SBR "U" (Page 39)

35 min run and an hour on the trainer for me today.  The weather here was actually pleasant with a bit of melting going on.  Temp was still below zero but with the sun out warming up the roads, there were lots of puddles and runoff for me to dodge.

Great to see people getting outside in the frozen (or ever so slightly melted) tundra.  This is the time of year when hope blooms in advance of flora...

<minor rant on>

Got out today for a ride, but talk about snakebitten.  Shop tuned my bike recently and put the front wheel (a 404) on and tightened the skewer so much that it was VERY difficult to open (noticed same on rear tire last Friday when I brought it home and put it on the trainer).  So, I do my usual pre-ride inspection and note that the front wheel is rubbing when I spin it and check the brakes.  Futz with it and check it (several times) - then notice a HUGE crack in the wheel hub that was definitely not there when I brought it in.  Have not ridden it since - just had it on the trainer (and today was to be the ride to check out the new fit they did a week ago, too).

So, I'm going in to the shop tomorrow and will have what I am concerned will be an uncomfortable conversation.  I'm going in with a positive attitude (they're supposed to be great - two of the five national USAT mechanics that serve Team USA at UTI world events are from this one shop, so they should be great) and expectation that they'll fix it.  We'll see.

So, then I try to put my race wheel on the front (808) - but they'd tightened the cables so much that it wouldn't spin even with the brakes opened all the way (different width, so only needs a minor adjustment for both to work).  So.... I took my road bike out (and was bummed about the wheel and not getting to try my new fit on the road).  Got a rear flat 24 miles in to a 40+ miler.  Fixed it (checked and cleaned the tire, put the new tube in, checked for pinches, popped a CO2).  Great.  Rode for a couple miles and POP!

Called the SAG wagon (aka, The Better Half, aka my wonderful-I-have-to-get-her-something-nice-for-doing-this-twice-this-month wife).

At least I was able to cobble one good trainer bike together out of the two bikes and some spare wheels to finish my workout!

I know, totally first world problems ("Wanh, even with two bikes I only got to ride outside for a little while").  

Should have just stayed on the trainer! (can't believe I even wrote that)  

<end rant>

Matt

Got out for a nice 15k run today.  Another sunny day with the temp just below freezing but lots of snow melt going on with the sun.  Days like today make me enjoy running in the winter.

Just about to start the descent into toronto to catch a connector. I can confirm that Canada does indeed look very white and shiny from 30,000 feet.

You headed to Europe?  Make sure you wave when you fly over my house.

yup - Istanbul for about a week then Rome for 4 or 5 days. I've timed this trip perfectly to then get about a week-and-a-half of spring break when I get back - sneaky. Lord you should have heard my people when they figured THAT out a couple of days ago.... I'll have pilot honk the horn when we fly over PEI.

Not Constantinople ...

(hehehe)

Starting to have the melt here finally as well - although to Rusty's comment it remains very white.  Depending on the weather I may aim to ride outdoors this weekend as my street is no longer snow covered.  Hopefully not snakebitten the way Matt was (seems the very definition of the term) - hope the conversation went okat\y at the bike shop.

Ran the closest thing to a road race I will likely do in the next 6 months or so for a fitness check

Here is my race report

As I said this was more of a fitness check, not going for a PR but I was really pleased. Even though I haven't gotten any quality workouts that were specific to this type of running my mountain running has kept me afloat.

So glad to see you pop in! Steve and I were just talking about you!

Now get to work? First time in almost 6 months pshhhhhh

Been thinking a lot about this season and planning, and finally decided that IM Canada isn't in the cards for me, for a number of reasons - vacation and work scheduling, motivation, etc.  So it's official now that I canceled the great hotel deal I had  

Will be looking at shorter races, and racing less often. Season focus more on the latter part of the summer

3/14 - Catalina Marathon
6/1 - RB Sprint
6/8 - Escape from Alcatraz
8/2 - 2 mile swim
8/23 - Santa Barbara Long Course
10/18 - Silverman
11/21 -Catalina Eco Marathon

Maybe we can get some people together for IMMT next year instead?

Lets just all do the Catalina Eco Marathon

Ha, I read the words "shorter races" and looked at the list and thought "most of those ain't short."   Guess I meant shorter than IM.  Mostly.  

Re the marathons, we had a heat wave last November for the Eco, hottest of the fall.  We're having a heatwave this weekend, hottest of the winter (that sounds odd), but going to be 80s.  Doesn't sound too bad, but back in the back country, with a tailwind, it gets mighty toasty.  Good things are this race starts an hour earlier and we just went to DST, so another hour early.

LA marathon has it worse on the mainland, up into the 90s

Matt...hope everything works out with the wheel.  I can imagine the conversation would be a bit awkward, but you have the right to at least present the possibility that it is their fault and you see where the go from there.

As far as my first world problems with my Quarq.  I got it back Friday evening and rode with it on Saturday.  Couldn't ride side by side with the PT since my GF was using it, but the numbers looked good at first...then possibly a bit high.  Unless of course I just set a new 10 minute personal best without being totally shelled.  Back pedalled, and then numbers looked a bit better.

Sunday I was able to ride side by side with the PT, and the numbers were a little wonky.  Not terrible, but as I hit the lap buttons often (on both my computers) I would see fluctuations where sometimes the PT would read a little higher (2-3%)...sometimes the Quarq a little higher...and sometimes spot on.  Then for one short 8ish minute hard effort...the Quarq was reading about 6% low...then good again.

I'm sure there is a bit of a break in period as the chain rings settle in, and this morning the numbers got even closer together.  A bit of fluctuation at the beginning, but the last 30 minutes were pretty much identical.  My overall AP and NP were less than 1% apart.  Offset numbers are also much lower now than before I sent the Quarq in.  It was around -750 to -800 prior, and now settling in around -300.  It was -203 as soon as I installed it.

Here's to hoping all is solved.

Uuuuuuuhhhhh anything over 60 degrees in a race and I am DYING. I like the sensation of running in the heat but I slow drastically. It takes me all summer to adapt. Just in time for our 20 degree fall days hahaha.

Sounds like you and Matt had some struggles, yeesh.

I hate days where things just don't seem to come together for a workout. I hate to do it but sometimes I feel like it's the universe telling me I need to take a day. 

dp

The mental anguish you've put yourself through is a great reason for me to never compare two PM's side by side should I ever move away from the PT!!

3 x 15' struggling at 95-98% yesterday was all the anguish I need from my PM.

The only thing that causes more mental anguish than comparing two PMs...having your primary PM read just low enough where it looks okay...but you can't hit any of your normal workout goals.  Believe me...that causes way more frustration in the sense that you often want to quit your workouts not even half way through.