B-Fit B-Day Challenge Results

>> Thursday, March 13, 2008

I made it another year! I was born under a bad omen (on Friday the 13th), but that hasn’t slowed me down yet. Today, to celebrate my birthday, I did the B-Fit B-Day Challenge. If you haven’t read my post from Tuesday where I give the details of the challenge, here’s what you need to know:

Take your age and:
1) Swim the number of miles in the first number,
2) Run the number of miles in the second number,
3) Bike the number of miles in the combined number.

And if you’re turning a “10” (like 20, 30, 40), then you have to run 10 miles, not 0. If you choose to accept the B-Fit B-Day Challenge you must....

Bronze: Do all three (swim/bike/run) during the week of your Birthday.
Silver: Do all three (swim/bike/run) in the three days before, after, or on your B-Day.
Gold: Do all three (swim/bike/run) in 24-hours to celebrate your B-Day!

I wanted to go for the gold, of course. So I planned to get up before 5 am and head to the pool. I’d get my swim done, and then go to the U of M to teach my photo class. After that, I’d come home and do a bike/run brick to finish the challenge.

Recently, there’s been a “traditional” photo to inaugurate the start of the Challenge. It’s a photo of the birthday boy or girl putting on his/her goggles at the pool. Here’s an example of Triboomer’s and little Jakey getting ready for their B-Fit B-Day Challenge:



I had a problem though. I got to the pool so damn early that no one else was there. And I wasn’t about to wait around. So I started. After I finished, there were a few people around, but they were all busy swimming laps, and I wasn’t going to drag someone out of the pool to take a photo of me. So I went up to the locker room, set up my camera in an empty locker, and made my version of the photo:



It’s not NEARLY as cool as Triboomer’s or Jakey’s, but it will have to do.

Swim: 2.0 miles (72 laps in a 50 yard pool)

I hadn’t swum that far since Ironman WI 6 months ago, but I knew it was still possible. I hit the pool EARLY, and started out. Shortly after starting, the pool filled up with old, overly-perfumed ladies on their noodles for their morning “workout.” I kept getting lung-fulls of White Diamonds and Aqua Net. Those ladies need to shower first (hair too!) like the rest of us!! Well, I got bored and depressed quickly. Seventy-two laps suck. I took a quick poop break after lap 40, and that was the little mental break I needed.

That distance drained me. The good news was that it was super fast for me! This was the first long distance swim since I’ve been meeting with Andrea to work on my breathing. I started well under 1 minute per lap (50 yards). I started to get slower. Near the end, I was afraid I could go over 72 minutes for the 72 laps. Instead of swimming HARDER, I finished by swimming BETTER (paying more attention to my form). And, wouldn’t cha know it, my last few lap times picked up! I finished in 71:51. Fastest swim of that distance ever!



T1: 6+ hours...

...so, yeah. T1 wasn’t fast. I got out of the pool, stretched a little, showered, and headed off to teach one of my classes. However, I DID get to stop for some sweet, sweet T1 fuel:


They should make a gel in this flavor! Yum-a-dum-dum!

After the delicious stop at Mickey-Ds, I drove to Minneapolis and got ready for class. I held class, and was headed back to St. Paul just after noon. I grabbed a few bowls of cereal and got all of my bike and run stuff together.

Bike: 27 miles (in my basement, on a trainer)

I got my bike ready with a couple of bottles of water. And I threw my large bottle of Hammer Gel in my rear bottle holder. I had 2 chugs of the gel throughout the ride:



I flipped on the TV in front of the trainer, and I was able to watch Martha Stewart and Rachel Ray. Cooking shows. Evil.



I started out on Big Rhonda, and kept slowly raising my speed throughout the ride. I was also able to enjoy Martha talk about Mexican food and cake, and Rachel talked with someone from Gray’s Anatomy, someone with cute animals, and then cooked with chicken. I should NOT have tuned into cooking shows. Torture. Anyway, here’s my bike computer before the ride, after the ride, and my bike time:



T2: 1:40

I wanted to have a nice brick workout today, so I had my run stuff all ready to go as soon as I hopped off the bike. Just after a minute, I was out the door. Thirty seconds later, I was off. A nice, speedy T2 time.

Run: 7 miles (out-and-back run, down Summit Ave)

I started my run with that great feeling of heavy, stiff legs from biking. I LOVE that feeling. And it was a great day! I was running again in shorts, because it was our first 50 degree day! I was puddle-hoppin’ and it was great. It was beautiful!

I don’t run with any fancy Garmin or equivalent, so you’ll just have to take my word that I ran 7 miles. Here was the route:



And here’s my final time:



And just for believability, here are my splits: (unless noted, all splits are half mile splits, taken at the major intersections along Summit Ave)

4:35 (nearly 3/4 of a mile)
3:33
3:24
3:15
3:24
3:18
1:45 (just over 1/4 of a mile)
(turn around)
1:47 (just over 1/4 of a mile)
3:17
3:34
3:20
3:14
3:18
4:29 (nearly 3/4 of a mile)

23:17 first 3.5 miles
23:05 last 3.5 miles

I got home and grabbed a picture of a tired, tired fella:


A fresh-faced 27-year-old

From jumping all those puddles, my legs got a little nasty:



Once I was done, I had a big glass of Recoverite (which is like crack to me), and a bunch of York Peppermint Patties. So it was a nice birthday with a great workout!

Final Numbers:
• Swim: 2 miles (72 laps in a 50 yard pool), 71:51. Average lap time: 59.87 seconds.
• Bike: 27 miles (on the trainer), 68:45. Average speed: 23.5 mph.
• Run: 7 miles (out-and-back along Summit Ave), 46:22
Pace: 6:38 / mile.
• Total Tri Time: 3:06:58

So I went for the gold and made it!



Thanks for reading everyone! Oh, and I think Pharmie and I are running the “Human Race 8K” run at the University of St. Thomas on Sunday. See you there?

44 comments:

Marcy 8:06 PM, March 13, 2008  

Nice dirt tan you're rockin. Well, that's what you tell us it is . . .for all we know you could've really pooped yourself and it ran down the legger :P

Sweet job homie!

TriBoomer a.k.a. Brian 8:13 PM, March 13, 2008  

Steve,

Congraulations on making it to Gold. I think your photo makes the grade but why didn't you ask one of the Aqua Net Honeys to take your pic?

Happy Birthday, Ironman!

Stay tuned...

RobbyB 8:14 PM, March 13, 2008  

Yay Steve! Happy Birthday Big Boy!

J~Mom 8:37 PM, March 13, 2008  

I had no idea about that pic. I mean I saw it on the website but didn't know I needed to take one. ;>P Now I have to figure out how to make my arms all beefy looking like that.

Congratulations on your gold medal!

Brian 9:11 PM, March 13, 2008  

Nice gold medal you can be proud of. When you get old like the rest of us, you'll have to watch those 'tasty mcd's'.

Rainmaker 9:12 PM, March 13, 2008  

Nicely done man! And happy birthday! Enjoy the evening. :)

Bill 9:21 PM, March 13, 2008  

Good on ya, Steve! Gold is definitely the way to go.

Chad 9:45 PM, March 13, 2008  

Awesome job.

Got the 30th coming up, think I'll go for the silver. 3 miles in a
25m pool is a long way to go in one session.

RunBubbaRun 5:47 AM, March 14, 2008  

Happy belated b-day you hunka man you...

Great way to spend it.. Hmm, born on friday 13th, that explains alot.

Dana 7:34 AM, March 14, 2008  

Nice job on the challenge,Steve!

The Sm'allards 7:52 AM, March 14, 2008  

Happy Birthday, Steve...and hey, those legs don't look nearly so pasty white when covered with road filth. There's a plus...

Anonymous,  8:46 AM, March 14, 2008  

Congratulations and Happy Birthday!! Great job on the challenge :)

Kim 11:13 AM, March 14, 2008  

congratulations steve!!! now go get drunk!

Wedgie 11:33 AM, March 14, 2008  

As someone who is hitting the big four-oh this year, I think the b-day challenge is ageist. To go for the gold I have to swim 4 miles in one day? What about people turning 50 or 60? That is disproportionately unfair.

Happy Birthday just the same.

Ryan 11:56 AM, March 14, 2008  

I love the picture of your SAUSAGE. . . .










patty. My favorite is the Sausage egg and cheese mcmuffin with grape jelly. Much like a morning orgasm, I only get it about once a month!

Iron Jayhawk 12:46 PM, March 14, 2008  

Happy birthday, showoff!! ;)

Nah, but seriously...nicely done. Hopefully I'll be able to pull this off in September. We shall see. I may have to try for the silver or bronze since my 27th birthday is the night before our 20 miler...hmmm...

Love the legs, by the way.

Paul 1:26 PM, March 14, 2008  

Good work. Glad it's not my birthday any time soon. Nice dirt sock too.

Stef0115 3:21 PM, March 14, 2008  

Way to kick some major tail with this challenge! Congratulation!

E-Speed 3:47 PM, March 14, 2008  

happy belated birthday! Looks like a good training day to me!

Bigun 4:10 PM, March 14, 2008  

Mine's coming up in a couple weeks...just a little farther to go then you, of course. The B-day challenge is not kind to the old. I like the double-bi-back-goggle-adjustment-start-photo; a tradition is born!

Bigun 4:10 PM, March 14, 2008  
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown 4:10 PM, March 14, 2008  

Happy Birthday!! Good job getting the challenge done!!

Nat 4:22 PM, March 14, 2008  

Happy belated birthday! Good luck at the race. I thought for a minute that you shaved your ankles for some reason....I don't put anything past you :)

Kate 9:31 PM, March 14, 2008  

Happy birthday and way to go on gold! You rock.

Tri-Dummy 9:55 PM, March 14, 2008  

Nice job, brother!

Thanks for the shoutout for Jakey!

Kewl Nitrox 5:57 AM, March 15, 2008  

Well done! And Happy Birthday. :-)

Lily on the Road 8:23 AM, March 15, 2008  

Great Job and Happy Birthday! Nothing worse than White Diamond, Aqua Net and chlorine....yikes...no wonder you need to stop for a power dump....

keep on rock'n...

IronMin 10:09 AM, March 15, 2008  

Happy Birthday Steve! Congrats on your BFit Victory.

GoBigGreen 12:10 PM, March 15, 2008  

good job Steve! You know my mom is one of those ladies ...they call themselves "The ladies of the pool," and be careful, they bite! And no, my mom doesnt use fragrance, trust me she knows better!
We are riding sunday but will look for you on summit!
Julia

21stCenturyMom 12:39 PM, March 15, 2008  

Happy Birthday!! You done good!

Bill Carter 7:03 PM, March 15, 2008  

Dude, as merely a runner who stays away from the bike and the pool at all costs, I am not worthy.

Happy gold b-day.

Mel 7:03 PM, March 15, 2008  

Those are some really good times for a training day :) You rocked it!!! Have a great Birthday :)

Kellye Mills 8:32 PM, March 15, 2008  

Congratulations!! And Happy Birthday Big number 27!!

CoachLiz 8:56 PM, March 15, 2008  

Wahoo!!!

And photos to prove you did it. I'm am only slightly jealous of your Birthday Bonanza because you got to recover with York Peppermint Patties. They are no longer free game for me since they have high fructose corn sryup in them. :0(

Anonymous,  10:08 PM, March 15, 2008  

Happy B-day. This is just awesome... I can relate to the part about the older folks and the noodle workouts. My gym has water aerobics so I end up swimming in the one open lane while Richard Simmons Sweatin' to the Oldies blasts from the sound sytem.

Michelle 6:49 AM, March 16, 2008  

Happy birthday Steve. Check your email. Bon Jovi's coming! Let's do lunch.

Afternoon Tea With Oranges 1:27 PM, March 17, 2008  

Great job! Hope you had a happy birthday!

monica 4:24 PM, March 17, 2008  

happy belated bday steve!! i'm inspired to take the bfit bday challenge and go for the gold!! but you just gotta keep going longer the older you get?? now that's cruel..

Jade Lady 2:35 AM, March 18, 2008  

Happy Birthday and congrats - you're the golden boy!

SM 3:43 PM, March 18, 2008  

Awesome job!!!! WTG on the GOLD!!! Love the T1 fuel!

Born To Endure 3:59 PM, March 22, 2008  

Happy belated birthday and great pic...you know I love it!!

Caroline Houdek 10:18 PM, March 23, 2008  

Happy birthday, although belated...

Those crazy fans of yours at CVA mentioned it to me, but I forgot anyway. Sorry, I'm a bad birthday-remembering friend...

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