Another weekend, another milestone. Coach Dave's training programmes come through innocently enough, but I've come to expect the devil to be lurking in the deep dark depths of the detail.
Take the session he sent through for my Sunday ride - it went something like this: "...find Hackthorne Rd and go up, turn into MacMillan Drive, down Dyers (Pass Rd) x6".
At first I just saw the first bit - the bit that said I had to climb Hackthorne Rd, go into MacMillan and then shoot down Dyers Pass Rd. Just as my brain was digesting this relatively unwelcome bit of news I then spotted the tiny postscript. x6. Yikes.
Yes, I know I had swatted the seagull with my ascent of Gebbies Pass a few weeks ago, but it was obviously still flying around, just out of reach, ready to swoop back at the tiniest sign of hesitation.
I had never biked up Hackthorne Rd before. Had no idea what the gradient would be like, let alone do it 6 times! I had biked Dyers Pass Rd - on the mountainbike, with much lower gearing. With the marathon clinic we regularly run up Hackthorne. Well, some people run up it - I tend to walk up it, and so the gradient looms large (and steep) in my imagination!
I was so convinced I would struggle to do the whole six reps I sought out Dave's advice as to the priorities. i.e. do I just do as many climbs as I can and then do the rest of the ride or do I do as many as I can, go away and do a stretch on the flat and come back and try again? The message that came back was clear - make sure I do the six! There were a couple of options - break it up into two sets of 3 reps or three sets of 2 reps, heading away for a spin inbetween. "Don't walk up the hill", Dave said, "if it gets too hard head back down, regroup, and try again". He finished off with a final gem of advice; "And don't forget, you are an ironman!" As if I could forget!
Sunday dawned fine and clear. No, wait, it actually dawned wet, cold and cloudy. As I walked out the door and got on the bike I realised that, typically, this would be a wind trainer day. There was a steady drizzle and conditions that would normally see me flicking through the DVD collection for the morning's entertainment while spinning in the comfort of the lounge. But hills awaited and, with an epic weekend coming up (more about that in future posts), there was no point putting it off for a fine day. Do the hill reps, I thought, and if it's still miserable I can at least call it a day then.
So bravely I headed down to Hackthorne and faced my first challenge. The first part of the climb started OK - a long, straight climb that seems to go forever, but doesn't. It flattens out for a brief moment and then the road heads to the right and climbs again and just around the corner it's a welcome sight to see the signpost for MacMillan Drive. Turn left and keep climbing for another 100m. Initially I thought (hoped!) that I had finished climbing for that set, but no. After a small downhill and sharp left hand bend there was another short, sharp climb before another drop and gentle rise to Dyers Pass Rd. That is the final climb and it is all the way down Dyers Pass to the bottom and along the bottom of the hill to do it all again.
Coming down Dyers Pass was pretty interesting - drizzle made the road conditions slippery and so hands were on the drops AND making full use of the brakes the whole way down. In fact coming down required just as much concentration as going up! Just as well there wasn't much traffic about - especially at the roundabout at the bottom of the hill. Despite going very slowly, the final corner off Dyers Pass is particularly steep for about 2 metres. Fine in a car, hairy on a bike...
Amazingly enough I completed the six reps without too much drama. Well it probably wasn't the prettiest and it definitely wasn't fast. But I did it and, in doing so, totally underestimated my abilities.
I am an Ironman!
Well, I will be soon. :)
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