Breath of Life Ventura Triathlon - Olympic Course - Triathlon

This race always attracts some good swimmers. Not that it is a swimmers race or anything, I just think the area somewhat lends itself to swimmers. Whatever, I don't know really. Anyhoo, gun went off and we headed in. Felt really good and smooth but was getting gaped by a sizable group right off the bat. It was so early however that I wasn't about to get into it just yet. Plus, the speed was not something I could hang with anyway. I found my group of about 3-4 guys and we seemed to be going back and forth. Upon exiting the first lap, I was in 7th (in my wave) and about :50 seconds back from the leader (split courtesy of Karin). Ok, let's just swim another solid lap. I headed back in and felt good. Arms were not fatiguing and breathing was slow and steady. I passed one guy in my wave and this dude decided he was just gonna sit on my feet. Ugh, so annoying. Tap, tap, tap, tap....DUDE! Just tried to put it out of my mind.

I seemed to sight a bit better the second lap and I think I swam a little more of a direct line to the turn buoys. Exited the water and felt good about everything so far. But I normally exit the water feeling good...so didn't now how things were going to pan out just yet. Turns out I was in 4th at this point.

Nothing....really solid swim.

Need work here...lost 20 seconds to the eventual winner. Unacceptable.

Need to work on getting my suit off quicker....and perhaps running quicker through transition.

This course is pretty dang flat. Which, can lead to its own challenges. ie no resting...constant pedaling. My goal was to ride hard. I can usually tell what that means when I get on the bike. I don't race with a goal wattage in Oly distance races. I just go hard but not so hard that my legs start to get fatigued in anyway. Normally, that works out to right around 85% of FTP. In this particular case, it was about 86-87%. Really solid for me.

It's a three lap loop that we have to do. First half of the first lap I was behind the female elite winner Adrienne Hengels and I must say, she was on the gas. I thought about passing a few times but it would have taken a big effort to do so. I was happy to sit in and stick to my plan. About 2/3's through the first lap, I was passed by a younger athlete from my wave (not in my division) and Adrienne had backed off just enough to make a pass warranted. I got around her and then stuck behind my new pace maker.....oh and I shouldn't have to write this and I hate it when people do but some of you are pessimists and I have to qualify, yes, I was riding at a legal distance.....

At this point, heading on to the last lap, I really felt good. I was actually taking down fluids (not normal for me in a Oly) and felt really solid. I decided to make an effort on the last lap to pass the guy in front of me and put in a nice effort to T2.

Came off the bike with a great split and ready to run.

Nothing

Again....lost another 9 seconds to the winner...that's 29 seconds in transitions and I lost the race by 30 seconds...hhhmmmm.

I can't get any simpler in T2...I just gotta hustle more.

Coming into T2 and I saw a bike....ugh. I knew that Karl Schultz often does this race and we are the same age. He's a fantastic athlete but someone I feel I can compete with. He's a fantastic swimmer and knew, if he was there, he would be ahead of me because I didn't pass anyone in my AG during the bike.

My goal here was to run fast. Just head out at a hard, quick turnover and see what I could hold. I didn't peg any pace. I would run through the first mile and just see what it was. I've been running a lot and a lot of my fitness is new and untested. This would be my first real test. Boise was suppose to be, but we all know what happened there. Not this time...this time I was ready to do my best, whatever that meant.

There were several people in front of me that I knew I was gaining on. Problem was that we were jumbled up now with athletes from the sprint race. I could see up ahead though a tall figure with silver hair and a recognizable kit....Karl...ok, here we go.

You have to understand my abilities...I've NEVER run anyone down. My races consist of swim and bike fast and hold on. But not this time. I've actually worked very hard on my run the past 6 months and I was ready to see what I could do. In the first mile, I definitely made up some time. I ran through at 6:17 and this was about what I thought it was going to be...so my brain was jiving with my body. Good. No negative thoughts. I was a little concerned that I wouldn't be able to hold the pace. Because this was a new pace for me, it really felt fast. I know it's not "that" fast....but it sure felt fast. Especially for a 10k.

Made the only turn on the course south and it looked like I had to make up about 30-40 seconds to take the lead. I was actually still chasing a group at this point but all but one, Karl, made the turn at the 5k sprint turn around and we were on our own. Miles 2-3 clicked off both at low 6:20's. I slowed a TINY bit but was still basically running the same pace. Problem though, I wasn't making up time. The gap was the same. So at the turn around I saw that it was indeed Karl and that I had about 30 seconds to make up. I had two choices....one, run as hard as I could to close the gap or, stay the course and see if the gap came down. #1 sounded like a horrible idea because what the hell do I do when I close the gap? I was on the limit as it was. Yeah, I could probably muster 1-2 minutes of super hard running and catch up but then what? Walk? So there was nothing left to do. I had to stay the course, solidify my current position and hope he faltered.

Well, he didn't. I was running as hard as I could and it wasn't going to be enough today. The good news, pace didn't slip and I wound up averaging 6:23's. Not bad. My goal this year is to get my 10k Oly Tri run down to 6:00 miles. Tall order but a cool benchmark.

Nothing at all. I did all I could.

Actually did a small jog for a warm down. I figured I felt so good after the race that a short jog might keep everything feeling good for the next day. Well, I feel good the next day so #1 it either worked or #2 I just felt good in the first place and the warm down jog was a waste of time...lol....never know.


I would have to objectively say that this was my best race to date. Everything went well, I paced well and I raced hard on the run. I out split the leader, which NEVER happens and really forced him to go hard till the end. A real race!

Now, transitions. I mentioned that I lost 29 seconds in transitions and lost the race by 30 seconds....believe you me, that will never happen again. Not in anything shorter than a Half.


What a great confidence boost heading into Vineman. With my Vegas slot already obtained, I'll be going there to just try and put together a solid race and bring some confidence in that distance to Vegas. I've already got a lot of good ideas on what I'll do different than Boise.

On a side note, Karin raced the sprint, first race since Kona last year and finished 1st in her age group and second overall with a jogging run. Look for her to light up the second half of the season as she continues to get back in race shape and build her run.

Special thanks to all my sponsors Wattie Ink, blueseventy, KSwiss, Reynolds Wheels, Scott Bikes, ISM Saddles, Power Bar, Kask Helmets, FuelBelt, 454 Tattoo and Speedfil. Corporate Sponsors 101 Pipe & Casing, Kurt Orban Partners, and Wins Wheels.

My coach, Brian Stover, from Accelerate 3.

My body mechanic, Blair Ferguson, from Ventura Training and Athletics.

My girlfriend, Karin...who I learn from everyday and every race. She is the reason I took the time to warm up for this race and it really helped.

Next up, Vineman 70.3