Possum Trot 10K June 21st 2009, Roswell, GA
Hi Everyone!
I just did my first race of the year. Granted I am reporting on it two days later, but I don't think that matters. Heck the fact that I posted twice in about a week is amazing! So this was a last minute entry (i.e. Stopped by Big Peach Running because I really needed to do something last Thursday) and then I stopped at James' house Saturday morning 6:15am for the race. His wife Tandy and his two daughters ran the 1 mile fun run, and then at 7:30am the race was on.
The first halfSooo... I went out like a gazelle. Ok, not that fast, but I was definately pushing just under 8:00 min/mi pace. Did not really feel the humidity until about mile two, as it had rained earlier that morning, and the sun was trying to burn through. Oh did I mention pancake flat, with the exception of two hills? Sweet. As I hit the turnaround, I kinda felt like I was losing gas, so I slowed up just a bit, because I knew that I wanted to have enough in the tank if I wanted to have a good finishing time.
The second halfAnnnnd... I came back in like a hippo. As I got to mile three, I realized that I would need a "rabbit" (yes I normally pick the female type, so sue me :P ) so I hooked onto one that was passing me and followed her for about half a mile. At that point she started pulling away and I thought to myself, "Is she speeding up?" No, as it turns out, my Garmin was telling me that I was slowing down. Thanks Garmin, really appreciate it.
As I approached what I thought was the finish, I realized that everyone that was going down the finishing chutes was going in the opposite direction that I was running... What!!! we are not done yet? Awh Crap! As I looked down Garmin once again laughed at me and told me that indeed I had about 1.7 miles left to go.
About that small hill... yes, at this point I was pushing my HR max the second half of the race and if not for the fact that I could take much more punishment, the hill reared its ugly head and laughed. I had to walk part of it. I got up over the hill, to the 2nd turn around, which was the start of the race, and then headed directly back to the hill. At this point I looked at my watch and decided to get this crap over with, so I ran the hill and finished the race.
And the worst part was...that I did not qualify for the Peachtree Road Race 2009. As my watch said 54:18, my official time ended up being 55.27. While I can understand the 45 seconds due to a mass start and I was at the back of the pack, I cannot fathom the 24 seconds after I crossed the finish line. I mean I crossed at 55.03 right when the clock was in front of my face, and somehow I got 55.27. There were some other people I raced with and they noticed the same problem, so I assume that everyone got that increase. You need sub 55 to prequalify and there is another lower tier of times to get subseeded in the Peachtree Road race. The race organizers (Atlanta Track Club) give preference to those people when then enter the following year, over general entrants.
I had a good time though, and in the end that is all that counted.
Once race in the books for the year.
In other news I signed up for the Tri-PTC triathlon in Peachtree City, GA. Not too far South of Atlanta for those of you who know the area, and moreover, a wannabe Buckhead for those of you who know Peachtree City oh too well. That one's for you Matt ; )
Finally, and I will let you guys guess this one, until I get a new clock up on my blog....
363 days...
Murtha...
Labels: News, Race Information, Race Report
What motivates you...
Hey Everyone...
I have fallen off the face of the tri world. I have also fallen off the face of the tri world. It is interesting that so much has happened since my last post (March 25th) and yet I come full circle to where I was earlier this year. Once again trying to find my motivational drive to push on and do something I love, or thought I loved. We will get to all of this in just a minute.
I got out and went swimming yesterday! About damn time! I swam for about a half an hour at Gault's Ferry in Lake Allatoona. Nice to see it about full pool. Last year I was swimming in a shallow mess, and I would get a sinus infection everytime I got in that lake (GA drought last year that we are still kinda in). Anyways, the lake is pretty much back to full pool and it was sweet. Except for the kids. This one 13 yr old kid teasing me about my speedo. I just gave him a dirty look, considering his parents were sitting right there on the shore. ; )
My workouts have been few and far between as of late, heck let's be honest. All year long. I have not competed or signed up for one event of any type this year. Back up on weight, but not breaking 180..... yet. I mean I have not even gone out for a run/ride yet today, and to tell you the truth, I am not really in the mood. Just had one of my friends stop by for about half an hour and told him the whole story. He said I just need to figure it all out. The problem is that I don't know what "it" is.
Well yesterday was a start. I know I have not done anything today, and if I am going to do anything tomorrow or Tuesday, it will have to be in the morning, since I work both jobs at the beginning of the week. That is fine, get it out of the way.
Ironman CdA is this coming weekend. I am thinking about signing up on Sunday when online begins, yet I will not put too much thought into it. After not getting online signups last November with IMFL, which is a less popular event, I don't think it will happen this year. NA sports even issued an official statement in December stating that at the Full Distance level, you will pretty much have to sign up in person, volunteer then sign up, or pick a community slot, which is not necessarily a bad deal compared to volunteering (depending on where you volunteer at).
Good news that the 70.3 series is going to have a race in Augusta, GA next year. Same city as The Masters for those of you not very familiar with golf. I am excited about that one... for once a Ironman event that is not a 7-8 hour drive away (closest one without having to hop on a plane). I can feasibly take one day off work and then mosey on over to Augusta, rack my bike, hang out for the afternoon, and then get ready for race day, even hang out the day after (depending on Saturday/Sunday race).
I will get motivated again, I just need to figure everything out in my head. As much as this sport punishes your body, 80% of this game is mental. Period.
Murtha...
Labels: General Stuff, Inspiration, News, Race Information
Hard weekend, but no water...
Hello All,
I hope that everyone who celebrates Easter had a wonderful holiday weekend, and for those who do not, I also hope that you had a wonderful weekend in general...
Wed/Thu I had to work at night (Wolfgang Puck Express for those of you who have forgotten...hey it has been awhile since I have written). So Friday last week was kind of my Monday. I work for so long on days that I have two jobs that it is really hard for me to get up in the morning.
Friday
Training - Run
Location: Chastain Park Loop
Distance: 5.12 miles
Time:
Pace:
Avg HR:
Max HR:
Workout was not too bad, I tried to take it easy on the first lap since I knew I was doing two. I have been taping my feet more often lately since my feet have had a break for months now and I am adding on the mileage way faster than callouses would form.
Saturday
Training - Run
Location: Silver Comet Trail
Distance: 6.67 miles
Time: 95min 11sec
Pace:
Avg HR:
Max HR:
This was my weekend run with James. He was pushing out about 20 miles or so and he was late getting started because of his daughters' Softball games, so I told him that instead of meeting him on the way back, I would meet up with him on the middle third of the run. I also did not want to get caught doing more than last weeks mileage, which would have put me just over 8 miles in a day. I have really ramped up my mileage quickly this year from doing nothing. Fortunately I have been able to come back from long strings starting out doing runs in the 3-5 mile range as long as I am not trying to break the world record pace.
Sunday
Training - Bike
Location - Buckhead/Smyrna/Vinings area
Distance - ??? (14-15 miles)
Time - ??? (Around about an hour, maybe a few minutes more)
Pace -
Avg HR - ???
Max HR - At least 185!!!
It was really cold on Sunday! At least it was not raining. Earlier in the week it was forecasted to rain, I guess the front that was supposed to come through changed or dissapated. With the exception of a few nice downhills, this ride was one of those things your father talked about.... walking uphill both ways. There is a hill about two miles into the ride that lasts about 4-4.5 miles long, and it has varying degrees of grade with one small and one decent downhill. It was a killer. It ended up setting the pace for the rest of my ride (which was slow). What made it worse is that I have told myself (I have a Shimano 3 ring 105 front) that I will not go into the smallest ring. Now I know that the smallest ring of a 2 ring is smaller than my mid ring, however I am training myself to stay in larger gears. And in the event I get a bike with a 2 ring front (or new Shimano components), then I will be better bred for the small ring up hills.
It is great to begin to hear again from you guys. I forgot how much comradeship and friendship I have gained over these last few years with you all and it has been fun. I am going to make sure I don't try to get out of the loop anytime soon. I am working tonight and tomorrow night, so my training week will begin Thu this week. I am going to try and squeeze in something tomorrow between jobs, or early in the morning.
Murtha...
Out of hibernation!!!
Hello All,
I know I am going to have to probably visit most of your blogs to let you know that I am back (or that I even still exist, thanks Wes and IronEric for checking up on me, even though I did not have the courtsey to write back).
Where in the hell have I been?!?!? Busy working two jobs, having a late quarter life crisis (almost at the age of 28), unsuccessfully trying to get back into grad school (i.e. having problems getting motivated to take GMAT, etc), and a whole other myraid of issues which has kept me from triathlon and this blog. Heck my favorite magazine publication (I will give you two guesses but you will only need one) has sat idle for the last three months and I have let my subscription expire. Oh and there is weight, I have gained some of that back as well, however not as bad as previously feared... I think I topped out at 178, and now I am hovering somewhere back in the low 170s.
But life happens : ) And we adapt. Just like in the sport of triathlon. Murphy's Law will ensue during your triathlon career, no matter what level or skill you compete at. All you can do is adapt to what comes your way and hope for the best.
I have been "back in the game" for about two weeks now. I have put in about 5 runs and two bike ride thus far (and no swimming). The blisters are back and I have shaved once. Not that you needed to know about that last part, I am just trying to make myself sound more accomplished thus far ;) I am beginning to put my race schedule together this year, but it is anything but sexy. If I do have one regret at the end of this year (and I try not to have too many) I think it will be that I wanted this third year in the sport of triathlon to be my breakout year. This in respect to more long distance races, as well as dramatically increased times (also I wanted to finish at least once on a podium this year even if only 3rd).
This year has the semblence of a lot of shorter distance races beginning in June and ending my season in November with longer races at the end. I am trying to find most of my races in Georiga this year with the possible exception being the "Great Florida Challenge (Half)" in November. Good time of year to head to FL.
For those of you who did not know and I may not have even posted it, I was unable to sign up for IM Florida. Florida always sold out in the past, just never that fast. It was one of those where it would not kill you to not drive down there and sign up, or if you missed online signup the first day, you could get to it the next day. Well I was sitting at my computer at 12:00p on that Sunday with James on the cellphone at his computer and a message shows up.... "We will be delaying online signups until 1:00p EST." I thought that was weird, however, James and I remained on the phone and the internet looking at hotel rooms and such in Panama City for the following year. 1:00pm approached, and it took me about 30 seconds to get everything submitted. Error in processing it said. Tried again. Error. Tried again. Error. Within 1 minute I had tried submitting my app 5 times. 6th time.... "We are sorry the Florida Ironman is full." Turns out after talking with a few people, that there were enough people who drove down to FL to sell the event out at the signups before it even hit online.
A few weeks later, NA Sports posts its new revised Ironman and Ironman 70.3 Signup guidelines. At the bottom of the letter the put a footnote that basically stated in order to sign up now you must sign up a year in advance and most likely sign up at the event in person. Whilst I do not mind signing up a year in person, I do have a problem with having to pay for an airline ticket (or pay for gas driving), Hotel, Food, etc... and then the entry fee, just so that I can go back and spend the same amount (ommitting the entry fee) the following year on the same race.
Saying this... James and I have been pondering the idea of flying to CdA this summer and signing up for the 2009 race. I think that we might even volunteer and make it a 4 day weekend of sorts. Maybe a three day weekend and leave Friday evening (the bank is normally slow on Monday) and come back on the Red Eye Tuesday morning, just in time for work. As I go off topic for a moment, I do not think I will ever fly from the left coast back to the east coast during the daytime. With the time change, and depending on where you come from you can lose anywhere between 6-8 hours of your day. No thank you, I will fly at night and sleep on the plane.
So.... I don't really know what else to post here, except that my blisters now have blisters and I remember finally what it feels like to be sore. But it is better to be back here with everyone I have befriended from my blog.
Nice to see you guys (and gals) again!
Murtha...
Labels: General Stuff
2007 Emerald Pointe Triathlon Race Report, October 7th, 2007 (Lake Lanier Islands Beach and Water Park , GA)
The end of a season...
Wow! I sit here this morning at my computer, and it has finally sunk in. A third year under my belt, with many (mental) highs and lows. I think I am going to save most of this talk for my next post though, since it will be my 100th post on my Triathlon Blog.
Lets get down to business...
PRE RACE (LOTS HAPPENED HERE!)I went to go and pick up my race packet on Saturday afternoon, and sure enough, Transition was bigger! I think that this race might rival the size that Tri-PTC was this year, next year. SWAG bag was pretty good. I did not realize that Hahnsgrohe was a company that sold shower fixtures and other bathroom stuff. What an interesting sponsor. Oh and going to pick up my race packet was between job #1 and job #2 the day before the race. By the time I got in bed Saturday night and fell asleep it was after 1:00am. That means a bit less than 3 hours of sleep.
Oh, and lets take account of how many workouts I did between the 4 weeks between races.
0 Swim workouts
+2 Bike workouts
+4 Run workouts
= Almost no training for a triathlete!
I got up at 4:15am, and got everything in the car. My roommate helped me pack my car since he was still up from the night before. Come to find out many of my friends were partying Saturday night so late that they were either still up or just going to bed when I was waking up. I picked up Jackie and we were off to the race. I was so tired I fell asleep for about 15 minutes or so in the car on the way up there. We arrived about 5:50am, and then I got my gear out of the car and rode my bike to the transition area. The parking lot was further away from the race this year, which was fine, since the previous year the parking lot they used was right next to the run/bike exits, which was bad for everyone.
Brought my headlamp, and began setting everything up. Pre race fuel was a banana nut clif bar, some oatmeal raisin cookie from my swag bag, Orange Burst Gu, and Accelerade. I also had some water as well. Went to the bathroom the first time, and then came out to stretch and take in some more fluids. Then as "the call of nature" hit me, the most horrible thing happened in my triathlon experience thus far...
MY GROSS STORY IS WORSE THAN YOUR GROSS STORY!So I "answered my call of nature" by going back to the porta johns. Got inside and was about to take care of my business when I kinda slid on the seat. Now I was one of the earlier arriving athletes, so not many people had used the porta johns when I got there. Much to my horror, there was a reason why I slipped on the seat. It seems that someone tried to squat and "missed!" How you miss when the hole is probably 10 inches in diameter is beyond me, but it happened. And what is even worse, is that I still had to go! I am a guy, but that was the most disgusting thing that has ever happened to me in my life! I cleaned up as best I could, used almost the entire sanitizer spray dispenser in the john, and then ran to the lake (the only place where I had lots of water access) to clean up. I am done with this paragraph, I just cannot take it anymore.
Head back up to the transition area to grab my cap and goggles, and a few people commented that I went for an early swim. I half - heartely laughed and then went on about my business. Walked back down to the swim start site to listen to the USAT ref give the essential items out over the speaker phone, and said hey to my fellow Team Javelin race buddy! Swam about 100M to warm up, and then it was to the start line to begin the race.
THE SWIMI felt really good on the swim. I think that I am getting used to open water swimming, my times are improving, and I am not feeling uncomfortable in the water like I used to, which caused my breathing to be erratic. I started towards the back of the pack, and I regret it. This is a fairly new race (this was the second year), and it is not a USAT gold/silver/bronze event, and is not directly tied to any regional or state championship race. So as you can assume the average swim times were ratched up a bit. I bascially had to change direction and swim sideways to get to the outside, and then swim in the correct direction! People were breast stroking, back stroking, doggy paddling, etc. Now I don't have a problem with this, I just thought it strange happening the first 50M of the event, in the Men's 20-24 and 25-29 wave. I was very happy with my time, out of the water, except that the pad for the swim/T1 line was about 100 yds away from the water, and uphill. So needless to say that my swim time had an additional 30 seconds or so (give or take) of me running up "Mount Transition." Last year they actually had the mats about 10-15 yds away from the water, so although everyone's transition time was longer, it was a more accurate representation of the swim. Well now it is time to climb "Mount T1!"Swim
Distance: 400yds
Time: 9:59 (it is relative for everyone, but matt location added about 30 sec to my time)
Rank: 28/44 in AG
TRANSITION 1I actually jogged up the entire hill this year, maxing out my HR, and passing about 10 or more people heading to my rack position. As I got to the top of the hill, I saw my Javelin teammate, Andrew, at his rack position getting his helmet on. My rack position was awsome!!! It was right next to the bike exit, so in both T1 and T2, I spent the majority of the time running without a bike and cleats in tow. Since I was not trying to break any records in this race, I decided to strap my shoes on, especially since the bike exit was a bit treacherous.
T1
Time: 2:19
Rank: 4/44 in AG
BIKELets begin by reminding everyone that this was not an "A" race for me, and that I was here to do this race for fun! (No, I am not trying to have a pity party for myself, just to make a point) This course has short hills, yet there elevation grade is much steeper than almost all of the races I have done this year. Indian Springs had a few steep ones, but not as many as this race does. There are also two long incline grades, and the largest one is coming back into the park from miles 10-12. So there were two times during the ride where I purposefully slowed down because I did not want to overexert myself from lack of training. I was also having issues with the banana nut clif bar during the ride, so that was not helpful. I was supposed to take a Gu on the bike, but all I could get down was the Accelerade. I went a bit light on the mixture with the Accelerade, and I might do that more often, since it tasted lighter.
Oh and Andrew (my race teammate), DNF'ed a mile into the race. As I was riding by, he was about 10 feet away from his bike sitting there, and he saw me ride by. He did not have a happy look on his face. Bike did not look too bad, but he was cut up on his arm and knee really good.
Bike
Distance: 13 miles
Time: 41:35
Avg Spd: 18.8 mph
Rank: 14/44 ppl in AG
TRANSITION 2Again, taking my time was the theme, since I was not worried about this race. I wore socks this time, so don't worry about my poor feet. I still have not "quick laced" my new shoes, so I was wearing my old Asics. Took water on the run this time, instead of Nuun, so that I could pour water on my body if I wanted, as well as drinking it. I think for shorter races I am just going to work on getting the right nutrition pre race, and then AT MOST taking in one gel and some Accelerade/Gatorade Endurance on the bike. And were off...
T2
Time: 1:21
Rank: 24/44 in AG
RUNI remember this run from last year. 3-4% grade all the way out to about 1.25 miles and then downhill and flat until about mile 3, and then it goes back uphill into a flat finish. Piece of cake right? Sure, until I got to the uphill portion... I was pushing close to a 10min/mi pace at one point, and then I finally got it together, in addition to taking advantage of the downhill (like i did in my last race). My usual regulars that I see at every race passed me, and I think I just finished before the first female. Literally, like 5-10 seconds before. I finished really strong. My heart rate was getting into upper zone 4 by the second mile, and stayed up there for the remainder of the race. I ignored it. My rate of perceived effort felt a bit easier than what my HR was reading, so I went with it. My pace coming back in was close to 8:00min/mi. I feel like I should have something more to say here, yet I do not, this particular run was fairly straighforward.
Run
Distance: 3.1 mi
Time: 25:49
Pace: 8:20min/mi
Rank: 22/44 in AG
Totals
Time: 1:21:00.00 (BROKE LAST YEAR'S TIME BY 7MIN 50 SEC!!!)
AG Rank: 17/44 ppl (38%)
Mens Rank: 176/404 ppl (43%)
Overall Rank: 210/677 ppl (31%)
Man! If I knew I was going to do that well, I would have shaved my transition times and not let off on the bike portion, and I could have gained 2 minutes. That would have placed me top 15. With that in mind, I am very satisified with my results!
Don't quote me on it, but I will probably post something later this week, as well as update my blog links and such, and begin philosophying and discussing things that may be next year. There have been some new and interesting developments in my life as of late, and it may or may not affect my season next year (I certainly hope not!). As for now, my focus shifts to the Atlanta Half Marathon on Thanksgiving Day.
When I get pictures, I will post them to the site.
Murtha...
Labels: Gross, Race Report, Ranting, Team News
2007 Tri - PTC Race Report, September 8th, 2007 (Peachtree City, GA)
Well,
As much as I want to let you in on my time (for better or worse), I will go through the race report first, and then I will let you see the final time at the bottom... Please note I have been trying to break 1hr 20min for quite some time in a sprint distance event.
PRE RACEI had to go pick up my race packet first since Friday night pickup ends at 8:00pm. I don't know what they hell that Tri-Peachtree City is thinking when they do this. For those of you who don't know, Atlanta is either somewhere between #1 and #3 with the worst traffic in the US (I think Southern Cal and Chicago make up the other two). Can I say, AWSOME SCHWAG BAG!!!!! It rivals the Tri 101 series. And if you have visited their website, I can honestly say that they have the best schwag bag ever! Afterwards everyone went to Chili's to get there food on! I had a somewhat good meal of mostly protein and a salad, except for that damn skillet queso (I just can't get enough of chips, salsa, and dip). I also had a beer. While consuming said beer (Miller Lite), someone starting talking about Beer Pong. For those of you not familiar with beer pong, please visit this website when you are done. Even if you do not drink, you will fall in love with this game.www.bpong.comWell being both a graduate of the University of Georgia, and living the fraternity experience in college, I was well versed in Beer Pong. Needless to say there was no way I could say no to such a challenge. After dinner we went back to Matt's house (about 15 minutes south of the race event, convenient!), and began playing beer pong. My team won a game and then lost a game. Since I carry the team (based on my superior beer pong skills), if I am off, then we will lose, because there is no one to bring up the rear. After a couple of games, I had to stop so I could get my bike together and pack my transition bag. Matt brought home a portable breathalizer from his work, and I was the least intoxicated at .023 (just over 1 beer or some Listerine). Packed, taped, bungee corded, etc, and then it was off to bed at the early hour of 12:30am. Hey as my uncle once said,
"Hey if your parents tell you to be home early, then come home early. I personally think that 7:00am on a weekend is pretty damn early!"
I woke up at 5:45am, about 20 minutes after what I wanted to wake up. I was not too worried though, since I was only 15 minutes away from the race site. For breakfast I had 1 Nature Valley Bar, some Accelerade, and a packet of Jelly Belly Sports Beans. I got out the door ok and headed to the race site. On the drive there I consumed some more Accelerade and some Gu. The new Accelerade flavors are awsome, I got really tired of having the lemon lime all the time until this year. When it was all said and done I did not have too much time to put my stuff together in transition, since I forgot the that this was a championship series race for U23 in the USAT. That meant they started 15 minutes earlier than everyone else. I forgot my sunglasses! Fortunately the roads are shaded early enough that hour of the morning not to cause any problems. I spoke with a few perfectly nice strangers while setting up, just to pass the time. Then I headed over to the seeding site since they were about to begin the swim for everyone, and I met up with Josh Nickell and Robby Sprayberry. We all went to high school together. This was the third race (I think) I have been in with Josh, and this was Robby's first triathlon. Within about 5 minutes, I was next to be in the water (2 person staggered starts every 2 seconds)....
THE SWIMI think overall you could call this the most chaotic swim that I have ever been in. I cannot tell you how many times that I was either hit/kicked or I hit/kicked someone during the swim. Total melee! Puts Ulitmate Fighting to shame! I had trouble getting rythm since I kept running into people, yet I felt that I was moving through the water pretty quickly. The first leg and the last half of the return leg were not that bad, it was the middle of the race that was horrible (between the two horizontal bouys). After leaving the water I maxed my heart rate out going into T1, I wanted to make sure that I got in and out as fast as I could. By the way, Lake Peachtree was really, really nasty!!!! I cannot even begin to describe to you how nasty it was.Distance: 600M
Time: 11:49:00
Place: 24/44 in AG
T1As I stated before, I maxed my heart rate out going into T1, basically sprinting to my rack position. This is pretty much the largest transition I have to go through, save Emerald Pointe (it is a long run from shore to the transition area and a steep uphill to get there). Everything was on ok, and again I wussed out and strapped on my shoes before I got on the bike. Other than the aforementioned factors, I was pleased with my transition time. Time: 1:12
Place: 4/44 in AG
THE BIKEHmmm, I will have to say that I was very happy about this leg of the race. There is a no pass section of the bike that takes up about a bit over half a mile when you calculate both the out and back poritons of the "NO PASS" zone. Once out of that area it was on. There was no such thing that existed on my bike except for the big ring! I passed Josh around mile 2-3 of the bike. He is always faster than me on the swim, but I make up for it on the rest of the race. The first half of the ride was overall slightly downhill with you starting rollers at the top of a hill, whereas coming back you were hitting false flats and rollers beginning at the bottom of the first hill. If there was a hill, I just geared down on my rear cassette, and if I had do, get out of the saddle. I think my max on my bike (which was actually faster than my fastest downhill) was around 35mph. For my bike that was awsome, considering the highest gear I have is 53x12. I had some GI issues during the bike that were due to my breakfast, so I was a bit uncomfortable and was belching alot. The Accelerade I had on the bike in my Aero bottle was awsome, and I did not fell the need to take the Gu I had on my bike, since my stomach was acting up. I only got passed by a handful of people (maybe 6 at the most). I did pass some people, but not as many as I had anticipated. The majority of people I did pass were going uphill though. I think that my hill skills are improving, especially ther rollers. Once I got to about mile ten, I increased my cadence and geared down a bit to save my legs for the run, but not low enough to sacrifice speed. Right as I was about to enter the no pass zone again on the way back in, I got out of my cleats and peadled on top of them until I had to dismount. Distance: 13.00mi
Time: 38min 1 sec
Avg: 20.8mph
Place: 13/44 people in AG
T2After the perfect dismount, I hauled ass to my rack position. I almost missed the row, and quickly corrected my problem. I took about an extra 5-7 seconds in wiping my feet off since they were still very wet and covered in grass (the transition area was in a field). As I was about to run out a volunteer stopped me and told me that one of my cleats had fallen off the bike going into transition, and the put it at my rack position. I thanked the guy but I was really pissed that he stopped me, since all he had to do was place it where my stuff was, since he knew my number. I think what had happened was that I felt my bike jump when I was coming into the transition area, and that was my cleat hitting the ground attached to my crank, and then fell off. Shoes, number, sweatband on, water bottle with Nuun in it, and I was off.Time: 1:20
Place: 19/44 in AG
THE RUNThis was going to be the make it or break it for my race goal, the INFAMOUS 1 hour and 20 minutes that has eluded me for a year and a half now. I got off to a really good pace for the first mile, and although my Garmin was beeping at me for being in and out of zone 5, my RPE at the time was more towards a 6-7. I had a brief "comfort zone slowdown" near the aid station, which was on an out and back section just before (and after) the turnaround of the 5K. When I got to mile 2, I began to crap out and the run kicked up slightly uphill. I needed some motivation, and so I found a rabbit to chase. That lasted all but for a quater mile, but it was what I needed, and it took me throught the steepest portion of any uphill area on the run. Once I got to the final .6 miles, I knew it was the home stretch and kicked it back up again, since it was downhill/flat for the rest of the race. I passed Robby when I was about 100yds from the finish, and he was just going out. I yelled at him, but I don't think that he heard me. Onto the Finish, and the times are below...Distance: 5K/3.12mi
Time: 24min 29 sec
Avg: 7:54/mi
Place: 20/44 in AG
FINISH TIMETIME: 1:16:49!!!!!!!!! I BROKE 1HR TWENTY AND I BEAT MY TIME LAST YEAR ON THIS RACE BY 5 MINUTES 56 SECONDS!!!PLACE: 17/44 IN AG
Excited could nto describe how I felt. I called Wes, James my training partner, who realistically stated I would do a 1:18:30, my parents, friends who care about my triathlon life, etc. Everyone was proud of me, and I was proud of myself. I hung out awhile after the race to check out other results, as well as get my stuff packed and in the car. As I was going to transition, they told everyone to get out of the way, that the last person was coming into transition and that they needed to move out of her way. WHAT!!! I was very proud of this lady for being so determined to complete this event. I had time to finish, veg out, eat a bagel, 2 slices of pizza, and an apple, drink 2 bottles of water and sit down some more before I ran into this person in T2. I guess that is kind of like the pros in Kona who finish, go take a shower, eat and take a nap, then come back to cheer on all the people who finish before the 17hour cutoff time.
There will be some pictures to post in the coming week. For now I am going to get back on Athlete tracker and check out team raceAthlete and see how they are doing at IM Wisconson.
Murtha...
Labels: General Stuff, Race Information, Race Report
On the Eve on an Eventful (and long awaited) Weekend
This weekend is going to be good.... real good.
This is not to say that my three day weekend last weekend filled with the first weekend of college football (and heading to my alma mater, UGA, for the first game of the season) wasn't great either ;)
I remember just about a year ago (maybe a bit less), there were 3-4 Bloggers (Wil, Stu, Kahuna, Everyman and a few others) that decided to create an organization that focused on the seeming "Everyday Age Grouper."
Team raceAthlete
Anyone could sign up, and share memories, input, tri philosophy, etc. I will quickly admit that I am a tri geek, and an information tri geek at that! I cannot get enough of it. If they were to create a triathlon channel on TV, I would either apply for a job or pay for whatever TV package covered the channel.
Fast forward through the raceAthlete blog archives (as well as coverage on the Tri Geek Dreams PodCast), and there was to be a huge announcement. We all waited in anticipation as the time went by and then it happened. Team raceAthlete was to fully sponsor eight age group triathletes and send them to Ironman Wisconson. People entered, and peeps were selected!!! The eight of you (Stu, Roman, Bolder, Tracy, Brett, Michelle, Tyler, and Chris) have shared your journey and experiences with us since that fateful week, and I for one have thoroughly enjoyed reading/listening to your journey(s). From sponsored schwag and gear to team training trips and group race events, we were able to watch the progression of eight age groupers and what their potential would be come race day.
Well, race day is upon us folks!!! I for one am super exicted. I for one will be out of commission for the best part of the race (the bike portion), and so I will catch all of you on athlete tracker during the swim and the marathon. Good luck to all of you this weekend, we are rooting for you.
I too have a race this weekend. This is the third year in my participation of the Tri-PTC, a sprint distance event. This was my very first race. Although there are some really other good races around, I have an attachment to this race for nostalgic and sentimental reasons. I have improved year after year in this race, and some of my closest friends usually attend. Last year I had almost 15 people show up to cheer me on, it was really fun! Maybe down the road, I will switch up to a bigger race either in or out of town, but until my life changes gears, I will be competing in this race for the time being.
I am contemplating signing up for one more race, a race that I competed in last year (Emerald Pointe Tri - Sprint).
After that, it is the off season and training for the Atlanta Half - Mary on Thanksgiving Day.
Just under 23 hours to go. I geeked up for the weekend, how about the rest of team raceAthlete???
Murtha...
Labels: General Stuff, Inspiration, Race Information, Race Schedule, team RaceAthlete
