Hop 'n' Hurl

Sunday was the Hop 'n' Hurl cyclocross race at Goldbar park. I was disappointed that the course on the technical guide was not the actual course as I enjoy the trail at the south end of the park. Instead, the course circled the lake and then headed to the north end of the park. The trip around the lake included a short section in sand which could be ridden if you stayed close to the lake where the sand was harder. There were two chicanes that offered some challenges. On one easy climb, the course had three very tight corners and, shortly after that, there was an off-camber chicane which had a high-speed approach. I tended to brake a little going into the last one because I thought my front tire might slip in the grass and send me sliding under the course markings.
The start offered few difficulties until a tight set of corners on the far side of the lake. The whole group was still fairly close together at this point so I almost had to stop while waiting for the bunch to feed through these corners. After that, I picked a few good spots to pick up a place or two but also gave up a few places as I settled into my race. I ended up riding alone and seeing very few people during my last three laps.
My lap times varied between 10:37 and 10:50. I completed all four laps for a total of 13.8 km and finished with a total time of 42:59. My average speed was 19.2 km/h with a maximum of 45.3 km/h. There was about 45 m of climbing on each lap. I didn't work as hard during this race compared to the previous day as I averaged only 162 bpm with a maximum of 178 bpm.
Recently, I've read about time trial pacing and not going out too hard. I followed this approach for my two cyclocross races this weekend and, while I've felt good throughout both races and finished with consistent lap times, it might be better to fight for position earlier in the lap. I'm not fighting for wins but I am losing quite a bit of time waiting for the pack to filter through some of the technical sections. Having someone to chase would also prevent me from falling asleep mid-race once I'm alone and have settled into my position.

School of Cross

Saturday was my first cyclocross race of the season. After some troubles with Bow Cycle while trying to buy a new back wheel and that causing me to miss my first four races, I got a wheel on loan until they find a wheel they can sell me. The course in Edmonton offered two contrasting elements; a mostly flat section in the playground with an overabundance of twists and turns and a short ravine section with a difficult downhill followed shortly by a difficult uphill and then some stairs. The playground contained the barriers, which someone said were much higher than UCI regulations allow, a trip through some deep sand and course markings which were difficult to see. I wasn't the only rider who took a wrong turn or two. Now, after that short list of negatives, it was actually a great race. Kyle was giving great commentary and updates so racers knew what was going on, there was lots of snacks from the Wild Earth Cafe and the playground was still accessible so Julie was content while I raced.
My race got off to an interesting start as a Hardcore rider missed clipping into his pedal and caused a small crash right off the start. It happened right in front of me but I just stopped and waited for the pack to get rolling again. No major technical sections kept the pack moving well until a good order was established. My first lap was my most eventful due to the crash, a small crash of my own just before the stairs and planting my bike in the deep sand instead of picking it up cleanly while I watched a rider in front of me try to carry some speed into the sand. I really enjoyed the hairy descent but never had any troubles with it. I have some mountain bike experience so I knew to use my top brakes and get my bum well behind my seat. In fact, I had my stomach on my seat while going down it. I was able to do the very short but difficult climb on my second and fourth laps. I'm not sure how many riders had to run up that one.
I ended up completing four laps as I was lapped by the top three riders late in my last lap. My lap times were consistant between 9:59 and 10:10. In total, I raced for 40:13 and covered 10.3 km for an average speed of 15.4 km/h and a top speed of 35.1 km/h. There was just over 30 m of climbing each lap. I averaged 173 bpm with a maximum of 186 bpm.

Water sports

I don't like water. It ruins all the sports I enjoy. Cycling and hiking in the rain isn't enjoyable. Baseball games get cancelled. Outdoor speed skating is finished when your rink looks more like a pool. On Friday, water wrecked a good round of golf for me. I'm well aware that water hazards are part of the game and I shouldn't complain if I'm not smart enough to stay away from them but my latest round of golf went from good to worse in a hurry when I stopped avoiding the water.
On the first hole on the Spring nine at Elbow Springs, I was the only one to avoid the water but a three-putt meant a double-bogey. A one-putt then saved a par and I got another par on the third hole. Pulling my drive left and being knocked down by a branch then putting my second shot into a fairway bunker meant another double-bogey. Four holes, four over par. That's a good round for me so far. Then, I started finding the water.
The fifth hole was a par three and I mis-hit a four iron and just barely missed clearing the water on the left. The penalty and second tee shot cost me two strokes. Next, I topped my second shot after a great drive and it rolled a short distance into some reeds just before the water hazard. That's an extra two stokes than if I hadn't topped my second shot. The seventh hole was the same as the fifth. If there's no water I can still chip on and get a bogey. The eighth hole was straight into the setting sun. I cheated by not penalizing myself for a lost ball because no one was able to see any of the drives due to the sun and I was the only one not to find my ball. I got a penalty anyway because I didn't see the water hazard beside the green due to a small hill and staring at the sun. I dropped beside the water and chipped on. The last hole had water on the left side and my drive rolled into it. I was able to bogey the hole even with the penalty.
If there was no water, or if I had just avoided it, I could have saved myself eight strokes. Instead of an average 53 over nine holes, I'd have shot a great 45; bogey golf. I've shot 100 a few times over a full 18 but never broken that so any nine holes under 50 is good on my card. Maybe I'll take a few lessons next year and finally break 100.

Ribbon Lakes Backpack

I was able to close out this summer in style! Peter, Rod and I were joined on the Labour Day long weekend by James and Simeon for a backpacking adventure. For probably the last time, the campsite decision was left mostly up to me and, with quite a bit of consultation with Peter, Ribbon Lakes was chosen as the destination.
We had decided to do something in either Banff National Park or Kananaskis. I consulted the lists of backcountry sites in Kananaskis again and checked the routes in. Tombstone, which three of us did three weeks prior, seemed to have been a good warm-up so I wanted to pick something a bit longer. Ribbon Lakes promised a few different options for getting in and out so I thought it would be great. We decided against going in and out over Buller Pass and only going out that way meant a long, long car shuttle. If you come in along Ribbon Creek, you have to tackle a rock face with the help of some chains. All descriptions said that way was tougher to come down and, since I thought a loop would be more exciting, we decided on a small car shuttle which allowed us to go in along Ribbon Creek and out along Galatea Creek. On the way out, we would have to cross Guinn's Pass.
Ribbon Creek turned out to be an easy walk in perfect weather. With James in the lead, we set a fast pace up to Ribbon Falls. We passed a few groups and encountered a park ranger, with whom we chatted at length. After the falls, the trail rapidly started to gain some altitude to the rock face. Our quick pace up the creek left us a little tired going up towards the chain section but we made it after some frequent rests. James and I charged ahead up the chains and were soon at the top. Peter, Rod and Simeon were a little slower up the last of the trail before the chains and had to wait a bit more as Rod experienced some cramps in his calves. The chain section wasn't as difficult as on-line guides had led me to believe but one section was probably a bit more difficult than anything I had scrambled before. It was definitely doable without the chains but they were helpful since I wasn't so nimble with a large pack on. I ended up going back down without my pack and lugging Rod's up as he suffered with his cramped legs; his gamer energy drink might have left him lacking some electrolytes. Peter and Simeon didn't mind lightening their packs at this point and sharing their water and snacks with Rod to help him out. Once at the top, it was again an easy walk to the lake and our campsite.
The next day was supposed to start out tough but would be downhill from the top of the pass. After a short walk through the trees, we took the turn up to Guinn's Pass and really started to go uphill in a hurry. The path was well-packed on the scree slope so walking wasn't difficult. Again, James set the pace and I stayed right on his heels. Rod was a ways back with Simeon and Peter a little further down the trail. It was a good grunt up Guinn's Pass but the view was definitely worth it. The other side proved to be another scree slope but not as well-packed so I was glad I was going down it. Again, James and I led the way with the others following at their leisure. After gathering together on the south side of the pass, we were off down Galatea Creek. James and I got into a nice rhythm and we flew down the path without any breaks. It was an overcast day and nice to put in a long, uninterrupted walk like that. The sun came out just before we hit the final parking lot and we had 40 minutes of lying in the warm sunshine before Rod appeared, followed quickly by Simeon and Peter.
After having the heaviest backpack during the Tombstone trip, I think I was the lightest on this one. I had pretty much the same equipment except James was carrying my tent poles and Rod's Grand Stew and I had forgot my camera. The stew would be even heavier this time since three of us would be sharing it. Peter weighed his pack once he had returned home and found he was carrying 16.6 kg, or nearly 30% of his body weight. My pack weighed 12.8 kg in the end or just 16% of my body weight. It's no wonder Peter struggled up the pass and I was on James' heels all day. As I took Rod's pack up the chains the first day, it felt like it was definitely a little heavier than mine.
We're all looking forward to more adventures like this next year and we hope a few more friends will join us.

Tombstone Backpacking

I got out for my first backpacking trip in a long time on 15 and 16 August. I went with Peter and Rod up to the Tombstone backcountry campground near Tombstone Lakes in Kananaskis. It was about ten years after Jesse, Rod and I got lost in David Thompson Country so it was about time to get back out. My little Edmonton gaming group is a good collection of outdoor adventurers but only three of us were able to find the time to go.

After a bit of debate, it was decided that we needed a fairly short, in and out, one-night trip that wasn't too far from Calgary. A little searching the web and talking with some of the hikers in my office led to picking Tombstone. It lies on the junction of the Little Elbow – Big Elbow loop and a trail in from Elbow Lake. The short route is to park on Hwy 40, just north of the summit of the Highwood Pass and hike the 6 km or so past Elbow Lake. We watched the weather all week as it was cloudy and rainy but the forecast for the weekend suggested some improvement.

Peter and Rod showed up at my house on Friday evening so we could make final arrangements and head out the next day. We expected a short hike so we didn't rush through waffles for breakfast and had our packs ready around 11:00. The initial part of the hike is quite steep as it climbs away from the highway. It was comfortable walking because the skies were mostly cloudy and the temperature was cool. We met a few groups coming down from the lake but the trail was almost all ours from the lake to the campground. The trail also descended slightly all the way from the lake to the campground. The scenery was excellent as we walked along the open trail through a gap in two mountain ranges. The peaks were white as the rain in Calgary had fallen as snow at the tops of the mountains.

We were set up in our campground in the late afternoon so we decided to walk up to Tombstone Lakes. We only visited the larger, lower lake. The wind was calm so the lake was perfectly flat with ripples occasionally made by fish coming to the surface to snatch bugs. Rod decided to keep his mountain bathing tradition alive so he stripped down behind some trees and jumped in.

Back at camp, Rod and I enjoyed "One Grand Stew" even though it had leaked a little in my pack. We eventually got a fire going despite the wet wood and were able to sit around it, enjoying 56 herbs of medicinal goodness, and chat while night came. We got a little rain through the night but Rod was comfy in his new bivy sack and Peter and I were dry in my tent. The slope of the ground and lack of friction between his mattress and sleeping bag meant Peter spent most of the night sliding to the foot of the tent.

We woke to more clouds and lots of mist in the valleys. Again, we were in no hurry so we ate breakfast and packed up at a relaxing pace. The weather was a little cooler and we got a few more drops of rain on the way out but it was a pleasant walk. This day we encountered a few more groups on the trail although they were just there for the day. I was a bit surprised because there was no real destination between Elbow Lake and the campground. We even encountered a group out on horses and I spotted a moose who quickly went crashing back into the trees because of the noise of the horses.

All in all, it was an easy, enjoyable hike and good to get back out with friends. We hadn't even got back to the car before plans for our second hike were being laid. The actual trip ended up to be 7.62 km each way and the one-way trip up to Tombstone Lake was 2.2 km. It took us 2.5 hours for each leg of the backpack though we were only in motion for 1:40 each time. The elevation gain was just under 400 m.

Highwood Pass

I finally did the Highwood Pass today. It's almost a must for any cyclist living close to it since it's the highest paved road in Canada, or so I'm told. It's where Lance Armstrong rides when he's in the area and it's been on my to do list for some time.

Crankmasters organized a group ride today to tackle the pass. About 30 riders started from the Ribbon Creek area near Kananaskis Village and would need to cover 45 km and climb 800 vertical metres to get to the pass. I started out with the lead group but as the road started to climb right away, I decided not to burn myself out and dropped back. Two riders came up behind me and I fell in with them. Brad (I think) did a great job of doing long pulls and I did quite a bit of work too but our third was just hanging in. A few more riders came up behind us and we also swept up a few who couldn't keep up with the front group. We stopped for a short rest at the gate which closes off the Highwood Pass. The road really starts to go up at this point so I was off the back of my group and spent my time to the top chasing Brad. It was a tough climb for me and the 7% grade for 2 km slowed me down to about 10 km/h. Just before we reached the top, all the riders in front of me started down.

Brad and I took a short rest at the parking lot and then started back down. Our speed definitely increased which is why I didn't see a small pothole and suffered a pinch-flat. Together, we were able to change my tire which was super-tough for me alone in the Spring. I think the tire might have stretched a tiny bit. I also got to try out my CO2 pump for the first time. I got a cool refresher in thermodynamics when the temperature of the canister dropped quickly as the pressure inside dropped. We found out later that three riders just ahead of where we changed my tire had a young, male grizzly bear run out just behind them. I'll have to keep this in mind as I plan to return close to the area next weekend for some backpacking. The rest of the ride back was fast but tough. My legs really were suffering as this was the longest ride I've done all year and had a ton of climbing.

According to my GPS, I covered 91.69 km in 3:17:07 (plus 23 minutes of resting and tire changing) for an average moving speed of 27.1 km/h and a maximum of 67.5 km/h. It was a social ride but with lots of climbing so I averaged 159 bpm with a maximum of 180 bpm. My GPS also totalled up 1100 m of climbing during the day.

C4 mini stage race

Way back on 29 July, my Wednesday night race series wrapped up with a little stage race. The prologue was a short time trial followed by a road race and then another, longer time trial.

For the prologue, I clocked 4:32 over the 2.68 km course for an average speed of 35.3 km/h and a maximum of 46.5 km/h. I averaged 159 bpm with a maximum of 174 bpm. That was good enough for seventh out of seven but I see that I was five seconds out of second.

For the road race, it was the usual story. I was splintered off the group during the climb and finished two and a half minutes behind the leader. I spent the last 15 km or so alone but had a group of three C racers just a few hundred metres behind me the whole way. I slowed a lot on the last little climb and one of them was able to sprint and just beat me at the line. I did the 29.2 km in 48:30 for an average speed of 36.2 km/h and a maximum speed of 63 km/h. I had an average heart rate of 158 bpm with a maximum of 176 bpm.

I was pretty tired for the final time trial and it was mostly climbing so I was only able to cover the 8.26 km in 15:30. That's an average of just 32 km/h with a maximum of 50 km/h. I averaged 162 bpm with a maximum of 174 bpm.

I really enjoyed the race series. The previous few years, I did the Midweek Mayhem criterium races. While the venue is close to my home, doing the exact same race each week is boring. I really liked alternating between time trials and road races and how the road races had different formats. I really need to improve my climbing because it's an obvious weakness for me. I ended up doing three laps of the Millarville loop during two races and was dropped from whichever group I was with at the exact same place each time. I really need to get my hip healthy so I can hit the weights more. I can also stand to lose 10 kg more while trying to increase my leg strength. More leg strength and less weight will also help boost my average speed on the flats.