It's not how you start....

My season was supposed to be over after Hy-Vee once I found out that the RJ Corman Duathlon was no longer being held, but a phone call from Chris Hutchens on the way to Hy-Vee changed it all.  He let me know about the Apex Physical Therapy Mini Triathlon in Oldham County that had a little bit of prize purse.  This was enticing, but I had a couple factors working against me (1) I didn't know how I would be feeling after Hy-Vee (2) we were hosting a baby shower for my wife the next day and I was responsible for cleaning the house and making cupcakes.  At this point, I guess you have discovered that I signed up for the race.

The main issue with deciding late to sign up for a pool swim sprint triathlon is that you get slotted at the back of the swim line.  In fact, I learned that I was actually starting third from last.  Not ideal, but the race organizer was smart and allowed :20 between starters and even left a 3:00 buffer between the final early entrant and the first of us who missed the "deadline".  For these reasons, I can't complain about any part of this race.  It was my fault (actually I didn't even find out about the race until the deadline had passed) that I didn't get signed up in time.

The silver lining was that I had a chance to hang out with Coach Nancy and some of the Maverick Multisport Youth team parents and watch these great youth athletes that I have gotten to know.  Before they started, I received as much advice from them as I was able to give to them.  They really seem to have this triathlon thing down and that is encouraging to see.  This team has no where to go but up and that is a testament to the great work that Coach Nancy and Coach Chris are doing.

As for my race, I didn't really recognize anyone on the start list, so I wasn't sure what the competition was.  That worried me a little because of my start position, but there was nothing that I could do about it.  I apologized to the swimmers around me and promised that I would try to swim around them the best that I could.  I was mostly successful in that promise, but there was one incident coming into a wall with two other swimmers.  We survived but it wasn't pretty.  I didn't have a great swim, but it would have to work.

Luckily there was much more room on the bike and run courses so I didn't have any concerns.  The bike was described as hilly and it was as advertised.  However, I was able to move up several places and put myself into a good position for the run.  The run was on a gravel path that I had previewed before the race.  I caught a couple of the Maverick kids and they were moving well.  I felt good on the run, but I was ready for it to be over.  Sprint races seem to hurt more than you would think, but they are really fun.

Sadly, I didn't win any of the door prizes, but I guess I didn't deserve one since I took home this giant trophy for the win.  I think this is a great way to end the season.  Now I need to get the rest of my chores done in prep for miss Emma Rae's arrival.  Thanks for reading and thanks again to my sponsors.

Hy-Vee 5150 Elite Championship

10 hours is a long way to travel to race, but when you have family in the area and the race is as well attended and as well conducted as Hy-Vee 5150, it is almost worth it.  I chose to travel on Thursday since I would be traveling with my wife's parents and we would be staying with her aunt and uncle.  Sadly, Neeley hasn't been able to attend any of my races this year, but she is saving her vacation days to stay home with our daughter after she is born so I can't blame her.  Anyway, with traffic and construction, we arrived in Des Moines later than I had planned, but I still put on my running clothes and went for a quick jog to get some of the junk out of my legs from the car ride.  I ate dinner and went to bed early, as always.

Friday and Saturday were about the same, I did a couple light workouts, got the bike ready and visited with family.  Having a kitchen and a nice place to stretch out and relax prior to a race is a huge advantage; now if I can just get family to move to the locations of some of the other races I would like to do.  On Saturday afternoon, I had an elite race meeting to attend and I ran into my friend Will, whom I raced side-by-side with the entire day at Columbus and assumed that it would be much the same at Hy-Vee.

Race morning, was the usual early rise and rather than sit around at the house and possibly wake someone up, I drove to the race site to just hang out.  It was raining with the occasional burst of lightning but I figured that we would be clear by race time.  When I arrived at the race site, it was still raining and since it was still early, I figured I would just wait the rain out in my car, so I waited and I waited and I waited.  Finally, I went to transition to see what was happening.  I heard the announcement that the race was delayed 45 minutes, so I waited.  Fast forward to race time....

Swim: 22:27 (19th)
I lined up between a couple of known fast swimmers and for some reason when the gun went off, I wasn't really aggressive and they squeezed me out.  Before I really got going Colin Riley kicked me in the face.  I got into a rhythm but I had missed the front pack (which I don't believe I could have hung with, but I can dream).  I led my group to the first buoy when I smartly found a set of feet to get behind, and I was actually able to draft for most of the swim which is a first for me.  I saw my swim time and was pleasantly surprised that, although it was a different course, I swam very closely to my wetsuit aided time from last year.  I guess that TYR Torpedo swimskin is worth the hype (thank you TYR).  Upon further analysis, I noticed that although I gave up 3+ minutes in the swim, I actually lost less time to the front back this year than I did last year.  That time in the pool is starting to pay off.

Bike: 59:22 (13th)
There was a huge gap in front of me and a huge gap behind me, so I knew that I had to work hard to close some gaps to those in front and I would quickly have a chance to check in on my competition with the two turnarounds within the first 6 miles of the bike.  As it turned out, they weren't that far in front and I was gaining on them and caught a couple before the second turnaround.  I was moving up through the field well, but I found out about mile 10 that those behind me were also moving up through the field.  Now that they caught me, I had some faster cyclists to work with and pace off and one of them happened to by Will.  Lucky for him that I was around because he lost his water bottle and I had an extra one.  Toward the end of the bike, I was able to follow a couple of guys to a slight break in our group and that is where I made another tactical mistake; I assumed that I could run down anyone that I could see coming off the bike, so I didn't work as hard to stay right with these two.  Anyway, we got to the end of the bike and I made a quick mental note of the number of bikes on the rack (a huge plus to the elite amateur wave) to realize that I was just outside the top 10 and had some work to do.

Run: 35:57 (10th)
As I said, I assumed that I could catch the 5 guys that were still in transition.  I came out running strong and actually feeling pretty good.  I passed the first guy 1/2 mile in thought that I was working my way up to the two guys from the bike, but I should have made that move more quickly.  They linked up and started running pretty strong.  I passed another guy shortly after the 2 mile mark and another guy after the turnaround and I thought that I was moving up to them until I really started to feel the effects of the headwind on the run.  That was when I started to wish that I had made that move more quickly so that I could tuck into behind them, but I didn't do it.  From the 3-mile mark on nothing changed except they got further away from me, but no one was making a move on me.

Finish: 2:00:44 (10th)
I finished 10th.  I feel pretty good about that, but I know that there were some places that I left out there because I wasn't aggressive enough at the swim start and the end of the bike/beginning of the run.  I enjoy this race for the competition and the atmosphere, but more importantly for the free ice cream cookies after the race.

I owe a lot of gratitude to my aunt and uncle, my travel partner in-laws, my supportive wife and as always the sponsors for the Maverick Multisport team.  Thanks again to TYR Sports, SmithOptics, Swiftwick, Infinit Nutrition, Scott, Tri-Bike Transport, Louisville Slugger, CycleSmiths, Occupational Kinetics and Brooks Airbrush Studio.

Sometimes you're the lion, sometimes you're the lamb....

A Giant Eagle 5150 Race Recap:

I know that it has been a long time since this has been updated, but I promise that I have been racing.....I just haven't been keeping everyone updated.  I could give you excuses as to why I haven't written anything over the past two months, but they would be just excuses.  Life happens and it happens to us all.  With that said, things are really good in my life currently.  Neeley and I have finally moved into our new house, our unborn child is progressing very well and I have been racing rather well.  So without further delay, I will give you the most recent race update along the way of getting my blog up to date.

I traveled up to Columbus, OH with a couple friends to try my hand at the elite wave of the Giant Eagle 5150 with the intentions of qualifying for Hy-Vee 5150 Championship in that division.  Neeley and I did this race last year and while it was a logistically difficult race, it was fast, fun and relatively close.  Logistically, the swim is a 25-minute drive north of the race finish.  The race offers a shuttle service from downtown (T2 and race finish) to the swim start (and T1) on race morning that is very nice but we were staying north east of town and this would have added more drive/ride time to our race morning.  We decided that we would leave one car downtown on Saturday and drive the other car to the race start Sunday and just drive up there after the race to pick it up.  It worked, but I don't know that it was any better/worse than last year when Neeley and I stayed downtown and rode the shuttle.

We arrived at T1 with what appeared to be forever before the race start, but before I knew it I was in a rush to get my wetsuit on before my wave started.  Luckily, I have finally figured out that I have to put my TYR Cat 5 Hurricane wetsuit on by pulling it into place from the inside rather than the outside.  As many have said before, the wetsuit is fast, but with that speed and flexibility comes a very delicate exterior.  I got it on and rushed to the line to find a couple of familiar faces on the line for the elite wave.  I thought that I had learned over the past 2 seasons that I NEED to push to front line on the swim and be aggressive.  Oh well, lesson learned and no harm done.  Swim was uneventful other than they claimed it was a 1500 meter swim, but when I stood up in the water and my watch read 16:XX, I knew they were mistaken.  I got in to T1 just before my friends and knew that I would have to take advantage of the fast bike course to stay in front of them.

I knew that the bike course was a net downhill, but I also knew that there would be a couple hills early in the ride.  My knowledge of the course from last year was not an advantage as road construction caused an immediate course change so I had to just roll with it.  I was feeling pretty good and rolling pretty strong but for the second straight race I wasn't able to get the power numbers up to what I was shooting for.  As I have learned, you just have to race with the what you got on the day and make the most of it.  The weather was in our favor and stayed cool.  I topped off on fuel with a couple sips of my secret Infint Nutrition"Go Fast" mix, but didn't need a whole bottle as I have in hotter races.  I only saw a couple riders up ahead and while I was catching them, it was taking a long time to get there.  I finally made it up to the first one and was halfway to the second when I was passed.  This lite a fire under me and I was able to use him to legally pace and make the rest of the way up to the other rider.  The three of us rode into T2 together and the run race was on.

I beat them both onto the run and found my stride, although it is difficult when you start the run with slight uphill, but I rolled through the first mile in 5:2X.  I guess I must have relaxed too much after that because the second mile was not as good and allowed them both back into the race.  I still had a lead at the out-and-back and was actually able to see who was ahead and how far.  I got to the turnaround in 4th, but I had company.  He was onto my should by mile 3 and the pace picked up as I tried hard to drop him.  We worked our way to 3rd/4th by mile 4.  I could see his shadow falling off as I pushed the pace on any incline, but never quite far enough back to snap the elastic.  Shortly after mile 5, we caught a glimpse of 2nd place and we were able to catch him around the 6 mile mark and then it was just a sprint to the finish.  Unfortunately, I found out later that he was former collegiate 800 meter run and my shadow for the past 3+ miles left me in the dust.  Disappointed that I hadn't been able to drop him on any of the hills, but happy to run a 10K PR off the bike.  As it turned out, we should have been able to see the winner as we came to the line, but neither of us can recall him.  I finished 3rd and accomplished my goal of qualifying for Hy-Vee in the elite division.  Now I just have to decide if I want to race AG or elite.

As it turned out (for the second straight year) the results were messed up and the one awards ceremony that I was able to stick around for, I didn't get the called up for the award that I rightfully earned.  While they didn't have the results right at that time, they have since changed them to reflect what actually happened in the race.  It was fun to race with and against friends and it is always nice to be able to get home in time to eat dinner with Neeley.

Thanks again to all the Maverick Multisport sponsors.

Memphis Amateur Challenge

The first triathlon I ever competed in was Memphis in May in 2003, so I was a little sad in 2010 when Neeley and I were there and they announced that the race was moving to Tunica, MS.  Did that mean that it would be Mississippi in May?  Nope, but the race is still in Tunica and this was the first time that I have been back.  The new course is just as flat (actually the run is a lot flatter) and fast, but the downsize is that it is not the same "big time" race that it once was.  It is now smaller (but continually growing) and the field (both pro and amateur) is not as star-studded, but the venue and the race atmosphere are still top notch.  The added plus was the 1 minute elevator ride and 3 minute walk to either the transition area or the swim start.

Enough about that, let's talk about the races.  More importantly, how do you pace yourself for a Saturday sprint and Sunday olympic distance race?  When I talked to Neeley before the race on Saturday, she informed me that I should swim fast, bike fast and run fast.  Since I always do what she tells me, that became my race strategy.  I swam well despite the issues that I created for myself by putting a hole in my wetsuit while trying to get it on and losing my goggles on my dive.  Other than that, I fixed my goggles and swam comfortably and clean and quite possibly straight.  It was otherwise uneventful which is how I like my swims.  To say that the bike course was flat was an understatement, but with flat can come some wind.  It was windy, but not bad and I felt fine and was riding well until someone passed me in the middle of the bike.  That was my cue to pick it up and ride.  I stayed with him through the second half of the bike and came out of transition in front of him on the run.  My legs felt great on the run.  I wished that I could find a way to save that for Sunday, but Sunday would take care of itself.  As for Saturday, I was 3rd overall, just :23 out of 1st place, so it was a good day.  The rest of the day was spent eating (thanks to Neeley for packing me plenty) and relaxing in preparation for the Olympic distance race to come.

Sunday's race started an hour earlier, but ended up being sunnier, hotter and windier.  I felt pretty good when I warmed up so I thought that it would be a good day to follow my same race strategy from yesterday.  After putting yet another small hole in my wetsuit I was ready to race again.  I just had to wait for my time to start in the time trial format.  This swim was even better and I ran into even less race traffic.  The course was nice and easy to follow, the sun nor the shallow water that I had been warned about weren't issues.  It was an Olympic distance swim PR, so despite my troubles getting the wetsuit on, it is really fast.

The bike was much of the small from Saturday, at least the route was, but did I mention that it was windier?  I started out on the bike with the same guy that I finished with on Saturday but this time I wasn't able to ride with him.  My legs felt flat; they didn't feel tired from Saturday, they just didn't have the power that I needed.  When the second guy passed me, I realized that it was time to stop making excuses and start riding my bike.  Either my pep talk worked or we changed direction enough that we had a tailwind and then I was flying on the way back to transition.  Overall, the tailwind evened out the bike course, so what was a very slow first half was turned into a good split.  Now it was time to run for the win.  I started out running great and was able to hold it together enough in the heat and the headwind.  I didn't have my best run, but I had a good enough run to get my first Olympic distance victory.  I was excited about that but disappointed that I lost the Amateur Challenge by .1 sec, but that's racing.  

This great weekend couldn't have happened without the help of my sponsors, Maverick Multisport, TYR, Scott, Infinit Nutrition, CycleSmiths, Occupational Kinetics, TriBike Transport, Smith Optics, Swiftwick, Brooks Airbrush Studio and Louisville Slugger.  

Until next time

MythBusters

I used the Hear and Sole Triathlon in Versailles, KY last weekend to "bust" the myth that "no one has ever won or lost a triathlon in the swim."  Well, Kevin Ryan was able to beat me in the race even though I had the fastest bike and run splits of the day.....leaving only the swim and transitions for him to beat me.  Myth Busted!!

I don't want to send the message that I am discouraged about this race.  Kevin is a good swimmer and I.....I am still working on my swim.  It has gotten better but losing :51 in a 400 yard swim suggests that I still need to make it a point to attend Master's Swim Practice several times per week.  I felt good going into the swim and I really felt comfortable and relaxed during the swim.  I think that I may have been able to squeeze another :06-:10 on the swim but that would be an absolutely perfect swim.  I will take my swim and I will continue to work on it.

I realized once we got out of the pool just how cold it was, but I knew from years past at this race if I took the time to put on arm warmers, gloves and/or a vest that Kevin (and several other competitors) would put some time into me.  So I transitioned and just jumped on my bike hoping that if I went hard enough that I would stay warm(er).  I pushed hard which was maybe a little harder than I was in cycling shape for but it was for warmth and survival.  It worked and I wasn't really as cold as I feared that I would be....except for my fingers.

I couldn't exactly feel my fingers coming into T2 but I was somehow able to get my helmet off and shoes on.  It took me a little bit of the run before I felt remotely comfortable with my stride and breathing, but that is a result of a little bit of overbiking and not doing any bricks.  I still ran well and know that with more bike fitness and more brick training, I will be able to get my running times closer to what I have been running this season.

The Heart and Sole is always fun because I can sleep in my own bed the night before, the course is surprisingly harder than I remember it every year and the weather is unpredictable.  The first two years that I raced it, the weather was beautiful, but for the past three or four years....not so much.  This race also allows me to try out any new stuff that I have.  I was very pleased with my new TYR equipment (googles, speedsuit and race suit, which was surprisingly quick drying).  A special thanks to all my other sponsors for helping to get me to the start line......SmithOptics, Infinit Nutrition, Scott, Tri-Bike Transport, CycleSmiths, Occupational Kinetics, Swiftwick, Brooks AirBrush Studio and Louisville Slugger.

Rodes City and Papa John's

Since my last post I have raced twice and had some great success.  I raced both the Rodes City Run 10K and the Papa John's 10-miler and got 5th place in each of them, won money running for the first time and set PR's in both races.  In addition, I believe that I "won" the Triple Crown of Running overall  with the fastest cumulative time for the 3 races combined.  This was partly because those ahead of me in the standings going into the 10-miler didn't race. 

While the placing results were the same, each race played out a little differently.  I went into both with the mindset that I would go out with the second group and try to push the pace from there.  This strategy leads to one of two results, either I am able to hold on and run a PR or I fall apart and struggle to the finish.  Luckily, both races resulted in the former, well sort of.

I was relaxed and alert at the beginning of the Rodes City 10K and was in a great position at the front of the second group when the first move happened.  I wasn't expecting the move to happen just after the mile marker, but it was the first (and basically only) hill on the course and Jonathan Reynolds made his move.  As it turned out, I was the only one (of about six) in our group that was willing to respond and we quickly created a gap.  I had to work to get back to his shoulder but when I did, we worked really well together and pushed the pace.  We extended our lead on the next group enough that I realized early that I was going to be in the money (baring that struggle to the finish).  Luckily for me, I didn't have to beat Jonathan to get in the money because he had a lot more pure speed than I did.  I tried to come back one last time, but it wasn't happening.  I still was able to set a PR and get a check.  I lowered my PR from 34:08 down to 32:36.  

My lesson learned during the 10K: Be alert at all times for the deciding move.

In contrast, at the Papa John's 10-miler, I tried too hard to make the deciding move early and found myself all alone.  Added to being alone, I had also gone out hard.  Maybe too hard because it was harder than the 10K and in contrast to that course, the 10-miler is not flat.  Well the first three miles are, but the next 3 1/2 miles are pretty challengingly hilly.  Luckily,  the last 3 1/2 miles are on flat roads.  My training had me ready for the flat, but not as much so for the hills.  I entered the hills 5th on the road with what I believed to be a sizable lead, but the early pace and my lack of hard running on hilly courses caused my pace to slow considerably and by the time I got back to flat land I was being chased.  I could tell because the cheering behind me was happening more quickly than before.  I held him off for awhile, but I could only put up a fight for a couple strides when he caught me.  It was a struggle to the finish, but it could have been worse.  It was a slightly positive split, but again a :51 PR.  If you do the math from my recap, I was 5th through the hills and got passed by one runner on the run in to the finish so the results have me listed in...........you guessed it, 5th place.  Hey, I'm not a mathematician, but 5th place means another check, so I will take it.

Lesson learned from the 10-miler: Be optimistic but realistic with your pacing.

I have fun racing and I have fun challenging myself to stay closer to that front pack.  If you are tired of going into each race with the same plan and coming out with the same results, then maybe it is time to stretch your limits.  You may fail, but you also may succeed.  Which one are you more afraid of?

It only took 18 years........

With all due respect to my high school cross-country coach, Ed Deiwert, the principles that he tried to instill in us have finally started to be implemented and are starting to prove advantageous.  He tried for all four years to get me to buy into running throughout the summer in preparation for the cross-country season.  I was never willing, or able, to do that work and I was at a further disadvantage because I played baseball and didn't run track.  So I was trying to run cross-country from about July through the end of the season and wondered why I wasn't able to run the times that my potential led everyone to believe that I could.

Now I am running those times that myself and my coach thought that I could.  I believe the reason that I am now running faster is because I have been able to put in about 6 years of consistent training.  Of course I have had a few setbacks over the past couple years with nagging injuries but haven't missed a prolonged period of time that would damage my overall fitness.  I can now go into any race knowing that I have plenty of miles in my legs to build upon.

In my first race of the season, the Anthem 5K in Louisville, I knew that I was in good enough shape that I should be able to PR, but I wasn't sure what type of speed I really had in my legs.  The endurance was there from the consistent training, but I hadn't done much speed work to give me confidence that I could "go fast" when the race pace picked up.  My goal was to settle into a solid pace early in the midst of a good group of runners, because running in a pack is always easier mentally than forging ahead solo.  I went through the mile marker with the guys that I had determined were the ones to go with and I set about to get in position to follow any move that happened.  Shortly after the mile marker, we hit a small little rise and the move happened.  One guy hit the hill hard and I quickly realized that I, in fact  didn't have that kind of speed, but I was confident that if I were patient and could just push the pace a little and hold on, that I could possibly get back into the mix.  It took about 1/4 mile but I was able to close the gap and get back on the shoulder that I wanted.  I stayed there until about 1/2 mile from the finish until he turned it on again and I was just able to hold my pace.  In the end, I pushed it to a :20 5K PR and a finishing time of 15:56.

Compare that to the mid-17's that I ran in high school and I am confident that most of that time cut can be attributed to consistent training.  I am now confident that although I don't have the speed that I once had, I can now hold a strong pace for much farther than I ever could.  So my advice is to think twice before taking prolonged time away from running, unless it is due to injury.  The consistency will pay off in the end.  I just hope that you don't have to take 18 years to realize that fact.

As always, thanks to Maverick Multisport and all of our sponsors (Smith Optics, TYR sports, Swiftwick, Infinit Nutrition, CycleSmiths, Brooks Air Brush Studio, Occupational Kinetics, Louisville Slugger, Tri-Bike Transport and Scott Bikes) for their continued support in getting me to the starting line.