IM Wisconsin

I have been on the road for the last 2+ weeks and just arrived home. I just had the pleasure of going through a real rewarding experience that is worth writing down. I was at Ironman Wisconsin yesterday doing some work with Rev3. I only knew three people racing, Gus, Lida, and Maura. I was following all of their progress. Gus' day ended first after being sick as soon as he started the run. Then came Lida and Maura. I found Lida about a mile from the first lap turnaround and ran/walked with her until the turnaround. I saw Maura about 30min. or so later. They were both on pace to finish in 16+ hours. I was getting a little worried. I decided I would run/walk the last 7 miles with Lida. I went with her for a mile or so and she asked if I could go find Maura and make sure she made it under the cutoff. Lida assured me she was fine and would be in well under the cutoff but Maura was well behind the pace. I ran the course backwards in the pitch black dark until I found her walking and looking labored. She had about 10 miles to go. I asked her how she was feeling and she said she was cramping and felt she couldn't go any faster because she would go into spasm. I asked her if she had any salt during the run. She hadn't but had a baggie full of salt tablets so I got her nutrition plan in order, salt tabs ingested, and chicken broth to sip. After 15 minutes her cramping went away and off we started running. 3 minutes on, 1 minute walk. We did fartleks.......run to a sign, then walk to the next pole, etc. We were averaging 15:30/min miles and had to keep this pace to make it under the cutoff of 17 hours. I factored in a fudge factor of 5 minutes in case she had to use the bathroom or something. There were about a dozen people on those lonely paths and at one point as I was walking next to Maura a race official came riding up and threatened to disqualify her for outside assistance. I didn't argue and moved over to the sidewalk until she left but come on.....you have got to be kidding me. Its not like she's going for a kona slot or something. One girl had an entourage of 10 people pacing her. Some people just don't get it......they feel some need to use this power they have for one day at 11pm on Ironman night. Maura was in lots of pain but I kept telling her that all this effort wasn't worth it if she couldn't make it to the finish line under the cutoff......thankfully she agreed so my persuasion worked. She made it to the capital square and the crowd was going crazy. She had a few minutes to spare so I told her to make sure she embraced the experience and celebrated this amazing accomplishment. She finished with 6 minutes to spare.

This was an easy decision to do this. It was an incredibly rewarding experience especially since she most likely wouldn't have finished given her pace and cramping situation when I found her. It was a fun experience and to see so many people out there close to midnight cheering her on and others to finish was very nice to witness. Congrats Maura....YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!!

IM Canada Recap

I just wanted to thank you all for your support. It means a lot that I knew I had friends out there watching my progress (even though the IM tracking stinks). A lot of people have been emailing me and asking me if I was okay so I just wanted to send out a brief explanation of my day.

I thought my preparation for the race went well. I was injury free all year and had some good race results going in and some solid training efforts. My only concern going in was that some of my key longer training days didn't go as planned and my body hadn't responded great. My shorter training and race efforts went great. I thought I had a great nutrition plan for the day.

The swim felt okay. I actually felt a bit faster than the clock but I wasn't overly concerned about it. My goal was to not fumble around in transition like my last IM and get out on the bike. I accomplished this. I had a solid power plan on the bike so I stuck to my wattage and felt confident with the numbers. The first hour flew by in no time and I was feeling great and optimistic. The first 40 miles are flat and I had averaged 22- for this portion of the race. At this point you make a turn and start climbing Richter Pass which is one of two longer sustained climbs. I immediately felt the temperature go up 10 degrees and my breathing became labored. I stuck to my power plan but at this point, I got passed by a lot of people. I was drinking non-stop, taking in my calories as planned, peeing, and taking water bottles at each aid station. 50 miles into the bike, I was already struggling….my back was super tight…..my neck was super tight, and I was getting zapped of all my energy. I had a good descent down Richter Pass and was hoping the recovery would do me good. The next 30 miles or so are rolling so they require a bit of work. My second wind just wasn't coming and I was struggling to maintain my power. I was in a world of hurt, low energy, etc. My body just wasn't processing my calories. My chest hurt and had trouble breathing. At this point in the race, I knew my time goals wouldn't be met and my new goal was to figure out how to get to the finish line. This became a huge challenge and the theme for the rest of the day. I stopped 3 or 4 times on the bike. I finally strolled into T2 and took my time before going out on the run. I already knew I wasn't going to have the run I was hoping for so I just went out there and took what the rest of the day gave me. My stomach was really upset and immediately had trouble taking in calories. I continued to have trouble breathing. I was happy to be running though and clicked off 8:30/min miles for the first 6 miles which was my goal pace for the entire marathon. I knew it wouldn't last because I was just so nauseous and couldn't breathe well. This is where the walking began. Again, it became a game of survival for me so I walked when I needed to walk and ran when I felt like I could. There were times when I would start running 10 steps and had to stop for fear of throwing up and not making it to the finish line. The sight of ambulances up and down the run course and vans full of people scared me from not making it to the finish so I was careful not to blow up. I ran the last 2-3 miles into the finish line as fast as I started the marathon.

Although I didn't come close to hitting any of my time goals, I met my goal of finishing and in a way it was my most rewarding race I've ever done. I was extremely proud of my fight and determination to not give up when I felt horrible. For anyone looking interested in this race, it is absolutely a beautiful part of the world. It is a great course….challenging, and the crowd support is fabulous. As it turned out, the temperature reached well into the 90's and there was a lot of smoke in the air from wildfires (which explains the difficulty I was having breathing). No ironman for me next year.

See you soon!

Eric

A little race and build up next for IMC

My training has been going fairly well and I've lost a couple of pounds so I was anxious to see how I would do in a little sprint triathlon coming off 3 hard weeks of training and a recovery week leading up to Sunday. Last Tuesday night I did my first XC race at Waveny.....it was a 3mile speed work run. I felt pretty good in the run and took the rest of the week fairly easy. Sunday I had a good warmup run and bike and swim. The beach was rocky so I was concerned with the start but I was able to dive in and start swimming right away. It was rough until the first buoy or so but it smoothed out quickly. I was able to find a rhythm after 5 minutes and cruised in. I couldn't believe how quickly it went by. A half mile swim now feels like a warmup. I remember when I came to watch this race about 4 or 5 years ago. It was my first triathlon that I ever watched and I remember looking out at the buoys and thinking that the distance was impossible.......interesting how times have changed. Many more things in life seem possible once you conquer the "impossible".

I was anxious to improve my transition times since I usually take my time in this part of the race so I was happy that I zoomed right throw both transitions. I got onto the bike and my HR was pretty high which is normal for this part of the race. I just concentrated on having a smooth cadence and my HR started to stablize.....check. I worked the first hill steady and hard and zipped through the first lap quickly and was anxious to see if I could stay on the pace or increase the pace for the second lap. I felt like I accomplished this. I was able to key off some guys in front of me and felt like I had a solid bike ride. I got onto the run course and my legs felt light and quick. I kept a nice steady pace and steady HR for the first mile. I was all alone at this point in the race. I passed 2 guys near the 2nd mile and cruised to the finish with no one around. I didn't get passed on the run and only got passed on the bike by 1 guy. Finished in 1:06. I did this race 2 years ago in 1:18. Swam 12min, biked 32min, and ran 19 this year. I was 5th in my age group and 33rd overall out of 630 racers. Very satisfied with the result. Off to Lake Placid on Wednesday or Thursday for some work, volunteering, spectating, training, and motivation. And its countdown to Canada now. I have 3 weeks of volume training ahead of me and clean nutrition for the next 5 + weeks.

Lake Placid Training

Its been a while since I posted. I'm just coming out of my coma now from Rev3. A weekend away of golf, then a weekend away of training. My training had suffered the couple of weeks surrounding Rev3 and felt a bit behind in my prep for IM Canada. I took the opportunity to escape up to Lake Placid with a few friends. Unfortunately, Sue couldn't make it as she had to work.

I drove up alone early Friday morning, getting up there before noon. I was surprised to see some fresh new pavement on rt. 73, a welcome site. It was a beautiful day so I got out and ran a loop around Mirror Lake to loosen up my legs. The town was full of triathletes as it was a peak training weekend for those athletes preparing for IMLP and the Tupper Lake Tinman was also going on. After the run, I got my wetsuit out and swam 2 loops of the lake or roughly 2.5 miles. My shoulders were tight but it felt good to get in a long swim. I needed it. I checked into my hotel and prepared for a long ride. My plan was to ride 12 miles to the base of Whiteface mountain (the site of the 80 Olympics skiing venue), then climb the 8 miles up the mountain (average 6% grade), then 12 miles back to the hotel. I loaded everything up, water bottles filled, helmet on, etc., then I look out the window. The sky turned black and the wind felt like it was going to blow the trees over. Rain came down so fast and so hard, it knocked the power out in the hotel, fire engines were in full emergency mode, but I was lucky I hadn't left. It took a few hours to blow over so my plans had to change. I didn't have enough daylight to make it up and down the mountain in time. I ended up riding around the run course and then some, but only got out for an hour or so.

Saturday's forecast was ominous....scattered rain and thunderstorms all day. I ended up swimming one loop of the course or 1.3 miles or so, then after some debate headed out on the bike. I knew it was going to be a wet one so I prepared the best I could. I felt decent for the first 30 miles or so (and it was raining), then my legs just felt dead. I tried to kick start them my shoving down an energy drink and two candy bars but that only worked for 5 miles or so. I finished one loop of the bike course (riding alone most of the day) or 56 miles and headed out for a second loop just hoping and waiting for my legs to get a second wind. It never happened. I rode for another 10 miles to the top of the long downhill and the clouds ahead were dark and my energy was dwindling. I decided to turn around and save myself for the next day. I ended up riding another 15 miles or so and called it a day.

Sunday was beautiful. I swam another 1.3 miles or so, then headed out for a long run. I was running well and ran the first 7.5 miles in an hour, then I became so dehydrated. It was hot and humid. I ended up salvaging the run with 1:30 run and 10.5 miles. The last few miles were up the cherries and the bears....tough to ride and run. After soaking my legs in the lake for a bit, I re-fueled and got ready for a ride. Mark and I were directed on a nice 2 hour ride on a nice route away from the IM course. My legs were tired but decent until the last 30 minutes and then I nothing left. I was spent. I guess I maxed out my legs for the weekend. They just didn't give me what I thought they would give me but mission accomplished.

Totals: Swim approx. 5 miles, bike approx. 130 miles, run 13 miles

An Epic Day on the Bike

Last Saturday myself, Sue, and Al went out to ride Rev3 bike course again. I think I've ridden it 5 or 6 times now and each time it becomes less and less daunting....hopefully that means good things for Canada. We finished the loop after a well-paced 56 mile ride. My goal was to ride approximately 5.5 hours. I looked at a map the night before and saw that I could ride up and around Lake Waramaug from Middlebury for a 45 mile loop. I knew I was going solo because Sue was going out for an hour run and Al was having bike troubles all day.

My plans changed quickly in the parking lot when Chris Thomas, Ian Ray, and another friend of their's drove in with the intention of riding the Rev3 course. They were all jazzed up in their orange timex gear and bright orange bikes. Besides being fast, they just looked fast too. I was clearly out of place. Chris could easily be pro and is one of the country's fast age group triathletes, usually winning top amateur athlete at most races he competes in while beating many of the pros. They didn't really know the course well and said they weren't going hard and welcomed me to come along. We had some enjoyable conversation for the first 15 miles but I could tell that the pace would be too fast for me especially on already tired legs. As soon as we hit Rt. 63, they were gone and I was left holding up the caboose. I didn't see them again for quite a while.

My pace really fell off on Rt. 254 so I just took it slow and steady. I knew I was going to skip the out/back and pulled into a little deli to refill and get some more calories......a muffin this time around. I decided to sit down for a few minutes and enjoy my rest and muffin. I had 15 miles to go with a few more hills to climb so the extra rest was nice. Chris comes up and asks if I was okay (he did the out/back). I said fine and soon resumed my ride home. I get to the corner of route 6 and 61 and decide I might try to take a shortcut home.....that was a mistake. I head down route 6, off the rev3 course and connect to White Deer Rock road to a very steep climb.....oh well, what's another climb at this point? I made it back and packed up. Chris came running in. Not only did he ride about 7 more miles than me, he also ran 20 minutes or so and we finished about the same time :)

I clocked a lot of hours, probably around 7, 108 miles of riding, and well over 8,000 feet of climbing. A great day!!

Workouts have suffered big time this week with lots of Rev3 planning........countdown......only 2 weeks to go. I gotta get more sleep.

A Little Training Update

Two weekends ago, it was a guys training weekend in the Hamptons. We sat in traffic for hours trying to get through the city and on the LI Expressway to the Hamptons. We finally get in around 9pm Friday night and we ate pizza and pasta when we got in. We had a big training day planned for Saturday so carbo loading was essential. We woke up Saturday morning and ate a light breakfast and went for a decently paced 50+ minute run before heading to the local YMCA for a swim. We get to the Y and found out the pool was closed. One workout done. We head to get more food.....great bagels and tofu cream cheese. Pig out some more. We suit up with our cold rain gear. It was cold and rainy so we were in for a long day. The plan was to ride for 4-5 hours all over the hamptons. We rode for the first hour in the rain and we steadily became colder and more wet. We decide to explore shelter island. Its a few minute ferry ride each way. Fortunately the rain slowed down and stopped but we were still soaking wet. Fortunately it was getting warmer so we dried out enough that we could feel our extremities. I enjoyed the riding and the scenery, especially has we rode down billionaire's row in southampton.....an incredible out/back of amazing properties. We ended up riding 90 miles and I paced well and finished the last 30 minutes pretty strong. Head out to a nice family style restaurant and pile in more carbs.....wiped out. Wake up Sunday and its raining again. The plan was to head out to the Montauk lighthouse, an out/back with some more wind and rolling small hills. We ride 2:30 hours in the constant rain. I had a slow leak in my rear tire all day and my legs were shelled from the previous day. It was a recovery ride for me. My fingers and toes were numb. Back to the house, take warm shower, put on dry clothes, eat again, and muster up enough energy to run. I decided to play this part by ear. I didn't have much left in me but managed to run 40 minutes with approx. 15 min. tempo pace. Pack up and head home.

This past weekend, I organized a Rev3 course preview day. We had approx. 60 people turn up and it was raining again. We went out in 2 groups and I lead the slower group. There was a huge disparity in cycling speeds so we were forced to stop often to bring the group together. I was constantly traveling from the back to the front all day......a day of intervals, trying to lead the group and help people falling off the pace. There were lots flats and mechanical problems. I got in 56 miles and lots of climbing and topped it off with a hilly 9 mile run.

A big weekend ahead......preparing to get myself motivated.

Bronx Biathlon

I had heard about this race for a few years now. Its a no frills race. I was planning on doing it last year but it rained so I bagged it. No excuses this year. I was coming off a recovery week so the timing was perfect. Spring finally arrived last week....actually the weather skipped spring and went directly to HOT summer weather. The forecast was for hot sunny weather Saturday and Sunday. I went for a 3 hour hilly ride Saturday. I was a bit dehydrated from the ride since it was hot so I wasn't feeling fresh. Oddly I was kinda of looking forward to testing my fitness. I wasn't feeling very speedy. It was hot and humid already....not my favorite race conditions.

The first run is 2.8 miles, mostly flat. Start slow as I like to do and settle into my pace and get stronger as the run goes on. My target was the first place female and I slowly gained on her the whole run and finally passed her right before transition. I get on my bike fairly quickly and spin the legs at high cadence to once again settle into a good pace. Once again my target is that first place female again :) Oops, she transitioned quicker than me. Pass her again. My next target is Rodney, hairdresser to the stars. Pass him. We exchange a quick chat. The great thing about this race is that they close down a 4.5 mile stretch on the Hutchinson Pkwy.....very smooth road with a steel grated bridge we go over 4 times. I can't imagine riding over that section when its wet out. The rest of the ride was uneventful. There was myself and two other guys that exchanged places for the bulk of the ride. I ended up in the middle coming into T2.....feeling good. Got onto the run quickly. I started slowly to find my legs and it was much hotter now. The guy behind me came by at a pace that was too fast to keep up with. I caught the guy in front of me within the first half mile. I was passed by one other guy who once again was cooking. Its an out/back run so you could see all your competition ahead and behind you. I finished feeling strong. First run pace 6:22/mile and second run was 6:40/mile. Biked 23.3 mph at 273 watts. Finished 15th overall out of about 200 people. Sue was 2nd female and had the fastest female bike split. Unfortunately I was 6th in my age group...no podium for me :(

I bet I had at least 40 pounds of body weight on the 14 guys ahead of me. Now, if I could just lose 15 pounds, I would be running in the 5's.....that's what I want.

Big training week ahead. Swam 4,000 yds Monday and biked 1:50 on the computrainer today. Boys ironman training weekend in the hamptons this weekend. I will need a massage next week :) Not sure which race is next.......we'll see.