Training Log Archive: Harps

C • Waiting.. 1

Got a flat while riding Hilton with no spare pump - stupid. Had to hike out to Guelph Line and meet Amy to the rescue. Planned for a 2 hour ride, bust.

Halton Hilly 45

Hardrock 10K orienteering race. So many trails kinda confusing in there but had a decent outing running into Phatty, Goose, Leanimal and Kirikou somewhere on the course. Spent some time chatting after with above + Bash and nosnhoj.

Over to Hilton Falls to hunt down all the dry singletrack and find a good loop for training. Need to bring a map next time had to bikewhack a bit. Also a bit muddier than Thursday.

wu - 8*50
build - 4*100
core - 5*100 on 2:10; 4*100 on 2:00, 3*100 on 1:55, 2*100 on 1:50
cd - 100

arms, core, chest, back quickly.

stretching with some deep tissue massage via a dumbell on the quads.

In around Hilton Falls and back. Most of the technical SW singletrack is very rideable, some flooded sections though.

Britannia, Bell School, Campbellville loop.

C • Nice day for a ride huh? 4

Still feeling the effects of Sunday's race. Sluggggggish...

Event: Raccoongaine
 

Since I was nearby in State College to do some mountain biking I also noticed a 6-hour rogaine being held a few hours west of where we were, near Pittsburgh, called the Racoongaine. Since Phatty and I just recently signed up for the Dakota Rogaine, I thought this would be a great training opportunity and nice way to end off a great weekend.

I arrived early got the 1:15000 maps and plotted a counter clockwise route, where I would try and clear the 50 checkpoint course but leave plenty of CP's near the finish in case I had to bail out of the back area early but had some time before cutoff. The controls were worth 10, 20, 30, 40 or 50 points depending on technical, distance, etc. They had indicated earlier that they didn't think the course could be cleared but they weren't completely sure. The area was in Racoon Creek State Park, which was a whole bunch of rivers, creek and large valleys. There was very little flat areas. It reminded me of Dundas Conservation Area (but much larger in size) and less trails.

I started out pretty fast and had no troubles with first bunch of CP's. For the first hour or so I would see a team or solo around me. The park was extremely thorny, much worse than any race I've done. Almost every control you got 'thorned'. I was glad I wore a long sleeve and pants and pitied those I saw in shorts. I did not wear gaitors though, and I found myself having to stop every 30 mins or so to remove a thorn from my foot. The other thing I didn't bring was enough water. I only filled my bladder with about 1.5L and with the temperatures in the 20's and the sun beating down I soon became dehydrated. There were water stations throughout the course but I had failed to plot those on my map (dumb!) so about halfway through the course I really started feeling weak on no water. Luckily I hit a water station about 4 hours into the race and with that felt a burst of energy. I had cleared most of the controls up until this point but with 2 hours left it was obvious I would not clear the entire course so from there I started making my way back to the finish, trying to maximize my points along the way. With about 30 minutes left I made my first big mistake of the race and almost found myself lost. Getting lost with 5 hours left is one thing, but to get lost near the end and face a time penalty would be crushing! I eventually figured out where I was, had to backtrack a bit and hammer (as much as my tired body would 'hammer') to the finish. I had 1 or 2 mins to spare but I was happy with how I raced and didn't finish over, and didn't finish with too much time either. I was cooked at the end, I didn't expect it to be so hard but the heat and hills did a good number on me.

I handed in my control punch and ended up finishing first overall (out of maybe 30 other soloist and teams?) with 1120 points. I thought I had a chance to win but with my 10 minute mistake near the end and a few other minor little issues, I thought I may have blown it. Plus, I took a lot of trails and you never know versus direct routes... Another soloist finished just 20 points behind me and the rest of the field were under 1000.

It was a great race, well run and all the controls (that I visited) were correctly placed. Even though I am a little cut up from the thorns, it is a race I would recommend for those looking to do a good 6-hour race. Overall great training for Giant's Rib Raid and Dakota Rogaine Championship!

C • Nice! 12

Day 2 of the R3 in Central Penn. I did a slightly modified route than the exact R3 route listed, as advised by the local bike shop - adding in a bit more singletrack and new trails. Like Friday it was another beautiful March day with clear skies and temperatures in the low 20's! The area is know to be very rocky, so I was glad to have full suspension, however since my Giant (with disc brakes) has a blown fork from Patagonia and is in the shop, I had my old Rocky Mountain Element - complete with v-brakes.... Wow, did I ever miss those disc brakes. My fingers and hands were numb from braking on the sketchy descents. It was so much fun though, reminded me of Transrockies. Basically you climbed for 30-60 minutes, descend for 15-30 and repeat until your hearts content in one of the numerous trails in the huge park. Awesome.

I would highly recommend this place for a trip. The riding is superb, the town of State College (home of Penn State) is cool. I hope to make it back there sometime soon, maybe even to do the Wilderness 101. Below are a few pics I took with my BB.

Went down to Pennsylvania to do some mountain biking and a min-rogaine. While we we having incredible March weather, the same great but even warmer was also occuring south. I decided to look into the IMBA Epic Rides
and find the closest one that would be rideable this weekend. I found the Roth Rock Ride (R3) in State College, PA - only a 5 hour jaunt south. It is also home of the Wilderness101, featuring 10,000 feet of climbing! We arrived late Thursday night, worked from the hotel all day then I headed out to do whatever I could with the remaining daylight. The ride was AWESOME... the singletrack was very technically challenging, tonnes of rock... slow rides up fire roads then quick descents down singletrack. Only had time for two big ascents and two downhills before getting ready for an epic Saturday.

Guinness-induced rest day.

Bruce trail run. Was not feeling it today. My lungs, heart (rate) and legs were just not up for it.

C • Bruce 3

The usual around Cedar Springs, Mt Nemo, Rattlesnake, Keslo, Hilton Falls, home.

Short ride to Kelso, Rattlesnake and Brittania, mostly on roads. Ducked into Kelso for a bit but was too muddy.

Yoga for Cyclists DVD, with a bit of foam roller and tennis ball in the quad after.

Quick interval run in the rain/sleet. HR still seems a bit elevated vs RPE.

Helping my sis move.

Tough TRX workout with Sherpa and Gooder at Premier. So hot in there, was like working out in a hot yoga studio. Sweating buckets. A bit of stretching at the end.

Pyramid workout with Gooder, 25 to 200m to 25m by 25m on 10-15 seconds rest.

Halton Hilly 100 with some minor modifications/improvements. In and around area of Campbellville, Mt Nemo, Rattlesnake, Hilton Falls, Eden Mills, Arkell and Moffat. Wind kicked in pretty good near the end, good thing I had a Mars bar stashed for just such an ocassion.

My HR the entire ride seemed elevated vs RPE, about 8-10 bpm higher than what I felt I was exterting. Not sure if good or bad (likely the latter).

C • I'm going to guess that Tue... 2

My usual standby routine. 400m warmup, 4 x 50m drills, 600 free, 8 x 100 free w pull bouy, 200m cool-down.

Hilly road ride, tried to hit most of the climbs in the area - Cedar Springs, Mt Nemo, Bell School Line and 6th Line. Way overdressed, my odometer read 16C at one point and I was wearing my Mizuno BreathThermo and Salomon Fast and Light. I was soaked. Must dress more appropriately for this warm weather next time.

Road run a few hours after the bike ride. Had to hold off the stitches from a big meal shortly before.

C • http://www.peakassurance.net/Rogaine.html 7

Sort of recovery day for me but couldn't resist the great weather and decided to take the new tri bike out for a quick spin. Tried to keep the intensity as low as possible but the wind and hills would not let me.

Stars Thomass race. Phatty, Nick, another person and I all took the same route for the pre-CP's all doing the full course. Lost Phatty heading into the first box, he must have taken the opposite route as I took the same route as Nick and other guy, Nick leading the way and setting the tracks in the snow. I took a few different routes, moreso on trails than Nick and other guy leading up to the final box but it did not gain me any positions. Going into the final box we came across another elite (I think) and 2 went clockwise, while Nick and I went counterclockwise, Nick still leading. I tried taking a trail to the second CP, but once again, no time gained on Nick. For the final CP in the box, I was going to take trails but ended up deciding to follow Nick and his tracks to the last Box CP (after the last Box CP there was a road run where I was hoping I could pass Nick but he kicked it up and I could not match). I think Nick won it and I was a close second but not totally sure as I had to leave immediately after to meet family for brunch. I wish I had taken my route on several other occassions instead of following the pack but I got in running race mode and not navigation training mode! Great course, hardest I've raced in a while, redlining pretty much the entire race.

C • nice race! 5

Chest and core at the gym. Planned to swim too but the Thomass race wiped and I could barely get in a decent resistance workout.

Most of the Halton Hilly 100 route with some dirt road modifications and exclusions due to higher traffic on paved roads.

Bruce trail medium loop. Some very icy sections, might have to bust out the spikes for the Thomass race Sunday (or will it all be melted by then)?

Hill climb repeats at Rattlesnake Pt (Appleby) x 4.

C • my turn to say nice work! 2

Was planning on riding the trails north of Hilton Falls but the conditions were horrible as my tires were like glue and half the time I was either falling off my bike or riding way too slow for me handle. So I decided to ditch the singletrack and just ride some quiet country roads which worked out nicely! Saw several other riders (roadies)... spring is here soon.