New Orleans Nonsense

So I raced in New Orleans last Sunday. Or at least had the intention of racing a triathlon but ended up stumbling through a quasi-duathlon.

The New Orleans 70.3 turned into the New Orleans 67.1 when on Saturday the race director decided to cancel the swim due to the forecast of windy conditions on Sunday morning. Other than a few extreme situations (ie an impending hurricane) I'm not aware of a situation where the swim has been canceled that early. When it happens, it is usually a game-time decision. And even then there is usually quite a bit of consternation.

But, it is what it is and we were left with basically a bike-run event. After all, its not like there was going to be any real separation in two miles among 35 fit guys who have to ride 10m apart. I had a decent opening run, and was on my bike without any issues. That wouldn't last long, though, as things went downhill quickly.

The details are presented below in list form because I'm in specification writing mode.

• About a mile (1) into the ride ride my front bottle which was filled with PowerBar Perform, decided it really didn't want to be in the cage anymore, so it flew away. 
• A Brazilian who I believe mainly does ITU races decided it would be a good idea to ride in our group. He rode like it was an ITU race, so when he finally decided to move to the front preceded to stop pedaling after passing me. I didn't brake quickly enough and there was the draft marshall to give me a 4min penalty, leading to...
• 4 minutes in the sin box. Never fun, but considerably less so when it is chilly and windy.   
• Replacement Perform grabbed at the aid station had a leaky cap and was spewing Perform all over my front wheel/frame/body/chain. I got a few swallows and had to dump the rest. 
• I probably didn't take enough calories, likely leading to a mild blow up the last couple miles of the run (5:45s to 6:15s).
• The last mile. There was a bridge, then a large roundabout, then the turn to the finish. We had already been through the roundabout once, after finishing the first lap, so I figured the turn for the finish wasn't too far past it after the completion of lap #2. I was wrong. We had to go back over the bridge then turn right and go through some gravel before finally reaching the anti-climatic finishing straight.

• The finish was in a gated parking lot at UNO rather than the French Quarter, the location of last year's finish.  

On the bright side, I did feel great on my new QR CD0.1 (when I was actually riding it) and felt good running as well (outside of the last couple of miles) so while last weekend didn't quite go as planned, I am looking forward to some solid racing in the near future. After all, might as well get all of the nonsense out of the way at once!  

Apr2-8

S: 25,300 yds
B: 7h 21min
R: 3h 58min

Total: 17h 36min

Ouch. It was a pretty busy week, both at "real" work and here in the "other" office. The result was a few really awesome workouts, one day where I got home and fell asleep for an hour and fifteen minutes (oops), and quite a bit of acute soreness. The highlight was, without a doubt the FAST track workout on Tuesday followed immediately by free Ben & Jerry's. Who needs chocolate milk when you can have New York Super Fudge Chunk??

Most importantly though the key workouts were very fast, which leaves me feeling fit just in time for New Orleans 70.3 in a couple of weeks.

Mar26-Apr1

S: 25,800 yds
B: 6h 12min
R: 4h 8min

Total: 17h 41min

Pretty solid week! Lets see... there was another fast track workout on Tuesday, a 4min power PR on the bike on Thursday (in a workout) and then the race on Sunday.

The race was certainly fun, but also a little bit of a CF... Really a combination of multiple CFs.

We started off with a pool swim which, even when designed really well, never actually goes well (CF #1). I was given the number '10', corresponding to the tenth starting position. Four spots behind me was fellow pro Craig Evans, who is apparently a pretty decent swimmer. Now I dont proclaim to be Ryan Locte by and stretch, but while standing for the start, I quickly came to the realization that there'd be a good chance I'd have to swim over a couple of people. So between the lane lines (300 yds in a 25yd pool...) and the slower swimmers, the swim was a bit rough.

Somehow Craig managed to passed me through the madness and I failed to catch the guy who started 4th, so heading out on the bike I was in third before a funny thing happened... I started moving up. I caught Number 4 about 4min into the ride, then just a couple minutes later reeled in Craig. Needless to say, I felt awesome on the QR CD0.1 so I tried to fly by Craig, hoping to gap him. Apparently he wouldn't have any of that, as he re-passed me a little over a minute later. We spent the rest of the ride going back and forth until, a few minutes out, we came to a pretty big intersection without a cop (CF #2). Thankfully we both recognized it as the intersection where we were supposed to turn right to head back to transition, and did so at high speeds while managing not to kill ourselves. After a couple of misdirections, we were finally back in transition.

Craig entered before me and I fumbled with my shoes a bit, so he had maybe 10-15s on me heading out onto the run. While that doesn't sound like much, it is a lot in a 5k, especially since due to the TT start I'd have to finish 25-30s ahead of him to win. So I took off and finally reeled him in around 6min into the run. From there on out, it was all about putting as much time on him as I could while also not getting lost...

Which brings up CF #3. While it was great to have so many volunteers/spectators (sorority girls) out on the course, I couldve done with more markings and less turns. There were no less than three 180deg turns along the way and the course varied from road to sidewalk, so I was never really sure I was going the right way. There also weren't any mile markers which, although not a huge deal, was a bit disappointing, especially when I crossed the line after after having been running for 14min 55s. I've been running well, but not well enough to run a 14:55 5k!

Craig crossed about 50s later, and no one else for another couple of minutes, so I felt pretty good about the win. This race was a great way to start the season, but hopefully next year they'll get some of the kinks worked out. The RD did personally apologize to me after the race, saying there were two cops at one intersection which is why there was one missing from the one where we were supposed to turn. I made some suggestions, like the idea of having a lead car for the bike and bike for the run, so hopefully the event will be better next year. I've been in that situation before (a college student trying to direct a race on a college campus) so I felt her pain.    

Mar19-25

S: 24,700yds
B: 6h 13min
R: 4h 12min

Total: 16h 53min

Wow... other than the pollen, the weather here has been awesome. I dont necessarily want to give it all the credit for recent awesome workouts, but it certainly hasnt hurt. Tues and Thurs were both, "Is my watch/PowerTap working?" kind of workouts... and in the good way!

This weekend I'm heading up to Murfreesboro, TN, for a little sprint race. Its been a while since I last raced a triathlon, so I wanted to get a race under my belt before New Orleans on April 22nd. Should be fun!

Mar12-18

S: 19,400yds
B: 6h 37min
R: 4h 8min

Total: 16h

Another weekend, another race. But who can turn down a free 10 miler? Saturday I ran the Rocket Run Ten Miler in Mooresville, AL, a very small town about 15mi west of Huntsville. The race is free for Huntsville Track Club members, so there really wasnt any reason not do it. (Incidentally, if you live or around Huntsville and arent a member of the HTC, sign up! Its only $12 and you get multiple free race entries, along with other benefits, so it more than pays for itself.) Local fast guy Josh Whitehead and kicked all of our butts, running 52:19 while I was second in a comfortable 56:30.

After a first mile of 5:49, I kept miles 2-7 between 5:40 and 5:40, then started bringing it down, finishing up with a pretty controlled 5:25 last mile. With Josh out of sight after the second mile, I was all alone out there for most of the race, but it was kind of nice to get in a rhythm and go. After helping break the course down and clean up, it was off to Cracker Barrel for some post race deliciousness.

Mar5-11

S: 20,400 yds
B: 6h 41min
R: 5h 14min

Total: 16h 56min

Glad to have that one out of the way! That was probably the hardest week of the year thus far, but I'm still feeling pretty good coming out of it.

Friday I had a last minute change of plans and decided to head out to Decatur, AL to run a relay with some Fleet Feet Racing Team friends at the Delano 12h race. David R, Lisa R, and Lynn C had their 4th member back out at the last minute, so I agreed to fill in. The race is a 12h race, 6a to 6p on a one mile packed dirt/fine gravel loop, but I knew I'd only be good for a long run. So after David and Lisa each ran a few loops, I got going around 7:30a and ended running further and faster than planned.

Data courtesy of the Timex Run Trainer

Although it sounds really boring, it was actually kind of fun. The surface was awesome, and it was great to have so many other people out there. Of course it also didnt hurt that the weather was picturesque. I ended up running 18mi w/ a 10mi progression run in the morning, then another 4 a few hours later for 22mi total. It was more than I had a planned, but nothing compared to most of the crazy people out there. For the day, our team finished with 95mi, a not-so-close second to the stacked team of George H, Tim V, Erik D, and Brad S, who had 117(!)

So basically it was a day of running and hanging out with friends. All in all not a bad way to spend a Saturday.

Feb27-Mar4

S: 18,400 yds
B: 5h 59min
R: 5h 46min

16h 59min

Another week, a few more VO2 workouts in the bag. Oh yeah, and then there was that race yesterday, the UAH 10k. I had 10k of faster running to do during the long run, anyway, so Saturday afternoon I pulled the trigger and signed up. This being spring in Huntsville, and the race being in the afternoon, there was a nice 15-20mph wind out of the N-NE which kept things interesting, if nothing else. So not wanting to give anyone a draft, I took off from the gun and ran pretty even splits, breaking the tape in first place in 33:52. Considering the hilly, windy course and the fatigue in my legs from the hard long ride the day before, I was pretty pleased with the result.

Unrelated to training, this race was awesome. I signed up the day before for three (3) dollars. I think day of race mayve been something unseemly like five or ten. On top of that, the race started at 2p! Now sure, there werent any t-shirts and the course was pretty boring, but there was RFID timing, water on the course, and bananas, muffins, doughnuts, peanuts, and other goodies afterward. But seriously.... $3! How awesome is that?!?!?!

Feb20-26

S: 18,800 yds
B: 6h 4min
R: 5h 24min

Total: 16h 48min

Back at it! The week before last was interrupted a bit by my trip up to New York/New Jersey for the annual Timex Multisport Team "Training Camp" aka yearly team kick-off and hangout. It really is a highlight of my year, and each time reminds me how privileged I am to be associated with such an awesome group of people. On that note, I'll have more to come, but for now you can check out the Timex Blog where it was well documented. See Shannon's take, Bo's take, QR presentation from Kyle, and Erin's take #1, and #2. Highlights include new sponsors Quintana Roo bikes and Champion Systems clothing, both of which I'm really excited about. Suffice it to say, workouts were a bit interrupted, but thats just part of the job.

Last week, though, was back to the grind and by Sunday I was toast. Thursday evening I had a really solid VO2 workout on the track, something I hadnt done since probably my junior year of college. After the recent economy phase, though, it really didn't feel all that bad until the last couple of repeats. The next morning, on the other hand, was a different story. I guess thats what happens you get old...

For this week; more of the same. Happy Monday!

Mercedes Half RR

High level summary: I have had better days. Quite a few of them, in fact. Fitness, as far as I can tell, wasn't a problem. Indeed, I actually think it was/is pretty good, and after the first few miles I was looking forward to expressing it. Unfortunately though, my GI system had other plans for the day.

So the executive summary is that my time was 1:14:40, but ~1:40 of that was spent, um, not running and more or less the whole second half of the race my focus was divided at best. I should thank the race organization for the plethora of port-o-johns out on the course; I certainly got my money's worth. If you dont want any more details, you can stop now.

If, however, you're still reading, well, here goes. It was a really cold morning, but for some reason it didnt feel like it was in the mid 20s when we were warming up. Not having any running short-tights, I went with briefs + running shorts (to keep the boys toasty), compression socks (to keep the achilles warm), my uber comfortable Sugoi TIMEX tech shirt, Sugoi TIMEX jersey, Sugoi TIMEX arm warmers, free cotton gloves, and of course the backwards hat. At the start I was cold, but thought I'd warm up and be OK. (In retrospect, I definitely would've bought and worn some half- tights; my quads and hip flexors were really, really cold.)

The gun went off and after the first half mile there seemed to be less depth up front than in years past, as things were already considerably spread out. Also in years past the first mile of this race has been in the neighborhood of 20s fast, so I wasnt sure to be glad or worried about seeing a 5:26 first mile. I figured best case I was right on pace, worst case I was starting a bit too conservatively. Either way, not too bad for a half marathon.

A quarter mile or so later, a long- haired white guy sporting a backwards hat came by me with a Kenyan in tow. I was pretty sure this was Mike Wardian, ultra runner/marathoner extraordinaire. I assumed he was running the marathon, and knew he consistently runs in the mid 2:20s, so I figured he'd be a great person to run with. Even if he was going a bit fast for me and I could only hang for 5-6 miles, it would be well worth it with the wind out on the course.

So I tucked in and focused on not tripping the Kenyan who was running behind Mike, thereby missing the second mile mark. The third mile came and we were through in 16:01 (5:20(!) pace). A bit after this, the fun started.

I've had the urge to use the restroom during races before, but outside of peeing on myself during IMH, I've always been able to keep it under control. So I figured this would be the case today, as well. Little did I know, a minute later, I was scanning for the next available port-a-john. I skipped the first one I saw, telling myself I'd be fine. I was not. The next one I saw, I took a bee-line to the door, hitting my start/split button before entering. I figured 10-15s max and I'd be back running.

After doing my business (#2) during the 40s pit stop, I was back on the course. I put it out of my mind and got back to racing, figuring surely that would be it for the day. While I was stopped, my Good Friend George had passed me, so I think I spooked him a bit when I re-passed him and headed up the road. Wardian and the Kenyan were probably too far ahead to catch, but at least I could keep them in my sight for a while. I missed mile 4, but I was through 5 in 27:26 (under 5:30 pace, including the stop), so I figured I could still have a pretty good race.

Mile 6 was another 5:30, and I was just starting to think about just getting through the uphill miles from 8-10 when it returned. Apparently, my gut had other ideas. Somewhere in middle of mile 7, it happened, again, except this time I had less time to get to the facilities. And then that happened. This second stop was longer, a bit over a minute, and included the loss of a piece of clothing.

I got back out onto the course and tried to get back into the race, but at this point it was an uphill struggle. The loss of the layer of clothing meant quite a bit less warmth, and the wind was biting. I was also still somehow fighting my gut. How there was anything left in it at that point was beyond me, but it seemed pretty insistent on not letting me do much of anything.

Worried about another event, I kept things under control at around 5:45 pace and was oh-so-happy to finally get to the finish.

So I'm still not really sure of the caused. Dinner the night before was at Mellow Mushroom, certainly nothing out of the ordinary. I eat there regularly, and have had quite a few pre-race meals there without issue. Something was up, though, because I'm still having some residual issues the day after the race. I was the only one at our table who ordered a Truck Stop Honey Brown, maybe that was it? Who knows... 

Race schedule!

With the first race of the season coming up this weekend, I suppose its about time to post a race schedule! These are certainly subject to change, especially the out months, but here goes...

Date - Race, Location
2/13 - Mercedes Half Marathon, Birmingham, AL
4/7 - Scholarship Fund Run 8k, Huntsville, AL
4/8 - Alpha Delta Piathlon, Murfeesboro, TN
4/22 - New Orleans 70.3, New Orleans, LA
5/20 - Florida 70.3, Haines City, FL
5/28 - Cotton Row Run 10k, Huntsville, AL
6/10 - Kansas 70.3, Lawrence, KS
7/1 - Muncie 70.3, Muncie, IN
7/8 - Chattanooga Waterfront Tri, Chatanooga, TN
7/24 - Music City Triathlon, Nashville, TN
8/5 - Washington DC 70.3, Washington, DC
8/26 - IM Louisville, Louisville, KY
8/27 - Who knows.

How about? Whats race(s) do you have targeted for this season?

Jan30-Feb5

S: 23,800 yds
B: 5h 23min
R: 4h 18min

Total: 16h 6min

Back at it! Another week of FAST swimming, biking, and running. Well, trying to be fast, at least. If nothing else the short, fast stuff is fun, but it does leave a much more acute soreness than the longer tempo paced efforts.

While having fun this is still training, which means there is still (or at least should be) an actual race at some point. So why not start this weekend? The Mercedes Marathon and Half Marathon are this weekend down in Birmingham, so I'm headed down to race the half. I've done this race the past few years, so it should give me a good indication of where I am relative to where I was last year.

Goals? As usual, cautious optimism is the way to go. One on hand, I'm trying to be cautious after missing so much time last year and so far this year not doing much half marathon specific training. On the other hand, I've been feeling good, running injury free, and lets face it... running fast is just a lot more fun.

Jan23-29

S: 20,200 yds
B: 5h
R: 3h 24min

Total: 13h 58min

Fun times, indeed, last week. This was a "recovery" week, which meant no hard Tuesday brick or Thursday track workout, so it was a nice break. But never fear, I still got to the track on Sunday morning for the conclusion of the long run. This being the winter and HHS not having any lights on its track, it has been rather dark out there, so it was nice to get out to the track in the sunshine. Equally nice was finishing the long run fast.

Jan16-22

S: 29,300 yds
B: 5h 46min
R: 4h 54min

Total: 18h 55min

BOOM. I had a great week of training, but did learn some things, the most important being that I'm old and slow. Well, I had suspicions about both, but the the slow part was reaffirmed by way of the track on Thursday. After all, as we all know, the track doesn't lie. The workout de jour included some fast 400s with plenty of rest but despite my best efforts I couldn't even run faster for one than I could for four in a row in HS. Looking on the bright side, I dont plan on racing any 400s anytime soon. Or 1600s, for that matter. But hopefully the short and fast stuff will, later in the season, help with the long and not-quite-as-fast stuff. In the meantime, I have to admit that it is kind of fun going out and sprinting around the track and doing every thing you can to hold it together for that last 100 of a fast 400.

Jan9-15

S: 28,600 yds
B: 5h 11min
R: 4h 18min

Total: 17h 8min

Whew! I'm definitely starting to feel the grind of training, but I'm also adapting pretty well, as I wasnt nearly as sore after the track workout this week as I was after last week's. These short, fast efforts are fun, but they definitely leave me sore.

Jan2-8

S: 28,900 yds
B: 4h 40min
R: 3h 51min

Total: 15h 50min

Well, the first week of hard training is in the books, although its not so much "hard" as it is "FAST". Really fast. Fast enough that I'm just now getting over some residual soreness from the track workout last THURSDAY. Hopefully though, soreness now will lead to positive adaptations and fast times later.