So I finally was able to get an appt with the ortho. It's next Tuesday, the 20th. I've been able to run up to 3 times in a week lately but after hard efforts, the knee is very sore still. Hopefully they'll figure this out and get me back by shortly after the new year.
Been biking and running enough to stay in shape but nothing more.
Countdown to B2B
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Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Monday, November 5, 2007
Century ride
Everything seemed to come together for the century ride yesterday, until I woke up feeling like dog ass. The weather had cooled off, the humidity dropped and wind dropped below the 20-30 mph winds we had most of the week.
It was a cool morning and seemed perfect, especially with the time change giving me an extra hour. But Beth has been sick since Wednesday and I think I picked it up. Woke up congested and feeling tired. After an easy week of just a couple rides and 1 run, I should have felt great, but I didn't. By the 35 mile mark(where the 100 mile and 100K rides split) I decided to cut it short as I wasn't feeling very good. Finished the 62 miles, grabbed some food and headed home. Overall it was a pretty good ride but not a lot of riders so I rode most of the last 30+ miles alone.
As far as the knee goes, it's been feeling much better until this week. Ran a hard 5 miles on Tuesday and it was really hurting for a couple days. But it felt fine on the ride yesterday. Going to call the Ortho today or tomorrow and hopefully get in before Thanksgiving.
Nothing planned for the rest of the year but with cooler weather finally hear, hoping I can get back to running soon.
It was a cool morning and seemed perfect, especially with the time change giving me an extra hour. But Beth has been sick since Wednesday and I think I picked it up. Woke up congested and feeling tired. After an easy week of just a couple rides and 1 run, I should have felt great, but I didn't. By the 35 mile mark(where the 100 mile and 100K rides split) I decided to cut it short as I wasn't feeling very good. Finished the 62 miles, grabbed some food and headed home. Overall it was a pretty good ride but not a lot of riders so I rode most of the last 30+ miles alone.
As far as the knee goes, it's been feeling much better until this week. Ran a hard 5 miles on Tuesday and it was really hurting for a couple days. But it felt fine on the ride yesterday. Going to call the Ortho today or tomorrow and hopefully get in before Thanksgiving.
Nothing planned for the rest of the year but with cooler weather finally hear, hoping I can get back to running soon.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Longleaf Race Report
Longleaf was the race Steelhead should have been. I'm even more convinced I went into Steelhead worn out from not tapering enough after this race.
I went into the Olympic distance race yesterday hoping to post a good bike after an average swim and then limp through the run. Breaking 3 hours was the best I could expect. I knew it was a fast course but never believed I could break my PR of 2:52:07. Especially after having a tough time at the Sharks Oly distance in May.
I get to the race early(about 6:30) to check in. The line is short and I get into transition by 7:15. I get transition setup and out by 7:35 and head to the swim start. The swim start was across a large field with weeds blocking the view from transition. As I get around the weeds, I realize it's going to be about a 1/4 mile run from the water to transition through high grass/weeds. So much for cutting time on T1. The race is supposed to begin at 8 but they decide to do a time trial start, with swimmers lining up by number and leaving every 5 seconds. There is a sprint distance race going on too and they go first so we don't even line up until 8:15. By about 8:30 I'm in the water, and by water, I mean a large retention pond!! They had the water tested early in the week and it came back clean but still....I prefer swimming in chlorine when my swim is man made. Anyway, the swim is an 2 loop square swim with the swimmers exiting and re-entering after the fist loop. I'm feeling good on the swim and since the body of water is slim, I don't got off course like I usually do. I'm hoping to break 16 minutes on the first loop, figuring I'll slow on the 2nd. I come out of the water after the 1st loop and check my watch. It's 13 minutes and change!! I've never broken 35 minutes on 1500 meter open water swim so I'm immediately thinking this course is short or I'm really going to slow down on the 2nd loop. I'm out and back in the water quickly and still feeling good. Just concentrate and swimming straight and not making the course longer than it is. When I exit the 2nd time I look at my watch and see 28:38!!!! I have crushed my PR and think the swim has to be short. But I'm not complaining as I know I've got a haul to T1 to make up for it. I was a little worried about my knee without shoes and through uneven terrain getting to T1 but it held up just fine. I get through T1 in 4:28 and off on the bike.
The wind was breezy all morning, out of the east. We knew it was going to be a fast return since the bike was a square loop heading north and then east, with the final 10 or so miles on fresh asphalt with the wind at our backs. I started out feeling really good on the bike for the 4 miles north before heading onto the Starky trail for 6.5 miles through the park. This was where I knew I needed to push the speed to give myself a chance to PR. I wanted to keep my average speed at 17.5 before heading back south and east. The wind was terrible but it was persistent at about 10-12 MPH. The trees provided some relief at times not much. I was able to push through those miles and came out of the park averaging 17.6,. Perfect. Now we were on the Suncoast trail and with the wind at our side. I pushed the pace for 4 miles adding to my average. Then we hit highway 54. They had blocked off an entire lane plus the shoulder of newly laid asphalt. The wind was still pushing 10+ MPH but now it was at my back!!! I was feeling very strong and pushing hard. The last ~10 miles flew by and I was back at T2 in record time, 1:11:58, another PR, this time by over 6 minutes. My bike computer confirmed the course was accurate, so I'm thinking ok, breaking 3 hours should be easy but still wasn't thinking a PR was at all possible.
I'm in and out of T2 in 1:55. My knee is feeling tight and a little painful but nothing bad at all. I haven't done any bricks since Steelhead so I don't know how my knee will respond after riding and riding hard. Turns out, it felt great. Actually felt better as I went along the run. The run was an out and back on an asphalt trail. Even though we've had record heat and it was still warm today(78 at start, 88 at finish), it was cloudy and didn't really get warm until last 2 miles. As I start the run I check my watch. I'm sitting at 1:52 and change!!! All I have to do is break an hour in the 10K run and I PR. Even with my lack of running the last 2 months and a bum knee, I know this is very possible. I'm feeling good and hit the first mile. 9:28. OK, I was hoping for a faster 1st mile but the 1st mile is always slower for me switching to running legs. Even still, I've put 30 seconds in the bank on the hour run for PR. Mile 2 is better at 8:55. I feel great and think I can go faster but I haven't run more than 5 miles in 2 months and I'm still leery about my knee. So I keep the pace steady and come through mile 3 in 8:58 and mile 4 in 9:25. I'm starting to feel my lack of running as my leg turnover is slowing but I'm still feeling pretty good. Mile 5 goes by in 9:26 and I know I'm going to PR. As I look at the total time, I realize I have a great chance to break 2:45. I pick up the pace(I thought) but come through mile 6 in 9:42. .2 to go, which I do in 1:02. Turns out the 6 mile marker was place long. Either way, I finish the run in 57:01. Not close to my Oly run PR of 51:57 but all things considered, very happy with it. Race time is 2:43:57!!!! Not only did I break 2:45 but I brokd 2:44.
Because of the huge swim PR, I was very skeptical of the distance. I asked 3-4 people if they thought the swim was short and each of them said no. I checked some results online and compared them to other races they did and the times was similar. The only think I can point to is the course was very easy to stay straight, which I've always found difficult in open water, ocean/bay swims.
Obviously a great way(and surprising) to end the season. Now I'll look at some long rides and the century on the 4th and getting the knee issue worked out before starting the long, big build for Ironman starting in January.
I went into the Olympic distance race yesterday hoping to post a good bike after an average swim and then limp through the run. Breaking 3 hours was the best I could expect. I knew it was a fast course but never believed I could break my PR of 2:52:07. Especially after having a tough time at the Sharks Oly distance in May.
I get to the race early(about 6:30) to check in. The line is short and I get into transition by 7:15. I get transition setup and out by 7:35 and head to the swim start. The swim start was across a large field with weeds blocking the view from transition. As I get around the weeds, I realize it's going to be about a 1/4 mile run from the water to transition through high grass/weeds. So much for cutting time on T1. The race is supposed to begin at 8 but they decide to do a time trial start, with swimmers lining up by number and leaving every 5 seconds. There is a sprint distance race going on too and they go first so we don't even line up until 8:15. By about 8:30 I'm in the water, and by water, I mean a large retention pond!! They had the water tested early in the week and it came back clean but still....I prefer swimming in chlorine when my swim is man made. Anyway, the swim is an 2 loop square swim with the swimmers exiting and re-entering after the fist loop. I'm feeling good on the swim and since the body of water is slim, I don't got off course like I usually do. I'm hoping to break 16 minutes on the first loop, figuring I'll slow on the 2nd. I come out of the water after the 1st loop and check my watch. It's 13 minutes and change!! I've never broken 35 minutes on 1500 meter open water swim so I'm immediately thinking this course is short or I'm really going to slow down on the 2nd loop. I'm out and back in the water quickly and still feeling good. Just concentrate and swimming straight and not making the course longer than it is. When I exit the 2nd time I look at my watch and see 28:38!!!! I have crushed my PR and think the swim has to be short. But I'm not complaining as I know I've got a haul to T1 to make up for it. I was a little worried about my knee without shoes and through uneven terrain getting to T1 but it held up just fine. I get through T1 in 4:28 and off on the bike.
The wind was breezy all morning, out of the east. We knew it was going to be a fast return since the bike was a square loop heading north and then east, with the final 10 or so miles on fresh asphalt with the wind at our backs. I started out feeling really good on the bike for the 4 miles north before heading onto the Starky trail for 6.5 miles through the park. This was where I knew I needed to push the speed to give myself a chance to PR. I wanted to keep my average speed at 17.5 before heading back south and east. The wind was terrible but it was persistent at about 10-12 MPH. The trees provided some relief at times not much. I was able to push through those miles and came out of the park averaging 17.6,. Perfect. Now we were on the Suncoast trail and with the wind at our side. I pushed the pace for 4 miles adding to my average. Then we hit highway 54. They had blocked off an entire lane plus the shoulder of newly laid asphalt. The wind was still pushing 10+ MPH but now it was at my back!!! I was feeling very strong and pushing hard. The last ~10 miles flew by and I was back at T2 in record time, 1:11:58, another PR, this time by over 6 minutes. My bike computer confirmed the course was accurate, so I'm thinking ok, breaking 3 hours should be easy but still wasn't thinking a PR was at all possible.
I'm in and out of T2 in 1:55. My knee is feeling tight and a little painful but nothing bad at all. I haven't done any bricks since Steelhead so I don't know how my knee will respond after riding and riding hard. Turns out, it felt great. Actually felt better as I went along the run. The run was an out and back on an asphalt trail. Even though we've had record heat and it was still warm today(78 at start, 88 at finish), it was cloudy and didn't really get warm until last 2 miles. As I start the run I check my watch. I'm sitting at 1:52 and change!!! All I have to do is break an hour in the 10K run and I PR. Even with my lack of running the last 2 months and a bum knee, I know this is very possible. I'm feeling good and hit the first mile. 9:28. OK, I was hoping for a faster 1st mile but the 1st mile is always slower for me switching to running legs. Even still, I've put 30 seconds in the bank on the hour run for PR. Mile 2 is better at 8:55. I feel great and think I can go faster but I haven't run more than 5 miles in 2 months and I'm still leery about my knee. So I keep the pace steady and come through mile 3 in 8:58 and mile 4 in 9:25. I'm starting to feel my lack of running as my leg turnover is slowing but I'm still feeling pretty good. Mile 5 goes by in 9:26 and I know I'm going to PR. As I look at the total time, I realize I have a great chance to break 2:45. I pick up the pace(I thought) but come through mile 6 in 9:42. .2 to go, which I do in 1:02. Turns out the 6 mile marker was place long. Either way, I finish the run in 57:01. Not close to my Oly run PR of 51:57 but all things considered, very happy with it. Race time is 2:43:57!!!! Not only did I break 2:45 but I brokd 2:44.
Because of the huge swim PR, I was very skeptical of the distance. I asked 3-4 people if they thought the swim was short and each of them said no. I checked some results online and compared them to other races they did and the times was similar. The only think I can point to is the course was very easy to stay straight, which I've always found difficult in open water, ocean/bay swims.
Obviously a great way(and surprising) to end the season. Now I'll look at some long rides and the century on the 4th and getting the knee issue worked out before starting the long, big build for Ironman starting in January.
Friday, October 19, 2007
Last race of season
The Longleaf Olympic distance is this weekend, which will be the last of the year for me. I'm signed up for a century in Sarasota on Nov. 4th but no tris. After this race I'll be getting an appt for my knee. I have been able to run 4 times in 10 days without any major pain, but it's definitely there and not getting better.
The weather still hasn't cooled off. Sunday(race day) should be 78 at the start and 88 at the finish. Just looking to PR the bike and have fun. Looks like a decent course. I will report back next week how it went.
The weather still hasn't cooled off. Sunday(race day) should be 78 at the start and 88 at the finish. Just looking to PR the bike and have fun. Looks like a decent course. I will report back next week how it went.
Monday, October 8, 2007
Still Hot!!
OK, so maybe the appearance of love bugs hasn't quite meant cooler weather yet. We've been setting records for heat the last week, heard on the news last night it was the hottest 1st week of October on record. Usually when it's this hot at least we can count on calm weather but the wind has really picked up lately also, which has made for some tough rides.
Still keeping the biking miles at about 150/week and continuing with 2 runs per week but I'm really losing running fitness. Ran 5 miles twice last week and struggled with each of them. My knee seems to be doing a little better with only a couple runs but still doesn't seem to be getter healed.
2 more weeks until the Longleaf Olympic distance. Right now I only have 2 goals for it.....PR the bike and finish. Looks like we might get the first cold(cool?) front of the fall this weekend so that should help.
The NC Ironman race has finally posted a website. Not much yet available but it should be filling in the coming weeks/months. www.beach2battleship.com
Still keeping the biking miles at about 150/week and continuing with 2 runs per week but I'm really losing running fitness. Ran 5 miles twice last week and struggled with each of them. My knee seems to be doing a little better with only a couple runs but still doesn't seem to be getter healed.
2 more weeks until the Longleaf Olympic distance. Right now I only have 2 goals for it.....PR the bike and finish. Looks like we might get the first cold(cool?) front of the fall this weekend so that should help.
The NC Ironman race has finally posted a website. Not much yet available but it should be filling in the coming weeks/months. www.beach2battleship.com
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Love bugs are back!!
Yesterday during my ride, I ran into several love bugs. This is good news as they appear twice a year. Once in the spring just before the real heat of summer begins and again, in smaller numbers, at the end of summer just before the first cold front cuts across Florida. Shouldn't be too long and the heat will finally break. Looking forward to some cooler weather
Biking is still accounting for most of my workouts. I've put in 300 miles the last 2 weeks with some really good rides. Yesterday I rode in 20+ mph winds but since my bike computer broke, I didn't have to worry about how slow I was!! Ran today(4 miles) for the first time in a week. My knee doesn't seem to be getting worse but it also doesn't seem to be getting any better. My plan now is to limp through the next month, do the Longleaf Olympic distance on Oct. 21st and assess where my knee is. If it's still hurting, I'll go see the Ortho.
Biking is still accounting for most of my workouts. I've put in 300 miles the last 2 weeks with some really good rides. Yesterday I rode in 20+ mph winds but since my bike computer broke, I didn't have to worry about how slow I was!! Ran today(4 miles) for the first time in a week. My knee doesn't seem to be getting worse but it also doesn't seem to be getting any better. My plan now is to limp through the next month, do the Longleaf Olympic distance on Oct. 21st and assess where my knee is. If it's still hurting, I'll go see the Ortho.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Random things
Well, I ran 4 easy miles yesterday, which was my first run in 11 days. My knee was hurting very bad, so much I could barely run. It would get worse as I ran, which is not a good thing. I've had tendinitis before but my knee would always warm up and feel better. It did feel better yesterday but not 100%. It didn't hurt this morning so I'm hopeful it's on it's way to being healed. I'll continue to take it easy on running the next couple weeks and hope it responds well.
I have been able to bike and swim so I've been doing quite a bit of both. Biked 150 miles last week and swam 4000 yards.
So summer is drawing to a close. Pretty soon we might even see the high 60s for a low!!! I'm always amazed in September that I ever run/bike without being able to wring sweat from my gloves/socks. It's been 4-5 months since I had a run or bike without drenching everything I was wearing, it's hard to remember getting home not dripping. Come April, I will have forgotten how hot it can actually get. I go through this cycle every year, you would think I would remember the seasons after living here for almost 10 years.
Today is September 11th. One of those life changing days for just about every American. I still remember that day in 2001 as if it were yesterday. I remember turning on the TV shortly after it the first plane struck and not moving until that evening. I didn't even go on my lunch time run because I was too stunned and scared to leave the house. I remember seeing on the TV there was a plane in Pennsylvania believed to be headed to the White House and I stood up, with no one else in the house, tears streaming down my face and screaming "Shoot the damn things down!!" I remember waking up to the local news station on the radio every day for months afterwards afraid to hear something else had happened. I remember September 11th, 2001, the day America lost her innocence.
I have been able to bike and swim so I've been doing quite a bit of both. Biked 150 miles last week and swam 4000 yards.
So summer is drawing to a close. Pretty soon we might even see the high 60s for a low!!! I'm always amazed in September that I ever run/bike without being able to wring sweat from my gloves/socks. It's been 4-5 months since I had a run or bike without drenching everything I was wearing, it's hard to remember getting home not dripping. Come April, I will have forgotten how hot it can actually get. I go through this cycle every year, you would think I would remember the seasons after living here for almost 10 years.
Today is September 11th. One of those life changing days for just about every American. I still remember that day in 2001 as if it were yesterday. I remember turning on the TV shortly after it the first plane struck and not moving until that evening. I didn't even go on my lunch time run because I was too stunned and scared to leave the house. I remember seeing on the TV there was a plane in Pennsylvania believed to be headed to the White House and I stood up, with no one else in the house, tears streaming down my face and screaming "Shoot the damn things down!!" I remember waking up to the local news station on the radio every day for months afterwards afraid to hear something else had happened. I remember September 11th, 2001, the day America lost her innocence.
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