Internal Mono(b)log

Hydration!  So key when traveling, especially so when traveling by air.  In my short 2 hr flight from YYZ->EWR I pounded back 2L of water (and 1 Nuun electrolyte tab) and I’m STILL THIRSTY!   Worse than that I feel dry.  Ah well…  I had 3 hrs in EWR to cool my heels, hydrate, eat, stretch, walk about and write.

I’m writing this from  the long leg of the journey: 5 hrs from EWR to Panama (PTY). It’s gonna be a whole lotta no fun.  Hopefully I sleep a lot of it away.  That’s my plan anyhow 🙂

So new products?  Oh yea 🙂

So I have one of these with me, to train with for the next 10 days, and hopefully race with on the 12th.  The other stayed home and will get reviewed when I return.

Item 1: From 4iiii.com the Sportiiiis.

These are such a great product. I fell in love with them when I first read about them at CES last year.  Sportiiiis are a device that attach to your sunglasses arm and position a heads-up-display of programmable LED lights just barely in your field of view at the bottom of your sunglasses.  You program the LEDs to light in different colours based on ANT+ data received from power meters, heart rate monitors, and cadence sensors.   With some setup this means you never have to look at your training watch during an event or training. In fact, if you aren’t concerned with collecting and reviewing data, you don’t even need a watch!

I had this idea years ago, but had no idea how to get it to market.  I’m so glad that 4iiiis did what I wasn’t able to, to be in their beta program and to be testing and reviewing this product.

Item 2: Finis Positive Propulsion Fins

These fins look… well funny, but because of their design they are billed as useful training aides for all swim strokes.  I swam 50m in them on Tuesday just to give them a super-quick test and from my very early first impressions, I can say they definitely seem to work as promised.  Further, the design is said to supinate the foot a bit to get a better propulsive kick, which I noticed.  Finally, the design is a “foot pocket/heal strap” design rather than a moulded full-foot design.  I found this design much more comfortable.

I’ll be working up a full comparative Zoomers vs Propulsion fins review. Once I’m back from Panama.