Bike Crashes

In 12 years of racing in events that involve a bike (triathlons, duathlons, TTs, adventure races, and MTB races), I've had very few crashes. I never really pondered that fact until I wiped out last year in a training ride. Leaning into a turn, I hit a section of slick, wet pavement and went down hard and fast. As I laid on the pavement, moaning, I remember thinking, "I'm really, really glad this doesn't happen often."

In fact, as I look back on all the races and training, and time in general, spent on a bike, I have only a handful of war stories and very few scars to show.

There was the time I hit a tree in a MTB race. Coming into a tight switch-back I clipped a small pine tree on the edge of the trail with my shoulder. Well, I should say my handlebar clipped the tree, turning my body directly into it. My shoulder took the full force and knocked me off the back of the bike. I jumped up and was on my way without really having to survey the damage, which ended up being only a bruise. Got lucky.

There was the time in my garage when I forgot to lock my bike into the trainer properly. After a minute or so of pedaling I felt myself leaning to the right, and before I knew it, I was on the floor in my garage, still clipped into the pedals. Nice bruise on my hip, but again, nothing serious.

My biggest scare came two summers ago when I hit a car while riding in my neighborhood. I was going about 19MPH when a car pulled directly into the bike lane from a side street. I hit the car's front tire and went over the hood. I should mention that the driver was the neighborhood paper-delivery person. She was flying around without any regard to stop signs or speed limit as she always does. It was early in the morning (plenty of light, in case you're wondering) so I can see how she didn't expect anyone to around. But she was on the wrong side of the road and ignored her stop sign (had I not hit her, she would not have stopped). I went over the handlebars and my hip hit the hood pretty hard as I bounced onto the other side of the car landing on my feet.

My bike did get a little dinged up in that one, but I've never felt so lucky in my life. Just a another nice bruise on my hip - although this one hung around for several weeks.

And really, that's it as far as crashes. I won't count the number of near misses and sketchy run-ins with drivers I've had in the years. Each time I go out for a ride I take extra precaution. I know things could go wrong at any moment and I pay attention. I just hope the guy behind the wheel is paying attention as well.

Mission Accomplished...sort of

I set out in 2009 to take a break from racing sprint triathlons. I was tired of all the speed work and focus on each and every second of a race, not to mention driving all over the state.

Over the years I've mixed in other kinds of events and distances, but for the most part, the base of my season revolved around the same 8-10 sprint triathlons each year. It was starting to get old.

Last year, I went in a different direction. I bought a road bike and left my tri bike on the trainer in the garage. I decided to race less and slow things down a bit. Instead of setting goals around how I placed in a race or series, I set four simple goals for 2009.

• Enter a crit (cycling)
• Enter a road race (cycling)
• Ride a Century (100 mile bike)
• Complete an Ironman

I entered a crit in Columbia in March and a road race in April. Technically, I hit my goal, but I finished horribly in both events - dropped in both and finishing alone. My grand entrance to the cycling scene was humbling, to say the least.

As for the Century, I never actually entered one as planned, but I did log two 100 mile bikes in training for the ironman, then of course, the 112 miles in the actual race. So, that sort of counts, sort of.

One thing is certain. I did complete my first ironman, and that effort definitely makes up for my shortcomings with the other goals. I enjoyed the long slow distances in training. It was simple, stress-free training. Not that preparing for an ironman isn't stressful, but when your goal is to finish, and you just want to enjoy the event, your attitude changes.

And now, just like I had hoped, my battery is recharged. I actually miss the intensity of fast racing and plan to jump back into to mix - racing around 12 sprint tris this year. I'm excited about the season. And that's the way it should be.

Half Ironman Updates

Just wanted to follow up on a couple of my recent posts about half Ironman races in South Carolina. I noted the huge drop in race participants at the SC Half last year and speculated that the new 70.3 Augusta Half Ironman was the reason. Looks like I might have been correct. This year, the SC Half is scheduled for August 29, a full month earlier than it’s ever been, but more importantly, four weeks BEFORE the Augusta 70.3 race.

Probably a good move. Of course, it will no longer be a wetsuit legal race, but hopefully that won’t be a big deterrent to racers. The SC Half is a great race.

Long Bay Triathlon
I’ve been following news about the Long Bay Triathlon, which I also wrote about in an earlier post. I had my doubts that this race would get off the ground, and I “think” I was correct. The lack of information around this race was concerning from the start, and probably a big reason the race didn’t happen. Shortly after the scheduled 2009 race date, the 2010 race date was posted on the website (October 10), and billed as the 1st annual – so I assumed the race did not happen. Then a few weeks later, they changed it to 2nd annual. No one I’ve talked to participated, or knows of anyone who did, and there are no race results to be found. If this race did happen, please let me know. I’d love to be wrong on this.

Like I said before, it’s great to have another long course triathlon in South Carolina, but you can’t just throw up a website with a date and expect much response. For a half ironman distance, racers need more information, more details. We’ll see if they can pull it off this year.

SC Half Ironman Half Full

I'm always curious to see how many local triathletes sign up for the SC Half Ironman in Greenwood at the end of the tri season. It's not a race most athletes do each year. The distances are 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, 13.1 mile run, so it requires a serious commitment to training volume.

Typically, this is a goal race. A race you mark on your calendar in January, and start training for months and months in advance. You've raced several sprint and Olympic distance triathlons and you're ready for the next challenge. For some, it's a stepping stone race, because before you can dream of completing the full ironman distance, you know you have to tackle the half. Just the natural triathlete progression I guess.

This year, I was surprised to see how low the total number of race participants were compared to previous years.

2004 185
2005 263
2006 380
2007 423
2008 567
2009 253

You can see that the total number of participants has gone up each year, a steady pattern of growth. Then, this year, 314 fewer entries than the previous year. Why the dramatic drop in participation?

I couldn't figure it out at first. This is a Setup Events production, and well organized. It's a race that's been around for six years and has a very good reputation.

Was it the economy? No, I don't think so. Local race director Paul King was quoted earlier this year stating that entries in his five local races were not down at all. In fact, the CSTS series sold out in record time (I've heard he's adding a 5th race to the series next year by the way). Plus, if you believe the statistical data provided by Triathlete Magazine, triathletes tend to have higher household incomes which translates to more disposable income, making them a little more recession proof as a demographic. The triathlon scene seems to be weathering the economy just fine.

Then it hit me. The new Augusta Half Ironman! That's it. A new half ironman just across the Savannah river in Augusta - parts of the course go through Aiken County. So, while this race is based in Georgia, it's not much longer of a drive for SC athletes. Plus, it bears the official Ironman brand and is part of the official Ironman series, making it a qualifier for the 70.3 world championship.

Also appealing, particularly to first-time half ironman racers, is the swim course. The swim is with the tide and thus swim times are a good 15 minutes faster for the average swimmer. So, if this was your year to tackle a half ironman, Augusta was an easy choice. Moreover, if you do race the SC Half each year, why not try a different course?

Bottom line, I think Augusta took a large chunk of race entries from the SC Half, and could continue to do so. I don't know what that means for the future of the SC Half, but this is a trend that will be interesting to watch.

Changing a Flat Tire (Tri Bike/Road Bike)

Being able to quickly and efficiently change a flat tire should be a priority to any cyclist. Be it on a group ride, in a race, or even in your neighborhood, you don’t want to spend 30 minutes (or longer) struggling to change your tire, or worse yet, have to walk all the way back to your house or car pushing your bike.

If you ride a bike, you should expect a flat. Maybe you don’t get a flat this year, but you could just as easily get three consecutive flats on your first three rides next year. It’s random, but one thing is for sure, it’s going to happen sooner or later.

For starters, you should prepare for flats by carrying all the tools necessary to change the tire, and you should practice changing flats until you feel comfortable with the process. And I recommend practicing with the back tire, because getting the chain back on the rear cassette can be tricky the first couple times. I recommend you carry a spare tube (2 if possible), 2 tire levers, and a CO2 kit. All this should fit nicely in most all bike saddle bags.

The only other advice I’ll offer up is that in a race situation flats are the worst. It’s really hard not to get frustrated. You just have to relax and change the tire quickly and smoothly. You won’t get your PR, and you will likely lose around 5 minutes minimum to your competitors, so just accept it and move on. Keep a positive mental attitude and finish strong. Don’t let a flat ruin your day. Your number just came up. It happens.

Here is a good video showing the proper way to change tire. FYI – the video is for clinchers, not tubulars.