A Run With the Marathon Dude

Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas!

What? I don't make a convincing Santa? Fine, fine. I'll stick with running.

I just got back from visiting family in Michigan for the holidays. It was a really low key trip, and I got to see all my family: everybody from my 4 year old cousin to my 88 year old Grandma. It was great!

I also got together with Bill for a nice run. We tried to go on Sunday morning, but the pouring rain and 50 MPH wind gusts canceled that plan for us real quick! The crap-tastic weather subsided yesterday, though, so we met up on Christmas Eve.

Bill is one solid runner; he doesn't make those numbers up! I felt as though I was holding him back quite a bit, but if I was in top shape I could give him a run for his money! Our splits were:

8:10 (Icy trail, yikes!)
7:26
7:08
6:37 (Woah, easy there!)
7:10

Since Bill was taking an interest in everything my Garmin will tell me, here is a link to the online version of the run: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/4644733

Afterwards we got a small bite to eat and took a picture, just for you guys!


My hip is feeling great today, even though that was my longest run since the Chicago Marathon. I'm still on the mend, but things are still looking up! I finally jumped out on my bike today too, since the snow is finally gone. Sweet!

Santa was kind to me this year, too; I must have been on the 'nice' list this year! I got most of what I asked for, including a stability ball, medicine ball, and the books Again to Carthage, Total Immersion, and The Triathlete's Training Bible.

I hope everybody else had a great Christmas!

I'm Sorry, Helen, but...

There's a new lady in my life. It just wasn't working between us. You're too needy. I've spent at least $400 on you in the past few months, and without insurance it would have been thousands! Don't even get me started on the emotional distress. Its over. I've found someone better.

Sure, she cost me a little more up front, but not by much. Plus she's really light weight, too. Oh, don't give me that, I wasn't calling you fat. Honest. Not to mention how grouchy you've been these past few months. You won't even let me do the things I enjoy. You're out of here. This new girl, well, I get to ride her several times a week if I want to.

Here she is:


Today has been a great day. I found out I could get my new bike for ~$200 cheaper than I originally thought I would, bought it, and got out for a 2.3 mile run!

I ended up picking up a helmet, gloves, biking shorts, an extra tube, bottle cage, and a tire lever as well. All in all, the total was less than I was planning to spend on the bike alone! Pretty sweet deal, huh? I can tell you're jealous.

I ran into a guy I run with at the bike shop too; he's starting triathlons in '08 and just bought a bike last week. The same one, actually. He has good taste! Sounds like I have someone to ride with already!

Running was good today. I ran a little quicker than I planned, but so far I'm not paying for it. In fact, my hip is feeling wonderful! Hopefully it stays that way after the run 'sets in.' Tomorrow is an off day with regards to running, but I might be riding with Brian and then swimming in the evening. The every other day thing seems to be working now, as long as I keep the build nice and gradual.

And last but not least, I really want some name suggestions for the bike, not joking! I can't believe you passed up the chance to give something a trashy name earlier, Marcy, are you feeling ill?

The decision is made!

I finally picked out the bike I'm getting.

I'm going with the 2007 Specialized Allez Triple. This is "last year's" model, and by "last year" I mean "not next year." Since they're trying to unload the 2007's, I'm getting it for 20% off. Cha ching!

This brought the choice down to a good bike for $650 +$70 for 3 years service or a great bike for $616 + free life time service. Tough choice, right?

I'll post a picture of MY lady in red tonight.

But she needs a name.

Any ideas?

Randomness

I just have a whole bunch of random stuff today. Enjoy.

Today was (probably) my last trip to the PT. I did schedule another appointment next week, but informed him I will probably call and cancel. I think the rest and strengthening exercises are what is bringing me back. I'm fairly certain the ultrasound and ASTYM aren't really making an impact at all, but if things fall apart, I'll go right back. Promise.

I'm doing more bike shopping again. Still looking at the same three bikes as before, with the exception of looking at the '08 Specialized Allez. I still have a little sticker shock going on, and am having a hard time bringing myself to drop almost a thousand dollars on the bike + accessories. Seriously. Thats a lot of money! I'm still leaning towards Specialized, though. The components are all around better than the other two bikes, and it is just a little bit more expensive. I'm going around later today and tomorrow to test ride all three bikes.

I stopped by and talked to one of the ride leader's from the local bike club to talk about different routes in the area. He busted out a folder that had at least 200 routes in it, and picked out the shorter ones for me to do. I picked his brain about a lot of biking stuff to try and balance out what would be the best choice.

My hip is feeling fantastic today, even after running yesterday! I'm feeling like this horrible road is almost over, as long as I'm patient in rebuilding my miles. Needless to say, I'm in the best mood in a long time!

Swimming tonight. I think I figured out my "sinking" problem from a few weeks ago, so it should go a whole lot better!

And.... some responses to various comments!

Bill -- I know exactly what you mean.

Marcy -- Since I MUST tell you, I weight 135 dripping wet. My metabolism is on crack, I exercise a lot, eat good, and haven't lifted weights for who knows how long. What do you expect?!

Nancy -- Don't get me started on this professor. I think "jerk" is very mild compared to what I could come up with!

My Bike Shop Adventure

This morning was a blur of numbers. Big numbers. Numbers bigger than I wanted them to be!

Yes, I went to look at road bikes. Entry level road bikes. The cheapest road bikes each of the three bike shops in town had. The result? Well, here are the three I'm considering if I decide I can live off of rice, PB & J, and chicken sandwiches for the next few months.

Giant OCR 3 -- $650

Here's the first one I looked at. At this shop they didn't take it off the shelf or anything since I wasn't buying anything today. The shop had a fair selection, but this was the cheapest bike they had which could be considered a road bike. The employee I dealt with, Brad, was very informative both regarding the bike and what else I would need to start biking. After looking at reviews online, it seems like a good bike. The main complaint I've seen is that the stem creaks.

Trek 1.2 -- $700

At the second shop, this was about all they had for entry level bikes. They didn't seem to have a very big selection, but for road bikes this was it. Its a replacement for the Trek 1000 which was a very popular bike. The main complaint I see in online reviews is that it is very noisy. This shop didn't do anything with used bikes, either, so this is as cheap as it goes at the second shop.

Specialized Allez -- $770 (Used: $570)

At my third and final shop they had a really good selection. But for road bikes, it was all about the Specialized Allez. The current year's model was a little ways above my price range, but they also had some lightly used ones! They rent out bikes, and sell the bikes from the previous season for 20% off, and happened to have this one for sale. According to Rick, the guy who was helping me out, these bikes are used very lightly and it probably has no more than a couple hundred miles on it. Also, maintenance is performed every time they get back from being rented. I know I need to be leery about the used bike, but it seems like a fairly good deal for a starter bike.

Rick was very useful at this shop, and let me go out in the parking lot and ride it around to get a feel for it. He adjusted the seat to give me a better fit on it as well. He also talked a lot about sizing and he really seemed as though he had a passion for biking. Looking at online reviews, there are a lot of good things said about this bike. A lot of people are saying its the fastest bike in its price range, but that it can feel fragile. I'm thinking since I don't weigh much that this negative could almost be canceled out? I'm not sure. I'm going to give myself a week to really think about this.


Between the three bikes, I'm leaning towards the Specialized Allez. I'm not sure if its because I actually got to ride it, or because Rick was very, very helpful. Regardless, it seems to be the best, and between the bikes it seems the cons matter least for this bike for my purposes. The only thing I'm set off by after this morning is the prices. I was hoping entry level bikes would be a little bit cheaper, but theres nothing much I can do about that.

If you have experience with bikes, let me know what you think! I'm all for input right now, lets hear it!