Brewery to Brewery Ride- long
So, as part of my buildup to LP, I decided to follow the LP tri rally with a 148 mile Brewery to Brewery ride the following weekend. I had to prove to myself that riding over 100 miles wasn't such a big deal, as before the LP rally I've never done a 100 mile ride. Saturday morning I woke up early to ride the 9 miles into town to the start. Unfortunately, I did not remember that I had to ride uphill to get there. I was also a little late, so I pushed the pace some and just convinced myself it was a warm up. This was my second road bike ride this week and the only two I've done since last October. I swagged up my FTP 15 watts from the tri bike and hoped for the best.
After registration, I just wandered into line to be with my group. Unfortunately, there was no rhyme or reason to the line, so you just had to be lucky to get with a group your speed. The ride out of town was uneventful and I just rode with my start group, which included a nice guy who was also in this ride solo. He proved to be my guide for much of the day and was a good companion. The ride out of town was pretty uneventful given all of the stoplights, etc. At times it seemed like whoever was at the front was pushing, but it would quickly settle back down due to lights.
After the first bathroom stop, things became interesting. The group changed a bit and at one point formed a gap. When this happened, people then dropped off the front, which left me in the lead. I could see that the other group wasn't moving real fast, so why not get some work in and chase. We eventually caught them, but at the same time a light came, which merged a few different groups. When we set out it became apparent that I ended up with the wrong group. Some maniac was at the front, just hammering and would do so for 5 minutes, then drop to the back for a minute, then pull out and pass everyone to go to the front and hammer. When he wasn't on the front it was a nice, quick 21 mph pace. He would crank it to 25 mph. I knew that I shouldn't be there, but I hung on for as long as possible, which ended up being a hill right before the first check point. I knew then that I didn't do a good thing only 50 miles into the day.
Ouch:
Duration: 1:30:38
Work: 1063 kJ
TSS: 129.8 (intensity factor 0.929)
Norm Power: 227
VI: 1.16
Distance: 31.152 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 718 196 watts
Cadence: 31 229 93 rpm
Speed: 2.4 35.6 20.6 mph
I knew I was in trouble, so I just started out with the person I met in the beginning who also dropped from the group a little after I did. I decided at that point to try to ride more steady when solo, but see if I could connect with a better paced group. I ended up doing a lot of this with my new buddy, but the pace was still a struggle at times as he rode hills like a roadie and I ride then like a triathlete. Eventually he dropped me and I hooked up with another small group until the gas station stop.
Rest stop 1 to Mobil:
Duration: 1:35:37 (1:36:20)
Work: 914 kJ
TSS: 89 (intensity factor 0.752)
Norm Power: 184
VI: 1.15
Distance: 23.451 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 437 160 watts
Cadence: 30 183 83 rpm
Speed: 0 38.3 14.7 mph
Next came the never ending hill. This thing was brutal. It just kept going and going and going. I had to start being a triathlete and watching the watts. I swagged a 245-250 by adding 15 watts from my tri bike FTP to the roadie. Did I mention this is only the 2nd ride on the roadie since October? Anyway, after a constant climb, I found some people who were pulliing just at my speed and jumped on to them to pace me up the hill. Definitely helped as I was starting to have foot problems with my left shoe. Rode most of the hill with it unstrapped to relieve some toe pressure. Finally got to the top and took an extended break at the rest stop.
Never ending hill:
Duration: 1:50:14 (1:51:01)
Work: 958 kJ
TSS: 84.7 (intensity factor 0.684)
Norm Power: 168
VI: 1.15
Distance: 27.846 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 380 145 watts
Cadence: 29 244 77 rpm
Speed: 0 43.4 15.2 mph
At this point, I was starting to question how I was going to finish this ride. My infinite just wasn't tasting good anymore and I switched to some solid food to see if that helped. I was starting to have trouble cooling myself off, even in the shade and by dumping water over my head. I eventually headed out again with a few people and quickly got dropped on another hill. I was trying to ride more consistent IM watts. Then a blessing happened, a stoplight with a regroup. I jumped on just to see if I could hang, but it wasn't to be. However, another group came quickly rolling through and I jumped in. It was a double line of almost 30 people and it was a hard, but good pace. I sat in the back, hammered the hills to keep contact and then settled in to rest. I was able to maintain this until the next rest stop. This group saved my ride.
Good group:
Duration: 1:09:16
Work: 583 kJ
TSS: 50.7 (intensity factor 0.663)
Norm Power: 162
VI: 1.16
Distance: 21.633 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 546 141 watts
Cadence: 35 236 86 rpm
Speed: 0 36.2 18.8 mph
I needed another extended rest and missed this group when they went back out. I don't think I could have hung on as I was feeling a little sick, so I watered up as much as possible. I figured I could ride a little less than IM watts and be done in about 1.5 hours. It was getting hot and I wanted to be done. I used the saying I did during the LP tri rally run--if you want this to be over, go faster. I didn't go faster, but I finished.
Just finish!!!:
Duration: 1:20:40 (1:21:04)
Work: 651 kJ
TSS: 53.3 (intensity factor 0.634)
Norm Power: 155
VI: 1.15
Distance: 20.881 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 341 135 watts
Cadence: 35 209 77 rpm
Speed: 0 33.9 15.5 mph
Pace 1:46 0:00 3:52 min/mi
I learned that trying to hold on is fun, just not when you have over 100 miles left to go. It was also interesting when that other group picked me up and I was able to hang on even though I was shelled. Overall it was a fun ride and I'm interested to try it again now that I know what to expect. Had some beers with the wife and then hit a cute little inn for the night to celebrate the anniversary with some great food and drink. I was tired for a few days, but not sore which surprised me. Total times were longer than expected, but hey it was fun.
Entire workout (151 watts):
Duration: 9:29:40 (11:54:46)
Work: 5133 kJ
TSS: 512.9 (intensity factor 0.742)
Norm Power: 182
VI: 1.2
Distance: 157.743 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 718 151 watts
Cadence: 29 244 84 rpm
Speed: 0 43.4 16.6 mph
Pace 1:23 0:00 3:37 min/mi
Comments
@Keith, 143 miles is legit, and the B2B ride is EPIC. I wouldn't do FTP at all…unless of course you try to hang with your group. So the options are either, try to hang with big boys and do some work with them (pace picks up right outside city limits!!!) until they settle down. OR you can do your own thing from the outset…dial in .68-.7 (your call) and ride IM watts all day and see how much TSS you can earn!
I guess I shouldn't have picked the big boy option
I've done that ride a few times now and am amazed at how hard people go out in the first 30 miles. Sorry I missed it this year. House hunting in Ausitn took precedence.