...a 10 mile downhill on a bicycle at 25+ MPH.
That is all.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
It's Amazing the New Things...
...I keep learning about LA.
How many of you LA peeps actually know that you can ride your bike (or run, I suppose) all the way from Azusa to Seal Beach without taking any surface streets? Or from El Monte to Long Beach without worrying about getting hit by a car? That’s right! The San Gabriel River Trail and the Los Angeles River/Rio Hondo Trail pretty much allows cyclists to ride North-South across LA entirely on dedicated bike paths. Pretty cool, huh?
Never heard of these trails? You've probably at least seen the LA River in the movies. The drag race scene from Grease and the chase scene from Terminator 2 were both filmed at the LA River. And yes, I know that to call this concrete monstrosity a “river” is like calling the Epcot China Pavilion "China". But in its defense, water *does* run through it. Most of the time.
Best of all, aside from the occasional underpasses, both of these trails are flat as a table. There are tons of places where you can hop on, so you can make your ride to the beach as long or as short as you want. Most of you triathletes already know that these are great trails to practice time trialing too. You’ll still have to watch out for the occasional unleashed dog or kid though. Heh.
What better way to spend a Saturday or Sunday morning than to ride down to Long Beach, have brunch, and ride back? Fun!
http://www.labikepaths.com/
How many of you LA peeps actually know that you can ride your bike (or run, I suppose) all the way from Azusa to Seal Beach without taking any surface streets? Or from El Monte to Long Beach without worrying about getting hit by a car? That’s right! The San Gabriel River Trail and the Los Angeles River/Rio Hondo Trail pretty much allows cyclists to ride North-South across LA entirely on dedicated bike paths. Pretty cool, huh?
Never heard of these trails? You've probably at least seen the LA River in the movies. The drag race scene from Grease and the chase scene from Terminator 2 were both filmed at the LA River. And yes, I know that to call this concrete monstrosity a “river” is like calling the Epcot China Pavilion "China". But in its defense, water *does* run through it. Most of the time.
Best of all, aside from the occasional underpasses, both of these trails are flat as a table. There are tons of places where you can hop on, so you can make your ride to the beach as long or as short as you want. Most of you triathletes already know that these are great trails to practice time trialing too. You’ll still have to watch out for the occasional unleashed dog or kid though. Heh.
What better way to spend a Saturday or Sunday morning than to ride down to Long Beach, have brunch, and ride back? Fun!
http://www.labikepaths.com/
Monday, April 5, 2010
A Day in the Life of a (very) Slow Triathete
This isn’t going to be your typical race report. If it was, you’d read about how early the day started (3am), how cold the water was (it wasn’t), how hilly the bike course was (pretty damn), and why I “ran” a dismal 3:07 half marathon (cramps). You might even read about how much I cared about placing 312 out of 314 guys in my age group (Didn’t. But what on earth were those other two schmucks doing?! Really. Lol!)
Instead, I want to give you some insight into what I think about when plugging along in an HIM. For someone as slow as me, that's a lot of thinking. So here are...
Stephen's Top 20 Thoughts at Oceanside 70.3
Look at all these bikes!
A veritable sea of over 2000 very expensive bicycles, all racked up and ready to roll. Imagine a parking lot full of Ferraris. That’s pretty much what I saw in my mind. Imagine my Corvette parked alongside all these Ferraris. No shame in driving a Corvette. It’s a fast car. But it’s no Ferrari. Then again, it’s not about the bike, is it?
These are my peoples!
It’s the same feeling you get at the start of a marathon, at a salsa congress, dance convention, ComicCon, E3, or anywhere else where you’re sharing your love for something with thousands of other people like you. At 5 in the morning. You just feel at home.
Allll riiight!
You can’t help but feel a tiny bit more badass after you get bodymarked. Having been on both sides of the pen as a volunteer and an athlete, I can tell you that one of the highlights of many an athlete’s day is getting their bib number written down their arm in permanent marker. In its own little way, bodymarking legitimizes your claim to race day.
Interesting. She’s X?
Happened many times that morning. In addition to getting your bib number written on your arm, you also get your age written on your calf. They do this so that during the race, it’s easier to tell who you’re racing against. The top finishers in each age group receive prizes and a spot in the championship race later in the year. Nowhere else in the real world can I find out how old somebody is just by looking at their leg. It’s like one of the grand little mysteries of everyday life is suddenly revealed for one glorious day.
I feel like a sausage.
Everytime I squeeze into that wetsuit. Time to lose some weight!
Holy Crap! They're done already?!
The pro men wave started the swim at 6:40am. My wave started at 7:07. We were right about to enter the water when the first pros were exiting. 22 minutes to swim 1.2 miles. Amazing.
Dammit. Where's the next buoy?!
I had this thought many many times during the swim. For a while there, you swim right into the sun, so it was next to impossible to see where you're supposed to go. I ended up getting so discombobulated that I didn't even realize that I had already reached the turn around point and started swimming back. I kept thinking, Jeez, how long is this swim. Then I finally see the transition area and realize that I'm almost done. Sweet!
I wonder how much salt water I have to drink before I start throwing up?
This thought came to mind every time I swallowed another gulp of salt water from an errant wave.
I wish I could pee.
Some people are able to pee in their wetsuits while swimming. I'm not some people. This will end up costing me a couple minutes.
That's gonna leave a mark.
Apparently, I didn't apply enough body glide because my wetsuit kept chaffing at the back of my neck. Ouch.
Haha! All the bikes are gone!
When your bike is the only one left in a 30 feet radius, you know you're a bad swimmer.
Keep spinning. Head down. Just keep spinning.
This was the mantra I kept repeating over and over as I made my way through the hilly second half of the bike course. I decided not to even look up anymore because it’s kind of overwhelming to keep being reminded of how much more hill you need to climb. It was easier for me to just look 3 feet ahead of me and compartmentalize. Just one more revolution. It'll end when it ends. (In the interest of full disclosure, the hills prolly weren’t that bad--for someone who actually rode their bike more than 4 times in the 2 months prior to the race. Ahem.)
I’m F-ing riding up, dammit.
When you’re out of shape and climbing a hill like that, little voices whisper to you constantly. "Why kill yourself Steve? Just walk it. Get off and walk it. Waaalk it. Don’t you want to walk it? There’s no shame in that. See, all those other people are walking. People with better bikes than you. C’mon! Just walk up the hill, man." That’s when you need to shout them all down. NO!! F U ALL, I'M RIDING IT!! Head down. Keep spinning.
I wonder if I can clip out in time?
At certain points I was going so slow up the hill, the thought entered my mind that this could end badly. Like what if I cramp up and physically can’t spin anymore? Seeing as how the only thing keeping the bike upright on the hill was its forward momentum which would stop as soon as I stopped pedaling, I wasn’t even sure if I could unclip my shoe from the pedal before the bike toppled over with me on it. That would have been embarrassing.
I should have practiced this more.
It’s easy to open up an energy bar or a sandwich wrapping when you’re stopped at a stoplight with both hands free. It’s not as easy when you’re trying to do the same with your teeth and your one free hand, going at 20 miles an hour. Since the bike is where athletes take in most of their calories, it’s rather important know how to do the little things like opening up food packages easily.
F this. This is BS. No F-ing way I’m riding 112 miles on this thing.
Don’t get me wrong. I love my road bike, but after a mile swim and maybe 30 miles on the bike, your arms, shoulders, neck, and wrists get sooo tired from supporting your upper body. The last 26 miles were painful. I couldn't fathom riding double this distance at IM Arizona on the same bike. I decided right then and there to buy a triathlon bike. :)
California girls. God bless ‘em!
Half of the run course was right along the beach. The bikinis were out in full force that day. Loved. It.
I can’t believe I signed up for double this distance. Crap.
With my quads and calves misfiring, stomach hungry, blisters forming, and the big toe hurting in a disturbingly novel way, the idea of running a marathon after a 112 mile bike ride seemed like pure madness. Still does.
Get me electrolytes!
I don't claim to know much about how the human body works, but the hiker in me has always equated muscle cramps with electrolyte deficiency. So every mile on the run, I dutifully gulped down Gatorade and bananas in the hopes of staying ahead of my cramps.
Just make sure you make the cutoff.
This was my overwhelming thought during the run. I was so friggen slow that I was in danger of not finishing by the course cutoff time of 9 hours. The little voices finally won and I had already resigned myself to run/walking the half marathon, so I was constantly checking my watch and doing math in my head, just to make sure that however much I walked, I was still going to come in on time.
Final Times:
Swim 1:13
Bike 3:49
Run 3:07
Total 8:24
Instead, I want to give you some insight into what I think about when plugging along in an HIM. For someone as slow as me, that's a lot of thinking. So here are...
Stephen's Top 20 Thoughts at Oceanside 70.3
Look at all these bikes!
A veritable sea of over 2000 very expensive bicycles, all racked up and ready to roll. Imagine a parking lot full of Ferraris. That’s pretty much what I saw in my mind. Imagine my Corvette parked alongside all these Ferraris. No shame in driving a Corvette. It’s a fast car. But it’s no Ferrari. Then again, it’s not about the bike, is it?
These are my peoples!
It’s the same feeling you get at the start of a marathon, at a salsa congress, dance convention, ComicCon, E3, or anywhere else where you’re sharing your love for something with thousands of other people like you. At 5 in the morning. You just feel at home.
Allll riiight!
You can’t help but feel a tiny bit more badass after you get bodymarked. Having been on both sides of the pen as a volunteer and an athlete, I can tell you that one of the highlights of many an athlete’s day is getting their bib number written down their arm in permanent marker. In its own little way, bodymarking legitimizes your claim to race day.
Interesting. She’s X?
Happened many times that morning. In addition to getting your bib number written on your arm, you also get your age written on your calf. They do this so that during the race, it’s easier to tell who you’re racing against. The top finishers in each age group receive prizes and a spot in the championship race later in the year. Nowhere else in the real world can I find out how old somebody is just by looking at their leg. It’s like one of the grand little mysteries of everyday life is suddenly revealed for one glorious day.
I feel like a sausage.
Everytime I squeeze into that wetsuit. Time to lose some weight!
Holy Crap! They're done already?!
The pro men wave started the swim at 6:40am. My wave started at 7:07. We were right about to enter the water when the first pros were exiting. 22 minutes to swim 1.2 miles. Amazing.
Dammit. Where's the next buoy?!
I had this thought many many times during the swim. For a while there, you swim right into the sun, so it was next to impossible to see where you're supposed to go. I ended up getting so discombobulated that I didn't even realize that I had already reached the turn around point and started swimming back. I kept thinking, Jeez, how long is this swim. Then I finally see the transition area and realize that I'm almost done. Sweet!
I wonder how much salt water I have to drink before I start throwing up?
This thought came to mind every time I swallowed another gulp of salt water from an errant wave.
I wish I could pee.
Some people are able to pee in their wetsuits while swimming. I'm not some people. This will end up costing me a couple minutes.
That's gonna leave a mark.
Apparently, I didn't apply enough body glide because my wetsuit kept chaffing at the back of my neck. Ouch.
Haha! All the bikes are gone!
When your bike is the only one left in a 30 feet radius, you know you're a bad swimmer.
Keep spinning. Head down. Just keep spinning.
This was the mantra I kept repeating over and over as I made my way through the hilly second half of the bike course. I decided not to even look up anymore because it’s kind of overwhelming to keep being reminded of how much more hill you need to climb. It was easier for me to just look 3 feet ahead of me and compartmentalize. Just one more revolution. It'll end when it ends. (In the interest of full disclosure, the hills prolly weren’t that bad--for someone who actually rode their bike more than 4 times in the 2 months prior to the race. Ahem.)
The bike course profile.
I’m F-ing riding up, dammit.
When you’re out of shape and climbing a hill like that, little voices whisper to you constantly. "Why kill yourself Steve? Just walk it. Get off and walk it. Waaalk it. Don’t you want to walk it? There’s no shame in that. See, all those other people are walking. People with better bikes than you. C’mon! Just walk up the hill, man." That’s when you need to shout them all down. NO!! F U ALL, I'M RIDING IT!! Head down. Keep spinning.
I wonder if I can clip out in time?
At certain points I was going so slow up the hill, the thought entered my mind that this could end badly. Like what if I cramp up and physically can’t spin anymore? Seeing as how the only thing keeping the bike upright on the hill was its forward momentum which would stop as soon as I stopped pedaling, I wasn’t even sure if I could unclip my shoe from the pedal before the bike toppled over with me on it. That would have been embarrassing.
I should have practiced this more.
It’s easy to open up an energy bar or a sandwich wrapping when you’re stopped at a stoplight with both hands free. It’s not as easy when you’re trying to do the same with your teeth and your one free hand, going at 20 miles an hour. Since the bike is where athletes take in most of their calories, it’s rather important know how to do the little things like opening up food packages easily.
F this. This is BS. No F-ing way I’m riding 112 miles on this thing.
Don’t get me wrong. I love my road bike, but after a mile swim and maybe 30 miles on the bike, your arms, shoulders, neck, and wrists get sooo tired from supporting your upper body. The last 26 miles were painful. I couldn't fathom riding double this distance at IM Arizona on the same bike. I decided right then and there to buy a triathlon bike. :)
California girls. God bless ‘em!
Half of the run course was right along the beach. The bikinis were out in full force that day. Loved. It.
I can’t believe I signed up for double this distance. Crap.
With my quads and calves misfiring, stomach hungry, blisters forming, and the big toe hurting in a disturbingly novel way, the idea of running a marathon after a 112 mile bike ride seemed like pure madness. Still does.
Get me electrolytes!
I don't claim to know much about how the human body works, but the hiker in me has always equated muscle cramps with electrolyte deficiency. So every mile on the run, I dutifully gulped down Gatorade and bananas in the hopes of staying ahead of my cramps.
Just make sure you make the cutoff.
This was my overwhelming thought during the run. I was so friggen slow that I was in danger of not finishing by the course cutoff time of 9 hours. The little voices finally won and I had already resigned myself to run/walking the half marathon, so I was constantly checking my watch and doing math in my head, just to make sure that however much I walked, I was still going to come in on time.
Final Times:
Swim 1:13
Bike 3:49
Run 3:07
Total 8:24
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