October 22 and 23

WE MADE IT!! We rolled into the Red Rock Canyon Resort at about 2:30 on Thursday. Well, here it is… the end of our Ride to the Ride. I don’t have any pictures of us finishing because it was a little disorganized when we arrived and I haven’t been able to get the four of us together since our arrival. We met the rest of the riders at dinner last night and we all did a short warm up ride this morning. Tomorrow, Saturday, we do the 100 mile Ride to Empower. It is great to get reacquainted with those who are back this year and to meet the first time riders. A couple of people, including Charene, asked me if we were glad we did the ride to Las Vegas. In reflecting, I can say for myself that there are no regrets about doing this ride. The scenery was beautiful and the people we met along the way were friendly and often inspiring. Taking on challenges is what keeps the glass half-full. Most of all, the generous financial support that you gave and your moral support during the ride provided the energy needed when the gas tank felt empty. I hope that you enjoyed the ramblings of these updates and that the photos helped give you the flavor of the ride. I look forward to seeing all of you as the year passes. I want to end by thanking Cline Winery for their support of the Breast Cancer Network of Strength and the Ride to Empower. I especially want to thank Andy’s wife Micki for driving support during our ride and my wife Sharon for meeting us in Lone Pine and riding with us part of each day and providing an additional support vehicle. We couldn’t have done this without them.

Best to all of you, Jim, Andy, Micki and Sharon

WOOHOO!

October 20 Day 11

We are in Pahrump Nevada tonight, and getting close to Red Rock Canyon, only a day and a half away. We are actually closer to our destination than we thought. When I was planning this ride, I had the distance from here to Red Rock Canyon as 85 miles. Now that we are here we found that we are only about 60 miles away. I think our plan is to ride half way there and back Wednesday and then ride into Red Rock Canyon on Thursday. We expect to arrive in the mid afternoon.

Today our ride included a very strong cross wind for the first half and then a wonderfully strong tail wind during the second half. The temperature was quite cool, in the mid 70s with spectacular clouds to our east. It is amazing that by now when we ride 48 miles, it feels like a short day. If only we could keep that feeling all year.

We are excited to be reaching our destination. We are looking forward to meeting the rest of the riders on Thursday and Friday, and riding the century Ride to Empower on Saturday.

Jim and Andy

Andy nearing Furnace Creek

October 19, Day 10

Today we rode out of Death Valley and to the top of the climb toward Death Valley Junction. Tomorrow we ride to Pahrump, Nevada (ever been there?). We are only two and a half days from Las Vegas where we will ride the Ride to Empower century ride in Red Rock Canyon.

This morning Sharon, Andy and I started our ride at Furnace Creek. Our goal was to get to the top of the climb out of Death Valley, just over 22 miles. Sharon rode about 8 uphill miles with us and headed back. We continued the climb and got to the top! This means that most of our ride to Pahrump will be flat or down tomorrow.

The climb was steady but not too steep with a head wind most of the way. We passed Zabriskie Point, and Twenty Mule Team Rd. on our way. The most interesting sight for the day was a coyote who was hanging out on the side of the road stopping cars. This animal was not afraid of cars or people and was definitely not intimidated by us. After five minutes of debating the danger of riding past him, a car stopped to take his picture and that was our chance to make a break for it. He was there again when we rode back.

Wylie Coyote

Why did we see him on the way back? That was because we are staying at Stovepipe Wells again tonight to see the desert one more day. It gave us a good day of climbing and a good day of downhill for our 40 mile ride.

There are clouds on the horizon this evening so we are looking forward to a great sunset tonight. Well the sunset was a bust. The clouds were in the North and the sun did not illuminate them at all. Oh well, they were still pretty.

We are holding up well. Your donations, emails and messages on Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025936&id=1068080243 and this blog help keep us going when the days get long. Mostly, remembering that we are riding to raise money to help Breast Cancer Network of Strength support women who are dealing with the much more difficult ride of breast cancer treatment and recovery, gives us the strength to do that last hill each day.

Jim and Andy

This is what you get when you leave Death Valley

Here we are heading from Lone Pine to Death Valley

Day 8 and 9  October 17-18

Day 8 Lone Pine to Panamint Springs
We started in Lone Pine, skirting Owens Lake (dry) with our first stop in Keeler. Keeler is a less than spectacular town with a very nice DWP employee who gave us water without arsenic. Then it was a rolling climb to the top of a pass where we had lunch at the turn off to Darwin, thanks to our wives Micki and Sharon.

After lunch we headed down a beautiful fast grade that dropped us into Panamint Springs; yet another awesome, fast descent. We enjoyed a giant cold iced tea at the cafe.  (See the picture of Andy in my Facebook album at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/album.php?aid=2025936&id=1068080243)

Another amazing donation story: When Andy walked up to the cafe porch, a group of locals asked what we were doing and Andy explained our ride. They pulled out a five dollar bill and made a donation on the spot!

When we returned to Lone Pine we celebrated Andy’s 61st birthday at a Mexican restaurant. Then it was early to bed, early to rise to prepare for Sunday’s ride as we had to drive back to Panamint Springs for the day’s start.

Death Valley straignt ahead!

Day 9
We are now in the heart of Death Valley at Stovepipe Wells. The valley here is a striking desert ecosystem. There is a vast flat valley surrounded by brown mountains in all directions. We are getting close to Las Vegas and are about a day ahead of schedule, so, we decided to extend our stay here for one more day.

We began our ride, today, at the base of Towne Pass elevation 4956 feet. I can say that this climb rivals just about any other that I have done anywhere. The grade was 8 miles of between 4% and 8% grade. The reward came after the summit when we had 18 miles of down with speeds approaching 40 mph. The descent ended at Stovepipe Wells where the thermometer read 98 degrees at noon. We stopped for a quick drink and then were off to Furnace Creek, 27 miles further.  Furnace Creek is 190 feet below sea level.

While riding up Towne Pass I was passed a couple of times by a white van. On the sides was written Ride for the Cure 3100 miles. Each time it passed the driver honked and waved. When we arrived at Stovepipe Wells the van was there. When I went over to thank them for their encouragement, I learned that they were a group from all over Canada, who were riding from Vancouver BC to Austin Texas in a relay. Each team rode 100 km each day. They expected to reach Austin next Friday.

Sharon and Micki picked us up and took us back to Stovepipe Wells where we all enjoyed the refreshing pool.

Tomorrow, we will ride from Furnace Creek to Death Valley Junction. Then we will do some exploring of Death Valley sights for the rest of the day.

Note for Fred and Nancy Cline: Andy was checking the wine selection at the Stovepipe Wells General Store and found that they carry Cline Wine!

Day 7, October 16, Highway 395
Today we rode from Bishop to Lone Pine. We had another spectacular day as we headed toward Mt. Whitney. It boggles my mind to think that we will be looking at the highest point in California and Sunday we will be riding through the lowest point in the U.S. Every day is a new adventure.

Speaking of adventure, we invented a new triathlon. It is the bike walk and search. I took the picture of Andy riding to Lone Pine while we were still moving. Unfortunately, when I pulled the camera out of my pocket, I flipped my glasses out onto the roadway. I didn’t notice they were gone until we stopped in Independence, about seven miles down the road. We had to backtrack in the car when Micki caught up with us to look for them. Fortunately, the picture had a road marking that helped us identify the intersection where I took the photo. Unfortunately, we could not remember what part of the ride the picture was taken. We backtracked from Big Pine where we had breakfast, and the last place I knew had my glasses, back toward Independence. Each time we came to an intersection that looked like the picture, Andy would let me out and I would walk back and look for the glasses. Luck was with us, I found the glasses lying in the sand just off the shoulder at the last intersection before Independence. What a lucky break.

Sharon, my wife,  joined us today for the rest of the trip. It is good to have her here. I was starting to miss her.

A shameless plug for the Mt. Whitney Motel in Lone Pine. We are staying here for two nights as we could not find a place to stay between Lone Pine and Death Valley on Saturday night. When we checked in to the Mt. Whitney Motel, the owner charged us for only one night and said the second night was free because he wanted to support our ride. The motel is not fancy but very comfortable. If you are in Lone Pine I recommend it.
Jim and Andy

A personal note. When I started this ride I was elated that I was only $90 away from meeting my goal of raising money for the Breast Cancer Network of Strength. Now six days into the ride I am still $90 away from my goal. I am feeling disappointed that I am no closer to my fund raising goal as I get closer to my bike tour goal. To those who have generously donated, thank you again. Your support keeps me riding. To those of you who have not yet donated, please consider a donation. It does not have to be a lot. Five or ten dollars will help move me toward my $4000 goal and will help the Network of Strength do its important work of providing free support to those dealing with breast cancer. You can click the link at the bottom of the page or paste http://ride.networkofstrength.org/heathpagliuso into your url or go to Team Cline at the same web address to donate to the team.  It all goes to continue the same great work.
Jim

Day 6, October 15, Highway 395
Today we rode from June Lakes to Bishop. Wow, what a beautiful ride. The trees along hwy. 395 are in full color now, with vibrant yellows, and oranges cast over the newly fallen snow. Above the tree level, on the mountain peaks, it looks as though nature took a white palette and painted everything above 8,000 feet. The storm took our scenic ride and made it into a spectacular ride. Unfortunately, my camera battery is almost dead so I couldn’t upload my pictures. I had hoped they would have given some idea of the beauty that we encountered. Sharon meets us tomorrow and has the charger, so we can send pictures then.

We climbed two passes today, one about 7,300 feet and the other 7,000 feet. Our total climbing was only about 850 feet for the day. Today was more of a descent sort of day. We were treated to an 8 mile down hill run before Bishop, a drop of almost 2,000 feet. What a rush!!

Tomorrow morning we will treat ourselves to some delicious baked goods from Schat’s Bakery in Bishop before we head to Lone Pine. At Lone Pine we will head east to cross Death Valley.

We met a lone rider just outside June Lakes who is taking a one year tour around the US. She began her trip on September 12th in Seattle. What an adventure that would be.

We are looking forward to another spectacular day tomorrow as we head toward Mt. Whitney. It boggles my mind to think that we will be looking at the highest point in California tomorrow and two days later we will be riding through the lowest point in the US. Every day is a new adventure.
Jim and Andy

Day 4, October 13 Rain and More Rain
Today we are stuck in Modesto watching the rain fall and the wind blow. This dashes our hopes of actually riding over the Sierras. We learned today that Tioga pass is closed and speculation is that it will be closed for the winter.  Andy and I are glad we decided to drive up to Yosemite yesterday and ride up the pass. This may be the earliest closing in recent history.

I just received word that a very close friend of mine and my wife Sharon’s died of cancer this morning. Although it was not breast cancer, all cancer deaths are heart breaking. I will add Doe, one of the most caring educators and warmest human being I have known, to my dedication for this ride.

Day 5, October 14 Back on the Road Again
This storm was amazing. Wind blew trees down all over Modesto and the rain totals for the day ranged between 1.5 and 3 inches in the Valley.  We left Modesto late-morning to drive to Lee Vining. We had to drive back to Carson Pass to get over the Sierras and on highway 395. We arrived at Lee Vining just before 5 PM but with enough daylight to ride.

The ride looked like early spring with fresh snow from yesterday’s storm covering all of the peaks. The south wind was blowing and the sun was getting close to disappearing behind the mountains so it was a cold uphill ride into the wind. We made it to the top of Deadman Pass, elevation 8,100 feet, before darkness and cold made us stop. We are happy to be back on the road and on schedule.

Andy and Jim at Deadman Pass (elevation 8,100 feet)

Jim and Andy set out on their journey from the club party

We finished day one. We rode from the Cline Winery to Winters. A total of 58.5 miles with 2742 feet of climbing. Our route took us over the hills on hwy 121 past Lake Berryessa. We had to end our ride in Winters as it was 7:00pm and quite dark when we arrived. The scenery through the Napa/Sonoma Valley was spectacular. The climb over Mt. George was challenging. All in all it was a great first day of riding.

Tomorrow is our longest planned ride. We will leave Davis and head for Modesto. This is a 97 mile leg but much flatter than the ride today.

Thank you to the Cline Winery staff and the Cline family for all of their support and for making our start so special. Andy and I felt like rock stars as we rode through the line of club members to start our ride. We will remember the start throughout our ride.

The pictures that are attached include a picture of Andy on one of the roads of the detour route around the road work on the highway. I think I might have missed part of Andy in the picture. The second picture is at the Montecello Dam. The light was already getting low. The third is the clock in the Winters town square showing the time that we arrived.

Barrie Simpson (left)and Charene Beltramo (right)

We would like to introduce you to our newest member of Team Cline.  Barrie Simpson is a Pendulum Club member who was chosen (at Saturday’s Club Party) to participate in this year’s Ride to Empower in Red Rock Canyon.  Congratulations and good luck! 

Please read her remarkable story:

Last year I landed in San Francisco from a work trip in Japan and went straight to the Cline Harvest party, an annual event for our family. Right before I left for Japan I was called back in to my doctor’s office for a biopsy as a result of an abnormal spot in my digital mammogram. Mostly, I wasn’t thinking that it would be real [cancer] as I’ve known many people who’ve had to go back for follow up and I wasn’t feeling “sick”. However, while in Tokyo, I couldn’t help but notice that there were pink posters all over for an upcoming breast cancer walk.

Two days following last year’s harvest party, I had a biopsy. The following Monday I found out that my “spot” was in fact cancerous. A lot of things happened very fast following that day in October 2008. By the 6th of November I’d had surgery, the first surgery of my life. It’s now a year later, I have a follow up appointment this week and I’m joining Team Cline for this ride. I’m overwhelmed, thrilled and nervous. I haven’t been on my bike for a while. I used to ride all the time but then kids came into our lives, and I put that hobby to the side.

Thanks to Cline Cellars for the opportunity to share in the Team Cline experience!

Best Regards,
Barrie Simpson

Jim puts on the finishing touches before the big trip

It has been a busy couple of weeks as I finished my long term substitute position and prepared for the ride. The weather during the last couple of weeks has given just about everything we might expect to encounter on the ride. There were record high temperatures, followed by rain and cold winds. This week the weather was about as nice as I could hope. Along with my own preparation, time was spent preparing my bike for the trip. The bike now has new tires, new brake and shifter cables, and as you can see from the picture, some new pink handlebar tape. I don’t think there is anything more to do.

Today is Friday before we start the ride. I went for a short ride today to keep limber and make sure everything on the bike is working well. Andy and I are looking forward to the Harvest Party tomorrow and the kick-off to our ride. The forecast through the weekend is good, but the first part of the week may see some rain. We plan to climb over Tioga Pass on Tuesday and hope that the rain/snow has either passed or does not materialize. The forecast for Death Valley is temperatures in the mid 90s. It looks like we will have the best weather that we can hope for at this time of year.

Thanks again to those who have supported our ride with donations to the Breast Cancer Network of Strength. We are looking forward to getting together with the other riders once we get to Red Rock Canyon. The next time I write we will be on our way!

Jim

Two birds, one stone!

Training Notes From Jim: Weekend of Sept. 19th, 2009 

This week I combined my training ride with my fund raising by riding on a stationary trainer Saturday morning at the Davis Farmer’s Market. I was able to accumulate four hours of quality seat time, toughening up where the body meets the bike, and raised $150. I found people were interested in what the Breast Cancer Network of Strength does and willing to donate to the effort. Being a long time Davis resident, I also saw some folks who I had not seen for a long time. Most of them donated to my ride.

A heart melting moment happened when a small girl, about 4 of 5 years old, came to my table and put a dollar into my jar. She said something to me in a small voice that I could not quite understand. Her mother stepped in and told me that the girl had leukemia and wanted to wish me luck. As she waved and walked away, I was left with a sense that I was just blessed for the effort I, and all others who raise money for worthy causes, put into helping others.

Jim, Andy, and Friends Train in Donner, CA.

Training Notes from Jim: Weekend of  Sept 12-13, 2009

Andy and I had a great weekend of training in the mountains this weekend. Our time is limited for getting in shape to climb at altitude but it is quite important for us to do. We will be climbing over Tioga Pass on our way to Red Rock Canyon. Tioga Pass is in Yosemite National Park and is one of the highest passes over the Sierra Nevada Mountains at  9945 feet. This weekend we climbed up the old highway 40 from Donner Lake to Soda Springs which summits at about 8200 feet. We made it without too much trouble and felt confident that we are ready for the big climb around October 14th. We rode again Sunday but took a less strenuous route to Rainbow Lodge just off highway 80 about 15 miles from Soda Springs. We were accompanied by our wives and a group of friends which made the ride all the more fun. During the upcoming week I will continue commuting 30 miles to work and plan to extend the rides to 40 and 50 miles if the temperatures stay below 100.

Today I’ve

• fed you at 3:30 am
• fed you at 5:30 am
• said goodbye to your dad as he left the bed to sleep somewhere else ’cause you’re such a noisy eater at 5:35 am
• been vomited on in bed by you at 6:38 am
• attempted to mop-up the vomit in the bed, on me, and on you at 6:39 am (you kept sleeping)
• vaguely thought, “oh shit, I only washed the sheets, the undersheet, the duvet cover and aired the duvet yesterday, great timing!” at 6:40 am as I drifted back to sleep
• been woken by your thrashing arms against my face at 7:08 am (you kept sleeping)
• said goodbye to your dad at 7:24 am as he left the house
• tried to get back to sleep at 7:25 am
• worked out that you had woken up and were wide-eyed at 7:27 am
• tried to ignore the fact it was morning at 7:28 am
• conceded at 7:36 am that your grunting, exertion and ‘poo-face’ facial expression was consistent with the fact you were actually pooing.
• calculated at 7:36 am that you hadn’t pooed for at least 48 hours
• determined at 7:36 am that immediate evasive action was required unless I wanted a pooey and vomity bed.
• lost track of time
• moved you to the bathroom, removed your nappy and assisted you to complete the poo in the bathroom sink in an EC-style manner.
• laughed as you concentrated and stared intently at yourself in the mirror as you finished pooing
• complimented myself on my fortuitous movement of your bum back over the sink after I thought you’d finished.  Was amazed at the amount of poo one small baby can contain.
• gave you a quick bath in the sink
• took the nappy bucket down to the laundry
• scrubbed your pooey nappy from this morning
• put on two loads of laundry – your nappies and your clothes
• had a play and a chat with you on the floor.
• assembled my bike and the bike trainer on the back deck (having brought the bike up to the back deck three days ago and the trainer up yesterday). Step 3 complete!


my bike set-up and your rocker... We're feeding as I take this..

• located my bike cleats (in the very back of the closet – who would have thought)
• cycled for 12 minutes (woo hoo! exercise – ahoy) while simultaneously coo-ing to you to keep you calm (as you were feeling abandoned from the look on your face)
• toasted a muffin and got some juice and managed to wolf it down


you and me. you're getting your fill

• fed you again at 8:50 am while simultaneously reading my email

Gee its busy being a mum

love your attempting to get back into regular exercise mum

ps. oh, and I wrote this post at the end of the feed and its now only 9:06 am.

W.U. 10 minutes moderate cruise around.

Main: 35 minutes Active rest (get up to faster then race pace for 5 minutes and cruise for 5 minutes etc)

Cool Down: 10 minutes moderate cruise around.

For a moment I thought the driver of the little Daihatsu Matiz was gesticulating at me, he had the swivel-eyed look of a mad man, one that would happily jump out of his car, tear the wind-shield wipers off it and beat you to death with them. I held my line, ready to take evasive action if he pulled over ahead of me. He did not.

As his car struggled to accelerate away from me on the steep gradient I noticed that it was a rental car. I imagined that he was frustrated at being in a tiny little car with no power for he was banging his hands on the steering wheel, willing the car onwards.

Several years ago I rented a car that was so slow I actually stopped to make sure the handbrake was not dragging. I got out of the car, put the car in neutral and with the handbrake off, tried to push it. It rolled along the road with almost no effort. In fact pushing it was almost as fast as driving it. I smiled as I continued up the climb.

Earlier on I had felt a bit like the guy in his rental car. I was trying to ride quickly up a long, hot climb but nothing was happening. I stood up, then sat down, I changed gears up and down the block but to no avail. It felt like I was glued to the road. After a while I gave up trying to smash myself to bits on the ascent and pretended to be touring. I eased off and looked out across the valley, enjoying the view. A huge blanket of wild flowers lay across the hillside. The sky was a picture postcard blue and Mr. Grumpy in his rental car was long gone. I was alone on my bike and that was good. It was peacefull. Tranquil you might say.

The fact that my velocity was roughly that of continental drift did not matter. Sometimes you have to just relax and accept it and today was going to be one of those days. Having taken 2 months off the bike, and then jumped back into training it was hardly surprising that I would be creeping along the road like this. I reminded myself that form takes time and that one has to go through days like these before regaining lost  form.

I decided to plan out my weeks ahead whilst I cycled. The basic idea was to build gradually and not to rush it. It was pointless trying to make up for lost time by piling on extra hours and extra intensity. That would risk injury and would set me back even further.

I was approaching the last set of hairpin bends when I spotted the little rental car by the side of the road. Steam was pouring out of the engine. As I drew alongside the car I spotted the driver on his mobile phone. To say he looked upset would be an understatement. As his day deteriorated mine improved. I gradually began to feel better on the bike.

The descent was fast and the road was smooth. I took delight in threading the bends together smoothly and at high speed. I have always enjoyed descending and today was no different. As often happens when I am training on the bike a tune lodged itself in my head and refulsed to go away. Who sang it? It was on the tip of my tongue but I could not remember the name of the musician.

As soon as I got home I looked it up and laughed. Recorded in 1977 it is a song that is full of get up and go, unlike me and the Daihatsu Matiz.

And what a great day! We met at Kelso Conservation Area:

• Carlos
• Rogerio
• Fernando
• Brian
• Bryan
• Bryan

I’ve been riding the computrainer for 4 months now, and don’t take me wrong, it is great. Having said that, nothing better then riding outside!! The weather was great, the group even better.

We started following the Milton Sprint Triathlon course, but we lost two guys. Bryan was too fast for us, and Fernando fell behind. We went back for Fernando, but we couldn’t find him… sorry about that. I blame Rogerio, so you should do the same!

Anyhow, the day was FANTASTIC. 22 C, cloudy, a bit windy, but not too much. Brian was kind enough to show us a few new hills, including some at Appleby Line, which is a great place to train for the IM France. A pretty tough hill of about 1 km long, felt like 10 though. I’ll definitely go back there next week if the weather is nice.

It was pretty interesting to see the difference between a road bike and a tri-bike. Brian and Bryan were riding road bikes, while Carlos, Rogerio and myself were on tri-bikes. Uphill was pretty hard to keep up with the road bikes, but as soon as it became flat or downhills the tri-bikes are much faster.

Oh, before I forget, Rogerio almost broke a tradition. He didn’t fall once until the last half hour, when we fell twice! As usual, stopping and getting the wrong foot out of the pedals. Fortunately not even a bruise, he is getting pretty good at that.

So, after riding for about 60 km, Rogerio, Carlos and I did a 55 min run. I think it would have been a perfect training for an X-Terra! We went uphill to Hilton Falls, into some trails and back to Kelso Conservation Area for a total of 11.2 km (give or take the calibration of my polar). To my surprise we averaged 12.4 km/h, but only because Carlos and I were chasing the rabbit… Rogerio! The bastard kept going like he was walking in the park! Well done man. What also surprised me was how Carlos maintained the pace all the way. This is someone that did the 10k downhill just under one hour last year!

Great job guys!

Awesome day. Time to relax and have a beer now! Next time we should include it in our program!

Cheers!

I’m starting to get use to the CompuTrainer and to CyclingPeaks Real 3d. I created a bunch of courses, such as IM France 2009 and the Suburu Milton Sprint. I find it pretty interesting that I’ve finish the Milton Sprint averaging 31.9 Km/h in the Computrainer and last year, during the race, I averaged 32.0 km/h! That is pretty cool!

Mind you, I’m on my off-season now, and Milton was my first race last season, so it is hard to say how my fitness level would compare. Having said that, not bad for a simulation!

I’m attaching the CompuTrainer report, it has quite a bit of information too. On the good side, I have a pretty good right to left power ratio, but I really need to work on my “SpinScan”, which should be at least 75:

Tomorrow is a big day on the bike trek’s calendar.  It reads…..”3 months to go, start training fat ass.”  I have a two-part training program; on-bike and off-bike.

The on-bike training is broken up into 3 parts, progressing in difficulty as the tour nears.

Month One- 30 mile rides every other day, fully-loaded.

Month Two- 50 mile rides every other day, weekend overnights.

Month Three- 50 mile weekday rides, 200 mile weekend overnights.

Man, that sounds nauseating.

The off the bike stuff revolves around the gym.  I was really surprised when I google’d this topic.  No clear answers came up anywhere.  Seemed like 1/2 the internet was for weight training, 1/2 was against it.  Then a whole new door of information was opened.  I learned about cycling power and wattage.  As if there wasn’t already enough crap for me to think about.  Keeping it short, that is the amount of power you create with your legs.  I read that during the 7th hour of a Tour-de-France stage, Lance Armstrong produced an average of 400 watts of power, damn.  The average man produces about 100-150 on a good day.  Top-performing racers don’t rely on strength training to increase performance cause they’re already set up.  I’m just getting back into the saddle and need to get myself on track quickly.  So I’m going to combine some yoga and weighlifting 3 days a week in 3 parts focusing on a few basic exercises:

Squat, Leg Press, Hammy Curls, Dead Lift, Bent-over rows, Push-ups, Sit-ups.

Month One- Foundation stage.  Getting back into the groove of lifting weights.  Lower weights 10 reps.

Month Two- Strength stage.  Add power to my foundation.  Heavy weight 5 reps.

Month Three- Transition.  Prepare muscles for cycling.  Moderate weight, rapid action.

Our Philosophy

Train Right

At Jetlagsports we emphasize quality over quantity.  Having personally raced at an Elite International level while still putting myself through school, or having to earn money at a “real” job, I have always valued getting as much out of the little time you have, rather than wasting time getting nowhere.  To find out more about our coach, click here.

Cycling is a sport for all to enjoy, so whether you ride once a week with a few friends, or travel the world racing against the world’s best, we want you to get the most out of your cycling and to enjoy yourself.

We approach coaching on two different levels.

1)      Fitness.  This is the usual level  everybody thinks of when you mention the term “coaching”.  Working to improve your endurance and cardiovascular system to basically get stronger on the bike

2)      Skill.  This aspect is too often neglected by the majority of people.  Riding skill and knowledge will improve your cycling more than you think.  You can compensate for a lack of fitness with some good riding skill and experience.  We strive to share our knowledge with you so that can be a better, safer and more efficient rider.  This is usually done on a face to face basis.  Be it individually or in a group, but it is sadly almost impossible to do without personal contact.

With this in mind, we offer two kinds of coaching services. 

-          “Coaching Programs” focus on your strength and cardiovascular system and can be done via the internet.  You will get specific workouts to do that are tailored to you as an individual.  These workouts can be Heart Rate or Power Based depending on your own preference.

-          “On the road Sessions” focus more on your riding skills.  This may include group riding, positioning within a group or peloton, pedal stroke, cornering, descending techniques as well as actual training skills such as Strength Endurance workouts and intervals.  These are skills you should be able to take home and work on on your own or with friends whilst also incorporating them into your daily training and “Coaching Program”.

 Contact:

jetlagsports@neuf.fr

This article was written about how No Training Wheels LLC started in the Life section of Over the Mountain Journal (Birmingham, AL) just before fathers day 2008. 

Please email me if you have any questions.

Bike Coach……

hnix@notrainingwheels.net

Two-Wheel Success Creates Confident Kids

Cary Estes

Over The Mountain Journal Staff Writer

Tuesday June 10, 2008

Harvey Nix In raising his three children, Harvey Nix wanted to ensure that they would one day be able to stand on their own two feet. And one of the best steps in that direction, he discovered, was to make sure that they could stand on two wheels. Like a legion of fathers before him, Nix felt both a powerful bond and a twinge of separation when he taught his children how to ride a bicycle. The bond came with the generational passing of a skill that is a cherished part of many childhoods. The separation came from watching his children pedal away from him, enjoying true independence for the first time in their young lives. “Riding a bike is a rite of passage,” Nix says. “There are certain life events that change you. Learning to walk is one of those, but most of us don’t remember that. But we remember learning to ride a bike. There’s a feeling of independence. People look at you differently after that. “You want kids to have confidence in you as a parent that you’re able to communicate effectively with them to learn something that (creates) a pretty powerful internal feeling. Because when you see them ride, that is a huge freedom thing.” Nix recently decided to help other children and their parents experience the joy of learning how to ride a bike. He wrote a book titled “Learning to Ride with The Bits,” the bits being nicknames he gave his own children: Tyler, Kyle and Rachel. In the book they are referred to as Little Bit, Big Bit and Tiny Bit. The book was released in February 2007. Three months later, Nix began a side business teaching bike-riding classes with the help of his children—who now range in age from 14 to 11—and his wife, Becky. “I wanted to do something I could do with the family, a business that we could do together,” Nix says. “When we filed (for a business license), the kids were involved in that and understanding what it was. They were involved in the whole editing and processing of the book. They had input in advertising, they help with the classes. “So for me, this is a great enjoyment, to spend time with the family. They’re also learning some pretty valuable skills, so it’s another way for me to teach the kids to do things.” Nix, who lives in Birmingham, Alabama, became a bike-riding instructor by accident. The origins date to a moment 11 years ago when his son Tyler, who was 3 at the time, began playing with an old bicycle that did not have any pedals or training wheels on it. “He pushed it around the garage for three months and got to where he could balance really well,” Nix recalls. “I thought, ‘He’s ready to ride.’ When I put the pedals on, he rode it the very first time. “I told that story hundreds of times to friends and family over the years. About five years ago a friend said, ‘That’s such a great story. You should write a book.’ It seemed to be the right time to do it.” Traditionally, most children have ridden bikes equipped with training wheels before attempting to master the two-wheeled variety. Nix, however, says the key to bike riding is learning how to balance, which cannot be accomplished as long as the training wheels are providing extra support. That is why he named his company No Training Wheels LLC. “Most kids are physically able to ride at (age) 3,” Nix says. “The training wheels don’t teach you how to ride. The key is the balance. And if they can walk, then they can balance. It’s not as hard as we’d like to make it.” Nix’s class is divided into four one-hour weekly sessions, and Nix says by the end of the third session more than 95 percent of the children are riding with no difficulty. “I played football through college, and coaches have always been real important to me,” Nix says. “They play a really special part in development. It seems like there are skills that you learn that a good coach can communicate that make it that much better. It’s a life-long thing. “That’s what’s led into this, my innate desire and love to coach. But what I love more is fostering relationships between parents and their kids. If we can teach them how to ride and they feel comfortable that they learned that step, then hopefully they’ll carry that on to other things you can teach them, too.” For details, visit www.notrainingwheels.net. 

A recent note from a mother of a young man (7 year old) that was attending the “No Training Wheels^tm” bike class in Birmingham, Alabama. 

“Thanks for the classes so far.  Sam has really enjoyed them and thrives in your process.  If I had tried these things at home, it just wouldn’t work.  He’s excited to practice and coasted all over our neighborhood yesterday.”

“Thanks for your work.”

————–

Mary Ann

I appreciate the feedback from parents.  My desire is that parents and their children are able to strengthen their relationship through bike riding.  This Mom was able to participate with her child because he wanted to practice what he had learned prior to attending the next class.  He was riding by the 3^rd class and so excited.  Talking to Mom after the class “You provide and incredibly valuable service.  My son loved every minute of it and you got much more out of him than I could have.  We are going on a summer vacation for the next three week and I know Sam will be riding a lot.” 

Happy riding and enjoying the family time….

Bike Coach………

Well, this is my first real experience with blogging, so I hope you’ll all forgive me if I bore you to death. I just thought that this would be a good place for bored and not so bored mothers to share their stuff. I guess that would be anything from TV to Biking (not to mention sushi and men) so here goes!

• Musings and Travels
• Alive and Safe and maybe never going whitewater rafting again!
• My Next Vacation
• I can breathe in Yosemite