From OU to BT50K

The past seven days have been a whirlwind of a week. Last weekend I visited my son at OU for Dad's weekend. I drove down on Friday to spend some extra time with him since I would need to leave a little early on Sunday to make a birthday party for my father-in-law. I knew we would have a good time but I wasn't sure what the weekend would entail.

After I got down to OU we waited for his roommates dad to arrive before getting something to eat. After wings and beer, great training food, we hopped to two other bars. It was nice to finally meet some of Andrew's friends. I've heard their names many times but didn't know who they were. We actually closed the second bar, but there was an "after party" to attend at another friends. We walked to the apartment and placed some games before finally leaving. We made it back to the dorm room around 4:00AM. What was I thinking. We slept in until 11:00AM like good college students.

We got some lunch then watched the women's basketball team. Andrew's cousin is the leading scorer on the team so it was fun to watch the game. Unfortunately the OU team lost. We killed some time before meeting with more friends and dads back at BWs. We stayed there until closing, a round of shots and 8 pitchers later. Of course there was another after party at another friends apartment so we walked there and hung for a little bit, I was tapped out so no more beer for me. Oh, did I mention that the weather in OU was pretty cold, low 30's all weekend and I was walking around in a hoodie or sweater. Didn't want to carry and worry about a jacket in the bars.

We made it back to the dorm around 2:30 - 3:00AM. I slept in again until about 10:00. I headed out to the showers and saw about 2 inches of snow on the ground and flurries coming down. Mind you this is southern Ohio and they don't usually get alot of snow. No salt on the roads, no snow plows. Made for an interesting drive to my dad-in-laws house for his birthday party. It took me about an extra hour to get where I was going. Thank-you SIRIUS for keeping me entertained on the drive.

The birthday party was fun and all I wanted was to get home and sleep. I didn't have much sleep all weekend, then through on top of that beer and college food.......I haven't done that in a long time. I'm waiting for Andrew to send me pictures so I can post a couple.

So come Monday morning I'm still extremely tired and also stuffed in the head. Oh yeah...walking around without a jacket really did me in. FULL BLOWN HEAD COLD.

I needed to get over this cold quickly because of the Buckeye Trail Winter Run on Saturday. There is also the overnight work trip to Detroit. What a week. The stuffiness in my head started floating down to my chest. It's not bad now but I should go see a doctor on Monday.

I finally got some good sleep Thursday and Friday nights. The run on Saturday started at 7:00AM. Aimee and I were up at 4:30. I wasn't sure how I was going to do the run. the BT Winter Run had three runs, half marathon, full marathon and 50k.....all on the trails of the Cuyahoga Valley. Don't forget the pictures I gave you of the creek crossing. I would have to cross it two times today. The winter run is very low key. No awards, proceeds would go towards a scholarship and a non-profit organization. But the race shirt was primo and the food afterwards top notch.

I started running easy to get warmed up. You never know how far the guy next to you was going to run. Conversation was abundant and I realized that there were several 50k runners around me. I couldn't believe the pace they were running at. I was feeling pretty good and decided to see what I could do. I think my heart rate was a little high from either the Sudafed I was taking or from just being sick. I was going to run on feeling. The footing was okay despite the snow and ice. A warm front came through over night and with temperatures just below 40 degrees the air was comfortable. The first loop was 5 miles which I completed in just over 40 minutes. I started the second loop still feeling good. The second loop, 8 miles, is alot of fun. The two times I've done it before it's become my favorite trail run. The creek crossing was at a normal level and I could step over on a couple of rocks.

It wasn't until the turn-around of this loop that I started having any problems. The hills were starting to take a toll on my calves. They were starting to cramp. I had to fight off the cramps and keep moving forward. The uphills were walkers and the downhills I took agressively moving quickly.

I would pass Aimee and other people I knew going the other way. Everyone looked good and even the people I didn't know offered words of encouragement and I tried to return with a comment to them as well.

As I came off the trail there is a half mile path to the finish. My calves started to cramp again but I was almost done. As I hit the finish someone called out my time. Run over. From the finish line we go inside and turn in our race number stub and tell Tanya our time. See....I told you it was low key. Then your race number gets placed on posterboard in order of finishing. I was 7th overall for the half marathon. As I reviewed the results I was surprised by what I saw. The top four spots went like this, 39, 15, 49. Those are the ages of the runners. The 49 year old is a friend of mine, but a 15 year old cranking out a 1:50 for a trail half mary. The only thing more incredible than that was the NINE YEAR OLD who finished around 2:40. This kid must be the next Dean Karnezes. Amazing he would even want to run that far.

Oh by the way.....my time was 2:01....which is what I was hoping to run. Of course being sick I was pretty much drained. Aimee and I made it home and took a nice long nap. My legs are very tired and I'll be hitting the sack early again. Maybe I'll be able to sleep better tonight despite the sore throat and stuffy head. I can only hope.

I can also hope that it won't be another 10 days before I post again.

Game on people.

Product Review

What do you get when you combine your cell phone with BimActive.com? The following information, charts and graphs. You may have seen the ads in Runners World or InsideTri for BimActive. The website is free, but you can also download a program onto certain phones that allows you to track your workout. It is supposed to be better than the GPS systems because it also uses cell towers to find your position. After the workout is done the data is uploaded to the website so you can look at it and publish it to a blog, like this. Personally I have seen two benefits of this program. Now that I am trail running I can get accurate distances of what I am running. My phone also beeps when I hit each mile, allowing me to mark my splits. this gives me average HR per mile. The total mileage is good for tracking how many miles I have on my shoes. I usually don't care how far I run, but I like to know when I should be replacing my shoes using mileage instead of age. I usually carry a phone with me when I cycle or run anyways so I might as well use it for something else. If you are interested check with the BimActive.com website to see if your phone is supported. You can try it and delete the program if it's not for you. Just another way to get your game on. Activity Route: -- Elev. Avg: 793 ft Location: Peninsula, OH Elev. Gain: -9 ft Date: 01/13/07 Up/Downhill: [+1158/-1167] Time: 11:53 AM Difficulty: 4.4 / 5.0 Weather: Fog/Mist 38F temp; 92% humidity 38F heat index; winds N 5 Performance Distance: 9.97 miles Time: 1:30:20 Speed: 6.63 mph Pace: 9' 03 /mi Calories: 1197 Map Elevation (ft.) Pace (min/mile) Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 07 +0' 04 6.6 -0.1 +111 ft 2 8' 58 -0' 05 6.7 +0.1 +105 ft 3 9' 00 -0' 03 6.7 +0.0 +3 ft 4 10' 21 +1' 18 5.8 -0.8 -69 ft 5 9' 08 +0' 05 6.6 -0.1 -112 ft 6 9' 12 +0' 09 6.5 -0.1 +177 ft 7 8' 43 -0' 20 6.9 +0.3 -42 ft 8 9' 35 +0' 32 6.3 -0.4 -26 ft 9 8' 28 -0' 35 7.1 +0.5 -151 ft end 8' 00 -1' 03 7.5 +0.9 -7 ft Versus average of 9' 03 min/mi

Posted from bimactive.com

Communing with Nature

Amazing what a week can mean for training. Remember my implosion and regaining of balance last weekend. I had a good trail run last Sunday on the Buckeye Trail. This weekend I had to work again but things went better and I was able to get in my trail run after work as I had planned. This week I had to be at my customer at 2:00AM. Hospitals can't do without their systems during the day. So I worked from 0200 - 1000, about 8 hours. With only one hiccup in the process things went well. I thought it would be interesting to get in my 1.5 hour run with only 4 hours rest before work.

I ran another section of the Buckeye Trail. This part will is the second half of the Buckeye Trail Half Marathon at the end of the month. The rain had come down in the area pretty hard. The rivers were running high so I knew of one creek crossing that would be flowing well. That and alot of mud on the trails.

As soon as I turned onto the trail the hill climb was slippery. There was water running down the middle of the path. I'm enjoying getting muddy. Splashing through the mud puddles. Ducking under trees. Jumping over logs.

I don't run with any music. I like to run by myself. I like to think about what I am doing. Keeping my pace where it should be. Staying in the HR zones where I need to be. Watching out for tree roots. Being careful where I place my feet. Taking the correct line on the trail.

I also think about people I know. Why I train. How I am improving. My "big" thought this trail run was how much I've been enjoying my current training. How much I've been enjoying getting muddy and loosing myself in the woods. I don't get lost literally, I just feel generally great about being out there.

I thought about IronKahuna at Tri-Geek Dreams. He's in a slump and needs some motivation. Go out and give him some love. I was a little slumped too but this trail running has helped alot. Maybe Kahuna needs something new in his training to get un-slumped.

It's the enjoyment of the trail running that has revitalized my training. Doing something off the beaten path. Getting into a unique area of running. That's how I got into triathlon. It wasn't something that everyone was doing at the time. I just like doing things that are a little unique.....like becoming an Ironman.

So I'm revitalized with my training. My HR zones have increased by 5 beats. I'm feeling the benefits of the changes and looking forward to a good season.

So to share my enthusiasm here are some pictures from my trail run.

This is a picture of the creek that I would have to cross twice, out and back loop of course.


This is a picture I took of myself crossing the creek. Normally the water is only ankle deep. Almost to my knee this time. The water was cold but once you get going again the legs warm up again. Of course I stood in the water for about 1 minute in order to get a good picture, maybe not the smartest move. I could feel the grit from the water filling my shoes. I was on my way back anyways.


Post run: Oh yeah, that's mud all the way up to my knees.

Reason #15 to shave your legs.......the mud is easier to get off post trail run/mountain bike.


Game On

Blog Updates

Make sure you check out my sidebar information. I've updated alot over there, especially the 2007 season.

Amazing what you can get done when waiting on an operating system upgrade in the middle of the night. I have read all of the posts that were waiting for me in bloglines.

Don't you people post in the middle of the night? I hope you all got in some good training this morning while I was working the hours into daylight.

Game.....yaaaawwwnnnnn......On.

How many of me?

Got this from Flatman so I punched in my name.

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 9 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Merry Christmas

Come on. It wasn't that long ago. Have you forgotten all about being nice to each other and fellowship and caring and Jesus and connecting? I didn't think so.

I was putting away more decorations and had to make sure I posted a picture of the ornament I got from my mom. My parents were at Lake Placid when I did the race. They stayed a couple of days extra to see more of the area, definitely nice to be retired. So they were strolling through town and one of the shops was selling ornaments. The entire thing is hand painted, including my name, number and finish time. What an awesome gift.

It's a great reminder that I am an Ironman.

Game On!

I love trail running

I finally am able to post my BiM Active activities on Blogger. Here is the results from my trail run the day after I found my perspective again. Activity Route: -- Elev. Avg: 724 ft Location: Northfield Center, OH Elev. Gain: +0 ft Date: 01/07/07 Up/Downhill: [+1286/-1286] Time: 09:19 AM Difficulty: 4.5 / 5.0 Weather: Overcast with Haze 39F temp; 75% humidity 39F heat index; winds SE 9 Performance Distance: 11.04 miles Time: 1:42:50 Speed: 6.45 mph Pace: 9' 18 /mi Calories: 1286 Notes HR for each split on the watch 8:18 / 145 8:29 / 149 9:20 / 154 9:23 / 151 8:27 / 155 8:36 / 151 9:51 / 137 21:40 / 146 17:50 / 156 Map Elevation (ft.) Pace (min/mile) Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 8' 32 -0' 46 7.0 +0.6 +132 ft 2 8' 24 -0' 54 7.1 +0.7 -115 ft 3 9' 25 +0' 07 6.4 -0.1 +39 ft 4 9' 24 +0' 06 6.4 -0.1 -65 ft 5 8' 22 -0' 56 7.2 +0.7 +161 ft 6 8' 59 -0' 19 6.7 +0.2 +4 ft 7 9' 50 +0' 32 6.1 -0.4 -105 ft 8 11' 05 +1' 47 5.4 -1.0 -66 ft 9 10' 38 +1' 20 5.6 -0.8 +27 ft 10 9' 33 +0' 15 6.3 -0.2 +122 ft 11 8' 12 -1' 06 7.3 +0.9 -128 ft end 11' 06 +1' 48 5.4 -1.1 -3 ft Versus average of 9' 18 min/mi

Posted from bimactive.com

Keeping It In Perspective

My problem is that I have things to post about but I can't set aside the time to write them down. I'm usually too busy reading other blogs, updating my Training Peaks, reading the message board for the Cleveland Tri Club, training, working, Snakebite team business, etc. You get the picture.

I also think quality over quantity is better, so I try to make my posts worth while. Then I need to spend some time and update the blog with sidebar information......where does it all end.

Must focus. I don't know if I have a mild case of adult ADD or just too many things that I'm involved in that pull me all over the place. Oh and the Christmas decorations need to be packed away. SEE WHAT I MEAN!!!

So usually I have to step back, make a list and prioritize. That's where the perspective part comes in. Once I create that list I can see what's important and get things done. On my current list almost everything is crossed off and blogging is one of the last things not crossed of......so here goes.

********BEGIN FLUFF******
******ALSO KNOWN AS BULLSHIT THAT PROMPTED THIS POST**********

Today's post actually goes back to last weekend, Jan. 5-6 to be exact. I was finishing a project at a customer in lovely Lima, OH. This place is a 2.5 hour drive from home. Friday was to go out and do some prep work on the new computer system and Saturday we restore the production data to the new system. Boom.....live on the new system.....everyone is happy. I forgot to include what I call the Denis Factor.

Denis is the person I was working with at the customer.......he is the customer. Smart guy. Been there over 15 years. Knows all there is to know about the processes on the system. Also a very busy guy, many year end projects as we also try to install this new system, the prior system was 8 years old.

Anyways, I knew Denis would be tight for time. However, when i arrived on Friday, 2:00PM, he hadn't done anything on the new system in the past two weeks. New software wasn't loaded. Things hadn't been tested. GREAT. I started doing what I had planned on doing and see where we wind up. I kept him on task as best I could. Friday plans was to prep the new system and save data from the old system.

I thought cool, write the program, set it up to run at night, get to the hotel, nice dinner at Applebee's, relax at the hotel, blog a little, good nights rest. Oh boy was I wrong. We could get the system at 7:00PM. Fine I said. Still early enough for me.

BOOM......oh by the way we have to run day end processing before we run the save. Now I almost loose it. WTF. so how long does that take........3-4 hours. Then he starts manipulating the jobs, ending some that don't need to run, pushing others fasters, etc. I'm sitting there trying to figure out what has happened as I can do nothing.

I've read most of the links on bloglines. Nothing new on the message boards, I don't feel like posting. I'm just getting totally frustrated as I am now tired and hungry. I've been going for over 12 hours. The emotional rollercoaster I'm on is worse than Ironman. At IM I was in control for a majority of the race. I have NO control over Denis.

Well we finally get out of there it was 10:00PM. I'm starving. Dinner turned into Arby's in bed watching CSI. Saturday's work started at 8:00AM so I needed some sleep.

Saturday went well. I was in control. I made sure during testing Denis stayed on track. Unfortunately, Saturday also went 3 hours longer than I wanted. I had packed a bag so I could run the trails on the way home. I didn't leave Lima until 3:30PM. As I drove by the exit for the park the sun was setting and there would be no trail run today. So Friday AND Saturday became rest days from training.

I called Aimee letting her know I was on the way home. She made plans with her sister and neighbor to go shopping and have dinner out. I wasn't going to interrupt her plans so I kept quiet about how shitty the past two days went.

Once home I made some dinner and opened up a bottle of wine. I guess I needed to unwind more than I thought. By the end of the evening I was one glass shy of finishing the bottle. Yeah, I was buzzing pretty good. I watched a couple of movies on the TV, only remembering "The Punisher".

On Sunday I felt better. Despite all the alcohol I put in an 11 mile trail run at a 9:18 pace. I felt great, got muddy and used the endorphines from the run to improve my attitude.

********END FLUFF*********

During my drive home Sat. afternoon I started to get things back into perspective. Things didn't go exactly as I had planned. I wasn't going to get my trail run done. I spent more time than I wanted at the customer, in fact it went 14 hours over thanks to the Denis Factor.

It was around noon on Saturday that things clicked for me. I was so pissed off because I wasn't going to get my run. The run mattered more than the work. I love my training and competition. I like my work. But it's the work that pays for my training and competition.....so get over it and deal with it. Once I let it go that I wouldn't get in my run I started dealing with the whole situation better.

I'm a triathlete damn-it. We constantly remind ourselves and others that we must go with the flow because on race day, especially Ironman, so many things are out of our control and we should expect anything. Be prepared to face the unexpected, adjust to the adversity and move forward......always move forward.

I think the flexibility is what prevented me from blowing up at Denis Friday night. It was what is was.....out of my control for the moment.

So once again the lessons we learn in triathlon, work and life can be used in any situation.

Keeping my perspective reminds me that things could be worse in my life. Homeless, jobless, ailing, mentally unstable.....you know what I mean.

So my perspective in back in balance......GAME ON.

Happy New Year - Let's Tri

Happy New Year everyone. I just got back from the Cleveland Tri Club's Polar Plunge into the brisk waters of Lake Erie. The air and water temps were both mid 40's, around 43-45 degrees F.


This is my fourth year involved with the Club plunge....and I love it each time.


Aimee took some great pictures this year and I post them for you today.

A local TV station was on hand and gave us a good story. I'm in the far right opening shot.

http://www.wkyc.com/video/player.aspx?aid=29439&bw

Here I am leading the troops into the water. Time to "Charge"

Below is my friend Jason from the Y. He just recently joined the tri club and this is his first polar plunge. I think he enjoyed it.

Here's JT from JT's Tri-spot.


Matt and I took our time getting out of the nice waters of Lake Erie. Doesn't it look inviting?

Several people were a little late for the first wave into the lake. Considering these are some of my best and bloggiest friends I couldn't let them go in alone.

The second wave consisted of, from left to right, Elizabeth (e-speed, runwithme), me (TriEric), Jen (JenuineIMexperience), Alan (TriAl), and Sara (TriSaraTops).

Alan in a new member of my race team Snakebite Racing.

A portion of the Cleveland Tri-Blog Alliance trying to get warm.

JT, Elizabeth, Sara, Alan

Reach out and touch...

somebody's hand....make this world a better place.....if you can.

Yeah it's the holiday season. A time for people to reconnect. Tell those around you how much they matter to you. Spreading joy and good cheer. Blah blah blah. Is this really a special time of the year? I look around and see another season for the retailers to make some money and people to paying off happiness with expensive gifts. No to become religious on your ass but isn't there more to this time of year than gifts.

I'm not trying to be negative here. I'm more of a realist. I see what's in front of me. And quite frankly I don't like what I see sometimes. When I was growing up, I remember when gas stations, restaurants, convenience stores and just about every other place of business was closed the day of major holidays. Christmas.....closed. Thanksgiving......closed. Easter.......closed. I feel sad for people who work on holidays now. They should be with family and friends the entire day......not the period of time before or after work. I'm sorry....it's bullshit.

Wow...did I just digress or what? Okay, back to making connections.

Must focus. Stay in the moment. Don't reveal yourself to the blog.

We are making contact here. During this joyous holiday season. Good tidings to one and all. Send the annual Christmas card, year end wrap up letter, and pictures of the kids.

What's wrong with contacting that one person you think about in the middle of August, beginning of June, end of February. Why must we wait until "special" occasions or seasons to reconnect. Just the simple act of reconnecting, or even connecting, should be special.

In our rush around lives we fly through the day and per chance you see an old friend from high school, co-worker from a previous job, neighbor. "Good talking to you. I'll give you a call sometime." Does sometime ever arrive? I know I'm guilty of it. In 2005 I saw many friends at my 20th high school reunion. 18 months later have I really kept in touch. No. Some e-mail here and there. A couple contributed to my fund raising for Ironman. Not much else.

(maybe I'm writing this not only to you.......but also to myself)

I know some people are better at maintaining contact than others. I'm not so good at it. Maybe it's a challenge I should pose to myself. What does it take to call someone. Even if it is to leave a message on an answering machine or on a voice mail. It may make a difference to the person at the other end.

How many times have you said to a friend, "If you need anything please let me know." It may be someone who has lost a family member. A neighbor with an ill child. A friend struggling through a tough time in their life. You want to help but don't want to appear intrusive. The other person doesn't want to impose. A stand still has developed that a simple phone call could resolve. Make that call to re-iterate the offer and be a support mechanism. Make the call and ask for help when feeling overwhelmed.

At this time of the year a little "touching" could be a good thing as people deal with the stress of life and the holidays. Be the person who "gives a call sometime".

I called my friend today. Who should I call tomorrow? Game is definitely On.

In case I don't post by the end of the week......enjoy your time with family and friends all through the holiday season however you manage to spend it.

There’s a mouse in the……

......CAR!!!

You are reading that correctly. My car has a mouse in it. How do I know? Evidence. First there was the chewed open package of Clif Blocks, CranRazz to be exact. Two holes the size of dimes and the corners of two blocks eaten. Next was the packet of hot chocolate with a small hole in it.

Then there is the ripped up napkin in the glove compartment and of course the tiny little mouse turds……ewww gross.

You see my vehicle sits outside because Aimee’s car gets the garage. And with all of the “stuff” (three bikes, Christmas storage boxes, two lawn mowers, two snowblowers, eight 5 gallon jugs of waters…..get the picture) being stored on the other half……..I get to park outside 365 days of the year.

So when the snow arrives and the little yard mice get cold, someone is bound to find the spacious HAMC (High Altitude Mouse Camp) in my car.

So yesterday there was a mouse all jacked up on runner’s crack (Clif Block) and hot chocolate running around in my car. I searched the places I could to try and find the little bugger. Not in the glove compartment. Not in the engine bay. Not under the seats. Hopefully not IN the seats. I left him some more food. I figured he would be hungry. Hungry enough to stick his scrawny little neck into a spring trap. Just a dab of peanut butter and SNAP……problem solved. He wouldn’t have to worry about the cold any more and I would have successfully evicted an unwelcome passenger in my car.

I placed the trap on the floor, passenger side. This morning I checked my trap and saw nothing. Let me repeat that, nothing. Oh the trap was still there. The trap was still set. However the bastard was talented enough to get all of the PB off the trap without setting it off. Who is this guy, Stuart Little?

I was going to use this to my advantage though. He must surely think, “Hey, I can get a free meal on this thing. No problem.” So I set the trap again. This time with a small amount of cheese jammed in there. He will have to work at it this time and SNAP, problem solved.

I left the trap in the car during the morning while I worked on a customers new computer system. I would check the trap when I went out during lunch. I was anxious to see if the trap was “occupied”. DAMN. The trap was still set and the cheese was untouched. I had to run out and refill the 5 gallon water jugs we use at home. The store where I fill them at is just down the street from my customer. The timing was perfect because we had just emptied the last of eight bottles.

At the store I started refilling the bottles and noticed that one bottle looked rather dirty on the bottom. I wasn’t sure if there was mud underneath the bottle from yesterdays trail run or what. I peered into the bottle and much to my surprise I found that little bastard mouse….dead. Somehow he had managed to get inside this huge bottle and found himself trapped…then died…..not before crapping all over the bottle……..little tiny mouse turds. I still don't get how he got in the bottle. The cap at left covers the large opening to the bottle. However, the little white cap in the middle was off, common occurance. But the hole is smaller than a dime. He might have caused himself some serious internal damage getting into the bottle.

No wonder the trap hadn’t been tripped again. He must have been thirsty from stealing the peanut butter and there was some extra water in the bottom of the bottle. These bottles were in the car overnight so he made his way in there during the 12 hours they were in the car.

I shared my story with the lady at the refilling station and she said they sanitize the bottles that are traded in. She said to leave the bottle, someone else would dispose of the mouse and I could refill a clean bottle instead. I was oh so happy to be rid of that mouse. I didn’t want to clean the bottle. But I do need to clean the rest of the car. Who knows where else he crapped.

So that is the story of my mouse in the car.

Game On…..except for mice.

Chicks and Trails

What an awesome weekend. The cold weather finally broke and that allowed for some great times outside. Saturday I got together with my good friend and SBR teammate Patrick. We met in the morning for some mountain biking at Findley SP. The temp was still 26 degrees F when we started but we donned our winter riding gear and set out on the 8 mile loop. The trail was frozen and very fun. The mud was solid which was good and bad. The surface was hard but the existing tire groves were tossing my front tire around. Made for some tough riding at times but it helps improve your bike handling skills.

After an hour we made it back to the parking lot and Pat had to head home for soccer games. I headed back out for another half hour on the inner trail loop. When I made it back to the car I had 12 miles on my tires. I changed into my new trail shoes and did a 2 mile run in 18 minutes. I hadn't done a brick in a long time and it felt good on the legs.



My total workout for the morning was 2:20. I hadn't exercised/trained for that long since.....since....actually I'm not sure when. It sure did feel good to be out there for a long time.



Aimee and I did some chores before we met a group of people from the Cleveland Tri Club to watch the Ironman Championships at a bar downtown. It was great to see some fellow triathletes including TriSaraTops and TriAl. Afterwards we went home for a quiet evening watching a movie.



For Sunday I had arranged for a trail run back out at Findley SP. TriSaraTops came over to our house and we drove together to the park. We met Coach Angela at the park. I was pumped to show these lovely ladies the trails I have been running and riding on. It was my pleasure to escort them through the woods, fields and hills. It was a nice easy run which took us an hour and 24 minutes. The company and scenery was the best. I had to take this picture of my "trail girls". From left to right, Angela, TriSaraTops and Aimee.

After we left the park we stopped at a place called Bread & Brew for some coffee and hot chocolate for the ride home. What a great morning. What a great way to start the day.

I'm looking forward to more runs and rides on trails.

Today......Game was definitely On.

Family and Friends Friday - Mr. VG

First off - Blogger Sucks Donkey Balls - take two for today's post.

I want to introduce you to a little friend who has been visiting me this week. Mr. VG has been at the house for maybe two weeks and he is starting to annoy me. I'm getting cranky. I'm tiring easily and I can't eat what I like. Mr. VG has been throwing a wrench into my training causing me to back off and not get in the quality or quantity I want during my base phase.

You see Mr. VG (Viral Gastroenteritis) is just plain annoying. Too much food or intensity during exercise and he passes everything right through. He's a cranky SOB as pictured here. I can't wait for him to finally leave so I can get back to feeling normal.

The Cleveland Tri Club is participating in the National Club Challenge and we are holding out own in the standings. I want to get some more mileage out there for our club.

So this weekend I have a brick on Saturday and a trail run with my local peeps, TriSaraTops included, on Sunday.

Here's to a better weekend, hoping to get some Game On.

Two for Tuesday - Bike Porn (Time to Hit the Road)

A couple of years after getting our mountain bikes I started to become interested in road riding. I had borrowed an old bike from my friends Pat and Linda. I was enjoying riding fast on the road. Aimee was also thinking about a road bike. So we went to the LBS and started looking around. Aimee was looking at different entry level bikes with the help of a sales associate. The final bike pulled down turned out to be a Bianchi.


While waiting to get a bike down from the hooks I turned around and saw this.......GT ZR3000....on sale.

The bike I saw on the sales floor was beautiful, only too big for me. They had a smaller size for me, 54cm, at another store and would have it brought over for me. Aimee and I scheduled to come back and test ride the bikes we selected. We came back about a week later with our shoes and helmets for the test ride. I was sold immediately. Aimee liked her bike also. We went back to the LBS and bought both bikes. We went in the store to find a bike for Aimee and wound up getting one for each of us. I'm grateful Aimee was open minded enough to agree on the double purchase.

These bikes have served us well. We trained and rode our first half IMs on these bikes. I've done road races and tri's on my GT. I've upgraded the components on both bikes and the wheels on my bike were bought over the summer. I really enjoy riding my bike. During my IM training I would ride both my road and tri bike. It was a great way to change things up.

I know the cold weather for many of you has started, but get those road/tri bikes on the trainers/rollers and get some game on.

Too much information......

runnin' through my brain.
Too much information drivin' me insane.

Yep, my brain has been on overdrive due to work, family life and not much else. Training has been on the down low. Really not feeling it. Trying to get some thoughts together for some blogs. Been taking video for posting on YouTube and on this blog. Random thoughts floating all over the place.

Just making sure people know I'm here and am hoping to post some quality information for your reading, viewing, listening pleasure.

Props to Boulder for providing some on-line support when my Treo went haywire on me Saturday night. He sent me some links and offered some advice. Essentially calmed me down for the night since I needed someone to listen to me have a mini freak out. It may not have seemed like it but my Treo life flashed by my eyes as I thought of everything stored on my Treo.

Amazing how dependant we sometimes become upon technology to help regulate our lives. Even though I work with computers I sometimes think it's a bad thing. I'll rant about that some other time.

Game On.

Breaking the surface

I had a morning swim today. Up at 5AM and off to the Y. Lately I have been far from the first in the pool, usually opting to wait for a couple of the early quick swimmers to get out.

This morning entered the pool and saw this. Smooth water and no one else in the water.

In fact I did my 600 yard warmup by myself before Jason got in the pool. I don't mind sharing the pool, especially when it's Jason, Dave, Ann, Bob and Dan. It was a good swim this morning.

Happy Thanksgiving

Wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. I hope that you are able to spend a fun day with family and friends. There are so many things to be thank-ful for today I wouldn't know where to start.

This morning I am thank-ful for being able to run with my wife and friends at the Nakon Foundation Turkey Dash. This run is a 5k right in my back yard. I did my warmup by running to the event site and met everyone there. I haven't run a 5k in like forever since this was the year of going long.

Finish time: 19:21
Mile 1 6:15
Mile 2 6:27
MIle 3 6:04

I felt great and I am thankful for that. Now for the rest of the weekend I'll be thankful for those around me.

Look out turkey....Game On.

Two for Tuesday - Before and After

Back from my blogger break. Aimee and I were on vacation last week. Nothing like the beaches of Curacao to regenerate you mind and body. So with that I provide a before and after picture.....skin tone. Aimee is more protective of her skin but I laid out in the sun hoping to build a tan that could last part of the winter. I know it will be gone by the new year, but a guy can always dream.

Can someone say "Rock Lobster"? More photos to come from our trip.

Off Season

Wow, it's been a week since my last post. Partly because of work keeping me busy. Partly because it's the off season and I'm taking a well deserved break. You won't get anything out of me next week either due to travel plans.

I'll catch you on the flip-side.

Game On? Nah.......give it a well earned rest.

Family and Friends Friday – The Voices in My Head

I’m c-c-c-c-c-c-cold.

Brain: Who said that?

Toes: It’s us. Down here. We are very cold.

Brain: I’m sorry. But we needed to get in a bike ride and I am trying to avoid the trainer in the basement.

Chest: I’m fine.

Hands: Sure! You are the one hogging all the warm blood.

Chest: Hey….without the lungs and heart pumping O2 and blood around you would be NOTHING!

Brain: Calm down everyone. Who else is not happy with this bike ride?

Face: I’m f-f-f-f-f-freezing.

Crotch: Wind chill will do that too ya. I’m glad we put on bike shorts and the Firewall tights. It’s colder than a wizards balls in a brass jock strap.

Chest: I thought it was “Colder than a witch’s tit in a brass bra”?

Brain: Watch your language! This is a family blog.

Crotch: I’m just calling it like I feel it.

Legs: I’m doing well.

Feet: Of course. You are at least moving. Can you send some of the blood past the ankles?

Eyes: I wish you had put on the clear lense glasses. I’m watering up here. What’s the stuff in the headlight beam. That better not be snow.

Brain: That’s snow alright. Some of that great lake effect stuff coming off Lake Erie.

Toes: We are all cold down here. When will this end?

Brain: Winter just started so it may get warm again after March.

Toes: We mean this stupid bike ride.

Hands: We are starting to warm up. Actually pretty comfortable now.

Brain: The schedule called for 1:15 but I won’t let it go that long.

Face: Are we heading west again? This wind is strong.

Brain: West it is. I’m sorry we didn’t cover you enough face. You will be fine.

Face: C-c-c-c-an’t m-m-m-m-m-ove l-l-l-l-ips.

Brain: Okay let’s turn back, we’ve been out for about 30 minutes.

Eyes: That’s better with the wind at our back. I’m not watering now.

Butt: Great for you but now I get to freeze my…um….my….oh you know what I mean. I’m freezing off right now.

Brain: We will be back in about 20 minutes. I’ll take some shortcuts going home. Toes you hanging in there?

Brain: Toes?

Toe (small one left foot): The big guys are very cold. We better get home soon. Lo-o-o-o-o-osing consciousnessssssssssss.

Brain: Will someone remind me to use the toe warmers next time?

Chest: This has been a great ride.

Brain: You have to stick with me guys. I’m trying to avoid the trainer as long as possible. Even in the middle of winter we will be riding outdoors on the trails.

Hands: I think I speak for everyone that as long as we are bundled up we are in for the riding.

Brain: Good because I talked to Linda about riding at Findley State Park again this year.

Legs: Cool, those are great trails.

Chest: That gives the lungs a good workout.

Crotch: Just avoid the sudden bumps that kick the saddle into the “boys”.

Brain: I for one like riding like this. Bundled up, headlight and blinkie going. People in the warm cars wondering what the heck I’m doing out in weather like this.

Eyes: Does anyone know the temperature right now?

Butt: You should know! You’re the one who looked at the thermometer before we left.

Eyes: But I don’t know what it means smelly!

Butt: You take that back.

Brain: You two better pipe down. The temperature is 32F. Hey everyone. We made it back home. 50 minutes and 12.6 miles. Great ride.

Brain: So everyone out there in the Blog-o-Sphere…….what’s preventing you from going out and getting your Game On?

Sharing the Passion

Aimee got me back into running during 2000. We ran together while she learned how to run and increase her distances. Now she has three marathons under her belt, plus a half IM. For Christmas one year I got her this poster because we had ran together and also trained together for our first half IM.


Last night I ran with Aimee. Yeah, we usually run at different speeds but I really wanted to share the evening with her. It was an awesome run.

I really enjoy sharing the passion with Aimee. The passion of running, cycling, triathlon, marathon, cooking, traveling, gardening....enjoying life.

I hope you all have someone to share your passion with.

Game On.

What's Cookin' Wednesday - Chicken Barley Chili

Aimee and I have a "tradition" of making some Chicken Barley Chili for Halloween and eating it while handing out treats to the kids. This is a great altenative to regular chili.

1 cup QUAKER Medium Barley
One 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained, chopped
One 8-ounce can tomato sauce
One 10-ounce can diced tomatoes with chilis
One 14-1/2-ounce can fat free chicken broth
4 cups water
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
One 11-ounce can whole kernel mexi-corn
3 cups chopped, cooked chicken (about 1-1/2 pounds)

Preparation

1. Combine first 7 ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover. Simmer 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add corn and cooked chicken; continue simmering 5 to 10 minutes or until chicken is heated through and barley is tender. Add additional water or chicken broth if chili becomes too thick upon standing.

2. Eleven 1-CUP SERVINGS

We love this recipe and make small changes here and there. The original recipe calls for beans but it's just fine without.

Enjoy.

Two for Tuesday - Paper or Plastic....bags

Paper or Plastic....what the heck as I talking about? Basically two types of bags....treat bags and Ironman bags.

In honor of Halloween I wanted to show everyone what will be handed out at our house. Each little treat bag, primarily for the neighbor kids, will have one of each in the picture.
















Now for the meat of my post. Some people have asked about all of the baggage used during an Ironman. In honor of those racing in Florida this Saturday, here is my write-up on Ironman Baggage. Hope this clears things up for those asking.

Ironman Baggage

Dry Clothes Bag
This bag is used to store your clothes before the swim. In case you do not have anyone to take your stuff for you, this bag will be placed on the racks with the rest of the transition bags.

Where the Bags Are
The transition bags at Lake Placid were hanging on a rack like this one. At Wisconsin they were placed on the floor in a meeting room. Either way everything is numerical and should be easy to find.


Swim to Bike Bag
Grab this bag as you make your way into the changing tent. All of your bike stuff should be in here.

This includes but is not limited to:
Helmet
Bike shoes
Socks – if you wear them
Towel – for a quick drying
Sunglasses
Race number on belt – You MUST wear your race number on the bike
Baby Powder – in case you want to powder your feet before socks
Extra nutrition – to stuff in you bike jersey pocket

The following if the temperatures will be cool:
Arm warmers
Leg Warmers
Tights
Jacket/Vest
Gloves

When you are done with your bag either you or a volunteer will stuff your swim gear back into the bag and place it in a pile to be sorted and placed back on the transition racks. I was ahead of the masses so the volunteer took my bag for me.


Bike Special Needs Bag
This bag will be waiting for you at the halfway point of the bike course. With some of the two loop courses out there you will hit the special needs area close to transition. Originally the special needs bag was for athletes with special needs. Perhaps a spare set of glasses, medication, asthma medicine, a syringe…..anything that you couldn’t do without. Now you can pack whatever you want in it, including the following:

Extra (replacement) water bottles – these bottles should have your bike fuel, like perpetuem or carbopro.
Extra (replacement) gel and food – you should be eating a lot on the bike.
Spare Tubes/Tires/CO2 cartridges – if you have flatted twice so far you will need the extra gear.

As you approach the special needs area a volunteer will call out your number and someone will retrieve your bag and bring it to the side of the road. They wait until you are done with the bag and then place it back in line. What service.

Bike to Run Bag
Grab this bag as you make your way into the changing tent. All of your run stuff should be in here.

This includes but is not limited to:
Hat
Running shoes
Socks – maybe you want to change into different or dry socks
Towel
Sunglasses – sometimes changes glasses is good if they are water stained from dumping water on yourself
Fuel Belt – Loaded with whatever nutrition you need
Baby Powder
Body Glide
Extra nutrition

The following if the temperatures will be cool:
Long sleeve shirt
Jacket/Vest
Gloves

Run Special Needs Bag
This bag will be waiting for you at the halfway point of the run course. Now you can pack whatever you want in it, including the following:

Long sleeve shirt – if you are out there after dark it may get cold
Dry socks – in case it’s raining dry socks will feel great
Extra (replacement) water bottles
Extra (replacement) gel and food

As you approach the special needs area a volunteer will call out your number and someone will retrieve your bag and bring it to the side of the road.

that's about it for the Ironman Baggage. If you have any questions about the bags let me know.

Now for all those getting ready for IM Florida.....GAME ON!

I've been traveling most of the week. My last stop was Indianapolis and I would finally be able to "do" something. I've been taking it easy as of late. Between work and the weather I haven't been on the bike or swam. An occasional run is all I've been fitting in. Rain moved into the area but I didn't want to run on a treadmill. By the time I left my customer the rain had stopped. It was still cold and windy but atually perfect running weather. There is a fitness club near my hotel and as I headed out on my run I was reminded of this Frazz cartoon. On my way back after a 50 minute run that's exactly what I did. I ran right by the glass windows where all of the treadmills were lined up. What a shame for all of those people to waste a great day.




Game On.

Two for Tuesday - Old School

I was in high school during the 80's.....class of '85 to be exact. I liked listening to rap and would even write down the lyrics. Jam On It was one of my favorite songs. I guess you could say I was a little freaky at night. But I had friends I could depend on.

Bold Butts are Beautiful

I have to say I have never seen So I Married An Axe Murderer or The Burbs, but Bolder in Boulder had to post a movie showdown. I didn't vote and I'm not going to watch either movie...so Bold says a gratuitous butt shot is in order. In honor of Halloween I offer my tender tush for the masses.



















And for the guys........ This is all I could find on the internet.