Love the New Bike Position? Ummm... Maybe Not

Yesterday I took to the road and put the new aero position to the test. The roadie club ride was advertised as, "55 Miles at an Average Speed of 17 Miles Per Hour."

"Hey, I can do that. No big," I thought. Plus, afterwards, I'll get off the bike and run 15 minutes to test the running legs too.

I was all good, right? Umm... think again.

The steady Zone 3 ride turned out to be a Class A sprint-fest. The group was either coasting along at 15 mph or hammering at 25 mph. Nothing in between. Twice I found myself at the back of the pack when the front took off like paparazzi chasing down Britney Spears. By the time the wave of dust got to the back, the leaders had put several hundred meters the lallygagers. It took a full-on sustained sprint to keep contact with them or be dropped like a dirty diaper.

Don't get me wrong. I can hang with those dawgz when I know where the hammer zones are on the route. But without knowing when to wind it up, I was fresh meat for their grinder.

Despite the booty-whipping, the early season hammering was a nice deposit into the Banko de Ironman. That's what I thought until....

... this morning's (attempted) 16 mile run.

Well before the end of the run... and long from my home... a sharp pain on my left leg, about an inch to the inside of the knee, brought me to a limp. I tried to walk it off but each time I began to run the pain would return. Not long afterwards the right leg, in the same area, joined in the suffering.


I literally limped back home and felt like crap about my blown run. The route was familiar to me as I have run it dozens of times and although there's one challenging hill it's not THAT hard. Never have I failed to complete any training session. Ever.


After I showered, and ate a bit, my first shout was to the Tri-Diva of the North, to get her take on the sicheeation. She said, ...


"Ummm, don't ya think your new bike fit might have something to do with it? Anyway, who gets a new fitting and hammers on it for three hours for the first time??"


I said with a crack in my voice, "M-m-me?"


"Yah, you 'Boomer. Jeeze. Always the drama with you! Get some ice on your knees and stay away from the run for a couple of days."


Sounds like good advice. So, there you have it 'BoomerNation. I'm off the road for a few days.

Any, and all, suggestions and prescriptions on getting over this thing are welcome. Please don't hesitate to leave a comment or send an email.

Until then, I'll see you in the pool and the weight room.


Stay tuned...