Farewell to a Friend, and I Wear Women's Shoes

It was a sad day last week.  I had to say goodbye to a training partner and a good friend of mine.  That's right.  My swim shorts finally bit the dust.  So sad.

Everything was going fine until one day last week when, after a long swim, I noticed that the stitching was starting to separate on one of the seams.

Well, that doesn't look too bad.

I took a closer look, and didn't like what I found...

Uh oh...

If you can do THIS, then it's time for a new pair of shorts.

You may remember my Speedo Endurance shorts from my first product review way back last June.  Chlorine has a way of eating shorts, especially the stretchy kind that lap swimmers use.  I was lucky to eek 2-3 months of use out of a pair of shorts before they became dangerously see-through.  The Endurance line is a blessing.  For just a few dollars more, they lasted well over a year.  What's even cooler is that the fabric never failed, it was the stitching that finally gave out.  Not bad.  Not bad at all.

So, the old shorts had a good life, but their time is done.  I ran out the next day and picked up a fresh pair.  This pair is cut a little differently.  There's no seam going up the back, and they leave a little less to the imagination.  If you want to know how much less, then you'll have to meet me for a swim workout some time.

On a somewhat related note, the day after I picked up my new swim trunks, my shower sandals crapped out too.  Ugh.  I'm not too particular about my sandals. I'm happy just as long as they keep my feet off the shower tile.  So, I ran by the nearest target and snagged the cheapest sandals I could find.  Shoot.  How could I possibly screw this up?

Sandals.  Easy.  No problems.  Right?

Then, I took a closer look...

Oh, you have got to be kidding me.

Yep. My new sandals were made for a woman.  So, in addition to my silky smooth legs, I am now sporting some ultra-fem-y footwear.  Basically, I'm all woman below the thighs. 

Score.

Hitting the Trainer - How I spent my Winter Vacation

Some days I feel like packing up all my things and moving to Arizona.  Why?  Because between November and March, Old Man Winter seems to get his jollies from kicking the holy heck out of us up here in the Great White North.  But as soon as I finish digging out loading up the car, I remember I'd be leaving my friends, family and steady employment behind.  Bah.  I guess I'll be sticking around after all.

So, if I AM going to stay in this wintry mess, how the heck am I going to keep my training up?  I know that the pool isn't going anywhere, so there really isn't a lot to change with my swim workouts.  For running, once you find a plowed trail, it's basically just a matter of proper attire to keep from freezing off your bits 'n' pieces.  Granted, when the trails are icy or rutted, you really can't do much interval training.  But, I've been making it out at least once a week to get in a longer run.  Once my muscles get warmed up, it's actually kinda nice.

The REAL problem though is with cycling training.  I haven't hit the road for a proper ride for almost two months.  Sure, there are some hard core commuters and cyclo-cross riders around here that just throw on some studded tires and head out into the elements. Us roadies though, we hit the trainer. It's basically a small frame that holds onto your rear wheel and provides resistance.  The good news is that you can use your own bike rather than some bike at the gym that hasn't been disinfected since the Earth was cooling.  The bad news is that you've got to be creative when it comes to the actual workouts.

Here's my current setup:

Note: Those are The Wife's Minnie Mouse Ears, so zip it!

In the past, I would just watch some television while I worked out.  I'd keep it at a moderate pace during the shows, and then hit the gas during the commercials.  Sure, it was kinda-sorta interval training, but it really wasn't as effective as it could have been.  Most workouts were in the 30-60 minute range.  Honestly, without a lot of direction, it was easy to find excuses to stop early.

Then, my uncle Dave gave me this little bad boy for Christmas:

Everyone knows that the best kind of love is 'Tough Love'.

Now, I've done Spinnervals workouts with the Twin Cities Spoke crew before, so my first thought was, "SWEET!  Finally, a Spinnervals DVD of my very own!  Thanks Uncle Dave!".  Then, I took a closer look at the title and saw that at 3 hours, it was almost 3 times as long as any workout I'd done before.  In addition, the difficulty was 9.9/10.  So, my second thought was, "Gulp.  I can't be sure, but I think Uncle Dave may be trying to murder me!" 

Well, as it turns out, this DVD was the perfect choice.  Yesterday, I filled a couple water bottles, cracked open the windows and popped this little guy into the player.  The best thing I can say about the disc is that it breaks up the monotony of what could be a very boring 3 hours and keeps you focused the whole time. 

You've got prompts for the gear to use, how hard to work and total workout time remaining.

Through a series of 10-30 minute intervals, I was instructed to change gears, alter my cadence and occasionally stand up.  At no time was I ever bored.  Now, I did have to pause the workout a couple of times to re-fill my water, grab a snack and use the little boy's room, but by the end, I was nice and tired. 

In fact, I was more tired than after a regular 3-hour ride during the summer.  Why?  Well, there are a couple of reasons.  First, you're pedaling the whole time; there's no resting on the downhills here. Second, Coach Troy does a pretty good job of pushing you to keep going.  Who's Coach Troy?  He's the host of the Spinnervals series.  He looks like this:

Coach Troy

Although, by the time you're on your 10th straight minute-long interval out of the saddle, he starts to look a little like this:

Coach Troy?!?

Yeah, these workouts are tough SOBs.  Sure, it's not the same as going for a real, honest to goodness ride, but at least I can be sure I'm keeping my fitness up so that I've got good legs once the snow melts.  Although, next time I do this workout, it would probably be best to put a towel down first so that I don't have to explain to The Wife why there's a funky puddle of nastiness on the floor.

Eew.

In other news, I'm starting to pull together my race schedule for next year.  I'm hoping to do a couple familiar favorites and mix in some new experiences to keep things interesting.  I'll keep you posted.

Oh yeah, and before I forget - Thanks Uncle Dave!

Product Review - Ryder's VTX Sunglasses

Okay.  So this is my second go-around with doing a product review.  By the way, if you're in the market for some new swim shorts, check out my review of Speedo Endurance+ shorts.

This time, I'll be taking a look at Ryder's VTX sunglasses.  Now, in the spirit of full disclosure, unlike the Speedo shorts, I did not pay for these shades.  I won these in a drawing put on by Steve in a Speedo. Prior to winning the VTXs, I was wearing Tifosi Slip sunglasses.  Both the VTXs and the Slips retail for $59.95.  So, were I to buy myself a new pair of shades, the VTXs would be right in my wheelhouse on the price side of things.

Here's how the glasses appear on the Ryder's website:

I got the sunglasses in the mail and ripped open the box to get to the goods.  They come in a standard hard case, with zip closure.  This model has 3 swapable lenses - Clear, Brown and Orange.  There are sleeves inside the case for storing the lenses you're not using.

All tucked in.

All spread out with the orange, brown and clear lenses.

The first thing that I noticed was that there wasn't a customary cleaning/storage bag included.  I thought this was a little odd as every other set of sunglasses I've owned have come with this handy little bag.  If anything, I know that I can use it for cleaning the lenses without worrying about scratches. 

The second thing I noticed was that they looked a little different than the photos on the Ryder's site.  As you can see in the photo above, the arms and nose-piece are a gunmetal gray color.  However, on the set I received, these parts are red.  Now, personally, I prefer the gray-on-red motif, but red-on-red isn't a deal breaker.

Okay.  Enough about the looks.  That's a personal preference thing anyway.  What you want to know is, are the sunglasses any good?  Let's take a look. 

It's nice to have 3 lenses to choose from.  Although, I find myself using the orange lenses for 80-90% of my workouts.  They're dark enough for bike rides in the middle of a sunny day, but I can still see clearly at dusk.  I've only used the clear lenses a handful of times for night-time and early-morning training.  The brown lenses are really just for sunny days, but they do look pretty bad-ass.

Practicing my 'bad-ass' face.

Changing out the lenses is fairly straight-forward.  Just bend the frames up and out come the lenses.  Insert the new lens outside-first and pop them back into place.  At first, I was worried that the lenses wouldn't hold solidly in the frames.  There was just a little wiggle room, even after they clicked in.  Though, once I'm wearing them, they feel solid.  After over 2 months of cycling and running, a lens has never popped loose.

The most unique thing about these Ryder's is the material out of which the arms and nose-piece are made.  This stuff is pretty cool.  It's bendy enough to get a nice snug fit on your temples and the bridge of your nose, but solid enough to keep its shape.

Bendy arms.

Bendy Nose.

I really dig what they're doing here.  One of my biggest issues with my Tifosis was their tendency to slide down my face, especially when I was on my bike in the aero position.  I constantly found myself looking through the space between the top of my shades and the bottom of my helmet.  With the Ryders, I could adjust them to sit nice and snug, right up against my face. 

They're bendy.  Like. REALLY Bendy.

Comfort for the lenses is outstanding.  Once they're on, they're on, and they stay put.  I've never had to push them back up on my nose, even after 112 miles in the aero position.

Here they are during the beginning of the Ironman bike leg.  I chose the orange lenses for that day.

Here they are during the run - no longer necessary in the dark, but the coolest part of this photo nonetheless.

So, let's summarize. 

The Pros: 
Comfort - One they're on, they disappear, and they stay put. 

Price - You get a good set of shades for $60.  In my opinion, it's a better deal than most other $60 shades out there.

Style - This is a personal thing, but I like mine.  If you don't like the VTX style, try one of the other Ryder's models. 

The Cons:
No Baggie - Call me picky, but I really miss this - not so much for storage, but definitely for cleaning.

Availability -  According to the Ryder's website, there isn't a dealer in my state.  The closest dealer is in Madison.  So, if I wanted to buy a new pair, I'd either have to order on-line, cross my fingers and hope that I look good in them, or I'd have to start drivin'.

In the end, I'm really pleased with these shades - not just because they were free, but because they work. 

Incidentally, if you have a product that you'd like me to try out, I'll be happy to work with you and your company (I'm looking at YOU Porsche). 

My First Product Review - Speedo Endurance

Well, here you go.  My first product review.  I went with my training swim shorts because they're one thing where I actually have quite a bit of experience with different types of products. 

When I first started training, I used just a standard pair of swim trunks.  They're made to last forever, but swimming with all of that fabric along with two giant pockets was akin to wearing a parachute on my ass.

Next, I moved on to a pair of jammers.  Imagine a pair of cycling shorts, except without the padded tush.  Comfy?  Yes.  Aero hydro-dynamic?  Sure.  But after about a dozen workouts, I noticed a problem.  Those suckers started to wear thin.  Literally.  Regardless of how well I took care of them and how well they were rinsed afterwords, the elastic was wearing away.  First, they started to sag, and my jammers turned into capris.  Second, they started to become see-through.  I don't have to tell you that transparent swim shorts does not benefit anybody.

For the next year, I tried different shorts (jammers, square-leg, briefs) from several different companies (TYR, Dolphin, Speedo) but they all developed the same sagging and thinning problems after a month or two.  Finally, I tried a pare of Speedo Endurance Shorts:

For those of you hoping to see me MODEL the Speedo.  Shame on you.  Perverts.

They seem to be made of a different fabric.  It's thicker and a bit less stretchy, especially the leg grippers..  My thighs definitely get the 'stuffed-sausage' effect when I'm wearing them.  But, they're still plenty skin-tight to allow for easy movement in the water.

However, the best thing about these shorts is that they're freaking INDESTRUCTIBLE.  I've been wearing the same pair for 8 months and they have yet to show any significant signs of wear.  I don't rinse them consistently and sometimes they just end up balled up in my towel for a couple of days.  In short, I treat them like crap - but they still hold up.

You can find the square leg variety on-line and in most big-box sporting goods stores for between $30 and $40, which is about $10 more than their less-durable counterparts.  But when you consider that they last at least 4 times as long as standard shorts, I think they're worth every cent.

There you have it.  My first review.  That wasn't too tough now, was it?

I hope to be back in the next couple of days to talk about my 1/2 Ironman this weekend.  It'll be a good opportunity to test my nutrition and pacing and get a good idea of what next September will be like.  Toodles.