Wednesday Night Race
 

Last night was the first time in 3 years that I have made it out of our local Wednesday night race. Temperature at the start was 94 degrees, approximately 14 degrees hotter than I have ridden in all year.

There were 2 local racing clubs there, along with about 7 or 8 unattached hacks like myself. 20 riders total.

Only knowing half of the guys there, I got stuck behind the wrong crowd a couple of times and was gapped at two inopportune times, having to dig like a dog to make my way back to the lead pack. I made it the first 20 miles (averaging over 25 mph) to the base of the first major climb with the lead group and feeling fair. Dropped like a rock as soon as the roads turned upward.

I actually felt pretty well for most of the 37 mile ride, although my HR was sky high, typically 173-177 for most the climbs and fast rollers. I peaked out at 183 while I was trying to close a gap at one point. I really didn't feel like my effort was that high, so I attribute it partially to not riding in the hot weather yet this year.

I really enjoyed the ride. I'm not sure how much fun it will be in a month when the temps are 105, but hopefully I can sneak out again sometime soon.

What would be a good HR for climbing? I noticed that when climbing I get into the high 160's low 170's. Which isl like 90%-95% of maximum. In other words what percent of max should I be spending my time in.

on a sidenote, I have noticed that when I am getting dehydrated that my HR tend to be higher.

Its hard to say for sure what the best HR for any person would be. A lot of it depends on their age, fitness level, and goals. If you are doing climbing intervals, then the goal would be to elevate HR above your lactate threshold. If you want to build climbing endurance, you should keep your HR is bit lower, likely 5-10 bpm below LT.

Last night, it was a relatively short ride with a couple of recovery days to follow, so I was able to crank up the intensity a bit. On Saturday, I am doing a climbing endurance day, so my plan is keep my HR down to 162-167 for at least 2 of the passes that i'll be doing, and possibly go past LT for the third.

On the dehydration issue, I think you are right. I couldn't get enough water in me all evening, so I'm sure I was a few quarts low, making my heart race like a jackrabbit.

Thanks bluegoose. One more question, how does one figure their lactate threshold?

It involves an hour of intense suffering.

Basically its the maximum intensity level that you can sustain for a long time, up to an hour. To accurately figure it out, an exercise physiologist would put you a stationary bike and have you ride til you puke, doing blood sticks every few minutes to check lactate levels.

More practically, find a long steady hill. Go up at a steadily increasing pace. The HR where you can no longer carry on a light conversation or complete a full sentence without needing to take breathe is pretty darn close to your LT.

LT is usually somewhere between 80-95% of your max HR. Its also variable, depending on your fitness level. My max HR is somewhere around 187. My LT hovers between 168-171, about 90-92% of HR Max.

Thanks for the info. I will give it a go and see.

I've never personally paid much attention to the talking test for determining LT. I personally just find a good long hill and find the HR that I can sustain for more than 20-30 minutes without cracking.

3 years ago at the death ride, I chose 168 as my ceiling HR for the ride. I rode probably 95% of the hills right at 168, +/- 2 beats. I may have hit 170 a couple of times, but only for a few seconds before I realized what I was doing. Overall, I think I did fine for the day. Last year I wasn't in as good of shape, so I had to drop it down to 165ish and I still was okay.

I wait until my legs load up and I slow down. Is that good enough?

My heartrate is all over the place, but according to creekster there's no way any of us except Viking can climb with the goose.

When the road goes up I fall back. If I was a pro I would have loaded up on the spring classics and stayed away from the grand tours. Maybe because I'm an old fart but I try to keep my HR in the 150's on the flats, push it into the 160's when climbing, once in a great while bump it into the 170's and if I ever hit 180 you better call an ambulance.