We did it!

The third annual Skatelife GranFondo is in the books!
Warm sun, great roads, awesome support team, and fun company made this ride a complete success.

Thank you to all of our donors, volunteers, riders, well wishers and sponsors.
In the coming days check back for some fun pictures of the weekend.
If you missed out this year, plan now to ride the Skatelife GranFondo 2014, June 21-22!

Our SLGF 2012 riding team!

Last days of prep for the big ride!

Here's an article from Velo News with some good tips for riding just prior to a GranFondo. It's all about tapering the effort down to allow your body rest prior to a big effort.


"Tapering before your Gran Fondo is important. Trying to get in a last minute 100-mile ride to boost your endurance in the week prior to the event will not help. You’d be better off tapering to make sure that you are rested before a long challenging ride.

Make sure you are well rested before a Gran Fondo.
How best to taper?
•Do your last endurance workout 4-8 days before your Gran Fondo.
•Avoid “big gear” workouts for 1-2 weeks before the event.
•Avoid exhaustive aerobic workouts for the three days prior to leaving for your Gran Fondo
•Intervals (LT) are OK in the last week, but should be avoided in final 2 or 3 days before you depart for the event
•Use an active recovery ride (very, very easy) in the days before, or simply rest if riding isn’t an option
•Treat the first few kilometers of the Gran Fondo as a “warm-up” to get your legs accustomed to the effort

If you’re looking to peak for your Gran Fondo event you’ll want to reduce volume in the week before but maintain your intensity. High volume makes recovery more difficult, and lower volume allows the rest required for replacing glycogen stores, while giving you time to psych yourself up for the hard efforts ahead. As your schedule permits, you’ll want to continue to ride, but keep in mind that you’ll benefit most from decreasing the duration of your intervals while maintaining intensity."

Article from

Training for Gran Fondos, part 5: Tapering and tips

• By Curtis and Kristi Eastin, Chris Jones
• Published Jul. 20, 2010
• Updated Dec. 14, 2012 at 3:36 PM EDT

 See the entire article here.

Mapping out the ride

Here is a complete picture of the day 1 and day 2 routes of the Skatelife GranFondo. Included are elevations, re-fuel stop locations, and even grades. Now all that's left is the biking!
We are excited to have a great support team backing us up en route for the weekend- Thank you volunteers!

Day 1 of the SLGF, 2013

Day 2

Route adjustment = better day 1 riding

New day 1 route around Skaha Lake (image Map My Ride)

Our Skatelife GranFondo "route consulting committee" has come up with a slight adjustment for the day 1 route which will offer quieter roads and better scenery for the first 19 km of the ride.

The new route will lead all our cyclists from our start point in south Penticton along the east side of Skaha Lake to Okanagan Falls. From there the main group will begin the ascent to the Hwy 3a Junction

A great ride around Skaha Lake (photo The Doctrine Training and Racing)

and beyond toward Keremeos.

We will provide the first rider check point at OK Falls where cyclists can grab snacks, adjust their gear, etc if they want. Of course our luxury support vehicles (Van of Shame) can offer 'assistance' to riders at any point up the ascent toward Keremeos.

On Sunday's return home we will stay on Hwy 97 from the 3A junction in to our finish in Penticton.

Jerseys are on their way!

Is your jersey collection looking a little too 'retro'? Does your jersey stand on it's own after a ride? Has it developed new pin striping rings under the armpits? Tired of all the comments from that old Livestong jersey you got a few years back?
If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions then this summer's Skatelife GranFondo has a treat for you!

Check out our new jerseys for this year's ride! They come from Hayman Sport in the Okanagan, and they are great quality, stylish items guaranteed to make you faster! (or look like you are faster!)

All participants raising funds as Silver or Gold riders will get a jersey as a big thank you for helping support Skatelife's important work with young people.

If you are coming and would like to pick one up- they are available for $85 and come in sport fit and race fit.

Or, you can pre-order one right now by emailing skatelife@younglife.ca.

 

More GranFondo Training Tips- Speed

Our second training tip comes again courtesy of Velonews. Enjoy!
 
Excepts from...
Training for Gran Fondo's, Part 2: Speed
by Velonews.com
Published  --> Mar. 26, 2010
Updated  Jul. 23, 2010 at 1:23 PM EDT -->

"When we talk about “speed work” in the context of this article we don’t necessarily mean racing. What we mean is keeping the pace of whichever group you find yourself riding in, be it two or 20 riders. This has many benefits for riders of long tours; sticking with a group and drafting helps to save energy and promote recovery.

Riding with a “quicker” group could save you energy in the long run, so safely practicing speed in groups could be an option.

When pedaling, think about spinning in circles. Be aware of picking up your power stroke as early as possible over the top of the pedaling cycle. Similarly, at the bottom of the cycle, think of scraping mud off a shoe to help get through the so-called dead-spot.

Don’t avoid speed work, even if you’re not a “racer” per se, and try to avoid gear mashing.

Pushing a big gear fatigues the leg muscles more quickly than spinning (in a smaller gear)."

Hope this helps. Check out the rest of the article here.

It's training time!

The weather has turned & it's the perfect time to prep for a great weekend of riding this summer at the Skatelife GranFondo.Preparing now for your ride will allow you the fitness and endurance you'll want for the event.

We've searched the internet and found some great articles to help your training, so stay tuned in the coming days and have fun riding!

Excerpts from- 
 Training For Gran Fondos, Part 1: Endurance

•    By Curtis and Kristi Eastin, Chris Jones

•    Published Feb. 23, 2010

•    Updated Dec. 15, 2012 at 11:23 PM EDT

From Velo News

“Since we’re speaking of training for endurance and not for “speed,” your most important ride will be your long ride. It is important not to mix your weekly endurance rides with speed, strength and power workouts. Avoid the local group ride on these days.

Find a friend who likes to ride steady i.e. you can still hold a conversation — yes, even uphill and on your favorite town-line sprints! Avoid those friends who insist on half-wheeling you. The objective is to train not only your muscles and your cardiovascular system — both of which receive benefits from strength, speed and power workouts — but also to train your digestive system and your ability to use energy efficiently.

The key is to plan and build up the miles slowly and consistently and enjoy your cycling!”

This year's SLGF sponsors- Making a great event even better!

A big shout out to all of our SLGF '13 sponsors. We are grateful to have these partners helping make this summer's ride the best yet.

This years' partners include Cannondale, Different Bikes in West Vancouver, New Line Skateparks, and Kelowna Cycle.

Register to Ride the Skatelife GranFondo

Registration is now open for this summer's Skatelife GranFondo, June 22-23.
Simply click on the registration link on the right to set up your rider page and you'll be ready to ride!
This year we are offering three rider options: Gold, Silver and SLGF Rider.

Thank you for joining us as we raise funds to help Skatelife reach out to young people across Canada!

SLGF Brochure

The Skatelife GranFondo Brochure is here!
We have a great route planned taking us from the Okanagan Valley to the Similkameen Valley and back. Our registration page will be online by the first week of March, so book off June 22-23 now and get ready to ride!

New web page- slgf.ca!

Hello cycling fans,

Soon you will have another option for getting the latest on the upcoming Skatelife GranFondo, June 22-23, 2013. You can continue checking us our on our Blogger page, or you can soon go to our new website, slgf.ca. Either way you will be connected to the latest info as this amazing cycling event approaches!

See you online again soon!