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hangin on

trying to stay aboard

I snapped this shot at the Poway Rodeo on Sunday. And it pretty much captures how I’m feeling lately. Life’s a bucking bronco and I’m just trying to avoid falling off and getting trampled. But I think the bumpy ride will be over soon.

monday sept 22 2008

I’ve gotten fat. Somehow in the last several weeks of sloth and off-season revelry (Pizza Port and Carlsbad Chronic), I’ve managed to put on 10.5 pounds from my Vineman race weight of 185. Weight as of this morning = 195.5. What the F&^*&%K!

Time to get serious about diet….I’ll be checking out Beth and James’s site for some healthy cooking ideas.

As far as training this past week, I managed to ramp it up a bit. 33 miles on foot and 77 miles on two wheels. I love my new bike.

friday sept 19 2008

Kona says "Bring it on!"

The 2009 season officially just began. I just registered for Oceanside 70.3 or whatever its called. The Ford Ironman California 70.3? The Oceanside 70.3? Maybe the Cali half? Or Cali 70.3? or how about the old name…Ralph’s Half Ironman?

Anyway, you know which race I mean.

The damage to the Flores family nest egg? 285 big ones. Last year it was roughly $230 (I can’t seem to dig up my old registration confirmation email so you’ll have to take my word on that). An increase of over 20%! Race entry fees are seriously getting out of hand…and it boggles my mind that there is no lack of demand whatsoever. The race is nearly full already. Last year it sold out in December and the year before in January. I’m all for the growth of the sport, but its rapidly approaching the mark where many folks are simply priced out of the event. And that’s a shame.

I certainly think that there is demand of another half-ironman distance race here in Southern California, M-Dot or otherwise. Outside of Wildflower, which is a long way to drive for many in SoCal, there are no other HIM distance events in the area. Pretty remarkable considering that this is one of, if not the, greatest concentration of amateur triathletes in the world.

Regardless, I’m entered for another go-round and am looking forward to redeeming myself after a lackluster performance in 2008.

Tuesday Sept 16 2008

Creative post title, don’t you think.

Last night I did my first track workout in a while…a set of 800’s with Coach Mike and the TCSD crew. Since I haven’t done any speedwork in over a month, I knew it would be interesting. I was really slow and lethargic to start with. Ran the first in a pedestrian 3 minutes flat which pretty much sucked..but the legs slowly loosened up and I started running more easily after. The last 5 were 2:55, 2:48, 2:39, 2:36, 2:37. Met Karl Bordine…cool guy. He’s a cyclist turned triathlete. The man can ride a bike…he casually mentions that at Oceanside he rode 2:18, only 7 seconds slower than Andy Potts.  Sick fast. We start to chat about bike mileage…he mentions that he typically rides 300-400 miles a week. As John L. Parker would say, The Secret is that there is no secret.

Speaking of Mr. Parker, I just reread “Once A Runner”, his famous novel. If you haven’t read this book, I highly recommend it.

A couple of my favorite passages:

“Cassidy sought no euphoric interludes. They came, when they did, quite naturally and he was content to enjoy them privately. He ran not for crypto-religious reasons, but to win races, to cover ground fast. Not only to be better than his fellows, but better than himself. To be faster by a tenth of a second, by an inch, by two feet or two yards than he had been the week or year before. He sought to conquer the physical limitations placed upon him by a three-dimensional world (and if Time is the fourth dimension, that too was his province). If he could conquer the weakness, the cowardice in himself, he would not worry about the rest; it would come. Training was a rite of purification; from it came speed, strength. Racing was a rite of death; from it came knowledge. Such rites demand, if they are to be meaningful at all, a certain amount of time spent precisely on the Red Line, where you can lean over the manicured putting green at the edge of the precipice and see exactly nothing.”

“Running to him was real, the way he did it the realest thing he knew. It was all joy and woe, hard as diamond; it made him weary beyond comprehension. But it also made him free.”

‘Til next time.

rock on

Got the new Metallica album, “Death Magnetic”…it freakin’ rocks. Reminds me of And Justice For All – long songs, heavy, fast riffs and Lar’s pounding kickdrum. Went for an easy 6 mile run that turned into a hard 6 mile run with my ears bleeding all over the pavement. Awesome.

getting back into it

I basically took the last month off. Actually since Vineman, I’ve done a whole lot of nothing. Well, not exactly nothing…but not much more than a few runs, a few short bike rides…and exactly zero swimming. I started my prep for Cali 70.3 way back in November. So, I shouldn’t be surprised that my motivation level took a dip.

But, now the need to train is becoming an itch I have to scratch.

Time to start laying down some miles. My shiny new bike is calling me.

a new whip

I’ve been mulling over the new bike decision for some time. About 2 weeks ago, I finally plunked down the cash and pulled the trigger on a 2007 Argon18 Gallium road frame. Many, many thanks to my good friend, Matt Simpson at Rivet Cyclesport for helping me pick out the exact spec and frame. And thanks to a great deal on a previous model year’s frame, I was able to save a boatload of cash.

I went with a combination of SRAM Red and Force for the components. Essentially, I went with Red everywhere there was a functional difference, i.e. derailleurs, shifters, and bottom bracket (ceramic bearings). Where the only real difference was weight (i.e. cranks, cassette, chain and brakes), I went with Force to save a few bucks. The net savings was about $400 by going this route and the weight penalty was about 200 grams. Not a bad exchange, in my opinion. On Matt’s recommendation, I went with Easton for the stem, handlebars, seatpost and wheels. All except for the wheels are carbon…Easton stuff is high-quality, reasonably light and durable so this was a good choice. The EA70 wheels are solid, durable training hoops, nothing flash here. The wheels are wrapped in Vittoria Evo Open Corsa CX tires, I love the feel of these tires. A bit pricey, but I indulged a bit here.

As an aspiring home mechanic, I decided to build up the bike myself and of course, took some pics during the process.

Total weight for the bike based on manufacturer’s spec is about 16 lbs. Pretty light for a big bike!

big ol’ box of parts

christmas morning

ready to begin

proper torque settings!

tightening the seat post binder bolt

setting up the stem and bars

installing the bottom bracket…grease those threads!

installing bottom bracket

installing cranks

using Park Tool’s website for some tips

installing shifters

installing front derailleur

front brake before stringing the cable

rear derailleur

rear wheel after running the chain

stringing cable for the front brake

bar tape – one down, one to go

in all her glory

the new cockpit…

coming at ya!

looks fast standing still

I present the Gallium S3

Full spec list

• Frame – Argon 18 Gallium XL (58.5)
• Headset – FSA Orbit CF Integrated
• Stem – Easton EC90 Road Stem (120mm)
• Handlebars – Easton EC70 Wing Road Bar
• Shifters/Brake Levers – SRAM Red
• Front Der. – SRAM Red
• Rear Der. – SRAM Red
• Crankset – SRAM Force 53/39 175mm
• Bottom Bracket – SRAM GXP Team English
• Chain – SRAM PC-1070
• Pedals – Speedplay X5 (2)
• Cassette – SRAM OG-1070 12-26
• Brakes – SRAM Force
• Seatpost – Easton EC70 Carbon Fiber
• Saddle – Prologo Nago
• Wheels – Easton EA70 Clincher
• Water Bottle Cage – Specialized Rib Cage
• Computer – Cateye Strada Wireless
• Tires – Vittoria Evo CX Open Corsa

where did August go?

Summer is nearly over.

I’m posting this from Washington DC…my travels have brought me here for the last week. A fortunate circumstance, I had some work commitments here and we combined the trip with a visit with my wife’s family and some friends. Good times.

I really like the DC area…lots of great stuff to do, fantastic restaurants (sorry San Diego, but DC restaurants rock!). We’ve had a good week. One thing I don’t miss is the weather. DC in August sucks. Funny, the local newscasters are talking about how nice it is, I’m thinking how friggin’ muggy it is. It’s all relative I guess.

Due to the travel this week and a hectic schedule, I didn’t do much in the way of training. Just a few runs to keep some fitness…ended up just over 25 miles for the week. I’m looking forward to getting back and getting on my regular routine.

I also have some exciting news. Exciting to me, anyways! I just ordered a new road bike. It is as close to a ‘dream’ bike as I can justifiably spend….I’ve spent a long time considering every part of the bike: what components, which frame, etc, etc. The frameset is enroute (probably sitting in customs as I type) and hopefully it will arrive and be built up in a week or so. I can’t wait to get the bike and start putting some miles in.

Once it arrives, I will post some pictures.

Until then, any guesses on the frame?

the better half

Kelly and I at Arista Winery - Sonoma County

If you’re married and trying to pursue this crazy sport of triathlon, you better have a supportive spouse. And that hold doubly true if you have kids.

Some things that I’ve learned, through trial and error mostly. A lesser woman would have changed the locks on me, but fortunately for me, my wife, Kelly, cuts me way more slack than I deserve.

Here we go:

1. Spectating at a race is nearly as tiring as actually competing in it. I’ve been on the other side of the ropes, as it were, on a number of occasions. As an athlete, your mind is occupied with your race, trying to get yourself prepared for a good performance. As a spectator, 50% of your mental energy is spent trying to send good vibes to your loved one, 25% is spent thinking how much you’d rather be in bed and the rest on where you can get some friggin’ coffee. A coffee stand near the transition area would clean up!! Ok, so nce you get the race area, you stand around, chat with other supporters a bit. And wait. And wait. And wait. And trying to figure out the exact moment when your athlete is going to flash by. How long did she think the swim would take? She started at 6:47 and 30 seconds, a 20 minute swim means she should go by at roughly 7:07 and oh crap, there she goes! Damn it, I didn’t have the camera ready!

2. Spectating at a race while simultaneously watching two young kids is HARDER than racing. Seriously. The kids and I watched Kelly compete at the Danskin race at Disneyland recently. Between getting the kids packed up in a stroller while they are still completely asleep, making sure they have food and drink for the day, managing to get them both to go to the bathroom in a porta potty at the same time without disaster (can’t leave one alone outside, ya know), prevent them from running out in front of speeding cyclists on the bike course, and calming them down after one of them drops a sippy cup in a lagoon. I was DYING for Kelly to finish just so I could get some help!! And that was a 2 hour race. How she does it for a 5+ event like a half-ironman, I honestly have no idea.

3. On a related note, no matter how exhausted you are when you cross the finish line, you better be ready to take over with the kids when you’re done. Like I mentioned before, your finish line is your spouse’s finish line as well. She (or he) is Finished taking care of the kids. Time to take off the race number and strap on the baby carrier. No complaining about how tired you are…get it?

4. Say goodbye to race expos. Yes, they are full of cool stuff to buy. We all have to procure those last minute items that every triathlete needs like Gu flasks, Co2 cartridges and Lacelocks. Do yourself a favor. Buy that stuff in advance. Get your race number and get out of there. Your spouse and your kids have no desire to be there…and are spending a whole day watching you tomorrow. Don’t make ‘em waste their day watching you pick out a new race number belt.

4. Race day is all about you, the athlete. And justifiably so, you’ve trained hard for your event, so come race morning, you deserve the ability to focus, prepare and enjoy your race experience. But, see #3 above. Once you’re done, you’re done. Save the talk about your next event for a few days down the road….the last thing your spouse wants to hear is more talk about your next heavy training block and another race.

5. So, do something fun for the family the day after, the week after, even the month after your big event. If you do Oceanside 70.3, take the kids to Legoland on Monday (Your legs will appreciate the walking). After Vineman, hit up the wineries and drink some old grape juice.  After IM Hawaii, relax on the beach for a few days afterwards and let your spouse indulge in a spa day while you hang with the kids. Let the training and triathlon talk disappear for a while.

There is more to life than triathlon after all. Right?