With fires outside of Ft Collins and road construction on the run course, L2L had some tough issues to overcome. The fires were burning near Horsetooth Reservoir and the road construction closed one lane of the run course. The race director really stepped up, developed new bike and run courses and put on a great race.
The swim course was slightly different than previous years but it was still a swim and 1500 meters. My goal was to try and swim with Chris who was slightly faster than me in Greeley. Unfortunately I wasn't able to find him before the start so I just picked a good line and set out on my own race. The swim went pretty well except for the sighting on the east-bound leg. There were two buoys but I couldn't see anything. I just had to swim with the group and hope the person out front went straight.
Out onto the bike course, I was trying a new wheelcover. Would it really make a difference? Would I be faster? Since the course is different from previous years, I wouldn't be able to compare bike splits so this one had to stand on its own. I was passed on the bike by a couple people in my age group but other than that, I held my own pretty well. On the bike, as we neared the foothills, you could feel and taste the smoke.
With temperatures expected to rise into the low hundreds, I was glad that the new bike course was shorter. I also carried two bottles on the bike loaded with Gu Electrolyte tabs. I wanted to make sure I was overhydrated on the bike so that I wouldn't get too dehydrated on the run. By the time I finished the bike leg, I had finished both bottles and didn't feel bloated.
At the start of the run, I knew there at least three people in my age group ahead of me, the two who passed me and Greg who's a former pro. I don't really have a chance to catch Greg so I had to focus on the others in my age group. At the start of the run, I passed the first person in my age group but he didn't look familiar so maybe I was farther down the leader board.
With the temperatures climbing and not exactly sure of the run distance, I took the strong and steady approach. I wanted to go hard but not too hard, leaving something for when I made it back around the course and knew I had only a couple miles to go. It turns out that the new run course wasn't the same as the really old course and was only 5.1 miles. I caught another age grouper with about half a mile to go and made a strong move so that he couldn't stay with me. Turns out that there was another two runners up the course.
Overall, I had a good run and good race. With the new course, smoke in the air and high temperatures, a lot of people had trouble racing. My hydration strategy worked really well and I didn't have any cramping issues off the bike. Even the next day, my legs still felt good and I didn't have the usual post race stiffness and headache. Lesson learned - more hydration with electrolyte replacement.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Friday, June 22, 2012
Computrainer to the Rescue
Due to the Hyde Park forest fire, the bike course for Loveland Lake to Lake had to be changed. Without a chance to preride the new course, I turned to my Computrainer. Taking the turn by turn directions and Map My Tri, I created a course layout. Using Cycling Peaks Real3D, I converted the layout into a 3D file and loaded that into my Computrainer.
It's not as good as riding the course but now I have an idea on where the hills and turns are.
It's not as good as riding the course but now I have an idea on where the hills and turns are.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Computrainer - Nutrition
During my first two triathlons, my nutrition has consisted of: one gel with water prior to the swim, one gel with water on the bike and water on the run. On the run I've been getting tight calves with some cramping. As near as I can tell, I think I'm low on electrolytes. The hydration is good and the energy levels seem fine but I think the cramps are electrolytes. Reading the labels of the gels and there isn't a lot of sodium or potassium.
For this week's race, I'm going to try something a little different. I'm trying Gu Electrolyte tabs on the Computrainer. They have a lot of sodium and a lot of potassium. The drink mix hasn't bothered my stomach on the Computrainer so it might work during racing.
Life is an experiment and triathlon is the lab.
For this week's race, I'm going to try something a little different. I'm trying Gu Electrolyte tabs on the Computrainer. They have a lot of sodium and a lot of potassium. The drink mix hasn't bothered my stomach on the Computrainer so it might work during racing.
Life is an experiment and triathlon is the lab.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Computrainer - PIG Improvement Comparison 2
I ran the numbers for Greeley and the bike portion was right where PIG predicts. I still don't know if the 10% improvement in power translates to 10% in speed but at Greeley it was pretty close. In 2011, the bike course took 26:34 and in 2012 only 24:19 which is a 2:15 improvement. That's an improvement of 9.25%. The run also improved from a 20:01 to 19:24, an improvement of 3%.
At a time when I should be slowing due to age, I'm improving with Computrainer.
At a time when I should be slowing due to age, I'm improving with Computrainer.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Greeley Computrainer Impact
I was talking with Chris after Greeley and he said that my run at Pelican and Greeley had been really strong and surprised a lot of people He then said that I must have worked hard on my run. My reply was that I worked on my bike hard using my Computrainer and that had made my run so much faster.
The PIG progam helped me improve my bike by two minutes and my run by forty seconds. Overall, my total time went down just over 2:20 seconds. Not too bad for a sprint triathlon.
The PIG progam helped me improve my bike by two minutes and my run by forty seconds. Overall, my total time went down just over 2:20 seconds. Not too bad for a sprint triathlon.
Greeley Triathlon
I chose the Greeley Triathlon for my second race of the year, just like last year. Greeley is a great sprint with a time trial type start and the regional championship for the juniors. It's a great chance to watch the potential of the young triathletes and always motivating.
Due to high winds the previous night and during the early morning hours, the race was on hold while a decision was made. After forty-five minutes, a decision was made and the race was on. The race director made the swim optional for anyone concerned but since the wind had died down, I thought the conditions were safe. I was concerned about the smoke from the forest fires but since they were far enough west and north, Greeley wasn't too impacted.
The swim is a time trial start in reverse age order with men and women starting together. I think mixing the men and women was a good improvement from last year when the women's field had to wait for all the men. I like the time trial start and had a good swim. At only 500 meters with two ninety degree turns, the swim is quick. I swam pretty straight and only had trouble sighting the exit. The rubber duckies were quite big enough for me to see. I remembered the exit from last year and knew to swim up the exit ramp as far as possible.
Coming out of the swim and into transition, I noticed a racer in my age group had caught me. From his number I knew I started before him so I lost fifteen to twenty seconds to him. I would have to close the gap on the bike. He had a faster transition since he didn't wear a wetsuit and that meant I had to get back even more seconds.
The bike course is similar to last year's course but the start had a new out and back with a round about. I thought we went to the second round about but we were supposed to u-turn at the first round about. Since I wasn't quite ready, I overcooked the turn, almost came to a complete stop and had to accelerate hard.
The major out and back was also moved to the front half which enabled me to get a good feel for how far back I was. At only ten miles, I would have to work hard to close the lead down. On the back half I finally caught my competition and made a hard pass. I didn't want him to think he could pull me back so I jumped around and went hard. I was lucky because after my pass, there were a couple turns and then a climb. I pushed it and used the corners to hide. It worked out well because when I made it back to transition, my chaser was gone.
With two climbs and two u-turns, the run is tougher than Pelican but it's still only a 5-k.The run starts with a downhill so I let it fly. After the first climb and u-turn, I could see my competition and I knew I had a good gap. I kept the pace up knowing that based upon my Pelican performance I would have a good run.
Overall, the race went really well. I had good splits in all disciplines and held a good solid pace the whole way. Of the age groupers, I finished fifth and won the age group. My strategy for nutrition and pacing were both good and I think that Loveland will be a good test in a couple weeks.
Due to high winds the previous night and during the early morning hours, the race was on hold while a decision was made. After forty-five minutes, a decision was made and the race was on. The race director made the swim optional for anyone concerned but since the wind had died down, I thought the conditions were safe. I was concerned about the smoke from the forest fires but since they were far enough west and north, Greeley wasn't too impacted.
The swim is a time trial start in reverse age order with men and women starting together. I think mixing the men and women was a good improvement from last year when the women's field had to wait for all the men. I like the time trial start and had a good swim. At only 500 meters with two ninety degree turns, the swim is quick. I swam pretty straight and only had trouble sighting the exit. The rubber duckies were quite big enough for me to see. I remembered the exit from last year and knew to swim up the exit ramp as far as possible.
Coming out of the swim and into transition, I noticed a racer in my age group had caught me. From his number I knew I started before him so I lost fifteen to twenty seconds to him. I would have to close the gap on the bike. He had a faster transition since he didn't wear a wetsuit and that meant I had to get back even more seconds.
The bike course is similar to last year's course but the start had a new out and back with a round about. I thought we went to the second round about but we were supposed to u-turn at the first round about. Since I wasn't quite ready, I overcooked the turn, almost came to a complete stop and had to accelerate hard.
The major out and back was also moved to the front half which enabled me to get a good feel for how far back I was. At only ten miles, I would have to work hard to close the lead down. On the back half I finally caught my competition and made a hard pass. I didn't want him to think he could pull me back so I jumped around and went hard. I was lucky because after my pass, there were a couple turns and then a climb. I pushed it and used the corners to hide. It worked out well because when I made it back to transition, my chaser was gone.
With two climbs and two u-turns, the run is tougher than Pelican but it's still only a 5-k.The run starts with a downhill so I let it fly. After the first climb and u-turn, I could see my competition and I knew I had a good gap. I kept the pace up knowing that based upon my Pelican performance I would have a good run.
Overall, the race went really well. I had good splits in all disciplines and held a good solid pace the whole way. Of the age groupers, I finished fifth and won the age group. My strategy for nutrition and pacing were both good and I think that Loveland will be a good test in a couple weeks.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Computrainer - Race Preparation
I'm finding that one big benefit of Computrainer is race preparation and course visualization. Prior to an event, most coaches will stress race visualization as one step in getting ready for a race. With Computrainer and the 3D software, the bike portion of a triathlon is easily visualized. During my taper before a race, I ride the bike course three or four times to learn where the turns and hills are. Which turns lead into hills, which hills have are short and steep or long and gradual. Everything helps prepare me so that when I arrive at the race, I'm already comfortable with the bike and I know where I have to make my move or the best place to react to a move.
It also works for the run but since most triathlon runs are short and flat, the benefit isn't as great.
It also works for the run but since most triathlon runs are short and flat, the benefit isn't as great.
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Computrainer - Slowtwitch Discussion
An interesting discussion on Slowtwitch about the benefits of a Computrainer.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Computrainer Calorie Calculator
Perhaps one of the most overlooked numbers when training with a Computrainer is the calorie counter. Everyone knows their CP30, watts per zone, heart rates but does anyone pay attention to calories? I think more people should and I'll let you know why.
During a recent tempo ride, I decided to watch my calorie counter and determine how many calories I burned for a period of time. I recorded calories for several one minute intervals and for a couple ten minute intervals. All the intervals averaged out to thirteen calories per minute. Utilizing that information, for a thirty minute tempo ride, I would burn 390 calories and for an hour tempo, 780 calories.
Thirty and sixty minutes are important benchmarks since most triathlons I do are either twenty or forty kilometers which take under thirty or sixty minutes respectively. In a race situation, I can expect to burn at least 390 or 780 calories. Since triathlons start with a swim, by the end of the bike, I've burned at least 500 or 1000 calories.
Armed with this knowledge, at the Pelican Fest triathlon, I decided to have a gel on the bike. Even though a gel doesn't contain 500 calories, by taking on calories during the bike, I started the run with more calories available. I think this had a definite impact on my run which was one of the fastest I've had in a long time.
Without the calorie calculator, I wouldn't have know how many calories I was utililzing and would not have realized how important even during a sprint triathlon a gel was.
Someone once said that Ironman was an eating contest and I think that applies to triathlons of all distance. Consume calories when you can to maintain your speed as long as possible.
During a recent tempo ride, I decided to watch my calorie counter and determine how many calories I burned for a period of time. I recorded calories for several one minute intervals and for a couple ten minute intervals. All the intervals averaged out to thirteen calories per minute. Utilizing that information, for a thirty minute tempo ride, I would burn 390 calories and for an hour tempo, 780 calories.
Thirty and sixty minutes are important benchmarks since most triathlons I do are either twenty or forty kilometers which take under thirty or sixty minutes respectively. In a race situation, I can expect to burn at least 390 or 780 calories. Since triathlons start with a swim, by the end of the bike, I've burned at least 500 or 1000 calories.
Armed with this knowledge, at the Pelican Fest triathlon, I decided to have a gel on the bike. Even though a gel doesn't contain 500 calories, by taking on calories during the bike, I started the run with more calories available. I think this had a definite impact on my run which was one of the fastest I've had in a long time.
Without the calorie calculator, I wouldn't have know how many calories I was utililzing and would not have realized how important even during a sprint triathlon a gel was.
Someone once said that Ironman was an eating contest and I think that applies to triathlons of all distance. Consume calories when you can to maintain your speed as long as possible.
Pelican Fest Triathlon
After missing Pelican Fest last year due to a toe issue, I was anxious for the start of triathlon season. Pelican Fest is a great sprint triathlon and is a good way to start the season. A lot of fast age groupers show up to see how their fitness is going and to shake out the cobwebs. My running has been going really well and after working through the Computrainer PIG program, I was excited to see how I would do.
My plan for the race was simple, stay with Steven on the swim, limit my lose on the bike and then run hard. In the past at this race, Steven would put too much time into me on the bike which would make the run irrelevant. Today, I wanted to hold him on the bike and then out run him. I also wanted to try and prevent Neil from catching me on the bike. Neil's a very good cyclist and always catches me. If I could hold him off on the bike, I knew I could take him on the run.
The swim is point-to-point and only 800 meters in length. Even with the mild winter and warm spring, the water was still cold. With a nice grassy park and sandy beach, the swim start is really nice. The exit is a different story involving running up a grassy and sometimes muddy bank. After warming up for ten minutes and getting used to the water temperature, I lined up on the front right for the start. It was a little hectic at the start but I managed to get to the middle front by the turn buoy and I was right on Steven's hip.
The buoys didn't go straight to the swim exit rather they went straight to keep swimmers from the shore. If you swam from the turn to the exit, you would have been about ten - twenty meters right of the buoys. Since I was in a good position to chase Steven, I stayed on his right. We drifted towards the buoys and I could have been a little faster if I swam straight but the draft was useful and saved a lot of effort.
Steven built up a ten second lead out of the water and added a few more through T1. He was already past the mounting line when I started to run my bike through transition.
The Pelican Fest bike course for some reason has always been hard for me. I really don't know why but I've never really had a good ride there. The first two miles are mostly uphill and that may be a factor. Other than being passed in the no-passing zone, the bike went pretty well. After the first climb, I settled in and held a pretty good pace. I kept thinking I could see Steven in the distance but I couldn't tell.
Off the bike and into transition two brought a couple of changes for this race. I'm running the Pearl Izumi Iso Transitions this year which is a departure from Asics. I almost bought the Asics Noosa triathlon shoe but it was heavier than the Pearl Izumis. The opening is a little tighter than I expected and it took a little longer to pull the shoes on. I used 2 Toms lubricating sheets instead of Body Glide and they worked really well. I think I need to practice pulling the shoes on a little more.
The Pelican Fest run course is about as flat as you can get around here. I set out with a hard pace and was determined to pull Steven back. At the turn, Steven still had a twenty second lead and there was less than two miles to run. By the two mile marker, his lead was down to ten seconds and coming down. I finally caught him with a kilometer to go and pushed hard to make it stick.
As I entered the park, I took a quick glance back on the turn and I knew I would finish ahead of Steven. I got nicked at the line by Travis who I had been pulling along during the run. Fortunately he had started five minutes before me.
Overall, the race went really well. My bike split was the fastest its ever been at Pelican Fest even though I thought it was slow. My run leg was also very good, finishing the run in 19:01. It's been a few years since I've been that fast in a 5k let alone in a triathlon 5k. In addition to finishing ahead of Steven, I finished third in my age group and finished ahead of Neal.
My plan for the race was simple, stay with Steven on the swim, limit my lose on the bike and then run hard. In the past at this race, Steven would put too much time into me on the bike which would make the run irrelevant. Today, I wanted to hold him on the bike and then out run him. I also wanted to try and prevent Neil from catching me on the bike. Neil's a very good cyclist and always catches me. If I could hold him off on the bike, I knew I could take him on the run.
The swim is point-to-point and only 800 meters in length. Even with the mild winter and warm spring, the water was still cold. With a nice grassy park and sandy beach, the swim start is really nice. The exit is a different story involving running up a grassy and sometimes muddy bank. After warming up for ten minutes and getting used to the water temperature, I lined up on the front right for the start. It was a little hectic at the start but I managed to get to the middle front by the turn buoy and I was right on Steven's hip.
The buoys didn't go straight to the swim exit rather they went straight to keep swimmers from the shore. If you swam from the turn to the exit, you would have been about ten - twenty meters right of the buoys. Since I was in a good position to chase Steven, I stayed on his right. We drifted towards the buoys and I could have been a little faster if I swam straight but the draft was useful and saved a lot of effort.
Steven built up a ten second lead out of the water and added a few more through T1. He was already past the mounting line when I started to run my bike through transition.
The Pelican Fest bike course for some reason has always been hard for me. I really don't know why but I've never really had a good ride there. The first two miles are mostly uphill and that may be a factor. Other than being passed in the no-passing zone, the bike went pretty well. After the first climb, I settled in and held a pretty good pace. I kept thinking I could see Steven in the distance but I couldn't tell.
Off the bike and into transition two brought a couple of changes for this race. I'm running the Pearl Izumi Iso Transitions this year which is a departure from Asics. I almost bought the Asics Noosa triathlon shoe but it was heavier than the Pearl Izumis. The opening is a little tighter than I expected and it took a little longer to pull the shoes on. I used 2 Toms lubricating sheets instead of Body Glide and they worked really well. I think I need to practice pulling the shoes on a little more.
The Pelican Fest run course is about as flat as you can get around here. I set out with a hard pace and was determined to pull Steven back. At the turn, Steven still had a twenty second lead and there was less than two miles to run. By the two mile marker, his lead was down to ten seconds and coming down. I finally caught him with a kilometer to go and pushed hard to make it stick.
As I entered the park, I took a quick glance back on the turn and I knew I would finish ahead of Steven. I got nicked at the line by Travis who I had been pulling along during the run. Fortunately he had started five minutes before me.
Overall, the race went really well. My bike split was the fastest its ever been at Pelican Fest even though I thought it was slow. My run leg was also very good, finishing the run in 19:01. It's been a few years since I've been that fast in a 5k let alone in a triathlon 5k. In addition to finishing ahead of Steven, I finished third in my age group and finished ahead of Neal.
Friday, June 1, 2012
Computrainer Contest Conundrum
Marketing is always a finicky proposition at best. Will this idea increase exposure and drive sales or at least help retain current customers? How to best reach new customers? How to reward existing customers? Will the idea be so successful that we can't keep up with the new demand?
I think the Computrainer blogging contest has reached that point? Brad.sweat365 won the January round but it appears that no one has won February - May. Did the contest generate too much interest, not enough? Is the contest still on? Was it ended? Will we ever know?
I think the Computrainer blogging contest has reached that point? Brad.sweat365 won the January round but it appears that no one has won February - May. Did the contest generate too much interest, not enough? Is the contest still on? Was it ended? Will we ever know?
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