You know it's summer when training starts to get really tough and the weather becomes brutally hot. Case in point, this past weekend when my training partner, Zimm, decided to enter us into this little race out in Wilmington. Despite the fact that it fell at the end of my longest training volume week of the year, happened to be 90 degrees on the roads, stiff winds working against us, humid, and Mother's Day, made this a difficult task to pull off.
I went down the day before and enjoyed the beach with my beautiful wife and 2 boys that morning before heading over to the hotel around 2pm on Saturday. After a short, and failed, attempt at napping with the boys, we decided to head back to the beach where they ran around some more and enjoyed the sand and surprisingly warm water. We had a good meal at Mellow Mushroom (altough not as good of service as Patrick Costello provides at the Durham location) and then headed back to watch a movie with the kids at the hotel.
A sleepless night with Eli in my bed and Braden in Carrie's and then up early on Sunday morning to race did not start off Mother's Day quite as I had planned... Nonetheless, Carrie was an awesome fan and brought the boys to watch me roll around for about 90 mins in the ridiculous heat, wind, and humidity. We wrapped up the day with another trip back to the beach before heading home.
RACE RECAP: The race was a duathlon with a 3.2 mile run, 16 mile bike, and then 2 mile run. I finished 9th overall out of 150 people and was 2nd in my age group. I had the 4th fastest bike overall (1st in age group and top bike with a non-tri or disc wheel bike) and was pleased with how I finished. I knew I could do better (I lost some time in transitions digging for a water bottle out of my backpack due to dehydration after the bike) but happy to have my lungs back and working again. Zimm Sr. and Jr. each had good races as well and seemed excited to back and training again.
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Unlearn What You Have Learned
Jedi lesson #1 - "You must unlearn what you have learned."
I raced for the first time since the 10 miler in the forrest back in the winter and it felt very very different. Not only have I fully converted to a mid to forefoot strike, my lungs are starting to get back to full strength. Roger and I went out together for the Tarheel 4+ Miler that was run just after the flagship 10 Miler race which drew a massive crowd. Our Olympic Trial Champion, Meb Keflezighi, was present for the gun start. He is our oldest Olympic Trial Champ at 36 and will be 37 when he dons the Stars & Stripes in London... a legend already.
I decided to start the race with Roger and help him learn pacing on this early season race. We were able to keep a respectable 7:40 pace for the first 2 miles but he needed to stop twice to clear his stomach and I waited the first time but he waived me forward at about 2.25 into the race. At this point, I decided to push a little to get to the long Laurel Hill climb. I have never been up this road before but am planning on making this a regular stop with the team come summer time. A great climb that brought my HR to 190 before I leveled off and turned on the boosters to finish strong. I closed with a 29:05 chip time and that was somehow good enough to take 1st place in my age group - weak field since the real runners were in the 10 miler.
My calves were on fire from all the ups and downs and the new mid to forefoot strike with the 4mm drop Kinvara 3's from Saucony. The evidence is overwhelming that this is the best method to run and it will continue to take some will power to prevent myself from heel striking.
After the race, Roger and I and his daughter, Megan, went out for a quick recovery run that ended right at Ye Olde Waffle Shop on Franklin St. in Chapel Hill. I, of course, had to get some post-race grub and polished off a full plate of waffles, blueberries, eggs, and bacon. Deliciousness!
Planned on getting in a nice ride and run brick of the Beaverdam course but we were sidelined today with constant rain... plugging on with a new week and will continue to tweak the foot strike to make it a more natural motion.
I raced for the first time since the 10 miler in the forrest back in the winter and it felt very very different. Not only have I fully converted to a mid to forefoot strike, my lungs are starting to get back to full strength. Roger and I went out together for the Tarheel 4+ Miler that was run just after the flagship 10 Miler race which drew a massive crowd. Our Olympic Trial Champion, Meb Keflezighi, was present for the gun start. He is our oldest Olympic Trial Champ at 36 and will be 37 when he dons the Stars & Stripes in London... a legend already.
I decided to start the race with Roger and help him learn pacing on this early season race. We were able to keep a respectable 7:40 pace for the first 2 miles but he needed to stop twice to clear his stomach and I waited the first time but he waived me forward at about 2.25 into the race. At this point, I decided to push a little to get to the long Laurel Hill climb. I have never been up this road before but am planning on making this a regular stop with the team come summer time. A great climb that brought my HR to 190 before I leveled off and turned on the boosters to finish strong. I closed with a 29:05 chip time and that was somehow good enough to take 1st place in my age group - weak field since the real runners were in the 10 miler.
My calves were on fire from all the ups and downs and the new mid to forefoot strike with the 4mm drop Kinvara 3's from Saucony. The evidence is overwhelming that this is the best method to run and it will continue to take some will power to prevent myself from heel striking.
After the race, Roger and I and his daughter, Megan, went out for a quick recovery run that ended right at Ye Olde Waffle Shop on Franklin St. in Chapel Hill. I, of course, had to get some post-race grub and polished off a full plate of waffles, blueberries, eggs, and bacon. Deliciousness!
Planned on getting in a nice ride and run brick of the Beaverdam course but we were sidelined today with constant rain... plugging on with a new week and will continue to tweak the foot strike to make it a more natural motion.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Inch By Inch
As my training continues to struggle to make it into the next level where I was at just before the pneumonia, I hover slowly waiting for my body to finally get right and let me take the jump. I tried again to push today and failed at the end coming to a walk while my HR skyrocketed up over 200bpm. Although, I'm not as anxious when this happens anymore after the pulmonologist cleared me with the chest x-ray last week, I still feel like I'm having a heart attack and back off. The swim is what suffers the most and I am thankful that I don't have any triathlons coming up soon. My breathing patterns and what I learned from Dave over the last few months has withered away and I'll need some serious practice to get it back... inch by inch.
The bike is my strongest part (I think).. only because of the 2 classes a week that I am teaching at UT that requires me to amp it up a notch. I have yet to get out on the road since the time that Zimm and I rode the record around the Duke loop almost 2 full months ago. Should be interesting when I try and go from no rides in 2 months to full throttle on Sat for the team ride from the house... I'll probably be hanging with Senior in the rear haha... inch by inch.
Run is the saddest part. Swim I expected, but to be so far behind with I was so far ahead prior to the pneumonia makes me really irate. I averaged 7:30's (although much faster before I was forced to walk with the 200+ HR) as I crawled home on a hilly course this afternoon after 460Kj on the bike... that will need to get better before too long. I signed up for the Tarheel 4+ Miler on April 21st and we shall see how far along I really am... inch by inch.
Happy to have Zimm back to train with for a Sat brick with some of the other team members. A new bike will make it that much harder to keep his wheel... inch by inch.
The bike is my strongest part (I think).. only because of the 2 classes a week that I am teaching at UT that requires me to amp it up a notch. I have yet to get out on the road since the time that Zimm and I rode the record around the Duke loop almost 2 full months ago. Should be interesting when I try and go from no rides in 2 months to full throttle on Sat for the team ride from the house... I'll probably be hanging with Senior in the rear haha... inch by inch.
Run is the saddest part. Swim I expected, but to be so far behind with I was so far ahead prior to the pneumonia makes me really irate. I averaged 7:30's (although much faster before I was forced to walk with the 200+ HR) as I crawled home on a hilly course this afternoon after 460Kj on the bike... that will need to get better before too long. I signed up for the Tarheel 4+ Miler on April 21st and we shall see how far along I really am... inch by inch.
Happy to have Zimm back to train with for a Sat brick with some of the other team members. A new bike will make it that much harder to keep his wheel... inch by inch.
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