Strides

The year has been going pretty well. Things are taking off at a local Cross Fit gym, IronSpider. I will be very active there and enjoy the people who are runnig it. I plan on getting my certification this spring and plan on coaching there as well.

Traingin is going to be going towards tri specific this next week. I will be adding an extra swim and two more bikes. Stength is there and I am looking forward to the black cat 1o miler. I will be running in that to see how my fitness is for the early spring set up.

Back at it

Back at it today with a nice trail run with my 5 month old Golden Rosie. I just picked up the New Balance MT 10's and gave the and easyh spin. I went out for 20 mins and that was more than enough with this low profile truely minimalist show. By far it is the lightest and least stable shoe I have ever worn. But it is a great shoe and have a hard time taking it off. I took my dog because I knew that I couldn't push it with her and it woudl keep my pace honest.

The Holidays have passed and I have not been here in a while. The fall treated me well and got into my weight training and now it is time to get geared up for triathlon season. A lot of my friends have been at it already going for 2 and 3 hour rides. I will be building myself up to hopefully have another great season. I will be making the AG nationals my A race this year and B race wil be the pumpkinman sprint. Trying to determine if I embark on the long distance stuff again. I like where I am at with the sprint distance.

So, here goes to a great 2012! see you on the road!

what a way to end the season

Pumpkin Man Sprint Tri race report

It was great to be able to focus on one final race as the summer was winding down. I had been feeling good and trainging was going well. Because of weather and work along with other commitments I was unable to do the last few Nahant races. I think that it kept me sharpe not pushing myself. I actually tapered for this sprint. Not that it was a big taper but still I reduced and adapted my intensity so I could benefit from the recovery to let it all out on 09/10/11.

This race has been growing year after year and I am glad I did it. S. Berwick ME. There were some big pros there and a rather large field. I was registered as an AGE grouper and was slotted to go off in the 3rd wave. 4 minutes behind the elites. the swim was a 1/3 of a mile and the lake was perfect. A triangle, counter clock wise course. My wave was 30-39 so there were a lot of guys jumping in together and we followed the 40-49 men. I took off and felt strong and was moving to the front of the pack. We got to the first turn and there was a huge bottle kneck. As I made the turn I started to see the the caps from the 2nd wave and while frustrated I was able to find a line and pick it up. It was a straigh shot to the next turn before heading to shore. As long as I held a good sight line I knew I would have a great swim. I hit the turn and got to the shore in about 7 min. Once out of the water there a 200 yrd hill that is a 10% grade up. Good friend and participant Vin Miserandino said take off the wet suit before the climb, I did and it worked out well as I passed a few going up.
T1 was quick and I saw one other bike from my wave so I knew I had a good swim. I got up to power. The bike was fast and could feel like I wanted to go faster but I also wanted to make sure I didnt over do it and falter on the run. I was at 275-280 watts and around 23MPH for the 14.4 miles. I felt comfortable and held it there. I passed a few guys from wave 2 and made I made it to T2 feeling ready to run.
I was out of T2 in less than a minute and I felt pretty good. the first 1/4 mile of this run was down hill and that helped get a quick turnover. I saw elite Marnie Lawler and Vin M. out ahead of me. I was feeling good and the first miel was around 5:50. I caught Vin around mile 2 and knew that I was in a good position to take the overall AG win. I held onto the sub 6 min pace and finished the run in the 17:52.
My total finish time was 1:04:23. I was more that pleased with my race especially with the bad luck I had from the two previous ones. I know that those things happen and are out of my control. But it is a great felling going into the off season with a great race to end the season!

Timberman Sprint

On 08/20/11 I participated in the T-man sprint. I had done this race back on 06 and was looking to put together a great day and reach for the top. Murphy's Law had other things in mind.

First off my brother and I got to Gunstock to park b/c we were told that the lower lots would be full. As we got there and put our bikes together my brother popped a tire on his brand new nver raced on bike! ouch that was a tough start to the day. After trying to getting fixed we finally go the the transition area with about 15 minutes to spare.

The Swim- .33 mile.

I went off in the first wave and really had no chance to warm up. The only warmup I got was rushing around trying got get my stuff together while wearing my heavy sweatshirt. After getting settled I headed down to the water and started going through the paces of the race. The water was good and not much glare from the rising sun. It was a big wave, couple hundred I think. I snuck my way to the front then off we went. The water was shallow for a good 25 yards so while the majority of the people tried to swim I did about 7-8 dolphin dives and cleared past a large portion of them. I hit the first turn buoy quickly then it was a straight line before we headed back in to shore. I felt great and was not overcooking myself. I got to the last turn buoy and headed in for about another 100 yards to shore. When i stood up I was surprised at how well I had done and was psyched to get out on the bike. I clocked my watch at 7:12.

The bike-15 miles

Got my gear on and passed a few people in transition and hoped on my bike. headed down the road to go out to RT11 and about 200 yards away from T1 I heard the dreaded his of air escaping rather quickly from my tire. Before I knew my front was flat. What the hell do I do now? I opt to go back t the bike tent to get it fixed. I did not have a tube to fit my zipp 1080. So I run back and the 2 techs get to work. 16 minutes later they give me my back and I get to go back. I was BULL. Ok, I should have had a tube and been able to do it myself I didn't and the $100 entry fee should have given something! As I stood there waiting I saw hundred of people go right on by, one tech said at least you'll be rested for the bike! SO as a man possessed I rode my bike with vengeance. I originally planed to hold around 275-280 on the power b/c of the big hills and I knew that would get me around 22.5 MPH and a good chance to hang with the front of the pack. Cause of the flat and my anger I went out at 295 for about 15 minutes. Not the smartest thing to do but I wanted to try and place in my age group. I got back to T2 in bike time 39;41 total time with flat 53;00.

Run -3 miles

It was a tad short but who cares. I went like a bat out of hell. My legs felt great and figured I could probably make up the most time here so that is what I tried to do. I was clipped right along and hit turn around and headed back to the finish, The best part of the run is that the last half was down hill and helped me pick it up even more. My final run time was 17 flat. I could not have run any harder or faster. total time was 1;20. If i took out my flat i would have finished in the top 3 overall and 1st overall age grouper! oh well better luck next time, and i'll bring a tube

Summer Winds

The summer is buzzing along quickly and last night was another Nahant. I have to say I was going into it skeptical of my training and planning with for the Timberman Sprint. I looked over some of my numbers from the past Nahant's and noticed I was pushing the bike way too hard. I was up near 300 watts for the majority of the bike and b/c my run would suffer. So I went at it yesterday to shoot for 265-275 and maintain the proper pace for a full sprint. The result was a 34:30. This was with a low tide that makes for a LONG transition in T1!

I compared the results to last years best Nahant at 33:16 and figured that b/c off the tide difference that I could have knocked of some good time. (a full minute just to get to the T-area) This has put my mind in a good state and feeling that I am more than ready for Timberman. My brother finally was able to get on his new bike which I am naming "white lightening" It looks fantastic!

DAM race report

I was going into this race feeling pretty good overall and am not sure why but I have mental issues about swimming in this lake. Lake Gardner that is. Not sure what the reason is but I never swim well there. Anyway. I was registered as an age grouper today and the reason is to try and get as many points as I can to see where I stack up national against men my own age. Last year I can in at just under 1:05. I was hoping to better that and get a top 5.

Swim: 1/2 mile

Went off in the second wave and the start seemed ok. I was cruising along for about 300 yards when I looked up and I was by myself, No not leading, I was lost of course. Went way to far to the left. I stopped for a second and found the buoy I was supposed to be going at and tried to finish strong. The funny this is last year no wetsuits were allowed b/c of the high water temps. This year was optional and after checking my time from last year. I was one second faster last year with NO WETSUIT. swim time = 11:42

T1=

It was quick enough but as I mentioned if I did not wear my wetsuit I probably could have made up about 20 seconds on the lead pack. not a bad transition though.

BIKE= 12.3

I went out well and found my power quickly. I passed two riders right away and Patrick Smith was one of them. I know he is a solid biker and was about 25 -35 yards behind me. He was in the elite wave so I knew I was making up ground. I was plowing through the course and felt strong, then I saw the official on his motorcycle come up to me and write my number down. I wasn't sure why because I knew I was pretty much by myself and was not drafting. There was no one there!. At about the 10 mile mark there is a very steep downhill and there were three other elites in front of me and I made the move to pass them. Then a sharp left turn. There were volunteers there but they didn't give a heads up as to how sharp it was. I should have known myself! So as I went to make the turn I was going way to fast and when i hit brakes I could feel my back tire lock up and fishtail. A) I was going to go down hard or B) Go into the woods, save broken bones and hopefully no flat tires. I picked "B", I hit the road marker then went about 25 yards into the woods as I unclipped and climbed back out on to the course all the guys I passed went flying by me. I was ripped!!! Then volunteer even told me I should slow down, My reply was "a little sooner would have helped"! Back on the bike and tried to get up to power but with another big climb I was loosing serious ground on the others. Another steep downhill for about 3/4 mile so I tucked and pushed, got to 46 MPH, I was dangerous but I made up some time because I was able to see the other guys getting ready to run out.

Bike time = 32:05 (per my computer)

T2= very quick, angry and motivated helps!

Run=

Still pissed about the bike and knew I was going to have to work hard. As soon as I was on the street I passed Pat Smith and another guy then the female elite winner Marnie Lawler. Just ahead of her was another elite male and then open road. I gathered myself and started running hard. I knew the course was a legit 5K and the first half was uphill, second half down so I wanted to get through the first half as quick as I could. I was holding about a 6:10 pace for the first 2 miles. At the turn around I was counting 8th place but the elites ahead of me had a 3 min head start so I was gunning to catch the other age grouper about 200 yards away. He had a strong gait and was running well. The last mile was starting to hurt. I tried to pick up the pace and at mile 3 I clocked a 6:00 min mile. Turned into the park and finished with a respectable 1:06:41. I got the preliminary results and I had placed 6th with my time. I was happy considering my bike ride through the woods.

Then the ref posted the penalties. Then to my surprise he gave me a 2 minute penalty for riding too far to the left. HUH?? I went to clarify what that meant b/c I never crossed over the line and when I passed I did so quickly. He stated that I was in the center of the street but to the right of the double yellow line and that I was there for more than 10 secs. I was baffled and angry. In the end I was happy that I still won my age group.

Lesson learned!

MinuteMan Sprint

This past weekend I raced at the Minute Man Sprint in Freetown MA. Also known as cranberry country! The lead up to this race was pretty good. I have been focusing on sprint distance races for two reasons. They are relatively quick and it is about all the amount of time I have to train for during the week.

Early rise on Sat morning 6/18; 3;30 as a matter of fact before I eat and get some coffee in me I pack the car for the 1 hour and 15 min drive. Race start is 7 am but I still have to check in and get some warm up in. Nutrition for this is simple for me, cereal, BASE amino drink and a banana along with some coffee for the drive. Get there no problem set up and warm up. I brought my new sleeveless Xterra wetsuit for this one too.

Swim= .25 mile

Went out in the second wave 3 min behind the elites. I felt great. Good friend Vin Miserandino was with me and we took off. My stroke felt long and strong and could feel myself making a move in the pack. I got to the first turn buoy quickly and powered the the rest of the swim catching some of the elites. out of the water in 5:55 and over the first mat at 6:01.

T1= I got a lot better at this and it showed in the total time. I exited T1 in 45 secs and at bike mount I was told I was in 4ht OA.

Bike= 14 miles

I immediately passed someone right as we got out on the street and got to power quickly. I was using a new ZIPP 1080 that Dean Phillips of Fit Werx offered for the day. Lets just say it is FAST. I felt strong again on the bike and was holding a good power number and was at around 25 mph. Caught 2 other people by mile 6 and was looking to see where the other one was? I kept pushing and pushing but as soon as mile 12 came I started to think that maybe the women who told me I was 4th was off by one. Non the less I came into T2 in 35:40 and my legs felt great.

T2= 55 sec. I entered looking to where the other bike was that was in the lead but it wasn't there. I asked a volunteer "is it just me?" he said "yup, have a great run" so on go the shoes and off I Go

Run= 4 miles

Got off to good stride and wanted to hold around 6 min miles. I was around a 6:05 for mile 1, then the course started to roll a bit. Mile 2 was a tad slower at 6:20 So I went a bit harder for mile 3 and got back to 6 flat and then I could feel the knife in quads. Luckily i knew that if I held this up I would be done in 6 mins so the last mile held on and finished it off as strong as I could.

race time was = 1:08:46 I was a minute ahead of the 2nd place finisher. It felt good to end strong and take the over all win. However the elites weren't too happy. The "leader" out of the water said he was directed off course and that he would have won. Pleading his case with the race director. He wound up getting the purse because he was the 1st elite and left before the awards were handed out but I was the one who got to stand on top of the podium with the number 1 trophy.

Thanks to Marty and Dean of Fit Werx for the tech support and wheel. BASE performance for the nutrition and recovery products. Next race is in a couple weeks in Salem MA.