Night Rides

I had the opportunity to join in on one of the SWAMP night rides last night (30-Oct-08). It’s been well over 6 ½ years since my last night ride in Washington. I had forgotten how much fun they are. Things were a bit different up there though. I had the added excitement of snow during the winter months. Not only was I unaware of obstacles until they right in front of me, I was also slightly out of control thanks to the snow. My night riding experience isn’t just limited to off-road trials though. I used to commute by bike a lot. My trip from home to school and from work to home was typically in the dark.

I used a  handle bar mounted Cygolite (Not sure of the model though). It wasn’t the best light out there but it got the job done. Unfortunately the light was sold with the bike when I moved down here. Paragonman was nice enough to lend me his Niterider Enduro for last night’s ride. It was my first experience with a helmet mounted light. I liked it! I’m thinking of picking one of up at jensonusa.com on close out.

A few details about the ride:

• Pace: 10-11 mph
  
• Distance: ~16 Miles
  
• Time: ~2 hrs
  

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First of Many

I joined a few guys from the SWAMP group Yesterday (28-Oct-08) out at Boyette for a ride. I am considering it the first of many endurance training rides. The guys I rode with are all training for 50 mile events coming up in Jan. I’m signed up for Croom 50 (14-Feb-09) and am hoping to get into Ididaride (31-Jan-09). Both of which are 50 mile events. Check out my tentative event schedule in the right hand collum.

Our group ended riding a total of about 12.5 miles. It was mostly intermediate trails at an average pace of 10-11 mph. They pushed me to ride harder and faster than I’m currently used to. The last time I had a ride like that was 6 ½ years ago during my Washington days. One of my main goals in hooking up with a group like this was to have them push me. I really think it’s the only way I’m going to get better. There were a total of 4 in our group. There were typicall two in front of me and one behind me. The rider behind me was there to make sure someone was there in case of an accident and also to make sure I didn’t get lost as this was only my second trip  out to Boyette.

Here is the route we took (At least I think it’s the route we took)

• Loch Ness
  
• Bridge
  
• Upper Loch Ness
  
• Gator Pit
  
• Golf Cart
  
• Pandemonium (I rode the upper portion)
  
• Sidewinder
  
• SWAMP Thing
  
• Garry’s Loop? (Not sure if we actually went this one or not)
  
• Woods Trail
  
• East Meadow
  
• Spur
  
• Spider Berm
  
• Randy’s Trail
  
• West Meadow
  
• Baby Nessie
• Inner Loch Ness

As I stated above, this was only my second time out on these trails so I was a bit disoriented most of the time. I pieced together the route based off the signs I saw and the conversations we had during the ride.

I know there are a lot of things I need to work on right now but there were a few that stood out during this ride.

• Speed fluctuations - I noticed that I was surging and then slowing down any time there was an incline. I need to work on keeping a consistent speed or at least keeping my speed up on inclines.
  
• Leg strength – My legs are pretty weak right now. My quads were getting really weak and burning pretty bad towards the end of the ride. I think strengthening my legs will help significantly with speed fluctuations. I will be able to more easily power my way up inclines.
  
• Control – I felt a bit out of control on the ride. There are quite a few tight technical spots out there and I found myself getting a bit unstable around them. Control will come with time though. I haven’t been riding much lately so I’m sure those skills are just a bit rusty.
  
• Picking my lines – I have a tendency to take drops without choosing a line first. This isn’t much of an issue for me on the drop but more so on the inclines. I usually end up taking a line that is much more difficult to get up on.
  
• Hydration – Although  I didn’t notice any hydration issues during the ride I felt very dehydrated a few hours after the ride and into the next morning. I hardly drank any liquid during the ride. I also need to look into some sort of an additive for my camelback to help with hydration.
  

All in all I think it was a great ride. Not just emotionally but physically as well. I’ve been itching to get out and ride with people that can really push me and help train me for the endurance rides and I think I’m off to a good start.

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And the verdict is...

It's been a little over a month since I cracked my ankle during a fall at Boyette. I had my followup appointment with the ankle Dr the other day. I've been worried because it seems to swell pretty bad anytime I'm on it for more than an hour. There isn't any pain, just swelling. The past week I've been helping my sister-in-law re-do the shower walls in her bathroom and the ankle tends to look more like a baseball than an ankle by the end of the day.

Anyways, the verdict is...Everything looks just fine. He said the swelling will be there for a couple of months but not to worry about it. He ordered me up some physical therapy to make sure that it's back to 100% for the next spill I take. Now I'll have to find another excuse to be lazy. This one was so convenient. I suppose I better start getting some long rides in if I'm going to ride Croom in a descent amount of time.

As a  result of this incident I've decided to change out my pedals as soon as I get the $ for a new pair. I'm currently riding shimano PD M545s. I like em because they have a platform around the clip which allows me to keep my footing if I'm not clipped in. I suppose I need to learn to get clipped in quicker. I originally considered one of the Crank Brother's Egg Beaters but I wasn't sure, so I posted a topic on the SWAMP club forums asking "what pedals have the best mud shedding capabilities?". Who would have known that pedals would be so controversial!?! It was an

interesting topic to say the least. After much debate, I've decided on the Time ATAC XS pedals. I know there is a lot of disagreement regarding the mud shedding capabilities of these pedals but I'm going to give them a shot anyways. I've always had trouble with the SPD type pedals and I didn't want to spend the $ ona new set to have the same old issues.

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