Random Thoughts

This week sucked.  I was out of town all week so it threw my training into a tailspin.  On top of that as mentioned in an earlier post, I totaled my bike. 

First, the travel.  I was in Columbus Ohio right next to the airport.  Hotel “health clubs” are small rooms where they store exercise equipment that is broke.  Trying to get an hour of running on a broken treadmill makes for a long hour. The equipment is noisy, does not track well and all the computers are not calibrated.  Basically,, nothing works.  On the bright side, I could use a gym nearby.  It was in another hotel.    They had a pool and spa so it was nice.  One afternoon, I did an hour of laps in the pool.  Afterwards, I was sitting by the side of the pool relaxing when a ladies water aerobics class started.  It was funny watching the class.  I was clearly, not welcomed.  The women all gave me the evil eye as they entered the water.  I think they were self-conscience about having a man around while they did their class.  I left before they started bouncing around too much.  The white caps were just starting to form.

I was supposed to put in 14.5 hours of training but only got in 8.  All due to the travel and because I ran my bike into the house.

Highlight of the week,,, I got a new bike frame…

If I was ever going to sit down and try to come up with ways to destroy my quest for the Ironman, I could come up with several ways. Eat a lot of junk food, skip training sessions, don’t warm-up, don’t stretch. Many ways to blow a year of training and 6 months of intense workouts. Unbelievably, I found a way that would have never entered my mind. Tonight, about two hours ago, I destroyed my bike. I am still in shock that I did this. I had it strapped onto my roof rack and absent-mindedly pulled into the garage. The bike hit the wall of the garage and bent the frame in about three places. It is gone. As of right now, I am without a bike and the IM is exactly one month away.

I am extremely angry with myself right now. The monetary impact is one thing but I am more upset at being so boneheaded and not thinking. My lack of concentration will cause me a hic-cup in my training. Between the leg injury and the bike fiasco, I am,,, just plain pissed off…

Tomorrow I will go by the bike shop and see what my options are. I think I can get a good frame and be able to move my components over. It will be expensive but,, like I said, I am more mad at myself for being a moron rather than the money..

This past weekend was the Liberty Hill ride, a 105 mile ride through the hill country around Burnet.  Very pretty scenery, lots of hills and a supported ride.  That means that we could count on a rest stop every 10-15 miles where the ride organizers would have refreshments and food for us.  We ran into a bit of a problem right off the bat.  One of our riders had a flat within the first 2 miles.   Not a big deal but it rather sets the stage for the rest of the day.  The team broke up into separate groups but we managed to get it back together as a group by mile 30,, just in time for the aforementioned drama.  Our route was through some really gorgeous areas.  We were on roads that were not traveled very much.  Grass was growing in the cracks of some parts of the road.  IN some areas the road would funnel down to one lane.  We crossed cattle guards, small bridges, under railroad trestles and across a few low water crossings.  On one low water crossing, there was water flowing over the road and a slimy moss had grown on the road.  I crossed over first without problem.  Felicia followed next.  Her wheels lost traction and she went flying head over handlebars.  Her left cleat was still locked into the pedal, and the bike was on her.  She was banged up pretty good, she had some road rash, and was muddy but thankfully, was not hurt serious.  She took a hard fall on her ribs and chest.  She was able to ride up to the next rest stop and get medical attention. 

Earlier I wrote about the qualities of a team.  After Felicia fell, the team really pulled together and made sure that she was okay.  Everyone just sort of circled around and rode along at a pace that was comfortable for her.  Everyone took turns bugging the crap out her to make sure she was okay.  Kim took the gold star for being a great team member.  She cut her ride short and made sure that Felicia got back to her car.  What makes that so special is that you have to bear in mind that Kim will finish her ride, on her own, unsupported and by herself.  A totally unselfish thing to do,, and also the right thing to do..

Later on, we found that Felicia was not the only one to take a spill at that crossing.  We had three other riders go down.  Everyone was okay but it is scary when you crash like that.  It shakes your confidence and makes you unsure of your abilities.

Despite that,, all four riders will be back on their bikes like nothing happened,, although we all will be walking our bikes across slimy Texas streams. 

This was supposed to be a rest week.  The weekly goal was 8.5 hours.  Since I missed the long ride last week, I put it in this week so I ended up with 15.5 hours of training.  That is good news,,, the better news is that I had my first session with the Physical Therapist.  The PT was great.  He gave me some good news.  He does not think that I have Shin Splints.  He thinks I have an irritated nerve in the lower back and that it is causing the pain in my leg.  I was skeptical at first because,, that is what I do.  He showed me a chart with the nerve bundle coming around from the back and to the front of the leg, down to the shins and foot.   He said that I have some balance / bio-mechanic problems that is causing my back to inflame the nerve.  That combined with some flexibility problems in my ankle, is the root of the problem.  At least that is what he thinks.  He did a chiropractic maneuver and popped my back and lower spine.  Afterwards,,, believe it or not, the pain was diminished quite a bit.  He gave me some exercises to help strengthen my core.  I ran three miles on Friday.  It was good to run again,, although it felt weird,  The good news is that the pain in the shin was tolerable.  It has gone down quite a bit so I am optimistic that it will go down with time.  In the meantime, I am continuing to use the elliptical trainer and Aqua jogging.

Highlight of the week:  Brody Michael Jones was born on Sunday the 14^th.  I am a grandfather.. It does not get much better than that.

Once again, my gear has started wearing out.  The bike has about 2600 miles on the odometer, and this is my second odometer.  The old one had about 1500 on it.  So naturally the wear and tear is taking it’s toll.  The chain has degraded to the point where it no longer has the same dimensions as the gearing.  What this means is that when I hit certain gears or go up hills,, it sounds like my bike is coming apart.

New chain $20, possible new cassette $60, new front inner gear $20,, smooth running bike, priceless.  

This was a rather uneventful week.  I got the good news that my injury is non-life threatening.  I started on the aqua jogging.  It is a lot harder than I thought.  The shin is feeling better already, so I have hope that I will be okay for the actual IM.  I am getting some reassurance from many people letting me know that I will be on schedule and not to worry too much about not running for the next couple of weeks.  Although I am sure that I am okay,, I still cannot help but feel left out.  (Whimper, whimper,, this is where I feel sorry for myself).  Last week I was out of town, this week, I missed the long ride and I am missing some good long runs with the team so I cannot help but feel a little disoriented.  At first I thought that this was just me but through some reading about injury recovery,, the author actually addressed this.  Athletes thrive on a regimented schedule.  When that schedule is thrown out of whack, the athlete’s mental state is also disrupted.  So,, part of the recovery process will be focusing mentally on things and make sure I keep a perspective.

This week we were supposed to put in 15.5 hours of training,, I only got in 12.  Mainly due to missing out on the long bike ride on Saturday.  

This next week will be a challenge to get all my training in.  We have a two-day conference on Monday and Tuesday, and then the company has the quarterly sales meetings for two days.  And then,, I can proudly say,, I am still on Grandpa watch.  Kelly was due on the fifth.  As of today,, the 7^th, we are still waiting.  As soon as she goes into labor,, I go into a rest period…

Highlight of the week:…Not having a stress fracture…

Lowlight of the week,, having Shin Splints.