Wow, race weekend already?!?!

So, I took this week very easy. I didn’t do anything on Tuesday. On Wednesday, I just ran a quick 5k at Veteran’s park. Thursday was another easy day of no training. Today is probably going to be the same, but I am planning on doing some light stretching this afternoon. Tonight or early tomorrow, I’ll clean my bike up and take an easy ride in the AM before I leave. Now, onto the race….

The swim (1500m, that’s just short of a mile for you non-metric folks) Goal: 33mins
I’m not too nervous about the swim. It is a long way, but you can stop and take a break whenever you feel like it. I’m planning on getting in the water and moving as far outside as I can so I won’t get knocked around by all the other triathletes. The big plus is the current. Since there has been so much rain up in TN, the current should be fairly swift (knock on wood).

Swim course


The bike (42km = 26.1mi) Goal: 1hr40mins
I’m nervous about this leg, but definitely not as nervous as I was last week before my 37 mile ride. I know I can do the distance, and even tackle most of the hills, but it looks like there are a couple of long grinds on the course that will take a lot out of me. Most of my nutrition will be on this leg. I’m planning on downing a couple of Hammer Gel’s and maybe a Clif Bar to get ready for the run. From what I’ve heard, the bike course is like riding down 280. We will have the entire inside lane. That means we will be buzzing down these hills at 40 mph with 18 wheelers flying by on the right…I’m expecting it to be pretty intense.

Bike Course


The run (10km = 6.21mi) Goal: 1hr18mins
The run ought to be interesting. Just one big hill (right at the end) and the rest is flat as a pancake. You have to go up some steps to a pedestrian bridge which I imagine will be tough on the quads. My buddy Jeff is lending me his GPS watch for the race. This way, I can do a better job of monitoring my pace throughout the run portion (Thanks Dude!). Side note: Keep Jeff and his group in your prayers this next week. They will be traveling to Juarez, Mexico to build houses. Pray for a safe journey, stay, & return. I’m going to try something new during the race. I’m going to run for 4-5 mins then walk 1 min. This should help me keep my HR under control a good bit better and help me to save a little bit of energy to crank out that last ½ mile.

Run Course


Quick weigh in report: Down to 242.5. Pretty happy with that considering no major training this week.

I’ll be sure to post my race report on Monday. No videos this time though…I’ll be the loner, the renegade, the rebel triathlete this trip. Have a great weekend!

Eric’s Quote of the Day: “A ship in the harbor is safe. But that’s not what ships are built for.” ~Anonymous

A little bit of training...

Thursday 7/2
No training today. I just wasn’t up for it.

Friday 7/3
I felt “guilty” for not doing anything Thursday, so I head up to Oak Mt. for a swim and ride. I swam for about 10-20 minutes just back and forth at the “beach” area. I tried to focus on my form and using my body to swim not just my arms (which I have a tendency to do). Then I jumped on my bike and road up the Mountain and back out to the main entrance and back to my car. It took about right at an hour to do. I felt pretty good after the ride…that is until I get a phone call form Hoover Toyota. Turns out I not only need a new AC clutch but also a new compressor (compressor = $$). I talked with the guy for a bit and let him know my “disappointment” that this couldn’t have been discovered last week when I took my car into their shop. I thought about it a bit and talked it over with Heather. We decided just to get rid of the 4Runner and go ahead and get something else. We were planning on getting something new towards the end of the year anyways. So the rest of Friday was spent cleaning up the 4Runner; going to CarMax and Driversway; and finding a great deal on a 2008 GMC Acadia. It is more of a crossover than an SUV. Not as small as a crossover but not as big as a Yukon…here is a pic



Saturday 7/4
No real training today unless you call loading up on pork products training (I like to think of it that way)

Sunday 7/5
I finally made it out for a training ride with Vulcan Triathletes. There were 6 of us heading out that morning. I was pretty nervous. We were going to go about 36-40 miles; my longest ride to date was 20 miles out at the industrial park. We left from the Brownell Travel building on Lakeshore and headed through Mt. Brook neighborhoods to Eastwood Mall area. Then we jumped onto Hwy 78 and rode out to the Bass Pro Shops (that’s right, Bass Pro Shops). Then we cut back on Rex Lake Road which changes into Sicard Hollow road all the way to Cahaba Heights. We then cut over and rode up Overton Road (b!tch of a hill). At the top of Overton, we cut back to the right and maneuvered our way over to Brookwood Road; turned between the golf courses; and road down Mt. Brook Parkway back to Brownell Travel. The overall trip was about 37 miles and took 2hrs27minutes. I was pumped after the ride. Chatty doesn’t look so scary anymore….ok, maybe it still does.

Monday 7/6
Recovery Day

Eric’s Quote of the Day: (an exert from Napoleon Dynamite)
Unlce Rico: “Back in ‘82, I use to be able to throw a pigskin a quarter mile”
Kip: “Are you serious?”

Uncle Rico: “I’m dead serious.”

New Race added to list!

Well, the weekend was OK. No ride on Saturday b/c I needed to take my bike to the shop. The chain was still jumping around on the rear gears. I did swim up at Oak Mt. with Jeff for a little while Saturday morning.

Sunday 6/28
I got in a pretty good run before church. I went 4.67 miles in right at an hour. I really don’t have the speed on the run that I would like to have. I need to be better about getting my runs in and quit finding excuses not to run. I should be running further distances by now.

Monday 6/29
Recovery Day

Tuesday 6/30
PM Bike
There is a stretch at Oak Mt. that is uphill and about a mile long. I rode up and then back down several times. Then I did the 20sec sprints (at 5k pace). Hills will wear a brother out!
Overall: avg HR 157; Peak HR 181; Min HR 98
Bike: Time 35mins; Dist 10.2 (forgot to look at avg and max speeds)
Sprints: 5 total
Wednesday 7/1
AM Swim
WU: 300m
Pulls: 300 on 6mins
250 on 4.5mins
125 on 3.5mins
75 on 2mins
Main Set: (4)50 easy/medium
(4)50 medium/fast

Total 1450m
I left to take the 4Runner to the shop so my AC can get fixed. One of these days, I swear I’ll be able to stay for the entire workout!

So, I decided to add another race to my calendar. The Wet Dog Triathlon is up in Decatur on July 18th. I’ve heard it is a very fun sprint distance (400m/15k/5k) tri. My buddy Kevin from the GJCC race might be doing it too. It is the weekend after Chattanooga. This way, I won’t be able to put off saddling back up after a race like I normally do. It should be a fun little day trip up there. After that, I’ll just have a couple of weeks until my first tri season’s culmination at Mt. Lakes.

Eric’s Quote of the Day: “You know what’s so bad about real life, Sssteven…there’s no danger music. Dududu DEDEDEDeDEde..” Chip Douglas (Jim Carrey) in The Cable Guy