First post. Using blogspot as part of my ride journal, with the other half residing at bikejournal.com. BikeJournal will be used to catalog ride data (cadence, speed, etc.), while comments will be placed here. BikeJournal has a 2000 character limit to their comments field, which limits these long writeups, so that's why I set this blog up, to get beyond 2000 character limit. If you're a sucker for a good story and have a fascination for cycling, you will find this blog interesting.
Having said that, here's the first post. (Accompanying ride data can be found here.
Yesterday was the Tour de Cure ride from KCC to Kailua and back. Several major hills, a few minor ones, and lots of happy flat land. Ride started with a downhill from KCC to Kahala Ave, and followed Kahala all the way to the road after Pueo St (forgot the name of the road--it's the long straightaway leading to Kalanianaole Hwy). Kept myself at a nice, relaxed pace for this first part--HR zones 2-3. At Kal Hwy, opened up the pace to zone 3, staying with the peloton for the most part. Around Niu Valley, the group began fracturing, and a breakaway group formed. I stayed with the main group right until the first rest stop at Maunalua Bay. Most kept on riding, but I pulled over. I had ridden the tour route solo last Wednesday, and at that ride I also skipped the first rest stop, but when you face Heartbreak Hill & Makapuu without adequate fuel, you will bonk. And last Wednesday, I bonked. Didn't want to go through that again, so I pulled into the rest stop for 10 minutes, had a gel, ate half a powerbar, drank some water, and steeled myself for the big push up the hills.
Pulling back into the flow of traffic along Kal Hwy and Lunalilo Home Road, I kept myself at a nice tempo, saving my energy for the upcoming hills. Right before the turn to head up Heartbreak, my cadence magnet got out of whack, so I adjusted it quickly.
Heartbreak Hill was not-so-fun painfest, although I consider myself lucky. Many people were dying going up that hill and had to walk their bike up. I stayed on, but I did half to pull into the halfway up street to recover for a few seconds. Was quite anaerobic at that point. Once past the peak of the hill, I coasted down, all the way to Sandy Beach/Kal Hwy.
I caught up to a peloton (led by "Specialized Guy") that had formed going up Makapuu, but the hill wasn't as bad as heartbreak, so I kept the pace at HR3. The peloton quickly passed a woman struggling with the hill. The descent was FAST! The group took the lane, and we all screamed down the mountain. During this time, many of the guys from the fast breakaway group had were on their return rides. Although some of our group kept on riding, most of us pulled into Waiamanalo Beach Park, the second rest stop, for some quick recovery & refueling. Had my second gel and some water. Restroom stop. Rested for 10 minutes, and then back on the road.
I left by myself, hoping to get a little more lead time away from this group and maybe begin catching some of the faster riders. It's very relaxing riding by yourself on a quiet Waiamanalo back road, but it can also be very unnerving. It really is quiet. Kept the pace at a nice tempo/subthreshold, although I think I was churning too big of a gear at one point and was wearing myself out prematurely. Then again, it was mostly flat land along the way. Passed several riders along the way.
Back on Kal Hwy and traveling toward Keolu Drive, the hill leading up to it wasn't as bad as it was last Wednesday, and I managed to get up it without dropping to granny gear. In fact, I even kept it in the big chainring. Turning right onto Keolu Drive, I kept the bike on the big chainring and smallest cog since I was traveling pretty fast at that point. Tempo was kept below threshold or in zone 3. Green lights all the way! The ride through the Kailua suburbs was nice; since it was all flats, I managed to stay in the big ring and keep the pace brisk yet relaxed.
Getting onto Kailua Road (after passing The Bike Shop), I passed some dude on a mountain bike and some dude on a road bike. Kailua Rd wasn't so bad, and I wasn't really out of breath by the time I got to the turnaround at Castle Medical Center.
At the rest stop, had another gel and some water. Then, back on the road. The hill leading to Waiamanalo wasn't that bad at first, but I lost some steam 2/3rds of the way up. The downhill was fast. Making the right turn back onto Kumuhau St, I joined two cyclists, and we took turns setting the pace. On Waikupunaha St, we dropped one of the riders, and from there it was me and this one guy ("White Jacket Guy On A Felt Bike") breaking away and giving chase. Great workout on the flats for me, especially when the guy broke into a sprint and I had to catch up. White Jacket Guy is a better rider than I am, so I spent most of that part at threshold or above.
At Waimanalo Beach Park, he kept on going, and I pulled into the rest stop for water and gel. There was a group of military cyclists there, and they were waiting for a few guys in the group to arrive. Their friends finally did, and they left the rest stop at the same time I did. They quickly attacked Makapuu Hill and disappeared from view. I had a hard time going up this hill last Wednesday, so I took it easy today, taking it at below threshold and staying for the most part in the middle chainring, finally dropping to the granny ring halfway through. But I did catch up to the military group, and finally passed them on the downhill. Going up the backside of Heartbreak wasn't too difficult; I kept chugging at a good cadence but had to pass two riders who were hammering their way through it. Had fun doing the downhill, and back onto Lunalilo Home Rd, where the group I caught up to was hitting some pretty good speed.
At the final "rest stop", the group I was with pulled over for a rest, but I kept going. Had a gel and some water on the bike as I kept going. Got onto Kal Hwy and headed West. Almost home! This is one of my favorite parts of the route because I was able to push the speed to about 25 mph without it really being too challenging. Kept the pace at zone 4, passing a couple of guys on mountain bikes and on a road bike. I was passed by a couple traveling really fast, but they weren't part of the ride and were just riding for fun/training. They were fast and were gone quite quickly. Finally slowed down right around Kalani HS, dropping to zone 3 and blending into traffic. After the left turn, traveled along Kilauea Ave, unfortunately catching all the reds along the way. Made a left at Elapio St, sprinted down to Kahala Ave, and took a right. Almost home! The slight hills leading up to KCC were pretty tiring, although I then I wasn't really trying to push myself. With the finish line in sight, I just wanted to relax. Caught up to one of the faster riders from the military group earlier, and we rode in together.
Popped the bike into the van, had some decent food (the stuff from Tiki's was pretty lame, but the Jamba Juice was great!), and rested for a little while before heading to IT&B to look at gear (which I didn't buy).
Overall, it was a good ride. Great weather, great riders, great times. Can't wait until the next charity ride in January. Hopefully Lesley can join this. We have to start training for that one soon!
This week will be my recovery week. No intervals, no rides in zone 4-7, no long 30 mi endurance rides. Just rest. Won't be able to make the HBL Ride next Saturday, but maybe I can do the Manoa ride on Sunday. We'll see.
Having said that, here's the first post. (Accompanying ride data can be found here.
Yesterday was the Tour de Cure ride from KCC to Kailua and back. Several major hills, a few minor ones, and lots of happy flat land. Ride started with a downhill from KCC to Kahala Ave, and followed Kahala all the way to the road after Pueo St (forgot the name of the road--it's the long straightaway leading to Kalanianaole Hwy). Kept myself at a nice, relaxed pace for this first part--HR zones 2-3. At Kal Hwy, opened up the pace to zone 3, staying with the peloton for the most part. Around Niu Valley, the group began fracturing, and a breakaway group formed. I stayed with the main group right until the first rest stop at Maunalua Bay. Most kept on riding, but I pulled over. I had ridden the tour route solo last Wednesday, and at that ride I also skipped the first rest stop, but when you face Heartbreak Hill & Makapuu without adequate fuel, you will bonk. And last Wednesday, I bonked. Didn't want to go through that again, so I pulled into the rest stop for 10 minutes, had a gel, ate half a powerbar, drank some water, and steeled myself for the big push up the hills.
Pulling back into the flow of traffic along Kal Hwy and Lunalilo Home Road, I kept myself at a nice tempo, saving my energy for the upcoming hills. Right before the turn to head up Heartbreak, my cadence magnet got out of whack, so I adjusted it quickly.
Heartbreak Hill was not-so-fun painfest, although I consider myself lucky. Many people were dying going up that hill and had to walk their bike up. I stayed on, but I did half to pull into the halfway up street to recover for a few seconds. Was quite anaerobic at that point. Once past the peak of the hill, I coasted down, all the way to Sandy Beach/Kal Hwy.
I caught up to a peloton (led by "Specialized Guy") that had formed going up Makapuu, but the hill wasn't as bad as heartbreak, so I kept the pace at HR3. The peloton quickly passed a woman struggling with the hill. The descent was FAST! The group took the lane, and we all screamed down the mountain. During this time, many of the guys from the fast breakaway group had were on their return rides. Although some of our group kept on riding, most of us pulled into Waiamanalo Beach Park, the second rest stop, for some quick recovery & refueling. Had my second gel and some water. Restroom stop. Rested for 10 minutes, and then back on the road.
I left by myself, hoping to get a little more lead time away from this group and maybe begin catching some of the faster riders. It's very relaxing riding by yourself on a quiet Waiamanalo back road, but it can also be very unnerving. It really is quiet. Kept the pace at a nice tempo/subthreshold, although I think I was churning too big of a gear at one point and was wearing myself out prematurely. Then again, it was mostly flat land along the way. Passed several riders along the way.
Back on Kal Hwy and traveling toward Keolu Drive, the hill leading up to it wasn't as bad as it was last Wednesday, and I managed to get up it without dropping to granny gear. In fact, I even kept it in the big chainring. Turning right onto Keolu Drive, I kept the bike on the big chainring and smallest cog since I was traveling pretty fast at that point. Tempo was kept below threshold or in zone 3. Green lights all the way! The ride through the Kailua suburbs was nice; since it was all flats, I managed to stay in the big ring and keep the pace brisk yet relaxed.
Getting onto Kailua Road (after passing The Bike Shop), I passed some dude on a mountain bike and some dude on a road bike. Kailua Rd wasn't so bad, and I wasn't really out of breath by the time I got to the turnaround at Castle Medical Center.
At the rest stop, had another gel and some water. Then, back on the road. The hill leading to Waiamanalo wasn't that bad at first, but I lost some steam 2/3rds of the way up. The downhill was fast. Making the right turn back onto Kumuhau St, I joined two cyclists, and we took turns setting the pace. On Waikupunaha St, we dropped one of the riders, and from there it was me and this one guy ("White Jacket Guy On A Felt Bike") breaking away and giving chase. Great workout on the flats for me, especially when the guy broke into a sprint and I had to catch up. White Jacket Guy is a better rider than I am, so I spent most of that part at threshold or above.
At Waimanalo Beach Park, he kept on going, and I pulled into the rest stop for water and gel. There was a group of military cyclists there, and they were waiting for a few guys in the group to arrive. Their friends finally did, and they left the rest stop at the same time I did. They quickly attacked Makapuu Hill and disappeared from view. I had a hard time going up this hill last Wednesday, so I took it easy today, taking it at below threshold and staying for the most part in the middle chainring, finally dropping to the granny ring halfway through. But I did catch up to the military group, and finally passed them on the downhill. Going up the backside of Heartbreak wasn't too difficult; I kept chugging at a good cadence but had to pass two riders who were hammering their way through it. Had fun doing the downhill, and back onto Lunalilo Home Rd, where the group I caught up to was hitting some pretty good speed.
At the final "rest stop", the group I was with pulled over for a rest, but I kept going. Had a gel and some water on the bike as I kept going. Got onto Kal Hwy and headed West. Almost home! This is one of my favorite parts of the route because I was able to push the speed to about 25 mph without it really being too challenging. Kept the pace at zone 4, passing a couple of guys on mountain bikes and on a road bike. I was passed by a couple traveling really fast, but they weren't part of the ride and were just riding for fun/training. They were fast and were gone quite quickly. Finally slowed down right around Kalani HS, dropping to zone 3 and blending into traffic. After the left turn, traveled along Kilauea Ave, unfortunately catching all the reds along the way. Made a left at Elapio St, sprinted down to Kahala Ave, and took a right. Almost home! The slight hills leading up to KCC were pretty tiring, although I then I wasn't really trying to push myself. With the finish line in sight, I just wanted to relax. Caught up to one of the faster riders from the military group earlier, and we rode in together.
Popped the bike into the van, had some decent food (the stuff from Tiki's was pretty lame, but the Jamba Juice was great!), and rested for a little while before heading to IT&B to look at gear (which I didn't buy).
Overall, it was a good ride. Great weather, great riders, great times. Can't wait until the next charity ride in January. Hopefully Lesley can join this. We have to start training for that one soon!
This week will be my recovery week. No intervals, no rides in zone 4-7, no long 30 mi endurance rides. Just rest. Won't be able to make the HBL Ride next Saturday, but maybe I can do the Manoa ride on Sunday. We'll see.
posted by Marino - Ninja Entertainment at 3:22 PM
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