My heavy training for the Horribly Hilly and the ETape is in full swing. I have done most of my traveling and now its time to concentrate on training. I did my first long ride outside last Sunday. The goal was 4+ hours. The weather was very odd. At first it was sunny and warm. Then after 30mn it became overcast and cold and began to rain. After the rain it was windy and a mix of tepid or cold. I have not ridden in such variable weather since I got caught in a snow squall two years ago.
My feed plan was to ride for 90mn, no energy drinks just electrolytes, then begin to do 300 calories an hour for the rest of the ride. I decided to use less food because I am still trying to shed some pounds. Unfortunately I discovered that I had a bad nutrition program. I was fine until the 2 hour mark then I bonked hard. My legs felt heavy and I had a hard time keeping my cadence up. I was definitely peddling squares not circles. Dennis, my riding partner, had to pull my sorry butt back from Wisconsin. (It really was a time of suffering for me.) I was able to pull for part of the time but I was not in my best form.
My new feed plan is too eat a breakfast of oatmeal and a protein 2 hours before the ride then I will have 2 bottles both with calories and electrolytes. I will start with the calories as the ride begins. I will also include caffeine at the 2 hour point in the form of a Coke. This seems like the best new strategy. If this does not work it will be onto plan 3,whatever that is. I am glad I have a chance to get the nutrition and hydration correct before my races. It looks like my initial ideas have really missed the mark.
Today I had a really fun ride. I rode with Robbie V and learned how to corner. We did 2 10 lap crits on a 1/4 mile course. The first crit was turning only right the second was turning only left. I had a great chance to learn about pressure on the pedals and steering. The saying "time on the bike with people more skilled" is truly correct. I plan to do more Tuesday rides with the Robbie to increase my skills.
Hopefully as I improve i will become more efficient. Until then. see you on the bike.
