Although the Ironman training has gone pretty well so far, I still have a hell of a long way to go. After missing most of last week due to travel, I have felt flat and sluggish all week. Today we ran 20. The first 3 were at 8:30, the next 4 or so were at around 8, then back to 8:30 with the last mile at about 8 or so.
My goal this week has been to get my mileage up and not get injured so my runs have been at low intensity (10m, 11m, 20m, 5m). I will log 45+ run miles this week, quite a few for these old legs. I will and get in a big bike week next week, 200 miles if all goes as planned. My swim needs a lot of work but swimming in the morning with the masters group at North County will begin to pay off this month (only 6700 yds this week).
Next week I will back down my run mileage and mix in some speed work.
Stephen Denny was injured by a boat propeller while assisting a friend before a triathlon in St. Augustine. This picture of Steve's left leg is a partial representation of his injuries. Steve is still hanging on to his dream of completing Ironman Florida on November 1, 2008. The physical pain of his injuries must be substantial. However, the psychological and spiritual pain of not doing what we love and that keeps us grounded has to be the most profound to me. Can ya feel me?
"the staples have been out for almost four weeks. I was released to swim about 2 1/2 weeks ago, it felt good for a few days to do something aerobic. Unfortunately I developed an infection shortly after and am restricted from the water until the new sores are completely healed. I also could not bike because it kept tearing the sore open." Stephen Denny (skdfinancial@msn.com)
As an athlete, nothing can be more frustrating than to be on the sidelines. It is just not in our nature to NOT be moving. For myself, and I am sure many others, this sport is really a lifestyle that keeps me connected to my soul. Maybe that sounds a little deep and at odds with the perception of outsiders that triathletes and athletes in general are superficial and more concerned with the external factors such as how we look and how we perform. However, the greatest benefits for me are: stress relief, decompressing, camaraderie, being alone with only the sound of my breathing, seeing the sun rise over the ocean 3-4 times per week, practicing self discipline, sacrifice and commitment.
It does feel great to look in the mirror and like what you see and have the feeling of wellness and confidence that comes with being fit. But what feels the best is knowing that I am pushing myself to the limit, setting and working towards a goal and doing workouts that only a small segment of the population can imagine.
Steve, I believe in your dream. Hang in there and do not give up, miracles happen and anything is possible. Every day ordinary people like us accomplish extraordinary things.
Words of encouragement can be posted here or sent directly to Steve's email address above.
Today I was lucky. I was riding the Sunday Cycle Science ride, just before the RR tracks nearing Cove Rode. There was a bottle neck in the pack and I moved left around some slower traffic to work myself into a better position near the front. At this point I am sure the pack is traveling 26-28mph and in the blink of an eye I touched wheels with Dave Garfield. Dave is an excellent and experienced rider so I am not sure if I moved into him (if I did, I apologize) or he bumped me (if he did, no big deal), it happens but it can be pretty hairy. Something on his bike, I think his wheel skewer, ripped through the spokes on my front wheel, within a second, we separated and I could tell he was going to stay up and was left to wonder about myself as my front wheel was vibrating and shaking violently. I stayed calm and held a line away from the pack so I didn't take anyone else out and just tried to hold it toward the grass so if I went down it might due less damage. Luckily, I made it to the grass and the pack went sailing smoothly by. When I got stopped I realized how damn lucky I was. There wasn't a spoke left undamaged, the wheel would not turn and I realized I was also skidding a bit on the pavement.
Looking at the wheel I was immediately taken back to my childhood cartoon days of Tom Slick in the Thunderbolt Grease Slapper as he battled Baron Otto Matic. In nearly every episode the Baron would pull beside Tom and use a spear like instrument protruding from his wheel to knock dashing Tom off his course. Good thing I can smile about it and I will be back to ride the group ride again. I should probably slow down a bit and not worry if I am getting caught back a bit, after all, I know where the ride ends and the goal is to get there in one piece.
By the way, thanks to Rick of Tire Kingdom. What a great guy, he threw my bike in his truck and brought me all the way back to Jupiter when he could have just drove home to Palm City..YOU'RE THE MAN RICK!
The sport of triathlon and perhaps more exclusively Ironman triathlon training may be responsible for brain damage in what appears to be healthy, otherwise normal individuals So spouses relax, your partner is not partaking of "the chronic, kona gold, maui wowie or texas tea".
The hippocampus is the part of the brain that is involved in memory forming, organizing, and storing. As evidence I will point to the results area following any race, where hundreds gather to analyze every aspect of each phase of the race to prove they could have pushed a little harder and caught the competitor who was only 30 seconds ahead. This obvious delusion demonstrates the absurdity and complete abandonment of reality as less than an hour earlier, the same foolish individuals were suffering on the brink of a complete physical and mental meltdown - spitting and gasping for air, quads afire and pain receptors screaming "what in God's name are you doing"?
I am the second example. This weekends training menu included a 50/10 brick on Saturday followed by a century ride on Sunday. Now, on paper, this seemed a plausible and reasonable progression in the program. What struck me, although I have lived through this before, was my complete inability to produce a single memory of just how bad it could suck. Starting your 10 mile run off a 50 mile bike at almost 9am - in July - in Florida - instant producer of pain. Can you sing "HOT, HOT, HOT"? I call it the Tour de Shower, dragging to the next shower long enough to cool off and march out another mile. I looked at Shir about mile 7 and there was no joy in his face, no smile, not a shred of happiness and the run was noticeably absent of any conversation as I realized he was a mirror of me. Even better was the Sunday century extravaganza. I was excited to do my first 100 miler in a while. Again, no memory of the pain and suffering that can take place. I now list the areas of suffering the last 20 miles of the day - my neck, my back, my crotch, my wrists, my quads and finally the bottoms of my feet.
How long will I remember this experience? My wife says, "It will be forgotten in the morning" You know, I think she is right. Maybe my hippocampus really is broken...
See you on the road,
So there you are, spent and without a drop of water or a spits worth of Gu. No worries mate, you can always count on your tri-training brother/sister to come through in your time of despair.
Today I was running 15 - starting and finishing at Running Sports - and my training mates were stopping at 10, so I planned ahead and stashed a bottle at the end of the 10 mile loop so I could just pick it up and keep on truckin. To my surprise, I peeked in the bushes to grab my tasty treat and...huh? No bottle. Crap, this could jam me up and really make the last 5 a true suffer fest with the high humidity and the fact that the first 10 miles were done at an average pace of 7:30/mile. I immediately had two offers from Alan Tanner and Bob Whitmore for a water bottle and salt pills to carry me through.
Now, part of this is because of the true spirit of support that exists among those who train, the second part is that no self respecting hard ass tri geek would ever want to see someone get out of a single mile of suffering due to such a silly thing like a flat tire, empty or lost water bottle or forgotten swim goggles.
This is a universal law (#6 - Law of Compensation) even though I have not been anywhere else in the universe, I can imagine an astronaut saying "Wow, I would love to go out there with you guys on a tether and try to fix the spaceship but I forgot my dang screwdriver" Oh hey man, use mine, I always bring an extra one just in case... (some wimpass like you tries to get out of some stuff like this). "Yea, thanks dude"
And triathletes never forget! Always quick to pay back or pay it forward. We can all recall an experience when someone helped us out in a pinch. Most amazing, are guys like Bruce that will bring an empty $2 water bottle that he borrowed on every ride for two months until he sees you just to return it.
So remember when you see a brother or sister in need to pay it forward, there will come a day when your TriKarma will bring it back...See you on the road!
I am posting this from San Antonio where I am having a great professional conference that runs 5 days. But I have to tell ya, I really don't know how Shir does it. Traveling and training really throws a wrench in your plan. My sleeping, eating and social schedule is completely upside down. Yesterday, I decided to jump out and do a quick run before dinner, it took me 1hr 10min to do a 45 minute run?!@?# I looked up a route on Athleticmindedtraveler.com and did my best to follow it, but somewhere an absent thought and a wrong turn and I was in a neighborhood where white men in spandex are not so much embraced. I eventually found my way back to the hotel and went to dinner that lasted until midnight. The last time I was up until midnight was New Years Eve, no early morning workout before the conference. I hope to make it back to the fitness center later before going out to another 3k calorie gut busting dinner but I imagine I will be landing in West Palm a little heavier and a lot softer than when I left. Shir, how do you do it man?
As July approaches, a sense of urgency to prepare for my Ironman training has finally arrived and man I was ready. I was getting somewhat concerned about my relaxed attitude towards training. Today, I feel energized and excited after months of "trying" to discipline myself to stay in reasonable shape.
Saturday was a 13 mile run, LSD, right. Starting off between blistering Bob Whitmore and the Israeli Ironman (Shir) the pace quickly established itself at 7:35 with Tom Benz pushing on the way out. After the turn it was time to stretch the legs as Bob and I pushed mile 8 at 6:46. Pass the gatorade and the salt pills (pronounced "solt peels" by Shir). After regrouping at mile 9, we decided to pick it up mile 10 before running easy the last 3. Mile 10: 6:50, epic.
Three consecutive weekends of base building on the bike and run are beginning to pay dividends and I feel I will be able to handle the progression of the mileage. The past two weekend trips to Jensen Beach over "middle bridge" at a steady cadence (90 rpm) and heart rate (120-130 bpm) are helping my endurance but my speed is still a little disappointing. I will have to mix in speed with the endurance in all three disciplines.
Next weekend I will ride long on Friday and brick on Saturday.
The purpose of this site is to share workout schedules and training experiences during the months leading up to Ironman Florida on November 1, 2008. I am a member of Running Sports Racing Team a great group of supportive athletes who call northern Palm Beach County home and train in the Jupiter/Juno area, proudly wearing the RSR banner on our spandex.
I will be counting down the weeks from 16 all the way to race day beginning the first week of July. I will be running on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6:00am from Loggerhead Park. Saturdays will alternate long run and brick sessions with Sundays reserved for long rides. Swims will most likely occur erratically on Wednesdays and Fridays at North County Aquatic Complex and Saturday ocean swims with the club. COME TRAIN WITH US!!
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