Check it out!

Yeah! I got my first article posted. It's about open water starts and exits. More topics to come, so check out Dr. Amanda's articles often!!!

Smoke in the Kitchen!

So I woke up not too long ago and was feeling the effects of my long weekend of training (it was actually my longest ever, yeah, go me!)...felt a little groggy and still not totally awake. I open up the refrigerator and it is empty...go to the pantry, nothing looks good...looks like I'll be making a trip to the grocery store today! Anyways, I am not a big oatmeal eater, but always have some on hand. So I put the instant oatmeal packets in a bowl and measure out the water. I decide to start stretching, then half way through I'll put it in the microwave so it'll be nice and hot when I'm ready to eat it. I start stretching, which feels so good on my tired muscles. Then I absent mindedly walk over and throw the bowl in the microwave, hit start, and return to my stretching. About 1min later, I smell something funky and wonder, what in the world is that??? but keep on stretching. Then I look towards the kitchen and see the smoke coming out of the microwave!!!! And the smell is growing worse! I fling open the microwave and my oatmeal is smoking, black, and totally charred...looks like I forgot to add the water :) At least I got it under control before any of the fire alarms went off....now I've really got to get to the grocery store!

RETUL: The Best Bike Fit in the World!

I was lucky enough to be able to go up to Denver and work with Todd Carver and his crew at their Retul Fit Studio. I had been having some problems with my knee leading up to the Clearwater race (bad enough that I could barely walk one week before!) Come to find out, it was due to my position on my TT bike. I headed up to Denver with hopes of a cure and found it! They looked at my position on my road bike and said they couldn't find anything wrong with it...then when I hopped on my TT bike, they found several things to fix. We tried to open up my hip angle and get it as close to the road bike position as possible while still giving me some aerodynamic advantages.

The Retul system is one of a kind. They place small LEDs in various places (ankle, knee, shoulder, elbow, wrist, ect). Then as you ride the 3D motion system captures your movements and calculates measurements. By capturing my position relative to my pedaling motion the most realistic replication of my actual pedal stroke and body position are created. The system is accurate to within less than a millimeter, creating true objective data which can be utilized for the perfect biomechanical fit. Measurements and my feel for the position are taken into consideration after each position change and then either changed to kept. We didn't have to make too many changes, but the small changes we made will have a HUGE impact on my power output and put an end to my knee pain!



I took my TT bike out for a ride this weekend (yes we actually had gorgeous weather in Colorado!) and felt awesome. I had a back up plan in case my knee started to act up...but nothing, not even a twinge! Yippee! Thanks Retul! You guys are awesome...now its time for me to go get FAST!!!!

Bike fits are a smart investment. With all the money you spend on equipment and tri related stuff, and the time and energy you put into training...I highly suggest investing in a bike fit. To find out more about Retul and a Fit Studio near you check out: www.retul.com



More Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/triusa/Retul?feat=directlink

Volcano Videos!

Here are the much anticipated videos of me sledding down the volcano!


This is the last 'run' of the day...so not quite as steep and fast as the others...as you can see I am the final one down the mountain and quickly gaining on the others!!!


These are some of the others in the group. And you can see our guide actually coming down skiing on his boots! That is my goal for next year :)