2008 -- the good, the bad, the craptacular

Event	2008 Goals	2008 Results	2007 Best
Half Marathon	Under 2 hours	1:56:47	First time in '08
10k	Under 50:00	49:47	53:24
5k	Under 22:30	22:07	24:55
Swim (tri)	2:00/100m	2:03/100m	2:09/100m
Bike (tri)	Avg 30km/h	Avg 32 km/h	Avg 28.5 km/h
Run (tri)	Under 5:00/km	5:08/km	5:24/km
Sprint	1:25:00	1:23:57	1:32:58
Olympic	Under 3 hours	2:52:53	First time in '08

I've been going back and looking over my 2008 season a little bit... results, training logs, nutrition journals, stuff like that. The table above is a summary of my '08 results.

Safe to say that 2008 was definitely the biggest step forward in my fitness so far... ironically enough, it also contained my biggest disappointment & moment of pain so far (both physical and mental). I specifically used the two words "so far" twice, and that is because of two reasons: 1) I plan on kicking more ass in 2009, so I know my fitness will continue to improve as I put in the work, and 2) As my goals and aspirations grow, there is no doubt that sometime down the road I will look back on 2008 and feel like the disappointment at that time was nothing compared to whatever I'm going through at that moment. I tend to be an optimist when it comes to triathlons, but let's face it -- you don't set a personal record every time you lace 'em up (or zip it up, or clip in). And of course, knowing and admiting that little fact will do nothing to dimish any such disappointment in the future. But at least I know it's out there. So, yeah, I've got that going for me.

Much like my overall season, my reaction to my '08 results (when they're all right there in one place) is a series of ups and downs. For example: Up = hitting my goals in the open runs... Down = missing it in the triathlon run.

Up = improving my best bike average by 3.5 km/h (same course, same distance)... Down = getting passed like a salt shaker during the run in that same race.

Up = making my Sprint overall goal... Down = feeling like I had something left in the tank at the end.

Up = making my Olympic overall goal... Down = knowing a faster time was there for the taking but missing out because of cramping during the run (which I believe was a result of wandering away from my nutrition plan and drinking too much, too soon on the run... idiot!).

Okay, that's enough of that. I definitely learned a lot about myself in 2008, and I look forward to learning even more in 2009 (and of course, lowering those times and increasing those speeds).

No coach? No problem!

Sometimes it feels as though I'm making things up as I go along... with respect to training, that is. I've never had a coach, so I don't have anyone in my ear telling me why this workout is better than that one, or that I need a rest day tomorrow. I'd love to have one, but the wedding is only about 2 months away now, and getting married is more expensive than anyone told me. The latest expenditures include wedding bands, new appliances, and the final payment on our Mexican wedding vacation (which is supposedly going to be cheaper than a "real" wedding). Right now, I don't have a lot of cash left over for a monthly coaching fee. That's usually when I turn to my good friend, the internet. Now, of course we all know that everything on the internet is 100% true. Wait... it isn't? Right. So then I guess I have to use the odd bit of common sense. Truth is, most of my information comes from the internet. Given my relatively rookie-ish triathlete status, it isn't hard to find people with more experience (and therefore hopefully more knowledge) than me. I read as much as I can on everything from training programs to rest and recovery to nutrition to equipment and so on. There is sooo much information out there... it can be a little overwhelming. I just try to sort through it, determine what may or may not apply to me and my goals, and see how I might be able to use it in the triathlon portion of my life. I visit many blogs, and usually a few times a week I stop by trifuel and slowtwitch to see what's going on. The forums that let people "speak" to each other makes them a golden source of information. There are stories directly from other people - with both happy and sad endings - plus advice on just about anything. It's nice to get more than one viewpoint about a piece of equipment, for example, from someone other than the dude who is trying to sell it to you. A lot of the articles I read suggest getting a coach... saying it is one of the best ways to advance your abilities. Believe me, I would if I could. But for now, my computer and I are doing just fine.

The lunch-time treadmill

I managed to get a run in at lunch today at the gym. Scheduling conflicts in both the morning and evening meant that either today's workout was going to be skipped, or it was going to be during my lunch hour. I haven't used the treadmill for running since last winter, and it didn't take me long to remember now much I dislike it. Also not a big fan of the lunch-hour workout thing. You could say I'm a bit of a heavy sweating guy, and trying to get back to work on time by trying to get showered and cooled off as quickly as possible just leads to more sweating for me. Outdoor running will always be the way to go.

Update... about nothing very important

And who doesn't like to read about that? Off-season update: I'm starting to become more emotionally involved in the workouts. That kind of sounds weird, but it's the only way I could think to describe it. I remember this time last year I was just kind of going through the motions of each workout, whether it was treadmill, trainer, or pool. It took me some time to get into it and start doing it with a purpose. It probably wasn't until January that I started looking at it differently... instead of just looking at the upcoming workout and then doing it, I would think about why I was doing it, especially right as it was happening -- if I work the big chainring hard on these intervals, then that hill in the Owen Sound Olympic will seem a lot smaller next August -- that kind of thing. I did my first triathlon in 2005, but 2007/08 was really the first off-season I did any kind of regular workouts. Before that I just kind of assumed that playing hockey a few times a week would keep me in shape. Yeah... how'd that work out, big fella? So, it's really only my second off-season, and I'm taking it as a good sign that I'm already approaching the workouts this way now, several months ahead of last year. I have no doubt that more experienced triathletes are pretty much always focused that way, but at least I'm going in the right direction. I think. Of course, even though it's only November, I find myself wishing it was next May and that the spring races were already here. And yes, if it was suddenly May and not November, then it goes without saying that I would have put in all the work over the off-season and have made massive fitness gains since last year. Ah, yes. The dream never dies, just the dreamer. On another note, I would like to say thank-you to Eric for leaving the words of encouragement on my Muskoka 70.3 race report (and mentioning this blog in a post!). My frame of mind when writing this stuff is basically that no one will ever read it. That someone actually did (and took the time to comment) is in itself very encouraging.

Remember

Having to rely on movies and photographs to tell me what it was like in the trenches... what it was like to literally look into the face of death every day. Unless we've been there, we will never truly know what they went through so that we could continue to have things the way we do. This says it better than I ever could... I HAVE NOT FOUGHT THE BATTLES OF THE PAST OR PRESENT. I WAS NOT ASKED TO GIVE OF MYSELF OR OF MY LIFE. I HAVE SEEN THE IMAGES OF THE HORROR, AND DESTRUCTION. I HAVE READ THE NAMES OF THOSE WHO DID NOT RETURN. I NOW GAZE OVER THE MARKERS OF THOSE WHO DIED FOR ALL. I LISTEN TO THE WORDS OF THOSE WHO FOUGHT, BUT THESE WORDS CONTAIN NO GLORY. I WILL REMEMBER, I DO SHED TEARS, I WILL BE SILENT. I WILL NEVER FORGET, WE SHALL NEVER FORGET. - author unknown

Don't mess with her

I read this Associated Press story on Flatman's Blog. This chick is tough! Jogger runs for aid with rabid fox biting arm Associated Press - November 5, 2008 2:43 PM ET PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) - Authorities in Arizona say a jogger attacked by a rabid fox ran a mile with the animal's jaws clamped on her arm and then drove herself to a hospital.The Yavapai (YA'-vuh-py) County sheriff's office says the woman told deputies she was on a trail near Prescott on Monday when the fox attacked and bit her foot.She said she grabbed the fox by the neck when it went for her leg but it bit her arm.The woman wanted the animal tested for rabies so she ran a mile to her car with the fox still biting her arm, then pried it off and tossed it in her trunk and drove to the Prescott hospital.The sheriff's office says the fox later bit an animal control officer. He and the woman are both receiving rabies vaccinations. No one will ever tell this woman to HTFU!

A potential flip-flop

Before even beginning to train (or even sign up) for it, I'm already having second thoughts about a marathon in May/09. On the one hand, I think training for and running it would improve my overall running fitness in a huge way. This would obviously carry over into the triathlons I'll be doing next year as well. But on the other hand, I'm worried that my biking and swimming would suffer as a result. It's not as though I kick ass in either one - I can't just rely my on base fitness to pull me through. If I was to focus on running 3 or 4 times a week and use the other days for swimming or biking as cross training (instead of detailed training workouts), I don't think I would really be improving my abilities in those areas. Plus I just added weight training to my schedule - I don't want to back off on it because my running mileage (and thus recovery time) is increasing from week to week. Now I'm thinking that a half marathon would be the better way to go. I would still have to focus a little extra on running, but obviously not in the same way as a full marathon. It's a distance I know I can do and recover from relatively quickly... this past spring I did a half marathon on a Sunday and then a duathlon a week later, with no pain or troubles to speak of. There is another reason (and maybe the REAL reason) I think I might be better off keeping it at the half marathon distance... in the past, with some races I've bitten off a little more than I could chew. Case in point: Muskoka 70.3. Going in, I hardly thought it would be a walk in the park, but I never dreamed for one second that it would be as tough as it was. And now, somehow I have let it creep into my head that it wouldn't be all that tough to run a full marathon... you know, just slowly increase mileage every week, blah, blah, blah... piece of cake, right? Ya, right. Hearing some marathon stories from athletes with much more experience (ie - in way better shape) than me has led me to believe that there is a good chance that I would probably take the preparation too lightly... even though it wouldn't be on purpose (if that makes any sense). I'd do all the workouts, but maybe not with as much intensity as I should... or something like that, I'm not really sure. Something caused me to bomb the 70.3, maybe it was that. I guess the short version of all that is... a marathon scares the hell out of me right now. I think I might be better off if I was to focus on improving what I already have, as far as base-fitness goes. I'd really like to increase my strength & power on the bike, and I don't know how much I could do that if I was focused on running a marathon. Or maybe I'm just making excuses because of the bad 70.3 experience... I don't know. And maybe I'm wrong, but I think the improvements I could gain on both the bike and run by not doing the marathon would outweigh what I could gain in running only if I was to do the marathon. I haven't fully decided yet, but as usual, time will tell.

10k race report

Unless something suddenly comes up, this will be the final race report of 2008... and it's not the "go out with a bang" type of report I was hoping to file. On Sunday the 26th I ran in a local 10k. The weather forecast was sketchy at best - calling for rain and cold temps - but I wanted to see how my fitness was holding up. I have been doing some unstructured running and swimming 4 or 5 times a week since Muskoka, but no speed or tempo work at all... just out for jogs, basically. My most recent 10k race was mid-April when I ran a 51:35, which had been a 2 1/2 minute improvement over a fall '07 race, and a 6 minute improvement over spring '07. Of course, I arrived at the race site later than I wanted to, and was limited to a warm-up of less than 5 minutes. It was chilly, but after jogging a little I decided on a short-sleeved T, instead of the long one I was wearing at the time. I also opted to wear gloves, as dorky as that probably looked with the shorts & T-shirt. This is a 2-loop course around a park and is a very nice place to run, as long as the geese stay out of your way when you're passing by the river. Getting chased by a pissed-off goose may not seem like much, but when they stretch their little heads out and run at you, their beaks are pretty much right at crotch level. And truthfully, I have no desire to get pecked in the junk by a territorial bird. Also, not to be rude, but their poop is really slippery. I can just picture myself slipping in goose poop and pulling a groin as my legs fly up and I go down on my back like I'm on an icy sidewalk, and then getting my eyes poked out while I roll around on the ground with a psycho version of Mother Goose on top of me. Bad times. So yeah, I tend to keep an eye out along the riverbanks. The horn went, and right away I felt sluggish and slow... no spring in my step at all. The first km seemed to go by quickly, and a glance at my watch showed just over 4 1/2 minutes. A little quick for me, but not too bad, seeing as how I was hoping for a time in the 47 to 48 minute range. In early September I ran a 5k to the tune of 22:07, which is screaming fast for me. The Daniels running calculator says based on my 5k time, I should be able to knock off a 10k in 45:51. Two words: not likely. During my Dan-world-record setting 5k run of 22:07, I was in "all out" mode for the entire race, and despite being only 5k I was totally spent at the end. I think I would have to be in full-on giv'er mode for the full 10k to go sub-46, and I don't know if I could make it that far in that gear without running out of steam. At the time of the 5k I was one week away from the 70.3, so I was pretty much in my best shape of the year. But lately, with the relaxed running schedule, it would seem I've lost any speed that I may have had. So I managed to run past the chute the first time by in almost exactly 24 minutes. Not a good sign. Running sub-48 pretty much went out the window right there, since this past year proved that "negative split" is not a phrase that is part of my racing vocabulary. Yet. So I focused on my start-of-season goal of running a 10k under 50 minutes... something I still wanted to accomplish, but now seeming kind of pedestrian compared to my new 5k best. The hills on the second lap seemed a little steeper and longer - not sure how they managed that. The wind was killer in some spots, while other areas had hardly any with all the trees. I tried to pick up the pace with about 2k to go, and while my effort certainly increased, I can't guarantee that my pace did the same. I crossed in 49:47... achieving my goal from the start of the season, but I didn't feel fast during any part of the race. So now it's time for the off-season. I'm going to do a more detailed post of my plans and goals, but it goes something like:

• 12 weeks (now until mid-January) of 6 workouts per week (2,2,2), plus 3 weight room sessions. The 6 will increase to 9 by the end of the 12 weeks. My goal is to gain strength and power while continuing to improve my fitness base.
• 16 weeks (mid-January until Mother's Day) for a marathon training program, using swimming, biking, and weights as cross training days. It would be my first marathon.

As mentioned, that takes me to Mother's Day. The season starts one week later with a duathlon on May 18th. I won't be signing up for it until I can assess how well (or how poorly) I've recovered from the marathon. If I feel it's too soon, then my first race will be the Milton Triathlon (750, 30k, 7.5k) on May 31. Looking forward to it already.

Official off-season coming up

Ever since the brutal experience known to me only as Muskoka, I've been taking it pretty easy. I've generally been swimming and running 2 and 3 times a week, respectively. I've mostly been doing it without a watch or HRM... just trying to get out there and enjoy it. I've read similar things from other people many times, and it is definitely true: just being able to relax and really enjoy the exercise is quite nice. Not having to worry about HR, lap times, zones, or any other junk like that. Of course, there is the minor issue of not having been on the Kuota since the 70.3 (over 5 weeks now). I do miss her a little, but I'm still plagued by memories of intense physical pain the last time I was in the saddle. We'll have lots of time to work out our differences on the trainer this winter. I am looking forward to having what I hope will be a kick-ass off-season, though. I'm likely going to race in one more 10k this Sunday, and then it's set to officially start next week. Last year on the bike trainer I did mostly base building stuff over the winter. I plan on doing more of that, but I will be adding some intense big-chainring workouts to that as well. For the first time since I took up triathlon I will be strength training 2 or 3 times a week, too. I'm hoping to really improve my core strength and work on previously neglected areas, like hip flexors, for one. That's it for now. There might be a race report coming after the weekend, but the weather around here on the weekend is supposed to be quite sucky... so if it's only a few degrees above freezing and raining, I might not make it to the starting line. As usual, time will tell.

Worst. Day. Ever.

I've been putting this off, hoping that if I waited long enough it would turn out to be a bad dream. Guess not, so here is a race report from Muskoka 70.3, my first ever attempt at the half iron distance.

The title of this post nicely sums up the race for me. In the short amount of time I've been doing this, it was certainly the worst, most brutal day of racing I have ever experienced. It left my spirit broken and my body battered and bruised. There were three specific times I wanted to quit, and if there happened to be a support vehicle in my area at those moments, I likely would have. I ended up making it to the finish line under my own power, and that's about the best thing that can be said.

The 5:00 wake-up call came and it revealed cold and rainy conditions. This wasn't exactly a shock, since it had been raining for a few days and it was expected to last through the weekend. It didn't ever end up raining really hard... just mostly steady drizzle that would make me feel colder than I could remember feeling while in the middle of a race.

The swim (2km): This turned out to be the best part of the day for me... not exactly what I expected. I knew from the pre-race newsletter that it would be a tough day mentally - I was the third wave off, which was also the first of the age-groupers. This basically meant that I would be passing very few people during the race, because it's not as though I was about to catch any of the pro men or women in wave 1 or 2. It also meant that hundreds of men and women, both younger and older, would be riding and running past me all day long. So, yeah... I had that going for me. Bad times.

There were 214 people in my wave... that was just M35-39... some of the races I have done didn't have that many total people in them. So it was a little more crowded than I was used to, but I knew it would be like that, so no big deal. I purposely stuck to the outside, because I knew that there would be faster swimmers coming soon, and I wanted to stay out of their way. I likely ended up swimming a little farther than the 2km, but I wasn't too worried -- it would have only added a couple of minutes to my overall time. I dealt with the congestion and rough-housing pretty well, not to mention the dude that insisted on slapping my head for about the first 300m. It was like getting cuffed in the back of the head by a bullying sibling. So for while it was stroke, stroke, breathe, CUFF, stroke, stroke, breathe, CUFF, and so on.

With less than 100m to go, I experienced something new... leg cramps during the swim! Yaay! I don't kick very much when I swim, and in the past I've been told by numerous People Who Know Things that with 50-100m to go in a long swim, start kicking a little more to get some blood flow down there and help prepare yourself for going vertical after being horizontal for a while. Well, on my 3rd or 4th kick, my right calf went into a massive spasm... it put me in pain and pissed me off - I mean, who gets a calf cramp when they're swimming?? It actually turned out to be a very good indicator of what was waiting just a few hours down the road for me (cue the Darth Vader evil theme music). I finally got to the stairs and a volunteer helped me out of the water. They had timing mats set up right there and my swim was cut off at 44:28... a little slower than I had hoped, but only by a few minutes - I'm a relatively slow swimmer. Besides, it's not like I was fighting for a spot on the podium or going after the prize money, or anything like that.

T1: This race has a long run from the water to transition, mostly up a giant hill. The eventual winner, Craig Alexander (yes, the former 70.3 World Champ and 2nd place dude in Kona last year... that Craig Alexander), had a transition time of 2:29, so that should give you some indication of what we were dealing with. As for me, I took my sweet-ass time and ended up just under 6 minutes. It's almost like I was delaying having to go out on the bike course. I didn't feel the leg cramp at all while I was running to my bike... in fact I forgot all about it (for the moment). T1 was also a good reminder that it was raining... I had kind of forgotten about that, too, while I was swimming, as weird as that sounds.

The bike (94km): Yes! 94! In order to avoid any out-and-back portions and "maintain the integrity" of the bike course, it had to be a little long, according to those who designed the course (including 11-time Ironman champion Lisa Bentley). Just what the novice first-timer wants... more distance! Yaay! This course also has the biggest hills I have ever seen. In fact, I know that opinions went both ways, but some people (who had experienced both) would go on to say that the hills were just as tough, if not tougher, than on the IM Lake Placid bike course.

I'm not going to spend too much time talking about this, because it just brings back bad memories. Early on in the bike, I could feel very faint pain in my quads as I climbed some of the hills... even for a non-pro like myself, it was waaay too early for that. It went beyond the feeling of muscles working hard. Something was wrong, and I didn't know what. My legs just didn't feel right. Much like the cramps during the swim, it was a new experience and I didn't really know what to do about it. The two bottle exchanges went well, I guess. It was my first time doing that, so I slowed right down... I mean slow... like, almost walking pace. I made sure I wasn't screwing up anyone behind me, and just took my time getting what I needed. The real fun came at about the 85k mark -- 3/4 of the way up a massive hill and both my quads just locked. I was almost at a complete stop, pushing down on the pedals when it happened... on my next revolution, my front tire went about 3 inches off the asphalt onto the sand, and I wiped out. Yes! WHO FALLS OFF THEIR BIKE GOING UPHILL?? Me. That's who. So there I am, lying on the pavement, feet still clipped into my pedals, and my water bottle goes rolling down the hill. Like, a kilometre down the hill. Yeah... not getting that. Meanwhile, people are asking me if I'm alright, and I'm saying yes, just keep going, don't stop your race for me, etc, etc (reason #256 why I love triathlon: people will sacrifice themselves to help out a fellow competitor... even a doofus who falls off his bike while going up a hill). So now I'm standing there beside my bike, only I can't move. Both my legs - quads and calves - are totally seized, and I am in immense pain. I can't even take a step. Not one single step. It's as though my muscles were replaced by rocks... and not the "rock-hard muscle" thing that people would want to have... no, this is just hard pieces of something under my skin that hurt when I touch them... a lot. I didn't think my calves could stick out that far. It looked kind of funny... if I wasn't almost crying from the pain, I'd would have almost been crying from laughing so hard. Bad times.

A couple minutes went by and my legs calmed down enough to continue. I eventually made it back to transition... more than half an hour after I thought I would. My support team -- my future wife & in-laws -- were apparently getting a little worried... especially after they saw a couple athletes getting carted back via ambulance and heard some horror stories from earlier athletes. Speaking of support teams, mine deserved a medal, I have to tell you. It rained non-stop and was cold. Not cool, not chilly, but cold. Yet there they were, waiting by transition to cheer me on. When I saw & heard them, it suddenly got a little dusty there in the Kuota saddle, despite all the rain.

T2: When I dismounted my bike, I realized how tough the run was going to be. I had a hard time getting unfolded from the aero position, I was so cold. Then there were my legs, which were busy singing me a few unhappy tunes. I got back to my racking spot and put on my shoes & socks, which were completely soaked despite being in a plastic bag. I'm talking wring-them-out type of water-logged here. That made my feet even more unhappy than they already were. My T2 time was not fast, but I was already a little off of world record pace, so I wasn't too worried. Plus I had to visit the porto-john to take care of some business. I finally found a place where there was no rain. Only huge amounts of stink.

The run (21k): And he's off! Slowly! I was in full running shuffle mode... you know, the one where you're making the running motion with your arms but your speed is more like a walking pace? Bad times. The run course was about as hilly as the bike course. And running down the hills sent more pain through my body than running up the hills. Another first for me. Other than the raining and shuffling, it was pretty uneventful until about the 13k mark, when both my calves cramped and seized again. I was in the middle of a wooded area on a pathway going up a hill, and I couldn't make my legs work. At all. In order to prevent myself from screaming out loud from the pain, I knew I had to sit down... but I couldn't bend my knees to get down there, so I just let myself fall back onto the paved path, landing on my ass. Since I was on a hill, it wasn't as far down as if I was on a flat section. That was the moment I most seriously contemplated quitting. I was sure that if I wasn't in the middle of nowhere I would have just hung up the shoes right there and climbed in a nice, warm support truck. But I just really wanted to finish the damn thing, even if I was the last one across the line and they were tearing down transition and packing everything up. I didn't want the months of training to be for nothing... even though it felt as though I'd never been on a bike or in running shoes before. On the run course, you have to go past transition and the finish line for a few more km before you're done... this gave my support crew a chance to see me a couple more times before the end. Hearing them certainly was a boost, and believe me, I needed it. I finally made it across the line... about 90 minutes later than I thought I'd be.

So, what went wrong? I really don't know. I can honestly say that I don't believe it was a lack of training. I put the miles in, and I think I deserved better. I thought I had a good nutrition plan and I was able to stick to it fairly well. It was tough sometimes to be right on schedule with eating & drinking, especially with all the hills. I know I was having trouble judging how much I was sweating because of the rain... I didn't know if I was drinking enough or not. The cold really seemed to affect me -- that plus not enough fluids, maybe... I really have no idea, and I doubt I ever will. So overall I don't really know what to think. It would be an understatement to say that I am discouraged. I had dreams of doing a full Ironman in 2010... but I think that's on hold now, after what went down in Muskoka.

It's a shitty way to end the triathlon season, no doubt. But I'll bounce back. My plan for next year is to stick to some shorter races, maybe a couple of Olympic distance tris, and really try to nail them. I'd also like to attempt my first marathon in the spring. The IM dream is obviously on hold, for now. But somewhere deep inside, it still lives on.

Only 3 sleeps to go

Ready or not, here comes Muskoka - my first Half Ironman. Less than 72 hours from now I will be in the early stages of the most brutal bike course I've ever seen (it's actually also quite beautiful). Of course, my experience is quite limited and I haven't seen all that many tri courses, but still. As of right now, I've practiced pretty much everything that can be practiced. I even did a test inflation using a CO2 cartridge, which I had never done before. A local tri coach, we'll call him A Guy Who Knows Things, thinks I'm ready. Well, that makes one of us! I don't mind admitting that I am a little afraid of this bike course. I rode it once, in late June at a Lisa Bentley Subaru Success Camp, and it didn't go too well. One of the rather large hills near the end got the best of me. My chain actually came off, forcing me to stop... but at that moment there wasn't a whole lot of forward progress being made, and I likely would have been forced to walk anyway. I do have a couple of things going for me now that I didn't have then, I guess. I'm much more informed about nutrition... during that ill-fated ride, I think I consuned half a Powerbar and some Gatorade. Likely not enough for over 3 hours in the saddle. Also, at that time my longest ride ever had been about 2 hours, and my longest race had been a sprint (750m, 20k, 5k). In the 11 weeks or so since then I've done my first Olympic Tri, my first Century ride, and several more rides of 90-100k. I've also put in one hill session per week since that June weekend. My overall fitness level has improved as well... a 20k run on a Sunday doesn't wipe me out... even after a 100k ride the day before. So there have been improvements... but that bike segment still looms large in my head. Am I ready? I only have a few days left before I find out. As usual, time will tell.

A pair of reports

A little over a week ago I competed in the Guelph Lake 2 Triathlon. Not a bad day, overall. I was mainly using it as a final tune-up for this weekend's 70.3 -- but I still wanted to do well. With about half an hour to go before the start, they decided to delay it by 15 minutes, since half of the athletes hadn't even racked their bikes yet. Getting into the conservation area took a while... apparently everyone in Guelph and surrounding area was camping on Labour Day weekend. The swim (750m): After the Olympic 1500m, this should be a piece of cake... or so I was thinking. Well, I wouldn't call it a piece of cake, but it wasn't too bad. I still have trouble swimming in a straight line -- every time I sighted I had somehow managed to bend quite a bit to the right. This course only had left turns, so I actually swam more than 750m... just trying to get my money's worth. Out of the water in 15:40 and head for my bike. The bike (30k): This course starts inside the conservation area, meaning there are plenty of speed bumps to contend with at the start (and finish). Not a lot to report, other than at one point I almost coasted to a complete stop while I attempted to eat a gel, and at another point I was passed by a guy on a mountain bike who was practically riding on the gravel shoulder of the road. Needless to say, my confidence is not exactly soaring right now with respect to the bike. Bad times. I ended up with an average of 30.5km/h... same as the Owen Sound Olympic. A little disappointing, but I know I averaged below 30km/h for the first half, so I must have had a fast second half. The run (7k): I am very happy with my results here - I averaged 5:08/km, which is a PR for me in a triathlon. Lately my running has shown improvement, and my long runs have been feeling really good. Hopefully it carries into the 70.3. Overall, my swimming and running seem to be peaking at just the right time, while my biking seems to be having a bit of a suckingly bad time. I'm still miles ahead of last year, but still not really satisfied with recent results. The other race I was recently in was a local 5k this past Sunday. With only a week to go before Muskoka, I needed a short, intense workout, so I thought I'd join in this annual run. The day was rainy and cool, so no worries about overheating... time to just open up and give'r for a while, and see what happens. Well I'll tell you what happened... a new PR, that's what! It's a bit of a rolling course, and I tried to accelerate up the hills (which likely means I stayed the same pace) and do more than just coast down them. With less than one km to go, I was catching a long-haired dude who had the longest, loudest, stomping-est strides I'd ever seen (and heard). I couldn't figure out how he could keep up that kind of pace with that kind of form... I passed him and quickly forgot about him, but with about 100m to go I heard old Stompy coming up behind me for the re-pass. Not today! I surged to the finish and kept Sir Stomp-a-lot behind me. Throughout the race I kept my cadence at 90 as much as possible, and I felt strong for the full 5k, ending up with a time of 22:07, or about 4:25/km. My previous best was 24:18, which came at a 5k on Good Friday earlier this year. It rained the whole race, and I'm wondering if it helped or hurt my time. I think being such a short distance, the discomfort factor didn't really get a chance to come to light... but for a 10k or longer, I think it would have really started to suck. I also think that the rain kept me cooler than normal, so I didn't lose any horsepower because of heat buildup. Less than one week to go now - can't wait for Sunday.

A little better

Wednesday's and Thursday's workouts were a little better than Tuesday's bike-related suckfest. A good tempo run Wednesday and a nice, long swim last night got me feeling a bit better. It was a good way to build up to the race tomorrow morning. My goals for tomorrow: 750m swim - under 16 minutes, including the run to transition. 30k bike - faster than 56:15, or an average faster than 32km/h 7k run - under 36 minutes. If achieved, all three of these goals would be my fastest ever in a triathlon (I've run faster in road races, but not by a whole lot), so my sights might be set a little high. But, here's my logic: I'm 2 weeks out from my first 70.3, and if I'm going to test myself, it's got to be tomorrow. The plan is basically to go hard for the whole thing - no saving energy for later - until I either collapse or cross the finish line... one or the other. Can I pull it off? As usual, time will tell.

Well, that sucked.

I spent the afternoon yesterday being excited about how there is less than 3 weeks left until the 70.3. After work I remained quite pumped up, and so I went out for some hill repeats on the bike. The 94k course is quite hilly (which I guess makes it more of a 76.7, not a 70.3), and any hill related prep work I can do would be a help, or so I thought. My conclusion? I suck. Or I should probably say Suck, with a big old CAPITAL S. Granted, I had a hard swim workout yesterday morning, and it was a big distance weekend for me on both the bike and the run, with a 100km ride Saturday followed by a 20km run Sunday. Given that my longest race is an Olympic triathlon, that is pretty far. But despite taking Monday off, my legs were heavy and slow, like some sort of combination of cast iron and molasses. Bad times. I trudged through a few times up the hill and went home. It was indeed a brutal experience. Not the kind of confidence builder I'm looking for this close to my first half IM. At least I don't have to worry about being cocky or overconfident... so I've got that going for me.

Less than 3 weeks

In fewer than 19 days, the triathlon of my life will have started and ended... one way or another. Either by way of my own power or by that of a support vehicle, my first half ironman event, the Muskoka 70.3, will be over. I have another week or so of intense training followed by some tapering and resting, and then I will be at the starting line. I'm exicted/anxious/nervous right now... I have no idea how I will keep it in control on race day. One final tune-up race this Saturday, the Guelph Lake #2 sprint triathlon. Should be a walk in the park compared to some of the long rides and runs I've been doing the last few weeks. Well... walk in the park might not be the most accurate way to describe it. I'm just hoping to have a really good race-intensity workout (and maybe set a personal best or two along the way... are you listening, Bike?). As usual, time will tell.

Well you know his name is Simon

All I can say is, Wow. It's been a while since watching the end of any sporting event on TV made my pulse increase, but what a finish! When he tossed the hat and started to make the move with only a few hundred metres to go, I was off the couch cheering in the living room. Congratulations, Simon Whitfield, on your medal and awe-inspiring finish. You ROCK.

Race Report -- My First Olympic Distance

As the title will tell you, I recently completed my first Olympic-distance triathlon. It was the Owen Sound Triathlon weekend, organized and operated by Trisport Canada (my usual choice for triathlons!). Similar to Peterborough, this is a 3 to 3.5 hour drive, so that means a night in a hotel. I'm cool with that, as it allows me to get to the race nice and early without having to get up at some crazy time. I was very excited to give this race a try, with Muskoka 70.3 looming large on the not-too-distant horizon. I was also anxious to experiment with my nutrition, since race days are always different from training days. The Swim (1500m): I wasn't too worried about the length of the swim - I've done lots of 2000m(+) workouts in the pool... but there is always my one big concern of the Race Day Swim... getting kicked or elbowed in the face or some other injury susceptible area. It was to be an in-water start, and the lake (the Channel? the Sound?) is quite shallow walking out from shore. So we had to walk out maybe 75m to the start buoys. Wave #2, wearing the gray caps today, breaking my 2-race streak of being a White Cap. I don't know why I pay attention to these things. Wading around in my too-big-for-me wetsuit (purchased when I was 25 pounds heavier), I said hi to a couple of friends and head over to the left side of the start line... being a clockwise swim course, I figured this would allow me to get roughed up the least. The horn went and so did I... all the way to a massive personal best! I had been estimating at least 33 minutes, but came in with a time of 30:44, despite swimming wide the whole way around. I kept it wide on purpose, especially after the final turn. I figured it would allow the faster swimmers from the wave behind to hug the buoys and pass easily without being held up at all. Even in my slow swimming state, I catch the stragglers from the wave in front, and I know how frustrating it can be to get past them as they float and bob along. At 2:03/100m, I am getting closer to that ever-elusive 2min/100m mark. I don't know if I caught a serious draft, or what. I swam my fastest pace in my longest race... that would be a nice trend to keep up for the 70.3 in September. And while it's not going to put me in position for a podium finish or anything, it's still an improvement, and I'll take it. The Bike (40km): This course is 20k out & back consisting mostly of fast flats and a few rollers. It also has one GIANT hill on the way out. The hill is well over 1k long and has varying degrees of incline. At first my plan was to stick to water & gels - no Gatorade - and to drink every 15 minutes and "eat" every 30 minutes. But, based on my estimated speed for the first leg, I was likely to be somewhere in the middle of the big hill when the 15 minute mark passed. I decided to take on water at :10 and :20, eat at :30, and then move to the 15 minute interval plan. All the nutrition stuff is all new to me, and it's all in preparation for the 70.3 in a few weeks. Most people probably wouldn't worry too much about nutrition for an Olympic distance tri, but I was treating it more like a truncated 70.3... trying to get my body used to eating on the bike and running with a somewhat full stomach. I ended up coming back to transition in 1:18:44 - an average of 30.5km/h... not as fast as my 32km/h Peterborough, but this was twice as long and a little more challenging. My biking has finally started to show some improvement, and I'm happy with this result. The Run (10km): I had no idea going in what to expect here, never having to run this long after a bike segment. I gave a conservative estimate of 55 minutes, thinking maybe with 2 or 3k to go I could pick it up and finish well. I never did feel great at any time on the run - I had a gel with me I was thinking of taking, but my stomach felt as though it would revolt if I tried to stuff it in. For about the first 7k I was right on pace, and I was feeling as though I could have (and should have) pushed it more over that first little bit. But then I got way off schedule with my drinking by taking water and Gatorade earlier than I had planned (which was also every 15 minutes on the run), and more frequently than I ever had during training. Stupid! This gave me major gut-rot at about the 8k mark, and I had to walk the aid station there to try to settle things down. It never really did, so I continued on as best I could, my pace shot to pieces with less than 2k to go. I shuffled home in just under an hour, 59:35 - my worst showing on the run this year by far. Ironically, I felt very fresh when I crossed the line, prompting my future-wife to comment, "You hardly look tired. Are you sure you're pushing it enough out there?" Because she probably had a valid point, I resisted the urge to tell her to shut the F up (and because it wouldn't be very nice, and would make for a VERY long car ride home). For my first Olympic I had been hoping for an overall time of ~2:50, and ended up at 2:52:53... almost 3 minutes slower than planned. The race started on a high note with the swim, and ended on a lousy note with the run. I am now aware of what needs the most work. I never thought that my swim would ever be my fastest segment, relatively speaking. Not only am I a slow runner, my form is total crap. My lady took a few pics of me as I ran by her a few times (a 2-loop run course), and I look BRUTAL - all hunched over with a half-angry, half-agony expression on my face. No wonder people of all ages blaze by me like I'm standing still. I talked to a local tri coach, and he says to not just "work" on my form, but to really concentrate on it... he says times will eventually come down. Earlier in the year when I was running faster times, I was also doing cadence drills. I've stopped doing them... guess I should start again. Next race is my personal big kahuna... Muskoka 70.3... I'm hoping I can actually race it a little, and not just consider it an exercise in survival. Time will tell!

A slightly late race report

I was in the Peterborough Sprint Triathlon on July 6, and had what turned out to be pretty much the greatest race of my young triathlon life. It's a 3 1/2 to 4 hour drive for me to get there, so that meant arriving the day before and staying at the good old Comfort Inn. They treated us well, as usual, but I'm always sad that I'm up too early in the morning to be able to partake in the free breakfast. The cool thing about this race is that there is a half-ironman event held there the same day... so I get to be inspired by people who are on the cusp of achieving (or repeating) what I hope to do on September 14 in Huntsville at the Muskoka 70.3. Plus there are lots of pro men and women there competing... it's cool just to walk around the park amid the mix of pros and regular folk like me. I realize they are professional athletes and should be in great shape, but when I can see them that close, I'm always amazed at just how fit they really are. I've never been to an Ironman race (or a really popular 70.3) so I don't really get to rub elbows with the pros too much. Sometimes a couple will compete in a lesser race in the region, but if I'm in the race too, obviously I don't get to see them start or finish. They're gone as soon as the gun goes off, and they finish a day or two ahead of me. The Half has a mass start and goes off an hour before the Sprint, which means we get to sit back and be treated to some of the best and most technically perfect swimming forms I've ever seen. Plus, the 2k swim is a double-loop 1k with a short run on the sand between loops. This is awesome, because we get to stand on the beach and have some of the best triathletes in the country (and the world) run by us to start the second loop. We also get to see the leaders come out of the water and head out on the bike. It's a great venue for a race, because with only 500 or 600 racers, you don't get the crowding of an full Ironman or "official" 70.3 race. I also love watching and listening to the supporters of age-groupers in the race... there's non-stop shouts of things like, "Go, mom!" -- sometimes made by kids barely old enough to walk. Triathlon... the only place I know of where I can be inspired by a 4 year-old cheering on her mother. My race was what I call a "standard" sprint distance - 750m, 20k, 5k. I did this race last year, and it was actually my first sprint distance triathlon... so I was looking forward to bettering last year's time. The swim (750m): Wave #2, wearing the white caps. The half IM swimmers were mostly out of the water, with the exception of a couple of stragglers. The horn went off and I jogged for the water, continuing my tradition of not hurrying at the beginning of a swim. Mental note -- improvement needed. I had been hoping to catch a draft from someone who was slightly faster than me, but of course, I lost the fast swimmers right away, leaving me to swim at the front of a group of mid-pack dudes like myself. For some reason I swam very wide the whole time, especially around the final turn. Heading back toward the beach, one of the lifeguards on the outside actually had to move her kayak further to the outside to get out of my way. I'd be interested to know how far I actually swam... I certainly didn't have to worry about any contact. My only other "problem" had to do with the watch I was wearing. I opted to not wear my HRM for the race, and I had on an old (and I mean old) Timex that I occasionally use for the stopwatch. Well, as I'm heading back to shore, the damn thing came off my wrist! I felt it slip off as my left arm was stretched out in front of me, and then as I brought my right arm into the water, the watch was pretty much at my face. It was just by luck that I managed to grab it with my right hand and stuff it partially in the front of my wetsuit, because I wasn't about to stop and make any kind of effort to recover it. Swim time = 16:41 (2007 = 17:22, a small improvement). It was slower than my Guelph time, but that's not surprising given my navigation and watch troubles. T1: I had two major brain farts in T1. First, I hadn't put my sunglasses inside my helmet to grab and quickly put on... they were actually still zipped away in my bag. I was going to leave them, but I wear them more for eye protection than for the sun, so I took some extra time to get them. Second, I grabbed my bike and started running without putting on my race belt and number, so I had to go back and get it. Idiot! I had probably only gone about 10 steps, but these things seriously put me in a sour mood. T1 time = 2:00 (2007 = 2:24) The bike (20k): Nothing major to report here... I rode hard but in control. I never felt like I was breathing too hard or really pushing it. I was trying to keep my cadence up, and shifted down a little earlier than I would have normally for a few of the steeper rollers. Passed some, got passed some... it felt good but really quite ordinary at the same time. Bike time = 37:31, avg 32 km/h (2007 = 42:07, 28.5 km/h). A personal best by a bunch. Very happy here. T2: Got the feet out of the shoes and ran in... got the running shoes on and ran out. Time = 1:18 (2007 = 1:40). The run (5k): As I took off on the run, I didn't know what my average bike speed was, but I knew it had to be close to a PR... this made me wonder if I'd gone too hard, and whether or not I'd have anything left for the final 5km. So I just tried to keep my breathing regular and not push it too hard. As usual on the run, I was passed by a ton of people... men, women, big, slow... they were all faster runners than me. Time = 26:30 (2007 = 29:26). Despite improving almost 3 minutes in the run over last year, it was still by far my slowest segment, comparatively speaking. Swim - 182/433 overall, 28/50 age group Bike - 183/433 overall, 26/50 age group Run - 223/433 overall, 35/50 age group... Booo! Overall I improved by 9 minutes on this course, so I'm happy with that. I obviously have room to improve in all 3 segments, but my running seems to have fallen behind for some reason. My next race is my first Olympic distance on August 4th, and I'm very much looking forward to having a solid performance.

So much to write, too lazy to write it.

Yeah... I'm lazy. Big shock. So, here is a race report from the Guelph Sprint I did over a week ago. Guelph is an awesome place to race a triathlon - very nice for both athletes and spectators, with a huge grass transition area, and lots of picnic tables for setting up a good home base. My future wife and in-laws were originally going to attend this one to cheer me on (it's only about an hour's drive for us), but my father-in-law just had a knee replacement and can't really get around too well yet. So I was flying solo for this one, as usual. No biggie, I'm used to it. I didn't really have a specific plan for this race... I was mainly looking to gage my fitness, and see what kind of improvement I had made (if any). I was hoping to see some improvement in my transition times, and I guess I was looking to have a good swim. Now, "good" is relative, of course, given that I'm really not that fast in the water... but sometimes I still have trouble in a crowd, so I knew this would be good practice for my mental game. First, though, we had to wait and see if it would stop raining and the lightning threat would diminish. It stopped a little before race time, so we were good to go. The swim (750m): Thus far in my brief triathlon career, I have been taking my time getting into the water at the start... I'm usually content to let the faster guys sprint out while I calmly (read: slowly) make my way into the water. This time wasn't really all that different, but I had more of a jog/saunter thing going on, which - believe me - is a big improvement. So off we went - wave #2, wearing our white caps. "White caps making whitecaps," I thought, as a churned away in the water somewhere in the middle of the pack. For some reason, this struck me as absolutely hilarious and I started laughing as I swam. As I laughed with my face under the water, the sound it made reminded me of an episode of Family Guy, and the sound Stewie made when he was learning to swim and saw a band-aid at the bottom of the pool. This made me laugh even harder. Unfortunately this didn't really help my efficiency in the water, and I had to force myself to focus. I actually passed quite a few people from the wave before, which made me feel good. This race has a long, uphill run to the transition once you're out of the water, and your swim time doesn't cut off until you're actually at the entrance to T1. Result = 16:06 (2:09/100m) for 750m of swimming and a long run. I don't know what my actual "swim only" time was since I opted not to wear my watch, but I'm happy with that result. T1 After the long run out of the water, I had my wetsuit half removed and continued across the mat into the transition area. As I was running, my wetsuit zipper got caught on my cycling shirt that I was already wearing. I was almost to my bike and it was still caught, but luckily one final yank managed to tear it loose. Off with the wetsuit, on with the helmet, glasses, race number, and shoes. Grab the bike and off I go. Result = 1:45... perhaps slow by some standards, but my best ever with a wetsuit involved. It was my first time ever wearing a tri top under the suit... it helped a lot and definitely kept me under two minutes. The Bike (19km): Kind of a weird number for a biking distance, but apparently this course used to be 20k. One year because of construction it was reduced to 19 and hasn't been changed back since then. I felt fairly strong on the ride. There aren't really any steep hills, just mostly rollers. The worst part was probably the crappy condition of the pavement... quite bumpy and more than a little uncomfortable at times. I didn't want to hammer the bike, but I wanted to keep up a relatively constant speed and a high cadence as much as I could. It worked most of the time, and I finished strong and ended up with my best showing so far, although I just missed out (by 9 seconds) on a goal of an average speed 30km/h. Result = 38:09 (29.9 km/h) T2 Uneventful transition. Decided to go with socks for the 5k run. Didn't have any trouble putting them on, and T2 was 1:12... also a personal best (when putting socks on!). The Run (5k): Felt terrible for almost the whole thing. My stomach felt really full the whole time and I was cramping like crazy. The only possible reason I can figure is that I drank too much on the bike for such a short ride. Then I decided to make matters worse by taking some water at the first aid station. Mistake! I ran the rest without drinking anything more, and I slowly started to feel better. I remembered having to pee back when the swim was getting ready to go, but I got some serious stage fright and couldn't make it happen... even while standing out in the lake before the start. Maybe a full bladder had something to do with it, I don't know. I got passed by a ton of people of all ages, and just tried to hang on as best I could, finally making it to the finish. Result = 27:18 (5:28 per km) Overall result = 1:24:28; 201/506 overall, 37/55 age group. What I learned:

• need to adjust amount of liquid consumed for distance of race and that day's temp.
• my transitions have improved, and I look forward to making them even better... it's an easy way to gain positions.

Next up -- a report on the Lisa Bentley Muskoka 70.3 training camp.

Throwin' a brick

Yesterday I did a brick workout, and I've concluded the following: my biking sucks ass. It sucked ass last year too, but I didn't really work all that hard last year, so I had pretty low expectations. This past winter was the first time I really made any kind of effort with off-season training. It's the first winter I even used the word "training" to describe what I was doing. I have shown some improvement in swimming and running. At the aquathon in San Diego I swam my longest event yet, at 1000m. My pace ended up being 2:05/100m -- this is not going to win me any medals, but it's about a 10% improvement over my longest swim last year, which was 750m and a 2:19/100m pace (I had a 2:09/100m pace in a 375m race, but that's pretty damn short, so I'm not really counting it). As for running, I took 3 minutes off my 5k time and almost 6 minutes off my 10k time -- also somewhere around a 10% improvement. Again, my paces are not setting world records, but I'm very happy that the work is paying off in the form of lower times and faster paces. And then there is the bike. I stink. STINK. How much do I stink? People drive by me in their cars and say, "What is that smell? Oh, that guy is riding his bike. Wow, he stinks." I didn't realize the magnitude of the stinkbomb I was laying until I rode outside a few times. Now, I haven't had any races on the bike yet so maybe I'm jumping to conclusions, but I'm just not feeling like I've made any improvement at all. In an effort to make myself feel better, I wondered if I should have taken more recovery time from the half marathon on Sunday. I had my usual Monday off, but was back to two workouts on Tuesday. Seems like a flimsy excuse, though. Last night, it seemed like the slightest breeze or the smallest hill made my speed plummet. And I remember the exact same thing happening last year. Safe to say I'm at a bit of a low point right now, and suddenly I'm not looking forward to Victoria's Duathlon this Monday. I think that any goals I have made as far as bike splits or overall race times for this summer will have to be adjusted. I don't even want to think about the 70.3 in September. Bad times.

Half-marathon race report

Well, it's over. My first half marathon has come and gone. Mother's day every year is the Forest City Road Races here in lovely London. It's actually quite the well-organized day, and there is something for everyone with a 2.5k, 5k, 10k, and both half and full marathons all taking place. Race time was 8:00 this morning, so for me that meant waking up at 5:30 -- there's only about 15 minutes of travel time to get there, but I wanted enough time to get a bunch of calories into me before the start of the race. So up at 5:30, and about 10 minutes later I was busy eating. It was supposed to be around 10 degrees (about 50F for any of my American friends who might read this), so I had already made the call to wear a t-shirt and shorts. I tend to get quite warm during races, so I thought I might be able to take advantage of the cool weather. Because it was relatively cool, I also decided to ditch the Fuel Belt I've been training with. I figured with aid stations about every 3k, I'd be fine. I ended up having no problem with drinking... except, of course, for the whole spilling half of it on my shirt thing every time I tried to take a drink. Bad times. But, by the final aid station I had it mastered. Only took almost the whole race. I had estimated (more like hoped) for a time of 1:55:00. When my 10k time of 51:35 was plugged into the Runworks calculator based on Daniel's formula, it gave me an estimated time of 1:54:22, so I had rounded it up to the next minute in an attempt at figuring out what pace I should run. My original goal was to be under 2 hours. I broke the race down into four separate 5k "races," plus a 1.1k charge to the finish. As it turns out, my ability to keep a pace seems to suck a little. At the 5k, 10, and 15k marks, I was under my pace by a couple of minutes. I kept thinking I should be slowing down, that I wouldn't have anything left for the final few km... and I was right! From the 16k mark to just before km #19 we began a long trek up a hill into the wind, and suddenly I didn't have to worry about slowing down anymore. In fact, I slowed down so much I thought I was in danger of missing my 2 hour mark. Not the end of the world, to be sure, but when you set a goal for yourself in an unknown situation, it's very nice to come through in the end. I was experiencing pain in my left knee at this point, too, and I could tell I was limping to compensate. Things were momentarily grim. Just after the 19k mark (and my successful drinking at the final aid station) the course joined up with the final 2k of the 10k race, which had started one hour after the half-mary. So suddenly the road was packed with runners. Pain decreasing... pace increasing... time to go! I managed to pick it up for the final km and passed a bunch of people, and crossed the line with a chip time of 1:56:47, for a pace of about 5:32/km (about 8:54/mile). I was one minute, 47 seconds off my estimated time, but I'm not disappointed at all. Overall a good day, and I'm happy to finally have a half marathon under my belt. Here's what I learned:

• With enough Bodyglide, even you can have regular, un-sore nipples after the race!
• I don't need as much water/sports drink when it's cooler (makes sense, I guess).
• Wind and hills really have a negative effect on me late in a long race.
• My pacing needs work... I have to learn to slow down early to go faster late.
• Although I'm improving, I need to continue to practice keeping my shoulders relaxed during a run. I think this really helps in the long haul.

Next up -- Victoria's Duathlon (4k, 25k, 4k) on May 19. Looking forward to beating last year's time by more than just a little.

San Diego rocks

Well, the San Diego trip is over and I'm back at work... which sucks, obviously. The vacation was great, though, and I have to say that if I ever had to move to the U.S. and I was given a choice, southern California would rank pretty high on my list. On Sunday the 27th I took part in race #1 of the Playa del Run aquathlon series... 1000m swim followed by a 5k run. Before the start, we all stood on the beach and had a moment of silence for David Martin, who was tragically killed by a shark attack in the area two days before. Some people got a little emotional, including me... I can't imagine what it was like for those who were swimming with him at the time and pulled him from the water in an attempt to save his life. During pre-race instructions, the race director announced that anyone was welcome to come up and say a few words about Dave (obviously I didn't know him, but people around me called him Dave, and it feels right. It's not meant to be disrespectful). No one opted to speak at the microphone, but during the moment of silence someone called out, "You're with us right now, Dave!"... and well... let's just say that suddenly it got a little dusty in my immediate area, causing my eyes to water a little. Shit, I'm getting emotional right now just thinking about it. That's one (of the many) reasons I love the world of triathlon... it's like we have our own little community, yet it spreads across countries and continents, and there's always room for more. And when we lose someone who shared our love for the sport, we all feel the loss - whether we personally knew them or not. As for the race... I've never run immediately after swimming before, and I was more tired than I thought I'd be. My original plan was to swim as hard as I could, then just kind of hang on for the run. I wanted to get a good idea of whether or not my swimming had improved over the winter. Here's what I learned:

• For a heterosexual male, I can get pretty emotional.
• I'm still a slow swimmer, although I have made improvements (this swim was 2:05/100m... previous best was 2:19/100m in a 750m race).
• With a wetsuit swim that long, Bodyglide should be your good friend... I didn't use enough on my armpit area and my neck. This made for some painful moments during the run.
• I'm still a little intimidated at the start of the swim... again, better than last year, but improvement needed. I think it has to do with knowing I'm a mid-pack swimmer at best, and I don't want to impede the progress of anyone else.
• Cold water (it was in the low 60's, while the air temp was mid 80's) really seems to take my breath away.
• It's not fun to swallow salt water.

Other than the race, I took it relatively easy during the week... two runs and one swim (it's tough to get up at 6:00am when you're on vacation!). The area we stayed at was very jogger-friendly, with plenty of sidewalks and pathways.

Next race is this weekend... the Mother's day half-marathon in my town. First time racing that distance and right now the long-range forecast calls for rain that day... should be interesting, to say the least.

San Diego draws near...

Less than 5 days and I'll be on vacation in sunny (I hope) California. I mentioned before that I have entered an aquathon in San Diego - a 1000m swim followed by a 5k run. I'm very much looking forward to seeing if my swimming has improved at all over the winter. Wetsuits are allowed for the race, and I have one mild concern with respect to my wetsuit. I have a QR Ultrafull size XL short, which used to fit perfect due to my non-tall and non-skinny body-type. The "problem" is that I'm down about 20 lbs since I bought it, and now - according to the sizing chart - I'm out of the weight range for the XL and I should be in a Large. I haven't had it on in the water yet, only at home. It still feels ok just standing around, but I'm having visions of half the lake leaking into my wetsuit during the race and sloshing around my belly like the Michelin man... if the Michelin man was a wetsuit wearing kind of guy, of course. I have noticed that San Diego tri shops carry the Ultrafull QR wetsuit in the "large, short" size for $220. That seems pretty good for a brand new suit, considering I paid $200 for mine at the end of the season in 2006, and it was a former rental. The price falls nicely within the amount of Duty-free purchases I'm allowed to bring back into Canada at the end of the trip, too. Now that's something to think about.

F.I.S.T. Bike fitting... with my freak body

Earlier this week, I went through an official tri-bike fitting session with a recent graduate of the Slowtwitch F.I.S.T. workshop (Fit Institute Slowtwitch). Since I don't have a tri-geometry bike and I would really like to get one, I thought it best that I be fitted before heading out and making a (rather large) purchase.

As it turns out I'm very glad I did the fitting first. Small tangent: I am not a tall man. It has taken me time to be able to admit this, instead of telling myself I was of average height. So to add insult to injury, apparently my 5'9" frame is freakishly disproportionate, with my upper body being short and legs being long.

So basically I need a relatively short reach to the aerobars, compared to the rest of the bike. Based on my fitting session, I would only fit onto 3 bikes out there. That's three specific models, not everything offered by 3 different manufacturers. If I had gone out and bought the Cervelo P2SL that I wanted, I would have been having some uncomfortable rides to say the least. That leaves me with one model from each of Specialized, Trek, and Kuota. The Specialized is nice, but out of my price range at well over three grand. The Trek is aluminum and readily available where I live, which is nice.

I might have to go out of town to get it, but I think I've fallen for the Kuota K-Factor.

It is the closest, measurement-wise, to my fitting results, which bodes well. It seems to get good reviews from everyone who comes across it. And it looks damn good... can't forget that one. So, no purchase yet, but I think a Saturday trip to a bike shop or two in the region is in order... and soon!

10k Race Report

This past Sunday was our local Run for Retina - proceeds going to... wait for it... retina research! The event has many options for all levels of runners - a 2.5k, 5k, 10k, and a half marathon - and it is a very well organized event. There is also some kind of scamper for the kiddies. I opted for the 10k - I think I could have (maybe?) completed the half marathon, but there likely would have been a bit (or a lot) of walking. Considering my Sunday long run is only up to about 16k at this point, I think the 10k was a good call. Besides, I did a 10k in April/07 and much like the earlier 5k race, I was very interested in seeing what kind of progress I had made in the last year. Last year's spring 2007 10k time = 57:34. My race didn't start until 9:30, but with limited parking I wanted to get there early. The weather didn't look promising early on, as there was a snow/rain mix falling and it was cold. So much for wearing shorts. It didn't really clear up until later in the day, but the precipitation did stop before the gun went off. I had set a goal of 50 minutes early in the year for this race. Based on my 5k race time of 24:18, I knew it would be tough to achieve. I didn't really have a plan for the race - just don't go out too hard at the beginning... keep the HR in control. Well, much like the 5k, there's no way I could have gone out very hard at the beginning... everyone was trying to stay on the narrow path, since the surrounding grass was mostly mud. This made for a very tight (and slow) pack. I passed the first km marker in 5:33... sheesh. Ok, time to pick it up. My HR was only 158 - so I knew I wasn't really pushing it, since it averaged 166 for the 5k race a few weeks ago. So for the next few km I tried to increase my effort without it turning into an all-out sprint. I was successful, in that over the next 4k, my time for each km was less than the one before. They had 2 aid stations, each to be passed twice on the out & back course. When I'm out for a 10k run on my own I don't take any water or other fuel, so I wasn't going to grab anything. But I figured that for longer races in the future I would likely be grabbing all I could get my hands on, so I took something as practice and tried to run and drink at the same time. I did ok, not choking and not spilling too much on myself... I used the "squish the cup, hold it sideways, take small sips, and don't inhale at the exact time the liquid flows into your mouth" method. Seemed to work. Meanwhile, my HR seemed to be staying at around 160... given the 166 average for the 5k, I didn't know if I should be pushing the pace more or not. It seemed reasonable that with twice as far to run, my pace would be a little slower, and therefore my HR would be, too. It seemed to make sense, but I really had no idea. The only times it really increased was up a small, steep hill, and at one point along a long stretch of path that was down the middle of a huge, open field (between 2 soccer fields, actually) and was slightly uphill and into a very stiff wind. There was a point on the course where we ran through a tunnel which was going under some railway tracks. I knew from earlier scouting that after the tunnel there would be less than 2k to go, so my plan was to exit the tunnel at a faster pace than I entered it. I don't know what my pace was for the final 2k, since I forgot to check my watch at the 8k mark just before we entered the tunnel. Smart! But my effort increased and so did my heart rate, and I finished strong, so I was relatively happy. Final time = 51:35 -- about 6 minutes better than last year, or about a 10% improvement. This is consistent with the improvement in my earlier 5k race time over 2007. Average HR for the race was 160, max was 170. I was a little disappointed in not getting down to 50 minutes. I spent some time on the drive home wondering where I could have shaved off an additional 1:35 (other than just the old adage, "run faster"). Maybe starting a little quicker, and maybe trying to keep my HR a little higher for the duration of the race. I don't know... it would seem that my body is just not ready to run that fast... yet. Next race is the Mission Bay Aquathon in San Diego when I'm on vacation, April 27. A 1000m swim followed by a 5k run. Can't wait!

San Diego soon! Plus aquathon?

The last week of April/first week of May I'm taking some vacation time and heading west to San Diego with my future wife, her brother & sister-in-law, and my future in-laws (I know what you're thinking, but actually I'm very lucky, in that I get along quite well with all my future relatives-by-marriage). But here's the really great part: I recently discovered that there will be an aquathon race - consisting of a 1000m swim and a 5k run - on the 27th of April... one day after we arrive! Unfortunately no one else in the group is as excited as I am... in fact, with a 9am start and a 3-hour time difference to get used to, I'm not expecting any kind of personal cheering section to be joining me... I'll just meet them back at the hotel for breakfast (my 2nd, their 1st). I was surfing the 'net and checking to see if there might be a small road race I could enter while I was there, and suddenly there it was... the Playa del Run Aquathon in Mission Bay. It is definitely within driving distance from our hotel. I think I'm more excited about the race than the actual vacation itself... it will be a great opportunity to see where my swimming is at -- I'll be able to determine whether I'm still really, really slow, or just plain slow. I'm looking forward to it very much.

First race report of 2008!

And yes, that title totally deserved the exclamation point. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, a race report for the first race of the year... a 5k in beautiful downtown London, Ontario! I did this race last year as well - same distance, same course. So I was looking forward to seeing if my first winter of actually doing some training would pay off with some improvement. Last year's time = 27:16... plenty of room for improvement (I've told you before... I'm slow). Race morning turned out to be colder than I would have liked for late March, but it was mostly sunny and that took some of the edge off. I was actually thinking of wearing shorts, but with the wind gusting I decided against it at the last minute. Long sleeved T, zip-up vest, toque, gloves, running pants (side track... I bought these Nike pants a couple of years back... they're not tights, but they aren't as loose as something like say, windbreaker pants. I just call them running pants and try not to look too ridiculous while wearing them... I still think I don't look as goofy as the tight-wearing guys). Ok, moving on... this race usually has 400-500 people in it, and last year I started near the back of the pack, not wanting to get in anyone's way. Well... I thought I was slow... turns out the people who are there to socialize during the race and push their kids in strollers also start at the back. After taking something like 7 minutes to complete the first km, I was finally around everyone and was able to continue on my way. Lesson learned. This year I started closer to the front. I was still paranoid about being trampled by the 5-minute mile dudes, so I kept myself about 25% of the way back. It's a narrow starting area, so there was still some dodging-the-crowd issues, but not nearly as bad as last year. It seemed like a fast pace right from the start, but I felt in control... it felt good. My HR jumped up to 166 almost instantly (my first race ever with a HR monitor!). I was a little worried - I hadn't seen it that high since I tried to give myself a lactate threshold test on the treadmill a few times last fall. The tests I did all had my LT pegged between 166 & 169... I had kind of written it off at the time as inaccurate, but my average HR for this race turned out to be 166, so it might have been closer than I originally thought (I've been trying to find someone in this city who will do a lactate threshold test in a lab-type environment, but no luck so far). So my HR seemed high, but as I ran along I felt good... my heart didn't feel like it was going to explode out of my chest, or anything, so I just kept going. This race is two loops of a 2.5km course, and as I passed by the clock to start my second lap, I was just under 11:30. This thrilled me a little, and I let it creep into my head that a 23 minute 5k was possible. Yeah, right... nice try, though. The second half felt just as fast, but the clock told a different tale. In fact, I was about 30 seconds per km slower on the second loop. How is that possible when it felt so fast? I was passing people like crazy! Needless to say, this unthrilled my previous thrill. Final time = 24:18. About 3 minutes faster than last year, or almost an 11% improvement. I am happy to have gained 3 minutes over 5k, but I'm disappointed my second loop was so much slower than my first. Maybe I went out too fast, I don't know. At least now I know that the winter training did actually do something, and this race gives me a good benchmark for the rest of the season. Next up: 10k road race on April 13.

Great to see you, where have you been?

Ok, since no one really reads this, there is no one for me to see. But still, it's been a very long time since I've posted anything. Mainly because since my last post in December, my workouts have been anything but exciting, consisting mostly of some kind of base building, with the occasional speed or power session thrown in for variation. That's pretty much all I would have been writing about, so I just let it be for a while. Recently I had my first race of the season... just a 5k, but it certainly got me looking forward to the start of triathlon season. I plan on doing a mini race report for the 5k in a separate post, so I won't divulge any details here. Oh, yeah... you're on the edge or your seat. Training-wise, I'm currently doing eight sessions per week (up from 6 sessions during the winter) -- 2 swim, 3 bike, 3 run. The swims consist of a lot of drill sets and base intervals, with a few sprints in there, too. I'm working on breathing on each side (bilateral breathing? Is that what it's called?), and I stink at it. Not much to add, other than my confidence has increased in the water, but I continue to be a very slow swimmer. It kind of bums me out, actually. Three bike rides a week, all on the trainer so far. I've replaced some base building rides with other stuff... sometimes power intervals, sometimes speed intervals. I'm gradually bringing in some brick workouts, too. Three runs a week -- one speed, one tempo, one long. I try to do all my long runs outside, but with winter refusing to fully go away, sometimes I'm relegated to the treadmill. I don't mind it for speed intervals or tempo runs, but if it's a long run, after an hour on the treadmill I find it very difficult to maintain focus and boredom creeps in. I don't experience the same problem while running outside, thankfully. It seems to be a weakness of mine -- not sure how to fix it, other than with more practice. I've actually decreased the bike intensity just a little. The logic being that it will help with recovery and let me focus a little more on my running workouts... I have my first half marathon coming up and would like to do well. All this stuff is just preliminary, anyway. My "real" training will start at the beginning of May, a 20-week deal with the number of sessions per week being nudged up to 9. My big race this year is the Muskoka 70.3 in September -- my first half ironman -- so I'm looking forward to getting into the structure of the program, with a specific focus and goal instead of "getting fit for some short races this summer." That's it for now... 5k race report coming soon!