Mayday’s IronBlog

Back into the swing of long, slow volume this week.  8:25 total trianing time: 5600 meters in the pool, 74 miles on the bike, and 14 miles of running.

That brings the grand total for the last twelve weeks to 98 hours 25 minutes of training: 41,700 meters in the pool (that’s a full marathon: 26+ miles!), 689 miles riding, and 178 miles running. 

Two weeks to go until the yearly MS ride.  I’m doing the century again this year, so that will be 150 miles in two days, hopefully with some running thrown in.  I was hoping to have afew longer days on the bike by now, but things are busier than usual.

SOMA is looking more and more like a realisty for the last weekend in October.  This 1/2 iron distance race takes place on the same ground as IMAZ, so it’s very appealing in a dry-run sense.  After SOMA, it will be time for training camp as school lets out and I’m a free man.

Other scheduled events include a week of on-course training in November (I’ll be crashing at Kristy’s aunt and uncle, Tom and Shanlee’s place), the OC Marathon after the new year, and perhaps something else before the Big Race.

Days like yesterday make me glad that my school schedule allows me to have extended time off during autumn and winter here in southern california.  It was an absolutely gorgeous day, and I had already taken the day off so Steve and I could go see Dave Matthews at the Hollywood Bowl, so I used the morning to tackle one of my favorite bike routes - the Palos Verdes ‘washboard.’

If I want to ride in the mountains, I generally go up to the Angeles Crest Highway, and if I want to ride flatland, I head for PCH or any one of the river trails that extend inland.  But for rolling hills and moderate climbing, you can’t beat the Palos Verdes peninsula.  There’s a 22 mile loop that winds around the perimeter of the peninsula, offering both challenging riding and spectacular views.  I stopped to snap the above photo with my phone near the tip of the peninsula looking north - you can see Redondo and Hermosa Beach, extending north across the bay into Manhattan Beach and all the way across to Malibu.  On an exceptionally clear day you can also see the channel islands.

So after two nice laps around the washboard and an equally nice nap, I picked up Steve and we headed up to the Hollywood Bowl for the DMB show.  It was amazing - only my second time seeing them (as opposed to “fifty-something” for Steve) but it was heads and shoulders above the first show I saw with Kristy in Chula Vista a few years ago.  Their new music is so versatile: it can be backed up by strings, brass, banjo, electric guitar (all were used last night, with heavier emphasis on the banjo and electric guitar) and sounds great any which way.  The extended jams between Dave and the guest banjo player last night were worth the price of admission on their own.  And, as a bonus, they played my favorite song of theirs, Everyday (#41).  If only every day were like this one!