Monday, July 29, 2013

2nd Tri of the Season - Boulder Peak Triathlon

Wow, this post is way overdue.  I apologize sincerely for the tardiness.

The Boulder Peak Triathlon is an Olympic Triathlon.  Involving a ridiculous climb up Olde Stage Road, where you gain over 1000 feet of elevation in about 1.4 miles, it's a tough tri to say the least.  The ride through the foothills near Boulder gives some spectacular views of nature.  Last year, I saw a red fox crossing the road.  So while it's a tough tri, it has some good things about it.

This year, I felt better prepared for it then last year.  I hadn't done any serious climbing to train, but overall, I thought I'd be okay.

Race Morning
By now, you all know our pre-race morning.  I made my egg and toast to eat in the car, grabbed a cup of coffee to go, and off we went.  4 am, we were out the door.  Transition opened at 5 am, and we wanted to be there when it opened.  Traffic was light, the morning was somewhat cool, and unlike last year, it wasn't raining.  Already the day was looking up.

We got there by 4:45 am, and they were strict about waiting to open until 5 am.  We waited behind perhaps 10 people, so while we weren't first, we were close.  I figured I'd get the best spot on the rack.  No such luck this race.  The dude directly in front of me grabbed it.  So I grabbed the 2nd best, and he and I had a good laugh about it.  Such is this sport, I guess.


Set up my transition area nice and quick, then the killing time ritual began.  We wanted to get into the open water early again, since both T and I wanted a long warmup.  

We both swam 3 loops to warm up.  We both know where our swimming is at right now; with little open water experience so far this year, the swim was going to be what it was.  I figured I was going to do pretty well, so I lined up in the 31:00-33:00 corral this time around.  

When it came time to run under the arch, I didn't hesitate.  I led the group into the water.  I dolphin-dove into it, and my race began.

The Swim
Unlike the Boulder Sprint Triathlon, this swim was much clearer and cleaner.  The bodies weren't around me constantly; I wasn't swimming over people the whole time.  I found open space for a lot of the swim, and enjoyed myself.  I felt I was moving through the water well.

I started feeling a bit fatigued when I made the turn around the buoy to come back in, so I dialed it back a bit.  This was the only time where the swim got a bit crowded, but it wasn't too big of a deal.  I was tempted to look at my watch to see how I was doing, however, last year, that was a cardinal sin that made me panic.  So I refused.

When I hit the shore, I looked at my time and wasn't thrilled with what I saw.  I knew I was swimming a bit slower to conserve energy, but I didn't think it was that slow.  With some time to make up, I hurried into transition to get to my bike.

Swim time - 33:37

T1
T1 went really smooth.  I was out and on my bike pretty quickly.  The mount line was jammed up and I very nearly lost it.

T1 time - 2:41

The Bike
The ride out of the res and up the J to Olde Stage is a chance to spin your legs, hydrate, and mentally prepare for a very difficult climb.  I took full advantage and didn't go out nearly as hard as I did in the sprint.  

Making the turn to Olde Stage, I forced a waffle down my gullet and breathed in as much O2 as I could.  The climb loomed.

When I started climbing, I struggled, as did everyone around me.  I saw 3 people walking their bikes.  People were breathing hard, doing what they had to do to ensure they could make it to the top.  I was no different.  I barely looked at my cyclometer, but when I saw it, it was 2-3 mph.  I made it eventually to the water station, where I refilled my aero bottle with Perform.  Then eventually made it to the very top, and prepped myself for the descent.

After you climb Olde Stage, nearly the entire course is downhill.  After being limited to 35 mph on the back of Olde Stage, you can throw down the hammer for nearly the entire ride.  However, shortly after bombing the hill down, the pack I was in slowed to a near crawl.  There was an ambulance there and a rider who was unconscious.  It shook a lot of us up, but I recovered and moved on.

Turning back onto 36 for a short bit, then onto Nelson Road.  Nelson Road allows a great deal of speed.  In our practice ride, we averaged nearly 30 mph on it.  However, knowing I had the run still, I pulled it back to about 24.  This not only saved my legs, but was still really quick.

Getting back into the res, I felt pretty good about my bike.  I felt strong and ready for the run.

Bike Time - 1:23:24

T2
I guess I was due for a bad transition.  I forgot my hat and had to turn around and go get it.  

T2 time - 2:53

The Run
My run was anticipated to be a lot better than last years time.  Last years run was hot, humid, and very unpleasant.  This year it wasn't too hot yet, the wind was down, and certainly very little humidity.

Mile one was quick, about 9:20.  Again, I need to learn how to pace, do I not?

Mile two was slower, but I was still doing sub-10.

Mile three and four were really blah.  Grinding.  I started to falter a bit; the lack of distance training catching up to me.  I was also chafing badly in my tri suit.  Why oh why didn't I body glide???  I chatted with T briefly; she was hurting but doing okay.

Somewhere short of mile 5, I overheard two runners talking and just enjoying conversation.  I picked it up a bit to catch up to them.  An older guy and a girl just going back and forth, talking about nothing and everything.  I was quiet, but just enjoyed hearing them talk.  And I found I was able to run better with them.  Seems I had found "running buddies".

Eventually the older guy dropped back and the girl and I talked nearly all the way to the finish.  The last mile and a half flew by and was quite pleasant.  She was my savior that day, and I thanked her for getting me in.  She wished me luck at Arizona and we agreed we'd say hi at 70.3.

I crossed the finish line smiling and proud.

Run time - 1:06:18

Post-Race
I was happy with my finishing time.  3:08:53.  A dramatic improvement over last year.  I ran back into transition to grab T's camera; I wanted to get a shot of her finishing.  Unfortunately right when she came down the chute her camera shut off and no shot was taken.  Sad day.

We grabbed some post-race food and didn't stick around too long; we hustled back down to Denver, grabbed lunch, and went home to collapse after a good race for both of us.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Race #5 of the Season: 5i50 Boulder Peak Triathlon

Oh Boulder Peak, I hate you.

This race report really starts the week before. Our friend Mike was in town. He likes hills and we wanted to pre-ride the course anyway, so we did. Stage, a bitch anyway, really hurt that day. It quite possibly killed my lungs and my legs ... and they were still recovering days later.

That ride was Wednesday the 3rd. The 5th, we went for a ride in Cherry Creek State Park and I could not climb worth a crap. I usually kill Brandon on a lot of those hills - he destroyed me that day. The 7th and 8th were trainer days and I finally started getting a little life in my legs on the 8th. After that, I didn't ride again until the 13th, the day before, in a pre-race shakeout ... and I brought the Team Baby Dino mascots along:

kidlet_bike
So cute ...

Then came race day.

Started out like usual - packed up the night before, woke up early, ate breakfast, got hydration together, drove up to get to the reservoir before transition opened. It paid off, too, as once again, I got first on my rack:

peak

I was not feeling good that morning - highly unsettled. My pre-race pooping wasn't going well, I felt fairly nauseous ... I just did not feel good. Brandon thought maybe I should not toe the start line that day, but I figured I'd try to race anyway.

I ate my peanut butter bread as we left transition and walked down to get in a pre-race swim; the two combined I think helped me feel a bit better and definitely better enough to race.

The Swim:

Swim was in the same format as the sprint, but in two minute increments (I did 39:00-41:00) and with a longer break between waves. Overall, I actually felt pretty good. I felt like I was moving well and tried to focus on not slowing down.

I did feel a slight scratching at the back of my neck - I was fiddling with my wetsuit a lot pre-race trying to make my neck feel not so choked (side effect of me feeling unsettled) and must not have reattached the Velcro properly - and tried to adjust it once, but for the most part, said "screw it" and kept swimming. Yeah, not a smart idea:

neck_chafe

Baaaad chafing that made me cry horribly in the shower that night. I've never had to BodyGlide the back of my neck before, but I may have to start. Boo.

In any case, out of the water and up to transition.

Time: 41:04 (rate: 2:45/100m; 1161st overall; 78th division)

T1:

In, out, etc. Didn't bother to check the neck.

Time: 2:36

The Bike:

I knew this ride was going to hurt. I also knew that it would be a slightly less-drawn out pain, as the bike course for Peak, like the sprint, was going to be cut short due to construction. So, instead of the typical 42K, it was going to be 23.3 mi. Slightly annoying when one likes to compare race results to previous years, but eh.

I could also tell early on that the bike was NOT going to go well. I was in granny gear much earlier than I should have been. The turn on to ... Broadway? was just as painful as it was the Wednesday previous when we did the pre-ride. I had to stop to breathe a few times - my lungs still felt so trashed.

As a result ... when I got to the super-steep part of Stage, I said "screw it" this year, decided to swallow my pride and stubbornness and just walk. I've been so proud that I haven't had to walk up the hill the past few years like so many others, but this year, I decided instead of struggling to climb back on the bike and risk falling over again (and doing a cartwheel like I did on the pre-ride or risk breaking the bike like I did last year), I'd just walk ... and in doing so, keep moving at the very least.

So I did. And climbed back on just before I reached the top of the bad part. I tried to get a water bottle from the aid station, but that was a fail after several missed handoffs.

I kept going in a fairly small chain ring up until the very, very top of Stage and the speed zone. Down the hill, did fairly well with cornering and finally felt better on the bike until the turnoff to Nelson Road. I stayed fairly well in the 30mph range on Nelson - couldn't crack 40 like on the pre-ride, though; a bit more wind probably helped with that - and then got demoralized again on 63rd. I remembered why I hate 63rd - it's not the part of it you ride during the sprint; it's the part you ride during the Oly. Ugh.

The turnoff was uneventful and it was back into transition.

Time: 1:34:02 (rate: 14.9 mph; rank: 1129th overall; 71st division)

T2:

Sprayed some sunscreen on and used TriSlide instead of BodyGlide on the feet - worked well, I think.

Time: 2:21

The Run:

Took the first bit really easy; partially because I realized my pretty MX12 kit was chafing under the arms a bit. This also meant that I did the entire run course with an awkward arm swing to avoid chafing as much as possible. The first mile aid station was fantastic - ice water and orange Perform with ice in it - SO GOOD. This also made me happy because I know they serve orange Perform at IMAZ ... so good to know I can drink it on the course and be fine.

I ran into Brandon right after the mile two marker; he looked like he was doing great. I was doing ... okay. It was hot and the awkward stride was, well, awkward.

Right after the turnaround, I kept going back and forth with a guy in a Timex kit and a below-the-knee prosthetic. He said I was looking good; I said kind of; we exchanged pleasantries but for some reason, it really picked me up. After the mile four marker, a similar thing happened - during one of my run stints, I complimented a woman on her tri kit - it was flowery and awesome. Not too long after I passed her, I had to walk again. She said that there was no way I could pass her with that much speed and then start walking, so I started running again at a slower pace and we chatted a bit. I ended up pulling away for good, but once again, I received a nice pick up from it.

Like the sprint, I felt somewhat stronger as the run went on and finished with a sprint - barely, pretty much collapsing on some barriers after getting my medal and taking off my chip. Once I recovered somewhat, I waited around the finish line before getting food to thank my two race angels who helped motivate me through the run.

Time: 1:06:34 (rate: 10:45/mi; 1085th overall; 69th division)

Overall Stats:
Time: 3:26:37
74/88 division (F30-34)
379/461 female
1123/1263 overall

And as with the sprint, distances are different, but let's play the comparison game:

This year:
Swim: 41:04; 2:45/100m
T1: 2:36
Bike: 1:34:02; 14.9 mph
T2: 2:21
Run: 1:06:34; 10:45/mi
Overall Time: 3:26:37

2012:
Swim: 42:20; 2:50/100m
T1: 3:25
Bike: 1:45:31; 14.8 mph
T2: 2:49
Run: 1:07:01; 10:49/mi
Overall Time: 3:41:06

2011:
Swim: 42:47
T1: 3:46
Bike: 1:41:49
T2: 2:44
Run: 1:10:41
Overall Time: 3:41:07

As with the sprint, we can tell my swimming is finally paying off somewhat as I chopped 1:20 off my swim from last year and almost two minutes from 2011. I'm still not as fast in open water as my pool times are indicating and I'm hoping those two times will merge at some point this year (preferably November, of course).

I chopped a whole minute off of T1. No idea how that happened.

My bike was 11 minutes faster - seven minutes faster than 2011 - and yet I still think that I could have been a lot faster. I was .1 mph faster than last year and, given my course pre-ride, I know that I could have been better. Like the swim, I don't believe my bike in this race is truly indicative of where my abilities are right now.

T2 was 20 seconds shorter. Woot.

The run, while it felt like it went a lot better, it was only four seconds per mile faster and 30 seconds faster over all. It was also a lot hotter this year than last, so I'll take it.

Most importantly, I finally cracked 3:30 in an Oly. Yes, shortened bike, whatever, but I feel like on a less stupid course (one without a nasty f'ing hill in the first 8 miles of the bike), I could pull off the same feat with a faster bike average. I truly believe that my performance in both the bike and the swim is not indicative of what I can actually do right now.

I also have to keep reminding myself that my main race is in November. This is the equivalent of doing early season racing, like Chilly Cheeks. I have nowhere to go but up. I have to believe this, and I do.

That, and if I ever want to do really well in this race, I'm going to have to specifically train for the sucker. Grr.

Monday, July 22, 2013

Week Twenty-Nine: 7/15-7/21

And, following along, week #3 of IM training.

Monday, July 15: Off: planned
- Post-Peak fatigue as well as horrible chafing kind of forced my hand ... or would have, had we not scheduled this as off.

Tuesday, July 16: Run: 3.32 mi in 32:38 - 9:48/mi
- Run CO pub run
- Garmin distances are slightly different
- Considered doing a few miles beforehand, but legs/lungs said aw hell no. Legs definitely sore from Peak.

Wednesday, July 17: Swim: 2000m in 45:53.97 - 2:16/100m
- 4x100m, 3x400m (1,3 w/pb), 4x100m (last 100m back/breast)
- set designed on the fly
- can't just swim anymore - need a plan!
Cycle: 1.73 mi in 9:43; avg cad 58; 10.68 mph
- 24.1 mph max
- aborted ride - flats
- Two, three weeks in and we already can't do a swim without having a plan first. WTF? Ride was a fail for many reasons.

Thursday, July 18: Walking: ~20:00
- post-dinner stroll
- Mental and physical break. Not happy with needing to take this essential day off, but definitely at peace with it. Have to make sure this is sustainable, right?

Friday, July 19: Bike: 26.37 mi in 1:42:07; avg cad 73; 15.49 mph
- 29.4 mph max
- CCSP to Cherry Creek trail and CC mall and back
- made sure to not push this too hard
Swim: 2400m in 54:31.87 - 2:16/100m
- MX12 Elevators - beginner
- set flew by, relatively speaking
- most of the hard 50s were between 55-57 seconds
- Hell of a day. Ride may have been slow, but it was purposeful and didn't want to feel toast at the end. Swim was late, but got it in and I'm glad - loved the set. Gonna be sore tomorrow ...

Saturday, July 20: Run: 8 mi in 1:24:45 - 10:35/mi
- Run CO Saturday run
- took it out too fast ... as usual
- got hot; tried to take it easy; faded at end
- Feet hurt slightly after this one ... Run wasn't bad. Probably would have done slightly better on a different course - hate Willow Creek trail.

Sunday, July 21: Bike: 33.15 mi in 2:03:34; avg cad 77; 16.1 mph
- 30.3 mph max
- CCSP to CC trail to Monaco and home
- not dead after which is good
Stretching: 10:00
- shoulders, shoulders, shoulders
- Long ride today went better than Fridays, which is a good sign. SFW mid-ride - good idea. Stretching was long overdue.

As Brandon said, shit got real this week. Time and mileage keeps creeping up. Granted, we are cramming for Boulder 70.3, but hey.

Weekly training time: 8:04:13
Weekly training mileage: 75.30 mi
Yearly training time: 128:42:13
Yearly training mileage: 990.65 mi

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Week Twenty-Eight: 7/8-7/14

A.K.A. week #2 of IM training. Also, super late with this.

Monday, July 8: Bike: 19.40 mi in 1:00:02; avg cad 89; 19.39 mph
- 38.1 mph max
- MX12 over-unders w/ extended wu and cd
- I think I need to clean my chain ...
- Starting to get some life back in these legs - MUCH better ride than either Friday or yesterday. Wahoo!

Tuesday, July 9: Run: 6.45 mi in 1:03:16 - 9:48/mi
- three loop DTC course and then Run CO pub run
- a lot faster than I was expecting
- hot to start; windy and spitting rain to end
- first run with Garmin!
- This was essentially two runs back-to-back, but it was easier to keep it as one. We've gotten to the point where just the pub run isn't enough, sadly.

Wednesday, July 10: Off: Life
- Planned a ride and wanted to wait until Brandon got home but it got way too late. So, we decided to shift our off day from Friday to today.

Thursday, July 11: Swim: 2000m in 44:03.23 - 2:12/100m
- 4x100m, 2x(16x25m, 200m hard)(3 hard, 1 easy), 4x100m
- I can't sprint worth a goddamn
- also can't take a week off swimming
- my arms hurt
Run: 3.48 mi in 37:58 - 10:54/mi
- random route - YAY GARMIN
- first mile went well ... then the legs died. and my butt got iffy
- EASY run for a change
- Swim kicked my ass. Run was not good, but eh. Started raining on us and got poured on us as we finished.

Friday, July 12: Off: decision/planned
- This was our original off day, but we decided to shift it and Wednesday's bike around. Unfortunately, leg and body fatigue said that was a bad idea. Definitely taught us the lesson that if you miss workouts in IM training, you have to let them go.

Saturday, July 13: Swim: 400 yds in 9:33.53 - 2:23/100m
- two loops at Boulder Res - one better than the other
Bike: 4.25 mi in 20:16; avg cad 69; 12.58 mph
- 24.7 mph max
- around DTC
Run: .63 mi in 6:41.1 - 10:36/mi
- around the neighborhood
- Just getting the legs moving for Peak tomorrow

Sunday, July 14: Triathlon: Boulder Peak in 3:26:37
- 1.5K swim in 41:04 - 2:43/100m
- 23.3 mi bike in 1:34:02 - 14.87 mph; avg cad 78; 35.7 mph max
- 10K run in 1:06:34 - 10:43/mi
- T1 in 2:36, T2 in 2:21
- Chafed badly - poor neck. Stronger in the second half of the run again. Well, it's a PR, but it wasn't the way I wanted it. Totally not indicative of what I believe I can do right now.

Another week of learning lessons, and a race that I'm convinced if I'm ever going to do well in, I'm gonna have to specifically train for the damn thing.

Weekly training time: 7:23:30
Weekly training mileage: 66.10 mi
Yearly training time: 120:38:00
Yearly training mileage: 915.35 mi

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Race #4 of the Season: Lone Tree Liberty Dash

I've been putting off this recap because I was not happy with this race. This is the old neighborhood 5K, it was my first race ever. It's also one of the hardest courses I've ever done.

I had the Fourth of July off this year and our friend Mike was in town, so the three of us decided to run it. We woke up early, drove to my parents' house, walked down to the park to register, registered and then walked back to the house to eat some breakfast. After some eggs and oj, we jogged down to the park as a warm up and then started stretching ... and took some photos.

liberty_dash
Brandon and Mike.

liberty_dash2
The three of us.

The kids fun run went off and then it was time for us to line up.

liberty_dash3

liberty_dash4
Aaaand we're off!

The first mile is all uphill. The trail we start out on is actually behind my brother's house and he must have heard the race hubbub and come out on his back porch, as we saw him running and we waved at each other.

I actually wore calf sleeves for this race as my legs were trashed from riding up Stage as were my lungs (and my lungs still are, if i'm being honest). The lungs hurt badly on that first hill.

Mile one? Felt slow. I know it was over 10 ... Soon after, I also started getting gastro issues. Most of mile two to the finish I really wanted to poop. All runners know that when that happens ... the run typically goes downhill. In this case, it was literal and metaphorical, as the last mile of the race is all downhill.

Not soon enough, I came rolling to the finish:

liberty_dash5

And moments behind me (you can see him in the white in my photo), Brandon:

liberty_dash6

Right after the finish, I booked it to a porta-potty. Ugh, misery.

Final Stats:
Time: 30:22
Pace: 9:48/mi
Overall Rank: 134/287
Gender Rank: 42/143
Division Rank: 5/18 (F20-29)

Second fastest time on this stupid course. I've cracked 30 on this course only once ... and will probably never do it again unless the stars align perfectly.

Stupid race.

The Rolling Stone Cover Controversy

Normally, this blog doesn't get political.  Although you all know my view on politics and government, I try to keep them out of my posts.  This one, however, will dig deep.  So if you are the easily offended type, click here and you can head on out.

On the majority of issues that face us, I am open minded.  I will generally listen to the other side of the viewpoint, and while I usually don't change my stance, it has happened.  A couple weeks ago, we went to a same-sex wedding.  Up until that point, I was uncomfortable with the idea of gay marriage.  Not because of religious reasons; I feared it would be a slippery slope.  However, seeing two people who clearly love each other, who are no different then me and T, well let's just say it changed my stance. 

However, this issue, the Rolling Stone cover issue, that's one I refuse to bend an inch on.

For those of you who are not sure what I'm talking about, I'll quick fill you in.

Rolling Stone, the music and cultural magazine, is featuring Boston bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on its cover.  The picture of him is not one of a troubled man, or a mug shot, or him lying in a boat surrounded by Boston police.  No, the picture of him is a cool, hip, young man, looking into the camera with a slightly smug look.  A hipster, suave and composed.  Looking at it, if you were clueless about this tragedy that struck in April, you'd think he was an up-and-coming lead singer, or maybe a DJ.  You wouldn't dare think he was a terrorist who killed 3 people, wounded hundreds of others, caused irreparable damage, and struck fear in the hearts of the athletic community all over America.

The controversy isn't with the article itself.  I don't care this this magazine, which has billed itself in recent years as less of a music magazine and more of a political magazine that calls out Republicans and right-wing policies, wrote an article about the Boston bomber.  I don't care.  What I care about is that they are featuring him on the cover like some sort of rock star.  Like some sort of cool kid.  I won't link to the picture out of principle, but take a look and judge for yourself if this picture is accurate of what I am saying.

David Draiman, the lead singer of Disturbed, called out the magazine, saying it can "go to hell" after featuring this man on the cover.  Other musicians have joined in with him saying similar things.  It's pretty clear that featuring this terrorist on their cover has upset the general public, and rightly so.  He created terror!  He killed people!  He wrote in the boat "Fuck America".  And yet this magazine featured him on the cover!

Now, here's where we're at this morning.  A friend who reads this blog created quite the stir the other night by saying he would have to read the article before he made a judgement on Rolling Stone magazine.  I reminded him that I wasn't making a judgement on the article; I was judging the decision to feature him like a rock star on the cover.  After bantering back and forth and feeling like an episode of CNN's Crossfire, I asked him bottom line did he feel the cover was wrong.  He said no, he did not.  He said all he saw was a kid.  He didn't see a terrorist.

To me, that says a lot.  

You see, on April 15th, those of us in the running community had our lives changed.  Altered.  The rules changed.  Races were no longer safe.  A place of escape, a place where athletes gather to achieve great things, suddenly were under attack.  The phrase "is nothing sacred?" gets thrown around a lot, but in this case, it's true.  Running and races are, to the community, sacred things.  Escape.  Zen.  Use whatever word you want, but it's reality, people.  Even non-runners who have a connection to the city of Boston were affected.  While not on the same scale as the 9/11 terrorist attacks, this was personal.  It was deep.  Days after the race, Boston Strong entered our lexicon.  Much as "we will never forget" became a tagline after 9/11, and "support the troops" came into play in 2003 for the Iraq/Afghanistan wars, Boston Strong was a symbol of our unwavering support for the city of Boston, and the running community.  It meant numerous things, and yet, tied it all together into one simple thing: we will not be afraid.  We will not stand for terrorism.  You cannot scare us.  Your bombs hurt, but cannot stop us.  You saw the support across the country, with runs for Boston, wristbands, and shirts that said "Colorado Runners for Boston".  

I was at the Boston Marathon in 2012 cheering my dear friend Kris on, who was running Boston for the first time.  It was hot.  It was humid.  A horrible day to have a marathon.  And yet, it was magical being there.  Camped out at mile 25, seeing athletes climb a hill, they were strong.  Healthy.  Most were in pain, having pushed themselves a ridiculous distance in sweltering conditions.  And yet, there was joy.  There was pride.  There was an amazing sense of accomplishment.  I remember distinctly a kid running near us, with a glassy look in his eyes.  He was out of it.  I gave him very clear instructions to put some ice on his head, drink some water, and keep going.  He didn't respond, but he did everything I said to do.  That's a connection right there.  That's experiencing the race.  That's what "Boston Strong" is all about.

And that's where the outrage at this magazine comes from.  To showcase this disgusting human being on the cover, to frame him like some sort of star.  It's horrid.  Inexcusable.  And if you are not outraged by this, I honestly have to question where your heart is.

Like I said earlier, I generally listen to both sides.  This issue though?  There is no other side.  Plain and simple, Rolling Stone glorified a terrorist.  And my outrage is not fake.

Monday, July 8, 2013

Week Twenty-Seven: 7/1-7/7

In which we enter official week #1 of Ironman training.

Monday, July 1: Stretching: 10:00
- butt, calves, kinda shoulders
- First official day of training ... and it is a personal choice of a stretch day. Love it. I'll enjoy it for now ...

Tuesday, July 2: Swim: 1400m in 30:18.06 - 2:09/100m
- 4x100m, 16x25m, 200m, 4x100m
- 3 easy, 1 hard in the 16
- 200 hard kicked my ass
- this was different and I liked that
Run: 3.07 mi in 28:43 - 9:19/mi
- Run CO pub run
- with Mike
- almost back to the 2011 pub run route
- This was a hell of a first day of training. The swim workout was a wonderful change ... and will be rough once we do it officially. New pub run route also a nice change.

Wednesday, July 3: Bike: 25.84 mi in 1:32:45; avg cad 78; 16.72 mph
- max 41.7 mph
- Boulder Peak course pre-ride
- fell over on Stage - bicycle cartwheel
- This was horribly, awful rough, legs hurt, yes, but oh dear god my lungs. Peak might be tricky ... maybe this pre-ride wasn't a good idea ...

Thursday, July 4: Run: Lone Tree Liberty Dash: 5K in 30:22 - 9:46/mi
- had to poop for most of this
- shitty
- Kinda hoping to stretch today, too, but didn't happen. Got some decent pre- and post-race walking in, though. As for the race ... 2nd fastest time on the course. Not particularly happy with it, but legs still trashed.

Friday, July 5: Swim: 1500m in 32:17.97 - 2:07/100m
- 30x50m
- BORING
- idea was to keep it steady; first 50 was 1:04 so a 2:08(7?) average is keeping it pretty damn steady
Bike: 14.99 mi in 55:21; avg cad 77; 16.25 mph
- 31.3 mph max
- My Way pre-ride with Mike
- can't climb anymore ...
- First day of training in a long while that I've hated. Swim was monotonous and I struggled mightily on the bike. Stupid crappy birthday workout ...

Saturday, July 6: Run: 4 mi in 41:58.42 - 10:29/mi
- Run CO Saturday run
- this week's training is in my legs
- painful and painfully slow
- Wanted to do six, but needed to go cheer Mike on in his du. This was a painful 4 miles. This has been a hell of a week of training so far ...

Sunday, July 7: Bike: 8.46 mi in 30:04; avg cad 84; 16.88 mph
- 27.2 mph max
- easy spin on the trainer
- I followed the "I'm tired, what should I do?" test ... and managed this. I worked out and I'm calling it good.

Probably should have been closer to 6.5, 6.75 hours this first week, but meh. We're combining two different plans - one from Triathlete magazine and another that we got from a friend. The Triathlete one is manageable, but won't get us ready for our 70.3 in a month. The plan from a friend ... well, let's just say it's for an experienced Ironman athlete, which we are not. However, it should help us prep better for said 70.3, so we're going with chunks of it. The only issue is that it has very few rest days, which we need due to scheduling and, if the way I'm feeling right now is any indication, we'll need for straight recovery.

Week one in the books, and I am tired and I am sore.

Weekly training time: 5:51:49
Weekly training mileage: 61.27 mi
Yearly training time: 113:14:30
Yearly training mileage: 849.25 mi

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Week Twenty-Six: 6/24-6/30

In which we get back into this crap.

Monday, June 24: Off: true day of rest
- While the stretch days are nice, I think physically and mentally, we need ACTUAL rest days. So like today, when we hung out by the pool for a bit, that was nice. Not officially ever taking a day off is ambitious and probably detrimental in the long run.

Tuesday, June 25: Run: 3.2 mi in 32:17.85 - 10:05/mi
- Lone Tree 5K course pre-run
- forgot how much those hills sucked
Lift: 24:00
- 3/12/70 leg curl; 3/10/12.5 bosu bicep curls; 3/10/6 med ball bosu tosses; 3/10 box jumps; 3/10 push-ups; 2/:60 planks
- quick and dirty
Run: 3.37 mi in 31:50.10 - 9:26/mi
- Run CO pub run
- busted a little ass on this - maybe pushed harder than i should
- hot ...
- This was a hell of a day in training. The two runs went surprisingly well - was it that way just because, or did the lift help as well? In any case, GREAT DAY.

Wednesday, June 26: Bike: 11.94 mi in 44:44; avg cad 76; 16.01 mph
- 33.3 mph max
- CCSP loop
- this hurt. a lot.
- I woke up very sore ... unsurprising, given yesterday's THREE workouts. But I got this in, even though in years (hell, months) past, I probably would have bagged it. Especially after my aero bottle bounced off and broke. Boo.

Thursday, June 27: Swim: 1600m in 36:41.74 - 2:17/100m
- 100m, 200m, 300m, 400m, 300m, 200m, 100m
- never got into a rhythm
- MUCUS! stupid mucus
- Had a treadmill workout scheduled, too, but we both decided that it wasn't necessary ... yet. Listened to our bodies on this one ...

Friday, June 28: Bike: 13.83 mi in 41:11; avg cad 93; 20.15 mph
- 38.0 mph max
- MX12 over-unders
- needed something quick
- This day was a disaster in terms of outside schedule factors - work that morning, wedding in the mountains that evening. But very glad I got this in, even though to me, it wasn't optional.

Saturday, June 29: Run: 6 mi in 1:02:56 - 10:29/mi
- Run CO Saturday run
- little slow ... fairly humid
- So damn exhausted when I woke up - really didn't want to be up that early to run - but I got up and I ran. Not the best or fastest, but I got out there, dangit. Amusing side note - later that afternoon, I was wondering what I did to workout - briefly thought I forgot ... and then I remembered oh yeah, you RAN 6 MILES this morning, idiot.

Sunday, June 30: Bike: 19.83 mi in 1:11:40; avg cad 85; 16.6 mph
- 37.4 mph max
- rollers near Aurora res
- legs never, ever liked me during this ride
- This was a rough ride - forgot how hard those rollers are. Still, glad to have experienced it and need to do it again.

Weekly training time: 5:45:21
Weekly training mileage: 59.16 mi
Yearly training time: 107:22:41
Yearly training mileage: 787.98 mi