The Naples Diaries
many moons ago, i went to cuba and fell in love with everything che. i read through his diary, and his field notes which he wrote during his revolutionary campaign in the jungles of cuba. it was captivating reading. one of the best parts was how he would describe what they ate at meal time every day. farmers would serve up nice cuts of pork, corn, cassava. every meal was accompanied by a drink of mate, and finished off with a cigar...
well, this is my version, the naples diaries, my field notes of my combination family winter holiday, training camp, and first chance to test my new ride out on the road.
i begin with a thematic retrospective. more than half my holiday is over already. better i think to cover the themes than a play by play.
1. TODDLERS AND TRAINING CAMPS: strangely, much of the life of a toddler parent facilitates training. true, there is never really any rest, but active recovery is what i am all about these days anyways. toddlers enjoy rythm, regularity, early mornings, naps...all of this is conducive to establishing your own rythm with training and it CAN be done, you just have to be realistic (three workouts a day aint gonna happen) and somewhat flexible (not a strong point for me) yet rigid (i am better at this).
my daughter loves it here. she is up every day between 5:30 and 6:00 and i, being the morning guy, get to greet dawn in the playground, on swings, checking spider webs and seesaws and even getting in the odd trip to target to buy a new battery for my new quarq, before our daily morning swim, all before 8:30. spending a few hours with my daugther each morning is a great way to start the day, she is so alive, zen-like and interested in the world. it is impossible to be in a stink mood around her.
my workouts are done between 9 and noon and then again in the late afternoon, during my daughter's dinner. i have managed to fit in some good, long sessions, and some good intensity. there have been the usual self-deprecating moments of realizing how selfish and time consuming triathlon is, but i am pretty used to that. and overall, i think there has been a reasonable balance here in naples, for everyone. and hats off to mommy, without her buy-in, my life would be hell and i could not do what i do.
2. THE USED BIKE CAN OF WORMS: oh i need to open this one, but not too much. like any good trauma, i am just glad it is over, and already seeing things through rose glasses, that is my nature. but MAN, have i had some issues with the the new bike. i purchased a second hand,2010 BLUE triad sl and various other components for a pretty nice price. i had it shipped here to the condo and it has been waiting for me, for the past six weeks.
i un-boxed the new BLUE in the dark garage on the first night we arrived. it was like meeting my mail order bride after a few phone calls, and a picture and months of waiting. my hands were literally shaking with anticipation. and she did not displease. she popped out of the box, looking like new, with exotic curves, golden hues and lots of high-tech sexiness; Zipp RTC shifters, integrated aerobars, hidden rear brake, high modolous hips and thighs, SRAM red with bling powerglide front ring, and a quarq to keep track of everything. man...she was/is beautiful.
sounds good so far. so what could be wrong? two words: INTEGRATED SEATMAST: translation...SATANIC NIGHTMARE.
no wiggle room. like 1cm. cool looking, yes, but a bitch if it is not exact...or so i learned. naive, stupid, whatever.
not enough discussion about previous husband's dimensions led to much headache and troubles. the person i made the purchase from is a trusted source, asked for my inseam, to which i gave my jeans size and that was about it. i knew that said person was a bit shorter than me, but we figured there would be a good fit. my advice on this one, get EXACT FUCKING MEASUREMENTS before you buy. but not everyone is as stupid as i am, so imagine that advice is largely superfluous.
the end result, was a week more of waiting, and close to 1000 bucks in extra expense. by the time i paid for overnight shipping, for BLUE to modify the frame for a standard aero seatpost, taking the bike apart, re-assembling...good thing i got a good deal on things, cause it just made the deal a little less sweet but still much better than if i got everyhing new.
and not all was lost from a riding point of view. i still got in some good time on a roadie.
i must thank the people at naples cyclery, in particular, jack for the excellent fit, and oscar, my savior, who took my bike apart, boxed it lovingly, got it safe to georgia overnight, and re-built it lickity split so that i still have a good week of riding ahead of me. oscar, you rock.
here is the end result, my NEW RIDE!!!
3. SAM ADAMS ON RECOVERY: Samuel Adams Brewery makes one hell of a recovery beverage, and i have used it immediately after every single long workout here so far. it has been my mate. there is no other way to cool off and replinish carbs. throw in some thinly sliced ham and a glass of mineral water and you have the perfect balance of protein, fluid and fun. florida style.
well, this is my version, the naples diaries, my field notes of my combination family winter holiday, training camp, and first chance to test my new ride out on the road.
 |
| one kind of typcial naples scene |
i begin with a thematic retrospective. more than half my holiday is over already. better i think to cover the themes than a play by play.
1. TODDLERS AND TRAINING CAMPS: strangely, much of the life of a toddler parent facilitates training. true, there is never really any rest, but active recovery is what i am all about these days anyways. toddlers enjoy rythm, regularity, early mornings, naps...all of this is conducive to establishing your own rythm with training and it CAN be done, you just have to be realistic (three workouts a day aint gonna happen) and somewhat flexible (not a strong point for me) yet rigid (i am better at this).
my daughter loves it here. she is up every day between 5:30 and 6:00 and i, being the morning guy, get to greet dawn in the playground, on swings, checking spider webs and seesaws and even getting in the odd trip to target to buy a new battery for my new quarq, before our daily morning swim, all before 8:30. spending a few hours with my daugther each morning is a great way to start the day, she is so alive, zen-like and interested in the world. it is impossible to be in a stink mood around her.
 |
| doing core work on the swing at 7 am |
my workouts are done between 9 and noon and then again in the late afternoon, during my daughter's dinner. i have managed to fit in some good, long sessions, and some good intensity. there have been the usual self-deprecating moments of realizing how selfish and time consuming triathlon is, but i am pretty used to that. and overall, i think there has been a reasonable balance here in naples, for everyone. and hats off to mommy, without her buy-in, my life would be hell and i could not do what i do.
 |
| getting ready for a killer toddler pool session |
2. THE USED BIKE CAN OF WORMS: oh i need to open this one, but not too much. like any good trauma, i am just glad it is over, and already seeing things through rose glasses, that is my nature. but MAN, have i had some issues with the the new bike. i purchased a second hand,2010 BLUE triad sl and various other components for a pretty nice price. i had it shipped here to the condo and it has been waiting for me, for the past six weeks.
i un-boxed the new BLUE in the dark garage on the first night we arrived. it was like meeting my mail order bride after a few phone calls, and a picture and months of waiting. my hands were literally shaking with anticipation. and she did not displease. she popped out of the box, looking like new, with exotic curves, golden hues and lots of high-tech sexiness; Zipp RTC shifters, integrated aerobars, hidden rear brake, high modolous hips and thighs, SRAM red with bling powerglide front ring, and a quarq to keep track of everything. man...she was/is beautiful.
sounds good so far. so what could be wrong? two words: INTEGRATED SEATMAST: translation...SATANIC NIGHTMARE.
no wiggle room. like 1cm. cool looking, yes, but a bitch if it is not exact...or so i learned. naive, stupid, whatever.
not enough discussion about previous husband's dimensions led to much headache and troubles. the person i made the purchase from is a trusted source, asked for my inseam, to which i gave my jeans size and that was about it. i knew that said person was a bit shorter than me, but we figured there would be a good fit. my advice on this one, get EXACT FUCKING MEASUREMENTS before you buy. but not everyone is as stupid as i am, so imagine that advice is largely superfluous.
the end result, was a week more of waiting, and close to 1000 bucks in extra expense. by the time i paid for overnight shipping, for BLUE to modify the frame for a standard aero seatpost, taking the bike apart, re-assembling...good thing i got a good deal on things, cause it just made the deal a little less sweet but still much better than if i got everyhing new.
and not all was lost from a riding point of view. i still got in some good time on a roadie.
i must thank the people at naples cyclery, in particular, jack for the excellent fit, and oscar, my savior, who took my bike apart, boxed it lovingly, got it safe to georgia overnight, and re-built it lickity split so that i still have a good week of riding ahead of me. oscar, you rock.
here is the end result, my NEW RIDE!!!
 |
| my divorced blue looking pretty virginal in the florida sun |
3. SAM ADAMS ON RECOVERY: Samuel Adams Brewery makes one hell of a recovery beverage, and i have used it immediately after every single long workout here so far. it has been my mate. there is no other way to cool off and replinish carbs. throw in some thinly sliced ham and a glass of mineral water and you have the perfect balance of protein, fluid and fun. florida style.
 |
| the view from my recovery chair |
that's it for now. naples diaries entry one.
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