in bloom

Good form is like a flower in bloom. It takes nurturing, time, patience and a bit of luck to get it right. Good form like a flower doesn't last long. You want to show it off. But you don't want to shake it so much that the petals fall off...

I feel that I'm in bloom at the moment. Two climbs of Komura Pass this morning.

On the road at 530. Need to be back by 700.　Three layers, leg warmers, arm warmers and a cap. Still feels cold. Need to dig deeper into the winter wardrobe.

Stiff headwind down the valley but still at the foot of the pass in 20 minutes.

Climb 1: Intervals

30 s hard / 90 s easy x 9 sets

The great thing about intervals is they tell you about your form in a split second. The first one was a shock to the system. After that I was flying. Dancing on the pedals. Pushing down. Pulling up. Still have a bit of a cold so the rest interval involves coughing and spluttering. But the work interval, pretty much anaerobic, feels good.

Climb 2: 170 > 175 > 180 > 185 HR

The plan was to go at lactate threshold 170 HR. It took a while to get the heart rate up. 160 by the first hairpin. By the second hairpin and 2 minutes into the ride, 165. The long steep drag brings me to 170.

I push hard through an easy section to keep it at 170. The next steep section. It creeps over the target. Up to 175. No bother, it should drop again on the next easy section.

Into the big ring. Keep pushing. Heavy gears. Light legs. 180 HR and still climbing. 185 HR on the final hairpin. 10:10 here, a fast if not record breaking time.

Keep it at 185 to the finish. Time: 11:25. Excellent considering it wasn’t an all out effort.

Hoepfully I can ride this wave of form all the way to Utsonomiya….

Wednesday’s asaren: Komura Pass x 2 (38 km, 560 m climbing)