Rob Eakin Triathlete

Wannabe Roadie

Looks like the crew's training methods have spread to South Africa...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2009/mar/22/tim-don-triathlon-london-olympics-2012

Like Tim Don, I spent my weekend pretending to be a roadie (aka road cyclist) racing in two EV Spring Series races. A rolling 55 km race on Saturday followed by "a climber's delight" 45 km race which included a solid climb each of the 7 laps.

Some video...

I'm the one hanging on to the back of the group.

So needless to say it is a humbling experience going from a fairly strong cyclist in the triathlon world to fighting to stick with the C group of roadies. But that's the point.

It was tough at times, looking at those around me, knowing I had better overall fitness but not the experience (and thus efficiency) on the bike. So what kept me going? I kept imagining I was in a triathlon. How could that help? Well I knew if I could just stick with the pack there was no one there who could stick with me in a 10 km run. Unfortunately none of them were willing to go run afterward.

If nothing else though, the races are great workouts. Saturday's race averaged over 37 km/h on a course with lots of tight turns and nearly 35 km/h on Sunday even with all the climbing. And there's nothing like pushing yourself to race two days in a row.

Now it's just about moving myself up into the middle of the pack and start battling for the front. From there I should be getting to the top of the triathlete world.

So another week of Spring Break means plenty more time on the bike to get myself up there. We'll see if I can top the 320 km of riding last week.

Lisa Hannigan

An update on how training is going is coming.

Until then another of my passions...

(I was talking about great music not beautiful women. Though together they are pretty amazing)

Wrenches and Plan B’s

Planning is great. When trying to fit work, training, and a life into the 24 hours you have each day, it's a necessity.

But you also have to be flexible. No plan should ever be written in stone. Because there are wrenches out there ready throw your best laid plans to waste. And if you're not ready for them, everything can go to crap.

This week's wrench:

Tickets to Tuesday's Canucks game in a private box with food and drinks. Damn wrenches.

So to Plan B I went. Tuesday night's bike moved to Thursday (which I had free for just such an occasion). Good thing for Plan B.

How It’s Done 2

Students who are around late think it's funny. The janitors think I'm nuts. But you gotta do what you gotta do.

PS There is nothing like having the Tragically Hip blaring down the empty hallways of a high school that is dead and stark (though the walls are not lined with the pictures of our parents prime ministers .

How It’s Done

Next week is a test. After two 14+ hour weeks, I've got 16 this coming week. To make things more interesting, at school, report cards are due at the end of the week.

So it's going to be a test (of a lot of things).

Bald!

Here are the pictures from Tuesday's pep rally where I was cermonial shaved.

Thanks to everyone who donated. Raised over $700! Thanks.

A Ride In Pictures

Sometimes you just have to take some time to appreciate where you live (where else in Canada could you be riding in mid February?) and where your training takes you (some amazing views of the city). Despite the apparent changes in weather, this is all from a single ride today.

Grouse from the Burrard Street Bridge

Downtown from Stanley Park

Lions Gate Bridge from Stanley Park

Burrard Inlet from Lions Gate Bridge

Stanley Park from Marine Drive (West Van)

West Van from Lions Gate Bridge.

UBC from Stanley Park

Kits Point from Stanley Park

Happy Valentines Day

How a triathlete keeps a rose.

New Bike

The order was placed today. Cervelo S2. Should be here mid-February (about the same time the snow should have completely melted away).

Can't beat this kind of review...

We remember the first time we ever rode a set of Zipp wheels. They were 404 tubulars, and after a 10-second big chainring acceleration our lives changed forever: We unequivocally knew that we could never ever do another serious ride again without wheels like those...

Our (Zipp) 404 revelation took place 4 or 5 years ago. We experiment with new equipment constantly and in the time since we've never had a similarly powerful experience. That is, until we had our first ride on the Cervélo S2. Simply put, it's the bicycle equivalent of Zipp's divine wheels, and in many ways serves as Cervélo's ultimate aero road racing frame. Why? Because it offers weight advantages no less amazing than its aerodynamics. Despite the sizeable surface area of its sculpted tubes, the S2 weighs little more than the Cervélo R3 -- the wonderbike preferred by Fabian Cancellara and Stuart O'Grady for the cobbled northern classics like Paris-Roubaix, but chosen by Carlos Sastre for the mountain stages of the Grand Tours.

Can't wait.

Ramblings

Yesterday I wrote a rant about politics and the world but after going over it, I decided not to post it. Instead I'm just going to post the video that went along with it and a part of the speech altered to make my point.

"We have been told we can't do this
by a chorus of cynics
that will only grow louder and more dissonant.
We've been asked to pause for a reality check.
We've been warned against offering [ourselves] false hope.
But in the unlikely story that is [you]
there has never been anything false about hope."

So yes you can. Yes I can. And yes we can.