Well there is still no snow.
Due to construction on the cross country ski trails in the city there were lots of mud and leaves. The trails had been dug up, because they are putting snow making equipment pipe in for the lit trails this winter.
For the first time in years, I had to get off the bike and push, because both front and rear wheels would not turn. Ha-ha, O the joy of it all. Since I was riding with a ski walker, I did not have much time to get the mud out. Using a stick I got going pretty soon, once I reached the top of the hill.
I jumped the bike up and down many times, first the front wheel , then the back wheel. The mud kept coming off as I got spanked in the behind. Finally I was able to jump both wheels.
I also did not trust my pedals as they released a couple of times, since I had lots of mud on my shoes and in the clip-less pedals.
Thankfully my XT derailleurs did not give me any shifting problems, though they also were filled with mud.
All the mud happened in the last half hour, of a slow 3 hour ride.
Where is the snow? Slip over to my ucannordicski blog for the winter months.
Sunday, November 8, 2015
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Beginner Bicycling 101 Part 4
Well some time has passed and the month of August could have had more training, but that is life. Unanticipated situations arise, and is dealt with the best way possible, at the time.
We discussed whether to race, even with so little training. I suggested racing anyway if you have the finances, for the experience. You cannot really learn a course unless its under race conditions. Racing is the best form of training in my mind. You need to learn how to push yourself, find out where you are strong and weak, with those around you.
Before heading out, we made sure your tires had enough air into them. As you know, they were low. You need to purchase a presta-shrader valve adapter, so you can go a gas station or make an investment and buy a presta foot pump. Keep the adapter on your bike all the time. Like I told you my Cinelli is over 40 years old. You learned how to pump the tire up and found out it took some effort and you had a pre-workout, lol. Your chain was dry, so we used some synthetic oil and oiled the entire chain.
We started off riding uphill, within 2 minutes of warming up, and that was not pleasant. We looked at a few turns on the race coming up and then went down a long busier hill. The hill was straight down with no potholes, so spin it up and go into a tight tuck. As was noticed, the coach left you by several hundred meters, by the time we got to the bottom. If you can safely gain time on the downhill, so much the better and use the downhill, not just for rest. Sling shotting in and out of someones draft, we will learn once you get more experience and come down at much faster speeds.
Keep playing with adjustment of the height of your seat a millimetre at a time. Soon we will have to move the seat forward fractionally.
At the bottom on a flat round circuit, you practised riding fast in the tuck position. Do you stay in the drops or come up to the top handlebar position and bend the elbows at 90 degrees? What feels more comfortable? As for the coach with his bigger belly and lack of flexibility, I can tell you staying up on the top bars is far more comfortable. Remember the closer the back is to being flat, the more the powerful buttocks muscles get used.
You practiced getting off your bike and running, while the coach pulled the bike beside you for a few minutes. You then immediately got back on the bike and did another lap, before doing running again.
You were reminded to constantly think of cycling in round circles. Cross as close to 90 degrees across larger cracks, especially that one metal bridge expansion joint, as possible. If that joint is wet, it will take some people down.
Get out there and do serious training, keep the mental edge strong, including eating properly. Continue practicing drinking while riding at speed. At this point in time, think competitive not recreation training.
After all is said and done, Have FUN!
We discussed whether to race, even with so little training. I suggested racing anyway if you have the finances, for the experience. You cannot really learn a course unless its under race conditions. Racing is the best form of training in my mind. You need to learn how to push yourself, find out where you are strong and weak, with those around you.
Before heading out, we made sure your tires had enough air into them. As you know, they were low. You need to purchase a presta-shrader valve adapter, so you can go a gas station or make an investment and buy a presta foot pump. Keep the adapter on your bike all the time. Like I told you my Cinelli is over 40 years old. You learned how to pump the tire up and found out it took some effort and you had a pre-workout, lol. Your chain was dry, so we used some synthetic oil and oiled the entire chain.
We started off riding uphill, within 2 minutes of warming up, and that was not pleasant. We looked at a few turns on the race coming up and then went down a long busier hill. The hill was straight down with no potholes, so spin it up and go into a tight tuck. As was noticed, the coach left you by several hundred meters, by the time we got to the bottom. If you can safely gain time on the downhill, so much the better and use the downhill, not just for rest. Sling shotting in and out of someones draft, we will learn once you get more experience and come down at much faster speeds.
Keep playing with adjustment of the height of your seat a millimetre at a time. Soon we will have to move the seat forward fractionally.
At the bottom on a flat round circuit, you practised riding fast in the tuck position. Do you stay in the drops or come up to the top handlebar position and bend the elbows at 90 degrees? What feels more comfortable? As for the coach with his bigger belly and lack of flexibility, I can tell you staying up on the top bars is far more comfortable. Remember the closer the back is to being flat, the more the powerful buttocks muscles get used.
You practiced getting off your bike and running, while the coach pulled the bike beside you for a few minutes. You then immediately got back on the bike and did another lap, before doing running again.
You were reminded to constantly think of cycling in round circles. Cross as close to 90 degrees across larger cracks, especially that one metal bridge expansion joint, as possible. If that joint is wet, it will take some people down.
You play you pay the price sometimes!
After all is said and done, Have FUN!
Looking to eat some small strawberries.
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Beginner Bicycling 101 Part 3
Today’s ride was a lot better. I could see that you have been on your bike and practising different techniques.
Your ability to get up out the saddle and stand while continuing to keep the cadence up was good to see. (honk,honk). Your spin (blip,blip) was also very smooth and up at just over 100rpm. Once you start riding in cycling shoes and using clipless pedals, you will have a big jump in power, as the hamstrings will come into play in a powerful way.
We practised keeping our speed up over little roller coasters. Nip up into a little harder gear while going down a small hill even if its only a10m drop, spin it and and then go back into a slightly easier gear and keep the spin as you begin to climb again. As you remember, even on a small little roller coaster you can gain an extra 10 meters.
We also did some very steep climbing where you ran out of gears, and had to walk. My gearing was low enough that I was able to stay on the bike, but it was not much faster then you walking. Keep that mind in future rides and run if needed. You will not lose much time. As you learn to throw your bodyweight on the pedals and pull on the handlebars you will be climbing that hill in no time.
Going downhill is another area where you will be able to let the bike roll going into a tight tuck. As you are still a bit timid yet, this will take time to master. Its better to be a bit safe, rather then take chances, however stay off the brakes if you see straight road ahead. The course you will be racing on, will be perfect for tight tucks and a lot of time can be made up, if you master tucking.
Life is to be enjoyed even in the midst of training, and so we stopped and ate some Saskatoon berries that were sweet, large, and yummy. :)
Natures natural blueberries, grown wild.
Your ability to get up out the saddle and stand while continuing to keep the cadence up was good to see. (honk,honk). Your spin (blip,blip) was also very smooth and up at just over 100rpm. Once you start riding in cycling shoes and using clipless pedals, you will have a big jump in power, as the hamstrings will come into play in a powerful way.
We practised keeping our speed up over little roller coasters. Nip up into a little harder gear while going down a small hill even if its only a10m drop, spin it and and then go back into a slightly easier gear and keep the spin as you begin to climb again. As you remember, even on a small little roller coaster you can gain an extra 10 meters.
We also did some very steep climbing where you ran out of gears, and had to walk. My gearing was low enough that I was able to stay on the bike, but it was not much faster then you walking. Keep that mind in future rides and run if needed. You will not lose much time. As you learn to throw your bodyweight on the pedals and pull on the handlebars you will be climbing that hill in no time.
Going downhill is another area where you will be able to let the bike roll going into a tight tuck. As you are still a bit timid yet, this will take time to master. Its better to be a bit safe, rather then take chances, however stay off the brakes if you see straight road ahead. The course you will be racing on, will be perfect for tight tucks and a lot of time can be made up, if you master tucking.
Life is to be enjoyed even in the midst of training, and so we stopped and ate some Saskatoon berries that were sweet, large, and yummy. :)
Natures natural blueberries, grown wild.
Thursday, July 2, 2015
Beginner Bicycling 101 Part 2
Well it is time to ride. First lets do a quick check of your leg length. With bigger feet you need to raise the seat post a bit higher. We will raise the seat a bit at a time.
The old fashioned training in me, had us check your elbow/finger tip to the handlebars reach. I have always used a 4 inch (10cm) reach, with a 4 inch drop from a level seat unless I was time trialing.
The first thing we did, was to encourage you to keep your elbows slightly bent, to absorb the shock of the bumps in the road.
Then you dropped a few gears so that your spin was up around a 100rpm, and I encourage you blip,blip blip. :)
We then tried having you stand up and grab the brake hoods in a harder gear and at slower rpm. This will need to be practised standing up and sitting down until it comes naturally. Get your full body weight on the pedals pulling on the bars like a dead lift.
I warned you about the parallel cracks to your line of travel that are filled with tar. It was mentioned to cross cracks like train tracks, bridge expansion joints etc, as close to 90' as possible. At a later date, you will learn to jump train tracks and the like.
It was raining out and you learned that you should feather the brakes to dry the brake rims.
Also going around high speed corners your inside knee is up, and your weight is on the outside pedal, with the hip pushed to the inside of the corner and shoulders over the outside pedal, just like if you were downhill skiing carving a turn. This will need to be practised more.
Going downhill you learned how to get into a comfortable tuck with knees wrapped around the top tube or if real steep the inner thigh squeezes the seat.
On the flats we had you go hard for just over half a km or so, Spinning at around 100rpm the gears got harder, till you could no longer keep the 100rpm and then up another gear, till you were able to keep the spin. The elbows were kept level with the ground and the back flat. Flexibility and getting the glut muscles working hard, will get the power to the pedals.
Once you have acquired clip in pedals, practising round pedalling will be another lesson.
There was just one more thing that we touch on and that was on cycle stretching while riding. Stretching the calf muscles, the back, and the quads while riding is something that comes in handy at times. In the last 5 minutes we shifted to a very easy gear.
Part 3 will coming after you have done 20 hours of homework, ie. cycling. Hopefully see you in about 10 days.
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Beginner Bicycling 101, Part 1
So you know how to ride a bicycle and have ridden around the block and a bit further.
Now all your friends are either into Triathlon racing, Obstacle racing or both. You have decided to try Triathlon racing. You are fit and ready to roll.
You went a bought a helmet and a decent bike and you want to get your moneys worth.
What is next?
Well after talking to a few friends perhaps they suggested buying cycling gloves to reduce vibration.
Some real cycling shorts for women and do not wear anything underneath the shorts.
Someone else told you to buy a spare tube, but someone will need to show you how to change it.
Your new bike after a few rides is now skipping gears, as the cables are stretching and your gears are skipping, when you put the power to the pedals. Take it to the shop to get it fixed, or check out youtube videos.
That means you will need some tools and the vast majority of bikes are metric, in case no one told you yet.
Someone else probably told you to get step in pedals and shoes which is more mulla, but it is worth it.
Perhaps a small cycling backpack with a water bladder that comes with it might be an idea. Costco has them cheap.
Buy a second water bottle cage for wide mouth plastic water bottle to carry your tools. It is far cheaper then buying a special tool seat bag and easier to take with you when you stop.
Now its time to ride. Find a friend who knows cycling. Hopefully the store set you up properly on the bike. They can get you in the ball park with seat height, fore and aft seat location in regards to ball of foot over pedal axle.
Did the store inform you that a bell is required by law? Its kind of stupid now, because so many people have ear phones in their head, biking, walking, running and driving, To get their attention you need to touch them, lol, not.
Did the store show you how to use the brakes and gears? They may have also took off the wheels so that you could get the bike in the car. Did you go for a bike roof rack or a trailer hitch bike rack. As I get older and my deltoids weaker I feel that trailer hitch bike rack is the better option. If you use boat ferries much you might also lean towards a trailer hitch bike rack. Just make sure the wheels are high enough not to be clobbered by small rocks.
A major deal is to have a proper width seat. This is VERY important as the seat may leave you with raw flesh and pain. Some stores have special equipment to determine the seat best for you. That seat stays with you for a lifetime so splurge!
Well just a few more things before you get on the bike. Did you centre the wheels in the axle properly? Did you tighten the wheel axle properly and orientate it in the correct direction? Are the brakes rubbing? Did you in fact pull down the small brake release mechanism?
Lift the back wheel and run through the gears to make sure all is working well.
Now it is time to check the tire pressure. O my, is it presta or shraeder valves? Did anyone tell you to buy adapters for both? Do you know how to put air in the tires? Do you have your own pump, which will also last you a lifetime if you take care of it. Do you remember how to check the tire pressure without a tire gauge by placing your middle finger over the tire and pressing down firmly with the heel of your other hand. The finger should only move a wee bit.
Is it time to ride yet? That will be in part 2. :)
Friday, June 19, 2015
Being #Injured with #Spinal #Stenosis
Being Injured with #Spinal #Stenosis
I tried to be act like I was 25 all over again, and did some bicycle touring without proper training. I rode from Edmonton to Jasper loaded with a lot of cycling gear. (I know dumb!)
Over use injures take a lot longer to heal as I have been training for over 5 decades. You have had a lot of fun and you have probably not stretched enough.
Perhaps your technique changed, your boots and/or shoes are worn out, or you over extended yourself.
Some of the areas of treatment you may have tried are medication from the doctor, the chiropractor, physiotherapist, certain exercises, ice and heat therapy.
Mental anguish happens to varying degrees and it is no fun. Sometimes you do not want to out of bed. To even think about standing which you know is going to hurt, keeps you sitting.
Being injured affects not only you but those around you. Your family, workmates and especially your spouse, all are concerned. The longer you are injured the more everything around you changes. They continue to ski and you are left behind.
Its very hard not to eat lots, and you gain weight, as food for some is a comfort.
Limping everywhere, bent over and bow legged like an old man, hurting and in pain is just not fun. The pins and needles, fussiness, in the legs is not pleasant.
Crawling literally into bed and then silently crying while trying to go to sleep because you are in pain is just not fun.
When your hips stop hurting for a short period then your hip flexor or knee hurts instead. The doc says that I need a knee replacement in the next few years and many of my friends have already done so.
You wonder how much longer??!! I have been told that 1 to 2 years before there might be a fairly full recovery is perhaps a possibility. Surgery is not really an option, as many studies show that in 2-8 years the ones opting for surgery are no further ahead.
You cannot push too hard or too easy. No one can tell you exactly either so you are an experiment of one.
Ah well, pass me the Advil and I will go for a short easy bike ride, as the snow has all disappeared for this year. :) :)
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