9 Days...

Man oh man...time seemed like it was standing still for so long...but now it is just flying by! It feels odd to me that I am now at the end of my journey...a journey that has lasted roughly seven months.  I have learned a great deal during this time, some of which will, and already has made me a better coach.  I now have a greater understanding of what it takes to dedicate one's self to accomplishing a goal.  As a coach, it is easy for me to lose sight of what is really involved...the sacrifices, the pain, the sweat, and sometimes the tears.  This little journey of mine has certainly increased my awareness of what my athletes go through to get to where they aspire to be.  I am now much more empathetic...as I have experienced many of those same things...especially pain.

I began this journey with transparency, and as I wind down and approach race day, it is time once again to let each of you into my world, through the crystal clear, transparency that lies in pictures.  I did not post pictures of myself at the beginning of this journey for any reason other than accountability.  You see, by posting those pictures, I was laying it all out there for the world to see.  By now, each of you should know me well enough to understand that there was no way I was going to come up short of my goals (or at least not give it my all)...and fail in front of each of you.  So...the question remains, did I achieve my goal(s)?

The down and dirty, quick answer is NO...not completely!  I came up short on my body-fat percentage.  My goal was 10%...but I was only able to achieve (and sustain) 11.6%.  Can I live with this?  Yes...but I will still try to achieve that goal when I get back from my race.  I still believe it is possible, I just need more time.  Below I have listed my final numbers, as well as my numbers from way back when this whole thing started.  The final numbers appear in blue, while my beginning stats appear in red.

Total Body Weight:   186 lbs           194 lbs

Bodyfat Percentage: 11.6%            18.8%

       Fat Weight:          21.57 lbs        36.47 lbs 

     Lean Weight:         164.43 lbs      157.26 lbs

Total Fat Weight Loss:  14.9 lbs

Total Lean Mass Gain: 7.17 lbs

Circumference Measurements (in inches)

Chest:         41 3/4     44

Shoulders: 48           51

    Neck:     12 1/2     12 3/4

Waist:        33 1/4    35

Thigh:       22 1/2    21

Calf:         14           14

Bicep:      14 1/2     14

As you read through the numbers above, you may think that my math is off.  Looking at the total Body weight values, it appears that I lost a total of 8 pounds.  Yet when you look at the Total Fat Weight Loss, it shows that I lost almost 15 pounds.  How is that possible?  The answer lies in the total amount of lean mass I gained over my little journey...7.17 pounds.  This lean mass gain must be figured into the calculations to understand how these numbers could be derived.  When figured correctly, it shows that I lost nearly 15-pounds since the start of my training program, even though my body weight only went down by 8 pounds.  

Now for the real transparency...pictures!

THEN...January 30, 2011

YESTERDAY...August 23, 2011

11 Days...

I had a good ride on my older bike today...the one with full suspension.  It's funny how you can get used to something so quickly, that you didn't think you would get used to at all!  I'm talking about my race bike.  If you remember, I had commented that my race bike felt completely different than my other bike, and I wasn't sure I liked it...or if I would get used to it.  Well, the jury is out, and I actually think I like the way my race bike handles in comparison to the other.  Yep, that's right, I think I now prefer the race bike!  "What's the difference?" you ask.  The frame geometry (the angles of each specific tube in relation to the other tubes that make up the frame) is different.  The two main differences are the head tube angle and the length of the chain-stays.

The what?  What the heck is a head tube...and a chain-stay?  Today you get (for free) a little bicycle education...whether you want it or not!  I guess you could always just 'x-out' of my blog if you don't want to read it...but why not take a moment to learn something new?

The head tube is the part of the bike where the front fork fits into (at the bottom of the head tube) and the handlebar stem sits (at the top of the head tube).  The head tube angle refers to the angle of that particular piece of the frame, compared to an imaginary line that runs perpendicular to the ground.  The steeper the angle (closer to vertical) the more responsive the steering will be.  The slacker the angle (less vertical) the less responsive the steering will be.  My bike has a steep head tube angle, which provides for quick, very responsive steering as compared to my full suspension, non-racing bike.  At first I didn't like it...it felt very twitchy, but now I feel that I just might prefer it. 

The chain-stays are the horizontal frame components that, when combined with the seat-stays, make up what is known as the rear-triangle of the bike.  The rear wheel attaches to the point at which the chain-stays and the seat-stays intersect.  Typically, the shorter the chain-stay, the better the bike will climb, and the longer the chain-stay, the better the bike will handle on steep descents.  My full suspension bike has longer chain-stays than my race bike, which means it is less efficient at climbing (I have to work harder!) than the race bike. 

I haven't ridden my full suspension bike for a few weeks now, as I have been getting used to the race bike.  Today when I rode, the difference was really obvious!  I have always heard people talking about how they could feel the difference from one bike to another...how it handled, or how it climbed, etc.  To be honest with you, I always thought they were full of...well, let's just call it bull.  But now, I have to admit that I was wrong...there absolutely is a noticeable difference when it comes to frame geometry.  Hmm...you learn something new everyday.

The reason I rode my older bike today is because my race bike is all packed up, and ready for New York!  I wanted to get it packed ahead of time because I knew it was going to be a bit of a chore to pack it up securely, the first time.  Some of you may remember that I wasn't sure just how this bike was going to fit into the case.  You see, the case is actually made for a road bike, not a mountain bike with 29" wheels.  The owner of the company that makes the cases, wasn't sure just how well it would work either.  In fact, he asked if I would mind taking some pictures of the packing process so that he could use them in the literature for the cases.  I decided to pack it up a few days ago, just in case I ran into some trouble, and needed to swap it out for another type of case.  After a about an hour, I had it packed up...snug as a bug in a rug!  Here are a few pictures of the process:

How in the world is that bike going to fit in there?

First...off come the wheels...

Gotta protect that carbon frame!

Amazing...it all fits!

All closed up and ready to fly!

A great place for all of those stickers I have lying around!

12 Days...

Happy Day of Rest everyone (to quote my good friend Scott)!  As I have said before, things are really starting to come together now, so I wanted to share all of this with each of you.  Yesterday I received the uniforms that many of you helped us purchase.  Thank you to all of you who were able to help us with that...mucho appreciado!  

The artwork for the jerseys that I showed in my "16 Days..." post was not for the uniforms that you all helped us buy...those were for the cycling jerseys that Paul and I purchased...just wanted to clear that up in case there was any confusion.  The uniforms that we were able to purchase with your support, were for all five of the team members.  We were able to order some polo shirts and sweats for all five team members.  Check out the pictures below!

Our stylin' athletic sweats

Our team polo shirts

That's a cool logo...who made that?

I am really happy with these 'uniforms'...they will certainly make us look like a team when we represent the Sun City Fire Department, the state of Arizona, and the United States during the Games.  Once again, thank you to all who were able to help us out!

Another huge thank you to Nancy and Jim "Goose" Gosewisch of GNG Design Enterprises, who really helped us out by absorbing a great deal of the cost of producing the sweats.  Without their support we would not have these!  Not only did they absorb costs, they rushed these to us in a matter of days!  Please support them by visiting their website...they have years of experience in screen printing design and production, embroidery, tackle-twill, team uniforms, etc.  Check out there website here.

13 Days...

Alright everyone, we are officially inside of two weeks!  I got some more information on the race course today...not sure whether it is good or bad, but it is what it is!

The course is only 3.3 miles long, so I am assuming we will turn three laps total...roughly ten miles.  Here's the bad news...the elevation gain for each 3.3 mile lap is 755 feet!  That's actually a fair amount of climbing over a short distance.  If I am correct, and we turn three total laps, I will perform a total of 2300 feet of climbing throughout the ten mile race.  That's alot of climbing for a guy who doesn't like to climb!

Topo-map and course profile for the race course (yellow trail)

caption

I also found out some information about what the day will entail.  It appears that I will be able to pre-ride the course on August 31st, which doesn't really jive with my tapering plan, as I am supposed to rest the day before...meaning, no exercise!  On race day I need to check in sometime between 10:00-11:00 am, then I must attend a mandatory racers meeting from 11:30-11:45 am.  I am assuming that during this meeting I will be provided with details of the race, such as just how many laps we will be completing; any trail-dangers, rules, etc.  Racing is set to commence at Noon, and is scheduled to be finished by 3:00 pm.  I have a feeling that my start time will be somewhere between 1:00-2:00 pm.  The awards ceremony is set to kick off at 4:00 pm.

Then, for me, it's off to pack up my bike for our return trip to Phoenix, grab some dinner and wine (of course), then shut it down so we can be up and ready for an early morning flight back home. 

15 days...

Today was my last ride on the race bike until I pre-ride the race course two days before my race.  I rode early this morning, putting my race tires to the test, and to my surprise, they worked out very well.  I was really concerned about how well they would hook up and bite, due to the very low profile of the knobs...I've always been one of those 'bigger is better' thinkers when it comes to tires..."the beefier the better" I always say.  Interestingly enough though, I have to say that these 'minimalist' tires really did the job.  I'm taking two beefy tires with me just in case though!

I came upon another snake this morning...in fact, it was another red racer!  I haven't seen one of these in years, and now I've seen two inside of a week's time...pretty cool!  This little guy (actually he was quite big as you can see in the picture below) was just sprawled out across the trail, taking in a little sun light, regulating his body temperature.  Then, along comes man...destined to disrupt this snake's time in the sun!  Man notices snake, and man decides that snake must be played with.  Man dismounts bike, pulls iPhone out of pack, and takes picture of snake.  Snake does not move.  Man decides snake must like man, and that snake must want to play too.  Man puts phone away, and walks behind snake.  Snake still.  Man reaches down to grab snake's tail.  Snake makes lighting-fast 180-degree turn at man, and charges man.  Man may have screamed like little girl.  Snake races away, heading into small hole under brush.  Man gets on bike and rides away hoping no one heard him shriek like little girl, at non-venomous snake.

A wolf in sheep's clothing!

After I was nearly attacked by the snake, the rest of my ride went without incident!  It was just a nice easy ride in heart rate zone 2 (there are 5 HR training zones that I use...zone 2 is moderately low intensity) with a couple short bursts up into zone 4.  All in all it was a relatively relaxing ride that totaled about 7 miles, which I completed in 33-minutes.

Thanks for reading!