favorite quotes

be careful of looking for adventure, it is ridiculously easy to find - William Least Heat-Moon

live the life you've dreamed - Henry David Thoreau

do more, feel better, live longer - GlaxoSmithKline mission

Those who believe in telekinetics, raise my hand - Kurt Vonnegut

each time I ride my bike is an adventure - I'm sure someone must have said this

(will add to the list over time)

60 mile ride - another near crash

I did the Dog Daze Southern loop today.

The temps were in the 50s! The wind was in my face for the first 1/2 of the ride, but it was a pleasure coming back.

25 miles in, a bridge was out, so I... climbed down, walked planks, stepped in mud, gunked up right cleat.

Tried to clear it out a few times - it seemed clean, but wouldn't catch into the pedal.

At one point when I was moving pretty fast, I went to return water bottle to cage and my foot slipped off the pedal - lost my balance, swerved across wet road, nearly wiped out pretty good.

Dumb ass.

So I stopped and spent some time with the cleat and a stick. I'm not sure what I did, but it finally 'clicked' into the pedal.

Need to pack a small screw driver in my bag.

Otherwise, ride was pretty cool. 3200 foot elevation gain.










Better to be thought a fool, than to blog and remove all doubt ; )

50 mile ride

50 miles yesterday.

It took 10 miles for my hands and feet to warm up - good to remember, because the ride was fine after that.

I live at the top of a hill - on cold days, it sucks because I'm not warmed up yet and I start by increasing the wind chill factor by 35mph or so - on days that are 30 degrees or below, that wind chill factor is brutal.

I got some compression pants for Christmas. Can't wear them until the foot doctor gives me the thumbs up to run again (well I suppose I could wear them around the house, but my daughters would not approve - not so sure about the wife ; )

So I call my brother - catch him and his family (2 sons under age of 5) on the car speaker phone on their way to the airport for a week in Mexico (they're livin' the life!). My nephews tell me about the dinosaurs and trucks they got from Santa, then ask me what I got....
'I got tights from Santa' - the line goes real quiet, so I follow up 'they are magic pants that make me run real fast' - now they get it - like a super hero - right ; )

Other than that, lots of normal Christmas stuff... wife has the flu... rescue niece and nephew from being stranded at Philly airport... way too much food, especially cookies, cake, chocolate... visit with family... start to think about next year...

I really have to get motivated on my race schedule. I'm looking for a good half IM.

best and worst tri-stuff

I pulled out an old Spinergy DVD yesterday - 90 minute Time Trial video. At 75 minutes I realized what a crap video it was when none of the riders could keep up with the trainer Troy Jacobson (who doesn't ride, just coaches from the sideline).

So I got this idea of sharing the worst, and best training / racing ideas on my blog.

My opinions - happy to hear comments...

Bike Training Videos
Best - Train Right - Carmichael
Worst - Spinergy - Jacobson

Power Bars
Best - Hammer Bars
Worst - Most non-organic power bars laden with preservatives

Most Productive Bike Training
Best
#1 - indoor training intervals
#2 - outdoor flat time trial 3x20 minutes 3-5 min rest

Worst
Most Group rides (yeah, they are fun, but only good for base training)
Commute to work (too much stopping and starting - good for some hill work or base training)

Swim Suit
Best - Jammer
Worst - Brief
Even worse - Swim Shorts

Goggles
Best - anything that keeps the water out and doesn't fog up - I like Aqua sphere Seal XP
Worst - cheap brands that don't adjust well, slip, let water in, fog easily, scratch easily

Race Tire Choice
Best - Continental Supersonic Clinchers
Worst - Tubulars - I don't like the idea of glue on race day

Training Plan
Best - Joe Friel Triathletes Bible custom fit for your needs or one developed for you by a qualified triathlete trainer
Worst - generic web training plans that don't address specific racer needs

Training Computer
Best - Garmin with Training Center
Worst - Separate devices - cyclometer + heart rate + running pace watch with pod, etc.

new bike workout - strength and speed

I set this one up on the Garmin Training Center and downloaded it to the 305 for an indoor workout...

Warmup
-2min HR Zone 1
-5min HR Zone 2
-3min HR Zone 3

Strength Repeats x 8
-2min easy
-3min high resistance (HR Zone 4+ / RPM 65)

Speed Repeats x 6
-1min easy
-2min fast feet (over 100 RPM)

Cooldown
- 2min HR Zone 3
- 5min HR Zone 2

the foot doctor

Took the trip down to Delaware to see the locally famous Dr. Feehery - a local podiatrist with a strong following amongst the elite endurance athletes.

It took 2 months to get on his calendar, but so far it seems worth it.

Over an hour later, 6+ X-rays, an ultrasound, numerous foot and gait checks, a Cortisone shot, and a long list of recovery procedures (ice, stretch, message, etc.), I'm on my way to better foot health (I hope).

The Xrays were pretty scary, showing a heel spur which has been the source of the pain.

No running for 2 weeks. I might just go crazy!

But no, kids are home for college break (freaking smart kids too - it's raining A's around here - whoo hoo - makes it easier to foot those monster tuition bills).

Sena's birthday today - some sushi, gourmet cupcakes, hi-def Harry Potter with the whole family - life is good.

I think everyone is now melowing out while I repair my daughter's PC - major virus just before she came home. It looks hopeless, will probably take most of the day - ouch.

So I'll blog on whilst I wait for crap software to uninstall so I can get to a relatively clean state.

Of course the restore points were wiped out by the virus, so it's manual clean up time.