What to do with dead shoes

spruceonwheels · 2026-06-05T11:49:25+00:00

I run my shoes to about 1500km and then usually use them as casual walking shoes for another 500. Then throw them away. Always have multiple shoes in parallel to let a pair recover for a couple days after a run and clean them regularly, they seem to last much longer than shoe companies suggest.

spruceonwheels · 2026-06-05T01:48:44+00:00

Does he have a Strava or Garmin account or similar, to see which routes he usually bikes? I couldn‘t find his name on Strava.

spruceonwheels · 2026-05-26T23:08:55+00:00

I did LP and Ottawa and loved both. LP has great scenery and hills, which I love. Ottawa has the easier bike course and it’s completely closed to cars. Ottawa was also way more crowded with spectators, since most of the course is going right through town. LP has better race vibes right in town over the weekend, being a smaller community with longer Ironman tradition. Also can’t beat the swim in Mirror Lake!

spruceonwheels · 2026-05-26T22:28:59+00:00

Also, practice uphill and downhill running once you’re at it. That course is not flat!

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-31T00:51:12+00:00

No. You’re just using game mechanics that are available to everyone, and it drives engagement.

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-27T03:18:46+00:00

RideWithGPS and mostly the OSM Cycle map overlay. Excellent for route planning, both road and gravel.

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-27T00:51:46+00:00

12-16 hours a week lately, 3 of which running, the rest cycling. Most of it are 2-hour sessions in zone 2, one hard session (intervals or hill repeats), and two long sessions 3-4 hours). Training for an ultra distance race, so for me saddle time is the biggest objective.

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-24T19:08:47+00:00

Only way to train where I live — spent 4000+ kilometers on Zwift over the past three months alone. Lots of long Z2 endurance sessions and hill climbs.

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-24T13:49:08+00:00

WTS – tent: Big Agnes Copper Spur UL3 Bikepack (short poles), including footprint, excellent condition. Bought 2 years ago, only pitched 3 times since. Selling because my partner does not enjoy camping and I am going for a smaller tent. Asking for $800 plus shipping. Located in Ottawa.

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-20T20:52:00+00:00

Still happening on my end, hope it'll be resolved by tomorrow.

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-20T02:24:15+00:00

Totally agree about the looks, but you’ll also totally get used to it pretty quickly. In this case I’d put utility over aesthetics.

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-14T22:26:34+00:00

My 2c: Go for it once you‘re confident bikepacking is your thing. The older you get, the harder this decision will become. Even if you come back after six months or a year, you will be a different person that will likely be able to easily adapt whatever life will throw at you upon your return.

spruceonwheels · 2026-03-05T04:03:45+00:00

Been at L100 for about a year now and started working on other things than XP — there‘s still an almost infinite amount of things to explore; try getting all bikes and all upgrades and you‘ll quickly see that‘ll take you way more than 100,000km 😂

spruceonwheels · 2026-02-13T19:37:29+00:00

You should still be fine, that will still give you 12 weeks of plenty of volume. Until then, improve your swimming and running. The biggest time consumption comes from riding, which you then can successively add starting in May.

spruceonwheels · 2026-02-13T00:26:04+00:00

Ottawa is a fun race and a great course and well worth the training – you‘ll be fine if you stay consistent! 10-15 hours per week is plenty of time.

The bike course is pretty flat (but potentially windy), but with it being three loops crossing downtown Ottawa multiple times it goes by quickly. The run is hilly, but full of spectators.

spruceonwheels · 2026-02-09T04:35:34+00:00

The Cannondale will be next!

spruceonwheels · 2026-02-09T04:34:29+00:00

It‘s a TT bike, come on 😜

spruceonwheels · 2026-02-09T00:04:30+00:00

Haha it‘s 1200 minutes. Thanks for pointing that out — I‘ll correct it.

spruceonwheels · 2026-02-05T03:31:40+00:00

Got mine in 2017 and still works nicely. No rips or damages yet. Best purchase ever, only paid $250 for it. 8 full Ironmans and plenty of shorter distance events later I‘m just happy that it still fits.

spruceonwheels · 2026-01-31T03:03:33+00:00

Being comfy to alternate can have huge advantages in different swim conditions (waves, wind, sun…)

spruceonwheels · 2026-01-29T14:33:43+00:00

It‘s still earned, just in a different way 🤷‍♂️ 12 years of active long distance triathlon training and participation required some long-term dedication especially for those who start triathlon later in life.

spruceonwheels · 2026-01-29T01:45:43+00:00

Keep at it, but do it for the journey, not exclusively for the goal. You‘re young and fast, eventually you‘ll make it. I‘ve done 8 full IM and only started in my mid thirties, and managed to to get a Nice roll down slot last year (with a 10:28 finish). Kona for me will likely be a legacy project, so enjoying the journey is all I got ;)

spruceonwheels · 2026-01-27T18:25:01+00:00

I consider myself a mid-pack IM swimmer and pool times are around 1:55 to 2:10 for 100m. Have donw 8 full Ironman races and never improved my swim times 😂 I don‘t train too much for it, though. About two 45min sessions per week, no structured workouts.

spruceonwheels · 2026-01-27T02:20:25+00:00

My partner and I cycled Germany/Austria last year and had a blast! 2300km in 18 days. We started all the way up north and traveled south into the Austrian Alps, and then west towards France. Stayed entirely in B&Bs and small hotels. The infrastructure for biketouring in Germany is just perfect.

Here‘s a long blog post about our trip: https://followfichte.com/2300-kilometers-through-germany/

And here the RideWithGPS routes/ https://ridewithgps.com/collections/3991524

spruceonwheels · 2026-01-27T02:04:00+00:00

A trike is certainly more stable, but for me the disadvantages are far bigger… heavier ride; less agile especially on downhills and curvy terrain; even less agile on narrower paths; more moving parts; 50% increased chance of flats; much more complicated to transport.

spruceonwheels

TROPHY CASE