I was out riding late October and snapped this photo while on Robinson Rd, adding in a last few intervals before Ironman Florida.  The sun went down a bit quicker than I thought it would and I stopped to take this quick pic, which turned out good.  I would recommend not putting the digital camera in the bento box on the front of the bike, my camera seems to have rewired itself with the help of my perspiration.  

This year I have put a lot of miles on the bike at Rocky Mount and ERBC to Mansfield.  We even got to see a cougar on the side of the road one weekend out on HWY 1 between Ellerbe and the General Store about five miles out.   The cougar was not alive, ...I don't know if a car hit the cougar or it was killed and placed there.   Jeff and Seth also spotted the cougar but none of us stopped to whip out the phone and take a pic.  Next time the workout will have to stop for a moment to capture the event.  The cougar was gone the next day.

I'm feeling pretty good about IMFL.  The training has been great, and I'm as fit as I have ever been.  I'm ready.  Bring it on.

cn

There is no doubt in my mind nutrition and pace control is a HUGE part of Ironman racing.   During the past seven months I've been training on the bike in a steady zone, slightly faster than an easy pace, building the endurance I'll need to ride 112 miles comfortably and build enough fitness on the bike where I can run great off the bike, and not have a sufferfest on the run.  The heart rate bpm I have been using for my zone was collected from data over several rides and races.   So, I had a question... "Did I correctly identify the zones?"

What I need is validation, before my race, I am training in the right zone for an Ironman distance race.  Jason Hamm had mentioned Source Endurance offers testing, and bike fits, and gave them a good recommendation.   I like Austin, and have clients in Austin, so why not take a trip down there.  How fun would that be?  An added benefit is the guys and gals at Source Endurance come to town and complete in our local events (Brandon Marsh, 2008 Red River Tri and 2008 RCT Overall Winner).

As you can see from the pic above,  I made it to Austin and had the tests completed.  The lactate test is fairly easy'ish to complete.  I'm not getting into the specifics here, but we did the test and got some solid numbers.  The VO2 Max ... is where you have to go all out.  Give everything you have and then push harder when you think you can not push anymore.  The test lasted 7min for me.  When I got to 6min into the test and the resistance increased I had to come out of the saddle and push, grunt, yell...  Brandon, Derick and Kelly were there cheering me on.  And this definitely helped.  At 6min my quads where on fire, and my mind was telling me to stop.  I just pushed those thoughts out, and kept the hammer down.

After a 10min cool down, and a quick change of clothes I started my bike fit.  Source Endurance uses Retul to do the bike fitting. David and Brandon both worked the bike, me and me shoes for the bike fit.  The biggest point I took away is my right leg is 1cm shorter than my left.  We stuffed an extra sole from another biking shoe to make up the difference, dropped the bars a bit more, dialed in the pedals and we were done with the bike fit.

I’m blown away, and really impressed with everyone at Source Endurance.  They helped to unload my bike, had top quality lab equipment, and everyone is super knowledgeable.  They even have coaching services so you can get the most out of your training as possible.  And I think this is very important.  Time management can be a hassle, when family life, work, and training.  If you can train less, more efficiently, in the correct way, and make huge improvements, then this is the way to go.

Right before I left for a meeting in Austin with a client, Derick went over the test results with me and gave me some excellent tips about improving my fitness (getting faster).   Derick knows his stuff.  He was spot on about me being a tad bit lazy with trainer workouts, not pushing up the power when I should have been.  Kinda like touring on the bike instead of training.

I wish I could have stayed a bit longer and discussed my test results more in depth with Derick, but I had to make a meeting.  Thanks to everyone at Source Endurance for providing top quality service and location.  I'll definitely be back.

Peace Out!

Craig