Experior and Slornow's Spring/Summer Mentor Group-CLOSED (Page 32)

Rene/Randy: I am around 5'11". Sometimes a 56cm frame fits and on other bikes its a 58cm fit. I am not sure how much I want to spend on a Tri bike. I would love a Cervelo!

Blanda/Randy: The US are not going to win this game. I love the game that Juergen Klinsmann wants to bring to the US but I am not sure if they can bring it. Sorry but Deutschland, Deutschland ... only a few more days until Euro 2012. 

Hi all, I'm here to brag about my youngest son Drew Barronkraus.  In this video he kicked the winning goal in the Michigan Rugby Division 2 State Finals.  They went 9-0 this season!  At the end his team just totally pounced on him in celebration!  I am so proud of him and he works so hard!  I hope the link works.  Jim

http://www.fox17online.com/videogallery/70157529/Sports/

That's AWESOME!! I love the celebration!! I know you're a super proud Papa. High fives to Drew for that fantastic kick!

Alright guys ... I need your advise on this whole bike thing ... here are two pictures that I have on my current bike ... 

Schwinn Varsity $199

Clip Pedals with Shoes $199

Aero Bar $50

Seat $50

So as you can see my add ons are more expensive than my bike. I am currently averaging anywhere between 17-19mph on 20 to 30 miles. How much can I improve by getting a new bike? 

Awesome job! Congrats, I know you're proud!

Jimmy-very cool!

Michael-the bike is a tough call.  Maybe try to look long term. Make it throught this season with what you have and look to buy over the winter.  A new bike might help a bit with speed but I would bet you could makesimilar speed gains by increasing your bike training volume.  Now with that said.....once I get in my head that I want/need a new piece of equipment I have a hard time talking myself out of it.  Alot depends on how much flexibility you have with spending the extra $ for a new bike.  I would try to wait and get a good fit done and try to find a good deal based on the fit.

Randy   

Congrats to your son!  That's a great accomplishment.  Rugby is one tough sport (I still have the scars).  It takes a lot of teamwork and athleticism to be that good.

Enjoy the moment!  You had a part in making it happen.

I'll share my experience.  Maybe that will help you a bit.  I love helping others spend their money :-)

I had a very similar bike two years ago (2005 Giant FCR 4). The longer my rides became, the more uncomfortable it got. So, comfort was my main motivation for upgrading to a road bike.

Differences I noticed are:

1. Climbing became easier (not easy mind you but, easier).
2. Speed increased a bit.
3. Comfort increased a lot.
4. Ride frequency increased a lot.

I credit the performance increases (#1 and #2) to the bike being lighter and the tires being more narrow.  I don't know if moving from a triple to a compact double chain ring made any difference (aside from weight).

The most gains will be found by improving the engine :-)

I agree with our esteemed colleagues about finishing the season with your current bike -- if it's comfortable. Try out a bunch of bikes and take your time. Also, have you considered getting a road bike before a tri bike?

One interesting tidbit I read on bikeforums.net: someone suggested buying the best frame you can afford (when purchasing a complete bike) because the components will wear out and need replacing whereas the frame will last for years (provided you actually use the darn thing - which it sounds like you do).

-Mark

My biggest accomplishment this week was putting Yankz laces on my running shoes.

In terms of money spent/time saved they've had the greatest impact over tying laces.

Jimmy - I never played rugby myself but I know a lot of people that did and that is one tough sport. Congratulations to your son on the State Championship very amazing accomplishment!

Rene - I am planning on 5 more triathlons this season. 1 Olympic in July and 4 more Sprints until the end of October. 

Randy - I really like that Cervelo P1. That is a good looking bike ... !

Mark - Up to this point I have only done rides up to 30 miles. I got a new seat which alone is already helping a lot in the comfort area. I am not looking for a road bike because I will ONLY use the bike for Triathlon races and Triathlon training and I love me that aero position. My biggest bike improvements are coming from the after market aero bars. I saw a big speed and time improvement there. 

Thanks to all of you for the advice. My original plan was to complete this season on my bike and see if I can get a deal at the end of the season. I figured the new models come out and older ones go on sale. On the other hand I keep on seeing these beautiful tri bikes and I really WANT one .... :-) 

Unless I am going to find a steal I will stick to my original plan. Starting Monday I am going to work on a Balanced 3x tri plan in which I am going to ride my bike on the trainer twice a week (trainerroad.com) and one long outside ride. I am going to work on the ENGINE and see how much further I can improve by the end of the season without spending the money for a new bike. 

So what else is going on? Its my Friday ... got a few more hours of work. I played racquetball this morning and I have a two hour TKD session tonight. Tomorrow I am planning on a 6 mile run. Saturday is brick day! 24 miles on the bike followed by a slow 2 mile run and 2000 meter pool swim in the afternoon. Is anyone racing this weekend coming up? 

I also entered a weight loss challenge at work which also starts on Monday. 5% weight loss in 30 days which for me amounts to about 2lbs a week. 

Mark-great points on the benefits of a new bike.  When I got mine in January 2011 I vowed that I would not be the "slow guy with the nice bike" so I rode ALOT! Where in the Hudson River Valley are you? My sister lives up that way...use to be in Poughkepsie and now in Earlton(?).

Michael/d3-sounds like a good plan on the bike.  There are some tough workouts on trainerroad.  Are you able to see your data while riding? Oh, forgot to mention the Bundesliga when we were talking about top soccer leagues.  The P1 is a really solid bike. Nice aluminum aero frame and solid components.  Not sure if Cervelo is still making that model as the P2 seems to have crept down into a similar price range.  It was always plenty of bike for me but had new bike fever and the only cure was a new bike....I have a very sweet wife who gave the OK for a nicer bike than I deserve! 

Rene-nice month!  Hope you can get that HR down some..  I don't use a HR monitor while running in the heat because I know its going to be high.....I go more by pace/RPE in the heat on runs.

Made it home from first day of orientation.  Some really useful info and some mind numbing sessions as well. Wife and son will finish up there tomorrow at noon.  For me its work then getting all my stuff together for my race Saturday.  

Randy

Randy - Wow! That's an early orientation. Is it early just for athletes? Most of the high schools I know of haven't yet had graduation, though the seniors are done with classes.  Good luck on Saturday with the race.

I will be heading off to Manhattan for a couple of days next week. A bit anxious about being in the city, and that's at least partially because I know my workout schedule will be thrown off because of it. Also, because I'm not crazy about staying in a high rise... or riding in taxis... The hotel is supposed to have a nice gym though, and I'm bound to do a lot of walking, so I'll try to focus on the positive. 

Ha!  Small world.  I'm always surprised at how many people I meet who know where Poughkeepsie is.  I live in Wappingers which is adjacent.  Earlton is about 90 min. north. Nice part of the state up there in the Irish Alps. The Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival moved up there a couple years ago so I've been meaning to get up there.

Manhattan is great in the spring.  Central Park is good for running.  And you're right about the walking. I actually miss the exercise I got walking from my office to the train station. Now I sit in a car and drive to New Jersey. Ugh.

Relax and have fun. NYC is much nicer than it was in the 70's and 80's.

Jen-I agree it does seem early. He graduated on May 20th.  Alabama has orientation sessions throughout the Summer. We wanted to go ahead and get it out of the way and this session was specific to the Honors College. 

Have fun in NYC.  I've been a few times and always had a great time.  So much to do. 

Randy    

Blanda that STINKS!  Yeah, life gets in the way sometimes but that doesn't relieve the dissappointment.  Hope you have a good weekend anyway.

Randy

tomorrow I'm going to be able to check off my 1st sprint triathlon.  Since I have been wishy-washy with my workouts, I'm just using this race as a practice.  

i am working on setting up a more structured workout schedule and signing up for another to actually race in August, but I want to wait and see how it goes.