East County Ride w/ Cyclo-Vets

Went out to Rancho San Diego this morning to ride with Cyclo-Vets. I've been in the mood to try something new lately and looking at different groups to see where I'm at fitness-wise. This ride was a little different than anything I've done on a bike. It was a structured workout day. Interval training mixed in with what Rob called the "Anarchy" portion of the ride towards the end. We've all read about interval training, and I must have 5 books that talk about it, but it's pretty hard to go out and practice what you read until you ride with a group that specifically does the workouts. This time of year the group was working on strenth training. While climbing, we were doing intervals that would keep us between 50 and 60 rpm, while keeping our heart-rate below 80% max (my max is 188 observed). Next section was one-leg climbs. I wasn't too sure if we were sticking to the 80% rule and rpm, I was having a challenge of a time riding with one foot clicked in, then switching to the other foot on a narrow road. Once to the top of the hill (approx 3k of climbing), we re-grouped and headed off for the "Anarchy" section. This was remniscent of the Ranchos ride last weekend. All out descent and sprints on the flats. It was a good workout and I felt comfortable with the riders that I was grouped with. I think they were all very competent. We took a break at Starbucks for about 30 mins and then out for a 18 mile loop (normal pace ride). Only a small group did this last 18 miles, as the orginal group seemed huge to me. Back up to the hills for a good climb, then a descent back down to the start/finish. I had plenty of energy and felt good all day. No bonking or legs hurting. I've been impressed with my fitness improvments for quite awhile now.

I can see where the structured ride will definitely make for improvement on the bike. I have been focusing on building miles for a long time now and I think the structured training will do me good. The only negative side of this ride was the location. Driving down to Rancho California every Sunday is quite a stretch. I think I can incorporate this training into my own rides with their group ride a couple times/month.

So, total mileage today was 60. Although I know that my Garmin is off when it comes to calories, it was at 3800 for the day. A good exertion day.