April 2008 - Spokes Magazine

In addition to these recommendations on portion
control and being mindful of the solids that I am
consuming it is also important to be conscious of what
fluids are being put into my body. Fluids are an easy
area to start with the minding of the consumption. Again
this is more about moderation than dieting, working
at rational levels of consumption.
LESS SODA is a quick and easy change to implement.
The consciousness of consumption goes beyond the
limiting of all of those cans of Coke. The minding of
the consumption extends to sport drinks. So often after
a ride or a run I go to the fridge and grab a bottle of
Vitamin Water or my all time favorite Gatorade when all
the body really needs is water. Water is precious.
Consume greater quantities of water in place of these
other drinks. Coca Cola will still be chilled in the fridge,
but the consumption will be less frequent. The natural
impulse to crack open a Coke with every meal must be
stopped. The increase in water consumption is a natural
habit as my riding picks up, but the frequent ingestion
of sports drinks is a habit that I need to break. It
is important to reach for regular old water rather than
colored water with unneeded calories. After all... it is all
about calories... calories consumed and calories burned.
It is easier to consume fewer calories than it is to work
out more and burn more calories.
Being lighter would mean being faster. Cyclists do not
only seek lighter bikes but it is desired to have lighter
bodies. Due to the basic strength to weight ratios
lighter racers are better climbers. Which means it is to
the advantage of any cyclist to be as light as they can
be so that they are not carrying any extra weight up
the hills.
I will always be a Clydesdale... but I do not have
to carry all this excess weight around. Clydesdales
need to weigh over 200 pounds, I do not need to be
over 230. Never do I expect to weigh less than 200
pounds... but I could most certainly afford to be a few
pounds less than my current weight.
With all the focus that riders put on getting a lighter
bike some of us other cyclists could do better to
focus on carrying less weight on our body. My older
and faster mountain biking cross racing brother also
shared this pearl with me: finding a healthy weight is the
TRISPOKES continued from p.22
For more information, Martha Herman can be
reached at martha8908@aol.com (301-667-2518) or
Ken Racine at kcracine@myactv.net (301-991-0461).
You can use the Contact link above.
This race supports the Joanna M. Nicolay Melanoma
Foundation whose mission is to promote prevention,
early detection and research to end melanoma.
The 2008 Hagerstown Youth Triathlon is scheduled
for Saturday, July 26, at Martin L. Snook Memorial
Park. That race is similar in format with 100 meters
swim, 2 mile bike and 3/4 mile swim. This race is
supporting the Boys and Girls Club of Washington
County and Ken Racine at kcracine@myactv.net (301-
991-0461) can be contacted for more information.
Mid-Maryland Triathlon Club and Howard County
Cycling Advocacy
Sadj Bartolo, of Columbia, an enthusiastic 65 - 69 age
group triathlete has stepped down as president of the
Mid-Maryland Triathlon Club, turning the leadership
responsibilities over to Chip Warfel.
“I did it for three years, I felt like it was time,” said
Bartolo, who competed in her first Half-Ironman
last year at Timberland in New Hampshire. She said
she’s only registered so far this year for the Columbia
Triathlon and IronGirl race, also in Columbia. She
has several vacation trips planned with her husband
goal; it is not necessarily about being as light as possible.
Be assured... I am not trying to get skinny. Skinny is
not part of my future... but I do not need to be fat.
Snacking on carrots may be a better option than a
bag of chips. In fact decreasing the amount of processed
foods is lumped right into the obvious with less
soda. Less processed foods and an increase in fruits
and vegetables just as MattyD suggested. I truly love
fruits and vegetables. I just need to train my mind to
reach for those things rather than all those junk food
junky options I have been lunging for over the past
many years.
Team mate and friend Kent Baake recommended eating
a salad with each meal for the pleasure of salad
and to aid in decreasing the amount of the main
course consumption, again it is about portion control.
Kent snacks on apples, nuts, or enjoys a PB&J with a
dash of honey or maple syrup. This is a fight that can
be won through small efforts.... efforts as simple as
selecting sorbet instead of ice cream.
Kent also mentioned avoiding hydrogenated oils and
high fructose products. In the last few seasons Kent
has been focused on increasing workout times and
decreasing eating. Again... that obvious balance of
burning more calories than the number of calories
ingested. This is all done by being mindful what is
being eaten.
This is not so much about sacrifice as it is about moderation.
Portion control is the key. What I select to eat
and drink is as important as how much I choose to eat
and drink. Riding and exercise are part of the equation
as well. I need to be consistent in my workouts.
This will aid in the burning of calories.
As mentioned it is not imperative for a mountain bike
event to offer a Clydesdale category for me to compete
but it does often add to the fun.
Potomac Velo Club (PVC) is not only offering a
NORBA/UCI quality mountain bike race at the
Greenbrier Challenge just outside of Hagerstown,
Maryland on April 27th, but there are also Single
Speed and Clydesdale Classes. While in some of
the multi-lap night relay events in the Mid-Atlantic
neither The Baker’s Dozen on April 19th as hosted
Robert, also a Mid-Maryland member, and may fit in
an end-of-the-season race or two.
A self-described recreational triathlete for over 20
years, Bartolo has said she most loves getting new people
into the sport and has been putting on one day
triathlon clinics with two friends for three years. She
is also a certified Level I USAT triathlon coach.
Bartolo added that the Mid-Maryland Triathlon has
club has joined with several other Howard Countyarea
groups to form the Bicycling Advocates of
Howard County (BAHC). The Bicycling Advocates
of Howard County is a coalition of the representatives
of the Baltimore Bicycling Club, Howard County
Cycling Club, Mid-Maryland Triathlon Club, The
John Hopkins University APL Cycling Club, as well as
representatives from the Columbia Association, The
Columbia Triathlon/Iron Girl Triathlon and other
community groups and individuals concerned with
road safety issues in Howard County.
The goal of the organization, which already has had
several meetings is to work with the Howard County
Government, and other government agencies when
needed, on improving the safety of roads in Howard
County that are the most heavily used by bicyclists.
Their next meeting is scheduled for Monday, April 14.
For more information contact Jack Guarneri at jack.
guarneri@jhuapl.edu or e-mail BAHoCo@gmail.com.
More information can also be found at http://sports.
groups.yahoo.com/group/BicyclingAdvocatesofHowardCounty/
by Plum Grove Cyclery out of Leesburg, nor the
Team Bike Works’ The 12 Hours of Lodi Farms in
Fredericksburg Virginia offer Clydesdale classes... but
these rolling courses with no significant climbs tend
to disadvantage the larger rider less.
Later in the season in June, Granny Gear’s 24 Hours
of Big Bear in Hazelton West Virginia will host its
third race of its six race 24 Hour Mountain Bike Race
Series with a Clydesdale class.
Then locally in Northern Virginia there are plenty
of Clydesdale race options; PVC hosts its summer
training series. Wednesdays at Wakefield in late June
will have a Clydesdale class while the folks at EX2
Adventures have added a Clydesdale class to their
four race Cranky Monkey Series and the 12 Hours of
Cranky Monkey.
More information on any of these races can be found online
with the assistance of GOOGLE.
LEESBURG BAKER’S DOZEN OVERFLOWING
One of the area’s newest mountain biking races is bursting at
the seams, and sponsors report more than double last year’s
registration, and the race isn’t until April 19th.
The Leesburg Baker’s Dozen, a 13 hours mountain bike race
held on a privately owned farm just north of Leesburg, Va., off
Rt. 15, has 332 preregistered racers as of March 25, and sponsors
at Plum Grove Cyclery expect quite a few more to sign up,
making it the largest mountain bike race in the state of Virginia.
The race begins at 11 a.m. and ends at midnight. Categories
include solo, two and three person teams. Last year’s solo event
was won by Steve Schwartz.
The course is a 7.6 mile loop, mostly flat, winding, singletrack,
not very technical, but over sections of limestone outcroppings.
For registration go to Plumgrovecyclery.com
ARE YOU READY FOR
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April 2008
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