I hauled by pathetic sack of bones around a lap and a half of the bike course last weekend for the first time in a while. I had forgotten what an incredible ride it is ( and how that kicker on Co Rd 6 by the church hurts )

BTW, watch out at the bottom of the first descent after going under Trapps bridge, the highway dep left some tarry pea rock on the shoulder of the road.

I'm in (huge shocker, huh?). F1 once again.
Calling it now - < 5 hrs, for realz this time.

Pick me up at the airport again, maybe with the wife in tow this time? We are about done with our three years of going to school when you are old (She already has a job so I'm ready to start spending her money, just not too much of it.) I've warned her I'm going again and she said "Not without me you are not." Maybe I can actually finish a five hour version, since the LC was an exercise in futility for me.

Chad

If both you and the Mrs. come out, who's gonna watch the 47 kids?

Or are you just gonna leave a big bowl of food, another of water, and some newspapers spread out on the floor, and hope for the best? ;-)


Parkito, is that you?

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float , hammer , and jog

Good Lord ... the Am Zof thread is starting in August this year??? It will be a miracle if we don't really hate each other by next May :-) But remember ... your spot in the transition zone is directly determined by your behavior here. Be nice to the race director for the next 9mo and you may not have to rack your bike in the woods. Glad to hear that Rich will leave 40-44. Bye-bye :-)

Well ... you won't have to worry about that after Sun

who's gonna watch the 47 kids?

Well, since my 4-year old just now decided I was not fast enough on pouring him some milk, and went and poured his own milk without spilling, I figure they can be left alone for a few days. The other 46 are old enough to take care of themselves.

Chad

Very true, although a canoe will be needed to get to the west side of the Wallkill.

I Just finished up a loop of the course. They re-paved Co Rd. 6 on the east side of Mohonk this week. Smooth as glass.

Sa-weet.

Now, if we could only get them to patch up that descent on the far side of Minne - that's where most folks who get flats (snakebites, usually) get 'em.


I just got back from my AmZof-esque hilly 29m training loop, new pb. Hooray for me.
Great day to ride, perfect go-fast conditions - humid, damp, and dead calm.

The calm before the storm....

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float , hammer , and jog

I'm in...but I wussed out and signed up for the canadian women's race. Based on my experience in the F1 this year (i.e. being completely shattered for 2+ weeks), I decided it would not be a good idea to do the F1 and then do quassy 2 weeks later. Yes...i'm a giant wuss. Maybe I'll change my mind by next spring. Although if Yoda is truly "retired" from long course events, then I'll stick with the sprint just to keep him honest.

F1 will be back on my schedule in 2013 when I do another Ironman.

Yoda says he is doing LC using only ICB's for nutrition. I think the 3rd bike loop might get pretty dicey but he sounded confident. Will be fun to watch regardless. On a serious note, Yoda doing only short events is a bad plan as it is way easier to beat him the longer the race.

Did you sign up for tour of the adks yet?

I wasn't sure whether to put the emphasis on giant, or wuss, so I just went with both.

Agreed w/ ChrisG - Yoda is waaay easier to beat on a longer course.
But in the real world, anything more than about 2 hours counts as a longer course, so the "Short" course at AmZof is still moving up into the Kryptonite range for Yoda.
However - that and a quarter you can make a local call.

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float , hammer , and jog

I'm riding the course for the first time Friday.
Am I in for a great ride?

What's your opinion on the best part of the bike course?

Have fun!
Yes.
All of it.

I love the course, there's a mix of climbing, fast descents, and some spectacular scenery.
The BIG descent from the Mountain House is fun. I think the section along Butterville Road after that is beautiful, with the bucolic fields on either side, Skytop and Smiley tower up on your right (that's where the SOS finish line is), the cliffs of the Gunks in the distance.
Lots of folks love the climbing section that goes around the hairpin turn at the base of the cliffs - feels like something straight out of the TdF.
The other big descent, from Minnewaska, has a section with what is referred to as "The Million Dollar View" (from back when a mil was a crazy lot of $).
Nuff said.

Bring your climbing gears, and eat yer Wheaties.
Enjoy!

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float , hammer , and jog

A wise man once said "nothing ventured, nothing gained." A much wiser man once said "mother-made-em? mother-fuck-em."

I'm in, middle distance.

Best part of the bike course is the aforementioned million dollar view to the right while descending. Although that was about a $.02 view on race day this year. Worst by far is that ass kicker right near the end.

Is there going to be timing at AZ this year?

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*********************
"When I first had the opportunity to compete in triathlon, it was the chicks and their skimpy race clothing that drew me in. Everyone was so welcoming and the lifestyle so obviously narcissistic. I fed off of that vain energy. To me it is what the sport is all about."

They used a stopwatch and notepad at AZ 1.0 (as you know) and got the finishing times perfectly.
There were no split times that year, which was not very much different from this past year.
The timing chips were apparently for entertainment/cosmetic purposes only.

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float , hammer , and jog

Yes.

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2015 American Zofingen Du is May 17.
R.I.P. Chris Gleason

How about I just start drinking beer when I finish. We can then have your time appear in the results as Chris G + x.xx beers. Oh course this assumes that you will finish before I lose track ;-)

Having seen that Cee Cee is all signed up for the Canadian Womens, my pre 8/31 Shorty Course reg is now official. Can Cee Cee get yet another NY State speeding ticket whilst caravaning illegal beverages on the NYS Thruway?? I heard the views on the mountain are supreme......I'll take the general population's word for it as 2011 was soup. But you already knew that. Tune up them bag pipes McGovern, race day will be here before you know it!

Let's hope it's not so damp next year!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSvQXlXcm04

it may end up being a donation to the Preserve, but at least I have a spot reserved if Rocket Man decides to issue me a weekend pass on what is the Cdn long weekend for 2012.... =o

Parkito, is that you?


No, but it does seem to ring a bell...

I'm in for the Canadians Womens. Not planning on any LC (i.e. IMs) next year (unless some peoples were really seerious about B2B next year), so anything longer than the SC next May would be deliberate suicide on my part. Even in shape, and no matter how heroic you feel on the first run loop,that second run loop is absolutely brutal, be it F1 or LC. Besides, it's got a nice sequence to it, SC was my first AmZof followed by LC and F1. I think I'll just keep repeating the cycle for now.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Good grief. I thought only wives could issue weekend (aka kitchen) passes? I must have missed the 3 minutes in elementary school where they mention Canada and some of their cultural norms. Have to think supportive husband Dan will cut you some slack so you can defend what little honor and dignity you have left with the New Paltz troll brigade.