Indian Springs Race Report

Saturday morning marked other Tri the Parks race just south of the city. I left out early and made the winding journey through farm pastures to Indian Springs State Park. I remember this race from last year. And in nearly 6 years of racing, I think it is the first time I have ever done a race in consecutive years without substantial course changes. Finally, I could benchmark my progress and see if I am really improving!

I made it in plenty of time to pick up my packet, ride the bike, chat with my parents and kick it with everyone in transition. I didn't have any real goals for the race but to go hard and hang on for the run.

Swim: 600m

The wave was a bit smaller with all men 34 and under. That made about 75 of us in the first wave. I didn't seed myself too aggressively, just to the right and in the second tier. There was a little jostling for position but nothing that I wasn't accustom to. I made it around the first turn buoy and focused on stretching out. I felt like I was working but as usual, I found myself in no man's land. I can never hang with the fast pack but I am faster than the next. At the final turn buoy I found some feet and just hung on for the ride.

Time: 11:17 exit (12:09 total)

T1:

One of the reasons I despise this race is that transition is on a giant hill. I seriously wonder if you were to bump the top rack the wrong way if all the bike would tumble down. The worst part is that when you exit the run you must run straight up the hill, back down it to your bike. Not fun. I found my bike, did my thing with only a fumble or two and then headed out.

Time: 56s

Bike: 14.4 miles

I recall the course being rolling but fast. I particularly remember the backside being really fast. I spent the first 5 minutes trying to settle into my riding position and getting the HR down. I didn't attack the hills, just spun up them. Once I found a groove I was ready to work and I took off. I attacked this course really hard. I think for the first time in my life I rode scared, lol. I waited until mile 10 to crank it up a bit more. Fortunately, I had that extra gear and I pulled away from the group. The only two people that passed me were the overall 1&2. Overall #3 was on my backside once we entered the park

Time: 38:41 (22.4 mph)

T2:

Back up the hill to rack the bike and run. Felt smooth here. No issues at all.

Time: 42s

Run: 3.1 miles

And this is why I HATE this course--probably the hilliest sprint I have ever done. I don't mind rolling hills but this one dives into a campsite twice and brings you back out. It nearly reduces you to a walk.

I knew I was in trouble. I felt like I had slightly overcooked the bike. Plus, I have only been running steady lately so I knew my top end speed wouldn't be there. I could only hope to hang on. And that lasted until about mile 1. Then I was passed...numerous times....by people in my age group. I was pushing as hard as my body would let me. I survived the hills and made my way back through the woods to the finish line.

Time: 23:04 (7:27)

Total time: 1:15:34

Overall it was a good race. I was pissed off due to the run. I was mowed down and that just chaps my hide in a bad way. It is just the story of my life right now and I can't seem to break that cycle. On a positive note, I did shave almost 3 minutes off last year's time so that indicates some positive improvement. More to come once I run the numbers.

Big Volume Week and Moving Forward

I had the opportunity to spend all of last week in Nashville. My job is flexible in that I occasional telework which allows me to spend extended periods of time with Jess and provides me the chance to get out of the office a bit more. When I telework, I don't keep rigid hours. I pick things up, move around the schedule and work often at unique times so long as still put in 40 hours during the week. It also allows me to be a little more liberal with training.

My goal for the week was to increase training nearly 100%. I planned to cut back intensity, just focus on quality volume and see what the body thinks. In the past three months, I have only approached the 10 hour mark in training twice. It seems that I am able to train (and produce) on a solid 8 hours a week so long as the intensity is high. And normally, I am good with this. As intensity goes up, I need to recover more, namely in the form of sleep. So I don't typically double up on many days.

For the big volume week, my goal was to aim for 15 hours of training....like I said, nearly double. I really wanted to see how my body responded. I know I need to run more so I put a heavy emphasis on increasing my mileage (note--this is generally not recommended for athletes however, after years of running, I know when to can a run if my body is revolting). The second emphasis was cycling. And as usual, I totally shirked the swim--but I have plans for it another week.

I didn't quite hit my goal for the week. I landed at 13.3 hours. I still feel a strong sense of accomplishment. Last week happened to be the hottest of the year and it certainly took a toll on me. I was beat after easy workouts. In fact, my runs on Monday and Tuesday were the hardest. I quickly made the adjustment to run first thing in the morning. I was up at 5:30 and out the door. On Saturday, I started riding by 6:15.

Totals for the week:

Swimming: 45 minutes and 2200 yards. I missed my other swim when I left my keys in Jess' car.

Cycling: 8.1 hours or 161 miles. That is a big week by non-Ironman standards. One ride was cut short when a storm caught me for the third time. And my ride on Sunday was the only workout of the week that was below standard. It was extremely hot and I was fatigued and under nurished.

Running: 4.2 hours or 31 miles. I am thrilled about this. I have pushed my mileage above 30 in well over a year and only on a few occasions that weren't IM race week. I ran 6 of the 7 days last week. I ran twice on Tuesday, a long run on Thursday and bricked Saturday. I failed to brick after Sunday's ride but ran once I returned to Atlanta. Call that determination.

More importantly, I felt really good. Yes, I was tired and took Monday off. But I jumped by in on Tuesday and didn't feel like I missed a beat. I am spending this week training less and recovering. But I am still stressing the body with some intensity. Then I start my first build toward AG Nationals. I hope to consistently run 25+ miles a week. That is what I need.

Clinics, Certifications and Business

It has been a whirlwind past 10 days. So much going on and never enough time to blog. I actually left blogger open for three straight days to encourage myself to blog and I just couldn't bring myself to do it.

It should come as no surprise to those who follow me on BT or facebook but Jessica and I have been working toward establishing a business together. A few months ago we invested into the idea of hosting a local bootcamp in the suburbs of Nashville. This was the first step of many in establishing a business. She has been crazy busy teaching classes, providing nutrition counseling and promoting the business. I have been working behind the scenes to provide the business support to help her succeed.

The second part of the business is the multi-sport coaching aspect. This is something I have been interested in pursuing for quite some time. With her support, I finally took that next step. For the past few months, I have worked tireless on developing the framework for the business, website maintenance and all the other minute details that seem to take forever. While many of our closest friends are familiar with our endeavor, neither of us have gone public with our announcement. So for those readers who didn't know, feel free to visit www.ftpcoaching.com and take a look around. I am always open for feedback and criticism--especially if you see errors.

Last weekend, Jess and I spent 3 days in Indianapolis at the USAT Level 1 clinic. It was 20+ hours of lecture, discussion and death by powerpoint from some of the leading coaches in the triathlon community. She has a good write up on here blog here. Overall we were pleased with the instruction. Now we just need to take the tests and officially become certified. I am also working toward my Level III cycling certification and she is headed to Florida next weekend for additional nutritional training.

As part of the business model, there are many different facets to keeping up with us. First, we of course can be found of facebook. Feel free to join the group where we will frequently post the latest news and updates from racing and our athletes. Second, and one that will impact this site, FTP Coaching has its own blog. We both will frequently blog to the homepage as well as the additional pages created. Eventually we will consolidate that blog into one. But for now, my brain is fried on these issues. So I will likely blog less here and more over there in the interim. My plan is to cross post a lot, so my apologies to those who use RSS feeds.

Finally, we have participated in a number of successful business meetings in Nashville. We have lined up a solid number of sponsors to help our athletes. We also recently had a promising meeting about partnering with two other endurance companies to form a strong alliance. Hopefully in the next few months, all the parties can agree to terms and I will be able to announce the next stage in our business endeavors. (crossing fingers)

In the meantime, I would love for my readers to help spread the word. If you or anyone you know is interested in coaching, contact Jess or me. We are only accepting a limited number of clients this year and anticipate those few slots to fill up fast.

Blalock Lakes Sprint Tri

Another racing opportunity! I have grown to love sandwiching a few sprints into the race calendar. Despite how much they hurt, it is good to test your training...or lack of training. Since Rev3, I haven't really trained like normal. I took off a solid two weeks and spent the past two easing back into 8-10 hour weeks. I have only trained with any intensity 2-3x. I am keeping everything around z2. So I didn't really know what to expect this weekend. I was also battling a cold so my body was especially achy.

I left the house with Dan at 5:30 to make the hour drive south. One of the things I love about TTP races is the 8 am starts. It just makes the morning easier on the body. I arrived in plenty of time to check-in and set up. I even had time to take the bike for a 10 minute spin.

Swim: 600m-11:02

After getting mauled at John Tanner, I seeded myself behind the lead pack. And it worked well as I didn't get trampled. I felt really good and smooth the first 200m. I rounded the buoy and tried to maintain my pace and form. I could tell that I wasn't killing myself but maintained an aggressive pace.

One of the things I am learning is that I keep getting strung out in no man's land...even if it is just for a few minutes. I am not fast enough to hang onto the back of the fast group. I am faster than the group behind me. The swim is often lonely. I finally found feet for the final 100m and used them.

It was a slow swim for everyone. I was nearly a minute slower than John Tanner. Maybe it was the lack of wetsuit. Maybe it was the non-aggressive pace. Not sure but I was generally happy.

T1: 43s
One of my goals for this race was to focus on transitions. I feel I have gotten sloppy. I need to get in and out without giving up time. I made one minor mistake but felt like I was moving.

Bike: 14.9 miles (39:32)

For a sprint race, this was a longer bike. Naturally this played into my advantage. I wanted to push hard and open up a sizable lead so that I wouldn't get mowed down on the run.

The course was rolling and a bit tough. The hills weren't crazy but they kept you honest and constantly shifting. I hit the road with 3-4 other guys and played leap frog for the first few miles. No one wanted to budge. I finally made a move and hoped to break up the pack but most of them just grabbed a wheel. I refused to play that game so I backed off and focused on getting my HR under control. I proceeded to watch 3 guys draft all the way until mile 10. grrr.

On the second half of the course, I picked it up a bit more. I was pushing the pace but not quite to the uncomfortable part. I was quickly picking off people left and right. Finally, I kicked it in the last 3 miles. I could tell some people were dragging and I had some extra energy so it was time to make my move. And it worked really well. I didn't see anyone for a while.

T2: 31s

I fumbled with my shoes but otherwise had no issue.

Run: 3.1 miles 22:50

My body was really tight coming out of transition. I knew this run was going to be brutal. I found a nice stride and started moving. I tried my best to focus on just running and figuring it out. Lucky for me, my plan worked. I didn't get mowed down. I would say about 5 guys caught me. And I actually caught 2 guys.

I ran right behind one of the drafters and I was determined to beat him. I pushed a few times but the body only had so much to give. The run was rolling terrain. And each hill hurt that much more. I was never able to catch the guy. However, I did run very consistent splits which made me VERY happy.

Total time: 1:14:44

Monthly Totals

I have become very lazy about getting out these updates. I really just like to have them for record keeping purposes.

May was a solid month of training. I tapered the first week of the month and took nearly an entire week off. The swim total certainly reflects those adjustments.

May's totals:
Bike: 14h 08m 23s - 275.8 Mi
Run: 9h 51m 27s - 72.17 Mi
Swim: 6h 15m 40s - 18212 Yd
Yoga: 25m

With 5 months (42%) of training in the books, I feel pretty good about my totals for the year. I anticipate my focus this summer will be volume as I will race less.

2010 totals
Bike: 69h 17m 50s - 1320.84 Mi (44% of goal)
Run: 45h 58m 19s - 348.84 Mi (46% of goal)
Swim: 37h 35m 07s - 107868.2 Yd (54% of goal)

Total hours: 152h 51m 16s

Change...change...change

Life is changing around these parts. I set out to write this blog last week and it morphed into something else. I feel like I am at a point in my triathlon career where I am wanting a bit more from the sport. I have come a long way in the past few years but I never seem to seize hold of that mythical goal. I seem to continually fall just short.

One of my favorite quotes is by Albert Einstein: Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. While I am not sure I qualify for clinical insanity, I do often feel like I repeat the same methods expecting the same results. So it is time to mix things up...

1. Changing the position on my bike. The reality is, I have never been that comfortable on the bike. The headset and bars are too narrow for my shoulders. Despite putting nearly 7000 miles on the bike, I needed to change things. So a few weeks ago, I headed up all3sports to sit down with Matt Cole and discuss how to ease the tension on my neck and shoulders. Lucky for me, I got out of there for only a few hundred dollars and a new set of aerobars that allow me to space myself differently. So far so good....

2. Medical care. One of the positives and negatives of my personality is that I am a VERY loyal person. I will stick with people through the good and bad. I have seen the same chiropractor for over 3 years in Atlanta. I really like working with the guy. However, I have long known that my care was short of what I would really like it to be. So it was time for a change. I hired a new chiropractor that deals more with comprehensive care. I am about to go through some serious ART and see if once and for all I can rid my self of aches, pains and inverted hips.

3. Coaching. After two years with Endurance Concepts, I recently decided that I wanted to go a different direction with coaching. I am very grateful for all that Dan did for me that past two years. I know I am a better athlete as a result of his direction. At the end of the day, I want something different from coaching. I am a complicated athlete (he can attest). I know too much to be completely obedient and a slave to my training plan. I want to mix it up in life. I felt I needed the added freedom so I am going back to self-coaching.

Finally, there are a number of other changes on the horizon. I am going to wait to see if the ART doctors can fix me, if not, I want to sit down with a running coach to once and for all fix my gait. I am also continuing with Masters swimming. Despite hating it, in a good way, I do feel like it has been good for me.

There are a few more changes in the pipeline...though the pipe has leaks. I am looking at the remaining schedule and already planning for next year.

Hendersonville Classic 5k

(not enough time in the day for me to catch up on all my needed blogging)

Last year, Jessica and I both did this local race and took home some hardware. I still laugh that my pathetic 10k time was good enough for 3rd in my AG but it just goes to show that you can't control who shows up on race day.

This year, I wasn't feeling the 10k. I had a lousy long run on Saturday and didn't feel like going through the pain of 6.2 miles. I will admit that I was a total wuss. Instead, I opted for the 5k race. I wanted to see if I could better my time from 4 weeks prior.

Race morning, my body ached. Aside from running and cycling over the weekend, Jessica and I ventured into our next challenge--rock climbing. Three hours on the gym wall left me aching in muscles I didn't know existed. DOMS set in late Sunday night and wasn't kind to me the next morning.

Aside from setting a pr, I just wanted to run this race smart. I knew I needed to control my first mile time and build from there. Then I needed to continue pushing the final mile and take note of the pain.

Well I accomplished all that.

First mile was solid. I paced behind two women who were moving but kept me in check. 6.42. I pushed up the hill and hard on the flat during mile 2. 6:30. I knew most of the final mile would be downhill and I did what I could to hang on. 6:20.

Total time: 20:28 (6:28/mile)

Good enough for a 30s pr and 2nd in my age group. I ended up 13/366. I really wanted top 10. I pushed hard but probably left some in the tank. I knew I couldn't catch the 2 guys in front of me so I didn't see the need to kill myself.

Overall, I am very pleased. Hopefully, I can get this time under 20:00 for the year. That would make me VERY happy