Training Log - 2/28/07

Distance: 1 hour spinning on the trainer
Weight: 187.6

Well... I didn't lose any vital organs tonight spinning on the trainer. It was pretty tough getting through it, particularly the last 10 minutes, as I still have this bad chest cold. I have been forcing myself to hydrate and eat as I can ill afford to lose any muscle from not eating while sick.

I wanted this to be my rest night and be able to travel to the team social in Orlando. But this was not to be. I needed to train tonight as I missed last night. I can't afford to fall behind in the training regardless of the reason. And, of course, drinking margaritas would be bad medicine.

OK, time to get to bed and try to shake this bug.

cheers,
Skip

Training Log - 2/27/07

Distance: not long
Weight: 187.4 lbs

OK, I am a little more than "under the weather." I am a whole lot under the weather. I took some Tylenol to break the fever. Both the kids are sick too. But I got up on the bike anyway. I could only manage 10 minutes on the trainer though before a coughing jag overwhelmed me. And, I do mean overwhelmed me as, at one point, I coughed so hard it launched my spleen from my mouth hurtling across the room. OK, maybe just a slight exaggeration, but only slightly.

Sorry, team, I didn't get my hour in, but I did the best I could tonight.

Mountains by Lonestar

Mark, our coach, sent out an inspirational message yesterday including the lyrics to the following song. Awesome. I think its very motivational and worth including here.


"Mountains"

Lucinda Jones, working at IHOP
Ten years worth of bacon, eggs and tears
She's waited on every creed and color
While waiting on this day to get here
Graveyard shifts, two big tips
Making every quarter count
Was worth it all to see her son
In that cap and gown

There are times in life when you gotta crawl
Lose your grip, trip and fall
When you can't lean on no-one else
That's when you find yourself
I've been around and I've noticed that
Walking's easier when the road is flat
Them danged ole hiils'll get you every time
Yeah, the good Lord gave us mountains
So we could learn how to climb

Bobby, Bobby Dunn came back from the war
Lost his leg but they couldn't take his will
Hell bent to run in that local marathon
He trained through the endless pain and pills
It hurt so bad that sometimes he just had to cry
He didn't stop until he crossed that finish line

There are times in life when you gotta crawl
Lose your grip, trip and fall
When you can't lean on no-one else
That's when you find yourself
I've been around and I've noticed that
Walkin's easier when the road is flat
Them danged ole hiils'll get you every time
Yeah, the good Lord gave us mountains
So we could learn how to climb

This world ain't fair
It can knock you on your butt
You can just lie there
Or you can get back up
You gotta get back up

There are times in life when you gotta crawl
Lose your grip, trip and fall
When you can't lean on no-one else
That's when you find yourself
I've been around and I've noticed that
Walkin's easier when the road is flat
Them danged ol' hiils'll get you every time
Yeah, the good Lord gave us mountains
(The good Lord gave us mountains)
So we could learn how to climb
Yeah, oh

Training Log - 2/26/07

Distance: one hour riding my cycling trainer

I arrived home late tonight. There was an open house for an academic program at the high school my daughter will be going to next year. It lasted until 8:00. I didn't get home and get anything to eat until after 8:30. I am feeling a little under the weather anyway. So I figured tonight would be a good night to pull out the trainer I bought a few weeks ago and pedal for an hour while watching 24.

How hard could it be? Its not like you are going anywhere. Just hook the bike up to the stand, put a little resistance on the rear wheel and pedal for an hour. Well... it kicked my butt. Its a whole lot harder than I thought it would be--which is good. I was sweating and huffing and puffing within 10 minutes. And it was a pretty good work out for my legs too.

Good workout.

Happy (truly) Anniversary

Twenty-three years ago today, I married a remarkable woman. And, for the next 21 years, I was able to enjoy her company and raise a family together. And we had fun doing that. Some may think this should be a sad day, but I look at it as a celebration of a remarkable woman and a life well lived. I spent the day with our children and her dad. Family. That endures... because of her. Quite a gift.

Training Log - 2/24/07

Distance: 22.95 miles
Avg. Speed: 16.1 mph
Max Speed: 20.4 mph
Total Training Distance: 175.4 miles
Temperature: 62 degrees
Weight: 189 lbs

Its funny. It seems like every training session is an opportunity to work on a specific aspect of my cycling. Some nights, its going fast. Other nights, its technique. Tonight I just wanted to increase my distance and ride at a comfortable pace.

I also end up learning something unexpected with each ride. About half way through my ride I started feeling light headed and sluggish. I started getting hungry which I couldn't imagine could be the case as I just had dinner. Then I mentally tallied what I have had to eat today and realized I really was out of gas. I only had some soup and a few girl scout cookies for dinner. It came on all of a sudden too. I surely don't want this to happen in Tahoe. Anyway, I stopped off at home, gassed up on a banana, some crackers and Gatorade and hit the road again. Lesson learned.

The ride was fine except I almost had a bad crash. One of those YouTube moments. I was riding along and a dog charged me in the dark. It startled me and almost caused me to wipe out. The worst part is the dog was let out to run free on purpose! The owners are too lazy to just walk the dog on a leash. Tomorrow we'll see if Animal Control can talk them into being responsible pet owners.

Overwhelmed... and humbled...

Since its a recovery week this week, I have been spending quite a bit more time on the fund raising part of this adventure and a little less time in the saddle. I have talked to many people this week and I am astounded by the number of people that have been more than willing to pull out their credit cards or check books to donate to the cause. And I am humbled by the amounts people are willing to give as well--money that is hard earned but truly given from the heart.

All I can say is thank you from the bottom of my heart. I can assure you, your contributions are a worthwhile investment towards a future for you and yours that hopefully will not include the specter of blood cancers.

When I hit the mountains around Lake Tahoe, I will take all of you with me.

Thank you.

Training Log - 2/22/07

Distance: 16.4 miles
Avg Speed: 15.5 mph
Max Speed: 17.9 mph
Temperature: 62 degrees
Total Training Distance: 152.5 miles
Weight: 190.6 lbs

Tonight I didn't focus on speed at all. I focused on efficiency--the proper cadence, pedal technique and a nice smooth ride. As it turned out, I was only 1.1 mph slower for average speed than the last ride. I ended up expending a whole lot more energy to pick up not a whole lot of speed.

I also noticed in the last week that my hamstrings have been getting tighter and tighter. From past experience, that has meant that I am working my quads much harder than my hamstrings. As a result, the opposing muscles are out of balance. To correct, I hit my weight machine to strengthen my hamstrings. This has always worked great. A little cross training is a good thing and I definately need to find some time to hit that weight machine and do core strengthening exercises. Tonight, I also focused on pedaling technique, using the whole stroke. By the end of the ride, I could feel it in my calves, hamstrings and hips.

Another good ride.

Training Log - 2/20/07

Distance: 13.2 miles
Avg Speed: 16.6 mph
Max Speed: 20.0 mph
Temperature: 66 degrees
Total Training Distance: 136.1 miles
Weight: no idea as I had to lend my son the scales for his high school robotics project

Awesome ride tonight! I decided to just let it rip and I had a blast. After the first 3-4 miles I settled down into a nice rhythm. It was like I was floating instead of riding over the road. For the last few miles it felt like I was flying. My legs were pumping effortlessly and my mouth was open sucking in air like a jet engine. It felt great! Riding at night only accentuated the sense of speed.

I need to raise my seat up just a little as it still feels like I'm a little cramped pedaling. I also need to adjust the gears on the front set of gears. The fall I took Sunday may have knocked the gear changer a little out of whack. Or maybe the cables have stretched a little after this initial few weeks of use. Its amazing how you need to make little tweeks to the bike to get the most out of it.

Anyway, it was a good night on the bike.

Sweet Success!!!

Well... although yesterday I felt like I could have ridden another 10-15 miles, today was different. I am a bit sore. A bit more bruised than I expected from running into that damn barricade too. But... I was the only one who got back up! Hahahaha... <--- maniacal laugh

But, despite all of that, I came home from work and met my partner in the driveway. We chatted for just a few minutes, planning several destinations for tonight's trek. Our journey began at a good pace but picked up speed with each of the destinations we clicked off. Soon we were in the zone--progress was coming easy--legs pumping, heart racing. We were covering some serious ground. And, then it appeared, the finish line. We both finished hard and sped to the end. Then, with such a sense of accomplishment, I plunked down my credit card to buy not one, but two, pairs of jeans that fit my daughter! Have you ever gone out shopping for clothes with a 14 year old girl?! OMG, it can be draining. Finding two pairs of jeans that fit is like finishing a marathon, like scaling Everest, like... well... you get the idea. I ran out of the store, arms raised like Rocky Balboa.

Eye of the tiger, baby!

Training Log - 2/18/07

Distance: 28.3 miles
Avg Speed: 12.8 mph
Temperature: 46 degrees w/ a fierce wind
Total Training Distance: 122.9 miles (so far)
Weight: 189.4 lbs

Rode today with the rest of the team through the hills of Clermont. It was OMG cold! The temperature in itself wasn't bad, but the wind was strong and felt like it blew right through you. I thought the hills would be tough but both my legs and lungs were fine. At the end of the ride, I had enough in the tank to bike another 10-15 miles without a problem. I am looking forward to biking in warmer weather though.

I did have one incident on the road. Again it resulted because of the cleats and pedals. My left foot snapped out of the pedal while I was riding. I looked down to snap my foot back in and ran right into one of those folding metal barricades that was on the side of the road to mark some pot holes. One more bruise on my knee to go with the others. Oi vey! What a clutz! :-)

Training Log - 2/16/07

Distance: 22.8 miles
Avg Speed: 16.0 mph
Temperature: 54 degrees
Total Training Distance: 94.6 miles (so far)
Weight: 190.4 lbs

Chilly ride but I put the arm and leg warmers on which helped considerably. I'm also getting used to clipping into the pedals. I'm almost comfortable with them now. I focused on proper pedaling technique. It does help to use the whole stroke but its something that will take a little while before pedaling this way will come naturally. I also focused on maintaining a steady cadence to my pedaling by changing the gears as needed. It was very windy with gusts up to 25 mph. So there were times when I had to gear up or down.

The ride ended with a bang though. I always try to finish my rides strong. So right at the end I was sprinting for home when it hit. Just as I was coming to my driveway, the only way I can describe it is--I blew out a buttock. OMG! My right butt cheek locked up suddenly in a cramp. I came flying off that bike like a coiled spring which is probably the only time at my age when I would be described in the same sentence as a coiled spring. Man, did that hurt. I hopped around my yard, cursing and waving my arms. It must have looked like some deranged dancer on Soul Train only with one leg shorter than the other as I was going round and round in circles. Now who gets a butt cramp?! LOL

Training Log - 2/14/07

Distance: 13.4 miles
Avg Speed: 15.1 mph
Weight: 189 lbs

Last night I attended the Fundraising Fair at the LLS office in Orlando. I didn't get back until late. So instead of fixing the flat on my bike and then riding late, I begin my online fund raising by sending out donation requests to some family and friends. Lot's more to do there. But its a start.

Tonight I needed to run my daughter on some errands after work. When I arrived home I fixed the flat on my bike. It took longer than I expected. I changed the tube in the rear tire. The tire valves are different than what I am used to. Plus, the CO2 cartridges you use to inflate the tires take some getting used to. After wasting two of the cartridges, I ended up filling the tire with a hand pump. Hey, its low tech, but it works!

After skipping two days, I hit the road around 9:30. I felt very good. Angling the handlebars back in order to rest my hands on the brake/gear handles works great. It gives me a lot more control over the bike as well. I also focused on getting into the right gear and my pedaling technique. Its funny how much you need to build into habit. When I focus on changing gears, I forget how I am pedaling. If I focus on pedaling, I'm not sitting back on the saddle all the way. I'll get it together though. Just takes practice.

Anyway, I felt good on this ride. Tomorrow night, I need to increase the distance and intensity.

Happy Valentines Day everyone!

One of Those Days...

This was one of those days that just got away from me. Immediately after work, I picked up my daughter and whisked her off to her middle school. We had a meeting about some of the academic programs available in her high school next year. What I thought would be a short meeting turned into a two and a half hour marathon. Good information, particularly for her, but it took up a large chunk of my evening. By the time I arrived home, it was after 9:00. It was also raining. No problem. We ate a late dinner and cleaned up. Then I unpacked my new trainer from the box and set it up anticipating some training time indoors. My legs feel pretty good after my long ride yesterday. I set up the trainer and retrieved by bike... which... had a flat tire. *sigh* It was now 10:30.

The day got the best of me today. Sometimes that just happens. You try to seize the day but it runs out before you can get ahold of it.

OK, its almost midnight now and I need to pay some bills before they are past due. Then I'll seize some pillows for a good nights sleep. Tomorrow night is the fundraising activity in Orlando and hopefully I'll have enough time to get out on the bike.

Nite... nite...

Training Log - 2/11/07

Distance: 30.4 miles
Average speed: 14.8 mph
Weight: 190.0 lbs
Falling over with your feet stuck in the pedals in front of two attractive women: priceless (*rolling eyes*)

Skipped training yesterday altogether. I've got a decent head and chest cold brewing which I'm trying to get rid of. No fever yet though.

My Team in Working schedule interfered with my Team in Training schedule. So I had to work today instead of meeting up with the team this morning to do the 30 mile ride with them. Too bad too as it was such a nice day for a bike ride. My work was finished around noon. So I came home to take a nap to nurse my cold, mounted the new bike computer on my bike and then hit the road. I did the 30 miles here. It wasn't too bad. I didn't stop except for the the aforementioned spill at the intersection. I also didn't try to set any land speed records. I still had some life left in my legs but my knees were letting me know they weren't used to this distance.

I also tilted my handlebars back in order to rest my hands on the stems of the brakes/gear changers. I'll see how this feels tomorrow night. I may want to raise up my feet just a little as well. Overall, I feel pretty good.

Goal for tomorrow night -- 12 miles and then see how I feel.

Amazing Support...

At the first informational meeting, the Team in Training staff reported finding support for our cause would not be difficult. I figured that most people would be sympathetic to what I was doing, raising much need funds for cancer research and support, but I am very surprised that every single person I talk to about this wants to do more than I ask for. Everyone has been affected by cancer in one way or another. Everyone wants to help. And so many want to relay their stories of how cancer has affected them and their families. There aren't too many activities I have been involved with in my life where I have had such a sense of being part of something so much bigger than myself. I'm riding for so many other people.

Training Log - 2/9/07

Distance: 17.5 miles
Temperature: 67 degrees
Weight: 189.4 lbs

Yesterday, I felt great doing 17.5 miles. Today, not so much. My legs weren't sore at all but when I got on the bike they were like lead. I struggled the whole distance. The last 3-4 miles were really tough. But I forced myself to finish the last 1-2 miles strong. A rest day tomorrow will be important if I'm going to do 30 miles on Sunday.

I'm also coming down with a cold. I was achy and not feeling well even before getting on the bike. I need the rest day to nurse the cold as well.

Florida Today Article

Woo hoo! I'm really excited about this. Today I met with a reporter from Florida Today who is going to do an article on my participation in this Team In Training century bike ride. The article will appear first on the Palm Bay edition of the Florida Today website and then in the print version of the newspaper. It will probably take a few days for the article to go up on the website. Stay tuned. You can bet I will publish the link here.

Training Log - 2/8/07

Distance: 17.5 miles
Temperature: 59 degrees
Weight: 190.8 lbs

I woke up this morning, after a day of rest, and felt great. No soreness at all. I sure sleep great now though. Tough to haul my anchor out of bed in the morning.

Anyway, the bike ride felt really good. I am getting more used to the bike and the pedals. No playing cards in the spokes, but I did put some lights on the bike. Being able to see a little better in the dark, not to mention the cars being able to see me as well, makes it easier to go fast. The bike is so light it screams to go fast.

The Color Purple

My late wife used to buy me these purple shirts for Christmas. I really don't like the color purple. After a couple of holidays I ended up telling her I didn't like the purple shirts. I looked forward to the next Christmas day with the knowledge that my days of purple shirts were behind me. I tore into the first gift box and discovered... a purple shirt! As a matter of fact, I received two purple shirts. I looked at my wife puzzled. She just smiled and told me I had made her angry the previous Sunday, right before she went out Christmas shopping, and it serves me right! I laughed so hard.

So, here I am, planning to spend a whole day riding 100 miles and guess what--I'll be in a purple shirt! She's paying me back for something I did.

Still laughing about it.

Training Log - 2/7/07

Distance: 1.75 miles (walk)

Just a brisk walk tonight. A bit sore. So a walk is just enough to get the blood flowing to flush all the lactic acid out of my legs. Also spent 15 minutes going through some core strengthening exercises. I am being careful not to overtrain.

Need to get more sleep though. Tough to fit everything into one day.

My new trainer arrived today along with some other cycling supplies. The trainer is a good thing. It will allow me to train even when the weather is bad.

Time for bed. Zzzzzz....

Don't Google... Goodsearch instead!

Just wanted to alert people to this Internet search engine. There are dozens of search engines available for all sorts of topics. And collectively these sites bring in billions of dollars in advertising revenues. One married couple decided to create their own web search site and contribute the ad revenues to charities. And, best of all, you can specify which charities you want your share of the ad revenues sent. So, of course, you would want to pick The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. To date, $653 has been contributed to LLS.

Skip says check it out, use it and send the money you generate from your searches to LLS. Here's the link to Good Search -

http://www.goodsearch.com/

Frazzled...

Feeling a bit frazzled today. Being a single parent of two teens, keeping up with a very demanding career, managing a household and now training for Tahoe keeps me hopping. I'm trying to get my Team in Training fundraising set up as I know I am going to have to put more and more time into training as June 3rd gets closer. Its all good though. I have a lot going on in my life right now but its all good stuff.

Training Log - 2/6/07

Distance: 14 miles
Temperature: 51 degrees
Star Date: 6762905.1

OK, second day on the new bike. Except for the cool ride, everything was OK until I had to stop at an intersection and suddenly lost gyroscopic stability, a condition which continued until the force of gravity and motion was counteracted by an equal and opposite force, whereupon I and my bike discovered we were at rest. In other words, I fell over and forget to unclip my feet from the pedals! LOL Hmmmm... note to self, the leverage required to snap your feet out of the pedals is inversely proportional to the distance from the ground you are. It was kind of like going to Daytona during Bike Week and watching the drunk bikers stop at the traffic lights and forget to put their feet down. You get the picture. I crack myself up! :-)

I was a bit sore getting up this morning. My thighs were fine but the muscles around my hips were sore. I am definately using different sets of muscles with the new bike. Tomorrow is a rest day. No bike tomorrow. But I will use the day to start a core strengthening routine. I also need to hit my weight machine to strengthen the stabilizing muscles around my knees. I have read this can be a problem for cyclists, particularly if the type of cleats and pedals don't agree with you. A little cross training is a good thing.

I am also looking forward to the early Daylight Savings Time change this year on March 11th. By the time I get home from work its dark. So riding around my neighborhood can be a bit tricky. I can't go as fast as I'd like to. I noticed the bike has no reflectors or kick stand. No streamers hanging from the handlebars or lights. I am thinking about clipping some playing cards in the spokes on Thursday. heehee...

Urgency...

Some days I get a real sense of the urgency to support this cause. I just read an email message from my son's boy scout troopmaster. His son is at home after surgery to remove a cancerous tumor. It came as a complete shock to everyone. I am shocked. It wasn't very long ago I was helping this kid complete his Personal Fitness merit badge. The randomness of this disease is incredible. The next time someone close to me hears the words "you have cancer," I want it to be followed by the words "but we have a cure."

On a lighter note, my friend Susan may be able to meet my daughter and I in Lake Tahoe. Susan is a dear friend I have known for 28 years. We were in the Air Force together. She is battling lung cancer and doing well. She is one of the people I ride for. And to know she might be waiting for me at the finish line will be awesome.

Training Log - 2/5/07

Distance: 14 miles
Temperature: 53 degrees

Woo hoo! This was my first day riding my new bike. There were a lot of firsts today: new bike, new bike shorts, new jersey, new bike shoes. Let me tell you, it took a while to figure out how to mount the cleats on my shoes. And, sweet mother of Schwinn, it is quite a feat to get those cleats snapped into the pedals. That is going to take some getting used to.

After spending the last month riding my 5-speed heavy duty Schwinn dreadnaught, it was a dream riding the 14 miles on my new light Mercier road bike. It almost felt like cheating. Unfortunately, I have a grand total of about 11 inches of vertical distance to climb over the course of the 14 miles. I am worried about training for the climbs around Lake Tahoe. My trainer is due to arrive in a few days. So maybe I can use that to train for the climbs. No way to train for the altitude unless I wore a bag over my head. (Just kidding!)

I did end up raising the seat and moving it back some. Once I did that my posture felt more natural. I have never used cleats or toe clips either. Just like Mark, my coach, reported clipping your feet to the pedals helps immensely. I quickly learned to pedal through the entire revolution of each cycle which seems a whole lot more efficient. I noticed it used a different combination of muscles as well.

It was cold too. Okay... Okay... it was only 53 degrees. But I am a Floridian. The idea of biking in Lake Tahoe in 30-something degree weather seems insane to me. I wonder if it would be bad form to start the ride in Tahoe in a snowmobile suit... ;-)

"Sometimes men have to wear stretchy pants." Jack Black in Nacho Libre

Hello,

My name is Skip and I have this crazy notion of coaxing this 47 year old body to bike 100 miles in Lake Tahoe on June 3rd for a cause that hits very close to home for me and my children. Two years ago my wife of nearly 22 years lost her fight to non-Hodgkins lymphoma. So I signed up as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training to complete the 100-mile endurance bike ride named America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride to raise funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma from taking more lives. I'm completing this event in honor of all individuals and their families who are battling blood cancers. These people are the real heroes on our team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

As the name of the blog indicates--I am no Lance Armstrong. So my journey to the finish line is bound to be humorous at times. I plan on making regular entries here regarding my training for the event, my fund raising activities, a little about me and some info on one special hero named Collin whom my Team In Training is honored to ride for.

I hope you check back often to keep track of my progress. And, if you want to be a part of my team, head to Skip Hines' 2007 Team In Training Page to make a donation. Every donation brings relief to those with blood cancers and the families who support them.

Thanks for your support,
Skip