left.right.repeat group -closed - Full of a bunch of winners...YEAH! (Page 15)

Way to go Dan. Great performance, especially on the swim portion !!

BTW - MSU made my local newspaper this morning but not for the right reason. Something about a party that got out of control. Of course, nothing like that would ever happen at MY university ( )

Mav - your goal of qualifying for Boston is tremendous. Even though my entry was a "charity" one, I still felt like an Olympian as I made my way along that hallowed course and the emotion of making the final turn onto Boylston Street when you see the old-fashioned finish line banner is indescribable.

Wow, that's a great pic Leston! Have a great trip and enjoy the mountain biking, the warmth, etc.

Mav - what did you mean by the "3k fee"?

I was to the pool yesterday but didn't want to do too tough a workout since I was still a little stiff from my Sunday LSD. I tried really hard to focus on "lengthening the vessel", on good kicking technique (still not very good at this) and on bi-lateral breathing.

Looks like it's to be a fantastic day weather-wise with temp as high as 50F. I plan to run at lunch and may even be brave enough to flash my spindly white legs for all to see by wearing shorts instead of running tights. Yikes !!

Not descriptive Dan? *cough cough* Actually, I found the description of your tri very detailed and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it! Wow, you did great! Are you sure you had a vacation recently? *grin* Good job!

I lengthened a little more today while swimming, Bryan, and shortened my stroke count to 25. I'm feeling more comfortable with the rotation, but it sure feels like I'm twisting a lot. And I'm with Leston... I can't even get my mouth above the water line to the left, lol, much less take a breath. Guess I'll continue to breath on the right side for now.

sTRIving on!

P.S. Hurray for Peter's warmer weather! Woohoo!

Dan - great performance at the indoor tri. You are SO ready for the outdoor season !! Apparently the Tigers aren't quite so ready ( ). Gosh, I remember the great Tigers-Jays rivalry in the mid to late 80's. One of my best friends from military college was from Windsor so a big Tigers fan and we used to love bantering back and forth.

Just back from my last swim class. Tonight there was only 2 of us again. I did 6 x 50's (2 pull, 2 one-arm and 2 kick) and then a 200m pyramid: 50-100-150-200-150-100-50.

Got home and chatted on the phone with my daughter who is away at university (1st year) and wrote her first final exam today and writes another tomorrow. She was really down because she didn't feel like she did well and is worried about the one tomorrow too. Poor kid feels the weight of the world on her shoulders because her scholarship requires that she maintain a 75% average for it to be renewed in subsequent years. Tried my best to tell her not to worry but she will anyway.

Saw my first road cyclist today as I was on the way home from work so it won't be long till I can get my new wheels out for a test drive.

BTW, I've decided on a name for my bike. I've been playing around with a number of concepts to try and find one that grabs me. Thought about something to do with its colour or maybe a Roman God, etc. etc. I've finally decided on (drum roll please)

Sebastian 

Why you ask? Well, because St. Sebastian is the patron saint of athletes. You can read a more complete story at: http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=103but I liked in particular that

"He is patron saint of athletes because of his physical endurance and his energetic way of spreading and defending the Faith. Sebastian is also patron to all soldiers. He entered the Roman army under Emperor Carinus in 283 in order to defend the confessors and martyrs of his day without drawing attention to himself. His efforts kept the Faith of Marcus and Marcellian firm during their persecutions, right up to the time of their martyrdom. He was declared patron of plague sufferers of his reported cures of those afflicted with many diseases"

So - he is connected to athletes, the army and curing diseases - all things that resonate with me.   

Cheers,

Pete

Dan - you were right there with me...cool....great job....it was a great event and I am glad you were able to do it....I looked at you club results and you did very well overall and in your division....you should be pumped....

Mav - Boston is $3000?????????????????

Leston....what a cool pic...a beautiful place for sure....keep up the good work

FBP - let those legs see the sun....go for it....you are one running dude....

Leston - you are probably lifting your head slightly vs. rotating when you go to the left vs. the right.  Have a friend or your wife stand at the end of the pool and watch your head.  It's angle should remain constant on both sides.  I would bet it doesn't.  ANY shift in your head "up" would force your legs down.  You might also be starting your next stroke sooner to "hold" yourself up.  Consider balance on that left breath.

Dan - your swim was awesome - 450 in 10 is about 1500 in 30 - a very respectable time.  Keep working on extending and do some 50s pushing the effort.  You will get faster with some interval work.  It is very similar to running.  In the future, on the bike you can check your cadence by counting the right knee up for 10 seconds and then multiply by 6.  So for a cadence of 90 you would want your right knee up 15 times in 10 seconds.  Hope that helps.  A couple of thoughts on your calf.  I would take some calcium as well as potassium.  I would also be sure I replace the electrolytes and salt I am losing and also I would be sure I drink lots of water.  You might not be hydrating well enough before you start a long workout.  Also, carefully stretch before you work out...after warmup stretch a little more.  I also use a foam roller and they work well too.

Flipper - be sure your rotation is the same on each side...getting your mouth above the waterline should be as much about the rotation of your core as well as your head.  Also, be sure your core goes evenly on both sides.  Belly button pointing at one side wall and then the other.  Go go go.....

FBP - what a great bike name...seems to fit perfectly.

By the way, you ALL rock.

Looking for a tri - go to www.trifind.com

sTRIve on Turtles

B

Had another good lunchtime run and once again it was decent enough to wear shorts. My 6k route was a little different than usual and included a monster hill but of course once you go up you get to come down.

Mav - still wondering what your $3k comment was referring to.

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

FBP 

A great workout today.... an hour and a half ride.  Wow...great weather here right now....yeah I know Mav...it's going to get hot.  But tomorrow morning I am out for a long run and the temp is supposed to be about perfect.  I swam Friday night prior to going out to dinner with Debbie and it was a good swim.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend and a couple of great workouts....

In your next post and thereafter, let's all put our next race and date....I bet there is a signature option that one of Bill Gate's relatives (masquerading as a Turtle) will tell us about.....

sTRIve,

B

CapTexTri - May 25 (although I think I may do a sprint April 26)

OK...here is another idea....

I have created a Google calendar that I use for my race schedule and training stuff.  I can create another one for us to share.  All I need is your email to give you access if you would like to add your events, that way, one look at the month would show everyone's events....

let me know,

Great idea B-man. I think you have my email but if not I will pm to you. My events are the Fredericton Half Marathon on May 11 and the Duncan Hadley Sprint Tri on July 6th.

Just back from my Sunday LSD  - 16k again today. Plan is to do 18k next weekend and then start to back off the distances leading up to the HalfM. Also hoping to get out cycling later this week - yippee!!

Caught most of the Ford 70.3 championship on NBC yesterday afternoon. Wish they spent more time focusing on age-groupers but the lady they did concentrate on (I think her name was Vicky?) was quite an inspiration. Had lost 80 pounds and was dead last (or close to last) but had a smile the whole time.

Also liked that the intro sequence said something like, "We will strive, we will etc." Our group's motto appropriated by a major network ().

Mav - bet you're loving the story about a Sox jersey buried in the foundation of the new Yankee Stadium, eh? Those New Yorkers - always puttin' something into their stadiums. Last time it was Jimmy Hoffa in the Meadowlands . We Canadians are sneaky too - we buried a Canadian coin beneath centre ice in the Salt Lake arena before the Olympics and went on to win Gold in the Mens and Womens hockey.

I love the idea of a team calendar, Bryan! How cool is that?! Great idea! I've inserted my one and only scheduled invent into my signature, and my email address is:

[email protected]

I took the weekend off. I was feeling run down (probably over-training again - I don't know what gets into me, *sigh*) and I'm having numerous migraine headaches. The doctor says they are worse due to menopause, arggg. (I know you guys want to read about this, lol.) I guess this is something I'll have to live with for awhile. It seems like I'm drugging myself constantly, but I don't want to give up my triathlon dream so, if drugs help me work out, so be it. Anyway, hope to get back on track, albeit, with a little less distance, tomorrow.

Have an AWESOME week, all! (Hope to hear from you soon, Marianne. You are in my prayers.) sTRIve on!

Wow mav, that is the best possible news to start my day with. Could not be happier for you. Now, quit slackin' and get to trainin'

Glad you liked my bike's name. The more I think about it the more I like it. It looks like I'll be able to get out riding with Seb before week's end. Snow is almost all melted now - just a few heaps on the lawns from where we shovelled the driveway all winter.

Some other bike news - I got a set of nearly new Profile Design aerobars (the low end model that you add onto your road bike bars) - on ebay yesterday for $18. Turns out they were being sold by someone in Kelowna which is where my wife is currently visiting. So, the vendor is dropping them off to her today instead of me having to pay for shipping. Sweet. Once I'm comfortable on Seb I'll add them and see how I feel. For an investment of $18 I'm not too worried if they don't work out

I'm off later this afternoon to pick up my daughter at university. It's about a 3 1/2 hour drive from here. She wrote her last two (first year science) exams yesterday and so is packing up her residence room today. I shudder to think how full the van will be on the way home!

Mav - are you a hockey fan at all? Your Bruins are playing OK against the Montreal Canadians. Dan - are you a Red Wings fan? Bryan - surely you are cheering for the Dallas Stars. Leston - do you follow hockey? Juanita - do you even know what hockey is down in 'bama (just kidding ) Sadly, my favourite team, the Ottawa Senators are now on the brink of elimination at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Not ahuge surprise since they played poorly most of the second half of the season and they are without three key players due to injury.

Have a great day everyone. Juanita - hope you are feeling a little more chipper than you were on the weekend.

Wonderful news, Marianne! AWESOME!! I'm so happy for you. I can't wait to see the way you compete from here on in. It's gonna be great. 

What's hockey?

I think you can do it, Dan! Go for it!

sTRIve on folks!

Please forgive me but I am going to hit 2 tonight and then follow up soon.  I apologize but tax day is today as you know and it has been a crazy few days at work.  None of you people keep your 1099s when we mail them.  Smile.

Dan - yes do an outside sprint before Chicago.  I think you will really enjoy it and it will be great practice.

Mav - what the hey....go for it.  You will be fine.  It will be tough but you are tougher.  I am really really pleased with your test results...that is fantastic.  Get on the bike a few times and take it easy on race day.  Work to keep that heart rate under control.  I would not OWS (open water swim) at anything below 60 degrees...and 65 is really cold in my humble opinion...even in a wesuit.  70 is pretty much my limit...and to me, that is COLD.  Be careful too, if your inner ear gets cold, you will experience dizziness.  In cold water, I highly advise silicone ear plugs to insulate the inner ears.  Be careful in cold water.  Don't swim too long.  Be sure someone is watching you or better yet kayaking with you.

Man - with advice like that you guys should be paying....LOL....

sTRIve on....more details on the calendar soon....

B