Thursday, August 30, 2007

Inspiration(x2) over Injuries

I've been injured. That is partly why I have not been posting much/taking sabbatical. I had to get my mind wrapped around the injury and how it was going to affect my chances for my fall marathon, The Wineglass in Corning, NY. I'm waiting to see how things go with recovery before committing to the race. This is supposed to be a Boston qualifier for me. I had my sights set on not only the BQ time but a time better than that.

Training has been going so well I was starting to put extra pressure on myself for an awesome finish time. I'm not sure if my body was starting to reject the preconceived notion of pushing to a goal beyond BQ or what. My right leg just didn't want to do the work anymore. I had to refocus and move away from such lofty goals and remember to enjoy the process of training and running.

I may have been putting too much pressure on myself. I think it was an internal pressure. I'm pretty easy going so I'm surprised that I am even saying that. But I've managed to let go a little and it has helped. If I am able to run this marathon great. If I am not able to then that is okay also.

Aimee helped me with getting my mind straightened out. Isn't that what an Ironmate is supposed to be. She helped pull me back together and look at the marathon for what it is. She's the marathon veteran in our house. I'm officially a newbie to the distance. She has been my rock and reminds me that no matter what she is there for me. One of many reasons I love her.

I was also finding myself lacking/loosing motivation to train at all. I still had the ability to ride the bike and swim. I also forgot about being on the elliptical trainer. I almost let it all go and say to hell with the marathon completely. But then I reconsidered. This was a small setback. I've seen this before in my son and I've dealt with it during the spring of '06.

Inspiration came in the form of my son. The summer prior to his senior year of high school he was diagnosed with a stress fracture. He was looking forward to a good season of cross country that would propel him to an even better track season. When he learned of his injury he was depressed that his senior year would not be what he had envisioned.

He went through rehab and was able to start running again half way through the season. He joined the junior varsity team for a couple of meets and finally made the varsity team near the end of the season.

During the awards banquet, his coach made special mention of the hard work and determination Andrew showed during his period of rehabilitation. The coach was impressed with Andrew's recovery and ability to rejoin the varsity squad.

I have resolved myself to push my training on the bike, on the elliptical and in the pool so that I may be ready to run on September 30th with Aimee. If I am not ready I will continue to train so that I may be able to attempt another race in October or November. Only time will tell.

Game On.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Quotable quotes

You don't love a woman because she's beautiful,

She's beautiful because you love her.

'Nuf said

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Sabbatical

I think it happens to all of us at one point or another. You reach that point where things slow down, new projects or events pull you in different directions and all of a sudden your plate if overflowing.



I've reached that point. I need to cut loose some extra fluff and find some focus, find some direction, find something. Release some things and see where everything falls.


I guess I've been taking a break sub-consciously since my posting has been sporadic at best. I'll post when the mood strikes me. I think I'm going to turn off comments, but my e-mail will still be open.




I'm trying to find a balance like Frazz.

If this is hard to read go here.












I'm going to leave you with this post from Phoenix. Listen to what she says about heros.....smart girl.

See you on the flip side.


As always.......


Game On!

Monday, August 06, 2007

Whiteface Mountain and Me

For all of the chart and data geeks out there here is the details on my ride up Whiteface Mountain. You may also appreciate the equipment selection as well.

Gear:
Clothing kit included arm warmers and wind vest tucked into the back pocket of my jersey. I need these on the ride down as the air was still cool and the speeds caused the sweat to chill the body.

GT ZR3000 road bike with Flashpoint 60 wheels, 11-23 cassette and 53/39 cranks.

I was in the 39/23 combination for the entire climb....no way around it. What do you expect when the average grade is 8.4% for 8 miles. I used Google Earth and the BIM Active data to figure out the average grades per mile. I changed the table to reflect the grades for the climb.

The data doesn't show it but I topped out at 4585 feet elevation after starting the official climb at 1040 feet. That's 3545 feet of pure non-stop climbing.

Activity
Route:--Elev. Avg:1984 ft
Location:Jay, NYElev. Gain:+9 ft
Date:07/21/07Up/Downhill:[+4812/-4803]
Time:06:19 AMDifficulty:4.6 / 5.0
Weather:Fair
63F temp; 83% humidity
63F heat index; winds Calm
Performance

Distance:32.92 miles
Time:2:39:48
Speed:12.3 mph
Pace:4' 53 /mi
Calories:1092
Map
Elevation (ft.)
Speed (mph)
Splits
MileGRADE Speed (mph)Elevation
Gain
actualactual+/- avg
111.0-1.3+174 ft
213.0+0.7+142 ft
324.1+11.8-114 ft
412.4+0.1+206 ft
516.0+3.7-92 ft
64.011.2-1.2+210 ft
79.47.0-5.3+495 ft
89.05.5-6.8+475 ft
97.17.8-4.5+374 ft
109.56.7-5.6+501 ft
119.06.6-5.7+475 ft
129.46.4-5.9+495 ft
137.37.9-4.4+387 ft
145.5-6.8-298 ft
1511.5-0.8-436 ft
1625.3+13.0-521 ft
1724.0+11.7-518 ft
1827.8+15.5-410 ft
1936.0+23.7-446 ft
2036.8+24.4-508 ft
219.1-3.3-331 ft
2216.0+3.7+147 ft
2326.9+14.6-151 ft
2417.5+5.2+49 ft
2520.0+7.7-105 ft
2626.1+13.8-193 ft
2722.6+10.3-20 ft
2819.7+7.4-27 ft
2918.9+6.6+42 ft
3014.2+1.9-7 ft
3121.9+9.6-36 ft
3219.9+7.6+26 ft
end14.3+2.0+23 ft
Versus average of 12.3 mph

Posted from bimactive.com

Friday, August 03, 2007

Ironman USA Spectator Race Report - Friday/Saturday

Ever since I finished my first Ironman at Lake Placid, Aimee and I have been excited about returning. Returning to this magical place in order to enjoy the scenery, do things we didn’t get a chance to do last year and cheer our friends to the finish line. We were also fortunate enough to get our dream volunteer job as wetsuit peelers. We wanted to volunteer early so we could then be on the course to cheer for not only our friends but all of the athletes.

We drove up to Lake Placid on Friday with a misty rain obscuring our view of the mountains all the way from Watertown. The drive was uneventful but I enjoy the time we spend together confined to the car. We both had workouts to do in the morning and were hoping for good weather. I wanted to ride the road up Whiteface Mountain and Aimee had 10 miles to run. We grabbed dinner at Caffe Rustica since we had to drive through town on our way to Jay.

We would be staying at the Book and Blanket Bed & Breakfast for the weekend. Only $75/night and not to far from Lake Placid, the lodging was very nice. Aimee’s mom stayed there last year and really liked it. The other guests at the B&B consisted of an athlete and her parents. Deborah Powell was competing in her second IM having completed IM Canada the prior year. Deb was on a 40 person team called Race 4 Kids. They each raised money to Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario. We chatted briefly before heading to bed.

I needed to get up early for my ride up Whiteface Mountain as this would be an “illegal” ride. The Veterans Memorial highway that goes up the mountain has a toll booth that controls the final four miles to the top. The booth doesn’t open until 8:00AM so I needed to be there before that. I left Jay around 6:15 to make the 6 mile ride to the starting area and climb to the toll booth. I had plenty of time since it didn’t take me long to get there. As I started the 8 mile climb another rider headed up the road as well. I noticed it was a female as I approached her from behind and said hi. Nancy and I chatted for a while and she had started before her husband Rick of Zone3Sports. I had to stop and fix my rear derailleur since it was not shifting into my largest cassette, something that I would need for such a steep and long climb.

I had put the FlashPoint 60s on my road bike and the 11-23 cassette wasn’t properly lined up so I couldn’t get into the 23. A quick turn of the low limit screw and I was all set. I would be in the 23 the entire ride. I continued on with my ride behind Nancy and Rick not sure if and when I would catch either of them. I rode the first 4 miles in 23 minutes. No guard at the booth so I slipped under the gate and kept going.

The more I climbed the more beautiful the scenery was. Another rider passed me going up and two riders zipped by me going down. So I wasn’t the only person riding the mountain that morning. I alternated between standing and sitting during the climb. I was happy how my legs felt when standing, it was almost like running and my legs felt strong. My best estimate was that I was averaging 7 MPH. After the final hairpin turn and 1 mile from the top I joined Nancy for the rest of the ride up. Rick came down to join us and re-ride the final mile, Nancy says he likes climbing on the bike.

Once we made the top Rick and Nancy descended while I took some pictures of the area. Lake Placid was covered with low clouds. I was above the clouds.



Very cool. I put my wind vest on and pulled up my arm warmers because the temperatures in the shade were still cool and the descent would be fast. After I stopped one more time for pictures it was a straight shot down the mountain. However the road was not in the best of conditions so I didn’t open it up like on the Keene descent. I held things back between 25 – 30 MPH as I maneuvered bumpy patches of road while looking out for potholes and possible animal crossings. My computer had a max speed of 45 MPH when I was done. At the bottom I caught up with Rick and Nancy and chatted about some of Rick’s athletes that were competing.

I made my way back to Jay to grab some breakfast. Before I had much of a chance to put my bike away Aimee said she lost an ear ring during her run. I grabbed a scone from the breakfast table and started to ride my bike out on the road she ran on. I turned around because I was riding too fast on the bike to see anything. I put on my running shoes and ran the 3.5 miles to Upper Jay to see if I could spot it. I felt good the entire 7 miles but came up empty handed. Bonus was the impromptu brick workout totaling 3.5 hours.

We finally ate breakfast, showered and headed into Lake Placid to meet the swim captain. On the way into town we stopped at Mt. Van Hoevenberg for a ride on the 1980 Olympic bobsled run. We did the 1 mile portion of the track in 42 seconds. It is quite a rush zooming down the concrete run banking on the turns a full 90 degrees.




We continued our way to town so we could meet the swim captain. Brandon is a veteran IM volunteer. He had some great advice for peeling off wetsuits. I stopped by the ART tent to say hi to Barry Horpestad. He fine tuned me before IM USA ’06. I sent him a picture via e-mail and he was apologetic about not responding. I was just happy he got the message and it was great to see him again.

We walked around the athlete village and Aimee bought a cycling skirt.

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I was getting turned off by all the people around and didn’t need to buy anything. When Aimee was done we got a bite to eat from the hotdog vendor and people watched along Main Street. People were dropping off their bikes in transition or returning from making purchases. We made our way to the shopping area of town and popped in and out of different stores making random purchases.

During the entire time in town we only saw one person from the Cleveland area. Mark had to pick up his wetsuit after getting a quick repair and he was heading back to the hotel. It was good to know that everyone was staying out of town and resting for their big day.

Aimee and I finally left town and headed for dinner. We made a quick stop at the store to buy some water and ice. In the parking lot we found this truck decorated. Those crazy Canadians.







We needed to make a return trip to Tail ‘o the Pup for a lobster clam bake. Sitting outside we enjoyed the music and fresh air. The food was great we finished dinner with a milk shake.


During dinner a woman walking by and wished me good luck for the race, she must have seen my Ironman hat I was wearing. Instead of trying to explain that I wasn’t racing I simply said “Thank-you” on behalf of all the athletes who would be competing. Right before we left two women walked in that looked very familiar. I was pretty sure I knew who they were and had to make sure. I walked up and ask if her name was Jen…….sure was. Jen and Bethany were vital in my success and overall IM experience in ’06. I had pictures that I wanted to send but didn’t have her e-mail address. They were hoping to see me this weekend and ask about the pictures. I got Jen’s e-mail address and have been corresponding ever since…..she has her pictures now…..a year later. It was still fantastic to see her and Bethany.

Aimee and I finally made out back to the B&B. We still needed to make signs for our friends and hang the Cleveland Tri Club banner along the bike route.





Aimee went to bed while I chatted with Deb about some details regarding the bike course. She hadn’t seen the exit from transition to the main road out of town and I warned her about the steep downhill section and to take it easy. I made it to bed since we would need to get up around 4:00AM.

Friday and Saturday were busy days and we weren’t even to race day yet. However, we were very excited about the race and watching our friends on the course.

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

The people have spoken.....

and I have been deemed a lazy blogger. First Neese had to leave me a comment on my last post. Then Dying Water Buffalo left me three messages on that post accusing me of having a life outside of blogging. Then Dave and Cliff posted comments about me sighting them at IM USA. Finally my brother e-mails me directly needing a blog post fix.

10 showings of love on my post from July 20 and nothing new since then. I'm a baaaaaaadddddd blogger. I'm working on my IM USA Spectator Race Report but training, work, and general life have gotten in my way. I'm sorry but I don't like to throw crap up on my blog just to see myself post.

I will try to report on my stripping exploits at IM USA soon.....I have pictures also.

Now go outside and get some Game On.