Following Racine, I took a week off from any kind of physical activity whatsoever. Then I kind of woke up, looked around and wondered, jeez, what do I do now? Eight months of intense training had just come to a grinding halt.
I entertained the thought of doing an Xterra triathlon. It sounded fun and outdoorsy. I have the base for swimming and running, but mountain biking is a whole different animal. A couple of rides convinced me that road riding fitness does not translate very well to mountain biking fitness. I was exhausted after a couple of miles. I wondered what the cutoff times for the race might be.
I also slowly came to realize that my beloved bike, a 2001 GF Tassajara, could double as a boat anchor, needs new brakes and a better drivetrain, and doesn't quite fit me right. Having dropped a ton of cash on my tri bike over the summer, I could hardly justify upgrading it.
So I took S's bike out and gave it a whirl. It's a newer Specialized Hardrock, a pretty basic bike with disc brakes. I am used to the Tass's anemic V brakes. The Hardrock bucked me off on the first turn and left me with some nasty bruises and contusions. I love that word. Contusions.
Fortunately for me, a conflict came up and I was relieved to have an excuse NOT to try the Xterra. Next year perhaps, no way am I ready this year.
So maybe the Quad Cities Half Marathon in late September. I need to work on my running and having this goal might be just the ticket.
2 comments:
Yep those disc brakes have a lot more stopping power than road/tri bike brakes (at least my do). My first off road ride in years was a little dicey too but luckily no contusions.
If you don't want to race but want to be around it you could consider doing some volunteering at races. I had a blast volunteering at Branson 70.3 last year.
Oh and funny comment on my blog. Ironic indeed :-)
Perhaps a half marathon PR is on its way? I felt that the speedwork I did in the winter/spring for my May half marathon really helped.
- Lauren
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