I just updated my workouts at my Runner's World training log and realized that I had three bike rides to enter. The first was a meander down (and back up) Beach Dr. in Rock Creek Park with my wife, the esteemed Dr. J.
The second was a MTB ride at Fairland with Kevin, Kona (my dog), and Cassie (Kevin's dog). This was the second trail ride along for Kona and the first with her bestest friend in the whole wide world, Cassie. Kona made it for the whole 7 mile loop this time (the first time we only went 5 miles). After we dropped the dogs off, we rode the opening section in an all-out, reverse direct sprint.
The third ride was again with the esteemed Dr. J to/from my football game. Once I assured Dr. J that there was only 1 hill on the ride, she agreed to come along. Too bad I underestimated. There actually about 10 hills total. Oops, sorry hun.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Introducing Dr. J!!!
The (future) has been dropped and her name is officially Dr. J! Jenny (wife) presented her last dissertation recital for (French) horn performance last Saturday. Her dissertation defense was this morning and the committee signed off. The signing off by her committee is when the degree (and title Dr.) was officially conferred.
The defense was pretty cool because I got to sit in for it. It lasted about an hour with Jenny presenting a summary of her dissertation topic (Works for the Horn by American Women Composers) including her likes/dislikes, challenges encountered, and relevance of the topic. After that, the committee members all asked questions and Jenny answered.
Watching Jenny speak so confidently about her topic really impressed me. She definitely knew the ins and outs of all the pieces and their composers, which I think is the real intent of the defense from the committee's perspective. One aspect that became clear to me through the committee's questions is that the dissertation is the beginning of something bigger (who knew? I thought it was the end).
There were pointed questions regarding what the next step is for: Jenny, the works played, and future recordings. There was discussion about why her topic was chosen other than Jenny being a woman. Exposure is a big hurdle, especially a lack of recordings, for composers when trying to get their works played.
Jenny did a great job. I'm impressed and will be proud to call her Dr. J!
The defense was pretty cool because I got to sit in for it. It lasted about an hour with Jenny presenting a summary of her dissertation topic (Works for the Horn by American Women Composers) including her likes/dislikes, challenges encountered, and relevance of the topic. After that, the committee members all asked questions and Jenny answered.
Watching Jenny speak so confidently about her topic really impressed me. She definitely knew the ins and outs of all the pieces and their composers, which I think is the real intent of the defense from the committee's perspective. One aspect that became clear to me through the committee's questions is that the dissertation is the beginning of something bigger (who knew? I thought it was the end).
There were pointed questions regarding what the next step is for: Jenny, the works played, and future recordings. There was discussion about why her topic was chosen other than Jenny being a woman. Exposure is a big hurdle, especially a lack of recordings, for composers when trying to get their works played.
Jenny did a great job. I'm impressed and will be proud to call her Dr. J!
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Tree 1, Me 0
Friday's weather was gorgeous...too gorgeous to work all day and not get on the trails. Kevin simultaneously sent me this email and text, "Cut out early and hit shaffer today? Perfect, perfect, perfect day to ride... Did I mention its perfect out?" at 8:59 am. I hadn't been at work for a half hour yet, but I knew he was right. I left at 12:30.
Kevin was impressed by Shaffer Farm after our first ride there. He wanted to go back and even offered to pick me up. How could I refuse?
Cassie (Kevin's dog) recently tore off two of her paw pads, so she gets to wear these cute booties on the trail now.
The weather was perfect and the riding superb, except for that pesky tree. We were on a section of trail with several 180 degree turns passing back and forth across a wide, 5 foot deep ditch. I came around a left turn and dropped into the ditch a little off balance. I saw the tree and focused on it. Unfortunately, I was too focused on it...and too close to it. BAM!
There are alot of obstacles (trees, bushes, etc.) that pass close by while mountain biking. The best way to ensure that you'll graze one of those obstacles (or run into one in my case) is too focus on them. When I constantly (and consistently) look down the trail 10-20 ft, obstacles stay out of the way. I must try to remember this in the future.
Kevin was impressed by Shaffer Farm after our first ride there. He wanted to go back and even offered to pick me up. How could I refuse?
Cassie (Kevin's dog) recently tore off two of her paw pads, so she gets to wear these cute booties on the trail now.
Cassie is ready to go
The weather was perfect and the riding superb, except for that pesky tree. We were on a section of trail with several 180 degree turns passing back and forth across a wide, 5 foot deep ditch. I came around a left turn and dropped into the ditch a little off balance. I saw the tree and focused on it. Unfortunately, I was too focused on it...and too close to it. BAM!
There are alot of obstacles (trees, bushes, etc.) that pass close by while mountain biking. The best way to ensure that you'll graze one of those obstacles (or run into one in my case) is too focus on them. When I constantly (and consistently) look down the trail 10-20 ft, obstacles stay out of the way. I must try to remember this in the future.
It stings
Day after upper arm
Day after forearm
How do I even the score with the trees? Trim some branches? Pull out leaves? Or do I have to use a chain saw?
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
I Found My Savior On The Trails
Easter Sunday was a perfect day to ride some new (to me) trails at Shaffer Farm in Germantown, MD. Shaffer Farm offers about 10 miles of rolling singletrack with plenty of obstacles to play on. There are tons of logs to go over and tree trunks to traverse (for those that are so inclined).
I met Kevin after his bike patrol ride along training at Black Hills Park, which is nearby. We rode most of what Shaffer has to offer and loved every second of it. Mild climbs warmed us up enough so that the down hills were exciting and the stream crossing splashes refreshing.
One of the toys to play on
Kevin is working on his tree trunk rides
I met Kevin after his bike patrol ride along training at Black Hills Park, which is nearby. We rode most of what Shaffer has to offer and loved every second of it. Mild climbs warmed us up enough so that the down hills were exciting and the stream crossing splashes refreshing.
I did try a short tree trunk ride. As soon as I got on the trunk I lost all momentum and hopped off. I'm still working on the multiple log piles such as the one below. I didn't make it over this one this time. Mine is more of a mental block (or challenge if I may) opposed to the 3 foot tall log pile. I get intimidated by the obstacle, which makes me cautious instead of just going for it.
After riding about 10 miles at Shaffer, I suggested we try some of the Hoyles Mill Connector Trail. It connects Shaffer Farm to Black Hill Park. Kevin and I tried to ride there once before, but the trail was waaaaay too muddy. This time, it was in great shape. The opening of Hoyles Mill (from Shaffer) contains alot of rocks. I've heard of rock gardens. I don't know if this qualifies, but to me it counts. There are enough rocks that one has to look ahead to pick a line that won't run into big rock. There's one part where the trail goes between two big rocks (maybe 2 feet across) with just enough room for a bike. Between the two rocks there's a big tree root (maybe a foot across). That part always makes me think of the movie Labyrinth, featuring 1986 David Bowie.
In all, we rode about 10 miles at Shaffer and another 3-4 on the Hoyles Mill Connector. Next time I'd like to ride more of the Hoyles Mill Connector. It was a nice way to spend Easter Sunday.
I'm still trying to work myself up for going over log piles like this
After riding about 10 miles at Shaffer, I suggested we try some of the Hoyles Mill Connector Trail. It connects Shaffer Farm to Black Hill Park. Kevin and I tried to ride there once before, but the trail was waaaaay too muddy. This time, it was in great shape. The opening of Hoyles Mill (from Shaffer) contains alot of rocks. I've heard of rock gardens. I don't know if this qualifies, but to me it counts. There are enough rocks that one has to look ahead to pick a line that won't run into big rock. There's one part where the trail goes between two big rocks (maybe 2 feet across) with just enough room for a bike. Between the two rocks there's a big tree root (maybe a foot across). That part always makes me think of the movie Labyrinth, featuring 1986 David Bowie.
Flight of the Conchords is sweet
In all, we rode about 10 miles at Shaffer and another 3-4 on the Hoyles Mill Connector. Next time I'd like to ride more of the Hoyles Mill Connector. It was a nice way to spend Easter Sunday.
A day on the trails is a victorious one
Thursday, April 9, 2009
France and Lance Are At It Again
France's anti-doping agency, AFLD, claims Lance Armstrong went against its rules and delayed a drug test by 20 minutes to take a shower. What was Lance doing in the shower? And why didn't he just invite the doctor to join him?
Who knows. Who really cares. I think the interesting story is why this is even a story. Nonetheless, France still wishes to get Lance.
Who knows. Who really cares. I think the interesting story is why this is even a story. Nonetheless, France still wishes to get Lance.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Cherry Blossom Race Review
As I exited the porta john, the race director's voiced boomed through the speakers, "5! 4! 3! 2! 1!" And just as I leaped the second chain fence, "GO!" What a way to start my first road race.
I jumped in about 25 yards behind the start line so "GO!" was a bit anticlimactic. The herd of people walked up to the start line where I began a restrained jog. Navigating the crowd was like trying to move to the front at a rock festival. "Elbows out!" Dipak (good friend from college and frequent concert goer) always told me. Right on.
I had to shuffle step several times to avoid running over people. I darted to the outside the first chance I got where the flow forward was less clogged. After a half mile or so, I was able to ease into my stride comfortably. I was pushing my self and my legs felt fresh. My two week layoff helped with that. Typing (speaking) of, two weeks ago (notice the lack of posts?) I knew the 10 miler wasn't happening (at least not without crawling across the finish line at the time limit), so I stopped training and switched to the 5K race. That was a bummer, but reality is sometimes. However, I saw alot of people with 10 miler bibs running the 5K, which made me feel a little better on the inside. I know that shouldn't make me feel better, but it does.
After the pack thinned out, the Memorial Bridge approached along with the "1 Mile" marker. What a beautiful setting: running from the cherry blossoms, across the Potomac, toward Arlington Cemetary. Before I got off the bridge, the leaders passed me going the other way. There was a kid, looked like he was in middle school, in about 5th place. Dude! Getting whooped that badly by a middle schooler is not cool.
As I passed the halfway point, I saw Santa Claus handing out water at the aid station. Thanks for the Xmas offering St. Nick, but no thanks. Back on the bridge, I passed the "2 Mile" marker and my two-week-layoff freshness turned into two-week-layoff rust. I could feel the burn.
I had to push hard through the last mile or so while the trees canopied the road in full bloom..gorgeous! As I crossed the finish line (trying to remain standing), I reflected on the struggle (damn hips!) to get to there. It wasn't the finish line I had hoped to cross, but it felt good nonetheless to cross a finish line.
My time was 26:35 (8:34 pace), which was good for 102nd place overall and 64th male (out of 410). Awesome! Also, I was beat handily by a 71 year old and a 9 year old. Not quite as awesome. Kevin finished the 10 Miler in 1:12:20 for 1044th overall out of 14500+. Way to go Brosef! Check out hiseventual race review at Kmax Trax.
The Cherry Blossom race was great. It was well organized with lots of volunteers. THANK YOU volunteers! The setting was amazing, the weather spectacular, and the cherry blossoms were in full bloom. I'll definitely try to get in the 10 miler again next year.
I jumped in about 25 yards behind the start line so "GO!" was a bit anticlimactic. The herd of people walked up to the start line where I began a restrained jog. Navigating the crowd was like trying to move to the front at a rock festival. "Elbows out!" Dipak (good friend from college and frequent concert goer) always told me. Right on.
I had to shuffle step several times to avoid running over people. I darted to the outside the first chance I got where the flow forward was less clogged. After a half mile or so, I was able to ease into my stride comfortably. I was pushing my self and my legs felt fresh. My two week layoff helped with that. Typing (speaking) of, two weeks ago (notice the lack of posts?) I knew the 10 miler wasn't happening (at least not without crawling across the finish line at the time limit), so I stopped training and switched to the 5K race. That was a bummer, but reality is sometimes. However, I saw alot of people with 10 miler bibs running the 5K, which made me feel a little better on the inside. I know that shouldn't make me feel better, but it does.
After the pack thinned out, the Memorial Bridge approached along with the "1 Mile" marker. What a beautiful setting: running from the cherry blossoms, across the Potomac, toward Arlington Cemetary. Before I got off the bridge, the leaders passed me going the other way. There was a kid, looked like he was in middle school, in about 5th place. Dude! Getting whooped that badly by a middle schooler is not cool.
As I passed the halfway point, I saw Santa Claus handing out water at the aid station. Thanks for the Xmas offering St. Nick, but no thanks. Back on the bridge, I passed the "2 Mile" marker and my two-week-layoff freshness turned into two-week-layoff rust. I could feel the burn.
I had to push hard through the last mile or so while the trees canopied the road in full bloom..gorgeous! As I crossed the finish line (trying to remain standing), I reflected on the struggle (damn hips!) to get to there. It wasn't the finish line I had hoped to cross, but it felt good nonetheless to cross a finish line.
My time was 26:35 (8:34 pace), which was good for 102nd place overall and 64th male (out of 410). Awesome! Also, I was beat handily by a 71 year old and a 9 year old. Not quite as awesome. Kevin finished the 10 Miler in 1:12:20 for 1044th overall out of 14500+. Way to go Brosef! Check out his
The Cherry Blossom race was great. It was well organized with lots of volunteers. THANK YOU volunteers! The setting was amazing, the weather spectacular, and the cherry blossoms were in full bloom. I'll definitely try to get in the 10 miler again next year.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Two To(Bi)kes Over The Line
The phone rang and (future) Dr. J picked it up. The call for her to join me in my now year long biking phase has been answered...with a resounding Y-E-S!
We picked up (future) Dr. J's new bike this afternoon from Performance Bikes. Not 2 hours later, it already has 7 miles on it. What a start. We rode on Sligo Creek Parkway the whole way, which is nice and flat. Saw some interesting houses...one looked like a domesticated star destroyer with sharp contrasting lines and some prismatic windows. We also saw some kids learning to ride bikes with their parents running along side. It was hard to tell if the parents were protecting their kids or they were protecting the rest of us. We had a fun time and the weather was great. I'm looking forward to our next ride.
(Future) Dr. J's new ride
The second part to this story is that we currently have FIVE bikes. In a previous post, I noted that (future) Dr. J's limit on the number of bikes in our house is THREE. With her new Schwinn Searcher, we are now 2 bikes over the line. And I'm happy to report that of those 2 bikes, we are each 1 over.
Bikes #1, #2, & #3. Eventually, the two on the left will go.
Bikes #4 & #5. These both stay.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Dear Lance Armstrong,
I saw that you broke your collar bone. I'm writing to let you know that you're not alone because I feel your pain. Rather, I felt your pain.
The recovery is not fun and it will drive you crazy. Sleeping will be painful, showering a b****, training next to impossible, and don't even ask about wiping post-#2. You opted to have a plate and screws inserted at the break. So, you won't have the pleasure of feeling your new bone ends rubbing against each other like me. Wuss.
You shaved your legs, put on skin tight spandex, went for a leisurely bicycle ride. You girl. I, on the other hand, was playing a real man's sport with the big boys, football, when I broke my collarbone.
Try to stay positive and remember what it's all about. You may say it's all about cancer awareness, others may say it's the glory, but we all really know it's just the little yellow stuffed lion from le Tour.
Hope you feel better soon. Let me know if you want any recovery advice. Or advice on how to be more tough.
Brian
[Note: This is satire and I'm not even qualified to carry Lance'sjock chamois]
The recovery is not fun and it will drive you crazy. Sleeping will be painful, showering a b****, training next to impossible, and don't even ask about wiping post-#2. You opted to have a plate and screws inserted at the break. So, you won't have the pleasure of feeling your new bone ends rubbing against each other like me. Wuss.
You shaved your legs, put on skin tight spandex, went for a leisurely bicycle ride. You girl. I, on the other hand, was playing a real man's sport with the big boys, football, when I broke my collarbone.
Try to stay positive and remember what it's all about. You may say it's all about cancer awareness, others may say it's the glory, but we all really know it's just the little yellow stuffed lion from le Tour.
You and you and your cuddle buddy
Hope you feel better soon. Let me know if you want any recovery advice. Or advice on how to be more tough.
Brian
[Note: This is satire and I'm not even qualified to carry Lance's
[Update: Lance already started training again...3 days after his crash. That's pretty tough.]
10 Day Hiatus
As all 20 visitors from the last week and a half have noticed, I haven't posted in 10 days. Haven't been in the mood. I didn't post about my 4 mile run from a week ago Sunday. My legs actually felt normal before, during, and after the run. Exciting times that didn't last long. Another 4 miler on Wednesday went ok. Thursday, the legs were screaming. No, they weren't screaming "are we here yet?"
A five hour car ride to NYC didn't help on Friday either. But NYC was awesome as always and lots of fun. I had planned to run through Central Park for a 5 miler on Saturday, but the legs weren't having any of it. I was really looking forward to that...extremely disappointing. I did go down to lower Manhattan with Jeff for a couple hours. We probably walked several miles. That counts right?
I've given up trying to stick to a training schedule for the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler (5K?). I'm just...whatever. To perk up my spirits, I'm riding in my first ever MTB race this Saturday...I think. Kevin e-mailed some guy who says he'll give up his registration, but the transfer hasn't happened yet. I don't even know where or what the race is. I'll post an update about the race...hopefully, within the next 10 days.
You Tube has weird stuff
Tree lined path along the Hudson river
Sweet eagle! Some sort of WWII memorial.
As close as I've ever been to the Statue of Liberty. See it back there?
I've given up trying to stick to a training schedule for the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler (5K?). I'm just...whatever. To perk up my spirits, I'm riding in my first ever MTB race this Saturday...I think. Kevin e-mailed some guy who says he'll give up his registration, but the transfer hasn't happened yet. I don't even know where or what the race is. I'll post an update about the race...hopefully, within the next 10 days.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
This Is Why Safety Gear Exists
Instead of running my scheduled 4 miles on Saturday, I planned to go ride the Baker's Dozen MTB race course. However, rain showers were already attacking Manassas and moving north toward Leesburg by noon. With an hour drive to get to Leesburg, the forecast wasn't looking good for getting a ride completed.
Kevin made it over the rock. Regrettably, he landed almost vertically on his front wheel. Never a good thing. Over the handle bars, he tried to turn it into a headstand, but to no avail. The failed headstand turned into a somersault, which ended with Kevin's back squarely across a downed tree trunk. This is what happened to his helmet.
The helmet worked as intended. You should check out what happened to Kevin here. THIS IS WHY SAFETY GEAR EXISTS PEOPLE. USE IT!
God bless his spirit, Kevin is tougher than me. After collecting his thoughts...and quite possibly his unmentionables, we continued on.
Patapsco is awesome. It has lots-o-trails for variety and good climbs that turn into great downhill sections. Patapsco is a step up technically (rocks & roots mostly) from the trails I'm used to. So, it offers challenging terrain for me to improve my skills upon.
Continue riding. Stay safe. And always wear your helmet.
Further to the north near Catonsville, MD lies Patapsco state park. Kevin and I decided to go there to get away from the rain and a MORE post indicated the trails were ready for primetime. Correct on both accounts.
The trails were in great shape. Not many ruts. No mud. Smooth trails ready for a butt whoopin'. Unfortunately, it was Kevin's butt that received the whoopin' because he decided to jump the rock.
For some reason, The Rock kept saying "You better ask somebodyyyyy!"
Kevin made it over the rock. Regrettably, he landed almost vertically on his front wheel. Never a good thing. Over the handle bars, he tried to turn it into a headstand, but to no avail. The failed headstand turned into a somersault, which ended with Kevin's back squarely across a downed tree trunk. This is what happened to his helmet.
These things happen, but it's a good thing Kevin wore his helmet
The helmet worked as intended. You should check out what happened to Kevin here. THIS IS WHY SAFETY GEAR EXISTS PEOPLE. USE IT!
God bless his spirit, Kevin is tougher than me. After collecting his thoughts...and quite possibly his unmentionables, we continued on.
Patapsco is awesome. It has lots-o-trails for variety and good climbs that turn into great downhill sections. Patapsco is a step up technically (rocks & roots mostly) from the trails I'm used to. So, it offers challenging terrain for me to improve my skills upon.
Continue riding. Stay safe. And always wear your helmet.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Blah
I haven't felt like posting much this week because I'm getting tired of writing about leg issues. I did get a foam roller, which is for self massage, core strengthening, and relieving muscle tightness. It helped my sore hamstrings, but it seems like that soreness just moved up to my glutes. The foam roller definitely does something. I'm just trying to figure out exactly what. This instructional video helps.
I'm skipping my scheduled 4 mile run today to go ride the Baker's Dozen MTB course. I believe it's the same course as the Snotcycle race, but riding clockwise instead of counter. The course is on a private farm and the owners are gracious enough to open it up today. Difficult to pass up. So, I'll squeeze my 4 miler in tomorrow and adjust this week's runs accordingly.
If (future) Dr. J won't massage my legs, the Go Fit foam roller will
I'm skipping my scheduled 4 mile run today to go ride the Baker's Dozen MTB course. I believe it's the same course as the Snotcycle race, but riding clockwise instead of counter. The course is on a private farm and the owners are gracious enough to open it up today. Difficult to pass up. So, I'll squeeze my 4 miler in tomorrow and adjust this week's runs accordingly.
Monday, March 9, 2009
A Possible Cause
I may have discovered a biomechanical cause for my sore hips. Yesterday, I noticed that when I tense my glutes (yes! buns-of steel), that I could feel the burning. Weird, who would have thunk a tight tush would cause such issues.
Ever since then, I have been trying to make a conscious effort to relax all my leg muscles. So far, so good.
After a cookout and 4 adult beverages yesterday (thank you warm weather and DST), my legs were tight this morning. A recipe for frustration lately.
This afternoon, I warmed up, stretched (which didn't do much) and ran my scheduled 1.5 miles. Granted, I ran slow and stopped for a 4 minute stretch break about 5 minutes in, but I concentrated on making sure my legs were relaxed. Lo and behold, I sat in a chair all afternoon without much discomfort. YEEHAW!
Hopefully I figured something out, or maybe I just had a good day.
Ever since then, I have been trying to make a conscious effort to relax all my leg muscles. So far, so good.
After a cookout and 4 adult beverages yesterday (thank you warm weather and DST), my legs were tight this morning. A recipe for frustration lately.
This afternoon, I warmed up, stretched (which didn't do much) and ran my scheduled 1.5 miles. Granted, I ran slow and stopped for a 4 minute stretch break about 5 minutes in, but I concentrated on making sure my legs were relaxed. Lo and behold, I sat in a chair all afternoon without much discomfort. YEEHAW!
Hopefully I figured something out, or maybe I just had a good day.
Daylight Savings Time...I Love You
DST rules, just like O'Doyle:
DST is awesome. Now I can bike, run, or walk the dog after work in daylight (as long as the temperature cooperates). DST is so great, I don't understand why regular time exists anymore...just get rid of it! The USA should be the anti-Arizona and refuse to recognize regular time. Actually there is a part of AZ that follows DST...a donut-shaped part. Turns out the Navajo Nation observes DST while the Hopi Reservation, which is completely contained within the Navajo Nation, doesn't. Interesting.
Another interesting DST story:
Not the most upbeat story, but sweet, ironic justice none the less. Check out other interesting DST history and facts at WebExhibits.
DST is awesome. Now I can bike, run, or walk the dog after work in daylight (as long as the temperature cooperates). DST is so great, I don't understand why regular time exists anymore...just get rid of it! The USA should be the anti-Arizona and refuse to recognize regular time. Actually there is a part of AZ that follows DST...a donut-shaped part. Turns out the Navajo Nation observes DST while the Hopi Reservation, which is completely contained within the Navajo Nation, doesn't. Interesting.
Another interesting DST story:
Terrorists (on DST) prepared time bombs and smuggled them to their counterparts (just switched back to standard time). As the bombs were being planted, they exploded, an hour too early, killing three terrorists instead of the intended victims.
Not the most upbeat story, but sweet, ironic justice none the less. Check out other interesting DST history and facts at WebExhibits.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Some Say Suck It Up
I had some interesting discussions yesterday with Kevin. He's been laid up all week, recovering from wisdom teeth removal. I wanted to head over to REI to spend my 2008 dividend on another bike mount for my rack. Kevin wanted to go too. I suggested that we get a short road ride in because of the 60+ degree (F) temperatures.
I had a 3 mile run to do before I could go out. To make a long story short, I finished the 3 miles, but I had to stop at least 4 times for thorough stretching during the run just to finish. 37 minutes of run time (really slow) took me at least 50 minutes clock time. Needless to say, I finished, but my legs weren't in that great of shape.
I decided that a road ride wasn't the best idea as I need to give my legs as much rest as possible. This disappointed Kevin greatly because he had been waiting all week to ride. As usual with the two of us, the mood was a bit adversarial because everything has to be a competition and neither one of us likes to admit defeat.
Kevin told me to suck it up and quit whining about my legs. I tried to explain that I wanted to ride just as much as he did and that I was dissappointed too. I may have thrown an "I hope you get a repeptitve injury some day so that you might understand" in there. Uncalled for, but boys will be boys. My point was that I am sucking it up in an attempt to still run the Cherry Blossom race.
So what's better, sucking it up by playing trough the pain or resting?
If I rest, then I shouldn't be training at all for the Cherry Blossom race, and I probably wouldn't train for much of anything at all because it seems that something always aches more than I'd like. That doesn't work. But I don't want to suck it up when I shouldn't and cause real problems down the line.
It's a delicate balance. Yesterday, I drew the line between my run and a road ride.
I had a 3 mile run to do before I could go out. To make a long story short, I finished the 3 miles, but I had to stop at least 4 times for thorough stretching during the run just to finish. 37 minutes of run time (really slow) took me at least 50 minutes clock time. Needless to say, I finished, but my legs weren't in that great of shape.
I decided that a road ride wasn't the best idea as I need to give my legs as much rest as possible. This disappointed Kevin greatly because he had been waiting all week to ride. As usual with the two of us, the mood was a bit adversarial because everything has to be a competition and neither one of us likes to admit defeat.
Kevin told me to suck it up and quit whining about my legs. I tried to explain that I wanted to ride just as much as he did and that I was dissappointed too. I may have thrown an "I hope you get a repeptitve injury some day so that you might understand" in there. Uncalled for, but boys will be boys. My point was that I am sucking it up in an attempt to still run the Cherry Blossom race.
So what's better, sucking it up by playing trough the pain or resting?
If I rest, then I shouldn't be training at all for the Cherry Blossom race, and I probably wouldn't train for much of anything at all because it seems that something always aches more than I'd like. That doesn't work. But I don't want to suck it up when I shouldn't and cause real problems down the line.
It's a delicate balance. Yesterday, I drew the line between my run and a road ride.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Like Sands Glued To Paper...
So are the last few days of my life. ROUGH...like the way my legs feel if I sit down for more than 20 minutes at a time. AHHHHHHHH! If can't make it through my run tomorrow (3 mi) without problems, it's gonna be time to pull the plug on this Cherry Blossom race.
On the good news side of things, I received my REI dividend yesterday. $54.something. And I got a 20% off coupon. So, I'm going to use those to get another bike mount for my roof rack. Now I'll be able to carry two bikes!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
New Strategy
Thinking about this hip thing in my dreams, or in between them really as I turned over, I think I overdid my leg/core strength training on Tuesday. One of the ways to improve my hip situation is to strengthen the muscles around them, or so I read. I'm thinking my muscles were still pretty tight from that yesterday, which is why I felt off during warmups. I'm going to try a new strategy of off day rest with lots-o-stretches. Maybe that'll help.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Seesaws Go Up And Down
Like a seesaw, so go my hips. I could feel it before my run while stretching. I thought I warmed up pretty well, but I guess not. During the first mile (of 2), I decided that my foot strike is all over the place...heel, arch, outside, ball...I can't seem to consistently hit the same part of my foot. I don't know if I'm concentrating on it toom much because of this hip thing or if I've always been inconsistent and just haven't noticed it. Supposedly hip bursitis is caused by poor biomechanics. If I had stuck with biomedical engineering in college maybe I would know the cause, but I've been told over pronating can cause it, which I tend to do. Wish I knew a running specialist doctor who would observe me on a treadmill for 10 minutes.
You know what hurts the worst? Sitting down. The actual run isn't bad nor afterwards during cooldown and stretching. It's when I sit down for long periods back in my office when it's the worst.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Introducing SNOW-RIDA (Who Almost Died Prematurely)
Continuing in the long tradition of sweet white rappers (yes, i'm talking about Vanilla Ice, Lil Wyte, and the immensely talented Eminem), I introduce my rap alter ego SNOW-RIDA (snow-rye-duh).
Why SNOW-RIDA? Well, the DC area got about 6 inches of snow last night and this morning. When I got to work and found a text message waiting from Kevin, I knew we were going riding. Hence SNOW-RIDA. I took off at 2:30 pm, headed home, then over to Fairland. I was a little late for our 4 o'clock meeting because the lock on my bike rack was frozen (still is).
This was my first snow ride, and it started out SHAKY. I fell in the parking lot within 5 seconds of getting on my MTB! We did the small loop first then headed back toward the cars because Kevin forgot his camera (all pictures are courtesy of Kevin). I fell at least twice on the inner loop and had to put my foot down about a dozen times. Roots with snow on them are not cool (indeed they are cool with snow on top of them, but i'm not picking up what they're throwing down). Instead of enjoying the ride, I was fearing it.
I was about ready to call it quits back at the car, but I had to get back on the horse one more time. Kevin suggested that I let most of the air out of my tires, which made all the difference in the world. Off we went yet again. We ended up riding almost the whole trail. We bailed on the last half mile section because it was getting dark.
The most difficult portion of the ride was clipping into my pedals. I had to get off my MTB many times due to loss of balance and/or traction. I actually think the constant balance issues will help me improve my non-snow balance later on. Also, I figured out that when losing traction, it's best to shift into the lowest gear, put my weight on the back of the saddle, pedal as slow as possible. This allowed my tires to grip.
In the end, I enjoyed riding in the snow. I love being in the woods where there's a couple inches of snow on the ground whether I'm biking, hiking, or skiing. The actual riding isn't my favorite (I prefer smooth, hard-packed single track), but it was a nice change of pace (once I got the air out of my tires) and the scenery was awesome. I'd try it again.
SNOW-RIDA out!
Why SNOW-RIDA? Well, the DC area got about 6 inches of snow last night and this morning. When I got to work and found a text message waiting from Kevin, I knew we were going riding. Hence SNOW-RIDA. I took off at 2:30 pm, headed home, then over to Fairland. I was a little late for our 4 o'clock meeting because the lock on my bike rack was frozen (still is).
This was my first snow ride, and it started out SHAKY. I fell in the parking lot within 5 seconds of getting on my MTB! We did the small loop first then headed back toward the cars because Kevin forgot his camera (all pictures are courtesy of Kevin). I fell at least twice on the inner loop and had to put my foot down about a dozen times. Roots with snow on them are not cool (indeed they are cool with snow on top of them, but i'm not picking up what they're throwing down). Instead of enjoying the ride, I was fearing it.
I'm probably about to fall
I was about ready to call it quits back at the car, but I had to get back on the horse one more time. Kevin suggested that I let most of the air out of my tires, which made all the difference in the world. Off we went yet again. We ended up riding almost the whole trail. We bailed on the last half mile section because it was getting dark.
The trees were our best friends when trying to clip in
The most difficult portion of the ride was clipping into my pedals. I had to get off my MTB many times due to loss of balance and/or traction. I actually think the constant balance issues will help me improve my non-snow balance later on. Also, I figured out that when losing traction, it's best to shift into the lowest gear, put my weight on the back of the saddle, pedal as slow as possible. This allowed my tires to grip.
Log domination
In the end, I enjoyed riding in the snow. I love being in the woods where there's a couple inches of snow on the ground whether I'm biking, hiking, or skiing. The actual riding isn't my favorite (I prefer smooth, hard-packed single track), but it was a nice change of pace (once I got the air out of my tires) and the scenery was awesome. I'd try it again.
SNOW-RIDA drops snow tracks
SNOW-RIDA out!
Welcome Week #2
Week #2 of Cherry Blossom 10 Miler training (redux) kicked off today with a successful 1.25 miler. With all the snow aroud here, the treadmill was my only option. In fact, one of the reason's I went to work, instead of staying home to spend QT with (future) Dr. J (who got the day off), was that I wanted to use the treadmill.
Here's a list of everything that went into my 1.25 miler:
1) Warmup on stair stepper (6 min)
2) Stretch - quads, hammy's, calfs (twice...mine are chronically tight), inner thighs, hip flexors, & outer thighs (IT Band) (15 min)
3) Run 1.25 mi (13 min 15 sec)
4) Cool Down (3 min)
5) Stretching - more of the same
Over 50 minutes of activity just to run 1.25 miles! Now that's a slow pace. At least runner's world gives me an extra 0.05 mi and rounds up to 1.3 (see right).
Sunday, March 1, 2009
February 2009 Family Blog Champion!
Yes, that's right. I took home the Family Blog Champion title for February 2009, which is given to the family member with the most number of posts. This is a competition that I made up and haven't really told the other contestants about.
Final tally:
Me - 24
Kevin - 23
Mom - 19
Sorry guys. And now I'm up 1 for March.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
The Mental Physical Haiku?
So, I have to say that yesterday's post in haiku about my Wednesday run was fun. The idea came to me randomly and I went with it. I'm intrigued by using the haiku format more. Maybe not permanently because I think I'd run out of interesting haikus, but maybe I'll try for a week or March to explore the concept.
P.S. I also like to home brew (yum, yum). The haiku would go best in a blog title as:
P.S. I also like to home brew (yum, yum). The haiku would go best in a blog title as:
Home Brew Haiku
Don't steal that one! It rhymes. I may use it later.
Dos Millas Mas
Two more miles! It's such a short distance, but it's been over a month since I ran that far. It's an important physical milestone, but an even bigger mental one. My body felt a bit sluggish compared to where I left off, which is expected.
I've been reading alot online and talking to other runners about coming back from injuries. From all the information I've gathered, coming back from a month off is a big deal. Especially with regards to overdoing it. Supposedly, even a week or two off and one loses significant speed and/or endurance ability. You have to cut your weekly miles down a bunch when coming back. It seems that running is a sport where you need to maintain your abilities consistently...a couple runs per week.
This is an aspect of running that I don't like. It's frustrating that I went skiing, got hip bursitis, took a month to recover, and now I have to essentially start over. The body is a fickle bitch I suppose.
I contrast this to cycling where I basically didn't ride for four months (ok, I rode my MTB twice). My last couple rides in October were 16.5 miles to/from work each way (33 total). Then in February after four months off, I rode 10+ and 15+ miles on consecutive days. And I didn't get exhausted at all. I like that I was able to ride about half my maximum distance from four months ago with only 2 MTB rides in between. It seems that my cycling base stayed with me much longer than my running base, and that's something I can get into!
The good news is that I'm back on track to run the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler five weeks from tomorrow.
I've been reading alot online and talking to other runners about coming back from injuries. From all the information I've gathered, coming back from a month off is a big deal. Especially with regards to overdoing it. Supposedly, even a week or two off and one loses significant speed and/or endurance ability. You have to cut your weekly miles down a bunch when coming back. It seems that running is a sport where you need to maintain your abilities consistently...a couple runs per week.
This is an aspect of running that I don't like. It's frustrating that I went skiing, got hip bursitis, took a month to recover, and now I have to essentially start over. The body is a fickle bitch I suppose.
I contrast this to cycling where I basically didn't ride for four months (ok, I rode my MTB twice). My last couple rides in October were 16.5 miles to/from work each way (33 total). Then in February after four months off, I rode 10+ and 15+ miles on consecutive days. And I didn't get exhausted at all. I like that I was able to ride about half my maximum distance from four months ago with only 2 MTB rides in between. It seems that my cycling base stayed with me much longer than my running base, and that's something I can get into!
The good news is that I'm back on track to run the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler five weeks from tomorrow.
Friday, February 27, 2009
My Apologies To Rosy
Dear Rosaryville,
I left work at 1:00 pm on Tuesday on a quest to go riding (hey, what is comp time for anyway). I intended to try the Hoyle Mills Connector again, but thought it wouldn't be ridable just like Sunday. Then, I considered a road ride, but balked because I really wanted a dirt ride. Alas, a post on MORE indicated that your singletrack was in great shape as of 11:30 am and the night ride was on. Victory! A MTB opportunity.
The first few miles, your trail was solid. But then, the mud was upon me. Only a bit. Not too bad. Later on, many more mud sections arrived. Unfortunately, too late to turn around. In the end, it turns out that I shoudn't have ridden at all. My apologies. I've learned an important lesson...not to listen to my heart when my mind tells me trail conditions aren't ridable. Trail work is coming up April 4th and 5th. I'll try to make up for it then.
Sincerely,
Brian
I left work at 1:00 pm on Tuesday on a quest to go riding (hey, what is comp time for anyway). I intended to try the Hoyle Mills Connector again, but thought it wouldn't be ridable just like Sunday. Then, I considered a road ride, but balked because I really wanted a dirt ride. Alas, a post on MORE indicated that your singletrack was in great shape as of 11:30 am and the night ride was on. Victory! A MTB opportunity.
The first few miles, your trail was solid. But then, the mud was upon me. Only a bit. Not too bad. Later on, many more mud sections arrived. Unfortunately, too late to turn around. In the end, it turns out that I shoudn't have ridden at all. My apologies. I've learned an important lesson...not to listen to my heart when my mind tells me trail conditions aren't ridable. Trail work is coming up April 4th and 5th. I'll try to make up for it then.
Sincerely,
Brian
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
How Many Road Miles Will You Give Me For This Shiny MTB Mile?
It's official, I have settled on a conversion from MTB miles to road miles. Everytime I go mountain biking, I am way more worn out than if I had ridden the same number of road miles. So, my personal official conversion is:
1 MTB mile = 2 road miles
Feel free to use it or suggest a better one. Maybe I'll refine the conversion in the future, but for right now, it works. I took the afternoon off today, on a whim, and figured this thing out. No time now, but I'll explain how I came to this conclusion later in the week.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Crossing My Fingers
Today is the day that I set as the deadline to start training again if I'm going to take part in the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler. I went to the gym at lunch. Stretched a little. Did some core strengthening exercises. Jogged a mile. Stretched some more. So far, no pain (6 hours later). Also, I didn't take any ibuprofen at lunch, which means I would feel any pain. I'm crossing my fingers hoping that this will hold out.
P.S. A great outer hip (abductor) exercise: tie a stretchy band in a loop, put it around your ankles, and shuffle one direction for 10 ft. Rinse and repeat in the other direction.
P.S. A great outer hip (abductor) exercise: tie a stretchy band in a loop, put it around your ankles, and shuffle one direction for 10 ft. Rinse and repeat in the other direction.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
A Mudder
I convinced Kevin to go trail riding today and we headed up to the Hoyles Mill Connector in an attempt to get some riding in. After riding Fairland a couple times recently, I'm tired of it and wanted to try something new.
Once the ground dries out, or freezes, I definitely want to get back up to the Hoyles Mill Connector. It offered some light rock garden riding. I'm not at all familiar with riding rock gardens, so I look forward to learning some more.
It started snowing heavily this morning and unfortunately, it wasn't cold enough to stick. It was warm enough to melt (just above freezing). I expected the trail to be a bit damp, but it turns out the trail's father was a mudder and his mother was a mudder.
No traction in this stuff
We drove by the trail head, wandering about the backroads of Germantown for a short while. Eventually we backtracked and found it. We rode no more than a quarter mile on the trail before deciding to call it a day because the trail was alot worse than expected. Neither of our tires were made for shedding the mud out there today. Even if they were, we would have torn the trail to shreds, which is NOT a good thing.
Three postives though:
1) I got out of the house and rode (even if it wasn't for long)
2) We discovered that Hoyles Mill Connector is a promising trail
3) We figured out how to find the trail head.
I couldn't turn, I floated
I couldn't see the tread in the woods
Once the ground dries out, or freezes, I definitely want to get back up to the Hoyles Mill Connector. It offered some light rock garden riding. I'm not at all familiar with riding rock gardens, so I look forward to learning some more.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Stretch, Stretch, Ibuprofen...Stretch, Stretch, Ibuprofen
If I had a cheerleading squad following me around, that would be the cheer [Update: they are all Kelly Kapowski by the way]. Stretch, Stretch, Ibuprofen! Stretch, Stretch, Ibuprofen! Ahhhhhhh, I can hear it now. Time for some iburofen.
I had a little bit of pain yesterday, but only mild. I'm trying to stay positive even though I'm going crazy on the inside because all I want to do is get back to race training. My consolation prize is that biking is easy on the hips. And biking (road and MTB) is SWEET!
It's just that my favorite phase for a race is the training. I really enjoy the daily challenge of taking my ability one step farther. To have that taken away by hip pain or a broken collar bone the week before the race SUCKS!
There's the call again: Stretch, Stretch, Ibuprofen! Stretch, Stretch, Ibuprofen!
I had a little bit of pain yesterday, but only mild. I'm trying to stay positive even though I'm going crazy on the inside because all I want to do is get back to race training. My consolation prize is that biking is easy on the hips. And biking (road and MTB) is SWEET!
It's just that my favorite phase for a race is the training. I really enjoy the daily challenge of taking my ability one step farther. To have that taken away by hip pain or a broken collar bone the week before the race SUCKS!
There's the call again: Stretch, Stretch, Ibuprofen! Stretch, Stretch, Ibuprofen!
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Hopefully, I'm Really Back This Time
I went to my doc today about the hip pain. After I made the appointment on Friday, I started doing some IT band stretches, which helped alot. By Monday, I wasn't experiencing any pain at all. I almost cancelled my appointment this morning, but I kinda forgot to do so within 24 hours.
I'm glad I went. My diagnosis (woe...that makes it sound serious) is an infected inflammed bursa sac. The outside of the hip has a fluid filled sac (a bursa) that is supposed lubricate between the Iliotibial (IT) band, a tendon, and the hip. The bursa becomes inflammed when the ITB tightens. According to WebMD, it is more common in middle-aged to elderly women rather than ounger men...yeay me. It can also be called Iliotibial Band Syndrome.
Rx: ice, ibuprofen, stretching
My doc poked, prodded, and told me that I was good to go for running again as long as I take it slow.
I was planning to go to the gym at lunch...stretch, bike or row for 15 minutes, and stretch some more. But I decided to walk/run/walk for 15 minutes instead. I did feel something this afternoon in the hip area, but I did some ITB stretches a couple times at work. Then, I stretched my legs completely when I got home.
Feeling good...great knowing that I can sort-of run again.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Bathroom Break
Luckily I planned ahead. I worked about five hours yesterday working on the bathroom fan and five hours this morning. After all that, I got to the point where I only had to put the finishing touches on and clean up...time for a break.
Kevin and I planned to go for a ride. Fortunately for Kevin, he got to go hiking while I mucked around in my attic. Unfortunately, he also lost his truck keys while hiking, so he couldn't meet to go riding :(
I headed over to Fairland late afternoon and took a ride. The trails had firmed up a bit from the bread-dough-like conditions on Friday. I pushed myself hard today and by the last mile or so, I was exhausted. That could have had something to do with me only eating Cinnamon Toast Crunch, some yogurt, and a little bit of hummus all day.
The ride was good, although I didn't feel as comfortable with my lines as I did Friday. The highlight of the day was a total wipeout going over a tree trunk. I got a decent start going in, but I pulled up (and to the left) too hard and I bit it. FUN!
Sport Of The Day...Bathroom Fan Replacement
Replacing a bathroom exhaust fan. Sounds easy. Tsk, tsk, not so fast. Whoever built our house pulled a fast one on me.
Both upstairs bathroom fans are getting noisy (i.e., the motors/bearings are going bad). Time to replace them. Only problem is that the current fans are installed directly below the main heating/cooling duct for the top floor. Can't remove the old fans unless I cut out sections of the duct. The fast one.
Plan B: cut new access holes for the new fans...learn how to drywall over old fans. After three trips to Home Depot, here's the finished product.
Turns out I only replaced the fan in the master bath because I was already hitting myself in the face due to one fan...really...with needle nose plyers.
Both upstairs bathroom fans are getting noisy (i.e., the motors/bearings are going bad). Time to replace them. Only problem is that the current fans are installed directly below the main heating/cooling duct for the top floor. Can't remove the old fans unless I cut out sections of the duct. The fast one.
Plan B: cut new access holes for the new fans...learn how to drywall over old fans. After three trips to Home Depot, here's the finished product.
The old fan (left) looks out of place because it's off center from the room. It'll stay until I take up drywall.
Turns out I only replaced the fan in the master bath because I was already hitting myself in the face due to one fan...really...with needle nose plyers.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Heroes...And I'm Not Talking About Sandwiches
My last post got me thinking about real heroes...my heroes. Do I have any? Have I had any? Who are they? I don't have an immediate answer for any of these questions.
Who's your hero?
It seems like common heroes are a parent, teacher, sports start, or famous person.
I'm not sure I ever really had a hero, but a person I can remember admiring is Hank Aaron. I used to love baseball as a kid (By the way, I'm a Cincinnati Reds fan through and through). I had all the baseball cards ( I was a Topps guy then I switched to Upper Deck) a kid could want...supposedly they were going to pay for my college education someday. HA!
During my fanaticism with baseball, I read Hank Aaron's autobiography, I Had A Hammer. What a story!
Recommended Read...Hank Aaron Is Incredible
I'm not going to try to give a synopsis of the story because I read the book so long ago. A quick perspective is that Hank Aaron was a superbly talented African-American baseball player who played in the major leagues shortly after they were integrated. Toward the end of his career, he challenged, then broke, the most hallowed sports record of all time (Babe Ruth's home run record), which many baseball fans did not like too much.
I don't admire Hank Aaron because he held the all-time home run record...or the all-time total bases record...or the all-time RBI record...or...
I admire him because of his courage and grace in the face of adversity. All he wanted to do was play baseball, but he carried the weight of so much more. Still today, I admire the way he carries himself regarding his one time hallowed record. He knows there are a lot better things to worry about.
An interesting question I sometimes hear or read goes something like this: If you could have dinner with three people (or one person depending on the questioner), dead or alive, who would they (it) be? I know one of mine would definitely be Hank Aaron.
Stretch Armstrong Is My Hero
Stretch Armstrong is my current hero. Suspecting an ITB cause to my pains, I've been Stretchy McStretcherson the last couple days. And it seems to be paying off. Every couple hours, I do all the leg stretches including the ITB one with a stretchy band wrapped around my foot. Some hope.
That's five "stretches" within a 50 word post (6 in 64 counting this sentence)!
Friday, February 13, 2009
MTB Therapy
In an effort to stop feeling sorry for myself, I met up with Kevin for a trail ride at Fairland Park. We probably would have gone for a road ride instead, but the wind is atrocious around here today...bodacious according to Bodhi (en espanol no doubt). I hadn't been on my MTB in a couple weeks anyway, so I'm happy I got to use my new bike again.
We started out with the small loop like usual, trading the lead a couple times. Kevin took the whole shot, but luckily for me he doesn't know his way aroud Fairland yet. So, I took the lead back when he went the wrong way. Before the end of the small loop we both realized that we forgot our cameras (for blogging purposes of course). We went back to the cars to get the cameras. Between us, we ended up taking one picture...DOH. Sorry for the lack of photography...still working on that.
I felt alot of confidence with cornering ("my lines" as those in the know would say) today. I was able to corner while looking to pedal instead of braking like usual. There's a pretty sweet section at Fairland with several 2-6 ft rolling bumps. Normally I'm a bit off balance a couple times throughout this section, but today I was feeling it...anticipating the next move beautifully and steamrolling through.
About halfway through the ride, I stopped to take the sleeves off my jersey for some added air conditioning. I also took the opportunity to streatch my legs thoroughly, which left Kevin bored. I could tell he was getting ancy to continue the ride, but I needed the stretches...be supportive bro!
The trail wasn't muddy, but it certainly wasn't dry either. Many sections were like riding on bread dough...or possibly the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.
Thank you Ghost Busters
Painful Avoidance
I've been avoiding TMPC the past couple days because I hate whining. This painful hip of mine is extremely frustrating. I ran Monday and it felt good. Tuesday...no physical activity...felt good. Then Wednesday, I had significant pain again. Thursday, same thing. IT'S PISSING ME OFF!
The pain comes after sitting in a chair for a while. Stretching (quads, hamstrings, calfs, inner thigh, hip flexor, ITB) and some light leg exercises help alot in the near term. Then an hour later, WHAM. The hip flexor and ITB stretches seem to do the best, expecially the ITB. When I do that one, I feel the stretch in the exact place in my hip that burns. Maybe it's an ITB issue, or maybe it's time to see a doctor. I'm going to see my doctor on Wednesday.
If I'm going to finish the Cherry Blossom race, I need to start training again a week from Monday. After that, I won't have enough time to build up miles. Hopefully, I can get this thing resolved by then.
If I'm going to finish the Cherry Blossom race, I need to start training again a week from Monday. After that, I won't have enough time to build up miles. Hopefully, I can get this thing resolved by then.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
(Future) Dr. J...Answer The Call!
I only have 4 minutes to finish this post because (future) Dr. J wants to watch a movie on the computer at 7:00. I just used a minute of my time conveying that...not smart.
This is an official invitation to my wife, (future) Dr. J, to join me in my now year long biking phase. I think we would really enjoy having a physical activity to do together. We'd get to see alot scenery and it would serve as a great bonding experience. Best part of all, we could stare at each other's butts for hours at a time!
Time is up. I should have been able to make a more compelling case in 4 minutes. Maybe I'll try again later.
I love you,
Brian
P.S. That actually took me 9 minutes...WEAK!
This is an official invitation to my wife, (future) Dr. J, to join me in my now year long biking phase. I think we would really enjoy having a physical activity to do together. We'd get to see alot scenery and it would serve as a great bonding experience. Best part of all, we could stare at each other's butts for hours at a time!
Time is up. I should have been able to make a more compelling case in 4 minutes. Maybe I'll try again later.
I love you,
Brian
P.S. That actually took me 9 minutes...WEAK!
Monday, February 9, 2009
Back In The Saddle...Well Maybe
So I finally ran again today. Whew! It was really nice. Toward the end of last week, my burning hips had mostly been extinguished and it was onto my knee pain. Luckily, the weather was on my side and I got to ride my road bike both weekend days.
Knee (to Road Bike): You are my friend. Whenever I'm in pain, you help comfort me.
Road Bike (to knee): You used to hate me! You complained about me all the time.
Knee (to Road Bike): Yes, but that was before Hands moved the seat post to the correct height. Now I love you!
(Knee and Road Bike hug and the curtains close)
Now that the play has finished derailing this post, back to the subject.
I had a dream last night that I ran and my knee hurt alot afterwards. So, what happens next? Of course, I woke up and my knee hurt. I had planned on running in the morning while (future) Dr. J was showering, but my knee hurt. DAMN! It went back and forth my head...it's been a week and a half, I should be able to run...but my knee hurts I don't want to get more injured...yes, but there's only 8 weeks left until the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler, I have to run sometime or another and it'll be most convenient right now instead of at lunch...but my knee hurts, etc, etc, etc.
I let the decision come down to temperature. If it was warm...then I would run. If not, I knew it was going to be fairly nice again today...low 50's...so I could go at lunch. Or I could just wait until Wednesday or Saturday because my knee hurts!
Turns out it was 37 degrees, which sounded too close to 32 degrees, which is freezing, and I didn't want to run enough to run when it's freezing outside. See how my mind plays games?
I took my running clothes to work, half expecting to bail. Lunch time came around and I made the decision to test the legs. It was about 50...chilly in just a t-shirt and shorts...but it turned out to be perfect once I got warmed up. I ran 2 miles at 10:24 pace. Just enough to call it a workout, yet slow enough go easy on my knee-sy. Bad joke...I'm aware.
After the run, I stretched for about ten minutes. Stretching is supposed to be good for sore joints, so I'm trying to branch out from my usual quad-hamstring-calf routine. I didn't feel much discomfort in my knee or hips afterwards...just a small something in my hip. 7 hours later, my legs feel about the same as before I ran. I'll take a couple ibuprofen today and tomorrow with dinner just in case.
Feels great to be back at it!
Knee (to Road Bike): You are my friend. Whenever I'm in pain, you help comfort me.
Road Bike (to knee): You used to hate me! You complained about me all the time.
Knee (to Road Bike): Yes, but that was before Hands moved the seat post to the correct height. Now I love you!
(Knee and Road Bike hug and the curtains close)
Now that the play has finished derailing this post, back to the subject.
I had a dream last night that I ran and my knee hurt alot afterwards. So, what happens next? Of course, I woke up and my knee hurt. I had planned on running in the morning while (future) Dr. J was showering, but my knee hurt. DAMN! It went back and forth my head...it's been a week and a half, I should be able to run...but my knee hurts I don't want to get more injured...yes, but there's only 8 weeks left until the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler, I have to run sometime or another and it'll be most convenient right now instead of at lunch...but my knee hurts, etc, etc, etc.
I let the decision come down to temperature. If it was warm...then I would run. If not, I knew it was going to be fairly nice again today...low 50's...so I could go at lunch. Or I could just wait until Wednesday or Saturday because my knee hurts!
Turns out it was 37 degrees, which sounded too close to 32 degrees, which is freezing, and I didn't want to run enough to run when it's freezing outside. See how my mind plays games?
I took my running clothes to work, half expecting to bail. Lunch time came around and I made the decision to test the legs. It was about 50...chilly in just a t-shirt and shorts...but it turned out to be perfect once I got warmed up. I ran 2 miles at 10:24 pace. Just enough to call it a workout, yet slow enough go easy on my knee-sy. Bad joke...I'm aware.
After the run, I stretched for about ten minutes. Stretching is supposed to be good for sore joints, so I'm trying to branch out from my usual quad-hamstring-calf routine. I didn't feel much discomfort in my knee or hips afterwards...just a small something in my hip. 7 hours later, my legs feel about the same as before I ran. I'll take a couple ibuprofen today and tomorrow with dinner just in case.
Feels great to be back at it!
Professional Blog Today...What Tomorrow?
I made Dirt Rag Magazine's blog entry about the Snotcycle MTB race from last weekend! Take a look at the last picture. No, I'm not the guy in the lead...I'm standing on the rock. Maybe next year I'll get mentioned for totally rocking this race. It looked like a really good venue.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
I Am A Road Warrior
I HAD to get back out on the road again today. 60 degree weather in February is difficult to pass up. Two days in a row on my bike was a rarity in 2008. In 2009, I'm a road warrior. I exerted a little more effort today (over yesterday), but it was still on the leisurely end as far as workouts go. At the 9.5 mile mark, I took an hour break to visit Jamy. Jamy got out on the tennis court today...girls over guys in a doubles thriller. I couldn't stay long because I needed to get home before sundown. My legs were a bit tired when I left Jamy's. Some lactic acid must have set in while we were re-watching the end of the Superbowl...Santonio, you broke my heart. 15.2 miles round trip and I still didn't get dead leg syndrome, which means the cycling base I built last fall hung with me through 3 months off.
I hope you're all enjoying the weather!
Brian
I hope you're all enjoying the weather!
Brian
What's Coffee Got To Do With It?
Kevin gave me a Christmas gift...with conditions. Who does that (other than said Kevin)? The gift was a bag of 53x11 Coffee's The Early Break. The condition was that I had to write a review of the product. How does this relate to TMPC you ask? Loosely, I'll admit. Rather than give Kevin the glory of posting my review, I'll keep the number-of-blog-posts point for myself. Catch Kevin's review here.
53x11 Coffee sells fair trade organic coffee, the best they claim (Fair Trade sounds nice though I'm skeptical of the certification process...not that I have insider information or know anything about it...I'm just skeptical). Interestingly, the company started as a way to get unaffiliated coffee drinking cyclists (without a team) together. There's the Physical tie-in...cycling. On the Mental side, coffee is sweet (if one puts enough sweetener into it, which I'm trying to ween myself off of)! It relaxes my mind and brings a smile to my face. Yes loose, but somewhat related to TMPC.
To put my review in perspective, a bit about my coffee drinking habits. My go to brand is Eight O'Clock because it's got the best quality-to-price ratio I've found. It's a slight step down from Peete's in quality (at half the price) and far superior to the what Folgers claims is coffee (at not much more in price). To back me up, Consumer Reports just named Eight O'Clock's Columbian Roast as the #1 best buy. That's my framework...I've tried quite a few brews over the years, but I'm not a coffee connoisseur. On to the review!
The Early Break is a high quality brew, rich in aroma and taste. The increase in quality over Eight O'Clock was noticable from the first sip. I would compare The Early Break's quality to Peete's...TEB might be a bit better. It's been my experience that organically grown beans are richer than non-organic ones and that experience held true with The Early Break. I could taste the animal dung (I mean ORGANIC) influence in the final product...yum yum! A 12 oz. bag of The Early Break can be yours for only $11.49 plus $4.95 S&H ($4.95 S&H covers up to 3 bags). For that price, 53x11's The Early Break won't take over my go to status, but I'd definitely choose it again for an intermitten coffee treat.
53x11 Coffee sells fair trade organic coffee, the best they claim (Fair Trade sounds nice though I'm skeptical of the certification process...not that I have insider information or know anything about it...I'm just skeptical). Interestingly, the company started as a way to get unaffiliated coffee drinking cyclists (without a team) together. There's the Physical tie-in...cycling. On the Mental side, coffee is sweet (if one puts enough sweetener into it, which I'm trying to ween myself off of)! It relaxes my mind and brings a smile to my face. Yes loose, but somewhat related to TMPC.
I even included the logo...where's my sponsorship money?
To put my review in perspective, a bit about my coffee drinking habits. My go to brand is Eight O'Clock because it's got the best quality-to-price ratio I've found. It's a slight step down from Peete's in quality (at half the price) and far superior to the what Folgers claims is coffee (at not much more in price). To back me up, Consumer Reports just named Eight O'Clock's Columbian Roast as the #1 best buy. That's my framework...I've tried quite a few brews over the years, but I'm not a coffee connoisseur. On to the review!
The Early Break is a high quality brew, rich in aroma and taste. The increase in quality over Eight O'Clock was noticable from the first sip. I would compare The Early Break's quality to Peete's...TEB might be a bit better. It's been my experience that organically grown beans are richer than non-organic ones and that experience held true with The Early Break. I could taste the animal dung (I mean ORGANIC) influence in the final product...yum yum! A 12 oz. bag of The Early Break can be yours for only $11.49 plus $4.95 S&H ($4.95 S&H covers up to 3 bags). For that price, 53x11's The Early Break won't take over my go to status, but I'd definitely choose it again for an intermitten coffee treat.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
On The Road (Bike) Again
I highly recommend setting Willie up in the background before reading this post.
The weather is quite nice today, so I had to get out on the road. It felt a bit weird clipping into my road bike because I haven't been on it in about 3 months. Going down the first hill, the bike felt a little shaky. Could have just been me, but I think it's time for that free tune up I haven't used yet.
There were alot of people out biking and running including these guys. I'm trying to include pictures with most of my posts. I didn't feel comfortable holding my camera while riding, so I only had time to take one picture.
Suprisingly, the ride was high quality considering how long it has been since my last one. I felt just as strong at the end of the 10.9 miles as I did at the beginning. I averaged 15.7 mph which, for the first ride of the year, is really good with the stop signs and traffic lights included.
Another benefit is that my right knee feels better after the ride than before. If it's not my hip, it's my knee. Ugh. Anyone know a good orthopaedist?
The weather is quite nice today, so I had to get out on the road. It felt a bit weird clipping into my road bike because I haven't been on it in about 3 months. Going down the first hill, the bike felt a little shaky. Could have just been me, but I think it's time for that free tune up I haven't used yet.
There were alot of people out biking and running including these guys. I'm trying to include pictures with most of my posts. I didn't feel comfortable holding my camera while riding, so I only had time to take one picture.
Thanks for the free draft guys
Suprisingly, the ride was high quality considering how long it has been since my last one. I felt just as strong at the end of the 10.9 miles as I did at the beginning. I averaged 15.7 mph which, for the first ride of the year, is really good with the stop signs and traffic lights included.
Another benefit is that my right knee feels better after the ride than before. If it's not my hip, it's my knee. Ugh. Anyone know a good orthopaedist?
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Race Recap Blast From The Past
With not running in the last week, I'm running out of material. So, it's time to reach into the vault for a race recap of the 2008 JerseyMan Sprint Triathlon.
The 2008 JMST was run September 28th at the Spruce Run Recreation Area in Clinton, NJ. Race stats: 0.6 mi swim, 19.5 mi bike, and 3.1 mi (5k) run. Why they had a 0.6 mi swim when the standard sprint distance is 0.45 mi (750m), I don't know, but I wish it would have been the standard distance. This was my first triathlon...my first race of any kind since middle school track. They also had a Half IronMan race going on too, which Kevin did. You can read his race recap here.
The race was scheduled to start at 7:30 am. We wanted to get there at least an hour before the start and eat breakfast, meaning we got up really early. I don't remember how early exactly, but 5:30 am sounds about right. We got to the race venue right at 6:30 am and made our way to the transition area. The sky was covered solid with clouds and it was still foggy...a little bit eery. I watched a video online about transition area setup the week before, so I knew to bring a towel. Being in the 25-29 age group, which is supposed to be fast, my transistion rack was the first one inside the entrance.
Kevin and I went to the registration area to get marked with race numbers then made our way back to transition for final checks. Everything looked good to me. What didn't sound good was that the DJ (on hand throughout race day) kept anouncing that they were still looking for volunteers for the bike course. The family showed up shortly thereafter to begin the long day of cheering. Thanks to Jenny, Mom, Aimee, Dad, and the dogs for coming out to show some support! I donned my rented wetsuit and headed toward the beach.
The course was open for warm up swimming, so I jumped in to get a feel for the water. IT WAS COLD! Even with a wetsuit (no sleeves) on it was freezing. I set up all the way on the right where I knew not too many other people would be. I'd never swam in a pack like this and I didn't know how I would react to other swimmers running over me. The whislte blew and off I went. Everything was fine, except I couldn't breathe very well. The wetsuit was just a tad tighter than comfortable, which constricted my chest, the water was cold, and I think I was freaking out a bit. While training, I settled in on a breath every four strokes, but I had to breath every 2 during the race. The lake was like swimming in Yoohoo, brown and no visibility. Aside from breathing, my biggest issue was swimming straight. Pools have lines on the bottom...easy to follow. In Yoohoo, there are no lines. The only landmarks are the buoys, of which there were only 3. Needless to say, I learned how to spot (pull myself out of the water every couple strokes to look at the buoy and adjust) on the job.
Swim - 24:02 (89th of 187)
Coming out of the water, I felt light headed and couldn't run. I meekly jogged between the cones back to transition to get ready for the bike. Sometime during the swim, it started raining, which got all my stuff soaked. The wetsuit came off fairly easily considering how difficult other racers made it sound beforehand. While bending over to put on my socks, I still felt light headed. To avoid passing out, I sat on the ground to put my socks and cycling shoes on.
T1 - 4:54
My light headedness went away and I actually felt good on the bike. I hit 33.5 mph going down a hill about a mile from the start...SWEET! Not too long into the ride, my number fell off my bike because soaking wet paper doesn't hold up well at my light speeds. I started checking my distance on the odometer a couple miles in...and my legs began to feel it. I asked myself...WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING OUT HERE?!? The exhaustion combined with knowing I wasn't halfway through the race yet made me question the point of continuing. What did I really have to prove anyway?
As I started the run, it felt like my legs were made of lead...very heavy. I passed two people on the run. One was a woman who completely stopped while drinking at an aid station. She immediately passed me back. And the other was a 70 yeard old dude...who started 15 minutes after me by the way. I only felt like I was going to puke three times during the run...not too bad.
Coming down the home stretch was wonderful. The feeling I had as I crossed the finish line is hard to describe...a great feeling of accomplishment, especially while overcoming all the mental doubts and tough training days.
Feeling strong!
Overall - 2:12:11 (110th; 7th of 12 age group; 78th of 122 male)
Crappy weather and complete exhaustion...what a great day. I can't wait to do it again.
The 2008 JMST was run September 28th at the Spruce Run Recreation Area in Clinton, NJ. Race stats: 0.6 mi swim, 19.5 mi bike, and 3.1 mi (5k) run. Why they had a 0.6 mi swim when the standard sprint distance is 0.45 mi (750m), I don't know, but I wish it would have been the standard distance. This was my first triathlon...my first race of any kind since middle school track. They also had a Half IronMan race going on too, which Kevin did. You can read his race recap here.
Greasing my chain the night before
The race was scheduled to start at 7:30 am. We wanted to get there at least an hour before the start and eat breakfast, meaning we got up really early. I don't remember how early exactly, but 5:30 am sounds about right. We got to the race venue right at 6:30 am and made our way to the transition area. The sky was covered solid with clouds and it was still foggy...a little bit eery. I watched a video online about transition area setup the week before, so I knew to bring a towel. Being in the 25-29 age group, which is supposed to be fast, my transistion rack was the first one inside the entrance.
Kevin and I went to the registration area to get marked with race numbers then made our way back to transition for final checks. Everything looked good to me. What didn't sound good was that the DJ (on hand throughout race day) kept anouncing that they were still looking for volunteers for the bike course. The family showed up shortly thereafter to begin the long day of cheering. Thanks to Jenny, Mom, Aimee, Dad, and the dogs for coming out to show some support! I donned my rented wetsuit and headed toward the beach.
Trying to figure out why I didn't study the bike course
The start area
The course was open for warm up swimming, so I jumped in to get a feel for the water. IT WAS COLD! Even with a wetsuit (no sleeves) on it was freezing. I set up all the way on the right where I knew not too many other people would be. I'd never swam in a pack like this and I didn't know how I would react to other swimmers running over me. The whislte blew and off I went. Everything was fine, except I couldn't breathe very well. The wetsuit was just a tad tighter than comfortable, which constricted my chest, the water was cold, and I think I was freaking out a bit. While training, I settled in on a breath every four strokes, but I had to breath every 2 during the race. The lake was like swimming in Yoohoo, brown and no visibility. Aside from breathing, my biggest issue was swimming straight. Pools have lines on the bottom...easy to follow. In Yoohoo, there are no lines. The only landmarks are the buoys, of which there were only 3. Needless to say, I learned how to spot (pull myself out of the water every couple strokes to look at the buoy and adjust) on the job.
Swim - 24:02 (89th of 187)
Coming out of the water, I felt light headed and couldn't run. I meekly jogged between the cones back to transition to get ready for the bike. Sometime during the swim, it started raining, which got all my stuff soaked. The wetsuit came off fairly easily considering how difficult other racers made it sound beforehand. While bending over to put on my socks, I still felt light headed. To avoid passing out, I sat on the ground to put my socks and cycling shoes on.
T1 - 4:54
My jersey is sticking...yuck!
Sitting down = SLOW transition
To the road and beyond!
My light headedness went away and I actually felt good on the bike. I hit 33.5 mph going down a hill about a mile from the start...SWEET! Not too long into the ride, my number fell off my bike because soaking wet paper doesn't hold up well at my light speeds. I started checking my distance on the odometer a couple miles in...and my legs began to feel it. I asked myself...WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING OUT HERE?!? The exhaustion combined with knowing I wasn't halfway through the race yet made me question the point of continuing. What did I really have to prove anyway?
About ten miles in, the biggest climb of the day awaited. I popped into 2nd gear or something an started cranking away. Finally, at the top of the hill I was somewhat amongst a pack...now we're cruising. Then, I heard someone in a van yelling at one of the pack leaders. JERK. Well, not exactly because the leader turned around (with about 15 others) and informed me that we were going the wrong way. See, at the top of the big climb there was a left hand turn. Unfortunately, there wasn't a volunteer at the intersection and the STUPID LITTLE SIGN THEY PUT UP WAS BARELY VISIBLE! Yes, I went about a mile off the course and a mile back. After the race, I heard alot of people say they missed a turn too, so at least it wasn't just my pack. The rest of the bike ride went smoothly.
Bike - 1:16:21 (114th, not bad for going 2 extra miles)
The second transition was much easier because all I had to do was change shoes. Easy really.
T2 - 1:21
T2 - The Terminator...Where's Arnold?
As I started the run, it felt like my legs were made of lead...very heavy. I passed two people on the run. One was a woman who completely stopped while drinking at an aid station. She immediately passed me back. And the other was a 70 yeard old dude...who started 15 minutes after me by the way. I only felt like I was going to puke three times during the run...not too bad.
Hanging in there
Coming down the home stretch was wonderful. The feeling I had as I crossed the finish line is hard to describe...a great feeling of accomplishment, especially while overcoming all the mental doubts and tough training days.
Run - 25:33 (116th)
Almost there
Feeling strong!
Looking great!
Overall - 2:12:11 (110th; 7th of 12 age group; 78th of 122 male)
Just after Kevin finished the Half...I got to shower and change...he stunk
Crappy weather and complete exhaustion...what a great day. I can't wait to do it again.
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