Beer Drinker Appreciation Society - Open For Business (Page 104)

Sandi, not an expert in bike fitting, but for sure they would be able to place you in a position that you find comfortable in all senses - you can always build one or have it custom made, but there so many ways to play with the bike fitting that I am sure they can put you as you wish!

Juan

....enjoy the extra 2-weeks!!

All the bike stores seem to be in complete agreement with my assessment. Most want to sell me their one flat bar racing road bike, but only REI would allow me to order one and return it if it doesn't feel right, and their version of this bike is sold out for the year.

Keep in mind I've been riding a flat bar hybrid and it's pretty much the only bike I have ridden in adulthood....I've only been riding recreationally let alone racing for the past year. Soooo, transitioning to a road bike with the change in braking and shifting would have been an adjustment anyways. I'm sure I'd have risen to the occasion ordinarily--but now....nope. I've gotten on a few traditional road bikes and when you couple what' is I'm sure a normal adjustment process with limited vision and depth perception--it's overwhelming enough that I'd rather just ride the hybrid and forget about placing in my races. There is a significant safety factor too with any attempt to transition and I'm just not willing to risk it. It was hard enough being out of commission this winter, I just don't want to fall and/or hurt myself. It would be VERY bad for morale right now which I've really struggled to keep up.

The way I see it I have two choices. The first is just to ride the hybrid (I do change out tires for races...it cuts a couple of mph off my times but it's still not significant enough to make me very competitive...I placed in my AG in a couple of small races but could have kicked if I knocked 5 minutes off the bike), MAYBE try a road bike on a trainer over the winter and see how it goes before buying. Or find a flat bar bike designed for racing that can get me to competitive speeds. It would really be an easy decision to just stick with the hybrid if I didn't know I was very competitive on my swim, reasonably so on my run, and definitely not so on the bike while working incredibly hard to stay in it. My whole race would probably feel very different with a much lighter rig. Plus...hey, I've got a competitive nature.

Building a bike sounds like a reasonable idea, I just have zero idea how to go about it. And my bike stores are a little less than helpful....I've been super unimpressed and frustrated by their inattentiveness.

Got in the pool today. Quarter mile in eight minutes. By lap 3 I was dragging, but one more and I was right back in the groove. :-) Ironically my left eye has always been the one where the goggles tended to leak. It's still the case....it just no longer interferes with my vision. :-/ One less thing to worry about.

Sandi

Hey everyone, I've been MIA the last few weeks, but for good reason. Took a step back and reevaluated everything, got my nutrition back on track, and I'm having fantastic results from switching to a mostly plant based diet, cramps have disappeared, and energy levels are through the roof.

My first race is this Sunday, been taking it easy the last few days, although I fell off my training for a while there, I'm still going into Sunday's race with whatever confidence I can muster, and honestly, I just want to have a fun time at the race. Although prerace nerves are already starting to hit me

Hope everyone has been well and is kicking butt!

I'll try to make it back on the forums a little more :P

Juan- I would love to see pictures from the area around your race! Good Luck!

Sandi- I think it sounds like you should build a bike! I bet you will learn a ton in the process

Devon- glad to hear you are doing well- have a great race this weekend!

Thor- I need to sign up for some more races! I got some more work travel info so have a better idea of when I can do it- now I just have to look up races.

Good for you, Devon! Good luck this weekend!

OK, I just spoke with a coworker who is a major bike enthusiast. His input was that building a bike is going to be just as expensive as buying one premade and gave me some good feedback on every bike shop in Seattle as well as different brands. There are 5-6 I haven't yet seen so I'm going to see if by any possible chance they will have the bike/style I'm after either in stock, or be willing to order it without my committing to buy 100%. (REI's feedback was that they'd LOVE to get me the bike and no problem if it needed to be returned as they thought it would be a fun bike to have in stock and would sell easily....the buyers just don't keep them in the store since they are "unusual".). So we'll see...before building I'll go that route.

Sandi

Juan, I think I'm going to want a flat bar with brakes and gearing on the bar. Posture is only part of it. So basically I'd be buying a road bike and replacing it with a flat bar if we were to do fitting on a road bike. Then it gets complicated with making sure that the gearing system has compatible components for finger shifting, as I understand it. I looked at a few bikes and again, I'm pretty much in the same price range as either buying a special carbon flat bar or building a bike. (A good carbon traditional road bike isn't a lot more money than a good carbon flat bar road bike, there are just a LOT more of the traditional ones out there!). The latter two situations really have me at the mercy of someone doing this, and I've yet to meet or get referred to someone who I have enough faith in to go this route. That may well change as I visit the stores my coworker recommended to me. Fingers crossed!

Sandi

The only one I've entered is REV3 Maine at the end of August. It's a HIM. I'm hoping to sign up for an Oly in July but am hoping to find a job first.

Sandy - The thing I'm thinking about is the the tires. With a hybrid - you've got larger tires which slows you down. By moving over to a road bike - you would gain a lot of speed. Here's the thing - I think you should take a road bike for a test spin because I think it would work for you. Here's why I think that...

Due to my own fears, I have resisted the urge to by a tri bike because I feel that my stability is compromised by leaning so far forward. So, for the most part - I ride my road with my hands on the grips which is bad for me aerodynamically - but good for my stability and my self of confidence as I ride my bike. I have a pretty good view of what's in front of my and my posture is a lot like it is when I'm riding my own hybrid. The other advantage of a road bike is the ease that comes with changing gears. If you are on a hilly course - you could gain a bit of time there.

Just my two cents. Hope you find something that works for you!

Nice work on the healthier life style! Kick some butt during your tri. You are gonna have a blast and be sure to post a race report!

Update:

Definitely overtrained. My fitness is starting to drop off a little. I had two big races this past weekend. The first was 29km TT. I came third. The second was 160km road race. I abandoned after 50km. I was dropped climbing the escarpment. The legs just were in it. I'm taking this week off the bike (which is good because I have to pack and move across the province this week). Next week I'll start back into another build period and try to peak again for the Intelligentsia Cup in Chicago. I'm heading down there with my team, which means an 8 hour drive in a van packed full of teenagers. yay.... 

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Hi all!

Races:
June 26: Toughman Tupper Lake Tinman (Tupper Lake, NY) - well, Aquabike for me (1.2 swim, 56 mile bike, I'll take a jog after)

July 26: Colchester Sprint Tri (Vermont) - this was cancelled last year

August 9: Vermont Sun Triathlon Series (Lake Dunmore, VT) - either the Sprint or Oly, not sure yet

September 6: Lake George Triathlon Festival "Big George" HIM (Lake George, NY) - just found out my friends may bag on me!!

Hopefully something where Dave Q and I and anyone else can link up at a race. That would be fun!

So we had a nice weekend remote camping - to include two nights with snow..., a moose near camp, and some nice brook trout fishing. Zero workouts except the outhouse was about 200 feet away up a very steep hill and we used the buddy system so Mommy did a lot of bathroom buddying and still managed a decent workout. LOL I love getting the kids away from everything. My 8 year old started our campfires and they both helped me put the tents up so it gives them a nice sense of accomplishment and we've been working with them on "what would you do if xxx happened..." scenarios to get them thinking about plans of action in the wilderness. I would never want to freak them out but knowing what to do in case mom and dad can't help is important when there is no motor access or cell coverage where you are. Plus, they are so much nicer to each other! Funny how that happens!!
Attached is a nice 13.5" brookie I caught from my kayak.

Oh, I got in a short swim yesterday (felt like I was learning to swim all over again...) and a run today. It was supposed to be for 30 minutes but at 5k I stopped at 27 minutes and change - wanted to get to my son's baseball game. Hope to bike in the morning but more thunderstorms on the way.





Edited by aviatrix802 2015-05-27 9:27 PM






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Congrats on the 3rd! Very cool pictures!!
Good luck with the move and it sounds like the timing is good with you needing a break. It happens. The break will help you to relax, rebuild, refuel, and refocus.

I know, scary, huh... :p

One of the hubby and kiddos as we pack in by boat. I'm in my kayak. (we did pack in a couple of Beck's)





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I'll have to check the REV3 out - maybe for next year. Is it an ocean swim? Hilly? Just curious. All I have are hills here, which is great...but it might be nice to do something a little flatter to see how I handle it. hahaha
***
I just read it - sounds lovely actually!! a flat run.....one could only dream of this...

Edited by aviatrix802 2015-05-27 9:58 PM

Jenn - It's the funniest thing - I know nothing about the course. All I've heard - for the last 4 years since the race started - is OMG - you have to do it. So I signed up banking on the fact that my wife could spend the day shopping in the town that the race run through... Glad to hear about the flat run. That's a nice bonus. When I finish my school year - I'll be sure to read over the race packet!

BTW - Nice call on packing in the Becks. I bet that was tasty after all the xxx scenarios

Congrats man on 3rd - especially after your tumble on the bike! I'm sorry to hear that the second road race didn't go so well. But - I'm hoping the rest does you right! Good luck with the move!

I've got to improve my bike time - I'm so slow. I really don't care about being a back of the packer as I'm really more interested in finishing. But for a good chunk of my ride this morning I was averaging 13 miles an hour on a paved bike path. I think part of the problem is that I spend a lot of time in the small ring and am wondering if staying in the big ring more consistently would help. Also, thinking about the angle of my foot as I press down on the pedal. I wonder if I'm at an angle.

Does anyone know a good article about improving bike speed while avoiding injury?

Hi Dave!
Can you get one of your kids to shoot a phone video? Then you could look at foot angle. I got a lot faster when I started going for 90rpm. I backed off resistance to do it- but then after I got used to it I started adding a little bit back in. Do you know what cadence you usually pedal at?

What is the race name/ city/town it is beside? Can we track your bib#?