A new bike for the TR?

July 9 – 54 kms in 2:21
I'm so excited. On Wednesday I was in my local bike shop and I heard a customer talking about the deals on road bikes he'd seen on the store's website. So, Wednesday night I checked out the deals and found a bike that looked like it would suit me perfectly. On Thursday I dropped in at the bike shop to enquire. The bike is located at the Burnaby branch and I asked them to hold it for me until Friday.
Before heading to Burnaby, and eventually Bowen Island, I had to pick up my road bike. I'd manage to break a spoke on the rear wheel and it took a while for the right one to come in. When I got down to the shop the bike was not ready so I hung out and ended up helping out. (I replaced the tyre and tube on a stroller.) I guess this is the reality of bike shops in the summer. When the weather is nice, everyone wants to ride.
Well, it turned out that the weather was not quite as nice as it might have been. Stinking hot. Well, stinking hot for Vancouver. The temperature was in the low 30s C/high 80s F. But I had enough water with me and made it out to the Burnaby shop in pretty good time.
This was the first time I'd seen this particular model, but my previous experience on other versions of the same design, and everything that I heard and read had led me to the conclusion that this would be a good choice for me and my style of riding. So, what was this mythical bike? A 2009 Rocky Mountain Element 90. The Element has won more stages on the TransRockies than any other bike. Last year's open men's TR7 winners, Marty and Stefan, and Colin Kerr, second place in the open men's TR3, rode Elements.
The 90 is one step down from the Team and has a slightly lower parts spec. The big difference is the Team has a scandium/carbon frame, while the 90 has an aluminium/carbon frame. A slight weight penalty, but the 90 will be about half the price of a new Team. The mechanic checked the bike over and I took it for a spin around the neighbourhood. The big difference between the Element and my 2002 Giant is this bike has Fox suspension fore and aft. And the Fox fork uses the QR15mm axle. A slight weight penalty, but a really solid feel. The fact that the rear suspension remains pretty active under braking should help on the descents.
At the shop I ran into Bryan Anderson, the new Rocky Mountain rep for BC. He rode in the 2009 TR but had to pull out after his partner broke his wrist. He had an Element before he worked for Rocky Mountain and loved it. He said that the suspension really helped on technical climbs as the rear wheel maintained really good traction on loose terrain.
It was pretty much love at first sight and I asked the shop to hold the bike until Tuesday when my apartment situation should be sorted and I can buy a new bike.
So, off to Bowen Island. I rode west to the Second Narrows bridge and then along the shore to Horseshoe Bay. It was stinking hot all the way, but I drank both of my water bottles and didn't feel too worn out when I got to Horseshoe Bay. On Fridays, the busiest day of the week, the ferry schedule does get a bit out of whack. So, the ferry was a bit late and I used my time resting and having an ice cream.
From the ferry it is a short ride home, but with a bunch of tough climbs. The gearing on the cassette on my road bike is not really a match for my 52 year-old legs and 16% grades. This means that when I ride my road bike on Bowen Island I end up doing more climbs out of the saddle. Not the most efficient, but a reality.

Rest day, so work like a dog

Thursday, July 1 - Rest Day

Well, it was supposed to be a rest day, and strictly speaking it was. I stayed off the bike and hung out with my daughter. I also spent 5 hours building a new railing on my front deck. The railing is required because the deck has a huge drop on one side. And with a small daughter a huge drop, leading to a steep bank and a rocky cliff and finally a drop to the beach, is not something that child safety advocates would recommend.

After all of my work the railing was pretty bombproof. 4x4 posts connected to the joists via lag bolts. That should withstand the best efforts of a toddler. But I do think back to the packaging I saw for a waterproof camera case that was guaranteed against everything except shark attacks and children under five.

 

Friday, July 2 – 38 kms in 2:54

This weekend the plan calls for a three day/eleven hour mountain bike camp. I presume the intent is to get used to long back-to-back days. But on the TR my problem was never that I could not ride for long periods day after day, it was that I was a plodding diesel. But Cory's plan is building the entire physical skill set needed for a successful TR. And if I finish three or four hours of riding and can do another long ride the next day, then the TR should be okay.

The first two hours of today's ride went pretty well. Some nice single-track and double-track, some technical climbs, a short rocky descent, a bit of pavement and then into a great single-track descent. And then I looked down and notice that my bike computer was missing. I didn't notice until I was at the bottom of the descent. So I rode back up the entire climb and then back down VERY slowly. No bike computer. Oh well. I'll have to buy a new one. I quite liked this model as the numbers were large and easy to read. I have the same model of bike computer on two of my other bikes, so I will likely just swap one over. But I will need to make sure that I don't lose this one as well.

 

Saturday, July 3 – 53 kms in 2:54

I know, it was to be a four hour ride. I was out of the house for four hours and did plan to spend more of my time riding. But the fates did not cooperate. As I was in town and my TR bike was not, I had to do this ride on my commuter bike. This 1990 mountain bike has no suspension at all, but does have reasonable geometry and low enough gearing to climb pretty much anything. (Being from 1990 the chain rings are 48-36-26 rather than my TR bike's 44-32-22.)

Before I started my ride I check the bike over and pumped up the tyres. What did I hear? A steady "psssss" from the front tyre. The presta valve had separated from the tube. So I replaced the tube and pumped up the tyre, then went back to the apartment to wash my hands and get a new tube. Of course once I was back in the apartment my daughter wanted to know what "dada" was doing and this added a bit more delay.

Eventually I was underway and headed over to the North Shore. Vancouver is blessed with riding opportunities. No matter what type of riding you are looking for, you can find it near Vancouver. From the crazy trails built by people like Digger and Dangerous Dan to the Burnaby velodrome and everything in between. I really like the North Shore climbs. (Yes, a glutton for punishment.) Mount Seymour, Mount Fromme, and Cypress Mountain. The Mount Fromme climb, at the top of Mountain Highway in North Vancouver, is a long gravel road climb that leads to well-known trails like Ladies Only, Oil Can, and Seventh Secret and eventually to Grouse Mountain. But as I lack both the skills and the bike to ride these trails I grind up the gravel road and then go back down.

I had climbed up past the sixth switchback and stopped at a new creek culvert. Here I turned around and stopped for a bite. I rolled forward to rest my foot on a boulder by the side of the road when what do I hear from the rear tyre? "psssssss". Apart from being very pissed off that I've got another flat, I'm very glad that I picked up a replacement tube before I set off. So, in the midst of hoards of mosquitoes I wrestle the rear wheel off, pull out the old tube, discover that it has the same valve separation problem, put in a new tube and go to work with my hand pump. After far too long a time I had the tyre back to a manageable pressure and was ready to head back home. But it was not too be. Bouncing down the road the head of my seat post came loose causing my saddle to take a sudden lurch to the rear. So another stop and a fight with post and Allen key to get the saddle to stay put. An hour later I was back home. In all I'd been out for four hours, but only managed to get in three hours of riding.

 

Sunday, July 4 – 89 kms in 3:48

My four hour day, and I actually rode for almost four hours. Given yesterday's flat tyre fiascos I made sure that I had a couple of spare tubes and a full tool kit with me.

I wanted to ride some trails and so I headed out to Pacific Spirit Park. If my time was all my own, and I didn't have to spend time being a parent, I would probably spend more time riding the trails around Squamish. Squamish calls itself the "Outdoor Recreation Capital of Canada". Given the wealth of opportunities I can't really disagree. In the 1990s I was a regular summer visitor rock climbing. Now I only make the journey for a bike race.

Pacific Spirit Park offers some interesting trails, but they are all pretty mild. I rode a few of the less used trails in the north end of the park and also did a few climbs on the hill from Spanish Banks up to the UBC campus.

I was on my old pig of a commuter big, so the hills were a bit of a chore, and the trail descents were a bit harsh, but I was pretty happy with my ride.

 

Monday, July 5 – Rest Day

I really do find these rest days trying. The weather is great and I'm itching to go out for a ride. In previous years I'd ride as long and as hard as I could pretty much every chance I got. As a result I had a great base, but didn't have that extra kick that I'd need in the technical single-track. As a result I'd end up walking too much stuff that was completely rideable.

This consisted of a few walks with my daughter and some shopping. Not very aerobic, but it is always good to go out a stretch the legs.

 

Tuesday, July 6 – 10 kms in 0:34

Cory's plan called for an hour ride today, but I had to cut my after-school ride short to get home for daddy duty. The weather is starting to improve and it looks like we will have some real summer weather by the end of the week.

Vancouver implemented a bike lane trial on one of the bridges leading to downtown. It is now a year since the trial began, so most cyclists expect it to continue. (And most motorists have consigned themselves to the fact that they will never get the lane back.) This bridge has become part of my commute to school. It is quite gratifying to run into traffic jams consisting entirely of bicycles on both the bridge and its approaches and exits.

 

Wednesday, July 7 – 25 kms in 1:14

After yesterday's shorter ride I made up for it today. The Wednesday plan is for 30 minutes of riding and 30 minutes of exercises. I usually manage to squeeze in the exercises after the family has gone to bed. My commute to school and back is usually my ride.

As I didn't get my full one hour ride in yesterday I tacked on a loop around Stanley Park to my commute home. I was riding my pig of a commuter bike. Fully loaded it is probably over double the weight of my road bike. Despite this I managed to hang with a couple of guys on road bike until we got to the climb up to the causeway and the Lions Gate Bridge.

I think that Cory's plan and the heavy and light weeks are really helping.

 

Thursday, July 8 – Rest day

Only one month before the start of the TR. My training is proceeding pretty well and I'm happy with the results. On July 24
I'll be doing the Gearjammer in Squamish. It has been a few years since I last did the race, although I did ride a big chunk of the course in the 2008 BC Bike Race, and it will interesting to compare my last time.

On my rest days I usually go out for a walk with my daughter. Today we had two trips to the library and also made it down to the park for some swing and slide time. Vancouver is in the midst of a heat wave. Clear skies, hot days, and lots of people complaining about the temperatures. I would have loved to go out on my bike, but I was a good boy and left my wheels at home.

Tomorrow I get to ride to Bowen Island on my road bike and then two hours of mountain biking on Saturday and two hours of road biking on Sunday.

On the road again

Sunday, June 27 – 73 kms in 2:57

It was supposed to be a three hour road ride, but I only had my cross country bike available. So I pumped up the tires to 50 PSI and headed to Vancouver. I had to ride like a mad man to make it to the ferry on time, but as the ferry was late I actually had plenty of time. From Horseshoe Bay I took the rolling route along Marine Drive and arrived at Stanley Park after about an hour of riding.

After a few loops around Stanley Park, to get both the time and distance up, I headed come with a cool-down route around the seawall.

In all, a very nice ride. Despite the increased rolling resistance from the Pythons, I made reasonably good time. I did however get a few odd looks from people on road bikes as I passed them on the hill to the Lions Gate Bridge.

 

Monday, June 28 – Rest Day

Some days the planets align and the weather cooperates. Today is one of those days. The forecast for the day was scattered showers with the hops of some clearing in the afternoon. But, as this was a rest day I didn't really mind.

I was out with my daughter and saw the sights, did some shopping and just enjoyed the day.

 

Tuesday, June 29 – 17 kms in 0:54

The plan was for a one hour ride, and I almost accomplished it. But it was a bit disjointed. A compute to school, a ride to the blood donor clinic and then a ride back home. And all on my pig of a commuter bike. Riding that bike is kind of like hitting your head against a brick wall. It feels so good when it tops. When I get on a trail on my full-suspension XC bike, or on the road on my full carbon road bike the difference is so nice that I enjoy the rides even more.

But a ride is a ride, and I am thankful anytime that I can get out on any bike.

 

Wednesday, June 30 – 10 kms in 0:34

682 kms for the month. A little bit more than last year and more than my average over the past few years. At times it seems that sticking to Cory's plan is really pulling down the total distance that I ride, but in reality the overall distance is probably about the same, but Cory is forcing me to implement some better structure.

This was just a quick commute to school and back. Enjoyable and great way to clear my head before class.