2014...Really?!

I can't believe that it's been so long since I posted anything here. Guess I should get my priorities back in line. A lot has happened since October 2012, nearly two entire seasons worth. Let's recap in a Reader's Digest Condensed version manner; 2013 was spent doing several sprints, and an Olympic, a half marathon and HHH Triple threat. HHH Triple Threat was my big event for the year. 22 miles of MTB race, 100 mile endurance ride and finally, a half marathon trail run. The race was fun and all of my friends did well. I had a pretty bad crash on the MTB that made the rest of the weekend a little more challenging than it needed to be, but everything went well. The trip home was a little harrowing as we broke down in SW Oklahoma. A lift from some friends who had seen us at the side of the road was most welcome. The climax of the season was Xterra National Championships in September. I found out I had received enough points to be invited the week after I got back from TX from HHH. After a little coaxing from my wife, I decided that I would go. I trained as much as I could for this event even though HHH was kind the A event for me in 2013. I had a poor showing there as I found I was not prepared for the altitude nor was I prepared for the amount of steady climbing this course is known for.

Don't count your chickens...

Well, what can you say. There's a reason you run the race. And that's to see who wins. I just got home from Xterra DeGray Lake. We had an excellent weekend. I traveled with my good friends Don, and John and Cynthia Bradley. Don, Cynthia, and I did the sprint course Xterra off road triathlon. John, did the Epic long course. We also met friends Justin Hough, and Jeff Daniels. When we showed up to packet pickup it was cold and overcast and the thought of swimming the next morning was not too appealing. Still that evening we had a good meal and as usual looked forward to our individual races with trepidation. The next morning we loaded up and headed over to set up our transition areas and don wet suits. After we set up our gear, we tried to stay warm before start time. When the announcer called one minute to start time, I knew we had put it off long enough. The swim was a deep water start and I had never done one of those. You tread water at the start line until they blow the horn, then you fight your way through the spanking machine that makes up a mass start. I tried to time my entry so that I got to the line as the horn sounded and intended to minimize the time I would have to tread water. It worked pretty well. The horn blew and we were off. Navigating this course wasn't too bad, as we swam between two docks and you could use them to keep yourself relatively straight. I'm always happy to see the first turn buoy of any open water swim. It signifies that you're making progress. I hit the first and shortly after hit the next. This turn buoy was even sweeter, it meant that I was heading back to shore. I got to the ramp and put on my water shoes for the run up the ramp to transition. When I got there I found Cynthia already getting her stuff ready for the bike section. I was a little behind her and stripped off my wetsuit. I stifled my urge tho shiver and shake as I swapped shoes and put on some long sleeves and my Camelback. I ate a gel and got a drink. I escorted my bike to the mount line with my glasses in my teeth. Once there I put on my gloves and took off. I'd had a good swim and felt pretty fresh. The first section of the bike was on pavement. I hit it pretty hard until I got to the single track. The bike is a nice flowing trail without a lot of technical drops or aggressive climbs. It does have some switchbacks and berms, with a few jumps sprinkled along the way. I was making good progress and passing lots of folks. Etiquette on single track is something I'm learning. I asked permission to pass and it worked well for the most part. I was having a good bike and making progress and then it all went to hell. After chasing and finally passing Cynthia, we came to a paved section. At the end of it was a section where you were supposed to enter a gate and cross back over the road. I got confused about the direction and wound up going around a two mile section for the second time. Had I looked back at any point I would have seen that Cynthia was no longer behind me. I knew I had screwed up when I saw Jeff ahead of me. I knew I was out of the water before him. My wrong turn cost me easily eight minutes. Maybe eight and a half. I was now riding pissed. Pissed at myself for making such an error. Pissed the course for being, well there. Pissed at the volunteers at the gate that let me make a bad turn. In the end, I bear the responsibility for it. Navigation is part of the game. I continued to ride hard even though I knew I was behind. I thought about shutting it down and relaxing. I decided against that and decided to make the most out of it. That was the right thing to do. Not only because it's a race and you should do your best, but because I thought there might be an outside chance I could make up the time. I rode into transition and saw Don's bike next to my area. He was ahead of me now too. I changed quickly into trail shoes, shed the long sleeves and trotted out the run exit gate. The first part was a steep uphill to the pavement and then a steep downhill below the dam to the turnaround. Along the way I saw Don, Cynthia and Justin. As I passed Cynthia, I yelled, "Did you see what I did?" She signified that she had. I yelled to Don, "I blew it Don!" No worries, I ran the rest of the way to the turnaround, collected the hair scrunchy that signifies that you made the check-point. I made my way back to the steep incline and had to slow to a walk. Once I was to the top I was on the run again. A trip back across the dam and I hit a technical down hill trail to the finish. From the edge of the woods I could see the Finish gate. I made my way around the winding rocky trail and trotted through the gate at 2:12. Cynthia, Don and Justin were there waiting, along with Jeff's girlfriend, Tracy and Justin's wife Katie. We all congratulated each other on our finishes as we knocked back water and Gatorade. Shortly Jeff crossed the line. We all got a little rest and talked about our different experiences during the race. It was pretty much unanimous that it was a fun race. I was still pretty dejected about my navigational gaff, but I didn't let it diminish the mood. Some good natured ribbing took out some of the sting. After we had all had a chance to rest and cool off we gathered a few things, put on warmer clothes and went about the business of supporting John in his efforts to crush the Epic course which had started thirty minutes after our own. Over the next hour or so results started to roll in. My friend Don had gotten 2nd in our age group, and I had managed to hold on to a 3rd place. It was terrific to share the podium with the friend that had started me down this road not too many years ago. Cynthia got a 1st place finish in her AG, and Justin got a 2nd. John finished the Epic in an awesome 4th place overall nail biter finish that won him 1st place in Masters. This is a great race and I would do it again tomorrow. Crystal clear water, fast flowing single track, rocky wooded trail run. What's not to like?

What is Strong?

The running apparel and shoe company Saucony has a tagline in one of it's ad campaigns. It asks the question, "What is strong?" Then it goes on to try to answer with a few suggestions. All sound like good answers until they hit upon the answer that seems to get at the heart of things, "Maybe strong is what you have, when you've used up all of your weak." I love this message. What this says to me is, if you train and push yourself, and challenge yourself to do more this week than you did last week, you can do just about anything you decide to do. My A+ race this year was Ironman Branson 70.3. At the beginning of the season that would culminate in this achievement, I truly wondered if I had the mental stamina to maintain the challenging training agenda I had set before myself. Another minor goal I set was to do one triathlon per month from April to September. Somehow I managed to get in with a good training group. This isn't something I planned, it just happened. What I discovered is that if you get invited to a ride or a run, show up and you'll get invited again. The upside to this is you don't have to train alone if you don't want to. The downside, if you want to call it that is, prepare to work, maybe harder than you want some days. On any given day, someone in the group is stronger, more rested, or just plain better than you are. Between races, I trained, I did group rides, and runs. I only ran one foot race this year. I did two road bike races. I did a 50, 75, and two 100 mile group rides. I did a trail race and I did the rite of passage for all cyclists, the Hotter than Hell Hundred. All of this was done with IM Branson in mind. Everything seemed to dovetail quite well when I use hindsight. There were times I was questioning my methods though. I found it difficult to follow any of the free published plans and I'm too cheap to hire a coach. So, relying on friends and dead reckoning I shambled my way through the summer. There were days I wondered how in the hell I was ever going to do what I set out to do. Self-doubt creeped in frequently. I wore my wife out with my anxiety. I spoke to anyone that would hold still about my training. I got a some reassurance from some of them. I also talked to a tri-coach acquaintance of mine. After listening patiently to what I had been doing, he emphatically assured me I was going to do fine. Another friend shared with me what her coach told her, 'it's okay to hurt'. These few words ran through my mind anytime I got an ache and made those hard training days a little easier. As race day got closer, time seemed to speed up. The next thing I knew, I was at packet pickup and setting up my T-1 gear. I slept good the night before the race, rose early and ate some food. The rest of my gear was packed the night before. I grabbed it in the pre-dawn hours, put it in the truck and met my friends to caravan down to the Landing. We set up our T-2 and grabbed the shuttle to Moonshine Beach. Final setup; tires inflated, food and drink packed onto the bike, don wetsuit....and wait. The pros go first, then the women age groupers, then the men age groupers. From oldest to youngest in both cases. My AG (45-49)was a large group. I was reminded of the openening lyrics to Bruce Springsteen's "Wrecking Ball", "if you got the guts mister, yeah if you got the balls, you think it's your time, go on and step to the line and bring on your wrecking ball." They blew the horn and we were off. I've learned over time, that you have to race your race, not anyone else's. I swam my swim. For once, I had almost zero navigation problems. I kept swim caps on both sides of me and looked for the turn buoys in the morning mist. I got caught up in all the flailing, kicking, and body-checking a mass beach start is known for. When I claimed my space, I was on cruise control. I hit the last turn and started looking for the exit chute. I'll never forget seeing the gravel through the clear lake water as I swam the last 150 or so yards. I stood up when it was too shallow to swim. I checked my Garmin, it read 39:40. I knew I had exceeded my goal. More importantly, I felt good. I ran through the chute and up the ramp, shedding my wetsuit along the way. I got to my bike and began the ritual of swapping gear from swim to bike. I stowed my wetsuit in the transport bag provided by the organizers so it could be brought to T-2 later. It was chilly, so I put on some long sleeves. I got a big gulp of cold water, knocked back a gel and trotted to the bike mount area. I mounted and then I was off. This course is all about climbing, and the first part before you get to the high road is no different. It was slow going, but I hunkered down and spun my way along the rolling hills to the high road. I had ridden the high road a few times during training, and I knew it was a serious ride. Pacing is the key. Push too hard and fall you'll apart early. The high road portion of the course is breakneck downhills, followed by lung busting climbs. There is no break where you can just settle in a spin. I broke it down mentally into legs, and except for a RR stop, I had an uneventful ride. No flats, no wrecks, just ground it out for 56 miles. Getting off the high road meant two things; the hardest riding was over, and T-2 was near. Before I knew it I was rolling through the roundabout. I unfastened my shoes and pedaled on top of them into the dismount area. My legs were sore and tired from all the climbing. I got lost in T-2 trying to find my gear. After stumbling around, I found my stuff racked my bike and put on my shoes. I shed the long sleeves, grabbed my hat and made my way to the run exit. This was the part I wasn't sure about. How would I behave after the first two event. I'd had some poor bricks during training and some that weren't so bad. I never did a long brick though. As I turned the corner to begin running down the sidewalk that makes up the main shopping area of the landing. It was at this point that I started to believe. Not believe that I could finish, not believe that I would meet my goal. I started to believe that I might exceed my wildest expectations. I started to believe that I had "used up all my weak". I didn't monitor my pace, but I really wanted to. I tried to run by feel. I mentally broke down the run into legs, just like I did the high road section of the bike. There were a lot of folks along the run course with motivating signs and words of encouragement. Also along the run I begin to encounter some of the folks I had trained and raced with this season. I'm sure we all had the same look on our face. The face that says, "get me to the finish." I had some trouble with leg cramps from about mile three on. Along the run I saw Clint, Megan, Cynthia, Katie, Vic at several of the turns. I ran into Chris on my last lap. He caught me on a walk break and I was happy to see that he was feeling well on his first 70.3. I had to take a few walk breaks, but tried to keep them to a minimum. In the last mile during a walk break, I was passed by a woman with whom I had run for a bit. As she passed, she shouted her words of encouragement, "You got this sir!" She knew I was on my last lap. I was able to run again and fully intended to go through that finish chute as fast as I could go. Hearing your name over the PA as you enter the finish chute is quite a thrill, makes you feel like a pro as you cross the finish line. I crossed that line at 6:05:04. My good friend Don was there with the camera as he had been on every leg of this race. I turned in my chip, got a Gatorade from the cooler, and collected my finisher's medal. After that I waited for my racing friends to finish and looked for those who had come in before me. While walking up and down fence, I stopped to lay back for a minute. Then it sank in, I had done it. I had done what I wasn't sure I could nine months ago. Tears welled up behind my sunglasses. "What it Strong?" I still don't have the definitive answer, but I'm closer to knowing what that answer is now than I was on that cool, misty September morning.

Season winding down

I can't believe how long I've allowed this blog to lie fallow. Well a lot has happened since Xterra. The Willard tri was disappointingly cancelled. This meant that Concreteman was up next. I decided to revisit the Olympic distance course again and hope they got it right. They did, and actually ran a pretty good event. I came in well under my goal of three hours. After that I did Tiger-Tri in Republic, and came in fifth in my AG. I was very happy about the result. I ran a low seven pace for the run and broke 20mph average for the bike. I had a very good race and felt good the whole time. Next up was my A+ race for the year. Ironman Branson. More on this later in a separate post. Next up will be Xterra Degray off-road tri. That was the tri season in a nutshell. Turns out that I did tons more stuff this summer. A couple of century rides including HHH in Wichita Falls TX, followed up the next day with a half marathon trail run. I also did two road bike races which were a scream. I have never ridden so fast. I learned more about bike handling in those races than in three years of riding. I also did a few long unsupported rides with friends this year. Not the least of which was the 5 Ugly Sisters, including the Lead Hill loopd. It is the most brutal climbing I have ever endured. This was terrific training and very satisfying. Once you've done something like that, you know you've done something. A word about this years training; I did more group training this year than ever before. I think the pay-off is evident. I had a terrific season. Met and exceeded most of my own expectations, and had a lot of fun to boot. The group I trained with was great. Abilities were matched well enough that if someone was having a good or bad day it boosted, or pushed the rest. These folks pushed me when I needed it. We all cheered one another on at races even though we were racing each other. Training together means you share in one another's success and anguish. You grow close in a short time in what I like to call the brother(or sister)hood of shared adversity. I truly enjoyed my training this year, and these folks are the biggest reason why. More soon regarding IM Branson 70.3 as this was a significant milestone for me.

Du-Series Xterra and beyond

It's been a while since my last entry and a lot has happened since then. I did the middle two of the four part Du-Series. The 1-11-1, and the 1/2-11-2. I did markedly better than in previous years. I'm sure in part to the Cervelo. It IS faster than my Trek. I also did my first Xterra off-road triathlon. This was an excellent event. More on that later. I did a couple of organized group rides; the Red Ribbon Ride, and the Queen City Ride (75 mi.). These organized rides are a great way to get in a long ride. They're well supported and there are always plenty of folks to ride with. I've been lucky enough to have enough friends involved both times. This is great because they are better cyclists than I am and it pushes me to work harder. Xterra Eureka Springs; This was an A-race for me. It was a long term goal anyway and it seemed like why not go ahead and do it this year. Lots of Springfield folks were doing it, so I decided to give it a go. The swim is open water in Lake Leatherwood. This is a very nice dammed up river that I'm told used to generate power. Now it's a smallish campground fishing and swimming lake. The swim was uneventful if a bit slow for me (I'm slower in open water). I was a little freaked out by the weeds, even though I didn't think I would be. The run to T-1 is not insignificant. It was about 200 yards. One plus side to this is that you can collect your thoughts a bit. The transition area is nicely layed out with sturdy racks. The event is limited to 200 athletes, and everyone is assigned their slot by bib number. I took my time at transition but was ready to go quickly enough. I had more gear than I usually deal with; gloves, Camelback, socks, and glasses. This ride is a b i t c h. The first climb is rideable and I had intended to ride it. When I hit the trail though, it was clogged with racers hiking their bikes, so I did the same as getting around them would have spent too much energy. I wish I had tried to ride it looking back. I got passed by my Cynthia Bradley who has become one of my main (friendly) competitors. I tried to keep her in sight after we got back on and started riding again, but after I wiped out on a switch back she jumped ahead three riders and with her experience showing, jumped past three more. It took me much longer to pass the same riders. I did stop to help some poor athlete who had flatted for a second time and was hiking his flat bike. I gave him a tube and my multi-tool. I considered this paying it forward, as I had been helped at the Branson Sprint last September. After this first main climb, the downhills are really fun if technical. After you pass through transition for the second part of the bike, you hit the real challenges. There is not much choice for the second main climb except to hike the bike up it. It's a very aggressive climb, and rideable if that's all you were planning to do that day. After you get to the top you get the payoff; downhill, switchbacks and ledgerocks, all the MTB fun stuff. Then you cross the dam and hit more fun stuff until the third main climb, and it is a doozy. Aggressive slope and really long. The last .25-.5 miles is very aggressive and I hiked it up. After that, you can haul ass, if you have the courage. I had a great time on the bike, but it took the starch out of me. I rolled into T-2 with pretty tired legs and probably low on electrolytes. The run portion is over much of the same terrain including the second main bike climb. I walked some of the run, but this isn't unusual on a trail run. I started to cramp in my quads and calves, but a little massage helped and curiously enough running did too. I passed Cynthia on the second major climb on the run. I reminded her that she was still at least five minutes ahead of me because the women start after the men. I tried my best to put some more time between us, but she held on to beat me by thirty seconds or so. I had a great time and these folks put on a great event. A special shout out to my good friend Don Buttram who made the trip down by himself to watch, cheer and take pictures. He's a rare breed. This race is on my A-list for next year. I'll have some experience next time and will try to go under three hours. One more thing; we pre-rode this course a couple of weeks before the race, and that was so very helpful. I'll be doing that again as well. Proper 70.3 training will begin soon. Till then, I've been making it up as I go and laying down a base. These long organized rides are very helpful. Getting the run volume up will be the hard work. The Willard Sprint, Concreteman, and Tiger-Tri are up next. I intend to use these as brick workouts in my training schedule.

Race report; The photo is from Tri-Zou. I'm told it's the largest pool swim triathlon in the country. There were around 550 finishers this year. Some years there are near one thousand. This is a very nicely done event. Awards went four deep and I was hopeful of getting one, but when I saw I was 11th in my AG, all hope was gone. I had a good race with good paces in everything but the swim leg, which was a little disappointing. The 50m pool gave me a little trouble, but not like you might think. There was something about the construction of the walls that made it difficult to get an efficient push. I had an especially difficult time making turns to the left. Weird. Transitions are really long on this course and my T1 and T2 were not like I would have liked. I tried a flying start and totally butchered it. More practice on this element of my game. It seems like the whole town was there. Many folks from Springfield have made this race a perennial event. I'll probably do the same and drop Claremore in the future. Zach and I stayed at HoJo and had a big supper at Chili's. I think I was asleep by 8:30. I had a great time, and I'm looking forward to it again. Training Log; Time is a premium. I wish I could be more scientific with my efforts, but trying to fit training around life can be a pain. I usually make out a schedule for the next week or two sitting in church on Sunday. If I'm going to do a 70.3, I'm going to have to get on the stick. I can slowly ramp up to 70.3 training until July, then it'll be time to get to work. I'll have to make myself do more bricks to hit my goals. I'd really like to go <6.5 hours for my first one, and try to pare that back for subsequent races. I'm not ready for the hot days to come. I know it will make training harder, but I'll adjust. The extra long spring we've had this year has been great for outdoor training. Next Up; Xterra Eureka Springs. This is an off-road tri, and I'm looking forward to the challenge. That means adding another element to my busy schedule- mountain biking. I intend to get my bike fitness on the road bike and my handling skills in abbreviated trips to the trails. Building my skills in 7-8 mile increments isn't ideal, but I think it'll work.

Holy Smokes!

It's been a long time since I made an entry here. I've done quite a bit since I took my hiatus from running. First of all, it didn't last long. I got back at it pretty quickly. I determined that most of my trouble was caused by running on the indoor track. I used my three sessions with Olympic miler and athletic trainer Jason Pyrah to help me figure out how to work through this injury. Doing fine right now. Events; Zach and I did AdventureMax in early March, and had a great time. It's a very fun race if a little cold. I did a 15k a little later in the month and did well, better than expected at 8:05 pace. In April, Chris made a jaunt down to Claremore OK, to revisit my first tri-course. I had a good race and improved my time by 18'. I was even in 2nd place in my AG for a while. That is until the 2nd wave of swimmers crossed the line. Then I dropped to fifth. I was pretty happy with the end result as it was two minutes faster than my goal time. A little short of a podium finish should motivate me a bit. Next up is Tri-Zou. I've never done this race, but it seems like the whole town is doing it. Just got to stay trained up for it. No big surprise that I bought another bike. I got a 29er MTB. I want to do the Xterra off-road tri in Eureka Springs this June and wanted 29er to do it with. I've been practicing with it a little, but plan to do more after Tri-Zou.

Running hiatus

I've been dealing with a little tendonitis in my left ankle lately, so I put myself on a two week hiatus from running. That means more trainer, more cross training and more swimming. I plan to start up running again next Tuesday or Wednesday. Last week we had an unseasonably warm Friday and I was off work. I managed to get in a group ride east of Springfield. I figured it would be about 20-25 miles. We rode 38. It was a great ride and followed a route I never would have figured out on my own. I realize now that I've been missing out on a group dynamic. I really enjoy getting out with others that enjoy the same activity. Over the last year I've met enough people to get me in the loop on some good group activities. This weekend I'm planning on a Gravel Grinder ride. I've never done one of these, but I'm told they're a good time and it seems to me that they would be. Riders use MTB or cross bikes and ride the gravel roads just like a road ride. A mix of MTB and road riding I suppose. A new swim class for triathletes started last Sunday, and I'm going to do it again. I really want to bi-lateral breathe. I think it'll help me swim straighter in the open water.

Keep movin'

A year on and I think I've mostly put my neck injury behind me. I exceeded all the goals I set for this year. I did four triathlons, two duathlons, a ten mile race, several 5ks, and 10ks. I set PRs in all events. Faster, faster, faster, that's the goal each race. Finishing an Olympic distance tri was my main goal for the year and my secondary goal was to finish a 1/2 marathon especially since I didn't get to do the one I had trained for last year when I was injured. My Olympic was about as close to a shambles as a person can imagine. Trashed from a mis-marked double distance swim course, I was terribly slow on the bike and barely held on to the run. I was happy to cross the finish line, legs cramping on the verge of shutdown. The 1/2 marathons were less dramatic, but no less satisfying. I came in way under my 9'/mile pace goal for both and the second one was faster than the first. I want to marathon at some point, but next year's main goal will be a 70.3 race.

Yesterday, Don and I had a great time on a 5 mile trail run followed by 12 miles of MTB at Honey Run near Lake of the Ozarks. I made it through two runs without a crash. A milestone for me. Mountain biking requires balance, discipline and some calculated wrecklessness that seems counter-intuitive at times. I seem to spend half of any MTB ride just figuring what the hell I'm doing. I rode Don's 26" instead of my Trek 4300. It has some finer things that my Trek doesn't have. I enjoyed the disc brakes, air-shock and dual action shifters quite a bit. He rode his new 29er. I'm gonna start shopping for one myself. The trail run was interesting. I'd never done one and I enjoyed it. It certainly works different groups of muscles. This I can attest because of what's sore the next day.

1/2 Marathon...check

So a couple of weeks ago I completed my first half marathon. What an experience. I got thwarted on this race last year after lots of hard work when I herniated a disc in my neck. I came back this year even more determined to complete the race. I think this helped me to train because I took it pretty seriously. So, about the race; again, I ran in a huge group of people. 1210 finishers. I finished 166 right behind/beside my good friend Don. He paced me and kept me in the zone with his coaching. I ran a good race I think, and exceeded my goal of 1:57. I laid out a strategy to try to average 8:30/mile, and would up with 8:25/mile with a total time of 1:50:08. Very happy with the final result. Negative split from front to back half and almost every mile. A lot of thoughts run through your mind when you run for a couple of hours, and this was no different, but toward the end all you think of is getting to the finish. Next up is the Turkey Trot 5k. I was thwarted on this raceI'm thinking I'll do another in December and I'm contemplating a full in April. I can't believe I'm actually thinking about it...

Bike Slut/ 1/2 Marathon training

Last month I found a Cervelo P2 on Craigslist. I decided that if it was still available after I got back from Chicago with my money from the USS Constitution I built that I would buy it. I know I just bought the Felt S32 and I haven't even ridden it. The Cervelo is much better equipped though. I got a few extras on the Cervelo too. I'm going to take the computer off of the Felt and maybe the aero-bars. I'll hold onto the Felt until next spring and I think I can get my money back out of it. I love bikes.

Cynthia Bradley, Don, and I had a great 12 miler today in preparation for the Bass Pro half marathon. We ran the course as marked, with a few errors in navigation. It's the furthest I've ever gone. I felt good and turned an average of 8:48 with negative splits, and an 8:12 last mile. Afterward, we had a huge breakfast, my favorite part of the run. I felt good and running in a group is something I don't get to do often. The camaraderie, and conversation is a great way to pass the time. The topics were training, bikes, racing, and life in general. Cynthia dropped off about mile nine and Don and I went on with our 12 mile plan. The weather was gorgeous, you couldn't have ordered up better weather. I am ready for it. If the weather is even close to what it was today, it will be epic. Maybe another in December, if I can keep up my training appetite.

Feeding the Beast

About a month ago, I decided that I needed to keep track of what I eat. A few folks at work use a calorie count tool on the web. The way they described it, it was just what I was looking for. I created a profile, set some goals and started tracking my intake and output. I hope I've been honest about quantities and content. I'm not trying to lose weight, but if I do, I'm okay with it. I think getting to a 165# race weight would be great. Lower than that, I think I'd be sacrificing muscle mass to get there. Something I've discovered about this process is that it's very difficult to get the right calories without eating too much fat and/or sodium. It's forced me to make some different choices about what I eat and when, but not how much. Basically, I eat all the time and lots of it. Activity is the key. When you work out about 30 minutes every day, you have a lot of leeway in caloric intake. Getting the right stuff has become more important to me and I'm less likely to eat junk. If I do eat junk, it better be good. I'm not going to waste calories on a crappy donut. I'll wait until there are good donuts! This is a big change in attitude for me. What I hope this will lead to is a more healthy body. Lighter and with less fat too.

Switching to 1/2 Marathon training is going fine. I turned down my friend Don's invite to partner in an adventure race the day before my first 1/2. I was afraid that I would not perform well the next day if I tried to go back to back. I'm planning on doing that one with him next year though. I want to maintain that base into next season.

Switching gears

Time to change gears I suppose. Triathlon season is over. I ended it with the Branson Sprint that ran along with the 70.3. Now it's time to switch to 1/2 marathon training. I think I've lost a little speed over last year, but I'm ahead on getting my miles up. I had a small setback this week by means of a cold and a week without training, but I should be on track to make my goal without a lot of trouble.

Don and I had an epic MTB ride a few weeks ago. The new White River Trail near Table Rock Dam is great. It was challenging, but not impossible. I crashed a few times, but nothing serious. I did some of my best riding on the last 1/4 of the trail. We will definitely be back.

Branson Sprint thoughts; I would have had a very good race had it not been for my back tire going flat at about mile 8. I had given up my repair kit to another rider who had nothing to repair his own flat. I rode about another half mile and had my own flat. Luckily, I came upon some others that were repairing their flats and they had spares to help me along. It cost me about 15-20 minutes. I would have more than met my sub 2 hour goal had it not been for the flat. I did my first wet suit swim, and I really liked it after I got over the constricted feeling. Thanks to Pete for the loan. I sighted on the wrong buoy for a while and that cost me a couple of minutes. I had a great swim though. The run was really good and I felt great after the halfway point. It poured rain soon after the sprint was over and rained on a lot of the 70.3 athletes. I think most were through T2 before the rain started. Several folks I know were doing the 70.3 and I hope they met their goals.

Season wrap and autumn plans

My last triathlon this season will be the Branson Sprint that's running alongside the 1/2IM the same day. I didn't think I was going to be able to do this race. I was supposed to be out of town that weekend, but those plans have been modified a little. I'll be home that weekend, and I intend to race. I think it will be a good time.

As I write this a few people I'm acquainted with are in the middle of IM Canada. I've been tracking their progress on OMC's facebook feed. I wish them all well. It's inspiring and humbling to see what the human body is capable of achieving with some determination.

It must be August, because I bought a new bike. A Felt S32. It needs some minor work that I didn't detect until I got it home. It works fine, but has some wear. I'll get it all going in time for next season. I don't think I can bear to get rid of my Trek though. It's an awesome ride and even moreso since Don put the tune to it. I'll split my riding up a bit next year on the two to see which one I like best, but I intend to race on the Felt. The Trek will be more for straight road rides.

It looks like a 50k relay, the Sunshine Run 10k, the Bass Pro 1/2 marathon and the Turkey Trot will round out the year. Then I'll rest into the holidays, and work on some off-season strength stuff. I'm considering Cross-Fit, but may come up with my own thing. I need to get back after my shoulder. It's doing better, but I've neglected it over the summer unless you count swimming (I don't).

Better Race

Megan, me and Katie from swim class, along with Vic Pardue. Taken by Katie's Mother.

The Republic Tiger Tri is the premier sprint distance race in the are in my opinion. Ultramax runs a class act. I had a good race, despite coming in slower than I wanted. I was shooting for 1:09, but finished just under 1:11. Faster transitions would have helped quite a bit. I still finished 6th in my AG and I'm pretty happy with that. Coming on the heels of the Concrete Man, it gave me back quite b bit of confidence. I enjoyed every aspect of this race.

The swim; I had a good swim and seeded myself in a very good spot. Throughout the 300 yards I had nearly a whole 25 between me and the swimmers ahead and behind.

The bike; I had just knocked out a 25 mile 19mph average training ride previous to this race and felt very confident. I cranked it as fast as I thought I could get away with. After passing several faster swimmers, I wound up battling it out between my neighbor Dennis and another young Asian fellow. I could have pushed harder toward the end and perhaps gotten closer to the 19 I was hoping for.

The run; I felt remarkably fresh on the 5k run. By this point in a race, you're just thinking about the finish line. The 5k was pretty flat and well staffed with three aid stations. Offers of a splash and/or a drink were on offer. When you hit the running track in the park, you can smell the barn and see the finish line. I cranked it up a notch when I saw I was in danger of coming in over 1:11. I finished strong at 1:10:56.

I waited for some of my friends to come in and hung around to see Dennis, Katie, Megan, and Zach get awards in their AG's. Pizza and other snacks along with an icy-pop at the finish topped it all off. I was glad that my Brother-in-Law Chris was able to come down and do this race again this year. I know he's been limited on races and training this summer. He and I did three races together last year.

Concrete Man post mortem

Well, I finished. I felt a little under trained for this event, and I may have been right. I had a rough race, slow on the bike and slower on the run, which I walked most of. Many thanks to my good friend Don for this video and moral support and general camaraderie.

The swim; It looked intimidating. When I first surveyed the course it didn't look that bad, then I saw the third buoy. It seemed a little long, but I was told that it was set using GPS, so it should be right. Getting to the first turn was a mental exercise, constantly telling myself, that I could do this. I've swam further and I know swimming is quite a bit mental and that's amplified in the open water. I didn't check my stopwatch after the first leg, but it seemed like an eternity. The second wasn't so bad as I finally felt like I was in a rhythm. I got out of the water after the second lap and I saw someone finish that I had started with (I think). I checked my watch, and it showed fifty minutes! That's five minutes longer than I had figured my total time at the outside limit would be. So it turns out that the swim course was long, maybe by as much as double. This makes me feel a little better about my final time, but not better about my bike and run performance.

The bike; The bike was not real eventful. I did okay, but I backed out of the speed quite a bit because the swim had really sapped me. My stomach was a little sick and that mad it hard to take on any nutrition. There were a couple of times I thought I might throw up, but it passed quickly. I forced myself to hydrate and eat a little. I felt awful after the bike and was happy to get into transition.

The run; What can I say? It was rough. I started out at a trot and did okay for about half a mile. Then I started a run/walk routine that turned into more walking than running. The aide stations were a Godsend. Cold water and towels felt great and kept me moving. So my strategy became, run till you cramp, then walk till it stops. I guess some folks got worried about me and sent out some recon in the form of Al Trumbo. It was great to see him actually and he helped me along by just showing up. I took on a gel at the four mile aide station. I made my way to the final mile and thought I'd be able to run the rest of the way in, but it was not to be. When my quads weren't cramping, my hamstrings were. I limped along until I could see the finish line. I was determined to actually run across the finish line. That's what you see in the video. At the end I was given ice for inside my hat, water, watermelon. Don and Dennis helped me haul all my stuff back to the car. I came home and took a great nap sincerely happy to have just finished this very difficult race.

Getting to the finish line...

Sitting here on the eve of the longest race I'll do this year. I set a goal of doing an Olympic distance race this summer. I settled on the Concreteman which will be tomorrow. In a few hours I'll be in the water waiting for the horn. I'm feeling a little under-trained and spent the day talking to other tri-athletes I know hoping for some reassurance. I heard a lot of the things I wanted to hear and I'm as ready as I'm going to get. I did a few calculations and I think something in the low threes is attainable. I'm well hydrated, evidenced by my frequent trips to the restroom today. Gear has been packed, and prepped. I picked up my packet tonight and stowed everything in my bag. I've done all I can do to this point. From here forward, it's all mental. I'm looking forward to the finish.

Open water swim practice and OMC

Getting in some open water swim practice. I think I covered the distance well enough. It'll be much different with other swimmers in the mix. I'll have to remember to do things at my pace.

At this point I'm feeling a little under-trained for an Olympic distance. I'll know more after my 15/3 brick tomorrow. I may skip my weekly long run and do something else this Sunday. There's still two weeks to go and plenty of training time. Ultimately, I'm committed to Olympic distance and will stick with it even if I finish ugly. But finishing well is still the goal.

I got aero-bars today and put them on. I'm looking forward to trying them out. I may have to play with them a bit to get them exactly where I want them. So far, so good though.

I joined Ozarks Multi-Sport Club the other day when I was buying a few things at The Starting Block. I even went on a group ride with some of the other club members. I'll see if I like the club. It does allow for 10% discounts at many of the run and bike stores in town. I think the new board is committed to more group training events as well.

Prepping for an "A Race"

My main goal this year was to complete an Olympic distance triathlon. The Olympic seems to require equal balancing of all three skills. I start two-days twice a week today. I'm doing my speedwork and mid-run on days I do my swimming. I'll include a weekly open water session as well. I know I can cover the distance, but everything changes in open water. Bike distance jumps this week as well. I'll add 5 miles to my long bike. I'm sticking with 8 miles for a long run for a while. The ConcreteMan is July 30th and if I stay injury free, I think I'm gonna make it.

Willard Triathlon

A photo from the Du-Series I found last week on Facebook.

Just knocked out my first tri of the year. It was fun. I outdid my time from last year by nearly seven minutes. I was very pleased with that. Every aspect was faster this year including transitions. The back half of the bike leg seemed very slow to me, but it's terribly hilly. I seem to be better than many climbing, although I hate it. I like seeing the younger folks at these races. I wish I had taken up this sport at a younger age. Not that I would be better at it by now. But I could enjoy it for that much longer. It really is kind of a habit forming sport and there are some great folks involved in it. My time this year would have been good enough for me to place in my AG last year. It seems that everyone this year was faster. I noticed that attendance this year was slightly less than last year. I'm wondering if I'll do this one next year myself. It didn't seem very well supported. One big beef I had was the shirt situation. I know doing no one runs any of these races just to get the shirt, but at the same time I could hardly believe that all they had were small and X-large shirts. Post race snacks and drinks were kind of sparse as well. I'm considering the Tin Man for next June's race.