Brick Mason

The forecast for today was pretty much rain all day. The likely hood of getting the brick in today was looking pretty slim. I'm not a big fan of riding in the rain and didn't think everyone would show up as planned. About 1:30 I decided to head over to see if everyone would get together to at least do the run portion. And yes I took my bike just in case. The rain had slacked, but it was still soggy out when I arrived. To my surprise, there were two other guys waiting and wondering if we were going to ride. Then all of the sudden our coach comes out with his helmet and singlet on. Guess that answered that question. The brick was on. The plan was to do a 20 mile ride followed by a 7.5 mile run.
The road conditions were sketchy. Not too slick, but enough to keep me at a slower pace. Breaking was difficult needless to say. Within like 10 minutes of the start the bottom fell out again and it started pouring. I ditched my shades due to water build up and took on the wind and the rain with my bare eyes. Seeing a little was better than not at all. Luckily the rain broke and we could see the clouds behind us clearing so we knew the ride back would be easier. About half way into the ride, we hit some dryer areas and really started to push it. I felt a little more confident with the conditions and pressed the accelerator a bit. My legs held strong on the hills, and I really started to feel good.
Back at home base, we made a quick change and hit the roads. The route took us along a busy road which wasn't perfect for running but we made due. I could really feel the hills in my quads. Cardio-wise, I felt strong and started to hit my stride on the flats. It was those damned hills that got me though. The last mile I pushed it hard. I was so ready to be done, but really glad that I had the chance to see what I could do.
Final stats on the day: 19.5 miles at a 18.9 mph avg and 7.5 miles in 54:45 which is a 7:26 pace. As I sitting here typing my legs are already sore. I know tomorrow is going to be even worse. Will have to ride a little to work the soreness out.

The rain held off!

The last couple of days have been great for training. I took only worked until noon yesterday so I bolted home and strapped on the running shoes. It was gorgeous out. The temp had to be in the mid 60's. I ran 5 miles in 36:55. Not earth shattering, but a good run. As for today, I had a bike ride scheduled, but was unsure about getting it in before the rain came. Luckily, the rain held off. We won't be getting any until tonight. So I took off this morning and got 28 in before meeting the guys for breakfast at Super Sam's (home of the best bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich in the world) I was able to show off my new yellow Team Discovery Jersery. Gotta love eBay.
Tomorrow, we're doing an end of the year brick. The ride will be 20 miles followed by a 7 mile run. Going to start hydrating now. Really looking forward to this, we'll see how my legs handle the transition. I've only done one brick in the past month.

Time to get back on Track

Count 'em off: Thanksgiving, gone! Office Parties, bye bye. 12 days of Christmas parties, see-ya! Christmas breakfast, lunch, dinner, and all that snacking in between, poof! Be gone! Oh and left overs? You don't exist at this house. Eating is so difficult to manage over the holidays. Oh and I made the most of it. I took advantage of every sausage ball, every cheese dip, and every cookie with sprinkles on it that I could find. Enough is enough. It's time to get back on track. It's time to really start seeing some results and get ready for Triathlon season. It's starts today.
I started the day off with protein, chicken and salad at lunch, low carbs at dinner, and small snacks in between. Not perfect, but it was better than the past three weeks. We were traveling today so I did the best I could.
I made it out for a quick run today. The sun was still out, but the temp was dropping quickly. I didn't feel like doing the prescribed hill repeats so I decided to run three miles through a hilly section of town at a quick pace. I managed to do 3.25 miles in 22:11 which puts my time at a 6:48 pace. Not too bad. My knee felt great which is encouraging. Tomorrow will be hill repeats on the bike. You know I'm really enjoying my time on the bike these days. Didn't think I'd ever get to that point. Bad news ahead though, the long ride I was planning on doing on Saturday will be rained out more than likely. Maybe if I had a trainer like someone I know, I'll call "BZuck", it wouldn't be so bad. But alas, instead of training on my own bike, I'll be in the freaking gym. Yeah me.
I picked up two books for Christmas. Lance Armstrong's "It's Not About the Bike" and "J. Edgar Hoover" by Curt Gentry. I started reading the book on Hoover this weekend. With each page I am becoming more and more disenfranchised with our country's actions following the first World War. The sinister actions of a few have forever put a black mark on the history of how our great nation handled emigrants and those seeking freedom. I'll post more on this as I read more, but needless to say J. Edgar will not make my list of heroes.

Christmas In Mobile

I've been in Mobile now since Saturday morning. The weather was gorgeous. Sunny and about 70 degrees, until the sun went down. But since then, the temps have been in the 50's and low 60's. Despite the rain on Sunday, I was able to get a run in of 5.5 miles. I took Christmas day off except for a round of golf. According to a local club's website, there was to be a ride leaving this morning at 5:15 so I woke up early to join these guys. It ended up just being 3 of us. I've never ridden much in the dark which as it turned out much of this ride was in. The temp was 43 according to the bank's sign. Not too bad. Mobile is much flatter than Birmingham so I had no trouble on the roads. The pace was a little slower than I usually keep, but it was good to get out and stretch my legs. I was disappointed to find out that the ride wasn't going to be the 28 miler that was advertised, but rather 19 miles. Oh well, just glad to get a ride in. My wife met me at a coffee house for breakfast. It was good to enjoy the morning with her. I didn't realize how much I'd missed our time alone to talk. Going to play a little more golf with the father in law. Here's a pic from yesterday. We're not as weird as this looks, promise. We all decided to put something on that we got for Christmas. Tail winds..

Cool pic from SI.Com and Travels

Check this pic out. It's from the start of the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon. Amazing. The water is just white from all the churning. It gets me out of breath just looking at it.

I've only competed in races with staggered starts. Every 5 seconds. Have any of you competed in a race with a mass start? With all the chaos of a staggered start, I can't imagine what it must be like in a mass start. Lots of kicking and grabbing I'm sure. Sometimes I feel like I'm apologizing for the full length of the swim.

I'm headed to Mobile, AL this weekend to see my wife's family. They are great folk. I'm sure I'll be playing a bit of golf, but I'll also find time to train as well. Sunday will be my long run, 9 miles. I found a group to ride with on Tuesday morning. My only beef is that they start at 5:15 am! It's not even light outside yet. I've been wanting to get a ride in down there, so I'll suit up and turn my lights on for this one. Should be fun. Merry Christmas everyone.

Why do I do it?

Sometimes I'm a jerk. I'm really short tempered with people who don't know what their doing, who don't put thought into their actions, or who are oblivious to others around them. I really lack patience for these people. For instance, I'm at a stop light and the person in the car in front of me is chatting away on their cell phone while the light has already turned it's fourth shade of green. I am the type that will honk the horn. I don't gesture or make faces, but if they aren't paying attention and it's been 5 or 6 seconds, they're getting a honk. I don't feel very good about it, but for the love PAY ATTENTION! Yesterday, I contemplated letting a guy hit my car when he pulled out in front of me. He was clearly in the wrong and wasn't paying attention. He would have paid "out tha nose" to fix my car. This would have given me tremendous satisfaction, because I could have been like - "What were you thinking?" But I showed restraint and hit the brakes.

All that to set up this situation. At work, I'm used to dealing with professionals or people who are in the industry and know what they're talking about. As of late, I've had to do a lot of work with a good number of Joe Schmoes;people off the street with no more knowledge of my industry than Anna Nicole Smith (so it's safe to say that I'm not in the business of loud obnoxious drunks, marrying rich old men, sleazy movies, or trim spa) I'm in insurance by the way. These Joes are not my customers or even my customers' customers - so no love there.
So I get this call and from the word go, I know it's a Joe because it's the 30th call I've received of this type today. It goes like this:

"This is Matt, may I help you"
"Uh yeah, this is Joe Schmo and I was told to give you a call."
"Ok, who told you to call me?"
"Uh, my dad." - by the sound of his voice, Joe was my age.
"Alright, why did your dad tell you to call me?"
"I don't know, he just told me to call and said that you could help me."
At this point I knew why he was calling and what he needed, but I'm a jerk and I really wanted this guy to know why he was calling me.
"Help you with what" I ask.
"Uh, I don't know, he just said to call"
"Well Joe, can you have your dad call me, I can't help you if you don't know why you're calling me."
"Ok, bye"

I had ample opportunity to help this guy out, but I'm a jerk and I didn't have the patience for him. It's pretty tough when you can see one of your short comings so clearly. The mirror is pretty tough to look at sometimes. Thankfully I am loved despite my short comings. So is Joe. I need to do a better job of remembering that. - John 13:35

Long Week

I've kind of had a love hate thing going on with this week. It's been long and boring due to work, but the nights have been fun with Christmas parties nearly every night. I am ready for a night off though. As for work, I'm almost ready to close the chapter on the year 2006. It's been a successful year so no complaints there, but I've had to start working on production for next year which isn't always fun. It all starts again. Same thing with triathlons, except that I'm stronger and faster -which is pretty freaking cool. Hopefully I'll be able to not suck it up on the run in each race this year. I had some pretty disappointing finishes this past year due to endurance and bonking issues on the run portion. Hopefully, that will not be a problem again.
One good thing of note, I went to the doctor on Monday and my ear was issued a clean bill of health. He suggested that I stay out of the water for another month, but said it wasn't necessary. He was concerned that the ear, while healed, might still be susceptible to getting infected. I'm going to give it until January 1 and then take the plunge. I'm ready.
Does anyone have any preference on brand of Tri Shorts? I have two pair. One is wearing thin and the other rubs me the wrong way. So, before I start the race season I'm going to need to buy some new shorts. Please send me any suggestions.
This weekend includes a 5 mile run (in about 30 minutes), a 2 hour ride and weights tomorrow, and a 9 mile run on Sunday. Here's praying for mild temps and a tail wind. Later.

2 Runs and a Ride with a Pro

The weekend has gone pretty well training wise despite the chilly weather and Christmas parties thrown in. I took advantage of the warmest part of the day on Friday (43 degrees) and ran my prescribed 5 miles during lunch. I knew there was no way I was going to want to run after work if the temperature continued to drop. On Saturday, I waited until the mid afternoon to ride. The temp was supposed to get in the 50's which sounded just perfect for a good long ride. My riding buddy was still Christmas shopping with his wife (where are his priorities?) so I was on my own for the ride. I took off from the house and after a few miles caught a glimpse of another rider heading off in the direction I was going. I caught up to him at a stop light and asked where he was heading. He said that he was just finishing up. He'd already done 56 and had downed a cup of coffee. After a short talk, he changed his mind and agreed to ride some more with me. We headed off through Mtn Brook toward Old Leeds Road which is a popular spot for cyclists as the road is long and fairly straight. Starting off, I took the lead on a hill and did my best to keep up a good pace. He was right there with me the whole time. We started talking again and I caught his name. I knew who he was as soon as he said his first name. He's a local who competes in Tri's and Duathlons professionally. It all made sense. So I thought "great, he's going to kill me on this road." For the first couple of miles I stayed with him. I took the lead and pushed the speed up to put on a good show, but at the first hill I lost it. It was all I could do not to coast for a while. He took the lead and I nearly dropped off completely. I pushed it hard to get back in his draft so I could rest a bit, but just doing that wore me out. Mercifully he slowed down a bit to talk. He said he was going to turn back at the next road. He said his legs were "spent." Keeping up appearances, I thanked him for riding with me for a little while and took off on a hard pace as he turned around. I've got a lot to work on before I can keep up with the big boys. Nice guy.
Today was my long run. 9 miles. I was a little apprehensive about the run today since my knee was aching after 8 last Sunday, but I thought I'd give it a try. Just moderate pain throughout the run. Just a little discomfort, but I am going to make a point to stay off of it for a few days. Over all the run went well. DCavin ran the last 3 with me which was helpful. Cardio wise, I felt like I could run for days. I could tell I needed to take some fuel with me next time. My energy level was low during the last miles.
By the way, did anyone happen to catch the Ironman World Championship from Hawaii on TV this weekend. Wow! A two hour spot on TV for Ironman. Loved every bit of it. I'd love to be there one day. Buck, you're going to have to get there this year without me, but I'll be extremely jealous.

Doesn't this look good?

Don't know why this is so appealing right now. But wow, how cool would it be to be able to earn this logo. Going to have to settle for a half for now.

So the last couple of days have been really good as far as training goes. Monday I took a much needed day of rest, but was back at it on Tuesday with a 5:45 am spin class followed by a little weight training. Today I did a first, running hill repeats. I have a good sized hill just up the road from my house. I couldn't manage the cold this morning before work so I did them at lunch. I'm lucky in that I live close to work and can get a work out in during my lunch hour (and a half). I told my coach today that I hated them, but also loved them. I felt so good after I was done. Definitely felt like an animal. Overall, I'm loving training. I'm loving how it's changed my energy level and helping me achieve my goals. Tomorrow, hill repeats on the bike. Golden!

If you get the opportunity, check out joepurdy.com. You can listen to all of his albums for free. I'm listening to Sessions from Motor Ave right now. Good stuff.

Tough Run

Per my training guide, I was supposed to spend 45 minutes on a trainer today, but yawn.. excuse me, I had better plans. This 45 minutes was supposed to include some focus on my technic with no resistance. Did they not know how beautiful it was outside. Was I supposed to spend my afternoon at the gym? Well, I took out on my own. I ran 8 miles today. Haven't done that in a while. I'm still planning on running my first 1/2 marathon in Feb. and I've been a little concerned that I haven't been putting the miles in running wise. I'm on the bike 4 times a week and in the pool three times. So far, I've only had to do moderate paced runs of 3 or 5 miles. My goal for the 1/2 is to finish in 1:45. That would be just over a 7:40 pace, I think. So today I took off and finished 8 miles in 1 hour, which is about where I need to be. That was encouraging. What concerns me is that my knees started aching a bit. Don't know if it was distance or if it's time for some new kicks. Maybe I made that second one up. I haven't run that much recently so hopefully, their not wearing down under the stress. Tomorrow is an off day so let's see how they feel after a good rest.

Cold, cold morning

I met BGillis this morning at 6:45 for a early morning ride. A cold front moved in over the last day and dropped the temp this morning to 35 degrees. Oooh, it was so cold. I was fine just standing there at the car, but as soon as I got on the bike and started moving the wind just ripped through me. The problem areas were my ears, toes, and worst of all - my fingers. I need to buy better gear I guess. My partner was not "feeling it" today so our pace was a bit slow. We ended up just over 25 miles. I've had a good two weeks of training since coming back from Italy. I can definitely see some improvements in my strength on the hills. Still have some work to do on maintaining a higher speed in the flats.
Overall, training is going well. I just wish it was a little warmer.

Oh, I'm hurtin....

My belly is a rumblin. Oh why do I do it to myself? Overeating that is. Some of the guys from the office took off to Dreamland BBQ today for lunch. If you've never been there or heard of it, you're missing out. For the longest time, they only served ribs and sweet tea. Recently, they've branched out to serving side dishes and desserts like banana pudding (oh sweet Jesus).
At Dreamland, you are immediately served a loaf of white bread still in the plastic bag and their secret sauce for dipping. While they are working on your order, you dine on this delicious soft white bread that's been smothered in the sauce. It's a golden time. It's like a foretaste of what's to come. And then, they bring the ribs. (insert heavenly music here) It doesn't take long for them to bring them out, cause they've been cooking for hours. Man they're good! Once they hit the lips, it's soooo good. And this is what gets me. These wonderful ribs and the fluffy white bread just sits in my belly reminding me of what I've done. Oh tummy, why do I torture you?

So I'm thinking ahead to tomorrow's ride. With this wonderful lump of meat and bread in my belly, what's my energy going to be like. Will I throw up at mile 20? Will I bonk on the hills? Well, we'll find out. I may have just set my training back a whole week, but to tell you the truth.. it was worth it.