Any suggestions for names? Paired names would be good, as they're sisters.
Wednesday, September 22
Help us name our new arrivals!
Cassie and I have just this morning become proud parents... to a pair of kittens!
Any suggestions for names? Paired names would be good, as they're sisters.
Any suggestions for names? Paired names would be good, as they're sisters.
Saturday, September 11
How God created the Big Bang
Maybe after spending a month in near-isolation in southern France has made me more susceptible to the lower forms of humour but this clip from Family Guy had me in stitches - the real story of how God created the Big Bang and, therefore, the universe.
Video not responding? Click here
So now you know, whether you believe in evolution or are from Kansas!
Video not responding? Click here
So now you know, whether you believe in evolution or are from Kansas!
Saturday, August 7
Energy Mountain
It's been a while, so here's another of my favourite rides, inspired by Lou Atkinson and Mel Chambers at Hemsby Fitness Fiesta last year.
This is a 35-minute climb that's designed to start comfortably but with gradually increasing intensity and energy, passing through different training zones or, as I coach them, "phases". These phases are not meant to be sudden but gradual - I outline them at the beginning and it's up to each individual rider to determine when they're in that zone and to think about whether it's too early, e.g., to be going above threshold, and should they hold back or increase the intensity.
To those unfamiliar with training zones or without HRMs: Phase 1 is basically a warm-up on a climb, trying to wake up your muscles gradually; Phase 2 is using those muscles effectively at a good steady pace but with breathing starting to get a little faster; Phase 3 is a more determined effort, really using one's strength, i.e., riding at tempo pace; Phase 4 is just under lactate threshold, only doing so because we're near the summit, otherwise we'd stay in Phase 3 for longer; Phase 5 is when you see the summit, get a second wind, and say "what the hell, let's go for it!"
The exact timings for each Phase are up to you and your audience. However, in my mixed version, I save Phase 5 for the final 3 minutes, using a speeded-up Saltwater as inspiration for digging deeper, reaching higher and going that one step further.
Profile
Phase 1 - finding your climbing legs (65-70% of MHR)
Phase 2 - getting into the climb (70-75%)
Phase 3 - pushing the pace up the climb (75-80%)
Phase 4 - looking to the top, in a rush to get there (80-85%, sub-threshold)
Phase 5 - racing to the top (85+%, above threshold)
You can download the 35-minute mix here.
The warm-up and cool-down are yours to choose - the first 45 seconds are to be included as part of a warm-up, the climb then goes on until 35:37, i.e., 35 minutes of constant climbing.
One final point - I've not only mixed it but also done it so that it starts at 60rpm and ends at 75rpm; the change is so gradual, spread out over the entire 35 minutes, so you will not notice how it speeds up. I've done this both for the benefit of those who ride to the beat and to give it a sense of how you would start up a climb at a steady speed, gradually getting more confident and picking up speed, finishing at race speed.
Playlist
Drifting away - Faithless
Look inside your head - Sander Van Doom
Sanctuary (The Traveller) - Origene
Ten seconds before sunrise - Tiesto
Dark and long (Dark train) - Underworld
More and more - white label vinyl, artist unknown
Coolio - again, a white label, any ideas?
Saltwater - Chicane feat Maire Brennan
Enjoy your climb to the summit of the Energy Mountain!
This is a 35-minute climb that's designed to start comfortably but with gradually increasing intensity and energy, passing through different training zones or, as I coach them, "phases". These phases are not meant to be sudden but gradual - I outline them at the beginning and it's up to each individual rider to determine when they're in that zone and to think about whether it's too early, e.g., to be going above threshold, and should they hold back or increase the intensity.
To those unfamiliar with training zones or without HRMs: Phase 1 is basically a warm-up on a climb, trying to wake up your muscles gradually; Phase 2 is using those muscles effectively at a good steady pace but with breathing starting to get a little faster; Phase 3 is a more determined effort, really using one's strength, i.e., riding at tempo pace; Phase 4 is just under lactate threshold, only doing so because we're near the summit, otherwise we'd stay in Phase 3 for longer; Phase 5 is when you see the summit, get a second wind, and say "what the hell, let's go for it!"
The exact timings for each Phase are up to you and your audience. However, in my mixed version, I save Phase 5 for the final 3 minutes, using a speeded-up Saltwater as inspiration for digging deeper, reaching higher and going that one step further.
Profile
Phase 1 - finding your climbing legs (65-70% of MHR)
Phase 2 - getting into the climb (70-75%)
Phase 3 - pushing the pace up the climb (75-80%)
Phase 4 - looking to the top, in a rush to get there (80-85%, sub-threshold)
Phase 5 - racing to the top (85+%, above threshold)
You can download the 35-minute mix here.
The warm-up and cool-down are yours to choose - the first 45 seconds are to be included as part of a warm-up, the climb then goes on until 35:37, i.e., 35 minutes of constant climbing.
One final point - I've not only mixed it but also done it so that it starts at 60rpm and ends at 75rpm; the change is so gradual, spread out over the entire 35 minutes, so you will not notice how it speeds up. I've done this both for the benefit of those who ride to the beat and to give it a sense of how you would start up a climb at a steady speed, gradually getting more confident and picking up speed, finishing at race speed.
Playlist
Drifting away - Faithless
Look inside your head - Sander Van Doom
Sanctuary (The Traveller) - Origene
Ten seconds before sunrise - Tiesto
Dark and long (Dark train) - Underworld
More and more - white label vinyl, artist unknown
Coolio - again, a white label, any ideas?
Saltwater - Chicane feat Maire Brennan
Enjoy your climb to the summit of the Energy Mountain!
Thursday, June 24
WHAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU!
Although the volume has diminished so that we can now actually hear the commentators, sometimes even the fans, those blasted vuvuzelas are ruining the World Cup. Worse, they are threatening to take over in every other sport - they had to specifically ban vuvuzelas from Wimbledon, in case some idiots decided it would be "fun" and "atmospheric". Cricket and baseball are two more sports that have lately banned vuvuzelas from their stadia.
Quick recap of the vuvuzela:
1 - They are plastic trumpets invented by a manufacturing company in 2002; or, allegedly, by a guy who first made an aluminium one in the 60s made from an old bicycle horn. Either way, they are not part of the traditional South African culture, just an excuse to make a quick Rand.
2 - It has a sound pressure of 120db, as loud as a 747 jet engine at take-off, and can lead to permanent hearing loss for unprotected ears after prolonged exposure. Thought you were lucky to get a ticket to see one of the matches in South Africa? I know a good hearing aid company...
3 - TV viewers were unable for the first round of matches to even hear the commentators; the commentators were even unable to hear each other. Players could not hear their team-mates on the pitch, some felt disorientated and unable to concentrate; even the stadium announcer cannot be heard (imagine if they ever need to evacuate the stadium, nobody will hear the tannoy!)
4 - Demand for earplugs to protect from hearing loss outstripped supply; a vuvuzela manufacturer came to the rescue and began selling earplugs to spectators (a double whammy money-spinner, if ever I saw one).
5 -Their monotone sound drowns out all the atmosphere from the game, the ebb and flow of the fans cannot be heard, no more the traditional (for England) fans' band playing the theme from The Great Escape, I can only hope the Brasilian samba band can drown out the vuvuzela-wielding zombies.
Think I'm over-reacting? Check out this guy:
Problems viewing? Try here.
Quick recap of the vuvuzela:
1 - They are plastic trumpets invented by a manufacturing company in 2002; or, allegedly, by a guy who first made an aluminium one in the 60s made from an old bicycle horn. Either way, they are not part of the traditional South African culture, just an excuse to make a quick Rand.
2 - It has a sound pressure of 120db, as loud as a 747 jet engine at take-off, and can lead to permanent hearing loss for unprotected ears after prolonged exposure. Thought you were lucky to get a ticket to see one of the matches in South Africa? I know a good hearing aid company...
3 - TV viewers were unable for the first round of matches to even hear the commentators; the commentators were even unable to hear each other. Players could not hear their team-mates on the pitch, some felt disorientated and unable to concentrate; even the stadium announcer cannot be heard (imagine if they ever need to evacuate the stadium, nobody will hear the tannoy!)
4 - Demand for earplugs to protect from hearing loss outstripped supply; a vuvuzela manufacturer came to the rescue and began selling earplugs to spectators (a double whammy money-spinner, if ever I saw one).
5 -Their monotone sound drowns out all the atmosphere from the game, the ebb and flow of the fans cannot be heard, no more the traditional (for England) fans' band playing the theme from The Great Escape, I can only hope the Brasilian samba band can drown out the vuvuzela-wielding zombies.
Think I'm over-reacting? Check out this guy:
Problems viewing? Try here.
Wednesday, June 23
It's oh so quiet...
The problem with summer is that, just at the time when it's perfect weather for a bike ride, there are so many sporting events on TV - after the cycling Classics, the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de Suisse, it's now time for the World Cup which itself overlaps with Wimbledon and the most-watched sporting event on the planet, the Tour de France.
Yeah, you heard me right. Cycling. Tour de France. The most-watched sporting event. Thinking the Olympics or the World Cup has more? For a start, they're only every four years; secondly, not everyone watches every single event or match; finally, don't forget there are millions that watch the Tour on the road - one million alone on Alpe d'Huez!
To top it all off, it's my 40th birthday this Monday, so I'll be running away for a long weekend with Cassie, to pretend that it didn't happen and I'm still "in my thirties"!
So, if I've gone quiet, you know where I am - either out for a long bike ride or watching football or cycling (or maybe even tennis)...
Yeah, you heard me right. Cycling. Tour de France. The most-watched sporting event. Thinking the Olympics or the World Cup has more? For a start, they're only every four years; secondly, not everyone watches every single event or match; finally, don't forget there are millions that watch the Tour on the road - one million alone on Alpe d'Huez!
To top it all off, it's my 40th birthday this Monday, so I'll be running away for a long weekend with Cassie, to pretend that it didn't happen and I'm still "in my thirties"!
So, if I've gone quiet, you know where I am - either out for a long bike ride or watching football or cycling (or maybe even tennis)...
Monday, June 14
Should we tolerate self-abuse?
Nothing to do with self-harming, which is a dark topic about which I'm nowhere near knowledgeable enough to discuss.
Lately, I've seen a few comments, references, forum posts and status updates that seem to suggest that we should accept obesity, despite the fact it's more deadly than drug dependency or alcoholism. This trinity of substance abuse (food, drug, drink) has become so widespread as to almost seem normal - what was previously overweight is now the norm, people get away with drinking amounts that would've raised eyebrows not long ago, and certain drug use has become acceptable.
In my previous post on this topic, I referred to a statistic that food, drug and alcohol abuse account for 80% of the NHS's budget. Recently, I talked about this topic and was curious enough to find out how much that is:
The NHS budget last year was £110bn
The number of tax payers in the UK is approx 29m
That's £3800 every year for each taxpayer towards food, drugs and alcohol abuse.
Next time you're asked to tolerate obesity, binge drinking or substance abuse, remember how much these people are costing every one of you £10 a day.
These people are wasting YOUR money!
Addendum - this doesn't include the cost of promoting good eating habits, policing, alcohol-fuelled criminal damage, thieving by drug users to fund their habit, etc.
Lately, I've seen a few comments, references, forum posts and status updates that seem to suggest that we should accept obesity, despite the fact it's more deadly than drug dependency or alcoholism. This trinity of substance abuse (food, drug, drink) has become so widespread as to almost seem normal - what was previously overweight is now the norm, people get away with drinking amounts that would've raised eyebrows not long ago, and certain drug use has become acceptable.
In my previous post on this topic, I referred to a statistic that food, drug and alcohol abuse account for 80% of the NHS's budget. Recently, I talked about this topic and was curious enough to find out how much that is:
The NHS budget last year was £110bn
The number of tax payers in the UK is approx 29m
That's £3800 every year for each taxpayer towards food, drugs and alcohol abuse.
Next time you're asked to tolerate obesity, binge drinking or substance abuse, remember how much these people are costing every one of you £10 a day.
These people are wasting YOUR money!
Addendum - this doesn't include the cost of promoting good eating habits, policing, alcohol-fuelled criminal damage, thieving by drug users to fund their habit, etc.
Monday, June 7
Off the grid
For a few months after my last post, we had problems with my cable/phone/broadband provider (Virgin Mediaaaaargh) and decided to ditch them in favour of Sky. Problem was that Virgin had removed our old phone line, so we had to get a new one (££££) before Sky could hook us up with a broaband connection. A series of engineer visits later and I now have a much faster connection than before (even though it's supposedly the same), wider choice of channels for a cheaper price, a proper phone line (useful if wanting to change broadband providers), and a HD box at no extra charge (cheers, Mr Engineer!). A lot of headaches and frustration and wanting to pay a visit to Virgin Media's Customer Services and "go US Postal on their ass" BUT a much better package now we're out the other end of the tunnel. Still trying to remember my new phone number though...
Been connected for about a month now but so busy training and riding (a spell of rare good weather) that I feel like I've become a technophobe. Now the weather's gone back to normal, i.e., crap, I'll probably be posting more regularly.
BTW, at a recent race, I also managed to lose my mobile phone while packing the bikes into the car. Argh! I still have the same number but I've lost all of my contacts - maybe I should go back to pen and paper...
Been connected for about a month now but so busy training and riding (a spell of rare good weather) that I feel like I've become a technophobe. Now the weather's gone back to normal, i.e., crap, I'll probably be posting more regularly.
BTW, at a recent race, I also managed to lose my mobile phone while packing the bikes into the car. Argh! I still have the same number but I've lost all of my contacts - maybe I should go back to pen and paper...
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