A foolish consistency

IMAZ 2007 - four weeks out

A busy training week.  The volume totals: 5900 yards swimming, 92 miles on the bike, 41.25 miles running. 

Monday is my usual lighter day after a big weekend - just a 50 minute swim in the pool.  Tuesday was a 50 minute swim, followed by a 2 hour treadmill run of 13 miles. Wednesday I did the max VO2 testing, which was actually a lot of fun and a tough workout in itself.   Thursday had a 2 hour trainer ride followed by a 30 minute run.

I skipped Friday night's planned 2 hour trainer session and 30 minute run - the sun was shining, it was in the low 60s, and I decided the best way to spend the evening was with Theresa out on the deck, enjoying a few glasses of wine.  Much as I enjoy training, life is too short to make that the only thing in my life.  And a day of recovery couldn't hurt.

Saturday morning was a series of hill climbs with Jill and my triathlon team.  First we climbed "Zoo Hill" on Cougar Mountain (2.6 miles, 1200 foot elevation gain, 10% average gradient).  This was my first climb up what is often considered the toughest climb in the Seattle area.  I usually don't ride this, because I frequently ride most of 153rd Ave home at the end of rides, and I don't need a lot more hill climbing.

Anyway, it was tough the first time, especially since I didn't know what was around each turn. I'd driven down the hill once a few months ago, but that's totally different. I got caught on the inside of the tightest switchback, and I really had to grunt out that climb.  Never get caught on the inside of a switchback.  Jill's instructions for the hill were to stay at AeT+10 (158 for me) to AeT+25 (173).  No problem...

We rode down (with me doing alternating braking to avoid overheating my Zipp carbon wheels), and then rode up right back up Zoo Hill again.  The second climb was actually easier since the anxiety of not knowing what to expect was gone, and I didn't have try to keep something in reserve for the second climb.  

After the second climb, we headed over to and then down Lakemont Blvd and then climbed it twice, standing for the first mile (!!) then riding all the way to the top past the park and almost back to the top of Cougar Mountain before heading back down to do it again.  My rough GPS data shows we climbed about 900 feet in 3.1 miles on each ride.  My heart rate was steady at 160 or so during the standing climb.  I was really happy with that, because only a few months ago the idea of climbing the bottom of Lakemont Blvd while standing would have been crazy talk.  Those trainer workouts have really paid off...

All rides end with a run, so after I headed home (climbing over the top of my own local hill, another 200 feet of climbing) I headed over to Redmond for a 60 minute out-and-back run on the Sammamish River Trail.   Theresa and my daughter Lana came along; they shopped at Redmond Town Center while I ran my 6.4 mile run. 

Sunday I went for a 3 hour out and back run on the same trail, with Shannon and Mark who are also training for IMAZ.  It was great to have running partners to talk with and share tips and stories.  We separated on the way back so we could each run at AeT pace.  My 148 bpm pace was around 8:30 or so, which is a big improvement over last year.  The run totaled about 18.7 miles or so.   After the run, I headed over to the Pro Sports Club (aka "ProClub") and did a 50 minute, 1750 yard swim session.  The kickboard work was tough, and my arms were surprisngly tired as well.  Next time I think I'll swim first...

This week marks the end of high volume training before IMAZ on April 15th.  Now the nature of the workouts will change to more specific strength building and maintenance. 

IMAZ 2007 should be quite an event for me and my family.  My training is solid, the house rental was worked out, the whole family is coming - I'm really excited about it.

Garmin Forerunner 305 aerobar mount

I'm a big fan of the Garmin Forerunner 305.  It gives me all the numbers to make my data loving heart go pitter patter.  And mapping your travels onto the globe is like "stalking yourself", as my friend Pat once said.  Who wouldn't love that?

So when I bought my new Cervelo, I decided I didn't need any other device to tell me speed, distance, heart rate, etc.  I had it all on the little box I love.  But after one ride, it was obvious that a wrist mount just wouldn't do.  I needed a bike mount.

Garmin, following their usual practice, has announced a bike mount for the 305 but it's not shipping yet.  I didn't want to wait, so I considered different ways to mount it myself.  All seemed seriously complex and difficult, except for the "strap it sideways over the stem" approach which I've been using these past weeks. Sideways doesn't exactly enhance readability at speed.

I mentioned it to my colleague Warren (carbon fiber sailboat guru) but he felt making some carbon fiber gizmo would be overkill.  Pshaw I say, any excuse to use carbon fiber is worth it.  But I must admit he has a point.

After some research, I found that the common wisdom for mounting a Forerunner 305 on an aerobar is to use a Polar heart rate mount with a Profile Designs aerobar computer mount.  The next time I had a chance to go by REI, I picked up the parts and gee whiz, what do you know:

It works:

My Cervelo P3 Carbon

A few years ago, I figured that if I'm going to be serious about triathlon, I'm going to need a serious triathlon bike. So after a year of consideration (hey, am I really serious, or what) and checking out several other bikes, I decided "yes, I'm going to be serious" and bought this bad boy:

This is my 2007 Cervelo P3 Carbon (aka P3C) with Dura Ace crankset (replacing the stock FSA crankset), Ultegra brakes (replacing the stock house brand Cervelo brakes), VisionTech R-bend carbon aerobar clip-ons (replacing the stock alloy clip-ons), and a pair of Zipp 404 clincher wheels (not dimpled, but cool black and white logos that match the bike), and a Profile Designs Tri Stryke TI saddle.  You also see the XLab FlatWing behind-the-seat bottle mounts and CO2 cartridge mount system. 

Since I took this photo, I've raised the seat 5mm and flipped over the stem, lowering the aerobars about 10mm, giving me more of the "drop" necessary for an efficient aero position.

Every time I ride this outdoors, I'm stunned by the difference between this and my 2003 Trek 5200.  It flys downhill effortlessly, it glides along on the flats, it's just flat out a fast bike.  I'm definitely serious now.

Max VO2 Testing

Earlier in the week I had my max VO2 (also known as VO2max) and lactate numbers tested at Harriot Sports Performance in Seattle.  These numbers will tell me how big of a cardiovascular "engine" I possess, and how efficient my system is at producing energy, and Jill (my triathlon coach) will use them as a basis for my workout planning for the next few months.

I brought my Cervelo to their offices on Western Avenue, where Todd and Russell set it up in a trainer stand with a CompuTrainer to measure power output.  The test began with a 10 minute warmup, then wearing a mask I did the max VO2 test.  This test started at 100 watts, then every minute the wattage ("effort") was increased by 20 watts until I maxed out halfway through the 320 watt set.   The heartrate plus data from the oxygen mask sensor gave the max VO2 numbers.  The wattage was lowered, then a series of blood tests are done at timed intervals as I increased my effort level and heart rate.  These tests gave my lactic acid levels.  All this resulted in a set of numbers that I'm still working to understand.

It turns out that I have a max VO2 of 60.6, which is apparently a very, very good number.  I've read that this number is mostly genetically determined, and only marginally improved by exercise (although being a couch potato can hurt this number).

So what this says is that I've been a slacker all these years.  My VO2 Max is only marginally below "elite cyclists and runners" level, according to various sources I've read.  Apparently I deserve a "not working to ability" note on my report card.  Jill says that my goal should be to develop leg strength to cycle and run equal to my VO2 max number.  I foresee a lot of interval and tempo work in my future...

Also, it turns out that I have an efficient fat burning system, at least at lower heart rates.  This lines up with my own perceived effort, which says I can "go all day" at heart rates lower than 136 bpm.  My goal here is to move that drop-off point in zone 2 over into zone 4.

IMAZ 2007 - five weeks out

Only five weeks to go, so I'm into the heavy volume weeks. 

Last week was a run focus week totalling 7550 yards swimming, 76.9 miles riding, 44.4 miles running.

Saturday morning I did a 500 yard TT after a 2100 yard swim set, and my T-pace was 2:00. I'm happy about that, because although that's still slow it's significantly faster than last year's 2:35. My work on developing a better pull is working...

After 2.5 hours of yardwork Saturday afternoon, I went for a 3 hour, 20 mile run. 9 minute pace, 141 average HR.

Sunday was raining too hard, so I tried a long, easy pace ride on my CompuTrainer, simulating the IMAZ course. Aargh. I can run 3 hours on a treadmill (music or DVD to keep me company), but for some reason easy pace on a bike trainer kills me even with a DVD. I bailed at 2.5 hours and then ran 6 miles on the treadmill at 10 minute pace.  I tried reading on the treadmill, but the magazine print was too fine and my head was bouncing too much to be comfortable.  I've ordered a clamp-on book stand via Amazon; I'll let you know how that works.   

Normally I have music or a DVD on while running.  I'm mid-way through the second season of The West Wing.  Easily one of the best TV series of the past decade, even if it did go downhill after Sorkin left.  As I watch these one after the other, I've noticed a certain lack of variety in the dialog.   I think Sorkin should have worked harder on giving each character a more unique voice; the dialog seems interchangeable.   Or perhaps all Ivy-educated, liberal political functionaries do all sound alike.

IMAZ 2007 - six weeks out

Aargh.  Another non-normal training week.  I came down with a cold late Tuesday and by Thursday it had turned into a heavy cough and congestion.  Thus I skipped my Thursday workout as well as the mini-tri and interval ride on Saturday.  I even stayed home from work on Friday. 

Sunday I went for a 113 mile ride from Bridle Trails down past Orting and then back to my house.  This was a group ride for Jill and two groups of her athletes - Mark and Shannon training for IMAZ (along with Jill and I) and Jason, Char, and Michael training for Ironman Cour d'Alene.

I had a fantastic ride - a "best ride ever" day - on my new Cervelo P3 Carbon.  This is my second outdoor ride on the P3C, and I tweaked the aero position by flipping over the stem.  This was just as comfortable and a lot more aero.  On the second half of the ride, I raised the seat about 4mm which also improved aero position and leg extension when sitting up.

This bike is just plain fast!  This was my first group ride with it, and thus I had some comparison points.  It really picks up speed on the downhill - without pedaling, gravity alone accelerated me way past the other riders (most on road bikes with clip-on aero bars).

In the middle of the ride on Interurban, Jill had us ride at AeT + 15 which is 159 bpm for me.  My splits per mile were all in the mid 19 mphs, with a 20.5 mph miles.  And this was despite having many road crossings in this stretch.  On the way back, the goal was to ride it at AeT+10.  My splits were similar with a couple 20s.  I got a bit hot at one point, with a 21.1 mph mile at 157 average bpm.  I was just enjoying the steady speed at this point.  I was practicing keeping aero while sighting forward - not always an easy task.

Past Orting, we were on a fairly new trail, wide, smooth, and flat with no intersections.  Jason and I flew down this section at average speed of 22.3, with my average HR at 160.  On my Trek, I would have been happy to do this in the mid 19s.

On the way back, the rest of the group was returning to Bridle Trails for their 112 mile ride but I split off to ride the rest of the way home.  My guestimation was a bit off and I ended up with 113 miles, with the last mile the 400 foot climb from Newport Way up to my house.   Tri bikes are not made for climbing, and I know my Trek with it's Ultegra triple would have been a lot easier.

The thing about the 78 degree tri bike position is that it saves your legs for running by engaging your muscles differently than the more relaxed 73-74 degree road bike position.  I did a 30 minute treadmill run when I got home, and while my legs were tired, they weren't nearly has bad as they could have been.  It seems to work.