My Sweet New Ride!

Tri Training officially started three days ago, when I reserved a lane at the pool and got geared up. I looked good, like I really knew what I was doing: TYR racing two-piece, TYR swim hat (thanks, mom!) and brand new TYR goggles. I didn’t mean to turn into a TYR commercial, it just happened. In any event, I had all my stuff on and was feeling pretty good about things.

Until I got in the pool. I was able to swim 4 laps (in my gym’s mini pool, that’s 80 yards) and then had to stop to catch my breath. It was hard! 20 minutes in the pool, with plenty of breaks to catch my breath, was more exhausting than an hour of light jogging.

Luckily, my mom is a total water baby and used to be a swim instructor, so yesterday I joined her for my intro swimming lesson at her pool. She gave my lots of really great tips, showed me strokes other than the crawl that I could use as “rest strokes” and helped my understand where the power was coming from (and not coming from) in my stroke. My the end of the lesson, I was feeling much better about my swimming. I still have quite a ways to go, but twice and thrice weekly swim sessions should help me build up endurance and confidence. I really think if I can get comfortable with the breathing, the rest will come with practive.

So with my running in decently good shape, and my plan for increasing my swimming skills well underway, I only had one tri-training hurdle to overcome this weekend--biking! I’m not super worried about the biking; I am confident that physically I can do it, even if I am not the best or most efficient cyclist at the moment. But in order to get better, and in order to eventually participate in the Danskin, I needed a bike.

Well, early this evening, I got a bike! The whole fam hunkered down at Gregg’s Cycle for most of the day; Nick and I each did multiple test fits and test rides, and in the end we all left with amazing new bikes. I am so thrilled with my new Trek 2.1. It fit’s me like a dream, and test rides along the interurban felt great! The bike is quick and responsive and gives me plenty of room to grow as a cyclist. I have a lot to figure out about cycling in general, and about the specifics of gear changing and cadence and energy transfer and whatnot with this particular ride, but I’m thrilled to be taking up a new sport! Even the test rides were just so fun!

For gear-head’s out there, here’s the specs:
Frame - Alpha Black Aluminum w/TCT Carbon stays
Fork - Bontrager Race, carbon
Wheels - Bontrager SSR (43cm: Alloy hubs w/650c Alex rims)
Crank - Bontrager 50/39/30
Rear Derailleur - Shimano 105
Size - 54 cm