Photo by Todd Langley

Though not officially a professional triathlete, the fact that Danielle Kehoe was the only woman in the world to finish all three World Championships last season makes her pro enough for us. The Colorado triathlete holds titles for her age group in both triathlon and Xterra National Championships, placed 3rd in her age group in Vegas and 8th in Kona, and won the Xterra World Championships 20-24 age slot.

Last year was a mix of sprint races, Ironman events, 36-hour adventure races, and 100-mile mountain bike races for the versatile athlete. The highlight, however, was Ironman St. George in May. The race marked both her first marathon and Ironman experience and it was there where she qualified for Kona in the competitive 24 and under category, winning her age group with a time of 10:46:44.

Kehoe is also a certified American College of Sports Medicine Health and Fitness Specialist and coaches injured soldiers through LifeQuest Transitions.

“I think about each of the soldiers I work with as I race,” she said. “They serve as the inspiration I need during the low moments of exhaustion, fatigue, and mental questioning which are a major challenge during endurance races. I know these men and women have been through so much more.”

Keep a lookout for Kehoe this year at Ironman St. George on May 5th—her first race of the 2012 season.

Onto the gear!

LAVA: Why do you love your Garmin (Forerunner 310XT) and Quarq Power Meter (CinQo Saturn, SRAM S975, 130 BCD) combo?

Danielle Kehoe: Feedback in training is essential to improving results and I get incredible information as I train with this system.

What differences have you noticed in your training while using the gear?

The major difference is how scientific my training has become. These precise readings allow me to monitor my training so that I don’t over- or under-train. Now, I have the ability to determine my work intervals off both power and heart rate zones instead of going off of just perceived exertion. This setup also allows me to accomplish each training session goal with precision. I am able to gauge my improvements over several weeks time with concrete numbers and determine the exact areas that need improvement.

When did you acquire the gear and what inspired you to do so?

I’ve been racing triathlon competitively for seven years now and I’ve been on some great teams. Last year, I was self-coached and had great success, but decided I wanted to take my training to the next level and go professional. In order to achieve this I knew I needed a knowledgeable coach, so I enlisted Lee Gardner with TriSmarter. He encouraged me to start training with a power meter and heart rate monitor; he said doing so would allow us to get the specific feedback we needed to track improvement. I cannot stress what a great investment both have been.

As a newbie to the set up, were you able to use the data from the get-go or was there a learning curve?

To be honest, I’m not very tech-savvy. I had my Quarq installed by Wheat Ridge Cyclery and they paired my Gamin for me. After your Garmin is paired, you have to set up the software to transfer your data to your computer. The Gamin comes with a CD that installs the software you need to transfer your workouts from your watch to your computer (in my case Training Peaks). This set up is wireless and very easy to use. As long as you have your watch turned on and use the USB ANT stick, it automatically downloads your past workouts.

As far as reading the results, Training Peaks makes it easy to view all the information you could want, ranging from KJ work, (TSS) Total Stress Score, (NP) Normalized Power, etc. You also can see minimum, maximum and average results for power, heart rate, cadence, speed, pace, and elevation for the entire workout and for each selected lap.

What are some pros and cons you’ve noticed in both so far?

Garmin 310XT Pros: The GPS on the Garmin is extremely accurate. The wireless USB Ant stick makes transferring date from your watch to your computer extremely easy, with the automatic sync. The battery life is up to 20 hours and it has the ability to record up to 1000 laps. It’s extremely sensitive to the heart rate receiver and Quarq Powerreceiver. Once it’s paired to a heart rate monitor it doesn’t get feedback interference from other heart rate monitors nearby. The Garmin is capable of monitoring heart rate, power, bike speed, and cadence. It’s multi-sport capable, so you can switch between swimming, cycling and running easily. There are several different fields to select from to monitor during your workouts.

The heart rate strap is easy to adjust, put on and take off, and very comfortable. It also allows you to detach the sensor from the strap for cleaning. The watch notifies the user by beeping and vibrating to ensure you notice the alert. And once the date fields are set up on the watch it’s easy to navigate through them.

Garmin 310XT Cons: It’s a little difficult to figure out how to set up the data fields on the watch. In some lights it’s difficult to read the data fields. It’s also extremely bulky especially in the water and heavy for a watch (72 g, 2.5 oz). I wish that when you turned it off it would show the time of day, like a normal watch. And it only comes in one color, orange. When you turn it on it takes a minute to locate satellite connection, it’s not immediate. Also, for adventure racing, 20 hours battery life isn’t long enough.

Quarq CinQo Pros: This is a crank-based power meter so you can switch out wheels and never lose your power readings like you would with PowerTap. It’s low maintenance and the battery lasts for several months. When it comes time to swap out the battery it’s cheap and easy to do. It comes in both standard and compact chainrings in a light weight design, and works fantastically with the Garmin.

Quarq CinQo Cons: You have to purchase the head unit device separately. It’s expensive compared to PowerTap and not as accurate as the Power Meter SRM. It also needs to be calibrated frequently.

Can you give us a rundown of how you use each in a typical training session?

I use both for all my cycling workouts and the Garmin for all my running workouts. A typical cycling workout is design by my predetermined heart rate zones and power zones. For example, say I have 5 x (7 minute efforts in Zone 3 power with a cadence of 70-75 RPMs plus 7 minutes efforts in Zone 3 power with a cadence of 90-100 RPMs). This workout would be nearly impossible to perform without the technology and accuracy of both. When I didn’t use either, I was playing a guessing game each time I worked out. Am I going too hard or too easy? Now, I have instant feedback so I can nail each interval.

Have you raced with the set up yet?

No, but I’ll be using both in all my races this year.

What has been the most unexpected experience that has come from using the gear?

Before, when I would train completely off of perceived exertion, I would see athletes getting pissed at their heart rate monitors or power meters when they were malfunctioning, as if it was the end of the world! I would think ‘Wow, am I glad I’m not like that, I never want to rely on technology to determine my motivation and effort.’ However, now that I’ve been training with both over a month, I’m becoming just as reliant!

Just the other day my Garmin was having a hard time locating GPS. I didn’t realize this until I was downloading the workout later and found that neither distance nor pace was recorded. I couldn’t believe it—here I was, really devastated that my great performance wasn’t recorded. The funny thing is, I still ran the miles and got the workout in which is what truly matters. But for an instant it seemed as if I had done all this hard work for nothing. That was an unexpected reality check. These are both fantastic training tools but it’s good to remember that they aren’t performance determinative devices. If either your heart rate monitor or power meter does malfunction, keep going on with the workout. The work still counts!

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Zoie Clift graduated from the University of Colorado and has a Masters in Journalism from Boston University. She has written for various media outlets including the United States Olympic Committee, Runner’s World, Trail Runner, American Fitness, Marathon & Beyond, and The Times-Picayune.