Alpe du Zwift and Winter Training

When my son graduated from high school in 2019, I suddenly had a lot more time on my hands. His sporting events were over. I no longer had to drive him around to school and practice and other events because he finally got his driver’s license. What to do with the extra time? I bought a new bike.

I’m now in my third winter since getting that bike. I’m in my Winter training time. But let me digress…

I’ve had several phases in life during which I would get excited about bike riding, then ride all Summer, building fitness, only to stop for the Winter because it was just too cold to ride outside. I tried stationary trainers but just didn’t stay with the routine. Then Spring would arrive, and my first few rides outside were cold and I was in awful shape so I was always sore at the beginning of the outdoor riding season. After years of this cycle, I would get busy with other things and stop riding altogether. This “ride for a few years then quit” cycle happened a few times.

Now I’m back on the bike, and had the same problem: I need a way to stay fit over the Winter. This time I have some advantages: technology has improved and I have a bigger budget.

I bought a turbo trainer and, for the first Winter, I used Rouvy. It was OK, and I definitely improved my fitness over the Winter, but I decided to try Zwift during my second Winter training cycle.

After a few months of regular Zwift use, I decided to do the Alpe du Zwift climb. I had ridden (virtually) every day for a few weeks before that and I was pushing myself a lot, knowing that I was about to leave on vacation and have a break from training. I finished that climb absolutely exhausted and my first few days of vacation were a new experience in soreness. But, I did it.

Upon my return from vacation, I spent a lot of time on the trainer, climbed Alpe du Zwift a few more times, and entered the outdoor riding season in the best shape in 20+ years. I trained indoors to build power. Once I got outside, I started training for distance to be ready for RAGBRAI.

OK, nice review of history, but what’s the point?

I’m taking a moment to reflect upon my fitness improvement progress:

• In 2019, when I first got my new bike, I was tired after only eight miles. I was getting passed by other bikers all the time. My average ride speed was awful.
• In 2020, my stamina was better, my speed was better, and I was still awfully slow. I had a lot of time off from work because of the COVID-19 pandemic and I rode a lot.
• In 2021, my fitness continued to improve, my average ride speed finally topped 16mph (in hills), and it’s no big deal for me to ride 50+ miles at any time.
• In early 2022, just yesterday, I climbed Alpe du Zwift for the 9th time (finally got the wheels), and I feel good enough to climb it again today.

After nearly three years of riding, I’m in good shape, I feel great, I’ve lost weight, and my resting heart rate is in the high 40s. And most importantly, I still enjoy cycling.

RAGBRAI Preparation #1

Two years ago my son went to college and suddenly I had a lot of time on my hands. I started cycling again. That was 2019. I quickly found out that I was in awful shape.

I got serious by riding a lot. My stamina improved. My speed (gradually) improved. A lot has changed since I last rode: there's a lot of training info on the web and services like Strava and Zwift make it easy to track activity and train effectively. Well, it doesn't make training easy but it does make it easier to know what to do. I embraced the training. I embraced the technology. I got a heart rate monitor, cadence sensor, power meter, and turbo trainer. No more excuses that it's too cold: that's what the turbo trainer is for. I rode (outside) more than 1,000 miles in 2019.

In the Fall of 2019 I stumbled upon a reference to RAGBRAI. I started reading about it. I watched YouTube videos. I decided to go. I subscribed to Rouvy and started training. A lot. I didn't know I could sweat that much. I got a Lasko fan that's designed to dry a flooded room's walls. I have it blasting air on me when I train. I (virtually) rode all Winter. As soon as RAGBRAI registration opened, I registered for the lottery. I booked a charter company for the ride from the end town to the start town.

Then I heard about COVID-19 in early 2020. I kept training, hoping there would be a quick shutdown of the disease. But no, it got worse. RAGBRAI was cancelled.

I kept riding indoors when it was cold, outdoors when it was warm. I kept training. I was enjoying it. I set personal records for distance. I rode 2,000 miles in 2020. 

Finally, it's 2021. I got my COVID-19 vaccinations. The rates of new infections are dropping fast. RAGBRAI is on. My RAGBRAI registration rolled to this year with no lottery for me. My charter company did the same.

So now it's the home stretch of training. I have about 6 weeks left. And it's HOT now. I've switched from 20-30 mile rides to longer ones. My plan is to ride 60 miles on the W&OD trail every day that I have off from work. That should get me ready for the heat, distance, and hours in the saddle on successive days. Others who have ridden RAGBRAI in the past have said that day #2 is the hardest because it's the first day that you start with a sore ass. It seems to me that RAGBRAI prep is more about training my ass for hours in the saddle than it is about speed or stamina. The route passes through several towns each day. It's really like several 10-15 mile rides in one day. It's not 40-80 miles nonstop.

And finally I need to make sure my bike is in good working order. When I went out on my first long ride in a few months, I started with a quiet bike and ended with creaking and groaning and a rattling stem. I went through a thorough round of greasing parts and found that one of the bearings in my stem was broken. So I ordered a new one and installed it. Next up: replace the chain and then I'll reindex the derailleurs. And I'll make sure to test ride before I leave for Iowa. My rear tire is looking a little worn too. I just ordered two new tires today.

For now, it's train, train, train, sweat, sweat, sweat.