Bakersfield

Bakersfield is now the in the US top ten. Bigger than the Big Easy and the Steel City. NINE! And today we unleash Stage Five, the indi Time Trial, 18.3 miles of hot, windy, dusty and dramatic trial of truth miles. The Amgen Tour of California, now in its seventh year, is again rocking the casbah! We got an early start and did the RCV course preview, shot some set-up vid and toured the expo/caravan. Bernie, Ken, Harry and a gaggle of others were out on the course early testing their winter training programs. Today there is no hiding. No drafting, no sitting in with the big dogs. It is just YOU and the 18.3 miles. Courage my friends, we all suffer, just go! 

And off we go back out to the dusty streets of Bakersfield, the same streets walked in the boots of Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and today, tour leader Peter Sagan. He might feel a little like Billy the Kid today. Everybody is gunnin' for him and the gold (as in yellow jersey).

Pix: CompuTrainer is well represented at the Unitled Healthcare booth at the expo. The final climb to the finish.

More to come. Stay tuned.

WED @ ToC12

Wednesday morning, sunrise, Tuttletown State Rec Area. A few minutes after campfire coffee on way to Stage Four. Having met up with Ken and Harry we'll break it up into two KOM stages today, keeping well ahead of the pack. Should go for about 60 miles of interesting climbing and a ton of spectacular video. Finish from Sonora is in Clovis, 130 miles from where we not sit and sip. I am going to try to get to the media center in Clovis as the guys are sluggin' out the final few miles and post later today, otherwise, contact will be sparse today as the shadow of Yosemite casts a long and silent blanket over wireless communication.

We will press onward, weather has been perfect, today should get smoking' out there, there is nary a cumulus in the blue sky at 0650. Time to rock. Andiamo.

Pix: Bernie (with Bonny Doon) and The RCVman (with BB's ex) at the 5K KOM sign on Mt. Diablo. Eight Track summits. Trucks are asked to gear down. THis patriot rode all the way carrying that weight and Willows Steak House in Jamestown where Bernie, Ken, Harry and myself dined like pioneers.

WWWII

Stage Two started in The City, downtown San Francisco and headed south on the great highway. We broke camp in Livermore GPS set on Half Moon Bay. The plan was to ride 20/20 (one ride, one shoot) to the Bonney Doon cutoff near Santa Cruz. Done. Then we split, BB rode and I shot the first KOM climb, BB had it at about 12 miles and 2,500 feet of gain. The sun finally broke through the cloud cover and the world was right.

Until we tried to backtrack through Santa Cruz and meet the boys at the finish. Then the world was all wrong. As in traffic, backups, detours, and more cars at idle than I have seen for quite some time. We missed the finish, grumbled thru the expo and I finally found the media center and get credentials.

Back to camp in darkness to charge batteries, download media, build a fire, start dinner review the day and plan for Stage Three. Plus we had the pleasant upraise of having dinner guests as Joel and Vicky, now living in San Jose came up to visit us at camp.

Being without internet hookup or cell reception in camp makes it challenging, so we have been trying to keep up via Facebook posts. You can go there here.

Today's Stage Three is the infamous Mt. Diablo climb. We are heading there i about an hour and then ride the circular route back into Livermore for the finish. After that I will have some time in the media center to update. Then it is out for Sonora and another basecamp.

If it wasn't for Bernie's great cooking and Linda's incredible rhubarb pie, this would be all work, as is, it's great fun. All for now, the hills beacon.

Where we're we?

"Ahh", he sighed, taking the first sip of an ice cold Negra Modelo after the ride. It was two days and a thousand miles from Seattle. The campsite at Del Valle State Recreation Area, seven miles south from Livermore into the east-side foothills was now base camp for two days. No cell service, no power, no TV. It was perfect.

Saturday from Seattle to Shasta ended with a plush and plumb bed at the Tree House Inn in Shasta. After a fabulous free breakfast the final 500 put them in camp mid afternoon, with the logistics for tomorrow's Tour of California Stage Two in the works. They would start well ahead of the peloton in Half Moon Bay, take 20 mile shits, one ride, one film until the turn into the Santa Cruz Mountains at Bonney Doon. The finish would be Aptos and from there, the expo, pro interviews, media center and maybe even one final ride.

But for tonight, a campfire, Bernie's homemade chili, my world famous burritos and some well deserved shuteye under the starry Northern California stars.

"You can do a lot worse", he said watching a hawk circle overhead.

Pix:
Bernie preps Big Red for getaway. The Tree House lobby in Shasta. Caught this at 70 mph near Weed. Bernie surreys the arroyo del vale. Always on the lookout for cheap sunglasses.

CIAO

Pulling the studio plug to pack cables, chargers, peripherals. Hard to leave the Northwest on such a beautiful day, but we have appointments with destiny. First night goal is Mt. Shasta. Going to try to get in a little ride at sunset, so stay tuned.

Nice work in the HoM this morning. Hope that was enough visualization to get ya through! Freedom. 

As we head out to join (in progress) the Tour of California, here is the sub schedule for the House of Mirth. Both Spins and Training by Power sessions are listed. Short of losing a limb, your dedication is expected! It is business as usual. 

Monday, 5.14 @ 0530 ~ Tony

Monday, 5.14 @ 0700 ~ Yasuyo

Tuesday, 5.15 @ 1000 ~ Yasuyo

Wednesday, 5.16 @ 0530 ~ Tony

Wednesday, 5.16 @ 0700 ~ Yasuyo

Wednesday, 5.16 @ 1700 ~ Yasuyo

Wednesday, 5.16 @ 1830 ~ Suzanne

Thursday, 5.17 @ 1000 ~ Yasuyo

Friday, 5.18 @ 1700 ~ Yasuyo

Saturday, 5.19 @ 0730 ~ Suzanne

Monday, 5.21 @ 0530 ~ Yasuyo

Monday, 5.21 @ 0700 ~ Yasuyo

We return late Monday, so I will be back int he saddle on Tuesday, 5.22. Business as usual. Enjoy the ride. 

Ciao!

Have Gun

Out of necessity, I need to be brief today. It is the day before getaway day and I have one more than 99 things to do. There are five specific areas that need packing attention to detail. They are:

The filming detail. I am planning on shooting LOTS of footage with several cameras to provide media for at least six projects. That means I need to capture every conceivable shot, angle, POV, locale, background, close up and cut-away, still and video of the entire eight days from Seattle to Santa Barbara and back. It also means packing heavy as the arsenal needed to accomplish all this would challenge a supply officer. See photo of my start. 

The riding detail. We are taking three bikes, Bernie's sleek new Specialized, his old Giant and Trixie, my faithful and fearless Specialized Langster fixie. This is the easy detail as I have, in pinches past, put together a road trip pack in less than three minutes. Don't forget the tool kit with spares. 

The camping detail. I wish I had a camper, RV or conversion van, but since BBs Toyota will be jam packed with gear, food and supplies, we are camping. Tent, bag, cooking, chairs, lantern, ice chest. Usual stuff. I keep all this ready so it isn't too big an issue. Always seem to leave behind one item. I have learned over the years to stash an extra bottle opener and corkscrew in my tool kit. 

The wedding detail. My nephew is getting married in Santa Barbara on Saturday, a week from tomorrow. That was the initial imperative. Get to SB. I was informed about two weeks ago that I am the official wedding videographer. Let me be perfectly clear on this: I DO NOT DO WEDDINGS. I will shoot, edit and produce just about anything (just about) but weddings are the worst. Absolute agony. A lose-lose scenario. That is why it is such a lucrative industry, because nobody likes doing them (unless there is a boatload of money involved). In this case, because my nephew is such a good kid and I will have the aforementioned gear with me anyway, I reluctantly agreed. You know who he works for…this is like me singing at Adele's nups. 

The assignment detail. Since you are reading this, I will assume you have at the very least a passive interest in the many ways I spend my precious time. The training, the racing, the travel, the glamour (!), blah, blah. I will, one way or another, post something every day. As you have come to expect. After all, Tuesday's post was number 1,475. That is comparatively consistent. The challenge is on, it will be work, but I am used to that, too. I find this all very exciting, look at it this way, all the details merely contribute to the fun. Remember Have Gun, Will Travel? Paladin might have said:

Have six cameras, will shoot.

Three bikes, will ride.

A sleeping bag, will nap.

A press pass, will interview.

A computer, will blog.

Details will follow. 

Make Sense?

I was asked the single hardest question of all time to adequately answer today.

Actually, it is number three on the list of hardest questions to adequately answer, right after,

Why are we here? and,

How do you make love last?

But it is a good one. Rich, complex, subjective (with hints of lavender and elderberry). It has nothing to do with metaphysics, religion, politics, philosophy or happiness, although it contains elements of them all. Its wholeness rests in its parts. Equal, opposite, independent and complete. The cadence yin and the power yang. Yes and both. 

The question, asked innocently and with great sincerity, was this:

How to I turn the pedals with more power and efficiency?

After twenty minutes, the duration of the first of two 85% of ftp sets, I finished my opening diatribe with the standard disclaimer, "Does that make sense?", even though I sensed losing her at about the halfway point. 

I tried to connect the mechanical componentry first, establishing the linkage between the posterior kinetic chain and the primary movers; glutes, quads and hammys. Referenced the role of the core and the ability to lift, pull, push and flow. Mentioned the integration of cadence and resistance. Spoke of blood flow, ATP, mitchocondria, glucose, lactic acid and dopamine. Isolated the importance of creating fluidity and oneness. Orated on the lungs and fat oxidation, delivery systems and recovery. Heart rate, wattage, vasculatiry and focus all received honorable mentions. We dissected the whole into a hundred parts, examined each and re-assembled, all freshly inspected, cleaned and replaced where necessary. There were examples, anecdotes, illustrations. There was the occasional drift into the subjective. A few opinions were held in the light to determine their prospective value as fact. Names were dropped faster than bad habits. 

It occurred to me, as I paused to refresh, that since this wonderful question could not be answered with one word, that perhaps it could with a thousand. And since I had a captive audience, now half-way into the second of the 2 x 20s, working hard, seated and locked into a pedal system, that I could stretch it out a little and explore some tangents. After all, where was he to go? Off to average torque angles, percent of dorsillflexation at bottom dead center, hip flexors, diaphragmatic breathing, mashing, attention depict disorders, Ayn Rand, Henry David Thoreau, Eddie Mercx, Greg LeMond, Bruce Cockburn, Tom Douglas and Michael Bay. The elderberries were in maximum fermentation stage one. 

It's a flow, a feel, the combination of all of the above. You have to test yourself and find where your strengths and weakness' are and then take the necessary (long, boring and endless) steps to improve them. Once they have become your de-facto spin, your enhancements can begin. You can add speed, power, endurance. You can become a master of the climb. You can sprint with the big dogs. You can ride a hundred miles (yes, in one day). And after you have done all this, after years and years of indoor structure and dedicated training, thousands of outdoor miles and hundreds of races, you can…

….start your training. It is all of the above. And a lot more. One must do them all. One must feel, experience and fail. One must fall. We want the complete package, an athlete capable of supplying adequate pressure to the pedals on demand as the situation dictates. The fitter we are the more we can enjoy.  The harder we work indoors the greater the rewards out. "THIS", I said, once again referencing the value in the 85% of ftp drill, "is for THAT."

Does that make sense?

Footnote: If you answered in the affirmative, then you know the answers to the first two as well.