Pulse Endurance Sports

back on the trails

2011-11-11T07:56:00.000-08:00

It's been a difficult year. I've had lots of ambition, or at least faux ambition, but when it's come down to it, i've folded under pressure.

I've set some goals which are slipping from my grasp at this point, and amassed a ridiculous 4 DNFs this year, some valid, some are still rattling around in my head.

Spring cleaning comes a bit late this year, and it's time to sort out the rattling. So i'm going to spend a bit of quality time outside phoenix this weekend recounting the things that were done right this year, and the areas for improvement.

If you're interested in joining me on this adventure, the Aravaipa running group was kind enough to make it possibe, at least in spirit and via the internet:
http://www.aravaiparunning.com/avr/ultracast/

if you've got something better to do than sit around and watch a computer screen for 25+ hours, enjoy your day, and feel free to check in periodically:)

i wish each of you the best this weekend - enjoy whatever you set out to do and make sure to pursue it whole heartedly.

I've been asked what is different about this run then the dnfs (DNF = simpley means i chose the easier path, i dropped from the race) from earlier this year? i don't have anything tangible here, except maybe this is an easier course.

fortunately there are the intangibles. here's to the desire to complete what you start.

or perhaps in Karl Meltzer's words "100 miles is not that far"

IM ST. George

2011-06-05T14:16:00.000-07:00

Since last weekend went so well, i decided i’d like to see what ironman st. George has to offer. I’d heard some good stories about the course, and just couldn’t resist the opportunity to form my own opinion. It would promise some good mileage to help prepare for the upcoming mountain bike tibet trip.

SWIM
I lined up a bit outside towards the front for the swim start, the gun went off, and i settled into a very comfortable pace. For the most part, there was a good amount of open water which i took full advantage off. There were several occasions where things got a bit crowded and i was reminded it is in fact an ironman swim.

The swim course is 1 large loop, similar to canada. The water was a good temperature, though i actually had a couple sections that were a bit warm for my taste. After the first turn, we were swimming into the sun, though the sighting wasn’t to difficult, it did require a little more attention.

I felt strong the entire swim, though i never pushed it, knowing full well i had a long day ahead of me, on one of the tougher ironman courses. I got out of the water feeling pretty fresh and ready to ride. Swim was 1:09:00 (1:49 min/100m).

T1
went well, no blazing times here, but a focused effort to get through without too much delay. 0:05:58

BIKE
the bike course has a 23 mile lead taking you from the swim course and delivering you to the 2 loop portion, with the much talked about climbing. I sat very comfortably in for the first section. Taking in liquid and calories very regularly.

I went through my 2500 calories of carbo pro right on schedule chased by lots of water and threw in a few bananas and gels for variety.

The first loop went well, i pedaled steadily and felt ok. At mile 50, the worst of the climbing is done, and by mile 56 it’s pretty much to a steady descent back into st george. The 2nd loop felt significantly slower, my legs didn’t want to push with any sort of consistency. I put my head down and kept spinning the best i could muster.

Slightly before mile 90, the last of the difficult climbs was complete. I knew there were 1 or 2 more inclines, and a series of fast descents, and paced accordingly. Though i struggled a bit on these last 2 ascents, once i hit the top, i assumed aero and enjoyed the fast descent back into town. 6:06:19 (18.4 mph)

T2
relatively uneventful, except for the fact that my legs where having none of this running portion. I chuckled a bit to myself, knowing full well there was still some run left in me and my legs were mislead.

RUN
It took almost 2 full miles to convince my legs that i fully intended to run the entire distance, no walking. The first 2 miles is a steady climb, with the next 1.5 being a bit steeper, before a small reprieve and a little more climbing. Then you drop down to mile 6.5 and turn around and retrace your steps.

I knew my legs were unhappy and it was a bit warm, so i followed a very simple routine, gel every 15 – 20 minutes followed with water. Every aid station had the same protocol: ice in the jersey, sponges, water, ice, sponges. I carried a water bottle, and would fill it up with ice and water every 3 miles. This worked well.

My first loop went slightly over 2 hours, then my legs and i had a bit of the same conversation as when i first started the run. Seemed like deja vu. I kept turning it over, every so slow and steady, knowing full well this is what i signed up for, and enjoying the fact that my achilles had yet to indicate any signs of stress.

Along the course of the run i crossed paths with 3 or 4 pulse regulars, and some not so regulars. I saw the gap closing slowly between myself and mark, until i caught up with him at mile 24. We proceeded through the last 2 miles to the finish together. 4:24:59 (10:09 min/mile)

All said and done, it’s been a solid week of testing the achilles and it’s come up roses. I’m back to full training volume, still holding off on any type of speed work, as i want to be very sure the achilles is 100% before i put those types of load on it. total time: 11:48:38

Spring Sprint

2011-06-05T14:10:00.000-07:00

What better way to test my recovery from injury then to have a long slow day followed by a short fast day? Sunday I'd be doing Spring Sprint, on top of testing my achilles, Mike was nice enough to get me a new tri bike - 2011 Felt DA. So i was very anxious to ride it.

I woke early, got my stuff together, and headed to mission bay. racked all my things, and promised myself, this wasn't a race, i was out here to have fun, and see how my achilles was holding up.

SWIM
At the start of the swim, i worked my way up to the front of the starting pack, and swam comfortably hard to the first turn (~ 1/3rd of the swim). I never really found a pair of feet to draft off, which seems to be the way things are going for me these days, i've lost a bit of the drafting ability i once had. this has been added to the list of potential improvements.

The last 100 meters of the swim proved to be a bit tougher then i anticipated, i started a little too hard, and had to dig a bit to remain consistent through the swim. (1:47 min/100m)

T1
Into transition, a pretty liesurely transition, and onto the bike. As i slipped my right foot into my shoe, the pedal came off the spindle. this will make for an interesting ride, not 200m into the 15km ride, and i'm down to 1 pedal . . . sort of.

BIKE
I got my other foot in the shoe, and slid the right pedal back onto the spindle. I would need to be cognizant of this the whole time riding. I wasn't able to apply to much force to the pedals, or my right pedal would come off the spindle again. So i road a consistent bike, a little slow, but steady. (0:28:25 - 19mph)

T2 - RUN
Back into transition, and another liesurely transition (not as relaxed as the 1st one). I made a slight effort to get in and out quickly. I still hadn't come across mike kelley, i figured i'd have trouble catching him on the bike with my pedal issue, but still held a little hope for it. no such luck, the catch would have to wait until mile 1 of the run.

we chatted briefly, he informed me there were 3 people in front of him. I tried to run with him, but the thought of 3 people ahead proved too much for me to bear.

I increased the pace and started looking, all the while being cautious not ot over exert and injure my achilles. About 200m from the finish line i caught kariem, wished him well on his second lap, and cruised into the finish. (0:20:54 - 6:45min/mile)

All in all it was a good day, some minor setbacks, but none of them had to do with my physical capacities, just equipment malfunctions, perfectly acceptable.

The pulse crew had a great day, lots of representation, a good time for all. another successful training group and pulse outing.

Leona Divide 50 mile run

2011-06-05T14:03:00.000-07:00

Leona Divide 50 mile run:

This was my first go at any sort of distance running since I opted to drop from the Catalina 50 mile run. I had some successful training runs in the last several weeks, so wanted to come out and see how my achilles recovery was progressing.

Sara and i drove up the night before, she was doing the 30k. We got to the race start about 45 minutes before the 50k and 50mile runs began. Sara would start at 7am, 1 hour after these races started. We gathered our race goodies, had some food and relaxed for a little while.

We started over towards the start line, Sara wished me luck, and i wished her luck on her run.

My days' adventure began with a 2 or 3 mile climb, I started very slow and cautious, not wanting to slide back down the slope of injury i'd been working to climb out of. After the climb, the course did a bit of rolling through lots of single track.

There was some definite tightness in my achilles and calf which lasted 1 - 2 hours, then it loosened up and would prove to be a non issue for some time. I never ran very fast or very hard, my primary focus was steady and injury free.

The course was impressive, lots of single track and a good number of participants. I felt strong for the first 5 or 6 hours, then things started to get more difficult. I grabbed handfuls of pineaple roctane at each aid station (the only flavor they had). I am pretty sure i consumed a good 25 of these gels throughout the course of the day.

At mile 23ish, the descent to the turn around began. i could feel the strain on my achilles during the ascent so opted to jog very slowly and cautiosuly on the descent. During one of my running stints, i heard a bit of a rustle, looked down, and was greeted by a lovely black snake.

Who happened to be crossing just in front of me, and almost under my footfall. Thankfully for both of us, My footfall landed on dirt rather than snake. that was a pleasant suprise.

I continued down to the turnaround, which was a little past 25 miles, and turned back up for the climb. I would walk up most of this, with brief spurts of short slow jogs. Once at the top of the climb, i began jogging again back through the rolling single track.

My legs where feeling a bit of the mileage by now, and required a bit of coaxing to keep moving. I managed to jog through most of the return, up to the bit of a climb which began around mile 40, and lasted 2 or 3 miles. I walked most of this.

The last 2 miles where back down the initial climb. Again, i opted to jog this very slowly, rather then my typical let gravity do the work, i opted to put the brakes on and minimize impact and strain to my achilles.

As i rounded the final corner to the finish line, Sara was there with encouragement. I jogged across, 10:40 (12:48 min / mile pace), nothing spectacular, but more then acceptable for testing the waters, and relatively little endurance running prior to the day.

Sara did great in her 30k, she was running in the top 5 most of the day, until she and several other runners took a wrong turn, and climbed an extra peak. She finished right around 3:50 finishing top 10 in her age group.

Feb 6, 2011 update

2011-02-09T17:51:00.000-08:00

20110131 Mon

day off
20110201 Tues
day off

20110202 Wed
pm run 3.4 miles (0:29) East H del rey loop (623'). barefoot run from the shop, it's better to run barefoot in the day so you don't have to worry about pokey devices. all in all a good run, i learned to be very cautious of spiny stuff.

20110203 Thur
am run 5.7 miles (0:39) TSF BM CM loop (942') pressed this run pretty good, legs felt good, achilles felt good, things are coming along.

20110204 Fri
am run 5.4 miles (0:42) abbreviated TSF BM CM loop (758'). legs feel good, achilles is a little tender after yesterdays effort and wednesday's barefoot.

20110205 Sat
day off

20110206 Sun
day off

Total Run for this week
-Miles: 14.5
-Hours: 1h 50min

Jan 2011 totals

2011-02-09T17:46:00.000-08:00

still working through achilles issues, though it seems to be healing, it´s a matter of patience, which i´m not doing so well with. guess i´ll find out how patient i can be.

RUN TOTALS
miles: 212 miles
time: 32hrs 28min

Jan 30, 2011 updates

2011-02-09T17:40:00.000-08:00

20110124 Mon
run 2 miles (0:20) northpark wandering (187'). easy little shake out run to check achilles progress.

20110125 Tues
run 5.7 miles (0:43) TSF BM CM loop (755'). base run, achilles feels good, time to start tacking some extra miles and see how things respond.

20110126 Wed
am run 5.7 miles (0:40) TSF BM CM loop (643') legs were feeling good, so i decided to press this run a bit and see how achilles was coming. a little tenderness with it after the run, probably about 75% or so, another week and i should be back to normal mileage.
pm run 3.5 miles (0:33) northpark wanderings (548'). easy run with KT tape, and some short steeper climbs to test achilles. some minor tenderness, but seems to be holding up all right. i know more tomorrow.

20110127 Thur
m run 5.7 miles (0:47) TSF BM CM loop+ (1070') easy run, with kt tape, achilles feels pretty good, seems to be better supported with the tape, i'm still going to use caution over the next few days to ensure i recover properly.

20110128 Fri
am run 5.7 miles (0:44) TSF BM CM loop (633'). easy run to let things settle out after yesterdays effort. still using kt tape to try to nurse things back to health.

20110129 Sat
day off

20110130 Sun
am run 11.2 mils (1:32) phoenix wanderings (1201') good run with some harder efforts to test achilles. everything is holding up well.

Total Run for this week
-Miles: 39.4
-Hours: 5h 21min

Jan 23, 2011 updates

2011-02-09T17:34:00.000-08:00

20110117 Mon
day off

20110118 Tues
day 2 off

20110119 Wed
pm run 1.3 miles (0:13) el cajon wanderings (177'). easy run to test achilles, no issues.

20110120 Thur
pm run 6.6 miles (0:51) greenfield cuyamaca prospect loop (663'). achilles feels good, a little more distance than was necessary, still need some easy short time to recover.

20110121 Fri
am run 5.7 miles (0:46) TSF BM CM loop (758'). legs feel good, nice and easy.

20110122 Sat
am run 7.8 miles (1:02) TSF BM CDS loop (722') a little extra distance, achilles feels good. will continue on current course of recovery with some stretching and strength work added in.

20110123 Sun
am run 11.2 miles (1:31) carlsbad marathon spectating (2089') could feel calves tightening on longer climbs, so i walked them. no achilles issues, just being cautious.

Total Run for this week
-Miles: 31.7
-Hours: 4h 35min

Jan 16, 2011 totals

2011-01-17T11:06:00.000-08:00

20110110 Mon
PM1: run 4 miles (0:30) peerless loop (433') stomach overloaded with lunch foods, tried to take it slow and let things settle, but was running well, so pressed the time a little towards the end.
PM2: run 3.4 miles (0:29) 2nd st loop (443') moderate effort shake out run.

20110111 Tues
AM run 9 miles (1:08) 2x peerless loop (1076') legs feel good, steady effort. primarily trying to keep things moving and legs ready.

20110112 Wed
run 7.7 miles (1:00) TSF BM CDS loop (1230'). Pressed the effort slightly after the halfway point to test achilles, feels pretty good, a little bit of niggling here and there, saturday should prove interesting.

20110113 Thur
run 5.7 miles (0:42) TSF BM CM loop (584') good pace, felt relaxed early on. Felt good, so i pressed the pace slightly towards the end.
20110114 Fri
AM: run 6.3 miles (0:53) peerless loop + (1188') steady shake out run legs feel good.

20110108 Sat
AM: run 34 miles (6:55) avalon benefit run (6073') legs felt ok through 24 miles, then started to protest, light on nutrition (only 5 gels for 4 hours and a couple cookies). the big problem came in the form of niggling injuries. dropped and decided to take some time and resolve the problems properly with rest and rehabilitiation.

20110116 Sun
day 90, despite my contemplations to run, i ended up skipping the day, ending my consecutive running days at 89. had some achilles issues again yesterday, and opted for a rest and recuperation approach to try and put an end to the niggles for good. it was a tough decision, but i'm going to avoid running for several days and re-evaluate the situation at that time. i laid awake tonight for several hours contemplating sneaking out for a quick run, debating whether this was going to be day 90 or if i'd hit the reset button. laziness, or good sense (perhaps a combination of the two) won out and i skipped the run.

Total Run for this week
-Miles: 79.3
-Hours: 11h 40min

89 day running summary:
had some good runs, and some niggling injuries, i'll take a bit of time to fix those, and start building for august:
- Miles: 911.75
- Hours: 136:48

Jan 9, 2011 recap

2011-01-10T18:09:00.000-08:00

20110103 Mon

PM: run 3.3 miles (0:23) del rey h st. loop (914') legs felt good, very solid pace.

20110104 Tues
AM run 7.8 miles (1:02) TSF BM CDS loop (771') very comfortable run, legs felt good the entire way, no hard efforts, no exaggerated pace, think the easy running over the last 10 days helped.

20110105 Wed
PM: run 6.1 miles (0:56) mission trails explorations (925') another easy run to ensure achilles is healing and nothing else is taking it's place. feeling very good these days.

20110106 Thur
PM: run 11.1 miles (1:27) El nopal greenfield loop (1624') legs felt very good, would have liked to run longer, but had prior committments. pretty relaxed run throughout. thought my achilles would protest early, but once it warmed up i was good to go.

20110107 Fri
PM run 10.2 miles (1:25) miramar lake (1017'). 1 mile easy, then about 5 miles of a moderate tempo, felt strong, and another 4 miles easy. achilles feels good, still going to give it time to heal for avalon.

20110108 Sat
AM: run 15.9 miles (2:20) Cahuilla wanderings (2664'). took a little while to warm up, then legs felt good, nice and relaxed very happy with the feel of things.

20110109 Sun
PM: run 3.1 miles (0:27) 2nd st. loop (433'). stomach not doing so well from the prior night. nice easy run.

Total Run
-Miles: 57.4
-Hours: 8h 00min

2010 Totals

2011-01-07T17:52:00.000-08:00

2010 was a good year, too bad i didn't really pick up the running in earnest until late in the year. we'll see how 2011 plays out, lots of good stuff to come.

Swim
miles: 167
hours: 44:40

Bike
miles: 3385
hours: 217:25

Run
miles: 1503.8
hours: 225:42
Bricks
miles: 300.5
hours: 22:35

races:
Challenge Wanaka
Ironman Lanzarote
Vineman
Silverman

Dec 2010 totals

2011-01-07T17:46:00.000-08:00

RUN
miles: 348.2
hours: 51:43

not a bad month, would have been a bit better had i not been stubborn and pushed myself to a bit of achilles tendonitis. heres to a strong 2011:)

Jan 2, 2011

2011-01-07T17:39:00.000-08:00

20101227 Mon
AM: run 1.1 miles (0:11) northpark wandering (157'). achilles is definitely tender, seems i should have cut yesterdays run a lot shorter. time to pay the piper. could feel it on the run. going to spend some time taking it easy and just improving the blood flow.

20101228 Tues
AM run 1.1 miles (0:10) northpark wanderings (151'). achilles feels slightly better then yesterday, still very tender, several more days of feeling it out runs.

20101229 Wed
AM: elliptical 1.5 miles (0:20) elliptical (0'). no discomfort, mighjt have to try a long elliptical session. oh joy, something to look forward to.
PM: run 1.5 miles (0:15) el cajon wanderings (148'). sirius run, achilles feels much better, still a bit of tenderness, but definitely improving.

20101230 Thur
PM: run 2.1 miles (0:19) Northpark wanderings (226'). achilles felt good today, no tenderness, a couple more good sessoins like this and i'll be ready to start adding on miles again.

20101231 Fri
AM: run 2 miles (0:17) Ray out and back (344'). Achilles feeling better. still taking it easy to ensure good recovery.

20110101 Sat
start of a new year, here is to injury free and consistent running, no bone head moves
GOALS:
1. run 3000 miles
2. remain injury free
3. complete 3 100 milers
AM: run 3.7 miles (0:43) Northpark wanderings (659') run to dog park, let the dogs play for a bit, then ran home, dropped dogs off and wandered around a bit more. legs feeling good.

20110102 Sun
PM: run 11 miles (2:05) Boden canyon trail run part 2 (1949') very easy trail run, legs felt good, just enjoying being outside and testing achilles on a longer run. everything feels fine, ready to begin normal running again.

Total Run
-Miles: 21.8
-Hours: 4h 12min

Dec 26, 2010 recap

2010-12-30T20:07:00.000-08:00

20101220 Mon
AM: run 11 miles (1:28) Broadway loop + marshall (1365'). run in the rain, legs felt good, enjoyed splashing through the puddles. very entertaining, like being 5 years old again:)

20101221 Tues
AM run 6 miles (0:42) treadmill run (318') started out easy run at 1% grade. finished last 1.5 miles +/- at 6:30 and better pace.
PM: run 2.2 miles (0:18) northpark wanderings (371'). had some time to kill while waiting for sara, so i ran a short easy run around the neighborhood. still enjoying splashing in the puddles:)

20101222 Wed
PM: run 9.9 miles (1:22) del rey loop (1663'). legs felt pretty crappy. turned into a shakeout/guts run. no hard efforts, just slow and steady. legs not happy today.

20101223 Thur
PM: run 16.6 miles (2:12) Pulse OTC loop + (1834'). legs felt strong started pretty conservative, and finished pretty comfortable. last mile or so legs started to feel a little tired.
20101224 Fri
AM: run 6.8 miles (0:55) modified cuyamaca loop (443'): legs started out feeling good, around mile 4 legs got heavy and pace seemed to slow a little. last 2 or 3 miles had some pretty good gi issues that contributed to the slowing.
PM: run 7.1 miles (1:00) extended del rey loop (1430'). legs started out strong, and slowly faded. perhaps i should refocus on my eating as i was supposed to be doing. have been eating pretty poorly and minimally the last 2 or 3 days and it's starting to reflect in my runs.

20101225 Sat
AM: run 12.2 miles (1:47) Proctor valley OTC loop (1611') good run, legs felt strong, needed a little bit of nutrition.
PM: run 6.5 miles (0:59) del rey loop + (0:59) good run, took a little bit for legs to come around, then felt strong.

20101226 Sun
AM: run 24.8 miles (4:38) Chula Vista wanderings (3550'). long run, right achilles started nagging earlier, but foolish me decided to pull back on the pace and try for the distance i had stuck in my head. around 19 miles, achilles started demanding i stop. was forced to walk the remaining 4 miles. i'll sleep on it and re-assess the situation tomorrow.

Total Run
-Miles: 103.7
-Hours: 15h 26min
-Vertical: 11,444'

Dec 19, 2010 recap

2010-12-19T13:52:00.000-08:00

20101213 Mon
PM run 7.2 miles (1:03) mission trails 5k loop + visitor center (1230'). achilles felt good. legs took about 1/2 Mile to come around, then felt very good.

20101214 Tues
PM run 5.2 miles (0:47) Del Rey loop (682'). Easy shake out run, legs felt good, pushed a slightly higher pace towards the end.

20101215 Wed
PM: run 12 miles (1:41) Balboa park wanderings (2054'): Legs a bit sluggish on the run. some right calf tightness. nice quiet run through balboa park.

20101216 Thur
PM: run 15.7 miles (2:05) Nopal mast park loop (1870'). Legs felt very good throughout, a little heavy around mile 15 but nothing to significant. running is improving nicely.

20101217 Fri
PM: run 6 miles (0:46) Del Rey loop + (1371'). Legs felt very good. higher effort during the final 2 miles due to schedule commitments.

20101218 Sat
AM: run 12.6 miles (1:51) broadway loop + marshall loop (1598') 1st 6 miles at a good strong effort, last 6.5 with sara with legs a bit lethargic.

20101219 Sun
AM: run 21 miles (3:45) swallow loop + Xterra Mission Trails 15k (4078'). Legs felt ok first 16 miles, then i blew up pretty badly, and never really recovered. took a nap and slept very deeply, hopefully just tired.
PM: run 4.3 miles (0:37) Nielsen to home (417'). shake out run, very slow and easy.

Total Run
-Miles: 84.1
-Hours: 12h 37min
-Vertical: 13,300

long week, lots of work obligations kept me from running as many sessions as i would have liked, and perhaps forced some longer runs. all in all the legs were feeling pretty good throughout, then on saturday, the last half was a little lethargic, and sunday's run was a bit of a sufferfest, though there were some very nice views from the peaks in mission trails. i'm attributing the short week to a lot more vertical focus then horizontal, and the slow finish on sunday. ready for a fresh week of high mileage, hopefully some doubles to come.

Nov 2010 Totals

2010-12-12T21:03:00.000-08:00

Total Run
-Miles: 322.3
-Hours: 49h 46min
-Vertical: 44,878'

Total Bike
-Miles: 152
-Hours: 8h 31min
-Vertical: 8,413'

Total Swim
-Miles: 3.2
-Hours: 1h 32min

Total
-Miles: 474.3
-Hours: 58h 17min
-Vertical: 53,291'

Dec 12, 2010 recap

2010-12-12T17:14:00.000-08:00

20101206 Mon

PM: run 11.6 miles (1:43) RPQ Side Hill green pond loop (1230'). Easy run to rebuild confidence after yesterdays implosion. legs felt good, steady pace, no spectacular efforts. good run.

20101207 Tues
run 9.2 miles (1:10) TSF RPQ CDS loop (1342'): started as an easy run, was feeling strong and on a good pace, so i pushed the last 3 miles a little bit racing the clock. All in all legs feel very good. some minor twinges in right achilles to work out.
PM: run 2.8 miles (0:26) Pulse H St trail loop (446'). slow easy shake out run. legs feel good.

20101208 Wed
AM: run 8 miles (1:01) BM CDS loop (1194') - easy run, comfortable the entire way, slightly higher effort the last 2 miles, but never really pushed the run. just enjoyed being out in the quiet morning hours..
PM: run 4.4 miles (0:41) Mast trails (463'): right achilles began to twinge, cut the run short.
20101209 Thur
PM: run 5.6 miles (0:51) TSF out and back (810'). rigth achilles tender for first 4 miles then loosened up a bit, cut run short.
20101210 Fri
PM: run 4 miles (0:27) rice canyon loop (548'). achilles felt good, pretty solid effort throughout to see how achilles was holding up.

20101211 Sat
AM: run 13.2 miles (1:38) 2x greenfield marshall loop (1736'). very comfortable run, pushed slightly the last 3 miles to have good showing. 1 twinge on r achilles at mile 10, stopped stretched it and massaged it and all is good. we'll see later how it handles.

20101211 Sun
AM: :run 35.4 miles (5:21) NP to Pulse and back (3822'). Minor slump in energy between 19 and 20 miles (due to lack of nutrition). stopped refueled and hydrated, Legs felt good through 32 miles then ran out of nutrition again and definitely felt it. minor right achilles tenderness. total nutrition 2.5 hammer gels, 1 pack of blueberry gu chomps (1st 3 hours) (~650 calories), 6 blueberry/pom roctanes (last 2:20) ~600 caloreis) - total 1250 cal - should have had closer to 1700. running is progressing nicely.

Total Run
-Miles: 94.2
-Hours: 13h 21min
-Vertical: 11,591'

Dec 05, 2010 recap

2010-12-11T12:04:00.000-08:00

20101129 Mon
AM: run 3 miles (0:26) 56 bike trail out and back (502'). very slow eay run, achilles still tender.

20101130 Tues
PM: run 3.3 miles (0:27) 56 bike trail out and back (502'). very slow easy run. minor achilles tenderness.

20101201 Wed
AM: run 7 miles (0:57) BM CM loop +, (1043') Good run, some minor achilles tenderness, went away pretty quickly.
PM: run 2.8 miles (0:29) Pulse H street trail loop (374') easy shake out run.

20101202 Thur
AM: run 10.1 miles (1:20) pepper broadway loop+ (1152') legs felt good, steady pace. some severe gi issues at the end of the run.

20101203 Fri
AM: run 5.7 miles (0:42) BM CM loop (866'). legs feeling strong, no issues, achilles feeling 90%.

20101204 Sat
AM: run 11.4 miles (1:36) Balboa park out and back+ (~1509'). legs felt solid, very relaxed run, some severe GI issues at the end forced me to cut it short.

20101205 Sun
AM: run 22.1 miles (3:58) Cowles Mtn wanderings (~3638'). Long run, a pretty poor showing today, felt like someone borrowed my legs for 15 - 20 miles before i got started on my run. never felt good throughout the day, no food, ~96oz of water. need more calories and to revisit my overall nutrition. i've officially lost interest in recovery weeks, for now. some slight achilles tenderness early on during steep ascents, stopped and stretched calves and massaged them a bit, and issues resolved.

Total Run
-Miles: 65.4
-Hours: 9h 55min
-Vertical: 9,586'

Nov 28 recap

2010-11-29T18:14:00.000-08:00

20101122 Mon
AM: run 5.6 miles (0:49) TSF BM CM loop (594'). legs feel ok, a little tired, started to come around after 4 miles or so.

20101123 Tues
PM: run 2.8 miles (0:32) Pulse H st trail loop (374'). very slow easy run.

20101124 Wed
AM: run 14.7 miles (1:55) RPQ Del mar loop +, (1430') Strong run and solid effort, legs felt good all the way through.

20101125 Thur
AM: run 24.1 miles (3:56) Downtown fiesta island ramblings (2831') legs a bit tired, sluggish for the last hour.

20101126 Fri
AM: run 14.3 miles (2:17) Chula Vista trails ramblings (2195'). legs are definitely feeling yesterdays effort. very sluggish, especially on climbs. very slow run.
PM: run 4.6 miles (0:41) Del Rey loop (453'). little better then this mornings run. legs loosening up a bit. all in all still tired.

20101127 Sat
AM: run 15.6 miles (2:11) Magnolia lake jennings loop + (1447'). Legs a little sluggish, pace solid, and consistent. had to focus the last mile or so to keep the pace.

20101128 Sun
AM: run 30.1 miles (5:07) Balboa park ramblings (4944'). Long run, felt pretty good through around 4:15, then things started to slow dramatically. 2 gels, 1 pack of chomps, 3 water bottles. need more food. have some tenderness in left achilles, right achilles feels fine.

Total Run
-Miles: 111.8
-Hours: 17h 28min
-Vertical: 14,268'

Nov 21 recap

2010-11-23T17:50:00.001-08:00

20101115 Mon

AM: run 7.3 miles (0:57) Misc run from home (449'). easy run with a break in the middle. legs feel pretty good

20101116 Tues
PM: run 2.8 miles (0:28) Pulse H st trail loop (374'). very slow easy run.

20101117 Wed
AM: run 10.2 miles (1:18) Balboa Park wanderings, (1152') good solid effort, legs were feeling the faster effort towards the end.

20101118 Thur
PM: run 12.25 miles (2:01) Mission Gorge wanderings (1657') steady trail run, legs felt good climbing. can start to feel a bit of the achilles, hopefully just tenderness from yesterdays effort and the hills today.

20101119 Fri
AM: run 13.4 miles (1:43) TSF BM del mar loop+ (1480'). strong run, solid effort, legs felt great the entire run. TSF BM del mar loop + short extensions.

20101120 Sat
AM: run 7 miles (0:58) Prospect Cuyamaca loop + (495'). felt like a newborn giraffe trying to learn how to walk.

20101121 Sun
- AM: run 29.25 miles (4:46) Xterra Mission Gorge 15k + run there and back (3107'). long run, legs felt good on all climbs and up until around 4:15 - 4:30, then mileage started to take it's toll. all in all a good day, not feeling too sore. need to roll out my achilles.

Total Run
-Miles: 82.7
-Hours: 12h 15min
-Vertical: 8,714'

Nov 14 recap

2010-11-14T09:00:00.000-08:00

20101108 Mon
-AM: run 3.3 miles (0:32) short loop in henderson (197'). recovery run, legs very tired and not happy.
20101109 Tues
AM: run 3.3 miles (0:32) Seattle needle loop (243'). slow and steady no great efforts. legs are still tired from silverman.

20101110 Wed
-AM: run 4.2 miles (0:30) Seattle aquarium out and back, (1138') egs started a bit stiff but quickly loosened up. clock is short by 10 minutes and about 1 mile.
20101111 Thur
- AM: run 4.9 miles (0:43) Seattle Needle through pioneer square loop (928')legs coming around sooner. think i'm pretty much recovered from silverman.

20101112 Fri
- AM: run 21.3 miles (3:25) Seattle green lake loop (1765'). exploration run, got lost a bit towards the end and wound up slowing a bit. all in all legs are doing well.

20101113 Sat
- AM: run 13 miles (1:59) Seattle waterfront out and back (4954'). Legs felt a little sluggish to start, but came around and felt good. loving the fall weather.

20101114 Sun
- AM: run 7.1 miles (1:00) random along the coast (2972'). egs felt good this morning, weather a little warmer then the previous days, and a little wet from overnight rains.

Total Run
-Miles: 57.5
-Hours: 8h 42min
-Vertical: 14,422'

Last visit with fall colors

2010-11-13T10:23:00.000-08:00

had a great exploratory run of the seattle area today. i was able to get out of the city and found some final hints of faded fall coloring on the trees. Combine that with the smell and feel of the fallen leaves underfoot. i'm loving my time here in seattle.

washed out oranges and yellows,
the reds are faded to rusted pink.

the ground hidden beneath
decaying colors so vibrant
just weeks before

the final scents of fall are in the air

i inhale and wash away my despair

i'm chilled at the core
i sit atop a hill, overlooking the bay
ships come and go
cormorants bob heavily in the sea

a heron comes to rest amongst
the rocky shore.

my mind wanders freely
taking in all around
as a brand new experience.

Silverman 2010

2010-11-09T21:25:00.000-08:00

I went into this race with a different approach than i've started any race since i've started: I knew it was going to be a very painful day, and i'd have to go to a very uncomfortable place. There were several things weighing heavily on me, and today would provide a great opportunity to work through some of them.

SWIM (2.4 miles): i lined up towards the front, once the gun went off, i worked my way through the initial congestion, i settled in on a pair of feet and cruised through the swim. nothing eventful, 1 bridged up to a new set of feet a couple of times. No great efforts, and my swim time reflected that. SWIM 1:11:13 (1:47min/100m)

T1: i came out of the water and had some trouble getting out of my wetsuit. After i stripped it off, i grabbed my bike gear, put my helmet a couple bonk breakers, racebelt, and sunglasses. made a quick bathroom break, and off onto the bike course. A rather slow transition (0:06:51)

Bike (112 miles): my strategy was pretty straight forward, ride easy for the fast sections, put a little extra effort into headwinds and climbs, and see where things fell out. I headed out towards the first turnaround just past 15 miles. On the way back, i saw several pulse kits, recognized Dean out front, Dave Stepp a little behind, and Mike Drury a little further back. I settled into a good steady effort, focused on hydrating well, and taking in the calories i would need to keep going. a couple riders went back and forth with me, and a couple rode past me, it wasn't in the cards today to engage in a game of chase. I sat in and followed the plan. At the 60 mile turnaround i felt strong, and continued with the plan, a slightly harder effort on the way back. At 65 miles my legs started cramping, lovely, this will make for a great day, and no salt tabs either.

i tried to focus on a steady effort, with consistent effort throughout the pedal stroke and tried to relax my legs. Next aid station i grabbed 1 banana and a gatorade. The cramping eased until between 75 and 80 miles and came back a little worse. Again i settled in to a steady effort, grabbed a banana, and more gatorade. I was hoping the low points would come much later, no such luck.

The 90 mile mark and onto the bike path, feeling pretty good, and the cramping had subsided. the bike path would prove to be into a stiff headwind, and particularly slow. it was a mental challenge to stay aero going so slowly; however, with the headwind, i kept reminding myself, it was far easier to proceed in the aero position then if i were to sit upright. When i got off the bike path, i was feeling pretty good, grabbed some water and gatorade from the last aid station. a couple more riders went by, then i settled back into my solo effort. The last 12 miles proved to be pretty straightforward, just kep plugging away at it. This was the first time i was not ready to get off the bike at the end of the ride. I saw Kariem starting on the run, as i was coming in off the bike. BIKE 6:07:57 (18.3 mph)

T2: Off the bike, my legs are a bit stiff and take a while to come around. I hand off my bike, grab my run gear bag, and head into the tent. socks, running shoes and i'm off onto the run. (0:02:18)

Run (26.2 miles): started on the run, slow and steady, try to run very comfortably easy and hold the pace for as long as possible. I grabbed some liquid at the first aid station, and would grab gel and liquid at even aid stations. legs felt ok, i caught Kariem just past mile 4 of the run, chatted briefly and wished him well. I kept plugging along slow and steady. this worked for almost 16 miles, then it all caught up, and my pace slowed to a crawl. I tried to grab nutrition and stuff it in, several gels, some animal crackers, oranges, bananas and broth, let my stomach settle, and hope my legs came around. I wound up walking a bit here and there, but always resumed the run. I came back down and made the last pass through the district. RUN 4:48:25 (11:01 min/m)

OVERALL: 12:16:42

all in all i'm satisfied with the results and a good time. Despite the fact that there were several things i missed during the race and trip.

Nov 7 recap

2010-11-09T20:34:00.000-08:00

20101101 Mon
-PM: run 8.5 miles (1:12) Mast out and back (915'). legs felt a bit sluggish for 4 - 5 miles then started to loosen up and hit a pretty good groove.

20101102 Tues
AM: run 7.7 miles (1:45) TSF Black mtn loop (1266'). slow and steady no great efforts. legs are still acclimating to the consistency and distance.

20101103 Wed
-AM: run 5.8 miles (0:45) TSF Carmel mtn loop, (577') legs moderately tired, slight discomfort in right achilles. felt stronger as run progressed.
-PM: ride 35.8 miles (2:02) Fiesta island loops, (118') steady efforts, started very slow, and built to stronger pace for the last 30 - 40 minutes.

20101104 Thur
- PM: run 3 miles (0:20) Down H st. (217') legs feel good. good solid effort.
- PM: swim .8 mile (0:21) Coronado oceanside swim. easy just concentrate on form.

20101105 Fri
- AM: run 6.7 miles (0:49) Marshall loop (535'). legs slightly tired, but hit a good pace and held it comfortable.
- AM: ride 4.8 miles (0:22) shake out ride (495'). shake out ride easy effort.

20101106 Sat
- AM: run 6.3 miles (0:49) Henderson loop (600'). solid run, legs feel good, started out a little heavy feeling but found a good flow.

20101107 Sun
- AM: swim 2.4 miles (1:11) Silverman swim.
- AM: ride 112 miles (6:07) Silverman bike (7800').
- PM: run 26.2 miles (4:48) Silverman run (2360').

Total Run
-Miles: 64
-Hours: 10h 28min
-Vertical: 6,470'

Total Bike
-Miles: 152
-Hours: 8h 31min
-Vertical: 8,413'

Total Swim
-Miles: 3.2
-Hours: 1h 32min

Total
-Miles: 220
-Hours: 20h 31min
-Vertical: 14,883'

October 31 recap.

2010-11-01T18:50:00.000-07:00

20101025 Mon

-AM: run 9 miles (1:20) TSF RPQ loop (1785'). legs felt a bit sluggish for 4 - 5 miles then started to loosen up and hit a pretty good groove.

20101026 Tues

AM: run 13 miles (1:45) TSF BM Del Mar loop (2200'). slow and steady no great efforts. legs are still acclimating to the consistency and distance.

20101027 Wed

-AM: run 7.8 miles (1:05) TSF Black mtn loop, (1460') legs felt very flat through 3 miles and had some pretty significant gi issues. after that i felt much better and paced picked up, and legs felt good

20101028 Thur

- PM: run 3.7 miles (0:26) EH short loop (928') legs feel good. good solid effort

20101029 Fri

- AM: run 5.8 miles (0:45) TSF CM loop (988'). just maintaining the daily runs.

20101030 Sat

- AM: ride 58 miles (3:28) Pulse Ride + (6132'). legs felt good, some stronger efforts.

- PM: ride 19 miles (1:13) ride home (1342'). easy cruise nothing spectacular.

- PM: run 4.1 miles (0:29) peerless loop (256'). brick run, legs feeling good.

20101031 Sun

- AM: ride 32 miles (2:14) random along the coast (1365'). easy spin.

- AM: swim 1 mile (0:27) la jolla shores. solid effort to 1/2 mile buoy, then good effort to marine room, from there, easy swim chasing leopard sharks. its refreshing to see them around again, it's been some time since i've come across them, and really enjoyed swimming with them.

- PM: run 7.3 miles (1:04) string of pulse trails (1043'). decent run, legs a bit tired, started to come around between 4 and 5 miles.20101031 Sun

Total Run

-Miles: 51

-Hours: 6h 55min

-Vertical: 8,671'

Total Bike

-Miles: 109
-Hours: 6h 55min

-Vertical: 8,839'

Total Swim

-Miles: 1.25

-Hours: 0h 30min

Total

-Miles: 161

-Hours: 14h 20min

-Vertical: 17,510'

October 24 recap

2010-10-24T11:13:00.000-07:00

20101018 - Monday PM: run 12 miles (1:45) los coches loop. slow and steady it's going to be a long week

20101019 - Tuesday AM: run 9 miles (1:10) treadmill run. nothing special here

20101020 - Wednesday AM: run 5 miles (0:40) treadmill run. legs a bit tired, but coming around
PM - run 6.5 miles (0:53) broadway loop + extra. legs felt a bit sluggish on the climbs, but are feeling stronger on the flats and descents.
PM - bike 60 minutes spin on the trainer to help flush legs

20101021 - Thursday PM: run 11 miles (1:25) TSF black mountain loop + 3 miles on the treadmill. legs are aclimating to running daily.

20101022 - Friday PM: run 1.25 miles (0:10) short loop to keep the streak.

20101023 - Saturday AM: bike 75 miles (4:40) GW loop + lake jennings bonus miles. legs are definitely feeling the mileage.
PM: run 13.5 miles (2:00) 3x cuyamaca trolley loop. blew up badly on the last 2 miles and limped home at a very slow slog.

20101024 - Sunday AM: bike 25 miles (1:45) zion loop. easy spin. legs just weren't there, cut ride a bit short.
AM: run 11 miles (1:55) big rock park out and back. a very difficult run, legs were gone from the beginning, just kept my head down and gutted it out.

Total
RUN
- Miles: 70
- Hours: 9h 58min
- Vertical: 3,400'

BIKE
- Miles: 100
- Hours: 7h 35min
- Vertical: 10,244'

Imperial Beach triathlon

2010-10-14T12:38:00.000-07:00

Swim (500 meters): there was a strong south to north current, the swim was structured with ~100m swim to the west then 300m swim north, then 100m swim back in. i started south of the turn buoy and swam straight, relying on the current to push me to the buoy. this worked well, and i found myself at the 1st turn with some strong swimmers. sometimes racing smart pays. on the south to north leg, several stronger swimmers went by. swimming back in i took advantage of some of the waves, but due to the current, found myself exiting the water a bit farther north then i'd hoped to be. SWIM 0:8:09 (1:38/100m)

T1 : Into t1 i stripped my wetsuit, and ran over to my bike. i saw mike kelley starting on the bike, and victor tello running out of t1 as i got to my bike. i struggled to get my wetsuit past my feet.

Bike (9.3 miles) onto the bike course, i figured i'd just go as hard as i could and see how things panned out. it took a little longer than usual to catch mike kelley (guess his bike is getting stronger). i caught 1 glimpse of victor on the bike course, guess his bike is getting stronger too. i rode pretty well, and came into t2: Bike 0:25:55 (22 mph)

T2 nothing exciting here. i was able to get everything switched out and onto the run to see how my legs would hold up.

Run (3.1 miles): i came out of transition knowing it would be a tough run. i settled into a steady pace early. i ran consistently, trying to focus on my breathing and lean. it was a fun day, a slight re-assurance i was not on my game, and need to put time in if i don't want to suffer so badly. RUN 0:20:04 (6:28 min/mile)

Overall time: 0:54:08.

Vineman

2010-10-14T12:08:00.000-07:00

Sara accompanied me to the race, and was kind enough to crawl out of bed into the chilly morning air a bit early to bring my forgotten nutrition to me in transition.

Swim (2.4 miles): the swim is 2 loops, starting upstream (with a very slow current). you swim .6 miles up stream, then turn around and come back down, then repeat. I started near the front, and quickly settled into a steady rhythm. At the first turn around, i felt things were going well, not too fatigued, and had a good rhythm. this continued back to the start and through the final turn around. i felt i swam straight and without exerting too much energy. when i exited to see 1:13:xx on the race clock i realized why it felt so easy, it was my slowest swim to date, guess this is going to be a liesurely day? SWIM 1:13:00 (1:55/100m)

T1 : Into t1 i stripped my wetsuit, and ran down 2 or 3 rows trying to find my bike. another uncharacteristic display. after finding my bike, i stripped my wetsuit and placed it in the allocated bag. on with the helmet, sunglasses and grab my bike: 4:00 transition time. continue with the leisurely day theme.

Bike (112 miles) the good news is the bike course is supposed to be very scenice. my legs weren't quite with me out of the water, so i pushed a little harder, knowing that a bit of extra effort typically wakes my legs up and helps out. i tried this for the first 25 miles without the expected results. around 35 miles the climbing started, and along came the strong cyclists from behind. much earlier than i typically get this. so i settled in and enjoyed the scenery. the bike continued like this for the remainder. the good news is my lap splits were pretty consistent. the course was enjoyable to ride and the weather was nice. I got to see Sara around mile 70, she drove out along the course, and parked waiting for me to pass by. that made the trip much more worth while. after a bit of this, i rolled into t2: Bike 5:29:17 (20.3 mph) not a stellar performance, though it did give me more time to appreciate the course.

T2 nothing exciting about this, the pavement was hot, so i was anxious to get my shoes on, and get onto the run so i could finish the 3 loops and get to enjoying the food and scenery of the russian river. transition time: 3:20.

Run (26.2 miles) : my first loop went ok, just a steady pace, and sara was there for the first mile or so, then she went to enjoy some of the wine tasting. shortly after the first loop, the wheels came entirely off, and i was relegated to walking and asking "what was i thinking, i knew i didn't have the legs for a marathon". i accepted this wouldn't fix things, and keep moving forward, knowing full well i was not ready to stop until i'd finished the full marathon course. RUN 4:55:10 (11:18 min/mile)

Overall time: 11:46:02. looks like i didn't get the necessary work in before showing up. that makes 2 in a row. 1 more for the season and i'll have to re-evaluate where i am, where i want to be, and how that fits with my time commitments.

IM Lanzarote

2010-06-20T06:35:00.000-07:00

Swim (2.4 miles) it was a beach start, out of laziness, I lined up pretty much in the middle of everybody, i didn't feel like pushing my way to the front to have everybody swim over me, so i stood where i was and waited for the gun to sound the migration. this proved to be a mistake, and re-inforced my standard advice, if you're a strong swimmer start at the front, if you are a weak swimmer, start at the back, if you are somewhere in the middle start to the outside. Because when you start in the middle, you wind up fighting through the weak swimmers and being swam over by the strong swimmers. the battle to the first turn was worse than i remember arizona being, and it only opened up slightly after the first turn. periodically through the first lap, i would be swarmed by masses of swimmers and reenact the opening struggles, swimming over, under and around people. the second loop went a bit more smoothly, yet still had the swarms from time to time. the last couple hundred meters i was able to pull a bit stronger and find calm water to enjoy before the bike.. SWIM 1:07:09 (1:44/100m), a bit slow, but faster than the 1:52/100m i swam at wildflower.

T1 a nice jaunt up the beach and into the changing tents, helmet, sunglasses, carry my shoes (after the changing tent, there is more sand to run through) had i properly researched the transition as usual, i'd have known this, and left my shoes on the bike, as i prefer to do anyway. i slap on lots of sunscreen, and head over to my bike. sit down and put on my cycling shoes. not quite sure how i took so long, but i do know i spent a lot of time around my bike before actually mustering the ambition to start the ride: 5:52 transition time.

Bike (112 miles) not much to say about this, except the bike course had some spectacular views, 1 descent with 4 or 5 switchbacks which i was very unenthusiastic about. i didn't have sufficient faith in my brakes or bike handling to go very quickly down that section. the weather was very forgiving, unfortunately my legs were unable to take advantage of this. I was holding an ok ride up to around 70 miles, then my legs began protesting, my pace slowed as did my ambition. The good news, there will be a couple more sections with some good views. i will say the bike course was smooth, they made great use of traffic circles on out and back and turning sections. The mile markers were off up to km 160, which made for a seemingly very fast final 20k. i was pretty happy to see puerto del carmen come into site and retrace the early stages of the bike course, coming back into transtion. a very unspectacular ride, though i did enjoy a lot more of the scenery on this course than on any other bike course, if only because i didn't have the legs to hammer through it: Bike 6:04:39 (18.4 mph)

T2 1 issue, a good little run through, put my socks and sneakers on wait around for the lady with the sunscreen, but she takes to long, so i am off without reapplying sunscreen. 3:59

Run (26.2 miles) I start out feeling pretty good and try to reign in the pace for the first 1/2. this turns out to be far easier than i'd hoped it would be. i keep waiting to see mike on his way back. after about 6 miles, the wheels are loosening up and feel as though they will come off at any minute. i fight to keep them on, but i didn't bring any nutritoin, and all i see at the aid stations is small pieces of banana and orange wedges. i am grabbing 1 piece of banana and orange wedges at every aid station and eating them; however, at roughly 50 calories/ aid station, i am not able to replenish calories as quick as i'd like to, the good news is i had 0 stomach issues, perhaps i'll try mixing a gel in every hour on top of the orange/banana nutrition to get my 400 calories an hour without stomach issues. sounds like something i'll be trying at vineman in late july. about 1 mile from the turn around, i see mike, he looks like the wheels are on the way off too. about 5 miles later, mike and i are shuffling along together laughing at the ridiculousness of the situation. after a bit of shuffling and much walking, we cross the finish line: RUN 5:15:51 (12:03 min/mile) another unspectacular day on a difficult course, but not a tough as my finishing time indicates: 12:37:28. looks like i didn't get the necessary work in before showing up.

Wildflower long course

2010-06-20T06:09:00.000-07:00

Swim (1.2 miles) I lined up close to front, not expecting too much. i was in a good pack for the first 100m or so, then we took the first turn, and my navigational proficiency failed, i swam out of the pack and was unable to find a set of feet to draft, so wound up swimming most of the course on my own. not ideal, but it makes for a good workout. SWIM 0:34:45 (1:47/100m), still lots of room to improve.

T1 a nice long run up the boat ramp and over to the bike, stripped my wetsuit with no issues, onto the bike. 2:35

Bike (56 miles) got onto the bike with that all to familiar my legs are still in the swim feel, not to excited about that, so i push a little bit to try to wake them up, after 4 or 5 miles of this and no real response, i accept it and just try to find a nice rhythm. Not too long into the ride i'm settled in a bit. just before the 1/2 way point i see a buffalo, that's a pleasant suprise, don't see too many of those in this area. the unspectacularness continues through the remainder of the bike, the climbs are slow and steady, i briefly get stuck behind a trio of cars on a downhill section and then am passed by them on the flat. i enjoy the relaxing coast down into t2: Bike 2:55:50 (19.1 mph).

T2 got in racked my bike, put on my shoes, and back out, a very comfortable and efficient transtion: 1:41

Run (13.1 miles) : the run wasn't bad, not spectacular, it's a nice run along the lake for the first 4 or 5 miles, then it turns in and runs through the campsites, so there is lots of people to help distract from the heat and discomfort. i had some issues and walked a bit on the run course, then decided that's not going to cut it, i need to get some running done, so i muster a decent pace for the remainder of the run, cruising up the climbs, and coasting down through the descents. on the last downhill i let gravity run it's magic, and continue to hold the momentum through the finish line. RUN 1:58:35 (9:03 min/mile) another unspectacular day: 5:33:26. looks like i did some digressing since oceanside.

Mulholland Challenge

2010-04-15T12:32:00.000-07:00

Sara invited me to join her and her brother (Eric) for a lovely ride through some very scenic areas North of la. how could i refuse, lots of climbing, technical descents on poorly maintained roads, and lots of miles, it's got me written all over it.

we got started shortly before 7am, and would ride together through the first big climb, there were some fun little descents and a nice section along pch that would prove to be some of the few areas well suited to a tt bike. since i'm in full swing on the triathlon training, that's the only bike in the quiver for anything other than recovery days, and this ride is not intended to promote recovery.

Eric made short work of the descents, he claimed he'd need the time later for the climbs and we'd see him again. today was to be his first day riding more than 50 miles, so there was little ground to argue his point, and it's a fun ride, so we wished him well and set him on his way.

at the top of the first climb, Sara and i pull off to the side to perform some minor adjustments to her bike, she was unable to shift into the big ring for much of the first 2 hours, the most unfortunate part of this is that was the most necessary ring to have for much of the initial portions. a little tweaking and we are back on the road.

At the bottom of a short descent was the first refueling stop, Sara and i stopped, got some water and food, and confirmed her bike was working better, and i wished her well. i was off to get in some good old fashioned suffering and see if i could find Eric along the way.

i passed Eric a bit further along, we talked briefly, and then i carried on with the suffering. my legs were feeling good, and there was much climbing to be done, so i wasn't interested in too much dawdling, figure i might as well get to the climbs while my legs feel good (this might be a bad approach, but i try not to think about riding too much, particularly when it's long riding, i get intimidated easily).

i wound up riding with a small group of cyclists for a good portion of the coming climbs. they stuck pretty well to my well, we chatted a bit, and once the descents got technical i bid them well. fully aware that a tt bike doesn't descend as well as a road bike, add to that my less then stellar bike handling skills, my unfamiliarity with the course, and my desire to not crash = a conservative descent: translated to lots of scenery enjoyment on the descent.

a short way into the descent, the roads went to shite, the were horrendous, my descending style goes from enjoying the scenery to trying to wear my brake pads down so i can get a new set. somewhere along the path a managed to flat, fortunately it was a slow leak so i persisted through to the bottom of the descent before pulling off to change it.

truth be told i didn't really notice it was flat until i was at the bottom. i pull over, change the flat in a very leisurely fashion, and am back onto another 3-4 mile climb. i think its around 70 miles now and i'm starting to feel a bit of tired in my legs. the good news is there is 1 descent, a stretch along pch, and 2 tough climbs, then it's primarily downhill and flat to the finish.

pch was another great stretch, just as i started to settle into a good rhythm, the course turned left and began a lovely steep climb up Decker rd, now my legs were truly getting unhappy with me, i was able to coax them up to the top through a good bit of protesting.

one nice stretch of small rolling terrain which offered a good bit of time trialing and back to the climb. the last of the major ascents, i will my way up the climb and am welcomed at the top by the final fuel stop, some pretzels, banana, look at the tantalizing cooler full of coke, and opt for straight water instead. i'm off, onto a quick descent and then a slightly less quick ascent.

then a nice long descent and an obnoxiously steep and short climb (probably not so bad with less riding leading up to it, but i reserve the right to exaggerate, it makes a better story). a couple more turns, and some nice little rollers, and i'm at the finish line.

i went back to Sara's car, got my phone, and began the lovely internal conversation: i should ride back and find Sara and Eric, but it's so far. after a little back and forthing, i'm back on the bike and heading backwards on the course to see how long it takes to meet up with them. i am growing tired and hungry, losing interest in riding the course backwards, when i come to the top of the obnoxiously steep climb.

easy decision, i'll stop and wait here, i've got to get back to the start/finish anyway, might as well wait and ride back with Sara and possibly Eric. after a little while, Eric goes by, no more than double his longest previous ride. kudos. very shortly thereafter, Sara comes by.

back on the bike and i'll pull a little bit of a train back to the finish. Eric and Sara finish within a couple minutes of each other, we grab some of the food they have (sandwiches a small pasta salad, some berries, and a cookie). head back to Eric's, get some food from the store, and grill up some very tasty steaks, rice, asparagus, and a cold glass of milk.

if you are interested, there is a course map and other data: Mulholland Challenge course from Garmin Connect

Sara has some photos which i might post, then again she has photos from New Zealand which i may post too, so don't' hold you're breath too long. they'll be put up eventually:)

Oceanside 70.3

2010-03-29T17:41:00.001-07:00

Swim (1.2 miles)
I lined up a bit wide and towards the front, not expecting a strong swim, but still not ready to concede a back of the pack start. i was lacking the strength to have a good pull, and the endurance to maintain. SWIM 0:35:27 (1:52/100m), a bit slow and lots of work to be done in the next month.

T1
a nice long run up the boat ramp and over to the bike, stripped my wetsuit with no issues, onto the bike. 3:11

Bike (56 miles)
Had a good bike ride, felt solid. spent the first 24 miles just relaxing and enjoying a good rhythm. This would deliver me to the base of the climbs feeling well. over the first 24 miles i did some back and forth with a couple riders, just before we got to the climbs, 1 of the riders made a move and left me, the other was not as strong, and soon dropped off the pace on the climbs. i enjoy picking people off through the climbs and coming into the flat return stretch feeling good and eager to ride strong. there were some good cross winds keeping things interesting, but not really inhibiting the forward progress.

coming back through the backside of camp pendleton, i've got a good amount of push left in my legs and am happily cruising into t2: Bike 2:34:05 (21.8 mph)

T2
no issues, a good little run through, put my socks and sneakers on and i'm off. 1:45

Run (13.1 miles)
I start out feeling pretty good and try to reign in the pace for the first 1/2. it's not long before i see mike coming back finishing up his first lap. Soon thereafter, i come up on victor, he's starting to cramp and have some issues, we talk a bit, and he runs with me for a mile or so, then he drops off the pace a bit, and i wish him well. the first loop went fairly well, i'm on pace to run a 1:35, then i start to feel the lack of running in my legs. a little before mile 9 i accept the inevitable and settle in on the pace, i don't have the miles in my legs to race the last 4 miles, so i'm going to run it strong, but accept a bit less on the run than i'd hoped for: RUN 1:43:32 (7:54 min/mile)

another unspectacular day: 4:57:59. still a bit of work to do before lanzarote.

Challenge Wanaka

2010-02-04T21:25:00.000-08:00

i arrived in wanaka thursday afternoon, 2 days prior to the race. It isn't actually intended to be a race, more of a status check and excuse to get to new zealand and visit a bit of the island.

Swim (3800m)
I lined up a bit wide and towards the front, not expecting a strong swim, but still not ready to concede a back of the pack start. It's a two loop swim, so i took it pretty comfortable for the first loop with virtually no draft. There were several cold sections. For the 2nd loop, i switched between a couple sets of feet and came out feeling pretty good, if not a little cold. SWIM 1:09:29 (1:50/100m), a bit slow, but lets me know i'll be fine in lanzarote with 3 - 4 swims a week.

T1
a run up the beach and over the bridge to transition area, grabbed my transition bag, and into the changing tent. sunglasses and i'm on my way. 4:20

Bike (180km)
Had some trouble getting into my shoes initially, then spent the next 20km being cold, holding a very comfortable effort, it's a long day coming. There are some gentle rollers, with a couple that extend long enough to drop to the small chainring. I enjoy catching some of the faster swimmers for the first 40km.

coming into km 60, i spent some time wondering if i would have any issues taking the water bottle with my left hand, in all my races to this point, the aid stations were on my right side, and i took the bottles with my right hand. on top of that, i'm right handed. At km 60, i dropped a pulse bottle, and took the bottle without issue.

I expected 40 - 90km to be a fast section, the course profile shows it to be a net downhill; however, the road texture and headwinds prove otherwise. around the 70km mark, two riders went by me, and i decided to hang on to the wheel through 90km. I maintained a constant effort at a slightly higher speed. Started to feel good, which is convenient as kms 90 - 140 are a net climb up. fortunately what was a headwind on the way down turned to a tailwind for the way back. that combined with my feeling better turned to a faster split through 140km. i had a toilet break at km 120, then back on the bike.

i came around a corner at 140km, and started on one of the longer climbs on the course. something lodged in my front brake, causing me to stop. I checked and didn't find anything in the brake, it must have pushed clear. Upon restarting part way up the hill, I slipped off the pedal and landed on the seat, which no longer sits level, now pointing about 20 degrees down. there goes that comfy riding position i'd been enjoying. The last 40km would prove challenging, due to the new position. I spent a bit of time standing, and moving around trying to limit the discomfort of the new saddle.

I missed one of the last turns, fortunately, the volunteers quickly chased me down, and got me back on course. The last 10km proved a bit challenging, my legs were not terribly happy, though i held a decent pace, i was ready for my legs to be worthless on the run. Bike 5:57:54 (30 km/hr = 18.8mph)

T2
no issues, re-applied sunscreen and off to see how my legs hold up for some 42kms. 2:26

Run (42km)
I start out feeling pretty good and try to reign in the pace for the first 10km. the first loop went fairly well, the first 1/2 of the loop is on trails, along the lake, and a river. I came through the 22 or 23km mark doing all right, though i was slowing steadily. At this point, i've started bartering: ok, i just need to run through 25km or perhaps 30km, then i can walk for a bit.

i try taking in more calories, hopefully it'll bring my legs back around. i'm grabbing em's power cookies and bananas at each station, some water and gatorade. At 30km, im walking up the steeper hills, and contemplating jumping in the river and floating down the course a bit. cool blue water, looks very inviting, flashbacks to canada, where i contemplated jumping in the lake.

on top of that, i can feel the sunburn setting in. lovely another 8kms, and i'm already sunburnt. this will be a great day. I walked from km 33 - 35, popped a motivator, in hopes it would ease the final 7km. it just made me dizzy, apparrently they only work if there's fuel in the tank. 37km, 1 aid station left, i'll just take some water and hold on for the rest. a very unspectacular finish. RUN
4:36:55 (6:34 min/km - 10:34 min/mile)

overall an unspectacular day on a fabulous course. 11:51:04

Silverman 2009

2009-11-16T11:53:00.000-08:00

headed down to transition area around 5:30, put my nutrition on the bike checked tire pressure, finalized preparations and made a couple bathroom stops before making my way down to the swim entrance.

The gun went off, and the day's effort was underway. I put in a fair effort for a few hundred meters to work my way up towards the front of the pack and avoid much of the chaos. I found a set of feet, and settled in for a draft at a good comfortable pace. The swim was fairly open, and I found myself bridging up to a faster set of feet on 3 occasions, primarily at turn buoys. I’d make a surge, get to the new set of feet and settle down to allow myself to come back to race effort. I came out of the water feeling pretty fresh and anxious to get on the bike had a minor delay with the wetsuit stripper. gathered my things, and heard mike “you had your best swim yet, time to get to the bike and race smart. SWIM 1:00:26 (1:33/100m) my fastest swim yet at this distance and fastest pace for any triathlon swim over 1 mile.

Transition went well, nothing spectacular, my standard in the tent shoes, sunglasses, helmet, race belt, sunscreen, off to the bike and pedaling. T1 0:02:45

The plan for the bike is to sit back and let things unfold until the turnaround. The ride after the turnaround is more difficult, and provides a good opportunity to make up time. Between miles 5 and 10 1 rider went cruising by, the only rider to pass me while I was riding the entire day. I was feeling good, and doing well at following my plan, lots of calories a good amount of water, and a comfortably solid pace. At mile 45 I saw the first riders heading back from the turnaround, putting them roughly 10 miles ahead of me. I believe there were 10 or 12 riders in front of me at the turn around, and the hunting began.

By the special needs station at mile 53 I had passed 1 rider, and had 2 more not too far ahead. By mile 60 I passed another couple of cyclists, and had 2 more I was pursuing. At mile 70 the course gets pretty fast, and I took an opportunity to rest a bit and enjoy the easy pedaling downhill. Around mile 85 my confidence took a hit, I broke my chain.

At least I’m close to the top of a climb, and not too far from the next aid station (just past mile 90). I picked up the broken chain put it in my pocket, and walked my bike to the crest of the climb. Remounting the bike, I coasted down the hill and as far up the last climb out of the park as gravity allowed. There was roughly 1 mile to the aid station, I began walking. Other riders asked if I needed anything, but none had a chain tool or chain, so I was on my own.

A spectator gave me a ride to the remaining mile to the next aid station. They were extremely helpful in helping me find a chain, the bad part is it took some time. I waited around long enough to find out the support vehicle had neither chain nor chain tools. It was now 1pm, I had until 3pm to get to the bike path before the cutoff, and my race was over. After some time, I decided I’d have to go back to where I was picked up and cover the distance back to the aid station under my own power. Might as well do it while the folks at the aid station where trying to locate a chain for me.

I began the journey back to where I was picked up. The good news is it was downhill, so I was able to coast my bike down. the bad news is that meant running back up the hill with my bike in tow, and either cycling shoes, or bare feet. I opted for bare feet, and jogged the remaining distance out of the park and to the aid station. The time was now 2pm, and still no chain. Race support had found a chain tool, and I started to try and re-use my broken chain in hopes I’d be able to limp the remaining miles on it to T2. After several failed attempts, I thought it’s best to wait for the new chain to arrive, as if the chain breaks, I’ll be several miles from any opportunity for assistance. One of the volunteers had a friend that was buying a chain and chain tool so I could continue my race. I sat around waiting, handed out water and gatorade to riders, and ate and drank.

Finally the chain and tool arrived, I installed the new chain, and quickly sped off, I’m not sure what time it was, but know it had to be getting close to 3. I quickly realized I was unable to get in the big ring. After a quick evaluation, I determined it would be beneficial to turn around go back to the aid station and adjust the front derailleur so I had access to the big ring. with that done, I was back on my way.
the remaining 22 miles went without hitch and I was into T2 around 3:40. Bike 7:37:01 (14.9 mph), approximately 8:40 into the race. For every up there is a down, this is my slowest bike split for any distance triathlon.

Transition 2 was a bit of a task, I was pretty disappointed with the whole bike scenario, and contemplated calling it a day. I would have, except you always have to start the next section and see how things go, the good news is there is relatively few mechanical issues you can have on the run. T2 -???

The run turned out to be a problem, no running legs, the ups seemed far steeper then they were, and the descents far slower than I typically enjoy. It would be 13 miles and nearly 2.5 hours before I saw anybody from pulse. They had all gathered and were waiting just past special needs to cheer me on. I was in no mood for cheering. When I saw them, I threw my nutrition and sunglasses and continued through. It was now 11 hours into the race. I got some food in me at the next aid station and proceeded to walk entirely too much. At mile 15, it became evident that I wasn’t enjoying this, and really didn’t want to be out here anymore. At mile 19, I proceeded to walk through the turn and towards the finishing area. I was done, my mood was sour, I was hungry, and not interested in the 2+ hours I would likely have used to finish the “run”. It was a little after 7pm when I handed over my race number and succumbed to the “toughest course in north america”. The irony lay in the fact that it was by far the best weather conditions the event has seen since its inception in 2005.

Not my best showing, I am still having trouble with the fact that I dropped out. that makes my last 2 events DNF numbers 3 and 4. back to the drawing board, I have exactly 2 months until I go to new zealand and have another go at figuring out the full distance triathlon.

Mission Bay Tri

2009-10-05T09:54:00.000-07:00

Running needs to become a priority. If i repeat i enough times, hopefully i'll actually believe it and make it so. I showed up early, set up transition and began wandering around transition.

It was good to see all the faces of the PULSE Mission Bay Training Group wandering around, some nervous, some tired, all smiling and excited. Everybody would have a great day.

Swim (500m)
i lined up by some fast swimmers and figured i'd go for it from the get go today and see what happens. I managed to hold onto the first set of feet for 20meters or so before i was off the back. Another set of feet wasn't too far off, so i made an effort, bridged the gap and would sit there for the majority of the swim. I pushed a solid effort, and before i realized i was approaching the final turn and last 100 meters of the swim. I was breathing hard, and the effort was evident.

T1
a quick run up and through the transtion area, Mike Kelley is just getting ready to head out on the bike. I had some issues in transition, taking the wetsuit off, putting cycling shoes on, sunglasses, helmet, race belt. ready to go. slightly slow, but done nonetheless.

Bike (15km)
Being the 4th wave off, there is a long line of carrots up ahead, time to start catching up. Bike feels good initially, legs complained a bit going over the first overpass, and i responded appropriately - shift to a harder gear. It usually takes a bit of a hard effort before my legs start to come around. I wiggle through the sea world parking lot enjoying the turns and accelerations and am spit out onto the faster section of the course.

Another gear up, and more speed. It takes me almost 4 miles to catch Mike Kelley, but if happens, i reach over and give him a "good game" slap, this time i'm able to keep everything and don't miss a bit on the bike. Fiesta island is fast and i'm enjoying pushing a big gear, then i come around the back side and get a bit of a headwind, things slow a bit, but continue on. To this point i've passed 3 or 4 guys in my division.

My legs start to feel a bit better and are going well, 3 miles left, some wigglies, the overpass, and then coast down into transition 2. I pass Kariem, he's smiling and having a blast. In August when he got his bike and decided to get healthy, he was having trouble riding 4 miles from home to work, he ran a mile as fast as he could, it took him 13 minutes, just over 2 months later, he's completed his 1st tri, i'm pretty sure he averaged better than 12 minute miles for 3.1 miles, he's lost 30 pounds and is excited to continue with his new found lifestyle.

I pass 1 more guy in my division in the last 1/2 mile of the bike. I dismount, get caught behind a guy at the dismount line, and am into T2.

T2
This goes much more smoothly, I get off the bike, rack it, drop my helmet slip into my shoes, and am off. I know there is at least 1 runner coming for me, no time to waste.

Run (5km)
I start out pretty good, a little conservative, just because i'm not sure how my legs are going to respond to a fast effort, it's been a while since i did any speedwork, and i haven't run in almost 2 weeks.

legs feel ok, so i pick it up a bit, there are still a good number of people in front of me, so i start picking them off. I run by a couple people i know, and exchange a quick hello. Just over 1 mile into the run, i see Victor coming the other way, that's good, he started 5 minutes ahead of me. Then i come around the corner and see i've still got a bit of running to do to get up to where i saw Victor. I also get a chance to look back and see the orange jersey, i passed at the end of the bike, running steadily behind me, even closing a bit.

Lovely, it hurts, and now i get to run a bit harder. the good news is this was the easiest portion of the race. there are a couple more little turns and wiggles that offer me an opportunity to get a status check on the orange jersey, he's hanging right there about 20 seconds back. I push pretty good over the overpass, after this, it's downhill, i let it go a bit, he's still holding steady.

coming around to the final climb up, if i can get to the top of this last overpass before the orange jersey, i can likely hold him off through the finish. There's no looking back, just running now. I get to the top, and let gravity take me back down to the final 0.1 miles. Time to pick up the pace, my legs turn over a bit quicker, and threaten to give out, even get a bit soft on a couple steps. I can see the finish chute, and know it's time to start racing. Again i quicken and go see how long i can hold this.

I cross the line with the orange jersey behind me. turns out he was 10 seconds behind me. He definitely made me run hard.

AFTER
I had a good time, and was able to see many of the PULSE Mission Bay Triathlon Training group come across the line. All but 1 of the participants started and finished the triathlon. That 1 particant was extremely sick the week or so leading up to the triathlon. Another of the participants was diagnosed with thyroid cancer less than a week before the triathlon. She decided to come out and participate regardless. She finished and was extremely pleased with her accomplishment on the day.

We gathered at the PULSE tent and exchanged stories about how much fun it was and how everybody felt and their thoughts. It was a good start to a good day.

Iroquois Trails 100 (i mean 50)

2009-10-01T10:32:00.000-07:00

An interesting day in my experiment to find my running legs, and see what it's like to be a professional athlete, traveling all over to race.

I got up early, Melissa and Phil drove me to the start. The good news is the weather was a bit warmer than it had been the previous nights, so i was ok with long sleeves, a hat, and gloves.

GATHERINGS LOOP
Run started at 5am, and was a nice comfortable start. My legs felt pretty good to start out. it's an easy flat mile, then about 1/2 mile climb to the top of the ski lift, and down. I opt to take the descents slower than usual in hopes of preserving my legs. legs still feeling good as i come back into the gatherings/start area.. i get rid of the long sleeve shirt, hat, and gloves and am on my way again.

GATHERINGS To PIPELINE RD
the next 6.3 mile section, this is a fun section, some technical portions with lots of tree cover before being dumped onto a road for the last mile. I'm still running conservative and enjoying it. weather is warming up, but in the tree cover, it's a bit chilly for my short sleeves and shorts. the next aid station comes fairly easily, legs still good.

PIPELINE RD LOOP
the next 5.4 mile section is a good bit of fun, spending a fair amount of time in the tree coverage. no issues, food is coming in good. i feel good, the bean and cheese burritos seem to be doing the trick. this 5.4 miles takes 1:04 (11:40 min/mile). so far things are very consistent, and i'm feeling good.

PIPELINE RD To GATHERINGS
time to head back towards the gathering, the same section as the previous 6.3 miles, in reverse. on the way back, it's starting to warm up, and i'm feeling pretty good, i hold a slow steady pace, hoping to conserve for the later miles.

GATHERINGS To GREEK PEAK
i get another bean and cheese burrito, some roctane, refill my pockets and water, and am off again. heading out towards daisy hollow rd for the out and back. the first section is a 3.7 mile jaunt, the majority of which is spent climbing the 800 feet up to the top of the ski resort. My legs are feeling good, so i run anythign that is relatively flat, and have a good section.

GREEK PEAK To ROCK PILE
i eat a little, refill my water bottle and am off again. At this point, the fatigue begins to set in. There is a good amount of downhill, which i try to run at a comfortable pace. despite how gradual the uphills are, i find myself walking. as quick as the highs come, so come the lows. i do what i can to run, but my legs are tired and beginning to rebel.

ROCK PILE To DAISH HOLLOW RD
i eat some food and drink a bit, trying to get nutrition and and snap out of the slump i'm quickly sinking into. I'm slogging along at a poor impression of a shuffle, and there is no sign of reprieve to come. Things are slightly better, but that's primarily due to the course trending downhill through this section.

DAISY HOLLOW RD To ROCK PILE
my dad, Phil, and Melissa are here to cheer me on and see if i need anything. i take another bean and cheese burrito, a pita and some hummus. i need something to try and get my legs moving. Things are going downhill and getting very slow. i have a few spots on my feet that are rubbing, so i get some duct tape and start wrapping my feet. Then i'm back off on my way. not really any improvement, i spend much of this section walking and when i do attempt to run, it's very slow.

ROCK PILE To GREEK PEAK
quite the suprise at rockpile, Phil and Melissa have made the trek to the aid station and are waiting when i get there. more hummus and pita, bean and cheese burrito, some coke, and i'm back on my way. Still slow going and no sign of improvement.

GREEK PEAK To GATHERINGS
at greek peak, i think my dad is there, Melissa, Phil, and Tracy shows up before i head out again. some coke, a little liquid and i'm back out to head down to gatherings. At this time, i feel like i'm making good time, and seem to be running fairly well. Then again it is pretty much downhill. i get into gatherings and am greeted by Phil, Melissa, and Tracy. i get some food and lay down. it's time to take inventory, i just ran the down from greek peak, far more downhill than climbing, and i held a 12:25 pace, just 25 miles earlier i ran the route in reverse (a much more challenging route, and held an 11:21 pace). my legs are tired, i'm walking a lot. my intention is to come out and become a better runner. if i'm not running, i'm not going to get better at it. walking doesn't make a good runner.

i opt to drop from the run. i lay there for a while before heading back to the hotel and showering. Then it's back home, still in time for dinner. See how things go in a couple weeks at mission bay triathlon.

AS#	Aid Station	Section Mileage	Overall Mileage	Section Time	Overall Time	Section Pace	Overall Pace
1	Gatherings	5.7	5.7	01:05	01:05	11:24	11:24
2	Pipeline Rd	6.3	12.0	01:14	02:19	11:44	11:34
3	Pipeline Rd	5.4	17.4	01:04	03:23	11:51	11:40
4	Gatherings	6.3	23.7	01:18	04:41	12:22	11:51
5	Greek Peak	3.7	27.4	00:42	05:23	11:21	11:47
6	Rock Pile	4.3	31.7	01:11	06:34	16:30	12:25
7	Daisy Hollow	5.2	36.9	01:15	07:49	14:25	12:42
8	Rock Pile	5.2	42.1	01:34	09:23	18:04	13:22
9	Greek Peak	4.3	46.4	01:17	10:40	17:54	13:47
10	Gatherings	3.7	50.1	00:46	11:26	12:25	13:41

IM Wisconsin

2009-09-16T09:50:00.000-07:00

headed down to transition area around 4:30, put my nutrition on the bike checked tire pressure, finalized preparations and made a couple bathroom stops before making my way down to the swim entrance.

Sara's family was out to support her, and i would ride her skirt tails in and enjoy their cheers of encouragement as well. got in the water around 6:55, and made my way towards the front a bit wide.

The gun went off, and the day's effort was underway. I put in a fair effort for a few hundred meters to work my way up towards the front of the pack and avoid much of the chaos. I settled into a good comfortable pace. The swim was fairly open, not much to mention, very little of the typical ironman battling. I wasn't able to find a pair of feet at all during the first lap. On the second loop i was able to find a pair of feet and enjoyed the benefit of the draft. On a couple of occassions i bridged up to a faster pair of feet. I came out of the water feeling pretty fresh and anxious to get on the bike and see how my back and leg where going to hold up. b pretty typical swim for me.

Transition in Wisconsin is entertaining, we exit the water, run ~150 yards, then proceed up 3 stories on the car ramp to the changing area and bikes. I jogged comfortably up the ramp and into the changing area, put my shoes on, sunscreen, helmet, race number, and off to find my bike. T1 0:6:13

The plan for the bike is to sit back, and hope to avoid the tightness and cramping i had in Canada. Things started out ok, not too crowded, a couple groups of cyclists which i proceeded to work up through. I had just over 2000 calories on the bike, a bit more than in Canada. The course was a suitable course, i sat up on the climbs and kept the effort to a moderate level. I could feel some tightness in my back and leg, but with the help of ibuprofen and some steady pacing i kept this from becoming too problematic. nutrition was good through mile 85 or so, then it became apparent, i was going to run low, so i began grabbing bananas from the aid stations. i heard sara's family several times on the bike course.

I slowed a bit on the 2nd loop (miles 40 - 83) and a bit more from 83 to 112. After completing the 2nd loop (mile 98ish), i made the turn back towards transition, and sat back a bit to let a couple guys ahead of me do the work. After several minutes of this, i decided i could push the pace a bit more, and passed them, i would be alone until mile 105 or so, when 2 other cyclists came around and i hung with them into T2. Bike 5:17:49 (21.14mph).

Transition 2 went pretty smoothly and quickly, we ride up the ramp again. It felt good to get off the bike, and i was ready to see what my legs had left in them. I quickly put my running shoes on, grabbed my nutrition, salt and amino tablets for the run and was out the door. T2 0:2:26

The run, will this be as miserable as 2 weeks prior? not so, i came out feeling pretty good, not going too hard, holding a steady pace with a decent effort, but not all out. I was able to hold this effort for the first 6 or 7 miles then things slowed pretty significantly. My legs got heavy, and i came close to walking a couple of times. Shortly after mile 12, i saw Sara on her way out for her 1st loop. I figured i was roughly 1 mile behind her, and should be able to make that up by mile 18 or so. Things got pretty bad for a bit, i was tempted to walk, and actually did for 10 or 20 yards a couple of times before pushing through it. After getting more food in, and a couple bathroom breaks, i was able to pick up the effort again, and again saw Sara on her way back from one of the out and back's (this is around mile 21).

I decided it's time to go, just over 4 miles to catch her, i quickened my pace, short quick steps, easy gear, 4 miles, just ofer 6km, i can do this. After about 1 mile, i caught another glimpse of Sara, she was definitely closer, so i put in a little extra effort, i caught her between miles 23 and 24 for me. At this point i ran with her for a bit, we walked through the aid station and continued walking to the next aid station. She opted to take a bathroom break, so i wished her well, and began my final push to the finish. Run 4:20:23 (9:56 / mile)

Not my best showing, but i'm definitely content with it under the circumstances, let see if this lights the fire again? I had a good time, and enjoyed most of the race. I was happy i had an opportuntity to run for a bit with Sara, and see her finish. a good race and good time all around.

IM Canada

2009-09-02T13:05:00.000-07:00

started out as a good day, clear skies, mild temperatures and the promise of some heat for the run. got up ate a little, then headed down to transition area. lined up for the swim at the front:

the 1st couple hundred meters went well, stayed out of congestion and thought i settled into a good spot, shortly thereafter several groups swam over me and put me back in my place. i found a couple more congested sections, needed to re-adjust my goggles once before the turn around. after the turn around, things went well, everything was open, i found a pair of feet, sat on them, and began feeling strong. could have pushed more and swam a little faster, next time. Swim split 1:05:02

into transition some sun screen a little vaseline and onto the bike. 1st 4 miles seemed to go very quickly, at which point i decided to hold back until the 1st climb (~45 miles into the bike). i was in a big group of people for a bit, doing some back and forth. at the base of the first climb, things opened up, my legs felt good and i rode comfortably to the top. then began picking my way up through the riders.
at 70 miles i was feeling really good, and opened it up a bit more, this was a very fast section of the course, i put in a bit of time on the other riders. shortly thereafter, at about 85 or 90 miles, things went south, what's this back tightness, oh bother, that's gonna affect the next 25ish miles.
all the work i'd done up to that point began undoing, many of the riders i went by between miles 70 and 80 would pass me in the final 20 miles of the ride.
i struggled a bit up to the top of the final climb and couldn't seem to find either a comfortable position on the bike, or any power in my legs for the final section (predominantly downhill). bike split: 5:16:56

time to see how that shapes the run up to be. into transition, re-apply sunscreen, and hope things loosen up for the run. 3/4 of a mile in, nothing good is happening today, my legs are blasted, my back is tight, and quads are cramping. i laid down for a bit and tried to wait it out, a couple spectators came by and helped me rub things out a bit, then medical comes over. i'm doing all right, just taking a break, waiting for the cramps to subside. ok, back up and time to plod along. ate pretzels, drank gatorade, and kept thinking, 25 miles is totally fakable. turns out it is, but fake is very slow. i did what i could to feign running for the rest of it, many interesting thought running through my head.
"if this was a 2 loop course, i'd drop after the first loop"
"once mike comes along, i'll grab on and hold his pace as long as i can"
"irony: wishing so hard for the last 25miles of the bike to be off that cursed contraption and onto the run. only to get to the run and find out i'm bound to be stuck in slow motion for an insufferable duration"

i even tried to pace with passing runners, knowing they were going slowly, but there wasn't anything there, my legs weren't sore, they weren't beat up, just flat, rebelling. shortly after the turn around, mike was running by my side. we laughed about both our situations, but after a couple miles, mike was unable to bear my slowness, and had to leave me behind so he could minimize his suffering (i told you my pace was insufferable). run split 5:15:46

had i known it was that slow, i would have drug it out for another minute and 10 seconds and had the same run and bike split. maybe next time.

back to the drawing board. see what comes of the next event.

Imperial Beach Tri

2009-08-27T07:10:00.001-07:00

all in all the day was a successful stepping stone and confidence builder for canada. got to transition early picked out a spot near the bike out and made myself at home. Then waited around for the start. Trying new shoes, lets see how they are to get into on the bike.
The swim went well, I don’t remember a lot about it except I spent a lot of time going wide on the course, felt relatively comfortable the entire time and smooth. The one memorable moment, on my way in, I was picked up by a wave and dropped over the falls, nothing like a good spin cycle to get you ready to do some hard cycling. Looking up the beach, I see Mike Kelley, a typically strong swimmer, so I chase him up the beach and into transition. Swim split 0:9:44
Had a slow transition, some issues getting my wetsuit off, and too stubborn to sit down to take the suit off, lesson learned, wetsuit strippers are the way to go. Sunglasses, helmet, bike, onto the good stuff.
Got on the bike, and started my chase of mike kelley. I built some speed up to try and get into my shoes. Now let’s see how easy I can get into those fancy new shoes. Not so easy, the right one came off the pedal, luckily I was able to keep it on my foot, somewhat and keep cycling. Finally got my foot into the shoe, and a slightly easier time for the left foot. Looks like I’ll be running to the bike mount in my shoes at canada. hope that goes well.
Back to chasing down mike kelley. with both shoes on I can focus on the task at hand. it took me 1 or 2 miles, but I eventually caught him. He and J have this little tradition, everytime J catches and passes mike, he slaps him on the ass, a little “good game” gesture. Since J isn’t racing today, I figure it’s my place to keep the tradition. Mental note, it’s best to keep your hands to yourself on the bike (that’s probably why J catches mike on the run, it’s safer). I reach over and give him a good pat on my way by. Almost immediately my tire grabs and I find myself being violently re-directed to the left. Oh bother, this will be perfect, if I crash, I’ll need to peel myself off the ground and pass mike kelley again, that means another slap, and more potential for a crash. fortunately I was able to keep things upright and somewhat together. Back to cycling.
The bike went well, took a little while before I found my groove, and in the last 10k a couple other participants in my division came up to me and started the pass and slow down game. I went by them twice, the 3rd time they passed me, I was content and let them go. My legs felt good, and I was confident I’d be able to run a stronger run than either of them was up for on the day.
Shoes off (much easier than shoes on while riding) and preparing for a fast transition to make up for the earlier debacle. Not to mention if’ I’m very efficient, I can be in and out of transition before either of the 2 cyclists in front of me get onto the run course. Bike split and 2 transitions: 0:26:18
I had a good transition, both of the cyclists where in behind me getting out of transition, now to see how the run is coming. I started out very strong on the run, see if anybody felt like pushing the pace. About 1 mile into the run, I caught up to Sara, gave her a little pat, and continued charging hard. At the turn around, I could see other the 2 dropping back. Now it’s just me to push it. I pushed through the finish, felt strong coming across the line, and like I may have been able to eak out a little more speed, but not much. Run spilt 0:16:56.
looks like I’ve still got some speed in my legs, the book is closed, time to see what happens in Canada. My biggest challenge is to race smart.

Flagstaff barnburner - Steep learning curve.

2009-06-22T09:40:00.001-07:00

so i regularly ride 80+ miles on my tri bike with no problems, how much worse can it be off road on a cushy mountain bike? and by the way, mountain bike fit is important, it's not so much just eh that's pretty close. maybe it is, but my eh wasn't even in the ball park.

lined up at the start, the rain has stopped, there are roughly 150 people waiting to make the 200yard run to our mountain bikes and begin the first of 4 laps (some would have 1 - 3 teammates, some owuld do it solo, and some with even more issues than i've found will do it solo on a single speed mountain bike: choose gearing wisely).

the dash to the bikes is slippery and great for clogging cleats. grab my bike and off i go. lots of kicking and cursing to clear the mud from the cleats before i can clip in.

all right this is fun, the course is fully muddied up my tires are clogged and mud is taking over the bike. i settle into a comfortable pace fully aware this will be a long day. i quickly notice the seat seems a bit low, i'll fix that after the first loop.

LOOP 1
the plan - go easy and see what the course looks like - the reality, i rode way above my head very early, had a great lap, some good findings and managed to stay upright. the entire course was fire roads, some skinnier than others, but no real single track, 2 longish kind of steep climbs, the first comes after a fast fun downhill section, it lasts about 1.5 miles, and climbs from 7400' up to around 7900. then there is a good downhill section (dropping down to 7250' over 3 miles) through some tight turns and through a near constant rock garden, lasting about 2.5 miles. leading into the 2nd climb: 3.5 miles taking you from 7200' up to 7900'. then you get to cruise through a fast pretty simple (translation point the bike down and don't hit the brakes) downhill section: ~1mile coming down from 7900' to 7650' ish.

on the way up the first climb (roughly 13 miles into the ride), i was hungry and thirsty. luckily i was smart enough to pack all the nutrition i could possibly need for the day in my camelback. the irony: despite my dragging knuckles, my arms are not as long as a typical apes, and i can't easily access anythign in my camelback without stopping. and since i'm racing, stopping isn't really in the cards.

well, i'm going up hill, so nows a great time to try this, i manage to take my camelback off, swing it around to the front and open the pouch. i transfer several items to my jersey pockets. still haven't fallen, nor have i stopped pedalling. now i need to close it up and swing it around to the back. nothing special, works, i'm still climbing and upright. that's good.

Up to the start of the 2nd climb, i was going back and forth with some fast riders, then it dawned on me, i have 3 more of these things to do, i've ridden my moutnain bike for a total of 4 times since getting it in february, for a total of maybe 80 miles, never more than 25 miles in one sitting? perhaps it's best to sit back nad let them go.

coming into the start finish area, there 3 things i need to address, the seat must be raised, food must consumed, and transfered from my camelback to my jersey pockets. sara is there cheering me on and enjoying the sun.

i raise my seat a good 2 inches. and am back out on my way.

LOOP 2
this was probably the most arduous loop of all. i'm back out the suns out trail is dry, my back is tight (bike fit is important), ass hurts (seat choice is important), and my legs are a bit tired. so i ease back on the pace a bit. nothing exciting on this loop, i vow to not walk any portion of the course, other than the mandated barn traversal, and keep my head down. i start thinking, how the hell do people ride like this for so damn long?

then i think back to a conversation juan and i had. i commented on needing aeorbars for my mountain bike since the course was pretty non-technical (mostly fire roads). i'm looking ahead, its nothing but dirt road, my legs are displeased, and i'm riding sittin up right, and the best part, my small chainring is innaccessible, good thing i don't need 27 gears, because i've been reduced to 18 (middle and big ring work up front, all 9 work in the rear).

click click click, wait, i have an idea, i can't pedal worth a damn right now, my back hurts, my ass hurts, and i'm used ot riding for hours on end in a tt position. f- it. here goes. i rest my elbows on the bars and start spinning a way. all of a sudden, i'm pushing into the big ring, starting to hold a decent pace. getting a good flow, legs are coming around (sort of). other than few sketchy moments on some of the washboard sections. this aero thing seems to be working (mental note, train like you race).

i do this on pretty much anything that isn't a steep climb, overly rocky, or downhill. it saves my legs a bit, helps my ass and back and keeps me going. this loop, i'm eating and drinking regularly. i'm figuring out on long stuff, if you don't have it in you, or you get that feeling that it's justnot there, i start eating and drinking. everytime i've started this, within 20 - 30 minutes, i feel things come back around.

by now the trail is dry, the sun is coming out, and i'm making my way over the 2nd climb and back into the start finish again.

another pleasant greeting by sara. this time i've got 2 thigns to address: raise the seat (yep, 2 inches wasn't enough), raised it close to another 1". more food in my belly, the juggling of food from my camelback to my jersey pockets. get this damn long sleeved thermo shirt off so i can stop sweating so excessively. and i'm off. sara mentions 1/2 way there, i hang my head, chuckle, and respond, might be a bit more than 1/2 way depending on how thigns go this round. it's now 11:11, that leaves me 4:49 until cut-off, the 1st 2 loops were done in 4:11, should be ok for the 9 hour mark.

LOOP 3
more thinking, mmm, there's an interesting concept, the end of the transition/handoff area is stocked wiht coolers and all sorts of crap from other people doing the solo ride.

yoou mean i odn't have to carry everything with me on every loop? sometimes i really believe i'm dumb as a gorilla (probably dumber, when was the last time you saw a gorilla pack food for a long trip?). damn even a gorilla knows you can restock food periodically. oh well, shite, i haven't refilled my camelback since starting, how long has it been, how much fluid does it hold 100 oz, times 4 divided by 3. i ran out of fingers. did i mention my feet hurt now too? these 8 year old shoes are in need of replacement.

back to the liquid math. so 100 oz is 4 water bottles, just over 4 hours at elevation i should probably drink more than 1 bottle an hour, but i'm feeling ok and still have some left. there is a self service aid station at around mile 10 which i will stop and restock - gatorade/water and powerbars/gels.

i get there, grab 2 power bars (these things are pretty tasty after sufficient warming), 2 gels, fill my camelback with gatorade and water (which i still haven't emptied yet) and am on my way.

i soon catch up to another rider (doing the solo single speed). i manage to pick the 1 tight spot in this 3 mile descent to try and squeeze by. of course i don't bother mentioning my intentions, as my front wheel is passing his seat, i see we are choosing the same line. big rock to my left, big single speed rider to my right. oh yeah, this has ground in dirt goodness written all over it.

i try to squeeze left without hitting the rock, then realize though we aren't physically touching, there is a lot of overlap on our bars. ooooh f--- bars touch riders go down. i'm not 100% sure what happened, but something like this is what i've figured:

our bars touched pulling me into him and him into me, my bikc went down first pulling him on top of me. i slid a bit, as did he. when the dust settled, i looked over apologized for the dumb-ass move, and asked if he was ok. he said he was all right, but was opting to just lay there for a bit. i laughed and responded likewise.

i remember crashing a lot when i first started riding mountain bikes, i don't really remember it hurting quite this much. i used to be pretty good at crashing, and avoiding potential breaks. however based on my abrasion patterns, i landed in a good fashion to break a collar bone. good thing i got that milk on the way out here. after laying around for a couple mintes, simon and i got up dusted some crap off. he asked how my bike was, i said its fine, i'll ride and see how it goes.

over the remaining 40 miles, i discovered my rear derailleur seems to have bent, and my bars twisted as a result of the crash. not too bad, i was able to ride both of them in that fashion the remaining 40+/- miles.

something happened on that crash, once i was back on the bike, there was a fire burning, and time to be made up, i took off at a good pace, and started pulling people back. simon and i traded back and forth for the rest of the loop (he would go by me on the climbs, and i'd go by him on the descents). i told you i'm a knuckle dragger, don't learn my lessons.

just starting the 1st climb, my left quad threatened something awful to cramp up and render itself useless. i off loaded a lot of the effort to my right leg and drank a bunch of gatorade. i attribute this tightness to crashing hard on that side and getting a charlie horse. it lasted through the 1st climb and most of the 2nd, then would subside and not return.

back in for the 3rd time, more food, from the camelback to my jersey pockets and back on my way. this loop felt the best, except for the donation to kaibab national forest.

LOOP 4
all right, last go round, fake it till you make it. nows the time to see where you really want to be. i passed by simon on my way out of the solo alley (he was getting stuff from his cooler). damn i have some learning to do.

back on the trail, i came out pretty fast, and feeling pretty good. good days and bad days, high points and low points, that's what it comes down to, and managing them appropriately. i passed 3 or 4 people on the last loop and felt solid, except for a couple sections.

about 4 or 5 miles into the loop, i went by one guy, got inot my tt position and kept cranking it out. my legs seemed to take a break. what the hell? i felt sluggish, after several minutes of this, i looked back, and he was nowhere to be found. did i make a wrong turn? surely i can't be riding this strong. i kept going, just make it to the top of the what the ????

an elk ran across the road in front of me. those things are ginormous. honestly bigger than my truck.

the 1st climb, then i get a downhill and some reprieve (sort of). i eat and drink pretty regularly, am feeling pretty strong. so i keep laying it down and seeing where i'll get caught.

the last climb, ok, it's time to go, one decent effort gets me over the top, then i can relax for a bit and finish it off. i manage to get over the top and piont and go.

a speedy descent a fast turn, and 1 mile left. hooray finish line.

what i learned on saturday:

vocalize your intentions to pass
pass with caution and make sure you are clear
eat and drink often
mountain bike fit is important - i will be fit on my mountain bike
raising the saddle alleviates pain in the front bottom of the knee.
raising it again alleviates the same pain
specialized epic saddle is not made for 100 miles (perhaps the gobi is)
dirt is really good at getting under my skin.
wearing your new jersey for your first mountain bike race is an expensive mistake.
road/dirt rash hurts more than riding 100 miles on a shitty seat with a poor fit.

timing estimates:

loop 1 - 1:55

loop 2 - 2:26

loop 3 - 2:20

loop 4 - 2:14

TOTAL - 8:45

Flaggstaff prep work

2009-06-22T09:13:00.000-07:00

i began writing my account of the barn burner race, and rather than double it's length, i've decided to break out the warm up story.

So it seemed like a good idea: 4 x 26 mile loops = 104 mile mountain bike race, how else would one get started racing mountain bikes? truthfully, i'm really only racing myself, that's my story, i'm sticking to it.

the plan is simple, get all my shite together, meet sara at PULSE between 2;30 and 3pm, head out by 3:30. plans are a list of things that don't happen:

got down to PULSE a little before 3pm to pick up my bikes and crap and head out to flagstaff (8 hours of driving). race packet pickup would start at 5:30 saturday morning. no problem, i get out of here by 4 and over to flagstaff by 12 call it good, still get my requisite 5 hours of sleep.

juan starts asking questions, have you ever adjusted the pressure in your shocks? you going to bring spare tubes? do you have airlock tubes (tubes with sealant for flat protection)? my answers were very simple. no, should it? juan shakes his head and continues the battery of questions how much do you weigh, you gonna pre-ride the course? you gonna leave the reflectors on your bike, and the retard guard?

since it's now past 3:30 and sara is running late, i'm distracted, and before you know it, juan is going to town on the epic: changing tubes, airing up shock pressure removing reflectors all sorts of helpful crap. including shift adjustments (who needs 27 gears??)

sweet, juan has the mountain bike handled, it will be good to go, so i switch my attention my tri bike, gotta be ready for that nice sunday ride out in the northern arizona area. it's the only logical answer based on the proximity of my knuckles and the ground.

juan finishes up rides around and advises me to pre-ride the bike before the race and take a shock pump in case anything needs to be adjusted. i might drag my knuckles, but i'm not very good at lieing, so i tell him very simply. it's almost 5, i'm giong to sit in traffic get in around midnight sleep for a few hours wake up get my shit together and ride. test riding and adjusting. not going to happen. thanks for the advise and getting my bike set up.

Got into the race venue around 1:30am. parking and camping was easy to find. set camp, curled up and went to sleep. or so i thought. i'd wind up sleeping for brief periods of time before finally waking at 4am. after laying there contemplating the rain and coming race for almost 1.5 hours, i rolled out and headed over to registration.

perfect conditions, cold, rainy, muddy, and mountain bikes, the course is primarily fire roads. how bad can it be? i'd soon find out the importance of practicing how you plan on racing. my ignorance is far greater than i thought it could be, and much of that was pointed out during my pre-race prep - aka juan shaking his head on my i don't know? answers to his questions. Juan, there's a reason my knuckles are so damned callous. (juan probably saved my ass on this one).

got my packet and crap on my bike and in my camelback, i'm ready, one more trip back to the tent to rouse sara from her slumber as she requested. she walks back over to the start line and grabs a coffee.

by now the rain has started to subside, but there is a nice layer of mud which promises for an interesting start.

wildflower 2009 long course

2009-05-07T08:22:00.000-07:00

OVERVIEW:

Splits Interval Time Pace
Swim 33:10.600 27:39 min/mi
T1 03:13.930
Bike 02:38:25.090 21.21 mi/hr
T2 01:01.540
Run 01:45:48.390 08:05 min/mi

PREP
another fitness guage completed, and a test to see how my leg is holding up. All in all, my day was pretty good. it started with a quick snack, bagel with peanut butter, ensure, and banana gather up the gear and head down to set up transition.

SWIM
the swim was a very easy effort, i just don't have any extra gears on the swim these days, i find a pair of feet, sit in on them and cruise along comfortably. i'm going to have to admit that i am apparently retired from racing the swim. the good news is i'll be taking a hiatus from running, so i'll have to replace those miles with swim time and bring myself back to racing the swim. the last 2 - 300 hundred meters of the swim i pushed a bit harder and came out of the water feeling ready for a nice bike session. swim split: 33:10

T1
transition was a bit slower than i'd like, i ran down the wrong row (that's what i get for making fun of mike for doing it 2 years back), i struggled slightly getting my wetsuit off then grabbed the necessary items and was off on the bike. t1: 3:13

BIKE
once out of the transition area and clear of the mount line, i hopped on my bike, as i began pedaling, my right shoe came off. stop, turn around go back and get my shoe. put it back on, back on the bike, and now i can start pedaling again. mental note, it's time to replace the cleats, and perhaps shoes, they've gotten much more life then they were made to withstand.

once i got things back in order, it was off to the races, i get all caught up in the excitement of being on the bike, and take off very quickly. the first climb was a reality check, once i got there i chose a new strategy, sit up and spin easy up the climb. the jury is still out on this one. still not sure if i sure push a little harder up the climbs or spin a little more, there's time to figure it out.

once at the top of the first climb, i settled into a comfortable pace, not pushing too hard just moving and giving my legs time to come around. within 5 miles of getting on the bike, my stomach was unhappy, that gave me something to ponder for the next 20 miles. i had been sipping on a gatorade carbopro concoction, but it wasn't overly dense, or anythign else that should have caused stomach issues. i switched to water and spent a good amount of time thinking, i should be drinking the carbopro, but not doing it.

at the aid stations i was grabbing a water bottle, drinking as much water as i could before i was through and dumping the bottle. after the aid station at mile 27, i grabbed a banana and water, at the banana and decided it was time to either clear my stomach out or twist it up good and tight, so i shifted to a harder gear, increased my cadence, and began powering through the last 1/2 of the bike course.

my stomach gave up and decided to cooperate, so i was off to the races, it was time to put in some hard miles so i wouldn't be tempted to race the run (this was to be my 3rd run, and only my first over 2 miles in almost 3 weeks, as i have some shin issues i'm working through).

at mile 37 i caught the first of several elite women, it's always fun to catch the pro's, even if they are having a bad day. i powered through the climbs pretty well, and managed to burn my legs out a bit. the last mile of the ride goes through a very fun wiggly descent, which i love. i tucked in and enjoyed the speedy descent. i took in roughly 900 calories on the bike. bike split: 2:38:25

T2
got into t2 went down the correct row this time, racked my back, put on my racing flats, and took off at a very conservative pace. t2: 1:01

Run
for the first mile or 2, i heard footsteps behind me and kept thinking, if you want to do well, you will have to pass me, i'm not racing, i'm just testing the waters on this run. i was more than content to shuffle along at a comfortable training pace and see how my shin felt. there were a couple twinges along the way, mostly on the descents. then just after mile 4, there is a good little climb which lasts a mile give or take.

i was in for a suprise, my right achilles began niggling. what the? this hasn't been a factor in 10 months, why now, am i compensating so much for the left shin? i slowed to a walk began contemplating my options and moving forward. as i neared the 1/2 way point i figured it was all in my head, i'm just going to jog up the hill and see where i'm at when i get to the bottom on the other side.

at the bottom, i decided it was time to pick up the pace and see how my leg was really doing, the quicker i get done running the better it is for me right?? so i picked up the pace, still not quite racing, but going pretty good to see how things felt.

the rest of the run went well, the last mile is the same descent which i enjoyed so much on the bike, and typically love running down. not today though, i new i'd be in for a slow descent, and would be forced to watch people run by me as i limped along trying not to aggravate my shin.

the run wasn't too bad under the circumstances, my leg felt good, a couple twinges but promise that it's on the way to better. i ate 1 gel, and drank pretty sparingly, maybe 3 or 4 cups of gatorade, and 2 or 3 cups of water. run split: 1:45:48

a decent showing, not ideal, but there are several pieces that will get more focus over the next month. overall time 5:01:39

results are under liam their
results: http://wf09.bazumedia.com/event/WILDFLWR2009#
photos: http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=47802&BIB=476

oceanside 70.3 2009 edition

2009-04-09T00:19:00.000-07:00

oceanisde ½ 2009 race report:
going into this one a bit differently than I have in the past. I’m going to go hard from the beginning and see if I can make it to the finish line before I detonate. combine this with fewer calories on the bike (900 as opposed to my usual 1200+) and more calories on the run (300 – 400 as opposed to my historic 100 and self detonation), and water to drink.
I woke early, got to the transition area. picked out an end spot and organized my area: bike hung by the hydrotail facing south for a quick exit, shoes clipped into the pedals. towel laid out underneath the bike. helmet by the front wheel straps outside, sunglasses inside. race belt and number in front of the helmet ready to put on. running shoes , by the rear tire.
I walk from my spot in transition to the swim exit paying attention to landmarks to locate my space. I do the same between my bike and the bike out/in. I repeat these exercises several times.
I wander around transition for a while, before sitting in the changing tent to warm up. I wait there until transition is about to close, stuff myself into my wetsuit, and get in line to wait. I’m in the final wave of the day. super, I love working my way up through all those other cyclist, and being on the run with everybody else on the course.
in the water and waiting for the start. I line up wide and in front. the gun goes off, I set out at a good pace and work my way into the center by the buoys. settled into a comfortable rhythm focusing on reaching on the stroke, now I’m looking for feet to settle in behind. no such luck. I wind up doing the swim on my own, but in a mass of people. nobody to lead the way.
before long, I’m out making the turn into the dog leg. almost half way there, and I’m feeling good, a nice relaxed long stroke still lots of gas in the tank. and now it’s time to come back. one problem, the sun is sitting low on the horizon so I can’t see much of anything. I look for the splashing and follow it. mmm is that diesel I taste, must be the fuel doc, which means I’m about 500m from the swim exit, about to start on my 2nd favorite discipline the bike.
I pick up the pace a bit, getting anxious to be on my bike and see how my legs will hold up. I’m out of the water feeling good, strip the wetsuit down to my waist during a solid run up through the maze to find my bike. run into mike kelley there, he’s just finishing getting out of his wetsuit, I sit down, yank of the remainder of my wetsuit, toss it on the rack. don my helmet, sunglasses grab my bike, and I’m off. total swim time 33min 19 secs not a stellar performance, but good for the day. transition 1 took 2min 57 seconds
run by mike kelley, time to start my pursuit of mike drury, with a solid bike, I might see him before the run, otherwise I should see him within the first 3 or 4 miles. legs feel really good on the bike, the first 20 miles go by pretty quickly, I’m making my way up through the hoards of triathletes that started in front of me, and feeling comfortable doing it. the sun is up, a little bit of wind, but nothing significant.
mile 23, and it’s time to get to the real riding. first climb, very relaxed still putting some good power to the pedals, a couple of riders went by me pretty handily, but nothing to really worry about. there’s still the ace in the hole, a nice 13 mile run to be found
along the course numerous people are cheering go pulse. it’s good to hear the encouragement. I round the corner and see the toughest of the climbs, all right, time to separate the pack a bit, this is where the real riding starts, and the digging starts.
the early part of the hill is strictly aero and relaxed about ½ way up, I decide it’s time to put a little more effort and power through the last half. so I alternate between standing and sitting up, and am soon over the top, pushing the bike up to top speed and settling in to let gravity do it’s work.
there is one more climb and the frustrating no pass zone which kills me everytime. it’s a race? how do you have a no passing zone, on a downhill??? I sit up complain to myself and wait for the end of the zone, then I am on it again, hammering away to see how my legs hold up. yep, I’m starting to feel the tiredness building in my legs. keep going, it willl pass, more calories more water. mile 50 and I’m through my allotted bike calories, and who do I come upon besides mike drury.
we chat briefly, and I’m on my way to see how quickly I can speed through the final 6 miles and get to the running. 1 last water bottle at the final aid station and I’m off to finish. there’s a good headwind on the back stretch, but I dig a little and press hard on the pedals, a rider just passed me, and I’m determined to hold him in sight until I get off the bike. hmmm, did I put too much into the climb? I don’t know, what i do know is I run well off a hard bike, so nows the time to do the damage and see where the chips are.
the final stretch in is a fast downhill with a couple 90 degree turns, I wiggle through some cyclists and am out of my shoes ready to dismount. off the bike and running to the rack: excuse me pardon me, coming through on your left. total bike split: 2:32:32 my fastest on the course so far.
rack the bike, shoes on helmet off, out to see how my legs hold up running. total transition 2 time: 1 min 20 seconds.
oh bother, the first steps on the run spell bad news, I know this feeling, and it’s not the one that ends up with a blazing run split. time to see how long I can stave of the pending detonation. I’m not ready to settle into survival mode, there are still some people I’d like to catch, and I’m willing to lay it out a bit. lovely, a bit of sand to help suck the life out of my legs. out of the sand into the first aid station, need calories and water, maybe gatorade. 1 gel, washed down with water. ok, head down lean forward, good form. steady pace, keep building, I’m dog slow on the uphills, but manage to hold a decent pace on the flats and a good effort on the descents.
some water or gatorade at every aid station, but not too much. my legs are threatening to cramp, but I’m not buying it, lets see where they give. I’m not able to push it to a faster gear, but I can hold a decent pace pretty steadily. mile 3.5 and the turn around. time to take status. i don’t remember if there are new faces coming up behind me or if those are the people I’ve been passing, nothing to do except run my race.
back through, another ½ a gel on the way back with 1 orange and a gatorade. legs are complaining, and I still can’t find my high gear. keep ticking off the miles. working my way back to the turnaround to start loop 2, lots of encouragement, I hear me name several times, little boosts, but they don’t make my legs turn over any faster. mental note, more speed work, and longer tempo runs in the coming weeks.
on the way out I see mike drury, still haven’t seen mike kelley (who I promised I’d run through with on his last loop). legs still feel like they did when I got off the bike, no speed, but no real sign of slowing. not sure what to do except keep running.
2 more uphills and I’m at the final turn around, then it’s only 3.5 miles and the glorious finish line some food and recovery then back to find mike kelley. at the final turn around I briefly entertain the thought of laying it all out for the last 3.5 miles, but that thought passes, it’s not the day for it, I’m going to maintain my cruising mode and finish with a decent run. on the way back, mike drury has joined some of the specatators for a beer and raises his can of bud light to cheer me on.
through the sand for the last time on my race and the last ½ mile now I pick up the pace hear some familiar voices that help propel me to the finish chute. final run split 1:38:18; overall time 4:48:23 just over a minute slower than my best time on this course. a good day.
I get some food and liquid then head back out to find the mikes. mike drury is escorting mike kelley, who is having a hell of a time. mike drury finished his second loop and I gave mike kelley some eoncouragement and he wound up shuffling his way through his final lap and to his first ½ ironman finish. Despite not being able to take in any nutrition since mile 30 on the bike, and severe bloating and stomach issues, he suffered through and came out a stronger wiser person for the battle. kudos mike kelley.

photos: http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=45839&BIB=2611&S=230&PWD=
results: http://www.ironmancenter.com/results/results.php

mission trails 15k

2009-02-06T10:11:00.000-08:00

all right, it's been 2 weeks and i'm off to run mission trails 15k. due to some freeway closures or something along those lines, the race start is postponed for another hour and a half.

i wander around waiting to see how this day will pan out. i see a couple people i know, say hello, and continue waiting. once agian, clear skies. how do you have clear skies? wouldn't it be a clear sky? are there really multiple skies? wouldn't that be like haveing multiple earths? regardless, the sun is shining and it's beginning to warm up.

8:30 rolls around and we're off, i work my way up towards the front, hoping for a stronger run than my last go. The pace is a bit aggressive, but i figure i might as well stick around and see where things go wrong, after all, it's a short day. though there is a bit of climbing to come.

i'm feeling pretty good until about 3/4 of the way up the first climb. nice, not even 1/4 of the way and i'm walking. at least it's up hill. should have had more water, and done more hill work. perhaps in the future.

at the top, i resume the running and enjoy a good stretch of downhill to flat and some smaller climbs. i manage to miss 1 turn, but am quickly alerted by the aid station that i needed to go left instead of straight. right, why would i opt for the straight flat route, when i could turn left and climb up a stairway built into the side of the mountain? i'm sure the views are much better at the top, though my legs are tiring of all these great views.

up the stairs, and i'm still doing all right the bright side is at the top, it's all downhill from there, and i typically enjoy those more (my legs seem to be doing a lot better at absorbing the beatings imposed by downhill running, now if i can just get them to do better at climbing).

at the top i take a brief reprieve and look around a bit. yep, lots of stuff to see, back to running. the downhill is pretty sketchy, a fairly steep descent with a combination of ruts, rocks (both loose strewn about on top and solidly rooted). it's a chore to find a good anchor for each step, but i do all right for a bit. then to the last of the harrowing descents, it's hardpack dirt with a thin layer of loose sandy stuff on top, of course i get into this a bit too quickly, and do some slip an sliding action arms flailing, legs flying hoping to keep things semi upright, or at least not wind up in a ball on my way down.

after a bit of that, i'm back under some semblance of control, much speed is sacrificed for safety and desires to stay running instead of tumbling. i think it's a good trade.

onto the most fun and technical section of the course, it's probably 1 - 2 miles of tight wiggly single track with several water crossings and numerous rocks and other obstacles. i try to pick up the pace a bit, and do for a little while before slowing. a couple people pass by me, my legs protest, and i've no choice but to watch them go.

a short while later, it's the last of the run, i manage to quicken the pace a bit, and cross the finish line. sky is still blue, sun is still shining, and i'm still tired. all in all it's a good day.

Avalon 50 mile benefit run

2009-02-06T09:56:00.001-08:00

the morning started off well. got up early, had some breakfast grabbed my necessities for the day. then j and i headed down to the start.

it was still dark and a bit chilly, but that would be resolved quickly. the first 15 miles went all right, i was running fairly strong and feeling pretty good, shortly after that, i seem to have run out of jam. no more motivation, and even less energy.

i plodded through the remaining climbs, tried to run the downhills the best i could and did what i could to keep the flats moving forward. my body just wasn't having much of it. i tried eating, drinking, increasing my salt intake, and chewing on some motivators (caffeine); none of this seemed to work.

about the half way point, my legs began to protest in addition to being flat they decided it was time to hurt. at this time, my brain began asking all the wrong questions:
what am i doing?
didn't i learn the last time i did this?
perhaps it's time to stop running so far?
i think i get to the finish line and retire the long runs.

my legs protested more on this run then in any of my previous ventures. i kept plodding along, the sun was up, the sky was clear, i'd been running for 7 or 8 hours, no buffalo, just a bunch of crows and ravens. what's going on? in typical me fashion i ran the last 35 miles or so by myself, despite the fact that there were runners around, i somehow manage to pace myself in such a way that they either pass me by, or i pass them. the later in the race the more the trend goes towards the former.

through the last aid station and up to the top of the final descent, nothing but 3 miles of downhill left and i'm good. i proceeded to let my legs fly as much as i could, and tried to enjoy the views rather than allowing my mind to continue with the incessant questioning.

at the bottom, across the finish line, at this point my legs felt better than they did during my go at the run last year. i grabbed my medal and continued on to the condo for a shower and whatever shananigans j had planned for the evening.

somehow during the days run, i managed to feel far flatter than i'd ever felt, no motivation or drive, as much as i tried to run faster, my legs just wouldn't go. no explanations, no ideas, nothing, just legs that were not willing to cooperate.

back to the drawing boards.

OTHTC 50k

2008-12-08T11:19:00.000-08:00

sunday would turn out to be a long day. i had numerous work obligations on friday which ran through the night and into saturday morning. I had a slight reprieve from the work during which i picked my mom up at the airport to start her visit.

got to sleep fairly early saturday, and we were up at 2:30 for a 3am departure to get to ridgecrest for the 7am race start. There were some issues finding the race start sunday morning. We were able to find the race headquarters, arriving around 6:30 am; however, the race start wasn't there.

it took another 30 minutes to find the race start. Got there and had to use the bathroom. As i was making my way back to the start line, i heard the race start. lovely, guess it really is going to be a training run; i still need to get my registration and number assignments.

i found a volunteer, got my race number and goody bag, put the number on, and handed my mom my goody bag. my race started, a couple minutes behind the rest. i didn't even need a horrible swim to set myself up to work my way through the field.

aid station 1 was feeling good, running very relaxed and conserative through the first 3 aid stations. i took a gel, and banana and orange at each of the 1st 3 stations, refilled my water bottle once. 11 miles down, and i was feeling very good, had worked my way up pretty close to the front of the group. The next 3 miles went well, some easier climbs and nothing but running.

after 14 miles there was a nice 1 or 1.5 mile climb which shut my legs down. i walked up about 1/2 of this, then began running and made my way to aid station 5 and mile 17. At this point, i'm thinking, i should have done that damn 30k. who the hell in their right mind runs 50k? did i race too much the last 6 weeks? this is pretty strange, i'm blowing a gasket at pretty much the exact mileage that i blew up on in arizona 2 weeks ago.

i ate some potatoes salt tablets and gatorade. put my head down and began my shuffle, 5 miles of rolling climbs and then i start the descent into the finish. I did my best to fake it, forcing myself to drink and trying potatoes gels, shot blocks and salt tablets. if my legs are lying to me about being tired, they're doing a very good job of it.

at mile 19.5 or so, i came into aid station 6, had just been passed by 3 people, and was coming back onto the course with indivuduals doing the 30k. ok, time for a whole lot of suck it up and go, all that hurting i'm willing to do, so far i've been talking more than walking.

i had a good come to my senses and make it work time to take my medicine and see how honest my legs are. i fake a pretty pitiful shuffle up the next 3 miles of climbing and all of a sudden, there's a whole lot of down to be had. ok legs, lets do this thing, 1 or 2 more hours of faking and it's going to be in the books. time to start taking back those spots that went by.

head down, lots of food and liquid in a couple gels. see where the wheels fall off next. the really good news is my quads are doing great on these downhills, no more of that exploding feeling i've been privy to in the past. the bad news, my hip flexors are screaming and threating to not lift my legs.

by the next aid station i'm moving pretty well, holding a good pace, and feeling all right. my legs are tired, but more of a late in the 100 miler sort of tired where they kind of give up the rebellion and succumb, realizing the only way to make it better is to get to the finish. i'm telling myself, the faster i run the sooner i'm done.

there's 1 runner ahead, that i'm trying to catch, and 2 runners behind that are probably thinking the same about me. one of them catches up and is sitting on my shoulder. i've played this game before, sit on the shoulder until you get close to the finish, then surge and hope the guy detonates. and i remember how much fun it is to be the guy who causes the other runner to detonate.

ok, there's gotta be 2 or 3 miles left, definitely fakable distance, lets see how deep this other guy is willing to go, he's gotta work to pass me, and i'm about to start hurting more and more until one of us drops off the pace. besides gravity is on my side, so i let things go. it's not long until i'm running off by myself, picking up another 2 runners within 1/2 mile of the finish.

i came into the finish strong and relieved that my body held out. now i'm just confused what happened during my 5ish miles where things went so awry. my calves were pretty tight for some time after the run, i moved like an old man for several hours, but am feeling good this morning.

that run marks my official return to long runs, and the begining of preparation for my avalon 50 mile run, which i'll be sending out requests for donations in the near future.

Ironman Arizona

2008-11-25T20:32:00.001-08:00

the started with a good bagel and waffle breakfast, then we headed over to transition to make final preparations. we got there, entered transition, put my nutrition on my bike, and turned in my special needs bags.

final bathroom break, then into the wetsuit and final preparations for the swim. the pros went off 10 minutes before the age group athletes. shortly after the pro start, the national anthem was sung, then into the water.

it was a bit chilly, and very crowded, now i'm remember some of the hesitance to race ironman races. too many people in the swim. which really just boils down to me being too lazy to swim enough to be ahead of 95% of the field.

i work my way toward the front and try to stay wide to the outside, because this seems like a good option for me. the gun goes off, and slowly the salmon migration ensues. it's all but impossible to find any clear water to swim in for what seems like at least 500meters. my goggles are knocked off, i'm not having a good time. why am i doing this? i work my way to the side, sit on the ledge, adust my goggles, empty the water, reseat them, and plunge back in, once again, it's like being in a washing machine, clear water is difficult to find, people are everywhere.

goggles get knocked off again. what the ??? i roll over, try to adjust them, not much luck = another excuse to work my way over and sit on the ledge to get back into this swim. final adjustment on the goggles, and i'm back in the water. this time it's thinned slightly, and i'm able to find some clear water to swim through, much better, i start working my way back up in the pack, and find more open water. much better, this is what open water swimming is about.

i hit a decent rhythm and find myself at the turn around before long. heading back, i have a couple collisions with other swimmers, but nothing significant. now this isn't so bad. a far cry from my earlier i hate this swim portion attitude. i make the final turn, and have about 100meters to the swim exit. hooray, the bike is soon to be. final swim split 1:06:46 (1:45 min/100meters), a faster pace than either of my previous races, despite it being twice as far. i'm ok with that

out of the water, some minor difficulties getting the wetsuit off, but still ready by the time i get to the strippers, i sit down, bam, it's off. back up and running into t1, now i get to revel in the bonus of being a slower swimmer.

i grab my bike, on the way out jump on, and before long, find myself facing the wrong way, i managed to crash into the fencing lining the bike start. bars are facing one way, and the wheels the other. not a stellar start to my biking day. i stand around trying to figure out whats going on, then trying to line the bars and wheel up. mike rides up, "what happened?, take my bike".

i shake my head no, get my bars and wheels semi aligned and start heading the right direction. there's a bike check area right at the start. i pull in and have htem go through re-adjust hte bars line up the bars and the wheels, make sure everythigns shifting ok. mike is telling me take his bike and do the ride, he'll wait and take mine. i decline, and he is on his way shortly after that.

before too long, i'm on my bike, and making my way out onto the bike course. i come out pretty conservatively. i'm working my way up through the faster swimmers. after nearly 20 miles, i'm consumed by a rahter large pack. it's all but impossible to do anything but draft. i can hear the marshalls coming up, so i try to stay as far right as i can, keeping a good distance between the bike in front of me, and work my way through the pack, i'm not feeling strong enough to put out a strong effort and break off the front, so i take my time and do what i can.

after 10 minutes or so, the pack seems to have dissolved. while this was going on, apparently i passed mike in the group. but i wouldn't find this out until after the race was over. i keep a steady pace on the bike, but don't have the same feel i've been enjoying in the previous races. on top of that, i plan on riding a bit easier through the first 2 loops, and letting a bit more out for the final bike lap. i see josh at the each of the turn arounds, he's putting a little bit of time into me, but not too much. i wouldn't see mike again until the run.

1/2 way through the bike, my back is stiffening up, and i have to go to the bathroom, so i make a stop. after which i feel much better, and i make up some good time on the way back into tempe. the 3rd loop would be a bit slower, and more painful. i just don't have the extra effort i've been giving before. i've consumed a large amount of calories, and salt. i have a slight headach, so i start taking in a lot of water, as much as i can get in, and increase my salt tablets. things start to feel better, but my legs just never really came around. i pretty much blew up around 90 miles on the bike, the good news is it was mostly downhill into t2, so i didn't have to work too hard. the bad news, i saw a fair number of people go by me.

it wasn't so bad, i pull back a bit on the bike, start getting some liquid and the last of my major calories in on the bike, and pull off a stellar run, i've been running strong. i've never looked so forward ot the run as i did during the last 12 miles of arizona. final bike split: 5:16:01 (21.3 mph), a bit slower than i should have split, but things happen.

into t2 and i'm very happy to get off the bike, a quick stop in transition, on with the runners and into the bathroom.

out onto the run, my legs felt phenomenal. so i let things out a bit, i know if i want a chance at a top finish, i need to run very strong, low 3 hours, and that won't happen if i dawdle.

the run is a 3 loop course, each loop being just under 9 miles. i ran the first one very solidly, i caught josh around 5 miles, he was moving slowly, but still going. i'm not sure what my pace was, somewhere around 6:50/mile, and it felt good, every aid station was pretty much the same: sponges wring them out and cool down, 1 cup of water 2 cups of gatorade, sponges again. every other aid station i'd grab a gel for some nutrition. take tablet concoction every 3 or 4 miles. call it good.

lap 2 still feeling good, probably holding a little over 7 minute/mile pace through 1/2 way. i caught mike around 11 miles, he was struggling a bit, but would ralley and come back to pass me. around mile 15 i made another bathroom stop. then back on the run again. still feeling pretty good, then i come through finishing lap 2, and things begin to waiver. mike catches me and tries to encourage me, my legs refuse, and i'm unable to find it in me to hold his pace, i see him pull away, and try to dig for more to hold on, but it's not there.

i don't remember much of the last 8 miles, except i refused to walk, though i was shuffling pretty slowly i know i didn't walk. i knew i needed a stellar marathon, and i came on pace for a 3:10 marathon. i held that through nearly 18 miles, then it all went downhill. over the last 8 miles of the course mike ran 17 minutes and 9 seconds faster than i did. total run split: 3:40:00 (8:23 min/mile). overall time: 10:09:17. mike clocked a 9:52:08, and josh had a solid 10:21:32, 2 weeks after taking 6th place at the silverman full distance triathlon.

todays lesson: somewhere on the run course i blew my nutrition, and likely hydration. 3 cups of water every 1.x miles was insufficient on the day for the conditions. i'm still trying to remember back to the run and where i took gels, if/when i stopped getting them from the aid stations. the last 1 i remember for certain would have been around 15 miles. next time, more nutrition and more water. i laid it out there for the run. despite blowing up on the run, i refused to walk. time to start the work for canada.

photos:
me http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=32045&BIB=361
mike: http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=32045&BIB=699
josh: http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=32045&BIB=544

results:
http://www.nasports.com/results/results.php

Silverman 1/2 race report

2008-11-09T21:00:00.000-08:00

to keep me a bit honest for the day, i did one good hard, short session on friday. consisting of 4 repeats of 15 minutes on the bike and 1 mile on the treadmill.

race morning started out very slowly. up around 4:30 to catch the shuttle over to the swim start. Got to the start, it was fairly nice weather, a bit windy, but not as cold as it's been in the past.

the full went off at 6:30 am sharp. i sat there and watched them go thinking i should be doing that, and remember i'm saving the long day for ironman arizona in 2 weeks. the 1/2 was scheduled to start at 8am. at 7:00 ish, the wind kicked up something vicious and the lake got incredibly choppy.

around 7:30 it began to rain and they announced the half start would be postponed. i was a bit upset, when the swimmers started coming in from the full, i was thinking i should be getting on my bike now and off riding instead of waiting to get in some windblown lake. then there was lightening, the kayakers were having trouble keeping track of themselves let alone the swimmers. 8:30 roles around, no word yet. finally they determine once the winds die down a bit we'll head out.

at 9 am we are finally in the water and swimming. i decided today was the day to have a decent swim, some redemption from soma. so i went out pretty strong, found a pair of feet, and latched on. after several hundred meters i saw a new pair of feet ahead, and decided to try and bridge the gap. that didn't turn out so well, i went for it, but used a lot of energy, and wound up picking up a pair of feet off to my left instead.

i hung on that pair of feet to the first turn buoy (roughly 1000 yards). then had my goggles 1/2 knocked off and had to adjust them. another surge brought me back onto the feet i had fallen off. i was there and pretty comfortable through the next several hundred yards and the final turn in towards shore. i switched off 2 or 3 pairs of feet on the way in, and came out of the water a bit tired, but feeling good. we'll see what the swim split turns out to be: 35:50 slightly better than my previous effort, 46th fastest on the day (obviously more focus will be put into this over the next 2 weeks.

onto the bike, and i'm thinking this is cold, i'm shivering slightly. better get some calories and start working. i got on the bike and hit it pretty hard from the outset to generate some warmth.

the wind was pretty ferocious in spots, and some spotty sprinkling was to be had as well. i was quickly catching and passing people, thinking make it stick: meaning if i passed someone i had to hold them off through the end of the bike, namely if i went by i had to do it strongly and not look back. this worked for me.

about 6 miles in, i came across Elizabeth Daubner, i slowed a bit to exchange greetings, and she shooed me on: 'don't slow down for me, go'. so off i went. to continue working my way up through the pack. at 11 miles i was feeling good, taking in nutrition and pills well, feeling pretty solid, and putting some good honest hurt into my legs, and more importantly some time into my fellow competitors.

the wind was doing it's best to blow me around, i was enjoying the ride too much to be terribly concerned. i just kept picking people off in the distance and watching them get closer and then passing them. at mile 20, i saw the lead pack coming back from the turn around (chris mccormack) and 2 or 3 other cyclist. they were at mile 25. i was pretty pleased with my positioning, and continued working on the bike.

around mile 35, some guy came by me pretty handily, i'm pretty sure he was a relay based on the days final outcome. the next 21 miles proved to be pretty brutal, a headwind that had me in my small chainring on some slight downhills, and using my smallest gear for the slight uphills. i picked up several more spots on the bike path, and the last 12 miles were a just as much of a bear, with me pulling in 3 or 4 more people. total time on the bike: 2:49:55, 4th fastest bike split on the day.

now the fun begins, the run course which has brutalized me the past 3 years, though this year i had an ace in the hole, i was only doing one loop, and had half the mileage leading up to it. the volunteer in the tent informed me there were 4 people ahead of me on the course. so i set out with a little fire burning.

about 1.5 miles in, some guy came blazing past me (found out after the finish he was a relay). i knew i wasn't holding his pace, so i watched him go. shortly after mile 2 i had my first carrot, i could see about 1 minute ahead was the next runner, so i kicked it up a bit, and started closing the gap. it took almost 2 miles, but i had the same rules as on the bike, all passes are final.

then the real climbing began, 2 miles up, a slight down, then back tracking. my pace slowed to a near shuffle, but i was still making up time, keeping nutrition coming every 2 or 3 miles and drinking every 1 - 2 miles. things were going well. up to the turn around, and i could see a relay runner coming up on me, if i can just hold him until mile 11, i'll be good.

i had a lemon hammer gel or something like that, and that twisted my stomach pretty good, no more lemon hammer gels. then at mile 9.5 things started to slow. i needed more nutrtition, grabbed some gel and water, ate a bit drank a bit, and told myself, it's a 5k, let it go, run strong.

miles 11 and 12 were tough, then a slight uphill. at the top, i picked the pace up and ran strong down through the finish. 3rd place, 5:03:14. if i would have found 2 minutes, i'd have been in 2nd place. if i had any dreams of catching chris mccormack and taking first, i would have had to go under 4:29:??. 34 minutes behind one of the fastest long course triathletes, i'm willing to be here for a bit. even if he didn't go all out, and he is not in peak condition. total run: 1:34:36 - 6th fastest on the day.

todays effort and results give me a bit of a confidence bolster for arizona. i understand a 1/2 is far different than a full, i also understand i am willing to go into a world of hurt to put myself up there in the standings and see what's inside. because when the day's over, it's what's inside that mattes, not what's in front, what's behind, to the left or the right. and i am finding out i've got a lot inside.

photos: http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=32538&BIB=554&LNSEARCH=1
results: http://www.silvermannv.com/downloads/08_RESULTS/SILVER08A-overall-half.TXT

SOMA 1/2 Triathlon race report

2008-10-27T20:39:00.001-07:00

Sunday November 26th i was in tempe arizona to race the soma 1/2 triathlon. I got to soma saturday afternoon, and took the opportunity to pre-ride the course. It was a 3 loop bike course, followed by a 2 loop run.

Shortly after i got into tempe, i met up with some friends, J and Summer, and we headed out to do a preview one loop of the bike course. it proved to be a very flat course with a number of u turns (5 per loop). seemed like it would be a fast one. The rest of the day entailed picking up the registration packet, dropping off my bike in transition and getting some food.

saturday night was a bit of a restless night, not much sleep. Sunday morning around 4:00 am the final wake up came, grabbed my usual boost for breakfast, mixed my water and 1000 calories of carbo pro. grabbed my bag of pills: thermolytes (salt tablets), vantage (supposed to help with oxygen uptake and stave off muscle fatigue), and recovery amino power (essential amino acid blends). we headed over to the transtion area.

today's race plan was simple, get through the swim in a decent position(i've been severely neglecting swim training), hammer the bike well beyond comfortable and see how hard i can run after that. soma was to serve as a measuring stick for ironman arizona, coming up november 23.

i was in the 3rd wave, starting 1 minute behind the pros, and 11 minutes behind the best of the US competition (a collection of 80 individuals representing various states in the quarterman, a separate race than the 1/2). so mens 30-34 was essentially the first wave of the soma 1/2.

i got in the water swam to the swim start, and waited for the start. the start was uneventful, i swam with a fair amount of effort, but couldn't seem to find any kind of groove. the good thing is i was relaxed the entire swim. the main pack quickly pulled away from me, and i spent most of the swim all by myself, managing to swim off course several times. i had a poor swim at best, i didn't feel overly tired, i just never really put anything together for that swim. i rounded the final turn and swam the last 50 meters pretty coming out of the water in 0:37:30 (0:01:58 min/100 meters).

had a fairly slow transition (i ran down the wrong row and had some trouble finding my bike). i came in, grabbed my bag o pills, T1 was 0:02:00, and i was off on the bike to test out my new strategy.

the morning was a bit chilly for my tastes (i've grown much more sensitive to cold these days), and i spent much of the first loop of the bike shivering. i was putting in a solid effort, comparable to what i would typically ride the entire bike at; however, today was to be different. i was going to build on each loop, the first would be solid, the 2nd would be hard, and the 3rd would be everything i had left. loop 1 went well, i was making up time (very easy to do when you come out of the swim behind 24 people plus the pros).

through the first loop i had gone through almost exactly 1/3 of my calories, right on schedule, and i was feeling pretty good. loop 2, time to notch up the effort a bit. i reached for my pills to start testing how my body reacted at this effort; however, they were gone, as i would see a few miles later, they had fallen out of my pocket and were laying on the course. it's a bit frustrating to go by a bag you know you dropped, that is full of good stuff, and i did it twice. another draw back of looped courses. though i guess if it was really important i would have stopped and picked it up.

loop 2 the pace quickened, and i started picking up more people. my legs were starting to feel a bit of the heavy training, and the hard effort of the day. but that was the plan, see how they react to a truly hard effort on the bike. by this time the bike course was significantly more crowded as more and more waves were entering. there were several tight spots on the course which offered a brief reprieve from the hard efforts. at the 2nd aid station on loop 2, i decided it would be good to see how i handled gel at this intensity, so i grabbed a strawberry banana power gel and consumed it immediately. it made a couple efforts to come back up, but ultimately stayed down.

loop 3, time to ratchet the effort up another notch. i could feel my legs starting to tighten up, so figured it was time to finish the water bottle i had, and trade it in for a gatorade bottle, at least a little electrolytes should help. i finished my water, disposed of the empty bottle, and grabbed a gatorade. i would sip on that over the next 7 or 8 miles until i got to the next aid station, where i grabbed another gel, ate it, and discarded the gatorade. by now i was hammering the bike, i knew i was close to t2, and was really looking to come of the bike in good standing. i managed to have an incredible bike ride: 2:06:55 (avg speed 26.6 mph)

into T2, legs feel good just getting to the rack. i drop my bike off, slip into my new racing shoes, and am off. i spent most of the last 2 loops on the bike looking for the elusive P, indicating the athlete was in the pro field. generally with a good race, i'll pick up a couple of the Pro women on the bike. even with my blistering bike ride, i didn't see any P's. Onto the run course to see if i could rectify the situation, but first a bathroom break.

the run started pretty comfortably, though a bit odd, everybody on the course was doing the quarterman. it took a couple minutes before i saw the first competitor doing the half. he was a big guy, so i wasn't too concerned about him matching my pace when i went by. i grabbed water through the first 2 aid stations, at the 3rd, i grabbed a gel (not to fall victim to the same blunder i made in oceanside). that went down pretty easy, but i had some water to help anyway.

my legs were feeling good, and my pace was building. i was running people down pretty well, and and things were feeling good. i kept grabbing water at every aid station, and gatorade at every 2nd aid station. this worked well for me. i finished the first loop feeling pretty good, and was ready to pick up the pace and see what i had left in my legs.

loop 2 was a bit tougher. within 1/2 mile, i was passed by a runner, he went by pretty quickly, so i wasn't too interested in holding on to his pace, i kept running my race, and balancing my limits. picking people out and running them down.

there were a couple opportunities where the course came back on itself, allowing me to see if there were any new faces trying to run me down. there were none, all the people were those i'd passed, and were falling further off my pace. at the 11 mile mark, it was time to empty the tank and see how things played out.

i really started to go at that point, only 2 miles, anybody can fake 2 miles, but how fast can i fake it?? that was the question, how deep am i willing to go? so i kept increasing my pace, faster and faster grabbed water for one last splash and cool down. at mile 12, i saw the runner that passed me 5 miles back. i thought no way, but wouldn't it be cool if i did.

so i put my head down, and had my final target for the day. with a 1/2 mile left, i was gaining, it was going to have to hurt a lot if i was planning on catching him. i remembered all those track workouts, the 800m repeats, the 1200m repeats, and smiled. i can hurt pretty damn good. lets see how it plays out.

so i continued picking up the pace, went by him, and held strong, faster and faster, with 200 meters left, my legs were on fire, my lungs hurt, and my body was ready to quite. there was a small grassy incline which was almost my undoing. on my way up, my leg wanted to give out, but it held up. then into the finishing chute. i crossed the line, 100% spent. nothing left (that's what i say now, but next time, i'll manage to find a little more and eak out a little faster performance). run split: 1:28:07 (a 6:43 min/mile pace)

as i was enjoying the hurt of a strong bike and solid run performance, i heard the announcer: 'here comes our first female pro'. somewhere out there on the bike and the run, i'd managed to pass both of the pro women, and one of the pro men. i did get 3 P's, i was just too busy keeping my head down and punishing my legs to notice.

all in all it was a great day, and a strong reminder that i need to start swimming more.

photos: http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=32532&BIB=665&LNSEARCH=1
results: http://www.ceptiming.com/2008/misc165/08Soma-Half-AllM.txt

Iroquois Trials 100

2008-09-29T10:00:00.000-07:00

it’s done, I’ve completed my first 100 miler, the jury is still out as to wether it was a good or bad experience, nonetheless, it was memorable. while it’s semi fresh (not much to do with me is fresh at this point in time). I’m just over 27 hours after finishing.
warning, the recollections of these events is quite possibly highly inaccurate, I’ve spent much of the past 50 hours in an altered mind state, brought on by sleep deprivation, too much exercise, and a predisposition to making this a bit inflated. this endeavor was a bit more impromptu than my typical go at an event of this proportion. a little over a week ago, I believe it was september 10th, my DNF at the sd100 rang vividly in my memories, and I decided it needed to be resolved. so my search began, can I find an event that won’t be too close that I don’t have time to properly prepare, won’t interfere with ironman arizona on november 23(??), and will still let me get in 100 before the end of this year. there weren’t any real solid winners, but I did find the Iroquois 100 in virgil new york. an inaugural 100 mile offering in the finer lakes region.
Virgil, even the family I have that lives in the finger lakes region had been asking virgil? where is virgil? After verifying my dad and sister were up for a visit, I checked airfare, confirmed PULSE would be sufficiently staffed during my travels, reviewed my training to make sure I was ready for a go at 100, did a gut check, and jumped in.
I got in to new york a couple days early to enjoy time with my family. Early friday evening, my dad and I headed up to get the keys for the cabin, partake in the pre-race dinner, and listen to the course talk.
The rest of my cheering section (both sisters, my mom, 2 nieces, nephew, and phil) was to arrive throughout the night. Melissa and Phil were driving up after work, Tracy, Shania, Hayley, and Aiden were picking up my mom at the airport (a 12 am arrival) then driving up. I had trouble sleeping, so go to visit with everyone before the race started.
my final wake up came around 4:30 am, I had some boost, grabbed my drinks and clothing. socks, shoes, hat, long sleeves, pulse jersey, shot blocks thermolytes, and various other sportsquest supplements to help me get through the next couple days. Melissa and I got in the car and headed down to the start for final check in. as it was cold (somewhere in the 40’s I guess), we waited in the car for the 6am start. about 5 minutes before I got out, shed my sweatshirt, grabbed my water bottles, and toed the line.
The course layout was seemingly straight forward, the magic of it was I new virtually nothing about the course, I barely looked at the course map. I did know there was a bit of climbing, it was 2 loops, and there were 5 aid stations, which would be visited a total of 20 times along the journey.
There was an announcement 1 minute left . . . 30 seconds left, 6am, Ian, the race directed said go, for the next 10 – 15 seconds, the 45 or so runners stood there looking at one another as if to ask is that the official start? are we supposed to embark on the madness now? then it happened, the crowd broke, and the race was started.
6 or 7 people went off the front pretty quickly, I settled in with the 2nd group at a comfortably slow pace. the first section was just over 5.5 miles, consisting of close to a 1 mile warm up, a climb up to the top of the ski resort, a descent back to the ski lodge, then back up to the top of the resort and down into the starting area.
during the first ascent the grass was wet, and slightly slick. shortly before the summit, I turned around to a fiery red sky, the sun was cresting the mountains the valley below was shrouded in fog, and here we were nearing the top of the first climb in what would turn out to be a revealing day.
In spite of my knowledge that taking early descents too aggressively costs dearly in the later stages of longer runs, in my standard fashion, I lead the descents bounding down to the bottom then slowing for the flats and walking much of the climbs.
the second climb up, slow and steady, coming back down the 2nd time was interesting, the access road was well traveled, had a bit of rutting, and was sufficiently wet to have several puddles and make it extremely difficult to have dry feet at the end. I’d given up on dry feet much earlier, so I was splashing pretty much straight down, slipping a bit here and there in the mud.
coming back into the starting area, which severed as the 1st, 4th, 10th, 11th,14th, and most importantly the finish line, things felt good, my feet were wet, 2 water bottles, and 3 packs of shot blocks were definitively more than I needed for a 5 mile section, maybe 1 water bottle/carbopro mix and 1 pack of shot blocks would suffice for the next time through. the coolness had dissipated a bit, and my legs were feeling pretty good. I ate a bit, drank a bit, and headed out on the next stretch 6.3 miles through the forest.
This section was particularly beautiful, and challenging. there weren’t any significant climbs or descents. The trail followed closely along a ridge overlooking a valley, and on several occasions crossed a gulley which promised to be fun at night.
the pace was slow and steady, I lost the trail for a bit but was fortunate enough to stumble back onto it, and fall in behind a runner, that lasted a little while, then I decided it was time to move a little better while I was still feeling good. shortly after that I caught up to another runner. I ran with him for the next 8 or 9 miles, which turned out to be a good thing, as along those miles, I wound up attempting to stray from the path 2 or 3 times; however, steve kept me honest and on track. Coming into the 3rd aid station, pipeline, I sat down, had my bottles refilled, and waited for a bit. roughly 12 miles in, things are feeling ok. time to start on the next portion which loops around and comes back through this aid station.
this was probably the easiest section on the course, a quick descent down the road, turn onto a dirt road, then a climb up a powerline access road, followed by a gradual descent that would bring things back to the road with the pipeline aid station, I think it was slightly more than 5 miles, and a fast 5 at that. once I got to the top and began the descent my habits came back, I slid into a strong jog embracing the slight descent, passing a runner on my way through. back up to the aid station.
this time through I was pleasantly surprised, tracy, melissa, aiden, and my mom greeted me. and escorted me into the aid station where I was greeted by my dad. just over 18 miles and ?? hours in, and my legs are definitely starting to show signs of the insufficient preparation. back through the forest trail, tracy and melissa escort me a little way down the road, then I begin jogging at the creast and bid them good day.
this time through I wind up pairing up with a couple runners, 1 of which will turn out to be the first women and 3rd overall finisher. the trip back to the gatherings is uneventful, lots of steady slow pacing walking uphills and savoring the fun to be had coming through in the dark.
back at gatherings, my legs are really starting to protest, I grab some food, and refill the drinks, I think my entire cheering section is here this time, very happy to see this, it helps my spirits a bit. 23+ miles in and a lot of hours, I’m not ready to start the next undertaking, but it’s time to stop sitting around and get moving.
The next 27 ish miles is an out and back section, so it offers a great opportunity to take stock on my position relative to the other runners.
this is where the fun begins. I’m still with the eventual 2nd and 3rd place finishers heading out of the aid station, we climb up to the top of the ski resort again. I watch them crest the top and begin down. I pick up the pace slightly to make up some ground, and crest the top, head down, a strong jog, it’s downhill, that’s how they go best for me. next time I look up, nobody is in front of me. they must have made a good descent too. I go down to the end of the power line road, there are some orange streamers and downhill to the right. so right I go.
as I’m running, I’m thinking, this looks a lot like the last descent coming back into the gatherings from this morning. then I get to the bottom. impossible, and incredibly frustrating, I’m back within ½ a mile of gatherings, the last aid statoin I just came from. I turn around and climb back up, continue straight and wind up back tracking roughly 1 mile on the course and realize I’m doing the mornings loop in reverse. time to backtrack on the trail and see how long it takes to find another runner. as I’m nearing the ½ way point up the power line climb, I see someone coming towards me, ok, only 45 minutes to 1 hour exploring the ski resort. not bad, maybe. so I turn and begin slowly going back down, figuring he’ll catch up to me and I can follow. I turn around to check, and he’s gone. what the ???? I guess I missed a turn. I track back up paying close attention, looking for a turn.
sure enough there is a turn which I missed. shortly after I start down it, I catch the guy in front of me, and start running a bit. magic how much fuel a little bit of anger can provide. now I’m traveling along at a good clip, this lasts a bit, I get to the next aid station (greak peek). I’m pretty sure shania, tracy, melissa, and my dad are there (aid stations and people are foggy in my recollections at this point) I refuel a bit, then I’m back off to find the rockpile. nothing terribly exciting through this section. the course is undulating, so there is a fair amount of jogging. by now my legs are protesting pretty good.
at the rockpile I sit down, have my water bottles refilled, eat a bit, restock my nutrition and am off again. at this point it’s getting more difficult to stand up from the chairs.
the good news is it’s fall, and the colors are changing, so I get a bit of a treat with some good colors here and there. as I get close to the rockpile, just about 6.5 miles from the turn around point, I see the 50 mile lead runner coming through, shortly after that, the 2nd runner passes, another 50 mile runner. within a couple hundred meters of the rockpile aid station, I see the 100 mile leader. he is looking pretty strong at this point.
I get into the aid station, at this point, my nutrition is a bit behind, so I need to get more calories in, my carbopro mix is empty, and I only have a couple packs of shot blocks. I eat a bit at the aid station, some cookies, m&ms, and a few other random foods offered. back on the trail.
at this point I start to pass groups of hikers, heading towards a small campground. they smile and offer some encouraging words as we pass. a couple miles in I pass several more 50 mile participants and about 2 miles from the turn around point there is the 2nd place 100 mile runner. the lady I had been running with and just behind up until my missed turn. ok. so how much time did I lose on the missed turn? roughly 5 miles assuming we were pretty much matching paces.
I keep going, a little motivation and energy finding its way back into my body, lets see how much time I can make up, it’s a fun game that has a tendency to come back and make me miserable later on, but for some reason I find myself playing a lot. I pass several more people on my way to the turn around. we chat briefly.
at the daisy hollow ranch aid station, much if not all of my family is there. it’s good to see them, they are excited, offer encouragement, and ask what I need. they are like my own portable aid station, helping me out and doing some of the aid station volunteer work. it’s now 38+ miles in, and my legs are pretty trashed. mental note, more long runs for 100 mile training. more food, refill the water bottles, oh yeah, time to run again.
there are 5 runners in front of me, that are definitely catchable. several of them are doing the 50 mile run, but that’s ok, a catch is a catch. so the game begins, how many can I catch, do I run a slow steady speed picking slowly away at their advantage, or do I take advantage of the slight downhill and small rollers to run hard while I’m going through a good spell? pacing isn’t my strong point (oddly enough even the promise of more misery down the road from running hard isn’t enough to deter me from catching the runners ahead of me quickly).
as my pace quickens, my legs seem to hurt less, so that’s the trick, run and things work better? not really, as the descents get steeper, my quads remind me how displeased and ready to explode they are. great, 40ish into 100, and my legs are cooked. time to start faking it: fake it til you make it. there’s a lot of faking to be done yet on this run.
I start to pass runners, as I go by I slow and recover a bit behind them as we chat. a couple ask where I’ve been, commenting on how I was ahead of them for a while . . . I mention my wrong turn and we have a good laugh. yeah, 100 just wasn’t long enough today, so I decided to climb up and down the ski slopes a couple extra times to loosen my legs up. back to the rock pile aid station.
here I come catch the 2nd female in the 50 mile race. she is young and doing well, this is her 2nd 50 miler, the last was on roads. the best part about her is her shoes, she’s doing a 50 mile trail run in red puma soccer type shoes, the type with virtually no sole or cushion. but it gets better (apparently I lied about the best part), one of her shoes is wrapped in duct tape, apparently holding the sole in place.
I continue running for a bit, but my energy soon reaches a lull, and I’m back to walking and counting time/steps/leaves/lots of things until the next aid station. coming up to the road by the greak peek aid station, I see tracy standing with her back to the trail. she turns around as I’m coming up, and greets me with a look of moderate shock. almost as she didn’t expect me to be coming. I climb up to the road, cross, and take a seat at the aid station.
at this point, I’m a bit worried, it’s been close to 40 miles since I last urinated, I haven’t been putting in the long miles I should have been, I’ve been taking a fair amount of electrolytes, my fingers are a bit swollen, so I decide it’s time to try and flush a bit out. I drink 1 bottle of water at the aid station, and have my 2 water bottles filled with just water.
I leave the aid station with one of the 50 mile runners, he jokes about my wrong turn and how I will likely hear a lot about it, I’m sure it will come up a bit. I am taking things nice and slow until I urinate and stop retaining so much water. I drink both water bottles, and still nothing. I plan on sitting in the gatherings aid station and drinking water until I can urinate. this last section is the fun part, a fairly technical downhill dropping us on the road just under 1 mile from the gatherings aid station. the descent is a constant reminder of how fatigued my quads are, they cringe with each step, quivering and threatening to collapse.
the best part, I still have the entire course to do another time. when we get down to the road, the pace becomes a slow shuffle, just to ease us back into the gatherings. I bid the runner goodbye, congratulations on your 50 miles. I’m going to go back through and make sure the course is still the same. . .
first I need to change my socks. I don’t remember why, but I do know I’ve got some rubbing that’s been going on for about 15 miles and wanted to check for blisters. but I forgot. with some help from my dad, I don a new pair of socks. a very welcome change. same shoes, but new socks. back out for the first loop, this time all by myself. a couple miles in I come across another runner, we chat briefly, then I move on. when I get back in to the gatherings, it is dark, and I’m ready to embark on my first experience with trail running at night. good news, I’ve remembered my headlamp, so will have some light to help pick my way through the trails.
even more good news, my family has made arrangements for me to have a pacer. graham will be accompanying me over the next 18 miles of the run, at which point he will stop at the pipeline aid station and work there until 5am.
the trails leading out to pipeline are easier to follow the 2nd time around, but a bit slower going as the footing is slightly technical, and it’s now dark. we make our way through come out at the pipeline aid station, grab some food refill my water bottles, say hello to my family, and are off again.
I opt to walk down the hill to the turn, as my legs are feeling the descents through and through by now. at the bottom, we make the turn, shuffle for a bit, and then begin the climb up along the powerlines. at the top we make a left, and shuffle for a bit, my legs begin to loosen up, and pretty soon we are holding a decent pace jog.
a quad with 4 or 5 teenagers goes by us, I shrug and look at graham, he comments “that was my other option for tonight, a typical saturday night for me is to load up 18 of my buddies on a quad, and drive down random dirt roads”. I laugh, and respond back, “they’re likely having a similar conversation: ‘yeah, that’s what I typically do on saturday night, grab a headlamp and running partner then go run around random dirt roads in the middle of nowhere’”.
pretty soon we are on our way back to the road and the short climb up to the aid station. at the aid station, my sister Melissa would take over and do the next 6.3 miles of the course with me. this was a pleasant surprise. before we left the aid station, I warned her, it’s muddy, lots of roots and rocks, dark, and over 6 miles, are you sure you want to do this? she looked at me and said I walk a lot, and I’ve talked to several people and know what to expect.
with that we were off and walking (it was dark, this section of trail has some tricky little sections, and I wasn’t in a big rush at this point). besides we hadn’t seen much of each other and this was a good opprotunity. it was around 11pm (17 hours into my run) when we left the aid station. for the next 3 hours we followed the trail through the woods, talked about numerous different things, catching up on each others lives, and spotting glow sticks. under normal circumstances, simple things amuse me; after running for 17+ hours, I’d like to hope simpler things amuse me, but honestly glow sticks hanging from trees in the woods would likely be nearly as amusing had I not be sleep deprived and physically exhausted.
almost too soon, we where through the woods, and onto the roads which promised to deliver us to the gatherings aid station, but not before a moderately punishing downhill, which we walked. arriving at the aid station around 2:15am.
after some soup, and miscellaneous other foods I was greeted by my next pacer, Joel, he would pace me through the last 27 miles, and managed to keep it very interesting, sharing stories and talking, finding ways to help motivate me and keep me moving.
the next 13 miles was pretty slow, lots of walking. this section was my low point, very little running, my body began it’s revolt. there were some particularly tough sections, but my family managed to make an appearance at several aid stations that I didn’t expect them to be at, and this helped lift my spirits.
it was an amazing sight to see the sun come up for a second time, all during 1 run. for some reason this made me question the sanity of running this long? because running 100 miles is all well and fine as long as you don’t have to endure 2 sunrises.
it was quite and experience watching as the sky morphed from the empty blackness to gray, then a bit of red. the red grew more and more dominant, birds starting singing and little animals began bustling. the reds gave way to blues, and morning was in full swing.
about 1 hour after this, my body’s revolt was done. things felt good, I passed 4 or 5 runners returning from the turn around point, and my body was ready to open up and go again. the pace quickened, and before I realized it I was at the turn around. my sisters and mom were there, it was a little after 7am (25 hours into my run), and I was feeling nearly as good as I felt when the race first started.
at this point, I was ready to go, so the run back was a bit faster. we did a lot of running on flats, the downhills, and even a good amount of the easier climbs. I came into the rock pile feeling good, and had started reeling people back in. then about ½ way between the rock pile and greek peak (the final aid station) my knees began to feel a bit strained so I pulled back on the pace a bit to try and keep them healthy. at greek peak, my mom, sisters, hayley, and ayden were there waiting for me. I stopped and enjoyed the company a bit before pushing back on. on the way out of the aid station, I heard my dad wish me well.
the next time I’d see my family would be at the finish, just 1 grueling descent left then almost 1 mile of flatish road running, and the finish line. I soon caught the runner in front of me, leo. we ran a together a bit, then he dropped off the pace. we were pretty close to 29 hours, so I figured it’d be a bit easier to find motivation with more people, so I slowed my descent (not necessarily a bad thing) to run with leo on the last road section.
the descent was brutal, legs hurt with every step, threatening to explode, but somehow they didn’t and they even managed to keep from falling. when we hit the road the running started. and the pace kept quickening. rounding the final turn into the finishing area, leo started to go harder, I went with him, and we wound up what felt like sprinting across the finish line, though after further review, it wasn’t much of a sprint at all, more of a fast run, akin to 10km race pace or such.
it was done, in the books, the 100 miles I’d promised my grandfather back in june was completed, there’d be no belt buckle (I might actually have to buy pants that fit), but it was a truly magnificent experience. ian Golden did a fantastic job on picking out a challenging, but potentially fast course (with the right amount of preparation and desire to suffer), the aid stations were well supported, could have been slightly better stocked (no grilled cheese, don’t know why, but for some reason I wanted grilled cheese along the way, and quesadillas weren’t cutting it).
hats off to Ian and his crew, the truth be told, I’m sure he had the longest day of everybody. though our race started on saturday morning at 6 am, and for 2 would last until a little after 5pm sunday evening, I’m sure ian’s day started much earlier saturday, or even friday, and the fact that I saw him at numerous points along the course, talked to him at a couple aid stations to provide feedback, which I was pleasantly surprised to see had been heeded and course marking modifications were made. Ian was there for the last finishers coming through, and began the clean up process after that. though my 28 hours was grueling, I am sure Ian and his crew had a much longer and more arduous weekend, ensuring the race went smoothly, rushing in last minute supplies to help ensure the runners had a great experience. this is a great race, an amazing venue, and the race staff truly went out of their way to make it as flawless as possible. check out the site and some

photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/IroquoisTrailsUltras/IroquoisTrailsUltras2008#
results: http://www.iroquoistrails100.com/Results.aspx

SD 100

2008-06-09T07:44:00.000-07:00

first a huge thanks to all that helped me with the run: heather catchpole, heather wosoogh, mike, randy, stephanie, and brian. despite the fact that i came up short and none of you got to enjoy as much of the scenic beauty of the course as i'd promised, your efforts and support are greatly appreciated.

the day started out early, up a little before 4am, ate some eggs and cheese drank lots of water, and started heading east to the run start. Got to the run start at camp cuyamaca shortly after 5am checked in and ate a bit of the pre run food.

Got the last of my things lined up, filled my nutrition and water bottles, and i was ready to go. the run began at 6am, a very easy shuffle would be sufficient for me. there were a couple groups that took off at faster paces, i just kept reminding myself, it's a long day, there will be lots of time for things to settle out. the most important thing was to keep my pace nice and easy.

the lead up to the sunrise aid station was choc full of climbing goodness, so i was very content to put forth a slow jog up it. As it leveled off the pace picked up a bit. i still wasn't feeling it though, so kept my effort nice and slow. i ate a little bit, drank a bit, but not as much as i planned to eat and drink. coming up over the summit and around into the first aid station, i was feeling flat, nothing wrong, just hadn't found the groove i was hoping for. At the aid station, i refilled my bottles, grabbed a bagel, and was on my way again.

the next section was a bunch of single track with some little rolling hills, i took it pretty conservatively, remembering that there were numerous training runs which took 10 - 12 miles for my legs to come around and get over the initial lethargy. so i kept plodding along, content to do my thing for another couple aid stations and wait for me legs to come around.

i increased my calorie intake, eating wasn't exactly what i wanted to do at this point, so it took some effort, but i wasn't goign to let my nutrition ruin my day, i was dedicated to getting enough calories and maintaining a good effort for the entire run. so in went a bunch of shot blocks (essentially gummi bears) and lots of water and carbopro (carbohydrate drink mixture).

the pedro fages aid station was a welcome site, time for more food, some m&m's, cookies, water melon, and cantaloupe refill my water bottles take a quick bathroom break and on my way again. the 3rd section started out with some rollers, before dropping back down to where the run started. this section went a bit better, but still feeling less than ideal, more food, more liquid, and it's getting hot by now.

coming back through camp cuyamaca i stopped at my truck to grab my refills, lots of carbopro, and 5 more packs of shot blocks, then on to the aid station for more food, refill my water bottles and off again to see how difficult the next section would be. by now the temperatures have gone above my comfort zone and i'm starting to feel the heat. lovely, time to start taking thermolytes and the rest of my tablets as planned.

the next section would prove to be the most difficult for me, it was a good climb out of camp cuyamaca, and nice and toasty at this point. i spent most of this section walking up the climb, i'd run the flats and downhills, but thigns weren't feeling good, i'm over 20 miles in at this point, and my legs aren't coming around. just keep moving, i'm not too far off my estimated pace.

when i get into the paso picacho aid station, the heat was really getting to me, i dumped my hat into the ice water, grabbed a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a glass of coke, and some gatorade. 1 of the volunteers offered me some salt tabs, i took 4, drank some more and asked for 3 more salt tablets. after some hemming and hawing on her part she gave in and provided me with the additional tablets. another of the volunteers had taken my bottles to refill with ice and water and added ice to my hat on my way out.

that was it, my legs started to come around and i began making good time through this section. all of a sudden i was hungry, and eating a bit ahead of schedule, before i was begrudgingly taking in roughly 400 calories an hour, at this point i was happily consuming 500 - 600 calories, and going through my water just as quickly. my pace was pretty steady through this section and my spirits were lifting, despite the fact the temperatures were climbing, i was doing well.

at the big bend aid station was feeling good. i was suprised to see the same volunteer that refilled my water bottles and filled my hat with icy goodness at paso picacho was waiting at big bend as well. she took my hat and water bottles. i ate some watermelon, cantaloupe, m&m's, cookies, more coke, and several cups of gatorade.

on the way out of big bend, i heard the promise of lots of climbing. nice, we are about to embark on a 1200+ foot climb over the next 2 miles give or take. eduardo, who i spoke with before the race and new from some of the other races, remarked that this climb was the toughest for him, and made him hurt severly the last time he did it. i put my head down and started my ascent.

my legs were feeling good, so i walked pretty aggressively, and jogged when the course leveled out and on minor inclines. i continued to catch and pass runners, chatting briefly as i went by. before long i was at the top, and ready to begin the descent into the milk ranch aid station. i could feel the sun getting hotter, and my sunblock wearing off, i'd need more sunblock soon, and ice.

i held a pretty solid pace through the descent and continued it through the little climb up into milk ranch. refill both water bottles, more food, strawberries were added to the usual fare and i was all too happy to sample some of them. sunblock, hat in the bucket of ice water, douse my head with icy water, ready to head out.

there was a mild climb then a long descent into the sweetwater aid station. my legs felt as they were getting stronger, so i continued to let it go a bit and enjoy the miles passing by. along the way, i found my energy building, my appetite was growing, and i was going through my food quickly, i was up to 600-700 calories an hour, mostly solids, and giong through my 2 water bottles faster than anticipated. this could get interesting, do i try and pick up the pace to get to sweetwater faster, or slow down so i don't need as much water?

to much thinking, i'll just run comfortable and let things work themselves out. within 1/2 mile i had found an unopened bottle of water. that's convenient. i picked it up and refilled my water bottle. 1 problem solved, no if i can just find a collection of food to add to my resevoir i'd be set. the heat was again getting to me, i'd need to remember to add ice to my hat before i leave the sweetwater station.

no such luck, i finished off this section out of food, and with just enough water. more food, and some more food to go. i loaded up my pockets with cliff bars, a couple gels, and had my bottles refilled, my hat socked in ice water. added sunblock, and i was off again. i bit premature, i knew i needed to drink and eat more before i left, but keeping to my true form of neglect, i left before completing the things that would make the next 7.5 miles easier.

this definitely bit me hard. within a couple miles i'd gone completely through my 2 water bottles, and eaten all the food (mental note cliff bars need a substantial amount of water to wash down, and are a bad idea to eat when you have no water. i was still catching and passing people, trying to stay conservative (looks like i'm not the only one that underestimated this section).

then it happened. that niggling little thing in my right achilles tendon let loose. running became uncomfortable at the good parts, the worst of it was my legs are still pretty fresh, i'm getting pretty significantly dehydrated, but that's easy to recover from. it's the shooting pain in my achilles that has me concerned.

if i don't figure this out soon, i'm going to be having a lot shorter day than anticipated. it's not long before i'm noticably limping, any kind of strain on my achilles hurts severely. i spend a good hour walking the rest of the way back into camp cuyamaca, where my first pacer will be waiting.

it's finally starting to cool down, but not looking like i'm going to get to enjoy the reprieve. i finally make my way into camp cuyamaca, and can hear heather catchpole's shouts of encouragement. i get to the tent and sit down, hand off the water bottles, throw my hat in the ice water and begin planning my course of action.

heather c. and brian are extremely helpful, providing me with chicken soup, oranges, i should have gotten some quesadillas too, but i was being stubborn. i drank lots ate lots, laid down and heather went to work on my right leg. whenever she got near the achilles i had shooting pain, and would wince. it was ridiculously tight, and noticably inflamed.

i laid there for over an hour hoping the rest would resolve the woes of my achilles. around 6pm i decided it was time to do a check and we loaded up and headed out for the sunrise aid station. my legs were a bit stiff, and the achilles didn't do what i'd hoped it would do. the questions start, do i press on and see where things go really bad? do i quite and finally admit there are some things that are out of my control?? i spend the better part of the next 1/2 mile or so goign back and forth over this in my head. i can still shuffle through the flats, i'm ok. it's only the ups that hurt (never mind i have a 5 mile climb ahead of me).

before long it's undeniable, even the slightest grade sends shooting pain through my achilles, my stride is far from normal, and will definitely increase the likeliness of other injuries if go through the next 50 miles, and the downhills hurt far wors than the climbs.

i pull over to the side of the course sit down and think for a couple minutes. it's official, i'm done, my run is nearly completed, though i've failed to complete the entirety of my run, i accept it at face value, it's not happening today. good days and bad days. today is both a good day and a bad day. i bounced back from my dehydration and insufficient nutrition, but i'm not bouncing back from the achilles in time to finish what i set out to do.

as i sit there, i am forced to accept the fact that there are things i just can't do. there are circumstances beyond my control, despite the fact this was amongst the most prepared i've been for any of my undertakings, it's playing out to be my first DNF. there is still 18+ hours in which i can likely hobble through most all if not all of the remaining 49 miles, but what kind of a set back will that cause? how important is my achilles tendon.

no more questions. it's time to walk back to camp cuyamaca, surrender my number and inform my support crew there is no need for support. heather c is very supportive an asks several times if this is what i want to do. when we get back to camp cuyamaca, i hand over my race number, the final step in officially dropping out. my day is over.

now it's time to start my next adventure. figuring out what i did to my achilles, and starting to fix it. i've got lots of stuff to do, and repairing myself is at the top, once that's complete i can get back to marking off the rest of the items on my list.

San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon

2008-06-05T09:24:00.000-07:00

a couple days before the race i spoke with an acquaintence who had signed up for the rock and roll marathon hoping to qualify for boston. He would need to run under 3:21:00 to qualify, a 7:39 min/mile pace or better would do.

I agreed to pace him through at least the first 1/2 in 1:35:00, after which i'd go as far as i could and wish him well when i blew up.sunday morning i woke up early, and headed down to balboa park and the start line. i parked on the other side of the park so i wouldn't have to deal with street closures plus then i could get a little warm up in before the run. i grabbed all my things and started jogging to the start. when i got the the start i realized i'd left my timing chip in my truck, almost 1 mile across the park. mmm, no chip no time? how important is the time for me?

i decided to go back and get the chip in order to officially document my first sub 4 hour marathon. a brisk jog back to my car, pick up the chip, and jog back to the start line, i'm good and warm now, all i have to do is wait for the race to start. about 10 minutes before the start i thought it would be a good idea to visit the bathroom 1 last time before the start, then i saw the lines and decided i could wait a couple hours.i met up with mark a couple minutes before the start. and that familiar pre-race feeling started to creep up on me, it's been so long since i raced i almost forgot how much i enjoy this stuff.

the gun went off and we started at a pretty brisk pace. 7:09 through the first mile, 7:24 pace for mile 2 and then a good downhill on the course brought us through mile 3 right around 7:15. i ran into some people from the shop i new, so chatted with them a bit, then switched the focus back to pacing mark. i let him know we were pacing a bit fast, on pace for a 3:10:00 marathon we settled in a bit and got comfortable. nothing too exciting for the next couple miles, we pulled back slightly on the pace, but were still running around a 3:10:00 pace through most of the first 12 miles. at mile 7.5 i decided the bathroom was a necessity, i told mark i was going to drop off and i'd be back in a mile or 2, i stopped and took a pee break.

i was back up with mark around mile 8.5, still ahead of his 3:20:00 pace and looking fresh.right around mile 12, mark's parents and sisters were shouting encouragement, it helped give him a little boost. somewhere around here the sun broke through the cloud cover and things began to heat up. just past mile 17 a couple of mark's supporters ran with him for a bit. this is were things started to get tougher and the pace suffered a bit. around mile 18.5 another of mark's friends joined the run, he would stay with us until just before the finish. at this point mark definitely began showing early signs of blowing up, his heart rate was climbing but his pace was staying pretty steady, we pulled back a bit more to try and help him settle into a more comfortable pace, but his pace was already beginning to look like it would be close to pull out a 3:20:00 finish.

we came through mile 21 at 2:38:29, on 7:33 min/mile pace. after mile 21 things got more gloomy, the heat was getting to mark, so we doused his hat in water and tried to cool him down through the aid stations. we walked for a bit to let mark get some gel and liquid in and settle his stomach a bit then resumed the running. mile 23 and mark was getting dizzy, we adjusted the pace again. he was experiencing tunnel vision and had become pretty dizzy, it was obvious he was pushing hard and digging deep to do what he came to do. he hit the 24 mile mark at 3:06:00, dropping his pace below what he needed to get in under 3:20:00. We had 2.2 miles to make up almost 3 minutes.

It was time for mark to dig real deep and see how the cards were to fall. we went a bit aggressively, hoping it would snap mark out of his funk and get his legs going again. marks friend went ahead to get some accelerade and water at the next aid station. i stayd with mark and we walked a bit to let him settle in before we made our last go for his 3:20:00. he got some liquid in and doused in water to cool him down.we came through mile 25 just over 3:17:00, 3:20:00 wasn't happening today, it was a bit hard to swallow, after such a strong start and huge display of heart, mark blew up severely.

he pushd himself harder than i've seen anybody push, and dug down deep, but it wasn't happening sunday. with about 3/4 of a mile to go, he dug even deeper and pulled together a solid effort to jog the remainder of the race, crossing the line in 3:27:44, nearly 5 minutes better than his previous best.he was a bit dissappointed he fell short of his 3:20:00 aspirations, but he was happy with the personal best he set, and from what i saw he laid every bit of what he had out on the line on sunday and dug deep down inside to find everythign he could find. it just wasn't in teh cards for sunday.

congratulations mark, i'm going to remember that effort for a long time, and am sure i'll use it as a source of encouragement to help me through some difficult times.you can see mark crossing the finish line on the far left of the screen at 3:27:54 on the race clock, he has a red shirt, white hat, and black shorts.

Oceanside 70.3 2008

2008-06-05T09:19:00.000-07:00

This year proved to be a bit of a challenge. As usual, I didn’t sleep very well the night before the race, I was up late organizing my race gear and then up early driving to oceanside. I got there, found my place in transition, it was very empty, lots of room to set up, but this would soon change as the hordes of participants showed up.

I made my way into the lineup to funnel down to the swim start, and waited to enter the harbor. 3 minutes before the wave start, we were allowed into the water for warmup and whatever else needing doing. I got in, a bit chilly, allowed me to find new tears in my wetsuit. guess it’s about time to retire it. the horn sounded and we were off, I started out a bit wide and near the front, quickly settled into a pretty comfortable pace, and worked my way into the center by the buoys. I’ve given up on predicting my swim pace, and have accepted I am a poor judge at best of swim performance. the entire swim felt good, I was sure I was holding a pretty good pace, and moving along. my effort felt pretty good, not overly hard, and not too relaxed. before long I was at the turnaround, and on my way back in. I was back by the start line seemingly sooner than anticipated, maybe I will actually string together a solid performance today. out of the water, through transition, back to my rack to pick up my bike and get down to business. swim time: 35:09, about 5 minutes slower than my usual time.

when I got back to the racks, they were very empty. hmmm, maybe that swim wasn’t as fast as I thought it was. granted I didn’t expect a blazing swim time, but figured there would be more bikes around when I got back.

I had some trouble getting my wetsuit off, so sat down for the struggle. One of the volunteers offered to help me peel it off, I accepted, and as she bent over to help out she hit my bike, knocking it off the rack and to the ground, my water bottle, full of my nutrition, skated across the transition area. “I’m sorry”, as she chased after it. and I’m still struggling to get my wet suit off. what the?? guess I need to actually swim and practice taking the wetsuit off. phew, finally got it off, the volunteer had recovered my nutrition, put it back in the water bottle cage, and set my bike upright. ok, the fun part. T1 time: 3:28, by no means blazing fast, but not too far from what I would have expected had things gone well.

now the bike, from here on out it’s good, nothing but chasing people down. out of t1, time to mount, I couldn’t get on the bike. guess I need to practice that one as well. it took me 3 or 4 tries to find the pedals and actually get moving. ok, it’s a bit chilly, there are lots of people out ahead of me on the bike, and I’m struggling with silly things which I usually do well. good thing I’m having fun out here, or this could be a bad day. immediately I start working my way through the field (not hard to do when you start out so poorlyJ ) and settling into a comfortably fast rhythm on the bike. drink some water, take in some nutrition. that’s the stuff. it’s pretty cold for the first 10 – 15 miles, but my legs are feeling pretty good, I seem to be making good time.

I pick up some water and refill my supplies at the first aid station, then settle in, the first 22 – 25 miles are pretty flat, and a good opportunity to make up some good speed before the climbing starts. around mile 22, the head wind starts. that’s a lot earlier, and a lot heavier than usual. through the first set of rollers I notice a peculiar noise when I put any real power through the pedals for climbing. I look back, and am pretty sure the rear wheel is deflecting and rubbing on the frame under heavy load. at least there are lots of hills to verify this hypothesis.
generally I’ll wind up going back and forth with a couple people on the bike, but not today, today was going to be a solo effort for whatever reason. despite the setbacks so far, things seem to be going well, I feel like I’m holding a good pace on the bike, and should be close to where I want to be come time to run. that’s where I’ll make up the bulk of my time. over the climbs, and through the descents, I’m smiling inside, and laughing to myself, this feels good, I’m having fun out here. the climbs aren’t passing as easily as I’ve become accustomed to, I chalk it up to the extra noises I’ve got coming from my rear wheel and bottom bracket, and laugh. so much neglect going into the race, and now it’s paying me back. but the downhills and flats feel very strong. I take a couple thermolytes as proactive cramp prevention.

onto the backside which is deceptive, though it’s pretty flat, there is a lot of wind, particularly today, so I tuck into a nice comfortable aero position, and click off the miles, mile 45, 11 miles left, no worries, it’s almost time to test out my new running skills. the remainder of the bike is uneventful, and seems to go by quickly. coming down into t2, I hear mike “go liam”, and am feeling good, my legs are still fresh and ready for the next hour and a half. a smooth t2, and onto the run. on top of that I don’t have to worry about any weird noises coming from my bike. bike time: 2:41:11

T2 is much smoother and faster than t1, that’s what I’m used to. I’ve gone through all 1200 calories on the bike, and am feeling good, I rack my bike, sit down, pull my shoes on, look right at my nutrition and electrolytes I’ve allocated for the run, and decide, I don’t need those, I’ll be back in less than 1:30:00. this would prove to be a giant blunder. t2 time: 0:1:33

shoes on, ready to go, I come blazing out of t2, this feels like it might be a little fast, but lets see where it takes us. though it seems like I might be coming out a bit quick, I feel very comfortable. after ½ mile, the story of the run starts to unfold. twinges start shooting through my quadriceps. mmm, guess I should have had more thermolytes on the bike, and grabbed my bag of run goodies in t2. it’s only 13 miles, let’s see how things unfold. 2 cups of gatorade at the first aid station, 2 sponges. still running, either my legs will cramp, or they won’t. my pace is still solid, and I feel comfortable other than the twinges.

mile 2, 2 more gatorades, I should get something with salt, maybe pretzels, or power gel. I definitely should do a gel before too long. but I’m still feeling good except the twinges. mile 3, my feet fall asleep, I’m still taking 1 or 2 gatorades every mile to fight off the cramps. but have yet to get any real calories. I’m running a solid pace, nobody is catching me, at the turnarounds, people are falling further behind, I just keep running people down. things are good.

mile 4, mile 5, mile 6, almost to the 2nd turnaround. I’m starting to feel things a bit. mike and my dad are there, mike feeds me my split: “you’re on pace for 1:28:00”. now I’m thinking I have to make up 3 minutes. time to start picking things up see what’s in the cards. how deep can I dig?

on the way out for lap 2, I pick up the pace slightly, more gatorade, more water. I need a gel, it’s stupid to pass them up. but I keep passing them up. mile 9, almost time for the last turn around. mile 10, need a gel, legs are cramping more, but anybody can fake a 5k. and it’s mainly downhill to flat from here. hey wait, is that my feet I can feel now. nice, at least they aren’t numb anymore.

mile 11. game over. that gel would have been real nice had I eaten it 3 – 5 miles ago. I’m still running, but more of a 9 min/mile pace instead of the 6:45 min/mile or so I was holding up to that point. time for damage control, I grab some oranges and start chewing on them, walk the aid station to get some gatorade and water in me. put my head down, and back to running. still painfully slow.

as hard as I try, there just isn’t anything in there. I keep reasoning, it’s 2 miles, 14 minutes, that’s easy you do it all the time. then my left hamstring starts to twinge. added to the collection of both quads threatening to cramp, and I have no energy. aaah yes, I miscalculated by 15 minutes. so close. only 2 miles. start digging, gotta hold off some people. in the last 2 miles, I dropped roughly 6 spots in my division, and probably dozens overall, but it’s not about that right now, it’s about running, as bad as I want to stop, I keep telling myself run faster, it will be over sooner, as hard as I try, my legs refuse to turn over faster, I watch a dozen or so people pull away, and have nothing to answer with. 1 mile left, ¾ of a mile, and I’m through the last aid station. nothing here will help now, just keep moving on. ¼ mile left, it’s now that I find out how much my body lied, or how much truth there was. I let it all out, digging in for a solid run down the finishing chute. 2 people ahead of me, 200meters to catch them, I can do this, I always have something left for a strong finish. here I go, my sprint. but I’m unable to go any faster than I’ve been going for the last 200 meters. what the? 2 people. and I manage to pull up even, but don’t have it to get ahead. the finish. run time: 1:34:27

my hamstring is cramped, my quads are cramped, I’m tired, I’m thirsty my legs are going to explode. but there is a smile deep down inside, I blew up 2 miles early, but in doing so, I learned a huge lesson. I laid it all out there, I wasn’t afraid of falling short, there were no questions, no doubts, just the here and now, each step on that run was done in the here and now. never holding back and wondering if I could keep that pace the whole way, just going with what felt right. not thinking about the possibility of coming up short, because there was no way that could happen (except perhaps if I didn’t eat anything for the entire run).

each race over the past year has brought me a new understading of what it means to lay it all out there, and to hurt like I’ve never hurt before. after lake placid I hurt more than I’d ever hurt before, after silverman, I raised the bar a bit more, after catalina, my legs were worse than I could imagine them feeling, and on saturday, I raised the bar a bit more. I’m starting to race closer and closer to my potential. with enough persistence, and attention to detail, it’s only a matter of time until everything falls into place, and I race the race that I know is in me. until them, I’m going to keep searching and reveling in my ability to push through the lies my body feeds me.

Catalina 50 mile run

2008-06-05T09:17:00.000-07:00

talk about a long day. We headed over to Catalina island on Doc's boat around 5pm friday evening, the crossing was uneventful, we moored the boat, went and ate, then back to the boat for sleeping, saturday would be an early start. i didn't sleep very well, too many things on my mind, oddly enough the race wasn't really one of them. I knew i was in for some serious hurting, as my training had been far less than i hoped for.

i had a decent base coming off of the silverman in november, took a couple weeks off, and early december, after 1 week of that i got sick. I wouldn't be able to run again until january 2nd. 10 days to build back up. that would prove to be an interesting experience.

after some napping here and there around 4 am, i decide enough laying around, i'm getting up and making my way to shore to get ready. Andy came over with me in the kayaks. and would bring my stuff back to the boat. very helpful. the plan was easy, i'd be at the isthmus between 10 and 11, they would take the boat up and yell encouragement, maybe take some of my things i didn't need, and then head back to see me at the finnish.

got there, filled up my gel and water bottles. promptly at 5 am, the run started, still dark and would stay that way until around 6:30 or so. the first 3 - 4 miles were a slight climb, and could be jogged slowly, then the climbing started, and the jog became a walk - 1600' (550m) of climbing over 2 imles (3.2 km). the first aid station came at mile 11.9, 2:12:00 after my start (11:04 min/mile - 6:53 min/km). more water, oranges, pretzels, banana, and i'm off another 7 miles to aid station 2. these miles would be rolling hills and a descent down into the aid station. things felt pretty good, just gotta focus on a very slow pace so i can maintain through the end. my mind would wander amongst the many things going on these days, but always came back to the details at hand. on the way down there was a buffalo, sitting by the road, eating some grass. those things are huge. it was an interesting site.

the downhill was pretty good, there was 1 more climb, then the final descent into and shortly after reaching the top of that climb, the road dropped back down close to sea level, and we were welcomed into the 2nd aid station, little harbor - 1:12:00 after leaving the last aid station, and 7 miles later (10:17 min/mile - 6:23 min/km), and a total of 18.9 miles down. oh boy, my legs are starting to feel the lack of preparation. water, gatorade, fill the water bottle 1/2 water, 1/2 gatorade, pretzels, bananas, potato and salt. off again.

there was a long climb out of this aid station, and a lot of walking. on the way up, another runner joined me, and i was able to run a bit with him. after a mile or 2, it became obvious this pace was entirely too fast for me to maintain, so i bid him well, and began walking again. 10 minutes or so later, another runner joined me. i would stay with her until roughly 33 miles, at which point she would take off ahead never to be seen again. at the top of the climb, we were greated by another buffalo down by a pond drinking and eating, and a few miles later an incredible view looking down onto the isthmus (a harbor on catalina). i was thinking about everythign i could except the fact that my legs were hurting something awful. only some minor coughing, so i was please with that part of it. we ran the 3 miles or so down to the isthmus aid station, and another 1.5 - 2 miles to the turn around. and back to the isthmus: 7.8 miles in 1:51:00 from the little harbor (14;13 min/mile - 8:50 min/km). yep, legs are definitely revolting. more oranges, pretzels, potato, bananas, and lots of liquid, then on our way back to little harbor. i was a bit saddened that there was no sign of andy or doc, but c'est la vie. turns out they had some boat trouble, and missed me at the isthmus by 10 minutes.

the climb out of the isthmus was brutal, hot, uphill, and steep. lots of walking. the good news is the worst is yet to come. at the top, the jogging resumes, letting gravity do what it can do to help out, at this point, i can no longer intelligently speak, just 1 syllable and i doubt it's very understandable. my usual joy for the downhills is lost, my legs threaten to buckle with every step. but keep going, one in front of the other, finally things flatten out, and we arrive at the little harbor aid station - 6.5 miles in 1:22:00 (12:36 min/mile - 7:49 min/km). banana, potato, pretzel, oranges, water, gatorade, refill the water bottle. salt and i'm on my way again.

a bit of a climb out, then a great view of little harbor and the ocean, a quick descent, and the brutal promise of several miles over which here is where things will climb some 600 - 1000 feet (200 - 350 m). doesn't sound like much, but looking at it, and wlaking up it at this point is increasingly difficult. i take solace in the fact that i should be around 40 miles into the race at this point, 1 or 2 aid stations left, and i get that lovely 3 mile descent into avalon, and the cold ocean to immerse my legs in. my ambition is long gone, thoughts of calling it a day are threatening me, and my legs are slowing significantly. then the crushing blow, i reach the next aid station which i'm absolutely confident is bewteen mile 42 and 45, 2 more miles after this, and it's all downhill, not a great thing, but a promise of the pendign finish. i get closer to the aid station, and am pretty much devastated. mile 38.8, 11.2 miles to go, that's a far cry from the 5 or so i was expecting. they have buffalo burgers and lobster at the eagles nest aid station, status check 5.6 miles mainly climbing in 1:11:00 (12:40 min/mile - 7:52 min/km) from little harbor. my stomach protested at teh thought of either lobster or buffalo at this point, so my standard fair, banana, oranges (did i mention i love these things for long races), pretzels, and potato. ooh red gatorade, something different, fill the water bottle with red gatorade please. and several cups of water and gatorade. back on the trail, another 5.2 miles (8.4 km) to the next stop.

to give you an idea of what catalina is like, these 5.2 miles (8.4 km) climbed 400' (320m), and at this point in the sufferfest (it's no longer a run) i was completely convinced this was flat. i was reduced to a walk, mainly due to the additional 7 miles (11.3 km) i was gifted at the last aid station. head down, and pretty well beaten for the time being. then kathryn came along: "you can't walk this, you won't get anywhere, come on, we are going to run walk. running to the 3rd set of tall trees". at the 3rd set of trees, another point would be set, we will walk to the white sign. we'd walk and run like this until the pump house aid station, at the bottom of a 600' (300m) climb which lasted 1/2 mile (0.8 km). finally, 5.2 miles (8.4 km) in 1:22:00 15:46 min/mile (9:47 min/km). at the aid station, no dilly dallying, water, gatorade, refill bottle, oranges, and a banana. off we go

kathryn told me about several other 50 mile (80km)runs she had done, and some people she had pulled through the final miles. she told me she did a 50 miler (80 Km) in october or november, and since hadn't run more than 3.5 miles (5.6 km). she explained how she is married to a air force person, and many of her runs are done around the base, which is fenced off, and how the guards would frequently drive out to ensure she isn't trying to break in. i suggested she have them bring her water and food. before you know it we were at the top of pumphouse hill, some rollers and then the 3.3 mile (5.3 km) descent into avalon (1600' - 490m). we ran most of the rollers and started down the descent. my legs have yet to protest a downhill section like they did that one. i couldn't muster any sort of a pace, even gravity couldn't help with that. "there is a gate, then the bell tower, at the bell tower, it's 1/2 mile (800 m) to the finish" kathryn was offering me hope. it wasn't a question at this point, downhill i can do (generally much better than this one, but i can do those). there was the gate, and a bit after that the bell tower. Kathryn chimes in, "and then there's the sprint to the finish". "have fun with that". finally the road levels out, we are in avalon, so close to the end.

kathryn checks her watch "if we hurry i can make it under 11:30". i'm thinking and with a long run of 3.5 miles over the past 3 months??? "ok, here we go, here's the sprint you wanted". so we go. Doc and Andy are there on the right side of the course cheering and taking photos. a very welcome boost. i offer kathryn to the opportunity to finish first, she declines, so we cross the line together, as discussed throughout the past 2.5 hours. 6 miles from pumphouse in 1:19:00 (13:10 min/mile - 8:10 min/km)

the aftermath. first thought through my head, where is Hilde-Karin, i look around and slowly realize she won't be there, she is in Norway, sleeping. a bit of sadness creeps into my heart. Doc and Andy greet me at the finish, and offer congratulations. you should sit down, get some food, i just want to stand in the ocean and enjoy the cold water.

this is a pain i have never felt. though that crosses my mind after many hard efforts, and eventually fades. this time my legs are destroyed, beyond past experiences. 7300' (2200 m) of climbing over 50 miles (80 km) will do that. i'm wobbly, disoriented, and determined to get in the ocean. after standing in the ocean for a while i come out, next order of business, shower and food.

Official numbers: 50 miles (80 km) in 10:29:00 average pace 12:34 min/mile (7:48 min/km). legs are more destroyed then ever, feet hurt, and i'm so hungry and thirsty, and smell incredibly horrible.

thank you to everyone for being there for me, and helping me in many ways. a special thanks to Hilde-Karin for helping me to find something i lost a long time ago, and being so patient with me jeg elsker deg.

Silverman 2007

2008-06-05T09:14:00.000-07:00

Carine, my Mom, my sister Tracy, my niece Shania came out to provide support and try to motivate me to a solid finish. Saturday i checked in most of my gear and my bike. Just got a new cassette, chain, tires and tubes, cleaned it up, and am ready to post a solid ride.
Sunday morning wake up around 4 am, eat a little, drink a little, grab the last of my things, and we head over to the swim start. i spend some time doing last minute preparations, and then relax and focus on the upcoming day. i'm feeling pretty good, legs are slightly tired, but that should shake out in the first 10 miles of the bike.

at 6 am i put on my wetsuit hand off my excess clothes and what not, and head over towards the swim start. the morning air is a bit cool, and the water slightly cooler, or at least that is how it feels.

6:30, the canon goes off, and swimming begins, i'd positioned myself towards the front, hoping to come out pretty hard for the 1st 500m, then settle in with one of the faster packs. it didn't take long before things went poorly. it was somewhat crowded, but not nearly as packed as lake placid; however, for some reason, it was too much for me, i came out hard, but quickly faded. i was having difficulty breathing, couldn't find a rhythm, and wound up pulling back and letting people go by until things thinned out. after nearly 600m enough people had swam by me for things to open up, and i was able to fall into a rhythm. it felt good, but i kept it very relaxed. i was moving along steadily, and was passing people. but i knew it would not be a fast swim, i'll get to make up time on the bike and run.

at the turn around we were swimming directly into the sun, so sighting was difficult. then the final turn in towards shore, only 800m to go and i was feeling good. i quickened my pace slightly, and exited the water feeling a bit too good. i need to get comfortable swimming in a pack. swim time: 1:13:04 (10 minutes slower than anticipated).

out of the water, up the ramp, the wetsuit is stripped off rather quickly, grab my T1 bag and into the changing tent. don my helmet, throw my goggles, cap, and wetsuit into the bag hand it to the volunteer, and i'm onto the bike.

it's a slow climb up to the road. once i make the right turn, i start moving along. 1 rider goes by me, i make an effort to keep him in sight and try to pace off him; however, my legs are not up for it, if i keep pace, i will pay dearly in the later miles. so i settle back into my comfortable pace.
i stop at the first aid station for a bathroom break and grab a water. then i'm back on my way. the nutrition is going down easy, and i'm slowly making up ground. the climbs seem comfortable, i'm maintaining a good pace, and feeling comfortable. about mile 20 i pass a small group.
within a mile or 2, 1 of the riders from the group comes by and comments that we will probably be seeing a lot of each other today. that would be good, it's nice to have someone to keep you honest and help you through the tough spots. we go back and forth, maintaining a strong pace for the course, and continue passing people. another cyclist keeps surging to pass us, then slows down. he managed that 3 or 4 times before he dropped off our pace. on the next climb, my companion pulls alongside and we do introductions, Daniel and i would keep each other honest and moving up to around mile 70 or 75.

somewhere between miles 25 and 30 my legs come around and i'm able to pick up the pace a bit. then i begin to get a twinge in my back. i've done some long rides, and only seem to aggravate this nerve or muscle in a few events - the last 3 silvermans, and the norseman. perhaps it's all the climbing and the position on my bike. not sure, but i do know i can generally go 5 - 6 hours without this problem. This would linger through mile 90 or so. Around mile 35 i pass Victor, whom i met in norway a couple years ago. he offers some encouragement and we wish each other well.

Daniel and i continue putting time into people up to the turn around, somewhere around mile 52. on the way back through there is the bike special needs bag (a collection of odds and ends, or snacks you may want on the bike). my nutrition is holding up as planned, so i have no need for my bag, and will leave it (this turns out to be good, because the volunteers offer me rider 175's bag, i'm 176). Daniel drops back slightly to grab his bag, but it's not there. He is understandably upset. i offer him what i have. he declines at that point.

Up to this point things have been pretty good, some wind, but nothing too severe. at the turn around, there were 10 - 12 riders ahead of me, and a small pack had formed behind me. most of the riders behind me were new. Daniel noticed this too, and commented that they were trying to chase us down. i smiled and said they are going to have to work hard, the worst is yet to come, some hard climbs, and a strong head wind. for a moment a doubt creeps in and i almost think some of the riders have a chance of passing me. than i shake it off, i've put in time on the climbs and building my bike, it's strong, and i'm ready to go. bike split at 52 miles: 2:39:21
as we start up the first climb, Daniel asks if i have any e-caps (electrolyte pills). he felt some muscle twinges, and doesn't want to cramp. I give him 1/2 the thermolytes i'm carrying (different electrolyte mix, but essentially the same). we pass several more riders on the climb out. around mile 70 or 75, my legs are really coming around, and i'm going well up the climbs.
the course gets faster, and i let it go a bit. around mile 80 or so, it's been a while since i've seen or heard Daniel, i glance back, and there is nobody there. i hope he didn't flat, he wasn't carrying anything except nutrition.

around mile 85, my back is tightening up, and really beginning to bother me. i have to pee as well, but i'm concerned some of the riders will catch me if i do. after a bit, the debate is over, i stop to pee. as i'm getting back on the bike, i see a rider coming up, so i hammer it pretty good for a couple miles to create a gap. as i'm coming out the last of the long climbs, i see a white truck off in the distance, parked at the turn. wouldn't that be great if it were my cheering section. my back is really starting to spasm and tighten up. i remember peter reid had said, my bike isn't comfortable, it's fast, and hope my bike is fast enough to get me off it before my back gets much worse.

as i'm climbing out, i hear the cheers for me, and when i turn, they are all happy to yell encouragement. i read the sign they have made, and draw a little bit of energy from them. my back is really getting bad, i have to stand up and pedal to try and loosen it up, while sitting up, and being aero my back seems to be tightening more. 22 miles, anybody can fake 22 miles right?

my truck drives by and there is more cheering. i'd see them once more in a couple miles as i turn onto the bike path. which would turn out to be quite torturous. it's good to hear them cheering me on, and see them.

as i come onto the bike path, a relay rider passes me, only the 3rd rider i know of that has gone by me. here come the 3 sisters (short steep climbs that can really kill your quads). i'm not looking forward to this, back spasms are making it hard to push the pedals. the first isn't so bad, i spend a lot of time standing in the pedals and get through all 3. mile 95 greets me at the top of the 3rd. the remaining section of bike path is roughly 7 miles of undulating and twisty sections with a strong head wind. many people would comment on how brutal that section was. my back is incredibly painful now, and keeps protesting more and more.

the past 2 years i've succumbed to the pain, gotten off my bike and stretched. this year i resolve not to do it, i'm staying on the bike into T2. mile 100 comes, and i know i'm almost off the bike path, 12 miles, 40 minutes left then i get to run. my legs are starting to become very tired, only a few climbs left, and some fast descents. i enjoy these, trying to take the opportunity to stretch my back and rest my legs. mile 105, i finish the last of my nutrition, over the course of the bike i take in 2000 calories in liquid form, 2 gels (roughly 300 calories), and 2 bananas, somewhere around 2500 calories, right around what i expected. i likely could have squeezed in a couple more, but i wasn't in too much of a deficit. bike split: 6:19:39

i get into T2, put on my shoes and socks. Dave Scott is in there, he looks right at me and asks how the ride went. i inform him it was pretty solid, but i have some serious issues with my back right now, i probably need to consider my fit, especially for this race. i ask him how his day is going. he chuckles, shakes his head, and says we'll talk about it after the run. fair enough. i'm off to start the fun part of the day.

i come out feeling pretty strong, my back no longer bothers me, and my legs are doing all right. then again, the first 1.3 miles are downhill, then the climbing starts. i keep conservative going over several things in my head: - when it feels good, go with it, - it's a long day, don't go out too hard; - the race starts at mile 10 of the marathon; - i'm a runner, this is where the pleasure of all those 50k's comes in and pays dividends.

i keep things moving pretty well, but not too fast, i don't want to explode. grabbing water on odd miles and gatorade on even miles. i take a couple thermolytes to make sure things keep moving, and a motivator (come caffeine and herb pill). my pace is pretty good, i'm making up time, passing people. feeling strong. at mile 3 i stop for a bathroom break.

around mile 5 i grab some pretzels and gatorade. eat a bit of gel. things feel good, steady pace keep the feet moving. now the fun starts. i get to the dirt connector around mile 7, i've never seen this in the daylight, it's a great sight, i'm happy to have the opportunity to see what it looks like through here when it's light. up and to the turn around, and coming back through i see the first of Daniel, since the bike. he is about 2 miles behind me, we exchange some encouragement. a mile later i see victor again, he comments on how strong my run looks, i wish him well and offer encouragement.

around this point, the lead women passes me, she is running strong, i try to hold on to her for a bit, but decide it's best if i sit back and save some for the 2nd loop. at mile 11, i see my mom cheering me on and wishing me well. i'm still feeling good through the 1/2 way point. and it's still light.

around mile 14, things get tough, i take a bathroom break. ok, back to running, my head is starting to spin, i need to start taking in nutrition, more gel, 1 orange slice at the next aid station. not really working, i walk briefly then attempt to run again, am reduced to a walk again. this happens 4 or 5 times before i decide there shall be no more walking. mile 17, i see the sign and that's where i run from. more gel, more gatorade, a banana, gotta get some energy back in me. some thermolytes, no more motivators.

i shuffle my way up through mile 20, it's time to push the pace and see how much those 50k's really help. several people at the aid stations recognize me, and remind me, this is my last time past here, the finish is coming. the turn around and mile 21. Daniel and i pass again, a couple aid stations, and then i see victor again. at this point, i'm digging so deep, i can't form words. speaking isn't an option.

mile 22, 1 small uphill, 3 miles of downhill, and a medium climb back up, then the finish. it's time to let things go and see how much i can really hurt. my legs have been burning for several miles at this point, and i'm exhausted, but there is always something left. so i go harder. the last 2 miles are it, i dig deep, and go hard, i must be doing 7 - 7:30 minute miles at this point. including the climb back up to the jogging path. down the path, i can hear the finish line, i can see the lights, i know i am close, i push harder.

as i approach the end of the jogging path i see the 26 mile sign. i push harder, slight downhill, into the last turn, and i can see the finishers chute, nobody behind me, nobody in front. i go harder, and give it the last of what i have. i cross the line and am drained. run split: 4:18:36. total race time: 11:56:09

i get a finishers medal, they take my timing chip, and i hug my cheering section. grab my t-shirt. the day is complete, now it's time for food and massage. thanks to mom, Tracy, Shania, and Carine for getting me food, my clothes, drink, and being there to help me through some tough sections.

Mission bay Sprint 2007

2008-06-05T09:09:00.001-07:00

Sunday morning comes awfully early, once again, up several hours before the sun, grab my gear and head west this morning. i get to the race, park and ride my bike over to transition. my legs are a bit tired from yesterdays run, but i did manage to eat a lot and sleep a fair amount, so hopefully once i get swimming they will loosen up and come around, otherwise it will be an exercise in self control and pacing. i pick out my spot in transition, rack my bike, and lay out my gear in preparation for the race.

now to walk through my transitions, i go to the swim in, walk through to my bike trying to make note of what i'll pass and how to easily find my bike, but i keep getting distracted, ooh elites, i wonder what tricks i can gain from watching them get ready. put your race number on before the swim and tuck it in your shorts, good call. oh yeah, walking to my bike. i do this several times, then decide i should try an easy run to see how things go.

oh yeah, my legs are really tired, my breathing is heavy, and that's not even a hard pace. it should be interesting. once again i'm hoping the swim loosens things up and brings my legs around. back from my warm up run (all of about 1/2 mile and it was painfully slow). i put my wetsuit on and head down for the swim start. i'm in the 5th wave, so i get to see a couple groups go off before getting in the water. it's a bit chilly this morning, and it seems my wetsuit has acquired several new holes since i last remember. why am i here again? oh yeah, i love racing. drift over to the swim start, and notice there is a good current in our favor. excellent. then the gun goes off, and all fades away.

i get stuck behind some slower swimmers for a bit and jostled mildly, but nothing compared to the usual swim start. i never seem to find a rhythm on the swim, i am becoming an endurance athlete, it takes me absurd amounts of time to find a groove, mental note, next time swim 1000 meters or so as a warm up before the actual race. finally as i 'm nearing the buoy to indicate it's time to turn into shore i start to flow slightly (or perhaps i'm just excited to know my bike is waiting in transition).

out of the water, peel the wetsuit down to my waist, a moderate jog up to T1, goggles and cap come off, looking for my bike, all the way at the other end of transition, which is fine, that means i'm that much closer to riding once i get my bike. the asphalt is beginning to hurt my feet. a little further and i get to struggle with removing my wetsuit (i need to work on this a lot more, i have gotten very bad at taking off my wetsuit). all right, don my helmet and sunglasses, grab my bike, and let the fun begin.

i leap onto my bike, and immediately begin picking up places. there is little i enjoy about racing more than passing people. there are a couple sections on the bike course that consist of some good sharp turns, i enjoy these immensely, especially if they are clear of other riders so i can really make up time. coming out onto the road there is an overpass to climb and come down, 2 more good things, i climb and descend well. a hard left then right at the bottom, even better, it's pretty clear so i carry a good amount of speed through. i am able to hold a pretty solid pace for the ride, granted it's flat, but i'm passing people, and nobody is passing me, so i must be doing better than average. i also made a decision to go a bit harder on the bike as i wasn't sure i'd be able to put together to strong a run after yesterday. my plan was go hard on the bike, put as much time into people as i can, and just try to hold them off on the run.

about 1/2 way through the bike another rider passes me, unacceptable, so i grab onto his wheel (staying at least 10m back to avoid a drafting penalty), and just hold on for a mile or 2, then i make a move and try to push him a bit. if i'm working, so is he. this doesn't go quit as well as i expect, as he passes me shortly thereafter. so i'm back to just keeping him within reach and trying to make up some time in the technical section and going back over the overpass. into the parking lot and tight turns i am able to catch up to him and would be able to pass if there is room. since there isn't i sit back and let my legs come around for the climb. i pass on the climb, and enter T2 ahead of him. unfortunately i am not prepared for the dismount line, about 50 feet from it i notice it, and am able to slip my right foot out of my shoe; however, not my left, so i stop at the line and put my right foot down while i take my left shoe off (did i mention i have to work on transitions, and paying attention???).

into t2, i rack my bike, and slip into my running shoes. the guy that passed me on the bike is 10' in front of me. i run through my options in my head sit back and let him dictate the pace until i want to make a move, or let things go and see if/when i blow up.

legs feel pretty good, so i'm going to see if i blow up. i quicken the pace and overtake him. surprisingly my legs are feeling pretty loose and good at this point. so i might as well take advantage of it. 1 mile down, it feels like i'm holding a good pace, and nobody appears to be catching me. about 1/2 way through the run, i'm still going strong, pace feels about the same, and i'm the one doing all the catching. good stuff, how long will it last?? hopefully another 1.5 miles. then there is the overpass from the bike course (get to do this twice on the run too). i hold a good pace over it, and relax into the descent allowing gravity to work for me. at the bottom, the course offers a chance to see who is following and how close. all the faces i see are recently passed, and falling further off my pace. that is good news. mile 2, only 1 more mile, time to try and pick up the pace.

coming around back towards the overpass, i start to settle into a comfortable pace, mmm, not today, with roughly 1/2 mile left, i decide that today is a good day to get used to pushing really hard, so i increase the pace again, over the overpass 1 last time, then down the other side and 1/4 mile to the finish. it's definitely uncomfortable ascending the overpass, and i manage to make the descent a bit of a push as well, then holding that pace for the last 1/4 mile, and the finish. that feels good.

i'm done, and still feeling pretty good. now if i can just figure out how to muster that kind of an effort for the better part of my next long course event, i'll be very happy.

Noble Canyon 50k

2008-06-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

saturday was my opportunity to run long, with lots of climbing and some good scenery. I woke up early (it was dark out for some time after i got up), grabbed my bag of stuff, and headed east towards the mountains for the noble canyon 55k trail run. I showed up, gathered my entry swag, a duffle bag, t-shirt, hat, socks, and some other things which are still somewhere in my car. in addition to all this good stuff, they had breakfast, cantaloupe, bananas, water melon, breakfast bars, yogurt, juices, cereal and probably more that i've forgotten. i grabbed some yogurt, a banana, cereal milk, and juice. ate up, sat through the meeting/course description, filled up my water bottle, and then lined up for the start.

at 7:00 am things were under way, the first 1/2mile was on the road and brought us to the base of our 10mile climb from 2000ft up to nearly 6000ft. for nearly 2 miles, the trail was pretty narrow and i was content to settle in to my place in line at a nice liesurely pace, i figured it was good to take it easy as i had 5 or 6 hours of running to look forward to, and lots of climbing. when the trail opened up a little bit i started working my way up, still conscious of my pace and making an effort to keep it very easy. the first aid station of five (the provide food and liquids roughly every 5 miles) came sooner than anticipated, when i got there, it was very congested. since i had hardly touched my water, i decided i would be fine until mile 11 and the next aid station.

on top of that, i remembered to stuff some gels in my pockets in case i needed some calories before the next aid station. on the climb up, a runner i had seen at the 50k in august ran by and commented how we did this through much of the bulldog (august's 50k). i agreed and he continued to remind me that i had finished before him at the bulldog, but that wasn't going to happen this time. i wished him luck and thought to myself, my legs are tired this time, i won't be surprised if i finish behind him. we went back and forth until around 7 miles or so, then he dropped off the pace, and i didn't see him the rest of the day. the trail meandered through some of the best mountain biking in san diego county, working it's way up.

i sat in behind a couple runners for another couple miles before passing them on some switch backs. there were a couple steeper sections which i opted to walk up in hopes of keeping my legs semi fresh, as well as providing an easy pace for eating my gel. i reached the top (at least for now), and began my descent to the 2nd aid station, marking 11.3 miles behind me, and around 20 left. i stopped, refilled my water bottle and my have grabbed a banana, then off again in search of the 3rd aid station, this loop on the course would prove to be the most difficult for me. another gel, some salt tablets. there were no real hard climbs, but with 11+ miles behind me, and having worked my way up from 4000' to somewhere around 6000' my body was tiring.

so i alternated between walking and running, enjoying some of the views, and asking the ever popular: when did i think this was a good idea? after winding through the hills for some time and passing several groups of hikers, i came across a couple that was out watching the race, only a couple hundred yards to aid station 3. nice, that's half way, and it's pretty flat to downhill from there on. so my spirits lifted a bit, i picked up the pace, and as the yards past, i started asking if anybody had explained to them that 1/2 mile is more than a couple hundred yards. though they may have been right, it seemed closer to 1/2 mile than 2 or 300 yards.

at this station, more water, i went through the entire bottle in the last 5 miles (it was starting to warm up) and once again on my way. i decided to test out my motivator capsules (essentially caffeine and other stimulants intended to provide a little kick when you are tired). that only succeeded in making me dizzy and shaky. mm, those might take some time to get used to. hopefully it has something to do with the 6000' or so of altitude.

the next 5 miles back to the 2nd aid station (which also serves as the 4th) were slightly better than the previous 5. i was able to tag along with a couple different runners over the course. that helps the mileage go by a bit faster, but also tends to pick up the pace a bit, so drains me a bit. my 3rd and last gel was required to help maintain. there were also several sets of hikers, many of whom provided cheers and welcomed encouragement. a slight climb back up to the road, across the road, and an easy descent into aid station 4. some oranges, refill my water bottle, and try to muster the ambition for the remaining 11 miles.

all right, i'm off again. on the climb up before i get to enjoy the downhill, 4 mountain bikers came up and passed me, so i figured it was a good motivation to stick with them, i picked up the pace slightly and hung on. we conversed briefly: 'how long a run are you doing''31 miles or so''holy ----' then 1 of them lost his balance on the climb and fell, after seeing he was fine, i carried on. i wouldn't see them again for pretty close to 8 miles, which was nice (there are some really technical sections that only really good mountain bikers can cycle through). regardless, it was nice to be able to hold them off for so long. the run down was good, pretty mellow descents the only drawback was a fair amount of half buried rocks and uneven ground which made for difficult footing along most of the trail.

now i'm just trying to stay ahead of the mountain bikers and get to the final aid station (which also served as the 1st). i'm out of food, and running low on water, so i try to let the downhills go as quickly as i can without tripping. it took slightly longer than i expected to get to the last aid station. i grabbed several orange slices, a banana, and a couple gels to get me through the final miles. ok, only 5 miles left, you can fake 5 miles right (funny what goes through your mind when you are tired). the last 5 miles was pretty uneventful, some ups and downs and a bit of walking some of the ups, but pretty much just a shuffle that was somewhere between a jog and a walk.

this lasted until i recognized that i was within 1.5 miles or so, at which point i mustered my remaining energy and increased my pace to a respectable jog. once i got on the road i felt a slight relief. then the final turn into the parking lot, and roughly 0.1 miles left, finished, just under 6 hours, slightly slower than i hoped, but a good day.

on top of that, they had showers there, so i had an opportunity to rinse before i sat down to eat. i enjoyed some pasta salad, sandwiches, salad, drinks, m&ms. very tood stuffs. then it was off to pick up my registration for sunday's sprint triathlon.

Heartbreak Ridge 1/2 Marathon

2008-06-05T09:05:00.001-07:00

woke up early, and headed up to camp pendelton for a good exercise in running. got my race number and sat around for a bit waiting for the start.

i lined up towards the front, anticipating being in the faster portion of the race (out of nearly 1,000 people, i'm hoping to pull a top 50 or so). They have the pre-race meeting, basic rules, and what not, then they raise the flag and honor those that serve and have served the country.

then it starts, of course everybody is caught up in the excitement, and comes out at a fast pace, so i just hang around a pace that is slightly faster than i anticipate being able to hold the entire time. i figure i'll hold this for 1 or 2 miles, then settle into something that is more comfortable.

which worked out well, because just past 2 miles, the race course began climbing for a couple hundred feet or so. this proved to be an interesting climb, i held a good effort up the climb, and was rewarded with a nice downhill on the other side, i let things go, and made some good time on the descent. the first 7 miles were difficult, my calves were pretty tight, and i couldn't really find a rhythm.

at about 7 miles, i decided i would pick up my pace every mile until i either blew up, or finished. it was a bit uncomfortable, but felt good, the rewarding part was i just kept running people down, i'd see them off in the distance, and know that it was only a matter of time until they would be watching me pull away from them.

then at mile 9, there was a bit of a climb, my legs were beginning to revolt a little, but i pushed them through it, and at the top the pace quickened a bit more. then some descents and that is always good for my average speed. i ran down a couple people, and somehow missed the 10 mile sign, then there was the last of the climbs, which is followed by a nice descent and flats to the finish.

so i tried to push up the climb, and was able to make up a little ground, then on the descent i once again let it go, 1 of the other runners tried to hold me off on the downhill, i came up on his shoulder, and i could hear he was breathing hard, so i doubted he would be able to hold me off. i just relaxed into it, let gravity do the work, and watched him fall away. at the bottom, there was the 11 mile sign, and i was able to pick up the pace yet again. as i came around the corner, i saw a slew of people, maybe 10 or 12, within 2 miles, i had almost 1/4 mile to make up on these people, difficult, but plausible.

so i kicked it up a notch, and could feel my legs revolt a little, and my breathing was harder. but the group was getting closer, and their was only 2 miles left. a couple more corners, and i was within 1 mile of the finish, and the people are within a couple hundred meters, a little more push, and i am through the group. a couple more people to pick off in the last mile.

finally i come around the corner into the finish chute, my legs where pretty tired, and definitely burning, but i mustered a bit of a increase in pace to finish strong. a good effort and exercise in being uncomfortable. i need more running time on my legs to get them used to continuing when i'm tired, so a decent pace becomes almost second nature.

Pacific Coast Triathlon

2008-06-05T09:03:00.000-07:00

where to start on this one. seemed like a good idea at the time, i've been focused on long course, so why not squeeze in a sprint to get in some speed work.

arrive at the race site early, and had to park about 1 mile away, so a nice easy bike ride over to transition, pick out a spot, get thing set up, and then go for an easy spin with some higher efforts to guage how my legs are feeling (did a longer ride yesterday with some good efforts on the climbs). legs are a little flat for the climbs, but i'm sure it will work itself out.

rack my bike again, and set it up for transition, then an easy little run to spin my legs out a bit. now it's about 20 minutes until the racing begins, time to put on the wetsuit, and get in a little pre race swim.

the water is pretty chilly, it's been some time since i've experienced these temperatures (probably in march at ralph's 1/2). but it's ok, so lets see, 800m swim (1/2 mile), 12 mile bike over some hilly terrain, and 5k (3.1 mile) run. i'm generally just getting warmed up at these times, but speed is a totally different ball game, so let's have at it.

the swim starts on the beach with a 25 m dash to the ocean then making your way through some minor bumps and swim.

I'm lined up and ready, the horn sounds, and it's a faster jog to the water, a couple porpoise dives and onto swimming, unfortunately i neglect to sight the buoy i should be chasing and swim a bit off course, no big deal, i work my way back to the turn buoy and make the turn, then start churning some water, not an incredible swim, relatively uneventful, I round the last buoy and turn in for shore, make a semi surge for the beach, as i am coming out of the water, i see a familiar race suit, Thorin is about 5 seconds ahead of me out of the water.
the run up to transition is a bit of a climb, i chat a bit with him on the way up, then into transition, as usual, i am a little slow getting the wetsuit off (i haven't worn a wetsuit since lake placid 5weeks prior), as i get out of my wetsuit, thorin is off on his bike, no worries, i'll be 10 - 15 seconds back on him (actually it was closer to 30 seconds).

i come out pretty good on the bike, down the first hill, and then the climbing starts, generally i love this part, but my legs just aren't having it today, there is a deep lingering tiredness in there (perhaps they aren't completely recovered from my 50k run 2 weeks ago). regardless, it's a lovely day, so i'll keep turning the pedals, and on the flats and dowhills i can get a bit of speed, it's just the climbing that i'm suffering a bit on.

these efforts are significantly higher than i am used to, so i'm breathing a little hard, and my muscles are warming up pretty quick. just before the turn around, i see thorin blast by, i'm still about 30 seconds behind him, there are a couple more hills in the other direction which take a bit of a toll on me, the 2nd turn around and thorin has put some time in on me, maybe 45 - 60 seconds up on me now.

1 lap of 2 completed, and my legs are still feeling sluggish. the climbs are pretty much the same on lap 2, then after the 2nd turn around, my legs start to come around a bit, still have a deep tired feeling, but they are turning a bit better, just in time to enter T2 and get ready for a run.
as i am coming in to T2, the 2nd cyclist of the day passes me, i have a decent T2, and come out running pretty strong, there aren't many people on the run yet, and the few that are there i'm reeling in pretty well. just past the 1/2 way point, the guy that past me on the bike coming into
T2 goes running by, i could make an effort to hold on to him for the remainder of the run, and do keep him in sight until we hit sand. what the ??? this is a pleasant suprise, or not.

everybody else gets the same course, so i slow my pace slightly, and try to stick to the hard pack sand by the waters edge. at this point i can hear a runner sitting just on my heels, he's been there for long enough that i'm sure he is in my division, and just sitting back there waiting to move in the final sprint to the finish.

do i pick up the pace and turn myself inside out to drop him, or hold out for the finish and try to outsprint him? at this point i'm pretty well beyond my comfort zone, so i'll just sit on it, maybe make a small surge on the climb back up off the beach and see what happens.
on the climb, my legs are starting to hurt, there is no coming around for them on the run, and this brutal climb to finish things off isn't helping, so my surges are very short lived, and rather pathetic (more hill running to come in training). then it levels off, and my tail whips around for a 200m sprint, he goes, and i start to follow, but my legs aren't turning over like they should.
this is peculiar, as i am generally game for a good sprint into the finish, and rarely come up on the short side of these, but looks like todays effort is just a bit higher effort than my body is ready for, so he slips away to finish 3 seconds ahead of me. now had there been another 20 or 30 miles on the bike, that would have been more my game, or the hills could have killed me just as easily?

all in all it was a good race, my stomach was twisted, my legs were burning, and my mind was trying to figure out why my body wouldn't respond to it's requests for speed. the answer, very simple, i have been focusing on slow steady efforts lasting hours, not short bursty efforts lasting just about 1 hour.

the remedy: more speed work during my workouts, not a lot, as i am still focusing on long course, but i do plan on throwing in a spattering of extra high efforts.

as for thorin, he went on to pull 4th place in a very tough division, and acredits his success to cheetos, beer, and hanging out with his newborn daughter.

personally i think he just has a better stomach for going well beyond his comfort zone than i do, i can go a little out of it, and stay there for a long time, but seem to have a little trouble going terribly far out of it even for short periods.

Bulldog 50k 2007

2008-06-05T09:01:00.000-07:00

my last adventure found me up in the mountains above malibu. it was a great experience, and one that will hopefully help me figure out how to run through the discomfort and fatigue which have caused me so much difficulty in past events.

i got to the race check in around 5:30 am, got my number and goodie bag. the race starts at 6:30, so i have some time to work out the details and plan my strategy. a strategy that was comprised of running really slow for a really long time. 6:30 rolls around, and we are off, its a nice trail run, the first 3-4km (2-3 miles) was relatively uneventful, then came the beginnings of the promised climbs. this continued in a pretty consistent fashion for 5-8km (3-5 miles) which bore witness to me walking most of it (this was a strategic choice at this point, i figured there is a lot left in the day, so i will try to save a bit of my legs for later).

then there was a fun section along the ridgeline with some undulating hills and fun single track stuff. followed by a pretty good downhill which i am extremely fond of. i generally let gravity do the work, and just turn my legs over as quickly as possible. that joined up with a good climb lasting about 1 km (.7 miles) then was followed by a brutal downhill, very steep, and lasting 3-5km (2-3miles), then it got flat for a bit followed by some uphill switch backs for approximately 1.5 km (1mile), then it dropped into a parking lot, and the last 2 km (1.5 miles) was on fire road. that was pleasant. then it was time for round 2. that's when things got tough, i kept chugging along at a bit of a diminished pace until the start of the major climb, then i was reduced to a walk.

i would walk much of this, every so often mustering a bit of energy for a run on the flatter portions. at the crest, i enjoyed a bit of the downhill, but at a significantly slower clip than my general vigor with which i embrace the descents. at 32km (19 miles) my legs were ready to explode, but somehow i managed to keep them turning over and moving forward. at this point something strange happened, my legs were terribly tired, but seemed to resign themselves to a slow but steady shuffle somewhere between a walk and a run, this continued, speeding up slightly for the downhills and slowing to a walk for the climbs. then the last 4km (2.5 miles) i was able to dig deep and pick up the pace to a respectable run, picking off 4 places in the process. i was within my expected finish time 5:42:19 (i was hoping for between 5 and 6 hours), and had pushed through some of the worst exhaustion my legs have been subjected to.

though my pace was fairly moderate at 6:49 min/km (10:58 min/mile), i came through the marathon point within 10 minutes of my previous best for that distance (i ran a 4:30:12 marathon at lake placid - 6:24 min/km = 10:19 min/mile), and then tacked on another 5 miles in about 1 hour.

results can be found here:http://www.trailrunevents.com/bd/2007-results-50k.htm
here is an ariel view of the course: http://www.trailrunevents.com/images/google_earth_bulldog_loop.jpg

Lake Placid 2007

2008-06-05T08:57:00.000-07:00

After much preparation and planning, Lake Placid has come and gone. lots of lessons taken away from this one:

PRE-RACEi left san diego late wednesday night, arriving in albany thursday around noon. my dad, sister and nieces were waiting for me. no bike, that could be a problem, fortunately they have a couple days to work out the details on that, so off to lake placid we go.

it's raining pretty steady for most of the first evening. got my registration packet and checked in to our cabin thursday, ate a bit of dinner. the airlines dropped my bike off during dinner, so things are on the up and up. sleep was a bit disrupted the first night.

got up and lounged around for a bit, it rained off and on most of the day, so outdoor activity will be limited (san diego has spoiled me). drove parts of the bike course and part of the run course (i had some problems accurately following the bike course). what i did see looks like it will suit my training very well, no real tough climbs, a couple moderate grades, but all said and done, should be a fast bike course.

as later evening rolled around, most of my family began arriving, with the last couple trickling in around 2 or 3 in the morning ( i was in a haze of half sleep half awake).

saturday morning was rather uneventful, i rode the last 12 miles of the bike course to the pancake breakfast and bike drop off. this is the worst of the climbing, and isn't bad at all, fairly fast and should be fun. spent much of the day enjoying the sun and relaxing with the family.

RACE DAY
woke up around 4, had some breakfast, bagel and infinit drink before heading over to the swim start. got to the transition area dropped off my bags, put my nutrition on my bike and filled my water bottles, then headed over to mirror lake.

SWIM
whoever thinks starting 2000+ swimmers in a mass start must enjoy watching salmon swim upstream. each leg is a 2loop affair, and it took all of the first 1.2 miles (split around 0:31:30) for me to find some open water on the swim. it was entirely too crowded to find a pair of feet to hang on. after running and getting back in for the second loop, i was able to hit a good groove, i wound up hooking on a couple different pairs of feet on the way out, then coming around the turnaround, i found a new set of feet that went very wide on the turn (on the bright side, lots of open water 20-30 meters outside the buoys). i worked my way back towards the course and picked up the effert the last 200-300 meters coming out of the water slightly slower than ideal, but still in good form (1:03:39), the strippers had some issues getting my suit off, no worries, it's a long day, what's 10-20 seconds. a nice jog into transition where i am excited to have my bike waiting at the end of the row for me to pick up.

T1
through the transition tent, number, helmet sunglasses, good to go, all right, now to pick up my bike. unfortunately my number was not relayed to the bike grabbers, so i had to fish mine out of the racks on my own.

BIKE - loop 1
here is where the fun really starts, the beginning has some short steep descents followed by hard turns, fun stuff, i really enjoy these and they provide me with an opportunity to make up a little time, coming out of town it's time to shift into the big ring and get things moving. bad news, that frayed cable i was going to change before the race, didn't change it, and it's broke (<5miles into the bike and breaking things already, good times).

so now i'm on keen lookout for the sag wagon, or somebody that may be carrying a derrailuer cable. there are some light rollers, then a long fast descent over the first 20 miles. despite not having a big ring, only 2 people pass me on the descent, and i am hanging with a pack of riders through the first 2 aid stations, feeling pretty good. i decide to stop at the 3rd station and see about getting my cable replaced, the downhills and flats will be worth the downtime to replace it. no luck, while i'm waiting for them to check for a cable, i eat several bananas, take a bathroom break, and down some water. no cable. ok, looks like today will be a lot of high cadence work.
while i was checking on my cable, dozens of people blow by the aid station.

hmmm, that's unfortunate. all right, back on the bike, back to picking up places. the climb out of jay is pretty good, i'm picking off people as anticipated. in a little bit, there will be an out and back section for me to guage how much time i lost to the group i was with up until i stopped for a derrailleur cable. so to the best of my guesses, i'm 15 minutes down form the group i was with. 40 miles into the race, now i've got to pee pretty bad, hope there are toilets soon. nothing around, so i improvise, now i'm a bathroom break and a 10-15 minute rest at an aid station on loop 1. coming back into lake placid was an absolute blast, several tight turns, ups and downs, a real technical section, i was moving through here picking off people. despite the misfortunes thus far, i was able to split at the 1st loop at 2:46:22, a little off pace, but once the stops are factored in, i'm golden.

BIKE - loop 2
still feeling pretty good, legs are a little heavy from the fun i had going through town, but once i get down into keen (the bottom of the long downhill), they will be ready again. uh oh, i'm way ahead of pace on my nutrition, i'm set to run out around 80 miles or so at this rate, and i've been conservative taking in the calories. instead of being smart and grabbing all the calories i can at the aid stations i blank and am just picking up water. then around 80 miles it happens, nutrition is gone, and my legs go flat, just before i get to start climbing back out of the lowest point on the course. jolly good.

so the climb is a bit painful and slow, and of course i neglect to get any nutrition at the 1st aid station i pass, so it's another 10 miles and i need to start taking on nutrition. next aid station i grab 3 or 4 gels, stash them in pockets and grab water, refill the water, start eating gels. repeat at the next aid station. around mile 95 my legs start to come around, and i start to return to form. attacking more so on the hills, still a bit leary because i am far behind on caloric intake. the last aid station i take another 3 or 4 gels and space them out over the remaining 6 miles. one more pass through town, a bit slower than last time, but still fast and fun. a great way to finish off the bike, i come into T2 with a big smile on my face despite having used 5:52:08 to complete the 112 mile bike (3:05:45 for the 2nd loop).

T2
hand off my bike, grab my T2 bag, and into the tent, shoes on, helmet off, good to go, except that pesky cramping in my left hamstring, so i get it rubbed out before setting out on my run.

RUN - loop 1
coming out of T2, i'm feeling pretty good, the run starts with a good dowhill, then about 1 mile of flat and a 2nd good downhill. as usual, i let gravity do the work, and am going by people. i turn down river road, it's about 3 miles out to the turn around, and now the tricky part, i need to keep a nice comfortable pace that i can maintain for the next 3+ hours, i settle in to a pretty comfortable pace, and am taking in 2 cups of liquid at each aid station, and a gel here and there. at 8 miles, i am feeling pretty good and go by the personal message sign (my family took this opportunity to tell me they love me, a very good pick me up at a needed time), at 10 miles, i get to start up the hills, when i reach the top, i get a boost of energy, so the pace is picked up and held pretty solid until mile 14, then things begin to crumble again. the first 13 miles were split at 1:55:38 (a bit behind pace, but i'm running)

RUN - loop 2
the downhills aren't quite as fast as they should be, and the flats are a shuffle, not really much more than a brisk walk, but still in the form of a jog. i'm parched, so i up the liquid intake (2 gatorade cups, and 2 waters at each aid station). throw in a gel pack to try and up the energy levels. now it's time to see how deep i really want to dig? is it time to walk??
1 mile at a time, mile 15, and i get to turn around at mile 18, i'm shuffling, struggling to keep moving forward and battling the desire to walk. so the games begin, if each aid station is 50m long, and there are 26 in the race, i walk every one of them in it's entirety, that means i've walked 1300m, just over 3/4 of a mile, so if i'm at mile 16, and i walk the rest of the way, that's less than 11 miles of walking, this continues up until mile 20, where i see the motivating sign from my family again.

that provides a little boost, and the pace quickens for about 1 or 2 miles. just before i get into the uphills again, it's time for another bathroom break (2 for the run). now it's the last bit of challenge, uphill, then it flattens and my pace quickens a bit. still only walked the aid stations and maybe 1/4 mile of the regular course. here comes the last of the uphills, my sisters are there to run with me for a bit, that helps. now if at absolute worst, i can wind up walking 2 miles, not gonna happen.

the worst of it is i have to go by the finish turn off, past this by almost 1 mile, and i get to turn around again to come back to it. this is usually where i shine, normally i throw in a good kick for the last mile, and a sprint to the finish. past mile marker 25, and it's time to pick up the pace, but it doesn't go, i'm still shuffling, though it may be slightly faster, it's still shuffling. i'm usually good to pick up 6 or 7 places in the last mile, but not today, i am humbled yet again, and content to shuffle into the last 200meters, as i step onto the speed skating oval, i find a bit of energy and start my finishing sprint, my niece and dad join me for the last 150meters. 2nd loop split at 2:34:33 for a 4:30:11 marathon (a personal best, but still a far cry from where i was hoping to be).

POST RACE
as i said lots of things learned, prior to lake placid, i had been very stringent about keeping my gear in top form; this time, i let a couple things slide, and they bit me. previously, i'd always carried an extra 25% of my calculated caloric requirements, today, i had to have botched the numbers and came in 25% short, and didn't acknowledge it and begin correcting until it was too late.

so when i tally the damage, broken cable (did this save my legs for the run? or cause me to spin out burning up more than i anticipated? i don't know and don't particularly care). the important thing is i had several downs, which i managed to pull through and come out with significant improvements over past experiences.

a big thank you and i love you to all that came to support me, including those there in spirit and my thoughts.

Duecman 2007

2008-06-05T08:54:00.000-07:00

got into arizona early friday afternoon and picked up my race packet. woke up early saturday, water is 67 degrees, i get to use my wetsuit today. I'm in the 2nd wave of 3.

I was curious to see how i would deal with the elevation (the race is between 5600 and 6500 feet), the swim being situated at an elevation of 6200'. my goal was to come in around 5 hours on this course, that would put me on target for lake placid. I lined up near the middle of the swim start. i had some significant issues the first 200 - 300m. i was unable to find a rhythm, i had trouble with my breathing, and wound up stopping completely 2 or 3 times to try and relax. after the 3rd stop, i decided i was going to just put my head down and keep swimming, breathing will happen. i found a pretty good groove, and cruised pretty comfortably back into t1.

The swim turned out to be pretty quick, especially considering my issues the first several hundred meters (0:32:26). out of the water, and i have the pleasure of wetsuit strippers (it's good stuff, i take the top of the wetsuit off, then lie down and bam, they yank it off the rest of the way). then a slight uphill to the transition area.

There are still lots of bikes here, that's a good sign. T1 went smoothly, ran out dropped my swim gear, adorned my helmet and locs, grabbed my bike on my way. The bike course was pretty hilly, and i was already breathing pretty heavy, so i settled into a decent pace and started taking in some water and nutrition (carbopro infinit blend). the hills started almost immediately, slight rollers, nothing too challenging, just enough to keep everybody honest.

the real climbing doesn't start until mile 40 ish.i took in nearly 6 water bottles of liquid on the bike course. the temperatures were pretty warm (mid 80's), and exceptionally dry. around mile 20 my legs started to feel better, so i picked up the pace slightly, and around mile 25, i hooked onto another rider and stayed with him for roughly 15 miles, then we got to the hills and it was time to start climbing. i made some good time on the climbs, and my legs were still feeling pretty solid. I took in 8 - 10 salt tablets during the bike, one of which broke on me, salt tastes really bad, and takes a fair amount of time to wash completely out of my mouth.

The last 5 miles or so i pulled back slightly and picked up the cadence to start preparing for the run. I came off the bike with a decent split, right around 12th place overall, 2:37:35 (21.3mph), slightly slower than i would have liked to see, but still on target to come in under 5 hours. the good news is my stomach is pretty comfortable so far, no nutrition problems. i had some minor troubles in T2 (some minor issues tying my shoes, but it's all good).

the first 4 miles of the run would have roughly 1/2 of the climbing on the course, and they seemed to go all right. the run started out fine, mile 1 was around 7:30 min/mile, mile 2 a little closer to 8:00 min/mile, after 4 miles, i was pretty close to a 7:30 min/mile pace. i was taking in 4-6 oz of water at every aid station, and 1 or 2 salt tablets.

At mile 4, i decided to try the hydroboom (the sports drink they had on the course). that sent my stomach into the verge of fits, i had acid reflux, and some significant sloshing deep down in my stomach (generally i get the sloshing right in the middle, but this stuff seemed to work on either extreme). i dropped my pace a little, to try and settle my stomach. in addition, my legs started to fade. damn i forgot to get some gels, they are supposed to be at every other aid station, so maybe 2 miles before i can get some nutrition in me. mile 5, no gels, or i forgot again, mile 6 definitely didn't have any gels, and mile 7 had no gels.

my pace probably dropped to 8:30 min/mile or so at this time. i'm still taking in 4-6 ozs of liquid at every aid station, and some salt tablets. shortly before mile 8, the aid station purports to have everything, until i ask for a gel, oooh, we are out of those. damn it, 2 more miles?? lesson learned, pick up nutrition before i need it, and always carry a spare. at this point, i'm pretty much overheating and dehydrating pretty good. i have been getting cold water dumped on me at nearly every aid station to try and cool down, and drinking, but it's not working real well.

mile 9 goes by slowly, at the aid station, they are giving out gatorade, which turns out to be more of that damned hydroboom, some fo the same effects. lesson learned, little kids call sports drinks gatorade, much like i call bandaids bandaids, regardless of what brand (see, i don't even know how to refer to them without the brand name) the run is starting to turn into a shuffle, i walk up some of the rollers between mile 10 and 12.

finally get a gel at mile 10, it provides a little help, but is hard to swallow with so little water. after mile 12, there is a bit of a downhill, and then minor climb then a short distance to the finish. i muster a slightly more respectable pace for the downhill, and begin to pick up the effort on the climb, to finish strong. probably need to work on better heat dissipation and more consistent nutrition during the run. the run was done now, 1:57:17 (8:57 min/mile).

time to start putting in the miles. lessons learned: - more liquid on hot days- more nutrition on the run (try 2 or 3 gels) stockpile these early- remember the boost before the swim next time- no hydroboom sports drinkthings i learned in florida that helped:- more electolytes on hot days- no accel gel

times can be found at: http://www.doitsports.com/newresults3/client/171767_201330_2007.html

photos at: http://www.fotojack.com/race/index.htmrace=950&sid=3fe1e998275804ac35adf85da6b6318d
(race number 128)

Florida Half IM 2007

2008-06-05T08:51:00.000-07:00

got into florida early thursday morning to make an attempt at acclimating to the heat and humidity. I was pleasanty suprised by moderate heat and only moderate humidity.
Picked up my race packet and checked my bike in saturday afternoon, and gorged myself for dinner (not the brightest idea, but this did not adversely affect my race.

up early saturday, water is 80 degrees, no wetsuit today. I'm in the 2nd to last wave, starting 1 hour after the 1st wave. no boost this morning before the swim start (going forward there will be nutrition 30 - 60 minutes before the swim)

I lined up near the front outside of the swim start (acceptable with the wetsuit to aid in body positioning, but a poor choice without my crutch). i wound up stuck in the pack for close to 700m. love the feeling of swimming upstream. i had to constantly remind myself to attempt good body position head down, legs up. the swim took a bit longer than i was hoping (0:38:37), but the bike is flat and fast, so i can make up some time there.

T1 has a long run from the beach to the bike, but this went pretty smoothly, ran out dropped my swim gear, adorned my helmet and locs, grabbed my bike on my way.
despite the course being pretty damn flat, i came out conservative on the bike. and kept hung with 3 riders from pretty early on. between mile 15 and 20, my legs started to come around, and i began putting time into people. around mile 25, we came into some moderate rollers (not much in the line of climbing in florida), and i couldn't help but smile a bit. though the hills proved to be insufficient to allow me to explore my strengths.

i made up some time on the minor climbs, but not enough to make a lasting impression. between miles 35 and 45, i was able to keep things around 25mph. then i was feeling a bit hungry so took an accelgel. that twisted up my innards for a bit, and i chose to pull back on the effort and let my guts sort through things before i started running.

around mile 52 my stomach settled down, and i ramped things back up to 25mph into T2. came off the bike at 2:30:48 (22.3mph), 0.3 mph faster than oceanside, on a much easier course. hmmm. can you say my legs are tired??

i blew through T2 pretty well (some minor issues tying my shoes, but it's all good)
the run started out fine, first 4.3 miles clocked in at 32 minutes (around 7:30 min/mile) second loop saw things starting to unravel. the heat started to get to me around mile 5. i stopped for a bathroom break at mile 6.5 and dumped a cup of ice down my shirt. that cooled things down for a bit. loop 2 clocked in around 37 minutes (around 8:30 min/mile). finished off with a 1:49:36 run (8:22 min/mile), slower than hoped for.

the last lap was a bit of an experiment. up to this point i was taking in a cup of water at even miles and gatorade at odd miles, that worked pretty well. now it was time for a little experiment: i drank a cup of coke at mile 10, hoping the sugar would kick in and give me a boost into the finish. didn't quite work, but i got to burp a lot and once again, the heat began wearing on me, so mile 10.5 was celebrated with more ice down my shirt. and some water. that was the last of anything from the aid stations. i kept turning my legs over planning to pick it up starting at mile 12, and about 0.3 miles from the finish to lay it all out and see what was left. there wasn't much left until the last 0.1 miles, at which point i was able to muster a modest sprint to the finish.

shortly after crossing the line, my legs began to cramp like never before. guess i should take in more salt (i had 4 thermolytes on the bike, 0 on the run). lessons learned:
- more electolytes on hot days,
- more nutrition on the run (try 2 or 3 gels)
- accel gel is retired from my racing nutrition plan
- remember the boost before the swim next time

i showed up, i put out almost all i could on the day, but the numbers weren't there. sometimes it happens that way. i've taken away some important lessons to be applied going forward. i think my legs are a bit tired from all the hard efforts i've been putting in. all in all, it was just a slow day for me. likely overtraining, but as long as i don't get injured or burned out, i will reap benefits. had a good mental race, and figured out good stuff about nutrition. i pushed through some stuff that in the past would have crippled my pace.

i was able to dig a little deeper and find something that hasn't been as strong these days. my heart is coming back. making these efforts now will pay dividends come july.

Wildflower 2007

2008-06-05T08:50:00.000-07:00

woke up early, put some breakfast foods in my stomach, gathered my gear, and headed down to prepare my place in transition.

The pro men went off at 8am, the pro women at 8:05am, then a new wave every 5 minutes. i went off at 8:25am. the swim started off pretty strong, i kept hooking onto the feet of people that were opposed to swimming in a straight line. Left should felt a little weak through the swim, but I was still able to finish it feeling pretty good, (time 0:34:41, slightly slower than expected, but well within acceptable limits considering the conditions and my lack of swimming)
entered T2 pretty quickly, got my left leg out of the wetsuit, and was hit with severe vertigo. I opted to sit down and get my right leg out. Added my helmet and race number, grabbed my bike, and out to do some climbing. (total time elapsed in T1 - 0:01:59)

the first 2km of the bike were pretty damn bumpy, lost my splash guard for my profile drinking bottle (it was only a matter of time). Then the first climb starts, a bit windy, and fairly steep. I just kept spinning got to the top, and picked up the pace a bit. My legs felt a pretty flat until kilometer 40 or 45 (about 1/2 way point). After wich they started coming around, and i was able to make up some of the spots i'd dropped in the earlier portions of the bike. I spent the next 15km waiting to get to the hard climbs, that was were i was going to let things loose and see how the day was to be.

Things worked as planned, i was able to pass a grip of people over the 10km climbs, and used the last 20km to pick up the pace a bit more, and loosen my legs up for the pending run.
The last 2kms leading into T2 are downhill, so i tucked in and let it fly (gravity is a good thing). I stepped off the bike after 2:53:45 (slower than expected, but still acceptable).

T2 went pretty well, i quickly found my spot, racked my bike, removed my helmet, put on my shoes, and grabbed my gel for the run. The first 6.5 kms went well, averaging somewhere around 4:40min/km, but i had some stomach issues waiting to surface. around 7km, they reared their ugly little heads, and began eating into my pace. I've decided my stomach pretty much shut down and the walking started around 7.5kms, primarily uphill, i was still running downhills (after all, gravity is a great friend most of the time), and flats, but significantly slower. It was decided, this day was officially converted to a hard training day, i could push through and probably save 10 minutes or so, but i have 2 more races coming up in the next 4 weeks, so losses are cut, i will be back at the drawing board to figure out what went wrong.

around 13km i was able to find some semblance of a rhythmn, and clicked off close to 5km at a slightly faster pace, then came the shuffle, that lasted until km 19.5 ish, then it was the same downhill from the bike earlier. thank you gravity, the last 1.5-2km was likely my fastest for the day. i was relieved to be done, the heat and hydration issues proved to be a bit more than i was prepared for. I managed to take a sweet 1:54:07 out there enjoying the run course (likely 20 minutes slower than i should be able to pull on the same course once i nail the nutrition portion). once again, nothing to stand up and shout about, but something i'm ok with for now.
all said and done, i was out there for 5:25:53, about 25-30 minutes longer than anticipated, but reasonable. the race is in the books, not a bad showing, and i have a new area to focus on, getting my head into things and working on the nutrition.

lets see how i deal with the heat and humidity on May 20th in florida. that will be a good indicator of my ability to figure out nutrition and hydration.