Day 54 & 55 - There and back, and back.

Challenge Set

Ride to Melbourne from Frankston, then if we have enough left in the 'tank', ride back. Approximated total distance 100km... Mr Peds was keen, and so was I.

Saturday 0500h...beep, beep, beepety-beep! Snooze? Hell No! After a quick breakie, I was dressed and ready to meet me bike buddy, Mr Peds, to head into Franko. It was dark, but not so cold outside. I tested my lights, checked my water bottles were full up (with water and electrolytes), stuffed my pre-packed ziplock of dates, and a four spare fizz-bomb electrolyte tabs into my back pockets of my jersey. I tested the Garmin, and as I finished my pre-start tests...My ride arrived!

The wind was already starting to blow when we started our ride from Oliver's beach, at 0645, but the sun was not rising. The tale tale white peaks on the water told me the wind was going to be consistent, I was expecting a little wind....the forecast said it was going to be blowing from the north.... Eeep!

Challenge Met

With the wind in our faces, this trip was going to be as psychological as it was physical. Keeping positive, and almost enjoying the wind burning my cheeks to a new shade of rosie, was in order. Mr Peds and I kept up the motivation in the early stages of the ride with the excitement factor of getting going with this challenge. Later on in the ride we talked about a manner of interesting things to kill the time. I found myself really buzzing throughout this experience. I really enjoyed the sunrise, watching the world around you light up so slowly, but with intensity is really special. Plus, when you start to see things ahead of you it really amps you up. In no time at all we had reached Mordialloc, and the Tour de Cafe. We stopped for a quick comfort break, and headed on. I got an electrolyte get for later, and stuffed in my back pocket.

Cycling from Mordialloc toward Melbourne was very quick in places, thanks to the big riding groups we encountered. Less nervous about riding in a pack, I was really getting into the whole process. Before I knew it we were smashing hills, and moving at a speed of around 35-45kph! This was fairly easy to achieve, since the slip-stream really helped everyone keep pace. I even ended up at the front of the pack for a few minutes - which was quite the opposite, I felt the drag from the whole group and the wind was back in my face! I managed to get my heart rate up to 173bpm! When I eventually dropped back in the group I could barely talk - SHOCK HORROR! What an awesome experience it was; all the fellow rider gee-ing you along, and giving their hand signals for things in the road, movement and such. I find yourself checking and thinking about the pack more than you think about the pain/agony of riding so fast!

At around Black Rock, the pack was all but gone. We were back to riding at around 22kph, and the wind was getting stronger. We joined lots of smaller packs as we went, and before we knew it were in St Kilda.

As we reached this area, Mr Peds pointed out that over in Williamstown you could see both of the new Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) vessels - what an awesome sight to see, Nuship Canberra and Nuship Adeliade parked top to tail, side by side... a rare sight, and it made us both feel quite "charry" - lol, Love Navy!

After this we turned in toward the city and our half way marker...

During the ride my front wheel had developed a lovely jingle-jangle sound, which was coming from the hub. We decided to head to Cycles Galleria to get it checked...one problem, it was only 0800h! So, we headed over to Flinders Station for our celebratory photo (and proof we made it).

After this 'photo shoot' we headed for another comfort break, and returned to the saddle. Knowing (and hoping) that wind would still be blowing from the north, we were confident we'd make the return.

Mr Peds took us out of the city a different way, but it was really busy traffic wise, and we decided to take a detour to make it fun. Just prior to this we spotted a bike shop, with a coffee shop attached (in fact they even had a spin studio for the fit-freaks who can't get enough). I asked for their opinion on my hub. As it happens, some good advice - your hub is a warranty! The bearing cover was meant to be pressed on, by machine, but mine had sheared off - well now the roller bearing were exposed - engineers, we know what that means....bad juju for the bearings! Not much I could do about it on this trip, and safe in the knowledge my wheel wasn't going to shit itself on the way home, I decided to carry on. My bike was gaining some new "memories" from the ride now too....

Whist in the coffee shop we had a lovely cappuccino, and some free protein balls. Yummy. The girl behind the counter was from my hemisphere, Clapham (London) and so we got to talking which was nice to help us relax for a few minutes.

 

 My Protein Balls never come out this tasty. I need more practice, clearly...

Hills...

I'm finding hills to be a great experience. I've learnt to prepare my gear shifts in advance, to make transitioning into the hill climb easier. I've learnt that there's a whole lot of technique in climbing and descending hills. Most of all, I think you need a strong core and endurance in your muscles. Since working on my core more frequently in the gym and training specifically for endurance, I've noticed a new gear in my riding. I've got my power in my legs because I'm holding my core better, my shoulders and chest are better positioned (not perfect, still developing) so that they support me as I ride, and climb. I even got to the point, on the return leg, where I was powering up hills with Mr Garmin (a rider dressed in a Garmin suit) who had monster calves, and I feel suitably bed for leaving Mr Peds standing on those occasions. I did however slow down and he caught me up - I did not want my ride buddy and I to be separated for long! Mr Peds commented on how he thought I'd improved, even since we'd last ridden together. Thanks Mate! As I passed my Personal Best to date of 83.97km, I gave out a good cheer "Boo-Ya" and felt very happy that whatever happened, I was in the realms of a new PB! Smiles all around.

The Route

Breaking 100...

So as we got close to the end, we realised we were going to be around 4-5km short of the target of 100km. So, we decided to turn around at Oliver's beach and do a short loop of 2.5km out and back to make it up.... As we approached those last few kilometres we were both feeling pretty happy, in my case almost euphoric to have accomplished something, that only a few months ago seemed like a dream. I remember, laughing and almost being shocked when IronRay, or Mr Keish would talk about 60km rides. Mr Keish would regularly ride home from the central NSW coast to Sydney, and IronRay is a machine from cycle-hell sent to make us all ride harder. I never thought, and said very frequently that I would never be "caught doing that kind of crazy".... How times change.

3 hours 52 Minutes and 49 Seconds of riding, and I loved every second.

So, as we finished, I played a mental fanfare in my head (well out loud actually), and took a pic of my Garmin screen. I took off my cycle shoes, stretched and prepared for our post ride 2km walk to realign blood flow... Oh My Gosh...We did it Mr Peds...plus we burned 2951 calories on that ride!

 

Achieving Your Impossible

So, as a reflection...and I know this has been said a million times before, so you get my swing on this. IMPOSSIBLE is something we all read wrong. It actually says IM POSSIBLE. Therefore, ergo, there should be nothing that you cannot achieve. For example, my spiritual guide and good friend Peaceful Warrior (PW) took some time off work recently. Without any significant training, she just climbed to base camp of Mt Everest - She completed it Thursday, I believe....but with slow internet on Everest, posted yesterday...you know, time delays, comms lag...blame it on the ISP! She always tells me that impossible is just an excuse. Well, I think, for my slowly ticking off my milestones, and achieving my impossibles, that she might be onto something.

Please, set goals, take baby steps if you need to, but work (like Michelle Bridges says) with Consistency, Consistency and Consistency. Never give up, never back down. I'm on a roll and I'm not planning on going back now. My life is infinitely better since committing to being healthy. It's actually changing my outlook on my whole life plans, and together with my amazing Winnie, and my amazing like-minded friends, I'm doing it.

And Back Again...

Well, thanks to my good mate Mr Peds, and the generous loan of his car, I was able to head straight back into the city to see the peeps at Cycles Galleria. After a quick call had organised a wheel for me. On arrival they told me the it was a "loaner" wheel, since its an upgrade, and that I should contact my local Sydney based shop, to organise the appropriate Cannondale warranty replacement. So, what is meant by "loaner" I asked, they responded with, this is a "free-loaner" as in you can keep it! So, I bagged a freebie Shimano RS21 Rim. As they replaced my tyre and tube onto said rim, my old tube exposed, so they replaced that for free too. I ended feeling a little guilty at the excellent customer service, so purchased some Endura Electrolye gels (which they subsequently reduced for me)...Great afternoon!

When in Rome...

Whilst in Melbourne, and well the parking fee was already paid for, I headed to get some lunch / dinner....it was 1600h by now. I ended up eating a delicious gluten free Thai Pork Vermicelli salad in a cute place on Russell. After, I walked past The Lab nitrogen gelato place...I noticed they had a special on this week only. Sorry Winnie, but I just had to try it (her favourite flavour) Ferrero Rocher, made their way. It was a gelato/sundae to be amazed by....people were queuing for this thing, and I just rocked up, they recognised me (how funny) and I ordered! Boom! It was delicious. The wafers on it were not gluten free, but were made with some type of flour that has yet to even effect me. OMG what a great celebration!

 

On my way home I collected the bike travel bag from a dude in St Kilda, and we removed the pedals and wheels. We locked it in the bag and I need to complete the packing of that bag later today. A fun exercise I'm sure. I was quite sad to see my trusty pedal machine being striped for travel :( I didn't take pictures because it was just too sad. 

Kicking Back...

Today I'm taking a full day of rest, not so much to recover, but to give myself a chance to readjust and relax so I can go hard next week. I've had a long morning, spent snoozing and just ate lunch. Now I plan to work on packing the bike and relaxing some more.

I think thats reward enough for my biggest challenge this year!

Have a great Sunday.

Days 46-48 Rest, Reload & Ride

Lots of Rest....

After my fairly intensive Thursday, I found myself using my rest day to its fullest, sleeping and enjoying a day off on Friday. I ate some yummy squares of chocolate, and rewarded my big week of training.

Just a couple of squares....

Saturday, wasn't a good weather day, so no good for long runs or rides thanks to the addition of wind gusts. So, I used my additional rest day to buy some groceries, relax at a little French Cafe, and chill out. After all, it is just as important to rest your mind as well as you body.... Well, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it! I also took the opportunity to load up with some healthy carbohydrates, in the hope that I might get to burn them off at some point over the weekend....

Biggest Ride Yet

After a slow start, and a later than normal wake up, I decided (since the sun was shining) to take a ride. Since my first road cycling milestone is to ride from Crib Point to Frankston, I decided to give it a stab. I really wanted to use my new quick disconnecting Garmin bike mount, and see how easy it was. Full visibility of the displays, ease of connect / disconnection on the mount and just the level of cool this lifted me to, made this so worthwhile!

I headed out from Crib, toward Hastings, turned off the highway just prior to Tyabb and cut across the peninsular toward Mornington. As I approached Mornington, I turned onto the highway in the direction of Frankston. I shortly after turned off the highway again, and in my infinite wisdom, took the turning for Mount Eliza.

Not knowing the elevation of Mount Eliza, I continued ahead (in hope of a good view of the peninsular).... In the few kilometres that were between me and Frankston, I started to feel the burn.... Incline getting steeper I was up out of the saddle, in the small chainring on the largest sprocket of my gears...basically as loose as I could get it....on and off the saddle I went, moving very slowly. The long, winding climb, never seemed to end.... Eventually, after what felt like forever (in reality around 15 minutes of riding), and as I saw my heart rate reach the highest I've ever seen it rise, 175bpm (95% Max HR), I saw a black BMW pass me and almost instantly disappear in front of me...

"WOW!, that must be some freaking awesome decline I'm about to riiiiiiiiiide! Yeeeee-ha!" 

As I sped down hill, in the drop bars, I saw my speedo on my Garmin 910XT reach 63kph! Oh yea! So speedy! That was a pretty awesome reward for the hard climb. As I continued to speed past Frankston, I had a thought....I'll just turn around at Seaford.... As I passed Seaford, I thought I'll be okay until Edithvale....then at Mordialloc I thought about pushing onto Black Rock. So as I reached Black Rock, and 60km travelled I pulled a u-turn and headed back toward Mordialloc. I stopped at the "Tour de Cafe" for a little rest. This place was awesome. There were purpose built racks to 'hang' your bike by its saddle, and it felt safe enough to just leave it there! 

Tour de Cafe

The other awesome thing about this place was that they not only sold coffee, food, but cycling fuel - bananas, electrolyte and carbohydrate gels, energy drinks and lots of other cool stuff like that. It was a haven for all those cyclist coming from Melbourne, or like me, from the south. With a lovely marina view, and the sun in my face, I enjoyed a cappuccino and a banana for $5. The Dextrose gel (cola flavour) which I got for $5 as I left, perked me up on the way home.

As I sat there, contemplating my return to Frankston, and the potential for butt-soreness if I went any further than that, I munched on one of my GU Chomps (which I brought in a ziplock) and downed a swig of coffee....BUZZ! Game on! After a few minutes of polite chit-chat with an older fellow rider, I jumped back on my trusty Cannondale and head on my way. I return the 20 odd kilometres to Frankston and pulled up at the train station, just in time for the next train to Crib. Perfect. After such a great day out on my bike, I feel like I've worked my body from head to toe! - especially my hip flexors and thighs! So, my first time beyond 80km and I feel good - 83.94km in 03:22:52...plus I was riding all by myself. I'm very happy with that result :) Even if I am writing this post a little after midnight - I called my Mum back in the UK to wish her a happy Aussie Mumma's Day! Did you call you mum tod?

 

Well Look at that - Max Speed 63kph, Max Heart Rate 175bpm, Max Cadence 123rpm!

 

Balls

After dinner, and a little more work on my engineering service paper, I decided to watch some movies and make some Protein Balls. This week I plan to use them to prevent me snacking on bad snacks, and to hold-off hunger. My 'balls' are simple, they're made up of almond meal, chopped dates, shredded coconut, Mayvers peanut & cacao spread, coconut water, ground cacao nibs and a generous scoop of Casein protein powder. All mixed, rolled and squished together, by my fair hand to produce an epic tummy filler of healthy goodness!

I'm pleased with the outcome, 7 days worth (2balls per bag) plus some spare to give to friends! 

Sharing is, indeed, caring!

Day 34 - Pushing Thru Sore

Sore, Not Sorry!

I woke up a little stiff this morning, glad to have slept in, but eager to get out on my road bike for some leg loosening, blood pumping, exhilaration....

I got dressed, ate a banana and gulped down a couple thermogenics with a glass of water. Sunnies on, plan in my head - I was ready to go.

I grabbed my bike, checked my tyres and headed down the fire escape from my cabin (my usual route). I jumped on my bike, hit go on my Garmin 910 XT and saw my cadence sensor, and heart rate monitor buzz into action before my eyes - I love technology.

Freedom Joyrides

I cycled out of the main gate, and headed away from Crib, toward Somers. My plan was simple, ride to Somers, stop at the General Store Cafe for coffee and a bite (brunch) and cycle back. The round trip was 30km, so still a valiant effort considering my achy soreness in my hamstrings, glutes and quads!

The first 10-15km were a little bit of a struggle, but soon after my legs warmed up and I felt the spin get easier. I was averaging 70rpm and a heart rate of 130bpm which for me is not too shabby. I arrived at the cafe, hungry in need of some fuel.

Thankfully, 10am on a sunday is not peak hour (11am seemed to be) and I made my order, took a table outside in the sun looking at the ocean...all I needed to make my morning perfect was my wifey, Winnie...sadly not gonna happen, so, I indulged (ha ha ha) in a large cappuccino and a gluten free breakie - which was yummy. It had good crispy bacon, half an avocado, steamed spinach, grilled tomato and a yummy salsa with the gluten free toast and poached (to perfection) eggs.... (must've been using Miss Han-Wan's poacher!).

After eating this yummy brunch, I sat and let it go down, for 10-15 minutes, took a couple generous gulps of my electrolyte drink and set off on my return trip. This made the couple sitting in the shade happy, since they jumped at the chance to steal my table in the sun!

My ride consumed around 900 calories, and my legs were pretty sore after so I had a shower, drank a protein recovery shake, aminos and finished the electrolyte drink.

The rest of my sunday has been spend revising for yet another exam! Boredom Central.

Day 6 - What Goes Down...

What a fantabulous day I've had!

I hope your Saturday has been equally fulfilling, satisfactory. I got up this morning, made a few edits to yesterday's post and added some cool photos from last night's mess dinner and got on with my day. I have been totally motivated all day.

Day 6 - Something a little different

I decided to don my cycling gear and go for a nice long bike ride, I haven't explored much of the Mornington Peninsular since my arrival in January and this is the best way I've found! I jumped on my bike, which by the way is my new super-cool Cannondale Caad 8 and headed off-base….

My Bike

Being the chary sort of Naval officer that I am, I felt a compelling urge to take my self to the namesake town of my old NEOC 49 Division, Flinders. Incidentally, NEOC 49 was that last time Flinders will be used to be a Divisional name. 

 

Flinders is approximately 25km South-West of HMAS Cerberus, fairly easy to get to if you follow the Frankston-Flinders Road. Now, I'd never been to Flinders, and thought I could make an adventure of it,  to ride and explore, whilst doing a nice gentle cardio workout. I left my cabin with bike, dressed for action - my Garmin 910XT and HR monitor, my iPhone strapped to my arm ready to record to Map My Ride - I like a double source of data, for greater accuracy!

I jumped on my bike and set off….

What Goes Down.

Now, when I left this morning I was expecting to see some wonderful sunshine, the open road ahead of me and some breathtaking ocean views in a 360 degree panorama around me. I was not to be disappointed, but initially was concerned about what I might see. As I cycled out of the main gate to the outside world, I realised I was rather chilly due to the fog that surrounded me. It was 9am and still foggy? Oh well, I just ploughed on...

After reaching the Frankston-Flinders Road, in pretty good time, I was cruising downhill using a fairly efficient spin technique and enjoying warming, from the exercise and noticed that the sun was burning up the fog and now the views were starting to open up to me - Oh Yea! I could see a long gradual downhill section of road that seemed to go down as far as the eye could see…. Clearly, I was wrong. The road to Flinders was not all downhill, or even flat in places. My 'gentle ride' in the countryside was looking epic from the saddle I was sitting in.

Initial Countryside Vistas

The hills were initially small and not too taxing, but frequent. I was travelling fairly well - a good speed and not too stiff a gear. I knew to glide and pull my feet, utilising the cleats to their max on the uphill sections.  I also remained seated - I had read that sitting down meant a more efficient ride up hills… They didn't mention that it takes a lot of effort to sustain on long hills!

As the hills started to get harder, I could feel I was getting a solid workout - nice. My heart rate was steady, averaging 135 bpm, but climbing with the hills. After a while I got into the rhythm of the hills.  I was powering down the hills and screaming to the top (although it felt like a crawl up). I noticed early on that I was changing to an overly easy gearing too soon into the hill and subsequently lost some power. I soon stopped that! I knew I was getting closer, and the country vistas were changing to dramatic views of cliffs and ocean views that were truly stunning. With around 15km under my belt, I was gifted a ridiculously steep, long downhill section that allowed me to really get my 'speed on'! I notched up my fasted downhill speed today - 72kph! However, what goes down…. must eventually come up.

Rolling Steep Hills

The hill up was equally steep and long, and I found myself in the easiest gear struggling and really working. My heart rate was pushing 150 bpm (which is pretty good for me) and as I reached the crest of the hill I could see the road far ahead of me…. (cue dramatic horror music) and the view ahead showed me something I didn't really wanna see…. about 5-6 more big hills just like this one! Two things immediately came to my mind - do I (a) turn around now, or (b) down this sucker and finish my ride to Flinders! I chose option B (as you might expect from me) and felt the literal burn in my legs, for the remain 5km or so…. It felt like 25km!

Before Descending to the Pier

As I spun my way into Flinders, I felt an awesome sensation to ride down to the pier and take a look, plus I would look awesome on my ride maps if it showed me riding down the pier, seemingly into the ocean! I didn't realise I'd be faced with 3 very steep declining roads to the pier! I went down anyway and rode my bike out onto the pier.

Stopping to take it all in...

Eventually….Flinders

After a short stop, and a comfort break I was back on my trusty machine, powering up those steep inclines and thinking only of one thing.

"Man, I need a coffee"

So, I stopped and ordered a short-mac, a milkshake and a slice of Gluten Free Orange Cake. I walked outside and joined a group senior citizens and their older looking dogs. As, I sat chatting to the gentleman closest to me, I found myself very intently listening to him, enjoying talking to someone new who could spin a story and was happy to while away a lazy hour. I enjoyed my coffee, the cake and my milkshake - loading up for the inevitable ride home. My legs were starting to get a little stiff, and the gentleman and his friends were just starting to leave - I promptly made to excuse myself from their company, so I could collect my bike, and go around the corner for a good stretch!

And Back!

After relaxing and listening to some local Flinders folk, I finished up and headed home. I found myself psyching myself up for each hill, then really getting into the aggression of powering back to base on a new found energy - even though my legs and my butt were getting sore!

Almost forgot, here's a few stats :- 

1. Round Trip Distance = 58km. 
2. Max Speed = 72kph
3. Average Speed = 21kph
4. Max HR = 168 bpm
5. Average HR = 135 bpm  

I returned to base around 1330h and gave my bike a quick clean, and then showered up and realised I had not only skipped breakie, but missed lunch too - so glad for my emergency supply of fruits and quinoa!

The rest of today has been spent relaxing, watching Dr Who (Season 5, if you're interested) and doing a little pre-reading for next weeks classes - Fluids Management!

What did I learn today….Well, if you want something go get it. If you are faced with a challenge you can either rise up and take it on, or not. I think just get the hell on with it and think a little less - you know you'll love it and you know you'll regret it if you turn back, so crack on!

I also realised, that I particularly enjoy listening to new people (old and young) tell their stories and share their experiences. That was a particular highlight. 

Time for bed, see you later!