The Swiss Made BMC

Here's the bike that Cadel Evans rode in this year's Tour de France.  Fastest man on a bike, Cadel.  He won this year's TdF on his trusty BMC.

The designers of BMC have taken that same technology and given triathlete's the ultimate ride,  The Time Machine One (TM01).  For 13 grand, this baby can be yours.  

But for a more modest price of $3,000, the Time Machine 02 (TM02) is the way to go.  

The TM02 has 30 different position combinations between its seat tube and angled stem.   It's lines are clean and squared off.  It's top tube is flat as a pancake. 

Details, details, details -- BMS has covered them all.  Well done, Swiss engineers.  I like your style.   

Porn For Cyclists

Stand ready.  I've just returned from Interbike.  Wow.

But for overload purposes, I'm going to only post one photo of a beautiful bike per day.

I am really amazed at the research and development that goes into these bikes.  The manufacturers give such attention to detail.  The angles, the colors, the aerodynamics, the simplicty.  Ahh, I love bikes.

Exhibit A.  Bianchi.

Bianchi has an amazing line of bikes.  They have a signature color called Celeste #227 painted on every bike.   Here's the story. 

Bianchi has been around since 1885.  The Italian cycling company has stand out bikes that give the air of simplicity and peace.  This is the bike you should buy if you want to go out and ride just for the enjoyment of the wind in your hair.    

Winding Down

Triathlon season is slowing down.  There's a couple of marathons on the horizon, Top of Utah, St. George, and Ironman Arizona, of course.  But for many triathletes, the regimented training programs taper down in favor of REST!

Bob Seebohar, the nutritionist guru with a whole bunch of letters after his name, M.S., R.D., C.S.S.D., C.S.C.S. had this to say about end of the season training.

"If you allow your body to do one thing during this cycle, it should be to learn the difference between training and exercising.  This is the most important point you can emphasize as you move from your competition season to your off-season.  Let me explain this further.  During this cycle most athletes take a couple of weeks to a couple of months of downtime from their primary sport to rejuvenate their bodies and minds.  This is a very necessary component of the sport and well-deserved after coming off of a long competition season.  If you continue to follow a structured training program, as you have been the last 8-11 months, then you are not in an off-season.

One of the best things you can do to improve metabolic efficiency is to reduce the intensity of your exercise and focus on aerobic exercise once again.  I usually do NOT promote the use of heart rate monitors or other pieces of technology as monitoring devices during this time of year.  Use subjective measures such as rate of perceived exertion as cues and by all means, have fun.  Make the mental switch from "training" to "exercising, focus on aerobic activity and try new ways to get the heart pumping."

Or in other words, ski season is on the horizon.

Bee Careful

There's not much about trail running that makes me nervous.

Except rattlesnakes.

I'd hate to run in to one of those bad boys all curled up in my path, rattle shakin', ready to strike.  That's more than a little scary.  That, and gila monsters, javalenas, scorpions and maybe a mountain lion.  But never BEES.  I've never been afraid of a cute little honey bee.

Until last week.

It was hiking day once again on the ole' Wind Caves Trail.  This time I was going with some guys who knew how to get to the summit, which is about .5 miles up from the actual caves.  The trail gets a little confusing once you pass this point.  And we were climbing over boulders, dodging cactus and squeezing by ledges -- all for the glorious views from the Superstition Mountains.

We rounded a bend nearly to the summit and over my right shoulder, I heard -- then saw -- the largest swirling mass of black Africanized bees I'd ever seen.  Ooh, that is NOT a fun sound to hear.

Steve, one of my fellow hikers and former park ranger at this very park let out the loudest screaming expletive that I've ever heard and started high tailing his way down the mountain.  You could hear the bees start to get irritated that we had ventured near their domain and suddenly, they were upon us.

Lyndon, the other hiker, kept yelling out to us "Bees can smell fear.  Back away slowly.  Don't get them agitated!" (Lyndon recently ran with the bulls in Pamplona, so I'm not putting too much stock in his advice).

Not the actual hive, but similar.

Me, I RAN.  My heart was pumping as I scurried down the boulders that blocked us from gravel path below.  I could hear one particularly angry bee swirling his way into my hair. I kept swatting at him, only encouraging his rage.  My flesh was his pursuit and he was not giving up without a fight.

Suddenly Mr. Bee freed himself from my tangled hair and launched his final suicide mission up over my head and down into my tank top, leaving his stinger dead center in my chest.  My anxiety abated but the pain grew as I realized his bulls eye gift was painful indeed.  Yet happily, I was free of the hysterical insect.   Silence was never so sweet.

Bee stings hurt.  And itch.  And I'm not sure what brings relief except constantly scratching that dang bite.  I've learned my lesson, Mr. Bee.  I'll stay away.  The Wind Caves summit is your to enjoy.  I respect your territory, and I'll choose another summit next time.

Bee-lieve me.

Running at the Blevins Trail

In the spirit of 'Try New Things This Summer', it was only appropriate to explore the Blevins Trail for a little holiday trail running this Labor Day.

Blevins Trail is located just inside the Usery Mountain Regional Park on the outskirts of Mesa.  Legend tells a tale of stage coach robbers Usery and Blevins, who acquired some  gold during one such robbery.  While Usery was convicted and served his time, Blevins was never found guilty.   I guess dead men tell no tales.

If you've never been out to this spectacular park, you're really missing out.  The saguaros and Palo Verdes and barrel cactus that dot the landscape are especially beautiful at sunrise.  The gravel trails twist and turn through the desert vegetation and lead you through dry river beds and over sandy hills.  The facilities are so well maintained, I've yet to see one piece of trash anywhere.

If you're looking for a way to spice up your morning runs, this is IT.

There are some great benefits to trail running:  stronger ankles, higher knees, as well as core and balance workouts.  Spending time in such a beautiful location, surrounded by the Superstition Mountains with distant views of downtown Phoenix is more a boost for the soul than anything.

You can find out more about the Usery Trails here.

Sweet Memories of A Fabulous Day

Confession

credit

I don't run with music.

There.  I've said it.  No, I don't have an uplifting playlist that gets me through my tempo run.  And I don't plug one ear into my ipod while tackling the climbs on Usery or Las Sendas.  I don't even particularly like the music they play at the hot yoga studio I've been going to lately.

Don't get me wrong, I DO love music.  I love it's power and beauty, it's beat.  I know it's what helped me get my marathon PR last year.  I put my ear buds in and turned up the most heart-pounding, invigorating tunes I could find.  I drowned out my overwhelmingly loud breathing and focused on the Best of Glee.   I set my play list to have Lenny Kravitz's American Woman push me across the finish line.  Yes, I do love the power of music.

But these days, the silence is what I prefer.  Everything on mute.  I ride and hike mostly with friends.  And we talk.  And laugh.  And breathe.  But there are also moments of reticence, spaces of reflection, stillness of mind.

Not to get too churchy, but there is a scripture that says "Be still.  And know that I am God."

Mostly in life, I am not still.  I like getting up and getting going.  I like loud music in the car.  I prefer jumping on my bike to sitting in a movie.  I love diving into a pool to swim my laps with Masters and moving through the water.

Stillness, however, is a gift to myself.  Stillness of mind and body.  Reflection. Quiet. Peace.  I love that I can unclutter my mind while climbing in the canyon, or chasing the group on my bike.

Music will always be there for me.

But today, I choose to be still.