Mamil

I'm also seriously considering this approach - dropping back to 4G or something similar and noodling around enjoying the vibe - last few years I've raced back to the M3 to join my S.O. on the short route but she's away this year so that's not going to happen. I'll decide on the morning

Normally I'm going on an on about how I'm aiming for my virgin sub 3 --- not n the cards this year so I'm hoping for bad weather

Ha Ha --- those damned "rollers" - one weary Mamil stopping in the scarce shade rummaging for the tasty papaya and pistachio bar he knows is in there somewhere, looking for the psychological boost he needs .....

Also feeling this way - might be because I'm less fit than I have been for the last 5 years and have my lowest seeding in as long - maybe its age but I'm also getting more scared of the bunch and found myself thinking "Maybe I'll wake up on the day and just go mountain biking in Durbanville".

Another factor to consider is the recovery process - I remember reading somewhere that in ride fueling as well as post ride recovery fueling improves immune system functining which is invlved in recovery (aka the building in of the gains made in training). Of course I know a guy who rode the whole 36one on water and electrolytes only at very low intensity - he's a strong brute on the bike and in the gym - so it can be done for sure - that isn't the discussion though, we're looking at optimal training practices.

Are you saying that fat adaptation is dependent on training in glycogen depleted states or perhaps on minimal carbohydrate consumption in low intensity, long duration training? If so, it seems to me from my youtube and lay person reading of open source research that is isn't necessarily true. It looks to me that the current consensus is that low intensity and duration are primary drivers of fat adaptation and that although in a training session, availability of carbs increases insulin levels and increases carbohydrate use, this doesn't impair the ability to draw on fat reserves. It appears that so long as there is some carb shortage, fat use develops as a function of time in the saddle at low intensity. I am also told by these sources that gut tolerance for high carb intake is necessary for race day performance and that this is trained by carb consumption on long rides. They are also saying that preserving glycogen levels in ultra events (that I complete at a very low intensity) is important and accomplished by consistent carbohydrate fueling. My experience bears these interpretations out - low intensity (high zone 1, low zone 2 - for me that's 160 to 230 watts) rides done fueled are more sustainable and less fatiguing At a minimum though I think that all statements in complex subjects like nutrition are provisional and caveated by disclaimers. The certainty I perceive in your posts I think obscures the complexity.

Ja without the carbs, even on a 3 hour zone 2 ride, I tire early and when I get home I bury myself in the fridge opening tupperwares and smashing leftovers. If I fuel at about 40 to 60g of carbs I finish feeling fresh and I don't behave like a glutton at an all you can eat buffet. For ultras (36one etc) I carry a bar bag full of gels and smash 30 to 40 g of carbs in addition to whatever looks appealing at the race villages and water points. Last night's 1hr 20 minute mostly high zone 3 through to zone 7 zwift race I smashed 80 grams of carbs and I wasn't that hungry at dinner time.

Guessing there's a few reasons for that - denial (not wanting to face the reality of a period of recovery and the loss of fitness and opportunity it involves), minds that are well trained to override pain/distress signals from the body, deep conviction borne of experience and training that their bodies are powerfully resilient and that pain wears off ...

24kmph average is actually slow and I am what it says on the tin -- a proper mamil.

Sometimes words are litter too akso - who uses Maurten - if you're after expensive processed sugars it has to be Amacx.

There's a new track cycling event called the hirsute pursuit .... (CT dad dad joke championship)

I manged to hold the front bunch of D only until the second roller on the cross tailwind section on VoorPaardeberg - which I was pleased with given the state of fitness. Some stragglers and I got caught by E but then cramps struck on Adderley and I was forced to stop - I was massaging my right adductor in a manner that might have gotten me arrested for public indecency in a different context by the 2 nice traffic policemen who stopped to see if I was OK - I'm also increasingly risk averse these days - the number of overweight MAMILS carrying speed into the rollers to avoid being dropped by riding on the wrong side of the road on blind rises is deserving of comment once again, especially when the wind is coming from the left - okes - if you are already up against the white line in those circs you just have to slow down for the bunching up effect and then put in the watts to stay in the bunch or not. You're risking everyone's well-being by crossing the line. But an enjoyable morning out despite noodling in over 3 hours. Expert marshalling in both D and E - great job the motorbike riders.

Gcn did a report on this. Incidence of prostate cancers no different in cyclists than gen pop. Which is good news. Im surprised discovery etal dont make PSA part of their screening.

THis is how I understood your view - it's the effects of this view that I'm uncomfrtable with. I'm not sure that the heuristic that informs the target acquisition system of a p23s with a overstimulated amygdala is "cyclists are bad" - or maybe it is that at a very granular level - at a higher level I think it might be änything that I think gets in my way and is more vulnerable than me"or maybe even less discriminating than that and it's something like ""änyone who engages me in a less than complimentary fashion" Of course we can behave in a way to not look like a lightning conductor looking for a storm but I worry that arguments that emphasise our behavior de-emphasise the stronger variables in the picture which I would see as being more contextual. In no particular order, the design of public spaces, the lack of provision for non motorised transport, the complete dominance of oil and petrol over transport infrastructure, a lack of law enforcement, deeply entrenched cultural and psychological investment in cars as symbols of all sorts of inter and intrapersonal dynamics, many of them to do with status, power, freedom, importance of individuality, negation of vulnerability, and so on.

Was shocked to find the padstal in hermon is now a wine bar. My mate couldn't believe that there were no burgers.

I like that!

This view is rational and logically consistent but while it stops short of actually saying it does it imply the following? "The p32s in the white bakkie lost his temper because cyclists en mass behave badly and therefore have a bad image and this is the most significant factor in causing the p23s to lose his temper. If cyclists en masse rode better and gave more thumbs up and smiled more drivers wouldn't get as angry as they do" If this is the subtext of this argument it runs very close to the kernel at the heart of any abusive relationship between powerful and less powerful parties "I wouldn't hit you if you behaved better".

That's a horrible experience. There Is a lot of aggression out there. More and more brains are driving around there with fight or flight activated including mine. I have a pepper spray velcroed to my top tube. It doesn't look cool but.... I have the radar camera. I often have a front camera i use to make YouTube videos... Most of the time these days im on tje gravel or trails or zwift because im scared on the road. I am sad about that because i love my road bike

My forerunner 955 can broadcast HR but it isn't as accurate as the chest strap - I have read that newer generation wrist based measurements have improved accuracy but the proof is in the pudding.

Quite often the C D E groups where i usually end up seeded feel like the n1 on a Friday. There's always someone in an flash car pushing in on the fast section only to be slamming on anchors when the concertina happens. When E caught D it was a horror story waiting to happen. Balancing risk and reward i find myself drifting backwards out of the madness. (not the smartest I know but i don't have the legs to get to the front)

I have a karoorak 2 bike rack. There are pro's and cons. One con is that it is flipping heavy. I haven't weighed it but you need to be quite strong to attach it to the vehicle. Once on its a dream to use though.

I might give this a go for Munga training - I have a trainer road subscription and honestly I find their training programmes and the AI that informs them not useful - workouts frequently feel too hard or too easy - advises rest when actually I feel strong and able to do more. Would also like to hear how its gone @PietervS

From a neuro psychological viewpoint, changes in nervous system functioning from ethanol is present as soon as bloodl levels are greater than 0 and occur regardless of subjective experience that there is no difference.

I've just finished that --- I have an ebike trail bike itch that might be going to be scratched at some point soon

All I hear from official channels and in the "we our own worst enemy" responses here in the hub is "I saw a cyclist behaving badly on the road". I have a 2km commute to work - here's the "I saw...." list from the two morning commutes so far this week 1. Suburban street with school children walking, me on a bike, cars parked on the side of the road a courier van doing about 80kmph hard braking for the speedbump 2. Same street - student in a polo rolling through the stop street on her phone 3. Cnr liesbeek and durban robot - taxi turning right from middle lane cutting across legitimate right turners. 4. Same intersection - three cars accelerating through after the green arrow has gone pushing through a throng of school kids 5. Next to Rondebosch common - city electrical department vehicle close passes me into the traffic circle and hoots as he does so - because he saw me but couldn't be @rsed to slow down for the one second it would take me to get out of his way. 6. Queue of cars waiting while parents turn right into Rustenburg grounds - two cars without looking try sneaking around and block the cycle lane - a frequent one this - some of the cars have had me slap them on the fender and tell the driver "sorry man did you git a cyclist?" 7. Same road - I'm turning right on my bike into premises with cars released from the snarfu at Rustenburg accelerating towards me - I'm signalling right turn - parent in SUV accelerates to close the gap so I can't turn (she didn't see me - how many times we heard that one? No darling you weren't looking) three cars do the same until someone lets me through despite the fact they must stop 30 meters further on. 8. One bishops kid on a bike possibly with parental instruction to ride on the jogging path not the road, another old man on his bike hugging the cycle lane while cars whizz past, a racer with a backpack sprinting hard to keep pace with the traffic, breathing in lungfuls of diesel particulate and skillfully anticipating the traffic movement. Ja cyclists should ride well on the road but this "take responsibility for your safety" stuff is bizarre to me as an endlessly repeated mantra. What I think motivates this argument that "we need to be better" is two main factors. 1. The absurdity of the normality that the motor car dominates our public space so much and the taken for granted idea that this is usual, normal and that there isn't another viable option. I see this is a profound lack of imagination and political will. The "cyclists do better" argument legitimates the lack of political will to protect the human and natural environment from cars. 2. The psychological difficulty of understanding that as a cyclist, we have very little control over what happens. Short of staying off the road. To get on the bike is to put our lives in the hands of the general f$#kwittery out there. It is reassuring then to say that we can do something to keep ourselves safe (stop at robots, wear bright clothing, yada yada yada) because to hold the idea that we have so little protection and so little control is terrifying. Ja my radar light and secondary flare light make a difference but much of that is as a talisman - reassurance of my fear. How many of the deaths we report and mark with sad emojis and ghost bikes are due to cyclist behaviour other than "he was riding his/her bike and a speeding / drunk / inattentive driver hit him?" I can think of one only - a young woman who did a U turn without checking in 2023 I think it was? I can guarantee that if every cyclists stopped at every robot, always rode single file, was festooned in lights and bright colours ... the carnage would continue unabated.