What a day! I completed my fourth and FINAL century (plus) ride today before my big race~Ironman Louisville. I entertained the idea of doing the full 112 miles (half jokingly) with my friend Lia Kaplan before the ride not knowing that circumstances would actually lend itself to accomplishing that goal. Overall, I had a great training day! •112 mile bike ride done (farthest to date! Yippee!)☆ •brick w/o with a quick run done☆ •total active riding time for 112 miles =6:42 (not too shabby)☆ •5,208 feet of climbing done☆ •thrilling descents up to 33.2 mph☆ •speedy flats up to 20.1mph☆ •Kept my candence between 85-95 for the most part (to save my legs for the run) & focused on my mantra: I am more than a cyclist; I am a triathlete.☆ •I finally got to meet the fabulous Julie Crusor for the first time (hey, girl!)☆ •met some GREAT folks on the course☆ •nice rest stops (I took a total of three stops)☆ • I got to see my tri family today☆ ~~~~~~~~The Challenges~~~~~~~~ • We use the term flat very loosely in the State a Georgia, and we dont seem to have a really good working definition of that word. Its not a big deal because my race will not be flat, but it helps to put you in the right frame of mind when you know what to expect. Athletes, if a Georgia race organizer or event coordinator describes an event as pancake flat, you should be very skeptical :) ijs • I felt (and heard) the cleat on my left foot moving in a wierd way at a rest stop. When I checked it out, I saw that Id lost a bolt on my left cleat (first time ever). Luckily, a bike repair guy was on site at one of the stops and helped a sista out. Problem solved (but wondering if this is yet another thing I need to pack with me for race day or whether this is an anomaly). •Dropped my chain....again (momentarily forgot my mantra). •Poorly marked course at the WORST possible place~ near the end at the 80 mile marker! I made a total of three test stops today (quick in & outs--no loitering). At the third and final stop, I was thrilled when I looked down at my Garmin and saw that I was only 20 miles from the finish, and my time was 4:40! However, because of the bad road markings, a big group of people (not just me) ended up totally OFF course! Ironically, it took us 12 miles out of our way (hence, the 112 mile ride). That can do something to you (mentally and emotionally) if you allow it. Lets call that mojo thievery. It took a minute to get my head back in the game, but I did it and got to the 100 mile marker in 5:55. In all honesty, it should NOT have taken me an additional 47 minutes to complete 12 more miles. • Unfortunately, a nice woman who I was riding with decided to quit when she reached 100 miles rather than go the extra distance to the finish. Like most of us, she was simply frustrated, tired, fatigued, and just wanted to be done! She decided to get on the sag wagon. It would have been very easy to get on sag wagon, too. But, I REFUSE to let that be my last experience before my race (again...mojo thievery). Despite the challenges, I had a pretty good day and got some good what if experience. A lot can happen in 112 miles on the bike. Mistake can be made, poor judgment can be used, and you may feel defeated by various issues. Keep. Moving. Forward. Anyhow. Tack on another 25 minutes for water stops/bathroom breaks, cleat repair, and a conference with a local police officer to get us back on course and that equals my total time today. Still not bad. Big S/O to Lia who completed her LONGEST ride to date and Janita Poe who completed her first century ride today!! Good job, ladies!! Priscilla Parris, girl I missed you today! The weather was actually quite cool this morning and well into the afternoon. The rain held off. Coach Richard Kalasky, did I mention Im looking to tapering???? ;) #IMLouBound #Iamready #21daysandcounting #Idontrunfromhills #hillsrunfromme #7straightdaysoftraining
Posted on: Sun, 03 Aug 2014 00:59:04 +0000
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