Intro to the 2015 DD2tB
There are crazy people out there. There are people that do crazy things. Occasionally, these qualities describe a single person. Well, I now fall into both of those categories. Two years ago, I decided to do something crazy and participate in a double century ride called Double Down to the Beach. My longest ride to date before that was only 101 miles. For some reason I thought that would prepare me for a 200+ mile ride from Greensboro to Wilmington, NC. Yes, I admit I was crazy for thinking that was something that I really wanted to do, and even that I could do it. It was a crazy idea for sure, but I saw it through and completed the ride, actually much stronger than I thought I would. I had done it, and that could never be taken away from me. I was an ultra endurance athlete for the first time in my life!
A few months later I hung up my helmet and decided to give cycling a rest to pursue other things. In less than a year though, I was missing my two wheeled adventures. I had gradually become an out of shape couch potato and wanted to stop that progression and recapture some of my previous fitness. I bought a new bike in September, 2014, and started on my way back to fitness. In less than a week, I had a crash which put my bike out of commission for a while. However, in an odd chain of events it provided me with a bike to put on the stationary trainer which really allowed me to drop pounds and build my endurance and muscle at a surprising rate. In a very short two months, I was back on the road again, and stronger than I was at the end of my former tenure as a cyclist.
Sometimes I do crazy things, but right around the end of 2014, just a few months after starting riding again, I went full on into being crazy. Knowing what was involved in a double century, and having completed one, I still wanted to do another one. I have nothing to prove, as I have already done this ride once. There is no special recognition for the accomplishment, I have other modes of transportation to get to the beach. So why am I wanting to sit on a bike for what is likely to be more than 11 hours over the course of a single day? I have no freakin' idea!! The best I can come up with is I've confused tough and stupid again. I know I am faster than I have ever been, and I've already completed two different century rides since November so I know I have the endurance. My participation in Double Down this year will be just because I love to ride, and want the experience once more. I am now a crazy man that is doing crazy things!!
In addition to dedicating pretty much an entire day to riding in June, and the next day for the return trip and cleanup, there is so much more to this ride than meets the eye. As with any endurance event, there is a lot of conditioning beforehand which comes in the form of lots and lots of training. For something like this, you almost have to over train so when the time comes to log the 200+ miles you can do it with a minimum of effort. There is also working out your nutrition which was my only failure in 2013. I bonked hard midway through the second half of the ride. Fortunately, I had a few tricks up my sleeve to overcome that bonk. These things will take months to really accomplish, and that is part of the commitment to a ride like this. The preparation starts before registration is even open.
Training
Unlike 2013, training for this year's Double Down actually got started the minute I rode my first ride of 2014. That was in early September and was a dismally slow 50 mile ride that darn near killed me. I had a long road ahead of me, and the training started the very next day with a shorter ride, but faster. After my crash, it was time to put the crashed bike on the trainer and start working intervals. The interval sessions were designed to accomplish several different things. First of all, I needed to get back down to my riding weight which was much lower than my current 205lbs. Within two months, I had dropped enough weight where I was back at my previous riding weight. I've said it before, intervals, or high intensity interval training is where its at when it comes to cycling!
In addition to working on my weight, I was putting in the trainer time to get my cardio vascular system back into shape. With 10 months of being pretty much sedentary, I was getting winded way too easily on the bike. Working in all of the heart rate zones not only dropped my resting heart rate by 10 bpm, I was also seeing increases in my max heart rate which was now up to 197 bpm. I was able to sustain max efforts for up to three minutes, and was able to recover from those efforts quicker and quicker. My heart was back to being an efficient machine once again.
Related to the cardio benefits, I also wanted to work on my endurance. You might think that doing only an hour on the trainer would have nothing to do with endurance over a several hour long ride, but you would be wrong. I'm sure it is the constant pedaling nature of the trainer that is to blame for this. Once I start pedaling, there is no stopping until I am done with the session, which in some cases can be over two hours in duration. By the time I got my replacement bike and was back on the road, I saw tremendous benefits from my time on the trainer. After having taken several breaks on my initial 50 mile ride, I was not expecting what happened on my 62 mile ride. In early November, I set out on a 62 mile ride in hopes that I could pull it off better than that first 50 mile ride. Not only was it quite a bit faster, I didn't have to take any breaks at all. I just sipped water as I went, and maintained a strong pace for the whole ride. Yep, the trainer came through once again for me.
So, the trainer has gotten me back in shape for riding both fast and for long distances. As the weather warms up, I will be getting back on the road and working on distance rides again. I won't be doing these necessarily to condition as I have the base miles in my legs without question. I will be doing these long rides to fine tune my nutritional requirements. This is the part that I learned I wasn't prepared for in 2013. What works for a regular century for me seems to fall short when the mileage is doubled. For one, I learned that toward the end of the ride, I will need a primarily liquid diet which will come in the form of Hammer Perpetuem. This is designed as an endurance fuel with all the needed ingredients delivered in a easily digested water dissolved powder. I get the benefit from the extra hydration and nutrients when I am just unable to stomach solid food anymore. I also fully understand the importance of a can of Coke at the right time. I will make sure that I have access to this magical elixir at the rest stops. There are also some new things that I am going to try for long rides while I'm training. I'm looking at different fruits to take along, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, home made macaroons, fig newtons, and power bars. I think that the variety will help me out and keep me eating solid foods for longer. I just need to make sure that they deliver what is needed over the long haul.
Support
Building on what I learned in 2013, I know the real importance of support on a ride like this. While the event is fully supported with SAG vehicles and rest stops, I found that for quick turnaround, Toni was invaluable. She would drive the route and leapfrog from one rest stop to the next. She carried my food, and more importantly, would have two bottles of water, Gatorade, or Perpetuem ready for me. When I rolled in, I would just look for her and she would stock me up. It was very much like a NASCAR pit stop. It was also a great morale booster to see her every 30-40 miles and be able to talk to her for a little while. I never had to stand in line at the water coolers, and never had to look for my personal bag of food. She had it ready for me every time, at every stop. Other than lunch, I didn't even have to get off of my bike.
Toni had great ideas about how to expedite the breaks for me, and she got better as the ride progressed. I'm sure that as things get finalized, we will be able to nearly perfect how the breaks will go building on what she has started. I am really looking forward to sharing this experience with her once again, and know that without her there, it would be much harder, and more stressful for me to accomplish.
The Bike
I'll admit that 90% of riding a double century is up to the rider and their ability. However, a rider is not much good without a bike. The last time I ventured into crazyland, I was riding a 2010 Specialized Tarmac SL. While not the ideal distance bike (a comfort bike would have been a much better choice), I was quite familiar with it and was used to the geometry. I made it the full 212 miles with no undue discomfort, so I consider that a success. It performed flawlessly the whole trip despite having about 10,000 miles on it at the time. I had systematically updated many of its parts in those miles creating a much better bike than when it was new.
After my sabbatical from cycling, I opted to go with the same geometry once again in the form of a Specialized, S-Works Tarmac with the Red groupset on it. Again, this was not the best choice for a distance cyclist, but to be fair, I was not planning on doing as many distance rides with the new bike. Well, that changed quickly as you can see. I'm not concerned though since I am having the same levels of comfort on the new bike and fully expect to be able to complete the double in its saddle. In an idea world, I would probably have a Roubaix to use for the distance events, but my wallet can't really swing that whole N+1 equation for the level of bike I prefer to ride.
The really nice thing about this bike is that it is outfitted better than what I had the previous time. For the first time, I am running carbon fiber wheels which should prove to be easier to turn for the miles I'll be clocking. There are also ceramic bearings in the wheel hubs, crank, and derailleur. I'm sure there is not that much difference to be gained, but any parasitic loss I can reduce in power going to the road will help over 200 miles. This bike is also equipped with a Body Geometry Romin saddle which was what I had eventually moved up to with my previous bike. This saddle is comfy, and for a hard race saddle, that is saying something. It maintains blood flow much better than the normal Toupe saddles that come with Tarmacs. While not a comfort based saddle, I have to say, I have no complaints at all. The drivetrain is much more precise than on my last bike. I had been running a hybrid Shimano/SRAM drivetrain which was based on a Shimano Ultegra groupset with SRAM chain and cassette. It worked very well, but the shifting was not always spot on, and it required constant adjustments. The new SRAM Red groupset is rock solid, and very easy to work with. It sounds stupid, but something so simple as adding a better groupset can reduce fatigue over a long ride, and reduce the chance for mechanical failures.
Over the next four months I will be getting even more familiar with this bike on the road. It behaves very well, but I haven't had much actual road time with this new frame due to winter. I still need to get back to my previous level of bike handling before I truly feel comfortable riding in a peloton, which is mandatory on a ride like this. The energy savings of group rides is the best strategy for a double century. However, to be an asset to the group and not a liability, I need to get more stable, and once again get comfortable drinking while in motion without the need to swing out wide. It won't take much to get back there again, and I do plan on doing quite a few group rides to build that skill back to where it was before.
So What's Next?
As of February 21, I am officially registered for the event. I have our hotel booked. I have Toni's blessing and support for this once again. It's all about training for it now. Fortunately, I find myself in a similar situation to where I was in 2013. I have signed up for the 2015 Assault on the Carolinas which is in the middle of April. This is not so much a distance ride at only 100K, but it is great training ride with a couple of really big climbs. Those climbs will help me build endurance, and will get my legs ready for the long miles ahead. It seemed to work well in 2013, so why not?
I'll be leading several training centuries for the Kernersville Cycling Club in the spring and early summer. While these rides are usually much slower than my normal century pace, it will condition me to be able to ride for the long distances at a pace lower than usual which will help me control my urge to go all out early on with the double. More than anything, pacing is the key with a double century, and doing a string of slow, long rides will go a long way to making that feel more natural.
I'll be working on tweaking my diet, both before and during the ride. This will ensure that my finish is strong, stronger than 2013. While I averaged 18.1 mph then, I am looking to break 19 mph this year. If I don't, I'm ok with it, but I think based on where my training is already, that is not out of the question at all. Ultimately though, it will be up to the group I end up riding with what that speed will be. That being said, I had planned on a 17-17.5 average in 2013, but ended up with a very strong group that pushed that up to the 18.1. Who knows, this year, I might accidentally get close to 20 mph. If that is the case, you will see one ecstatic cyclist at the finish line. Time will tell, but I do know that I have the miles in my legs and heart this year.
Signed,
The crazy man, doing crazy things
