Monday, May 2, 2011

And so it begins....(Hi Ironman training!) *cue daunting music

This week is a major milestone this season. It marks 12 weeks until Ironman Lake Placid. Wow! 12 weeks you ask? That is TONS of time!

Uuuuuuuuummmmmm, WRONG. 12 weeks is gonna go by quicker than we will all realize.

So this week marks the transition into unknown territory, aka Ironman specific training. Aka the separation from my former Half Ironman training life into FULL Ironman training life. This is where things get REAL. It is no longer a "do I feel like it" or "should I maybe" do a workout to its entirety. Its now a "HAVE TO" kinda thing. GET IT?!?!?!?

Take for today. I had to swim 3,000 yards in the pool. "Had to" has many meanings. Nobody is making me swim 3,000 yards today. I just know that I am going to hate myself if I don't swim the entire 3,000 yards. Showing up on race day as prepared as I can is a must!!!

So this past weekend, for example, was a good crash course into the beginnings of Ironman specific training. I went up to the mother land, aka, the Lakes Region and White Mountains of New Hampshire and visited some of my old and new stomping grounds.

I started with 65 miles on the bike on Saturday where I climbed a 2500 foot hill over 6 miles (good climb!). This hill is known as "Gonzo" pass. Long story as to why it is called that. But! Before I even got to it I had to fight a biketarded headwind for 22-ish miles going at times 14mph on dead flats. Frustration, anyone?

By the time I hit the climb I let the compact crank do the talking and I spun up the climb as much as I could. Great climb and it still hurt as much as when I climbed it in high school on the bike.

View from the top. The White Mountains of New Hampshire

After a painful downhill (the road was bombed out and my body is a terrible shock absorber) I now had a tailwind. Before I started the quick trek back, the downhill dumps you into the town of Warren, NH. They didn't want a band stand in the center of their town, so they installed a 60 foot ballistic missile replica instead.



Yeah.....
What took me 2 hours to get to the top of the climb, only took me 1:15 to get back to my starting point! I was basically pushing 25mph the entire way back. Felt AWESOME. Of course I made it back 15 mins sooner so I had to do a quick 15 min out and back to round it out to a 3.5 hour ride.

Then I ran for 40 mins on the trails at my old high school. It was a tad wet out there but it brought back MANY memories of cutting down trees, splitting wood, and spraining my ankle 10+ years ago. Not the fastest run due to the terrain but it felt AWESOME.

I guess I felt muddier than I looked?
Oh and the fun didn't stop there! Sunday AM was a two hour run. I knocked off 13.1 on the Timberman course before my innards had other ideas and was forced to call it a run. Regardless, running along Lake Winnipesaukee is always a treat.


The white snow capper back there is Mt. Washington. Clear day!

So other than hanging with my dog, Aachen, and showing off "Rio" to my family, it was a successful weekend and my legs feel surprisingly good! I should revel in this feeling, because I think things are only going to get harder from here :)

Das Aachen!

19 comments:

  1. Oh, puppy face! Is Aachen a beagle mix or other hound?
    Doncha love a tailwind on the way back?!? Makes the whole ride out totally worth it! Your weekend mileage was like my entire month of April. You are going to kick IMLP's ass.

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  2. awww...sweet pup!

    Loved all the pics - just beautiful! Sounds like a great weekend :-)

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  3. His dad's dog is a German Shorthair - 13 years old.

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  4. I don't know what's more beautiful, the landscapes or the pup. I wish you continued success in your training!

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  5. Picturesque Jon, wow!

    Let the fun begin, IMLP will be here before you know it!

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  6. You are going to own IMLP....

    12 weeks is nothing, but a great way to start those 12 weeks. Those pictures are awesome and will give you something to visualize as you are training.

    Keep Doing What You Do b/c you inspire.

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  7. You have 12 weeks left??? I have 29 weeks and am already freaking out..ha ha! Nice job with your workouts! It sounds like you found a beautiful place to ride and run!

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  8. Totally agree with you on the "have to" philosophy. In the end, I know that skipping one workout isn't the worst thing in the world, but I don't want to mentally get in the habit of thinking it is OK to skip. Every workout is a "have to" for me and I will do whatever I can to get them all in.

    That is one crazy bike ride! 45 minute negative split - must have been some serious wind and downhill.

    Great looking dog. Looks like the kind of dog that enjoys the "recovery rest" after the workout :)

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  9. Aachen looks like a pretty cool dog. Nice work on all the training. That ride sounds awesome other than the "biketardish" wind. I hate those!

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  10. hahaha
    cue daunting music

    that was the theme in my head today as I reviewed what I have done and where I am at with this halfway point today

    great bike nice ride and climb!

    D

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  11. You're off to a roaring start! Great job.

    Oh, I took the kids to see Rio and we all enjoyed it. Great job there as well!

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  12. You are going to rock Placid!! Haven't been to see Rio yet! This weekend! Beautiful Pics!! :)

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  13. GOOD LUCK WITH TRAINING~!

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  14. I love reading of what I am about to get myself into

    PS Shave your legs, didnt you learn from Jeff's mistakes

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  15. Woo Hoo! I can't wait to read all about the next 12 weeks.

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  16. How did it feel venturing back into your old stomping grounds?

    I always feel very weird when I head back to where I spent hours of my life training. Those 5 mile loops in high school are a joke to me now ;)

    Crazy climbing and head wind man. 14mph... not cool!

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  17. 12 weeks? Wait, didn't you just sign up?

    Looks like some great workouts!

    And that doggie is too cute!

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  18. Aachen is so cute!! I love older dogs with gray on their muzzle. Nice work. 12 weeks. Oh crap. I am going to see you in like 2 weeks or so at camp!! I can't believe it is getting so close!!

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  19. wow that is a lot of training! keep it up and you will get there!

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