Race The Training Thread
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Tsuga
Speeding Up
- Jan 17, 2023
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Apparently this is his 10th year racing JPT and his first podium. Really stoked for him. He also did the 130km race the day before on Saturday, sheesh. But, not only is he a really strong rider, he's a super nice guy too. He's always smiling and laughing. Chatting with him and the rest of the team is a major motivator for me to keep working on my Japanese (and my fitness, I want to help him get that win.)
How did the day go for you @GrantT ? I realized at one point I actually don't know what you look like. I saw some other foreigners... and then thought wait... he may not even be a white guy or a foreigner in general haha.
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It’s especially impressive given he has a full time job.
I know he finished, which is impressive on its own given the attrition rate!
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GrantT
Maximum Pace
- Oct 2, 2012
- 1,883
- 1,587
@Tsuga
Finished in the main bunch not too far behind the breakaway. Took me a while to figure out the course as well, where to move up, where to hide from the wind, where all the broken pavement was. Wasn't sure how the bunch sprint would go though so didn't really contest it. Saw three crashes in the last 300 metres though so just lucky no to get caught up in any of those.
Congrats on the finish! Bad luck to get another wet race, but getting to the end has to be a win. I saw you with the other JPT riders waiting to get on course but it didn't seem like the best time for a chat and a selfie. Hopefully next time. Yeah, quite a few foreigners around at the weekend. Usually those in the pro ranks outnumber those in the elites, but not last weekend. Interesting times. I am definitely a foreigner though. My instagram is linked in my signature on this board.
Looking forward to hearing more about your race in the next podcast!
Finished in the main bunch not too far behind the breakaway. Took me a while to figure out the course as well, where to move up, where to hide from the wind, where all the broken pavement was. Wasn't sure how the bunch sprint would go though so didn't really contest it. Saw three crashes in the last 300 metres though so just lucky no to get caught up in any of those.
Congrats on the finish! Bad luck to get another wet race, but getting to the end has to be a win. I saw you with the other JPT riders waiting to get on course but it didn't seem like the best time for a chat and a selfie. Hopefully next time. Yeah, quite a few foreigners around at the weekend. Usually those in the pro ranks outnumber those in the elites, but not last weekend. Interesting times. I am definitely a foreigner though. My instagram is linked in my signature on this board.
Looking forward to hearing more about your race in the next podcast!
OreoCookie
Maximum Pace
- Dec 2, 2017
- 2,529
- 2,119
Podcast?!?!! Link, please!
It's nice to hear about your race exploits, wish I could be there.
My training is a bit weird, fitness-wise I am doing ok, but not great. My last training block was not great, I got sick, had a business trip and stagnated.
Yet, the last 3 outdoor rides I have had were spectacular even though I stayed in zone 2. Last Friday someone overtook me on a climb. I could tell we were evenly matched, I just capped my power to 75 %. We did the descent together, and there we were on par. I could tell I improved from a horrible descender to a mediocre descender, in no small part thanks to @bloaker's tips. Today was just great, too. 90 km, 1,200 m of climbing and I feel no fatigue. It felt as if I could have continued on at that pace for quite a while.
OreoCookie
Maximum Pace
- Dec 2, 2017
- 2,529
- 2,119
PS I did have to pay a bit of a price during this mornings workout: my muscles felt fatigued, but my cardiovascular system was super happy. Still, totally worth it!
Did 200km this morning in preparation for Tokyo-Itoigawa a week on Saturday.
One or two 200km rides in training is usually enough to prepare for 300km when rested and tapered.
After a bit of hiatus I need to go back and look at the route before taping up the stem and getting into race mode!
Andy
One or two 200km rides in training is usually enough to prepare for 300km when rested and tapered.
After a bit of hiatus I need to go back and look at the route before taping up the stem and getting into race mode!
Andy
Tsuga
Speeding Up
- Jan 17, 2023
- 58
- 61
Nice job! Glad you made it through unscathed. It was definitely a tricky course. Makes me think a lot of someone like my teammate Yuki that has been racing JPT for a decade. That's almost as long as I've been riding bikes, the knowledge he has of the courses must be invaluable.
Glad to hear you're back on the bike. My wife and I started a podcast just as a fun project / to keep friends and family in the loop. We've really started to enjoy it a lot and have a (very) small following now. It's also a great way for us to keep a sort of audio journal for ourselves too. We kind of talk about whatever, but obviously very "foreigner living in Japan" specific. It may be a bit boring for someone that's been over here a long time, but you can find it at https://www.ramblingramsbothams.com/
We actually ended up meeting up with a guy at the Gunma Race that listens! Was pretty neat. We raced against each other in collegiate nationals back in 2016, but he moved to Japan just this year. I don't think we had formally met before... Maybe more sensibly he started in E3, and already got his first upgrade. He has his UCI license for CX, so I feel like he'll move through the ranks quickly.
That's coming in hot, good luck with the event! Hopefully it goes smoothly.
I know it's Golden Week, but this coincided with a good time for a rest week. It's kind of nice having unstructured time during a holiday when I can just hang out around the house. We have a friend coming to stay with us as a base camp while he does some bikepacking around the area. Looking forward to getting out on some relaxing rides with him for the 2nd half of my easy week. But... he was a national champion podium contender in all disciplines during our college days, so even if he's on a touring bike it may be harder than I'm expecting.
Sida san takes the photos at my events.
He was at Gunma taking photos of Niigata riders including Honda san and Adachi san on your team.
A few cameos in there!
Andy
OreoCookie
Maximum Pace
- Dec 2, 2017
- 2,529
- 2,119
Thanks for the link, I'll definitely give it a listen.
Being back on the bike feels great. My fitness is slowly getting back to where it was, and I enjoy spending time on the bike. The weather is perfect for riding, the scenery beautiful and the mountain roads (save for a few) free of snow.
- Jul 26, 2008
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No problem in kanazawa--of the two, the first was a 4 here, the second a 3.
But up in Noto/Suzu, various damage, injuries, and one death (apparently someone up on a ladder that fell due to the quake?).
Tsuga
Speeding Up
- Jan 17, 2023
- 58
- 61
Same here in Uchinada. No issues. Strongest earthquake(s) we've ever felt, so that was a little exciting / frightening. I don't understand the geology, but Uchinada had reported intensity lower than even Kanazawa which is right next to us. We're technically an island loosely connected to the land by bridges, so maybe that's why?
The day before we had just been telling our friend staying with us we have never really felt an earthquake too.
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Yeah, I think the 2011 quake was *only* a 5+ where I was, and that was bar none of the biggest quake I have ever felt by a large margin. So I bet a 6+ was definitely frightciting, like you say.
On a less serious note, I bought the wife a hybrid bike (with gravel tires) and we have gone on one ride together. I hope to get her fit and trim again in no time...
They opened a new really nice gym in town, so I think I might cancel my JoyFit membership just because of the convenience, even though JoyFit's gym is more complete and has niceties like a sauna (the town gym is also cheaper). Still a bit sore... I haven't been weight training nearly enough lately.
The next race I am entered is a pan-flat (but windy) 100-minute "enduro", so I don't need to worry about weight all that much at the moment. I figure as long as I am "stage lean" by the 200-km Tour de Fukushima in September, I will be golden...
GrantT
Maximum Pace
- Oct 2, 2012
- 1,883
- 1,587
Yeah, nice to have that kind of experience to dip into. I've been riding these circuits for around six years but the JPT peloton is a different beast. JBCF sometimes does E1/P races but I've been shelled sharpish both times I tried those.
Got some big miles in with the team over GW. We usually get awful weather for some reason, but was blessed with clear skies and clement temps this year. Main target now is a JBCF race weekend at Shuzenji CSC at the beginning of June.
Tsuga
Speeding Up
- Jan 17, 2023
- 58
- 61
That race looks really interesting, is it a fun course? I think I'm going to stay in Ishikawa that weekend so I'll miss it. It's a bit of a long drive for one day of racing. I signed up for the 2nd round of Gunma in mid-June though. I don't know if I particularly like Gunma... but now that I have some experience racing there I'll give it another try.
My next event is the Hill Climb in Kiso on May 21st. Our friend that is visiting is off on a 5 day bikepacking trip in the mountains so I rode with him from Kanazawa over to the Sho river valley before peeling off and heading back home. At 4.5 hours into the ride I hit a local climb that's 9km at 7.1% and was able to hold ~323w for about 31.5 minutes.
The Kiso Hill Climb is 21km at 5.7%, so double the distance but about 100m short of twice what I did yesterday. I think being totally fresh I'll be aiming for 300-325w (no significant time over 340 ideally) and a goal time of 1 hour. I'm really interested to see how it goes. I know it's a mass start event, but I think I'll need to just try and ignore everyone else.
GrantT
Maximum Pace
- Oct 2, 2012
- 1,883
- 1,587
@Tsuga
Yep, a fun course. Nothing but threshold/VO2 climbing and high speed descending. Better tarmac than Gunma and acres of room to maneuver. The Olympic velodrome and MTB course are also on the same site, so a good place for some sightseeing. If it didn't overlap the Tour of Kumano I'm pretty sure JPT would have done a full weekend there.
That's a big ol' climb. Didn't realize it would be so long. Stats are quite similar to the Fuji Hill Climb, which is 23 km at just over 5% ave. Drafting actually made a difference when I did it so might be worth sticking with a group if a good one forms, especially if the wind gets up.
Yep, a fun course. Nothing but threshold/VO2 climbing and high speed descending. Better tarmac than Gunma and acres of room to maneuver. The Olympic velodrome and MTB course are also on the same site, so a good place for some sightseeing. If it didn't overlap the Tour of Kumano I'm pretty sure JPT would have done a full weekend there.
That's a big ol' climb. Didn't realize it would be so long. Stats are quite similar to the Fuji Hill Climb, which is 23 km at just over 5% ave. Drafting actually made a difference when I did it so might be worth sticking with a group if a good one forms, especially if the wind gets up.