Speedfil Hydration System

As Triathletes and especially as coaches we are constantly on the lookout for products that can help us or our athletes. Unfortunately, with the rapid development and high costs associated with a lot of equipment it becomes quite challenging to get the opportunity to test or review a large number of products available to triathletes. However, one of the great benefits of working with the partners of Grasky Endurance Coaching is the fact that we are often asked to help with the testing of products. Recently I was asked by one of the buyers from our partners at TriSports.com to assist with a test and review of the Speedfil Hydration system.

The Speedfil system is a frame mounted hydration system that mounts directly to the water bottle cage mounts on your bicycle's downtube. However, once mounted this system provides a hands free drinking system that does not require you to pull the bottle from the cage to drink. Basically a flexible straw runs from the bottle and you route it to your liking so that a drinking tube eventually runs between your aero bars. This tube then provides you with hands free access to 40 ounces of your favorite rehydration/energy fluids. If you need to refill the system you simply grab a bottle at the next aid station and squeeze the fluids through the refill port located on the top of the Speedfil bottle.

I found this system to be very easy to mount to the frame. All told it took me about 5 minutes to mount the bracket and then run the tubing along my frame and out between my aero bars. I had to do a little trimming of the flexible drinking tube but other than that no modifications were needed. On the first test ride I did have to make a few minor adjustments to get the tube secured properly and placed in the correct position but once I got the system dialed in it seemed to stay in place and worked very well. Refilling while riding was a snap (actually probably easier than trying to place a bottle back into your water bottle cage on a standard set up) and with 40 ounces of fluid it is not necessary to refill the system very often (even in an Ironman distance event). The system seemed to be well designed and although the bottle is rather large it tucked away nicely within the lines of my frame. I have had issues in the past with aero bottles because I can typically only fit one bottle on my frame which limits the amount of fluids that I can carry in aero bottles on my frame.

My one real concern with this system is the fact that you must commit 40 ounces of the same type of fluid to this bottle. Some of us like to carry only a couple of bottles and use one for water and the other for nutrition. With this system you must still carry a separate bottle mounted somewhere else on your bike if you run with two different fluid types. In addition, I can see where a strong crosswind might cause some handling issues but still this would be significantly less than having a system mounted between your aerobars in a strong wind.

Overall I would certainly recommend this product to those looking at longer distance races who like to have a hands free aerodynamic system on their bikes. This system would work especially well for those of you who like to use a large amount of one specific type of fluid. On the other hand, if you are doing shorter races or like to have a number of different types of products to use that are under 40 ounces then this is probably not the system for you. The system retails for just under $100.00 and is available on-line or in-store at TriSports.com.

Riding under lights

I’m doing this craziness we call 24Hr racing now…ok, I’m signed up for one…so it’s the time of the season where I begin to hone my night riding skills. That, and it’s just plain good times. So with that, I’m calling a weekly Friday Night Lights Ride. Anyone in the Tucson area can meet us at 5:30pm at the north entrance to Fantasy Island for some ripping around on undulating single track, narrowly dodging the saguaro and prickly pear, the trail illuminated only by our helmet lights and whatever beams reflect off our glowing smiles.

Last week was night 1. Here’s the story of that fateful night:

- While adjusting my helmet-mounted light I accidentally hit the "ON" button in "Brighter than sun" mode. I should regain vision in left eyeball in March.

- I love my Light & Motion Seca 700. It’s a great light—the best I’ve ridden by far—and supposed to be very good for reliability. I bought an extra battery so I’ll have a complete night of LED illumination. Check out their beam pattern—very cool. Get yours at Trisports (and use code BGRAS-S for over $50 off!)

- Later, Kyle and I were cruising when the trail came to a split. I went right; he went left; we sprinted for the confluence at a left 180 degree turn. At the rejoin, with brakes locked up and dust flying, we both, rather late mind you, saw broadside in the trail a very large, very dark, very horn-ed cow and her calf. Kyle screamed like a 10 yr old school girl on a field trip to an arachnid farm, while I, barreling into Kyle's unmetered braking, saw my life and images of an again splintered left leg flash before my eyes. I literally fell off my bike in hysterics. I stopped laughing about 2 hours ago.

- Fantasy Island is great at night. The trail “decorations” are wonderful, and there’s just the right amount of obstacles to keep things interesting. The new Fire Loop is great: Field Goal is a great little section, where you feel like you’re being punted through the uprights; Elbow Slammer is just that; and The Drop has so many reflectors it makes you think you’re on a very steep approach to land an aircraft on a runway (my favorite!).

Twisting, turning, climbing, and descending, all under the glow of 700 lumens of LED and a big ‘ol smile. Good times.

Single Speed

For years my race bike from college has been hanging in the garage. I didn’t want to sell it—it’s a limited edition ’96 Schwinn Homegrown with the Control Tech rear triangle—but the parts had worn out and I was riding for other manufacturers. So I decided it was time to build it into a single speed for training.

Thanks to Stan www.notubes.com and DeeJay and the boys at Arizona Cyclist for the advice and for building me up a sweet set of wheels—ENO hubs, Stan’s tubeless hoops, and beautiful work. Add to that some parts I had in the garage including the original White Industries crankset and bottom bracket and a Rock Shox Duke that was hanging for about 5 years. I took a set of Michelin XCR Dry2s I had hanging around, some Crank Brothers pedals, and a Fizik saddle. Oh, and the brakes from ’96 are on their last legs…new ones are on order. A new fork would be good, but it’s a beater.

I took it out this week to cruise on Fantasy Island. I’ve never ridden a single speed, and constantly found my thumb reaching for the shifters, but I had a blast. It was fun to cruise on a lightweight bike, not having to worry about shifting. Just ride. That’s what it’s all about. Sweet.

Dawn to Dusk Race Report

Sometimes you just have to get out and ride. Saturday was the Dawn to Dusk Mountain Bike Endurance Race. The plan was to ride beginning at official sunrise, or 7:19am and go until sunset at 5:20pm. I decided to do this as my first real endurance event, in my prep for the 24Hrs of Old Pueblo in February. I'm still not sure why I'm doing this. Frankly, it scares the daylights out of me. But I digress...

I show up early and got my area set up. I took over a plot of real estate and dumped my bag of extra clothing; a crate with bottles of Hammer Sustained Energy and HEED, Hammer Gels, and some electrolytes; my cooler with water, an extra hydration pack bladder and some backup food--Snickers, PB&J and Red Bull for when/if my body rejects the good stuff; and a spare wheelset. It looked strangely like a garage sale. I got my gear ready, warmed up, stretched, and hit the porta-johns. Ready.

Equipment: 2008 Cannondale Scalpel Carbon with Lefty Speed Carbon rolling on Stan's ZTR Olympics with Michelin XCR Dry2 (regular tires run tubeless thanks to Stan's juice), Crank Bros Egg Beaters. Diadora Team Racer shoes, Rudy Project Actyum helmet and Horus sunglasses. Zoot Cyclefit arm warmers. Chamois Butt'r. Huge Thanks!!!

Here's what went through my mind...

Start: It's 7:15am. Am I really going to ride until 5:30pm??? Goal: 6 laps. That'll be 94 miles. That's enough. Does it matter that my longest ride was 4hrs? How bad can it be? Just start out slow and ease off from there.

Lap 1: This ain't so bad. Just ease into it. Grrr...Why can no one ride in sand? Oh, no! This sand will suck on lap 6. This downhill is fun! What are all these water bars? They're huge! Stopped to fill bottles. Lap time 1:06; Cumulative time 1:06

Lap 2: Easy does it. Get in nutrition. These water bars are getting annoying. I like this track. It's good to be riding again! Stopped for water and new Hammer bottles. Lap 1:09; Cumulative 2:15

Lap 3: This is starting to hurt. What am I doing out here? I can go home and take a nap instead. Sun's getting high...sweet. Stopped to remove knee warmers and vest. 1:10; 3:25

Lap 4: I need food, real food. I also need to train...yup, training would help. Maybe I should take that up. What's up with these flipping water bars???? Stopped to grab a PB&J sammich for the road. 1:09; 4:34

Lap 5: The short break (2 mins) was nice. Just go steady. This saddle is starting to hurt. I wonder if I have another lap in me. Its great to be riding again...I could be on the couch in a cast again...nope, riding is good! Body need real food...stopped to fill bottles and grabbed a Red Bull. 1:11; 5:44

Lap 6: Crap, the guy who just passed me is solo also. That's it...I'm counting these friggin' water bars. There must be 100 of them per lap and they keep getting bigger. Stopped for a Snickers. One more lap...you can do it. 1:10; 6:55

Lap 7: Why do they put the transition area at the bottom of the long hill so you feel good and keep going??? 368 $%^ing water bars per lap?!?!!? What??? Why am I spending every daylight hour today on my bike? Oh yeah...because I can! (Euphoria setting in). Legs getting numb now. This is now my longest ride since the crash. Stopped for water and another Red Bull. 1:12; 8:07

Lap 8: Unless I go under 1:00, I won't make the cutoff for another lap...I'm ok with that. There's the guy who passed me earlier. See ya! Now don't make him think I'm about to fall off my bike from fatigue. These hills keep getting larger each lap, too. Water bar # 2920, 2921, 2922, ... Ah, the last hill. Halleluiah! Good, no one behind me. Smooth sailing. My longest ride ever. Sweet. 1:19; 9:26

Finish: Owwie. I want my mommy. I need a new lower back. And a new saddle. And butt.

Success: 11th of 52 solos. 8 laps; 125 miles. It's the longest ride I've ever done, and the longest amount of time I've been on a bike (for good reason). Only my Ironman races have been longer events. No mechanicals--every thing ran smooth and easy. Makes a huge difference. Lessons learned: I like this stuff! Bring Chapstick next time. I need to train.

It's good to be back on the bike. Thanks for supporting me in my adventures...all it takes is a touch of insanity to truly live!

Off-Road Triathlon Training Camp

For the last week I’ve been gearing up for my winter Off-Road Triathlon Training Camp held in Tucson, and I’m really getting excited. I’m partnering with XTERRA pro and coach Trevor Glavin as the other coach, and bringing in XTERRA Regional Champion Brian Barrett, Ironman swim champion and Kona qualifier Bill Daniell, and NORBA pro Jill Grasky to lend a hand.

The camp is going to be a blast. While the rest of the country creates pools of sweat under their Computrainer, it’ll be 60-70 degrees in Tucson. We’ll be riding among towering saguaro cacti, dodging the occasional javalina or coyote, and running the canyons Tucson is famous for. We’ll have an outdoor pool for our swim sessions including video swim stroke analysis, and as much technical riding, climbing, and twisting on the courses as you can take. Put that with a great group of people, great coaching staff, and great food, and you have a time in Tucson you won’t forget. Oh, and the training and knowledge learned will set your season on the right track.

I don’t run my camps as purely training camps. We learn a lot—we talk about stretching, strength training, core training, aerobic training, season set-up, building power, racing, recovery, injury prevention and rehab and a slew of other topics as much as the attending athletes desire. I know I don’t have all the answers, so I bring in the other coaches and pros to help out. And we have fun. Work hard, play hard.

This year's camp is also held in conjuction with TRIFEST. Show up a day or two early and attend the best expo, trade show, conference around, including some of the industry's top people speaking on everything you can think of. TRIFEST is like Interbike for the normal person, only completely triathlon-related! Campers get a discount to the conference.

If you’re interested in checking out this camp or any other I put on, go here. I guarantee you will gain confidence and fitness, learn a ton, and have fun here. Everything (except travel to Tucson and a few dinners) is included in the price. We've got some great sponsors signed on as well, so athletes won't go home empty handed!

And you can’t beat Tucson’s Mexican food!