Ride Stats for March

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This month was close to expected on the stats front - down on hours and mileage on January and February, but  up on speed. 

As racing starts and training begins to be orientated towards power and speed, rather than base miles, the distance and time of my rides has predictably fallen. 

There is also a slight effect that when I am at home, which I have been for two weeks of this month, I tend to ride off road at least twice a week, so the distances I do are less on these rides compared to on-road training.

Overall though, I'm happy with how training is going, and the race results seem to be good so far. A bit of a break from racing now until the 11th April, then back at it with a few Portsmouth track races and two road races - can't wait! 

Monthly Comparison Chart
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Nutrition: "Recovery" Brownies

When you finish a long ride or a race sometimes you need a bit of a treat to get the blood sugar levels back up and reward yourself. These brownies definitely satisfy that need, and they also have a few added ingredients that are useful to cyclists.

Walnuts and Brazil Nuts:
I've mentioned about nuts in previous nutritional blog posts; they are a great source of protein and low-saturate calories to replace those lost during a long-ride.
However, walnuts and brazil nuts may have added benefits to cyclists:

• Whole walnuts contain the rare gamma-tocopherol form of Vitamin E found which provides significant protection from heart problems. Also, the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant phyto-nutrients in the nuts have shown decreased risks of certain cancers including prostate cancer.   
• Brazil nuts are particularly good, because similar to eggs, they are a "complete" source of protein, due to their high selenium content. This means that unlike many other proteins found in plant produce, brazil nuts have a complete range of amino acids to enable growth and muscular recovery, vital after a long ride!
• Both nuts also contain high levels of Omega 3 fatty acids - beneficial to lowering cholesterol levels

Nuts can be a bit boring though, so here is my custom brownies recipe to make that handful of nuts a bit more appealing:

Makes 12: Ingredients: 100g Dark Chocolate Powder, 125g Butter, 200g Caster Sugar, 75g Plain Flour, 2 eggs, 1 Handful of Chopped Brazil Nuts, 1 Handful of Chopped Walnuts, 1 Handful of Raisins/Sultanas

Method: Melt butter over a low heat. Add the chocolate powder and whisk until melted. In a bowl, beat together eggs and sugar, then stir in the melted chocolate. Sieve in the plain flour and add the nuts and raisins, and beat until smooth. Pour the mixture into a lined, 9 inch square tin.
Bake in the oven on 180'C for 20-25mins
Leave to cool fully after removing from oven, and store in the fridge (especially when it's hot)

Warning: From experience, these do not travel well in a jersey pocket - they melt...big time! Have them as an after-ride treat!

Enjoy! 

Thruxton Circuit Race - 25th March - Headwinds and High Heart Rates

Today I travelled up to Thruxton for the second round of the Thruxton Circuit Race. We had a good set of lads heading up for the Wightlink Race Team, and with sunny skies and a good temperature it looked like it was going to be a cracker of a day.

Last week I had made the mistake of doing too much too early on in the race. So the plan for today was to sit in the bunch until lap six (of ten) and then give it a go at a break-away, and if that didn't work I would have time to sit back in, recover and prepare myself for the sprint.

That is pretty much how the race panned out, from the off my legs weren't feeling great; I don't know why, but it was just one of those days. Unlike last week there weren't many attempts to get off the front in the first six laps, so there wasn't much chasing to do. We couldn't get organised for the break-away in the sixth lap, so we pushed it back to the seventh and towards the end of that lap we gave it a go: As we headed up the small drag to the chicane, I was up towards the front with the guys that thought we could make a break. After the chicane we kicked - four or five of us, I'm not sure, I was at the front going hell-for-leather, with a heart rate through the roof.

It worked...well sort off. We had a thirty metre gap at one point, and I seriously thought we might be able to do it. But then simultaneously we turned the corner and hit the headwind, and at the same time someone on the front of the main field kicked and brought them chasing up behind us quickly. After a third of a lap we were caught, it seemed that once again it wasn't going to happen - Thruxton doesn't seem to lend itself well to breakaways; for the whole circuit you can see riders going off the front, so there is no element of surprise, and at the same time it is so flat and windy that it makes it hard to stay out in front of a chasing bunch.

So by halfway through lap eight we were back in the front of the pack and the speed was ramping up. We were well strung out and my hope was that it would remain that way so that it wouldn't be a bunch sprint.
To an extent it did; going into the final drag we were fairly strung out and I was in the front four riders, the three in front of me then went VERY early, on the hill on the way into the chicane. I had no choice but to go with them and as a result went through the chicane and onto the straight with legs burning and already feeling like it should be the end of the sprint....but it wasn't, I had another 300meters to go. I tried to kick, but the legs weren't there, I rolled over the line in 7th I think.

It was a good race, around a mile an hour faster paced than last week at 23.7mph, and with the headwinds there was never really much chance of a breakaway. We tried though and it almost worked, which is encouraging. I might not have got all the points I needed to move out of 4th Cat, but I put some points on the card, so I only need an 8th place now, which should be do-able fairly easily. Another great day out with the Wightlink RT boys, and a good test of the legs and heart on a hard, windy day. In the next few weeks I'll be working on my sprint and looking at the calendar to find me some hills!

Thruxton Circuit Race - 18th March - 4th Cat Frustration and a Fifth Place Finish

Photo Courtesy of Neil Andrews

Today was my first race of 2012, my first road race ever!
It was at Thruxton Motor Racing Circuit - a great venue for a first race; wide, traffic free tarmac with a few chicanes thrown in to challenge the bike handling.

Sam and I sped up to the venue from the ferry to make the start at 10:15, with just a few laps of the paddock for a warm-up. Luckily the start was fairly sedate for the first lap around the 2.3 mile circuit.

By the start of lap two (out of ten), the pace had ramped up, with an average of 23mph. Attacks started going off the front, but no-one could stay clear. Sam and I tried on lap three to make a break, but once they saw two yellow Wightlink Jerseys off the front, the field was quick to reel us back in.

From lap three to lap eight, the race remained much the same; attacks would go, I would chase a few, we would get a little gap, then no-one would work together and the bunch would catch up.

On lap eight there was a crash in the final chicane, luckily Sam and I were both ahead of it, but it brought down a few riders, one of which had to be stretchered off! Hope he was OK!

On lap nine, I was sat near the front, around position three or four; there were a few riders up there that were doing some decent work, so I tried to encourage two of them to come with me on a break on the final climb of that lap. But when it came, I went, they followed, then they never came through when I pulled over once I started red-lining. So, to my frustration it appeared that it was going to come down to a sprint finish - not ideal for me!

So on the last lap Sam and I got our positions; I was a few riders back from the front going into the last 800 meters, just before the chicane. Someone jumped just in front of me, so I kicked as well and went with them, I went through the last bend in about eighth, then was able to just about kick again to pull myself up to fifth for the line.

So fifth place! Not bad for my first road race in a field of 66 riders. It gives me a few points and I only need to do the same again next week and I'll be out of 4th Cat. That really will be a result! Don't get me wrong, I loved every second I was on that bike, but I'm not a sprinter, I need others to work with me in a break-away. The legs are there, but I just need a mutual breakaway companion, either that or obtain a time-trialling ability to go off the front at 28mph and sustain it....don't think that's really going to happen! ;-)

So a great first race really, a little frustrating at times, but I learnt a huge amount. Do the same next week and I'll be out of 4th Cat and have a better chance of making my breakaway dream work in the 3rds hopefully.

Weekend Watch: Renshaw's Transition Year

Weekend Watch: From the Inside Out Trailer

From the Inside Out Trailer from SecondBase Films on Vimeo.
Producer Description:
"Many past films, riders, and locations have inspired us. Some of those locations are now our backyards, and some of those riders are now our friends. From the Inside Out is our adventure to the places we've always wanted to ride, and our expression of the lines and styles that have influenced us. This is freeride mountain biking. This film is from us – the riders.

Written, directed and edited by The Coastal Crew and produced by Anthill Films, From the Inside Out was filmed entirely in British Columbia, the birthplace of freeride, and features some of the sport's best riders, including: Brandon Semenuk, Steve Smith, Thomas Vanderham, Matt Hunter, Graham Agassiz, Mike Hopkins, Kenny Smith & The Coastal Crew. Photography by Nicolas Teichrob"

Weekend Watch: 2012 Belgium Opening Weekend with OPQS Team

A nice little summary of last weekend's Classics:

"The team races Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne in Belgium, where it is based.
Copyright Omega Pharma Quick-Step Cycling Team. All Rights Reserved"

Ride Stats for February

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Considering February is a short month, even with the extra day, and considering I missed almost a week in the middle as a result of illness, then this months Stats are not bad.

If I've learnt one thing this month, it is that Recovery pays: see my blog post on The Importance of Being Idle