SBR Utopia - OPEN (Page 56)

Smartwool is actually the brand, but if you look here you can see all different types they have. It sounds like you have a lower cut pair. Another reason I use the ski or snowboards socks is that they'll go all the way up to my knees. I'm 6'3", so understand on the tights being a bit short. Plenty of overlap with that. The various thicknesses doesn't really show up on screen except for the hiking socks though.

It's even more fun when they freeze together.

I finally gave up on Garmin connect.  I was never using it there so it was easy to stop.

My stuff just autoloads to Garmin connect.  I only go look at it if I want to see the neat little map it draws to see where exactly I got lost on my run.  Um, not that I ever get lost out in the middle of the wods on my run.  More like I just don't really know where I am...

Asalzwed - 2013-01-22 4:37 PMIt's been about like this every day here. Cold too. On the plus side, I look like a ninja in my balaclava.

Is that person on the bike wearing a parachute? Now THAT's hardcore...

It's Seattle.  I am assuming that is just a nice water proof covering over their pack.  Seattle is really a nice city....in the summer

My cousin says it is -50C (I assume there is windchill in there) in Timmins.  So, um, it could be worse?!?!?  Not sure how close you are to Timmins

Well, we were on a bridge. It's a safety precaution.  

Naaah, we are all commuters so it's just a waterproof pack. Hmmm I guess that's not so common in non-Seattle areas eh?

Ok, If that happened to me I think I'd prolly completely FREAK OUT!!!! 

kate  My weather in Austin.....73 degrees 31 percent humidity winds light and variable.

Chris  Thanks for taking the abuse before i did. I live a few min, from a park with a fifteen mph speed limit, seven mile loop mostly bordering the lake. I stopped myself from posting a pic.

Lets stick together guys...we dont have to feel guilty . LOL

swimming masters at my pool never includes more than 3600 yards. you guys hammer down those w/o's 

I am trying to learn to shift going up hills. any good links people. I am starting to get better but want to nail it down asap. Concentrating on the upstroke helps keep my quads from burning. yah!

How helpful is it to frequently practice T2 bike to run transition?

What kind of hill?  Big and long or short and rolling?  If it is a short little sucker I often just stand up and power over it.  Might not do that in an ironman but generally it is a good bet for me.  If it is long I just let cadance be my guide.  The stronger you get riding hills the longer it takes before you have to shift.  I have gotten a pretty good idea as to what type of grade I am comfortable at what cadence and I think that just comes with experience.  Of course there is always the hill were I am looking for that extra gear to shift down into and it is never there.  And yet I keep checking over and over again on the ride. lol

You probably don't want to move to Tucson then.  If I wasn't finding some weird odd thing pretty much every day then it means I wasn't in Tucson.  Not as bad here in Payson

longish hill. maybe half a mile. part way up theres a steeper segment....i have to shift up before i stand out of the saddle. low gear is okay when im sitting but i want to get up it quicker....

ya i guess experience is best teacher...just feel awkward trying to go from horns to tri shifters and back to the horns whilst i stand up/sit down etc.....it did seem a little easier today than last time. By the way...its the street out front of my place where the hill is.

as far as kicking....didnt someone here say break out of the two beat kick to really gain some speed for at least part of the swim?

The two beat kick.  I spent last winter working on developing a good two beat kick and I have to say, I never really mastered it.  I can do it but I can't swear that I'm doing it right - I had a hard time trying to figure out the timing.  I gave up sometime during the summer when I timed myself a few times and I seemed to be going slower.  I think my problem was that I was focusing so much on the timing that it was slowing my turnover down and it was killing my speed.  

That said, I think if you can get it right it should be a very effective kick for distance swimming.  I just spent so much time in the pool as a kid that it's one of those automatic motions that I have a really hard time breaking.  That and when I wear a wetsuit, I barely kick at all - that too may have contributed to my giving it up.  

Fred, as to your question about whether you are doing it right or not, I think what you are describing sounds right.  I was always thinking about it as during the pull with my right arm, I am kicking down with my right leg but that's essentially what you are saying.

I'm no fish - but this is basically what I do.

I have been working on it, too, the same way you are, down kick with opposite hand. It is beginning to feel natural and faster, but I also want to hear what others say about it.

Per TJ's explanation somewhere or other, it's timed with when you're supposed to roll. I *thought* that was right as you begin to pull after making the catch, but maybe you can explain that part better.

I just pedal in through the bottom. That's far enough for the other leg to take over on pushing down. The upstroke is a rather inefficient use of energy. If my quads are burning I'm going too hard. Or I badly missed on the gears needed and am going at a very slow cadence. Do learn to shift a little before you *need* to. That way you don't get bogged down. It'll help keep your momentum up.

When I stand, there is kind of a rhythm to keep that idea going, but I'm still not powering on the upstroke.

And Kim (bzgl) is right in that there are differences in more specific hill situations, but hopefully that can help start.

On land I can handle most things. Swimming into a monitor lizard?

Name 3 things in AZ that would be crazier to come upon... 

I load things into Garmin Connect, then transfer the files to TP. Then copy into BT. Haven't gotten to the TP to BT transfer yet. Strava is just for races and more adventurous rides. Hardly anything immediate is really worth putting on there for me though.