A flat, out and back 5K, on the river, on my "home course", the course I run twice per week, during lunch.
This was the Spring Runoff, and was a benefit for the St John's St Ann's Community Outreach Center in Albany's Southend. Our registration fee included a pasta dinner Friday evening and it was terrific - the food was donated by D'Raymond's Restaurant, and the food was delicious. Included a glass of wine, coffee and homemade dessert, too - not what I expected at all.
Good news - PR! Bad news - still didn't break 37:10, and 12 minute miles.
Time was 37:30, and rate was 12:06.
Used my IPOD, and listened to Ryan Adam's "Elizabeth, You Were Born to Play that Part" - 7 times. It kept me from going out too fast, and still got me thru the first mile in 11:33, another PR. Hit the turnaround at 18:36, and thought I had a shot at breaking 37, but I fatigued coming back in, with a lot of walking. I figured if I made it back to the boat launch at 30 flat, I had a real shot at breaking 37, since I had gone out in 7 minutes, but I was off by 33 seconds and while I came back in 7 minutes, I was too tired to make up any time. Too much walking, not enough kicking.
Oh, well - I'll just blame the wind, which was stiff and from the south today, and in our faces all the way home. It's usually from the northwest, so it's in my face going out and at my back coming home. So, I'll blame the wind for my 20 seconds. (Couldn't have been me, right?)
There was a 10K which went off at 8:30, and my swimming buddy Sky Pilot Mike ran that in a little over 50 minutes. I didn't recognize him, even though I was standing right on the edge of the path as he went by - because we were cheering for Deanne - who was right behind him. They don't know each other , but he followed her all the way out and back, catching her with a little ways to go. Small world. We introduced them after the race.
Pretty impressive for Deanne - she chopped about 18 minutes off the 10K she ran 2 weeks ago. Especially impressive since she ran a 23:56 5K just last evening. And then she turned around and ran the 5K with Jen M., who had also run the 5K last night. Jen is celebrating her 27th birthday today. Way to go, Jen.
Donna ran a 27 and change 5K today - her 10th race of the young season. She has been a great training partner for me, and there is no way I could have done so well today if she hadn't logged all those miles with me for the last several months.
Amusing story - as I was getting close to the turnaround point, the lead runners began passing me- as usual. I cheer for them, and often let them know how they are doing - first man, first woman, etc. When the second woman went by, I held up two fingers and said "Second Woman!" Well, she had her earphones in and must not have heard me, because she held up the same two fingers and said, "Peace!"
Lessons Learned
The IPOD and slower music really helped. Even though I was nervous before the race, the music calmed me down and I went out at a comfortable pace, yet still did a PR first mile, running all the way. Hopefully when I get stronger and faster I will need to choose some more up tempo songs to run to - but I'm not there yet.
I need to keep training, to get stronger. I'm up to 2.2 miles running without stopping in training, usually as part of a 4 mile session. I often include more jogging in the session, maybe as much as another half mile. I usually walk back, but try to run the hills. I just need to keep this up, to improve the distance I can run without stopping and to work on increasing my distance. When my base is better, I will work in more hills and add some speed work.
For now, though, I am reasonably pleased. B+
See you out there.
After My First Tri: Pinebush '06
Me & Coach Andrea - Armed and Dangerous!
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Friday, April 25, 2008
Boston Marathon 2008 - The View from Mile 18
We went to Boston - Newton, actually - to see the Boston Marathon and to cheer on Christina, my friend and Stroke Improvement teammate. Both were superb.
For thorough coverage and some terrific pictures, go to Boston.com. For some personal observations and a link to pictures of people who caught my eye from mile 18, read on, or go to the links posted on the right hand side of the blog.
Sunday night, we stayed at the Newton Marriott, a little over a mile from the corner of Washington and Commonwealth Avenues, about 17.5 miles from the start. We walked over to the course, carrying a two folding lawn chairs and a day pack with sandwiches, fruit and water. Turning this corner, the athletes begin to climb the first of the four Newton Hills, culminating 3 miles later with the famous "Heartbreak Hill". My friend tells me the first hill is the toughest. Heartbreak has the reputation, though, because it comes 20 miles into the race and it can break your heart, your quads and your spirit.
I Was Sad Because I Had No Shoes
The wheel chairs started in Hopkinton at 9:25, and the leaders rounded the corner and started the climb at about 10:15. There are two kinds - the traditional grab the wheel and turn chair, and the newer ones with hand cranks and gears. Big controversy in the handicapped racer community, with some of the traditionalists saying the newer chairs are more like bikes, and shouldn't be allowed. Very ironic - exclusion advocated by those who were excluded themselves for so long. If you are interested in a good article from the New York Times which explains this issue, let me know.
The elite women started at 9:35, and they appeared next. Among them was Albany's own Emily Bryans, who finished in under 3 hours. Deanne worked with her at one time and ran with her often, and had introduced me to her at a recent Corporate Challenge, so I felt like I had a small personal connection. She finished in under 3 hours.
Emily Bryans from Albany F106
There were no world class American women in this group, though - they had run the Olympic trials the day before. The race was won by Deena Castor, and included crowd favorite Joan Benoit Samuelson, who finished in 2:49:08, good for 90th place and an American age group record.
Both the women's and men's leaders are preceded by a pace vehicle, electronic timing clock prominently attached to the roof, officers on motorcycles, and tons of press: on bicycles, stuffing a half ton truck, and on electric motor scooters, with a driver, and a camera man, mounted on the back, facing backwards.
Speaking of motorcycles, cops on motorcycles spent a good portion of the day riding close to each side of the course, keeping the spectators back from the road. I guess that was a good thing.
The 4 women leaders were trailed by more women from the lead group, and a smattering of wheel chair racers. One of the lead woman had the men's lead vehicles right on her heels. You can see her, and the other elite racers in my webshots album, Boston Marathon 29008 Leaders and Elite.
Something I noticed about the elite runners - and you can see it in some of the pictures - when they stride, their heels come way off the ground in the back of their bodies - almost up to their butts. For me, each step is a struggle with gravity, and each step is more of a shuffle than a stride - I strive for minimal clearance, just enough to move me forward. Don't know how they do it.
Lead Male Runners Near Mile 19
After the elite runners passed, the street gradually filled up with those who followed, great athletes, but not quite world class. Eventually, the Wave arrived, and the streets were swollen with runners. You can see them in my webshots album Boston Marathon 2008 The Waves.
A very notable runner early in the wave - Lance Armstrong. I was lucky enough to get two pictures of him. (Mike - here's a wider shot - can you see your friend?)
Lance Armstrong and Fellow Runners at Mile 18
Also notable - Team Hoyt - very, very inspirational.
The Hoyts
There were about 14,000 people in the first wave, including my friend Christina. They started just after the elite men went off at 10 am. Each and every runner in this wave had to run a qualifying age-graded time at a sanctioned marathon to get in. To qualify at her age, Christina had to run a sub 3:40, which she did last year in the NYC Marathon.
If I wanted to qualify for next year's race, I would have to run a sub 4 hr marathon.
There were about 12,000 in the second wave, and almost every one of them had to qualify, too. The exception? About 1,400 charity runners, who raised a chunk of money for one of the official charities, including the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Team in Training, the Campus School of Boston College, and Dana Farber Institute, all wonderful causes. We cheered for every TNT runner - Kathy's cousin is a survivor and she, Kathy, walked a half marathon last year at Lake Placid and raised over $4500 for the cause; for the Campus School at Boston College Team - Em is a junior at BC; and for the Tufts Team (I don't remember what charity they were running for) - Jon graduated from there a couple of years ago.
The number of entries for the Boston Marathon is limited because it starts in the narrow streets of Hopkinton. This tight limit on entries causes some strange behaviors and even cheating - before the race starts. Great article about that in the New York Times last week, too. Interested? Let me know and I'll send it to you.
Also causes some hostile feeling among those who qualified towards the charity runners - they think the charity runners should be eliminated to open up additional spots for "real" runners. Too bad - the only way I would ever make it into this race would be as a "charity case" - not that I'm even fantasizing about that (well, maybe a little).
Two things struck me about the wave. First, it went on for hours. Second, after looking down the street at the wave for a while, whenever I tried to look across the street, I got vertigo - the runners surging up the street made the road look like it was sliding down the hill. Very odd and unsettling.
Lots of very serious runners with a lot of character in this race - but lots and lots of "characters", too. We saw 3 nuns; 2 angels, complete with halos; an indeterminate super hero, in costume; two young men wearing black spandex briefs and over the calf socks; a band of Korean runners, all wearing the same running outfits, carrying flags at the front and rear of their group,
and chanting while running up the hill;and a group of American women wearing red with US flags atop their baseball hats. And, of course, Elvis.
Elvis
We stayed until the sweep vehicles brought up the rear. We cheered and clapped for all the charity runners and we clapped and cheered by name for every runner who wore a name on his or her body, bib or running outfit. We especially cheered for the back of the packers - you just knew I'd be rooting really hard for them, didn't you?
Back of the Packers - But They Are in the Boston Marathon!
At the end of the day, we felt wonderful and knew we had been part of something very special. We had an internal glow (and an unexpected external one from the unexpected sun) that lasted for well over a day. We will be going back again - count on it.
See you out there.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
I Am Inspiration!
I liked "Serpentine Swimming" - thought it was well written, had an illustrative photo embedded (a first for me), a link to an instructive article. I thought it was a good piece. But I wanted my son's blessing, wanted him to tell me it was good and well written. At 23, Jon has already had two paid internships, reporting for the Scranton Times Tribune and the Wichita Eagle, unpaid positions for the Medford Transcript and Boston's Sampan, and was Managing Editor for the Tuft's Daily. So, I asked.
"Jon - is it good, is it well written?"
"Yes, it's well written..."
"But?"
"The subject is boring. Who cares about "Serpentine Swimming?"
"My teammates and anyone else who might be thinking about entering the indoor/outdoor tri next month. Besides, you don't care about sports and think everything I write about them is boring. The only piece you ever got even remotely excited about was the one about my IPod, and that's only faintly related to sports."
"My friends and I are still talking about that one. In fact, it's inspired us to create a new blog!"
"Really? Wow, I'm flattered!"
"Wait a minute, I'll show you. Here it is: 'An Alien's Guide to the Earth'"
" 'An Alien's Guide to the Earth'?"
"It's a series of detailed and instructive articles about common things that an alien visiting Earth for the first time wouldn't know about. Like a spoon or chairs."
"Or an IPod?"
"We're going to use your blog as our first article!"
Every dad wants to inspire his children, but that wasn't exactly what I had in mind. Hey, at least I have a purpose in their lives - I serve as a source of endless amusement. Everyone's got to be good a something.
See you out there.
"Jon - is it good, is it well written?"
"Yes, it's well written..."
"But?"
"The subject is boring. Who cares about "Serpentine Swimming?"
"My teammates and anyone else who might be thinking about entering the indoor/outdoor tri next month. Besides, you don't care about sports and think everything I write about them is boring. The only piece you ever got even remotely excited about was the one about my IPod, and that's only faintly related to sports."
"My friends and I are still talking about that one. In fact, it's inspired us to create a new blog!"
"Really? Wow, I'm flattered!"
"Wait a minute, I'll show you. Here it is: 'An Alien's Guide to the Earth'"
" 'An Alien's Guide to the Earth'?"
"It's a series of detailed and instructive articles about common things that an alien visiting Earth for the first time wouldn't know about. Like a spoon or chairs."
"Or an IPod?"
"We're going to use your blog as our first article!"
Every dad wants to inspire his children, but that wasn't exactly what I had in mind. Hey, at least I have a purpose in their lives - I serve as a source of endless amusement. Everyone's got to be good a something.
See you out there.
Ganging Aft Agley
The poet Robert Burns knew it,
"The best laid schemes o' mice an' men Gang aft agley"
Or as we better know the lines,
"The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry."
That's how my training has gone the last couple of days - not bad, mind you, but just not how I planned it.
Thursday was beautiful - close to 60* at noon, with a bit of a wind from the northwest. Even though it was Swim nite, it was such a good day for a run, I went. Donna slogged along with me, and we ran the run we ran on Tuesday - from the building, down State to Broadway, north on Broadway to the pedestrian bridge over the highway, across the bridge and down to the ceremonial circle on the bike path - a half mile. Stop there and stretch. Then run 1 mile north on the path, turn around and walk/jog back, a total of 3 miles.
I like this route, because the first half mile is mostly an easy down hill, a great way to warm up, and the rest of the route is the same start and course I will run at the St. John's St. Ann's Spring Runoff, which will be my next 5K, on April 26. It's flat and scenic, as it follows the Hudson River, and because I run there often, I am familiar with the landmarks and distances. This helps me gauge how far I have to go and how I am doing.
Bringing me to failed Plan #1. Because I have been running regularly, I was sure I had a great shot Thursday at running a sub-12 minute mile. After all, I had run a 12:10 on Tuesday over the same course, I had rested Wednesday, so all me and my fresh legs had to do was pick it up a little and those 10 seconds were gone, baby, gone! Except, they weren't. For whatever reason, my thighs were lead and every step was an effort. Even, so I was pretty much on pace as I passed the boat launch and headed up the narrowed path into the last third of a mile. Then, with 200 yards to go and a real shot at getting under 12 - I stopped to walk. In the last 200 yards I paused twice more, and ended up at 12:16, six seconds slower than Tuesday's time. Maybe it was all in my head again, but it sure felt like it was in my legs and lungs, and I have no idea why.
Good thing I ran at noon, though, because instead of workout number two for the day, a phone call brought me failed Plan #2 - the Y called and said the pool filter was under repair and class was canceled.
The Southern Saratoga YMCA's Indoor/Outdoor Tri is coming in 3 weeks and the bike portion is a 10 mile outdoor ride. I need some training time on a real bike before then, no spinning bikes in this tri, so I called Maria and set up a ride. The weather had been spectacular for the previous four days, but called for rain Friday afternoon. No problem, I thought - we scheduled my first outdoor bike ride of the season for 9 AM Friday morning, well ahead of the forecasted start of the showers. Of course, at 8 AM, it began raining, and I called Maria and canceled. Make that failed Plan #3.
Not to be dissuaded, I went off to the Y. I logged a half hour on the stationary bike, jumped off and hied myself over to the track. This time I sprayed a paper towel and stowed it on the console of the bike before I started my session, meaning when I finished the ride, I could wipe down the bike immediately and get right over to the track to start my brick. Good plan, as I was on the track in one minute and I was running in less than 90 seconds. My idea was to jog a half mile, and then cool down with a half mile walk. Leading to failed Plan #4. Three laps into this, my legs were lead and I stopped. After a rest, I tried it again, and again I stopped after 3 laps.
Standing off to the side catching my breath, I recognized my friend Mike on the track, back from his flights to DC, San Juan and Rochester, Minn. He is a good runner, and trying to get back up to speed after his knee surgery last fall. To help him do this, he has a pretty spiffy watch, connected wirelessly to a gizmo that attaches to the laces of one shoe,and the system includes a GPS, and a computer and I'm not sure what all. Anyway, he was effortlessly loping around the track on a 7:30 pace or so, and I decided to lope along with him. I ended up doing one lap, resting, do another, resting and then a third. His lap times, in the center lane (14 laps to the mile) were 34, 33 and 31 seconds. For me, in the outer lane (13 laps to the mile), that last lap equated to a 6:43 mile. In other words, Mike's pace run ended up being my interval training!
I thought I might get a swim in today, but today is turning out to be more of a chore day than a training day, and that's ok. Tomorrow I really want to get my weekly LSD in, preferably outside, and I'd like to get in a 1,000 yard swim - my neck is still a little stiff from last week's mile (Yes, Dorie, if I had been using proper technique, I would have been my body would have been rotating my head and not my neck, and it wouldn't be sore - I'll work on that next time)
LSD and swim - that's what I'd like to do tomorrow - but I'm making a "Plan" - I already know how that will go.
See you out there.
"The best laid schemes o' mice an' men Gang aft agley"
Or as we better know the lines,
"The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry."
That's how my training has gone the last couple of days - not bad, mind you, but just not how I planned it.
Thursday was beautiful - close to 60* at noon, with a bit of a wind from the northwest. Even though it was Swim nite, it was such a good day for a run, I went. Donna slogged along with me, and we ran the run we ran on Tuesday - from the building, down State to Broadway, north on Broadway to the pedestrian bridge over the highway, across the bridge and down to the ceremonial circle on the bike path - a half mile. Stop there and stretch. Then run 1 mile north on the path, turn around and walk/jog back, a total of 3 miles.
I like this route, because the first half mile is mostly an easy down hill, a great way to warm up, and the rest of the route is the same start and course I will run at the St. John's St. Ann's Spring Runoff, which will be my next 5K, on April 26. It's flat and scenic, as it follows the Hudson River, and because I run there often, I am familiar with the landmarks and distances. This helps me gauge how far I have to go and how I am doing.
Bringing me to failed Plan #1. Because I have been running regularly, I was sure I had a great shot Thursday at running a sub-12 minute mile. After all, I had run a 12:10 on Tuesday over the same course, I had rested Wednesday, so all me and my fresh legs had to do was pick it up a little and those 10 seconds were gone, baby, gone! Except, they weren't. For whatever reason, my thighs were lead and every step was an effort. Even, so I was pretty much on pace as I passed the boat launch and headed up the narrowed path into the last third of a mile. Then, with 200 yards to go and a real shot at getting under 12 - I stopped to walk. In the last 200 yards I paused twice more, and ended up at 12:16, six seconds slower than Tuesday's time. Maybe it was all in my head again, but it sure felt like it was in my legs and lungs, and I have no idea why.
Good thing I ran at noon, though, because instead of workout number two for the day, a phone call brought me failed Plan #2 - the Y called and said the pool filter was under repair and class was canceled.
The Southern Saratoga YMCA's Indoor/Outdoor Tri is coming in 3 weeks and the bike portion is a 10 mile outdoor ride. I need some training time on a real bike before then, no spinning bikes in this tri, so I called Maria and set up a ride. The weather had been spectacular for the previous four days, but called for rain Friday afternoon. No problem, I thought - we scheduled my first outdoor bike ride of the season for 9 AM Friday morning, well ahead of the forecasted start of the showers. Of course, at 8 AM, it began raining, and I called Maria and canceled. Make that failed Plan #3.
Not to be dissuaded, I went off to the Y. I logged a half hour on the stationary bike, jumped off and hied myself over to the track. This time I sprayed a paper towel and stowed it on the console of the bike before I started my session, meaning when I finished the ride, I could wipe down the bike immediately and get right over to the track to start my brick. Good plan, as I was on the track in one minute and I was running in less than 90 seconds. My idea was to jog a half mile, and then cool down with a half mile walk. Leading to failed Plan #4. Three laps into this, my legs were lead and I stopped. After a rest, I tried it again, and again I stopped after 3 laps.
Standing off to the side catching my breath, I recognized my friend Mike on the track, back from his flights to DC, San Juan and Rochester, Minn. He is a good runner, and trying to get back up to speed after his knee surgery last fall. To help him do this, he has a pretty spiffy watch, connected wirelessly to a gizmo that attaches to the laces of one shoe,and the system includes a GPS, and a computer and I'm not sure what all. Anyway, he was effortlessly loping around the track on a 7:30 pace or so, and I decided to lope along with him. I ended up doing one lap, resting, do another, resting and then a third. His lap times, in the center lane (14 laps to the mile) were 34, 33 and 31 seconds. For me, in the outer lane (13 laps to the mile), that last lap equated to a 6:43 mile. In other words, Mike's pace run ended up being my interval training!
I thought I might get a swim in today, but today is turning out to be more of a chore day than a training day, and that's ok. Tomorrow I really want to get my weekly LSD in, preferably outside, and I'd like to get in a 1,000 yard swim - my neck is still a little stiff from last week's mile (Yes, Dorie, if I had been using proper technique, I would have been my body would have been rotating my head and not my neck, and it wouldn't be sore - I'll work on that next time)
LSD and swim - that's what I'd like to do tomorrow - but I'm making a "Plan" - I already know how that will go.
See you out there.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Serpentine Swimming
The next triathlon will be an Indoor/Outdoor event at the Southern Saratoga Y in early May. The bike and run are both outdoors and straightforward: the ride is a fairly flat 10 miles, with a couple of minor hills and the run is very flat 5K through some quiet residential neighborhood streets. The swim, on the other hand, is interesting.
The swim is an indoor 325 yard "serpentine swim." It falls someplace between the "every swimmer in his or her own lane" of the indoor tri's and the "me and 50 of my closest friends swarming in a lake" of the wave format of an outdoor tri.
It's called a "serpentine swim" because the swimmers start start in lane one and then "snake" their way down one lane, under the lane line, up and down lane two, snake under the lane line again, swim up and down lane three, etc. The pattern, when seen from above, is a series of "s" shaped curves, or - serpentine.
When they register for the event, the swimmers are asked how quickly they can swim the 325 yards, and based on the answers, are seeded. The fastest swimmer starts first, and the remaining swimmers start about 10 seconds behind each each other, from faster to slower. In that way, the swimmers should form a single uniformly spaced line, start to finish.
That's the theory, anyway. In reality someone always overestimates his speed, or is having a bad day, leading to some swimmers catching up to others. The protocol is for the faster swimmer to tap the ankle of the slower, overtaken swimmer and for the slower swimmer to slide over to the side of the lane nearest the lane line and let the faster swimmer go by. In reality, there are often a number of rookies in the field who don't have a clue, leading to the inevitable bumping and collisions. I don't recall, however, seeing anyone swim over top of another swimmer, as I have seen in open water events.
For something new to me and this blog, I have included a picture of the serpentine swim at last year's Southern Saratoga Indoor/Outdoor Y, so you can get an idea of what it looks like. If you put your mouse on the picture and click, it will expand, and you can see more of the pool. Look for the swimmer in the yellow cap in the lower right side of the picture to see an example of the "standing turn" described above. (I am in the picture, standing near the lifeguard tower.)
The link below will give you some really good advice about how to swim one of these, and how to avoid some common problems. Since the author does a much better job in this area than I could, I will just talk a little about some of the things I experienced which he doesn't talk about.
First, you wear a chip for this race, and it starts when you step on the mat at the edge of the pool, at the direction of the starter. I jumped into the pool feet first to begin my swim, as did most of the participants. However, as we started at the deep end, some of the more experienced racers dove in and got off to a much quicker start.
Since the race is 325 yards and there are 8 lanes, you do not swim up and down each lane - that would be 400 yards. Instead you swim down lane one, up and down lanes 2-6, up lane 7 and down lane 8, ending up at the shallow end of the pool. There you can go up the steps to exit the pool and immediately out the door to your left, over the timing mat, and into the parking lot where the bikes are racked. There are cones on the pool deck at each end of lanes 2-6, reminding you that you need to swim up and down those lanes.
The article below also gives you some excellent tips on how to approach each lane transition, to help you shave time off your swim without shaving skin off your arm, wrist, fingers or head by coming up under the hardware which attaches the lane line to the end of the pool. They are great tips, and I did practice them a few times in the weeks leading up to the race. However, I forgot all about them in the race, and did whatever I could to get under the lines to the other side. Often this consisted of stopping at the end of the pool, standing up, turning my body around, and then ducking under the line and giving a one legged push off the wall. Not too elegant - but it worked.
A final note - the swim is actually a little longer than 325 yards because in addition to swimming up and down the lanes, you are also swimming side to side in the pool, starting on one side and ending across the width of the pool on the other.
I kind of like this event - it was novel, and didn't take too long. The worst part was coming out of the pool, soaked, wearing just my biking shorts, and dashing into the 40* air on the way to my clothes and bike.
I am looking forward to trying it again, and improving my technique and my time.
Here's the link:
How to Race a Pool Sprint Triathlon
See you out there.
The swim is an indoor 325 yard "serpentine swim." It falls someplace between the "every swimmer in his or her own lane" of the indoor tri's and the "me and 50 of my closest friends swarming in a lake" of the wave format of an outdoor tri.
It's called a "serpentine swim" because the swimmers start start in lane one and then "snake" their way down one lane, under the lane line, up and down lane two, snake under the lane line again, swim up and down lane three, etc. The pattern, when seen from above, is a series of "s" shaped curves, or - serpentine.
When they register for the event, the swimmers are asked how quickly they can swim the 325 yards, and based on the answers, are seeded. The fastest swimmer starts first, and the remaining swimmers start about 10 seconds behind each each other, from faster to slower. In that way, the swimmers should form a single uniformly spaced line, start to finish.
That's the theory, anyway. In reality someone always overestimates his speed, or is having a bad day, leading to some swimmers catching up to others. The protocol is for the faster swimmer to tap the ankle of the slower, overtaken swimmer and for the slower swimmer to slide over to the side of the lane nearest the lane line and let the faster swimmer go by. In reality, there are often a number of rookies in the field who don't have a clue, leading to the inevitable bumping and collisions. I don't recall, however, seeing anyone swim over top of another swimmer, as I have seen in open water events.
For something new to me and this blog, I have included a picture of the serpentine swim at last year's Southern Saratoga Indoor/Outdoor Y, so you can get an idea of what it looks like. If you put your mouse on the picture and click, it will expand, and you can see more of the pool. Look for the swimmer in the yellow cap in the lower right side of the picture to see an example of the "standing turn" described above. (I am in the picture, standing near the lifeguard tower.)
The link below will give you some really good advice about how to swim one of these, and how to avoid some common problems. Since the author does a much better job in this area than I could, I will just talk a little about some of the things I experienced which he doesn't talk about.
First, you wear a chip for this race, and it starts when you step on the mat at the edge of the pool, at the direction of the starter. I jumped into the pool feet first to begin my swim, as did most of the participants. However, as we started at the deep end, some of the more experienced racers dove in and got off to a much quicker start.
Since the race is 325 yards and there are 8 lanes, you do not swim up and down each lane - that would be 400 yards. Instead you swim down lane one, up and down lanes 2-6, up lane 7 and down lane 8, ending up at the shallow end of the pool. There you can go up the steps to exit the pool and immediately out the door to your left, over the timing mat, and into the parking lot where the bikes are racked. There are cones on the pool deck at each end of lanes 2-6, reminding you that you need to swim up and down those lanes.
The article below also gives you some excellent tips on how to approach each lane transition, to help you shave time off your swim without shaving skin off your arm, wrist, fingers or head by coming up under the hardware which attaches the lane line to the end of the pool. They are great tips, and I did practice them a few times in the weeks leading up to the race. However, I forgot all about them in the race, and did whatever I could to get under the lines to the other side. Often this consisted of stopping at the end of the pool, standing up, turning my body around, and then ducking under the line and giving a one legged push off the wall. Not too elegant - but it worked.
A final note - the swim is actually a little longer than 325 yards because in addition to swimming up and down the lanes, you are also swimming side to side in the pool, starting on one side and ending across the width of the pool on the other.
I kind of like this event - it was novel, and didn't take too long. The worst part was coming out of the pool, soaked, wearing just my biking shorts, and dashing into the 40* air on the way to my clothes and bike.
I am looking forward to trying it again, and improving my technique and my time.
Here's the link:
How to Race a Pool Sprint Triathlon
See you out there.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
An LSD Sunday
Part I
Sunday is LSD day, and I got to spend the morning on the bike path with my friends Dave and Maria. Warm up was a moderate .8 mile walk, in a relaxed 14 minutes or so, followed by stretching. Then we set off west, at an easy jog, Maria and I chatting, with Dave loping off down the grass at the side of the path. Two weeks ago when we did this it was blustery and a good 15 degrees cooler, and we headed out into the wind. Today was calm, overcast and in the mid-40's - just right. The river was perfect mirror-image reflection still, and beautiful.
Maria hesitated just a tick at the orange bridge - it's one mile out and where I turned around last time out. But I kept going. And she slowed down just for two beats at the crossing leading into the cabbage patch, at 1.5 miles. But I kept going. 50 yards down I let her know I was aiming for the barricades at about 1.9 miles. 200 yards later, she asked me if I was going to cross the road and try for the 2 mile marker - and I told her I thought I could do that. I was a little worried about that road crossing, because after the barricade, the path drops down to cross the road that goes to the Lock, and I would have to go up the rise on the other side to get back on the path - but my legs felt good and strong, and I went up it just fine.
And then, we were there, at the yellow post, 2 miles out. It was a slog for sure, 28 minutes, but I ran all the way, talked all the way and did not stop either for the whole distance. Felt like I could have gone another half mile, too, but I didn't want to push. Other than a little dash up the hill to the barricade on the return, we walked and talked back to the parking lot, and declared that it had been a good run and a grand morning, and vowed to do it again soon.
Part II
Sunday morning is usually swim time me, but both cars were gone, and I had to wait for Jon to come back from his overnight with my car before I could get out to the Y. As he is not an early riser - his idea of an early start to the day is to get up at "crack of noon", he wasn't back until 2:30 pm, and I didn't get to the Y until after 3. This really isn't too bad, as the kids are done with their lessons by 1 pm on Sunday and the pool is pretty quiet, with lots of lanes open. Coach lifeguards from 11-4 on Sundays, and after we exchanged pleasantries and I updated him on the whereabouts and activities of the rest of the crew, I slipped into the pool. I pulled on my zoomers, spit into my goggles, rinsed them, slipped the strap over my head, and made each eye piece "suck face".
Warm up was a lap each of breast, back kick, back stroke and breast, followed by stretching. Then I slipped into an easy crawl, LSD-ing in the pool at 70 seconds per lap. I felt really relaxed and at ease, my breathing was unrushed, and I just felt good. I knew that today was going to be the day - and it was: my very first mile using just the crawl stroke and no stopping!
I felt a little tired around lap 26, and I felt my stroke getting jagged, but I was able to get back to fundamentals, stretching out my arms and rotating my hips. By lap 30 I knew I was going to make it. Just for jollies, I grabbed a quick peek at the clock before I started the last lap. I pushed through the lap - not exactly a Thursday night "melt-down" sprint, but I did it in 55 seconds - and I was pretty happy with that.
Total time: 43:03. Not too shabby for me.
Tonight's question: Will I be able to move tomorrow? I'll let you know.
See you out there.
Sunday is LSD day, and I got to spend the morning on the bike path with my friends Dave and Maria. Warm up was a moderate .8 mile walk, in a relaxed 14 minutes or so, followed by stretching. Then we set off west, at an easy jog, Maria and I chatting, with Dave loping off down the grass at the side of the path. Two weeks ago when we did this it was blustery and a good 15 degrees cooler, and we headed out into the wind. Today was calm, overcast and in the mid-40's - just right. The river was perfect mirror-image reflection still, and beautiful.
Maria hesitated just a tick at the orange bridge - it's one mile out and where I turned around last time out. But I kept going. And she slowed down just for two beats at the crossing leading into the cabbage patch, at 1.5 miles. But I kept going. 50 yards down I let her know I was aiming for the barricades at about 1.9 miles. 200 yards later, she asked me if I was going to cross the road and try for the 2 mile marker - and I told her I thought I could do that. I was a little worried about that road crossing, because after the barricade, the path drops down to cross the road that goes to the Lock, and I would have to go up the rise on the other side to get back on the path - but my legs felt good and strong, and I went up it just fine.
And then, we were there, at the yellow post, 2 miles out. It was a slog for sure, 28 minutes, but I ran all the way, talked all the way and did not stop either for the whole distance. Felt like I could have gone another half mile, too, but I didn't want to push. Other than a little dash up the hill to the barricade on the return, we walked and talked back to the parking lot, and declared that it had been a good run and a grand morning, and vowed to do it again soon.
Part II
Sunday morning is usually swim time me, but both cars were gone, and I had to wait for Jon to come back from his overnight with my car before I could get out to the Y. As he is not an early riser - his idea of an early start to the day is to get up at "crack of noon", he wasn't back until 2:30 pm, and I didn't get to the Y until after 3. This really isn't too bad, as the kids are done with their lessons by 1 pm on Sunday and the pool is pretty quiet, with lots of lanes open. Coach lifeguards from 11-4 on Sundays, and after we exchanged pleasantries and I updated him on the whereabouts and activities of the rest of the crew, I slipped into the pool. I pulled on my zoomers, spit into my goggles, rinsed them, slipped the strap over my head, and made each eye piece "suck face".
Warm up was a lap each of breast, back kick, back stroke and breast, followed by stretching. Then I slipped into an easy crawl, LSD-ing in the pool at 70 seconds per lap. I felt really relaxed and at ease, my breathing was unrushed, and I just felt good. I knew that today was going to be the day - and it was: my very first mile using just the crawl stroke and no stopping!
I felt a little tired around lap 26, and I felt my stroke getting jagged, but I was able to get back to fundamentals, stretching out my arms and rotating my hips. By lap 30 I knew I was going to make it. Just for jollies, I grabbed a quick peek at the clock before I started the last lap. I pushed through the lap - not exactly a Thursday night "melt-down" sprint, but I did it in 55 seconds - and I was pretty happy with that.
Total time: 43:03. Not too shabby for me.
Tonight's question: Will I be able to move tomorrow? I'll let you know.
See you out there.
First 5K of 2008 - Lessons Learned
I meant to do this in my first post on the subject, but I kind of got off into warm and fuzzy land. That was nice, but it's not going to help me get better. So, here goes.
I tried to relax and go out slowly, but I got out of breath and had to walk only 2:54 into this event. That was very, very disappointing, since I have been working on increasing my distance and increasing my speed. I have routinely been running miles at a little over 12 minutes, both on the track and outside, and I have routinely been running a mile or more at that pace. So, why am I getting gassed a measly 3 minutes in? Back to this question in a minute or two.
The second thing I noticed was that when I did resume jogging, I seemed to be going at a quicker than training pace, but only kept it up for a minute or two. By the time I was into my third mile, in fact, I tried to count 100 sets of footsteps per jog, but I could only maintain sets of 25.
Finally, someplace in the middle of my third mile, I noticed that my quads were getting fried, and by the time I hit the track and my last quarter mile, the Bionic Women jogging me home could have carried me faster than I was moving.
Back to the heavy breathing and premature cessation - this it what my friends think: "It's all in my head!" I believe they are correct. For my first two triathlon seasons, I experienced something very similar during the swim. I was fine in practice, but every time I raced, I was out of breath in a single length, and had to drop back into the breast stroke and hang on the wall to catch it. But in this season's two races, no problem. Why? I've trained harder, I'm more confident, and consequently, I'm more relaxed, and I go out easy. And, if I do start to get out of breath, I know that rolling to my side and looking up at the ceiling will allow me to catch it.
My friend Bill pointed out how ironic it was that I beat 12 out of 28 men in the water in my last tri, a "weaker" event for me, but only 9 out of 28 on the bike, my "strongest" event. Something to be said for training and relaxation.
Yesterday I did 35 good minutes on the stationary bike and then went over to the track to run. I only planned to do two laps, just to run through that brick feeling in my legs. I grabbed my IPod, put on the headphones and listened to Ryan Adams sing, "Elizabeth You Were Born to Play that Part" from 29, a pretty mellow tune. I set off at an easy pace, listening to the music, and before I knew it, I was "in" the music, and very relaxed. I finished my two planned laps and felt so good that I kept going - for 5 more laps. And here's the kicker - I did the half in 5:39, an 11:18 per mile pace, faster than I ever go. That was a revelation - the trick was not rock, but relaxation.
Since Friday's Raider Classic 5K was sponsored by Colonie HS, I'll frame my lessons learned in the form of the famous "3R's":
Relax - especially at the start of these races.
Rhythm - find the right rhythm in the music in my IPod, or the music in my head, but find it.
Run, Run, Run - I'm getting stronger , I can feel it. I just have to continue the regular training to build up my endurance and stamina, and I will get there.
OK - next event is coming up in 3 weeks, another flat 5K. Let's see if I can master my lessons and earn a "A" on that exam.
See you out there.
I tried to relax and go out slowly, but I got out of breath and had to walk only 2:54 into this event. That was very, very disappointing, since I have been working on increasing my distance and increasing my speed. I have routinely been running miles at a little over 12 minutes, both on the track and outside, and I have routinely been running a mile or more at that pace. So, why am I getting gassed a measly 3 minutes in? Back to this question in a minute or two.
The second thing I noticed was that when I did resume jogging, I seemed to be going at a quicker than training pace, but only kept it up for a minute or two. By the time I was into my third mile, in fact, I tried to count 100 sets of footsteps per jog, but I could only maintain sets of 25.
Finally, someplace in the middle of my third mile, I noticed that my quads were getting fried, and by the time I hit the track and my last quarter mile, the Bionic Women jogging me home could have carried me faster than I was moving.
Back to the heavy breathing and premature cessation - this it what my friends think: "It's all in my head!" I believe they are correct. For my first two triathlon seasons, I experienced something very similar during the swim. I was fine in practice, but every time I raced, I was out of breath in a single length, and had to drop back into the breast stroke and hang on the wall to catch it. But in this season's two races, no problem. Why? I've trained harder, I'm more confident, and consequently, I'm more relaxed, and I go out easy. And, if I do start to get out of breath, I know that rolling to my side and looking up at the ceiling will allow me to catch it.
My friend Bill pointed out how ironic it was that I beat 12 out of 28 men in the water in my last tri, a "weaker" event for me, but only 9 out of 28 on the bike, my "strongest" event. Something to be said for training and relaxation.
Yesterday I did 35 good minutes on the stationary bike and then went over to the track to run. I only planned to do two laps, just to run through that brick feeling in my legs. I grabbed my IPod, put on the headphones and listened to Ryan Adams sing, "Elizabeth You Were Born to Play that Part" from 29, a pretty mellow tune. I set off at an easy pace, listening to the music, and before I knew it, I was "in" the music, and very relaxed. I finished my two planned laps and felt so good that I kept going - for 5 more laps. And here's the kicker - I did the half in 5:39, an 11:18 per mile pace, faster than I ever go. That was a revelation - the trick was not rock, but relaxation.
Since Friday's Raider Classic 5K was sponsored by Colonie HS, I'll frame my lessons learned in the form of the famous "3R's":
Relax - especially at the start of these races.
Rhythm - find the right rhythm in the music in my IPod, or the music in my head, but find it.
Run, Run, Run - I'm getting stronger , I can feel it. I just have to continue the regular training to build up my endurance and stamina, and I will get there.
OK - next event is coming up in 3 weeks, another flat 5K. Let's see if I can master my lessons and earn a "A" on that exam.
See you out there.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Colonie Raider Classic - First 5K of 2008
One day I will tell you that I have run well, that I am satisfied. I will tell you that I have risen out of the ranks of wretched, passed through appalling and made it all the way to mediocrity. Not today.
Here's the bottom line from the finish line: 40:24, 13 minutes per mile average, walked more than I ran, and in a spate of leniency because we are just on the cusp of the season, I give myself a "C-".
Good news? I was not last - I managed to beat a 10 year old girl who was running her very first 5K - and, of course, her mother and her mother's two friends her were staying with her. Wow!
Deanne and Jen M, both 30ish, talked me into this. Jen and Deanne are like Mutt and Jeff: Jen, a sturdy 5'9" brunette; Deanne, a tiny 5' blond sprite. They have been running up a storm this Spring, each for her own reason: Deanne wants to reclaim her title as the fastest woman in OSC at the upcoming GHI Workforce Team Challenge; Jen wants to wear a bikini.
Me? The race was a benefit for the Colonie HS Class of 2008, and since both my kids graduated from there, it was a good cause for me to support. Besides, the $15 is tax deductible, right? I also thought it would be a good early season test of how my recovery and training have been going. The weather was cool and the course was flat, both good things for me. Of course, it had also been pouring all day, and although it let up a little by race time, it continued to rain through out the event. This is not an excuse for my poor performance, however - I just sucked.
Donna was there, too, and she introduced me to a couple of people, both interesting in different ways. The first was older - over 60 - an obviously very competitive. Soon after we met, he began complaining because the last category for prizes was too wide - 50+. He was insistent that many runners wouldn't even come to a small race like this with such an inequity, that the usual groupings were in 5 year increments. First, he engaged the three little old ladies sitting at a table selling raffle tickets. They pointed out that they were just volunteers and directed him to the event organizer. He then bent her ear, while she, in the midst of trying to get this whole event launched, politely noted his concerns. I'm thinking you really have to be driven to kick up such a fuss over a plastic water bottle hung with a blue ribbon.
I confess that I did give some thought as to whether I might be the proud recipient of one of said water bottles, but I looked at it a little differently. I figured that since it was such a small race - about 70 people, and since it seemed to skew toward high school-aged athletes, that I had a shot at a prize, provided there were only 3 people in the race over 50 - including me. The gent described above made 1, so I still had a chance. Then another guy came in and he made two - but I was still in the race for a prize. When a third guy over the magic age came in, my hopes were dashed.
But wait - there was still hope! What if one of the guys tripped and broke and ankle, or had a heart attack and couldn't finish? As long as I made it, I could still win.
And then, because he knew Donna, he - Chuck - came came over to talk with her, and Donna introduced him. He was her neighbor, and a really nice guy. He often encountered her at these races. He hadn't been running too much lately, though, because he had been having some heart arrhythmias. He had been to the doctor and been treated, and he was fine now, but he was going to take it easy. I immediately felt really guilty about my stupid fantasy, and realized that what was important about these events didn't have a single thing to do with prizes or age groupings. They are about the experiences and most of all about the people.
Like the organizers and volunteers who give of their time for worthy causes. And the spectators who cheer for you and encourage you, no matter how slow you are or how far behind the leaders. And Donna and Jen and Deanne, who waited in the rain long after they finished their races, until I turned the last corner and headed out onto the track. There they joined me and kept me company through the last quarter mile, encouraging me all the way. That's pretty special and that's what I really love about these races.
See you out there.
Here's the bottom line from the finish line: 40:24, 13 minutes per mile average, walked more than I ran, and in a spate of leniency because we are just on the cusp of the season, I give myself a "C-".
Good news? I was not last - I managed to beat a 10 year old girl who was running her very first 5K - and, of course, her mother and her mother's two friends her were staying with her. Wow!
Deanne and Jen M, both 30ish, talked me into this. Jen and Deanne are like Mutt and Jeff: Jen, a sturdy 5'9" brunette; Deanne, a tiny 5' blond sprite. They have been running up a storm this Spring, each for her own reason: Deanne wants to reclaim her title as the fastest woman in OSC at the upcoming GHI Workforce Team Challenge; Jen wants to wear a bikini.
Me? The race was a benefit for the Colonie HS Class of 2008, and since both my kids graduated from there, it was a good cause for me to support. Besides, the $15 is tax deductible, right? I also thought it would be a good early season test of how my recovery and training have been going. The weather was cool and the course was flat, both good things for me. Of course, it had also been pouring all day, and although it let up a little by race time, it continued to rain through out the event. This is not an excuse for my poor performance, however - I just sucked.
Donna was there, too, and she introduced me to a couple of people, both interesting in different ways. The first was older - over 60 - an obviously very competitive. Soon after we met, he began complaining because the last category for prizes was too wide - 50+. He was insistent that many runners wouldn't even come to a small race like this with such an inequity, that the usual groupings were in 5 year increments. First, he engaged the three little old ladies sitting at a table selling raffle tickets. They pointed out that they were just volunteers and directed him to the event organizer. He then bent her ear, while she, in the midst of trying to get this whole event launched, politely noted his concerns. I'm thinking you really have to be driven to kick up such a fuss over a plastic water bottle hung with a blue ribbon.
I confess that I did give some thought as to whether I might be the proud recipient of one of said water bottles, but I looked at it a little differently. I figured that since it was such a small race - about 70 people, and since it seemed to skew toward high school-aged athletes, that I had a shot at a prize, provided there were only 3 people in the race over 50 - including me. The gent described above made 1, so I still had a chance. Then another guy came in and he made two - but I was still in the race for a prize. When a third guy over the magic age came in, my hopes were dashed.
But wait - there was still hope! What if one of the guys tripped and broke and ankle, or had a heart attack and couldn't finish? As long as I made it, I could still win.
And then, because he knew Donna, he - Chuck - came came over to talk with her, and Donna introduced him. He was her neighbor, and a really nice guy. He often encountered her at these races. He hadn't been running too much lately, though, because he had been having some heart arrhythmias. He had been to the doctor and been treated, and he was fine now, but he was going to take it easy. I immediately felt really guilty about my stupid fantasy, and realized that what was important about these events didn't have a single thing to do with prizes or age groupings. They are about the experiences and most of all about the people.
Like the organizers and volunteers who give of their time for worthy causes. And the spectators who cheer for you and encourage you, no matter how slow you are or how far behind the leaders. And Donna and Jen and Deanne, who waited in the rain long after they finished their races, until I turned the last corner and headed out onto the track. There they joined me and kept me company through the last quarter mile, encouraging me all the way. That's pretty special and that's what I really love about these races.
See you out there.
A "Short" Night at the Pool
Jess and Christina were back from DC, where they both did terrific:
Jess finished the DC Marathon in 3:55:17, chip time, 636/1387 overall, and 16/63 in her division, clocking 8:59 per mile.
Christina finished the DC Half Marathon in 1:33:33, chip time, 156/2640 overall, and 11/236 in her Division, clocking 7:09 per mile.
But here's the really interesting thing: while they were there they had access to the FBI's training facility pool and its underwater cameras, where they had their swimming strokes filmed and analyzed by one of the instructors. Jess learned that she was turning her fingers up slightly as she extended her arm, which was increasing resistance. She also learned that her arms, instead of going straight forward, should be angled more steeply, to get to the undisturbed water in front of and underneath her body. (At least I think that's what she said.) They both were able to correct flaws in their strokes and shorten their Strokes Per Length (SPL)by about 15%, meaning they were more efficient in the water.
They also noted that they while they were more efficient in their stroking, they were a little slower. As we Total Immersion fans know, the trick to increasing speed is decrease our SPL while increasing our Stroke Rates (SR), and, most important, to find the perfect balance between the two. The tricky thing for those of us who are not elite swimmers is that as we try to increase our SR, our form tends to break down, and we do more churning and less gliding. It's amazing how technical swimming can be.
Finally, to really, really get faster, you not only have to balance SPL with SR, you have to add power to your stroke. I'm afraid this all may beyond my abilities, as I am only mortal, and far, far from elite. But, what the hell, I'll talk to them some more next week, see what else they learned, and I try it out. Can't hurt, right?.
Coach also added a new 200 yard freestyle drill, shortening the time between sprints as follows: a length up at 50%, followed by a sprint back at 100%, repeated 4 times.
Our swim time was shorter, too. We had a good turn out, with all the women there, and me - Mike was working, Gil had to take care of a project at home and Steve couldn't make it. We all had a lot of catching up to do, we congratulated everyone on their recent accomplishments, and we were all pretty interested in Jess' and Christina's experiences with the FBI. Dodie was back, too, and had just had her stitches pulled. With all the talk-talk-talk, we didn't get started with warm-ups until 7:40.
Finally, our class time was shorter. Class is supposed to go from 7:30 until 8:15, but early on, Dodie asked if we could go until 8:30. Coach, being vary gracious, accommodated her request, and made sure his lesson plans kept us busy for the full hour. However, there is now a life saving class which meets at 8:15, meaning we have to abandon two of our reserved lanes at that time. We do get to keep the third lane, for the extra 15 minutes, though. As usual, Kelly took the time after class to swim extra laps, joined this week by Jess.
So, it was, indeed, a "short" swim night (you didn't think I was going to make jokes about the diminutive stature of my teammates, did you?)
Once again, the best part of the evening was Dodie - when she learned that we were losing 15 minutes off the end of our class, she immediately said to Coach, "Well, we will just have to start at 7:15, when the earlier class ends!" And who knows, maybe we will.
Jess finished the DC Marathon in 3:55:17, chip time, 636/1387 overall, and 16/63 in her division, clocking 8:59 per mile.
Christina finished the DC Half Marathon in 1:33:33, chip time, 156/2640 overall, and 11/236 in her Division, clocking 7:09 per mile.
But here's the really interesting thing: while they were there they had access to the FBI's training facility pool and its underwater cameras, where they had their swimming strokes filmed and analyzed by one of the instructors. Jess learned that she was turning her fingers up slightly as she extended her arm, which was increasing resistance. She also learned that her arms, instead of going straight forward, should be angled more steeply, to get to the undisturbed water in front of and underneath her body. (At least I think that's what she said.) They both were able to correct flaws in their strokes and shorten their Strokes Per Length (SPL)by about 15%, meaning they were more efficient in the water.
They also noted that they while they were more efficient in their stroking, they were a little slower. As we Total Immersion fans know, the trick to increasing speed is decrease our SPL while increasing our Stroke Rates (SR), and, most important, to find the perfect balance between the two. The tricky thing for those of us who are not elite swimmers is that as we try to increase our SR, our form tends to break down, and we do more churning and less gliding. It's amazing how technical swimming can be.
Finally, to really, really get faster, you not only have to balance SPL with SR, you have to add power to your stroke. I'm afraid this all may beyond my abilities, as I am only mortal, and far, far from elite. But, what the hell, I'll talk to them some more next week, see what else they learned, and I try it out. Can't hurt, right?.
Coach also added a new 200 yard freestyle drill, shortening the time between sprints as follows: a length up at 50%, followed by a sprint back at 100%, repeated 4 times.
Our swim time was shorter, too. We had a good turn out, with all the women there, and me - Mike was working, Gil had to take care of a project at home and Steve couldn't make it. We all had a lot of catching up to do, we congratulated everyone on their recent accomplishments, and we were all pretty interested in Jess' and Christina's experiences with the FBI. Dodie was back, too, and had just had her stitches pulled. With all the talk-talk-talk, we didn't get started with warm-ups until 7:40.
Finally, our class time was shorter. Class is supposed to go from 7:30 until 8:15, but early on, Dodie asked if we could go until 8:30. Coach, being vary gracious, accommodated her request, and made sure his lesson plans kept us busy for the full hour. However, there is now a life saving class which meets at 8:15, meaning we have to abandon two of our reserved lanes at that time. We do get to keep the third lane, for the extra 15 minutes, though. As usual, Kelly took the time after class to swim extra laps, joined this week by Jess.
So, it was, indeed, a "short" swim night (you didn't think I was going to make jokes about the diminutive stature of my teammates, did you?)
Once again, the best part of the evening was Dodie - when she learned that we were losing 15 minutes off the end of our class, she immediately said to Coach, "Well, we will just have to start at 7:15, when the earlier class ends!" And who knows, maybe we will.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Two Kinds of Thor
The pun police are after me, but I can't help myself!
Two days after the tri, some observations about the aftermath of biking, and some additional lessons learned.
First kind of soreness – muscular soreness. Remarkably enough, my hams, quads, calves and glutes are all fine. My adductors
on the other hand (other leg? – oops, there I go again), the inner thigh muscles, are sore. These muscles are used to bring the legs in towards each other, and to stabilize the hips. I am speculating that my seat may not have been positioned properly, that it was a bit high, meaning my hips were "rocking", with my thighs flying out on the down stroke and moving in on the upstroke. The soreness would have been caused by the work these muscles did trying to compensate and keep me centered.
Second kind of soreness – pressure soreness. Every spring my butt (which is not really my butt but – how to put this delicately? - the region between my "zither " and my "zatch", i.e., front to back along the centerline of my bottom – gets sore during my first few longer bike rides. After a while, the riding gets routine, and the area "toughens up". Apparently "Ground 0" has not toughened up yet.
I generally wear bike shorts with a good pad in them to minimize the pressure and soreness. However, for this tri, I wore an older pair of bike shorts with a minimal gel pad, and I don't think there was very much gel left in it. This was good for the swim – I didn't have that "swimming while wearing a wet diaper" feeling that I get when wearing my regular biking shorts, but not so good for the bike. Hey, I figured I would be on and off in a flash, so what did it matter? (Don't even start! And in the same spirit, a new slogan –"Every time you climb into the saddle, make sure you are wearing the right protection!")
Good padding helps to prevent chafing when you're in the saddle, too, but the real key here is the judicious application of the proper lubricant to all tender parts and bits before putting anything else on. I favor A&D ointment, but there are a number of other products that work equally well. Whatever you pick, make sure it's waterproof, because moisture, from whatever source or cause, exacerbates chafing. This is a good tip for the long run, too, or swim for that matter. (The pun police are almost here...)
Lessons learned:
- Make sure the bike seat is properly adjusted before training or riding.
- Sometimes its OK to put a little padding where Mother Nature hasn't provided any of her own (no - I'm not going there)
- Muscles are activity specific. The best way to train the muscles used in a specific event is to do that event. The bike portion for the next tri will be outdoors on a "real" bike. Since the weather at this time more or less precludes training outside on my bike, the training will have to be done on a stationary bike. To best train for this, I will need to lower my RPM's to 85-90, increase the resistance to build strength, and vary the resistance to emulate hills.
- Finally, to make sure I approximate "real" conditions, move my stationary bike about ½ mile behind each bike being ridden by a sprite or an elf every time I go "up" a hill. Never too early for a dose of reality therapy.....
See you out there!
Two days after the tri, some observations about the aftermath of biking, and some additional lessons learned.
First kind of soreness – muscular soreness. Remarkably enough, my hams, quads, calves and glutes are all fine. My adductors
on the other hand (other leg? – oops, there I go again), the inner thigh muscles, are sore. These muscles are used to bring the legs in towards each other, and to stabilize the hips. I am speculating that my seat may not have been positioned properly, that it was a bit high, meaning my hips were "rocking", with my thighs flying out on the down stroke and moving in on the upstroke. The soreness would have been caused by the work these muscles did trying to compensate and keep me centered.
Second kind of soreness – pressure soreness. Every spring my butt (which is not really my butt but – how to put this delicately? - the region between my "zither " and my "zatch", i.e., front to back along the centerline of my bottom – gets sore during my first few longer bike rides. After a while, the riding gets routine, and the area "toughens up". Apparently "Ground 0" has not toughened up yet.
I generally wear bike shorts with a good pad in them to minimize the pressure and soreness. However, for this tri, I wore an older pair of bike shorts with a minimal gel pad, and I don't think there was very much gel left in it. This was good for the swim – I didn't have that "swimming while wearing a wet diaper" feeling that I get when wearing my regular biking shorts, but not so good for the bike. Hey, I figured I would be on and off in a flash, so what did it matter? (Don't even start! And in the same spirit, a new slogan –"Every time you climb into the saddle, make sure you are wearing the right protection!")
Good padding helps to prevent chafing when you're in the saddle, too, but the real key here is the judicious application of the proper lubricant to all tender parts and bits before putting anything else on. I favor A&D ointment, but there are a number of other products that work equally well. Whatever you pick, make sure it's waterproof, because moisture, from whatever source or cause, exacerbates chafing. This is a good tip for the long run, too, or swim for that matter. (The pun police are almost here...)
Lessons learned:
- Make sure the bike seat is properly adjusted before training or riding.
- Sometimes its OK to put a little padding where Mother Nature hasn't provided any of her own (no - I'm not going there)
- Muscles are activity specific. The best way to train the muscles used in a specific event is to do that event. The bike portion for the next tri will be outdoors on a "real" bike. Since the weather at this time more or less precludes training outside on my bike, the training will have to be done on a stationary bike. To best train for this, I will need to lower my RPM's to 85-90, increase the resistance to build strength, and vary the resistance to emulate hills.
- Finally, to make sure I approximate "real" conditions, move my stationary bike about ½ mile behind each bike being ridden by a sprite or an elf every time I go "up" a hill. Never too early for a dose of reality therapy.....
See you out there!
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