training ups and downs

This week has been up and down. I went back to the pool this week and got two quality swims in. I worked on 4x400's with 70.3 race pace and went well I wass going into each one at 5:45 and taking off on 6:00 with steady turn over. A couple days later I also worked on speed with 10x100's broken. 1st 5 were pull and last 5 were all out. My last 5 were 1:14, 1:14, 1:15, 1:14 and 1:15. two months ago I was 2-3 seconds slower. So I am happy with my results.

The downs, I have been running on the Newton trainers and racers fo rhe last 14 months. I really adapted well and enjoyed the shoes. This past 2 weeks I have been dealing with some foot pain. Right under my 3rd an 4th toes. Some research proved that I may be wearing a shoe too small. I have looked at my shoes soles and tried to determine if I do in fact need to bump up. I will reach out to Newton today and see what they can help mw with.

Tonight I raced in Nahnat at the beach Tri and it was great crowd. First time back since my brother's fender bender ( he is still out of comission). The water was very warm which also adds to my need to get a sleeveless wetsuit (maybe X-mas). I was first out of the water getting to the beach at 4 mins even. I had a good bike. Legs were a bit heavy but felt I rode par for the course. Completed the out and back in 12:15. Because of my issues with my Newtons i used my Nike Lunar Trainers. Much bigger toe box. The problem here is that my T2 time suffered immensely. After I finally got going I my pace picked up. I will add that I did not like running in these and missed my Newtons. I felt like I had to work a little harder to stay in my forward lean. THe LT's were much softer and I think that it took some energy from me. I hope Newton will let me exchange my other shoes for a bigger size. Right now they are out of stock in the racer. I may have to go to find a retailer and buy them or go to the new performance trainer. The only difference btw the two is about .5 ounces. nothing in the total scheme of things.

Anyway I held a decent run even though they field was hunting me down. I think I lost about 20 secs in T2 and would guess maybe 3-4 secs per mile in the 5K. So my finish time of 34:22 could have been close to own PR at 33:16. But we'll wait till next time!

That Dam Lake! (race report for DAM tri)

Well I raced the Dam today and was pleased with my results. I finished in 1:04. I crossed the line in 4th OA but because of a penalty on the overall first finisher I bumped up to 3rd. I have always said that not only do you have to race fast fast but also know where you are going. I also saw two types of PRO's today, and one of my good friends set a great example of what the word Professional really is.

Today was and odd day for the front runners. Everything was pretty normal up until the start. The water temp was registered at 82.4 degrees. I wasn't thrilled b/c that meant we could not wear wetsuits if we wanted to get $. So the only thing I wore today was my tri shorts.

Swim: 11:41

This was VERY slow for me. I thought I would get out in about 10 min. One of the volunteers in the lake said she saw me zigzagging and probably swam 3/4 of a mile with all the distance I covered. I was bummed and exhausted when I got out. Didn't realize how much I liked wearing a wetsuit. When the gun went off there were 3 guys who took off. Dave Sek, Pete Mallet and Dean Phillips. It was great to see Dean looking good w/ all of the injuries he has had. The good thing about no wetsuit is that T1 was super fast.

Bike: 31:40

I felt sluggish at the start. Took me a little longer to get moving but once I did I felt strong. The course had a few ups and downs and I covered the 12.3 in about 31 mins. The strange thing was that I did not see one other rider once I left transition. I think that if I had a rabbit to chase it may have been quicker. I finally got into T2 and had another fast transition. I headed out for the run it was hot right off the bat. In the end I think I need to look at my power file and really see what I need to do to help balance my power. I also think that because of my poor swim, I suffered on the bike to try and race where I wanted to be.

Run: 19:57

A quick turn out of transition put you on a slight down hill heading into town. My legs really were turning over quick and I was curious were I was placed at this time. What I didn't know was that one of the leaders, Pete Mallet, had gone of course on the bike I subsequently bumped up to 4th. I hit the first water table. No one was there so I took a drink on my own. I felt like I was moving pretty good and didn't feel like I was hurting to bad. I was at about the 1 mile mark when I saw a runner up ahead of me. It another elite athlete. I focused on him for a while and planned on making a move after the turnaround. While I was thinking of this Pete Mallet came blowing by us. As we got to the turn Dean Phillips was in 1st, Dave Sek in 2nd Pete Mallet 3rd and Steve Wright 4th with me in 5th. I hit the turn in about 10 mins and knew that I could run harder. I was kind of pissed at myself b/c I knew that I could have pushed it a bit harder and maybe have made a move a littler earlier or eve tried to hang with Pete for awhile. I did make a move and pass Wright at about the 2 .5 mile and felt like I was running hard now. I made that turn back to the lake with a slight up hill and felt the thighs start to burn. I knew that i was going to come in under 1:06 (last years time). I pushed hard the last bit and finished in just under 1:05.

The stories started to unfold after the race. While Dean was out on the run, in first, he was sent the wrong way as he was misdirected by 2 volunteers. He followed their direction knowing that it was the wrong way. If he didn't they could have been disqualified. After getting back on course he fought through the frustration of getting caught by 2 others that would have had a really hard time of caching him if he didn't lose 3 mins. In the end he came in 3rd.

The other issue was Pete mallet not making on of the last turns on the bike and going off course. He re-entered the course at a different location and then headed out on the run. Granted he had a super fast run caught all of us to finish first but he didn't follow the rules or the course. For what should have been a DQ he only got a 2 min penalty. After the race, one of the directors came up to me and Dave Sek. the two who after Pete and asked if there was a volunteer at the turn in question. I told him when I got there, I saw a police office with vehicle on the shoulder of the road along with 2, yes TWO signs that said RIGHT TURN!!

What frustrated me the most was that there is a 25 year old kid who after the race was cursing and swearing and trashing the people and volunteers because he missed a turn. I don't think his sponsors would have been pleased to see his rant. In Dean's defense, he followed instructions and was led the wrong way and came back on course where he went off. I am not a PRO, I have just started racing as an elite this year only because I was asked to in Cohasset. If this is what it entails then I would be happy as and AG and taking podium spots there. But I would rather follow Dean's lead and set the example. I understand the pressure knowing what it takes to be in the elite field. The wimmer was frustrated and yes he would have won, but part of the race and sport is knowing the course, following directions and covering the entire event without problem or penalty as fast as you can. To hear the complaining that this is my livelihood and I have bills pissed me off even more. I laughed to myself because I thought of Dean who even though just as upset kept it to himself and realized this is a sport and yes he is a pro with a wife 3 kids and BILLS understands that sometimes there is human error and you live and learn. Hell I have 2 kids works nights, sleep only 4-5 hours a day and bills to pay. Hell there were elites at this race who asked for free entry. I don't get. you ask to race for free, want to win to get money and when you go off course the was clearly marked complain because you aren't going to get paid?

I learned something for myself when I was in at Norwich, you have to pay the consequences for your actions weather they are good or bad. In the big picture if the payday at that Dam Tri is going to make or brake you checking account then you can have my Fit Werx gift certificate and better start working on a plan B.

Dam Tri

So this week has been super hot. Since the Cohasset tri I have been maintaining my 70.3 training. Over the 4th I had a good run and 2.5 hour bike with a 40 min open water beach swim. I have thrown in some speed work on the bike and Ran the Fire cracker 4 miler. I finished in 23:2o and 4th over all.

Yesterday I tested my endurance and tolerance for heat with an 8.5 mile run. Temp heading out the door was 101. Out in Nahant it was 99 and when I returned it was still 101. I totaled 59:10. My usual time on this has been as fast as 54 min. I will take into consideration that I was going on 20 hours with no sleep and it was hotter than HELL itself. I think the Devil was looking for a pool.

Today I went and did a 2000 yard swim in the pool. I was wiped. Just couldn't get my times. I was just a few seconds off. I am going for an easy 1:15 bike this afternoon. On Sat I will be racing as an elite again at the Dam Tri in Amesbury. Pete Mallet who is riding for Fit Werx along with pro/owner Dean Phillips will be leading the charge. Dave Sek is another friend who is going to race elite. Pete and Dave will lead the way on the swim and surely Dean will take over the bike. I just want to hang on show another solid performance.

For the next couple of days I will be taking my BASE products and Aminos to make sure I have I high level of electrolytes. I weighed in today at 185 and feel like a lot of that was water weight lost yesterday. Well i will let you all know how it goes.

PS. Cyclists remember to check your helmets and ride safe. Keep you eye out for the cars. They are not looking for you. My brother and another friend were in accidents last week. Both are ok. Thank God. Stay safe!