SBR Utopia Season II - OPEN (Page 83)

Thanks for the heads up.  I almost crapped my pants when I first read it, but I think Chris and I didn't see the fine print till later stating you must return the wheels after Kona, but you get to keep them if you win your AG.  Still a great offer, but I'm not sure I want to deal with using a wheelset I'm not familiar with (wider rim and carbon brake track) knowing it would only be a one time deal.  I'd also hope that the first 40 people who respond actually have a chance to win their AG and score the wheels.

That said...this Kona experience has been great even though I have not even gotten there yet.  Rudy project gave us an unbelievable deal on a basically free helmet, free shades and 40% off anything else we wanted.  Another company who wanted to remain nameless emailed me with another 40% off anything offer.  Feeling like a rock star!

I too am going to be in the market for a new tri bike for this coming season and glad to hear that "looks matter" to you guys as well. I actually thought I was going to be in the market for a new mountain bike as my original plans were to give xterra a go next year, but JT really wants to do another IM next year and she is the boss, so we signed up for IMMT. I am really looking forward to it as we have a great time training together.

Like Fred I too am going to be a little more time crunched than usual, so am definitely going to have to train differently than in years past. Not entirely sure yet what that means as this season is not over, but will definitely be spending more time on the trainer than usual for starters. A couple of years ago I got a KK Rock and Roll which I like A LOT - it is incredibly comfortable. It is terribly non-transportable however, it is really big and does not fold up: you literally have to take it apart to lug it around. So I have kept my old Fluid2 trainer in Auburn, but it is officially shot. The bearings are gone in it and it blew a seal. So last week I pulled the trigger on a Kickr and while I have only ridden it a handful of times I have to say it is very cool. The way it integrates with TrainerRoad and sufferfest is beyond slick. It is smooth and quiet, and the the power changes are quick and responsive. The reported power is 3~4w higer than my quarq, which is pretty good in my book. I rounded out the package with a set of Jaybird blue buds. I am obviously new to erg power, and I find it to take a little bit of a different mindset. Since I do a fair amount of variable cadence work already I think I will actually like it quite a bit; erg mode seems to make it a lot easier/precise to do cadence-focused (ie: variable system) work. I know a few of you train with CTs in erg mode (anybody else have a Kickr?) Just want to make sure what I have gotten myself into and that I am not missing something obvious: do you do or think about anything differently than you would on a resistance trainer?

All this talk about buying new toys is eventually going to cost me money, I'm sure of it....  The Kickr looks really cool and it crossed my mind when my last Fluid2 started leaking.  

Rusty, you should see if they will replace your Fluid2 no matter how old it is and then you could just sell it.  I'm on my 3rd one now and (like your Quarq) they have replaced it no questions asked, no receipt or proof of anything other than me saying I was the original owner.

What's everyone got on the sched for this weekend?  I've got a 2 hour run in 98% humidity to do.  

The Athlete check-in is a big marketing show.  We had a great time watching that while standing right behind the Lava magazine guys doing the counts.  They knew who all the pros were and it was impressive seeing them enumerate a bike for what was on it as it walked by!

Originally posted by axteraa  I've got a 2 hour run in 98% humidity to do.  

ugh, I feel for you, that is gonna suck. 

I am heading up to the Grand Canyon to road bike.  Won't be any speed records broken, this was Tina's idea.  Should be fun though.  I want to find time to get one more run in this week, yet still also get a mountain bike ride in

3 hour ish ride today.   hour run tomorrow.   Arend you are going to crush Miami with that training.   I am going to pinch it, at best 

Hopefully it pays off on the run and I can hold my pace a bit longer for a few minutes gain over MT.  The humidity dropped to about 90% by the time I ran - soooo much better  

Wooohooooooooo!!  

That is too cool.  Did my 6th run of the week today - yeah for me.  Tomorrow I'm volunteering at the local HM put on by the LRS.

Marc - if my offset value was -260 to start in the morning, then continually rose to -325 at the end of the ride (about 25 degrees warmer) does that mean my quarq was reading 10-20 watts low at the end.  I did back pedal about 10x during this 5.5 hour ride and I checked the offset value every time I stopped to refill bottles. 

The ride itself was brutal.  It rained hard on Friday and some early this morning then the sun came out and it was just hot and humid.  My garmin was recording temps up to 100 degrees while riding, and over 112 while my bike was just sitting in the sun after the ride.  Never seen that before.  I've seen up to 103 with the garmin just sitting in the sun, and 92-96 while riding.  Glad I experienced it though.  I have a new respect for just how much I need to back off in the heat.

Saw that and I'll probably sign up. I haven't been very good about managing month to month access/costs so the yearly pricing will probably work out to be less expensive. And it won't be that long before it's time to start complaining about the weather and riding indoors. 41F when I headed out this morning. I had to hunt for the arm warmers and a windbreaker.