Guidelines for safe group riding

These are some guidelines that FOTR adopted (subject to fine tuning):

• Use verbal cues and hand signals - car back, hazards, etc. ANZA cycling has very good guidelines.
• Accelerate smoothly and gradually from stationary starts and away from corners. More so when the train is long and at higher speeds, to allows rear riders to stay with the group.
• On undulating terrain, front riders should ease up when climbing, especially if the train is long. 
• Designate certain stretches as no surge zones and sprint zones where riders can rev their engines with designated rv points
• Pre-ride briefing to emphasize ride route, stop points for re-grouping
• Pre-ride route sent out via email 
• Let the group know if tired or not feeling well
• For inclusivity, we should have shorter options for riders who are not out to do endurance riding
• Commitment to riding as a group for safety. Sometimes we may split up into two sub-groups - the speedy and steady sub-groups. Each sub-gorup should have a sweeper. Those who are dropped from the speedy group, please slow down and join the steady group. We should also stick together as a group when traffic builds up. We should have at least two or three riders sticking together, especially when peeling off.
• Organize the 2 groups such that the group taking the shorter route could rv with the group taking the longer route at a designated point at a later time. This way we could all end together, have breakfast and live up to the name of the group - fellowship!
• Rolling off - pull for a specified time/distance and then roll off. This way, everyone takes turn pulling at a good speed

Cycling: How fast is fast?

The start of our back-to-back long rides to prepare for Mersing double century was a 86km on Sat followed by 66km on Sun. We hooked up with another group of strong riders, and they, together with CS and MH set a blazing pace. More often than not, we were above 30 kph up till LCK.

After a rest stop along the westcoast highway, the action got even faster and more furious. We were rolling along at more than 35 kph along, and the speed went above 40 kph subsequently. This was the first time I hit above 40 kph (42 to be precise) over a single km on flats. I got dropped along the Keppel viaduct after a traffic light and slowed to join the steady group. Average speed: 28.3 kph over 86 km (the rest were faster!).

On Sunday, we tried taking turns to pull. The first part went quite well as we rode the Braddell viaduct, with speed between 25 to 30 kph on undulating terrain. RV with HP and WL for the second loop, and also RV with Jodan. Kept the pace to a comfortable 25 - 28 kph. And went up Hendon Road, a 400m climb that was sufficiently challenging but doable.

Then we decided to take turn pulling along CCR. We sped along at 32 to 38 kph and realized that we had to fine tune our technique to switching / rolling over.

At higher speed (above 30 kph), the first rider has to slow down to peel off, but the second rider should not speed up too much. Just enough to maintain the speed, otherwise the first rider would not be able to catch up at the back. Also, three lamp-posts appeared too short a distance to pull. Perhaps 1 km is a better distance. The other thing to note is that once the lead rider drops below a specified speed, he should switch back. 

For a better perspective on Sunday's ride, please see Jodan's account.

Personally I thought last weekend's rides set a new milestone for FOTR. We could now sustain above 34 kph and we achieved new highs (as a group).

But the question is how fast is fast? I had asked myself this question before, and my answer then was 35 kph is fast enough for me. Sure, it feels good to hit new highs to improve. Yes, it is wonderful to be stronger. However, we should never do so at the expense of safety.

One of the key learning points for me is to accelerate gradually. Surging from a stationary start or after cornering would mean that the riders at the back would have to accelerate even more to keep up. The same applies for going upslopes. This becomes more critical when the speed goes above 30 kph.

Why is this important? Safety. Riders tend to get dropped if the pack surges, and it is certainly safer to ride with the pack.

We have been mulling over some guidelines for safe riding, especially as our group gets bigger. Certainly need to fine tune our guidelines as we go along.

But hey, it feels great to hit 42!

Training program outline for next 12 months

Serious stuff, getting a 12-month training outline. But then, IM is serious business.

Formal IM program starts in Oct on account of my busy schedule in Dec & Jan. Aviva 70.3 will ne a tune-up. Focus will be on swimming and triathlon-specifics from now till Oct.

The C word - Cramps

Cramps. My beloved nemesis!

 

For long rides over 2 hours, cramps are very real problems.

From my intimate experience with the Cs, they strike due to 

- salt and electrolyte imbalance due to heavy perspiration 

- anaerobic state for too long

- tight muscles

- insufficent conditioning

Better genes help, naturally, but we can't do anything about what God endowed us with. So..

Solutions from trial and error, and these vary from person to person:

- s-caps / salt tablets 

- isotonic drink e.g. infinit (recommended by Mark Allen)

- stretch b4, during and after exercise

- monitor HR, determine and adhere to HR zones

- avoid sudden surges

- shift to easier gears

- take more frequent and longer breaks

- sports massage 

- training. motherhood reason :) 

    

Above are my thoughts in response to a recent FOTR discussion on cramp problems in cycling.

IM races and training

3.8 km swim, 180 km bike and 42 km run.

How much training would I need to cover the IM distances? Having put in up to 17 hours for the 70.3 (half IM), I have been pondering over the training time required to complete an IM.

After a few discussions with coach, here's what I established:

• 6 months of training
• peak mileages (6 weeks out): 10 km swim, 300 km bike (400 km preferably) and 80 km run. In one week. For two consecutive weeks. [faint!] The rule of thumb coach uses is twice the race distance.
• That's more than 30 hours a week for my limited capability. Alternatively 25 hours on higher intensities. 
• 6 weeks before the race: 4 weeks of speedwork and 2 weeks of taper

With such Herculean prospects, it would mean either (a) train for a good AP 70.3 (Dec 2010) and a mid year 2011 IM, or (b) treat AP 70.3 as training for IM China (May 2011).

A number of other considerations come into play in the choice of IM race - (a) cut-off time, preferably 17 hours, (b) distance and cost, preferably Asia, (c) beach or deep water swim start, (d) temperature, (e) time of the year, preferably during school holidays so that the family can go as well, and (f) work and travel schedules.

After some deliberation and consultation, I am targeting IM China (May) and IMWA (Dec). AP 70.3 and Aviva 70.3 would be training sessions.

BFG Rave Runs: Rotterdam, Netherlands

It's World Cup time, and there's no better place to be than in Europe. Rotterdam has another distinction this summer - it is the starting point for the 2010 Tour de France.

The Netherlands is a great place for cycling. One of the curious facts of the Netherlands: nearly 85 percent of the population own at least one bicycle.  It is estimated that there are about 16 million bicycles in Holland, slightly more than one for every inhabitant. About 1.3 million new bicycles are sold every year.

I was amazed when I saw a parking lot for bicycles near the train station. Rows and rows of bikes on a land area not unlike that for car parks. That's a grand sight.

It is not difficult to see the contrast in cycling environment between Netherlands and Singapore. Here, there are dedicated bike lanes (shared with motorbikes/scooters), and there are road markings, traffic lights, road etiquette for cyclists. The pix taken from the 15th floor of Novotel Brainpark shows clearly the dedicated bike lanes (in reddish brown).

Commuters as well as recreational cyclists can be seen well utilizing these lanes, making me wish that I could go out for a spin as well. After all, it's a nice summer day here, with 20 deg C temperature. I was looking at a ride to Delft, about 20km away. But work comes first.

What I did have time was a short 5 km jog around the hotel. Good to get those legs moving after the travel.

And I came across a small grass patch near the river with sheep grazing on it. Right here in Rotterdam. Amazing.

Now to catch up on World Cup news so as to make politically correct conversation with the conference delegates.

Back on the bike

Too many LSD runs have left my cycling muscles dormant for too long. So it was good to get back to cycling again, with a mid-week ride with JN and IN, and two longer rides over the weekend with FOTR.

The Sat ride was 75km through Braddell and Kaki Bukit viaduct (nice!), Punggol Point (what a rush), Sengkang (got lost), YCK (never ending; met AY there), Mandai (never seen so many cyclists at the Shell station before) before heading back via Upper Bt Timah. It was WL's first ride on cleats, so he had some difficulty adjusting to them. To his credit, he did not fall! So he's now officially our cleat hero.   :)

Sunday ride started off with dark clouds looming, but we decided to go ahead anyway. Towards the end of CCR, it started pouring and we took shelter at Changi village - and had some hot coffee and toast. HP improved substantially and reached 30 kph! Bravo.

This morning's ride was called off due to lightning and thunder. A downer for sure, but we win some and we lose some.

New Directions

My checklist for this year looks decent so far. PB for a 42, completed the 70.3 and 84 ultra. Now the next check box is a full IM next year. To go that distance for me would simply be one word - focus.

Coach confirmed my intuition yesterday. Ideally, 8 months to train for the IM. He put it very nicely - it would be easier for him to plan my training if I didn't get distracted with various other events. The Mersing ride is ok - two back-to-back long rides. The SBR/AHM is fine - just a long training run. But no main event until the Asia Pacific 70.3 in December. That means foregoing Desaru, TNF and other events.

Next year, we plan on two IMs - IMWA (Dec), with Desaru in October as a lead-up, and another mid year. Possibilities are Korea or Roth, Germany. I am more inclined towards Korea even though it is not a dot-M event for a simple reason that it has a 17-hour cutoff. Cheaper to boot - only USD170. Roth has a 15-hour cutoff.  Plan to use the 2011 aviva as a lead up to mid year.

A new direction going forward would be speedwork to improve my run. True, all the longer distances have slowed me down considerably (not that I mind), but to do well in the run leg, I have to get some speed. No way to buy speed except to train. Urrgghh! The dreaded intervals again. So the plan is to do 5km races with a target time in mind. Strangely enough, I have never taken part in a 5 km race.

I am also toying with the idea of taking a sabbatical from racing in 2012.

A good break

The past week was spent with PK, JN & our families visiting Siem Reap, PP and HCM city. It was a well deserved rest, with lazy swims and only one 5 km treadmill run.

But we can only stay away for so long. This morning, JN and I met up with IN for a short ride on the usual Mandai route. Boy, has IN improved! He's really fast and slowed down so that I could keep up.

Pretty happy with the new Edge 1.65 wheels. Stable at high speeds, and nimble on climbs. Managed close to 40 kph for one km before Mandai Shell, which is my fastest todate. This stretch is slightly downhill, so nothing to shout about really. Need to get them cycling muscles up to speed.

A nice finisher photo for MBH! Her first half marathon, bad ITB and all.