Is This A Logo??

Is This A Logo??

Thursday 30 January 2014

Winter Training?? Base2Build?? Nothin??

So the winter weather here continues to be wintery...in fact more wintery than it has been for a couple of decades.  This is positive-speak for 'it is colder and snowier than it has been in forever!!'...which kinda sucks for a mountain biker.  And apparently for just about anyone else...










However, riding in snow is an opportunity to better ride single-track, to power through a boggy feeling trail, and to ride slippery conditions.  This weather has made fatbikes very popular, and I have tried to fit in with the fatbike crowd. 


 
 
 
 
 



It has also had me on the trainer, riding to Sufferfest videos when conditions are bad enough (-30degrees C) to keep me indoors.

It has also been an opportunity to try new cross training activities when the snow is too deep to ride in.  For example, CptSydor was kind enough to lend me some snowshoes and invite me to give that sport a go.  Turned out not only to be fun, but a great Base training workout, and to pack down the trails.  Besides, what more appropriate sport for a Metis man??

Some pics to prove it...







Notice how I always had a couple of attractive females following me??

Actually, this is the accurate pic of me...






Anyways...moving on.  I am now finishing my last week of Base training...and next week, will be moving into the Build phase of training.  What that means is that, where Base training was basically training to train (working on strength workouts, and maintaining general fitness and mountain-bike skills to increase capacity for the higher stress workouts of the Build phase)...sorry getting kinda techy here, its the kinesiology/bio-chemistry background.  (Mountain-biking Chemistry professors love this stuff!)




Sorry...there are a ton of those memes!!





Like I said...enough!

Anyways, to keep this in language I can understand; in the Build phase, strength maintenance is now the plan with the primary focus on race-like training and building aerobic endurance.  So, the next 9 weeks of my training will be 3 blocks of this...
where the red highlighted days are when I will be working on either an aerobic endurance workout or one that mimics what is expected on race day.  The black days will either be rest days, or days of a low intensity recovery activity.

Build 1 – 3 week block
         Week 1 – 7 days (S, S, M, T, W, T, F)
         Week 2 – 7 days (S, S, M, T, W, T, F)
         Week 3 (recovery) – 7 days (S, S, M, T, W, T, F)

OK...enough tech stuff...

The race schedule is up on the little widget to the right.  Fig may talk me into a couple of road races in there somewhere (don't worry...I am still a man...I will ask Lois to check occasionally...'occasionally' = hourly)





Yeah, usually ends like that (and yes, my Lois is blonde!)...anyways enough about my private life...

As far as the race schedule goes, I will likely do the Albion Tuesday night race series where I can fit it in.

Anyways, the weather is supposed to clear up to a balmy -4 today!!  Perhaps a real ride could result! 

Stay posted!

 


PS:  Condolences to my family in Saskatchewan...after a lengthy struggle Auntie Marie is at peace, and will be dearly missed by all that knew and loved her...




Friday 17 January 2014

Noob Iken Winter Training???

So as you may remember from previous couple of posts, I have run into a couple of problems with breaking parts on the Epic...the cassette, then breaking the rim, then breaking the axle of the replacement wheel...

Well since then, the shock was not acting properly...so it was sent to get work done (basically just needed regular servicing) ... my LBS BicycleWorks giving me a replacement loner shock to use in the meantime.  Then, while out on a winter trailride with Giant, NewfieSteve, and EnglishJim...I noticed that the fork suspension was not functioning properly...thought it might be frozen, but that wasn't it either.  Took it into BicycleWorks...at first they thought that it too was due for servicing...but when taking it off to send it for service...BicycleWorks Paul noticed that the carbon crown was cracked...so off it went for (hopefully) warranty replacement...

So...now I am without a ride until parts are repaired?  No...BicycleWorks Paul 'generously' has lent me the store demo...a carbon Camber 29...which I have had my eye on for a while (Paul knows this...hence the quotation marks above...).  The Camber is awesome for a winter bike, for a training bike, and more suited for our local (rocky, rooty, technical) trails with it's slacker angles, shorter cockpit, and a little more travel; but still quick and light.  So, yes I will likely end up buying it just for those purposes...and let the Epic run primarily for racing.

This is actually what the Camber looks like...



How about that...a pic with no animal and witty (stupid?) slogan...

Anyways...as far as training goes, still in the Base Phase of training...but soon to get into more intense Build and Peak training, which I am really looking forward to!!  For now I am getting some good winter riding in...and some Sufferfest on the trainer when weather is not conducive to riding.

Even managing winter road rides on the CX bike!  It's a little scary though...ice and pavement can be a little more worrisome than ice and trails...

Actually the scariest part of the last winter road ride (was a group of 6 of us)...was Unglued (who is a lawyer) walking up my icy driveway in his mountain bike shoes...(lawyers and icy driveways are not a good mix!)....actually, lawyers and (place anything here) are not a good mix, are they??





Actually, this is Unglued on the ride...really it is...you can tell by the lawyery snarl...




Hopefully he doesn't sue me for posting his pic...






Maybe he will be lenient if I post two???




Even caught him smiling!

Notice Fig in that pic (goggles...facemask to protect his identity)?  I have to give Fig kudos for making this ride...he is post surgery and still in significant pain.

Who else was on this ride?

CptSydor and VVagabond


Notice how they are always together?...Which makes sense since they are....

Although Sydor is always trying to capture the spotlight...



Is that pic like this pic???




Maybe not...

Anyways...who else was on that ride??



Also on the ride was Jeff S....but he is way too fast for the camera to catch him!!  (Besides...he was holding it...the camera I mean)

Anyways...back to work...back to training...or at least to get those oopsies out of the oven....do you know what those are???

Till next time...stay posted!



 





 

Wednesday 1 January 2014

Snow Time


Happy New Year all!!
 
So it has been a couple of weeks of snow and cold weather.  It has made for interesting winter riding...mostly mountain biking; although one day was nice enough to get out on the road on the CX with CptSydor.  However, this may not have been the best idea...suffered a wipeout on the icy pavement...survived, and all is good! 

Otherwise it has been all Mountain Biking.  Including some cool group rides.  CptSydor planned and ran the MTBR-EC Holiday Ride had a good group of us out.
 
CptSydor leading us out...




 

 



 
 
Yours truly....
 


The group...


 
Thank you to John C for most of the pics.  I am terrible at pics...especially selfies.

This could be me ...



 
 



Anyways...On Dec 29th Riot's Holiday Ride had a few friends out for a ride then chilli and recovery beverages at house of Riot afterwards...and this...

 


 

Then the weather warmed up for a couple of days, then froze hard...making the trails ice sheets.  On a ride with NewfieSteve, EnglishJim, and Giant had Jim go down hard on the ice and injured his knee.  He whined a bit like Fig...

 

 


 

But he kept riding...but he is still limping today...3 days later...

Just kidding about Fig whining...he is still recovering from surgery, and not riding.  Hopefully soon...get well soon Fig!!  (but gain 20 lbs first...so I may be able to keep up to you...) 

I better be careful...I don't want to make Fig or EnglishJim mad...they can be violent...like this guy...
 
 
 
 
Or eye beam me...
 
 
 
 
Hey anybody recognize these??

 


 
Sorry...someone left them at my house...and there is a chance it could be one of the 3 people who actually read this blog...

Anyways...between Christmas, Birthday, and New Years....



 

 
 
It is time to get the nutrition back under control...perhaps when I get down to 185 lbs I can do this...





Until then it is time to get back to work (both training, and paying work I guess...)....

Stay posted!!