Soma Triathlon

Its Friday afternoon and I just go back from work. Suddenly my phone rings and it's T-Ride. "Hey Adam, do you want to go to Phoenix?" I thought for a minute and about the 4 weeks of laundry I needed to do and if I had enough cloths for 2 more days. Then I said, "Mmmm...Okay!" Four hours later we were on the road to Arizona blasting and rocking out to old classic rock hits and 80's rap.

T-ride is one of those guys that knows everybody. As we entered Tuscon we found and met up with Chris Green and his brother Cameron. They were both triathletes and raced for the University of Arizona. Chris and Cameron (but mostly Chris) were big party guys and being Friday night we had somewhere to go. I was pretty tired and hungry during the party so I was pretty lame but I did get in a nice game of darts with Cameron. After the party we spent the night at the Green's in our sleeping bags on the floor.

The next morning, Saturday, was a brick workout with the University of Arizona Triathlon team. Tuscon, actually, was recently named the best place to live if you are a triathlete. You could ride down any busy street and see other bikers everywhere. The cars were very respectful and patient too. The weather is fantastic basically all year and there is an infinite number of routs, trails and pools. The brick workout we did was very quick and easy. Maybe a ten mile ride and a three mile run through the university campus. It was pretty slick throwing in monster attacks on my Pinarello while racing through traffic and flying around corners. That kind of riding really helps your handling skills, something I lack. After the ride we stopped at the famous TriSports.com shop. Pretty much amazing. If you need anything at all for the swim, bike or run this is the place. Me, I got some hand paddles. I guess I will have to start swimming again.

So now we're in Phoenix and its 90 plus degrees. Weather in the desert southwest during fall is picture perfect. We dropped T-Rides bike off at transition 2 and then worked on where to stay for the night. We had a couple of options but nothing seemed that good. We were running out of ideas and ready to pitch the tent in a park or the back of the truck when T-Ride remembered the website couchsurfing.com. If you don't know about this site (like me) it is a site where you sign up and when you need a place to stay in a new town just call a person on the list and see if its cool to sleep on their couch for the night. We scrolled down the list and saw a dude with a guitar named Ari. He lived really close to the race start too. We gave him a call and he agreed to meet us when he got off of work at 9:00.

Ari was so amazing and his house was pretty sweet as well. He and his 3 other room mates were musicians and artists. Lots of talent in that house. We talked for a little bit and then hit the sack. It would have been nice to stay up a little longer and learn more but I was exhausted. We left at around 4:15 in the morning to get to the race with about 2 hours before race start so we never saw Ari again.

The Soma half ironman triathlon was much bigger than I thought. There were over a thousand entrants including several professionals. The course was pretty dang flat and the run looped around the reservoir. T-Ride kept trying to get me to race it but I am pretty sure I would die if I did. I could race an olympic on pure bike training but running a half marathon on no run training might be kind of painful. Instead I just offered to take pictures as T-Ride zipped around Tempe, Arizona for the rest of the morning.

I was so excited watching the race. I was running around like a madman with my camera trying to get as many pictures as I could. I mean what else am I going to do for 5 hours. T-ride had a pretty good race despite bonking on the run. That's okay man, it happens to everyone, you'll figure it out next time. After the race we had our meal, said our goodbyes, and got back in the car for the long ride back to Las Cruces. It was yet another fantastic weekend. I am so glad I found this sport and the people in it. It makes life so much brighter.

Exploring My New Home

There is so much to see and explore around Las Cruces. The only problem I have with that is there is no way I will ever see it all. Just taking my camera out for a couple bike rides and a hike I found some pretty neat stuff. Here are some pictures from those outings.


This dog came out of his driveway to see what I was doing parked at the side of the road. Apparently the hill was too much or I was too boring because he turned around.


There are lots of Pecan orchards in the Mesilla Valley. I liked the way the trees made a tunnel over the road here.


I see roadrunners almost every time I hop on the bike. Luckily I had my camera this time.


Chile field with the Organ Mts. in the background at sunset. Too perfect.


Cotton tail rabbit.


Desert Datura.


Organ Mts. during a rare cloudy day.


Not sure what bug this is (it is a true bug) but the ant at the top of the picture was hell bent on bitting me as many times as it could as I was trying to get a picture. The ants are crazy aggressive here in the south.


A rare cloudy day in the Organ Mts. with a bloomed yucca.


More clouds in the Organ Mts.


Spiderwort.


Cloudy Organ Mts.


My room mate likes peaches.

Elephantman

There are a few things I would like to say before I get started here. First of all, none of this would have been possible if it wasn’t for my awesome Race Club teammates. They basically did everything for me. They drove me, fed me, housed me (well it was camping, but still), entertained me, and even provide me with a NMSU uniform to race in. Bottom line, RACE CLUB ROCKS! Second, I had not been training much nor was I in very good shape what so ever. I had swum maybe 5 times since late July and had run even less. Let’s just say I was scared for the swim and run. Finally, I had made a big change to my TT bike. Having a long torso and being constantly disappointed with my bike leg, I decided to set up my seat like its set on my road bike. In order to do that I had to move the seat back, not a little bit, not some, but all the way back. This is like a 1.5 inch change! Plus I tilted the nose up on my seat so I’m not sliding off of the saddle. I really think it made a huge difference and I'll explain why in a little bit.

Racing for NMSU was a pretty cool deal. It allowed me to start in the first wave and race for a cause but like I said earlier I was not ready for the swim. I decided to just leave my wetsuit at home because I figured what’s the point of wrestling it on and off if you are still slow. Also the water was pretty warm too. The announcer said it was in the mid 70’s but it felt warmer to me, even though I was still shivering at the beginning. I was completely chill and calm before the start, no nerves firing or butterflies in the tummy, just ready to have some fun. So off we go.

I started at the back because I really didn’t care. Everyone immediately closed in around me and started pushing me towards the middle. With all the pushing and adjusting I didn’t get pummeled too much, probably because our wave was on the small side. After everyone settled down and found their rhythm the swim went pretty smooth. The conditions were calm and the orange buoys were easy to spot. For a little while I was actually swimming next to Brianne, who is fantastic swimmer, so that made me feel pretty good. After a while I she must have turned on the jets because I never saw her again. Overall the swim was very relaxing for me. I got out feeling quite fresh and was not winded at all despite swimming very, very little. Swim time was 28:08 for 1500m.

Now I was excited. It was time for the bike. I think this was the first time ever; I was excited for the bike. Leaving T1 I tried to keep my efforts conservative until I felt fairly warmed up. Despite staying conservative I started flying by my fellow competitors like they were lane lines on the Autobahn. I thought, “Hmmmm… this is most peculiar. I hope I’m not going too hard or something.” Then around mile 6 I passed a dude on a hill, still in reserve mode. At the top there was a Suburban with its emergency flashers going. It was traveling at the same speed I was and it was getting kind of annoying. I’m like, “Get out of the way or go faster or let me pass.” Then I realized it was the lead vehicle. Huh?!? This is only mile 6 or so and I’m leading the bike segment? I’m not supposed to be a fast biker; at least I have not proven it. At this point I was feeling fairly warmed up and decided to go for it. Since the only training I had been doing was just riding my bike around I was going to try and squeeze everything I could out of this bike leg.

I blasted up the hills putting myself deep into the red zone. I continued this momentum over the top digging my calves into the petals and popping my leg back over with my hamstrings and hip flexor. I have been experimenting with my pedaling action on some of my rides and I seem to feel stronger longer using all my muscles except my quads. Yeah, I know, weird, but I think it works. Anyway now that I was leading I really wanted to ride out of sight by the end of the bike since I knew my run was going to be ugly. Surprisingly I accomplished this by around mile 10 or so. I finished up my water and picked up a little extra around 20 miles. I didn’t take any GU or Gatorade, just water. Coming into transition all of the NMSU spectators went crazy. It was so cool. They were just amazing! I can’t thank them enough for all of their support. Being first off the bike was an experience to remember. Something I thought would never happen. Bike time was 1:08:39 for 27 miles. It was a great high point in my race but now things were about to get ugly just like I knew they would.

Getting off the bike I was so completely trashed. As I put my shoes on and began shuffling out of transition I started having major doubts about what lay before me. I had not just some run training in me, I had not even a little bit, I had zip, nil, nata, run training in my system. So let the fun begin.

I ran about 400 meters and went behind some bushes out of sight from the spectators. I didn’t feel very good at all. My guts hurt and I felt heavy. I stopped to stretch and touch my toes. BLLLLEEEEEEGGGGGHHHH!!! Out came some pressure from my stomach. I felt a little better; I really should keep running (shuffling) on I thought. Oh no here it comes again, BLLLLLLEEEEEEGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!! I had to stop. At this point I thought there is no way I am going to run 6 miles like this. I have to drop out or walk. I feel just too gone. Luckily I am getting pretty good at these mental battles and I decided I could continue on even if it was a slow shuffle. After a while the dirt road gave way to pavement. I felt a little better and was able to do a little more running and a little less shuffling. I kept thinking short smooth strides. Around 2.5 miles I was still pretty full of water and another wave of up-chucky-ness hit me. BLLEEGGHH! Not so much this time. I was also expecting to see someone any minute closing in on me fast but I never did. At the turn around the second place dude was probably still three minutes back, and he was moving. Double huh?!? My lead off the bike wasn’t that big was it?

The last three miles there were only two things going through my mind, “Yes you can and no you can’t”. One minute I was confident I could take it all the way, then in a flash, I was ready to walk and settle for just a finish. As I came up on the finish I heard the music and saw my NMSU friends. Jill and Dez were at the bottom of the last hill and pretty much went nuts. Still, any moment I was sure someone would pass me but I made it to the line in time for my first win. A wave of nausea hit me like a brick wall when I finally stopped but luckily I was able to maintain my composure and not blow chunks all over the volunteers. Not that there was anything left in there anyway. My run time was 38:58 and fifth fastest overall. Not only had I held everyone off but I maintained my lead. I loved T-Rides expression upon hearing this, “Yeah, I’m pretty disgusted with you.” Although I must also give T-Ride the credit for having the fastest run of the day by whole minute and stating afterward, “Me, I run fast.” Haha, priceless.

However, there is a little twist to the race here. Although I was first over the line and won the college division I was forth overall, but surprisingly by only 3 minutes. Pretty cool. I was happy. Unfortunately this looks like it will be my last race for a while. School is getting rolling and although I would love to train my ass off and get out there and mix it up I will concentrate on my studies. It will be hard but the right thing to do I think. Thanks everyone for your incredible support.

Adam

Tom the Mt. Biker Dude

It’s finally Friday! HoooRaaaaaay!!! To celebrate I decided to go exploring on the old Pinarello. I really should name it. Some pretty Italian name would fit nicely. Any suggestions please shoot them my way. The bike is a little heavy but super snappy. It accelerates like a rocket and pretty much climbs mountains all by itself. A name like Isabella or Alessandra sounds pretty sexy. Anyway I’m getting away from the point. Back to the ride. Instead of going to the out and back part of my ride I took a turn into a housing development. I was expecting a dead end but the road took a glorious turn directly towards the Organ Mountains. After a brutal week my mind and body was free at last.

On and on the road continued through the desert. Each mile the road got progressively steeper as it approached the base of the Organs. Around Las Cruces there is a definite lack of serious hills but this sucker was punishing. The last mile was probably around 5 or 6%, not super steep but enough to work those quads and turn me into a rain cloud. At the top I took a nice pause to enjoy the beautiful evening before the big decent back into Las Cruces.

At the bottom of the decent I passed a Mt. biker parked on the side of the road. Looked like a flat tire. Slowing to a stop I asked if he had everything he needed. Nope, he was stranded, and his wife was not answering the phone. Haha, that sucks. Not to worry old biker dude, I am your savior, which was until I checked my front tire. OH COME ON! Now I have a flat too. Damn those Goat heads. I hoped I had 2 CO2 cartrages but I didn’t. Tom, the Mt. biker dude, said that was okay and wished me luck as he started walking into the sunset like they do in old western movies. For the next 15 minutes I fought and cursed with my tire but finally got it fixed.

Continuing on down I found Tom again, still walking. I said I wished there was something I could do to help but I was out of ideas. Slowly I rode on, still thinking hard. Oh yeah, there was still a little air left in my cartrage. I quickly turned around and offered the last of my air to Tom. He accepted and it worked! Well sort of. Tom’s tire was still pretty squishy but it was ride able. He thanked me as we shook hands and then we parted ways.

The rest of ride back I was just glowing. All week long people and things had proceeded to dump their shit on me. I was tired of screwing up and feeling worthless. Giving Tom the hand he needed to get home was just what I needed after one of the worst weeks. Thank you Tom.

Hey More Lightning!

Once again lightning storms rolled through Las Cruces last night. And once again I, being the nerd I am, traded my Saturday night to go take pictures of clouds. I hate to say it but hopefully these lightning storms mellow out soon because if they're there and firing, there's not much I can do to restrain myself. The desert is also getting its fair share of water too. Almost all the arroyos are running and the surrounding scrub is taking on a nice new vibrant green.

If you look closely you can see 2 or 3 small bolts coming up from the ground. I bet the spectators at the Aggie football game liked this one.


I didn't see this bolt but I saw the blue flash of the exploding transformer it hit. Again, I bet the football players were soaking up all the fun down there.

New Camera!

So the other day I was computer shopping and, wouldn't you know it, Best buy was sold out of all their laptop computers. While I was there I noticed their nice digital cameras. I had been thinking about buying a new camera for some time too. Hmmm... I didn't want to leave empty handed and I really wanted one so what the heck. Why not? I'll use it. A lot of money later, I had a brand new Canon Rebel XS. It was actually one of the least expensive cameras there so I was skeptical being a rookie photographer and all but let me tell you it kicks serious ass!

The first few days I just wandered around the desert here taking pictures of the cacti and rocks (two of some of my favorite things). The quality is amazing. Much better than my old 3.4 megapixel camera. I was enjoying it so much I went back to Best buy and got a tripod. That night I got lucky as huge supercell thunderstorms erupted 50 miles south of Las Cruces. I hoped I would get to see my first supercell storm but they stayed south of the US border. However, the other little local storms did not disappoint. The very first picture I took was the first picture below. Beginners luck I guess. The rest of the shots were more hit and miss. After 45 minutes, it began to rain so I packed it up. It was a pretty good Thursday night for me. Beats the heck out of sitting in meetings and seminars all day.

Now with my new toy I decided to start this blog thing so I could share all of my favorite things with everyone else. As you could guess from my title, my favorite things are clouds, plants, and triathlons. But anything that happens outside, really, I am a huge fan of. So here it is: my life, my interests, good and bad (but hopefully not too bad). Thanks for reading, I hope you find it interesting.


This was the first lightning picture I took. Total luck right here.