OJ getting ready to go for a car ride!

The weather’s picking up, the training’s picking up…woo hoo! Time to throw the bike on the car and head out to some long ride locations.

Friday I got out for my first ride after the bike fit. WOW! I really didn’t realize what a difference having my bike custom adjusted to me would make. I did an 18 mile ride out Padden Parkway to a friend’s house and back. It was a crisp 40 degrees (warmed up 9 degrees from when I got up). I could not believe how smooth the ride was. I don’t know really how else to explain it, but everything was smooth and connected. No slack, full power all the way through the pedal stroke. I actually picked up 2 mph on my average pace, which is fantastic considering the last half of my ride was in the pouring rain! I’m convinced! If you haven’t done it, make an appointment to get a professional bike fitting–if you’re in the Portland area, contact Russell Cree at Upper Echelon Fitness (no longer in business).

I’ve started “stacking” my workouts, doing back-to-back training workouts, such as Zumba and then cycling, Boot Camp and then yoga, swimming and then lifting, etc. I’m trying to up the intensity and get my body used to changing activities one after the other to get ready for brick training (the transition from swim to bike and bike to run). I can tell it’s more work on my body…my 18 mile ride was right after Zumba and I could really feel my legs. The weather was beautiful Saturday so I did an impromptu 7 mile run even though it was supposed to be a rest day, and my hip flexors were really barking at me by the end. Sunday and today are rest days now.

I took my friend Theresa with me to the Portland Triathlon Club Coffee Hour Saturday so she could meet folks. She’s done a sprint and an Olympic triathlon and has trained on her own for them; she’s excited to meet others to train with. We’ll be heading to Hood River next month to visit ProMotion Wetsuits to check out their women’s tri suits—we’ve heard great things about them.

Stuff Coming Up

I’m going to attend a free Triathlon Tips 101 class offered through Portland Parks and Recreation, have the next Tri Club meeting with a bike maintenance clinic beforehand, and the 15K Shamrock Run in Portland with high school girlfriends Seriny and Patty. Working on scheduling training with tri buddies Christine and Theresa and others I’ve met at Tri Club. Also planning on checking out some rides with the Portland Velo Club; I met the club president at Upper Echelon during my fitting and sounds like they have some great rides.

Tenative 2011 Race Schedule