No-race September Sundays and delayed road test reports

It's official. I was not able to register for any race this September. It was out of negligence actually, I was hoping for New Balance but out of character I waited for this week, only to find out that it was already closed. Ok, it was kind of not meant to be.

Nonetheless, I'm happy that i'm still able to catch up on kilometers in between tasks. Next on the agenda is to catch up on sleep too.

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A delayed review on some recently procured gear mostly used in last month's UP Law Tri:

(1) CW-X Tri-Shorts

This brand is very popular among runners, now that it became available in Runnr (Bonifacio High Street, Fort). Its hottest product are the running tights which come in variation depending on your preferred support area.

Cw-x technology incorporates kinesio-taping techniques which is why aside from having compression properties, it also has support properties for specific target areas. The tri-shorts particularly has support for lower abs, lower back, quads and hip flexors, and aside from that it has integrated padding (for the bike part). These features made it a little heavy after the swim part, it retained more water than expected for tri-shorts. But then again, that is the trade-off for added support and if you're that focused, you won't notice it much.

(2) Zoot TRIfit Racerback

"Born in Kona" as it advertises, Zoot apparel are specifically made for triathletes to eliminate the need for changing and/or adding other garments during transition. Top-and-bottom combinations are available for those who are not so keen with the one piece trisuits (for easy bathroom moments prior to and after the race...or even during). This particular top has side pockets to stash gels, bars etc. Quick dry like it promises. My mom bought for me during their US trip. I'm not so sure if it's available in local bike shops but a lot are using this brand, maybe it is.

(3) Asics Gel Cumulus 11

I'm very happy with this purchase. I alternate this shoe with my NB 1025 (which was my favorite prior to this) for 10-15k sessions. It comes in pink! It's a neutral cushioning shoe, a lighter version of Nimbus 11. Highly recommended.

(4) Yankz Bungee Lacing System

Also from mom's US trip, I don't know if this is available here. This eliminates tying shoes, whether for triathlon purposes or just out of laziness. It looks cool and very adjustable. The downside though is it's not meant to accommodate my foot pod.

UP Law Tri 08302009

When I signed up for this, the only thought I had is that this might be the best idea I had or the worst. Up until now, several days after, I do not know the answer to that question. Haha. Scheduled right smack in the middle of midterms season, amidst ola and all other endeavors which eat up my free days, and considering the fact that I gradually decreased training time since my fit and fab summer, it was a recipe for disaster.

Actually, the reckoning point was some days prior to registration, I did a practice swim leg, and the time would determine whether or not i would shell out 1500 for registration. If it's less than 30 mins, proceed. If not, back out. So I guess we all know what happened then.

Early registration. An early bird, not exactly because of the discounted registration fee (because actually, there was no discount for the triathlon) but for reinforcement of training. But that didn't work. In August, I did a measely 60k total of running, roughly 8 swimming sessions and just 2 bike sessions. Haha.

Race Day. Woke up early to watch the fun run and waterstations, some administrative work and boom...7:30 na pala, have to set up my transition area.

750m Swim. Pretty uneventful, haha. 5 laps, 3 sets. The UP swimming pool is quite humbling. Sana the alumni would raise funds for its improvement. The UP Varsity Swimming Team does well in the UAAP, champions even during my college days so they deserve nice training facilities. As I've said, the dirtiest i've swam in by far with just one meter of visibility...actually, not even. Just armslength. But come to think of it, open water swims are in even murkier water. I could have reduced my time by raising myself from the end of the pool, but no..., I wanted to conserve the energy in my arms so i opted to use the rails...and anyway, the triceps are not like they used to be anymore. :P

T1. I anticipated a little and brought shoes to the pool so it was a quick trip back to the transition area. However, it took me so long to take off from there...disorganized thoughts and wet skin is not compatible with a fast t1. I may have reached 5 minutes. Haha.

20k Bike. This was tough to finish. I was using a nice fast road bike c/o Charles but I'm not that good a biker and, like the triceps, the quads aren't as they were before. That was 8 rounds of the course (acad oval plus a portion of university ave.) ...counterclockwise!!! The original route was clockwise which means just one challenging part: that hike from eng'g to econ. In this case, the uphill started from quezon hall up until educ. by the 4th round I could feel my quads complaining. Nang matapos, all I could think of is "hay salamat natapos din."

T2. They made us dismount around 100m (or more) from the transition area. As I could not run with a bike nor bring a bike on my back, I just walked. And like before, it took me 10 years to take off, even though I rehearsed it in my head while biking: isabit ang bike, drink, gel, saltstick, wear socks, shoes, tie hair, drink again. Probably 5 minutes again, not counting the walk from the dismount. Kupad! parang pupunta lang ng mall...

5k Run. Finally, the last leg. Heart rate was still 70-80%, not too tired although the calves are a little stiff from the biking. I have done that route and I knew that I could do it in 30 minutes or 35 at most, but all I could think about is I don't want to get cramps and not finish...ayun naglakad. I regret not pushing myself at this point, after doing so for the past 2 legs. But then again, pwede na considering I've done worse times, and kailangang pangatawanan ang pagiging maarte. At the last 100 meters I savored the festive environment: mommy was noisy as usual cheering like she was in a softball field watching danielle and dennise, a band was playing on the left, law school friends were likewise cheering in chorus (i remember dan, res and sop particularly), the biker that almost ran over me (hindi kasi nakikinig sa marshall haha), the friendly lifesize chocolate bar and kisses waving at me, and before I knew it, tapos na pala, nagcross na ako ng finish line.

So that's the story. I probably placed last but I have a medal still. No.1 ata ito sa student category...hehe. Next time, i will be conscious of transition time and will truly run. But for now, ie September and until i acquire my own bike, training muna at takbo.

I would like to congratulate my watergirls at university avenue for winning the best waterstation award. :)