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A Little Heat Training

06.26.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 7 Comments

A biking buddy I haven’t ridden with for awhile contacted me the other day. He’s been off the bike lately, and wants to get back into it. He suggested we do a few Veloway laps after work. While I knew it would be a hot ride, I readily agreed.

John juggles his young sons, his 29-inch mountain bike and his road bike with his other obligations. He’s ridden rides of decent length before, and last year even did a guest post here about riding the Atlas 4000 kickoff ride under hot conditions.

But he says he’s slowed down quite a bit, and just wanted to turn the cranks in the heat to build up some tolerance for the temperatures he’ll face when he tackles organized rides again next month.

I had my concerns driving home this afternoon. The forecast had called for highs in the 100s most days of this week, and the car thermometer showed 107 at around 3 p.m. After getting my stuff together and setting off to meet John at our agreed-upon ride time of 4:30, I saw that it had dipped — to 106 (41C). One of the official weather stations in Austin recorded a record 109 today. My wife was none too pleased that I was heading out in such conditions.

She forgets, though, that just last weekend she played golf in temperatures almost as high, and had a great round. I slathered on the sunscreen, put lots of ice in the water bottle, and headed out.

The Veloway wasn’t completely deserted, but I saw only a few other bikers rounding the track. While I waited for John, I made sure the bike was parked in the shade, so it wouldn’t be a hot seat when I climbed back on for our laps.

Any shade is good shade.

We set off at an easy pace. John said he’d been averaging about 12 mph lately, and wanted to see if keeping up with me posed any special problems. He monitored his heart rate as we rode, and noted with satisfaction that it was at a reasonable level.

The Veloway is a 3.1-mile circuit, and John said three laps would be plenty for him. Coupled with my ride from home and back again, I would clock about 15 miles. In this weather, I figured that was just right.

The heat wasn’t too bad. Really. Some breeze would have been nice, though. Since we weren’t doing intervals or anything stupid like that, I thought the ride was just the kind of easy day I could always use. I noticed that John was pushing a bit to keep even with me, and once, when I kicked it into high gear, he lagged behind for about half a lap.

John catches and passes me.

After three laps, we pulled into the canopy that offers some shade at the head of the track.  Sweat glistened off both of us, but otherwise, we were fine. That is, until John suggested it was time to head to the parking lot so he could get his bike back on the car rack. I set off to see if any water was left in the coolers at the parking lot entrance (nope), and when I got there, I looked back to see John still under the canopy, staring straight ahead.

“Take the picture already, so I can go refill my water bottle!” The Noob with the borrowed bike.

My average speed for the trip, including the run between the house and the track, was 14.7 mph, just a tad slower than I usually do. If John was adding 2 mph to his typical speeds, and on a day like today, that could really stress him. He’ll be fine if he keeps up his riding this summer, but today was a good reminder to take it easy in extreme conditions. I wonder how some other acquaintances of mine did. They planned a 60-miler late this afternoon!

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Categories // Heat, Rides Tags // heat, Rides

It Takes More Than Water

06.12.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 9 Comments

Summer temperatures are here in Texas now. Austin got its first 100-degree day (38C) this week, although thankfully, we’re way behind last year’s ridiculous 90 days of 100 degrees or more.

So I’ve been making sure I have plenty of water while out on my rides. But the advent of the really hot temperatures reminds me that water alone isn’t enough. If I needed a stark reminder of that fact, all I had to do was take note of this news item:

SAN ANTONIO, June 12 (UPI) — A 30-year-old man who fell ill during an endurance boat race in Texas has died, authorities said.

Brad Ellis, who had become ill Sunday during the Texas Water Safari race on the San Marcos and Guadalupe rivers, was the first participant to die in the event’s 50-year history, the San Antonio Express-News reported.

Ellis died of hyponatremia, or low sodium, said Allen Spelce, president of the Texas Water Safari.

“It goes against logic,” Spelce said. “You think, ‘Drink water, drink water,’ but you’re expelling all of that sodium, through sweat and using the bathroom, and not getting the replacements.”

I plead guilty. I get by just fine with two bottles of water for rides of 30 miles or less. Part of the reason I bonked last weekend is that I was just drinking water and not replenishing my electrolytes on a ride about an hour longer than I’ve been doing lately. It’s time to start carrying some kind of electrolyte replacement again.

I’ve never been picky about what I use. Often, in the middle of a ride, I’ll stop at a convenience store and pick up a bottle of G2 — the low-sugar Gatorade. I have used Nuun in the past, and like it, although I know people who don’t care for the fizzy tablets you add to your water.

Most sports drinks have a variety of electrolytes — sodium, potassium, chloride and more — it appears that sodium is the one to be most concerned about. The Mayo Clinic’s website says sodium is important to the body, because it “helps maintain normal blood pressure, supports the work of your nerves and muscles, and regulates your body’s fluid balance.” If the sodium level drops too much, extra water enters your cells and swells them. It can even cause you brain cells to swell, and since the brain’s ability to enlarge is restricted by the skull, swollen brain cells could trigger more dangerous symptoms.

In lieu of a sports drink, you could munch on something salty. I’ve always liked a Payday candy bar. The peanuts that surround the nougat center of a Payday contain plenty of salt. A small bag of pretzels would work just as well.

The main thing to be aware of, though, is that water isn’t enough. The Mayo Clinic says you should only drink as much fluid as you lose through sweat during exercise. That would be about 34 ounces — or one liter — of water an hour. That’s about two water bottles. Uh oh — I usually drink only one bottle per hour. So hyponatremia wouldn’t seem to be a particular worry for me. I need to boost my fluid intake, and now that it’s really hot outside, make sure I replenish my sodium, too.

Just use the common sense guidelines you’ve been following since starting to cycle, and you’ll be fine.

 

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Categories // food, Heat, training Tags // electrolytes, water

Yard work + Heat + Bike + Bike = Knackered

04.01.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 4 Comments

I rode Friday afternoon when I got home from work. A nice 20 miles in the neighborhood with an acceptable average speed. That meant that Saturday morning, I was at Mrs. Noob’s disposal. No way she was going to let me ride again, especially since she knew I’d be on the club ride Sunday morning.

So I turned my attention to the yard. The in ground sprinklers need some help. Some of them aren’t getting all the grass they’re supposed to, so I’ve got some noticeable dead spots. I replaced a couple of sprinkler heads, then hit the doozy. An oak tree growing nearby is spreading its roots so extensively that one of them wrapped around the sprinkler, about six inches underground. Getting that done was a bear. By the time I finished, it was after noon, and the temperature had risen. Combined with the humidity, it was an uncomfortable day. I was bathed in sweat and sunburned.

What better idea under those circumstances than to finally go for a ride? It was 3 o’clock before I got going, was now the hottest part of the day, at 85 degrees (29C). I figured I’d tackle some hills, so headed for Convict Hill. In a 10-mile loop from my house, I get several tough ups on Convict Hill.

After the hill work, I was planning to head for a Mopac loop, because that’s part of the usual Saturday morning ride I do. Combining Mopac with Convict Hill and one turn around the Veloway, I get a nice 27-mile ride. Trouble was, I realized long before I got to Mopac that it wasn’t in the cards. That morning work in the yard had taken it all out of me. I modified my route and wound up with 20 miles once again, but this time felt completely done in.

This morning, we had a big turnout for the club ride. The A’s were going to do a Dam Loop, and we B’s decided to head out with them, but turn around about 17 miles out and head back home. I was looking forward to the ride, because it features “Hail Mary Hill,” a steep bugger that ends in a church parking lot. I had successfully climbed the hill about a month ago for the first time in over a year. I expected to get it again.

The road leading to the hill is wide and smooth, with lots of smaller hills. On one stretch, I hit 40.7 mph — a new all-time high speed for me. I caught and passed another B just before Hail Mary Hill began.

Almost immediately, I could tell I had a problem on my hands. Judy and Laura glided past me like I was standing still. I was standing, all right — standing on the pedals to try to get some oomph before the steep part hit. But when it did, even the standing didn’t help. A little past the halfway point, I unclipped and stopped. My heart was racing. I had no power left. I walked the bike about 100 yards, then climbed back on and pedaled to the church lot.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a cyclist most in want of a break gets the least. I had time to stop, take an extra-long swig from my water bottle, and try to get my breathing under control, when calls of “Let’s go!” rang out. The peloton rolled back onto the street, got the green light, and turned onto the wide shoulder of Bee Caves Road. I missed the light and was well off the back immediately. It didn’t take long before I couldn’t see anyone from the club, but I played cycling tag with a guy who had been left behind by the two riders he was with.

At the turnaround point, in a Walgreen’s parking lot, I was pleased to see that several were inside using the facilities. I had time to eat an oatmeal-raisin cookie my wife had baked the previous day and chat with some of the guys, gawk at Steve’s new bike (“My Madone is good for flat routes. This one [a Kona] is geared for hills”). Then we were on our way back.

Bee Caves Road is a popular biking route. It has a lot of rolling hills, many of them long and challenging. I just wasn’t up to the challenge today. It irked me, because when we did this ride a month ago, I could handle them with little difficulty. Now, I spun easily, often in my lowest granny gear, while I watched the group leave me behind again. Oh well, when we got back to the church parking lot I knew they’d be waiting for me.

They weren’t. I decided to leave the planned route and return the way I came. Less traffic, but the hills were just as tough. I pulled into a school’s front drive and sat on the curb in cooling shade.

I did finally make it back to the Starbucks where the ride started. Everyone had been there for quite awhile, it seemed. I went inside and ordered a large (“Venti” — give me a break, Starbucks) iced tea. Then I waited for them to call my name. And waited. And waited. Finally, I interrupted a “barista” (give me a break, pretentious coffee shops everywhere) and pointed out that people who had ordered after me were getting served, while I was waiting for a crummy tea. It turned out that someone else had grabbed mine by mistake.

Clearly, I hadn’t recovered from the strenuous work of the previous day. Given the shape of my yard, I think I’ll be in for a summer’s worth of hard work on Saturday mornings. I just hope my Sundays turn out better than today, where I was a C among the B’s.

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Categories // Heat, Rides Tags // Rides, slow, tired

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