Team McAlister

Last Summer I took part in CARVE’s Summer Crit Series, and I came out of it with a thoroughly cleaned clock. It took me three races just to not get lapped by everyone else. This Summer I’m determined to do at least a little bit better, so today I went out for a little crit-specific practice. I went down to Crissy Field, found an empty parking lot, and spent the better part of an hour working on track starts, figure eights and slaloming. I’ve hardly been on my bike at all this semester, since I can’t ride to class and my exercise time has gone toward running, but I’m definitely in better physical condition than I was this time last year. With some more time in the saddle I should be in pretty good shape, maybe even good enough to keep up with the old, fat, Cat 5 guys.

It’s a fantastically clear day, so after my parking lot drills I rode to the base of the bridge. There’s a new bike path most of the way there, so now instead of worrying about potholes and gravel you can focus on dodging tourists on rental bikes. Something about renting a bike absolutely makes people lose their minds. I honestly feel safer riding downtown during rush hour. Anyway, here are some pics, courtesy of my apparently colorblind iPhone.

Tags: biking, Golden Gate, san francisco

Hey, remember when I said I was going to run 9 miles today? I lied. The opportunity arose to go for a bike ride with some friends, so I postponed the run until tomorrow. It’s probably a good thing, I feel like my knees needed the reprieve.

We went to a neat little cafe called the Velo Rouge for lunch. As you might imagine, it’s very bike-centric. Funky bike racks and a pump outside, SFBC stickers all over, and lots of old pictures of Tours de France. My favorite was of a rider lighting a cigarette for the rider next to him, that’s what I mean by “old pictures.” The coffee and the food were both outstanding, I might have to stop eating out altogether so I can make Sunday brunch there a regular thing. They have a t-shirt with a picture of a bike on it that says “53 miles per burrito.” I really need that shirt. I wear a large, by the way 

Tomorrow I will be trying for 9 miles, for real.

Tags: bicycle, bike, biking, cafe, food, health, san francisco, velo rouge

In the last post, I was optimistic about the beautiful day and the promise it held for strong training. That was the triumph of hope over experience! By the time I made it to the parking lot down by the river, the wind was brutal. Naturally, I was not completely kitted for the conditions. At any rate, I logged a decent ride with a nice climb and some tough head winds. It was a good day to get the cadence up and keep it smooth.

After a short break to give a driving lesson to a friend’s daughter, I got back out to do the running.

It was slow and sloggy, but it’s done now. The good news? No injuries.

Tags: biking, cycling, running, triathlon

It’s beautiful out there today! As soon as the aquarium water change is finished, I’m getting out to ride and run.

The danger is in trying to do too much. Ideally, I’ll get about 3 hours of cycling in plus the ever-present 30 minutes of running/walking. Three hours of cycling right now is a load though,so we’ll see how it goes.

Tags: biking, cycling, injuries, running, triathlon

You gotta love a place where the temperatures vary by 30 degrees from one day to the next. Thursday’s run in 23 degree weather was pretty special. That was Thursday wasn’t it? Well, today it was 50 and windy.

Today’s plan was to stick with the 30 minutes of walking and running as prescribed by Hal Higdon – sort of. I’m not a slave to his program, but I am being careful since it’s been a long, long time since I ran seriously. I completed 2.23 miles at a 13:30 pace and didn’t feel as though it was a push at all. That’s probably as it should be. These old knees were just a wee bit cranky at the end, but not too bad. (A doc looking inside my knees once said that I had the knees of an 80 year old man! And that was over 25 years ago.) This is my biggest concern, but I figure that in the final analysis, it’s just pain. And, pain can be overcome.

Being able to finish up the run and get on my bike was a fine reward. Slammed down a banana, aired up, and got to rolling. Had a nice 1:45 with some hills and lots of wind. Plenty of opportunity to work on smooth stroke and balance.

I’m lovin’ this!

Tags: biking, cycling, health, masters, triathlon