Maumee Bay Duathlon

On June 19, I completed the Maumee Bay Sprint Duathlon. This event featured a 5k run around a man-made lake in beautiful Maumee Bay State Park on the shore of Lake Erie near Toledo, Ohio. The first run was followed by a 23k bike segment and then another 5k run to finish. The bike course was very flat though one several mile stretch was dead into a 15-20 mile per hour wind. The event also offered an Oylympic distance event (roughly double the distance) and triathlons (swim in place of the first run segment) for both sprint and Olympic lengths. HFP racing ran the event and did a great job. There was no confusion at 6:30 a.m. when most of the participants (several hundred) showed up to get their bibs (numbers), timing chips (ankle bracelets), and number and age ceremoniously scribed onto arms and legs with magic marker. The race flights started right on time to the minute and it was quite a rush to be part of it. Those of you who know my medical history also know that finishing this event was a marker for me on my path to prove that cardiac issues don't have to mean an end to athletic training and competition. My new bike (the Trek Madone) was a dream to ride. Most of the athletes were riding tri bikes, though, and I plan to convert my Trek 5200 by adding aero bars and a Profile seat post. The flat course and wind issues made the tri bike configuration an advantage. Of course, on a hilly course, the Madone would be the preferred ride. The screen shot shows the route as recorded by my Garmin 305. Click on the image to make it full screen. I did a bit better in terms of time than I expected and am optimistic that the right kind of specific training will result in significant gains. This was truly a "trial run," and the result is as I hoped -I am excited to continue.

New Bike

Here is my new Trek Madone 6.2. Double click the image to zoom. If you are interested in the specs, go to Trek's website. I did use Project One which enables web based customization (e.g.color and the wheelset). I bought it through Bike Authroity in Broadview Heights. They do a great job with careful sizing and fit. Unfortunately, it has been cold and rainy nearly everyday since I brought it home late last week. I did manage a pretty good ride on Saturday. The bike handles like a dream -the carbon frame is stiff and responsive as advertised. It seems to eat the hills. I can't wait to get it into Cuyahoga Valley to test some of the "out of the Valley" climbs. Some are over 20% grades for portions.

In two weeks, I'm running the 10K at the Cleveland/RiteAid event. In mid-June, I am planning on a sprint duathlon in NW Ohio. For the next few days, I am editing student papers with the grade submission deadline coming up.

Lucy Marie Corbett

Here is my brand new granddaughter, Lucy, at about two weeks of age. Please double click on the picture to provide a better appreciation of Lucy's charisma and cuteness! My daughter, Stephanie, birthed her totally naturally without any drugs or pain killers. I am very proud of her. The day of her birth, Saturday, March 5, I received a call from my son-in-law, Matt, while I was relaxing in Barnes and Noble after my early morning spinning class. This was about a week before the supposed "due date." Linda and I immediately "mobilized" and got up to St. John's Westshore Hospital in Westlake to be there for Lucy's first hour in the world beyond Mom.

Cross Country Skiing

Linda and I got each other new cross country skis for Christmas. We ordered them from a Maine company called Akers Ski -that was ironic since our first sets had been ordered from LL Bean (Freeport, Maine) back in 1975. The Bean's skis are all wood with hickory bases. The three pin bindings are outmoded and the boots were shot a long time ago. But I won't throw out those classic skis. One of these days, I may see if the bindings can be switched out without weakening the ski with new drill holes -perhaps not.

We couldn't wait for Christmas to open them once UPS dropped them at the door. We've been out twice to trails in a local park in pretty good conditions. Yesterday, we did close to an hour and really worked up a sweat in the high 20's temps. It was a good workout day for me since I had done my hour and a half Saturday morning spinning class. This is a great class with a serious instructor, and it's geared to triathletes, serious cyclists, and other sorts who like to suffer.

Sunday Ride

Here is a screen shot of my Garmin page showing the data and map for a 73.5 mile ride I took over to a family reunion on Sunday, July 11th. Click on the image to enlarge it or go to my page at http://connect.garmin.com/activity/40108167. Garmin says that I burned over 5200 calories though I fueled the trip with just 3 packs of Gu gel -the stuff must be potent -more sugar than I typically eat in a month. I stopped at my Mom's just past Canfield for about 45 minutes late in the morning and my quads felt pretty tight when I climbed back on my Trek 5200 for the last leg over to the picnic grounds where the reunion was held. I've had the Trek since 2001 though I recently added Speedplay pedals which work great with my new Sidi shoes. Much of the trip was on route 224 between Akron and Youngstown which wasn't too busy on a Sunday morning though the traffic that was present was flying. At one point, I was passed by a convoy of wide load trucks that were using about 2/3 of the pavement and all of the berm. Fortunately, they swung over for me so that I didn't have to bail into the ditch bordering the berm. Near Youngstown, there were some sections of teeth rattling washboard asphalt. The weather was wonderful - low 60's when I left the house just after 6 a.m. and low 80's by the time I arrived around 1 p.m.

Here are a couple of scanned pages from a booklet titled Outcomes which was handed out at a recent Grand Rounds session at Fairview Hospital which is where I had my bypass surgery. Click on the image to enlarge it to readable size. The picture is me dancing with my daughter at her wedding which was in a beautiful outdoor setting near Chagrin Falls, Ohio. The article is a fairly accurate rendition of what happened to me on June 3 last year. I was told, however, that it was more like 15 minutes between the time my heart stopped and when it was restarted. There is no mention of my adoption of a plant-based diet in a quest to keep my vein grafts patent. Also, well-before the 12 week mark (sternum healed rock-solid), I was back to limited weight lifting. I have been progressing my workouts, and the spinning class that is mentioned is now up to two hours and is very intense. Many of my workout mates are triathletes. I run trails with my pooch, Casey, and lift heavier weights than the typical 20-40 year old at the place where I workout. I have been lifting 2 or 3 times a week, spinning twice a week, doing yoga a couple of times in between, and playing tennis several times a month. Not bad for a guy whose ER report listed the diagnosis as "Sudden Clinical Death." Both my cardiologist and surgeon (identified in the article) say that I suffered a plaque rupture which is an acute (sudden) event where a narrowed portion of a coronary artery splits and results in formation of a clot which acts effectively as a cork in the particular artery (in my case, the trunk of the left main -not good!). How fortunate (blessed) was I to have a cardiologist and pediatric intensivist within a few yards?

Hiking at Sunrise

Here are a couple of shots taken by my hiking buddy, John Shaffer, at River Styx Park a couple of weeks ago. We meet for a sunrise hike once a week no matter the weather. This day, it was about 5 degrees when we started. I'm carrying my pooch, Casey, after he came up limping with ice balls between his toes for the second time. The first time, I thawed his foot with my ungloved hand. The hand stayed cold so the second time he limped, I figured the over the shoulder carry was better than frostbite. He didn't seem to mind!