Training with Terenzo

It's been great to train with people lately! I've been training with my new kiwi friend Terenzo Bozzone who's living here in SB for a little while ('08 Ironman 70.3 World Champ). His place is close, just about a mile from me. I enjoy finding new people to train with; he's a really cool guy and I've really appreciated him letting me along on workouts. His girlfriend Kelly and brother Dino are super nice too. They joined us for the Nuggets game last night at Sharkeez after we ran... and yes the Nuggets won. I love being a Nuggets fan when they're playing the Lakers, everyone here worships the Lakers while I enjoy hating them.
It's interesting to see the type of training the top long course pros do. His volume is incredible, some 8 hour days. I've swam with him in the mornings, go to work while he's out for a 4 hour ride, then run together in the afternoon. Also, I never knew how coke can be a staple training drink for long rides and runs ha! I'm still pondering it all, trying to figure out half and full Ironman training and how it is similar and different Olympic distance training as a current working amateur trying to move to the next level. It does make me want/feel the need to do more..man if I could put in 5-8 hours a day, think of the fitness I'd gain. I'm very impressed with what people like Terenzo does day after day; it's a full time/8 hour a day job..and more than just 5 days a week. I look forward to (well..scared might be a better word) trying to hang on his hard bike and run days coming up... tomorrow at 6:30am is a 5+ hr ride mostly along highway 101..we'll see how long I last hanging onto his wheel.
(4/24/09: I did my first 100 mile ride yesterday. I left my house at 6:15am and met Terenzo at his house, from where we rode the Montecito hills, followed by a 2 hour/50 mile time trial for him while I latched onto his wheel and went along for the ride. He was flyin!!. We then rode up Old San Marcos - a long steep climb up the hills and back down thru Montecito again. During the TT I hit a bump and launched my full water bottle early on and wasn't about to stop and get it, so had to conserve my small bottle for a few hours. Luckily we stopped at a gas station for some Coke and bars, so I got to refuel. I got back 5 1/2 hours later, 98 miles later, and had to do a few laps around my place to hit the 100 mile mark. I wasn't going to stop at 98! I wanted to join Terenzo for his hour run after, but figured I needed to be smart and refrain from it even though I felt pretty good. He advised it and knew that ride was nearly 30 miles more than I'd ever rode. He asked me how my legs were feeling a few times after 4 hours.. I'm just gettin' warmed up!. Really, I felt good.
Yesterday's morning swim was a tough one, with the main set of about 30+x100m on the 1:30 interval (split up 8x100, 100ez, 7x100, 100ez, etc..). He swam faster than I of course, but I was able to stay on the 1:30 interval for most of it, starting out the first set in 1:19s, and a bunch of low 1:20s for a while. I did have to take a short break in the 4th set though, and I got a calf cramp in the 5th set..so I guess my body didn't like my mind trying to will itself faster than the body could handle. I downed some magnesium pills and finished the last few sets and the cramping was gone. Nothing crazy fast but after 30 of those you feel it in the arms. It's crazy how fast 4000m goes by when you're mentally in a zone. Today's pool workout was a longer ladder workout, with some paddles, and i was feelin' yesterday. Terenzo is 10x the athlete I am, but I definitely can see how being pushed like that in the pool a few times a week would really help me. It's been fun getting to know new people from another country; I'm always curious to what life is like elsewhere, and would love to travel to New Zealand some time. It's good to get a little motivation back, and not ride and run alone like most days.I will say though, there's the temptation to compare training and tell myself I've got forever to go to get to where I want to be.. but we're training for different types of races in a sense, have completely different backgrounds, are at different places as athletes (unfortunately, ha) etc. He's been in triathlon for 10 years or so. But I'm getting there..give me a year. I need to learn a few things from it, not get hung up on training stuff, keep sticking to my plan, and enjoy the new friendship.