100 Steps of Ironman Weekend

There are a few of these floating around on the Internet. I have a running list of things to add so I thought it was time to create one. This isn't 100% accurate but it is definitely close to my day....

1. Arrive in Panama City.

2. Smile because you know that your accommodations meet your needs

3. Call your friends only to hear them bitch about their 300sf over-priced hotel

4. Unload the bike and display it in the safest and most prominent part of the house

5. Sit down and wonder what you are going to do for the next 3 days before the event

6. Go to registration tent, stand in line, get bracelet and swag. Walk around the expo looking for free stuff.

7. Make fun of all the people wearing $80 compression socks out in public

8. Make fun of all the people paying $45 for a shirt because it says IMFL

9. Look at the ocean. Pray to trigods for calm weather

10. Realize that walking around is making your tired so you head back home

11. Run into 25 people you know and realize 2 hours later that you still haven’t made it back home

12. Dump contents of expo bag on kitchen table looking for free stuff. Cheap bastards only gave me lip balm and a coozie from Morris Real Estate

13. Throw away the five pounds of flyers ranging from endless pools to Ironman prayer groups

14. Spend 4 hours attaching numbers to your bicycle, helmet, and race outfit. Panic that you don’t have 8 pieces of reflective tape for your run outfit, even though IMNA has never been known to enforce the rule

15. Take pictures of the bike

16. Decide to ride the run course

17. Display little to no regard for traffic because it is IM weekend. Annoy the locals even more

18. Realize the bike doesn’t feel right. And freak out

19. Decide that you are now a bike mechanic and begin making adjustments

20. Shamelessly find the guys from Elite bikes to fix your repair. And only the guys from Elite because they are far enough from the venue that no one will see you

21. Go to the Gatorade swim start the next morning

22. Put wetsuit on, stand around talking for 30 minutes. Swim 15 minutes and hope people are thinking…wow he is fast

23. Exit the water trying to hide the fact that you just swam 15s faster than your T-pace and are winded

24. Think to yourself…can I really swim 2.4 miles?

25. Act like a penguin in the wetsuit

26. Go to waffle house (choose any of the 10 in town) for a large breakfast

27. Remember how much you HATE waffle house

28. Nap

29. Go for a 30 minute run in the afternoon to see how hot it is

30. Get a gentle reminder that you ate Waffle House

31. Run the final mile in 7:30 and barely make it back to the house in time

32. Lay out all your special needs bags throughout the living room

33. Begin making post its notes of the bags contents. Make a master post-it note of all the post-it notes

34. Pack transition bags.

35. Drive to Carbo-dinner. Stand in line, proceed through buffet with poor food selection, sit at crowded table, and remember you paid an extra $20 each so your family could enjoy this food. Listen to the screech of PNF’s voice. Wonder why you came. Get pumped up about doing an Ironman. Stand in line to leave

36. Unpack transition bags.

37. Repack transition bags.

38. Go to bed knowing that you forgot something

39. Go to Friday morning Gatorade swim and repeat #23-25

40. Stress that your wetsuit didn’t feel right, goggles were leaking and the chop was 10x worse than yesterday

41. Prep bike to drop off . Spend 45 minutes positioning your tubular tire so that it doesn’t create negative drag on the bike (nevermind it wasn’t an issue all season)

42. Freak out about double flatting. Drive to expo, stand in line, pay $80 for tubular tire. Get back to home, realize you don’t know how to glue on a tubular, drive back to expo and have them do it for you.

43. Put the spare in your bike special…just in case

44. Realize that your bike special needs now weighs 22 pounds…just in case

45. Drop bike off, wonder if you should put plastic bags over it to keep it dry despite the forecast showing 0% of rain

46. Drop off your transition bags, realize you forgot something. Make a mental note to bring it in the morning. Remind your Sherpa to remind you.

47. Realize there is nothing more you can do to get ready. Sit down and relax.

48. Realize you haven’t packed your nutrition

49. Act like a drug dealer, carefully pouring white powder into 6 bottles and shaking them.

50. Stress about what’s for dinner by analyzing the perfect amount of carbs and protein needed to have a good race

51. Settle for Mellow Mushroom or Wendy’s because now you are hungry

52. Go to bed early, have nightmares of sleeping through your alarm, lie there in a cold sweat.

53. Wake up at 2:00 am for 1000 calorie bottle of nasty-tasting concoction or 2 ensures, “because Gordo does it”.

54. Wake up to every sound and freak because you know you forgot something but you can’t remember what it is.

55. Wake up at 4:00 am

56. Force a banana, ensure and PB bagel down your throat

57. Pray that you need to take a dump before you leave the house

58. Drive to the start. Stand in line for a parking spot. Stand in line for body marking. Stand in line to enter transition. Stand in line to pump your tires. Stand in line for porta potties

59. Realize that you left bottles in the freezer and send your Sherpa back to get them

60. Find a quiet warm spot to chill only to have 200 other athletes join you.

61. Listen to d-bags brag about how bad the conditions were in their race. Listen to first timers and realize they have no clue what they are doing.

62. Walk out to the beach and put on wetsuit. Get in the water but realize it doesn’t do any good.

63. Watch the sun rise and have a moment of zen.

64. Try to find a large guy who can swim. Line up directly behind him. He is your torpedo.

65. Gun goes off, 2000 people attempt to swim on top of you, realize that you are in mortal danger or drowning and few moments of your life have been this dangerous.

66. Get kicked in face, goggles come off, panic and tread water trying to get them back on while people hit you. Remember you paid good money to do this.

67. Exit swim, stand in line to get into transition.

68. Enter the change tent where 300 wet naked guys are. Grab a volunteer for help. Thank the volunteer for what has to be the worst job in all of IM racing

69. Start bike, realize that there is no way 1000 people can pack onto a course within 20 minutes without massive drafting problems.

70. Ride, ride, ride, ignore that noise, ride, ride, ignore that feeling in your stomach, ride, ride, ride, ignore that it feels your bike has a flat, ride, ride, ride, realize the road, wind, hill sux, ride, ride, ride

71. Realize that you haven’t touched your nutrition plan.

72. Play catchup with nutrition

73. Slow down because you feel sick

74. Realize you have to pee but don’t want to stop and wait at a porta potty

75. Slow down and move to the right. Ahhhhhh. Much better now. And your left leg/foot is warm. Realize you don’t have a water bottle to wash off with. Use your infinit. Get even stickier

76. Spend the next 10 minutes trying to quantify the cost of the Infinit that you just wasted to wash urine off your body.

77. Enter transition and do the slowest flying dismount in the history of triathlon but you looked cool…even if you were passed by 4 people. Enter T2 wondering how you can run 26.2 at this point

78. Make it to the next aid station, make it to the next aid station, make it to the next aid station, make it to the next aid station

79. Give scornful looks at the pros because they look effortless

80. Sample the variety of food at aid stations because another gel will NOT go in your mouth. Discover Oreos, grapes, oranges. There is a GOD!!!

81. Revert to the Ironman shuffle to push a 13 min/mile pace. But at least you aren’t walking!!!

82. Chicken Broth! And you thought there was a god when you discovered oreos. More chicken broth. Burn your tongue on the hot chicken broth. Put ice in your mouth. Get chills all over

83. Begin to hear Mike Reilly’s voice. Miraculously begin running again. Spend the final 2 miles setting a PR because you are about to become an Ironman

84. See finishing chute. Sprint madly down the road high-fiving people and cheering while announcer screams your name.

85. Prepare to have your moment at the finish line only to have some douchebag and his 3 kids run in front of you screwing up your finisher’s photo.

86. Get your medal, shirt, hat and mylar. Stand in line waiting on douchebag to get pictures with his kids, wife, grandma, local sheriff and family cat

87. Realize you need to get to the med tent…FAST. Spend 2 hours getting an IV because you failed to execute your nutrition plan.

88. Bounce back after some cold pizza, enter the stands and fight with a 12-year old for a Timex visor that you already own. Scream, I did and f’ing Ironman today it is MINE!!!

89. Go back home. Debate if you have the energy to shower. Listen to the pleas of your Sherpa to PLEASE shower. Smell yourself. I am not that bad. Hear the water running only to be guided into the shower…still in your tri suit. Go to bed

90. Wake at 4:00 in a bunch of pain and starving. Realize Waffle House is the only place open. Shuffle down there for 3 waffles, 4 eggs, 6 biscuits and 2 glasses of chocolate. Re-enter coma

91. Wake at 7 due to stomach. Damn Waffle House. Spend 45 minutes on the toilet wondering if it will ever end.

92. Call out for another magazine…you aren’t done

93. Pour over the results only to realize that your PR was trumped by the fact that a 65 year old woman beat you

94. Go to Official Finishers merchandise tent. Stand in line. Laugh at all the gear and the guy spending $500 to brag about his undertrained 16:45 Ironman finish

95. Make fun of all the people talking about getting a tattoo to immortalize their achievement.

96. Look at the line to register for next year. Try to ignore it. Debate it. Kick yourself because you are now standing in line

97. Eat again. Eat some more. And when you are full. Eat some more.

98. Though it took you 3 days to pack, you are able to pack your car in 15 minutes, throwing all your valuable equipment into the trunk hoping nothing breaks.

99. Get a text from your coach reminding you that training for the 2009 season begins in 3 weeks.

100 Let out a smile because you are ready for what the next season brings….

Fate, destiny, a lucky guess?

I am blogging...I promise. Writing an IM race report takes a ton of time. Plus, I thought I might wait for the race photos. Today is my first day back in the office. And I was astonished at a piece of paper left on my desk. On it, I was calculating what it would take to Kona Qualify at IMFL. For the experiment, I was estimating sub 9:30.

I started with my splits from IM CDA and worked myself down in each of the disciplines. 5 minutes here, 20-30 there. I was attempting to quantify how much work would it take to say lower my bike time by 20 minutes. Is it even attainable? These things look easy on paper.

What amazed me is that I wrote down the following splits:
Swim-1:10:00
T1-05:00
Bike: 5:30:00
T2: 03:00
Run: 4:15:00
Total Time: 11:03:00

I circled the time and wrote: Get there first.

Wow. That gave me shivers
I am there.

Less than 48 hours out

The nerves are slowly beginning to set in. I can feel the taper madness taking over. I will say that I am handling it 100% better than I did last year. Some of it is experience but most of it has to do with my mindset. I don't feel the need to do anything right now. I got everything done yesterday. I got registered, I made the purchases I needed and I got the freak away from the venue.

I am a HUGE believer in not staying at the race site. I like to stay close but a few miles off. To me, there is nothing more irritable than to be surrounded by 2000 other neurotic, nervous athletes. Staying away from the venue also mitigates the possibility of doing a lot of walking around. With the expo, there is always something to do. You can make signs, look at new products, buy merchandise. And of course, run into everyone you know. But most importantly, it puts you on your feet all day. No thanks.

I swam this morning. Brrrr. It was a miserable 51 degrees out this morning. The water was nice, especially since it was warming than the air temperature. My swim was solid. I felt really strong. The water was like glass with a small currently pulling you out and to the left. I am crossing my fingers for similar conditions on Saturday.

My afternoon ride was average. I didn't feel particularly strong. Off the bike I went into a brief run. I tried a 9/1 approach which felt great. I was able to still average 9/minute miles. If only the run after the bike was always that easy.

Race Day Tracking

For those readers that are not able to be in Florida this weekend, Ironman does provide online tracking of athletes. On race day Ironmanlive.com will provide updates around the clock on the status of pros and age groupers. Starting in the afternoon (3 pm), they will begin streaming live video from the course too.

If you are bored on Saturday, feel free to track me:

http://ironman.com/events/ironman/florida

You will have two options--
Race/bib Number: 234
Or by last name.

I can almost taste the salt water

Ironman Florida has nearly arrive. In 48 hours I will be in Panama City Beach among the mass of nervous athletes. It hasn't been easy this year. I have endured a lot physically, mentally and emotionally. I struggled with an injury that nearly broke me. It required me to let go of my aggressive time goals. It required me to physically take a break from training. It required me to muster the mental stamina to listen to a coach when all I wanted to do was go...and go longer and faster. It required me to physically do the right thing despite my inclinations. It wasn't an easy year.

It can easily be said that getting to the Ironman is just as challenging than the feat itself. Last year, I said training was 10x harder than the race. And this year is likely to confirm that feeling once again. For now, the goal is to rest and begin to mentally dial in for the race. While it has been a long year, I can now quantify in hours how far away the race is. It is time to toe the line and get in the water.

This year I have ridden over 3400 miles
This year I have ran over 600 miles
This year I have swam over 240,000 yards

This is the journey to the Ironman.

The road continues on...

Final week of training and I let it all go. Nothing much to report here. My body was screaming for recovery and taper. I didn't fight it. I set out Friday to train and it didn't happen. It was steadily raining and in the mid-40s. The ride that was supposed to be 3.5 hours never was. I wasn't going to fight the weather. I opted for the hot tub and an afternoon nap (sorta).

Monday--2500y in 50'
Tuesday-20 mile ride in 55'; 3.3 run in 30'
Wednesday-4500y swim in 1:15
Thursday-5.2 mile run in 45'
Friday-1600y in 25'; 24.5 miles in 80'
Saturday-12.3 miles in 45'
Sunday--2 hour massage :)

Swim: 8600y in 2h 30m
Bike: 56.8 miles in 3h
Run: 8.5 miles in 1h 15m
Total training time: 6h 45m

I like weeks like this!

Georgia State Time Trial

Last weekend was my first venture into road racing. Given my interest in cycling it was only a matter of time before I entered one of these races. I thought about the Roswell Crit earlier in the season but didn't have the means to race it....yet.

So a group of us ventured to north Georgia, near Chattanooga, for the time trial race. It was a bunch of triathletes versus the roadies. The morning was cool and required digging out my cold gear for the race.

A time trial is simple. Everyone lines up in order and each cyclist is sent off each 30 seconds. The goal, to do the course as fast as you can. You really don't have a clue how your rank. It is truly a race between you and the clock.

I had no expectations for the race. In fact, I was a bit fatigued from a long week of training. My goal was to have a consistent, hard race. The course was moderate hilly. The climbs weren't substantial but there were enough to kindly remind you that you were climbing. And it made for great descents.

The result--55:17 for 20.5 miles...average 22.1 mph and average 240 effort. That is what I call a solid effort. I felt like I pushed it for most of the race. There were definitely times that I was sandbagging. There was plenty of snot and spit coming out of the mouth.

I ended up 5th of 17 in Cat 5. Not too bad for my first attempt.

Quick Read

So I am backlogged a bit on the blogs right now. I am working on catching up. Tapering should provide me some time to get my thoughts together on a few more topics. Plus, I will be blogging from IMFL.

I would be remiss if I didn't post a link to this story. When you have time read it...you will have chills a tears. http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=backinthewater&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab2pos1

Summary: A victim, a son and a community come back together, finding strength in one another, after a popular athlete was attacked my a shark earlier in the year.

Motivation and Goals, part duex

I am spending an increasing amount of time thinking and discussing motivation. As you may recall, I blogged about it a while back in regards to pulling out of a triathlon. Recently, I have refined and narrowed the discussion in regards to how I analyze motivation.

The question is simple--Are you intrinsically or extrinsically motivated? Do you motivate yourself by personal development and improvement or do you measure your success by awards, medals and external stimuli?

The easy answer is that we are all intrinsically motivated. Our motivation comes from within. Sounds simple enough. But is that really the case? Look around and tell me what you see.

Two weekends ago, at the Ironman World Championships, defending champ Chris McCormack began having mechanical issues half way through the bike. Given the time he would lose fixing the problem, he made the decision to bow out of the race. He was there to win. Nothing less. He was externally motivated by the carrot that is World Championship (that isn't to say he isn't internally motivated). And for the record, I agree with his decision to pull out...though I think it is bad sportsmanship.

Two years ago, pro Rutger Beke blew up on the marathon and was reduced to walking. Beke, is one of the top pros in the world, consistently finishing top 5 from 03-06. Talk about consistency. Beke was done. He was toast. But he chose to stay in the race and walk the remainder of the 26.2 miles. He let go of the external motivation; instead digging deep inside and internally finding the motivation to still finish the race among the age groupers, in 898th place. Beke returned to Kona this year and plowed through the field to a second place finish.

Again, none of this goes to say that the pros aren't intrinsically motivated. That certainly isn't the case as they put in more effort at ungodly intensities. Instead, it is just two glaring examples of how motivation has played out in recent events. But more often, this is seen on the local level among age groupers, particularly in beginners.

How do you determine if someone is extrinsically motivated? I think the first sign is to look at their goals. The second is to understand how not meeting one or some of their goals affects them. Finally, how they carry themselves in regards to their goal.

In my opinion, I think a number of athletes use this sport to validate themselves. For instance, their goal is to do an Ironman. However, they have no business doing a race of that distance. Their bodies simply aren't ready or they don't come from an athletic background. I can admire the goal. I was there. I had no business signing up for my first IM. The Ironman itself came to define who I was. I see this a lot.

As a result of this, the external stimulus (Ironman) fuels the internal motivation. I have blogged a number of times about training out of fear. That is what happens. When the external is motivating the internal...that is a problem. Your motivations in life should always come from within. One should fuel themselves in a way that the external motivation is really the goal to reach.

Take the athlete who in his/her first year in a new age group suddenly finds themselves not as competitive. The previous year, the may have been consistently top 5; now they aren't even top 10. Their goal is to finish in the top 5 of every race. This is how they define success. This type of athlete can commonly be found saying things like "if i was still in x age group, I would have been in the top 3." One has to wonder where the motivation rests.

What I find particularly interesting about the example above is that the athlete may have bettered their previous time. So, in essence, the athlete has a better race yet appears unsatisfied or disappointed in the results.

Or take the athlete that is strictly time oriented in their approach to the sport. Setting a realistic time goal is great and I would never argue the differ. But things like time, speed and rankings are quantifiable. That is why we like them. They allow us to compare. That however is not always good. What about an athlete that gave 100% in a race and came up 3 seconds short of their goal? What about an athlete in a half ironman only averaging 18.5 mph when they averaged 19.5 in their last half.

A lot goes into a race (blog forthcoming). You can't always do apples to apples comparisons...their are too many variables....even when you do the same race from year to year. Instead, what should be important is how much effort you gave, how you felt during and how you felt after. If I race a 10k in 42 minutes, feel like crap and vomit everywhere after the race is it worth it when I can race a 43 minute 10k and feel great? One has to wonder. But I do get to hang my hat on a 42 minute 10k.

And how one uses these external stimuli is always interesting. Do I go our touting the I am the Olympic Distance champion? What does that get me? Bragging rights? Do I get a large obnoxious Ironman tattoo on my calf only to put on an extra 20 pounds after the season? How one uses accolades or successfully meeting goals says a lot about the person. But as I mentioned in the first point, much of it is self-validation. They need these things to validate themselves in front of others. They feel like they can hold their own in conversation or put their finishers medals up against someone else. These are the people that wear Ironman gear everywhere they go and bring it up anytime they can. (Ironman athletes are easier to pick on to make this point)

Again, I have been giving this a lot of thought over the past few months. I think my motivation has changed in this sport. I am much more concerned with having a great race. Sure, my goal is to improve upon my previous time. I understand what it takes to get there. But I have let go of many of the tangibles. I don't need medals or accolades to validate me in this sport. It is a hobby, something I do for fun. Just like I want to be promoted in my job...I want to better myself in the sport.


This played out most recently for me at Ameliaman. Getting passed in the chute by an age grouper was devasting. For me, it was the difference between hardware and being just another name on the results page. I still kick myself about the incident. I still want that hardware. But at the end fo the day...that doesn't matter to me. What matters is that I pulled off a great race. It was a killer PR for me. I had the best bike of my career and pulled off a killer run. That is what matters to me. I bettered myself. That easily overcame the motivation to take home a medal that says 3rd place.

None of this is to say that I am not externally motivated. I certainly am motivated by time and rankings. However, I use those as goals. Not the reason to train harder.

The road continues on...

Another week down. I can almost taste the salt water of the Gulf. I am officially less that two weeks out. I am to the point where I can quantify the time in the number of days. I am preparing my checklists of things to pack.

This week was ok in terms of training. I am not officially training but the volume is coming down just a bit. My body is beat...my legs are at their breaking point. They have no pop anymore. Long rides are a bit of a struggle. But that is kinda the point. If I can work through it now, then having to do that on fresh legs will be easier. Conceptually I get it.

Mon-2000y recovery swim in 35'
Tues-32 miles of intervals in 90'
Wed-4500y swim in 75'; 3.3 mile run in 30'
Thurs-14.3 mile run in 125'
Fri-Rest :)
Sat-20.5 mile Time Trial; 16 mile recovery ride 120'
Saturday-69.5 miles in 3h 40m

Swim: 6500y 1h 50m
Bike: 138 miles in 7h 20m
Run: 17.6 miles in 2h 35m

Total Training time 11h 24m

Only 2 more big workouts left...

Beating my head against the wall

90 times that is.

Is there anything more mind numbing than swimming? You really never go anywhere. It is like running long on the treadmill or putting in a few hours on the trainer. I really don't have the patience or the attention span for it.

On Wednesday, I had to perform the daunting task of 4500y in the pool. Continuously. The equates to 70-75 minutes swimming...without stopping....in a pool. The agony.

In a 25y pool, that is down and back 90 times. That equates to flipping around and pushing off the wall 180 times. Every 25 seconds, you slow, turn and push. Repeat 180 times.

Mentally, I break it into 9 x 500y segments. If I take splits here, then I don't need to count laps. I can look at my watch and know how many yards I am into the 500 set. This helps. But goodness, it is mind numbing.

I guess it is mental training. It sure sucked.
And I have to do it again next week.

The road continues on...

This past week was mediocre in nature. The race and long ride left me a bit fatigued and run down. Coach Dan promised a recovery week but my hours barely reflect it.

Mon-1200y 4x300 recovery swim 25'
Tues-2000y 4x500 continue to recovery 35'
Wed-4000y 2x200 70'
Thursday-13.8 miles of running 2h 5'
Friday-Rest
Saturday- 72 mile bike; 3h 50m
Sunday 3900y swim 60'

Swim-11,100y in 3h 10m
Bike-72 miles in 3h 50m
Run-13.8 miles in 2h 5m
Total training time-9h 5m

And that is a light week. Hmpf. I ended up cutting my bike short by 70'. I was having a bad ride and didn't want to force it.

I can almost smell taper in the air.

3 weeks out

Yesterday marked the final three weeks before Ironman. Kinda hard to fathom that three weeks from this morning, I will be devouring every bit of food in sight as I bitch and complain about my achy joints.

I am starting to feel ready. The number of big workouts have been reduced to just a few. I had a long ride yesterday that didn't go as planned. It put me in a bad mood for most of the day. But I have to keep in mind that I have had 2 great 100+ mile rides and that is where the strength will come from.

I also had a great run this week. I totally nearly 14 miles on Wednesday between the am and pm runs. This week, I have a 2 hour continuous run. Baby steps I tell myself. But that run will be a huge confidence booster if I can get through it. And then I get to look forward to tapering.

The body is still holding up well. It is taxed. It is fatigued. But I am grateful each morning that I am able to rise and get through another workout. As I have said before, each Ironman is a different journey. Each has its own story. This one is marked by perseverance and overcoming adversity. Three more weeks and I will fulfill the only promise I have made this season--to let my body finally rest.

EPIC

That is the word that I am using to describe this weekends ride. Sometimes it is not enough to just do 100 miles. Sometimes one needs to add a bit more perspective to the situation to understand the magnitude of the ride. Often, when I look at a local century, it just makes a large loop around a central point. When I ride on the SCT, it is just a long out and back then out and back. It doesn't give much perspective. Well the ride this weekend did.

Coach Dan and I stayed in Jacksonville Saturday night after the Ameliaman race. We started out on a Jacksonville trailhead traveling west at about 9 am. For the first hour, I was not feeling good. When I woke that morning I was extremely low energy and the mood set in. I was having difficulty finding my rhythm on the bike and could feel the soreness from the previous days race.

At the 75 minute mark, Dan and JC were to turn around and leave me to the rest of my trip. I plugged along on Highway 90 west finally finding my groove. The scenary wasn't much to talk about. I did manage to pass 3 correctional facilities. I found it bizarre that they were all on the same highway. The road conditions were favorable; providing a nice shoulder and very little traffic. I was beginning to enjoy this ride.

The first town I came upon was Lake City, FL. I had originally anticipated stopping there to refuel as it was about 50 miles into the trip. However, I was in a good groove and had enough fluid to continue on. In Lake City was my ONLY turn on the entire trip. I turned right onto Highway 41 North and was pleased to instantly see a sign that said Valdosta 63 miles. Sweet.

Highway 41 was much of the same. Good conditions and a good mindset. I was really moving at this point. I hit the 56 mile (half ironman distance) at sub 2:30. There wasn't much to see once you left Lake City. In fact, there wasn't any traffic. I felt like I was entering the twilight zone.

At the 3 hour mark I had traveled roughly 65 miles and just dumped my final bottle into my aerodrink so I made the decision to pull off at the nearest gas station. Needless to say that these people don't see too many cyclists. I purchase a few large waters to refuel. One guy asks how far I am riding today? I reply not sure, riding to Valdosta. He stares at me blankly. From here? He asks. Well I started in Jacksonville, I replied. Another deep confused look. Good luck he says as he shakes his head.

At this point I am moving at a faster clip than expected. I text Coach Dan to give him my update and then I plug along. I find my comfortable pace again. Around the 4 hour mark I begin to struggle. It is growing increasingly hot outside and I am a bit tired. I know I lost some speed and power as the fatigue begin to set in. At the 4h 30m mark, I want to be off the bike and out of the saddle.

I make the decision to stop again at the 105 mile juncture. I am overheating and it is causing my stomach to shut down a bit. I find the nearest gas station and douse myself with some more water. I try some gatorade but my mouth is parched and I don't want anything. I text Coach Dan again and wonder where he is.

At this point, I only have about 10 miles to go. I get back on the highway and try to dial in mentally. It is quite the struggle at this point. Then I hear the familiar sound of cowbell as Coach Dan comes flying around me. He helps motorpace me for the final few miles as I reach Valdosta.

The funniest part of the trip is that my watch is saying 114.7 miles as I hit the bridge going into Valdosta. It is a short, steep hill. I haven't had a hill all day. Dan pulls to the side waiting for me to make the call. I'll be damned if I am wussing out at the very end because of a hill. I got out of the saddle and attacked it. I totally ignored the sign that said no pedestrians or bicycles, lol. My power soared to 500 watts. I hit the summit and cruised down the backside. I found the nearest parking lot and collapsed. I was done!.

116.1 miles. Jacksonville to Valdosta
5h 29m of riding
21.2 mph average
158 watt average

And one hell of a sunburn.

The road continues on...

Another interesting week in training. I regret to inform my readers that I skipped a workout. One of my goals coming down the backstretch was to NOT miss any workouts. But it was the right call. I skipped a run because my knee was really agitated. I was growing increasingly concerned throughout the week that the knee would not hold up and the inflammation was growing. (Knock on wood) but that doesn't seem to be the case.

Mon-3000y as 12x200 in 60 minutes
Tues-24 mile ride in 1h 25m
Wed-8 mile run in 1h 15m (skipped 45 minute run that evening)
Thurs-3100 at T-pace in 62m
Fri-rode to Florida
Saturday-1650y in 28'; 25 mile ride in 67'; 6.2 mile run in 48'
Sunday-116 mile ride in 5h 30m

Swim: 7750y in 2.5h
Bike: 165 miles in 8h
Run: 14.2 miles in 2h

Total training this week was 12h 40m. This was a decrease from last week. But I will say that the intensity was much higher this week. Now onto a rest week! Yippee!

Ameliaman Race

This was a really late addition to the race calendar. Coach Dan was itching to race and wanted some company. Since I pulled out of the race in Nashville this seemed like a great opportunity. So we departed around noon en route to Amelia Island. We met up with some of his friends and crashed in a hotel adjacent to transition.

We first started moving around 5 am Saturday morning as the women in the room were racing the half ironman. I think I finally pried myself from the hotel sofa around 6 am. I devoured a clif bar and a banana while jostling around. I finally made my way to transition, took the bike for a spin and began to stretch out a bit.

My wave was the fourth to go off, after the half ironman wave.s We started on the beach and ran into the water. You had to wade nearly 50' before you could swim. Before the start, we watched the earlier waves go off and you could see that the current was pushing the athletes left really hard (I think the whole first wave missed the first buoy). My plan was to sit on Dan's feet as long as I can and site about 30' to the right of the turn buoys.

First few minutes were good. I was on his hip for the first 200m. Then he began pulling way so I got on his feet. We both were drifting left quickly. He finally pulled away between the second and final buoy. I rounded the turn buoy just fine but realized I couldn't see anything. I had no clue about the course layout. I tried to find feet but everyone was so spread out. I found the second turn buoy and headed home

Here is where I made a mistake. I forgot to take into account the current pushing me on the return. I was a good 20' off course. And there were NO feet anywhere. So I had to fight the current to make it back in. Then you had to wade the final 50' again. That really sucked.

Swim: 27:59 (1.43y/100)

I came out of the water sucking wind. I was not happy with my swim but it was the best I could do given the conditions. The run from the water to the parking lot was about 150 feet. I could tell my heartrate was through the roof. I made it to my bike and popped off my wetsuit. I put my garmin on my wrist and was already in zone 6. And then I was gone.

T1: 2:14

I came out of transition with 3-4 guys and got up to speed quickly. The race was run concurrently with a HIM so they too were transitioning to the bike. My plan was to push it hard as long as I can in order to build up a lead for the run. The best part was that I was passing people as if they were standing still. One guy caught me and I decided not to chase. I sat right outside the draft zone waiting for him to falter. He began to fatigue and I took off.

As I was approaching the turnaround, I began counting the number of people coming back. I was in 18th place and knew I could make up a few more sports. So I put down the hammer on the way back. I was pushing LT nearly the whole time and gaining on everyone. The funny part was that I was in no man's land most the race. If I passed someone, then I dropped them quick and there wasn't anyone to catch for a few more minutes.

Even in the final 3 miles, I caught another 3 guys and soared past them. I knew I had just put together a kickass bike

Bike: 1:07:22 (22 mph)

Due to the injury, I was under explicit instructions to not push the run. If needed, I was to switch to a 9/1 style in an effort to keep the knee from getting irritated. I came out of transition feeling a bit rough. I felt like I was just shuffling along. My HR was in check so I just kept moving. Imagine my surprise when I hit mile 1 at 7:48. Uh-oh WAY too fast.

And for the first time in a while I had a HORRIBLE side stitch. I can't recall the last time I developed one of those. And it wasn't going away. In fact it was slowing my down. I had to bypass the water station despite feeling parched.

I kept plugging along until I was passed by a guy in my age group. Grrr. I knew with the side stitch and bum knee that I couldn't go with him. I made a deal with myself that I was going to continue pushing the pace until the 2nd guy passed me in my AG. (I had a really good feeling where I stood).

Around mile 3 the side stitch subsided. And more importantly the knee was still engaged. At the turnaround I saw some hungry wolves coming my way about 200m back. I settled into a very comfortable sub 8 pace and kept moving.

Around the final 1.5 miles, my HR started to go up. I could hear footsteps behind me. I pushed a bit harder and said hello to z4. I was passed with right at mile 5 but there were 2 more behind me. So I picked it up a bit more. I put a bit more distance between us. At this point I knew I was going to pr and was having a really good race. I made the final turn and had about 50' on a guy.

Despite it being a race, I really didn't want to blow it out over the final 100m but he came barreling toward the finish line and I had to pick it up. And I'll be damned if he doesn't pass me IN the chute. I look at his calf. It says 26. I am devastated.

Run: 48:08 (7:46 pace)

Overall: 2:26:43
4th in my Age Group (grr)
20th overall

This was a great race for me. I really wanted to get out there prior to IMFL and go through the process again. Given my injury, I really didn't expect much from the run. And I really surprised myself. My knee held up really well and I barely felt it. My bike was the best performance to date. After reviewing the results I am pleased with my swim. All in all, I am thrilled with my performance. This was a PR of about 20 minutes for me. I am just mad that I didn't finish the race and secure hardware!!!

Early morning sites and sounds

One of the coolest things about being an athlete living in a big city is watching the town come to life in the morning. I see this a lot on the weekend when I customarily leave around 6 am to go cycling. The interstates are silent. And then I return only to face the chaos. More intriguing are the days that I choose to ride in town on some of the city's major arteries. Riding through Buckhead and Midtown is quite exciting at 7 am on a Saturday.

Running is much of the same. The past two weeks I have gotten up extremely early to log a solid run before work. This morning I departed shortly before 6 am. Running in the dark presents a number of challenges but it allows you to see and hear things that typically go unnoticed.

On each of my runs I have headed north on Peachtree Industrial through Brookhaven and into Chamblee. As I am going out, traffic is light. The only sounds are the marta trains whizzing by. When my sidewalk runs out, I easily gallop across 5 lanes of traffic to the other side of the road. My primary concern is not tripping on the sidewalk and the occassional turning car.

However, 6:30 is the time that the city comes to life. Traffic picks up. But what I find really interesting is that you can tell exactly where everyone works by where they are driving.

1. If they turn onto Ashford-Dunwoody or Johnson Ferry it can be inferred that they either work in Sandy Springs (probably near the King and Queen building) or Alpharetta.

2. If they turn down Clairmont or Druid Hills then they need the interstate so they work Downtown or Midtown.

3. If they continue south on Peachtree then they work in Buckhead.

On my return traffic is much heavier. There are a number of cars turning off and onto Peachtree. There is no more running across 5 lanes of traffic. Instead I am forced to wait at the crosswalk. The Marta station is busier and busier as busloads of people are dumped onto MY sidewalk. Grrrr.

I guess I will need to start even earlier. I am willing to bet less people will be there when it gets cold. It is really cool to watch the city come to life.

September Totals

Another month down.

September's totals:
Bike:	25h 47m 19s - 473.3 Mi
Run:	6h 01m 47s - 37.55 Mi
Swim:	10h 59m 47s - 32700 Yd
Strength:	20m

2008 totals
Bike:	167h 19m 18s - 2992.74 Mi
Run:	82h 19m 44s - 566.11 Mi
Swim:	71h 56m 07s - 210466.3 Yd
Strength:	7h 30m
Yoga:	7h 40m

I am definitely pleased with these totals. I biking was solid. Ideally I would have liked to be around 550. My run is better than I expected. I would feel much more comfortable if it was close to 80-90 miles. And my swim looks great.

For the year, I surpassed my swim goal a while back. I will pass my bike goal this weekend. It is unlikely that I will reach my run goal. I can't imagine that I can get 200 miles out of my body over the next 3 months. Possible...but unlikely.

The road continues on...

One more week down. And only one OH SHIT moment. I just flipped the calendar today and the date is present. I can see the large red circle...32 days. Wow. That suddenly seems REALLY close.

This week went REALLY well. I hit 14.5 hours of training...by far the most on the year. I only wish I had about 2 extra weeks before IMFL. I would like to push this a bit more. Sometimes it is amazing how one can train for 15 hours and still have plenty of time to do everything else during the week. I feel like I watched more TV than I have in months. I watched football and attended a birthday party on Saturday. And then I chilled most of Sunday afternoon. Time management. That is the key.

Mon--2300y as 16x100 (55m)
Tues--2400y as 5x300 and 3x150 (55m); 15 mile ride (51m)
Wed--60 minute run in the morning; 50 minute run in the evening
Thurs-70 minute swim 2x2000
Fri-Rest day
Sat-110 mile ride (5.5h) 20 minute run
Sun-3 hour ride; 50 miles.

Swim: 8700y 3h
Bike: 175 miles 9h 20m
Run: 13.5 slow miles in 2h 10m

Wow. That is a lot. And to think that I took a full day off.

If you need me....

I will be on my bike this weekend. Like ALL weekend long.

Saturday: 5h 30m on the Silver Comet Trail. That easily translates to 100 miles for me. Likely to be in the 105-110 range.

Sunday: 3h to Stone Mountain, around SM a few times and back. That will likely be about 50 miles.

Can anyone recommend a solid remedy to nurse my boy parts back to health???

I love to see improvements

I am constantly asked how I feel this year compared to last year's Ironman. And to be honest, they are different animals. The motivation and drive are totally different (see previous blogs). But as I progressed through training last year, one thing that was apparent was that I was in the best shape of my life. My times were coming down and I was hitting new highs frequently. But is that the case this year?

As I have mentioned over and over, each journey to the Ironman is different. Do I feel like I am in the best shape of my life? No. But my times are much better than last season. Do I feel like I could conquer the world? Nope. But I know I am going to have a better race than last season. Chalk it up to experience, knowing what to expect or maybe just better training. I might not 'feel' like I am in better shape but there is no denying that I am faster.

I had an absolutely brutal swim tonight. It was not only mentally but physically taxing. 2x2000y with a small break in the middle. Ugh. I had an idea what to expect so it was one of the few workouts that I went into with an expectation. I went 33:00 in the first set and 33:22 in the second. I am fairly certain that I could have gone faster in the second set but I lost my mental focus. The amazing thing is that I never really felt like I pushed it. I was set on cruise control for the most part...keeping it in my comfort area.

While swimming, it got me thinking about swimming last season. There is no denying that I am swimming faster this season...but by how much? The actual number isn't all that important. Instead, I can recall two particular swims last season that I felt were 'breakthrough' swims. I was curious how today's swim compared to two of my best swims from last year.

6x500 (9.23, 9.15, 9.12, 9.20, 9.12, 9.38)
3x1000 (18.40, 16.54, 18.07)

Last year, I was ecstatic about these swims. This year, these swim would be horrible. In my first set today I went 4x500 (8.09, 8.18, 8.14, 8.20) That is nearly a minute faster for each set. And to think that I definitely held back. I love to see improvements.

The positive is that I am on target to go 1.10.00 at IMFL. That seems really doable. In fact, I will probably be disappointed if I don't go that fast.

The Road to Florida begins.....

Four hard weeks. That is about all I need to endure. It began last week with my first real week of training in quite some time. This was the first week in probably six months that I hit everyone of my workouts. This was the first time in over six months that I put in 10+ hours of training.

Week in Review:

Monday--Rest day
Tuesday--2300y in the pool as 16x100 hard
Wednesday--3000y in the pool as 5x300 and 5x150; 23 mile ride with Coach Dan
Thursday--3.5 mile run easy with Coach Dan
Friday--3300y in the pool as 5x500; 10 mile ride
Saturday--1400y in the lake continuous; 81 mile ride
Sunday--5 mile run in the morning; 5 mile run in the evening

Swim: 10,000 yards
Bike:114 miles
Run: 13.5 miles
Total time: 11h 39m.

I am thrilled with this. The best part is thus far, my body is feeling good coming off that week. I thought I would be dying for some recovery. But I am not. The numbers are well below where I really need to be for this part of the season but I am happy to be at this point. I will take what I can get right now.

The next few weeks bump me up to 14-16 hours. That will be the key. I hope I am on the right path for a good race at Florida!!!

Sleep and Recovery

Sleep. I have always had a love / hate relationship with this topic. I am way too high strung to spend the day in bed lounging around. I have established a routine that revolves around waking early and getting my body to react to working out. My unlike many of my training counterparts, I have long lacked the ability to nap.

For as long as I remember, napping hasn't come easy. In college, I wasn't one of those that came back to my room and crashed. If I was up, I was doing things. This issue is still prevalent today. It simply amazes me that I can get 5.5 hours of sleep, pound out 5-6 hours of training and still not be able to fall asleep. Today I did everything possible. I cut down the air, grabbed a blanket, turned on the fan and just tried to relax. For 30 minutes, I 'rested my eyes.' But resting my eyes merely means closing them. There was no sleeping.

Sleep has been on a my mind quite a bit lately. A lot of research surrounds the impact it has on the body particularly as it relates to workout recovery. Most people look at it from a simplistic perspective...a sleep routine is good. But more important is what goes on inside your body. When you sleep your body is in hyper-recovery mode. Around the 60 minute mark, the body begins releasing a growth hormone that instantly attacks damaged tissue. Since the body is nearly 50% muscle tissue, the secretion of this hormone is crucial to repairing all the micro-tears. This is why napping is that much more important. Read the training plans of a few professional triathletes and you will see 2 hour naps in the middle of the day.

To bring this full circle, sleep and I have been getting along lately, despite my inability to nap. I have commented a few times in the past weeks that my body seems to be craving sleep. I am going to bed early and sometimes sleeping much later than usual. I am not naive to think that this doesn't have something to do with the stress in my life and the increase in training. But what I find particularly interesting is the improvement in my ITBS injury.

Without wanting to overstate things, I feel like things are improving. My massage therapist said it was still a mess but better. My chiropractor is dumbfounded because the area demonstrated a great deal of repair since my last visit. Could it be sleep? Well all I know is that I have been getting more sleep lately than I have in years. I hope the literature is right and the hormones are repairing the tissue running down the side of my right leg.

Countdown to IMFL

I think it is about that time. As we begin to countdown the days until the election, lest we not forget that the bigger question is how fast can I finish Ironman Florida. While all the attention may be on the Obama-McCain flap, or even what a poor choice Palin may prove to be, I dare say that my Ironman time might have a stronger bearing on the future of this country! Well, at least from my perspective. If that counts for anything.

So the countdown is on! Less than 45 days and I am feeling more motivated than I have in a long time. I am still pumped up about getting in the water that morning. I just need my body to hold up for the next 30 days.

What does the next 30 days hopefully hold? An all out assault on training. Coach Dan is holding nothing back. He is more determined than ever to break me. If things go well I will race in two weeks down in the Jacksonville area. Then the next day, I am riding back to Atlanta. Literally. Well at least some of it. 90+ miles hugging I-95 from Jacksonville to Savannah while Coach Dan yells through a bullhorn to ride faster!

If I hold up this will be the first week in probably six months that I have solidly training. It is Thursday so outlook is good. I just need to be smart, listen to my body and keep channeling positive energy!!!

Need to find me? I will be at the pool or on my bike. Probably not running too much.

Motivation, Goals and Rewards

I spent a great deal of time this past week thinking about what motivates me in this sport. I have often said that this sport brings out the best and worst in people. Finishing is never enough. Getting better is never enough. There is an endless pursuit of perfection. It ranges from the beginner all the way to the Ironman World Champion. There are so many variables in the equation to pull off a great race, training session and season. Sometimes your reward is setting a personal best in a race. But the euphoria is short lived as you begin agonizing and second guessing how you could shave a few seconds here or how next time you will get your run down an extra minute.

As I stated in a previous blog, training for my second Ironman has proven to be a difficult feat. I don't have that instinctive fear. My legs don't quiver in horror at the thought of racing 140.6 miles. I have the confidence I need. Instead, the motivation, goals and rewards are different. Last year my motivation was to overcome the adversity of training and finishing what I view was a monumental task. In that case the end (finishing) justified the means (training). As I move forward with more Ironman races, I can't help but to wonder if the opposite is true. Have the means (training) justified the end (finishing).

Training is a way of life now. Last year it was something I had to do in order to get myself to the finish line. This year, in part, it is what I love. Sure it still has meaning, but the confidence and experience play a much larger role. I know exactly what it takes to finish a race in a desired time. My goals and rewards have also significantly changed. I had a very aggressive time goal for Ironman Florida. That is no longer there but I still have an semi-aggressive approach to the race. The reward? I am not sure yet. I don't know if it will feel the same or feel different than last time. Guess I will foreshadow a blog.

All this came to head on Sunday at the Music City Triathlon. I was stoked about racing again. I popped out of the bed that morning and I was ready to get my tri-on. Excluded Belgium, I hadn't raced in over 3 months. And since I don't count Triple-T, this would really only be my second race of the year. But tri-gods had a different idea.

Hurricane Ike was sending horrible conditions our way. The tranquil nature of the lake produce white caps. Fine. So the course will be a bit more challenging. I am ready for this. A few waves go off and more chaos ensues. The buoys become unhinged and fly off course. Now you have swimmers going in three different directions. The race director had lost control of the race. Time for Plan B.

They decided to implement a duathlon style race on the bike-run course. 27.1 mile bike followed by a 6 mile run. Ummm....no thanks. Given the conditions and format, I can't see this being fun at all. Put more importantly, I don't see this being beneficial.

I agree that you learn something new every race. But there comes a point in your career where the risk outweighs the rewards. For me, there was no great reward awaiting me at the finish line. Even if I pulled off a great bike and run, it would just be another finish. And the recovery time would be a few extra days. Instead, I choose to pack my backs, head home, still score a solid workout and focus on recovery.

I don't know what the word is to describe it. Maybe confidence? Experienced? Focused? I spent some time wondering what now separates me from the numerous beginners, more experienced athletes (or the old version of me) that made the decision to stay in the race. I think what it comes down to is that I have reached a point in my triathlon career that enables me to make rational decisions and keep my vanity at bay. I didn't need that race. I didn't need another medal. I didn't need another ranking, time, number next to my name. It was just a warm-up, a tuner, in preparation for IM FL. I was standing in the water ready to race. That, quite possibly, gave me the same euphoric feeling as crossing the finish line.

Right now my focus is on IM FL. I have my motivation, I have my goal and I look forward to crossing the finish line and receiving my reward.

I am racing this weekend!!!!

Yippee Skippy!!! Coach Dan approved me to race this weekend. I am excited and scared at the same time. I know I need to race again prior to Ironman Florida. Typically, I would race a half-ironman about 4-6 weeks out. This would allow me to go through a checklist for racing. I would test my nutrition plan and get it dialed in for the Ironman.

But given everything that has occurred this season, I have grown weary of racing a HIM. I am running out of time. Plus I feel that racing 13.1 miles might put me at jeopardy and not able to fully recover in time. This is a bit disappointing because I really like the 70.3 distance.

Alas, I have felt that I need to race again. I really haven't raced much this season. My last tri was the first week of June. I feel like I need a run through to mentally dial in for Florida. Plus, when I thought about this race, I began to get excited. I love racing. I miss racing.

This is all part of my plan to push out negative energy. I am hoping this race will rejuvenate me a bit. It will remind me why I love this sport. It will catapult me into wanting to train again.

I don't expect to do too well. My goal is to prepare for Florida and that means I try to have a good swim and kill the bike. The run? Well shit happens and we will see if I can muster together 6 miles of something on Sunday.

Motivation & Ironman Florida

Yesterday I did something that I haven't done in a long time. I simply did not train. Sure I miss workouts here and there but more often than not, life gets in the way. Yesterday...I simply didn't want to train. I did not WANT to get on my bike for three hours. It was hot outside and that made me cranky. I caved at the thought of riding at least 1.5 hours. I let the negative energy defeat me.

Staying motivated is one of the most difficult things an athlete has to endure. In the case of an Ironman, ones training plan begins 4-5 months before the actual race. Put the Ironman at the end of the year and that makes the season even longer. When I think about it I am amazed that I have held it together for so long. I ultimately started training back in November. I began racing in February with a half marathon. That makes for a long season. Add an injury and it is easy to see why I feel very defeated at times.

I spent a couple of hours thinking about motivation last night. I sat down and watched the Kona 2007 video for some additional inspiration. I began asking myself if I really want to race Ironman Florida, what needs to happen between now and then. I need to refocus my mental drive and force out the negative energy.

The easiest answer is to get healthy. That is easier said than done. The injury is definitely a source of negativity. It burdens me day in and day out. So in the coming weeks, I am going to work with Coach Dan on this issue. If this is going to be a limiting factor in my training how close can I toe the line with no running and still compete in November. If running is a source of my stress and negative energy then I need to do what I can do to minimize it.

Acceptance. Ironman Florida is going to suck. That may sound negative but it is realistic. I need to accept that the race is going to take a lot out of me mentally, physically and definitely emotionally. I need to let go of my time goals and accept that in my condition there is no way I can race at the level I want. There may be room for a PR but that will take a lot.

Surround myself with postive people. This sounds like a no brainer but my support team will be even more important down the stretch so that I can make this happen.

Find motivation from other sources. Last year, I used all kinds of motivational techniques. Why haven't I employeed any of those this year. I know that I mentally respond. I need to direct my energy in that direction.

Training for your second or third Ironman is a difficult feat. Your first is the easiest. It sounds counterintuitive but the reality is that fear drives you that first time. The second and third and fueled by pure personal motivation. For instance, what pushes an athlete to improve on his or her time when s/he already knows how little is needed to finish? That is the ultimate question. I am about to embark upon my last 6-7 weeks of training. I need to channel out all the negative energy and focus on what I can accomplish and improve upon. I need to accept the obstacles in my way and do what I can to avert them. And then I need to show up on race day and get in the damn water.

August Totals

August's totals:
Bike:	20h 45m 47s - 385.27 Mi
Run:	7h 06m 07s - 46.05 Mi
Swim:	5h 11m 04s - 15100 Yd

2008 totals
Bike:	147h 15m 43s - 2627.94 Mi
Run:	75h 43m 33s - 524.76 Mi
Swim:	62h 56m 49s - 183966.3 Yd
Strength:	7h 10m
Yoga:	7h 40m

This was a much better month than the previous two. While I am still less than thrilled, I am moving in the right direction. Despite traveling nearly half the month I did manage to surpass my 2007 totals for both biking and swimming. This month might allow me to surpass my 2008 goals in those areas. too.