Last weekend I competed in the Timberman 70.3 triathlon in Gilford New Hampshire.  This is like a hometown race for me because it is only 90 minutes away.  The race director Keith Jordan always does a great job organizing this race and the volunteers and spectators are great.  It also had one of the most competitive mens pro field in on the 70.3 circuit.  My goal for the race was to swim hard, bike hard to put me in a good overall position to use my run to be with the leaders

 

  On race morning the temperature was already pretty warm and the air was very humid.  It was going to be a very hot and humid race.  I started in the front row on the swim and my goal was to stay on the feet of some of the top guys.  When the race started I did a good job of staying on their feet for the first 400 yards.  Normally after about 100 yards I am swimming by myself so this was a big step for me.  What I wasn’t prepared for was the constant contact with swimming in a group.  At about 600yds there was a group of about 10 and I was in about 3^rd in the group.  I stayed with this group until about 300 yards to go when I lost the feet of the swimmer in front of me and began to prepare to exit the water.  I exited the water with a time of 27:40 and was the 12 male pro out of the water.  Not to bad.

 

  I got on the bike and was with a group of about 4 riders.  My goal was to try and average 285 watts on the bike.  For the first 30 minutes my quads were really sore and felt tired.  I kept pushing because normally I have plenty left at the end of the bike.  After the first 30 minutes I started to feel much better and was cruising along.  At the turn around I was feeling great although my watts were a bit lower than I had hoped, 270 so I decided to pick it up.  I had just over 1 hour left on the bike.  After pushing at about 290 watts for 5 minutes, I started to feel tired.  So I decided to back off the pace a bit and try and settle back in at my goal watts.  For the next 30 minutes I averaged 280 watts.  At about mile 40 Janda Ricci-Munn came by me and I tried to keep him in sight.  At this point I decided not to focus on my powermeter, but focus on keeping Janda in sight.  During this last 16 miles the temperature really started to rise and I was starting to get very hot out on the bike.  The sweat was dripping of my face and elbows.  I had also gone through all of my nutrition on the bike after about 90 minutes so I didn’t have much in the way of calories for the last 45 minutes of the bike.  I did grab a Gatorade at one of the last aid stations, but the lid was not put on properly so every time I took a drink it spilled all of me and my bike.   I finished the bike in 2:17:18.  Not a bad time, but the course was very fast since most of the roads were just paved.

 

  My goal was to begin the run at about 2:45-47, so that I could run 1:15-16.  This would give me a finishing time of around 4:00-4:03 which I knew would put me right in the mix with the top guys.  I came out of T2 just over 2:48 so I was a bit slower than I wanted but still feeling pretty good. I lost some time to Janda in T2 so I had to push hard the first mile to catch back up to his shoulder.  I caught him at the 1 mile marker and tried to settle down into a comfortable pace.  My first mile was in 5:50 which was a bit slower than I thought since I was working so hard.  I figured it must have been slow because it was a bit long and was mostly up hill.  I was still having a tough time settling into a comfortable rhythm but I figured it was because I was running 5:30-5:45 pace.  When I got to the 2 mile mark I checked my watch and I was running 6:00 min/mile pace.  Not a good sign.  I am still holding out hope that between miles 2 and 3 I regain my running legs and am able to snap out of the pace I am running.  Unfortunately my next mile is even slower.  At this point I realized that my running legs are not going to come around.  Also I strained my right calf last weekend and that was started to get really tight and on the verge of seizing up.  I was only able to land on my heel and push off with my heel.  Adding to my misery my left achilles which had been sore for the past month was really starting to ache.  By mile 4 my goal was to just try and finish without injuring myself so bad that I end my season.  I finished the run with a time of 1:23:44.  I was the 8^th placed Pro with a time of 4:11:49.

 

   Overall it was one of my most disappointing races as a pro triathlete.  People had said that I might not feel 100% because of what Lake Placid Ironman took out of my legs and they were right!

  This past weekend I raced the 30^th anniversary of the Muncie Endurathon half-ironman.  I had heard a lot of good things about the race and was looking forward to it.  The race takes place about 75 miles outside of Indianapolis.  It is your typical Midwestern town with long straight flat roads.  The nice thing about this race is that most of the roads are closed to traffic.  The main road they closed was a fairly major road and they closed both sides of it. 

  On race morning we were told that wetsuits would be allowed which was pretty surprising since the water seemed very warm.  The official water temp was 77 with the cut of being 78, (age group rules.)  I started in the first wave with about 30 other guys.  About 500 yards into the swim I was at the tail end of the lead group.  I could see that two guys were starting to pull away from the front but I was content just sitting in the group.  Not sure if I could have gone with them since I was so hot.  The pace seemed to slow a bit after the half way point and other swimmers were starting to catch our group.  When we exited the water there were about 10 or so swimmers in the group with 2 people out front. 

  I got on my Jamis Xenith T2 in about 4-5 place, right with my US PRO TRI teammate Ryan Bates.  About 5 miles into the bike the race goes down a bike path which is about as wide as a one lane road. It was flat and as straight can be.  My legs felt a bit tired but I was still able to keep my power near my goal.  The roads were very well marked with painted arrows on the road ahead of the few turns that were on the bike.  Like I mentioned before the roads were closed to traffic and there were cops at nearly every intersection.   There was tailwind for the second section of the race which helped keep my speed up.  My time was 2:09:xx on a course that was a bit short. 

  I rolled into T2 and jumped off of my bike.  About 2 miles into the run the skies opened up and it started pouring on me.  It was actually nice because it was starting to get a bit hot and humid.  It rained off and on during most of the run.   The course was a simple out and back course on a side street that went around the lake.  There were some small rolling hills so it made the course fly by.  Also there were mile markers clearly marked every mile on the run and were very accurate.   I spent most of the run trying to hold back since I am racing Lake Placid in two weeks.  I ran 1:19:xx, finishing in a time of 4:01:22. 

  Overall this was a very well organized race and rates right up there with some of the best 70.3 races in the country.  One of the exceptionally nice things were the pre race expo was very extensive.  Also the food buffet had tons of stuff.  Each athlete was given a ticket to get Baskin Robbins sundae cup which was amazing.(Although not sure if it compares to Jordan’s Ice Cream.).  The other nice thing that you can’t find at a WTC 70.3 is that small race feel and the comradery that you find at a race like this.  Anyone looking for a great half-ironman or sprint race a bit off the beaten track should really consider this race.

  Here is a link to the local news paper article and video clip of me finishing:

http://www.thestarpress.com/section/SPORTS

 

 Here is a link to the results:

http://onlineraceresults.com/race/view_race.php?race_id=11328#racetop

I raced Rev3, ½ Ironman yesterday and can say that was the second toughest race (American Zofinger is the hardest!) that I have done.  The day before the race I drove the run course and I was very glad that I did.  I had heard that it was hilly, but I didn’t think it would be as hilly as it was.  There was one section called the “K-Swiss Mile” were it was a dirt road and all up hill.  The athlete with the fastest time up it would receive $500, very tempting but it was early in the run, 3.5 mile to 4.5 mile which would make the last 8 miles VERY painful.  Especially since the last mile was uphill.

  Race morning was very uneventful which is always nice.  My goal in the swim was to swim hard the first 500 yds and try and get with the second group of swimmers.  The gun went off and immediately my goggles started leaking.  Not good!  I had to stop a couple times and clear them and reseal them.  By the time I got that cleared up I was swimming by myself again.  I started to get into a rhythm and passed a few people about half way through.  Then with about 400yds to go the pro women started swimming by.  I jumped on the feet of a small group and finished the swim in 26:45 (15^th place for the pro men) about 4-5 minutes back from the leaders.  Definitely not the swim I was hoping for. 

  Starting the bike it took me about 30 minutes to get into any type of rhythm.  My goal was to avg 290-280 watts on the bike.  It seemed like whenever I looked down I was either 330 or 250 but never where I should be.  My plan was to stay patient and work the second ½ of the bike and the run.  I knew with such a challenging course I need to have plenty left for the end.  There was one section where it was down hill for about 5 miles where I was going 40+ mph the whole time.  I also knew that between miles 20-30 there was a 7 mile hill.  As tough as the course was none of the hills were very steep, most were long steady climbs.  I was able to sit and pedal up nearly all of the hills. The other thing that was nice was that the roads were all in good shape and were not too rough.   I picked it up for the last 15 miles to finish the bike with a time of 2:24:49 and in 9^th place, although Paul Amey(3x Duathlon World Champion, 2008 Florida 70.3 and Eagleman 70.3 champion) was right on my heels.

  Starting the run I had a terrible side stitch.  It made it even worse that the first mile and ½ was all down hill.  Every step was very painful.  I have been getting side stitches during most of bricks and even at my last race Florida 70.3, but they normally go away after a mile or so.  I was not so lucky yesterday.  It started to go away during the uphill K-Swiss mile but then came back on both sides shortly after.  The course is an out and back with a loop at the very end.  Near the turn around I was able to see the guys in front of me and many of them looked like they were really struggling.  I thought that if I pulled it together I might be able to catch some of them and move into the money (top 8).  At about mile 9 my side stitches started to go away so I started to pick up the pace.  On the long uphill I passed Leon Griffen to move back into 9^th.  I felt good for the last 3 miles but it was a bit too late.  I ran 1:19:57 for the 5^th fastest run.  Not super fast, but considering the way I felt I was happy.  My overall time was 4:15 good for 9^th a very disappointing day.  Luckily I race again next weekend a Eagleman 70.3 so hopefully I can redeem myself with a good race there.

  Overall this was a great race and I will definitely be back next year.  Anyone looking for a challenging, scenic, well run ½ Ironman should definitely do this.  The other thing that was great was that it took place in Quassy Amusement Park in Middlebury,CT (www.Quassy.com).  All athletes and spectators got free admission to ride all of the rides and into the water park.  My oldest son Jack loves scary rides so it was perfect for him.  Although he is only 2.5 years old he was able to ride nearly all of the rides.  His favorites were the roller coaster, the pirate ship, tilt-a-whirl and paratrooper. 

It has been a while since I have last posted but am going to try to stay a bit more current now that the season has started.

  I just got back from my first major triathlon of the 2009 season, Florida 70.3.  Overall I was a bit disappointed with my result, but considering my training this offseason it wasn’t too bad.  I was 12^th overall with a time of 4:04:42.  Hopefully this can be a good race to build on.  It has been that way in past.

  I went down with my wife, Megan, and our oldest son, Jack (2.5 yrs) and was using the race as an excuse to take Jack to Disney.  For the second time in his short life I may add. We stayed at the Nickelodeon Hotel (www.NickHotel.com) which was a great hotel; unfortunately Jack is about 4 inches to short to go on the water slides.  Despite that Jack loved the hotel. 

  On race morning we driving to the race and I was driving the same way I went the day before to check in.  We were getting close when we noticed cops had blocked off the road going to the Fort Wilderness.   We were already a bit late so this was not good.   We now had no idea how to get to the race.  After driving around Disney for a bit we were able to find the parking lot near For Wilderness.  I had about 1 hour before my wave was to start and the parking lot was 1+ mile away for transition.  So as my warm-up was running down a paved trail in the dark with my backpack. 

    With the race about to start my goal was to try and stay with the main group.  When the race started I got caught behind some slower swimmers and lost the main group at the start.  After about 500 yards I found myself in a small group of about 3 other swimmers.  I swam in 3^rd at very comfortable pace.  I got out of the water in 30:04 and was 5 minutes down from the leader and about 3 minutes down from the main group. 

  Starting the bike I was with a few other guys, one being Alex McDonald.  I had a tough time settling into a rhythm and I let him and a few other go.  Hindsight being 20/20, I should have pushed a bit to stay with them.  There were 3 out and backs on the bike course so I could see where I was in the race.  There were about 15 guys riding together in the second group.  I have to say that they were riding very legally every time they pasted me going the other way.  I have done a few other races were this group tends to look more like a bike race.  I rode nearly the entire bike alone and struggled keeping my power numbers where they should be.  I was about 15-20 watts less than what I was hoping to ride.  Most of the time during the bike leg even if I struggle in the lst hour I seemed to get a second wind in the second hour, but it never seemed to come.  My quads were really hurting with 11 miles to go and the end couldn’t come soon enough.  

  I got off the bike and had no idea what to expect.  I had only done a few bricks all year and they were normally after 90 minute rides and were only 4-7 miles.  Also my legs were toast from the bike.  I started the run and felt really slow and tired.  I was hoping this would go away. I looked down at the mile marker and ran a 5:35, which was very surprising.  I felt just as bad during the next mile and it was again in 5:35.  I started to feel much better after that.  Miles 3-8 I felt great all in about 5:40-5:45 pace.  I even found myself holding back during miles 6-8.  My plan was to start pushing it at mile 9.  I looked down at mile 9 and saw I just ran 6:00.  I picked it up and started pushing; hoping to get back to 5:45 pace, the next mile was 6:00.   Then I realized that I was starting to fall apart.  My left quad was cramping along with my right calf.  I no longer focused on running 5:45, but just making it to the finish.  I don’t know what the last few miles were since every time I looked down at my watch I couldn’t remember what my watch read at the last mile.  I also had really blurry vision so it was a struggle to read my watch. 

  The combination of the heat/humidity and lack of training contributed to my slow finish.   My run time was the 5^th fastest of the day in 1:17:20, which was surprising considering my melt-down near the end.   My bike time was 2:13:40 (2 seconds slower than 2 years ago.)

  After the race we left and went back to the Nickelodeon hotel to hang out at the pool.  On Monday we went to Magic Kingdom at 10:00am and went on nearly every ride and show that Jack was able to go on.  Even though it rained for some of the day there were no lines at any of the rides.  Jack went non-stop until he fell asleep watching the parade at 9:30pm.  His favorite ride was the Barnstorm roller coaster that he was just tall enough to go on.  We went on it 4 times right in row since there were no lines.  Tuesday we went to Epcot and Wednesday we flew home. 

 

This was the 3rd year that I have raced Eagleman 70.3.  It is a great race and I would highly recommend it to anyone.    It is flat and fast.  This was my first race of the year so I was a bit unsure of how I would do  especially since I have not trained much since my 2nd son was born in the beginning of April.  I had also had a problem with my calf cramping so I have only run a few times during this time.   The plan was to fly down on Sat morning and fly back Sunday afternoon.  I would need to race fast just to make my flight.  My flight was leaving from BWI at 2:45 on Sunday and the race was 80 miles away.

My father and I arrived on Sat to blistering hot weather.  We saw a temperature sign that read 98 at 4:30pm.  It was hot!  The pre-race stuff was pretty uneventful.  The pro meeting was at 4:00pm so we hung around till then and headed to our hotel to check in.  We grabbed a quick bit to eat at Olive Garden and I was in bed by 8:45.  Which is really early for me.

Race day morning:  The alarm went off at 4:15am and I was ready to go.  Normally the night before a race I don’t sleep that well.  This night was one of the best nights sleep ever.  We packed up my stuff and headed to the race.  When we arrived we were told that pro’s would not be allowed to wear wetsuits.  It actually didn’t surprise me at all.  I don’t know why but I thought that would happen.  During my warm-up jog I felt my calf starting to cramp up again.  I tried not to worry about it and hoped that 56m of racing would “loosen” it up.

The race started at 6:45am and immediately I lost the group.  That was my main goal of the day.  To stay with the lead group.  I spent the whole swim swimming alone.  I could see a group of women swimming a bit behind me and to the side.    I got out of the water a saw 30:47.  Out of the 3 disciplines swimming is the only thing I have been really doing the past 8 weeks.  So I was very disappointed.  Nothing I could do about it now, just get my bike and try to catch some people.

I race with a PT and was hoping to race around 290 watts.  With the heat I decided to back that down a few watts.  After about 15 minutes on the bike I realized that 280 was probably more realistic because of my lack of training.  I had adjusted my aerobars a bit the day before, this made my hands to far forward so I kept sliding down the seat.  So every 30 sec or so I had to slide back up to the top of the seat.  Which was super annoying.  The bike rolled on and I felt good easily pedaling along.  I picked it up a bit near the end to finish in 2:11:21 about 30 seconds slower than last year.  Not bad although not at all where I wanted to be.   I averaged 277 watts and 279 NP.  And my VI was 1.00, very impressive huh?  I had moved into 11 starting the run and new that there would be a few drop outs so if I had a good run I could  move into the money (7th).

The first step of the run my calf started to cramp up.  I thought about just dropping out since I wasn’t sure I would be able to run 13 miles.  The only way I could get it not to cramp was to land on my heal and push off with my heal with my heal.  So there was no calf contraction of my left calf.  I knew this wouldn’t be fast but hopefully it would get me to the finish.  My 1st mile was 5:33 which was very surprising.  My next 5 miles were all between 5:40-45.  I had pasted a few people and had moved up into 8th.  I felt good, except for my calf.  Things started to get a bit tougher between 7 and 8.  This is where I passed 3 more people who were really struggling in the heat.  And by the time I got to 9 I was really struggling.  The last 4 miles I was running 6:15-30.  I knew at mile 9 that I was not going to catch anyone in front of me and most likely nobody was going to catch me.  I finished in 04:04:49 good enough for 5th.  Not bad all things considered.

I hung around for a few minutes then jumped in the river to try and get my body temp below 100.  Within 30min of finishing I was disassembling my bike and heading to the airport.  Luckily there was no traffic and we made it to the airport with plenty of time.  We were dropping off the rental car at 1:00pm after finishing at 11:00am.  The flight was on time and I was at home in Maine at 4:15pm with my wife and two sons, Jack and Hunter.  It was great that I was able to race and still spend an afternoon with my kids.

Overall not a bad day.  I raced last year and thought I raced the perfect race.  This year I had a similiar result but felt I could improve in all three disciplines. Hopefully I will be able to find some more time to train so that I can start racing with the top guys.