Tri-Daddy

RACE REPORT - Mayo Lake Sprint Triathlon

2011-08-15T09:23:00.000-04:00

The past two years for me were marked by injuries, the loss of my mother, and a work schedule that prevented me from participating in many of the triathlons I’ve come to love in the area, like FS Series Battle at Buckhorn, which was the last race I did. As a result, my Kuota K-Factor had been wasting away in my shed (I’ve been riding my road bike with triple chain ring - taking great advantage with the extra gears on all the hills here in Raleigh). A week ago, I bought new tires, pedals and arm rests, re-attached my bottle cage, and gave the K-Factor a little tune-up. That night, when I saw the Mayo Lake Sprint was only $30, I couldn’t say no - and I’m glad I didn’t!

Mayo Lake is about 1.5 hours from my house, a very reasonable distance for me to drive for a clean lake swim, which seems to be hard to find very much closer to Raleigh. Passing over one of the fingers of the lake, I was excited about how calm the water was - like glass. As the swim takes place in a pretty protected finger of the lake, I doubt you would ever experience much chop. Although I didn’t check the course maps prior to the race, the point to point swim (750 meters) including only one sharp turn, unlike the two you typically experience in a normal triangular sprint swim. Sharp turns mess with my navigation a bit! But, on the course, I was able to spot the buoys a long way off and keep my head down. I churned out a nice 12:36 swim, right on pace with how I’ve been training.

I heard that the swim exit was changed this year because of the water level, resulting in a longer uphill run to transition. I hit it pretty hard, put on my race belt, glasses and helmet and shoulder my bike for the run to the mount line, but would soon find out that my 1:37 transition wasn’t much to my benefit.

What time I gained in transition was quickly lost at the mount line for the bike when I immediately realized that I couldn’t remember how I normally did this - right foot in my clipped in shoes first? Or left? I punted and hopped on my bike and rode feet on top of both my shoes before I finally manage to snake the right foot in. But, I compressed the top of the left shoe so much and couldn’t get my foot in. I gave up, pulled to the side, dismounted, and on wobbly legs (funny, they didn’t feel that way on the bike - must have been the uphill run to T1!) put both shoes on, mounted, and even then had trouble clipping in to my pedals.

Once rolling, my lack of time on my K-Factor (rode it twice in past two years) showed through on the 16-mile bike course. I kept clicking through gears hoping to find the right one, but couldn’t seem to find one throughout most of the course, which is a shame, since the course is on very smooth surfaced roads, featuring all right hand turns. The consistent rolling hills kept me running through a variety of gears most of the ride. The course wasvVery well marked with orange arrows and police/volunteers at intersections. Early on the bike, the sky let loose. While it was warm and very humid early on, the rain brought in cool temperatures. Given my 50 minute bike split, I wish I could say the rain slowed me down, but honestly, it was just lack of riding time and a botched mount, which I’m know will come back with a practice or two. On this day, I think I preferred the cool wet weather to the hot dry weather we’ve been experiencing.
I normally shoulder my bike and dash through T2, but the botched mount was still in my mind and I opted to go easy and push my bike through. I still had a nice 42 second transition and managed to kiss my daughter who ran down from the pavilion in the rain. My son, on the other hand, saw two guys ready to pass me and refused to give me a kiss. Go! Go! He said. I demanded a kiss and he blew one to me and said “Now Run!”

With a max long run of 4 miles in the past year (injuries) I had no idea what to expect on the 3-mile trail run. I heard there would be lots of skinned knees on the course, but given my trail running experience, I felt that was an overstatement. While the course was endlessly undulating with steeps rises and drops, featured plenty of roots and rough surfaces, the majority of it was on soft and spongy dirt, turned wet this day in the endless rain, which created more than a handful of mud puddles to run through, but only a few truly slick muddy parts.

My hopes for this day was to finish strong (nothing to do with it being an FS aka Finish Strong Series race!) and comfortable. There will be days when I push myself hard again, but today wasn’t one of them. I wanted to have fun and not experience any discomfort at any point in this race, so I kept a nice even 9-minute per mile pace throughout the run. I tend to run faster off the bike then slow down later on in the run, so I was extremely happy at mile 2 when I was right on my 9-minute pace and feeling good. Just as I started to wonder if the course was long, I turned a corner and saw the finish, which I hit pretty darn close to what I expected for this race (minus the bike difficulties).

As I said, I’ve run a few trail runs and given the shade this course would provide on a hot day, the run course is one of my favorite ever in a triathlon. I love trail runs and triathlons, but hate mountain biking - if you share the same interests, this is THE perfect triathlon for you.

Being able to throw in a fun excursion for the family is such a bonus for a triathlon, that I have to mention the nearby Rock of Ages Winery. Afterwards, the family and I detoured by the Rock of Ages Winery. We arrived at the beautiful winery and vineyard a bit early, but ran into the owner, Kevin Moore, a runner and former triathlete. He shared some stories of the early days of North Carolina triathlon and chatted it up with me until it started pouring again. When the rain stopped, the kids had plenty of space to run around and blow off some steam built up being cooped up in the pavilion during the rainy race. In a few minutes, the winery was open and we had a very generous and entertaining wine-tasting with a very unique creation of Kevin’s that pairs amazingly well with barbecue. Quite a surprise for a North Carolina wine.

Lake Mayo Triathlon

2011-08-08T00:30:00.002-04:00

Big day for triathlon at my house. Got new tires, tubes and pedals for my tri bike. Also, switched out the arm-rests on my tri-bars. The bolts were rusted underneath the old pads, but luckily I had an old set of clip-ons from my road bike, so I just switched the whole arm rest assembly. Then, a few minutes before midnight, I signed up for my first triathlon in 2 years! It's the Lake Mayo Sprint - cost only $30. Even now (the price increased at midnight) the race is only $40.

While I've been logging serious mile on my bike (serious for me - except for the year I did IM Florida, I've never ridden more than 1500 miles in a year - I'm at 1200 now) but they've all been VERY slow. Swimming, probably on par with any other year for me. Running? I've got just about 3 miles in me on a good day. So... this race will be INTERESTING!!!

Gone?

2011-07-29T14:42:00.002-04:00

Really... I have been gone. I haven't raced anything since January 2010 (March 2010 if you count the half marathon I didn't finish due to injury). Funny, though, by the end of 2010 I logged a personal best in yardage swam for a year and second best in miles ridden on the bike. Despite not having raced in 2011, I'm on pace to crush my PR swim yardage and challenge my personal best bike mileage for a year. God-willing, I'll throw a couple late season races in the mix. Mostly, I've been focusing on family/work and health. I say "family/work" because no matter how much I focus on either, each seems to get better. That's the great thing about a lifestyle job.

Post Apocalyptic 40 Race Schedule

2010-12-11T15:03:00.006-05:00

Catastrophe. I can best describe the effects of training on my body and my gear over the past year as a catastrophe. 40 has not been good to me. 40 will forever be remembered as a year of firsts. I turned 40 and experienced my first...

1. blister (several of them)
2. black toe nail (during the Richmond Marathon)
3. injury (torn piriformis during the Tobacco Road Half Marathon)
4. overturned ankle (severely on the Loblolly Trail - a few days before I turned 41)

My body and my gear feel and look a bit like Wall-E right now: pieced together by spare parts. My 2010 "season" was for the most part a wasteland. I'm hoping to find a little green plant and turn things around in 2011. To do that, I need a plan. I got one. I also have a race schedule.

Here it is...

June 5 - Kerr Lake (International)
PRIOR RESULTS: 2:37:51 (2008), 2:39:44 (2007), 2:47:15 (2005)
July 10 - Triangle Triathlon (Sprint)
PRIOR RESULTS: 1:27:09 (2007 - old course)
September 10 - IOS White Lake (International)
PRIOR RESULTS: none

Season Update and Pumpkin Bomb

2010-10-17T18:52:00.005-04:00

I wrapped up my Chi Running class with Pat's Personal Training last week with a pretty good idea of how I tore my piriformis earlier this year at the Tobacco Road Half Marathon. In trying to change my heel-striking form to a mid-foot strike, I was landing too far forward in my stride and too far forward on my foot resulting in overly tight muscles that couldn't bear the strain. In attempting to correct a style that never got me injured in 20 years of running - I got injured. For about half the Chi Running class, I thought I would just abandon the mid-foot strike all together and going back to my heel-striking ways. But, then I had a few "aha!" moments during the class. So, I have decided to continue working on improving my form.

Speaking of form, after about six week of four days of riding per week, I'm pretty sure I need to be re-fitted for my Kuota. I got my old road bike back from Sonny last week and after a few adjustments, spent 3 hours on the road including a jaunt on the bridle paths at Umstead. Super fun ride and practically no discomfort. Generally, in 2 hours on my Kuota, I'm pretty restless in the saddle and itching to finish up. But, I also need new tires. I just shelled out nearly $100 on two tires over the summer. One got a huge gash on only my second ride (I replaced it with my 4-year-old Vittoria I saved for emergencies) and the other tire is seriously worn. I've been doing a lot more riding than normal but, am pretty disappointed in the tires I just bought, which wore faster in 3 months than my VIttoria's did in 3 years. So, in short, I need new tires and a fitting.

Considering the incompleteness of my change in running form and my bike issues, it doesn't appear that I'll compete in a triathlon at all this year. I kind of knew that would be the case which is why I was training in hopes of competing in cyclo-cross but, there's just not money in the budget for a new bike. I considered selling a bike but, I just can't come to grips with selling the road bike (my first which I used for IM Florida) and I can't bear selling my Kuota - a gift from my sister and family. In dry conditions, I think I could pull off a cyclo-cross event on the road bike but, it was pretty squirrely on Turkey Loops descents. It would be crazy to risk another injury since this one has taken so long to recover from.

So, for the remainder of the year, it looks like I'll just be running, cycling and swim for the health benefits which sadly, doesn't offer enough motivation for me to workout when I'm not in the mood. You can read my editor's note in the October issue of Endurance to understand that more completely. On the other hand, skipping a three-hour ride in exchange for a hike with the family and a Pumpkin Bomb - pumpkin spice beer and goldschlager in a honey-spice-rimmed glass - is much more mentally rewarding!

Cyclo Cross & Chi Running

2010-09-21T17:49:00.002-04:00

It's nearing the end of summer here in North Carolina and as usual, I've been thinking about getting into cyclo-cross this year. I've done a fair amount of cycling since tearing my piriformis at Tobacco Road and a few weeks ago started a Chris Carmichael Training Plan for "time-crunched" athletes. It's basically intervals on Tuesday and Wednesday (which I do on the trainer) and "endurance miles" on Saturday AND Sunday. As a triathlete, it's a bit weird to have two substantial rides on consecutive days but, I'm enjoying the training and seeing results only three weeks into it the training. However, I'm not sure cyclo-cross is going to work out because a new bike just isn't in the budget at the moment. So, I'm trying to keep some semblance of run and swim training going so if all fails, I can squeeze in a triathlon this year. So, in addition to cycling, I typically work in one day of running for about 25 minutes and one day of swimming for about 45 minutes. The triathlete in me wants to do more, but work-wise, my schedule just won't allow it and there's a little voice in the back of my head is telling me to be happy with what I'm doing otherwise I'll do too much and get injured again. Guess I'm a little gun-shy after my first-ever injury. With that in mind, I'm taking a class in Chi Running through New Balance Raleigh. I had my first class last Wednesday and will have three more each Wednesday. So far, I think I've identified a few errors I made in trying to teach myself to be a mid-foot striker, which may have led to my injury I suspect. Finally, at the bottom of my "to do" list is posting a few pictures my mom took of me and Sandi and the kids at Ironman Florida in 2006. Memories!!!

Calico Toast

2010-07-17T16:44:00.003-04:00

When I was a kid, my mother would do anything for me. I remember once when we were camping, she offered to cook my favorite breakfast - two eggs over easy - on the green Coleman camping stove. But, for me, it took two pieces of buttered toast to make the breakfast complete and we were without a toaster. So, my mom cooked up the eggs and set the bread on the stove to toast it for me. We laughed at the finished product, which was burned, toasted, and uncooked in a manner that made it look like the coat of a calico cat. The cold butter wouldn't spread well and she tore a few holes in the toast trying to do it.

Last weekend, my son wanted to help make homemade pancakes but, we didn't have any syrup. I thought of the calico toast and rummaged through our cabinets. A few years ago, my wife and I were avid readers of Cooking Light, which has many amazing recipes - all of which require at least one ingredient we didn't have at the time. As a result, we wound up with a lot of spices and vinegars and other such things we have used only once. One thing we still have is... corn syrup. I found it way back in the cabinet, cooked it up with some sugar, brown sugar, water and a little bit of vanilla. Voila! Pancake syrup.

As I often do, before I served it to him, I told him the story of the calico toast.

Another Boot Camp Story

2010-06-24T16:31:00.008-04:00

It's been a while since I included a Marine story here. This is based on my own experience in boot camp (updated with a currently popular actress) and is dedicated to Marines and combat correspondents everywhere...

The blood vessel in his head is going to pop. It’s going to POP! The drill instructor’s flashing white teeth are centimeters from my eyeballs and I cannot flinch. To flinch is to die. Do NOT blink. His voice is alien and I cannot understand the words his mouth is making so he is now yelling in my ear as if positioning his mouth closer to where I hear he can force the words in better. He expects me to do something so I move. I move FAST. You do not move slow at Parris Island. You move fast and with purpose. Everything counts. Everything is watched and critiqued - your clothes and how you wear them, your bearing, your posture, how you speak and how quickly you can find answers for questions with no right answers, your fitness - EVERYTHING.

In a few moments, it’s over. I’m standing back in formation staring at the dark hair stubble on the back of another recruit’s shaved head. He’s got a white crescent scar where the hair doesn’t grow about a half an inch long, slightly off-center and tilted to the right. I know recruits best by the scars and hair stubble pattern on the backs of their heads - their faces, not so much. I can feel every leg of the huge mosquito that has just landed on my neck and continue to look straight ahead without a single muscle fiber twitch - flinch, twitch, or God forbid move, in any way is to draw swift and painful reprimand. Mosquitos have to eat, too, the drill instructors say. I let him feed. To the mosquito, I’m one of about 80 curious statues with soft skin to puncture with his proboscis this morning. To me, the mosquito is just one of many things I'm aware of within a 360 degree perimeter of myself.

Forward march we go. We quick step next and then we run. The drill instructor chants and I listen just enough to keep step. My brain commands my jaw to move and my lips to mouth the words of the “ditty” the drill instructor wants us all to repeat back but, I think of other things: the heat of the sun on my shaved head, the dead stillness of the swamp, how the canter of the road seems identical to the canter of my glasses resting cockeyed on my nose’s bruise from the where the drill instructor kicked my rifle butt into it, of how the oncoming platoon wearing Marine Corps issued red PT shorts and yellow shirts looks like a gigantic yellow skinned red-bellied caterpillar with 160 legs crawling it along Parris Island’s old air strip tarmac. Metamorphosis into a fragile butterfly this caterpillar will not.

My newly assigned occupational specialty is Combat Correspondent. I’ll receive training after boot camp to become a journalist and the drill instructors show me no mercy. They make me tell stories to other platoons and their drill instructors.

“Tell us the story of the three bears,” they say. “No not that one. The Marine Corps version,” they say. “The one where Goldilocks drops a couple of mortars on the bear’s house. Fuckin’ bears got no right hoarding all that porrage. Tell that one.”

I tell it.

I tell it exactly the way the drill instructors want to hear it: Jessica Biel as Goldilocks in a Rambo-ripoff adaptation of the Three Bears, where the wealthy and fanatical bears are torn apart by Goldilocks’ machine gun fire thus ending their hegemony over the world’s supply of porrage.

The drill instructors chuckle and say "ooh-rah", then, "Go away, recruit."

"Sir, go away recruit, aye aye, sir," I say. Then, I go away.

My Son: The Hunter Gatherer Warrior

2010-06-10T12:25:00.003-04:00

We shielded our kids from violence on TV, to the extent of not letting them watching Bugs Bunny and Tom & Jerry. Still, my son persisted in making guns out of sticks and bow and arrows from coat hangers. He's not interested in sports, especially not running or riding a bike like his triathlon dad (go figure) but he LOVES karate. Can easily demonstrate (and likes to) how to do a takedown. As a quick sidenote, my son is very mechanical. I'm a writer. He taught himself how to use a screwdriver when he was about 3 to replace the batteries in his toys I'd inevitably (and thankfully) let die. I still have to say, "righty tighty, lefty loosey". At one year old, he sat patiently watching and then applauded when I replaced the weather stripping on our back door. Like I said, I'm a writer. I think he sensed that at an early age. He recently "invented" a lever to lift up a brick and look for worms to use for fishing. We've never actually dug up worms and used them for fishing but, he's stuck on the concept of using a small piece of meat to get an even bigger piece of meat. Did I mention my son is also a serious meat-eater? My daughter and I are a self-imposed vegetarians, except for bacon.

Back to my son, the warrior...

Today he initiated an interesting conversation: If a blue crab and a hermit crab had a fight, who would win? (We recently found real live hermit crabs at the beach on a sandbar. Previously, I thought hermit crabs were bred in secret someplace only to be sold at select souvenir shops at the beach). Having been pinched by a blue crab at the beach a few weekends ago, which my son witnessed, I said, while holding up the pinched finger as a reminder, "without a doubt, the blue crab. He's bigger and has a bigger claw."

Then...

My son countered. Actually countered my argument, the little he-man.

"But, the hermit crab has a shell. He can crawl up inside to defend himself."

Okay... my son is 4. Four years old and he is thinking about defensive warfare. Cover and concealment, no doubt. The hermit crab can "defend" himself with his shell, dad. Duh. Weren't you a Marine or something?

Before I had kids, I would have argued to the death that personalities are "learned" traits in people. Clearly, they are not. Which, makes me proud. Not that my son is interested in fighting but, he has a natural inclination to build tools. If I were the first man ever on this planet, and was lucky enough to survive the sabertooth tigers long enough to father my son, raise him till he was 4, I'm certain he would have built the necessary tools and provided the necessary sabertooth tiger meat to extend the human race. If it was just me, the human race would have had a short, lonely, and hungry existence, which I would have written eloquently on a cave wall someplace, hungry and hiding from the sabertooths.

Taking a Breather

2010-05-28T07:37:00.002-04:00

Part of my salary is dependent on commission. I have to sell. Luckily for me I sell advertising/sponsorships for a magazine (www.endurancemag.com) and a series of races (www.ramblinroseevents.com) that I love. I was with Endurance Magazine when we first started the Ramblin' Rose Women Only Triathlon Series way back in 2006. Since then, I've sold a few ads here and there based on my sheer love of triathlon. I have no formal sales training. As a one-man show production "team" for the magazine I never felt I really had time to sell. But, as a result of my injury and past several years of training with a bunch of PR's (but sadly no age group victories) I decided to become "just an average guy" and have scaled back my training levels from what I call "olympic tri +" (so I have a solid base and launching point should I ever want to do a half iron on short notice) to "sprint -" (just enough to stay in shape to do okay at a sprint). The rest of my energies have been focused on work. Well, I had an amazing month of sales. Felt good. Promoting what I love. The recent success in sales has encouraged me to take more of a breather from training. I think it's quite possible I may just train without doing an event this year. I'm not planning anything at this point. But after about 6 years of triathlon craziness including a bunch of half iron events, Ironman Florida, a mountain bike ride across Costa Rica, and some very cool trail/mountain runs - I think a break is in order. Refocus. Still train and plan to come back later a little bit stronger as well as physically and mentally rested.

Weak Glutes & Hips

2010-05-15T12:54:00.005-04:00

I talked to a different doctor at Raleigh Ortho and he had me do some functional strength exercises. The tests revealed that whatever is torn is probably not badly torn. In addtion, it revealed that I have weak glutes and hips. Makes sense. I don't do strength training outside of a few basic exercises I learned in the Marines. He wants me to see the PT about working with me on some specific strength exercises. I may just research and find some on my own. I did run twice last week before my follow-up with the doctor. I ran once for 20 minutes at 9:10 pace even though I tried to go super slow and then once for 30 minutes at 9:14 pace when I was trying to go even slower. So, the doctor recommended I add in some walk breaks. Earlier this week I did 20 minutes at a 1/4 walk/run interval which put me at about 9:40 pace. Then the other day I did 30 minutes at 1/4 thru 20, then 2/3 thru 30 minutes. I finished that one at about 10:15. My plan is to do a couple weeks at the 2/3 walk/run interval, then a few weeks at 1/4, when I'll start ramping up the swim and bike intensity. Then finish up the last few weeks of a 12 week cycle running straight thru in preparation for my first sprint tri of the year. That's the plan.

Test Run

2010-04-30T15:28:00.003-04:00

Sunday is six weeks from my injury. I've got a planned test run for Monday or Tuesday. 10 minutes. If I feel good, another 10. I've only run once (for 7 minutes) since the injury. I've done a boatload of PT. I've even chased the kids a bit here and there the past week and have felt fine. If all goes well, my new season schedule will be a 12 week plan to the Mission Man Sprint, followed by another 12 week plan to the Emerald Isle Triathlon and the cyclo-cross season I've been bantering about for the past few years. I'm really going to do it this time. Really.

Cycling Route Mystery Solved & Food Memories!

2010-04-25T12:18:00.003-04:00

It was nice weather to take the old Kuota K-Factor out on a spin yesterday. Plus, I finally met someone who knew what the odd structure in the field by Mt. Vernon Church Road is - art! Cost $40,000 she told me. And, there's more beyond the treeline. The girl I caught up with on the hill just before the field said she read about in the paper once. See! You can still get valuable information from the newspaper. I've tried Googling that structure before but, always came up empty. Might not have known the right search terms.

Another bonus from yesterday's ride was that I got to see two guys walk a snapper turtle across a busy road. If you've been reading my blog for a while you know that I'm a saver of turtle during my bike rides. So, that was cool.

Total time in the saddle yesterday was 1:45:41. I hopped on the trainer this morning for another 51 minutes while I watched "Where the Wild Things Are". Definitely not a movie for small children. But, I did enjoy it. Very artful, I thought. At times, it seemed to me the Wild Things were how Max saw adults, other times, a reflection of himself. I'll have to re-read the book sometime. The only part I really remember from the book - my favorite part - was Max returning home to find his dinner... still hot!

Hmmm... now that I think about it, my favorite part of Ratatouille is the part where the taste of ratatouille transports the critic back to his mother's kitchen. I've said before on Facebook that nothing beats eating good food with good friends and family. Eating certain foods are some of my fondest memories of childhood. One of those is from my pre-kindergarten days where I'm sitting on my mom's lap on my dad's La-Z-Boy recliner watching game shows and eating peanut butter toast cut into quarters.

Time for a peanut butter sandwich!

Injury Update

2010-04-17T08:50:00.002-04:00

I'm still healing. I tried to run for a bit, with the doctor's permission but, only four minutes in, I called it quits. I need more time. I can ride my bike without pain and got permission from the doctor to ride more often than I have been and maybe even upping the intensity just a bit. I can also swim. But, I can't run again until May 2. That's the target.

I had actually created an alternate season plan based on getting back to running a bit earlier, but now I need to come up with a new schedule - which I need because I won't exercise without a race schedule hanging over my head. And honestly, the geeky side of me likes creating race schedules for myself.

According to my doctor at my last follow-up, I was pretty messed up. It's not surprising to him that the area of my injury is still swollen. He's cautioned me that it might never go back to looking the way it did before the injury. It was pretty bad.

It's really weird that after years of never being injured, something like this would just happen without warning. Or, it could be the culmination of years of inconsistent stretching and virtually no strength training. Who knows?

For now, I'm going to continue being what my wife calls "a physical therapist's dream" as I do all my new exercises and foam roller routines.

Tobacco Road Half Marathon: Race Report

2010-03-21T10:48:00.004-04:00

I DNF'd the Tobacco Road Half Marathon this morning.

My pre-race routine was exactly the same as the Little River 10-Mile Trail Run which was a 4-minute PR for me. I felt great except that my hips were tight - something I never experienced before. The tightness in my right hip faded away and the left seemed to be fading too. But then, crossing a road, I twisted just a little bit and it seemed to re-activate the tightness on the left hip. Shortly after that, something popped, and for a brief moment, felt like a vibrating rubber band right on top of my left hip bone. I pulled up and gasped, OUCH! A guy near me asked if I was okay and I lied of course, tried to run a bit more but felt like my hip wouldn't hold me and I'd just topple over. I rubbed it, stretched it (with some IT Band stretches I always do), tried to run some more but that was it. I watched the 1:40 pace group fade away along with the possibility of me finishing.

I'm not quite sure why I've bombed at all my long races the past two years. Richmond Marathon '09 (cramps), Duke Half Iron '08 (puked), Uwharrie '09 (knee). I finished those races and felt horrible at the end. Today, it was my hip, and it was bad enough that I knew without a doubt I couldn't run even a few more feet.

Now, I've had a few decent races but, all on the shorter side. Little River Trail Run '10 (4 min PR on the 10-mile course, 41/277 Overall and 9/62 Age Group), and Buckhorn Sprint Tri '09 (3rd in Age Group).

It is what it is. I had decided a few weeks ago to stick t shorter stuff this year. I want to figure out what I'm doing wrong but until then, I'm sticking to shorter events I've been able to be successful at.

A Week's Worth of Lunches

2010-03-14T12:03:00.004-04:00

When you're a married, full-time employee, and dedicated triathlete, you know you need to be organized. For me, that means making lunch in advance. It's noon, and I just finished what will be a week's worth of lunches for me:

Black Beans & Rice
Brown Rice
1 can Black Beans
1-1/2 large tomatoes, crushed
1/2 Red Pepper
1/2 Green Pepper
Olive Oil
Adobo Seasoning
Hot Sauce

Brown Rice for Vegetables
I make 2 cups of brown rice every Sunday - 1 cup for the Black Beans & Rice, the other for steamed vegetables during the week.

Sweet Potato Hash
1 Extra Large Sweet Potato, diced
1 Small White Potato, diced
Couple cloves of garlic, crushed and sauteed in olive oil
1/2 onion
1/2 Red Pepper
1/2 Green Pepper

Tuna Salad
I hate calling this "salad" because it's not the mushy heavily mayonaisse'd kind.
2 cans solid Albacore tuna
1 stalk celery
1/2 diced green appled
handful of sliced almonds, crushed
1/2 onion
Dijon Mustard
Pepper
Just enough mayonaisse to keep it all together

I also made a batch of whole wheat pancakes for breakfast, of which I have 6 remaining. Froze those in groups of three for an alternate breakfast to my normal Grape Nuts.

Race Report: Marine Corps Marathon 1998 (a little late!)

2010-02-09T05:07:00.000-05:00

For the most part, I've documented every race I've ever run. I even documented my very first triathlon in 1988 for which there are no existing records. But, I never documented my performance at the Marine Corps Marathon in 1998. But, while looking for some important documents tonight, lo and behold, my Official Marine Corps Marathon finisher's certificate appeared with 7-mile, 13.1-mile & 19-mile splits. So, 12+ years late, here's my Marine Corps Marathon race report.

In much the same way I would register for Ironman Florida, I decided to register for the Marine Corps Marathon except that it wasn't on a whim on active.com, it was on a whim on a postcard I received from the Whitman Walker Clinic in Washington, D.C., near where I lived at the time. Raise money and get trained to run a marathon. One of my girlfriend's (now wife) friends did a marathon, which was cool, I thought. So, I signed up to do one, too.

For 16 weeks, I believe, I ran 45-60 minutes every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, then went on a long run on Sunday. I trained alone during the week and was supposed to cross-train on Tuesday and Thursday but, I never did since I didn't own a bike, belong to a gym, or had access to a pool outside the 10-meter wide pool at my apartment complex.

Early in training, I did a 3-mile timed run, calculated my pace per mile and added two-minutes to it to calculate my training and race pace, according to the Galloway run/walk plan. I was a bit disappointed in my 9:30 pace which translated into an 11:30 walk/run pace. Having run nearly 6-minute miles as a Marine, I expected better, but considering I gained 40 pounds since the Corps and spent more time drinking than exercising, I accepted it and looked forward to finishing a marathon - something none of my friends were doing - which has long since been a selection criteria for me in terms of racing.

I don't remember much from my weekday runs except training on the beautiful W&OD Trail in Northern Virginia and all the fit people who ran and rode bikes along the paved route. My Sunday long run was an introduction to Heaven and Hell, pleasure and pain, in reverse order. While the shorter weekday runs always left me feeling rejuvenated and revived my interest in running, my Sunday long runs left my legs sore and revived my interest in not running - pure hell. But, I created my own little heaven after each run by rewarding myself to a colossal three-egg omelette with potatoes, peppers, salsa, shredded cheese, sour cream, mushrooms, bacon, sausage and basically whatever else I could throw in. Then, I'd kick back on the couch and not move till Monday.

During our training, we actually ran a marathon, which I did in 5 hours flat - just below my planned 11:30 pace. My fuel for the run was water and old-school PowerBars cut up into bite-size pieces for specific time increments. Immediately upon finishing I went to the bathroom in the park where I was certain I would throw-up, then die. I lived and ate an omelette to celebrate not dying. Then I'm certain, I crashed on the couch till Monday.

Come race day, I was a bit nervous from what I remember. I rode over to the race with my teammates singing our version of Cake's "The Distance"... "we're going the distance... we're going for speed...". I'm sure we thought we were very original since that song was still relatively new at the time.

Per our training advice, we started slow. I remember jumping up and down in the crowds so my girlfriend (now wife) and my sister could get my picture. The course was amazing. The crowds were deep on every street. Everyone cheered for little old me and my 12-minute per mile pace.

As the race wore on, we picked up the pace. I went from a 12:10 pace thru 7 miles, to an 11:35 pace at the half, to an 11:22 at 19 miles. As I picked up pace, I lost most of the group. Some however, lost me, but I still felt great. I felt a big surge near the end and started to leg it out... then hit the wall somewhere around 24 miles. For the first time during the race, I broke stride and couldn't keep my run/walk interval which I think was 7/1.

Just as I walked my way towards the Iwo Jima, my boss at the time, who I didn't know was coming to the race, jumped out from behind the ropes, high-fived me and told me how amazing I was... I felt the energy pass from her to me and it jolted me to sprint for the finish, where a Marine placed a medal around my neck. Final time: 4:54:38.

Despite walking, I posted my fastest split over the last 7.2 miles with a 10:52 pace. I ate a banana, got some water, and sat down in the grass and waited for my girlfriend (now wife) and sister to find me. When they found me, we went home and instead of eating an omelette, I ate a Quarter Pounder w/Cheese, Large Fries and a Coke from McDonalds.

The American Triple-T at White Lake

2010-02-08T14:05:00.002-05:00

If you're reading my blog, chances are, you've done an Ironman. Chances are, super cool endurance events get your juices flowing. Chances are, you long for the next big epic event. Chances are, you know about the American Triple-T: four triathlons over three days with more than 140 miles to cover. The event starts with a super sprint on Friday, follows with two Olympics on Saturday and then concludes with a Half Iron on Sunday. You can do it solo, or with a teammate. Part of your registration fee includes a super cool singlet. The event has been selling out for years in Ohio and this year, the Triple-T is hosting a second event in White Lake, NC.

And... they've added the White Lake Challenge for those not ready to tackle the full Triple-T. The White Lake Challenge is a Half Iron on Sunday.

Having done an Ironman, having done La Ruta de los Conquistadores, I have to say the Triple-T is next up on my list of epics. While I'll be working the Triple-T for Endurance Magazine this year - I just might "squeeze" in the White Lake Challenge. 2011 will mark my five-year anniversary of my first epic event, and I can't imagine a more fitting celebration of that date than doing the Triple-T.

By the way, if you're interested in registering you can still get the 10% Endurance Magazine discount by using the code ENDURANCEMAG. The discount offer ends on February 15th!

Register at http://www.americantriple-t.com/

Rocky IV

2010-01-31T09:54:00.003-05:00

I keep my trainer in the shed out back. When it's warm, I pull it out in the yard and ride. Slightly cold, I'll open the doors and ride inside. Freezing, I bring it in the house. But I'm not sure that today I want to track snow into the house to bring my bike and trainer inside. I might just get all Rocky IV and ride in the snow-covered shed and do some pull-ups on the door frame. You better believe I'll have some coffee though!

It's Not How You Run, It's How You Fly

2010-01-28T06:50:00.000-05:00

For years, I've had it all wrong. I've worried about the types of shoes I wear, the mileage I run in a week, how I cross train, whether or not I lift weights or do Yoga, and most recently with the popularity of fore- or mid-foot striking, how my feet make contact with the ground.

It's all irrelevant.

What really matters is how you fly because it's not about how your feet are touching the ground, it's about how your feet are NOT touching the ground - it's about how you feel in between the moments your feet are on the ground.

Think about all your favorite race photos... do you favor the ones that make it appear like gravity is sucking you down into the street, both feet on the ground, knees bent, body compressing? Or do you favor the one's where the photographer caught you while both feet were OFF the ground?

Exactly.

You favor the photos where you are truly flying.

When someone runs fast, you say they are "flying" and truly, it's not a metaphor. The more you fly, the less your feet touch the ground, the less your chance of injury, the less the impact of the coefficient of friction on your speed.

The secret isn't in how we run, it's in how we fly.

Race Results

2010-01-27T23:03:00.004-05:00

I'm interrupting my regularly scheduled 9:30 bed-time to bring you an important message. I've updated my blog to include my 2003-2005 & 2010 Race Results because I know you've been wondering about that. If anyone has the results to the 1988 Marine Corps Recruit Depot Triathlon in San Diego, please let me know. That's the final piece to my race results listing on my blog!

Little River Trail Run - Race Report

2010-01-09T12:43:00.008-05:00

One great thing about the Little River Trail is the 9 a.m. start - 9:40 a.m. for the 7K. I stayed up late (about 12:30) and planned to get up at 7, but wound up getting up 6, raring to go. I felt strong from skipping the bike on Thursday and swimming instead, then taking yesterday off completely. As I like to do but, rarely have the opportunity to do in the morning, I puttered around the house. I had some coffee and made a chill-out CD for the ride out. CJ came down stairs and asked me if I was racing and I fed him a breakfast bar and some milk, and got another cup of milk ready for his buddy Ryan who slept over last night. CJ and I talked a bit and that helped me relax even more since he was not his typical 6 a.m. ball of fire. I showered, he flossed his teeth, then gave me a "kissing hand" and wished me luck. I gave him a "kissing hand" back and got my stuff together and headed out. Everyone else was still sleeping.

I read something somewhere about how some people "drift" or let things happen to them and react. I tend to do that when it comes to racing. Feeling good, I told myself if I made it to the race before 9 a.m., I'd try to switch to the 10-miler. At 15 degrees, it was too cold to stand around 40 minutes waiting for the 7K to start. I stopped at a gas station to take a dump about 8:30, but the bathroom was out of order. Not sure if there was another before the park, I backtracked, found one, then headed back to the race start. I got there at 8:45 a.m., parked, went to pick up my bib and was about to stick with the 7K when the guy in front of me said he wanted to drop from the 10 to the 7. I took it as a sign and asked if I could switch, too. They agreed, we swapped bibs, and I returned to my car confident karma was working for me.

I quickly formulated a 10-mile game plan: go hard on the first long fire road downhill, let people pass on the next single-track downhill, but hold my own on the hills. The flats would be a judgement call depending how close I was to a hill - because I run best going uphill. I truly do. That's my strength.

Everything played out exactly as I intended. I rolled through the course creating gaps on the hills while people would tend to close a bit on the downhills. Just as I knew I shouldn't pass people just before a downhill I think the people closing in on me knew not to try to pass just before an uphill. As we got to the hillier portion of the first half, I had distanced myself from all but two who passed me as I walked through an aid station. Then it was just me - perfect! I didn't check my watch, but ran for quite some time without someone passing me.

Then, after I knew I was past the halfway point (there are no mile-markers), a woman passed. "Oh no she didn't!" I thought. But I felt it was too early to try and keep pace. She flew on the flats and downhills and created gaps on the downhills that I could never quite close on the uphills. I was still running within myself until I finally checked my watch: 52 minutes. Based on my memory of the course, I knew I was likely having a good race. I felt strong. So, I decided to go hard on the downhills again and stay on her heels for an eventual pass. Knowing her speed on the flats and downhills, I could never quite get close enough just before a hill to pass. So, I stuck to her heels and at one point, as she went around a sharp turn, she seemed surprise to see me and then picked up the pace on the uphills. Still, I clung to her heels on ever downhill and her pace going uphill was now equal to mine.

We reeled in one woman, the only person I passed on the course up to this point, then closed in on a guy. The woman I was trailing passed him, but he fell in right behind her, unwilling to yield his position. So, I clung to his heels. Not sure of how much more of the course remained, I held in check the power I had to pass. Suddenly, I passed a group of volunteers who told us there was only a half-mile to go. As soon as an opening appeared, I cut loose and passed the guys and the woman I trailed for so long. "Go get 'em!" she said.

For a brief moment, I thought I had made a mistake and wouldn't be able to hold the pace - forcing her to pass me back. This little fear kept me motivated to keep up my final sprint and I raced to the finish with a 4-minute PR - comfortably I hope - 10 seconds ahead of the woman.

While I've been making steady improvement running over the past few years, I was totally surprised by a 4-minute PR. I thought last year's 1:27 would be hard to beat but I knocked that out with a 1:23 this year. I placed 41 of 277 overall and 9 of 62 in the 40-49 Age Group.

My gear choice was perfect - CW-X Stabilyx Tights, Avi Stoltz Shoes, a Mizuno Biogear undershirt, my very old and trusty New Balance heavy base layer long sleeve shirt, a Columbia hat, and a pair of glove liners (yes, my hands were a bit cold, but I prefer slightly cold and dry to warm and sweaty). Nutrition was simply some Gatorade prior and water on the course. No gels this year, so I am super-stoked with a 4min PR without a gel!

In the end, super glad I switched to the 10 and super happy the Trailheads let me switch! Great race!

Little River Trail Run

2010-01-08T06:44:00.002-05:00

I love the Little River Trail run. The first two years I ran it, it was a 9-mile and 5K (I think) course. Last year, to mix things up a bit, they made it a 10-mile and 7K. It's still a 10-mile and 7K this year but, in the spirit of change, I opted for the shorter distance for the first-time ever. I haven't tackled a lot of single-track at Umstead in preparation and my regular training routes have been somewhat flat so it will be interesting to see how things play out this year. In addition, I think the temperature is going to be in the 20's - the coldest ever for this race. For those of you who live in the North, 20F to a Carolinian is like -30F to someone in Chicago. Should be fun and interesting!

Marathon or Half Marathon Decision

2010-01-07T05:47:00.000-05:00

I'm going to run the Half Marathon at Wrightsville Beach. My heart just isn't in it for the full. I've been pulling off some decent paces on the road and trails lately and I've seriously honed my visualization skills in the process. It's been rewarding to be able to run as fast as I have been. But, when I compare my training for this marathon to my training for Richmond, it hasn't been fun. While training for Richmond, I saw my paces improve dramatically as well but felt great after each run - even immediately after each run. Now, regardless of my pace, regardless of running LSD or tempo or intervals, I feel seriously worked and don't recover until just before my next workout it seems. There's been a lot of bannister-holding while walking down steps and on most days I've been unable to run with my kids because my legs are still store from my last workout. Getting faster is addictive and I finally get why people run through pain and black toenails and what not. It's hard to quit when your numbers on paper are better than they have been - but numbers don't tell the whole story. When I run my next marathon, I want to hit my goal. I don't think I'm traveling down a road that's going to enable me to do that. What's more, the way my triathlon schedule is playing out, I'll likely only do early-season triathlons - a sprint or two and an Olympic. I'm a triathlete at heart and placing well at a sprint triathlon is still more rewarding to me than being just another finisher in a marathon. I want to be healthy when I jump into triathlon training full-swing and suffering through a March 21 marathon isn't going to be a good set-up for an April triathlon.

So, the half marathon it is.

What Should I Do?

2009-12-29T21:15:00.002-05:00

I'm considering abandoning my pursuit of another marathon and dropping down to a half marathon on March 21. I just haven't felt fresh since my great run last weekend. It's far to early in my training cycle to feel like I've got nothing in the tank.

I'd like to think that by not running a full marathon, I could run a FAST half marathon. Build some speed and endurance possibly prior to tackling a summer triathlon schedule of a couple sprints and an A-race Olympic. But, things don't always work out that way - I might be too tired to put in the intensity to run a fast half marathon.

I've got time to think about it but, have no clue what I'm going to do. By this time of year, I usually have a race schedule laid out. Maybe I'll just do something crazy like train with no specific goal and do races on a whim.

So far, whatever course I choose, my schedule looks something like this:

Little River Trail Run - Early January
Melbourne Beaches & Music Half Marathon - Early February
Wrightsville Beach or Tobacco Road (Half or Full Marathon, haven't decided) - March 21
Riverwood Sprint Triathlon - Late April
Kerr Lake Olympic (A-priority Race) - Early June

But Who's Counting?

2009-12-26T10:37:00.002-05:00

I Won!

2009-12-20T12:17:00.002-05:00

It wasn't an official race, but it was a race - and I won! For the 16 weeks leading up to the Richmond Marathon I periodically tackled an 8 mile route. I tried like hell to break one hour. The closest I got was 1:00:43. Those 43 seconds became my enemy always standing between me and victory as I failed on two other attempts to beat 1:00:43.

With this morning's stiff headwind on the way out, I hesitated to look at my watch, but when I reached a known distance on my route, I looked - I was on track to break 30 minutes at the halfway point - something I'd never done before. But the wind was really wearing me down and I started using it as an excuse in case I couldn't hold the pace back. I eased up a bit to conserve energy in case I bonked. Mentally, I was conceding the opportunity to break an hour - too much wind today.

But then I remembered Ironman Kona.

I don't usually watch it, but my son was interested enough to watch most of it with me yesterday. I was completely mesmerized by Craig Alexander's run... his stride, his calm demeanor, and just how fluid and effortless his form seemed to be. I kept that picture in my mind and focused my gaze only a few feet in front of me rather than the entire distance of the long straight road. I faltered in my stride and breathing a few times and had to re-focus but I kept going back to the image of Alexander running. At times, I felt every fiber of my muscles working together creating such fluid form that my feet hardly seemed to touch the ground.

I just ran.

I didn't think to look at my watch till I turned into my neighborhood - 58 minutes!!! I pumped my fist in the air. I still wasn't there and re-focused until I reached my driveway, checked my watch and threw both arms in the air - I'm sure my neighbors thought I was crazy - I guess they couldn't see me breaking the tape at the finish. 59:20! A crushing 1-minute and 23-second PR!

I've been walking around like I've got a medal around my neck ever since.

Casio Pathfinder

2009-12-15T06:07:00.002-05:00

A few days back, I finally had the battery replaced to my Casio Pathfinder. Unfortunately, the guy at Dakota Watch in the Triangle Town Center mall couldn't figure out how to set the time - neither could I. I checked Casio's manual online and was surprised to discover my watch automatically calibrated via a sensor to the atomic clock (in Switzerland I imagine). But, it only did so during the wee hours of the morning in my time zone. So, I went to bed expecting it to be magically calibrated through science far beyond my humble understanding. No luck. I checked the manual again and discovered that someone with my humble understanding could actually initiate the calibration myself. Again, no luck.

Now, my natural inclination is to believe any "customer service" number will leave me on hold for a long period of time - time that will only make me frustrated (irrational, I know, because I can always put my phone on speaker). Well, yesterday, having been up since 3:30am and having put in a 10-hour work day, my mind started skidding like a car on black ice, aimlessly meandering for a few precarious moments before finally crashing and rendering it useless. So, what better time to waste time on hold.

I'm happy to say that upon calling tech support at Casio, my call was immediately answered by a cheerful rep, who walked me through the time-setting and re-calibration of my outdated model Pathfinder in probably about a minute.

Thank you Casio.

Greatest Cycling Songs Playlist

2009-12-12T07:44:00.000-05:00

This is a work in progress...

Homemade Spaghetti-Type Sauce

2009-12-11T05:55:00.000-05:00

Over Thanksgiving I came up with the best pancakes ever because while cooking from scratch I had to improvise a few ingredients. The other day, I wanted spaghetti, but we were out of sauce. I don't know how to make spaghetti sauce from scratch, but I did have tomatoes, olive oil and some spices. So, I cut up the tomatoes in small chunks, sprinkled dried basil and garlic salt on them, and cooked them up in the olive oil in a skillet. It wasn't looking too tasty so, I took a slotted spoon and mashed the tomatoes to give it more of a spaghetti sauce look. Yum!

Tomorrow, the the kids are going to have pizza, but I'm going to refine my new sauce. I've got fresh basil, fresh garlic and some campari tomatoes (never had them, but apparently they are the "foodies choice"). As always, I'll be adding it to whole wheat pasta. And of course, I'll have to make a trip to the new Trader Joe's for a bottle of wine.

Ironman: The Original Sports Illustrated Story

2009-12-08T06:06:00.001-05:00

May 14, 1979. A guy named Barry McDermott witnessed the second ever Ironman, a race with just 15 participants, and wrote a 10-page story about it for Sports Illustrated. The story, like the race, is epic - you should read it.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1094935/1/index.htm

The World's Greatest Pancakes

2009-12-07T05:38:00.000-05:00

For probably what was only the second time in my life, I made pancakes from scratch Thanksgiving weekend. They turned out to be the world's greatest. I re-heated some tonight so CJ could have breakfast for dinner and upon tasting one myself, I realized that even mircrowaved from frozen, they are still the world's greatest pancakes. Unfortunately, I improvised a recipe with what we had available in the cabinets and I'm not completely sure I remember what I did. What's worse, I only have four left in the freezer. And really, there are only three eat-able pancakes because the fourth, well, I'm sending that off to a cryogenics lab - just in case there's some apocalyptic catastrophe and the world needs the DNA of a pancake to learn how to remake it.

Annual Training Hour Analysis

2009-12-04T07:16:00.000-05:00

It's likely I had more training hours in 2006 when I trained for Ironman, but I didn't keep track until I started training for Ironman, then I stopped keeping track about 2 months before the race. But, since then, I've kept complete and accurate totals.

I think the only thing you can really glean from these numbers is my overall fitness. I know a lot of people who probably train twice as much as me, some with only marginally faster race times, others with race times that blow me out of the water. For me, I'm quite happy with the bang per buck I got from these hours.

Here are the hours:

2007
Swim - 16h 18m (48,489 yards / 2:01 per 100)
Bike - 97h 05m (1,374 miles / 15.43 mph)
Run - 54h 08m (335 miles / 9:43 per mile)
2007 TOTAL HOURS - 167h 31m

2008
Swim - 23h 31m (65,150 yards / 2:10 per 100)
Bike - 100h 43m (1,726 miles / 17.13 mph)
Run - 74h 52m (487 miles / 9:14 per mile)
2008 TOTAL HOURS - 199h 06m

2009
Swim - 32h 10m (86,300 yards / 2:14 per 100)
Bike - 79h 32m (1,296 miles / 16.29 mph)
Run - 72h 07m (501 miles / 8:41 per mile)
2009 TOTAL HOURS TO DATE - 183h 49m

Here's what the numbers really mean:

1. My running performance has improved. I read in a Mark Allen newsletter a long way back that it's hardest to build back your running fitness after a long layoff. As a result, I've always maintained running. Looking closer, 2007 was all about Heart Rate training (as was 2006). I took some lessons with me from those days, but my running really didn't start improving until I went by RPE, instead. I'm super happy with my 8:41 per mile training pace in 2009, compared to my 9:43 in 2007.

2. My swimming performance has improved. The numbers you see below aren't so accurate because in 2007, I usually just figured my yards by calculating 2:00 per 100. For instance, if I had to swim 500 yards, I usually just swam for 10 minutes and called it even. But, as I transitioned to shorter sets, I started keeping accurate total time, which included rests. Why am I 4 seconds slower per hundred in 2009, than 2008? I have no idea - probably bad time keeping. In 2009, I averaged close to 1:30 per 100 in races. I'm just going to keep on keeping on with my swimming.

3. My biking performance (in terms of triathlon) has likely declined. My biking numbers reflect mostly what I was training for. In 2007, I had some pretty fast paces in sprint triathlon's, but near the end of the year, I started training for La Ruta, a mountain bike race. So, a lot of that 15.43 mph is due to 12 mph or less mountain biking endeavors. Without a doubt, 2008 was a great year for me, mostly because I rode with a group once a week. My race paces in 2009, however were slightly down from 2008. Both my races happened before group riding started (I started riding with the group late in the year) and then started training for a marathon. While I still rode a lot for someone training for a marathon, the intensity was missing.

I'm not sure how these will numbers will change in 2010, since the first three months of the year will be all about marathon training, then the rest... who knows? I haven't thought that far in advance. I am excited to see whether or not my running hours will exceed my biking hours in 2009 and, if I'll break 200 training hours this year. I'm kicking in marathon training now and have about four weeks left in the year!

New Marathon Training

2009-12-01T19:00:00.000-05:00

I haven't been to the pool much since I ran the Richmond Marathon. I thought I'd swim a lot during my two-week recovery, but life got a hold of me and I never really made it - just some trainer rides and running near the house, though I did make it Umstead on my birthday for a nice little run. Training for my next marathon kicks in this week - officially yesterday, but a work obligation is pushing focused training back a day or so. I'm going to follow a similar training plan, alternating long run and long bike weekends. Only this time, I'm going to make sure I race at least one, hopefully two, "B" races leading up to it. I'm also going to dial back on the cycling a bit and throw in an extra swim session in place of a bike session every so often, since it will be colder outside and I'm not a big fan of the trainer. The only other thing is that I'm going to try to be a bit more focused on strength training, likely kettlebells, this go around.

Still haven't decided which marathon: Wrightsville Beach, Tobacco Road, or the Shamrock.

Timex Ironman 30-Lap Watch

2009-11-30T08:08:00.003-05:00

I got a new Timex Ironman 30-Lap watch for my birthday. As with all things endurance sports related in my life the past two years, the goal has been to simplify, simplify. While my Nike Triax CV10 Heart Rate Monitor watch has served me well since 2005 (the actual HRM hit the fritz in 2007) it was severely falling apart. Even at the Richmond Marathon, I worried the core part of the watch would fly off at any moment, but I wanted one last race out of it. Now, it's time to usher in a more simple era of just a regular watch. I haven't trained by heart rate in years and have posted some of my best times ever. I think heart rate training has its purpose to a certain extent, but for me, the freedom of running is often lost when a watch beep warns me to hold back just when I'm feeling good. Here's to a return to the trusted watch of my military days!

Reverse Taper

2009-11-24T18:11:00.002-05:00

Strangely, after experiencing the most painful 8 miles of my life (the final 8 of the Richmond Marathon), I recovered rather quickly. Maybe it's because I ran-walked the last 8 miles. In any case, I've been proceeding with caution before starting another 16-week build up to either the Tobacco Road Marathon or the Wrightsville Beach Marathon. What I'm doing - a reverse taper. I'm loosely following my 2-week taper for Richmond, but backwards. I hope that it's sufficient enough not to lose the fitness I built up so far.

The Melbourne & Beaches Music Marathon

2009-11-23T07:54:00.002-05:00

As I ponder a new marathon training plan and The Melbourne & Beaches Music Marathon, where I'll be running only my second stand alone half marathon, Thys pointed out to me the fact that my half marathon split at the Richmond Marathon, just happened to be a half marathon PR for me. It's true, in all my Half Ironman races and my one stand alone half mary, the Boulder Half Marathon (2:06) I never even broke two hours. At Richmond, I ran a 1:45 and change, a solid 21-minute PR. I hadn't really thought of it in that perspective since I was regularly churning out that pace in training. While it's not official enough for me to list it as a PR on my blog, I will keep that in mind as a goal to break at Melbourne. Also, while it was far from my goal, if I hadn't already mentioned it, my 3:55 at Richmond was a PR as well.

2010 Running Events

2009-11-19T06:55:00.000-05:00

I haven't had too many races where I've really zeroed in on a race goal. As a result, I've often jumped from a season of long distance triathlon, to a season of trail running, or short distance triathlon, and even once mountain biking. I've never had any real consistency in the type of events I trained for and consequently, I think my faster times have eluded me.

The Richmond Marathon was one of those races where I really zeroed in on a goal. I REALLY wanted a 3:30 finish. So, I'm going to stick with marathon training for the beginning of 2010. Here are my tentative races leading up to my next tentative marathon, on March 21.

January 10 - Little River Trail Run, 7K or 10miles (I've run this the last 3-4 years and will probably work this into my schedule somehow - great race)

January 17 - Riverfront Race Festival (This event features a 10-miler, which is a race distance called for on my training schedule)

February 7 - Melbourne Beaches & Music Marathon - A flat and fast marathon and more importantly HALF MARATHON in an amazing location (I know because my sister lives there) in Melbourne, FL.

March 21 - Wrightsville Beach Marathon, Tobacco Road Marathon, or Shamrock Marathon. Wow, so many marathons all on the same day. Which one will I pick? I'm not sure, but they're all flat and fast and I plan to break 3:30 at one of them.

Richmond Marathon

2009-11-17T06:51:00.004-05:00

Well... I've been racing for long enough to know better. Lesson learned. ALWAYS check the race site for logistical information. Just because you've run an Ironman and there were aid stations at every mile along the marathon course, doesn't mean that's true for stand alone marathons.

My game plan was 8 minute miles through 18, then adjusting my pace up or down to 22, then another adjustment to the finish. I had all 4 bottles of gel and water to be taken every 45 minutes, supplementing with water from the course in between. I figured I'd just drink water when I needed it, as I did in training.

Unfortunately, there were only liquids at even mile aid stations between something like Mile 8 and 20.

I had my own fuel mixture at 12, nothing at 13, skipped 14 intentionally with a plan to drink something before the bridge, but when I got to 15 and there weren't any liquids, I got concerned. Was there supposed to be and something went wrong? Still on pace, I hit the bridge, and started unravelling. I was running into a stiff headwind and several non-participants were "pulling" trains of people over the bridge. I backed off pace, trying to conserve energy for the final flat 8 miles. I was getting thirsty. I debated drinking my gel and water mixture, but I was too close to Mile 16 where there HAD to be water.

Now, I was looking for water at 16, but I didn't see any. There was supposed to be water there, and I imagine there was, but I just didn't see it. I could feel myself getting ready to mentally unravel completely, so I grabbed some Gummi Bears and ate one at a time, slowly, planning on getting water at 17 where there HAD to be liquids. The gummi's certainly brightened my day, and someone even commented to me that if "you're smiling after that bridge, you're in good shape." The people on the course, were great, and truly brightened my spirits.

I was only a few minutes from when I should have had my own fuel mixture, and I should have drank it right there, but I guess I was at the beginning stages of being dehydrated. I wasn't thinking clearly and decided to wait until 17 where they probably moved the water station to, but of course, there weren't any liquids at 17 either - not an even number aid station. No sooner did I hit 17, still close to an 8 minute per mile pace, a MASSIVE cramp set in my left hamstring.

I drank my fuel bottle immediately, pissed at the water situation and pissed at myself for not knowing it. I could still salvage something. But the cramp wouldn't leave and soon, I got one in my right calf. When the cramps hit, I had to stop. They were that bad. I discovered that I could run for 2 minutes and walk for 1. At that point, I just wanted to get home as fast as possible, which meant running. I didn't want to run though. The goal that I wanted - 3:30 - was out the window. I didn't want anything else for this race.

No matter, by the end of every two minute interval, I would be cramping so badly, I had to walk. That's how I speant the last 8 miles. Truly the most painful 8 miles of my life. At Ironman Florida, I was simply tired and exhausted on the run, but here, I was cramping horribly for 8 long miles. During the last 8 miles, I remember only this - OUCH. Even the downhill finish, was murderous on my quads - more OUCH.

Final time 3:55 and change. OUCH.

Lesson learned - ALWAYS check the logistical info on the race website. I should have known better. OUCH.

Playlist for the Richmond Marathon

2009-11-12T07:46:00.000-05:00

I don't listen to an iPod when I run, but if I did, this would be my playlist:

Miles 1 - 13: Naive Melody - Talking Heads. One of those rare songs in which I love the lyrics and the music. For running, all I need is the music, though. I could run for hours (and I will) just thinking of the music to this song.

Miles 14 - 17: Believe - Lenny Kravitz. One of those songs where when you read the lyrics on paper, they sound cliche and kind of cheesy, but set to the song, sounds incredibly wise. "If you want it, you just got to believe. Believe in yourself... yeah!"

Miles 18 - 23: Warrior's Code - Dropkick Murphy's. You can't beat this song for pure motivational energy. I may need it as I enter mileage beyond my longest run.

Mile 24: Cadence to Arms - Dropkick Murphy's. No words, just bag pipes and guitars. Gotta love it - like Braveheart in a running event. Hopefully, this will be my cadence to one final kick.

Miles 25 - 26.2: In a Big Country - Big Country. This is my favorite song of all time. Released in the mid-80's, what probability would it be that in 2006, as I approached the final 100 yards or so of the marathon portion of Ironman Florida, this song would start playing at the event - not likely - but it did, and became the most memorable race finish of my life.

That's it. Not a lot of songs to the playlist, but that's how I roll. I'll get a few songs in my head and fall back on those when I need them during the run.

Gear of Choice for the Richmond Marathon

2009-11-11T06:58:00.003-05:00

On Saturday, November 14th, I've got a job to do at the Richmond Marathon. Here is the gear I've chosen for it:

SHOES - Karhu Strong Ride. Ever since Ironman Florida, my choice in shoes has gotten lighter and lighter, but I realized early on, I need a bit more support for the long haul. These shoes are perfect.

SHORTS - Under Armour Men's Pacer 2.0. Damn - they're good shorts. I know Under Armour as a brand hasn't always been embraced brand by runners, but these guys know clothes - even if they don't know the elastic band for energy gels is too small (not a big deal, I'm not using it anyway). Possibly the best pair of running shorts I've ever owned.

SOCKS - basic white pair of Wright Socks.

SHIRT - Haven't decided yet. I have an old white New Balance shirt with my daughter's handprint on it, or a Mizuno shirt from Raleigh Running.

ANTI-CHAFING - Body Glide. Is there anything else that works as well? I doubt it.

NUTRITION - 4 Gu Blueberry Roctane. 1 Gel per 8 ounces of water, to be consumed every 45 minutes.

HYDRATION SYSTEM - Fuel Belt. Got a basic four-bottle Fuel Belt for Ironman Florida, but didn't wear it. I'll wear it on Saturday - no stopping at aid stations for me, unless I need some straight water.

That's it. Rock on. I'm ready.

Bond Park, Brooklyn Boys Pizza & Blueberry Roctane

2009-11-08T08:10:00.000-05:00

I had to meet someone for work yesterday, so we agreed to lunch in Cary at Brooklyn Boys Pizza. I had never been there before, although my wife and I tried to go there once when she was pregnant with our first child. Sandi started having contractions on the way there, we got lost (which always happens when I drive into Cary), and headed home only for the contractions to stop. She wound up giving birth to CB the very next day.

Opening the door to Brooklyn Boys is like opening your oven and catching a whiff of freshly baked pizza dough, sauce and oregano - it's amazing how few shops actually have that smell to them. I thouroughly enjoyed the two slices of cheese and Pepsi. I did run 5 miles at Bond Park prior, so I'll have to return to Brooklyn Boys once more to make sure it wasn't just post-workout induced hunger that made it taste so good!

Afterwards, I dropped by the Cycling Spoken Here and asked a few questions about the only cyclo-cross bike they had in stock - a Gary Fisher model - for about $1,800. Out of my budget. The guy insisted I needed to spend at least that much for a decent 'cross bike, though I've seen many other brand name 'cross bikes for less. According to their website, they carry the Erwin (MSRP of $1,429.99) and the Presidio (MSRP of $1,979.99). I pictured the Erwin here because that's what the bike looked like in the shop - to be honest I don't know the model they had in the store.

Then, I swung by InsideOut Sports to pick up some Gu Blueberry Roctane for the Richmond Marathon. Of course, wouldn't you know it, when I checked the mail this morning, my $10 coupon from TrySports - what I hoped to buy my gels with - finally arrived - a day too late!! Oh well, I do need new goggles. I've been using the same basic cheapy Sprint Model Speedo Goggles I've had since Ironman Florida and they've only now just given up on me. I'm sure when Speedo made these bad boys for $7.99 they didn't expect them to last for four years!

Reebok Easy Tone Commercial

2009-11-06T07:22:00.001-05:00

I read through AOL News that there was a "racy" and possibly "sexist" new Reebok Easy Tone Commercial, but was too lazy to follow the link. AOL likes to make you click through a bunch of crap before you get to what you're looking for and I usually don't have enough interest to keep clicking through...

But, I happened to see the Reebok Easy Tone commercial last night during Grey's Anatomy. From what I understand, the Easy Tone shoes are supposed to help tone the butt and legs. I don't think it was "racy" or "sexist". In fact, I think that news release was just part of the ad campaign to get people to watch a "ho hum" quality ad.

Based on what I saw from the model, I think the Easy Tone shoes work better for the thighs than the butt - just my opinion, which is likely due to the fact I'm not a big fan of the style of shorts she was wearing - somewhere between gym attire and running attire - a little of both, but not enough of either to be one or the other.

Lastly, I think it's just weird when girls say "dude".

See for yourself:

2010 Race Schedule

2009-11-05T07:07:00.000-05:00

I've been so entirely focused on the Richmond Marathon that I haven't given any serious thought to 2010. Some notes on how things are playing out in my mind and my wallet:

1. I missed signing up for the Uwharrie Mountain Run. First time in four years. Drat. Maybe 2011.

2. I'm still planning on being a pacer at the Umstead 100 miler in March.

3. I'm considering something called "The Highland Games" in June. It's part of a Gaelic festival in the mountains here. It's not a 3-day event, but if you compete in each of the events you get points to rank yourself amongst the other crazies who have done all three.

Day 1 - 5 mile run with 1,500+ feet of elevation gain.
Day 2 - 65 mile bike ride with 7,000 feet of elevation gain inluding the mountain where Lance Armstrong made his decision to make a comeback.
Day 3 - The Grandfather Mountain marathon. I don't know the stats on the race except I think the entire marathon is going up the mountain - 4,000 feet of gain an zero feet elevation loss I think.

4. In thinking about Richmond & Uwharrie, I totally forgot about Survival of the Shawangunks in September. It looks like registration is still open, but I can't login for some reason. It's been years since I registered for anything on active.com and the upgrade is telling me I can't use my username. Weird. This race really isn't in my budget anyway.

5. I'm remotely considering another marathon (because it's relatively easy to train for compared to an Olympic triathlon or longer).

6. I'm also considering one of the many centuries in the North Carolina Mountains with over 10,000 feet of elevation gain.

7. Or simply sticking with Olympic triathlon level training and jumping into a race when it suits me (pretty much what I did this year) and then making the jump to cyclo-cross like I've been promising myself for about two years now.

Managing Your Diet During Taper

2009-11-04T07:19:00.000-05:00

I finished up my 19-mile run on Sunday, ate a slice of Smucker's Natural Peanut Butter on 100% Whole Wheat bread, a glass of Silk Vanilla Soy Milk, and a cup of coffee. My post-long run ritual also includes icing my legs and three Motrin. My nutrition during my long run was three Blueberry Roctaine Gels mixed in 8 ounces of water.

For the rest of the day, I ate what I typically eat: spinach salad, lots of black beans and rice, an apple, carrots, and more peanut butter. I also had some pizza later that night. Monday was a normal day as well.

But last night, I felt the effects of marathon training on my diet for the first time. I sampled some of the mac n' cheese I made for the kids and that was all she wrote. I ate everything the kids didn't. Fortunately for me, my weight was still at 156 this morning. But, I can't have too many more days like that when my mileage is low - at least not if I want to head into the Richmond Marathon at 155-157 pounds.

The problem with yesterday was that I skipped my Grape Nuts breakfast and wound up eating out for lunch which resulted in dramatically less fiber which keeps me full. I've corrected that breakfast part this morning and will be more careful going forward.

On the positive side, at least I'm nto eating a pint of Ben & Jerry's every Sunday like I did when I trained for Ironman Florida.

Last Long Run for Richmond - 19 Miles

2009-11-01T10:15:00.002-05:00

It's 10:30am. I'm laying in bed tracking a friend at the New York City Marathon. I've got 19 miles down today in some brutal (for North Carolina) weather conditions. I've got a white pair of Karhu Strong Ride sneakers I plan to wear at Richmond that aren't so white anymore. They're a "tad bit" wet as well as the rest of my gear. I'm still a bit chilled (from the weather and icing my legs after my run) and ready to take a warm shower when I finish this.

When I went to bed it was in the mid-60 degrees with falling temperatures and 60% chance of showers in the morning. I awoke to rain beating on the roof at 5am. I went back to bed. It eased up at 6am and I realized I probably should have been up and ready for the break in the weather. Truthfully, it wouldn't matter.

I was out the door at 6:30am and for the next 2.5 hours, the wind blew in my face each gust colder than the last. The rain sometimes poured, sometimes drizzled, sometimes blew in my ear with sideways sheets of rain gusting about, but always - it rained. Leaves swirled in little tornadoes until gusts of wind disintegrated and scattered them.

Thys told me I might be a bit tired still from my 17-miler. So, I stuck to what I thought was an even 8:00/mile. By the time I finished the last big climb off of Lead Mine Road, I knew I was close to pace, but probably over. Even if I wanted to go faster, I don't think I had it in me - the wind was beating me down and running Lead Mine from Sawmill to Baileywick is tough. So, I continued on shooting for 2:32. I could have made it, with a big push over the last mile or so, but instead, I slowed and pulled in with a 2:34.

No reason to hurt myself now, especially considering I probably worked a lot harder in the wind and rain.

My pace at an hour was 8:07, at two hours 8:05, and I finished up with a 2:34:17 run, for an 8:06 overall. I'll take it.

Taper Time.

Marathon Pace

2009-10-30T07:36:00.001-04:00

I originally planned to run a comfortable 3:45 or better marathon, about an 8:35/mile or better pace. I hit those marks at the hilly Umstead Park, but have been much faster on the open road. All my long runs (13, 15, 17 miles) not to mention some of my shorter runs, especially at Umstead, have exceeded the total elevation gain at the Richmond Marathon. Typically, my long runs outside of Umstead have been at an 8:00/mile pace for 75% of the run, at which point I've opened it up and finished the last 25% at 7:20 - 7:40 per mile depending on the terrain.

Now, I've got my last long run (19 miles) planned for Sunday. For about a day, I entertained the thought of shooting for an even 7:45 pace for the whole run.

But, I've abandoned that.

I'm going to shoot for an even 8:00/mile pace for the whole 19. Whatever speed I've developed up till now is what I've got. I'm not going to injure myself for the best 19 miles I've ever run and sacrifice what could potentially be the best marathon I've ever run.

If I can maintain 8:00 miles for 19 miles here in Raleigh, I can do it in Richmond. That will get me over the last hill and set for the last flat 7 miles, where I'll work my magic to ensure a sub 3:30 marathon, or work my magic to struggle home with a 3:45 or better.

Wish me luck on Sunday - I'm mapping my route now.

Weight Watcher Update

2009-10-29T07:36:00.000-04:00

Today's weight - 156 pounds. Slowly but surely making my way down to 155 for the Richmond Marathon and hopefully beyond. I'll probably bounce back to 157 off and on for a few days. I'm not really on Weight Watchers, by the way. I've been eating mostly brown rice with black or red beans and diced tomatoes and hot sauce of course, brown rice and vegetables and the occassionally boneless skinless chicken breast. My breakfast, as always, has been Grape Nuts, Vanilla Soy Milk and raisins, thought I do through in an occassional scrambled egg and black beans and rice plate ala Costa Rica - Pura Vida!

Fuel for Running - Give a Lentil Bit

2009-10-28T17:57:00.001-04:00

Probably one of the best foods you can eat to boost your running and maintain your health are lentils. They are high in carbs, protein and fiber. I love them in soup and since I don't normally consume a lot of sodium, I usually don't shy away from the higher sodium brands like Progresso, though the low sodium one's like Health Valley are my favorite - though expensive for a can of soup.

And... one of my favorite all time songs is Supertramp's "Give a Little Bit". We don't do RockBand anymore, but when we did, I used to make up my own lyrics to the songs - usually a dedication to my wife. So, for your reading pleasure and to give you a glimpse of how I entertain my wife on occassion, here's my version of the classic Supertramp song - "Give a Lentil Bit" - dedicated to runners and vegetarians everywhere.

Oooo yeah
Alright
Here we go again
Nay nay
Woh oh
Na na
Hey hey
(Yeah)
Give a lentil bit
Give a lentil bit of your carbs to me
Give a lentil bit
I'll give a little bit of my love to you
There's so much protein we need to share
So send some fiber and show you care

So give a lentil bit...

Running Mantras

2009-10-27T06:52:00.001-04:00

I had another great negative split run yesterday. A day after tackling some serious hills on a 2:30 ride in the mountains (not to mention a hike, then a long drive home) I wondered if I had the legs to run 10 miles. I didn't have a specific goal for the 10 miles - just to git 'r done and see what I had left in the tank this deep into training.

I felt strong as I readied to run, but then a bit creaky starting off. After a short incline, the first 5 miles were mostly downhill. But, 25 minutes into my run and I still couldn't get loose. As I neared the halfway point, though, I started getting a good stride going and was feeling good until I reached the turnaround at 41:30. Crap! I was hoping to be near an 8:00/mile pace. I was 1:30 over that.

The situation posed a good mental challenge for me. There was no way I could finish 10 miles under an 8:00/mile pace (1 hour and 20 minutes) because the rest of the run was for the most part uphill. I was certain I couldn't run at a faster clip than I was going downhill. I immediately reverted to the mantras that I developed to help me improve my running:

1) "oxygen is fuel" (this reminds me to breathe properly - in the past, I used to tense up and restrict my breathing when things got physically challenging), and
2) "form makes you faster" (this reminds me to run with good form when my mind is thinking about being tired)

I'm not going to lie - the rest of the run was a challenge, physically and mentally. But I kept reciting my mantras to myself and despite having only water, I kept up what I felt like was the same pace I had going downhill. My goal was still a negative split. Like Thys told me once, even a single second faster is a negative split.

"Oxygen is fuel - Form makes you faster."

I repeated it. When my form started to fade and I started to tire, I repeated it again.

"Oxygen is fuel - form makes you faster."

About a half mile from home... I slowed. Not because I couldn't go anymore - but because I was SERIOUSLY crushing the run from the turnaround to home. I had a big negative split in the bag - no reason to hurt myself on a 10 miler a few weeks from Richmond.

I finished up the run with a sub-40 minute run home. My pace going out (mostly downhill) was 8:01 (turns out the route was 10.34 miles, not an even 10 like I thought) and a 7:41 pace coming back (mostly uphill).

It was a good run.

Cycling for the Richmond Marathon

2009-10-26T07:33:00.003-04:00

I'm a few weeks shy of wrapping up 16 weeks of training for the Richmond Marathon - training that includes a long bike ride instead of a long run every other weekend. This past weekend was a 2:30 ride with 20 minute intervals in a big gear. The big gear intervals never happened because I was in the mountains and instead, rode some big hills, including Three Top Mountain. The elevation graph of Three Top looks just like that of the infamouts Snake Mountain on Meat Camp Road (percent grade in the high teens) of Blood, Sweat and Gears fame, only shorter.

It was a cold, tiring ride up Three Top yesterday morning about 8 am, but when I reached the top, I was rewarded with this view. From there, I made my way to the Todd General Store and Railroad Grade Road, which I'm told, has been featured in Bicycling Magazine. If it wasn't, well, it should be - more beautiful views of a misty meandering river along frosted green meadows and golden leaf covered mountains.

During the ride, I lost my only nutrition, a Trail Cookie from the Todd Mercantile Store, only to find the wrapper on the way back home, already scavenged no doubt by the many chipmunks darting in and out of the brush alongside the road.

I returned to the long steep hike-a-bike driveway to the cabin and found hot coffee and a breakfast plate of eggs, fried potatoes and onions, toast and bacon, ready and waiting for me. I scarfed it down, showered, had one more cup of coffee, then took the kids hiking. After our hike, I had some hot stew and a beer on the deck in the crisp early afternoon air.

Sock Sabotage!

2009-10-22T08:12:00.003-04:00

I'm pissed. Not even bullshitting here. Remember the old episode of Married With Children where Peg was secretly throwing away one of Al's socks with every load of laundry, leaving him with just a bunch of singles? Yeah. That's happening at our house and with the kid's socks, too! Yesterday, just like I always do, I specifically made sure I put each sock in the washer with its partner, but then I crashed last night while putting the kids to sleep, leaving Sandi to put it all in the dryer. Guess what? And this has to be a record - in the undfolded laundry basket this morning there exists 11 - freakin' 11!!! - single socks. No matching pair. You've got to be kidding me! SOCK. SABOTAGE. Time to start safety pinning them together.

Are Gels Cheating?

2009-10-21T06:15:00.004-04:00

I had an 8-mile run yesterday with intervals - 1 minute hard, then 1 easy, followed by 2 minutes hard, then 2 easy, followed by 3 minutes, then 3 easy and back down.

I've been flirting with one of two things on this 8-mile route, either: 1) breaking an hour or 2) going without water or nutrition. I think a 1 hour to 1:15 run is that "lost zone" where the benefit of nutrition is only minimal. I probably already have enough calories on board to knock out the run, but a gel 30-40 minutes in would give me a nice kick and boost performance a bit, which for me, would mean breaking an hour. But, that kind of feels like cheating to me since I know I can run for an hour without gel or water.

I did a negative split run at about 1:03:15, where I fueled on a gel 45 minutes in (I was praticing race day nutrition, which for me will be a gel every 45 minutes). Then, I did a tempo run on this course with only water and came closest to breaking an hour (about 1:01:19 if memory serves me correctly). Of course, my fitness was improved for the tempo run and I believe that if I use a gel next time, I could break an hour, but my current belief is that for the distance, a gel would be cheating.

So, with that cheating mentality in mind, I did my 8-mile run with intervals without gel or water, yesterday. Truthfully, I felt a little bit creaky the first five minutes into my run. Then, I loosened up and got a good ryhthym (hope that's right I can never spell that word) going until I hit 18 minutes, where my route was more conducive to intervals. Although I was going slow during the "easy" parts, I hit the halfway point at 30:37. But, once my intervals were over, I resumed my regular pace. I felt good right up to about 49 minutes, then slowed, then slowed some more.

Perhaps I was feeling the effects of a 17-miler two days prior. Perhaps it was the lack of water or a gel. Perhaps its just the nature of intervals with an "easy" pace. Perhaps all three. In any case, I'm happy I did it without a gel. I'm starting to feel that maybe, our whole marathon and endurance running culture is being propped up by food technology. Didn't runners do sub-2:30 marathons "back in the day" before Gu? What did they fuel on? I wonder.

In the end, I finished the run with an 8:13 per mile pace. Solid. But not the sub 8:00 per mile pace I'm now hoping for Richmond, where I won't have to worry about gels - I'm definitely taking gels during a marathon - I can't think of too many people who would call that cheating these days and I'm not sure if that's good or bad.

Delayed Onset Muscle Syndrome

2009-10-20T05:15:00.000-04:00

I had a bit of the old delayed onset muscle syndrome yesteday. I felt fine after Sunday's 17.03 mile run, and even for most of Monday, until I tried to stand up after sitting down and working non-stop for a couple of hours. I can't remember which leg it was at the moment, but as soon as I stood up, I felt it! It's the first real pain I've had since training for Richmond. Staying up late Sunday night and having a few glasses of wine probably wasn't the best recovery plan. Then, I tried running with the kids and "it" wasn't happening. I've got intervals today and given the temperature this morning, I'm definitely waiting till the afternoon to run, which will give my legs a few more hours of recovery.

Run Report - 17.0 Miles

2009-10-19T05:51:00.001-04:00

I got to bed about 11:30pm on Saturday, a little late for a pending long run, and positioned my Karhu Strong Ride sneakers by the bedroom door with my shorts and two shirt options rolled up to prevent our six-pound Yorkie from making a bed of it like he often does when I prestage gear. I hate running with even the faintest smell of dog on me, but if I put the gear anywhere else besides the floor by the door, I'll likely forget it in the morning, forcing a return trip up the stairs and possibly waking one of the kids, ruining my early-morning quiet time I need before a run or ride. I could take it downstairs, of course, but I was already on the way to bed and a trip back downstairs would likely wake me up and make me unable to go back to sleep. So, of course, I awoke at just before 5am to the Yorkie scratching at my Karhu's trying to make a bed of my clothes. I popped out of bed, snatched up my clothes and heading downstairs with all my stuff to get ready. It took nearly an hour for me to wake up enough to run, during which time I realized it was in the low 40's. Normally, I could tolerate a run in shorts in this weather, but I have been feeling a bit wimpier as of late so I snuck back up stairs for some long pants, a long shirt, and some gloves. I headed out in the dark, about 6:00am.

My run features about 770 feet of climbing, 680 on the first 13 miles. For the first 9 miles, I ran head on into the wind, in the dark, on the hills, and a long gradual climb before it flattened out for about a mile. Turns out my last-minute switch in attire was the right call. The sweat was drying on my clothes and I was just the right amount of cool. The wind however, started grinding me down mentally, and when the beautiful sunrise I anticipated to lift my spirts turned out to be grey and lame, I started thinking I would be happy with slightly slower than the pace I intended - 8:10 per mile or faster. I hit some more serious hills between 9 and 13, but near the end, I could see the horizon flatten out and I got some serious mojo going, especially when I knew I had about 4 miles to go and was close to where I wanted to be - in fact, I would later discover that I ran 8:03 miles up to this point, though I felt slower because of the wind.

With just over four to go and a good idea of the terrain ahead, I locked in to a good pace, one at which I had no idea how fast I was going. The wind died down, the terrain was flat, and I focused on breathing... my mind was blank... just feeling my legs stride like a metronome and breathing in tempo... four count inhale, four count exhale... I had one more Fuel Belt flask of Roctaine and water, but it was not to be taken until 2:15 "into" my run. I hoped to finish up by 2:18 and some odd seconds and always like a gel at the end to help me recover. At times thoughts crept in my mind that I wouldn't be able to hold the pace, but each time I asked myself why I thought that... I wasn't tired... I felt strong... I can do this... I negative split this terrain as part of shorter runs several times... by a lot. The last mile of my run today, however, was new. It included a downhill (like Richmond's finish) but then a steep uphill and hundred yards or so to the finish. It wasn't until I hit this section that I looked at my watch... I could break 2:16. 2:16 was an 8:00 per mile pace. I held my current pace to the downhill, picked it up on the downhill (normmally I don't try to go faster on downhills) then bounded up the hill, rounded the corner then sprinted hard... I was not only going to break 2:16, but possibly 2:15, which I did. I finished up at 2:14:29 for a sub 8:00 mile pace, overall - 7:18 per mile for the last 4.

Like all my long runs during this training cycle, I ran faster than my prior long run. 8:10 per mile for my 11 miler, then 8:06 for 13, (9:39 for 15, but that was the hills of Umstead) and now 7:54 for 17. Like with all those other runs, I'm going to pack this one away and focus on the next. I have a long bike ride next weekend, which I'll do in the mountains, then my last long run of 19 miles before my taper.

Long Run Nutrition

2009-10-18T05:26:00.003-04:00

Today's long run is 17 miles. My route has about 200 more feet of elevation than Richmond, but one I consider not too hilly for where I live. My nutrition weapon of choice - Blueberry Roctaine. I used to rely heavily on e-Caps and supplement with gels as necessary, but have found that Roctaine is pretty much all I need. I take one mixed with about 8 ounces of water ever 45 minutes. My plan for Richmond, is one prior to the race and then one every 45 minutes using my Fuel Belt - no walking at aid stations. My weight this morning - 159 (Halloween Party last night and couldn't lay off the pumpkin dip & graham cracker cookies!).

Bitten

2009-10-15T21:56:00.003-04:00

First off, my weight this morning was 157. It will likely fluctuate between 157 and 159 for a few days before settling on 158 for a few days. Then between 156 and 158 until settling on 157 and so it will go until I hit 155 barring any diet disasters.

Now back to my "bitten" post...

I think I've truly been bitten by the running bug. The hardest thing for me these days is sticking to my training plan. With a max of three runs per weeks, I often find myself wanting to run. Yesterday, I tackled 8 miles of hills. Near the end, I decided to shoot for breaking an hour. I've flirted with it on tempo runs and negative split runs, but on hills, I didn't think I'd get close. But, I had the luxury of not knowing how far I'd run or how far I'd have to run to get home. With about 53 minutes down, I let loose. I still had hills to cover, but I flew over each. I kept waiting for the wheels to come off forcing me to resort to jogging back home, but it wasn't happening. I decided to keep going until I was home or hit an hour. I hit an hour and wasn't home, but still had enough left to keep going at the same pace. So I did. I thought for sure, I'd pay for it later. But I didn't.

It was a struggle today NOT to run. I swam. Now I have rest for two days (one of which I'll do some strength training) before I can run again. I can't wait. I just want to run.

Tough Week

2009-10-13T22:55:00.002-04:00

... and it's only Tuesday. Ugh. It's 10:45pm and I'm still up. I should have been in bed an hour a go. I got blisters last Friday when I chose to run 8 miles with clean old socks versus dirty new socks. The clean old socks slipped down over my achilles (now completely soft because of my conversion to running with socks for the marathon) and I paid for it dearly - blisters on both achilles.

I was on track to return to my ideal race weight of 155 (which was what I raced the Buckhorn Sprint at in June) for Richmond, but slipped this weekend when I didn't eat breakfast Sunday morning and instead ate a bunch of white bread bagels and Clif bars all day at the race I supported. I had so many "bagel calories" on board that I rode for 2:15 after the race on only water and was still kind of full when I finished. What's more, I didn't have time to cook up my brown rice until tonight and wound up eating a bunch of late night munchies Sunday and Monday night. After being down to 158 on Friday, I'm back up to 161 - my summer slouch weight.

Now the weatherman says it's going to drop into the 40's and be rainy the rest of the week. Not cool considering the sore throat I've been flirting with since Saturday.

The good thing is that all of the bad stuff has been eaten. Rice is made. Vegetables are in house. I've got black beans and diced tomatoes and hot sauce to make black beans and rice. Neosporin is being administered to blisters. Fat free French vanilla yogurt is ready to be mixed with Grape Nuts for a quick healthy snack. I've got clementine oranges and spinach for a nice salad. I've got a month to re-lock in my diet for Richmond (and stay away from white bread bagels and Clif bars). I can sleep in (7am) and postpone tomorrow's run until the evening and still get some decent sleep. I'm not really tired, but I've got some SleepyTime Tea and a book and a warm bed.

Good night.

Blogging

2009-10-12T09:03:00.000-04:00

I was up till about 2am Friday night. While that hasn't been unusual for most of my life, it was for the past 12 weeks when I've routinely made it to bed between 9-10pm. I was up early to help out with our community yard sale Saturday morning, helped clean up and put the unsold things back in storage, ate lunch, interviewed someone for a story, worked on our newsletter for a while, played with the kids a bit, watched a movie with them, put them to bed, did some laundry and tried to write a funny blog post about my new blisters and opera singing, but I couldn't find a free image of a woman in a viking helmet. I wasted about a 1/2 hour on that and decided to hit the sack at 11:30pm, which was very late considering I needed to be up early Sunday morning to help out with a race the magazine was putting on. So, Sunday, I was up at 4:30am, got a shower, headed out to the race and worked that till about 1:30pm, when I drove home, did a quick change and was out on my bike for a 2+ hour ride. I rolled back in the driveway just as Sandi and the kids were pulling out of the driveway to head out to someone's house for chili. I did another quick change and joined them for dinner at our friends (close friends, so I didn't shower). After returning home, we gave the kids baths, and set them up to watch TV, but they weren't interested. They played for a bit, I tried to write a post about all the dogs I ever lived with, but the kids couldn't leave me alone and I knew I still needed to make lunches for school, not too mention a pot of rice to accompany some vegetables and/or beans and rice for my lunches for the week. With all that going on and in my mind, I lost inspiration.

So... I'm saving this thoughtless post about neither blisters nor women in viking helmets nor opera nor dogs, setting it to publish at 9:03am Monday (it's actually 9:03pm Sunday) and getting a quick shower before going to bed.

Breakthrough

2009-10-06T05:27:00.000-04:00

I feel like I'm on the verge of a breakthrough event.

I felt the same way about the Duke Half Ironman last year, but failed miserably. Even if I didn't puke a mile into the run course, my times were still not up to the paces I trained at. I've been re-reading my blog posts during the days leading up to that race in hopes of learning something. The only thing missing back then was sleep. For a few weeks leading up to the race I was only getting four hours a night. It's interesting that I could still put up great training resuls on that amount of sleep, but then crashed and burned in the actual event.

So, I'm constantly making sure I stay off the caffeine and manage to get to bed on time. I think everything else is going as good as can be, except for forgetting my watch Sunday night and running 2:17 versus 2 hours at Umstead and then stepping in horseshit in the dark and tracking it into my car.

Marathon Training Update

2009-10-03T09:08:00.002-04:00

Sorry this hasn't been the "Run-Daddy" blog of epic proportions I hoped it to be. Run-Daddy has got to pay the bills and even 6 hours a week of marathon training takes it's toll when you're working five days a week and weekends. You might think that 6 hours a week sounds light, but that's not including what is probably my most important workout of all - something totally new to the Tri-daddy and Run-daddy - sleep. While training for Ironman Florida on about 4-5 hours of sleep a night was quite a feat in and of itself, someone's comments to me, and my co-worker/friend/training plan designer/occassional coach Thys encouraged me to do something I never thought I'd do: Go to bed at a decent hour. The comment on my blog was about not giving it my all for this race, settling for a 3:45 marathon (which still isn't in the bag, I know how marathon goals change on a dime come race day) whenI could possibly do better.

Thinking on that, I knew I couldn't give any more in the run department, but I could in the sleep department. So, for about the past 4 weeks, I've been limiting my coffee intake to 2 cups before 9:30am. As a result, I've been able to go to sleep at 10pm, sometimes **GASP** even 9pm. Not surprisingly, my running has improved. I've given up doing my long runs at "race pace" which I set at 8:30/mi and have gone by RPE instead. I ran 11 miles (completely flat)a few weeks ago at 8:10/mi after a night of drinking and lots of lasagna. Two weeks later, I ran 13.1 on hilly terrain at 8:06/mi. This past Wednesday, I ran an 8mi route I previously did at 8:10/mi at7:53/mi, which included a 7:59 pace for the first 4 and a 7:47/mi on the way back for a nice negative split.

I've got a two hour run tomorrow, which I plan to take easy. Then two weeks from now (I only do long runs every other week, with long bike rides in between) I plan to do 17 at 8:10/mi or faster. I think my pace has come down for long runs because of:

1. the sleep I'm getting (I was at about 5 hours a night the first 4 weeks of this training, now I'm at 7-8)
2. a dedicated focus to proper breathing techniques, and
3. my continued weekly runs at the hilly Umstead.

What does it all mean? I don't know. Not knowing the terrain at Richmond outside of the course profile I've seen online, I could be closer to 3:45 or closer to 3:30. My two goals for race day will be:

1. Beat 3:45 for sure, whether I hurt or not, and
2. Have a strategy for beating 3:30, if all the stars are aligned.

That's my upddate. Thanks for reading.

Reason #1 Why I'm Different

2009-09-24T07:27:00.002-04:00

With the Millbrook Exchange Pool closed, I've been swimming at the Optimist Pool as of late. Driving up to the "new" facility is like a dagger in the heart every time I see it. I can't tell you how many hours I've enjoyed over the past five years swimming laps in the outdoor pool as the sun came up. Truly beautiful to see the first rays of sun shine through the water as you come up from a flip turn. But, now, the pool is permanently enclosed in a white bubble. It also has a new locker room. Why on earth would people who swim be more concerned about a locker room than the pool itself, which is exactly the same as it was before the renovation right down to the scum on the rails of the white plastic deck surrounding the edge? Who knows. Guess I'm just different. All I wanted was shower gel instead of handsoap in the showers and a chance to see the sun come up while I swim. Oh well... I'll continue on swimming and racing triathlons until someone gets the bright idea to enclose our lakes in a year round bubble, or something. You know, because of "weird" things like the weather or something.

In the meantime, if you swim at Optimist, see if you can find the motivational saying I scratched into the scum on the rail this morning!

Smelly Post

2009-09-22T06:36:00.003-04:00

I scheduled a very creative post to appear this morning, but between family activities and work this weekend I never got around to finishing it. Lucky readers may have caught a glimpse this morning and probably still can if you subscribe to my blog via www.bloglines.com where I've seen posts "hang" for quite some time after they've been removed from their original blogs. I'll try to finish the post up this weekend maybe and have it ready for you next week. I know you're all accustomed to a certain level of dare I say "professionalism" on the Tridaddy, er, I mean Run Daddy Blog! Here's something in the meantime:

The smell of onions and peppers and potatoes from my sweet potato hash is blending perfectly with the aroma of brewing coffee. It's raining hard, and I only smell a little bit like chlorine from the pool after my drenching running from the car to the house. I'm going to open the kitchen window and eat my breakfast to the enjoyable damp smell of rain and pine and wet brick, creating a wonderful blend of smells and amalgamation of a beautiful childhood memory swimming, eating my dad's fried potatoes for breakfast, camping, and playing in the rain.

Run Daddy's Excellent Adventure

2009-09-18T05:08:00.000-04:00

I tried to get my weekly run in at Umstead on Monday, but didn't get to the park until 8pm at which point it was way too dark. I had my headlamp in my car and started to run anyway, but couldn't stop think about weirdo killers hiding out in the park ready to attack freaks like me running alone. With a long run scheduled this weekend, I knew last night was my last chance to get a run in at Umstead, since I'm transitioning my long runs over 13 miles out of the park (too many hills!). When I got to my secret parking spot (I knew I'd be in the park after hours, so I had to park outside) I noticed for the first time a NO PARKING sign. Given the day I had, I knew luck was against me, so I looked for another spot, but couldn't find a legal place to park. Eventually, I found a spot at what I later discovered was 3/4 miles away.

By the time I actually made it in the park, the sun was setting fast and before I knew it, it was completely dark. Oddly, I wasn't the only weirdo running at Umstead. I trailed a guy and his dog and then another runner on the first downhill (I go really slow on downhills) then smoked them on the first big climb. I switched on my headlamp and continued on debating whether or not it would be better to run with it off in case any weirdos were lying in the weeds waiting to ambush me. When it started to fade slightly, that was enough a sign (like the NO PARKING sign) for me to turn it off.

So, there I was... swift, silent, deadly... as we used to say in the Marines. I'm a VERY quiet runner unless I have a water bottle swishing around, which I did, but that's another story, which since I have the time, I might as well tell you now. I left the house in a hurry having only eaten rice and vegetables all day (and coffee, of course). I did grab two Gu's (one extra than I'd normally carry since I didn't eat much today), but forgot a water bottle. Lucky for me, the kids use my car as a trash can and left a half filled sippy cup with pink lemonade. Lucky for me, we always water their juice down.

So, there I was... swift, silent, deadly... with a sippy cup that even though was only half-full insulated the swishing quite nicely. While I'm sure a fellow Marine could detect the swishing water sound in a sippy cup, the average weirdo killer, could not, at least the one's that were in the park last night (since thankfully, I'm writing this to you now.)

So... I'm in the dark, running at quite a nice clip for total darkness on hilly terrain sipping watered down pink lemonade from a sippy cup, my big ole Blackberry crammed in my pocket (in case I had to call for help, or use it as weapon) in a leftover sandwich bag (again, thanks to my kids for using my car as a trash can) and slapping (silently) my thigh.

It was great.

I didn't think of anything. I just ran, trying to be quiet and avoid the dark patches (either holes or horse poop) I could make out on the whitish dirt trail. The only real problem I encountered were spider webs - big thick 6-pound test threads of spider web - no joke! At one point, and I am not kidding here, I seriously wound a thread of spider web around my hand as I ran. Another time, I kept stretching it between my two hands, amazed that it wouldn't snap. Oddly enough, I didn't think of the spiders that might be attached to them until just now.

I felt strong the whole way and thankfull my core and strength training was paying off. I've also been focusing a lot on breathing. It wasn't until I neared the top of the very last hill, a long one at that, nearly a mile, that I started to lose the rhythmic cadence that carried me over nearly 1,000 feet of elevation in the dark. But, it only took a little bit of focus for me to tough it out and maintain my form until I hit the flat road, at which point I turned my headlamp back on - this time on strobe - to warn the cars that might hit a crazy like me running at night.

Remember the NO PARKING sign? My gut instinct was right (as it may well have been about stalkers in the park - good thing I kept my light off) because I saw a tow truck pull in to my secret spot just as I was passing. Wouldn't that have sucked? To run 1:38 through a dark park only to arrive at the spot where you left your car and find it gone!

So... I made it. And... instead of the 9 miles I planned for, I actually ran nearly 11. I felt a bit lucky not to have an incident, and a bit foolish to take such chances, but since I've got my name on the list to be a pacer at the park's 100-mile run in March, it was all EXCELLENT training.

Richmond Marathon Doubts

2009-09-09T05:20:00.001-04:00

My training has been going great. Outside of getting my first major blister (a nasty one at that) because I forgot my socks, I've been executing what I set out to do: maintain 8:30 miles at the hilly Umstead Proving Grounds so that I can maintain 8:30 miles at Richmond with ease. So, I had my first non-hilly long run (11 miles) this past weekend and it was a cake walk, especially considering the amount of beer and lasagna (thanks Kim!) I consumed the night before. (Hey, I didn't say I was going to sacrifice fun living for Richmond, only that I wanted to run a 3:45 and not hurt.)

Last night, however, I had serious doubts whether I wanted to continue training.

I need more mystery. My two greatest joys in endurance sports were training for Ironman and training for La Ruta because I didn't know what to expect. I think that's what I liked about training in the Marines. All the training can't possibly prepare you for the unknowns come "show time". The mystery of what will happen on the big day is pure and clean motivation. But, I've done a marathon before, and as I execute my training goals on schedule, race day becomes less and less a mystery.

For now, I'm continuing on. I keep telling myself that I don't know what race day will hold. Heat. Rain. Wind. Injury. Those things keep me going, but my biggest fear is that come race day, I'll execute my training plan just as intended, which would, for me, be pretty boring since I knew it all along.

I do have one other motivation - Richmond will only make me stronger for my next BIG race - Survival of the Shawangunks (If I get in of course!).

What the Hell is This?

2009-09-01T05:12:00.000-04:00

While my running plan doesn't call for me to head out with a cycling group and hammer for a little more than an hour every Tuesday, I still do because I like it. I'm more concerned with doing what I like than what will make me a better endurance athlete. Anyone who rides on Mt. Vernon Church will recognize this sight we pass every Tuesday. Weird. I think it's the remnants of a government missile silo that was disguised as a feed silo for farmers. No one can remember what was there prior which only ads to the mystery. A couple of Men in Black must have erased our memories to what it really was...

THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE.

"Simplify, Simplify"

2009-08-29T15:31:00.002-04:00

Though I normally run sockless, I decided to start wearing them since I'll inevitably need them in a marathon, I imagine. Unfortunately, socks make my feet sweat more. So, to combat this, I started using a foot gel product that is supposed to "energize" my feet. In reality, the only active ingredient in the gel is the same active ingredient in my anti-perspirant. Not surprisingly, it does a fairly reasonable job of minimizing my foot sweat, if nothing else.

I think that it also prevented some of the normal "smoothing out" of the fabric on the heel of my shoes...

I had a short five-mile run the other day which I decided to do at Umstead. Upon arrival at the park, I realized I forgot my socks. Not a big deal to me, in fact, I felt happy that I could go back to my old sockless running. But, I immediately felt a roughness in the heel of my shoes I never felt in any shoe before. It was like the fiber in the fabric was hard. I hoped it was something that would go away, but it didn't. Halfway into my run, I could feel the skin peel back on my heel...

Normally, I would stop for an injury, but this was my first ever heel blister (I had my first blister ever on a big toe last year when I did some single track trail running through a creek with no socks) and I knew I had nearly three days of non-running ahead, so I stuck it out.

Yuck. The skin didn't actually peel back, but stretched and folded over it's pus-filled self. Later that night, it popped when I doing flips into the pool for the kids. That hurt!

I'm airing it out the best I can while keeping neosporin on it. It's healing nicely and should be ready to go Monday for my 7-mile run, which I can postpone to the evening if necessary. Fortunately, I heal quickly.

For the sake of my blister, I'll probably wear socks on Monday, but after that, I'm done with them. I used socks for the long distance running I did for Uwharrie last year and they probably contributed to softening my feet too much. If I had kept things simple like I did for most of my life running, I would'nt have worn socks and wouldn't have needed the gel that likely messed up the fabric to my shoe.

Like Henry David Thoreau said, "simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler; solitude will not be solitude, poverty will not be poverty, nor weakness weakness; nor blisters blisters."

[I might have edited that quote just a bit]

Running Mileage for Marathon Training

2009-08-19T08:33:00.003-04:00

Greg McMillan's chart in the September issue of Runner's World says that based on my weekly mileage over the summer (less than 10 miles a week) my goal should be to run a fast 5-K or 10-K this fall. In order to run a marathon, McMillan claims that I should be running 20-30 miles a week. Hopefully, he's not considering cross training. On less than 10 miles a week this summer I set a PR in the 5-K (at the end of a triathlon, no less!).

Last week was the frist time I topped 10 miles per week all year. My plan alternates between 2 runs per week and 3 runs per week. I fill in the gaps with 1-2 days of cycling, 1 day of swimming, 1 day of strength, and 1-2 days of rest. My goal training pace for long runs has been 9:00min miles on some somewhat hilly terrain. I've been consistently hitting 8:45 to 8:50.

It will be interesting to see how I fare against McMillan's prediction. I will say that I generally train less than most people. I understand that and proceed with caution, but the bottom line (especially when you've got kids and a family) you've got to find a schedule that works for you and is varied enough to keep things interesting for you.
:

Marathon Man

2009-08-12T09:35:00.002-04:00

Over 10 years ago I received a post card from the Whitman Walker Clinic in Washington, DC, asking me to run the Marine Corps Marathon and raise money for AIDS awareness. While I still maintained a weekly run or two like I had learned to do in the Marine Corps, I was a far cry from even considering a marathon, like the one I trained for in 1992, but didn't run because of the death of my grandfather. Without much more though, I went to the informational meeting and decided to do it. I trained consistently, never missed a workout, and forced myself to run as slow as my 3-mile time trial dictated I run (2:00 per mile slower than my per mile pace for 3 miles). I finished a few minutes ahead of pace and had an amazing time and felt completely recovered a few hours later. Since then, the only marathon I've run has been the one at the end of Ironman Florida, which I ran in 5+ hours and nearly a month to recover from.

So...

I've decided to run another marathon. The Suntrust Richmond Marathon. My goal, as always, is to enjoy the experience. My plan is to shoot for an easy 3:45 and enjoy an easy recovery like I did at the Marine Corps Marathon in 1998. I don't want to work hard for 3:45 and suffer. I'm only in my second official week of training, and I'll probably adjust that goal up or down as my training progresses and I hit (or miss) a couple of benchmarks I set for myself.

Battle of Buckhorn (Podium!)

2009-06-13T15:28:00.004-04:00

This was a 1000m swim, 17mile bike and 5K, which obviously favored a strong swimmer and not coincidentally, a strong swimmer won the race by about the margin of his closest competitor in the swim.

My race turned out equally as well as I placed (3rd in A/G) in a triathlon for the first time ever. I also broke 1:30 per 100 pace for the first time ever in a race without a wet suit. As long as I sighted well (which I did) I knew I would have a strong swim. Things have been clicking for during training.

Like Mission Man, this course has rolling hills, but perhaps a bit more gentler. Someone who has been training (someone who is not me) could have really bombed this course. At one trainer ride per week as my only bike training for the past 4 weeks, I knew pacing would be key on the bike. I held back when the urge to crush the downhills appeared and as a result several people passed me on a single long downhill. I reeled them ALL in, and then about 4 more people (1 in my Age Group) on the only significant hill on the course. Only one of those people passed me back.

I immediately caught the guy who passed me back on the only uphill run (right out of transition). My stride felt great but once in the sun, my decision to use Nuun and gels versus e-Caps and water was the reason for me getting cramps in both my calves I think. It wasn't a factor to me physically, but mentally, kept me from going harder than I planned too. A little HEED here and there at the aid stations alleviated the cramps somewhat and before the halfway point, I reeled in two more people in my age group. With a little more than a mile from the finish (in anticipation of gravity pulling me down the hill to the finish) I started my kick, but the cramping in my calves became pretty major. But I could tell it would be a great run for me if I held on, and I legged it out despite the cramps and broke 24 minutes for the first time in a triatlhon 5K run.

Stats:

3/10 Age Group & 19/78 Overall (1:31:06)
Swim (16:04 - 1:28 per 100)
T1 ( :37)
Bike (50:18 - 20.27mph)
T2 (:34)
Run (23:36 - 7:35 per mile)

Guy Stuff

2009-06-05T10:07:00.003-04:00

THIS POST IS DEDICATED TO "THE BIG CHEESE"

It was great hearing Conan O'Brien relate to Gwyneth Paltrow about how their 3-year-old boys exhibited such traditional "guy" behavior, like demolishing things, at such a young age. People without kids don't realized how inherent these characteristics really are. For instance, my son wants to hunt and race cars. I've never hunted in my entire life and probably couldn't kill an animal if I had to. And, I'm clearly not a "car" guy (I've only ever owned four cars: '04 Taurus, '96 Taurus, '90 Sentra, '86 Grand Am). But the inherent desire to "hunt" and "race" are in my son's gene's. So, too, is measuring his poop.

CJ: "Daddy, come quick!"

(Triaddy opens the bathroom door)

CJ: "Look in the potty. That's a long one."

TRIDADDY: "Wow. That is long."

CJ: "The other night, when Jinny was over, I had one even longer!"

What make this so "guy" isn't just that he noted the size of his poop, but that he had stored in his brain somewhere the memory of another poop which he found notable. Obviously, I took a picture of him holding his hands above the potty to show me how long it was because even though I'm not a hunter or car guy, I am still a guy who appreciates a good poop.

Trip to Nike World Headquarters

2009-06-04T13:36:00.005-04:00

It's true. I'm going to the Emerald City of everything SPORTS. For those not in the "know" the Emerald City for everyday athletes like us is the Nike World Headquarters. I'll also be watching the Prefontaine Classic... IN PERSON!

Check out a pic of me and the other Endurance Sports Media Group editors and publishers visiting the Nike Campus below...

What Do You Do When Race Plans Fall Through?

2009-05-29T13:39:00.004-04:00

As much as someone can "work his ass off" in training while keeping family and work top priorities, that's what I'm doing. I've been knocking out all my planned swimming and running this year, but lax on the bike. However, I do feel like I maximized my bike training with appropriate drills and relevant work on the trainer with a few nice outside rides, as well. In addition, I've put a lot more (a lot more than zero, that is) time into core and strength training this year. I think the core work paid off with a solid run finish at the Riverwood Sprint earlier this year.

I've got an easy Gears & Cheers ride tomorrow (online registration is closed, but you can still register tonight at Trek Raleigh or cycles de ORO in Greensboro), then a BRICK on Sunday befoe I officially taper for Kerr Lake, June 7th.

But, it looks like it might all be for naught. My race plans may fall through because I have a pending BIG COOL business trip in the works that would cause me to miss Kerr Lake altogether, wiping out a solid 12 weeks of training. My replacement race would be either the TrySports Battle at Buckhorn Sprint (1,000m open water swim) on June 13, or the Dextro Energy Olympic Triathlon in DC (pending travel arangements) on June 21.

Anyone have any suggestions on what to do after your race plans fall through and you've got an extra 1-2 weeks after you're taper?

Gears & Cheers

2009-05-25T15:14:00.005-04:00

Well, another Memorial Day Weekend trip to Pennsylvania to see the kids great grandma and another epic roadtrip home via the backroads and a few stops at some wineries in Virginia. With the closing of Farfelu, several years ago, even though its still listed as being open just about everywhere, we hit up some new spots (and an old standby, Rappahannock Cellars). The "Best Of" award for new spots goes to Gadino Cellars for the laid back atmosphere and beautiful porch and garden. (The wine was good, too!) Chester Gap is fairly new, and while the wines were good, there wasn't a whole lot of room for the kids like at Rappahannock and Gadino Cellars. Overall, I like Rappahannock the best because of the live music and open area for the kids to roam, not too mention an outstanding Meritage and Port Wine (both of which were out of my price range at $29 and $36, respectively).

Which all brings me to Gear & Cheers. I just realized I don't have to travel to Virginia (and miss my training rides) to go to a wine tasting. I can do that right here in North Carolina! In fact, next weekend, I'm considering drinking more wine (as part of a official ride versus the "unofficial" consumption that occurs daily with the Tridaddy... you know, to keep my cholesterol down). The occassion is the 2009 Gears & Cheers ride starting and finishing at the Grove Winery. There are two options (25 or 40-mile) and the event includes ride support, lunch, event glass, and beverage at the winery featuring live entertainment, vineyard tours, picnicking and more. I'm assuming we drink AFTER we ride... either way, without any clear race goals for the future, I can't think of a better way to merge to passions.

Cool? or UNCOOL!!!!

2009-05-12T06:40:00.002-04:00

Just as I tie my Tyr jammers and get ready to exit the locker room, a dude in his late 40's in a pair of bulging yet saggy Speedos approaches me.

DUDE: You think I need a new pair of Speedos?

TRIDDAY (after an unfortunate gaze): Yeah. They've seen better days, dude.

DUDE (turns around and points his ass at the Tridaddy): Really? Can you see anything?

CUE DICEMAN "OHHHHHH!!!"

Answer: UNCOOL!!!!

Bible Belt Bicycling

2009-05-03T21:30:00.002-04:00

I normally pre-stage my Sunday morning long rides, but given my propensity for hanging out on Saturday nights this year, my morning ride has become an afternoon ride starting anywhere between 1-2pm. Today, however, I decided to head out at about 11:30am. Couple of notes for bible belt cycling:

1. Make sure you have all your long-ride nutrition prior to starting out for a Sunday ride.
2. Make sure you ride a route that has stores with open hours on a Sunday morning.

Mistake #1 - I didn't prestage my ride, so all I had for a 2 hour ride was water.
Mistake #2 - I counted on stopping at the local bike shop, about 2 minutes from my house for Gatorade and/or e-Caps, and/or gels.
Mistaje #3 - I chose a new route, which had two stores along the route; one store was at about 1:15 into the ride, and the next was at 1:50 into the ride.

Unfortunately, the LBS didn't open till 1pm. When I cruised by at 11:32am, I didn't think it was a big deal. Instead, I planned to stop at the gas station 1:15 into my ride.

1:15 into my ride, it wasn't yet 1:00pm, so the gas station wasn't open yet. Crap. It was hot and windy and I was already hurting for some calories.

1:50 into my ride, I hit a gas station that was open, but I wasn't thinking clearly and bought a small can of Red Bull Cola. The energy lasted for abbout 30 minutes.

2:20 into my ride, I officially bonked and was done. DONE. D.O.N.E. Done. Why didn;'t I refuel properly? Who knows.

2:38 into my ride, I limped into my driveway. What should have been a 2:00 ride turned into a 2:38 Gilligan's Island type tour.

Surprisingly, I had a 17.5 mph average. Not bad given the hills and wind and bonking.

All I'm saying is that if you're going to ride in the bible belt where people go to church rather than open up their country gas stations on a Sunday morning, you should plan accordingly.

Riverwood Results: The Thin Imaginary Line

2009-04-26T20:09:00.002-04:00

There's a thin imaginary line in triathlon results. Usually, the top few results within an age group are tightly packed, each within seconds of the other. Then, there's a break; about a two-minute gap between the top finishers and everyone else. I've alway been on the wrong side of that gap, but not at Riverwood. I was 7th in my Age Group, but less than 1-minutes out of third place. Here's the grouping:

1. 1:09:02
2. 1:12:02
3. 1:12:59
4. 1:13:20
5. 1:13:40
6. 1:13:48
7. 1:13:53 <-- Tridaddy
8. 1:16:15

So, as you can see, even though I was 7th, I was only 54 seconds out of third place. Pretty tight and just as I expected, I would have placed if I nailed that 41:00 bike split I was hoping for! But you know what's really funny? I thought moving up to the 40-44 Age Group would be beneficial for me, but I actually would have placed higher in the 35-39's!

Here are my official splits:

300 yard swim: 4:58 (6/40 Age Group; 40/234 Overall)
T1: 1:04 (2/40 Age Group; 6/234 Overall)
14-mile Bike: 42:01 (5/40 Age Group; 32/234 Overall)
T2: 1:03 (8/40 Age Group; 13/40 Overall)
5K Run: 24:49 (9/40 Age Group; 44/234 Overall)

Total Time: 1:13:53 (7/40 Age Group; 28/234 Overall)

Interesting to note, I was 28th overall, but didn't place that high in the run, bike, or swim, but I did kick ass in transition.

I think everyone should do a pool sprint to start off the year. The staggered start makes it easy for you to race your own race, rather than race the guy swimming next to you, and consequently you get to figure out your strengths and weaknesses.

Based on these results and my solid run performance without over-exerting myself, I can see that my strength and core training is working, my swim is spot on with my current T-Pace, and that I have a solid base. I was planning on shaking things up and trying a new training plan, but I think I'm just going to continue on with this plan since speed work will be starting soon.

Riverwood Sprint Triathlon

2009-04-25T15:04:00.002-04:00

Just got back from eating fish tacos and enjoying a Stella Artois at the North Raleigh Bistro... my treat to myself for a great race at the Riverwood Sprint Triathlon this morning.

I planned to run this event, then called it off, then back on when my friend Sonny decided to tackle it as his first triathlon. He had a great race and rocked the bike course for a first time triathlete!

For me, this was my first triathlon of 2009 and a short race for me to focus on my limiters and work the kinks out of my game. Because I like to peruse prior year stats, I knew that if I had the same type of bike splits I had at the end of last season, I might actually get 3rd place in the 40-44. I think I just missed it.

But, wow! What a great family-friendly race. I can't say enough about this must-do event. Great location (about 38 minutes from my house), great course, great event site layout, smooth roads, partially shaded run, and great post race food (pizza, pasta salad, garlic rolls, fresh fruit cups, brownies, bananas, and a few other things.

As for my race... both my watches are officially dead so I don't know my splits. And, I wasn't really out racing, but working on my limiters, which are:

1. Not killing myself on the swim.
2. Not killing myself on the bike.
3. Maintaing solid form throughout the run.

So...

The Swim:
Prior to this year, I never really focused on swimming technique or pacing. But, it's been my entire focus in training this year and has resulted in me knowing I can swim a comfortable 1:38 per 100 for 300 yards. I felt as if I paced this swim perfectly and probably finished in 4:54.

T1:
As always I had a solid transition. I fumbled a bit getting a tic tac box of e-Caps in my pocket as I was worried about the heat. 67 degrees at 6am with a high of 94 today!

The Bike:
I knew if I was to place, I would need to pull a 41:00 minute split or less. There was a bit of wind, my bike training has been lax, and there were a few hills. At the five-mile mark, I was way off pace. I knew the placing wasn't likely unless I hit it hard. I didn't. Instead, I focused on smooth cadence and staying in my zone (as told by RPE). I think my split was 42:30

T2:
Damn! I am so smooth coming off the bike I can't remember when people haven't cheered for me. Great T2.

The Run:
I ran steady and kept a solid pace where I could maintain my form, throughout the run. I didn't have trouble getting loose or finishing like I typically do. I calculated a 24:10 run split for this race, which would have been almost a minute faster than any other 5K split in a triathlon for me. Based on my finish time, I'm thinking I might have broke 24:00!

My final time was 1:13:53 for a 300 yard pool swim, 14-mile bike and 5K. I am extremely happy with my time, but even more happy for getting to see Sonny finish his first race and still happier for an even that was a great place for the kids and Sandi to come out and watch.

Stay tuned for pics and official splits...

St. Timothy's Spring Sprint

2009-04-18T20:42:00.002-04:00

I ran this race for the past three years with a PR of 23:30 and third place Age Group finish last year. I ran 23:31 this morning. Different strategy than last year... same result. Last year I went strong in the beginning and died at the end. This year I went easy at the beginning and finished strong. Pretty much the same result, but 23:31 was only a 6th place Age Group finish this year. No surprise since looking over my training records I'm doing pretty much the same workouts as I did last year, with the same results. Might be time to shake things up.

Swim Workout

2009-04-13T20:53:00.002-04:00

Today's workout started with a 500 yard warm up, then 10x100 at T-Pace (1:38), 400 pull, then 8x100 at T-Pace -5 (1:33) then 200 pull, then 100 cool down.

I couldn't seem to slow down enough to consistently hit 1:38's on my 10x100's. I started off with a 1:31 then fluctuated between 1:34 - 1:36. I hit 1:38 once.

Then, I couldn't seem to swim fast enough to hit 1:33 on my 8x100's. It fluctuated between 1:34 - 1:36. I hit 1:33 once.

What was interesting and somewhat comical was that on my T-Pace -5 effort, I started tiring near the end and realized that I as I got tired, I would lift my head, which caused me to slow down. But, even though I realized that, and tried to focus on keeping my head down, I kept lifting it... my mind unable to will my body to follow the command.

Still, it feels good to be doing so well at swimming this early in the year. I may be signing up for my first race soon!

Return to Umstead

2009-04-12T16:34:00.003-04:00

I felt awesome on my 7.53 mile Umstead Run which included the difficult Turkey Loops. I was certain I PR'd the route, but found that I was actually 2 minutes slower than my PR for that route, achieved during peak Uwharrie Mountain Run training this past November.

Considering it was only my 6th run since the February 7th Uwharrie race, and only my fourth workout in the past two weeks, I'm pretty pleased with it. Thanks to the Marine Corps "Daily" 7's I've been doing three times a week, my core felt strong and my legs were able to power up the hills.

In addition, I did this without water or any type of fuel during the run, when typically I'd carry a bottle of water or sports drink and take at least 2 e-caps or a gel. Just part of my continuing experiment (inspired by elite people I know who run up to 2 hours without taking anything) to see how necessary sports drinks, etc., really are.

Leftover Pizza Recipe: Updated

2009-04-11T05:49:00.004-04:00

(see bottom of post for update)

I remember the long ago weekend mornings of Ironman triathlon training where I would ready my bike, park in the driveway, and blog away anxiously awaiting the first glimmer of sunlight to allow me to start a 3 hour bike ride. That was a year of 5:30am workout times and soooo 2006! Now, I can't even comprehend working out in the morning. But today, I was up at 5 am, having fallen asleep last night at 8:30 pm from sheer work exhaustion (I swam once this past week as my only workout). I briefly entertained the notion of riding, but it's cold (60 degrees... in 2006 cold to me was 32 or below!) and dark and damp. No, instead, I conjured up a recipe -- Leftover Pizza Sandwiches. I haven't even made this yet, but it's going to be good. I'm certain the kids will just want a bowl of cereal rather than watch the old "mad cook" in his laboratory dissecting and re-creating a Franken-pizza!

Anyway, here's the recipe (might change as I cook it for the first time):

Ingredients:

2 slices of leftover pizza
1 egg, scrambled w/ your choice of Italian Seasonings

Instructions:

Using a large cookie-cutter (preferrably a circle, but all we have is a heart-shaped cutter), cut out two pizza slices. Save the cookie-cutter shapes and eat the remaining scraps (yum!). Peel the cheese off the pizza and save. Scramble the egg softly with your favorite spices (Oregeno and garlic salt for me). Place about half (or all) of the scrambled egg on cookie-cutter slice and top with saved pizza cheese. Top with other cookie-cutter slice and microwave just long enough for cheese to soften.

Author Note: I haven't yet made this so I can't vouch for it. I'll let you know shortly how well this came out.

UPDATE:

Here is the final product:

As always, I took some detours when preparing this based on my original recipe. Here are the new instructions:

1. Cut up a slice of pizza into smaller strips.
2. Peel off the cheese and dice, save pizza dough.
3. Scramble 1 egg
4. Chop a 1/2 clove of garlic
5. Place pizza dough in oven at 300 degrees to warm
6. Sautee diced garlic in olive oil
7. Add a handful of spinach to garlic and oil
8. The very second the spinach wilts, add egg and diced pizza cheese.
9. Once egg is cooked to your liking, place on warmed pizza dough.
10. Top with a slice of tomato and fresh basil (I didn't have fresh, though)

NOTES on original idea:

1. I couldn't find the cookie-cutter
2. Microwave seemed to noisy and I didn't want to wake the family.
3. Garlic salt would have made this recipe too salty, I think.
4. I actually made the pizza sandwich with the cheese on top, but it was too cheesy.
5. I also tried the egg on top of a slice with cheese not peeled off, but again, it was too cheesy.
6. Even with the variations, it only took less than 10 minutes to whip my Franken-pizza together

Oreo Cookies & One Hundred Years of Solitude

2009-03-31T23:13:00.003-04:00

I just packed Orea cookies (instead of the usual baby carrots) in my kid's lunches for tomorrow and can't wait to hear about it tomorrow after work. My 5-year-old daughter doesn't talk much about school work on the drive home, but loves to share details of recess and lunch (chip off the old block!). Such a thoughtful kid, she sometimes saves portions of her lunch for me to eat as a snack on the way home from school!

I usually make lunches a bit earlier, but crashed on the floor in the playroom after our after-dinner walk. I've been losing my voice and must have some sort of energy-sapping bug or something. I tried getting up to help put the kids to bed, but was glued to the floor. My son even jumped on me a few times with no luck. Needless to say, I skipped training today and have officially decided to ramp down to a less aggressive training schedule this year.

That being said, I'm getting ready to hit the sack but fear I may not be able to sleep so I'm breaking out One Hundred Years of Solitude for the umpteenth time. I've tried reading the book several times but could never get into it enough to even make it halfway through. I've been a big basher of the book, since so far, I think it's immensely overrated. But who knows, maybe it will suddenly get interesting (like my old "fall asleep" book, Alaska by James Michener) and I will finally get the big deal about One Hundred Years of Solitude.

I have to say, I have my doubts about learning to enjoy it, though. I don't like books or movies that skip around in time. For instance, outside of the coolness factor John Travolta brought to Pulp Fiction, I thought the movie was weak with some occassional snappy dialogue. But, while the book Alaska was near 1,000 pages and sparse on dialogue, it's chronological style made it easier for me to digest.

Swimming & Running & Racing

2009-03-31T06:24:00.001-04:00

I've been having some great swim workouts lately. Considering I've just started swimming consistently, I'm suprised that I can easily swim 900 yards straight after a 300 swim/200 kick/200 pull warm up, when my old warm up used to be about 200 yards total. I'm also surprised that I can knock out 12x100 at T-Pace +5, when I've never been able to pace that consistently before.

On the other hand, while my knee issues I experienced at Uwharrie are non-existent, I find myself out running and wondering if I ever really enjoyed it in the first place, or whether its just been a means to train for a triathlon that allows me the opportunity to swim in open water. Truly, I can't remember when a run at any pace felt good. I mean, I feel good having done it, but I can't remember when I enjoyed the experience itself.

To combat the challenge of motivating myself to run, I've taken to running only new routes this year. Of course I'm limited to where and when I can run, so I often run old routes in different directions where possible and combine segments of old favorite routes.

It will be interesting to see how well I do in races this year given my apathy towards running (my limiter), focus on swimming, and propensity for riding the trainer rather than the road, not too mention not having any real race goals this year.

Farting

2009-03-25T15:45:00.001-04:00

It's true I no longer eat meat, which is sad in a way, but the upside is that the extra beans I'm eating is really elevating my farting to legendary status.

There's joy everywhere.

Tri Training Begins (In the Nick of Time!)

2009-03-16T21:45:00.002-04:00

Today was my T-pace test.

Leading up to tonight, I went swimming twice in the week after Uwharrie and knocked out 2600 and 3000 yard workouts with ease, which was pretty awesome since I didn't do a whole lot of swimming leading up to the race. I took about two weeks off completely before I started cycling in 3-4 day blocks with about 3-4 days off in between. No purpose to it... just doing what I felt like doing, which didn't include ANY running for a month and a half and NO swimming for a full month.

So, I meant to go swimming this morning for a little T-Pace test, but I got up late and had to do the workout after dinner... like IMMEDIATELY after dinner. I'm not sure if it was the full belly, or the time off, or my leaky goggles which I had to cinch way too tight... but the T-Pace test was a STRUGGLE. I didn't feel good at all.

Amazingly, I set an early year T-Pace of 1:40 per 100. I'm usually at about 1:50-1:55 this time of year and ramp up to about 1:40-1:45 on race day. I have a feeling that if I missed any more swimming my pace would rapidly deterioriate from here... good thing I started training TODAY!!!

As I said, I haven't done a whole lot of swimming since the Duke Half Iron last year, but when I do swim, I've been focusing on maintaining a steady kick (which has always been my weakness) and "pulling" the water along the length of my torso rather than the more wind-mill like motion I used in the past. I say "pulling" in quotes because I think that's typically way it's described, though for me, it seems like a pull at first, then a push when my cupped hand crossed beneath my shoulders.

I'm probably doing it wrong, but for me, the joy of swimming in a pool is testing out different things and seeing how they work.

Now all that remains to be seen is how well I run after a 1.5 month layoff!

Vegetarians are Cheesy

2009-03-13T09:16:00.001-04:00

I've been a vegetarian for more than 30 days now. My observation from the other side of the fence where the grass is truly greener is that vegetarians are cheesy. Literally. I haven't been telling people that I'm a vegetarian because I don't like the political connotations that implies but I do say that I don't eat meat. The unilateral response has been an unusual kind of cultish acceptance that leaves me waiting for the secret handshake. And then it starts...

"Oh, here's a recipe. Veggie Lasagna. You'll need 4 cups of cheese..."
"You've got to try my veggie enchilada. You'll need 6 cups of cheese..."
"I've got the perfect recipe for veggie baked potatoes. You'll need 8 cups of cheese..."
"Have you tried my cheesy cheese recipe? You'll need 10 cups of cheese."

Seriously, I don't know a vegetarian who doesn't eat bucket loads of cheese. True, in some cases that means soy cheese, but the fact of the matter is (except for pizza) I pretty much gave up cheese five years ago. It's been the only dietary change (and I've made a lot of them) that has significantly reduced my cholesterol (the reason I'm switching to a vegetarian diet).

I simply have no desire to dress up food with cheese, soy or otherwise, which kind of leaves me in the barren wasteland of cheese-less vegetarians. I think they're called vegans, which sounds a little too much like vulcan to me. I certainly don't adhere to the political veiws of vegans or vulcans.

While I haven't had any problems giving up meat in the slightest (okay, I did have one cheeseburger dream), I still think we're all carnivores at heart. As my 3-year-old son said upon seeing a deer in a book about animals... "is that a deer? I'd like to eat that."

Meet The TriGeek Kahuna!!

2009-03-07T14:32:00.004-05:00

If you've been a long-time reader of the Tridaddy blog you know that William Lobdell, the TriGeek Kahuna, was my inspiration to do Ironman Florida. Well, he'll be in Raleigh on Sunday promoting his book Losing My Religion at the Quail Ridge Book Store. You should head over at 3pm on Sunday to get a copy and meet Bill!

Goodnight My Angels

2009-03-05T01:45:00.003-05:00

I fell asleep in my son's room telling him "jokes" tonight. A "joke" is Carson's story-telling convention where he tells me some things that "our dog" wants to do (i.e., things Carson wants to do, but is not allowed, like drive a car, get into the sugar bowl, etc.) and then I make up a story about our dog's elaborate plans to trick me into allowing him to do those things, but of course Barnum always gets caught.

About an hour ago, I drifted in and out of sleep in that weird half asleep mode, hearing what I believed to be an piano and sax afterlude to a Billy Joel song that goes something like...

I never meant to promise you
I never meant to [something] you

I never meant to [something] you
I never meant to [something] you

Unable to get it out of my head, I searched fruitlessly for the lyrics, but found a lot of great Billy Joel songs I never heard or didn't remember. So, to my beautiful children... Goodnight My Angels

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LraZEoRnkPc

Four Days of Cycling!

2009-03-03T09:25:00.002-05:00

No small feat in this weird North Carolina weather, but I rode my bike four days in a row --

FRIDAY: 2-hour long ride
SATURDAY: 1-hour on Cyclops trainer with focus on Single Leg Drills
SUNDAY: 1-hour on Cyclops trainer with focus on high cadence pedalling (smooth at 115 rpm, but I tend to get bouncy and lose form above that)
MONDAY: w/u with squat jumps, then 1-hour on Cyclops trainer with focus on Power Intervals.

I think I'm going to take a break today, otherwise I'll start getting bored with the trainer!!!

Spearmint Cocoa Treat w/ Whipped Cream

2009-03-02T12:15:00.013-05:00

What better way to warm up after playing in the snow!

First Bike Ride of the Season

2009-02-28T09:35:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, I got outside on Kuota for the first time this year. Having 2+ weeks off after Uwharrie I was surprised to knock out 37 miles in two hours in some tough wind, matching about the fastest pace I've ever had on that particular route. I'm planning on a lot more cycling before I officially kick in triathlon training soon.

Swimming

2009-02-25T17:30:00.003-05:00

I haven't had the urge to run since Uwharrie. I did some Marine Corps Daily 7's as my first official exercise since the race, then followed up with 2,600 yards in the pool Tuesday, followed by some more Marine Corps Daily 7's this morning. I really wanted to be cycling and taking up yoga, but it's been too cold and I can't find my yoga DVD!

Doesn't really matter as I'm in "free form" exercise mode for the next week and a half before I kick it into gear for race season. Right now, getting to the pool seems easiest, which makes me think maybe this is the year for my 4.4-mile Chesapeake Bay Swim... hmmm. Probably swim again tomorrow.

Uwharrie: The Cup

2009-02-21T17:33:00.001-05:00

Here's the cup I ran 20 miles for a couple of weeks ago.

MUST-HAVE TRI GEAR: The Lunocet

2009-02-17T04:24:00.002-05:00

They say you can't win a triathlon on the swim, well, Lunocet begs to differ. At $1,800 it won't be the cheapest triathlon gear you'll ever buy, but then again, what's the value of speed? Cyclists would certainly spend an extra $1,800 on a new Cervelo just to shave 2 minutes off their split, but what if you could shave 10 minutes of your sprint swim split? What about a sub 30-minute Ironman swim?

Check it out!

http://www.lunocet.com/

Triathlon Season or Cyclocross?

2009-02-15T05:58:00.004-05:00

I've got a great four-race triathlon season scheduled for this year, but am considering scrapping it and making this summer a "get ready for cyclocross" season. There's a couple of local crits, much cheaper than triathlons, that I think would be fun to ride to get used to bike racing. I'll have to give it some more thought, but without a doubt, I'm certain I could be of more entertainment to my family (especially my three-year-old son) to watch in a crit or cyclocross race than a triathlon. My only obstacle is overcoming my sentimental attachment to my mountain bike (which I never ride) and trading it in for a cyclocross bike.

Uwharrie Race Report: I Got the Cup

2009-02-08T11:36:00.003-05:00

Fot the first time in my life not only did I execute my training plan as it was intended to be done, I actually executed a real taper whereas for me "taper" typically means staying up late during deadline week at work and getting no sleep. I was super-charged at the get go and shot up the first steep hill faster than ever, certain this would be my day.

It was not my day.

On the very first downhill I recognize the same stiffness in my right knee that I experienced at the end of my last long run. It hadn't reared it's ugly head in two weeks, but here it was on race day trying to hitch a ride on the Tridaddy Express.

When you train for a trail run with lots of hills, it's hard to say what pace you'll run. But, I've run enough to know that when I'm moving well over any terrain, I'm going to be between 10 and 11 minutes miles.

Well, I was moving really well at the get go. I was probably close to 10-minute miles, but because of the knee pain, which I knew was some type of injury (probably overuse) from training, I adjusted my strategy and walked the steep portions of hills and went VERY easy on the downhills to preserve my knee for as long as possible.

I hit mile 11 at 1:58, so I knew I was much closer to 11-minute miles than 10, but that was still in the range I wanted to hit. So I was happy.

But, just like miles 11-14 broke me and forced a DNF in 2007, they broke me once again. When I hit the aid station at 14 I knew my choices were QUIT, CONTINUE RUNNING AND DESTROY MY KNEE, OR WALK. I felt bad, because I knew if I walked I'd probably come in at 5 hours and Thys would be miserable waiting for me at the start...

but goddammit! I wanted that cup! (you get a ceramic mug if you finish the 20)

I convinced myself that maybe my knee would come around if I walked a bit. So I started walking. Every time I tried to run however... no dice. The knee was stiffening up bad, but I discovered I could walk quickly (dare I say power-walking?!?!?) i could prevent my knee from stiffening up without doing any unneccessary damage to it (becuase after you leave 14... you pretty much have to finish any because it's too remote to get any help to you very quickly).

So, when I hit the mile 17 aid station at about 3:50. I was pretty stoked. 17-20 is a short 3 miles (11-14 is long, I believe) and I knew I could bust out a 4:30 finish if I power-walked my ass out of there. Unfortunately, even walking 6 miles on Uwharrie terrain takes a toll and my knee wasn't up to the pace and I cruised in at 4:35 or so.

In the end, I'm happy with this race. I put in a lot of training and I wasn't going to leave those mountains without a cup. I did the smart thing and finished without destroying my knee, which after only 24 hours feels back to normal.

Just like I said last year:

I am NEVER doing this race again.

(Registration for 2010 opens on November 2)

Last Long Run Before Uwharrie

2009-01-25T21:53:00.002-05:00

I had a 16.74 mile run planned at Umstead today which included both the Sycamore Loop and Company Mill Trail in their entireties (is that a word?). But I ran past a turn for Company Mill and didn't notice until I was too far past to backtrack. In the end, I finished with 15.26 miles at about a 10:15 pace. I hit all the big hills on the North Turkey Loop and one on Reedy Creek, for my official longest training run by .20 miles.

Next week begins my taper and I am ready for it!!!

Winter Trail Running Gear Review: My Beard

2009-01-20T16:13:00.004-05:00

Today, I tested one of the most important pieces of gear you can have for winter trail running - a beard. The temperature was 31 F and a bit blustery in the woods. See below for a pic from my run. With only a few weeks worth of growth, my beard came through like a champ today keeping my chin nice and warm and preventing the snot from dripping down over my upper lip and into my mouth. If you don't already have a beard for winter trail running - get one now!

Ladies... please check out this link to find out how you can get a beard, too!

Fake Beards For Women!

NOTE: Sorry for the grainy pic... our card reader is on the fritz! Here's another grainy pic of part of the trail I ran to test my new beard.

Little River Trail Run PR!!!

2009-01-16T05:12:00.005-05:00

Even though TrailHeads used a different course (same trails, for the most part, though) and included a long downhill to start, I'm claiming a PR on pace and overall placement to start the New Year off right! Results are up for the 10-mile Little River Trail Run and my official finish time is 1:27:31 (8:48 per mile). I was 55 of 259 runners overall, which is about top 21%. Both my pace and overall placement greatly improved since last year, so I'm claiming a PR!

As a comparison, here are my last three results at Little River:

2009: 8:45 pace, top 21% (10-mile time of 1:27:31)
2008: 9:09 pace, top 42% (9-mile time of 1:22:23)
2007: 10:21 pace, top 68% (9-mile time of 1:33:10)

It's interesting to note, that my progress as a triathlete is lagging behind my progress as a trail runner. When you look at the three disciplines, I have slacked off in swimming, improved greatly in cycling, but improved only marginally in running. I think the answer to that is that I don't have the time or inclination to spend as much time as needed to focus on longer distances (olympic distance and up), which is why my resolution this year is to stick to shorter races (olympic distance and down). Hopefully I can put it all together for triathlon this year!