Bike Shorts
I know I was warned, but come on…
Anyway, yesterday I was on the stationary bike for an hour, doing part one of a little brick workout. I get obsessed about a lot of things, but the transition from biking to running has got me hot and bothered this week, at least. That twilight zone feeling you get when you start to run after biking is too weird to describe, and I’m a glutton for weird.
But before all that, the seat of the bike had been chafing and hurting for far too long. Somehow over the last week I misplaced the only pair of padded bike shorts I own, and I was, well, padless. The old shorts were leftovers from a few years back when I took a spinning class that left me sore, painful, and whiny. But the shorts I bought then were kind of wimpy and low-tech, they had padding that apparently had been made from potholder material. So it was time to buy some real, grown-up, padded shorts to replace the (literally) sorry-ass ones I still can’t find. So off I went to the local bike shop.
And as most of you would expect, the damn things are expensive. I was shocked that the first pair I picked up had a $79 price tag. ‘Tell me something I don’t know’ you’re saying, but bike tyro here wasn’t ready for the price check on aisle four. Sheesh. I found a pair for $50, and felt happy to have at least found something of a deal. On the way to the checkout, I noticed the bike shoes. $200 ?!?!? And I thought running shoes were expensive… No wonder all the beginner triathlon guides tell you to borrow a bike for your first event, if you bought a new one and all the crap that goes with it you’d be in debtor’s prison before the race even started…
Well, at least now I have my padded shorts. When I put them on, I feel like I’m wearing a loaded diaper, but that’s better than bike seat pain.
Busted and Outed
Funny thing happened at the end of last week. I had finished one of my indoor workouts at my gym, and I was in the locker room getting ready to head out when Shaun, one of the owners of the place, stopped in to ask me a question.
Shaun: Richard, are you….. Cranky Runner?
Well, ‘yeah’ I replied, and I somehow I knew right away how he’d found out. I’ve had a link here to ‘Edge’ gym since day one, and the management had somehow been notified. Hmmm. Well, I’m glad I didn’t write angry tirades about the gym. In fact, I rather like my gym, or else I wouldn’t have put a link on the right side of this page, nor would I have renewed my membership. Anyway, I explained a little bit about the blog, and we both had a small laugh over it. And Shaun, or Dennis, if you’re reading, thanks, uh, for noticing… at least you get the ‘cranky’ seal of approval, and that’s hard to get.
Goofy Marathon Vibes
Some folks are running the Walt Disney World Marathon this Sunday morning. You sure know who you are. If you’re not going to be there, make a mental note to send moderately pleasant, happy, supportive-but-not-embarrasingly-sentimental thoughts their way Sunday morning. The race starts at 6AM, with the runners starting to arrive at Epcot at 4. That’s pretty damn early, but at least most folks will be done by lunch time, and there’s a lot to be said for getting the race done and out of the way by noon. According to the website, the finisher’s medal is TOP SECRET (their caps, not mine), I can just imagine. Then again, ‘imagining’ is part of the magic of Disney! I just hope an exhausted runner at the finish line crotch-kicks some annoyingly cheerful Disney character and it gets videotaped so we can watch the mayhem over and over on YouTube.
Anyway, between 6 and 10AM (and beyond), think about your comrade(s) and how they’re feeling and what they’re going through, and let them know they’ll be fine. And don’t even say ‘you’re almost there’ out loud, it’s always a complete lie. ‘Your Trainer Can Kick Your Ass’, or ‘Go Team: Angry!’ will suffice.
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8 comments:
I got outed about a month ago with some of my friends who didn't know I wrote a blog. "Are you Vanilla?" one of them asked. I debated playing dumb and telling him I didn't know what he was talking about but in the end I just confessed.
"Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes." . . . Henry Thoreau.
Apparently Henry did not ride a bicycle.
Your comments about my run with Angry made me laugh. I know he's going to kick my ass all up and down some 5k somewhere, but you haven't heard how much he's been whining!
I hear you on the bike shorts. I always go for the cheap-o pair, and by the third ride the padding is being held on by about 2" of stitching on each side.
So how's the swimming going? I haven't heard anything about that yet. I'll bring you a couple of water wings in April when you come up, if you want.
Those $200 bike shoes are actually mid-range. The REAL good ones go for $300 and up. Sad, huh?
That crotch-kicking runner may be me depending on how much pain I'm in, but it just so happens that most of the bodies inside the characters are female since men are usually too tall. Disney is also a big TNT race, so there will be plenty of "YAYYYY YOU CAN DO IT" nonsense along the course. Hopefully I'll be well in front of anyone in purple...
$200 bike shorts are mid range? No kidding that tri's are expensive to start. And here all I thought I would need was a new bike if I ever wandered down that path... Thanks for the good vibes and also the terrific racing advice for this weekend. Active relaxation and pretzles...gotcha!
Welcome to the sport of tri...let the debt fest begin. You should have seen my jaws drop when I started buying winter gear....my creditors love and hate me oh so very much.
All you really need is a good tri short and those run about $50. they don't have as much padding but they don't make you feel like you're running with Depends, on your brick workouts.
On a lighter note,I think I should start a new poll, which disney character most deserves a cheap shot.
Thanks to all who confirmed and commented on all the triathlon ducats that swirl around the money drain. I just bought bike gloves that I can use in road races, too, so at least they're versatile. And a pair of swim goggles so big that make me look like Speed Racer.
Claire, as for the swimming, I just finished my first workout and overall, it was rather unpleasant, and that feels like an understatement. I did improve over the course of the workout, thanks to some patient and respecrful coaches, but right now I'm rather demoralized. However, I'm a better swimmer now than I was, so I should be happy with that small comfort. I'll write more about all that later when I feel comfortable enough to discuss it. Thanks for asking, though.
Anyway, thanks again to all for the advice on spending, swimming, biking and running (in that order). i already miss the days of just running.
Speaking of, kick ass AR and RL in FL this weekend...
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