So you want to ride a bike? First step: Find the right fit.

A friend has asked me to put together some information that would be helpful to someone who is interested in getting into cycling but doesn't really know where to start.  I have been riding bikes for quite some time - really it started in 1985, however there have been periods that I have not really been cycling much.

That being said, I've been consistently cycling since returning to Greenville in 2005.  Started with my mountain bike, then more recently onto a road bike.  Between my wife and I we have 9 bikes.  Some are ridden more than others of course, but they span the range from a vintage Schwinn Tandem to a high end full carbon road bike and includes various other road and mountain bikes.

So, how's that help you, maybe not much right now, but my experience with bikes is what I hope to share with you so you can make some sense out of the whole bicycling scene.  You see, selecting a bike (new or used) starts with finding the right fit.  The right fit is really about three things:

• Your lifestyle and the type of riding you want to do.
• How much money you wish to spend (how does the purchase fit your wallet)
• Your physical size and fitting the proper frame size to you.  

The very first thing I want to encourage is for you to find all of the local bike shops in your area.  Forget about bikes from big box stores (especially from places like Wal-Mart, Target, KMart, etc.) and steer away from even the big box sporting good stores (locally we have Academy Sports, Dick's, etc.).  The key point here is you want to find a place where the people are VERY knowledgeable about bikes.  The local bike shop is your very best source of information and for quality bikes.

1.  Your Lifestyle and type of riding
So, let's get started on fitting you to a bike.  First you need to consider what type of riding you wish to do.  There are a TON of different types or styles of bikes out there, just check out this page from Bicycling Magazine.  I count 28 different styles of bikes on that page!!

However, even with 28 styles of bikes, you can still create a smaller number of groupings.  Clearly, even Bicycling Magazine has broken it down to a certain extent.  Just within the Road and Mountain categories are a total of 18 specific styles.

Since this post is intended for a new rider who's interested in getting fit, I'm going to try to keep it  relatively simple and break it down into only three Categories:  Road, Mountain and Hybrid.

Road Bikes:
Road bikes are generally a skinny tire bike that obviously goes best on the road (and generally quite fast).  Think of Le Tour de France.  While those bikes are true race bikes, most 'roadies' are riding bikes quite similar to what those Pros are riding.  Generally these bikes have a total of 20-22 speeds (gears) and a body forward riding position.  Depending on where you are with your fitness, this body forward riding position may be difficult for you. 

Here's my personal road bike.  While it doesn't fit into Bicycling Magazine's category "Road - Dream", it really is just about my dream bike (Pinarello ROKH):

Bicycling Magazine actually puts that bike in the Road - Plush category.  Why it falls into this category is a good reason for you to go visit your local bike shop - they can help you sort out the many different styles of Road Bikes.  If you are interested in a road bike, read the reviews of the bikes in the "Road - New Rider" category.

The bikes found in this 'New Rider' category are going to have frames mostly of aluminum, but there may be a lower end carbon frame in this bunch.  Component group (see your local bike shop... ;) will be lower to mid range as will wheels, saddle, handlebars etc. 

Getting involved in road riding is pretty easy.  Every local bike shop here in Greenville offers an opportunity for group rides - it's pretty much common everywhere.  They'll have a group ride for just about every level of rider available.  You should also support your local Bicycling club - they are working to make roads safe and to promote bicycling as a mode of transportation, not just for kids.  If you don't know how to find out about a local club.....yes, go talk to the folks at your local bike shop.  They'll point you in the right direction.  

Mountain Bikes:
Another category to consider are the Mountain bikes.  These are 'fat tire' bikes generally with gearing.  Some of these are fully rigid (no suspension) while others may have just a front suspension and then there is a crop of full suspension bikes.  They'll weigh more than a road bike and they won't be near as fast (on the road) but you get that back in comfort.  Of course, these bikes are made to handle off road terrain, so this opens up a whole new experience that Road riding can't touch.  The riding position is generally more upright and the bike will feel quite plush (as compared to a skinny tire road bike) - especially a full suspension bike. 

The variations on mountain bikes are massive.  Today you can get a mountain bike with 26" wheels, 27.5" wheels or 29" wheels.  There are plenty of people who will tell you one is better than another, but read up on the reviews a little and talk to the folks at the bike shop.  They'll help point you in the right direction.  I have three mountain bikes in my personal stable.  Single speed rigid, a front suspension multi geared bike and a full suspension multi-geared bike.  Here's my Surly 1x1 (single speed, rigid) and my full suspension Kona. 

Each bike has it's purpose, and for me it's all just for fun.  For you, the bikes in the mountain bike category (look again for the "Mountain - New Rider" category) will provide a comfortable mount for you to get around town or out on your local trails.  

Take note:  Mountain biking requires a level of skill beyond that needed for riding on the road.  If you choose to buy a mountain bike and wish to take it off road, please check into meeting up with a local IMBA chapter - see this information for a local chapter.  Folks in these organizations frequently offer up group rides and may cater to beginners.  If you don't have a local chapter, well, go talk to the folks at the local bike shop from which you purchased your bike - they'll be able to help you find opportunities to get off road in a location that best matches your ability. 

Hybrid Bikes:

Hybrid bikes are generally more oriented towards the road with skinny(ish) tires, but offer the comfort of an upright seating position.  From the Bicycling Magazine link above, check out the "Commuter and City" bike category. 

These bikes will move quite well on the road and handle some minor dirt or gravel conditions.  Generally these bikes have gears which make getting around much easier.  They'll be easy to attach a rack or a basket and in fact may come with some of this stuff.  Not much more to say about this category except - go see your local bike shop!

2.  How does this bike purchase fit your wallet?

This is a tough question.  Clearly if you go to Walmart or one of those types of stores you can find bikes for extremely cheap.  YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!!  Please do a little research and purchase a quality bike - the kind that you find at a local bike shop.  You can buy new or used, but the value of quality groupset (shifters, derailleurs, brakes) makes a HUGE difference in how much time (or money) you'll spend on maintenance.  

You can see that bikes in the categories I've linked to above range from about $400 for the lower end bikes in Commuter / City and Mountain Bike new rider categories (about $600 in Road New rider)

and up to about $1400 for Mountain bike new rider, $1900 for Road New Rider and almost $5000 in the commuter / City category. 

Once you find the type of bike you want to ride, look into finding used.  Your local bike shop may have a bulletin board, online bike Forums, Craigslist, e-bay, etc.  All are good sources to find quality used bikes.  If you're not comfortable looking at a bike to asses it's condition, check with your local bike shop to see if they offer a service where they would check the bike out for you.  If someone is selling a quality bike, they should understand if you'd like to have a professional check it out for you.  Always check first with the bike shop, then suggest that the seller meet you there so you can look at and ride the bike. 

3.  Find the right bike frame size for your body. 
I can't stress how important this is.  There are some very detailed measurements that are taken when one goes to a professional bike fitting.  These measurements are intended to help the pro adjust your bike to fit you.  However, I don't recommend paying for a professional bike fitting at this stage, wait until you've found your inner cyclist and have decided that you really want to upgrade to a higher end bike.  That's the time to pay for a fitting (these can cost $200 or more and take several hours). 

However, since you're just getting into cycling, you'll have to do the best you can following the advice you'll receive from your local bike shop or from friends who are into cycling.  MOST IMPORTANTLY, ride a bike before you buy it.  Adjust the seat height and have a quick lesson on how to use the shifters.  Try to ride for more than just a few minutes.  If you're buying from a bike shop, they'll be able to set the right seat height. 

A couple of things to watch out for: 

• Don't 'reach' too far to the handlebars.  This can cause strain on your lower back and it indicates that the frame is too big for you.  Even in a body forward style road bike, you need to watch out for this.  Your core has to support your body when you are riding - you don't want too much weight on your hands (regardless of type of bike).  
• Seat height - your leg should not be fully extended but you don't want too much bend when the pedal is at the bottom of the stroke and the ball of your foot is on the pedal.  Just a little bit of bend is what you want.  Watch out for a seat tube that is extended all the way out or conversely seems to be all the way in.  All the way out could indicate that the frame is a little small, all the way in could indicate the frame is a little big.  If your knees are hitting the handlebar it's pretty likely the frame is too small.

Hopefully this information is helpful in getting you started on finding a bike.  Cycling is a fun, low impact exercise that you can enjoy with friends and family.  Additionally, cycling gives a great mental boost - it can really make you feel like a kid again. 

Of course, once you choose a bike, you'll have to outfit yourself with appropriate equipment and clothing.  I will say that you should purchase a helmet when you get the bike.  Nothing more important than protecting your head.  Next time we'll talk about other stuff you'll need to make your ride more enjoyable and safe. 

Wildlife sighting!!

Back out on the Dale Ball trail systems today.  Today we started from yet another trailhead, this one called Sierra Del Norte.

These trails, like those from yesterday, are very runnable.  That being said, there was a couple times where Jenny and / or I did some walking.  Probably still a function of the altitude despite the fact we've been at altitude for nearly a week.

 The map above labels the intersections.  Our route went from 1 to 2 to 3, although we took the big loop around to get to intersection 3.  Just after starting on that big loop and barely a mile in - Jenny trips on a rock.  She is fine, although likely her pride was as skinned up as her chin / hands / knee are.  She bumped her chin and her knee pretty hard.  I felt so bad for her.  She being the trooper she is, she kept running.

Shortly after that, I finally get a wildlife sighting!!  Coming around a bend I see a pretty big Coyote trotting up the trail in front of me.  He / She turned around and gave me a look, but turned left off the trail pretty quickly.  Jenny came up and we looked for a minute but the Coyote was gone.  The loop around from 2 to 3 is a beautiful trail with some very nice views out over Santa Fe.

At intersection 4 our garmins showed around 2 miles.  Jenny was worried about her knee so she headed back to the car while I continued to intersections 5, 10, 7, 6, then I started backtracking to intersection 5, 4, 3 - long way around to 2, then back to the car.

That put me a little over 5.5 miles on the day.  Amazing how the altitude affects one out here.  My heart rate was pretty high at times when I wasn't really moving that fast.  Beautiful place, great running conditions.  I only wish Jenny hadn't had her spill so we could have run together.  

Post Jemez trail run

Great day today.  We started with a fine breakfast, enjoyed coffee on the porch then headed up to the foothills for another trail run.  We managed to find information about the Santa Fe Foothills trails systems and even better we found that we could get a free map of the area!  Love having maps when running in unfamiliar territory.

Today we chose to run trails associated with the Dale Ball trail system.  From our little condo it took less than 15 minutes to arrive at the trailhead on upper canyon road (that was after stopping at the visitors center for the free map).  The terrain was mostly runable for us although there were a few spots where one or both of us walked up (or down) a section.

We started with the Nature Conservancy Interpretive trail that goes around a small pond.  A quick stop at the Audobon Center and we were back on the trails.

It was a great day for running and the foliage in the area provided for some shade along the way.  The route we took seems to be at an elevation between about 7000' and 7600' (not clear on the map).  That being said, the elevation definitely played a part in our effort.

Despite the difficulty my calf gave me on the Jemez half marathon last weekend, it felt great today.  Crazy!  Very glad there is no more trouble, but bummed it had to happen for the half.

The trails were well marked and at each intersection was a permanent copy of the map I had in my pocket.  Distances between intersections are indicated and the intersections are numbered.  Even better, the map is properly oriented so the intersection is easy to figure out which way to go for the different trails.

We saw a few mountain bikers out there.  No wonder, the trails were technical but totally rideable.  A great resource for the folks in Santa Fe.  If you come out this way, definitely pick up a map at the Santa Fe Convention and Visitors Center at 201 W. Marcy Street (not far from the plaza) and give these trails a shot.

The most difficult trail run yet

Was the Jemez Mountain Trail heavy Half.  14 miles through some very rugged but very beautiful mountains surrounding Los Alamos, New Mexico.  A number of factors lead me to the title statement, but let's start a bit further back.

Jenny and I made the choice to do this trail half marathon several months ago.  With our nephew graduating High School in Clovis (New Mexico), it seemed a great opportunity to work in a nice event and wouldn't you know it, an excellent opportunity presented itself with the Jemez Mt Trail Runs.

These runs include the heavy half, a 50km and a 50 mile run.  Neither of us are prepared for the longer distances, but we both felt we were prepared for the half.  After all, we'd just finished the Smoky Mountain Relay where my last leg was one of the harder legs on the relay (certainly not the hardest, but among the most difficult).  That last leg was 9.5 miles with about 3000' of elevation gain over about 5 miles.  Furthermore, just a couple of weeks before the Jemez, we did a little less than 11 miles with plenty of climbing at Paris Mt State Park.  Because we weren't looking to set any records at Jemez, we felt we were well prepared.

We flew into Albuquerque on Wednesday prior to the event date (event date was May 24).  Dinner with family (in Clovis) Wednesday night and in bed early to try to work out the kinks from a long day of travel.  Thursday morning we got up to do a little run just to keep the legs fresh.

In Clovis there are really no hills, but the altitude is somewhere near 5000'.  We saw this as an opportunity to begin our acclimatization.  We left direct from the hotel and within 3/4 mile I suspected I might be in a little trouble with my right calf.  My lower leg was sending me some signals that I didn't like, but I thought I'd be ok, I'd felt this same feeling before.  Unfortunately by the time we hit a mile my calf was near full lockdown.  I told Jenny about it and decided I needed to stop running.  Because she was feeling fine, she was doing laps out and back to me as I walked, then ran back towards the hotel.

I made it by mostly walking back to the hotel.  By that time my calf was VERY sore.  I did my best to stretch it out after arriving at the hotel.  I wasn't pleased.

The rest of the day Thursday and all day Friday I didn't do any running and stretched as best I could.  Friday was a lot of hanging out with family before our Nephew's graduation which started at 6pm Friday.  We didn't get out of Clovis until around 8pm.  Thankfully we have a great friend in Los Alamos who put us up for the night (we arrived at midnight) and had some nice hot coffee ready when we woke at 530am Saturday morning before the race.

DeWayne and Valeria led us over to the start line where we were greeted by the awesome volunteers at packet pickup.  All went smoothly as expected and we lined up for the start.  Both of us were equipped with 50 oz camelbak packs with three or four Gu packs each. 

We started off like many other races do, we were passing people, people were passing us.  No complaints here, it made for a nice warmup.  Downhill on the road with plenty of room to maneuver around other folks.  I was trying to get a feel for my calf and I didn't really like what I was feeling. 

I'm a natural fore-foot runner so of course my calf plays a very important part in my stride.  I could tell it was not going to cooperate with me this day.  It was still early but I could feel the soreness and I had to compensate for it in my stride.  This put me into a heel strike mode.  I've run plenty of miles using a heel strike stride but they never turn out as well for me. 

Part of my compensation was to relax into the run and forget any competitive thoughts.  While I'm not a guy who is generally looking to win any races, I am a guy who sets goals and pushes myself to meet or exceed them.  My competition is with myself.  I had to really work to put these thoughts aside.  I knew I would end up with real issues somewhere along the way if I didn't take this relaxed approach. 

Off the road and onto the trails was great.  There were a lot of people out there but all were very cordial when passing or being passed.  At times I just sat in behind a group and at others I worked my way past them.  I'm a big proponent of giving the person in front of me the opportunity to find the right place (read 'safe' place) for me to pass so I talk to them when I am ready to pass.  Others who passed me treated me with similar respect.  I like that. 

My calf was feeling well enough as we ran through some beautiful terrain and up on the lower slopes leading to Mitchell Aid Station.  Except for maybe a rare occasion when traffic caused me to have to walk for a couple of steps, I was able to run all of that terrain.  Not bad considering we come from a town whose elevation is something around 1000'.  I could feel the altitude though.  I knew it was going to play a factor in my day. 

After Mitchell AS of course the trails turns up.  It was here that the terrain combined with the altitude really could be felt.  While my calf was forcing me to run differently than my natural stride, I was able to run / walk well enough.  As with many others on the climb to Guaje Ridge I was walking the steeper parts and running when I could.  I thought it was very cool that I could look back on the trail and see Jenny coming up behind me.

At the AS at the top of Guaje Ridge, the folks were super nice.  Because I knew Jenny wasn't far behind me I decided to wait.  Of course as I waited I chatted with some of the volunteers.  THANK YOU so much to these folks who give up their day to help us out.  I hope I was able to communicate my thanks to them. 

Within a few minutes Jenny arrived at the summit.  I was glad to see her and while I could tell she was feeling the effects of the effort and the altitude, she looked to be in fine condition.  We ran for a while together, then I started to open a gap. 

Here's where my calf really started talking to me.  Normally when I am not nursing an injured calf, I can move quite quickly down a trail.  Of course I do this by bouncing from rock to rock on the ball of my feet.  My calf was having none of this so I was in short stride, heel strike mode.  Add to this the VERY narrow trail which forced me to take slightly longer strides than I would have liked and I found myself moving quite slowly down the mountian. 

It wasn't too long before I was being passed by a lot of people.  I knew that Jen wasn't too far behind so I would look back to see her occasionally.  We would run together at times where the terrain caused our paces to match and at times I would open a small gap when the terrain leveled out or the trail became wider to allow me a more natural stride length. 

We ran briefly on a fire road before turning right onto more single track.  This brought us to the top of a very beautiful canyon.  I can't find the name for this canyon, but running down through this canyon was one of the highlights of the run for me.  I was starting to feel some fatigue now and I was a little worried that my heel strike stride was causing a blister on my right foot.  Just what I needed. 

Jenny was still with me or just behind me as we ran through this canyon.  She looked like she was beginning to feel the effort as well, but as normal, she soldiered on.  We came upon the Oasis which was the last chance saloon after running past a number of signs that made me laugh.  These folks really went all out to make for a great aid station. 

Of course the route then took us up one last slap in the face of a climb.  We managed to pass a couple of folks going up this climb, then into the home stretch.  Again, some great running on some wonderful trails.  Jenny and I stuck together through this last part, although I opened a small gap before our final climb through the rocks to the finish chute. 

I waited for her at the top, and we ran through the finish chute together.  I love that we can share these events. 

In the end, I have to rate this as my most difficult trail run to date.  Combine the altitude with the elevation gain and some extremely rugged terrain with the fact I was running injured and it all adds up to a very tough day for me.  That said, I really enjoyed spending that 3 hours out on the trails in the Jemez Mountains.  Maybe next time I can do it without the injury and just battle the course.

A final note - We had it easy with the weather.  We were back at DeWayne's house, showered and having lunch by the time the skies opened up.  The folks on the 50k and 50 miler have my enduring respect for the conditions in which they had to race.  Congrats to all of you who ran in those conditions, bummed that some were not able to complete the course. 

JD's Blacksheep - 1997 Jeep Wrangler

1997 Jeep Wrangler Sport

Auto, AC, tilt wheel, 75,000 miles


I have taken the Jeep off the market so please don't contact me about selling it.  Since I had all of the specs listed, I thought I would leave it up.  

Body and interior:

. Hard Top
. . I still have the half soft cab and tonneau cover that used to be on the rig.  it’s yours if you buy

. Full Hard Doors

. Neoprene front seat covers

. rear seat and seatbelts included but not currently installed

. CB radio with external speaker

. factory center console



. Cab cover for when you have the hard top removed
. Paint is in overall good condition.



Tires and Wheels:

. 35x12.5R15 BFG Mud Terrain (all new last fall, including new spare)

. 15x10 Black wagon wheels (including spare)



Lift:

. Rubicon Express Long arm kit with one wheeling trip on rebuilt joints

. . Pro-comp 3.5" springs

. . 1" budget lift (spring spacers)

. . 1" Body lift

. Front adjustable trac bar
 - new Heim joint June 2013
. JKS quick disconnects

. 1" motor mount lift

. New Skyjacker Nitro shocks and steering damper (not yet installed as of 9/16/13 but is on the honey do list)


Engine and drivetrain:

. 4.0 L inline 6

. . Fresh valve job Jan 2007 (less than 5000 miles since)

. . New Water pump, hoses, thermostat (2007)
. . New Aluminum Radiator (2013)

. Banks header and complete exhaust system w/ new cat (replaced complete system Jan 2007)

. Champion tri-core aluminum radiator (new July 2013)

. AEM Brute force intake system with throttle body spacer

. Factory automatic transmission

. . Aftermarket transmission cooler

. . Skyjacker deep tranny pan

. NP231 transfer case

. . Aftermarket slip yoke eliminator kit

. Dana 30 (F) and 35 (R) axles

. . Detroit lockers and 4.10 gearing (Front and rear)

. . Superior axles Super 35 axle kit (rear)



Protection and recovery
:
. Toys by Troy sport cage (replaces the factory roll bar to windshield bars - connects to the firewall)
. Toys by Troy front and rear bumper with tire carrier

. Poison spyder customs rock sliders

. Skyjacker steering box skid plate

. Kilby gas tank skid

. Warn 9000# winch with remote

. . fitted with winch rope

. . will include original steel cable

. . various recovery items in recovery kit (turnbuckle, shackles, tow ropes, tree saver)

. Hi-lift 48" jack

. . Hi-lift jack base (the plastic base for soft surfaces)

Here's some photos:  http://1997wranglerforsale.shutterfly.com/pictures/8

Half way to Iron

It's done.  In the record books.  My first half ironman triathlon.  It was a great experience and at this moment, my legs are about as sore as they have ever been.  I'll sleep well tonight, probably very shortly after finishing this blog!

The event was the White Lake Half Ironman in White Lake, NC.  This course is very flat, and I was actually a bit bummed about that.  Me being the sick individual I am, I really wanted something with more hills.  Let me be absolutely honest - had there been hills on this course, I may not have been able to finish.  I went deep into the pain cave on the run, and I struggled just to finish on this flat course.

A few comments about the weekend in general:
**Hanging with some of my favorite peeps is a big part of why I even became interested in doing this event.  Some notable characters were missing from our weekend, and we truly did miss them.
**The organization by Setup Events was OUTSTANDING!!!!
**The volunteers on the course were AMAZING!!!  THANK YOU so much for your dedication.
**The spectators were also AWESOME!!!  Folks were out with water guns and hoses to spray down the competitors, others were just out there to give a cheer and words of encouragement.  These folks made it so much easier to finish the run portion of the event.
**Congratulations to everyone who finished the event.  Not just my friends who were down there, but also to all of the other competitors.  The conditions were really hard for that run so anyone who finished is a first class athlete in my book.
**Congratulations to my friends Jenny for her 4th place age group placing and Kristin for her 2nd place in her category in the Half and to RJ for his 3rd place age group placing in the sprint.  These peeps rocked it big time!

I'll put this link up here at the top - it is the 'live tracking' link from Setup Events.  My bib number was 74 (you may have to type in the number):
http://setupevents.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=live_timing&eventID=1924
Other friends who I know their numbers:
Jenny:  420
Tedd:  54
Ron:  105
Keith:  727
Justina:  148
Kristin:  711
Robin:  85
Scott:  49
Danette:  71

So, here's my perspective:

The Swim.
The swim was wetsuit legal, but I elected to NOT wear my wetsuit.  This probably cost me pretty dearly in the swim.  How much did it cost, I'll never know, but I feel sure that I was slower without it than with it.  I also found that my sighting still needs work.  In the end, my swim time was 45m2s.  Really not so bad considering I swam probably at least 100 extra meters because of my sighting.

Just after the first turn, I was struck by the lead woman from the group behind me.  She was flying!  I had a 5 minute head start, and she caught me within 600 meters or so.  AMAZING!  At the second turn, I was attacked by a pack of ravenous alpha females who must have sensed my weakness - there must have been about 10 of the light blue capped, over 34 women who passed me at that turn.  I just tried to stay out of their way.

I felt good at the end of the swim, and had a 2:41 transition to the bike.  Perhaps one of my better transitions so far, but I didn't have to remove my wetsuit.  I did spend a fair amount of time cleaning my feet and putting my socks on.  I know that would help me go faster.

The Bike:
On the bike, I went out feeling good and rocked a 22.8 mph pace for the first hour.  I was passing a lot of people and I caught up to Jenny at mile 10, Scott at mile 25 and Ron and Tedd at about mile 40.  Of course, after that first hour, I did start to slow a little, then we turned into the wind and had to fight that for about 20 miles or so.

It didn't help that my back started hurting at about the same time that we turned into the wind.  So, not only did I have to fight the wind, I had to do it from a less aerodynamic position to try and save my back.  That definitely slowed me down.  I finished with (I think) a 20.1 mph average.  The time was 2h44m29s.  I was hoping to get about 2h30m, but that was just not in the cards.

In the future, especially if I decide to continue these longer events, I'll be getting a professional fit and raising the handlebars a little to try to ease some strain from my back.  It is fine for a sprint, and maybe for olympic distance (20-30 miles - not sure exactly), but not for the half or full distances.

I was glad to see the transition area, and I had a 2:30 transition to the run.  I felt ok with that, although I made a serious rookie mistake.  I forgot my run number and left without it!

The Run:
I was about a 1/3 mile into the run when I realized I forgot my number.  I turned around briefly and asked a volunteer what I should do.  She said some people elected to go back for it.  I decided that I had my garmin, and if I didn't get an official time, at least I had my personal results.  I put it in the back of my mind and concentrated on the run.

My first mile was about 8m40s.  I was feeling ok, but I could already feel it in my legs.  More distressing, as I ran through mile 2 was my heart rate.  It was about 160 and I knew I would not be able to hold that pace for a half marathon distance.  My second mile was 9m9s and after that I slowed down.  I think the heat was really causing me some trouble, thus my high heart rate.

I grabbed an ice towel at mile 2, and stoppped in a port-a-john at about mile 3.  At first I tried to put the towel on my neck, held in by my jersey, but that really wasn't doing anything for me.  So I think it was at mile 3 that I simply laid it on my head.  What a relief that was.  I was so thankful for that ice water!

I ran for most of the first 7 miles.  I tried to stop running only at the aid stations which were placed at every mile.  I did drink water and refresh my ice towel at the stations.  I also took to scooping up some ice into my hat and putting it back on my head.  If my water cup had ice in it after the water was gone, I poured that down the back of my jersey.  I was soaked completely for almost the entire run.  My shoes were soaked!

The run course was out and back, so I was able to see my peeps after I turned around.  Jenny was just less than a mile behind me.  I figured she probably would catch me, but it would likely be very near the end of the run.  She looked good when I passed her.  Ron, Tedd, Scott, Robin, Justina, Kristin, Danette and Keith were all seemingly in good spirits when I saw them, some were walking, some were running.  I was glad to see all of them.

Miles 9-11 were the most difficult.  I struggled to keep running and I talked myself into doing 1/2 mile, then walking 1 minute.  Then, it was run 5 minutes and walk 1.  I don't know exactly what I did, but these two miles was when I was deepest in the pain cave.  Even though I knew there was 'only' a 5k left to run, I couldn't muster the mental fortitude to run the entire distance.

It was only when I crossed the 11 mile mark that I was able to summon the courage to pick it back up and run the remaining distance.  That is of course except the short walks at the aid stations to refresh my ice towel and get some water or HEED energy drink.  The last mile was tough, but it was actually a pretty decent pace - something near 10 minutes.

My overall pace on my Garmin showed 10:41/mile and the official results showed me completing the run in 2h20m25s.  About 20 minutes slower than I had hoped, but faster than I felt while I was out there.

Overall, my finish time was 5h55m5s (on 5/5 no less!).  My goal was 6 hours with a super goal of 5h30m.  I met my goal, so I am pleased with that. 

I'm in some pretty severe pain - mostly my quadriceps.  It is very difficult to navigate stairs and even slight grades.  Downhill is worse than uphill, quite surprisingly.

Will I do it again, Yes, but it will be a few days before you really start hearing the enthusiasm in that response.   

Lessons learned

My first on-road tri today. Me and a bunch of friends signed up and participated in the Downtown Columbia Tri. For many of us, it was our first 'real' triathlon. Without a doubt, all of us learned a heck of a lot!

This is actually a great course. The pool at Carolina is very nice. 10 lanes in the 50 meter pool. It made for perhaps the best introduction to a pool swim triathlon possible. Since the swim was 500 meters, you swam each lane one time. No doubling up in the lane which gave plenty of room to pass (or be passed!).

The swim was a complete eye-opener. Most of my friends agreed with me that the swim was a very hard event. It's going to take some time to get used to that. One thing that was nice was the way the race was started. One at a time, swimmers are released to do their swim. A five second gap between each swimmer. Being 172nd in the line, I had about 20 minutes to hang out before my chance to swim.

When it was my chance, I dove in and went about as hard as I could. What a fool! I did great for the first 50 meters, even passed the girl who went out in front of me. About half way down the 2nd lap, I swallowed a bunch of water and had to breast stroke for a couple strokes. By the end of lap 2, she re-passed me.

It wasn't until I was well into lap 3 that I started to settle down a little. I was too worried about going fast, and not worried enough about having good form. Had I slowed down just a little, I bet my time would have been better. My breathing was all messed up, I don't think I was using my core correctly and I'm certain I wasn't getting the appropriate amount of rotation. I was a mess.

My results showed it. I was ranked 141 out of 196 with a time of 11m58s for the swim plus about a 150m run to the transition area. The timing pad was not at the exit to the pool, it was at the entrance to the transition area. Not a problem, but it made it difficult to get an actual swim time.

However, since I was using my super cool new Garmin 910XT, I hit the lap button as I got out of the pool. It shows my actual 500m swim time as 11m23s. That means it took me about 25 seconds to jog that distance to the actual timing pad.

When I arrived at the transition, I did decide to wear socks for the ride (and thus the run as well). I didn't anticipate how tired I would be after the swim, so it took me quite a bit of time to get the socks on, and then the shoes. I lost my balance a couple of times before I started to slow down a bit and get squared away. I popped a gu packet, on with the glasses and helmet and I was heading out towards the bike course, and another timing pad to get my transition split.

Turns out that was a pretty slow transition at 1m43s. The fastest guys were doing it in around 30 seconds. Probably the average guy was doing it around 45s. Something for me to think about when I do the half ironman in May - I should just go ahead and sit down on my towel to put my socks on. Do it right away and don't waste the time.

I'm committed to putting on the socks. I don't think I can be comfortable for a 56 mile bike and a 13.1 mile run without any socks. That's why I did it today - all in training for the half iron. I probably could have been ok without socks for today, but it didn't serve the purpose of doing the transition just as if it were half iron race day.

I ran my bike out of the transition area and mounted up. The course immediately goes uphill. Not a super steep uphill, but a nice hill nonetheless. I kept it in the small chainring until I got to the top, then I kicked it into the big ring and started pushing as big a gear as I could handle.

The bike course was a great course. Three laps of 3 miles each. As a loop, of course you get to do some descending since you had that great opportunity to climb coming out of transition. I was really amazed to see people coasting down that hill. I was big ring, small cog and pushing for all I had. I was determined to gain as much as possible whenever I could push the gears.

I passed a lot of people. I think I was passed once where it actually stuck. One guy passed me just as we were getting towards the top of the climb, but I bombed past him on the downhill and never saw him again.

Of course I was riding my Javelin TT bike. For the most part, I was able to ride in the aero position. When I approached a corner at speed, I did sit up a bit and grab the bars with the brake levers. Never know when you're going to need to slow down a bit.

On my second lap, I passed Robin who was cheering us on outside the transition area. Almost as soon as I got past her, as the road started up again, I lost my chain! I had shifted into the small ring to tackle the hill, and boom, the chain falls to the inside of the crankset. I had to stop, so I lost between a half and a full minute getting the chain back in place. That includes the time for stopping and the re-acceleration in those big gears. Not the end of the world, but losing a minute on the bike cost me 10 positions in my bike leg ranking. As it was, I was ranked 40th with a time of 28m44s (the guy ranked 30th was 27:47).

Of course, I'm pleased with that result as it puts me in the top 21% of the field for the bike leg. Much better than the bottom 25% on the swim!

As I rolled back up to the transition area, I was feeling pretty good. The legs were holding up just fine. I dismounted and ran to my transition area to get ready for the run. I got out of my bike shoes and into my running shoes just fine. Removed the helmet, spun the race number from around back to around front, and headed out for the run.

I was already out of transition and headed up the road when I realized that I had forgotten my hat. While not the end of the world for a run that ended up being short of the advertised 3 miles (I clocked it at 2.75mi), I certainly don't want to forget that for the half marathon that finishes out the half ironman!

This transition was better, and the results show a time of 54s. Again, the fastest guys were doing it in 30ish seconds. Although I was better, it can use improvement. No reason to mess with my number at that point. and, DON'T FORGET YOUR HAT!!!!

As with the bike, the run heads uphill from the transition area. It was a mostly out and back course with a loop thrown in at the end before the finish. I set out on the course just trying to find my groove. At mile one, my pace was 7m58s. I was good with that, and would have been happy to have kept that pace for the entire distance.

At around mile 1, I passed my buddy Scott. He started about 40 swimmers in front of me. I didn't recognize him as I really was in a zone. Once he said something, I realized who it was and said hey. We weren't too far from the turn-around, so I got to see him again shortly. He was looking pretty good.

The next of my friends I saw was Rene. She looked like she was rocking it! Then, I saw Jen just as I started the last leg of the run, which was a loop around the block. Mile 2 was clocked at 7m32s, and the last .75 mile to the finish was clocked at 5m29s (a 7:17/mile pace). I really didn't feel like I was moving that fast! I was ranked 77th in the run. In the upper 50th percentile. Looks like there is room for improvement there.

My garmin shows a total time of 1h4m33s, while the official results show me at 1h4m31s. That puts me in 63rd out of 196 men. I'd say that is the top 30%, which is where I seem to end up in many of the larger events in which I participate.

So, what did I learn?
I need to concentrate on my form, and forget about speed for the swim. I'd probably be faster just in doing that. I'll contact a swim coach to see if I can get some help improving my technique. 1.2 miles is a hell of a long way to swim, and I need to get better. I have a little over a month.

Need to speed up the transition to the bike. Sit down immediately if I am going to wear socks. I'm certain that is where I lost all my time. I had a towel to dry my feet, but don't think that is necessary, just need one on which to wipe my feet.

DON'T FORGET MY HAT!!!!! Stupid move here. Again, not a big deal for a 2.75mile run, but I will definitely be hating it if I forget for a half marathon! Concentrate on smooth during the bike - run transition. Smooth is almost always fast.

Tune up my bike, and test ride it about a week before the event. For some reason, even though I have been riding the TT bike, I had not noticed the front derailleur contacting the big ring when I switched from small to big ring. Also, fix the damn thing so it won't drop the chain to the inside when shifting from big to small ring. I have time to mess with it, so I need to work that out.

Overall, I had a great time. My finish of 1h4m31s puts me in 9th place for my age group, and 63rd in the overall men's ranking. Nine women finished in front of me, so for the overall event, that puts me 72nd out of 271 participants.

Next up: I need to find another on-road tri. I need to get more swimming!