SWBKRUN- Miles and Miles ahead!!!! CLOSED (Page 148)

Beat me to it Rob. We are heading out shoppping today with the family. But if you got her covered, we're good.

Had a good morning recovery swim today. Legs were a wee bit sore from yesterday.

PM sent.  Thanks Rob.  Wouldn't want your sugar's fingers to get too cold.  BTW, there is the new 2010 GIRLS OF BT thread going in COJ.  I remember how much you enjoyed that last year. 

Birdy - haven't seen you in the PACE BOOTY 2010 thread..............weren't you the original post of that thread last year?

Not too bad!! If is it take the train....

Northbound Border Wait Times 9:25 A.M. Monday, February 15, 2010
I-5 General Purpose	Less Than 5 Min
I-5 Nexus Lane	Less Than 5 Min
SR 543 General Purpose	Less Than 5 Min
SR 543 Nexus Lane	Less Than 5 Min
SR 543 Trucks	Less Than 5 Min
SR 543 Trucks FAST Lane	Less Than 5 Min
SR 539 General Purpose	5 Min
SR 9 General Purpose	Less Than 5 Min

YOU CAN ALWAYS CAR CAMP!!! Kids would love it!

Whew! I'm hoping now that my projects overload for school has dwindled a little bit so I can catch up on the posts!

   Short and sweet - Congrats to everyone for any achievement you did. :-)

The bike LT test went "okay". I kind of screwed up by turning around not realizing that the road wasn't flat. I had my HR steadily 166-168 and cadence 92...then i turned around...*boooom*, HR dropped to 135-140, Cadence to 70's due to the descents (it didn't seem that much, probably 0.5% to 1% grade, but still).  However, I felt like I really worked hard, and my legs were feeling it in the end. It's a fabulous feeling! I normally don't feel "anything", like I didn't work hard enough.

The other pace tests went well.  Taught a guy how to swim properly after seeing him slap the water too many times causing my lane to feel like a washing machine (good practice on what it feels like in OW!).

A friend is letting me borrow her wetsuit (yahoo!!!!), since she can't do tris/running anymore due to severe shin splints, but is still cycling and swimming. She's short as me, so I'm grateful for her letting me borrow one.

Can't wait to get started on a real coaching schedule. I'm feeling like a slacker last week, however, I was so overwhelmed with Midterms, so I'm glad for the little break. Aside from frustrations and disappointments from school, I'm glad it's a new week!

Valentine's Day was uneventful - sort of. My fiance got me new bras and undies, just like he does every year. I love this man...he'll go to the supermarket and buy me the proper "stuff" that I need every month, if you know what I mean. *winks*  He knows my sizes by heart, so has no problem going to Victoria Secret and get me a bunch of new bras and undies. :-)  He made warm fire in the fireplace (although, he claims that he makes it for me, yet, he has been starting fires almost on a daily basis), and delicious roasted chicken.

I watched the Olympics - I'm glad I'm living on the west coast...I wouldn't have to stay up all night!  I TiVo'd the Opening - so to the person (I forget who), that missed it, do you want me to put it on a DVD and mail it out to you? I'm not sure if it will fit, but I can try.  Sucked about the 4th torch. I wonder if they got it fixed?


I also finally spent my Christmas money and got a Nook. Yahoo! Loving it, loving it!

Good luck to all of your training! Keep it up!!

The Sun has come out to greet us, so it's been very warm the last couple days...I SO want to go for a looooong ride!

Interesting about the 2-beat kick.   Lately I've been focusing on getting my stroke properly, and I've been gliding through the water...but I don't kick. :-) I know I should, but I think if I tried to do that it will throw off my stroke...I did that once, and it felt like patting my head and rubbing my tummy kind of thing...I have to "think" about it.

   I certainly would like to improve my time, and perhaps the 2-beat kick will do it.  I've tried 4 beat kick or more, and it feels off.   Any way to practice the kick technique?

Wow... It's been a year already?! I don't I have been over there is a while... Someone will get that baby started soon enough....

To my Canadian friends... Congrats on the gold... I am sure that story is even more amazing than NBC is letting on. 

To Trevor--- I see a SUB 2 in your future!! Great job on the PR!!!

Hills?  In Houston?  LOL....I don't think so.....closest thing to hills here are levees and freeway overpasses.....and maybe parking garages, which is where my wife's running club does their hill training.

Anyway, glad you are having a great time in Hawaii.  Safe travels!

Chris -- no word on the trainer. Me thinks we were both too late. Rats, huh?!

LOVE LOVE LOVE the Olympics!!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE that my kids are FINALLY old enough to "GET IT." We had so much fun watching last night (we are and will remain one night behind, and I am trying not to follow any news so I can get some surprises). I offered to fast forward for the kids but no! They wanted to watch everything. Oh, I was in heaven. And I cried after the women's moguls and my daughter didn't understand why. And I cried when Ohno and Celski won medals and my daughter didn't understand why. We had fun talking to the kids about sportsmanship (finishing the runs after they wiped out), sponsorship, determination, setbacks/injuries, dreams... It just rocks.

LOVE LOVE LOVED in Ohno's interview when he said something to the effect of, "I ask myself when I go to bed at night, did I do every single thing possible to be a champion today. It's very hard to answer yes every day." And then they showed him kicking major @$$ in his workouts. He was doing v-ups with the fitness ball like nobody's business -- I struggle to do two fo those.

OK, can you tell that the Olympics inspire me?! HAVE A GREAT WEEK, everyone!

not sure we can do that.                                     BWWWWWAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!!!!

thats AWESOME news about the legs and feet!!

any of you guys have any tips for taking the training wheels off and teaching the kiddos how to ride?  jack got a new bike this weekend.  i figured its best in the grass.  appreciate any advice.

the better half is on a trans canada pipeline project so she had the day off.  i played hooky and we went to the zoo. pretty nice day here. came home and got a great run in.  forgot to charge the garmin so i just ran what i was supposed to do with a regular ol' watch.  really had a good run. 

Funny enough, my grandmother (RIP), taught me how to ride on my MOTHER's banana seat bike (SO 60's!). It has sparkles in the seat...I loved that bike. Pi$$ed it got stolen and trashed up from my neighbor's kids.

Anyhoo...I never really had training wheels, so she just held up the rear (which is why a banana seat is awesome because of the high back and able to have another person to hold on to it), and let me go, and followed behind. It took a couple tries, then I got it.  I didn't use the grass though, it slowed me down too much...no momentum.

I don't have kids, but they usually "get" it after a while, and stubborn to learn how to ride.  My mom tried to ride my old MTB, and she was SO wobbly, so it's probably easier for kids than adults. :-) Try on a trail instead of grass and road.

Good luck!!

The Europeans have a great method... which eventually worked well for our Thing 2. They take off the pedals and have the kids just sort-of push themselves around with their legs. Over time (not much), this really helps them get their balance figured out, particularly if you have some gradual slopes where they can get a little speed. My daughter pretty much sucked with the training wheels and had a hard time putting everything together until we forced the issue with the pedal removal. Within a few days (literally) she was riding like nobody's business.

Thing 1 does things his way at his own speed. We tried to teach him, with minimal success. Then a kid about his age rode around our house one afternoon while my son studied and studied him. Next day, my son went out and just started riding. He had to figure it out on his own terms and put it together on his own terms.

My friends and I have had many hilarious conversations about the psychology of teaching kids how to ride bikes, having other parents help your own kids, etc. I truly believe it's a "when they are ready" type of thing.

GOOD LUCK!! It's so fun when they can ride. Just got back from a trip to Starbucks and the grocery store on bikes with my kiddos (I rode my beater mtn. bike -- the seat feels sooooooooooo cush!!).

yeah we are going to try the no pedals thing come spring.  Talked to some other parents at the park they had a skut or whatever you call it and my kids tried it and were already getting their balance going within 30 mins.

Little delayed reaction here since I was away all weekend through today but...what a better way to train for 2011 than to come here in 2010.  You are welcome to stay with me but it is still a couple/three hours from me.  I do have a cousin in New Paltz though...

This does look like an insane race!

What I try to do for sighting is. (hehe I am doing this at my desk now)

On the strokes I am going to sight.

Right arm enters water, eyes go forward, as my right arm pulls and left arm is out in front of me I lift my head up slightly so the eyes are out of the water, then back down and continue with stroke.

Seems simple but the eyes up before is important, I am already looking forward and only have to raise up slightly to see, and having my left arm extended gives me the anchor I need to not sink any more than I already am.

Does this make snse?

Suzy....FWIW, in longer races you can switch strokes from Freestyle to Breast stroke for 1 or 2 strokes to help with sighting.  I found that it didn't take me very long to teach myself how to make that switch and then switch back.  I worked on it in the pool by swimming part of a pool length freestyle and then switching to breaststroke for a stroke and switching back.  The hardest part was figuring out what works for your rhythm breathing wise when doing this, but it makes sighting really easy (both route and competetion around you) and also gives your shoulders a break once in a while.

Also, siting will be easier when you are in the freestyle position with your wetsuit on because of the increased bouyancy.  When you site you are most likely dropping your feet farther than you think (we all do, its the physics of the human body...head comes up and feet go down) and that is why your stroke falls apart.  Unless you plan on being in the top 10 out of the water....it takes a lot of work to fix a sighting problem for very little return.  Play with it in the pool and see what works for you.  One of the guys I train with can sight with no issues, but he "barges" a lot more than I do when swimming so he doesn't have to take his body as far out of his normal swimimng position to site.  The better your form, the harder sighting becomes without throwing off your stoke......probably the issue you are now experiencing since you have improved your swim form over the off season.   

Just some thoughts......Enjoy your trip, more snow again last night. 

Dino

John,  we adjusted the training wheels so they were very high.  The girls basically had to lean the bike over in order for the T.wheels to touch.  Then we explained how they could hear when the t.wheels were being used and they needed to practice their balance to stay on the main wheels and not lean over.  After about a week the t. wheels came off no sweat.  Still be prepared to be doing some bad form sprint drills as you run along side them holding the back of the bike.

so siting and swimming a straight line is the only thing i do really well in this sport.  i use range and bearing as much as possible. learn how to do this and incorporate determining back ranges into your pre-race routine.  you will be much more confident in the water and if you get on good ranges you'll barley have to raise your head which as dino points out can really screw with your stroke.  i have yet to race a course including both HIM's where a back range was not available for a turn buoy. 

about breast stroking, i second the be aware of people around you comment.  and if you are going to breast stroke near a turn, please stay wide.  you can really do some damage, even someone your size, with a breast stoke kick. 

i learned how to use a pace clock!  used it to count laps today.  makes life a bit easier in the pool.



Edited by fattyfatfat 2010-02-16 9:47 AM

You might try doing "Heads Up" freestyle...start from the wall and do 1/2 a length with your head up then finish the length with regular freestyle. The higher head position will cause your hips to drop so you will need a little kick to maintain body position.

As you get more comfortable swimming with your head up it will get easier for you to switch between the two (regular free/sighting).

Robert

This is what I did with my boys.  Only used the grass for stopping (controlled crash) once they were able to ride some on their own.  Was too hard for them to peddle in the grass to learn there.  I tried the raise the training wheels approach Tracy mentions above but the kids just figured out how to ride the bike with a really big lean so I just took of the t-wheels and did the running thing.

George