1 Hr Swim, 100 Mi Bike, 4.5 Mi Run: Plus Extra 1%

The pool opens at 8am so my workout got pushed to a late start. The hour in the pool felt pretty darn good. I haven't done many longer swims and wasn't sure how it'd turn out. I paced it properly, increasing power throughout, ending strong. Just like I wanted to.

On the bike, not so much. I rode 138-143 bpm for the first couple hours. Not brilliant. My biking has already been sucking since the flu. I knew I couldn't hold it. But hey, why not.

Saw Ava/Emme/Terp/Urs running. Great to see them out there. Love you guys!

Detour around the closed portion is easy. Left @ Seaboard. Rt @ Oak. Cross the big road at the stop light. Rt @ dead end. Left @ intersection/dead end. You come up around the corner to the comet. Watch out for speed bumps. Only adds about 1/2 mile or so. It's only a small section that's still out.

At about two hours I got the msg from Jerry Loch... go an extra 1%! I'm game. On the bike I did the 1% via intensity. I rode a few beats higher than I have been for the last couple seasons on long rides.

I should step back. The last couple seasons I've been doing these long Comet rides at sub-130 heart rate. Two years ago I did one at an average of 109bpm. And not a bad time, actually. But I wanted to push closer to race effort. Specificity.

Five, four and three years ago I would sit at 130bpm for the first four hours and then push hard at the end.

My times have been getting slower and slower over the years. And my races have been getting faster and faster. I just don't understand it.

The bike sucked today, btw.

Avg of 18mph didn't make for a happy me. Especially this close to the race. No time to cram for the exam. Oddly I'm getting more frustrated about the flu three weeks after its onset.

Fiddled with the seat height and front/back a bunch today. I had it way too high. That's what's been causing the plantar fasciitis. For the first time I had that problem early in the ride, lowered the seat and by the end didn't. I had zero bend in the knee. Watching Ironman riders in profile yesterday I realized my problem and decided to fiddle.

All the fit fiddling this season means my muscles have never had a single stroke to master.

And this is the first season I've had a road bike and a tri bike. Different fit. Different crank sizes. Smart? Maybe not... legs don't seem to be adapting on the tri side. I felt great pre-flu on the road bike.

At about the halfway point I saw Misty and her friend. Good to see a friendly face. She's doing IMFLA too. I was just about to bail to be honest. Was just miserable. Misty cheered me up. Thanks! I turned around.

And it was still miserable. But it was the right thing to do. The flu banged my endurance fitness to some degree. I needed a long day. At this point it's about confidence as much as fitness.

All the mud in the Big Tunnel meant that my chain was squeaky and poppy all day. Ghost shifting and a notching sound. I had to turn up the music which made the world feel like it was spinning out of control.

Did I mention my flat tire? At about 2 hours in. Quick change but I realized the folly of only carrying one tube and CO2. I'll start to carry 2 and a tire repair kit. I was about 40 miles out and had to come back in to 20 miles out before heading back to 40 miles out. All without a backup. Luckily things worked out today.

The symptom that's driving me nuts lately is this mild dizzy/bonkish feeling. I get this. Not new. But this season it comes on quickly. Makes me think I've hosed my metabolic system. Or I have quick onset diabetes. Or, more likely, I'm holding my body weight too low and it's reluctant to hand over the fat reserves. 164lbs this am. Last year I raced at 169 lbs. Need to add some weight.

But it's a tradeoff because I run better light.

Most of this is mental. I hit it hard for the last 30 minutes, no problem. Held 150-160bpm and tired legs the whole time. Passed a bunch of folks.

Made it back to the car. Finally.

Didn't plan on running. Didn't want to run.

Was in that bonky mad mood.

But I headed out for what I thought would be a 1 mile run. With the final 30 minutes hard on the bike I was certain I didn't have run legs.

After a few minutes I felt pretty good. I had turnover. So I went with it.

I planned on turning around at 2 miles. But for Jerry I went the extra 1% out to 2.25. On the way back I planned on slowing down. But I could see a running couple up ahead. And we all know what happens next. Big push to catch them. Which I did. And then I just ran it through to the end.

Run legs good after a miserable bike. Odd.

I have to be in the pool in less than 12 hours. No rest before the week has me worried.

Thanks to Jerry for the motivation. Misty for the pick-me-up. And Jill and Marshall for the tweets!