Today I rode with two lovely ladies from Costa Mesa to Camp Pendleton and then back through Live Oak and Santiago Canyon. I had great legs today. I sprinted (1016watts max sprint) all the rollers on PCH and chased down rabbits all day long.
What follows is a graphical comparison of my personal records on Newport Coast Dr. It should be self-explanatory but feel free to make comments on this blog post to open a discussion. I will tell you that I strongly believe that the CVAC sessions in Newport Beach have made an improvement in my training and subsequent field tests.
George “Red-Eyed Vireo” Vargas progression to current personal record of 6:43 on Newport Coast Drive.
A few points to consider:
1. Time is an absolute — less time represents faster ascents
2. Normalized Power increased for each Personal Record. Faster times not a product of environmental factors such as tailwinds
3. Watts per Kg increased for each Personal Record. Regardless of my weight I increased w/kg ratio
4. Crank Torque increased for each Personal Record. More powerful legs pushing harder and pushing harder gears. Last effort on 6/28 was done in “Big Ring” (53×21).
5. Intensity Factor- 6/28/11 represents 122% of effort compared to my FTP (1 hour of power) of 285watts. So either I need to adjust up my FTP or I’m becoming a specialist at 5 minute efforts 😉 I will adjust my FTP regardless to 295 watts.
6. Weather consistent. Early morning efforts no winds, no heat. Allowing repeatable Field Tests.
Yep folks another PR today. I took 7 seconds off my previous PR of 6:50 from May 31, 2011. Today I climbed Newport Coast with a time of 6:43. My gearing was 53 x 24, with 53 x 21 when I stood up. I stood up twice towards the end of the effort. For years I have been climbing this hill month after month and never have I had such significant gains in performance.
I am now certain the CVAC sessions are paying off. I owe a huge thank you to my good friends at Lunar Health and Wellness in Newport Beach. Not only has my performance improved but the exercise-induced asthma has disappeared!! My heart rate reached 192 bpm on this effort. In the past when I would come off of a hard effort like this I would cough uncontrollably for several minutes afterwards. I didn’t cough at all today! Additionally, my sleep is REALLY deep. I can’t explain it but it’s very different.
George “Red-Eyed Vireo” sets new Personal Record on Newport Coast 6:43
A four-hour training ride turned into a seven hour climbfest d’oh! Angeles Crest Hwy from La Canada (1300 Elev) to Dawson Saddle (7901 Elev) Lots of climbing, lots of heat with few options for rehydrating on the road. I will put together a more detailed route sheet but here is the down and dirty. From La Canada I climbed on the Angeles Crest Hwy about 14 miles to Red Box. I refilled my water bottle and then proceeded to climb up Mt Wilson, a five-mile climb. I descended back to Red Box and refilled my bottle then climbed approximately 14 miles to Newcomb’s Ranch and refilled my bottle there. I then climbed from Newcomb’s Ranch to Dawson Saddle through Cloud Burst Summit (7018 Elev) and back down to Newcomb’s Ranch. I refilled at Newcomb’s and then descended back to La Canada. About 100 miles 12,400 feet of climbing most of it on the way up with annoying rollers on the way down.
The Angeles Crest Highway is a two-lane (one lane of travel in each direction) segment of California State Route 2 in the United States. The road is 66 miles (106 km) in length, with its western terminus at the intersection at Foothill Boulevard in La Cañada Flintridge and its eastern terminus at State Route 138 northeast of Wrightwood. The majority of the route passes through the mountainous terrain located north of the Los Angeles basin. Its alignment passes through the Angeles National Forest in the San Gabriel Mountains. Segments of the road reach altitudes above 7,000 feet (2,100 m), with a summit of 7,903 feet (2,409 m) at the Dawson Saddle, which makes this road one of the highest in Southern California.
You can read more about the Angeles Crest Hwy here
4,000 elevation at mile marker 36.25.
Approximately 12 miles into the 45 mile climb to Dawson Saddle
Above and below– The intersection of Mount Wilson/Red Box Rd and Angeles Crest Hwy.
Approximately 14 miles into the 45 mile climb to Dawson Saddle
Cultural Center at Red Box
Work crews on Angeles Crest Hwy. Above is somewhere between Red Box and Newcomb’s Ranch
5,000 elevation sign
Approximately 20 miles into the 45 mile climb to Dawson Saddle
The distances above are from Newcomb’s Ranch
The base of the climb is mile marker 24 ish Dawson Saddle is approximately mile marker 69.50.
This is a 45 mile climb, albeit not all in one shot but you don’t ever get more than a mile or two of reliefs along the way.
My good friends at Lizard Skins dropped off a roll of DSP 2.5 bar tape for me to try out. I’ve been curious about the tape for some time now. I will be doing a four training ride in the San Gabriel Mountains today. I’ll let you know what I think about it this evening.
From their site:
“Experience the best in bar tape, DSP has excellent durability, increased shock absorption, and great feel in any condition. 2.5 mm thick for that extra bit of comfort. At 82” there is ample length for any bar and only 50 grams per set, including the plugs, makes it the lightest tape on the market.”
I have discovered what I think are some of the best tasting nutrition bars ever– Pro Bar !! Not only do they taste great but they are all natural with ingredients you can actually pronounce! Check them out and places like Mother’s, Whole Foods and now at Bike Religion!!
I got one of these today. I thought it would be fun for you my readers to track me when I’m doing Everest Challenge in One day, EC ONE, henceforth. I now need to “geek out” and figure out how to use it. Stay tuned…
For years I have had this crazy idea of doing all six climbs (29,000 feet of climbing) in the Everest Challenge stage race in ONE day. It is the California/Nevada state climbing championship held over two days. The first day has three climbs with 15,500 feet of gain and then another 13,500 feet of gain over three climbs on the second day. The event is held in late September and directed by my friend Steve Barnes. I would like to know if anyone has heard of a rider doing all six climbs in one sitting. Please ask your friends if they have heard of anyone doing all six climbs in one day and then report back here and comment on my blog.
Here are the graphs for the two days of climbing.
Event Website — Everest Challenge
Como Street from Costa Mesa 18 additional miles to and from the start
Como Street Training Ride from Costa Mesa by vireo508 at Garmin Connect – Details.
On the last day of a 75 hour, 1274 mile month, I set a new PR on Newport Coast Dr. My new time of 6:50 is 12 seconds faster than my previous PR from earlier in the month of 7:02 and 31 seconds faster than the PR before that of 7:21. I held 321 watts for almost seven minutes. My weight was 147.4 and my 4.8 w/kg was the highest and longest time frame I have ever held for that w/kg. Keep in mind, the pros hold 6 w/kg for 30 minutes or more once again proving I’m just your average working stiff that enjoys riding a bike. And speaking of working, that 1274 mile month was done by riding 2-2.5 hours in the morning and 1.5- 2 hours at night after work. I often see Crow going in the opposite direction. ONCE last month we were going the same direction and chatted a few minutes. I had a few centuries thrown in as well. You may not know but I can’t ride on weekends because I am either working or I have my six year-old son.
George “Red-Eyed Vireo” Vargas sets new PR on Newport Coast Dr of 6:50
New Power Profile after PR
Month End numbers for May.
As you can see above, May was my first thousand mile month in a long time. I’m fortunate to have a good base from my first years of Ultras where I would do 12,000 – 15,000 miles a year. Why the big ramp up this month? Well because every May I start my preparation in earnest for the Furnace Creek 508 I now have to put in four months of solid training. By September, I am doing more speedwork (intensity) so the mileage (duration) is shorter. I would like to do Everest Challenge just before Furnace Creek 508- just like last year with one week apart. AND there is also Interbike in September so basically September is a wash. Hence, May through August is when I really need to focus on my 508 training.
Stay tuned for more Furnace Creek 508 specific training….
For those that wonder where I am timing my Newport Coast PR’s here is a graph. 1.55 miles 450 feet of gain about 6ish% grade.
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George's Epic Adventures 