We are Independent

Uh boy. Movement of my arms near the shoulder joint is causing pins and needles. Yes, I got sunburned. I know better. I refrained from putting on the sunblock because I was in a hurry to get out onto the road and get riding, and now I'm paying for it. It is not the worst sunburn in the world. But, it is enough to be uncomfortable. And now my back looks like I'm permanently wearing a sleeveless shirt. This ain't no farmers tan.....it's cyclists tan. No, It's cyclists sunburn and I'll be showing it off tonite during my swim.

Thanks to Charlie, Amaterasu is now sporting some aerobars. They took a little getting used to, but I like them. Yesterday whilst peddling into steady headwinds blowing off of the Great Lake Erie they were invaluable. They put a little strain on the ole back, but are relatively comfortable. They do give the forearms and triceps a bit of a workout. The best thing is.....they make you faster. As soon as I move from my basebar to the aerobars my cadence goes up, as does my pace. Ahhh yeah!!!!

I have been hella busy of late. Busy time of the year for work. Summer class. Training volume is getting heavier. Thursday, the 4th is the Firecracker 4 Miler. Sunday, the 8th is the NCN Summer triathlon. If I decide a 2 week taper is enough for the Greater Cleveland Triathlon then the 28th will be my first century with Amaterasu @ the Sweet Corn Challenge. Here is a breakdown of last week's workouts:

Mon: swim 1200m
Tues: run 7.25mi
Wed: cross train (sort of) 5 hours of moving furniture
Thurs: rest
Fri: swim 2000m bike 25mi (brick)
Sat: bike 40mi
Sun: bike 49mi run 4mi (brick)

Totals
Swim: 3200m
Bike: 114 mi.
Run: 11.25 mi.
Ben & Jerry's: 2 pints

Over the month of July I need to increase running mileage as much as possible and be careful not to overdo the saturated fat in form of pints of ice cream. Also, I'll add one long bike ride per week.....somehow I"ll find the time. Hopefully I"ll get in 3 swims per week over 1200m. The good news is that I felt good on Sunday's brick. There was plenty of running fuel left in the tank when I pulled up after 4 miles. I have set a new athletic goal for this summer. I'll tell you about it later this week. It is a somewhat lofty, absolutely spur of the moment kind of goal. I've already asked myself, "why?" a few times. I can come up with a couple of answers. 1) I like to challenge myself. 2) I want to prove that pain is a state of mind. 3) I like the look on peoples faces when talking about such things.....or in other words, I think I like to shock people. More details to come.

I have a challenge for all of you. Get a stranger to smile at you today by only using one word....hello. Or better yet, see if you can get 10 strangers to smile. I think you get the idea. This was inspired by a little piece of Robert Hunter's writing that is going through my head. "Strangers stopping strangers, just to shake their hand."

Wednesday is Independence Day.

Celebrate your freedom, friends. Celebrate your freedom.