Free, to a good home

Yes, you read that right, FREE!! It's my first give--a-way. I got this as a prize at my second half IM, so several years ago now. I was the very last person to cross the line, except the line wasn't even there anymore, just a guy with a stop watch. You can read about it here.

Here's the prize. It's a set of carbon fibre aero bars, retail value about $220.

They aren't going to work for me. You can see from the ruler that they're quite short. On me the armrest is only slightly aft of my wrist bones, so I suspect these would be a good fit for someone with short arms. So how do you win this prize? Leave a comment telling me why you should win. Making me laugh is a good plan. So is clear logical reasoning showing how the bars will make you so much faster you'll pick up all sorts of prizes at races, which you will generously share with me. Begging might work, if you're really good. No need to facebook friend me, or twitter anything, or even add yourself as a follower to my blog if you aren't already. Though feel free to do those things if you want.

Here's the kicker though. If you're the winner you have to drop by to pick it up. I suppose I could meet you at some mutually convenient location, in Calgary, and give it to you then. But in that case you won't get any milk and cookies. It need not be instantly, so if you're planning a trip to Calgary, or have friends here willing to be your intermediary, I can cope with that. Unless you're cute and therefore I'd be missing out on a hug. :-( For my American readers, this gives you a good reason to pick a race in or near Calgary this summer. There is no shortage to choose from. So, lets see. Today is Sept 17. I'll give people till Sunday Sept 26 to comment. I guess if you comment before I look at my blog on the 27th, that would be ok too. I'll choose a winner based on my own arbitrary set of criteria, and announce him or her on the 27. That gives you something to look forward to on a Monday.

The great basement library tidy up is going well. Here's the proof:

Compare that to the photo in yesterday's blog. The neat thing about tidying up is that you find all kinds of stuff. Stuff you'd forgotten you had. Stuff you wonder when or how you came to own. So far there is a big bag going to the Sally Ann, several bags of garbage, and our big blue recycling in on wheels is nearly full. Most of it is paper or cardboard. I somehow don't think there is much of a market for old Macworld magazines from the early 90's.

No fitness today, unless you count a zillion trips up and down the stairs, toting books and all sorts of other crap up and down. And we had pizza for supper. So there.

The garage smells of the sea, the library smells like dust

I have no idea why the garage smells so strongly like seawater. Sure, it's been raining cats and dogs here, but that's fresh. There is a distinct sea salty smell just in the garage. Nice. Better than gas, or garbage. It reminded me of our vacations in Nova Scotia, and spending time on the beach. All those years I thought I wasn't a beach person because I sunburned too easily. But beaches are about more than lying down in the sun. I think I need another vacation to the seaside.

I know exactly why the library smells like dust. Books. Tri stuff. stuff stuff out the ying yang. Here's the tidy part of the library.

Yes, I'm serious, that's the tidy part. My task over the next little while is get more shelving up and try to bring some order to this chaos. We have a serious book problem. We both like to read, though for some strange reason I haven't had much time over the last little while. What's more, we like to re-read some books, or parts of books, which is why we buy and keep them around. We'll get a piece of a conversation or a scene in our minds, and will want to re-read the bits around it. Can't satisfy that itch using a library. Plus it supports authors.

The resolution on the iphone screen is amazing. I'm not sure I'd want to read a whole book on it, but I think I'd be willing to give it a go, especially if I was commuting on public transit. If I'm sitting at home I'm pretty sure I'd rather hold the actual book. The iPad though, could be tempting. I had one go at setting up the wireless network again, with inconclusive results. I think the network is there, but I don't think any data is actually being transmitted. I think my old base station might not be compatible with my current Mac.

You will be happy to know that fitness has not been abandoned. Wed just about lunch time there was a brief window of partial sunshine. I managed to get out for a half hour bike ride, easy spin around the neighbourhood. I should have worn a jacket; it was pretty cool. My legs liked it.

Then yoga in the evening. Fiona is starting to work on us a bit harder now. A lot harder. Back into my totally [sarcasm]favourite[/sarcasm] pose, downward dog. Then a variant of a held squat that had my quads burning. I think I fell asleep during corpse pose at the end.

Tomorrow is supposed to be nice, partly cloudy and a high of 7 C (45 F) I'll wear a jacket for sure.

Swimming to an iphone 4

Back in the pool on Monday. Swam a really nice warmup. There had been a girl swimming a really slow, really wide side stroke in my "fast" lane, and after a couple laps she moved over. Yay! Common sense is not dead.

Warmed up thinking about catch, and elbows up, and head down. Keeping tabs on how my body was feeling. Good. Happy to be in the water. Did 5 x 100 on 2 minutes. These were all done in about minute and 43 or 44 seconds, which I'm pretty pleased with. Cool down. A little over a half hour total.

Did some core work and stretching in the dive tank, and a short deep water run, very easy. My legs didn't know quite what to think of that. Soaked in the hot tub, and boy is it nice!

Then over to Market Mall to join the line for an iPhone 4. I got there about 8 and there were already 30 people ahead of me. More joined the line. A while later the Apple people got us organized, figuring out who wanted what and matching the line to the number of phones in stock. Not many today, there was only 6 people in the line behind me when they finished that.

So now I have one. Set up my home wi-fi network again, but I'm not totally sure the phone recognizes it or is getting web pages through it. It's been fun setting things up, and figuring out how it works. Linda is going to laugh when she realizes what ring tone I'm using for her. And I did my very first video, using Amelia the Cat as a reluctant subject.

I've been trolling through the many, many, MANY apps out there. Holy crap are there ever a lot of them, and most of them seem to be on the wrong side of useful. Any advice on which ones are working for you iphone users out there? And no, this was not written on the iPhone. I'm still training my thumbs how to type. It's funny, my eyes have no idea where any of the letters on the keyboard are because my fingers know. I very rarely actually look at a keyboard.

Low key today, short walk, and a massage.

So please, iPhone users, tell me which apps you love, which you hated, and most of all, the game you wish you had never loaded because you can't stop playing it.

The pro photos that I paid for (prepare yourselves)

There was some internal discussion about buying the photos from IMC. The camera loves some people, for example, my mom's husband Sam. I've never seen a bad photo of him. I once got him as he was getting out of a vehicle after a long day on the job, as he was shifting his cap to settle it better. He looks a little startled, but otherwise perfectly poised, and posed. No model could have looked as natural or comfortable.

Unlike me. The camera hates me. As some people have astutely commented, I often look like a cardboard cutout. With a wine glass in one hand. I've never really been happy with the photos taken by various photographers at various races. Jase did well, but it's a measure of his talent that the shots turned out as well as they did. Plus Cath is in a couple of shots so nobody is looking at me anyway. No, the problem isn't them or their equipment. It's the subject.

So when I was looking at the thumbnails of my IMC photos I was really of two minds if I should buy them or not. In the end, I figured there likely wasn't going to be another opportunity to get better photos of me doing an Ironman, and shelled out.

I've put one up in the title but I don't like how the spacing has turned out. I'll probably be playing with that for a bit. Maybe I'll go to a different template. Therefore, with no further ado, here are the best of the race photos. With commentary. I hope you've got a stiff drink to hand.

Here's the swim start. I can see my cap in there near the left, about 10 people back. You can't tell? What, are you blind?

Here's me coming out the water, in the thick of the herd. The green stripe on my cheek is to remind the people at the eyeglasses table to shout at us to get our glasses. As if I need reminding. 

On the bike, still ahead of some people, for a little while. This is on the road going to Osoyoos, not sure exactly where.

Going up Richters Pass. You get a beautiful view of the valley off to the right. So far it's been a perfect day for a bike ride.

The only photo of me on the run. I like to say I'm focussed. Others, less charitable, might say I'm looking dazed.

Crossing the finish line! Only those who have been there know how good it feels, can understand the wash of emotions. Happiness that it's done. Pride in the achievement. Sadness that it's done.

The formal finisher photo. Even I have to admit the look in my eyes is just a bit scary.

It's been a couple of weeks now. One toenail has gone black. The toe that had the blister that never popped just had the skin shift around and form a ridge that any dinosaur would be proud of. The hams are feeling better, though my left leg is still a bit stiff. Left shoulder is a bit creaky. 

All things considered I came out of this very well. There are a bunch of people who didn't finish at all, including some pros. Not that that makes me better than them. It just means there is an element of luck in these things. Luck about not getting pummeled too badly in the swim, or having mechanical problems or flats on the bike, or being struck with biological issues for whatever reason no matter how carefully you plan. But the most important element by far is your own level of mental and physical fitness and toughness. Without that you aren't finishing no matter how lucky you are. Katie's coaching and the day in and out practice is why I finished.

I like to think I know my limits and "raced" within them. The swim was a little bit faster than I expected, but it was really important to me that I got out of the water feeling good and ready to bike, so I didn't push hard. That means I paced myself carefully, not minding that 888 people passed me on the bike. That means I came within 4 minutes of negative splitting my "run" because I started easy at a pace I hoped I could maintain for the whole distance.  (There is a great xl that gives all sorts of calculations about the time and place data, email me if you want a copy, or look for it on slow twitch.) The final result is that I didn't go deep into the well to pull out every last bit of everything there is, just to make it to the finish line. Into it a bit, yes, but not deep. Which is why I'm feeling so good now. I've gone and done workouts with my legs feeling worse than they do now, but I'm enjoying the rest.

Now is a time to take stock and think about where to go from here. While I'm not going to be doing another Ironman any time soon, if at all, I am continuing with triathlon. I want to get faster, yes, much faster, compared to my cohorts. And, I want to see a photo of me running that has both my feet off the ground. I can but dream.

Yoooohhhhhga

I have been taking it easy lately. Wed night was the first yoga class of the season. Fiona started us off easy, lots of gentle stretches that felt really good. Though she did sneak Tree in there. Right leg as almost good, things were a bit wobbly with the left. Nearly went to sleep in corpse pose.

After the swim on Tues, even though it was pretty short and gentle, I was feeling a bit tired and creaky. The intent was to swim on Friday, but here it is, almost over, and I'm not going swimming. But I have napped! I'm very happy about that.

Recovery is going well, I think. I don't feel bad at all. My left leg is a bit creaky, one of the left toenails has gone black, and I'm sleeping like a rock. But I'm still feeling a bit, I don't know, depleted?

Not sure what the weekend will bring. Perhaps more napping, though I'm thinking I've had two weeks of almost complete slug-itude, so it's time to get moving again. Maybe after just another cookie, and one more nap. yesssszzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Back in the swim

But only the swim. And an easy swim at that. Well, except for the short walks. But nothing else. Well, eating cookies and other good recovery nutrition. Oh, let's not forget the stretching in the hot tub. That was good.

Only swam 20 minutes, just to stretch out my arms, try to retain the feel of the water. Thinking lots about the catch because it wasn't working worth beans. But that's ok, the first one back is always the worst one. Even did a little bit of drill.

The important part of the swim was chatting with my buddy Deb. She did IMC last year, and we've shared several races. One of these days I'll be able to keep up with her. Also chatted with the guy sharing the lane. I noticed he picked up the pace considerably once I joined him.

Met up with Neil last night. Funny that two guys living in South Calgary meet via a guy neither of us have met that happens to live in New Jersey. Thanks Tom! Lots of fun to chat with him. Neil that is, though if Tom dropped by I'd buy him a beer at one of the local microbreweries. Even if he (Neil) didn't blog the photo he took of the two hotties in front of me in the line at Tim Hortons, using the excuse it was a photo of me.

Cleaning and buying adventures

First, the failed buying adventure. Aside from finisher swag, one of the things I figured out during the run was that I was going to stop dithering and buy an iPhone 4. And the finisher swag, aside from the semi-ugly T shirt, is very nice. So this morning I trundled up to Market Mall (and this was after breakfast, and an hour of working from home) to buy one. I figured since the initial rush was over it ought to be no problem. If you figured that too, you would be wrong too.

There was a sign at the front of the store saying they're selling them so fast they were out of stock. The nice guy at the front was telling people the next shipment would be available Tuesday morning. He suggesting starting the line up at 6am, for a store opening of 10 am. NOT! Gee, do I spend that time lined up, hoping to get one, since he said they come in about a dozen at a time, or do I go to work and put in some billable time? Duh. The other choice was to buy it online, pay full freaking price, and find someone to sell an air and data package for yet more $$$$, with no rebate off the purchase price, AND I have to get a new phone number. Since I'm in the mood, NOT!

The Telus store just around the corner gets even fewer, and he had the same advice. So I went home bereft and unfulfilled. Sigh.

Cleaning came next. Estela was filthy, covered with road grime, sticky from the honey and OJ that oozed from one of my drink bottles, which got on my hands, which then got lots of places. So I spent a while cleaning her thoroughly. This was a very peaceful and restful activity. I chatted with some neighbours at the same time. She's all ready to go for the next ride, which is more than I can say for me. We went for a short walk around the block, a mere 3 K or so, and my legs were a bit tired at the end.

We've had our current microwave for 20 years or so, and it wasn't new to us. We got it for storing a friend's stuff while he traveled around the world accumulating insurance claims. I was acting as his agent, paying his bills, moving money around, talking to insurance agents. I got to know the one insurance agent quite well. This is the kind of microwave where you push in a button to pop open the door. That button has had a crack in it since forever but worked fine till the other day. Then I had to fuss with it to open the door. Then had to do it again. It's been getting harder and harder to get the button in, and we decided we were done with it. Both of us could just picture having friends over, needing to nuke something, and being unable to open the door. This exact thing happened at work while I was in Penticton, and I missed out on the chance to join a bunch of engineers and other technical people, with real and improvised tools from the lab, trying to get into the microwave. They didn't.

So off we went to Trail Appliances in the old Costco store. They've got lots of upscale stuff, but went pretty quick to the right place for counter top microwaves. We wanted a basic one. It took longer to round up a sales guy than it did to pick out what we wanted. Turns out he runs marathons, and wanted to chat about Ironman Canada, since I was wearing the finisher jacket. (It was cold and raining out, give me a break!) In the end we were in the store 20 minutes, and another 10 waiting for our turn to pick up the box from the warehouse door. This one has about twice the zap of the old one, a cup of coffee taking 1 minute to heat up, rather than the 2 of the old one.

We'll be good and take the old one to the electronic recycling place. But what I want to do is line the inside with a couple layers of garbage bag, put it on it's back, and totally fill it with water so that door just barely closes. Then get a long extension cord. A really really long extension cord, like several hundred metres worth. Put the microwave in the middle of a big empty place and turn it on high. Eventually the water will heat up. Since there is very little space for steam to go it will start to pressurize the microwave and the pressure will build. Although the temperature is above 100C the water is not boiling because it will be at higher than local atmospheric pressure. Eventually, even though this is a very heavy microwave, built on a metal frame (it's really old, remember) the internal pressure will exceed the structural strength of the microwave enclosure. It will start to rupture somewhere, which will allow the water pressure to drop. All the latent energy will go into converting that superheated liquid water into a cloud of steam, very quickly, and very, very violently. A cubic foot of water, (which is about the interior size of the microwave) will convert into 1700 cubic feet of steam. Now you see why I want a really long extension cord. And something big and thick to hide behind. There is probably a youtube video of someone doing exactly this, but I'm to lazy to look, and besides, watching a video wouldn't be nearly as much fun as doing it.

Speaking of videos, we started season 2 of True Blood last night. I drank wine and ate cheese and crackers. Tonight will be more episodes, with beer, I think. I won't indulge myself like this too much, but it's sure nice to be having a break from training.

Oh, and I found my race photos here.