Results!

Shelbyville Tri Series reults are IN!!!!! Didn't do as bad as I thought - see results to the right ------->

Shelbyville Tri Series #2

Just completed my first tri of the year, and boy has my lack of training been showing on this one. The course was run/bike/swim due to the weather. Felt like sub-freezing temperatures this morning, and that bone cutting wind didn't help.

There looked to be about 50 or so participants this year, and less than a half mile into the race I was bringing up the rear with about 4-5 people behind me. That 10 mile run yesterday did nothing for me, as my legs grew tired very quickly, and with a few rolling hills that hampered me even more I was bound for a slow race. I had eated a Cliff Bar and some Muscle Milk in the car on the way to the race, but they didn't help more poor aching legs. I was able to run most of it though, and encouraged others, as they encouraged me, that we were all doing a "great job." I grabbed a GU about 30 minutes in while making my way to the first transition. I'm sure it didn't hurt to have this on the "ride from hell" that I was about to experience. I came into T1 and looked down at my watch - an unofficial 33:40.

The transition went smoothly, as I was already dressed appropriately and only had to switch out shoes, put on my helmet and sunglasses and mount my bike. I had the luxury of chatting for a few minutes with a guy that I know from one of the local running groups - it was nice to see a friendly face and hear some words of encouragement. After I got on the bike I headed out to do the two-loop course, which had changed from last year. Last years course had a number of rolling hills, and this one was mostly flat. However, one turn to the right onto the highway and it was nothing by headwind for 1.5 - 2 miles - brutal! Not only that, but it started to sprinkle to boot, and it didn't help that some folks who had already finished their first loop were now passing by me with seemingly effortless speed. I had been messing with my gears to try and find the easiest one to get me through this wind tunnel, and ended up almost losing my chain. I got off my bike once, thought that I had the situation under control, and then got off again shortly after just certain that the chain had finally come off. Luckily, a fella directing traffic was able to look at it for me and got it taken care of. Off I went to finish the first lap, and then the second. Since I already knew what I was in for, I'm pretty certain I had a negative split time, and with no trouble with my chain this time around, I came in to T2 at just past 55 minutes (the total finishing time of the overall winner - kinda puts thing into perspective!).

T2 took a little longer as I had to strip many layers of clothing, don my swim cap, and run a few yards to the indoor pool. Once inside the building, I crossed the mat, jumped into the warm water, put on the goggles, and I was off. About 100 yards in I could feel my arms getting tired. I noticed though that about half-way through I started getting into a groove and felt great. I heard some Landsharks cheering my name, and another friend took pictures when I'd come up at the end of the lanes. It was great to know that so many people were there supporting me - most of whom had already finished the race.

I touched the wall in an unoffical 1:48:50, which is 2 minutes slower than my best time on this length of a race. I think I finished the swim in 11 minutes or so. Results will be out in the next few days, so I will know then what my actual times are.

Oldham Co. in Sept. 2009 was my first triathlon. However, Shelbyville is the series I did last year where I met some of the tri-friends that have been with me since. Over the past few months I've met even more people from the Landsharks socials and other events and have been fortunate enough to build some friendships with some of them. I absolutely love this sport - it's so great to be around like-minded people who are so supportive of you, no matter if you finish first, or dead last. I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to do something that I love, and to be around people who can relate to every emotional, physical, and spiritual moment that comes with competing in triathlons.

Flying Pig Training Begins

Just got in from a 10.4 mile run that was supposed to be 12, but Alicia had to get back in time to get ready for work so we had to cut it a little short. Was a little tired towards the end, and knees started aching (still do, sorta), but I had to keep moving on and telling myself, "You just did a half-marathon 3 weeks ago! You can DO this!"

Still averaging about a 11:30 - 12 min. pace, but I've always been slow and, although I wouldn't mind being a faster runner, if slow is what it takes to finish the race, then so be it. I am planning on getting a HR monitor so I can see just exactly if I am working at my highest capacity or not. If not, it sure feels like it, but it will be interesting to find out just the same. I think I'm becoming a tri/technology geek - I should be receiving my tax return in a week or so, and I'm already scoping out a Garmin, a watch that keeps track of swim laps, and some aero-bars for the bike. Being the anal person that I am, I'm definitely feeling that the purchase will be worth it since I will now be able to keep track of EXACT statistics (mileage/laps, calories, HR, elevation, etc.) Plus, the aero-bars are a must for my half-ironman in September. I'm excited!

Tomorrow is my first tri of the year - the Shelbyville Race Series #2, which I did last year for the first time. I'm really looking forward to this one - gonna be a bit chilly, but I'm definitely ready to jump back in there and get my feet wet (literally). Also, there are going to be a lot of Landsharks competing, and it will be nice to meet up with friends, and hopefully meet some new folks, too.

For now, I'm off and running again - this time to VO2 Multisport (tri store) to learn how to change a flat tire. Again, practical and needed workshop, but also an opportunity to talk to and meet more people......

I'm Back!

Sitting here relaxing on the couch after a great 6-mile training trail run this morning. I'm trying to get more active/involved in training sessions and other social events with the Louisville Lansharks - a local triathlon training club that I joined last year, but didn't really do much with. There were about 10 of us out there this morning, and it took a little while to get warmed up and in the swing of things, but after it was all said and done I felt great (as usual) and keep meeting more and more new people each time I go out.

I also started doing some weights/strength training. First day was Thursday (just 3 days ago), but have done two sets so far and am planning on borrowing P90X from a co-worker and plan on starting that this week. Here's hoping I can maintain over the next 3 months, and will hopefully see results both with my body as far as physical appearance, and with my strength, endurance, and cardio for runs/tris.

I've also signed up for back to back races this spring. I'm going to be doing the Derby half marathon on the last Saturday in April, and the Cincinnati Flying Pig the next day. The Derby race changed their course this year and it's mostly flat, so I figured - why not??? More bling, and more races to add to this years already insane schedule!

Miami Half Marathon

Just got in from Miami about 1:00 a.m. this morning and it was a great vacation/running trip. Spent the first few days on the beach, catching a Miami Heat game (beat the Pistons by 1 point), and soaking up the sun before our marathon (Shane and Alicia) and my half. I haven't done much of anything in terms of training since the Memphis Marathon and - let's face it, I didn't do much preparation for that one either. But my head was in a better place for this race, and I feel my confidence and fitness is at least to the point where I can run a half and feel pretty good with little training.

The morning started off kind of chilly - 54 degrees at the start - and was one of the earliest races I've been in with the gun going off at 6:15 a.m. This of course being due to the Miami weather, and the fact that it was a warm and humid 75 degrees by 11:00 a.m. that day. Alicia and I quickly got separated from Shane since he's a bit faster, and we ended up trying out a new interval of 4:1 rather than our usual 6:1. This felt pretty good throughout the race, and I never really felt that I got tired, or that I was looking at my watch numerous times counting down the minutes to the next walk break.

I filled up on Muscle Milk and Gatorade pre-race, and had to make my first pit stop two miles in. Much like the New Orleans half marathon just 11 months prior, this race felt like it went by quickly. Before I knew it we were running up Ocean Drive and hitting the 5 mile mark. At 6 miles, another potty break called and we lost 3-4 minutes due to some slow urinators.

I continued to feel good throughout, and Alicia and I even managed to run up the small inclines as we entered onto numerous bridges throughout the race - this is a good thing for the both of us as we tend to lose it during the hills and end up walking at least some of it. At mile 9 or so my thighs could feel the burn and it was only then that I really started to feel the effects of the prior miles.

Alicia and I had planned on splitting up at the marathon/half split-off, but after a short walk break I wasn't quite ready to pick it up again, and Alicia took off at the 11.5-12 mile mark. I continued with the 4:1 intervals, and sprinted to the finish line the last 100 feet or so to make it a solid 2:48:00 race - a measley 12:50 min. mile. Not my best attempt, but certainly not my worst either.

I've been talking to some folks about getting involved in some kind of structured workout plan. I'm looking into P90X at this point, and am hoping that with some determination and guidance I can pull off getting more toned, adding strength and endurance, and helping out my cardio for the upcoming races this year. 2010 was a great year as far as quantity and, I do have to admit, Rev3 Knoxville and the San Francisco Marathon were two races that I truly felt I trained hard for and ended up being fantastic events for me. In 2011 however, I will have the Half-Rev in September, and need to make sure I'm in tip-top shape come race time. With that said, here's to getting back on the treadmill/bike trainer/swimming pool and hopefully another PR in the upcoming Shelbyville Tri Series and Triple Crown races.....

The 2011 Season Begins....

Went to my first Louisville Landsharks social tonight (a local triathlon club that I've belonged to for a year now). Met some new folks, and caught up with peeps I've met since starting tri's this past year. Really looking forward to a great 2011 season. Started working out at the gym a week or two ago - did one hour of spin and 30 minute swim tonight before the banquet, and forgot how good it feels to get sore, pump up my endorphins, and sweat a bit - okay, a lot!

So far I've signed up for two half-marathons (Miami in two weeks and Providence in August), one full marathon (Cincinnati Flying Pig in May), and have my eye on a half dozen or so triathlons including what I'm hoping will be my first half Ironman in Cedar Point in September - crossing my fingers that this all works out!

St. Jude Memphis Marathon

30 hours post-marathon, I am still trying to figure out how I feel about what just happened, and why. I went into the weekend a little leary of this race, as I prepared very little - much like with Chicago 2009. But, having two marathons under my belt, knowing that it was going to be good weather, and that I would have Alicia running beside me the whole time, I felt a little confident at least. I wasn't super-psyched about the race from the start of the long weekend, but there have been plenty of races I went into not feeling it, and ended up with either a PR or at least the ability to mentally overcome whatever obstacle there were to my enjoyment of the event. For St. Jude, however, this never quite happened.

I started the race at a wall. I would say by Mile 3 I knew I wasn't going to feel any better two miles, six miles, ten miles, or twenty six miles into it. I usually am able to give a play-by-play of my races, and distinctly recap what happend at each mile, but for whatever reason my head just wasn't in the game yesterday. I started off wishing it was already over and wondering when it would all end. At mile 11 I started crying and told Alicia that I was seriously considering breaking off with the half-marathoners and just finishing then. She pushed me, and although now I'm glad that she did, I really just wanted to stop at 13.1 miles in.

After that half-way mark I wasn't the same. Prior to that I was trying to cheer myself up (you know, the whole "fake it 'til you make it" trick). I was taking photos along the route, posing with an Elvis impersonator and some random-ass panda on the side of the road, and video-taping a nice little version of The Village People's YMCA. But after that first half I was mentally and physically done. I'm not sure how much of a part the physical fitness came into play, as I was able to accomplish this feat in Chicago just a year prior (running a full marathon with little training, I mean), and Alicia was like Mary Poppins on crack with just as little training as I had. Sincerely - she was like a motivational speaker who just eventually got pissed and wanted to slap me before it was all over with. Looking back, I think a lot of it was mental.

Although I was physically in pain, it wasn't until I sat down to stretch about 17 miles in that I mentally gave up and cried loudly to Alicia that I couldn't finish. She was supportive, and told me that she really thought I would regret it if I didn't keep going - but she understood that if I was in that much pain and needed to quit. It was up to me. Because the ball was now in my court, however, and I was being told that I could throw in the towel or not, I kept going. Grimace and all.

Most of the race was a blur as I was more in my head than anywhere else. I stopped a dozen times or more to stretch, avoided eye contact with anyone I came in contact with, forced water and Gu's hoping anything would help - but didn't. My solace was having looked at the elevation map of the race beforehand, and being under the impression that it was almost all downhill (literally) after mile 19. Well, mile 19 came and went and the course looked no less hilly than it had been the prior miles. I was truly defeated at this point. I was ticked at Alicia for her chipper "C'mon girl" attitude, and she was ticked at me for my "Screw the world" one. I later told her I honestly felt homicidal when she told me, at mile 22, that I "wasn't even trying". Ugh!!!!!!

I believe it was somewhere between miles 23 and 24 that I just got so sick and tired of being out on the road that I forced myself, with all I had, to run as much as I could (this looked more like a shuffle really). I ran more those last 2-3 miles than I did the prior 5 or so. We made our way up the last hill and around the corner to see mile marker 26 just ahead. For the last .2 Alicia and I continued to run together and there should be a nice shot of us holding hands up in the air as we cross the finish line together! Finally - the torture was over.

As I said, I'm not sure what was so different about this race than the prior two marathons. Yes, Chicago was a struggle, and maybe I was having subconscious flashbacks of that race that hampered my mental status this time around - who knows. One thing is for sure - we have the Miami Marathon coming up in less than two months, and there WILL be training for that one. I plan on getting back on the treadmill for a small run in another three days, and continuing 3 short runs during the week, with long runs on weekends with Alicia. Never in my life do I want to feel again what I felt yesterday. And if it was a lack of training, at least I'll nip that one in the bud. If it was something else however - well, I don't know. I may have to evaluate things going on in my life right now and see what needs to change.