds a bit like none of us want to make a group because we're all too scared and don't want to hold anyone back.

We'll probably all find each other along the way and end up riding as a group.

Hopefully!  That would be cool!

So many flats! Gear Up Girl! Panda shot!

So many flats!

I've had 3 flats this week!

2 on my road bike, 1 on my commuter.

It's good though, I'm getting pretty good at fixing them.

They used to annoy me a lot because of the inconvenience, but it's good that they've annoyingly happened to me enough times that I'm super familiar with how to fix them now.

My husband also taught me a nice trick for finding small punctures, when you can't feel the air escaping.  

Put a tiny bit of soapy water on where you think it might be and the air escaping will blow a bubble!  It took me a few goes to find this one!

Gear Up Girl

So last weekend, I completed Gear Up Girl.

It was a social ride run by Bicycle NSW from Homebush to Cronulla (with a Kurnell loop).

It was 60km in total and it took me 10km on either side to get to Redfern station.

It was pretty fun, I was lucky I was with a friend.

With these social rides, a lot of the challenge is navigating through the other riders.

I think because it was an accessible ride, the purpose was to get anyone doing it, so even people who don't cycle, on cruiser bikes, the first kms were quite frustrating.

There were also many bottlenecks around that area before we got to the Cooks River cycleway (which is quite narrow and there were a number of people out walking - poor people!).

I was glad I was on my road bike.

Despite the ride being easy (not very challenging), I was in quite a lot of leg muscle pain the next day.  

I guess time on the bike is still time on the bike.

Glad I did 80km in one day as Bobbin Head will be that but much harder.

Panda Shot!

I recently found out that a selfie while you were cycling was called a Panda Shot after the person that made this type of photo popular.  (Their username was "faster panda kill kill").

Anyway, it sounded pretty cool and I was thinking of it as something to aim for (despite struggling to take selfies with both feet on the ground).

Until I read this article today.

This

turned into this

A fractured back and a degloved hand.

She says:

"even though i am on the road to recovery and have been very lucky...i don't want you to have to be laying in bed with your loved one crying because you don't want to be like this anymore and you just want to be better so you can continue doing the things you love."

Something to think about.. 

Sorry to end on such an awful note.

Here's some ice cream.  :)

Amazing bike watching on Oxford St:

(Almost as good as people watching and dog watching.  Actually as good).

And my bike when I got home.  With my fluro pink ass saver.  :)

This was my view for a bit.  All I could do was sit there!

Then I got up, had a shower, went for an upper body massage and ate a bag of chips and gravy.  Hehehehe.

Afterwards,
Massage man: If you go for a bike ride, I'd recommend getting your lower body massaged instead.
Me: Nope, too painful.  Thanks anyway.

I seriously reckon I would karate chop anyone who went anywhere near my tight quads.

I should probably get my quads massaged one day, but they're so hard and tight the thought itself scares me..

Wet Bottoms, Headlight, Bobbin Fear, San Fran Commuters

Amazing 3D art from Shinaro Ohata

So it's Autumn already!

I've been continuing the cycling to work despite the rain and I love it.

Cycling home gives me something to look forward to with the current monotony of work.  It's quiet at the moment which means a bit monotonous and I'm better with the hectic crazy pace, so I'm finding it quite tiring.

My waterproof jacket is really good, but I kind of wish it was better looking.  Oh well.  It works.
The weather is still too hot to wear the sleeves though.  I think in Winter, I'll really only need a Kathmandu thermal underneath.

I still have to work out what to do about my legs getting wet though.  I still haven't decided on a coat solution or a wrap or waterproof pants.

I just found out about the Agu rain jacket with cycling specific front panel: from tweeting #WomenTalkBikes - Janet LaFleur (One Woman, Many Bikes) - a great blog I came across in my googling of commuting clothes for women - sent me a link to her rain jacket post.

Sometimes, being in Sydney, you are not sure what to make of Northern Hemisphere commuter cyclists' blog posts about bad weather gear.  A lot of them seem to cycle in snow and immense rain and I feel like we're lucky in Sydney, it's quite tropical and not really at all as cold as most places that people cycle.

Although, what I really want is the Georgia In Dublin leggits and rain wrap....

I found a blog post that confirmed the rain wrap worked with a cross bar...

I think this solution will work well for me as my winter outfit mostly consists of shift dresses, tights and boots.

But I am still thinking about it.

Lights

As we travel towards the end of Daylight Savings, I bought a headlight.

Last week when cycling in the rain, I didn't want to admit it, but it was really hard to see in the rain.  On top of the water on my glasses, and the darkness, and my weak front light being dispersed all over the place due to the water, it was ok, but not ideal.

(image via photobucket.com/user/esparza90/)

No, it wasn't that bad.

The suburban streets were ok, but there's 2 streets on the way that are quite quiet and it was difficult to gauge the road surface.

I decided to get a stronger headlight.  My current Moon Comet one is only 100 lumens.

So I decided to get the Serfas 250 lumen headlight.

It was the same price as the Moon version and more lumens, a bit clunkier for the bigger battery (to last longer) - but because I'm not fussed about weight, I thought I'd go for the hardier one.

(Serfas TSL-S250 usb rechargeable)

Once my husband showed me how to clip it on the handlebars - it wasn't intuitive to me... - it was great - it was very effective at lighting up the road in front of me.

My husband bought himself a set as he is about to start off road riding.

Bobbin Head

So I made my husband take me on a driving recon of the Bobbin Head ride.

The first uphill was long and not too steep.

However, the second uphill was super steep but quite short.  By the time I got my phone out to facebook an OMFG photo, the uphill had ended.

It's a bit scary.

People often say, just drop down to the lowest gear and spin.

Not sure how much "spinning" I'll be doing.

I've immediately started resistance training (even on my tiny commute), as I think I will pretty much be "stomping" up those slopes!

P.S.  Amazing bike commuter photo series!

An amazing photo series from San Fran about various cyclists here:

Eileen Lloyd, 64, occupational health and safety

Commute = 160km