I am starting to lose track of how many double centuries I’ve done (well, I have all the training recordings but I keep forgetting exactly.
2011: 1 Everest Challenge (205 miles in 2 days)
2012: 5 = Death Valley Double, Solvang Spring Double, Devil Mountain Double, Alta Alpina, Everest Challenge
2013: 1 = Everest Challenge
2014: 1 = Solvang Spring Double, Everest Challenge (aborted 2nd day, lungs)
2015: 7 = Southern Inyo Double, Joshua Tree Double, Solvang Spring Double, Devil Mountain Double, Central Coast Double, Marin Double, Alta Alpina
2016: 8 = Southern Inyo Double, Joshua Tree Double, Solvang Spring Double, Devil Mountain Double, Central Coast Double, Davis Double, Eastern Sierra Double, Alta Alpina (to mile 165 7 of 8 passes, severe cramping)
2017: 8 = Camino Real Double, Southern Inyo Double, Solvang Spring Double, Devil Mountain Double, Central Coast Double, Davis Double, Eastern Sierra Double
2018: = 2 done, 8 more planned
I’m being slightly liberal here, counting the 2-day Everest Challenge as a double century and also Alta Alpine where I had issues and completed only 7 of 8 passes last year (severe cramps).
Total as of March 2018: 33, or 29 if strictly counted as single-day 192+ mile events.
Expected tally for 2018: 41
Double centuries planned for 2018
Barring injury that is.
I have an ambitious year planned for at least 12 double centuries.
Everything revolves around finishing well in the California Triple Challenge, the 3 doubles highlighted in green, which starts with amping-up fitness early and shedding fat ASAP.
See also my letter to Chuck Bramwell on solo vs de facto teams that game the placement system.
Double Century schedule for 2018
Getting it done
The cycling double century schedule shown below should be a lot easier with the comfort of the Mercedes Sprinter adventure van, not to mention being able to work efficiently before and after with no rush to get home.
My goal this year is to place well in the 2018 California Triple Crown which this year consists of:
These are perhaps 3 of the top 4 hardest double centuries in the state in my view, having done all the hard ones. I rate Alta Alpina 8 Pass Challenge as the hardest due to high elevation and sometimes very high temperatures.
By “placing well” I refer mostly to personal best efforts with no glitches; something close to what I can do on my very best days. I don’t hope to win, only to finish well for my own ability. I do hope to win at least one of the other double centuries this year (I’ve one the Central Coast Double once, and the Eastern Sierra Double once, so that is not unrealistic if training goes well).
This year, the series has all three events within 90 minutes driving of my home, so I have no excuse for not doing it (in past years it was too far to travel).
Why so many doubles so early?
The trick is getting in shape early, which means dropping 15 pounds of body fat by April 29, or just under one pound of body fat per week.
That’s incredibly hard to do, as it means a 500 calorie per day deficit (a pound of body fat is 3500 calories since it includes some water). Since back in 2011 I lost weight at the rate of 1.25 pound per week for 12 weeks. the goal has an existence proof, though 7 years later it will be harder to do. In 2011 (Sept 13) I got down to 7.9% body fat (168 pounds).
As of Jan 1 2018, I have reversed those last two digits: 168 now up to 186 = about 17% body fat.
- Each double century typically loses me a full pound of body fat. It varies; it can be 3/4 to 1.5 pounds of body fat, depending on difficulty and self discipline in recovery eating properly.
- There are two back-to-back (1 week apart) pairs of doubles 3/10 and 3/17 plus 4/7 and f/14. This early physical stress sets things up nicely for stronger results later in the year. Then a 2 week recovery prior to DMD on 4/29.
Why body weight is a BFD
The reason I need to drop 15 pound of fat is that Devil Mountain Double even 5 pounds of extra body fat costs half an hour of riding time: if total riding weight (TRW) is 196 pounds (rider 171 , clothes/shoes 3, food and water 5, bike 17) then 15 more pounds is a 7.6% increase in TRW. Devil Mountain Double with its 20000' of climbing means that ascending is about 60% of the riding time. Since it takes about 15 hours, that’s 9 hours. Adding 7% or so to the time, that adds 38 minutes to the riding time—around 14:20 versus 15:00. But it’s worse than that: if it’s hot, more fat means more stress (heat). Higher weight forces lower cadence on climbs, stressing legs and burning them out prematurely plus demanding higher energy expenditure, which means burning off glucose stores faster (higher exertion level for same pace). So I deem the difference more like an hour. And that means daylight finish versus night finish, which saves another 10 minutes (much easier to see/navigate). So that 15 extra pounds really means 70 minutes more riding time.
Losing body fat
Fat comes off most easily at first as the body is less cranky about losing fat. For me that means I should be able to get down to 179 on or ahead of that schedule (I’ve done that before), but 179 to 175 gets harder, and 175 to 171 the body fights back, big time (appetite, more efficient metabolism).
2018-03-10: Lloyd after finishing 2018 Joshua Tree Double Century
I had an extraordinary day at the Joshua Tree Double Century on March 10m 2018 with only three minor setbacks:
- Soaked feet /wet socks the rest of the day start around mile 100. It wasn’t the rain so much as my front tire kicking up water onto my shoes, which became squishy with water. The compensation: cool temperatures are ideal for me, since I put out relatively high wattage, so cool temps help shed body heat.
- Rest stops 4/5/6/7/8 were not there. Even though I was the last one to leave (excepting a 3 man pacelining team), from what I can tell I outrode everyone excepting that 3-man pacelining team. Only by the kindness of a stranger (and at just the right time) did I get water at mile 144 right at the summit of 29 Palms / Hwy 62 and rice Rd. Otherwise, dehydration would have gotten very bad.
- The worst issue: what feels like a small tear in the left hamstring about 3 inches above the left knee*, to the inside. This had been bugging me for about a week, but starting at mile 120 or so, I began to get shooting pains from that area all the way up my leg. This slowed my down significantly, but I was able to compensate by forcing the gluteus muscles to do more work, which made it only mildly painful.
I had no bronchospasms, but I also wore a face mask along the entire Interstate 10 section. At the finish, I noticed that cyclists had absolutely filthy faces—which means they were breathing that nasty stuff in. I will be using an N100 face mask a lot more, definitely any time there is significant dust or heavy traffic (which throws up dust and whatever toxic metals are on the roadway).
Regarding that 3-many pacelining team (beat me by ~29 minutes)—when they caught up to me at mile 100, they passed me, then I passed them, then they started drafting me. I had to wave them off but they did not understand, so I just stopped pedaling and let them go. So I was beaten in an unfair contest by a 3-man team in which each rider gets to rest for 2/3 of the way at greatly reduced effort—massively lower physical stress and effort needed when pacelining. Chuck Bramwell just won’t discuss this “external assist” versus solo effort ridiculousness; see my essay and his responses in How is Drafting in a Paceline Different from an Electric Motor?.
Fueling
I consumed a total of 500 calories of Hammer HEED, and roughly 700 calories of GU and 120 calories of Osmo, equating to about 20% of the total caloric expenditure, a little low but nearly optimal (20 to 25% is best). The relatively cool temperatures kept dehydration far lower than in hotter years; I drank only 4.5 liters of water. However, that’s because I carbo loaded the two prior days, which stores a great deal of water.
Post ride
Rare in my experience in 36 double centuries, I felt ready to ride more when done. I went out and ate immediately and wanted to eat and it tasted good. Most doubles I feel like I don’t want to eat until tomorrow or feel more like vomiting than anything else. Not so this one, suggesting that my fitness has gone way up, and that I nailed the fueling and hydration.
Results
start: 05:30:37
finish: 15:25:42
elapsed: 09:53:40
riding time: 9:47:11 (time actually on bike)
2018 Joshua Tree Double Century results
Riders {Mark Christopherson, Ludovic Hilde, Patrick Copp} were the 3 man team that “won” with identical times of 09:26. Their times are identical—pacelining for 196 miles is vastly easier than soloing. They should be listed as a team win; it is not a fair contest, and it is grossly misleading in terms of who “won”. It was clear when they passed me and I passed them and then they drafted me, that they were no stronger than me—but each guy gets to rest about 2/3 of the time. That’s no personal win, it’s a team win. While I respect their right and choice to paceline a double, I reject it as any kind of win except a team win.
I think team efforts should be noted as such in the results for all double centuries. But more important (to me), a SOLO designation (honor system) should be noted, which means taking no draft for the entire distance, thus ruling out pacelining or any kind of drafting. To be clear, some haphazard “by luck” drafting is at least a more sporting and honest effort than a pre-planned coordinated team effort. Why not just install an electric motor and call it a win—there is no difference; both are an external assist.
2018-03-10: graph showing power in watts, heart rate, elevation for 2018 Joshua Tree Double Century
2018-03-10: Lloyd after finishing 2018 Joshua Tree Double Century
f1.8 @ 1/500 sec, ISO 20; 2018-03-10 15:32:24
iPhone 7 Plus + iPhone 7 Plus back dual camera 3.99mm f/1.8 @ 28mm (4mm)
[low-res image for bot]
Thanks to Robert VB for sending this article along.
This one below resonated with me, because in January 2018, 3 years after suffering significant nerve damage, I finally felt like my legs wire “firing” again—and I’ve put on muscle mass at the same time and can spin smoothly up to 110 rpm as I could back prior to the nerve damages. And I am much stronger than the last 3 years.
Inevitable muscle wasting of old age could be stopped, scientists believe
The inevitable muscle wasting of old age could be stopped, scientists believe, after discovering why people become frail as they grow older.
Most people become weaker in their later years, as their leg muscles get smaller and less able to bear weight, which often leads to disability and falls. But until now, nobody has known why the process happens or if it can be reversed. However, scientists at Manchester Metropolitan University have discovered that by the age of 75, people have between 30 and 50 per cent fewer nerves controlling the muscles in their legs.
...
The scientists also found that the nerves in healthy muscles can send out new branches to rescue muscles which have become detached, and believe that regular exercise could help this branching process.
...
“Our findings debunk the assumption that ageing automatically makes us more frail.”
Sounds like the “I’m getting old” excuse should translate as “I’m lazy”.
Robert V sent along this interesting article, which dovetail with my sense if it all, which I’ve mentioned for years now—I hardly ever get sick, and when I do I recover very rapidly.
Cycling keeps your immune system young, study finds
Cycling can hold back the effects of ageing and rejuvenate the immune system, a study has found.
Scientists carried out tests on 125 amateur cyclists aged 55 to 79 and compared them with healthy adults from a wide age group who did not exercise regularly. The 'miracle pill': how cycling could save the NHS.
The findings, outlined in two papers in the journal Aging Cell, showed that the cyclists preserved muscle mass and strength with age while maintaining stable levels of body fat and cholesterol. In men, testosterone levels remained high.
More surprisingly, the anti-ageing effects of cycling appeared to extend to the immune system.
...
“However, importantly, our findings debunk the assumption that ageing automatically makes us more frail. Our research means we now have strong evidence that encouraging people to commit to regular exercise throughout their lives is a viable solution to the problem that we are living longer but not healthier.”
...
What’s the point of living a long time if one’s body is not functioning well, so that living becomes incapacity and/or suffering and/or deprived of simply joys?
See also:
SEARCH
