Heywood with the race report:

This past week, Heywood attended two stages of the tour of California with that guy called Dave and a newcomer named Big Cat. Tuesday, we arrived at the finish line for stage two in Sacramento to watch the pros battle it out for the victory. Before the race, I was able to take in some of the scenery and talk to a few old friends of mine. First things first. I had to get a picture with my sponsors. Floyd tried to explain to me the intricacies of his hip surgery. This is the same procedure my grandmother got when she turned 81. Shorty after the conversation with the Mennonite, some people in white lab coats came and took him away while yelling "wee, wee!"

JJ pulled out another win for team CSC. Nice work!

Wednesday was on to Wood's old stopping ground for the start of Stage 3. Was able to have a chat with some old friends while visiting the hood.

Michael Rasmussen and Wood formed a plan for him to shed some extra pounds. Also, he complained about feeling under the weather. After our talk, I weighed his bike to make sure it was legal. 15.3 lbs.

Got a chance to hang out with my old pal Bjarne Riis. “Let him spread his wings” I told him regarding Jens Voigt. “This is his day to shine.” About time he listened to Heywood.

OK, Al will formulate one batch of homemade beer to the person who can guess the identity of this man. Hint: He was a cyclist a few decades ago. Very comical character.

Hey Bobby.

The world champ, Paolo Bettini.

My father getting interviewed by ABC news. They wanted to know all about Heywood and his bicoastal friends.

Over all, this has been a wonderful tour and we still have one day remaining. All are welcome to come join Heywood next year and follow the whole race. Any takers?

Reviv-AL

Al, On Antibiotics and Recovering Slowly, Contemplates Multisport

It seems mi compadres (Fred and Woody) are doing a lot of nothin' on the ole blog. So I'll carry the weight for a while here. I've been on my ass for the last 9 days, taking antibiotics and decongestants, so what else do I have to do? Boy these meds kick the crap out of you. I've been falling asleep at 9 pm.

Anyway, yesterday was eventful and got me FIRED up again for the tri season. I went out to the bike shop to be fitted on my new tri bike. (Check our link for Kreb Cycle...they kick ass!) As I mentioned in an earlier post, I got a Cervelo P2SL. It is kitted out with a mix of Ultegra and Dura Ace. And the package came with a set of Bontrager Race Lite wheels. I plan to use these for training, and I got a sweet set of Zipps for Race Day. The zipps are tubs, 530 in the front and a 440 rear. Back to the bike shop...I spent about an hour with Chris from Kreb. He's a Serotta dealer and does a lot of high end bike work, and he really amazed me with his knowledge about fit and proper form etc. I learned a ton in just a couple of hours with him.

The fit involved a ton of different measurements and a good deal of analysis and readjustment as I pedaled away on the trainer. (It also involved putting this expanding "fit stick" under my nuts and letting it stretch and press my jewels. I don't think this has anything to do with the fit; I figure it's a fun way for the fit guy to have a laugh at my expense.) Chris noticed right away a problem in my form. (A bit of background: I have very little bike experience. I swam in college and was a marathon runner for about the last 12 years. I only started biking about 2 years ago.) He noticed a tightness in my hammys that translated into a footstroke that was very heel high. I've been pedaling with way too much calf and not really utilizing my quads effectively. This is something I need to work on and be aware of. Additionally, I've had my set up geared towards that sort of ride. He's set me up a good deal lower than I am used to. I felt the difference immediately. All you bike guys and gals are prolly saying, "elementary, Al, you putz" (or something similar). All this is new for me, and I'm psyched. I'm thinking that as I learn, I will improve. Cool.

Well, that's all. I'll leave you with this vid, to show you where my mind is at:

Logic-AL

This one was just to splendid to pass up. It reminds me of the lecture I give my students on drinking and driving / driving in inclement weather / driving late at night / driving on New Years etc:

Try to double or even triple the speed limit wherever possible. This will dramatically reduce your "road time" and make it far less likely that you will have an accident or get pulled over. It's all about exposure time!

Drunk Driver In The Zone

Perpetu-AL

Al is sick again, as reported.
Well, Dr. visit and x-ray confirm that I have another sinus infection. (Or maybe the same one from two months ago.) SHIT! I'm on meds again and feeling like crap. I'm also a bit concerned that I might slap on a few pounds with all this sickness downtime. Maybe I'll take up dancing.

Moveitfred's Weekend Workout...

Roborant for Al

Al, you and Moveitfred completely missed the tonic to cure all ills: a stay out in Cali and attendance at that little ol' bike race they got going on.


Care for a free brochure?

How about joining Moveitfred's pal Thor for some hors d’oeuvres and libations with the ladies?


















It's the land where angels fly...

Disgrunt-AL

Al is not happy. I'm sick again. The last three months have just been a nightmare for me with sickness. Around Thanksgiving, I came down with a cold and it seems like I just can't kick it. Around x-mas, I was on antibiotics, and it seemed like I was on the mend. Then I was down with another and another. It's driven me to the point where I'm taking significant time off from training to heal up (I know, you're saying no duh!) This is something I NEVER do. But I just can't seem to get well, even with rest. I was sick a couple weeks back. I took 10 days off, and I seemed to be back in the game. I worked out just 4 days this last week, and I'm congested and headachy and weak again. WTF!?! I've got two little ones in pre-school, and they seem to be sniffling and coughing pretty frequently. They bounce right back though. (I'm sure they are passing all this nonsense along to me.) Anyway, I'm losing my marbles here. At times, I think I've just got to rest more and let myself heal. But then there is that inner voice that that screams, "courage and determination! Get out there!" Here's a little courage and determination for ya.