On week 15, except monday’s marathon turned half marathon because of poor fitness, i didnot do a single exercise. Work and family got in the way…
On saturday 11, put my Five Fingers on and went for city run, without any route planned. I like these kind of runs where body cannot unconsciously adapt to a unknown distance. I ended up doing 18k, a very enjoyable run, with some EG.
Got pretty sore calves the next day, while i was considering heading to Claveisolles the next 2 days, with uncooperative legs it felt pointless.
Then i got the idea: go by bike, stay the night and ride back the next day.
On Tuesday morning i waited for the bike rental shop to open, rented the same gravel bike as before and headed toward Claveisolles.
Routing: done with https://brouter.m11n.de/ i played with the optional itineraries as i had 2 constraints:
- avoid the Azergues valley road which is boring and high traffic
- have a different return itinerary
Application did a very good job. Good mixing of gravel and asphalt road. Gravel parts were effectively gravel compatible (mostly hardpacked trail). Roads were quiet, beautiful, with very few cars. By avoiding valley road, i got an extra EG 😅
Navigation: out of care, i took 2 phones and a spare battery. Wise choice as my main phone battery dies shortly after leaving Lyon. I then used the second phone to display the itinerary without routing. I would keep it off and turn it on only when a routing decision had to be taken. The battery lasted pretty well.
Gear: i took gloves, they turn out being too hot and not padded enough. I had painful wrists / handpalm. I also got a padded short. butt appreciated it. But not enough for the second day on the saddle. For the next ride, i must find my pair of mtb shoes compatible with automatic pedals. and also sun protection…
Food: mix of dried fruits and oat. during 1st day i did a lengthy stop at a boulangerie, midway.
An afterthought: this was more a performance exercise than a gentle day out. Gravel biking is to bike travel what trailrunning is to hiking. Or is it just me ?