Brewery to Calhoun to Fairmont

Happy 4th of July to all my friends and family!!
May you have a blessed and enjoyable time this weekend.

Garmin Connect Ride Data

Ride Summary:
Distance: 62.18 mi
Elevation Gain: 3,135 ft
Moving Time: 03:48:16
Avg Speed: 16.2 mph
Max Speed: 34.5 mph

The Group: Jamie, Peter, Derek, Claire, Doug, Mike, Gary, Nancy and me

The Ride: After four weeks of virtually the same route out to Redbud I wanted a little change of scenery so I selected a route and modified it a bit to fit something different. We were still going to be on some of the same roads, but riding out there it is difficult to come up with different variations. I heard some good feedback concerning the route, which is good and I certainly enjoyed it. The route was fairly flat to low rolling hills and my goal upfront was to stay at a certain level or in other words not go so hard that I would end up in a recovery hole that I would struggle to get out of. Peter had just returned from a week of hard riding on Bike Virginia, but he along with everyone else looked to be riding strong today or at least from my vantage point. Pretty much everyone spent a turn or two up front pulling the group so there was good group effort from everyone.

The biggest entertainment of the day, since she turned out to be safe, was Jamie's short but epic battle against a border collie mix that brought Jamie up to sprint speed trying to shake the pesky canine. The rest of us got to watch safely a few feet behind as Jamie took one for the team. Also kudos to Jamie for a long awaited step forward using her Garmin Edge 705. Way to go and way to shake that pesky dog.

Our pace for the most part was moderate and we did a good job staying together, but on a few occasions were stretched out. Unfortunately my route overlapped the Georgia Cup Time Trial for a few miles. Who knew that there would be a time trial out in the middle of nowhere? I hated that we may have been in their way, but I suppose it turned out okay. We did our best as a group to stay single file and close to the white line as each individual passed us.

After the store stop in Fairmont and four mile stint on Highway 53, the group picked up the pace a little bit and was pulling me out of an intended zone so at near mile 50 I dropped off the back of the group and finished the remaining miles at a very subdue pace, but with the hills I still was hitting 85% of my functional threshold. I guess the 0.82 intesity factor below feels about right for the day and the other thing was I was just plain sleepy today. I felt physically fine, but driving home was a struggle and once inside the house I dropped my gear, laid down and immediately fell asleep. I did not stay asleep long, but when I woke I felt as if I could go another 8 hours of sleep and still feel that way at the moment.


To those in the group please know that my dropping off the back was intentional and I was completely fine riding the remaining miles solo. I had planned before the ride to stay in my training zones. Plus the threshold intervals on Thursday wore me out and I was tired today.

The Weather: Cloudy, 82 (feels like 83 according the Weather Channel), 7 mph winds from the E.



Nutrition Intake During and after the Course: (1) 24 oz. bottle of water with glutamine, BCAA's, and Hammer Heed, (1) 24 oz. bottle of water with Hammer Perpetuem (1) Cliff bar, (2) Hammer gel

 Power Data:
 Entire workout (119 watts):
    Duration:      3:52:53 (4:17:47)
    Work:          1646 kJ
    TSS:           263.2 (intensity factor 0.828)
    Norm Power:    157
    VI:            1.32
    Distance:      62.605 mi
        Min    Max    Avg
    Power:           0    820    119     watts
    Cadence:         29    244    78     rpm
    Speed:           2.3    35    16.3     mph
    Pace             1:43    26:06    3:41     min/mi
    Hub Torque:      0    385    57     lb-in
    Crank Torque:    0    866    135     lb-in

____________________________________________________
I recently did my FT test at probably my lowest fitness point of this season due to work and vacation interfering with training. So my FT in WKO is currently set very low and as a result until my fitness level picks up my data looks like my casual group ride is a race. My fitness level may be coming back quickly so these numbers may appear to be skewed. I will stick with the FT number for a few more weeks, but then I may need to retest sooner than I had hoped. The ride today did not feel near as hard as 0.9 IF as indicated below for 60 minutes or 0.82 If for the duration. There were no data drops today using my back up bike (Cannondale six13) so the wiring harness on the LOOK needs some attention.




Peak 60min (135 watts):
    Duration:      1:00:29 (1:11:57)
    Work:          487 kJ
    TSS:           82.5 (intensity factor 0.908)
    Norm Power:    173
    VI:            1.28
    Distance:      18.244 mi
        Min    Max    Avg
    Power:           0    568    135     watts
    Cadence:         33    188    83     rpm
    Speed:           2.3    35    18.2     mph
    Pace             1:43    26:06    3:18     min/mi
    Hub Torque:      0    344    57     lb-in
    Crank Torque:    0    605    144     lb-in