Four Days to Fitness

I can’t remember where I saw the notice about Neil Shirley’s Four Days to Fitness. Probably on Instagram or Facebook. You can follow Neil on IG at @nielshirley1. In case you didn’t know Neil is a former Pro, riding for the Kelly Benefits Strategies Team back in 2009-2010 he was also the recent Editor for Road Bike Action, handing the reins over to John Hornbeck at the tail end of last year.

The premise is simple, four days, four big rides, rain or shine! The rides started and finished in Santa Clarita which is a 40 minutes’ drive away and with the kids away at the respective other parents and some downtime from work lined up I had a clear runaway to attend all four days. The rides started on December 29 and would finish on January 1.

The first three days routes we announced in advance and were around the 75 mile distance. The fourth would be 100 miles or so and would be announced closer to the date. All four days started and finished from a parking lot of semi occupied strip mall and as a result parking was easy. All four rides were new to me as I had never ridden in this are before.

Day 1. The vibe was laid back with a hint of nervousness. The sun was out but it was cool and crisp. Clothing choices are always a challenge as you could end up either over or underdressed, the former meaning you have to stuff your jersey pockets with everything you discard. As well as all the spare bits and pieces that you may need along the way. There was a SAG vehicle but that was really only a “in case of emergency” option. There were some instructions on safety and we rolled out. It didn’t take for me to drop off the back, or at least into the latter half of the group, getting caught at traffic lights didn’t help. We rode through town and then started on the climb along Lake Casitas. There was a small group and we bobbed and weaved through each other. We definitely weren’t working together which made it harder and I could see the faster half heading off into the distance. I dug in and rode off from the group in a very futile attempt to bridge. A couple of guys came with me and pulled them along for best part 10 miles with the climb to Lake Hughes. The scenery was great and very different from where I usually ride. We were located on the western edge of the San Gabriel Mountains and as noted in my Crystal Lake ride from the fall, the views are longer, the mountains bigger and the climbs longer! There was a small regrouping and we rolled off again. I tried to hang with the big kids and got dropped like a stone! This left me in no-man’s land and so I just dug in and rode. A quick side note, the rides had been uploaded to MapMyRide and I was able to download it into my Garmin 810. I had opted to download the .gpx file, bad choice. I should have used the .tcx file. The .gpx was so poorly aligned to the map on my screen there were times I would zoom all the way out and still could not see it in relation to my location. Failing eyes and a 1.5” screen was not helping! The route passed through Leona Valley and then turned right towards Lincoln Crest. Around mile 49 the route turned right. My noted .gps file missed this. I rode straight on…oops! As it turned out it was no biggie and I eventually rolled back into Santa Clarita not before having a swooping descent where I maxed out a 47mph. A new top speed PR for me! The parking lot looked emptier and I assumed everyone had come back and left. I was loading my car when suddenly everyone rolled into the Parking Lot. I asked the guy parked near me about distances and then realized my mistake!

Day 2 Rain and lots of it! The forecast was rain, it was raining when I looked at it! I had decided to take my Lynskey for Day 2. Big fat 32mm Gatorskins and Disc brakes gave me a sense of security. Unknown roads and the thought of wiping out on my precious Cervelo were enough to motivate me to leave in behind. The downside was the increase in weight. Titanium is relatively light but this is the bike I rode for Dirty Kanza vs the bike I Everested on! The ride comprised of two out and backs and then a loop. The group was smaller than the day before and we were significantly more wrapped up. Again I was dropped, it’s a good job I am comfortable in my own company, in fact I was still fussing when they left and so I was a good 5 minutes behind them. We rode out of town and started the climb up Ridge Route Road. I caught the main group around my mile 15, their mile 21! Ugh. A descent down to a dead end on Templin Highway, a U turn and back up. The ride was two big climbs bookended by more big climbs and descents. I dropped back down the other side and started the ride out to Pyramid Lake. Another out and back. As I was outing others were backing. No worries. At Pyramid Lake the sun came out and I stripped off leg warmers and a windbreaker leaving the waterproof jacket just in case! The second section of the ride was the loop and I had been given the headsup that there would have been some gravel. With the rain parts of it were a muddy, puddled mess. I had spent 64 miles thinking I had made a mistake bringing the Lynskey then I turned right into Dry Gulch Road and all the mud and gravel made up for it! I rode through this section noticing a few tire tracks but no way as many as riders who had left the parking lot in the morning. No surprises I was last one back kin the parking lot! Beer me!

Day 3 Rinse and Repeat! Becca was going to join me for Day 3. This day the route took us to the East of Santa Clarita in the general direction of Palmdale. The ride profile had two climbs; the first was 35 miles long and the second was about 4 miles. The total distance was 79 miles so marginally more up than down. Becca and I were wrapped up for the elements and were glad of that fact. I had checked out the road as best I could from the aerial maps and this day there was not gravel sections so we were both on our road bikes Becca making good use of her Specialized Ruby and its new shiny 11 speed groupset! The first two hours were steady rain with intermittent heavy rain. We climbed and climbed topping out at 4300’, this is some 1000’ higher than the absolute highest point in the Santa Monica Mountains and we could see snow on the higher slopes. It certainly got gritty at the end, best described as remorseless! The turnaround as you would expect presented a nice downhill until it turned uphill. At this point the rain came in again and the temperature dropped. We both gritted our teeth and made the sketchy ride back into Santa Clarita catching every set of traffic lights on the way back! It truly sucked! After loading up the car our reward was a drive though the McDonalds drive-thru for French Fries and Hot Chocolate!

Day 4 Finally a break in the weather. What had been originally billed as 100 miles was cut down to 75 miles and was a reverse of Day 1 route. I wanted to use this ride as my first Ultra Marathon Cycling Association Year Rounder Century ride of the year and start the year with a bang. To be honest it’s been a couple of weeks since riding and I can’t remember too much. This route included a reverse of the section that I had missed from Day 1 and that provided a great view over Bouquet Reservoir. From here it was a short drop back into Bouquet Canyon and the long ride up into Green Valley. After all the rain it was cold and there was a steady wind. It could have been a lot worse but it wasn’t great. I knew that once I got to the location of the stop from Day 1 it should be a long easy descent with a pitchy climb in the middle. What I hadn’t banked on was the block headwind for the 30 miles back to the start! Still the sun was out, I was on my bike and it could have been far far worse! I got back to the car with 77 miles on the clock and pootled around the bike likes of Santa Clarita to round it up. It was a long day for sure and on top the three big days prior my legs were shagged!

So four days and just over 311 miles with 22,208’ of gain. By far one, if not the, biggest four day block I have done. As always, I was humbled by the other rider’s ability to spin their pedals and crank out the watts! I am pretty sure that with the exception of Day 1 they were all at home with their feet up while I was cursing at the weather, the weight of my bike, the weight of me or a combination of all thee! That said I was pleased that I was able to grit all four days out and complete each ride. I’ll be on the lookout for the same event next year and hopefully I will be able to hang a little longer!