Du Nats Challenge is off and running. If you’re logged into the forum, go here and you’ll be at the challenge page. just hit the link that says Join Challenge, which is right on that challenge page. that’ll enroll you. Then start logging your workouts and they’ll accrue onto the challenge.
If you’re clicking links, and trying to get there, and nothing happens, it’s because you’re not logged in. If you wonder what’s the deal with logging in, well, you have to set up a Slowtwitch account. Just click the link at the top of the page that says LOG IN, then follow the link that says SIGN ME UP! It’s free, takes about a minute, and then you’ve got a lot of Slowtwitch privileges you didn’t have before.
First day ended up being a massive “spurt” cause I had a 53K XC ski race and then I finished it and paced my son through his 10K race…plus warmup and cooldown and my bogus running for the 100 run challenge and then a really easy 20 min on the rollers in the evening to try to get the legs feeling normal. Still lobbying for 2.5 points per mile for Nordic, but you get the picture :-).
Anyway, the race was a total distaster cause I just messed up. I was leading a pack of 10 in around 20th place when one of the guys steps on my pole and SNAP…first broken pole in 20 years in racing…next aid station, I get a pole from a guy a foot taller than me, and the chase is on, and spend 15 K trying to get back to the pack I was with…in the mean time nutrition and pacing went out the window…reattached to the pack and then spent the next 20 K in a cat and mouse “bike race” where no one was strong enough to get away. Then through the final 3K of technical and I just did not have the heart to fight for the sprint finish and slide to the back of the peleton and lost 20 spots in a snap of a finger…oh well…live and learn. Right shoulder is totally messed up right now on account of using a replacement pole way too long for my body!
Fast day, averaged 21.9 kph, or sub 3 min per K…as it turns out from a time perspective it was a PB, but in this type of racing, like in bike racing what we really care about is positions:
“i edited it but it won’t change it from km to miles. what am i doing wrong”
i don’t know. i can’t get into your training log account and edit a workout. worst case, why don’t you at least stick in 5.5 instead of 3.4, and you’ll at least have the distance right.
dan, its an almost embarrasingly type-A personality complaint, but … given that the challenge focuses on “aerobic points”, it would have been nice to include indoor rowing too. I was stuck in a hotel this morning (snow everywhere outside) and they had no treadmill, but they did have a C2. tri-specifity is not high, but better than weights oh well, ignore this feeble request this time out, but maybe keep it in mind for any future winter challenges.
Hey Dev. So you think that skiing is only worth 2.5 pts per mile instead of 3?? I have never skied so I have no idea, but it seems like you go a heck of a lot faster on skis and I thought 3 points is a little bit excessive, but I honestly have no idea. My house is surrounded by ski trails and I know a lot of people that put in huge amounts of miles on them, similar to what you do, but they can’t run at all, so I am just curious to know what someone that does both really thinks.
Vagabond, I had a detailed discussion with Dan and Rappstar about the point allocation. In reality just like biking or running or swimming your ability to acquire points depends on your proficiency level. I guess the bottom line is that not that many people will be able to go as fast as I can, for as long as I can, so 3 pts was actually reasonably fair. I think the best analogy is a 4000m swim and a good swimmer doing 8K per day. This guy is going to bag 70-80 pts per day. I’m going to need to XC ski 25 miles per day to match that, and while I could pull it off, I’d be just as toast as the swimmer doing 8000m per day for a week straight. Meanwhile your average tri dude might bag 3000m of swimming per day comfortably. Most reasonably fit guys with reasonable technique should not have a problem nordic skiing 10 miles per day, or from a running perspective 7-8 miles per day, so you can see, why slowman arrived at his number. For me personally, it is more like 2.5 when I skate ski, but when I classic it would be more like 3.5. Anyway, it is what it is. I’ll be flipping primarily over to biking in a month and change.
Tribriguy, no USA Duathlon Nationals. If I do an early season race it will be St. Croix or nothing at all. At the moment, I have only swam 8K since Jan 1 and my biking is barely 1 hour per week, but I am sure I can get my bike legs back in 15 days after all the winter sport. Cardio is there, running is there and quad muscles are strong enough to flip over to the specificity of cycling.
This morning’s workout 42K skate ski+7K transition run. I’m cooked, but had the day off work, and the weather is terrific, so I figure I can recover over the next few days when I get back to work.
personally I think that this challenge should just include running and riding since it is a duathlon challenge. But it doesn’t really matter that much to me, it’s not going to alter what I am doing.
Joined in… doing the 100/100 so I’ll get my running in. Going to focus on riding and swimming more too now that I signed up for the first tri of the year in mid may.
How does the bike trainer fit in to the mileage? I have an odometer hooked up to the rear wheel, and while I knock out 20 miles an hr, I don’t think it really translates to 20 “real” miles in terms of effort. Maybe I’ll dock myself 10%. Not sure.
I just want to know how many people in the “challenge” are actually going to toe the line in Richmond? Dev has already said he’s not going to be there.
