Ride Recap - 3/31/12 - Velosmith Group Pulled Us to New Fastest Time On A Local Training Ride

We joined up with the Velosmith Studio ride again this Saturday. However, unlike last week during which the group got separated and then mixed up with other groups, we stayed together with the Velosmith group for the full ride. The pace of the ride was the fastest yet for our group on a local training ride (this definition excludes the sub 5 route in Hampshire). The average speed for the 50.9 mile ride was 20.7 mph. This average rolling speed includes all the time lost due to slowing down for traffic signals  Thus, the pace for the majority of the ride was above 20.7 mph. It was a big group, so the were lots of riders to share the pulls and a nice draft to get in behind.

Felix has provided details on the ride via a link to his Garmin file for today's ride. The group segment of the ride is Split #2 (split #1 and #3 were getting to and from Velosmith).

Members of our group on the ride today included:

Dave
George
Hugo
Herb
Felix
Martin
Randy

The route included riding through Fort Sheridan, the Three Sisters on St. Mary's, and a loop around Ascension Cemetery. We went straight through without a mid ride stop. Our group ended the ride by heading to Panera Bread in Wilmette. In addition to our group, we were joined at Panera by David Cordoba, a very fast cyclist from the Velosmith group that we originally met on last week's ride. Like just about everyone on the today's ride, he was great company.

Minor Modification to About Us in Blog Description - Now 20-25 mph

At a mid ride break the other day, Felix and I were discussing the increase in pace of our group's ride. As of four years ago, the typical pace was 15-17 mph. By last year, it had become 20-23 mph. This year the ride has become a bit faster, with frequent intervals at 24 or 25 miles per hour. Thus, I revised the description in "about us" (in the column on the right hand side of the page) to 20-25 mph from 20 - 23 mph.

It would be nice to imagine we could keep increasing pace on a straight line basis. Heck, if we could continue to increase the pace by another mile per hour each year, we would be able to ride a 4 hour century before end of the decade. However, being realistic it becomes a question of how much longer will our group be able to defeat advancing years and keep the slope of the ride's pace advancing upward or at least flat.

The mild winter and summer in March have allowed us to get in a lot of bonus miles this year and is a key reason the ride has become faster this spring. A factor that will make it increasingly hard to continue getting faster is that some of us are probably getting pretty close to the maximum time we can spent on a bike without endangering our marriages.

For comparison sake, shown below are the number of EBC miles Felix, Dave, and I rode during all of 2008 versus miles this year during just January through March 23. Also shown below is the fact that the total club membership has been able to more than double the number of club miles ridden year to date versus 2008 due to the mild weather this winter.

Bleeding Heart Bakery in Lakeview - Another Location Catering to Cyclists

The Bleeding Heart Bakery is opening up a new location in Lakeview that includes indoor bike racks. According to an e-mail they sent, "We will have four inside racks as well as two out side. We are also offering a call in service so you don't even need to get off your bike or out of your car, you just call in your order and we bring it right out to you!". 

The new Bleeding Heart Bakery location is at 1351 W. Belmont Ave and will begin operation in early April. It will be open 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Brunch will be offered Fridays through Sundays and small plates will be offered throughout the week.

For more information, visit the Bleeding Heart Bakery website or read a review from the Chicago Tribune

It is nice to find another location catering to cyclists. This is a welcome trend.

Sunday 4/1/2012 Ride

We will start at 08:00 AM from Panera Bread in Wilmette. We will do 50-60 miles with a food stop in the middle of the ride. We will practice paceline riding if we get enough riders.

Saturday 3/31/2012 Ride

This Saturday we will do again the Velo Smith Bike Studio Group Ride. It starts at 07:30 from 805 Ridge Rd Wilmette, IL 60091
The ride will be around 50-60 miles at a brisk pace with some short sprints. Bring water and snacks for the ride. Last time we did not stop for food in the middle. We did go to Panera in Wilmette at the end of the ride.

3/25/12 - Ride Recap

We had 12 cyclists for a 55 mile ride today. The group included Martin, Joe, Heidi, Dave, Felix, Tom, Herb, Rob, Clay, Cons, Jay and me. It was a Panera to Panera ride with a loop around Ascension Cemetary. The ride was almost as fast as Saturday's ride, despite a bunch of us having tired legs from yesterday's ride. Clay in particular was really pushing the pace and did a number long hard pulls. The biggest reason that today's ride was not as fast as yesterday's ride is due to our riding along with a group from Vision Quest. They passed us at a stop light on Waukegan road, but slowed us down a bit as they were  riding at a 22 mph pace. Yesterday, when we got mixed in with the Plaza Group, they pulled us along at a 26 mph pace.


Kudos to Heidi for getting stronger as the ride progressed. She was part of the  lead pack on the sprints during the later sections of the ride.


The weather for the ride was again spectacular. It was a little chilly at the start of the ride, but the sun came out and we were stripping off layers on the way north. A bonus feature of the ride is that going north we were riding into a gentle breeze. It picked up by a couple of mph as we were heading into it and helped push us home.

3/24 Ride Recap

It was an interesting ride this morning. At the beginning of the ride, the misty fog was so heavy that at times we could barely see other cyclists that were only 30 yards ahead of us.

We met up at the Velosmith Bicycle Studio and joined their shop ride. The group from EBC included Cons, Felix, Herb, Hugo, Ian, Martin and me. During the course of the ride we also came across and rode for a while with the Judson Classic Group and the Plaza Group, as well as other groups for brief periods. Felix guessed that if we counted all the different groups we got mixed in with, the total number of riders might be close to 100.

The pace of the ride was all over the board. The first third of the ride was at a 20 mph pace. The pace for the balance of the ride seemed to vary almost randomly from stretch to stretch from 20 to 22 to 24 to 26 mph, with 3 sprints at 30 mph thrown in for good measure. The average speed for the entire ride, including all our stops, was about 19.75 mph.

We got tangled up with some of the faster riders from the Plaza Group heading south on Waukegan. They started a rotating double pace line at a 26 mph pace. All the riders from our group, with the exception of Cons and myself joined the pace line. Watching from the back of the group, Cons and I must have witnessed a half dozen near accidents on the wet pavement. It served as a good lesson in how not to ride in a double pace line.

We ended up heading back to the Velosmith Studio to pick up cars, and then stopped at Panera Bread in Wilmette for food and beverages.

Sunday 3/25/12 Ride

Tentative plan is for about a 55 mile ride from Panera to Panera including a loop around Axcension Cemetary. Subject to change based on the whim of the group at the start of the ride

The Sunday ride will start from Panera Bread in Wilmette at 8:00 am

There has been some discussion about making our Saturday rides faster and/or longer than the Sunday rides. The Saturday ride might be at a 22-23 mph pace with some sprints/intervals thrown in (or even faster if we ride at the Velosmith Studio group pace), while the Sunday ride might be at a 20-22 mph pace. No decision has been made in regard to this suggestion. Please feel free to express your opinion on whether you agree or disagree with this suggestion via the comments section.

Intro to Track Cycling

After listening to the World Track Champion Reid Schwartz at the EBC monthly meeting last night I decided to educate myself about track cycling. I came across an interesting web site that has a good overview.

http://www.chicagovelocampus.com/programs/dancurrel

Saturday 3/24/2012 Ride

Dear All,
As part of the training for the Sub-5 Century we decided to try to ride with the Velosmith Bicycle Studio

Group Ride. It is located at 805 Ridge Rd Wilmette, IL 60091

The ride starts at 07:30 sharp. Plan to be there few minutes earlier. We did ride with them last year. The ride is on familiar streets going north via Fort Sheridan, Old Elm, St. Mary to Buckley and back. Total around 50 miles. On the way back we could stop at Panera on Rt. 176 for a snack, or we could finish the ride and stop at Panera in Wilmette. Last year it felt a little faster for me, but I believe this year we are all much stronger. We can always separate and do our own ride. Send me an email if you are planning to join us so we can look for you.

Felix

Sub 5 Hour Century Challenge Time Goal - Fiddling With Numbers

Sub 5 Century Challenge

When reviewing the average speed for the group's ride on 3/18/12, I was surprised at how fast the pace was for this early in the season. For the most part, the front of the group was at a 22 mph or faster pace during most of the ride. This did not seem like a big deal on the way up to Lake Bluff, because we had the wind at our backs. However, that fact that we were able to maintain the 22 mph pace on the way back south while riding into the wind was a bit of a revelation. We were essentially riding at a sub 5 hour century pace in March, while still having six months of training time to get ready for the Sub 5 Hour Century Challenge. Obviously, it is easier to maintain a fast pace on a 60 mile ride than on a 100 mile ride. Also we had a lot of stopping time which allowed for recovery. particularly during the long stop at Panera Bread, but the group is far more fit this spring than we were a year ago.

Given that we have 25 weeks to prepare for riding 100 miles, basically all we have to is add 1.7 miles per week to our rides and we should be ready for a 100 miles at a sub 5 hour pace.

What would be a good time goal for our group this year? As long as the wind and heat are reasonably  moderate again this year, a feasible goal might be 4:43:30. I arrived at this time based upon:

Lap 1 - 33.5 miles @ 23 mph - Time = 1:28 - this was our first lap pace last year, so we should be able to match it again this year (as long as wind, heat, or rain are not big factors)

Rest Stop 0:06 - Other groups took less than 6 minutes, but between refilling water bottles, a biology break, and getting some solid food into our systems, this seems like a conservative estimate. Might be able to cut some time here

Lap 2  - 33.5 miles @ 22 mph - Time 1:31:30 - Lap 2 offers an opportunity to gain some time on last years pace. I think we were at a pace of about 21.6 mph last year, so this lap should allow us to pick up a few minutes versus last year.

Rest Stop 0:06

Lap 3  - 33 miles @ 21.5 mph - Time 1:32 - Our group still had a lot of energy at the beginning of Lap 3 last year, but we started wearing down around the middle of the lap. If we want to significantly beat last year's time, this is the lap where we probably have the most opportunity for improvement. Maintaining a pace of 21.5 miles per hour for the third lap will not be easy with weary legs, but does not seem like an unreasonable goal.

Total - 4:43:50

What do other members of the group think? Is a goal of 4:43:30 too aggressive or too easy?

3/18/12 Ride Recap - Just Under 60 Miles On A Gorgeous Day

The near perfect weather for biking brought out the largest number of riders that our group has had to date. 14 of us started off from Panera Bread, and we were joined enroute by Herb and Rob. The group included:

Alvin Spector

Martin Hu

Juliane Meurice

Ben Schapiro

Steve Courtright

Cons Gattuso

Jeff Kahle

Nancy Berte

George Usleber

Bob Werner

Dave Reesh

Gary Pickens

Felix Angelov

Randy Pickard

Herb Schwartz

Rob Schulman

At the beginning of the ride, it seems there may have been a few nasty words shouted at Martin and me. We both had fresh legs, while the majority of the group had weary legs from a tough session at Vision Quest on Saturday. However, with the wind at our backs, Martin and I thought that a brisk early pace would be fun for the group, and we both have thick skins.

Once we got to Skokie Valley Bikeway, the pace jumped up to 24 mph, with a few pulls at 25.5. At the end of the "bunny trail" Felix convinced the group to do a loop around Ascension Cemetery which led to the ride's total miles ending up at just under 60 miles.

 The ride featured a number of sprints, but as Martin is getting accustomed to his fixie and the spots where he is most likely to be attacked, it has become tough to beat him to the top of a hill. Despite valiant efforts by Steve and Felix, no one was able to catch Martin on any of the sprints.

It was a perfect day to sit out on the patio at Panera Bread for our mid ride break. The patio was  basically taken over by bikes groups.

On the way back home, we passed the EBC 9:00 am group. It seems remarkable how often our two groups encounter each other on rides.

It is interesting to note how much faster our group has become over the past year. On the way back south on the Skokie Valley Bikeway, we rode into the wind at a 22 mph pace. The mild weather has allowed for more outdoor miles this year and the group's members have obviously put in a lot of time on trainers over the winter. On a comparable ride during the St. Patrick Day weekend last year, our average pace including stop was a fraction over 16 mph. On today's ride, our average pace including stops was over 19 mph. I'm sure we were wearing more layers of clothing last year, but hard training over the winter probably accounts for more of the increase in speed than better weather.

Sunday Ride - 3/18/12 Back to 8:00 am Start Time

We'll assume that a week of daylight savings time has given everyone a chance to adjust to the time change. The group will go back to an 8:00 am start this Sunday. Tentative plan is for about a 60 mile ride, but final decision on the destination and distance won't be made until we gather at Panera Bread.

This is the last week of the Vision Quest training, so we'll be back to riding on both days of the weekend starting on 3/24.

Ride for Sunday 3/11/2012

Tomorrow 3/11/2012 we will meet at Panera in Wilmette at 09:00 (keep in mind that the time will change tonight). We will do Panera to Panera and be back before noon so we could attend the EBC St. Patrick's day lunch at the Celtic Knot in Evanston. If you are planning to go to the lunch bring a lock for your bike.

The start time seemed to be preferred by most of the people who were at VQ today.

Cleat Position

Here is a great description of how to find the "ball" of your foot and adjust the cleat according to shoe size. I guess what I called a neutral position ends up being forward. If I am understanding this article correctly, you don't measure from that big hump ("ball") on your foot, you measure from the joint which is forward of that big ole hump. Felix is the team doctor, is this correct?

http://ezinearticles.com/?Dialing-in-Cleat-Position-For-More-Power-and-Less-Pain&id=3257264

Comment by Felix:

Well this is a little more complicated. The joint in question is called the First Metatarso-Phalageal Joint. There is a big variability in the shapes and sizes of it. Sometimes the joint space falls right at what is felt like the "ball of the foot", sometimes it can be in-front of it. Usually the "ball of the foot" starts "moving" backwards from the joint when there is a bunion formation. Then the "ball of the foot" is mostly represented by "hypertrophied" (enlarged) distal end of the first metatarsal bone instead of both the distal end of the metatarsal and the proximal end of the first phalanx. You can kind of figure out where you fall by looking where the motion is in relation to where the ball of the foot is. Or you can always get an X-ray and place a radio opaque marker on the skin at the ball of the foot and see the relation to the joint space. I will try to attach soome pics to the original post that might explain it better

Here are some pitures that can help you understand my comment above.

This one shows a foot with a bunion and in that case the "ball of the foot" will be behind the real joint.

The next one shows a more normal foot where the "ball of the foot" and the joint are pretty much aligned.





Windy City

Taking advantage of the warm weather past two days, but the wind gusts set a new definition for challenging.
Here's a link to what we have in store for road bikes in the next year or so. SRAM comes out with its version in the fall. My friend at SRAM seems pretty excited about it. All I can say is, 'Rad man, just rad'.

http://www.colnago.com/c59-disc/

Wee Wee...

http://youtu.be/H8ZDV3fvaXM

Cleat Position

After the suggestion Cons got from Robbie Ventura about his cleat position, I came across this blog:

http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/04/power-to-the-pedal-cleat-position/

Take it with a little grain of salt, but there might be something in it.