One of my favorite charities...tied directly to biking

The Idaho Foodbank has an OUTSTANDING program where they give backpacks full of food to school kids to take home on Friday so they have something to eat during the weekend. It's not the kids' fault that mom or dad don't buy the kids food for whatever reason(s). Every kid out there deserves an opportunity to eat, it's that simple, and you can help. The Foodbank says that every dollar you give turns into ten dollars when they use it, based on their purchase prices versus retail prices that you and I would pay.

Anyway, there is an event in August here in Pocatello called Biking For Backpacks. A short bike ride provides food for a schoolkid and the backpack to carry it home.

Take a look at www.bikingforbackpacks.org.

30% off weight training book...take a peek while I write a race report!

While I'm writing a race report for the Pacific Crest Olympic Triathlon, take a peek at the Weight Training Routine for Olympic and Sprint Triathlon e-book at www.smashwords.com/books/view/26079.

Use Coupon Code WH58N to get it for $1.99 instead of $2.99 until July 27, 2011.

Quick summary of the race:

1. The extra bike miles went better than expected but hurt my run more than expected.
2. The heat got me on the last two miles (see also #1!).
3. The swim went really well.
4. Finished 41 of 504 total.
5. Finished 9th in 40-44 Males Age Group with a 2:40:40. That time would have got me 3d in th 35-39 age group....getting old sucks!  I just turned 40 last month.
6. Family trip went well and maintained the priority it needed. Tera even did the 5k, and her mom/aunts/sisters did half-marathon, 10k, and 5k races.  Kids had lots of fun.
7. Coming back was tough with the little guys tired of being in the car.

Full report in a couple of days.

Final Preps for Pacific Crest Olympic Tri

The day before the day is here! While others are doing the long course tri, marathon, or half marathon, I just finished my final preps for the olympic tri here in Sunriver, Oregon. The place is definitely beautiful, and I've seen the lake, bike course, and run course.

I did about 600 meters in the lake yesterday to op-check my wetsuit that hasn't been worn AT ALL yet this year. Yes, I'm going into this swim as the first OWS of the year other than 600 meters yesterday. We'll see how that goes. The water was 60 degrees, but it didn't feel cold at all. It felt significantly warmer than the Cache Valley Tri last year when my hands froze into a claw position. I'm not sure my feet won't be numb when I get out, but they should be ok.

The bike course looks great except the road is a bit rough. The long course road is a AWESOME smooth paved road. The oly course is chip-sealed and rough. I think I'll rattle my teeth out tomorrow! There are sections that are really smooth, but the majority is rough. I don't think there will be alot of wind because the course is lined by trees....very tall trees, the kind of tall trees that grow only in the Cascades. I think it will be cold on the bike, too.

I biked the run course last night. Three short but definitely-there hills. Otherwise mostly downhill somehow, at least the cruising on the bike felt like it was downhill. I'm excited about the run portion.

The weather is supposed to be really nice. Mid-seventies and sunny. Can't beat it.

Tomorrow is going to be great!

Good luck and be safe to everyone out on the course right now!

Sufferfest Video Sale!

Yeehaw!  15% off Sufferfest videos. Got this e-mail today........................

1x/year! 15% off videos.

New Wind & Rain vest pre-order sale!

My Dear Sufferlandrians,

15% off videos
Once a year, in the middle of the northern hemisphere Summer, we do a sale on our videos. This one starts right now. Get 15% off all Sufferfest videos until July 1st. Just use the code IHAVESUFFERED. Remember: Even in Summer, a 'fest a week keeps the pack away. http://www.thesufferfest.com

New Sufferfest Wind & Rain Vest
We're nearly out of our jersey and bibshorts, and now we're introducing our Sufferfest Wind & Rain vest. It's on pre-order sale now - just $59 USD (Regular: $69 USD) if you order before July 1st. It'll ship in September and includes FREE 'fest stickers. You can get it here: http://sufferfest.myshopify.com/products/sufferfest-wind-rain-vest

Last week before my "A" race

Push has come to shove. I can no longer influence my finish time for my "A" race this year (Pacific Crest Olympic Triathlon) by doing hard workouts. The time for that has come and gone. I'm one week away from race day. Any thoughts of hard or long workouts right now will decrease my chances at meeting my goals. I need to be resting. 

I don't know if "taper" is the right word for the rest period right before an Olympic distance triathlon. I'm basically just resting to get my legs back to 100%, shed all that fatigue. I will still do some very short and race-pace intervals, but they will be minimal overall effort. The idea is for my body to remember what race-pace is while not adding to any fatigue.

So, I wrote my race plan. I'm about half-way done. It's a bit more in-depth and detailed than I expected, but that's good because it helps me hold myself to my goals and let's me remember what I was thinking when I wrote out my goals. Some people will say that the goals should be written down at the beginning of the year, but I prefer to understand deep down that all the base and build training is simply leading up to the fastest that I can be, and writing down my goals for times is done best a week or so out when I know where I'm at physically and mentally. When I finish the race plan, I'll post it on a page for this blog.  I did write down training objectives based on my "A" race back in October or November, but I left out any specific times I want to get.

Tomorrow I organize. Wednesday I pack. I also have a race in the local hill climb series, but I'll be doing that simply as a participant to get the points....I missed the first one because of travel for work, and it killed me in the overall points standings.  I certainly won't be pushing hard on this race ride, and I have four days afterwards to shed that fatigue.

I'm excited and nervous about the race. I've never been there before, and I think it will be a nice family gathering.

Bike rack review and thoughts and Results of the Duathlon Great Experiment

Two points in this post: Quick thoughts on Feedback Sports A-Frame Event Bike Stand and the results from tonight's grand experiment at the local club duathlon race.

Have you ever wondered about getting your own bike stand? I saw one at the local bike/tri club race series tonight. Built by Feedback Sports, this bike stand is rated at eight bikes racked by the saddle. Tonight, it seemed that six would be the max for any race event; eight seems fair if you're taking your time to put the bikes in place neatly.  It was quite sturdy, taken down by one guy in about two minutes (that I saw, might have been quicker), and then put into a great looking, durable carrying case.  Anyway, it's a great piece of gear if this is what you are looking for!

Experiments can be useful in validating race strategy, but it's hard to find the right time and conditions to try them. I find it difficult to experiment wildly out of my norm during a race I paid for because it just seems like paying to suffer isn't my idea of fun; paying to go slow while following a plan is doable, though.  And tonight's race was my chance to experiment with an all-out effort on the bike to see what would happen on the run because it's a no-kidding race and it's free (so easier to deal with if it goes horribly wrong).

Tonight's course was the regular 10k bike (5k out and back) followed by a short 1.5 mile run (originally 3 mile, changed to 1.5mile for whatever reason I don't know). Sunny and windy, and at least it wasn't freezing cold...somewhat warm in fact.

Anyway, I beat my previous times for this year by about a minute but still slower than last year's best, and I think the wind has everything to do with that. I went all out on the bike, with average heart for 10k bike at 164 versus last years 40k bike average heart rate of 152. The heart rate of 164 matches the all out efforts from the previous two races.

After a quick transition, I sprinted out to start the race, and I immediately blasted to heart rate of 174. Wow! I didn't know that was even possible outside of doing the Alpha Killer / Ass Kicker hill workout.  That effort didn't last long, and I backed off after a couple minutes, and then backed off again after a couple more minutes until I finally settled in at at a hard pace and heart rate of 162ish. From there I started building faster until finishing strong with a heart rate of 164, right where my average was last year during the 10k runs of an olympic race.

So, tonight's experiment was a success. I learned that I can't bust it all out on the bike and then sprint out of T2 and expect to run well. Best to keep a good, hard effort on the bike and then set a cruise pace right out of T2 and build to finish...pretty much my tactics from last year, but this year I can push just a bit harder right out of T2.

It was a great day to be riding and running!

Interesting data tracker.

Infographic Of The Day: Ben Fry's TriTRACK Simplifies Triathlon Training | Co.Design

I haven't looked at this beyond the FasyCompany review. I'm just sharing the link right now. I wonder how easy it is to import data from other applications?

Tera is back at it.

Tera did the second 5k of the Pocatello Fun Run series yesterday, and me and the boys cheered her on. Funny how she can turn our weekend trips for a tri race into a flawless family trip over three days and a couple hundred miles, and I was five minutes late getting to the her run course only 50 yards from the house.

The Simple Ways to Sabatoge Your "A" Race

I've been busy with some travelling for work the past two or three weeks, and there was a holiday in there somewhere, too. Days fade into each other after too much rain. And there it is, the truth of the matter in two short sentences.

I have done more to sabotage my training plan for my "A" race than I could possibly imagine. None of it on purpose, of course. But all of it is my own doing.  

So, while running today (I have actually run my 10k loop three days in a row!), I came up with the first few of probably 7-10 ways that you, too, can sabotage your own race. Here are the first few. This is a look into my real world at this point.

1. Schedule your "A" race within three months of the birth of your child. This will do absolute wonders for everyone in your house. Of course, you prioritize the baby before your training and race (at least you should!), but the lost sleep and missed workouts start to creep into your conscious as something you wish wasn't your new norm. Then that piles onto the dumb comments you say while stressed out because the baby is screaming that awful "baby scream" for the last 15 minutes (hint: feed him, will work 90% of the time).  And then you have the car ride with a screaming baby and stops every 90 minutes for breastfeeding....I'm looking forward to making a ten hour ride into 14 hours.

2. Schedule your "A" race for June if you live in the Pacific Northwest and you don't like to ride in the rain or the cold. I can count this year's outside bike rides on my fingers at this point because of all the rain, wind, late winter conditions, and generally crap weather. So, when those conditions are outside, you can guarantee my bike is not outside. I can run in -20 with snow, but the minute it is cold, windy, and wet, I'm going to make it a swim day inside.  Speaking of swimming, you won't get any open water swim practice because everything is flooding in the spring, and the water is just to damn cold (45deg?) and generally dangerous to think about getting in. My psychology and confidence is in a downward spiral right now because of my lack of following my training plan.  At this point, I'm just happy to do something that makes me break a sweat.

3. Break your indoor trainer eight weeks prior to the race and during the crappiest weather of the year. Because you will now not ride a bike trainer for three weeks til you finally break down and buy one, this will guarantee that you lose nearly all the bike fitness and progress you made by busting your ass all winter. Refer to #2 on why you can't just ride your bike outside.

4. Schedule as much work travel as you can during the 3-8 weeks prior to your "A" race. Build period? What's that? Combined with the broken trainer in #3, you now certainly won't ride your bike very often. Nor will you get in any consistent running of good quality because you don't know good courses in the towns your visiting, and you're generally downtown in the smog and traffic anyway, and who wants to run in that crap when you're used to running in perfect mountain air? You might find a pool and be close to it if you're lucky...I got lucky, but it was so cool to then swim in a 50m outdoor pool that I don't think I can get back into the 25y indoor pool back here at home. 

More later............and remember, no matter how bad you got it, somebody always has it worse. But the guy at the end of that line is Guy Sajer.

Great Run: Up City Creek in Salt Lake City

While in Salt Lake for work, I got the chance to run up City Creek, starting from my downtown hotel. I scoped out the map during the meeting, and then hit it directly after release from our day's duties.

As I climbed uphill, I realized this was going to be an all uphill, then all downhill type run. I adjusted my expected timeline accordingly to save my knees. Upon entering the park area, I ran next to the creek for a while, following some very serious terrain undulations until I was forced onto the road, at which point I got on a nice single track above the road. This was much easier going, but still all uphill. Very nice running up the canyon at an easy pace to get my long run in for the week. At the watershed boundary and conveniently an hour into the run, I took a short two minute break before turning around. 

The way down was difficult even though I stuck to the road. My knees and quads were screaming! 

I made it down, back to the hotel in 55 minutes. Upon hitting some flat ground, I actually sped up to a quick trot just because I could.

After a quick shower, I got a burger. Then I needed a burger and shake. The burger was easy. I couldn't find a place near the hotel that sells ice cream. So I stopped into the hotel bar and had a couple glasses of merlot with a chocolate molten lava ice cream thing...WOW! That was good, but I still needed that orea shake. I found it two blocks away at the Carls Jr after stopping into a couple other restaruants to see if they had ice cream.   With that fix, I went home and hit the rack.