Camarillo Duathlon Championships - September 2012

Here is my recap of my re-visit to last year's first ever time event race for this amatuer athlete.  The Camarillo Duathlon, at Camarillo Airport, California, (www.camarilloduathlon) consists of 2 distances - Olympic and Sprint.  Last year I competed in the sprint distance ( 1.5mi run, 10bike, 1.5mi run) and with all the training I have done in 2012, I was ready to tackle the Olympic distance (3mi run, 19.5mi bike, 3mi run).

The wife and kids were here to support me and it makes a big difference when you have actual people to smile to and give a big thumbs up as you suffer along.  The weather could not have been any better, even if the run got a little hot at the end.

Setting up in transition in the morning was one of the most frustrating ones I've had in a long time.  Probably because it there was gap between my last event and this one and I must have forgotten the normal routine.  First I left my one and only water bottle in the back of our car and Jessikah had taken it and the kids to go get some breakfast.  Secondly, when I had went to fire up my Garmin GPS watch (for pace and distance) it didn't come on, despite a fully charge battery.  It had locked up!  It was coming up to 5 minutes before race start and here I was with no water bottle for my bike and a dead watch.  Grabbing the phone, I look up YouTube on how to soft-reset the Garmin 305 watch.  Within a few minutes, I finally get my watch fired up!  Jessikah pulls up within 4 minutes of start and I run the water bottle to transition, fill it up with water and NUUN Hydration.  After double checking everything, I run back to the start line with about 45 seconds left!!! 

And BAM! the horn sounds and off we go at 8:00 a.m.  There were 43 participants in the Olympic distance (34 men, 9 women) and the pace was fast as we were humming along at 6:45min/mi.  I realized that most of us probably wouldn't be holding this pace, at least myself, and backed off to 7:30min/mi. and not feed off adrenaline and pay for it later.  The reason why I like this race is because it is mostly FLAT!  The run course takes us from the park to the the street that runs parallel to Camarillo Airport and is mostly paved.  The course is 1.5 miles out and back, so we end up doing this as a double loop.  That means I get to see my family as they cheer me on!

I get back into T1, finishing the 3 mile run in 22:23 - 7:42 min/mile (Best was 5:45 min/mile at 16:35) and feeling pretty good as I had pulled back the reigns early on.  I switch into my bike shoes, strap on the helmet, don the sunglasses and load up my pocket with fuel.  T1 came through in about 45 seconds (the best was 34 seconds) and off I was onto my favorite leg....the BIKE.

As I had already lost some ground to the faster runners, I found this opportunity to pluck them off one by one to put me back into contention (I was already 31st place after Run #1).  I begin my bike fueling myself and I quickly tried to consume about 3/4 of a Hammer Apple-cinnamon bar and a gel pack at the same time.  Rolling through the strawberry and herb farms, you get a nice whiff that reminds you that you are living the life! I continue to pluck off the riders as we trek for 19.5 miles, and there fewer and fewer ones towards the end to battle against.  I come in 7th best at 54:34 - 21.3 mph avg ( Best was 51:00 - 23 mph avg). 

Coming back into T2, I log a 38 second transition throwing on my running shoes and race belt/bib number. As I head out for the last 3 miles, I remember the bad feeling I had last year when my calves started to cramp on me and I had to stop and stretch them out.  This year with all my training, it paid off and I was able to stave off any issues other then the normal fatigue that was settling into my legs.  You always get this weird jello feeling and your legs want to keep moving at the same cadence that you were going on the bike and you have to mentally block all the negative triggers and focus on the stride at hand.  It got pretty tiring at the end and I just wanted the race to finish!  I come down the last stretch and put in all the power I had left to finish in 23:56 - 8:15min/mi (Best was 17:13 - 5:56 min/mi).  I was beaming a big smile seeing my family cheer me to the finish line and all the training had paid off.  I got 11th place with a finish of 1 hour and 42 min and my goal was to top 10.  Next year.....as I can see and taste what I need to do get into top 10!  Overall a great race with a smaller crowd and great people.  I will find myself back here every year to compete in one of funnest Duathlons around.

Olympic Duathlon Race recap:
Run 3 mi - 22:23 - 7:42 min/mi
T1 - 45 seconds
Bike 19.5 mi - 54:34 - 21.3 mph avg
T2 - 38 seconds
Run 3 mi - 23:56 - 8:15 min/mi
Overall - 1 hour 42 min and 18 seconds

Peace out yo!

Bryan (multi color jersey) and I on the Vincent St. Thomas Bridge

Battle of the Century

Well, here I am alive and walking after completing my second century ever (same course 2011, 2012).

I have a long story, however I figured it would give first time event riders an inside look of all the little details on getting ready for ride day.

Team 4D-SST started with four riders: Myself, Bryan, Craig and his brother Sean.  There was probably 200 riders doing the 100 mile trek through the rugged, edgy Long Beach terminal island and the fine lines of Palos Verdes.

4 a.m. I woke up and gathered up last of the items and enjoyed a 1 egg sandwich to get some fuel in my system.  I couldn't find my trusty headphones in my backpack the night before and decided to stop by the 24 hour WalMart and grab myself a set.  I picked up Bryan around 5 a.m., loaded up his bike and off we went to the Queen Mary, Long Beach.

6 a.m.  We arrive around and headed straight for the registration tables.  As having done 4 rides with the Tour De Cure (American Diabetes Association), I find that they are very organized and very efficient in getting us going quickly.  We picked up our t-shirts, hit the beverage-food table and gobbled up some oranges, bagels and drinks.  We returned to our truck to change into our riding attire and exchanged questions: Which glasses to wear? (it was a bit overcast), arm warmers? vest? how much food to bring?  We settle on arm warmers and Bryan ended up bring 2 sets of glasses to adjust to the changing conditons.  I chew down a whole PowerBar, took a dose of SportsLegs and washed it down with some water. 

Sean, Craig, Bryan, Bill

7:00 a.m. We line up with Craig and Sean with lots of eagerness to get going and get our team picture taken by a fellow rider.  The singing of the Star Spangled Banner always gets me; a reminder that we have the freedom to do things like this in this country and be proud of it.

7:15 a.m. Not sure what the hold up was as it was suppose to be a 7 a.m. roll.  We roll through downtown Long Beach and it is always cool to see every year the leftover k-rails and tire marks from the recent LB Grand Prix.  Talk about going 180 to 15 mph in 4 seconds to make a u-turn on the course!  We quickly find ourselves crossing the 1st of 2 bridges - Desmond and then the St. Vincent Thomas.  These bridges are usually closed to pedestrians and bicycles; they close at least one direction to allow us to enjoy the breathtaking, elevated views of the harbor.  Nothing like endless sea of shipping containers, huge boats and rail cars - a 4 year old boy's wild imagination!  The size of these bridges fool your mind when you are driving in a car; you find yourself a little daunted by the grade of the climb sitting on your saddle.  Bryan and I led the group and the bridge got us warmed up and settled.  Bombing the downhill, it was the first time I got to test my new cassette setup - I went from a 12 small tooth cog down to 11.  As having a compact crank, I always felt I was out geared going down hill.  I was smiling all the way down as the 1 tooth difference gave me what I wanted short of changing out the crankset.

8:00 a.m. We roll into port of call and I hear this PFFFFFFFFTTT sound behind me and noticed that Sean landed a flat front tire.  We quickly worked together to get him changed in about 4 minutes and he mentioned he saw a small sidewall cut on his tire on a previous day's inspection (although I couldn't find it).

We roll through our first rest stop with a quick 2 minute pee break and headed through the hills of Palos Verdes.  The sun continued to hide from us and the wind was calm at this point.  Bryan and I laid the hammer down and dropped the group, including Craig and Sean.  We decided to stop at the next rest stop to get sun screen on Bryan and refuel food and Gatorade for myself.  We never saw Sean or Craig so we decided to take off as they may have passed us while we were stopped. 

*** Turned out Sean had flatted again right before the rest stop.  He would flat 2 more times and decided to DNF and take the sag van back at mile 55.  Craig flatted 2 more times after leaving Sean and ended up doing the 65 mile loop.  We never saw the duo after losing contact earlier.

Miles 20-30 was through the rolling hills and ranches of Palos Verdes.  This is pretty much my favorite part of the ride - Ocean views, beautiful homes, nice people!  The one thing that miffed Bryan and I was a lady cop that decided to pull over a Tour De Cure cyclist for rolling through a stop sign and was citing him.  I overhear her as we roll pass "......I'm going to ticket every single one of you running that stop sign!".  Afterwards she rolls behind Bryan and I (on a very quiet road that runs next to the golf course) and gets on the bullhorn " Stay off the roadway!"  MAN, what was her problem?!?!?!   For the next 3 miles going DOWNHILL, Bryan and I decide to come to a complete stop at every stop sign to avoid getting a ticket by the Palos Verdes finest.  She sure did leave a sour taste in our mouth.

 Mile 40 gave us the mega climb that we all looked forward to, the PV switchbacks.  The road was quiet and my new cassette held up well (as my large cog got smaller).  Bryan, a strong climber, led the way.  He landed at the top by at least 45 seconds to a minute!  The next 30 miles brought us back to the Queen Mary and continued through Seal Beach.  The wind picked up and we worked together to keep the pace going.  At times we were moving from 19mph to 22 mph.  Bryan truly showed his stamina as he kept the pace going.  The one thing that destroyed us was the constant RED stoplights!  At this time my inner quads kept giving me trouble and all I could do was eat and stretch and try to do my share of the pull.

11:50 a.m.  Mile 75 was where our families had come to cheer us on.  They had PB&J sammiches, cold Cokes and Gatorades.  It was nice to take a break from the constant push through the mid-day wind.  It is such an honor to be a Dad to represent what we want for our kids: To be healthy, enjoy the outdoors and to perservere to a personal goal!  We wrap up our visit in about 20 minutes and they yelled as we rolled out, " SEE YOU AT THE FINISH LINE!"

For the next 23 miles, we battled constant winds on top of constant red lights.  This was the most frustrating part of the ride and there was nothing really we could do other then enjoy the scenery.  We partnered up a guy named John, who was doing the ride on a mountain bike!  I came to find out that he was preparing for a 100 mile mtb race in a few weeks in AZ.  He was also a 4 time KONA Ironman finisher! It was cool to trade talk to help me subside the muscle pain that was increasing as the miles ticked on.

Ironman John bringing us in on his mountain bike

Congrats to each other and a finish prayer

We roll back into the Queen Mary area and finish strong as our families and others cheered us back home!  WE DID IT!  Bryan had planned for a 5:30 ride time goal and I was aiming for a 5:55.  We finished it in 5:45 for an average of 17 mph.  Our elasped time was 6:41 that included our family break, Sean's flat, rest stops and the numerous red lights.  Bryan and I enjoyed the Wahoo's lunch that came with our ride and it was sure a hit after eating all those Cliff bars.  Our team raised over $680 for a cause that hits close to our friends and families and we were proud to represent with our 100 mile bike ride!

The Hughes and Voong Family at the 100 mile finish line






One of the weirdest rides we saw on the road

 

2012 Tour De Cure Ride Fundraiser

It's that time of the year again! No not my daughter's birthday (April 28th) but on April 29th, our team will be participating in the American Diabetes Assocation Tour De Cure ride in Long Beach, Ca.
Team Page    Bill's fundraising page

I have selected to ride a 100 miles alongside some teammates, Bryan Hughes and Craig Curran in our 4D-SST team.  This route through Long Beach, Palos Verdes and Huntington Beach is breathtaking, technical in climbing, ascending and manuevering through different road terrains (i.e. train tracks!).

Please support this cause as it effects millions of American's as well as a few close to me.  I look forward to raise funds and complete this ride with the many others that have the same passion for this sport and giving back.

There are shorter courses for any level from 8 miles and up, so join our team also!

Tuesday night group ride (CCCH)

A smaller group meets up every Tuesday at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills around 5 p.m. and we head off in different directions based on conditions and likes.

Today Brian, Vicken, Jeff and I decided on a slightly different route by loading up the hills of Eucalyptus and Peyton in the beginning.  We primarily stayed sideways 75% of the route with the evening wind that was blowing eastbound at about 10 mph.  That kept our spirits up for most of the ride.

The last 10 minutes was definitely a strong headwind and it was nice to have a group of guys to share the workload to get us home. 

What a difference riding with others makes!  I ride solo so much that I forget the teamwork, joking around and camraderie that comes along with others that share your passion and blow off some steam.

We wrapped up the ride at around 20 miles at an average of 18 mph as most of it was climbing some moderate hills.

Come join us!

March Madness Weight loss

March came and it was time to lose a little more weight to get leaner, faster, stronger!  I decided to go for a 30 day concentrated effort to see where I would end up.

I'm a big believer in losing it slowly and doing the healthy way.  I started January 1st 2008 @ 245lbs. - 5'10".  I flucuated lower and higher within the year, but found that I was pretty consistant on getting lower and lower.

Jan - 2009: 215lbs.
Jan - 2010: 210 lbs.
Jan - 2011: 215 lbs.
Jan - 2012: 198 lbs.

March 1st I weighed in at 193 and felt pretty good.  I had held that weight since late January and been feeling ok with my workouts.  I wanted to get into the 180's as my next step.  By March 31st, I had checked in at 182.6 - 10.4 lbs.

March 3rd BEFORE

Here were my continued efforts and notes:
- Back to calorie counting!  By using my iPad app - MyFitnessPal, I was able to get my head in the game of ensuring what I was going in my mouth was accounted for.  It is so easy to "lose" track of the snacks that get snatched up before you can even think twice about.  About 2 weeks into it, I did slack off a bit as I was in the routine of eating conciously (and eating similar meals/snacks over and over) and didn't need to calorie count as much.  I did do it from time to time to check myself.  I'm sure if I kept it up, I would of done even better.

- Enjoyed myself from time to time.  I avoided the whole "Cheat Day" as I believe it tends to re-build bad habits, but instead enjoyed a dinner or lunch that was on the satisfying side.  Everytime I did that splurge, my body felt pretty bad about it.  So by the next feeding time, I was choosing more wisely.

- Excercise.  I cut the running miles down a bit and increased the speed.  I was doing 8:45-9:15 min/mi. for most of Jan and Feb.  Because I had built a solid base of slower speed running, I felt okay pushing the limits.  During Jan/Feb, whenever I pushed the limits, I got hip pain and shin splints.  Not anymore.  I had a couple of shorter runs @ 7:30 min/mi. and even a 7 mile run @ 8:23 min/mi.   I smashed my 7min PR by over 3 minutes!  I believe by increasing speed, it jolted my body into some increased metabolism.  Once I had woken my body up from the normal routine, I immediately saw the weight and mirror results.

-  Water.  Drank more and more of it this month.  Kept my jug around me as much as possible.  Taking a swig right now.

- Juice detox.  My wife is currently doing a Juice detox that uses a juicer to extract from mainly vegetables and some fruit.  I had a couple here and there as meal replacements.  Primarily on off days, or easy rides/runs. 

- Enjoyed some carbs.  I included some carbs in my diet to be balanced.  I believe eating a balanced diet allowed my body to burn and use a variety of fuel.  Remember to run faster, you are using your aerobic efforts that is looking for fuel in the form of sugar/carbs as well as protein in the end.

- Breakfast.  I usually eat breakfast, but I have switching it up a little bit. Primarily I have been eating some subway sandwiches with egg whites and veggies.  I'm pre-loading the calories in the morning, and slimming them down as the day goes.  I obviously add in calories when I work out.

- Doing multiple workouts.  I bike at lunch.  And I run after work or at night.  I do pushups when the hot water is warming up for the shower.  I do some dumbells during commercials.  I go for walks.  I keep moving along all day.  I drink so much water, I have to get up from my work chair to go #1.  Keeps me from sitting too long in one place!

I'll post an after picture for March Madness weight loss.  I can tell you, the last few pounds are definitely hard to lose.  Everything I have done the past 4 years, is now magnified x2.  Eating that cookie used to be okay, but now I feel that it shows up in my progress real easily.  By honing it in little by little and doing the above routines, I feel like there is an end goal in sight.  I personally don't want to be "skinny"; I would like to lose the love handles and gain some speed on my running (hopefully in the 7 min/mi. range).  At this time, the weight number is what I have to work with.

All in all, with my current workouts and building muscle I was aware of not paying too much attention to weight.  I also made sure I gave myself positive movement by looking in the mirror and not at the scale only. 

What tips do you have on getting slimmed down?

My life with Grandpa Tran Au

It was no April Fool's day.....and I love April Fool's day.  I love joking around (ask anyone)...

However that day in April 1st, 2012 is when my Grandpa passed away.  He was 90 years old and had a memory and conversation of a 40 year old.  He enjoyed playing the lottery, primarily it gave him something to do as in walking everyday to the local store.  To get his haircut, to get light groceries, to get out into the city.

My Grandparents moved here in the mid 80's from China into our home in Orange.  We had a huge household as most of their children had came here as well.  Do know my Grandparents had 10 children - 8 Daughters in a row and the last 2 were the boys.  We took the bonus room and added walls to create more bedrooms.  We probably had 16 people living there at one point!

As I was growing up, my Grandmother took me to Sycamore Elementary everyday as both my parents were working.  She ensured I had my lunch and that I made it to class safely.  She took my little brother, Keith, along with her until he himself started at the elementary school as well (he is 6 years younger then I). 

After school, Grandpa would take me on a walk - sometimes to 7-11 to get a lotto ticket and a slurpee for me.  But alot of the times we went to Mcdonald's on Chapman avenue.  I remember the days when you got legos from the happy meals.   Man did I get alot of legos.  We talked about many thing over the years up and down Eckoff street, in which I truly can't remember today.  But I do remember that he always had a few sayings that we always laughed about even to this day with my brother.

My Grandparents and some of their kids got a house in Anaheim in the early 90's and moved out of the Orange house.  By then I was 13 years old and on my own to watch my brother.  The house was quiet.  Mcdonald's was a time to time event. 

After I turned 16, my parents sold the Orange house and moved to Garden Grove.  I wanted to finish at Orange High so my brother and I moved to into my Grandparents in Anaheim.  I would commute from there to school with my own car and my brother would go to local schools.  The house didn't seem so quiet anymore.  I had my grandparents back and it seemed so familiar.

Great Grandparents to Bradyn, Titus and Judah - Judah's 30 day party June 2010

While attending Cal State Fullerton, I moved back with my parents in Garden Grove when I was around 19.  From there on, I saw my Grandparents here and there, primarily at family functions.  I know that part of my life getting busier and the language barrier kept our relationship apart the past 10 years (that is my own undoing).

October 2011, I found out that Grandpa was having stomach pains and was having a biopsy and xray procedure in which they found Pancreatic Cancer.  The choices were very slim.  His age did not give him favorable odds on surgery and chemo would only extend his life a few months giving him horrible side effects.
The family decided on in-home hospice as his wife and children would able to give him the best care.

The next 6 months we visited my grandparents everyweek.  We brought cards, pictures, stories, and smiles.  Lottery tickets were a plenty and he loved to check them as soon as he got the results.  He watched alot of international TV and he knew what was going on in the world to the tee.  My kids lit up grandpa's face, and Titus always got the thumbs up.  Bradyn always got the "good looking and tall" comment.  Judah love blowing kisses to Grandpa.  He and I talked about many things, but it was still hard to get deep into conversation because of the language barrier.  I prayed for him, heck I prayed over him so many times.  There were days when he looked great, and there were days that were pretty scary.

His appetite and the ability to keep food down got worse and worse through the months.  I got instant message from my wife that he had stopped drinking water on Tuesday.  We all visited him on Wednesday and his voice was hoarse.  His stomach hurt and he was uncomfortable.  We visited him again on Thursday and it was more amplified.  My mom was bedside with him and we talked about what he would want us to do with the huge Mega Millions jackpot.  He clearly stated that he wanted us to be taken care of and then to create jobs and do social work, generally take care of others.  We had some jokes that night and we talked about life.  It was the last time I would hear his actual voice.  I prayed for him that night, and boy did I pray for comfort. 

Saturday we arrived around 2 p.m. and basically gave my kids the chance to say thier final goodbyes.  Bradyn and Titus were pretty quick to do so and Judah was ever so sweet.  My brother and some cousins played some basketball to get our minds cleared up and then we sat around Grandpa through the night.  He was in so much discomfort and could not keep any liquids down.  He couldn't say anything.  Everything was done with hand motions and eye contact.  Towards 8 p.m. I had my last communication with Grandpa.  I brought Titus and Judah back in - they said goodbyes and love you's.  Grandpa gave Titus a thumbs up telling him he's number one.  It was really hard to go through this motion.  His breathing was hard.  I didn't want to leave him and it was 11:45 p.m., but I was un-prepared as I didn't have my eye contact solution with me and really didn't have much to offer to him.  I just didn't want him to be alone when it got really tough, but I knew that his children were around and was working feverishly to keep him comfortable.

Sunday morning we skipped church as Jessikah had went to pick up Bradyn from a sleep over at a friend's house.  When she got back we left for my grandparent's wondering what the day had in store for Grandpa.  Upon arrival my uncle, standing outside, was shaking his head and gave us the thumbs down.  I immediately knew that Grandpa was gone.  The next few minutes was a blur, all my stuff was placed around the house, and I think I told Jess to send the kids upstairs.  I walked into my Grandpa's room and he was still.  He had just passed by about 10 minutes.  His family and wife was around him.  It was a very emotional charged room and it was an odd sight as I was so use to seeing him in a different way week in and week out for the past 6 months.  But he was now no more in pain.  He didn't have to drink or eat in pain.  Unfortunately, the pain was now seen evidently in my Grandma that just broke my heart.

I thank God that Grandpa was given time for us to reflect and share our lives together before he passed.  He raised great children of respect, he showed great wisdom, he refused to become stagnated in life and he loved his wife and his family.  Tran Au is man that I am proud to call my grandfather.  We will miss him and we will continue on his legacy.  Services will be held at Pacific View Memorial in Corona Del Mar, Ca on April 9th.

Rest In Peace, gong gong.

Titus and Grandpa - Christmas 2010

Strawberry delight

One thing I found out during these few months of doing my workouts and blogging is that I now take a few moments to enjoy what is going on around me.  Part of it is what I have been missing out while training/focusing only on me, and the other part is gathering fun and cool things to share with my audience.  If nobody reads this, at least I can look back and reflect what I have done and accomplished.

Today's lunch ride was a slight chiller.  The storm passed through just the day before and we were in the low 50's with a slight breeze.  The sun sure can warm you up and it convinced me to get the bike out for a spin around the old Tustin Marine Base for lunch.  The strawberry pickers were out in full force and scent of fresh strawberries filled the cool air.  I sure love this time of the year (minus the allergy pollen!).  As I came across this senic view, I took the time to stop and snap this picture you see here (try this last year, I would say heck no! I don't got time for this!).

After taking this picture however, it felt like I ran across every red light here in Irvine.  But with that, I took the time to see what was going on around me - people running, walking, taking the bus, reading.  People doing the same thing that I'm enjoying - The great outdoors.

After work I was able to squeeze in a PR 5k (26:01) run before my 5:30 appointment.  Talk about a busy Monday!

Are you absorbing the very cool nature that surrounds you?

2% FLAT skim milk....

Well today on my lunch ride of 14 miles, halfway through I encountered the dreaded pfffftffffftttttffffffff noise that comes from a punctured 115 psi filled tire/tube.  I had decided to add an additional route for an extra 3 miles that landed me in the middle of some debris that wanted me to enjoy my outing a little longer.

Directing myself to my trusty kit, I got myself back on the road within 5-6 minutes.  30 seconds was added to take this picture!  So this brings me to this topic of what to carry and how to change an inner tube.

What I carry in my little wedge under my seat:
- Spare Tube
- (1-2) threaded air cartridges 12-16g
- Glueless patch kit
- Dollar (to create a boot when the tire has a nice tear)
- Cartridge pump
- Tire/rim levers

I travel frequently either on well travelled roads with other bikers, or with a group.  That said, usually carrying one tube and a patch kit will get me through 2 flats.  If I run out of supplies, I'm going to beg from another rider for something I'm out of.  Knock on wood, haven't had to go there.  Obviously if you are going out for a ride to nowhere, pack accordingly.
- Stop the bike as soon as possible so you can hear and see the leak/puncture
- Make sure to pay attention to where this cut is in relation to the valve stem
- Shift the rear derailleur to the smallest sprocket
- Undo the brake lever that opens up the brake calipers and undo the quick release lever
- Dislodge the rear wheel.  THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART NEXT!
- Lay your bike down on the left side - Non-drive side.  Rookies will make the mistake and lay it on the derailleur and cause issues from there on
- Place the wheel in your lap or ground and use one tire lever to open up the tire from the rim
- Use the second lever to open up the tire next to the original lever and then slide it away and follow the rim.  The tire will then unseat itself
- Remove valve nut and then take the tube out.  Run your fingers around the area of the puncture.  This is why I mentioned to spot where the puncture was in relation to the stem for you to reference to
- Remove any debris that may have caused the issue.
- Pump in a little bit of air into the new tube, just enough to create the form
- Insert the valve through the rim and then seat the tube into the tire
- Pick a spot on the tire and tuck it in by hand and then move around the rim until it gets hard to do so.  This is where the levers come into play.  Use them to pry the tire back onto the rim, be careful not to pinch the tube
- Inspect the bead setting of the tire that it is seated correctly before adding any air.  If anything, add some and then release it to get any pinch flats out
- Air up!  I commonly compare my other tire's feel to gauge how much I need to ensure I get enough pressure in there to avoid a pinch flat

Hope my lengthy description is of any help!  Watch the video if you prefer to -  HAPPY RIDING!

Update on Month-to-Month training per sport

As I had previously posted about focusing on one sport at a time, it has come to a point of looking back and seeing if the results are as what I wanted them to be.

- Started running around Jan 12th - running 10 minute miles around the 4-5 mile distance
- Include at least one interval run a week.
- Kept my HR around 150 bpm and below except during intervals peaks.
- Gradually increase mileage per week.  Week 3-4 saw mile #6.  Week 5 saw mile #7.
- Pace of 7 mile run was 8:40.  I'm sure if I focus on a 5k race now, I can nail 8 min miles
- Even running 7 miles doesn't seem to kill my body like running 4.5 miles before
- week 5 included a 14mi bike that followed up with a 5.5mi run that felt great.  Enough for most sprint distances!
- Desire to run and increase pace has been increasing.  I use to hate running...and now I know why!  By using my HR to show me how to not kill myself on every run, I've been able to build a decent base for me to work on now.  I can see by doing the correct work, I can continue to increase my speed over time.  The hardest thing to do is to increase the speed at a responsible rate that puts added stress to my body's buildup.

Now to work on the bike as I haven't signed up for the gym yet to go swimming!

No time - You will find time

Well this week's numbers are pretty sad for my training due to busy-ness of work, family commitments and work.  Did I say work twice?  I'm blessed to have the ability to provide, so no complaint there!

What it means is that sometimes schedules don't go the way you want them to and we cannot stress on what don't have control of.  That is my point of view and is what keeps me sane into going into a crazy late night/early morning workout.  I believe exercise is important, however should not control your life.....it should be part of your life.

The reminder is that we need to keep this fun, moving forward and rejuvinating.  If we are worn out and putting too much on the plate, we end up getting sick, dis-engaged and burnt out. 

How do you handle the day-to-day schedule?

K-Swiss Kwicky QT2 - How Cutey is it?

Read enough magazines and you end up drooling over products that seem to make you faster, more comfortable and cool lookin'!

I'm in need of new running shoes and my dear Wife had purchased a set of Nike lightweights with foot pod for my birthday in October.  Knowing my race was coming up in less then a month, changing into new shoes didn't seem the right thing to do.

And they were Nike's.  God bless my Wife for even catering to my likes and I do appreciate the love and effort into them.  But they were Nike's.  Don't get me wrong, I trend to Nike for basketball, baseball and running as they are great brand.  But us triathletes would ideally invest in tri-specific gear.

The KSWISS Kwicky QT2 is a shoe that looks rather abnormal - colors are somewhat clashing - the yellow/green does't have that neon pop that some shoes portray, nor is it muted enough to look tame.   I'm not sure, maybe its my monitor.  Looking at it online I'm sure is different then what is going to be in front of you.

The seamless technology is key as us triathletes usually run without socks.  My current shoe, Asics, does well on the cushion/support side of things, but the lace has a hot spot right at the top of my foot/ankle (I'm using lock laces, part of my problem).

It's nice to see a shoe that moves the tension of the lace to the side away from the compression of the upper foot and ankle.  Its lightweight design is a sure thing to accompany you on those long runs.

Kwicky QT2 goes for $144.00 and is available only in the one color shown. 

What shoe(s) brand/models are you looking for and what needs are you trying to fulfill?

3/GO Triathlon Magazine - Click and GO!

If you're looking for some good Triathlon reads, here is a free electronic subscription to 3/GO Triathlon March/April issue.  Usually its a $7.99 issue!

It looks great on the iPad too!

3/GO March/April Issue
January/February Issue

The O.C. Great Park

Today was an awesome Friday to get a lunch ride in.  Just wanted to share a picture of The Great Park Balloon attraction at my halfway point.  Happy Friday!

- Open Thursday-Sunday
- Goes up 400 ft and holds about 20-30 people
- Free
- Have to reserve your spot ahead of time....arrive and go is most likely not an option.
- Doesn't go up on windy days
- The OC Great Park is to be the center of a massive master planned community.  The land was acquired from Lennar by 5 Points Community headed by one of my clients, Emile Haddad.  We hope to secure most of the wiring for the new homes that are being built starting at the end of the year.  Bulldozers are currently grading the first projects now.



Show me some cool destinations on your bike!

Getting off the road - change of pace!

My house can be seen here towards the left!

As I have been doing the specific workouts per month, the road bike has seen little action to avoid the rain/cold.  I was lucky enough to get a 5mi. lunch run in before my 2:00 p.m. sales appointment and then when I got home later on, no one was home yet.  I looked outside and man it looked like it was going to pour any minute.  That meant, I had minutes!  I donned my mountain bike shorts and gear and stomped out to the local mountain trail, 1/2 mile from my front door (me so lucky!).

Very lucky to enjoy this view a
 couple minutes from my door

 The goal was to change it up a bit from the road and still get some leg work in.  It is a 1.5 mi. circuit that has a nice climb in the beginning and then rollers throughout.  The grand finale is a 15% downhill that screams "brakes!".

I was able to squeeze in 3 rounds on the circuit before the rain decided to move in.  I was happy to get on 2 wheels, stay close to home to call it day when it needed to be, and just enjoy the view and nature.  What a great stress reliever to work in!

I want to encourage the thought of ensuing your goals at any given opportunity.  This only took 25 minutes at the end of the day and I burned off about 400 calories (on top of metabolism).

What activities that you squeeze in during the day that are efficient?

Garmin 305 HR/GPS watch review

After all these years of doing my own thing, I never paid attention to using a HR monitor to track my progress or view how my efforts were performing.  It was either go easy or go hard.  I felt like I didn't need something to tell me how hard I was going...I just did it!

Only recently when I signed up for my first timed event, that I took training a bit more seriously (and organized) that I found that heart rate meant many things to me to perform appropriately.  There are days of rest, days of intervals and days of endurance training.  Using the HR monitor keeps me in check and gives me goals on paper that helps me to build upon.  Using one of my favorite analytical tactics; reading Amazon.com reviews on products, I picked a Garmin 305 Forerunner w/GPS.  Amazon has a return policy and also it shipped quick....Kudos!

When I received the unit, the form factor was a little on the large side, yet it wasn't "bulky".  The commonly used buttons, start-top and lap are large buttons on the front and easy to hit (good and bad?).  The others are enter, up/down on the right, and mode and power on the left.








The first setup involved was pairing up the heart strap and then fitting it on myself.  At first if felt awkward, but I quickly got used to it and even forgot it was even there during my excercise.  Secondly, I setup the screens the way I wanted to see them for each individual sport - running and biking.  I'm a numbers guy, so the large screen and the ability to go 4,3,2 and 1 options is awesome.  I currently run with 4 options on my main screen - Average Pace, Current Pace, Distance and Time.  You can scroll to other "run" screens to see other items in which I have Elevation, Time and Speed setup.  By toggling the up and down arrows, you can satisfy the numbers junkie in you.  The one odd thing that sticks out is that it takes about a minute of non-movement to get the GPS locked in.  I usually set it down somewhere when it does this in the beginning and I will do my warmup stretches.

For the bike, I strap it to my handlebars for ease of view and it does fine using the strap that it comes with.  The cool accessories available are: replacement band for bike mounting and velcro strap, wireless cadence and speed sensor.  Another is the footpod sensor to track your running on a treadmill/indoor/cruise ship!.

It comes with a USB dock that allows for transfer of information as well as charging it.  I rarely run out of battery as long as I dock it every other day.  Any longer then 3 days of training, the 4th day is probably in jeopardy.  I would rate the battery life to be above-average.

The current design upgrades from the 305 (405 etc..) has had quite a few of negative reviews from form factor to GPS accuracy.  The touch bezel apparently does not work very well with sweaty/wet fingers.  Many have reported going back to their old 305 as they were much happier with the results.

Here are my pros and cons:  Remember this is my first HR watch, so I really don't have much to compare against. 

Pros:
-GPS accuracy - It seems dead on while running comparing markers, at races etc. as long as you don't continually run under a bridge/tunnel.

- Ease of use - 6 buttons give you much of what you need easily.  Nothing fancy, simple.

- Large screen with options - Let's you customize what you want to see and still read it easily on the 4 option version.

- Distance/pace/hr alerts are audible -  I can still hear it with my headphones and music playing.  There are plenty of alerts that you can activate.

- Backlight - Very even toned and bright enough to view in the darkest run.

- Easy dock for charging - charges and downloads/uploads information at the same time.

- Virtual Partner - race against yourself or others to keep things lively.  I find running boring if I'm on my normal route and these little nuggets keep you going.

Cons:
- No auto power off - Remember to turn it off or no worky for you next time out!

- A few times during biking the HR monitor was reading erractically - It would show me having a 234 bpm on a ride at the beginning.  I would be dead!  A reset or rescan seems to fix this.  I also changed the watch battery in the strap to ensure it wasn't a power problem.  It has happened maybe 3-4 times in the past 6 months.  It is a bit annoying but it seems to clear up soon.  Maybe its a skin contact issue?

- GPS will auto pause while under a bridge - of course is there a way around this?  It is looking for a satellite, so I don't think there really is a solution to this.

- Uploading software - The software that comes with the watch for your computer stinks and seems antique. I don't use it personally and instead upload to connect.garmin.com.  A much more improved interface and updated maps, it gives a nice calendar to work with.  The only thing is sorting data is either slow, or doesn't exisist.  You have to use the PC software for that.

I want to pass this information on so that if you are interested in either upgrading or getting a new watch, hopefully this info will help you choose one that will fit your needs.

What do you own that you like or don't like about your watch? 

Incycle Saturday Morning Ride - You In?

If you are from around here in Chino Hills, every Saturday morning between 8-9:30, you will find a very large peleton zooming through the hills and pastures at times with smiles, jokes and grunting.  The InCycle Chino bike store facilitates this ride every Saturday with an 8:00 a.m. sharp rollout.  Click here for a MAP/Stats

Brian and I had planned to ride to the beach via SCART and meet up with the wives for breakfast and hitch a ride home.  However my sick daughter (Judah) and Brian's son (Braden) kept that from happening - so we decided to ride local.
You meet up first at the Incycle bike shop parking lot and you get a chance to say "Hi" and "good morning" as you check out each other's ride.  Usually the carbon 80mm wheels are the difference among the group as well as an occasional vintage bike with downtube shifters.  This ride is about your legs and the ability to attack up the hills, bar none.  If you can keep up with the pack that trolls around 21-24 mph on the flats, you are in good standing.

Gearing up for the ride at the InCycle Chino shop

The warm up consists of mainly flat surface with minimal road roughness, and light traffic for a rather busy street at any other time (Shaeffer).  After crossing the 71 underpass, you will enjoying the quietness of the Shoppes of Chino Hills as most stores are closed at this time.  You will then briefly notice a slight uphill roll up Peyton as you enjoy the timeline of Chino Hills - The old and new Sheriff station, post office, Ayala HS, horse ranches on your right, and the relocation of Community Park.  Brian and I kept an easy pace but stayed close to the upper half of the group.

Once you cross Chino Hills Parkway, you will then notice the first attack from the peleton.  You are delivered a modest Cat5 climb that last about 5 minutes with rollers in between.  This is where you get put into place....go too hard in the beginning, you will find yourself falling in the ranks - start too slow-find yourself weaving through traffic of slower riders.  Brian and I maintained a good spot in the upper 1/3 of the group.  Thankfully everyone waits up on top (reasonably) for the group to "re-group".  Then a quick roll through the trees of Woodview, farms and a golf course keeps you on edge as you avoid potholes, wandering pedestrians, and parked cars.

The peleton regrouping at the top of Peyton

The more enjoyable part of the route as in smoothness of the road is enjoyed going down Butterfield ranch.  As a large group, we easily take up the whole lane for about 1 mile, pissing off plenty of drivers!  When the group crosses Soquel Canyon, the peleton once again lines up for a chase.  I've led this chase before and man, when you are alone in the front, the group catches you quick!

After rolling through Butterfield, you will cross over the 71 freeway as it turns into Euclid Avenue.  This part is subject to be open; if there is heavy rain, this section may be flooded out.  That happened last year for about 3 weeks and a different route onto Soquel was the result.  The last part of the ride is a slight increase in elevation all the way back to the shop.  Euclid is a fast moving pace street with trucks going along with you.  The only thing that is sane is the "bike" lane is super wide so you have room to work with. 



Enjoying a brief downhill breather before heading north to the beginning.

 In the end, we end up with about 24 miles of riding and it goes by pretty quick with the engagement of riding with a large group.  Talk with others, meet new friends and compare gear....go bike nuts!

What rides have you done with groups that you would like to share?

Massage...oh massage!

It is week three of picking up the pieces and here are the numbers for Jan-22 to Jan-28 (7 days).  Do remember this month is focused on running.
Sun- 5 mi. run
Mon- 5 mi. run
Tues- 4.5 mi. run
Wed - 20 mi. BIKE
Thurs - 14 mi. BIKE, 4.5 mi. run (BRICK)
Friday - 5 mi. run
Saturday - 15 mi. BIKE
Sunday - REST / MASSAGE
Totals: 24 mi. RUN (9:30 pace) / 49 mi. BIKE (18.5 mph avg)

So Sunday we went to a "Jump House" for Bradyn's schoolmate's birthday party.  Kicking off your shoes and chase after your boys is another great workout.  I had to catch my breath a few times climbing over obstacles made for humans shorter then 4'10".  After chasing and tumbling around, I felt my shoulder blade muscles tighten up and was limited in motion.  I realized my whole body was sore...So Jessikah gave me the green light and dropped me off at a place that offered foot massage and body treatment. 

 Rejuvenation Spa in Chino Hills has prices from $15 and up.  I settled for the $30 version and I believe it was worth the money.  And MAN did I forget the power of a good massage during training!  I had a magnificent lady, Ella, that took her time (20 min on both feet up to my kneecap) and hit the right spots.  It hurt a little bit on the pressure points, but oh it was good pain.  Soon after her waking me up from my lost in space feeling, she took me to massage table and quickly she noticed the tight spots without me telling her.  She then worked her way around to help loosen it and she even found a few that I didn't realize was tender!  I left the spa in a daze, not knowing what hit me...I was feeling like a sore loose noodle, but it was a good sore.  After looking at the price list again, I noticed...$15 for 60 min. of foot massage?!? Count me in!

Today I'm feeling looser and seem to be fresh, ready to hit my last week of running focus.  Is it time to treat your body to a refresher?

2012 Resolutions - still here? Anyone? Anyone?

So it is the last week of January.....how has your New Year's resolutions fared out?  It's funny how we are creatures of habits and change demands your full attention and commitment.  Do you find yourself slipping back to where you were before?  Or are you still trekking along, but are not seeing much results or are lacking some motivation?

I'm stuck in between the 2 myself and I believe I'm getting around the hump of a lackluster start to the New Year.  Part of the issue was I really enjoyed the off season, a bit too much.  The food was good, the sleeping was joyful and staying warm was inviting.  Add to the part of traveling 2000 miles back and forth via driving to Colorado in the last week of December sure added to the slack-off.

Part of re-igniting the fuel was to really look at the calendar and notice how much time I really had before my next race.  I also decided to work on my training regimen and scheduling it out (see my previous post about per sport training).  Eating properly has gone from 50% of the time, to about 70%.  I believe we should be in the 80-85% eating properly, allowing the 15-20% of enjoying and rewarding yourself with savory tastes.

What is keeping you from maintaining your fitness goals? Are you skipping out on workouts? Take a look at this checklist and see what you can incorporate into your daily life to maintain your goals and avoid getting sabatoged into the "excuse land".
- Register for an event.  Whatever it is....and then set a goal.  Doing a 5k? Post on facebook that you have signed up for a 5k, invite others to join you and set a realistic goal that you are going to be accountable for (sub 24 minutes?).
- Pack your gear ahead of time.  If you plan to workout before/lunch/after work, be sure to have all the essentials ready to go in a backpack
- Squeeze in workouts where you can.  I am blessed to have a job that has me at my desk at times so I can go for a bike ride or run during lunch and I can follow up with a small meal while at my desk working afterwards.  If you drive for work, invest in a bike rack or put it in tow and go for the same lunch ride.  Start by the nearest park so that when you are done, you can change and do the "sink shower".
- Pack your lunch ahead of time.  This goes with the first point.
- Incorporate bike rides into your daily appointments.  I once rode my bike to church with a backpack.  I changed at church and the wife and kids showed up in the car (with the bike rack).  I hitched the ride home afterwards.  This Saturday I am going to ride my bike to my grandparents for a party and the wife and kids will show up with vehicle to join in the fun.
- Incorporate bike / runs with your kids-pets.  Bradyn and Titus gets to ride their bikes while I run.  Last saturday, I did a 4 mile run while Bradyn rode his motorized razor scooter.  Instead of just taking Hadyn, our golden doodle dog, for walk, we usually go for a 5k run.
- Wake up earlier then normal to do morning workouts.  It is really hard at first, but by week 2 you will use to it.  But buyer beware, ensure you go to bed earlier to catch the 7-8 hours of beauty sleep.  You need it.
- Drink lots of water.  I used to be good at this by carrying the jug with me wherever I went.  Be sure to use good water (not tap), so that you enjoy the refreshing taste and not have to gag at it.  You will feel so much better and it will motivate you to continue working at your goals.
- Avoid driving somewhere to go workout.  That creates excuses and time lost.  Run from your office.  Bike from home.

These are the few elements that keep me in check and strive to continue on.  Some days are great, some are hard, but with a good plan-backbone, we shall see results coming our way. 

Happy New Year's resolutions and stay on TARGET!

Triathlon Training - one sport at a time

There comes a day when you reflect on something you read on the WORLD WIDE WEB and wish you had bookmarked it.  Well this day came late last year as I was trying to figure out how my training was going to be done in the following months leading up to my first 2012 tri race.

Somewhere in the www, I read an article that mentioned focusing primarily on one sport at a time and then combining them together.  The idea is that sometimes in the mix of tight schedules, we try to do each sport a little here, a little there, combined.  That's the result of what happened last year at my first triathlon, the Turkey Tri.  My swim was non-competitive and the energy sapped from me carried over to the bike and eventually on the run (my lower back was killing me!).  The article recommended working on each specific sport to create a good foundation in which we could build upon.

In Southern California, January is usually the month that we get most of our heavy rain.  I decided to focus on running in January so that I could keep the bike home and not worry about keeping it clean (or crash!).  Typical running techniques are now put into place; working on maintaining an anaerobic heart rate endurance, speed workouts (intervals,fartleks) and elevation gains/loss.  I am still riding the bike at least once a week to maintain that base fitness, although I have not put any pool time in yet.  I plan to change that soon by renewing my gym membership (eck!) as I will be switching to swimming in Feb.

My overall goal looks like this:
January - Running: Improve 5k time, run 20 miles in 6 days, improve form/foundation
February - Swimming: Understand proper stroke technique, breathing regimens, endurance
March - Cycling: Focus on intervals to increase speed, complete at least (1) 75 mile ride

I have "planned" a race in late March if all this training goes appropriately and as cycling is my strongest asset, I have saved it for last to allow the muscle groups that involve running and swimming repair themselves.

Thoughts?  I'll let you know how this goes in April!

2012 Race Calendar

Here is my 2012 calendar now that I'm ready to conquer it!  Do note if you are interested in any of these events there are either longer or shorter distances then what I have posted (they are the distances that I want to compete in):

*March 3rd (Saturday) - Desert International - Palm Springs - 500 meter swim, 14mi. bike, 3mi. run
  Desert International Triathlon
   AND/OR - (we'll see how training goes)
*March 18th (Sunday) - Seal Sprint II - Coronado, SD - 500 meter swim, 12mi. bike, 3.7mi run
  Superfrog Triathlon
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*April 29th (Sunday) Tour De Cure - Long Beach - American Diabetes Association - 100 mile bike ride
  2012 Tour De Cure - Long Beach
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*May 12th (Saturday) - LA Tri series - San Dimas - Express distance???
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*June 10th (Sunday) Camarillo Duathlon #1 - Sprint Distance - 1.5 run - 10 mi bike - 1.5 run
  Camarillo Duathlon Series 2012
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*August 12th (Sunday) Camarillo Duathlon #2 - Olympic (first time!) - 3 mi. run - 20 mi. bike - 3 mi. run
  Camarillo Duathlon Series 2012
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*August 18th (Saturday) Cool Breeze Century - Ventura - 102 mi. bike ride
  Cool Breeze Century - ***TBD depending on schedule so close to Duathlon #2
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*September 9th (Sunday) Camarillo Duathlon #3 - Olympic - 3mi. run - 20 mi. bike - 3 mi. run
  Camarillo Duathlon Series 2012
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*November 25th (Tentative) Turkey Triathlon - San Dimas - 1/2 mi. swim - 14 mi. bike - 4.5 mi. run
  Turkey Tri

Simply Faster - P5

http://p5simplyfaster.com/

Rings that cost more then my wife's?

Check out these SMART ENVes 3.4 wheels.  Anyone want to donate $3,100 on these? They sound incredible and I believe money is well spent on wheels more then any other component besides losing your own weight.

Smart ENVes 3.4 click here