New milestones in March, and at the date of this writing, only three weeks until my 200K brevet. Yikes!
March results
I basically met my training goals in March, as I did in February. Two early March training sessions were on rollers; otherwise, I was outdoors, in good and bad weather.
- Week of March 1: 25 miles outdoors during the week, and 21 on rollers. On the weekend I did a 21-mile ride with Jennifer Saturday, then a 45.8-mile ride by myself on Sunday.
- Week of March 8: 40 miles during the week, and a 50-mile ride on the weekend.
- Week of March 15: 43 miles on Tuesday and Sunday; due to a trip to New Haven on the weekend, I did my long ride—62 miles, a metric century—on Wednesday (we were on spring break). It was the first week I have ridden more than 100 miles since last summer.
- Week of March 22: 38 miles during the week, and a 71.5-mile ride on the weekend.
- Week of March 29: I’ll report on this week in April, since the bulk of my riding was done Thursday through Sunday, April 1-4.
The metric century, as I reported earlier, was a challenging ride for me, with about 3500 feet of vertical elevation, much of it in a long stretch along Route 9 from Williamsburg to Goshen. The 45-mile ride on March 7 also had a lot of climbing. My March 28 long ride was fairly flat. Still, the hills seem to be getting easier.
Goals for April
- Continue to maintain my base
- Increase my long rides: 80 miles on April 4, and a century on the weekend of April 10
- Do a couple of hill workouts in the weeks of April 5 and April 12, in hopes of building up some additional strength
- Do a shorter long ride a week before the brevet, and taper after that
- Ride the Shelburne Falls 200K on April 24
After the 200K—maybe a couple days after it—I’ll decide whether it’s worth registering for the 300K on May 8….
I’ll post a March update in a couple of days for anyone who is reading this blog (mostly for myself!). Just a brief note on yesterday’s ride. There was a stiff south wind, 10-15 mph, so I decided to go south and then come back north. I decided on a 25-mile ride to Westfield (50 miles round trip), partly along the Manhan Rail Trail in Easthampton, and partly along some back roads in Easthampton, Holyoke, and Southampton. The last five miles or so were on Route 202. Indeed, the winds were strong and in my face for much of the way out, but it was nice having them at my back on the return. After doing those 50 miles I was joined by Jennifer, who rode with me from Hadley to Look Park in Northampton and back, mostly along the Norwottuck and Northampton bike paths.
It was cold and cloudy all day, with highs in the mid 40s. And for the last half-hour on the way back from Look Park, we were riding in light rain. My generator-powered headlight (IQ Cyo R Senso Plus) worked well to keep us visible to oncoming traffic and, as the sun began to set behind the gray clouds, to light the way (though it was still twilight when we got home).
I ate two Clif Bars, a Snickers bar, and some corn chips during the ride, and drank a 20-oz. bottle of Gatorade and about 8 oz. orange juice, in addition to a couple bottles of water. I didn’t bonk, and I didn’t have indigestion, so I think I have the eating part down. Still, the shortest brevet is 53 miles more than I did yesterday, so there may be nutritional surprises in my future….
Because I was going to be out of town for the weekend, I rode my first 100K ever on Wednesday, on a route that was partly familiar, partly new. It was around 60 degrees in the Connecticut River valley where I started (150 feet above sea level), down to the upper 40s/low 50s at my maximum elevation of around 1600 feet above sea level. There was still snow on the ground up there. My ride took me across the river, then gradually uphill (1-2% grade) for around 8 miles, then uphill at a slightly steeper grade (3-6% with a few steeper sections) for the next 5 miles. The wind was in my face too! Then it was down a bit and up for a few more miles. I then had an eleven-mile descent into the picturesque little village of Shelburne Falls, on the Deerfield River. I stopped there at McCusker’s deli and grocery for a blueberry muffin and some chocolate milk. After that, I took unfamiliar back roads with a couple of short but grueling climbs, one of them through shallow but viscous mud. The climbs might not have been so bad early in the ride, but at that point I had worn out my climbing muscles. Fortunately the next part was a thrilling descent—on an unfamiliar road with a hairpin turn. I was happy that I had adjusted my brakes recently. From there I was on roads that I had cycled or driven; the last 18 miles were pretty easy physically, but it took some self-discipline to keep going.
I had an enormous sandwich about an hour before starting out, and I ate one Clif bar and drank a 20-oz bottle of Dr. Pepper during the ride, in addition to the muffin and 8-oz bottle of chocolate milk. By the end I was feeling hungry; I probably should have had another Clif bar around an hour after leaving Shelburne Falls.
I took a few photos along the way. (The shot of my bike shows the fine wheels that Peter White built for me last fall.) The route map is also online.
A mid-month report: I’ve been keeping up with my self-imposed schedule for training, including a mix of commuting, after-work rides, and long weekend rides.
March 6-7: 21 + 45 miles
Saturday, March 6, was a warmish sunny day. Jennifer and I decided to take the rail trails from Hadley to Look Park in Leeds (Northampton) and back. From home, we rode over Mount Warner and then down Route 47 to North Lane and West St., where we picked up the Norwottuck Rail Trail. At the end of that trail we crossed Damon Road and followed the extension to its end on Woodmont St. A short jaunt on North St., King St., Finn St., and State St. took us to the Northampton Bike Path, which we followed to Look Park. We did a tour of the park and then rode back along the trails to East St. in Hadley, then north to Rocky Hill Road, Breckenridge, and thence back home. It was about 21 miles total.
The next day I decided to go out for another 25+ miles to make my 45-mile training goal for the weekend. I headed up toward Leverett and then Lake Wyola, torn between turning around (which would have made for a 28- to 32-mile ride) and heading north to Wendell. The lure of the unknown won out, so I headed north, and up, to Wendell. There I headed west toward Mormon Hollow Road, where I had a thrilling descent that was my reward for the climbs—over Cave Hill, up from East Leverett to Lake Wyola, and then up even more to Wendell. I took my camera with me; pictures are on my Flickr site, and the route map is here.
Overall I climbed 2900 vertical feet, according to my cyclocomputer, the vast majority of it between miles 4 and 22. Not bad preparation for the Berkshire Brevets.
March 13: 50 miles in cold rain
The week of March 8 I commuted 4 days and got in one post-work ride of 12 miles or so. Riding after work should be easier now that daylight saving time has started. The weekend was forecast to be lousy, though: temperatures in the low 40s, rain, and strong winds. Nonetheless, I suited up on Saturday morning and went out for a ride. I decided on a 25-mile loop to Montague, up Route 47 and back on Route 63, with options for bailing out and doing shorter loops at several points. When I started, it was raining lightly and the wind was against me. Around mile 14 the rain let up and the wind was helping me out; I was feeling OK except for my cold toes. I got home, had a snack, changed shoes, and set out again, intending to do the loop again but leaving open the possibility of bailing out. The new shoes weren’t much help: in fact, they left my toes feeling not only cold and damp but also numb. And it started to rain again. But I finished the second loop, feeling tired but content. I didn’t take any pictures, but the route map is here.
Coming attractions
We’ll probably go down to New Haven next weekend to visit a friend, do some work at Yale’s library, and see some sights, so I’ll probably do a long ride on Wednesday. It’s spring break, so I won’t do as much commuting, though I do have a meeting Tuesday.
Six weeks to go until the 200K brevet. I’m on track to be prepared, though I need to do some speedwork if I want to finish much ahead of the limit. My goal is to average 20 km/h including stops; right now I’m just a little over that on my long rides—but without stops.
March has been mild so far, and I’ve started bike commuting again as of March 1: four days each week. One day I wimped out because of the weather and one I was recovering from hard exertions the previous day. Mostly I’ve been riding my normal 6-mile round trip from home to my office, but a few times I’ve gone further, including a ride up to the Renaissance Center, which involves a stiff climb. That day I wished that my commuter bike had a lower low gear. It currently bottoms out at 28.5 gear inches.
I like commuting this time of year. When I set out in the morning the temperature has been in the upper 30s or low 40s. I wear my regular outfit, slacks, dress shirt, and sportcoat, with a reflective vest. I’ve been carrying a jacket but I haven’t needed it. There’s still a lot of sand on the shoulders, but my Breezer commuter has good fenders and an enclosed chaincase.
I’ve seen hawks and a wood duck on the ride in, though it’s too early for the sheep and alpaca to be out at the UMass farm. Hopefully the formerly vernal pool, now year-round pond, on Maple St. will attract a heron or egret.
Now that we are down to one car (the other was totaled after a bizarre January parking lot flood), I’m hoping I can bring myself to commute in the rain. After riding for nearly four hours in light rain yesterday, 15-20 minutes won’t seem so bad. But the trick will be keeping my work clothes presentable.
