Some interesting results from my second (and final) training ride before the big race.


Starting at the Little Scraggy Trailhead, this loop follows the CT down
to the Platte River, returns on pavement to Buffalo Creek, then climbs Sandy Wash and
Miller Gulch, descends Gashouse Gulch, then ends with a nasty climb up the fireroad back
to the trailhead.

Last week I did a 40 mile training ride in the blazing heat, and towards the end I could tell my legs were wanting to cramp up. I drank about 150oz of pure water, and supplemented it with some fruit, and a powerbar gel shot every so often. At the end of the ride I was all but exhausted. I went home and took a nap, and generally felt like crap all the next day.

So, I retooled, did some research and came up with plan B. I had some prior experience with Hammer Gel, and so decided to try out their "system" of hydration and proper long distance nutrition (they are also going to have Hammer products at each aid station at the race, so I thought it was a good idea to get some experience with them). I followed Hammer’s instructions as best I could. I completely skipped breakfast before my ride, I popped an endurolyte capsule every half hour, I took a shot of hammer gel every 45 minutes, and I drank contstantly from my camelback which had Perptuem mixed in. Here is the strange part… Much to my chagrin, the mixed water/Perpetuem was absolutely horrid tasting (reminded me of semi-warm soy milk) and because of this I drank about 1/3 as much fluid as I did last weekend (about 50oz for 40 miles!) – it was almost as hot as last weekend too. I simply could not get past the taste, and so I just didn’t drink. HOWEVER, when I finished my ride, I felt pretty good. No cramps whatsoever, I had plenty of energy to ride up some pretty major hills, and contrary to last week, I really felt like I could have pushed on rather than collapse at the car.

If that wasn’t enough, after a decent post-ride meal, I actually felt just about normal, like I didn’t waste myself on the ride. I went to bed that night at my normal time. When I woke up the next day, I felt outstanding, and in fact went out to do another shorter (12 mile) ride down at Deer Creek (fairly steep local ride). I felt like my muscles were just about normal, and I was showing no fatigue from the previous day. In contrast, last week I spent all of Sunday laying around and recovering from the same exact ride.

In short, this combination seems to really help for my personal endurance needs. I do have some concerns about the final tweaking of my routine, since you are not supposed to mix these products with "simple sugars" – which is going to be tempting because Perpetuem just tastes so blasted bad. I might have to make a paste and choke it down rather than taint my water with it LOL.

I was pretty beat down after my first training ride, and was beginning to wonder if I’d bitten off more than I could chew.  However, this second ride restored my faith in myself, and I think I should be able to complete this beast.  The weather forecast is showing a high of around 80 for the race, which is about 15-20 degrees cooler than my training rides!  That should help a LOT.