Adam's cycling training journal

3 favourite YouTube videos

2008-10-03T23:05:55Z

Not related to cycling at all, I promise.

In no particular order.....

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=K4aoCMIasZY
I love how they actually overtake the news crew at about 1:25. Makes you feel safe, eh!

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=tM8WOGgH8Sc
Ah, the tranquillity!

I'm still undecided about the third one. Will get back on this.

7 September ride

2008-09-07T11:21:31Z

Today is the Pinarello's 8th birthday! It was, of course, raining and so I took it for a ride because I didn't want to get the Cannondale dirty.

I took it easy and went to Onuma, met Hisanari, did two thirds of a lap to make sure he was warmed up then did some intervals.
From a sprint start,
2 minutes at
180+ BPM and
110 RPM followed by
5 minutes' recovery,
3 times.

These hurt! I was able to maintain my speed after the initial sprint but found that my legs were pretty 'full' and I didn't feel like I was really powering along. I found myself concentrating on relaxing through the high cadence and being efficient, which was good but wanted to be more explosive, with a higher HR. Maybe if I psyched myself up more before they started...
My HR was generally between 180 and 185.

Hisanari did the same, at his pace. For a 15 year-old they were pretty tough! He did his best. After that we finished the lap at a comfortable recovery pace, chatting. He's really looking forward to the Tour of Hokkaido's citizen races next week.

After he went I was just about to go home when I saw a large group of riders who had come from Hakodate on an organised ride. It took them 2 hours! I did a lap with them, which was nice but I found myself alone when I increased the pace to 36km/hr.

After that, I was just about to go home when I saw a couple of people from Hakodate I know - Dan and Tomoko. They had rented bikes and were going to a hot spring. What a great thing to do together on a Sunday. We had a nice chat and finally I rode home!

Road bike to Onuma, 3 laps, home.
Distance = 98 km
Bike time = 3hr 10min
Ride time = 3hr 25min
Avg speed = 31 km/hr
Max speed = 65 km/hr
Avg HR = 141 BPM
Max HR = 185 BPM
2008 total = 10600 km

3 September ride

2008-09-03T08:50:56Z

Today's big news is that the brake pads and shoe cleats I ordered a few weeks ago finally arrived. Pretty exciting stuff. I will install them in the next day or so.

It was really really humid today, it wasn't so hot, about 25 degrees or so but it was extremely sticky. OK if you're cycling but wearing light wool pants at work was quite uncomfortable.

I went to Toi and while it was a great tailwind on the way there it rained for the whole way back and I got a little wet. Warm rain though. My legs felt a bit dodgy at first, recovering from yesterday's intervals but then they were fine.

Road bike to Toi.
Distance = 51 km
Bike time = 1hr 30min
Ride time = 1hr 30min
Avg speed = 34 km/hr
Max speed = 54 km/hr
Avg HR = 143 BPM
Max HR = 165 BPM
2008 total = 10284 km

2 September ride

2008-09-02T13:12:17Z

Today's big news is that my new heart rate monitor strap arrived! I will be very careful not to put it in the washing machine in the future.

I forgot that I had a 5 o'clock commitment instead of the usual 6, so I spent a half an hour veging out watching youtube.com instead of riding. Therefore I didn't ride as much as I should have.

Anyway I warmed up by riding towards Toi then did the following intervals.
3 minutes at
180 BPM and
110 RPM followed by
5 minutes' recovery,
4 times.

During each interval my breathing was really heavy and I had a bit of heartburn, it was a bit uncomfortable. Need to eat more veggies! Been eating lots of rice and pasta and bread and muesli recently. That feels like the reason for it...

Road bike towards Toi.
Distance = 45 km
Bike time = 1hr 33min
Ride time = 1hr 35min
Avg speed = 30 km/hr
Max speed = 53 km/hr
Avg HR = 138 BPM
Max HR = 185 BPM
2008 total = 10233 km

31 August ride

2008-08-31T05:50:04Z

After the ride yesterday I didn't get a really good rest, but slept deeply. It has been really humid in the last couple of weeks, I'm looking forward to it drying out, even thought it will be cooler.

Hiro and I met at 8 and rode slowly to Future Uni then along the hills to the day centre near the start of Hakodate Shindo. From there I did some intervals.
From a sprint start,
3 minutes at
185 - 190+ BPM and
110+ RPM followed by
5 minutes' recovery,
4 times.

These were not so long and I didn't do so many but crikey they hurt! Without a heart rate monitor I couldn't know my HR exactly but measured it to be about 190 BPM at the end of two of them.

Hiro did the same too. When we had finished we rode to Onuma but it was really hard for Hiro to ride strongly, he was still recovering from the intervals. And he got a flat tyre!

At Onuma, Hisanari joined us and we did a really fast 5 laps. That's 70km. We only stopped a couple of times to fill up the water bottles and I really enjoyed riding with Hiro and Hisanari. There were lots of other people riding or walking around the lake and it was fun watching them zoom past!

I was getting pretty tired at the end of the 5th lap, so after sprinting up the little hill, we cruised back to Hisanari's parents' place. Then we rode back to Hakodate, taking the hilliest course available! I felt really good, tired but still had energy. I know I should have started taking it easier before the Tour but I wanted to make up for last week's terrible Sunday, when I could only manage 42km or so.

Road bike to Onuma, 5 laps, home.
Distance = 154 km
Bike time = 5hr 10min
Ride time = 5hr 50min
Avg speed = 30 km/hr
Max speed = 75 km/hr
Avg HR = ??? BPM
Max HR = ??? BPM
2008 total = 10188 km

30 August ride

2008-08-30T13:14:24Z

Yesterday it rained all of the morning and I had stuff to do in the afternoon so I didn't get to get on the bike.

This morning I met Hiro at 8, we rode steadily to Onuma and met Hisanari after doing a lap. We did two more laps together, the first nice and slow, the second a lot faster with a great surge for the second half.

We stopped to have a chat with Hisanari's parents, stopped to get some water, stopped to get some sports drink from my favourite shop (which has 15 varieties of Belgium beer at extremely reasonable prices...). I love Saturday rides! Finally we stopped at the wonderful organic cafe and had some tea and blueberry cake.

For all of the breaks it was a pretty good ride, we rode at a good pace and I was pretty tired when I got home. I wonder how I will feel tomorrow after another long hard ride with intervals?

In the late afternoon Michi and I went to Obachan's place and we picked most of the basil that we have been growing. It filled two shopping bags and after we chopped it into paste it filled two large cereal bowls. I'm really looking forward to eating the pesto sauce!

Road bike to Onuma, 3 laps, organic cafe, home.
Distance = 105 km
Bike time = 3hr 35min
Ride time = 5hr 00min
Avg speed = 30 km/hr
Max speed = 66 km/hr
Avg HR = ??? BPM
Max HR = ??? BPM
2008 total = 10034 km

26 August ride

2008-08-26T08:33:14Z

Last night we stayed at an onsen inn in a tiny town called Yunotai. I sometimes ride through it on my long rides and thought it was a really cute place. It's in the middle of nowhere, on a small plain amongst hills of green. There are only a handful of houses and a bare minimum of services. A post office. A shop. A school. That's all. In Japan that's a pretty unusual thing. There is no industry and no reason for it to be there really. I wonder what it's future holds.

Anyway today we drove home via Esashi and Assabu. I did my ride in the afternoon. Into the wind, of course, I did some intervals...
From a sprinting start,
5 minutes at
180 - 185 BPM and
110 - 120 RPM followed by
5 minutes recovery at
100 RPM,
6 times.

These were good, I was able to focus well and stay on target throughout. My heart rate monitor doesn't work so I times my heart rate for 6 seconds and multiplied it by 10 for an occasional estimate. Anyway it felt like a good workout. I will have a new one this week.

Road bike towards Toi
Distance = 51 km
Bike time = 1hr 40min
Ride time = 1hr 45min
Avg speed = 30 km/hr
Max speed = 65 km/hr
Avg HR = ??? BPM
Max HR =185 BPM
2008 total = 9759 km

24 August ride

2008-08-24T04:07:27Z

What a crazy day! Summer has definitely gone, and it seems it has no plans of returning this year.

Anyway, last night Michi and I made a really big pot of miso soup and we ate most of it. This morning I felt fully recharged which is a wonderful thing. Phew.

It was really wet earlier on so I waited for the Olympic marathon to finish (those guys are amazing) before putting on most of my winter gear and going for a ride. The wind was about 50km/hr and it rained 'on and off' so I didn't go too far from Hakodate.

I went East along the coast road toward Toi, into the wind. I did the following intervals..
5 minutes at
180 BPM and
110 RPM followed by
5 minutes' recovery at
110 RPM,
4 times.

The schedule was to do 6 intervals for a total ride of 160km but given the weather and my lack of energy yesterday I thought this was enough. It was good to get the legs moving. Two intervals were into the wind at about 26km/hr, but those with the wind were at about 54km/hr!

Road bike towards Toi
Distance = 43 km
Bike time = 1hr 30min
Ride time = 1hr 35min
Avg speed = 33 km/hr
Max speed = 58 km/hr
Avg HR = ??? BPM
Max HR = ??? BPM
2008 total = 9708 km

23 August ride

2008-08-23T07:43:57Z

Where has Summer gone?

Again it was cold and cloudy this morning when Hiro and I left at 8. I had armwarmers and a vest on and still it wasn't enough. We rode slowly into a really strong wind to Ono then Onuma.

Hisanari kun joined us for a couple of laps of Onuma at a comfortable pace (well the first one was a bit faster!). Then we went home via the wonderful organic cafe hidden in the second floor of a farm shed in Ono.

Riding home after lots of mint tea, pumpkin cake and a nice chat my legs had no energy and I felt quite flat. It was that 'I'm getting a cold' kind of sensation - not good! So when I got home I had a shower, some food and rested well.

Hopefully I can recover quickly....

Road bike to Onuma 2 laps and home
Distance = 85 km
Bike time = 2hr 55min
Ride time = 3hr 40min
Avg speed = 29 km/hr
Max speed = 65 km/hr
Avg HR = ??? BPM
Max HR = ??? BPM
2008 total = 9665 km

19 August ride

2008-08-19T03:40:13Z

John and I left at 9, just as it started raining lightly. We went to Ono and stopped by the organic cafe but it was closed so we just continued slowly back to Hakodate.

I hadn't seen John for a year or so, so we rode really slowly and had a chat. He's on a cycling tour of Hokkaido but with several broken spokes has been spending quite a bit of time on trains too. We stopped at Lucky Pierrot near my place and had a hamburger for lunch.

Road bike to Ono.
Distance = 42 km
Bike time = 1hr 50min
Ride time = 2hr 30min
Avg speed = 22 km/hr
Max speed = 57 km/hr
Avg HR = ??? BPM
Max HR = ??? BPM
2008 total = 9431 km

17 August ride

2008-08-17T11:44:50Z

I arrived back from Korea yesterday - it took a long time!

This morning Peter, Malcomn, Fujisawa and I went for a ride. I didn't want a really long hard ride and it was nice to catch up with my friends.

We went to Onuma, Shikabe, Minami Kayabe then back over the hill to Tetsuzan. I did some short intervals and little hill sprints, riding back to regroup if we got split up.

It was a good workout after all, not so many breaks and some higher intensity bits as well.

Road bike to Onuma, Shikabe, Tetsuzan.
Distance = 100 km
Bike time = 3hr 20min
Ride time = 3hr 50min
Avg speed = 30 km/hr
Max speed = 70 km/hr
Avg HR = ??? BPM
Max HR = ??? BPM
2008 total = 9389 km

13 August race

2008-08-13T11:40:05Z

I felt pretty good this morning, the legs were quite light and felt ready for another race. Nice feeling!

We started at 10 again and it took my a while to get psyched into it. I guess I just felt a little wary of crashing, but after a while when everyone settled down and rode a bit smoother I felt better.

Again the pace was really high. The series of little hills was there from yesterday but the rest of the course was halved to 16km which we did 6 times. It didn't rain!

Somewhere on the second or third laps a break got away and there were a lot of serious and not so serious attempts to bridge it. They increased their lead slowly and finished a minute and a bit ahead of us at the end I think.

This is such good training for the Tour of Hokkaido. I'm strong and have good endurance but the Korean riders can just attack all day and it's a really challenge to keep up with the changing pace. I was pretty good on the climbs too.

But terrible at the final sprint. I finished 4th last I think. But it's the journey that matters, right? :-)

If you want to see some photos please have a look at these. They were taken by Megumi who joined the group. Thanks Megumi!

http://megkusatch.exblog.jp/d2008-08-12
http://megkusatch.exblog.jp/d2008-08-13

Race in Korea
Distance = 100 km
Bike time = 2hr 28min
Ride time = 2hr 28min
Avg speed = 41 km/hr
Max speed = 80 km/hr
Avg HR = ??? BPM
Max HR = ??? BPM
2008 total = 9208 km

10 August ride

2008-08-10T13:27:28Z

Yesterday I got my Cannondale back from the bike shop in Nagoya, so I spent some time putting it back together and making sure I didn't break anything. It has a new bottom bracket, chain, cables and seatpost. A big service!

We woke up at 6, got ready quickly and drove to Onuma at a quarter to seven, arriving before seven thirty. It was a beautiful morning, clear, dry and quiet, with just a little bit of cool in the air.

I got the bike ready, helped Malcolm with the tent and waited for people to arrive. At the start time of 8:07 we had about 10 people, so we started! The idea was to ride to support a couple of African charities. I also had a training plan, which I did.

But first, I had to stop a couple of times to lower my seat. And talk with Akiko and her friend. After the first lap, which was really slow, I did...
15 minutes at
170 BPM and
90 RPM followed by
10 minutes' recovery,
3 times.

After last Thursday's big intervals it was easy but my legs took a little to get used to the Cannondale again. No soreness, just getting used to it!

After the intervals I took a bit of a break, talked with some friends, rode for a couple of hours, filled my water bottles and did three great laps with Peter at a good steady pace.

My original plan was to do 200km so that I would have a total of 2500km but with a big week next week and fairly hot conditions I decided not to strain myself and was happy to stop after 153km.

After I got home I packed up my Cannondale and put it into a padded bag for my trip to Korea. I'm leaving Hakodate at 7 tomorrow morning, the race goes from Tuesday to Thursday and back home on Saturday. It's hard to believe I'm going, really. I'm looking forward to it though.

Road bike around Onuma 11 times.
Distance = 153 km
Bike time = 4hr 40min
Ride time = 5hr 50min
Avg speed = 33 km/hr
Max speed = 52 km/hr
Avg HR = 146 BPM
Max HR = 178 BPM
2008 total = 9008 km

Charity ride total = 2455 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

9 August ride

2008-08-09T06:35:19Z

Ito san and I rode to Ono, met with Malcolm then went at a comfortable pace to Shikabe. We didn't do any sprints but Ito san did some great time trials, he's pretty strong.

I was happy to ride behind, save my energy and keep my HR below 80%.

It was a stunningly beautiful day, warm, dry and with really clear air. The views of Komagatake (mountain) were as good as in winter. Lots of people were at the beach and of course there were absolutely no waves.

When we returned to Hakodate Ito san and I enjoyed a cup of coffee in the only cafe in town with outside seats.

I've included 20km to the total below to account for trips to the shops and stuff on my mountain bike this week.

Road bike to Ono, Onuma, Shikabe and back
Distance = 104 km
Bike time = 3hr 48min
Ride time = 4hr 35min
Avg speed = 27 km/hr
Max speed = 61 km/hr
Avg HR = 123 BPM
Max HR = 172 BPM
2008 total = 8855 km

Charity ride total = 2302 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

7 August ride

2008-08-07T11:14:50Z

I originally planned to leave at 1pm but it was about 29 degrees and really bright. It didn't seem like a good environment for effective training so I chilled out at home and left at 3 o'clock. A 200km ride became 120km.

After warming up I stopped to stretch. My heart rate didn't drop below 95 BPM and I was a bit worried that it was too high. I considered not doing the intervals but decided to play it by ear. No dramas, as it turned out. They were....
25 minutes at
169 - 174 BPM and
90 RPM followed by
10 minutes' recovery,
3 times.

I actually really enjoyed these, with the longer duration I could get into a good rhythm and focus on pedalling smoothly. They didn't seem so long!

After 60km I turned around and came back on the same flat roads. I started riding through the built-up area just after the sun had set, so it was darker than usual. I had front and back lights and felt safer because there was no sun shining in the eyes of the drivers coming towards me.

Road bike to Sengen cho and back
Distance = 120 km
Bike time = 3hr 30min
Ride time = 3hr 50min
Avg speed = 34 km/hr
Max speed = 57 km/hr
Avg HR = 155 BPM
Max HR = 177 BPM
2008 total = 8731 km

Charity ride total = 2178 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

6 August ride

2008-08-06T13:19:02Z

It was really hot today, 27 degrees and fairly humid. I know, it's not that hot but this is Hokkaido and it's usually not so bad.

So anyway with a few big rides coming up and the trip to Korea next week I decided just to take it easy. I rode to Tobetsu along the flat ocean road past Kamiiso. No sprints or intervals, just a nice steady pace.

Road bike to Tobetsu and back
Distance = 51 km
Bike time = 1hr 40min
Ride time = 1hr 50min
Avg speed = 31 km/hr
Max speed = 47 km/hr
Avg HR = 133 BPM
Max HR = 162 BPM
2008 total = 8611 km

Charity ride total = 2058 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

30 July ride

2008-07-30T03:39:49Z

I rode at a comfortable pace to Onuma this morning, met Hisanari, did a hard half lap together (about 8km) then completed it at a cruisy pace. He's 15 years old and training hard in his school holidays for a 1000m race on the 10th of August.

From there I just rode home alone, stopping at Meihou bike shop for a spare tube. It was a nice ride, saving my energy for tomorrow. My left archilles tendon is a bit tight so I will get a massage this afternoon.

Road bike to Onuma, 1 lap
Distance = 70 km
Bike time = 2hr 20min
Ride time = 2hr 50min
Avg speed = 30 km/hr
Max speed = 52 km/hr
Avg HR = 134 BPM
Max HR = 175 BPM
2008 total = 8333 km

Charity ride total = 1780 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

29 July ride

2008-07-29T13:04:31Z

It rained this morning, so I went out at about 4 o'clock this afternoon. I felt well rested as it was over 48 hours since Sunday's ride, but my legs were a bit tight and heavy.

I went to Toi, warmed up for 11km then did the following intervals..
15 minutes at
170 - 175 BPM and
90 - 100 RPM with
10 minutes' recovery,
2 times.

I was meant to do three of these intervals but my stomach felt a bit dodgy so I only did two. But I was happy with how they went, I rode strongly both times, once into a headwind and the other time with a tailwind. It also rained near Toi, the roads were really wet, but as I went back to Hakodate they dried out quickly.

Road bike to Toi, home
Distance = 54 km
Bike time = 1hr 50min
Ride time = 2hr 00min
Avg speed = 29 km/hr
Max speed = 64 km/hr
Avg HR = 137 BPM
Max HR = 181 BPM
2008 total = 8263 km

Charity ride total = 1710 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

27 July ride

2008-07-27T07:07:20Z

I prepared for today's ride by eating lots of good food and hydrating well yesterday. Also I got a decent sleep, so I felt pretty good when I got up just after 5:00.

After a quick breakfast I left at ten past six. I rode to Kamiiso pretty quickly as a warmup then started the following intervals.
20 minutes at
168 - 172 BPM and
100 RPM followed by
5 minutes' recovery,
3 times.

It was difficult to keep my heart rate above 170. My legs felt 'full' when I pushed up the pace, so I stood up occasionally to stretch and/or get some more speed. These were with a tailwind, and the average was about 43 km/hr.

Finally they were over and I continued down the coast, 15km past last Sunday's turnaround point to Matsumae, an old and history-filled town. My average speed was 37 km/hr! I bought some water and a snack and rode back.

Although the last 20km was a tailwind, generally it was a headwind and occastionally a sidewind. I ignored my speed completely and just focused on my heart rate and cadence. The HR monitor worked perfectly today!

I rode at a steady pace, but made a couple of really short breaks to fill up water bottles. At the 5 hour mark I felt quite tired but was able to get over it. I drank a fair bit more than last week - 4 160ml gels, 2 litres of water and 500ml of gaterade. When I was riding in to Hakodate my legs felt tired but it wasn't painful to start at traffic lights. And no cramps whatsoever.

It was an hour longer than last week but I finished strongly and am sure that I could do it again at a higher pace, expecially the intervals.

Road bike to Matsumae, home
Distance = 190 km
Bike time = 5hr 35min
Ride time = 6hr 00min
Avg speed = 34 km/hr
Max speed = 65 km/hr
Avg HR = 152 BPM
Max HR = 175 BPM
2008 total = 8209 km

Charity ride total = 1656 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

26 July ride

2008-07-26T03:29:20Z

We started earlyish today, Ito san and I left at 7. On our way to Onuma we met Akahama san and Malcolm. I also got a flat tyre (wasn't paying enough attention and rode over a rock).

At Onuma we did three laps nice and easy, nothing of a high intensity which was good because I will be having a big ride tomorrow. Yesterday's rest was very welcome too!

Road bike to Onuma, 3 laps, home
Distance = 100 km
Bike time = 3hr 30min
Ride time = 4hr 05min
Avg speed = 29 km/hr
Max speed = 59 km/hr
Avg HR = 123 BPM
Max HR = 166 BPM
2008 total = 8019 km

Charity ride total = 1466 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

24 July ride

2008-07-24T12:49:17Z

I originally planned to ride this morning but when I got up at 5 o'clock I was pretty tired so I went back to sleep.

I headed out to Onuma at about 1 o'clock feeling much more refreshed. It was really overcast and actually rained a bit so the roads were partly wet. But it was warm so it didn't matter.

After riding for about 20 minutes I started some intervals...
15 minutes at
170 - 175 BPM and
90-100 RPM followed by
10 minutes' recovery,
4 times.

By the time I had finished this I had done two and a half laps of Onuma (and passed a few startled tourists on tandems!). From there I did three and a half more then came home.

After the intervals finished my heart rate monitor showed a HR of 190 - 230 BPM. Very strange and a little frustrating. I corrected the information below.

I only stopped twice to fill up my water bottle, so it was a very steady ride. Unfortunately I couldn't do the full 160km as planned but 142 is OK! I felt pretty good, my legs were fine and even near the end riding out of the saddle was no problem (last year it was impossible!). I'm getting a lot stronger from these rides.

Road bike to Onuma, 6 laps, home
Distance = 142 km
Bike time = 4hr 08min
Ride time = 4hr 17min
Avg speed = 34 km/hr
Max speed = 53 km/hr
Avg HR = 151 BPM
Max HR = 175 BPM
2008 total = 7919 km

Charity ride total = 1366 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

23 July ride

2008-07-23T12:31:14Z

This afternoon went to City Hall to get my new gaijin card, an ID card that all foreigners are required to carry. That was the warming up.

Then I rode to Toi. It was really humid but the roads were dry and it didn't rain. My goal was to go at 150 BPM but that felt a bit hard to I just took it easy and rode comfortably. I have been doing a lot of riding recently and tomorrow will be another long day so I don't want to push myself all the time.

Then I went home and ate some salad with some basil and parsley Michi and I had grown - delicious!

Road bike to Toi and back
Distance = 53 km
Bike time = 1hr 40min
Ride time = 1hr 45min
Avg speed = 32 km/hr
Max speed = 59 km/hr
Avg HR = 132 BPM
Max HR = 160 BPM
2008 total = 7777 km

Charity ride total = 1224 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

22 July ride

2008-07-22T13:20:01Z

It rained this morning and so I took a chance that it would be fine in the afternoon. The roads were dry when I left and rode towards Toi but although it didn't actually rain the roads were sometimes quite wet. But it was warm so no problem!

After warming up I did the following intervals..
15 minutes at
170 - 175 BPM and
100 RPM followed by
10 minutes' recovery,
3 times.

My legs took a few minutes getting used to the pace but it was not too hard at all. Actually, I quite enjoyed them, there was no wind and I was able to ride at about 42km/hr. Between intervals I rode quite slowly and noticed a lot of really beautiful houses and buildings that I have passed many times but never really noticed!

After I finished the last one I spent about 15 minutes cooling down, then went to a hot spring with Michi. Even though it's summer it's very refreshing, something I didn't really expect.

Road bike to Toi and back
Distance = 60 km
Bike time = 1hr 50min
Ride time = 2hr 00min
Avg speed = 33 km/hr
Max speed = 55 km/hr
Avg HR = 154 BPM
Max HR = 178 BPM
2008 total = 7724 km

Charity ride total = 1171 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

21 July ride

2008-07-21T09:43:33Z

I didn't plan on riding today but Fujimaki san invited me so I said 'yes!'. It was a very relaxing ride with him and Hisanari. We went to Ono, then back around the main roads to the start of the Shirotai climb then back the same way.

We had two short sprints but that was all. Good conversation!

From there we went home and then had lunch at the buffet restaurant at the local Marui department store. So much ice-cream.... And yesterday's steak was delicious too, felt much better after that.

Road bike to Kamiiso, Ono and back
Distance = 55 km
Bike time = 1hr 55min
Ride time = 2hr 00min
Avg speed = 28 km/hr
Max speed = 55 km/hr
Avg HR = 117 BPM
Max HR = 170 BPM
2008 total = 7664 km

Charity ride total = 1111 km
http://africa.petesweb.org

20 July ride

2008-07-20T03:34:40Z

I got up at 5 o'clock, ate some muesli, got my stuff ready and left at 6:10. It was really quiet on the road, it was warm and cloudy but no chance of rain.

After riding to Kamiiso I did some intervals on the flat roads....
15 minutes at
171 BPM and
100 RPM, followed by
10 minutes' recovery,
4 times.

This took an hour and a half! The first one took quite an effort to finish within the target HR zone but the other three were better. Not easy though! The roads were mainly flat and there was little wind, so I could get into a rhythm easily.

When these had finished I was just past Fukushima, a little fishing village. I continued a little further to make up the distance. At the turnaround point I was pretty tired and kind of looking forward to the trip home.

For the last 80km I rode at a really steady pace of 150 - 155 BPM. Even though it was pretty challenging, especially the last 40km, I felt like it was a great endurance building ride.

I took a minumum of breaks - two stops to buy drinks, one to make a phone call and the rest were traffic lights.

After I got home I had a shower, stretch, water and some food. While I was resting I noticed that my calf muscles were having mini-spasms, not cramps, no sensation at all. It was pretty funny to watch. I imagine that this is them recovering from the effort.

I feel like eating a nice big juicy steak for lunch!

Road bike to Fukishima and back
Distance = 165 km
Bike time = 4hr 45min
Ride time = 4hr 59min
Avg speed = 34 km/hr
Max speed = 55 km/hr
Avg HR = 155 BPM
Max HR = 175 BPM
2008 total = 7609 km

Charity ride total = 1056 km
http://africa.petesweb.org