Riders on the Storm

So why was this Doors tune going through my head over and over again this morning?   Because for the first time ever I got caught in a really heavy thunderstorm here in Nags Head, NC while out on a bike ride. 

The story really starts yesterday.  I was scheduled for a 2.5 hour ride and got up early with the intention of driving my bike over the Oregon Inlet Bridge and then riding to Hatteras and back.   After chugging my first coffee I went to get ready to ride, only to discover that I had left my bike shorts in Raleigh - damn!   No worries though, I need a new pair anyway, so I decided to go to OBX Cycles; buy some new shorts and ride later in the day.   Unfortuately those plans were scuppered.  I bought a nice new pair of Cannondale shorts after the store opened at noon, but thunderstorms messed up my ride plans.   OK, on to "plan C"....    move the ride to today and do the movement prep. and strength work originally scheduled for today yesterday afternoon (I also went for a nice long walk along the beach).

Before I headed out this morning I checked the radar on Weather.com.   Some rain down on Hatteras Island persuaded me that I should ride north, where the radar was completely clear.  I was about ten miles up the road in Kill Devil Hills, however, when it became apparent that a few "pop-up" storms were forming and within minutes I was riding in heavy rain with a steady off-shore breeze.  Now I don't mind riding in "heavy rain" (in a masochistic kind of way) so I just kept pushing on, but a few minutes later the rain became absolutely torrential - one might almost say "Biblical"!   I could barely see and it was clearly not safe to stay on the road, so (along with a guy from Pennsylvania on a nice Cervelo P3) I sought shelter under the car port of a local motel.

I guess the lens on the phone was a bit wet!

After a while the deluge abated and I continued north to the Wright Memorial Bridge before turning for home.  The sun was out at the turn, but it was pretty clear from the view as I headed south that my adventure wan't over yet.....

Around milepost four

Milespost eight - getting closer!

I basically follwed a spectacular lightning show south for about fourteen miles.   Luckily the rain stayed ahead of me, but I had to deal with extremely gusty winds and flooded roads.   It's hard to maintain your speed when you're riding through 2" of water on the road!   :-)   I will say that, for once, drivers were extremely courteous this morning - not always the case here in the summer when there are so many vacationers!

Another one in the books and at least I wasn't this guy......  :-)

Learning to Run....

Running....    you just do it, right?   Any two year old knows how to simply get up and go, right?

The answer to the second question is "yes", those little suckers simply get up and go.  They don't think about it; they don't need shoes; they just run with pure joyous abandon and beautiful, natural form.

51 year old guys?   Not so much!.......    :-)

One of the things I really need to work on is my run form.   This and losing a few pounds could be the difference between a good half marathon leg at the upcoming Rev.3 SC 70.3 race and struggling home.  Thankfully, as best I can tell (based particularly on feedback from the guys at Bull City Running and coach Marisa) I'm pretty much a "mid foot striker" and I don't have huge issues with either over or under pronation.  I see this as a good start (especially when it comes to avoiding injury), but there's soooo much more to work on.  Basically I'm still pretty much a "plodder"...   I don't float majestically across the asphalt...  I fight my way there!  

Most recently I have been working on "toeing off" and trying to finish every stride.   I can certainly feel the benefits when I'm fresh, but find it hard to stay focused on this when I get tired.

Then there's run cadence.  Again, I can comfortably maintain a good cadence (maybe 80-90 per min) when I'm fresh, but do I maintain it at the end of a long run?

I also, apparently, run like a plank!   The new challenge is to introduce "contralateral rotation" - basically having your right leg and left shoulder work in harmony and vice versa.   I'm looking forward to a session with The Puppeteer on Friday to start to get this "grooved".   I'm absolutely positive that improved flexibility and core strength will be a recurring theme!

No doubt there will be a dozen other things in the future to add to the list.   Isn't it amazing that there is so much to learn and that even something as fundamental and "natural" as running can involve so much learning.?   It's so easy, even a baby can do it!

I Will.....

As my facebook friends know, I recently had a rush of blood to the head and signed-up for the Rev.3 Anderson, SC 70.3 "Half Ironman" distance triathlon on October 14th of this year.  http://rev3tri.com/anderson/anderson-news/

I don't want to do this to "just finish" - I want to make both myself and The Puppeteer proud and, in order to do that, I'm going to have to work very hard for the next three months.  I'm absolutely committed to doing this.   Here's my first pass at an "I Will List" - no doubt I will be adding more as time goes on!

I Will……

I will make myself and my coach proud at Rev.3 South Carolina 70.3 in October

In order to do this I will……

….work my ass off for the next three months

….give 100% on every workout

….lose at least 10 lbs by race day

….eat fewer carbs

….move my calorie input earlier in the day

….cut alcohol consumption by at least 50% (I’m not going nuts!)

….eat more fruit and veggies

….stay hydrated

….get more sleep (get to bed earlier)

….get my workouts in earlier to beat the heat

….not sneak any extra breaths during swim workouts

….do more open water work

….perfect my sighting and swim straight!

….finish swim workouts with tired lats

….not mash on the bike and maintain a high cadence – distribute power more evenly

….engage my core and glutes on the bike

….not freewheel unless I run out of gears

….take more calories on my rides

….stay aero!

….do 10 mins dynamic warm-up before every run

….toe-off and finish every stride

….learn to use contralateral rotation when I run

….become a lot more flexible

….do TRX or other core/flex work at least twice a week

….do yoga or other stretch/flex work at least twice a week

Apparently I Swim Like an Elephant.....

I just don't get it.....    at yesterday's Triangle Triathlon I felt as if I had put in a good strong freestyle;   I thought that I sighted well;  I drafted off a few guys;  I swam close to every buoy and I was pleased with my turns........

.......and yet my time was four minutes slower than last year when I struggled and had to throw in breaststroke!

WTF?    Sometimes triathon is just plain strange........

This Should Be Interesting

Saturday morning will see me competing in the Triangle Triathlon (sprint) organised by Set-Up Events.   I raced it last year and very much enjoyed it - I would be really looking forward to this year's event but for the fact that my training has been so disrupted by travel and illness.   I'm not exactly race ready!......

What can you do but suck it up; get out there; do your best and have fun?  

Despite my poor preparation I still think that I can go under last years time.   It's just a short event:  750M swim (in the hot, green soupy waters of Harris Lake - not too far from the nuclear power station!); 17.5 mile moderately hilly bike ride and 5k run - mostly on trails.

That water's fine I'm sure....    What could possibly go wrong?  :-)

Come on in, the water's fine....

Bloody Typical!

As often seems to be the case, my workouts leading-up to a race (Triangle Triathlon on July 14th) have been disrupted somewhat by work travel, but it seemed this time as if I was getting things back on track a couple of weeks in advance of the big day.  Swims have been pretty good; I feel as if my running legs are back under me and, after a short forced lay-off because of the travel, the bike also feels about back to normal.

I have enjoyed a couple of days at the coast for the July 4th Holiday, with a little extra time to train.  Some nice open water swims; a good long bike session and some runs...  what could possibly go wrong (apart from the ridiculous heat!)?    UGH!   Two evenings ago my throat felt a bit "scratchy" and I was concerned something was up.  Yesterday morning my stomach was a bit upset (but feeling better by lunchtime) and I was coughing slightly.  This morning I woke up completely congested and with nasty sinus discomfort and headache....    the dreaded "summer cold"....   this BLOWS!   Why, oh why, can't I have a "normal" lead-up to a race?

Not much I can do apart from suck it up and try to get better.   I have a long ride with two 10 mile time trials scheduled for today.  Hopefully I'll feel a little better this evening and at least be able to give it a try.