Gordy & Tribabe's TriBlog

It's been a long time !!!

2010-05-13T12:19:00.002+01:00

Wow, was it really July we last blogged ?? Yes and now must gird up my loins to start again.

What has happened??? Not much........Had to pull out of IMAZ the day before the race as i was taken ill......was so disappointed, it has taken me a long time to get over that.

Went to do 'Goofy's Challenge' in January in Florida and nearly froze !!! Never thought Florida could get that cold.

We had a terrible winter - more snow than we have had in years and temps never rose much above freezing !

Had fun in NYC in March doing the half marathon and have been accepted to run NYC Marathon on 7 November, 2010...that's very exciting and our other big race is Boulder 70.3 in August, 2010.

Weather is still pretty cool here and have still to 'rug up' to ride outside....brrrrr

Life is as busy as ever and time is flying by.....have booked to go to Rotterdam to see the 'Grand Depart' of the TDF....that's exciting too.......

Will start being more vigilant in blogging.......promise.....in the meantime congratulations to all our friends who have had a brilliant time racing this spring.....you have truly been an inspiration.

Tour de France 2009

2009-07-28T14:06:00.011+01:00

When the 2009 TdF route was announced and I saw that Stage 20 would be climbing the legendary Mt Ventoux the day after my birthday - 25 July 2009 - I knew that's where we were going to be. Mt Ventoux has always held a fascination for me - and many other British cyclists - and I wanted to experience the climb and pay homage at Tom Simpson's memorial.

I hunted around for somewhere to stay and found a beautiful hotel on the outskirts of the small town of Monteux, just a couple of km from Carpentras - from where Tom had set off on his fateful journey on 13 July 1967. The booking was made before Christmas last year and then it was sorting out the Eurotunnel and route. We finally left Cambridge on 21 July with the bikes and bags packed in the car, hit the tunnel around 7:00am and were heading for our first stop at Dijon.

Rolling into Dijon that evening we stayed at La Flambee on the outskirts of the town and made it to our room in time to watch the last few kms of that day's stage on TV! Up early the next morning we were heading south and watching the temperature soar to 30 deg C in a cloudless blue sky. As we turned off the main Autoroute du Soleil towards Monteux we saw it - towering over the flat farmland - Mont Vonteux "The Giant of Provence" - remind me again, who's bright idea was it to try climbing this thing on a bike?

Having upacked at our charming hotel we went for a run and (after cleaning up!) had dinner on the terrace while we waited for Steve & Sue to make it. They eventually arrived at nearly 9:00pm but that was no problem for our host, Penelope, and we enjoyed sitting in the warm air drinking the local wine.

Thursday was to be a "get our bearings" sort of day with a ride through Carpentras to pick up the old D942 route through the Gorges de la Nesque towards Sault. Traffic in Carpentras was awful and meant we had to walk the bikes through the town (same on the return) but we eventually made it out onto the open road and got to ride through the first part of the Gorge.

Lunch was spent at the Cafe de Soleil in Villes-sur-Auzon before heading back the way we had came. Everywhere we cycled we could see the towering presence of Mt Ventoux with the old Observetoire at its summit ... it looked forboding.

Friday was my birthday, 24th July, and the day set aside for cycling up Mt Ventoux. It was a perfect day for it, clear blue sky, temperature expected to reach 32 deg C, little wind, unlimited visibility. There are three roads which lead up the mountain and we chose the road from Sault, it is longer but not as steep as the "classic" route from Bedoin which the TdF riders would be riding the next day. It joins the Bedoin route at Chalet Reynard and from then on it is about 6km to the summit - this is the part which is likened to a "Moonscape" as you ride through sun-bleached limestone rocks via several hairpin bends to the summit.

We decided to make our own way to Chalet Reynard, meet there, and then tackle the final climb. I set off smoothly and found myself climbing easily with three cogs left to go on my 12-25 10-speed cassette, having a 50/34 Compact chainset is a great help - thankyou FSA! Steve and Jack climbed steadily behind me but we were separated fairly soon and worked our own ways up, with nothing but the sun, the mountain and the butterflies for company ... apart from dozens of other cyclists with exactly the same idea as us!

As you swing right around the final hairpin to Chalet Reynard you get your first clear sight of the observatory and speed up as the road gently descends. There were cyclists, cars, camper vans, people everywhere. The Chalet is a small bar/restaurant which is perfectly positioned for anyone interested in viewing proceedings on the mountain as it is located at the junction of the roads from Sault and Bedoin. It was packed with cyclists - a fantastic place to meet, rest, eat and drink.

From there the road to the summit averages 7.7% and climbs into and through the classic Mt Ventoux limestone peak. With the Tour going through the next day it was total chaos! Every camper van in Europe must have been parked on either side of the road, people were everywhere, the road was covered in names painted or chalked by spectators and as you settled into a steady climb they just cheered you on. There were hundreds of cyclists out on the mountain that day, all of us with just one aim - get to the summit.

As I climbed past Tom Simpson's memorial I said a silent "Chapeau Tom" to myself and pushed on towards the observatory ... which didn't seem to be getting any closer. The final two kms are at around 10% and as I swung into one hairpin I decided to take a breather and stop for a few minutes. Luckilly the TdF organisation had placed the barriers out on either side of the road, without them to hang onto I'm not sure I could have clipped in and got going again!

The last section is straight across the face of the mountain beneath the summit and is followed by a 90 deg hairpin which kick up - you must have seen Lance and Pantani crest it a million times! It looks wicked but in fact it's not that bad - as I approached there were a bunch of stalled 4x4's there so I thought "What the ****" and put on a surge which to my surprise propelled me to the top and there I was - 1,912m above Provence looking down on the World.

Steve & Jack joined me at the summit and we agreed it was one hell of a way to celebrate my birthday. All we had to do know was descend through the madness which was a story in itself!

25th July - Stage 20

With road closures and forest fires to contend with on Saturday we decided to make our way to Villes-sur-Auzon, settle ourselves in a cafe-bar and wait for the Tour to go by. We had another great day (if you watch the video there is a helicopter shot of a rounabout on the road with the "LiveStrong" logo written in yellow chalk around it ... that's where we were. After the race went past we took a Tour direction arrow as a souvenir and made our way to the local winery where they had a huge Jumbotron TV set up with live commentary for everyone to watch the climb to the summit - perfect!

Phew !

2009-04-20T20:49:00.003+01:00

Race report for our duathlon will have to wait a day or so (unless Gordy will get around to write it), I am away on business for a few days.

'The Most SKIRTSPORTS Outfits in One Race'- had there been a prize for that, I would have been a shoe in for it !!!

More later......

First Race

2009-04-17T14:27:00.002+01:00

We are off for the week-end....first multi event of the year. Should be good fun. We're doing a duathlon at Goodwood round the famous motor racing circuit.

Distance is 4k-40k-8k...never done a du when the second run is longer than the first. Think is something to do with runners/bikers using the same road.

Outfits to wear are causing me some concern.....not sure what the weather will be like...supposed to be warm and sunny .....will I believe it ??

'Everyone Needs Good Neighbours...'

2009-04-13T15:43:00.002+01:00

A line from the theme song from the Aussie soap "Neighbours'......

Well, I think to train for any endurance sport you MUST have good neighbours. Ours are the best.

A little background. We live in a tiny village in the middle of the countryside. No pavements (sidewalks for you Americans), no street lighting....you get the idea. When there is no moon it as black as the 'inside of my hat' outside

So through the winter months when I get up at 5.15 am and turn the landing and kitchen lights on the entire back garden area is lit up like a Christmas tree.....always amazes me how much an indoor lights reflects outside.

Then, I turn the washer and dryer on about 5.30am.....as there is NO noise where we are either - this makes them seem very loud !

THEN, I transfer the huge amount of stuff I always seem to carry with me to the car and then start it. Now, I have a PT Cruiser, diesel version, which on turning the ignition key makes a noise akin to a tractor. The upside of this is I get around 40 mpg.

In all the years, I don't think we have ONE complaint from the neighbours, now friends, either side of our house.

I have a new 'best friend' in the milkman.....he is usually coming to deliver our milk at 5.40 as I am leaving the house......I then pass the same cyclist on the road into Cambridge. I always know how late I am depending where en route I pass him.

Now we have the lighter mornings our neighbours may get some relief......I can run from home so there is no car engine....but now I can also bike in the mornings so this means I have to open the garage and clomp around in cleats !!!

But to get out first thing in the morning after our long, cold dark winter is just the BEST

Two Weeks in.....

2009-04-11T09:27:00.002+01:00

Just shy of two weeks of IM Wisconsin training.

So glad it finally arrived, I really needed something to focus on.

Weather has been co-operating, well some of the time ! Nice to be back on the bike again and to get some structured runs in. Although, we had our 'tick over' plan to concentrate on when you know that you can, sometimes, blow off, a session it makes it that much harder to get out of bed in the cold , dark mornings.

We are having a lovely spring....spring flowers are out, lots of blossom already showing and the trees are beginning to show their summer wear.

Of course, true to form this Easter week-end we have low cloud, mist and a light drizzle. But it's just wonderful to have this four day week-end. Yes, we get Monday off as well, as a Bank Holiday ! It seems a long time since our Christmas break.

Surprise 10k race last week-end. A friend of ours was competing and we were going to support her. At 9.15am I got a phone call to ask whether I could accompany Miriam ...I changed outfits three times before I was out the door. Lovely race...beautiful weather.....first time this event had been run. All off road which was a little 'testing' especially I had forgotten this and turned up to run in my Newtons ! A great time was had by all. The race was certainly a success, particularly, as the field consisted of 48% women...amazing.

Ninety minute ride and a 45 min OD run scheduled for today.

Now which of my new SKIRTSPORTS outfits will I wear....check out their spring collection...brilliant !

It must be nearly........

2009-03-20T17:15:00.003Z

As I took my second shower today - my first double shower day this year - I realised it must be nearly time to start IM training ! One more week to go before we start.

Can't wait for those days when you are so tired you just want to come in and lie down on the kitchen floor, when the laundry is piled up, when the alarm goes off and you just get up without thinking about it. Bring it on !

These past week, I have managed to get most of Craig's work-outs in but some cold dark morning, when the alarm goes off at 5.15, I must admit I have turned over and bagged it !

However, spring has arrived (we think)...it's been sunny and warmish.....even managed to ride outside for the first time since my accident. It was lovely ! I missed my bike ! Lovely to ride outside in shorts.....

The spring flowers are out and it's light in the morning when I leave the house at 5.30 and even light when I get home from work. Our clocks don't go forward until the end of March when we move to British summertime - we use the word 'summer' loosely over here.

Did my spinning class this morning and did some work and then a 55 minute run.....a two shower day and more laundry.

Tomorrow and swim and run - long bike for Sunday.

Sunday

2009-03-08T09:57:00.002Z

It's blowing like the clappers outside but nice and sunny....will ride inside again.

Having a nice leisurely breakfast with the Sunday newspapers...have only three more Sundays before IM training starts so will treasure them.

Not much happening here. Went to Gordy's spin class yesterday and then ran straight after. We have a duathlon locally in April and several members of our spin class are going to do this. So from yesterday we are adding a run after the class as a bit of training for them. We had a few runners out yesterday, all of different abilities but there's enough of us so no-one gets left behind.

The sun was out yesterday morning and it was lovely to feel a little warmth but all the cyclists we saw out riding were certainly rugged up and all looked very 'pinched' !

A great week for our football team....West Ham had back to back victories so all is good in the Riley household !

All I need now is for the SKIRT spring line to arrive !

Nearly Spring .......

2009-02-26T14:29:00.005Z

The snow has long gone so thought it was time to post again !

Now what's been happening? Not a lot ! Working, sleeping and some training, blah, blah blah !

Actually, I am really enjoying this time of year. A plan from Craig to stick to but not so much that you are exhausted.....and lying around at the week-end watching trash tv....not going to last much longer so enjoying it whilst I can !

Did a 5k race the the American Air Base where I work (sometimes) last week.....weather was kind so managed to get into a SKIRT ! Lovely to finally to feel a little sun. Was pleased with my 28.41 with not a huge amount of effort.

Am managing my two swims a week and two lifting sessions....my arm has gained so much more strength and my elbow gained a lot more movement. I am beginning to

I am writing this in the kitchen and looking across to the dining room there are two bikes on two turbo trainers ! Such is life in our winters.....am desperate to get out onto the road for some 'real' biking. Have exhausted all my episodes of 'ER' so it MUST be time to get outside. Have entered a duathlon in April - it's taking place at a motor racing circuit so there will be no traffic to contend with. When we race here the roads are NOT closed.........

Snow ... Snow ... Snow ...

2009-02-08T18:38:00.004Z

And so it continues - snow isn't something we are that used to in our part of England - not for the past 10 to 15 years anyway - so the last week has been something of a surprise to us. Needless to say some of the "younger" generation are finding things hard going ... they don't know how to drive in snow & ice so that has been somewhat entertaining to us who remember the days before central heating when you had to scrape the frost off the inside of your bedroom windows in the mornings!

(Here's a shot showing snow on the main road to Newmarket on Friday morning.)

We went into Cambridge for breakfast this morning and most of the snow there had melted - although the pavements had not been treated so most of our running routes around the river area are definitely "no-go" areas for the moment.

(This is the view across the fields at the back of our house - snowboarding anyone?)

Here at the heady altitude of 365 feet ASL we still have snow ... are more is forecast ... Oh Joy!

(And this is the wood at the bottom of our garden)

What a week !

2009-02-08T13:36:00.004Z

It's been an awful week here......heavy snow arrived on Monday and has been here every since. In England we are totally unequipped for this snow ! The entire country ground to a halt...NO buses ran at all in the centre of London on Monday...can you imagine any other big city coming to a complete stand-still ????

So, couldn't get to the gym. We live in a tiny village miles from anywhere, well 13 miles from Cambridge, but the road was so bad it was very difficult to drive !

Managed to get into London a couple of days for meetings...they were so boring I wish I hadn't bothered ! The drive into London was so stressful - had a complete white-out !

Anyway, only managed a short run this week and will try to turbo this afternoon...not bothered about missing work-outs (hope Craig is not reading this)...I am so enjoying just lazing about and not feeling the pressure of training BUT, on the other hand, can't wait to start training for IM MOO !

Picture of us at Goofy....just finished the marathon.....

Friday

2009-01-23T11:32:00.002Z

Well, another week over.......weather still crappy...blowing a gale and sheeting down with rain this morning. We are all so sick of MUD !

Starting a 'tick over' plan with Craig.....his words 'training to train'......managed a few of the sessions but still feel 'Goofy' in my quads.....did my spinning class this morning and then straight in the pool for 600m swim.

Tonight, I am going to 'Bodypump' want to test my elbow through a hard weight session.
I have lost so much strength/muscle in my arm and hand I am now starting to panic !

Not much else happening....spin/run tomorrow......should have stopped raining by then !

A New Year !

2009-01-19T15:57:00.002Z

Hey, it's been some time since I posted. I had hoped Gordy would want to write a race report but he felt he had told everyone all about his race and didn't want to bore everyone again !

Christmas and the New Year has come and gone and we have been to Florida for 'Goofy's Challenge'. As in the previous 2 years we had a brilliant time. It really is a fun week-end and I would recommend ANYONE to do it.........it's so ridiculous to do those distances in two days. Plus we always throw in the 5k on the Friday.....42.4 miles.....not too shabby.

For me, it was just lovely to be racing again...I use the term 'racing' loosely....just having a number on and running with a bunch of people and getting a medal at the end ! Nothing like Disney for some serious finisher's bling !

I have been cleared by my elbow doc to do ANYTHING now, including biking (outside). No surgery....he thinks I have recovered enough movement to make this unnnecessary.......just lots of exercise to strengthen the arm.......hitting the weight room now.

Probably not biking outside for a week or so..we have had the most miserable winter........freezing....windy....raining...there's water and mud everywhere.

I have learned to co-exist with the treadmill as it has been too icy to run outside ......the few times I have ventured outside I was very glad of my Ice Queen SKIRT......kept my butt nice and toasty.

Well, getting back into some structured training now....thanks, Craig.....I really need the discipline of a regular schedule.

To all our American friends, have a great day tomorrow....a truly historic one.

Home

2008-11-27T19:54:00.003Z

Arrived home late yesterday....it's grey, cold and rainy. How we miss that Arizona sun !

What a great week. Don't know where to begin. It was wonderful to hang with some of the SKIRTS.....thank you all for your support and sympathy.....you are all amazing.

I was so proud of Gordy...he didn't quite make it this time but I know he will in Madison in September. He hadn't done enough running and he needs to work on his nutrition on the bike but due to my accident he missed some crucial work-outs in the final weeks leaing up to the race. He is fine with his effort.

Thanks to everyoen who made our time in Arizona so great. Congrats to Kona-bound Dan, Cathy, who notched up another IM this year, BJ who PR'd all over the place, Sarah who knocked a shed-load of time off her previous IM time, April who had a tough day but saw it through.

It was a lovely day.

Post Mortem

2008-11-26T02:44:00.002Z

I'll keep this short and add some more thoughts once I get home.

The day started well - I did a PR in the swim of 1:28:39 - interesting starting the swim when it was semi-dark, I didn't see any marker buoys until I had gone around 500m. Swimmers were all over the place and I got my goggles knocked off 5 or 6 times but once we got to the turn around the sun was with us and it was an easy ride all the way back to transition.

T1 was an absolute zoo - no space at all in the change tent.

Got out onto the bike and tried to settle down into my planned pace of 16 mph - which would have got me home in 7 hours. My heart rate was a little too high and I averaged 17.4 mph so I came in around 2:11 for the first lap. I backed it off a little on lap 2 - probably a bit too much - and slowed down too much. By lap 3 my HR was dropping too low and I found it hard to keep the speed up ... it got a bit lonely on that final lap.

Came into T2 at 4:23 and got some massage on my shoulder before heading out on the run. Running and walking for the first 4 miles but after that I found I was slowing down. I calculated that I wouldn't be able to finish the run by midnight so I pulled out at mile 7 where Jack was waiting at the aid station with Gerry & Sue. They all tried to convince me to carry on but enough was enough and I decided that discretion was the better part of valour!

We had a great time in Tempe and got to hang out with loads of friends - Dan qualified for Kona which really was the icing on the cake. BJ and Sarah both posted PR's.

I'll post pictures and more stuff once we are home.

Thanks to everyone for your support and good wishes, it really is great to know that you are all out there!

Today's the day !

2008-11-23T11:31:00.002Z

Well, it's 4.30 am here in Tempe.....I'm up and ready to go....as usual Gordy is pottering about in his calm, unhurried fashion...drives me crazy !!!!

Just to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone that has sent him all the 'Good Luck' messages....they have been coming in thick and fast....you people out there are the BEST !

I'll keep everyone posted during the day as much as I can........

Have a good day....

Final Countdown!

2008-11-22T23:10:00.003Z

It's 4:10 in the afternoon - if all goes to plan tomorrow I should be in off the bike and out on the run ... we'll see. The time since we arrived on Tuesday night has gone incredibly quickly, Thursday morning was the first day we could swim in the lake so down we went - I led Gerry & Sue down part of the swim course while Jack went for a half-hour gentle run along the lake shore path.

The lake water was cool and murky - just like home - so no problems there. Just spent the time swimming steadily - throwing in the odd sprint & kick - and found that I fell into breathing every 4th stroke very naturally. The plan is to come out of the swim in 1 hour 30 minutes tomorrow.

Friday was quite windy - it calmed down by late afternoon and Sarah came over for a final test ride of our bikes - a couple of short loops testing the gears & brakes then back to the hotel for a quick "transition" and we joined up with Jack, Gerry & Sue for a gentle jog along part of the run course along the lake. Beautiful weather.

Saturday morning I decided not to bother with another swim, just sat on the side watching G & S while Jack signed up for the 2009 race. Back to the hotel to sort all my kit into the bags for tomorrow and then back to the transition area to check in my bike and bags.

Back in the room now (4:20) and resting until we have dinner at 7:00 then off to bed - will probably pick up donuts for breakfast(!) and slip down to the start fairly late - got our own marker pens so if there is a long line I can mark my own numbers on my arms & legs!

Keep an eye on www.ironman.com tomorrow to see what I'm up to.

All our bags are packed.......

2008-11-17T09:05:00.004Z

Gordy's bike is packed and everything else is packed, except for those last few bits. When we woke up this morning I reminded Gordy that this time next week he will be an IRONMAN! He rolled over, went back to sleep and was snoring......

Be glad to leave this cold, wet, grey weather for the sunshine of Arizona.

Planning my first run today since the accident...getting very excited ! Physio is very pleased with my progress, I can nearly see the palm of my left hand ! Actually got a spoon to my mouth last night......if I lower my head enough to meet it !!!! Also, another milestone was reached this morning, I could get my socks on with two hands !!!

Baby steps......

Managing

2008-11-13T17:21:00.002Z

Waiting for Gordy to get home from work...another physio appointment tonight. Ouch ! Saw her on Tuesday and she thought the movement I have in my arm was good, especially when she saw the scans.

I should be in taper mode....I have managed 2 sessions on the elliptical trainer, another one tomorrow, so I suppose it could be classed as 'taper'.

Having to totally think my Tempe wardrobe !!! No racing clothes......finally got Gordy to think about what he will race in. I had mine planned out weeks ago ! He's a 'last minute' kind of chap...drives me mad !

His patience has been endless. I have been very difficult these past two weeks.....

Damn !

2008-11-10T09:19:00.002Z

I think that was the word I used when I hit the deck on my bike last week.......yeah right !!!! There ae notices in our A & E Department which state not to use abusive language to staff, so I very politely asked the doctor if I could use the 'f' word !

Couldn't believe it...I knew immediately something was broken......anyway, latest news is not too bad !

Saw the sugeon on Thursday and he took the plaster off...what a relief...I had it from knuckles to shoulder with arm set in a right angle. Because of the gaping wound in my elbow and the fact the elbow is in so many pieces he has decided not to operate...he said he would have to put so many pins/plates in it to get everything back together I would be left with too much scar tissue....SO he has given me exercises to do to keep mobility whilst bones heal. When bones have knitted together he may have to do keyhole surger to 'tidy' things up.

Can't drive for at least another 4 weeks...we live in a tin y village miles from anywhere so I am a little stuck ! He said I could start exercising a little...managed 55 minutes on x-trainer...and as we have a spin bike at home I can ride that with no hands. Suggested I start gentle running next week...will be in Tempe so will be lovely to run in the warm with no wet, soggy leaves underfoot.

Missing IMAZ ? Trying to be brave about it...had a car been behind me Gordy would have been organising a funeral instead of packing his bike up to race an IM.......

I know I will be sad when the bib numbers are posted........I am planning to register as I have gone beyond the point where I could get any money back, so will sign up for next year....anyone joining me ?????

btw my brand new 2XU bike jacket stood up to the test...all the blood has come out of the arm and there are barely any marks on it !

As I couldn't sleep on Tuesday night sat and watched US election......how exciting was that ???? Excited that BO won......he's a West Ham United supporter ! Apparently when he was over here years ago he went to see them play and was hooked! You Americans have a good man there...if he can deal with the trials and tribulations of WHU he can deal with ANYTHING!

More difficult than they thought

2008-11-03T20:53:00.002Z

Well, the specialists took a look and pretty much threw their hands up in horror!

They don't want to touch anything until they have had a chance to do a CT scan so we are hoping that can be scheduled for Tuesday and she'll see the consultant on Thursday.

Watch this space.

Patient update

2008-11-03T07:55:00.001Z

Jack didn't get a lot of sleep last night but they did tell her that surgery is scheduled for 3:00pm today (Monday) so she could eat & drink a little. She looked at what was on offer and chose a PowerBar Triple Threat from her own stash!

I'll keep you posted with any developments.

Deja Vu

2008-11-02T21:48:00.003Z

Sometimes I wonder if Jack is fated to never finish an Ironman. We set off on our 115 mile ride this morning - the weather had cleared after overnight rain and the sun was actually shining in a watery, English November sort of way.

Things were looking good until Jack crossed over a level crossing and got her front wheel caught in the tracks.

Boom!

She landed on the exact same elbow she injured in July but this time the bone fractured. Radial head and neck fractures plus the old scar blew open to expose a lot of flesh. New 2XU winter jacket has a huge bloodstain on the arm. Some railway workers gave her and her bike a ride home and we spent the rest of the day at the hospital.

She will probably have surgery on Monday but that is not confirmed yet, for the moment she in in plaster and having intravenous antibiotics.

I'll keep you posted on her progress.

(Thanks for all the good wishes - they are all much appreciated)

Mt Ventoux

2008-10-23T16:04:00.003+01:00

It's official - Mt Ventoux will be the penultimate stage of the TdF next year and the Etape - the amateur stage - will ride it on 20th July. I've always wanted to ride that climb and our bike shop (www.cyclefit.co.uk) may well have some slots up for grabs. Anyone fancy a trip to Provence next July?

Chasing shadows

2008-10-23T15:57:00.002+01:00

We've been getting the long miles in on Sundays - luckilly the weather has been kind and its been generally dry, sunny and calm. Because its rolling hills where we live we've been going over to the USAF base where it's flat as a pancake and just getting down on the aero's on those long straight fenland roads - very like Arizona but no desert and a lot cooler!

To try to mimic the Arizona heat we've been riding in extra clothes - including winter cycling jackets over our jerseys.

The land out there is reclaimed from under the sea - so the roads are just above sea-level (not exactly Boulder!) and one afternoon as the sun got low I was cruising along and noticed my shadow riding next to me but a few feet below me in the field. It was great to just cruise and check my cadence & position by looking across at my shadow in the adjacent field ... if it had gone past me I would have been really worried!

Normal service resumed ....

2008-10-23T15:44:00.003+01:00

Sorry about the long delay in updating the blog but the past few weeks have been somewhat hectic - and the next few will be something to write home about too!

After our trip to Madison the next thing on our agenda was the Cologne Marathon. We had planned to drive over to Germany but a fire on a freight train in the Channel Tunnel put paid to our plans and we managed to get a cheap flight at the last minute. This was our third outing to the race in Cologne and each time we go we seem to take more and more friends with us - we are starting to feel like the Pied Piper!

The weather was awful - cold and rainy - just when your clothes had dried out from the rain it started raining again! The marathon doesn't start until gone 11:00 to give the real head-cases a chance to run the Half Marathon first ... there are even some who enter the HM, then the 42km inline skate race and only THEN do they run the marathon!

We were on for a comfortable 4:30 but things went west around 16 miles and we slowed to a crawl for a while - finally came in at 5:15 - as we crossed the bridge over the Rhine with 1km to go the speakers blared out "The Final Countdown" (I love "Euro Pop") and Didi Senft "The Devil" from the Tour de France was there in his devil outfit to cheer us on!

IM MOO

2008-09-13T21:10:00.002+01:00

Still gathering our thoughts from IM MOO.....worked T1 and T2 - a wonderful experience......I will post a report report later !!!!

Phew, that was hard !

2008-09-13T20:59:00.002+01:00

Did a 16 miler this morning.......why is it some runs are harder than others? Ran along the River Cam - it was a perfect autumn day. In fact, it was one of the warmest days we have had this year ! Our summer has been truly awful. It has not stopped raining since we arrived hom from Madison !

Oddly enough, turned tv on to watch 'The Tour of Spain'...pouring with rain on the roads, there....F1 Grand Prix qualifying laps in Monza, Italy were cut because, you're guessed it, pouring with rain !

I digress, it was a hard run...couldn't get going and finally settled into some sort of shuffle to get the job done.

Up early tomorrow to ride 85 miles.....watch this space !

Home at last !

2008-09-11T09:47:00.003+01:00

We arrived home yesterday from our week in Chicago and Madison. Wonderful time. Signed up for IM MOO in 2009.....wow the queues were long ! I managed to get Gordy out of bed earlier than he would have liked to sign up. Luckily I did.....we got to queue under cover so was nice and dry when it started to rain !

Had a great time volunteering. I was in the change 'tent' in T1 and T2....it was great to be inside the lovely ballroom. Got to see friends and help them change. Madison is certainly a beautiful venue for an IM.

Managed to get a couple of runs in but never made it to swim the course.

Eleven weeks to IMAZ...85 mile ride and 16.5 run between now and Sunday !

Pink Bikes !

2008-08-30T17:24:00.003+01:00

Just seen the photos of Tiara Ditcher's new bike.......a beautiful steed...but deja vu .....??? Now who doesn't like pink???

I ordered my brand new custom made Serotta on 7 July, 2007 - the day we went to London to see the opening day of the TDF.......I picked it up on 15 September, 2008...now here's the scary part...the pink colour I ordered is called 'Beat Cancer Pink'.....the day I picked my bike up was 3 days after my cancer surgery.....cancer diagnosed on 5 September......

My bike is beautiful....shame about the rider !!!

Enjoy your new bike, Kristina....and next Sunday....ride like the wind !

Swimming and more swimming....

2008-08-28T12:52:00.003+01:00

I seem to have been in the pool the whole time this week ...may not, it just seems like it !!!!

Biking in the wind (again)....hey, it's August and I went out on Tuesday afternoon with a compression top, bike jersey and arm warmers...and guess what? I wasn't hot !!! The wind has been dreadful this summer. Never seems to abate and always seems to be in your face !

Gordy and I are both contract holders at a nearby American Air Force Base and tomorrow they are holding a half marathon on the perimeter track along the runway.....at least it will be flat ! BUT should it be windy it will be HARD !

Our friends, Gerry and Sue are doing it with us......so new SKIRTCHASER outfits were purchased and arrived yesterday so we will all look fabulous ! It will be so much fun.

Then a long bike ride this week-end.

All this whilst packing up for our trip on Tuesday to Chicago and then on to Madison to watch/voly/sign up at IM MOO and more importantly, cheer all our friends who are racing !!!

AWOL

2008-08-25T17:56:00.002+01:00

Been a bit of a hectic week.....had to work away from home last week and that entailed a huge long car ride !

Whilst I was away had a 13.5 mile run to do. Left on Wednesday morning after taking my Boot Camp class and then swimming 950m drill swim....drove 270 miles to take a witness statement...then on to the hotel to run. By this time the weather had REALLY de-generated...high winds, cool with the hint of rain (what else is new this summer?)....

Well, had mapped my route out and left the hotel....two miles into the run I knew it was going to be ugly..no energy...tired, tired. Anyway, ran to the bottom of the road and map said turn right, looked right and there was the BIGGEST hill.....turned back! Thought well, the road is 2.7 miles long just run up and down it until 13.5 is completed.....

Then found a way into a Country Park....ran a couple of laps round that dodging the mud. By this time it had started to drizzle.......came out of the park as it was getting too dark to see. By the time I had got to 11.5 miles it was pouring and I was soaked......thought about the running I had done with my Boot Camp class, worked out I had probably made up the deficit and then called it a day !!!!

I call those runs an "IM" run.....just gotta get through it !!!!

Hard time this week-end with riding...my elbow is too sore still to get down on the aeros and my knee still sore to do any climbing......

Today is the beginning of another week and all work-outs will be completed...I promise, Craig...........

No Olympics to watch...already getting withdrawal symptoms...still the Paralympics will be starting in a couple of weeks and we get blanket coverage of that......

A week tomorrow we will be leaving for Chicago !

Didn't We Do Well?

2008-08-24T11:57:00.003+01:00

What a fantastic two weeks of sports! We are so lucky here in the UK that we have had wall-to-wall TV coverage of the Olympics round the clock for the past two weeks. The Closing Ceremony is about to start and in a couple of hours the Olympic Flag will be passed to the Mayor of London and London will officially become the Host City of the 2012 Games.

The athletics stadium, velodrome and aquatic centres are all being built in the area of London where Jack grew up (Statford) and where I went to college, we met, got married there and lived there ... utterly unbelievable!
Turning to more mundane matters - our scars have healed pretty well and Jack got out on her bike yesterday for the first time in 4 weeks - her elbow was painful and she couldn't get down on the aeros very much but it's a start.

I ran 14 before breakfast on Wednesday with a descending Z4 pyramid - thanks Craig - but have not been able to ride. Was hoping to get out today (Sunday) but weather is pouring with rain - in fact the weather has been so bad we ordered a new Turbo Trainer this week!

Had the Serottas serviced at CycleFit in London on Tuesday and are looking forward to a day off tomorrow (Bank Holiday Monday) and a Half Marathon at the US Air Force base on Friday morning!

Back to the Pool !

2008-08-13T10:58:00.002+01:00

Yes, I never thought I would be excited about swimming but I AM ! My wounds have healed sufficiently to swim so did my short drill swim this morning at 6.00am.

I take a 'Boot Camp' class on Wednesday mornings at 7.00 am so had to be out of the water in time to take that !

I was quit surprised how strong I felt in the water....must be all that swimming I have watched from Beijing ! Of course, i think I swim like Michael Phelps......how on earth do those swimmers move the water so quickly????

I am in awe !

Wiesbaden 70.3 Race Report

2008-08-12T11:30:00.006+01:00

Well - as some of you already know - things didn't quite go to plan on Sunday!

Swim
The Old Guy's wave (Men 50+) was off at 9:10am with just the Relay Swimmers following us. I set off at a steady pace aiming to exit the water in around 45 minutes and was pleased with my 44:39 (official time was 44:49). I took it pretty easy to the turn around point and then tried to pick up the pace slightly on the way back. My average HR was 134 which is mid Z3 for my biking so I guess that was OK - I even overtook several swimmers from the 9:00am wave so that made me feel good.

I took too long in T1 - I logged 7:58 against the official time of 7:48 - I always have issues getting my wetsuit off, anyhow this was a training event not a racing one so I wasn't worried by a couple of minutes.

Bike
The first four miles are pretty flat & fast so I cruised along at 135 bpm and a speed of 18-23 mph - then you hit the first hill - six miles of steady climbing with 1,350 feet to the summit, my speed was down to 6 mph at times but despite being overtaken by pretty much every Relay Team cyclist I did manage to overtake a couple of real triathletes myself!

The problem with the course is that after the long climb(s) the descents are quite technical with loads of safety marshals out to slow you down. I did manage to jump on the back of three other guys and we eventually cruised down looking like a TDF group swooping around the curves - that was a pretty good feeling!

By now gentle rainfall had started.

After 70 km of constant long drag climbs and switchback descents I misjudged my line through a descending S-bend in a little town. Things would have been fine if the curb had followed the road ... but it didn't! So I ended up slamming into the curbstones lining a bus-stop and departed from the bike. Road rash to knee, elbow, hip and shoulder down the right side - nothing serious. Luckily a paramedic team was on the spot and they patched me up. The rear mech was bent into the wheel - no spoke damage - and the service van sorted that out and offered me a ride back to the finish but I still had The Hammer to do so off I went! I think I lost about 16 minutes in total.

Took The Hammer in my stride and the two long hills after that before hitting the long fast descent back to Wiesbaden. Last year I was really cooking on this section with speeds around 50mph - this time I touched the brakes and realised that there was a problem with the front wheel. Checking after the race I saw that the braking surface had been scuffed by the impact with the curb and there was metal swarf sticking out of it!

Discretion being the better part of valour I kept the speed down to around 30 by feathering the rear brake and lost even more time! When I came into T2 I couldn't stop properly at the dismount line and ran straight into the helper!

Run
I didn't really intend starting the run at all but the T2 helpers changed my shoes for me and I thought "What the hell?" and set off. My knee was painful but not too bad and I felt pretty strong (Thanks Craig!). After a while I was thinking "This knee hurts, the elbow bandage is too tight, its only a training day, do I really want to beat myself up?" and at the end of Lap 1 I decided to bail.

So all in all I had a good swim and first 70km of the bike - the last 20km was OK but compromised. Its a very tough bike course and I need to find more hills to train on if I want to be able to improve my climbing.

Bike Check-in

2008-08-09T19:39:00.002+01:00

Got up early this morning for a 75 minute Z1/Z2 run in the park in the middle of town - its where the run course will be tomorrow. Went to the race briefing with Gordy at 11:00am and chuckled when the race director said "If your bike computer is only reading 10km/hr on the first hill don't be alarmed - it's perfectly normal." Maybe I'm glad I'm not riding tomorrow!

Gordy and Torsten aren't the only ones riding road bikes - almost the entire 2,500 are riding road bikes - saw a few Cervelo's so it must be an official Ironman event!

Got Gordy checked in this afternoon - weather hot and sunny and the forecast for tomorrow looks pretty good - hopefully the rain will hold off and it will stay warm and sunny.

Good luck to everyone racing tomorrow - wish I was too :-(

Friday in Wiesbaden

2008-08-08T20:06:00.002+01:00

Met up with some friends last night and had dinner before falling into bed at 9:00pm! I had a 55 minute run to do this morning (including some speedwork - thanks Craig!) so set off for the run course and left Gordy at the hotel ... he has to rest!

Run over, it was breakfast and then off to register for the race - even though I can't race I registered to pick up my Goody Bag. By now it was pouring with rain (yesterday's weather must have followed us). Met a guy from Los Angeles who is here with his wife - he's racing and she's spectating - and had lunch with them then back to the hotel to snooze and watch the opening ceremony of the Olympics ... a German voice-over the Chinese commentary - didn't understand a word in either language but it looked pretty cool. We'll get live coverage here so that should keep us occupied ... road race is on tomorrow morning.

Just back from the pasta party - very efficient even down to proper china and flatware.

450 miles on half a tank of diesel!

2008-08-08T19:57:00.003+01:00

Well here we are in Wiesbaden, Germany. Got up at 5:00am on Thursday morning, out of the house just before 6:00am and rolling up to the Channel Tunnel at 7:45 - 112 miles from our house ... how spooky is that?

40 minutes to cross the English Channel on the Eurotunnel train - fantastic - and we are rolling out of Calais where it started raining. The rain continued through France, Belgium and Holland and only cleared when we got into Germany. From then on it was just off and on!

Held our speed down to 65 mph and thus managed to get 49.5 miles per gallon - those Saab diesels are very frugal - we still have a half tank left so that should get us back to Belgium before we need to think about refuelling - diesel is cheaper in Europe than at home!

Speed Work

2008-08-05T11:24:00.002+01:00

Run this morning......cool and overcast (again) what a terrible summer we have had. Raining now !

Anyway, plan called for 33-43 minute run with strides and 3 x 1 min efforts in Z4 ...managed this and loved it. Can finally see how all this training is working...feel really, really strong.

Knee held up well, a little sore now and the bruising is coming out beautifully. Had last session with the nurse....everything is healing really well and I can swim next week when goop has finally stopped oozing out of my gashed elbow.

Bike later.......just 80 minutes...my 'recovery' week.

Considering what a terrible swimmer I am ...I am REALLY missing it !

60 miles

2008-08-03T20:30:00.003+01:00

Set off this morning for my 60 mile endurance ride. Our German friend Torsten was in Cambridge for the weekend so Jack picked him up at 7:15 and having adjusted Jack's road bike to fit him - and loaned him shoes, helmet, gloves and wet weather gear - we set off at 8:25.

HRM failed to transmit so this ride was done on "feel" rather than actual data - it worked well - kept in an easy breathing zone, could talk all the time. Left home and headed north into the flat Fenland country around Mildenhall, spinning along at 17 - 18 mph felt really good. Got home after 3:30 and Jack was ready with a protein smoothie for the two of us - what a star!

Weather was around 60F, cloudy with drizzle & a couple of heavy showers - lovely!

Torsten is also racing Wiesbaden 70.3 next Sunday so this was a good session for both of us. Short run off the bike completed the session.

We have both decided that as the Wiesbaden bike course is SO hilly that there is no point riding tri-bikes, we are both going to race on our road bikes, my Kestrel Evoke is significantly lighter than my Serotta CXII so that will be a definite plus.

Looking forward to a pre-race week - I like Craig's description of behaving like a "lazy slug with a salt addiction" before the race!

Yes!

2008-08-03T08:44:00.002+01:00

Yesterday I planned my 11 mile run and was hoping my knee would allow me to do this. YES ! Not only nailed the 11 but even managed to do the 2 x 2.30 in z4 which I was VERY pleased with.

Knee was sore during the afternoon but seems better this morning.

Wounds healing slowly. Elbow is still quite nasty and at the gym yesterday I saw a friend of mine who is not only an ultra runner but a doctor and I asked her what I should do about the 70.3 next week. Without hesitation she looked at he elbow and said "Don't race' ! I am inclined to take her advice ! She knows me well enough to know how much I want to do this and would not give that advice lightly.

Ho Hum......IMAZ is my main focus so everything is sacrificed to race that.

Hope to be back on the bike early next week......hand is still a little too painful to hold the bars!

Just waved Gordy off for his 60 mile bike.......cool and light drizzle this morning......

40 miles in the bag - 7.5 to go!

2008-08-01T15:30:00.002+01:00

Got up with "herself" this morning and redressed the wound on her hand before she set off to teach her 7:00am Spinning class. I was planning my 40/7.5 brick session (which I should have done yesterday) and hoping to get it done in time to get to see my first massage client of the day.

Well - there was a significant wind factor this morning which I hadn't been expecting! Got out the door, onto the bike and thought "What the ****?" Seemed like I was going nowhere. Thinking positively I thought - well there's a good chance it will be windy on the Beeline in November - but I was still going nowhere!

Upshot was I could only average 15.6 mph (Z2/Z3) which felt pretty awful to me, 2:35 for 40 miles!!! Had to bag the run as I had to get cleaned up before setting off to see my client but will attempt the run later on today.

More bandages !

2008-07-31T18:18:00.002+01:00

Another painful session with the nurse....things do not look good re Wiesbaden 70.3......elbow is still really painful but right palm is healing well. Will take my spin class in the morning and if everything 'seems' fine will ride tomorrow !

Better Today.

2008-07-30T11:53:00.002+01:00

Everything feels a little easier this morning. I take a 'Boot Camp' class at 7.00 am at our gym so I was up bright and early to take that.

I am now running....I ran the warm-up with the class and knee feels ok....had to keep my left arm still as the elbow is still very, very painful. I am determined to get my 11 miler in on Saturday.

Got my road bike out and may see if I can ride this afternoon...less 'twitchy' than my tri bike ... just see if I can hold the handbars with my right hand strapped up.

Wiesbaden looks less likely for me...but I will wait until tomorrow until I see the nurse.

11 miler

2008-07-30T07:37:00.003+01:00

Well it was slower than I had hoped for but I got the 11 miler in the bag last night. Evening was not as hot as we had been having lately and there was a strong breeze so that made it easier. Found it easier to keep in my zones but a lot of the time I was just ONE beat too high! (I think I'll reset my HRM zones!) Route was undulating country roads in a figure of eight pattern.

Spin & Swim

2008-07-29T13:13:00.002+01:00

I cunningly used Tribabe's accident to blow off my long bike ride at the weekend but am now back in the groove.

Spinning class on Monday night - what sort of people turn up to a class on a Monday night when the temperature is 29C / 90F ? I REALLY don't get it but 20 turned up and I had a waiting list ... I told them they were crazy! Some actually rode to the gym to take the class!!!

1800m swim this morning before work - still got a 11 mile run to do.

Progessing ?

2008-07-29T13:09:00.002+01:00

The 'English Patient' is not too bad this morning...still nursing the wounds from Saturday.....had them re-dressed yesterday and they DO NOT look good....have to go back on Thursday to have them done again...ouch..

Did not have to get up at 5.15 to do my brick this morning but wistfully watched Gordy go off for his swim....

Gerry & Sue's first triathlon

2008-07-27T21:30:00.002+01:00

After yesterday's accident we had a fun day today with friends who took part in their first sprint triathlon. Beautiful weather, hot, sunny, no wind. Great venue, we took OJ and fizz to make Mimosas to toast their success. Jack's wounds still very painful, will go to the doc tomorrow to get the dressings changed.

Oops!

2008-07-27T21:21:00.002+01:00

Saturday morning - Jack is running a 10 miler with friends while I am teaching my Spinning class. 300m from home at the end of the run she slipped and fell.

Result - deep gashes to elbow and knee, skin torn from right palm, loads of minor but painful abrasions ... including where her shades smashed into her cheek as she hit the deck.

Trip to the hospital to get cleaned up and now Wiesbaden 70.3 looks only 50:50.

Hopefully she's the last HEPster to have an accident!

Saturday

2008-07-19T17:48:00.002+01:00

If you have been watching The Open from Royal Birkdale you'll know that its been a little windy today! We bagged the open water swim last night but Jack was out early for a 6.5 mile run at 8:00am this morning followed by a 1,250m swim session. I taught my regular 9:30am Spinning class and bagged the swim. We had thought about a ride this afternoon but the wind was crazy!

Hopefully things will be better tomorrow - 30 mile ride with a Z4 TT

Stabiliser Week

2008-07-18T14:25:00.003+01:00

Well I guess that its good that this is a Stabiliser Week as the weather has been awful here in England and the last thing either of us wanted to do was get out on the roads. Having said that we did our 5.5 mile Z2 run on Tuesday morning but so far we have bagged two swims and a Brick session!

John Fisher "Fisch" is over from Los Angeles and spent the day with us on Tuesday - a trip to the hallowed turf of Upton Park was followed by a whistle-stop tour of Cambridge - ending up with a meal at The Rupert Brooke pub in Grantchester.

There is a chance of a lake swim tonight but if the weather remains lousy we might bag that one too!

There's a map of our 5.5 mile run route just below:

5.5 mile Z2 run from Greens along river
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