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.

A Hard Week ended with a Half Mary

Only one swim this past week but just got done with a nice 4,000 yd swim this morning and felt like I could have kept going for another hour :) The weather here in CT this time of the year is all over the place. We have some nice days and a lot of not so nice days so getting outside is not very predictable which means I need to juggle my schedule around. I got in 3 trainer rides this week...7 hours on the trainer.....spells torture. I had a 3 hour trainer ride on Saturday and I had a great 1.5 hour ride, then the rest was blahhhhhhhh.....it sucked. I averaged 240 watts for 1.5 hours and felt really strong. I was holding back too, knowing that I had a long way to go. My ego got in the way because I was riding with some other guys so I challenged myself to kick some butt. Mission accomplished but the payed the price after the fact....oh well. Sunday (yesterday) I planned on running in the Danbury half marathon but only as a training run. My legs were pretty shot from the 3 hour trainer ride the day before so I just wanted to run in my aerobic zone, keeping my HR under 150 which is a comfortable pace for me but definitely not racing. There was a 2 to 3 mile stretch somewhere around mile 8-11 that the hills come and keep coming. I felt strong going up the hills but my HR definitely went into anaerobic but I was sure to try to recover on the downhills. I ran steady the whole way and decided to run strong for the last two miles. Finished 1:39 with a 7:30 pace. I have a sub 1:30 half marathon in me....just need to lose 10-15 pounds and find the right course. Cooled down with another 2 miles so got in 15 miles....nice long run. Mission accomplished. Another decent week ahead!!!

A little update

Not much cookin these days. I think Ironman training started this week. Swam 6,000, ran 30+ miles, and biked about 120 miles. A little wiped today but feel strong. I'm on my way. First bike ride outside this year (other than racing in Miami) yesterday....went on a nice 3 hour hilly ride. It was a good one. Felt strong and had good energy and endurance. Definitely need to work on increasing my power to weight ratio. Its taking me too much power to get up hills which isn't sustainable over a long period.....guess what that means??? LOSE WEIGHT. It will make my life so much easier when I go up those hills and Richter Pass and Yellow Lake will be easier too.

M.I.T. Mini Race Report

I borrowed one of those tri all 3 bike cases. If you know what I mean, those things are monsters and can hold a bike, wheels, gear, and even the kitchen sink. Well, so I thought anyway....my bike didn't fit very well. Since I got this new bike recently, it has an integrated seat tube thingy and its longer. I had to take off the rear derailler and the seat and it still didn't fit. I really needed to take off the crankset too but I didn't have an 8mm allen wrench to do so, so I was forced to sort of cram the bike in with little breathing room....not an ideal packing job for a brand new bike. Well, it worked and made it there and back with no damage but I need to make a few changes (like probably having to take the crankset off this time) by the time I travel to canada. Back to the race....

Did the whole day before race reg, swim/bike/run, and bike check-in. This race is only in year 2 and has the feel of a big race.....well, it was big (over 1,000 racers, I think). It was pretty well done. I have a much different perspective as most other racers because I look at the race site from a race director's standpoint as well as racer.

I was excited to see I was starting early (4th wave). Pro men, pro women, elites, then clydesdales/relays/PC went together. It was dark during my warmup in the water which was weird and hard to see. The pros started in the dark but by the time my wave started 10 min. later I didn't have any problems seeing or sighting. I swam well and pretty straight the whole time with only a few minutes of contact. I was happy with how I felt as I established a good rythym. Swam 25min which means the swim was probably short....good by me. Took my time in T1 as I always do, out on the bike and felt good. I was terrible at descending and there was a nice headwind in one direction but I powered through and felt strong on the whole bike ride. I rode by myself the entire first loop never getting passed but continually passing some people. The second loop was super crowded but manageable. Finished strong averaging 22mph. Hit T2 and there were very few bikes in transition...good sign. Off to the run and started with a big guy so I figured he was a clydesdale with me and he was my competition. The run is an out/back so you could see everyone in front of you. This guy was a touch stronger than me and opened a 30 yard gap which I maintained. There are two loops on the run so I wasn't worried because he wasn't gaining on me anymore. I was starting to cramp within the first two miles so I realized I didn't have enough sodium and I underestimated the heat. I hit the Heed at every aid station and was able to control the cramping. I focused on staying relaxed. After going through one loop, my pace remained steady and I didn't see any other big guys ahead of me except this dude. Well, 30 yards became about 10 pretty quickly and I passed him as we started the second loop. He came back to me and I stayed my course to make sure my cramps didn't become a bigger issue. I thought there was a good chance I came in first but you never know. I felt very slow on the run but as it turned out, I was running 7:30ish pace which wasn't too bad. I know I have much faster wheels in me...probably to run sub 7 pace if I was 10lbs. lighter and hydrated a bit better. It turned out I did win the clydesdale division....first out of 40 guys and won by 6 minutes. Would have come in 22nd in my age group out of 100+. A good way to start the season off. Felt good considering I'm not near ideal race weight but the off season training has proven its merits. Pics to follow.

A Few Days To Go To Miami

12 workouts down in 5 days so far this week and 2 more to go tomorrow.....and it felt great. I'm ready to test my fitness down in Miami. My only bummer is that I'm heavier than I want to be right now but I'm heading in the right direction and feeling good and strong. So, as a result, I'll probably feel a little heavy on the run. I think its harder to lose weight when a lot of training sessions are in anaerobic training zones that rely on glycogen (carbs). As I start building more volume and aerobic training sessions become more common, I'm hoping the weight will come off a little easier (it should).

I biked with Isiah Thomas this week at one of my indoor training sessions. Yea, the same Isiah from the Detroit Pistons. Yea, the Hall of Fame B-Ball player. Yea, the former NY Knicks coach. Zeke. Junior. Multiple NBA member of World Champion Pistons. He has aged very well. He looks like he did when he was balling in the NBA. Great guy. We watched the Hawaii Ironman DVD while we biked for 2 hours and he's getting hooked on triathlon, I think. He's aiming to do his first triathlon this year, maybe at the Westchester Triathlon. I'm trying to get him to come to Rev3. He really wants to take pictures with the pros and get their autographs. He volunteered to be my "bike bitch" for Ironman Canada so I guess I'll have to be his at Westchester. I'll have to hold him to it.

Images from the gym never cease to amaze me

I wish I had a camera with me but I didn't. After a less than stellar 3,000 yds. in the pool, I went to run on the treadmill for 30 min. It was a quiet time of the day so I had a chance to people-watch all the characters at the gym. First, there was a lady who was working out with a wool sweater on. I'm sorry, but if you're wearing a wool sweater, you're not working out. You might as well go outside and walk. On to the next woman who was on the elliptical going through the motions while wearing clog type slippers......come on. Are you kidding me? The final one is my favorite....I'm laughing as I type just thinking about it. Another woman (I think I may have been the only guy in the gym at the time) was on the elliptical. Apparently she was afraid on contracting some deadly virus. Keep in mind that this gym as paper towels all around with spray bottles of disinfectant. Its a very clean gym. Apparently it was clean enough for her because she tore off two pieces of paper towels and put one in each hand and proceeded to move along on the machine with the paper towel in between her hands and the machine and if she needed to press a button, she would make sure to do it with the paper towel......too funny.

I wonder what I'll see today :)

Less than 3 weeks to Miami

Training continues to go well. I was hitting some 100's in the pool this week in 1:28. I had some good bike sessions this week. I got some runs in but they were average. I was supposed to do a high intensity workout on Thursday but my body just wasn't feeling it. I have to get in a few more intense runs before I leave for Miami. I'm going to rest up for a combo run/bike tomorrow with intensity on both. To top it off, I'm coming down with some sinus thing. It hasn't gotten worse but it hasn't gotten better yet either. I'm hoping with some good rest today and tomorrow, I can knock this thing out of my system. I'm realizing more than ever the value of sleep. When I get solid sleep, my workouts are better. I also try to fit in naps whenever I can. Speaking of naps, its almost time for one :)

Heading to Sandusky, Ohio via Cleveland next week for a few days of meetings and scoping out a new race venue for a full-iron distance race next year with Rev3. I hope they don't have a snowstorm while we're there.

Enjoying the Tour of California on Versus. I feel bad for these guys because the weather has been horrible, although they've enjoyed some sunshine the last few days but they earned it after the first few days of awful weather. Two stages to go and looks like Levi Leipheimer is firmly in control with Lance as his domestique.

I'm now into my sixth day of no sweets. I haven't lost much in the way of weight but I already feel better. I think I'll catch up next week.

Gotta go....my sofa is calling me :)

Heading to Miami :)

I just booked my tickets today and registered for this race.....I'm in. Thanks to my mom (thanks mom), I had some plane vouchers that needed to be used up by mid April so I have been trying to figure out where to go. I was thinking about doing an early season half iron but gearing up for a half early April seemed un-motivating, especially since I don't really get outside until April on my bike. A friend told me about this race and then it became a reality. Sue and I have a place to stay in Boca (thanks Joannie). I can't wait to get in some warm weather and I'm excited to have a little early season goal. This race is chock full of pros and my Rev3 teammates, the Gollnicks will be there racing.

My fitness is in pretty good shape right now. Marty gave me a 4,000 swim workout last week and I was dreading it but once I got into a rhythm with my swimman, I just rolled along. I felt so good, I added another 500 for good measure.....that's a little over 2.5 miles. I could have kept going. I was hitting my 100's in 1:30-1:32 which is pretty good for me. My indoor cycling workouts have been going well too. My running has been average, only because I am heavy right now and I haven't added too much intensity.

I have 4 weeks until the race which is a perfect little goal to get ready for this race. My diet starts Monday and I want to lose 8 pounds by race day....2 pounds per week.....that should be doable. Bye bye sugar.....its been nice knowing you for the last few months.

Anyone want to join me in Miami? Come along and race.....its still open.

And, they have a clydesdale category so my goal is to finish top 3 in this category.

This will be a good dress rehearsal before canada for flying with my bike, taking it a part, and putting it back together.

Ciao for now!

What the Heck?

I'm in the gym yesterday running on the treadmill. I look over to my left and see a guy jump on a treadmill. He's in pretty decent shape. He's got running clothes on. He looks like a runner. He's moving along at a pretty good clip.......he's holding onto the hand rails for his entire workout. I look over and he's floating along at 8 mph. I wonder what he's going to hold onto when he runs outside....maybe a walker? I felt the need to tell him he was cheating himself but I refrained. He probably tells his friends he runs at 5:00min/mile (with his hands on the rails....DOH)

This is like swimming with fins and paddles in the pool for the whole workout.

Whatever floats your boat, I guess.

Curious Minds Want to Know......

For all of my loyal readers out there have been asking......where have you been?......what are you up to?.......how come no updates to your blog?

Well, its winter and I'm kind of in hibernation mode just hoping that spring is around the corner. I'm busy planning the Revolution 3 triathlon. This is going to be one cool race. Unfortunately its not going unnoticed as there is a thread on slowtwitch right now pitting the Rev3 race against a staple New England race on the same day, Mooseman. Keith Jordan runs the Mooseman triathlon and he is one of the best race directors out there. He runs great races. Because of all the attention and promises Rev3 is making, we need to put on a great race which adds to the stress.

Training is moving forward well. My swim, bike, and run sessions are all going well. Biking seems to be going exceptionally well with the computrainer sessions. My preference seems to be the one hour intense workout. When this ironman gig is over this year, I'm looking forward to working on my speed to see how fast I can go in the shorter distances.

My nutrition is still a struggle. Still making too many mistakes but I'm also trying to be easier on myself and remind myself that its a long season. More on this later as I had an ah-ha moment the other day with proper nutrition and training sessions.

Rev3 Planning is heating up

June 7th will be the inaugural Revolution3 Half Iron distance triathlon in Middlebury, CT at Quassy Amusement Park. Panic is beginning to set in, distress calls are flying, and calls for help are loud. Okay, so I'm exaggerating a little. The team is set to spend 3 1/2 days together this weekend to spend some quality time all getting on the same page and meeting with some key local people. We continue to look for sponsors but my role is more on the logistics of getting this race executed as close to perfection as possible. The founders of the race wanted to hit a home run first year out which puts a lot more pressure on our team to execute. They put up $100,000 professional purse so many of the sports top professionals will be vying for their share. This is one of the richer purses in our sport. I'll be in Rev3 planning mode for the next 4 months. It will be here before I know it.

10 week Computrainer Kick Off

We kicked off the 10 week program with a power test today. Marty chose a 10k dead flat course for the test. After a nice 20min. warmup, we hammered away. This is an early indicator of what my power looks like right now and on the 10th week, we'll do the same test to measure progress.

As for the test, I averaged 308 watts for the 10k session. My HR was a new sky-high 165. I even saw 178 at one point. I was happy that I stayed pretty steady for the whole effort. It will be interesting to see how much my power can improve over the next 10 weeks of riding these sessions 3 days per week. Here are a few pics from today's session:

Chilly Chili 5k

I decided to start the new year with a hard effort. I hadn't been running a whole lot leading up to this race and I certainly haven't done any speed work. To top that off I'm about 10 pounds heavier than my race weight at Ironman Florida two months ago. I haven't done a 5k in over a year I think. I was hoping I might be able to break 20 minutes but figured it would be a stretch considering the points mentioned earlier. Running and body weight have a huge factor in speed. We awoke to one of the coldest days of the winter plus we got 3-4 inches of snow the previous afternoon. It was bitter, bitter cold. The morning started with temps in the single digits with strong winds. Not a good day to run hard and fast....oh well.

I started up front and could see the leaders through the first mile and I was in the top 10-12. I ran the first 1st mile in 6:16 but it was flat to downhill but I was ahead of schedule. My 2 mile split was 13:xx so I fell behind schedule but the 2nd mile was mostly uphill. I have never seen the course so I didn't know what the third mile would bring but it had to be downhill if I was going to hit my target. Unfortunately, there was the biggest hill on the course and I hit an all-time new high heart rate trying to get up that hill. I wasn't feeling too optimistic at this point but settled into the fastest pace I could maintain. At the top of the hill I saw 18:xx on my watch an knew unless I had rocket boosters, I wasn't going to break 20 minutes. I finished in 20:48 or something, 6:43 pace. Better fitness, less body weight, and better conditions will bring me that sub 20 minute 5k before too long. I finished in 17th overall out of 284 people. The best part of the race was watching a 90 year old man run and finish the race....something to strive for.

New Bike

I just got back from picking up my new bike in Philadelphia from Elite Bicycles. If anyone is keeping track, this is my third bike from Elite in the last year. Fortunately I haven't had to pay for one of them. The owner of Elite is Dave Greenfield. Dave is the "The Man". He has the best customer service in the bike business. He pours his heart and soul into his business and goes to the extreme to make sure his customers are happy and satisfied.

My first bike was great but it developed a crack in the top tube in the Easton tubing where a cable hole was drilled out. No questions asked, Dave replaced the frame. The second new bike was great too and I raced it at Ironman Florida. I have had some problems in the past with a high speed wobble and was mentioning this to Dave. He wasn't happy that I was experiencing this with his bike. He had to make it right. He offered to make me a full custom frame to meet my needs. The changes included a beefier downtube, a beefier top tube near the head tube tapering towards the seat tube, a taller head tube, flat/aero seat stays, and a change in geometry to give me longer wheelbase. Hopefully, this machine will be rock solid. Unfortunately, its too darn cold to get outside and test it out so it will have to wait until the weather improves.

In addition, I have been chosen to be one of a few select athletes to be on the Elite Bicycles triathlon team. There will be some nice perks to go along with it so I'm excited to wear my new Elite tri kit in 2009.

Here are a few pictures: