Penn State's mentor group - CLOSED! (Page 117)

Kath2163 - 2010-10-30 4:06 PM I just came back from a tough ride on a hilly course. I haven't ridden it in over a year and I can tell!  Riding into the wind and wind gusts of 21-25 miles per hour didn't help. Much of the downhill was spent out of the aerobars and on the breaks as I kept getting blown into the street. A bit nerve wracking. I did get to take my brand new Garmin out on its first ride though   I have a lot to learn about that thing but it is fun.

After today's ride I have considered bringing my road bike instead of my tri bike to the Miami Man race in two weeks as the course is known to be windy. However, it is a flat course so perfect for the tri bike, at least in that regard. I was supposed to do the race last year but had to transfer it to this year. There were 30-40 mph winds last year due to some storms. I was so glad I dodged that bullet!

I hope everyone is having a great weekend.
Ken, I am looking forward to tracking you next week. Best of luck!

Thanks Kathleen!

Wind can be nerve wracking, but on a flat course you would be better off with the tri bike.

Thanks all!  I appreciate you all hanging around here after your seasons have ended!

Packing this morning, then a short bike before packing that.  On the overnight flight tonight from San Diego to Panama City.  We get in fairly early tomorrow.  

Congrats to you on your team winning Chris.  I'm not much of a baseball fan but always good to see teams in it and winning that are not the same ol bought teams. 

Thanks everyone!!

I did a swim in the gulf with a bunch of the BT gang here this morning!  Kathy was with us Fred!!

Water was quite choppy as there are strong thunder storms and heavy rain coming through (we were out of the water before todays storms!).  Over 3 inches of rain yesterday and it is still coming!  Supposed to pass sometime this afternoon and get windy and cool but clear for tomorrow then Saturday the winds are supposed to die off some.  It is supposed to be in the upper 30's at race time.  Probably the biggest challenge will be getting dried off enough in T1 to put on some warmer cycling clothes as it isn't forcasted to be above 60 till afternoon. 

Cant control the weather, just adjust to it!!

I will read the forums, at least until they go negative.  Never have posted there, but most of my posts here have been in mentor threads or race reports.  I agree there can be good information there, especially for more experienced triathletes.

I agree that the mentor threads here have become the gem of the site. 

Ken - good luck.  I feel bad for ya because most of us are well past IM season and not as charged up for you as we should be (as we were in July).  Knock em dead brother!!!!!  Take some names!

Fred - I've been an avid BT participant for a few years now, and a big time ST lurker for about the same time.  Most of what I know about tri training I learned in those two places. 

I think just like ST, if you know what (who) to look for on BT you can still learn a ton.  If you have a thick skin, ST is much more efficient because for the most part if someone says something stupid they will be raked over the coals immediately over there.  Basically bad information doesn't pass as good information there, which is a huge problem with BT because the beginner-friendly moderation means people can get away with being ignorant.

I'd love to see a place where ST experience and knowlege exists with BT culture and friendliness, but I don't think that's likely once a group reaches critical mass.  In a way, mentor threads are THE place to find that on BT... you have someone with experience and knowledge and success (who is probably keeping their ear to the ground on ST too) who has made a committment to help some newbies out... and the newbies appreciate it and - I hope this doesn't sound bad - mind their place.  What I mean is they may ask a question or share an opinion but they aren't likely to pick a fight with someone who has established his/her credibility.

Bottom line - there's still a place for me on BT, I think... it's to offer ST-quality information with BT helpfulness.  I'm not going to get into huge debates... I'm just going to share (hopefully with clarity and credibility) and let the reader decide.  I've found that the race-specific threads are also great places to find that kind of blend.  I'm already an unofficial mentor of the IMCdA thread... I hope my posts there are what I'm describing in this paragraph.

Honestly, I think there might be a place on ST for me as well, as that forum has softened a bit in the last year (see threads lementing the lack of HTFU attitude over there), and every now and then shows itself to be made up of a pretty classy group of people who really aren't as mean and cruel as they pretend to be behind their screen names (heck, we've all got issues and I definitely have an on-line bravado that I lack in real life).

Bottom line recipe for best message board value:
1) knowledge and experience
2) sense of community

You have that in the mentor groups.  You have that in the "official" race threads.  And that's where you find your best bang for your buck on BT.  But it's really hard to have both of those things once a forum gets large enough.  On BT you have a sense of community that is so important that you can't call someone an idiot or a cheater even when they're caught red handed... and so bad information and even injustice occurs.  ON ST you have a bunch of very smart and very experienced athletes but frankly the "community" dynamic is disfunctional -- a lot of people with some clear social/pscyhological issues going on (maybe that's why I feel at home there)