This Just In......

Fatboy Gets His Ass Kicked To The Curb!!!

Saturday night was not one of my best running days. I had pretty much slacked off the whole day after Julie's race, with the exception of putting a kitchen faucet in for my folks. I spent most of the day grazing in the kitchen, and then ate a really BIG steak dinner!! Or was it a Big Mis-Steak dinner?  I determined that I needed to get my run in for the day. I soon realized the error of that thinking. Fatboy was laughing is big ol' fat ass off as I was struggling to breathe and to keep my dinner down. At about the 2 mile mark, my stomach decided it'd had enough, and well....I'll spare the details, but you get the idea. Despite what I thought was a dismal run, I still managed to pull off 8 PR's. Go figure.

Monday night, Julie joined me on my run, and once again my brain was telling me to slow down and pace yourself. My legs had other ideas. The nice, small, easy strides seem to kill my knees for some reason. I started taking longer, faster strides, and berfore you know it I was gasping for breath and wheezing. Julie said that I need to just take it easy. That the purpose of interval training is to get used to running long periods of time. Still, I could hear Fatboy chuckling in the corner, saying "see I told you that you couldn't do it." At  one point he almost had me convinced. But thanks to my running buddy telling me not to give up, I dug a little deeper and found the strength to finish the run, and knocked out one more PR. Probably what screwed me up the most was, earlier in the day, I had riden 20 miles on the bike. I thought I was feeling good enough to run that eveneing, but my knees, back, and hips were actually killing me. Getting old SUCKS!!!

 

                                                                                                                                       

Wednesday morning I decided to drive into work because I had a 7 p.m. softball game, and the train has been running late all week. I left the house at my normal time and arrived at work an hour ahead of schedule. Now what? I don't want to clock in and hour early. (I can't leave early anyway) Sooo... I laced up my shoes and went for my run. The shop I work at is located close to a nice little neighborhood that was perfect for a nice early morning run. After my abismal failure on Monday, I forced myself to run at a more manageable pace. To my surprise, it worked. The first run interval was 5 minutes, and seemed like it was only 2. The next one was a 6 minute run, and at the end of it my legs didn't seem to want to stop going. Weird!! The final 5 minute run went by so quick , I didn't even get the least bit winded. TAKE THAT FATBOY!!!  I felt so good, like I could take on the world. I didn't set any PR's, but I did have a personal triumph in knowing that my inner Fatboy had been beaten down and left whimpering in the corner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today, Julie signed up for the Bay Breeze 10K race in February held at Quarry Lakes in Fremont. She also signed me up for the 5K race the same day. She sent me a text telling me that I was signed up now, so I can't back out. Not that I would. I'm actually excited to run now. Who'da thunk it? ME? Running? and running a 5K to boot? A year ago I would've laughed at the idea. But this is the new me, and I'm likin' what I see

 

 

 

 

 

Getting The Lead Out !!!

This week is the begining of my new training strategy. WORK, WORK, WORK and WORK some more. April is going to be here before you know it, I need to be better prepared. I got some really good info on a training regimen to build up my cardio from a fellow cyclist tha rides the train with me. I only wish I'd have caught his name. So, following his advice, I'm looking for trails and roads to work out on. He said I need to find a road that is pretty steep and climb it in little intervals until I can climb to the top without getting winded. For now though, I'm pushing myself harder on some days, lighter on others just to kinda give my body a chance to recover from the harder days. The Strava app on my phone has actually played role in my training as of late. Everyday I try to break my own personal records of how fast I can get to the train station, or to work. It's gotten boring though, because I can bang it out pretty quickly now. One day, while on Strava,  I noticed a little trophy next to my name. It was for a time record of a segment of my ride. The next day when I got to where the segment started, I put the hammer down and broke that record!!! From then on I've been hooked. On Tuesday I had actually set a couple of top five times on two segments. One was a 5th fast time for a 1.8 mile stretch, and the other was a 4 way tie for 2nd on a little .4 mile sprint. Had I been a second faster I would have owned 2nd place.

 

24 hours later I did own it!!!

27.6 mph average on a Mountain Bike!!!

 

Race Day Recap!!

Well, first of all let me say, todays race was a real eye opener. I learned really quickly the importance of carrying water on the bike at all times. Don't underestimate the distance of a race. 6 miles doesn't seem very far on paper, but once your on the trail it can seem like 100. For a beginner like myself, this trail might not have been the best choice for a first race. The event was held at the Granite Beach area of Folsom Lake, and let's just say, it's not called that for nothing. Don't get me wrong I had fun, but I wish I could have been able to pre-ride the trail, so I could have an idea of what I was getting into.

MTB Kickstart Trail via Strava

 

Final Score: Scott-1, Fatboy-0

On the Grid.......

....And They're Off!!

For me, although I came in dead last, I triumphed in the fact that set a goal and accomplished it. I had a few beakdown moments along the trail, where my lungs and heart just didn't have any gas left in them. I pulled off the trail several times to catch my breath, and to let the pro riders pass. I'm still in awe of how fast some of those guys could blast through some of those really rocky sections. If I'd have been thinking, I would have taken some pics while I was resting. Fatboy put up a good fight, but I fought harder. I guess I just wanted it more. he got a couple of good shot in at about the halfway-point when I came upon one of the younger riders who was stuggling to make it up  a really technical section, and stalled in front of me, causing me to tip over. (fall #1) Later another young rider, same scenario.(fall#2) Later, while trying to get out of the way of the hot dogs, I hit a boulder wrong and went down hard. (3rd and final fall) After the fall I noticed my rear wheel rubbing the frame. CRAP!!!! I bent my wheel!!! or so I thought. It was at that moment Fatboy seemed to be winning." Just give up ", he kept saying "You can't win", he said. But in that same instance I yelled back at him, and told him to "SHUT THE FUCK UP ASSHOLE!!!" " The only one I have to beat IS YOU!!" I got back on my bike just went for it and finished the race.  I finally got to where I could hear the spectators cheering, and I knew I was close to the finish. I rode the last half miles hard as I could, and crossed the finish line with a time of 1:05:32. 10 minutes behind the second to last division rider and 25 minutes behind the division leader. Upon finishing the race exhausted and out of breath, I noticed why my wheel was bent. As it turned out in that last fall, one of the spokes had actually broken off right at the hub. As I said before, this was mostly a shakedown race to see what I need to work on. After today, I know I have my work cut out for me before the Sea Otter Classic on April 21st.

Sprinting For The Finish!!!

I Survived!!!

On a lighter note, I'd like to thank the guys at Kinetic Cycles in Elk Grove for being able to fix my broken spoke on such short notice and for such a reasonable price.

 

 

This Week in Running.....

Last nights run was a little brutal. Short, but brutal. I'm now on week 3 day 2 of my C25K training. My inner "Fatboy" kept trying to come out, but I beat his ASS back into the corner where he belongs. He kept saying,"This is too hard, I'm tired, Slow down, I wanna go home!!" I just told him to "Shut up, and take it like a man!!" I then proceeded to tun up my music and push forward. When I got home and checked my Strava run tracker, I found that I actually had a great run. I set 4 new personal records. Yay Me!! I now know a little about what Julie feels when she runs. It's the little victories that make the difference in the long run. (no pun intended)

  

The Weekend is Finally Here!!!!

Whew!!! what a long work week this was. Glad it's over. Now it's off to Granite Bay for the big race. I guess I should go out to the garage and clean and tune my bike before I go.  You always hope everything goes smoothly, but you still need to prepare for the unpredictable. I'm debating on wheather or not I'm going to bother carrying my spare tubes and/or patch kit. It's only a 6 mile race, I probably wouldn't have time to change it and get back in the race anyway. I guess I'll pray for NO FLATS!!! Wish me luck!!!

Countdown To Race Day!!!!

Sunday is just around the corner, time to get pumped up. I've been logging extra miles to make sure I'm ready. Today I got off the train at the Santa Clara station and rode in to San Jose. My plan was to make it in as close to 7 a.m. as possible. Instead, I made it to work with 2 minutes to spare!!!  BOOYAH!!!  Here is a glimpse of my ride tracking on Strava.

Morning ride 1/15/2013

Last night was a good run night with Julie. I just finished week 2 day3 of my couch to 5K run trainer. Julie has a lot of races planned for the year that I'd like to take part in. I'm thinking about running the  5K at the end of February (Julie's is planning to run the 10K) I went for a run last Saturday, it felt like I had lead in my shoes, I was having trouble breathing, and my back was killing me. But, when Julie goes with me it seems like all that stuff goes away. I guess having her there with me takes my mind off the pain long enough to get through the run.

Evening Run 1/14/2013

Tomorrow night is softball night, so I may have to skip running or squeeze it in before the game. Hard to believe I'd be worried about when I'd be able to get a run in, let alone having to work it in around other sports.

 

 

 

New Week, New Goal !!

This past week I rode a total of 85 miles, about 30 more than I ususally ride. My goal for next week be 100 total miles. Although I might amend that figure so I don't wear myself out before Sunday. As of Thursday, I'm officially entered in the men's category 3 cross country mountain bike race at the Sea Otter Classic. It's a 16 miler that should really test my endurance. I need to find some good trails to train on for the next 3 months. My flat ground speed is getting better, thanks in part to making the switch to clipless pedals and shoes.(see previous post) Today the wind was blowing pretty hard, so I decided to ride into it as hard as I could to try and simulate a climbing ride as close as I can. Other than the wind, and the fact it was 45 degrees outside, I was an absolutely beutiful day for a ride.

Who was that Masked Man?

 

 

                     

 

 

It's Gotta Be The Shoes!!!!

Today Julie and I went out for a little sporting goods shopping. She had decided that her old running shoes had seen better days, so it was time for new ones. So we set out for Stockton to go to the Fleet Feet store for her, and then we were going to head over to REI to look at cycling shoes for me.  While Julie was getting fitted, the guy was making idle chit-chat about what we had planned for the rest of the day. He told us about Performance Bikes which was right across the street. After Julie got done we headed over there to check out their selection. We walk in and they have a ton of shoes, most of which were on sale. I wear a size 50 EUR, so its pretty hard to find regular shoes let alone cycling shoes. But low and behold, Julie spots a pair, and they're perfect and on sale!!! I was pretty stoked, I was able to get my shoes and a set of pedals for a little over a $100. I installed the pedals on the bike and strapped on my shoes and went for a ride. I've always been a little apprehensive about being clipped in, but once I got them sorted out and started riding, I started wishing I would have got them sooner. I noticed right away that I could maintain a lot more speed than before. I can't wait to go out agian when the sun's shinning so I can see what these babies can really do.

Speaking of Running Shoes.....

 As part of the whole getting in shape kick that I'm on, I bought a pair of running shoes.(two weeks old now) I've also started a couch to 5K program. I'm tired of going to these races with Julie to just watch and cheer. I want to be out there running beside her. Maybe by the end of summer I might try a couple dualathlons I read about. I'll keep you posted on my progress !!

Put The Pedal To The Metal!!!

This week I decided I should probably start pushing the envelope a little and get out of my little comfortable routine ride to work. For the last couple of days I've been getting off the train one stop early and riding an extra 3 miles. I'm also reversing the route and riding back for a total 6 extra miles per day. I know thats not a lot, but miles are miles, right? On the left is my normal 5.06 mile ride to work. On the right is the new 8.14 mile route.

 

 

Let The Games Begin!!

          2013 is going to be my year! I recently signed up for my first mountain bike race!! I'm so excited that I can hardly wait. Julie (my wife) found this really great site that has MTB races, 5K-10K runs, Half marathons, Dualathalons, Triatalons, etc. Check it out!!tbfracing.com. I signed up for the MTB Kickstart race on Jan. 20th. The event is held at Folsom Lake, So its pretty close to home. I figured that this would be a good race to "get my feet wet"!! I'm also planning to race in the cross-country mountain bike race at the Sea Otter Classic held April 18th-21st near Monterrey, CA .http://www.seaotterclassic.com/ For now, my only goal is to finish. But I know, once I get the first race jitters out of the way, and my competitive gene takes over, that goal will change. Wish me luck!!!

Its a New Year!!! It's a New Life!!!

 
  First of all let me say Happy New Year to you all. 2012 was a pretty busy year for me and the family. We had a lot of ups and downs, but in the end it all worked out. 2012 was the starting point of a new life for me, I started getting my physical health in better shape. It was also the year my wife and I finally made a real connection with each other (we've been married almost 20 years) and are now doing more things together than ever before. 2013 is going to be about continuing on this course that we have laid out for ourselves, hopefully without so many big bumps in the road!