I'm training for the Longhorn 70.3 half ironman race in Austin in October. Everyone has been saying the course is super hilly and since Houston is flat, that presents a challenge. So I've ridden the Camp For All bike course with Jeff a couple times and ridden in Chappell Hill with some HRTC friends and that will be the plan for most weekends until October. 
Kim and Matt rode at Chappell Hill with me last weekend
I am painfully slow on hills at the moment. At Chappell Hill we rode 40 miles and my average speed was only 13.5 mph, so I need to work on speed and endurance for Longhorn, good thing I still have 3 months!
On Tuesday Jeff and I helped a co-worker/friend of his move to Austin (I use the term "helped" loosely, I rode in the truck and carried a couple of pillows into the new apartment). Since we were in Austin, Jeff and I used the opportunity to check out the Longhorn race site and bike course. This is a picture of Decker Lake, it looks beautiful and should be a great place to swim.
We also drove the bike course which is my biggest concern for this race. There are actually only 2 places that really scare me. One is a huge downhill just before a sharp right turn (I didn't take any pictures there), I'll be riding my brakes down that hill.This is one of the smaller hills on Monkey road, most of the course is like this, rolling scenic country side.
The second thing on the course that scares me is this huge steep hill at mile 55! It is much steeper in real life than it looks in the pictures!
The big hill we ride up goes up over the dam for Decker Lake
Jeff also mapped the bike course on the GPS unit. We now have more info on the ride than I know what to do with. So now I need to take the GPS unit on all my bike rides and compare the elevation profiles and grades to the Longhorn course. Here's a link to the GPS info we got.http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/invitation/dashboard.mb?episodePk.pkValue=6140995
You can actually use the map to look at the elevation or grade at any specific point on the course, it's pretty cool.
After moving and checking out the Longhorn course, Jim took us to the Hula Hut for dinner.
Jeff and Jim
Sunset over Towne Lake
You can actually use the map to look at the elevation or grade at any specific point on the course, it's pretty cool.
After moving and checking out the Longhorn course, Jim took us to the Hula Hut for dinner.Jeff and Jim
Sunset over Towne Lake
1 comment:
I can't remember how I found your blog, but I'm a fellow Houston triathlete.
I have done portions of the Longhorn course as part of the Danskin sprint tri. That hill at the end due to the dam is indeed a monster, and there were people walking up it. But with training, you will make it!
I'm considering doing that race as well.
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