I took today off work to get in some long miles.  I haven't yet broken the century mark this year so I was in need of some quality miles.  The plan was to at least hit triple digits on mileage.  I knew the wind was going to be out of the SW but I didn't feel like riding all day on flat roads south of town.  Especially not by myself.  Today was going to be a solo ride. Leaving the house at … [Read more...]

My day started at 05:00.  I woke up early to get in a solid breakfast.  Around 06:00 I left the house heading toward the race with my gear in a backpack.  The ride to the race ended up being just over 17 miles.  A good warm-up.  It was pleasant and traffic-free with little wind.  Just what I needed.  I arrived at the Beach House just before 07:00. Having been pre-registered and already … [Read more...]

This was an early one.  I woke at 04:30 to get plenty of fuel in the engine before today's ride.  I met Dan at his house around 05:15 and we headed to Lunch With Eric's house.  The protagonists of the day were Lawyer, Clarence, Dan E., Lunch With Eric, me, Danoh, and Buzz.  It was foggy and quite dark starting out but by the time we left Eric's it wasn't that bad. The problem with today's … [Read more...]

I spent the weekend at my sister's house in Monticello.  On Friday we celebrated my nephew's birthday.  Ryan will be 16 years old.  Oh to be young again. On Saturday morning, me and my other nephew, Jake, went on a 16 mile bike ride.  We finished our ride at the start of the 2010 Kirby Derby 5K/10K.  It's a small race in Monticello benefiting the Kirby Hospital Foundation.  Over 600 … [Read more...]

This week can be described with 2 words........flat tires and wind. Tuesday was sprint night.  Even though I was still physically tired from Saturday I thought I might have a fighting chance to stay with the group the whole ride....nope.  Kirk, Danoh, and myself got in an early 10 miles and met the group on Old Salem Rd.  I was with the main protagonists maybe 30 seconds.  And that was all … [Read more...]

Not the result I was expecting at the 2010 Illinois Marathon.  I was hoping for a PR which would have been anything under 3:30.  Starting with the 3:20 pace I was hoping to eventually fade between 3:20 and 3:30.  Having Danoh start out with me was a bonus as he would add a distraction to the first couple of miles.  Not finishing wasn't even in the picture.  Unfortunately it was reality. My … [Read more...]

Saturday is the Illinois Marathon so today will be my last day of training.  My goal for today was just to spin as much as possible and get in an hour of riding.  I warmed up with Kirk and headed to BikeTek. The group for today's training race was huge.  It felt good to work up some lactic acid in my legs.  As the boys revved up for the first sprint I quietly drifted to the back in order to … [Read more...]

Like standing at the bar with some drinkin' buddies and someone suggests doing a shot of Wild Turkey, the Sullivan Triathlon sounded good at the time.  I signed up for it months ago.  I failed to realize it was just 6 days before the Illinois Marathon and didn't bargain for rain that was blowing sideways.  Oh well! The Sullivan Sprint Triathlon wasn't exactly an "A" race for me but everyone … [Read more...]

Wednesday was my first day back in the pool in a while.  Because of vacation it had been about 2 weeks since I actually swam in water and wasn't lounging.  Considering the layoff and the previous night's ride I didn't feel that bad.  I only got in 1000 yards but did some 50 yard intervals to get the heart pumping. My run schedule is all screwed up.  So on Thursday I had to do my … [Read more...]

Like a freshman pledge during Hell Week I was hazed again at my first training race of the year.  It was fast, mainly because most of the usual suspects have a few races under their belts and are flying.  Sprint night was tougher than I remember.  First of all, the regroupment after the first sprint was the shortest I can remember.  Second of all, it was fast. I lasted until about half way … [Read more...]