Beer Drinker Appreciation Society - Open For Business (Page 126)

Scott - Congrats on the great race. Sure - I know you wished your time was better but at least you remembered your race belt and shot block, which Thor managed to forget during his race

Seriously- Kudos! Swimming in different conditions can throw anyone off their game. Way to finish strong and wear that sweet BDAS jersey with pride.

Do they not teach Geography in Canadian schools? I think it has to be further east.... like Boston.

Seriously - I think it should be closer to Tennessee that way people from the south don't have to move heaven and earth to get there.

Lake George!!!! It's so beautiful there and maybe we could have everyone up to our camp and enjoy copious amounts of Switchback! There are options for Oly, HIM, Aquabike, I think a kids race, - possibly a sprint but I'd have to check. There is so much to do there - wonderful hiking, historical Fort Ticonderoga where my cousin Ethan Allen kicked some Red Coat butt (then got drunk and they took it back a day or so later). Oops. ??

Devon, I sort of looked into it a few months ago. Since I needed a unique frame combo, one guy recommended it, and it made sense. I asked a coworker who is a bike nerd about it and he advised against it. He just felt so many things could go wrong and unless you REALLY know what you're doing you might not get the combination of quality parts that you are aiming for....better off waiting for a good sale. In the end I was happy with my purchase of a new bike, it just took a while to figure out what I wanted.

Sandi

Thanks, Dave. Something that's been hard for me to accept the past six to eight weeks is that I've been pushing so hard for normal, for the things I want to do...that I'm still struggling in other ways. I was anxious about last weekend and it made it easy once I was overwhelmed with the health stuff to decide to bag it. Which is VERY unlike me.....usually I rebel and fight against that sort of thing....so it told me something. I think the feeling of not being ready was not being psychologically ready....interesting that I just don't have that feeling about this coming weekend.

My race is Sunday. I'll dedicate my practice OWS to your son. :-)

Sandi

Boy can I relate to that! I know I can improve in each of the 3 disciplines and it's really hard to figure out how/where to focus! I know my single biggest psychological issue is the OWS and ALL I have to do is more practice OWS and I can get over that completely--at least that's what happened last year, I'm still surprised at how much of a backslide I took this year! And I know I'm a decent swimmer without even attempting to work on my form and speed....all I do in the pool are laps at a comfortable speed, no sets or anything...so I think about focusing on swimming really improving that.

And the bike....well, I just spent a fortune on a new bike, maybe I should take that to the best of it's potential, eh? And let's not get on the running....just like the swim, I've made NO attempt to increase my speed with any sort of training.

For now, like you I think it would probably be most effective to focus on the bike--my guess is that it's probably the best area to quickly pick up speed in (and drop minutes in a race). I've also learned a TON by working on cadence, so I'm going to start there. I do want to develop a far better off season swimming plan--clearly what I've been doing hasn't worked so well, but I've really developed a bit of a hatred for the pool. I need to get into the OWS two months earlier next year.

Sandi

Scott.....90 degrees???????????? one word.....YUCK! I'm not a fan of really cold water, but that just sounds Not Fun. Good job getting through it. Not sure I could have.

Sandi

I mean, the gruppo I'm looking at is pretty straight forward. Thinking ultegra Di2. The really only thing I'm kinda confused about is crank length and bottom brackets.

I think i might take the step and find a retul fitter around here and see if they can give me a list of the best frames for my body. I've got a pretty good relationship with one of my LBS with some great mechanics if need help with anything major.

Wow - that course is so pretty it would almost be worth traveling halfway around the world for it!

"In the name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress (Allen's words when capturing Fort Ticonderoga)" I declare Allen a BDAS!

Is there any chance of getting the BDAS kit in a trisuit?

I would love to rep it at a race, but I'm a fan of one piece suits.

That looks like a lot of fun!!! I wonder what the heat is like then - us northerners would be in for a shock and it could very well be the first outdoor ride of the season - that would be a hoot!

I've been following everyone's posts - wow!
Thor - great race and kudos to your wife!!

Sandi - you will rock this next race, I can feel your confidence from here!

Many more comments to come but I have to get to PT - but first....

So, last night at my folks (went there for dinner with the boys), my mom had some veggies in a steamer, cranked it on high to get it boiling and walked away...forgot to put water in the pot.... Anyway, they have these special kind of fancy pots that have a heat conducting disc on the bottom and the pot got so hot the solder started to melt. She realized there was no water and took it off the stove and kind of waved it to cool it - dropping liquid solder in long snake-like ribbons all over the floor - I'm next to her seeing this, not knowing what the heck it is but start jumping out of the way of the flying molten solder and wham, step right on it. I think it was almost as bad as stepping on a Lego on the stairs at night in the dark.... Dog biscuits, now I have a quarter size blister burned into the center of the ball of my foot. It was fun trying to pull the metal off my skin as it sat burning a hole in my foot. "Feel the burn" has a whole new meaning for me now. LOL. It's not too big of a deal from the standpoint that it's a blister, it will heal. The timing ain't great. I have my bike fit with Ian Buchanan of FitWerx (aka fit guru and Triathlete Magazine contributor) tomorrow. If it were politically correct to drop an F-bomb I would. Not sure what I'm going to do. I iced the heck out of it last night right when it happened and put the aloe to it and Neosporin. It feels like I'm walking on a marble when I'm barefoot so I'm wearing running shoes then it's not so bad. I'm not sure what the cancellation policy is for the fitting - it's about 3 hours long and I'm now 24 hours away from it or so. The shop opens at 10:00 today so I have a half hour to make a decision. I may pop my bike shoes on to see if I can even pedal.

But... Monday I had a nice 2,500 yard swim - was lovely to get back in the pool; and yesterday I did a 20 mile bike with a few 2 minute hard efforts mixed in. I was supposed to do 6 - I did 3 on the way out and the wind was so bad on the way back I felt that was enough of a workout just leaning into it to stay upright. I followed that up with a 3 mile run in 90 degree heat.

OH, Hey! I picked up one of those "cooling towels" I've seen at Dick's Sporting Goods thinking it was a gimmick, but thought I'd give it a shot. It's GREAT!! It was 90 degrees yesterday and I soaked it in cold water, wrung it out and wrapped it around my neck - perfect!!! I recommend it!! By the end of the 30 minute run it was still cool and I wrapped it around my head like a do-rag. I'd post a picture but it just isn't pretty. hahaha

Holy Crap Jenn! That is terrible! As I was reading it - I couldn't help but cringe... I can only imagine the pain! I hope you heal up quickly.

I would agree with Thor - I think seeing if you could postpone the fitting would make the most sense and I hope everything works out!

I'm gonna have to try the cooling towel - although the hottest it's been up here in MI has been in the mid 80's. Don't hate me but it should be in the mid 70's this afternoon for my bike ride.

Dave - my Tri Clinic is the same day/time but otherwise I would have dropped anything and done the 5k! Will make a donation, just need to talk to the CFO (aka my wife) to figure out how much. Also I will dedicate my Saturday morning tri clinic workout - 400 yd OWS and 9 mi bike - to the kids!

Yowers Jenn- that sounds terrible! I hope it heals up quick!

I was feeling crap last night after waking up at 5:15 to swim. I channelled Scott though and ran through the crappy first 1.5 miles and did start to feel better. I did 40 minutes of 9:1 and felt like I could do more at the end- but needed to make dinner.

Dave, I have never heard of that hospital- it looks cool! (Funny how much press children's get- I had surgery there in my teens and spent some time in the onocology department while they tried to figure out why one of my bones has a big hole in it).

I have more hanging with granny on tap for this weekend (can I wear out my granny gear? It sure feels like I'm on track to.)

Tonight if the rain holds off I'm biking with a total bad*ss friend of mine. I'm afraid if I ride more with her I'm going to buy a cross bike ;-)

Wow do I have some catching up to do! Miss a few days around here and....

Congrats to everyone kicking some 'AS' and generally being BDAS this past weekend! Gretchen, Thor, Scott, who else did I miss?

Lots of great luck and positive vibes for those racing this weekend - Scott, Sandi, and anyone else!

BDAS Tri - Lake George would be awesome!!! The scenery up that way is just spectacular. Of course, it is in Boulder and Lake Mead too! Some of my favorite travel destinations! Thor - Lincoln, Nebraska? I know it's probably convenient for Kurt (fifthcircle) but not sure who else, yourself included The one thing we could guarantee though is it would be flat :D

Alan - thanks for the video! This is precisely what I need - the knowledge to do it myself.

Bike Had a chat with the wife last night about the cost of bringing the bike to the LBS for service. I know they're a low margin business and I love to support local businesses, but they already got a ton of money from us buying 3 bikes from them (two new), they clearly don't need my help in the service department since it took more than a week to get a tune up, and I really can't justify putting this kind of money into a 9 year old bike any more. $300 and what I have to show for it is the tune up (adjusted derailleurs and brakes, lubed and adjusted cables, cleaning, and safety check), two new tires and tubes, and a new chain. I could have done the same myself, armed with the knowledge, for 1/3 the cost. I really should have done the tires myself but never thought their markup would be so much and that they would charge shop labor to install the tires and tubes. It's my first trip to the shop for service with my bike, live and learn. I'm out $300 and still left with the questions of how much longer my chainrings and cassette are good for, and how long my cracked rear rim will carry me. The extra $200 would have bought me a cassette, 3 chainrings (I have a triple front), and an Easton to replace my rear wheel.

Workouts Had a bit of a tough week last week with a neck spasm, which cost me a PT visit (we worked on the neck instead of my back). Missed a couple workouts as a result, and had a terrible couple swims with back pain. Spin was ok, then had a 5.5 mi run on Sunday that was pretty dreadful. Not terribly slow, just completely unable to sustain a pace due to pain from missed PT. I'm not out of the woods yet...
This week I've missed a workout (boot camp) and today is my rest day so I'm going to pick up the bike. It'll be good to have it back! Tomorrow I have my tri group, this week we're doing a hill run workout and a gym workout, so I'm going to swim before the class to get a swim in. Friday will hopefully be another swim (missed my friday night swim last week - they closed the pool for a trial aqua aerobics class!!!!!! >:-( ) Saturday is my tri clinic at my race venue. Then next week is taper before MY FIRST EVER TRIATHLON!!!!

Holy crap Jenn - your foot!!! I hope it's better enough for the fit! Let us know how it goes. I dabble with DIY electronics (or rather, did before committing 6 days/week to workouts...) and melted solder is no joke!

I agree!

Sandi

The man knows his history!! Well done!!!!
North Hero and South Hero up here in the VT islands are named for Ethan and Ira Allen. I think that's about the only truly flat riding here - up through the islands.


Edited by aviatrix802 2015-07-15 10:18 PM

Devon, If we had the BDAS layout on this trisuit would it work for you?

http://www.jakroo.com/custom-products/fusion-tri-suit/

I'm pretty sure that would be the price too.


If so I'll ask my contact there if they can work up a layout and add it to our team site. Hopefully that's something they can do.