I Went Mountain Biking – And I Trapped ALL of the Data!
The purpose of this exercise and series of blogs is to share my thought processes, as a coach, on how to interpret data from instruments. With that data, I can then make more informed decisions on my own training, recovery, and performance. When the cold snap hit, I went indoors; it’s a controlled environment. But when I moved to Nevada, we specifically purchased a home right next to some of the best mountain biking trails available. We’re at 5200′ MSL. The peak behind my house, which I can ride to from my front door, is at 8400′ MSL. My mailbox signals the end of a Strava and RWGPS segment that equals a Cat 4 Climb for roadies.
In other words, we moved here so we could RIDE! Today, after a lot of distractions and work on other projects, I pulled out the mountain bike and just RODE!
The ride included the following:
- Vo2master with display on my iphone in realtime.
- Left Shoulder Moxy Muscle Oxygen
- Right Rectus Femoris Moxy Muscle Oxygen.
- Left Vastus Lateralis Moxy Muscle Oxygen.
- Polar H10 recording in BLE on Garmin 1030.
- Quarq ShockWiz on both Front and Rear Suspension.
And MAN, did I get some good data!
The temps were perfect, the trail a little less dusty thanks to some rain and snow last weekend, and the sun was on my arms and back as I rode one of my favorite anti-clockwise loops.
Here’s the fun part: I hit a 57 Vo2max, and climbed steadily just below 20% of Smo2 for the first hill, and then just above 20% SmO2 for the second hill.
After the descent, I took a look at my Quarq ShockWiz data. Front Suspension was at a 96/100, and rear was at a 92/100. The descent was my 3rd-fastest ever on that segment.
I know I was not ‘feeling it’ this morning. But I needed to free my soul. This ride provided that, and more.
Here’s the video:
Thanks for reading, thanks for watching, and as always, ENJOY THE RIDE!
