back in the water

well, almost 3 months later i have finally dragged my behind into the pool. oddly enough, it felt great. granted my arms were a little tired, but i will attribute that to the lifting that i did two days ago and not the fact that i haven't swam in 3 months... the first swim was a nice relaxing 1500m swim, swam basically the entire distance with only a short stop at each 500. which by the way is far better than i have ever been able to do at the start of swim training earlier in the year. i guess i still have a somewhat decent foundation in place, or at least preserved the technique. another month of decent base creation and then come january to increase the load. about 10 months to madison, there is plenty of time, plenty of time.

anyway, i have spent the past several weeks trying to become a runner. trying to develop a more consistent schedule, more frequency. i was doing alright, it is a heck of a lot easier when the weather is nice. running inside on the perpetual hamster machine is a bit challenging mentally at times. but, it will be another several months before i can really start to think about going outside again. the temps don't bother me, but rather i am not really in the mood to destroy an ankle, or even a wrist. so, i will just have to find a way to make the running more exciting. i might try to learn how to run intervals, or maybe even add an incline, maybe oneday i will just let the computer pick a work out for me.

this week i was back on my bike. went for 2 rides. hopefully more rides this week. and more rides of course means more movies, because really, apart from actually getting in shape, watching movies in the winter is seriously one of the best benefits of training on the bike.

oh yea, i got new shoes today. i think it was about time. not sure how many miles they had on them but there was definitely a marathon in there somewhere....

back to more productive endeavors

8 years ago

8 years ago i was sitting in a library studying for classes during my last semester of college.
8 years ago i was watching the polls wondering what was going to happen in an election. the watching and waiting then continued for several more weeks as chads were counted, and recounted.
8 years later, i am closer to finishing residency. closer to trying to find a job.
8 years later, i am watching the polls again, wondering if the country is going to get "right" this time.

the several weeks following the ironman were rough. between being on call at county...q3 should be abolished, it really just cannot be good for the body in any fashion - and the total body destruction involved, and the physical recovery following the race, and just wanting to chill out, i did approximately no physical activity for about a month and a half. this past week i have started to get into training again. i have gone running the past 4 days in a row, not huge miles but somewhere around 3 miles a day. i feel great. i have been smiling, running with friends, getting back into the swing of things. i am looking forward to putting on the miles again. next step is to start riding my bike again, the trainer is itching to be used.

game on

314 days to go

just for fun

today i went back to my roots.

the sun was out, wind gusting from the north, mid 50's, leaves turning yellow, lake front deserted. i took out my old mountain bike. a 1998 gary fisher hoo-koo-e-koo (in blue) and wandered all along the lakefront. in and out of parks, over hills, and under trees. i had no planned route, no spedometer, no place to be. just a relaxing ride with my old friend.

it felt great to be out riding again. i had taken out my tri bike earlier in the week for a ride when the weather was a little warmer. today i had a grin the entire ride. sometimes it is fun to just do things without a purpose, without a plan, without a goal. just riding for the sake of riding.

best of all, the urge to start training is coming back. i knew it would, just had to wait for the body to tell me it is ready.

looks like it is time to start planning for madison 09...

the greatest adventure

I will try to capture my thoughts from the day and incorporate pictures to tell the story of the culminations one of the greatest adventures i have ever undertaken. unlike prior race reports this one will not have a short version...sorry.

however, before i begin i wanted to thank my support crew who were out on the course with me for the the entire day moving from place to place. following me with the GPS tracker i had, relaying messages to the rest of the family at home, and always in the right place, at the right time, cheering me on.

my alarm goes off at 3:45 on race morning. i wake up and start to eat breakfast, mix bottles of nutrition, and feverishly log on to the internet to check the weather...can it be true, has the chance of rain really gone away. wow...i feel like the luckiest person in the world, forecast is for the high 60's, no rain until late, but some steady wind from the west building around noon. i can deal with that.

i finish my bagel with peanut butter, cliff bar, and bottle of nutrition, pack up the rest of my stuff, grab a banana, diluted gatorade, and head to the car. i was staying northeast of madison and as i drove into the capitol the illuminate dome of the capitol building appeared and the excitement started to build.

i dropped off my special needs bags, headed for transition to get my numbers, pump my tires, lube the chain, load the bottles, gu etc. i figured at this point i would lose my friend so i said good-bye to evan. little did i know that i would see him again about 15 minutes later.



i wandered through monona terrace making a pit stop, stretching a little, and then putting on my wetsuit. at about 6:25 i started to head down to the water. there was a fantastic sunrise on the opposite shore.



as i approached the lake i started to hear the announcer encouraging everyone to head on in. i reset my watch with the race clock and headed into the lake just before 6:45. as i got closer to the start line i found a bit of open water and floated on my back. i was just staring up at the sky trying to minimize energy spent and think through my race. i realized that the hardest part of the race had already occured. up until that point the hardest thing was sticking with the training plan, preventing injury and balancing work with training. i was ready for the final part of the adventure. i looked back to land and was amazed by the sheer number of people lining the waterfront. i ended up floating about 1/2 way between the ski jump and the big red corner bouy. with ten minutes before our start the pros begin.



the national anthem is sung, the clock ticks down. the water is calm, the air is cool, the sun is rising over the opposite shore. there is a sense of anticipation in the air, an eager anticipation for the journey that was to lie ahead. then the cannon fires and the calm water is turned into a sea of flailing arms, kicking legs, and organized chaos.



i start swimming and feel great. i hardly feel like i am working at all to move forward. in the first lap it remained pretty tight. i got kicked in the jaw, punched in the side, jammed my finger on someone's hip, had someone grab my leg, and got into a total cluster around the bouy. i reached the 1.2 mile mark around 34 minutes. i had no idea that i was moving that fast, but i felt completely relaxed and was breathing every 4th stroke so i figured i would keep on going. somewhere on that first leg heading out from the 1/2 way point the crowds in the water thinned out and i found some nice water where i could swim without constantly bumping into people.

i got out of the water in 1:10:46, got my wetsuit stripped off and then started to run up the helix.



i saw my family there and gave them a big high 5. i was thrilled and somewhat shocked that i was out of the water that fast. i think the picture shows my utter confusion. i cruised on up the helix, which wasn't as hard as i thought it would be, with a huge smile on my face.

i get into t1, get my arm warmers on (by the way, the absolute best purchase of anything that i bought the entire year), socks, shoes, helmet, sunglasses, gloves...time to rock and roll.

i head down the helix, apparently miss my friend taking pictures (sorry) and head out on the bike ride.



i really felt good on the first part of the ride. i was trying to not go full out on the stick leading out to the loop. i figured i would have plenty of time to ride later in the day. i tried to stay as relaxed as possible, stay in the saddle as much as i could while climbing, and stay true to my nutrition plan. everything seemed to be working well. i had a good cadence, a nice pace, and felt really comfortable. i was having a great time on the course. tackling the hills, keeping a really positive attitude, and cruising along.



i reached cross plains and decided that it would be a good time for a quick stop to unload the bladder. i then headed off to my favorite part of the course. the 2 climbs that end with timber ln are just fun. the first, unknown to me was lined with people cheering us on. it really had a fun and festive atmosphere. then i reached timber lane and felt like the most important person in the world. my uncle ran a brief section with me and i was able to give him my thoughts on how i was feeling to relay back to the family.



i head back to verona, feeling good, notice the wind has picked up a little but excited that the first lap is just about done. i stop for special needs and begin the second attempt at conquering the loops.

well the second loop did not go as well as the first. i never felt tired, my muscles never were fatigued or sore...but my knees started to blow-up. it got to the point where every pedal stroke was starting to hurt. i tried standing, moving back in the saddle, sitting upright, basically anything i could to try to feel better. the climbs up the hills by timber lane, and then again later were not as much fun as before.



even cruising through verona was not enjoyable. i reached a dark point between miles 90-112 where i wasn't sure if i was even going to be able to finish the race. i started seeing people i had passed a while back catch up with me. i made a conscious decision to pull back a little on the bike to try to save whatever i could to make it through the marathon.

bike time 6:31:54

i make it up the helix, get off the bike, head to t2, change, make a quick stop in the port-o-potty and start to make my way out of t2.

i am standing at the start of the marathon trying to convince my body that running would be a good thing to do. my body is just not listening. i think mostly because i was scared that my knees would kill and the race would be over. i hear someone either a spectator or a volunteer yell..."hey david...try to find your rhythm." something inside of me obliged and i started to get a cadence and run. and would you believe it, my knees felt great. whatever i was doing on the bike that caused the irritation was gone and i was moving.

i saw my family again in mile one and stopped to give my mom a big hug before continuing on with the rest of marathon.



i had planned to have one cliff block every mile of the marathon...let's just say that plan fell apart at mile 2 when my stomach did not like them anymore. instead every aid station was some water, some gatorade, some grapes....they were really good, a couple pretzels here and there, some oranges, and water soaked sponges in the front of my jersey.

i walked up the big hill both laps...was walking almost as fast as some of the people were walking. i started to get my usual knee discomfort somewhere between mile 16 and 18, at that point i just kept running when i could and walking when i couldn't.



i reached mile 20 to hear a spectator say, "you only have a 10k to go." the miles started to melt away, 6.2 turned into 5.2, and before i knew it i was winding my way back up to state street and around the capitol.

i made the turn to MLK drive and saw the people, the lights, the ironman arches, and could finally see the finish line. as i was moving toward the line i heard the line that exactly one year prior created chills and a sense of awe in all of the competators. my hands were above my head, fists pumping in triumph.



i had covered the 140.6 miles, i had made it to the finish line. i heard mike's voice over the loudspeaker say "David Salzman, a 29 yr old physician from chicago....YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!" i crossed the finish line, the happiest person in the world.



my finishing time was 12:50:24. it was 10 minutes faster than my goal time of 13 hours. i ran my first ever marathon in 4:49. i completed my first ironman.



i spent the rest of the night trying to rehydrate (being a doctor with access to IV's does have it's benefits...), get my appetite back, and hang out with my family. sometime around midnight i got my appetite back, wolfed down a cheeseburger and fell back asleep. the day was done, the journey had reached its finish line, but the memories will last for a long time.



thanks for reading, but an even bigger thanks for supporting me along this crazy journey over the past year.

I AM AN IRONMAN

the starting line

well, the time is here. it has been 1 year since i stood in line on the cold rainy monday morning to get my golden ticket to participate in this event. and all i can say is that the journey to get here has been amazing. it has had its ups and downs with compromises that have been made, but overall the journey has been memorable. i think the hardest thing i have done so far is to train for the event. trying to balance work, sleep, eating, training, and hanging out with friends has been taxing, yet rewarding.

i spent yesterday soaking in the ironman ambience. at registration in the morning there were people that have all done similar things to get here. we probably all have different reasons for racing, different traning plans to get us to the starting line, different goals to get us to the finish line, but in the end we are all here to race, to have a good day, and to finish the race. i couldn't believe all of the stuff on display. i felt like a little kid in a candy store....with a credit card. luckily i did exhibit some restraint, but i wonder if i should have gotten more...

the opening dinner was good. there was a good video, some interesting discussion with some people. oddly enough it was not as anxiety provoking as i thought it might be. i didn't really spend much time thinking about other people. the truth is that lots of them will be faster than me. lots of them will have spent lots more time (and money) on training and toys. i am going to race my race tomorrow. i've got no one to beat, just that little clock at the end as it starts to tick away. and, there is only one thing that i can control...and it's not the weather, and it is not the 2400 other people racing...

all of my transition bags are packed, stuff is ready to go. my T1 bag is kind of funny, it has all of my usual T1 stuff (not really that much) plus a long sleeve shirt, windbreakers, and full fingered gloves. those are in a separate bag inside the big bag just to help organize. at the athlete dinner last night paula newby-fraser basically said, if you brought it along, put it in the bag...with the weather forecast changing as many times as it has over the past several days, i figure it will be race morning decision.

my family arrives this afteroon, that should allow for enough time for dinner, making signs, going over the course, etc. until then, breakfast, a quick swim to loosen up, bring in the bike, bring in the transition bags, relax a little this afternoon.

140.6 more miles to go.

lets put this in perspective...the distance from my house in chicago to madison is 143 miles.

see you at the finish line

final preparations

each day brings me one day closer to the race. each day is one less day of waiting, one less day of trying to be a meteorologist, one less day of preparing, one less day of worrying that i am not doing something right, one less day of wondering.

each day i look at my watch during random times of the day and try to envision where i will be on race day. that is a part of the taper, to "visualize" the race. i remember lying on the bleachers in highschool preparing for the conference meets and visualizing each stroke, each flip off the wall, each race. this time things are different. an ironman is a little too long to visualize each movement during the course of the day.

on today's bike ride i envisioned i was heading out to the loop. keeping a nice relaxed pedal stroke, trying, yet failing miserably to stay in my seat, and most importantly trying to loosen up and feel ready. i felt a little tight when i first started which quickly improved.

unfortunately with extra time you notice things. i felt a little twinge here, a little twinge there and was wondering if it meant anything. wondering if at mile 88 it would come back and be more than just a twinge. wondering if it is all in my mind.

but some things are for sure. sunday is coming. there is no turning back the clock. the weather systems will do what they want to do, despite my continued encouragement to go in some other direction. the cannon will go off, and i will race. it will be tough, it will hurt, there will be points where i might just want to quit, but i will keep going, and i will have a blast in the process.

waiting

well all there is to do now is to wait. the days are passing one at a time, and i luckily have work to act as a distraction. unfortunately i get very frequent access to the internet to observe the 10 day madison forecast. the damn weather has changed 10 times today. first it was raining, then cloudy, then sunny, then raining, then sunny, now raining again. at least now it says scattered storms with a big sun in the background. maybe i will get lucky. it seems the weather will be dependent on gustav and no one can figure out where it is going. ... at least it looks like it will be cooler...

ok, no more weather checking for me, at least for tonight

more tomorrow

T-6 days 9 hours

IMMOO

I am racer number 415

my new lucky number

can it be true?

Madison weather forecast

Sun
Sep 7 Partly Cloudy (mostly sunny)

73°
52°

20% of rain

From the West Northwest 8mph

Race starts 9 days from right now

my fast "new" bike

i got my bike back from the shop today. best money i have spent in a while. it rode so smoothly this afternoon. the brakes are very responsive. the shifting is spot on. brand new chain. all clean. and the bike was soooooo quiet. not a single little squeak or sound to be heard. i felt like i was riding a brand new bike, despite the fact that basically everything is the same. yipppeee

my ride this afternoon was nice and relaxing. 40 miles. spent a good portion of the ride talking with someone else which kept my speed reasonable and allowed me to spin. my leg felt a little tight when i started to ride but then loosened up. i spent a good 20 min stretching after my ride. felt refreshed. now tired

i'm testing my watch today. i started the stopwatch just after 7am. so far we are doing good just over 13:30. i want to see how long it will go....just in case.

race numbers are apparently going to be posted on friday.

10 days and 10 hours to go

the calm before the storm

today i went swimming in the lake. it was kind of an eerie experience. to begin with, the wind was howling out of the north creating 2-3 foot waves, some intermittent white caps, and really impeding my ability to see where i was going, and at times get a good breath of water. regardless i had a blast. even more interesting was the fact that there was no one else swimming. ok maybe i saw one or 2 other people in the water the entire time i was there. granted yesterday was the chicago tri so i am sure that the majority of the people are either done with their seasons or taking the day off. regardless it was just me, the lifeguards, the random onlookers on the path (it seemed like there were a lot of those today) and the waves beating me up.

i got out of the water feeling refreshed, well as refreshed as i could be for having worked overnight and then slept for 4 and a half hours....

the bike is in the shop now. hopefully they can get shifting will a little tighter. i liked the feel of the new tires on my ride the other day.

the t-shirts came in today. i am pretty happy with the way they look. here is the image on the back. nice red shirt. i'm thinking they will stand out better than the original grey design so i can spot people more easily.


one day closer, T minus 12 days

uncertainty

the problem with a big event for me has always been the fear of the unknown. in the first competitions in high school sports i never quite knew what to expect. after the first event things got better, i settled into a pattern and felt much more comfortable for the second race. i thought i knew what to expect for the ironman, now everything is confused.

have i trained enough? or more importantly have i done the right type of training...were my long rides long enough, or too short? did i do enough long runs or was the last one too early? did i do enough bricks? have i done an adequate job of testing my nutrition plan before the race? will my body hold up for an entire marathon after the 8 hours of swimming and biking before? will i be able to eat enough on the bike? will i get the crap kicked out of me during the swim, or will i escape unscathed? will i get to the start line feeling relaxed and ready?

i'm sure the majority of these concerns are born out of uncertainty. after seeing the race, i know it is possible to do. i have a mental image of the swim, transitions, and bike. i have watched video of the run, and seen parts of the course. it can be done. i just hope it can be done in a relatively tolerable fashion and that all of my preparation was adequate.

2 weeks from now i will be somewhere on the bike course, the day will have just begun, let's keep our fingers crossed for good weather and a start just like last year...

It's TAPER TIME

i am going to try to chronicle my thoughts in the last 2 weeks of my journey to the start line, check back often these next two weeks.

well, after a long 10 months of training, it is time to put the machine into autopilot and pull back on the intensity. time to focus more on rest, stretching, relaxing, and less on destroying my body. i remember back in highschool when i swam that we would always look forward to the taper, probably because it meant that after a season a hard work we would not have to work as hard. now it is just the last step along the journey.

i think a lot of theory of tapering comes from the idea that very little aerobic benefit will be obtained from anything that is done in the two weeks (or so) preceding a big race. instead much greater benefit will be obtained through allowing the body to get enough rest.

the ultimate goal for the next 2 weeks... to show up to the start line feeling refreshed, rested, loose, pain free, and ready for a great race.

the bike is going into the shop this week, this will serve two purposes. first, it needs a tune-up. need to fine tune the rear der shifting, and fix a little on the front as well. a nice cleaning of the drive train will make it even more shiny. second, it will keep me off my bike for a little.

i think the best part of the taper is that i have earned it. i have worked hard for 10 months, i have endured the long work-outs, the long days, going home early from bars to get up early the next morning to work-out, or go back to work and then work-out.

but the next 2 weeks will not be easy, my work schedule will keep me busy, and it will be a challenge to really pull the throttle back on the intensity. in the end if there is a decision between sleeping late and training the answer will be to sleep.

i will be rested, i will be loose, i will be ready to go in 15 days.

it's gonna happen

so i have been away from blogging for the past 2 weeks due to training. i have had 2 phenomenal weeks of training, 22:28 and 19:49 respectively. I have ridden 370 miles, swam 11k meters, and run 52 miles.

the greatest accomplishment capped off the two weeks of training with a 20 mile run this morning.

the three big mental barriers to starting the race have now been taken care of, a 4K open water swim, 100 mile bike, 20 mile run.

the race is 4 weeks away. i can't wait to get out there and tackle the course.

i've laid down a great foundation, cemented it the past several weeks, now it is just time to fine tune the little details and and get some rest

a bike and a run

i am trying to add more miles

60 mile bike

4.5 mile run

and i just hit the wall

time to sleep so hopefully i can get in a long run tomorrow

take that lake michigan

4,000 meters swimming today.

The day was absolutely beautiful, calm water, sun out, blue sky, warm water.

It was great, now time to sleep so i can ride again in the morning.

Spirit of Racine - Last Stop Before Madison

The short version:
I had an excellent race this past weekend at the Spirit of Racine. Second time for the event 5:11:36. I felt like I really went out to race the event this weekend, and had an absolute blast. Still one of the best courses and well organized races I have raced.

The (really) long version:

Well the “fun” really began for this race about 3 weeks ago when I got a phone call from the hotel that I had made reservations at in april calling to kindly inform me that they had to cancel my reservation due to overbooking. Great, thanks. Quickly went to the internet and found the next closest hotel, just south of the Milwaukee airport.

Saturday-

It is overcast and raining here in Chicago. The 10 day weather forecast for Sunday had changed several times every day ranging from 20-60% chance of rain. The before leaving it seemed as if the weather might hold at least until the afternoon. So I drive up to racine and complete registration. I learned that the water was a balmy 56 degrees. Sweet, it’s a great thing that I have a full sleeved wetsuit, but 56 is still chilly. I had trained in Lake Michigan here in Chicago earlier in the summer when the temp was in the high 50’s, but lately it has been beautiful approaching the high 60’s. I head down to the transition area and check-in my bike. Cover the drive train, handlebars, seat with plastic bags and say goodnight to the bike.

Next we head up to Milwaukee to the hotel, and rest for a little before going to dinner. The original plan was to go to an olive garden for the breadsticks and salad. So we drive about 15 min, find the olive garden and learn of the 60 minute wait. Jeez, I mean seriously 60 minutes. So we walk outside and right across the street is another Italian restaurant. So we cross 6 lanes of traffic and get seated right away. The food was great, and we were done eating by the time we would have gotten food across the street.

Back to the hotel, watch the weather channel, there is a huge line of thunderstorms in Iowa / eastern Wisconsin moving on toward us. Off to sleep.

Sunday-

4:20am, the alarm goes off, and it is time to wake up, get dressed, pack the car, and drive to the race. Look at the radar one more time and whatever is left of the storm is out over the lake, nothing left to the west. Sweet.

Arrive at the race and find a parking spot about 3 blocks away, excellent, this will make the end of the day much better. I bring my race stuff to transition area. The temperature is comfortable but the visibility is horrendous, maybe 200 feet, and getting worse as we get closer to the lake. I make the requisite stop at the port-o-potties and then head off to transition to unwrap the bike and set up all of my stuff.

As everything is set and I am ready to go the race director announces that there is a 15 minute delay due to the fog. The coast guard won’t let the race start until the visibility is a little better at the shore. Apparently, they are unable to see the last buoy before the turn into the shore. Luckily the buoy’s were only 50-100 feet off of shore or the race might have never started. I look at my numbers and realize they have already started to wear off so i ask for some family help in reprinting them.

The masses start the mile walk down the shoreline to get to the swim start. The sight of athletes disappearing into the fog was quite surreal.

When we finally get to the start we are informed that the rolling start delays have continued. An hour later at 8am the race directors were given the go-ahead for the race and the pro wave took off. After that just like clock-work on 3 minute intervals each heat started the journey.

At 8:12 the horn sounded and I ran into the water to begin the race along with the rest of my heat. We were able to run about ¾ of the way out to the first buoy before starting to swim. And then crap was that water cold. 55 degrees. The two swim caps really helped to dampen some of the chill. After the first several minutes of swimming my body was warm enough that I could tolerate the water. Then I was able to settle into my swim, switch from breathing every 2 to breathing every 4 and find some feet to swim with. Sighting was definitely interesting as the visibility was so poor. It was also a challenge because there was a guy about 20 meters in front with a bright yellow cap that I kept confusing for the buoy. I keep swimming and make it to the final turn and head for shore. There were a bunch of people that missed this final buoy. I get out of the water and look at my watch. Huh? 10 minutes faster than last year…really…how is that possible?…is the watch still working?…did I miss part of the course?...was there a really strong undercurrent?...am I just that fast?

I trudge my way through the sand up to transition. My hands and feet are still a little chilled from the swim so it takes me a minute to get coordinated to put on shoes, socks, and gloves. Helmet and sunglasses are on, and we’re off. Start the odometer and I am off up the hill and onto the course.

The first 10 miles of the bike felt great. I was cruising around 21-22 mph and really enjoying my time despite the fact that I couldn’t see much due to the fogging of my sunglasses. There was still some fog that was lifting and it was overcast. There were a lot of people out there up until mile 35. I had to fight for clear airspace several times, making some passes that required a little extra energy but I just didn’t like the idea of sitting behind someone. There were A LOT of officials on motorbikes and I didn’t want to get caught up on one of these big packs. So I let a couple go by, I found some road and enjoyed my ride. I saw a couple of people on the side of the road. One looked like a blown tire. I saw some guy take a corner a little too tight and wiped out. He slid sideways into the drainage ditch, popped out of his cleats, rolled one more time, stood up and walked away from the crash. Looked like some road rash but hard to tell as there were a bunch of people all around as we were turning. There was a cop at the intersection who was talking to him and made sure he was ok. I kept riding around people and then around mile 35 the course entirely opened up. There was no-one out there. There I passed someone and chatted with them for a little around mile 40 then trailed someone else by about a ¼ of a mile for a while. Didn’t really see many others until back on main street. I guess the huge crowds had managed to get in front of me and my pace of around 21-22 was holding off the others. I cruise down the final hill and manage to get off the bike unscathed ready for a run.

Bike time 2:37:28 avg speed 21.3

Back into transition, change shoes and socks, out to the run. Wait, first things first. Mandatory stop in the port-o-potty. Off to the run. By now the sun had come out, the clouds had cleared, the fog gone, and could see beautiful blue sky. I am out running and really feel good, it takes a little to get my legs working again, but I feel much better than I thought I would have after the 21.3 mph ride.

I complete the first lap and look at my watch. For the first time all day I start doing the math. I am at the turn around pretty close to 4:15. I had run the first 6.6 miles in under an hour. I start thinking that if I can keep close to the same pace I will break 2 hours for the half marathon and have a chance to beat last years time by 30 minutes. Wow, where am I going to get this energy from. Let’s just hope that the new nutrition plan on the bike of consuming nearly 700 calories in the 2 hours and 30 min that I was out there was going to be enough to start.

I keep running, I find someone that I tag along with from about a mile, I like his pace and he is motivating me to keep running. After a little I leave him and keep running. One last turn around and I keep trying to push back home but it is a challenge, I walk through a couple of aid stations, try to get fluids, salt, tabs, some solid gels as well. Finally mile 12 and I am excited to finish. I ran through the zoo with some other guy and we talked about all of the food we were going to eat once we got to the finish line. The burgers on the way home, watermelon, anything really. We ran down the last hill together and I let him go.

I hit the final stretch and start to hear the crowds and music. I look back down at my watch and realize that I am about to smoke my time from last year. I turn around, no one else around, head into the finisher’s chute smiling from ear to ear with excitement.

Run – 1:58:02 avg 9:01min/mile

Total – 5:11:36

440/1360 finishers

52/121 30-34 age group

Overall it was a great day. I am trilled with my time, ecstatic about the run, and happy that the nutrition and hydration seemed to work out. Thanks to my family and friends that came out to watch, and take pictures. I think they are all getting practice for how to be a spectator in Madison.

One day later I am not too sore, will probably try to walk around a little later and maybe swim tomorrow. Then one last push for some big miles before Madison.

goals

so i had originally started the thought for this blog over a year ago. it was sometime around then that the idea was planted in my mind to try and do a half ironman. i was sitting in the MICU one night on call waiting for stuff to get done when i decided to create the blog. the original title was "the journey begins". that was great when i created the blog as the journey had just begun. however, i never actually started blogging until much later. then i decided that since the journey had long since begun, it was time for a new name. i hope to continue to write for the next 50 some odd days until the big dance.

4 months ago i sat down with a calendar from march through september to plan my attack on madison. i didn't plan exact daily work-outs, just general goals. between my work schedule and the weather it is often too difficult to make plans too far ahead of time. so instead, i wanted to have distance goals that would keep me on track for the full race. i hadn't looked at the original plan in several weeks because it seemed as if things were moving along well. so, much to my happiness, i looked at the plan this afternoon and noticed that i am ahead of my intended goals.

my training this year has far surpassed last years. i have more than doubled the total training hours. compared to last year i have ridden 1300 more miles, run 150 more miles and swam 50k more.

i am about to enter the last big couple weeks of training. but first, the last several days of rest. i am going to do a mini taper over the next several days in preparation for the spirit of racine. the race is on sunday. one or two short swims a short run or two, and a quick ride. some time to clean and prep the bike. then i am off to racine on saturday for the race.

the weather prediction is now down to 40% chance of rain, better than the 60% earlier in the week. let's keep our fingers crossed

a run and an ear infection

16.5 miles running today

it felt pretty good, in fact, the best i have felt on a run.

one week until spirit of racine. still a 60% chance of rain. but that looks better than yesterday when it was going to rain both saturday and sunday....

time to go to sleep and go back to work tomorrow morning.

oh, and i have an ear infection...where did that come from. last night i thought it was just water stuck in my ear after my swim. but this morning when it was still there and the ear hurt and the noise was slightly muffled i figured it must be something else. so i had someone look at it...ear infection, fascinating. not swimmer's ear, but an ear infection. i don't know if i've ever had an ear infection before. its probably related to all of the allergies i have had lately and is just backed up... i'm on antibiotics, anti-histamines, and during the day some decongestants. i'll get this all cleared up by next weekend.

the first nightmare

so the nightmares begin...

i have read all about the nightmares, the self doubt inducing, anxiety provoking, angst creating nightmares. well, i had my first one last night.

i was sleeping pretty well, typical of my usual night, head hits pillow and asleep within about 30 seconds.

then the dream begins, i will try to pain the picture. it is sunday morning, ironman day. it is 6:30, i stare at the clock wondering why the hell i am still asleep when the race begins in 30 minutes. crap, i somehow make it to the terrace, but the problems begin. i had forgotten all of my hydration and bottles at the hotel. even worse the security won't let me in the the transition area because somehow my athlete band had been cut off. i looked down and my ankle to find that my chip was missing. so i can't get to my bike in transition, i have no water, no chip, and no band. but somehow manage to have my wetsuit and goggles around my neck. great, at least i might get to race. i look over the terrace into the water to see people warming up. great, at least i am in the right place...but why is it still dark out, the sun should be out by now.

i go to put on my wetsuit, it wont go on. so i run over to where i think the start of the race should be. usually it is a nice calm walk into the water. not last night. there was a giant jump off of a cliff to get into the lake.

i am standing on the edge of the cliff, ready to jump....my alarm goes off.

57 days
crap
double crap

the spirit of racine is coming up this weekend. 8 days out with 60% chance of rain....lets hope that forecast gets changed. otherwise it will be a great training day in the rain. last night i commuted home in the rain, that was actually a lot of fun.

hopefully a long run and a long swim this weekend, one more long ride, and a psuedo-taper into the weekend.

that's all for now, this really starting to become real instead of just a pipe dream.

100

one hundred miles today on my bike

i'm going to sleep before i have to work tonight on the busiest day of the year in the ER.

millions of people coming to watch fireworks.

good night

breakthrough race

the day started off picture perfect. the sun rising out of the east striking the clouds turning them a bight red....red sky in morning, sailors take warning...



i got to the race site and my support crew pulled in right behind me. my grandparents and mom were able to make it up to the race to cheer me on. they helped me unload the car and then i made my way over to the transition area. after a quick stop to get my numbers and then my chip it was time to set up my space. no problems here. continued with my pre-race nutrition game plan and then the pit stop. races like this really need more portapotties, i mean seriously, you know that everyone is going to want to pee or crap before the race starts....oh well. mission accomplished, back to transition to get my wetsuit and down to the lake. i said goodbye to my family and they found a place to watch the race.


i started in heat #1...i have never started in heat #1. there were some pretty fast people that i recognized from other races in my heat and knew that my time at the front would be non-existent. the gun goes off and we start for the bouy. i get caught up in the initial fight for space and end up tailing the lead group. this was great and all, except they were headed on a really wide path. so i ditched them and caught another set of feet on a better course. i turned the far bouy and pretty much had the water by myself with 2 other people. i swim on back to transition and get out of the water in 27:44 which i think is a new PR for me on the 1.5k swim. off to transition,
my wetsuit just wouldn't come off. finally get off wetsuit and run out with my bike.


after about the frist 1/2 mile i get my legs back and i am starting to feel pretty good. i keep looking down at my speedometer and can't figure out why my average speed is only 10mph. i know i am going much faster. the current speed is correct but the average is just way off. after about 5 miles of trying to ride faster to get the average up it occurs to me that i had reset the computer at the car and then walked it to transition screwing up both the time and the distance. oh well. i figured i would get to transition when i got there. somewhere around mile 2 or 3 we turned heading straight south. i was staring at a massive thunderhead, black as night, with rain pouring from the clouds...and oh yea, bolts of lightening. oh well. i figured i was pretty safe, being fully insulated on my tires...luckily the storm stayed south and didn't impact the race. (what i found out later was that this same cloud, and same lightening could be seen while we were swimming, my mom wasn't too happy i was in the water) there was a fierce headwind as we were heading west which ultimately cramped my riding speed a little, but nonetheless i managed. on the way home i was holding around 26-28 mph...yeeehaaa. that was was fun, i was flying. back to transition in 1:15:09. a little slower than usual, but i will take it with the wind and the hills.

second transition was a little better, despite the fact that i had to tie my shoes because i forgot my speed laces. (at least this year i didn't forget my bike shoes...) i start running out of transition and actually feel pretty good.

there is a new run course this year because of all of the storms that we have had recently, too much mud, too many trees falling, etc. i made it to the 1/2 way point and look at my watch 24:45...holy crap. i am flying. i figure it i keep up this speed i might have a chance to break 50 min a wall that has since i started racing triathlons been unbreakable. i decide i am going to keep pushing for the finish line. i cruise past the turn around, wave to my support crew and keep on going. no time for smiles now. i keep going, up one last hill and then i see the finish line. i really dig in to find whatever energy is left to get me across the finish line.

run time: 49:22 for 7:58 min miles. not only did i break the 50 min barrier but i also broke the 8 min mile barrier. i couldn't believe it. i was just thrilled.

total time 2:35:59. a new personal best

all in all it was a spectacular race. the weather held out, i got to spend some time with my family, and i had a great race (well probably my best ever).


i guess that all of the extra training this winter and spring, even if not speed training, has really paid off. i am starting to have high hopes for racine.

this race is just what i needed to regain my motivation for training. madison is in 76 days. bring it on.

off to the races

yea!!!!! I finally get to race this year. after a 3 week delay due to travel and work commitments i am ready to hit the starting line. i am racing tomorrow morning up in lake geneva at the bigfoot triathlon. i have done this race during the last 2 years and really enjoy the course and the venue. latest weather predictions suggest that the rain will hold off until the afteroon with low winds in the morning. sweeeeeeet.

i think the race will go well. i have trained my butt off this year, but the majority of the training has been geared at long distance endurance. it will be interesting to see how my times stack up this year when i need to go short and fast. i'll probably have it in me. there is also a chance that i will be starting in the first heat...i've never had that happen before...however, little chance of sitting in front for any of the race.

i'm looking forward to having my grandparents at the race with me. it should be great.

i'm going to head up there today to relax, get my packet, try and find something to eat, get some work done. now i am off to finish packing, get the bike ready, eat some more, and drive back up to wisconsin.

by the way, i checked my fuel mileage yesterday when i had to refill my tank. 39.2 mpg, how about them apples.

oh yea, cubs win, take that you silly southsiders.

tackling madison

with a forecast for perfect weather i drove up to madison to ride the course. i had just finished nights and knew my sleep schedule would be rather screwed up. so i woke up at 5:45am without an alarm and was out the door by 6:15 after eating a bowel of cereal.

after a very relaxing drive of just under 3 hours, and 2 bagels later i was in verona. ah the memories of last year when i tried to do this. let me take you back. it was the sunday of the ironman. i didn't really have much to eat for breakfast, hadn't slept well the night before, had barely had any liquids during the day. all in all the perfect set up for one of the worst headaches i have ever had. that coupled with trying to ride on all of those hills and pay attention. equals BAD...very bad. i think i had to stop about every 5 miles last year because i felt like absolute dog poo. well not this year...different story all together.

i get the bike all set up, chain lubed, water and gatorade loaded, and i am off. there is a little wind from the northwest which is building and the sun is out. not a cloud in the sky. i have the cue sheet in my back pocket and use it for the turns on the first loop. i definitely remembered almost all of the first 2/3 of the route from last year.

what i didn't remember was how annoying witte road about 1/4 of the way into the loop and midtown road were. i just forgot how punishing those hills were. i remembered all of the other hills, the climb into mt horeb, old sauk pass, timber lane, but the midtown climb just caught me off guard.

after the first loop i stopped at my car, refueled my bottles and headed out for the second loop. i think i was going about the same speed, maybe just a tad slower but it felt much better. it was probably an 80-85% effort throughout the day. two loops 86 miles, 5 hours.

during my 5 hours of riding i passed 3 bikers going in my direction and around 5 going in the opposite direction, sure different than my usual training day on the frightening path.

i felt really good at the end of the day, my neck was a little sore and i was tired of sitting.

so i changed, packed the car and headed back home. 3 hours later i was making myself i nice ribeye steak to get in some protein to help build me some big climbing muscles.

things to take away from today
-i have no idea how fast i was going down garfoot, when i finally mustered the courage to look at my spedometer i was going 32.
-if i remember correctly i was above 35 a the end of timber lane
-climbing timber lane will be so much more fun when it is lined with people
-it is much easier to ride this course without a headache
-oh yea, i think i am glad that i won't have deep wheels, that wind was pushing me around all over the place, i think i might have ended up on my face with a disc...
-i feel much better about being ready to really take this thing on in september, but feel great knowing that i could do it today

what a day, what an absolutely perfect day

milestones

i guess it has been too long. i have been spending most of my time either eating, sleeping, training, or working. the past week has been tough as i basically worked every single day, was getting home late from work, and was just tired.

but nonetheless it was a big breakthrough week for me. in past 5 days i have upped the ante with my riding and running. this week marked the longest distances so far - 15.5 miles running and 83 miles on the bike.

the ride was actually really nice. started out in glenview and headed all the way north. eventually ended up across the state line in wisconsin. i have always wanted to ride my bike to wisconsin, now i guess i can check that one off the list. a little less anti-climatic that i thought it might be. riding back was into a nice little headwind. somehow we missed all of the storms because when we got back there was an evil line of storms at the wisco border. oh yea, that was yesterday, i'm still hungry.

the 15.5 mile run was earlier in the week. i had tried to go for a 13.2 the week before but guessed wrong on the distance. crap. i was mad so i just figured i would overestimate a little to ensure that i didn't miss the miles this time. managed to keep an average HR around 144 for the entire run which was the lowest that it has been all year. i hope that is a good thing

i still have to get into the lake. yea it will be cold but i just need to get into the lake. maybe this evening if it isn't raining. i guess if it is raining then i will just swim inside. i need to loosen up after that 83 mile ride yesterday.

um 85 days.

um, need to figure out nutrition

um, what have i gotten myself into

luckily no nightmares or lying awake in bed not being able to fall asleep yet.

3 overnights of work, training is usually sub-optimal on that schedule, we'll see what happens.

bicycles, hemlet, and bandits

yesterday i did bike the drive. while many people treated it as a chance to get out and ride their bicycle on lake shore drive, i viewed it as a great training day. I woke up at dawn, got dressed and headed out just as the sun was rising over lake michigan. really cool to see, the sky was red, and winds had changed from the night before and were coming from the south. by the time the day was done (9:30am), the sun was bright blue and it had warmed up to the mid 60's

i rode the course 2 and a half times for a grand total of 72 miles. i was cruising coming back up north with the wind behind me. i was cruising around 22 mph sometimes even 24 without really pushing myself too hard. the downwind was a little harder, i think i was working to keep 18. anyway over the time I was out there i averaged 19 mph on the bike over the course of the 72 miles. it felt fantastic, but probably can't use speed as an indicator for MOO as lake shore drive is essentially flat as a pancake (it even includes all of the holes you see on pancakes).

so the good news about the drive is that people seemed to be a little smarter this year than in the past. i didn't see a single tricycle in the left lane, which is good because it would have been a disaster.

the one thing i still just do not understand is the challenge that people face when it comes to wearing bicycle helmets. i mean seriously folks its just plain stupid. i was also shocked at the number of people not wearing helmets when the instructions specifically said they are required to participate. i just looked online. the cost of registration was around $40, there are helmets, and ones that are somewhat stylish on sale for $20. doesn't make sense. and please don't blame gas prices for your stupidity.

also, i just wanted to say a big "you're welcome" to all of the people who were out there riding without numbers, while i am sure that some of the numbers had blown off in the wind, i am sure there were a decent number of people who were out there without paying. i'm glad you had a good time, next year, play along like the rest of us.

yesterday afternoon walked around for a couple of hours to try to loosen up the legs. and then slept for 12 hours last night.

last week: 11:53 total training time, it was a good week.

7:21 min/mile running

so last night i ran in the JP morgan chase corporate challenge. someone from work wanted me to run, so why not. anyway, i have not done any speed work for training this year, it has all been long distance. i couldn't quite decide how fast i was going to run, i felt as if somewhere between 7:30 and 8 would be about right without killing myself. apparently NO ONE else could figure out how to seed themselves either. granted there were over 22k people there, but seriously folks. i can't tell you the number of people that i passed in the first 1/2 mile who were either walking, talking on phone (no joke) running with back-pack, running with jogger, etc. it was ridiculous. i didn't go out to try and get a personal best or to shatter some record, i just wanted to run and push myself.

anyway after about a mile things thinned out a little. but that might have just been due to the number of people cutting corners, running on sidewalks, or ignoring fences. usual race protocol i am sure.

i finished the run in 25:44 after i crossed the start line. that boils down to 7:21 min/mile which is clearly faster than i have ever run before for an extended period of time...sweet!!!

i was supposed to ride this morning but it is too damn cold. 49 degrees the weekend before memorial day, are you kidding me. al gore be damned. so instead it will be a swim today, running tomorrow and then a nice leisurely (well not really) 60 mile ride on sunday. then lots of running and swimming when i am out of town next week.

ok, back to finishing some work.

lessons learned

well, i have had a great week of training. the mileage is starting to add up and i'm feeling a little bit more confident about where i am...not so much a week ago

anyway, rewind a week. i get back from a great 2 week vacation to south-east asia. sightseeing galore, picture taking, eating food, wonderful. then i get back in the pool. ha, what a joke. i felt like a ton of bricks. nothing worked, each stroke was a fight against the water, i cursed the pool with every stroke i took. i found it hard to believe that i had lost so much touch in the water. now, about a week later and several trips back to the pool i am starting to get my feel of the water back again. times are pretty close to pre-trip, but i just want to feel like a swimmer again. lesson learned - don't ever (at least until september) not swim for 3 weeks

over the weekend i went on a 13 mile run. well actually just under 13 miles, 12.89 according to mapmyrun, but i am sure that the extra turns to get to the drinking fountain added up to a grand total of .1 miles to get to 13. the run felt great. had my HR pegged just over 150, was talking with some people the whole time. legs generally felt good. the best part was running with others... but that only gets me to the turn around. and then i have to go and do it all over again. eeek. lesson learned - keep running, making good progress, but keep running.

today i rode 50 miles in 2:44. a little chilly but otherwise a good ride. i took 9 minutes off of my 40 mile time from last week. it is nice to go on these long rides during the week when the path is empty. i thought i had a decent nutrition plan today, 2 bottles of gatorade, one bottle of water, a huge lunch before i hit the road. well that worked until about mile 45 when i just got tired. i hadn't even had all of my liquid. i am going to have to do a better job drinking and eating on the bike if i want to have any chance of finishing this race come september. it looks like i have some more learning to do.

the end of the week will get exciting. thursday is a 3.5 mile run, i have no idea why i signed up for this other than someone else is paying for the event...sunday is bike the drive. aiming for 60 miles. then i am out of town and in DC for the majority of next week. hopefully i can find a pool and a place to run.

dinner time

training resumes

so with jet-lag totally destroying me over the past several days i decided that the only way to win was to train more. i figured that it might just help to flip my body back the 12 hours that it needs to switch.

yesterday i was planning to ride 30 miles. luckily i was on my trainer. i got to mile 15 and was dead. i just couldn't convince my legs to go any further. it's as if my body was laughing at me. "haha, you went away for 2 weeks and just thought you could train again, you fool." well maybe. so i decided to take it easy, give my body one day to get used to being punished before taking it for a whirl. so i got off the trainer and watched the cubs game instead.

today got back on the trainer for that 30 mile ride. I got to 26 miles before my body decided that it was tired, and then kept pushing. finished in 90 minutes. sweet. then i changed quickly to go out for a quick 3 mile transition run. i didn't want to start too hard, and the 3 mile run felt great. no pain, maybe a little slower than i would have expected but i got through the run. yippee.

i am going to push the miles over the next 3 weeks, with the goal of getting up to 60 miles for bike the drive. its time to get back on the trusted steed and get moving.

119 days eeeekkk

i am going to try to sleep soon. with any luck i won't wake up at 3 in the morning again. hell, i would settle for even 4 am... i shouldn't get too greedy

i'm making progress on my photos. one more group of photos to narrow down, then labeling and posting. i'm moving faster than i thought i would.

i'm back

after 17 hours of flying today i saw two sun rises on the 8th and with any luck will be able to stay awake long enough to see 2 sunsets...

i had a fantastic trip, somewhere over 25oo pictures that i am starting to sort through

its good to be home, but the vacation sure was fun

my bags are packed

i am off to south-east asia. it is a really long way away. the flight later today is around 15 and a half hours. luckily i haven't really been able to sleep today as i worked from 2-12 (well really 1 by the time i was done) then came back, packed and cleaned up a little. now i am just going to have a little snack and then get a short nap. sleep on the plane.

let's hope the weather gets a little better. i looked at the radar today, it is kind of wet. maybe by the time that i get there in about 2 days it will improve. let's hope so.

oh, so my random thought for the day. so, there is a law in chicago, and I assume the rest of the country that when your dog or other animal takes a crap on the sidewalk that it is your responsibility to pick up said crap. why then, is it permissible for cops to ride around on their horses and allow them to crap all over the side walk without even blinking or thinking that it might be a good idea to clean up after them. they are little land mines when running or biking and i am sick of playing dodgeball with the little turdlets. it is just reprehensible.

that's all for now. i will try to update from the other side of the world.

talk to you soon.

happy passover

i already dislike matzoh, arrgh its going to be long week. maybe i just won't eat any. well the people that i really feel sorry for are those that are running boston tomorrow. trying to carbo load with that stuff...they might never have a bowel movement ever again. the things we do for religion. and by religion i mean triathlon or other endurance sports.

it looks like the weather is taking a turn for the better in the next couple of days. i worked last night, slept 6 hours, woke up, ran 7 miles, slept 2 hours, woke up again, now getting ready to go to work. i think i might liberate my bike from its trainer wheel tomorrow and take it back outside. should be about 70. that will be after a short nap in the morning.

8 hours and 8 minutes this week...i am going to have to add on some serious time when i get back from vacation, anyone know where i can find some free time? if you happen to find any for me please let me know, i am looking.

ok, back to work, cross your fingers that it will be decent. but it can't be too bad, i am going to ride my bike to work, just like elementary school when everything was good...

cubs win again, holy cow

tale of the numbers

1 - cub games i have gone to this year
2 - lenses for my camera i have bought recently (just a tad bit of buyer's remorse right now but i am sure that will change when i actually have it in my hands and am taking pictures halfway around the world)
3 - days until dinner with family
4 - shifts to work until i go on vacation
6 - days until i get on a plane to fly half way around the world

i went on an 11 mile run this week. 11 miles, i didn't run 11 miles last year until the middle of july. felt great afterwards, even the next day too. i am a full 3 months ahead of my training from last year and i haven't really even been able to log than many consistent outside miles. the best part of the run...the sun was out, it got up to 70 degrees, it was almost as if it was summer. but not to get my hopes up too quickly it got cold again the next day. soon, soon, in due time it will be consistently good weather.

its late, i am going to sleep. i work overnights on saturday and sunday. i'll see what training i can do over the weekend, it is always hard when working a string of nights and my body gets confused. hopefully a ride on monday (mostly sunny and 70), maybe try and get in a swim and a run before then. any workout would be a bonus. hard to ride on the weekend especially if the weather is nice as too many randoms out there.

hopefully work will be decent this weekend, we shall see, maybe i'll have a good story come monday

cubs win (10 and 6)

I've Been Busy

i've had a busy couple of days. work has kept me out of trouble, but has also kept me away from the computer.

yesterday was a 3K swim and today a 40 mile bike ride. so this whole global warming thing...anytime now, it is mid april and 40 degrees, i mean seriously. i'm out of new movies to watch on the computrainer and i just want to be outside. the ride today was great, averaged 2omph and was flying the last 15 minutes, HR averaged 135.

i'm just about finished planning my trip to southeast asia. today i made one more trip to target to get all of the medications and other sundry stuff that i will need on the trip on the other half of the world. did you know that they made mosquito repellent with 100% DEET? i thought that high of a concentration would just melt off the skin. needless to say i did not opt for that version. the 30% will work just fine.

my new lens arrived on friday. i had a chance to take it out for a test drive today. i haven't had a chance to closely look at all of the pictures but so far the ones i have been able to view appear really sharp. the color is good. next test is with less light to see the full capabilities of the f/2.8 and the image stabilization. i think i am going to get a bunch of keepers from this trip.

i brought the lens on its first assignment to wrigley field today. the light was just a tad bit harsh, oh well. i really just wanted to find the brick, after hearing about it for so long i figured it was the perfect mission for the camera. and i think it succeeded. anyway, for those of you farther away than me (2 blocks) here is a picture of the brick

not much to say

good day of training
7 miles 1:01:03 - 8:43 min/mile
the fastest i have run that distance, and it felt good
heart rate monitor stopped transmitting half-way through the run... or my heart wasn't beating...yea not likely, maybe it is time to seriously look into that new HRM i have been thinking about getting anyway.

cubs win

riding to work

today i finally was able to ride my bike to work. i felt like i was in elementary school again. i packed my bag the night before, donned my helmet (i don't think we had those things when i was in elementary school), turned on my lights, all 4 of them - 2 in front, 2 in back, and out the door i went. now one might say that 4 lights might be a little much, but i was going to be seen. needless to say, despite my candlepower, some moron in an SUV almost didn't see me. anyway i get off of the streets and onto the bike-highway, aka the lakefront path. no traffic today for my commute. now granted i left my house just after 6. the path was peaceful. over lake michigan the sun was rising. a picture perfect orange hue glowing over the far side of the lake. a couple people were out taking pictures, some running, i think one walking home from last night... about 3/4 of the way i was able to turn off my front lights. i got to work and took the best parking spot, (well for a bike at least), right outside the front door. it definitely made work more relaxing and calming today.

on the way home the ride was just as nice, this time with the wind at my back and the path scattered with chicago's finest. today i met "i'm important so i will run down the center line", "i'm going to wait for oncoming traffic before i decide to turn my child in her stroller across the path". i'm thinking of trying to find a way to jury-rig my camera to my handlebar to capture some of the mayhem, i'll work on that for some other time.

training
today was a recovery day. i'll count my ride to work as something. more mileage tomorrow.

cubs win

finally some nice weather

i was finally able to get my bike off of my computrainer today. high 50's, sunny, warm, wind from the south, couldn't have asked for a much better day. apparently nor could the rest of the city. i swear everyone came out from the woodwork. the path was crowded, i guess i forgot my old mantra to never ride on the path on the weekend. anyway, it was still a perfect day.

brings the grand total for the past 3 days to
9 miles running
71 miles cycling

tomorrow i am going to try to commute to work on my bike. it's all tricked out with new lights, a new lock, and a fender. i've got some windpants and a windjacket to help fight the cold on the way downtown tomorrow. just trying to hold off filling my gas tank for one more day...

now i just have to find some people to read my tangential and often random thoughts.

cubs win

getting my act together

i have been trying to create this blog for a while. mainly it has been stalled due to a lack of creativity. however, i am going to give it a shot. i mean if silly famous people can have a blog then why can't i? it might turn into all things triathlon, or maybe even a place to show some photographs from upcoming trips. who knows...

welcome, and enjoy