kenj's group closed, training hard and having fun!! (Page 4)

I have a Fuji Finest - which is a fairly low end road bike.

My DH says if I complete my olympic, we can upgrade! Now that is motivation.

I will probably stick with a road bike though - the hills (mountains) here are not really suited for aero. Clipping in is second nature - just wished I could say the same for my new mountain bike (Santa Cruz Julianna). Now going fast - not so much, I still feel pretty timid at 25-30mph.

Thanks for the question gogogo! Of course you need to answer it as well!!!

I have a carbon fibre Trek 5500 road bike, a few years old now but a great deal faster than I'll ever be. Would love a new toy but... mortgage is calling louder.

Clipping in is usually no problem, but on occasion with cars all 'round starting off at a light... it happens.

I don't think I'd be afraid of going fast... if I had that particular ability.

Yeah Ken we did meet at Musselman last year.  Looking forward to being up there again this year.  Im not fast enough for my name to be a personality statement even though I tell my wife "I know I'm not perfect just really good at a lot of things" hahah.

For the question on buying the beer out west, the brewery is based out of Cali. somewhere...

Hope everybody had a great day, we actually had sun here in upstate NY.

If I may be so bold, I will start with a QOTD (question of the day)...

Do you have a bike yet?

I purchased a Felt road bike when I first started doing tris. I added aero bars to it at the end of my first season as I was always in the drops and wanted another position for my arms. Last year I took the plunge and bought a tri bike.

If yes, what type?

Felt W35 road bike and Specialized Transition tri bike

Are you comfortable clipping in?

I just (like in last week) went from mountain bike shoes and peddles to road shoes and Speedplay peddles. I am extremely comfortable with the mountain bike set up but am just getting used to the new set up on my tri bike and have only used them while on the trainer.  I got the new peddles and shoes because of the longer distance I will be doing this year. If I wasn't taking on an IM, I would have stuck with what I know.

Are you comfortable going fast?

Yes and no. Cycling is my strongest event so when I am racing I tend to go faster then I would if I were out trainng or riding with a group.  I don't mind going fast but when there are a lot of twists and turns, I tend to ride the breaks. I think the fastest I have gone is about 38 miles an hour (strait down hill, no turns).  I would say that my handling skills could stand some work and the usual talk in my head during a race goes something like this " go faster..don't crash!, go faster.. don't crash!"

Hi everyone (I’m trying to catch-up, here’s my bio)

NAME: acv/ Adam

STORY: I'm a 42 years old.  I live on Long Island in New York.  My wife actually signed us up for our first tri. She never trained and I sort of trained for it. The kicker was that we had a wedding to go to the night before. I got 4 hours of sleep and almost packed it in during the swim. I was exhausted but pushed through to finish. It was a great experience! She never did the race and has never wanted to be involved in racing since.

This will be my 3^rd year doing tri’s. Last year I got into a good rhythm during the spring but had trouble in the summer and fall being consistent. This will be my second year being part of a mentor group.

FAMILY STATUS: I’ve been married 11 years, I have three children (all boys) 8, 6 and 2. I’m pretty busy with the family and being that spring has started that also means baseball and soccer has started for them. So if I don’t get my workout in early I may not get it in.

 CURRENT TRAINING: I‘ll be doing tri’s this year with a mix of running races for fun. I’ve been running and biking pretty consistently since the end Feb. I’ve been battling the cold and wind and darkness for a while now. Also my running has not been up to par. But I have been seeing the light at the end of the tunnel lately which is nice. The only downside to where I live is indoor pool access. I just don’t have any indoor pools in my area. I do all my training in open water and will start swimming mid May. The water temps are usually in the mid 50’s.

THIS PAST YEAR'S RACES: This past season I did a sprint in the summer and a sprint in the fall. I also did a 10K and a couple 5K’s last year.

2011 RACES:   I have a sprint in July and my first olympic length race in Oct. The footnote to the olympic length is that the RD is allowing you to upgrade to the HIM length up till August 15^th. The 2 races will be going on simultaneously. I always planned on doing an Olympic this year and HIM next but I’d really love to finish a HIM.

WEIGHTLOSS: I’m around 180 right now and was at 240 at one time. I need to stay active and be careful about what I eat in order to maintain my weight. I’d love to drop a few more pounds.

I’m excited to be part of another mentor group and this one looks really active which is nice!

I do my bike rides on the weekends so I can get in a little longer ride. It's supposed to be windy which won't be much fun but I'll be out there anyway.

  IronGirl - Yeah, I'm looking foward to it.  I know a handful of others doing it, and another who's thinking about it.

GOGOGO, in response to your QOTD:

I have a hybrid bike, a Trek something or other.  My goal is to ride 3 x week and build up my strength.  I've been keeping the idea of trading it in for a beginner road bike.  I know Trek has a women's bike for @$500. 

But I need to prove myself "worthy" first.  I don't know if I'm ready to make the investment.

Great question!  Have a good one all,

Julie - I live in Laramie - which is 1hr 15 minutes N. of Fort Collins and a couple hours away from Denver. Not many tri's here so most of the ones I will do will be in CO. (Pelican Fest Sprint in Windsor and Rattlesnake Oly in Aurora).

Ken - safe travels today! My DH is also in the air flying back home from D.C.

Weekend plans - I have my long run today - will be a little over 2hours (10-11miles). Which will be the longest ever! Easy recovery run tomorrow and then most likely take Sunday off. I am fortunate that I work from home and have a very flexible schedule so I usually do my long ride/runs durring the week so hubby (who is training for a century) can get his long rides in on the weekend.

I hope everyone has  a great Friday!!!!

It's good to see the group off to a nice start with some great people!

Regarding gogogo's bike question: I started training in 2006 on a hybrid that I already had and soon bought a used roadbike. In 2008 I got a Kuota K-factor which is a carbon fiber tri bike which I am very fond if, but I sometimes think I would like a new bike. Maybe I can convince my wife that a bike would be a great 25th anniversary present...

I like to go fast, but I get chicken when I get over 35 MPH or so.

8 mile hilly run on Saturday, and then a 35 or so mile very hilly ride on Sunday. My Duathlon in May is VERY hilly so I have to hit as many hills as possible.

Welcome back to NY, Ken, and everyone have a great weekend!

Anthony

Yeah Julie, there is really only 1 sprint tri in this portion of the state - the Cheyenne Sprint Tri. It is on my birthday this year so it should be fun. Unfortunatly they moved the course so I can't compare my time from last year. I notice you have the Boulder Sunrise on your list of races.  I was registered for the Boulder Sunset last year, but their big fire postponed the race and I couldn't make the new date. It looks like a fun course.

I got in my long run for the week today. Longest run ever at 2hrs5min and 10.4 miles! This is a huge accomplishment for me as I only started running a little over a year ago. I looked at my logs and my total weekly mileage back in December is around the same length as my long run now. I should hit over 25 miles for the week too, which will also be a first! Now if I wasn't soooo slow!

Bikes...

I, as well, started with a hybrid.  Still use it for cummuting & riding with the kids.  It is a Specialized Sirrus Sport.  Have it with road wheels.

Then bought a road bike, Cannondale Synapse.  Learned about clippng in on it.

Last year bought a TT bike.  Cannondale Hi-Mod2.  This bike feels & is quite fast.

I enjoy fast blasts, but have to feel in control.

That is my bike story.

No big plans for me.  semi-working.  Took today as a rest day.

Tomorrow, hopefully will be able to squeeze in a spin class.

Sunday, hopefully a run, length depends on work.

This sounds sensible.  If you catch the bug, you will want to upgrade.  No need to rush yet.  Many have done their 1st sprint on a hybrid!!

So everyone has a bike. Excellent!!

Another QOTD, for those willing to playalong.

What is the single biggest impediment to your training & how do you deal with it.

For me it is definitely time.

How about you?

PS.  Ken, I assume you don't mind us playing while you are away.

PPS.  QOTD can be submitted by anyone, for a conversation point!

Do you have a bike yet?

Kinda

If yes, what type?

I am using my bike that my parents bought for me in high school (stop laughing at me!).  That makes it about 16+ years old.  It is a GT Mountain Bike.

Are you comfortable clipping in?

Don't have clips.  Just riding in my running shoes!

Are you comfortable going fast?

Nope!  I rode my bike on Tuesday.  It was the first time in... well... quite a while.  It was awesome!  But I need practice.  Flying down hills is a bit scary.