End of the year reflections…or…Where’d the stinkin year go?

Woh…2009 is over?  Man I just can’t believe it?  Where did it go?  Wasn’t it just yesterday I did the “Hangover Handicap” run in Coeur d’Alene on January 1st?   Wow..

Well as I look back over the year I feel good about things overall.  I had many high’s and one low.  My race list was much shorter this year due to finances, and having signed up for Ironman 2010.  Did you know that cost $550.00 bucks?  Yikes!  So that pretty much took up my entire racing budget for the year including my birthday, Christmas and anniversary.

Just for the heck of it, here’s the list of races I did this year:

Hangover Handicap 5 Miler – CDA, ID
CTRUN Ultra Marathon 37 miler: From the Idaho state line to 9 mile in Spokane, WA
Windermer Marathon: Spokane, WA
Bloomsday: Spokane, WA
EWU Sprint Triathlon: Cheney, WA
Tiger Tri Olympic Triathlon: Colville, WA  (Link to Race report)
Titanium Man Olympic Triathlon: Pasco, WA
Black Diamond Half Ironman: Enumclaw, WA

So compared to last year (17 events) this seems rather modest, oh but wait…there’s more here than meets the eye!  (or eyes if you have two of them)

But 1^st let’s start with what I feel were my top 3 events:

1: My 1^st Ultra Marathon: Somewhere in the back of my head I always wanted to try and do one and since this was right here in my home town I figured why not!  I have to say this was not only my top race of the year it was just an amazing amount of fun! I’m sure some folks will say I’m nuts to run 37 miles but it was done at such a relaxed pace that it never felt difficult until the last 3 miles….THAT was work!  To read more about it, click here:

2: My 2^nd Half Ironman was the best triathlon I’ve ever done…bar none!  Why?  Well…. soooo many reasons:

• I think I was trained up properly and didn’t do more than what I had trained for.  I had hoped on finishing under 6 hours (My previous half was 6:14:00) but secretly had 5:45:00 in my sights. 
• I stayed within my abilities.  There’s no magic on race day.  You can only do what you have been training to do; so for each leg I set reasonable goals and met them.  Even if I felt particularly great during any part of each leg I made sure I stayed within my “box”, knowing that if I pushed here then perhaps somewhere down the road I won’t have enough left to finish and finish strong.
• A strong support group!  Almost my entire family was there to cheer me on and that was amazingly important to me and helpful!  Also, my two training bud’s, Steve & Jerry, also did the race and it was a source of encouragement seeing them out on the course.  (Having Steve breathing down my neck helped immensely!)
  To read more about this race, click here:

3:  WTS:  Warrington Triathlon Series Triathlons….whew!  That’s a mouthfull!  This was a 12 week period (3 MONTHS!) of mock triathlons that included Jerry, his wife Dawn, Steve-o & I.  This is something that Steve’s wife, Brenda came up with as a way to reduce the cost of doing triathlons and yet actually get the same effect.  So Steve drew up some bike and run routes and we started swimming at Medical Lake (YUCK!) and after two of these mock tri’s we just knew we had to find a different lake as swimming in goose poop is not a lot of fun.  So again Steve came up with Fish Lake as our take off point and I have to say, it worked beautifully.
                Starting in Fish Lake gave us a beautiful location to swim, bike and run.  Twelve Saturdays of open water swims at 6:30 AM was amazingly helpful in building not only our strength during the 30 minute to 1 hour and 30 minute swims but also awarded us with some amazing beauty found only in early morning training sessions.  I think I’ve miss this the most since our last mock triathlon.

                We then would “slowly” transition onto the bike leg and again due to the location we had a number of beautiful routes in which to choose from. (Show pic)

                After the bike we would head out onto a paved ‘flat’ trail that gave us out and back distances of 10 miles or more if we wanted to run into Cheney.  Mostly we did short bricks once we figured out that doing 10 or 12 miles wrecked us for the rest of the training week.

                Suffice to say that this was a highlight in my training for the entire year and although I had doubts that this was the ‘best’ way to train, it certainly was the most enjoyable, even the 43 degree morning with fog on the lake…absolutely the best!
              You can read more about these: Here and Here

Okay, I realize that I could go on and on about the best, because there were soooooo many highlights:

-          Volunteering for Ironman 2009: I’m telling you…if you don’t DO Ironman CDA, then volunteer!  You WON’T be disappointed.  I would highly recommend doing the kayak as you are “up close and personal” with all the athletes.  And if you go a few days before the event you can go out on the swim course and tag along with any of the swimmers as most really enjoy having someone there and will usually pop their heads up and chat with you for a while.  (If you are interested then contact ginger@cdachamber.com to sign up.)  Another good spot to volunteer for is the transition area as you get to see all the athletes but you also have some down time which enables you to cheer them on as they come and go for the bike and run.

-          Biked over 100 miles…well, it was 101.6 but still, that was a high and a low…ugh my legs!

-          Signed up for Ironman CDA 2010.  For sure that was a high!  I was sooooo giddy!  I felt like a little kid!

-          Trip to the big Island and Kona…oh, yeah, and I saw my daughters and son-in-law, but KONA! (Just kidding kids)  Yes, that was a real treat as I was able to swim the same course that they do in the World Championships, except much shorter, and they even had buoys out.  What a thrill!  Each time I breathed I was able to see Ali’i Drive where they bike and run and each breath was a thrill as I took in the panoramic view of shops, cafes, and lava rock sea wall!  Someday I’ll be doing the thing for real!

-          Boise Foothills:  I know this seems like a small thing but there’s something about those hills that just beckon me to run.  For more info and pictures, click here.

Okay, so those were some of the good things and I guess I could also add that there was only ONE bad thing so that in its self is a good thing, right?  I’m so confused.

The one bad thing was doing the Windermer Marathon here in Spokane.  You can read my comment to the race directory here: http://www.active.com/running/spokane-wa/windermere-marathon-2009#Reviews

But suffice to say I didn’t make my time of 3:45:59, instead I did 3:49:07, which is 3 minutes and 8 seconds too slow.  Good enough for 2^nd place in my age division but not good enough for Boston.  And this also was one of those highs and lows all in one race.  The high was running with my training partner Steve-o until around mile 18 as he unselfishly gave me his watch as mine had malfunctioned and told me to continue on as he started having cramps.

 I felt so good in the run!  I hit EVERY split right on time until mile 23…which was mile 24..but, let’s not go there.  So, I didn’t qualify for Boston and to be honest that hit me so hard that I don’t think I’ve fully recovered from it mentally and it’s been a struggle to even think about it ever since.  This photo pretty much sums up how I felt at the end.  (More pics here)

But…over all, this was a fantastic year and I need to thank a few people.

First off and most important, I want to thank my Lord and savior, Jesus (Just in case you weren’t sure) for allowing me to chase these goals and for the health to be able to complete them.

Secondly I want to thank my wife for putting up with my crazy athletic endeavors and also for joining in during the 12 weeks of mock triathlons.  It was so great seeing you out there riding next to us as we ran and then afterwards swimming with you. (I know, I only did it once…but I was tired!)  And for all the times I was grouchy before a big race.  (Yes, all of them are big to me)  Thanks for understanding.

Thirdly (is that a word?)  A great big thanks to my #1 training partner Steve-o, “slow-mo, don’t follow me I’m lost” Warrington for all the miles we’ve put in together both on the bike, the run and in the water.  Doing this sport of triathlon can be a lonely endeavor or it can tedious if you have the wrong training partner.  But you have proven again and again to be very accommodating, patient, long winded…(in a good way!) and a Godly man.  I feel so honored to be able to train with you and know that each time we go out for a run, bike or swim that I’m not with someone I have to put up with, but someone who is a blessing and an encourager and one who honors his wife and family and enjoys the simple pleasure of sport without ego or pride.  Someone that I would be honored to run 100 miles with….oh yeah!  Here we come Western States 100! (http://www.ws100.com/home.html)  I know I know..2011, right?

Also thanks goes out to the triathlon community as well as some of my good friends who often race or train with me:

Jerry & Dawn Gray: Thanks guys for being there at all those WTS’s!  Let’s say we all do another Half Ironman together in 2010…yes Dawn, you too this time, I KNOW (I mean it!) you can do it!

Suzie: Thanks for always having a great big smile (and big guns!) and providing all the great energy each time I see you at the races.  It’s infectious and uplifting!

Spokane Al: Hey thanks for all the encouragement and advice.  I’m hoping to join Team Blaze this year and can’t wait to meet and train with everyone.

To all the guys at work: I don’t really think you read any of this silliness, but I do appreciate your encouragement and patience when I’m doing those long training miles and have to stretch the lunch hour a little longer than normal.

To “The Age Grouper” podcast dudes, “You RAWK!”.  Really, you guys are such an great source of information and hilarity.  I can only wish that you guys lived closer so I could train and race with you!  (For those of you that don’t know what I’m talking about go to http://theagegrouper.com/ and click on the Podcast link and download a few of them.  You won’t be disappointed.

To my kids: Well most of the time you’re not even in Spokane, but thanks for praying for me and for the encouraging comments and I do hope one day we can ALL meet in Kona and you can watch your old Dad do something that he has dreamed about for the last 5 years.

To my Dad:  Dad, thanks for the good genetics that you and Mom gave me and the freedom that I had as a kid to play any sport I wanted….except football.  I’m soooo glad Mom wouldn’t sign that permission slip.  Who knows what part of me would have been broken beyond repair!

To the sport of Triathlon:  I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And to all the other triathletes…I love watching you struggle and eventually succeed.  It gives me hope and encouragement that one day you’ll be looking at my back for a change.

Press on.

TriMoot

Up Coming Event!

Well here we are in the duldrums of winter and it’s getting more and more difficult to stay motivated to train and maintain my current level of fitness.  What I need is a reason or an event to shoot for…..Hmmmm, what can I do?  There’s no triathlons going on here in the great North West as the temperatures are WAY TOO COLD!  There’s not even road races at this time of year.  (Probably too hard to interest volunteers to stand out in the cold!)

So what’s a guy to do?  Hmmmm, well, I do have a birthday coming up.  A rather BIG one.  Well, not like turning a 100 or anything, but it’s big enough that on that day I’m going to head over to I-HOP and order off the “Senior” menu!  That’s right….I’m turning 55!!!!!!!!!!  Whew!  How in the heck did it come to this?  How is it, that it was just a few days ago I was laying on the grass in my yard at 917 Ironwood Road, North Palm Beach, Florida and looking up at the sky and wondering where my future would take me.  I was probably 10 or 11 years old, and now, here I am, huddling in my house with the heat turned up and two jackets on wondering how I’m going to celebrate my BIG 55th birthday?  Whew…how time fly’s.

Well, in trying to figure out what to do on my birthday I decided it had to include something about 55.  55 miles, 55 moments, 55 of something.  So I went to my two Ironman training buddies and asked what they thought I should and we came up with the following:

SWIM: Swim 1 mile
BIKE: Bike 40 miles
RUN: Run 14 miles

For a total of 55 miles.

Wait a minute…it’s winter here in Spokane.  There’s no way I’m going to swim in a lake or ride outside in December!  Oh yeah, there is such thing as an indoor pool and Computrainier bikes inside a gym, so maybe this might just work!

So the plan is, on December 29th @ 8:00 AM, Steve-o, my training buddy, and I (Gerry thinks we’re crazy!) will head over to the new “Y” and start my epic adventure of doing 55 miles on my birthday.  (And THEN go to I-HOP!)

So stay tuned as I’m sure we’ll have some stories to share about our adventure of running and maybe biking in VERY cold weather here in Spokane.

TriMoot out!

Boise Foothills and other stuff

Well it’s been a while since I’ve written and I have to say it’s not because I haven’t been doing anything, I’ve just been a little flat.  I think sometimes without an immediate goal in front of me I tend not to focus on running and fitness but more on life issues, which is good since during my training this past summer I sort of tuned those things out.

I know the title of this blog is about Boise and the run I did there and I will get to that, but I have to tell you what I’m doing right now.

Right now, even as I type I’m watching an amazing documentary called, “Ultramarathon Man: 50 Marathons, 50 States, 50 Days”.  It’s a story about Dean Karnazes and his project to run 50 marathons in 50 days to raise awareness of obesity in our kids as well as just kids being overweight in general.

Well I have to tell you…this is a great motivational movie.  And it was great to see Dean interact with everyone and he is what he appears to be; a guy who loves running and people, and treats everyone with respect, no matter their stature or place in the world.  To him everyone is amazing and has amazing stories to tell about why they run, whether it’s an experienced runner or jogger.

Right now he’s running in Alaska and encountered a huge lower leg of a moose on day 16 of this 50 day event as they were running.  Dean asked where did that come from?  And a runner next to him pointed off to the left of the trail, and said, probably from that bear right over there.  And sure enough there was a bear gnawing down on the remains of the moose.  Amazing. 

I want to make a strong recommendation:  Go to your local library or hop on over to Amazon and order two things: 1.  The book called “Ultramarathon Man” and rent the movie I’m watching right now.  You will not be disappointed.  Dean is an amazing individual and is a great story-teller in the book and a down to earth guy in the movie.  His influence in running should not be taken for granted and probably should get more media attention as most all his runs are for charity. 

Okay…I’ve said enough about Dean, but really, read the book and watch the movie.  Amazing.

Now, so let’s talk about Boise and the fantastic foothills.  Each time we travel to Boise to visit family I look up at the foothills and say, “I’ve gotta run those hills!”.  And this trip during the Thanksgiving weekend was no exception.  We had a wonderful time with family and ate some gerrrrrreat food, and on Saturday the weather was cold and the sky clear.  A couple of years ago when we were there I ran the trail and came to a fork and had to choose which way to go.  One way lead up to a tower  and the other went up and down for about 13 miles with rolling hills.  I was a little short on time that day and said someday I’ll come back and do the tower trail (Lucky Peak Trail).  Well, Saturday after Thanksgiving was that day.

 

The weather in Boise had been mild but rainy and the trail was very muddy and the 1st 1/5 mile was red sticky clay and the more I ran the taller I became.  Finally I had to scrap off all the mud and try and find grass to run on.  What was interesting was I was listening to a podcast by “The AgeGrouper” folks and they were talking about how the sport of Triathlon had changed how they did other things in their lives.  One of the things that Jeff mentioned was he tended not to give up on things too soon.  He felt as a result of putting in so many miles of training that if things got a little tough he’d just tuck his head down and keep going.  So, that’s what I did, I just hunkered down, and pretty soon I was out of the sticky mud and flying down the trail.

Oh what a glorious day!  I love that God has blessed me with the love of running and being outdoors.  What a way to spend a Saturday morning!

As I slowly worked my way up to the tower I started to see some ice and a little snow and things got a little bit slippery but not bad, and of course the view got better and better.

I came to a spot where there was a make shift water trough that was overflowing with water.  As I looked up toward the tower I saw a heard of elk.  Probably around 20 to 25 or more.

You probably can’t see in this photo, but perhaps if you click on it and enlarge it you might spot them on the right side of the photo near the top.  Since they sort of stood in my way I thought I had better get them moving so I wouldn’t encounter them at the top, so I yelled out, “Yoh!  Elk!”, in true Rocky style.  It took about two seconds for my voice to get to them and all of a sudden as one they all jumped and started moving quickly to the top of the hill and hopefully over the top and down the other side.  I was nervous that I might meet up with the boss at the top and I sure didn’t want to do that. 

I continued on around the corner and up the trail and soon came to my 1st real amount of snow and a spooky dark forest.  Normally I’m not nervous about being out in the woods alone as I’ve had my share of lonely runs, but the words of my sister-in-law came ringing back to me from the night before; “Be careful up there…I’ve seen cougar tracks up in the foothills”.  Great.  Just what I wanted to hear.  Now I know how my wife felt on our honeymoon when I had her start hiking out to the main road by herself because the car wouldn’t start.  As she was leaving I said, “Hey hon, if you hear any noise in the forest it could be a mountain lion so be careful”.  Yeah..now I understand.

When I reached this point I stopped and was wondering what I should do.  I ran back to the corner to see if that guy who I’d seen a few times when looking back down the hills was still following me and close, but I didn’t see him.  So I just shouted a few times and took off running as fast as I could through the ever-deepening snow.  As I was about halfway through I heard a noise off to my left and stopped (my heart almost did to) and it was a large elk bounding down the mountain side.  Whew…  I started up again and took a few more steps when I heard another sound off to my right, and it was another elk taking off up the hill.  Shesss!  Don’t they know I’m trying to run here?!  GOSH! 

So finally I ran out of the spooky forest and found myself in the sun again, yes!  The snow was the deepest here, probably around 12 inches or so, so I wasn’t really running at this point, more like plodding.  Again…memories of our honeymoon.

I kept plodding along and finally the trail cleared and the tower was right there in front of me.  I did it!  I made it to the top of one of the MANY summits of the Boise foothills!  What a view!  Oh man, the WIND!  I felt like this must how it must be on top of Everest!  The wind was howling!  I tried to make a video but all you can here is the noise of the wind in the mic.

Well, this was something I had hoped to do one day and guess what?  I want to do it again!  There’s just something about the Boise foothills that just continue to call to me whenever I’m there.  Just can’t wait to get out in them.  Next time?  Next time I’m going to wear my camelback and bring lots of food.  The run back was great but I was SOOOOO hungry!  When I got back to my mother-in-law’s place I had breakfast and then an hour later we went out to eat pizza!  YES!  That’s why I run!  HA!

TriMoot…out!

I Love my phone

Yes its true…I LOVE my new phone! I’m using it right now as I type this. In fact I’m using it to post this blog while laying here in bed.

I love technology…..but not as much you my dear. (yes she’s watching me type….;-)

TriMoot…out
PS: It’s a HTC Android phone called Hero.

Black Diamond Half Iron Results

Date: September 26^th, 2009 – 9:00 AM
Weather: 55 and cloudy, light wind (while biking)
Sleep: Fitful, but had plenty on preceding nights
Health: Good, but I did feel perhaps a slight sore throat.

Overall Time   5:48:04 Overall place   116 / 226

Division           54/M                Division Place 8 / 12

Swim Time      0:40:40            Swim Pace      1:55  min per 100 yrds

Swim Place     164 / 252         T1 Time           5:44

Bike Time        3:07:29            Bike Pace        17.92 MPH avg

Bike Place       173 / 248         T2 Time           2:45

Place after bike 167 / 248        Run Time        1:51:26

Run Pace         8:30 mpm        Run Place        82 / 246

Over all impressions: I feel I had a strong race, probably the 1^st time I actually felt strong on all the legs.

Day before race: I was feeling a little stressed from the race but also from the logistics point of view in that I had 5 other people and a dog to consider when planning things Traveled to race location, and checked into hotel.  That was all smooth.  No issues.

The evening went smoothly as we had two rooms and I was able to get to bed at a decent time and everyone else had the other room to visit in.  This worked very well and will do again in future away races.

Nutrition the day before consisted of my normal oatmeal routine with the super greens drink mixed with a banana and walnuts.  Lunch was spaghetti and meat balls at the local Café Panini in Enumclaw.  Dinner was a light salmon salad with a couple of bread sticks.  I felt just right, not stuffed and we had it early enough.  I believe I might have had a banana or yogurt before bed.

I did wake up about 2:30 and felt hungry but this time (Tiger Tri I got up and ate) I didn’t eat.  Never really went back to sleep after that.

Drove the Course:  Drove the course with Jerry & Steve.  Did both the ride and run.  This is helpful just from the standpoint of not having any surprises. Also it put me at ease on the difficulty of the course.

Morning of race: Since the race was a late start I got up at 6:40, showered, and had a bowl of oatmeal with walnuts, banana, and super green drink, along with water.  No coffee.  I had all my stuff laid out so getting ready was quick.  No issues.

Got to the race site by 7:45 and setup transition area.

Transition Area: I thought the site was a little tight and was not 100% happy with my setup.  I felt my towel stuck out too much and would get trampled on, which it did, but it didn’t seem to matter much.  I laid out all my stuff and was able to put my bag on the inside of the area out of the way of the bikes.  Since it was a small transition area there was no need to mark my bike or rack.  These were assigned racks so it was just a mater of remembering the row.  I borrowed Jerry’s bike pump and inflated my tires to 120 lbs.  Since it didn’t seem like it was going to be hot I didn’t worry about them getting hot and bursting due to the heat.

NOTE: I wasn’t sure I needed to use the bathroom, but before I changed into my wet suit I wanted to stay warm and use the time to relax so I went into the Porta Potty  and relaxed.  It was warm inside, and not at all smelly. (Must have gotten a good one) I closed my eyes and mentally went through each part of the race.  This seemed to relax me and I was able to have a BM.  I did go at the hotel but it was good to make sure I was completely comfortable.

Swim Prep: I used glide on all the usual areas in the morning and just before changing into the wet suit I used it on my ankles.  I believe this helped in getting the wet suit off.  I took a small drink of water prior to leaving the area.  I made sure my suit was properly set and I had lots of room in the shoulders by pulling the legs way up.  (Looked like I had knickers on)  Nothing special here, just took my time, tried to make sure everything was on correctly and nothing chaffed.  I noticed that Steve used some around his neck; I don’t recall seeing anyone doing that but it’s not a bad idea.  Will try it sometime.  I tried not to be distracted during the entire setup time as in the past I haven’t paid too much attention to details.  So I was cordial with everyone but I tried to make conversations brief and really focused on what I was doing..

Swim: 40:40 – Since I have a full wet suit I wasn’t scared about doing a warm up.  I probably waited a little too long to go, but I was nervous about getting wet and then standing there too long and getting cold.

NOTE: I’m thinking about bringing a towel and/or a warm throw away jacket so that I can take a longer swim and not worry about getting cold while waiting for the start.

The swim was two laps around a diamond shape buoy layout.  What I noticed about my swim afterwards was that each leg of the swim was too short so that it was difficult to get into a rhythm as the turns came fairly quickly.  The turns were very busy and there was a lot of pushing and shoving and one guy purposely tried to kick me because I had bumped into his feet a couple of times.  That was a 1^st.  Over all I felt I had just a so so swim as I really never got into a good rhythm until the last buoy where we headed straight to the finish line.  I really pushed at the end and my heart rate was the highest it had been during the swim.  I might want to rethink that as it took me a LONG time to bring the heart rate down on the bike.  40:40 for the 1.2 mile swim.  That tells me that for 2.4 mile swim I would probably been in the 1:30 minute area.  I wish I could do better but I’m not really concerned about it.

T1:  5:44 – This was a disaster! I came into the T1 and the wet suit removal was fine.  No problem.  The 1^st mistake I made was to not take the time to dry off my back.  When I attempted to put on my jersey it got stuck, and stuck hard!  I lost WAY too much time here, probably close to a full minute!  The 2^nd issue was I had to load all my food into my jersey.  I have got to find a better way.  I’ve tried to put the food in 1^st then put on the jersey and it hasn’t worked.  I know I’ll need a bigger bento box for IM, but I think I might need to figure out a better way to carry the food.

Here’s a list of the food I carried on the bike:

2 – PBJ sandwiches in my bento box * Need a larger bento box

I’m not sure this worked very well as I struggled to get the squares out every time and as a result probably didn’t eat all that I could have.

5 – Roctaine Gels: I may have only used 4

2 – Cliff Mojo’s – Mixed Nuts:  I only ate 1/2 of the bar.  Part of the issue was they were difficult to get out of the wrapper.  I should have cut the wrapper or perhaps found a better way to make them more accessible.

1 – Bag of square cut pretzels…didn’t eat many as it was difficult to get to.  (Fix that)

1 – Banana, cut into 2: Ate ½ of the banana

1 – Bottle of Ensure (It was the Safeway brand and for diabetics as it had only 6 grams of sugar.)  This seems to really have worked for me.  It was easy on the stomach and seemed to help settle it.  Seems like I had more food but can’t remember what else I had.

Biggest issue here is I need to make the food more easily accessible.  Perhaps two bento boxes on the bar….?? Ideas?

Bike Leg: 3:07:29 – Don’t really have too much to say here.  After the swim my heart rate was too high and it took me over two miles (maybe more) before it started to come down.  During that time I tried to reach for my gator aid bottle and I dropped it.  Had to stop and go back to get it.  I just tried to find a good heart rate and stay in it.  I didn’t have my HR monitor so I had to do it by perceived exertion and it appears to have worked.  I tried to be conscious of how I was feeling at all times and constantly tried to eat when ever I could and not over do it.  I probably drank too much water as there were a couple of times my stomach felt bloated.  I also had to pee around the 33 mile mark.  Good/bad?  Don’t know.  How are you supposed to do this?  Are you supposed to feel like you have to pee?  Or are you supposed to try and balance it so you don’t?  I don’t know.

My back started to hurt around 12 miles, which was kind of strange.  I was able to manager the pain by standing up every so often and that seemed to help.  The toes on my right foot started to go to sleep early on and I had to reach down and loosen the straps.  I did so on both shoes and then after a few miles the toes felt better so I gently re-fastened the strap.   I would like to get a better bike computer as it was very difficult to read and I had to take my eyes off the road too much.

**** This brings up an issue:  I used my watch during the swim but had to take it off to remove my wet suit, so I didn’t put it back on during T1 because I felt rushed.  How are you supposed to do this?  I NEED to have a watch to keep track of the over all time.  Also, during the run I have to take time to put on my Garmin.  I need a quicker way to do that.  Do they make a different strap so you can just slip on the Garmin?

T2: This was okay, 2:45.  The two issues I had was 1: Emptying my jersey, 2: putting on my Garmin.  Oh, I didn’t have speed laces and that’s a must next time around.

Run:  1:51:26 – The 1^st mile of the run actually didn’t feel too bad.  I was very focused on keeping it around a 9 minute mile pace.  Unfortunately I neglected to start my Garmin so I didn’t get the 1^st mile recorded, but I was watching the pace carefully and I’m pretty sure my 1^st mile was around a 9:00.  I think this is one area that I hadn’t really thought about enough as I wasn’t sure WHAT pace I should run.  I wasn’t sure how I would feel coming off the bike so I never put it on paper or at least clearly articulated what pace I was going to run.  I kept changing my mind as I ran.  Oh, let’s go for an 8:30 to make sure I make it.  Then I thought maybe I should shoot for an 8:15.  I guess the reason for this uncertainty was I hadn’t done enough full bricks to know for sure. The two long bricks I did while Steve was on vacation had resulted in 8:31 pace for 8 miles and an 8:45 for 12 miles (I think…I’m struggling to remember.  Have to check the log book).  So the whole time I’m running my mind set was to conserve conserve conserve.  Hind sight, perhaps I should have shot for an 8:15 the whole way.  I need to look at my Garmin and get the details.

Over all the run was good.  I believe I had a negative split.  I stopped for a pee break at the 1^st aid station and that was a welcome relief.  I was having an issue with holding back as I would find myself surging from time to time.  At the turn around I did try and pick up the pace a bit since it was down hill but once again I had to slow down as I would find myself doing 7:30’s from time to time.  I didn’t start pushing the pace until after the gravel road.  I don’t know what mile marker that was as my Garmin was off and I NEVER saw ANY mile markers!  I do know I was doing a 7:00 or 7:05 pace up until I hit the 12 mile marker and was shocked.  I thought I would be seeing the 13 mile marker so I backed it down and made sure I had enough to finish strong.

This is the 1^st triathlon that I finished so strong that I felt I could have continued running.  I also felt strong on the bike and swim.  I think the mock tri’s helped as well as really good nutrition the two weeks leading up to the race and while on the bike.

The nutrition before the week involved using the Super Greens supplements, drinking Odwalla Super Green drink at work and not eating any (or two much) fat.  (No butter on toast!)

Much thanks to my wife who put up with me and all my training leading up to this half.  She did join our Saturday morning group for biking and swimming, although she did these on her own.  She also joined our Tuesday and Thursday evening bike rides which helped me tremendously.  (Thanks to the “Hammer Heads” that allowed me to tag along.  Their maniacal pace really help me to improve my overall bike results in this race, thanks to Lance, Steve, Fred and the rest of you speedsters!)

Thanks to my kids, Nate, Cass & Beth for being at the race!  It was just a joy to see you guys yelling and encouraging me the whole way.  And thanks for the signs!  They sure meant a lot!  (I’ll try and get some of the pic’s up soon)

Thanks ultimately to Jesus for giving me EVERYTHING good that I have.

Black Diamond Half Iron – Sept 26

You know, I’ve never really liked the name of this triathlon.  Seems to conjure up thoughts of sheer vertical walls that the race director calls “hills” and there are these black diamond signs that say, “Ride at your own risk!” or “Beware Extreme Danger!”.  Sheesh!

But, I’m sure that’s only in MY mind, as by now you’ve gotten to know how I think…or not.

Anywho, my last final event of the year officially….well, there could be others that I don’t know about and at the last minute I say, “Oh, I’ve GOT to do that one!”, but for now, it’s the last one.   And you know what?  I’m READY for it to be my last one.

Even though I’ve done fewer official races this year, 6 officially, I feel like I’ve been training and training hard all year long.  And actually I have.

So when I say this is my last official race of the season, I’m actually looking forward to it.  And not only physically looking forward to it, but mentally as well.

There seems to be a constant effort that I’m putting forth whether it’s a physical or mental.  Always being careful what I eat, how I feel, did I pack my bag, do I have enough gels, don’t forget the anti-defogger, did I over do it during that workout, “OUCH my back hurts!”, on and on.  And I’m not complaining, I’ve chosen this sport, it’s what I love to do, but it does take a great deal of effort to maintain the momentum of always pushing forward, trying to fix this, or strengthen that, and just trying to get better each and every day.

So yes, after the 26th I am VERY much looking forward to relaxing and recuperating and putting the training on the back burner, knowing that come January 1st, I will be working none stop at training for my 1st Ironman in Coeur d’Alene.

But, before we go there, let’s talk about “Black Diamond”….Oooouuu scary!  Really?  Why couldn’t they have named it “Blue Sapphire” or something more peaceful?

As all half Ironman are, it’s a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile bike, and a 13.1 mile run.  That’s all doable right?

Well, on they’re own, they are!  And in fact I’ve done all these distances and more, but normally just one at a time.  However we have been doing mock triathlons (we being Steve, Jerry and his wife Dawn) out at Fish Lake for the last 9 Saturdays and have approached all these distances and more.

On one mock triathlon that we did a couple of weekends ago, we swam for an hour and half, which is 2.4 miles and the same distance as Ironman.  Then we did a 65 mile bike ride which is a little more than half the distance of Ironman, and while we were on the bike I realized that I already was feeling fatigued and IF this had been a real Ironman I would still have 47 more miles of biking PLUS a marathon to do!

I realized a couple of things:

1. I have a LONG way to go before I’m ready for a full Ironman
2. That even though I’ve been very dedicated to training each and every day (except Sundays), I am tired mentally, of the training and constantly thinking about training, nutrition, etc, etc, that I’m ready for THIS race to be over and for training to be over.  And that I will have to be twice as diligent and focused when my Ironman training starts in January, and that’s going to last almost 6 months!  Whew!

I was humbled by the thought of doing this.  I think I might have undervalued the effort required to do an Ironman, and of course to do it well, not just float through all 140.6 miles of it.

So yes, Black Diamond is my last event of the year and while I’m excited to do it, especially with my two training buddies Steve & Jerry, I am going to be VERY HAPPY to have it over with and know that I don’t have to think about training for the rest of the year.  (No that doesn’t mean I’m  going to sit on the couch and eat bonbons until January!)

Meanwhile, this is my taper week and I’ve enjoyed it but I have soooo much to do to get ready to drive over to the West side of the state.  I will have almost my entire family with me at the start and finish line.  This is a 1st and I’m very excited that they can be there to see their “old man” taking another step closer to preparing for one of my long term goals.

I will report back next week with all the stats.

Predictions?   Well, my only other half Ironman was Troika 2008 in Spokane and I did a 6:14:08.

That was a 46:20 swim, 3:05:56 bike, and a 2:12:00 run (UGH!)

I know what I did wrong on that race so I’m going to try and fix it this race, so, here’s what I HOPE will happen:

45:00 swim, 3:17:00 bike, and a (gulp) 1:52:29 run, for a total of 5:59:59, includes total of 5:30 transition times.

If I can finish in the middle of the pack in my age group I’ll feel pretty good.

Of course bottom line is to have fun and enjoy the fact that my family will be there to greet me (carry me?), that is after all, why I do these things..to enjoy them!

TriMoot…out!
http://racecenter.com/blackdiamond/

I lost my fish in Fish Lake

Hey Steve,

While we’re all in Kennewick this weekend doing the Titanium Man, could you do me a favor?

The last time we were in Fish Lake I took my pet fish with me and forgot to bring it back home.

If you see it, could you gently pick it up and bring it back to me?

Here’s a picture of it so you’ll know which one it is.  You’ll know it by it’s silly toothy grin:

Here Toothy Toothy

Titanium Man 2009 Predictions

Once again it’s time to head down to Pasco, WA, the Tri-City area here in Washington state to the annual Titanium Man Olympic triathlon held on September 5th.
This is a fun well run tri that allows all of us to have the fastest 1500 meter swim ever, since it’s in the Columbia river and we swim downstream, and I want to tell you, we FLY!  I always feel like superman when I swim here as you can see the rocks flying by on the bottom.
Here’s my stats from last year:
Finish Time:   02:36:44
Swim Time:    00:19:32 – 1:19 minutes per 100 meters (Now that’s FAST!  But not because I’m fast)
T1 Time:          00:03:59
Bike Time:      01:22:49 – 18 MPH..well, that’s okay for me..I’m just not a strong biker.
T2 Time:         00:01:15
Run Time:      00:49:07 – 7:54 pace.  Well, that might be hard to beat this year.  Hmmmm.

So here’s my prediction for this years race:

But before I put them all down on paper..so to speak, let’s chat a bit.

To be honest, I “should” be able to do a little faster swim as even last year I had a problem getting into the fast current.  This year I will really focus on watching the starter and as soon as he wades out into the water I’m going to swim out to where most all the swimmers start, which is NOT an easy task!  Why?  Because the current is soooooo stinking strong!  I remember having to swim against the current while waiting for the start and I became so tired I had to swim over to the side, only to have someone tell me, “Hey, they just fired the starting gun, GO! GO! GO!”.  Yikes, I hadn’t even caught my breath and I had to turn around and head out to try and catch everyone which I never did.  So this year I’ll try and manage this better.

T1: Yeah, I should be able to make this quicker as I was kidding around with Steve and not really rushing too much.  This year, I’ll be ALL business.

Ride: Well, you know, Steve’s not going to be here this year and the ONLY reason I had a pretty good ride was I had the threat of Steve passing me (which he did!) and so I really hammered.  (Keep in mind “hammering” for me is like a walk in the park for most people!)  So this year I won’t have that “incentive” pushing me harder.  Plus I really want to try and ride within my abilities so that when I get to the run I’ll have enough left to do a run I know I’m capable of.  Now, one more thing that could come into play is I’ve been working hard on my bike by riding with a bunch of “hammer heads” on Tuesday and Thursday nights.  (I use hammer heads in the most positive sense: Meaning they really push hard on the bike and are kind enough to wait for me at the top of most hills.  They’re a great group!)  So, I’m hoping that all these hard rides will help with my overall bike time.  Also (I know I said “one more thing” earlier, but so what!) there’s a small group of us that have been doing mock triathlons for the last 7 weeks and they have gotten longer and harder each week.  I honestly don’t know if it’s helping or not, but it sure is a lot of fun, but hopefully all the swimming and biking and running for the last 7 weekends will add up to some improved fitness and endurance.  (This week: Swim for 1:30:00, Bike 54 miles, run 8 or 10 miles)

T2:  I don’t think I can improve much on this, perhaps a little, but I was pretty quick last year as I was trying to catch Steve!

Run:  Hmmm, I average an 7:54 pace and to be honest…I don’t think I can improve on that.  This year my emphasis has been on long distance stuff, with very little track or speed work, so getting below a 7:54 pace…yikes..that will be tough.  And once again, since Steve won’t be there, I don’t have anyone to chase!  DANG IT STEVE!!!

So now,  here’s my predictions:
Finish time:    02:35:40  Yeah, I now, it’s only a minute faster, but hey!  I’m not getting any younger!
Swim Time:    00:18:52  Yeah, this is where I HOPE to make up the time.
T1 Time:         00:02:47  I have a new wet suit and I’m thinking it’s going to take a little longer to get out of.
Bike Time:     01:25:00   Yup…a SLOWER bike time this year.  I really pushed knowing Steve was behind me.
T2 Time:        00:01:15    Nope, no improvement here, that’s already pretty fast.
Run Time:     00:49:00  That’s a 7:52 pace..I’m okay with that!

I will update this when I complete it on September 5th.

TriMoot Out!

WTS #7 – 8/22/2009

Hey hey!  Just another in the continuing saga of the “Warrington Tri Series” Triathlons!

Today, August 22nd found us, Jerry & Dawn and myself at Fish Lake for another mock triathlon.  Today’s distance was close to a  ”SprOly” (A sprint and Olympic distance combined).  In fact it was more.

I swam for about one hour and 9 minutes or so but Jerry and his wife Dawn continued on for 1 hour and 15 or 20 minutes (I was hiding the truck trying to get warm!)

The day was MUCH warmer than last week end, where we experienced a 43 degree morning with mist on the water.  Today was probably close to 50 or more so it almost felt balmy.  We did two laps back and forth across the lake and then Jerry did a little more by going back to find Dawn.  (There was some question as to the actually location of Dawn and the buoy’s, but we won’t go into that here! (Heehee, inside joke!)

After a quick change (HA!) we head out for a 40 mile ride.  The weather was actually perfect, probably close to 58 or warmer.  We did two loops of 20+ miles and the 1st loops was nice and easy, didn’t rush anything.  We knew we had another 20 mile loop plus a 10 mile run afterwards so we wanted to make sure we had plenty in the bank for the run.  The second loop, everyone was on there own so they could do their own pace.

I believe at the 17 mile mark during the 1st loop the time was 1:17:00 which was a pace around 14 MPH.  See, nothing too fast, we were just tooling along enjoying the weather (and saving our strength).  The 2nd loop for me was at 2: 24:?? (something like that..I’d have to get up and go get my Garmin in the other room, and frankly….that’s just too far!) for a pace of 15 MPH, so as you can see we didn’t really push too hard, and I’m glad we didn’t.

Once I got to the start point, my wife showed up and was just getting ready to head out for her bike ride, so I did a quick change and we started off together.  My plan was to go really easy, say around a 9:00 to 9:15 pace to let my legs get used to running, and that’s pretty much what happened.  Did that for about 3 miles and then at the 5 mile turn around I went ahead and started running an 8:30ish pace but since it was down hill for a lot of it I kept dipping down to around 8:00 and some sub 8 minute miles so I would have to keep pulling it back.  Finally once I settled down on the flats I ran pretty evenly at 8:30’s which is just where I wanted to be.  With about two miles to go I kicked it up a notch (well actually I was listening to some music and I found myself running to the beat of the music and the next thing I know I’m doing a 7:30 pace, YIKES!  So backed it down to 8:30ish and cruised in to the finish for a 8:43 pace over all.  My wife pretty much finished her bike just before I crossed the finish line so we both headed down to the lake to cool off.  It was “GLORIOUS!”

I’m not sure what the times were for Jerry & Dawn but I know they did really well.  They have made huge improvments since they 1st started and…..should I say it here?  (Shhhh, don’t tell anyone……)  Dawn is “thinking” about doing the Black Diamond HALF IRONMAN this SEPTEMBER!!!!!!!!!!!  And why not?  Her goal?  Just to finish.  She’s not worried about time, she just wants so see if she can balance her swim and bike enough so she has enough to finish a 13.1 mile run after putting in a 1.2 mile swim (which I believe she did today) and a 56 mile bike (She did 40 today) and  the run (which she did 10 today!)  So that’s pretty cool.  BUT…I’m not sure if she’s 100% committed yet, and I think Jerry is nervous about her doing such a long event.  (Stay tuned!)

Some of the things I’ve been reading about and listening to are about “Executing your Plan”.  Meaning, if you know it takes you x amount of time to do the swim, the bike, the run, then do it.  Don’t go beyond what you know you CAN do.  So many times in Tri’s or any event, we get caught up in the moment and find that we are cruising along during the first few miles and realize we’re going WAY over our normal pace but because we “Feel” good at the moment, we just keep going.  Pretty soon, we realize that no, I don’t normally run a 7:30 pace or 9:30 pace or whatever it is for you and we wind up running out of gas and having a lousy event and feeling really really bummed.

So during these WTS’s I have purposely been holding back on the bike, keeping my pace and heart rate down and I’m finding the time difference between a 17 MPH and an 18 MPH is not THAT big of a difference. (11 minutes in a 56 mile bike) but if you’ve got nothing left at the end of the bike because you went “Out side your Box..or pace” then it can mean you’re walking most of your half marathon because you have NOTHING left in your legs.  (Yes, I’m speaking from experience!)

So, I’m drinking the “Endurance Nation” cool aid and not only will I have a good race but I should (WILL!) feel good at the end.  Check out some of their free resources: http://www.endurancenation.us/resources/

Okay, enough.

Here’s some pictures from today: (Here)
And here’s a view videos:  Before the Swim: On the Bike: Peanut Butter and Honey

WTS Continues! 8-15-2009

Yes, another one in the on going WTS, Warrington Tri Series Triathlons!

Today, Saturday August 15th, finds us at Fish Lake in beauuuutiful Eastern Washington at 6:30 (okay okay, it was 6:43 and I was late!) in the morning.  And the lake was awesome!  There was a beautiful mist covering the entire lake and the sun coming up over the eastern sky make it look magnificent.  It was soooo cool (VERY COOL!  More on that later) swimming along and looking over at Jerry and you could barely see him with all the mist.  I sooo wished I had had a camera in the water with me.  I’m hoping next week I will as it is certainly worth the risk.  Just have to figure out a way to carry it without dropping it and without it chaffing me anywhere.  Ideas?

So, did I mention it was 6:43 in the morning?  AND 43 degrees!  YIKES!  Man oh man, I was shaking like a leaf and that was before I even got into my wet suit!  I kept complaining to Jerry about starting this thing a little later but he reassured me the water was warm.

So off we went to start our swim and sure enough as soon as I put my toe in I realized Jerry was right, it was warm.  Amazingly warm!  So once we were ready we started off in the misty mist.  I have to say, today was one of those days where everything felt super!  I MEAN SUPER!  The water was warm and completely flat and the mist felt like a cool blanket covering everything.  The sun was up and once we got out towards the middle where the sun was shinning on the water it felt so good that I didn’t even bother sighting.  I just kept swimming and swimming and enjoying the freedom of the lake.  No turns, no walls, no lane markers, no one to bump into it was so easy to get into a rhythm. The next thing I know I’m seeing weeds on the bottom and I look up and I’m clear over on the side where the island is.  So I finally started sighting every so often so I wouldn’t zig zap all over the place.  Long story short, I spent about an hour in the water and it was only the last few minutes when I started to get cold and got the chills and shakes.

Got out of the water and a few minutes later Jerry and then Dawn showed up and Jerry had a time of 1:09:00 for the swim.  Not bad.  Probably close to 1.2 to 1.4 miles if I had to guess.  A very nice swim.  Of course by that time the mist was gone and it had warmed up to 45 degrees.  Whew..I was almost sweating….HA!  Actually I was shaking like a leaf and even once we got to the car I continued to shake until I finally got dressed in my jersey and riding jacket.  Here’s a short video from Dawn’s perspective: WTS #6 – T1

So off we went on our bike ride that was done at a very modest pace, and unfortunately I don’t have any spec’s on it as my Garmin stopped working for some reason, but according to Jerry’s bike computer we did 31.5 miles, but I don’t know the time.  (Jerry, can you check your computer?)  What was good about the bike was we decided to introduce Dawn to drafting on the bike and she loved it!  She’s actually going to start a campaign to change the rules at all Ironman’s to allow drafting!  Oh yeah baby! THAT would be great!

Once we completed the bike it was time for the 8 mile run and what a perfect temperature it was for that.  It probably was about 65 or 68, somewhere in there and the sun was shinning and the bike path was in use by a number of families all out having a great day.

We all started out at our own pace and pretty soon I was in a grove and just zooming along (well, it was zooming to me) at an 8:30ish pace.  I was listening to one of my favorite podcast from the “The Age Grouper” called “Ace Your Race” and you can download it here.  Pretty soon I was at the turnaround point and as I started back, low and behold, JERRY!  He was right behind me!  WOW!  This guy has been improving each time we do one of these mock triathlons.  I gave him a high five on the way by and he looked great!  Didn’t even look like he was working hard.

Just a little further down I saw another red shirt, and sure enough it was Dawn! (Yes, Jerry and Dawn ALWAYS dress alike. You should see Jerry in a formal gown…beautiful!)  So as Dawn went by I high fived her and continued plodding along.  Pretty soon Fish Lake was in view and that meant I had about a mile to go so I florid it and zoomed to the finish in 1:08:00 for a 8:31 pace.  I was very happy with that pace since my legs were pretty sore from some of the hard rides and squats and lunges I did earlier in the week.

So over all, it was a good day, not a hard one, we really didn’t push the bike pace too much, but I’m sure that’s why I had so much leg left, which is a very good thing to remember.  Stay within your pace on the bike and it will pay BIG dividends on the run!

Here’s a wrap up video report: (Here)

Also, don’t forget you can listen to my podcast over on the right or click here to listen to a quick pre-race report: (here)
And quick audio wrap-up mp3: (here)

We missed you Steve-o!  Have fun!

TriMoot, Out!
PS: You can email me comments at TriMoot@hotmail.com