Pedals and Paddles Worldwide

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Ronde van Great Bay: Great Bay Half Marathon (4/11/10)

Race: Great Bay Half Marathon, Newmarket, NH
Distance: 13.1 Miles
Goal Time: 1:45:00
Real Time: 1:43:43

At about 12 and a half miles we made a sweeping turn back toward the town of Newmarket only to be faced with a hill about a block long and probably greater than a 10% grade. The guy in front of me says: "Fuck, not another fucking one!" Sure enough before we could finish this race we had to run up one more damn hill. Pretty much the whole half marathon was like the Ronde van Vlaanderen - short steep hills.

It was a fantastically organized race. We were directed to parking and then vans shuttled us to the registration and we took the same van back to our car. And the shirt, a short leve high quality wicking shirt was up to Felix's standards (apparently his number one concern of a race is that you get a good shirt).

Despite all the steep hills, it was a beautiful course. The loop took us out through the woods on the Durham line. Parts of it were on a cool winding dirt road with the short steep hills. I was able to maintain a comfortable pace and didn't feel pressured or have my usual "heavy legs." Turning off the dirt road, we were on the loop back toward Newmarket. Throughout the ride people were out in force. People were playing music in front of their house and local high school track teams and others were manning the water stations.

Coming over the last hill and back into town, the last 100 meters were straight down the main drag with even more people lining the finishing stretch. Me and another guy sprinted each other down that last bit. He nosed me out, but I'm sure each of us cut ten seconds trying to beat each other. As I stopped my watch I realized the great time. While it was 1 minute slower than my Portland run in October, I think I ran better considering that this was that much more difficult of a course.

If you are not doing Boston next year, the Great Bay Half Marathon should be your April 2011 race!

Friday, April 9, 2010

Jealous of people in bed - City Run (3-28-10)

Distance: 5 Miles
Goal Time: 37:30
Actual Time: 37:50

Do you think it'd be okay
If I kept this pace today
And you see I'm in no shape for racing
And, anyway I got a half in two weeks

The night before I worried about the cold. Most people I know complain in February about the cold, but I'm fine with winter cold. It is the cold in Spring I hate. Once winter's gone, I want it to be fully gone. Temperatures between 35 and 50 drive me insane.

Sunday was cold and windy. Wandering around, I tried to get myself motivated to run a 5 mile race in weather I didn't want to be in. The Saucony truck blaring "Hey, Jealousy" was not much help either.

As the gun went off, I immediately felt my "heavy legs." The first mile was fighting the inertia in my thighs. It seems every race that first mile has the butterflies drop from my stomach into my legs carrying lead weights. The first mile was 7:03 - way too fast.

And you know now the question it begs
From where comes always heavy legs
If I hadn't signed up for this City Run
I might not have this fun.

By mile two I had dropped into a steady pace. We turned off the road and circled the Fresh Pond path. For a bit I found a guy in a yellow shirt who I could pace off of. After the pond there was the final dash up Huron. The uphill false flat finish left me unprepared for my usual sprint finish - but I did get one person.

Everything I had left was not enough to break my goal time - missing by 20 seconds. But, as Lance argued at the Criterium International this year "if it was July and I had this form, it would be a problem." The City Run is merely a step in my path. On 4/11 at Great Bay we'll get the 4-1-1 on my path.

I can run around this lake
Let the others go and race
This race is done but something might be
Found to get a good pace

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Glacial Century (2/20/10)

From Random Pics

Bascke Ostarije at the New Hampshire Line

Distance: 102.5 miles

Difficulty: Medium

Glacial - both in speed and amount of ice I rode through.

At 8:45 I left Central Square and headed out for a century ride. I found a great ride on mapmyride.com: http://www.mapmyride.com/route/united-states/ma/cambridge/570354427

It was to take me up to the NH line and back. Then I was going to add a ten mile loop to make it up to 100 miles.

This first ran into some trouble when Bedford doesn't plow its portion of the Minuteman. I made my way over to 225 which is the main connector between the Minuteman and the Nashua River Trail.

The Nashua Trail was then not plowed at the Groton line. So I worked my way over to 111 and then up to the Nashua area.

There's a note in my book to kayak the Nashua river this summer.

But this was no touring ride! My goal was to do it in 8 hours - with stops.

Unfortunately, as usual I was too frickin' slow - I did it in 9:15 with breaks. Average speed - 11.08 mph. Alas.

Friday, February 19, 2010

No Chalk Candy Hearts Ride (2/14/10)

View No chalky candy hearts Ride in a larger map

Distance: 86 Miles

Difficulty: Easy

Ride: Cambridge, Somerville, Arlington, Lexington, Lincoln, Concord, Acton, Littleton

I know when the callendar flips to winter and the middle of February comes, the thing most people think of is - long bike rides.

The Charles River Wheelmen were doing a 45 mile Valentine's Day Ride leaving from Lincoln. I figured I'd tag along to that ride.

Lincoln of course is at least 15 miles from my house, so I had to ride there first. In my typical last possible second style I left Central Square at 9:15 with a little over an hour to ride out to Lincoln. With my cold legs churning through the cold February air I had difficulty moving my body but I created my mantra:

Throwing out what was a blistering pace for me, I rode up Mass Ave into Arlington and hopped onto the Minuteman into Lexington and took the surface roads out. I was unable to stop at my usual break-point, Paul Revere's Capture Site as I had no time.

Taking the tough hills of Bedford Road and Lincoln Road, I got to the ride with seconds to spare, riders were already leaving. As they started going by me, I asked:

As I had not brought a cue sheet, I had to hop on with these guys - with no knowledge of speeds, etc. The lack of knowledge and experience in these group rides is one of the detriments to my cycling skills. I have never tried to stay with another experienced rider. So now as we rode through the Lincoln Woods and Walden Pond, I had to push myself to keep up in some points but then only have to slow myself down in others.

At one point my computer started to malfunction (or not function). I split myself from the group and "repaired" the computer. (I wiggled the cable that was loose). But now I had to make up ground and was back to throwing down a blistering pace.

As things shook out, soon after the split off of the 45-miler and the 30-miler, It was only a guy Peter and I riding in our "group." I tried to just follow him and keep up. At times I was able to get my speed up or beyond his as I kept on his wheel. And, it turned out, he was a great one of these club cyclists with whom to ride.

We finished up the ride. Peter offered me a lift as far as Watertown, but I was actually looking forward to my ride back to Cambridge with only myself to account for. I hung out with Thoreau at Walden Pond for a few minutes and then enjoyed a pretty leisurely ride down 62 and the Minuteman back to Cambridge.

83 miles in 7.25 hours - 11.86 mph. While this is nowhere near the pace of 13.75 mph that I want to achieve by September; it's a good time for my second long ride of the year.

This coming weekend, I either want to throw down a century on Saturday or maybe a 50/50 on Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Winter Blues Ride (1/16/10)

View Winter Blues Ride in a larger map

Distance: 50 miles
Difficulty: Medium
Sights: Castle Island, Great Blue

I reached a rotary and somewhere in those recesses of my mind, I remembered something.

I’ve been here before, but why?

Suddenly I remembered that there was a good sandwich shop, but I didn’t remember exactly from where and to where I would have been going to get to said sandwich shop. So I made an educated guesstimate of the way I should go.

It immediately seemed wrong. The road looked familiar but I was definitely heading the wrong way. Into the sun meant southwest, while I clearly wanted to go Northwest to get to Chestnut Hill.

Soon I reached the Harvard Vanguard and Bertucci’s on VFW Parkway. Crap. Sure enough, I had ridden the exact wrong way from JP to get to Newton.

So, I rode up VFW, since NOW I know how to get over to Newton

******

It was a nice warm day to go out, for the middle of January at least. I took my new ride – Baska Ostarije – out on its paces. From Central I rode down the river and over to Southie. After a slow peddling around Castle Island and then down the beach, I cruised through the mayhem of Upham’s Corner and then down the long straight run of Blue Hill Ave.

I made it to the Blue Hills. I have never climbed the access road on Great Blue and have always wanted to, so up I climbed to the Weather station. While it is no near the challenge of Akrokorinthos or the climb of my bike’s namesake, it’s a tough climb for the middle of January with virtually no miles on the legs yet.

After a brief rest atop Great Blue, I cruised back down and through the backroads of Canton/Hyde Park and back to Mattapan.

Then cycling through Roslindale and JP and the Arbs, I stopped by the co-op and picked up some snacks (and a box of Tim Tams for Andrew).

I figured, I’d make the reasonable quick jaunt over to Newtonville to give him som Tim Tams before heading home.

Alas, this is where I took a wrong turn in Albuquerque or Brookline.

*****

All, in all it was a pleasant ride that will probably make my routes list.

Tino Pai!

Jesse…

Monday, September 21, 2009

CRW Fall Metric Century + (9/20/09)

CRW Fall Metric Century +

Trip: CRW’s 100k + ride home
Distance: 90 miles
Difficulty: 9 (out of 10)
Scenery: 7 (out of 10)

http://www.crw.org/century.php?ride=f

I awoke: 6:18, shit

I missed when I was supposed to be ready to go for the century ride. Fortunately, I still had time to make it to the half century. After a ride to Andrew’s house to pick up his mountain bike and then out to Acton-Boxboro High, I was ready to go.

The rolling terrain through the Boston exurbs and further out was beautiful. The ride was mapped out great with only a few stretches on busy roads.

35 miles into the ride was the water stop. It is here that three things were pointed out to me:

Number of people on a mountain bike: 1
Number of people not wearing cycling clothes: 1
Number of people smoking: 1

The Charles River Wheelmen put on a good ride and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Afterwards, I realized I missed the 2:30 train to Boston and would have to wait hours for the next. So, I hopped on the bike and rode another 26 miles back into the city.

Great to be back on the long roads with my bike.