Resuming Cycling After Covid

 I recently found out that I had Covid, and am now on the road to getting back up to speed.

One of the interesting things about this round, is that the first indication that something was amiss came from my Apple Watch's VO2 Max reading dropping suddenly, which happened on July 1.  It decreased from 38.5 on June 10 to 36.3, and it usually will increase or decrease in increments of 0.1-0.2, so this was a sudden and large drop.

I didn't really think any more of this drop, and continued to ride, both to work and recreationally, for the next several days.  I was a little tired and had sinus issues during this time, but this was my rest week following three weeks of going harder, so the symptoms were not unexpected.  On July 6, I took a Covid test, basically just to rule it out, and was surprised to find that the second line turned dark very quickly - yup, it was Covid.  The symptoms were not nearly as bad as the first time I hac the virus, but I did feel fatigued and spacy.

During my break, I found this article and infographic that was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine that outlined specific steps in recovery that I thought would be useful.  I'm now a couple of days into the protocol, and feeling pretty good, so I wanted to document this information for my own future reference, as well as possibly helping others.

Since I've now resumed activities, I've also returned to walking and was happy to see that on July 16, my iPhone VO2 Max had returned up 38.1.

Mt. Baker Highway 2024

 I rode up the Mt. Baker highway again this year, after a couple of years off.  It was a gorgeous day, somewhat on the cool side weather wise, which I really appreciated on the way up.

The lower parts of the climb were quite cloudy, and it was not a certainty that the clouds would clear and render the peaks visible.

The pavement was mercifully dry; however, and I set about climbing while trying to limit myself from going too hard too early.  As I made my way up, some blue patches began appearing in the sky.

The road flattens somewhat at the ski area, and even though it's still around a 3% grade, it almost feels like pedaling downhill given the gradients preceding it.

Once past the ski area, the road switchbacks up through and into the snow.

Which gets thicker to the point that the upper reaches of the climb were cleared by snow plow just a couple of weeks prior to my ascent.

North Cascades Highway 2024

I was able to ride the North Cascades Highway all the way to Washington Pass car free this year. There was a much lighter snow pack than normal, so the WSDOT road clearing operation didn't take nearly as long as usual - this meant it was essential to seize the day and get up there. Unlike most of my previous rides up, I knew from the outset that the road had been cleared all the way to Washington Pass, the only question was whether my legs and spring form would allow me to make it all the way.

 

The way is up up up.

The secret seems to be out in terms of this ride being on folks' radar now. The parking lot at the Roass Lake Trailhead was beyond full, and cars were parked on the side of the road going down from the closure gate.  There were many people cycling up on all manner of bikes, from fancy road bikes to commuter e-bikes and everything in between.  Several factors likely contributed to the exceptional numbers:  the shorter than normal clearing operation, the first sunny weekend in a cool and wet spring, and the fact that this was likely the last remaining weekend that the road would remain car free.

It's great that the word is out and so many folks are enjoying the beautiful alpine scenery by bike.

As I crested Rainy Pass and counted down the mile markers during the brief descent to the base of Washington Pass, I figured I might as well continue all the way there.  Though this was further than I had ridden over the spring, I could not pass up the opportunity to keep going.  I was rewarded with a spectacular view of Liberty Bell and the WSDOT road clearing equipment.

I also got to take a picture (drive side out!) of my bike leaned up against the snowbank with the Washington Pass sign in the background.  One of these days, I'll continue down the other side of the pass to Mazama and/or Winthrop in the Skagit Valley on the other side.

The descent back down to the car at the Ross Lake trailhead started out very cold, so I was glad of all the layers I had with me, even though on the way up I was too warm on the parts below the snow line.  It's always important when cycling in the mountains to realize that both the speed and effort differential between the ascent and descent will result in vastly divergent experiences of the same temperature.

Cycling is Good for Your Brain

 This is no surprise whatsoever to anyone who rides regularly; however, it is validating when our self care practices become evidence based.  https://cyclingtips.com/2023/02/outride-research-shows-cyclings-benefits-are-more-than-physical/

Ode to the Underappreciated: A New Chain

Sigh.  It's time to replace my chain.  First was the fact that when I started pedaling hard in my most popular gear combination, the chain is beginning to slip and skip a little.  Further confirmation came from using a chain checking tool.  Yup, it's now beyond spec.

Needing a new chain is no big deal, in the grand scheme of things, but I like to remind myself whenever this happens that I stretched a steel assembly with my legs.  At this point, the discussion could veer off into whether I actually stretched the plates of the chain or rather have worn down the connections between the links so that there is now lateral play in them.  Regardless of which of these scenarios has resulted in my chain skipping and being beyond spec, the fact remains that it is now longer than it should be.

The metaphor here is hard to miss, but I'm going to spell it out for future reference when I'm feeling down.  Consistent work over time enables us to do things that we would not consider possible, a little bit at a time.  If I were to go into a bar and tell my new friends that I could stretch steel with my legs, they would regard me dubiously.  But there it is, out there on my bike, the one that needs a new chain.

Ode to the Underappreciated: This F***ing Headwind

What is it with this wind, why do I feel like it's always pushing me back, no matter the direction I take on my ride?  Why are my legs feeling like jelly, it must be this f***ing wind.  These are questions that sometimes come to mind on a ride.

The best, cheapest, and easiest to access indicator of wind speed, although it is completely subjective, is the volume of wind noise in one's ears (for those not hearing impaired). If the volume increases, I am either going faster, or the headwind has increased, or some combination of the two. Of course, the inverse is also true. Comparing the wind noise level with my cadence helps to isolate if it's my speed or the wind that's changing. If I'm pedaling the same gear at the same cadence, and the wind volume increases, then I have isolated that the wind has increased.

Different volume levels in each ear also help me ascertain which direction the wind is coming from relative to my vector, ie the volume in the upwind ear will be higher. This is useful for anticipating the wind conditions ahead if the course direction is changing.

After years of riding, I've developed an intuitive sense that above a certain level of wind noise, I should be in the drops and small to the wind or I'm just throwing away watts needlessly (and I don't have any extra to spare).

And herein lies the underappreciated aspect of this f***ing headwind.  I can, in the moment, crouch down and get as low as possible to reduce its affects, so I at least still have some small measure of control of the situation in the here and now.  A similar dynamic is at work with climbing and trying not to be so heavy, but this is much less immediate, relying as it does on not having that extra scoop of ice cream, or several beers with friends, or that extra helping of jerk chicken weeks in advance.

An Ode to the Underappreciated - Horizontal Dropouts

 I love horizontal dropouts, to me, they are the epitome of design tweaks over the life of a longstanding product resulting in multiple benefits.

They aren't really horizontal, but the angle of them has evolved to be tangential to the rear brake pad mounting bolt. This minimizes as much as possible the amount of both angle and reach adjustment needed at the brake pads when moving the wheel through the range of the dropout.

The additional benefit of their long evolution is that the ride characteristics promoted by the position of the wheel within the dropout are complementary. If I have smaller, lighter tires on the bike and move the wheel to its most forward position, the wheelbase will be shorter, which generally will promote a quicker handling ride. Again, due to the angle of the dropout, this position also results in the rear end of the bike moving up several mm, both raising the bottom bracket and effectively steepening the head and seat tube angles - all characteristics that will make the bike respond faster to inputs.

Conversely, if I wanted to soften the ride, the first things to do would be to mount bigger tires on the bike and move the wheels back, which will increase the wheelbase, lower the rear of the bike (assuming same size tires front and back), slacken the head and seat angles, and provide for a bit more clearance around the rear brake and behind the seat tube. If keeping similar sized tires, this position also allows for more room for fenders for converting a bike to winter training. Again, changing all of these attributes simultaneously is complementary to the desired result.