Saturday Rantings

OK, it's my Saturday to donate time I will never get back. Yes, I'm at work. One tech, no luber. What a waste. But, on the bright side, I can catch up on some paper work, explore the 'net, and generally waste time. Here goes...

Sammy Sanchez took the Gold at the men's road race at the Olympic Games. I sure didn't see that one coming. David Rebellin took silver, and my boy Fabian Cancellara fly up from the chase to take bronze. I hear the heat and humidity were ungodly.

On the diabetes front, there sure are a ton of studies coming down that favor fats and such over carbs a way to combat diabetes. Seems the ADA pyramid suggests we type 2's eat lots of whole grain based starches. From what most make of this is that combating heart disease first and combating blood sugar with drugs is secondary. Now many doctors and researchers are trying to defuse this theory. And it's all just theory it seems to me.

Way back in the late 1900's, E P Joslin was helping people control their glucose levels with a diet of 70% fats and 10% carbohydrates. It worked well, in fact his own mother reversed her diabetes with his methods. Along came Canadian (those damned Cannucks-ha ha!) Frederick Benting with insulin. Soon the low carb fell out of favor due to insulin being effective for those with poorly disciplined eating habits. And there in is the rub. Injecting insulin is a trial and error process. You never know exactly how much to take due to all the variables involved. Diet, exercise etc. change from day to day.

Me, I take Lantus, a 24 hour dose in the a.m., to maintain my glucose level daily. A metformin in the a.m. and p.m., along with Byetta at the same times help also. For me, with my lifestyle, this is a crude form of control, in my humble opinion. My usual dosage of Lantus is 33 units. But if I'm going on a 4 hour ride, I'll cut it back to 20 units, or so. If it's a morning ride, I skip the Byetta. It's stomach emptying control gives me heartburn under hard exertion, so I don't take it if I'll be riding shortly after breakfast.

At the end of the day, when all is said and done, when there is nothing left to say or do, when the last dog is hung, exercise and weight loss are the key for me. The effects of an epic ride last for a couple of days, in that my blood sugar stays fairly low mo matter what I eat. But I just don't have the time to ride every day, and effort changes, too. A 4 hour spin is different than an hour of hill repeats. It does appear in my case, the longer the duration of the exercise, the longer the positive effect is on my glucose levels. But life throws in too many curve balls when your a fast ball hitter. What's my plan, you ask? I'm working on it. More details Monday.

The Light Bulb In My Head

Just went on.In Steps. Progressions. OK, I finally put two and two together. Higher cadence equals more endurance. I read a Joe Friel article in Velo News on the 3 main keys to better riding and racing. Basically, work on your weaknesses, you'll be faster. No kidding, Joe. But what I did realize after reading this, was that I pedal too slow. I seem to be in that 80-84 range, lower on grades, relying more on power than efficiency. I always have used that "torque feeling" judge how well I am riding. That was fine when I was young and strong as a bull, but not any more. Jan Ullrich could get away with grinding it out as he was a genetic freak, I am not.

So Sunday morning I set off on a 30 mile ride from the camper south on the state trail. I tried to up my cadence to the 85 to 90 rpm range. My speed was the same as usual, but the effort seemed less. Pretty soon, a guy on a bent pulled up along side. He obviously was an experienced rider, well conditioned and fast. I asked why the bent? He said he had a serious back injury many years back and couldn't ride a normal bike, so he tried a bent, and can tolerate it. He was a Cat 2 at one time and it showed. We went through the hilly twisting area behind Rutledge, and he put 200 yards on me in no time. I was amazed at how quick he could corner and climb. Fun times.

He stopped to meet his wife in Finlayson, so we chatted a bit before I went another 5 miles south. I asked what his thoughts about cadence were. He said one of the big things he works on with younger riders is spinning faster than you think you should be. I mentioned I was working on that, and he agreed I was still to slow. Concentrate on the 90 to 100 rpm range and you'll ride faster longer. I headed on south to my turn around point, as I decided to do 40 miles instead of the planned 30. Concentrating on upping my cadence was tough, but after a few miles, it started to feel normal. After I got back to the camp ground, my legs felt much fresher, and the inner thigh soreness I normally get after a long ride never set in. An 18 mph average for 41.36 mile was a good effort for me. Combined with 2 hours of hard MTB riding Saturday and 1 1/2 hours Friday night, it was a good weekend for me.

New Look

Thought I would update the look of the blog a bit. I like this layout better, hope you do.

I rode up Lester River road, then left onto Stark. That Col is a leg breaker, for sure. Anyone got a spare compact crank they can bum me? Come on, help a brother out. Actually, I found a nice deal on a Ultegra compact crank set for $160.00 on line. My current set is an FSA SL-K Mega XO carbon. A compact version runs about $299.00. Nice, but a little spendy.

It looks like a nice weekend coming up, I'll get some good mile in at the camper on both the road and mountain bikes. SWMBO wants to get in some ride time with me, so I won't have to ride alone all the time. Last year there was a couple of riders in the site, but I haven't seen them this year. Hope you all have a good weekend, I hope to.

New Stuff

My road bike rides kind of harsh. To be expected, seeing that it's an aluminum frame. The carbon fork and stays do help, but it's still aluminum. The original seat was a was a butt abusing hunk of plastic, so I tried a Specialized touring seat, which was too soft. Next up, a Specialized BG Rival MTB seat. Better,but it didn't translate to the road well. Don't ask me why, because it's great on the MTB. After installing it on the MTB, I put the old BG Sport seat from the MTB on the road bike. No cigar. This game of musical seats had to stop. A little research on the various chats and review sites brought my choices down to a few. Luck would have it one of the finalists came up as a special on Blue Sky's e-mail flier. I've bought a few things from them and have always come through right on time. This seat, the Fi'zi:k Rondine Wing Flex Magnesium (that's quite a mouthful), is regularly $85.00. With a sale price of $29.98 + shipping, it looked like a steal.

It is a steal. I got home today and installed it post-haste. Now, the Ritchey Comp seat post has been nothing but a headache, always letting the seat tilt back at the first sight of a climb and some aft pressure. Not so with this saddle. Not a creak or any sign of the tilt-itis it had with the other ones. And that harshness I attributed to the aluminum frame? Much reduced. The flex wings seem to help eat up a lot of vibration. The padding seems just right for my bony butt. It came with a small clip in seat bag, but it's too little for my needs. This seat is a bit wider, so it fits me perfectly. I use a BG 143 width, and this is pretty close.

*This is not a paid endorsement for Fi'zi:k, but it could be if they would send me a check.

Deep Thoughts

Deep in the woods, that is. My weekend ride scouting ride took me into the thick state forest on ATV trail. Fun riding, especially on those sharp, burmed corners. You can crank into them full tilt and rail around with no brakes. Miles and miles of varied surface and width make for a great day on the MTB. But, that black cloud the cycling gods have seen fit to horse collar me with rained on my parade. Not with literal rain, but with flies. Those nasty, biting deer flies. Don't they know the difference between humans and deer? Maybe they should be called "we'll bite anything" flies. I had these nasty critters stuck on my arms, legs, in my helmet, everywhere. There is always bad with the good, and this was bad. But the riding was great!

I've read a lot of negative comments on the Versus coverage of the TDF. I actually don't mind the Phil and Paul running cliche commentary style, or Bobke's all around goofiness. It could be a lot worse. And a lot better. True HD picture would be a plus, but I'm sure the signal conversion from PAL to the US NTSC standard is the culprit, cost wise. The sound is pretty decent, and Vs does broadcast in 720. Maybe next year. One can only hope.

Ever wonder how the dopers get the idea to try the latest and greatest drugs? I have theories, such as research scientists noticing peculiar reactions to the last wonder drug meant to help the very ill. Hey, maybe I could make a buck on the side and black market this to some unscrupulous athlete or trainer. Or maybe he or she is a big sports fan and wants to "help out" some athlete or team. Money, I'm sure, is behind it, mostly. Why not spend more time tracking the source and enforcing existing laws in this country the way the French do. Wait, did just say "the way the French do"? Yes, stuffing Barry Bonds or Roger Clemens in a squad car after the game might help curb the flow, so to speak. Again, one can only hope.

TDF Final

My apologies, dear readers, for failing to file my usual, up to the minute reports on the last 2 stages of the TDF. I was out of town being eaten by deer flies and mosquitoes in my quest finding the best MTB trails near where our camper is parked. I rode some ATV trails that were da bomb, but the biting flies really took the joy out of things. I'll ride 'em again after fly season is over.

Back to the Tour: Carlos Sastre dug deep on the final time trial and sealed the victory over Cryin' Cadel Evans. The Aussie Weeper just didn't pull off the time trial he was looking for this time around. I've got a feeling he was worn to a frazzle after the constant beat down at the hands of CSC. Bjarne Riis put together a killer squad and worked his plan perfectly. The last stage into Paris was won in a sprint by Gert Steegman of Quickstep, who were floundering with out Tom Boonen, who's Tour was derailed in cloud of white powder. The latest doper to be flushed is Dmitri Fofonov from Credit Agricole. He got some blood pressure medication over the internet to help fight cramps was his excuse. Hmmm - I think the teams frown on anything the rider takes not pre-approved, especially a banned substance. What a dope(r).

All and all, a great Tour De France, though Sastre is not your most charismatic champion in recent years, but his team sure was! I think the Schleck boys will continue the trend in the future, and Evans might have one more run in him, but needs a stronger team to do it. And more Kleenex.

TDF Stage 19

Mad attack artist Sylvian Chavanel took today's fairly flat stage in a sprint over Jeremy Roy for a French 1-2 victory. Team Columbia's Gerald Ciolek took the field sprint for 3rd. I don't remember so many breaks that have actually worked as in this tour. Fun stuff. Tomorrow's time trial should be a nail chewing good time!!