Good sensations

This time last year I was still back home in Australia preparing to go to the USA for a season of racing. VISA delays meant that I did not leave until early April so I had a lot of early season preparation. 

This year has been very different. I have been racing since January and this weekend will be my 22nd race for the season! And there is plenty more to come. 

On top of the heavier schedule, the racing here in Europe is much harder. The level of the field is higher and it reflects in the speed of the race. More people are wanting to get into the early breakaway which means that the race goes much faster from the start. In today's GP Nobili, we covered the first 100km in less than 2hrs!

Climbs are longer, higher, faster and there is more of them. Couple this with more riders in the race and smaller roads, and it means that position in the peloton is the most important element of the race. If you are not at the front of the race, then you have no chance of finishing at the front of the race. The problem is, you are fighting with 200 guys for the same position on the road! If you are at the back of the race, or even in the middle, you have to brake and sprint out of every corner and fight for your place. There are more crashes, more risk and you use much more energy than the guys at the front. 

So far, the 2014 season has been a big learning curve but, as they say, what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. I am definitely in better shape than last year but the harder racing means I feel like I am not going as good!

Vuelta Mexico estar loco!

4 days before the start of the Vuelta Mexico, we were still unsure if the race was going ahead as we had very little details of the event and no itinerary. The race route was found online but it changed on a daily basis. At one point, it contained a 100km individual time trial but 24hrs later, this changed to 2.5km!

Despite this, we arrived in Mexico City the day before the race. Although Mexico City is not at the top of a mountain peak, it has a deceptively high altitude of 2500m. This means that riding a bike felt like someone was standing on your chest while you tried to breath. 

Stage 1 was a relatively short stage of 81km but started with a 30km climb up to 3000m of elevation. Within 5km of starting, riders were struggling to get oxygen and dropping off the back of the bunch. Altitude is a cruel beast. 

Before the start of stage 2, we were told that there was a number of speed bumps during the stage. In fact, there was over 180 speed bumps in just 145km of racing. 

The stage started with a fast downhill section before a short climb and another steep descent. We started the first downhill section at speeds around 70kph when the lead vehicles hit a small problem. Bikes could easily maintain their speed over the speed bumps but the cars struggled to take them at high speed. Halfway down the hill, the neutral spares vehicle at the front of the race hit a speed bump and it's roof racks (and bikes) came flying off!

The race went past without any problems but it meant we had no lead vehicle anymore and we were basically riding alone on the roads of Mexico! When we began the first climb, the cars eventually caught up and neutralised the race.

This turned out to be extremely lucky, as we began the second descent, we hit a section of cobble stones. This was not your typical cobble stones that you could ride over with relative ease. This was more like a bunch of rocks that someone had thrown on the ground and called it a road. 

 

Water bottles went flying, tyres exploded all through the bunch and riders crashed as they tried to navigate their way through the chaos. Once the race started again, it only got worse as cracks in the road that were wide enough put your hand in, caused even more crashes, punctures and general craziness. 

 

Many riders were left stranded on the side of the road as their team cars were held up while trying to help others or slowed by the endless speed bumps! As the race continued on, many were still trying to catch up but thanks to all of the obstacles, it made it almost impossible to maintain any speed! At the end of the stage, some riders finished over 1hr behind the winner after being left alone and getting lost!!

 

Over the next couple of days, many riders including myself, suffered a case of Montezuma's Revenge after some consuming some dodgey food and the race became more about survival than anything else. The altitude eventually got the better of me and I withdrew from the race. 

 

By the time the last stage rolled around, many were pretty keen to leave, especially the rider that had his bike stolen at gun point before the start of the stage! 

 

Needless to say, the Vuelta Mexico was an experience that I won't forget. Everything about it was crazy!!

2000 in 100

Back home in Brisbane, if I want to do a ride with some climbing, I need to basically ride every hilly road that I know or ride 70km to get to a decent climb. The goal is to try to climb 2000m vertically in 100km horizontally. With the biggest climb in my area reaching just over 500m of elevation, this can be quite difficult to do. 

Here in Spain, 2000 in 100 is pretty much a standard ride! Within a few minutes of leaving for a ride, I am immediately going up a climb that is longer than the biggest climb in the area near my home in Australia. This week, I went out for a short 'recovery' ride and in just over an hour I had already racked up almost 1000m of climbing. It is a shock to the system for someone that is used to such flat terrain. 

An even bigger shock was the last race I did, Ruta del Sol in Andalucia. The first two stages were each around 180km and each stage had almost 4000m of climbing!! The entire race had very few km's on flat road and it felt like I was either riding full speed up hill or coasting down the other side the entire time!

 

 

For someone that is not a climber, the terrain here in Spain can only be doing me benefit. I am slowly getting used to riding uphill so much and at least, when I get home to Australia, a 'hilly' ride will not feel so bad. 

Reubicación en el extranjero

Back in 2011, I moved to Munich, Germany with my wife for some bike racing. We were fortunate enough to have our fiends, Ben & Beck come along for a year of adventure. 

At the beginning of the year I had several races in Asia, so my wife and friends went a few weeks before me. My wife told me on several occasions that she was finding life difficult in a foreign country as they tried to find a place to live, furniture etc while fighting the language barrier. I thought nothing of it. 

When I finally arrived in Germany, it just so happened to coincide with the day that my wife and friends moved into a new apartment. I helped carry some stuff and moved in without any issues. No problem, right?

My wife told me that next time we had to move, I would be responsible for all of the logistics as it was 'my turn'. Unfortunately for her, at the end of the year, she returned to Australia a few weeks before me as I had some more races to do and she had to repeat her experiences all over again, albeit without the language barrier. I returned to Australia to a new place that was all set up and ready to go. My wife was not impressed but I couldn't understand her frustrations. 

This year, I have based myself in Spain and now appreciate what my wife went through. I have finally settled into a new place just outside of Barcelona and if it wasn't for my team mate's help, I would probably be sleeping on the street. 

It seems that finding out and understanding local laws, rules and customs is extremely difficult if you can't speak the language! The simply task of setting up an electricity account can become a nightmare. Even with hours of research on the Internet, I still had relatively no idea what I was doing. 

This time, my wife will be coming over to see me and hopefully she will be impressed with how I (with my Spanish team mate's help) have managed to get along. Of course I'm going to lie and tell her it was so easy!

'Benefits' of the cold

Back home in Australia, after a long ride on the weekends, my wife often likes to go out to a cafe for breakfast or lunch. This means that I have to shower and change as quickly as possible and head out the door. 

When choosing somewhere to eat, I have to be very selective. After riding for hours in the hot sun, drinking a coffee in a cafe that has no air conditioning means that within 5 minutes, I'm sweating like I have a fever and am eating a vindaloo in the desert in the middle of summer. 

The hot weather makes it difficult to bring the body's core temperature down and unless I am sitting in a swimming pool or laying on tiles in air conditioning, I have to drink endless amounts of water to rehydrate properly. This does not make recovery very easy. 

Here in Girona it's cold. Annoying cold. Not so cold that there is snow and you can go skiing or make a snowman but cold enough so that you have to wear 5 layers of clothes and your face hurts in the wind. On the upside, it means you don't sweat very much. 

On a ride here, I don't go through a litre of water every half an hour and don't have to drink the same amount for 3hrs afterwards. The body temperature stays normal and recovery is so much quicker and easier. This means that I feel fresher each day and am able to do better training. 

Despite this, I still hate the cold. I hate feeling like the Michelin Man when I'm trying to ride cause I have to wear so many clothes. I hate that my nose is constantly running. I hate that my feet go numb and I can't feel my fingers. Bring on Summer!!

Sweltering

I've endured some pretty sweltering summers at home in Australia. I've seen the thermometer go over 45 degrees Celsius many times and usually retreat to air conditioning or a swimming pool to escape it. 

The last thing I would do in those temperatures is ride a bike. Or if I must, I would leave home at 5am to avoid it as much as possible. 

Here at the Tour de San Luis, it appears that they have the opposite idea. The temperature has been consistently above 40 degrees and the stages start in the middle of the day, resulting in the hottest days I have ever spent on the bike. 

I thought stage one was hot. I thought stage 2 was hotter. Then came stage 3. 173km with an average temperature of 43 degrees. Not a single bit of shade and to top it off, the entire stage was fought in strong cross winds. 

From the moment the race started, I was thirsty and it seems that all we did the entire race was to go back and get water bottles from the car. In the 24hr period of the day of the race, I estimate I consumed close to 17L of water and it was still not enough. 

With stage 4 being another long, hot day with a climb at the end,  it was a race to rehydrate before it began. Drinking water alone was not enough as you have to replace the huge amounts of salt that is crusted to your kit when you finish each day. 

Stage 4 started with some respite.  Although the temperatures were still in the 40's, a slight tail wind made it a little easier and at times you forgot just how hot it was. Then we hit the final climb. 

At the base, it was 45 degrees. It seemed that no matter how slow you went, the body was producing more heat than what it could get rid of. As a result, riders were pouring water on their heads in an effort to cool down. 

A few km's up the climb and we started to run out of water, realising that there was still a long way to go. At this point, riders started to beg spectators on the side of the road for water. Anyone with a bottle with anything to spare so that they could pour it over themselves. 'Agua! Agua! Por favor!!'

I'm not gonna lie, I was one of these people begging. I felt like my head was going to explode and my feet were burning from the heat. I had unzipped my jersey, taken off my gloves and sunglasses in an effort to cool down but it felt like it did nothing. Several times, I genuinely considered stopping in what little shade I could find. 

The last few days have been, by far, the hottest I have ever spent on a bike and I still have 3 more to go. At least it is going to make the rest of the season feel easier. Or at least it better!

First race for 2014

I have not turned a pedal in anger since November last year. So when I found out that the Tour de San Luis was going to be my first race for the 2014 season, I was a little concerned. With 12 World Tour teams making their way over with some big names on the start list, it was going to be tough.  

On paper, Stage 1 was supposed to be relatively easy, with the sprinters expected to battle it out at the end. 

 

The first 80km was slightly up hill at around 1-2% with a small crosswind while the last 80km was all down hill with a tail wind. As per the usual script, a small group of 6 riders were 'allowed' off the front as the bunch waited for the sprinter's teams to take control. 

Omega Pharma-Quick Step sent a rider to the front for the next 40km and held the break at 4mins for their sprinters while the rest of the bunch just cruised along behind, barely averaging over 30kph. 

Then they realised something. Up the road, in the break, were some overall GC contenders including last year's winner. The sprinters teams did not want to do the work for the others so they sat up. On top of that, the temperature was upwards of 45 degrees Celsius and no one was too keen on putting in a hard effort in what felt like an oven. 

For the next 10-15km, there was a lot of confusion over who would do the work and the race pretty much came to a stand still. The breakaway blew their lead out to almost 12mins before the GC teams reluctantly took up the chase. 

When calculating how much time a breakaway is 'allowed' to have, there is a bit of a general rule. The chasing bunch can generally bring back a minute every 10km. With 80km to go, the time gap was at 11min40sec and was looking out of reach. 

The race turned down hill with a tail wind and pace went up. Right up. We sat at around 50kph for the next 40km but it was already too late. With 40km to go, the gap was still at 9mins and when we finally reached 10km to go, there was still over 6mins to the leader. 

The race sat up again as everyone saw the writing on the wall. I was relieved as the heat made it feel like my head was going to explode and my feet were on fire. 

We crossed the line a long way down from the winner. I'm happy to have the first race for the season done and dusted. Despite this, it means that the overall contenders are going to have their work cut out for them over the next stages, and so do I. 

Cross Training

I hate walking. In fact, I'll do just about anything to avoid it. My wife finds it quite intriguing that I can ride hundreds of km's but can't gather the energy to walk around the block. Despite this, almost 12 months ago, I agreed to ring in the 2014 new year with a 3 day hike in Freycinet National Park in Tasmania with family. 

I had no idea what to expect. I have done day walks before and I have gone camping before but I have never combined the two. I soon discovered that doing both at the same time, meant that you had to purchase a large amount of hiking, camping and mobile cooking gear. It felt like we had enough stuff to remodel a kitchen but at more than the cost it is to refit a house. I still felt under prepared. 

We all arrived in Tasmania, ready to start the hike but thanks to Jetstar Airlines, a lost back pack meant we had to postpone all plans by a day so that they could locate the bag. (I could start an epic rant about this but I won't)

My back pack was heavy. Like 30kg heavy. We had to carry enough food for 3 days as well as about 6L of water as the creeks may not be flowing for refills. I struggled to put it in the car, never mind lugging it around for 3 days!

Walking with a heavy back pack is a lot like driving with a trailer. You can't accelerate as fast, you can't slow down as fast. You can't corner very well and you always have to remember that it is there or you will run into things. The main difference is that a trailer doesn't leave you with an aching back and shoulders!

Despite this, the hike was amazing. On day one, we covered 15km on our way around The Hazards (4 mountains that are, well... hazardous), along Hazards Beach to Cooks Hut for our first camp site. At this point I was feeling particularly energetic and did an extra small 6km loop to check out Bryan's Beach. I probably shouldn't have. 

At Cooks Hut, we were lucky enough to have access to fresh water and a composting toilet that made the worst public toilet I have ever seen look like Buckingham Palace. Just before dusk, we were lucky enough to see a wombat venture out for food- my first ever wild wombat sighting. 

 

 

We woke tired and sore the next day for what was the hardest day of the hike; 11km hike over the top of Mt Graham at 579m and a drop down into the iconic Wineglass Bay for night 2. It was like doing a 6hr gym session made up entirely of leg squats. 

Despite this, Wineglass Bay is an amazing place that was definitely worth the effort. Interestingly, it is named for its appearance after whales were chased into the bay and slaughtered, turning the water a 'wine' red and making it look like a glass of wine. 

The final day was a relatively short hike over The Hazzards and back to the car park. The relief of taking off the back pack was amazing. Removing 30kg of weight made me feel like I was going to fall over when ever I walked because my balance had been thrown out but also so light that I could jump 10ft in the air and slam dunk a basketball. 

The hike was 36km in total and was tough, yet rewarding. My feet are sore and my shoulders hurt to touch but I would do it again. It is something that I have always wanted to do and something that I look forward to doing more of. Now that I have all the gear, it should be a lot easier!

Numbers

It is the end of 2013 and time to take stock of the year that was. It was a busy year and here are the stats...

I have taken 32 flights this year not including connecting flights. That's roughly a flight every 11 days. 

I have spent 212 days (58%) of the year away from home with 196 (54%) of those away from my lovely and patient wife. 

During my time away, I spent 141 days (39%) of the year staying in a hotel. 

I have visited 29 cities in 8 different countries not including the smaller towns that stage races visit. 

I had 55 international race days and covered a total of  31657km on bike. If I rode every day of the year, that's an average of 87km per day. If you only look at the days I did ride, I averaged just on 100km per riding day. That is 8419km short of riding the distance around the globe!

During these km's, I spent 1026hrs riding a bike which is almost 3hrs per day with an average speed of 30.8kph.

I climbed 317250m uphill which would get me up Mt Everest 35.9 times. 

I went through roughly 4 cassettes, 6 chains and 20 tires on 3 different bikes and I have lost count of the number of tubes I have used. 

Last but not least, I burnt 458067 calories while riding my bike which is  1624 McDonalds cheeseburgers. 

I'm going to get a start on those cheeseburgers now. And maybe a head start on next year. 

Chris's Adventure Rides

I hate doing the same ride twice. Well at least twice in the same week. As a result, I am constantly trying to find and plan new rides that I have never done. 

I have maps with me on my bike computer and I look for the most obscure way to get to places. My friends have called these rides 'Chris's adventure rides' and some are not so fond of them as, on the odd occasion, I get lost and end up going way further than planned. The adventure ends up being an ordeal. 

Having a mountain bike means that I can also plan some epic adventure rides. There are trails and tracks not far from the city centre that allow you to do endless hours off road in the middle of no where. 

The only problem with planning these MTB adventure rides, is that the maps are very limited and whilst they indicate that there is a trail, in real-life that trail may be over grown and straight up a vertical wall. 

Today, I experienced one such trail. We took a small 'shortcut' down a trail that was quite prominent on my maps but ended up being a 1km hike up a hill pushing the bikes in 40 degree heat. We just about needed a machete to carve our way through the trail. 

Despite this set back, the ride was an 'adventure' in every sense of the word. 120km in the dirt. Dehydration. Exhaustion. Navigation issues. Crashes. It had it all. As I tell my friends whenever they complain about 'Chris's adventure rides'... Attitude is the difference between an adventure and an ordeal!