Triathlon at Retirement

I have continued to nurse my knee and been able to do some shorter runs. Times have been decent, around 9 minutes-mile, which is not amazing but good enough after a long break. In February, I went to Breckenridge for cross country ski training and the USA National Championships in Winter Triathlon and Duathlon. As it was my second year in Breckenridge, I quickly came into the swing of things. I know the courses, and I wasted no time hitting the trails. As an extra bonus, my daughter joined me for a few days! I really enjoy cross-country skiing. It is tough, a very good workout for arms, legs and aerobic system. The first day, I burned over 1400 calories according to my smart watch. The altitude, over 9000 feet, also took its toll, but I never felt any altitude sickness, it only showed in my elevated heart rate. Over the 10 days I was there, I added over 20 points to my Strava fitness scores.  I won my age group in both the duathlon and the triathlon again. The duathlon run was very...

Without previous experience in winter triathlon, I signed up for US National Championship in duathlon (run + ski) and triathlon (run + bike + ski). With all my participation in regular triathlon and cross-country skiing, how hard can it be? Answer: very hard. Maybe it was the altitude (>9000 feet), maybe all the fresh snow, but it was exhausting. I was worried about the altitude, and I also needed to get back into skiing, so I arrived in Breckenridge a week before the competitions.  I got an extra workout right away the first morning when I had to clear my car of snow and shovel my way out to the road. I did not want to push my limits the first day and skiing felt fine, but really, that slow? Mile splits of 12-14 minutes! I checked the Strava segments, and I was quite high on them, for my age group number 1 or 2. I realized high altitude has a big impact. After a few days, I rented a fat bike and tried the biking. It had snowed in the night and even though the track had been pre...