5 days and $0 to go!

Spent most of last week in Florida where I made several 3 mile and one 6 mile run. I think I'm ready for the run leg on Sunday. I'll take one salt tablet before each leg of the race. That should help me fight off the leg cramps.

On Saturday, several of my team in training friends were getting together for a swim at Headlands Beach. Since my wife had the car, I decided to bike to Headlands to meet my friends for the swim. It's an easy 20-25 minute ride from my house to Headlands... usually. The swim was at 7:15 AM, so I left home at 6:30. Plenty of time. I was about half-way to the Beach when I realized that I wasn't wearing my helmet! That never happens since I am very careful to always wear my helmet when I am riding. Well, it happened this particular morning. So, I hurried back to my house to get my helmet. Now, I am definitely running late. I slapped my helmet on my head and hurried back out to the Beach. I was half-way to the Beach again when I realized that my rear tire felt a little mushy. A short time later, it was flat. Of course, it's always the rear tire. Becuase that is the hardest to change. It was a struggle since I had both saddle bags on my bike to carry my gear for the swim. Well, I finally arrived at Headlands at 7:30, about 15 minutes late. Happily, my friends were still waiting.

We had a nice swim and I rode with them for a short time after the swim then headed for home.

On Friday, I'm off to D.C. Wish me luck!

27 days and $0 to go!

The Pittsburgh skyline as seen from Mount Washington. The bridge that is visible spans the Allegheny River. The Ohio River is in the lower left. The Monongahela River comes in from the upper right but is not visible in this picture.

My daughter with the biggest owl I've ever seen.

Yoga and running. That comprised much of my training this week. Tuesday and Wednesday, I did my joga routine and ran about 3 miles. No real problems with the calf cramping. That's a good thing. Hopefully, I am past that. I definitely need to start gearing up for the big race, which is less than a month away. I decided to step up the distance on Thursday, covering 5-6 miles on my morning run.

Thursday evening, I was in Pittsburgh to visit my youngest daughter who was interning for the summer at the National Aviary. She is staying on Mount Washington on the shores of the Monongahela River, which joins the Allegheny River to form the Ohio River at the base of Mount Washington. Two blocks from where she was staying is a stunning view of downtown Pittsburgh. Friday and Saturday morning, I ran the length of the aptly named Grandview Avenue along the crest of Mount Washington. It was indeed a "grand view". It was also quite a workout! The crest of Mount Washington is actually quite hilly!

I finished the week by biking about 10 miles on Sunday, after doing my joga routine, of course.

56 days and $220 to go!

My first week of training on vacation went very well. On monday I ran around Edisto Island from our cottage to the south inlet, out on the beach for about a half mile, then back to the road, down Jungle Road and back up Palmetto to the cottage again. It took about an hour and a quarter, a distance of about 7-8 miles. I finished out the day's training with a one hour bike ride through the state park. Check out the cool pictures of my route.

On tuesday, I did a shortened "brick" workout riding for a half hour, then jumping off the bike for a quick half hour run. Wednesday, I hopped back on my bike for a one hour ride through the park again. Gee, I love that route!

I thought Thursday would be a good day attempt another long run. I was wrong. The humidity was up and there was no wind. So, even at 6:30 AM it was tough going. Half way through the run, I got a little worried about dehydration, so I stole a drink from the garden hose of a house I was passing. Now, Edisto water is so bad tasting that everyone who vacations here gets their water in bottles from the local firehouse, so this is decision I made out of pure desperation. Anyway, I finished the run and immediately jumped into the pool.

Friday, I went for any easy ride with my brother, sister, and my daughter, Heather. Saturday, Heather and I went kayaking up and down the beach. To finish out the week, I decided that Sunday morning would be a good time to try another long run around the island. The humidity was down and there was a little bit of a breeze. The run went well.

70 days and $1250 to go!

Another good week of training, but the fund-raising has slowed considerably. I'm guessing that with the current economic situation, it is harder for people to budget for charity. This makes me all the more grateful for the support of those of you who have already given to this cause. Thanks so much! If you have any friends or family who are able to support a worthy cause, please pass on the following website to them and ask them to consider a contribution. Thanks.

http://pages.teamintraining.org/noh/nattri09/larata

As I said, the training this has been good. After resting Sunday and Monday to recover from my 100 mile ride with my brother I ran Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday while I was in Florida on business. Tuesday's run was an easy 3 miler to start off the week. I decided to go a little farther on Wednesday and was able to cover about 6 miles. That is close to the distance of the run for the Olympic course that I will be doing in Washington, D.C. Thursday I "dialed it back" but just a little, covering 5 miles.

Friday was a rest day and a travel day since I flew back home on that day. Since it has been some time since I have run a long distance, I went for a long run on Saturday, covering about 8.5 miles. I don't want to jinx myself by saying this, but so far my legs aren't cramping up on the longer runs. That's good news! Anyway, I finished the week with a long bike ride today covering a little over 30 miles. Feeling good and ready for the next week's adventures.

77 days and $1485 to go!

This has been a good week. I've been looking forward all week to my brother's century (100 mile) ride, which was Saturday. But, I'll tell you about that later.

The training week started for me, as usual, on tuesday with a three mile run from home, looping through the park and returning home. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to meet some of my TNT team members so I joined a training ride that evening in Chagrin Falls. I flatted about a mile into the ride but we still completed about 24 miles, one mile short of the olympic distance ride. I met two of my TNT members and enjoyed a cold drink with them at the local pub after the ride.

The next two days, I ran five then three miles. I'm feeling rather sluggish on the runs, so I discussed that with one of my friends, who just completed her first iron man. Awesome! She suggested that I plan a one mile easy warmup to let my muscles ease into the run. I'll try that this week when I run.

I have a second road bike that I use on the long rides with my brother. It has a rack for saddlebags and works well for touring. I haven't ridden it for a while so I checked it on thursday only to discover that the rear tire was flat. So, I went to the bike store and bought four tubes, four patch kits, chain lube, and bike cleaner. After replacing the rear tube and giving my bike a quick cleaning I judged that I was ready to go.

Saturday, the day of the century ride, in Cincinnati was sunny and clear with temperatures rising into the 90s during the day. Seven people started the ride. Two people, my brother and I, finished. The secret for me was making sure I had plenty to eat and drink during the ride. I started with a big bag of trail mix and three full water bottles. I grabbed a handfull or two of trail mix each time we stopped and sipped water every few minutes. Breakfast was a three egg omelet with a side of bacon and the biggest glass of orange juice I've ever seen. Lunch was a bowl of beef barley soup and a spinach salad.

My legs felt good after the ride but I was pretty wiped out. I'm still smiling, though, as you can see from the picture. But, I took the next two days off. Back to running tomorrow. :)

91 days and $1565 to go!

I started this past week with a 3 mile run on Tuesday. Remember, according to my marathon training schedule, Monday is always a "rest" day. After I ran, I received an email from my TNT coach for the Nation's Triathlon asking if anyone on the team was interested in a 6PM bike ride starting in North Chagrin Reservation. I thought this might be a good opportunity to meet some of my team mates, so I emailed back that I would be happy to join. Biking is not on my schedule right now but I thought, "What the heck!"

Well, I met up with the group that was planning to ride. None of the TNT people showed up, so it was the coach, 3 other people from the Cleveland Triathlon Club and me. In other words, 4 - 20 or 30 somethings, and me! Well, I ended up chasing the other 4 for about 38 miles up hill and down dale on my bike for a rather gruelling couple of hours. Actually, they spent a good deal of their time waiting for me to catch up with them. One very nice young woman who was on a "rest" day in her training schedule spent much of the ride keeping me company in the back of the pack. Don't get me wrong, there were moments when I was able to charge ahead for brief periods of time, but I was definitely outclassed.

This was a very nice group of people, and I did have a good time, getting together with them at a nearby bar after the run. Anyway, back to the ride. I was able to more or less hold my own for about the first 30 miles before I really ran into trouble. I found myself completely out of energy and barely able to pedal. I was talking to the coach about "collapsing" on the side of the road and waiting for him to come back in his car and pick me up. It was that bad! Instead, he gave me a power bar and asked me to hang in there for a little while longer. I don't know what was in that power bar, but 2 or 3 minutes after finishing it, I found myself amazingly re-energized and planning to finish the ride with the rest of the group (who were doing just fine).

I ran into trouble once more as I started up the final hill back into the park. Both quads suddenly developed a charley-horse. Both! I didn't know what else to do, so I hopped off the bike. Bad move! Very bad move! At least when I am on the bike my legs are bent most of the time. When I try to walk, my legs are mostly straight and that's when the very painful charley-horse kicks in. Note to self: Stay on the bike when fighting a charley-horse! So, I hobbled along for awhile until my coach came back and gave me a bottle of his water. I made plans with him to come back with the car and pick me up thinking that this time I was really "done-for". He rode on ahead. Amazingly, after downing the water in a couple of minutes the charley-horse eased up. I quickly hopped back on the bike and rode the rest of the way up the hill. Sometime after reaching the top of the hill, I passed my coach in his car going in the other direction and cheering me on and finished the ride.

Seems I still have a lot to learn about nutrition, electrolyte replacement, and hydration for these long runs. And, this is just the group from which to learn it. I took the next day off, ran about 3 miles on Thursday, and about 9 miles today. All in all a good week. Now I'm shopping for salt pills and power bars!

133 days and $2085 to go!

I rode the crank off my bike this week! Literally!

I have toe clips on my bike. I know, to the unfamiliar it sounds like a medieval torture device but they are actually quite handy. They consist of a short plastic cage and a strap to keep the toe of your shoe on the pedal. Sometimes, on long rides, they can actually feel like a medieval torture device. I don't tighten the strap because when I fall - and I do fall - I don't want to be fastened tightly to the bike. But, keeping your feet securely in the pedals while you are riding is definitely a good thing. Well, back to the crank. I was about 7 miles into a 10 mile loop on tuesday when I noticed that my left pedal seemed to be a little loose. Something actually started clicking against the frame of my bike. It was the crank. I was rounding a bend about 3 miles from home when I found that the left pedal and crank were just hanging by the toe clip from my left foot. Just like that the whole left crank popped off of the bike.

At that point, I decided to turn my 10 mile bike workout into a 7 mile bike, 3 mile run "brick" workout. So, grabbing the crank and pedal in my left hand and guiding the bike with my right, I jogged the 3 miles back home to finish the workout. Now my Cannondale is in the shop and I am riding my trusty Specialized. This is the bike I use for touring with my brother.

Thursday was a magical evening. It was the Team in Training kickoff celebration for the summer season. It was great to see two of my Philadelphia Triathlon team members at the party. No matter how many of these events I may do, the first one in Philadelphia along with the people with whom I shared it will always be special to me.

This morning, for the first time this year, I completed the 30 mile loop from my house which follows the Greater Cleveland Triathlon course. It took me about 2 hours. This coming week I will be running in florida.

Taking shelter in Harrison's tomb

Yesterday, I joined my brother and some of his friends on his 100 mile bicycle "Le Tour de Hamilton County". Much of the charm of these long distance rides is in dealing with the unexpected, like getting lost (which we do at least once in every ride) or dodging thunderstorms. The weather around Cincinnati yesterday was characterized as "isolated violent thunderstorms". Ok, sounds interesting. Intrepid bicyclers that we were, we decided to go for it anyway.

Our first downpour hit at around 25 miles and was very quick, just enough to get us thoroughly soaked in time for breakfast. For the next 50 miles or so, the weather was ideal. We thought, mistakenly, that we had pretty much dodged the thunderstorms for the day. Not so...

We were about 80 miles into the ride near North Bend, Ohio, when it hit. The sky darkened quickly and shortly after that the rain began to pour. The tough thing about rain like that, besides the fact that it makes the road rather slippery, is that it reduces visibility for those of us who wear glasses. Anyway, when the lightning started hitting a little too close, we took shelter on the side of the road. As the rain continued to pour, making us ever more cold, wet, and somewhat miserable, we noticed that about 200 yards up the road was the tomb of William Henry Harrison (9th president of the United States). Harrison has the dubious distinction of being the president to have served the shortest term in office - 32 days. He died after contracting pneumonia on his inauguration day. Bummer!

Be that as it may, his tomb now served as an excellent shelter for 3 weary, wet, and cold travellers. Once we were safely inside, I called my daughter to say we were safe and to get an updated weather report to see how much longer we might be delayed. 20-30 minutes later, the sky cleared and we were on our way.


Here are the 3 intrepid travellers after about 103 miles on bicycles. 7 started, 3 finished. All in all, a great day!

20 days to go and I have collected $5112!

"When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking."
-- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (author of Sherlock Holmes)

Monday evening TNT hosted a "transitions" workshop. They talked about how to shave seconds off your time in the transition between swim and bike and between bike and run. I listened attentively and pretty much kept my mouth shut. In Philadelphia I spent 7 minutes after the swim and about 4 minutes after the bike legs. In the triathlon world, that's practically having a picnic! But, I figure I want to make sure that everything is "just so" before I hit the road on the bike or on the run. If I hurry out of transition and I have forgotten something or am not completely ready, it's going to be a long and probably more painful leg. So, I say, take your time and get it right. But, I didn't say that at the workshop. :-)

My goal is to finish the triathlon (70 miles total). To that end I am concentrating these last three weeks on building my stamina. Since the run is the last leg of the triathlon, maintaining my stamina through that segment is crucial. So...

After taking monday off, just a little yoga and a half hour walk, I tackled my second 13 miler on tuesday. This time, my recouperation lasted no more than about 2-3 days. At the end of the run, I was walking kind of slow since both quads were "screaming" at me. I could tell I have developed a "trigger-point" in my left quad and my right quad was just overall sore. six to twelve mile bike rides on wednesday and thursday along with a lot of massage - mostly using the "stick" and my thumbs on the "trigger-point" trying to knead out the knot - cleared up the soreness in short order. Now, that's progress!

This is one of the few weeks in which I have actually trained in all 3 sports. Bicycling formed the core of the training. This is usual when I am at home. But I also had the long run and this morning I had the last swimming workshop before the race. I am one of the slowest swimmers in the workshop but I am able to complete the hour and a half workout strong. As I said, I'm all about finishing this thing.

I've started thinking about what, and how, to pack for the trip to the race. I went shopping at Dick's sporting goods and picked up a good bike lock and a small flashlight. I mounted two water bottle cages on my bike since our coach said for the 56 mile bike it's best to have two water bottles especially if you miss one of the bottle exchanges. Finally, I mounted my small "flat fix" pack under my saddle. It has a spare tube, tire levers, patch kit, and a CO2 trigger with two cartridges. I really should try that CO2 trigger out at least once before the race.

27 days to go and I have collected $5082 so far!

"Runners like to train 100 miles per week because it's a round number. But I think 88 is a lot rounder."
Don Kardong

Well, I hit 133 miles for the week - 3 walking, 23 running, 107 bicycling. That's not a round number any way you look at it, but I think it's a good number.

It has been a busy and a fun week on the training front. Monday, I was travelling so I took the day off. No time, really, to run. I have to do my running very early in the morning when I am in Florida. My training week started on tuesday with a 10 mile run in about an hour and a half. The important thing about this is that I am getting much smarter about recovering from these long runs, understanding and compensating for the extra stress they put on my muscles. I no longer dread the effects of a long run on the rest of my training week. With that in mind I ran a modest 3 miles on wednesday to recover, asking a co-worker to punch me in the nose if I ran farther. I didn't, so my nose is still intact. :-)

Thursday was a fun day! We had a large group from my company attending the annual "Corporate Run" in Ft. Lauderdale. Mako set up a tent and had a great spread of food and "munchies" catered. At least a couple dozen people showed up with friends and family. Not wanting to wear myself out for the event, I "walked" 3 miles in the morning just to loosen up. The Corporate Run is a 5K (3.1 mile) run/walk and is heavily attended. I took the opportunity to "tri" out my "triathlon" outfit. Pun definitely intended! It was not my best time, but it was the best I was going to do for this specific event. I finished in 25 minutes, 54 seconds. I was struggling from the opening gun - not really sure why. The fun for me actually started after I finished when I quickly downed some water, grabbed two cups and doubled back on the course to offer water and cheer on my colleagues. I had a great time! The next morning I went for a "leisurely" 1 hour run.

Now for the "real" miles. The time till the triathlon is growing short. It's lss than one month away. I have resolved to experience at least the full distance for the bike and the run. So, yesterday, I decided to try for a 60 mile bike in around 4 hours. I was approaching 45 miles in about 3 hours when a poor split-second decision landed me in a pot-hole. I managed to "jump" the hole with my front tire but for the back tire, there was no avoiding it. The back tire went "spongy" on me almost immediately and I knew my ride was finished. Still, not a bad effort.

I had resolved to try again next weekend, but what the heck! Although I was nursing a very saddle sore posterior, I changed my plans to take advantage of today's excellent weather. I wasn't sure how long I would last, but I held on for the full distance, riding a little slower than the day before. Saturday's ride had sure taken it's toll, but today's ride turned into a good "mental toughness" test for me. I am now recouperating.

Think I'll take the day off tomorrow. Maybe just do some yoga or go for a short
walk. :-)

45 miles in 3 hours

It was supposed to be 60 miles in 4 hours but I had a flat. Beautiful sunny day in the 50s with dry pavement, perfect for my first attempt to conquer the half ironman bicycling distance (56 miles). Alas, it was not to be. Bad judgement and a pothole in the wrong place pinched a small hole in my rear tire. I could tell immediately that the tire had gone "spongy" on me. It had a slow leak that did not leave me with much remaining riding time. It's ok. The ride left me just 11 miles short of the triathlon distance and well within reach of my 60 mile goal. I definitely feel strong enough to complete it on my next attempt.

I should be able to reach that goal by next weekend.

34 days to go and I have collected $5052 so far!

Predawn ride, I pass my neighbor on a run. "Why are you riding a bike?" he asks. "Running gets you in shape faster." It's not about that. It's about how riding makes me feel. The speed. Leaning into gentle curves. Charging up hills. How strong my legs feel. Riding gets me fit. But thats just luck. I don't ride to get fit.
-R. Todd Barker

37 miles. That's about how far I rode today. Took me a little over 2 and a half hours. That works out to about 14 miles an hour. 37 miles is about two-thirds of the 56 miles I will be riding for the triathlon. Yesterday, I rode about 25 miles. I felt strong after both rides, although I did feel a little stronger on yesterday's ride since I had rested the day before. I was planning to go for longer yesterday, I stopped a little early when I could no longer feel my toes. The temperature for most of the week has been in the low 30's so I have not been able to ride for more than an hour and a half on any given day. Today it got into the 40's and I had planned to ride for longer but decided not to push it to the point where my legs got too sore. I will probably shoot for the 56 miles next weekend. Looks like it will continue to warm up. It is, officially, spring afterall!

My legs seem to have fully recovered from the 12-13 miler I ran almost 2 weeks ago. I have been using "the stick" to massage not only my calves but my quads as well. This seems to have done some good.

My strategy continues to be one of gradually building up my mileage for the bike and for the run. I have, maybe, two more swimming workouts I can go to. I think the swim will take care of itself. I will have to prepare myself mainly for the bicycle and running courses. Tomorrow will be a day off since I will be travelling to Florida for the coming week. I am looking forward to "warm weather" runs while I am down there. I will try to add one or two longer runs as well.

Since the triathlon is only about 1 month away, I will also have to prepare for the trip. I got a box for my bicycle which will have to be shipped to California in about 3 weeks. I will also have to shop for a mattress to go with my sleeping bag. That will be an experience, trying to get enough sleep for the triathlon while camping out for the weekend. So much to think about - so little time. :-)

Bicycling around the town...

Whenever I go to Cincinnati for the weekend to spend time with my family I always check with my brother to see if he wants to go bicycling while I am in town. He always does. So, yesterday, I met him around 1 PM at a neighborhood restaurant and we headed down to the Ohio River. With all the recent rain we have had in the midwest the river is running at about 25-30 feet above "pool" stage. The serpentine wall at the river front only had the topmost step visible above the river level. Normally, there are about 10-15 2 foot steps visible. We rode along Sawyer Point for a short way until we couldn't continue because of the high water level.

Then we headed inland and up a sharp hill (about 300 feet) to the top of Mount Adams. The picture above was taken at the top of Mount Adams. You can see the Ohio River well below us in the background. That was a steep climb and good practice for me leading up to the Wildflower Triathlon. While we were in the area, my brother suggested we stop at the Cincinnati Art Museum. We parked and locked our bikes and walked around for about a half hour. This proves that two sweaty guys out for an afternoon ride can actually absorb a little "culture" along the way.

We continued the ride back to my brother's house covering about 25 to 30 miles and ascending several more challenging hills along the way. The final hill, as usual, is a street called Glenview which is about 250 feet and always ends the days ride. It is my nemesis, although on this day it felt like a good climb. A definite (and necessary) confidence builder for my Wildflower adventure.

48 days to go and I have collected $5052 so far!

"If you don't have confidence, you'll always find a way not to win."
Carl Lewis

For the next few weeks my training will be aimed at bulding my confidence for the big race. How will I do that? By piling on the miles on the bike and the for run. At this point I think the swimming will take care of itself. I'm confident I can cover that distance in a reasonable period of time. Also, it's the only portion of the course that doesn't have hills. :-)

This has been, for me, a week of testing. Since my recent back and knee problems seem to have abated and since the weather in the north seems to be cooperating, I have resolved to gradually increase my biking and running mileage. The intent is to be able to test myself at least once at the race distance for the bike (56 miles) and for the run (13 miles).

This week while in Florida I went for 4 runs. I alternated "hard day", "easy day" and bumped my maximum distance to about 10 miles. I want to thank my cousin for giving me the information about the muscle "trigger point" discussion and my colleague at Mako for pointing me to the "myofascial release" page. For me, regular massage of my calves and quads has proven to be the final answer to my muscle cramps while running. I look forward to gradually building my distance over the next few weeks. Running is becoming fun for me again!

Yesterday I went for a long bike ride. Right now I feel like I can go forever on the bike. I am really looking forward to the warm spring days that I know are right around the corner. I will build up to a continuous 60 mile ride in preparation for the race. What about the hills? I don't think I will be able to train specifically for those since it is not hilly enough around my house. I am counting on my general fitness to see me through that challenge.

Not forgetting the swim, I participated today in the second last swimming workshop at Oberlin College. For the first time, I used my new "semi-prescription" swim goggles. Amazing! I can see! It will be wonderful to be able to sight the bouy easily in the race. We covered at least 2300 yards (1.3 miles) during the practice. The last drill was a set of 25 yard swims with the coach surprising us by telling us how to swim the 25 yards only 5 seconds before the start. The choices were easy swim, sprint, underwater, and one of several drills. He started us off with an easy swim, then two underwater lengths back-to-back. I made the first one on one breath, but my lungs were screaming as I neared the wall at the opposite end. I didn't even try to to the second underwater swim on one breath, taking a second one at the half-way point.

The next weeks are all about building mileage and the confidence that goes with it. Wish me luck! :-)

Back in the saddle... rackin' up the miles

After a week of warmer weather up north, the foot and a half of snow that fell around my house has half melted away. At least the roads are clear and mostly dry. The temperature today is in the mid thirties but the sun is (mostly) out. It's a good opportunity to get my bike out and see how long I can go. With the triathlon only a month and a half away I am anxious to build my mileage in the bike (56 miles) and the run (13 miles). The swim will have to take care of itself.

When I started riding I was planning to sort of play it by ear and go for either one or two hours and 12 to 25 miles. As I rode, my muscles loosened up and I became more comfortable and felt stronger on the bike. Still, it was a little cold to be out for any length of time. I was able to finish 30 miles in about 2 hours. I returned home still feeling fresh enough to do more miles, but it was really too cold for me to stay out any longer. I'm very happy with the effort and will be building my mileage over the next few weeks. When I got home today I took a long hot shower.

55 days to go and I have collected $5027 so far!

I'm not finished collecting donations but, thanks to your generosity, I have surpassed by minimum commitment of $4900 - the requirement to participate in the Wildflower triathlon. Thanks!

"Where else but in San Francisco would characters such as Sister Boom-Boom, a transvestite who dresses in a miniskirted nun's habit, and a punk rocker named Jello Biafra run for seats on the Board of Supervisors? And where else would 75,000 runners dress like centipedes, gorilla, and six packs of beer to participate in the "moving masquerade ball" otherwise known as the Bay to Breakers Race?"
-JoAnne Davidson, journalist

My oldest daughter emailed me about a 101 year old man training to run the London Marathon on April 13th. I don't know what else to say, but... Amazing! Apparently, if he finishes he will be the oldest person to have completed a marathon. Go man go!

I was able to squeeze in a 12 mile bike on monday before I headed for San Francisco and the weather in Cleveland took a turn for the worst. On tuesday I got to the hotel a little after noon changed into my running duds and headed out towards fisherman's wharf. I'm guessing that the hotel where I stayed is about 3-4 miles from the wharf. The weather in San Francisco was just about ideal all week. A little beyond fisherman's wharf is a public pier that curves around opposite Alcatraz. From the pier is a beautiful view of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge. I slowed down a bit and took it all in. The other side of the pier was a nice sheltered cove. If I had my wet suit I could have gotten in an nice open water swim or two. I think I need to concentrate on the running, however. That final 13 miles is looming larger and larger in my imagination these days. In a little over an hour I was back at my hotel.

The next two days I got up around 5:30AM and headed out for a 30-45 minute "hill" run. I actually found someone else who was crazy enough to keep me company on these runs. Wouldn't you know it, he's a former Marine. Kinda figures. :-) He and I ran up and down Nob Hill. Nob Hill is a gradual climb for about 4-6 blocks but just when you think you're almost there you hit the last 1 block uphill which is an absolute killer. It's a significantly steeper grade than the previous climb. It provides great practice for just "gutting" it out to get to the top. My legs think they are running but my body is moving at an agonizing crawl. Heading down hill is not much better since your legs take a real pounding on those steep grades.

On friday morning I had to be at the conference by about 7AM so I wasn't planning to run. However, I found myself wide awake at 3:30AM (6:30AM EST). So, I headed out for the hour round trip to fisherman's wharf one more time. On the way I saw a baker taking a 4 foot crocodile out of the oven. It was a loaf of sourdough shaped like a croc. :-) Aahh! The smell of freshly baked bread is well worth waking up for. It was a nice finish to my San Francisco runs.

I left Frisco that evening on the red-eye, wondering when I would make it home. All of Ohio was by then in the middle of a record setting late season blizzard. I expected to get stuck in Charlotte, which was my intermediate stop, on saturday morning. But I did make it at least close to home that day. However, I didn't actually get home until the following day, sunday. After all that, I'm really glad to be home!

I had a pair of prescription swim goggles that I had ordered last week waiting for me when I got home. What a treat. Now I may actually be able to spot the bouys on my open water swims.

I'm off to florida tomorrow where I hope to continue to build up my running mileage.

62 days to go and I have collected $5027 so far!

I'm not finished collecting donations but, thanks to your generosity, I have surpassed by minimum commitment of $4900 - the requirement to participate in the Wildflower triathlon. Thanks!

"Life is an endurance sport!"
Lou Arata

It's true! Whether you're raising children or trying to keep up with grandchildren, building a new career or keeping up with the demands of a more established career, life requires endurance! My addiction to life drives my addiction to my chosen sport.

Speaking of endurance events, the Iditarod started today. What's the Iditarod? It's an 1150 mile sled dog race from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska.

I struggled a bit to get on the bike this week. I was able to get in a couple of 12 mile rides and a six mile ride but the weather kept me indoors for two days. Looks like milder weather is on the way, though. Spring can't be far off. The good news is, my right knee is back to very nearly 100%. In fact, at the moment I have no real physical complaints. Hope it lasts. :-)

Yesterday, I participated in a spinning workout organized by our Team in Training coach. A spinning workout is an hour long session on a stationary bicycle in which you try desperately to keep up with the coach - in this case, an accomplished "Iron Man" triathlete. I am dripping with sweat - not a dry spot on me - after about 10 minutes. The workout involves continuous pedalling while simulating hills by increasing the resistance. We finished the workout with a rousing chorus of "Macho Man", which was a little strange since over half of the team are women. But, they may have been singing "Nacho Man" - I think I heard that once or twice.

I haven't had much pool time during my training for this event. Maybe an hour and a half each month so far. I'm not really concerned, since the swim is only about a third longer than I faced last year in Pilly (1.2 miles instead of 0.9 miles). The bike and the run are over twoce the distance of the Philly triathlon. I figure, I just want to complete the swim without getting too beat up. You see, in the triathlon swimming is a contact sport. It's pretty much a "free for all" with people swimming into and over you at least at the start and later on as well when the wave that starts 5 minutes behind you catches up. I maxed out my pool time today, however, finishing an hour and a half workout in Oberlin then driving an hour to do an hour Team in Training workout in Macedonia. I think I'll do ok in the swim.

This coming week I'll be in San Francisco. I'll be attending the biggest orthopedic conference in the nation. It will be my company's big chance to debut our products. I am looking forward to running the hills in San Francisco. It's a great city for running and great preparation for the Wildflower course. Oh, and the conference should be pretty cool too. :-)

90 days and $603 to go!

"Restlessness is discontent - and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man - and I will show you a failure."
Thomas Alva Edison

Restlessness, that's the story of my week. Both the weather and my ailing back were conspiring to keep me from doing much training. The weather, not because of the temperature, but because of the road conditions - too much snow, slush, or ice. I won't ride if I think there is a better than even chance that I will take a spill on the bike. My back is actually rehabilitating rather nicely but I didn't want to push it until all the pain is gone.

Anyway, here's how the week went. Monday was the one nice day this week so I was able to take my new bike for a spin. It rides great! I'm really going to enjoy it. When I went for my second ride on tuesday. I decided to get a new saddle, one that was more like the saddle on my road bike. I spent the next 3 days indoors concentrating on my hourly exercises to help mend my aching back. Yesterday, I went for a short ride to and from the bank just to cash a check. Yes, it still counts as training, light training anyway. Today, I took the new bike out for another 12.5 mile ride. Felt good and the discomfort in my back seems to have gone entirely.

I'll be in Florida this coming week, so it will be a good opportunity to ease back into the running and see if my back has really healed. Looks like I will have to pay regular attention to maintaining the health of the discs in my back. Every time I get a little complacent because I am not feeling any lower back pain I seem to get myself in the same fix - bulging discs.

Well, I have about 3 months to go until the triathlon. The weather should start getting milder. Spring is around the corner. Now the training starts in earnest.

A new saddle

Tuesday, I rode about 12.5 miles on my new bike, my second ride. Feeling more comfortable with the shifters. No longer reaching my thumb out when I need to shift to a smaller sprocket. Getting used to using my fingers to push the brake lever and the shift lever sideways to do my up and down shifting. But, I decided I didn't like the feel of the saddle. I've gotten used to saddles which have a center cut-out to relieve the pressure on the peroneal nerve. Keeps me from getting numb in a place where most men really don't like being numb - if you know what I mean. Anyway, I took the bike back to the place where I bought it and they swapped the saddle that came with the bike for one that I picked out of a "grab box". This new one almost matches the saddle I have on my trusty "Specialized" road bike. I know that one works since I have ridden up to 80 miles in one day on that saddle. Now I should be set.
The weather has gotten really cold here in the last couple of days. My back is feeling better but I should probably give it another day or two before I get back into the training seriously. The hourly exercises really seem to be helping.

Cold Weather Riding

Living in the far north, hating to use a stationary bicycle, and being hooked on bicycling year round, I have had to adapt to riding in the cold. It's actually not bad - if you dress appropriately. As long as the roads are clear (free of ice and snow) and reasonably dry and the temperature is not below freezing, I'm up for a ride especially if the sun is out.

Appropriate dress being a requirement for a reasonably comfortable ride, I always start with about 3 or 4 pairs of underpants. I know, too much information, but it's also a practical necessity on a cold weather bicycle ride. I'm am nothing if not practical. A pair of long sweat pants go on next along with a warm pair of cotton socks. I have a long sleeve cotton turtle neck pullover and an old t-shirt I wear tucked into my sweat pants. If the sun is not out, I will add a thin fleece vest. Warm gloves, a helmet liner, and a pair of gym shoes complete my sartorial ensemble. That's it, I'm good for at least an hour ride, as long as it's followed by a long warm shower. :-)