How is it that July is almost half way over?! I'm sitting here typing this up with this Saturday being the Total 200 ride. You read that right, 200 miles in one day. I've been building miles and getting as ready as I can. A few weeks ago I did my first century ride. Of coarse that is the day that the temperature gets up to 98 degrees in DC and I spend 52 miles riding by myself on hilly roads. After 100.2 miles and 5,300 calories burned I learned a few things:
1.) I need to eat much much more than I did on the ride. I should be eating between 300 and 400 calories an hour. I had a grand total of maybe 500 or 600 calories over the whole ride.
2.) When it's hot, you can't drink enough. I went through at least 9 bottles of water, each of them being about 25 oz. Seven of them were water, one was Gatorade.
I'm excited for this ride but I think I'm more nervous about this ride than I was for the half Ironman I did last year.
On a positive note, I've been doing consistent group rides and there as been some talks of joining a cycling team as a basic rider starting at the bottom (Cat 4/5 rider) and seeing what comes of it. I'm going to be looking into racing in the Mid-Atlantic area next year, as well as a few races that are close to my hometown. I'll see what happens and I'll hopefully get some good races in and win some races.
Another goal for next year will be Chicago Marathon! With the 10 miler and half marathon coming in the next few months, they will be good thoughts on how the marathon would go.
Here are some new updates for the racing season.
July:
July 17th: www.total200.com double century bike ride! 200 miles - 100 miles out, lunch, 100 miles back
August:
August 14th – 21st: Brigantine Family vacation (Brigantine, NJ)
August 29th: Annapolis 10 Miler Run(Annapolis, MD)
September:
September 12th: Parks Half Marathon, Rockville, MD to Bethesda, MD
November: TBD (Vacation in Ohio for Thanksgiving hopefully)
December: TBD (Queens, NY for Christmas break)
Jul 12, 2010
May 28, 2010
5 Boros Bike Tour and Races Update
So it has been a few weeks since I participated with Melissa and my parents in New York City's Five Boro Bike Tour. The best way to sum it up was mostly a let down.
The day started very early in Queens with loading the bikes, and gearing up for the event. Then heading to the Long Island Railroad to have the easiest way to the city without paying a whole bunch for parking.
We made our way from Penn Station down the west side of Manhattan till we got to where my parents stayed for the night, Millennium Hilton. If you have never seen or stayed at this place it is right next to the World Trade Center/Ground Zero. This is the first time I had been to the World Trade Center since probably mid 1990s. It was great seeing the plans posted on the fences there, as well as construction taking place.
We came to find out that the starting line was right in front of the hotel, which worked out great for my parents. The only thing is we wished we knew this before hand so we could have planned for a later arrival time to the start.
Here is where the day started to suck. the race was suppose to start somewhere around 9 a.m. At about 10 a.m. we were actually moving. Once we were beginning our trek up to Central Park we thought this was great. Cruising along the wide open road, enjoying the sites. Then we got to Central Park
In Central Park the roads narrowed, went slightly up hill, and split then merged shortly after. This all caused a huge back up and one of our first parts of standing/walking the bikes. We continued to walk then bike a little, then slow down, then stop, then try to restart, only to be stopped by volunteers letting traffic go through the course.
We got to the first rest stop which was a huge Cluster F**k. The one amazing thing was that my uncle was doing the ride as well, and we were hoping to find him at some point during the ride (The problem was that there were thousands of people there and it wasn't very likely that we were going to find him at all during the ride). By some dumb luck we ended up 20 feet from each other near the port-o-johns.
After starting out again after filling water bottles and getting a little food, we made it maybe a mile or two on the FDR before we were stopped yet again because of letting cars dictate our ability to ride on these roads. 10 more minutes of walking the bike and then we were able to start climbing to ride the bikes on the bridge to Queens.
***This brings me to a complaint. The bike ride is suppose to be 42 miles, this is not a short ride, even when you are riding leisurely. So get out and ride, and be in some sort of shape to ride around and not be in the middle of the road and have to stop when there are people surrounding you. Melissa was almost taken out by a guy who couldn't make it and without looking or moving to one side, just stopped his bike.***
After making the decent off the bridge we are sent down a helix where there again is a stop and walk, also this is apparently the place, through no fault of our own, where the bike tour cut a few miles off of the ride. Since they couldn't start on time or properly control traffic we got screwed out of most of Queens.
Then after this go through the slums of Brooklyn (no sites worth seeing), then only a highway where it was just moving along to get to Staten island, got stopped up again at another helix, where we got to another rest area. This rest area was poorly stocked and didn't have water. The only water available here was from a fire hydrant (If we are spending the money get some proper water for all the people you allow to be at the tour).
Then we take a quick trip over the bridge to Staten Island. It was quick since we weren't allowed to stop on the bridge for any pictures. Then to the fake finish. It was fake because we had to still ride 2 miles to get to the ferry.
The nice parts were riding with the family and Melissa, seeing some good sites, and running into my uncle.
My suggestion for anyone reading this that would consider doing it would be to avoid trying. This is not well organized. It would be better for the company to have staggered times to ride, avoiding a lot of the clutter of people. Also cutting down on the amount of entries would help.
Anyways, once the tour left Manhattan it wasn't much of an event.
I'm finished with my rant, but the pictures are up on Facebook. There is a link to my facebook page to the right of this blog. If you want to add me as a friend to see the pictures go for it. I should accept shortly after the request is sent.
I also wanted to update the spring/summer races:
April 18th: Earth Day 5k (Silver Spring, MD) Finished 25:34
May 2nd: 5 boros bike tour (New York, NY) Finished with sunburns/tan lines to show
May 8th weekend: Trip to NY Lots of Fun!
May 12th – 16th: Agee/Spampinato wedding (Cincinnati, Ohio) Whole lot of fun, Congrats Agee's
May 29th weekend: Trip to NY
June:
June 12th-13th: Bike MS ride (30 miles on Saturday, 50 miles on Sunday)
Raising money for Multiple Sclerosis
July:
July 4th weekend trip to Philly!
July 10th: Caribbean Sounds 10k (Rock Creek Park) possible, not definite
July 17th: www.total200.com double century bike ride! 200 miles - 100 miles out, lunch, 100 miles back
August:
August 14th – 21st: Brigantine Family vacation (Brigantine, NJ)
September:
September 4th: Open Water Swimming races in Connecticut (3 mile, 1.5 mile, .5 mile)
Septemver 12th: Parks Half Marathon, Rockville, MD to Bethesda, MD
September 18th: Run Geek Run 8k (West Potomac Park)
October 10th: Boo! Run for Life 10k (West Potomac Park)
November: TBD (Vacation in Ohio for Thanksgiving hopefully)
December: TBD (Queens, NY for Christmas break)
Somewhere I would like to do a shorter triathlon (June –August time frame)
The day started very early in Queens with loading the bikes, and gearing up for the event. Then heading to the Long Island Railroad to have the easiest way to the city without paying a whole bunch for parking.
We made our way from Penn Station down the west side of Manhattan till we got to where my parents stayed for the night, Millennium Hilton. If you have never seen or stayed at this place it is right next to the World Trade Center/Ground Zero. This is the first time I had been to the World Trade Center since probably mid 1990s. It was great seeing the plans posted on the fences there, as well as construction taking place.
We came to find out that the starting line was right in front of the hotel, which worked out great for my parents. The only thing is we wished we knew this before hand so we could have planned for a later arrival time to the start.
Here is where the day started to suck. the race was suppose to start somewhere around 9 a.m. At about 10 a.m. we were actually moving. Once we were beginning our trek up to Central Park we thought this was great. Cruising along the wide open road, enjoying the sites. Then we got to Central Park
In Central Park the roads narrowed, went slightly up hill, and split then merged shortly after. This all caused a huge back up and one of our first parts of standing/walking the bikes. We continued to walk then bike a little, then slow down, then stop, then try to restart, only to be stopped by volunteers letting traffic go through the course.
We got to the first rest stop which was a huge Cluster F**k. The one amazing thing was that my uncle was doing the ride as well, and we were hoping to find him at some point during the ride (The problem was that there were thousands of people there and it wasn't very likely that we were going to find him at all during the ride). By some dumb luck we ended up 20 feet from each other near the port-o-johns.
After starting out again after filling water bottles and getting a little food, we made it maybe a mile or two on the FDR before we were stopped yet again because of letting cars dictate our ability to ride on these roads. 10 more minutes of walking the bike and then we were able to start climbing to ride the bikes on the bridge to Queens.
***This brings me to a complaint. The bike ride is suppose to be 42 miles, this is not a short ride, even when you are riding leisurely. So get out and ride, and be in some sort of shape to ride around and not be in the middle of the road and have to stop when there are people surrounding you. Melissa was almost taken out by a guy who couldn't make it and without looking or moving to one side, just stopped his bike.***
After making the decent off the bridge we are sent down a helix where there again is a stop and walk, also this is apparently the place, through no fault of our own, where the bike tour cut a few miles off of the ride. Since they couldn't start on time or properly control traffic we got screwed out of most of Queens.
Then after this go through the slums of Brooklyn (no sites worth seeing), then only a highway where it was just moving along to get to Staten island, got stopped up again at another helix, where we got to another rest area. This rest area was poorly stocked and didn't have water. The only water available here was from a fire hydrant (If we are spending the money get some proper water for all the people you allow to be at the tour).
Then we take a quick trip over the bridge to Staten Island. It was quick since we weren't allowed to stop on the bridge for any pictures. Then to the fake finish. It was fake because we had to still ride 2 miles to get to the ferry.
The nice parts were riding with the family and Melissa, seeing some good sites, and running into my uncle.
My suggestion for anyone reading this that would consider doing it would be to avoid trying. This is not well organized. It would be better for the company to have staggered times to ride, avoiding a lot of the clutter of people. Also cutting down on the amount of entries would help.
Anyways, once the tour left Manhattan it wasn't much of an event.
I'm finished with my rant, but the pictures are up on Facebook. There is a link to my facebook page to the right of this blog. If you want to add me as a friend to see the pictures go for it. I should accept shortly after the request is sent.
I also wanted to update the spring/summer races:
April 18th: Earth Day 5k (Silver Spring, MD) Finished 25:34
May 2nd: 5 boros bike tour (New York, NY) Finished with sunburns/tan lines to show
May 8th weekend: Trip to NY Lots of Fun!
May 12th – 16th: Agee/Spampinato wedding (Cincinnati, Ohio) Whole lot of fun, Congrats Agee's
May 29th weekend: Trip to NY
June:
June 12th-13th: Bike MS ride (30 miles on Saturday, 50 miles on Sunday)
Raising money for Multiple Sclerosis
July:
July 4th weekend trip to Philly!
July 10th: Caribbean Sounds 10k (Rock Creek Park) possible, not definite
July 17th: www.total200.com double century bike ride! 200 miles - 100 miles out, lunch, 100 miles back
August:
August 14th – 21st: Brigantine Family vacation (Brigantine, NJ)
September:
September 4th: Open Water Swimming races in Connecticut (3 mile, 1.5 mile, .5 mile)
Septemver 12th: Parks Half Marathon, Rockville, MD to Bethesda, MD
September 18th: Run Geek Run 8k (West Potomac Park)
October 10th: Boo! Run for Life 10k (West Potomac Park)
November: TBD (Vacation in Ohio for Thanksgiving hopefully)
December: TBD (Queens, NY for Christmas break)
Somewhere I would like to do a shorter triathlon (June –August time frame)
Apr 28, 2010
Even more updates for the summer
Additions have been made again for my summer races/events.
My BikeMS ride is still June 12-13th but now I have a link for anyone who would like to help with my goal of raising $300 towards MS research Click Here.
I'm also going to sign up for a half marathon in September!
In Bethesda/Rockville Area!
Vacations are set for Possibly October and definitely August.
My BikeMS ride is still June 12-13th but now I have a link for anyone who would like to help with my goal of raising $300 towards MS research Click Here.
I'm also going to sign up for a half marathon in September!
In Bethesda/Rockville Area!
Vacations are set for Possibly October and definitely August.
Apr 20, 2010
Quick Post
Hey just a quick update, ran the Earth Day 5k run on Sunday. I finished in 25:34, an 8:14 average mile, and placing 145th out of 686 total people. Not to bad for my first running race post injury.
I also wanted to update the spring/summer races:
April 18th: Earth Day 5k (Silver Spring, MD) Finished 25:34
May 2nd: 5 boroughs bike tour (New York, NY)
May 8th weekend: Trip to NY
May 12th – 16th: Agee/Spampinato wedding (Cincinnati, Ohio)
May 29th weekend: Trip to NY
June: Opened at the moment. Group rides and training will be going on
June 12th-13th: Bike MS ride (30 miles on Saturday, 50 miles on Sunday)
Raising money for Multiple Sclerosis
July: Possibly 4th of July vacation?
July 10th: Caribbean Sounds 10k (Rock Creek Park)
August 14th – 21st: Brigantine Family vacation (Brigantine, NJ)
September or October: Melissa and I will run half Marathon on the trail or if we find a race
September 4th: Open Water Swimming races in Connecticut (3 mile, 1.5 mile, .5 mile)
September 18th: Run Geek Run 8k (West Potomac Park)
October 10th: Boo! Run for Life 10k (West Potomac Park)
November: TBD (Vacation in Ohio for Thanksgiving hopefully)
December: TBD (Queens, NY for Christmas break)
Somewhere I would like to do a shorter triathlon (June –August time frame)
I also wanted to update the spring/summer races:
April 18th: Earth Day 5k (Silver Spring, MD) Finished 25:34
May 2nd: 5 boroughs bike tour (New York, NY)
May 8th weekend: Trip to NY
May 12th – 16th: Agee/Spampinato wedding (Cincinnati, Ohio)
May 29th weekend: Trip to NY
June: Opened at the moment. Group rides and training will be going on
June 12th-13th: Bike MS ride (30 miles on Saturday, 50 miles on Sunday)
Raising money for Multiple Sclerosis
July: Possibly 4th of July vacation?
July 10th: Caribbean Sounds 10k (Rock Creek Park)
August 14th – 21st: Brigantine Family vacation (Brigantine, NJ)
September or October: Melissa and I will run half Marathon on the trail or if we find a race
September 4th: Open Water Swimming races in Connecticut (3 mile, 1.5 mile, .5 mile)
September 18th: Run Geek Run 8k (West Potomac Park)
October 10th: Boo! Run for Life 10k (West Potomac Park)
November: TBD (Vacation in Ohio for Thanksgiving hopefully)
December: TBD (Queens, NY for Christmas break)
Somewhere I would like to do a shorter triathlon (June –August time frame)
Apr 13, 2010
Back From Injuries, Spring Time
Hey all, it has been a really long time since I have posted anything (August 9, 2009 WTF!). Mostly because there was nothing but annoying rants about how I couldn’t do anything workout-wise because of my injuries. If you are interested in reading any of these rants and 140 characters bitch-fest it is on my Facebook and Twitter accounts.
To catch everyone up, I was dealing with a major leg/back problem since late December 2008/early January 2009 through returning from my two months working in San Diego in August and September. I had an MRI exam on my lumbar part of my back to find out that I had multiple minor herniated discs, as well as disc degradation. The doctor at Capital Spine and Pain took care of me and I had cortisone shot in my L5/S1 vertebrae. I followed, and continue to follow the doctors recommendations, “don’t help anyone move and stick to one girlfriend!”
The amazing thing about this injection is that it instantly helped. Still being cautious I didn’t really do a whole lot of training. I continued to get some physical therapy, but after a few months nothing seemed to be helping so I started going to the gym again. At first I was focused mainly on swimming and upper body weights. Avoiding putting any stress on my lower back.
Finally after a month or two of avoiding biking and running, I started to train a bit more. I started off with a jog on the treadmill at 5 mph. and slowly adding speed, then an occasional sprint. Feeling more and more comfortable with this I began bike riding. Since this was during winter I did some easy trainer work before moving to spin classes at the gym.
Now that it has begun to warm up and the snow is finally melting from the mass amounts of snow that caused the entire area of D.C. for almost an entire week just after the Super Bowl, I started to go on the roads with Melissa. Some short rides down to Georgetown and around the area. We even started running outside, again slowly easing into hard runs.
The good news in all of this is that the back is healed. There are occasional pains but I either take it easy and it is alright by morning or the next day. I have tried to take a good look at my training and make sure that I don’t have any more overtraining injuries. This has included taking days off and relaxing so my body will recover properly.
Also, thanks to my roommate I was able to partake in my first group cycling ride. WOW! I have never been going that fast on a bike in my life. At points we were topping out at 40 mph and when the pace line was formed we were cruising at 25-30 mph. Got to see new places to ride and met some interesting people.
One of the people ran the Boston Marathon and beat LANCE ARMSTRONG! The guy is 56 years old and ran 2 hrs and 46 minutes! How awesome is that to say that you beat a guy like Lance! Another guy I met coach’s triathletes and runners and helped my roommate train for the three ironman triathlon races that he has completed. The guy can also fly up hills on a bike. He was starting near the back of the pack and finish in the top ten (of what seemed to be 50 people) at the top of the hill.
Other things going on in my life right now:
Still living/working in Washington, D.C., Wednesday April 14, 2010 makes it two full years.
Still dating Melissa, almost 14 months now
This summer has some exciting events planned:
April 18th: Earth Day 5k (Silver Spring, MD)
May 2nd: 5 boroughs bike tour (New York, NY)
May 8th weekend: Trip to NY
May 12th – 16th: Agee/Spampinato wedding (Cincinnati, Ohio)
May 29th weekend: Trip to NY
June: Opened at the moment. Group rides and training will be going on
July: Possibly 4th of July vacation?
August 14th – 21st: Brigantine Family vacation (Brigantine, NJ)
September or October: Melissa and I will run half Marathon on the trail or if we find a race
November: TBD (Vacation in Ohio for Thanksgiving hopefully)
December: TBD (Queens, NY for Christmas break)
Somewhere I would like to do a shorter triathlon (June –August time frame)
Some things to think about for 2011 for anyone reading this:
1. My friend Kevin and I want to do Ragbrai (Click Here). Anyone interested in creating a team and getting custom jerseys? Probably need at least 8 people (maybe more).
2. Chicago Marathon 2011?
3. Any other event where I could get some good hurting in. Suggestions? Centuries? Tri’s?
To catch everyone up, I was dealing with a major leg/back problem since late December 2008/early January 2009 through returning from my two months working in San Diego in August and September. I had an MRI exam on my lumbar part of my back to find out that I had multiple minor herniated discs, as well as disc degradation. The doctor at Capital Spine and Pain took care of me and I had cortisone shot in my L5/S1 vertebrae. I followed, and continue to follow the doctors recommendations, “don’t help anyone move and stick to one girlfriend!”
The amazing thing about this injection is that it instantly helped. Still being cautious I didn’t really do a whole lot of training. I continued to get some physical therapy, but after a few months nothing seemed to be helping so I started going to the gym again. At first I was focused mainly on swimming and upper body weights. Avoiding putting any stress on my lower back.
Finally after a month or two of avoiding biking and running, I started to train a bit more. I started off with a jog on the treadmill at 5 mph. and slowly adding speed, then an occasional sprint. Feeling more and more comfortable with this I began bike riding. Since this was during winter I did some easy trainer work before moving to spin classes at the gym.
Now that it has begun to warm up and the snow is finally melting from the mass amounts of snow that caused the entire area of D.C. for almost an entire week just after the Super Bowl, I started to go on the roads with Melissa. Some short rides down to Georgetown and around the area. We even started running outside, again slowly easing into hard runs.
The good news in all of this is that the back is healed. There are occasional pains but I either take it easy and it is alright by morning or the next day. I have tried to take a good look at my training and make sure that I don’t have any more overtraining injuries. This has included taking days off and relaxing so my body will recover properly.
Also, thanks to my roommate I was able to partake in my first group cycling ride. WOW! I have never been going that fast on a bike in my life. At points we were topping out at 40 mph and when the pace line was formed we were cruising at 25-30 mph. Got to see new places to ride and met some interesting people.
One of the people ran the Boston Marathon and beat LANCE ARMSTRONG! The guy is 56 years old and ran 2 hrs and 46 minutes! How awesome is that to say that you beat a guy like Lance! Another guy I met coach’s triathletes and runners and helped my roommate train for the three ironman triathlon races that he has completed. The guy can also fly up hills on a bike. He was starting near the back of the pack and finish in the top ten (of what seemed to be 50 people) at the top of the hill.
Other things going on in my life right now:
Still living/working in Washington, D.C., Wednesday April 14, 2010 makes it two full years.
Still dating Melissa, almost 14 months now
This summer has some exciting events planned:
April 18th: Earth Day 5k (Silver Spring, MD)
May 2nd: 5 boroughs bike tour (New York, NY)
May 8th weekend: Trip to NY
May 12th – 16th: Agee/Spampinato wedding (Cincinnati, Ohio)
May 29th weekend: Trip to NY
June: Opened at the moment. Group rides and training will be going on
July: Possibly 4th of July vacation?
August 14th – 21st: Brigantine Family vacation (Brigantine, NJ)
September or October: Melissa and I will run half Marathon on the trail or if we find a race
November: TBD (Vacation in Ohio for Thanksgiving hopefully)
December: TBD (Queens, NY for Christmas break)
Somewhere I would like to do a shorter triathlon (June –August time frame)
Some things to think about for 2011 for anyone reading this:
1. My friend Kevin and I want to do Ragbrai (Click Here). Anyone interested in creating a team and getting custom jerseys? Probably need at least 8 people (maybe more).
2. Chicago Marathon 2011?
3. Any other event where I could get some good hurting in. Suggestions? Centuries? Tri’s?
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