2016 MFP Grand Tour Challenge - Vuelta Now Up and Rolling...
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Ok amendments have been made, it's logic goes a little like this:
Spawn a Strava fetch thread, if it takes longer then 10 mins then kill kill kill and then spawn another.
Wash, rinse and repeat.
Test is running so lets see if it works for us.
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On the training Le Tour Triple Tour front it's not gone super smooth but it's still been some excellent training and prep for LeJog, two tours down (1087.52 km & 12430m climbed) and one tour up to the Lakes to go.
Next up on Friday, bit apprehensive about this one:
Day 2 will change a little to a straight 100 miles, Adriennes joining me in the Lakes for the two night stay so the plan is to do the ride early and then chill with her for the rest of the Saturday and then head back on Sunday after the hotel breakfast, due to the late start on the Sunday I may not make it home before midnight so the plan is to stop and save on the Garmin just before midnight which will count as Le Tour kms. The final ride back from the Lakes will be my toughest test yet due to both the climbing and the fact it's on day three of the weekend tour, I'll likely be going on the tourer with it's new brake setup for comfort and so I can take various layers.
Should be interesting.
On a fitness front this is how it's standing for those interested in such stattos:
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I think that the pickup from CycLeagues to the spreadsheet had also hung - logged in this morning and Clive's ride from last night was still MIA. did a refresh on CycLeagues, data there, checked the .txt file, yep-data there also, looked in spreadsheet - nope. Manual refreshed and got it to work, pulled in everything ridden after Clive (may have been others previous, but I "KNEW" when he'd ridden/booked it on strava, and I knew it was booked in last night, not this morning - so it had to have been hung at Google's end for much more than a hour...
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I think that the pickup from CycLeagues to the spreadsheet had also hung - logged in this morning and Clive's ride from last night was still MIA. did a refresh on CycLeagues, data there, checked the .txt file, yep-data there also, looked in spreadsheet - nope. Manual refreshed and got it to work, pulled in everything ridden after Clive (may have been others previous, but I "KNEW" when he'd ridden/booked it on strava, and I knew it was booked in last night, not this morning - so it had to have been hung at Google's end for much more than a hour...
My hope is for at least the fetch to run continuously now so at least it keeps on trucking while I'm away, it was just rather unfortunate for these new style connection issues to happen over the weekend, wasn't overly keen on spending a couple of hours programming on my day off work either but if it does the trick then for next week end it'll be worth the effort.0 -
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that's because you're busy playing a computer game while riding, isn't it...
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Jakess1971 wrote: »...snip...
On a fitness front this is how it's standing for those interested in such stattos:
It's pretty cool to see how the whole fitness/freshness/form graph responds to these challenges, isn't it...
I've been doing my own variant in GoldenCheetah
2 weeks into the TdF and I've just exceeded the "peak" from the final day of the Giro... But it's clear that in the 3 weeks of the challenge the overall fitness (Well - Coggan Chronic Training Load to be more specific) increases purely from the regularity of riding.
Here's a chart of my progress back to September 4th all the way to Yesterday.
for clarity, heres just the CTL curve
it's clear that the initial improvement was much quicker than the current gains are coming in - this is partly explained by the fact that I was following a highly structured regime on the indoor trainer until well into march - if you look at the "Stress" plot it's clear that there was quite a high load on at the time...
Though, this DOES have to be tempered by the consideration that my FTP was maybe 40% lower than current back then, owing to the strict "ceiling" I had on my efforts re: heart rate. Lower FTP = more stress for a given average wattage. Taking the same data but giving my FTP as it's current level for the duration would most likely either straight line the "average curve" or, even make it an upwards curve instead of a tapering off one...
either way you slice and dice it however, I'm a) getting fitter and stronger, and b) despite feeling worn out and tired all the time, I'm actually at the fittest I've been since October 2014... before the whole series of Illnesses came about. And, I'm doing all this on medication that's making me run at around 2/3 of full speed!
Sometimes it takes hard data like this to actually make me sit up and realise just how well I'm actually doing - being the Type-A, over competitive *kitten* that I've always been when it came to any sports I played, getting to a point where I can cope with the fact that I'm old, fat, slow, and can't climb hills to save my life anymore is a tough ask... But being able to confirm in cold hard numbers that I'm actually fitter than I was before the heart episode is one hell of a shot in the arm...
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that's because you're busy playing a computer game while riding, isn't it...
That was only yesterday and the Garmin pauses when I stop to do that.
I'm just old and fat and slow, but persistent.
And, of course, because of weird and persistent health issues, I'm now afraid to get too far from home, so I'm doing lots of repetitive small loops close to home.
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Now that is some stats.0
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So here in San Diego, NerdProm (otherwise known as San Diego Comic-Con) is upon us, which means no rides for me until maybe Sunday night depending on how exhausted I am from the weekend's events. I will for sure be putting in some serious KMs for the finale on Monday though
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Hate to tell you this but it finishes on Sunday, there's always the Summer challenge though.0
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As I have a rowing race this weekend I suspect I have just logged my last ride of Le Tour. It was nice to finish with some sunshine1
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I am heading for my week long ride tomorrow. I am going to attempt to run Strava for the ride but who knows what cell service will be like when over 10000 people converge on the southern part of Iowa where there is pretty much nothing. If I am unable to make that work, I will not be able to post my garmin data until I am finished as I am not dragging my computer along. Just wanted to give you a heads up. Thanks for another great challenge.1
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That's me done for the event - would have liked to have got a few more rides in, but real life intervened.
Thanks Mark for organising the event & the spreadsheet, and Jason for your most excellent CycLeagues tool - this is the first time I've ever done something like this, and both have given me some real motivation to push up my mileage and speed.1 -
@TheBigYin
Mark - I think the spreadsheet update has stuck. It's got my ride from this morning in there, but the afternoon ride that finished around 1800 is in CycLeagues but hasn't come through to the spreadsheet.0 -
@TheBigYin - That should do it for me. I doubt I'll get a ride in this weekend as I'm on a 72 hour shift. The work you and Jakess1971 put into this is amazing. Much appreciated and very motivating.
@Jakess1971 - With a few hiccups, the cycleages worked great! Thanks for setting that up. I know that was a lot of work but it is appreciated. 0 -
@TheBigYin
Mark - I think the spreadsheet update has stuck. It's got my ride from this morning in there, but the afternoon ride that finished around 1800 is in CycLeagues but hasn't come through to the spreadsheet.
http://www.strava.com/activities/649368232, http://www.strava.com/activities/649740061are both in the sheet now...
...as is the most recent ride of anyone showing in the TDF Strava Club, (Kupe's ride this morning, 40.3km - https://www.strava.com/activities/650117036 ) so I'm going to say it managed to get itself un-stuck...
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Can't believe another TDF Challenge has come and gone. Jason/Mark, thank you for another amazing friendly competition. I know for a fact if it wasn't for this challenge I would not have even come close to logging the miles I did. An enormous thank you for all the work that was done behind the scenes to make the whole automated process work as seamlessly as possible was fantastic and much appreciated. I'm sure there's more coding/programming then I'll ever understand in my lifetime. Lastly, Great job to all the riders for taking the time to get out, cycle and enjoy the world around you!3
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lbchilds2001 wrote: »Can't believe another TDF Challenge has come and gone. Jason/Mark, thank you for another amazing friendly competition. I know for a fact if it wasn't for this challenge I would not have even come close to logging the miles I did. An enormous thank you for all the work that was done behind the scenes to make the whole automated process work as seamlessly as possible was fantastic and much appreciated. I'm sure there's more coding/programming then I'll ever understand in my lifetime. Lastly, Great job to all the riders for taking the time to get out, cycle and enjoy the world around you!
Very impressive performance, don't know how you got such a high average speed with all that climbing, I can just about keep it above 20kph when sticking in big hills and distances.
I'm looking forward to getting in a few days healing time and doing some standard 50s for a few weeks now until Septembers big un.
I appreciate everyones patience during the second weekend while I was away and the process died a death, we do however after some tinkering have a better process for it, it kept on pulling rides from Strava over the last weekend even after network issues and Strava death grips, a much happier fitter hamster and he denies he's on EPO.
This will be my last MFP tour this year, my pre weeks LeJog rest and rides clashes with Vuelta and It would spoil the team thing I think but I'll make sure CycLeagues is setup for it and I'll be taking a very active interest to see people go for the prize, judging by Le Tour I can see at least a couple of real contenders.
Thanks to Mark as per for organising another great event and covering for me when things went t I t s up
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Mark & Jase, all I can say is 'superb'!
These challenges are great; helped me get back in the saddle after my 'off' and gave me a purpose. My fitness has improved as a result, so thank you...
Ironically, my average speed was sapped by a club ride into the hills before I was ready for it; so the Green Jersey has escaped me this year
I'm really looking forward to the epic write up Mark usually composes; it's a superb 'finishing touch' to the whole thing...
CycLeagues has been a roaring success; not having to manually enter data has been a god-send. Even with initial teething troubles, it has been worth it's weight in Gold!
Onwards and upwards! See you all for the Vuelta
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A BIG thank you, Mark & Jason, for all of the time & effort you have both invested in to running the Tour challenges and Cycleagues! It's amazing how effortless you guys have made it for us competitors.
I would have liked to contribute more to this challenge but this summer hasn't been the typical 'summer break' for me & my daughter. Free time has been quite low. Get in where you can fit in, I suppose!
Big ups, Jason, for your rides preparing for LeJog this year. Between the 10 days of centuries & your long distance excursions up walls, you are one tough cookie, bro! Thanks for sharing your experiences with the group.
Clive, kudos to you and thanks for the competition over this challenge. It demanded performing at a higher level and pushed me to new limits. It was also a wake up call to shed more pounds! Curious if you PR avg speed this challenge compared to those in the past?
Mark, you've come a long way since last year! I hope your healthy progression continues forward, friend. And stay on the bike because I usually get a chuckle from your post ride reports!
And to everyone else, congrats! I hope you accomplished some goals over these 3 weeks.
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well - that's the TdF Challenge riding over with for another year... Once again, I've said to myself "get out somewhere different this time" and once again I've stuck to the same old circuits - okay, maybe not quite as much as @FitterBody - but still very much a restricted set of loops and locations, and all "out of the back door"...
This REALLY brings it home... not sure if this link will work, but if it does, it's a interactive map - click on the profile, and get the loop...
http://veloviewer.com/athlete/165533/wheel
I started this incarnation of the challenge with a few objectives...
1) Don't Die During It. - check
2) Ride further than last year (602.8km) - check, rode 735.8km, up 22%, also faster (it's all relative - for most of you it's still hideously slow I know) 20.92kph/19.68kph, and with more ascent 5715m/5339m
3) Really, Don't Die During it. - check
4) Try and ride "my share" of the distance and ascent (i.e. have a figure of more than 11.1% of the team's ascent and distance total) - at least that way I know I've "pulled my weight" - can't tell yet, not everyone on the teams ridden, but it's looking good at 12.1% for each)
5) Did I mention Not Dying?? - check
6) to try and get into the "top 10" on at least one "jersey category" - too early to say yet.
7) to still be alive to set up the challenge for LaVuelta, as that's the one i'm slightly scared about, after last year...
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Thanks Mark, thanks Jason! Without you two thus just won't gonna be happen.1
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I've been on MFP over five years (really?) and this is the group that keeps me going, through care-giving and medical issues and life crap. Thanks a bunch, particularly Mark and Jason. My rides get shorter and slower and closer to home every year, but I am still riding and so is the husband, and we are pretty darn happy about it.
Lord willing, and the creek don't rise... we will be riding in Europe next year during the tour and will be at the first couple of stages in person. At least, that's our goal for next year (assuming we save enough money, have good enough health, and cancer and lyme stay in the background). I've already booked a place in Düsseldorf in hope!5 -
Love the wheel graphic from veloviewer, TBY! I made mine (roughly, using the free version) and it shows nothing but two dots because I biked only in Las Vegas and at home (western Arkansas) so the routes are too small to show at the zoomed out view that shows both locations, I just see a big swath of the USA! HA!
But, I still didn't get more than mile as the crow flies from home (or the hotel in Vegas) on any single ride the whole time. This is a product of weird health issues and having to occasionally bike for home under duress (maybe five times during the Tour) in the middle of a planned ride.
Next year I hope to have a much more interesting wheel.
I made my original goal of at least 100k a week during the Tour although I didn't expect to make it when we started. Of course, these are the slowest kilometers ever biked, but who cares. So glad to be cycling slowly and not stuck in bed or hospital or 6 feet under!
And have I mentioned how proud I am of Team Twinkie Scoff?
What an awesome group of folks on my team and in the whole challenge! 
Thanks again, y'all!2 -
Thanks Mark & Jason for making the last month a lot more fun that it would have been and getting this gerbil out and around his Skylane circuit a lot more often than he would have been leading to me becoming a fitter faster gerbil than I was last month! I will ensure the bearings are all greased up and ready to go for the La Vuelta challenge next month which I am sure will be a wheely wheely good challenge ;-)1
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Many Kudos to Mark and Jason ... the challenges definitely get me out on my bike more than I probably would otherwise, and definitely have pushed me to pick up my average speed this year especially.
MANY thanks for doing away with the need to put up a text file every day to log rides ... PyschLeagues has been a boon as far as I'm concerned!
I always feel bad for the team I end up on, because my little slices of time don't amount to much mileage ... but I do my best with what time I have (you have 6 kids in the house and see how much time you have to ride LMAO)1 -
Thanks for a great challenge once again!
Great riding with/seeing everyone's rides and special thanks to Mark and Jason for their work getting and keeping things running. It definitely motivated me to get out and ride at least double what I would have otherwise!1 -
many thanks to Mark and Jason, it was so much easier not having to go on and log the rides manually. Gutted we came last... Lol! But pleasantly surprised and happy to be near the top of the VAM table :drinker:
looking forrward to the next challenge!1 -
Thank you guys -- this is a great group. I wasn't as consistent as I wanted to be but you guys sure inspired me to get out and try to get some miles as often as possible.
Cheers everyone... thanks again.1
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