Buying Speed

I got the tri bike a year ago.  I got the aero helmet a month ago.  What else will buy me speed (other than the engine)?  Ah yes: Race Wheels!  But first the week:

Swim:
14,000 yards, 4 swims, 5:35, Almost 8 miles of swimming.  3 days over 2M.  Felt kinda tired near the end of the week (duh!).  Pretty good week for me.

Bike
93.1 miles, 2 rides, 4:42, plus 1 hr on the Y trainer.  Had to ride in the early am both Saturday and Sunday.  Saturday was cold at 37 degrees, rode Kensington.  Sunday was brutally cold at 27 deg.  Thought I was prepared for it, but had some shivers even 30 and 40M in.  Sunday rode up around the airport.

Run
21 miles, 3 runs, 2:32.  Ran 8M each Saturday and Sunday afternoon.  Felt kinda tired both days (felt the effects of the morning rides).  Even so ran 7:10's on Saturday and 7:15's on Sunday.

Totals
122.1 miles, 10 workouts, 13:49 Good amount of time!

I'm sure everyone has been following the developments over the last few months (?years) of this startup company trying to bring cheap aero wheels to the triathlon market.

FLO Cycling was created by two brothers who were looking to start their own business and got the idea of aero wheels because they did triathlons.  Basically they are aluminum rims with carbon fairings.  Either 60mm or 90mm as well as a rear disc.  They are of the newer wide shape and not the 'V' shape.

Luckily I got my bonus from work earlier in the month and had the money to spend (?blow) on a set of wheels.  I decided on a set of 60/90's.  They had a special launch last Thursday.  You saved $100 on a set and got an extended 3 year warranty by ordering in the first 4 hours.  The biggest kicker is the delivery.  Roughly the first 200 people to order can expect to get their wheels in early June.  The next 200 in early July, and so on and so forth.

So the mad dash on Thursday crashed their server instantly.  I managed to get my order through, but it took almost 15 minutes.  I was order # 312.

FRONT 60

REAR 90

I opted for the Stealth Green stickers.  As you know, my B16 is green.  I showed my kids the regular green sticker and these stealth ones.  Both kids like the stealth, so I went with that.  I have not found out yet when I should expect to see my wheels.  I'm hoping that I will be in that first delivery group.  The rumor is that the first order is 129, which means I would actually be the 183rd person to place an order. Assuming that everyone ahead of me orders an average of 2 wheels I should be in the first group.   I heard some people ordered 1 and some ordered 3.  

How will it look on my Felt?  Pretty close to this:

Now that looks simply Hot! I'm pretty stoked about it.  Now I have to get some tires.  There have been a lot of threads on ST lately about that.  I'm leaning toward the Vittoria Open Corsa Evo CX.  FLO tested in Michelin Pro Race 3's.  Anyways, I'll be riding in style at Augusta!

Mid-February Fun

Training weather in SC this time of year can be hit or miss.  Sometimes it's 70, sometimes its snowing.  Almost got a little of each this week (actually this weekend).  Without further ado, the week:

Swim
13,000 yards, 4 swims, 5:15.  Good volume.  The four different workouts were 1) 100's and 150's 2) Ladder 3) Long set (in this case 2,200 straight) and 4) 200's kinda a fartlek as in 50 easy then 50 hard.  The last workout actually seems to go by pretty fast.  Much better for me than straight 200's.  That is a mentally taxing workout for me.  Next week is my last higher volume week.  Higher volume for me that is!

Bike
43.8 miles, 1 ride (Boo!), 2:03, plus 1hr on the Y trainer.  I wussed out on the Sunday afternoon ride.  40 degrees, raining, windy, temp dropping rapidly (the bad weather side of SC February).  I thought I was hardcore, but I guess I still need some HTFU'ing.  Glad I got a good ride in on Saturday at 21.3 mph average.  Good news is that next weekend's weather and schedule are much more favorable.

Run
18 miles, 3 runs, 2:10.  Good week of running as I'm slowing building back.  5M on Wed night relaxed.  Then 5M on Saturday about 2.5 hrs after my bike ride.  Felt it in the beginning but ended up averaging 6:50's on the run.  Felt almost hot near the end!  Sunny and mid 60's and almost took the t-shirt off (the good weather side of SC February).  Sunday morning put in 8M and felt pretty good.  Wanted to run 7:30's but ended up at 7:16 avg.  Feel pretty encouraged about my running for the Charleston Half.  Just not sure how that's gonna feel after 56M hard on the bike!

Totals
69.2 miles, 9 workouts, 10:28

Just 9 weeks until Charleston.  The swim is what it is, not worried about it.  The running seems to be coming along.  Need more saddle time, though.  I'll continue base work through February and then start some intervals and tempos on the bike and run in March.

Pointy Helmet Time

There comes a time in every triathlete's life (?career) that they have to ask themselves one single question: Should I get an Aero Helmet?  Well, I'm of the opinion that if you have to ask, then you shouldn't.  So I didn't really ask (I got some cash from Christmas and my Birthday).  First the week:

Swim
12,800 yards, 4 swims, 5:09, Some pretty slow sessions this week.  Kinda tired near the end

Bike
81 miles, 2 rides, 3:55, plus 1 hr on the Y trainer.  Super Windy ride on Saturday, felt like I was dragging an anchor at times.

Run
13 miles, 3 runs, 1:34.  Got a couple of 5M runs in over the weekend.  Good 23 degrees Sunday morning 5 miler.

Total
101.2 miles, 10 workouts, 11:38.  Starting to get some good time in.


So It's always fun when a UPS box with your name on it gets delivered, right?  Especially when you know its a new toy, and not something like humidifier filters.  They just aren't as fun to get.

The first box just boxed the second box with all the cool artwork.  Both boxes got shipped out the same  day that I ordered them online. Although it took a week to get here from California.  

In the box was a cool bag with more artwork.  The helmet came this way packaged in the bag.

Here it is in all it's Fluo Glory!

Here's basically what all came in the box:

But as I discovered later, there were actually (4) different front inserts.  I was actually about to throw the box out when I found the other inserts.

The inserts just pop in and out of the front.  Vented or not, "Chrome" or White.

I'm kinda partial to the "Chrome" myself.

I haven't done a race hot enough (or long enough?) for a vent yet, but maybe this year!

Underneath the the straps that fit your head is adjustable (like a hard hat if your familiar with that).  So you can get it fit pretty good.  I think this is why they go with the "one size fits all".  It fits me great, so I either have an average head, I got lucky, or other people are just too picky.  The piece under the tail is removable as well for further ventilation.  I doubt I'll need that at this point in time however.  I saw where some people even tape over the rear vents for more aerodynamics.

How does it look?  Well I haven't gotten it on the road yet, but it looks totally Freakin Cool!  Plus it is lighter than crap.  Make my $35 Giro feel like a bag of bricks.

Why the lime green?  Well I've decided to totally dive into the lime green accents on my B16.  I've always kinda liked the color.  I just need to find some race wheels and tires with the lime green and I'll be well on my way.  Right before I placed the order for the helmet, I started to waffle on whether I should just go with the Black.  But I think I made the right decision.  

I'll have to take it out for a short training ride to test it out.  I don't want to look like a real Tri Dork for a 2 hour ride with it.  Hopefully I can get in a time trial at CMS or Rock Hill to get a good 10 mile test on it.  I'll post an update them.

January Training

Over the past week I got some good training in and January came to an end.  Typically the end of January means its time for my son's birthday on February 1st.  It still meant that this year, but I got in a whole lot of training this January compared to last January.  Why?  First the week.

Swim
12,000 yards, 4 swims, 4:38.  3K yards a swim.

Had some good workouts with 200's and a ladder.  Shoulder still feels good.  Focusing on rotating my body has helped a lot.  Now I'm trying to get that rotation, or hip movement to add power to my stroke.  I heard rotate your hips "forward" a couple of weeks ago.  I think it helps with my catch and pull as well.

Bike
77.8 miles, 2 rides, 3:41, plus 1hr on the Y trainer.

Got a couple of really good rides in over the weekend.  Both from a performance standpoint and a "HTFU" standpoint.  Still just doing some base rides.  Not planning on adding intervals or tempo rides for a few weeks.  I'm doing intervals on the trainer, so that helps.  Saturday morning was 45 degrees and raining.  Well raining off and on.  Streets were all wet, but it wasn't raining when I started.  Got a couple of good showers on me, but no real downpours.  As you can see from the pic, my "white" socks are pretty nasty.  My feet were just frozen by the end of the ride.  Jumped straight into the shower afterward, and it was prolly one of the most satisfying showers I've had!  I rode Doby's Bridge Road to Van Wyck and Waxhaw, and then came back to 521 on Kensington and then back up Doby's.  It's become one of my favorite rides.  47M at a 21.1 avg.  I felt like I was officially 'hardcore' at the end of it.  Sunday afternoon was cloudy and overcast.  A little warmer at 52 degrees.  Rode Doby's again but turned around before the end and went up to Regent Parkway and back.  30M at 21.0 avg.

Run
9 miles, 3 runs, 1:04

Just easing back into it.  Felt good on all the runs.  Just 3M each run.  Ran one at a 6:50 pace and one at 6:56 pace.  I'll do a little more next week.

Totals:
93.7 miles, 10 workouts, 10:24

January Totals:
Swim
46,400 yards,  18 swims, 17:42
Highest swim yardage month ever!  Really taking the 'January Fish' thing to heart.  Plus, I've always said I would swim more if my shoulder didn't hurt . . .

Bike
284.4 miles, 8 rides, 3 trainer sessions, 16:56
Almost 250M more than last January on the roads.  Having a bike helps. 20.8 mph avg for the 8 rides outside.  Love riding outside.  It's certainly nice to be able to ride outside all year round in South Carolina.

Run
6 miles, 2 runs, 0:42
So I just got back into running at the end of the month.  The running will fall into place, I'm not that worried about it.

Totals:
316.8 miles, 31 workouts, 35:20
About 50% more time than last January.  Swam more a biked a lot more.  The Charleston Half seems to be getting close.  The realization that April 21st is now only 11 weeks away is starting to motivate me pretty good.  Sometimes it seems that I won't be ready for my first half.  On the other hand, no matter what I do, I'm sure I won't feel ready.  

I did get another little Christmas/Birthday present from UPS this past week.  Pics next week, but here's a hint: It will help me go faster on the bike!