Slipping up

I don't know how I could let this go. Once again I have slipped up and forgotten a major portion of a tale, and I find myself having to back up and retell a portion of the previous day's events.

As I posted yesterday, three of us took the challenge and rode in spite of the rain. Let's face it, you never know, it may rain race day. You'd still ride, right? We had to man up.

Remember the order was Scott, Roy, then me. Remember I felt that was a hard choice to make between Roy and Scott, as I feel there is practically nothing between them in speed at the moment. One is slightly better one way, the other in another. I felt giving Scott a one-minute advantage would be more than enough to ensure Roy couldn't catch - which turned out to be correct. What we didn't know was Scott helped keep it closer, albeit unintentionally.

We were on the cool-down portion of the ride. We were discussing our efforts and times, calculating roughly our speeds, when Scott had his epiphany.

He'd ridden the whole time trial in the small ring.

Let that soak in for a second. He'd been cautious on the way out because of the wet roads. We layered back off Roy's lead, so I noticed over and over on the way out he was in the low ring. He simply forgot to shift it up when he started the time trial. Chalk it up to the distraction of wet roads, but nonetheless, he rode his best TT time in the low chain ring.

Anyone who rides knows that meant he left a lot of speed out there. What had been a high-23 might have been a high-24/low-25. Easily. Maybe more. It was a great effort, and now passes into club lore in the category of, "You remember that time...?" Hall-of-Fame greats in that category?

• Larry Moffatt wearing his helmet backwards as Galloway clipped in and immediately fell over on his first clipped ride
• Galloway wearing his helmet through T2 and onto the run leg of Cicero Triathlon
• Galloway undressing in the doorway at Cicero, showing his backside to anyone interested in looking up
• Galloway attempting to change his flat tire without removing the wheel from the frame

Hey, waitaminnit... this whole thing ought to be renamed the "Galloway Hall of Shame"!

Congratulations, Scott. It takes a great effort to be aligned with one of the all-time greats.

Why not?

Allen started contacting me about 1:30. The weather was falling apart, and he was looking for a way to complete the ride before the rain started. There was obvious wisdom to his planning, but alas, we waited too long. The line moving in from Illinois was massive and building. The forecast for thunderstorm activity seemed to be spot on, so I agreed to try to sneak it in. However, as the agreed upon time to ride approached, it became obvious the line would overtake us long before we could complete the workout.

If it had been anyone else than Allen (or Lester) I might have gone anyway. Unfortunately I was already blamed (rightly so, I suppose) for the stormy ride we had earlier in the summer. Kedra had been somewhat forgiving of me for that episode, though I endangered the lives of two of her favorite people. I couldn't risk it again. I told Allen we'd best wait to see if it would blow over.

Of course it didn't. The front parked itself right over Lawrence County precisely when we should have headed to the gathering. One by one riders begged off via text, and though I resolved to go anyway, I doubted anyone else would show. It didn't matter; I was going. It's taper, and some things need to happen in a timely fashion. I felt this was a critical workout, so if I could make it happen, it would happen.

Roy, Scott, and I were the only people to show. Scott hopped out of the truck thinking run, as he was garbed in running attire. I suppose Roy was too. When I started unloading my bike in the light rain, they both looked at me with slightly surprised expressions. "Are you going to ride in this?", they asked. I explained I'd done more in worse, and figured I'd give it a shot. I guess I shamed them into it, because within minutes we were all loaded up on bikes and ready to go. On time I might add, Mr. Galloway!

We batted courses back-and-forth for a few minutes. I said I didn't know if a hard ride was possible, they said they didn't care to ride hard in this stuff, so we considered our options. In the back of my mind I hadn't yet given up on a time trial, so I suggested going out the regular way. We could always change our minds later if necessary.

As we started, they mentioned Jimmy had been planning a time trial today. It made sense. We are at the end of the season for some, and it's good to get a check on progress. If I was going to do it, today had to be the day. Next week is the week of the peak race, so I wouldn't do it then. After that, I probably won't get another chance to ride on Tuesdays. Now or never for me.

On the way out Roy pushed the pace all the way (once on 337). We had to string out a bit because the roads were soaked, traffic was steady, and the bikes threw up quite a bit of water. I'd judge Scott's rooster tail to be about three bike lengths (or the size of a Toyota Corolla for you triathletes), so I laid way back. Looking at the road on the way out, I knew it was dicey. There was a lot of ponding water, and any misstep could be disastrous.

Pace line was out. There was no safe way to do it. Time trial was the best option. At first the other guys didn't seem interested, but like me, I think the testosterone started to kick in when someone committed to going hard. I said flat out I was going for it no matter what - the worst that would happen is I wouldn't make it (actually, the worst that could happen would be to die in a tragic slide-off-the-slick-road style crash into a barb wire fence). That's infallible logic, so we were set.

Scott went first. That was a hard one to judge, because I don't think there's much difference between Roy and Scott in terms of speed. Roy is in better bike shape, Scott is a better climber. This was going to be fun.

I went last. There was a minute between every rider, and I honestly wondered if there was any way to catch them.

When I got onto 337, I saw Roy way off in the distance. Way off. He was clearly riding much better than before, and it didn't seem possible to get to him. Regardless, I laid over the top tube and got to work. The speed was good, but not impressive. Clearly there was no tailwind assist, so this would have to be done the old fashioned way. I kept the pressure on, and by the end of the straightaway I'd closed quite a bit.

Through Bromer I could see the gap was closing, but it wasn't rapid. Steady, not fast. It wasn't until we'd topped the first hill and were in the next section when I caught him. Even then, I didn't smash by him. It was work. I set my eyes forward to scour the landscape for Scott.

I was using the whole road, taking the straight lines, the shortest distances, yet trying to avoid the larger puddles that covered the road in places. I focused on these because I figured that would improve my odds of finishing without a nasty wreck. I finally got to Scott in the Lost River Bottoms, though he too was pushing well.

I half imagined he would overtake me on the climb up Lost River Hill. Even if he did, I was confident I would rebuild my speed and overtake him again in a short time. (In another year this may not be possible!) My speed quickly returned, and I was left only with the last series of rollers and the final hill.

It went pretty well. I couldn't really read my Garmin easily because the rain drops covered the display, distorting the readout. I went by feel. Speaking of feel, my lungs felt fine, but my quads were still a bit sore. I pushed them anyway.

I'd checked my time when I hit the start and again at the finish. It was 1:05:35 at the start, 1:27:50 at the end. That's 22:15 on the preliminary, which would be a season's best if it held. It did. That equates to 26.9 mph, and a 2-second PR (season) for the KOM.

Roy went 24:32, good for 24.42 mph. That would have to rank as one of his best rides this season.

Scott didn't get his time. His Garmin has it, and when he uploads his ride tonight it will show up on the segments. I'm betting it was a good one. (Let me check... there it is. 25:16 for 23.7 mph) This would be a PR for Scott.

On the ride in, Allen met us on DNR road for an impromptu photo session. Roy put me up to mischief I quickly regretted... Kedra was in the car. Sorry!

We were all soaked when we got back, and since no one had brought a change of socks, we canned the run. It was all good. It was a good meal and a good time. Man, I'm going to miss our Wendy's after a hard workout!

Forgotten info

I can't believe I didn't relate this on Saturday's post, but it was a rather long day and I forgot. Let me make up for that error of omission straight off...

Roy, Robin and I had just left Heltonville on the 30-mile ride from the club. It had been interesting enough, Robin telling us about her sunflower peanut butter and the billy goat visiting, though it was time to get on our way. We weren't five minutes from Bonehead's when it happened.

We were strung out in line because of traffic, thought it wasn't particularly heavy. I was in front, then Robin, then Roy. They were pretty close together, I was maybe 25 yards ahead. On the flat straightaway right out of town I saw it coming - a jet black blur of fur and teeth, medium in size but high in speed. I calculated instantly that it had no angle for me, rather it was trying for Robin. I called, "Dog!" and looked back to see what would happen. What happened next could be considered comic or tragic (or a Shakespearean comedy I suppose, which is a bit of both) depending on your perspective.

Apparently it was an immature dog, because he missed his angle - badly. That's not so bad in the animal kingdom, inexperienced hunters often miss until they practice a bit. Problem was the pup also had tunnel vision, because it never saw Roy until it was far too late. It was a clean miss on Robin, and the dog was still looking square at its escaping prey when it ran smack into Roy's front wheel. THUMP!

You never know how that will play out. Often a rider will go down if they hit something that large, but Roy just ran it over - not squarely, just the hind quarters - but that was enough. With a rather sheepish look and much meeker demeanor the dog slunk away to the waiting owner, who never uttered a word throughout the 5-10 seconds it took to play out.

"Great. Just went down a few days ago and now I about went down again." Roy's a man of few words and pragmatic outlook. I waited for a block, then asked him to pull it over so I could check out the bike. All was good and we went on without further incident. I do wish I'd gotten that one on film. It was pretty funny after the fact, when I knew no one was hurt and nothing was damaged...

Back to today... didn't run that much as I am in taper. However, Leisa and I did work out in the yard all day staining the fence. It was a long day in the sun. I was whistling "Bridge Over the River Kuwai" by the time it was done. My back is pretty red too. Not a bad sunburn mind you, but it was definitely time to get back in the house.

Tomorrow we ride, weather permitting. I am also going to run at least a little after the ride.That may be alone or with company, but I'm announcing it now. I figure I need one brick before the race next week...

Hills AGAIN?!

My run this morning went a lot better than I could have expected. No, it wasn't fast, but the last two days of biking have been a lot hillier than I'm used to. On top of that, I created five new segments on the course, and of course I had to push on all the segments during yesterday's ride. I wound up picking up a KOM and a couple of sore quads full of lactic acid.

In the afternoon a few of us met at Kenray for our Sunday swim. Rand, Jimmy, and Allen all had their wetsuits - I was without. I'd considered bringing mine, even figured they would, but I wanted one more training swim without. I figured whatever I could accomplish today would be slower than what could be done at Milwaukee with a wetsuit.

My time was 25:48, which breaks down to 1:28 per 100 yards. That's very good, and consistent with the times I've been seeing at the pool. At that level I am on par with the best swimmers in my age group at Nationals. And that's without the wetsuit. I should be able to peel a minute or two off that time, which would be a major coup if it happens.

Actually, if I wanted to get more technical about it, that pace translates into a 24-flat 1500 meter swim without wetsuit. Dropping a couple minutes from there would make it 22-flat, which again would be among the best. Of course this is all theoretical, because I know nothing of the course and how things will be staged, how crowded, etc., but the math is accurate. I also don't know if last year's results are typical. Still, if I can swim in the 22-23 range, I will be very pleased.

Jimmy wanted to keep the bike ride in town because he was short of time. Of course that meant we were going to do the Industrial Park hill workout... what, hills AGAIN?! Third day in a row, and I knew my legs were totally not up for it. You know me though... I hope no one ever challenges me to a turd eating contest, because I'd bet I'd have to win that, too.

It was only Bartley, Jimmy, and me. Bartley climbs well, we had a tailwind, and I was confident he would wind up the with KOM with very little effort. But... James's words of wisdom rang in my ears (he has to tell you, I won't repeat them here). So I tried. Over and over. Remarkably the speed went up with each succeeding attempt, until ultimately I felt confident I might actually have a shot at the KOM.

We took Jimmy home, then Bartley and I went out on William's Blvd. for a fast stretch. I figured either there existed a segment on the road, or there soon would be. We caught a break in traffic and rolled onto the stretch.

Believe it or not, it's not flat. In fact, after the first part it climbs. My legs were screaming at me, protesting all the effort they've been put through over the last few days. My lungs didn't care - thank goodness for the cool weather. There's only so much you can ask of your body, and I faded a bit over the last part of the segment. Still, I pushed until the agreed upon ending point. It would be up to the upload to sort it out.

We finished the ride gathering junk miles around town. I wanted 20, and got it. I'd like to pick up 70-80 more this week, including the pace line on Tuesday. This is the first week of taper, so I'll have to be more careful about the quality workouts I include.

Ride data!

WWDDD

Can you believe it? On the morning of the inaugural Alumni Days Bike Ride, rain fell defiantly from the skies. It had been with a great deal of trepidation our guides had faced the prospect of guiding neophyte riders through the unforgiving hills and valleys of northern Lawrence County... now we had to face them on wet roads.

Our conviction wavered, if only for a while. Our impromptu breakfast at McDonald's had been a stalling tactic, attempting to set aside for a while the decision we were all secretly admitting must be made - to cancel the event. Once we arrived at the club, Jimmy echoed the voices in our minds, and seemed poised to end the suspense.

Then the ladies came.

That's right, the women gave the men the backbone to venture out. When it was time to toe the line, it was a 3/2 advantage for the women. Embarking were Robin Elliot, Judy Cross, Amy Brown, Roy Ritter, and IronBill.

It might have been that we laid it on too thick - okay, maybe I laid it on too thick - about yesterday's ride. I had been talking about hills being pretty challenging, and we were all worried about slick roads on some of the massive downhills. The results was two of the ladies turned back before we hit the big stuff. For that, I'm sorry.

Once it was down to three, the ride began in earnest. Fortunately for us the skies dried up and the northwest winds quickly dried the roads, and we enjoyed ever safer roads as time went on. We were very cautious about the two major downhills, and with that put away, we only concerned ourselves about getting through the ensuing uphills.

I mentioned yesterday how I began laughing when I faced that wall of a hill near Peerless. No joke, I let Roy and Robin go ahead (I planned to try to hit it hard), and as they crossed the bridge I distinctly heard Robin begin laughing. I love it. Imminent death faced her, and she rode into it not whining, but laughing. I'd ride with her any time.

I gave it all I could, but I could not overtake the KOM. I'm not a climber anyway, but yesterday's ride definitely took the zip out of my legs. Funny thing... my lungs were fine, a sign my conditioning is excellent I suppose. I just couldn't crush the pedals fast enough. It wasn't even close, I can tell you that.

After that the ride was a lot more pleasant. We crossed Bartlettsville road and headed toward Bonehead's in Heltonville. There we stopped and got a drink and ate our food. It's worth noting Robin had some exotic peanut butter made from sunflower seeds and nutrition bars. I'm not going to argue with the value of such things, given she's a pretty fit person, but dang... if I had to live on that stuff, I'd probably sprint towards the light.

The ride across the valley proved once again Robin could hang. On the flats she could hold 18 mph without effort, and that is as well as we do as a group. Maybe we had to wait a little on the hills, but it wasn't much. Looking at the ride data would fool you, because it's 2 mph slower than yesterday, but... that's because the first 4-5 miles of the ride were spent waiting on the rider on the old mountain bike.

In the end it was a terrific ride. Roy and Robin were old friends from school, so the conversation went smoothly throughout the morning. I didn't know what to expect in her riding ability. I knew she could ride distance, as her group has already accomplished 100-milers this year. Still you never know until you ride with people.

Roy did well too. This doesn't surprise me as much, because he lives and rides in an area surrounded by hills, and he recently competed in a half-Ironman. For that reason I haven't spent a lot of electronic ink here discussing his efforts. I will say I never felt he was wearing out or struggling any more than we did yesterday.

For my part, I tried to take a few KOMs but largely failed. The good news is the one I really wanted most, the "Mt. Unpleasant" segment, is mine. Of course that will last only until Miller or Heatherly or Bartley get out there to top it (they all climb better than I do), but today, it's mine.

Mt. Unpleasant

So what if the numbers were low? So what if only three went the distance? It was a fun ride. I actually like the circuit, hilly though it is. It doesn't figure much into the next two weeks of my training (taper), but afterwards, who knows?

After the ride, Roy and I went to Subway for a sandwich. As I was standing in line deciding what to buy, I asked myself the question any serious connoisseur of the glorified bologna sandwich would: WWDDD? (That's, "What Would Dan Dyke Do?")

I could hear that baritone voice drawling in his familiar John Wayne cadence, "Anyone who rides THAT hard of a ride ought to eat the WHOLE sandwich!" How right you are, Dan! So I bought the full sub, though I took half home. Maybe I'll have it later tonight...

Interesting ride

That was interesting! John T., Jimmy, Scott, Galloway, Rand, Allen, and I rode the Alumni bike tour course today, more to finalize it than anything, and wow, it sure is different than riding south! The biggest thing we have to face when going south is the cut; we could only dream of something as easy as the cut today.

Jimmy and I drove the proposed course yesterday, and honestly from a car it didn't seem too bad. However, when we got to the bottoms north of GM and hooked right and hit the first hill, it was clear we had been mislead. When we hit the second bottoms and crossed the bridge, I looked ahead and saw the massive hill awaiting us. It literally looked as if we were riding into a wall. I just started laughing. What else could we do? We had to go up.

I kid you not, my Garmin, however accurate it might or might not have been, registered 26% grade. That's over double the pitch of a regular roof. It was crazy steep, if not that long. I never doubted for a second I could climb it, or even if any of our riders would... I was more thinking of the poor souls we lead out tomorrow. There will be blood, oh yes, there will be blood...

It would have been bad enough if that had been the end of it, but it wasn't. The next few miles were a serious of lulls interrupted by harsh climbs. None of them lasted too long, usually about a half mile or so, but they were more than enough.

Eventually we got to some tamer hills, and the ride turned downright pleasant. I will also say road conditions were excellent throughout the ride, including fresh pavement in two separate areas. There can't be any complaint about being on overly busy roads either - we managed to stay off Highway 58, making it a much safer ride.

It came down to this - we could have a safe ride or we could have an easier ride. There was no way to have both. I think we made the right choice, even if some of our "guests" tomorrow wind up hating our guts.

Oh, I created five new segments on today's course in Strava. Check it out... it was surprising who won the most KOMs. Allen also asked that I create a club, the "Amish Country Cyclists", and I've sent invites to everyone who has given me an e-mail. Of course you should all understand you have to create a Strava account if you want to be a club member. Don't worry, it's free. If you have the ability to upload ride data (either through smartphone or Garmin device) you can analyze and compare your rides with others. It's actually a terrific training tool. If you haven't tried it, you don't know what you're missing.

Ride tomorrow!

Trifecta

Did all three today - ran, biked, then swam. Didn't get into a single guy's face either. I got a little sassy with a couple of girls on my team in the morning run, but they don't count.

My 4.5 mile run this morning was purposely curtailed because I had enough miles already for the week AND I needed to watch the girls run for the technical portion of the workout. We did some form drills on the 800 course on Washington Avenue. They did a great job, all 13 of them.

Later Jimmy and I drove a proposed course for Saturday's event. We felt confident we had something safe, if challenging. We'll ride it tomorrow, and you guys will see for yourself. Here's a one-word hint: Peerless.

Later, Allen and I went for a ride. Before we left the church Allen mentioned trying to get a ranking on the Super 2. Did it work? Check for yourself!

We rode into Huck's, had a drink and a bite, then headed on east to meet Lester. We eventually found him and finished the ride. Nothing difficult, other than the Super 2 stretch. Well, I did try to beat my time on the "Climb to Glide" segment...

Later on was the swim. John T., Allen, Greg, and I were the only ones. I jumped right in and started my set - 8 x 200 @3:00. I did this with a pull buoy to replicate wetsuit speed. I made the set with ease, which is a bit of a confidence booster.

Jimmy and I were out in the fading light marking the course. Never fear, we got most of it finished, so tomorrow no one should get lost. Well, Allen should get lost, but that's another story...

Cooler weather, hotter running

I'm getting fired up a bit, I guess. Two triathlons successfully completed out of three, and the big one to go. Admittedly my vision had been limited to making All-American (officially), but today two events occurred, disconnected but tied together, that may have altered my field of view.

At lunch with Leisa, our conversation had rambled around various topics. This often happens as we catch up with events, which sometimes are separate (as we have separate interests). Out of the blue she says, "Before I forget it, if you go to this race in Wisconsin and qualify for the Worlds in some exotic place, I want to go."

This caught me completely off guard, mainly because I couldn't figure out why it would even be on her mind. I assured her there were two main reasons it couldn't happen: first, I couldn't make the cut, and; the worlds were bound to occur during cross season, meaning even if I could qualify, I couldn't spare the time. I dismissed the conversation from my mind as being so far-fetched it didn't garner serious consideration.

Later, as I arrived for my second run of the day (13 miles total), both Rand and Jimmy asked me if I was going to Worlds. I couldn't believe this conversation came up again in the space of a few short hours, but once again I began to dismiss the idea as ludicrous, applying the logic there was no way to meet the standard (which admittedly I didn't know).

"You only have to make the top-18."

Wow. Just... wow. Now I have to seriously consider this possibility. Top-18 in my age group? At worst I figured my chances were 50/50. Alberta, Canada isn't that far a place to go to, either. This just might happen.

Jimmy and Rand both knew the times that made it last year - something that hadn't occurred to me to look up. When I got home I decided to look up the results of last year - just to get an idea, you understand.

18. Michael Lamie Duxbury MA  52 M  swim - 23:39 T1 - 2:23 bike - 1:05:12 22.9    T2 - 1:46 Run - 43:16  6:58 Total - 2:16:14 

OMG! That's about what I swim with wetsuit, I bike and run faster... and there were several times above that level that were similar. If I have a normal day... make the odds 70/30. Now I have to really think about this.

I asked both Rand and Jimmy if they would go if they qualified. Rand hedged, tossed some thoughts out there, but was definitely non-committal. Jimmy on the other hand instantly responded, "YES!" That would weigh heavily in my decision whether or not to go, but it sounds like it could be a great road trip. 

First things first... gotta qualify...

Rotating Death

Eleven. That's the number of riders we had tonight. James even got to go all the way to to the county line - and it's fair to note that could be seen a mile away. Lessee... P5, racing wheels, aero helmet, speed suit... yup, someone planned to lay down a fast lick.

I didn't know what I'd do. Part of me was worried about my legs after the race Sunday and 13 miles yesterday. The testosterone part of me wanted to go TT with James. I surprised myself and didn't TT, instead sticking to the plan from last week.

What plan is that? Greg suggested last week that we try a different rotation. Five of us jumped on board with the plan, which consisted of 15-second rotations in a counter-clockwise direction. Though it was refreshing to have someone else be in charge of the specifics, I'll admit I was a little lost in some of the directions. I thought I had the idea, but he kept stressing a particular part about the slow line adapting to the fast line, and the little red idiot light on the dashboard of my mind kept warning me I was missing something. So I asked for a clarification. Thanks for your patience, Greg. I think I was the slowest kid in the class today.

The gist of what I got out of it was how we needed to adapt our return to the rear portion of the ride so as to accommodate the shorter pull time of the lead rider. Here's how I understood it, and please Greg, correct me if I'm wrong; you pull 15 seconds, pull left, then immediately slow yourself so you move backward quicker, allowing the next guy to come off cleanly without risk of colliding with someone still there.

The hard part of this for me was hitting the brakes, however lightly, caused me to lose hard-earned energy in the form of speed. Now I was forced to regenerate the speed so I could re-attach to the back of the line. This meant a series of accelerations throughout the ride. This is something I am totally not accustomed to, so it was stressful to me, though the overall speed was actually lower than what I could have maintained on my own. Makes sense? In briefer terms, though I could have been faster with less effort, I got a better workout going slower.

A look at my ride data shows why. Look at the heart rate. I peaked at 179, and held in the 160's for most of the time. Usually I'm about 10 beats below that on a TT.

Another indication of how tough it was manifested itself in riders getting dropped. By agreement, before we left it was made clear that dropped was dropped - no waiting for anyone. IT was cut-throat, but the whole point was to push it hard all the way. We lost two of the five riders by the end. We're all good riders, but the constant fast/slow took its toll. It was especially difficult to rotate going up Lost River Hill. That's probably the point I worried about most, because I am a notoriously bad climber by comparison to the rest of you, but I held in there.

I could see Greg was in his element. He seemed very comfortable throughout the ride. The rest of us definitely had a much more difficult time.

The thing I think I struggled with the most was speed in the short pulls. Greg warned us the workout was about perceived effort and adjusting to the slow line - another reference I wasn't sure I clearly understood - but I still found myself looking at mph. Not that I was trying to hit some massive top-end, rather I was using that as a gauge of how the group was riding. I was trying to maintain an average of the speed we'd been holding all along. Greg said, "don't surge when on front"... I don't know if I handled that properly. I thought I had at the time, I was aware of it, but only the rest of the guys can say. I can say I felt the rest of the guys did just fine in this regard.

I'm not sure what the sweet spot is for number of riders in such a line. You have to be able to trust one another, ride a steady line, and above all else maintain space. A rider that starts to yo-yo in their place is going to cause all kinds of trouble radiating back worse than a regular line because there is a lot more stress in the line when riding this way. Five riders worked fine, as did four, but when it got to three it became constant rotation. A fellow had to keep his awareness level up at all times.

Anyway, great job guys!

Two runs, and I'm tired

The race was harder on me than I thought. I ran twice today for a total of 13 miles, and by the end I'm worn to a frazzle. I guess that's as it should be.

There isn't much else to talk about.

I finally washed off my race tattoos. Too bad. They were kinda cool. But... what would a guy do at the next race? They had to come off.

Pace line is tomorrow. I hope I can pull it together. Right now I don't know where the energy is going to come from.

Signing off!

Bedford Brings the BOOM!

We've long had a flourishing endurance athletics group in Bedford. Though our town and community is small, we have a committed group of people that train to win. Today that training bore fruit.

Jimmy, Galloway, Rand, Scott, and I traveled to Jeffersonville for the Buckhead Border Challenge Sprint Triathlon/Duathlon competitions this morning. All but Scott were doing the tri, and he would compete in his first duathlon. It would also be the first race for his child bride Cervelo P2, doubly important because it was fresh from a custom fitting.

What took us all there? Galloway went for the bike course. I'd talked it up last year, and he was looking for a great bike ride. Scott wanted to try a duathlon, and this was the perfect introductory distance/course. Jimmy wanted a replacement for Cicero and a test of his fitness before the Nationals. Rand could probably be added to that list as well. I wanted to place well to help my rankings.

We all arrived in time to hit the early transition closing. One of the more beautiful aspects of this particular race is access - the parking is across the street from the transition area. Jimmy and I found the apex of parking, the premium spot for unloading, and after getting our bags and tags we moved our stuff in.

I took this opportunity to show the guys the water-to-bike transition. It was important intel as T1 involves a rather steep incline near the end. I'd warned them, and when they saw it they realized I hadn't exaggerated at all. It was fortunate the water temperature was 80 degrees, taking the wetsuit option off the table. There really is no way you'd want to be wrestling a wetsuit going up that climb.

We walked to the swim start. A change from last year, a derrick had been built on the course that necessitated the swim start farther west, head south toward the center of the river, then down the bank. It wasn't hard, but the derrick created a slack current which negated the 2.4 knot current advantage we would otherwise have enjoyed. This had the effect of slowing the swim down.

Things were going pretty smoothly before the start of the race, when suddenly I remembered I had taken my Garmin off my bike. I bought a 510 the other day and had planned to use it, but the mounting system I am using seemed a little crowded with my drink system in place, so I second guessed myself out of using it. However, in the rush to get ready I forgot to switch. I had some time, so I asked the raced director if I could re-enter the transition to place it. Long story short, I got it on my bike.

It was a time trial start, with about 3-5 seconds between athletes. Jimmy and I were in the first wave, Rand in the next, Tim in the last. Jimmy moved to the back of our wave, I was about midway. This worked out well. I had clear water all the way, passed one swimmer, and caught the back end of a clump of swimmers as I exited.

I had a slick T1, eschewing socks and any extras. I was lucky in that most of the bikes that had been crowded around me were already gone (duathletes), so there wasn't much to hinder my progress.

It's a fast course, or at least it should be. There isn't much elevation gain, though the corners are a little tight. The real complication is there are four races happening at the same time on the course, and laying into the tight corners incurred more than normal risk because there was a the very real probability you would meet someone coming the other way in the apex of the turn. Not a pretty thought.

I never felt like I was really "on", though I was crushing the field in front of me. There is nothing quite like being in good bike shape and smashing through a crowded race. And, like the swim, it wasn't difficult. Sure there were the normal levels of people riding on the left, but for the most part they moved when prompted with the "On Your Left!" command.

There were a few swimmers in our wave I'd taken notice of, figuring them to be the competition. One by one I passed them, making note of their distance from me after the turn. One in particular I noticed was a Purdue Tri Team member. He would be serious business.

The second transition wasn't as smooth as the first because the bikes were largely back. I was very crowded, and I had to make sure there wasn't any interference with anyone else's equipment. We'd been warned very specifically about a number of infractions, and this was one of them. I'd judged our referee to mean business, and I was right.

Onto the run, and I could see a stream of runners ahead of me. I'd seen a 54 on a calf when I got off the bike, and I guessed the first guy ahead was the same fellow. It might have been he was a duathlete, but I couldn't be sure. I had to pass him. Fortunately it didn't take long. Then there was the next. And the next. And the next. A steady stream of runners came and went, and soon I was looking for the turn. I didn't know how many of the runners were sprint or Olympic, but I knew the turn would sort it out. My place would be determined by how many people made the turn.

Only one.

He was 200 meters up, running steadily, and I didn't know if I could get to him. I took a good look at him as we passed, and he didn't give up much by appearance. He didn't look overly stressed, however he also didn't look like he was moving that fast. I figured I had a shot.

After I turned, I got a chance to see who was chasing me. About 30 seconds after the turn I passed the Purdue kid. That gave me about a minute in a mile and a half. I figured I needed right at a minute advantage to hold him off, at a minimum. If I could manage a 6:15 or so mile, he'd be forced to run upwards of 5:30 pace to catch me. Maybe he could, maybe he couldn't, but I wasn't going to worry about that yet. My immediate job was to catch the guy ahead.

I was drawing him in steadily, if slowly. I had it figured I would catch him by mile 3, at which time I could try to kick. It's a true mark of my desperation that I would even consider trying to kick, but I was fresh out of options. My secondary goal was to keep it close even if I couldn't catch him. Since we had a time trial start on the swim, there was a chance he started at the front of our wave (assuming he was a triathlete, not a duathlete). If I could keep it close, and he started at the front of the wave, I would beat the spread. I could give him maybe another 30 seconds and still win.

That's when the Purdue kid came by. We were around a quarter to go, and when he passed there was no question of keeping up. When he pulled alongside the guy I was chasing, they both accelerated. Thanks, Purdue guy! So it was on to Plan B, minimize the gap.

Now it was time to sort it out. I was 100% sure the Purdue kid won. I was almost certain I would have 3rd, at least. The gap between our finish and the next group was too great for it to be any other way. Our wave was the fastest of the swimmers, and I'd smashed the bike. It had to be us.

I'd seen each of the other guys out on the courses, both bike and run, and it was now time to watch them come in. Scott came first. He'd yelled at me when I passed him on the bike, and I saw him after both the bike and run turns, and he seemed to be holding his own.

Jimmy was next. His head was buried and he was working hard on the bike, though he was a bit more animated on the run.

Rand was stoic as always. He gave me a nod both times I saw him, almost a Joe Cool sort of deal. He did look strong.

Galloway was his normal self - I don't think I ever remember him looking differently in a race. Focus, head down, grind it out.

That's the order in which they finished too. Check the results here.

Here's the shakedown:

Jimmy - 1st in 55-59 - 20th overall
Rand - 2nd in 55-59 - 25th overall
Galloway - 1st in 60-64 - 28th overall
Bartley - 1st in 35-39, 2nd Hoosier, 9th overall
IronBill - 1st in 50-54, 2nd Hoosier, 2nd overall

As you can see, Bedford, brought it. Oh yes, we did! We may not have been the largest group there, but we were the loudest. Awards took a while, though they were worth it. Sure, we had to wait until the near-bitter end, but how could we leave before Bartley collected all his hardware?

I was talking to each of the guys after the race. I don't think any one of us was totally happy with their races, but realistically, how much better could our races have been?

Galloway has been hurt for much of this training cycle. It would be unfair for him to beat himself up about any of his numbers today, which were all solid.

Rand has had his share of stress and training interruptions... and he beat Jimmy in the swim AND bike. Victory.

Jimmy is in charge of everything in Bedford right now EXCEPT his training schedule. He was telling me at the finish this would be the day both Rand and Tim beat him. He was almost right, but he wasn't. Under the circumstances, that's a win.

Bartley was simply stunning. He was on himself about his 2nd run, but do you know how many duathlons Scott has done before today? 0. None. So, on his first duathlon, he won his age group and was 9th overall. Total win.

My primary goal was to score USAT points. Second place should do that in spades. I won't know until it all gets turned in, but I can't see how that doesn't beat the Terre Haute total. On top of that, for the second year in a row, I turned in the fastest bike. No, it wasn't as fast as I wanted. No, I wasn't happy with my run. But it was still a total victory.

Bike Leg

Winding Down

July is quickly coming to a close, and I will soon start school. Cross-country officially starts the first Monday in August, and from that point on my after-school time will be consumed first with the sport. If I have time left over, then I can train. If last year is an example, that's not likely to be much.

So it's left to make the most of what remains. There are two races yet to be run; the Border Challenge and the Age Group Nationals. Allen asked me today if I was ready... my answer was I was trained as I was going to get. The truth is after this week I should really be tapering. I could still do some sharp workouts next week, maybe even the week after, but it's coming down to crunch time. I wouldn't call myself nervous, rather I find myself wishing I was better trained in the running. I did what I could do, so it will have to sustain me.

Pressure is a funny thing. There are two basic types, internal and external, and I think people roughly break down into those categories. Some people are completely unflappable, absolutely bereft of internal forces and only inconvenienced by the external pressed upon them by others. These people are few and far between in my opinion. More common are people who either place a lot of pressure on themselves or have it placed upon them by others.

I tend to believe that successful people place the pressure upon themselves because they expect a lot from themselves. They have higher standards if you will, and though observers might wonder why they press themselves so hard, to the individual there simply isn't any other way. I think of Galloway in particular when I visualize this type of person.

As for myself, I am internally driven for the most part. Let's face it, no one really cares how I do in a race but me. No one cares how fast any part of the race is but me. Sure, my friends are happy when I do well, but honestly, which of you has lost sleep over the prospect I won't meet a time goal (other than those of you who have placed breakfast bets)? If I'm being brutally honest, it doesn't matter to me what anyone thinks I should or shouldn't do. I might use it as a guide to formulate a goal, much the same way someone uses advice in some situations, but I'm never afraid I might disappoint someone with an inferior performance.

So when folks make race predictions for me, even placing bets, I think that's fun, but it doesn't touch me at all in a positive or negative way. I apply the brutal calculus of my training numbers and consider whether or not they are valid posits. Nothing personal at all. I think I wanted to clarify this because of recent events where bets and predictions were made for others, bets in which I took part. Nothing personal here - we were talking breakfast! You all did a great job and should be proud of your efforts. Two of you did race distances for the first time. You disappointed no one.

So back to the original thought... am I nervous? No, at least, not in that way. I have set an arbitrary goal for myself that no one else on the planet cares about, a goal I've chased since I became a triathlete. It's the same goal I have every summer. This year has been a teaser, because I unexpectedly started well, then had a bad piece of luck, and now I am in a position to have a shot to finish it off. I still need a lot of good luck, and maybe this will be the year, but no matter which way it goes, the only person that really cares is me. I feel I've trained enough to have a chance, so long as the things I cannot control don't interfere.

And that gives me peace.

The Fine Five

Galloway couldn't be too displeased. Despite riders showing up at the very last minute, we only missed the official starting time by 3 minutes. That must be some kind of record!

Ten riders started tonight, though James was once again on call and had to peel off before we hit 337. That left nine of us to head off to the county line for the harder work.

I say harder work because we didn't intend to do hard work. Two guys had big races just a few days ago, and most of the rest have races coming this weekend. That being the case, the original plan was to ride two groups, both of which would try to be as close to 22 mph average as possible. The closer of the two groups would be the winner.

It didn't take long for the plan to fall apart. First, no one seemed to want to commit to a group. Next, I could tell the 22 mph was too low a number for a couple of the riders. Actually, I thought about it and decided, under the weather conditions we had, it would be far too easy for me. I'd have to ride the brake to hold that number, which made no sense. I decided I'd relax on the number, and in order to facilitate the start, I'd say so right away.

"Anyone wanting to go a bit faster than 22 go with me!" I said. I lined up to go first, saying that anyone that wanted to ride with me needed to get in line, because I was leaving. And then I left.

Getting to the start I could see four guys trailing behind - Troy, John T., Greg, and Miller. There was a very slight headwind, not much, but there. I let my legs ease into a 25-26 mph cadence, with occasional drops below to the low 24's through Bromer and ultimately down to 21 mph over the first hill. I took it back up to 25+ and handed over.

Troy was next, and he did a fine job pulling an almost identical leg. He held it for a long while, giving over to John T. John kept it at the same level. His pull wasn't quite as long, but give him a break; he did just complete his first Half-Ironman on Saturday! Great job, John T.!

Greg wound up with Lost River, and he carried us across the valley and up the bridge hill at just under 20 mph. He looked very much improved over the last time he rode with us, pulling both faster and longer. He tapped, Miller took over, and carried us over the final hill. Miller too has improved a great deal, riding much stronger than before.

I got the lead back again for the final mile. I held 26-27, then shortly after the break Greg made his move. Greg, Miller, John T. cruised by, though not quickly. I jumped on John T. and rode along. John T. saw me join and waited. I felt strong enough to try to cruise by, and as I did John kicked again, leaving us for good. I was going 30 mph, not really pressing hard and not willing to. I wanted to pass the other two guys, and that accomplished, I settled.

It was right at 25 mph, and I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was as seamless a pace line as we've ridden this summer. When a rider came off he moved to the back and attached, no hesitation for the group, just off and back on. Great job guys!

Big day

Four. That's right, four workouts today. It was a big day.

I woke up early, and since there is a race next Sunday, I thought it best to go ahead and get some miles in the early part of the week. I got to the track at 8 AM, and there was a good bunch there. An easy 5-mile run followed, and workout one was done.

After church and lunch, a few of us met at Kenray for a swim. It was a great 1-mile swim, better than I thought since my shoulder still hurts so much. Miller, Jimmy, and Rand also had great times. Workout two was done.

We came back into town to ride. Miller, Jimmy, and I stayed in town and did repeats on Industrial Park. My legs were dead! I couldn't hold 20 mph this week going over the top, but Miller sure did. I fought hard, as did Jimmy. They turned on their Strava and we hit a few more, knowing I was going to create a segment on the course. I figured Miller would be #1 in the end.

Check the results here.

With three workouts done, I went out for another ride with Leisa and Morgan. This was the first time I'd ridden with my daughter, and let me tell you, she's a natural. I mean it. She has a great feel for a bike, and she rode very well. She can climb! It was a beautiful evening, one of the funnest rides I've had in a long time.

I plan on resting some this week - the race at the end of the week is an important one for my ranking. My dead legs are enough indication I have to do so.

Close Enough

My goal numbers are 30 running, one swimming, 150 biking. My actual numbers this week are 28.5 running, half swimming, 148.95 biking.

Close enough.

The first half of this week was killer on the system, and truthfully I am not yet fully recovered. Though the run at Spring Mill this morning wasn't tough at all, the ride was in places. Mostly nausea, though near the end I could even complain a bit of foot and Achilles cramping. Those last two symptoms are reason enough to back off.

The end of the season is closing in fast for me. School starts earlier this year, and with a race next weekend and another two weeks after, I'm nearing taper. That's cool - I do actually feel as if I'm nearing peak anyway. My swimming is still fine (other than a sore shoulder), my running is doing much better, and my bike is great. That's all I can worry about I guess... weather, the incompetence of race personnel, just dumb luck... all beyond my control. I'll focus on what I can do and let the rest take care of itself.

I did get into the Nationals. I received the official mail this morning. I would print a screen shot, but I hear it's top secret. I guess I could pull a Snowden and blow the lid off the organization, revealing to the world what everyone already knew they did, but I'll be cool. Besides, I don't know if Russia holds an age group national triathlon competition.

I have to cop to something I've done the last two days... I've worn earbuds when riding. It's stupid, I know, but it's been hard to go out the door at times. It's always the same for me... if I get out the door, everything is cool. Getting out the door is the hard part. I've been particularly resistant to the usual internal berating I give myself. Had to do it.

It's disconcerting at first. All the normal external stimuli was blocked out, information I was subconsciously processing constantly. After a bit I got into it, even got to the point I was ignoring the music and thinking about the moment, upcoming races, my cross team, that sort of stuff. In short, the effect was to get me out the door and little more. I still can't recommend the practice though. It's sort of like taking a mouth full of  gasoline and blowing fire. It's great if it works, but if one little thing goes wrong...

No run or ride for me tomorrow. Girls' Cross team has a car wash all day.

Good luck to the participants of Muncie Half-Ironman tomorrow!

Easier day

There's not much to post, so let's get right to it.

The girls swam this morning, so I didn't get a run. That was fine, as yesterday was to taxing it probably was for the best. Too bad it was the best running day of the week!

After the swim I took my bike to Lighthouse and did the loop. The wind was from the NE, so it was a great time to lay down a good lick on the Super 2. Nearly 28 mph! That was about all the real quality I did though... caution was needed to help recovery. I like to get some quality in every ride, but you can't ride super hard every day.

Leisa and I went to Bloomington to take care of some errands. That wound up taking a lot longer than we thought, and I even missed lunch in the process. I'm a big boy and can take it, but I hate missing a chance to eat! One good (and essential) thing though... I bought some more Enduralytes. After this week, I don't want to get caught without again.

Galloway, John T., and I met at the pool for the Thursday evening swim. It was short for different reasons: my shoulder is increasingly sore, John T. is racing Saturday, and Galloway's dehydrated body gave him an ex-wife. Right leg and intense. If you don't know what that is, ask me in private and I'll tell you.

I had a choice when I got home - clean gutters or run. It was a great night to run BUT plants were sprouting in the gutter. I could do it tonight or wait until it was 150 degrees outside and do it. So... I cleaned the gutters. I'll pick up the running slack in the next two days.

Tomorrow we run at Spring Mill. After that, bike ride!

Thankfully, it rained

For those of you who missed this morning's opportunity to run, thank your lucky stars. It was unquestionably the worst of the summer so far. If you were lucky enough to have to wait until after the rain came in the mid-afternoon, thank them again.

I wanted today to be a recovery day for the team. It wasn't. Even though they ran slowly, heart rates were over 180-190 bpm. That's not rest, even for a teenager. I had to cut some miles for a few of the kids. I even made some walk.

As for myself, I felt the effects of the last week and a half of training. I was really tapped going into today - I awoke to quad cramps. That's about right. I last about three bad days in a row, then that's it.

I've tried to lay around the rest of the day drinking fluids. I do feel better by this point, though I don't know if I'll be ready to go again tomorrow. I know it won't be hard whatever I do. I think right now I'd like to bike, maybe skip a day running. With luck, I'll have my riding done by Friday afternoon, and I'll have enough running miles in the bank as well. If I can manage that I can take Saturday off. That will work out best because of the car wash - I'll have to be in the sun most of the day before I get a chance to run.

Swim tomorrow night!

Magnificent Seven and a Mediocre One

I'll begin with the end - the pace line data.

Strava segment report

This day started with a muggy morning 7-miler in which the team did 3 x 1-mile cruise intervals. I played the rabbit, holding 6:40's for all three. A couple of the girls didn't take the directions to ignore my lead-out and paid the price. I can still run 5k's in the 18's - they can't. Their heads have to tell them to ignore me and run their own paces. Some people learn faster than others, I guess.

It wasn't exactly an easy workout for me either because of the weather. though it was only 77 degrees, the dewpoint was 77 degrees and the humidity 100%. That's a pretty deadly combination for anyone, and I was soaked when I finished. I'm guessing the run cost me 3-4 lbs. at least. Luckily there were hours left until the evening ride.

I did my best to hide from the weather the rest of the day. My wife might describe me as "worthless", and that would be fair enough. I do feel some pangs of guilt over it, but it was completely self-defensive. Tonight's ride was going to be a rough one.

The last two nights I've ridden quality. I won't call it all-out, because neither ride was, but they were 85-90%, tempo pace if you will, and with limited recovery time, the price would ultimately have to be paid. It would be perilously close to disaster tonight.

There were seven of us who left Allen's church at the start - Galloway, Miller, John T., Jimmy, Scott, Rand, and me. I called it the "Magnificent Seven" on our way out to meet the "Mediocre One". I don't want to be too mean about that, so I'll let the titles be self-descriptive.

The ride out was slow - at least, for Scott, Rand, Jimmy, and me. Galloway, Miller, and John T. got tired of fiddle-farting around with us and left. Again, I didn't care. I was being very conservative, saving myself for what was to come.

I left the myself out of the organizing committee for the workout this time, mainly because I fear I'm always pushing too hard for my plan, whatever that might be. The committee tonight decided on breaking into two groups, and Scott would lead out as the rabbit alone. No, we didn't kick Scott out of the groups; he wanted to ride alone (new P2 he wanted to test!). We had a light wind that started as a WSW, appeared to turn more SSW, but as soon as we started it sure felt more in the face than to the side. Scott would have a hard time on his own.

The first group allowed Scott 1:16 before they took off. Our second group gave another 1:30 before we went. That felt like a pretty good spread, about right really. Miller, John T., and I would ordinarily had no trouble covering that gap, but tonight we were trying to ride a bit more conservative for John T's sake - he's racing a half-ironman this weekend.

John T. took the first pull, and other than going a bit long, he did a good job controlling himself. Then Miller got on. John T. held his speed in the 25's - Miller went to 27's. I knew then the peace wouldn't last.

My first pull happened just to the west of Bromer. I took the speed up enough to be able to crash into the hill with some energy, and we topped at 23+. That wasn't challenging for these guys, and we continued on. I brought the speed back up in the slight rollers, then as the course dropped, I took it up a bit more and tapped. It had been about 2-3 minutes.

John T. was on again, and he took us downhill quickly. There's no way to complain about that - it is downhill after all - and just before Pumpkin Center, he tapped again. Miller took over and took us up again. He held on until shortly before the drop, and it was my turn again.

It was around this time (or just before) the first group became really visible to us. Because of the bends in the course we hadn't seen much of them, though we were steadily catching. Once the road opened up it became obvious we were going to catch them, and it would be in the next couple of miles. One of the riders popped off the pack before the descent. He would be first.

They dropped into the valley and sped across the plain. We came down behind, maybe 10-15 seconds behind. I gauged how close we were to the dropped rider, and figured we'd catch him before we were halfway across the river bottom. This particular rider has a bad reputation for doing erratic things, like trying to jump into a passing line. It wouldn't be bad if he could do it safely, or at the very least in a way we could understand before he did something silly, but I decided it wasn't worth the risk.

Our top speed was 36.5 mph downhill. I used this smash to accelerate toward the rider. I got on the pedals and maintained 32 mph. I slid into a line directly behind him so his peripheral vision would not pick us up. I was all-out on my cassette so he couldn't hear a shift. This was complete stealth mode.

It worked perfectly. Right before we got to him we popped wide, buzzing past with over a 10 mph advantage. There was absolutely no way for him to respond to it. It was over before he knew we were there.

I held the front until we topped Lost River. I know John T. was itching to go, and could have taken us over the top at 20+. I didn't want him to do that. Not because I couldn't; because his race this weekend was more important than this ride. Once on the top, we were practically on top of the first group. I took the speed up to 25 mph and tapped.

John T. got the honor of passing the first group, a nice foretaste of the coming weekend I hope. We got by them in the rollers heading into the last climb. John T. tapped and it was Miller Time.

Miller did a nice job on the last hill. I believe this is the area in which we finally caught Scott, who by the way had a terrific individual effort. Miller took us over the top and to the finish. I was behind him with no intention of pushing for the win.

• I was tired
• I didn't want to incite John T. to do something he shouldn't
• Miller earned it

John T. later revealed he had no intention of trying - too much potential to hurt himself, get in a wreck, or some other mishap. 

It was a great ride. My official Strava time was 23:21, good for 25.6 mph on a night that was far from favorable and we were conserving to boot. The first group did pretty well too. While they didn't ride as quickly, they did hold together (except for the one, who never had a chance to hang in there). 

I won't ride tomorrow, which is probably a good thing. The weather looks pretty nasty. Hopefully the storms will clear things out a bit and we'll have better training weather the next day. I'll probably pick up a ride then. 

A run and then some

This week is a bit of a Mexican stand-off; Allen, my usual morning training partner, is off to Honduras on a mission trip, but dead week is over, so I am training with the girls' team again. Tie, kiss your sister, whatever you call that situation when there is give-and-take, that's what I've got.

So to start the morning I ran with the team. It was a slow one, and with three good reasons - 75 degrees, 75 degree dew point, 100% humidity. I probably lost a few pounds of sweat on that one, though it didn't seem too hard. Runs like this are insidious because they take more out of you than you can recover in a day. The first day or so go okay, but if the weather is prolonged this way, eventually you wear down. I do anyway.

After that I considered a ride. I didn't have a particular direction in time, place, or distance, and this is where I realized I've been spoiled this summer. Without Allen to call, I was bereft of impetus to get going. I decided (ultimately) to put it off to the evening. I'd decide then whether or not I really needed to ride at all.

Figuring into the equation was the condition of my legs. I felt last night's ride, which was harder than I planned. I also went 8 miles on the morning run, which is also farther than I usually go. I also had tomorrow night in mind... how much could I peel off the legs and still have anything left for the pace line?

Yet the sun shone, unlike the last couple of weeks, and rain is forecast throughout the week. I knew I'd kick myself for letting sunshine go wasted, so out I went. There was no particular path planned, but once on the saddle, autopilot took me south.

It was later in the evening and traffic was light. By the time I hit the highway I decided to stay on the highway if traffic was light enough, taking it all the way to Mitchell. Once there, I would turn at 10 miles and reverse the course. I wasn't looking for a time trial per se, it's just nice to get a real measure of my fitness every now and then, and the only true way to know your speed is to go out and back on the same course.

The wind wasn't too strong, but it was out of the southwest, meaning the way out would be harder. On top of that, much of the way out was a climb, slow but steady. In fact, from about mile 3 (the river bridge) it's basically uphill all the way to Mitchell. That should have meant slow speed.

It didn't. Sure, climbing out of the river bottom was slower, but once I got on top of the first climb, I was quickly over 20 mph. I was amazed at how easy it was to hold speed, even on the grades. Into the breeze, no less!

The turn occurs right at KFC in Mitchell. I was lucky, and caught a break right as the Garmin ticked over to 10 miles. I crossed the road and headed back. Of course this was much easier, riding the gradual stair-step downward to the river bottoms. Staying in aero, I road up the cut, into town, and into my drive in a bit over 56 for a bit over 20.

This usually happens when I ride alone. I get caught up in the moment and ride harder and harder. In this case it may make the pace line tomorrow harder or it may not. I don't care. I'm getting ready for an Olympic distance race, and that means a long time down in aero. That doesn't just happen - you have to practice it. Spending some time over the next few weeks brushing up on my aero skills won't hurt a thing. If it takes the edge off tomorrow, so be it.

The ride was a confidence booster in a lot of ways, but mainly because I wasn't pushing for the speed. I kept my heart rate in the 150's, a comfortable exercise range. I didn't blast the legs either, meaning I didn't feel any lactic burn at any time. I was in a sustainable effort for time, and considering the climbs in the course, the average speed is pretty good. Heck, I didn't even start putting any effort into the ride until I was on the bridge on the way out.

I don't really know why I've ridden so well the last couple of years, but right now I'm the best I've ever been, or darn close to it. It's probably a result of getting the right gear together and getting it tweaked just right. Hard to imagine this aging body could improve like that...

Ride Data

Busy weekend

It's been a quiet few days on the blog. I've meandered off in other directions... family reunion, the 4th of July, Erin leaving for Honduras, and a whole lot of nothing. I've been distracted mainly.

Last week was an outstanding week of training for me personally. I had two terrific rides, three great runs, and two great swims. I wish every week would go as well, but alas age makes such occurrences few and far between. At least I appreciate them more when they do happen.

I'm thinking of upgrading my Garmin already. I really do like my bike Garmin - well enough to upgrade. The feature I'm seeking most is one most husbands would eschew - the ability to be tracked live. I often go out for long rides alone. Leisa often worries when I do. Whether that's for my health or her mistrust of my intentions I cannot say; you would have to ask her. I do believe it is a fair thing to ask. Plus it would be cool to use it in a race (if possible).

That means of course I might sell my current model at a (slight) discount. I've had it only a couple of months, so it's hardly used. I'm not desperate though... I won't give it away. I don't have any problem keeping it for my other bike (or Leisa's). They're so easy to use and set up on different bikes it just wouldn't be a problem either way.

Speaking of riding alone, I did today. I didn't have a great deal of motivation about it, so I rode the standard 20. It wouldn't have been a bad idea to take the day completely off - mentally I need it - but with the weather the way it's been I figured 20 miles was a safe way to start the week.

Ride data.

Oh, and finally... I was asked to set up a Google calendar for our activities. I did so. If you want the contact info (it's private) contact me. I will send you the particulars. It may or may not work out - that's up to you guys. The more people use it, the more it will work.

By the way, if you want to access it with a smart phone, download the "G-Whizz!" Google app. It will allow you to hit the calendar, check events, or even create events on the go. 

A full day

Take that, Allen!

Galloway and I met at 9 this morning for a brisk 5-mile run. It went well, probably because the temperatures are still rather cool this week. The plan was for me to leave from the run to help my mother set up for tomorrow, then meet at BNL pool at 11. Allen would catch us there.

Galloway and I got there first, starting our swim. Allen joined us, and after the swim added his usual bit... we told him we'd run 5 miles, and of course he said he'd run 5.5. I did point out I'd swum much farther than he, but he waved that off as inconsequential. He even stated he'd add onto our ride after I left. He was plowing it deep.

Turns out he had to cancel the ride. I didn't. Lester and I rode a little over an hour, which is a little over an hour more than Allen rode today. But I wasn't going to leave it there.

There was still a scheduled run at 5:15. I felt good, so I went. As John T., Roy, Miller, Rand, and Bartlett are my witnesses, I ran again. Even more, Miller laid down the hammer a bit in the last two miles, and I decided to hang in there with him as long as I could.

So Allen... top that? ;)

I will admit I finally ran out of gas. I didn't go to the gym, but to be honest, I probably shouldn't anyway. I'm giving the shoulder the rest of the summer, I think. If it isn't straightened out by then, I'm going to have it checked out. No choice at that point.

Tomorrow is a ride, early. 7 AM at Lighthouse, or if you want a shorter one, 8 AM at Huck's. All welcome!

You never know

Who can unravel the mysteries of endurance athletics? Who has a crystal ball which allows the user to peer into its depths and glean the future? How can one ever know for certain how a workout may go until it is in fact history?

It's a lesson I've learned many times over the years... often, when you least expect it, or have cause to do so, the best workouts can happen. At the very least, often you can overperform your expectations.

Tonight was one of those nights. It was weird from the jump. There weren't that many of us there - seven riders started, though James was on call and would soon have to peel away. This left us with Miller, Allen, Rand, Scott, Galloway, and me.

We seemed to slowly, every so slowly make our way out to the turn. The wind seemed in our faces the whole way, which at least meant a favorable push back. Something else had crept in, pervasive and palpable, an almost disconnected air. The bodies were there, but the minds weren't. The word that comes to mind is indifferent.

I moved around the group to gather a pulse. Allen was most notably absent, to the point it felt like he was half paying attention to me (a feeling I quite easily recognize!). Rand was talkative, so I felt he was into it. Galloway was pretty normal, though without a big race coming, I couldn't be sure how committed he was to anything. Scott was off the front, so I didn't get much chance to talk to him. Miller had done a 400 workout during lunch, so his legs were a bit wasted.

Hmmm. A 6-man pace line with this group wouldn't do, unless (as I offered to Miller) he and I pulled longer and slower. That might work. Or we might break into groups, Miller and me, the rest of the guys in one group. That might work. Or, since Miller had done the running workout, they could all collect into one group and I could chase. I wasn't feeling very strong, but I was more than willing to try. Then of course we could break into three groups - a 3-man group, a 2-man group, and then myself. That would certainly work, and was the way I favored.

As plans often do, this one fell apart as we neared the line. Here came DfO to meet us. That could be two 3-man groups, possibly. It would be up to the fellows to pick their poison. At the tree, I threw out the options. Galloway sliced right through it all by saying, "Let's just do a time trial!"

It wasn't a bad idea at all. The wind would be favorable enough, and since no one was committed to anything else, it might as well be a time trial. I continued to lay out the team option if anyone wanted to pair up. No one spoke up, so we prepared the take-off for the usual 1-minute intervals.

Scott lead us off. Allen stated he would go next, but when he went - surprise - DfO jumped out too. Rand later claimed he heard DfO ask Allen if he wanted to pair, but the jury is out on whether or not Allen heard him. The rest of us certainly didn't. That pair was certain to be an anecdote generator!

Galloway was next, and being the model of efficiency that he is, fairly well flew out to the start. He was down and in aero before you could say, well, "down and in aero". Rand followed suit, though not quite as efficiently as Tim, then came Miller. Miller matched Galloway in time to start, and it's a time I don't care to surpass. The chip-and-seal surface recently applied becomes quite loose near the intersection of 337, and trying to speed around that corner is an invitation to road rash.

Finally my turn came, 5 minutes after the start (seems like it always works that way). I sped down the rough surface, turned starboard and hit it. I tapped my split on my stopwatch so I could get my preliminary time at the end, and it was off to the races.

First thing I noticed; the wind was no help at all. In fact, it might have been a hindrance, creating a slight buffet. I hoped it was a temporary issue, but the farther along the Amish stretch I went, the more I realized it was just how it was going to be. Still I made decent time. This stretch was spent in the 27-28+ range. By the end of this piece I could see I was gaining on Miller, but only slowly.

Bromer did have a slight boost from the wind, but as soon as the road turned west again, the breeze again was no help. I could see Miller heading into the first climb, tantalizingly close, but I would have to be patient. I topped this hill at 24-high, and by now I was quite certain this week's weather was tougher than last.

Miller seemed to come to me, then recede away, back and forth over the next couple of miles. I finally caught and passed him near the Pumpkin Center turn. Not very far ahead was Rand, and I was closing fast. I was maintaining the speed pretty well, and was beginning to think I might have a good one going.

A couple of turns later and I was in aero heading down into Lost River Valley. Rand was just ahead of me now, and before we were halfway across the floor I had him. He was making good time, and looked solid. Looking past him, I could see Galloway entering the first stages of Lost River Hill.

I tried to hold a better time on the hill this week, and I did, topping at 16-high. Galloway was coming into closer view, so I laid over the bars and went to work. Soon I was back to 27+, and in the following rollers I quickly closed down the distance to Tim. I caught him on the final climb, topped it, then dropped over the side for the final downhill of the course. I used it to bring the speed back up, and prepared for the final push.

As I hit the straightaway, I could see Allen and DfO. They were too far ahead to catch, though I'd closed the gap quite a bit. I focused instead on my computer, watching the speed, trying to hold it up as high as possible. I crossed and looked at my watch - 22:20, or 27 second faster than last week. I was very happy about that one.

Everyone else came in shortly after. I asked Galloway what he thought about the wind. He echoed everything I thought - certainly not helpful, except in Bromer and the Pumpkin Center bend. Other than that, neutral. Despite having a harder night, most guys went faster. That's a good sign training is improving us!

Analysis:

Scott: 26;00 - 23:08 mph. This is a 40-second improvement over last week. As Scott learns how to use his bike more effectively, he will continue to have huge jumps. His confidence and fitness are also growing daily.

Allen: 25:44 - 23:32 mph. This is an excellent individual time. I call it individual because he pulled 90% of the time and did not get help from his "partner" the whole ride. It must have been very distracting.

Galloway: 25:40 - 23:38 mph. Tim is a month distant from a serious break in his training due to health issues, so this is an especially great time for him. Good to see him back out on it!

Rand: 25:36 - 23:44 mph. Rand too has had his share of health issues, but hopefully they are behind him. Regardless, this is a great time.

Miller: 24:36 - 24:39 mph. Great time for two reasons: Tim isn't biking much, and; he did a hard running workout earlier. No doubt about it, a fresh Miller with decent bike mileage is a killer. Over 24 mph on your ancillary sport is not bad, bro.

IronBill: 22:17 - 26.93 mph. I have been faster, though the fastest time was wind-aided. As far as neutral conditions records, if this isn't it, it's close. A year ago in June I have a 27-high time in the mid-21's, but I can't help but believe this too was wind-aided. Regardless, one thing is clear - my biking is dialing in.

Ride data.