AZ Training Trip

When I say this outloud, I almost can't believe it, but I went to Arizona last weekend just to train. Sounds like I belong on the Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous or something, but the cost of the trip really wasn't all that much. When I planned the trip several months ago, I figured long bike rides were going to be brutal this time of year here in Chicago and I wasn't really that far off. The weather prediction for this weekend isn't making me look forward to my last long ride in preparation for this race. Sure, there's always the trainer, but....

Of course having someone to share the experience with makes it all that much better, so another fellow IMAZ competitor (SH) flew down to AZ for the weekend also. We arrived on Friday night and, trying to keep expenses to a minimum, we opted not to rent a car and decided to walk to dinner. This was Halloween night and I am now convinced that girls in college use Halloween to get away with dressing like hoochies. We also had some drunk college student talking to us as we walked past and actually burped as he was speaking. It was impossible not to laugh.

The two hour time difference screwed with us a little, but it allowed us to get a good night's sleep before the ride on Saturday. We headed down the street to get some bagels, bananas and peanut butter to fuel for the long ride. After clearing out the couple of ice machines the hotel had, our Camelbacks and water bottles were full and we were ready to go. It was already warm by Chicago standards - a balmy 68 degrees or so.

I'm not going to give a long, detailed description of the entire ride, but know these important parts:

• The Beeline highway has a very deceiving incline
• You get hot even in a dry heat
• Wind and desert can make for a nasty combination

Though the ride was not brutal, it was tough. The drastic temperature change from the 32 of Chicago to the 97 of Tempe was hard to deal with...and I love the heat. At each stop, we filled up the water bottles and Camelbacks with ice, but our fluids never really seemed to stay cold. Biggest disappointment: I don't even have any tan lines after being out there all day.

Had my brother come and pick us up for some dinner. It was great to see him and AZ seems to be treating him well. Dinner was fabulous and we ate every bite. It was our first real meal of the day. Another early bed time.

Got a little confused because now the time had changed. But it doesn't change in AZ. So weird, I walked around the rest of the day not really being sure of what time it was. We ran 1 loop of the 2 loop run course (or something close to it). No real challenging hills, but definitely some ramps that will probably not be all that fun come race day. It was fun to see so many other people out there - on what was Nov. 2 - outside enjoying the day. There was an Autism walk this day and had an amazing turnout! We thought about snatching some water from some of the sponsors, but decided to head over and grab some recovery food at the Einstein's on the way back to the hotel.

Sunday night brought us right back home. It was not as cold back home as I expected. Of course, I was hoping for freezing, sleeting conditions here while I was away!! This time, my bike and box made it back safe and sound (huge sigh of relief!) and now my hardest training weekend for IMAZ is complete.

And The Countdown Continues

Time is just flying by as Ironman Arizona gets closer each day. I don't really have much to comment on except that training is going well. The hardest part is that the weather really hasn't been cooperating all that much. The wind gusts of up to 50mph were enough to keep me from my scheduled long ride last Sunday. It seemed the smart thing to do to cancel the ride, but the guilt that forced upon me had me questioning my decision for days. I was still laying in bed around 7:15am wondering what I was going to do with myself all day. It made me wonder what the heck I did with my weekends before I started all this triathlon business.

Training for such a late season Ironman is not fun. Most of my training buddies have long since called the season a wrap. Not many people want to do a nice 20 mile run just for fun. Can't say I blame them. If I was finished with my racing for the year, I would be doing the same thing as them! On a positive note, the time change this weekend will help with the next couple weeks of workouts. And then it's time to taper so the need to start at the crack of dawn isn't there any more.

This is normally the time of year to start thinking about the schedule for next year. And while I have my "main" races targeted, I'm sure I'll be playing around with what works and what doesn't for 2009 in terms of races. One thing for sure is that the season has, once again, begun to feel like it's never-ending for me. I tend to fall into the trap of starting early, like everyone else, because I'm anxious to take advantage of the small window it seems triathlons are locked into. But most others seem to finish around the end of August. While my training volume has been pretty large the last couple of weeks, I am hearing rumblings of people who feel they've "lost it" from the summer and are now ready to start training again!!

So just a little over 3 more weeks to go. I'm sure it will just fly by and I'll have to keep reminding myself to back it down. I'm looking forward to a little desert heat!

It's a Dry Heat

I was initially signed up to do the TriShark triathlon this weekend. However, a couple of months ago, an opportunity for me to get down to ride the Ironman Arizona course came up, so I sold my triathlon entry in lieu of going down to see what it's like to ride on the Beeline Highway. I've since found out that they CANCELLED the swim at the TriShark and made it a duathlon, so I definitely made the right choice in skipping that race this year!

I headed out on Saturday morning and arrived in Phoenix around 11am their time. The temperature had already climbed up to about 98 degrees. After a big fiasco in helping my partner in crime, SH, rent a bike, we hooked up with my brother who just moved to AZ last month for a short, easy early evening ride. Now it was about 102 degrees. We loaded up with all sorts of fluids and the ride was short but sweet. We were saving our efforts for the next day...the Ironman course.

The morning came all too quickly and we met up at the start of where the bike portion of the Ironman was to take place. Initially, I wanted to put in the full 112 miles, but the heat was a consideration as was the fact that this race is still pretty far away. So we headed out around 7:30am to log in some good, solid, steady-paced miles. The thermometer was reading about 82 degrees at the start of the ride. I could give you all the details, but let me just sum it up that the heat rose to about 102 again this day. We rode until about 3pm with the sun baking on our backs as we pedaled along. There is absolutely NO SHADE on all of this bike course. And I have to say, I loved every minute of it. 102 in AZ does NOT feel like 102 in Chicago. Heck, even 85 feels hotter here in Chicago. So I guess it's true, the whole "dry heat" thing takes much less of a toll on athletes. I fully expected to be wiped out after the ride, but that really didn't happen. I had much more to give and it felt great.

I love the Beeline Highway!