SBR "U" (Page 54)

Originally posted by TankBoy

Star Wars is not a good example because it covers ALL of the basic plots simultaneously, duh.

I was in fourth or fifth grade and grounded when Star Wars (Episode 4: A New Hope) first came out. Way back then movies came and went in the theater in a matter of a couple of weeks, no matter what sort of block-buster it was, and with no Cable, DVD's, VHS, or even BetaMax, if you didn't see a movie when it came out in the theater you didn't see it. I will never forget all of my friends showing up at school talking endlessly about how awesome it was. In order to punish my parents for the injustice I bore, I never went to see any of the other movies when they came out. Then for some reason last week I decide to buy all of the movies (they were just released as a set in the iTunes store) and watch them all. I mentioned it to some of my students and that set off a raging debate about what order I should watch them in. I settled on 4, 5, 1, 2, 3, 6, and also inserted The Clone Wars animated movie between 2 & 3) One of my students actually suggest I leave out Episode 1 (Phantom Menace) altogether, and I agree  that was good advice not taken. I am actually going to watch Return of the Jedi tonight - so no spoilers!!

 

Originally posted by marcag Would love to try and read it. I am old enough and went through a very classic, more european, catholic schooling system where we wrote like that. Believe it or not, grades 3,4,5 we used the pens that you would dip in ink, write, dip in ink, write....So I can actually write like that. My parents and grand parents did. No joke, we used slide rules in high school No joke, Cegep (which is like first year College), we used punch cards. Back in my day.......WOW I am getting old.

Originally posted by GoFaster

I'm just not sure where to go with this - you didn't see Star Wars as a kid, or even as an adult, until now??!!  I remember listening (yes, listening) to the Star Wars movie on 8 Track in a friends van as we drove to camping trips as a boy scout.  I was too young when the original came out, but essentially grew up with Star Wars as part of my childhood culture.

Originally posted by TankBoy But to return to SBRU, am I mis-remembering that Jedi Master Bryan Dunn used to race with a USS Enterprise emblazoned disk wheel? Now that there is just messed up...

Originally posted by TankBoy

I know, crazy right? After finishing up watching them all I did realize that somewhere along the lines I had seenThe Empire Strikes Back, and I also saw the Phantom Menace on opening day in the theater. The latter probably explains why I had never seen the rest - it really is awful. I figured this was the main reason that several folks recommended the 4/5/1/2/3/6 watching order(get the story going, flashback with some important background info and finish with a triumph), but after finishing up with watching Return of the Jedi last night it seems that the best part of that particular screening order is that it keeps it a story about Luke rather than about Aniken/Vader. But at any rate I found the whole thing kinda awful. In the end I am probably way too much of a Star Trek kid to REALLY get in to it. I also much prefer, say Horatio Hornblower and Gulliver's Travels to King Arthur or Beowulf, so I come by it pretty honestly. But to return to SBRU, am I mis-remembering that Jedi Master Bryan Dunn used to race with a USS Enterprise emblazoned disk wheel? Now that there is just messed up...

Originally posted by Asalzwed

I've got two really exciting things going on.

1. I recently purchased a mountain bike it's about 5 years old, has a great frame and fairly good components (for it's price) and from what the internets tell me, it's easily up-gradable if I start really getting into MTB. Anyhoo, I got it for a steal. I am using it as a creative outlet and just broke it down last night (aside from the headset and bottom bracket because I don't have the tools) and am getting it custom painted, new grips, pedals, cables etc. It should be awesome. I'll post before and after pics when I am done. I bet you never thought I of all people would be posting bike porn! 

2. I just booked my one way seaplane ticket from a remote town in the north cascades. A fellow BTer and I (ThebigB) will be running 105 miles (with 25,000' elevation gain) in 3 days in August. 

Originally posted by TankBoy

here you go (I think you should be able to click the link and get a larger version if I embedded it correctly from my iPad):

 

From the the bits I can make out it probably has something to do with a lecture I gave in St. Etienne a couple of years ago. 

We used slip sticks and punch cards as well. every now and again we have our students noodle around with slide rules (I have a colleague who bought a whole bunch of them for next to nothing years ago). I am a spatial thinker (either it comes with the territory or the territory comes with it) and I always like how it makes obvious that numbers have a clear spatial relationship with each other. I also like that it often demands a little estimation based on common sense as well. 

Originally posted by axteraa

1. Awesome, love the bike porn!

2. Wow!!!  I cannot imagine.

Originally posted by ratherbeswimming

Those are both super exciting. And #2 is why I want to just keep running all the time. Sounds like an AMAZING adventure!

Originally posted by axteraa

I'd never seen or heard the expression "Bien à vous" before.  Well, maybe I've heard it and just not clued in.  

Originally posted by Asalzwed

I think it's my favorite part of just being fit. This entire world is opened up...I don't know how else to explain it.

What started as being so results based and improvement based has more just turned into how can I use my fitness to get myself to see some awesome sh*t! 

Originally posted by Asalzwed

I think it's my favorite part of just being fit. This entire world is opened up...I don't know how else to explain it.

What started as being so results based and improvement based has more just turned into how can I use my fitness to get myself to see some awesome sh*t! 

Originally posted by spudone

You've probably noticed that about me also, by my race choices

I do still work on results, but it has always been for self improvement.  Sure I like beating someone else at the finish but in the grand scheme of things, where I end up in relation to the field isn't a big deal.

I've had the opportunity to race around the world, swim in three oceans, meet lots of great people and even raise some money for charity.

Someone asked me if I went to Kona if I'd quit racing after that.  Maybe I need to put up more travel photos or something.  I don't think they see what I see.

Originally posted by Jason N

So I'm riding yesterday, doing some VO2 intervals on some short hills, when it starts to rain a little.  Nothing crazy, but a good 2-3 minute shower...it was drizzling off and on up to that point.  Just as it starts, my Quarq suddenly decides to go bonkers and spitting out wattage in the 1400 range.  Damn...must have had the Spanish beef for lunch.

I've never had this happen before, so I pulled over and did a manual calibration.  -6900.  Spin the cranks backwards, do another calibration.  -4200.  Several more tries and more of the same.  I don't have any more time to be fussing around, so I continue on with the short climb and I'm putting out like 0-10 watts on more of a 300ish effort.  Get to the top, and it's stopped raining.  Back pedal and now it's sort of reading a bit better.  

I get to the next short roller where I'm targetting 400w for about 45 seconds and for the first 20-25 seconds it's reading fine...then it starts reading really low again.  Then the next short hill it's reading low the whole time.  By this time my intervals are done, and I'm just riding home.  I get to a stop light and do another calibration.  -500.  The rest of the ride seemed legit.  Ending calibration was around -475.

This morning calibration was around -478.  Ever since I got my Quarq back from servicing, the offset has been around -250 to -280.  I checked the torque on the bolts and nothing moved.  Flipped the battery (not sure I did this right) to try and do the reset on the Quarq.  My ride into work seemed normal.

So I finally look at the garmin data and my elevation data is really off.  Normally it's very accurate on my 510, but it barely recognized any of the hills I was riding.  So maybe just some really funky barometric pressure that day?  I've had my Garmin do something like this maybe once or twice in the past during funky weather, but it has never affected my PM like this.

Here's the strava ride from yesterday up to the point where the PM went crazy.  I ended the ride and started a new one after that.  It started raining at about mile 5.3...and that's when my elevation data went to crap.  The power data seemed perfect all the way up to the very end of that file.  Here's the exact same ride I did last week...with the exception that it includes the rest of the ride home.  

Before I sent my Quarq back in, the offsett number was steady at around -470...so it's weird that it went right back to that number all of a sudden too.  It wasn't a temperature issue.  Temps changed maybe 2-3 degrees if that when it rained.

Originally posted by ChrisM

When I first got into tris I had a couple friends that stopped racing once they could no longer podium.  I was always glad that I was not that fast to care about such issues  

Originally posted by spudone

Don't know what to tell you except these Quarq calibration horror stories have completely scared me off the product.  It seems so amateur hour to have to manually calibrate mid-ride all the time.  That should be handled by their software.

(I know that probably isn't improving your mood - sorry)

Originally posted by Jason N

I actually think it's going to be okay.  The garmin elevation data being wonky leads me to believe it was some type of weather anomaly.  I mean, what are the chances that both devices go completely crazy right when it starts to rain?  Both my garmin and quarq have worked just fine int he rain before, but something must have been different about yesterday for them to act up at the exact same time...then both start working perfectly again almost in sync.

Originally posted by Asalzwed

Yeah, I see this with some of the extremely competitive athletes in my club. I can imagine it's hard going from Olympics/Olympics Qualifying to barely making the podium in a smaller race. For the most part though, there is plenty of opportunity to race at a variety of National Championships for Masters.

I know there are some different opinions on age group awards, age-grading etc. but I think this is exactly why it is important.  Our Club represents well here! (http://www.runnersworld.com/masters-racing/2014-intermediate-masters-long-distance-runners-of-the-year) 

 

But I find it hard to imagine not just simply appreciating the opportunity fitness creates and how much it genuinely enhances your life. No matter where you finish. Even near the top. 

Originally posted by axteraa

Begin whine/rant mode.

We got more snow yesterday and as a result we have surpassed the local record for snowfall in one winter dating back to the early 1800s.   We are now up to 551 cms / 18.1 feet!  There is still 2-3 feet in the woods behind my house and 90% of my backyard has snow on it.  The local cycling org has already delayed two races in May because of it.

End whine/rant mode

Originally posted by axteraa

Begin whine/rant mode.

We got more snow yesterday and as a result we have surpassed the local record for snowfall in one winter dating back to the early 1800s.   We are now up to 551 cms / 18.1 feet!  There is still 2-3 feet in the woods behind my house and 90% of my backyard has snow on it.  The local cycling org has already delayed two races in May because of it.

End whine/rant mode

Originally posted by spudone

Maybe you can start doing 2-a-days in the pool and demolish everyone on the swim