Training with the stars

This past weekend I got invited to tag alongside a couple of the top rock stars in the state. Fellow BLUE rider Michael "Pedal Pounder" Gordon and Kara Nielsen planned a long suffer fest, and I got sent an RSVP to get my butt kicked. Sure-why not? It's always nice to be humbled by riding with power houses.

Look at these two geeks...

The ride turned out to be actually really nice, though we did get hit with a heavy shower during the first hour, and the air temperatures made us wonder if Spring is ever going to come. We were able to hit some long stretches of open road, and made sure we got some good headwind beating on us. Last time I went out with Michael on this route, I was gasping for air- at least I was able to hang off the back this time.

Don't let the smile fool you- she bends crank arms just by looking at them.

I got a chance to practice my IM race-day nutrition and hydration, composed of First Endurance (Liquid Shot and EFS) and NUUN, while Michael and Kara shared a couple almonds, a fig and some cheetos. Maybe that's the secret to going fast... In any case, I got my fueling strategy down and feel confident with the 4th discipline come race day.

Small and Medium Triads. Can you tell which one is which? Mine is the more aero.

Another solid weekend of training in the books for me. Now a few days of down time, and then it's time for the final build block ending with Boise 70.3, all in preparation for IM Coeur d'Alene.

Thanks Michael and Kara for the long ride!

Do work, son... be smart 'bout it too....

Ancient proverbs to live by:

"2 beers is 2 too many on the eve of a big workout"

"Dig a hole, make sure you can get out"

"Man who gets 2 flats should carry 2 tubes"

After the temperatures subsided some, the rest of this week was not *too* bad, although it still allowed for some good heat training. On Saturday, after some cartoons and the world's best pancakes with Donovan, I went and ran 20+mi, and at 18, well, I went on survival mode, after messing up the hydration and nutrition plan. I am sure not paying attention to proverb # 1 didn't help matters either.... It is amazing how tough running 2-3mi becomes when the engine runs out of gas and coolant....

Theresa came to my rescue and helped me get liquids and nourishment back in me as I lay in the bathtub of cold water. The day got better from there, with patience and understanding from her. We left Donovan at my in-laws and went off to have an 'afternoon/early evening date' in downtown Seattle. We shopped around for a bit, which for me mostly meant looking for places to sit down, rest, drink and eat. I actually think the light walking around helped a little bit. We went to see "UP" in 3-D. Awesome movie, seriously. It was a blast. I was laughing left and right. We then topped it off with a nice dinner at the Pink Door, a place we've been going to together on/off for like 10yrs. All in all, a great Saturday with my beautiful wife.

I feel I dug myself into a hole on Saturday. While I needed to get a long ride in on Sunday, I choose to cap it at 3hrs and at a light effort, <=3w/kilo and higher rpms. By the time 3hrs had gone by, I was done and tired. So I think I payed attention to proverb # 2.

As far as Proverb # 3... My training wheels have had tire liners in them forever. Be smart about the work.

Heat Wave

Seattle experienced heat like never before, or so I understand. The heat raised steadily over 4-5 days up to a crazy maximum on Wednesday. As I was driving home from work, at ~5pm, I saw several business' clocks (you know, the kind that intermittently blink the time, temp, and 1gal of milk for $0.99) showing 108F. Woah!
I got home and joined Theresa and Donovan in his little pool in our backyard. Stuff (furniture, counters, etc) inside our house felt hot to the touch. We slept in our basement, which was probably 20 degrees cooler, without needing fans, so the hottest night in history wasn't too bad for us. After dinner, I went for a 45 min run, and it was still very much in the 90's. I got home dripping sweat. Heat training, anyone? All the people that live & train in these kinds of climates, hats off to you.... it is tough...

YETI

I decided to switch to blogger for my random thoughts, simply b/c I'm not versed enough (nor have the time or drive) to keep playing with Dreamweaver, so this here is my first post.

Older posts, pictures, etc. of my adventures are found on my 'old' website here.

This time, I wanted to talk about this great tasting beer I had this past weekend. Theresa and I were able to have a date while Donovan stayed with Teddy and Katie. I am not sure if it was the 6.5hr ride or the 18-19mi run weekend, but, dang, this thing tasted OH-SO good together with the awesome indian food we had. I was not able to finish all 650ml of this 7% lager, as I was feeling the amount I did have. I'll definitely try again another time....