Republic Bike liked
Any examples of good web design in a cycling context will be posted. Above: Republic Bikes, spotted on Dropular.
Archive for March, 2009
Recovery notes
A couple of notes to self on recovery. Since the Burgess Hill Classic a fortnight ago, I haven’t felt above 80% on the bike – in terms of my energy levels and leg strength – and I’m trying to figure out why.
There are some things I already know about, like last Saturday’s late night / hangover combo. But this weekend I would have expected to feel recovered, so after a good sleep Thursday night, I headed out on Friday, aiming for 4hrs minimum. I went 2.5hrs. The hailstorms that at one point forced me off the road were a factor, but basically I still felt tired, I didn’t even particularly want to ride that day, and once in the saddle my legs had no zing.
Looking back at my training plan, I had 3 ‘build’ weeks up to the Puncheur on 1st March. Then I had a kind of plateau week, then I did a week, albeit with 2 rest days, that culminated in Burgess Hill on 15th. In retrospect I probably ought to have had a light week straight afterwards i.e. no more than 5 hrs in the saddle. In fact, by last Friday I’d only had 1 day completely off the bike since the sportive.
I’ve now had 3 days off the bike and some good sleeps, even if I did climb Snowdon on Saturday and my legs are wrecked. My plan is now to repeat last week’s 4 days of commuting, before doing 100 miles on Saturday, and another 100 the following Friday.
Zing update: I rode Archway to Brixton last night, and powered it. 2 full days off the bike, and the zing is back.
Rollapaluza
Under starter's orders...
Cruising.
Burning.
Last Wednesday I got in some impromptu spin training at the Rollapaluza Winter League in Reliance Square, Shoreditch.
Jas was along to take photos for the London Paper, and I ended up racing against Kevin, the LP journalist. We did 1000 metre heats, and I posted a time of 50 secs or thereabouts, comfortably toasting Kevin. As a workout it was surprisingly savage. After about 30 secs it feels as if every muscle in your legs is filling up with burning acid. It took me 3 days to stretch out the stiffness.
I’d like to try it again, because apparently it’s as least as much about technique as leg speed and power. Furthermore I had the bonk walking into the venue – a beer and a packet of crisps was all I had to get back on track.
Check out the Rollapaluza Flickr photostream or for more Roller madness browse this set from Rapha.
Big-ride prep: what not to do
Last Friday, for the first time this year, I prepared really badly for my big weekend ride. Normally I’m really careful and focussed on my important training blocks, but maybe I was a little focussed-out after the Puncheur and Burgess Hill Classic both within a fortnight, and needed more rest. In any case, here’s my run-down of how it all went wrong.
Sleep: I had about 6 hours sleep on Thursday and Friday night. Not cool, I need at least 8 for 2-3 nights before a big ride to be in optimum shape.
Food: It was my Mum’s 60th last week, so on Friday my family and I went to Claridge’s for a celebratory tea.
Tea at Claridge's: posh carbo-loading.
I consumed:
- 10-12 small sandwiches, no crusts, mixed fillings.
- 1 scone with jam.
- A glazed fruit tart.
- Half a chocolate cake.
- 6 cups of tea.
- 1 glass pink champagne.
Alcohol: after Claridge’s, and prolonging the posh party vibe, we went for a few drinks at the Park Lane Hilton. Later, I caught the tube to Brick Lane to meet some people in a bar.
I drank:
- 5 double rum and cokes.
- A bottle of lager.
- A Jager-bomb (for the uninitiated, this is a shot of Jagermeister dropped into a glass of Red Bull, and downed).
My plan for Saturday was a 5-6 hour easy ride with Millsy, but the combination of poor sleep and a hangover found me tired, weak and confused at 7am Saturday. The weather was stunning, but I had a headache and dry mouth for much of the ride. It could have been the ride of the year, but instead it was an ordeal.
Note to self: this is not to be repeated before July 4th!
What recession?
My 2009 Wiggle tab. I'm not proud.
As another £50 finds its way from my pocket to Wiggle’s today (for a chain and 4 brake pads), I take comfort in this from Velodramatic:
The world economy may be in shambles but those of us who ride and still have a job to go to can always find a way to justify one more piece of Rapha kit. There’s nothing wrong with looking good when times are bad. Just make sure there’s a little something left over for charity.
Velodramatic's Tab: read it and weep.
I know that, however much I splurge on bike bits and cycling essentials, my debits pale into insignificance when compared to Velodramatic’s Tab. The Tab is the most blatant, glorious example of celebrating a bike gear habit on the web. It’s a list of over USD $42,000’s worth of purchases made over the past few years, the majority of it on high-end items and clothing that most of us struggle to justify. The man’s spending is epic, it is shameless, it is immense. To top it all the page itself is a labour of love, an elegant, neatly implemented HTML table with star ratings and links to suppliers where applicable.
I am in awe.
Mornflake gets a makeover
Mornflake: a true breakfast contender (old-style packaging on the right).
Mornflake has had a packaging makeover. Gone is the old skool red-and-yellow logo; a new era has been ushered in, presumably aiming to re-position Mornflake alongside Jordans in the competitive muesli market. The farmhouse colour scheme and countryside imagery hit all the right rustic notes. Back of the net, then, for Mornflake. (more…)
Sportive poster-boy
Check it out. The sportivephoto.com home page currently offers a photo of me pseudo-toasting Jonny in the Puncheur.
While we’re on the subject, I have a couple of suggestions for Mr Phil O’Connor of Sportive Photo. No quibble with the quality of the photography, excellent event coverage, reliable web interface, very fast processing times. But £7.50 for a digital download? It’s too expensive – all I want is to email my Mum and post on this blog.
This is how I would price images in this scenario:
- lo-res (600px longest edge) digital download: £3
- hi-res digital download: £6
- all hi-res rider photos from single event zipped for download: £25
Printed image prices are fine, as is the bill for burning all images to CD (£30), which clearly takes time.
But I do think Phil’s pricing misses a trick in deterring the casual digital downloader. I would happily have paid a tenner for a few lo-res files from each event (3 so far this year) – but I won’t pay £22.50. At that price I can handle the watermarks.
Lightweight
A chocolate eclair. Not so healthy for ya...
People have started remarking on my weight. ‘You look quite thin’ etc. There was a point last year when this started, although this year I’ve reached that point earlier on, mainly because I deliberately set out to shave off a few pounds from mid-February.
Last year it wasn’t until after the Mexico trip that I lost weight – and that time I think I went from about 12st to a low of 11st 6 on the Southern Sportive in September. This year, I was less than 12st after Christmas, but I’m already down to 11st 6, if not lower. I need to be more scientific about this, but I think I’ve lost about 3-4 pounds over the last month.
It’s actually been really easy, check out Al’s pro weight-loss techniques:
- eat just a bit less – if you’re riding 10 hrs a week, there’s no sense in cutting down massively. It’s actually enough to simply not have a second plateful for your evening meal.
- cut out butter, mayo, bacon sarnies, creamy puddings, cakes, chocolate, crisps.
- do the occasional ‘fasted’ ride i.e. ride to work without breakfast or do a mid-week session on just a banana – your body will start metabolising fat more efficiently. I find doing a couple of these a week over a 3-week period is enough to kick-start weight-loss.
Why bother? The bottom line is that losing weight = free speed. Climbing is also my strength, and the lighter I am the better I climb. All pro cyclists aim to lose weight gradually over the season, leaving their lowest weight target until they reach peak fitness. I’ve heard this referred to as being ‘on the razor’, the point beyond which a rider actually risks getting ill or, paradoxically, losing form (this happened to Iban Mayo too early in his 2005 tour, I think).
My target weight is to be around 11st for La Marmotte in July.
Half Acre Cycling
I discovered Half Acre Cycling via a post on their designer’s website. It’s a really cracking site that continually reminds me I need to create a new theme for this one. Another reminder was my discovery last night of Joe’s Échapée site, which obviously uses the same ClockWorkSimple theme as this blog. It is on my list, but I want to give it some proper time.
The Burgess Hill Classic
Yesterday’s 114km sportive, my 3rd of the year, marked a new milestone in my training calendar. At just 4km longer than the Puncheur a fortnight ago, the Burgess Hill Classic was significantly hillier, with Kidds Hill after 45km and (contrary to what one rider was saying at the first feed station) a draining series of short, steep climbs from about the 80km mark.