an amazing run

Wind/Pollen/Dust – Oh My!

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 11 WRAP-UP – MAY 18, 2025

Classic Rock lives in my head, and this week was a little rocky, so here’s the playlist (more like earworms) of this week in training.

Bicycle Race – Queen

I’ve been riding my e-bike pretty regularly to work and back the past couple of weeks. The temps have been warmer, and it hasn’t rained. But my bottom bracket on this bike has been creaking and making popping noises so much that it just can’t be ignored any longer. Thursday did, however, look to possibly have storms in the afternoon, so instead of trying to ride home and then hop on my tribike for an actual workout, I opted to extend my ride commute home and use the e-bike for the workout. I powered it down to the lowest level and rode 20 miles on it, making it home in time to also get in a swim. The storm? It may have rained for 10 minutes in the late afternoon. I took my bike into the local bike shop to have it looked at, but come Monday, I will really just want to ride my bicycle again, even if it is to work and back.

Dust In The Wind – Kansas

Friday was hot, and lately the pollen around the Chicago area has been off the charts. I came home and headed out for my 8.25-mile run. When I got home, there was a weather alert on my phone for a potential dust storm. That storm was something we hadn’t had here, well, in like ever. Fortunately, I only had to deal with the pollen on the run and not the dust, as it would have been miserable.

A screenshot of the brown dust storm heading into Chicagoland.

Against The Wind – Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band

Me wondering why I didn’t listen to my wife on this crazy windy day.

My “coach wife” Kari was looking at her phone and said, “It looks like your best day for biking this weekend is Sunday.” Great. I have had to move my weekend schedule around so much this training cycle that I was dreading the swap. It means moving the bike to Sunday, which is no big deal, but it puts the typical Sunday long run on Saturday and makes it a back-to-back hard run effort after the Friday run. Did I listen to my wife? No, I chose to ride on Saturday, a day that was cold and windy. Fortunately, the wind would be in my face heading out this time, unlike last week when I suffered trying to make it back home after a long ride. Going out toward the west was hard, but coming back, I was flying. I put in 55 miles on the ride, and then followed it up with a 5-mile brick run. Sometimes you just have to take on the day as it is presented. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best, as race day is always a gamble.

The turnaround point for many of us is the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, IL. It’s hard not to be thankful for the service to our country these lives once gave us when I am here.

Lust For Life – Iggy Pop

I was running that 5-mile brick run and caught up to a runner I see on the trail all the time, and we always share a wave and hello. This time we were running in the same direction when I caught him, and we introduced ourselves and talked about our running plans for the year. Tom, as I learned, is newish at running, but has three marathons under his belt and had a ton of questions about fueling for me as he was trying to figure that part of it out. It really was a high-energy conversation that I enjoyed, and it ended quicker than I wanted it to, as my trail home went opposite of his. He definitely had a lust for life and running, too.

Running On Empty – Jackson Browne

Sunday came, and I was still sore from the 60-mile effort on Saturday. A lot of the time, getting a run workout done when you really don’t want to is to just get dressed and take the first steps out the door. And that’s what I did today. Put my foot outside the door, paraphrasing Robert Plant on Led Zeppelin’s The Ocean. But once out, I could feel the strain of running on tired legs. Running on empty, for sure. I kept putting one foot in front of the other and ended with a nice 10.75 miles. Just get out there, and you might surprise yourself.

That wraps up the soundtrack for the week. I’m sure I will have something in my head next week.

Week 11 Totals: Swims 2/2600 yards – Bikes 3/88 miles – Runs 5/35 miles

Finally Logged A Swim

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 10 WRAP-UP – MAY 11, 2025

Week 10 of a sixteen-week half-iron distance training plan, and I finally logged a swim. It went about as well as expected. Although the movement through the water was efficient at first, I quickly got tired, and my legs began to sink. I checked my watch, thinking I was near halfway done – nope, only 8 minutes into a planned 30-minute swim. I did this swim after running eight miles, which was always the norm for me – why swim first? Jump in after a run or bike, cool down, then swim is my typical method. But seeing that I haven’t done a swim workout in about a year, I was low on energy and desire. Somehow, I got through the 30 minutes at a 2:20/100 pace, a pace that I will need to improve on in these last few weeks. I give this swim a C-, which is not great, but a passing grade nonetheless.

Then the foot cramps started. Oh, how I missed them. I’m sure that I needed to hydrate better, maybe take some electrolytes, and all that. But these cramps happen to people who try to do workouts that they haven’t built up to yet, and that is me to a T. I will add more water and electrolytes to my day, and keep swimming, hoping to build some swimming strength and avoid foot cramps.

I managed a second swim on Sunday, which went a little better. Form was better, strength was a tad better, and I didn’t drown. Moved up to a B-.

Overall, I have gotten stronger and regained some speed in my running and cycling over these last 10 weeks. I’m a firm believer that triathlon is one of the best forms of cross-training, as I am mostly injury-free and moving better. I keep saying that I’m quitting triathlon after this race, but the workouts have been great for me. We’ll see.

Speaking of quitting triathlon, I mentioned to my buddy Dave that as soon as Rockford is over, I intend to sell all my triathlon gear and quit this dumb sport. Dave, who is currently in year four of quitting this dumb sport himself, looked me straight in the eye and responded with, “Oh no, don’t do that. Don’t quit yet.” What the hell does that mean?! I can tell you right now that it means trouble for me. If he intends to jump back in, he’s not dragging my tired ass back into it. And I’m sure he wants to have all of us do an Ironman again. Nope, not going to happen. I’m retiring from triathlon as soon as that medal from Rockford gets hung around my neck.

Back to the hydration/fueling topic – Last week, I spent time traveling with my friend Karen to do the Rockford 70.3 course preview, and we discussed nutrition, with her saying that she likes to use Tailwind, a 200-calorie powder that you add to 20-24 oz. of water, as her main source of fuel and electrolytes. I’ve always stuck with gels, as they are 100 calories each (I take 2 per hour) and also contain electrolytes, and I can drink plain water instead. Plus, you don’t have to stop and mix the packet with water, a messy proposition for me. With liquid nutrition, you have to drink all of the bottle’s contents in an hour to stay on top of it, and I just never was one for drinking that much water. If it’s hot, yes, I will drink copious amounts of water. If it is cool, I may not drink a whole bottle in an hour. I tried another brand once, and it did not taste good at all. I can’t handle anything chalky tasting. But Karen insisted that Tailwind was just like drinking flavored water. So I ordered the caffeinated Raspberry flavor and the caffeine-free Naked flavor (or lack of flavor). The result – chalky, and it tastes just like the other brand that I didn’t like. When will I learn? But I decided that maybe I would give it a chance, and drank it as my main fuel/hydration source on the 13.25-mile run that I did on Friday, as well as the 71-mile bike ride I did on Saturday. I might be able to get used to it, or at least get through the forty packets of it that I bought.

The Saturday long ride was going great until it wasn’t. I had seen the weather forecast and knew that the wind direction would change mid-afternoon. I got on my bike for the planned four-hour, fifteen-minute ride around 8:30, hoping I would get it done before having to fight the wind. For 55 miles, I was going great, probably averaging about 17.5 mph. Then I turned for home and could feel the wind strongly in my face, as well as the temperature drop that came with it. At points, I was barely managing 10-11 mph. I gave some thought to calling my wife, Kari, to come get me, as I was nearly out of gas, but I had brought some gels with me and took one to help me power through the remaining 40 minutes. I was zapped when I got home, and decided to skip the 45-minute brick run after the ride.

Three hours into the ride and still feeling good. Very lucky to have car-free roads 40 miles southwest of Chicago.

It’s not uncharacteristic to start calculating and predicting how you might do in the race based on your current workouts, and mid-ride, I was thinking sub-6 hours maybe possible. After the ride, that seems like a big wish at this point. But I have roughly six more weeks to go to get myself dialed in. More swims, bikes, and runs to come.

Week 10 Totals: Swims 2/2650 yards – Bikes 3/107 miles – Runs 3/25 miles

Rockford 70.3 Bike Course Preview

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 9 WRAP-UP – MAY 4, 2025

My local friend Karen, who is crazy enough to also like to run and tri, asked if I was going to do the course preview ride this week. I hadn’t planned on it, but if she was going, I thought I would too. After thinking it over, I texted her and told her that I signed up, and she replied, “Oh cool-I guess I better sign up too “. Great, she tricked me into it. Fortunately, the ride fee was only about $25 and Karen offered to drive, so it was set – my long ride this weekend would be a group ride with police escort of the race bike course.

I found the one person who drives slower than I, and that is Karen, but we had a great trip there and back with great conversation. Once parked, we unloaded our bikes, fretted over what to wear on this 50-degree morning, and then waited for the command of “Riders UP!” (couldn’t help the Kentucky Derby reference.)

Karen and I at the start

Riding out of Rockford was going well, with the group finding spacing and fitting into the spots in the peloton where we best fit. It consisted mostly of rolling hills, with one decent climb in the first 10 miles, but every uphill had a pretty decent downhill to match.

The group would stretch out, and after a while, the police escort would stop and allow the group to reassemble. The ride included a pit stop for a nature break and a pit stop for some snackies.

At one of the pit stops, I ran into another local friend, Jennifer, and her friend Laura, who were also having a fun ride. I jokingly gave Jen a “yellow card” for blocking (riding out of position in the passing area), but we were all doing it. Hopefully, on race day, the riders will be better spread out and follow the race rules. Today, however, we were all riding and chatting.

As for the course, it was typical of what we have around our area – rolling hills, some flats, and wind. It was what I expected, and glad to see that it wasn’t anything that I won’t be prepared for.

The last regrouping before riding back into downtown Rockford. Note the “Circle of Death” roundabout in the background. We made it through.

Karen and I forced ourselves to do a little post-ride run afterwards, although neither of us really wanted to. We then took advantage of some post-ride drinks and more snackies, and then made the trip back home. A fun capper to the week. I’m looking forward to racing the course in June. It should be pretty fast.

Note: Facebook blocked me from sharing my own blog post on my own Facebook page, calling it spam. I hope that it doesn’t do it again.

Week 9 Totals: Swims 0 – Bikes 5/106 miles – Runs 4/25 miles

Life Happens

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEKS 7/8 WRAP-UP – APRIL 27, 2025

Sometimes the best-laid plans of a triathlete in training often go awry, to paraphrase poet Robert Burns, and the past two weeks have been that way for me. Last week, I took a trip to Florida with the family over Easter to visit my in-laws, which made for a nice escape, and that included an escape from my training. I ran a couple of times over that extended 5-day excursion, but did little else other than enjoy my family being together and enjoying a break from our busy lives.

This past week also had some conflicts: my wife Kari’s birthday, a memorial service for an old friend, an appointment to have my sprinkler system fixed, and the ever-changing weather around here causing disruptions to the training plan. Somehow, I managed to get back at it until I got derailed again with a very sore throat at the end of the week. I could feel it coming on, and thought that maybe it was just a reaction to the bad pollen levels we are experiencing. Nope, it turned into a cold.

Wednesday’s call for a bike/run brick workout that I normally let myself push pace, but found that my calf muscles were not happy about that, cramping up occasionally while I tried to get through 45 minutes of biking followed by a 30-minute run. I grabbed a Gatorade after the bike and took a big swig from it, hoping that a swig of electrolytes would set me straight, but I thought that I better bring it with me. I’m glad I did. Normally, I never cramp while running, but the bike effort had already done its damage. Nevertheless, as I moved forward slowly, sipping away at the Gatorade, I was able to find my stride again. It was a wake-up call, though – I need to focus on hydrating more and making sure that I’m taking in enough electrolytes.

The weather is starting to look warmer here in the Chicago area, and I started thinking about opening the pool. Closing and opening a pool both include a fair amount of work, but there’s definitely more cleaning up with the spring opening. So while the sprinkler guy worked on the sprinkler valve, I gathered my pool opening supplies and read through my notes. Even though I have opened my pool by myself for almost 20 years, each year I forget how to do it. I’m losing it.

I held out hope for feeling good by the weekend, and on Saturday morning, I decided that I felt good enough to run. I planned to take it easy and just run and walk through the 1:45 run, but I felt good and changed my mind, running it straight through. I felt pretty good, but after getting home, my body didn’t like that. I was drained, and now my sore throat was accompanied by a cough. Time to take some medicine.

I opted to skip the long ride this weekend, and instead I filled the time opening the pool and mowing the grass. The pool was pretty clean, and didn’t take much time to vacuum and start the heater going. I should be swimming by Tuesday, or maybe Thursday.

So, life threw some curveballs at me this past two weeks, but experience has taught me not to worry about it. I will pick the plan back up this next week and keep moving forward.

Week 7/8 Totals: Swims 0 – Bikes; Far too few – Runs: Nowhere near enough

Comfort Zone/Danger Zone

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 6 WRAP-UP – APRIL 13, 2025

I put in some good work this week and was feeling pretty good about it. I had not had any nagging issues or pains to deal with for a few weeks now, and I knew better to tempt fate by declaring myself back to normal. What is normal, anyway? I’m not sure if people who put themselves through this type of training for this dumb sport are ever normal. But, I was feeling good and taking notice of it.

I have a usual running route that I take almost every time, and I had noticed that someone had painted little mile markings on the trail. I later realized that these markings were for a local 1/2 marathon race that I have run a few times in the past. As I was running my 6-mile run, I was feeling good and started to think that maybe running that race again might be a good test for myself. I began to push pace, and as the run was winding down, I could feel myself tiring, and the hamstrings started to bark at me, reminding me that any “feeling good” effort could lead to bad things. I decided that pushing myself at this stage of training was not in my best interests. Stay in the comfort zone and avoid the danger zone.

I was tempted to swap my long Saturday ride and long Sunday ride as that Sunday group ride was becoming a fun time for me. But I thought the best riding conditions would be Saturday, so I stuck with that. I was glad I did, because Sunday was a windy day, to say the least.

I overdressed a little for the sunny ride, but I wasn’t uncomfortable. Since the ride was a three hour, fifteen minute ride, I figured I would ride to the west and add on out there if I needed more time/distance. I realized that 3:15 would be a time near that 70.3 bike of 56 miles, so I decided that 3:15 or 56 miles would be a good ride and might be a good way of telling me where I stand at this point of training.

I felt great, and the miles were flying by. I don’t know if riding the gravel bike as I have been doing lately was just harder for me and I didn’t realize it, or if the tri bike was just that much faster. It seemed effortless. Most of the ride felt great, but the comfort zone of the first 2/3’s of that ride started dipping into the danger zone in the last 1/3. I made it home with a 56-mile split of 3:16, not too far off of where I thought I could be, and I think that there is time to get a little faster. I’d like to be somewhere near three hours for the bike portion of the race in June.

2-hours into the ride and a little stop for a nature break and a stroopwafel. Nice day for riding!

The plan called for a run right after the ride, so I changed into running gear and was out running within 5 minutes. The bike was causing numbness in my left foot, and I hoped that it wouldn’t affect my running, but it did. But it seemingly didn’t affect my pace. I felt labored and couldn’t believe that I had an 8:40 first mile split. I pushed on and could sense that I was definitely entering the danger zone again, feeling like I was about to run out of gas. I made it home with a 3.25 mile run and a need for some Gatorade and nourishment. Seems like I went a little too far into the danger zone. The 59-mile day was a wake-up call, letting me know that I am not quite ready to tackle the half-iron race distance. But I’m getting closer. Back at it next week, and back to the comfort zone, I hope.

Week 6 Totals: Swims 0 – Bikes 3 rides/85 miles – Runs 5/27.6 miles

Keep Dreaming

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 5 WRAP-UP – APRIL 6, 2025

I rarely remember dreams upon waking up, and if I do, I generally can’t remember the particulars. But the other night I was dreaming about swimming. It really wasn’t anything of note, but there I was in the pool, swimming laps. I have a past history of being very straightforward about swimming – I hate it. I consider it something I am forced to do to get to the two things in this dumb sport that I like. Yes, I know that there are duathlons and other biking and running events that don’t even include swimming, but those events don’t have an announcer shouting ” CHRIS – YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!” So, therefore, I swim.

But what was my dream telling me? I haven’t even started swim training yet, as spring has just barely started, and I haven’t opened my pool yet. Was it subconsciously telling me that I need to get after it? I remember actually having a fun time in my dream while I was swimming. Is that a sign that maybe I can find a small amount of joy in swimming? Maybe the only way I can enjoy swimming is to dream that I enjoy swimming.

When I started training for my first Ironman in 2013, I can remember how much time I spent thinking about it. Ironman was the only thing on my mind when my head hit the pillow and the first thing on my mind when I woke up. Daydreaming is dreaming, too, right? I spent a lot of time daydreaming about Ironman, from how long it would take me to how to celebrate the finish. When I’m swimming, thinking about swimming is often on my mind because there’s nothing to distract you from it. I don’t have any fancy underwater music players or earphones. You just hear yourself moving through water and try not to think about how much of a drag swimming is. Well, at least for me, that is what I do.

But no matter how much I think I dislike swimming, there is satisfaction when getting it done. It’s hard to beat the feeling of crossing the finish line in a race, but getting out of the water has resulted in some of my best race-day photos. I’m seemingly just as happy to be done with the swim as I am with the race overall.

Looks like I kinda had fun finishing this swim.

It won’t be long, and I will be back in the pool, putting in laps and daydreaming about the next swim challenge that is coming up in June. Until then, I will keep dreaming that swimming is something to enjoy.

Week 5 Totals: Swims 0 – Bikes 3 rides/63.5 miles – Runs 3/18 miles

Character Building

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 4 WRAP-UP – MARCH 30, 2025

I was a little concerned about the weather for the weekend, so I thought I might have to shuffle things around again to make sure that I got the important weekend workouts done and not skip them. Sunday looked to be the worst of the weather, so I moved that long run to Friday and did two hours of easy run/walk through 10 miles. Friday was a good day to do it; a little windy, but otherwise, very comfortable.

That left Saturday for the bike as usual. My plan indicated that I was supposed to do two hours and fifteen minutes of riding. A day or two earlier, Jim, a local friend who admins our local bike “club,” posted on Facebook that he was planning a 3-hour gravel ride on Saturday. Three hours was a little more than the 2:15 ride I was supposed to do, but I figured it wouldn’t kill me. I replied that I’d be there and crossed my fingers for good weather.

I normally would have ridden to the normal meet-up location, but since the ride was going to be three hours, I didn’t want the extra 40 minutes of riding. I loaded my stuff into my truck and drove to meet Jim. As I backed out of the driveway, I could see sprinkles of rain on the windshield. It was raining consistently when I met up with Jim and another rider, Dave. I invited Jim into my truck, as he had ridden the half-mile to the school from his house, and we checked the radar. The rain let up enough to begin the ride, but since Jim’s house was on the way, we stopped for him to get some extra riding gear to handle the weather. I was starting to think that this ride was going to be a character builder – one that you don’t want to do, but if forced to do it, you would get it done.

As we began again, the rain had stopped, but what was on the road was spraying our legs, feet, and butts. But it wouldn’t be long before we would dry out from riding and enjoying a nice gravel ride through the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie. We had no overall plan other than to get to Midewin and then wander through the park, exploring different abandoned roads and trails that none of us had explored before. Jim had realized that his front tire was going flat, and I just so happened to have brought along my new electronic pocket pump, which filled his tire quickly, and thanks to his tubeless tire setup, I think the tire probably had enough sealant in it to stop the leak.

Upon riding through Midewin for a while, we arrived at a newly re-opened trail that had been closed for the past couple of seasons. Jim suggested that we ride over Route 53 and then loop back. I looked at my watch, and it showed 1 hour and 50 minutes of riding. The Gilligan’s Island theme song popped into my head – “A three hour tour, a three hour tour.” If we kept riding further out, this was going to turn into a much longer than a three-hour ride. It was a good thing that I had a stash of extra gels in my bike top tube bag.

Of course, the first bridge we got to said “CLOSED DANGER” or something like that. We crossed it anyway. Building character. The next little bridge we came to was also apparently closed, as it had mounds of crushed limestone piled in front of it. The ground next to it looked wet but possibly passable, so we dismounted and walked through the wet stuff, just barely sensing some water seeping into our shoes. More character building. We rode a little further and came to another bridge that was impassable due to a creek, and we just weren’t ready for that type of character building, so we decided to turn back. Upon getting to the swampy bridge that we had previously just passed, I said screw it and rode my bike through it. It might not have been the most sound idea I have had, but I must have picked the correct gearing to get through it without sinking. We gathered again, and up ahead of us was a single rider stopped, looking at the ground. She was looking at a snake she had narrowly missed and then said hello. After a brief introduction, Kristen said that she was from South Carolina and had recently relocated to the Chicago area and was exploring the preserve. She was headed for the direction we had just turned back from, and she decided to join us as we found an alternate route. Kristen wasn’t any new rider; she shot ahead with us three older guys trying to keep up. She wanted to see the bison, so we headed that way, and we weren’t disappointed. The bison were out grazing in the prairie, and Kristen found them to be worth the trip to the area.

Kristen decided to visit the park’s visitor center, and we parted ways, deciding to head back to our cars. We got a little turned around, riding a little bit out or our way again (more character building), then finally into the town of Manhattan. We decided to pick up some fuel, but the little eatery that Jim wanted to stop at was now closed. A trip a little bit down the road found us parking our bikes in front of a Dunkin’ Donuts and heading in for a brief refueling. Then it started to sprinkle.

The sprinkling led to consistent rain, and it wasn’t looking good. We opted to ride a busier road as it was a more direct route, but other than the driving rain, we had no further issues.

I had mentioned this character-building ride several times to Jim as we kept making dumb decisions, and each time he said he didn’t need any character building, as he was already a “character.” Aren’t we all?

But the ride did provide a couple of insights for me. If I need to ride in weather conditions that I would normally avoid, I can do it. And, after logging nearly 56 miles, I don’t have to worry about covering that distance in my upcoming race. Twelve more weeks of character-building to go.

Week 4 Totals: Swims 0 – Bikes 3 rides/84.5 miles – Runs 4/23 miles

Settling In

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 3 WRAP-UP – MARCH 23, 2025

As I headed out the door to wrap up the week with an 8-mile run, I had a couple things on my mind. First, don’t overdo this run. Find a nice, easy pace and settle in for the duration. And second, get this run done before it starts raining!

I found that the comfortable pace I started out with was good, right in the zone of not overdoing anything. But as hustled across the street with the green light, my pace quickened, and the next thing I knew I was running at my usual running pace. Once I was a mile into the run, and also into the hills, I realized that this was not the original plan, I reigned myself back in and got back into a more casual pace.

If you are a runner, you probably have a pace that you run, one that your body just falls into and feels natural. Most people walk at the same pace every time or talk at the same rate as well. Running is no different. Although I am saying pace, what I really mean is cadence. When my buddies and I were training for our first Ironman in 2013, we were wrapping up a long bike with a short run together, and one of them commented that I took a lot of steps. I quickly replied, “Yes, 180 steps per minute.” That I knew how many steps I took per minute was a surprise to him, but unknowingly I had settled into my usual cadence. I was a little faster of a runner than they were at the time, and I had shortened my stride to run with them, but that same cadence or leg turnover remained the same. I had settled into that cadence.

As I wrap up Week 3 of training, I have also found myself settling into the routine of training for a 70.3. That feeling of being in the right zone is where I need to be right now.

Week 3 Totals: Swims 0 – Bikes 3 rides/53.5 miles – Runs 6/26 miles

It’s All Coming Back To Me

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 2 WRAP-UP – MARCH 16, 2025

This week was a little turned around for me. The weather was cool some days, then it shot up to the mid 70s and turned windy. Plus, I had to testify in a big local case that ate up my Thursday sitting around waiting to “speak the truth,” as a former coworker used to call testifying in court. I hadn’t testified in a criminal case in probably 15 years, and that one was a huge case. I admit I had a little bit of nerves, as well as just not having the best start to my week in general. So, following the plan meant making some adjustments this week.

My tri bike hasn’t been ridden with any regularity since I raced my last Ironman race in Chattanooga in 2021. Occasionally I would get it down, pump up the tires and take a short spin on it, but it really has just been literally hanging around in the garage from the ceiling. I have been mostly riding my gravel bike, which gives me the option of riding more than just paved trails and roads. It is a comfortable ride and has been pretty dependable. Since signing up for the Rockford 70.3, I knew that the tri bike would be the better choice for the race.

Some people give their bike a name, like “Leroy,” or “Black Beauty,” but I have always referred to my tri bike as my “Pile of Money.” Not very catchy, I must admit, but it is true – tri bikes are stupidly expensive. I lifted it off the hooks where it hangs from the garage ceiling, gave it a good mechanical going over, pumped some air in the tires, and waited for an optimal day to ride it. Since Saturday is my typical long ride day in my plan, the weather looked to be better on Friday to do the ride. It was a warm day, but the winds were straight out of the south, maybe a little southwest, but I figured that once I got to the east/west trail, I wouldn’t need to worry about the wind.

I fired up all my gizmos, put my water bottle in the cage, and threw my leg over the seat to head out. Wow. I have forgotten how uncomfortable tri bikes are. I can’t believe that I have ridden this thing through 5 Ironman races and thousands of training miles. My butt had immediate memory recall. That seat is nowhere near as comfortable as the one on my gravel bike. The gravel bike isn’t as nimble but the tri bike reacts to me doing the smallest little movement. It took a little time to get used to that feeling again. I also couldn’t believe how much faster I felt like I was riding.

Then I hit the cross winds. Riding my tri bike with aero wheels is a little like carrying a piece of plywood on a windy day. But that got sorted out pretty quickly.

Then came the calf muscle cramps! Let’s not forget about how fun those are. People will ask why they get cramps when riding, and many will offer dehydration, or lack of electrolytes, and suggest drinking pickle juice for some crazy reason. Sure, I guess those could be things to look at. But for me, Charlie Horse-type calf cramps always occur at the beginning of a training cycle, when my calf muscles just aren’t ready for the workload yet. There’s a reason why we ease into training with a base phase. It reminded me of when I used to coach youth baseball. At the first practice, I would pitch batting practice and end the day with my arm dragging on the ground. I could never remember to get my arm ready for the season. But by the end of the season, I was in no need of a reliever.

Coming home, a nice tailwind that pushed me up to 30 mph. That was exhilarating somewhat, and definitely put a smile on my face. That is one memory jog that made me feel good about riding the tri bike.

While I was testifying, I soon found the questions to be very familiar and could easily predict where the discussion was heading. I settled in and got through it. And with the tri bike, they say that you never forget how to ride a bike. That might be true, but there is a little more to it with getting comfortable again riding my “Pile of Money.” I’m sure getting reacquainted will be quick. I hope I get reacquainted with swimming as easily.

Week 2 Totals: Swims 0 – Bikes 2 rides/35 miles – Runs 3/14.5 miles

Winter Maintenance Paying Off

IRONMAN 70.3 ROCKFORD TRAINING – WEEK 1 WRAP-UP – MARCH 9, 2025

As most amateur athletes do, I beat myself up through spring, summer, and fall, then use winter to recover, maintain fitness and get ready for the ritual to start all over again. Winter maintenance for me mostly means staying out of the cold and training indoors on the treadmill and a stationary bike at my workplace gym. It’s been a pretty mild winter and I did get outside occasionally to put in some running miles, but they were all done at an easy pace.

When I ride the stationary bike indoors, I usually set the level to a slightly hard spin, and just sit and do the work. I often will finish with an hour ride with a 16 mph average, and I wonder how accurate that average is. Sure I am sweating, and I can feel like I used my legs, but experience has shown that when I ride outside, a 16 mph average will kick my butt.

The weather turned nice for early March in Chicagoland this weekend and I decided to join a group ride on Sunday. The post said to expect a 16-17 mph average pace, but seeing that my plan called for 75 minutes of riding, I wasn’t too worried about it as I would ride to join the group and then split off when I needed to. I held on to the group as we casually warmed up for a few miles. But after about 15 minutes into it, I was working pretty hard to hang on. I purposely didn’t bring any gels with me to avoid being tempted to ride farther than my plan called for, and when we reached an intersection about 5 miles into the ride, the group went west, and I turned east toward home. Proud of myself for not overdoing my first outdoor ride since last fall.

Me waving from the rear, where I would start and where I would end.

Upon getting home, the ride ended at 25 total miles, 94 minutes of riding, and an average of 15.3 mph. That was about what I was expecting. Factoring in periods of slowing for walkers on the bike path, slowing for traffic, and the leisurely start pace of the riding group, the effort was probably pretty close to 16 mph average. But I’m not fooling myself, I was worn out, much more so than when I ride the stationary bike. But winter maintenance seems to be doing an adequate job at keeping me close to being ready to reclaim mid-year form. I just have to follow the plan and not overdo the training when a group ride dangles in front of me like a GU pack.

A good start for the first week of training. 4 runs/17 miles, 3 rides/55 miles, and swimming will have to wait until I get my pool open.