Oct thru Dec 2012 review

Oct thru Dec 2012 review So I haven't blogged in a while. No events where I participated. I did volunteer at the Spinx runfest (late october) helping setup the marathon course flags and orange cones.  I did many "wellness events" for me. doctors, dentist, eye dr etc.  Free from strep throat this quarter of the year so I am happy.  I got an orthodic for my left foot and use it at work in my steeltoe boot. No cure but better than I had. I am able to do 6 mile runs with no problem, but the walking at work is hurting me. Will keep trying to remedy this.  Joined the Y in early October and have gotten my swimming back up to a high level. About 2 sessions per week. In late December I swam for over 2 hours and did 200 laps for over 3 miles.  The bike rides are couple times a week and an hour or two at a time. Record high power levels have been seen and I wonder if my calibration is off or I am really that strong despite the low miles and moderate speeds. Heavy bike (30 lb), heavy me (147 lb) and hills keep me humble.   Had a few shop rides with Gusto Cycles Group. Close to home, convenient, and good people.  I enjoyed a spin class at the Y and may do it again. My power for the hardest intervals was about 350 watts so I felt good about that.  Doing some work in the weight room and will be going there more often. My body weight is up compared to say B2B tri in Fall of 2011 and I struggle to bring it back down.  So no big huge training, but a solid base on which to maintain.  A more balanced and steady life for now.  See what 2013 might have in store. I may ramp it up and go off the deep end again. 

A light bike and eternal youth

Confessions of a Weight Weenie.  Over the years I have messed with my bike weight a lot. Starting around 2002 and my 28 lb Trek sport touring steel bike.  I was about 170 lbs then.  the complete system was over 200 pounds. Fenders and racks came off. I lost a few pounds. A few years later I bought a used Schwinn Supersport for $85 and it was at 24 lbs. Also I was loosing more body weight.  In 2005 the gift of a used Specialized Allez Epic came from Oregon. A 22 lb bike. I had lost about 30 lbs too. I was much faster now.  Another bike in 2007 was about 18 lbs. A huge decrease. But still I found new parts and new ways to take off weight.  Playing with removing grams here and there. Lighter tires. No handlebar tape. So on. Obsessed.  Anyhow I took the recently new to me light wheels and put them with my light frame. Took off extra stuff and weighed parts and pieces that could be taken off. I have several weigh scales for measuring small amounts. Wrote it out on paper. Did the math. See that I could have a sub 15 lb bike (without pedals). They always seem to leave off the pedals when bikemakers state their weights. Add 1/2 pound for pedals. Then the bike would UCI legal too. Pretty light.  For an uphill time trial I could even take off the front brake, front derailluer, big chainring (maybe),  left brake lever and cables. This would take off enough to give a 14 lb bike. Zoom zoom. Crazy crazy.  I have ideas for further weight reduction that could involve homemade or specially made parts. I probably won't pursue them, but maybe. If there is a huge markdown on some light part at a bikeshop  or  eBay - I might buy. I don't think I'm that obsessed though.  Of course the most cost effective and reasonable thing to do is become a big loser. Well maybe I am already, but I mean weight loss on me. I've been almost 20 lbs lighter. Could not sustain that but 10 lbs less of me is doable. Darn Hershey's Bliss chocolates,  Kettle cooked Lays potato chips and Mountain Dew (regular).  If only I was 15 years younger, was very fit yet light, had a 14 lb bike and good legs on a good day I could "slay" Paris Mtn.  The fountain of youth is in Florida somewhere, right?

Bike drinking systems

Bike drink systems Currently I have two water bottles cages on my triathlon (or time trial) bike. They are standard mounting locations within the frame as on a standard road bike.  I have been wanting to upgrade to a type of drinking system I have seen others use in tri/TT. Not sure what is best for me and I may have to experiment.  More aero or to be a cohesive overall system for speed. A mix of approaches may be best.  So I bought an aero drink system for my triathlon/TT bike. It is made by Vision Tech division of FSA, the same make as my aerobars.  The mounting is on the underside of my aero bar extensions. This is a "cockpit" mounted system. It has two separate bladders and combined can reportedly hold one liter (33 oz). There are tubes that sticks up to drink from like a straw with bite valves. One for each fluid actually.  Although it adds some weight, it seems negligible on a long flat course. Keeping aerodynamic tuck is the key and having the fluid constantly "staring at you" keeps you most likely to succeed at nutrition / hydration.   Profile Design, Torhans and others make aerobottles that I have seen many riders use. The PD has a yellow sponge mesh in it that I always think "how do they wash that?" or "yuk-drinking out of a sponge".  It seems simpler and reliable.  Anyhow, it holds a lot and is up front at your mouth. Big opening for "on the go" refill. Not sure how to quickly the refill while riding would be. It may take too long.  Another approach in this area are to just mount a standard water bottle horizontally between the extensions. That would require getting out of the aero tuck to drink from. A variation of this takes a standard bottle and adds a tube (Speedfil).  Speedfil makes a system with a special big aero bottle using the downtube cage mounting holes. It has tubing that goes up to the cockpit.  There are systems that put two standard water bottles behind the riders butt. It helps fill in the dead air zone and supposedly make the rider even more aerodynamic. That was the direction I was going to go with  and maybe I will in the future. Anyhow X-Lab is one company that makes good systems that top pro triathletes use. They even integrate the spare tire tube and inflator equipment into some models.  Not sure if I would also use one (the downtube cage only) or both frame mount cages. It depends on the race distance. The Vision system holds say 32 oz plus two bottles of 24 oz each adds up 80 oz total.  I know the Vision system would have saved me a minute or two in B2B as I refilled my water bottles out of their bottles. I stopped and got drinks. Perhaps I could just grab and go now. I need to research or rethink this more. Did i refill my bottles from a 5 gallon jug with a spout at the bottom? Not stopping is the goal.  Envision the jet-fighters refueling in mid air. If only I could have someone in a car fill up my containers. Yes they could just hand me new bottles.  I know I took 10 minutes at least at that one stop (hypothermia) at B2B. Way too long. There were other delays but part of it was time spent filing my bottles.  I got the Vision drink system for 80% off which made it an easy choice. I love a bargain.   Now if I could only get 80% off the entry fees of these races. 

Late August

Late August Regression of endurance efforts I have been sick yet again. My fitness is low. My left foot is in chronic distress. My apartment is near squalor. A truck tire is abnormally worn down, screaming for attention in it and in the suspension. 3 vehicles needing repair. Too much more to lust. Oops I mean list.  How did it get like this? I've spent so much time "out there" riding, running, etc. for top fitness. I don't regret it, however I need a  recess from the endurance training. A need for a more balanced life. I can get back to "ironman" fitness later. Just short runs and rides for now. Wellness with doctor and dentist visits are overdue. I've put them off.   My left foot needs pro help or at least rest; rest (little or no running) is cheap and easy. But I can't avoid the darn walking at work situation. I must try to improve it there yet again too. I may cut back on the blog as no event or heavy training will be going on. Then again there are non-training and event things to blog.  I am bummed out about not doing the marathon or even a half marathon in October. I just don't feel like paying to run and not do better than before or even much worse due to lack of training, chronic stress and injuries. I'm glad to have done two big centuries, a 3 day bike camping tour, and gotten into trail riding this year. I will volunteer at Spinx runfest and maybe the gran fondo Hincapie. That should be interesting.  I cheer for fellow athletes competing in events just completed and coming up. At least one has signed up for one (IM Canada) about a year away.  Getting back to endurance/ multi-sport racing: when that occurs is unimportant as long as the to-do list is under control and the health issues are dealt with. 

Zoot Ultra Tempo

Zoot tri shoes I recently bought a pair of triathlon specific shoes. They were a deep discount ($63 vs. $140) and I couldn't resist. They are Zoot Ultra Tempo 4.0 shoes are meant for triathlons specifically. Features: sockless wear; they are light at 9.1 oz each; have an elastic string instead of regular strings so as to tighten the shoe with one hand. They feel like slippers. Not great for a marathon, but best for sprint to olympic distances.  This purchase signifies that I just know I will get back to multi-sport/triathlon racing (or at least that is my hope). When and where are TBD. 

Mid august

Mid August I find myself just sitting and watching the Olympics a lot lately. Can't motivate myself for much. Watched the 10 km women's swim (condensed). 1st and 2nd so close after 2 hours of swimming.  7/9 Thursday: Went for a trail ride in woods near the apartment office on a muggy overcast day. Took pruning shears and cut back vegetation. I made about 4 laps total (maybe 20 minutes of riding) and was dripping sweat. A thunderstorm popped up and forced me into the office. The power went out.  7/11 Saturday: after work I found the motivation and discipline to run nearly 6 miles. I think the cooler temperatures, compared to those of the last month or two, helped me to get out there. Oh yea, near the end of the run, I almost ran into a skunk. About 2 feet away. In milliseconds I thought it was a cat coming out of the bushes then oh no it is a skunk ( i made a yelp) evasive action, run away, run fast. Did not get sprayed. So lucky. Not my first encounter with one in this town.  Did you hear about the blind skunk that fell in love with a fart? Also just before the skunk I did a sprint interval, but with something I learned watching a 200 or 400 meter race at Olympics. Commentator said it was good the guy was bringing his hands up to eye level. I tried it and arms are forcefully thrust to do this. I felt fast. Look forward to trying it again, especially at the track sometime.  I pondered getting fast again. Thought about committing to doing a marathon at the Spinxs Runfest on October 28. Found out there is a Gran Fondo Hincapie the day before. Maybe I can volunteer for that event.   But the thing is I'm having problems with my left foot. All the walking at work in boots is not friendly to them. I may need to stop or scale back my running even further. 

Early August

Early August 7/1 Wednesday. Andy and I  went to Oldenburg, Indiana to ride with his friend Steve Leak around that hilly area. Great route along creeks and tree shaded rolling hills. The Hill Top Road was very steep up to 17% at one reading. Climbing out of a river. One of the forks of the Whitewater River. Buena Vista, Enochsburg, Hamburg. 45 miles and 2300 feet of vertical. It's great to ride an entirely new route.  7/3 ran in Huntington to the Spokesman bicycle shop and looked around briefly. Ran along River Rd and back up Byron. Did 60 pushups along the way. Hot and humid- had to walk alot coming up hills. About 4.2 miles estimated in 45 minutes.   7/4 rode solo out of Huntington on IN 5 up to Bracken Rd. And over to IN 105 and up to IN 114 then to North Manchester in about 53 minutes. 19 miles estimated. It was hot and I went in a CVS to get cold water. Down across the covered bridge and south then east. Went down county line road toward 800 N but had to walk over big piles of gravel (road closed at small bridge). Went thru Bippus and over to IN 5 and back home. Got into garage 1 minute before a huge storm let loose with heavy rain and lightning. 38 miles approximate in 2 hours. Only 592 feet vertical so pretty flat and fast.  So you can see there are 2 Indianas. One is flat and the northern 2/3 and the other is very hilly and in the south.  7/5 drive to SC

Late July - new activities

Late July - new activities.  7/25. Got done with working an extra day for 3 days in a row. One day off and 3 in a row this weekend. Not much time for exercise.  On the way home I stopped at my bosses house and bought a mountain bike from him. It is a Trek 17" frame "Limited Edition VW ". Yep all in quotes is painted on the frame. It weighs about 27 pounds, has no suspension, cro-moly frame, Shimano SXT components, 26 x 2.1 Kuhmo tires, presta tubes, 22 x 28 lowest gear. Those items should give you an idea that it is not a Walmart bike - quite a bit better. I have a "found" and abused Walmart MTB (by Huffy) that I have ridden a few times but I don't treat it well and haven't ridden it in years. It is heavy and shifts poorly.  7/26. Stayed up too late last night watching a couple old movies "Born Loosers" (a Billy Jack prequel) and "I spy" (Eddy Murphy). Anyhow, got up at like noon and it was already 95 degrees and humid. The open road did not appeal to me nor the pool. I took the Jetta Trek down to the trails in the woods behind the apartment office. I have run these trails in the past for variety (and tried the Huffy MTB here). The heavily forested trails would at least offer a lot of shade. For about 30 minutes I sweated and taught myself how to ride MTB. I have rarely done this type of riding. Climbing on foot on steeper grades, but pedaling whenever possible. Very challenging trails. Will try to develop a routine here on these trails and do some trail maintenance. Did not wear heart rate monitor or have any metrics. I know i had some high intensity bits and some low. Afterwards, the right knee is sore.  So thus a new dimension to this blog is born?  Bicycling OFF-road!  Oh yea, I think I may add fishing to here as well. Kristen and I have been going to Lake Robinson and catching mainly small bluegills. We will keep learning and see where it takes us. It is not part of the normal multi sport activities but it is an outdoor activity.  7/28 Saturday. Walk 8.5 miles at work. Then for a humid run near sunset in Clinton/Presby.Coll.  Did estimated 4.2 miles and 100 pushups (declining rep. sets every 5-10 minutes)  in 45 minutes.  Will drive home Sunday night and head to Huntington on Monday. 

Bike Camping Trip

Bike camping trip 7/19 Friday. Got up not too early around 8:30. Started working on getting everything together. Took quite a while and cleaning up apt. I was kinda ready around 3pm but a severe T-storm came in and I just sat there watching TV. I weighed each wheel and it added up to nearly 70 pound bike.  The TV had a news special about shooting in Colorado movie theater I had not heard about.  I had to relook at map and rethink.   I left right before 5pm.  I headed to Travelers Rest on sometimes busy State Park Road. A few quick stops to adjust. To TR/US 25 at 5:30.  Kept going to US 276 and up to SC 11. Rain was light but not bad. Over to Table Rock State Park at 7:30 pm. Office closed, but posting said $16 for primitive campsite. Also a notice about black bears.  Got the tent up by 8:30 and started eating. Can of ravioli and a banana. The rain was falling pretty good now. By 9 it was getting low light.  Hike to pit toilet. 1000 flys; Yuck. Had a plastic tablecloth for an impromptu rain shield thru the woods on narrow muddy trail. A weird site if seen.  Couldn't get asleep. Noisy neighbors. Listened to NOAA weather, then Rock Racing radio show, then Ira Glass on NPR about amusement park and "games". Maybe 11 pm. got to sleep. Rain was starting to ease up. Got out of tent around 9 am.  Noisy neighbors woke me up. Front of tent inside was all wet. Pack it up wet. Walked out at 10am and by 10:20 was on the road. Stop for adjustments and shoe change.  Before long I got to US 178 at SC 11. I had cell service so made call to mom to let her (someone) know where I was. Then headed toward Rosman with lots of climbing thru Rocky Bottom and Eastern continental divide. Just before the divide I stopped at a roadside pipe that was streaming out pencil thin water and filled up a bottle. A family in a car stopped to do same thing too and the man offered me bottle of water. Weird but nice. It was getting real hot and I needed any water I could get.  At Middle Fork Baptist Church right before Rosman I stopped and filled up more on water. Drank 22 oz of Powerade in under 60 seconds.   Dark clouds all around as I went thru Rosman. Short leg on rt. 64 and then on 215 north!  Guy in GMC Jimmy stopped on 215 in other lane  I thought "what the heck?". Later he came by me slow. Ater that he was way up road, out of Jimmy and waved me down. He was maybe 80 years old. Earl from Balsam Grove.  He was a former bike tourer. Biked Europe, australia.  Across america (San Diego to St. Augustine FL ). Talked a good while. He offered me his used panniers. Later wished I got his address or contact info. Onward.  Hit balsom grove at 2:25.  I had been doing lots of climbing all day, but now the hard climbing would hit. 9 miles to the BRP said Earl. Climb slow in my 28 x 28 gear usually. Heart rate hits red zone and I back off. Rest. Repeat. Very little traffic, almost no mans land.   I could have rode naked...but I didn't. Dark dense forest. Sheer granite rock walls with water falling down. Birds whistling. Sweat pouring. Dark clouds appearing. Getting very dark. put on rain jacket. Sweat inside it. Take it off.  The rain started at 4:05 maybe. It let loose dramatically and I was quickly as wet as I could be. Took 20 sec to get rain jacket back on. In a few minutes I hit a bridge underpass.  A moto guy on a "Pacific Coast" and his wife were there. We talked a while. He was looking to buy a Goldwing. He recently bought a $5000 trek bicycle for only $1800 at Liberty Bicycle shop (Asheville). I was skeptical. The rain let up and he left. I got out my gloves and went onto the blue ridge parkway. So glad I brought gloves (even though it got to mid 90's at home). I was on the parkway at 4:15. Almost 2 hours climbing from Balsam Grove. As it is basically up "on top of it all" it is a wonderful view, but not so much with the dark sky.  Soon into devils courthouse tunnel. Kinda scary.  I had rear flasher, but I was trapped once inside and pedaled hard to reach the other end where I stopped a minute. I rode on and began to feel cold from the wind and wet. Soon saw Looking Glass Rock, a Plutonite mountain that is round and huge. When wet or ice covered it reflects the sun dramatically. Wow. Cool.  Lots of downhill. Stop at "The graveyard" overlook. Like 500 years ago a strong wind blew all the trees down. Then like 90 years ago a fire burned everything down. Guy from Charleston and maybe his dad were there on bikes. Doing the whole BRP (470 miles) in 10 days. He just graduated from college of charleston where Jessica is headed. We talked awhile. Onward. Rain had let up but totally cloudy and windy.  Was done with the 12 miles  on the BRP and on 276 down toward Brevard at 5:40. Road was wet but no rain.  Miles of coasting and braking.   Got to sliding rock recreation area and wanted to ask a ranger about camping, but no one there.  Parking lot jammed full. From roadside I watched people in a long waiting line wait their turn to slide down a huge slanted rockface with rushing water flowing on it and into a pool.  Weeee. That was 6:05 pm.  To ranger station building 6:30. They were closed. Study maps on the bulliten boards. Then to Davidson River Campground - 20 bucks for a site. Noisy neighbors. Went back to ranger station. It said it was legal to backcountry camp anywhere 1000 feet from a road. Also bury your human waste - but I forgot my shovel!  Panic began to set in. I thought; like Winney the Pooh. Think! Went to group camping area road back up the hill a mile. It was a gravel road. Big group at first site. Keep going.  See another site in 5 minutes. Cross over stream on narrow wood bridge. By reservation and fee area sign. Noone there!  Nice pit toilet building and pretty clean. Decided to risk it. Nice array of gravel tent pads. Get tent up by 8 pm. Then I ate can of soup, can of fruit, apple sauce, chocolate protein bar for dessert.  750 calories. Time enough to count calories. Getting dusk. Hang up food again tonight and hope bears cant reach it. Organize and brush teeth. Dim at 9.  In tent laying down at 9:20.  Water pump was double crank like a bicycle!  Had to crank it alot to get water. As soon as you stop cranking the water stopped. Got arm workout.  In tent on iPod writing this stuff till 10:45.  Had rain fly pulled back and could see stars real well. Hope no rain. Or bears.  Woke up fully at 7:45 Sunday morning. The mountains hid the early sun I guess. Took til 9:30 to be ready to leave. Went down the gravel road along Avery Creek.  I was at White Pines campground. Another night of free camping. Don't tell.  Went a mile or two to ranger station to use bathroom, change shoes, and put on sunscreen. Watched the multitude of hummingbirds there at the feeders by porch. So many they fought over the feeder holes.  They chirp at each other while arguing.  Headed down to get on 64 at Pisgah forest. Went into a bike shop slash hiking & camping store called Hub City. Kinda shopped around at all the wonderful toys (I mean equipment).  First purchase of trip was a Honey Stinger waffle. Outside was so hot already. I was wilting after maybe 3 miles.  Headed to Hendersonville on 64. Nice wide shoulder til I got to Horseshoe. Stop at a Dollar General in Etowah to oil chain in shade and swap a water bottle. Lady with 2 or 3 year old girl talked about "big bike".  Guy from store talked. Found 21¢ laying on rock in wall. I'm lucky.  Down the road and I stop at a fire station and got water. Fireman offered me a cold bottle.  Made more Powerade. Hot!  Got into Hendersonville and headed south on 225. Stop in shade and rest and fill up bottles and make more Powerade. Got to Flatrock  went to The Wrinkled Egg bakery and after long wait got 2 scones: blueberry and chocolate chip. Ate the blueberry immediately & hoped the starch and sugar would power me up.  Took two Advil for my neck ache. Long climb out of Flatrock. Zoom down past Zirconia and into Tuxedo. Then a long climb out of there to state line; got to state line and zoom down watershed. At Les Mullinax Park ate other scone.  Made more Powerade. Hot. 4 Harley riders pulled in. All us "bikers" Went to Tigerville. Started on last food item I had. A Clif bar. One bottle left. Less than an hour from home hopefully.  Went past lake Robinson and stopped at 290. Rest in shade.  Got home at 5:10 pm. Really I was gone slightly over 48 hours. So was it a three day ride?   Got in and took a cool shower. Soon I was asleep in my big comfy chair.  For FB 48 hour bike camping tour up  to Blue Ridge Parkway (215 to 276) was mini adventure. Primitive camping and no black bears woke me up.  Www.taylorspeach.blogspot.com

Mid-July.

Mid July 7/11 ran with Rob on Srt from the Y. Ran and walked 8.4 miles. After we parted I ran 3.2 more.  Later swam 1000 yds.  7/12. Got in 47 mile bike over Paris mtn. SRT down to the Y and back to P.M. Backside in 16 minutes. Storms luckily never happened, but it threatened all day.   7/16 long work weekend over with no running. Oh well. Ran about 4.5 miles in high heat but with about 1/3 shaded.  7/17 rode over to and over Paris Mtn then to Furman University to meet Rob. Rob and I got on the route to Saluda but as planned only went to Old 25 and back using the Dividing Waters/Callahan Mtn loop.  Went fishing later with Kristen.  Still thinking of doing 3 day bike camping trip on the 19th but I won't probably be able to leave early Friday. Lack preparation. 

Early July

Early July 6/1 just work, walk 16,000 steps (8 miles) as normal.  6/2 slept like 12 hours. Did not feel good or right somehow. Only at 8pm did I go to pool and swim 54 laps in crowded pool.  6/3 got up early. Felt good. Worked on front flat on Allez. Put on the bigger 25 or 26c tire (labeled as 28c). Rode toward Saluda. Camp Old Indian route. As it was nearing 95 degrees in Greenville today I was glad to be in the shade of the watershed. Met up with Kieth Owen and 2 others along the way, briefly. Got to Saluda and got water refilled. Oh yea back tire was a slow leak and I pumped it up more then it really blew out. Valve stem area Back on road and dark clouds appear. I hoped to get down the watershed before it let loose, but 10 minutes out of Saluda it opened up. I got soaked.  Keith was there under a tree at the state line. I waited with him till it let up. We went slowly down watershed and he went to his car at Mullinax Park. Around Tigerville the sun came out and it was hot.   A good 4 hour ride.  6/6 Friday. Run 3 miles in high heat but some shade. Later bike 13.6 miles on SRT w/ Kristen.  6/7 Saturday. Big 80 mile ride to Furman (hook up w/ Doug) then Caesars Head climb and back to Paris Mtn climb and home. 6400 ft of climbing. We started early but it got real hot at the end.    Fishing w/ Kristen later.  6/8 Sunday. Run 5 miles.  I am thinking more about going the route of Spinx Runfest marathon this Fall if my ankle holds up. 

Late JUNE

Late JUNE Late JUNE 6/26. After work. Went and bought a 16 oz Rockstar energy drink and waited for it's  effects. I was real tired but needed to drive home and possibly run.  After an hour of catnaps I was feeling peppy. But I didn't run. 3 days "rest". Read more about Diana Nyad. Extraordinary endurance athlete with an extreme dream.  6/27 swam almost 2500 yds in an hour in a crowded pool. Got a sunburn too. Strength train.  Later 32 mile ride with Gusto bike shop group. New (to me) route thru Greer, toward Duncan/BMW. Went all out trying to catch lead group at one point, but failed.  6/28. Great 28 mile ride with Kristen on SRT this morning (cool). Her longest ride ever I think. Went on new trail section by Greenville Tech.  Then later I ran 6 miles in high heat and my heart could barely take it. Heart rate kept hitting 165 to 170. At 4 miles in I had to start walking every minute or two. Last mile i was actually surprised it was only 12 to 13 minutes.  I should have only done 3 or 4 miles. Need alot of recovery on this. A quart of Gatorade after then a medium thingy from Sno-Hut helped. Heart rate did not want to come down afterwards.  "Badwater ultramarathon 135" race training. Can't understand how they train for and compete that thing. Unreal.  6/29. Got up to 105 degrees at least at work. Felt the effects of the run in the morning but drank and ate my way out of problems. Ok later in the day. No exercise tonight. Maybe some Saturday evening.  6/30 after work it was mid 90s so I went on Internet awhile. Then at sunset began a run. 3 mile loop at low 90s.  Got back to truck and Was dripping sweat. Drank 22 oz of Powerade. Then went and ran 2 more miles. Went and bought 64 oz chocolate milk. Drank 2/3 of it. Heart worked normally. 

Mid June

6/8- ride SR trail 2.3 hours with Kristen. SR = Swamp Rabbit.  6/9 miracle hill century. 3rd to the top of ceasars head with Doug on my tail. He later has a flat after I ride ahead. Then I wait. We rejoin, then I have a flat. Took some air out of the event, but we had great support on the way. Great volunteers and such a worthy cause.  That night I developed strep throat. Next day go to CVS minute clinic and get antibiotic.  6/13: 10 min on treadmill.  6/14. Core and upperbody workout. Then bike to  -  not too hard.  6/16. Run 5.3 mile. Feeling good.   6/18 swim, run, bike.  1500 yds, 2 mile, 22 miles. Also core work, squats, etc 6/19: 1200 yd swim.  2.4 mi run 6/22. Swim 1500 , run 3 mile.  Got a new bike that will be setup for Kristen to ride. Fuji.  6/23. Ride QR bike up to SC 11 and back in 90 degree hot sun.  Averaged 19 mph for 32 miles.  Go with Kristen to SR trail. Park at the Swamp Rabbit Cafe and Grocery. Go to Cleveland St "Y". Slow around all the crowds downtown but average over 11 mph north to Furman and ride 20 miles total. Run 2 miles.   • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • So Kristen has been running some and the occasional bike rides. Not sure how dedicated she will be to regular workouts. Hope she sticks with it.  I'm still trying to determine a event goal but no luck. Taking 3 vacation days for B2B is a concern. I would like to do a marathon swim somewhere. Diana Nyad to again attempt Cuba to FL swim soon. Inspiring.   Fitness goals are to work more on core strength and weight training and loosing fat. 

Early June training

Early June training 6/1 Friday. After work ran 5.7 miles in just over 46 minutes. Felt rested and therefore strong.  I still remember in February that 8 minute miles were a distant memory and so far off.  6/2 Saturday. Should have run 3 miles but surfed Internet instead.  6/3 Sunday. ran 6.1 miles after work.  6/4 rode to Saluda - 62 miles. Surprised I was so tired afterwards. No flats or wrecks so a very good ride.  6/5 Tuesday: 13 minute run.  25 minute swim. 15 minute bike. Weird day.  6/6 Wednesday.  After work run 42 minutes. Odd route so estimate 4.8 miles.  Btw. My back pains have moderated.  I need to get back to using the TT bike soon. Also I'm hungry to do a triathlon. A cheap local 5150 or half iron. Maybe a sprint. Still unsure of B2B this year.  The bike century on June 9th will be my lone planned event this year and it is not a race nor timed. 

Late May training

Late May training Thurs 5/24: rest/clean house Friday 5/25: rest. Pickup Mom at GSP. :) Saturday 5/26: ride 4.1 hours (67 miles & 5400 ft vertical). Ceasars Head and more- Miracle Hill training ride. Rear end healed from AOMM and I felt good.  Sunday 5/27: rest Monday 5/28: work. Walk over 20,000 steps. Miss the US PRO Championship bike race :( Tuesday 5/29: swim 45 minutes (2000 yds).  Wed 5/30: rest/ walk downtown GVL. Lower back pain has persisted for over a week. Doing some sit-ups and lots of stretching.  Thurs 5/31 [Jessica graduates H.S.]

Mid may - spontaneous assault

Mid May 5/14 Monday. Just work. Walk 10 miles as usual.  5/15 Tuesday. After work I ran 5.2 miles. Started slow at near 10 minute pace and got faster. For the last 1.1 mile it took me about 8 minutes. I did not get the exact seconds so it was at about a 7.5 minute pace which was about a 90% effort. 45 minutes total.  5/16 Wednesday. Got a late start but rode up to Tigerville. Went up the Callahan mountain climb (12%) slowly. The Poinsett bridge has had a lot of work done on it with sidewalks and such. Beautiful day in the peaceful woods.  Continued on to the Greenville Watershed and past the Saluda/Hendersonville split toward Saluda. Turned around since I wanted to be downtown at 6:30 pm. They were having a "Ride of Silence" bike ride to honor cyclists killed on the road. I was slightly late but joined them for most of the very slow ride around Greenville (a 7 mile loop). Had to leave them around 8pm so I could get home before dark. 70 miles total.  5/17 Thursday. My knees were a little sore so I avoided much climbing or running today.  5/18 fri. Ran 5.7 miles. 49 minutes.  5/19 ran same 5.7 miles 47 minutes.  5/20 Sunday   Thought about the assaults on Marion and Mitchell. They are tomorrow morning.  After work, looked online (8:30 pm) but online registration is closed for Marion. Might go over there in the morning.  Btw. Bro Andy is in California  following Tour Of California bike race.  He took his bike.   5/21. Monday. Woke at 4 am. Drove to Spartanburg with bike. Signup for Marion 6am. Couple thousand of us leave at 6:30. End up at Mt. Mitchell summit 8 hrs later (7 hours of riding). 103 miles & over 11,000 ft climbing.  5/22 Tuesday. 6 mile easy ride. Rear end so sore. Used unpadded seat yesterday. Clean 2 bikes (making back sore). Later twist wrong and develop lower back spasm/pulled muscle. Can barely stand up.  5/23 Wednesday. Work 13+ hours. Walk 9 miles. After work run moderate 3.2 miles. 

Early-mid May workouts

5/7 Monday. Did a time trial on a familiar route of 22 miles/1300 feet vertical. Took 1 hour 6 minutes. Real hard effort.  5/8/12 8:18 pm run to Taylors Elementary and do 4 laps on their mini track. Back to mailbox and get email. Easy .35 home. 2+ .6 + .7 = 3.3 miles. 33 min; 132 ave, 148 max heart rate.  5/9. Ran 6.5 miles after work.  5/10 just work. Drive home.  5/11 Friday: worked on the bike (more flats, seat change, remove clipon aerobars) ran a bit but the big effort was swam 2900 yards in about an hour at outdoor pool.  It was a cool day and my hands got numb. Shivering cold when I quit. A young guy poolside was like "dude - how far have you swam??" in a manner of disbelief at my seriousness you might say.  5/12 Saturday. 7:35 am   Rode down to Carolina Triathlon shop and joined a couple dozen riders for about 50 miles.  Wet roads and dark clouds, but no real rain.  Discussed tubular tires with owner Randy. Met a few new people. Then with 4 miracle hill riders to do Paris Mtn (15.3 minutes backside) and back to the shop. Oh, Doug was fastest on the climb with 14.5 minutes or so.  Went the with Doug awhile to the southeast. Split off when I thought it might rain soon. Did 77 miles and 4600 feet of climbing.  After about 20 minutes at home (transition), went for a 4 mile run. 6 hours total today. Time for a movie and a pizza.  5/13 Sunday.  It was lightly raining at about 1 pm when I started my run. I ran a different way than normal, but I think I've done it before. I headed down to Wade Hampton (US 29) and headed toward Greer. Huge nice shoulder on this section. Ran past the Target, home Depot and all the other stores and turned around at SC 290 or the Taco Bell. It was raining steady but still light. I ran about 7 miles at a 9:15 pace. Junk miles? Soggy shoes!  Time to watch a movie. 

Siezures aHead: skinny tire headaches

May 3 2012 Thursday My ride to Seizures aHead was an adverse adventure. Chose my heavy 35 lb Allez to use . Started around 2pm And by going toward Paris Mountain. Climbed Audubon (like 9% ave and 15% peak) To get warmed up. I had to stop near the top and rest a few minutes.  Egads. Sweating alot. Mid 80's and sunny. Oh yea before Paris mountain I rode and the two baby chipmunks ran out in the road not knowing where to go. They would soon be roadkill if they didn't get out of the road. One went right the other went left. And as I passed the leftbound one I looked over and a huge hawk was at the roadside and I could quickly realize it just caught a nice little snack.   Then up onto climb steep part of Altamont and the summit.  Onward to Green Valley and so on (on the Miracle Hill Route) toward Seizures aHead - I mean Ceasars Head State Park.  On past the pretty Tall Pines Lake and then onto Talley Bridge Road. Ate a powerbar; My fluids are getting low. As I approached the bridge I knew it had a bad sharp rise with a metal edge.  For some reason I did not properly slow down and thought I could go to the other lane and get a smooth line. Not seeing one I tried to bunny hop over it. I guess I landed my back tire right onto it because it blew out. Dummy! I quickly pulled over and got off. Got on a driveway and began to change the tube out.  The tube I removed was a double thickness one I thought would survive almost anything. Snakebite punctures. I had two new tubes so I felt fine. I watched a gecko that came to visit me as I fixed my bike. He was light brown and about 7 inches long. I saw him catch a small bug with his tounge on the driveway.   Back on the bike in about 20 minutes. Ceasars Head was only about 30 minutes ahead and it was about 4:30. I wanted to get to the top by 6 pm. I began the climb and expected a 50 minute climb.  On the way up there was a huge tow truck towing a huge crane truck coming at me. So of course an idiot behind me in a pickup had to pass me and go into the lane with the tow truck. Near miss (not with me).  Then I passed a tractor (headed down) with a bush hog going - stuff all over the road. I climbed on with weak legs just wanting to be done and at home. At least the temperature was lower at 80 degrees. Bit off more than I can chew again?? I climbed and all the sudden about 3/4 of the way up I feel my rear wheel being weird. Oh great, it is flat (nearly). I have to get to the top. I am out of fluids and thirsty. I just leaned the bike against a guardrail and pumped up the tire pretty full (maybe 60 psi). After 4 minutes I had to do it again. 3 or 4 times total. Did i run over debris?? Got to the top (park) about 6:05pm. An hour to do the climb. They closed at 5 pm anyhow. Darn. Oh well- There was a water thing up the hill - I hoped. I got to the upper restrooms and was seriously thinking I was going to buy a Coke or something for my stingy self. But wait $2 per can/bottle??!  Oh yea I have a Gatorade powder packet for 20 Oz. and an off brand for 16 oz.  The water standpipe was there and filled a bottle in about 1 second! I drank 16 oz Of water right off and then made the 16 oz of sunburst or whatever electrolyte drink and drank it.    Now I walked up to a picnic table and removed the rear wheel. I determined the source of the leak was at the valve stem.  That tube is worthless now but how did it go bad? I guess I mounted it wrong. Dummy. This time I was very careful installing the new tube. Caught myself not seating the stem right. Also the tire didn't seat right after a tiny inflation. It was not at all seated on the rim.  It has to be right so I can get home!  And before dark. Got out a second Powerbar for the ride home. The mosquitoes were pretty annoying. Belly full of fluid. Hopefully not too much. Left the park at 6:28 pm. When is sunset ?  End of dusk I wondered. As I descended I was very careful and slow weaving around potholes and bush hog debris. The purpose of a bushhog is to covert logs and limbs on the shoulder and put sharp pieces of wood all over the road so as to give cyclists flats. Stupid bushhog. I saw cars with their headlights on and I thought why. I realized the sky behind me was getting dark due to thick clouds. Oh no. I got to the bottom and was feeling better. Now just try to ride hard and careful.  The route quickest to home is via SC 11 and Highway 276 to Travelers Rest.  It can be busy but it sure is in terrible shape. They have chip and seal all over to try to "paper over" the big cracks and potholes.  I saw several layers down into some potholes. Yikes. So at some point, maybe near Travlers Rest , the road got better. The clouds were thick but the sun peeked underneath them some near sunset. Marietta at 7:15. North side of T. R. At 7:30. Cross over US highway 25 at 7:40. Might get home before dark. About 30 more minutes of riding if I held up ( and my tires).  I was putting out over 200 watts for some of the final climbs on State Park Road so I felt better and better. Hit Reid School Road and it was dusk. Got home at 8:08 pm. 73 miles and about 6600 vertical feet of climbing. 2 flats. One nervous ride home. Thank you God. A bad day on the bike is better than a good day at work.

Late April resurgence

Tuesday 4-24 Rode up to NC state line (toward Saluda) but turned back there. Dividing Waters Road both times.  55 miles in 3.5 hours.  Wed 4-25 ran 5.2 miles. First 3 miles in 26 minutes ; did 3- 15 minute sprints/ intervals. Last 2.2 miles slowed it down to 10 min pace.  Oh yea there is a new free running magazine in upstate SC called "Pace". Local running news. Great read.  Friday 4-27 Ran 6 miles total to/from the Y.  Swam the most this year by far at 3300 yds or 2 miles in 1:22. It wore me out. Was stopped right at 3300 yds due to thunder ( lifeguard says get out). Last Y swim this year maybe unless I rejoin in September for one month.  Sat 4-28 rode over to Furman late to check out the "Wheels for Meals" riders/event. Did 39 miles and 3500 ft of climbing. Backside of Paris mtn. still so slow I don't even want to say how long. I want improvement! Sunday 4-29 rode 55 miles.  For the first time in 6 months I got back on my light road bike. It felt good. Been training on the nearly 35 lb bike or 45 lb/32 c tired bike. I went up to the watershed and intercepted Doug. Then I tried to lead him back home in a hurry. He was doing the 110 mile Saluda ride and had a deadline. I averaged 17.5 mph overall.  Mon 4-29. Just work. Walk 20,000 steps.  Tuesday night after work ran about 7 miles steady.  Wednesday 5-2-12. Volunteered to work. No swim bike or run.  Thursday 72 mile ride 6600 feet vertical. Details to follow. 

I'm still alive

Haven't posted or blogged in a while. I have been out of it a little. Had a bike accident and it took me a while to get motivated to write. I was riding with friend Doug Guth on 3/31/12 and we had ridden Ceasars Head (and Doug did Table Rock too). Anyhow I was behind him and all the sudden I was on the ground and stunned and confused. I had hit my head and blacked out. I caused Doug to break a rib. My hips and neck were in great pain (next day) and I could not exercise. Now 3 weeks later I am back up where I feel ok running. The cause of the accident is a true mystery to me. Some buzzards or vultures or female turkeys were in the road getting some roadkill I think. I almost became roadkill. My helmet cracked down the side. I did like 75 miles that day and I was maybe bonking and looking down. I ran into Doug on Thursday April 19 as I rode my bike. Wait I didn't run into him. I saw him and we stopped and talked. He has done 110 mile ride since but I'm only to a 35 mile ride. I'm happy to be riding ok again. Thank God I am relatively OK after that fall. Sorry again Doug.

Cooper River run

Cooper River Bridge Run
A race I would like to do in Charleston. Like 30,000 runners. If I don't do it this year then next year. It is 10k or 6.2 miles. They want you to commit to 49 minutes or less or 50 to 70 minutes. Right?  So 49 minutes gives a 7.9 minute pace or 7:54. 

Not sure I can do that pace. Climbing the bridge could be tough. That should be my goal though. I need a 7:48 pace to qualify for Boston. 

Paris in the Spring (Paris Mountain in the rain)

March 22
Biked to Paris mtn in the face of dark clouds. I needed a ride since I'd just swam alot and didn't want to run. I wanted to climb and see if I had improved over this years first attempt of 2012. 

The rain started right away and I put on a rain jacket (thanks again Andy for the Showers Pass) but was already wet. I got to CVS and began the climb. It rained until just before the summit. Weird. Anyway, I did it in just under 24 minutes. Much better than first time (27 minutes). 

Went down backside and it began to pour.  Why did I wear my sunglasses?  Went 80% down the backside and turned around. Maybe next time I will do it all. Climbed back up in heavy rain, but it was warm and no thunder. The heavy amount of pollen was no problem as well. I was very slow going down both sides to avoid sliding out like a few years ago. 

Got 23 miles and 1950 ft of climbing in 1 hour 50 minutes. 

March multisport madness

March 16-21
Friday 16th
Rode bike to Paris mtn and climb front side. Took 27.2 minutes. Slow, Legs hurt. Didn't want to climb anymore. Thought about going down backside, but thunder in distance and a black wall of clouds changed my plans. Went down a few tenths to see storm then climb back, ouch. 12% grade. 

Raced down front after that to avoid rain. Went home. 22 miles in all. 1 hour 50 minutes. 

Saturday 17th
Took Kristen to driving school. Went to Sports Authority- bought running shoes and swim jammers. everything 20-40% off. 
Took Allez north to Dividing Waters Rd. and back. 42 miles. 
2:50. Then swam 1000 yds in 25 minutes. 

Sunday 18th
Bike to p. o. 2.5 miles on Trek then switch to the QR. Time trial 5.2miles (6 miles total); even with 3 stop signs and two stop lights I averaged 22 mph. Later I ran (in new Saucony shoes) 4.1 mile. Moderate pace.  

Monday. 19th.  Work. Walk 18,000 steps. Rest. 

Tues march 20

After work run. Drank a can of "Rip it" energy drink I got at Fred's dept. store and used their facilities before the run. This time I took my mini-mag lite and used it well. 
I ran thru PC and a mens soccer game had just ended with Wofford. 5.1 miles total. A 9:30 pace was good, but I did not feel great. 

My legs were real sore afterwards. I guess they are still trying to recover from the big increase over the last few days. I will wait til maybe Sunday to do another run of 6-8 miles. 

Wed march 21
Rode Trek to the Y and swam 2000 yards in 47 minutes. Used paddles and fins some. 6.7 mile bike. 

Monster run

March 15
Run @ Clinton, SC.  8:35 pm, 73 degrees. 
Drank a Monster energy drink (very rare for me) and checked the radar since storms clouds were in the distance. Stars and thin clouds above. Looks ok. Changed into bike shorts and a jersey. Ran up Broad street on the lighted sidewalks 1.5 miles then turned around. Lots of people were out walking around. Got back to truck at 9:03 pm. 

Feeling real good.  Runners high
28 minutes gives 9:20 pace. Wow, Great! About 142 ave HR estimated. Keep going!  Decided to do a 3 mile loop that I had not done in maybe 5 months that included Presbyterian Collage. 

As I started on Springdale Drive I thought maybe I should have brought my maglite. There were a few stretches of unlighted road. Also I wished I had a light strapped to my head like a Petzl light. I might look into getting one. I have a cheap and heavy version of one I ought to try out. Where is it? So anyway I entered the first dark area and yep here comes a car. At the appropriate moment I jumped up the curb  onto the grassy shoulder. Just about 3 strides and thump! I hit the ground. I fell /stepped into a hole. The heel of both hands hit the grass while clenched around my phone in one hand and keys in other. My face nearly hit the dirt. stupid.

Full of adrenaline, ( and Taurine, caffiene , ...)  just bolted right back up.  I needed my flashlight. My left knee hit the ground but I hoped it wasn't bleeding. When I got to a lighted area I looked and it was ok. Lucky. 

I continued around the football stadium and past the fraternity houses. There was music blaring and people were out like it was a Friday. 

For the last 3 miles, a 9:00 pace is just so awesome. Heart rate was getting to 150 the few times I checked. No HRM just a digital watch. Used the 6 second method. 

So a 9:10 pace for the 6 miles. Great run. I feel great, like a rock star. Next time I will try Rockstar energy drink. And bring a spot light. 

First week in March - progressing again

March 2 2012 
I jogged 3.1 miles in 35 minutes.  137 bpm ave HR. Picked up beverage cans on the roadside (Reid School Road) again. I'm thinking of putting my name on the road sign for adopt-a-hiway. I would need an asterisk by it to indicate aluminum only. 

March 3
Took a bike ride on the Silverado since it was wet from the recent storms. Did my usual Willis3 loop of 22 miles and 1200 ft of climbing. Took a record (PW) 1:40 to do it. 

March 4
Rode my truck, I mean my Trek, to the Y then did an aerobic shower. A new class they got. Kinda like pole dancing. They have to stay on the cutting edge. Ha. JK. Also swam 1400 yards in 45 minutes. Hope I didn't overdo it (recent illness). Pedaled back home and with newest copy of GO magazine. 6 miles on bike. 

My left calf is so tight and my pump bump is aggravated. Keep trying to stretch it out. 

March 5 go to bed early since I couldn't/didn't get good sleep last night. Bought cold coffee drink (half gallon) and just had to try a bit, then another- oops. 

March 7. Ran 5.5 miles. Good for me. ankle not too bad. Went easy. Took an hour. 

March 8 Without any warmup, I took the QR (TT/tri bike) out on the road (for the first time) sans spare tubular or pump. Went out 2.7 miles with fingers crossed.  It was 70 degrees and breezy. I ended with 20.2 mph average for the quick 5.4 mile trip. Seems good for not being in shape. I was sweating after just 16 minutes. Later took the Silverado Trek to the Y and swam 1050 yds. in 29 minutes. 

March 9 after work I ran 3.2 miles in about 33 minutes. Wow, I'm almost at a 10 minute pace with 137 ave HR. Progress. Was doing 12 min pace not too long ago. Don't think I can qualify for Boston quite yet though. Tomorrow is a short night due to daylight savings time so I will have no aerobic activity (not really a recovery day). Sleep is the goal. 

End of February

Feb 27
Rode about 10 miles on the "Silverado" (heavy Trek); did some errands (bank, pay rent, get mail); the 32c tires work well at 70 psi.  Took about an hour. 

Later that night at 8:30 pm: Swam 1000 yards in 35 minutes. 
Would have been easy to swim faster and go into the red zone and overdo it. Risk getting sick again. 

Feb. 28
Rode 14.4 miles in about an hour. 135 ave HR. 

Feb 29 
After work I jogged/walked 2.2 miles in 25 minutes. About 125 to 130 bpm ave HR. 

Although slow, I am grateful to be able to do that much. 

Late February

So Friday Feb. 17th I went to Minute Clinic at CVS and diagnosed with strep. Went to get penicillin and go home. Watch Pink Panther movies and sleep.  

Saturday I went for a 3 mile walk. In the woods. 

So Sunday 2/19 I was on the couch most of day feeling ok but low energy. I put a battery in the cateye cyclemeter that came with the QR and took a little spin on the rollers. It is tricky to do rollers and be in aero position to shift but I did it. 

Had to pump up the tires. They say 170 psi max. ( Continental Sprinter tubulars ). I wonder what psi I should use on the road??  I got them to 120.  

I am up near 150 lbs (155 in my PJs) and so very out of shape.  It is almost funny. I have a long way to go. 

I finished putting 32mm tires on my Trek touring bike which had 28mm before. A better suited tire for this bike which has panniers front and rear and weighs almost 40 pounds. They barely fit with the fenders. The phrase bomb proof comes to mind. I took it for a 10 mile ride around town doing errands.

So I finished my antibiotics today 2/27 and am going to try and ease back into an exercise routine.

Dave

Not active

I have gone from bad to worse. Don't want to cry about it. Got strep throat and am on antibiotics. So I'm sleeping alot.  Was a real nice weekend to bike ride. Boo hoo hoo.  

Got my SPD-SL cleats finally and installed them on the Tri Fly III shoes. The QR is ready for a test ride now, someday. Maybe an easy roller ride first. 

Hope everyone is staying healthy and enjoying some nice outdoor activity. 

3 days - 3 sports

Sun night ran 3.2 miles at about 10 pm in Clinton. It was after work on a chilly night. Maybe 45 degrees-I ran in my work clothes and some old stiff running shoes. On the way back down Broad Street, a tranquil road past the town hall, I heard a huge crash. I looked back and a car slowly drifted across the road and another came to rest across the road and I could see the air bag had deployed and the front end was badly damaged. So shocking. I ran back to it but the lady got out and started phoning someone. I think she hit a parked car. Weird, I was 30 seconds from being involved. I walked toward the police station but as I got there a sherriffs car came out and turned his lights on.

Anyhow I continued on and ran almost a 10 minute pace for this run so I'm showing some improvement. Right knee hurts from somehow I slept on it funny. Ha ha? No, Boo hoo. Didn't hurt too bad to run a little.

Monday swam 1150 yards in 32 minutes. Longest swim yet in 2012 but still slow. Earlier this day i had banged my left knee hard on the bumper of my old truck so I was lucky to swim at all.

Tuesday biked for an hour. Estimate it was 13 miles. Took heavy (40 lb) Trek. Tried out the Shimano RW80 winter shoes. It was about 45 degrees and the feet were nice and warm. I have lost the bike lately so it was good to get out again.

3 days - 3 sports.

Feb 11

Swam 1100 yards Thursday in 30 minutes.

Friday after work did a big run of 6.4 miles, but slowly. Took 72 minutes or about 11 minute pace. Just above race walking or fast race walking. I'm feeling old and worn out.

State Trooper pulls me over during a run

On Friday I went to the Y at 7:30 pm. I thought the pool was open til 8. Got in 20 monies and 800 yards when they kicked me out. Ave heart rate of approx 160 so very intense but short duration compensates.

Later around 11pm decided to run 6 to 8 miles. It was slow as I tried to keep my heart below 150. My watch somehow got set on beep if over my preset limit and that was helpful. I am out of shape and wanted to do LSD (long slow distance) run to put a load on my aerobic system in order to gain fitness. I had to again do a lot of race walking which felt like shuffling along to me.

So I was going down Wade Hampton Blvd. I was running mainly on the "goat path" that is worn on the grassy shoulder. Sometimes I do run out in the road when no cars are around. Wade Hampton is 7 lanes across and at night is almost deserted. I run against traffic. I am very careful. All the sudden a car stops right where I am. The driver says "I want to talk to you". Then I see it is a highway patrol car. I catch my breath and pause my HRM. I wondered if he suspected me of some crime?! He was concerned about me running in the road (I wasn't). He said "don't you think it is strange to be out here late at night running?". I said "it is not what normal people do". I explained it was not uncommon and how I was safe/careful etc and that I train for such things as marathons.


I am glad he cared to stop actually. A guy (pedestrian ) got hit on I-85 the other day trying to cross it. I won't be on the interstate running! Anyhow Wade Hampton is also US 29 so the trooper may see no difference. I am just a potential victim to him. He was very young (green)and not yet jaded by the job I guess. I wonder if my mom had anything to do with this??? Ha.

So I got a piece of paper that was like a warning but was checked for just "contact". It is like the write ups I give (and get) at work. I can display it with my race bibs?

So I went the 8 miles and averaged 10:30 pace or 1hr 24 minutes. Took 90 minutes for the heart to get down to 70 bpm. Good workout, but I should have gotten a ticket for runnIng too slowly!

New bike and related equipment

So I bought (thru eBay ) a new (to me) bike for triathlons and time trials. It is a 2005 Quintana Roo carbon frameset, model Lucero. Dura Ace components. Zipp 404 tubular wheelset with Continental Sprinter tires. Vision alloy base bar, extensions and stem. FSA makes the Vision line. Adamo ISM seat by John Cobb.

So I am not in a rush to ride it but I will soon enough. I want to use the tubulars sparingly. Also I need to get cleats for the shimano pedals (I did Wednesday night via eBay ). I also bought used (ebay) Pearl Izumi Tri Fly III carbon shoes. Back in December I bought a new aero helmet by Rudy Project (Wingspan model) when it was 50% off. It is also designed by John Cobb, the aerodynamics guru.

The new bike is very aero yet also lighter than I would have guessed. It is 17 or 17.5 lbs. The Zipp wheels are lighter than my light climbing wheelset! Need a flat and long smooth course to test how fast I can go on the new bike. Of course the engine (me) is not in great shape now so I need to keep working on that. The bike came originally and also shipped from "Richardsons Bike Mart" near Dallas, TX where Lance Armstrong got his first bikes.

So I await the cleats to complete the package. I am thinking about a new outfit to wear as well. Need a snug top at least for shorter triathlons so I can transition quickly.

My best road bike (F413) can now go back to being a road bike without the homemade aerobars and heavy soft seat. I can get it like it was intended.

Joined "The Y"

Had a good ride on Monday of 23 miles in sunny yet windy 59 degrees. The "Willis 3" loop that includes out Groce Meadow to Sally Gilreath and back to Jackson Grove and to the apartment. The heart recovered back to 70 BPM real quick this time. Before the ride I worked my arms and core (bicept curls, pushups, sit-ups ).

So I rejoined the YMCA Eastside on Monday night. Only one more day left in January with no joining fee.

Tuesday after working on my old truck I went and swam 1000 yards in half an hour. Slow due to lots of resting. When I was in best shape it would have taken 20 minutes. Felt good to be back in the water. Neck, back and chest a little sore from the effort.

Late January

Got a great workout on Wednesday with the temperature at 63 degrees. A 22 mile ride then about 30 minute transition and then a 4 mile run. It was huge relative to my recent activity. My heart took a long time to recover.

The run was slow as I tried to keep the heart rate from going above 155. I had to race walk the last mile. Took nearly 11 minutes for the final mile. Like I was recovering from a surgury induced layoff or something.

Goals

Been thinking about goals. Wondering what I should do as far as this year and beyond in the athletic arena.  

This year I will try to improve my running and maybe do a marathon and try to not only beat my previous time of about 3hr40min, but do it fast enough to qualify for the Boston marathon.  Also a triathlon or two as well. I may do the B2B again, which is in late October, so I have some time to decide. I will want to improve my time there as well (by an hour). Do one or more bike centuries probably as well. Rides with Doug, Rob and more. 

So anyway goals.  I can see that a person can use specific events as their goals [race for first place at event X].  Also specific geographical destinations as a goal [run or tri or bike in or near Washington DC]. You can of course just have a time goal like me wanting to run 26.2 somewhere, sometime in 3h25m or less. Might have a goal to try a new activity [try kayaking on a nearby river].  I could go on. 

What's my point?  Not sure. It is just interesting to see what other events or training schedule others do and why. If you are a pro, money is the ultimate reason. Why have goals? Why not just participate and enjoy? Why do I feel the need to outdo myself?  I may need to read some of Frued's theories. 

By the way my goal will not to go to Boston unless I win Powerball or something. I may want to just Qualify for it, to say that I could go. Same goes for Kona, even more so. I doubt I will go to Boston. I just want to be in the "club" of those who could go. Kinda like there are standards for army rangers as far as how many pushups in x time or pullups or run 2 miles (their standards and the seals are on wikipedia). I'm not going to be a navy seal. But maybe i can pass their physical.  For some reason that makes sense for me.  To just qualify. 

I have enjoyed going around SC (and Wilmington, NC) to different events.  I may go to Portland Oregon (where my bike riding brother lives and do an event or northern Indiana or Ohio where other family is. The rev 3 Cedar Point triathlon or a tri near Muncie looks interesting.  

Another goal is to continue to meet and train with more good people out there. Some I run into on the road or thru other friends. 

What are your goals? (athletic or otherwise)?  Wanna go to new places? Specific new places?  Buy a house? Get to a certain level at something? MBA? Certified worm inspector? President of USA?

Mid January

Well for the first time in a month I got on a bicycle. Ran some errands and did about 12 slow miles. Took about an hour in city on my heavy touring bike. Yesterday ran 3 miles. The entire previous week only had a single 2.3 mile run for activity.

I have been spending time on eBay and now expect to receive a new to me (used) triathlon bike. It looks real good. Once I get it from Texas I will give details. Got some tri shoes as well.

Well I am getting back to training soon and I have a long way to go. Hopefully I won't be passing out again. My wounds are healing up from the Christmas eve accident. Band aids are finally gone. Took a while.

I CAN run

Been doing short runs most days lately.  3 to 3.5 mile runs.  Today I ran a 3.3 mile loop from my apartment but it was different.  Yesterday as I ran the same loop i saw many aluminum cans on the shoulder.   Today I went with several grocery bags and picked up all the cans. This is along the busy Reid School Road.  bout 1 mile in I had to leave a full bag to come back for with the truck.  Also I found four full cans of beer. A few were in the split open box.  Busch lite or something.  what are people doing out there?  anyhow I got the next mile in and had another full bag.  I had doubled back and left the bags together.  on to the last mile with one bag.

On the way I found a pair of slip joint pliers.  Also found a very small weighing scales, electronic, with no batteries and no battery cover.  It measures 0.1grams up to 600 grams.  Yes, I suspect it is drug trafficking related.

Got home with a 3rd full bag and had smelled enough beer and got enough of it splattered on me for one day.

I went back and picked up the other bags with the truck.

It took 8 minutes to do the 3.3 miles.  good workout and got about 3 pounds of aluminum.

The scales work.  I took a new penny and weighed it.  I knew it should be 2.5 grams.  then I took a pre 1983 penny and it weighed 3.0 grams.  It is 95% copper whereas the post 1983 pennies are like 95% zinc with copper cladding.  The scientist in me loves little details and tools like this.  I can weigh some bike components now. ha.

anyone want some beer?

New shoes

Blog Jan 6 2012

My brother Andy has once again supplied me with bicycle gear. This time some winter shoes -Shimano RW80 with thermal insulation and Gore-Tex fabric. They wrap around the ankles. I suppose I could use just thick socks or even use shoe covers and be able to ride in very cold weather. Maybe 15 to 20 degrees. I will need to test them out. Thanks bro.  

I have a desire to have a low level of activity until the end of January. I need to spend time on vehicle maintenance, financial matters, and domestic living organization.  Yes my apartment has become even too much of a mess for me. It is a pigpen. 

Hopefully by February I can join the Y and start swimming and increasing my endurance sports. 

Macca the machine and a miracle workout machine

Blog-misc workout info I found interesting. 

I stopped in the cereal isle at the grocery. I read the Wheaties Fuel box that has Mark "macca" McCormack on it. On the back it says a typical ironman athlete swims 7 miles, bikes 225 miles and runs 48 miles in a week to prepare for the ironman Kona. It also says Macca swims 17 miles, bikes 430 and runs about 75 miles in a typical week. Wow.  

I might have hit 30 miles of running in one week but more like low 20's. I can hardly envision doing the typical Macca workout. I would have to win the lottery and be half insane to try it. 

I saw an add in in the Dupont Registry (high end cars$$) for a workout machine called a Quick Gym. It is a full body exercise contraption and it costs like $15,000.  It claims that you just use it for 4 minutes a day for a great aerobic workout. I just don't know. I looked an the Internet and found that there are places springing up in the USA where you can go and use one. Also there is a less expensive competitor (just over $11,000) to it called XLR8. 

Again, after winning Powerball I will buy a red Ferrari Italia 458 and a quick gym.