WIN A COMPUTRAINER!

ALL RIGHT!!!!!

We just opened the CompuTrainer booth for the last and final day of the Ironman US Championships in New York City. It has been fun, yet not without the usual challenges and issues. My issues seem puny compared to the organizers problems in dealing with the sewerage leak in Tannytown, about eight miles up the Hudson.

So to offer a final day special, we are offering a first time ever opportunity for you to take part in the CompuTrainer raffle. Up to this point one needed to be present to fill out an official entry form and drop it in the official collector box. But TODAY ONLY you can enter the drawing simply by responding to this post using the CODE: RCVrock and giving my your name, phone and e-mail addy.

I will fill out a form for you and drop in in the lucky box.

WOW. TODAY ONLY.

WIN A FREE COMPUTRAINER. (A $1,649 value)

use CODE: RCVrock
Name:
Phone:
E-mail:

Good Luck

Things happen FAST around here!!

Joe?

Long day (this is Ironman) in NYC. A few quick images from the last 24 hours. It is humid, everyone seems to smoke, everything is at maxed volume and there is attitude galore. If you are easily offended, timid in any way or the slightest bit thin-skinned, you might want to steer clear. However, for those who find full-tilt, take no prisoners, maximum overdrive yahoo at breakneck speed to be six degrees of intoxication, Broadway beckons. I keep asking myself where the heck Joe D has gone.

Also, this review by Pez Cycling News of the new RacerMate1 software. For your review.

Big Apple Day One

Logistics day in NYC. Hotel (Newark) shuttle, AirTrain, NJ Transit, a 2.2 mile walk and I was at Pier 92 checking out the Expo site. Made it in 1:45 at the RT cost of $25. Not bad by New York standards. Everything here is supposed to happen in a minute. Stopped by Paul Levine's spectacular Signature Cycles on the Upper West Side. Paul is a custom fitter, frame builder and trip organizer. He uses the CompuTrainer for his fit tests and sizing.

On my reverse walk back to Penn Station I stopped in Hells Kitchen for a couple slices of delicious pizza Margharita. Thin, cheese like liquid white-gold perfectly balanced and with just a hint of charring underneath. Mama mia! Two slices with an ice cold water for $5. No wonder this place never sleeps.

Got some bad news form the home office today. Looks like we have lost our partner of six years on the RCV project. It is our belief that they are, and have been, negotiating with one of our competitors and wanted to orchestrate a bidding war for the filming rights to their events. My boss said, diplomatically, no. I seriously doubt I would have had that same degree of business acumen, let alone patience, or even professionalism. I would have told them, with all due respect, to go fly a kite.

And you know also that is sugar coating what I REALLY would have said.

New York City Day One Pics:

Paul's Signature Cycles fitting room. My lunch heating. Manhattan Center with ESB behind.

Q de Applause

Travel Day. I am out for the Big Apple. The inaugural Ironman US Championship 

It is going to be interesting. It is also going to be a challenge. You can imagine the logistic nightmare. Four years ago we shot the New York City Triathlon, that being a scaled down version of the full IMonty (1500m/40K/10K to 2.4/112/26.2). Even then, swimming in the Hudson, riding on the Henry Hudson Parkway and running into Central Park presented a test not only of speed and skill, but of inner city orientation as well. I remember taking a road in Central Park on race day, trying to get to the finish line and coming out on the wrong side of Manhattan. I hopped in a cab and asked to be driven to the other side. Traffic was a mess and I got about twenty feet for ten bucks before I saw a landmark and bailed at an (closed to traffic) intersection. 

One can only imagine what 140.6 miles through the boroughs into Jersey, across the GWB and to the finish on the upper west side will do for the locals. I can hear the Yankee fans screaming now. 

The plan is to plan. I am working the Expo all week and should have enough intel by race day, Saturday, to create a workable battle plan. How to get where I need to get to capture enough imagery to create a story of the day. I have three cameras packed, loaded and ready to go. I know the transition points. I will decide on what money shots are possible considering the constrains. I will get to bed early Friday night as the task will require a 0300 wake up call and a 15 hour shift. Ironman requires endurance from everyone!

I plan on filming daily segments from the Expo and uploading each night. The idea being a virtual expo that you can experience at home (or work) some of the energy and excitement along with the participants and race fans. Won't THAT be fun?

Now I am seeing the opening, "LIVE from Newark (where I am staying) it's RCVman from the CompuTrainer exhibit at Ironman US Championships".

Cue the applause. Please. 

Slow

The third workout isn't really a workout at all, it's more of a playout. After this morning's 90 minute focus-fest, and an afternoon 5K recovery run in the glorious sun, the third was what one might call an un-workout.

As in it being about slow. Like, as slow as you can. PAINFULLY SLOW. Trackstand slow. Balance, breathing, feeling as aware as the grazing geese. 

After this evening's delightful curried sweet potato and tofu, I set out for a couple of laps with Trixie. I think she misses me. She is quintessentially nonjudgmental, accepting me for the hack rider I am. She is tolerant of my views and appreciative of my few good traits, staggeringly outnumbered by my not-so-good. She likes me for who I am, not whom I might become. I sometimes think she wishes I was Wiggo or Fabiano or Lance, but as soon as we put our parts together, my motor and her drive chain, the magic quickly chases that displacement away. It's good harmony. House groove with overtones of quirk. We like it. We are happy together. We bust some stress and enjoy the ride. 

And we desire to make it last. We have the want to enjoy, to share, to merge and laugh. And that is why we practice the slow. The objective is to circle the pond as slow as we can go. It is a struggle. It is out of the comfort zone of speed. There is an obvious dearth of power. Yet the focus required, the presence, the ability to sustain a equilibrium, balanced by awe, propels our anti-fast, totally exhilarating direct drive ride. Or maybe it's the letting go, the vacuum created in the absence of the relentless pursuit of more. 

It was still 80 plus degrees tonight as we circled the calm blue water six times. I thought about cortisone, inflammation, geometry, deep breathing, the aging process, anger, New York, fear, hatred, society, hypocrisy, joy, love, laughter and my place in all this chaos. I remembered what Rob said after class this morning. About life being funny. 

I started to laugh. It IS funny. The joke is on us (or maybe just me) Can we calm down folks? I know times are tough. But it won't help any by pointing fingers, blame or guns at people who might have an alternative point of view. I believe that the purpose of life is to realize our capacity for joy and fully explore our self-awareness and love. There are many ways to get there. Equally as many paths. I don't care which you choose. I grant you that freedom. Please don't judge me by mine. 

Because at the pace of my last workout, this may take some time. 

Pix: Top: University of Washington campus. The W can symbolize many things. Bot: The shadow of slow. 

Tahoe sample

Ten minutes from last week's recon trip to Lake Tahoe. The morning light is a little weak at the start as is the audio captured on the fly. But it does give an introductory view of the course, which was the goal. I think this one is going to end up being a keeper. To watch full screen, HD, click on the title or the YouTube logo.

In charge of change

Riffing off of yesterday's theme, we added some variation this morning. Here is the basic premise: 

We get into ruts. Routines that are sometimes not for our greater good. We were laughing the other day about repeating the same mistakes over and over, expediting a different response with each repetition. The current global scenario makes each choice we make an important one. The focus has been narrowed. The margin for error, minuscule. It is crucial that you take charge of those things you control in order to compete. We must empower ourselves. Rise up. Meet the challenge. And thrive, not merely survive. 

This can be tough. You have responsibilities. You are busy tending to all the demands on your time. When the day's work is done, the night shift punches the clock. It sometimes seems that you are working 24/7 just to hang onto a world that is spinning faster and faster. We ask, what could I possible do to initiate change into this circumstance? To quote the Floyd: Hanging on in quiet desperation is the English way. 

But wait, there IS something we can do. Please remember that yesterday (and the day before) we dissected the reasons for exercise. We, taking the suggestions from John Douillard, examined (closely) his research, and found it enlightening. He postulated that exercise satisfies three basic human requirements:

1) It rejuvenates the body and cultivates the mind

2) It manages stress

3) It re-establishes communication between mind and body.

This morning, I added a fourth. IF (a big if) we can successfully execute those three, the synergy and response to the stimuli further creates a state of metaphysical euphoria known in several ethereal circles as The Flow, or the sweet-spot groove zone as we like to say. And thusly enters the spirit. This is the soul of the matter. Only obtainable with the successful addition of the three. You sync up your head with your heart, your mind with your muscle and the chances are good that you will quickly realize that change, your life, your destiny, your love and your reason for being rest in your capable hands. You control you. 

Perhaps there are things in your life that you cannot change. Maybe it's not your calling to change the world. But there will always be the opportunity for you to change you. 

I find that fact incredibly empowering. 

Pic: The CompuTrainer Multi-Rider @ Bainbridge Athletic Club white board. I need to refresh (analog:erase) the data to start anew the process. Data: Name-Average watts for 20 min FTP test > 95% = Drill sets of 2X20 @ 85% of FTP. This is one (great) way to take charge of change. EmPOWER.