STEPH SPRINT FULL Let's do this thing! StephSprint group FULL! (Page 38)

As fall is moving in here in CT, I look forward to doing more trail running and taking in the leafery too.  

My feet have been hurting me from running, so much so I went to our local-owned running shoe store to have them look at my shoes, consider getting a new pair.    

The owner fit me, told me my current running shoes were too small- although they were the same as my shoe size, he recommended a full size to 1 1/2 sizes larger than my shoe size- I thought I just needed a "super feet" insert or something.  

I bought a new pair- for a bit less than the internet price on roadrunnersports.com.  He told me they sell for a bit less than the suggested retail.  It was a small local store, in the middle of tourist shops- and made me reconsider where I get my running shoes.  Honestly, I would prefer to support my local shop owners, I feared cost, and felt too amateurish to be shopping there- they were awesome.  

After all that and a brief run this morning, I am burning out from running so much- plan to go to spin class in the morning.  

Bridget

When I bought my last pair all they had left was a size 12. I am usually a size 11. After just one run I was in shoe love with them. The feet need room to move and swell up.

Hey Steph,

Glad you made it through the storm.

Suzzi,

Sorry to hear you missed the race.  I hope you are feeling better. 

Race Report (warning another long post)

Yesterdays race went OK.  I was onsite extra early to help set up and do what ever they needed help with. The race is hosted in my town so it is easy to get there early. I probably could have slept until 530 and still had plenty of time.  At 5AM, when I first woke up it was still raining and I was worried it was going to be a rainy day.  I packed a trash bag, just in case to help keep stuff dry.  Luckily by 530 the rain was done and the sun worked its way out long before the race start. 

The water was a bit chilly and there were a number of racers that were in wet suits. I was in the first heat and the start was delayed.  Once we were off, I went out too hard and made it 125 yards or so before I realized I was in trouble, not the uh oh I am going down trouble. More like I pushed too hard now I am winded and cant breath trouble. I paused looked for a buoy, then a kayak but both were too far away. Plus I aint going out like that. I remembered the roll on your back and float thing I read on a post here and that worked like a charm.  I just relaxed, took a few big breaths and was back on my way. I had to do it twice, but it allowed me to catch my breath and move on. Way better than the alternative. I made it to the turn around buoy and was on my way back before I could see the second heat. My swim on the way out I was going fairly straight, but on the way back I kept going towards the sun and off course.  I probably should have switched to breathing on my right side.  My time for the swim was 10:47 (2:33/100).  Not the start I was hoping for.

T1 was long, and I took my time trying to get it together.

The bike was two laps and I must have been passed by 1/2 the racers.  I kept it fairly even tempo, pushing myself in a few spots.  There is a downhill on the backside where you can really get moving (35mph for me.) As I was getting closer to the end of the second lap I pushed my tempo as much as I could. My time for the 17.2 miles was 1:00:04.  Pretty much the time I expected.

T2 was uneventful, my legs lost the rubbery feeling pretty quickly.

The run went great.  Just a 5k out and back. I was able to push my tempo on this and was passing people almost the entire duration. My time was 22:55, 31 seconds faster than the last tri but 56 seconds behind my PB.

Total time was 1:36:59.  I figured I would finish around 1:36, but was hoping for 1:30.  This was certainly a great Tri season as it was my first.

I will definitely be focusing on biking and swimming faster  from now until late winter. Then starting picking up the distances again.  I only have one 5k race left, which is not until November,and will be looking to break 21:30 for that race. 

Next year I am planning 4 tri's (2oly 2 sprint) , a 1/2 marithon and a couple of 5ks. 

Hi All,

Marcus - great job & way to power through the swim.

+1 & way to spin it out.  :-)  I'm thinking of getting an indoor trainer - thoughts or experience?

+1 -- Sounds like opting out was the better choice.  Hope your sis doesn't hold it against you for too long. haha :-)

+1 again.  As much as I am a 'leave me alone' type of shopper, sometimes the local independent retailers are the best resource & usually worth a few extra dollars in knowledge.  The one in my area is very small, but they have free group runs & rides almost all year long.  Makes it worth it to me to support them.  

Every superhero has his/her kryptonite.  ;-)

Race report forthcoming.

Awesome race/report Marcus. I'm jealous I don't have any tri reports of my own. Next year you will be inundated with my race reports, or at the very least irritated by my reports.

Might run this evening. Would like to swim, but it just rained and I hear OWS after a rain is not good. A muddy trail run might be just the thing. 

Race Report (u might want to grab a snack) -  If I had an 'A' race, I guess this would have been it.

Quick Stats:  Final time 1:33:31, OA 394/1490, 56/212 AG - Bike & run courses were both a little short by my Garmin.  Weather gods cooperated - overcast all morning & light rain started only while the final athletes were finishing the run course. 

Long Version  -  Started the day by getting absolutely no sleep.  Not a wink.  I expect not to sleep well the night before a race, but none at all was a little frustrating.  Let the adrenaline (anxiety?) kick in & forgot about it.  

Got to transition where I had racked my bike the day before, and proceeded to throw a mini-tantrum because my bike had been moved 4 entire inches.  I looked up to find the offending athlete standing nearby who happened to be talking with a woman I realized I had gone to HS with and haven't seen in over 25 years (insert flush of embarrassment here).  I can't find my yearbook, but I think we were actually on the swim team together. Small world.

Anyway, I watched the first waves of the supersprint race take off so that I could see the process - run in from the tiny beach, standing in the water, etc.  Then I walked down to join some women who were getting a warm-up swim (All the SIPE talk here & at ST have freaked me out enough to make sure I warmed up.  Meh?).  I got staged with my wave & moved to the front, hoping I could get out early & stay there to avoid a lot of traffic.  I'll admit I was a little bummed when I saw a pair of feet out in front of me, until I realized 'Oh, FEET!  Let's catch them" & proceeded to follow her through the whole swim.  I couldn't keep up with her, but I was able to use her head to sight and was 3rd in my wave out of the water in 15:09.

T1 was uneventful albeit slow as usual & I mistakenly hit the stop button on my garmin instead of the lap button so I had no stats for the bike until about 1/2 way in. 

Bike leg - very little to say here because I just suck on the bike.  Race stats say I averaged 17.8 mph which would be a HUUUUGE improvement for me on my little non-aero hybrid.  Maybe the change to slick tires helped a little too?  Oh, and there was only 1 hill this time. haha 41:33 for the 11+ mile course.

T2 again, slow & uneventful.  Tried to be neat.

The run was definitely more than 1/10th of a mile short, so my run pace was actually even worse than calculated.  But my heart rate was already so high at the start of the run, I walked the 1st aid station at mile 1 and tried to settle in for the rest. I couldn't keep my HR below 180, so I walked another 1/10th at the 2.5 mark and ran it in to the finish.  31:46 for 2.97 miles.  yuk

Overall it was a well run event, although they apparently need more bike racks for my age group. lol  My classmate kicked my a$$ by 12 minutes, & the gal that moved my bike beat me by 30 seconds.  I saw her after I made the turnaround too & knew I only had a 3 min head start.  Oh well, guess I shouldn't have walked. My uber-competitiveness seems to have a short circuit. Lots of things to work on in the off-season. 

And I skipped the post-race cheesecake this time.  

Have a great week everyone!

Terri

I am back and so HAPPY to be here!  I had to scrap my October tri but am able to participate in my son's run in February - Yay! Training will be slow but steady - have my workouts planned through December and will adjust as I go.  First day back at the gym today and it went well.

It was so much fun to catch up on the posts - this group has such great people! Happy Tuesday!!

I'm on Facebook. Send me a message and I'll give you my name and stuff. I do like the BT site though. Will a new mentor thread be started?

7 miles today at the track. Tried alternating two mile runs and half mile plods. 2 more weekends until HM. 

ETA: Nice race report Terri. Congrats on the finish.

Terri,

Congrats on the tri.  17.8 mph on a hybrid is way fast.  I would have been equally peeved if my bike was moved 4inches.  

So what are your plans now? 

I look forward to them.  Sounds like we should have one in a few weeks. 

Welcome back threejs!

I am good with either or.  I subscribed to the thread so I will get emails as it is updated. I assume that will continue to work even after it is archived.  We can do the facebook thing too.  Just PM me and I will send my details. 

--Cheers. 

Thanks coach! ;-)  

And thanks also Skibum & Marcus.  

What's next?  Haha - one more sprint on Sept 15th.  I'm determined to get my money's worth out of my USAT membership this season.  lol

Half mile swim/ 10K run/ Half mile swim. Just a few more weeks left of OWS around here.

Felt really good on the run, but I'm afraid that I may have run one too many miles before the HM. There are big letters spelling TAPER on my calender on this past Monday. Hard to taper when I don't feel my mileage was up where it should have been in the first place. My taper will start this Monday. I will do a few days of half mile runs to keep from getting stale. I'm just going to swim like crazy until the race to preserve my legs (knee).

One of my goggle straps came off my head during the swim today and floated in front of my sight, which gave me a huge panic because I thought it was a little water snake. EEEK!! Didn't ruin my swim, I just figured it out and re-strapped.  

Now to try out my brandy new yoga mat.

3 posts in a row . 

Another 1 mile OWS. Then did a 5K like this: walk K, run fast K, run med. K, run slow K, walk K. Trying to get some last minute pacing feel for the HM. I went WAY too fast on the fast K and the following 2 slower K's were the result of trying to hold on to a feel good pace. I felt so bad arse after the swim that I didn't realize I was zipping along until it was too late. I walked to get a better feel for a walking pace and to preserve the legs. Does it still count as 5K?