The Urizar Articles

By Paolo Urizar

April '05

     The beginning of March meant warm weather for me for a change.  I spent the first week and half of March in Guatemala, Central America.  That is where my family is from and I spent the time traveling through the gorgeous mountains.  Guatemala is situated among a landscape of forests, jungle, and enormously beautiful valleys.  It has earned its nickname justly, ‘The Eternal Springland’.   I attempted to train a few days, taking advantage of the mountain trails.  Unfortunately, I did not take my bike with me.  I had to borrow a bike, which was not a nimble or light ride in the least.  The only available choice was a 35-45lb steel hardtail.   In the face of a 2,000 ft. climb, it made for a long day of lactic acid threshold training for my quads.   Despite not having an ideal bike to seriously train on, I enjoyed visiting my family and homeland immensely.  The idea of creating a mountain bike haven in the foothills of the Mayan world is attractive, and someday I may pursue that idea with greater detail.  Until then, I continue my training effort to effortlessly fly through the Guatemalan highlands.

     The trip was too short.  I had to return to the still frigid climate of the Midwest.  Leaving one airport at 85 degrees and entering one at 35 degrees is never pleasant no matter how much you’re prepared for it.  Cold is cold.  March signals the beginning of the thaw in Chicago as we move from snowy to rainy weather.   I bought fenders for my road bike to protect my bike and I from the salty mixture on the roads.  I’ve made a valiant effort since February to commute to work to add on training miles to my base mileage routine.  This has not been the easiest of mileage additions; however, it is necessary if I aim to have a leg up on the competition in May.  In this month’s article I am going to go over equipment specifics to survive training in this wintry environment.  I am also going to review what I am doing to prepare for the season now.  March is the month where we begin to catch a glimpse of spring peeking its head around the corner, and it means a growing opportunity to ride outside a lot more.  Am I ready? 

     I typically arrive to work between 7:00-7:30AM.  I live exactly 8.36 miles from my back door to the front door of my office building.  On an average ride, meaning that I exert about 60% effort, I complete the commute in 38 minutes.  This is an average of about 14-15 miles per hour.  I can keep my heart rate and my pedaling revolutions at a sustained pace for most of the commute, especially, in the morning when there is minimal traffic at 6:30AM.  There is a gym at my office building that I head into and work on my core routine before getting ready to head to my desk.  I am trying to meet my target goal of 40 miles per week for the month of March.  I will gradually increase this mileage to 70 miles per week by end of April.  The goal is not just the mileage itself but the sustained workout to get the most out of my cardiovascular fitness to increase my endurance level.  Core training is concentrating on upper body strength endurance by doing more repetitions of a lighter weight set or using body resistance solely.  I am keeping form in mind to focus on flexibility and prevent injury.  The core training and the slow addition of mileage is required to train my body to be more efficient at burning fat.  This phase is absolutely necessary to increase my metabolic rate and improve how my body is using energy, an important task to concentrate on during the base mileage period.   I won’t be able to reach my target of 200 plus miles a week safely, without first concentrating on this strength and endurance building period.

     I mentioned that the weather is not exactly the most inviting of sorts to allow for easy rides on a whim.  I have invested in some items, equipment and clothing, that have helped alleviate the chill factor and to make the most out of my winter training.   I have selected these particular items based out of reviews from other more experienced riders at various online forums and websites.   The first and cheapest overall purchase was the bike fender set.  Regardless of what bike you ride, riding in a winter environment means protecting yourself and your investment from the salt, slush, snow, and watery mess from the streets.   Although I will be concentrating on competing mountain biking specifically, I do train and commute primarily on my road bike.  I built, or rather Johnny Sprockets (www.johnnysprockets.com) built, a road bike worthy of excellent training, commuting, and cyclocross racing.  I wanted a commuter bike that could serve several purposes and a cyclocross rig seemed to fit all three categories nicely.   I have a Surly Crosscheck frame and fork (www.surlybikes.com) that is all steel.  The bike is rounded out with a Shimano drive train (Shimano 105 Group), Truvativ Crank, and Ritchey Pro components.   The wheelset is comprised of Shimano 105 hubs laced to Mavic CPX22 rims.  I am using Michellin Axial Carbon 25cc tires.   Planet Bike ‘Freddy Fenders’ are installed to protect the frame.  I have put approximately 500 miles on this bike since last November and all components mentioned above have been performing flawlessly with no issues (not even a flat yet!).  It is a workhorse of a bike and is needed for the Chicago type of street environment.  I have ridden over many uneven streets and an occasional street crater, and thankfully the bike has survived the hits.  The bike has been handling the elements superbly and I have been conscious to wipe the frame down after the more messy rides and to keep a watchful eye on lubricating the chain path and checking the rims for salt (salt tends to jam into the Mavic rim crevices causing braking noise).

     The bike is well protected; now, I have to be well protected.  I have said time and time again that the weather is not inviting.  I have found a combination of some key clothing that makes that experience not only manageable but dare I say, fun.  You have to concern yourself with taking care of your extremities first, especially on a wind chilled day.  This is my typical riding outfit that keeps me warm in an outside temperature of 35 degrees and above: Polar REI thin wool balaclava, tank top drytech, long sleeve drytech t-shirt, 8 panel lycra shorts, thermal lined Gore winter bib tights,  extra thick ‘The Blaze’ wool socks, a Pearl Izumi winter barrier cycling jacket, and Marmot windstopper gloves.  If the weather absolutely dips below 30 and there is a team ride (which amazingly people still attend at these extreme temperatures!), I will wear all the above and add a long sleeve wool jersey underneath my jacket and wear neoprene shoe covers.   This is not exactly a cheap route to keep yourself warm; for the type of cold weather riding gear I have mentioned above, expect to spend $300-400 dollars.  What makes it ideal for training is its lightweight  and non-bulkiness quality.  The material is designed to breathe to keep you cool without sacrificing heat retention, so you don’t overheat and feel burdened with that ‘wet clothes’ feeling.  These aren’t must have items for training but definitely make the riding experience that much more comfortable riding in this weather.  I also have a Chrome ‘Metropolis’ messenger bag (www.chromebags.com) that carries all my work stuff, clothes, and gym essentials.  It stores up to 2000 cubic inches, and is completely weatherproof.  I have ridden in some very slushy days and all my belongings have remained completely dry in this bag.  There is a ‘benefit’ that most folks on the XXX Racing team have mentioned in casual conversations, and that is that winter training increases your will power to succeed.  You learn to adapt to harsh conditions and you train with a more intense focus to form and efficiency as you adapt to wet and sometimes slippery conditions.  The extra clothing adds weight, as does the messenger bag, and it adds on to your list of things to keep in mind while developing and maintaining good form.  I actually look forward to the Saturday morning training rides when I don’t have the messenger bag on and I automatically feel lighter and faster because of it.  Makes me itch for the spring weather to come sooner!

     My mountain bike has been quite dormant this winter and it hasn’t hit any trails since last October.  The season is approaching and it calls for pulling it out of its storage space and start reviewing its functions and preparing for a season of hard riding.  The XXX Racing team not only provides direction and focus on training and successfully competing in races, but also guidance on learning essential bicycle maintenance and routines to ensure that your bikes will perform optimally throughout the season.  The one tried and true rule among the team is that each team member should be able to change a tire, regardless of cycling discipline, in less than 4 minutes.  Ideally you should be able to do it in 2 minutes.  This doesn’t come naturally for many folks, including myself, but with some practice now in the off-season, it can be done and will make getting a flat out on the race course that much less stressful.   I will be racing a hardtail this year and its current specifications are:

Gary Fisher Paragon Frame (ZR9000 Zirconium Aluminum Platinum Frame – 2002)

Rock Shox Duke XC U-Turn Front Shock (68mm-108mm adjustable)

Shimano LX Front Deraileur

SRAM X-9 Rear Dearilleur

SRAM X-9 Trigger Shifters

Avid SD-7 Brakes and Levers

Shimano XT BB Integrated Crankset (170 mm)

Bontrager Race Lite – Stem, Crowbar Riser, and Seatpost

Bonrager Race Lite Wheelset

WTB Laser V Saddle

Time ATAC XS Pedals

Tires vary by need (Maxxis and Panaracer)

     This rig has been very durable and has survived its fair share of rough trails (over 1,100 miles of it last year).   I am confident that this is indeed a worthy race bike as it is a tough as nails bike.   The key to winning bike races is only minimally attributed to your bike; the real contributing attributes are the rider’s experience and conditioning.   I am currently about 180 lbs so the bike is lightweight to me (approximately 25 lbs.).  My bike is only as effective as my knowledge in maintaining and fixing problems quickly on it, especially in the heat of the race.  Understanding and learning how to correct issues that arise during training and on the racecourse will ultimately make me a more efficient and effective racer out in the field.   My training partners on the XXX Racing team have given me excellent perspective on the realities of the racecourse and the special considerations for the races that are over 6 hours long.   Never assume that your bike will work 100% on the racecourse just because of a shop’s tune-up.  You must accept the fact that you will eventually crash on a racecourse.  There are many participants in every race category and most, if not all, racecourses in the NORBA, WEMS, WORS, and DINO series contain tough technical singletrack sections with plenty of climbs and downhills.  Understanding how to fix a shifting problem quickly or adapting to it is the difference between finishing ahead of the pack or dropping out completely.  Endurance races, like my major goal of a 12 hour race, have a much higher demand on the durability and effectiveness of your equipment.   100 miles of rough terrain already demand tough physical competency, and also add a great deal of stress on the equipment that carries you.  

     Using the XXX Racing team’s resources and sponsorships help in deciding what works best for what particular purpose.  For instance, XXX Racing is sponsored by Maxxis tires, which gives me the ability to choose from different tires for different terrains to achieve maximum traction and effectiveness out of my tire set for a race.  Understanding how my components work to use them to their fullest potential will make me a better racer as much as the amount of training that I put in.  Understanding how your bike makes you feel during the training process is also key.  I am learning my dislikes and likes about my riding position after longer periods of time and with excellent information from both the team and my local bike shop, I tweak components for positive changes.  The shorter courses leave you little chance to think about saddle position or stem length as you’ll most likely be blazing all out for most of the course.  On a 6 hour course though, a 1 degree difference in the nose of your saddle could be all the difference in the world to squashing an inner leg pain that you’ve been having.  The idea is very basic, the more comfortable you are on your bike, the better you will perform.  Don’t adjust to your bike’s nuances, but rather, adjust the bike to your needs.  You want to do this as you work on your form and your pedaling technique, especially through technical sections.  Having a saddle too high or too low is typically the culprit for poor pedaling efficiency.  Having too much or too little reach on your handlebars will affect your breathing performance and cause undue stress on upper body muscles.  This will slow you down as your body compensates to get more comfortable throughout the ride.  Having the right equipment is as important as using it properly to get the best performance out of you and your bike.

     I mentioned in previous months’ articles that I would cover all the aspects in the training process as I meet my goals.  There is a lot to consider to race safely and with high performance.  There is no real particular downtime during the winter months, and thankfully, it is something that I truly enjoy doing.  I may not be putting in massive mileage in yet, however, there is plenty to still learn and do before the race season is in full swing.   Understanding how to regulate your body temperature with effective layering is actually a great skill to have for those future races where the temperature changes are drastic, such as in 12 and 24 hour races.  Knowing your equipment and how to use it and fix it is key to keep yourself in the race when you face the calamity of crashing alongside a dozen others in a mad downhill rush to the singletrack section.   Be resourceful with what you have and investing in quality items that are recommended by the racing community at large.   Even outside of my own team, I have found valuable other resources online to review products and gather opinions on the industry offerings (i.e. MTBR – www.mtbr.com).  It is rarely ever super lightweight and bling-bling bikes that cross the finish line first in droves, and if it is, then you’re most likely watching the Professional series!   Making your ride as comfortable as possible without sacrificing good form is just as essential a skill as the training itself as it will only propel you into better cycling. 

     In next month’s article, I will get into the race prep and how the earlier races are merely training bases for the bigger races down the season.  The first race is schedule for May and that marks the beginning of a slew of races in three different states in the Midwest.  I’ll analyze some of those racecourses and what I have planned to prepare for them.  Hopefully by next month’s article, I will have a working digital camera to share snapshots as well.  Until then, happy riding and see you next month when its at least another 10 degrees warmer.