Briderdt and Lkct's Mentor Group - CLOSED for training! (Page 6)

Libby - That is a good motto/mantra!

Shannon - AWESOME JOB!!

Jonah -  It's surprising how the "old school" activities are a good work out.  Dave & I got invited to a bounce place - with big blow up things that you jump on - just jumping around for a few minutes and I was done!

Another busy day for me...

Made it to the gym for the first time in months.  Did a sub-par but okay workout on the treadmill and stationary bike.  Michael and I need to buy a trainer!!!  Next week we are going to order the Kinetic Road Machine...seems to get good reviews.  Reasonably priced fluid trainer.

Just checked the results from the Heatwave 2010, which is the oly I want to do in June.  Most of the my age group averaged over 19 mph on the bike, with the top third over 20mph.  I have some work to do!

And way to get out there, Shannon! 

Edited by Mary A 2011-01-06 9:31 AM

I LOVE my Kinetic Road Machine. It looks so pretty sitting there holding up my bike and gathering dust…
Seriously, it’s a fantastic trainer. It’s relatively quiet (important for me, since I live in an apartment), and really feels like you’re pedaling on the road. I’ve used some cheaper wind and magnetic trainers and they all feel like you’re riding a cheap stationary bike, but the RM really rolls and accelerates like you’re riding your bike.

Thanks for the review Jonah.  I'm really excited (probably more than Michael).   It just gets dark too early, and I'm afraid to ride in the dark.  We ride on the Natchez Trace, which is not lit and is rather narrow.

I've done some off-road riding at night, and rarely some short bike commuting in the dark (on very quiet semi-urban roads), but I wouldn't try to do any serious training in the dark. That's just me. My trainer is an old (maybe 15 years old) Minoura mag unit that's seen better days (lots of rust on the frame), and actually has a fork mount (it's like they just don't make them that way any more). But... it hasn't been used in quite a while. Like Jonah's, it looks great holding my bike up in the family room...

Used to ride the Natchez Trace when we lived in Nashville.  What a beautiful road.  Never made down that far, just through a corner of Alabama and back up.

I'm partial to my 1up USA trainer.  The massive flywheel lets you coast a bit here and there giving it more of a road feel.  Big resistance in big gears too.  I'm liking my new rollers a lot too.

Contemplating some coming events:

The Winter Offroad Duathlon at Ft Stielacoom Park, February 23rd (maybe a relay): www.4thDimensionRacing.com/duathlon
The Seattle Warrior Dash on July 16th: http://www.warriordash.com/register2011_washington.php# (Reg fee increases afer tomorrow)

That Warrior Dash looks hilarious. There's one in NY, but it's about 3 hrs from NYC. Maybe I'll try to talk a friend into doing it. Isn't the finisher hat a viking helmet or something?

Picked up packet for Michael's MS Blues half-mary tomorrow!  He's going to do awesome.  Felt like a loser walking around without a swag bag.

Wanted to buy some new running shoes, but I think I only have about 200 miles on my current pair.  They just aren't nice and shiny anymore...

And the Warrior Dash looks awesome!  I'd sign up if we weren't on the other side of the country!

Edited by Mary A 2011-01-07 8:11 AM

They're all over the country: http://www.warriordash.com/register2011_louisiana.php

http://www.warriordash.com/locations.php

And as for new shoes... I'm looking forward to the new models coming from Merrell, New Balance, and Altra. Of course, those are hitting the market in February, March, and April (respectively), so I've got a little while to wait. Gives me some time to put the miles on my current shoes. But it's always good to have more than one pair -- they last longer that way!

Also check out the Muddy Buddy Series - I did that and it was FUN!!!!

Saw a reference on another site to Tough Mudder... Like the Warrior Dash, but 3-4 times as long. About a 78% finish rate...  http://toughmudder.com/

Couldn't find any Muddy Buddy races for 2011... ?

Don't know why you couldn't??

http://muddy-buddy.competitor.com/

Rats! They finally have a Muddy Buddy in NY and it’s on the same weekend as my Oly tri in New Jersey.
I am soooo doing that race next year. And there’s a kids’ race? Hmm….I wonder if my then-8 yr old son will be interested in a race where you first complete an obstacle course and then dive into a huge pit filled with mud?

Because I was looking in Washington... Nearest ones are Vancouver, BC, and Portland, OR.

We have the Muddy Buddy, Warrior Dash and the Tough Mudder here around Atlanta.  I really want to do the Warrior Dash but I think it is on the weekend I have to go to my brother-in-laws graduation.  I have a lot of friends who did the Warrior Dash last year and had a blast.  They did get the Viking helmets and beer at the finish.  Muddy Buddy is always popular too.  My brother and his friend are doing the Tough Mudder this year.  It is a little too crazy for me though. 

Okay, I just signed Lisa and I up for the Warrior Dash on July 16th!!!

Is there a certain training plan that I should be on for a sprint tri?  Or should I just rotate through the 3 events the best that I can?  I have the free membership to the site, but I do have access to some of the training plans.  Any suggestions?

Even among the tri-talk posts, if you do a search, you could come up with a lot of options...

But, the first thing to determine is how much time you can put into training weekly, considering all your other obligations. After that, work towards two workouts in each sport each week, adding distance as you progress. Swim time is usually the more difficult to work with, as pool schedules often determine when you can make those. Then sprinkle in the others around that, not trying to do too much too soon.

Swim training is the most technique-intensive, and run training can be the most wearing. At least for a while, try to not have back-to-back run days.

Hope that helps.

Unofficial time for my first half mary today was 1:43 on the dot (per the Garmin).  I'll post the official time and race report when we get back in town next week.  This was a great race to be a part of.  Lots of fun.  Splits are in my log.  Gave it everything I had the last 5k and it turned out great.  It was all smiles at the finish line!  Thanks for all the advice, it helped. 

Well done! Awesome time. You've given me a time to shoot for come August.

Michael did so great today!!! I was an amazing cheer section, if I do say so myself.  He looked like a champ coming down the finish.