Thursday, September 30, 2010

Fina was dragging

Yesterday afternoon, I headed out for a cruise run. My legs felt great. I had the dogs on leash for 3 miles before I hit the trails. On the way back, I had to put Fina on leash. I had to slow my pace down because Fina was dragging. I sucked it up for 2 miles then let her off leash when it was safe again. I went right back to my pace. It felt effortless. 9 days till Kona.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Flat!?!

Yesterday morning I swam 3.2k. I felt good, but not great. The main set was 300 + 150 + 2x100 + 50 three times through. The base send off increased as the distance decreased. I was consistent through out.

After work, I cleaned the bike and then took a nap. The bike was still dirty from the race. I didn't want to spend several minutes switching out wheels and tires, so I decided to ride the race wheels. It was humid with lots of clouds. It looked like there was a good chance of rain. I felt good on the ride, up until mile 38. I saw a blur on the road. I missed it with the front tire, the back tire hit it hard. I hear the sound of air whooshing out of the tire. I stop to change out the flat. I had the new tube in the wheel. I go to inflate and air is not going into the tube. One cartridge down and one to go. This time I make sure I have everything snug. Same outcome, nothing. UGH!!! I am near the Texaco station in Ranier and it is 5:00PM. Who do I call? Ghostbusters were busy, but luckily my brother wasn't. What a total bummer! I was supposed to ride 3 hours. This is what I get for being lazy and not washing the bike and switching out the wheels after the race. Lesson learned.

I haven't inflated the race wheels with the new adapters, so this was good practice. It is better to have issues on training day, so that you know how to overcome on race day.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Black Diamond Olympic

At the last minute, I decided to enter this race and use it as a training day.

In the wee hours of the night, I heard loud rain. How could this happen? It was sunny and 77 on Saturday, only in Washington. The weather was going to be a repeat of the race from Cascades Edge.

I was getting ready to take my bike over to packet pick-up, until I noticed my rear tire was flat. I learned through several lessons to change the tube and not try to mess around with it. After a few minutes of messing around in the dark and dropping stuff, I got the tire re-inflated. This put me behind enough that I ended up as the second bike on the rack. I went back to the car and relaxed. I grabbed the rest of my race gear and set up my transition area.

It rained on and off all morning. I headed out for a short run to warm-up. Then took the LYNSKEY to get my glutes warmed up. With 15 minutes left till my wave started, I donned my XTERRA VENDETTA. Actually, it took me a good 10 minutes to get it on because of the pouring rain.

SWIM - 22:10
I started in the center. 3-2-1 the gun sounded. It was chaos. There were a lot of people in the mix. After the first buoy it started to thin out. I swam next to a guy stroke for stroke through the next 2 buoys. I made a move as we were rounding for the second loop. I think he went wide and never caught back up to me.

BIKE - 1:03.10
I ran into T-1, ripped off the XTERRA,  grabbed the LYNSKEY, and headed out. The roads were much worse than June. I played it conservative on the turns. The only reason I had the fastest bike split was because the winner went down.

RUN - 39:42
I racked the LYNSKEY, slid my feet into my NEWTONS, and stormed out of T-2. I passed a guy nearing the transition area. It was short lived. He passed me back within the first mile on the run. I tried to keep my pacing consistent. As I neared the turn around, I started to count 6 racers in front of me and once I came around I saw 4 guys chasing. I managed to pass the super swimmer at the start of the trail run. I heard a guy behind me in the distance with half a mile to go yelling, "On your left!!!" I knew he was moving like a cheetah and I was the antelope. I kept it together and held him off. He ran 4 minutes faster than me for the fastest run of the day.

I ended up 4th overall and 1st in my division. I biked faster and ran a little slower than June. As for recovery, I swam Monday morning and felt great. I wasn't sore.

Saturday, September 25, 2010

Deep into the tooth

I swam one of my favorite sets yesterday. The main set was 40x50 odds cruise and evens fast 1-28 on 50/40 and 29-40 on 55/40. I improved dramatically from the last time I swam the set in early August. I averaged 35 for the entire set. Last year I was swimming the set on 60/40 and averaging 37-38. I finished up with 3.5k.

I left work early to see the dentist. I had a cavity in between teeth. Lucky me. I love the smell of drilling on a tooth. The dentist said she drilled deep into the tooth. If the tooth gives me problems later on, I will have to get a root canal. They should have just pulled it out.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Kona is fast!!!

Swimming fast without effort was much easier than yesterday. It required a solid effort. The main set was 3x100 on short rest followed by a 100 fast then 100 cruise, 3 times through. I some how mustered enough strength to descend the fast 100s. I finished up with 4.2k.

After work and a short nap, I took Kona out for a run. I knew Fina would not be able to run because she got in a long walk earlier. My legs felt a little heavy when I started. I stayed on the trails. Kona took off at one of the turn-a-rounds. She was gone like a cheetah chasing antelope. It was at least 3 minutes before she came back looking for me. The look she gave me was hurry up slow poke. I threw in several short bursts of speed and finished up with almost 8.5 miles.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Last long ride of the season

I had a good swim yesterday. It was an easy workout with IM and pulling. I felt much better than Monday and finished up with 3.3k.

After work and a nap, I headed out for my last long ride of the season. It was sunny with a few clouds. The air was much cooler than Saturday. The workout consisted of several short bursts of speed followed by lots of Half Ironman/Ironman pace riding. After 3 consecutive bad workouts, my power numbers are back to normal. It must have been a combination of hard cycling and increased running that trashed my legs. It seemed bizarre that my swim & run workouts were good and by bike workouts were bad. I am glad to be back on track with my final week of training. I finished up with almost 86 miles at 22mph.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Tired dogs and me

I was a little surprised at how sore my legs were from the run yesterday. I was expecting a slow swim this morning. I was wrong. I had a good swim. The first part of the set was 100/200/300/400 with the send off base decreasing from 1:35 to 1:20. The 400 was on 5:20. I did not think I was going to have a shot at making the 400 until I saw my 200 split. I knew if I held it together, I had a shot. I couldn't believe I made the 400. I know having sore quads and calves definitely don't make it any easier. I did the rest of the workout with pull buoy and paddles. I finished up with 4.5k. Last long swim of the year.

Look at how tired the dogs are:

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Less than 3 weeks til Kona

It rained Thursday and Friday. I thought the chances of me riding on the trainer were 100%. I woke up Saturday morning and saw some blue skies with clouds. I decided to head out at 9 and caught up to the group at the Dupont gate. I said hi and then took off. A half marathon race started at 8ish. I slowed down and tried to make sure there was plenty of room between the runners and myself. It was nice and humid yesterday. A good day for getting ready for Kona type weather. The only thing missing was another 20 degrees of heat. I rode to Johnson Creek, then Waldrick Road, then Texaco to home. I finished up just shy of 110 miles and a few minutes over 5 hours. I even managed to beat the rain.

This morning started with blue skies then rain. I swam just over 3k in the lake. It stopped raining for the swim. I lucked out again. I came back home, refueled, then took a nap. I took the dogs out for a run in the sun. It was humid with a little bit of heat. Perfect Kona like training. That is until mile 12. It started to rain on and off for the next few miles. I finished with a little over 17 miles at sub 7 min/mile pace. It is less than 3 weeks till Kona. One more week of peak training before taper time.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

A typical day in Warshington

I had a another great swim this week. Yesterday I set personal best for 200m free twice. I was very surprised. The main set was a 200 fast followed by 6x100 pace on short rest then 200 cruise. I went through that twice. I decided to add one last 200 and see if I could go any faster. I was almost 4 seconds faster.

After my yummy mocha frappe from McDonalds, I took a nice 1 hour nap. I did not want to get up. My eyes were telling me to go back to sleep. I knew if I did then I wouldn't run. I grabbed Kona and took her for a 12+ mile run. We started in the rain, a typical day in Washington. The rain was intermittent, so it was kind of refreshing. I didn't take Fina because she went for a long walk earlier. I lost 2.5lbs of water weight. Have you ever tried to eating after drinking 32 ounces of water/recovery drink? Needless to say I could only eat a small portion of my dinner. I ate 2 more dinners throughout the night.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Easy swim, biking backwards

Yesterday I swam an easy 3.5k. The workout was mostly IM and pulling. Nothing too special.

After work, I headed out for a 3.5 hour ride. I was feeling pretty good about the workout until I looked at my power meter. My numbers pointed to the fact that I was biking backwards. This is 2 consecutive bike workouts that fall in the category of poop. I guess it is the combination of peak training and sleep or lack of quality sleep. I chose not to focus on the numbers and go with perceived effort. I finished up with 76 miles at almost 22mph.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Longest swim...

I did not sleep well Sunday night. Actually I couldn't sleep. I finally fell asleep at 3AM. In the past, this meant I was over training. What doesn't make sense, I had a great swim later in the afternoon. I was not expecting to have a great swim because my legs were sore from the bike and run over the weekend.

I can't believe how much faster my aerobic pace has increased. The main set was (100, 100, 200), 4 times through. The first 100 send descended each round, the second 100 was on a short rest send-off, and the 200 was on a short rest send-off. The last set was basically short rest for everything. It was a really good set to be able to negative split with fast 200s at the end. After that set, there was 800 of cruise efforts. Then I finished up with 4x200 pull with paddles. I did these on 2:50. I was able to descend all 4. I finished up with 5k of swimming. The longest swim of the season.

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Longest run...

This was my longest run of the season. I took the dogs to the bottom of Solo Point and back. Fina struggled after 5 miles and it was 6 miles back to the house. I'm sure the climb didn't help either. I dropped the dogs off at 11 miles. I grabbed a new bottle and headed for the trails. I felt good on the entire run. I finished with 19.5 miles in 2 hours and 15 minutes. I snuck into the house and the dogs were chillin. No mischief. This is what the dogs look like after long run Sunday.


Saturday, September 11, 2010

4 weeks til Kona

I will be racing in 4 weeks. I am nearing the peak volume of the season.

Yesterday, I swam 4k in the morning. I thought it was going to be another tough swim. It actually turned out to be a great swim. The main set was 30x100s. I finished the set with a 1:08. Sometimes you feel great and are slow in workout. Sometimes you feel horrible and have a great workout. Most of the time you are somewhere in between.

Later in the afternoon, I attended Chip's change of command ceremony. Then quickly headed home for a run. It was dry for about 3 minutes. It sprinkled for the next 15 minutes then stopped. The run felt good and the dogs were very happy.

This morning I headed out for a long ride. It was a little chilly, so I grabbed arm warmers and gloves. I guess the summer is truly over. It was cold until the end of my ride. I love it when the sun comes out as I put the bike away. My plan was to ride 5 hours. There was nothing in the legs. My wattage continued to drop, even as I tried to increase effort. I know how Chip felt last weekend. I managed to get in 84 miles at just over 21 mph. The rest of the day I will rest up for a long run and easy swim tomorrow.

Friday, September 10, 2010

No nap, have to beat the rain?

I planned on taking a nap yesterday after work. I didn't really feel tired and the roads were still dry. I quickly got everything ready and headed out the door. No nap, I have to beat the rain.

After a long warm-up, I started several 2 minute hard efforts. The 1st & 3rd were a few watts over the goal. All the rest were a little under. I also had a low number that would end the repeats. No, it's not because I am looking for a way out of the workout. If you drop out of the zone then that energy system is no longer being worked. It helps you train smarter. I was close to the low once. Only because it is super hard to keep the watts high in a tailwind. After the last one, there was a short recovery spin. Then straight into a 20 minute tempo ride. I felt strong. I have done similar workouts in the past and fell apart on the tempo ride. I finished the workout with 43 miles, just under 22mph.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

The good, bad, and surprising

I thought I was going to have a great swim yesterday morning because of my warm-up was fast. This was one of those days that start well and go down the toilet very quickly. I think my heart was trying to jump out of my chest on the first round of 100s, 300, and 100. I decided to back off and just finish. Once I got to the last round. I took a minute rest and tried to swim fast. Surprisingly I was 3:53 for a 300. I did not have the endurance to swim fast with short rest, but mustered out a good 300. I finished up with 4.5k.

After work, I took nap. I fell asleep to the dogs playing. Kona somehow landed on top of me. Dead center bulls eye. I tried to swat at her, but she went into matrix mode and I missed. She went into the kennel to hide. I told her it was okay and she came out. I fell asleep for almost an hour. I woke up and could not find Kona. She was sleeping on my bed. That was a first.

It was time for a run. The weather stayed dry, so I was happy. I made a looping course on the trails. Fina is happy running at 7:15 pace. For an experiment I picked up the pace. Sure enough, she started lagging behind. Kona was having so much fun during the run. At one point she was sprinting and jumping at branches. We finished up with a little over 8 miles.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Pluggin along

It rained Monday night.

I swam 3.5k yesterday morning. It was a lot of kicking and IM swimming. I felt so so. After work, I went home for a nap. I did not want to get up. My motivation for riding was super low. I slapped myself around and finally got up.

I headed out for a 3 hour bike ride. I noticed there was very little wind and a lot of humidity. The workout focus was on improving endurance/FTP. I had to change my route a couple of times because of traffic. Mental note, start earlier. No naps at 2:30PM. It was a good workout. I averaged 22+mph. My wattage was a 2% higher than Saturday. Probably because I couldn't draft off anyone except my imaginary friend.

It is raining again today.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Blobs

Swam in the lake yesterday, almost 5k. The worst part was swimming through a blob of total nastiness. It smelled like sewage. I lucked out because it only happened once and I saw several blobs floating around.

Monday, September 6, 2010

Running hills

Yesterday, I hit the pool for an easy 2k. I assumed it would be a hard swim because my legs were tired from the ride.

I went for a run at 1PM. The dogs were super excited since they haven't run for over a week. I headed out to the trails for some hills. Lots and lots of hills. Short gradual hills, long gradual hills, short steep hills, and my favorite long gradual hill with a short steep crest (my slowest mile of the run). There is a even a water source for the dogs to cool off. Fina has figured out the run routes. She will stop and wait for me to turn around. Every once in awhile I change it up and she will sprint to catch up. She does not like to run over an hour. I dropped the dogs off 75 minutes into the run. I finished up the rest of the run on pavement. I managed a little over 17 miles in 2hours.

I drove south to visit with the family. My niece wanted to throw the ball for the dogs. My nephew was watching us and smiling. They are very cute. The rest of the day entailed legs elevated and chillaxin.

Sunday, September 5, 2010

Ironman Canda Pics



Riding with Chipster

I haven't ridden with Chip in 2 years. He was down in Florida tearing up the cycling scene. He broke his collar bone in a race and came back even stronger.

We rode out to Johnson Creek road. The winds were tough. We could not find shelter from the persistent wind. Surprisingly we still managed to average over 22mph. The best part was when Chip came flying by me after the last downhill. I was soft pedaling waiting and all I hear is whoosh. I laughed. He totally caught me off guard. He wanted to make sure I knew he still has it. We stopped at Forza at the end of the ride and saw a few familiar faces.

Less than 5 weeks to Kona.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Pulling fast

I had a great swim today. The main set was 40x50 pull with paddles on 45. The set progressively gets harder as you have to swim faster more often. I felt strong and finished up with 4k. I miss swimming outside in the sunshine.

Lake Stevens 70.3 pics