Race report: National ITTs

Dad offered to give me a lift to race venue, first time I had such support and I'm worried about my warmup...

So I reached the venue and saw many prepping for the race... What I didn't expect was the amount of foreigners... I mean, in my mind it was a National event... Than again... Shall not touch on this...

So I started putting on the race bib and timing chip...

The race chip is the blue thing at the bottom of my fork... I preferred the trifactor race chip as it incorporated the use of the slotting the race chip into the QR skewers.. Very clean and no zip ties required.

After setting up the bike and feeling a little awkward when asking one of the staff to help me pin the race bib on my skin tight jersey... I set off for a warmup ride... I targeted about 20mins of easy spinning, just to get me sweating and to try out the elevation of the route. I saw my speedo at 30km/h and wondered if my legs were ready... 20mins later, i felt I needed more time. But start time was closing in and I went to the start point.

After some anxious minutes because I didn't know exactly when was my turn, I was on the start ramp. One official grabbed my bike as I clipped in, and felt super uneasy with both feet clipped in but at a complete standstill...

3...
2...
1...

Wobble... Don't fall down!

random pic from spectrum cycling at how uneasy i felt the launch was...

*don't burn out in the beginning!*

I cranked, but not as hard as I imagined, steady acceleration, tucked into aero position and checking of speed. 35km/h... ok... relax... turn ahead anyway..

out of the turn, it was eerie. No one ahead of me, no one behind me. I spun the wheels more, hitting 38km/h on what seems like an incline...

Up that incline and down... Hitting 40km/h now... Feeling ok, shall hold this speed.

Hump ahead, relax... Ouch... my elbows still on the aerobars... ok will take it differently on the next lap... U-turn ahead.

brake hard before the turn and corner... Out of the corner at 22km/h... Seems so slow... Hard acceleration out of the corner!

Omg, direct headwind! 35km/h... This is hard.... 33km/h... Giving a hard effort, keep it up!

Passing the the start point gave me more motivation to pedal hard, U-turn point! Crank it up! Feeling better as I warm up... Damn the warm up was not enough! Never mind, concentrate... 42km/h... Nice speed, must be the tail wind.... Good stuff....
Than I hear the familiar whine of a disc wheel, whoosssshh, a ang moh passes not more than an inch away from my front wheel!  That was awfully reckless of him... I look down at my speedo... Still 42km/h and he is pulling away from me.
I know I had to keep my own pace, no burning out for me.
U-turn than 32km/h.... Push harder... It's faster when you push on the incline/headwind and recover on the decline/tailwind... (read somewhere on the net)
3rd lap, 42km/h down again, U-turn point, more confident at turning I go into it at higher speed, spotting the apex and waiting to accelerate... PANGGGG I hit a small rock sending my front wheel sliding out.... WTF. I straighten out and brake! GOSH THAT was close! I accelerate out and catch a glimpse of a camera man gasping... Damn... That sure ruined my confidence of cornering...

Up and down, with pretty much the same speed, on the 2nd last lap one of my thigh muscle feels like it's gonna cramp... hang in there!

On the last lap a guy wearing the same skinsuit as me overtakes me before the U-turn point. I corner faster than him and end up side by side... No drafting, but I'm supposed to keep 2metres away from him according to the rules... damn it... So weird... Riding side by side in aero position as we reach the incline..

Going down now as he pulls away from me... I'm saving up for the final stretch into the headwind after the U-turn point.

Hard effort after the u-turn point look a head and see the end... Push harder! .... 36km/h.... All I have got! 39km/h and I cross the finish......

Mad.... I pant hard as the official at the finish pit stop help me cut the race chip and tag me as finished... A bottle of isotonic handed to me, as I look for a place to sit down... Wow, that was hard...

After some rest I went over the result tent-age to see my time of 56 mins... An average speed of 37.5km/h... Pretty satisfied since the headwind was just so punishing. And just as I go off, Darren Low comes into the finish line 4th... With a very happy girl beside me jumping around... Apperantly, someone related to the National Time Trial winner that day.

Wondering if that will one day be me.

My own race support... Oh ya, I finished second last in my category... And to console myself I was the 8th Singaporean out of 25 riders... Haha, till the next race! Ride safe all!

Race day report: Trifactor Time Trial 40km 10th June

And my team captain lent me his front 404 Zipps! Now let's look at the final product...

I was drooling after I put those front wheels on, every time I walked pass my bike, I paused and just stared at those big white capital ZIPP words... Boy do they look fast.

Changes:

• Saddle bag removed
• Front 404 Zipps!
• Down tube bottle cage shifted to seat tube, replacing a slightly heavier one
• Lights removed

However, when I pumped the tires up, at night they were flat... It was a slow leak... I was so worried that it kept me up on the night before... Contemplating whether swap those 88mms back... After much deliberation I decided to pump'em tires up, sleep and see if they hold up decently. At least enough to ride home.

Alas! The next morning, I couldn't drag myself out of bed early... Rushed here and there, tires held up! One last pump up before setting off... Wait... Better pump it up and leave at the last min...

What a bad decision! I reached the venue at like 820am, dropped off my phone and keys, and ended up quite literally at the very back of all riders... I knew this race was a goner, should have really really excused my way to the front... Ahhhhhh...............

Photo above taken from Trifactor, to give you an idea of where I was... And this wasn't even at the back! I was further behind!! Argh! Oh well...

But just infront of me, was the guy... Yeow Chun Tan (IIRC, to be referred to as "Aeroguy") on a aero time trial bike, aero helmet, zipps and a skin suit too! Maybe if I just draft him, we will catch the lead pack! Alright that's the plan, you sneaky bastard...

Gun time! Bang! hmm... Shoes not tight.. *adjust velcro* *check tire pressure* *reset cyclometer* *clip right leg in* And still I have not moved off... Come on guys! Start riding! That's the problem with coming late and starting at the back...

Alright! We are moving! With the excitement and adrenaline I started spooling up the wheels, the Aeroguy wasn't speeding up as much as I hoped so I overtook him.... Faster and faster, I saw my speedo stabalise at about 42km/h... So many people to pass... Luckily most were keeping left...

I knew I couldn't maintain 42 for the race... The fatigue started to come in, and I slowed to 38km/h knowing the first pack was gone.

Than BAM, Aeroguy comes along! YES! Draft that ass! 40km/h constant... Nice... But probably not enough to catch the first pack... I surge to his right and ask,
 "Do you want to take turns?"
"No, it's okay, you can go ahead" I'm not sure if he said I can go ahead, or that I can draft him... HAHA but I couldn't maintain 40 for nuts, so I drafted. My face was dripping sweat like crazy, not sure if it was the aerohelmet's lack of ventilation or the 40km/h pace that I was not used to. It was hard, even just drafting! And drinking water from a bottle in your seat tube is damn difficult! Big mistake on my part!

So for the first 2 laps I was on his rear wheel feeling like a cheater, he started slowing down to 38 and I went right thinking it was my turn to pull, holding at 40... 40... ahhh dropping to 38, than he pulls again at 40.... It kept going till lap 4...

Final lap! When I glanced back, a huge group of blue jerseys were drafting the two of us! I THOUGHT I WAS THE CHEATER, THOSE BUNCH OF GUYS! At least I helped pull when Aeroguy dropped in speed. I was letting my thoughts distract me, as I got sick of pulling the bunch of cheaters and dropped left.

Only one guy from the blue jersey pack pulled and me and Aeroguy took a break (Actually I didn't know where he was when blue pack leader pulled as he was behind.. Slowing down to 38 now... Just before the U-turn of the final lap, blue pack leader said "go!" as I surged ahead to 40 hoping to break the pack before the u-turn and make them work to sprint out of the u-turn.

As I accelerated out of the U-turn, Aeroguy comes along and I get on his rear wheel again, 38... than 36... Oops, it was my turn... 38... 40... Than I realised isn't this a time trial? It was like my worst fears, it was a road race with time trial bikes... If that's the case... I gotta save my legs for the final sprint... I know I couldn't do a Cancellera and time trial into the distance! I was half dead!

I dropped left... Aeroguys comes along... 38.... 37... 36... my turn... 38... 37. 36... drop left, blue pack leader finally pulls again... 38... 37... 36... I'm not going to pull any longer, I gonna wack that sprint! I look down at the speedo to see 37.77 km... Not long now... 38km... And a guy on road bike sprints off! It's too early! No ones goes after him!  Dual Tri-spoke guys comes and takes the lead, I go after his wheel! 40+ now as the speed climbs higher in anticipation, the guy on road bike gets caught... I head left and over take dual tri-spoke... blue pack leader surges infront of me!
I want to head left to surge, but traffic ahead!
Aeroguy comes pass me on the right, a huge train behind him!
I can't get on Aeroguy's rear wheel! Shit!
Traffic on the lefts clears! Surge left!
Traffic in the MIDDLE of the road! SHIT! PLEASE RIDE STRAIGHT!
Phew! Pass the traffic omg! Traffic everywhere!
Aeroguy, guns it! and hugs the right edge of road! No one can match his burst! And what strategy to go right so no one can use his draft!
Blue pack leader leader got dropped, new bunch of fresh cheaters come along.
NO WAY AM I GONNA LET A BUNCH OF CHEATER DRAFTERS ( actually I also drafted a lot, hahaha) WIN ME!
AHHH MY LEGS!!! DEAD!!!
Tuck into aero position GIVE IT MY EVERYTHING!
48km/h just before I hit the finishing line... Second to Aeroguy.

As we rolled to a stop, the feelings was great. I congratulated Aeroguy, and thanked him for the insane pull... Head comes blue jersey team as they shake my hand, and congratulate me like I won 2nd overall (we were the second pack)... It was nice. haha. I knew we weren't the first pack, so 2nd to Aeroguy was still a good feeling.  And the shaking of hands of every rider coming in... Quite priceless! Knowing we had put in a hard effort, and enjoyed the ride.

I just saw the results today, 12th place... I started off 1 min behind the race leaders, and ended up just 2 mins behind them on timing... Damn! If Aeroguy and me had tried harder, maybe we could have caught up?

Anyway, important lessons:

• Reach early and get a good position on start grid, if not try to squeeze in front no matter what!
• Bottle on downtube, even though slightly worse aerodynamics, no point if you can't reach it properly!

And I leave you with a video of the 5km category flag off!

Open Slow Ride of Silence for Jude Alphonsus Tan (2012-05-28)

Open Slow Ride of Silence for Jude Alphonsus Tan. This ride is dedicated to Jude who perished when he was knocked down by a lorry at the Changi Coastal Road on 26 May 2012.

Though most of us do not know Jude, he is one of us, a fellow cyclist. Please join this Open Slow Ride of Silence for Jude on Monday, 28 May 2012 at 8:30pm. The ride will start from Lorong Halus (Popeye) to Changi Village to NRSCC to Marine Terrace Blk 54 where his wake is held. Those who are not able to ride but would like to join us at the wake please come with your bikes and jerseys. The media will be informed about this ride. The ride will be a mix of PCN and Road.

You must:
a. obey all traffic rules
b. wear helmet
c. bike must be equipped with front (white) and rear (red) lights
d. please wear appropriately coloured jerseys
e. observe silence for Jude

Non-Stop Route and Timing:
8:30pm - Lorong Halus (Popeye)
9:00pm - Changi Village
9:20pm - NSRCC
9:45pm - Marine Terrace Block 54
10:30pm - Disperse

Route
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/fullscreen/96752145/

Wake location
http://www.streetdirectory.com/asia_travel/travel/travel_id_3541/travel_site_67631/

We will pay respects to Jude and each will give a token of contribution $10 to the wake. 

Please share this.

Just doing my part to share the above information and details...

Just some thoughts that have been going through my head, I have been cycling on the roads since some 10 years ago. I am thankful for that, many I know tell me that they are shaken from what they saw/read about the accident. Just because it is so close to our hearts, a Saturday, at Changi Coastal.

Let me tell you, take a break if you want. But never stop cycling, make the necessary precautions, proper safety equipment (basically your helmet, lights, good brakes and tires) and it might be wise to invest in a simple ID card/tag which your particulars (blood type, Next-of-kin contact, etc).

The roads will only get safer when yet more cyclists get on the roads, that way, cyclists will be just be another part of our daily lives. We get to understand them, get used to them and eventually accept them.

This has brought me to some thoughts on discrimination, just like Singapore being a Multiracial society (Thanks to National Education), the roads on Singapore should be friendly to all forms of transport!

And the recent Ferrari crash at the Bugis area? It really seems that Singapore roads are designed like a F1 racetrack (F1 night race), too powerful cars, on roads that simply can't accommodate them.

I have so many thoughts but little time to pen them down, back to my usual words... Ride safe.

Runway Cycling 2012

Back from their hiatus, Runway cycling is back! Register now! Having been to 2 such events before, I am not in for so much the experience of riding on a actual runway but for the many bicycle related booths, shows, promos and of course a chance to catch up with friends. I always caution people who participate in such mass cycling events to be careful and keep your distance from other riders, safety is paramount! Cheers!

Ride of Silence 2012 - Cancelled...

You, once upon a time could Register here but due to some reasons... It has been cancelled...

I was looking forward to doing a ROS ride this year... Since I missed the ride twice before... Gosh. Oh well.

Trifactor series 40km Time Trial

This is the next event I'm going to, I'm training and want to beat my personal best! This is also probably my stepping stone to the National Individual Time Trial, I will have to assess myself if Time Trialing is my thing. The future is unknown! Must train hard ah!!!

Anyway the category is for 40km bike leg on June 10th... Right! Let's go!

If you want to follow my trainings, follow me on Twitter and/or Strava :) Cheers!

Rapha Gentlemen's race

Note there is a age restriction of 15 to 20 years old.

Organised by Rapha or SP cyclists, I don't know... Just sharing the word :)

OCBC 2012: After thoughts

I went down to the F1 pits, to check out what OCBC 2012 has to offer for the bargain hunter in me and to check out the Professional Criterium that was heavily publicized that involved a "invite only" start grid of Pro riders.

Right after arriving I saw the Men's Open Crit (above picture), I didn't know what was happening and the commentator didn't help much. So after a few clicks of the camera I proceeded on the the booths where I heard Shimano was having a big sale!

 

Loots from OCBC! From left, free Spin (old issue) magazine (no time to read omg), Pro 3 gloves from Shimano booth ($15), 700c spare tube ($5), Free stickers from Spin booth.

I shall leave you with some eye candy:

 Oh gosh, the disc wheel acts as a great banner, and look at those TT bars!

 

Might need one of these when I go overseas with my bike... Hmm...

 Some electric bikes on display... But... Their range pretty much sucks. Compared to this baby.

 

Skate bicycles?

 

Of course some decent locks.

By the time my friends and I finished browsing through all the booths, the Pro Crit had alrdy started. We got some chairs and sat infront of the huge ass TV, and Mr. Yuva bought us beers! Thanks dude, great atmosphere with beer? Couldn't beat that anywhere. We watched as some attacks took place... Some of us went to the barriers just the experience them blazing through and get right into the action!

There was a break away by a solo Japanese rider, who unfortunately had a puncture! Talk about dramatic. And the worst? His mechanics struggled to change his rear wheel.

By the time the mechanics were done, the peloton had caught up, as if to show us that he was crazy strong or just plain crazy he broke away again! Apperantly just before the special stage horn was sounded, securing a small prize money.... Maybe that was his plan all along... The peloton caught him and subsequently dropped him later on... But interestingly a 3-men breakaway formed as below:

I don't know who they are, but this guys really put in some hardwork!

3 other men caught up with the breakaway! And they worked their asses off! How hard? Well, this 6-men breakaway (above) was never caught by the main peloton! Insane.

Resulting in a mad sprint at the end by the 6-men:

 

This guy leads them out from the final turn, cranking the speeds up!

 

The decisive moment! This was the guy right behind the first guy coming out from the final turn, blasting out from the rear wheel of the lead man, he sprints and manages to out sprint everyone else to take the win!

I was wondering if the 2nd guy could last till the finish line... It seemed pretty far to me! and look at the current third guy! It would seem to me he had enough to edge 2nd guy for the win! But not to be! hahahaha, exciting!

So what was so fun about this? Well, next time... I would go early to the booths and grab bargain deals before they are sold out, avoid the crowds and of course watch the exciting Pro Crit! Over beer! Damn, if you missed this... Come next year!

Review: Nusa-Iskandar MTB Adventure ride 2012

Woke up 4am, had a "as slow as possible" ride to conserve energy towards Kranji MRT. Unfortunately, it included riding through Mandai Road...

Special Thanks to Family that gave some White cards for faster clearing of customs! Thank you Kenneth from PurebikesAsia for the PowerGel, William from TropiCare for Goodie bag storage, Owen from Crest Pursuit Cycling Apparel for organizing the bus from customs to race venue and back! Shout out to SMU riders, Ben from Shimano, Organisers, my fellow NTU Teammates and everyone else that shared the sufferings along the way!

 

Spot the shameless advertisement

Shimano sponsors!

Giant sponsors!

Start line! I'm nowhere near! =(

Crazy amount of riders, some 1040 riders in fact! MAD!

Once the race started, had to wait a little since I was in the middle, than a slow increase in speed to ~35km/h drafting a guy in front. Was wondering if I wanted to increase my speed, but thought otherwise. It was a long ride(68km) ahead after all.

The 5km road start seemed all too short as the whole group of riders came to an almost complete standstill when there was a bottle neck where only one person can move across a narrow bridge. As you can imagine, 1000 to 1 will cause havoc... Eventually people found alternative routes and more alternative routes and it was pretty unpleasant as the people who rode slowly got ahead and choked up the trail all over again.

Afterwards, it was the first climb some 150m in elevation and yet another choke point. But this time i waited about 8minutes to enter a really impossible apparently "World Class" downhill section, I walked through about half of it, injured my ankle, got some vines entwined into the rear hubs that wasted so much time! Once I was on my bike riding and not walking it was really scary skidding about downhill at speed, and to add to my fear, a guy ahead was lying on the floor in pain...

After I got used to the skidding I started to enjoy the downhill only to have it end and a short road section and steep hill and downhill and routes around the palm plantation and again and again!

The pit stops were the highlights of the race, volunteers rush to your side, checkpoint stick, peeled open banana, F1 quick refill of water and off you go! At the third checkpoint I was offered what seemed like a can of redbull and I grabbed it for it seemed too good to be true. I drank half and wondered if I was drinking too much at one go...

My thoughts replied almost instantly as a stitch on my right abdomen started voicing out its concern, I could push my pace anymore and just maintained.

The most torturous parts had to be the insanely steep, long and loose inclines. I knew I had trained for a long ride but was the training sufficient? About two thirds of the way in, I started pushing myself, I wanted to finish the race with nothing left... I overtook many during the climbs, where most were pushing, I wanted to finish badly without pushing my bike and kept telling myself I could do it. Than came a steeper than usual climb where the clean lines were taken by riders pushing up, leaving me with lots of loose ground to climb. 

I eventually spun out, put my left leg down and that leg cramped! The hamstring/thigh muscle that cramps forces your legs to straighten putting me in pain and I had to stop. I put my right leg down and that cramped too! The pain of two of  your major muscles pulling is quite something, so much that it made me tear. I had to stop and take a rest.

Unsatisfied, i continued my way up pushing my bike. Strangely I could still go on at a decent pace but was really careful to not put too much exertion on my hamstrings/thighs. At the base of the next incline, I didn't want to push my luck and ride up, as I wanted to finish the race!! So I just dismounted and pushed. To my surprise up the time I reach the top, my stitch had subsided and happy I could go on.

I took at slightly longer rest at the 2nd last pit with 2 bananas and a drink, and bit down hard to dig deep and find a higher pace. "Botak hill" dawned on me and it was yet another climb, with the sun at it's peak, no vegetation to shield you and as if the ground was reflecting even more sun to somehow melt you. I pedaled on. Granny gear, no one ahead and behind me. It was a lonely climb where I was wondering what about a quote I saw somewhere. was it Lance Armstrong?

Why do you do it(cycling) if it is so painful? -reporter

Are you kidding? I do it for the pain. -LA

Just before the last checkpoint my triceps started showing signs of cramping and I had to stop halfway downhill. Never had so many cramps before! Crazy! At last checkpoint 6! 5km to end point! downhill, left, right, the road! I have never been so happy to see road! Once on the road, i got into "time trial" position and spun that crank so hard. playing mind games again. The guy ahead is number 100th if I overtake him I get a medal! I overtook 5 guys haha. I finished 242nd and was so spent! And just got off the bike and stoned.

The team won 2 helmets from the lucky draw, a picture with Shimano staff and a long ride home later, it was over! Thank you loving family for supporting me when I got home! One heck of a ride!


Oh ya, if you wanna check out the stats of the ride: http://app.strava.com/rides/4095941

Nusa-Iskandar MTB Adventure ride 2012

I'm going for this:

Getting excited! It's more reason for me to ride! I'm now tapering (a term I never knew till recently, which basically means toning down training or resting before a race/event) down...

I have no idea about the conditions of the trails there, the climbs, the people riding, just don't know what to expect. Don't know how I will do in terms of pacing for a 60km offroad ride either. Well, I will blog about it after then!

NTU Bike Rally 2012 Tips

It's your first time embarking on a trip greater than the epicly termed century ride (100km=century ride), and you don't know what to expect... Or you are a seasoned rider but can do with some tips anyway...

Courtesy of Graz Cycle Chic

1. Adjust your seat height!

Probably the number 1 mistake I see for beginners, I have ridden with a couple of Cycling events and this is the most common. You won't feel it for the first 30km or so, but after that your thigh muscles are just too tired to output that kind of strength.

Example, when climbing a long set of stairs to you take them 2 or 3 steps at a time? If you do, you notice you are expanding lots of energy faster than just taking one step at a time. It's a endurance ride, 128km is no joke!

So set the seat high, preferably when your leg is on the lowest part of the down stroke, it is slightly bent. Of course this can be a little dangerous, if you can't reach the floor... So you can use another way to adjust the seat, i.e. when you are seated, you should be tiptoeing on the floor! Again, lower the seat if you find tiptoeing dangerous... Extended periods on tiptoes can induce cramps!

2. Chaffing cream or Vaseline

This Chaffing cream has received some rave reviews... Or you can use what I have been using since I learned it eliminates abrasion for road marches (In army), yup to save yourself from a painful shower later!

Apply a generous amount between your thighs or just about anywhere you think you might get abrasion, maybe even around the openings of your shorts (Btw avoid wearing FBT shorts, they are too short! You might get some serious abrasions!). Bring it along in case abrasions develop and just apply it over for instant relief!

3. Sunblock!

Don't wanna suffer from a serious biker's tan! And mainly because I got sun burnt during the recce ride... Haha!


Misc. Inflate your tires!

I like maximum at the front and about 45 psi at the rear, I ride and Mountain bike (Which is similar to the rental bikes), The rear is not too hard so you get a sore bum, and the front usually has front suspension to soak up the bumps. Very important as these are your only contact to the ground, properly inflated tires mean less rolling resistance and thus equate to less energy expanded allowing you to go further for longer!


Variations include, changing your tires to slicks if you have the budget. Or even getting yourself a road bike... 
Misc. Water bottle and some snacks

There are water points at every checkpoint, but in between your are on your own. Bring along a small snack, like a fruit bar. You need to keep yourself fueled or you will burn out quickly!

NTU Bike Rally!!! I'm excited!

NTU Bike Rally 2012 Recce

At 5.30am in the morning at the Singapore flyer, about a hundred safety cyclists gathered for the annual round-island recce ride. The point of the recce? For both the organizers and cyclists  to familiarize themselves with the route, logistics, any possible dangers on the road and so many more...

I eventually saw 136km on my Odometer on and my legs were pretty shot. Hopefully I will have enough time to post some tips on clearing this epic 128km (Those going for 168km are probably seasoned riders anyway...) round Singapore ride! Cheers!

NTU Bike Rally 2011

Well, I must say I was really looking forward to joining this year's bike rally. In fact, I started looking forward to it right after the event ended. And if I really wanted to exaggerate, during the recce ride before the actual event last year. It was that positive of a experience.

No pressure, go at your own pace! Don't tire yourself out! If you have never done this ride, I strongly urge you to go register. When else can you get a whole army of marshals at every point you need to make a turn, motivational notes along the route to keep you going, refreshments and snacks at every checkpoint, ambulance and medical assistance at the ready, security forces on motorbike, tons and tons of people joining in the fun, the potential to meet new friends, getting a good tan, the crazy goodies in the goodie bag, the INSANE lucky draw prizes this year, just to name a few...

Oops, that was not "a few" was it?

Well, for those of you who are like me. In some foreign land or some other reason that you can't join in the ride for this year. There's always the next year. Cheers!

tags:  NTU Bike Rally, ntu bike rally 2011, ntu bike rally review, round island ride, singapore