I'm signed up to ride up Fraser Hill and Genting Highlands very soon, assuming I can take time off work. Fraser is supposed to be a very doable ride but Genting is quite a hairy prospect. Various people have variously informed me that it is variously the third or fourth hardest climb on the world pro circuit. Even without aiming to break any speed records, this doesn't sound like a walk in the park! Particularly since my training has been of the on-again-off-again variety. I just want to get to the top without stopping or falling off, hence the prep.
Today's ride was a sequel to a ride I set out on yesterday. I'd planned to do a hilly series (yes, incredible but true, possible even in Singapore) through NUS and South Buona Vista and finishing with a few loops of Mount Faber. Rain put paid to that plan so I only managed an aborted ride through NUS. I did manage, however, to test out my new compact crank. For the non-cyclist reader, think of the compact crank simply as a gearing arrangement that makes it easier to scale steep climbs. Very gratified to report that the compacts helped me get up to Kent Ridge Park! The approach road to Kent Ridge Park goes by the moniker of Vigilante Drive but it should probably be renamed Assassin Drive. The unwary cyclist (or even car) is presented with a sudden steep wall of a slope that would be absurdly funny if it wasn't real. It doesn't help that roadies' cycling shoes clip into the pedals and disengaging before a fall at super-slow speed isn't the easiest thing. I did need to stand to make sure I made it up but no other problems. In fact, pedalling sitting down, my front wheel kept jumping off the road because my weight was shifted so far back. I made it up. That's all that counts.
Today's ride was a straightforward 8 loops of Mount Faber. High gearing and cadence never above 40 rpm and sometimes much lower so as to increase the intensity of the workout. (Cadence = number of pedals spins per minute. In my case, usually in the range of 90-110 rpm.) At the end of each loop, I raised the gearing a notch. Only allowed myself to stand up and pedal (ie, cheat) on the last loop, and even that only because I know I'll need to do that on Genting at some point, so practice is a good idea. Very happy to report that I never needed to switch down to my easiest gear. In fact, I had a few in reserve. Genting will be harder though because it's relentless. No easy patches to rest the legs before it's once more unto the breach.
Climbs are interesting. It's not just sheer leg power that gets one up. It's also controlling one's heart rate and breathing, maintaining a good pedalling rhythm, having above average bike-handling skills, and, perhaps surprisingly, having a strong lower back, arms and shoulders.
Today's ride stats:
1:39:38
36.02 km
21.7 km/h average
56.2 km/h max
178 max heart rate
148 avg heart rate
Comments