It's the dream machine

Last December I decided to get a bike fit at Benidorm Bike in Canton, CT. The lovely Jan (who has a very distinct Pittsburgh accent), Master's BG Fit Technician, spent more than 3 hours with me on a snowy afternoon outfitting my Novara Strada to help me achieve a proper fit. It turns out the bike I bought from REI was a bit small for me, so Jan had to practically max out all aspects of my bike including some new parts. The process was expensive, but made me realize how much better and more comfortable biking can be when your bike has the appropriate fit, especially on the long haul bike rides.

Well all winter long I had it in my head that my bike was too small and even though Jan outfitted it for me, it still bothered me. I probably would not have done anything about the bike, mostly out of laziness and a lot because of cost, but my roommate decided that he wanted to get into road biking and inquired if I had plans to buy a new bike. He would mention it to me, I would say "probably sometime" and then forget about it. Until one day....

On a Saturday afternoon in May, I decided to take a ride back to Benidorm and just peruse the stockpile to see what goods were in store this season. Pete greeted me and even remembered my name (I hadn't been in the store since January). We chatted for a few minutes, talked about what I was looking for and then got down to the dirty work...road test!

I tried a few bikes out and then Pete had the gall to put me on the Specialized Tarmac. I instantly fell in love with the full carbon sweetness. After the test ride he asked me what I wanted to do next. I said that I wanted to sleep on it overnight and think about it. Pete then said "What is there to think about? I saw your face when you came back." Can't blame the man for trying to sell me the bike. He set up the bike according to my bike fit from December and told me to come back on Sunday for a ride.

I took the bike and all its brand new glory out on the road. The handlebars still wrapped in plastic, I managed to get better at the different brand of shifters and was amazed at the quietness of the ride. The road seemed to disappear. The ride wasn't as long as I wanted but it was getting hot and I had no water, so I headed back to the shop and bought it. Case closed.

Brought the bike back home, sold my Strada to the roommate and life has been pure bliss ever since.

First Race
Every other Thursday night during the summer there is a sprint tri in Marlborough, CT at Lake Terramuggus. Unfortunately, I've only competed in one of the sprint tri's at Lake T this summer, but the one that I did compete gave me instant fame. Well not really fame or notoriety, but my picture ended up in the Benidorm Bike July Newsletter.

I think this bike and I will have a long life together. Filled with many miles and much sweat.

Where has the time gone?

I'll skip the lame apologies for the delay in my posting and just get right to the meat and potatoes.

I'll start with the results from the Worcester Half Marathon. As I mentioned in my previous post, the Worcester half was supposed to be a friendly adventure with Kate. Unfortunately, I was stood up on race day (she even put in the effort required to receive the student discount!). Don't worry Kate, I'm not too upset, but I hope to see you in Hartford! The weather for the inaugural Worcester half marathon was cloudy and unseasonably cool (read: great running weather).

One thing about Worcester, for those of you who have never been there, is the amount of hills located in the city. The race route did not shy away from these hills to say the least. The route brought back memories of my times at WPI as well, which was definitely a mental boost since I could never physically run around the city while in school.

(Runkeeper with iPhone)

A little less than half through I had a small cheering section (thanks Adam and Eileen!). Not used to a personalized cheering section during a race, so that was fun and it was definitely helped with the oncoming climb. The race ended with some guy behind me giving me motivation. He kept yelling at me and I kept yelling back, but it definitely helped me sprint (I use that term loosely after 13 miles). After looking at the pictures from the race, apparently he was old and shirtless. Fun fact.

Results

bib number:	74
age:	25
gender:	M
location:	West Hartford, CT
overall place:	205 out of 1091
division place:	25 out of 66
gender place:	139 out of 458
time:	1:47:37
pace:	8:13

So after my third half marathon, my times are progressively faster. Personal records are always great, especially considering this course was significantly more difficult than the previous two courses.

Next road race: CIGNA Falmouth Road Race 7 miles, August 15, 2010

PS It was more than 4 months since my last post. Darn.