As part of training for my upcoming Ironman in the Philippines (happening in 7 weeks), I need to familiarize myself with a few long bike rides. I have managed to do two 6-hour bike rides in the last two Saturdays. I captured some reflection on nutrition in Long Indoor Bike Rides. The Friday evenings before those Saturdays got me nervous. What would I do just spinning non-stop for 6 hours?
Itâs another Friday evening now, and I wouldnât be nervous if I had to do another indoor ride. However, Iâll ride outdoors tomorrow. I need to wake up at 4 a.m., get ready, and ride 15km to meet friends at 5 a.m., then ride together for a few hours to the Can Gio district.
Itâs getting late, so I donât have the luxury to daydream. Getting my gears ready before hand helps prevent all the mess in the morning. Letâs go through them.
My Garmin Forerunner watch is being charged. My Garmin EDGE bike computer is charged. While it is possible to capture the ride on my watch via GPS, having a bike computer provides me bigger screen to adjust my power along the ride. Itâs like bringing an iPad to work even when you already have an iPhone. I will use my watch as a heart rate monitor, sending the measurements to the bike computer. I will need to keep glances on my heart rate and the power I exert on the road. I do not get to ride outside much. The data from this ride is important to gauge my recent improvement.
The bike computer gets the power data continuously from my Assioma power pedal. I have not charged them for a week or two, but they should still last just fine. Ah, I should at least go check the battery percentage via the iOS app.
My trisuit and socks are are on a chair next to the bed so I can put them on as soon as I wake up. I probably donât need to put on sunscreen because it wonât be very sunny until a few hours later. It will be scorching on my ride back though. Ah hah, I realize I should bring the little packets of sunscreen to use on the way back.
Nutrition is ready. I mixed 3 Tailwind scoops with 600ml water and stored it in the fridge. In the morning, Iâll transfer the cold fuel into my new 750ml insulated bottle with some ice. Itâll be worth noting how cool the liquid will stay in there. I also prepare 3 Saltsticks capsules in a tiny plastic bag, a GU gel, and an energy bar. As I write this, I realize it may not be sufficient if we ride longer than 4 hours. But we will probably do 4 hours.
My bike gear is ready: a Lazer Bullet helmet with visor, Fizik bike shoes, tall socks, bike gloves, and bike LED flights. I need to practice using these items as they will be used on race day, except for the bike lights.
I wrote todayâs post for me. It hopefully makes it harder to chicken out for any reason. It will be difficult to wake up at 4 am, which is in 5 hours. May I have sufficient fuel, ride safely, and return home safely to get on with the rest of Saturday with family and friends!