One of the only interesting things about this month (that hasn't been previously blogged about) was that I helped coach a triathlon camp, in Prescott, AZ. The camp was being put on by Destination Kona (Destination Kona) and Sole Swim Solutions (Sole Swim Solutions). It was a great 3 day, 2 night event, that included things like nutritional presentations, the psychology of training sessions, a chi running clinic, swim technique at the local community college pool, rides in the cool pines, and plenty of social activities.
Here is a pic of me and Frank:
For more pics, you can go here Camp Pics or here More Camp Pics.
July Numbers:
JULY 2010 TOTALS (IMAZ 2010 TRAINING YEAR):
SWIM = 17850 yards
BIKE = 554.69 miles
RUN = 82.70 miles
JULY 2011 TOTALS:
SWIM = 39042 yards
BIKE = 578.87 miles
RUN = 0 miles
JULY 2012 TOTALS (IMAZ 2012 TRAINING YEAR):
SWIM = 27000 yards
BIKE = 338.63 miles
RUN = 96.33 miles
JULY 2013 TOTALS:
SWIM = 11200 yards
BIKE = 321.91 miles (169.77 tri & 152.14 MTB)
RUN = 6.5 miles
I started my beloved stack of Beta-Alanine & Kre-Alkalyn again this morning. I'm on this cocktail again because that it is confirmed that we will be doing the State TTT Championship on September 8th. I'll be back on Optygen exactly one month prior to the race too. After using this cocktail for my IMAZ 2012 training, I have repeatedly told everybody that I can how beneficial I thought it was...for me at least. While there is no guarantee that they would experience the same benefits, I can say that I know of at least 5 other people that have used it and swear by it as well. Since the number one web search that brings people to this blog is some derivative of "Kre-Alkalyn Ironman Triathlon" or "Beta Alanine and Kre-Alkalyn Stack" or just the words "Beta-Alanine" and "Kre-Alkalyn" together, I figured that I would group all of my posting about it here:
My initial report explaining what these supplements are and pics of the bottles I bought:
Introducing Beta-Alanine & Kre-Alkalyn
In this post, Beta-Alanine & Kre-Alkalyn 6 Week Report, I gave a rather neutral review 6 weeks in.
I started taking Beta-Alanine only when I was training for my swimming national championships: Beta-Alanine & Kre-Alkalyn Part II
I gave a pretty positive 17 day update on the use of just Beta-Alanine: Beta Alanine Without Kre-Alkalyn Update
On 06/21, my son competed in his 1st ever swim meet! He participated in the 6 and under age group and completed the 25 yard freestyle and the 25 yard backstroke. He completed his second meet this last Saturday (07/13). I brings a tear to my eye to see him starting to enjoy being part of the swimming community and doing well at it. Seeing him swim brought back a flood of memories, emotions, and feelings that completely overwhelmed me. When he brought home is first ribbons, it reminded me that I still have, get this, EVERY SINGLE ribbon/medal that I ever won!!!! They have been packaged neatly in plastic bags, with various other trophies, in a box in our garage. I wanted to get them out to see what my first times were in the same events. Ironically, my first two events ever were the same as his. I was hoping to compare them, but then realized that I didn't start competing until I was 8. I did show them to him and told him that he now has a time goal to set his sights on when he turns 8.
- My first ever freestyle = 06/13/1981 (25 yards in 18.60) = 2nd place
- My first ever backstroke = 06/13/1981 (25 yards in 21.61) = 1st place
At any rate, I went through each one (they are all in chronological order) and found my fastest times in each event. What surprised me the most is that I actually had breaststroke ribbons and, for the life of me, can't recall ever swimming that stroke! I considered myself a backstroke, butterfly, and freestyle only guy (and in that order). In any medley relay, I pretty much always did the backstroke or butterfly (or at least that's how I remember it!). I can remember actually taking private lessons for breaststroke even in my advanced years because my coach, and grandmother, wanted me to be an IMer (Individual Medley). I can't remember that ever amounting to much. OK, OK, back to why I pulled out my fastest times....I wanted to compare them to my most recent PRs:
- My fastest age group butterfly = 06/13/1989 (50 yards in 25.74)
- My current PR = 04/05/2013 (50 yards in 25.54)
- My fastest age group backstroke = 07/11/1991 (50 yards in 27.10)
- My current "PR" = 04/05/2013 (50 yards in 27.62)
- My fastest age group breaststroke = 06/13/1991 (50 yards in 32.34)
- Haven't competed in this event
- My fastest age group freestyle = 07/02/1991 (50 yards in 23.36)
- My current "PR" = 05/09/2013 (50 yards in 23.62)
Aside from the revelation that I actually competed in breaststroke, the other surprising thing that stands out to me is that my butterfly PR occured when I was just 16! All of the other fastest times were right after I graduated high school and had one summer of age group eligibility left. That doesn't seem right. Maybe I missed a ribbon somewhere, so maybe I'll go back and recheck. If I do, I'll make the necessary changes to this post. Until then, however, this is how I'll leave it.
My two very first ribbons are on the left. The ones on the right are for my fastest times (above) as an age grouper:
I really must not have anything going on if I'm posting pics of snakes. I saw this monster bull snake sprawled across the trail on my ride this morning.
Headed up to the family cabin for our annual 4th of July weekend trip. If you recall, last year, I was in full-on IMAZ training and brought my tri bike and running gear. This time, however, it was MTB time! Before we left, I downloaded a trail map of the area and found out that there were a few great trails near our cabin. I won't bore you with any of the minutia, rather I'll give an overview of each ride (there were 3).
First up was the Luna Lake trail. It has a big loop (8 miles) and a small loop (2.5 miles). Luna Lake is about 5-6 miles from the cabin and the trail head may be another mile further in. The MTB trails in this area are designated with a blue diamond and are marked fairly well. I decided to ride from the cabin to the trail head, do the long loop, and head back. Once in the thick of it, I ended up getting turned around and when I turned to the trail markers, I saw two arrows pointing in opposite directions on the same trail. Which way should I go?!? I ran into a few rangers and made some small talk too. They told me that there was a big mountain lion roaming in the area so I should be careful. Awesome. Ultimately, I found my way back to the trail head and headed home. This would end up being my longest MTB ride yet and it was great.
Link to the ride: Luna Lake Loop
I guess this is the trail head!
The trails were marked fairly well:
Or were they?
The scenery was much different than what I've been used to MTBing in:
Two days later, on the 5th, I racked my bike and headed over to Williams Valley to hit the trails there. It's not far, but I just didn't feel like riding to the trails like I did with Luna. The VERY short version of this ride is that I saw some Elk, was completely isolated in the middle of the forest, saw/heard and eagle screeching, fell over while still clipped in at a complete stop on the trail, and cut it short due to an incoming thunder storm. Finally, the feeling of being completely isolated, in the middle of a valley, in the middle of the forest, with elk close by, was completely, and totally, out of this world, cool.
Link to the ride: Williams Valley Trails
More gratuitous pics of my bike:
The last ride was sometime after the Williams Valley ride. After the storm passed, I headed back out. I left my bike on the rack and made a quick 2 mile drive to the Georges Lake trail head. I suppose I could have ridden there, but you know what? I didn't. The trail is a 9 mile OAB with a pretty good climb thrown in the middle. I didn't actually see a lake, so I'm bummed about that, but I did do some exploring and had a great ride. No pics though!
Link to the ride: Georges Lake Trail
There is a new major road that just opened up in our neck of the woods. It's about 8 miles long, has no stop lights, and is relatively flat. It cuts through the desert and offers views previously unseen. It's a great route to incorporate into any ride, as it adds an additional 16 miles of continuous riding. Once we started utilizing this new stretch of road, one of the previously unseen views was that of Cave Creek Dam. Previously, the only way to see it from afar was if you were on one of the MTB trails in the area. Every time I saw it, while on the new stretch, I became more and more intrigued. Today was the day that I made the decision to hop on my MTB and take off on an exploratory ride. I had no idea how to get there, or if it was even accessible. I simply hopped on my steed and followed a number of different, unmarked, trails that led to the general area that I wanted to go.
This is the first ride that I was able to use my new Camelbak Rogue. I've been trying to get a bottle, and cage, to fit in the middle of my frame, but had absolutely no luck. I borrowed a side loading cage from Airpark Bikes and purchased the smallest (20oz) bottle that I could find. Unfortunately, it was still too big and would mess with the suspension/shock. As a result, I was carrying a bottle in my jersey pocket, but that didn't provide enough water. I should mention that there is a place for a cage on the underside of my frame, but who the heck puts a bottle down there?!?! It would get muddy, dirty, dusty, and be hanging out down there....impossible for me to reach whilst riding. A few of my pals have Camelbaks, and a few of them actually use them. The few that don't tell me that they don't like having the extra weight on their back, or that "you just don't see the elite guys wearing them" Some of my other MTB buddies have hardtails that have a frame that allows for two full sized bottles, so no pack is necessary. With all that considered, I still HAD to make the purchase, but didn't want a huge, monstrous, back pack. After checking them all out, I settled on the smaller, 70oz, minimal, Rouge. I didn't want a black one, since I figured that it was really heat up in the summer, and the yellow one just didn't catch my fancy. I kind of liked the white one, but I could only order that from the UK. That left me with the red one and, I gotta say, now that I have it, looks bad ass!
Once I get some more use out of it, maybe I'll give a full report. Until then, I'll get back to the ride report on the Dam.
After about 7 or 8 miles of riding seemingly endless trails, I came upon the dam itself. It was actually quite the site! I took my time to take it all in, take some pics, and just ride around. I found this guys MTB blog with more detailed info and more pics: Cave Creek Dam Blog Entry
Once it was time to head back, I decided to take a different way then I had come in. I mean, why not? Let's explore! At one point, I wasn't sure where the trail was going to take me and the only landmark I had was the North Sonoran Mountain and it's trail system. As long as I was heading northeast of that, I was good to go! Eventually, I made my way back safely and had an awesome time out there alone....just exploring.
Link to the ride: Cave Creek Dam Ride
Pic of my bike with the dam in the background:
