On the Mend

I started this post 10 days ago. I'm finally getting back to finish it...........

I've been trying to take care of myself and heal my leg. I saw an orthopedic doctor and he doesn't think it's too serious. Probably an inflamation of the bone and tendons. On Friday he said one more week of cross training before hitting the pavement for a test run.


He gave me a water running workout to try. I've always hated water running but I never had a structured workout. So why not give it a try.



It's a ladder workout.



Warm up 5 minutes

Follow this ladder twice

15 second sprint / 15 second easy
30 second sprint / 30 second easy
45 second sprint / 45 second easy
60 second sprint / 60 second easy
90 second sprint / 90 second easy
90 second sprint / 90 second easy
60 second sprint / 60 second easy
45 second sprint / 45 second easy
30 second sprint / 30 second easy
15 second sprint / 15 second easy

This was harder than I thought. Oh yeah....don't use any flotation. No belt or anything.

The workout your arms get is intense. Doc said that I shouldn't be able to lift myself out of the pool. If I could I should do another ladder.

It actually makes pool running tolerable.

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.

Quotable quotes

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

She's beautiful because you love her.

'Nuf said

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!

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, NY Elev. Gain: +9 ft Date: 07/21/07 Up/Downhill: [+4812/-4803] Time: 06:19 AM Difficulty: 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 Mile GRADE Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual actual +/- avg 1 11.0 -1.3 +174 ft 2 13.0 +0.7 +142 ft 3 24.1 +11.8 -114 ft 4 12.4 +0.1 +206 ft 5 16.0 +3.7 -92 ft 6 4.0 11.2 -1.2 +210 ft 7 9.4 7.0 -5.3 +495 ft 8 9.0 5.5 -6.8 +475 ft 9 7.1 7.8 -4.5 +374 ft 10 9.5 6.7 -5.6 +501 ft 11 9.0 6.6 -5.7 +475 ft 12 9.4 6.4 -5.9 +495 ft 13 7.3 7.9 -4.4 +387 ft 14 5.5 -6.8 -298 ft 15 11.5 -0.8 -436 ft 16 25.3 +13.0 -521 ft 17 24.0 +11.7 -518 ft 18 27.8 +15.5 -410 ft 19 36.0 +23.7 -446 ft 20 36.8 +24.4 -508 ft 21 9.1 -3.3 -331 ft 22 16.0 +3.7 +147 ft 23 26.9 +14.6 -151 ft 24 17.5 +5.2 +49 ft 25 20.0 +7.7 -105 ft 26 26.1 +13.8 -193 ft 27 22.6 +10.3 -20 ft 28 19.7 +7.4 -27 ft 29 18.9 +6.6 +42 ft 30 14.2 +1.9 -7 ft 31 21.9 +9.6 -36 ft 32 19.9 +7.6 +26 ft end 14.3 +2.0 +23 ft Versus average of 12.3 mph

Posted from bimactive.com

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.

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.

Family and Friends Friday - IM USA participants

There is a special kindred relationship I now share with participants of Ironman USA. Having lost my Iron-virginity at Lake Placid I am extremely excited to be travelling to this awesome little city with Aimee this weekend. We get to cheer for approximately 15 Cleveland area Iron-peeps, as well as some bloggers and the pro women.

Next week I will post my Ironman USA Spectator Race Report. This is going to be a great weekend.

Now I leave you with this moment of Zen:

Don't eat a jalopeno hamburger with onion rings and swiss cheese the night before a hard tempo run. It will come back to haunt you.....perhaps three times.....maybe even once during the run. Not that I have any personal experience with that.

Game On.

A quote for Ironman USA participants

The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win. Roger Bannister

Good Luck to all who are going for 140.6 this weekend.

LOOK OUT!!!! It's the Police.

Yes the Police were in town Monday night. I'm not talking about the fuzz, cops, coppers, troopers, the man. And they weren't singing "Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do when they come for you...."

I'm talking about THE POLICE

What an amazing show it was at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland. Our seats were upper bowl but the view was great. The lighting and video production was very good. Large screen TVs provided close up views of Sting, Andy and Stewart. I was so impressed with the drumming of Stewart Copeland, who also turned 55 the day of the concert...July 16th.

These guys may be "old" but they rock like it was the early years.

The following picture is from concert. No I wasn't that close but a newpaper photographer was. The bass Sting is playing was worn and weathered. He's probably had it since the beginning of the band.

This was definitely one of the best shows I have been to. I'm glad we spent the money to see it.

Some Weekend Motivation

Two for Tuesday - His and Hers

It's Tuesday right? Yeah...Tuesday. Sorry I get all confused when the week hits a holiday and I work on the weekend and my brain gets frazzled like that.

So yes a return to Two for Tuesday

His

I did a training run/race this past weekend. This was the Columbia Station 10-Mile Run which was called the Columbia Station Roadkill and Roller Coaster 10.5 miler last year because of the dead animals along the ride of the road, up and down course layout and the killer heat of July 2006. Oh and the 10.5 part is because it was a longer that advertised course.

Well not much changed between '06 and '07. Same course. Same hills. Appeared to be the same road kill. The RD told us the actual mileage is 10.4 miles. The only thing missing was the oppresive heat and about half of the runners from last year.

So on with the report. I had two days of rest due to work and was itching to run. The plan was for a marathon tempo run hitting a 7 min/mile pace. Cool.....I'd be done in just over 70 minutes. I was going on pace and not worrying about heart rate. Figure out what the heart did after the run.

I started out feeling great. Immediately was out near the front of the race. There was no way I was going to hang with JP, who would eventually win at 6 min/mile, so he was not even chased by me. I settled into what I felt was a good effort. We hit the first mile marker at 5:59. The girl, Tara, I was running with also let out a "what the F" and we both tried to temper our pace. She was shooting for 6:45's and me 7's. Turns out she is training for an Olympic qualifying time in the marathon. Once I let her go I watched her pull away a nice steady pace. I caught another guy during a downhill section before the mile three marker and never saw him again. I felt great the entire run and took one HammerGel right before the water stop near mile 6.

The final 3.5 miles back to the finish is where all the hills are. I felt powerful going up the hills and never suffered. I took water or Gatorade at each aid station, 5 total. Here are my splits form the race.


Mile 1 5:59
Mile 2 6:29
Mile 3 6:51
Mile 4 7:09
Mile 6 14:21 Missed mile marker 5
Mile 7 6:14
Mile 8 6:45
Mile 9 6:43
Mile 10 7:19
Mile 10.4 2:14

I averaged 160 for my heart rate. I finished 1:10:02 which is a 6:45 pace, imagine that when looking at my splits. I was also second overall male and third finisher. I got chicked by 3 minutes by Tara....I didn't mind one bit.

Here was my moment of Zen during the race. Our friend Jane is handing me a Gatorade while Michelle is taking a picture. I never have pics of me during a race. This rocks.

Hers

Aimee rocks. She works hard, trains hard, party's hard....when she can and rests harder (solid sleeper). Anyways, she was made an equity partner in the firm she works for. It's 5% which came out of the majority owners share. They appreciate and respect her for all that she does which is a hell of a lot. I'm so F'in proud of her and love her more than I can ever tell her. She's definitely go Game.

My blog rating

This rating was determined based on the presence of the following words:

Porn (5x) and Hurt (1x)

I hate to see what Bolders blog is rated.

Boulder Training Camp/Vacation - Day 4

Sunday night Bolder and I talked about what Monday should hold for us. I felt it would be a shame to not get another bike ride in. It would be the last time I would have an opportunity to climb anything significant, even though I’m hoping to attack Whiteface Mountain at Lake Placid.

We started formulating the sequence of events starting with my flight departure at 12:45PM. As we started working our way backwards to our wake up time I stopped the conversation. I looked him square in the eyes and said “No”. There was NO need to get in another bike ride. There was NO need to put more stress on our bodies. There was NO need to rush around like crazy people and have a repeat of Saturdays rush to ride. Once the planning became more effort than the enjoyment we would get from the ride, we had to call it quits.

Boy am I glad we decided to skip the morning ride. We woke up at our leisure and headed out to a local “greasy spoon” for breakfast. We talked and enjoyed the scenery from our booth and ate some great breakfast food. Getting back to the HABC I started to pack for my return trip home. Around 10:00AM we finally headed to the airport.

I felt sad looking behind me and seeing the foothills and mountains I was leaving behind. I think Boulder, or at least Colorado, has chosen me. I can hear it calling for me to return, either for a visit or permanently. The empty feeling in my stomach as I left Boulder would become filled again when I embrace Aimee in my arms at home. Then we will make plans to return so I can show Aimee the beauty of Colorado.

I cannot say enough about this epic weekend with Bolder. When I say epic it was on many different levels.

Yes the training was “epic”. Masters swim class and a total of 4000 yards swimming for the weekend in outdoor pools, one being 50 yards long. A two day total of 105 miles on the bike with 6 hours 15 minutes of riding. There was also 10-11 miles of running.

The eating was “epic”. Bolder took me to some of the nicest restaurants where we ate fantastic food without breaking the bank. You can’t go wrong with Salmon BLTs, burrito’s covered in cheese and sauce, egg and cheese bagel sandwiches, 12 ounces of prime rib, breakfast soufflés, brick over baked pizza, and blackened catfish. Oh, I can’t forget the Mint Oreo Cookie ice cream for evening snacks.

The scenery in and around Boulder is “epic”. The number of cyclists was thrilling. The mountain views spectacular. The plains and red rock escarpments were breathtaking. I had a hard time focusing on the road because I wanted to see everything around me. The multi-purpose path along the Boulder Creek was a true testament to the dedication Boulder has to the health and enjoyment people are expected to have while there.

Most importantly and most epic of all was the building of a friendship with my TriBrother. Bolder is a most gracious host and wanted to make my trip enjoyable, and he succeeded. The more we talked the more we realized how many things we have in common, inside and outside triathlon. Bolder has a deep and passionate commitment to the tri-blog community. The invaluable advice and support he provides is priceless. He fielded several calls from people that had raced on Sunday offering congratulations and moments of zen, often both.

Many thanks to Bolder for a wonderful weekend. This man has Game and more often than not, it’s On.

Boulder Training Camp/Vacation - Day 3

So what do you do after an epic day of riding? You train some more then relax for the rest of the day.

Bolder and I had a nice relaxed breakfast before heading to the pool where we would be swimming after our morning run. We briefly checked on conditions for Ironman CdA as we both had friends we were tracking. It was hard to tear ourselves away from the computers. We gathered our gear together and headed out to the trail head. The paved path ran along Boulder Creek. What a beautiful place to run, walk, bike, skate, take the dogs, kids and family for a great day out.

We started with somewhat heavy legs from the 80+ mile bike ride the day before. Bolder's plan called for a zone 2 run so I was just going to go along for the ride, er.um.run. The cover of the trees was a nice break from the sun. After leaving the paved path we continued on climbing higher along a nice dirt path that was filled with runners, walkers and cyclists. We saw people fishing, rock climbing and even kayaking in the Boulder Creek.

When we finished our run I waded into the cool, flowing waters of the creek to provide some hydro therapy for the legs. The 45 degree water was refreshing to say the least but felt great on the legs. I spent 10 minutes in the water as we talked some more before we headed to the pool for an easy swim.

The city pool we were at was huge. Imagine looking to the other side of the pool 50 yards away. I'm used to swimming in a 20 yard pool. I felt like I was doing an open water swim. I kept waiting for the wall of the pool to approach and it took forever to get there. We did 1500 yards which only took 15 laps. At home that would have been 38 laps. Again it was great to swim outside in the sun.

After we showered and dressed it was time to "strap on the feed bags". Bolder took me to Proto's Pizzeria for some salad and oven baked pizza. It was a fantastic pizza at the coolest little restaurant. Twice I saw people walk in after getting off their bikes. The atmosphere in Boulder is unbelievable.

After polishing off a large pizza we retreated to the HABC to continue our athlete tracking for Ironman CdA. There is nothing worse than two Ironman triathletes parking their asses in front of laptops analyzing the proceedings of the race while we are in beautiful Boulder, Colorado. But hey after the day we had on the bikes yesterday we needed some extra rest for the legs.

We managed to watch the finishes of the top three pros. We especially enjoyed Michael Lovato's little victory dance and interview with Greg Welch. With the pro's finishing we knew there was time before our friends would be finishing....enough time to go out and grab dinner at Jax's Fish House. We had some of the best calamari ever for an appetizer and I followed that with a blackened Catfish that was to die for. The bartender recommended it and I'm glad I took his advice.

We walked around downtown Boulder taking in the sights and bought a couple of t-shirts. The plaza area is home for some local entertainers. We stumbled upon the Zip Code Man. He was asking for zip codes from people visiting Boulder. From only the Zip code he would name the city and sometimes provide restaurant suggestions. With a plastic chain he outlined the United States and asked for more zip codes. He would place each person in their state, including me. After he had about 15 people placed on the outline he then told a story that included each city we represented. So he remembered each persons zip code then named the city. This guy is amazing and a great entertainer.

We finally made our way back to the HABC and continued our Ironman CdA vigil in front of our laptops. I was waiting for Jodi and Bolder was watching several people including IronBenny. We were disappointed with the athlete tracking because with no intermediate run splits we didn't know how people were progressing in the race. I had the live feed on my laptop and was able to hear Jodi's name announced and caught a glimpse of her finishing her first Ironman in 12:37:05. She did awesome and I can't wait to hear the complete write-up.

So that takes us up to me finishing this blog post and heading to bed. Hoping to get in one more ride tomorrow before heading to the airport.

Do I have it in me for one more Game On? I'll let you know tomorrow.

Boulder Training Camp/Vacation - Day 2

How could the second day in Boulder be better than the first? I wasn't sure since we biked up a beautiful canyon to Jamestown and had a great session at masters swim. But damnit if Bolder didn't have something planned that would blow me away.

I woke up around 4AM, 6AM Cleveland time. I wasn't quite ready to be "up" so I hit the bathroom and went back to sleep. I managed to get another 1.5 hours in before getting up around 5:30AM. I knew I would be up before Bolder stirred so I made myself comfortable watching some TV and catching up on sports, news and weather...on three different channels.

I did some surfing of the web and waited patiently for Bolder to wake up. We weren't meeting up with the Boulder Tri Club for a group ride until 9:00AM. I waited for Bolder to wake up. I mixed up some fuel for the long ride he had planned for us. I called Aimee to chat for a while. I waited for Bolder to wake up. I read the local newspaper, Friday and Saturday editions. I waited for Bolder to wake up.

I wasn't sure quite when Bolder was going to wake up. Briefly the thought of my host lying dead in his bed flashed through my mind. OH.MY.GOD....I killed him. Bolder finally wakes up. Dude it's like 8:00AM and we have to meet the group in one hour. We high-tailed it up to the bagel shop to grab a bite to eat pre-ride. Drove back to the HABC and kitted up for the ride. We rode to the coffee shop where the group was to meet, only 5 minutes away, and waited for the ride to begin.

We set out with a group of seven riders. Conversation was good and the pace moderate at most times. We rode out to Carter Lake. This is a cool reservoir type lake that you have to climb to get to. It was about a 750 foot climb with two switchbacks. It was very cool to reach the top and see the lake on the other side. At the boat launch area for the lake was the campground grocery store. At this point were had 30 miles behind us in 1 hour 30 minutes. Not bad. Most was flat or downhill, except for climbing to Carter Lake.

I have to mention how much I enjoy seeing cyclists out riding.....a lot of them....all sorts of them......waving hello.....smiling......enjoying their ride. I saw so many cyclist that I thought I was in cycling heaven, which I think I am. Throughout the day I literally saw over 100 cyclists. If I didn't see a cyclist every 5 miles I would be surprised.

After refilling bottles we continued on. After another short climb we crested and started a screaming decent to the plains. We rode with the group a little longer until they turned right to head back to Boulder and we turned left to continue the days adventure.

Oh...the views of the foothills and mountains were spectacular. Some of the snow is still on the peaks and no picture can capture what I saw. Unfortunately I didn't have a small enough camera to bring along for the ride or else there would be some pics to accompany the story.

We continued our way towards our destination of Masonville which is southwest of Fort Collins. We climbed and descended. We saw cows, horses and other livestock. The roads were smooth for the most part and had very little traffic at times.

At Masonville we refueled again with water for myself, powerade and Mountain Dew for Bolder. This old mining town has two stores that were the coolest hole in the wall places with charm and character. It was also a popular stopping point for motorcyclists. I couldn't resist buying an ice cream sandwich....Hey I never do that type of thing and I'm on vacation.

We headed back towards Carter Lake retracing our route. Bolder and I had talked about time trials and determining LT values and power levels. So we decided that I would try a TT. I took off and started a 20 minute all out ride. The route wasn't the best because there was one downhill, some sharp turns and a major road to cross. But I did the TT regardless and we have some PowerTap information to look at.

After the TT I rode easy until I could place my right lung back into my chest. I rejoined Bolder and we began the last hour of our ride which would take us away from Carter Lake and into the town of Hygiene. That is not a typo. THE.TOWN.OF.HYGIENE. Don't ask me how they came up with that name. I'm sure there is some good history. Once we made it to Hygiene (I try not to snickers as I type that) we refueled again for the final push home to the HABC.

The rest of the ride was rather uneventful. The entire ride was actually uneventful except for a mysterious chain skip that was plaguing Bolders ride, the BMC ProMachine. We stopped several times and couldn't see any obvious problems. We did narrow it down to the chain though.

I will post the ride route and details in another post. Several comments about this ride.

• It was hot. No cloud cover and direct sunlight.
• The company was great. The others in the group were great to talk to and Bolder is a great cycling companion.
• the views were awesome. Like I said earlier, Carter Lake, the Plains, Foothills and Mountains were gorgeous.
• This was my longest ride for the season. I will not repeat the mileage again this summer.
• I thoroughly enjoyed this ride. From beginning to end. The tired feeling my legs was well worth it.

Once we got back to the HABC we showered and headed out for an early dinner. And boy did we eat. We each had the 12 ounce prime rib. Yes, we ate it all. After dinner we walked around downtown Boulder so I could see the sights. What a great little town.

Back at the HABC we relaxed, talked about the ride, and looked at the PowerTap information. Now I am done for the day. Hopefully the legs will recover overnight and be ready for a 1:30 run tomorrow morning.

Game is still On.

PS.....Good luck to everyone at all of the Ironman events, especially JT at Coeur D'Alene....her first IM.

Boulder Training Camp/Vacation - Day 1

I have made my way to Boulder to visit and train with Bolder for the weekend. I have been waiting for this weekend and a chance to get away all month. I know I will miss Aimee all weekend but Bolder has plenty planned and I think he is going to send me home as a shell of my former self.

The flight was uneventful and Bolder met me at the airport. I couldn't miss him sporting a BMC t-shirt and some of the locals pointing and staring at the namesake of the Bolder Boulder 10k. He even brushed off a couple of autograph hounds.

During the drive to the HABC we talked about many things and discovered some more similarities between us. I just love looking at the mountains since I have absolutely nothing like that back home. Lunch, or mid-afternoon snack for me, was at a Walnut Brewery where I had a Salmon BLT. That is definitely a sandwich I will have to make when I get back home.

We finally made it to the HABC and I unpacked my gear in the "The Medal Room". The HABC is a fabulous outpost for training at the base of the foothills of Boulder. We let lunch settle before taking our first training ride of the weekend. Just something to loosen up the legs and let me take in the scenery during a ride up to Jamestown. This ride was great and allowed me to use a PowerTap for the first time. I'll wait for the downloaded information before doing any analysis.

The climb up to Jamestown was simply gorgeous and reminded me of the bike course at Lake Placid. The final 10 miles to LP was very similar to the ride to Jamestown with pine trees, high cliffs and a river running along the road. Plenty of opportunity to talk and relax. Once we arrived in Jamestown we made a u-turn and bombed down the road. Once I got comfortable on the Trek 2200 I was able to take the curves more aggressively.

About half way down the wind started to pickup, and not in our favor. The winds were coming UP the road. And the winds were so strong that we were actually loosing speed going downhill. At one point I looked at the PowerTap and I was riding at 31 MPH downhill and pushing 450+ Watts. I'm sorry but that math doesn't add up. When we made it to the bottom we looked at each other and couldn't believe what had just happened.

We made a turn to head back to the HABC. We had to climb again before bombing back down. The winds were still blowing and we could actually feel the extra push from the wind as we were going UPHILL. It was certainly some freaky wind. On the downside back to Boulder I was warned about a stop sign half way down. I was following Bold's leada so I knew when to brake. I certainly knew when to start braking, I only had to smell the burning rubber from Bolders brakes...and boy did it stink. I was 50 yards behind him and I could smell the pungent odor of burning rubber. When we got back to the HABC the front brakes on the BMC had a glob of rubber. It was the weirdest thing I have ever seen.

Here is the profile from my powertap.......

After we relaxed and talked about the ride, we got ready to go to a masters swim session. I haven't done a structured swim workout since before the half iron race. It felt nice getting into a pool that wasn't 88 degrees and following the workout provided by the deck coaches. I felt strong and fluid in the water. After a kick ass one hour workout we finally grabbed something to eat at Wahoo's Fish Tacos. I had a massive burrito that helped fill the void from the double workouts of the day.

I'm looking forward to the ride and swim scheduled for Saturday, but right now I am tired and ready for bed. The two hour time change is bad enough when you aren't working out.

Game On.

Preserving Your Chi

Let’s talk about sex baby, let’s talk about you and me let’s talk about the Half Ironman I’m doing tomorrow. Okay so that’s not how the Salt ‘n Pepa song really goes but that was the idea behind the June issue of Inside Triathlon. Come on, admit it. You picked up the Sex Issue just like everyone else. We’re human, sex sells. You may not agree with the marketing department at Inside Tri or Triathlon Magazine but they are in the business of selling issues. How can you not be curious when the cover looks like this.

Now did you actually go beyond the pictures and read the articles? Or is that argument reserved for only Playboy magazine? I felt that the articles were interesting and informative. Aimee and I were quite interested in the sub-article on page 52, “An Alternative for Abstinence”.

Scientifically there are theories that abstaining from sex raises the testosterone levels in both men and women. For some sports they say that is good because aggressiveness is linked to testosterone, especially when you are dealing with something like boxing or football.

But does triathlon need all that extra testosterone? Just look around in transition before the race begins. If the sight of all the scantily clad, buff and tanned athletes doesn’t raise your levels of testosterone you are way too focused on the race. You are missing one of the best parts about celebrating the human body and triathlon.

And how aggressive does one need to be for a triathlon? The true nature of the sport is to compete as an individual….you against the clock or distance. Okay so the swim start can resemble the scrum at a rugby match but other than that, how aggressive do you need to be. At races greater than the Olympic distance it’s all about being steady, reserved, consistent, and under control. Go out too aggressive at an Ironman and you may have a long day. Be too conservative at a sprint and you will be left on the beach sipping a pina colada.

Now Chinese theory states that each individual has a central energy store, or Chi. Everything comes from this same source of energy or life force. A contributor to the article says that in men, sperm is part of the ultimate life force, the essence that the body uses to heal injuries or a person (men in this case) needs to perform at their best. Sorry ladies, they didn’t mention anything about your Chi. However, women are the ultimate life force with their ability to give birth…..but I digress.

Professional triathlete and U.S. Olympic hopeful, Matt Reed, shared his own candid views on this topic. He doesn’t feel it helps or hinders a person’s race day performance. He admitted to race morning intimacy since pro races are often held in the afternoon. Now most age group races start in the early morning and a quick romp in the sack may not work out. I would say two days prior to the race is when you should avoid the two hour marathon sex sessions.

Wait a minute…..was that a huge collective groan I just heard from the women? It can happen…..conditions just need to be right. You know…the moon has to be in retrograde to Venus only when the fourth moon of Saturn in on the dark side….blah…blah….blah. IT COULD HAPPEN!!

Aimee and I read this article right before my Half Iron at Racing for Recovery. She knew how important this race was to me. She wanted me to perform at my best. She didn’t want me to “loose” any of my Chi. Do you see where this is going?!?! ABSTINENCE PEOPLE! How is this good? I have trouble dealing with this theory. Do you know that prolonged abstinence leads to this and this. How am I supposed to ride a bike for 2.5 hours with this between my legs? Is it going to simply make me go faster so I can release the Chi I don’t use during the race post race? When was the last time you were able to “perform” after completing a half or full Ironman race? STOP! You don’t have to answer that….rhetorical question….I really don’t want to know.

As if training doesn’t take enough time away from spending intimate moments with our significant others, now we have to deal with abstinence before races. Good gracious what have we gotten ourselves into with this triathlon stuff?

So I have come to the following conclusion….preserving Chi equals this.

Chi On.

Flashpoint Bike Porn

Now who doesn't like bike porn, epsecially when simple cosmetic surgury can spice up any bike. Aimee did a Biathlon with her dad on Father's Day so I cleaned up her bike and put some new bar tape on. I also put the Flashpoint 60's on her bike to see what they would look like. I liked what I saw so I had her "race" on the wheels....she was more escorting her dad on the course.

I put black tape on the aerobar and that hawt robins egg blue on the handlebars.

After the race she commented on how she felt like a poser, especially when she wasn't riding very fast. Next race she can use the wheel set again and fly around the course.

I also put the FP 60's on my road bike, my beloved GT ZR3000. I'm gonna have to do a crit with these bad boys.

Game, and wheels, On.

A fine mess I've gotten myself into....

......I'm visiting Bolder in Boulder this weekend. Just a nice trip to finally meet my TriBrother in person and have a good time riding, running and swimming. Enjoy the scenery, without any butt crack, drink some beer, eat some food.....etc.

However, my wife (Aimee) is a little nervous about my trip. She is worried that I will fall in love while at the HABC because of this. You see I have decided to not take my own bike out to Boulder. Turns out Bolder rides the same size machine that I do so he will provide me with a steed from his stables. Will I be able to resist the temptation to bring a similar steed into my own lineup?

I have no intentions of retiring my beloved GT and Elite. They have served me well and I would rather work on bettering the engine.

But it will be quite an honor to ride a steed from the stable of Bolder.