Peaking is Killa

Saturday morning, Dee Dee and I got up relatively early to take her to get fitted for her bike. Yea, it's been nine months since Dee Dee got her bike and we were just now getting around to getting her fitted. It was a dreary day. It was raining, not a big down pour, but the kind of drizzle that reminds that it is indeed a craptacular day.

Dee Dee and I mosied on over to All3Sports. This fine establishment is the tri store of choice in North Atlanta. Heck, it's the only tri store I know of in Atlanta. We managed to get there shortly after the store opened. Dee Dee got right to getting "fitted". Here is a list of things that were wrong with Dee Dee's bike.

1. Her seat was too low.
2. Her handle bars were crooked.
3. Her cleats were loose, which explained why she couldn't unclip.

LOL! Totally not my fault. I told that woman to go get fitted shortly after she got her bike! Oh well, better late than never! While she was getting fitted, I was browsing every single item in the store, but managed to restrain myself to a new aero bottle for the tri bike.

On the way home, we stopped off at the LBS to see if Aerowyn was finished. The manager said that the guy working on her had stopped for some reason and he would check on her. Well, she needed about 10 more minutes of work. They actually looked pained! I said not to worry. I would come back for her later, as I lived right down the street. Within the hour, they called to tell me she was ready. Oh yea!! I went by and picked her up and brought her home.


Shortly thereafter, I suited up and hit the streets for my 90 minute run. The rain was still coming down in a slow drizzle. I wore short sleeves, shorts, and my new tri visor. The temps were about sixty degrees and it was actually fantastic. It took about five minutes before water started dripping from my hat, and I didn't even realize I was soaking wet until about mile three. I felt good enough to hit the familiar hilly loop hard and did 8.3 miles in about 88 minutes, for a 10:30 average pace.

Sunday morning, Dee Dee and I met Brian at the Silver Comet Trail for our long ride of the weekend. I had 2.5 hours on the schedule, 1 hour at race pace. Dee Dee was looking at doing about an hour. Brian was looking like the stud triathlete on a really cool black Felt tri-bike. Let me tell ya, that dude can ride!!! I just can't say how awesome it was to have TT bars on Aerowyn and thumb shifters. My riding was smooth. Shifting was smooth and effortless. I was really surprised at the way it changed the ride. I am very happy with the investment! About fifteen minutes into the ride, Dee Dee said that she wasn't worried about riding with us. Brian and I continued on at our own pace. We mainly rode side by side, but every now and then Brian would surge ahead. I was thinking, "That bastard!" LOL!! Just kiddin... It was really great to get together with Brian again and have a riding partner on the trail. We are making plans for some more training sessions before Florida 70.3. Brian was taking his family to Six Flags. After dropping him off, I headed back out on the trail for another 10 miles or so. Over all, I did 42.8 miles in about 2.5 hours, for a 17 mph average.

When I got back to the trail head, I took my time changing into my running clothes. I had been drinking quite a bit out of my aero bottle, and I had eaten a gel every 30 minutes. I've gotten into the habit of eating a cliff bar before my run. I was quite energized for my thirty minute run off. Dee Dee had put her bike in the back of the SUV. I had to lock my bike up on the rack. I ran an out and back along the trail head, mainly to keep an eye on Aerowyn while I was running. The 42 mile ride seemed to add some ooomph to my run, and managed 9:22 minute miles for my thirty minute run, turning in 3.2 miles. That was a new record for me.

Overall, it was an awesome training weekend. I'm looking forward to even longer sessions over the next two weeks. This will truly test my mettle, prior to the taper for Langley Pond on the 26th.

Rock'n and Roll'in. Everybody have a great week!

Wes

ORN: 8.33 miles, 1:28:14, 10:30 mmp
OCN: 42.8 miles, 2:30:53, 17 mph
ORN: 3.2 miles, 30 minutes, 9:22 mmp