Frozen Dairy Frenzy

Ithaca's winter 2010-11 will go down in history as one of the most real and stubborn seasons in a while, if perceptions are indeed accurate. After experiencing many Buffalo winters that challenged its' citizens to the core, I felt positively coddled by the relatively tropical Ithaca winters, that is until now. The big differences between these two locales are the cold winds coming off of frozen Lake Erie and the sudden, massive lake effect snowstorms. I remember all the wear and tear on the paint and the decking on our front porch resulting from driving snow, rain and mixed precipitation, and I must have replaced the storm door closing hardware four times in six years. Portions of the decking needed to be replaced frequently, much like weather-beaten homes on the coast of Maine, and if you didn't keep on top of exterior maintenance, you really paid a price. Meanwhile, Ithaca winters, at least in the downtown area, have always been mellow until this year. I've been so used to a week of oddly warm weather sometime in the middle of winter and then an early spring, so it's been a bit of a readjustment.

This year has been particularly trying for cyclists desperate to log winter and early spring road miles. It seems like every time we are teased with a warming trend, the cold and snow swoop in once again. In spite of this annoying pattern, I feel fairly successful in getting the best of a challenging situation. Today I crossed the 600 mile threshold for the year, and should have close to 1K miles logged before my first race on May Day. Rather than despair like I did last year, I just kept looking for opportunities and concocted a winter cycling wardrobe that worked for the most challenging of conditions.

King Ferry, Ledyard, Genoa, Lansing

While my last two rides were all about climbing (Snyder Hill, Ringwood and Mt. Pleasant), today I concentrated more on distance. This was my longest ride of the year, a tad under 48 miles, along a familiar route that I'm quite fond of, up to King Ferry and Ledyard along Cayuga Lake, east to Genoa (big dairy country) and back home through West Groton and Lansing, and it was the most brutal and memorable ride of the year so far for sure!

The first 20+ miles up to Ledyard via Lansing and King Ferry were rough. Direct headwinds of 15-20 mph had my digging deep and averaging only 15.8 mph, and my legs felt like rubber by the time I turned on Ledyard Rd. I concentrated on keeping my cadence up high, but my legs were stinging a bit from the cold, in spite of my layers. After toying with the idea of using my remaining pair of ski hand warmers for a month now, I finally broke down and shoved them into my winter cycling gloves. It was really good move, since my hands never got cold during the entire ride.

As soon as I headed East I felt liberated, since I was no longer battling a powerful invisible force. The eventual tailwind had me flying home and every hillclimb was a breeze (pun intended). It was great to be back in big dairy country, and a big hats off to the friendly dairy farmer with the vanity plate on his pickup "Milks4U" who slowed down to make sure I wasn't chased by a dog and gave me a hearty wave. Winter and early spring can be dangerous times for cyclists, since drivers aren't expecting to see bikes and folks are less likely to tie up their dogs. This kind gesture by the friendly farmer had me wanting to buy up a big supply of his milk, even if it wasn't organic and didn't come from a small farm! I've always found farmers to be very friendly to cyclists, even though you'd think that they'd be annoyed. They're working insanely long days and then some overgrown kid with a fancypants carbon fiber bike zips by, seemingly oblivious to their hard work and daily back breaking chores. I usually feel guilty until I imagine that somewhere in farm country is a crazed cycling farmer getting ready for the racing and growing seasons simultaneously.

The ride into Lansing went so fast, as did the ride down East Shore Drive, and I was home before I knew it. The tailwinds really boosted my average speed, and I managed 18.1 mph for the windy loop. It wasn't my best time for that route, but all things considered, it felt pretty good. My fuel management and recoveries keep getting better, thanks to my latest sports nutrition obsessions. I'm hooked on the Heed products of late, and I'm using Perpetuem instead of gels and bars during the ride. The stuff really works, and it makes so much more sense to take on fuel in smaller quantities with less time in-between than the old gel and bar approach. You just adjust the mixture according to how long you'll be riding and you'll never bonk. The Recoverite seems to work like magic to reduce post-ride soreness and restore muscle. I was skeptical for the longest time, but my body is telling me that this is the magic elixer.

The Fuji Bordeaux, Jean's new road bike.

Finally, I was thrilled to be able to help my friend Jean buy a used road bike today. I called her the moment I saw the posting on the FLCC listserv, and she is now the proud owner of a 2005 Fuji Bourdeaux in mint condition. Thanks, Stephen, you did right by Jean, and I can't wait to go for a ride with her on her spiffy new toy.

A Reminder of the Joys of Group Rides

While I truly enjoy and appreciate my solo rides, it's hard to beat a good group ride, especially when the cyclists are well-matched and no one rides off of the front and disappears. Add kindness and good cheer to the mix and you have a road biking experience that can't be beat. Also, when someone else chooses the route, it helps me to get out of my routine. I'm feeling so fortunate to have finally found this great group to ride with, and look forward to more adventures in less familiar territory.

Today I had the distinct pleasure of riding with Steve, Travis, Stephanie, Liz, Garth and Ashu, and we headed out to Lansing, then took Cobb Rd. to Moravia. Moravia seems to be a pretty popular crossroads for Finger Lakes cyclists, and it makes sense, since it's a connecting point to Auburn, Owasco Lake, and some gorgeous country with challenging hill climbs. Climbing out of Moravia on the aptly named Long Hill Rd. was an exhilarating challenge, with 570 ft. of ascent spread over 1.5 miles. This hill was around an average 9% grade, which was similar to Ringwood Rd. in terms of distance and elevation gain. The rolling hills that followed took us to right past the Hazard Public Library in Poplar Ridge. I was tempted to get on a ladder and add an extra z to their very cool sign.

The return trip took us back on the familiar 34B through King Ferry and Lansing, and we had a most excellent tailwind that brought us back to our starting point in Cayuga Heights in short order. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day in mid-October, and now that I'm three miles away from making my 4500 mile goal for the year, any and all road biking this season is yummy fluff.

Big Dairy Morning and Some Big Speed

No, I didn't overindulge on cheese and ice cream for breakfast, though that sounds like a pretty irresistible temptation right about now. This morning I revisited a favorite ride that I haven't been on since the end of March, which was a raw ride in the low 40s. 

Today's adventure stood in stark contrast, with temperatures in the low to mid 70s, and farmers' fields newly planted with corn and soybeans. With the wind coming from the right (wrong?) direction, freshly fertilized fields wafted the intense odor of liquified cow manure, and livestock were out in abundance. 

I've been really working on pacing, trying hard not to preserve fuel early on and strategically spend those reserves when it's most needed, like the 1/4 mile section of 12% grade on Ledyard Rd. that comes at the 24 mile point of the ride. Timing the gel and powerbar are critical to the pacing, and fueling up 10 or 15 minutes before a tough climb really does make a difference. I've recently been reading Serious Cycling by Edmund Burke, and I'm trying to retain some of the many training tips he offers, such as working toward a rounder stroke, something that I believe will help to reduce the heavy leg issue I've been having of late after several days of all-out cycling. (This winter I'm going to try one-legged cycling on the trainer to work more on improving rounded pedal strokes.)

Midway through the 12% climb, I had a most annoying loose dog encounter, which forced me off the bike at the worst possible time. I hollered "Please call your dog!" repeatedly, which finally resulted in a lame, ambivalent coaxing which accomplished nothing. I've had encounters at this same property before, and while I know that this is not a very highly trafficked stretch of road, it still seems pretty inconsiderate of the owners.

Without a doubt, the highlight of today's ride was the descent on Myers Rd. This section of road is relatively straight, with a sizable drop, as you can see by the closeup. Just check out those contour lines! When I last attacked this downhill, I clocked in at 44.1 mph, but today I broke my bike speed record, with an official 50.0 mph. I know, the pros routinely top 70 mph on those crazy alpine descents, but hey, 50 mph in the finger lakes is nothing to sneeze at. I had a bit of a tailwind and a good tuck, and since I know the road pretty well, I was very comfortable about knowing all the twists and turns. At a certain point my lower lip started flapping and my cheeks puffed out, so I knew I was getting some good speed, but that was more than I could have hoped for. Of course not everyone in my household shares this view, but as I pointed out to the family during the Cornell Physics dept. gyroscope demonstration later in the day, the gyroscopic effect really holds true and this wasn't really dangerous. In fact, I felt downright giddy! I love the fact that my trusty Garmin told me that I topped out at 50.0, not 49.9, and not 50.1. Perfect!

I spent the rest of my ride trying to get my average speed up, while battling a moderate headwind. It was a no-nonsense haul back through Lansing, and the average speed of 19.2 was far better than the 18.1 from back in March, though there's no accounting for wind speed. Still, I feel like this ride and the relatively quick recovery afterwards is showing me that all of this training is really paying off.

Stats:

Distance: 44.91 miles

Avg. speed: 19.2 mph

Vertical ascent: 2406 ft.

Calories burned: 3197 kcal

Max. speed: 50.0 mph

Time: 2:23:22

Big Dairy Afternoon

No, I didn't gorge myself at Cayuga Lake Creamery, taking on their intimidating but delicious 50 flavor challenge. I left that task in the capable hands of one of my library colleagues. Instead, I headed to the land of big dairy, namely 20 miles north of Ithaca, around King Ferry, Genoa and Venice. This area reminds me so much of midwestern farming towns, with feed stores, silos, large open pastures and chip seal roads. It was a very sleepy Saturday in dairy country, with next to no traffic and nobody outside. It felt more like a Sunday than a Saturday.

Yesterday was somewhat raw, with temperatures starting out in the upper-40s, then gradually cooling down as I made my way to Terpening Corners and beyond. My heart rate was unusually high during the Remington/Sunset climb, probably due to the fact that this was my first ride in a week, and I was fighting off a virus. However, by the time I got to the hillclimb out of Lansing toward King Ferry, I was feeling pretty strong. This was an illusion, of course, as I had a massive tailwind all the way past King Ferry to Ledyard. Of course, this meant that I had to face a wicked headwind on the homestretch back toward Lansing and all the way down 34B to Ithaca, and I was certainly feeling it when I got home. This was my longest ride of the season, and I'm looking forward to ramping up the distances in the coming weeks.

Stats:

Distance: 44.83 miles

Avg. speed: 18.1 mph

Vertical ascent: 2367 ft.

Avg. heart rate: 147 bpm

Calories burned: 2525 kcal

Max. speed: 44.1 mph

Time: 2:29:02

I bought a pair of Pearl Izumi windblocker gloves yesterday at my LBS that slip over the regular summer bike gloves. This is an excellent alternative to padded full-finger cold weather bike gloves, which are twice the price. By the time I climbed the second hill out of Lansing, my hands were so toasty that I had to take them off.

While I was at the LBS, I noticed an absurd product that served as a reminder that there is no end to the development of niche market products. It's called the gel-bot from Hydrapak, and no, it's not a gelatinous robot. It's a 2-in-1 water/gel bottle that allegedly allows easy consumption of a gel without having to struggle with opening the gel pack and suffer from dreaded sticky finger syndrome. While this $16 item gets some decent reviews online, it's RIDICULOUS! I imagine the thinking of a triathlete who imagines that they might gain a five second advantage by not having to unzip a gel pack while racing. The product must be finding its market, since gel-bots have been selling for almost five years, evidently.

Big Dairies & King Ferry

As the king of hyperbole, I won't shy away from describing this ride as absolutely euphoric. It's November 15th here in Ithaca, and the high temperature on my ride was 67 degrees! Riding without a jacket in mid-November is most bizarre, but I'm most grateful to the cycling goddess for arranging such ideal conditions and facilitating the further extension of an already long season.

Today I passed the 2800 mile mark for the season—I carefully chose a route that would get me there, and since I haven't been up along the lake to the King Ferry area in a while, I chose that route. This was my first time on Ledyard Rd., and it is the perfect choice for heading east and turning back to Ithaca.

I'm so glad that I decided to bring the camera today. Usually I am reluctant to bring the camera along, since I am trying to get maximum miles in during my allotted cycling time, but today I had the luxury of some extra time.

As you can see, I saw some very noisy wild turkeys on Remington Rd., just a couple hundred feet from Boynton Middle School. The sun was only with me for the first half hour, then the skies darkened and I thought perhaps I'd encounter rain, but it just stayed overcast for the rest of the trip. With all of the trees bare, it was a great day to get shots of the lake in the distance, as well as old barns and some beautiful homes.

This route takes you through some very big dairy operations around King Ferry, Genoa, Venice and East Lansing, and I tried to imagine what the old farming days were like in this area. There are a few remnants from those days, but now, the only shiny and new-looking farms are huge, sprawling dairies. It's so sad that family farming is the exception, not the rule.

Drivers seemed to be less attentive toward cyclists now that it's mid-November, and on a couple of occasions, drivers almost turned into me while I was in an intersection. Good practice for the lungs (I don't shy away from shouting at drivers) and for the evil-eye-darting-glance, but moments like those are most unwelcome. Us cyclists aren't asking for much, just a little attention. Put those damn cell phones away, people, and watch the road!

You can also see that I was all about the data today. Regular odometer, heartrate cyclocomputer and GPS, not to mention the camera. I know that it seems like overkill, but I won't be using the heartrate unit as an odometer. I've read that it can easily get reset by accident, and I want a reliable odometer to keep track of my road miles. Furthermore, my basic meter has a thermometer, which is pretty handy. Still, I can't wait to get a new Garmin Edge with cadence, like a Garmin Edge 405 or 605. That way I can ditch the Polar unit and have my heartrate data integrated into my speed and elevation data. This will allow me to see how my heartrate changes during specific climbs. This would be very valuable information for training purposes. Too bad I'd have to shell out around $400...I'd much rather spend it on a new wheelset or something.

Speaking of heartrate information, I hit a max of 170 at the top of Ridge Rd. in Lansing. That was pretty cool. I averaged 144 BPM for 2 1/2 hours, which feels pretty damn good. I don't think that downhill skiing will come anywhere close. Sure, cross-country skiing would be similar, but I probably won't have many opportunities this winter. Who knows...snowshoeing might be a good middle ground.

My favorite part of today's ride was Gulf Rd. in Lansing. There's a short, steep climb where Gulf meets Conlon Rd., and it's a real pedal stomping heart pounding affair. That turn onto Conlon Rd. is so gratifying.

See the ride on Everytrail

Here's the data:

Distance: 46.13 miles

Elapsed time: 2 hours, 30 min.

Avg. speed: 18.5 mph

Max. speed: 46 mph (heading east on Ledyard toward 34)

Vertical ascent: 2566 ft.

Calories burned: 2431

Avg. BPM: 144

Nov. 15th, and planning a long ride

Check back later...this is truly incredible, high in the mid 60s on Nov. 15th in Ithaca. I'm going for a long ride today up to King Ferry. Should be some great views of the lake. Bringing the camera too. Never again will I write something like "last ride of the year." Or maybe I should, since it seems to guarantee that I'll be wrong. While I don't subscribe to paranoid views that this is a clear sign of global warming, this would clearly be the up-side!