The multisport season kicked off for me this weekend. Unfortunately it wasn't a celebratory kickoff. I ran the Peanut Butter Duathlon (formerly the Law Day Duathlon) in Rockford, IL. 2 mile run, 14 mile bike, 2 mile run. I was really looking forward to this race after the Madison debacle. I've run this race the past 2 years so I was very interested in seeing my progress. The weather was pretty rough. The sun was shining as I drove out but the clouds quickly moved in and the rain started. Getting set up in transition was interesting in the pouring rain. The trails we very messy which made the run portion more fun (for me anyway, saw a few guys covered in mud as they must have fallen). I ran near the front but made sure not to run too fast. I shot for a 6:30 pace and was right on. I came into transition and had a little difficulty with the strap of my helmet since I had gloves on. Then getting clipped into the pedals was a pain since my shoes were wet and kept slipping. I was planning to use the LT training I've been doing with VQ to really pound the bike. I was hoping to knock a bout 5 minutes off my bike split from last year. Well, I'll never know if that would have been accomplished or not. I was riding my new Zipps with brand new Vittoria tubulars. Tubulars are still new to me so I didn’t have a spare nor am I quite clear on how to change one. The bike was 3 loops around Rock Cut State Park roads. I didn’t even make it around once before I heard a loud POP and my back tire went flat. After training and racing on clinchers for 2 years I've only experienced 1 flat tire. After only 4 miles on tubulars I've already had a flat. I didn’t hit a pothole and I didn’t see any glass or rocks. Everything I've read says tubulars are more dependable but now I'm really questioning how I can complete Ironman Wisconsin on these tires. I walked the rest of the loop and met up with my wife. She felt my disappointment but was very grateful I was ok after hearing a rider went down on the slick metal track on the dam. We walked back to the start and I packed my stuff and went home. The leader was just about finishing by then. Once the results are posted I'll be interested in projecting my finish. My age group is always very competitive at this event.
So another Saturday down the drain. I tried to make up for it on Sunday with a long ride with VQ. It was my first group ride… ever! As a triathlete I'm used to long rides alone so this was a very interesting. The group was slated for 53 miles at 17-19 average MPH. There were two other groups that went out at a faster pace. I went with the slower group knowing I was going to have difficulty just finishing that distance. I doubt I would have covered 53 miles by myself. I haven't biked that far since the Lake Geneva Half last September. I probably would have headed home around 30 as the soreness in my back and neck flared up. But riding with the group (and having no idea where I was) made it easier to press on. I learned quite a bit from Joe Wrobel who led the group. He's a VQ coach and an older gentleman but he's in excellent shape since he whipped out those miles like they were nothing. I'm looking forward to riding with the group again next weekend. Then I can have an excuse to take a nap while at my mother-in-law's for Mother's Day.
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Sorry to hear you had some bad luck at the PB Duathlon. I don't know much about tubulars, but I do know that it's a lot easier to get a flat on a wet day since debris will stick to your tire and then get pressed into the rubber as your tire spins. Hopefully it was just a case of bad luck and you'll be fine riding tubulars for the IM.
Also, don't let a bad day on the IM loop get you down. The conditions that day were flat out dangerous. If you couldn't feel your fingers you made the right decision. Sometimes it's better to play it safe than risk an injury and blow a year of training.
Good luck at IM Wisconsin. Maybe I'll run into on the loop one of these days.
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