Re: cycling

  • Fenceline et al.; Nutrition.

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    Today was Fenceline to about halfway to Wright’s Hill, followed by the big bully: Car Parts, followed by Spuds (Upper Ikigai), then Ikigai, and finally Transient back up.

    Car Parts gives me the shits. It is only a grade 3 but it is tough. I do like it though. But yeah, I find it hard going. I definitely need to practice more.

    Fenceline was good training. It gets very steep in a few places and I involuntarily dismounted a few times to walk to where I could ride again. I can’t wait to get back to it.

    Ikigai felt GREAT. It flowed more for me than it has for ages, despite the corners I can’t do.

    As it turns out, I probably had a bung rear tyre which would have made things a little harder. The valve probably got bent when I tried to inflate the tyre near the top of Transient.

    The big change in riding this time was nutrition: I had a gel thing that appeared to completely give me more energy – especially on the way down where I needed it most.

    Great fun.

  • Xmas eve sleigh bells

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    Super ride up from the house to Spuds (aka Upper Ikigai), then Ikigai, then back up to to Ikigai again.

    It was knackering. I was so buggered before the second descent I stumbled off the bike at the Transient/Highbury Fling junction.

    Anyhoo, the second descent was awesome, and the ride up was a little smoother also.

    All the uphill corners are now sweet.

    The Spuds/Ikigai left handers are most definitely not sweet. I have SO much work to do over the summer to be able to successfully ride them.

  • Upper Ikigai

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    The rear brake pads were pretty close to shot so I did a quick change and general clean up while the rear wheel was off. I need to sort out the bottom bracket at some point.

    This week I commuted a couple of times and things were generally feeling better.

    I was a little apprehensive about hitting Ikigai on the Roscoe after the experience on the Pivot the previous weekend.

    It was the first time riding from the end of Highbury Fling up to top of upper Ikigai, and it was a tough one.

    The ride down was amazing, and fun, although my quads were burning for much of it. I had started at upper Ikigai which I’d never ridden before, and the geometry of the Roscoe felt unfamiliar after the Firebird. I remembered I needed to be further back and working harder than the previous weekend, and the first decent bump my tail was airborne. No harm done, but I was a little lucky.

    Ikigai has three tough right handers. I want to get good at them.

    The strange thing was the ride back up Transient was amazing – almost easy. I couldn’t understand why it felt so much easier than usual.

  • First grade four // Pivot demo day

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    Holy cow the Pivot Firebird is amazing. I rode it up Koru and for the first time attempted the shortcut (I will ride that next time without walking (but it is STEEP)). Then onto Snake Charmer: tough as it was either hot or you were riding into the wind – which was getting strong. While the ride up was tough, coming down was very rewarding.

    On the Pivot Peak Flow was a total joy. I had never imagined the benefits of rear suspension, and I imagine that on this bike they were massively enhanced. The ride down was not the usual bone shaking ordeal, it was mostly a joy. And for the first time riding it in months it felt relatively easy.

    Next onto Upper Starfish and my first grade four trail with Julian’s most excellent advice. It was scary of course, but easier than I imagined. I felt I could have ridden all of it with a bit more practice, but, I only came a cropper a couple of times and given my fitness and the time pressure to return the bike it was not too bad.

    SWIGG was lovely as always and riding fast.

    The bike was incredibly confidence inspiring, I did wonder how the Roscoe would feel on the next ride….

  • Lunchtime ride

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    Fun ride at lunch. My first downhill in close to four months was Ikigai, and despite my reservations I loved it, it is such a great track.

    Coming up was tough. Riding with someone who has not had a break was useful for me, but, damn I was slow.

    Tomorrow, Friday, is most definitely a rest day after four in a row.

  • Reunited with Clinical

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    1. I love Clinical so much it’s stupid.
    2. The big reverse S corner I was able to get around; so happy.
    3. I rode and stopped twice to catch my breathe.
    4. There is something magical about this trail, it was wonderful to be back on it.

  • Commuting again

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    So great to ride down the hill and then in the afternoon back up Aro Street to the Waimapihi.

    I managed every single corner on Transient without issue: I almost couldn’t believe it, especially given my historic hiccups with a couple of those corners in the past.

    It was a slow ride up and I was knackered, but great to be on bike once more.

  • First post-MCL ride

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    I rode up to the Highbury Fling from Brooklyn on the road. It was harder than I expected; I was close to throwing up once I hit the trail head.

    Other than that the ride was fun: I felt awkward but extremely grateful to be on the bike and feeling good.

  • Barking Emu is a tough guy

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    I finally got to ride Carparts extension and Barking Emu. It was a beautiful morning and pretty much perfect riding conditions, although a very challenging ride given how out of practice I am, having ridden only a few times in the last month.

    The climb is a little like Sally Alley/Upswing to Makara Peak, but not maintained to the same level. This made for a more challenging climb for sure, and I did have to walk in quite a few places. I also had quite a few dismounts, two of them notable: one off the side of the track which was pretty freaky; and the other I didn’t even consider at the time but which has left my knee in considerable discomfort since (edit: going on nine days now). Once we’re out of lockdown I may need to get it looked at.

    Compounding this I had forgotten my knee and shin pads. Big mistake, especially on a track I’ve never ridden before and one that I suspected would be challenging.

    It is a cool ride and I would like to ride it more frequently, although I need to work on my climbing fitness – I was increasingly making mistakes the further I rode due to fatigue. Once I am back in form I’d like to ride this all the way to Red Rocks.

    It also has piqued my interest in attempting to ride the Tip Track, although that is going to require a little more training.

  • Sore knees no more

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    The sore knee issue I was suffering from has almost completely ceased since I started stopping for a good set of stretches before hitting the tough stuff. Such an incredible relief, and I am so much more comfortable.