Nothing is more humbling than the first brick workout of the season.

Sat, 12 May 2012 09:42:43 -0400

Team Muddy Baggers

Sun, 06 May 2012 13:15:40 -0400

Team Muddy Baggers

Nothing like a little cross training.

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 11:30:04 -0400

Nothing like a little cross training.

T minus 11 days until TOUGH MUDDER VT…

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 19:04:11 -0400

T minus 11 days until TOUGH MUDDER VT…

Boston Midnight Marathon Ride 2012. What a great night.

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 11:20:58 -0400

Boston Midnight Marathon Ride 2012. What a great night.

Happiness is new running shoes after 2+ months in a walking...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 21:15:45 -0500

Happiness is new running shoes after 2+ months in a walking boot.

"If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it."

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 20:03:07 -0500

“If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it.”

- League of Their Own

"I’d rather be a comma than a full stop."

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 08:22:08 -0500

“I’d rather be a comma than a full stop.”

- Coldplay

Bummer. 2 weeks at least til I’m back on Blizzard Sunrise.

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:59:47 -0500

Bummer. 2 weeks at least til I’m back on Blizzard Sunrise.

Photo

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:53:38 -0500

"Make an obstacle an opportunity, make a negative a positive."

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:48:36 -0500

“Make an obstacle an opportunity, make a negative a positive.”

- Lance Armstrong

I'm back!

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:44:45 -0500

It has been three years since my last post and about 2.5 since my last long distance triathlon. But here it goes again… (on the new venue of Tumblr)

On June 3, I will race the 70.3 distance for the 2nd time. This time I hope to be more prepared (and to document the journey more frequently). I am not starting off well, suffering from a 2nd metatarsal stress fracture in my left foot. I have been booted for 3 weeks, hoping for only a couple more.

To start now, let’s look back at my last 70.3 (technically it was a 70.6), Tupper Lake Tinman in the Adirondacks.

It started off a cold, overcast day in late June. My nerves were starting to get the best of me, which was evident the previous night when I could not immediately find all of my Hammer Gels for race day… I has some cause to be nervous; it being my first long distance race. The longest race distance I had previously gone were half-marathons and sprint triathlons. This would be the longest day of exercise to date. I also was not as prepared as I should have been. I was naive and had not directly followed my training plan. I had put too much focus on running with not enough focus on my weakest part, the bike. I had only done a singular 50+ mile ride a couple weeks before so my tush was not nearly ready for the almost 4 hours I spent on the saddle that day.

As I entered the water that morning, with my family and friends all there to watch (my father was also racing but in a later heat), I stuck to the back of the pack of my 18-25 year olds wave. I knew there would be strong swimmers in this age group and wanted to avoid the frenzy at the front of the pack. As soon as the gun shot off, I felt my heart rate jump up. I felt anxious as I took my first few (dozen) strokes. I wondered what I had gotten myself into and what the rest of this day would have in store for me.

After 10 minutes I had settled into a good pace and felt my heart rate slow to normal. I had always been confident in the water and the swim was the least of my worries. I was out of the water in 41:15. I grabbed an orange slice on my way to transition and was feeling great! It was starting to rain as I switched gears and jumped on my bike.

The rain was getting heavier through the first 10 miles and I was taking it slow on the down hills. I was still not a thoroughly confident rider and wanted to make sure not to wipe out on my first long race. As the rain started to clear, I was nearing the turn around. I was consuming calories at a good pace, having eaten some gels and a peanut butter sandwich. My plan was to consume the majority of my calories during the first half of the run, so that I would avoid any GI problems during the run. The bike course consisted of rolling hills, a few steep, but generally it was not bad. I had not spent enough time on my aerobars prior to race day, which was resulting in lower back pain any time I tried resuming the position. My dad passed me with about 10 miles left in the ride and told me I had to learn to ride in the areo position to improve my bike time. Due to lack of aero and the rain in the early part of the ride, I had a slow average pace of about 15.5mph. I was off the bike after 3hr38min, knowing I had to make up time on the run.

The sun was beating down by the time I started the run. I wanted to run around 10min miles to finish the 13.4mile course in about 2:15. I felt great for the first half of the race. I quickly found my legs. I was a much stronger runner than my dad while he a much stronger biker, so I was not surprised when I started approaching him about 2 miles in. At this point he was struggling and I was in cruise mode. The course ran through neighborhoods before making the turn onto the main road with a brief hiatus on a wooded trail. Around mile 8, I started feeling twinges in my knee. I kept running, but by mile 10, it was full blown pain, feeling like it would give out anytime I ran. At one point I remember looking back and seeing my dad gaining distance. I knew I could not let him pass me. I had to finish the last miles.

As I made the last turn out of the residential area, adrenaline started to take over. At the best possible moment, with .4 to go, my intoxicated friend, Steve, appeared. He started running with me, yelling “Let the dogs out! The finish line is right there!! Let the dogs out!” That was the boost I needed. I finished strong, crossing the line in 7:00:11. My run time for the day was 2:32, about 45 minutes slower than my half-marathon PR.

I later found out that I had received 3rd place in my age group, which was a great feeling, even though the day had not gone 100% by plan.

Today, that race is fading into distance memory, nearly 3 years ago. I am looking forward to the months of training and to putting into action everything I learned from that experience. I plan to cycle more and ride multiple 50milers prior to race day.

I am all signed up for Rev3 Quassy in Middlebury, CT, the same site of where I watched all of my dad’s triathlons while I was growing up. The course is known to have one of the most challenging bike courses in the country, but I look forward to riding through my hometown.

So, here is to a speedy recovery, followed by effective training. I WILL conquer this challenge.

The Journey to 70.3

Nothing is more humbling than the first brick workout of the season.

Team Muddy Baggers

Nothing like a little cross training.

T minus 11 days until TOUGH MUDDER VT…

Boston Midnight Marathon Ride 2012. What a great night.

Happiness is new running shoes after 2+ months in a walking...

"If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it."

"I’d rather be a comma than a full stop."

Bummer. 2 weeks at least til I’m back on Blizzard Sunrise.

Photo

"Make an obstacle an opportunity, make a negative a positive."

I'm back!