Sadly, every one of us knows someone who suffers from mental illness. We don’t think that riding our bikes will be the cure, but in doing so we are hoping to increase awareness and raise money so that those who are in need of help will be able to get it promptly.
Will you join us next year?
We ride the 60km distance as a club but you can ride any distance that you are comfortable with.
In the spring of 2017, my husband, Dean, and I finalized our travel plans for a fall trip to Europe, which was to include one week at the Belvedere Bike Hotel in Italy. We had both been involved in long distance running for about 15 years and had a fairly solid cardiovascular fitness base. Over the years, we had completed several bike touring trips around BC. However, neither of us had much experience riding in a larger group, we didn’t have road bikes, and I had never used clip ins (the mere idea of clip-ins freaked me out a bit).
So Dean suggested we join the Spring Kits Energy beginner cycling course and were so fortunate to have Kristina as our trainer. The beginner course provided me with the support and encouragement I needed to get into clips and conquer my fear of falling. The course structure, which involved weekly instruction on a specific topic, followed by a group ride, provided just the right combination of education, practical skill development, and fun.
By the time September arrived, I felt confident in my emerging road cycling skills, but the real test was still to come. The highlight of the trip was my sense of accomplishment upon riding to the top of San Marino, which is a tiny little country within Italy set at the top of a “little” mountain. As I dug deep and used the numerous hill climbing techniques Kristina had drilled into me (yes, she can be a task master), the full extent of what she had taught me, sunk in.
I don’t know whom to attribute the quote to but I agree wholeheartedly that “A coach is someone who always makes you do what you don’t want to do, so you can be who you’ve always wanted to be. There is no glory in practice, but without practice there is no glory”.
Thanks for everything Kristina!
Dean and Dianna Robertson
| Marathon #30! |
Thank you for all the good luck wishes for my 30th marathon! I don’t usually write a race report for (just?) a marathon, but since it was my 30th and a destination race, I thought I’d shared a little about my day…. The weather had been quite cold leading up to race day. But the day promised to be perfect running conditions and didn’t disappoint. Having not run a big city marathon recently I prepared for security checks, long porta-pottie line ups and a lengthy wait in my corral to reach the start line. So, other than being a bit cold while I waited, everything went fairly smoothly and 23mins after the race started I crossed the start line and my marathon began.
The crowd support was amazing and the volunteers were fantastic – they really did the city of Philadelphia proud. Because of the wave starts which were three minutes apart, initially we had lots of room to run. But since the half and the full marathon ran together for the first 13 miles the course became quite congested at times. In some neighbourhoods the roads were quite narrow and the spectators were gathered on the road so it was challenging to find my pace. In my mind I was really hoping to finish sub-4:15 so when I reached the halfway mark at 2:08 I was a little worried. As the half marathoners broke off for the finish line, the pack dispersed and I was finally able to find my groove. As it turned out, the slower pace in the first half paid off for me as the miles in the second half clicked by easily and I just kept feeling strong! My pace picked up and I caught the 4:15 pace group. Once I passed them, I never saw them again:)
When I reached the 25 mile mark at 3:59, knowing I had only 1.2 miles to go, I knew I would finish sub-4:15, but didn’t think I would be so close to my personal best. I ran strong and happily into the finish. I looked at my watch and was surprised to see a sub-4:10! I couldn’t believe I was only 12 seconds off my PR!!!! I had to ask myself, Could I not have run just half a second per mile faster?!?
In the end, I had a great day on the course. I felt strong the whole way and enjoyed a world-class marathon here in Philadelphia. What more could a girl ask for?
The city of Philadelphia has been an amazing city to visit! The history here combined with some unbelievable collections of art has left Brian and I with too little time to see it all. We’re plotting out a strategy for our last couple of days….so we’re off to see a bit more before we head home later tomorrow.
Thank you again for supporting me in my marathoning adventures!
Elaine Reid
If you haven’t heard this saying before and you have a race coming up within the next two or three weeks, I want you tape this sentence on your bike and read it before every ride.
Most people are procrastinators. Whether you are preparing for an important presentation or training for a big ride, most people will wait until the last few weeks before they start to get serious. When it comes to mental projects, your brain is very malleable and you can quickly cram it with all the information you need. But your body doesn’t work that way. It takes months to build a training base and many more months to build speed and power, on top of that base.
All this information shouldn’t be new to you, but I’m reminding you again because, with less than a month left in the season, what you do now can make or break your entire season.
If you haven’t completed your long rides over the last few months and have been skipping your intensity workouts, I’m sorry but cramming in extra rides during the last few weeks will do you more harm than good.
The purpose of training is to break the body down gently, allow it to recover and grow stronger. Trying to speed up this process means that you will miss the recovery and getting stronger part. On Fondo day, you will arrive feeling burnt out, tired and possibly injured.
Instead of throwing in the towel, you can still salvage the ride with less than optimal training if you follow these five tips:
1. Get lots of sleep and recovery time so you arrive on race day feeling refreshed and mentally ready for a hard ride day.
2. For the two weeks leading up to race or ride don’t add in any extra training sessions in addition to what is on your training program. Or talk to your coach about foregoing the taper to continue training up until the event.
3. During the ride, take it easy and don’t try to race the event. Keep your heart rate low and take as many breaks as you need at the rest stops. If your body isn’t accustomed to riding the distance you will fatigue simply from being on the bike for this extended amount of time.
4. Readjust your expectation. Possibly use the event as a training ride to prepare you for the next one.
5. Have fun and enjoy the day. Remember that any day on the bike is a good day.
2. For the two weeks leading up to race or ride don’t add in any extra training sessions on top of what is on your training program. Talk to your coach about discuss how to skip the taper and continue training until the event.
3. During the ride, take it easy and don’t try to race the event. Keep your heart rate low and take as many breaks as you need at the rest stops. If your body isn’t accustomed to riding the distance you will fatigue simply from being on the bike for this extended amount of time.
4. Use the event as a training ride to prepare you for the next one.
5. Have fun and enjoy the day. Remember that any day on the bike – is a good day.
