Rode my new wheels today for the first time. And they are sweeeeeet! Since they are carbon fiber, they make the ride softer. I could tell a difference when I got a carbon fiber bike and think I could tell a difference today too with the new wheels. Awesome. Here is a picture of my setup that I took after my ride today.
I was in a bit of a time pinch so I didn’t yet get the magnet for my computer glued to the spoke yet so didn’t have an exact speed reading. I did 22 miles in 1 hour and 4 minutes though which is above 20mph average. The wind today is about 15mph gusting. I did a 1 hr 45 min run yesterday and a 90 minute BRICK on Monday plus an hour of TaeKwonDo so I was feeling a bit tired today before the ride. All that considered I feel good about my ride and felt like it was a bit easier to maintain that pace with the new HED’s. I get the magnet put on tonight so I can get some more objective data. I followed today’s ride with a 3 mile run at 6.5mph pace and then a mile swim. In just a few minutes I will go to another hour of TaeKwonDo with my boys.
Tomorrow will be a rest day. I am on call so work will be from 7 AM to 10 PM not giving much time for training. During my call weeks I get 2-3 afternoons free so Friday I will do a 50 mile ride and another swim. Saturday I am going to go for a 2.5 hour ride followed by a 1.5 hour run for a 4.0 hour total. Sunday will be a 90 minute BRICK. Monday a 2 hour run. Rest Tuesday. With the higher intensity this week before next weeks cut back week while I am on night call I am holding on my formal strength workouts. I will get them back up and running next week.
And, yes, John, Friday afternoon I am going down to the massage therapist a mile away and get a massage. I do feel that I need it.
9 responses so far ↓
TitforTat // May 7, 2009 at 13:49 |
Hallelujah………..He has seen the light.
Yael // May 8, 2009 at 21:14 |
Man, that is one beautiful bike! Hey, I moved mine from the garage to the living room. Out of sight, out of mind. Now I’m looking at it and getting it ready for a test drive again….Mine isn’t as beautiful as yours but when I think of all the miles I’ve put on this one, it has its own beauty.
freestyleroadtrip // May 8, 2009 at 22:03 |
Well congratulations. And by the way, the living is the best place for a bike. I NEVER put mine in the garage. Often to my wife’s dismay, my Felt is often in the living room. My Giant, which I don’t ride as much because I train on my TT bike which is my Felt, stays downstairs in my workout room/office/guy room with my old Bianchi Sport SS that is on my trainer. Garage. NO WAY!
freestyleroadtrip // May 8, 2009 at 22:07 |
Oh and thanks for the compliment on my bike. It is probably my most prized “thing”. I love looking at it. I love riding it. I love racing on it. I love keeping it in the living room.
Yael // May 10, 2009 at 22:36 |
I went jogging yesterday with my son. It was just a short distance but it was a start. I told him I have a ways to go yet before that marathon. My doctor has decided to start jogging again, too, so we are going to run together sometimes just to help keep each other going. I also played tennis and went for a brisk walk this weekend. I feel good!
Bill // May 13, 2009 at 19:57 |
Nice wheels. Glad you got them. I went riding with a tri coach last week. We talked wheels. He owns a HED 3 front wheel and a back disc. Also, he owns a ZIPP 404 set. Depending on race conditions and length, he uses different combinations of these wheels. For a 40k bike leg, the wheels improve his time by about a minute. I’d be interested in knowing what kind of improvements you see vs the standard wheelset that came with our Felt B12s. Regardless of time reductions, your wheels sure look fast! I’m racing Sunday and plan on riding with you in a few weeks when I’m back in KS.
freestyleroadtrip // May 14, 2009 at 04:01 |
Bill. Glad you found the new blog and thanks for taking an interest. I really like the wheels. Decided on them because from all the research I did, they seemed to offer the most under all conditions. Of course, the best thing, as you have touched on, is to own multiple sets for different conditions. But that is really not justifiable in my book just due to the cost. So I went with the HED’s. I am pleased with them. It’s difficult to say whether they make me faster or not. I feel like they do. But in order to tell that you have to compare under identical conditions which as you know, is difficult to do. I will say that I think they make the ride smoother being carbon. And I feel that my radically awesome cool factor is way higher
. That being said, I am also realistic. Shaving a minute off my time is basically worthless. I am not a speedster. Probably will never be a speedster. I am in this just for the challenge of finishing long races and doing it better than I did it last time. That is what I love about it. May be able to win my age group when I am 65 and the only one entered in my age group. I look forward to our work outs. Although if you have been using a coach I better be scared as I might not be able to keep up.
Daniel Pearl // August 14, 2009 at 17:02 |
Do you use the HED 3s as a daily training wheelset?
FSRT // August 14, 2009 at 20:56 |
Daniel. Thanks for checking out my blog. I do use my HED3s in daily training. HED recommends it on their website so I’ve done it. And I am riding faster this year than I ever have. I don’t how much to attribute that to HEDs and how much to attribute to better training. I do think the wheels definitely help at some level. I feel less wind around my ankles, and I live in Kansas so there is plenty of wind. I have ridden in 25mph cross wind, tailwind, headwind, and all kinds of angles. I do think that if I was a dinky little guy, I would get blown around a bit as they function almost like a disc as one gets to higher speeds. Hope that helps.