This Sunday, the world of professional bicycle racing descends on the French city of Compiegne for the annual Paris - Roubaix bike race. It is a 254 kilometer race that covers mostly flat road through the farm lands of Northern France. It is one of the oldest races held in the world. What make the Paris - Roubaix race so challenging is that parts of the race are ridden over 200 year old cobblestone roads that are not used by motor vehicles any longer. They are used only by farm tractors these days. Those roads are what give the race its character. It takes a special type of racer to do well in this race. One that is very familiar with pain. Pain that is served out for 6 plus hours. The sheer body shattering that is experienced by these racers is best described as "flu-like symptoms for days'' after they've finished the race. It leaves their bodies sore for at least a week. To win this race is viewed as a super human feat.
I will wake up early Sunday morning to watch the live streaming of the "Hell of the North." There will be so many dramas that will occur before the winner rides in to the velodrome in Roubaix. I will watch it with great interest. Much like most people watch the Super Bowl.
Here's a short film on the romantic view of the race and its participants.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Friday, March 29, 2013
Friday's Session:
In the gym:
800 m Run
1 20' Rope Climb
50 Thrusters 75#
25 Box Jumps 30"
1 Rope Climb
50 Double Unders
25 Burpees
1 Rope Climb
50 GHD Sit Ups
25 Pull Ups
50 KB Swings 70#
1 Rope Climb
800 m Run
Time: 37:16
On the Buke:
Rode 32 miles on my 'cross bike. Most of it off road. I do this to keep my bike handling skills up to par. It's also, refreshing to ride where there are no cars and very little traffic. On this ride there are a few sections where I have to dismount and trek up some of the climbs. I don't have the gearing on my bike to navigate those sections of the terrain. I guess it may be possible with a mountain bike, but I don't have one, so, that settles that. Over all a good day of training.
In the gym:
800 m Run
1 20' Rope Climb
50 Thrusters 75#
25 Box Jumps 30"
1 Rope Climb
50 Double Unders
25 Burpees
1 Rope Climb
50 GHD Sit Ups
25 Pull Ups
50 KB Swings 70#
1 Rope Climb
800 m Run
Time: 37:16
On the Buke:
Rode 32 miles on my 'cross bike. Most of it off road. I do this to keep my bike handling skills up to par. It's also, refreshing to ride where there are no cars and very little traffic. On this ride there are a few sections where I have to dismount and trek up some of the climbs. I don't have the gearing on my bike to navigate those sections of the terrain. I guess it may be possible with a mountain bike, but I don't have one, so, that settles that. Over all a good day of training.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Today's session:
In the gym - 5 Rounds
3 Muscle Ups
6 Power Snatch 75#
9 Overhead Squats
24 Double Unders
Time: 10:46
On the bike:
48 miles w/ fast pace climb up West Bound 52 behind some Swami's racer. Felt good to do the whole climb seated, with only standing up to keep up speed at the crest of the hill. It was gratifying not to get dropped on the climb by a guy that weighs 145#. I thanked the guy for the pull.
In the gym - 5 Rounds
3 Muscle Ups
6 Power Snatch 75#
9 Overhead Squats
24 Double Unders
Time: 10:46
On the bike:
48 miles w/ fast pace climb up West Bound 52 behind some Swami's racer. Felt good to do the whole climb seated, with only standing up to keep up speed at the crest of the hill. It was gratifying not to get dropped on the climb by a guy that weighs 145#. I thanked the guy for the pull.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Today's training had me in the gym working on my Oly lifts. I worked up to 185# in the Squat Clean. This is far below my max of previous months, but I haven't worked on them too extensively. My body is a little sore from yesterday's workout. The 50 pull ups made my arms real sore today.
On the bike, I rode 50 miles with 3500 feet of climbing. 3 Hours in the saddle and most of it going up hill has got my hamstrings screaming. Good stuff though. So far this week I've ridden 130 miles. I'm trying to get 250+ this week. That'll make for a nice over reach week on the bike.
On the bike, I rode 50 miles with 3500 feet of climbing. 3 Hours in the saddle and most of it going up hill has got my hamstrings screaming. Good stuff though. So far this week I've ridden 130 miles. I'm trying to get 250+ this week. That'll make for a nice over reach week on the bike.
Monday, March 25, 2013
As of this post, I will now post on all training, not just CrossFit. This will include not only my bike training and racing, but also surfing, triathlon and other adventures.
Today's training had me riding my bike into work at 4:30 a.m. 7 miles one way. My workout was:
1 mile run
20 burpees
1 mile run
30 burpees
1 mile run
40 burpees
3 attempts at as many pull up as possible.
19 pull ups, 14 pull ups and 17 pull ups.
Time: 36:38
I then, rode home with a detour of hill training on the way. Total mileage was 22 for the day. This was done on my 'cross bike. Not too fast, but good enough for today. Tomorrow will be a longer ride with more hills.
My triathlon season begins in May. May 5th to be exact. I'm starting to ramp up my run training, but since I love cycling, I don't want my running to cut too deep into my cycling training. It's a tough balancing act. I'm not going to spend a whole lot of time in the pool, which will probably keep me out of the top 10 in my age group, but I can't stand staring at that fricking black line for too long.
Today's training had me riding my bike into work at 4:30 a.m. 7 miles one way. My workout was:
1 mile run
20 burpees
1 mile run
30 burpees
1 mile run
40 burpees
3 attempts at as many pull up as possible.
19 pull ups, 14 pull ups and 17 pull ups.
Time: 36:38
I then, rode home with a detour of hill training on the way. Total mileage was 22 for the day. This was done on my 'cross bike. Not too fast, but good enough for today. Tomorrow will be a longer ride with more hills.
My triathlon season begins in May. May 5th to be exact. I'm starting to ramp up my run training, but since I love cycling, I don't want my running to cut too deep into my cycling training. It's a tough balancing act. I'm not going to spend a whole lot of time in the pool, which will probably keep me out of the top 10 in my age group, but I can't stand staring at that fricking black line for too long.
Monday, January 21, 2013
At the writing of this post, my cyclocross season has ended. I competed in 8 races, from L.A. to San Diego, and I enjoyed the return to competition. I finished 21st in the SoCal 'Cross Prestige Series for category C racers. I did 2 races in the 45+ B category and scored 11 points from those races. If I applied those point to my C race points, I would have finished in 14th place in the series. That's among 200+ guys throughout Southern California. Not too bad for my first season of 'cross racing. I've decided to go at this full force next season. This ramping up of my goals, means I will do a few road races this Spring and Summer. It's been 8-9 years since I've done a bike race. I'm looking forward to that experience.
Here's what I did for today's training:
7 mile bike ride in to work
+
25 Burpees
25 DB Hang Squat Cleans 35#
25 Knee to Elbows
500m Row
20 Burpees
20 DB HSC's
20 KTE's
500m Row
15 Burpees
15 DB HSC's
15 KTE's
Result: 20:06
+
20 Unbroken Double Unders
10 Burpees
30 Unbroken D/U's
15 Burpees
40 Unbroken D/U's
20 Burpees
50 Unbroken D/U's
25 Burpees
Result: 9:34
+
13 mile bike ride back home. Mostly recovery pace.
Here's what I did for today's training:
7 mile bike ride in to work
+
25 Burpees
25 DB Hang Squat Cleans 35#
25 Knee to Elbows
500m Row
20 Burpees
20 DB HSC's
20 KTE's
500m Row
15 Burpees
15 DB HSC's
15 KTE's
Result: 20:06
+
20 Unbroken Double Unders
10 Burpees
30 Unbroken D/U's
15 Burpees
40 Unbroken D/U's
20 Burpees
50 Unbroken D/U's
25 Burpees
Result: 9:34
+
13 mile bike ride back home. Mostly recovery pace.
Monday, October 29, 2012
It has been a long time since my last post. I have been very busy with the growth of my gym, as well as my own training. Since last time I posted, I had been training by doing 3-4 CrossFit with running and biking workouts in preparation of triathlon competitions. I have competed in 4 Sprint distance triathlons this year and I have gotten better results with each one. Finishing the last 2 in the top 10 and top 15, respectfully. Not quite the top 10 results I was getting 10 years ago, but I will take those results for now. Especially, not going into the pool to train for no more than 3 times all season. Needless to say, that's where I had the most glaring weakness in my game. Over all, I'm happy with my triathlon racing season.
As I have been doing more cycling in preparation for tri's, I started to really love riding my bike again. It has a very therapeutic affect on me and my psyche. I also love the elevation in my fitness riding has helped me achieve. The challenge of bettering my time up a specific climb, getting my HR up to a certain number and holding it there for a few seconds longer are all part of the appeal cycling has brought me. It really sparked my competitive juices once again. In so much, that I have started bicycle racing again. Just this past weekend I entered and competed in a cyclocross race. (I'll post a video for you below, if you're unfamiliar with this sport.) I had a blast and I can't wait to race some more.
I cannot thank my CrossFit training enough for the success I had in my very first cyclocross races. I knew it would help, as one of the coaches at my gym has been doing these types of races for years, but I witnessed first hand how a 35 minute AMRAP would be the equivalent to a Category C cyclocross race. These short, in bike racing terms, intense races, over a wide variety of obstacles and terrain, are instantly transferable from my CrossFit training. The thought of being able to do a CrossFit workout on a bicycle is like mixing Nutella and Peanut Butter in the same jar. They were almost made for each other. Who would have thought.
I will post a few more examples of specific training sessions to let you see exactly what I am doing in preparation for upcomimg races and further CF competitions. Even the Open. Well, we'll see about that one.
Watch the video here:
As I have been doing more cycling in preparation for tri's, I started to really love riding my bike again. It has a very therapeutic affect on me and my psyche. I also love the elevation in my fitness riding has helped me achieve. The challenge of bettering my time up a specific climb, getting my HR up to a certain number and holding it there for a few seconds longer are all part of the appeal cycling has brought me. It really sparked my competitive juices once again. In so much, that I have started bicycle racing again. Just this past weekend I entered and competed in a cyclocross race. (I'll post a video for you below, if you're unfamiliar with this sport.) I had a blast and I can't wait to race some more.
I cannot thank my CrossFit training enough for the success I had in my very first cyclocross races. I knew it would help, as one of the coaches at my gym has been doing these types of races for years, but I witnessed first hand how a 35 minute AMRAP would be the equivalent to a Category C cyclocross race. These short, in bike racing terms, intense races, over a wide variety of obstacles and terrain, are instantly transferable from my CrossFit training. The thought of being able to do a CrossFit workout on a bicycle is like mixing Nutella and Peanut Butter in the same jar. They were almost made for each other. Who would have thought.
I will post a few more examples of specific training sessions to let you see exactly what I am doing in preparation for upcomimg races and further CF competitions. Even the Open. Well, we'll see about that one.
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