Bellwether Coldfront Jacket Review

Since I started training for the Rev3 Half Ironman I have noticed that even though I have been biking for years now I still do not have all the gear I need. I had been suffering with the cold and wet weather not having just quite the right jacket for riding in winter conditions so I decided to try and find a jacket I could afford and that looked good and was going to be comfortable that is when I can accross the Bellwether Coldfront Jacket.

I know it is hard sometimes to make decisions about making purchases online as one cannot try things on so this is why I am going to review the Bellwether Coldfront Jacket. This coldfront jacket comes in both women's and men's sizing. I used it yesterday in terrible rain and wind and it worked great. It stretched with me as I leaned forward but also stayed in place at the bottom of my back. It Has two separate back zippers which was nice so I can keep my nutrition organized. It is also lined in a very warm fleece like material. The front is wind resistant and water repellent. It also has zippers in the cuffs to make it easy to take off and put on or to facilitate getting the sleeve over gloves.

All in all I was a little nervous as it was a big investment and I was not going to be able to see it up close but it works great. It also seems to be true to size, I used their sizing chart.

2011 Shamrock Run 8k Done

This year was the first year I did the Shamrock Run. I participated in the 8k race there were over 30,000 people there and it was a lot of fun. I really did not care about the time and I just ran for fun with a costume. More than a costume it was a mask that towards the end of the race was making me really hot! I ended up running 8k in 42 minutes. Like I said lots of fun and I hope to do it again next year. Maybe next year I will do the 15k run I hear it is a really challenging course.

2011 Shamrock Run

For the past several years I have wanted to do the Shamrock run but I have always been to busy or at work to do it so this year I made it happen, a few weeks ago I signed up for the run. It seems to be a very large run they say 30,000 participants and at the end they give you some chowder! So I'm really looking forward to that.

I will be doing the 8k race a distance I have never raced in before so I am happy about that. I am just going to have fun I even have a costume lined up for the run I hope I am able to breath though the mask!

Packet pick up today, race to9morrow as well as daylight savings. Race update will be posted tomorrow.

Training Day 9

Day 9 of training for the Rev3 half Ironman is today. What the schedule says to do is a 25 mile bike ride followed by a 1000 yard swim. I woke up this morning to 25mph winds and gusts up to 40mph so I have decided, even though I feel guilty not to do the ride portion of todays workout.

Even though I feel guilty I think this might be the right decision. I also have the Shamrock 5k run and Sunday and I was not planning on taking any days off or altering my workouts but maybe its better to give my legs a rest for one day especially since yesterday I did ten 400 meter intervals the winds were also strong yesterday but not 25mph.

So there is is, tomorrow 30 mile ride the wind is predicted to be "only" 12mph!

Ravx Speedmax Road Bicycle Saddle Review

The Selle Italia saddle I have been using for years has finally gotten too worn out. I loved that saddle but I had to get a new one so after doing some price comparison and quality comparison I decided to buy the Ravx Speedmax Road Bicycle Saddle.

I had never heard of this brand but when I saw the saddle it looked great and it was a womens saddle so I decided to give it a try. It has titanium rails and is really slim and light great looking. I rode with it for the first time today I was a little worried as it is so slim but it was really comfortable up until now I feel like this is a good quality saddle for a good price. I just wish it came in yellow in adition to black!

Training Day 5

Yesterday was training day 4 for the Rev3 half Ironman and it did not go very well I only rode 17 out of 20 scheduled miles and my swim time for 500 yards was 15 seconds slower than I wanted it to be. I put all that behind me today in day 5 of training on the menu, 25 mile ride.

The wind was really strong today, it was shifting me from side to side at times which was quite scary I kept hoping I would not get pushed off the bike. I kept on going though knowing that at some point the headwind would become the tail wind. After about an hour of riding against the wind I finally turned around! When I was going against the wind I was going about 10mph when I turned around I was going 23mph! After about 1 hour 50 minutes I had finally completed a very hard winter ride. I was exhausted! Tomorrow, 50 minute run.

Day 3 training Half Ironman Done

When I woke up this morning for day3 of my half ironman training my legs felt tired. On todays workout menu was a ten minute warm up followed by 400 meter sprints with a two minute recovery in between I had to do 8 of them. The rain has subsided and it is warmer than it has been but there is some wind. It went well I wish I was a few seconds faster but hat will come with more work. Overall I'm satisfied with today's workout I just feel extremely hungry now.

Day 2 Half Ironman Training

Today was day two of my half ironman rev3 training. Yesterday it poured rain but it wasn't a big problem because I had to run and I don't mind running in the rain but it poured rain again today and I had to ride my bike 20 miles in it. I was soaked literally within minutes there is only so much rain gear one can wear and I wore it but I still got wet. I rode at an ok speed 15mph when I got home I was completely drenched and freezing, I think it rained almost 2 inches there have even been landslides in the area.

After the bike ride time to go swimming I swam 1000 yards and mostly focused on my 500 yard swim time for the Beaver Freezer which is coming up in about 4 weeks. Right now I am swimming it in about 7:40 I was hoping for a 7:30 but 7:40 is good too. Ok now time for some dinner.

Workout for tomorrow 400 yard intervals.

First Day of Rev3 training

Today is my first official day of training for the Rev3 Half Ironamn in Portland. I am a little scared and a little excited about it. Today's work out starts out "easy" 40 minute run and 40 minutes of strength training. It is currently pouring rain but I am getting ready to go out there. Rain is always better than freezing temperatures so I can't complain. So here we go day one starts now, July Rev3 Half Ironman I will be ready for you!

Back in the Pool

Because I have felt so sick with a cold and cough I skipped my Saturday long run and my Monday run and strength training to try and get better. I think it is working I still have a cough and a bit of a runny nose but I feel better. On today's triathlon training schedule was a bike ride and a swimming workout. I opted to skip the bike ride and just go swimming. The swimming went pretty well I swam 50 lengths and timed 500 yards to see where I was for the Beaver Freezer. Right now I am at about 7 minutes 43 seconds for the 500 yard swim I want to be at 7:30 come the Beaver Freezer.

I hope I get better fast the Beaver freezer is in about 6 weeks and I feel like I still have some work to do.

Yes I Have a Cold

I was really looking forward to being back in the training routine of triathlon but I have a bad cold. I feel better today but yesterday I felt really bad. I decided that the best thing to do would be to skip my 6 mile run and rest. I was a hard decision to make but I think it was the right decision.

Today I am still congested and now my throat hurts a little but I do feel better. Today is a rest day anyway but I hope I am well enough tomorrow to do the workout 4 mile run plus 40 minutes of strength exercises.

Back in the Pacific Northwest

After some time in the sun I am back in the pacific northwest I have been back for about 5 days now and training here seems very cold and on top of it I have managed to catch a cold which is really annoying.

My first race of 2011 will be the Beaver Freezer. I was able to sign up on February 1st but it was very very stressful. I did not have a good internet connection and on top of it the page was crashing! Every time it was time to check out the page would fail and I would have to start over again! I was getting so stressed out and nervous I thought I was not going to get in. I worked on it for an hour until finally I was able to get in!

On the triathlon workout menu for tomorrow my first long run in about a month I am going to go for 6 miles to try and ease into it I hope this bothersome cold does not bother me too much.

Vacation Vacation

I have been on vacation so my whole triathlon workout routine has been out of wack. I still have one week of vacation left and then it is back to the real world of swim bike tri. I am going to have to start preparing for my sprint races such as the beaver freezer and my rev3 half ironman in July.

I have been keeping on shape mostly by going on jogs and doing some spining classes which are actually pretty good workouts. I am considering taking up spining again but I'm not sure if I can add more exercise to my routine. For now I'm just goong to enjoy my vacation.

Running in the rain, 10k

Today was a very rainy day, flood type rain not horrible floods but lots of huge puddles. On the menu for todays training was a 10k run. It was rainy but warm about 52 degrees the weatherman called it "tropical" I believe, only in Oregon.....

I tried to not go out too hard, I ran in the low 8s the first mile or so and then slowed down a bit. At the half way point I was at about a 8:40 average. It starting raining harder and harder which I did not know was even possible. When I got to the main street where I usually have to stop for the light I tried stopping my Garmin Forerunner 310xt but it would not beep. I looked at it and yup I had forgotten to charge the battery. Battery dead no Garmin no run info. Since I still had Garmin juice at midway point I am assuming that I did the 10k in the high 8s by the time I got home I was soaked!

Yes! I ran a fast 5k!

For New Years while many people went to a party I decided to participate in two 5k's the First Run of the Year (at midnight) and the Twenty11 Resolution run at 10am on the 1st of January. It was very very cold and windy here but my friend and I set out to do it anyway. We ran the midnight run together and then the next morning I raced as hard as I could in the Twenty11 Resolution run, I was determined.

I started off pretty good at about a 7 minute mile pace. As I looked at my Garmin I decided there was no way I would be able to sustain this so I tried slowing down a little bit. Next thing I knew I had covered 1 mile just keep going I told myself. I ran and ran and finished great. My average pace for the 5k was 7:36 minute miles the fastest I have ever done! I placed 2nd in my age group and 8th overall! It was a huge accomplishment I hope I can pull this off during my sprint races this year! It was really fun to start off the new year with a couple of races and a medal.