Something old, something new

No training yet today, although that probably won't last long.

The plan had been to go for a run this morning and have this afternoon off. However, the run is a long one and so would have meant getting up very early to get it done before work. That would have meant getting to bed very early. I did not get to bed very early.

I had plans to get to bed very early. I was on track to get to bed very early. But then children happened and my plans went fluttering out the window. Rather than beat myself up over it, or force myself out of bed to head out tired, I just moved the session to this afternoon and had a sleep in instead. The argument could be made that doing the run this afternoon is actually a more efficient use of time, but in the end it was either this or exhaustion, so I went with this.

Hopefully the run goes okay. I haven't really run since Putrajaya, and so this will be the first proper run for a bit over a week. Always a bit nerve racking returning to running after such a long break. Usually it goes fine, but there is always that doubt in your mind. That doubt isn't helped by the fact that this afternoon I am running home from the City. Last time I did this route it was fairly disastrous, ending with me getting a bit to close to the limit in terms of heat stress and finally aborting the session after about 12kms. Today the conditions are just slightly different with the forecast temperature this afternoon being around 20 degrees. So I don't think heat stress will be on the table.

In the end though, none of this is really that important. The important thing is heading out for a run. Whether the session goes well or not doesn't really matter that much. Obviously I would prefer that the session goes well. But if I physically fall in a hole and am not able to execute the session well, it doesn't matter that much. These things happen sometimes, the important thing is that I was out there in the first place. In order to move towards your goals, you need to be moving.

A bit of new gear over the last couple of days. Breaking out a new pair of Mizuno Wave Inspires today. Same shoes as my old ones really, just the latest version. The others had been going well, but had just reached the end of their mileage. I have found from experience that I can get around 550km to 600km from a pair of Wave Inspires and my last pair were about there. They still felt okay, but that is the thing with shoes wearing out, it is a gradual process, so you don't tend to notice it. So that should be fun.

The other bit of kit was something I broke out yesterday for my TT session. It was this:

My first selfie

This is a new TT helmet. Lazer Wasp Air to be exact. Quite deadly looking with that visor in place etc. I have been riding in a Lazer Tardiz for a while now and whilst it is still going strong it has got a bit beat up on some of the more recent trips, it was getting to a point that I had this fear that I would pull it out of my bag at a race to find it in several pieces. Possibly not what you want from a piece of equipment that intended to save your life in a crash. Plus the Tardiz was just getting a bit long in the tooth. This new Lazer is the latest in the brand's line of TT helmets. They also make a helmet called the Wasp, which has a full long tail. By all account the Wasp is a great helmet, but the long tail does create a bit of drag when you look around, and it apparently difficult to get on quickly. This short tailed Air version is a bit more Triathlon specific.

I have had a number of Lazer helmets and I have always been quite impressed with them, they always seem well designed. This latest one is no different. In order to reduce drag as much as possible, this helmet has no vents, however, that sort of design can make for a hot helmet. To work around that this helmet it does this nifty thing where you can pop the visor forward and the helmet effectively sucks air in through the front, over your head and out the back. I had a play with it yesterday and it is surprisingly effective. I still wouldn't use it at an really hot race (looking at you Putrajaya), but it should be fine for most conditions. The only issue with pushing the visor forward is that it really needs two hands, so it would have to be a decision you make before you jump on the bike. But I think you would have a fairly good idea of how hot a race is going to be before you hit the start line. Cool bit of kit though.

Run time soon.