Experior's Group, Take Two -- CLOSED (Page 25)

I got a long ride in yesterday morning before Fathers day activities got rolling.  I had a super close call on the bike. Big ford expedition blew through the stop sign and almost hit me. All I could think was, "Stay on the bike" as I swerved out of his way. I'm really not sure if he EVER saw me!

Then we went to my in-laws lake house. So, I got a bonus OWS! The water was warm, but pretty choppy. Not sure of the distance, but it was great practice with the waves. I also took a bunch of nieces/nephews swimming in the middle of the lake off the back of my uncles boat. That was a good 30 minute work out! The best part was when my 15 year old niece said, "I want to be like you, Aunt Heidi. It's cool that you don't just sit on the dock and drink beer all day."

Good to hear you ended up safe Heidi.

So what's wrong with sitting around drinking beers all day... 

At my Sprint this Sunday we ran along the reservoir dam, and it was hot with the direct sun.  A boat and wake boarder went by...I was thinking how cool the water would be feeling just then, how much more refreshing that looked than the Tri!

I finally posted my race report. http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=214152&posts=1&start=1 I'm not a creative writer so it's pretty simple. As Joe Friday would say "Just the facts."

Phil

Was that your first Tri Phil?

My last two Tri's and Phil's report made me think of another area of triathlon to train for: walking, nay running, barefoot over gravely pavement, rough sand and other stuff.

Need to build up the calluses on the bottom of the feet.

OK, so that is the coolest thing I've read in a while.  That comment would put me on cloud nine for a good long while.

Sounds like you had a great weekend!

Mike,

What made you think it was my 1st. Tri? LOL Yes, it was my first. I wish I could have a do over, but there's always the next race.

Phil

Go barefoot whenever you can.  Seriously.  I almost never wear shoes.  The secretaries at my office think I'm insane, but fortunately I have job security, so I can afford to be perceived as insane, as long as I am nice to them and get the work done.  I have noticed that while I'm cruising over whatever junk is in transition or elsewhere, some others are dancing 'ooh, ouch, owie!'.  I'm convinced that my transitions tend to be above average in part because I RUN over whatever happens to be in transition.

That settles it. I'm going to set up a broken glass and pebble course in my back yard. Seriously, I have had so many issues with my foot I almost hyperventilated when I got to the race, set up my bike and saw the distance between the pool exit and the bike, knowing I was going to have to get across the parking lot barefoot. Part of the learning experience.

A side note on the crazy bike time. I called Fleet Feet the company who did the timing. The bike time started when you exited the water and ended when you started the run. I was fortunate I was keeping timing on my watch so I knew what my transitions were and I subtracted them from the bike time. Plus the times have changed several times since Sunday. Now that seems screwy.

Phil

Edited by StlPhil 2010-06-22 7:24 PM

'Just the facts', but some useful facts, there.  Can I make one comment?  OK, two.  First:  nice bike!  That is pretty quick for your first time!  First-and-a-half:  way to fight through the negatives (being pulled on the swim -- which is very not cool -- and side stitches on the run).

Second:  transitions.  As you yourself said, there is lots of room for improvement here.  I'm not knocking you AT ALL -- it was your first time!  And you did great.  But a fast transition is free speed.  All it takes is some practice to build the confidence you need to get through it quickly.

I think that 'some practice' is the key here.  That will come partly with more racing, but a lot can happen 'at home' to speed up transitions.  I'm 100% convinced that fast transitions are largely a result of a little forethought and a lot of confidence, much of which can be gained by practicing the transition at home -- and of course this can be (and is best) done as part of a workout, which means it adds just a minute or two to the total workout.

I'll use myself as an example.  I have, until my last race, been pretty slow in T1.  I finally figured out why.  When I get out of the swim, my mind is everywhere except on the task at hand.  (How fast did I swim?  Why didn't I swim up to my potential?  I can't believe that 10 people from the wave behind me passed me.  How fast do I have to go on the bike to make that up?  Will that hurt my run?  Why is that person looking at me funny?  Did I remember to turn the oven off?  Etc...)  Those thoughts are born of a lack of confidence and focus.  I should have been thinking about the task at hand.  It's really very simple:

* cap/goggles (and wetsuit top if there is one) off while running to the bike
* helmet on
* (put shoes on if no flying mount)
* grab the bike
* go!

In my last race, I promised myself I would think about NOTHING except the points above, and I had the third fastest T1 in the race.  It really is almost all mental in T1 and T2.  And all of us are mature and experienced (in life, not tri) enough to be able to win the mental game, if we put our, well, minds to it.

I agree.  It is a bit screwy.  I much prefer that transitions reflect (as far as possible) the time between exiting the water and mounting the bike, and the swim and bike times reflect actual time swimming (and biking).  Same for the run.

Continuing on transition talk I found this video on BT: http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=... it reviews T1 and the various methods to hop on bike.

This one is also a good one: http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=... shows you how to attach your shoe with rubber band so it doesn't flip around while you run and hop on.

Edited by sstucker 2010-06-23 12:28 AM

Thanks Michael, this was a video with good pointers. The one point that really cought my attention is pick a higher target for sighting. Makes perfect sense, but not obvious to a rooky.

Well, I was sort of confused Phil.  You have the picture in your signature with your medal ribon, and you've had a lot of training etc for a while now.  And then in your race report you said "not ever having a Tri experience before".

Your bike time was great, seemingly not a first timers.  So good job.

Phil,

I had a similar concern and opted for a pair of swim socks.  While I may ditch them at some point in future for a minor time gain, at this point in my tri career, the tradeoff of comfort and warmth is worth the extra time. 

There were probably a half a dozen people at my race last weekend that cut their feet while wading into the water for the swim start.  I might have finished last, but I didn't have to deal with the pain of an open wound for the rest of the race.

- Mark

Mark, where did you get the swim socks?

 
Mike,

The metal was from my HM. If you finished you got one.........all 5000 of us!  Thanks on the bike time. The bike is where I will have to make hay. I will have to be fast on the bike because I'm SO SLOW of foot.

Phil

Had a great bike ride today. I ride in a local state park a couple times a week. Real hilly. This was the first time I made it up all the hills. No walking the bike up the hills! On one hill I hit a whopping speed of 2.8 mph LOL. But, I stayed in the saddle despite the temptation to stand or unclip and walk.

Phil

Nothing wrong with standing up on a steep climb.  That walking thing, though...yeah, try to eliminate that. 

State Park ride sounds very nice.

This evening I went and rode the course for my next two Sprint Tri's.  Beautiful 80 Degree day; some head wind.  It is also a very, very hilly ride.  I did a time trial to see where I compared to last year.  Was able to gain two minutes on my time last year in September.  I was hoping for more of a time increase, but I'll take it.  I plan to go out a couple more time to ride and to see if I can figure out some better chain ring options in different spots.  There are some major killer hills; long...

Nice!  Two minutes on a sprint course is quite a lot.  And on race day you'll probably go even faster.

Just got back from a quick bike (25 min). Having hard time getting out these days, up too late for work. G20 summit wrecking havoc at work, my building is in the red zone all fenced in. On a good note I'm off to Vegas, conference, from Saturday to Friday. Will not get any training done during that week. But when I get back I have a plan of attack to prepare for my first Sprint in August. I was going to perform one in July but won't have enough time to prepare and have been too inconsistent. My foot has finally healed, no more pain for a month, so don't want to re-injure or create new one. I’m not Michael, I can’t run with broken bones .

Back to the bike. Question for the veterans. What part of the rotation should a rooky concentrate on during training and racing. Should we concentrate on the top of the rotation (pushing with toes horizontally) or bottom (scrape horizontally) or something else. Tonight I worked on the top only. Unfortunately I don’t have a trainer so it’s on the road only.

Thanks
Sylvain

I'm not sure about the top/bottom thing Sylvain, but I read something here on BT that discussed practicing making a full circle with your feet.  It said to think about one foot at a time, say 100 revolutions of the left, and visualize yourself making a perfect circle and keeping the power transfer even around it.  Then switch to the right, then both.  But Moogle (Michael) can probably give a better answer.