16hours, 250mi, 5 days

With 2 months left to go before the Ride to Remember, I've been refocusing my efforts on making sure that I can complete and enjoy the 3 day trip.  With back to back to back days of riding across South Carolina, it's going to be a completely different level of challenge to what I've trained for in the past.  For rides like the Assault on  Mt Mitchell, the effort is contained in a single day.  The concept I used was the train to be prepared for that one huge day of effort, and then take 2 or 3 days off afterwards to recover.  Now I need to be able to put out large efforts multiple days in a row, conserving and refueling appropriately to be able to complete mile 250 over 48 hours after I start mile 1.

Thus when I saw that Strava had a riding challenge sponsored by Scratch Labs that was designed to be done as a multi-day effort, I figured it was a good opportunity to test out my current fitness level prior to the Ride to Remember.  The Scratch Labs Stage Race Challenge was set around the 8 days of the Amgen Tour of California, and required you to log 16 hours of moving time during the event.  Doing some quick napkin math, I realized that if I averaged at least 15 miles per hour during the time period, I would also end up riding a cumulative total of miles as I would experience on the Ride to Remember.  It was going to take efforts every day to finish with enough time (and miles) logged.

Monday - with the first day lost to a mechanical issue, I decided that I needed to ride on what is typically a rest day for me.  With my new Garmin 800 in hand, I decided to try out a different route than I typically take.  It would give me a chance to learn more about the bike computer, and give me some time on the bike.  The ride was very successful, and I logged in my first solid ride of the week.  2 hours down, 14 to go.

Tuesday - looking ahead on weather sites indicated that I was going to have to compensate for at least 1 rain day during the week, which meant figuring out when I could get in more and/or longer rides.  With a 20% chance of rain Tuesday afternoon, I had to make the decision to ride at lunch to make sure I got in time, or decide to risk riding in the afternoon.  What I decided to do was make it a potential "2 a day" scenario:  get in an easy ride during lunch, and if the weather held out go out again to SCTAC for additional time/mileage in an easier group than I'm used to.  The lunch ride went without a hitch, and I let my cycling clothes dry during the afternoon in preparation for the evening ride.

Evening came around, and the weather looked favorable.  After a ride around the SCTAC airport known as the "Perimeter Road Loop", I went out with the 16mph group.  I just wanted to sit in and have a somewhat easy ride, although very early on I could tell that the group wasn't going to end up being a pace that I'd really enjoy.  Thus about a quarter of the way out I decided to go out on my own ahead of the main group, and bridged over to another group ahead of us.  With Tuesday in the books, I was at 6 hours and 92mi completed.

Wednesday - originally on Monday when I decided to ride, I scheduled this to be a recovery ride day, knowing that Tuesday evening was probably going to be difficult.  When the forecast started showing an extremely high chance of rain on Thursday, I knew I had to move up my timetables and use Thursday as an off the bike recovery day, just in case of bad weather.  Thus instead of just a single extremely easy ride, I ended up completing yet another "2 a day" workout.  Ride #1 was another 30mi long loop, using the same route that I had taken Monday.  

The evening ride ended up being the original intended recovery ride.  At this point I had to say that my legs were extremely tired, but I was happy about my ability to set an effort level and keep to it given additional efforts ahead.  At the halfway point of the week I was just under the 10 hour mark.  The goal was in sight!

Thursday - the weatherman didn't disappoint.  With rain pretty much all day, many of the group rides were canceled.  I kept looking at the after work forecasts to determine if there was a glimmer of hope of getting in a quick ride, but the wet roads and radar reports didn't make it look very promising.  By about 7pm the roads were looking relatively clear, but the sky still looked threatening.  I wasn't too concerned with 3 days of riding left that I could get the time in.  

Friday - I had already been figuring out what I wanted to do for rides over the weekend, and I came across an older 80mi route that I had been really wanting to try out all spring.  Looking at the forecast, it was going to be cool but nice, and it would give me over 4 hours of time in the saddle.  For the ride on Friday what it meant was that I had to make sure to get in time Friday, but definitely not overdo it.  While longer than the recovery ride Thursday evening, it was a shorter effort than I had been doing most lunchtimes thus far.  I was now just over 4 hours left to finish the challenge, with a big 80mi ride the next day!

Saturday - I have to say that building up an epic week of riding like this has a way of really testing if you are able to stick to your game plan, as well as keep each workout within reason so you can maintain your effort.  With a seemingly monsterous route ahead of me, especially solo, it was going to be a good dry run of my ability to keep to my game plan.  Without the distractions of keeping with a group, it was up to me to make good sound choices on fueling and pace.  After a good breakfast, and a little bit of a late start, I got underway.  I ended up needing arm warmers, as the weather was cooler than expected at the start of the ride, and I packed enough water and food for at least 2/3 of the ride.  I already knew in my head that I'd probably be stretching that to be for the entire ride, but I had made this route with at least 2 known good rest stops along the way.  Of the 80 miles that I was going to ride, there was probably only about 10 or 15 miles of it that were new roads to me.   That meant that at any point I could decide to change the route up if I felt that things were not going well.

During the route I did extremely well at making sure to have fuel, and taking my time when I needed to.  The hardest parts to deal with really were the climbs.  Up until this week, the largest effort week I had done was 171miles and 11 hours.  This meant that by Satuday I was into uncharted territory for how much energy I'd have left.  I was having to make sure to conserve energy whenever possible, allowing myself the chance to recover on downhills and setting an easy pace on the uphills.  The goal wasn't to set any personal records, but rather to get a solid effort in and have good time in the saddle.  

What I wasn't expecting was that the weather was going to show signs of turning.  The weather reports had said a 30% chance of rain on Sunday, and clouds in the afternoon Saturday.  By the time I was just about home on the route, the winds started to pick up, and if I was back Florida I would have expected a severe thunderstorm within the hour.  I worked my way back to the house, and completed the course in just over 5 hours of moving time.  16 hours completed, and 252miles traveled.  This turned out to be a good strategy, as Sunday ended up being washed out all day long.  The weather finally cleared late in the afternoon.  For me it ended up being a great afternoon to catch up on some rest and spend some time with the family.

In the end I feel like my training is in a good place as the time draws nearer for the Ride to Remember.  My goal for the ride isn't to go with the A group and ride like crazy each day, but rather to enjoy the experience and ride with friends and teammates.  The ride profile should work well to my personality type on the bike, as the majority of the non-flat riding ends up being late on Day 1 and early on Day 2.  As long as I am able to "ride my ride" during the event, and force myself to stop when I know it's appropriate, I should do fine.

Hiatus

It wasn't my intention to take an almost 3 month break from posting.  It's not that I haven't been out riding, or had anything to write about, but after a few weeks of missing out on writing about a topic, I felt like I was behind, and it snowballed from there.

AOTC 2014 did not disappoint

So, in my worst announcer type voice, here is the short-short version of the past 3 months:  I've gone through several highs and lows and completed the Assault on the Carolinas, which was once again a fantastic ride.  I've dealt with another wave of mechanical issues on the bike, including being managing to taco my small chainring, and had to make the decision to drop from riding in the inaugural Beech Mountain Metric.

Even my Garmin had a mechanical...	Taco... small ring.

At this point I've set my sights, training, and fundraising on the Ride to Remember this July.  It'll be the first 3-day event that I have ever attempted, and it encompasses over 240mi of riding.  The fundraising benefits the Alzheimer's Association, where the funds raised are used to help Alzheimer's research, care, and support of the over 5 million Americans suffering from Alzheimer's currently.

Personal life also required more attention during the past few months, and I've had several lower than average volume weeks as a result.  With only 9 weeks left until the Ride to Remember, though, I feel like I'm on track.  In fact, I'm looking forward to giving a recap of the Skratch Labs Stage Race Challenge on Strava which I'm using as a dry run of what to expect in July.  With only 6 hours of riding left to complete the challenge, I feel like it is really putting me to the test.

Mountain Training

Oh, these vast, calm, measureless mountain days, inciting at once to work and rest! Days in whose light everything seems equally divine, opening a thousand windows to show us God. Nevermore, however weary, should one faint by the way who gains the blessings of one mountain day; whatever his fate, long life, short life, stormy or calm, he is rich forever.  - John Muir

Just a week ago we were facing record-setting amounts of snow and ice in the upstate, and trainer rides were the name of the game.  Getting out for a ride once the temperatures warmed up was a nice "change of pace", even if it was a windy and you still had to be on the lookout for remnants of ice.  

Hard to believe that this was less than 2 weeks ago

The wonderful thing about winter in the upstate is that snow melts quickly, and the ice and snow gives way to clear skies and dry roads.  Saturday the forecast was for highs in the 60's.  Time for some climb training in the mountains!  Up until now most of my training this year has been focused on trainer sessions and hill repeats at best, so I wasn't really sure what my legs were going to give me.  In fact, just two days before on my training plan I was doing 3 minute hill climbs up the back side of Paris Mountain.  A big personal goal for me this year is to train "smarter" by keeping to training plans, instead of just blasting away miles and pushing myself in haphazardly before events.  Since I've signed up for the Beech Mountain Metric this May, I need to keep myself focused on steady amounts of climbing.  

The route that was established brought us up one of the more favorite climbing spots in the upstate:  The Greenville Watershed.  This route is a gradual continual climb, and you can chose to go to Saluda or Tuxedo.  We started in Tigerville SC, a popular starting point for groups on any given clear Saturday.  In fact, as I parked at the meet-up spot I noticed the cars of several friends I typically ride with who obviously were already out enjoying the day.  We started out by climbing up Callahan Mountain, which is a notoriously steep climb, averaging around 9% grade for about 1 mile.  On the way down towards the watershed we stopped at the Poinsett Bridge and took a few pictures.  Created in 1820, it's one of the oldest bridges in South Carolina. 

Poinsett Bridge

Upon reaching "the Watershed" we met up with several groups of cyclists out for their day in the mountains.  While some were heading to Saluda, many were heading up to Tuxedo today. The Assault on Mount Mitchell training rides were even heading this direction today.  We kept the pace on the easy side, as our goal wasn't to set any personal records but rather to get in good training miles.  Regrouping at the top, we then turned off onto Mount Olivett.

This is another popular climbing area, although this is the first time that I had a chance to attempt it.  While not as long as the Watershed (3.6mi vs 6.4mi) the average grade for this section is steeper (6% vs 4%).  Adding on Mt Olivett to the climb was definitely a great test of the legs this early in the season.  What I was really pleased about was that I was able to climb it at a relatively relaxed pace, and not feel like I had to kill myself just to stay upright.  The view at the top was definitely worth the time climbing up.

Views like this never disappoint

At the top of the climb we intersected with Pinnacle Mountain Road, and made the turn to descend back to Flat Rock for our Bakery stop.  The trip down was much more technical than the climb, and I was glad to have upgraded brakes.  While this wasn't as exciting as coming down Skyuka Mountain Road, it definitely was challenging, especially at the bottom.  With no major incidents descending, we moved on to the most important part of the ride:  The Bakery!

While getting a chance to ride in the mountains is reward enough, there is something to be said about getting to stop at the local bakeries.  The stop for today was the Flat Rock Village Bakery, where we enjoyed a snack and some time off the bike to relax.  With a snack, a pit stop, and fresh water in our bottles, we were ready to head back.  The trip back was a straight shot down 225/old-US25 to the Watershed.  At the bottom we decided to go past Hotel Domestique, owned by retired pro cyclist George Hincapie.  This also adds another few shots of climbing which is always a little bit cruel, since you end up descending for  long enough to let your legs cool down prior to getting to these hills. 

What I was very pleased about for this ride was the ability to ride in a comfort zone, keeping a consistent effort for more than 3 hours in the saddle.  I'm so used to trying to "keep up" that I end up spending an entire ride in harsh heartrate zones.  Having an endurance/tempo pace was refreshing.  While I still need to work on more effective fuel strategies for both during and after the ride, keeping myself in check is important.  As I look towards the Spring, I think I'm going to be in a good place to be strong and have a lot of fun without worrying about getting dropped.

The best laid plans

As a part of 2014, I realized that I had to do something different than 2013 to meet the goals that I had laid before me.  For 2013 my big goals were to complete the Assault on Mt Mitchell and to ride at least 400mi/month on average (but aim for 100mi/week average).  I completed all of these goals, riding over 5,400 miles and completing the Assault as my first English Century.  What I realized is that without a comprehensive training plan, I was expending a lot more work than I should have needed to in order to complete the first of these goals, and by having goals that were distance-based I was setting myself up for always feeling like I had to be on the road gathering miles.  I signed up for 3 "major" events for 2014, which I will consider my "hard goals", and I'm working on the "soft goals" for additional requirements along the way.  The events that I've signed up for at this point are:

• The Assault on the Carolinas - 62mi ride in the early spring that was one of my favorites from last year.  Starts and ends in Brevard, NC and benefits the Rotary in Transylvania County.

AOTC 2013 finish line

• Beech Mountain Metric - this is a new event for 2014, and is a metric century event in Beech Mountain, NC.  Starts and ends at ~1mi above sea level, this is going to be a challenging climbing event.
• The Ride to Remember - this is a 3 day event where riders travel from Simpsonville to Charleston, SC.  Proceeds from this ride benefit the Alzheimer's Association. The lengths increase from 60mi to 80mi and culminating with a 100mi ride to the coast.  240mi in 3 days will be a real challenge, and will test my ability to recover and prepare.  This is also a fundraising event, so I will be working on creative ways to gather support for the ride.

Beyond the planned events, I have a few other goals I would like to cover in the process.  

• Complete a training plan -  This one sounds easy enough, but sticking to a 10-12 week plan is very challenging.  It means finding a way to ride when riding is the last thing you want to do.  It will mean NOT riding when I should be resting, and preparing myself mentally and physically for the rest of the year.  So far I am working my way through a training plan using Training Peaks right now that will finish right before the Assault on the Carolinas.  It is going to be very challenging, but I think it will ultimately be very beneficial.

  

  Feb 3-9 training log.

  
  
• Quality over Quantity - Instead of just putting in miles all the time, I'm focused on my rides having a purpose.  If this means spending an hour with The Sufferfest to get a workout to target certain aspects, or just following the training plan, giving my workouts a purpose should allow me to do more with less time on the bike.  

• Balance Bike & Family time - last year to meet my mileage based goals I ended up riding on both Saturday and Sunday ... a LOT.  This meant taking time away from my duties as a husband and father.  This year I am looking to balance that out, making sure to not rush out on the bike when I don't need to, and getting my other goals accomplished around the house.  I'm hopeful that this can extend to finding a way for the whole family to spend time on the bike together as well.

Taking a Water Break

With focused goals that are within my own ability to control and manage, I think 2014 will be another good year on the bike.  

The Weather outside is Frightful...

Last week was one of the coldest weeks in decades for many cities across the US.  For me personally, it was probably the coldest week that I had experienced in over 20 years.  There something about highs that are not above freezing (and lows in the single digits) that didn't inspire me to go out for my typical lunch rides to get base miles.  Instead, this was an opportunity for me to do more testing on how I can (and will) use the trainer this winter.

During the fall I wrote about getting a trainer, and using a couple of different software solutions to record and evaluate my workouts on the bike.  Both TrainerRoad and GoldenCheetah were successful in recording a workout, but the larger obstacle  that I ran into was wanting to complete the workouts.  Watching TV (or Netflix as the case may be) while grinding away on the bike just really didn't motivate me to give my best efforts, even when I had instructions in front of me.  Over the course of the last 6 months I had gotten a couple of different trainer workout demos free to try out, so with the week of bad weather I figured it was worth giving them a shot.

I completed 4 rides on the trainer this week while evaluating videos from 3 different companies:  1 from Endurance Films, 1 from Carmichael Training, and 2 from The Sufferfest.  All of these were downloaded files on my laptop that I had integrated into Golden Cheetah to sync/record my efforts while watching the video.  The actual data gathered was Heart Rate, Speed, and Cadence from my ANT+ meters I use with my Garmin 305.  Beyond that GC has an option to estimate power based on my trainer (Cyleops Fluid 2) and speed.

screenshot of Golden Cheetah playing The Sufferfest Downward Spiral

The first video I checked out was the Demo of RIDES: Florida - Paradise Road  from Endurance Films.  This was a BRO (Big Ring Only) Interval set, and the demo video included the first half hour of the workout.  This includes a single interval set and a warm up period.  Overall I liked the layout of this video, and at some point I will look into getting the full version of this particular workout.  The workouts were simple to follow, and it had great video footage along with good music to keep you entertained throughout the workout.  The goal of this workout was base strength, thus attempting to hold a low cadence (under 60 rpm) at a relatively high Wattage.  As a downside, most of the RIDES series is DVD (not download/mp4) and the pricing was not inexpensive.  There are 3 of their videos that are download friendly and run $19.95.  The DVD videos run approximately $29.95 + shipping from their site.  Currently they are running a promotion with the demo video to get 25% off your order when you use a code provided at the end of the video, though.


  RIDES Florida FREE Workout Interval from Endurance Films on Vimeo.
The second video I used was from Carmichael Training.  CTS is famously known for training many major pro cyclists, and for getting results.  They run several "Bucket List" rides throughout the year, including rides that follow the Tour of California and the US Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado.  I have getting "Bucket List Certified" on my goals list for the future, as I'd love to ride the Pro courses at some point in the future.  The video I demoed was from a Strava challenge during the summer, where by participating I was able to get the video for free.  The title is "Threshold Power", and as the name implies the goal is to increase your FTP.  This is a full hour long video, going through multiple intervals.  While this video had a lot of great instruction, there wasn't much to see on the screen except for other folks on trainers with the occasional outside training ride shot, and very little music to keep you grooving.  Thus time didn't move very quickly.  I did find that their instructions for how to find your goal range, based on % of Power as well as HR or RPE to be effective at helping me zero in my goal range.  CTS has download options, as well as DVD options, for all of their videos, and the pricing starts at $9.99.



Preview of CTS training videos on YouTube
The last two videos I used during the week were part of the Starter Kit from The Sufferfest.  This is one of the most popular of the trainer series that I see my friends posting about online.  Ranging from $5.99 to $14.99 they for the download videos, you can get DVD backups of the videos for a fee.  The names on these videos are interesting, and descriptive.  With  names like "the Blender", "Revolver", and "The Downward Spiral", you can tell that the folks that created these videos definitely are a creative bunch.  The HUD on the video is very minimal, it's like they are expecting you to be using another program like TrainerRoad or GC to integrate your efforts, and they put the extra time into making an interesting video experience instead of a detailed HUD of your workout.  The two videos that I have used from the Starter Pack so far are "The Downward Spiral" and "Extra Shot: The Long Scream".  Both of these workouts left me tired and drenched, but with good video and music, the time passed relatively quickly.  I say relatively, because when you are working at threshold for 30 minutes on a simulated time trial, I'm not sure you can call any time passing "quick".  Of the 3 different series, this is the one that I would gravitate towards using regularly.  


Preview of "The Downward Spiral" on Vimeo

One of the big advantages that The Sufferfest has over the other training videos was that I was able to easily find and import ERG files to use with GC for the workouts.  This allowed me to have a "target power" number to try to hit to stay in my effort zones, based on a FTP workout, instead of having to guess by my own perceived effort or heart rate.  I tend to push way too hard early in effort levels, as can still be seen in my workouts on the trainer, and thus I cannot push at a level for nearly as long as I can if I know where my target is and my target is realistic.  I'm sure I can find or create ERG files for the other videos, but having them readily available just made it easy.  

After spending 4 days on the trainer, the weather was finally to a point where I was able to get out on the road and ride with some friends on Sunday.  This was the first "checkpoint" on if the trainer sessions were going to translate into actual gains while out on the bike.  For 2 years I've mostly attempted to figure out efforts effectively based on RPE, or perceived effort.  The problem I've had with that method is that I overexert too early in the effort, as I don't have a good feel for experience I should have at a given effort level. What I was focusing on was not jumping out to too big of an effort early to just be reeled back in late.  While I didn't get Personal Records on the route, I did feel like I had success in my goals.  I can see if I spend time on the trainer focusing on knowing what an effort feels like in my legs, and not just training myself on perceived effort, I'm going to see a big difference in long efforts over time.  

Retüling

This fall I've been lucky enough to have friends get upgrades, giving me the opportunity to get some used components to upgrade my bicycle.  As such, I was able to replace the OEM equipment that came with my Scott S40 (which was mostly Shimano Sora-level equipment) with a SRAM Force/Rival groupset, along with a set of OEM brakes from Pinnerello.  While it would seem like the new groupset would be the bigger focus, the brake really made a big difference in how the bike handles downhill.  I didn't realize just how poor the braking power was on that bike until I had new brakes on the exact same bicycle.  

That isn't to say that the SRAM drivetrain didn't change the feel of the bike.  Much of the feel that I got from the SRAM ride experience in late October has come through quite clearly even without a frame update.  It may be psychosematic, but the bike seems to feel better overall since the change.  It's taken several rides to get used to using double-tap for shifting instead of the thumb-shifting on the Sora, but the transition has been very smooth.  The biggest issue for me so far has been accidentally shifting to a smaller cog when I'm at the top of the cassette.  The new crank is VERY slightly longer (175mm vs 172.5mm), and after a few rides I've gotten used to the changes there as well.  

Earlier in the year I had signed up for a contest sponsored by Retül, and as a part of it I received a coupon to get a fitting.  After getting the new groupset, and realizing that it had been 18 months plus more than 6,000miles since my last bike fit, I figured now would be a good time to make sure the bike was properly adjusted to my fitness.  Bad form on the bike can relate to injuries in the long term.  Injuries that you cannot recover from with a little bit of rest.  I made an appointment to go in to Greenville Cycling Center and get a Retül fit.  It was worth every penny spent.

Even though the weather was a little bit poor, I decided to just ride down to GCC, as it is only about 3miles from work on the Swamp Rabbit Trail to their offices.  I got there a little early, so I had a little time to relax and be amazed by the CompuTrainer setup.  I made sure to wear one of my sleeveless base layers, as I was told.  

Jason and Jim started out by putting my bike onto the trainer they had set up for fittings, making sure that the bike was level.  The Retül system looked at a very basic level like a really big XBOX Kinnect sensor.  You could see multiple cameras facing the bike at a set distance, and they had the data set up on a big TV at one side of the trainer for review.  The trainer was on a platform and had a Kurt Kinetic fluid trainer and a Retül device coyly named a Levül to help make sure the bike sat level.  They replaced my rear skewer with a trainer skewer that had a knob on the end to give a spot to mount a level to make sure that the bike was on level before doing any adjustments.

They asked me the standard battery of questions (height, weight, cycling goals), and then took my measurements (outseam, arms, wingspan, etc).   From there they set up a table for me to lie down on to test my flexibility and core strength (definitely not my strong suit).  Jim went through several stretches and exercises ranging from arching my back to push-ups to one legged squats.  It definitely brought home the work that I needed to focus on during the off-season, as my core definitely needs work (that plus doing push ups on a padded table isn't a whole lot of fun).  Jim also noted that my hip flexibility, especially inward, was very poor.  Time for more stretching!

After completing my fitness evaluation, it was on to getting the bike adjusted!  They started by noting the current measurements on the bike.  The saddle was (once again) pointing nose up, along with slightly left.  The nose up part was definitely an issue, and they corrected it (once again) back to level.  We chatted for a bit about a new seat post, as this one has had the "nose up" issue a bunch this year.  It's definitely a future investment on my radar.  The next step was for me to get several velcro dots applied at my joints so that the Retül camera could track my motions.  

Once dotted up and having the sensors applied, I had to ride at approximately 90rpm for 30s while the camera recorded the motion on my right side.  They then spun me around and had me spin again at 90rpm for 30s to capture the motion on my left side.  This allowed them to not just look at how the bike fit me, but also how I was tracking while pedaling without just "eyeballing it".  They found 2 issues that they wanted to correct immediately:  First was that I was sitting too low, and thus not fully extending my leg at the bottom of my stroke.  The second is that my knee wasn't tracking straight;  noteably the upstroke was curving slightly outward.  They also noted that my hips shift such that my right side is pushed slightly forward.  The hip shift didn't concern them, but the knee motion did.

The first adjustment was to raise my saddle by 10mm!  This doesn't sound major, but in bicycle fit terms, small amounts are huge adjustments.  The second was to attempt to fix the knee track by adding in spacers on my pedals.  After making the adjustments I ran the test again (30s @ 90rpm for each side) to see if the tracking was better.  The saddle height fixed most things, but the pedal spacers didn't help the knee motion

For the second adjustment they removed the pedal spacers and placed shims in my shoes.  Without seeing my street shoes, Jim could tell that I underpronate while standing;  That is to say that I walk/stand on the outside of my foot.  This is of note because even going into running stores it takes the fitters a few iterations of measurements and triple-checking the wear pattern on my shoes for them to really believe I underpronate because it is so uncommon.  He also was hopeful that the shims would also help my knee to track more evenly.  After another 30s @ 90rpm for each side (anyone else feeling like this is cooking instructions yet?) my knee tracking was slightly better on the left side, but not magically better.  Everything else was dialed in almost perfectly, so we are hopeful that if I focus on core and stretching that my knee will start tracking in where it should be.  

The end of the appointment was spent going over the report generated by the Retül software.  The detail in the report was incredible, and it really made me comfortable that my fit was really dialed in.  I was still a little concerned over my hips being shifted, along with the difference in crank length between my original OEM equipment and the new Rival crank I had just installed.  I was assured that the neither was an issue.

SRAM Ride Experience

On October 25, Greenville Cycling Center and SRAM hosted a Road Ride Experience.  This was the first time that I've really had a chance to ride a bike that wasn't my trusty Scott S40 since I seriously started riding, and I really didn't have a good idea of what expectations to have on the differences between various components.  Ride Experiences like this are designed to get you interested in the manufacture's equipment, and give you a chance to try everything out.  While it was a rather chilly lunchtime ride, I was excited to give it a shot.

I got to the ride tents around noon, when the event started, and while they transfered my pedals over to the test bike I had a chance to talk to the local SRAM sales representatives and the techs that were there.  Once they had the test bike set up, they gave me a quick overview of the components that I would be riding as a part of the experience.  I was going to be trying out the SRAM Force22 group set, along with Zipp 404 Firebrand wheels and a complete Zipp carbon cockpit (stem, handlebars and seat post).  After a few minutes of training on how SRAM double-tap functions, and a chance to try it out on a pair of shifters, they had me do a quick loop and make sure everything was set okay on the bike.  



The drive train is the real reason that I was interested in the Ride Experience - I've done the homework on SRAM, from how double-tap works to weight and function of the derailleurs, and I was really interested in trying it out.  The 22-series is designed to give a wide number of gears with a limited number of overlapping selections.  One of the features that they showed me was how the front derailleur has a trim function to allow for a wider distance from chain ring to cog, allowing for less chain rub than a traditional setup.  I had a 11-32 cassette on the rear, and a compact (50-34) crankset.  The shifting on SRAM is also unique, as they use a single lever design for shifting each derailleur.  A single slight throw moves the rear derailleur to a smaller cog, and varying longer throws move the rear derailleur between 1 and 3 cogs larger.  

 
The representatives at the booth also gave me a complete rundown on the Zipp 404 wheel set that I was going to be riding on.  I was honestly a little nervous about riding on carbon wheels, as my size typically puts me at the top end of the usual weight scales.  The other added worry is that because of my size I put a lot of stress on brakes as I attempt to slow down.  I was assured that these wheels were rated to 240lbs, which should have no issues handling me at a measly 205lbs.  They also educated me on the material and shape of the rims, and how they had spent the time to develop the rim such that it wouldn't overheat while braking, and that cross winds would not cause steering issues even given the deeper nature of the rim.  Given that it was a rather blustery day, I was sure to test out if they were accurate with the rim shape!

The last thing that they talked to me before I headed out was minor, but I really wish they had it.  SRAM earlier this year released bar mounts for the Edge 500, 510, 800 and 810 series cycling computers.  The test bike was equipped with a mount on it that I could have placed my Garmin on, if I didn't have an Edge 305 right now (which uses a different mounting system).  The SRAM guys told me about an adapter they released recently that allows my Edge 305 (or a 605 or 705) to connect to their bar mount!  Alas, they didn't have any of the adapters on them and I just placed my garmin into my jersey pocket before I headed out.  I will definitely be visiting Bike Street to get one VERY soon.

In order to give it a real shake down, I decided to ride up the Swamp Rabbit Trail and give a go on Paris Mountain.  I do this climb fairly often, so it would give me a good chance to see how the bike acted and how the shifting worked.  On the way up to Paris Mountain, I never had a reason to leave the small chainring (34 tooth).  The selection of gears that I had available to me was quite sufficient to have plenty of speed (the top speed on SRT is 20mph) with a good feeling of cadence. The shifting, while quite different from the thumb shift of my Shimano Sora shifters, was quite natural.  There were a few times where I'd accidentally shift gears the wrong direction, mostly when I was playing around in being in the largest cog and attempting to downshift further.  



Once on Paris Mountain, I wasn't attempting to necessarily get a personal record up the climb, but I wanted to see how everything worked together.  Having a super light bike, light wheels, and a high end drive train should mean that I would have little issues with climbing, right?  Well, that really isn't the whole story, but I'll say that I found that no matter where I was on the climb I always had access to a gear ratio that allowed me to climb without having to put out extra effort.  In fact, up until the last grunt, I felt more inclined to climb in the saddle than be standing and really putting power into the crank.  I attribute some of this to bike fit, but a lot of it was that I was comfortable enough in the saddle and could keep a cadence that didn't make me feel like I had to stand to keep going.   When I finally got to the top, I still had a energy to spare, meaning that I could have put more into the climb than I did, but not being completely drained when I got done was quite nice.  I noticed the power of the brakes as I attempted to turn around, making me hop a couple of times because of the angle of the road where I chose to make my U Turn.  

Descending Paris Mountain was going to end up giving me a real feel for how the Zipp 404 really handled.  The wind was blustery on the north side of the mountain, giving a good cross wind to the descent.  Also I've already been working on attempting to not bomb downhill, but rather keep control, so I'd be testing out the heating of the wheels and the feathering of the brakes.  Several times during the descent I got a good solid wind gust hit me, and I could feel the bike being pushed around.  Even during those pushes I never felt like the steering was impacted, or that I had anything but 100% control of the bike.  While I didn't attempt to go super slow on the way down, I did keep my speed in check.  A couple of times I could hear the brakes start to get noisy, but at no time did I feel like the wheels were overheating or that I was losing braking power.  Even at the stop sign at the bottom of the hill I had plenty of braking power to not be using a "Kung Fu Grip" to get the bike to stop.  The ride back to the start point was very uneventful, but I did spend more time playing around with the shifting on the way back.

After returning to the event booth and getting my pedals put back on my bike, I rode back over to work, my lunch break being over.  The last part of the experience was for me to get back on my trusted steed after being on such a high end machine.  I now had a tactile way to understand what I'd get if I upgraded to a new high-end bike.  The only way that I can explain it to non-riders would be to say it's like the differences in a Camry and a Lexus.   My Scott is very functional, shifts when I want it to (mostly) and takes just about everything I throw at it from day to day.  Getting onto the test bike I could feel that it was significantly lighter and more responsive, and that shifting was much more crisp.  It never hesitated to react when I gave it power, and overall it had a very muted and comfortable ride compared to my Sportster.  From a comfort perspective the cockpit was much easier to keep my hands in a comfortable position, and I felt that shifting was always very easy to reach no matter where my hands were on the hoods or drops.  Braking was powerful and snappy as well. 

So in the end, I had a fantastic time trying out the various pieces of SRAM equipment, and I gained some very valuable insight into these components and what to expect from SRAM when I get new components.  While a major bike upgrade for me is more than likely more than a year away, knowing what I like and how various components act and feel is going to be vital in making my next bike purchases wise ones.  I wish I had an opportunity to try out disc brakes, and maybe a power meter, what I tested was definitely in line with what I'd like to get in the nearer future.  At this point I'd put Zipp cockpit and drive train upgrades pretty high on my wish list of components, although I have to say I'm still in love with my Boyd Wheels, and riding the 404's really didn't change my opinion of that.