Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Moab, Utah - Mountain Bike Heaven


Well I got to spend 1 morning in Moab, Utah and I loved every second of it!

I rode Klondike Bluffs Trail and did some single track on baby steps trail. Had to do some hike a bike and wiped out a couple of times but hey it was worth every scratch, dirt bath, and drop of sweat that happened!

If you have never been to Moab and you love mountain biking - then you have to visit with your bike - you will not be disappointed.

Running is coming along and now it is time to hit it hard and start preparing for Philadelphia.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Completed first XTERRA

Sunday August 17th, 2008 - I got my A** kicked by a game called XTERRA. It was my first triathlon, however it will not be my last - even though I should be checked in to a mental home based on how I fared during the event itself.

So it starts with a 1500 meter (2 750 meter laps) lake swim. I will be the first to tell you that my swimming is as poor as it can be for someone attempting a triathlon. I was not the last out of the water, pretty close but not last. There was a lot of breaststroke and the freestyle needs a lot of work. There were no wetsuits available.

I get out of the water and am feeling good about the bike. So I take a GU, drink some water, and head out after changing. My biggest mistake was not having my camelback or taking any nutrition in besides the GU. I should have had a clifbar before I headed out of the lake area, but this was a good learning experience.

The bike ride was hell on wheels. It was very technical, much more so than I was prepared for. I did a lot of falling, walking, swearing, and crying (not really but I felt like it a couple of times :) ). Tree roots running at an angle to the trail are a pain and rock gardens when you are wasted are very dangerous. Another mistake made was having my tires too pumped up. I should have dropped some of the pressure out and it would have been better (A little not much more!). So 17 miles later and I am done with the bike and still have to hit a 5 mile trail run.

I was spent by the time I got off the bike. My legs cramped up in transition while I was trying to tie my shoes so I just left the right shoe untied and ran a while to loosen up. That worked and I tied my shoe down the road. Then came the uphill section and more cramping. Sat down for a couple of minutes, did some stretching, and drank some gatorade. The funniest part was that I felt stronger at the end of the run than I had since I got on the bike (This is where the nutrition/hydration part comes in because I was replacing some stuff with gatorade at least).

All in all I was very displeased with my performance. Would I do XTERRA again - in a heartbeat! Why - to prove to myself that I am stronger than the performance that I put in this date. It was a great learning experience, a great event, well organized, and the competitors were awesome to be around. The winners are studs!!!!

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Where has the time gone?

Well it is mid-august already and the last time I posted was July 1st. We finished the kitchen project up so hopefully I will be able to do some more long runs and rides to discuss in this blog of mine :)

This weekend I am doing my first triathlon - XTERRA which is a swim, mountain bike ride, and trail run. I am really looking forward to it and hope all goes well (which means finishing!). I know I will be slow out of the water, but will hopefully make up a lot of ground on the bike and running.

Other than that, I am now training for the Philadelphia Marathon. So hopefully I will be able to get some more information down on how the runs are going, but I really hate giving up bicycle time right now. I am sure I can do both and not kill myself physically.

I will post a post-XTERRA report next week just to let you know how things went!