Triathlon Related Gear I Got This Year That I Really Like

I have wanted to write this post for a little while, and being stuck in a hotel outside Schipol Airport (Amsterdam) seems like a good time to write.  I am pretty tired.  I have been in Dresden, Germany the last week working.  I am exhausted.  Weather was bad leaving Germany and my flight from Frankfurt to Amsterdam was delayed 2 hours due to fog, so I missed my flight from Amsterdam to Minneapolis and I am stuck at the Park Place Hotel Schipol Airport.  I could go into Amsterdam, but I am too tired and don't want to spend the money.
So, here are items I bought, or was given, in the last year that I really like, with some reasons why I like the items and some pictures.

Zipp Sub-9 Disc - Got a blemished one from Gear West, only way I could afford one.  New they run $2000,, blemished they are significantly less.  The obvious reason I like it, it is a disc wheel.  Another reason, it is a Zipp wheel.  It looks cool, it sounds cool, it is stiff, and just a great wheel.  If  you can afford one, get one.  Racing wheels are expensive, but they make the biggest difference of gear you can buy for the bike.  No substitute for training, but a helpful tool to increase speed.

SLS3 Compression Socks - I finally got a chance to really use compression socks.  Last year I had a pair, that did not fit right and I was injured.  This year I did 18 races, so I wore these socks before races, after races, and after hard training.  Basically, when I expected my legs to be tired.  I think they work well for me.  I think they helped my recovery.  At lot of people, pros and age groupers, use them and I now know the reason.  I have not raced in compression socks, or guards, maybe next year. 

Speedo Active Goggles - Air Seal Tri Mirror - Did every race this year in these goggles.  I swam almost every practice this year with these goggles.  They did not leak or fog up.  They fit well.  They are tinted just the right amount.  These goggles do everything goggles should do, and I got them free through the Gear West Test Team.  Nice.  I think these goggles go for about 20 bucks.

Lazer Tardis Aero Helmet - Comfortable aero helmet, looks cool, and is aero.  Need I say more.  I think the helmet retails for about 150.

CycleOps Pro Series SuperMagneto - I needed a new trainer badly.  My old one is over 8 years old and super crappy. I got a couple of trainers to test from Gear West and I liked this one the best.  It is smooth and fairly quiet.  It is heavy, in a good way, and the bike is easy to get in and out of the trainer.  I think the trainer retails for about 400 bucks. 

Felt F75X - First new bike in over 5 years.  One reason I bought a cyclecross bike is I want to try cyclecross, which I have and I have gotten my ass kicked.  The other reason is I wanted something like a road bike.  I can swap wheels and ride this thing on the road with no problem.  The new 105 setup is really nice and the bike has an aluminum main triangle, carbon rear triangle, carbon forks, and carbon seat post.  I think the bike retails for about $1800.

2010 Duathlon Summary and Duathlon History

Below is my summary for the 2010 duathlon season.  It started off slow, due to recovery from my injury, and ended up pretty fast.  I am pleased with my duathlon results for this year.  2008 was my fastest season overall, my fastest bike splits were this year.  Duathlon is where is started in 2006.  In 2006 I did them on a Lemond Sarthe road bike with bolt on aerobars.  As you can see from my times in 2006 I was really slow.

Duathlon is tricky for me, as I think it is for a lot of people.  I think that everyone wants to go out and run that first run hard, but doing that can kill you for the bike and second run.  I went to a duathlon clinic held at Gear West earlier this year, where cutting back on the first run was recommended and discussed, and it makes sense, but it is hard to do.  I think it takes a lot of discipline to temper that first run.  I don't have that yet.

In 2011 I plan on doing the same four duathlons I did this year.
Click on images below to expand

2010 Duathlon Results Summary  (Average of 4 Duathlons)

Average Run Pace - 8:02 min/mi (Average Distance - 2.55mi)

T1 Average - 1:10

Average Bike Pace - 21.3MPH (Average Distance - 18.1mi)

T2 Average - 1:20

Average Run Pace - 8:38 min/mi (Average Distance - 2.65mi)

Average Overall Pace (Total Time/Total Mileage) - 4:12 min/mi (Average Total Distance - 23.3mi)

Average Overall Finish - 108/386

Average AG Finish - 19/43

2009 Duathlon Season Results (Injured Season)

2008 Duathlon Season Results

2007 Duathlon Season Results (First season coached, first season also doing triathlon)

2006 Duathlon Season Results (First season doing multi-sport, did all race on road bike)

Another Tuesday Night Cyclecross

I did the Tuesday Night Cyclecross again.  Go to http://www.mcf.net/ for more information.  This time the course was flatter and had fewer barriers.  The barriers were in two groups.  One group of two barriers and one group of three barriers.  It was equally as technical with many turns, both uphill and downhill.
Again, I got my ass kicked.  I think I finished dead last, or close second to last.  Of course, I will continue to do these Tuesday night races.
The people who do this well, really know how to cross those barriers fast.  If I came up to a barrier even with someone, by the time I got through the barriers, they were on their bike and a good 50 feet or more ahead of me.  I am fast enough getting off the bike, I am just not smooth getting over the barriers and back on the bike.  I think I need to go out and get a barrier and practice on my own.
My legs really are not that tired when I finish, I am just breathing hard.  Breathing hard through the whole race.  I can do a sprint or olympic tri and I don't think my heart rate gets as high as it does during a half hour of cyclecross.  This the opposite of a TT or the cycle portion of a tri.  Here I am in a gear where I am spinning a lot, because of the uphill.  In a TT or tri I am pushing a big gear at a constant pace.  Cyclecross is a very different creature that requires very different training than what I have been doing.
I took some random pictures of the Masters and Female race that was after the Cat 4 race I did.  I tried to give some sense of what the course was like.

September 2010 Workout Summary and Season Workout Summary

This was my last month of triathlons and duathlons. One triathlon and two duathlons in September. I also did my first cyclecross race, it was painful.
The last day of September I added in 20 minutes of strength workout. For the next few months I will be cutting back on the swim, bike, and run, and adding some strength. I think I need a little break from swimming, I think I am getting a bit burned out on it. I also think I need to build strength. Not only arm and leg, but core. My back and abs, especially back, are weak and need building.

I have also stopped with a coach for now, coaching ended today. I have a coach for more than 2 years. I might start up again next year.

The main reason for the stop is money. The second reason is that I need to do some unstructured workouts and to do my workouts in more of a relaxed way. I fear burnout and getting sick of working out.

I do think that hiring a coach was the best decision I made for my training. I don't think I would have reach the point I have reached without the structure and insight of a coach. It is really the best way to focus workouts, make workouts more efficient, and save time. I do recommend OptumHealth Performance (http://www.optumhealthperformance.com/) and Kris Swarthout. Kris has been my coach for over 2 years and has done a fantastic job. I hope to return at some point.

Below are summaries for Sept, YTD, 2007 to date, averages, and the breakdown for every month of this season. Enjoy!

September 2010 Summary and Comparison

YTD Summary and Since 2007 Summary

Since 2007 Summary and Monthly Averages

Month-by-Month Breakdown of 2010 - Includes races