Saturday, May 31, 2014

Brewery - Endurance Pace


Route and Ride Data Links:                                           
Garmin - Ride Data
Strava   - Ride Data
Overall Ride Metrics:                                                       
Distance:  miles
Avg. Moving Speed: 16.7 mph
Moving Time: 3:53:55
Total Time: 3:57:49 
Ride Total TSS: 208 (0.72 IF)
Group or Solo:                                                                  
With Edgar the first 15 and solo on the rest
Goal:                                                                                 
Stay at an easier endurance intensity
Ride Description:                                                            
It was great to ride the first 15 miles with Edgar. He is the one that got me into cycling in 2004 and has been on hiatus from the road bike for a while and is now returning. It was good for him to go shorter miles and something maybe I should have considered today as well. Most of the time I ready for a long Saturday ride, but today my legs (and body) were just too pooped to push a decent pace. Looking at the data it would appear that I accomplished my task of just staying at an easier endurance pace, but the truth is I really struggled all day.

Oh well it was great to ride a few miles with Edgar. I got to see Paul and Judy before the ride and chat with them about some of their upcoming epic ride adventures and I got to see a few other cycling friends as well.
 
Weather:                                                                          
Partly clouds, fairly calm air, from 67 (F) at the start to 86 at the finish.
Nutrition Intake During and after the Course:             
24 oz from Bottle #1 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
24 oz from Bottle #2 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
Hammer gel @ mile 50
Post Ride | 30 gram protein drink
Home | Chicken sandwich from Subway
Bike:                                                                                  
LOOK 585,  Garmin 800, Powertap G3, HED Belgium/Conti 4000s @ 95 psi
Overall Power Data:                                                        
Entire workout (130 watts):
Duration: 3:56:05 (3:57:51)
Work: 1837 kJ
TSS: 208.7 (intensity factor 0.729)
Norm Power: 153
VI: 1.18
Distance: 64.918 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 506 130 watts
Cadence: 1 206 71 rpm
Speed: 0 33.2 16.5 mph
Pace 1:48 0:00 3:38 min/mi
Altitude: 670 923 763 ft
Crank Torque: 0 1472 154 lb-in
Temperature: 64.4 91.4 77.8 Fahrenheit

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Monday, May 26, 2014

Memorial Day Group Ride


Route and Ride Data Links:                                           
Garmin - Ride Data
Strava   - Ride Data
Overall Ride Metrics:                                                       
Distance: 46 miles
Avg. Moving Speed: 16.8 mph
Moving Time: 2:45:36
Total Time: 3:13:11 
Ride Total TSS: 178 (0.78 IF)
Group or Solo:                                                                  
Group: Kit, Neal, Glenn, Gary, Mike and me 
Goal:                                                                                 
Group ride
Ride Description:                                                            
Easy paced for the most part, then it rained and then it rained a little harder. Even though it did rain on us for a good portion of the ride and we had to shorten the route a bit, I still thought this was a good day out with the guys.

We got to celebrate this day riding in freedom because men and women have made it possible by serving this country with flesh and sacrifice. I am very grateful to all of those who have served in the military.
Weather:                                                                          
Sunny start, rain, more rain and then it stopped as we rolled in at the finish
Nutrition Intake During and after the Course:             
24 oz from Bottle #1 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
Hammer gel @ mile 17
Cliff Bar @ mile 30
Post Ride | 30 gram protein drink
Home | Turkey sandwich, skim milk
Bike:                                                                                  
LOOK 585,  Garmin 800, Powertap G3, HED Belgium/Conti 4000s @ 95 psi
Overall Power Data:                                                        
Entire workout (117 watts):
Duration: 2:54:10 (3:13:15)
Work: 1218 kJ
TSS: 178 (intensity factor 0.784)
Norm Power: 165
VI: 1.41
Distance: 46.266 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 667 117 watts
Cadence: 1 179 67 rpm
Speed: 0 31.6 16.0 mph
Pace 1:54 0:00 3:45 min/mi
Altitude: 663 1001 830 ft
Crank Torque: 0 1563 145 lb-in
Temperature: 60.8 66.2 62.6 Fahrenheit


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Saturday, May 24, 2014

Jasper - Fort Mt Group Ride


Route and Ride Data Links:                                           
Garmin - Ride Data
Strava   - Ride Data
Overall Ride Metrics:                                                       
Distance: 82 miles
Avg. Moving Speed: 16 mph
Moving Time: 5:09:11
Total Time: 5:45:21 
Ride Total TSS: 350 (0.8 IF)
Group or Solo:                                                                  
Group: Kit, Glenn, Neal, Gary, Mike, Nancy, Craig and me
Goal:                                                                                 
Group ride so it was go with the flow
Ride Description:                                                            
I certainly wasn't expecting to join in on this ride because it had been a rough week between indoor training and mostly a hard work week. With a little pre-ride kidding around through email from the group I decided to join in. I still had some issues starting off this morning with a nail in my car tire (aired it up and took off) and some tummy issues, but I made it to the parking lot just on time.

Eight of us rolled out at 7 a.m. and all I could think of was just surviving at the back of the line if at all. The group broke apart a few times regrouped a few times throughout the day. At the first portion I was kind of taking it easy just to see if my stomach and legs were going to play this game of torture today and I suppose both did well enough.

The route certainly has its challenging portions and I was happy to make it through each of those. From what I could tell each of the group looked like they were enjoying their day out on the bike. Good fun riding with the gang. Good to see Nancy and Craig.

Well it was a good day overall and even better to get back and see my car tire still inflated.
Weather:                                                                          
Partly cloudy, 62 (F) start, mild breeze at times, 82 (F) finish
Nutrition Intake During and after the Course:             
24 oz from Bottle #1 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
24 oz from Bottle #2 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
Hammer gel @ mile 20
Cliff Bar @ mile 30
Post Ride | 30 gram protein drink, 44oz frozen drink on the drive home
Home | Protein shake
Bike:                                                                                  
LOOK 585,  Garmin 800, Powertap G3, HED Belgium/Conti 4000s @ 95 psi
Overall Power Data:                                                        
Entire workout (130 watts):
Duration: 5:30:22 (5:45:24)
Work: 2518 kJ
TSS: 350.6 (intensity factor 0.809)
Norm Power: 170
VI: 1.3
Distance: 82.22 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 616 130 watts
Cadence: 1 161 68 rpm
Speed: 0 44 15.0 mph
Pace 1:22 0:00 4:00 min/mi
Altitude: 699 2840 1409 ft
Crank Torque: 0 1781 160 lb-in


 
Fort Mountain Climb: Kept the climb pace moderate with the remaining challenges in mind.
Duration: 1:00:09
Work: 627 kJ
TSS: 78.1 (intensity factor 0.883)
Norm Power: 185
VI: 1.07
Distance: 8.218 mi
Elevation Gain: 2093 ft
Grade: 4.7 % (2057 ft)
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 325 174 watts
Cadence: 4 93 67 rpm
Speed: 4.3 23.7 8.2 mph
Pace 2:32 13:60 7:19 min/mi

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Monday, May 19, 2014

Powertap G3 - Oddities and Updates

This past Saturday I went through my pre-ride ritual of preparation and one of the last steps is to "zero" (Garmin calls it "Calibration") the torque offset value. Typically this value falls in a certain range like 500 to 520. Mine typically shows a value between 496 to 500. I feel good with that range since I have completed a static weight test and found the hub to be within 2% accuracy.

The image below showing a value of -22281 was what I saw in the field just before the ride so I turned the power meter off in the Garmin 800 and did the ride old school with just the basic metrics derived from the GPS.

When I got home I first uploaded my data and created a blog entry. The wheel had been sitting dormant in the garage for about 45 minutes. I turned both the 500 and the 800 on before walking down to the garage and before I opened the door both units detected the hub. This is not supposed to happen! The hub is supposed to go to sleep after a few minutes of non use and to be honest it does most of the time. I cannot remember a time in the past since updating with Firmware 16.000 that the hub was detected without spinning the wheel to wake up the hub. Nonetheless this time it was still awake. 




















A few moments later the Garmin 500 gave a low battery warning.



 



 
 
Trying to keep calm about it all, I checked the PowerAgent application and it gave me a clue that a new firmware update 16.056 was available. It was a simple process to follow the steps in the application and install a new battery as well.


 




















Next step is to wake up the hub and see if the offset value looks back to normal
























I finished with several tests to see if the hub would go to sleep, wake it up and repeat. The G3 hub looks to be in good working order again. It performed well in today's ride and hopefully there will be a touch more battery life as a bonus.

I do like having the ability to do these firmware updates at home without the stress of boxing up the rear wheel like the older PowerTap hubs and send it off for repair or a rebuild. What I have learned from this experience was to check more often for the firmware updates.

From PowerTap
http://www.powertap.com/pages/firmware-release-history

G3 Powercap

Current Firmware 16.058, released March 26, 2014
Release Notes: 
  • Added a reset after sleep to cure zero power issue. 
  • Changed low battery warning values.

Comet - JRA of Sorts


Route and Ride Data Links:                                           
Garmin - Ride Data
Strava   - Ride Data
Overall Ride Metrics:                                                       
Distance: 40 miles
Avg. Moving Speed: 18.6 mph
Moving Time: 2:10:41
Total Time: 2:11:46  
Ride Total TSS: 143 (0.8 IF)
Group or Solo:                                                                  
Solo
Goal:                                                                                 
Just ride fast enough to finish and get home before Atlanta rush hour traffic starts
Ride Description:                                                            
Not much to it other than enjoy being on the bike for my final vacation day.
Weather:                                                                          
Very cloudy, calm air, 66 (F) 
Nutrition Intake During and after the Course:             
24 oz from Bottle #1 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
Post Ride | 30 gram protein drink
Home | Turkey wrap
Bike:                                                                                  
LOOK 585,  Garmin 800, Powertap G3, HED Belgium/Conti 4000s @ 95 psi
Overall Power Data:                                                        
Entire workout (158 watts):
Duration: 2:11:48
Work: 1248 kJ
TSS: 143.2 (intensity factor 0.809)
Norm Power: 170
VI: 1.08
Distance: 40.45 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 539 158 watts
Cadence: 3 209 72 rpm
Speed: 0 24.4 18.4 mph
Pace 2:28 0:00 3:15 min/mi
Altitude: 910 1136 1026 ft
Crank Torque: 0 1752 189 lb-in
Temperature: 59 68 63.4 Fahrenheit

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Saturday, May 17, 2014

Brewery Group - Rainy Ride (no power meter)


Route and Ride Data Links:                                           
Garmin - Ride Data
Strava   - Ride Data
Overall Ride Metrics:                                                       
Distance: 53 miles
Avg. Moving Speed: 17.8 mph
Moving Time: 2:58:56
Total Time: 3:14:48 
Group or Solo:                                                                  
Alan, Bill, Tom, Stacey and me
Goal:                                                                                 
Group ride
Ride Description:                                                            
I wasn't sure what time to go since each weather report seemed a bit different. I suppose I went with the wrong forecast if I was looking for a dry ride since it rained on us for most of the 53 miles.

Alan came up to say hi as his group was about to roll out. I asked if I could join them since I wanted stay off the structure one more day. I had just finished a rest week with light training this past week while at the beach and wanted just one more day outside of my typical structure. At the start it was the five of us, but no long after Bill picked up the pace and Alan and me joined that pace. It was a bit more enthusiastic pace than I expected to do for today, but the legs were feeling rested so I went with their pace. With just the three of us we each had long pulls through out the rest of the miles. Probably the rain, slick roads and tire spray kept the pace from becoming more intense.

I have always been so impressed with Alan's fitness level. I am not sure what his age is at this point, but I am still impressed that he still has a lot of fire in his legs and keep a steady strong pace.

Even with the cool rain and being near the point of shivering at times I still enjoyed getting out on the roads with these guys today. I ran the car heater on full blast on the way home and took a hot shower so all is good now. Now I just need to figure out what is going on with my PowerTap power meter.
Weather:                                                                          
Cool rain for most of the ride, sun came out just as we finished 
Nutrition Intake During and after the Course:             
18 oz from Bottle #1 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
Hammer gel @ mile 20
Post Ride | 30 gram protein drink
Home | Turkey wrap, skim milk
Bike:                                                                                  
LOOK 585,  Garmin 800, Powertap G3, HED Belgium/Conti 4000s @ 95 psi
Overall Power Data:                                                        
Turned the power meter off in the Garmin 800 because the zero offset value was way off at 770. I checked it again when I got home with the Garmin 500 and it was within acceptable range at 503.

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Sunday, May 4, 2014

Comet - Easy Spin


Route and Ride Data Links:                                           
Garmin - Ride Data
Strava   - Ride Data
Overall Ride Metrics:                                                       
Distance: 40 miles
Avg. Moving Speed: 17.8  mph
Moving Time: 2:17:16
Total Time: 2:21:49 
Ride Total TSS: 112.5 (0.69 IF)
Group or Solo:                                                                  
Solo
Goal:                                                                                 
Take it easy
Ride Description:                                                            
I really had to take it easy today. The cramp in my left leg at the end of yesterday's ride really did some damage and the entire inner left quad felt very tender. That being the case I went to the Comet for an easy spin on the flattest pavement in the area.

Lots of people on the trail and a reminder why I will be glad to get back to riding at the brewery on Sunday afternoons.

I hope all my cycling friends and enthusiasts that dropped by had a good weekend and great miles.
Weather:                                                                          
Sunny, 80 (F), breezy
Nutrition Intake During and after the Course:             
24 oz from Bottle #1 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
Post Ride | 30 gram protein drink
Home | Chicken, potato salad, skim milk
Bike:                                                                                  
LOOK 585,  Garmin 800, Powertap G3, HED Belgium/Conti 4000s @ 95 psi
Overall Power Data:                                                        
Entire workout (133 watts):
Duration: 2:19:03 (2:21:53)
Work: 1107 kJ
TSS: 112.5 (intensity factor 0.698)
Norm Power: 147
VI: 1.1
Distance: 40.617 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 419 133 watts
Cadence: 1 219 73 rpm
Speed: 0 24.2 17.6 mph
Pace 2:29 0:00 3:24 min/mi
Altitude: 915 1125 1027 ft
Crank Torque: 0 1783 159 lb-in
Temperature: 77 86 82.6 Fahrenheit

Summary Table
  Level   Minutes       TSS
      1      2.00      0.64
      2    135.70    111.04
      3      0.00      0.00
      4      0.00      0.00
      5      0.00      0.00
      6      0.00      0.00
      7      0.15      0.29

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Saturday, May 3, 2014

Brewery to Cagle - L2 Endurance Solo Ride


Route and Ride Data Links:                                           
Garmin - Ride Data
Strava   - Ride Data
Overall Ride Metrics:                                                       
Distance: 77 miles
Avg. Moving Speed: 18.5 mph
Moving Time: 4:11:21
Total Time:  4:14:56
Ride Total TSS: 260 (0.78 IF)
Group or Solo:                                                                  
Solo
Goal:                                                                                 
Keep the pedals moving, minimize stop time, steady pace if possible from start to finish
Ride Description:                                                            
Normally I do this route with the Felt TT bike, but today I used the road bike. This was a nice change up for the endurance training ride. I rolled out of the brewery a bit chilled with a summer kit and Perl Izumi sun sleeves, but it did not take long for the chill to go away.

Overall a fairly good day out and I met up with Steve and Courtney or more correctly they caught up with me. I finished the remaining miles with them on my wheel until we were in the last couple of miles and then I dropped to the back. So I will say that most of the ride was a solo effort. Unfortunately I ended up just a few miles short of my 80 mile route. I turned too early at the out & back turning point. First time I have had a cramp in many years in the last mile on Busch Drive so I did not bother make up the remaining miles.
 
Weather:                                                                          
Sunny, cool start 47 (F), finish 70 (F), slight breeze 
Nutrition Intake During and after the Course:             
24 oz from Bottle #1 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin (Finished mile 61)
10 oz from Bottle #2 water, BCAA, Glutamine, maltodextrin
Hammer gel @ mile 20
Cliff Bar @ mile 40
Post Ride | 30 gram protein drink
Home | Roast beef wrap
Bike:                                                                                  
LOOK 585,  Garmin 800, Powertap G3, HED Belgium/Conti 4000s @ 95 psi
Overall Power Data:                                                        
Entire workout (149 watts):
Duration: 4:13:08 (4:14:57)
Work: 2259 kJ
TSS: 260.2 (intensity factor 0.786)
Norm Power: 165
VI: 1.11
Distance: 77.296 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 474 149 watts
Cadence: 1 187 73 rpm
Speed: 0 32.9 18.4 mph
Pace 1:50 0:00 3:16 min/mi
Altitude: 656 922 756 ft
Crank Torque: 0 1537 174 lb-in

Summary Table for Time in Level
  Level   Minutes       TSS
      1      1.32      0.31
      2    143.58    133.91
      3    105.85    123.24
      4      0.00      0.00
      5      0.00      0.00
      6      0.00      0.00
      7      1.23      2.12

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