7 Strava segments defined at Wekiwa; 5 new PRs set yesterday.

Yesterday I went back over to Wekiwa to complete the project of establishing mountain biking segments on Strava. Thankfully I didn’t have any major GPS issues this time, and I have now established segments for most of the trails I ride regularly out there.

Here’s the segment that I named “The Bike Loop“. This is a ~7.5 mile loop that starts at the Sand Lake trailhead and follows the Red blaze (bike) trails back around to the trailhead.

 

The created the entire “Bike Loop” as a single segment, but I also created the following segments within it, which make for nice timed challenges:

• Sand Lake Trailhead to Marker 13 (Red Blaze Trail)
• Marker 13 to Marker 19 (Red Blaze Trail)
• Marker 19 to Sand Lake Trailhead “Sand Hell” (Red Blaze Trail)

 

Then there’s what I call “The Big Loop“. This is a longer and more technical (as Wekiwa goes) ~9 mile loop that also starts at the Sand Lake trail head. At Marker 19, however, instead of following the bike trail I take the White blaze (hiking) trails back around to Sand Lake. The hiking trails have lots of roots along with some mud and water, and are pretty fun to ride:

 

Just like the “Bike Loop”, the “Big Loop” is a single segment, but I also created the following segments within it:

• Sand Lake Trailhead to Marker 13 (Red Blaze Trail)
• Marker 13 to Marker 19 (Red Blaze Trail)
• Marker 19 to Camp Cozy (White Blaze Trail)
• Camp Cozy to Sand Lake (White Blaze Trail)

 

As you can see, the first two segments on both loops are the same. The first segment is the timed run I always start my rides with, but now–thanks to Strava–every segment of my ride (and the entire ride itself) will automatically be compared to previous efforts by me, and anyone else who rides at Wekiwa using Strava.

Yesterday’s ride was only about 9 miles in total, but it was basically a 9 mile all-out sprint as I mapped out and defined “The Bike Loop”. I took a couple of minutes of rest between the segments, but apart from those two fast breaks I was riding as hard as I could. It was quite a workout, especially the final segment, which I no-so-lovingly call “Sand Hell”.

In addition to setting four new timed personal records yesterday (the three mini-segments as well as the complete loop), I also set a peak power output personal record of 1,134 watts. Wekiwa may not have much in the way of elevation challenges (there are a couple of decent sandy climbs, however), but the sugar sand certainly makes for a brutal cardio workout.

So the stage at Wekiwa is set, and the gauntlet has been thrown down! If you live near Central Florida, own a mountain bike and a Garmin, iPhone or Android-based phone, then get out there and kick my butt! Wekiwa is my backyard, and if you can take my crown away on the above segments you’ll definitely have my respect.

By the way, if you want to follow my progress, my rides and my accomplishments on Strava, just create a free account and follow me. Here’s my Strava profile.

Yeah, I’m hooked.