"On The Passage"

Tar Heel 200 Permanent: Dueling the Heat, 7/24/10

You’ve heard the old adage about people who don’t have enough sense to come in out of the rain? Indeed, we learned just last week that some of them are called “randonneurs.” Well, what about people who ride a hundred miles in the heat, on a day when even dogs have the good sense to cool it? Like this one . . .

It was so hot on Saturday’s ride we got a vacation from the dogs on vacation. Sure, there were a couple of “friendlies” like this one that came out to greet us. But due to the hot-weather exercise ban, it didn’t cross the line.

I was surprised that things heated up so quickly. At the first control, I heard somebody shout, “It’s my quarter; I found it first!”

But under the circumstances, the three of us who ventured out Saturday did a remarkable job of keeping our cool. Gary and Al were well prepared. In addition to light-colored jerseys, note Gary’s haircut and Al’s sleeveless jersey providing additional surface area for evaporative cooling.

Then there’s acclimatization. All three of us had logged significant hot-weather riding miles of late, including some long rides. Gary is back from a week-long bike tour of parts of Wyoming and Utah. It was obvious when he showed up with his fixed-gear that he was still loaded for bear.

Soon after leaving the Erwin control, we were elated to learn that the rumors we’d been hearing about the paving of NC 82—the battlefield road—all the way from Erwin to the Cumberland County line were true.

Gary’s response as we turn onto Iris Bryant Road is captured by his body language.

Some sections of NC 82 have not yet been paved. But based on the number of orange markers dotting the roadside, something major is about to happen. I don’t think the DOT plans to put out tomato plants.

The closer we got to the Averasboro Battlefield Museum, the more serious things became. The pavement at the museum is completely gone, a fact indicated by a detour sign:
It’s fitting that Gary is pictured here, since it was he who penned the phrase, “authentic Civil War era pavement,” pavement that will soon be history. More and more of the Tar Heel 200 “speed sucking pavement” as it is referred to by NC randonneurs Cole and Isaac is itself being sucked up.

The detour sign should have been poking in our collective craws rather than in Gary’s ear, since it added six miles to our ride on such a “lovely” sightseeing day, that is, with the exception of Al, who ignored the detour on the return and consequently beat both Gary and me back to Erwin.

With all this progress of late, the Tar Heel 200 may eventually become nothing more than a time trial course. There may be a message awaiting me on my voicemail from Le Tour folks upon my return.

Here is some Americana nostalgia just south of the town of Godwin, NC, on our detour . . .

What worked keeping our cool? We all showed up with Camelbaks (i.e., fluid reservoirs). We stopped periodically to top off drink bottles and fill our fluid reservoirs with ice. I’ve learned that ice lasts much longer in my fluid reservoir than in insulated drink bottles. Moreover, the ice in my fluid reservoir provides an additional benefit, cooling a good portion of my back. Borrowing a trick from our bulldog on ice above, Gary and I both prepared ice socks, which we wore around our necks. In extreme heat, I wear neither gloves nor skullcap, which allows air flow over these crucial heat-dissipating body parts. Those who wear cycling sandals in the heat would have an additional leg up.

My ride plan included monitoring my heart rate during the heat of the day and to adjust my speed accordingly. A spike in heart rate may indicate overheating, dehydration, or a combination of the two factors. Anyone who rides in extremely hot weather should be aware of the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. I was pleased that my pulse after the Tar Heel turn-around control, while cruising River Road at 16-17.5 mph with an ice sock around my neck, was about the same as when I push a mower on a warm day.

I knew how crucial it was to stay hydrated and that to effectively accomplish this I needed to regularly consume carbohydrates in addition to water and electrolytes. The constant sipping of ice water helped cool my core. I’ve learned that keeping the “food” I carry in drink bottles iced makes it more palatable. I also drank cold tomato juice at each opportunity. If one is looking for a quick-fix hydrator, tomato juice is a near-perfect choice.

Now a little bit about how the body stays cool in extreme heat. Tell me you didn’t see it coming! While the body has a mechanism for generating heat (i.e., muscles), it does not have a built-in air-conditioning system. Moreover, our muscles generate a lot of heat when we ride on hot days.

Sure, the body diverts blood from the core to the skin in order to dissipate heat. And, yes, the body produces sweat, which can be an effective cooling agent. But there is a price to pay for these services, which ultimately guarantee neither performance nor cooling in some cases.

Blood diverted to the skin is not available to exercising muscles, slowing cyclists in the heat.

While sweat can be an effective cooling agent, it does not cool the body by itself, since perspiration is body temperature. Moreover, there is an energy cost in producing sweat.

Our physiological adaptations to heat are dependent upon purely physical cooling mechanisms which may or may not be working in our favor at the time they are needed most. It may be too hot and humid, for example, for evaporative cooling and sweat to act as an effective cooling agent. There is no convective cooling, for example, when a cyclist is standing on hundred-degree asphalt if the wind is not blowing. Nor is there convective cooling without a head wind even if a cyclist is traveling at 15 mph.

I entertained the thought while riding that knowing something about the physics and physiology of thermal regulation was a bit academic, superfluous. I recall thinking that perhaps I was being way too cautious in planning and executing my plan while riding in the heat. That could very well be. Maybe one has the luxury of entertaining such thoughts when things are going well. But what if my body had not been responding as well as it was? Indeed, there is something to the conventional wisdom based on the collective experience of untold numbers of people which warns against overexertion on hot, humid days. The question is where one’s own tipping point lies. When things begin going badly, they can unravel in a hurry.

The previous thoughts seemed less academic, when I found myself dawdling a little more than usual at the Stedman control. My deliberateness in the air-conditioned confine allowed my pulse to return to near-resting level. Now, with a fresh “ice sock” around my neck, my subsequent pace was good considering the heat.

Just after the battlefield detour, I noticed my riding speed had dropped a bit and that my pulse was beginning to climb. Even when I slackened the pace, my pulse did not follow suit. I slowed some more. No reduction in pulse. That got my attention. I did not want to cross over the line into heat exhaustion. A short time later, I began to feel a little woozy. This really got my attention. Just ask our favorite bulldog on ice above about the signs of heat exhaustion and he will unhesitatingly yelp, “Barf, barf!”

Cramps may be another sign of impending heat exhaustion in some people. Although I was a bit edgy, my stomach had not revolted, nor was I cramping. The Erwin control came none too soon. I knew that my faculties were intact upon noticing a newly created, paved, marked turn lane leading directly into the control that hadn’t existed on earlier rides. I thought to myself, “Wow, this is nice!” On the other hand, maybe I was hallucinating. I’ll check next time to see if the newly created special turn lane is still there.

The sign on the convenience store control entrance read “No Loitering.” I thought to myself, “This is great; I can hang out, cool off, and have the run of the place without being bothered by loiterers.” I kicked off my shoes and stood on the cold floor in my stocking feet in the walk-in beer cooler with the frigid air blowing directly on me. I used the opportunity to eat and hydrate.

I saw Gary utilize another trick to cool off: pour cold water over his head and body. In due time, we were revived. We set out on the last leg of the journey: Gary first, then Al, then me.

While I coasted to Dunn, I sensed warm beads of perspiration forming on my face. A good sign!

So that my ride experience would be complete, I flatted my rear tire just after turning onto Old Fairground Road north of Dunn. I laughed out loud, thinking to myself, “This is great, I can find some shade and take another break and fix this thing.” I was pleased to learn that I did not have to wrestle the tire onto the rim of my newly acquired hand-built wheels. Now with some luck and no major mechanicals, I should be back in Benson soon.

I never really beat my worthy opponent the heat. I just sort of fended it off for a good portion of the day. Things could have been worse. But for today, I was successful. Congratulations to both my riding companions for successfully completing their rides, especially to Al who, with this ride, keeps his R-12 aspiration alive.

This ride is dedicated to Gary pictured here:

Best wishes to you and Sara.

Let’s ride!

Adorable Wet Critters Populaire, 7/17/10

Judging by the lawns and flower gardens in our neighborhood just south of the capital city, it’s rather obvious that we’ve missed most of the afternoon pop-up thunderstorms the past couple of weeks enjoyed by others. But what’s that got to do with yesterday’s Get ‘er Dunn Permanent Populaire?

Well, I should have thought of it sooner. Someone needed to invite “Fearless Leader,” aka “Rainman” Alan, to this side of town for a ride! No kidding, before yesterday, I’d ridden the route thirteen times. And the only time it had rained on me was the one and only other time that Alan rode with me. The two of us got caught that day in a nice refreshing downpour. Today was no different, just the intensity and duration of the torrent. Alan got ‘er Dunn again.

But I’m getting ahead of myself as the day started dry but overcast. We assembled for the group picture:

We stuck together until the Johnston County hills began sorting us out. Here we are getting ready to climb out of the first of several creek beds.

JayJay is climbing in good form.

So is "Fearless Leader" Alan fresh from Bike Virginia donned in his sharp commerative jersey.

JayJay is inspecting this year's cotton crop just south of Coats, NC.

At the turn-around control, the team plays mind-agility games in the conference room of our local Dunn randonneuring office. Mike asks engrossed contestants random questions in a game of cue-sheet trivia. Either that or state capitals. I can't remember.

Meeting over. On the road again.

A little while later as I talk to Mike, I'm still wracking my brain, trying to remember . . . what is the state capital of North Carolina?

But he won't even give me a hint.

We split up after the next control in Erwin. Janis heads out first followed shortly by Mike and Alan, while I wait to ride with Sridhar.

After having referred to my riding buddies as "adorable two-legged critters" in the ride announcement I happened to post on the NC Randon listserv, it was now payback time. Here I am caught in what was supposed to be a group picture in Coats, NC.

Much of the route is farm land. On our return as we cross from Harnett into Johnston County, we are greeted by some adorable critters of the four-legged variety.

A little closer to home, we catch a tractor on Stancil Road. Daddy is getting a helping hand from junior today. Wave!

The dark clouds ahead are clearly visible now as Sridhar and I trace along the top of a ridgeline. We hear the thunder which is almost constant and see what must surely be rain ahead. The only question is whether it is going to beat us to our desination.

With about ten miles to go, I ride ahead of Sridhar, in an attempt to outrace the storm.

About six miles from the end of Sridhar's ride, storm clouds gather. The sky darkens and the sound of thunder is more urgent. Sridhar has more immediate concerns as he senses an impending leg cramp. He gets off his bike, which he leans on a nearby mailbox. He walks around in hopes of placating his legs. Well, the son of the owner of the neaby house spots poor Sridhar and takes pity on him. He asks Sridhar if he's okay, invites him in the house, and offers him shelter from the looming storm.

The young man introduces Sridhar to his family and offers Sridhar a beer, which Sridhar forlornly declines we are told. The hosts take great care of our hero, who sits in their garage protected from the elements. An industrial fan blows on Sridhar, who reclines in a love seat where he manages a short nap. At last, there is a lull in the rain. With the clock still ticking, Sridhar bids his hosts adieu and ventures out under unsure skies. The downpour begins again in earnest and our randonneur is caught out in it.

Alan and Mike, who are at the front leading the charge home, get caught in a deluge just 20 minutes out. They decide to push on to the finish as wet as wet can be.

JayJay is not far behind. She, too, gets dumped on as she forged ahead, splashing in the puddles along Rock Service Station Road, finishing her ride in fine style.

Me? I'm caught somewhere between JayJay and Sridhar just under four miles from the finish. I'm dry at this point, still entertaining the false notion that I can remain dry to the end. Little did I know that there was an active line of cell formation that would continue for the next several hours. But who's complaining? We needed the rain. Besides, doesn't randonneuring = rain?

I pulled over under a car-port roof of a local nursing home. From my perch, I watched the sky darken across the road beyond the produce stand.

I called home and my suppositions were confirmed. I needed to stay put for the time being. I'm informed that not only is it raining hard there but lightening is dancing all around. Assuming that Alan, Mike, and JayJay are already there at the finish, I inquired as to how they were doing. I am informed that they have not yet arrived. This could only mean that they were still out in the rain or holed up somewhere like me.

Still no sign of Sridhar approaching from behind. Then the rain came.

And it came.

As soon as there was a lull, I headed out only to be caught in a real downpour. I cruised the length of Rock Service Station Road with both taillights flashing. The heavy rain was warm and invigorating. With my system awash in adrenaline, I pushed in a taller gear than usual those last few miles. Who besides randonneurs know how to have as much fun, excitement?

I'm happy to report that all the "adorable two-legged critters" on bikes yesterday made it back safely, successfully completing the ride within the allotted time, and with stories to tell.

The only question remaining is whether reclining on a love seat sofa, taking a nap, while being cooled by an industrial fan as you wait out a storm is allowed outside of a control. It's a good thing that our hero respectfully declined the beer. That would have been too much.

So how wet were we? So wet we had to take showers just to dry off.

Let's ride!

My Kinda Town...

Thanks to Raleigh City Council for passing this, and to Bike / Ped Commission Chair Steve Waters for the scan.

'You Wrecked My Car....'

From today's N&O. Really? $2,000 bail for assault with a deadly weapon?

A Raleigh man was arrested Sunday after police said he hit a bicyclist with his car, yelled at the cyclist for wrecking his car, then drove off.

Lesley Covington, 35, of 852 Athens Drive, is facing one count of assault with a deadly weapon and one count of felony hit and run causing serious injury, according to an arrest warrant filed in the Wake County Magistrate's Office.

Raleigh police said in the warrant that Covington struck Pedro Lopez-Espinoza Sunday while Lopez-Espinoza was riding his bike.

Covington then exited his vehicle, police said, told the cyclist, "You wrecked my car." then drove away.

Covington was released from the Wake County jail this morning after posting $2,000 bail.

Read more.

Phun Physiology: Use It or Lose It?

Diagram from Ron's blog

This is dedicated to all my cycling buddies who have noticed that if we are away from the bike for a couple of weeks that our endurance begins to suffer. What’s going on here? Is it anything serious? Is there some point at which all of our previous conditioning goes for naught?

I’m referring here to the effects of complete inactivity on endurance, when a once well-conditioned athlete goes “cold turkey” and does not engage in any type of physical training for a particular time period, regardless of the reason.

Physiologists have studied the effects of training cessation on well-conditioned endurance athletes. The term they’ve coined for this type of inactivity is “detraining.” Detraining is different from either tapering or maintenance, both of which involve purposeful physical activity which guards against performance decline when athletes are not engaged in their normal training routines. Detraining is also different from the type of recovery in which a cyclist may be inactive for a few days following a long, multi-day ride, for example.

Detraining can result in the loss of physiological gains that have accrued in some cases from years of endurance training. Some of the declines begin to occur in as little as two weeks of inactivity. In one particular study that I use as a reference and whose results I report here, most declines begin to plateau at about 56 days of detraining. However, even the fully detrained athlete has greater endurance than a sedentary control who never trained.

What follows is a brief summary of some of the physiological declines affecting performance in endurance athletes and their timeline. Caution should be exercised in generalizing these findings to individual circumstances. As our riding buddy, Lin, so aptly puts it, “Your mileage may vary.”

12 Days of Detraining
In as little as 12 days of detraining, there are perceptible physiological changes affecting performance.

Most notable to athletes themselves is an increase in perceived exertion during sub-maximal exercise accompanied by an increased heart rate.

What’s happening? At the cellular level, there is a decline in the activity of muscle mitochondrial enzymes. These enzymes convert fuel in the presence of oxygen to the high-energy molecule—ATP—which powers muscles. With a decrease in enzyme activity, muscles cannot work as hard, since there is less ATP. The mitochondrial enzymes rather than oxygen have become the limiting factor. It is easy to understand why VO2 max, which is a measure of the peak volume of oxygen the body consumes during a given time period for a given body weight, declines. VO2max is sometimes taken as an indicator of endurance potential.

During this same time period, there are metabolic changes. Muscles begin to shift away from using fat to using carbohydrate for energy. Ironically, however, a muscle’s ability to store carbohydrate—in the form of glycogen—begins to decline with detraining and, unfortunately, returns to baseline levels within just a few weeks of detraining. Moreover, because carbohydrates provide less energy than fats, the athlete who is detraining pays double. One particular study notes the abrupt onset of these latter changes with detraining:

These metabolic changes may take place within 10 d[ays] of training cessation.

21 Days of Detraining
At 21 days of detraining, the aforementioned declines continue, while others become noticeable.

The reduction in fat metabolism has decreased now from 24% of energy utilization to 7%.

The rate of decline in muscle mitochondrial enzyme activity, which was first noticeable after just 10-12 days of detraining, has accelerated.

Ventilation (breathing) has increased significantly from day 12 of detraining.

Other noticeable changes at this time include declines in blood volume (mostly plasma); stroke volume; and VO2max. Meanwhile, peripheral resistance in blood vessels has increased.

What does all this mean? An increase in peripheral resistance means that the heart must pump harder to get blood to the tissues. Because stroke volume (the amount of blood the heart pumps with each contraction) has decreased, heart rate must increase to compensate.

In contrast, well-conditioned athletes possess the opposite cardiovasculature: low peripheral resistance, low pulse, and high stroke volume. Moreover, conditioned athletes store more glycogen (while burning it more efficiently) and metabolize fat better than detrained athletes.

56 Days of Detraining
At 56 days of detraining, many of the aforementioned declines begin to plateau.

VO2max appears to stabilize as does the activity of mitochondrial enzymes, with values still 50% above those of sedentary controls.

Moreover, there is no reduction in muscle capillarization, the amount of small blood vessels serving the muscles. However, stroke volume and mitochondrial enzyme activity have declined to control, or baseline, levels.

By this time, there is a noticeable change in the type of skeletal muscle fibers (cells) brought about by inactivity. Broadly speaking, skeletal muscles are made up of type I and type II fibers, type I being preferred by endurance athletes due to their resistance to fatigue during aerobic exercise. There are also two types of type II muscle fibers—type IIa and type IIb. Type IIa is preferred over type IIb for the same reason that type I is preferred over type II. While there is no loss of type I muscle fibers, detraining results in the conversion of a percentage of type IIa fibers to the less-preferred type IIb fibers. In fact there was an increase in type IIb fibers from 5% to 19% as a result of detraining

60 Days of Detraining
At 60 days of detraining, there is measurable atrophy (decrease in thickness) of the heart’s muscle wall and, consequently, its ability to pump. This corresponds to the decrease in stroke volume noted earlier, necessitating a faster pulse.

84 Days of Detraining
At 84 days of detraining, the once highly conditioned endurance athlete still has 50% more mitochondrial enzyme activity than the sedentary individual who has never trained.

Additionally, the former still enjoys 22% better lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) enzyme activity over controls.

The more LDH activity an individual has the greater is his or her lactate threshold. An athlete with a high lactate threshold is able to exercise at a higher level aerobically than an athlete with a lower lactate threshold. The lactate threshold is the point at which an athlete begins metabolizing anaerobically. (Anaerobic respiration is incompatible with endurance cycling.) This occurs because lactate, which is a by-product of anaerobic respiration, interferes with other metabolic pathways. LDH removes lactate (or what some refer to as lactic acid). It follows from this that an athlete’s LDH enzyme activity is a good indicator of aerobic or endurance conditioning (capacity).

Summary
It is true that an endurance athlete’s performance begins to suffer as a direct result of inactivity even in the space of ten days. The good news is that performance decline is not progressively linear as a function of time of inactivity. While we may lose our competitive edge quickly, the physiological declines of inactivity begin to plateau at about 56 days with the exceptions of stroke volume and glycogen storage capacity both of which continue to decline to baseline, or control, levels. Consequently, the detrained athlete will still be able to outperform the sedentary individual who has never trained. Even the pumping action of the heart of a fully detrained fifty-year-old male is as strong as that of a much younger male who has never trained.

There are ways that endurance athletes with limited time to condition can stave off the adverse effects of detraining, that is, if they can manage short, intense workouts known as interval training. One possibility for cyclists who wish to maintain their present conditioning level is speed training. According to some:

[S]peed endurance training can maintain muscle oxidative capacity, capillarization, and endurance performance in already trained individuals despite reduction in the amount of training.

Another group maintains that athletes who are able to train as little as once per week at 70% VO2 max are still able to maintain their aerobic conditioning level.

Summary of Physiological Effects of Detraining
Heart rate increases as well as total peripheral resistance
Blood volume decreases (mostly the plasma portion)
Stroke volume decreases to baseline levels
Cardiac output decreases
VO2max decreases
Conversion of some type IIa skeletal muscle fibers to type IIb muscle fibers
Lactate threshold decreases
Ventilatory efficiency decreases while rate increases
Fat metabolism decreases while carbohydrate metabolism increases
Resting muscle glycogen levels decrease
Mitochondrial enzyme activity decreases


Let’s ride!

Tobacco's Bloom

Flowers on a tobacco plant, taken on yesterday's Tar Heel 200K, a ride which cuts through the heart of North Carolina tobacco country.

Sunday Sermon

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

July 3-4 400 km Brevet

Well, after having slept most of the day away on Sunday and a good portion of Monday too, I am finally recovered enough to offer my thanks to Tony and the volunteers, Mary, Maria, John, and Paul (hope I’m not leaving any out) for an absolute EPIC ride. I try not to use words like “epic”, “brutal”, etc. to describe rando events, because I think they are overused, but in this case I can’t think of a more apt description. The course was spectacular and breathtaking in several aspects—the scenery, the overlooks, the small towns, and of course the climbs. I guess Tony thought that the 10-mile climb to Little Switzerland wasn’t enough so he threw in another 16 miles on the Parkway which included it’s own 6-mile gut buster? And to make sure we got our money’s worth, he gave us 9 bonus miles—thanks for being so generous!!

OK—a little tongue-in-cheek there, but I did enjoy it; well, most of it anyway!

HUGE congratulations to everyone who rode and especially, to use Maria’s word, to the “Animals” who rode the 600! And to the newcomers Cole and Isaac—mere words can’t describe the admiration I have for you for tackling these rides so early in your Rando careers. Welcome to the club.

I've attached a few pictures and a short video of the July 4th Parade in Little Switzerland. Enjoy.

JP

John O. and Lowell Grubbs in Lenoir (above)
Field of sunflowers near Lenoir or is that le Noir?
John at Bear Cliff in the Lake James region
No explanation required—the beginning of the climb to Little Switzerland
View from the back porch of the Alpine Inn of the valley at the beginning of the 10-mile climb
Parade Picture
The “Loops” overlook on the Parkway
Parade Video

Into The Woods..

The Chesapeake & Ohio Canal had a relatively short lifespan. Digging began on July 4th, 1828, and the Canal closed in 1924. Industry's loss is our gain, now that the National Park Service maintains it for recreation. Recent posts from Gilbert and Adrian had rekindled my interest in riding it from start to finish- 185 miles. On their advice, I decided to scout 25 miles between Williamsport and Hancock, Maryland, on my fixed-gear commuter. I learned that maybe a fixed-gear isn't the bike to use for 300K of dirt riding on the flats, but we'll see. If you're thinking of riding the C&O, you'll find Bike Washington's "C&O Bicycling Guide" a huge help.