Darn right I overdid it!

…and if we ever get another weekend like this last one… I’ll do it again!

Yes, I’m sore. 

Yes, I’m tired.

No.  Not one regret.

After Saturday’s euphoria settled in I just had to see if it would last one more day.  I packed up the bike and headed back to Rock Bridge for round two.  I decided to stop at another trailhead because the map made it look like there was a bigger loop I could hit that would join up with the ones I did yesterday.  But since I had never done this loop I decided to run it first.  What I found was another spectacular (albeit leaf obscured) trail that wound through the woods in Rock Bridge.  After several missed turns I managed to find my way back to the car.  I was tired, but satisfied that I could ride the vast majority of this trail.  The run was about 3 miles and although I was glad I did it to scout the trail, it took a lot out of me and I was tired when I got on the bike. 

Nevertheless, on a day so spectacular for November, they were going to have to drag me off the trail kicking and screaming…  I was here to play and I brought all my toys with me.  The ride was surreal.  I saw 5 people on the trail in an hour of riding.  I knew 4 of them.  I rode roughly 8 miles (no GPS so I’m not sure) of which, about 100 yards was hike-a-bike (less if I was a better rider!).  Really the essence of mountain biking.  Lots of ups, downs, bumps, mud, water, leaves, rocks, critters, even a couple of downed trees to navigate.  I went back down the trail I had run until it split and went off toward some of the trails I ran/rode yesterday.  Then I crawled back over those for a while, just exploring and trying to remember what mountain biking was supposed to feel like.  I would have bursts of getting it all right and climbing stuff I didn’t think I could.  Followed immediately by nearly crashing due to lack of control or inattention to technique.  This will be the way of things for a while, which is cool.  It’s all fun and exciting and new again.

I got back to the car completely exhausted, but happy.  Then I went home and made the first batch of beer I have attempted in 12 years.  Finished up the day with friends, Guinness and a game of Munchkin.  Next weekend is going to have to really be something special to beat this one.

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Didn’t want to stop

So much of this summer (that wasn’t) has been about dealing with adverse weather conditions.  I had nearly forgotten what it was like to do a workout in nearly ideal conditions.  But as I read the weather forecast for the weekend I was stunned to see no rain and temperatures in the 70’s… in November…?  Really?  I immediately got happy feet and started planning some workouts.

Yesterday, I headed over to Rock Bridge State Park.  This park is amazing for several reasons.  First, it’s urban.  It is less than a mile outside of Columbia.  Second, it’s beautiful.  Gorgeous scenery, caves, sink holes, creeks and ponds, huge trees and lots of trails for hiking, biking, running and general putzing around on.  Finally, it’s well maintained.  Decent bathrooms, good parking, picnic tables and signs to help you find your way around the trails.

I had been threatening myself with a mountain bike ride there since I got the bike back together again and yesterday was the day for it!  After a quick stop at the bike shop to pick up a spare tube, I was on my way.  My thought was that since Mizzou was playing a home game, maybe the park wouldn’t be so crowded (did I mention it’s urban?).  No such luck.  It wasn’t aweful, and I certainly don’t ride fast enough to worry about crashing into anyone, but there were lots of people on the trail so I tried to be as cautious and polite as possible.

Several of the trails are 2 miles long or longer and most intersect so you can just jump from one trail to another and stay out in the park for quite a while.  I took off up one of the few trails I had actually been on before (hiking) and thus the adventure began.  Beautiful doesn’t begin to describe it.  Great single and double track trails, all very much ridable.  A few slightly technical sections but nothing major.  Very little mud or water.  The only thing to worry about was that a lot of the trail was completely obscured by leaves!  Fun to ride through but hard to see what was under them.  In general, a nice, easy ride.

I went around one time (about a 3 mile loop)… then I went around again (about a 4 mile loop)… and then, yup… you guessed it… I went around again (another 3 miles)!  When I was done with the last loop, I rode in circles around the parking lot.  I was tired, but I REALLY didn’t want to stop.  Finally, and very reluctantly, I got off the bike and put it away.  I put my shoes back on and it was then I realized I had grabbed my trail running shoes to wear…

…heh…

I only ran about a mile and a half (made a wrong turn and didn’t realize it until I was back at the parking lot…) but it was awesome!  My legs were not tired and I was careful not to do anything stupid.  What a day…  I actually thought about going back around AGAIN… but decided that I was just tired enough that it wouldn’t be prudent.  Besides, there was always tomorrow (which is today!!).

It is these types of workouts that keep me motivated.  I’m sure if I had been with someone else I would have just slowed them down because I was purposefully NOT going fast… I was just GOING.  And it was awesome.

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Reacquainted with an old friend

Went for a mountain bike ride yesterday.  Back in the day (circa 1993…*cough*) I bought a GT Zaskar LE frame and then spent the next year (and entirely too much money) building it from scratch.  The only things I didn’t do to it were press on the headset and build the wheels.  Other than that, I did all the work.  I then subsequently spent the better part of the next two years putting well over 5000 miles on it in the mountains around SoCal.  For all the ugliness that is SoCal, it’s wilderness (yes, there is a substantial amount) is spectacular.  Then a horrific back injury took me off my bike and put me on the couch for nearly 10 years.  Through various attempts to get back in shape, my mountain bike mostly just sat there.  It was sad. 

When we moved to Missouri in 2006, I started running again to get in shape, and still the mountain bike sat.  Through another difficult injury in 2008 and into the launch of my triathlon career, it sat.  The only time I touched it was to pull the saddle and pedals off of it to put on my new cross bike as I tried to build it into a triathlon bike.

As the triathlon season came to a close in October, I began to make plans for offseason training.  One day while driving to work, I went by a familiar trail called Bear Creek that leads to a huge park.  The back side of that park has some really cool mountain biking trails on it (Rhett’s Run).  I have run and walked these trails many times.  It all got me to thinking about that old mountain bike, now nearly 17 years old.

That weekend I pulled it down of the rack, took it downstairs and put it back together.  Surprisingly after all that time, a little oil and a few small tweaks were all that was needed to get everything working again.  It even shifted nicely (better than my new cross/triathlon bike!) after all that time.  I took it out and rode it around the yard a bit and it still seemed pretty sound.  Granted, the tech on it is still 17 years old.  Air/oil shock (Rock Shox Mag 21), XTR, cable brakes, etc.  But it worked.  I put out a call to the triathlon list to borrow a set of spd pedals (mine were not compatible and there are no cleats available for them anymore) and got several offers.  The next day the bike was complete and ready to rise from the ashes.

That was two weeks ago.  I have ridden the bike 4 times since then.  Once on a local trail and three times at Rhett’s Run.  Several things became apparent on these rides.  First, this is still a SOLID bike.  Second, I do still love mountain biking.  Third, I have become very tentative in my old age and will need many more rides to find that comfort level I used to have with mountain biking.  And finally, I have found my offseason cross training.

Yes, I suck at mountain biking.  I miss shifts, miss turns and have forgotten everything about riding position, climbing, descents, etc.  I’m lucky to get out of the parking lot without falling.  But even with all that, it’s awesome exercise, beautiful and tons of fun.  The bike, even though very sound, is still very old.  The shock doesn’t rebound anymore and the brakes are sketchy.  Falling seems to hurt a lot more than it did 17 years ago.  Nevertheless, I’m pretty excited about getting back on my old bike again.  I don’t pretend to think I will ever go as fast as I used to (back in the day I hit 52mph through the speed trap at Mammoth Mountain in California) but I don’t care about that anymore.  It just feels good to get back on that bike and ride again.

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Feelin’ WAY too good to be at work…

After many a week of soggy weather, Ma’ Nature decided to give us a reprieve.  Starting on Halloween, the weather has been nothing short of spectacular.  I have been trying to cram as many outdoor workouts in as I could because I know it’s bound to end all too soon.  Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your opinion of running) it has all been running miles.

I got 5 miles in on Halloween (new tradition, do something active on EVERY major holiday) in Oklahoma.  Then I got back to Columbia but the drive took it out of me and I missed my Monday morning swim session.  Tuesday was an awesome run under an early morning full moon on a tough, hilly, long course.  Missed ANOTHER swim session yesterday morning and then had a GREAT 8 mile run this morning under clear, chilly (30 degrees!) skies.

But as I sat outside in the sun at lunch with my family, I found myself in serious want of more.  A day like this should NOT be wasted and I’ve already pissed away my share of good ones, so I’m taking off an hour early and taking Frankenstein down to Rhett’s Run for a little fat tire time.  I may not be completely in love with road bikes yet, but I do still love me some mountain biking.  So much so, in fact, that I’m thinking about doing the Xterra Eureka Springs race this year…  I’ve always wanted to do an Xterra or offroad triathlon and this one is close (relatively) so I just might have to put it on the list…!  The only problem is that I also want to run the Hospital Hill Half Marathon, which is the week before… crud.  I could definitely DO both…  I just don’t know if I could AFFORD both… *sigh*

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Miserableness cancelled due to lack of misery…

Is it officially a sickness when you are disappointed the weather isn’t crappy when you run?  I have learned more about running in foul weather in the last two years than in the other 40 combined.  It now takes a tornado warning, large hail or temperatures well below zero to keep me from my appointed run.  Thursday before last I damn near killed myself trying to get to a regularly scheduled run when EVERY road to and from my house was flooded.  And for what?  A bead?  The satisfaction of getting my run in?  A notch on the gun to brag about later?  Scars?  Physical therapy visits?  Why do I do this?

This morning I will admit to being slightly disappointed when I arrived for my run and not only was it NOT raining but the weather was (almost) perfect.  Fifty two degrees, bright stars shining.  The only thing to gripe about was a little wind.  I got in 5.6 miles at an ok pace but spent the entire time (that I should have been concentrating on pace, et al.) hoping that the lightning I saw on the horizon would get to us before the run was over.  That’s sad.  We have had such crappy weather for so long that I am now frustrated by GOOD weather (he says as a deluge roars outside…).  I don’t know what to wear.  I have nothing to bitch about (except my lack of fitness).  I’m miserable when I’m not miserable.

Demented…  That’s what I really am…  I need a new hobby…  Anyone for cribbage?

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That will be quite enough. Thank you.

Two months filled with way more work than I could handle in an effort to train WAY too many people in WAY too short a time, plus get ready for Club Nationals, create material for two major conferences, try desperately to make some sort of progress towards finishing my cabinet doors and, oh by the way, I still have a family (I think… If they haven’t disowned me by now… Or put my face on a milk carton…) have left me… hopefully understandably… tired.

So when, on one of the numerous travel dates I had in the last month, I noticed that my workmates were both sniffling and coughing, I knew it would only be a matter of time…  I entered into the last weekend of this extended trip with a conference.  I felt great for the first two days, but on the last day, I awoke to a tight chest and a scratchy throat.  Nothing like topping off two solid months of working my ass off… with H1N1…

…lovely.

So.  I took it home and gave it to my family.  Thereby solidifying my place as BEST.  DAD. NEVER…

*sigh*

All this meant that after piggy flu took its course on me for three days, I then had to make sure to take care of the family for another three days while they fought it.  Blessedly, it has been mild for all of us (comparatively) and has actually been about the same as any other flu we have gotten.  Still, the entire family getting the flu…. SUX!

As I started to mend I did manage to get out and run a bit this weekend and it gave me some time to plan.  I know I need goals or I tend to wander so here is what I’ve got.

Currently, I have 72 miles logged in the water this year.  I want to get to 100.  I need to swim 28 miles.  I have roughly 20 days to do this so I have to swim right at 2000 yards a session between now and December 31 to achieve this goal.

I want to run a sub 22 minute 5K at First Night on January 1.

I want to develop an offseason lifting program and use it from tonight until the end of February.

STRETCH!

Research a new triathlon bike

Run trails and mountain bike for cross training as weather allows.

 

To that end I have come up with a weightlifting program that will require me to go to the gym a couple of times per week to use equipment I don’t have at home, but it is doable.  It is triathlon specific and focuses on core strength and working the muscles you neglect in triathlon training.

AND… FINALLY… I went for a trail run on Sunday.  The first one I have really been on.  It was a blast!

There is a mountain biking trail about 2 miles from my house.  It is awesome.  All single track, steep little ups and downs but all ridable/runnable.  Since I am still recovering from the flu, I decided to just go out for a little bit so I started on a trail that runs by the mountain biking course but is flat.  That allowed me to warm up a bit and get ready for the trails.  Once I hit the trail it was immediately apparent why people do trail runs.

The trail was narrow single track and it was almost completely obscured by leaves.  It had opened up and begun POURING on me on the main trail, but once I got into the deep woods, it let up, with only the occasional drip getting through the canopy.  The ground and leaves were wet and since the trail was obscured, the sum total made me SLOW DOWN.  Careful foot placement and far more lateral movement than I am used to also made me pay far more attention to the run than I usually do.  It was a conscious effort.  I had to think about nearly every foot placement.  Due to all the rain we have had, there were puddles, streams and mud in a lot of places.  This also made me focus more.  It was intense.  I don’t remember ever running like this.  I ran about two miles of trails and then came back home for a total of about 4 miles.  The trail portion had to have been somewhere at or above 10 minute miles, but the workout was difficult.  I got lost a couple of times in the woods when I took a wrong turn and missed the trail.  Like I said, everything was covered in leaves.  It was beautiful…!

I can’t overemphasize the importance of the words SLOW DOWN.  I was NOT worried about time, form, or any technique other than just survival.  Foot placement.  Power.  Effort.  I found myself breathing easy on the flats and downs.  No stress or strain at all.  I know that will change as I get more comfortable but it really felt awesome to be working out easy.

The one thing I thought I could do that I found nearly impossible was sightsee.  In order to place my feet confidently I had to give total attention to the 10 foot section of trail in front of me.  I could only glance up briefly to orient myself to the trail.  No watching wildlife, etc.  Trail running really makes you focus.

So I guess you could say I really liked it.  I am really slow and don’t really care.  This is great cross training for a million reasons.  Time to get dirty!

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Shoe Laces

Some weird people have a shoe fetish.  My obsession/pet peeve goes even further.  Shoe LACES.  Yes… he said shoe laces…  I mean… I’m not like… creepy, obsessed with them or anything.  I’m just really, REALLY… picky.

It all comes from a strong belief in having the right equipment.  My dad taught me that and I really believe it.  From hammers, to baseball gloves, to athletic shoes.  I have always believed in having the right gear for the job and getting the GOOD stuff, even if it means waiting until I can afford it.  And I rarely go back on that (and regret it every time I do). 

The most recent example of this was when I started running and started looking seriously at shoes.  Let’s face it, shoes are the only real piece of equipment you need.  Getting good ones that last and fit right is critical. 

So then why do shoe companies put REALLY crappy shoe laces on $125 shoes?  Do they know how much it pisses me of when shoes don’t stay tied even when I double knot them?  Do they know how hard it is for my fat butt to bend over to re-tie my shoes 8 miles into a run? 

So over the last two years of serious running I’ve gotten lots of opportunities to come up with solutions.  Asics shoes?  Just replace the laces.  They are crap.  Nike?  Fuggedaboudit.  Saucony?  …yuck.  The only really good stock laces I have found are on high end New Balance shoes.  They look like crinkle cut fries (sorry, it was the best example I could think of).  When you tie them the crinkles keep them taught and they don’t loosen up.  They just work.  I have had 4 pairs now and haven’t had to re-tie my shoes once.

However, once I learned about Yankz and tried them out, I became big fan.  They are an elastic, bungy like lacing system that essentially turns your shoes into slip ons.  They are a pain in the butt to install, but worth it.  They also take a bit to get adjusted so they don’t constrict too much, but once you get them adjusted they are awesome.  They are made for triathlons so you can slip your shoes on easier in transition, but if you want to eliminate all the hassle of laces, you can’t beat them.

So I took my new shoes, with Yankz firmly attached, on a 10 mile run today.  A spectacular fall day!  Temps in the 60’s, light wind, painfully blue skies and turning leaves.  It was special.  The trail was full. People, dogs (including one unbelievably cute 3 month old Bassett Hound pup), bikes, walkers, runners.  It’s so rare that I run 10 miles anymore, but I just couldn’t let this day go.  And as I discovered, 10 miles is still a long damn way.  I think it’s further than it used to be…  I’m sore and very tired.  But it was worth it.

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Music and mud

I could never be a spin instructor.  I would kill people.  Either because of the frightening choices I make in music, the volume it must be played at to achieve full effect, or the fact that none of it is under 10,000 beats per minute!!!  Wanna bet?  Look up and listen to “Beast and The Harlot” by Avenged Sevenfold (A7X) or “All Nightmare Long” by Metallica on iTunes.  See if YOU could keep up with them.  I have an iPod full of stuff just like it and I get to listen to it all winter long.  If I’m not faster on the bike by next spring, I will either have given up or I’m dead because my heart blew up.  Good GAWD!  I need a little Manilow or some Cap’n and Tenille (yeah… that’ll happen) to bring me down.  I don’t purposefully choose hard rock or metal, I just prefer something that has a beat that pushes me.  I couldn’t sing the lyrics (nor would you want me to…) of any of the songs on my playlist,  but they are fast and hard.  I need the drive.  I have to be careful not to run to the beat or I will actually slow down on slower songs (and destroy myself on the fast ones).  I don’t run with music much because I like to hear what’s going on around me, but when I do I’m always shot at the end of the run!  The other problem with running with music is that me wearing an iPod on a run is a dead sure guarantee that SOMEONE will want to talk to me ALL RUN LONG… *sigh*  So I mostly use my iPod on the wind trainer to break up the monotony.  My son says he can tell when I’m listening to a fast song because it sounds like the wind trainer is about to take off…!

So I’ve decided that I want to try trail running this fall for something different.  I even bought a new pair of trail shoes just for the occasion.  I have to admit I’m a little nervous.  My ankles are crap and many a running buddy has gone out on these trails only to return bloodied and broken (I’m looking at YOU, Dan).  Still, I at least want to try it a couple of times just to see how it goes.  I would really like to try an Xterra race next year for the heck of it so the cold and mud will be good training.  I’ll let you know Sunday morning…!

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I tried to talk myself out of it…

I mean… C’mon…  It was thundering, lots of lightning, rain, wind, 50 degree temps, DARK (except when the lightning lit up the trail)…  Who on earth runs in that crap.

…that would be… umm… me.

And, of course, 30 or 40 of my closest and most insane buddies and teammates from CMC.

To show how dissimilar my viewpoints are between running and other sports, I don’t even want to get ON my bike if the wind is blowing over 10mph or it’s over 80 degrees.  Yet I ran this morning IN THE MIDDLE of a thunderstorm…

Now, don’t get me wrong.  I tried to talk myself out of it.  In bed, at the computer looking at the radar, on the drive to the trailhead, every second before I opened the car door, while I was waiting to start, in the first half mile, at the first turn, at the second mile… etc.  But I just couldn’t say no.  I LIKE to run.  In ANY conditions.  I just wish I LIKED to do the other stuff as much.  I should WANT to ride.  God knows I NEED to.  But I will almost always drop my bike shoes and head out the door for a run.  I guess I’m just the most comfortable with that sport.

And this is not to say that I’m really that good at running.  I just enjoy it more than anything else.  In fact, of the three sports in triathlon I would have to say that my level of enjoyment rating is: 1.)Running, 2.)Swimming, 3.)Biking.  And yes, I know that this needs to change.  I’m just trying to figure out how.  I’m hoping that introducing mountain biking back into my training will bring back some of the joy and fun to riding that I used to have.  We’ll see…!

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Monsters in the Water

Sunday was a beautiful day at Finger Lakes.  I fear there will not be many more like it this year and even with the 80+ degree temps, the water was pretty cool for a swim at the start. 

For the first time ever, I did an open water swim alone.  For whatever reasons, all of the people who said they would be there, weren’t.  I debated bailing on the swim and just running, but I couldn’t.  I really wanted the swim and know my open water days are numbered, so I put on my wetsuit and cap and went it alone (sorry Lise). 

There were demons in the water.  Not real ones, of course… But those of my own creation.  Shaped like crocodiles, Jaws, giant fish and dragons. I think Nessie even made an appearance.  For a 40+ year old man to have such thoughts is a bit embarrassing, but it was a fear I needed to face.  It’s easy to rationalize and throw logic at these fears when you are standing on the shore looking out at them.  It’s when you get in that the real fight begins.  I fought panic a couple of times, especially when I heard what sounded like large bubbles just to the left of me.  It was nothing.  Just my arm entering the water at not quite the same angle.  To help me focus, I really tried to concentrate on form.  While I was out there, it really didn’t feel like it helped.  Funny thing is, I swam the distance a full minute faster…

I’ve never panicked in the water.  I’ve been uncomfortable quite a few times.  Either at my own accord or at the hands (and feet) of others.  But of the two, I think I would rather be crashing, banging and unintentionally high fiving a pack of triathletes, rather than swimming alone.  The sun was setting and the trees cast shadows that were cold and dark.  I knew where the shore was at all times since the lake is narrow, but all I wanted to do was get back to the car.

When I was done I felt silly and a bit ashamed.  The biggest real monster I saw was about a 2lb. bass.  Tasty… but not really all that scary.  This whole triathlon thing seems to be about me facing fears.  Fear of injury (correction: RE-injury), self doubt, fear of the water, fear of crashing.  And, whether fortunately or unfortunately, I seem to have confronted them all this year.  Next year I will push the boundaries a bit.  Longer distances, more challenging races, perhaps…

Once my heart rate came back down below 300 from my adrenaline filled walk on water, I decided to reward/punish myself with a longer run than usual.  The park was fairly empty and the weather was perfect.  After such a self-induced, heart pounding swim, the run seemed almost too mundane.  The leaves are just starting to turn in central Missouri and the forest is thinning with the season.  It was fun to see deeper into the woods.  The wind picked up for the first time (without the aid of a thunderstorm) this fall and the early turners were falling en masse.  I forgot about pace and technique and just ran.  The sun was warm but the wind was cool.  I was sad when it was over.  And I was tired…  I have such a long way to go…

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