Denver Holidays

 Friday, Dec 19:

Flew out to DEN

(HeroClip for the win)

(Carolers at the intra-airport train station)

Saturday, Dec 20:

Ways I spend my time in Denver...

(drinking tea)

(sleeping with the Denver-specific stuffed animals)

Making use of a nice gym...

4 mi at a 2 degree incline on the treadmill in 35:30, 8:55 ave, with a progression run that started from 6mph and went up 0.5mph every mile.  I nose breathed only for the first two miles.  I was feeling the oatmeal breakfast and didn't push it to a fifth mile.  Higher speeds almost felt easier at times due to the different mechanics.  Having the sun shine on my face got a little bothersome after a while.  

Next, I found a nice bar for doing seated L-sit pull-ups... sets of 3-5.

I finished with 18A "Dynamic Warmup" in 22:26 to loosen up my back after the run, since my quads were tight.  This was nose breathed.

We went to the Denver Christmas Market afterwards.  It was in a new [smaller] location this year, which made it feel even more packed with people?  We went during the daytime this time, though, since it was chilly out.  It was a different experience in the light... more focus on the vendors.

Made gingerbread houses...

Went out to dinner at a new Thai place...

Sunday, Dec 21:

Glute and pec PT v1 in 29:07, then HDT-KB "Kettledoom" 20 min AMRAP with 6 rounds and 10 reps using a 30#KB for everything other than the curls, which needed a 25#KB.

Monday, Dec 22:

Did Day 8 - Snuggle | BREATH & Upper Back and Neck Mobility with Adriene.  I needed this today, since my pull-up muscles and legs were sore after the previous 2 days of workouts.

Walked to the REI flagship store with my mom.

Tuesday, Dec 23:

Went out to gold mining country

Found a geocache at the overlook.

Found our 14th troll, Rita the Rock Planter...

“A hundred suns is how long a nap takes for the trolls.
When Rita woke again, her mountainside was full of holes
The humans must have dug them in their search for shiny rock
But someone could fall in, so Rita went to tidy up.”

There were a couple of geocaches near her, too.

There was also old mining equipment and old mining buildings.

On our way back to Denver, we stopped at Garden of the Gods, which I hadn't seen since 2016.  There were record high temps for the area, so lots of people were out enjoying the weather.

("Camel Kissing a Rock")

Saw my sister's BF's cat...

Wednesday, Dec 24:

Saw the cat again...

Got some groceries...

Ran 5 mi on a 2 degree incline treadmill in 43:26 (8:41 ave).  I went at 6.5mph for 2 mi, 7mph for 2 mi, and only held 7.5mph for 1 mi.  My cardiovascular system and muscles need to get used to not-super-slow-Z2 running again.

In the evening, we walked around town to see the Xmas lights and the drone show.

Thursday, Dec 25:

Xmas presents...

18A "Upper Body Prep" in 23:23, then "Push-up" in 56:16, plus a 2:30 dead hang finisher on a fatter but grippy metal bar that didn't slip.  I could truly test my grip and not have to reset at all.

More cat time...

Made butterscotch and walnut cookies...

Friday, Dec 26:

Day 14 - Space | BREATH & Mental Health Break yoga with Adriene

Went for a little walk at Mount Falcon Park.

More cat time...

Saturday, Dec 27:

18A "Lower Body Prep" in 19:46, "Lower Push BW" in 40:52, 5 min arm strengtheners as a finisher (all I could do today)

Went back out to see 16th street in the daytime...

Sunday, Dec 28:

2x 5 mi run at 6mph... the treadmill has a 60 min time cap in "Quick Start" mode, so I had to break it up and reset it.  

Skipped lunch so that I could leave room for a fancy dinner with Waygu Flank Steak, Iberico Pork, and roasted carrots.

Monday, Dec 29:

Finished reading "The Tipping Point" by Malcom Gladwell.

Tuesday, Dec 30:

18A "Upper Body Prep" in 30:15... needed those stretches after the run.  Then "Hanging Abs" in 18:19, followed by a finisher of 6 x [1 min max burpees, 1 min rest] with 20-21 reps per set... good to touch on intensity... I don't do enough of it these days.

Went to Wholefoods to get vegan pumpkin pie (it was really good) and free rebate beans.

Wednesday, Dec 31:

Early Morning Yoga and Meditation & Home - Day 21 - BREATH yoga with Adriene

Went to Boulder to do a Celestial Seasonings factory tour... it was nice.  You also get unlimited tea tastings, even without doing a tour.  They have tons of varieties here that you don't normally find in stores, plus all the seasonal offerings.

They don't allow pictures during the tour since it's inside a production facility, but the most notable portion of the tour is the mint room.  The menthol oil is so strong they have to isolate it to avoid contaminating the flavors of other ingredients.  It was also cool to experience the "smell pockets".  In their ingredient storage, as you walk by different ingredients sourced from around the world, you'll encounter different smells every few meters.

The three steps of the factory are milling (cleaning, then either cutting up or grinding), mixing (either single-ingredient fluffing or multi-ingredient mashups), and packaging (in wax-lined containers that hold many stringless tea bags, to minimize waste).

After the tour, we did a little hike at Flatirons Vista Trail.

Since it was warm out, there were many marmots out and about.  

It was super windy that day, and we hiked against the wind for all of the first part.  It was warm enough to just wear a t-shirt, but the wind made it a bit chilly.  

There were cows in the pastures, too.

For NYE, we had dinner with fam and friends, watched more Great British Baking Show, played video games, played "Ransom Notes", and played with the cat.

Thursday, Jan 1:

Glute and pec pt v1 (would've liked to do v2, but the gym didn't have any ankle weights), since I've been sore since the 10 miler.  Then, I did HDT-KB "KB There Is No Spoon" 30 min AMRAP with 2 rounds and 2 reps... a decent one

Friday, Jan 2:

Morning Hip Release & Yoga for Weight Loss - Hips & Hamstrings with Adriene, since my glute was quite sore.

The outing of the day was a short walk to McGregor Square, where there's a small ice skating rink.  

After taking a look and stopping by a toy store, we walked around downtown a bit more.  It's always fun to explore and stumble upon cool places.

I saved lots of room in my stomach for my first visit to Casa Bonita.  I had wanted to go back in 2016 but didn't get to fit it in that trip.  They had closed over COVID and had recently reopened.  All I knew about it was that they had divers that you could watch, along with dinner, but it had a cult following. 

It's hard to mess up Mexican food.  That and Indian food are my favorite cuisines, because they are flavorful.  It was OK... I see what people mean when they comment on the quality of the food.  They are serving a ton of people constantly, though, so it's somewhat understandable.

The star of the restaurant are all the fun things you get to do after your hour of dinner reservation time.  This place is big and like a maze with multiple floors.  It's remarkable what they managed to build in the middle of what looks like a strip mall.  

There's lots of stuff to do and little shows to watch.  Not pictured were a magic show and a puppet show.  All of it is kid-friendly, but it brings out the kid in you.  

Afterwards, my mom and I went to Ross, and she got me tiger slippers for my bday.

Saturday, Jan 3:

Time to go home.  It was a nice, long trip.  It was a busy first half and a more relaxed second half.  Lots of gym time, family time, and cat time.  Ready to get back home where I had more stuff to get done!

USPSA into the Holidays

BLACKSTONE DECEMBER THIRD MONDAY USPSA MATCH

This would be my 7th USPSA match and my second after a few months' off.  This would be my first match after my first lesson with Emily, too.

I wasn't sure how mentally and physically ready I'd be for this, since I was coming off of a weekend with not a lot of sleep, but it was actually quite ok!

They had a random draw prize table at the start of it, which was nice... not so much prize, then, I guess, but giveaways.  It was an nice surprise to end the year.  I got a Stealth Arms Platypus stuffed animal.  I was thrilled.  I was probably picked like a third or halfway through, and the whole time as numbers were getting drawn, I hoped that there would still be some left by the time my number was drawn.  To my surprise, nobody took any before I got a turn, haha, so I had the pick of the litter (they were identical).  I decided to shoot with him in my pocket for the stages that day, so that we could bond.

Stage 1: <Virginia>
- Start with hands on the barrel, loaded and holstered
- On the beep, shoot 3 from box 1 and 2 from box 2 (or squat and get 5 from box 2), then shoot 3 from box 3, with 2 rounds each

Learnings/Outcomes: 10/15 Div, 19/29 Overall

- 16A, 2C in 21.46 = 4.0075 HF

- I didn't wait for my sights on the last array, unfortunately, because I was so focused on maintaining a steady cadence... sights should matter more

- I need to drill looking then moving my gun on multiple target transitions

- Squatting from box 2 worked really well because I could get all the targets from one spot with minimal shifting of my weight only for one of the targets, and the first array's targets were closer since I was shooting from the box that was further up

- I loaded then topped off my gun before the stage, since we needed exactly 18 rounds.

- My trigger might've gotten stuck a bit on the safety a little bit, at least upon clearing at the end, but maybe mid-stage, too.  

- The stuffed animal in my left pocket didn't really get in the way, so I continued having him with me for the rest of the match.  I was so happy to have him.

- I went far->near (L->R) on the last array since I had positioned my body in a static spot to get all the targets there

- My shoes were a bit slippery on the floor during the run for some reason... hadn't happened before and didn't happen for the rest of the match

Stage 2: <Comstock>

- Start unloaded and holstered with feet on the XX's

- On the beep, shoot 

> 2 from 10-15yd from box 1

> 2 from 7yd from the left corner of box 2, leaning around the wall

> 4 from 10-15yd on the right corner of box 2

Learnings/Outcomes: 8/15 Div, 16/29 Overall

- 13A, 3C in 22.77 = 3.2499 HF

- I wasn't holding the top 1/3 of the target this time every time, and I wasn't doing a slow squeeze back on the trigger, so I yanked some C's, but at least I was always seeing my sights

- I shot the far target first, from position 1

- I rehearsed the initial steps dry (without a weapon, only using my hands) to avoid making procedural errors or wasting thinking/executing time... 1) draw gun and mag simultaneously while also taking a step backwards into the box, 2) load, 3) rack, 4) present

- From spot 2 where we had to lean, I think the discomfort of the lean and my desire to not shoot the wall caused me to rush and yank a C or two

- In this match and the last, I've not thought about using extra rounds for the Comstock allowance... it didn't cross my mind, maybe because by the time I saw the miss and considered it, I had already physically and mentally moved on?  Or maybe I should go based on where I feel like the trigger is breaking as it's breaking, instead of waiting for visual confirmation of where the rounds landed.

- I went R->L this time on the last array of targets, based on when they became visible, even though I was still shooting from a static position

Stage 4: <Virginia>

- Start loaded and holstered, with feet on the XX's and hands above shoulders

- On the beep, shooot 

> 3 from box 1 at 15-20yd

> 2 from 7yd from the left side of box 2

> 3 from 10-15yd from the right side of box 2

Learnings/Outcomes: 8/15 Div, 19/29 Overall

- 15A, 1C, 1 NS in 23.33 = 2.9147 HF

- I got both an A and a NS with a single round based on where the round landed in relation to the NS's perf

- I took my time more on this stage vs stage 2, since I needed more precision with the added no shoots in the way

- I saw my NS after I did it and was like "awww man"... I didn't know that it was possible to still earn an A for that, though, so that's nice

- I shot the farthest target first on the first array, then I went R->L on the last array as I saw them again

Stage 3: <Virginia>

- Start unloaded and holstered with hands above shoulders, toes on the rear fault line

- On the beep, shoot

> 3 from box 1 and 2 from box 2 (or 5 from box 2 squatting)

> 4 from box 3 @ 7-10yd

Learnings/Outcomes: 8/15 Div, 18/29 Overall

- 17A, 1C in 21.68 = 4.0590 HF

- I didn't realize until after the RO said something, that we had to start with hands above shoulders, since it was in a part of the brief that I had skipped over when reading

- I had a decent run, though.... I felt like I had some lags, but it looked ok

- I realized while "making ready" that we start unholstered, so there would be no opportunity to load then top off... there would be a mag change, so I decided then to do it during my last movement... NBD but something I hadn't factored in ahead of time before I stepped up to load and make ready

Overall 8/15 Div, 18/29 Overall

- I forgot to put my WML back on my pistol after the GBF Finale, when I had removed it to save weight with all that movement we were doing

- I need to look for my sights always

- I need to remember that briefs aren't always written in the same format, so pay attention to details

- There were no obvious opportunities to walk and shoot today

- Some stages favor shorter people (like when I squatted), and others favor tall people (when leaning is required to make it around a wall)

- Be mindful of more chances to avoid mag changes by topping off in stages with Virginia count and 18 rounds (but still have a spare mag in case of malfunctions)

POST-MATCH TRAINING

Tuesday, Dec 16:

Bedtime Yoga Sequence & Morning Yoga on the Road with Adriene

This was also my first opportunity to get in some dry fire like Emily recommended.  I didn't want to do it before GBF Op Shooter, since I didn't want to wear out my arms or my palms, and then I did more live fire at USPSA on Monday.

I got in about an hour and 180 trigger squeezes of dry fire, though.  I used the Shooters Global Timer, which has a built-in function specifically for dry fire training.  It was my first time using that setting, so it took a few mags to figure out how I wanted to set it up, and I'm sure I'll continue to tweak it as I learn what works best and as what I'm doing for different drills evolves.

I started with tracking my time from beep to first shot, averaging 1.8-2.25s... a lot of this will depend on what sized target you're aiming for and how far away it is.  Mine was a 3x3" sticker at about 5yd.

I did some without the timer, just to get muscle memory down with a lot of reps at once.  

I did some mags' worth without pulling the trigger and just drawing, to get more reps without having to worry about racking and eventually reloading dummy rounds.

I resumed with the timer.

I finished by pushing it a bit, doing load + shoot with a step backwards from hands-above-shoulders for a mag.

Learnings:

- Slamming down on the grip during the draw helps.

- Driving with a strong left hand helps me not be low left as often

- I do have to remember to not make any noises after my last "shot" to avoid false positive readings on the shot timer... wait until the par time beep happens, before racking and resetting

- This wasn't as fatiguing as I expected for my arms being out as much as they were... maybe because I wasn't having to manage all that recoil (and maybe I'm gripping with less force than I would with live fire... who knows)

- The dot is loose on the pistol I was using, but it's a pistol that's missing a front sight, so I consider it a beater now anyways.  It lets me practice with the right kind of gun with the right weight and everything.

Wednesday, Dec 17:

Did some live fire, so no dry fire.  I wanted to play with the DWX Compact some more... continue to break it in and learn how to use a 1911-style gun.  

One big win... the range counter staff helped me figure out what was going on with the last round not firing at the end of each mag.  I had looked up whether it might be a mag issue or what... turns out, thumb pressure against the slide can keep it from going into battery.  I'm fortunate to have such experienced and eagle-eyed staff there to help me diagnose this!

It is interesting that's only the last round that makes this happen.  I'll have to modify my grip a bit... it's modified anyways as a 1911, and I only recently even learned about the gas pedal, but I'll have to continue playing with it.  Even knowing about it, I still managed to cause the malfunction again later on during practice on my own.

Afterwards, I did 2 mi with a 40#WV and Rough Runners in 40:38 because I wanted some movement in.  It was good active recovery, since I was still catching up on sleep and calories.

Thursday, Dec 18:

18A "Lower Body Prep" in 16:45, then HDT March Madness Sweet 16 "Transition Offense" 20 min AMRAP with a 30# Rucker V2 with 5 rounds and 45 reps, then 18A "Hanging Abs" in 16:44... not bad.

Afterwards, my second post-Emily DF session...

I focused on bringing the gun up to my head level and being more upright.  

I also developed an affinity for yanking the pistol out of the holster.

I started to do multiple trigger squeezes per beep, to get into the practice of doing double-taps.

Last time, I had decided that more left hand pressure was good, but I was maybe overdoing it today and pushing right.

I shot at a target that was less low to the ground this time, which will give me practice with a more naturally occurring / common POA.

My pinky finger did start to feel some abrasion by the end of this.

I got tired after 4 mags, but I was still getting in good reps so kept going until I did about an hour and 105 rounds.

I started doing sets of 15 this time, vs of sets of 5, which helped me have more uninterrupted reps before I'd have to reset the timer.