Season Rewind 2008

I am about a month removed from my final race of the season, the Black Diamond Half Ironman in Enumclaw WA. This race, unlike the July race was a success. I spent the intervening two months getting on my bike and getting some great long rides in. I also did some solid runs and even some bike/run bricks.. I didn't do much swimming, however, but had a few lake swims, so I was okay.

The portion was pretty hard and although I finished with a respectable 42 minutes, I suspect I was a little slower than normal. The bike was a daunting task but I was up for it. I got through the first 34 or so miles in an hour and a half and made it through my second loop in three and a half hours. I was extremely happy to finish the bike and I felt in great shape to start running. I was a little nervous because of a painful IT Band problem in my left leg. That forced me to run/walk the 13 miles but I finished in 7 hrs and 19 minutes.

The race capped a long season of training and stress but surprisingly I was in decent shape in the following days. I learned that I had to embrace my training and try to tackle the tasks I did not want to do. I also learned that a triathlon is a long race with lots of problems and pitfalls. It takes a clear head and a mentally prepared mind to get through it. But it is well worth the effort.

Stick around in the upcoming days to find out what 2009 has in store. Thanks for reading. Dennis

Couple days to think about things.

After time to think things over, the race autopsy (nee racetopsy) results are in. Due to my carelessness and stupidity, my bike had tires that were severely underinflated. Usually racers with brains keep extra tires, tubes, and CO2 cartidges to handle these mistakes during the race. I did not. I was too focused on the racing itself that I neglected my equipment. Therefore, I was forced to do the 58 miles at an unbelievably slow pace while being passed by nearly every rider. It was a tough pill to swallow, but I believe I will be stronger for it.

The last few days have givven me an opportunity to get more acquainted with the wonderful world of tire inflation as I have spent time inflating, deflating, and then, re-inflating my tires. I will soon be getting back on the bike and working on some technique drills that I have been neglecting as well.

As for the race itself, it would have been nice to finish. But I was nearly dead after getting off the bike. A 13 mile run after that would have been a 13 mile walk, at a very slow pace and would have taken all night. Instead, I have two months to think about what happened and make sure it does not happen again. In the meantime I will be resting for a few days and then back at it as soon as I can. Thanks for reading.

70.3 minus 13.1 equals 57.2

Tough day today at the race. I completed the swim in 40 minutes. Right on target for the best race of my life. That's the good news. From the second I got on the bike it was a nightmare. I had trouble getting in my shoes and was messed up for a good 15 miles. Then I had trouble getting my brand new Rudy Project glasses on and they fell off never to be seen again. By the time I took my first sip of water, my water bottle fell off the bike never to be seen again as well.

Then the real fun happened. I looked down at mile 30 and notice my tire was FLAT. With no spare or pump or help in site I had two options: quit in the middle of the course or gut it out on the flat. I somehow finished the bike but was past the cutoff and didn't run. I was okay with that since riding 40 ish miles on a flat killed me.

I was mad a myself and disappointed in my performance but I was able to take some good experience and look ahead to my September race. Lessons learned - Always inflate your tires, carry spares and train to your weaknesses. I am dead right now but I will be back to follow-up in a few days. Thanks for your support and I am sorry I could not finish. To all those who donated, we'll get them in September

Couple Days Away

Just wrapping up the final days before the race. This are going well. The short run was a little longer than I thought and I felt a little sore from it. My goal now is to prepare myself mentally for the race. I have been getting my ear together, been planning out the route, getting directions, and all the other afterthoughts so I don't have to worry about things. Tomorrow I plan to head to Lake Tapps for 4th of July BBQ with the relatives. At that time, I'll head into the water for a final swim whilst dodging all the jet skis and boats. No better time than at the last second to practice sighting in the water.

I found out the race has a couple pretty large hills. I am a little nervous but I just need to rely on my training and realize the race just represents the equivalent of a really tough training day. With that in mind, I should be in good shape. As long as I keep focused on that and not get rattled by little things, it should be a fun day. Ideally, I would like to finish the bike at about 3hrs 30 minutes and in good shape. If I can do that, I can run 13 miles at a comfortable pace with stops worked in if necessary, and I'll be ready for a final push in the last few miles. Sounds easy right? We shall see.

A Short Run

My last real workout was a long, long run last Wednesday or Thursday (I can't remember anymore). After that I realized I needed to rest my body and get myself ready for the race. Well after eventually popping all my blisters, getting a pair of shoes that fit, doing actual work, and going out of town for a wedding; I was ready to get a few light workouts in. The days off were good because they let me cool down and rest myself in preparation for the race. But today it was back at it for the final push.

I got back on the road because I wanted to reconnect with what it feels like to be running up and down hills in the hot sun. I did about 5-6 miles near my house and up and down some nice hills. The new shoes feel great although I re-blistered a certain tender area. I ran very well though and am very excited with my progress. If only the race was a 10K I would be all set. Alas it's not, but I am not worried. Tomorrow I get on the bike for a few miles, rest on Thursday, Swim a bit on Friday with a warm-down run and then I prepare for the race.

The mental preparation is the most challenging because I need to overcome all my thoughts of self-doubt and everything. I find myself always second-guessing and whatiffing instead of shutting up and racing. I'm never happy its over, I am most happy when the wait is over and I am "doing it." Back tomorrow with my bike post.

Less Than A Week Away

My blog reporting has gone dry in the last few weeks. I am frankly shocked at the response from a few of the readers. Yes thats right I actually had readers.

To get you up to date, the training has been going well. I am either training or sleeping from training. These last few days has been a lot of "not training". On Wednesday I had a really long run of about 10 miles. I was very sore the next day or two and had some blistering problems and whatnot and decided to take a few day of so that I can begin this week with some light workouts in preparation for Sunday's race. My days off were fine, I had some business meetings and got some new shoes and made one last adjustment to my bike in preparation for Sunday.

In addition I am scaling back my workouts in an attempt to avoid something I always have done in my life...cramming. For my last race I ran 6 miles two days before my race. Which is ludicrous especially since I was sore for my race. This time I am taking it easy, squeezing in some light workouts and working on preparing myself mentally. I will be blogging all week and thanks for reading

Progress and Lessons Learned

Today's workout was tough. I was scheduled to swim 2600 at race pace in a series of drills. I decided I would use flipturns as much as I could from now on so I had to work real hard. Making things more difficult, I was going to do so without a warmup. A warmup is a great luxury to have because it allows you to get accustomed to the water and start off on the right track.

I started off with 4 200s with flipturns. It was okay but I felt real sluggish and even muffed a turn. To execute a flipturn you have measure a certain distance from the wall, flip over, push off the wall, twist your body and begin your stroke. As the set goes, on and you get more tired, it becomes harder and harder to execute the turns properly, plus you lose your technique and all sorts of other things happen. It feels really awful to mess up, lose your stroke, have water go up your nose etc. etc.

My next set was 500 yds with flipturns. I screwed up a turn early in the set and lost my stroke. I wanted to stop the whole workout but I pressed on, gather myself and vowed to finish the set. It stunk though, I had snot all over me, water in my nose and it took me about 45 strokes to get to each wall.

My final set consisted of 6 200s. After doing one of them without flipturns I was able to complete six of them. I went from wanting to quit and almost walking out of the pool, to finishing the set strongly and even doing an extra 200. I kept thinking to myself 'is this ever going to be easy'. I guess the simple answer is, 'as long as I keep working on them'. It doesn't really feel like I have made progress but the flipturns are going much better. I can easily complete them on 100s, 200s are getting better and as seen today, I can survive on doing them over 500. Plus I am pretty much doing them throughout the workout, so I am not far away from doing them as a rule.

Song in my head "PDA" John Legend http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4R_oswROic