The Running Thread - 2018

[FFigawi]

Today's QOTD: I've signed up for my first triathlon next year August 2019 and I do not own a bike. But Santa is going to give me one for Xmas. Please suggest a beginner friendly road bike for a 5'9" 150 lbs woman who is slightly scared by speed when not on her feet. And doesn't want to spend a million dollars. But also wants something nicer than a walmart shelf model bike.

The first thing to do is get a professional bike fitting. You need to know what size and type of frame will fit your body geometry before you choose a bike. Once you have your fit numbers, you can look at frames which will work for you and make your decision on comfort, price, etc. You should try out multiple saddles too, as has been mentioned. I love my ISM saddles, but you might not.

Secondary QOTD for those who don't care about bikes:

If you could make your own triathlon out of Running + two other events what would it be?

My answer to that second questions would be British Baking style competition + Dance Break + Running

Does drink, run, nap count?

 

[Keels]

Today's QOTD: I've signed up for my first triathlon next year August 2019 and I do not own a bike. But Santa is going to give me one for Xmas. Please suggest a beginner friendly road bike for a 5'9" 150 lbs woman who is slightly scared by speed when not on her feet. And doesn't want to spend a million dollars. But also wants something nicer than a walmart shelf model bike.

Go to a bike shop and get measured for size (you’re probably the same size as me), and then ride EVERY MODEL available to you. Then? Wait until after Christmas when everyone is selling their old bikes for a fraction of the cost because they upgraded at Christmas.

Both of my roadies are used Specialized (Dolce Elite and Ruby Elite) and I’ve paid 1/4 of what retail cost was, just because they were broken in for a year or two.

My Dolce was $250 and I paid $475 for my Ruby.

 

[AntimonyER]

ATTQOTD: Can't help you with the bike, haven't had one in 15 years, not even sure if I remember how to ride anymore . As far as my custom triathlon? Golfing, Running, and Fishing sounds pretty darn good to me.

 

[flav]

ATTQOTD:
For bike advice, I might follow @run.minnie.miles advice... and add a nice white basket to mine. I did do some « serious » biking earlier in my life but then I had kids and, now, it is just making me nervous to go on the roads. It did not help that a biker did a faceplant in front of me this spring and we had to put him in an ambulance.

For my personnal tri, most of the other sports I miss are not individual sports and are truly inconvenient to fit in a schedule: Fencing, Hockey, Flag football...

So I’ll second Touring the parks + Running + Chilling at a Disney Resort pool or Eating/Drinking afterwards

After serious thoughts, I could like Running+Skating+Weight lifting?

 

[jennamfeo]

ATTQOTD: I did my first two tris on a janky, cheap Schwinn from Target that was covered in rust. I logged many training miles on it and (of course, no surprise here) my first triathlon had a HUGE mountain I had to ride up on my bike. I slooooowly pedaled past many people who gave up and were walking their bikes up and I made myself stay on that thing until I reached the top. Probably one of my proudest moments.
The following year my mom bought me a legit, beautiful road bike. I picked it based on the color, but I knew it was gonna be perfect for me.
And I haven't done a triathlon since. But I love my current bike a lot.

I would like to see the bike portion shortened and the swim portion lengthened to make the legs more "even" in terms of the time it takes and average triathlete to complete them...

YES. This. Swimming is my favorite part, I definitely wish it was longer.

 

[michigandergirl]

My daughter has the same donut compression sleeves:

View attachment 350501

Awesome!! Zensah has so many fun prints - I want them all!!

 

[Keels]

So - I mentioned it a couple of weeks ago, but my sweet friend Kari ran the Leadville 100 in Colorado a couple of weeks ago. She finished and with just a few minutes to spare! If you're friends with me on social, I posted the live video of her crossing the finish line in the last 15 minutes of the race before the cutoff - but here is a picture of her ... look at that face! Such joy after 102 miles of crazy elevation and conditions!!



@BikeFan asked about it over on my (obviously abandoned) training journal, so instead of responding there - I figured I'd post about it here. Initially, I was hoping to be there to support her - but my heel and Achilles issues (and surgery and treatment) kept me from being able to go. But I feel like I was there with her through the whole thing.

She finally sat down and wrote out her experience, and I wanted to share it with y'all ... just in case you need inspiration, or are thinking about taking that leap to a bigger challenge ... or if you're actually crazy enough to think about the Leadville 100.

But I was scared. As much as I wanted to believe in myself, the odds were against me - less than 50% of the starters will cross the red carpet and get a finisher’s buckle. I knew it would be the hardest day of my life so I came up with one of my mantras “pain is temporary, regret is forever.” Do not regret it mentally, do not regret not giving it your all - 30 hours isn’t that long.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/...tuGFXHAW6jl1SzYbpUkOo1vnVu6pp63R05u3Tdfar/pub

I hope y'all read and enjoy. I'm so proud of her, like all of my friends - and all of you! - that inspire and motivate me every day with your accomplishments.

 

[GreatLakes]

Today's QOTD: I've signed up for my first triathlon next year August 2019 and I do not own a bike. But Santa is going to give me one for Xmas. Please suggest a beginner friendly road bike for a 5'9" 150 lbs woman who is slightly scared by speed when not on her feet. And doesn't want to spend a million dollars. But also wants something nicer than a walmart shelf model bike.

I'll echo some of what others have said about the bike. Find the best local bike shop and go get a proper fitting. I would also look into a local Tri club. Membership in our local club comes with a free fitting and discounts on bikes (along with some other stuff) so in addition to the training and comradery you may save some money joining.

A used bike can save you a lot of money but be careful if you buy anything carbon (full frame or forks). Not only are there a lot of counterfeit carbon bikes, and the seller may not even know themselves, but there could be microscopic internal cracks that can cause a catastrophic failure at a bad time. I personally wouldn't risk it.

Don't waste your money on a Tri bike as a first bike but clip-on aero bars can be a great investment. You can borrow some to try (another pro of being in a club) and get used to the position. I would highly recommend getting clipless pedals and cleats. It makes a huge difference and I would never go back. If you want to easily switch between cycling shoes and regular shoes look into something like these.

 

[Waiting2goback]

Need? No. Mostly I would like the option to skip a couple of the hills a morning a week. I end up running a 3% grade over a quarter of a mile with more gentle rolls for a mile and repeat this to add distance when it is dark and snowy. I tell myself it will make me a better runner, but it is hard to believe it sometimes. {whine over}



I think most drivers at that time are zoned out and cannot think properly.


I was thinking along these lines yesterday. I had very few aches after Sunday's race, leading me to question if I really had trained better than I expected or if I didn't do it right!

I guess you don't know if you trained properly until after the race and you find out how sore you are.

I just submitted my registration....now to wait for the confirmation!

I submitted my registration too. I think I can still here them laughing in BAA headquarters.

 

[Waiting2goback]

So true. I wasted so many years of life living in fear and sitting on the couch. I have to keep going. I was actually talking to my friend the other day about 2014 TOT and how much that race changed my life. I was scared to death from the minute I signed up until I finished. Then the bulb went off and I realized what it felt like to get out and experience life.

 

[Kazrak]

So - I mentioned it a couple of weeks ago, but my sweet friend Kari ran the Leadville 100 in Colorado a couple of weeks ago. She finished and with just a few minutes to spare! If you're friends with me on social, I posted the live video of her crossing the finish line in the last 15 minutes of the race before the cutoff - but here is a picture of her ... look at that face! Such joy after 102 miles of crazy elevation and conditions!!

So true. I wasted so many years of life living in fear and sitting on the couch. I have to keep going. I was actually talking to my friend the other day about 2014 TOT and how much that race changed my life. I was scared to death from the minute I signed up until I finished. Then the bulb went off and I realized what it felt like to get out and experience life.

You've both got me thinking about my daughter this morning. I need to talk to her and thank her for getting me back into running, and tell her how proud of her I am.

Way back, before she was born, I did what I call "the diet from Hell" where I lost 70 pounds in 5 months. Part of it was twice-a-day workouts, 5 days a week. At the end, I ran a 10k in just under an hour. And then I moved and had a kid and changed jobs and...yeah, you know where this goes. The weight all comes back with reinforcements when you stop paying attention.

When I turned 40, I thought about what I wanted to do, and thought I'd like to take up running again. I tried a bit but never really got to make it stick. But I had in the back of my head that...maybe someday I could do a half marathon. Maybe.

For a 2016 WDW trip, it turned out that we'd be there over Marathon Weekend. Daughter decided she'd like to run a race while we were there, and if I'd like to train with her. (She'd tried a bit earlier, and couldn't make it stick either.) Since we were booking on DVC points, we had a year to prep. We decided on the 10k. And...it worked. It worked well.

A year later, we did the Light Side Challenge - first half marathon for either of us. I made a solo 'commando run' to WDW for the Dark Side Half to complete the Kessel Run. (She had classes the day after the race and couldn't go.)

She's still running, up at school in Flagstaff. She did the (brutal) New Year's Day half marathon at Lake Chabot in the SFBA - 2075' elevation change. She was the last finisher - got through the last checkpoint just as they were closing it up. But she finished it.

I don't run for her. I run for me. But I run because of her.

 

[jmasgat]

I submitted my registration too. I think I can still here them laughing in BAA headquarters.

Hardly! (With a 10+ minute cushion-you must be a rock star.) Sounds like they'll be a few of us toeing the line on April 15th

 

[KSellers88]

QOTD: I am on a quest to run a half marathon or full in every state and am selfishly using my question to get some ideas for the future. If you could only pick one state and race to run for the rest of your life, which state and race would you pick and why?

ATTQOTD: My favorite race so far is the Rock n' Roll half marathon in Nashville, Tennessee. It is very hilly, but the crowd support and scenery was fantastic throughout the entire 13.1 miles. Running down Broadway and through Music Row where so many hopes and dreams have come true was amazing.

 

[rteetz]

QOTD: I am on a quest to run a half marathon or full in every state and am selfishly using my question to get some ideas for the future. If you could only pick one state and race to run for the rest of your life, which state and race would you pick and why?

That’s tough. I’ve only run in two states WI and FL. I’d love to experience more states and maybe some day all 50. So for right now I’d pick running a Disney half/full for the rest of my life. I’d love to some day run a major whether it’s New York, Boston, or Chicago. I’d also like to do Big Sur eventually.

 

[Miranda]

ATTQOTD: My favorite half so far is the Covered Bridges half in Vermont the first weekend in June, so I'd probably pick that one, even though I hate training for spring halfs. It's a point to point race that starts at a ski area in Pomfret, runs through Woodstock, and then ends in Quechee. The community support for it is great and the course is beautiful.

 

[GreatLakes]

QOTD: I am on a quest to run a half marathon or full in every state and am selfishly using my question to get some ideas for the future. If you could only pick one state and race to run for the rest of your life, which state and race would you pick and why?

The Flying Pig in Cincinnati, OH is my favorite race so that would be it. It is close to home but still a trip, the course is challenging but not ridiculous, the crowd support is the best I've ever seen, while you can have extremes in weather in Cincy in May it averages out to being nice running weather, and they have a whole host of different distances and challenges so if you decide one year you just want to do a 10K and a dog run you can do that.

A close second would be Gasparilla in Tampa, FL. It is in February or March so would be a good escape from winter every year, the course is in my favorite part of Tampa, I love the Pirate theme, and they also have a host of races and challenges. The weather can also be quite humid and can be cold but it also averages out to pretty decent running weather.

 

[roxymama]

ATTQOTD: This one makes me sad but I'd love to go to CA and run a Disneyland race once a year. With points I can fly cheap and the hotels are so close that I could stay cheap and there's just something very special about walking to the parks and the expo and the races. I know it can get very HOT which would be the only big drawback, but the Tink weekend weather was perfect.
Sigh.....
If picking my home state is too boring, then I'd go Florida (WDW, duh) or Ohio (Flying Pig weekend is so fun!! If you still need to add OH to your list you should do that one)

 

[Bree]

ATTQOTD: I have run very few races (one 5K in MA & FL has been only Disney plus a local 5K and 10K). This is a tough question! I guess I’d have to go with the Dark Side Half.

 

[run.minnie.miles]

ATTQOTD:
I absolutely loved running in Maui. The path was so beautiful right along the ocean- I wish I could run that every single day! I could also end at a Starbucks like 1/3 mile away and walk back to the resort drinking iced coffee

Races: WDW all the way
When you come to Nebraska, I loved the Good Life Halfsy, but the Lincoln Marathon weekend is really popular too. Let me know when you come and I'll run with you

 

[rteetz]

The Flying Pig in Cincinnati, OH is my favorite race so that would be it. It is close to home but still a trip, the course is challenging but not ridiculous, the crowd support is the best I've ever seen, while you can have extremes in weather in Cincy in May it averages out to being nice running weather, and they have a whole host of different distances and challenges so if you decide one year you just want to do a 10K and a dog run you can do that.

A close second would be Gasparilla in Tampa, FL. It is in February or March so would be a good escape from winter every year, the course is in my favorite part of Tampa, I love the Pirate theme, and they also have a host of races and challenges. The weather can also be quite humid and can be cold but it also averages out to pretty decent running weather.

I want to do Flying Pig really bad. My running group is doing it this coming year but it’s right before finals and I feel that’s a bad time to travel.