Team McAlister

Where does one begin to tell the story of how great a love can be….oops…wrong beginning….but where to begin the story of the weirdness of the last couple of weeks?

I’m still paying for that little practice tri from a couple of Saturdays ago. The nagging tightness in the MCL and some other pain in the knee area are hugely annoying. Discouraging. Not to mention taking a toll on other training. I’m not throwing in the towel on running yet, but I am really, really close. I’ve received some swim coaching, but still need lots of technique work to master what I’m learning.

But get this. I’ve been thinking about a new bike and while simply moving the wheels from my bike to a test bike yesterday, the guys at the bike shop discovered that my bike frame is broken! I’ve been riding that bike quite a bit lately and doing a lot of hill climbing and DESCENDING on a frame with a broken chain stay! I’ve had a sixth sense about something being wrong, but I certainly didn’t think that.

One positive note is that the test bike is a 3/2.5 titanium in a standard configuration and geometry. With my wheels (but none of my other components), it is a fine, fast, stiff ride. Very responsive. Very strong. Gonna have to work on fit now and get my stuff off of the old frame. Not sure yet exactly what ti frame I’ll get, but even if it’s the one I rode today, it’d be a significant step forward.

Another exciting development is that I’m building a strong consensus for creating a signature road ride locally that I hope will be as fine an event as any in the country. Still, just a dream, but sneaking up on being a goal.

Tags: bikes, cycling, running, Training

The date is set for October 10. A sprint tri of 500 yd. swim, 13.5 mi. ride, and 3.4 mi. run. As a budding triFAThlete, I’m approaching this with some trepidation. Last Saturday, I went to the athletic club to work out and put together a small practice tri. It was about 100,000,000 degrees outside, so except for the swim, everything was indoors. Hit the pool for the swim – no problemo. Transitioned in the locker room….very clumsy. Had to fix a water bottle and adjust a spin bike. Rode like mad for 30 minutes at between 95-100 rpms and about 270 watts. The bike said 13.5 miles, but I was told later that was not accurate. Oh well. Anyway, had to wipe down the bike, fix another water bottle, and go back to the locker room for another transition. Then hit the track. Of course, track running is easy and simple, but all running is hard for me. I got my tunes cranked up and a running program that helps me decide when to alternate walking and running. Polished off the 3.4 miles in about 40 minutes. The entire workout, start to finish including transitions, water bottles, bike adjustments and all, took 1:50. I was happy with that. Naturally, since running was involved, I couldn’t walk afterwards for two days – cranky right knee. But I woke up this morning pain free and can walk normally. It takes a lot of massage to loosen up the muscles that control some of those knee ligaments.

So, no more running between now and the big day. Just lots of swimming and cycling. I think I’m beginning to look forward to this.

Tags: cycling, running, swimming, Training, triathlon