Sunday, February 24, 2008
Mercer Island Time Trial for Seattle to Portland Ride
I picked the sport with the most attractive clothing. Sexy, huh? This is the inaugural blog for my ride from Seattle to Portland and a member of Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's TEAM in Training. TEAM is the acronym for Train, Endure, Achieve, Matter. I turned 50 this year and needed a new goal for fitness. I had come off a so-so year that included moving to a new place after 8 years in the old one. This required scoping out new food shopping locations (I'm vegan, so it's not that easy to find everything at just one store), restaurants, and a new YMCA. I was a long time member (13 years!) of the Northshore Y in Bothell. I knew all the staff, the equipment, and the fitness instructors. Moving to the West Seattle was a positive change; however, getting used to new staff, instructors, peak usage times took longer that I thought. The biggest benefit to moving to our new home, other than owning our own home, is that I have a 5-minute commute to work. As I look back on 2007, I realize that adjusting to a new location took me a long time. However, in January, something clicked and regular workouts and renewed diet discipline became very easy. Hence the new purpose/objective.
Have you seen the TEAM in Training flyers around? I had seen them and even read them, but I'd never made the commitment to be part of this very wonderful organization. For a commitment of 7 times their expenses ($2800 in my case), I get new friends; world-class training; riding partners; mapped routes; and a sense of accomplishment, purpose, and pride. My event is the Seattle to Portland Bike Ride, which covers 206 miles from the Emerald City to the Rose City. I'll ride it in two days, because this is a huge local event and I wouldn't want to miss out on any of the fun by riding in one day. My fundraising website is located here: http://www.active.com/donate/tntwaak/tntwaak/mamiebrouwer. My re-commitment date is 30 April. So far, I've raised $75, but letters just went out. Thanks so much to Alison and Liz for their donations. Alison was first! Rainbows rock!
We've had three training rides. The first was a 12-mile out and back on the Burke-Gilman Trail in Redmond. One hour after that experience, I had REI change the tires on my mountain bike from fat to very, very narrow. So much for the thought that I could compete on a mountain bike (say hello, new bike!). The next week was a 13.77-mile time trial around Mercer Island, which I completed quickly enough to be in the 13 to 15-mph group. Last week was a 22-mile ride around Lake Sammamish, and yesterday's ride was a 27.06-mile ride from MaryMoor Park to Maltby over to Woodinville and back to MMP. I have a Garmin 305, which collects all my stats, so here goes: average heart rate 118, max heart rate 152, max speed 25 mph, average speed 10.1 mph (this is slow because I didn't pause the timer on the 305 and it recorded the SAG stop), number of calories 1458. Current weight is 156 and I'm 5'8" tall. I"m currently on my way to 145 and a percent body fat of 20 percent or below. This ride had several stiff hills, one of which defeated me. It was a tactical shifting error. Many thanks to Stu at Alki Bike and Board for refreshing my memory on shifting practice. This was so great for down hills, but I shifted into granny low too early on the Maltby hill, so I walked the last 25 yards. I should have stood up to power over the crest. This did not happen again. Shout out to SAGy Bill for insisting that I eat something at the SAG (Support and Gear) stop.
Before I close this post, I will include a mission moment. Yesterday, we learned that one of our participants is in the gray area of having all the myeloma symptoms and not the final diagnosis. He will be meeting with an oncologist later this week. I dedicate the 18,880 heart beats of my heart on Saturday's ride to my team mate. I will pass on my information when it becomes available.
More stats to follow, as well as a discussion of my training, instructors, gear, and results. Plus, a discussion of how all this is going to be accomplished while also dealing with atrial flutter.
More to follow: Have a great, healthy week, and remember to eat your vegetables.
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