Confessions of a Lane Five Swimmer - Part 2

I am settling comfortably in Lane 5. I can keep up with the lane during 50's and strokes. If we do 8 x100, then I line up toward the end. But if we do 150 or more, then I fall behind. I still need to find my comfortable zone that I can pace myself out for 200 yards and be ready to move right on to the next set.

Last Thursday's workout
Warm--up
12 x 75 (kick, drill, swim by 25)
12 x 25 stroke count reduction

Main set
200
2 x 150
4 x 100 by 1:40
4 x 50
100 easy
Repeat main set

Bear Encounters

Earlier this month, while I was waiting for my Chinese takeout, I noticed two idiots making faces at me from the glass window. Naturally, I pulled out my iPhone to capture their silliness. Noticing that they were on camera, they started to act even sillier. They went around to the front entrance of the restaurant, yelling at me, "gaysian ... we love gaysians!" I was amused, but the restaurant workers were a little disturbed. I looked at my stalkers and now it became clear that one of they was Jay McCaroll http://www.jaymccarroll.com/, the first season winner of Project Runway.



After my weird run-in with the stalkers, I decided that a weekend in the Poconos would be a great getaway. I was stalked by bears! Not the kind of bears that drink beer and dance to Madonna at the Bike Stop, but the real bears in the wild. On the first day, I went running with Todd and Dan. One black bear ran across the street right in front of Todd and me. The next day, I went with Dan to the same general area. As I looked up, a big bear standing on its two feet, was staring right at me. I unleashed a scream so loud that probably caused leaves to fall all over. Dan was about 10 yards in front of me. Dan turned around and saw the bear and it started to lumber down and walked away.

Boys of Summer 2008

I made an encore appearance as a "lifeguard" at the Boys of Summer party last night. Guys seemed to behave better this year, but maybe that's because I left before midnight.

Lehigh Valley Steelman Triathlon

Finally, I got around to do a sprint distance triathlon. It's a fun race that pretty much anyone can do without any significant training. I signed up for this race in May, and almost skipped it to go to Rehoboth Beach for the weekend.

The swim portion went as well as I could imagine. The lake temperature was 79 degrees, so no wetsuits allowed for official results. I stayed with the slower pack of my wave, alternating between freestyle and breaststroke. The sun glare affected my vision, so I found myself drifting toward land too much when I swam freestyle.

My slow bike time seems to indicate that something went wrong. No, I didn't have a flat tire. My bike was fine. I was painfully slow. At first, I enjoyed the slow scenic ride, but as soon as I got passed by people who shouldn't pass me, I thought about all the training rides that I skipped.








Overall
1:39:18
29/37 M30-34
208/308 Males
395th out of 524 overall sprint finishers

Swim (800 yards)
18:14 minutes; 264th out of 524

Transition 1 (swim to bike) 2:16

Bike (12.8 miles)
54:08 minutes; pace = 14.2 miles per hour; 420th out of 524

Transition 2 (bike to run) 0:54

Run (3.1 miles)
23:48 minutes; 7:41 minutes per mile pace; 127th out of 524

Twenty Year Affair

Twenty years had gone by so I thought that my love affair with fresh jackfruit had ended. It is a sweet fruit that I enjoyed in Vietnam, and is not available where I currently live. I stumbled upon it in Chinatown San Francisco. One bite and I am in love again! I love most fruits, but jackfruit is something I can have for breakfast, lunch, and dinner everyday.

Confessions of a Lane Five Swimmer - Part 1

Whoa, I've moved to Lane 5! The migration was mostly due to a few new beginners joining the team the past two months. A few fellow former Lane Six regulars moved with me which made my move a lot easier to adjust.

Lane 5 can be fast one day and slow the next day, depending on who shows up. Some days I was able to complete all lane 5 sets. Certain days, I have to skip a few 50's to catch my breath. I can keep up well if the set includes breaststroke or freestyle of 50 yards or less. I lose pace at every freestyle turn since I can't flip!

I'd have no problem going back to lane 6 during practices when lane 6 is more appropriate for me. Lane 5 for me is a new challenge, and I hope that I will feel more comfortable as time goes by.

San Francisco Marathon

San Francisco Marathon
Originally uploaded by reflexblue

It was a slow run, but my pace was even, and I officially completed my 19th marathon.

It was a cool and cloudy day. Course was hilly. Runners and crowd were not as fun to look at as I'd expected to see in San Francisco. Best part of the course was the 5 mile run over the Golden Gate Bridge and back.

Place Overall: 2164 out of 4354
Men: 1670 out of 2873
M 30-34: 289 out of 466
AgeGrade: 46.63%
Place: 2160
FINISH: 4:27:53 pace: 10:14
7.5 Mi: 1:17:11 pace: 10:18
Half: 2:09:06 pace: 9:51