The Trainer Blues are a normal thing this time of year. Weather is getting colder and the roads are heading toward icy, and you really don't want to go out for a ride, so you have your bike on the Trainer Stand.
Personally, I hate riding the trainer. It makes me feel like I'm riding in a Gerbil Wheel. It's the lesser of two evils though, as compared to not riding. I have some goal rides for next Summer to train for.
The first major goal is to turn a high speed Century on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during Tour de Cure, 2008. Ideally, I want to turn the 100 miles in about 5 ½ hours. This means I'll need to be able to hold a 20 MPH average to make it and still get a 5 minute break hourly for nutrition and bottle restock and possible output breaks.
My second goal for the Summer is a lot more ambitious and I've been hesitant to talk about it for obvious reasons! I've been struggling with the whole idea as to whether it's within my physical abilities, but I decided it's better to try and not succeed than to not try and always wonder.
I am planning a route right now for a ride starting in Michigan City, Indiana at the Michigan State Line, and ending at the Indiana/Kentucky line by Owensboro, Kentucky. It's a 310 mile route, and here's the catch. I want to do it in a day! It's going to be a fully supported attempt, with a SAG van and support crew, ala RAAM. All I need to do on that end is recruit crew.
Now, I'm sure you're asking yourself.....”Is he insane?” The answer to this is a resounding YES, but in a good way! To achieve this goal, I'm going to have to train, and train hard! When the pain hits, I'm just going to have to “take off my skirt, cancel my manicure, grow a mustache and harden the f*ck up”, to quote one of my favorite funny men, Ronnie Johns, aka Chopper, down in Australia!
My roughed out route
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/in/lafayette/743009585
This ought to be a challenge for me, what do you think?
6 comments:
Yikes, Tom! You have your work cut out for ya! I've avoided getting a trainer for the same reasons you hate yours, but I don't have anything epic planned for '08, either. I'll be pulling for ya!
I was thinking that looks like a nice 5 day route. One day?!?! Sounds fun.
Let me know as the details get firmed up. I'd like to help you out if I can.
So, you're volunteering as crew? Cool! :D I'll take you up on that!
Totally do-able, Tom! As I am sure you have figured out, you only need a 13 mph average to complete this route in 24 hours. There is a good bit of climbing - I would say roughly 4-5,000 feet of total elevation change - but that shouldn't be too much of a problem since you have a LOT of downhill on this route. And none of those climbs look super brutal; however, you would be wise to do a significant amount of climb training on the trainer this winter. I have a few tips if you want to shoot me an email. Another thought would be to enter a 12 hour or 24 hour race event in your area. I did one of these last year, and met some really great people - very down-to-earth. It is not as pumped up of an atmosphere as you might think. It would be great prep for your epic ride.
I think I can do it, Uncle Dan :D Just a matter of time in the saddle. I also have some hill training routes here and down in the Bloomington area. Watch your email! I'll be shooting you that email. :D
With support I think it's a doable thing, what with all you have accomplished. Even if you didn't, the challenge alone will make you stronger. You'll never know your limits until you push them. In other words, they're boundless!
Boz
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