There were definitely some highs and lows though related to training, and here’s a brief summary:
Low:
Wednesday morning I removed my trainer tire (for indoor riding) from my back wheel and replaced it with a real tire. Once changed, it looked like the tire was bulging out a bit near the valve… I deflated and re-inflated the tube, checking it carefully. The tire still didn’t look like it was seated correctly on the rim in that spot, but I didn’t know what else to try. I headed out, and from the get go something felt off. I couldn’t tell at first if the road was just bumpy or if the unusually tall water bottle I had was just rattling around in the cage. A minute later I realized my tire was making a “thud” with every rotation. I looked down and noticed it was coming off the rim, right by the valve where I had tried to fix. I muttered a few things under my breath and turned back. I don’t know if the culprit was the tube or the tire, but luckily I brought a couple of each and swapped both out.
High:
The new tube/tire didn’t give me any problems, and I ventured out onto the old Ironman St. George course (the “old highway” if you’re familiar with the course). The scenery out there is amazing, and combined with memories from that race, it was a great ride. I got a couple hours in and it felt great.
Many Highs, Many Lows:
That pretty much sums up the IMSG 70.3 run course… it’s a roller coaster. Thursday morning my wife and I drove out to the start. The course begins at its lowest point, and up, up, up you go until finally leveling off around mile 5. I only wanted to run 9, so I chopped some of the course, whereas Lindsay wanted to power through and run the whole 13.1. I’m weak, I know. All in all it was a fun time, and got my appetite nice and ready for turkey and pie!
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| this is how the week went |
Low:
Friday morning Lindsay and I went to the local pool. Low is a great adjective to describe how I always feel right before and after jumping in the water. I was better than Lindsay though, who put on an impressive stalling exhibition before finally taking the plunge.
High:
Similarly, high is a great way to describe how I feel during, and especially after swimming. It’s always worth it. I never get out of the pool and think “well, that was a terrible idea.”
Low:
On Saturday, Lindsay and I were prepping to head out for a ride. I had planned out a nice route, and Lindsay was excited to get some time in on her new bike. I pumped up my tires, and as I pulled the pump off my rear wheel, the valve stem (the part you screw in) inexplicably broke off and went flying across the garage. Man, cycling can really be annoying sometimes. The tube stayed inflated, but I’m not sure if it’s functional going forward. To add some salt in the wound, about 10 minutes into our ride, Lindsay yells out “is this road really bumpy?” This was trouble, because it was actually really smooth. Long story short, the same exact thing that had happened to me a couple days prior happened to her… right near the valve, the tire had come completely off the rim. I’d never seen that before, and then twice in a row. Weird. We took the wheel off, tried a few things, then re-inflated with a CO2 cartridge… it still didn’t look perfectly seated on the rim at that spot, so we headed for home. Linds told me to just go on by myself, but I wanted to make sure she could get back without further issues.
High:
The tire was holding up so we figured we’d press our luck, staying somewhat in the vicinity of home. I’m glad we didn’t give up on it, because we just kept going. It turned into a great ride.
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