09-30-2019 Ride

It was a simple plan, head out 30 miles, turn around and ride back.  I started out at slow pace and never really got into a groove.  Out Ben Zvi and the 44, quiet streets on this Rosh HaShana.  It seemed like I had a little headwind on the way out, and I didn't mind because I figured I would need the help on the way back.  Out to Hwy 3, feeling okay but slow.  On the first moderate little climb past the highway, I was able to keep it above 10 mph the whole way, but it was an effort near the end.  Not so good on the second climb, where I started slow and got even slower when the incline increased.  This is when I should have realized I was low in energy.  Out to the 38, heading south to the point where there is a fairly short, steep downhill.  I didn't want to climb back up, so I turned around and rode back to the 3835, turning here to get a little more distance in.  Off this road is the Teperberg Winery, but it looks pretty industrial.  Retraced my route back to the 38, and I was slow from here all the way back home.  All the climbs were a chore, no legs cramping but no push at all.  And that tailwind I was hoping for was much more of a headwind, no help at all and somewhat of a hindrance.  Even the coasting downhill sections seemed slow, and I was definitely in "just make it to the end" mode.  By the time I realized I was low-energy, I just figured there wasn't any real benefit in stopping to get something to eat.  So I suffered on the way back.  Really happy to get to the end, but it seemed anticlimatic, since I had been awaiting it for the last half of the ride.  Definitely need a different strategy for getting calories during such rides, this was not a good day.

Avg speed = 15.6 mph. Total mileage = 60.6 mi
Avg heartrate = 139 bpm
Total elevation gain = 2730'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3821427892
https://www.fitbit.com/activities/exercise/25639057193

09-29-2019 Ride

Solo ride, able to get up and rolling just a little after 6:30.  Out Ben Zvi and the 44 to the 412, not really feeling any strong headwind (more on this later).  Rode through Rishon LeTsion and turned on the 4311 to go out to Palmahim.  Pretty good time on this stretch.  At the beach, there were a huge number of tents set up, so my idea of camping out there this week isn't a good one.  On the way back, I was a little slower, but my pace was still decent.  I turned right onto the 412 and took it over to Kalman Shor St, which roughly parallels the 431 for a while.  It has an annoying little grade to it, and I was slow on this stretch.  Then I turned left onto the 4313, which took me back to the 44.  But I wanted more distance, so I turned right and rode through Ramla on Sderot Herzl, slowly because of poor road quality and traffic lights.  Then back over to the 44 by the train station and heading back toward home.  Initial stretch on this road was a little slow, but once I got over the new bridge just past Ramla, the tailwind really picked me up.  I averaged over 20 mph for the next 7 miles or so, only slowing down when I got back into town and more traffic lights.  I lost a water bottle hitting a pothole going under the 20, but I stopped and was able to pick it up off the road.  Quite a workout on the way back to keep my pace high, again with the aid of a good tailwind.

Avg speed = 17.9 mph. Total mileage = 41.3 mi
Avg heartrate = 143 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1467'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3819604840
https://www.fitbit.com/activities/exercise/25621122784

09-28-2019 Ride

Solo ride, initially, leaving from usual Netanya parking lot by Oren's home and heading out through the neighborhood to the 57 and then up to Hwy 4.  I headed south for a little bit before turning around at a gas station, riding counter to traffic flow for this little stretch to get back to the 57, not so safe feeling.  Then it was back to starting spot, waiting a couple of minutes for Oren to show up, then riding over to meet Slavik and head back the same way.  Only we turned north and rode up to the 581, which is becoming a familiar road.  Oren's pace on this ride was faster than he had been riding recently, so I generally rode at his pace, occasionally faster on the little climbs.  On the northbound stretch of the 581, we rode in a pace line, the three of us, and that was generally faster.  Up to the 574 for a very small climb before we turned onto the 6403, which is a nice little stretch of road.  Over to the 65, which we took back to Hwy 4.  Here, I dialed my pace back, since Slavik was falling back and I didn't want to lose contact with him.  We rode at a more moderate pace back through Hadera, then a little faster for the rest of the section on Hwy 4, but it was disjointed, not very organized in rotating through leads.  Back to the 57, staying on it a little longer to ride over to Landower for a quick break before returning to the starting point.  Legs felt fine at the end of this 50 mile ride, but I was hungry.  Again, I need to figure out a plan for fueling during longer rides.

MapMyRide app on my phone hasn't been working so well lately with auto starting and stopping.  Luckly, Fitbit app is a good substitute.

Avg speed = 17.0  Total distance = 49.7 mi
Avg heartrate = 135 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1170'
https://www.fitbit.com/activities/exercise/25572366888

09-27-2019 Ride

Easy solo ride, getting a late start.  Headed out Ben Zvi and the 44 to the 40, then back through downtown Ramla and retracing my route until Herzel St, where I took a right and rode over to Kibbutz Galuyot.  Then home the normal way.  Nothing really special about the ride, I didn't push the pace really at all.

Avg speed = 16.7 mph. Total mileage = 24.9 mi
Avg heartrate = 132 bpm
Total elevation gain = 740'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3816206233
https://www.fitbit.com/activities/exercise/25572164500

09-21-2019 Ride

I saw early in the morning that Oren had proposed riding, but there weren't any further details.  So I proactively drove up past Netanya, near Hadera, and hung out for a while.  He sent me a text aligning on meeting location and time (later than I had guessed by about an hour), so we met by an Aroma in Pardes Hana-Karkur, me, Oren, and Rotem.  Got started around 7:15, heading north on the 652 to get to the 653, which goes through Giv'at Ada, where we had started a ride about a month ago.  We turned left onto the 6533, then right onto this other road that we had ridden before and took us to the turnoff to get onto the Golani military base.  Weather was cooperative for most of this ride, cooler, and a little cloudy, with lower humidity than the previous day.  Through the military base, continuing to the 672, which we took north to climb up to Dalya.  Then we turned right onto the 6953 for a short climb up to Ein HaShofet.  A 10-minute rest there before we retraced our route.  This time, I was in better shape and also not as worn out, so I made decent time on the return trip, getting out ahead of the others on the little climbing sections.  There weren't a lot of long climbs on this ride, but much of it was up and down, not so many flat sections.  After we exited the military base, I slowed down to match the pace of the others, except for a little climb not so long after.  The last couple of miles were significantly slower, as I was riding at Oren's pace, and he was ready to be done.  The cafe wasn't open when we got back, so we went to another Aroma place not too far away.  Felt really good at the end of this ride, it was a workout but not one where I overextended myself.

Avg speed = 15.2 mph. Total mileage = 36.6 mi
Avg heartrate = 136 bpm
Total elevation gain = 2220'
https://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/2696252170
https://www.fitbit.com/activities/exercise/25395027723

09-20-2019 Ride

Solo ride in the morning, I was a little surprise at myself for being able to get up at 5:30 to start riding at 6:00, when it was still dark.  Headed out Ben Zvi and the 44 to the 412, turning left to get to the 461 and the 40.  It was cloudy at the start, although I could feel the humidity.  No real wind to speak of at the start.  I rode to the end of the 44 and then turned onto the 55 to get more miles in.  This road has a little hill that gets steeper at the end, and I took it to the top and then rode downhill past it.  There is a roundabout right before what looked like a security checkpoint, and that's where I turned around to retrace my route.  On the way back, I didn't have to battle the wind, so I think my pace was a little higher than usual.  I felt okay on this ride, but I was really tired later in the day, and my legs were tired.  By the latter part of the ride back, the sun was out a little bit, and it was really humid, more that I remember being affected by it in some time.

It was the first ride with my replacement Fitbit, which I received earlier in the week.  Whoohoo!

Avg speed = 17.5 mph. Total mileage = 52.9 mi
Avg heartrate (Fitbit) = 146 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1290'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3802732078
https://www.fitbit.com/activities/exercise/25403348239

09-14-2019 Ride

Solo ride, after initially planning to meet Oren, who was not feeling well.  After two days of faster rides, my aims were modest here.  Faster average speed than 16 mph, about 35 miles.  So I headed out Ben Zvi and the 44 to the 412, heading northeast to the 4610 and then the 40.  North to Petah Tikva, riding past the turnoff to continue on the 40.  By the time I got to the 412, my average speed was 14.4 mph, so that was a slow start.  I picked up the pace after this.  I also found that the road in Petah Tikva doesn't continue for very much longer past the 40 turnoff, so I turned around and retraced my route.  Not much help from the wind on this day, since it wasn't doing much that I could detect.  On the way back, once on Ben Zvi, I turned right onto Lavon St, which took me to Shalma, and from there it was the normal way back home.

Avg speed = 17.0 mph. Total mileage = 35.0 mi
Total elevation gain = 750'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3790410808

09-13-2019 Ride

Solo ride from home, getting started at 6:30.  Headed out Ben Zvi and the 44 to the 424, taking it up to Kfar Bin-Nun and turning around before the little downhill.  I originally intended to ride at a moderate pace, but I was feeling good and made good progress on the gradual slight grade on the 424 until the turnaround point.  When I turned around, it seemed like I had more of a tailwind than any headwind I had felt on the way out, and so I was riding fast on the way back.  Averaged almost 21 mph on the return, and I never really felt like I was pushing myself all out.

Avg speed = 18.2 mph. Total mileage = 40.8 mi
Total elevation gain = 1150'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3788738095

09-12-2019 Ride

Solo ride in the morning from work, parking behind Ilan Ramon building and starting around 6:00. I headed out Menachem Begin to the 40,then turned south to get to the 411. Headed southeast on this road which has a very gentle slope upward that gets slightly steeper at times. Out to where it tees into Hwy 3,where I turned around and retraced my route. Still hearing some noise in my drivetrain, so maybe I need somebody to look at my bottom bracket. Ugh!

Avg speed = 18.1 mph. Total mileage = 24.8 mi
Avg heartrate = 148 bpm (!)
Total elevation gain = 860'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3786789940

09-07-2019 Ride

Ride with Oren, Slavik, and Rotem, leaving from usual starting place in Netanya.  Met Slavik shortly after, and we headed over to Hwy 4, heading north.  After a rolling start, we kept a pretty good pace.  We rode past the 581, looking for Rotem at the intersection and not seeing him.  Turns out he was waiting at the bus stop on the 581, so we circled back and connected with him.  East on the 581 to the 5803, where Slavik turned back and we continued riding east.  For a stretch, the three of us kept up a loose pace line, riding to the 574 and then turning left onto the 6403, riding just past the 65 intersection to stop at an Aroma for a break.  After the stop we headed back to Hwy 4 via the 65, where Rotem headed back home and we turned south.  A somewhat slow pace through Hadera, then Oren and I picked it up a little bit on the way back to Netanya.  My legs were still feeling it from the previous day's ride, so I couldn't push it very much.  Cool-down section on the last 2 miles back to the car.

Avg speed = 16.3 mph. Total mileage = 42.0 mi
Avg heartrate = 136 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1080'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3776569750

09-06-2019 Ride

Ride from Nachshon junction, meeting Zvika and starting around 6:00.  We headed out the 44 toward the 38, and I did okay on the two little climbs.  Then we turned onto the 3855 to get over to the 3866 and the climb up to Nes Harim.  It was brutal, just so steep that I couldn't keep up a steady cadence and just plugged along.  I knew it would be tough, I haven't been riding hills or long distances to build up my endurance and muscle strength.  From there we rode down the Tsur Hadassah grade, a long downhill with some really fast sections, to the 375, where we turned and kept the downhill going, although at just a slight gradient.  Then it was a short climb up to Aderet, which looks over the Ela Valley, before we turned around the headed back to the 375.  From there to the 38, and I've ridden this road a number of times.  The gradual climb was bad at the start but I finished better than I thought I would.  The sharper, short climb was one I was able to punch through, not so bad but it probably did a number on my leg muscles, so there wasn't a lot left.  A short stop in Bet Shemesh for a candy bar and a little rest before finishing up.  I was slow, plodding, up the climb on the 44, then I just rode without a lot of push in my legs to finish up the ride.  Only a brief moment or two on that last climb where I felt a twinge in my right hamstring, but it didn't turn into anything.  In any case, I was glad I didn't have much more distance to cover by the end.

Avg speed = 14.5 mph. Total mileage = 46.2 mi
Avg heartrate = 151 bpm
Total elevation gain = 4780'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3774889120

09-02-2019 Ride

Solo ride leaving from work, first time I tried it.  I got up early and was on the road by 6:00, although it was still a little dark.  Headed out Begin to the 40 and turned left.  Some traffic but not so bothersome.  I rode over to the 44 and headed southeast.  Felt generally good on the little climbs, not so much wind in play.  Rode to Hwy 3 and headed south to get to the 411.  After a little climb it was mostly flat to slightly downhill, so I made good time on the return.  Back to the 40, heading toward Rehovot.  I turned right onto the road just before the turn back toward work to get a couple of extra miles in.  Fast on the last stretch as well, again a slight downhill but more traffic and sketchy road near the curb.  Although I had a good average speed on this ride, my legs didn't feel all that strong.  I took a shower at work, which was a big help.

Avg speed = 18.3 mph. Total mileage = 30.9 mi
Avg heartrate = 141 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1130'
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3766300780