100 Triathlons
Go to the early blogs to read how I got into triathlons. Click on any picture to enlarge it. "It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood...who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly." Theodore Roosevelt 1910


Saturday, November 19, 2011

500 MILES!

Thursday evening I went  for a 6 mile run in Wekiwa Springs in the dark with no moon, just my headlight.  Sandy doesn't like me to do that and it is a bit scary but exhilarating.  Friday morning I did a 12 mile ride on the trails as we were going to the Albin Polasek Museum & Home in Winter Park early.  I was going for a long bike ride this morning but the Litespeed had a flat and I didn't feel like riding the Trek so I took out on the Salsa and went into the Park.  Stopped about mile 12 to watch 2 buck deer chasing 3 does in the big open area on the north end.  As I started out again, I checked my bike computer and discovered I had just passed 500 miles on the bike!  That's all trail riding since I got the Salsa in May.  Still love it; every ride is an adventure.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Magic Full Moon Run

With the end of Daylight Savings Time on Sunday morning, darkness now begins around 6:00. I rushed home Wednesday evening to do a long run under the full moon.  I planned on running 6.2 miles in Wekiwa Springs State Park as early as possible.  I grabbed my headlamp, a new 200 lumen mini-flashlight, my reflective belt, the Garmin GPS, and my park pass and headed out at 5:55.  As I entered the park, the canopy of oak trees made the road even darker and I was grateful for the pool of light from my headlamp on the road ahead of me. 

By the time I reached the base of the big hill at mile 1.3, it was quite dark.  Off to my right, a owl hooted to it's mate with no response.  As I approached the campground entrance, my light picked up tiny glittering green lights in the grass by the road's edge.  At first I thought it was dewsparkle but upon crouching in the gravel, I realized what I was seeing were the eyes of small ground spiders.  I soon reached the open area by the Sand Lake parking lot, which was bathed in the full moon's light.  I turned off my headlight and ran a short distance in the moonlight.  I turned it back on as I rounded the lot at 2.7 miles for the run back.  Glancing into the woods to my left, I was surprised by a pair of glowing eyes watching me, about 4 feet from the ground.  I flicked on my new flashlight and realized it was a deer watching me about 20 yards off the road.  Running back past the campground brought me the smell of woodsmoke and campfires visible through the trees. 

Leaving the park, I did a little additional mileage to finish my run at 6.23 miles with a time of 1:05 under the shining moon.  I grabbed my camera and took the photo above.  This was a lot of fun and I'll definitely do it again.