Deuceman Triathlon

I missed out on a couple of scheduled races in May so
I decided to race the Deuceman HIM in Show Low, AZ
earlier this week. It was a bit of a last minute
decision, but I thought I could do well there despite
a lack of planning. It was an altitude race: swimming
around 6300 ft, riding between 5500 and 7000 and
running around 6300 ft.

Unfortunately my altitude acclimization had faded
after 2.5 weeks in Grand Junction (4600 ft). I felt it
immediately at the swim start as I blew up like a
champ and was forced to throw in some backstroke every
100 meters to avoid hyperventilating.

The race just sort of declined from there. I felt
quite weak on the bike, but the thin air makes for
fast(er) bike splits no matter what so I was hoping to
at put together a reasonable run split and call it a
day. I ran one good mile off the bike and then began a
nice 12.1 mile jog/walk-aid-stations cool down. It was
frustrating, but it happens. In my case, it happens in
two consecutive races because of two entirely
different reasons. Lessons in humility, I suppose.

I had a race like this last year at Ralph's where I
limped into the finish line in 4:44 or something. I
finished this one in 4:33 so I made a subtantial
improvement on my 'blow up' PR.

I learned more about altitide as a result. Even though
I included training at 5000-7000 while living at 4600
ft, its not enough to show up at the race site 48
hours beforehand. The 24-hour rule would still apply
as my body had gone into 'acclimization mode.'

On the plus side, my two buddies, Chris and Marilyn,
won the men's and women's race and will be taking back
a grand total of 6,000 USD to Boulder. They both
looked really strong out there. They embodied the "I
want to look like him/her" characteristic. Real "Eye
of the Tiger" stuff.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I'm back in my adopted home of GJ again and its look
like there is a good chance that my father will be out
of the hospital on Monday. The fingers are crossed.

jd

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Where did J go?

Howdy. I'm in Grand Junction sitting in a hotel room.
I've been here for two weeks.

I often hesitate to write anything personal on the
internet that is not entirely about me (I guess you
can never write completely 'about me', but whatever).
In this case I am referring to my father and his
health.

My father went in for a 'routine' surgery two weeks
and one day ago. This particular surgery went well.
During his recovery an entirely different scenario
presented itself. He developed pancreatitis as a
result of a deteriorating gallbladder. A situation
that takes years to develop showed itself while my
father was actually in the hospital.

A second surgery was scheduled and he is now in a new
recovery phase after dealing with pain, fatigue, and
god-only-knows-how-much boredom. I have been trucking
over to the hospital mutiple times every day and I am
happy to report that yesterday was the best I have
seen him in this two week ordeal. He is weak, which is
a contradiction from his character, but he is doing
what he can to guarantee a safe and lasting recovery.

The doctors, PAs, and especially the nurses at the VA
hopsital in Grand Junction, Colorado have been
exceptional. However, my father's patience and
tenacity probably helped to generate such sympathy
(and in some cases empathy) from the hospital staff.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

As a result: No races in Memphis or Austin. Hardly
even worth mentioning given this situation, but I
thought I would point out the obvious anyways.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I have received a lot of emails and phone calls from
friends out there and I want everybody to know that I
genuinely appreciate every single one of them.

My father isn't out of the woods yet, but he certainly
seems closer.

-jd

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Altitude makes me sleepy

I typically try to write a blog every 5-7 days, but
its been nearly two weeks now since I wrote about my
lovely stomach ailment in Texas. Frankly, I would have
written earlier, but I've just been, well, tired. I
essentially became a 'triathlete + 1' for a couple
weeks while acclimating to altitude.

'Triathlete plus one' defined: I had the energy to do
my training 'plus' one more activity. That activity
ranged from cleaning my room, to laundry, to picking
up my bike case and other gear, but never reached the
blog. Normally I knock them out over early morning
coffee, but I've been sleeping through every_alarm,
every_morning.

Kind of made me laugh when BB and I made plans to get
going by 6:30-7:00 on about a dozen consecutive
mornings and I never even got out of bed until 7:30
(at the earliest). Luckily, he's pretty understanding
and flexible.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Its great to be back in this town. The first week is a
bit tough, but 5430 never seems_that_high since I
routinely go to 9500 when visiting my folks (and I
lived there years ago). Nevertheless, I still take
certain precautions in the first 3-7 (and even up to
14) days at altitude when arriving from sea level. My
best advice is to simply 'keep moving' during this
time period instead of following a normal training
routine.

An athlete needs to be really flexible during this
time period. Altitude training locales are always
filled with fit and motivated athletes, but I would
suggest holding off from those groups sessions (or
epic mountain rides) and becoming friends with your
thoughts for a few days. There is plenty of time to
get hammered into the ground and its probably best to
at least wait until the altitude isn't the variable
causing your heavy breathing.

+++++++++++++++++

Couple funny things...

I hurdled a snake Sunday while running around the
reservoir. It was in the 'read-to-strike' position and
everything and somehow I looked down in time to spring
over it.

I also hurdled some soccer balls during a track
workout (Thursday) since others were practicing while
I was running.

On Wednesday I was running along the Mesa trail and it
was becoming more and more muddy as the run
progressed. I kept telling myself it would surely get
better. Then I slid down the hill into a tree. I
turned around.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

More to come since I'm actually able to get up before
7:00 now.

-jd

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The revenge that is MONTEZUMA

Man. Being sick is a drag. Being sick to your stomache
is an even bigger drag. I had the pleasure of meeting
Montezuma last Thursday. I was strung out staring at
the wall like an idiot for a few days. I tried to
cheer myself from time to time by thinking of how the
situation could be worse. I concluded that if I felt
that ill, while driving from Jacksonville to LA on
I-10 with (any) Don Henley album on repeat, it would
be worse.

Well I hoped to get some good training in while
visiting my aunt and uncle in Melissa, Tx last week
but it turned out to be a bust. Since I was still too
sick to train, but not to sick to sit on my ass, I
decided to drive to Colorado a couple days early. I
also decided to go to Boulder via Crested Butte to
surprise my mom who I haven't seen since Xmas (and
Dad, but I saw hime one week ago in Houston).

She was surprised. I am no longer sick. It always
seems like life gets better when I cross that Colorado
border. I love this state.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Marc and BB towed to line at St Anthony's this
weekend. They both had solid races with Marc taking
the overall AG title. BB fought through some stomache
issues (sympathy pains, what a loyal friend) and still
went 1:56.

Good times,

JD

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Racing and thoughts

I didn't win. I really wanted to win, but I didn't
win.

I raced the Battle of San Jacinto OLY triathlon this
weekend in Houston (La Porte actually).

The race began in Galveston Bay and the water was
still cool enough to make the swim wetsuit legal
(barely at 77 or so). The water was a little choppy
and that typically works to my advantage. I tend to
get dropped early on in races when the pure swimmers
can hammer out in flat water, but choppy water keeps
things closer together and I have a better chance of
hanging onto the pack until the pace settles.

The swim broke up very quickly. Eventually the race
leader pulled ahead and I swam solo in second until it
finished. Unfortunately I was starting to feel really
hot and that is never a good thing for me. Overheating
in the water is quite detrimental to my racing.

I felt really sick at the start of the bike. My HR was
in the 180s, I puked, and I generally just felt
wrecked. Luckily the race included some solid climbs
early on which forced me to ride hard, but then
allowed my HR and my core temp to drop on the
descents. After the first 8-10 miles the course goes
dead flat. My legs felt much better by this point and
I was in the lead.

I overheated in the Lifetime Fitness Tri last year and
it showed itself on the run. Knowing this, I decided I
was going to "TJ" the rest of the bike course (ride as
hard as I could, a la Mr. Tollakson).

I hit the the two loop run course and I likely
ascended every single mile. Things were getting worse
and with one mile to go I was passed. I was frustrated
that I couldn't race to my normal ability, but I was
pleased that I managed to hold it together physically
until the end. I actually thought I was going to have
to drop out of the race around mile 2. I held it
together enough to hold onto 2nd so s'all good.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I kind of see the weather channel as the next MTV. MTV
revolved solely around music videos in the beginning
and the Weather Channel addresses the current (or
future) weather forecasts. Now we all know MTV has
next to nothing to do with music videos now and sister
stations (and sister stations of the sister stations)
had to be created to host these music videos.

The WC is the same way. More 'shows' are in the daily
and prime time lineup, and who knows? Maybe there will
be a WC2 one day.

-jd

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few minutes to kill

Well, I'm waiting to go to lunch with some friends so
I might as well give a quick update.

I'm actually in the middle of another serious blog,
but I haven't posted it yet. Sometimes I need to take
step back when I get worked up.

Lunch was cancelled.

Anyways, about taking a step back... ...I suppose I
can get a little worked up, especially with a couple
beers in me. I've been in Houston since late Monday
night (after a super awesome 14 hour drive from
clermont) and I've been doing my best to catch up with
my friends that still live here. Luckily my friends
and I don't need a lot of time to 'catch up.' We just
say 'what's up' and get right back into normal
conversations and such.

One of my buddies and I got into a conversation aout
sociology, gas prices, overpopulation, etc. and I was
getting pretty worked up about things. Kind of makes
me laugh when I take things so seriously, but I can't
help it sometimes.

Anyways, Houston is growing and its damn warm here.
June weather in April. Rough.

The Astros are great. I made it to a game the other
night. I won't pretend to be a huge baseball fan, but
I have always enjoyed Astros bb and I love to go to
games (especially with a big group). My friends are
bigger fans and it rubs off on me. Its also easier to
get into it when they are doing so well.

Training has been fairly light this week other than
running. I've been swimming and biking, but not as
much as usual. I'm racing a local OLY race tomorrow
and I'm pretty excited about that. I take pride in
being from Houston (even though I'll likely never live
here again. I'm done with big cities) and racing here
excites me.

I'll let you all know how it goes. Can't wait to have
breakfast at Goode Co Taqueria when its all over.

-jd

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PMAL

Last weekend BB and I traveled to Birmingham, Alabama
to race Powerman. Its a long course duathlon
consisting of an 8K run, 53K bike and then another 8K
run.

We got a bit of a cold blast over the weekend and race
morning was 41 degrees with steady winds out of the
North. I started the race with arm warmers and gloves
and I never regretted that decision.

PMAL was my first race pro race with a pro field.
Powermans tend to bring out the stronger runners in
triathlon as well as the pure duathletes. I had a feel
I was going to get dusted on the first run.

I was right.

The lead pack literally put about 200-300 meters
(being generous to me here) into me by mile one.
Awesome. My legs felt great and fresh, but my race
plan was to simply TT the course at the appropriate
effort and the overall placing after that would be
whatever it would be.

I went through the first run in 28:18, grabbed my bike
and headed out of T1.

The bike course at PMAL has a great road surface and a
solid amount of steady climbing. I was pretty far from
any of the pros in contention so I had an open road to
put my head down and ride hard for the first lap of
the course. I had to navigate my way through the AG
race after the first lap, but I finished the bike
without incidence.

I was pretty psyched when the second run got started.
I was starting to smell the finish line and my legs
were not completely toasted yet. I ran the second run
in 28:59 and finished 8th within the pro field and
11th overall. BB still races AG and had started around
nine minutes behind me. I waited at the finish line
hoping that nine minutes would pass by before he
crossed the line. Well, only 8:30 passed and BB took
the victory in the JDvBB classic.

We both agreed that duathlons are hard, but fun,
races. Powerman Alabama is a first class event managed
by Team Magic. I was impressed by the volunteers, the
host city, the officials, and the overall race
direction. To top it off, they imposed drug testing
for the professional athletes that placed in the
money.

I'm a little late on reporting about this race since I
jumped right back into training this week in Clermont,
but here are a few things BB and I learned over the
weekend:

1. Duathlons are hard.

2. Driving eight hours is not fun, even with two
drivers.

3. Fix your car stereo before you go on long road
trips.

4. Grits and Southern Homeade Biscuits can be
successfully eaten for breakfast the day before a
race.

5. Along the same lines, Taco Bell can be eaten the
night before. I'll let you all contemplate what we
ordered.

6. Having your own coffee and coffee maker on road
trips is the_best_idea_ever.

7. Alabama is a pretty state.

8. Duathlons are hard.

-jd

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Racing and Carpet Cleaning

I raced this past weekend and I had intentions of
writing something sooner, but I had a carpet to clean.
At least, I had a carpet I wanted to clean.

I don't think I've ever mentioned this, but I live
with a dude named Graham, aka, G Nash. GN and I met
before IM Utah in 2002 and have been friends ever
since. He has probably played the biggest role (second
only to my family) in supporting my pursuit of this
sport. For the past four months he has put up with
both BB and I. In exchange for his overwhelming
hospitality we try to pick up a little and look after
his friends (Fat Cat and Iggy Pop).

Anyways, I had this great idea about cleaning his
carpet when he was away on business. BB and I headed
over to Home Depot...

Off Tangent... ...Home Depot is amazing. Not really
the store itself, just everything that is going on in
there at that same time. Its the sort of place that
can make you feel a bit arbitrary (universally at
least). You might have these wonderful ambitions about
your own life while growing up (saving the world,
becoming president, curing cancer) and all of sudden
you find yourself debating about which kind of zip
ties you prefer. Not the most exciting moment of that
fancy journey you dreamed about as a kid (or adult).

Those are some of the less sexy moments of our lives
that don't get written/talked about, but are obviously
necessary. It kind of reminds me of all the aerobic
maintenance workouts in between the fancy ones. Its
all part of the program, but hardly memorable in the
long run. Ride left, ride right, out-and-back, etc.
(sorry, inside joke there)

Anyways, long story short: The carpet cleaner we
rented doesn't really work that well. In fact, it
sucked. 54 bucks, and 4-5 hours later we made a very
minor difference.

Through my own experiences I have now learned that two
things are worth the money:

1)Movers

2)Professional Carpet Cleaners (assuming your place
has more than a few hundred square feet of carpet).

+++++++++++++++++++++

Right, the race.

I did an OLY tri this weekend here in Clermont. It was
the last day of a 28-day training cycle. It was also
the fourth race in four consecutive weekends within
that training cycle. Nevertheless, I felt good about
it and I was pleased with the result.

I don't know why, but for some reason I lined up to
the outside at the swim start and it has_NEVER_worked
well when I have done that. I promise I will never
line up anywhere but the middle from now on. This
error left me TTing the course solo and I had
absolutely no one to work with. I came out in 21 flat,
but it was still 3.5-4 minutes down on the leaders.

I rode fairly hard (fastest bike split) and ran well,
but it was only enough to get me into 3rd overall. I
was within 90 seconds of the leader and I really gave
that away in the water. Oh well. I'll get this nailed
down eventually.

I was pleased with my run though. I ran the 10K in
36:33 and really felt in control the whole way. I was
only running about 8-10 sec/mile off my open 10K
ability so that was a good sign. I have not really
been blessed with incredible open run speed (working
on it), but I have been fortunate enough to access
that fitness more easily than some in triathlon
running.

So now I have a few easy days before heading to
Birmingham for Powerman Alabama. I have always wanted
to do this event so I'm pretty excited. Its also my
first race as an elite in a pro field. I reckon I'll
be a bit humbled as I will now start the journey
within a new set of ranks.

cheers,

jd

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Everything

Last weekend I made it out to a 10K race. We had near
perfect racing weather which was a major contrast to
every running race I've done so far this
winter/spring. My mind started to calculate these
magical splits that I would be seeing now that the
weather was not in my way.

I managed to go through mile 1 in a conservative (and
planned) fashion, but I could not descend with my
training partner after that. He was off and I was not.
I descended my own race, but I could not hang with his
race plan. I should know I can't change how fast I
want to be by wishing for ideal conditions or
complaining about not be 'fully rested.' Those sorts
of things account for minor differences and not for
major breakthrough performances.

After the race I heard a lot of people that "need more
speed work" or "need to train harder." I'm not
knocking them as I was contemplating my on Vo2
intervals, but perhaps we (or I) all need to take a
step back and come to one simple conclusion: We just
need to be more fit if we want to reach our goals. We
need to do more of everything.

A fellow triathlete in AZ, Lewis Elliot (who I have
finished 2nd to in more race than I care to
remember!), and I were having a conversation after
some race last year. He mentioned that someone had
asked him "what was holding him back" from a real
breakthrough race now that he was racing pro.
"Everything. I need_to_get_better at everything."

Off to the track,

jd

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Not as cool as I think I am

A couple days each week I stretch a little longer than
I do on the other days. I go over to the National
Training Center and I spend about 30-45 minutes on the
"stretch cage." For all I know, "stretch cage" might
even be what this contraption is actually called, but
if not, its a good name/description. Basically you
have a series of bars going every way imagineable so
that every angle is covered for your stretching needs.
I see it pretty frequently now in most gyms, but only
in the last couple years so your gym might not have it
yet.

Anyways, I was just getting started the other day when
I noticed this nice lady was staring in my general
direction. For the next 30+ minutes I continued to
stretch and every few minutes my eyes would glance in
her direction, I would catch her looking over, and she
would quickly look in a different direction. I suppose
I was flattered, but I kind of wondered why she has
been doing this for so long. It had gone from cool to
weird.

Eventually I finished stretching and walked away. Just
as I did she walked over to the "cage" and proceeded
to begin her own routine. This poor lady had been
waiting for over half_an_hour for this thing. I don't
know what I find more amusing; the fact that someone
waited so long for this thing (its not_that_great) or
the fact that I actually thought it was me she was
interested in and not "the cage." I think the latter
is more amusing. Hints the title of this blog.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

More of the same going on this week. I've had some
good sessions and I'll be racing the Winter Park 10K
tomorrow. (Mark B is going down!) Its the last running
race I'll be doing this spring before the tris begin
on April 2nd.

-jd

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I tried to race

Well I tried to get the triathlon season started lastSaturday, but I only succeeded to start about 60% of it. I was signed up to race in a smaller OLY triathlon on Saturday out on the southeast side of Orlando. I planned to get there quite early to ride a loop of the bike coure, run a loop of the run course, and get a good swim in before the start.

Somehow absolutely none of the above happened and I found myself in the transition area setting up my bike with just a couple minutes before the start. I didn't even have my wetsuit on yet. So much for warming up. I got over to the start and heard the race director say "we didn't mark the bike course very well." Awesome. I didn't get a look at the bike course map either.

The race started and I felt pretty crappy until the first loop of the swim was done. Missing a warm up hurt me, but that's what first races are for: getting used to feeling uncomfortable again.

I got out in a decent position to the leaders and hit the bike hard. I was making good progresss, but eventually I realized I had cut the bike course. Instead of backtracking I decided to ride hard to the finish to get some power data, turn my timing chip in, and run 90 minutes on my own. I felt really good on the bike so this was rather unfortunate.

After running one loop of the bike course on my own I came back to the post-race tent to get a snack and it appeared that everyone in the Elite wave had cut the course and continued racing. The problem was that everyone cut it in a different way (not intentionally). A lot of them were angry with the race director and I don't blame them, but, at the same time, I also don't blame the race director. At least, I don't place the blame solely on either party.

It is an athlete's responsibility to know the course, but I think its also the race director's responsibility to mark a course well. Thing is, he had the course marked very well on every turn (with flaggers, cops, etc), except the one everybody missed. A simple cone with an arrow would have solved everything

It happens. I didn't let it get me down. I got some good training in regardless of what happened. I'll be racing on the first weekend of April so at least I got a little taste of what's to come.

-jd

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To Texas and Back

Well I made a quick trip to Texas over the weekend.
Tom Rodgers and I have worked together on a couple of
the Texas Tri Camps over the past few years. I missed
last year's camp, but I managed to find the time to
make it this year. It was nice to get out of Florida
over the weekend and the camp was a great success. I
met some great people and it seemed like the whole
weekend rolled along nicely without incident.

Couple things I thought about over the weekend...

The flight attendant that served my section of the
airplane (from Orlando to DFW) was rude. Really rude.
I suppose I could mention the airline, but it probably
wouldn't make a difference when you or I make our next
airline ticket purchase.

Jonathan (the dude sitting next to me on the flight)
turned to me early in the flight to inquire as to
whether I normally fly said airline. This eventually
led to a coversation about working in sales, cross
cultural customer service conflicts (hey Dad, J;
remember Andorra!!!), brand loyalty, etc., etc.

I suppose that flying in the 1970s and 80s was
different than now (I flew in the 80s, but I don't
remember the customer service). I think flying today
is sort of like getting gas. It really isn't about
brand loyalty or customer service. Its about
convenience and price. Nothing wrong with that, but it
might explain how a flight attendant might be more
concerned with the utilitarian side of her job (as
opposed to 'serving with a smile').

People don't need to spend uber dollars to fly
anymore. Getting from point A to B on time
consistently, and at the lowest price, trumps "the
experience" that might have been present when flying
was a luxury. This probably applies less to flights
overseas, but I did see a flight attendant and a
customer go at each other on a flight back from Paris,
so maybe not.

I left out the name of the airline because this entire
blog could be a result of someone simply having a bad
day. Every day people are deciding whether to love or
hate us based on first impressions. I'll give her the
benefit of the doubt and assume the best until I meet
her again.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I spent the majority of the weekend talking about
training protocols, racing, nutrition, swim/bike/run
technique, etc. I enjoy talking shop. My life would be
rather turtuous otherwise given my surroundings. There
are nearly a dozen books about training/nutrition/ex
phys sitting on the table here and when not
reading/writing/talking about training, I'm
actually... ...training.

I actually rarely encourage talking about triathlon
(outside of a small core group of friends/colleagues).
I merely respond and offer my opinions if asked. I
think the biggest advantage of having the common
demoninator of triathlon is accessing what makes each
individual different and/or great (as opposed to
simply having one thing in common).

Everybody came to the tri camp this past weekend to
learn more about the sport and hopefully they did. I
take satisfaction in helping others, but what I really
enjoy is getting to know who they are, what they care
about, what they have passions for, etc. Smokers get
to know one another by sharing a cigarette outside of
a non-smoking venue. Tri camps, races, training
sessions, etc. offer the same for me. I think that is
why the best friends I have from triathlon are the
ones that I can talk with about things other than
triathlon.

Perhaps it puts them on the same level as those who
know me best. My friends and family might know I do
triathlons, but they don't know me as a triathlete.
They just know me as me and that's why I love 'em.

-j

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Blake and I headed over to Tampa Bay last weekend for
a half marathon. The weather forecast kept looking
rather bleak, but it turned out better than we thought
it would be (which really doesn't say much). It was
still wet, and the warm, humid air made it feel like a
sauna. Blake finished 5th overall in 1:15:50 and I
finished 11th overall in 1:20:20.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

A G G I E S W I N

Dude, my team NEVER wins the big ones, but they pulled
through last night. The Men's basketball team really
needed a decisive victory to up their chances to get
into the NCAA tournament. They got it last night
against Texas.

It had an exciting ending with a three pointer at the
buzzer to break the tie, but frankly the teams were
both playing poorly until then. The fact that TAMU
averaged one point per minute in the second half says
something about the pace of the game. It says even
more when you consider that they averaged more than
Texas.

I'll keep my fingers crossed that TAMU makes the
tourney.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I'm about to head to the airport to travel to Dallas
for the weekend. I'm working at the Texas Tri Camp
with an old friend of mine. I'm looking forward to
getting out of town and having a light weekend as it
relates to training. Joe will be there as well so it
will be good to get some face time with my coach.

cheers,

JD

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Where am I?

Well February is almost over. Hard to believe we are
almost in our third month of 2006. That means races
aren't too far away so I decided to give a run down of
how things are looking so far.

Might as well go in order.

SWIM++++++++++++++++++

I've been pretty pleased with my fitness improvements
since Jan 1. I think I've finally established a
reasonable base from the past two years of higher
yardage. It made it much easier to return to swimming
comfortably within a few weeks. I've been putting in
around 20-22K each week for the past 5-6 weeks and
there is quality in at least 70% of those yards.

Boris had a hard time finding his stroke once he
arrived in FL, but this week is an entirely different
story. He swam some lifetime bests on Monday and
backed it up with a hard 4K main set on Tuesday. Looks
like my alledged 'edge' in one of the disciplines is
gone. Oh well. Our cycling and swimming (at least what
I have seen so far) is very close so it will be great
to keep each other honest day in and day out.

He has a considerable edge in the running dept.

BIKE+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I haven't ridden that much so far. Last week I rode 18
hours, but that was 10 hours more than my biggest week
in 2006 (or maybe eight, not sure). Most of my rides
have been pretty steady while working the rolling
sections. Since there wasn't much volume I usually
kept it smooth and steady from the get go on most
rides. Last week BB and I rode well on M-R and had a
damn fun ride on Sunday with Marc which included some
hard riding, especially at the finish.

My Powertap was sent it to be overhauled so I've been
riding blind for the last eight weeks. Frankly, I
enjoyed easing back into things this way since there
is nothing to guide you but your intuition. I think
thats a great way to find your legs again before the
first round of real training begins.

I did get the PT back yesterday and I did a ride this
morning with 2+ hours at 150-155 HR which is a rough
estimate of my AeT. My FTP HR (or LT, AT) is right
around 173-175 so this workout is 20 beats below
threshold. I averaged 238 watts for a 2:10 main set;
so it seems as though my bottom end is ok. I imagine
the top end has detoriated, but maybe not. I will
certainly find out soon enough.

RUN++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I haven't run many miles either because of an early
season focus on strength. By strength, I mean
weightlifting as well as plyometrics. I have done more
leaping, skipping, jumping, etc in the last month than
I likely have in my entire lifetime before that. If
nothing else, it certainly has improved my hip flexor
strength tremendously. Hopefully this will help lay
the foundation for some better running in the months
to come. I have logged 2-3 50+ mile weeks, but
everything has mostly been moderate as far as
intensity is concerned. Other weeks have only been
around 40 miles (and sometimes less than that).

I did run a 10K last weekend and finished in 2nd (out
of probably 20 total?) behind Boris. I have only run
one other standalone 10K before so this was a PR with
a 35:14. I was pretty pleased with it since it was a
rolling course and it was within a 33 hour training
week.

I'll be running the Tampa Half Marathon this weekend
so it might give me another (and probably better)
insight to my current run fitness, especially if the
weather holds out. I will be pleased if I manage to
stay within 10 sec/mile avg of Boris' finishing time
(assuming he races well).

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

So I guess that's a pretty decent snapshot of how
everything is going. I still have a long way to go,
but I am in a better position that I have ever been in
the last week of February. I'll be racing fairly
frequently from now until late April so that I can be
in better form for MIM and Buffalo Springs.

All for now, more to come.

jd

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The Winter Games

Let's see if I can tie all of this together.

I was having a conversation with Boris tonight about
pet peeves. I asked which ones he had. Nothing jumped
out at first, but when we started brainstorming a few
'issues' came out that we had in common.

-Driving in the left lane too slowly, littering, using
the word "carb" (that's just me), people who don't
tread lightly, etc.

"People who are critical about things they know
nothing about."

That came directly from BB and frankly this is more
than simply a pet peeve, in that, it is (or certainly
should be) universal.

Early last week I was having a conversation with my
mother about the coverage of the Olympics. More
specifically, I was critical (or actually 'worried')
about how the other networks were competing hard with
NBC. American Idol, Grey's Anatomy, whatever is on tv.
All new episodes, all at the same time as the prime
time coverage of the Olympics.

Now, I understand that other networks can't roll over
and play dead. Perhaps one network shouldn't be able
to cover the Olmpics in their entirety. Maybe they
should only get certain events. I think this would
help raise the bar on the overall quality of tv
coverage as each of them would get the chance to tap
into the heart of America's prime time every few
nights.

Now, why do the Olympics lose out in ratings to
American idol? Why, in contrast, are the summer
Olympics so popular?

Well, first of all, the summer Olympics are, well, in
the summer. TV Networks are not exactly in the meat of
their fall or spring series. More can be seen during
the day, Americans know and relate to a higher
percentage of the summer games, Americans win more
medals, more countries are involved, etc.

Now, what else might be causing the lack of interest?
Well, I certainly think that some sports journalists
might shed some light on this.

How about the fact that leading sports journalists
directly_criticize_the games. I heard Skip on Cold
Pizza say that any game "that doesn't involve a ball,
isn't a sport." I think he also said the Astros were
going to win in six so I don't take much stock in his
thoughts. (FWIW, your team will lose if he picks them.
Always happens to me).

And forget about Gumbel's recent comments on how the
winter games are a complete bore (amongst other
criticisms). "Mike and Mike" in the morning talked
more about next year's super bowl (which is 50 weeks
away) picks and about Barry Bonds' possible retirement
than anything else this morning.

And they aren't talking simply about what they_want_to
talk_about. They are speaking about what their
audience wants_to_hear_about.

I don't want to get too much into what I think about
what each journalist has specifically said about this
year's games or about winter sports in general. I just
want to get back the point: "many folks are critical
of what they do not know." You would think a sports
journalist might help to inform ignorant audiences
about the games instead of playing the "my dad can
beat up your dad" card.

Its like telling a NASCAR diehard that all they watch
are "people making left turns"; or telling a cycling
fan that cycling is nothing but "riding a bike"; or a
runner that all they do is "put one foot in front of
the other." Oh, and how many people understand how
anyone can watch 162 (not including playoffs) 3+ hours
games of baseball a year. I'm sure a baseball fan
could give you a million reasons. I know my buddies
that love the Astros certainly can.

The games that come on each night (for two short weeks
every four long years) are a small glimpse into
something great. If you can put aside your cynicism
and look past all the commercialization you will see
something common in something that might be so
foreign. You can identify with the athletes, and fans,
that live and breathe their sport.

And even if it still a bore... ...you still need to
learn why you don't like what you don't like.

jd

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