On January 14th, I am running the Willis River 35K Trail Race. The race takes place in Cumberland County, Virginia at Bear Creek State Park. As you may recall, I ran the Bear Creek 10 Miler at the same park on December 4th. The terrain is likely to be very similar although I won't know for sure until I run the race. Here is a video from the park's web site showing a little bit about the Willis River Trail. In the video, you don't really get to see too much of the trail but you sort of get the idea that the trail is on the wild side.
This race will be slightly more than twice the distance of the Bear Creek 10 Miler. I am not sure how long it will take me to complete the race. I am guessing around 4 hours. I have been running trails for the last month or so in addition to tempo runs, hill work, and other runs. Plus I have been keeping up with my cycling and swimming.
My goal for this race is to run hard and have fun. Running trails is a great way to gain fitness as well as strength. This particular race features lots of "blow downs" which means I will be leaping over downed trees as well as jumping around and through several creeks. A race like this will force me to use different muscles than a straight road race which will help me in my overall fitness. I am also hoping that training and racing this event will help build a strong running base which is something I have not really had for many years.
In preparation for this race, I have been running the trails downtown. Seems funny to link "trails" and "downtown" in the same sentence but here in Richmond that is exactly what we have. In the heart of downtown Richmond we have the James River Park with miles of single track trails that parallel the James River. There are several races each year on these trails and I have both ridden and run them many times.
For me, running trails is so much more interesting then simply running around my neighborhood. Don't get me wrong, the streets around my house are great for running but there is not much to inspire me. It is the same old parked cars, houses, lawns, fences, dogs barking, etc over and over again. When I run downtown, I have to concentrate more on my footing and there are always surprises in the way of other bikers and runners as well as wildlife and great scenery. Running through the woods seems more primal to me and thus more motivating.
For today's Saturday morning run, my training plan called for a 2 hours and 30 minute run nice and easy. A few of my friends from church met me downtown at 8AM to run. They would end up running one loop with me. I continued on after a brief stop at the cars to say adios for a second loop by myself. Running with friends definitely helps break up the monotony of a long run. But it was nice to also get some time by myself to ponder my training and upcoming races. Running alone on the trails can be meditative. I think my run this morning was a perfect mix of social running and running with my thoughts.
I ended up seeing a coworker and her children on the tail end of my run. I love seeing people I know exercising and it was great to see them running together as a family. I stopped to chat briefly before continuing on my last mile back to the car. I ended up running 2:45 at a very easy pace. I think I accomplished the goal of the workout by keeping my heart rate low. In fact, after getting home and analyzing my GPS data, I could see that my heart rate stayed in zone 1 and 2 for the entire run.
Tomorrow I have a 1 hour pace run to complete. After that run, my long runs will mostly be over for now. The rest of my preparation for the race in two weeks will involve shorter but faster workouts. I am not sure exactly what the coach has in store for me but I will likely find out tomorrow. Coach K seems to consistently update my weekly training plan on Sundays.
In general I feel pretty good about my preparation for the 35K. It will be the farthest I have run since my marathon training in 2007 but I am confident I will enjoy the race. I have learned a lot since the training I did for the marathon and I think I train better now. Plus I have been doing lots of cross training which I think will pay off when I run the trail race.
Until next time, thanks for reading. Comments appreciated but not required.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Just Keep Pushing Play
"Just keep pushing play." These are the words of Tony Horton who encourages people who are doing his P90x workout in the privacy of their own home to put his DVD in and just press play. It is a similar philosophy that you will hear runners talk about. Just lace up and hit the streets. Don't obsess about the workout or how many miles you need to do. Just get out there and run. Even it means just getting out for a 1 mile run. Often that 1 mile will turn into many more.
I reflected on this philosophy which is captured by the famous Nike slogan, "just do it." It is one thing to get out there and exercise simply for health. It is another thing to train for a specific event. For multisport athletes, just do it becomes just do what? How much should I swim, bike, and run? Thankfully, I have a training plan that tells me exactly what to do. Now, I can look at my training plan and say to myself, "just go run 1 hour." It is a luxury really. I have faith in the plan because I believe in my coach and my training team.
So far this week, the workouts have been great. We had a grueling swim class on Monday that had us up to 700 kick (some with fins) and push ups in between some swim intervals. It was a hard workout but I felt pretty darn good about it afterwards because I knew I had worked hard and done well. I still have my swim issues to work out and I will be getting in the pool as often as possible over the winter break. Hopefully with more time in the water, my stroke form will improve. It did last year when I increased my time in the water.
In addition to the swim, I had Monday night yoga which was wonderful as always, Tuesday morning cycling class which was hard but rewarding, Wednesday morning tempo run which turned out great, and Thursday morning cycling class. Next up is a 1 hour easy run. I plan to head out for that run very soon.
My job now is to follow my plan and just do the workouts. I am going to 'just say no' to skipping workouts and say yes to just doing it.
I reflected on this philosophy which is captured by the famous Nike slogan, "just do it." It is one thing to get out there and exercise simply for health. It is another thing to train for a specific event. For multisport athletes, just do it becomes just do what? How much should I swim, bike, and run? Thankfully, I have a training plan that tells me exactly what to do. Now, I can look at my training plan and say to myself, "just go run 1 hour." It is a luxury really. I have faith in the plan because I believe in my coach and my training team.
So far this week, the workouts have been great. We had a grueling swim class on Monday that had us up to 700 kick (some with fins) and push ups in between some swim intervals. It was a hard workout but I felt pretty darn good about it afterwards because I knew I had worked hard and done well. I still have my swim issues to work out and I will be getting in the pool as often as possible over the winter break. Hopefully with more time in the water, my stroke form will improve. It did last year when I increased my time in the water.
In addition to the swim, I had Monday night yoga which was wonderful as always, Tuesday morning cycling class which was hard but rewarding, Wednesday morning tempo run which turned out great, and Thursday morning cycling class. Next up is a 1 hour easy run. I plan to head out for that run very soon.
My job now is to follow my plan and just do the workouts. I am going to 'just say no' to skipping workouts and say yes to just doing it.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Saturday Wrap Up
This morning we had our normal 1 hour cycling class with Karen. Karen lost her voice somehow so instead of her usual workout, we did a Spinervals DVD that I brought to class and ran off my computer connected to the projector. It was a relatively small class as some folks had opted to get their run in today rather than tomorrow due to h0liday obligations. We had a good workout although not as hard as when Karen leads the class.
After cycling, we went home and I refueled with a smoothie and got all my gear together to run. I made the quick drive downtown to run the trails- this week by myself. My training plan called for a 2 hours and 45 minute run and that is exactly what I did. I felt good on the run. I ended up doing about the same distance as last week but about 15 minutes faster. The trails were muddy and slick in some spots but I managed to stay upright the entire time. It was cold but I dressed appropriately.
During my run, I consumed 3 Vanilla Hammer Gels. At no time did I feel hungry or weak. Toward the end of my run, my legs and hips were starting to complain slightly and my right calf was starting to tighten up a bit but these things did not really slow me down. I was tired afterwards but not wrecked or anything. I did some quick stretches and headed home.
When I walked in, I was shivering. Melissa said that I looked cold. I told her I was about to get even colder. "Ice bath?" she asked. Yes indeed, that was my plan. I put on a bunch of clothes over the upper half of my body including a winter hat and the hood from my sweatshirt. Then I sat in the empty tub and let the cold water rise up so my hips and legs were submerged. Melissa then put the big back of ice in the tub for me and started the timer. Boy was it cold. Ice baths in the winter are always colder because the cold water comes out of the tap so much colder than during the summer. I did my 11:35 in the icy cold water before I had had enough. There is no doubt that the ice bath helped with inflammation. After I finished getting cleaned up and headed out to the store, I thought my legs felt pretty good.
Later that evening we had a Christmas party to go to. It was fun. There is nothing like a house full of like minded people talking about training and racing. I heard some great Ironman stories and discovered that one couple has traveled all over the world doing Ironman. It was neat to hear their stories of finishing their first Ironman.
One guy who also had some great stories told me I should do Florida Ironman in 2013. The bike and swim are flat and fast so it is good for a first Ironman race. Of course the 2.4 mike swim is in the Gulf of Mexico which can be very choppy. That would be the most daunting part I think. That and the 112 mile bike ride followed by 26.2 mile run. It all seems so crazy. In talking to the folks at the party, one woman told me that she thought it was crazy. But she said, after you do one, you have a new idea of what crazy really is.
I think I am on my way to someday going for it. But I am not really ready for that distance yet. My goals for this year are to get more time in the saddle, swim better, and learn how to pace and race better. I have planned to do 2 half iron distance races as well as a few Olympics and a sprint. We'll see how thing go. If, in November of 2012, my coach things I should go for it, I may just go ahead and register for the 2013 Florida Ironman. Then again, maybe I will wait another year. For now, I have to take things one workout at a time. And is it now time for some recovery. Good night.
After cycling, we went home and I refueled with a smoothie and got all my gear together to run. I made the quick drive downtown to run the trails- this week by myself. My training plan called for a 2 hours and 45 minute run and that is exactly what I did. I felt good on the run. I ended up doing about the same distance as last week but about 15 minutes faster. The trails were muddy and slick in some spots but I managed to stay upright the entire time. It was cold but I dressed appropriately.
During my run, I consumed 3 Vanilla Hammer Gels. At no time did I feel hungry or weak. Toward the end of my run, my legs and hips were starting to complain slightly and my right calf was starting to tighten up a bit but these things did not really slow me down. I was tired afterwards but not wrecked or anything. I did some quick stretches and headed home.
When I walked in, I was shivering. Melissa said that I looked cold. I told her I was about to get even colder. "Ice bath?" she asked. Yes indeed, that was my plan. I put on a bunch of clothes over the upper half of my body including a winter hat and the hood from my sweatshirt. Then I sat in the empty tub and let the cold water rise up so my hips and legs were submerged. Melissa then put the big back of ice in the tub for me and started the timer. Boy was it cold. Ice baths in the winter are always colder because the cold water comes out of the tap so much colder than during the summer. I did my 11:35 in the icy cold water before I had had enough. There is no doubt that the ice bath helped with inflammation. After I finished getting cleaned up and headed out to the store, I thought my legs felt pretty good.
Later that evening we had a Christmas party to go to. It was fun. There is nothing like a house full of like minded people talking about training and racing. I heard some great Ironman stories and discovered that one couple has traveled all over the world doing Ironman. It was neat to hear their stories of finishing their first Ironman.
One guy who also had some great stories told me I should do Florida Ironman in 2013. The bike and swim are flat and fast so it is good for a first Ironman race. Of course the 2.4 mike swim is in the Gulf of Mexico which can be very choppy. That would be the most daunting part I think. That and the 112 mile bike ride followed by 26.2 mile run. It all seems so crazy. In talking to the folks at the party, one woman told me that she thought it was crazy. But she said, after you do one, you have a new idea of what crazy really is.
I think I am on my way to someday going for it. But I am not really ready for that distance yet. My goals for this year are to get more time in the saddle, swim better, and learn how to pace and race better. I have planned to do 2 half iron distance races as well as a few Olympics and a sprint. We'll see how thing go. If, in November of 2012, my coach things I should go for it, I may just go ahead and register for the 2013 Florida Ironman. Then again, maybe I will wait another year. For now, I have to take things one workout at a time. And is it now time for some recovery. Good night.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Feels like a Rest Day
This morning during cycling class, I felt pretty good up until we started doing the T-Max Absolute Power drills. It was then that I could feel the effects of Wednesday night's hill repeats. I did not quite have the gas to red line it like I have in the past. I still feel like I got a great workout and I am gradually progressing.
I think since I slept in on Wednesday and slept well last night, today almost felt like a rest day. I had the cycling class but then I had nothing scheduled for after work. My legs are not sore and I felt relaxed and alert all day. For some reason or another, it almost feels like a rest day.
My actual rest day is tomorrow. Having a rest day on Friday is nice because usually by the end of the work week, I am pretty tired and ready for a break. Another good reason to rest on Friday is to prepare for the busy weekend. This particular weekend will be very busy.
Saturday morning we have cycling class and then I have a 2:45 hour trail run. After refueling, I then have a little more shopping to do and some presents to wrap. Later we have a Christmas party to attend. And of course as I mentioned before, Sunday night we are going out with friends for dinner. I think I mentioned it.
There are 7 disciplines involved in Triathlon. Swimming, biking, and running are the obvious ones of course. Then there is transition, nutrition, and pacing. Finally, one of the most important and often overlooked parts of training for triathlon is recovery. With that, I must say goodnight.
I think since I slept in on Wednesday and slept well last night, today almost felt like a rest day. I had the cycling class but then I had nothing scheduled for after work. My legs are not sore and I felt relaxed and alert all day. For some reason or another, it almost feels like a rest day.
My actual rest day is tomorrow. Having a rest day on Friday is nice because usually by the end of the work week, I am pretty tired and ready for a break. Another good reason to rest on Friday is to prepare for the busy weekend. This particular weekend will be very busy.
Saturday morning we have cycling class and then I have a 2:45 hour trail run. After refueling, I then have a little more shopping to do and some presents to wrap. Later we have a Christmas party to attend. And of course as I mentioned before, Sunday night we are going out with friends for dinner. I think I mentioned it.
There are 7 disciplines involved in Triathlon. Swimming, biking, and running are the obvious ones of course. Then there is transition, nutrition, and pacing. Finally, one of the most important and often overlooked parts of training for triathlon is recovery. With that, I must say goodnight.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Tired Legs
As my winter training continues, I may shift my blog to something more akin to a training journal with occasional longer entries about this and that. I have been meaning to experiment with doing a daily journal and thought it would be more interesting to do it here on my blog than in a little notebook. It will mean more frequent but shorter posts and less story telling. I hope my readers don't get too bored with it. I will undoubtedly occasionally write about other things and I will of course continue updating you with my race plans and race reports.
Let me recap the week so far. Saturday started out early with a morning cycling class with our coach. "Fun with Karen" as she likes to put it. We did a lot of one leg drills and a bunch of standing and high cadence work. My legs were pretty tired afterwards. I would never be able to push myself as hard as I do when I am in one of her training sessions.
After cycling, I pretty much shopped for the rest of the day and got almost all of my shopping for the holidays done. When I tell people that I went to Short Pump on Saturday to shop as well as to the Toys R Us, they think I am crazy. "Wasn't it just so busy" they ask. Well, I don't really think it is such a big deal. I grew up 5 minutes from Tysons Corner in Northern Virginia. Shopping at Christmas up there is a totally different ballgame. That is what I am used to. Sure you may have to wait at a stop light a little longer than normal on Broad Street but honestly, it is really nothing compared to what I grew up doing.
On Sunday, I did a very slow trail run with some of the ladies from my training team. We ended up running trails for about 3 hours. We had a few walk breaks and occasionally stopped to tend to the dogs that were running with us. And we took a short refueling break during the middle of our run. I was in zone 1 for the entire run. That is probably just what I need. I tend to go a little too fast when I am supposed to be taking it easy.
Monday morning came early and I was back in the pool. We did lots of kick drills and my tired legs did not serve me well. I felt slow and I was slow. I was the last one to finish the kick drills each time down the lane. My legs were pretty shot.
After work on Monday, I hurried home and did a 30 minute pace run and then headed off to Yoga. Tuesday morning was cycling class. It was hard. My legs were pretty tired and the high cadence drills were tough to maintain. But I think overall, I did pretty well.
On Wednesday, I slept in until 7AM. It is nice to catch up on some sleep sometimes. After work I did my one hour hill workout. We have one short hill in our neighborhood that climbs about 50 feet in about a quarter of a mile. It was repetitive but I managed to run up and down the hill about 23 times after warming up. Here are my splits.
Tomorrow I will cycle again and then Friday I have a day off before Saturday's cycle and long run. I am moving the long run to Saturday. Sunday is our 18 year wedding anniversary. I want to have the whole day free so we can spend time relaxing and enjoying our day.
That's all for now. Thanks.
Let me recap the week so far. Saturday started out early with a morning cycling class with our coach. "Fun with Karen" as she likes to put it. We did a lot of one leg drills and a bunch of standing and high cadence work. My legs were pretty tired afterwards. I would never be able to push myself as hard as I do when I am in one of her training sessions.
After cycling, I pretty much shopped for the rest of the day and got almost all of my shopping for the holidays done. When I tell people that I went to Short Pump on Saturday to shop as well as to the Toys R Us, they think I am crazy. "Wasn't it just so busy" they ask. Well, I don't really think it is such a big deal. I grew up 5 minutes from Tysons Corner in Northern Virginia. Shopping at Christmas up there is a totally different ballgame. That is what I am used to. Sure you may have to wait at a stop light a little longer than normal on Broad Street but honestly, it is really nothing compared to what I grew up doing.
On Sunday, I did a very slow trail run with some of the ladies from my training team. We ended up running trails for about 3 hours. We had a few walk breaks and occasionally stopped to tend to the dogs that were running with us. And we took a short refueling break during the middle of our run. I was in zone 1 for the entire run. That is probably just what I need. I tend to go a little too fast when I am supposed to be taking it easy.
Monday morning came early and I was back in the pool. We did lots of kick drills and my tired legs did not serve me well. I felt slow and I was slow. I was the last one to finish the kick drills each time down the lane. My legs were pretty shot.
After work on Monday, I hurried home and did a 30 minute pace run and then headed off to Yoga. Tuesday morning was cycling class. It was hard. My legs were pretty tired and the high cadence drills were tough to maintain. But I think overall, I did pretty well.
On Wednesday, I slept in until 7AM. It is nice to catch up on some sleep sometimes. After work I did my one hour hill workout. We have one short hill in our neighborhood that climbs about 50 feet in about a quarter of a mile. It was repetitive but I managed to run up and down the hill about 23 times after warming up. Here are my splits.
Tomorrow I will cycle again and then Friday I have a day off before Saturday's cycle and long run. I am moving the long run to Saturday. Sunday is our 18 year wedding anniversary. I want to have the whole day free so we can spend time relaxing and enjoying our day.
That's all for now. Thanks.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Caveat Emptor
Caveat emptor - let the buyer beware. Before I get into my Bear Creek 10 Miler race report, I must first discuss something that happened to me on the way home from the race. Like the many thousands of triathletes, cyclist, and families who travel with their bikes, I have a bike rack on the back of my vehicle. I bought the rack in 2010 from our local REI here in Richmond, Virginia. As it turns out, my bike rack is illegal. That's right. According to the Cumberland County sheriff who pulled me over for speeding on the way home from the race, the bike rack obscures the license plate and is therefore illegal in the state of Virginia. Even without a bike on the rack.
When I got pulled over for doing 69 in a 55, I expected to get a speeding ticket. What I did not expect was being told my rack was illegal. When the sheriff told me that "the thing you got on the back of your car is illegal" I was a bit miffed and in an act of anger made some smart remarks. He told me I could tell it to the judge after which I explained that coming to court would be inconvenient and couldn't I just pay the fine. At that point, he had me get out of the car to show me why the rack was illegal. I was super polite and understanding from this point forward because I did not want the extra ticket.
The sheriff said that just because you can buy these things at the Walmart or wherever, they are illegal in the state of Virginia. Part of me realizes that it is my responsibility to know the law and to abide by it. Part of me wonders why the REI here in Virginia would sell me something that is illegal. Ultimately I know it is my duty to make sure my vehicle complies with all the laws of Virginia but at the same time, wasn't Tommy Chong arrested and jailed for many years for selling a device -legal in some states but not in other states- to someone in one of the states where it is illegal. I am not sure how this is different. We are talking about two very different items but still, it makes me wonder why the laws are not applied the same.
In the end, I did not get the extra ticket. But I wanted to make sure everyone was aware of this issue. The sheriff told me that if I wanted to keep the rack on the back, I would have to move the license plate to a place on the back of the vehicle that was not obscured by anything. I am not sure how I am going to pull this off but I am going to research it.
As far as the race goes, it was a blast. It was a bit chilly at the beginning of the race but after about 2 miles into the race, I stripped off my hat and gloves and stowed them in my pockets. It was actually great weather for a race. The terrain was mostly single track with lots of wet leaves all over the trail. In addition to the roots, rocks, creek crossings, and leaves, there were also a fair amount of downed trees to hurdle here and there.
With less than a mile to go in the race, the people I was following went off the course and before you know it we were lost. We ran back and forth in the woods trying to find our way back to the official race course. It was fairly obvious we were off trail as the leaves looked undisturbed. We finally did make it back to the finish and ended up with an extra 1.5 miles. I did not really mind too much as I was just doing it all for fun and was not too concerned with my time. Speaking of my time, I ended up doing the 11.5 miles of trails in 1:48 which is pretty good overall I think.
Despite being pretty sore for the next couple of days, I decided to go ahead and sign up for the 35K trail race that takes place at the same park but on different trails on January 14th. It will be a very different race because I will have to take it much easier in order to finish. It will be the longest trail race I have ever run and the most I have run since I ran the Richmond Marathon back in 2007. I am looking forward to the training leading up to the race and hope that running trails makes me a stronger runner. Running trails is so much more interesting than running on the road.
Well, I tried to keep it relatively short. Sometimes I think more details about the race would be interesting but I don't want to ramble too much. Comments are appreciated. Thanks.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Let's Race!
Now that I have a coach, I have a training plan. I have direction, structure, and focus. And, I have a race to run. The other day I logged into my Training Peaks to view my upcoming week of prescribed training. I noticed that Karen put the Bear Creek 10 Miler Trail Race on my calendar for Sunday, December 4rd. When I checked the race website, I noticed the race was full. However at track practice, another athlete offered me her spot in the race because she is recovering from an injury and cannot race. So Tuesday, I found out I would be racing on Sunday. It was quite a pleasant surprise because the race sounds challenging but fun.
The Bear Creek 10 miler is a trail race. There are apparently no flat sections on the course and the trails are rooty, covered in leaves, and there are 5 creek crossings. I have been told to be prepared to get my feet wet as there is really no way around it. The course is harder than the downtown trails I have been running on and since I don't know the course at all, it will be difficult to pick my way through the rough terrain. One thing that does favor me is there are no sustained climbs, just lots of short up and downs.
This race is a nice capstone to my week of training. Here is how my exercise week has unfolded thus far.
Monday-Morning Swim, Evening Yoga
Tuesday-Morning Cycling Class, Evening Track Practice
Wednesday- Morning Swim
Thursday-Morning Cycling Class, Evening Run
Friday-Evening Run
Saturday-Morning Cycling Class
I am pretty excited about the race and look forward to getting to know my teammates better. Of course I will blog about the race here when I find some time in between working out, eating, sleeping, working, and of course doing some shopping.
Thanks for reading. Comment below if you are so inclined.
The Bear Creek 10 miler is a trail race. There are apparently no flat sections on the course and the trails are rooty, covered in leaves, and there are 5 creek crossings. I have been told to be prepared to get my feet wet as there is really no way around it. The course is harder than the downtown trails I have been running on and since I don't know the course at all, it will be difficult to pick my way through the rough terrain. One thing that does favor me is there are no sustained climbs, just lots of short up and downs.
This race is a nice capstone to my week of training. Here is how my exercise week has unfolded thus far.
Monday-Morning Swim, Evening Yoga
Tuesday-Morning Cycling Class, Evening Track Practice
Wednesday- Morning Swim
Thursday-Morning Cycling Class, Evening Run
Friday-Evening Run
Saturday-Morning Cycling Class
I am pretty excited about the race and look forward to getting to know my teammates better. Of course I will blog about the race here when I find some time in between working out, eating, sleeping, working, and of course doing some shopping.
Thanks for reading. Comment below if you are so inclined.
Friday, November 25, 2011
Gobble Wobble 5K Race Report
As some of you may recall, we have a Thanksgiving tradition on my wife's side of the family. Each year, everyone in the family converges on North Wales, PA to share good food, good company, and to participate in the Gobble Wobble 5K Run and Fun Walk. Some of us run, some of us walk, and Scott stays home to cook a breakfast feast for after the race.
The Gobble Wobble 5K course is pretty hilly. Despite the hills, each year the competition seems to get faster. Winning times are going down and more people seem to be really racing. This year was no exception. In fact the winning time was a new course record at 15:41.
In past years we have arrived at the race location, gone inside and waited in long lines for the bathroom before making our way to the start line. This year, Melissa, Chad and I went straight to the start to warm up and use the porta johns. There was not much of a line at the porta johns so that worked out great. Plus as I have learned, if I warm up before the race, getting my heart rate up and getting out of breath, I have a much better race.
As I warmed up I was thinking about my goals for the race. I have been running track, and doing some trail running. In addition, I have been cycling and swimming. Given these workouts, I was thinking I might be able to have a decent race. As I finished up my warm up, I decided I would be happy with a 22 minute finishing time.
Before you know it, it was time to line up at the start and race. The race starts 0n a pretty significant downhill so when the gun goes off, there is a mad dash down the hill which makes the first mile a fast mile. Even though I have run this course a few times, I had forgotten how hilly it is. I knew there were hills but for some reason it seemed more hilly than I remembered it.
As I was racing, I noticed that most of the people around me were quite a bit younger. Perhaps I could do well in my age group. I ran the first mile in just under 6:30. The fast downhill plus my tendency to go out fast made this first mile my fastest. The second mile was much slower (7:41 pace) but then again mile 1 to mile 2 is all uphill (see elevation profile below). Mile 3 is mostly downhill with a final uphill before hitting the track. As I rounded the final turn of the track, I could see the finish clock. If I hurried, I could break 22 minutes. I turned on the gas and passed a few people to finish in 21:51 according to my watch, 21:53 according to the official results. I took 6th in my age group. Not too bad really. I think I could do better by training on more hills but overall, I was pleased with the performance.
The Gobble Wobble 5K has become a nice healthy Thanksgiving tradition. It is fun to be active when on holiday. In fact, the next day after the race, I had a leisurely morning followed by a late morning 40 minute tempo run. I felt great during this run and was glad to be out in the gorgeous weather.
On Saturday, we drove back to Richmond early to beat the traffic. After a quick nap, I went for about an hour walk down at the river and then swam for about a half an hour in the pool. Next on my list is to go for a 90 minute long and slow run. Then tomorrow our week of swimming, yoga, cycling, and running continues. My goal for this next week is to get into the pool more often to work on my stroke.
That's all for now. I hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving and thanks for reading. Comments appreciated.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
It is Official
Today I took the plunge and officially signed up with Pro K training. I have been swimming with Karen's guppies class for about a year now and I have been going to track workouts for about a month or so. Also we just completed our 3rd week of cycling at Richmond Cycling Corporation. I have enjoyed the workouts and the people. It's nice to get to know like-minded individuals who share a passion for health, exercise, and camaraderie. Quite refreshing really.
Not to bash my former soccer teammates too much. But I got the feeling they were weekend warriors who were more concerned with football, beer, and partying when not on the soccer field while I was more dedicated to staying fit throughout the week. Not everyone was like that but there were just enough to turn me off a bit.
There is still some gentle trash talking amongst my new triathlon friends but it is not hateful. For some reason when you put a bunch of guys together, they tend to bash each other. It is as if that is the only way they know how to communicate. Pro K training is a community of co-ed athletes with various levels of skill, strength, talent, and experience (way more than me) who work together to train their minds and bodies for the rigors of Triathlon.
Before I signed up with Karen (that is where the K comes from in Pro K), I had to piece together my 2012 plans so she could train me properly. I have set out a very ambitious schedule. This past season I completed 6 triathlons, 3 running races, and a mountain bike race. Not too shabby. This year, I have decided on 3 running races and 6 or 7 triathlons. Also I will be tackling longer races. I am still going to race nothing longer than a half ironman distance race but in 2012, I am planning two Halfs as well as more International distances rather than sprint distance races.
My first race of the season is tentative at this point. On January 14th, there is a 35K trail run that I have been toying with. Right now I am not sure if my knees can handle all the hill work. I am still bothered by my knees with good days and bad days throughout the week. The more I sit at work, the worse they get. If I am going to do this trail race, I am going to have to make good friends with my foam roller as well as do some strength training.
I am excited to be training with my new group and am looking forward to the 2012 race season. It won't be all exercise. I do want to carve out some beach time this summer. Last summer I got zero hours on the beach. Not that I am a beach bum or anything but I do enjoy the laid back atmosphere of lying on the beach, reading a magazine, falling asleep, etc.
That is about all I have for you right now. Comments are appreciated. Thanks for reading.
Not to bash my former soccer teammates too much. But I got the feeling they were weekend warriors who were more concerned with football, beer, and partying when not on the soccer field while I was more dedicated to staying fit throughout the week. Not everyone was like that but there were just enough to turn me off a bit.
There is still some gentle trash talking amongst my new triathlon friends but it is not hateful. For some reason when you put a bunch of guys together, they tend to bash each other. It is as if that is the only way they know how to communicate. Pro K training is a community of co-ed athletes with various levels of skill, strength, talent, and experience (way more than me) who work together to train their minds and bodies for the rigors of Triathlon.
Before I signed up with Karen (that is where the K comes from in Pro K), I had to piece together my 2012 plans so she could train me properly. I have set out a very ambitious schedule. This past season I completed 6 triathlons, 3 running races, and a mountain bike race. Not too shabby. This year, I have decided on 3 running races and 6 or 7 triathlons. Also I will be tackling longer races. I am still going to race nothing longer than a half ironman distance race but in 2012, I am planning two Halfs as well as more International distances rather than sprint distance races.
My first race of the season is tentative at this point. On January 14th, there is a 35K trail run that I have been toying with. Right now I am not sure if my knees can handle all the hill work. I am still bothered by my knees with good days and bad days throughout the week. The more I sit at work, the worse they get. If I am going to do this trail race, I am going to have to make good friends with my foam roller as well as do some strength training.
I am excited to be training with my new group and am looking forward to the 2012 race season. It won't be all exercise. I do want to carve out some beach time this summer. Last summer I got zero hours on the beach. Not that I am a beach bum or anything but I do enjoy the laid back atmosphere of lying on the beach, reading a magazine, falling asleep, etc.
That is about all I have for you right now. Comments are appreciated. Thanks for reading.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Let the Off Season Begin
After my break from hard, regimented training, I have recently started what I call my off season. My off season is structured in some ways, not too structured in other ways. My schedule from now through the winter is pretty much spelled out. The structured part follows this schedule:
The cycling class is being taught by Craig at the Richmond Cycling Corporation. Here is a snippet from their web site:
RICHMOND CYCLING CORPS (RCC) is a prestigious non-profit organization that provides leadership and personal development to Richmond’s urban youth through the sport of cycling. The corps connects highly qualified staff and volunteers to provide cycling opportunities, outreach, academic support, and fitness towards our youth participants in a knuckles-down, all for one environment. We obtain funding through Richmond-area business partnerships and individual supporters all over the country to provide these opportunities to Richmond-urban youth at no cost.
One of the way RCC raises money is through cycling classes. Karen arranged for her Tri team to get a group discount. We meet on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at the RCC at 6 AM for a one hour session with Craig. Craig was a little reluctant at first to schedule such early sessions because he was not convinced the class would be consistently well attended. Little did he know that triathletes are committed to their sport and will make sacrifices to improve their fitness and abilities. So far the class has been full.
On Saturdays, Karen will lead a longer class that will be more laid back and less structured. This morning when there was a discussion about what time we were going to start on Saturday, Craig was again surprised that we would be starting so early, at 7AM. He asked if we ever slept in. One guy on our team said, "What is sleeping in?"
During the class, Craig is teaching us some physiology, some technique, and helping us train more efficiently. We do lots of drills, including one-leg drills, low-cadence drills, high-cadence drills to a metronome, biking to exhaustion (all-out drills that last 10 to 15 seconds), as well as some mental training. We have only had two sessions but I can already tell that I am going to love this class and get a great benefit from it. The bike portion of the Triathlon is the longest and takes the most time so training smart on the bike is very important. Also, as I learned in my first year of Triathlon, my bike skills need work. There are a few words and phrases that describe my abilities on the bike: Low Power, Inefficient, Low Endurance, and as a result of these things, Slow. I know this class will help me improve all of these things.
Track practice has also been fun. I have been attending the track practices for several weeks. Since it is the off season, the coach is really taking it easy on us. She is trying to get us to learn how to pace ourselves evenly. We do lots of timed 1200s, 1600s, and 800s, as well as some drills. There are two guys who are faster than me but I have about 10 years on them so I feel pretty good about that.
The last discipline I am trying to perfect is my swim. My swim stroke is horrible. Let me let the video do the talking:
Video number 1
http://youtu.be/qM6jo1YUc8U
Video number 2
http://youtu.be/rwyDiZ_iAKM
I am not sure how I am going to get my stroke straightened out. I understand what I am doing wrong but it has been difficult for me to get my hips and shoulder to cooperate and I have a very weak kick. There are so many things to fix, sometimes it is hard to remember all the pieces of a good stroke and get it all to come together. My overall swimming fitness has improved. But I am still slow and inefficient. I know I will get there eventually.
Now to switch gears a little, I must talk about Yoga. Our Yoga instructor is the best. Her class is intimate and delightful. Kelly's class is the perfect pace and the vibe is so cleansing for both mind and body. For every move she teaches us, there is always a slight variation to make it more or less challenging. She knows how to gently guide us in and out of poses so we get the benefit of strong poses as well as rest in between. I have really come to love the class.
One of the best things about this entire schedule listed above is Melissa does it all with me. Being able to train together has been a great treat. I know that the training is going to help improve my time on the various courses next season and I know it will allow Melissa to enjoy the races even more. I am looking forward to the spring season. Now we just have to find a good destination race for next year.
Well that about wraps up my discussion of my off season training regimen. In addition to these scheduled practices, I will also be doing some trail runs. Last Sunday I ran 7.5 miles on the trails in about 1 hour. It was a beautiful day for a run in the park and I had a great workout. Also, I will be ratcheting things up a bit in anticipation of the Gobble Wobble 5K on Thanksgiving. The course is hilly so I will need to get some hill work in between now and then. It is all just for fun but if I run well, I could be in the top 10 in my age group.
Thanks for reading.
- Monday morning swim
- Monday evening Yoga
- Tuesday morning Cycling Class
- Tuesday evening Track
- Thursday morning Cycling Class
- Saturday morning Cycling Class
The cycling class is being taught by Craig at the Richmond Cycling Corporation. Here is a snippet from their web site:
RICHMOND CYCLING CORPS (RCC) is a prestigious non-profit organization that provides leadership and personal development to Richmond’s urban youth through the sport of cycling. The corps connects highly qualified staff and volunteers to provide cycling opportunities, outreach, academic support, and fitness towards our youth participants in a knuckles-down, all for one environment. We obtain funding through Richmond-area business partnerships and individual supporters all over the country to provide these opportunities to Richmond-urban youth at no cost.
One of the way RCC raises money is through cycling classes. Karen arranged for her Tri team to get a group discount. We meet on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at the RCC at 6 AM for a one hour session with Craig. Craig was a little reluctant at first to schedule such early sessions because he was not convinced the class would be consistently well attended. Little did he know that triathletes are committed to their sport and will make sacrifices to improve their fitness and abilities. So far the class has been full.
On Saturdays, Karen will lead a longer class that will be more laid back and less structured. This morning when there was a discussion about what time we were going to start on Saturday, Craig was again surprised that we would be starting so early, at 7AM. He asked if we ever slept in. One guy on our team said, "What is sleeping in?"
During the class, Craig is teaching us some physiology, some technique, and helping us train more efficiently. We do lots of drills, including one-leg drills, low-cadence drills, high-cadence drills to a metronome, biking to exhaustion (all-out drills that last 10 to 15 seconds), as well as some mental training. We have only had two sessions but I can already tell that I am going to love this class and get a great benefit from it. The bike portion of the Triathlon is the longest and takes the most time so training smart on the bike is very important. Also, as I learned in my first year of Triathlon, my bike skills need work. There are a few words and phrases that describe my abilities on the bike: Low Power, Inefficient, Low Endurance, and as a result of these things, Slow. I know this class will help me improve all of these things.
Track practice has also been fun. I have been attending the track practices for several weeks. Since it is the off season, the coach is really taking it easy on us. She is trying to get us to learn how to pace ourselves evenly. We do lots of timed 1200s, 1600s, and 800s, as well as some drills. There are two guys who are faster than me but I have about 10 years on them so I feel pretty good about that.
The last discipline I am trying to perfect is my swim. My swim stroke is horrible. Let me let the video do the talking:
Video number 1
http://youtu.be/qM6jo1YUc8U
Video number 2
http://youtu.be/rwyDiZ_iAKM
I am not sure how I am going to get my stroke straightened out. I understand what I am doing wrong but it has been difficult for me to get my hips and shoulder to cooperate and I have a very weak kick. There are so many things to fix, sometimes it is hard to remember all the pieces of a good stroke and get it all to come together. My overall swimming fitness has improved. But I am still slow and inefficient. I know I will get there eventually.
Now to switch gears a little, I must talk about Yoga. Our Yoga instructor is the best. Her class is intimate and delightful. Kelly's class is the perfect pace and the vibe is so cleansing for both mind and body. For every move she teaches us, there is always a slight variation to make it more or less challenging. She knows how to gently guide us in and out of poses so we get the benefit of strong poses as well as rest in between. I have really come to love the class.
One of the best things about this entire schedule listed above is Melissa does it all with me. Being able to train together has been a great treat. I know that the training is going to help improve my time on the various courses next season and I know it will allow Melissa to enjoy the races even more. I am looking forward to the spring season. Now we just have to find a good destination race for next year.
Well that about wraps up my discussion of my off season training regimen. In addition to these scheduled practices, I will also be doing some trail runs. Last Sunday I ran 7.5 miles on the trails in about 1 hour. It was a beautiful day for a run in the park and I had a great workout. Also, I will be ratcheting things up a bit in anticipation of the Gobble Wobble 5K on Thanksgiving. The course is hilly so I will need to get some hill work in between now and then. It is all just for fun but if I run well, I could be in the top 10 in my age group.
Thanks for reading.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Jeff A. Reed Memorial 1st Annual 5K and 1 Mile Walk
This past weekend we participated in a 5K. It was the first annual Jeff A. Reed Memorial 5K and 1 Mile walk. Jeff was a cousin of a friend of mine who was killed fighting in Iraq (friend's family pictured above). The event was a fund raiser for his memorial fund. Here is a snippet from the jeffreedmemorial.org web site:
"The Jeffrey A. Reed Memorial Fund, which was founded in 2010, serves as a memorial to Sgt. Jeffrey Reed, of Chesterfield, Virginia, who died of combat wounds in Iraq in March of 2009.
Founded in order to carry on Jeff's spirit of service and helping others, the fund works to raise awareness about the needs of veterans, specifically those from the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Additionally, the fund provides financial support to existing organizations that serve this population, both on a local and national level."
Since this was the first annual race, there were not a whole lot of people racing. In the picture below you can see all the runners at the starting line getting the last minute instructions from the race director. You can see that the field is pretty small compared to more established races but this was their first one. Hopefully it will grow each year.
Below are a few pictures of the beginning of the race.
The course started out with one loop around the track before heading down the road and into the woods for a nice loop around some very pleasant trails. Below is a picture that shows me in the lead after two thirds of the one loop around the track. As you can see, there is one person behind me who I was slowly pulling away from.
Here is a picture of Melissa coming around in her first lap. Or another way to describe this picture is this way. Here is a picture of a guy getting chicked by Melissa.
After rounding the track and heading out to the road, I could see that I had a small lead over the second place runner. But I have a habit of going out too fast and slowing down in the middle of a race so I knew I would have to focus on maintaining my pace in order to guarantee that no one would catch me. It was fun because for the first time, I was running directly behind the pace bicycle. There were a few little rolling dips on the trail. I took advantage of the slight downhills to pick up speed and put more distance between me and the rest of the field.
As I made my way back to the track for my last loop to the finish, I noticed that there was no one behind me and I knew I had the race wrapped up. I could have slowed down at that point but when I hit the track I could see the walkers doing their 1 mile (4 laps on the track). When the teenage children of my friends saw me enter the track, they started running. They did not want me to run 3 miles in less time than it took them to walk 1 mile. The younger boy did not last long. The older child who is a high school senior was getting close to the finish line. But I put the hammer down and ran by her, shouting out her name as I whizzed by. Afterwards, I would look at my race data and notice that my best pace was 4:24 minute mile and that my max heart rate for the race was 197 beats per minute. I really did put the hammer down. Wow.
My total time was 21.39 which is not bad for a guy my age. And while that is not really a fast time for most races, it was enough to win this small local 5K. The race was quite fun and since it was the first one, I guess that means I get the course record too. It was also great to see my friends and catch up with them. And Barb always takes such great pictures. Maybe I can get her to come out to some of our other events.
Thanks for reading.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Post Race Slowdown
Sleeping in until 7 AM during the week, sleeping in on weekends, doing yard work, watching Hulu, spending quiet time with Melissa. These are just some of the things I have been doing more of since I finished my race season. It has been relaxing and a nice change of pace. Melissa and I even made it out to a movie one weekend. Unfortunately, I also got a cold and missed a few days of work. In reality I don't know if I was just suffering from bad allergies or if I had a cold. Most likely it was just allergies. Either way, I could not breathe and had some other nasty symptoms.
I ended up my season with six Triathlons and one 10K. While I plan to do some 5Ks over the next couple of months, I have no big events on the calendar. After my last race, I decided to just lay low and try not to plan too much. I will continue to swim with Karen's class and Melissa and I do yoga on Monday nights. Plus last week, we started to participate in Karen's track workouts on Tuesday nights. Last week was our first workout but I think it will become a regular occurrence.
Starting in November, Melissa and I will start an indoor cycling class that will take place from 6AM to 7AM on Tuesdays and Thursdays as well as a longer ride on Saturdays from 7AM until we get tired or bored. All of these sessions will be coached and I am looking forward to getting better, stronger, and faster on the bike. All of these sessions will take place indoors on Kinetic Fluid Trainers using our own bikes. I also plan to get into the pool on my own again, something I have not done since the race.
In addition to these planned workouts, I also need to get back into doing more core and strengthening work. I sort of slacked off in that department midway through the 2011 season. For me, core work is not my most favorite but I can definitely tell a difference in the way my body feels when I strengthen my core. It can make a big difference on race day.
So while I have definitely slowed down after the race, I have not totally stopped working out. The number of workouts and the length of my workouts has gone way down. But my calendar is quickly filling up starting in November. I am looking forward to getting back on the bandwagon. I have lots of work to do to improve, build endurance, and get ready for year two of triathlon racing.
Thanks for reading.
I ended up my season with six Triathlons and one 10K. While I plan to do some 5Ks over the next couple of months, I have no big events on the calendar. After my last race, I decided to just lay low and try not to plan too much. I will continue to swim with Karen's class and Melissa and I do yoga on Monday nights. Plus last week, we started to participate in Karen's track workouts on Tuesday nights. Last week was our first workout but I think it will become a regular occurrence.
Starting in November, Melissa and I will start an indoor cycling class that will take place from 6AM to 7AM on Tuesdays and Thursdays as well as a longer ride on Saturdays from 7AM until we get tired or bored. All of these sessions will be coached and I am looking forward to getting better, stronger, and faster on the bike. All of these sessions will take place indoors on Kinetic Fluid Trainers using our own bikes. I also plan to get into the pool on my own again, something I have not done since the race.
In addition to these planned workouts, I also need to get back into doing more core and strengthening work. I sort of slacked off in that department midway through the 2011 season. For me, core work is not my most favorite but I can definitely tell a difference in the way my body feels when I strengthen my core. It can make a big difference on race day.
So while I have definitely slowed down after the race, I have not totally stopped working out. The number of workouts and the length of my workouts has gone way down. But my calendar is quickly filling up starting in November. I am looking forward to getting back on the bandwagon. I have lots of work to do to improve, build endurance, and get ready for year two of triathlon racing.
Thanks for reading.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Patriots Half Race Report
Most of my coworkers, family, and friends would say that I exercise a great deal and am in very good shape. They might even think that I have great endurance. And while compared to many, if not all, of the people at the work place and most of my friends, this holds true-I am in very good shape and have endurance. But alas, compared to most of the other competitors in Saturday's race, this is not so true.
In general I was happy and satisfied with my race results. However, I must say I was a little dismayed with the number of people who passed me in the water and on the bike. I know that I am not a fast swimmer nor a strong cyclist but the passing seemed to go on from the first minute through to the 5th hour of my 7+ hour endeavor. No doubt, I will be working on these weaknesses in the off season. That is, I will be focusing on biking and swimming technique, strength, and endurance.
But before I get into all that, let me recap the race for you.
The Patriots Half Triathlon takes place near Williamsburg, VA in Festival Park which is across the street from Historic Jamestown. We arrived at Festival Park Friday afternoon for packet pickup and the pre-race meeting. When the race director described the location of the first turn buoy for the swim, I thought it looked like a very long way out. It was going to be a long and difficult swim.
After the meeting, we made our way to our hotel to unload all my gear and get settled. We got a room with a kitchen so I could have my favorite pre-race meal. My race crew cooked salmon, potatoes and onions, collards and spinach with garlic, and heated some soup. I got all my ducks in a row and relaxed. I have to thank Melissa for all the hard work she put into packing all the food, loading the car, picking me up at work, and cooking my pre-race meal. She put in a lot of work to support me and she deserves big thanks.
After dinner, I helped clean up before settling down for the night. Of course the hotel had TV so I was treated to some channel surfing which is something I have not done since the last out of town triathlon. And what a treat I had. There was an hour show on that recapped all the British Premier League soccer games. What fun it was to see all the goals and saves including a recap of Tim Howard's amazing saves as a goal keeper for Everton. The British announcers were heaping high praise on "the American."
At 4:30 AM the next day, we awoke to the piercing sounds of our alarm clocks. I felt very rested. I had slept well. We ate and I drank my pre-race smoothy. We packed the car and headed to the venue. There were virtually no cars on the road until we got near the venue. We arrived at Festival Park about 5:30AM and there was already a line of cars waiting to get into the parking lot. It seemed like people were there earlier compared to other triathlons we had been to this year. Usually I am the early bird and get my choice on the bike rack. This time around, I did not get to choose and was in the middle of the rack as there were so many people already there. But it was not really a big deal. I was prepared and since this was my 6th race of the year, I was not as nervous about all my gear.
Leading up to the race I was a little nervous about how I would handle the water bottle hand off on the bike and my hydration strategy in general. Luckily I had had some great advice from not one, but two experienced racers.
First, my friend Matthias and I had been going back and forth on Facebook. He was asking me all kinds of questions and giving me great advice. If you did not know Matthias, his manner might come across as abrupt. Often with written communication, tone and intonation are missing and it is easy to read things into the text we write back and forth to each other. Fortunately, I knew Matthias was genuine and wanted me to succeed. And I wrote off his writing style as typically German. If you want someone to give you direct and helpful advice, ask an experienced German racer. Hopefully he understands where I am coming from. I appreciate his interest in my well being, his frankness, and his straight to the point demeanor. Matthias is a guy that has helped me even when he was not with me. When I was training hard for a mountain bike race, I would imagine that him and another friend Bill were behind me on the bike which made me push harder.
I also had a phone conversation the day before the race with a coworker who races bikes. In fact, he is a retired pro racer who has raced with the best racers in the world. He still races in local races and still performs at the highest level. After a few minutes of talking to him on the phone, I felt much more comfortable about my hydration and nutrition strategy.
After racking my bike and using the bathroom one last time, it was time to head down to the race start. I made it down to the water just in time to have the announcer call everyone out of the water so I did not get to warm up. That did not really bother me as I don't think it would have made a difference on my swim time had I warmed up. We had the National Anthem and before you know it, it was time to swim. I was in the second wave wearing a red swim cap. Each wave had a different swim cap color. Waves are mostly decided by gender and age group. Below is a picture of my wave waiting to go off. I am in this picture. I am the one with no shirt and the red swim cap. You can click on the picture to see a bigger version.
When the horn went off, we all started trudging through the water and then started swimming. Right away, I was all over the course. Apparently, I can't swim straight without the lines on the bottom of the pool to look at. I zig zagged all over and had to stop every now and then to get my bearings. After most everyone in my wave had pulled away from me, I found it difficult to stay on course and I had trouble seeing the buoys that I would be sighting on. But I just kept going. That first 400 meters seemed long before we hit the first turn buoy. Once we turned, I would be going with the current for quite a long time. I must say, I did not feel the current but I guess it was helping me along. It was not like the strong currents in downtown Richmond. Again, I was all over the place and burned a lot more energy than I would have had I swam straight. At one point, I got hit in the head by some floating drift wood. At least it wasn't a body part. I just kept going, taking little sighting breaks here and there and readjusting my line. I finally made it to the turn around buoy and then turned back into the current.
The whole time I was swimming, people were passing me. First purple caps, then blue, then green. I even got passed by some guys in wet suits who were in the 7th wave. I kept moving and before I knew it, I saw the final turn buoy. Lots of racers were standing up once they rounded this last buoy. That was sort of a relief because I knew we were not far from shore. I stood for a moment but then decided I should keep swimming as swimming is actually the preferred method of moving through the water. As I got closer into the shore and it got shallower, I started doing some dolphin diving. On my second or third dolphin dive, my right calf cramped up. That was not good. Here I was, I had not even finished the first leg of the race which is the shortest of the three legs, and I was already cramping. I stopped dolphin diving and just swam some more until I could run out onto the beach. I knew I would have to start hydrating and eating gels as soon as I got on the bike to prevent any more cramping.
As I made my way to the shore line in the shallow water, I saw Melissa in her bright red shirt and cute skirt. She was on the shore cheering me on. It was a great lift to see her and I got a big smile on my face. It was great to see her cheering me on. And she even got this picture.
I am in the middle of this picture with no shirt and a red swim cap. And of course I am smiling. As I passed Melissa, she shouted out my swim time. One hour on the dot she said. I had been hoping for 50 minutes. Maybe if I could swim straight I would have done better. But I beat the cutoff by 15 minutes so that was good enough.
Many racers had staged shoes of some sort near the beach. The run from the beach to the transition area was about a quarter of a mile through thick grass, mud, and a climb on carpet they had laid down on some rough and rocky terrain. I had decided at the last minute on race morning to also stage some shoes. As I put on my shoes, I felt a little wobbly. But I managed ok and took off towards transition.
My T1 was the longest out of all the triathlons I have done. I had decided I would need to wear my jersey so I could carry plenty of nutrition. That's what we triathletes call it-nutrition. It is not called food. So that took a little extra time to put on my jersey and stuff the pockets with two Hammer Bars, two flasks of vanilla Hammer Gel, one extra packet of Hammer Gel, my Endurolytes, and my lip balm. Once I got all that stuff situated and put on my hair and makeup, I was ready to run out of transition and start the 58 mile bike ride. On my way out, there was Melissa. She surprised me. She must have also made the quarter mile run back to transition so she could catch me. She got this nice picture of me sticking my tongue out for the camera. I was being silly. After all, I was having a good time.
Right away, as soon as I got out on the course, I was being passed on the bike. I made sure to take a good look at the bikes that were passing me as well as the age of the riders. Interestingly enough, I saw some very high-end bikes cruising by me. And the age of the racers varied greatly. I was passed by a lot of older men and some older women and lots of younger women. After a while I began to wonder where all these people were coming from. I was so far back in the swim, I did not think there would be too many people left to pass me. But they kept coming.
Occasionally when someone would pass me, I would kick it up a notch and try to stay with them for a while. Since there is no drafting in triathlon and I could not ride anyone's wheel, inevitably they would pull away from me and I would let them go. I think I passed 2 people out there on the course. I just kept thinking that maybe I could catch a few of them on the run.
With about 20 miles to go in the bike, I had the strong urge to go to the bathroom. It is uncomfortable to ride when one's bladder is full but there were no Porta Potties on the course. I could have easily pulled over to the side of the road and gone behind a bush or something but I just could not find an appropriate place to get off the course and go. As I would approach what looked like a dirt road that went into the woods, I would think, "I wonder if that would be a good place to stop." And since I could not really tell until I was right up on it, I would then think, "Yeah, that would have been a good place to stop. Too late now." So while I had to go super bad, I did not have to go so bad that I would just go in my pants like some people do.
After about 3 hours and 48 minutes, I finally made it back to transition. And of course Melissa was there to greet me with her bright red shirt and cute skirt. I am not sure how long she had to stand there waiting for me. Hopefully not too long. I told her I thought it would take me between 3.5 to 4 hours. Again, it was great to see her cheering me on.
When I hopped off my bike at the dismount line and started to run my bike into transition, I felt a little wobbly. My legs did not seem to enjoy the sudden change of pace. My legs showed their annoyance with what I was asking them to do by going rubbery. I had to concentrate so I would not fall down as I went through the cheering crowd and volunteers saying, "good job, you made it to T2." Sure I was not biking anymore but I still had a little half marathon to run.
My T2 time was also very long. For one, I had decided that I would put some Vaseline on my nipples to prevent chaffing. This was something I decided on while riding the bike so I had not really prepared myself. I thought I remembered putting some Vaseline in my transition bag. After racking my bike, grabbing some Hammer Gels, changing my shoes, and putting on my number, I searched through my transition bag for the Vaseline. Alas, I could not find it. Oh well. Next time I will have to plan better.
As I made my way out of transition toward the run, I was greeted by 5 or 6 beautiful green structures. Yes, the porta potties stood there beckoning me. I was relieved to see them and without going into too much detail, I quickly jumped into one of them and unleashed the flood gates. Also I took the opportunity to use the last of my lip balm on my nipples to prevent chaffing. If all of this seems like too much information, I apologize. These types of things come up in normal conversation among triathletes and runners, I'm afraid.
I popped out of the bathroom and started my watch for the run. I immediately passed two women who were just making their way out of transition. And then I saw Melissa again. I gave her a high five which actually had the effect of giving me a burst of energy. Just the positive act of giving her a hearty high five made me feel good. She is so supportive, positive, and helpful. What a great team we make. And while I did not see her until right afterwards, she snapped another decent photo of me swallowing some hydration and tending to my watch.
Can you see something that is wrong with this picture? It was not until after I gave Melissa a high five that I realized I had my cycling gloves on. Oops. Luckily, I had plenty of room in my jersey pockets to stuff in my gloves and my race belt held everything down nicely so nothing bounced around.
As I ran, I continued to pass people. I was probably running way too fast. I always tend to go out too fast but I knew I would eventually have to walk some so I decided I would ease back a little but continue to run at a pace that felt good.
After my first 4 miles, I was running a sub 8-minute mile pace. If I continued this pace, I would PR my half marathon time. I knew that I could not last at this pace. During the run, I took water at each water stop and took some Endurolytes that I carried in a Mentos container that I had in my jersey. As I ran through the trails in the woods, I kept passing people. But I could still hear people on my tail. In fact, it seemed like someone was running just a few feet behind me. This kept me moving at a good pace because by now, so many people had passed me on the swim and the bike, I was tired of it and determined to hold them off.
It was not until about mile 6 that I realized there was no one behind me. In fact, there never was anyone right on my tail. What I thought was the sound of a runner gaining on me was actually the rattle of my Endurolytes bouncing up and down in my Mentos container. The sound is similar to the sound you get when you walk around with Tic Tacs in your pocket. Interestingly enough, as the race continued, there were times when this sound still pushed me forward. Sure, I had already realized that the sound was not from a runner. But maybe I would forget or maybe have my doubts. For whatever reason, that bouncing sound became my mantra and kept me going.
I started running around noon and it had really started to get hot. After mile 8, I started to walk through the aid stations, taking one water for my head, and one that I drank. Many of the aid stations also had little girls handing out ice cold, soaking wet sponges. I used this to cool my face and neck and then squeezed them out on to my head to keep me cool. I also took another gel around this time and continued my trudge toward the finish.
Along the way, I saw lots of people walking, a few people barely moving, one guy puking on the side of the trail, and plenty of people grimacing in pain. I felt fairly good all things considered. It was not until about mile 10 that I started to feel some soreness in my legs. I had slowed way down by then and I knew that I would not beat 2 hours as I had hoped. But at the pace I was going, I calculated that I would not be too much past 2 hours.
During the last 2 miles, I took several very short walk breaks to catch my breath and prepare for the final kick. One thing about this race that was very nice was the aid station support. They had cold water and even cups full of ice. Usually when you are at the back of the pack, you get the leftovers and scraps and the water is usually not cold anymore. But at this race, I was getting full cups of ice even at the last aid station. I used the ice to help bring my core temperature down which allows more blood to be diverted from cooling to fueling muscles. Putting the ice down the front and back of my jersey really helped. I had to move the ice around sometimes so it would not burn my skin but the ice really helped cool me off and allowed me to enjoy the last mile much more than had I been overheating.
Finally, I could hear the music blasting at the finish line. I picked up the pace and had a strong finish. And of course who was there at the end. Melissa of course. I gave her another high five as I ran hard to the finish. I felt pretty good. And sure enough, she got a pretty good shot of me finishing.
My times were not the best but overall I had a great time and for my first year in triathlon, I did not do too shabby at all. Here are my times.
1.2 Mile Swim in Tidal James- 01:00:39
T1 - 00:06:36 (includes quarter mile run from swim to transition and I had to put on my hair and makeup)
58 Mile Bike - 03:48:59 (had to pee so bad for last 20 miles but not enough to go in my pants).
T2 - 00:04:29 (included peeing a gallon in the porta john and searching my gear for some nipple protection to put on)
13.1 mile run - 02:10:43
Total Time 07:11:24.
Now the question is, will I do another one. I am pretty sure I will. And of course I will let you all know how it goes each step of the way.
One final picture of me after finishing.
Thanks for reading.
In general I was happy and satisfied with my race results. However, I must say I was a little dismayed with the number of people who passed me in the water and on the bike. I know that I am not a fast swimmer nor a strong cyclist but the passing seemed to go on from the first minute through to the 5th hour of my 7+ hour endeavor. No doubt, I will be working on these weaknesses in the off season. That is, I will be focusing on biking and swimming technique, strength, and endurance.
But before I get into all that, let me recap the race for you.
The Patriots Half Triathlon takes place near Williamsburg, VA in Festival Park which is across the street from Historic Jamestown. We arrived at Festival Park Friday afternoon for packet pickup and the pre-race meeting. When the race director described the location of the first turn buoy for the swim, I thought it looked like a very long way out. It was going to be a long and difficult swim.
After the meeting, we made our way to our hotel to unload all my gear and get settled. We got a room with a kitchen so I could have my favorite pre-race meal. My race crew cooked salmon, potatoes and onions, collards and spinach with garlic, and heated some soup. I got all my ducks in a row and relaxed. I have to thank Melissa for all the hard work she put into packing all the food, loading the car, picking me up at work, and cooking my pre-race meal. She put in a lot of work to support me and she deserves big thanks.
After dinner, I helped clean up before settling down for the night. Of course the hotel had TV so I was treated to some channel surfing which is something I have not done since the last out of town triathlon. And what a treat I had. There was an hour show on that recapped all the British Premier League soccer games. What fun it was to see all the goals and saves including a recap of Tim Howard's amazing saves as a goal keeper for Everton. The British announcers were heaping high praise on "the American."
At 4:30 AM the next day, we awoke to the piercing sounds of our alarm clocks. I felt very rested. I had slept well. We ate and I drank my pre-race smoothy. We packed the car and headed to the venue. There were virtually no cars on the road until we got near the venue. We arrived at Festival Park about 5:30AM and there was already a line of cars waiting to get into the parking lot. It seemed like people were there earlier compared to other triathlons we had been to this year. Usually I am the early bird and get my choice on the bike rack. This time around, I did not get to choose and was in the middle of the rack as there were so many people already there. But it was not really a big deal. I was prepared and since this was my 6th race of the year, I was not as nervous about all my gear.
Leading up to the race I was a little nervous about how I would handle the water bottle hand off on the bike and my hydration strategy in general. Luckily I had had some great advice from not one, but two experienced racers.
First, my friend Matthias and I had been going back and forth on Facebook. He was asking me all kinds of questions and giving me great advice. If you did not know Matthias, his manner might come across as abrupt. Often with written communication, tone and intonation are missing and it is easy to read things into the text we write back and forth to each other. Fortunately, I knew Matthias was genuine and wanted me to succeed. And I wrote off his writing style as typically German. If you want someone to give you direct and helpful advice, ask an experienced German racer. Hopefully he understands where I am coming from. I appreciate his interest in my well being, his frankness, and his straight to the point demeanor. Matthias is a guy that has helped me even when he was not with me. When I was training hard for a mountain bike race, I would imagine that him and another friend Bill were behind me on the bike which made me push harder.
I also had a phone conversation the day before the race with a coworker who races bikes. In fact, he is a retired pro racer who has raced with the best racers in the world. He still races in local races and still performs at the highest level. After a few minutes of talking to him on the phone, I felt much more comfortable about my hydration and nutrition strategy.
After racking my bike and using the bathroom one last time, it was time to head down to the race start. I made it down to the water just in time to have the announcer call everyone out of the water so I did not get to warm up. That did not really bother me as I don't think it would have made a difference on my swim time had I warmed up. We had the National Anthem and before you know it, it was time to swim. I was in the second wave wearing a red swim cap. Each wave had a different swim cap color. Waves are mostly decided by gender and age group. Below is a picture of my wave waiting to go off. I am in this picture. I am the one with no shirt and the red swim cap. You can click on the picture to see a bigger version.
When the horn went off, we all started trudging through the water and then started swimming. Right away, I was all over the course. Apparently, I can't swim straight without the lines on the bottom of the pool to look at. I zig zagged all over and had to stop every now and then to get my bearings. After most everyone in my wave had pulled away from me, I found it difficult to stay on course and I had trouble seeing the buoys that I would be sighting on. But I just kept going. That first 400 meters seemed long before we hit the first turn buoy. Once we turned, I would be going with the current for quite a long time. I must say, I did not feel the current but I guess it was helping me along. It was not like the strong currents in downtown Richmond. Again, I was all over the place and burned a lot more energy than I would have had I swam straight. At one point, I got hit in the head by some floating drift wood. At least it wasn't a body part. I just kept going, taking little sighting breaks here and there and readjusting my line. I finally made it to the turn around buoy and then turned back into the current.
The whole time I was swimming, people were passing me. First purple caps, then blue, then green. I even got passed by some guys in wet suits who were in the 7th wave. I kept moving and before I knew it, I saw the final turn buoy. Lots of racers were standing up once they rounded this last buoy. That was sort of a relief because I knew we were not far from shore. I stood for a moment but then decided I should keep swimming as swimming is actually the preferred method of moving through the water. As I got closer into the shore and it got shallower, I started doing some dolphin diving. On my second or third dolphin dive, my right calf cramped up. That was not good. Here I was, I had not even finished the first leg of the race which is the shortest of the three legs, and I was already cramping. I stopped dolphin diving and just swam some more until I could run out onto the beach. I knew I would have to start hydrating and eating gels as soon as I got on the bike to prevent any more cramping.
As I made my way to the shore line in the shallow water, I saw Melissa in her bright red shirt and cute skirt. She was on the shore cheering me on. It was a great lift to see her and I got a big smile on my face. It was great to see her cheering me on. And she even got this picture.
I am in the middle of this picture with no shirt and a red swim cap. And of course I am smiling. As I passed Melissa, she shouted out my swim time. One hour on the dot she said. I had been hoping for 50 minutes. Maybe if I could swim straight I would have done better. But I beat the cutoff by 15 minutes so that was good enough.
Many racers had staged shoes of some sort near the beach. The run from the beach to the transition area was about a quarter of a mile through thick grass, mud, and a climb on carpet they had laid down on some rough and rocky terrain. I had decided at the last minute on race morning to also stage some shoes. As I put on my shoes, I felt a little wobbly. But I managed ok and took off towards transition.
My T1 was the longest out of all the triathlons I have done. I had decided I would need to wear my jersey so I could carry plenty of nutrition. That's what we triathletes call it-nutrition. It is not called food. So that took a little extra time to put on my jersey and stuff the pockets with two Hammer Bars, two flasks of vanilla Hammer Gel, one extra packet of Hammer Gel, my Endurolytes, and my lip balm. Once I got all that stuff situated and put on my hair and makeup, I was ready to run out of transition and start the 58 mile bike ride. On my way out, there was Melissa. She surprised me. She must have also made the quarter mile run back to transition so she could catch me. She got this nice picture of me sticking my tongue out for the camera. I was being silly. After all, I was having a good time.
Right away, as soon as I got out on the course, I was being passed on the bike. I made sure to take a good look at the bikes that were passing me as well as the age of the riders. Interestingly enough, I saw some very high-end bikes cruising by me. And the age of the racers varied greatly. I was passed by a lot of older men and some older women and lots of younger women. After a while I began to wonder where all these people were coming from. I was so far back in the swim, I did not think there would be too many people left to pass me. But they kept coming.
Occasionally when someone would pass me, I would kick it up a notch and try to stay with them for a while. Since there is no drafting in triathlon and I could not ride anyone's wheel, inevitably they would pull away from me and I would let them go. I think I passed 2 people out there on the course. I just kept thinking that maybe I could catch a few of them on the run.
With about 20 miles to go in the bike, I had the strong urge to go to the bathroom. It is uncomfortable to ride when one's bladder is full but there were no Porta Potties on the course. I could have easily pulled over to the side of the road and gone behind a bush or something but I just could not find an appropriate place to get off the course and go. As I would approach what looked like a dirt road that went into the woods, I would think, "I wonder if that would be a good place to stop." And since I could not really tell until I was right up on it, I would then think, "Yeah, that would have been a good place to stop. Too late now." So while I had to go super bad, I did not have to go so bad that I would just go in my pants like some people do.
After about 3 hours and 48 minutes, I finally made it back to transition. And of course Melissa was there to greet me with her bright red shirt and cute skirt. I am not sure how long she had to stand there waiting for me. Hopefully not too long. I told her I thought it would take me between 3.5 to 4 hours. Again, it was great to see her cheering me on.
When I hopped off my bike at the dismount line and started to run my bike into transition, I felt a little wobbly. My legs did not seem to enjoy the sudden change of pace. My legs showed their annoyance with what I was asking them to do by going rubbery. I had to concentrate so I would not fall down as I went through the cheering crowd and volunteers saying, "good job, you made it to T2." Sure I was not biking anymore but I still had a little half marathon to run.
My T2 time was also very long. For one, I had decided that I would put some Vaseline on my nipples to prevent chaffing. This was something I decided on while riding the bike so I had not really prepared myself. I thought I remembered putting some Vaseline in my transition bag. After racking my bike, grabbing some Hammer Gels, changing my shoes, and putting on my number, I searched through my transition bag for the Vaseline. Alas, I could not find it. Oh well. Next time I will have to plan better.
As I made my way out of transition toward the run, I was greeted by 5 or 6 beautiful green structures. Yes, the porta potties stood there beckoning me. I was relieved to see them and without going into too much detail, I quickly jumped into one of them and unleashed the flood gates. Also I took the opportunity to use the last of my lip balm on my nipples to prevent chaffing. If all of this seems like too much information, I apologize. These types of things come up in normal conversation among triathletes and runners, I'm afraid.
I popped out of the bathroom and started my watch for the run. I immediately passed two women who were just making their way out of transition. And then I saw Melissa again. I gave her a high five which actually had the effect of giving me a burst of energy. Just the positive act of giving her a hearty high five made me feel good. She is so supportive, positive, and helpful. What a great team we make. And while I did not see her until right afterwards, she snapped another decent photo of me swallowing some hydration and tending to my watch.
Can you see something that is wrong with this picture? It was not until after I gave Melissa a high five that I realized I had my cycling gloves on. Oops. Luckily, I had plenty of room in my jersey pockets to stuff in my gloves and my race belt held everything down nicely so nothing bounced around.
As I ran, I continued to pass people. I was probably running way too fast. I always tend to go out too fast but I knew I would eventually have to walk some so I decided I would ease back a little but continue to run at a pace that felt good.
After my first 4 miles, I was running a sub 8-minute mile pace. If I continued this pace, I would PR my half marathon time. I knew that I could not last at this pace. During the run, I took water at each water stop and took some Endurolytes that I carried in a Mentos container that I had in my jersey. As I ran through the trails in the woods, I kept passing people. But I could still hear people on my tail. In fact, it seemed like someone was running just a few feet behind me. This kept me moving at a good pace because by now, so many people had passed me on the swim and the bike, I was tired of it and determined to hold them off.
It was not until about mile 6 that I realized there was no one behind me. In fact, there never was anyone right on my tail. What I thought was the sound of a runner gaining on me was actually the rattle of my Endurolytes bouncing up and down in my Mentos container. The sound is similar to the sound you get when you walk around with Tic Tacs in your pocket. Interestingly enough, as the race continued, there were times when this sound still pushed me forward. Sure, I had already realized that the sound was not from a runner. But maybe I would forget or maybe have my doubts. For whatever reason, that bouncing sound became my mantra and kept me going.
I started running around noon and it had really started to get hot. After mile 8, I started to walk through the aid stations, taking one water for my head, and one that I drank. Many of the aid stations also had little girls handing out ice cold, soaking wet sponges. I used this to cool my face and neck and then squeezed them out on to my head to keep me cool. I also took another gel around this time and continued my trudge toward the finish.
Along the way, I saw lots of people walking, a few people barely moving, one guy puking on the side of the trail, and plenty of people grimacing in pain. I felt fairly good all things considered. It was not until about mile 10 that I started to feel some soreness in my legs. I had slowed way down by then and I knew that I would not beat 2 hours as I had hoped. But at the pace I was going, I calculated that I would not be too much past 2 hours.
During the last 2 miles, I took several very short walk breaks to catch my breath and prepare for the final kick. One thing about this race that was very nice was the aid station support. They had cold water and even cups full of ice. Usually when you are at the back of the pack, you get the leftovers and scraps and the water is usually not cold anymore. But at this race, I was getting full cups of ice even at the last aid station. I used the ice to help bring my core temperature down which allows more blood to be diverted from cooling to fueling muscles. Putting the ice down the front and back of my jersey really helped. I had to move the ice around sometimes so it would not burn my skin but the ice really helped cool me off and allowed me to enjoy the last mile much more than had I been overheating.
Finally, I could hear the music blasting at the finish line. I picked up the pace and had a strong finish. And of course who was there at the end. Melissa of course. I gave her another high five as I ran hard to the finish. I felt pretty good. And sure enough, she got a pretty good shot of me finishing.
My times were not the best but overall I had a great time and for my first year in triathlon, I did not do too shabby at all. Here are my times.
1.2 Mile Swim in Tidal James- 01:00:39
T1 - 00:06:36 (includes quarter mile run from swim to transition and I had to put on my hair and makeup)
58 Mile Bike - 03:48:59 (had to pee so bad for last 20 miles but not enough to go in my pants).
T2 - 00:04:29 (included peeing a gallon in the porta john and searching my gear for some nipple protection to put on)
13.1 mile run - 02:10:43
Total Time 07:11:24.
Now the question is, will I do another one. I am pretty sure I will. And of course I will let you all know how it goes each step of the way.
One final picture of me after finishing.
Thanks for reading.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Race Week Reflections
And before you know it, race week is here. With all my long workouts behind me, I must now focus my energy on eating right, getting the proper rest, and getting my gear organized and ready for Saturday. I can't say that I have nailed every workout leading up to this race. I bonked on more than a couple of runs off the bike. I missed a swim-maybe two. And I missed one long run. But today I did manage to do my 1.2 mile swim in the pool. I did it in just under 48 minutes and while my form was starting to fall apart at towards the end, I felt pretty good and completing the swim gives me some more confidence.
Looking back at my training, I think one of the more difficult things I faced was having enough energy to complete late week workouts. My Thursday morning runs suffered mostly due to a lack of sufficient calories I think. To address this issue, I plan to do a detailed food journal for one week during the Fall "off season." This is something I have been meaning to do for a long time. I have all the tools necessary to analyze my caloric intake as well as how much I am burning during each workout. It will be interesting to see what I find out.
In addition to nutrition challenges, I think in order to adhere to the rigors of training for a half iron distance race, more rest is in order. Not more rest days but just more sleep. Working 10 hour days during the summer made it difficult to get the training done and get the proper amount of sleep. This is something to think about when I plan my next couple of race seasons.
Another issue I had during my training was dealing with the heat. My runs off the bike on Saturdays were tough. The heat really put a zap on me and I fell short on several runs off the bike. The heat seems to bother me more these days. Back when I played soccer, I got acclimated to the heat pretty well and even temperatures in the high 90s did not bother me. Plus let's face it. I am not getting any younger. Looking back on these long Saturdays (70 mile bike followed by 30 minute run off the bike), I probably should have adjusted my goal pace down slightly on the run. Getting started earlier in the day would also have helped I think.
I have a few more things to figure out as far as gear goes. I still need to find a lightweight container to hold my Endurolytes. I also need to figure out how I am going to manage the water bottle hand off on the bike. The race has 3 water bottle hand offs where they will be handing off Deer Park Blue Caps which is a particular style of Deer Park water bottle. My first step is to purchase some of these waters and see if my plan to put one in my jersey pocket will work. So off I go to Walmart to look for some.
One other big thing on my mind is Lee - as in Tropical Storm Lee. The remnants of this storm is bringing lots of rain to the mountainous areas of Virginia and West Virginia. I am really not sure how the race venue will be affected by all this rain. I do know that the James River in downtown Richmond is currently running at 3.6 feet which is extremely low. But by Thursday morning, the river is predicted to rise to over 10 feet which is just shy of flood stage. I will be keeping my eye on the river level. Obviously the higher the river, the faster the current and the more difficult the swim will be. As a pool swimmer, I don't really need all that extra current to swim across or against.
Thanks for reading. My next post will likely be the race report after the race unless something very interesting happens between now and the race.
Looking back at my training, I think one of the more difficult things I faced was having enough energy to complete late week workouts. My Thursday morning runs suffered mostly due to a lack of sufficient calories I think. To address this issue, I plan to do a detailed food journal for one week during the Fall "off season." This is something I have been meaning to do for a long time. I have all the tools necessary to analyze my caloric intake as well as how much I am burning during each workout. It will be interesting to see what I find out.
In addition to nutrition challenges, I think in order to adhere to the rigors of training for a half iron distance race, more rest is in order. Not more rest days but just more sleep. Working 10 hour days during the summer made it difficult to get the training done and get the proper amount of sleep. This is something to think about when I plan my next couple of race seasons.
Another issue I had during my training was dealing with the heat. My runs off the bike on Saturdays were tough. The heat really put a zap on me and I fell short on several runs off the bike. The heat seems to bother me more these days. Back when I played soccer, I got acclimated to the heat pretty well and even temperatures in the high 90s did not bother me. Plus let's face it. I am not getting any younger. Looking back on these long Saturdays (70 mile bike followed by 30 minute run off the bike), I probably should have adjusted my goal pace down slightly on the run. Getting started earlier in the day would also have helped I think.
I have a few more things to figure out as far as gear goes. I still need to find a lightweight container to hold my Endurolytes. I also need to figure out how I am going to manage the water bottle hand off on the bike. The race has 3 water bottle hand offs where they will be handing off Deer Park Blue Caps which is a particular style of Deer Park water bottle. My first step is to purchase some of these waters and see if my plan to put one in my jersey pocket will work. So off I go to Walmart to look for some.
One other big thing on my mind is Lee - as in Tropical Storm Lee. The remnants of this storm is bringing lots of rain to the mountainous areas of Virginia and West Virginia. I am really not sure how the race venue will be affected by all this rain. I do know that the James River in downtown Richmond is currently running at 3.6 feet which is extremely low. But by Thursday morning, the river is predicted to rise to over 10 feet which is just shy of flood stage. I will be keeping my eye on the river level. Obviously the higher the river, the faster the current and the more difficult the swim will be. As a pool swimmer, I don't really need all that extra current to swim across or against.
Thanks for reading. My next post will likely be the race report after the race unless something very interesting happens between now and the race.
Friday, August 26, 2011
Hurricane Irene
Weather.gov, weatherundergroud.com, weather.com, nhc.noaa.gov, wxrisk.com. While not fully versed in all the scientific mumbo jumbo, I still like to follow what the experts are saying. Here is a post I cut and pasted from DT who I follow on his wxrisk.com Facebook page:
What does it all mean? Well I am not really sure what all the acronyms mean but I can figure out that Sandbridge and Nags Head are doomed if the weather model DT is quoting comes true. After all, no one can predict the weather with 100 percent certainty. Even the best meteorologist will tell you that the sophisticated computer models are only as good as the most recent data fed into them and that data changes rapidly and often.
DT has been predicting this would be a bad storm for the Eastern seaboard for about a week now and so far, his predictions have been pretty darn accurate. It remains to be seen what we will get here in Richmond. The coast of NC and VA will definitely get slammed with bad weather, it seems, but here in Richmond, it looks like we will be spared the worst of the storm. We will still likely get lots of rain, either something around 3 or 4 inches, or something around 6 to 8 inches. It really depends on whose forecast you are paying attention to. Some locals have been saying that we will not get that much rain, maybe just 2 or 3 inches. It is an odd thing to me to say that 2 or 3 inches is not that much rain. Relative to what they will get on the shore, it is a lot less, but if it were a regular summer rain event, 2 to 3 inches of rain would be considered a great deal of rain.
At work we are bracing for the worst. We spent all afternoon powering down all of the computer equipment in almost all of our schools. There were even some sandbags placed in and around parts of the building. I certainly hope it is not bad. Being without power is sort of a drag. Sure it is nothing compared to the hardships that millions of people go through everyday. We are lucky to live the lifestyles we live for sure. We have plenty of food, shelter, and resources. We are not in full combat gear in the desert fighting a war that seems like it will never end. We are not starving because of famine. We have rights and people who will protect us from wrong doing.
But alas, I think most of you would agree, being without power puts a crimp in our style. No way to easily cook, no hot showers, no Internet which of course means no Facebook, no Farmville, no Gears of War. It is a far cry from the inconveniences of famine and war but still, it puts us out doesn't it?
For me, I have been paying close attention to the storm for many reasons. I have family and friends who are in the path of the storm. I worry about their well being. I worry about all the firemen, police, coast guard, and military personnel that will be risking their lives this weekend to save and protect others. These people are truly heroes. Also though, and this seems a little selfish to me but it is the truth, I am worried about getting in my workouts.
I can't ride my bike in a hurricane. Petty? Maybe. But it is the truth. I have been thinking about it all week. I am hoping that if I get up very early in the morning and start my ride at first light, I can beat the storm. But looking at the radar, I am not sure that will happen. I can always adjust my schedule but this close to the race, it would be nice to be able to stick to the training schedule. After all, the training plan was custom made for me by a great Triathlon coach who based the plan on lots of data from myself as well as his vast knowledge of training and racing Triathlon. He came in 3rd overall in the Luray International by the way.
I guess I will obsess about the storm for a while tonight but hopefully not too late. Just in case I have the opportunity, I want to be able to feel good for the 55 mile bike ride followed by 45 minutes of running fairly hard. We'll see.
Stay safe and if you are in the path of the storm, be smart. Listen to the warnings and heed them.
Thanks for reading.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Post Race Update
You may wonder what one does after competing in a somewhat difficult race? Fpr me, step 1 after finishing was packing up and leaving the venue. I stuck around for a little to rest a bit but then we bugged out. We had about 2 and half hours to drive home and if we got a move on, we would still have lots of Saturday left.
We thought about trying to find something to eat in Luray but honestly, I did not have much faith in our options. I am sure there is healthy food somewhere in Luray but I did not have the energy to search for it. So we hit the road and decided to snack on a few things and see how far we got before having to have a proper meal.
As we were driving through Culpepper, our stomachs were groaning and reminding us how hungry we were. So we parked right on the street in downtown Culpepper and walked in to the first eatery we came to. It was a sub and sandwich place with Deli in the name. I took one look at the menu and decided I could definitely eat a veggie sub with no cheese. The food was all made fresh to order by the owner Sal, or Nick, or Vinny. I did not actually catch the proprietors name but he seemed like a genuine transplant from New York. And his subs did not disappoint. Why can't we get sandwiches and subs like that in Richmond?
After devouring my 12 inch sub and eating the little bits of crusty bread discarded by Melissa, we drove the rest of the way home. Interestingly enough, I had a bottle of water, two cans of coconut water, plus 750 ML of additional water after the race but I did not have to stop to use the bathroom at all. I guess my body really needed replenishing.
Upon arriving home, I was hungry again. So we decided to get cleaned up and go to dinner and a movie. Can you believe it? A proverbial night on the town. Well at least a night at the mall. We went to a Thai place and I again devoured the appetizers and my big meal and then we went and saw a movie.
I slept like a log that night and spent most of the next day relaxing, napping, eating and drinking. Monday I went back to work but otherwise took another rest day.
That is what I did after my race. What about Matias Palavecino? What did he do after winning Saturday's Luray International Triathlon in a time of 02:04:28 (my time was 03:15:03). Well, he competed in the Sunday Luray Sprint Triathlon and won that as well. I was wiped out for two days after my once race. This guy races two races in one weekend and wins them both. Not only did he win but in Saturday's race, he beat the second and third place finishers by 6 minutes!
Matias's performance plus all the other super fit triathletes who passed me on the bike acted to inspire me. When the alarm went off Tuesday morning, I was ready to get back to training and do my best make myself a stronger racer. I have not nailed every workout since the race but I feel pretty good about my training over all. I have two more weeks of training before race week. During race week, I still train but at a much smaller volume and with less intensity. Hopefully Irene won't wash out my plans for the weekend. I think if I get up early enough on Saturday I can get my long ride and run in. I may have to run in some rain on Sunday but as long as we are not having hurricane weather, I think I will be up for it. It could rain on race day after all.
Finally, here are some pictures from the pros from my race. You can click on each thumbnail and to see the bigger picture. Then click on the X to close it. The photographers did a great job. I managed to make a funny face in a couple of the bike pictures. I was having fun!
Link to Pictures
We thought about trying to find something to eat in Luray but honestly, I did not have much faith in our options. I am sure there is healthy food somewhere in Luray but I did not have the energy to search for it. So we hit the road and decided to snack on a few things and see how far we got before having to have a proper meal.
As we were driving through Culpepper, our stomachs were groaning and reminding us how hungry we were. So we parked right on the street in downtown Culpepper and walked in to the first eatery we came to. It was a sub and sandwich place with Deli in the name. I took one look at the menu and decided I could definitely eat a veggie sub with no cheese. The food was all made fresh to order by the owner Sal, or Nick, or Vinny. I did not actually catch the proprietors name but he seemed like a genuine transplant from New York. And his subs did not disappoint. Why can't we get sandwiches and subs like that in Richmond?
After devouring my 12 inch sub and eating the little bits of crusty bread discarded by Melissa, we drove the rest of the way home. Interestingly enough, I had a bottle of water, two cans of coconut water, plus 750 ML of additional water after the race but I did not have to stop to use the bathroom at all. I guess my body really needed replenishing.
Upon arriving home, I was hungry again. So we decided to get cleaned up and go to dinner and a movie. Can you believe it? A proverbial night on the town. Well at least a night at the mall. We went to a Thai place and I again devoured the appetizers and my big meal and then we went and saw a movie.
I slept like a log that night and spent most of the next day relaxing, napping, eating and drinking. Monday I went back to work but otherwise took another rest day.
That is what I did after my race. What about Matias Palavecino? What did he do after winning Saturday's Luray International Triathlon in a time of 02:04:28 (my time was 03:15:03). Well, he competed in the Sunday Luray Sprint Triathlon and won that as well. I was wiped out for two days after my once race. This guy races two races in one weekend and wins them both. Not only did he win but in Saturday's race, he beat the second and third place finishers by 6 minutes!
Matias's performance plus all the other super fit triathletes who passed me on the bike acted to inspire me. When the alarm went off Tuesday morning, I was ready to get back to training and do my best make myself a stronger racer. I have not nailed every workout since the race but I feel pretty good about my training over all. I have two more weeks of training before race week. During race week, I still train but at a much smaller volume and with less intensity. Hopefully Irene won't wash out my plans for the weekend. I think if I get up early enough on Saturday I can get my long ride and run in. I may have to run in some rain on Sunday but as long as we are not having hurricane weather, I think I will be up for it. It could rain on race day after all.
Finally, here are some pictures from the pros from my race. You can click on each thumbnail and to see the bigger picture. Then click on the X to close it. The photographers did a great job. I managed to make a funny face in a couple of the bike pictures. I was having fun!
Link to Pictures
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Luray Race Report
Going into the Luray International Triathlon, I knew it was going to be a challenging course. Also I knew this would be my B race. What is a B race you might ask? To be honest, I can really only give you a minimal explanation. It is not an A race, that is for sure. It is more of a training race and I suppose the B race is supposed to have less pressure to reach specific goals and is supposed to require slightly less effort than the A race. That said, I am still a newbie so when my coach told me that Luray would be my B race leading up to the Williamsburg A race, I nodded to show my understanding but I don't have precise measurements to differentiate between an A effort and a B effort. Is there a particular pace on the swim, bike, and run for a B race versus my A race? Maybe 20 seconds per mile slower on the run for example? I really have no way to quantify it this early in my triathlon career. I decided my goal for this race would be to not be last in my age group and to feel good at the finish.
Before I get into the blow by blow of the race, I have to tell you a little about our stay in New Market. We had to stay in New Market because all of the hotels in and around Luray were booked when I started looking to make reservations. Our hotel was about 40 minutes from the race venue. When we finally arrived after getting my packet and scoping out the swim, bike, and run course, the lady working the front desk asked us if we were here for the 50-Mile Yard Sale. I told her no. We were here for the Triathlon. Then I said, 'a 50-yard yard sale sounds like fun though.' She corrected me. It was 50 miles of yard sale. Interesting.
She also said there was another event nearby that was causing all the hotels to be booked. There was a Hazzard Reunion. As in "The Dukes of Hazzard." Ah. Now we know why we saw three General Lee's parked at a roadside diner on our way through Sperryville. Who knows what goes on at such an event. One can only imagine. There would be the General Lee cars of course and I am guessing some sort of Daisy Duke contest, lots of rebel flags (we confirmed that when we drove by the event site), and maybe some bluegrass music and fireworks. None of it made much sense to us. Maybe my cousin John can tell me about what goes on at such an event. I am not sure if he has ever heard of it either but if there is anyone that I know who would know, it is him. If you are reading John, please enlighten us city folk.
After we checked in, we decided to order some pasta and have it delivered to the room. Unfortunately, the person taking the order thought I wanted plain pasta with absolutely no sauce. I guess in my efforts to make sure that there was no meat in the sauce, she decided I meant no sauce at all. I am not sure who would eat such a meal but that is what was delivered. So off I went in the car in search of spaghetti sauce. After a trip through town, I found some at a small market, came home and used the in-room microwave to heat up the sub-par meal. It was better than nothing I suppose.
On race morning, I was feeling pretty relaxed. We checked out about 5:30 or so and made our way to the venue. I got my bike racked on the end and started to lay out my stuff and then stood there staring at it for a while to make sure that I had everything to my liking. Here are a few pictures of me in Transition.
After getting all setup, it was time to face the music and head on down to the lake for a swim warmup. I swam out to one of the buoys, tread water for a little bit, and then swam back. The water was quite warm and there was no current to speak of in the little lake. After my warmup, I got out and listened to the pre-race announcements. We had the National Anthem and then it was time to start.
I was in wave 2 with red swim caps. Each wave had a different color swim cap. Right before the 1st wave of green swim cap racers got in the water, I saw the surgeon who operated on my knees. We shook hands and wished each other luck. He was in the first wave and I knew I would not see him on the course. He was 10th overall at this race last year so he would be long done while I was still sweating it out on the run course.
Here are a few pictures of the swimmers mulling about before the race. I am actually in all of these pictures. You may have to click on them to see the bigger versions but I am there.
Notice in the above picture the stairs in the background. After the swim, we had to run all the way up those stairs to transition to get on our bikes.
In the above picture I actually have my hand up in the air and am waving to Melissa who took all these great photos. I am in the last group of 10 guys at the top left part of the picture.
Right before my wave was to start, another red-capped racer said to me, "why do I do this. Right before every race, I ask myself this. Why am I doing this. Swimming is definitely not my best sport. I am not terrible but sometimes I wonder." I assured him that when he got settled on the bike, he would be having fun. Besides almost every swimmer who says they are slow or a terrible swimmer is faster than me.
And then we were off. The mayhem begins. Open water racing is a contact sport. I was punched, kicked, run over and otherwise jostled during much of the race. Here are some pictures showing the beginning of my wave.
Overall, I would have to say the swim was hard. I found myself taking frequent breaks and slowly getting left behind by everyone else in my wave. It was not long before some silver capped racers who started 3 minutes behind me caught up to me and started running over me. After a while, the white capped swimmers caught up to me. They were mostly women who seem to be more polite in general and tended to not run me over. I could see a few red caps in my vicinity but I was afraid I was falling way behind my fellow 40-44-year-old men. Since my goal was to not be last in my age group, I knew I just had to keep one or two red caps in site as I was sure I could make up the time on the run if I stayed somewhat close.
When I exited the water to run up the stairs, I was among a lot of women. The women were at least a couple of waves behind me so I was already fading in the race and it had barely begun. In the end, my swim time was really not all that bad for me. Here is a picture of us running up the stairs. I am in there behind all the women.
Once back in T1, I quickly put on my shoes, socks, and helmet and took off on the bike. The bike course was going to be tough- I knew that. Melissa and I had driven the course the day before and made note of all the hills. As I made my way along the course, I passed a few people at the beginning but after that I was mostly being passed. Occasionally, I would hear what I thought was a car coming up the road behind me. But when the vehicle passed me, I saw that it was not a car at all. It was a biker with aero wheels flying by at breakneck speed. I felt like I was standing still when these guys would speed by with their loud wind-breaking bikes. As the bike portion of the race continued, I continued to mostly get passed by other riders. The course was a lollipop and we had to do the round part twice. No doubt the guys screaming by me were on their second lap.
I was starting to worry about my goal. No doubt I had a blast on the course as it was gorgeous and there was little to no car traffic. And since there was no double yellow line on much of the roads, there was no problem passing other riders. In Triathlon, going over the double yellow line is an automatic disqualification if an official happens to catch you. The rolling farmland made for a beautiful course. But I just could not keep up with these guys.
In the last 10 miles of the bike portion, I had slowed down quite a bit. I was spinning along in a pretty low gear, taking it pretty easy really. I looked at my watch and it said 10 miles an hour. Wow. It seemed like I was going so slow. There were several sections of the course that looked flat. But they were not. They were what we call, "false flats". It looks flat but once you have to shift down to a low gear, you realize there is nothing flat about it. Sure there were some nice downhills. I even got up to 41.88 miles an hour at one point. But they did not last. In the end I think I averaged 15 miles an hour.
I finally approached the final big climb. There were people at the top of the hill with horns and cowbells cheering us on. It was a great motivator and really helped lift my energy levels. I came into T2 feeling pretty pumped up. Melissa got a short video of me coming in.
T2 was a little shorter than T1. I took a shot of Hammer Gel and swished it down with some water, changed my shoes, put on my race belt and hat, and took off. I immediately passed some strollers who were taking their time easing into the run. Here is a picture Melissa got of me passing one guy. Not sure why I tend to make faces when I get my picture taken during a race.
After a few minutes of running, I glanced down at my watch. I was running a 7:10 pace. Pretty fast considering all I had done at that point. Of course, this out and back course was all downhill at the beginning and then all uphill at the end. Here is the elevation profile for the course.
I ran pretty well and I started to realize that while I had been passing lots of people, no one had passed me. I started picking people off one by one. Some of them had started in a wave behind me, caught me on the swim or bike, and now I was catching them on the run. In Triathlon, we all have our ages inked onto our calf. That way, when someone passes you or you come across someone on the course, you know if they are in your age group or not. I started counting whenever I passed someone in my age group. 1, 2, 3, etc. I think by the time the race was over, I had caught 12 people in my age group on the run course. I was hurting on some of the hills but was motivated to keep going to see if I could catch more people in my age group. Melissa snapped this final picture of me running in strong at the end. Yes. I passed that last guy and absolutely no one passed me on the run course.
In the end, I had a great time, did well for my first race at this distance, and felt good about the whole thing. Yes, I am slow in the water, and yes I am slow on the bike. But I have room for improvement and I still have my run as my strength.
My times were as follows:
1500 Meter Swim - 38:55
T1 - 2:38
26 Mile Hilly Bike - 1:41:56
T2 - 1:39
10K Hilly Run - 49:56
Total - 3:15:03
I ended up 272 out of 388 overall and 58 out of 74 in Men 40-44. The most interesting thing to me is that the next fastest run split was the 24th place person. All of the people who beat my total time between my 58th place and the 24th place person had slower run times than me. I am hoping that this trend holds true for my next race. Perhaps I can catch even more people on the 13.1 mile run.
Thanks again to Melissa for supporting me, cheering me on, and taking pictures. I can still see Melissa cheering me on. It is always so uplifting.
Well, I have a 75-minute zone 3 ride followed by a 20-minute zone 3 run to knock out before work tomorrow so I better hit the bed. 4 AM will be here soon. Thanks for reading.
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