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.