It is again time for the Rapha "Festive 500" challenge. Unlike the other Rapha challenges, which just entitle you to an "opportunity" to buy commemorative cycling gear, this one actually has a prize -- a small sew-on patch!
500 kms to ride from December 24 to December 31.
I am off to a good start, as today I rode to my office, then to Keio Shonan Fujisawa Campus to teach a class, then home from SFC -- 98 kms total. Tomorrow no riding plans, but I hope to get in another 100 kms or so on the 26th. And on the 28th I plan to ride out with Jerome as he heads for Nagoya ... I should be able to get in well over 100 kms before hopping a train home. So that would leave under 200 kms left over the 27th, and 29th, 30th, 31st.
I was on the Canyon Shark today with the Gokiso wine red hubs/wide carbon clinchers. So I set a bunch of "personal records" on the Fujisawa commute. The bike is fast, and the wheels are really fast, I think my fastest yet for this kind of rolling ride.
I was especially pleased with this one segment. Ranked 15 out of 369 riders over a 5.6 km TT, one second ahead of professional rider James Machin, aka "Far East".
Yes, I had a bit of tailwind on the trip home ... but that does not explain the other fast times on the way out of town with a bit of headwind!
UPDATE (Dec 31): With another 201 kms ridden on December 28 ... to Shizuoka over Atami Pass, the Festive 500 was within easy reach, except I caught a cold and was off the bike (except for errands) the next two days. On the morning of the 31st, I rolled up the Tamagawa to Hino-shi and back, with a few minor loops added in, to stretch my legs and clear 500 kms without, I hope, delaying my recovery from the cold.
Total riding for 2014 -- 13,941 kms. This is consistent with the past several years.
The basic 4 or 5 days per week bicycle commute of almost 24 kms round trip to Azabu has given me a base of 96-120 kms per week, which adds up over the full year. The year started slow, with my 2 early season brevets cancelled due to snow and its aftermath, and January through March each below 1000 kms. April and September were big months, over 1600kms/1000 miles each. April featured MOB's visit, the Fleche and Nishi Tokyo 300 Brevet. September featured the R-Tokyo Ise 1000 Brevet. But really each month from July to December I rode more than 1150 kms.
For 2015, I will get in plenty of mileage, so need to focus a bit more on actually training a bit for specific events. That said, my main goals are endurance focused: (1) PBP in August and (2) an SR600 in June. I would like to add something more speed focused -- if I can get set for Giro delle Dolomiti with MOB and friends, then I will add that at end of July. Otherwise, maybe some domestic Japanese races with JCRC ...
2 comments:
Congratulations, very impressive.
I managed to clock only 2,600km on my three bikes, but in addition around 1,000km with 85,000m of climbing on foot :) My only cycling ambition is to do little by little as not to stress my back. On foot though I want to conquer most of the remaining 40 Famous 100 peaks that I have not done yet.
UPDATE (Jan 2):
MOB clocked almost 660kms for the Festive 500. Impressive, and ranks him #727 out of over 48,000 participants.
Jerome completed his trip to Kobe on December 31. He RECORDED 496 kms for the Festive 500 period. He DID NOT RECORD ... but did ride, an additional 140+kms from Gora back to Tokyo via Ashigara/Yabitsu, and another 125+kms on December 31 after his Strava app was turned off somehow. So if he had just recorded his rides in the entirety, he could have registered at least 750kms! That would have put him in the Top 15 riders in Japan (out of almost 1500 participants), or the Top 350 globally.
Then again, if a tree falls in the forest, but no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?
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