Whew, one tough build week

Sorry I’m a little late with this week’s update.  My best friend from High School was in town Monday and we spent the day catching up, and yesterday just got away from me.  I’m trying to get this done before today gets crazy.

Last week as a pretty tough build week as I get ready for my first big race of the year:  New Orleans 5150.  Coach and I built my schedule around this race and the championships, so I hope to be in top form.  To get there means lots of work these last few weeks.

The good news about last week is that I finished it strongly.  Friday through Sunday are usually my longest workouts of the week, and I managed the pull them off.  I was a bit worried about the run on Sunday as I started off that morning with very tired legs.  The beginning of the week wasn’t so good.

Monday I found myself pretty tired and worn out from the cumulative effect several weeks of racing and traveling, with a colonoscopy thrown in for good measure.  For the record, I don’t think two days off to deal with a colonoscopy should count as a day of rest.  Anyway, I ended up skipping my Monday morning swim to try and get some energy back.

Tuesday I had on tap a really tough bike ride in the morning and a strong run in the afternoon.  I misread the instructions for the bike, and started the first of my five my intervals to hard.  By the 3rd I had peaked and couldn’t hold on for the last two.  It’s funny how three minutes can be a very long time when you are really hurting!  When it came to the threshold section of my workout I simply had nothing left.  For the first time in a long time I failed to finish the scheduled workout.

There was a day when that would have really messed with my head and gotten me down.  I told myself that I had a bad day, left it at that and moved on.  Coach told me that I’d started too hot and was too aggressive in my plan.  Maybe for that day, but I still think I could do what I tried to do.

The rest of the week went as planned, even the run later that day.  It was an exhausting week though and I’m glad to be done with it!

When you need strength

I watched my first triathlon this weekend.  I also volunteered so I could get up close and personal with the athletes as they came out of the water.  While I saw a lot of smiles all day, there weren’t a lot of them as they stood up to climb through the sand and up the hill after the swim.  Now I know that the look on my face when I finish isn’t unique!

I got to witness my good friend Natasha Van Der Merwe kill the race taking first place overall for the women anchoring the race with a run pace that isn’t even on my chart, not even for a 400 meter interval!  I saw one guy (Jamie Cleveland) finish the swim in half the time it would have taken me, and another (Peter Mallett) crush the field with a 5:15 minute/mile pace on the run.  Really guys, that is just sick!

There were, however, two athletes there in whom I was particularly interested:  my father and older sister.  Their stories are wonderful; full of hope, inspiration and strength.  The next time I find myself struggling to complete a workout or feeling sorry for myself because I’m tired or it’s hot or windy or whatever excuse I might come up with at the time, I will use them as an energy shot.  Thinking of them and what they have been through will give me strength.

Deb Lockwood

My sister Deb is 5 years older than I.   Forgive my ignorance, but 5 years is a lot of time when you are a little kid.  Her interests were far more sophisticated than mine, though I did inherit her “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” album which I played all the time.  I don’t know that she was particularly athletic growing up, but she was at one point involved in a master’s swim team, and pretty good from what I hear.

I don’t want to say anything here that she might not appreciate, but it was obvious that she gained some weight as she got older.  It was like the elephant in the room, something that everyone knew but no one talked about.

For whatever reason, Deb decided it was time to lose the weight.  Somewhere along her weight loss journey she decided it would be fun to do a triathlon, and attacked the training like a rabid pit-bull.  Despite needing shoulder surgery, she toed the line yesterday, determined to do this race.  I watched her swim, bike and run, all with the smile of a person confident she could do it (Ok, maybe she didn’t smile while she was swimming, but you get the point).  I saw her bike split and worried she had made the classic rookie mistake and spent too much energy on that leg, especially when her smile at the beginning of the run wasn’t a big (she had just twisted her ankle).

They disappear for a long time on the run, and you wait and wonder what is going on.  Did they have problems and have to withdraw, are they hurt or walking; where are they?  Suddenly there she was!  She was approaching the finish line so much sooner than I’d expected I almost missed her!  She was still running, and was ahead of much younger and thinner racers.  It is hard for me to say who was more proud when she crossed the finish line, what a wonderful race she had!

Deb might not appreciate me telling everyone how much weight she lost, but I can safely say this:  The announcer mentioned another racer’s weight loss journey, and my sister lost much more than her, and she is looking great!

Arnold Lachner

My father was never athletic when I was growing up.  A favorite family story is of how he went running with another of my sisters and he lasted a block.  He was in his 50’s back then, and the experience changed him.  He took up running, finishing one marathon and was training for another when he was injured and had to back out.  When his knees finally gave out he took up cycling.  I remember coming home from the Army, thinking I was in good shape, and he would put the hurt on me during long bike rides.

Knee problems continued and he was forced to abandon his beloved bike.  He started lifting weights and swimming, though as a former smoker he couldn’t swim 50 yards without gasping for breath.  Somewhere along this journey he suffered a major heart attack.  With his priorities firmly in place, the first post operative question he asked was will this improve my cardio!

It took me a year, several doctor’s visits for both his knees and heart, and some nutritional changes, but I was able to convince him to do a triathlon.  I think he was the the one who got my sister to also sign up.

During his training he suffered a calf injury.  He couldn’t run without pain.  He changed up his training to focus more on the bike and run, until he cut his arm and couldn’t swim.  I know he thought about quitting, probably a lot.  I would have understood if he had quit, how many of us in his shoes would have?  Amazingly, a little rest and regular usage of a foam roller worked that out and he was back running.  The cut on his arm healed and he was able to get back into the pool.  Unfortunately he lost several valuable weeks of training and started the race less prepared than he would have liked.

I was right next to him as he got out of the water.  I’d like to say he smiled at me as he walked by, but he didn’t.  He was focused as he walked up the hill, straight to his wife, who received a kiss.

I didn’t see him again until he came charging up the last hill before climbing off the bike.  He looked very strong, even standing up for a bit.  I wonder if he ever used his granny gear?

It was awesome to see him come running around the corner towards the finish line, yes running!  After more than an hour and a half of strenuous physical exertion he was still running!  The announcer gave him huge props as the oldest athlete on the field, at the tender age of 77.  Oh, did I forget to mention that my father was doing his first triathlon at 77!  He ended up winning his division, beating the nearest competitor by almost 40 minutes, despite giving up 9 years!

All in the family

I am proud to announce that we now have two more triathletes in the family.  Both of them have expressed interest in racing again, maybe later this year.  Then a crazy thing happened:  Deb’s husband and her son said they want to do a triathlon, then Deb’s daughter and her roommate chimed in as well.  The target race is still nearly 6 months away, but it looks like we could have 7 family members sign up!  I wonder what the record is?

All I can say to everyone (including myself) is that if you put your mind to it, there isn’t much you cannot accomplish!

The happy finishers:

Lonestar Sprint 2011

The Lonestar half-Ironman last year was my first attempt at that distance, and the first (and only race) I was unable to finish.  That left a bad taste in my mouth for a long time, and I was looking forward to a little revenge.  Completing a sprint as revenge for a half Ironman isn’t the same thing, but I did want to remove some of the mental voodoo the course had in my head.

One thing I didn’t put in my pre-race report was my plan.  I didn’t write it because it seemed audacious, and I was afraid to commit it to writing.  Here it was:  Go out fast on the swim (redline it was the phrase I used), make everyone have to work hard on the bike to keep up, and then really go on the bike.  If they wanted to beat me they were going to have to really pay for it.  That was the plan at least,  red-line all the way!

Pre race

I got to the site plenty early even though we had assigned racking.  It was chilly, so I walked around looking at people and bikes to keep warm.  At one point I came back and was looking at my bike, only to realize I’d forgotten to attach my bike computer!  I would have been fine without it, but it sure is nice to have.  It was my first race in a one piece race suit, and this one is very tight.  I’d tried it on a couple of times, but when I put it on and was walking around I felt pretty self conscious.  I actually took the top off my shoulders and put on a T shirt until it was time to leave the area.  With all these distractions I forgot my pre-race gel.  In fact, I didn’t think about it until I was on my bike.

The Swim

I was so relieved to finally get in the water, even if it was pretty cold.  I positioned myself at the front of the pack and treaded water for 4 minutes, during which time I got pretty cold.  The gun sounded and we were off!  Right away I felt the cold water inside my goggle.  I swam a bit more to make sure it was leaking and not just the initial shock.  When it kept filling up I paused long enough to give it a firm push with the palm of my hand to try and get a seal.  That didn’t work, and I did the rest of the swim  with one good eye.  Funny, I think this happened last year too!

I went out like I planned, really pushing the pace.  About halfway two things happened, my arms started getting tired from the pace, and I started catching people from the wave in front of me.  I kept the pace up for a while, but eventually had to back off a bit for fear of not finishing.  Even still, I passed a LOT of people in the water.

The Bike

That was to be the theme for the day, passing lots of people.  I ran past people on the way to transition, suited up, and then passed people on the way out of transition.  Using my new mount I was off in a hurry.  With my heart still racing I kept pushing.  There was a section with a no passing zone (boo!), and another with several speed bumps, but once we hit the seawall I was off.  I could feel a lot of cross winds, and while my power was pretty high my pace was lower than I wanted.  I assumed there was some headwind involved, ignored the speed and focused on keeping the power up.  I was passed twice on the bike, once by a mystery guy and once by a young lady.  I wanted to try and keep up, but they were too strong for me.  Everyone else was another story!  I passed people, a lot of people.  And I didn’t just pass them, I flew by them.  It reminded me of last year, only in reverse.  I thought I was having a pretty good bike.

At about mile 10 I passed a guy in my age bracket.  No mercy I thought, really push now and break his spirit.  I suspect there was some tail wind on the back leg because I was really flying.  I saw a speed in the mid 20’s a lot.

The Run

When I got into transition the first thing I noticed was that there were no bikes in my area.  Since all of old people seemed to be right together I figured I had gotten off the bike in first place.  All I had to do now was hold on.  After fighting a shoe that just didn’t want to go on I finally started the course.  My legs were heavy, maybe a bit more than usual, but I’d pushed harder on the bike than before.  I glanced at my watch and it said I was doing 13:30 pace!  There was no way I was running that slowly, I’ve never run that slowly, at least not since I started training for triathlons.  Maybe the GPS had lost its signal or it’s some crazy average pace for the entire race.  After running a couple more minutes I checked again and this time it said 13:45!  I never looked again because whatever it was displaying was useless.  That was probably the best thing that happened to me, it forced me to run based on how I felt instead of by numbers on my watch.

I was passed by another young lady who was really flying, and then a young guy (trust me, I check the ages as they pass!).  I tried to hang with the young guy, and then he faded and dropped back.  My pace felt slow, I was thinking about 8 minutes/mile, but it was all I had.  I continued to pass a lot of people, all younger.  Towards the end a couple of non-racers passed me, and I worked to stay with them.  They were very nice and encouraging, even reminding me to breath.  He must have been deaf, because I was certain they could hear me breathing over the entire course!

The Results

Once it was over I got a quick stretch at the massage tent, then headed over to check the results.  I was shocked and a little disappointed when I saw that I’d finished second.  I just knew I’d won the race.  It turns out that the mystery rider who passed me early on won.  I beat him everywhere but on the bike, where he smoked me to take 6th overall on the bike.  Don’t bet me wrong, I am very happy with my results.  The run, the one that felt so slow was at 7:02 pace.  That was after tearing up the bike with what I feel was my best effort to date.  2nd place was good enough to qualify me for Nationals again, so maybe the last race wasn’t just a fluke.

What’s next

After a couple of days to rest and recover, it is time to get back after it.  New Orleans 5150 is just around the corner, and with my newly charged confidence in tow there is no telling what could happen there.  I do think that with 5 or so more races on the schedule for this year, I could have a couple more podium finishes in store.

Hold on to your hats, this is going to be one CRAZY ride!

Twas the night before Lonestar

It may not be the night before a race, but if I wait until this evening I will probably forget, again.  So, without further ado, let’s take a quick inventory to see how we are feeling for tomorrow’s race.

Sleep:  While last night wasn’t the best night’s sleep, it was ok.  I got plenty of sleep the other nights so I should be ok here.  I might get time for a nap today, but I think that would be a mistake, making it more difficult for me to sleep tonight (as if I need any help there!)

Legs:  I noticed this morning while I was brushing my teeth that my legs were a little tired.  They aren’t too bad and should be fine tomorrow since today is a short swim.  I did a little run yesterday and opened it up for a couple of minute intervals.  That felt great!  I easily dropped to 7 minute/mile for the first one, and by the end was running sub 6 minute miles.  I think they will respond nicely tomorrow.

Neck and shoulders:  They were a little sore and stiff last night, perhaps from too much sitting around on my taper week.  I don’t notice it this morning, but I haven’t been up for an hour yet!

Stomach:  Here is the million dollar question, how is my stomach?  It is better than last week or pre last race, but still not normal.  I’ve been avoiding almost all dairy and that seems to have helped.  I’ll continue to skip it today, and then throw caution to the wind with my traditional post-race pizza!

Head:  Mentally I think I’m good.  This is a short race, so I haven’t spent much time thinking about it.  I know that last year it was windy and hot, but I think I’m better prepared this time around.  Plus my race tomorrow is probably less than a quarter of last year’s distance.  To be honest I have thought about the race some.  I’ve practiced my transition several times in my head and calculated the times for each leg.  I’ve even gone so far as to compare that time to previous years.  Instead of freaking me out, it has given me the confidence that I can do really well at this race.  I’m hoping to finish in the 70-75 minute range.  How I place will depend on who else shows up (I did look that up too, but don’t really have a way to figure out who is fast and slow).

Here is what I have learned over my 10+ races:  Your time and placement doesn’t matter.  If I am able to look inside and say that I gave it everything I had, then I will be happy.  Of course, with a chance to win…

Ready to race, again

Sorry for missing my scheduled post yesterday, somehow work got in the way of my social and racing life!  I’m back on track today, and just in time.

My second race of the season, a sprint, is this weekend.  It is one of only two sprints on the radar this year, and only my second sprint since my first season.  Because I haven’t done a lot of them I don’t know what to expect.  I vaguely remember the one I did last year.  I went out a little harder than normal on the bike, and struggled with the run.  In the end it wasn’t one of my better performances.  According to USAT, that sprint ranked only ahead of my half Ironman races.

This year I hope to improve that performance.  I don’t mean that in the sense that I hope to get better every year, or that because of my improved fitness I should do better.  I’ve actually thought about this race.  I’ve considered the distances, how hard I could and should be able to perform, added them up, and voila, it is a better time.

Comparing my projected time to previous years tells me that I should do well.  A win is not out of the question, and certainly a podium finish is possible.  That said, anything can happen race day, that’s why we race.  I could get a flat, take a spill on the bike, suffer cramps on the run, or a number of things I haven’t even considered.

Here is my plan for this race, summed up into a few short notes:

• Get to the starting line healthy
• Start off the swim hard
• Keep my foot on the gas for the bike
• Push the run and hang on until the end

Let’s see how this plan and race work out for me!