Topic Title

Well, the weather's been kind up until now, but...

...Metcheck is showing -1c (and "Feels like" -6c) for Saturday morning, along with brisk winds and even colder temperatures overnight. Having had one visit to A&E already this week (albeit as spectator) caution is uppermost in my mind. I'd suggest reviewing the situation on Friday and at the very least choosing the northern route which uses more main roads. There's a strong argument for avoiding training at temperatures below zero though - even if the roads aren't a sheet of ice. Watch this space.

...and a Friday update:-

Metcheck has crashed with the excitement of recent weather but the Met Office website reckons minus two overnight and creeping slowly up to 4c by Saturday lunchtime, but (hopefully) dry. I'll be there at 9:00 and aiming to do the northerly route at a very steady pace.

I intend to be there too.

Any recommendations for tyre pressure?

I usually go about 90 psi on days when it's a bit dodgy. It doesn't help if it's icy though!

Hope to be out. What's a little ice between friends

Well, it did feel slightly bonkers arriving in the square surrounded by layers of frost on sheets of ice, but since about a dozen other people showed up, there was clearly No Going Back. We stuck to main roads out of town and onwards to Walshford, and by the time we were stuck into the A168 the box on the bars was showing 3c, and will bright sunshine it was really rather nice. A brisk loop around Milby, Easingwold, Crayke and the northern leg of the flat ten circuit brought us back into York for a mishap-free fifty-nine-point-something miles (whereupon Toby had an argument with a car, but thankfully no harm done). Three hours at 19.5mph for the out-of-town bit, and power once again bang on 200W. Good stuff, ladies and gents. Get those fingers crossed for next week...

It was a good outing this morning, nice to see so many people out in such cold conditions. Not so sure about your description of this being an 'easy' ride though Phil, didn't feel that easy on the flat 10 behind Darren! On a positive note, I did get the feeling back in my toes by 2.30 See you next Sat for more of the same

I honestly don't know what the fuss over the weather is all about, I set off from Sherburn before 8am and apart from a few frozen puddles at the side of the road and a little frost it was fine...I've raced in worse. Good ride for me and another 5 hours to draw on next summer.

"Not so sure about your description of this being an 'easy' ride though Phil..."

Hmmm... ...don't think I ever used the word "easy" - although "steady" and "brisk" certainly featured. The group kept together - just - and when Darren decided to crank it up a little on the flat of the "ten" circuit, it was just a case of following wheels for those of us who didn't want to steam up our specs.

All of these rides have been significantly quicker than social ride pace - which they should be - but also steady on the hills. As Darren pointed out on the ride, it's a case of keeping effort, not speed, consistent.

As per previous posts, you can be doing shorter weekday sessions quite a bit harder than this level, while still focusing entirely on aerobic fitness. None of it's "easy" though...

Hi all
just missed you all on sat by 5 mins but set off after you seeing the wheel the wheel marks in the frost.I followed on towards Knaresbourgh and back to Bourghbridge and Aldwark then home so a 4 hour ride in the sun.Out this morning for a few hours in totally differant conditions never one or the other.still good to be out.cheers

Don't really know why my name's getting a mention. Looking at the last few training rides, which I wasn't on, the average speeds and Phil's watts were exactly the same. I'd say a group training ride at 19/20 mph is steady enough, and I'm sure those rides on a Wednesday with the VC crowd aren't any slower Nigel.

In the words of Oscar Wilde Darren, 'Any publicity is better than no publicity' so on that basis it's always good to get a mention!

It probably wasn't actually Oscar Wilde who said that but I doubt if anyone really cares!

Looking forward to more of the same (rides, not mentions) next weekend already

Had a good outing, again, nice and steady. One thing I either need to improve on or just wait for the warmth is trying to eat throughout, which is particularly difficult with thick gloves. I had left it too late, and when we hit the flat '10' I was feeling it in the legs without much reserves. I pulled through a couple of turns (with a little help) I then decided it would be better to eat then go another figuring I won't be going much longer if I didn't. I lost a bit of ground in the process and had to but in a bit of an effort to catch back up. Turns out a small cereal bar doesn't make a huge difference so I just stuck on the back till home. Which did lead to my downfall as a car mistimed an overtake and i hit the wheel in front..no harm done

Good training ride, it certainly lived up to it's name

Cheers

Tobz

I'm like you Toby- I need to eat something on the training rides as I can't manage the full distance just on drinks, even with my built-in reserves of body fat! I've found the gels are really good for this- even in winter gloves- I struggle to eat the bars if my breathing's up (which it normally is on these rides) but with the gels there's no problem and they give me the 'instant' kick up the backside I need, despite having the consistency of snot.

Just don't drop your bottle when you're washing one down, cos you'll never catch the bunch again

This week I was coming off a recovery week rather than a 'several turbo sessions' week and as a consequence - with fresh legs - found it somewhat easier than previous training ride outings. Still pretty brisk but not 'oh my god I'm about to blow up' hard.

What I'm trying to say is that we all have different lives and depending on work, chores, training etc, we can vary in how well we're going on any given week. Thus it is hard to be objective about a ride without a power meter.

Besides, Darren is a class act and tempo for him is at least threshold for me I'm sure. Riding with better riders and digging in can only be good for me - can't it?