BRW 2007

Got some new bits for the bike last week. A new computer - Sigma 1606l DTS with wireless cadence, rack + panniers and some clear lenses specs for cycling in the dark.

Today was the first day I got to play with two of the three. I rode to Elwood this morning to check out the BRW triathlon that I plan to compete in next year. Went Blackburn -> FTG Road -> Princes Hwy -> Neerim Rd -> Bambra Rd -> North Rd -> bike track along beach to Elwood. About 15kms and a nice ride early in the morning.

Met up with L and A there and had a look around, had breaky and headed home - total trip a tad over 30km.
Avg Cadence was 76
Avg Speed was 17.8
Top speed was 55.07

We did a bit of slow riding around the event which will have dropped the averages slightly.

Also when I was setting up the new computer I noticed the old one had the wheel circumference set up wrong! so everything was out by about 10%. I took that into account when plugging in the new odometer reading in the new computer, so the total reading is about right now. (236km)

Still it was a fun ride, and I can't wait to get the bike racks so I can get the Mrs down to the beach for rides along the bike tracks there - it was magic riding along the tracks towards the city this morning.

This morning's swim

The 25m lengths are getting easier - gone is the struggling to get from one end to the other. Over the next week or two I'll be trying to extend to 50m non-stop from 25m. I know it doesn't sound like much, but I'm way out of practice and shape.

L has a megaswim on this weekend - a fundraiser for MS. I think I'll go and cheer the company team on a bit.

The 2007 BRW triathlon (this years competition that I want to compete in next year) is on this weekend. I checked out where it is, and it's a 15km ride from home - which would make for a 30km-ish round ride - I think I could do that ok.

back in the saddle

After having a slack week I'm back on the bike and will be back in the pool tomorrow. Wedding anniversary, valentines day, work pressures and any number of other excuses. :)

The odometer says 180km on the bike - I want it to say 300 before I take it for it's first service in March. I think I need to be careful of how hard I try - my legs were very sore at the end of last week - perhaps some more (some) stretching is required.

The steed

With a pool available to me via my gym, and I can walk (no running until I'm near 90kg) where I like, the only thing left was to get a bike. I'd tried the exercise bike before, and whilst I had some success, in the end it was just plain boring.

So having done some research my wife and I visited a couple of bike shops in our area. One place was really good, the guy who ran the place was very helpful, and the prices seemed reasonable. The second place wasn't as good, the guy who spoke to us didn't seem to know his stuff, and on returning home to check prices, we found he was overpriced. So the next day we went back to the first shop - Open Road Cycles (the web page will be working some day) and ordered a bike for myself and my wife. Due to my weight the LBS recommended a mountain bike for me, and a hybrid for my wife.

We ordered some odds and ends for the bikes - mine got a bike computer, pump, underseat bag with spare tube and tools. Both got lights, bidons (french for water bottle that goes on bike) and cages, locks and we got a helmet each. My bike also got a slightly longer headstem and a change of tyres to something a little more useful on biketracks than nobblies. As a result of the changes, and the cheese and kisses bike having to be ordered in, we had to wait for a week.

Whilst waiting, I went looking for some forums for advice. I found bicycles.net.au and made a few posts on there. The people there were amazingly helpful, and tremendously encouraging. I must admit, I had a preconceived notion that cycling was a bit cliquey and that I would be stonewalled. I couldn't have been further from the truth. Thanks guys.

On the day the bikes arrived I convinced the wife that it would be good for us to catch a bus to the LBS and ride home (a paltry 6km). She was unsure, but I was persuasive. So we caught the bus in, got some good tips from the LBS and set out.

I should point out at this point that neither of us had ridden since we were at school, and now are both in our 30s. The 6km happened, but quite slowly, and both backsides were sore and sorry at the end.

6km down, how many more to come?

Iron Awe

I spoke with a friend of work about this, and he mentioned that a mutual friend was also looking to get into shape. In fact all three of us started a casual steak eating 'club' which we had called Iron Awe.

So I sent out an email to gauge interest.

A,

L and I were enjoying a caffeinated beverage on the banks of the Yarra recently when I mentioned to him that I had set myself a goal to participate in a triathlon in the next 3 years - 'bout 2009 or there abouts, as I was striving to get fit, and I thought it worthwhile to set a goal. L said the masters games was on and he intended to participate in that and mentioned that he had spoken to you recently and there was some talk of a fitness regime of some sort involving riding.

L also went on to say that the BRW Corporate triathlon might be a good one to look at.

So like any good geek I did a little research - seems that the "Ironman", whose name fits well with the little steak club has a swim of 3.8km, a ride of 180km, and a run of just over 42km. Now I'm sweating just thinking about that. I'd need closer to 30 years to prep for that. I looked at the BRW - luckily it's a 400m swim, 10k cycle and 4k run. So a little more achievable.

Now... guess what - the BRW race needs teams of 3 :) It works in a relay fashion - person 1 swims, rides, runs, then person 2 then 3.

Looking at the times of the last race - they look like this:

2006 MELBOURNE SUMMARY RESULTS

Overall Team Time
1st 1:55:58
50th 2:20:52
100th 2:26:10
250th 2:33:02
500th 2:40:24
750th 2:46:12
1000th 2:53:02
1250th 3:01:01
Last 3:54:13

Now, I'm not sure if that's measured in hours, days or weeks, but I figure if we can beat the bottom time, we'll be doing ok.

It seems to run in Febuary - so Feb 2009 - about 25 months off. It's running at Elwood - so not far away, and we can always duck down to the stokehouse for a steak afterwards.

What do you reckon? Are you up for it?

I received answers in the affirmative, only the guys were keen to go for 2008 rather than 2009. I'm going to have to seriously lose some weight so I can run without blowing out a knee or something.

Genesis

I knew there was a problem when the scales I needed to weigh myself couldn't be bought in normal shops. I also had a chest scare, which I thought was heart related, but luckily turned out to be reflux. I guess the combination of these two things really got me moving to get fit and lose some weight. I have hypertension and I believe I can resolve this by getting fit and losing weight. Also my 'good' cholesterol is low. My doctor says exercise is key to fixing this. All things point to getting fit.

So around November of '05 I started walking. At that point I weighed 163kgs (25.6 stone, or 360 pounds) and had a BMI of 49.8. At first I could barely get around the block without my shins and calves screaming bloody murder. I reduced what I ate, started eating better and started stretching my lower legs to get rid of the pain.

Over a couple of months I worked up to walking 4.5km without pain, started riding an exercise bike for 30mins in the evening and kept eating ok. I counted calories for a bit to get a better idea of what I was eating, and tried to get the calorie deficit happening. I joined the local gym and I lost about 20kgs.

Then the inevitable plateau came. I hovered around 144-146 kg. Work became more intense, and whilst I still attended gym from time to time, the best I was doing was maintaining weight, and certainly not getting any fitter.

It was just after the new year of 2007 that my wife suggested that we should do some bicycle riding. My wife isn't much of an outdoorsy sort of person, or an exercise freak, so I took her suggestion on board. I also knew I needed to set a goal. Something to aim for where weight loss and fitness was a side effect, not the end game. I don't even remember what inspired me go in that direction - I think it was a chat at work with a friend, but I decided I was going to participate in a triathlon.