Nation's Triathlon 2009

When I signed up for this year's Nation's Triathlon, both Aimee and Brian were planning on racing as well, the first Olympic distance race for each of them. Unfortunately Brian's legs, lower back and possibly sciatic nerve issues sidelined him for most of the year and put any training and racing on indefinite hold. Aimee, dealing with her big move (into my place and further from her job), tonsil removal, work and wedding travel, swine flu and the general stresses of a complicated (to say the least) relationship to a superior in the workplace was left with little time or motivation to train and prepare for the race as well.


While I continued to plan on racing, my motivation for the race was almost nonexistent. Between the Pittsburgh Triathlon and race I didn't manage to get to the pool to swim even once, barely touched my road bike (or my mountain bike for that matter) and only completed two "bricks" in the form of a mountain bike then trail run at Rosaryville last weekend and a few weeks earlier. That said, my expectations were not very high going into race day. My main thoughts were to be sure to take in enough fluid during the bike portion to avoid a repeat of last year on the run, and to beat Mayor Fenty again (last year I beat him by about 5 minutes).

I managed to keep myself well hydrated this year but unfortunately beating the (faster then last year) Mayor just was not in the cards.

The swim went better then expected and at about the half way point I felt like I really settled in to a solid pace. Aside from a kick in the right eye that suctioned my goggle to my eye harder then I ever knew was possible things were going well. At the very last buoy, turning back up river to the exit ramp my calf suddenly cramped up hard and fast and as I spun in the water to try to work it out my hamstrings began to cramp as well. After somewhat successfully working out the worst of the cramping I swam, legs dragging to the ramp and made my way out and over to transition.

T1 and the bike leg were uneventful overall though both very crowded with the race having doubled in size over 2008. Overall I felt strong and was moving well though while I was passing people on the uphill sections, others seemed to be hitting it harder on the downhill sections then I was. Possibly a result of the 10 lbs I've lost over the last month or so, leading to slightly better "climbing" but no real improvement in overall power?

Getting back to transition I heard my family (all of them with Aimee) cheering for me. The transition entrance was jammed with people and I might have been telling people to move and get going the whole way in; praising one rider I'd been back and forth with throughout the ride along the way.

The run started out a little bit rough as the calf muscles were still a bit tight and sore from the cramping. After a slow first mile though I began to feel a bit better and settled into a (probably overly) comfortable pace. With about a mile and a half remaining I picked it up after the 180 degree turn around and just kept trying to motivate myself with the I can run any pace for a mile and half. Coming into the last 2 tenths of a mile I hopped onto the coat tails of a 40+ running a brisk pace. I held there up to the last 100 yards or so where I coasted in to the finish, my family once again calling out their cheers of support from the sides.

In the end I lost about 1 1/2 minutes from last year in both the swim and the bike, but I made up those 3 minutes on the run. My transitions however were each about 1 minute slower then last year, in part probably due to the huge transition area and in part just due to me taking it a bit easier. Final time 2:27:53 compared to last year's 2:25:50 (which it should be said was a fairly different course).

bib number:	1834
age:	26
gender:	M
location:	Greenbelt, MD
overall place:	347 out of 3933
division place:	46 out of 392
gender place:	318 out of 2480
time:	2:27:53
pace:	0:
swim:	29:44
t1:	2:10
bike:	1:08:10
t2:	1:58
run:	45:54
penalty:	0:

Have to say I won't be doing this race next year since it was simply too big for me to really enjoy. Also I was a pretty big fan of the bike and run courses from last year that went around the mall and finished up Penn Ave with the Capital in the background. Apparently the overall displeasure of people with the finish being so far from transition overtook the novelty of the race being really in the Nation's Capital. Otherwise it was once again a well organized and run event with a wonderful atmosphere.

Big thanks to my family and Aimee for getting up early and coming down to see me after a late night watching the nail biter of a game that was USC vs Ohio State, a far cry from last year's romp at the Coliseum.

2009 Pittsburgh Sprint Triathlon - In words

You all already know I had some decent results Sunday at the Pittsburgh Triathlon, though I'd guess you're thinking I did better then I really did. So no, I did not win the overall race. I came in 6th overall but 1st in my age group, so a podium spot was mine none the less.

On top! (of the age group...)

The race was pretty fun for my first tri of the year and Cole and Teddy's first ever despite swimming in another river that the mere mention of brings cringing and questions of sanity (I really don't think its any worse then the Potomac). Standing on the shore watching the Olympic distance racers was pretty tough for some of the 1st timers out there. The long swim course went up river before turning around and heading back down to rejoin the sprint course and down river further to the water exit. Unfortunately the up river swim did not hug the shore as I would have expected but went right up the middle of the river.

Ever seen one of those swimming treadmills where the water flows and you swim to stay in place? Yeah, it was like that for a few poor souls.

Our start was good though. I got in quickly and got a very brief warm up in before the race started and we were off with the flow. I could tell I hadn't been swimming enough, but I also could tell I could have used a better warm up. Once I got settled in I swam consistently down to the exit. I drifted a bit swimming back across the river to the exit and probably lost some time trying to walk back up the slippery rocky ramp to the official exit area but overall I had a pretty good swim.

Swim:
9:51
31st Overall

Transition was quick and uneventful.

T1:
1:16

The bike was pretty cool, following the same highway I used to drive to get out to my old job at the home depot when I lived there, only in the HOV lanes. Going out was basically a false flat uphill +. I felt pretty good keeping a good cadence but still putting pressure on the pedals, and passing scores of people on the way. I battled a few people along the way, coming out on top of each one, though admittedly at least a few of them were out for the Olympic distance race which was two laps of the course. Coming back in we all were picking up some serious speed and a passing rain cell dumped stinging rain drops on us all as we topped out in the mid to upper 30's. I passed Teddy making a hard pass with a guy right behind me while going close to 40 on the aero bars down hill in the rain. I gave the slightest of a nod at that point.

Bike:
32:46
10th overall

Very quick T2, felt like I was forgetting something and stalled a moment while I decided if I was.

T2:
0:44

The run was up river along the river trail we used to run on for Crew back in the day, almost up to the island and then back. I kept my leg turnover high and just worked to keep my effort high. From the start of the run I could spot the racer ahead of me, a Pro Bikes guy (sponsors of the race) and so I set my sights on a steady catch. After about a mile I caught and passed him and shortly there after saw the leaders heading back in to the finish on the out and back course. I counted four and thought myself in a pretty comfortable position, though far enough back I wasn't catching any of them and I settled into a quick but sustainable pace. At the turn around I realized my previous pass was also being passed by another guy I'd battled on the bike. He was cruising up the path so I picked up my speed to try to hold him off as long as I could. His long gait and smooth running style got the best of me however with probably a mile to go and though I tried to stick him for the final mile he was way too fast. I settled back into my pace and finished strong without a sprint for the line since I was all alone as far back as I could see. I believe I was the 5th finisher but another competitor from the next wave I believe was faster to place me 6th overall.

Run:
21:40
16th overall

Cole and I enjoying the view from the podium!

It was a great feeling coming down into the well stocked lines of fans at the finish along the river, especially being so high up in the finishing order. Hearing everyone cheering just for me as I finished all alone there was pretty cool. I spoke briefly with the guy who passed me on the run and told him he did a great job and went back to watch for Cole and Teddy to follow. Cole came in super strong for 21st overall and Teddy came in a bit later for his first tri finish as well. All things considered here, they both did awesome! Next time Cole's going to be VERY hard to beat and well, if Teddy will actually train a little bit he'll be right there as well. The only thing that would have made this race better would have been a sweep of the podium for us Duquesne Crew boys. There's always next time...

Acknowledging the Duquesne Crew shout out from Pat's father who competed in the relay category. Sweet!

Oh yeah, and Cole at least is all about next time... Another convert.

Pittsburgh Tri

Me, Teddy and Cole post race.

No words yet here on this but here are some shots for a general idea of how the race went.

Cole and I representing the Duquesne Crew team. Yes, there were a handful of Carnegie Mellon rowing alumni in the race as well. Just like the old days of kicking their butts.

Back to the (attempted) start

This coming Sunday, the 26th I'll finally be participating in the Pittsburgh Triathlon. Two years ago I made a big fuss over signing up for the race that year for what would have been my first triathlon. Then, playing bike polo I crashed, hurt my shoulder and fell off my swimming and training in general pretty hard and gave up on that race.


A few years ago a couple of my closest buddies from college and I headed down to Virginia Beach to run the Shamrockfest Marathon. In the same spirit I invited them to try out the Pittsburgh tri with me this year and they were game. Their training got a bit waylaid by life (school, impending doom marriage, work, etc...) and we collectively decided on the new sprint distance.

While for the marathon we intentionally stuck together for the majority of the race, this time we'll be on our own once we hit the water. I'm feeling pretty good on the bike and running right now so I think I should be able to do fairly well. The swim is only 600 meters too so a sprint it truely is. Hopefully my buddies will enjoy the tri as much as I have and will be hooked and joining me for more down the road.

This is not an April fools joke-Those are over spent

Why can't check card theft just be an April Fools day joke? Apparently someone with a UPS online account jacked my card info and spent the day making small charges on my account. We'll see how this plays out. Hopefully I can pay mortgage tomorrow...

Otherwise, the shoulders are still sore and I still feel like I've got to pop my chest back into place a little bit. It basically just feels like a slightly misaligned spine does before someone pops it for you, but it's kind of more in my chest... Strange.

It's not holding me back too much though. My running has felt great and on Monday night I got in a decent swim at 3000 yards. I can feel the spots during swimming but it's not detracting from much. Running on the other hand things feel pretty good; looser then normal for the most part. After CB I'll probably continue ramping up the mileage.

That's right. That sexy tanned beast (aka the black guy? Damn I'm tan!) is yours truly. Cole's at stroke and Teddy is behind me in bow. Miss those days like nothing other. Miss those guys like nothing other as well.

In other news, I've managed to convince a couple of my boys from crew to do the Pittsburgh triathlon with me. These are the same two guys I did the Shamrockfest Marathon with a couple of years ago. Great people and lots of fun to hang with. Can't wait to get up there and see them! I think they'll really love the racing. They're still deciding between the sprint and Olympic but I don't see any reason they can't do the Olympic... Although considering the panic attack I had on the open water swim my first tri I can certainly understand the choice to do the sprint...

Other upcoming races, 12 Hours at Lodi Farms with a 3 man squad from DCMTB. Otherwise the slate is officially open with a number maybes and likelys in there for the season. Need to find out if Brian is planning on doing the Kinetic Sprint down at Lake Anna this year...

Tri Newbie Kickin some ass

On Saturday Aimee did her first triathlon! Woohoo!

She competed in the Giant Acorn Sprint Tri down at Lake Anna and did a great job. Her training for the race was pretty spotty at best so she was getting pretty nervous about it beforehand but I knew she'd be fine. My biggest fears for her were what her comfort level (or lack there of) would be on the bike around all the other riders and any cars she might encounter on the course.

We got to the race around 8:30 am and got her all set up in transition. Transition area rules were super lax so I was able to go in and help her get set up. After she set up and pulled on the wetsuit she basically said she had no desire to do the race anymore. The pre-race jitters were really setting in on her. She started in the second swim wave and with her pink accented wetsuit and massive goggles I was able to spot her for almost the entire course. Pretty cool! She came out of the water looking great and finished in excellent time.

As she came out of transition she also looked strong running with the bike. The bike course hit a sharp though short little rise right away and she struggled up it as she tried to get her feet into the straps and then was gone. I went back to my truck and grabbed Cass who was patiently waiting for my return and headed back to play for a bit before Aimee got back on the back. I was assuming she'd be about an hour for the 12 mile ride but since I didn't have a watch or clock of any kind I had no idea how much time had passed. I probably started looking for her after about a half an hour so by the time she'd come in I created plenty of horrible scenarios in my head, all of which ended up in her hating me for the rest of her life.

Turns out she did the ride with no problems and I was spared the life long hatred for another day. Looking strong she rode by and headed into transition. Coming out on foot she hit the pavement looking great with a big smile and a wave. Cassie and I moved over towards the finish to watch her come in and cheered her on as she passed. Aside from low blood sugar she said she felt good at the finish and was pretty pleased with her result. Someone had grabbed her Hammer Gel from transition so she struggled a bit because of that and she said she got bored out on the bike course but otherwise enjoyed it.

We obviously have a very different outlook on racing since I'd never get bored during a race so I struggled to understand that a bit. But I think she's going to find some friends to train and race with and she says she plans to do more next year. Actually I believe an Olympic (specifically Nation's) is in her eye for next year.

Jerseyman 70.3 Race Report

So, now that you know I survived and even finished; I suppose all 2 of you that may read this want to know all about the race! Or not, but here it is anyway. ;-)

The morning started off a bit dreary and foggy as Brian and I set up our transition areas, got marked and eventually made our final preparations. Brian's Sprint race was supposed to start at 7:30 and my Half at 8 though registration issues delayed the sprint start until closer 7:50. I saw Brian off and then cheered him out of the water. He looked good and had a great swim, especially for his first ever race! My race was delayed an additional 30 minutes or so due to apparent thunder that I never heard, though otherwise I doubt I'd have seen Bri finish the swim.

When our race finally was cleared to start we made our way through the shoot and to the water's edge and quickly heard 45 seconds to the start. I managed to find a great spot between two people and had a very strong start, putting myself easily in the top 15 of my 50+ person wave start. I saw a group forming up to my right so I made my way onto the feet of one of the guys in it. I kept my place in the draft for a couple of minutes before losing it and just going on my way. Throughout the swim I drafted where I could and just worked on keeping a nice steady pace throughout. At times I felt like due to a stronger follow through with my right arm I was drifting to the left, though I think it was less pronounced then I believed during the swim. A number of the people I was basing this thought on swam way right of the bouy's and finish area so my thoughts were a bit skewed on that.

I got out of the water feeling good and made my way up the beach while working off the top half of my suit. Running by my parents, sister and Aimee was great as they cheered for me. I even smiled for the first time during a race! T1 was pretty slow as I struggled to get my left leg out of the suit over the timing chip. Once out I got my stuff set for the bike and was gone.

Swim: 38:40 (heard the swim course was a bit long, possibly as much as 1.4 miles...)
47th overall on the swim.

T1: 2:49

The bike started off a bit slowly and we hit some general rollers basically right away so it was good for warming up the legs but it felt like a slow start. Once I got rolling I started to feel better, got my first on bike gel in me and settled in for the long bike. I also focused on taking in liquids, despite the relatively cool and wet conditions compared to Nations' I didn't want to have a repeat of my near total meltdown two weeks prior. The roads were mostly very nice and the scenary was definitely beautiful. The heavily hyped Frenchtown was a bit of a joke, being at the bottom of one of the steepest declines in the race and being an extremely tiny little town. The course also took an immediate left upon entering the town; I along with a number of other riders missed this left as I was more focused on navigating the somewhat heavy traffic that was held up around the turn. Luckily I caught my mistake quickly, turned around and then saw the volunteer standing silently pointing to the turn... Seriously, completely silent... Never said a word as I went past the turn or as I watched others do the same while retracing my steps to find it.

The covered bridge which was also heavily built up in the race description was also highly overrated though the scenary leading up to it was great. The rest of the ride was uneventful and continued on with some light rollers that I struggled somewhat up, though not much worse then anyone else around me. Rode back into the park and before I knew it I was back in the dismount zone, one shoe off the other still on.

I tore into the transition area threw my bike up on the rack happily noting I was one of the first 20 bikes to return pulled on my running shoes and took off. All the while my "fan club" (including Brian who'd finished by then) cheered and screamed me on. One of the head race organizers even called out that I had the best fan base at the race. It really was great to have them there cheering, and especially cheering for me specifically. That's a first for me.

Bike: 2:51:38
24th overall bike

T2: 0:56
Very smooth transition

I went out fairly easy on the run, not sure just how much I could give it without blowing up. I got to run by my "fan club" again as the course looped around and came back by transition and I gave a little skip in direct defiance of the stated "run, walk or crawl" rule for the run portion and then was on my way for the long slog along the wet streets. The rain had come down steadily and sometimes heavily during the bike portion so some areas had standing or even running water across the streets. The run course followed the bike course out for about 6 and a half miles before turning around and coming back. Since none of the roads were closed off to cars it seemed a bit scary at times but as far as I know there were no incidents. There were also no mile markers so I based my milage on water stations being at about every mile. I later found out they were ever 1.5 miles so I was undercounting, which I had absolutely no problem with, especially when it became apparent i had much less distance to go to the finish.

About half way through the run I started walking at the water stations to drink before resuming my running; a practice I adopted from two runners I'd been trailing the entire run. Finally at about mile ten I caught and passed on of them and then held on for the finish. The final quarter mile I felt great; I opened up the stride a bit and strode into the finishing stretch. Holding back tears of general exhaustion and happiness I smiled yet again for the family and crossed the line just under 5 and a half hours later. I got a finishers medal, wrapped up, in a plastic bag...

Run: 1:49:24
55th overall run

Overall Time: 5:23:25
Overall Rank: 31st
Male Rank: 29/158
Age Group: 5/12

8:22 pace was a bit slower then I'd hope for, though I'm far from dissapointed with it, especially being my first time at this distance. In my age group I was somewhat excited to see that all the guys that beat me were later 20's so I've still got time. 2 29 year olds, a 28 year old and a 27 year old. Look out late 20's, here I come! :)

Aimee made me a homemade "1/2 Iron Man" trophy which I was presented with and more pictures were taken. Overall Aimee had 300 + from the day. My soaking stuff was thrown together and then into my bin in the back of my truck, goodbyes were said and Aimee drove us back to the hotel were we stayed the rest of the gloomy and rainy day, reading and watching movies and eating pizza.

All in all an excellent 1st 70.3 experience and while the race may not have been the most well planned (card stock bike numbers don't stay on in the rain; instead they get in the cassete) and organized race out there it was still a solid race in my opinion. I may not choose to return to it specifically again, though there is no doubt I'll be doing another 70.3.

The big shibang!

So, that's it. It's over. Life as I knew it now resumes.

It feels good... to a degree.

I enjoy being finished, though I already miss the buildup a little.

The race was fun and I did about what I expected in my first. Cheers, to a successful first season in the Triathlon. I may actually feel comfortable calling my a triathlete now for the first time. Somehow, completing a couple of sprint tri's just didn't seem like enough to say the word.

Nation's Triathlon 2008

Another race, another recap. Up until yesterday I'd only done sprint triathlons so I was eager to see what I could muster in an Olympic. Today, I'm thankful as I learned a very important lesson, despite the fact that it's something I've been told my entire life.

The race start/transition area was a bit tough for easy access, especially after a bit of plan shuffling on my end. The shuttle from the expo hotel turned out to be extremely helpful and proved to be much less of a hassle then I expected. The early morning drive down New York Avenue heading parking was beautiful with a huge bright orange moon behind a few passing clouds to distract my tired eyes and mind from the task ahead. (USC vs Ohio State was on late Saturday night and I'm a USC fan... :)

Once down to transition I got my things set up at my transition spot, row 12 2nd bike from the main artery... sweet! Grabbed my wetsuit and goggles and set out to wait in the forever lines at the port a johns. Jumping into the Potomac for my 7:20 am wave start was hardly as eventful as I imagined and aside from the feeling of being drug and clustered into a large pack along with the rest of my wave I felt good waiting for the start.

People were pretty courteous in my start group since we were so smashed together and went easy on the kicking until things cleared out a bit. My swim was by far the best I've had, a testament to my thoughts that the longer I swim the better I feel in general. The Sprints don't tend to be long enough to really get into a grove. Also for the first time I was able to really work on drafting, finding someone right around my speed or slightly faster to chase. I've also worked a bit on my sighting since watching the Olympic tri swims which was evident until the final buoy which I couldn't spot along with the rest of the swimmers.

Swim: 28:08

T1: 1:25

The bike route was so great and my worries about the sharp turns were completely unfounded. Totally flat and fast, my legs felt good and my average speed was staying strong. The shade along Clara Barton Parkway was great and everything was very easy to navigate.

This is where the lesson began. Usually when I first get onto the bike in the sprint tri's I eat my first gel however this time I jammed one down between my cage and water bottle so I wouldn't have to start on the bike with it hanging out of my mouth. As I biked and continued to feel great I didn't want to lose my momentum by slowing to grab and eat my gel and so because of that I also never took my water out and drank from that bottle. I had one bottle of water and one of Accelerade which I drank most of. On a sprint course I generally down most of 2 bottles of liquids so the longer course and my insanely high sweat rate called for even higher water intake which obviously didn't happen. On a day projected to reach the mid to upper nineties this was about as big a mistake as I could possibly make.

Bike time: 1:06:26

T2 time: 0:59

Now starting the run I was feeling thirsty, even after gulping a bit from a spare bottle in my transition area. I found myself actively looking for water stations for the first time in my life in a race. I finally remembered to start my watch on the run and felt pretty decent to start clocking my first mile at somewhere around 6:45, just a bit off my usual sprint pace. My second fell quickly to just over 7 minutes and I turned in a similar time for my third. That however was where any good news ended. I started to seriously struggle to keep the legs moving and my splits dropped to near 8 by 4 miles in. At this point I started running over in my mind how I'd be talking about myself imploding around mile 3 or 4. Mentally and physically I was beginning to break down.

I continued to struggle along watching runner after runner pass me including a number that I'd passed convincingly on the bike and even earlier in the run. I felt completely deflated but I kept shuffling on determined not to let myself walk. I don't particularly remember feeling the heat as an issue but I know it didn't help. The last two turn arounds were hell, especially the last on Pennsylvania Ave where the finish was just right there but you still had to run all the way down the other way first.

Running the final stretch I caught a glimpse of my girlfriend on the side cheering me on. She wasn't supposed to be able to make it so that was a big help. I trotted in the last 2 tenths and stumbled through the finish area; never in my life having felt so happy to find cold water in my hand and down my back.

Run time: 48:54

Overall: 2:25:50
Overall Rank: 112
Age Group Rank: 16

Valuable life lesson rating: 9.8 out of 10

In the post race festival area I stood around just feeling aweful. I could hardly do much of anything such as put together a coherent thought or figure out what to do. My skin was covered in goosebumps and I was almost certain I was going to throw up what ever water I had left in me. Watching people eating the pizza provided almost did me in. I down a few bottles of Powerade and some more of water. 5 Hours later and multiple bottles of water later I was still dehydrated and still struggling to force myself to eat anything. Even this morning after about 15 hours of sleeping I was still dehydrated.

While it was a pretty crappy thing to put myself through, I'm extremely happy I learned the lesson out the yesterday. With the Jerseyman 1/2 IM coming up in less then 2 weeks it was a very valuable lesson. I know that had the run been any longer yesterday I likely would have been headed to the hospital with heat stroke or worse; better hydration and nutrition is a must for a half ironman.

1st Annual Greenbelt Sprint Tri

Around the time this year when I first started training for a triathlon with my brother in law I decided that Greenbelt would be an ideal location for a sprint triathlon. The swim would have to be in a pool (which some may consider a benefit), but aside from that the location would be perfect. I started bouncing the idea around of organizing a tri there with some friends and they all seemed interested. So, while I won't be holding any kind of official event, I'm excited to announce the 1st (unofficial) annual greenbelt sprint (training/fun) triathlon!

While the date is not official yet, I'm looking at a date of October 25th and a "cost" ranging from $5 to $25 to $30 depending on the number of people who can make it. If enough people can/want to do it I'll set up to get shirts made for it so it'd be a bit more, though otherwise it'd just be the $5 to cover the pool usage fee.

If you'd be interested feel free to drop me a line and let me know. It really is a just for fun kind of event so there is no pressure to do well or even have any kind of triathlon background. If you've just ever wondered if you could do one or if you'd even enjoy it this is the event for you...

Swim -
500 Meters at the Greenbelt Aquatic Center

Prospective Bike Route (TBD)
Out Research Rd through the Beltsville Ag Center

Prospective Run Route
2 Laps around Greenbelt Lake (Buddy Attick Lake Park)

Prospective Bike Route (TBD)
Out Research Rd through the Beltsville Ag Center

NJ State (Sprint) Triathlon

Did the NJ state triathlon on Sunday in and around the very pleasant Mercer County Park. Since the race started at 7:30am and packet pickup was required the previous day I drove and split a hotel room with another DCTri guy, Rudy. I kind of liked the general organization I was forced into because of this, though I'd still prefer my own bed (and free accommodations). After a 5 + hour drive that should have been 3 I made packet pickup with a 1/2 to spare and then hit the DCTri dinner of pasta and salad. Perfect pre-race experience and I got to meet a few more DCTri'ers which is always a good thing.

Got everything set up that night and got to bed around 9:30 or so. Didn't sleep great but that's pretty much my M.O. the night before a race. Woke up to a bagel, cliff bar and headed to the course. Set up my transition area and walked the swim to T1 course, the T1 to bike course and back to T2 and finally the T2 to run. Pretty simple and straightforward so I downed half a banana and headed to the swim start about 300 meters down the shore. Got a nice 250 or so meter warm up in the water to try and get rid of the initial shock of the swim.

My wave started 3rd and I did what I could to tread towards the front of the pack. The start was a bit crazy and the swim was the most aggressive I've done yet. A lot of pulling, scratching and general crap going on in the water by people all over. I felt like I was swimming alright but despite my efforts to go a bit harder then I usually have I still ended up 90th overall on my swim time. I swam up on the group in front of mine but that just made things more difficult since at no time during the swim could I get clear of the rest of the pack. Not sure if that was due to the short distance or what.

500 meter swim: 8:25
Overall Swim Rank: 90
T1: 1:49

T1 felt like it took me forever, though I'm really not sure why. It took too long to put on my helmet glasses and race belt but it shouldn't have. I may have just been a bit winded from the run from the lake since I sprinted past a few people on the way up the hill.

The bike course was a great fast and flat course made for high speeds. It did feel like there was a pretty solid headwind the entire way but I feel like I had a pretty good ride. I continuously passed people on the course, some on mountain bikes and some on sweet tri-specific rigs with aero helmets (or sperm helmets as my girlfriend likes to call them) and zipps. If I had to guess I'd say I rolled up at least 50 riders though I wouldn't be surprised if that were a low ball estimate. The course was packed and I was certainly not surprised to see some drafting penalties issued from what I saw. A couple of times I dolled out some watch the drafting warnings when I'd pass some larger groups of riders. Probably should have ridden the turns a bit more aggressively but with the number of riders that were on the course, and more importantly the number of shaky riders, I stayed a bit more reserved. At the finish of the bike I pulled my feet out of the shoes since there was a longer and somewhat hillier re-entry to t2 which went smoothly though may have taken a bit longer then necessary and a few guys I'd just passed passed me back to the dismount.

11.5 Mile Bike: 29:00
Speed: 23.8 MPH
Overall Rank: 16th
T2: 1:14

T2 was better then T1 though still should have been faster. I had a little trouble getting a hold of the lace to pull it tight with the new lace system but not too serious. Should be solidly under 1 minute in both transitions though, especially t2.

The run portion I wanted to make sure I didn't go out too hard since I didn't know the course at all and at General Smallwood I basically cracked from going out to hard to start. I felt pretty good on the start though didn't get moving too quickly. I still was moving well though and was running down people in front of me pretty regularly. I noticed one guy ahead who was keeping a steady distance between us and made it my goal to pick him off. It took probably 2 and a half miles but I did manage to catch him. During the middle of the run I definitely lost focus as my stomach bloated a bit from trying to throw what I thought was water but was actually heed down my throat. The cold towels at the aid station felt incredible though despite the fact it wasn't nearly as hot as it could have been. When I caught my goal runner I ended up unfocused and just running right behind him for a little bit before waking up mentally and picking up the pace to run by and drop him quickly. My final mile was almost definitely my fastest as I regained my focus a bit more there but still I didn't break the 20 minute mark. The fastest runner on the day ran a 15:59 (overall winner) followed by 17:11 (2nd overall) so I've definitely got some room to improve on my running. The fitness is there though, it's just the mental part that kills me.

5k Run time: 20:47
Pace: 6:42
Overall Rank: 32

Overall another solid race with with strong run and bike and a somewhat less then stellar swim.

Overall Time: 1:01.14
Overall Placement: 15th out of 1020 finishers
Overall Men: 14th out of 549
Division (Men 25-29): 2nd (3rd?) out of 33

The second I assume was out of registered age groupers in my division while the 3rd is overall age group. The first place in my age group was 2nd overall (7+ minutes faster then me) and the 2nd place of my age group was 4th (about 5 mins faster) though so I've got some serious work to do on catching those guys... Once again though I see where the time can come off when I put my mind to it. Mentally I need to get better on both the bike and run (especially the run) and physically I have GOT to work on my swim!

Results Links: Overall
Division

No pics up yet... Brightroom was there though. I was bib 352.

Sunday I got my first ever "podium" finish in a race (aside from my single greenbelt C race win), though it was only in my age group. I did the General Smallwood Sprint Triathlon down in Indianhead, MD and had a pretty decent time of it. I slept horribly the two nights before (like a grand total of maybe 4 hours) and didn't eat well Saturday but luckily that didn't come back to haunt me too much. I think I felt it, especially in the bike when I was mentally losing my drive a little bit but I managed to get through it.

The swim was pretty fun and interesting. The water was 85 degrees so wetsuits were banned. I'd luckily gone out the day before and picked up a singlet which I liked a lot more then my two piece and it definitely was a lot better for drag in the swim. The grass was filled with a lake sea grass that was thankfully not slimy since I swam through every single tall clump out there on the way back in. Despite my lack of swimming since Nanticoke I did well; not as well as I'd thought but well enough. Swim was 3rd age group and 24th overall.

The run from the swim finish to the transition area was a bit of a trek which I practically sprinted and not pulling off a wetsuit was pretty great. My T1 time was 2nd AG and 5th Overall.

The bike portion could have been a bit better for me this time. I went out pretty solidly but pretty quickly hit some rollers that hit back. I gave a bit more in the swim and the run to transition took a bit out of me as well so the hills which caught me by surprise were a bit of a bear to get through. I was still moving and passing people all over so I didn't feel too bad mentally yet. The turn for the Olympic vs Sprint almost caught me off guard but I noticed the markings at the last second and went the right way. Now after passing one more person I was out alone for a while before someone was in sight behind me. I could tell the guy was catching up and this is where i started losing mentally.

I was pretty physically drained at this point and this started to break me down mentally as well. After he passed I saw a whole slew of guys coming up. When they passed I finally realized they were the leaders from the Olympic distance and not my competition so I relaxed a bit and got my mind back under control. I finished up the bike strong catching a couple of guys who'd caught me previously, dismounted on the fly and ran into transition. Bike was 3rd AG and 11th Overall.

My second transition was also fairly quick, 3rd AG and 10th Overall.

Hitting the run leg I was immediately excited when I realized my calves weren't cramping up like they'd always done previously so I ended up going out pretty hard and passing a few guys. The we hit the hills again and I slowed drastically. One or two of the guys I passed ended up coming around me with one in my sprint race. Hit the turn around and then turned off the main road onto some "off-road" trails which also caught me by surprise. I pretty much coasted through the run, consistently losing time to the guy in front of me but keeping an eye on the guy behind and making sure he didn't catch me.

Came through the finish in 8th overall with 2nd in my age group. Overall pretty satisfying race though I know I can do better. Always room for improvement and this race was certainly no excepption. I'd like to think that with a couple of good nights' rest I'd have been a bit more mentally capable of overcoming things in a couple of places but how much of a difference that would have made in my placement I don't really know.

I stuck around for my first awards ceremony (well over 2 hours after I finished in the blistering sun without knowing anyone there) and got a folding chair for my time. It felt good to get called up though I'm not sure I'd want to stick around that long again for the ceremony. I guess though since I've lost all my chairs before now it was good to get a new one.

Age Group Results

Overall Results

Photos will soon be here

Oh and if you feel like looking:

Pics from Kinetic Sprint

Pics from Nanticoke Sprint

T2 - A marked improvement

My second triathlon showed the marked improvement I was looking for, though there is certainly still room for improvement. My largest time cuts were realized, most notably in the swim and 2nd transition where some adjustments and better prep were evident yesterday. I also managed a better pace in the run and posted a solid bike performance as well. There are a couple of things that happened that should certainly not have and cost me a few seconds here or there like my tool pouch jumping out of my back pocket on the way out of the 1st transition and trying to run out the bike entrance for my run portion. That said, I'll take my 9th overall placement for now. I unfortunately just barely missed the top three in my age group coming in a close 4th to the 8th place overall competitor.

The swim went fantastic in comparison to the last one. I felt much more comfortable swimming in the group and I must have had a bit better control of my heart rate because breathing was far less of a problem. I was still breathing every other stroke but I was not panicking for breath. The water was very choppy and it was a salt water swim so that was a bit new but I swam consistently and relatively efficiently with long easy strokes. Overall I came out of the water in 27th place so I'm not too disappointed with that. Room for improvement by far but a good base to start from.

The 1st transition was a bit sloppy but still was a solid 2 minute job. I may need to look into some shoes that are easier to put on and may want to practice wetsuit removal. I also think the pre-clipped shoes may be something I should look into.

The bike was a nice flat course with some somewhat strong headwinds that hurt me a little bit. For the first half of it I battled it out with two other cyclists, each of us taking turns passing each other but not really able to put each other away. After about half the way through heading into some headwinds I began to fade back and slowly faded away from the two of them. I held on though, passed a few more riders and held off any other potential advancers and finished with the 10th fastest bike time overall.

The bike to run transition I dropped over a minute off my time from the last race, mostly due to the zip tie shoe laces. I did however have a bit of a brain fart and started to try to run out the bike lane before a spectator yelled at me and got me back on track.

The run started off very poorly as both calves started to cramp up big time. I was actually thinking I wouldn't be able to do much of anything and actually stopped a couple of times to message my calves and try to work out the cramping. After a couple of minutes however they loosened up and I was able to open up my stride again. The biker that finished first of the two I was battling earlier was not as strong a runner as biker so I picked him off almost immediately. I passed a few others and had my sights on the other cyclists from the group for the remainder of the run.

I ended up finishing just behind him though despite my initial closing of the gap, he held a consistent lead through the finish line. My run time was 12th overall at a 6:30 something pace. I know I can do better then that and I'm a bit disappointed once again that I didn't dig deeper for this final section, but once again here lies some more room for improvement.

It's a bit of a disappointment as well to have come so close to my mental goal of at least placing in my age group, though in my own defense I was thinking about races with the Elite category (I know, a bit of a cop-out but still). I know where I need to and can improve so that is the important thing. One thing that I really enjoyed was being one of the "toppish" contenders out there. Running by the leaders, knowing I was only a short distance behind is a pretty good feeling which I certainly don't get from my usual road running races at my average guy pace. It's cool that my combined slightly above average abilities can produce a near top result too...

Day two of hell: Kinetic Sprint Tri

So what Saturday held in the way of glorious outside weather, Sunday made up for. At 9am it was rainy and 70 degrees (thank god it wasn't colder) and I stood around mostly in a daze watching other people prepare their things for the Kinetic Sprint Triathlon.

Let me back up here, I want to make sure you all understand just how hard I am and all that jazz (or what a complete idiot I am I'm not sure I've decided yet). I got home Saturday night/Sunday morning from the Leesburg Bakers Dozen around 1am, unpacked the loads of things I had in the truck bed, took a much needed shower and crashed somewhere around 2am. Though I had 4 separate alarms set for around 5:30/6 am not a single one actually worked, though the light sleep I was in allowed me to wake up on my own around 6:15.

Got on the road about 15 minutes late but traffic was a breeze aside from the constant moderate rainfall and I got down to the race site, aka mud pit with plenty of time to spare. Unfortunately my hazy mind in the am didn't allow for any additional rain gear or gear in general as I just grabbed the bag I'd prepacked and headed out the door. So, my transition area was my small suitcase (yes I really mean suitcase) covered by my only jacket to keep the few remaining dry items I had from being soaked.

With help from some other more experienced tri-folks I managed to squeeze on the wetsuit and headed down to the swim area. I was really just in a haze, watching the people around me, picking out the guys in my age group that were going to kick my ass and the guys I'd hopefully beat. When we lined up in the starting area I stood mid-pack, silently watching and listening. The suddenly 30 seconds, 15 seconds, Go! We ran through the shallows and then waded/swam until we were away from the ground. Getting going here was pretty awful though it wasn't the rough, kicked in the face experience I was expecting. The hardest part of the group open water swim for me was the increasingly choppy water and my general inability to breath without taking in a full mouthful of water.

In practicing I'd been breathing every third stroke, alternating sides, but now I couldn't possibly make it more then every two to the same side. Even that for the first half of the swim wasn't working for me. For the first half I spent a majority of the time working a slight breast stroke trying to stay away from the flailing arms and legs surrounding me. My foggy head didn't help me here but it seemed like every time I swam free I'd run into people and then catch a mouthful of water and choke, so I just sat back and went. I even spent a small amount of time on my back just catching my breath. For the second half of the swim and especially the final third I felt much better and swam easily back to the beach. Not sure if it was because we were more spaced out or if I just loosened up finally but I certainly wish I'd managed that for the entire swim portion. On the other hand I distinctly remember not being able to close my fingers into a cup because they were so cold; the best I could get was a Spock live long and prosper thing.

Swim time: 16:55 for 187th place overall men. Ouch... I knew I was a bad swimmer but damn.

Anyway, out of the water and onto transition 1 was very smooth. The suit peeled off without a problem and I threw on the bike shoes and helmet and ran to the bike start. I meant to bring glasses, tire repair kit, tube and repair tool as well but I was just happy I remembered the helmet and a gu which I downed in the first minutes of the bike. I started gobbling guys up left and right that had swum faster then me and was suddenly feeling pretty good. I could feel snot and spit all over my face but that was inconsequential at that point.

The course was relatively flat and smooth and speed was easy to come by. Surprisingly my legs felt solid and produced a good deal more power then I was afraid of. For the bike portion I averaged just under 22 miles an hour which was right about where I expected to be. The position on the aero bars felt great and despite the rain pelting my body I loved my time on the bike. I was probably a bit delirious at times as I remember snot and drool hanging from my face as I stared down the riders ahead of me, laughing out loud to myself whenever I'd catch someone. The people riding towards me probably thought I was possessed or something watching my face, but hey I was moving.

Bike time: 49:46 for 57th overall men. Not too bad.

After the bike my transition, while still seemingly respectable was pretty poor at 2 minutes flat. Putting on my shoes was no problem but tying the laces proved to be nearly impossible. My fingers were essentially frozen by this point so getting them to do what I wanted was a battle in and of itself. When I ran across the pad I could feel my legs were pretty exhausted but I managed to pick up the pace a little bit and enjoyed the cheering on lookers for the first 100 yards of the run. Then I turned up the short steep hill which turned into a steady false flat my somewhat quick pace out of the blocks quickly plummeted to slow plod.

The run was pretty awful and I got passed by a handful of guys. I'd look back and see someone and tell myself to pick up the pace, increase my cadence but nothing would happen. I just couldn't get my legs to move faster. So I plodded along and gave what I had. The finishing stretch was a bit downhill where I finally managed to pick up my cadence a bit. I heard some footsteps coming from behind so I tried extra hard to pick up the pace even more and then once we hit the flats before the finish I opened up my legs into a longer more hectic (and probably significantly less graceful) stride and held off the next guy through the finish. I didn't puke at line, though I almost fell over a few times and I did feel like I was going to during the run a couple of times. Eh, maybe next time.


Run time: 21:42 for 72nd overall men. Not terrible but I KNOW I can run much faster then that, even after all that other crap. I should at least have been putting in 7 minute miles.

And the grand whopping total time for the day: 1:32:36 for 76th place overall men. Not to bad out of 365 finishers though not quite what I'd dreamed about in my "new guy breaks into the tri scene with x place at the Kinetic Sprint!" day dreams. Notice only 1 x... just kidding, I didn't really have that bad of delusions. On the other hand after a bit of counting I found out I did manage a solid 7th place in my registered category men 25 - 29. SWEET! Looks like there is hope for me after all!

So now I'm gunning for my category, and outlining on my head where I'll be shaving time in my next rendition. The swim of course will be an easy place to shed some minutes. I should for one be more prepared for the start next time and hopefully with a full night's rest ahead of time and a slightly less battered and bruised and exhausted body I'll be able to keep a steady pace throughout the swim. Conservatively I'll say I should easily be able to cut 3 minutes off my swim time. Less conservatively I'd say 4 but I'm not going to hold my breath for now.

Next my bike to run transition. I saw a guy that came in after me across the rack from my area take off in seconds; I'm guessing he wasn't tying his shoes manually. So, quick tie shoelaces are a must. Conservatively I'd say there is a solid 30 seconds, better yet I'd think a full minute would be possible.

My running? I can at the very least run some 6:45 minute miles. Brick work outs are in my future for sure. Conservatively I'll give myself another minute here, though considering the run is the final section and it's only a 5k I'd less conservatively give myself 2 minutes here. There is no reason for me to be standing after I finish so I need to give every last bit I have during this final leg of the race.

As for the swim to bike transition and the biking, I could almost see myself loosing a little bit of time. The transition was almost flawless I felt and while maybe I could save some time with a couple of small adjustments I think I did pretty well there. I would like to remember some supplies in case the inevitable happens and I need to change a tire. As for the bike, my little zone I was in really helped a lot. Hopefully I'll be able to recreate that and with fresher legs I won't have the slight bonk I had on one of the hills after crossing over the lake the last time. It was minor but it probably could have shaved a few seconds. I'm hopeful I can shave some time off the bike leg but I'm very satisfied with the effort and outcome of my performance there.

So, conservatively I'm shaving 4:30 off my time just on body fatigue and general mental awareness for the next time out. That result over the weekend would have placed me just in the top 50 overall, 5th in my age category. Less conservatively I drop 7 full minutes which would have put me just into the top 30, 2nd in my category by just a few seconds by just over a minute. If I then manage to cut on the bike and second transition I could easily be looking at a 1st place age group finish here.

All that said, the elite men category includes a number of heavy hitters from my age group, but at the awards ceremony no one really cares about that, right? (Ok so 10 of the elite men are in the 25 - 29 age range, but that's their fault for being good enough to possibly win the whole thing.)

So the post to end all posts is now finally about finished. I know you probably didn't make it all the way through this, no reason to really as most of it is speculative gibberish but if you did, just remember not to take me too seriously.

Posted results overall
Age group results

I'm feeling pretty good about the tri next weekend. Everything appears to be coming together well training wise and so long as I don't destroy myself too much the day before at the Leesburg Bakers Dozen I should put in a decent showing. My hope is to be competitive in my age group for the Lake Moomaw Sprint Tri in Mid/late June so this will be a test of how likely that will be. I of course am hopeful of mustering up some high level performance for the Kinetic next weekend but I'm certainly not holding my breath on that one.

Yesterday morning I drove to hains and did a few laps before heading into work, beating the tourists and crowds of lunch time. On Sunday while waiting for my bro-in-law to purchase his new Felt F85 (SWEET!) I happened across a set of FSA VisionTech clip-on aero bars on sale for half off. Of course I had to get them. I mounted them tentatively on the Cannondale and really tested them out for the first time yesterday morning. I figured I'd be too cramped but as it turns out my position feels amazing! It may not be as aggressive as it could be but it is very comfortable and I was able to produce plenty of power.

Over lunch I took a Mall run with a coworker I happened to bump into on the way out. The legs and body felt really good and I think I could have put in some serious miles and or speed work but we kept it pretty easy and stuck to the 4/4.5 mile mall loop.

Then finally after work I headed out to Falls Church to pick up the rented wetsuit from Bonzai Sports then headed home to my pool to try it out. After initially putting it on backwards and then swimming a lap (God that was weird and uncomfortable) I got it on correctly and got a good swim in. I timed myself for the 17 lap approximate 750 m swim and came in right around 14 minutes, though that included some brief breaks in between on my turns and was a bit long for the actual race distance. My hope is to be able to come in under 13 minutes for the race. I just have to remain focused on efficiency and not get caught up in the high stroke rates that tend to kill me. I also seem to glide so much easier and quicker really with limited leg kick which is good since I want to use my legs as little as possible during the swim anyway.

So, that's where I stand; the second half of next week I'll hopefully scale things way down and try to save some energy for the crazy weekend ahead. The Monday following I'm taking the day off to recover. My goal for now with the triathlon is to be puking as I cross the finish line, or at least as close as possible to that. I've never been able to physically push hard enough to get there so it will be a tough thing to accomplish.

Tri-ing out my luck: Planning for my certain failure.

While thinking about the next month or tow and what kind of racing and training I’ll be doing, I’ve started to think I’m going to just go ahead and try and bust this triathlon out despite my lack of training. It’s doubtful that without the broken bone (no I am certainly not asking for one) I’ll be able to get a refund for the Pittsburgh Tri I signed up for a few months ago so instead of throwing away the $80 + entry fee I may as well go and at least try it. I mean the worst thing that could happen is they have to come pull me out of the water due to my suckness factor; either that I come in dfl. Either way I at least gave it a shot and paid to get my ass handed to me instead of nothing. Plus I could use a trip to Pittsburgh; it’s been almost a year and it’d be good to go see some friends. They have flexcars up there now and I can make the hour and five minute flight round trip via Southwest Airlines for $100 and have plenty of time for hanging out with friends.

The only part of the race that bothers me a little bit is the swim part, especially due to my lack of preparation lately for a .9 mile swim. On the other hand however I’m pretty sure that I could at least survive it by using only breast stroke or a combination of free and breast. I may not put out the fastest time and would probably get demolished there by the 10 other guys currently signed up in my age group, but I could probably still make up for it a bit in the bike and running part. I think I’ll call some people in Pittsburgh and see how willing and able they’ll be to get me to and from the airport and all of that good stuff.

In the mean time I better start hitting the pool again and at least make sure I can move through the water.

In other news, I’ve lied again; the bike is not yet in at the bike shop so I’ll likely be racing the Specialized once again at Greenbelt. I’m am getting tired of waiting; it is affecting my sleep and I’m dreaming about bikes more then anything these days. The past two nights I’ve woken up at 3:30am thinking about my bikes.

I feel like I smashed my legs with a ton of bricks!

Today, beautiful as it was saw me out in Rock Creek Park completing my first ever brick workout. GD that was hard as hell! It didn't help that my legs were still a bit sore from yesterday, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to get out and get a good workout in. Also I'd picked up a new pair of running shoes so I can keep my older pair at work as well as some tri shorts so I was primed to get out and try them both out.

I started out with a pretty strong four mile run along beach drive locking my bike up outside the NPS station near Military road. I still need to get in some speed work but as a start I held my pace pretty consistent and and was happy with my running. When I got back to the bike my transition was decent, taking just under three minutes, though these three minutes would have been much shorter if I hadn't been fishing my gear out of my bag and dealing with the bike lock etc...

For the bike portion I did 12 solid miles including climbing Ridge Road and also included some serious calf cramping towards the end of the ride. (Damn, I knew I should have eaten that banana before I left!) Overall though I felt good on the bike, though without the aero bars I was having a bit of tough time staying down in the more aerodynamic position I'll be using for the race. I really need to get my hands on those and start riding with them.

The transition back to the bike was even a little bit quicker at closer to 2 and a half minutes, but when I started running again my calves quickly began to cramp even more so I had to stop for a bit to stretch them out. Once they were worked out I ran out and then crossed over the creek and did some trail running for a couple of miles and finished up the second run of 3 miles.

All in all a great workout and I'm definitely feeling it this evening. Unfortunately this morning I once again did not do well enough with hydrating so I was ready to pass out for a while afterwards; Hopefully I'll get better at that soon. I also need to improve on my weekend eating habits and stop skipping meals. Too bad I've got to go back to work tomorrow, this weekend was just so amazing and it just couldn't last long enough.

Back in the hills

Yesterday was pretty much what weekends are all about. Around 9am I caught a ride with a friend out to the Avalon area of Patapsco Valley State Park to catch up with a couple of other guys for some trail riding. We started out from the Rt 195 Park and Ride and within the first 20 or 30 minutes of the ride I took my first spill after rounding a corner too quickly. It was pretty basic and pain free but the spectators behind me said it looked pretty fantastic.

The trails were pretty much perfect for riding as most of the rain had passed over and missed the area and what did fall was soaked up quickly by the thirsty soil. Other then a few sections of puddles and a little bit of mud on one of the fire trails the tracks were entirely dry.

After that I felt more comfortable on the bike (kind of like that old football mindset where you're always nervous until the first hit of the game) and then was cruising the rest of the way. I killed some of the long climbs and just cruised through most of the technical single track out there gaining more and more confidence as the day went. I'm definitely feeling good about racing as a beginner this Cranky Monkey Series later this summer.

As we were riding along one of the roads on the way back to the trail towards the cars we saw a Cannondale box truck unloading bikes and I knew we had to stop by. They were doing a demo, so I got to try out there new Cannondale Caffeine 29er. It was my first time ever on a lefty. a bike with disc brakes and a 29er so I was pretty excited about it. Before heading out I asked if I was allowed to get it dirty and they laughed at me and said of course.

half an hour to 45 minutes later I came back with the bike covered in mud and a huge smile on my face. The bike felt a bit clunky at first and I didn't like the set up of the shifters, though since the components on the bike were pretty basic I wasn't really suprised by that. Not sure if the clunky/clumsy feeling was from the bigger tires or if it was more due to the fact that the handle bars and grips were noticable wider then my Trek. Either way I still had a great time trying out the bike and it definitely felt more capable when rolling over certain obstacles. Not sure that I still feel the need to get one though since it seems to cover up technique and isn't really all that necessary for me right now.

We finished up that ride and John brought me back in to my place and as soon as I got home grabbed a beer and relaxed for a minute. I then remembered that I'd wanted to go for a run when I got back so I finished off the beer chugged some water and got out for a good fast 5 mile run keeping my heart rate a good full 5 - 10 bpms above my usual running heart rate for the entire thing. Today the body feels great and and the high rate running made me much more confident with my speed for the Triathlon. I've never been a terrifically fast runner, though I can be very steady and shouldn't lose much if any time to the average competitor out there.

Things to come

I’m officially in for the Baltimore Marathon in October so I’ve got a nice little season laid out for myself. I also registered this morning for a 4 pack of the Greenbelt Training Series races on Wednesday nights so I can get a little bit more road racing experience under my belt without the hefty fees and (probably more self imposed) high pressure situations of all out races. I’ve heard great things about this series so I’m looking forward to getting out there next Wednesday for the first one.

Haven’t figured anything else out officially for the year, but I’m thinking it would be pretty fun to try out a beginner mountain bike race this season and I’m also considering the Marine Corp Half Marathon which would be 2 weeks after the Baltimore full. I think that would be enough recovery for me as long as I make sure I stretch consistently and get back out for some light jogging the day after the marathon. My legs were sore after the Shamrockfest Marathon, but I got a nice spin on the trainer in the day after and was back riding “hard” either one or two days after that. If the Ultra Marathon Man can run 50 marathons in 50 days in 50 states then I can do this for sure.

I’m also eyeing up a May 12th brick session “race” through the dc tri club down at hains point that is a run bike run session of 6 total miles running and 15 biking. Reviewing the times of some of the previous sessions I don’t really expect to vie for any kind of top spot, but I think it would be a great opportunity to get out and get a feel for where I’m at on what I believe will be my two stronger areas of the triathlon. Throw in a nice sprint tri sometime in June and I should be good to go, and what’s more is I may even have a clue what I’m doing when it comes to the transitions in Pittsburgh.

Why tri?

Poking around the DC Tri page I ran across some “articles” written by some of the other members of the club with a handful of the recent one’s being “Why I Tri” presumably to offer motivation through the difficult cold winter. Reading through the most recent one (effectively getting me motivated and excited about my first tri coming up) I started to think about why it was I am so interested in them. None of my friends around here are into triathlons and aside from my fathers running for health purposes no one else in my family is even all that active.

So what is it that makes me want to do all of these things? Why do I keep jumping in head first to all of this new stuff? What is that draw that is pulling me in? Better yet, where do I start on this? Sure I want to be in shape and I really like doing things outdoors, but I think there is so much more to this then that. There is a deeper meaning and feeling behind the sort of soul searching that I think these events help me with; they can tell me so much about myself that I never knew and bring a tremendous feeling of accomplishment that can not be found anywhere else.

I guess it all really started back in college during a race I’ve probably mentioned here before. With a team of about 12 guys we raced very few 8 races and when we did we never really expected too much against some of the larger teams we’d be up against that could field two or more 8’s with their numbers. At one fall head race (5-6K instead of a 2K for spring races) everything in the boat just clicked right out of the shoot and we fired on all 8 cylinders through the entire race watching all of the other boats die far, far behind us. My parents were at that race and I can remember our coxswain using that to motivate me specifically and running through everyone in the boat with specific words of encouragement that sent shockwaves through our bodies. (I’m getting an adrenaline rush just thinking about and writing about this).

It’s not everyday that everyone in the boat just clicks and when that happens it is obvious to everyone involved that there is something special going on. That was the first day I had ever felt those feelings, the run in the boat, the perfect catch and release throughout and watching the boats all fall further and further away behind us; it was the most spiritual feeling I have ever had in my life. I was near tears coming down the course passing the shore where everyone was cheering us on and finishing the race all knowing that we had won and completely dominated our usual equals like they’d never been in a boat before.

While my current endeavors may never amount to the level of teamwork involved in rowing, the feelings of personal satisfaction from them can be as great if not greater. Just a year ago I never would have thought I could get out and run more then maybe a dozen or so miles. But I got out there and did it and the feeling of personal pride I got from that was incredible. Also with that sense of accomplishment came that same spiritual feeling I felt during that race; a complete and utter satisfaction upon the completion of a goal that could very well have been unattainable. When I crossed the finish line after my run, those tears of joy and satisfaction were back glistening in my eyes.

Now that I’ve done one though I can’t stop there, I’ve got to do more; more miles, more races, more workouts and naturally more events. I want to challenge myself with something that I don’t know if I can complete and then see what happens. If I complete it, then it is that much more special while if I don’t I’ll keep going back for more until I do, working harder and training longer then I did before. This is my religion and the outdoors are my sanctuary; my spirituality comes when I truly get in touch with my self and learn what I’m really made of. My next step is the Pittsburgh Triathlon and after that there will be more.