brick94513-GoGoGo Mentor Group - Closed For Now! (Page 22)

dhopman - 2010-04-22 8:20 AM


This reminds me...I've read that it's smart to save your legs on the swim. Luckily, I rarely kick to begin with unless I'm sprinting. Usually this "front quadrant" swimming advice says to kick in the last part of your swim to get some blood into your legs before exiting the water. I've never given it that much thought in a race. Had anyone tried using this technique?

dhopman - 2010-04-22 12:08 PM

Last night I was able to squeeze in 45 minutes on the trainer after dinner while my gf watched her new favorite show "Parenthood".

I'm swimming tonight for the first time in the last three weeks. The pool has been shut down for a new filtration system. My Wildflower Oly is in 10 days and I've been slacking!

wplummer - 2010-04-22 2:54 PM living so cal i used to be a huge weather wimp. this winter i have run in the high 20's on some mornings with only shorts a long sleeve and gloves. and loved it.

GoGoGo - 2010-04-22 3:04 PM Finally, my new TT bike...yet to be ridden!!

GoGoGo - 2010-04-22 1:04 PM Finally, my new TT bike...yet to be ridden!!

brick94513 - 2010-04-22 3:11 PM

That is right around the corner.  I was thinking about doing the Wildflower HIM, but my race series kicks off on the same day.  So, I'll be up in Cool (Auburn) trying to kill myself cycling 24 hours solo.

brick94513 - 2010-04-22 5:49 PM ^^^Whys the dumb fireman have to be the IT guy too?^^^

dhopman - 2010-04-22 8:20 AM This reminds me...I've read that it's smart to save your legs on the swim. Luckily, I rarely kick to begin with unless I'm sprinting. Usually this "front quadrant" swimming advice says to kick in the last part of your swim to get some blood into your legs before exiting the water. I've never given it that much thought in a race. Had anyone tried using this technique?

brick94513 - 2010-04-22 1:50 PM Hey David (Norcal), are you going to come down to Xterra Del Valle and race with us?  May 8th.  Should be a fun course very similar to Folsom.

GoGoGo - 2010-04-21 4:57 AM

I agree with Tim, we can take another.

Let us know a bit more about you.  Previous training?  Previous races?  Any running/cycling or just a swimming guru?

R

dhopman - 2010-04-22 9:44 AM

Ahhh, zoot shoes! I'm tempted to go sockless on the run which I think would require a specialized shoe like zoots, but I'm nervous that I'd still get blisters and putting on socks just doesn't take that much time if you roll them up.

How have they worked for you?

SAWFISH50 - 2010-04-22 1:13 PM

Nice Bikes Richard!!!  The new one is really SWEEET!!

jhogan9600 - 2010-04-22 5:06 PM Ran hills this afternoon. They kicked my butt pretty good. Drove home and jumped on the bike and took off. Had a nice ride... almost no one on the road, calm winds and high 60s. Smells like spring here. Just got my TI Breast Stroke dvd in the mail this afternoon Looking forward to watching it this weekend.

dhopman - 2010-04-22 6:45 PM

I was wading through the old pages and somehow missed this one. Sorry!

Some more background: I'm a fish. Started swimming when I was 4 in a rec league, picked up water polo just before high school. Once I started doing year-round swimming/polo I started to get hungry for the competition. I played at a pretty high level through high school on a club team that did well at junior olympics (took 4th our first year playing together). I went to Cal Poly (SLO) for college, played a few years there on the club team but between work and school, I couldn't stay competitive in the pool anymore.

After college, I started doing OWSwims - Alcatraz a couple times and some lake swimming. Did a duathlon (swim/run), then got invited to do the swim leg of a tri relay. I did two tris that same season - a sprint and an Oly. My oly was terrible, but I loved it. I did a number of running events (5/10/12k's, and a half mary), learned to enjoy running for the first time ever. Then came the MBA and I didn't do anything for 3 years (god that sounds bad).

Last year I focused 100% on running. I did 3 half-marys and set a new PR (1:41). I ramped up for my first marathon but ended up with this knee injury (PFPS) and couldn't heal in time. It was a huge set back after 6 months of training, and I'm still battling it. Since then, I've started taking cycling much more seriously, and I'm finally back in the pool which feels great. I've probably cut 15lbs or more since finishing my MBA. I stepped on the scale a few weeks ago while getting an MRI on my knee and I'm at 172lbs (I'm 6'4").

For this year, I have two major goals. First, is completing my first HIM. I'm doing it with 3 others from my MBA program and we're all super competitive type A's. I'd be lying if I said I'd be happy with just finishing...I want to beat my buddies and have a respectable race. I'm not sure if sub-6 hours if reasonable but that's the benchmark in my head right now. The second big goal is completing my first marathon on 10/31. This is less of a competition...staying healthy is going to be huge for me. If I am healthy, I know I can go under 4 hours.

Anyways...that's more background on me. I'm super excited for this race season!!! Looking forward to sharing the journey with you all.

-Dave