Tri/tbay group closed (Page 19)

Hey guys, just sitting down with a nice water bottle full of Recoverite about to log today's bike workout and race from yesterday.  Let's start with the race:

Left Friday at 7AM for the 5 hour drive to get to Minneapolis.  I wanted to get there, register and find everything Friday to eliminate race day hassles.  Got to the convention center around 1PM, found parking and went in.  Walked into Hall A into an absolute dreamland of triathlon!!!  There was an expo being put on with equipment, bikes, wetsuits, shoes, EVERYTHING you could imagine.  I picked up a pair of goggles as I had left mine hanging in my front entryway, some body glide, Yanks laces, and a bento box.  Pretty much rounded out my equipment.  It was cool.  Andy Potts, Matt Reed, Becky Lavalle, and a few other big timers hanging around giving autographs, etc.  I tend to stay away from that type of stuff, so I didn't get any autographs.  Registered, got one of the ugliest race t-shirts I have ever seen, and then looked around at the $10k bikes.  Then it was down to the course to check it out.  Easy to find with my GPS.  Walked around, saw everything was well marked, found my transition spot, and marked entry and exit points.  Decided to get to my friends place and chill the rest of the day as check in was early. 

Raceday, got up at 3:45 for crying out loud.  Showered, ate a cliff bar and started drinking water.  Got to the transition at 5, set up and then wondered what to do until 7:26 when I was set to start.  I regret not traveling to the event with another athlete.  I did alot of hanging around by myself.  About 6:30 I put my wetsuit halfway on and went to the swim staging/warmup area and decided to see if I still knew how to swim.  Thirty seconds out and back, yep, still works the same.  Got out, ate a gel and relaxed.  They had a time trial start, so you ran into the water in 3 second intervals.  I remembered Mike's advice and stayed within myself on the swim and found it relatively easy going.  It was difficult to navigate because the sun was in the perfect position to absolutely blind you when you peeked up to find the buoys.  Didn't stop and rest, just chugged along and passed A LOT of people (remember there were about 1000 people in the water when I started).  Got out of the water at 28 mins and started removing my wetsuit only to realize my watch had slid up my sleeve becoming a Chinese Handcuff.  The harder I pulled, the tighter it got.  I didn't even start the frickin thing when I started!!  So that cost me about thirty seconds.  Grabbed my bike and noticed everyone that was running out had their shoes on their feet.  Mine were on my pedals.  Well needless to say when they were trying to get clipped in I took off and left them sit.  Score one for Steve.  Bike route was AWESOME.  It was very twisty with tight turns that required actual bike handling skills rather than just massive leg strength and LT threshold.  I passed and stayed ahead of many people because of this.  I credit MTB for that.  Got passed by 4 guys the entire course and passed literally 500.  Finished at 1:11 and hopped off my bike right at the line causing a volunteer to yell at me because he thought I was going to ride into the transition.  Score another one for Steve.  Found my rack, tossed my helmet, and pulled on my shoes now sporting sweet Yanks (which are AWESOME by the way).  I couldn't find the run out spot and got yelled at by another volunteer when I used bad language asking where it was.  I was on the right track, I just couldn't see it.  The run started fast and I felt good.  I was carrying a gel but didn't eat it, just carried it the whole time.  Must be habit as I carry a water bottle with me during training runs over 30 mins.  I didn't get passed at all on lap one, however I did have to stop and use the spiff at the 3.5 mile mark for a minute.  I absolutely had to.  I was picking people about 75 yards ahead of me and using them as rabbits, just picking them off.  I picked a girl around the 3.6 mark and made ABSOLUTELY no ground on her the remainder of the race.  Maybe she was too nice to look at, or maybe I was tired, I can't decide.  I got passed by two guys (both in my age group) on the second lap.  Finished at 44 mins for a total time of 2:29.  15TH out of 134 in my age group and 100th out of 1040 overall.  I definitely have a sub 2:20 in me, but not that day.  I really just wanted to complete this race without any problems as my first two both did not go as I had hoped.  This race went perfectly and gave me a lot of confidence, which in my case is as important as fitness as I am way too hard on myself mentally.

Normally when I finish something I'm kind of like, "ho hum, I guess I'm done", but I had a really great feeling of accomplishment after I was done.  I haven't felt like that in YEARS, if ever.  I can't remember feeling that good about doing something (non child or marriage related).  This was a fantastic event and I really had a good time, even if it was by myself.  That was a cool feeling. 

Thanks Mike!  I haven't really swam in two months, so I've got some time I can gain there, also I can do a faster bike split by about 5 minutes I feel (because I've done it in training), my goal on the run is also 5 minutes lower than what I did on saturday.  This being the first real Olympic length tri I have done however i didn't expect to hit those times on the first try.  I left a lot of time on the bike not knowing the course and trying to keep my legs really fresh.  The run was a nice pace and I felt really comfortable throughout. 

I have a ton of events in July and August, but only one tri and it's off road.  The rest are trail runs and mountain bike races.  Total of 5 races between 7/25 and 8/16.  I'm psyched as there is almost no travel involved. 

Hello everyone,

I only have a few minutes to write today, everything went great this past weekend with the swim meet. Just couldn't have asked for better cooperation from our volunteers, coaches and swimmers, the parents were pretty good to. Date is selected so we'll do it again next year.   

Steven great job last weekend, you can definitely go sub 2:20 I can only dream of a sub 2:30 which you cruised. Oh to be younger. Oh well.  Looks like you got nutrition, hydration pretty well worked out this time.

Mike I'll take a shot at the book I'll pm you later tonight with an address, if one of the other guys haven't already called dibs.

I hope to be able to offer a little more commentary next week, things will calm down now after the meet. Then Steven is in high mode for his event.

HIM training started this week and it is really fun.  I like the longer workouts a lot.  I have gone to 4 runs a week, 3 are 60 minutes (one hard run with a goal distance over 9 miles, one interval/hill session and one easy or comfortable) during the weekdays then a long run of 90+ minutes on Saturday.  My bike workouts consist of my long Sunday ride (60-100 miles or 3-5 hours), my MTB ride (2-3 hours hills/power) and a Friday easy 2 hour ride.  I will get swimming in when I can.  I have just been taking the approach of swimming one session a week of 2-3k meters straight to gain confidence swimming those distances without having to stop.  I did not once feel uncomfortable on the swim portion of my race, so I think I'll be ok. 

The hardest workouts are the hard 60 minute run and the run interval/hill workout.  But to quote Manciata:  "No one gets faster without meeting their personal pain barrier straight on."  And pain is right.  Not pain in the discomfort, injury meaning, but the lung/leg burning meaning.  Just like on the bike, I have to do long intervals at my goal pace to convince myself I can do it in a race.  Define my "fast" and go about getting there. 

Have a great weekend!!

You can tell we're entering the "dog days" of summer.  Not much posting going on.  This is the stretch where we need to dig down and make sure that consistency that got us where we are at remains constant for the final part of the season.  We all have big races coming up and it would be a shame to see all that hard work go by the wayside. 

This week is crazy with race preparations, but I'm getting at least an hour in everyday.  Whether it's a swim, bike or run.  I have almost everything set up so every day for the rest of the week a team of individuals gets something done in systematic fashion.  Wednesday is volunteer coordination and training, Thursday is Aid Station mowing and set up, Friday is course marking and transition area set up.  Saturday is race day!!!!  It looks like we'll have 50+ participants between the solo tri, relay tri and trail run.  Not bad for a first year event with a grass roots marketing campaign.  Next year should be bigger if this year is a success. 

Ola Amigo's,

Wow time is flying by now. Sorry for the silence of late between our swim meet, another one away last weekend and  finally the last one for a while at the end of the month it has taken up alot of my time. But that's the way summer goes especially July in the swim world. The kids have swum really well this summer, I'm looking forward to their performance in the meet in two weeks. Should be a good one. I am enjoying the TdF watching it daily. Some intense stuff.

Steven I hope all is going well with your event. Looks like you have everything planned out and ready to go. I'm sure for a first year event its going to go really well. Best of Luck.  Put some pictures in your album for us to see.

Mike and Olman, how is it going. Lots of running for you Olman looking good in your log. Mike how is the mixing of the plans going? I need to get a in a long run or two haven't been over 8 in a long time.

Mike I read where the Houston Marathon filled in two days.

Hope training is well.

Hey Mike, welcome to Florida. The east coast is known for sharks or something similar. I'd been scard to. The west coast where Olman and I usually will compete is usually pretty tame. I have had the hand  issue once before and  your discription is spot on. The fleshy area between the thumb and forefinger is sore as can be. Since you were on your TT bike they don't offer much comfort if you are sitting up. This is what caused your sore hand. And if your like me I tend to put more pressure on my left hand when I ride not sure why, it is something I'm am working on evening out the pressure. When you are on your TT or road bike, make  sure you are re=positioning your hands pretty often this will help prevent this. It will take a week for you to get your feeling back, its weird.

Glad your training is going well. Keep us updated. I PR'd on my 5k today by .10, 23.21

Hey guys!!  The event went as smoothly as I could have ever imagined.  No serious injuries (2 DNFs), 37 participants, and I caught two guys on the run and held off an 18 year old all-state cross country runner for the win.  He had made up three minutes on me in the course of the first 4.5 miles and I had to battle him the last half mile and out kick him.  He made me throw up (caught by TV cameras no less).  It was a great race and I put in the fastest MTB lap for me this year (only the fourth fastest time of the day, we had some blazers there on Saturday).  The race got front page coverage in the local paper as well as statewide news TV coverage.  It was really as good as I could have hoped.  Athletes from all over ND, SD and MN.  I once again felt that feeling of accomplishment I described in my race recap from Lifetime Fitness Tri, except it lasted a day and a half. 

Mike, I read all but 40 pages  of your book yesterday.  Just lounged on the deck, kicked my feet up and read (after a 50 mile bike ride, of course).  There are several passages in there that absolutely NAIL some of the feelings I experienced during college training and ultimately why I left the sport eleven years ago.  I can tell you now that today I run for the pure enjoyment of covering distances fast.  That book really conveys that sentiment.  I'll finish it either tonite or tomorrow.  Someone PM me their address and I'll get it out to you this week.

My long ride is the only thing that gets me out of bed.  If I don't do it, the whole day is shot.  I just can't justify a 5pm-9pm ride when Sunday is the last day of the weekend to spend with family.  That quality time buys me five more workouts that week (and makes me feel good about it). 

Tomorrow is a tough day.  I'm going to the track for a 4-3-2-1 interval workout.  I haven't done a mile interval in a loooooooooooong time.  Goal is 6 flat, so 6, 4:30, 3, and :90.  It's nice that they make trainers as light as racers now so I don't have to pound myself to death wearing flats.  I think I'm going to mark off mileage readings around the soccer complex so I can do intervals on the grass next week.  I know all the guys on the park and rec grounds crew, so they'll leave them be for the rest of the summer and early fall. 

I have a couple running races coming up.  A 10k this weekend (with a MTB double an hour later), and an 8 mile trail race 8/15.  I should push my running fitness up a couple notches this month just in time for the half in September.  I'm planning long runs of 90-120 minutes as well as a long interval session per week.  I've never raced longer than a 10k before.  I'm assuming there is a time or two during a half marathon (especially a HIM half marathon) where you want to quit.  I'll need to train my brain with 3 hour bricks (2 bike, 1 run) to be prepared for it.  Those will come later in August, I want mean speed for these next few weeks. 

Hey fellas, check out my log for this weekend.  By far the biggest weekend of training I have ever done.  10k trail race yesterday morning at 8 (2nd place, should have won), 40k MTB race an hour and a half after the run.  Ugh!  I wasn't in that to win it, just get a tough workout in.  Plus the organizer brought a big group of people up to my race last weekend, so I wanted to return the favor.  For some reason, I was the only person that pulled that double.  Hmm, weird.  I followed that up today with 100 miles on the bike.  I didn't set out to do that, but I felt so dang good after my second 30 mile loop that I just kept going.