Tempo and Zen go to Fiesta Island

Zen (aka Newton)

Tempo (Leslie's lab) and Zen (my lab) are sweet, happy and well dumb labs. We love them dearly and often make fun of their brain(less) power.

We often refer to not so smart people as Tempo and Zen.

So my coach (kinds sounds like I am comparing him to Temp and Zen - but I am not) who I trust wholeheartedly and do everything he says generally, told me to "get used to power tests"  Once a month- like it or not.   Well for me it is not, but well I do what he says most of the time anyway.  

Temp (aka Einstein) 

So when TCSD posted a monthly TT I thought aha, better than doing this mind numbing, killer  awesome test alone, why not do it with company.  So I emailed Leslie and said "lets do a TT"

Seemed like a great idea on paper...and even like  it might be fun.... until the day approached and I was tired.  But I loaded up my bike and stuff and picked up Les and out she rolls with her aero helmet and race wheels. Duh.....its a TT, maybe that would have been a good idea.  Oh well-  race wheels on Yakima roof rack, no go.  Rear wheel off, training wheel on, car packed and we sit in the awesome I5 traffic for 45 minutes.

Arrive and Fiesta Island- don't you just love that name.  When I see Fiesta Island I see a barren round island over a landfill and think of suffering in circles. Lot's of F words come to mind and none of them are anything like a fiesta.

I digress, instead of parking where we normally do, we drove around the island- who drives around Fiesta, what the hell ?  So we decided it was course recon. Go Tempo and Zen

We unload and I'm not really sure what transpired but Les' hands were black and her bike was too were completely covered in grease, but she is prepared  with hand soap  and a bottle of raspberry seltzer water.  "here zen, pour this water on my hands"  " okay tempo"  raspberry seltzer spewing all over like it was champagne on a podium.  We are now standing in raspberry seltzer mud.   20 minutes or an hour later we get ready to roll and Les' wheel will not turn, as in it does not fit.  Seriously, it fit before we put it on the rack.

This is what I did NOT look like 

Hey Tempo call to bike shop.  We can see the mechanics laughing at these dumb triathletes... says undo the skewer and pull the wheel out a bit. Um okay, as if it may fall out?  Yes. than tighten it up.  Okay Tempo do it. What's the worst thing that can happen, wheel falls off and you fall down.  Still wanna do this?  yes.  OK.

As we are warming up tooling along chatting as if we have not seen each other in a month  I remember I am supposed to be doing 30 sec pick ups- all out to "get ready"  Off I go and I glance down to see how high my watts are and they are at an amazing 0.  Yes 0 watts, crap, no power for the power test. No worries, reset "find my power meter"  and yeah we have watts.  On we go. Next pick up is even better holding 550 watts. Yes me and Lance!
Next pick up is 0.  Now I am realizing that there is a small  or a 100%  chance my battery is dead.  I suggest to my athletes that they carry an extra battery in their tool kit for such matters.  Wish I listened to me.

So we check in, line up and Les and are next to each other, ready to race.  We are laughing hysterically at so many stupid things I am afraid we will miss the "epic" start.   Every 30 seconds 2 people go off and we are next.  Ready, set, go!  and Les's wheel locks up.... Ok see ya.

3 x 4 mile loops  all out.  I drop in aero and go.  Settle in look down and see 0. Okay this is for "fun" .... I have to say it is better than doing it alone or even with 1 person - at least you have people to try and pass or guys in skin suits and a disc blowing by you at 27mph.

Here is how it went down... 1st loop is good, feeling strong and having fun- so glad I am doing this.   2nd loop starts as " i can do this, just hang on and then in an instant I am like holy crap I am not even 1/2 way, I may just die"  I am watching HR, since I don't have power, and am trying to keep it up.  OK 2nd loop done, yeah, 2/3 of the way, awesome, crap there is no way I can do another lap.  What is that noise, wait it is me, what kind of noise is that coming from my lungs... geez who is making this island longer, when will I finish, wait here comes a car, can I draft off the car?   Is that cheating? yes but the dang car is afraid to pass me so he is drafting off me, is he sucking me back, is that why I am going slower?, I can't do this I might die, arg my HR is dropping, no, pedal harder... hey I see the finish line. That was fun :)

It was fun to "race" sort of and all said and done glad we did it.  Rolled back the raspberry seltzer mud pit to "Joe" in the 1990 explorer, high, combing his ratted hair asking if we heard about the wiener dog killed in Coronado.

Off we go, dropped Les off and gave her my wheel as well as her's..... home at last.