Tour of Cali 2009

Training in Florida ended quite nicely with a solo 5 hour ride and 8 mile build run. Ironically, it was the best ride "watt-wise" that I had put out all week! I think it was due to the "forced concentration" from being alone as well as the knowledge that it was my last long training day before heading out and onto a more "mentally relaxing" (but not necessarily physically relaxing) trip to see the Tour of California! I was really anxious, after training so hard, to have a week that was spent riding however long I wanted to and at whatever pace I felt like riding, all while following the Tour of Cali to beautiful spots that I probably would never have visited or known about on my own. PIC: Tour of Cali Stage #1...View of the Sierra Nevada's...

It was the third year going to see the Tour of California and it did not disappoint. George and I headed to the finish of stage 5, a town near the Sierra Nevada's called Clovis. Luckily, the first sunny day of the Tour was the first day we were out riding! We rode part of the stage, then headed back into town just in time to see one of the most exciting finishes where Tom Boonen and Mark Cavendish battled it out for the win (Boonen was first loser by a fraction of a second, which was the closest he would come to Super sprinter Mark Cavendish). The next day we headed to my favorite town of the Tour, Paso Robles. Again we rode in sunny 70 degree weather on a course through the foothills near the coast. There were countless riders doing the stage this day, so it was a great time having other people out on the course before the race came through.
PICS: Above: Bob Roll interviewing Tom Boonen, BELOW: The crowds in Paso Robles (Glimpse of George in the tree upper left hand corner...trying to get a better view!)

The last day we watched the Tour was the TT in Solvang, one of the most beautiful areas I have had the pleasure to ride in. The crowds this year were epic, due to the thousands of "Lance Fans" that wanted to catch a glimpse of the celeb. While I do not necessarily label myself as a "Lance Fan", I must say that it is a thrill to see him out on the course. The great thing about the Tour is that you can go right up to the team buses and watch the riders warm up on their trainers (we thought that the riders seemed like animals in the zoo on display for everyone to watch in awe). The TT again, did not disappoint as George, myself and a friend of mine that we ran into, Dave Decker, stood on the wicked climb out of town watching the guys suffer past us on the first mile of a 15 mile TT... Great stuff!

...PICS: Dave Zabriske in the TT, Levi in the TT, High Road boys warming up in Solvang (the crowds of spectators lining up to catch a glimpse).

So now I am back in Long Island, trying to recover a bit from the past weeks of training and travel. I have a few solid days of "recovery" ahead of me this week. I cannot say that I am enjoying the cold NY weather, but it forces me to really recover which I need right now. The season starts soon enough and once it does it will start flying by!

Chick Ride...

Yesterdays ride ended up being fantastic! We all met down by Lake Minneola and did Nic's "Dog Loop". I named it that due to a point in the ride where you have to be ready to SPRINT away from two big dogs that escape under a hole in the fence out on a country road. At first I thought she was kidding, "Just yell at them while you are sprinting away...and don't make any noise as we approach the house...they will hear us" Nic told me calmly. "WHAT"?! If I ever encountered these dogs on my own, I would CERTAINLY never revisit that loop again, BUT I was with company, and Nic and I had done the loop earlier in the week (without running into the dogs, thankfully). However, my heart still raced as we approached the house...I'm a huge wimp! Luckily, no dogs again, though we DID have a "kamikaze" little dog run out at us and almost wedge itself under my tire at one point during the ride!

The four of us headed out from the lake (see pic from left to right: me, Nic Guembel, Cynthia Wilson, Jacqui Gordon). Jacqui was the only one with a real "agenda" for the day. I had to ride 3+ hours, but easy with no efforts for that particular day. A sort of "recovery" type ride. Nic just wanted to ride easy, and Cynthia was only going out for a bit since she just arrived here from Canada (a long drive down)! Jacqui had to ride "steady" with 4x10 min "Zone 4" intervals mixed in. We let her lead the way. She was strong from the start! We gladly drafted her, though it is not very easy to draft such a tiny person on the bike! While Jacqui did her 10 min HARD intervals, Nic and I would ride steady (around Ironman pace) and she would meet up again on her rest periods. For the remainder of the ride we followed along, pushing a great pace!

I was really happy to be able to coordinate a ride with Jacqui while we were down here and it was great doing a ride like that with 3 other Pro women! It isn't something that I get to experience often, so it is nice when I get the opportunity! For tomorrow, a LONG steady ride for me. I should be ready for a great ride tomorrow after the steady ride the other day with the girls and a "rest day" today! Luckily, I will again have company to mix up the ride a bit. Then one more epic ride before home! The last epic ride, however, may be mostly or ALL solo as many people down here will be racing "Florida's Great Escape Triathlon" on Sunday. I've ridden SO many long rides ALONE in my career of racing Ironman, but I find as I get "older" (I cringe at the thought!) I really look for company out there. Ironman IS a "lonely sport" out on the bike, however, so the solo rides are great for concentration and learning how to push yourself mentally and physically. I've found that it's great to mix it up (some solo, some with friends)! I look forward to tomorrow and hope to have some great stories (minus angry dogs)!

Clermont, FL

So, I've been in Clermont, FL since last Wednesday and I am getting in great training with my friends Nic and Wolf Guembel (www.nicandwolf.com) who will be here till April. I am here for a week and a half total, so I am concentrating on a big block of bike training while I am in the warm weather! As of now, I am getting ready to meet my friend Jacquie Gordon who is down here training from New Jersey (http://jacquigordon.blogspot.com), as well as Nicole and her friend, fellow Pro Cynthia Wilson. An awesome "girls ride" for today, which can be rare! In addition to great biking, I have been attending Masters swim practices at the NTC coached by Olympic distance star Sara McClarty and running on the great paths around Clermont! All is well and I will keep the updates coming!

WINTER...

"In the midst of winter, I found there was within me, an invincible summer." -Albert Camus

That "invincible summer" has come in the form of a trainer and a treadmill. Despite FREEZING temps, snow and more snow, the training is coming along fantastically! I've found a "fondness", or rather an "appreciation" for the trainer and I am finding that the workouts are getting better and better. As George pointed out the other day, a trainer workout goes by much faster while watching the Tour de France and that is exactly what I have been doing. Right now I am in the middle of the 2002 Tour. Lance just had a victory at Plateau de Beille, but was not so lucky at Mt. Ventoux. Since I was not an "avid" Tour watcher back then, it is like watching it for the first time! Of course, I know the outcome, but it is exciting anyway...even without one of my favorites, Jan Ullrich competing (alright, I know he has been found guilty of doping, but Im still a "Jan fan"...sorry)!

The running has been coming along great and there is a LOT of it. Today's run #1 started at 15 degree temps...I went to the trail and did a snowy run by Belmont Lake. I find that running in the snow is REALLY fun, but I really suck at it. That's what my Garmin's average pace tells me anyway. No worries...I find that it is an AWESOME workout! Run #2 today will be done on the treadmill, however. This run will be much shorter and easier after a core and strength session at the gym. Treadmill running is nice because I can wear shorts, but I am certainly not the world's best treadmill runner. Give me a flat road and I am Golden...any deviation and I am not so "Gold", but as they say, "that which does not kill you makes you stronger", so bring on the snowy trails and the treadmill workouts! Swimming, of course, is easy during this arctic freeze, so I do this QUITE often! Alternating swimming with Aquafit and swimming solo...both of which I look forward to when the time comes. So, until I reach REAL summer (Arizona, Florida), I am finding that the brutal winter we are having is not bringing me down so much. I may even get out on the road this weekend! A first since Florida! :-)

2009

Happy New Year! I've finally decided on my training and racing plans for 2009! I will be heading to Tucson in February to train with twin superstars Kim Loeffler and Kelly Liljeblad for warm weather training , then returning home for a few weeks before heading to New Orleans to race the new 70.3 race there on April 5th. I am really excited to race New Orleans as it seems like a flat course with warm weather...my favorite conditions! I will be flying back to Tucson after the race to again train with Kelly and Kim as well as with Tara Norton! The four of us should be excellent training partners, all with different strengths! At the end of the Tucson training in April, I will head to St. Croix for another excellent 70.3 (and TOUGH COURSE) with Tara before returning home again for good. At least mostly for good, that is. I may have to travel down to Maryland for one of my favorite races of all time in June...Eagleman! That is not set, however as it is only 3 weeks before my "A race"...Ironman Austria on July 5th! My friend Erin will be traveling with me to Austria to provide race support. It should be a great time! After that, things are up in the air, but so far the schedule is set and I am really looking forward to it!

As I headed out the door to do Part I of my "split long run" yesterday I thought about the warm weather that I had just run in down in Florida and the warmth that awaits me in Arizona. I find that I get less tolerant for the cold the more I travel! All went well though. It didnt seem to be quite as bad as I had anticipated. Now if I can only get to the pool this morning. The roads seem pretty icy out there, so Im hoping the pool is open!

Training Camp

I've been in Florida for the past week and a half doing a training camp with my friends Tara Norton, Lisa and Kayla (both of whom I just met this weekend) and Matt Long. It was a last-minute decision to go down and train and I'm REALLY glad I did! We had 80 degree weather everyday and I put in over 42 hours of training in 8 days. Training with Tara is excellent as she is a PHENOMENAL cyclist! I knew she was great, but training with her this past week really showed me just how great she is. Throughout the week we swam double sessions every morning with the Masters swim team (coached by Marty) at the Hall of Fame Pool (except for Saturday in which we did the 5K "Rough Water Ocean Swim"), put in a LOT of miles on the bike and had some great run sessions as well. All as I watched the weather back home plummet into sub 20 degree temperatures!

Matt Long came here to log big miles on the bike and jump start his training for IM Lake Placid. I think he is going to see a tremendous boost in power and bike fitness after this training block. It was great to be able to do some training with him and I look forward to watching him race Ironman in July. Lisa is an open water swimmer and completed the "Around Manhattan Island" open water swim this past July! That's 28 miles of swimming (no wetsuit) around NYC. Wow...I can't even imagine (especially after my never-ending 5K swim the other day)! She did all of the swim sessions and some of the run sessions as well. Unlike Tara and I, she had time to do some beach time and sight-seeing, which was nice. Kayla came down to get a jump on her training as she is trying to switch from triathlete to cyclist. All three girls are from Canada (Toronto and Montreal) and it's safe to say that we are all dreading the cold weather that we are returning to!
I plan on writing more about some of the training from this past week, but for now I am getting ready to head to the airport. As for me, I plan on doing much of my winter training in Tucson (hopefully with super triathlete and runners Kim Loeffler and her twin sister Kelly Liljeblad) and in between I will brave the cold. Tara is heading to "Epic Camp" at the end of the month and when the time comes I'll post a list with her blog. It's incredible to read what they do at Epic Camp. Tara is one of only a handful of women to even complete it! I look forward to training with her again in Tucson!

Pics: Top Left: Lisa, Marty (swim coach), Tara, myself and Matt Long at the start of the Rough Water Swim. Middle: Hall of Fame Pool, Bottom: Tara and I after a morning swim session.

Short Update...

It's been just about 1 month since my last update and Im thinking that the very small number of people that actually read my blog have probably tuned out and given up on logging onto deesullitriathlete.com for the "extremely exciting updates" that I usually give. Two such "readers" are my Sunday co-workers at Runners Edge. After learning that I have let both of these co-workers down (I think they live for my blog updates), I have decided to write a short, possibly non-impressive, "update" with the hopes of getting myself back into the blog writing that I usually enjoy and at the same time cheer up my co-workers. Killing two birds with one stone, you might say. ;-)


The weeks after IM Arizona were great. Lots of downtime and enjoying myself, while keeping up a semi-decent training load. I have been able to pull off training a decent amount post-Arizona after discovering that walking for much of the marathon portion enabled me to bounce back quite quickly as I was certainly not as "beat up" as I have been after past Ironman competitions. In addition to a decent amount of training (up until the ARCTIC days that arrived this past weekend) I have gotten some new coaching clients (which I am very excited about), celebrated my friend Nancy's 60th birthday, went into NYC with George and Mike to watch the NY Velocity-sponsored "roller races" with a guest appearance by Christian VandeVelde (see picture to right...and, no that is not Christian...), had my friend Erin visit from D.C, and started planning my races and training camps for 2009.

So that's it. My first update since November 26th. I hope that my Sunday co-workers can now rest easy knowing that Im back. I can only imagine that they were on the edge of their seats after reading THIS entry! Just wait...there will be more for 2009!