Full Vineman 2014 Triathlon : Official Thread (Page 9)

Good point Kate - I guess the countdown is beginning!  So yesterday I put the tires that I plan to race with (Continental GP4000s) tires on my bike as I wanted to give them a break in period before actual race day.  Yesterday I had my LBS install my 11-28 cassette after my two laps on the course last week.  I guess we are entering that stage of anticipation and preparation (and perhaps a little trepidation) that gets the juices flowing a little faster.

So today I take the bike out on a longer and hillier ride to see how I like the 11-28 and the new tires and to make sure the chain and derailleur all works just fine with the new cassette.  The ride has a good hill and provides great training for Chalk hill, so figured it would be a good test.  Here's what it looks like:

Everything performed smoothly and I am really liking the extra gearing I get with the 11-28.  I could really tell the difference if I was using the 28 and downshifted to the next gear, a 24, so that tells me there is really some good benefit regarding saving the legs with the new cassette.  The coach who created my plan (lives up near the course, has done Vineman multiple times, etc.) in a recent email to all plan users recommended going to a 11 or 12-28 if you have a compact crank on the front and going to a 12-30 if you have a standard crank and I have to say, I think it was good advice.

Well that's the good news, the bad news is that at about the 17 mile mark my brand new 4000s rear tire found a 3/4" machine screw complete with washer on the roadway.  The result was a flat and a 1/4" gash in the tire itself with 24 miles to go.  After a few choice expletives, I went about the task of replacing the tube and using some advice I'd seen in a posting here on BT somewhere.  I took my emergency $20 bill, folded it up and placed it against the inner wall of the tire where the gash was, then inflated the tube.  Worked beautifully and got me home.  I must admit to being a bit more restrained on the downhill from that point on, but never had any cause for concern.

Finally, remember I mention putting pretzels on the tube of your aero bottle to provide a not-so-sweet snack alternative?   It tried it out today and it worked fine:

Now it is just a matter of finding the right pretzel.  These particular ones were not very dense nor did they have enough salt to make them the optimal race snack, so will have to keep looking.  Old dogs, new tricks.  What have you got up your sleeves that we could learn from?

Rita, sorry to hear that the inserts did not prevent the hot spots.  Thinner socks and moving the cleats back seem to be the next low cost steps before having to look at investing in new shoes (have you loosened up the front strap on your shoe to create more room in the toebox area?)  And congrats on winning the paddleboard.  That ought to be welcome on the hot summer days there!  I looked around and found a 12-30 on amazon for $68 - not a whole lot more than the 11-28.  Here's the link:  http://www.amazon.com/Shimano-CS-6700-Ultegra-Cassette-10-Speed/dp/B002KNLX10/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1403045078&sr=8-1&keywords=12-30+cassette.  You might want to check with your LBS to make sure whatever you buy is compatible with your chain and derailleur before you pull the trigger on the purchase.

Jose, you called it - a 2012 P2, and I love that bike!

Just finished my longest run thus far of this training cycle, 17.6 miles/2hr33m, so an average pace of 8:52.  What I really liked was the HR where I had an average of 133 which is solidly in z1.  Didn't expect that!  Guess there is something to the argument that s/b/r really does build up one's aerobic system.  Now after swimming 2.4 and riding 112, I expect the picture will be slightly different

Dan, just be glad the seat broke on the training ride and not during the race!  That last 10 miles or so must have been a bit disconcerting and perhaps uncomfortable; glad it worked out OK.  I have always had a real problem with going out too fast on the run, and my HR shoots up.  For this training cycle, I've set up a custom workout on my Garmin that has an alert that goes off if my pace is any faster than an 8:58 to teach me to go slower and control the HR (current plan is to use this during the race as well).  I do a short 1.1 mile transition run after every bike just to reinforce this, and it has helped a lot.  When I first did these runs (without the alert), my HR would end up in high z2; on the one I did yesterday which was after a higher intensity ride, it only peaked at 1.7 because of the more measured start and hopefully, the training!

I agree that it has snuck up on us.  I'm alternately wishing it was tomorrow since I've avoided any training-ending injuries thus far, and wishing it was further out so I could do more training.  I keep chanting the mantra, "Trust the plan, trust the plan, trust the plan . . ."  I get the feeling taper is going to be a barrel of laughs for all of us!

I'm guessing we are all a bit tired right now as we hit peak training weeks - I know I am.  I'm finding staying on top of nutrition every day is vital or my energy level will all of a sudden plummet along with my motivation to get out the door.  Between base metabolism and exercise today, I will need to take in over 6,000 calories.  This is quite a challenge but did teach me the importance of pre-loading before the big workout days and the on the bike/run nutrition.  Today was the big combination training day (1.8m swim/68 bike/8.5 run), so got up at 3:00 am and had two Boost nutrition shakes and a big slice of whole grain bread with homemade ollalaberry jam on it as a practice for race day.  This got me started with about 700 calories and I've found it makes a big difference on my energy level throughout the entire workout.  Added about 1400 calories on the bike/run in the form of Infinit, Honey Stinger waffles, gels and, of course, a Payday bar.  When I got done with the run I was starving though, but I'm not sure if I could take any more carbs without getting nauseous on the run.  The good news is that after today's hard workout, I get two rest days!  The bad news is that next week is the peak training week and includes a 6 hour ride followed the next day by a 2:45 run.  It is all downhill from there though!

Hmm, just noticed the date.  The race is officially 1 month away.  Let the obsessing begin!

Saw this over on the Vineman 70.3 thread, and thought I'd share so you could check off one box of anxiety inducing items:

From the official forum over on active.com:

OFFICIAL 2014 Water Condition Thread

June 18th:

The Temporary Dam has been installed @ Johnsons Beach

* The entire Dam is not contructed so there are some shallow places near the 2nd bridge and 1000 meters up river ... it is swimmable ... once the final pieces fo the Dam are constructed it will be considerably deeper

* Water Temperature at 8am this morning = 70 degree's

So last week was my birthday, and my preschool granddaughter gave me the gift that keeps on giving - a cold.  Just in time for my peak training ride and runs.  Thanks Honey, for thinking of me . . .