Welcome to off-season 2007

I was so happy to cross the finish line Saturday. Not because I has set the world on fire with some blistering pace, or had broken through some fantastic distance barrier. I just wanted the competetive season to be over. Burn out.

All in all, it was a good race. I felt strong in the water, held a decent pace on the bike (especially considering some of the monster hills on the course), and had a good run. No podium finish, but 5/17 in my competitive age group, and 18/145 overall. During the bike leg, toward the end, I realized I still had to run and was filled with dread. I had noticed the burn out building over the last few weeks, but it really peaked at that moment. Much like Paul noted recently, I've been having trouble gathering enough motivation to train like I need to be. I just wanted the season to be over.

I know I'm not alone when it comes to these end-of-season sentiments and attitude. While some people can keep charging on at a constant pace, year in and year out, I think it's a function of truly maximizing your training and ability, along with cycles of peaking, that drive an athlete to desire - almost require - a break in the intensity. Surely many elite athletes also attribute an off season to injury prevention, be it soft and connective tissues due to altering the training focus, or joints and bones due to recovering focus and intensity and reducing complacency at the limits of performance.

So, I have done nothing since Saturday's race until today. I will probably ease into some training this week, but it will be low-key. My plan at this point is to:

• Rest tired muscles, connective tissue, and brain cells
• Get/keep moving with some aerobic benefit
• Hit the gym hard to build up some muscle mass in key areas, for about a month
• Begin base mileage and aerobic capacity building
• Chart my reentry to next season's training cycle

For the last step, I will need to decide on next year's race schedule. For sure, I will be more selective than this year. I also intend to include a greater variety of events, such as more running events and a couple of purely cycling events. I think that there's a different dynamic to competing in the single event races that will help me achieve and keep an edge in multi sport. I hope to break through some barriers that I'm sure exist, wherein I'm holding some of "it" back for the next leg of the race.

There are also some exciting things brewing for next year that I will share with you guys as soon as I'm able to. For sure, it's going to be an awesome season and I will realize a hope/dream that I had toward fall of last year, around the time that cycling was forever infused with my life and running was becoming a personal challenge.

But before all of that, it's going to be a great fall and winter with my family and friends, tons of good food, and reflection on my first of many years training hard and competing in triathlons. The good people I've met and relationships I've formed this season have opened my eyes, and the community that came together to help and support me when I tested physics was incredible, as were all the well wishes, thoughts, and prayers from you awesome folks. Thanks for listening to me, laughing with me, helping me, educating me, and entertaining me. Don't go getting slack on any of it, though! ;-)

Okay, enough of the sappy stuff.

I guess plans can be good

What an awesome weekend! Friday really set my mood in motion, and I kept positive Saturday and Sunday, even becoming more hopeful of my performance in the upcoming Hickory Knob Sprint tri in a couple of weeks. I already picked out two really fast dudes, so right now the best I can realistically hope for is 3rd in my age group. Not downing myself, just reality; I haven't been doing this long, and my swim doesn't do me any favors. But, I think I can do well, and intend to be in the top 5. Or should I say "plan"?

At the end of my last entry, I mentioned planning on doing the group ride with Carolina Triathlon on Saturday morning. I also alluded to not planning on setting any land speed records, meaning I was going to try to have an easy-ish ride, hopefully hanging off the back of the B group. Half of that wasn't meant to be. I did join the group ride, but they decided (without consulting ME!!) to join the A (lightning fast) and B (pretty fast, but comfortable for me) groups, essentially creating a B+ group. The alternative was the *ahem* more conservatively paced C group, but that would have just made me irritated. {sigh} So, B+ group it was. We wound up going at a pretty fast pace in a lot of sections, but I held on okay. I pulled some, but tried to not push too much. One of the shop guys leading it, Sideshow (real name Tim, but nicknamed for his hair), had to peel off and get back to the shop, so we took a shortcut. Truth be told, everyone was supposed to take it, but the lead group didn't hear that, so they zigged when we zagged. Anyway, we wound our way back, and I wound up pulling the 3 of us up a ~2 mile stretch that's mostly a shallow uphill. At the light near the shop, I made a futile attempt to sprint finish, but Sideshow walked away from me. Still, it was a great ride:

42.76 miles in 2:14:50 @ 19.03 mph avg

I went straight to the coffee shop (Lava Java) to meet my ladiez, already gettin their grub on. I sat there in my spandex, looking goooooood, and chatting with our friend - the shop owner. Grace ate a whole bagel & cream cheese to herself! Then we went home, did some chores, and I talked Mendy into going to Northampton Wines for some relaxation and grub. Sooooo delicious!

Sunday started before I had planned, since I stayed up to watch Bug (not bad, but don't let the kiddies watch - boobies and wiener), but I did enjoy the trade off: we enjoyed a family breakfast out at our favorite diner. Then we were off to church to see Chris Sligh (of American Idol fame) play for the last time at our church. He left today for Nashville, where he is beginning his music career: Christian music, not country music. I had forgotten how great he harmonized with the lady that sings, and how well it all sounded with the band. Man, we are going to miss his contribution, but wish him well!

After church, we came home again, and were off to the park downtown, cameras in hand. Grace had a BLAST playing on the slides and all the other playground toys. Then we had ice cream from the little truck (Grace ate a Dora head ice cream - kinda disturbing), and got thoroughly messy. What fun! Time to get in the water, right? We drove up to main street and parked, then wandered down to a new kids play area with a waterfall and fountain that shoots jets up at random patterns. The water was freezing, and the air wasn't hot (78 deg and in the shade), but Grace wanted to play. I decided she should change into her swim suit (yeah, a bikini) to play any more, since we would need warm clothes to change her in to. She flashed everyone before we could react, and then got her changed surfer style, behind a towel. After about 20-30 minutes, she was getting pretty cold, so I was somehow able to talk Mendy into going to the Mellow Mushroom for some grub. Perfect ending to the perfect day.

Okay, so it wasn't the end: we came home and sat out on the back deck enjoying the evening. Grace finally fell asleep around 9:30 and her parents were able to enjoy some nice shiraz. Awesome evening, mostly unplanned, but perfectly according to plan.

Today was back to the pool for some moderate distance and a nice run after work:
Swim: 1500yds in 25:54 @ 1:44/100yds (8:21, 8:51, 8:42 splits)
Run: 4.28 miles in 29:16 @ 6:50/mile

That is all: carry on...

Resume mental state of training

Because sometimes I do think I'm mental. Seriously.
This morning I got up super early for a run: 6:20, and out the door about 7 minutes later. Okay, so maybe that's not too early for the truly insane (Robin, Marcy, Jess, I'm talking to you 4:30 weirdos!), but it's a full 40 minutes before I have to wake up, which is the equivalent of paying money to receive hemorrhoids in my opinion. Regardless, I did it (the wakeup, not the 'roids). I had to make up for yesterday, when I skipped my lunch brick to go eat Thai with Mendy. Good trade, but the crazy hot food stuck around and I just wasn't feeling it after work, so I sat around like a turd. Anyway, you morning runners are officially out of your minds! Running early in the morning is like running at night, except the people are more hungover, less awake, and in a bigger hurry. I would like to say my pace suffered due to watching - and occasionally dodging - homicidal commuters. It probably had more to do with being half asleep, empty stomach, and just a touch of erratic pace. I honestly felt like I was going faster than the numbers, though:

4.28 miles in 29:55 @ 6:59/mile

The cool thing was that all day the run seemed like a dream, as if I hadn't actually done it. Weird, and cool. I again skipped my lunch workout, this time to lunch with my mental training mentor, Chris G-Man Giordanelli. The Greek food was great, but didn't compare to the sharing of training ideas, goals, history, fitness philosophy, upcoming race schedules, and some other chit-chat to fill in between talk of running, swimming, and cycling. We talked a bit about the wreck, and Chris shared how he was pleasantly amazed I had missed flying over the edge to the creek below, and how much the whole scene is still very vivid to him. I'm still/again very thankful that he, Clay, Cynthia, and the others were there to help me. Can't imagine if I was alone.

I left again inspired to push harder, break down barriers, and never quit striving for a new dream. I already had it in my mind to do something after work, probably swimming. After checking on Mendy's plans, I decided to ride to the gym to swim. That morphed into swimming and riding. Hmmm, what's left to do after swimming and riding? Might as well do a mini tri! What is wrong with me? Anyway, the stats:

500yd swim in 18:23 @ 1:41/100yd
13.95 mile ride in 41:06 @ 20.36 mph
2.4 mile run: 17:06 @ 7:08/mile

I'm now officially tired. I'm still planning on doing the group ride tomorrow, but I don't plan on setting any land speed records. Plans, schmans!

Dubious notoriety

At 5 AM, the most glorious dream started with Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir" as the background music. Then Mendy nudged me, telling me the alarm was going off. DRAT!! Oh yeah, I did sign up for a stupid tri this morning. *grumble* I get moving, get my spandex on (werd!), and get the coffee going. Mendy is slow to rise, and when I check on her she's nearly in tears from ear pain. She tells me she's been up for the most part since about 2:30, and in agony. I quickly get her hooked up with decongestant and tell her she's not coming, but rather going back to bed. She resists...sorta...but agrees with me and goes back to bed. Hey, it's not a big race, right?

So, the car is loaded up, the house left dark, and I'm on my way through the thick fog. And I mean thick! I honestly thought they were going to delay the start. They probably would have if it was an open water swim, but this was in the pool. I got my packet, body marked, and transition set up. Hmm, what am I forgetting? Don't know, so I'll just go visit the facilities. Why can't I do this at home, where it's cleaner and the line is usually shorter? Geez!

During my travels around the site, people kept coming up to me that I didn't recognize (at least immediately) and asking how I was doing, and wishing me well on my continued recovery. One pair of ladies walked up and the first did basically the above. Then the other turned to the first and said, "Oh, that was HIM!?!" Wow, I guess I'm famous. Or something. Notorious?

The pre-race meeting went normally, and we lined up in the seeded start order for the 300yd swim. I had SWAG'd 5:20 for my time, so I started 49th. My start comes up, and I'm off. Within one length (25yds) I've caught up with the lady ahead of me. Clearly, one of us was way off on our estimate. I passed her 50yds later after setting up on a turn, and was off with clear sailing ahead of me. I got out of the pool feeling good, albeit winded from strong effort, but happy. I get to transition (150yd run?) and hit my watch: 5:09? Whoa, I must have been "on" in the water today! On to the bike leg...

I forgot to hit my watch at transition exit, so I didn't have my unofficial split, and only hit it about 1/2 mile later. My legs were feeling really sluggish and tired, and I didn't understand why. Then it hit me: the vitamins I normally take before a ride or race (essentially Sport Legs) were still in my bag. Doh! But, I slowly loosened up and started finding my groove. I picked up the pace and passed a lot of people. Until I blew by an untended and poorly marked turn. Double DOH! Fortunately the guys behind me let me know, and I turned around. I had to pass all these guys again, and the hills on this course were brutal. Not especially steep, but seemingly unending. I finished strong, and was into transition for the run. No idea of the actual time, but the average speed was over 21mph.

The run started on an uphill stretch, and my calf started cramping almost immediately. I backed off and ran through it, but my pace suffered. There was a dude in my AG that I tried to hang on to, but he was stronger than me today. I did get a kick at the end, but nothing spectacular. I crossed the line with an unofficial time of somewhere under 1:05:00. And Chad, I did yell SPARTA! when I crossed the line, just for you. I swear, I really did!

We milled around, talked with some folks, and got our gear back in the cars. After an extensive door-prize giveaway, the awards ceremony started. There were 4 of us that are sort of on the same "team" if you will. Jamie placed 2nd overall, but should have been first. We weren't using chip timing, and there was a SNAFU with gapped slots and compensating for the swim start. Oh well, still a good result. Johnathon and Cameron both placed 1st in their age groups, and they all left after getting their prizes (it was getting late in the morning by now). I stuck around for a bit longer, and they got to the men's 30-34 AG. I heard the 3rd place time, and a huge smile went across my face.


I placed 2nd in my age group, with a 1:04:29! Woo hoo!! The one race Mendy didn't attend this year, and I finally podium. While admittedly not the depth of ability in the other races, there were still plenty of fast people, so I'm happy.


After that, I went home to shower and change, and then we all loaded up to meet Mendy's dad for lunch. Holy cow, what a nice meal: a huge sliced prime rib sandwich and fries, washed down with some barley sodas. Now it's football time while Mendy rests and takes medicine.

It was a typical Florida early morning...

...when I set out to do my pre-race brick yesterday afternoon here in South Carolina. (What is David talking about today? He must be back on the pain pills!) Let me explain: the temps were in the mid to upper 70's, but the humidity was in the upper 80%'s. The air was thick and sticky, but fortunately it was overcast. Seemed a lot like the weather Jess describes for her early morning runs. So I jumped on my bike to perform my first brick in over a month. I wasn't expecting a lot, and was a bit concerned about the afternoon rush hour traffic, but had to get it in for a Friday rest prior to Saturday race. I was pleasantly surprised!

Bike: 14.21 miles in 39:34 @ 21.55 mph average

Run: 2.4 miles in 16:41 @ 6:57/mile average

That's only 7 seconds off my PR for the bike course, which was done not as a brick workout, but rather a simple Time Trial back on July 4th. And the run felt much easier than it had, even though there was a bit of wooden leg in the beginning. This gives me some hope for Saturday's race, indeed!

In other news, I just noticed yesterday that I'm now linked off of Carolina Triathlon's website as a local athlete, so I guess I need to clean up my act for all the passers-by. :-) It really surprised me, and I'm honored to be included in fine company. I do wave the CT flag to anyone locally that's looking to get into either cycling or multisport anyway, so hopefully I can add some real content to this blog to validate the listing.

I hope everyone racing this weekend has an excellent time and finishes strong. Wes, rock that 5K brother! Catch you later with a race report, folks!

Back in the ring

After sitting out the last 2 races of the SCTS season, I have signed up for a local race this weekend. It's a sprint tri, with a deliciously short swim. 300yd water, 20k bike, 5k run. Ah, this is my format! Especially with my state of training. Speaking of which...

I went to the pool today and linked up with a local triathlete friend who was a former competitive swimmer. To say she is fluid and ridiculously fast in the water is an understatement. Anyway, I was able to complete the first HALF of her scheduled workout before *ahem* having to go back to work. Thank goodness for that! In approximately 45 minutes (including rest breaks) we did:

100yd swim
8x25 drills (single arm, catch-up, butt-tap, Tarzan, finger tip drag)
100yd swim
200yd swim
8x25yd alternate 1 drill, 2 swim ( side kick)
3x25yd sidekick switch, single arm
1x25yd swim
100yd swim

Son of a mother, I was whooped after that! I mean, I could have floated through maybe about 1000 more yards, but not with any pace I would have been proud of, and I couldn't have moved much afterwards. As it was, returning to work was like...uh...hard work. I have some catching up to do in the pool, but more over I have a lot of work to do in the off season. Which had me looking forward.

This off season, I am seriously looking toward some horrible weather so that I am forced in to the gym and on the trainer. That was my intention last winter, but the season was so mild that I was never forced off the roads, and cycled all winter. That is one big reason that my cycling was so strong this season, but it is also the reason my training has been off kilter for training structure all year. It's been an 15 month long season so far, and with the good there is some bad showing. But, maybe it works into my plan...

I would like next season to be such that at almost any time from about March on, I'm able to complete a Half IronMan if posed with such. It kinda goes with my personal drive to maintain an elevated level, but others are like that I believe. I see people like Paul that go out and do a 14 mile "recovery" run while injured, and see that this is a realistic goal if properly prepared for.

Anyway, the baby race this Saturday is my first step back to that goal. I hope my mind can pull out all stops, and let my body put the limits. Maybe I'll reward myself with a couple of bacon strips afterward! Hooray racing!

A new triathlete is born and get-well "bakies"

Congrats to Mendy on her first (of many?) triathlon!!! She did great, and without significant preparation and training, had some awesome times. I was very jealous of her, and really itched to do the race myself, but was happy to be able to cheer her on. Grace was a trooper, too, with a very early wake up call and a long morning in the heat. Despite that, she cheered and clapped, and stayed in a very good mood! Scott and Robin, and later Daniel (Mendy's brother) and mom-in-law were there to help cheer and enjoy the day, too. Thanks for dedicating a very early morning to come out and help Mendy!

It was weird being on the other side of things. I saw people that I would have been racing with/against, and it fueled my desire to heal and get back out there. The guy closest to me in points and recent results came in 4th in our age group. Since I have been just slightly faster than him lately, that would have been me most likely. THAT sucks!

A bunch of friends did really well: Jamie came in 3rd overall (2nd Elite male), Chris coming in 8th overall (4th Elite male), Pam placing 2nd in her age group, Hal placing 3rd in his, Clay at 20th overall (8th Elite male), Olivier, Eric, and Scott (Pam's husband) doing very well in their ultra-competitive age groups with some smokin' fast times. I'm jealous of the great race you guys had! I don't know how, but I have got to get it in gear and race the SC HIM!!

Before the race, Chris had mentioned he had something for me, referencing a previous comment I made. After the race, as I talked with friends and inquired of their races, I got a chance to speak with the G-Man. Though not finishing as well as perhaps he had hoped, he was ever-positive describing the finish as no worse than he expected or trained for. And then, the most awesome surprise: His lovely wife Janis had stayed up really really late and labored intensively over a hot stove to hand-craft the most delicious "bakies" as a get-well gift for me. Chris said normally she is an extremely healthful cook, but he insisted on full "nutrition" content for these: brown sugar, real butter, etc. Holy cow, I'm glad you all are too far away to taste them, or there wouldn't be nearly enough for me! The heaving bag of well over a dozen call to me every time I walk near. Chris, please thank your wonderful wife for the bakies! She rocks!!

Recovery is still going well. I'm getting angry that I can't get on the bike yet, and may strap the bike to the trainer in the next few days for some exercise. My leg, right forearm, left shoulder and elbow are still bandaged, but healing rapidly. The leg still hurts, though. My nose is filling in nicely, and I may not have that much scarring besides the uneven area between my top "lip" and nose. Yes, Mendy, I realize I don't actually have a top lip, but just imagine where it should have been to picture where I'm referring to.

I'm flat out tired of this stoned feeling, though. I would have made a horrible pot head, it seems. Or maybe it's just because it's a low intensity sensation, persisting now for 2 weeks, that it's more annoying than pleasurable. Whatever, I am just ready for it to be done. I feel like absolutely tearing up the road on my bike...just as long as there are no turns. :-)

Tri the Pee Dee pictorial

This is the dirt road that comprised the first and last mile of the bike course. The entire site was the private property of the owner of this house, which was a pretty okay house on a pretty okay piece of the world...with a private lake...small beach...bastards.

The swim exit. Feeling pretty good at this point, and happy about my time...I think. I didn't start my timer correctly, so I had no idea what my actual time was. But it felt good.

This is just about the time I felt like I was going to toss my cookies. No time to dilly dally, though! I decided to work it out on the bike and take my chances.

Back from the bike, time to work on some blisters! Yeah, this was the critical moment when I said, "Nah, socks aren't going to be important on such a short run. Wow, my feet are dirty..."

This picture is incredibly telling, and I'm sure Chad and Wes know what's going on. No, he's not checking out my sweet ass in the Lycra shorts!

What's going on here, as I pass this guy, is he's looking at the number on the back of my right calf. My age group category. He wants to see if I've just knocked him down a notch. Awesome job to Mendy for catching this cool pic.

This was the only drink I got on the run. The next time around they were ill-prepared and the two dudes right in front of me got the only two cups available.

Man, was I glad to have this one over. My feet were killing me, I was hungry, my stomach still didn't feel right, and my whole body ached. It was like a raging hangover, kind of. Made me realize how much effort I put into this one.

By the way, this pic (on the left) is for you Nikki! LOL

Somebody learned how to swim

Today started early. Very early, at least for me. Three separate alarms went off around 5 AM so we could get packed up and to the race site in time. I figured we were early to on-time. As I walked my bike out to the car, and surveyed the desolate parking lot, I was suddenly struck with the fear that we were really behind everyone else. We got moving and arrived at the race site. To our surprise, only a few cars were there. Perhaps everyone went to breakfast early? Whatever, we were looking good and I was going to get a great transition setup. Bring it!

I was set up so fast, I started doubting myself and wondering what I had forgot. I checked my transition area 2 additional times after initial setup. Satisfied, I chatted with some friends and made a pit stop at the little blue stinky hut. As I was so early, it wasn't bad yet. If you have been following my last couple of performances, you may realize that I felt a lot of pressure for my swim performance. I have been doing the open water swims at about 1 minute more per 100m than my training pace, putting me way behind, and forcing huge efforts on the bike to make up time. The butterflies came, and my concern grew.


I entered the water for the start. I knew well enough to get at the back of the group and work my way through any overly ambitious swimmers as needed. I wasn't yet sure how much that would come into play, since I doubted my ability to pull off a decent pace. But I just made my mind up that I was going to keep going, work hard, be as smooth as possible, and give it my best. I picked off lots of swimmers, and felt pretty good at the exit. I was actually catching up to the group ahead, instead of the group behind catching me. As I got out of the water, I realized I hadn't successfully started my timer, so I was just going to have to go by feel. But I felt good...

Until, as I began putting on my bike shoes, I started to feel I was about to unswallow. Not just a bit of upset stomach, but full-on, Jagermeister and tequila, bad seafood, warm mayonnaise sick. I went to the side of the bike rack as I was putting on my shoes, waiting for the technicolor yawn. I guess I didn't have enough in my stomach, other than lake water, and never spewed. I decided to just get on the bike and work through it. Besides, I had a tough dirt road to navigate before putting the hammer down.


The bike leg just felt off. I just never felt like I had the legs, and would swear I was dragging a brake. I wound up adjusting the rear one at 8.5 miles (of 15.5 total) and charged on. My quads were singing to me by now, and I wasn't looking forward to the run. I caught a bunch of people, traded places with one guy 3 times, but wound up being passed by 2 people. Crap!

The ride in on the dirt was treacherous, but I made it without falling. In a quick decision, I went without socks for the quick 3.1 mile run. My feet were dirty, and it was a dirt/sand/grass route, so I had been on the fence. Oh well, it's only a 5k, right? First lap I held a good pace and checked out the course. Since it was 3 loops of the same route, I could pace myself on the second two based on the first lap. Lap 2 I was loosening up and finding my stride. Lap 3 I began to attack, and at 2.5 miles in started to turn the screws. I found a guy that I am close to in most races, and planned to pass him at the last moment. I was feeling so strong, however, that I just passed and decided to put some immediate distance down to make me look uncatchable. It worked, and I finished about 1 minute ahead of him! The whole run Mendy and a friend from the Y were cheering me on. Man, that helped so much! Made me forget for a minute how I actually felt.

As I crossed the line, I thought I was going to pass out. This day, I left it all out on the course. Sure I wasn't feeling as potent on the bike, but I never let up. I gave the swim and the run my all. I did my very best.

700m swim in 14:19 @ 2:03/100m
15.5 mile ride in 43:14 @ 21.55 mph
3.1 mile run in 21:35 @ 6:58/mile

This performance at any other race to date would have been close to, if not on the podium. But today there were some very fast racers. My age group had the fastest top 5 of any age group. One group below or above would have put me on the podium. But not mine. I finished a frustrating 8th of 22, but beat some key people. In some ways I feel like I wasted my best performance. Really, though, it is a progression for me. I'm getting better, and will expect improved performance in future races.

I got a leg massage (no happy ending) after the race, and my IT bands are tight! Wow, that hurt. I will need to pay more attention to those in the future. Mendy and I traveled home and eventually made our way to dinner and the wine bar. I felt a bit better by this evening, but am really tired now. I know I gave it what I had to give, and that helps me. Next race will be better.

**pictures to follow - need sleep**

Um, call it tapering?

I really wanted to do a brick at lunch to give me the high intensity/low duration cap to my week before an easy swim tomorrow and pre-race rest on Friday. A peek outside just before lunch showed the wind kickin' like karate, somewhere between 16 and 18 mph. Um, no thanks. I could do it, but I'd rather not put any bad vibes into my noggin from slow times before Saturday. So I finished watching the Tour de France on the web and grabbed some sammich fixins, returning to my desk early. The afternoon floated by, and I got a lot done, but I absolutely HAD to do something today.

I get home, walk up to get Grace, and Mendy is returning from the gym on our way back. We get to the house and I tell Mendy I'm going for a quick run. Or rather, I hoped it would be quick. Into my new C9 tank from Target and some shorts, and I'm warming up. No need for Garmin, I'm doing my standard 2.4 mile out-and-back. It was cross wind almost the whole way, so there wasn't much I could blame on wind. I could, however, clearly tell my nutrition wasn't ideal for this effort level. It would have been at lunch, but I was low on carbs. Not a bad run, but a few ticks off my PR last week:

2.4 miles in 15:13 @ 6:20/mile

I was pretty drenched after the run, though I won't go into an R rated discussion about peeling my soaked clothes off like Jess did! ;-) So, what better way to celebrate Wednesday, no thunderstorms today, a run, and...whatever else?

Yes, sports fans, it was Mexican food night for us! Though they didn't have DosXX (again!!!) the mole sauce on the pollo poblano was absolutely the best! Grace was reasonably well behaved, for a terrible 2, and no stinkies while there! Grace has a tendency to unleash the most foul of movements particularly while we eat Mexican. Since the place is frequented by lots of local construction workers all day, the dudes' bathroom isn't so awesome to change a diaper/pull-up. Poor Mendy gets that "honor" most times, but she's a trooper about it...usually. :-)

As I mentioned, tomorrow is a mild swim to round out the week, and we are going to the tri clinic tomorrow night. Mendy is a participant, and I'm a mentor/assistant/case study. I may even be asked to speak to the group as a relative tri newbie, albeit kicking some serious "A" in my first competitive season! LOL

Speaking of swimming, I think I missed a day. Here's yesterday's workout:

500yds in 6m 58s @ 1m 23s /100 yards
5 X 100yd sprints
1st 1:17
2nd 1:19
3rd 1:21
4th 1:29
5th 1:32

I was getting pretty bushed, as evidenced by my increasing times. Stupid swimming!

We are family...

Ah, that old Sister Sledge tune. That's the first thing I thought of when preparing this picture. As you can see, my rides tower over Mendy's by a good bit. Hence, my statements about hers being the Garanimals model. But, it's actually a decent size, and perfect for her: easy to control, easy to mount/dismount, and not nearly as small as Grace's. :-)

Mendy tried to go on a ride tonight, but I'll let her tell that tale. Suffice to say, the South Carolina summer tradition of evening thunderstorms helped ensure my belly got full of fajitas and a gigantic beer (no DosXX, they were out *boo hoo*). At least I got mine...

Lunch swim:
1500yds in 25:36 @ 1:43/100yds - This may actually be a PR for me at that distance
1st 500yd: 8:11 @ 1:38/100yd
2nd 500yd: 8:45 @ 1:45/100yd
3rd 500yd: 8:39 @ 1:44/100yd

After work run:
8.01 miles in 59:55 @ 7:29/mile
Avg HR:167 1238 cals (per Garmin)

I kinda wanted to go longer on the run, but I was hot and sweating like a pig. It was only 88 deg (yeah Chad and Lisa, I know I'm weak), but the humidity felt pretty stinkin' high. A quick before-and-after on the scale indicate 6.5 lbs of fluid lost. A large bottle of Smart Water helped me replenish much of that. Seriously, folks, check this stuff out! It's good tasting water with the right electrolytes for athletes. Anyway, I held back at points on the run and finished strong, but honestly had some struggles at other parts: my HR rocketed up at one point when my breathing was off. The entire time I was fighting shallow breath issues. Gotta fix that before the...

Sunday in Hell: the South Carolina Half IronMan on Sept 30. Chad had asked what my future plans are, and this is (almost for sure, for sure) on my schedule. Honestly, I'm intimidated by it. I can do the swim (1.2 mile), and I can easily do the ride (56 mile), and at any other time I could do the run (13.1 mile/half marathon), but the run after the ride is daunting. And by the time I get around to that, it will be hot. This is mostly the same course as the Festival of Flowers tri I did a few weeks back, with the brutal swim conditions. Similar swim length (that was 1500m), but double the bike (no prob) and more-than-double the run (yikes!). My main enemies are hydration and cooling. If I gotta stop and cool at the aid stations, so be it.

Other than that, life is good. I did slice the back of my knee tonight while removing follicle matter in the shower. I think I just got in a hurry and the razor went a bit sideways. Gotta replace that blade...

And now, to all you fine folks' blogs. Yay, Monday is over!!!

Festival of Flowers Olympic triathlon pictorial

Last minute bike preps...like some kind of idiot!
I would never have guessed there were actually people behind me after that swim.

Somehow I finally exited T1
This one is especially for Nikki. Just imagine it in a blue speedo... ;-)
Yay, I made up some time!"Hey, how come it's hot all of a sudden?"

Nice view...unless you are running and looking up the wall to the finish line.

Man, was I tired and hot!

What the hell kind of pose was this? I look like the long lost member of the Village People: Spandex Spice

I'm reminded of a quote from a good friend of mine the other night, when asked if he knows anyone who's gay. He said, "No I don't know anyone who's gay. I'm wearing cowboy boots...right now!"

There wasn't any tone or inflection in his comment, or our whole conversation, that was anti-gay, but what he said was absolutely hilarious to me. And by the looks of this picture, maybe he does... :-o

In other news, Mendy and I met at the pool today. It was a nice way to ease back into training, since I'm still kinda recovering from the race. I was struggling with some speed work until a friend from BeginnerTriathlete.com gave me some tips that really paid off. I used her advice before the 4th 200yd sprint, and you can see how much it reversed the trend:

Warmup: 100yd free, 50yd keel,50yd supine kick

200yd @ 2:55

200yd @ 3:02

200yd @ 3:12

200yd @ 3:03

100yd catch up drills

50yd free

My impression of a concrete donkey swimming...

I don't think I've made it a secret that swimming is my weak part of triathlon. Well, the Olympic distance tri just happens to be my kryptonite; the swim is almost Half IronMan distance, while the bike is about half of a HIM, and the run is less than half of the HIM. So, with my current weakness on the swim, I have even less chance to make up for it in other parts. But boy did I try!

(to skip the race report, some other info near the bottom of this post)

We jetted down to Greenwood and grabbed some food (boring details: baked potato and 2 trips to the salad bar). Back to the room, and my perfectionist nature decided it was a PERFECT time - the night before a race - to do some fairly significant maintenance on the Chariot of Dreams. I replace on shifter cable and also the chain, then do the tuning required for those changes. That took a while, and I was looking for the pillow and a cup or two of wine to sleep heavy.

Should have left for the race site early: a long walk, long lines, and 2 freakin porta-johns for the nearly 300 racers and however many spectators buzzing around transition. Standing in line was my warm up, unfortunately. I noticed the wind kicking, and was concerned about water conditions and the bike ride. I was right on about the water; it sucked! BIG time!! My pace was way off, I felt awkward, I couldn't plane out (legs sinking), the waves caused me to ingest lots of stinky brown lake water. It finally ended, and I exited the water quite obviously disappointed. Mendy noticed me shaking my head as I looked at my watch. Almost 36 minutes for 1500m. Then came the transition from hell: I just couldn't pull my head out of my butt and get going. AHHHH! I was so frustrated, so I took it out on the bike.

I started to gain speed slowly, finding my legs. I traded places with one of the fastest Elite females, and then passed finally for good. Then it was hammer time: I just kept passing and passing - probably about 2 dozen other riders. It was a nice course, with some significant headwind in places, and plenty of chip-and-seal pavement for "texture", but it was a nice challenge. No steep hills, just long shallow grades. I felt on, but I had to be to make up for my swim. Did I mention how bad it was? Anyway, the weather was beautiful, and I was looking forward to the run in reasonable temps as I entered the home stretch on the bike. 1:03:17 for 24 miles

Then someone turned on the sun, and it was instantly about 90 degrees! Holy crap! Transition went better this time, but not great. Next time I won't wear a fuel belt, since the water stations were plentiful. Once you exit the park, it's a long stretch of hilly road about 38 feet from the sun. I could feel my temp rising and discovered that I had totally failed to consume calories on the ride. DOH! What was I thinking? Turn right and into the shade for the middle leg of the run. Some words of encouragement to the faster runners, and the turn-around - more water dumped on the head (whoa...I'm getting dizzy). At about 3.5 miles in, I'm feeling good (in the shade, mind you) so I turn it up a bit. On a down-hill some woman comes trotting by me. On the next up hill I went by handily, showing what terrain she trains in. This happened a couple more times until I turned it up a bit more at about mile 4. I kept cranking it up a touch more every 1/3 to 1/2 mile until I was alone on the road between any groups of runners. I thought I was going the wrong way a couple of times, but I found my way. Man, the people of Greenwood are so supportive, and were cheering us on like crazy. It felt great! The last 100yds to the finish are up a hill so steep it's almost a wall. Seriously!

Total time: 2:29:08 - 7/23 in male age group, 63/192 men

I was never so glad to be done with a run, and stood under the shower tent trying to cool down. As sensation was returning to my body, I started to feel the lack of nutrition shutting my muscles down as they tried to rest: I was stiffening up faster than a 12 year old boy with a hot substitute teacher. I began to eat anything I could keep down; cookies, Gatorade, sandwich, chips, more Gatorade, protein bar, more cookies. Wow, it was hot, and I needed to stretch. We hung out for a bit and then headed home. I was bushed, but it wasn't long to Grandma's house and our reunion with Grace. She's such a sweetie, and grew another 2 inches over the weekend I think. She hadn't napped, so she slept the entire way to Mellow Mushroom, and the whole time we were there gorging on pizza and Blue Moon!

Sorry for the extremely long race report. I'm sure those of you still awake are nearing hysteria by now. So, on to my 6 thangs 'bout me:

1) toilet paper absolutely must come over the top of the roll, and can not ever have a part of a square remaining. Only a whole square at the end will do.
2) like Mendy, I have to eat candies in a certain order: damaged first, then until all colors are even in number (from darkest to lightest), then in order from darkest to lightest one of each at a time.
3) Marcy's new profile pic makes me think some one's spying on me.
4) I would always rather skip lidocaine (novocaine) injections when getting a filling in a tooth: 2 seconds of blinding pain is worth it to not deal with needles in the mouth or warm puffy face.
5) somehow my body knows when Mendy is nearby, and decides it's the perfect time for gas to be released. It's uncanny.
6) I'm starting to enjoy running (shhhhh! Don't tell Mendy or Robin!)

If only every day could be a taper day

*Sigh* Today feels so peaceful and relaxing. Well, besides the vaccination shot I got just after lunch. Mendy and I are at the reserve center today, catching up on some administrative things and whatnot. She had to to her PRT run, and I got to be her pacer/motivator/coach/running partner for it. This is good, because if she weren't here I would likely have gone and done something silly like a long ride or run. With only 2 days until the Festival of Flowers Olympic Triathlon, I can't afford to be off my game. I'll let her talk in detail about the run, but I clocked my run at

1.5 miles in 12:08 at 8:08/mile

It was good to go out and stretch the legs a bit. We came back and decided to keep the fitness train rolling, so we jumped on our bikes and did a lap of Donaldson Center. I wanted to help Mendy focus on shifting and technique to become more efficient, and while she was concentrating on that she wouldn't get to worry so much about traffic...and I get to check out her booty in the bike shots. Yummy!

7.14 miles in 33:55 @ 12.63mph average

Then Mendy surprised me by wanting to do a brick run immediately after. She confirmed right at the end of the ride, so I had my stopwatch ready. As soon as the bikes stop, we were in transition. in a scant 1:51, we were running. Not a world record transition time, but not bad for changing shoes, stowing the helmet and gloves, and getting the running hat and Garmin on. Way to go, Mendy! We had a very short run, but it was just to get a feel for the brick workout. It ended on a pretty good uphill grade, and I could tell the pre-ride banana Mendy ate wasn't working with her. She finished strong, and we had a lot of fun. And we got paid, like pro athletes! (thanks taxpayers ;-) )

.79 mile in 8:49 @ 11:09/mile

Last night I did a tri clinic group ride, which was a lot of fun. I rode there, did a quick run, then went on the ride in sort of a mentor/example/herder role, but got some great feedback on my form, technique, and abilities. The guy leading the ride is a Pro 1/2 racer, and he took me out for a quick lap to see my position and technique. He told me afterwards that I've improved tremendously over the last year, and looked great on the bike, but was a little cramped on the bars. I thanked him, and said I just didn't want to be boring for him. He laughed and said I had actually pushed him much harder than he wanted to go. Cool!

Stats: bike computer error (stupid rider) so no accurate data. ~27 miles in 1:27:54 combined time, with brick run in the middle @ 18.43mph average

It was a good time, and I look forward to helping out with the tri clinic that both Mendy and Scott will attend. Having just started this year, I hope to impart some "newbie" experiences and learning points to the clinic that perhaps more seasoned athletes have forgotten. Anyway, caught a ride home and went through the evening routine with Grace and preps for today. She was a little bear last night, but we survived and hopefully she'll be good for Grandma this weekend.

Progress! Lake Murray Sprint tri

Last night I was a bit concerned that I was still feeling some fatigue and soreness from Friday's activities. I tried to massage the muscles as best I could and get some sleep. At least I was able to massage some stiffness away; the night terrors remain for me on the eve of an event. I worry if I have forgotten something, dream of being totally confused about the first transition, and starting a run instead of a bike, etc. So, not a great rest Saturday night, but enough I suppose.

We arrive at the race site after weaving our way through the country roads, and they directed us to park up on top of an embankment since the parking lot was full. Uh hello! Can't they see we are in a low-slung sedan? So I eased up the hump and then gassed it hard, spinning the rear tires. I doubt I made my point, but I felt better! :-) Race preps seemed to take forever, and I was concerned I wouldn't get transition set up and my gear ready for the swim in time. No time for warm up by the time I got all my stuff together.


I did manage to get in the water early and at least do some treading water warm up (slow arm arcs, using chest, back, delts, and tris). I lined up in my customary outside spot for the in-water start, and then we were off. The swim went pretty well, and I did feel like I left some back. We were all blinded on the 2nd leg of the swim, going straight into the low-sitting sun. But it was a good swim and I was out of the water almost a full minute faster than last week at Clemson. I can say that this about the race: it was the first one where I tried to think ahead to the next phase much more, and began mentally preparing for the bike during the swim. I think that helped a lot. Stats: 15m30s 750m swim + 1m15s T1 - 93rd overall men

T1 seemed to take forever for some reason. Maybe I was just anticipating the next step too much. Anyway, I was on my bike and getting up to speed. Holy crap, it's chilly! It was about 53 deg, I would estimate. Roughly the same as Paris Island a couple of months ago. My knees felt chilly, and I wish I had put on arm and knee warmers. Oh well, I guess I better just push harder! I started getting my legs, and then started passing people. Several people with REALLY nice bikes and wheels dropped behind me. Then all of a sudden a pack of speedster caught up and passed me. Looks like I found my pace group! I stayed back out of draft range, but kept them in sight. I think one or two motored on, but about 3 of them didn't get away from me, and we all wound up trading the lead for about 10 miles of the race. I thought I was done for in the final 2 miles as 3 dudes passed me, but almost immediately I got my legs once again and started picking them off. At about 1 mile remaining, I went by the last one quite handily and never saw them again. Came screaming into the dismount line, and almost did an endo, but laughed it off and completed T2 fairly well. Stats: 42m 07s 16mile + 53s T2 - 33th overall men

The run started and I felt pretty flat and clumsy. I pushed really hard on the bike, and it was showing. It took over a mile to find a comfortable stride, but until then I felt like I was running backwards. I latched on to a 51yo dude and paced him. The course was small rolling hills, and actually pretty good. I cheered on those that I knew and tried hard to dig deep for that extra effort. With about 1/2 mile to go, I started a small kick, and let it grow as best I could. I made up some time and was feeling good. Had I known how close I was to the next highest finisher at the line, I would have found an extra effort. 5 seconds on the run, and only 4 seconds overall. Man, if that doesn't just kick you where it hurts. Stats: 21m 37s 5k - 69th overall men When the unofficial age group results were posted, I was 6th out of 25, and 48th out of 239 overall males. Wow! I'm getting there, and considering I was 4 seconds behind 5th, I'm making progress. I am starting to think that a longer course may benefit me, as I feel like I could have continued at the paces I had for much further, but getting faster than I currently am is taking time. I guess we'll see in 3 weeks: Festival of Flowers Olympic/International distance tri in Greenwood, SC!

After the awards, we ate a quick bite and headed to the MIL's house (Grandma) where Grace had spent the weekend. She was happy to see us, and I was happy to see her and the fabled hammock they had. After a nap, we ate some homemade tacos and later went home, but this was the best part of the day:Hope you all had a great weekend! I did, for sure. :-)

David

Clemson sprint tri

As promised...

So, we wake up at about 5:15 for the day's events. I say we woke up then, but I didn't really sleep much over the 5 1/2 hours I was in bed, mainly because of the b/a rating I assigned to this race. I was too wired to get to sleep, woke up a lot, and the stupid alarm broke the still air much too early. "Better get up and moving, so I'm not sluggish at the race," I thought to myself. Skin suit and tec shirt on, final (Grace) preps made, and we are out the door.

We made good time, and were on the highway with several other competitors - the only other idiots out on I85 with bikes strapped to their car at 6AM - and watched the increasing glow of sun through the overcast skies as we traveled through the very nice campus of Clemson University. Mendy was the expert navigator, and Grace gave us other observations from the back seat. I can't believe she stayed awake! What a trooper.

So, we get in and parked, and I started pulling my gear and bike from the car. I decided to just take everything at once, since I have a huge roll-behind bag that carries all my race and transition gear. I pick up my race packet, get marked, get Mendy and Grace settled, and start my transition area preps.

I see a few folks from my YMCA Clemson Tri clinic, and make small talk, wishing them all well. Lots of stuff to prep. The weather was looking great for the race, though. Not too hot, absolutely no wind, and not too humid...yet

Lots of stinkies in the port-a-potties, and tons of competitors. I briefly spoke with Chris Giordanelli, and Holly DiGiovine stopped by to chat before a warm-up ride. Hmmm, I may need to start warming up before these things. Grace, as always, is looking for lots of attention. I try to give her as much as possible before I disappear for a bit more than an hour. Uh oh, time to pull on the wetsuit and head toward the swim start. Hopefully our friends will arrive soon!

I head down to the beach, talk with Holly and her mom, chat with some more of the tri clinic folks, and take a quick dip in the water. We observed colors (the anthem was played), and it was race time! I was in the 4th wave, which gave me some time to analyze (worry about) the swim course, and my T1. I finally got in the water and felt okay. I was more focused on staying out of other swimmers' way than going fast, which may account partially for my dismal time (16:18 for 750m and a LONG run to transition). I also took my wetsuit off just before transition to keep from being in any one's way and limit my T1 time. Off on the bike!

The humidity had really skyrocketed by the time I got on the bike. It was a rather pedestrian course out to the road, and we got bunched up a bit. One dude passed me, whom I later passed when I got my stride. Like Chris detailed, it seemed to take a couple of miles for me to find my legs in this route. It was a decent route, but I wasn't in full stride until about 4.5 miles in, and really started picking people off. During one descent just past the airport, I was passing some folks and one drifted toward the center for no reason. I crossed one yellow line only, but I bet the infraction could have been noted had a course Marshall been there. I even called out, "On your left!" Oh well...

On to the run, which was a different course this year. T2 was 1m01s, which I was happy about. Mendy gave me some quick encouragement and advice, I gave a "How 'bout some of THIS" to Scott, and I was off. I was expecting a much better time on the run, but the course was challenging to me, and everyone I've heard from (at least near my level). "Holy crap, it's HUMID! I'm soaked. Are we ever going to see the turn-around?" As I reached the half way point of the race, I put the hat on back wards, a la the rally cap. Time to turn it on! So, I made my way back trying to play it smart. Some dude passed me, but he's not in my age group: Have a nice run, young punk! (Grrrrr) Running around my home gives me some hill experience, so when I encountered a couple of dudes in my AG I was able to pick them off on the hill. "Ahhh, striding out now!" One last climb toward the park, one more dude in my AG to pick off, and I'm feeling good. Really good!

It's go time! I enter the Y grounds, see a dude just ahead of me in my AG, and decide it's on like Donkey Kong. I pace up to him, and about 120m before finish start my attack. He reciprocated, but I went to full-on sprint. And kept speeding up. And up. Whoops, maybe I left too much back on this run. I crossed the finish flat-out hauling ass. Jeremy Davis of SetUp Events even commented that I was finishing strong. Of course, I thought I was going to vomit when I stopped, but it was totally worth it. I looked AWESOME at the finish! Ha ha ha.

I caught up with Mendy and Grace, got my props from Scott and Robin (all my homies and my bitches say "Hoh"), and somehow avoided passing out as I chatted with Jason and Bob. I look up and see the G-Man going for a run. Freak! We walked around and spoke with some other racers and joke about stuff. Good times.

All in all, it was a good race I suppose. I had hoped to place higher (of course), and thought my swim would be a bit faster. Must be my open water swim ability, I guess. Here's the breakdown:

Swim: 16:18 AG Rank: 20 T1: 0:51 Bike: 31:04 AG Rank: 8 T2: 1:00 Run: 22:06 AG Rank: 8

Final: 1:11:18 AG Rank: 9th

So, I'm not sure yet where the series rankings will fall out, but I suppose I'm kinda happy about my performance. Or at least the results. I need to focus on my training to improve my times, and I hope that competing in all races in the series will help my overall ranking. We'll see, and thanks for joining me on this journey!

David

Pre-race day

Well, it's the eve of the Clemson triathlon. This is probably one I would consider an "A" race, simply due to the depth of the field and subsequent high competition level. Now that I have (somehow) slipped into third in the series standings, I don't want to give it up. Yes, I do realize this is my first season, but that doesn't matter to me. I have the capability, so I must use it and not hold back. Time to pull out the stops.

But have I trained enough? All day it's felt like I haven't ran or done a brick or swam in well over a week, though it's been much shorter than that. Perhaps I'm ready to push through to a new level, or switch up some training aspects since the lack of mental impact may indicate a lack of effective physical impact from the last few workouts. So next week I'm going to shock the body with some pure speed work and a long run, a long ride (no intense brick), and some hard-core swim drills and speed work.

This is the first tri that I'm not in a hotel the night before, also. I have to keep reminding myself that when we leave tomorrow, it's race time. We aren't driving to the town and casually preparing for the race, that has to be done tonight. The up side is that I get to sleep in my own bed tonight. The down side is that we have to get up at the unholy time of 5:15. Now this is the normal start time for some of Robin and Scott's psycho runs, but it's just unnatural for me. But, we ate some chicken and a big pile of whole wheat pasta for dinner, and I'm enjoying some wine to help me sleep. Purely medicinal, I assure you! :-)

Perhaps some of the added importance of this race, besides trying to maintain my series standing, is that Scott and Robin will be there, and tonight Jason let me know he and his father-in-law and co-worker of mine (Bob) will be there to heckle me under the guise of cheering me on. Seriously, though, I know they are going WAY out of their way to come support me, and I appreciate it. It's a pretty awesome feeling, and I thank you guys!

So, some pre-race jitters I suppose. My biggest goal is not really a time, but to push myself to the point that I know I have reached my limit and given my all. We'll see if I do it, and what my performance brings in the way of results. I'm a bit leery of the rain forecast for tomorrow, and I guess I will run a touch lower tire pressure just in case. Gotta take the amber sunglasses for contrast and definition on the bike. Chain is lubed up with wet lube for the moisture. Chairs and shelter "tent" are packed. Tool roll, spare chain, bike and run shoes, wetsuit, race belt, water, Carb Boom gels, and tons of other stuff: all packed. Okay, I think I'm ready...

Time to go get 'em! I'll let you all know how it goes. Later!

David