Training Log Archive: Nadim

After a nice dinner on Friday, I crashed early and slept in. On Saturday my right knee was sometimes feeling out of alignment with some slight pain so I figured it best to just take the day off. It was a bit discouraging but it's probably best for me to continue trying to ramp up more slowly. Otherwise I'd be eager to put in more time both running an riding.

The good thing that happened on Friday was finding a sitter for Max on the following Saturday. That allowed Peggy and I to register for the SVO ROGAINE. I hope we can hold-up physically. We would have liked to go for 24 hours but due to the child care situation and our physical well being, we're only in the 6 hour race.

From Northfield Rd. to Maple Ave. with Max in his trailer, then to Water St., NW, Washington, D.C. via the Capital Crescent Trail. It is Bike-to-Work Day in D.C. so even with it being damp outside and being worried about further aggravating my right knee, I made the effort to get out and ride. In Bethesda, I had to pass through the festivities at Woodmont and Bethesda Avenues twice. There was another gathering spot in Georgetown--I don't remember WABA having one here in previous years. I turned off the normal route from Water St. to try to make my way to Freedom Plaza. My route up K St. was a bit slow with lots of traffic and traffic lights. I cut off K St. at around 19th Street, rounded the southern ends of the White House and was feeling good about not having any knee pain up to this point. Just before getting into Freedom Plaza for the biggest Bike-to-Work celebration stop, I did feel the pangs that I felt the day before. Like yesterday it happened just as was pushing off and moving my leg forward on the down stroke; the resistance triggered it. In the plaza, I spotted 3 other USDA riders--they and I had on our new USDA cycling jerseys. Mine says "USDA Organic" on the back. I got a t-shirt from the Bike-to-Work Day WABA sponsors but didn't bother trying to get any of the other giveaways at the many booths. While I looked around the crowd was being serenaded by a group of women cyclists on a small stage singing made-up bicycling songs. They went to the tune of other songs like this one done in a reggae voice:

DaaaaaaaaeeOOOOhh. Daaaaaaaa--aaa--eeee-OO--oohh.
Metro, not... the only way to go home.....

I rode slowly up busy 14th St. to C. St. SW after that. Perhaps today was busier than most with cyclists everywhere, tourists and tour busses, and even a police escorted motorcade in the mix. The city streets were a mess and made me really appreciate having a nice trail to use for most of the way on my daily commute.

C • Bike to work day 2

From 12th St . SW, Washington, D.C. to Maple Ave., then to Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD. I enjoyed the tailwind home again though it was a bit less than going home the day before. On the Capital Crescent Trail, though I didn't have the help of someone else blocking wind I was moving at a faster pace. Eventually, I passed a guy around MacArthur Blvd. and towed him up until Fall Rd. While he was thanking me and trying to explain how he was just hanging on, I slowed and then he took over for half a mile. I continued to feel knee pain in my right knee when pushing forward on the down stroke, if at the right (or perhaps more descriptively the wrong) angle. It was especially sharp when starting. Just short of home, I ran into Peggy and Max returning home from the local playground.

From Northfield Rd. to Maple Ave. with Max in his trailer, then to C St., SW, Washington, D.C. via the Capital Crescent Trail and Ohio Dr. I finally fixed the flat tire on my commuting bike. It was a nice cool 61F moring. There were a few sprinkles but it was essentially dry. However, I had strong headwinds most of the way. In the woods it wasn't bad. I spun pretty well, keeping it around 20mph down the grade. Just at Canal Dr., I got passed by a tall guy on a mountainbike who was carrying a large pack. It was hard to see around him so I knew I was getting a good draft. Unlike myself, he had obviously been riding all winter. For a while he towed me at 24mph on the flats into the wind but he slowed too. I pulled a couple more times. There were a few construction zones to get through and one small detour made to escape a fleet of trash trucks while I was still pulling Max. The bluestone Georgetown Branch Trail near Max's school was bumpy from the laying of a concrete ditch. The school hasn't rebuilt the old bridge going over the ditch the from the trail so it was a bit awkward there. Downtown past the Thompson Boathouse and through the Watergate complex area, construction crews were ripping up the Rock Creek Trail. It was closed. I hope they are getting ready to remove some of the nasty tree root bumps there but going home later today could problematic.

From 12th St . SW, Washington, D.C. to Maple Ave., then to Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD. When I pushed into my pedal to engage the clip and start my ride home, I immediately felt some sharp pain in my right knee, my good one. At first I thought it was just a slight thing like turning it the wrong way but going up the short ramp to get out of the building courtyard, it hurt in the same place again. I had to slow during the three pedal strokes and climb it with just my left leg. The pain was on the lower left side of the right knee but could be felt shooting upward a bit above it too. The rest of the way home I was more careful to keep spinning a high cadence. Fortunately I had a strong tailwind for most of the way and didn't have to stop much. A few of the times that I did have to stop and start at traffic intersections, I felt the sharp pain again. I slowed up enough for another guy who was taking it easy, to pass me. I drafted off of him while climbing the long grade to Bethesda and had a tailwind. I made it home okay. It's kind of scary to have potential problems with my right knee now given the unfortunate turn of events of what's happened to Kris Beecroft. At least with my left knee problems since last year, I was able to cycle without discomfort, even when I couldn't run.

From Northfield Rd., to Roosevelt St. via Jefferson St., to Garfield St. to McKinley St. to Hempstead Ave. to Hartsdale Ave. to Folkstone Rd. to Bradmor Dr. to Lindale Dr. into Ayrlawn Park to Johnson Ave. to OId Georgetown Rd. to Greenwich Park, to Northfield Rd. I would have liked to ride to work on bike this nice morning but I hadn't fixed my flat tire yet. On the way home I was feeling rather tired so it surprised me when I got out on the road that I felt okay. There was even a spring to my step at times. On Old Georgetown Rd., a younger runner was paralleling my route but on the other side of the road. I think we both picked up the pace but split at a traffic intersection.

Bethesda, MD. After flying home, I felt like running. It was just before midnight as I got started which is pretty good since my plane was scheduled to arrive at National Airport at 10:55 (it got in a bit early). The air was cool and crisp--probably in the upper 50's F. From Northfield Rd., I ran up to Custer Rd., to Wilson La., to Exeter Rd. to Glenbrook Rd. to the Bethesda Trolley Trail, to the NIH grounds, to Maple Ridge Rd. to Georgetown Pike, to Huntington Pkwy., to Custer Rd. to Northfield Rd. I started fairly slow and was stiff but this improved.

Overland Park, KS. After flying home to Bethesda, MD from NH the night before, I went to work as usual, then caught another flight to Kansas. I got there late enough not to need to go to the office and enjoyed the chance to go for a run. Mike Eglinski and Mary Jones were not available since they had to pack up their house. I figured that I wouldn't get the chance to workout on Tuesday so I wanted to take advantage of the time I had by doing a longer run. If I were in better shape, I wouldn't have been concerned about it being right after the Billygoat race but I know that I'm not yet ready to take on a lot of miles yet. I had some good weather enthusiasm going for me along with not feeling so sore after the Billygoat. After I got started, it wasn't very long before I felt like I was slowing and actually feeling the effects of the race. I plodded along. From Woodson, I went to 110th St., to Nall Ave. to the Indian Creek Trail. The trail was disrupted at one point by a road bridge construction. I got off route there but knew enough of the route to get back on easily. I took the right path at all the forks so I covered most of the loop areas. I turned around right at the underpass for State Line Ave.; right on the Kansas/Missourri border. During the run, I felt somewhat stocky; strong on the few hills and not very smooth or efficient on the flatter grounds. Before I ran, I noted that my knee hurt sharply when I turned it a certain way. During the last 1.5 miles it hurt too but not very sharply. I was glad that I got in some distance training.

Event: Billygoat
 

The Billygoat. Nottingcook Forest, NH. I had prepared a bit by running a few longer runs in the last two weeks. I didn't feel quite prepared but was a little more confident. Fortunately this was to be a short race.

The Billygoat, Nottingcook Forest near Bow, NH. I started out feeling rather winded and used the crowd for the first few controls. Though I had no plans to stick with anyone in particular, I found myself around people more after that--through about two-thirds of the race. It wasn't until I let Kristin and another guy leave the aid station w/o me and decided to skip #15 that I was alone. Through much of the race I had not been very confident. I was concerned about the poor run I had on the same map when the first A-meet was held on it. I knew there were some light green areas where the map showed white woods. I also probably felt that I was running faster than I would have navigated on my own in places. I think being in better shape would have helped with that though I'd of probably run faster and beyond my navigation skill that way too. It's kind of natural for most of the people running the Billygoat. I ended up making pretty good choices most of the time, going on the left route choice to #4, the left fork at #5, not skipping #7, and skipping #15. I would have liked to have done the leg to #12 over again but a bright spot was some good navigation to #20. I got sloppy going to #21 figuring it was near the end and would be easy so I lost some time there. I finished 19th overall which is not bad for the physical shape that I'm in. See the Split List.

Billygoat - Splits