Mountain Bikes, Bass Guitar, and other stuff I like

I had a great race today and I'm really pleased with how I performed. It's really satisfying to realize that one is making progress and all the training is paying off.  It's not so much about the results today although I missed 2nd by 1 second and sure, it's a bitter pill to swallow. I really think I excel at these multi-discipline races.  I feel more at home with them than a mountain bike race, which usually bring out the uber-elite racers.  Those same racers I would imagine don't spend much, if any, time running so a duathlon really levels the playing field.  As an example, the guy who took 1st today was a poor biker but destroyed me on the run.  I put in a 9 minute run pace and he was probably 7 or 8 minute. That was the difference.  I felt so leaden on the run. Knowing that, I can assume that not everyone is great on a bike at duathlons and go  ahead and leave them behind.  The guy who finished 1st slowed me down on the 1st bike lap but ther...

I had a pretty awesome, if not terrifying, dream last night. I was on a mountain in the forest and I had heard talk of bears in the area.  I saw one out of the corner of my eye but never did encounter one.  Eventually, I made my way down this mountain to a campsite with cabins.  It was fairly populated ,maybe too populated, probably 500 or so people. A few minutes after being in the camp,  I began to see 4 bears coming down the mountain with a vengeance.  They were snarling and destroying everything in their path, including people.  The bears were grizzlies and kodiaks. I knew this because of their color.  I feared for my life but I was not harmed.  The bears wore themselves down on the forest then the people.  The carnage was brief but intense.

Felt a little sluggish on my run on Tuesday.  Probably still recovering from the race. Legs were a little dead. Mentally I'm just about over the race. Reading Joe Friel's book has helpdesk because he mentions that all races aren't A-level races, some are just "training through."  I think the SS race was a "training through." Looking forward to more running and Du training in the coming weeks.

Things I learned from this race: I am a slow starter. I feel more "in to" the race on the 2nd lap.  Need to feel that way on the 1st lap! I need to be more aggressive at the start to be competitive. I need to position myself not at the back of the pack at the start of a race. I need to work on fast-twitch muscle fibers (sprints, short climbs) I have excellent endurance and get better as the race goes on. This was a 3-lap 7-mile course.  I feel I would've been more in contention if we had to do 6 laps but there were some insanely fast cats out there! 6 beers the night before a race is not a good idea!