… NOT!

My first time going with a group of five on a “commute.” The Bisikleta Iglesia didn’t push through; so we decided to go on a more difficult ride hahahaha. We were supposed to go to the Maarat trail. Tricia [correctly] suggested we drive there so we could spend most of our energy hitting the actual trail area everyone knows about. Unfortunately that was overruled and we ended up attempting to ride to the place – and ended up in some dirt trail right after the Divine Mercy Village before calling it quits.

We rode from UP to San Mateo, Rizal and back. Probably 18-20 miles; We didn’t put much mileage in the actual destination because the steep climbs decimated our energy. ¹ In fairness, after some referencing with wikimapia, I think we actually rode through part of the “Shotgun;” which was one of the more difficult areas to do. Not to mention that long uphill road in Batasan-San Mateo (pictured above) was utter hell for me; I was riding so slow that my speed was just enough to keep me balanced. Regardless, I’m proud to say that I did it in one go; not bad for a first timer. Or maybe it was the bike that made it easier for me ² I surely had the easiest time on the overpasses hahahaha.

Anyways, the picture above leads to more gallery pictures. But I was fiddling with Googlemaps and tried to plot out our trip. I’m lousy with directions, but I think the route was fairly accurate. The green part (the actual dirt trail/area we road) isn’t [accurate] however. I really couldn’t make heads or tails where we really ended up in hehehe.

There are a couple of things I learned/confirmed for/about myself from this trip:

Pacing is EVERTYHING

If you don’t want lactic acid to destroy you, pace yourself. Cadence is critical here because it’s the thing that makes sure you don’t over-exert (use too high a gear and fatigue easily) or under-exert (too low a gear and tire because of too much RPMs) yourself.

Don’t feel pressured to keep up with the [more experienced] people in front; because you really wont when it comes to sustained uphill climbs. Instead, focus solely on the resistance your pedals are giving you – regardless of the speed you’re in. The goal is to not stop as much as possible ³ Because once you stop, the degree of the uphill incline is proportional to the difficulty it takes to get enough immediate momentum to keep balanced.

Bring sunblock

Don’t argue, just do it. Or use arm sleeves (unless you want to get a burn/tan) that way you get to use less sunblock (a lot of us men don’t like the feeling of sunblock). The sleeves are very thin, so it’s not like you’ll be wearing a jacket because of it.

Have a small towel handy

You’ll sweat like a faucet in some parts… and it can get quite uncomfortable – at least for me it was.

Keep hydrated

This is a no brainer; but hydration systems are a necessity for anything more than a casual ride. Being thirsty actually contributes to a decrease in efficiency. So if you feel really strained and tired, dehydration is sure to be a part of that… even if you’re not that thirsty.

I was able to consume about 1.5L of water the whole trip. A bit less probably, but either way; it’s definitely more than those 20-24oz bottles. Do not underestimate what dehydration can do to your body during any physical activity.

Bring a spare tube

Fortunately no mishaps occurred during the trip. But after seeing what type of “trails” we were riding (rocky, etc.) it’s quite scary to think you’re going through that much uneven, rocky ground without a backup tube. Even on tubeless tires, bring a tube, since you can use a tube for emergencies.

Get used to using cycling shoes

I really have to get used to using my cleated/cycling shoes. There were a number of times that I noticed how the shoes would’ve helped immensely. But at the “level” I’m in, they’d also be too dangerous when I go off balance (which is so easy to do when doing an uneven rocky uphill). Overall I made the right decision of not using them that day. I’m sure Tricia and Elaine know exactly which part of the ride would’ve been the death of me had my feet been locked on the pedals.

Brake effectively

Despite conventional [mis]wisdom, people should know the primary brakes are the front; not the rear. But people fear the front brakes because of the danger of flipping-over; which is possible, but only if you don’t take the time to learn how to modulate the brake properly.

The truth is that regardless of how hard the rear brake is applied, or whether it is applied at all, the sole determinant of whether the bicycle will be flipped is the strength of application of the front brake. As the deceleration to produce flip is approached, the weight on the rear wheel decreases to zero, so that the rear wheel cannot produce any deceleration; with no application of the rear brake it rolls freely, with any application at all it skids at a force approaching zero. With typical bicycle geometry, a brake application to attempt to produce a deceleration greater than 0.67 g will flip the bicycle. (Those who advocate the cyclist moving his butt off and behind the saddle to change the weight distribution achieve a very small increase in this.)

Read more about it here

But there’s a reason why cars’ main brakes are the front, as well as motorcycles’. Simple physics tells us that when decelerating, the weight is shifted to the front… hence the front wheel will have the most traction – hence the most stopping power. So as Mr. Brown posited, skilled cyclists use the most effective brake (front) 95% of the time.

Not that I’m skilled, but I certainly intend to learn everything right the first time around so I could avoid having to “unlearn” anything down the road. So I took the time to switch my brake levers opposite from the US standard. Simple logic: The front brake is most effective and my right hand is my skillful hand… so naturally I’d like to be able to control the “best” brake with my “best hand” – especially when you have to control the modulation to prevent flipping over. I was using my front brakes most of the time, and those were pretty steep inclines… and I don’t recall flipping over.

Having said that, when doing sustained braking (going down long stretches), it is preferable to use the brakes alternately and not at the same time. This is to distribute the heat build up. Brake pads are “rough” or at least they should be. And heating them up too much by braking can have the effect of “glazing” them… which considerably reduces the effectiveness of your brake.

So just imagine if you’re used to using both at the same time and you’re wearing them out at the same time. You’ll be in deep trouble when both start glazing at the same time as well. While it is is also rare for this to happen (unless you live in a mountain and constantly go downhill), it doesn’t hurt to alternate just to minimize the possibility of overheating your brakes.

Stand up

I must’ve gotten this habit from my BMX riding days (you seldom sit down when doing tricks, or jumping everywhere with the bike), but I’m glad I got to use it effectively in mountain biking.

Jane (where I got most of my parts from) had suggested that I get the seat she uses herself – dubbed the “sulit seat.” It was light, inexpensive and had Ti and Cr elements. We have the same body type and she swears her ass bones fit the seat quite nicely in spite of it looking like a racing seat. I’d have to concur. My ass isn’t sore at all from the whole trip.

Still, we mustn’t underestimate the “sucky-ness” of Philippine roads; there are a lot of uneven patches everywhere. What I’m trying to say is that instead of investing in a big-assed, super comfortable, but heavy seat. Try to get a seat that feels decent/good on smooth roads… then simply make it a habit to lift yourself up at the first sign of uneven ground. You get to save a lot of weight on the seat, and you still end up taking it easy on your tooschie.

So today, my legs hurt (naturally), but my ass is fine. And I didn’t wear any padding during the whole trip. Either I have buns of steel, or I simply developed a solid technique of riding more comfortably.

Block the whole day

Whenever you go on trips like these, I think it’s better if you don’t have any other plans for the whole day. Because everyone rides at a different pace and not everyone is prompt. To maximize the experience you should be able to extend the “plan” freely – which I must admit, is part of the fun (I like spontaneous decisions) – which is impossible to do if you’ve got to catch an appointment.

Bike weight matters

I guess whenever you see a cyclist riding the road who looks like they’re overly “set-up” (like going on a nearby camping trip), most of the time they’re not. Kahit papaano, we all tend to be weight weenies din and try to bring only the necessities… it just so happens they add up as well 😉

Considering those “ideal stuff to bring;” all that [compounded] extra weight will make this statement true – especially when you start going up and down overpasses hahaha.

Realization

Technically, my bike wasn’t built for the uber aggressive riding (downhill bombs, etc.), but given my weight, I guess I could get away with it if I’m extremely careful. It’s really a Cross Country (XC) competition bike; which is perfect because I noticed that I’m really an XC type person instead of a downhill/free-rider.

Perhaps the techincal difficulty of the venue was too much too soon for a newbie like me; and I ended up spending more time “struggling” than “having fun.” I ended up enjoying the commute more than the actual “trail ride.” And I’m looking forward to much longer trips (e.g. going to Tagaytay or something) where we can sleepover once there, etc. I appreciate the scenery/company more than the actual “challenge.” All very XC characteristics.

I just have to invest in a bigger bag for those epic rides… that and get Cris to develop enough endurance to ride with me during those trips.