Old Fool in Lycra

[Derny Driver]

And it carried me to my first century today. Slow, but 117km/650m ascent. I'm chuffed.
And stuffed.

Thats a great effort mate. Quite an achievement.

Just dont do that too often though.
Theres 2 ways to run a marathon:
1. Run the 42k really slowly and try each week to walk less / run more / get faster.
2. Run 1km properly, good technique and pace. Do that for a while. Then run 2 km properly ....then 3
Theres merit in both I guess, but the second method is preferable I think.

[nemo57]

Thanks, Derny
I don't aim to do it again for a while, but as it looks as though I have to be off the bike for 3 weeks come Friday (having skin sliced out of the arm) I kind of set myself to see whether I could do the distance.
My mentor down here said in passing the other day that it ain't easy to average 25km/hr. He's right. I'm not within cooee of that. When I can get back on the horse it will be much shorter and a little more intense. Chipping away at it bit by bit ...

[Derny Driver]

Variety is the key mate. Throw in a long slow one every now and then.
Dont worry about average speed, dont try to ride to a certain speed. Ride to a comfortable cadence. Nice fast legs in a not too hard gear.
You dont pedal a bike with your arms You can still ride a stationary bike. If you dont have a trainer, drop in at a gym a couple of times each week and turn the legs over on a spin bike. Otherwise you will lose a lot of condition over 3 weeks.

[nemo57]

Haven't reported for a while, but progressing. Between surgery and a quick trip to London to give away the eldest daughter the hours did drop off alarmingly for a bit. But I got some white legwarmers to protect against the encroaching Melbourne winter. My legs are so pale you can't tell that I'm wearing them.
How I see myself:

How others see me:

[10speedsemiracer]

Made me laugh...

[nemo57]

Well, since I last reported I've ridden about 40 hours, covered 840 k, climbed 5.5 k and lost about 2 Kg. I try to get out every other day, generally for a couple of hours, once a week crawl my way up and down the Kew Boulevard and some other day try to climb 3-500m.
I do not enjoy climbing one little bit, but it's lovely when it stops. And, to my surprise, I find that I can actually get up some slopes that had me walking back in February, and am covering various bits and pieces of ground in only 3/4 of the time it took me back then.
All of which is encouraging.
Mostly I'm doing 30-50km at a time, and throwing in 60-70-90 or some such every other week. Spinning my stumpy legs like a veritable DEMON! But the more I do, the more I realise that my 210 km-in-a-day project for October is going to take quite a bit of work yet.

[Derny Driver]

.... lost about 2 Kg...... I find that I can actually get up some slopes that had me walking back in February, and am covering various bits and pieces of ground in only 3/4 of the time it took me back then.
All of which is encouraging.
Mostly I'm doing 30-50km at a time, and throwing in 60-70-90 or some such every other week. Spinning my stumpy legs like a veritable DEMON!

Very encouraging mate. Doing well!!

[10speedsemiracer]

Well, since I last reported I've ridden about 40 hours, covered 840 k, climbed 5.5 k and lost about 2 Kg. I try to get out every other day, generally for a couple of hours, once a week crawl my way up and down the Kew Boulevard and some other day try to climb 3-500m.
I do not enjoy climbing one little bit, but it's lovely when it stops. And, to my surprise, I find that I can actually get up some slopes that had me walking back in February, and am covering various bits and pieces of ground in only 3/4 of the time it took me back then.
All of which is encouraging.
Mostly I'm doing 30-50km at a time, and throwing in 60-70-90 or some such every other week. Spinning my stumpy legs like a veritable DEMON! But the more I do, the more I realise that my 210 km-in-a-day project for October is going to take quite a bit of work yet.

Really good work so far, well done.

I actually got passed by a guy on a carbon Cervelo yesterday on the Blvd, he was travelling.

[nemo57]

Thank yez both. I still get passed by older ladies in twin-sets with milk and bread in their baskets ...

[10speedsemiracer]

Thank yez both. I still get passed by older ladies in twin-sets with milk and bread in their baskets ...

Ah, so you've met my ex-wife...sorry 'bout that.

[TheWall]

And the 2kg lost is merely a fraction of the mind and body benefits of your efforts so far.

Well done.

[nemo57]

Another month and a bit have passed under the tyres, and I'm beginning to doubt that I'll make that 210K round trip come October.
No doubt the legs are enduring more, though they don't seem to be getting stronger by leaps and bounds. But I'm only doing around 200K per week, and climbing less than 1000m.
On the positive side, I haven't injured myself, keep spinning my stumpy legs as fast as I can, feel plenty is left in the tank after my usual 40-70K distances, half of the work in the last few weeks has been grinding into our prevailing 25kph+ northerlies and my pants are still getting larger after shrinking for many years.
But I'm deathly slow. In anything like a real effort the legs give out before the cardio does. Not that I'm monitoring developments in a scientific way.
Should I be doing that longer once a week ride now? More climbing? Or stick with the existing regime, which is like this:

Actually, my legs do look rather like that, only hairy.

[Derny Driver]

Another month and a bit have passed under the tyres, and I'm beginning to doubt that I'll make that 210K round trip come October
No doubt the legs are enduring more, though they don't seem to be getting stronger by leaps and bounds. But I'm only doing around 200K per week ...
Should I be doing that longer once a week ride now? More climbing? Or stick with the existing regime...

All in all I think the positives are encouraging. 200k a week is not bad. Aim for 250, then 300, then 350. Increase distances. Ignore elevation / climbing. Just focus on distance. Stick with what you are doing for 1 or 2 more weeks. Then in the 6/7 weeks leading up to the race you need to up the distances a bit ...and get that long ride in once a week. Long ride needs to start at say 90km, then increase weekly to 100, 110, 120, 130, hit 140 about 2 weeks out from the event. Then ease back and freshen up.

[nemo57]

Thank you, again, for the encouragement DD. I shall do my best!

[nemo57]

Another month in, and although I haven't reached Derny's recommended distances, have managed a few centuries, including 110 on Monday and 130 today. Was nice weather today, too, and that makes a big difference: no winds more than a few knots in any direction. Plus, touring down Port Phillip Bay isn't exactly the most physically demanding of routes.
Nevertheless, and while I'm used to be overtaken by all the just-missed-out-on-the-call-from-the-Euro-team warriors along that path, my pace has definitely picked up over these several months: today's effort was 20% faster than that first century back in March. If such rates of improvement can be sustained, why, in about 6 years time I should be in the peleton at the Vuelta.

[10speedsemiracer]

well done Nemo, impressive....in the meantime enjoy this anthem celebrating your username (turn it up, annoy the neighbours)..also the video probably sums up the weather we've been riding around in recently.

[foo on patrol]

On my Charity ride back in 81, I'd never ridden 200klm plus at any stage in my riding, yet I did two 225=klm days in a row, so don't think about it, just do it. You go into something doubting yourself and you will fail!

Foo

[g-boaf]

On my Charity ride back in 81, I'd never ridden 200klm plus at any stage in my riding, yet I did two 225=klm days in a row, so don't think about it, just do it. You go into something doubting yourself and you will fail!

Foo

Exactly right. Just make sure you eat enough and you'll get through it.

[nemo57]

Thank yez all. 4 weeks out I do feel much more confident of getting there than I did a month ago. Now I feel I'm gaining the real benefit of the kms since January: stretching out from 70-90 k rides to 110-130 has not been a strain, at least when the return isn't into a howling headwind. A few more to do yet, though, before I "taper".

[nemo57]

Almost 1200 km in the past 4 weeks, including 6 centuries, the last at DD's recommended 140, so I'm as ready as I'm gonna be.
Tomorrow we complete the technical transformation of the venerable Hillman to full Superbe Pro, when the new old cranks and 53/38 chainrings go on. I'm thinking that 4 fewer teeth might make a pleasant difference bashing into the wind and up inclines greater than 2 degrees.
And I also have new socks.

[10speedsemiracer]

Good work, only 2 weeks out now, sounds like your prepped.

Pics of the Hillman in full sexy Superbe Pro guise pls.

[nemo57]

Got there. Conditions fine throughout: mild tail wind on the way down that seemed to turn southerly on the way back. What???
Young people often ask me my secret. It is from Reynolds. The R.J. Reynolds company of Winston-Salem, Virginia, that is.

The genuine article is available only in the USA. I'd been saving some for a special occasion, and this was it.
To my huge surprise I averaged over 24 km/h, but I did have the assistance of the other man in the pic, who to my delight appeared at Rosebud on the way back and offered pacing and encouragement as he has throughout this journey: Gordon Hill.
And thank you to you guys who have been on board in this venture.

[10speedsemiracer]

Congrats Nemo.

Now you've got me wondering if I should redo the paint on my training bike to the 1970s John Player Special black/gold...

[fat and old]

Finally, I have someone to look up to

[nemo57]

Good work, only 2 weeks out now, sounds like your prepped.

Pics of the Hillman in full sexy Superbe Pro guise pls.

Koolstop brake blocks grip a little better than the near 30 year-old originals ...

The "new" cranks w Stronglight rings. Was I ever glad to go smaller than 42!

But I cannot tell a lie: the BB is Campy, hoods DiaCompe (tho they did make Suntour's brakes), seatpost and pedals only Superbe (except I don't know that they actually put out pedals marked s-Pro at any stage)