75 Indiana miles

Rode 75 miles last Thursday. Good ride to Roanoke, then travelled north, then West a bit more into areas I've never been.

Friday was a rest day.

Saturday I rode 47 miles in the rain with a friend. We came upon a really bad auto accident out in the country. The ambulance had arrived, but they were still trying to get one person out of the car. Pretty gruesome sight. The Men of Steel guys didn't ride because it was raining. Huh? Fear of rust I suppose.

Sunday I ran 9.5 miles. Good run. I'm writing more brightly about running lately.

Monday ran 12.5 miles early AM. Here's the deal...my hearing 'goes out' sometimes in both ears when I run long distances. I've been telling my doctor this for over three years. My hypochondria has no end. So anyway she talked me into doing a hearing test with an ear/nose/throat specialist wherein I run for 12 miles then pop right into the sound chamber to see if they can detect anything. I ran circles around a hospital complex in the Fort (Dupont). I know every nook and cranny of the grounds now. Then I ran into the waiting room of a medical specialist and sat down, dripping wet, with a towel to sop up the perspiration. It was one of the most ridiculous moments of my life. I drank from the water fountain obnoxiously, as if I'd been lost in the desert for a week. My eyes were post-hard run blood shot, my hair was matted and wet and a mess, I changed my shirt in the parking lot and quickly soaked the fresh one. All the while I could hear every breath and my heart beep clearly in my right ear. I achieve the goal: the ear had 'gone out'. I sat. And sat. And my pulse returned to normal. And then my name was finally called....I explained the experiment in quick detail, told them I'd been running around the building in the dark for the last hour and forty-five minutes, next thing I know I was alone with little beeps going off through some head phones. I think I could hear them all. I responded affirmatively to every beeping beep, to my surprise. The nice lady did a series of test, then I saw the doctor, and on and on. Conclusion: hold your nose, close your mouth, and try to blow out your ears. "That should do it", my $30 co-pay specialist said.

I was looking for something more. But, it does seem to work. All that effort. All I needed to do was Google the subject I suppose.

This morning I put in a good 2,000 yard swim. Did 50's with head out - like what it takes to swim in an Ironman mass start with a whole bunch of bodies all over the place. Rode my bike home from work....was holding 25mph pretty consistently.

bike fit

I had a professional bike fit yesterday. This is well worth the time. Most of the study is a series of measurements and flexibility angles that your body can achieve while cycling. My fitter noticed my odd ankle - which I had long forgotten. "Have you ever broken your right ankle, or sprained it badly?" he asked. As a matter of fact I did - my freshman year of college playing ultimate Frisbee. I loved that game. My ankle swelled up to the size of a grapefruit, and my college swim coach still made me get in the water. Twenty years later it's still 'off'. My hips are good. One femur is a touch longer than the other. My flexibility is off the charts - "pretzel flexibility" is how he put it. Even so he raised my bars higher than what I think looks cool. Took a perfectly good bike and made it look a little goofy. What once just looked fast now looks my age. It is a bit more comfortable. My back will be slightly straighter, head a bit higher, but the aero envelope is still minimal. I'll hold this position for 5 hours, pedalling madly the whole time. It's important in Ironman distance to have a comfortable fit, not necessarily the the most aero fit. We did move the bars slightly in, elbows a touch more center. We changed the seat also - recently on a long ride my trusty saddle didn't real right. Instead it felt like pain and agony, with raw skin to prove it (sorry, it happens). I prefer Specialized...but learned that they drop a bit over time. I'm riding a test saddle to see if I like it; good marketing from the dealer. A bike seat cost about $150-$200. Crazy huh? Other than the seat decision my bike is ready, God willing I won't destroy the thing again. Tomorrow morning I'm doing my last 100 miler of the training season. Not sure the route yet...might just wander Indiana for a while and see where I end up.

Tonight I ran 8.5 miles. Good and fast. Stronger than I've felt all summer. I drank a glass of Champagne leftover from my wife's birthday a few minutes before heading out. So, OK, I'm not your normal triathlete. Maybe that's the key to running enjoyment? Champagne bubbles? It didn't seem to phase me. Actually was the fastest 8.5 I can remember. I'm ready to race NOW. Timing this whole thing to 9/12, being at peak level on a target date, is hard to do.

I wonder if they alow Champagne in your 'special needs' bag on the bike in Madison? Doubt it. More on the various bags that I have access to during the race later. To bed for me.

renewal of boot camp

I hadn't met up with the bootcamp guys for weeks, and I'm tired of running, so I jogged to the park this AM to fall in. The usual group was there. The leader excitedly pulled the morning props from the back of his Jeep - a landscape timber and an old car tire. We then proceeded to alternate running with the beam between two guys, one in-front one in-back, beam on shoulder and tire hanging in the middle around Foster park. It was quite a sight. When transitioning we'd do push-ups, sit-ups, sun gods, hello dollies, burpies, and 8-count body builders. All kinds of good bootcamp named exercises.

Hopefully I didn't ruin anything.

2 run

I ran twice today! A miracle. Fairly easy 2.5 this morning, and a quick 5.5 tonight. It was dark at the park, with half-moon light. Good temperature. Perfect running weather. And I felt strong which helped pass the time. Cardiovascularly I'm in pretty deceit shape. My lungs are like balloons. I bumped into some deer tonight at the park - haven't seen them in ages - it was dark and snowy the last time I saw deer at Foster. But they were out tonight enjoying the evening.

Last weekend I did a triple brick, almost. Wimped out on the last 6 mile run. Ended with a total bike of 50 miles and run of 14. Sunday I swam a good high quality 3,000 yards. 500 FR, 5 x 100FR on 1:20's, repeat. Held 1:02-1:05's on the hundreds. There's nothing like swimming. I felt good and sick for an hour after the workout.

I have a digital clock that shows the date. Everyday for months now I look at that clock in the morning and marvel at how fast the days go by and how few days remain between now and September 12th.

Flat tire in the parking lot today.

There's not much worse than leaving early from work to go cycling and getting a flat in the parking lot. There I was trying to skip out early to meet up with some guys for the Tuesday night race ride and I flatted at my car. It's odd enough to go from business casual (real casual) to skin tight Lycra in front of your co-workers. Worse to stand in the burning sun and change a tire on your bike while everyone else is working. Oh well, I worked fast and was on the road within minutes.

Super ride tonight. My lungs are still burning, can't take a deep breath. I just walked the boys up for bath and I had to pause on the stairs - true sign of a good ride. It was a small group tonight. I tried to keep it lively and do several attacks, long pulls at the front, attack again, etc. It worked - our pace was pretty solid the whole way. In the final moments I was dropped again. Attacked one too many times and had nothing left for the finish. A few of the guys thanked me for pushing it. Got in 60 miles of high intensity training. Good stuff.

The title to this entry makes me think of a song titled "murder in the trailer park tonight". Can't remember the band, but I bet my sister does?

4:30 AM

Couldn't sleep, so I went running. On the road at 4:30am. The humidity hit me the second I stepped from the air-conditioned luxury of my home. Very interesting 7 miles of running. I skipped the park and decided to run downtown, so I made my way through the neighborhood to Broadway. This road is littered with a few small bars, old houses, a train overpass, and some other business that really shouldn't be solvent. But yet they exist. You don't see a wig shop very often but one survives not far from my home. Oh what a lovely street. There were a few people out and about. In the distance I could see a nice woman wearing a short skirt. Remember, it's 4:30am, the dead of night, on Broadway. She heard me coming and stopped, turned my way, and waited for me to pass. We exchanged "good mornings" and I was on my way. Next I saw a man laying in the most unusual way - up the set of stairs in front of a church, as if he sat down, then just laid down to sleep. The unusual part was he was grasping the arm rail leading into the church with his opposite arm, contorting his body, and slightly raising himself up off the concrete steps. Didn't look too comfortable. If I was homeless I would hang by the church also rather than under the bridges with everyone else. I didn't run under the bridges this morning. // I passed by the local hot dog store. Inside I recognized the hot dog man with the bad nose in the dim light of onion air. He was at the grill, at 4:45am, readying his daily labor. I was recently in France - and on my morning run there I passed a bakery where everyone walked in the morning to pick up their fresh croissants and daily bread. In America it's hot dog prep. I saw more - the world is different at that hour, everything seemed like it was set-up on a stage waiting for the actors to appear. I found a nice house for sale in West Central, ran past my kids former day care, ran past our church, nearly had to step over another guys legs that were sticking out into the sidewalk as he slept. When finished I walked directly down the middle of my street, shirtless, covered in sweat, looking at the homes. I was done running by 5:30am. The good clean world was soon to wake up.

no short-cuts

You can't take any short cuts with Ironman. I think that's what I've done this time around in my training. I ran 22 miles yesterday and rode 95 miles today.

Yesterday's run was horrible. I haven't been running enough, again. I should just run everyday. Every single day, like a Kenyan going to school. But I don't because it hurts. I was so completely spent at mile 18 it was scary. La-la land. And then in my last mile a little itty-bitty dog ran out of no where and was barking and nipping at my ankles. I almost went down, dancing around the dog, trying to be nice. But then I felt the little fella's teeth bite down on my skin, just a little pinch. Next, little precious ran in front of me were I landed a fairly powerful kick to his snout. That ended things pretty quickly. I've never had to kick a dog before, but I think it had to be done.

Afterwards I felt horrible for about three hours, had to take a nap, iced my knees, drank and ate everything in sight.

Today I rode and rode, started out solo, then hooked up with a friend, then went solo again. Great weather. I've really enjoyed the Queen Anne's Lace that lines the country roads this summer. I'm sure its considered a weed, but it's a flower. A nice touch of white among the blue and green setting. The only noteworthy event was my second water-bottle cage that kept coming loose, and rattling. I had to carry the bottle in my back jersey pocket. No allen wrench on hand to correct the situation.

I got home, drank my Recoverite, and went for a light jog. Real light - maybe a mile. Just to get the message to my muscles. Then shower, and a 25 minute nap. Napping immediately after a 5 hour workout feels great. Highly recommended. It's forced rest.

Sore throat

The sore throat that's been plaguing me really hit hard this morning. I swam 2,000 yards this AM, but felt sick mostly the whole time. Did 5 x 200 free on 3:00. Held 2:15's. Then off to Starbuck's, cereal, banana, work.

nutrition...and other thoughts

At work yesterday I downed some "Grandma's Mini-Sandwich Cremes" from the vending machine. It's hopeless. I'm hooked on sugar.


Ran 7 miles Tuesday morning in the rain with a friend.


Rode a total of 50 miles Monday, ran 2.2. No rest since the half-ironman.

Wednesday swam 1,000 yards outside at Pocohontas. It was miserable.

This morning I got up at 5:00am and ran 10 miles like it was nothing. I think my mind was in the right place - floating around from thought to thought rather than thinking about my stride, impact, future knee replacement, etc. I just ran along in the dark and humidity and enjoyed the coming of light.

I learned a fair amount at that half I did last weekend. Triathletes are weird mostly. Weird like swimmers I met in high school. A bit sheltered. Kind of goofy. Lots of talk about the races they've done recently, fear of swimming, love of running. They look good though - nice legs. Really the stock triathlete is pretty well rounded overall, upper body/lower body development. Thanks to swimming I reason. Running kind of cast a gaunt thinness after prolonged use. I try to stay away from it as much as possible. That fact will haunt me soon.

During the 13.1 run last weekend I was uninterested. Good thing they don't have you do a 1 mile loop. I would have probably stopped at my car and gone home. The swim was completely different. I looked forward to the start, my pulse was steady, no pre-race jitters whatsoever. I looked around at all the toned men in my group and they all looked like nervous runners before a long swim. I knew I had the advantage. During the swim I could tell also that they weren't 'working' with the current. There was an obvious push from the lake that could be taken advantage of if one timed the pull phase of the stroke...but everyone was fighting the water. I would come up on people's feet and pass from foot to head in about two strokes then they would be out of sight. How discouraging. I think I could make a living by teaching triathletes how to swim. Something to fall back on if this CFO business sputters out.

I'm on the final approach. I keep thinking that all the time. Have I done enough? Do I have enough time to put in the aerobic base that I need? July was very weak. My plan calls for a rest week next week and then taper. I'm not tapering yet. Planning to keep building up a bit, breaking myself down, and having a two week taper. We shall see. What do I want from all this? Hmmm? Nothing really. That's my answer: Nothing. I don't even enjoy talking about it with people because it's such a long explanation....I've defined in casual conversation over a hundred times the distances for each segment of a full distance Ironman. And then people want to know how much I train, and then this, and then that, etc. I don't even bring it up if I avoid it - saves the small talk.

Steelhead Half-Ironman

Yesterday I did Steelhead in Benton Harbor, MI. My time was 4:52.

The morning set-up was horrible. It was cold, it was raining, and it was dark. I was wearing a T-shirt. In the midst of the other 2,500 competitors I found my spot in the bikes racks, dropped my gear, and tried to find a spot out of the rain. For the next 60 minutes I sat around in the changing rooms with a bunch of guys in wet-suits next to the heavily utilized urinals. It sounds gross but was actually quite nice - warm and dry.

Things I should have at transition: a light rain jacket and a headlamp.

The swim started in waves - I was in wave 15! Nearly the last to go. It was a beach start, on Lake Michigan. The water was perfect, surprisingly, still nearly everyone wore wet-suits. Wet-suits are like wearing flippers and paddles to me - the buoyancy that you get makes a huge difference in the water. I swam strong, passed two waves that started before me, and was the first guy out of the water from my group. Those triathletes are not swimmers.

Transition (T1) was a little slow - getting out of a wet-suit un-aided is nearly impossible. I also left my gear wrapped tight in plastic to protect it from the rain, so I had to fuss with finding everything. After what felt like an eternity I was on my bike. Riding my new Felt B2R for the first time, other than a few light spins around the neighborhood. I learned a good lesson: never ride a brand new bike for the first time in a race situation. At mile 10 I noticed that the bolt holding the handlebars to the stem was coming loose! The bars had some play that made me fear the entire aero unit would swivel down to the front tire. This is not a good thing to have on your mind for the remaining 46 miles. Nonetheless I just kept on riding. The bolt kept riding as well - didn't get any worse amazingly. It was a good ride - I average 22mph for 56miles. Finished in 2:30. Likely my fastest time ever for the bike segment. I attribute this mostly to the Zipp 808's I got for fathers day, and a whole bunch of cycling lately.

The run. I had a fairly fast transition at T2. Put on my visor, changed shoes, rotated my number from back to front, and I was gone. My normal psychological barrier to running started to creep in. Maybe it's because the run always hurts coming off the bike? I struggled to enjoy the run. I was hitting 8:30's for a while (which is slow). There were two big hills, one of which we had to run up twice, as it was a loop run. I finished strong - finally decided to stop feeling sorry for myself and push the last three miles. Averaged an 8:15 pace.

So this was half of an Ironman. I have 5 weeks until the big one.