Bike Fitting at last...

I attended a bike fitting session in Leamington Spa yesterday with the goal of making my mountain bike into something more likely to get me through the long rides I will need to do in preparation for next May.  I spent 2.5 hours being assessed and measured both on and off the bike (mounted on a turbo trainer) using video software to track key biomechanical points.

The outcome was interesting in that my saddle needed to move back further (fore/aft) and come down by a couple of mm, this did take some of the pressure off of my hands and shoulders.  The cleats attached to my shoes were repositioned and I now have plastic shims in my shoes to keep my knees working straight up and down.  This coupled with the bars being dropped 20mm and some flexibility work on my hamstrings should pay dividends.  My main goals were to protect my knees as much as possible and alleviate back ache after so many miles/hours in the saddle.

There was a query about the width of my saddle, this coupled with a slightly unstable upper body could be leading to increased saddle soreness. I’ll change one thing at a time I think.

A very worthwhile day which I am hoping will translate into some more comfortable riding.

http://www.bikedynamics.co.uk/index.html

Easy ride today.....

Had a two hour slot this afternoon so decided to do a hilly ride but on an easy basis - my legs were a bit sore from the weeks activities and I wanted to do something different.  I set off with Steve from Lark Hill and headed for the Ridgeway, the Lands End Cottage, onto Ilsley and back through Ginge - about 1:25 of riding time. I sometimes forget the fantastic countryside we have on our own door step.

The evening was spent weighing more items of kit and airing my tent and sleeping bag.  The new sleep mat fits into the sleeping bag a treat and provides a very comfortable bed. The total weight is around 14kg's at the moment, this does not include clothing, food or some of the heavier tools such as my cable shears. There are definitely items on the list that will be left at home, I'll get everything listed and theen start the process of trimming items.

Total rest day tomorrow then bike in to work on Monday.

Grab the readers attention early doors....

Upon returning from leave (a spa break doing absolutely nothing) this week, I have trained twice in the gym and have started to feel the effects of this; I must admit to not wanting to get out of bed this morning to cycle in to work.  However, having set up my kit and bike the night before it would have been rude not to.

Armed with all the knowledge about training in a rut etc I proceeded to cycle as hard as I could for the 50 minutes it took me to get into work – probably missed out on all of the autumnal scenes with mist and golden leaves etc.  The air temperature was comfortable but I chose winter gloves – can’t stand cold fingers, I think this goes back to my rugby days when I was a child, sometimes my hands hurt with the cold and it was a total relief to get into the warm. The point is that I arrived at work feeling fine but didn’t put in a very good time so I guess there is something in this mixed training effort thing. Homer would have said, ‘Doh, stupid brain!’.

A friend at work reminded me yesterday that my blogs should start with an eye catching statement that will grab the readers’ attention – maybe the previous article about seat pack weight and contents was wide of the mark here. So this time I decided to take his advice and talk about the new sleep mat (804g un-inflated) and Trangia Fuel Bottle (793g unfilled) that I bought yesterday – you lucky people.

I have been using a cheap foam mat, very thin and only really insulates, not comfortable to sleep on plus its pack volume is largish.  I forked out on a coffin shaped, self inflating Ultralite mat made by Hi-Gear – it’s awesome and packs down well. I have yet to try but I am hoping it will fit inside my sleeping bag to make things neater and easier in my tent. Being bright orange it will also serve to get me into such shows as Beech Rescue and Highland Rescue very easily (helicopter ride at the tax payers’ expense). The only downside is that it requires meticulous stowing – all the air has to be expelled.  The best way I have found to do this comes from a throw back to my skydiving days, before the canopy was ready to be folded into the deployment bag I used to lie full length on it to expel trapped air – works a treat on the sleep mat.

The fuel bottle will contain methelated spirit for my Trangia Mini Stove, it has a push valve at the top to deliver a steady flow of fuel into the burner when it is being filled.  It’s a multi fuel bottle so if I upgrade to a different burner it will still be useful. The only downside is that it doesn’t quite fit in my bottle cage (I’ll be using the attachment point on the underside of the down tube – one of three cages I’ll be carrying) so I will have to rig some type of elastic retaining strap.  I don’t think it will pop out given the type of riding that I will be doing but I don’t fancy crunching on uncooked pasta.

These new items have been added to my spreadsheet, eventually I will end up with the gross weight of the bike, I can then start to whittle down the stuff I don’t really need. The other issue will be my own weight – could lose a kilo, every little helps.

Could Training be better?

My last cycle ride was two half hour hard efforts separated by a football match - I got back feeling a bit sore in the knee and ready to eat a load of crappy food. I picked up a cycling magazine that had been recently bought for me and read the article about being stuck in a training rut and it would appear that I am stuck in a training rut.

My main problem is time available and also the lack of variety. It's pointless being a great 10 miler when I have an average daily mileage of over 80 to achieve, my backside won't thank me.  I have started to do longer rides at the weekend (slightly more variety) to try and get the necessary conditioning so it's not all bad.  My other riding consists of the same route to work (as fast as I can given time constraints) and not much else; I can't remember the last time I went for a nice leisurely ride around some of the great contryside we have here. The main issue is that I may not be giving myself time to recover between the big effort rides or the long distance rides.

I am cross training though and that's a big positive. Boxercise, spin and circuits are all good and different from the day to day riding I do. Working hard at this stuff will hopefully improve my muscular endurance and improve my CV fitness - all good stuff for a prolonged tour. I have adopted this habit already so I don't have to make huge commitments to new training as part of my overall plan - the less I have to change the better.

Having said all of this, just jumping in the car now to get home, which is a bit lightweight.....

More Gear Required

Purchased a few more items today namely another slick tyre and a spare shifter cable with outers along with a new set of tyre leavers weigning in at 35g, the old set are 23g so will have to drill some holes in the new one to manage the weight budget. I cleaned the drive train and also tried to clean the shifter cables as things have been a bit sticky of late.

I checked the contents of my seat pack which weighs in at 753g with the new tyre leavers - picture attached for those that give a toss. I doubt this is the optimum set of tools but all I know is that I have always got home using them when I have had an issue - if it ain't broke don't fix it.

I also tested my new Trangia 28 T stove, a birthday present from my wife.  I burned through 3 loads of meths before putting the saucepan on, apparently the do not function that well until they have heated and cooled a few times. Three quaters full, the stove burns for half an hour - I got 0.7 litres of water to the boil in 12 minutes and had plenty of burn time left to cook pasta/potatos. Now need to check this by cooking the real thing. Including the plastic bag (the burner does have a lid with a gasket but I have wrapped it in plastic to avoid tainting the saucepan with meths), the stove weighs in at 359g - frying pan and handle too.

I trained at the gym yesterday - I have a programme to address leg strength/endurance and CV fitness - very stiff today so decided just to eat and not train.  Might cycle to Ben's football tomorrow at Didcot to blow the cobwebs away. I've adjusted my shifters and brakes tonight so things should be running nicely.

Gym Class Heroes V Consumables

Yesterday’s gym session left me feeling a bit sore in the legs but I hopped onto my bike this morning for a great trip into work – nice and sunny but coolish.  It took 10 minutes or so to warm up after which the soreness seemed to go – or was this just overused legs becoming numb again?

I spent yesterday evening planning on a spreadsheet, the main topics were:

•       Training: Bike miles and gym + stretching
•       Bike and Tools
•       Kit and clothing
•       Route and recording/travel log
•       Fund Raising
•       Getting there and getting home

Each entry has a comment against each item, it’s weight and stowed location; knowing where things should be packed saves a lot of time when de-camping. Once I have this information I can start to pair the list down to save weight and volume, I should end up with the absolute essentials only.

I have sketched out a list of kit that I do own and stuff that I will need to get, it then has to be tested. An example of this would be the burn time to boil a full pan of water compared to a pan full of pasta and water etc. This may seem over the top but it informs the amount of consumables I will need to have especially fuel (for me and the burner) and water at any given time.

Neil Armstrong was once asked in a press conference before the Apollo 11 flight if there was anything else he would take if weight and volume weren’t an issue – he said more fuel. Apollo was paired down to the bone when it came to consumables to make the whole thing work, if it’s good enough for Apollo it should be good enough for me…..

Putting things into perspective.

David Walliams completed his massive 140 swim down the Thames yesterday and a friend attempted to swim the Channel at the weekend but was pulled out after 15 hours – too choppy and the tide had changed. Both of these are huge achievements and must have required a lot of mental strength to keep going when it hurt.

Although cycling from Cornwall to Scotland doesn’t even come close to either of the above, there are similarities in the approach to training and mind set.  Having finished Saturday’s ride, I was definitely ready to stop and 70 miles would be an easy day in my 11 day schedule.  Admittedly I had only eaten before and had a large sandwich halfway round – normally I would have had another meal break which would have got me up to the 100 mile mark. My biggest fear is running on that empty feeling and not being able to continue, but that would be bad planning.

Someone said once that the only thing to fear is fear itself – maybe but then there is mechanical failure, illness, knee failing, running out of staples in the highlands, not enough to drink etc etc etc.

First things first, set up a blog!

I have always harboured an ambition to do the end to end (it was on the same ticklist as 'market an original invention and learn to skydive') but until now have not really had the fitness to do it. When I turned 30, I disregarded the need to exercise and eat sensibly so have spent the last two years getting back to fitness and a sensible weight. I am slightly hampered by arthritus in my right knee but this is just mild aching, cycling is definitely the best exercise for me because there is a lack of impact.


I bought a Trek 6500 (Mountain bike) last year using the Bike Loan Scheme, this has been a good bike to commute to work on and also enjoy some trail races etc. I am bike fit but I need to get more hours in the saddle to condition myself for the relentless day after day cycling of the End to End. My bike is not exactly ideal for this kind of tour but it will have to do - I haven't got a spare grand knocking around to buy a tourer!


Training began 2 weeks ago (4th September 2011) with a hilly 40 mile ride followed by precisely no cycling in to work (14 miles each way) and no gym classes during that week.  I did a hilly/windy 70 miles on Saturday just gone with no ill effects except the usual aches and pains. Looking forward to some more rides this weekend.