Breathless Agony Century

You know it will be a fun bike race when they name it "Breathless Agony". I love the jersey.

I signed up today as this is the next ride the sub5 team will begin training for in February. The race is May 1st which will be good timing for ramping up bike fitness for Ironman in June.

Several of the sub5 team did the Julian, Borrego, Montezuma Rd., Banner grade loop over the holidays. Andy Green and I made it up the 12 mile, 3,000 foot climb in 1 hour 4 minutes. We're planning doing this ride again as part of BA training and hopes of breaking the 1 hour mark as we get further into the training cycle.

I plan to continue doing double peak intervals to build climbing stregth. I'm currently able to ride from main square in San Elijo Hills to the DP park in 18 minutes. Will monitor improvement over the coming months.

Alvin and the Chipmunks 2: The Squeakquel

The kids loved the first Alvin and the Chipmunks so we took them to see the "squeakquel". I think they liked the first one better. This is not one of those movies like "Up" or "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" which is entertaining for adults too.

Car Camping

The kids and I slept in the minivan last Saturday parked in front of the house. We had a blast. We cooked dinner in the garage on the supercat alcohol stove we made earlier. The instant mashed pototoes were pretty good, however, the couscous and risotto were a bit too salty for my taste - something to do perhaps with the mushroom seasoning. Will try something more mild next time. Nathan and Morgan also made Nutella and graham cracker sandwiches which were a hit.

They couldn't wait to go to sleep, so we were in bed by 6:30 and didn't get up until I woke them up at 6:15 because I needed to run.

It turned out to be quite warm that evening. The temps only got down to the mid 50's.

We used a blow up mattress and I opened up my sleeping bag like a quilt. The kids were plenty warm in their 30 degree bags.

They want to do it again.

A Succesful End to My First Full Year of Biking

As I reflect on 2009 as related to bicycling, I'm struck with how quickly the year came and went and the sense of accomplishment it has brought.

There were many highlights which included:

* Biking roughly 8,000 miles for the year
* Earning "Platinum" at the Tour de Tucson
* Climbing Montezuma road (12 miles, over 3,000 ft of climbing) in 1 hr. 4 minutes
* Keeping up with the Swami's "A" team on their Saturday rides

Yet much of the satisfaction also comes every day and is unplanned:

* Extraordinary sunsets
* Extraordinary sunrises
* Riding in pouring rain
* Riding in the freezing cold and dark
* Seeing and intimately experiencing new places, some far away and some very nearby

I've also had the opportunity to get to know, train, and enjoy the company of many new friends. In particular, the sub5 team I began training with September for the Tour de Tucson.

I hope 2010 brings similar accomplishments and satisfaction as I couldn't imagine a much better start to this adventure.

Mt. Whitney

So I've recently been thinking again about ultralight backpacking. Nathan and had a lot of fun making alcohol stoves over the Christmas break and have committed to building out the required equipment.

I see two categories of hiking/backpacking/camping to pursue. One is the more "extreme" type that will be an extension of long distance running. This will be fast trekking through the wilderness over long distances with possible overnight stays.

The other will be family camping where the modern conveniences need to be available - showers, restrooms, running water.

For the first category, Mt. Whitney seems to be one of the classic hikes in the area. There has been some discussion about when to go on the hiking mail list at work. It seems there is still snow on mountain in June. Mid July seems to be the recommended time if you want to carry less gear. Permits are required for an overnight. Will start looking into that, but perhaps this would be a fun weekend after Ironman is done.

It would also be a good excuse for "training" hikes and camping to get familiar with and optimize gear and back country skills.

Could be fun.

Book Review: Full Tilt - Ireland to India with a Bicycle

I like books that engage you. And this one does just that. To add a twist, this has become somewhat of a multimedia affair. As the author describes here journey through France, Italy, Yugoslavia, Slovania, and Bulagaria (as far as I've gotten so far), I've also followed here travels on Google Earth.

It's been quite educational seeing the towns, roads, mountains, plains, and rivers that she crossed by visiting these sites virtually on the computer.

So far, it's been a lot of fun tracking her journey, even though it occured in 1964.

20 Miles from Poinsettia

This was the second time I ran from Poinsettia train station to work. Pace was 10:47 (3:39 total over 20.3 miles). Probably could have used a little more recovery time from the 1/2 ironman I did last weekend.

Left train station at 4:30 am. Used head mounted flashlight which worked out pretty well. It was dark for the first few hours. Drank 3 8oz. cytomax and 1/2 bottle of water. 2 gels. Ate banana and cliff bar before leaving.

Temp 43F in morning. Long sleeve, vest, shorts, could have used light gloves as hands got cold in some areas, particularly through Cardiff and 3/4th through run.

Although I ran the whole way, time was not that far off from run/walk strategy. I believe time was ~3:45 when did it earlier.

Hope to improve in time next time when more recovered. Will be doing 15-20 mile runs every week through December in prep for the Carlsbad Marathon.