Hello, sports fans. I am road kill today. I've got that "run down," lactic acid, monday morning blah feeling again. It seems counter-intuitive but I'm always beat up and looking for the license plate of the vehicle that got me on Monday mornings (counter-intuitive because Mondays are either an OFF day or a very light day in my schedule). But I know it makes sense. Mondays always follow 6 hard days of work. Mondays are the day that all the ache and acid can settle in. A light walk or a little spin usually sets me right. But right now--8 AM--I'm just working through a few cups of coffee and holding the head aloft with my other hand.
Last week was a good week for training. I swam about 4 miles, logged about 40 run miles, biked about 60, and got in 3 good weight circuits. I felt pretty good through all. Highlights were a brutal hill set on wednesday. This run was a two mile warm then a few miles worth of hill repeats. The hill I use is a 1/4 mile climb. I repeated this about 8 times: sprint uphill, jog down in between. It's a steep climb and is a serious beating. I had one nice open water swim on Tuesday, I think. I swam about a mile in the Great South Bay. It was late afternoon, no one on the beach really. I had the bay to myself 'cept for some distant boats. Yesterday, I did a 20m bike/ 6 m run brick. It was a good day. The bike leg was an out and back along the paved trail down to Jones Beach from Wantagh (with a few loops at the park to make up the extra distance). It was very windy on the way down to the beach. I could only hold about 13-15 mph though I was working hard. The way back was a real cruise though. I had the wind at the back and was cranking at 25 mph the whole way without much effort it seemed. Once back, I worked a tri transition. (As an aside: I recently purchased some tri-specific shoes. I've been beating the shit out of my SIDI's in my tri transitions. These bad boys cost me $250 and they are not right for tri anyway. So I got some cheap--$70--tri shoes with one velcro strap.) I had the shoes clipped into the bike, and I did 3 or 4 transitions getting on/off the bike to get used to this. The run was just 6 loops on the 1 mile course at Cedar Creek, Wantagh. This course is relatively flat with one rise. In all, a good brick.
Well, maybe I'll take that little walk now. The kids are scampering about my feet and the dog looks like he could use a break too. Maybe we'll all take a stroll. Sayonara.
9 comments:
I don't get the shoes on the pedal trick. At the duathlons I pass at least 6 people each time who are fumbling with their shoes, weaving around, looking down, and coming dangerouly close to amputating their toes with their bladed spokes. Put you friggin shoes on, RUN out of the transition, and do a proper cyclocross mount and off you go. The transistion is usually in some park anyway, so do you really want to run through a summer's worth of dog shit and piss? Ditto for T2. Style points for a proper 'cross dismount.
I've been working both ways. Up to now, I've been doing the cross mount and dis and running in shoes. But this really kicks the shit outta yer shoes and cleats and it is tough to do more than a weird heel trot. (Plus: My SIDIs were getting flat busted!) If you see the real pros do the T with shoes clipped in, it is so fluid and fast. They run fast in their socks and are "in" in a flash. However, you're 100% right about D-Bags like me who try this stuff at home. (I haven't been lucky enough to see a foot jammed into spokes, but I'll keep an eye out and check Youtube...yummy.) I'll keep practicing and see what I like better and which I do faster (the purpose of all this stupidity in the end).
I put MTB shoes/pedals on for the duathlons. Might not be so good for a longer one.
In theory, that sounds like a great idea. I've got a set of speedplay frogs that utilize a cleat that recesses and would allow for an almost normal run step. BUT the shoes wouldn't be too comfy (as you allude to). Too hot, and too heavy/chunky. That cleat/pedal mounted on the tri shoe might be an idea. Any thought on that?
hey solo...'nuther Q:
I just startted getting this "creaking" from my BB after the last tri. (I think it is the BB. It only happens when pedaling and comes from that area.) It was raining on the ride. I wiped down etc. but I wonder if H2O might have gotten in there and be causing that. Or if something else is going on. Is this common, this creaking? Any knowledge on this, senseii?
The creaking bottom bracket has been messing up man every since he crawled out of the ocean, I mean was created touched by the creator's noodly appendage and he learned to pedal. The newer and more expensive the BB is, the more likely it is to creak. I've had no experience with the "mega exo" or similar units with external bearings, but I know they creak too. There are really 3 kinds of BB creaking. The most serious is "crank about to fall off syndrome." Check the bolts that hold the crank on. New splined cranks need to be retorqued after a few miles. If you ride it loose, it will be junk. The second kind of creak is the bearing cups moving around in the frame. This is very common with aluminum and ti frames. You need to dissassemble everything, and liberally lube it up (Fred should be able to help with this) using quality synthetic grease or "never-seize." A&D ointment will do in a pinch, but never use KY or Vaseline, they are too thin for such a rough environment. The third kind of creak is what you allude too, bearings going south syndrome. Your bike is too new for this to happen, but since you bought it used, you never know. The POS in my bike only lasted 3000 miles. Check for problem number one before you ride the bike again.
On the shoes, I think if the event is too long to use MTB style shoes, then it's long enough to not worry about a few seconds getting in the pedals. If the transition is long, then by all means leave them on the pedals and run through the dog shit barefoot. I think if I were a tri specialist, I'd look for a road shoe/pedal setup with a recessed cleat. When is your next event?
The big event is 7/29. I may do a smaller tri this weekend.
Thanks for the BB tips. I'm going to get on it (and no Astro Glide).
For now, I'm going to race with the old school cross technique and practice the dog deuce stomp some more.
Gracias, Solo sage.
just a thought--the creaking BB is sometimes actually a creaking pedal. they need lube and love too--esp if you are running on them.
Thanks to Mega and Solo! I had the BB tightened (it is relatively knew and needed the adjustment) and lubed. I also had my peds greased. I do not have that little grease gun thingy for my Speedplays or I'd do it myself. Bike is cranking like a dream. Which is good as I'm planning on hanging with
the Hookers on Sunday morn.
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