Rockwall Criteriums

If you missed the recap of day 1 of our epic weekend then follow the link to read all about our experience at the Hot Rocks Bike Ride.  Fair warning about day 2 though ..... it's a long one.

The Beginning
Day 2 of our epic weekend didn't exactly start as planned.  The first event on the agenda was a 10k for Angelia at the Hottest Half & 10k.  This was a big event for her but she elected to skip it.  Why?  Well, here's a clue .... when she got out of bed and made her way to the kitchen she was wearing sunglasses.  Not a good sign.  She had a wicked headache and every sight and sound meant pain.

While the 10k was a lost cause, the rest of the family still had the Rockwall Criteriums to look forward to.  The itinerary included my first ever race at 10:55am (35+ 4/5), the Kids Showdown at 12:20pm for the boys, and another race for me at 3:30pm (4/5).  Have you ever tried to prepare yourself for a race while trying to keep two hyperactive boys from screaming constantly, and thereby adding to your wife's pounding headache?  Not easy.  In fact, I failed miserably at managing the situation.  The one smart move was enlisting the help of my dad as Angelia still wanted to watch me race and the boys needed to get there with their bikes.

Men 35+ Cat 4/5
Unfortunately, I got ready a bit later than planned, took a big longer to get my number and pin it than planned, and before I knew it I had practically no time to get warmed up.  Ideally for a short intense race like a crit you want a nice long warm-up.  Instead I rolled up to the line in the back of the pack with only several minutes in my legs.

Don't bother looking for me.  I'm in the back.

Once we started I thought I'd probably be ok.  Sure, the pace was quick and I was at the back of the pack but it didn't feel insane.  I played it a little too cautiously on a couple turns and 2 laps in, I was off the back.  At that point the wind became a factor and I just couldn't close the gap.  There were 3 of us popped off and we managed to hook up.  I spotted the pack at one point and realized this was going to be very short lived at our current pace.  I wanted to make something out of this race so I started thinking about where to put in an effort and distance myself from the other 2 riders.  I sat 3rd wheel after turn 1, drank a bit of Heed, and caught my breath for a bit.  Just before turn 3 I broke to the left and took the turn a bit wider putting me in a sheltered position from the NE wind.  That little relief allowed me to crank the cadence up and clear both riders in time to take an aggressive line on turn 4.  I got out of the saddle for part of the frontstretch to make sure the gap stuck.  I felt really good about this - it kept the race from feeling like a total waste.

Taking a short pull before recovering and
finally dropping these 2 guys for good.

A couple laps later the scooter was coming up on me and I knew I was about to be swallowed by the pack.  I kept the effort up the best I could including a leg-searing out of saddle effort up the hill.  I remember thinking, "Well, that's a new kind of burn."  I staved off my demise by more than a lap finally succumbing on turn 2 of lap 8.  I pulled off at the completion of that lap because I didn't see the point of killing myself for another 20 minutes in the heat when I was going to do another race in the afternoon.  With the way the morning had been, I thought it best to take what little opportunity I had to reset my brain, rest a little, and come into the 2nd race better prepared.  In the end, I was disappointed to be lapped only 20min in but was glad I salvaged part of it with 2 efforts in particular - my planned move to drop the other 2 stragglers and giving it that one last shot to hold off being lapped.

Kids Showdown
After watching the Womens Cat 4 and Juniors Cat 4/5 race that occurred after mine, it was time for the Kids Showdown!  The event was changed up a bit at the last minute and both the big and little kids did 1 lap of the mile long loop.  For the big kids, this was shortened from the expected 2 laps.  For the little ones it was suddenly much more challenging than the 1/4 lap they've done in the past.  This race story is best told in pictures:

Julian gets caught in a chaotic start.

Lining up the little ones.

Looking like a future cyclist.

Julian challenges for 2nd at the finish.

Connor up the final hill in a clear 2nd place.

First cycling medal!

3rd for Julian and 2nd for Connor

Mens 4/5

After the kids were done we loaded up and went home (a whopping 1-1/2mi away).  Sitting in the air conditioning with a little food and a chance to dry out my race kit were all beneficial.  I pulled out on time and got a better warmup than in the morning.

Unfortunately the race wasn't much different.  I did stick with the pack a little longer but it wasn't in an efficient manner.  A couple of those laps were spent "tailgunning", getting gapped every straight and closing it each turn.  Eventually I failed to close that gap and it was back to soloing in the wind.  There was no help this time around.  There were others popped off but the gaps remained.  This became a gruelling hot workout and not much more.  Just like in the morning race, I was lapped 20 minutes in.  I tried to hook on to the pack but no such luck - missed the train.  The solo laps were a struggle but eventually I was able to close a gap on another dropped rider that had consistently been 300m in front of me.  It didn't seem like he wanted to work together but he grabbed my wheel and I just couldn't find the energy to shake him.  After a while I started pulling a bit to the side and letting up hoping he'd pull ahead of me.  He would slow as well and made an obvious comment on how totally cooked he was.  Translation:  No way in hell was he pulling.  That bugged me enough that I found the small bit of extra oomph I needed to finally shake him.  By the time the race ended I was 2 laps down.  Heck, I didn't even realize when the race was over!

No-one around me.  Not a good sign.

I was a bit more disappointed in this race.  I thought it would go better than the first one and I was shocked at how slowly I was going towards the end.  I realize that was partially the product of the heat and wind which definitely picked up throughout the race.  In fact, towards the end I had a close call thanks to a swirling wind.  There were 3 of us, all 1 or 2 laps down, and you could see a swirl of leaves to the inside of the course just after turn 2.  That swirling mass of leaves started moving right for us and when it hit, all of our bikes were moved sideways.  The only thing that kept it from being a disaster was we all saw it coming and were able to space out and brace ourselves.

The End
With that, the day's racing was over.  Both boys were happy with their rides and medals.  Connor absolutely loves racing and getting bling.  Julian was a bit bummed about the shaky start and the shortening of the race but was pleased with how he rode, especially the sprint up the final hill.  Meanwhile, I got 2 official races under my belt, albeit with significantly less pack time than I hoped for.  There's a lot of work to be done before my target event in 4 weeks.  Connor gave me a tip that should help me get to the front of the pack though .....

"You know what you need to do better in your next race, Daddy?"
"What do I need?"
Connor rolls up the right leg on his shorts, points to his quad, and proclaims,
"These!"

Good advice little man.  Good advice.

Hot Rocks Bike Ride

Day one of this epic weekend started in a most curious way ...... with rain!  Here we are in the middle of one of the hottest summers on record and on the morning of the Hot Rocks Bike Ride it is nothing but clouds and rain.  This wasn't going to change anything as far as I was concerned but I wasn't sure how Angelia and Julian would handle it.  The long route has a race component to it and thus starts separately from the short route so I didn't see them much once the bikes came off the bike rack.  Below is the story of my ride followed by their experience as it was relayed to me.

My Day - A Tale of Water, Grime, and Riding with Streamers
The start gun fired and I ..... totally missed my pedal as my foot slipped awkwardly off it.  You'd think I had never clipped in before.  Just like that I was watching everyone pull away.  I ended up in a small 7-man group that included one other Rockwall Cycling racer.  It was weird with the weather as your choices were limited to 1) work hard in the wind, or 2) get pelted by grimy water from the wheels in the pack.  We kept it going at a solid pace and eventually shook off 3 of the riders.   The two non-RC riders were a little erratic with their efforts (and drafting).  On one of their unpredictable surges I reacted late and popped off the back.  Soon after I saw the other RC jersey drifting back to me.  I caught up to her and had one of my better efforts on the day as we bridged.  Eventually we were both popped off again 20-something miles in and decided to let them go.

Not the typical sunny day in north Texas

It was at this point the day started throwing little things at me.  The right bar end came off and my bar tape started unraveling.  It looked like I had a long red streamer on my handlebars.  Soon after that I threw my chain.  I got the chain back on quickly and tried to hook up with a pack that was passing but missed the tail end so it was a solo ride to the rest stop about 33mi in.  I planned on this being my only stop and a quick one at that.  I refilled my bottles, hit the portajohn, and re-wrapped the bar.  With no cap I just wrapped it with less overlap and stuffed a large portion in the end hoping it would hold.  I asked the volunteers if anyone had any tape but no luck.  One guy did have a tie-wrap though and I cinched that around the end to keep the tape in place.  While I was doing that, my friend Keith showed up.  Looks like I wouldn't have to finish solo!

We pulled out together and soon were swallowed up by a huge pack - the official pace group.  For awhile it was a nice pace with minimal effort and we just sat in.  By the time we were on the hillier section of the route ("hillier" is a relative term here) it became apparent neither Keith or I were thrilled with the way the group was riding the hills (bomb down but carry none of the pace back up). We decided to stick with them to a particular junction then pull away.  First, I had some other business to tend to .... another red streamer!  I guess the Lizard Skin bar tape and bar end caps just don't like the rain.  My right one is already tie-wrapped down and here I am re-wrapping my left one while going 30+mph downhill.  FYI, the force needed to stuff enough of the tape in the end to hold it is also enough force to turn your bike!  This became an interesting balancing act of pack position, pacing, stuffing the bar end and counteracting it with the opposite hand.  I (and everyone around me) survived so it was back to the game plan.  We made a left hand turn and took the shoulder.  We easily slipped past the pacesetters who had the group on fresh chipseal.  The gap we opened never closed.

Keith and I took turns pulling in the wind but would ride side-by-side in easier sections.  The route had a couple turns towards the end taking us off the I-30 access road and then back to it adding about a mile.  I thought that was a bit strange and am guessing it had to do with bypassing some construction.  In fact, at one point Keith and I had to slow because a construction vehicle pulled out in to the only available lane in front of us.  We crossed the line after 58+ miles feeling pretty good.  Both of our families were standing together at the finish.  If I had known that, I might have sprinted in for fun!

Considering I didn't "race" this course, I felt good about the 20+mph average.

Their Day - A Tale of Mom vs Son vs Random Kid
As we walked towards the post-race refreshments I could tell Angelia and Julian had a different kind of day from mine.  Heck, Julian's jersey was still white!  Mine was nowhere near its original color after nearly 3hrs of rainy riding.  But I knew there would be a story to tell because I sneaked a peek at his bike computer.  It looked to be one of his faster rides - a good sign.

Their course was a familiar 12+mi out-and-back route.  Apparently the out portion was just a typical ride -  Julian wasn't really pushing it and Angelia was ahead.  When she made the turnaround she saw Julian and another kid riding against each other.  She took it easy spinning up a hill to allow them to catch her a bit when ..... bam, they flew by her!  Uh-oh, Momma couldn't get beat by her 9yr old.  It was time to ride!  Julian wanted to use what he's learned and share the workload but the other boy just wanted to keep half-wheeling him as they battled it out.  Angelia had to slow at one intersection and when she was waved through she told the police officer that 2 boys were racing behind her and to make sure they could go right through.  In the end Julian won his battle and both of them felt great about their rides.  All in all, a very good day at the "not so Hot" Rocks.

Stay tuned for the epic weekend day 2 recap when the entire family had races scheduled ......

Everybody Races

Continuing my current streak of rarely posting .......

This weekend EVERYBODY RACES!

Saturday will be a warm-up as Angelia, Julian, and I all ride a local bike rally - Hot Rocks.  They'll be doing the 13.5mi route and I'll be taking on the 57mi.  Last year I cramped badly in both quads about 34mi in so I'm looking for a less miserable experience this year.  Meanwhile, Angelia has challenged Julian to beat her but he doesn't seem to motivated by that.

Julian in his Cheesy Riders jersey
at last year's Kids Showdown

Sunday is a different story.  Angelia will kick things off with a 10k at The Hottest Half & 10k.  This event is held at popular White Rock Lake and is early enough it shouldn't be completely brutal.  Later in the day for the rest of us is the Rockwall Criteriums.  First up will be my first ever bike race, a 40min crit at the Tech Park for the 35+ Cat4/5 field.  Not long after that is the Kids Showdown where the big kids like Julian do 2 laps (about 2mi) and the little ones like Connor do a 1/4 lap.  Julian did this last year and enjoyed it even though it is very brief.  Then, when the sun is at its hottest (and we know it has been HOT) I will have the opportunity to race in another 40min crit as part of the standard Cat 4/5 field!  Yep, first 2 races ever in blazing heat the day after a 57mi bike rally.  Clearly I'm an idiot.  One thing is for certain - surviving this gauntlet will be a good indicator of what I can expect at my goal race, the Cotton Patch Challenge.

The Triathlete's Teeth - acidity in sport drinks

Some time ago, Active.com posted an article titled "Do Sports Drinks Cause Cavities?"  Working from a perspective of dental hygiene the article touched on something many athletes are somewhat aware of but often ignore --- ph levels in sport drinks.  I soon discovered that many who write about the subject only touch on a single aspect at a time and the lack of knowledge in some areas was startling.  In this case the focus was on how the combination of sugar and acid common in most sports drinks is a ripe environment for tooth decay.  The solution they proposed?  Rinse your mouth with water after workouts and take care of your teeth outside the sports arena.  Ground breaking stuff, huh?  Still, my curiosity was peaked especially since Gatorade was the only sport drink used as a reference ..... not exactly comprehensive.

For those new to the subject of pH balance, here's a quick primer.  The pH scale goes from 0 (acid) to 14 (base) with water being in the middle at 7.  Our blood is slightly alkaline at 7.5 and stomach acid is a 2.  Where does Gatorade fall?  A 2.73, the same as a Coca-Cola.  Yikes!  (NOTE: I didn't single these two products out.  They happen to be the most tested as they lead their respective markets.)

One of my first actions was to find information for my sport drink of choice:  Hammer Heed (melon flavor).  I scoured the Hammer Nutrition site which has tons of nutritional info but not one mention of pH levels.  I emailed their support and got a fairly quick reply with a copy of a response from their Senior Technical Advisor to a similar question in the past.  Here were the key points in the email:

1. Heed tested at a pH of 7.04, slightly above neutral (towards alkaline).
2. They believe it tests more neutral due to the lack of refined sugars (Heed favors complex carbs).
3. They also believe the inclusion of Xylitol plays a role.  What is Xylitol?  The short answer is it severely reduces the likeliness of an acid attack on the tooth enamel as it is not fermented in the metabolism of the offending bacteria.  In fact, when not in an acidic environment it can actually harden the soft, calcium-deficient enamel sites.

Naturally I was glad to find that my drink of choice wasn't acidic but one thing still bothered me ..... they "believe that HEED has a more-neutral pH is because of the lack of refined sugars".  The word "believe" isn't very definitive.  It looks like I'd need to dig deeper into this subject matter.

Ben Greenfield, an Ironman and 2008 Personal Trainer of the Year, has written extensively on this subject.  Most of his writings deal with the extremely common condition of an overly-acidic body during training and competition.  Some of the more interesting quotes:

“An over-acidic body reduces the amount of oxygen entering the cells, which accelerates free-radical damage and speeds lactic acid buildup. joint pain and muscle ache An over- acidic body leaches vital acidic-buffering minerals such as magnesium and calcium from bones. These minerals are forced to be redeployed into the blood in an attempt to balance the pH of the body by increasing alkalinity. The depletion of these minerals affects a myriad of body functions that are vital to athletes, including energy, endurance and recovery.”

“Every living organism on the planet relies upon a pH-balanced state, which is why fish die in acidic water and plants do not grow properly in excessively acidic soil. Athletes and all people are no different—they rely upon a net alkaline state to function properly.”

Wow!  All of a sudden we're talking about a lot more than tooth decay.  Drinking acidic, sugary sports drinks leads to depletion of minerals as our bodies attempt a balancing act.  Two minerals are mentioned specifically:  calcium and magnesium.  Turns out there's more than meets the eye when it comes to this pair of minerals.  The typical Western diet puts an emphasis on dairy consumption and calcium supplements yet other cultures with lower calcium intakes have fewer fractures and less prevalent osteoporosis.  Why?  Because the Western diet neglects magnesium and the two are out of balance.  Magnesium is crucial to calcium absorption and utilization.  It also has a big impact on sleep, hydration, metabolic efficiency, oxygen consumption, muscle function, and even heart rate.  In fact, Greenfield calls magnesium "the single most important mineral in sports nutrition."  Going back to my Hammer Heed, I was pleased to find 5% daily value of calcium balanced with 6% daily value of magnesium (coincidentally about a 2:1 ratio of calcium to magnesium).  I have yet to come across a sport drink or gel that doesn't include both minerals but the ratios vary wildly.  Where you need to be extra careful is when using supplements or other methods for getting calcium (such as Tums) as they often do NOT include the requisite magnesium for proper absorption and utilization.

In summary, watch out for too many simple sugars and imbalanced electrolytes that can lead not only to excessive tooth decay, but also a condition of over-acidity that will negatively impact your energy levels, endurance, and recovery.  What's in your sport drink, electrolyte tab, gel or chew?

Ramping It Up

Wow, it's been nearly a week since I last posted that I was going to take on my first bike race.  You probably didn't even notice as the week has been filled with excellent recaps from all the rock stars that completed Ironman Lake Placid (Congrats Jon, Mandy, and Jill!) ..... oh, and some post about rampant obesity that's generated a lot of buzz.  Anyway, if I'm not posting every few days then it means one of two things - either I'm in a funk, or I'm ramping up the training.  In this case, it is the latter.

Committing to a 58mi road race is a big deal.  Sure, I've ridden the distance many times.  Heck, some of those were even at a fairly strong pace ...... but it was never a race.  Racing changes everything, and not just the pace and group dynamics.  I need to rehearse my hydration/nutrition.  Do I carry a bunch of bottles or do I make use of the feed zone?  That's just one of many questions I'll need to answer before arriving at the start line.  From a training perspective, my body has been tuned to handle steady-state efforts.  That needs to change.  Handling the surges of the pack and recovering are the key.  With each group ride I show improvement but it is a definite work in progress.

The elevation profile for the local hill route, one of many critical training workouts for me.

My training plan with the Cotton Patch Challenge squarely in the cross-hairs has gotten off to a solid start.  I'll be riding 6 days a week with 1 day of rest (usually Thursday).  This week sees things like threshold intervals, the "hill route" (see above), form sprints, and the "race pace" group ride with Rockwall Cycling.  Next week has things like a tempo ride, cadence intervals, threshold intervals, the local Hot Rocks Bike Rally, and the Rockwall Criteriums.  Whoa, whoa, whoa ...... back that up a second ...... Rockwall Criteriums?!?!?  Yep.  My coach put this fabulous nugget on Training Peaks:

He knew it would get a reaction and it did.  I'm conflicted a bit on it.  I can think of a million reasons to NOT do it:

1. It's in less than 2 weeks.
2. It's the day after the Hot Rocks rally, a ride I cramped on severely last year.
3. It's at the site of my worst road bike crash.
4. It will be in the heat of the day (likely between 100 and 115 degrees).
5. It's in less than 2 weeks!!!

Of course there are reasons to go ahead and tackle it:

1. It's an easy course.
2. It's a course I'm very familiar with (the Tech Park).
3. The heat will likely thin the field.

In the end, I think how I feel after the rally will be the driving factor which means I likely won't pre-register and instead decide then.  Regardless, it will definitely keep me focused when I tackle my form sprints at the Tech Park this week!

What if I surprise myself and enjoy crit racing?  Does that expand the scope of my target event?  After all, the Cotton Patch Challenge offers more than a road race --- it has the Omnium which is basically a 2-day 3-stage race with the road race and a time trial on Saturday followed by a criterium on Sunday.  Oh my, what have I gotten myself into?

Something Wicked This Way Comes

In just under 8 weeks I will be lining up for the Cotton Patch Challenge - not the 100k rally like I did last year, but the road race!  This will mark my first foray into the world of bike racing ..... and it's a bit nerve-wracking.  I know most of this blog's followers are triathletes or runners so this statement may come as a shock - "Finishing is not an accomplishment."  Shocking, huh?  That simple statement illustrates the difference between a running race and a cycling race.  When it comes to a bike race there is no glory in simply finishing.  The goal is to WIN (or at a minimum to influence the outcome).  That puts a completely different spin on the mental approach.

When in doubt, Jens says you should attack.

I'm no fool.  I know that the vast majority of first time racers get dropped by the pack and end up finishing solo (that is, if they aren't pulled off the course for a DNF).  So would I be happy with surviving the 58 miles incident-free and crossing the line with the peloton?  Sure.  After all, the most common goals for new racers are 1) Don't crash, and 2) Don't get dropped.  Notice something about both of those goals?  They're both negative and defensive.  Take that approach and you are toast.  I don't want to crash or get dropped but I sure as heck don't want to spend a few hours just desperately trying to "hang on".  I can do that at a rally or the weekend group ride.  Instead, I will arrive at that starting line with a plan for when and where to ATTACK.  I may or may not ever get the opportunity to execute that plan but I will be prepared and I will be looking for the opportunity.  That, you can be certain of.

Tour de Cure

Last Saturday the family did the Tour de Cure, a rally supporting the American Diabetes Association.  Angelia and Julian were taking on the 32mi route while I went for the full 64mi route.  The start/finish was at Texas Motor Speedway (yep, we've raced there before at the Texas Motor Speedway Duathlon).  It's a fair drive for us but worth it for the early 7am start.  After all, it's been hot in Texas.  How hot?  I could tell you how many consecutive triple-digit days we've had but this paints a clearer picture ..... the other night my youngest complained that the shower water was too warm ...... I had it on cold.  This time of year we don't get hot and cold running water, we get hot and not quite as hot.  Yes, refrigerating your hydration overnight is important.

Pre-Ride
When we arrived the first order of business was to hit the restroom.  One nice thing about the event being held at the racetrack is you get full shower & toilet facilities instead of porta-potties.  However, it was still early and the lights weren't on.  Inside there'd be an occasional eerie glow from a cell phone but otherwise it was pitch black.  Navigating public restrooms in pitch blackness is a bit of an odd scenario.  You can't exactly feel your way around!  This is further complicated when you're in cycling bibs which can produce bathroom challenges of their own.

We got our bikes set up and Angelia went to get our event shirts which for some reason were not available at the early packet pickups.  No sooner did she get to the end of the parking lot than she turned around.  Flat tire!  Neither of us brought multiple tubes so before the rally had even started, she had used her one spare tube.  The tire change also meant we were running a bit behind and needed to hustle.  We made it to the line on time, even nudging our way up towards the front where our fellow Cheesy Riders had gathered.  We listened to the national anthem and we're off!

The Ride
The ride starts with a loop around the track.  They keep you down on the apron through the turns but you can get up on the banking in the straightaways.  It's kind of a cool way to start a rally.  After completing a lap you turn back through the start line in the opposite direction.  As I made the turn I waved at Angelia and Julian.  Little did I know that mere moments later Julian would come to a sudden stop and Angelia unable to unclip would take a tumble.  She banged her knee pretty good and was concerned about her ability to continue.  Of course, I was long gone by this point so if she didn't continue then Julian would miss out on his ride too.  So she forged ahead.

Ang & Julian - a Tale of Two Rides

On the out portion of the route, Julian was riding ahead at a reasonable pace.  Angelia was fighting her knee but keeping him in sight.  She said that there was a lot of "single leg" pedaling with her right doing all the real work and the left being just along for the ride.  Things changed once they hit the rest stop at the turnaround point though.  Julian had been doing well on his hydration but neglected taking in any calories.  This combined with the headwind on the return route made for a slower boy ..... and suddenly mommy was flying by him.  In the end they had a solid 32mi ride which beat Julian's previous long by a couple miles.

Chris - a Tale of Ugh
My goal on this ride was to stick with the lead pack and be self-sufficient (no rest stops).  I had 3 bottles and an assortment of nutrition options.  Unfortunately, the initial lap around TMS stretched the field and made it tough for packs to form after exiting through the single lane tunnel.  A couple miles in I hooked up with a small group and did my first ever echelon as the crosswinds were significant.  It was a fight for me to stay with them and I got gapped (more like dropped) at the 16mi mark.  Not good.  One bright spot was I did some of my best time-trialing for the next 4mi trying to close (and I did .... a little).  In fact, this was my fastest stretch on the entire ride (by FAR) even though I was solo at the time.  I was closing on them when my Garmin alerted me I was off course.  I turned around and took it a bit easier hoping the group would realize their error and soon catch up to me.  It never happened but a larger, faster group came by.  I hooked on with them to the turnaround point for our route.  Surprisingly they stopped here so I scrapped my initial plan and took a moment too.

I hit the porta-john, had a half-banana, and began to wonder how long the pack was stopping.  It was longer than I planned on so I took off as a solo rider.  Eight miles later, at the 40mi mark, they caught me.  We were flying along on some challenging terrain (horrible roads, headwind, and 7% grades) until I dropped my chain. Say goodbye to that group. Other than briefly hooking up with a group of 4 for some wind relief, the remainder was a solo effort.  Then, at the 60mi mark my right knee went.  The quads and hamstrings had both shown the early signs of giving out but the knee was sudden.  The pain was sharp just above the knee on the inside.  With only 4mi to go I kept pushing forward and soon discovered it only bugged me on climbs.  I was perfectly fine on the flats.  Overall the ride was just brutal roads with wind and a few more climbs than I expected.  In fact I disliked the route so much I have no plans of ever riding that one again.

Post-Ride
When I crossed the line, Angelia and Julian were already eating and relaxing under a canopy.  The rally had all the usual stuff with food, music, and massages.  I thought it strange they only had chair massages though.  This is a cycling event people .... table massages are needed to work the quads and hammies!

I should mention that both Angelia's knee and my knee ended up being fine after a couple days of rest and ice.  No long term ill effects here.  We both ran successfully yesterday, and this morning I even did my hill route so if it was going to flare up I gave it plenty of opportunity.

Stay tuned for my next post when I explain why I was so determined to finish with the lead pack ..... any guesses?

Blazing Saddles Duathlon

This past weekend was my second ever duathlon (the first was Fast & Furious back in April).  A few things have changed in the months in between - namely the temperature has risen significantly.  My run "training" has been minimal so I wasn't expecting any improvement in that area.  However, I did anticipate a better bike leg despite the heat.  In the end I thought 1:05 was a good target for this 2miR / 9.5miB / 2miR course.

The race was put on at White Rock Lake, a very popular spot in Dallas among runners (like my sister) and cyclists.  Personally, I've always avoided it because of its popularity.  Cycling at high speeds around runners and other pedestrians, pets, etc. is hazardous at best so why would I seek it out?  In this case, it was a negative as I was likely the only participant who had never ridden the course.  On top of that, it's not a closed course so my first time dodging all these obstacles would be in a race situation while in aero position.  Not ideal.

Race morning went well as I got a decent breakfast, was well hydrated, got a great transition spot (open racking!), and generally felt ready to take it on.  This wasn't a major target so there was no stress.  In fact, I felt free to just "go for it".  I threw in a little warm-up run, had a pre-race GU, and then they announced a 15min delay. WTF?  I'm primed and ready to go!  With as quickly as temps were going up, every minute was precious.

Run 1 - 2mi
Eventually, they gave us the go signal and we were off running.  A 5k race started with us and this worked against me a bit as I got sucked up in the momentum and didn't manage my pace.  Normally, I'm excellent at finding the right pace which should have been around 8:30min/mi for the first run leg.  Instead, my first mile was 7:42 - oops!  That would be fine for an aggressive 5k but not for this.  I slowed up a bit and finished the route in 16:21.

T1
Transition was fairly quick.  No idea what the time was as the official splits haven't been posted anywhere I can find.  My heartrate was elevated higher than I wanted but I figured that would come down a bit once I got in my comfort zone on the bike.

Bike - 9.5mi
The bike started well except for one thing - my HR wouldn't budge!  This would be the downfall of my day.  No matter what I did my HR just did not want to recover.  Ok, ok, honestly I probably just wasn't patient enough to let it recover while out on the race course and I just kept pushing forward.  I had one spot where I slowed to a crawl as I wasn't 100% certain on the route and another where I dropped my water bottle (doh!).  It was a Camelbak Podium Big Chill so I pulled a quick u-turn and grabbed it - couldn't have cost me more than a couple seconds.  Unfortunately, in both instances my heart just kept on beating fast.  In the end I had a decent bike split of 28:17 but felt I could have done so much more had I taken it easy on the first run.

T2
By this point I was hyper-aware of my HR and intentionally took it a bit easier in transition.  I walked instead of running in transition and generally didn't rush anything.  Did it help?

Photos are thanks to my wife.

Run 2 - 2mi
Nope.  Relaxed transition or not, my HR was still up (did I mention the sweltering heat?).  I took off on the 2nd run which actually went the opposite direction from the 1st run leg.  This run was B-R-U-T-A-L.  By the 1/2mi mark I had slowed to a 10min/mi pace with a HR at max.  I had to do something so I walked and focused on my breathing.  I've walked once before in a race and ended up with a 5k PR so I knew walking a short while wouldn't kill me.  My HR slowed about 8bpm which isn't a lot but it was enough for me to give it another go.  I was doing better but still well off pace around 9min/mi then with only 1/2mi left to go I found my legs and was suddenly running around an 8min/mi.  Wow, a 2min/mi variance in the span of a single mile.  I crossed the finish line with a final run split of 17:38.

Overall
I crossed the line at 1:05:52.78 meaning I missed my realistically conservative goal by 53 seconds.  It was a weird feeling.  On one hand I was disappointed I missed the mark but on the other it was close enough I didn't think I could get too upset with myself.  It was clear what my issue was.  In my first duathlon my 2nd run was 6sec quicker than the first.  In this one I was 1:17 slower on the 2nd run.  I had clearly gone out too fast.  I knew it and it cost me.  If I had taken as little as 40sec longer on run 1 I would have been faster on the bike, in T2, and on run 2.  In the end, I would have hit my goal.  I know it.  When I got home and looked at the stats it was even more pronounced than I imagined.  AvgHR for Run1?  96% of MaxHR.  AvgHR on the Bike?  98% of MaxHR.  AvgHR for Run2?  97% of MaxHR.  Yeah, essentially I was at 97% MaxHR for over an hour in the hot Texas sun.  Surprised I didn't collapse.  In fact, something unexpected happened ......

Yep, 1st place Age Group!  Well, there was one guy in my age group who clobbered me by nearly 14 minutes (Really?  14 freaking minutes?), but he got 1st Overall so the Age Group award fell to me.  Heck, I don't get these often so I'll take it.  I wonder what I could do if I actually improved my running and had a tri bike?  Hmmm.

Lake Ladies and Swimming Strong

One thing I forgot to mention in Thursday's post was that Angelia is racing this morning.  She is running the opening leg for a 4 lady team at the Lady of the Lake Relays.  The relay legs are 5.25mi, 3.75mi, 5.25mi, and 3.75mi which amounts to 2 laps around White Rock Lake, an extremely popular location for runners and cyclists in Dallas.  In fact, that's where my Blazing Saddles Duathlon is tomorrow morning.  I hope she has a good run with her running buddies this AM as our young 'uns sleep in and I type this blog.  I've got the Tour de France on in the background as well (still can't get over Thor's win yesterday - awesome!).  Usually we watch the TdF together but there won't be time today as tonight is date night (translated: sitting amongst a mass of teenagers for a showing of Harry Potter).

Yesterday, both boys had swim lessons.  They usually don't have lessons on Friday but their coach will be gone as of Wednesday and we're cramming in some extra sessions.  She will be missed as she got nearly instant results from both of them.  Plenty has been written on this blog about Julian's progression on the open water front where he recently swam a mile.  In the pool it hasn't all been triathlon oriented - he's gotten very proficient at the backstroke and his fly is getting good as well.  Meanwhile, Connor went from goofing off in the pool to SWIMMING.  In fact, I think this picture might give you an idea of just how far along he is:

Yeah, that's a 4yr old about to enter the 50m pool (the 25m kids pool is behind him).  He did some freestyle with flippers, backstroke, kickboard drills (with and w/o flippers), and finished off with a little freestyle sans flippers for about 400m worth of work.  I think I've been downgraded to 4th best swimmer in the family.  Here's one more pic.  He's in the yellow SwimStrong cap in lane 5.

That's a long way for a little man!  I really hope he keeps approaching his swimming aggressively when he switches coaches.  His second triathlon in October should be quite a different experience from his first.

Quick Tour de Family

Wow, I've really slacked on my blogging.  It's not that there's nothing going on - it's just that I'm either working, training, or watching the Tour de France (and what a TdF it has been!).  Here's a quick look at what everyone is up to ......

Julian

Last weekend Julian hit a swimming milestone by completing his first swim over a mile --- and in open water!  Coach Sean grabbed the kayak and took him out at the usual spot.  The original plan was for around an 800m swim which would be around the same distance he did the week prior.  The big change was that instead of doing multiple loops of a small triangle course, he would instead do a long out-and-back.  The idea?  To see the impact mentally of what appeared to be a longer swim (even though it wasn't).  Apparently, during the swim they decided to just keep going to the last buoy.  His swimming has come a long ways and he has decided to take on IronKids - Oklahoma City a month from now.

See that kayak way out there?  Julian's swimming next to it along the line of buoys.

After over a mile of open water swimming.

Julian earns a Triple Threat Tough t-shirt.

Chris

Since the "Discom-BOB-ulated One" is no doubt going to leave another comment asking if I swam as well, I'll just answer it here - "Nope."  My swimming has been pool only and not nearly often enough.  However, my objectives for the rest of this year have shifted a bit and swimming is not a key component.  I will continue working on it and when we hit the cycling "off-season" I plan on upping my running and swimming.  Swimming WILL be necessary for next year's goals.  In the meantime, while Julian was setting a new distance mark on the lake, I was setting a new personal mark around my neighborhood.  I had a brick interval workout that went something like this:

Warm-up jog - 3.21mi

Threshold bike - 13.94mi

Threshold run - 2.22mi

Cooldown bike - 4.99mi

Now, I know the distances are nothing massive but with the heat (even in the morning) and the intensity level this was a tough little brick.  The significant number here is the 5.43mi running which is a mile further than I've ever done in a day before.  Yes, it wasn't continuous as the bike was in the middle but I wasn't exactly out for a casual spin.  This Sunday I have the Blazing Saddles Duathlon which should be no problem as it is a 2miR / 9.5miB / 2miR.

Angelia

It's been a tough week for Angelia.  Headaches, allergies, heat, .... the challenges keep coming.  She is very motivated to train for not 1, but 2 half-marathons later this year!  Her first one will be the Women's Half Marathon in St.Petersburg.  Check out the sweet bling (yes, the small part is a detachable charm):

Connor

Since the family outing at the Tech Park (Past, Present, and Future at Tech Park), Connor hasn't gotten to do too much out of the ordinary so I'll just share 2 quick videos.  The first is of him climbing the hill at the Tech Park on his bike complete with a celebration of making it.  The second is his ...... well, his re-imagining of a Led Zeppelin classic.

In case you can't make it out, the new lyrics are "Come from the land of ice and snow, shake your booty three times ..... slow".  Yep, we're never lacking for entertainment at our house.

Technically Speaking

A little over half a year into this blog I realize it has become something different from what I originally intended.  Frankly, that's mostly due to a thing called "time".  It takes more time than I anticipated writing posts.  It takes a LOT more time reading others blogs.  This time has to fit around family, work, training, and other interests.  The other big factor has been that as a family we do a lot.  Seriously, have you seen the quarterly retrospectives (1stQ & 2ndQ)?  That means that there's always a race recap to write and rarely time for other thoughts.

So, what's missing?  Those that know me well know that I research the heck out of any interest I have.  I'm an engineer at heart and I dig into the details.  Don't get me wrong - I know in the worlds of cycling and multisport that I'm a newbie.  However, I also know that my knack for research gives me a knowledge base that exceeds a lot of rookies (and some more experienced folk as well).  This is "book smarts" and not "street smarts" obviously and I have no intention of misleading anyone.  However, I think a lot of what I learn by just being me can be beneficial to a lot of people.  Sharing my research and analysis was one of the things I originally intended to do with this blog.  In some cases, I hope these types of posts can be helpful for the masses.  In some I may invite the blogosphere to disprove me and set me straight.  Either way, knowledge is to be gained and as G.I. Joe used to say ....... "Knowing is half the battle."


So, what should you expect?  Expect to see a post of this nature at least every other week if not weekly.  Sometimes it will be gear related, sometimes it will be training theory, sometimes ...... well, it could be anything.  Early topics will be things like troubleshooting a Garmin speed/cadence sensor, pH levels in sport drinks, a workaround for accessing Garmin files without the usual "plug-ins", etc.  Only two questions I need help answering:

1) What topics would you like me to delve into?

2) What should I call this feature?

Thanks for reading!

Past, Present, & Future at the Tech Park

PAST - About a mile and a half from my house is a Technology Park.  Most small cities have one - nothing more than a collection of buildings, warehouses, and offices for technology based companies.  They're common sites for riding laps and criterium races as they're frequently devoid of traffic outside normal business hours.  This was the site of my crash last Labor Day when I destroyed my frame and donated some skin to the pavement (from my knee, wrist, elbow, shoulder, and oh yeah .... my face).  That crash happened while doing a specific workout - "form sprint intervals".  The idea is to get a good cadence going on one side of the square course, turn the corner, grab a much larger gear, and do a slow motion sprint up the grade.  You then carry that effort through the turn at the top and along the third leg of the course.  On the final side of the square you recover while on a slight downgrade.  That particular day something went wrong on one of the turns and it has affected my cornering ever since.

PRESENT - 9 months later, in early June, form sprints appeared again on my workout schedule.  It has been so long and my cornering has regained some of its earlier form but that turn still has a bit of a mental hold on me.  I've done form sprints at the Tech Park four times since.  The first 2 times back on this workout I exercised a lot of demons.  Keep in mind, the workout really had no role in the crash.  The crash could have happened anytime but what this workout does is force me to go through that same corner at speed over and over again --- it's a challenge mentally.  The 3rd time I went out I did it later in the evening due to the persistent temps around 100 lately.  While there I ran into a familiar face from the Rockwall Cycling race team and we chatted while riding laps.  I was warming up while she was cooling down.  I ended up warming up longer than originally planned and the sun had set.  No problem - I was prepared with the appropriate lights.  It wasn't until I started the workout that it hit me.  I was now going to repeatedly go through that corner in the dark and without knowing how much speed I was carrying into it (due to being unable to see the Garmin clearly).  The reality is that I still have yet to go through that corner as quickly as I did the day of the crash.  I think I maintain more of my momentum through it but I definitely don't enter as quickly.  In the end, all went well - I survived and took a big step in regaining some comfort there.

My apologies to Rockwall Cycling,
but hey .... this jersey fits.

FUTURE - No, I don't have a crystal ball.  By "future" I mean my little ones.  Last night's form sprint workout had the whole family at the Tech Park.  Julian rode over with me and joined in the workout by sprinting the incline each lap.  He ended up getting in a solid 18.5 miles.  Meanwhile, Angelia and Connor did some riding in one of the parking lots and around the building.  Once I was done we traded off so that Angelia could ride laps as well.  It was a good way to get Connor involved and he really enjoyed it.  When he wasn't riding he was cheering loudly for us on our sprints.

Oh, the evening wasn't completely without incident.  There was that point on the ride to the Tech Park that Julian decided not to make the right turn and instead ride into my wheel.  He took a quick spill to the ground and got some scrapes and bruises but nothing major.  He popped right back up, quickly removed his bike from the street, and when he was ready we continued onward.  Final inventory showed marks on the shoulder, elbow, and a couple around the knee.  He'll live.

2nd Quarter Retrospective

Wow, halfway through 2011.  That means I'm only 6 months from having "40" written on my calf (even though I won't be 40 for 17-1/2 months).  It's a weird thought.  It also means Julian is only 6 months away from bike racing age.  That's a more exciting thought.  Oh well, on to the look back at our family's 2nd quarter.  If you're new to the blog, be sure to read (and follow some of the links) in the 1st Quarter Retrospective.

The 2nd quarter got off to a roaring start as Angelia PR'ed the Lion's Dash 5k and more importantly --- wrote the blog recap herself!  Meanwhile, Julian got his first road rash and we had a great race at the Fast & Furious Duathlon.  It was our first non-relayed duathlon which meant I had to *gasp* run competitively for the first time. Julian naturally took home some bling.

The boys started swim lessons at our very awesome aquatic center only 2mi from the house.  There were also a couple more 5k's with Julian & Angelia running the Springer 5k and Julian running the Heart of Heath 5k while Angelia volunteered at a water station.  No recaps were ever posted for these as I was at baseball with Connor both times.  I did however see Angelia cross the line at the Springer 5k for yet another PR.

I relayed a humorous story about why I suck as a riding buddy.

Julian took to defining his own style by wearing cycling caps everywhere.  I played Jam for Japan where we raised money for earthquake/tsunami relief.

Connor got some TV facetime as the cutest member of the Cheesy Riders.  You can read about all three of these in the Random Tidbits post.

Why were we on TV?  To promote BikeMS - Frisco to Ft.Worth of course.  Angelia and I had a great first day riding before getting rained out on day 2.  Videos and photos can be found via the link.  Phew!  That was all just in April ..... could we keep it up?

Well, not completely.  Angelia had a big health scare where here legs stopped working due to an atypical migraine.  This was ironic timing as she just purchased a new bike which she wouldn't get to ride for awhile.

May was a big month for our boys as they both competed at the Hooty's Kids Tri which was Connor's first ever triathlon at the ripe age of 4.  Tons of great photos in that post so go check it out.

The next weekend was a big one as we lived up to the subtitle of this blog ("The family that tri's together, wins together!") by relaying the Classic Rock Sprint Triathlon.  Angelia had recovered enough to tackle the swim leg, I delivered my best ever bike split, and Julian crushed the field on the run for a very successful and fun event all around.

Next up was the Buffalo Creek Kids Tri which was the first repeat event for Julian.  He knocked over 8 minutes off his time from a year and a half prior.  This was a very busy month for him.  Every weekend had something, ending with the American Heroes Race on Memorial Day.  Angelia did a 10k there while Julian and I did the 5k.  It was a great run but in the end only one person came home with bling.  Yep, Julian with 1st in his age group ...... again.

After a crazy April and May, June didn't really have much planned.  So what did we do?  Angelia and I rode the Mesquite Rodeo Ride as a last minute (read: night before) decision.  I had a t-ball game to get to afterwards so I opted to ride the 75k as fast as I could instead of the full 100k route.  End result?  First to finish the 75k route, probably my best ride ever.  Last year, Julian did this ride with us but this time he had to skip it as the next day was the Kids Tri at the J.  This marked his 4th triathlon and the first with a 100m swim, an important stepping stone towards his goal of IronKids.

Julian was the first to complete a triathlon in our family at the age of 7.  Connor was next at the age of 4.  Finally, one of us parental units stepped up as Angelia competed in the Try the Tri.  She did a great job.  Will she follow in IronTexasMommy's footsteps by completing Ironman Texas just 2 years after breaking into the sport at Try the Tri?  No pressure. ;-)

Following that was the most exciting, ground-breaking event of the year ...... the Half-Birthday Triathlon in Kona, TX!  Really, I can't justify this event with a little snippet - follow the link and enjoy.

That's it!  Since then it's been Julian putting in all the real training work (fully detailed in the Conquering Demons, Glutton for Punishment, and 9yr old training week posts.  What lies ahead for the remainder of 2011?  Some potentially big things ...... a first for me on the bike, a big challenge for Julian, and an out of state event for Angelia.  Stay tuned.