SBR Utopia - OPEN (Page 138)

I just got a chance to track down the issue yesterday and the shifter cable evidently became frayed about an inch below the knurl at the shifter end. It looked like it literally exploded inside the shifter - it was a complete tangled mess inside the shifter. Just out of habit iw ould of course try to upshift for the whole ride, and evidently everytime i did it wound the frayed ends more and more into the inner workings of the shifter - I have never seen anything quite like it. SRAM double taps are supposedly "user servicable," but the only time I ever tried to service my own shifter (shimano) I couldn't remotely get it back together quite right and ultimately had to buy a new pair. So, I took it to my bike guy to let him take it apart and get it put back right. Ah, well.

I messed around with my mountain bike ones once (shimano) and man, I managed to get it pretty messed up.  But they worked in the end so I said screw it and left it that way.  lol  I have sense brought the bike in and got them fixed while they were working other things

Apropos' of nothing, when I bought the PX bike i decided to give SRAM Rival a try.  Same issues above, FD would work fine for about 10 miles of a ride, then it would become unusable.  Eventually had the DA Drs I had taken off the Litespeed put on the PX, and the SRAM/Shimano frankenstein mix has worked perfectly since...  Didn't change the rings though

That type of situation makes more sense. Especially the Red FD before their more recent release.

I should say that I went with Dura Ace rings from the start. I'd read they were the best for shifting, but didn't know all specifics why at the time. Think they also have very good pin & ramp placement for lifting the chain up. Also did it for the off sized rings, 54/42.

For the record, my mechanic was having a really hard time tuning the shifting when I moved to the quarq.  I don't know if it had to do with the fact that I needed the BB30 adapters which essentialy pushes the crank out another 3/4 of an inch away from the frame.  I don't think it had to do with chainring flex because it was having a hard time while even on the bike stand.  The chain wouldn't drop, just that it wasn't shifting smoothly (or as smooth as it should) when slightly cross chained.  For example going from 34/21 to 50/21 on a 11-26 cassette.

Just got a 14.1 miler done. Tested out the 9:1 run/walk that coach mike wanted me to start testing out for Honu and France. It actually went a lot better than I thought it would. I've always been really hesitant to say I'm going to go into a race with a run/walk strategy but Mike suggested that we put parameters on the walking that is likely to happen...especially with IM France. So first test of it was successful. 

He also switched up my weekend training to 2x[90min trainer ride with zone training + 35min run]. He was worried I would mentally burn out with that much trainer time so early in the training cycle for IM. Can't say I'm sad about the switch from the 5hr trainer ride. 

ohmygod....   Good news on the walk/run.  Most of us mortals walk parts of the IM run anyway, might as well be in control of it...

Oh bless you folks who have to ride the trainer! I couldn't do it! I've done several 4-5 hour rides this year: all outdoors! 

Work has been ridiculous, stressful, and been traveling alot...not real happy about it.  I was shocked how much the stress really affected my training.  I was just too tired to do much.  Things are back to normal for a bit now.

I got stitches in my should removed last week and hopefully can get back in the groove here.

I still have not been outside on the bike yet...miserable and cold still in MI.  May triathlons are looking like some really really cold water.

Melissa - I for one think it is very smart to train to run/walk the marathon if you are fairly certain that is what you will do on race day. I think a lot of people think oh, if things go south I will just walk it in, but then underestimate how tough that is if you haven't trained for. Plus switching to a walk after you are wiped out can be devastating.

FWIW I have some experience with the method from my first straight-up marathon years ago. Jeff Galloway was a neighbor at the time and he ran a local training group out of our neighborhood running store, so it was a natural thing to jump right in without even thinking too much about it. I ran/walked Chicago using a 4/1 ratio and finished in 3:25. The key to making it work is committing to it from the get-go, not simply reverting to it late in the race when you can no longer run.

This is our current forecast.  "SNOWFALL WARNING IN EFFECT".

*sigh*

LTHR question.  I've seen a couple of different ways of doing a field test.  Either:

a)  Warmup for 10min, run for 30min, record avg HR for last 20min
b)  Warmup for 10min, run for 20min, record avg HR for the 20min

Is one better than the other?  Obviously you have to alter your pacing strategy between the two, and I would assume for test a your avg would be potentially lower than test b, but maybe I'm wrong.

It would be a for me.  You want to run 30 mins IMO and the first 10 mins is a good time to get settled into an effort level.  I find it takes a little to settle into it, even with a good warmup

I'd prefer to work with the data from "a" because it will (should) be much flatter. The test in "b" will have a ramp up time in the beginning of the recording. Even though there is a warm-up, it likely won't take you all the way to the hard effort. For me, it still takes at least a few minutes for HR to level off even with the warm-up.

I would do (a), but more importantly I would not train with HR on the run, but rather pace.

Put me down for "A" as well.

Marc, I am interested in that. Is that a universal distinction for you or one that just suits your terrain, type of running, etc? When I lived in Chicago I found training by pace to be preferable to HR. After we moved to Atlanta, not so much. Then when I switched to mostly soft surfaces and trails, virtually impossible (for me anyway). I now use HR, but the "zones" I use are "soft" in that they overlap each other. I still run by pace on the track, and do a fair amount of cadence work as well in which both HR and pace are secondary data points.

You guys have to try this Cross Fit Swim workout.  I did it yesterday it was awesome!

Crossfit swim workout

Swim  

250 - 10 push ups

250 - 10 sit ups 

250 - 10 squats

Swim

200 - 20 push ups

200 - 20 sit ups

200 - 20 squats

Swim

150 - 30 push ups

150 - 30 sit ups

150 - 30 squats

Swim  

100 -  40 push ups 

100 - 40  sit ups 

100 - 40 squats

Swim

50 - 50 push ups 

50 - 50 sit ups

50 - 50 squats

I was exhausted after, slept really good    It totals out to be 2250 meters swimming and 150 for exercises.  It took me over an hour, did not time it.

Have fun with it

Anyone had any luck selling bikes online? We are trying to sell a road bike, tried the local Craigslist but CL here in Phx is a nightmare. So many freaks and such a large area!

My husband wants to put the bike on Ebay but I don't know if it's best to put a "Buy it Now" price or just do an auction! Hubby is working 6 days/12 hours a day for the next month so I think I will be left to deal with this.

If you are going to list it online, try the BT and/or ST classifieds first?  That would avoid eBay fees.

I did put it up on ST...I am just so wary of selling anything online. It's a nice carbon bike and I would have preferred to sell it locally. Maybe I'll just have to be patient?

I am interested as well.  For me, that translates (perhaps wrongly) to chasing a time, regardless of HR, when on that day and that course it just isn't happening and might put you in a hole.   Hilly, hotter than normal dehydrated, whatever... 

ETA at Oceanside I was assigned HR levels for various parts of the run (whether I could hold those, that's another thread), which *should* have correlated to paces, but they didn't

Misc. things

I find HR on the run lags way too much. For example, if I want to do a threshold run, ie 10k pace. It will take take me 10 minutes to get my HR where it's supposed to be. If I want to get it there faster, I have to run faster than pace.So it's useless for threshold runs

Same thing for a long slow run. If I want to average top Z1/bot Z2 which is about 148 for me. At a constant pace, on flat, I will probably start off at low 140 and finish around 152ish. That's a big range and it takes a long time to get close to the 148. If I pace by speed, it can settle into the pace with 2 min.

Forget about it on the track...useless

McMillan and Daniel's are great tools for setting training paces. There is nothing like it with HR

If I am going to spill my guts doing a test, I prefer to do a 10k and update my McMillan paces.

It's basically useless for pacing a race, unless you know how to ramp it up properly. For example I would probably race a HM at average 165ish. But I need to know that at 1km it's 148, 2km, 152........it just lags way too much. Pace is more "instantaneous"

I can adjust my pace for hills. I know that a good climb is +10sec/km.

I am aware of my HR, I know them, but I find them for interesting than useful. I do look at my AvgHR for a given route and pace and compare it to others.

I would do a race, get my mcmillan paces, use them and know how my HR behaves, but not use it for pacing.

But coming back to the comment I made to Neil. He is going to go out, get a number...then what does he do with it ? I find it's a nice number to know, but kind of useless.

I think there is huge value in knowing how your HR behaves, but I would not set my training zones by it.

I look at my HR...a lot....and I do use it to evaluate my pace when racing. When racing I don't chase a time. I look at it, I look at my HR, I see how I am feeling and I adjust.

I know my LTHR but to be honest, it's absolutely useless for me. I do know that if I am over 155 in the first half of my HIM run I will be in trouble. I know what starting at 148 and finishing at 162 has been good  for me, but knowing LTHR is 172....useless. So why measure it.

I am not one that likes to spill my guts racing, so if I am going to do it, I will do it on something more useful like a 10km to track my VDOT and training paces. Doing at 30m balls to the walls to get a number I won't use doesn't make sense to me.

But that is a very personal thing.

OK, I've been lurking for some time here and really enjoy the thread.  As it's - OPEN, I think I should now subject you all to my active participation.  Apologies in advance. 

So, although you're now on page eleventy-three-gajillion, here's my bio-in-brief:

Name: Matt McManus

Story: I'm the somewhat typical 44 year old (but just aged up a group this year - youngest guy in the 45-49... good thing this new AG is not that fast) who is getting back into tris and loving it.  I did my first in the early 90's and couple through the mid-90's, then went on to mostly just running to stay in I'm-not-dead-yet shape (well, I ran a bunch races through the late 90's but it was easier to be "fast enough" back then on those young legs).  Bought a bike almost exactly a year ago (4/10/12) after a year of hectoring by a colleague at work and just jumped back in to longer and more intense workouts through the spring.  Started riding longer and harder, and also running longer and harder and did the first couple of races (5k's) in a loooong time with my wife (and kids - mile races).  Bought new bikes for everyone (kids because they grow like weeds - they're now 8, 10, 12 - and Kim because she really needed one).  Happy times.

Then one day, I hopped back in the ocean while down at the beach in the early summer and decided to go for a long swim.  Hmmmmmmm...... Well, after a few drinks a night not long thereafter I said to Kim (aforementioned wife - and partner in crime wrt exercise) that I might as well do a tri again as I'm kind of doing all three s/b/r for fun anyway.  That was it - couldn't wait to get started and pin a number on chest!

So, I registered for a local sprint (Dover-Sherborne) that some friends from Sherborne were doing about 8 weeks prior to it (and started the 8 week Time Crunched Tri program).  Kim raised an eyebrow and, after a few drinks a night not long thereafter, said to me that she might as well do a tri, too, as she was working out all the time and it might be fun (if scary).  Boom.

We both also registered for the Mayflower Sprint in Plymouth (you get to swim along side the Mayflower - how cool is THAT?).  That was a great race for us, and D-S was even more fun.

Over the winter, I've been more run focused (a couple HMs, some 5k's and few of each - a 5k, a 10k a HM - coming up), and Kim is back on with the run now, too, after some shin splints knocked her out of the fall HM in November.  Not sure if she'll do a tri this year (despite having been a HS swimmer, she doesn't like the swim, and despite being QOM on a bunch of Strava segments, the bike still freaks her out a bit when she goes faaaaaast.... and she goes fast). 

I am very excited about being back in the tribe, although it's like a new sport compared to back when (and in pretty much all good ways).  While many are focused on just tri's, we tend to do a lot of single sport races (at least the last year) as well.  It's been a bit of a struggle trying to peak for an open race while still doing the other two disciplines, but there are many folks here (and in the tri community) that do the same, so these boards have been helpful with that.

We just moved back to Boston (Concord, in the 'burbs, actuall) a couple years ago after having moved around the Northeast and to Cleveland (twice - no, really).  Happy to be home, but SICK of winter this year (for the first time - usually love it, but I've been more interested in running and biking than skiing this year - another first!).

What else...  Work, I guess.  I'm in biotech (longer story there than I'll put down here!), so Boston is a great place.  Family is in Mass, as well, so another bonus (mostly).   

Family Status: Married to Kim (oh so happily) with three terrific kids.  Two dogs - a yellow and chocolate lab.  A bazillion fish, hamsters, frogs, etc. - the kids like pets (OK - so do the parents).

Current Training: Um, lots, for me.  Not so much compared to long course folks!  Running 5-6 times a week at the moment (ending a long run focus with a 10k in three weeks), riding 3 times a week at a minimum (and will start going longer and more often after the 10k as I build distance for the b2b ride of 148 miles on June 15th), swimming 2 or 3 times a week (will stick with 2 through the 10k, then 2-3 through b2b, then 3+ from then until tri's mid-end of July).  Really trying to figure out if the long bike focus for 6 weeks will 1) be enough for the long race and 2) lead to losing my dearly won running form (best running of my life currently) even with a few 5k's and a HM thrown in on the way to the b2b.  So, expect me to ask questions!

2012 Races: Mayflower Sprint 9/1/12 (got a third place medal in AG, but official results had one "Johnny Appleseed" taking first - not sure what that was, but I was WAY happy with the result).  DoverSherborne Sprint 9/16/12 (4th or 5th in AG - again very happy with that).  Katie's HM 11/4/12 in 1:43:20ish (PR for me!).

2013 Races: Hyannis HM end of February (1:41:30 ish - a PR in some NASTY weather).  Plymouth 5k 3/16 in ~21' (PR).  JB Blastoff 5k (20:35 a PR and felt great).  James Joyce 10k on 4/28. Great Bear 5k on 5/5. Boston HM on 5/26 (pacing Kim). Emerson 5k on 6/1. Possibly Catskills Grand Fondo 6/2.  Harpoon b2b 6/15.  Falmouth Sprint 7/13.  Nantucket Oly 7/21.  Then it's less certain.  Maybe: Marsh Madness Sprint 7/28.  Sharon Sprint 8/11.  Cranberry Oly 8/25.  Probably: Mayflower Sprint 8/31. DS Boosters Sprint 9/15.  MAYBE a HIM in the fall in place of one of these or a bit later IF I'm feeling awesome (but might wait until next season - just don't know how to pace a season yet)

Weightloss: Sure!  Sounds good.  I went from high 180's to high 150's (so, if math is right, about 30 pounds in a year) and am not really looking to drop more (I'm about 5'8"+).  Truth is, I didn't focus on weight - just working out and eating right (which includes ice cream and IPAs - at least now and again - for me).  Maybe another 3-4 pounds, but only if it happens...  Curious what it will be like to race at a lighter weight (current weight, that is) for the bike!

What will make me a good member:  I'm very much interested in s/b/r.  I can get a bit analytical at times, but also just love the "feel" of the sport, so I tend to be an active contributor and have a positive outlook on the whole thing (sometimes my desire to have fun conflicts with my desire to go fast, which is when I stop thinking and just move!).  I hope that the questions I post up will also be of value, but time will tell!  Looking forward to trying to keep up with this thread (I'm sure there were three pages posted while I wrote this).

Best,

Matt