Taunting

About a month ago due to some shifting around the office, I lucked out and was promoted to an office with a window. Woo hoo! Instead of having just the life sucking halogen lights, I now have a full wall of natural light streaming in. Have you seen Joe vs. the Volcano where Joe describes the lighting at his job in the prosthetics clinic? It wasn't that bad, but I do feel like everything is in color now.

So this glorious window that I now have is attached to a building sitting in Homewood, AL which just so happens to be the cycling and endurance sport headquarters of our great city of Birmingham. All epic rides and runs leave from Homewood. This window just so happens to sit about 30 feet from a popular route taken by cyclist and runners heading out. At first, I thought this was kind of cool. I've seen different cycling teams heading out all geeked out in their matching outfits. I've watched Birmingham's top runner along with countless others doing hill repeats on this road. For a while, I enjoyed it, but now... now I think they are taunting me.

I mean, I'm sitting here working (for the most part) and they're 1. not working! 2. doing the very thing that I love to do and 3. shoving it in my face! What the heck? I mean what kind of job do these folks have that enable them to take off for a ride at 10 am on a Thursday? And where can I get an application? Seriously, let me in on your secret.

But this morning, my hopes are up because I'm heading to the beach today. I'm taking my bike and my running shoes. And there's no animosity for the cyclists that just flew past my window. I wish them well because it just started raining. hee hee hee.

Let's Talk Aerodynamics

I just finished listening to this great Podcast of an interview with some guys over at MIT regarding bikes and aerodynamics. What they had to say floored me. I knew that being aero mattered, but if you had asked me prior to listening to this I would have told you that power was more important if you wanted to be fast. Not so.

They said the typical triathlete creates about 6 lbs of drag on the bike. By using a wind tunnel they were able to look at different things that might help reduce this drag. High on my list would have been the ever coveted disk wheels. They are the sexiest item that you can add to your bike and you would probably be faster just for having them right? Well, they stated that having an aero helmet decreases drag 2 to 4 times as much as having disk wheels. What? So for a $200 investment I could be faster than using a $1800 wheel set? That's right mon frere. An aero helmet will reduce your drag coefficient by 1/2 a pound. That's nearly 10%. So over the course of a 40K (24.8 miles) the average triathlete will save 30 seconds to a full minute. I'm sold.

What about the aero drink? I think most people know this but the cylinder is the biggest enemy of aerodynamics. Having a bottle mounted on your down tube greatly increases the amount of drag you produce. Switching to a bottle mounted in your aero bars is not only an improvement, it's actually better than having nothing there at all. The bottle actually breaks up the wind and decreases the turbulence around the head stem thus reducing your drag. Who woulda thunk it?

They also discussed the straw coming out of the bottle. If you reduce the length of the straw by 10cm you can reduce the amount of drag on the straw by 1/10 of a pound.

How about the bent-o-box? It's been given the same kudos as the aero drink. It's actually a benefit to have a bent-o-box breaking up the wind coming off the stem of the bike as opposed to having nothing at all.

Lastly, body position. A lot of people try to improve their aerodynamics by buying a sleeker bike, but the bike only accounts for 15%-25% of wind drag. The rest is the triathlete's body. Spending a couple of hundred dollars on a bike fit will benefit you 3 times over what you could get out of spending a few thousand on the latest TT bike. You need a fit that is aero, but also comfortable so you are not having to get out of the aero position to stretch or relax your back. Staying in an aerodynamic position for the ride is key in reducing drag.

So stop eating beans and rice trying to save for the latest Zipp wheels. Go frugal and buy yourself a decent aero helmet and scorch the competition this season.

Tailwinds...

Bike Commuting

Alright, so everyone knows this is National Bike Month right? Which off the bat begs the question, when is National Swim or Run Month? Equal rights for all sports is what I say. Given that during National Bike Month people are urged to commute to work instead of driving, I'll pass on having National Swim Month for the simple fact there are no major or minor waterways close to my house or work. So this week, I was able to commute to work twice via the almighty Madone, including this morning. It hasn't been that difficult to do considering the distance from my front door to my office door is 2.16 miles. Yeah, I'm spoiled. I admit it, but it's the thought that counts right? I've designated these bike days as being swim days at the pool since I can just about see my gym's pool from my office window. I should probably just walk right, but alas that's less time on the bike.

So Wednesday on my way home from work, this dude pulls up beside me on his cross bike all decked out in appropriate riding gear while I'm dorking it up in dress pants, golf shirt and leather shoes. We talk for a bit, and I find out he's riding 26 miles to work each day. Every day. Suddenly, my 2.16 mile commute didn't seem that green and gas conscious after all. I applaud the guy, cause I couldn't do it. It's pretty easy in May, but come July and August it's gonna be down right nasty hot here.

So whatever your situation, give commuting on your bike a shot. Even if it's just one time or just down the street. I've enjoyed the heck out of it.

Why Do I always have to think of a title?

First things first, thanks for all of the kind words of encouragement and support. It's really cool to see how people who don't know each other can support one another. So, thanks.
Now, remember, I'm not dead so here's what I did this week. I've decided that I'm going to be the best gosh darned swimmer that I possibly can this year. I'm still only swimming three times a week, but they will be more focused swims. Monday will be a 1000 yard time trial, with easy swimming afterwards. Wednesday is drill and sprint day. Friday is long distance day. I swam 2 miles this past friday and I plan to add .1 mile each week until I'm swimming 3 miles each friday. It's all part of the Bfitbday.com challenge I have set up for November. If you haven't signed up for it, click on the icon to the right.
Running notes: I ran my fastest 5K ever Wednesday night at 20:24. I still can't seem to get under 20, but I'm going to be working on that. I've got a goal of two months to burn 25 seconds off my time. We'll see how that goes. Saturday was a solid 10.5 miler with a buddy of mine. It was absolutely gorgeous out.
And yes, I did find my way onto the bike today (Sunday). I soooo mourn the loss of my cycling abilities. It's so sad to suck wind on a course that I used to burn it up on. Oh well, it was good to get out.
And tonight, OMG, was the Josh Ritter concert at Bottletree. This guy is way too big of a name to play at such a small venue, but I'm so glad that he did. Bottletree isn't much bigger than most people's garage. It fits maybe 150 people in it jammed packed. Ritter absolutely brought it tonight. It was a great way to end a great week. Now, off to bed to dream of Zipp wheels, powerbars, and wetsuits.
Bullet sends tailwinds to you all...