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.

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.

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.

A 9yr Old Training Week

Well, it's obvious my training "mojo" has been MIA when every post lately has been about Julian.  This is yet another.  We started tracking his triathlon-related workouts and thought I'd share what a week of training looks like at age 9.

Monday - Rest

Tuesday
Swim  - 30min lesson at the Rockwall Aquatics Center of Excellence.  Minimal talking, lots of swimming.
Run - 30min light jog with Angelia.

Wednesday
Bike - 45min Cadence Intervals (10x 30sec high cadence w/ 1min recovery + warmup & cooldown).  Julian had done this before but was ready to give it another shot (follow link for video).




Thursday
Swim - 30min lesson at the aquatic center.
Run - 1hr15min track practice.  Coach Barrett of Rockwall Running Center and the Mustangs Track Club had him doing tons of sprint work.

Friday - Rest

Saturday
Bike - 1hr Hard Intervals (5x 2min hard with 5min recovery + warmup & cooldown).  Ideally we would've taken him for a long "steady-state" ride but I was fried from the morning group ride and Angelia was fried from a 9mi walk/run at the lake.  Here's the summary I put in Training Peaks for this workout:

On the trainer ..... 15min warmup 5x 2min "all-out" in a harder gear with 5min recovery Cooldown Julian's version of "all-out" is more like threshold. On the 4th interval I stood next to him and kept him going. His cadence would get up to 100 and I'd have him shift to the next gear. He was vocal about how much it hurt but I pointed out his legs could do more, look how quick they're still spinning. That interval he put the suffer on but recovered nicely. Now that he knew what it felt like to really push, I told him the last interval was up to him. It would be a test of his will. He didn't push quite as hard on that last one but it was much better than the first 3. He rounded out the hour spinning and still had plenty of energy the rest of the day.

Sunday
Swim - 1hr10min Open Water lesson. A ton of swimming here .... and a lot of progress.  A triangle course was set up in the water which Coach Sean and I both estimated at around 75m.  Often he was doing 2 loops of the course before any rest (and rests were brief).  By the end, a beach entry was included to complete the experience.  No idea how much he swam total but it was a lot.

So, how do you think his week stacks up?  Should we tell him there's another potential shot at IronKids in Oklahoma City on August 21st?

Glutton for Punishment

Earlier this month I wrote about Julian joining me for some cadence intervals which got a lot of positive comments.  He looked like he was going to keel over at the end and the lingering question was if he'd ride the trainer with me again.  Well, here's the answer:

You can hear me indicate "5" as in 5sec left in the 30sec high-cadence interval,

 and "rest" for the beginning of the 1min recovery.  There's also a hyper cheering monkey on the couch.

This was late in the session and for whatever reason my legs were already cooked, but Julian was still going strong.  Unlike last time when he finished collapsed over the bars, this time he still looked like he'd live.  It was a MUCH better session for him.  For me, I felt like it was horrible with only the very first interval (out of 10) being any good.  That was not the truth however.  For those who like to go sans computer, here's an argument for ...... it was my best ever cadence interval session.  The 1st interval was awesome, the 2nd thru 5th were above my norm and 6 thru 10 were weaker but not by as much as it seemed.  In reviewing the data post-ride I went from feeling pathetic to feeling decent about the evening's workout.


I know there are several of you out there who are just getting started in the world of cycling and have only recently ventured into the world of clipless pedals.  This story is for you .........

On Fathers' Day, I received an awesome gift from my family - a new pair of cycling shoes!  The new Specialized Pro Carbon shoes are a nice upgrade over the plastic-soled Specialized shoes I was using.  On top of that, I had a new set of Look Keo2Max Carbon pedals to install as an upgrade from my standard Keo pedals.  I spent time getting the cleats adjusted correctly and loosened the pedals a bit as they were really tight.  I was barely able to unclip after my first test run on the trainer.  I didn't loosen them as much as my previous set as I had recently popped out of my pedals on the move --- not a good thing!   Do you see where this is going?

Well, out on my ride I came up to an intersection with cars behind me, and a perfect storm of conditions led to a quicker stop than planned.  It had been a couple years since the last occurrence but there I was slowly falling over still clipped into my bike.  Bang!  Pride injured and wrist a little sore but no big deal.  Apparently I had gotten used to those ultra-loose pedals before.  Still, I have no plans on adjusting the new ones.  I'd rather adapt.  Better to fall over at a stop than to unintentionally come unclipped during a sprint!  Anyway, I thought you newer riders might enjoy knowing that clipless falls can happen to anyone at any time. It just takes the right set of conditions.  Hang in there!

Conquering Demons

About a month ago I wrote a post where I mentioned Julian's attempt at IronKids would have to wait till next year.  The reason?  Back to back swim struggles in races.  Sure, he was swimming fine in lessons but on raceday things were falling apart.  Reason number 2?  IronKids is an open water swim, and Julian's idea of open water includes all kinds of creatures he'd rather avoid.  A solution was needed and we turned the same place any triathlete would turn in this situation ...... a coach.  Since then Julian has been making great progress with Coach Sean.  They swim each weekend in the lake just a couple miles from our house.  This is a big stepping stone on the road to Julian's big "life goal" ..... to compete in Kona.

Julian gets some instructions as Coach takes the buoy out.

One of the things they worked on in a recent session was the beach entry and exit.  In these photos you can see Coach Sean talking about when to begin swimming and Julian's first attempts.  He did quite well!

By the time IronKids rolls around again next year, he'll be ready to crush the course.  It's gonna be a lot of fun when that happens!

Make the Kid Suffer

Sometimes when I have a trainer ride, Julian gets excited and wants to ride the trainer as well.  Usually this ends up being nothing more than 20 minutes of spinning for him, but he's done better lately with a recent full hour trainer ride.  After all, he does want to build up some quads like one of his favorite riders - Peter Sagan from team Liquigas.  This time was going to be different.

Julian was already happily spinning along when I began my warm-up.  After about 10 minutes I asked him if he was going to join me on my intervals.  He looked slightly apprehensive but said yes.  On the menu was high cadence drills - 10 sets of 30sec with 1min recovery.  Like any set of intervals, the first few are reasonable but then recovery gets harder and the legs burn quicker.  I let him know what was coming and that no matter how hard it got, he was capable of completing the workout.  When the time came I counted out loud to cue him .....

5 ..... 4 ..... 3 ..... 2 ..... 1 .....

1st interval - It took him a little time to figure out the right gear and really accelerate the feet but he was in a nice groove by the end of the 30sec.

2nd interval - Already in an easier gear he was able to spin up much more quickly.  He also discovered how much quicker the legs can start burning.  I think he was relieved when I shouted out, "Rest!" to indicate the recovery phase.

3rd interval - By now this was becoming a full fledged "event".  Julian was starting to feel it and our cheering section of Angelia and Connor were getting louder by the moment.  Angelia would be yelling, "Go Julian!", "Keep it going!", "You got it, Julian!" while Connor was busy yelling "Go, go, go!" and "You're gonna beat him Daddy!" (Yes, he's a Daddy's boy.)

4th interval - Getting tougher for him (me too) and I talk him through what he's experiencing.  Especially dealing with that mental thing that happens during intervals where the efforts seem to get longer and longer while the recoveries feel shorter and shorter.

Sagan leading the field.

5th thru 7th interval - Real suffering occurring here.  It was no longer enough to just cheer him on.  Angelia was creating race situations and yelling, "Here comes Peter Sagan!  Hold him off!  Go! Go! Go!"

8th and 9th interval - I think it took every ounce of guts he had just to turn the cranks at this point.  The idea of a fun night on the trainer with Dad had long passed.  Pain was evident on the face and in the body position.  I wasn't doing much better as I was getting some tightness in the core that was making things a bit uncomfortable.  Still, I focused on Julian.  "Only 1 more to go.  You can do anything for 30 seconds.  Give this everything you have.  You'll have all night to recover afterwards."

10th and final interval - He dug deep and turned in a solid final effort, collapsing over his handle bars when I shouted, "Rest!"  His whole body was slumped over and the cranks stopped turning.  Naturally we still had a cool-down to do and I told him to keep the feet moving - that cadence didn't matter anymore but he needed to keep the legs moving for the next 15 minutes.  He was not thrilled with that idea.  Of course this provided ample opportunity to discuss why we cool down properly and the benefits of doing it as well as what can happen when you skip it.  Eventually the 15 minutes passed and he was never so relieved as when I told him we were done.  The only question is ..... will he ride the trainer with me again?

Sagan won this round but hopefully Julian will give him another run for it.

Back in the Saddle Again

Metaphorical

No longer feeling neglected.

After the whole scare with Angelia's legs at the start of this month, her activity level seriously dropped off (for good reason).  A bout with bronchitis after that sure didn't help.  She still managed to do the swim leg of our family relay at the Classic Rock Sprint Triathlon which was great, but running and biking put more stress on the leg.  Her first attempt to run was a real struggle and she clearly needed more time to get well.  By this point, the fact that one leg was still sluggish was getting worrisome.  There was a new bike in the garage with some custom wheels added on Mother's Day that still hadn't been out for a ride.  Nearly 3 weeks later, after the Buffalo Creek Kids Tri, she ventured out on the inaugural ride of the Specialized Ruby with Julian and Jessica.  The ride went well and there were no problems with the leg even when needing to power into the wind.  This was a good sign!  Four days later she got up for an early morning run, ran about 3mi, and even though the pace was slower she was grinning from ear to ear.  Yep ....... she's back in the saddle again!

Literal

Out with the old ....

.... and in with the new.

When I got my road bike about a year-and-a-half ago one of the first things I knew needed changing was the saddle.  I tried a bunch of saddles and eventually settled on the Selle Italia Flite Gel Flow.  That was not a cheap saddle by any stretch but it just felt right so I went with it.  Recently, I've become more and more aware that it just isn't as comfortable as it used to be.  I don't think it's the saddle though - I think it's me.  I spend a lot more time riding in more aggressive positions than I did when I first started.  Throw in the physiology changes from weight loss and general fitness and I just require something different from my saddle now.  So it's back to testing out saddles but I'm hoping this will be simpler this time around.  I'm starting with the Specialized Romin which is a saddle I almost got originally.  I made a mental note at the time that when I was in the market again I would give it another try.  I installed it the other night but it didn't get a full test as I had high cadence trainer intervals on the agenda.  The next day has some tough intervals on the road and then there's the race-pace group ride on Saturday.  If I still like it then, I'll stick with it.  Even in the short workout last night I could tell the difference in some areas.  It's definitely a harder saddle than the Flite but I was feeling it primarily on the sit bones which is what you want.  There was more relief for the perineal artery (my primary pain point) and the less bulky nose of the saddle was an appreciated feature too.

Trying but not Tri'ing

The whole family has been working on their swimming lately.  Angelia has been doing well and is on target for her first triathlon in June.  It's one of those rookie tri's that will serve as a warm-up event for her sprint in August. I was planning on joining her for the tri next month but my swimming has a little massive ways to go.  For years my primary exposure to water has been via scuba diving.  In that time, my surface swimming ability has completely disappeared.  Body position is wrong, breathing is labored (where's my air tank?), and I'm just working too hard in general.  While I've made some solid progress the last few weeks it became clear that the tri would be a big struggle.  That was not the intention when I put it on the calendar.  It was just supposed to be an easy event to get my feet wet.  With that in mind I have decided not to do it.

How Julian pictures open water,
even if it's just a pond.

Meanwhile, Julian has been making great strides in swimming but there are still a number of demons to conquer which means no IronKids this year.  A 150yd open water swim seems doable for him but he's had rough 50m swims at 2 warm-up events, has issues with his face in cooler water, and has a lot of anxiety about what lives in the open water.  Just a few too many areas to address in such a short time for an event that would require overnight travel.

I don't want to neglect the little man here either.  Connor switched swim instructors and in the last couple weeks has started to show signs of the super swimmer he was last summer.  I think he's gonna really surprise some people by the time he does the Monster Kids Tri in October.  He'll be a completely different beast by then swimming the pool length with ease and probably no training wheels on the bike.

So with no triathlons for me, what's next?  Well, Julian and I are going to make this the year of the duathlon.  We've got 4 on the calendar.  Throw in some cycling events and as many as 5 kids tri's for Julian and we'll be plenty busy.  Next up though is some running at the American Heroes Race on Memorial Day.  It'll be a 10k for Angelia and 5k for Julian and I.  Have a safe and active holiday weekend everybody!

The Bully Computer

Some days your heartrate just won't elevate no matter what you do.  This is quite common the day following a hard workout but there are a lot of potential triggers.  For whatever reason, Wednesday was one of those days. The workout called for 10-minute threshold intervals with 5-min recoveries.  This is one I've done many times and already have programmed in my Garmin Edge 500.  Sometimes I wish it wasn't.

I took off towards my chosen road for the intervals which is the perfect distance away for a short warm-up.  I could tell my legs were a little tighter than usual but nothing excessive.  I also knew that as soon as I made the turn and began the interval I'd be fighting an intense headwind the whole way.  I was prepared for this.

I made the turn and hit the lap button on my Garmin to end the warm-up and begin the interval.  As is typical, the Garmin beeps at me because I'm below the target HR zone.  No problem, the heart always lags a bit behind the effort so in a few moments I'll be golden ..... except this time I couldn't get past threshold.  Here I was down in the drops pushing a big gear into a strong headwind, feeling the legs burning, and my Garmin dares to tell me I'm not working hard enough?  WTF?!?!?  I push harder still and occasionally manage to hit the elusive zone 4 but never for long.

I quickly recognize it's just one of those days where the heart won't elevate.  No problem, I'll crank out the effort and complete the workout as planned even if the numbers look off.  That works for a little while, but let's not forget ..... this is a workout ..... I am suffering ..... AND THAT DAMN COMPUTER KEEPS BEEPING AT ME!  Now I'm not just riding hard, but I'm busy cursing at a tiny electronic device that I paid good money to have.  Thankfully I'm on an empty country road because I doubt I'd appear sane to anyone who happened to hear me.  In the back forefront of my mind I'm envisioning grabbing the computer and tossing it angrily into the brush.  I can't though.  I know if I did I would just as quickly hop off my bike and be on my knees searching for it in the tall grass, telling it I'm sorry, begging it to let me find it ..... and that would be the moment a farmer walking his dog would pass by.  We cyclists have enough public image problems without me adding to it.  Oh well, time to HTFU, finish the workout, and get home.

So, what about you fellow endurance athletes?  Ever have the urge to destroy your computer/watch while working out?