Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/05/2017 11:18 AM |
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Race ready!!
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/05/2017 11:27 AM |
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Full Spec
Specialized Shiv TT Frame and HB module
TriRig Gamma Aerobars
Shimano TT shifter w/ Dura Ace RD and Ultegra FD
Shimano Ultegra 52/34 Crank
Zipp 808 Firecrest front / Zipp 900 PowerTap Disc rear; tubular
Vittoria Corsa G+ Graphene tubular tires
ICE chain
Bontrager XXX Brake Levers
Profile Design saddle
Specialized Virture aero waterbottle; Regular WB BTA (between the arms)
Shimano pedals
Heading down to Chattanooga tomorrow, stopp;ing halfway in Louisville. Register on Thursday afternoon. Race is Sunday.
Zero ambition or goals....I know I am not going to be competitive at the pointy end of this group, so my goal is mainly to enjoy the experience / day. Swim is gonna be tough.....half of it will be upstream against the current and no wetsuits. That alone sinks any chances of me doing well, since the swim is my weakest leg. So just wanna survive the swim and then have a decent bike and consistent run. Not going to flog myself to finish 152nd instead of 156th, ya know? 
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/05/2017 01:03 PM |
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"please update your account to enable third party hosting"
hope you're better prepared otherwise :-)
Good luck. |
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huckleberry
Posts:824
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| 09/05/2017 01:46 PM |
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| Best of luck, CK! |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/05/2017 02:28 PM |
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Posted By Orange Crush on 09/05/2017 01:03 PM
"please update your account to enable third party hosting"
hope you're better prepared otherwise :-)
Good luck.
??? I can see the pic in my browser.....weird. Can anyone see the pic?
I'll see if I can work around it w/o posting a widey again. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/05/2017 02:39 PM |
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[url=https://imgur.com/i8DAiTv] [/url] |
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/05/2017 02:42 PM |
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| Crap....sorry. Can only seem to get it to post as a widey. |
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Habanero
Posts:257
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| 09/05/2017 03:20 PM |
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Good luck CK!
Is the ICE chain worth the extra coin? How long does the treatment last? |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/05/2017 10:12 PM |
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Hab, the ICE chain is totally worth it if you are racing or have a big event that you want to eek every second out of. It is amazing the difference it makes.
Treatment supposedly lasts ~500 miles, but I have never gotten that much. Initial outlay is pricey, but retreatments are *only* $60.
A cheaper option is to get an ultrasonic parts cleaner, clean You chain and cassette with it and just do a parrafin wax treatment yourself. |
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Dale
Posts:1767
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| 09/06/2017 06:44 AM |
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I though you bought one of the ultrasonic cleaners?
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/06/2017 07:06 AM |
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I did....love it. Just haven't gotten around to waxing my own chain yet.
Added thought to above post - if you use a quick link on the ICE chain, it is very easy to swap it out between events. Just make sure you clean your cassette and chainrings when you put the ICE chain back on. |
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Habanero
Posts:257
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| 09/06/2017 07:16 AM |
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| CK - what kind of ultrasonic cleaner do you have/recommend out of curiosity?
I'm still using the old Detmar technique of 1 part synthetic motor oil to 3 parts mineral spirits. Of course, he always preached using bar chain oil but I like how synthetic lasts. I use a quick link so I can easily get the chain off, soak and scrub it off if needed and then relube it. All this said I always am curious about other setups and their pros and cons. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/06/2017 09:57 PM |
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| I'll check which unit I have when I get home, Hab....but it was nothing special. Just a cheap unit off Amazon. Less than $100 IIRC. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/09/2017 05:26 AM |
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Quick update from Chattanooga.....arrived Thursday AM and did a short recon ride up Lookout Mountain. It is about 5 miles outside of town and the climb is 3.5 miles and ~1k feet. Pretty steep at the bottom, but not too bad.
Did a test swim on Friday in the river, which went well. Definitely the part of the race I am most nervous about. 1/2 the swim is straight upstream and no wetsuit. Was seriously concerned it may just be a giant Endless Pool for me....Current was pretty strong on Friday and forward progress could be made, so a big relief. Plus the current will be slower on the weekend as they will close the hydro dam upstream for the weekend.
Women's race is today so we are heading down to watch them for a bit and see how transitions work, etc.
Having a blast....Chattanooga is a great town and the energy here is awesome. Really, really cool to actually be participating in an event like this! |
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Dale
Posts:1767
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| 09/09/2017 10:27 AM |
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| Cool! Good luck |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/10/2017 03:39 AM |
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RACE DAY!!!
If anyone wants to track me, you can do it at the link below. My bib is #541. Also, I put a bunch of pics / vids up from the week on Instagram...@velobouf.
http://m.ironman.com/triathlon/coverage/detail.aspx?race=worldchampionship70.3m&year=2017 |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/12/2017 10:18 AM |
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late race report.....some good, some bad.
After stressing for over a year about a non-wetsuit, upstream swim, turns out that not only did they shut off the current to almost non-existent levels, the water cooled substantially in the last week. Dropped from 83* the week before to under 76* on race day.....WETSUIT LEGAL!!! My only stress factor for the race was now removed!!
Swam faster than I had planned (but also planned for non-wetsuit) and got out in ~38 minutes. Not a great swim, but better than expected and I came out feeling fresh and ready. Grabbed my bike stuff and got going.
Went over some RR tracks about 2 miles in and jettisoned my DT aero bottle. Crap. Stopped, went back and had to wait for a break in the riders to grab it. Probably cost me 20-30"....next time, take the aero penalty and use a standard bottle maybe.
There was a pretty big climb at the 5 mile mark....3.5 miles and ~1K feet of climbing up Lookout Mountain. i was planning n riding just over threshold and trying to leverage my strength. LOL....I was getting shelled everywhere. Guys were just BLOWING by me. Was literally laughing out loud over how fast these guys were. Insane.
About mile 21 or so, I dropped my chain on a climb and it got stuck between my frame and the chain catcher (which clearly did not do it's job, but it prevented me from getting the chain back on....well done, K-Edge!!). Lost another 2 minutes there.
Course was pretty flat after dropping down form Lookout. Had a small issue when a guy veered left on the descent as I was passing him. I hit the yellow reflectors in the middle of the road and thought for sure I had double flatted. Definitely doinked the front rim though as I now have a "tick-tick-tick-tick" when I brake. Fook. This was a high-speed descent and I now had no confidence in my tires or my front wheel and I was pretty cautious. Oh well.
Passed a fair number of riders on the way back in once we got on the flats. Came into T2 ready to run. Time was 2:39 and I was planning a 2:40. Factor in the mechanicals and bottle and I probably rode a 2:36 pace. Not bad on that course!
Grab my run stuff and decide to hit the portapotty to pee. Get in and suddenly realize that I need to do more than pee. Never had to "drop a deuce" while racing, but it hit me then. So that cost me a few minutes, plus trying to wrestle back into my skinsuit soaking wet.
Feeling good on the run and was slightly below my expected pace...but I also probably underestimated how hard the run was. 1K feet of climbing across 13.1 miles is BRUTAL. There was a 1/2 mile climb followed by a 1/2 mile descent and then you went a block over and went back up and down. Really tough section of the race.
get through mile 7 and need to pee again....and repeat what happened in T2, except worse. Spent about 7 minutes in there....would stand up and start getting ready to leave and have to sit right back down. Not pretty. Side note - if you ever need to get a really good sweat going, run a hilly 7 miles and then immediately sit in a portapotty. Sweat was just rolling off me!!
Lost a little bit of fight at that point....walked the second half of the first hill and the whole 2nd one on the second lap. After cresting it, I ran the final 2 miles in. Finished in 5:27, whcih was about 7 minutes slower than I had expected. But if you factor in the mechanicals and stomach issues, I was probably at least 10 minutes faster than my finish time.
All in all, I had a great time....fantastic experience and I enjoyed the whole week. Going up against the best in the world was a humbling, but awesome, experience. Even when I was sufferring on the run I had a great time.
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Habanero
Posts:257
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| 09/12/2017 10:31 AM |
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Awesome race report - thank you so much for sharing!! I love hearing about other's experiences like this and I checked out your Strava stats for the race which were impressive. Stomach/mechanical issues were a bummer no doubt but you'll figure out what to do differently next time. Speaking of which, when will you do another 1/2?
It is always humbling and amazing to train or compete with the best in the world. Definitely gives you some perspective! |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/12/2017 03:20 PM |
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"plus trying to wrestle back into my skinsuit soaking wet."
"if you ever need to get a really good sweat going, run a hilly 7 miles and then immediately sit in a portapotty."
"Course was pretty flat"
none of this sounds appealing; I'll stick to the 34x40 gravel climbs thank you very much LOL. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/12/2017 03:43 PM |
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No, no OC....you didn't quote the whole thing re: the course being flat. It was only flat AFTER climbing up Lookout Mountain and then also riding along the top of the mountain. race had 3500ft of climbing in 56 miles. BY FAR, the hardest Half-Ironman bike leg I have ever ridden.
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/12/2017 04:23 PM |
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LOL that's still flat in my neck of the woods. Just ribbing you a bit CK, nice effort, Dumoulin moments* and all. Its something I am sure you won't forget easily.
(* As Dumoulin would tell you, avoid the excessive sweating by going out in the open.) |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/12/2017 04:51 PM |
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LOL...Dumoulin moments. Not quite as dramatic as his issues, but certainly not much fun!
Better representation of the bike course, IMO, below....previous pic was stretched out too much and made the course look flatter than it was. File is from Ben Kanute who finished 2nd and was first off the bike.
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/13/2017 10:03 AM |
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Just found out that Jalabert did the race, as well......and I beat his punk-ass.
Well, I beat his punk-ass out of the water. He destroyed me on the bike and run.  |
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Habanero
Posts:257
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| 09/13/2017 10:05 AM |
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| Haha!!! Ex pros are still scary fast! |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/13/2017 10:58 AM |
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And he was just out there to have some fun and travel with family (including his triathlete son) LOL :-)
"Le cycliste international n’a pas d’objectif précis pour le Championnat du Monde IRONMAN 70.3, seulement se faire plaisir et voyager en famille, avec son fils triathlète. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/13/2017 02:02 PM |
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Buddy of mine beat his punk-ass out of the water AND on the run.....but got completely destroyed by him on the bike.
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SideBySide
Posts:444
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| 09/15/2017 10:16 PM |
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| Nice job! Especially considering your"issues." |
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