Kinetic Half Bike Relay Race Report

On Saturday I did a new to me race, a 56 mile time trial on a wicked fast course at The Kinetic Half as part of a 70.3 relay team. This was the first time that I just raced 56 miles on my bike, all out. It was awesome!.....and I was happy I did NOT have to run 13.1 afterwards :)

I was down in the area for Liz's weekend birthday bash at an AMAZING lake house on Lake Anna with a huge group of friends. The weather all weekend was spectacular with zero humidity and sunshine into the high 70's. Perfect weather!

As for race morning? It was COLD. 41 degrees when we left the house. Luckily I had packed arm warmers, vest, knee warmers, and long fingered gloves for the bike just in case. Turns out I didn't need them (it warmed up quickly!), but they were nice while waiting around in transition.

I was paired up with some CAR runners, Jessica for the swim, and Crystal for the run. Jessica has a swimming background, I have a cycling background, and Crystal is a runner, so we were ready to kick some relay butt!

And our team name?

don't ask how we came up with the name....

Overall there were 38 relay teams, with three of them coming from our group. Our swimmers were all pure swimmers back in the day, so it ended up being a close battle, with all three finishing within a minute of each other in 30-31 mins. These ladies were fast!

EDIT: I  TOOK THE KNEE WARMERS OFF BEFORE RIDING!!!!

Then it was my turn :)

As I was exiting transition, one of the announcer guys was running up and down the rows yelling out bib numbers for the other announcer guy to say who the person was and where they were from. He found us, relayed our number, and I waited for it....

"Number 608, a relay team! Name.......(pause)......Tom (pause) Selleck's MUSTACHE!!!"

Basically, his train of thought was, "Hhhhhmmm, number 608: OMG....do I have to say this? Sigh....."

I BURST out laughing as I was running out of transition. We TOTALLY got the win for MOST creative relay team name!!

Based upon the course profile and my successful 70.3 the weekend before, I was aiming for a 2:30:00 or faster time.

I came in at 2:30:39. Right on the mark!! 22.3 mph average, and by far the fastest average I have ever ridden for that long. The ride hurt the entire time, but that was the point. Hold nothing back!

The ride was also a great confirmation of my bike fitness and really gave me a lot more confidence in it, since I feel like I have constantly been struggling to get faster this season after a few stupid injuries.

HR was high!

The course itself was flat, with just over 1000 feet of climbing in it. I just hammered and hammered and hammered. With only two "climbs" in the entire course, those were the only moments I had to ever get out of aero, other than when cornering at turns. It was a nice course to stay consistent and (almost the fastest) course I have ever ridden, besides down in Galveston, TX.

When I finished and was running through transition, our runner, Crystal, was easy to spot with her not only waving, but wearing a bright red CAR top. We quickly exchanged the timing chip and she was off!

She, by far, had the toughest job of the day. Jessica was done in 30 minutes. I had the longest part of the day, but I was sitting down and it wasn't that hot. But poor Crystal. By the time she started it was getting HOT and there were a ton of exposed areas on a 3 loop course.

She did great though! She ran a 1:52 that put our team into 7th place out of 39th for a finish time of 4:55:xx. It was a GREAT day for our team!

Our "sign" of awesomeness :)

I spent the rest of the afternoon cheering in our other two teams, including Amy who was already running a half marathon less than a week after running a 3:36 marathon!

After the race, it was beer and relaxing time down on the boat dock, staying out of the sun.

Wordless Wednesday: MonticelloMan Race Photos

MonticelloMan Half Race Report

After the last 3 weeks of inconsistent training and disasters, I was thrilled just to make it to the start line, let alone do the run AND! run my 2nd fastest half marathon on a challenging run course.

Ever since I slipped in the shower three weeks ago, Sunday was the first 100% pain free day. Ever since I ripped a gigantic blister on my foot a week ago, Sunday was the first time I ran in a week.

So dropping my first sub 5 hour 70.3 after all of this was wonderful! This is a 3.5 min PR for the distance on a hillier course than my previous PR set on pancake flat (but windy on the bike) Galveston, TX. I'm still holding up the bargain with myself to PR every distance I attempt this season!

That being said, here is the race report:

Total Time: 4:59:49
Age Group Placing: 3/19 (bumped up to 2nd after 1st took overall)
Gender Placing: 14/114
Overall Placing: 15/167

Swim: 34:17
The day before, I did a quick 10 min swim in my wetsuit just to get used to it again. The last time I swam in it was Placid! Everything felt like it should, and it would be a matter of how fast I go.

Nothing too crazy to report about the swim itself. The last race I did was with 3000 of my newest and closest friends, so starting with only about 50 people was totally relaxing. I felt great the entire time and just got into a rhythm and kept at it.

I made sure to lube up the usual rub spots with plenty of Tri Slide.

Had no idea what my time was until after the race. There was no race clock at the swim exit.

Lake Monticello is a GREAT body of water. Clean and was 68 degrees. PERFECT conditions!

T1: 1:54
One of the biggest issues I had to deal with that day was the blister on my foot. I had to keep it covered for the run. So when would I cover it for the run during the race? The night before I put on a generic CVS brand "heavy duty water proof bandage." Before the swim it was firmly on there, so I just left it on.

I also used Tri Slide in the interior of my shoe as an extra insurance policy. Love Tri Slide!

During T1 as I was getting my bike stuff on, that bandage was STILL firmly on there. So I left it to T2 to see if would need to be changed....


Bike: 2:39:10
Like most early season triathlons, my inner quads (the VMO muscles) love to cramp at the very start of the bike. After 5-10 mins, the cramping usually goes away. This time, the cramping not only DIDN'T go away, but it got worse throughout the entire ride! Eeeks!

But what is strange, is that it didn't slow me down. I still felt fluid and strong, just in pain. Strange...

The course is a 2 looper, which mentally breaks it up. I loved the course! It is mostly flat (it seems) but still had over 2000 ft of elevation over the 56 miles. We drove the course the day before, which was a good idea to get an idea for where any of the hills were. Fortunately the hills were short (and not quite steep enough) that I could stay in the big ring the entire time. Long live that compact crank!

Other than the first loop, I was riding mostly alone for the entire ride, which was fine.

Also, my powerTap on my rear Zipp 808 isn't reporting any power data or cadence, so I just went off of feel and monitored my heart rate. It felt like riding naked but felt VERY liberating! I had my 2nd fastest personal HIM split for the distance.

Lap #1: 1:18:09
Lap #2: 1:20:43

Boy was I revved at the start!

T2: 1:60 (yes, that is the official time! haha!)
Got off the bike shoes, looked at the bandage and it was still firmly on there. Why mess with it? So I put on the socks and shoes and went! No blister rubbing issues. I think the new Wave Rider 15's did the trick!

Run: 1:42:29
Of course the start of the run hurt. It was uphill for the first 1/4 mile, but I kept it as smooth as I could and held back a bit. That helped settle my legs.

Cruising

By about mile 5 I was starting to feel pretty good and was running VERY consistently. NO blister issues. No breathing issues. It was the legs doing the talking at this point.

Armed with my Nathan's bottle filled with my "Waterade" (half gatorade/half water) I settled in.

Beth found me around mile 7-8-ish and gave me a nice motivational slap on the ass (literal! not figurative...) and I was on my way for the 2nd out and back portion of the run.

Here are my splits
Mile 01: 7:36
Mile 02: 7:36
Mile 03: 7:45
Mile 04: 7:42
Mile 05: 7:44
Mile 06: 7:33
Mile 07: 7:34
Mile 08: 7:49
Mile 09: 8:09
Mile 10: 8:06
Mile 11: 8:12
Mile 12: 8:11
Mile 13: 8:41
Last 0.1: 0:57

As you can see, around mile 9 is when I went into survival mode and just hung on for dear life. I was ready to be done by then.

HR kept creaping up!

Finish
The entire course was marked very well, except for the final turn. I had to ask one of the volunteers if this is where I turned to finish. Even she was slightly confused? Oh well. Turned the corner, went up a hill, there was Beth cheering me on and taking pictures, and the finish!

As I was running into the finish chute I saw the race clock and it ready 5:00:xx. So close to sub 5!

Or so I thought....


Gravy!!!
When they posted the results on the wall, I quickly learned that the race clock at the finish was slow. YES!!! I squeeked in under 5 hours by 11 seconds, and it said I took 3rd in my age group. But! The overall winner was in my age group too, so they took him out of the age group awards which meant I got bumped up a slot to 2nd. BAM! Out of 19 folks, I will take 2nd for sure!

Winners!
I wasn't the only victor of the day. Beth also kicked some major butt and won the OVERALL in the aqua bike division by over 9 minutes!!! Woo hoo!! You can read her report HERE.

About as ready as I can get

It's funny, I am totally relaxed and NOT freaking out over this 70.3 on Sunday. I am not exactly in the best swimming shape of my life right now, and with that monster blister sore on my foot, its gonna be an interesting race :)

I am taking the "no pressure" approach with this race. The Mont Tremblant races are my A races this season, and this race this weekend is just a season opener. Time to break off the tri rust!

My goal is to survive the swim, enjoy the bike, and hope to God I don't have any blister issues on the run.

My finish time goals? I really don't care. I just want to finish knowing I had a solid race and chalk it up as a benchmark test to see where my fitness is so far this season. There is no reason to kill myself completely at this race. I still have 4 months of racing left!!!

As for my blister, it has been healing well. On Tuesday after that botched run and when the dead skin came off, revealing raw hamburger, I took some Ibuprofen to knock down the inflammation, and used a combination of neosporin and "heavy duty water proof bandages" from CVS to protect it. It has healed enough that pressing down hard on the new skin doesn't hurt.

And with new shoes (Wave Rider 15's) that offer WAY more support in my blister prone area, I am going to in T2 take a bit more time and dry the skin as best as I can and apply one of these super bandages to it. What other choice do I have? Otherwise, I will have duct tape as a backup.

I just hope when I finish, I go, "That was it?" (Ironman DOES warp you...)

Good luck to everyone else racing this weekend!!!

The Blister From Hell

Ready for some more gore?

Sorry for the lack of warning, but this is my latest "stupid" injury. I classify a "stupid" injury as one that is just frustrating while preventing you from your full potential even though your joints and muscles are 100%.

This blister came from that amazing 14 mile trail run last Sunday. I knew that I was getting either a hot spot or a small blister, but I didn't realize how bad it was until I tried to run yesterday. I made it 6 mins before it was just too painful to continue. Now, whats left of that blister is raw hamburger.

I blame my shoes, the New Balance Baddeley 890's . I think they just fell apart a lot quicker than they should have. My previous pair lasted almost 300 miles and I kept them as a back up just in case because they were such a great pair, and I never got a blister in them. This pair must have been just bad luck. They barely lasted 8 weeks.

So I am switching back to the Mizuno Wave Rider 15's. While it is a slightly heavier shoe, the amount of foot support in my blister area is 10x's that of the New Balance. I used the Mizuno 13's and 14's all last season and NEVER got a blister. This latest pair of New Balance just wreaked havoc on my poor feet. Oh well. It was worth a shot to try the new shoes!

Fortunately I can bike all I want! And after basically a 2+ week taper from the ribs "stupid" injury, I am finally finding that speed on the bike again that I so covet. I put the Zipps on my bike last night and I flew! I love those wheels. So smoooooooth.

But! I have that 70.3 this Sunday! GAH! What do I do? After consulting some important people, I am going to see how well this blister heals by Saturday, do a 15 min test run, and go from there. My coach has suggested Newskin to protect it in the meantime and neosporin and a bandage.

I just don't want to destroy my foot anymore with a 13.1 mile run/race effort that will set me back further. If I do run, I will be using trislide galore on the spot to prevent as much chafing as possible.

So! Dear Blister: HEAL!!!!

Otherwise, there is always an aquavelo option. This is NOT an A race, and I don't want to increase an injury that will screw up more of my season. I just want to get in a good swim, and hammer the bike. The run will take care of itself I hope, if it happens.

Either way, I won't know more until Saturday.

Stupid "stupid" injuries!!!

The Snot Rocket Barometer

Hi there! Whats new?

I went silent over the last week because quite frankly I was fed up with my body from slipping in the shower that I needed a nice mental break from blogging. There was really nothing new to report other than, "Yep! My ribs still hurt...."

But! Now that my ribs don't hurt as much, I can finally report that I am rallying and coming back a tad stronger.

Swimming:
Swimming was the hardest to return to. Something about arm movement and breathing that gave me an awful stabbing pain in my side. Fortunately that went away after two weeks and I can now swim 2200 yards before that stabbing pain comes back. Fortunately! My swimming endurance didn't take much of a hit. Phew!

Biking:
A week ago I did a short 40 min ride (because 20 mins out I didn't think I was gonna make it back) and got back to my car and was wheezing thinking I was going to suffocate. That subsided and I saw day after day improvement. I was able to knock out a pretty decent 3 hour ride + 30 min brick last Saturday. That settled some worries.

Running:
I can now run up hills without running out of oxygen! Same thing was occuring a week ago where I would run to the top of the hill and just slowly run out of gas (oxygen) and would be gasping for air on the way down the hill. This past Sunday I did an AMAZING 2 hour run on the trails of Rockefeller State Park (where I only got lost 4 times...) and knocked off 2400 feet of elevation over 14 miles all while holding an 8:33 pace. BAM! Happy to see that some of my long run speed is still there.

Oh! And the title of this post: So I have been gauging my long term pain threshold by how little pain I get by blowing snockets (like that one?) off the bike or while running. Its gross, I know, but to do a successful snot rocket, you gotta blow out of your nose really hard and that really uses your rib muscles. The less sharp pain, the better, hence, The Snot Rocket Barometer.

And OH! I am doing a 70.3 this Sunday. Happy Tuesday!

An Opportunity I Might Regret Not Taking...

Thanks to Matty-O on Twitter this morning and Jason @ CookEatTrainRace, I learned about the transformation of Ironman St. George to Ironman St. George 70.3 taking place for 2013.

Slowtwitch wrote up a great report on the matter HERE.

Basically the popularity and finisher rate of IMSG was diminishing since its inception, and the powers that be @ WTC thought best to shorten the race to a 70.3 to make it more appealing (and most likely more profitable).

I am sure some folks think this is disgusting, or wimpy (and I totally agree with you if you are in that boat!) but as for someone who lives in the Northeast and just doesn't see early May as a viable time to race a full Ironman, I am welcoming the change of this race with open arms.

While it is possible to train for an early May Ironman while living in the Northeast, it won't be fun, and that is one of the reasons why I do triathlon and Ironman, because its fun. This is also why my A+++ race is usually in August.

In fact, I was looking for a Western 70.3 race to do for this early season, but there is a huge dearth of them currently, other than California 70.3 or Superfrog (are there others?), but San Diego isn't a venue I want to travel to.

St. George, Utah? Lemme explain visually:

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Screw racing, I just want to VISIT this area. Bryce Canyon? Zion National Park? Grand Canyon? Just to name a few...

I was chatting with a coworker born and raised in Utah and I said, "I could spend months out there in that area." His response? "Try a lifetime."

So already the screws are turning for 2013, even though I said, "NO MORE RACE PLANS TILL AFTER MONT TREMBLANT!"

Well, I already broke that when I said I wanted to kill the 5K, 10K, and Half Marathon again this Fall.

Why not an early season 70.3 out west and turn it into a race-cation?