Double Century Prep

I am planning to ride a Double Century tomorrow from Pasadena to Ojai, returning up Encinal Canyon and Agoura Road. I typically ride easy the week before a Double Century. This allows me mentally and physically to feel sharp and able to complete a ride that's 12 hours in the saddle without feeling too fatigued. 

The weather this week has been conducive to cycling, especially for August. Overcast mornings extending until 10:00 or 11:00 am, with temperatures under 80. Tomorrow is supposed to be even a little cooler.

I will get up at 3:45 am and roll by 4:50 am. I plan to return home about 6:30 pm. I plan to ride tempo with some hard efforts, and reduce my stopped time to about one hour. I will run front and rear lights and bring gel and powder, and stop four or five times to refill.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Forest Closures

The forests are closed until at least September 17th. I will not attempt to ride the closed roads. Instead, I'm going to ride the Verdugos and Griffith Park this weekend. I predict they'll be inundated with cyclists, as would the Santa Monic Mountains, which is an open alternative to the San Gabriels.
Read more

Group Climb

Image
Anytime I hear about a group ride going up Highway 39 or Glendora Mountain Road, two of the best local climbs, I get excited, because group climbing rides attract younger riders who climb faster than me, and sometimes include a support vehicle carrying water and ice. In the more desolate areas like upper 39, it's safer to ride in a group. There's a chance I'll know someone else in the group, and if I don't, they might be new to these roads, and since I know them quite well, I can serve as a guide. Loren texted me last week me about a group ride doing the Circle of Dawson on 7/31/21.  On Saturday morning I woke up at 3:55 am and rolled from my house at 4:45 am to the starting point of the group ride, Encanto Park. I arrived and saw a couple of Adobo Velo members getting ready to ride the bike path to Seal Beach, and I rode through the parking lot and saw Marco, who had just completed an Iron Man followed by a mountain bike race. We chatted, I texted Loren "are u her...
Read more

Circle of DaWilson

Image
  On Saturday, I again rode the 120-mile Circle of Doom route, plus Dawson Saddle and Mount Wilson, that I call "Circle of DaWilson." I woke up at 4:00 am and left home at 4:45 am, with lights, to beat the heat, which I did. I made it up to the Crystal Lake cafe at 8:00 am, and Dawson Saddle just after 9:30 am. I put in some hard efforts on the climbs after Crystal Lake, including the Islip Saddle to Dawson Saddle segment, on which I set a personal record by over two minutes. I did end up overheating and almost bonking hallway up the final climb to Mount Wilson. I slowed down, drank some gatorade and ate some gel, and that seemed to help. Still, when I arrived at the Cosmic Cafe at the summit, I sat and rested my head on the picnic table, sweating, with my eyes closed. I got back home early, took a long bath, and watched the film, "Sound of Metal," which I enjoyed. It's stayed with me. The acting is great, the tone is very uncomfortable, and it comes across almo...
Read more