Friday, October 5, 2012
Season in Review
So its that time of year, time for the off season. Time to think about the past.
So as a little recap. I missed all of last season due to a hamstring tear. Took forever and then some to rehab. Despite that I was able to cobble together some halfway decent race results. But certainly not where I wanted to be.
So, first lets review the plan. Working with Scott made the plan simple. Run 6x per week, swim 4x per week, Ride 4x per week. With work I do what I can in the early mornings so my afternoons aren't too busy and I can spend time with Aimee. For the most part minus a few disruptions the schedule worked out well.
In terms of expectations I really didn't have too many for the season due to my leg. I was hoping for some PR's and great results. But I also knew I might have some set backs along the way. All in all, despite the failures I am calling this season a success. A little more than a year ago I thought I'd never race again. I wasn't sure I'd even be able to run/ride casually as the doctors thought I had that bulging disc in my back. So in a lot of ways this season has been a gift, and a success.
Lets get into it and see where that leaves us.
The negatives:
First, the leg cramping was an obvious problem. I shouldn't have fiddled with my bike fit. I knew better and decided to be cheap.
Second, run pacing. While my cramping was a problem, it really had very little impact at Racine. At Racine it was hot and simply ran to hard, didn't drink enough, and ended up with problems at mile 7. It was a valiant effort ultimately leading to death.
Third, consistency. Overall I was pretty consistent, but not great. I missed several workouts including some longer stuff. In this sport consistency is king. More is more until it is too much, as they say.
Lastly, my performance in Vegas. I still don't fully understand why my bike split was so slow. Thinking back I am sure that impacted everything else. I was on the bike 10 minutes longer than I expected without nutrition. I was more tired than I thought, and the cramping was worse than at any other race. I'm glad I went and experienced it, it was a lot of fun. But the overall performance was poor.
The positives:
First, I managed to qualify for the world championships despite a poor performance at Kansas. Granted it was a rolldown, but considering how bad Kansas really was...the fact that I managed to make it is something of a big deal. I've come a long ways.
Second, My olympic distance racing and speed has really come around. I PR'd in all my shorter distances. To me, this is a really good sign. It tells me that I have the speed, I just need to do a better job of pacing. With my bike fit corrected, I should be able to see some big improvements.
Third, run durability has improved. Because of the base I have now built up, I am able to switch over to a plan with 7 runs per week and more speed work. Due to injuries of old, I had not been able to do a lot of fast running and relied on volume. This off season I can do both. It should be fun.
Fourth, I was able to race again. Duh.
Fifth, I kept my weight way down. Its always been a challenge. In college I was a chubby 215lbs until my Crohns diagnosis. I dropped to 205ish, but put it back on and stayed around 215 for a long while. Balooned up to 265 about 5-6 years ago, but was able to get back into athletics and triathlons and have since dropped to about 195 where I am right now.
What's Next.
Well, I've already decided that I want to go back to Vegas, I just can't next year. As a kid my father used to take me on some really great fishing trips in Alaska and Canada. It is time I repaid the favor when we are both old enough to really appreciate it. So, we're heading up to go do some fishing in early September 2013. As that is when Vegas is, I can't go. In my eyes, well worth the sacrifice.
So I am thinking I am going to start the season a bit earlier with New Orleans or maybe Galveston 70.3's. Have a really fun year of doing a lot of smaller races, and then see if I can go to Steelhead in August to qualify for Vegas 2014.
From a speed perspective, who knows. I feel like I have a lot of gains left to make. With my bike fit I am really hoping to get a lot more power. But I am need to be sure my hamstring can take the pressure of this fit. My old fit had the seat lower to take the pressure off my hamstring. So we'll see if my new fit needs any modifications as we go.
In any case, I won't get much faster in swimming. Not much point in trying to get faster either. Fortunately I do have that to fall back on. Running and biking are another story. So this off season will primarily focus on getting faster in both.
Of course there is my weight. Its time I got down to 185. I've never seen my abs and want to! Even if it is just for a day so I know that they are there. I'm not sure 185 is low enough to do that, but its a good starting point. The lowered weight will make my biking and running faster too!
For the moment, I think that's it.
To bring out the geeks: Do, or do not. There is no try.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
The 20 minute 5k
As I prepare to write my year end review post and prepare myself for the coming off season. One of the goals that has forever eluded me is the 20 minute 5k.
I was prepared to write about my plans to crush that goal this off season.
The good news is that yesterday during my threshold testing I ran a 5k in 19:53. A new PR by 30s. (My old PR was on a track, this was out on a path).
The bad news is that now I don't know what to write about.
I've been doing threshold testing across the board, even on the bike with my new fit. Funny thing, despite being on the fit for 3 days I was still very close to my previous 20min power tests. If I re-did the test I am confident I could match my previous best. And on the 3 minute test I hit a PB by 12 watts.
Interesting results. I'm a total gym-class hero right now.
I was prepared to write about my plans to crush that goal this off season.
The good news is that yesterday during my threshold testing I ran a 5k in 19:53. A new PR by 30s. (My old PR was on a track, this was out on a path).
The bad news is that now I don't know what to write about.
I've been doing threshold testing across the board, even on the bike with my new fit. Funny thing, despite being on the fit for 3 days I was still very close to my previous 20min power tests. If I re-did the test I am confident I could match my previous best. And on the 3 minute test I hit a PB by 12 watts.
Interesting results. I'm a total gym-class hero right now.
Friday, September 21, 2012
I'm a moron...again and again and again and again
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I'm pretty sure I've blogged about what an idiot I am. I really need to make it an annual or semi-annual thing. In this case, its certainly past due.
Now that I have that out of the way, I went in for a retul fit. It was mostly a precaution...or so I thought. I figured my fit had something to do with my cramping...little did I know.
To keep this post nice and short allow me to say this. My saddle was moved up an inch. My saddle was also moved forward about an inch. I had to bring my handle bars back over a centimeter, and bring them up a mm. Plus my cleats were moved back and to the side. To summarize, everything was wrong...and not by small amount.
Notice all the different things that needed moving...well guess what. Between the last time I had been fit and this fit I had gotten new aero bars, base bar, stem, saddle, pedals, cleats, and components. No need for concern there, right.
The fitter was pretty confident that my fit was indeed the reason for my cramping due to the very specific nature of the cramps and how my fit had me positioned on the bike. Furthermore, I position myself differently when on the trainer and riding outside. I'm much stronger on the trainer because of this. So when I was riding outside...I was pacing too hard.
Anyway, that's it for now. Just thought I'd share.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I will never touch my bike fit without professional help ever ever ever again, ever.
I'm pretty sure I've blogged about what an idiot I am. I really need to make it an annual or semi-annual thing. In this case, its certainly past due.
Now that I have that out of the way, I went in for a retul fit. It was mostly a precaution...or so I thought. I figured my fit had something to do with my cramping...little did I know.
To keep this post nice and short allow me to say this. My saddle was moved up an inch. My saddle was also moved forward about an inch. I had to bring my handle bars back over a centimeter, and bring them up a mm. Plus my cleats were moved back and to the side. To summarize, everything was wrong...and not by small amount.
Notice all the different things that needed moving...well guess what. Between the last time I had been fit and this fit I had gotten new aero bars, base bar, stem, saddle, pedals, cleats, and components. No need for concern there, right.
The fitter was pretty confident that my fit was indeed the reason for my cramping due to the very specific nature of the cramps and how my fit had me positioned on the bike. Furthermore, I position myself differently when on the trainer and riding outside. I'm much stronger on the trainer because of this. So when I was riding outside...I was pacing too hard.
Anyway, that's it for now. Just thought I'd share.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Ironman 70.3 World Championships - Report
For those interested in the results without the lengthy report, I finished in 5:32:33. 775th overall and 117th in my age group. Not what I had hoped for, below is the how and why.
Before the race:
Got into Vegas on Thursday night, very late. Slept until I couldn’t sleep anymore and went to athlete check-in -- It was hot! Went to the airport and picked up my parents who came in on Friday. Everything was going well as I unpacked my bike and got it built back up.
Saturday was gear check-in day. T1 was about 30 minutes away from our hotel, I woke up early to go to the practice swim and ride/run on the opening hills. Unfortunately the parking situation was out of control, and despite getting there pretty early I didn’t find parking until it was too late. So I could not swim, but did get in a nice 10-15 minute ride on the opening hills followed by a quick run. Checked in my bike later that day. T2 is about 15 miles away in town, so I went there and dropped off my run gear.
After being able to riding the opening hill that day, I was not nearly as intimidated by the course. If you look at the bike course profile map, it looks very intimidating. It was not nearly as hard as I thought it would be. I really relaxed quite a bit after that. The whole course was longer gradual climbs. Slower to be sure, but not as brutal on the legs, and nothing like Kansas.
Friday and Saturday were also spent hydrating. I drank a huge amount of Gatorade and water. On Saturday evening I took 3 salt tabs to get some pre-race electrolytes. I also had an early dinner which consisted of Subway at around 3pm followed by chicken and rice at around 5:30. I was feeling really good.
Race Morning:
Everything was all set, and I took in my breakfast exactly as planned. One medium bowl of golden grahams, 1 banana, 1 10oz bottle of coconut water, and 2 24oz bottles of my Gatorade mixture. And the really good news was that I had to pee right before the swim. I had no heartburn, slept good and felt ready to go.
The Swim:
Totally uneventful and basically perfect. It was a non-wetsuit swim so I figured I’d back off a little bit and conserve some energy. I knew I wasn’t going to go a 26:30, nor did I want to. At the end of the day I consider this a somewhat lazy swim, which was intentional. I really needed to focus my energy on being able to run.
I did get a little side-stitch towards the back half of the swim, but I pushed through it. I actually thought it was a good sign, that I had lots of fluids ready and waiting in my guts.
The ending was very crowded and rough as they made everyone come up and out at a small narrow pier. But I finished with a 28:23. My stopwatch had been kicked and was stopped at 24:30ish, so I didn’t really know my swim time. Knowing it now, I am perfectly content with that swim. Yes I could have swam quite a bit faster, but it wouldn't have been worth the additional effort.
T1:
T1 is very very long (took me 4:31). First there was an extended run from the water to get to T1. Then I ran all the way through transition to get to my bike. Then after I got my bike I had to run up a winding uphill path to get out of transition. I got stuck behind an older woman that was walking up and could not get around her. My focus was on the run, so I wasn’t too worried about losing a few seconds in T1. I have no real idea, but I think T1 was about a quarter mile long in total.
The Bike:
Looking at the profile of the bike I was very intimidated. It looked like I’d be climbing mountains for the first 5 miles. But having ridden the morning before, I was feeling much better about things. My plan had been to ride really easy in the early goings and then build it up. I’m pretty sure I came very close to that goal.
I held close to 240 for the opening 5 miles or so, 230 watts was just too low given the nature of the climbing. I was keeping a high cadence up the hill, so I wasn't really all that worried. I was not winded and my legs felt really good. The next 5 miles or so were pretty fast with some smaller climbs. I held wattage close to the same.
From there the ride was uneventful. The course was almost entirely long gradual inclines vs. really steep climbs. And while I am slower on those kinds of climbs, they don’t crush my legs as much. Overall, based on what the Garmin was showing me, I was very happy with my ride. There was one 5 mile section where my power was low as it was an extremely fast section. And there were a couple other sections that I pushed and was in the 250-260w range. The very last 5 mile section was a litte rough and all uphill. By then I was a bit tired, but not struggling to hold wattage at all.
I took in my 2 24oz bottles of Gatorade mixture. I had added a salt stick to the mix. Unfortunately my little box of salt sticks fell out of my pocket early in the ride. I wasn’t too concerned as I’d only intended to take a couple anyway.
About mid-way through the ride I heard my brakes rubbing. I didn't think much of it at the time, but the bike did feel a bit sluggish. I adjusted the brakes while riding, but it didn’t help. I actually got off my bike to see what the problem was, found nothing. After finding nothing there wasn't anything I could do...so I just kept riding. (more on that subject later).
I finished the ride strong, and got into T2 with a time of 2:47. I was shocked at how slow my time was given the wattage I rode. But I felt really good and wasn’t going to let that worry me. I always knew I was racing myself in Vegas, and if my target wattage was only worth a 2:47 then so be it.
After the race I learned that some electricians tape holding my wheel cover onto the wheel had literally melted, fallen off and gotten lodged between my rear fork and wheel. I didn’t see it, but that was the cause of the rubbing noise I heard and probably why the bike felt sluggish. It also *might* be responsible for why by bike time was way slower than the watts I put out. There was very light wind, and given previous results and wattages I was expecting my wattage to get me home in about 2:40ish. So 2:47 does seem kind of odd. Unfortunately I have no real way to know what the tape cost me, if anything.
As another note, during a lot of the uphill sections I sat up off the aero bars. The reasons were simple…deep breathing and legs. I have cramped in other ½’s this year and wasn’t sure if my bike fit was partly to blame. I spent more time sitting up in this race than most if not all other races I’ve done this year. Mostly to make sure I did some good breathing on the hills and to change bike positions. I rarely stood on the pedals, but did a few times to stretch my legs.
I also had my HR monitor on and would occasionally check it on the bike ride. I have not seen the files yet but am pretty sure I was around 140 for most of the ride.
T2:
Came into T2 and felt pretty good. Changed and got going. Nothing eventful.
Run:
First off, the run course was much harder than I anticipated. The run basically consisted of a 1 mile downhill run, a 2 mile uphill run, 2 mile downhill run, repeat twice more, and then finish with about a 1 mile downhill run to the finish. We’re not talking about mountains or anything, but the climbing was a bit steeper than I anticipated. And it was almost all on blacktop…so it was like a furnace. I believe it was in the low 80's for the race start and in the mid 90's by the time I started running. But the blacktop really radiated the heat and it was sweltering.
I came out of T2 feeling pretty good. My fuel belt had leaked everywhere, so it didn’t have much in the way of fluids in it. But it had enough for me to hammer back about 5 oz of Gatorade and a salt stick. I took the salt stick because my quads were giving me that cramping feeling. You know the one…not muscle soreness, but the “if you make a wrong move I will go full-on cramp and screw you” feeling. I had that for the first 3.5 miles at which point I was nearing the end of the first 2 mile climb. At that point mentally I was still in good shape and felt good. I was also hoping that like in previous races the cramping feeling would go away.
But at mile 3.5 the leg cramps stopped me dead. It was both legs, quads and hamstrings. I think I was stopped for at least 2 minutes, not sure. I couldn’t move without something cramping. I literally had to stand there frozen still trying to keep both muscles somewhat stretched until they relaxed. Finally I was able to walk it off a little bit. And after that I was able to start a jog. I do not believe I stopped again except for aid stations until I started the 2nd climb. I was still hoping the cramps would go away like my other races. That was not to be. Every single step of the run I was on the edge of complete cramping. No joke, every single step, especially my right quad.
I muddled forward like that until about mile 7.5 and was generally making good progress. I certainly wasn’t running fast, but mostly running with some walking in there at aid stations and if the cramping threatened again. Again, overall I felt fine. I wanted to run and was getting pretty frustrated. In fact that first downhill I was making some decent progress and feeling pretty good about things. After my bike time I knew I wasn't going to hit any time goals, so I really just wanted to finish strong and feeling good.
At mile 7.5 just as I started the second 2 mile downhill section, I was actually feeling pretty good about things. I really thought that for the next 2 miles I’d be able to run down the hill, hit the aid stations, and generally feel pretty decent with only one climb remaining. My first stretch downhill was pretty good. And honestly, despite my slow times I really felt like I could be happy with my race if I was able to just run through the remainder despite some slower times.
As I was getting some momentum down the hill and running fairly decently, the worst side-stitch of my life hit really hard and really fast. I tried pulling a Macca and digging my fingers into it, massaging it, deeper breathing...nothing helped. It got to the point of being so bad I struggled to breath and was groaning/grunting with each step.
I was pissed. I’ll have to look at the files, but other than the initial cramping and aid stations I don’t think I really stopped to walk until this point. My running was slow, but it was still running. I was also pissed off because I didn't feel bad. I remember specifically thinking that to myself too...that if it weren't for these leg cramps I'd be doing a whole lot better because I feel pretty good and pretty strong right now. That was incredibly frustrating.
The side stitch stayed with me down the entire hill. I tried some walk/run, but it was pretty bad and stayed with me. At this point I get a little blury as there was way more walking and a lot of cursing and frustration. I seem to remember the side stitch finally subsiding as I started up the hill for the last time (great timing). It didn’t go away, but became bearable. I did some jogging up the hill as best I could, but not being able to run down the hill like I wanted demoralized me pretty badly.
About halfway up the final climb with about 2 mile left to race I saw Aimee and my parents. I stopped to say hi and gave Aimee a kiss. Told them about the cramping and moved on. At that point I just wanted to make it enjoyable and was doing a run/walk based on how I felt. Based on the amounts I was drinking at each aid station, I doubted hydration would be an issue when I finished, but to make sure I started drinking more at each aid station. I wasn’t about to end up in medical.
I finished the run with a 2:10 and a lot of questions about this cramping. Is it really nutrition related? Is it bike fit related? It is always the same muscles that cramp, my quad (vastus medialis) Often referred to as the teardrop. (Although the Sartorius is right in that area too).
Plus my hamstring. However I don’t know that my hamstring would cramp if I didn’t have to deal with my quad. Typically my hamstring only cramps when I try to stretch my quad…not on its own.
Post race thoughts:
First I loved the race and the course. The whole area was beautiful and the race was very well run and a lot of fun. Despite my troubles I am really happy I went and would like to go back, next year if possible.
I got to see the zip by while on the bike. Wow!! Granted I was climbing a long steady climb as they were screaming down it with their hair on fire, but those guys were hammering HARD. It was pretty cool to see. It was like a freight train going by.
Monday my legs were still cramping with certain movements, mostly my hamstrings. The side-stitch was also sore to the touch. That’s a new one for me, side-stitch so bad it hurts the next day. My quads still hurt. Not just sore, they hurt. My hamstrings are touchy and hurt to massage.
Had the cramping not occurred my race would have been a lot different. I know for a fact that I am not pacing poorly. In Kansas it was pacing, but at Racine my power was fine, and in Vegas my pacing was fine. I've gone equally hard in training, if not harder and gotten off that bike and run a HELL of a lot harder with no cramping of any kind. Something is causing this. Something doesn’t make sense. I need to find out what that something is.
There really are only a few options.
It can't be my run fitness or pace because I'm getting these cramps too early. In most cases I feel the cramping before I'm done with mile 1 and every time they have hit running paces that I routinely do in training.
So first in my mind is my bike fit. It is vastly different from 2 years back when I never, ever cramped in a race. Waaaay more aggressive. I'm so much lower today that while on my base bars now, I am lower than I was on my aero bars back then. I should probably get my fit looked at again. Perhaps I am too far forward/backward on my bike and am putting too much pressure on the front of my quads. Perhaps the fit is just too aggressive. I’m really not sure.
Nutrition is a possibility. 2 years back I did ½ irons with 400-600 calories of Heed, almost no salt and just water. Never once cramped. That includes a rather hot Racine race. Maybe I need to get a salt study done. (Prior to this year I have never cramped in a race other than IMWI which I knew I was not in proper run shape for).
I should also point this out: Despite all the fluids I took in the night before the race (at least 80-100oz of Gatorade, plus water and other stuff.) (I had to pee 4 times during the night) I also took in 70oz race morning, 90-100oz on the bike, and the 2-3 cups of fluids I took in at every aid station (5oz x12 = 60oz while running)…I still only went to the bathroom one time during the race, and it was midway through the run, and it was not very much. I got off the bike feeling rather thirsty as well.
To top it off, I did not go to the bathroom again until much later that night. Having said that, I felt perfectly fine after the race, helped pack up my stuff and walked 15 minutes to the car almost immediately. (in the burning hot sun)
I’m not really sure what else that leaves for consistent quad/hamstring cramping. It will be the subject of many discussions this off season.
As for what’s next, I have not decided, nor do I have any goals set for next season. I’d like a few weeks to be unstructured, although I may do a couple races for fun. Jhawk, or a half marathon are possibilities. I’m not sure at this point.
I am considering the possibility of doing a training half Iron at really challenging paces in an effort to replicate the cramping in training. A really hard non-stop swim followed by a challenging ride at 250+ watts, followed by a run. Not a half marathon, but a hard 4-5 miles to see if I cramp. In every race so far I’ve been ready to cramp at mile 1, so I should know pretty quickly.
Anyone with ideas or crazy suggestions let me know. At this point I am open to suggestions.
Before the race:
Got into Vegas on Thursday night, very late. Slept until I couldn’t sleep anymore and went to athlete check-in -- It was hot! Went to the airport and picked up my parents who came in on Friday. Everything was going well as I unpacked my bike and got it built back up.
Saturday was gear check-in day. T1 was about 30 minutes away from our hotel, I woke up early to go to the practice swim and ride/run on the opening hills. Unfortunately the parking situation was out of control, and despite getting there pretty early I didn’t find parking until it was too late. So I could not swim, but did get in a nice 10-15 minute ride on the opening hills followed by a quick run. Checked in my bike later that day. T2 is about 15 miles away in town, so I went there and dropped off my run gear.
After being able to riding the opening hill that day, I was not nearly as intimidated by the course. If you look at the bike course profile map, it looks very intimidating. It was not nearly as hard as I thought it would be. I really relaxed quite a bit after that. The whole course was longer gradual climbs. Slower to be sure, but not as brutal on the legs, and nothing like Kansas.
Friday and Saturday were also spent hydrating. I drank a huge amount of Gatorade and water. On Saturday evening I took 3 salt tabs to get some pre-race electrolytes. I also had an early dinner which consisted of Subway at around 3pm followed by chicken and rice at around 5:30. I was feeling really good.
Race Morning:
Everything was all set, and I took in my breakfast exactly as planned. One medium bowl of golden grahams, 1 banana, 1 10oz bottle of coconut water, and 2 24oz bottles of my Gatorade mixture. And the really good news was that I had to pee right before the swim. I had no heartburn, slept good and felt ready to go.
The Swim:
Totally uneventful and basically perfect. It was a non-wetsuit swim so I figured I’d back off a little bit and conserve some energy. I knew I wasn’t going to go a 26:30, nor did I want to. At the end of the day I consider this a somewhat lazy swim, which was intentional. I really needed to focus my energy on being able to run.
I did get a little side-stitch towards the back half of the swim, but I pushed through it. I actually thought it was a good sign, that I had lots of fluids ready and waiting in my guts.
The ending was very crowded and rough as they made everyone come up and out at a small narrow pier. But I finished with a 28:23. My stopwatch had been kicked and was stopped at 24:30ish, so I didn’t really know my swim time. Knowing it now, I am perfectly content with that swim. Yes I could have swam quite a bit faster, but it wouldn't have been worth the additional effort.
T1:
T1 is very very long (took me 4:31). First there was an extended run from the water to get to T1. Then I ran all the way through transition to get to my bike. Then after I got my bike I had to run up a winding uphill path to get out of transition. I got stuck behind an older woman that was walking up and could not get around her. My focus was on the run, so I wasn’t too worried about losing a few seconds in T1. I have no real idea, but I think T1 was about a quarter mile long in total.
The Bike:
Looking at the profile of the bike I was very intimidated. It looked like I’d be climbing mountains for the first 5 miles. But having ridden the morning before, I was feeling much better about things. My plan had been to ride really easy in the early goings and then build it up. I’m pretty sure I came very close to that goal.
I held close to 240 for the opening 5 miles or so, 230 watts was just too low given the nature of the climbing. I was keeping a high cadence up the hill, so I wasn't really all that worried. I was not winded and my legs felt really good. The next 5 miles or so were pretty fast with some smaller climbs. I held wattage close to the same.
From there the ride was uneventful. The course was almost entirely long gradual inclines vs. really steep climbs. And while I am slower on those kinds of climbs, they don’t crush my legs as much. Overall, based on what the Garmin was showing me, I was very happy with my ride. There was one 5 mile section where my power was low as it was an extremely fast section. And there were a couple other sections that I pushed and was in the 250-260w range. The very last 5 mile section was a litte rough and all uphill. By then I was a bit tired, but not struggling to hold wattage at all.
I took in my 2 24oz bottles of Gatorade mixture. I had added a salt stick to the mix. Unfortunately my little box of salt sticks fell out of my pocket early in the ride. I wasn’t too concerned as I’d only intended to take a couple anyway.
About mid-way through the ride I heard my brakes rubbing. I didn't think much of it at the time, but the bike did feel a bit sluggish. I adjusted the brakes while riding, but it didn’t help. I actually got off my bike to see what the problem was, found nothing. After finding nothing there wasn't anything I could do...so I just kept riding. (more on that subject later).
I finished the ride strong, and got into T2 with a time of 2:47. I was shocked at how slow my time was given the wattage I rode. But I felt really good and wasn’t going to let that worry me. I always knew I was racing myself in Vegas, and if my target wattage was only worth a 2:47 then so be it.
After the race I learned that some electricians tape holding my wheel cover onto the wheel had literally melted, fallen off and gotten lodged between my rear fork and wheel. I didn’t see it, but that was the cause of the rubbing noise I heard and probably why the bike felt sluggish. It also *might* be responsible for why by bike time was way slower than the watts I put out. There was very light wind, and given previous results and wattages I was expecting my wattage to get me home in about 2:40ish. So 2:47 does seem kind of odd. Unfortunately I have no real way to know what the tape cost me, if anything.
As another note, during a lot of the uphill sections I sat up off the aero bars. The reasons were simple…deep breathing and legs. I have cramped in other ½’s this year and wasn’t sure if my bike fit was partly to blame. I spent more time sitting up in this race than most if not all other races I’ve done this year. Mostly to make sure I did some good breathing on the hills and to change bike positions. I rarely stood on the pedals, but did a few times to stretch my legs.
I also had my HR monitor on and would occasionally check it on the bike ride. I have not seen the files yet but am pretty sure I was around 140 for most of the ride.
T2:
Came into T2 and felt pretty good. Changed and got going. Nothing eventful.
Run:
First off, the run course was much harder than I anticipated. The run basically consisted of a 1 mile downhill run, a 2 mile uphill run, 2 mile downhill run, repeat twice more, and then finish with about a 1 mile downhill run to the finish. We’re not talking about mountains or anything, but the climbing was a bit steeper than I anticipated. And it was almost all on blacktop…so it was like a furnace. I believe it was in the low 80's for the race start and in the mid 90's by the time I started running. But the blacktop really radiated the heat and it was sweltering.
I came out of T2 feeling pretty good. My fuel belt had leaked everywhere, so it didn’t have much in the way of fluids in it. But it had enough for me to hammer back about 5 oz of Gatorade and a salt stick. I took the salt stick because my quads were giving me that cramping feeling. You know the one…not muscle soreness, but the “if you make a wrong move I will go full-on cramp and screw you” feeling. I had that for the first 3.5 miles at which point I was nearing the end of the first 2 mile climb. At that point mentally I was still in good shape and felt good. I was also hoping that like in previous races the cramping feeling would go away.
But at mile 3.5 the leg cramps stopped me dead. It was both legs, quads and hamstrings. I think I was stopped for at least 2 minutes, not sure. I couldn’t move without something cramping. I literally had to stand there frozen still trying to keep both muscles somewhat stretched until they relaxed. Finally I was able to walk it off a little bit. And after that I was able to start a jog. I do not believe I stopped again except for aid stations until I started the 2nd climb. I was still hoping the cramps would go away like my other races. That was not to be. Every single step of the run I was on the edge of complete cramping. No joke, every single step, especially my right quad.
I muddled forward like that until about mile 7.5 and was generally making good progress. I certainly wasn’t running fast, but mostly running with some walking in there at aid stations and if the cramping threatened again. Again, overall I felt fine. I wanted to run and was getting pretty frustrated. In fact that first downhill I was making some decent progress and feeling pretty good about things. After my bike time I knew I wasn't going to hit any time goals, so I really just wanted to finish strong and feeling good.
At mile 7.5 just as I started the second 2 mile downhill section, I was actually feeling pretty good about things. I really thought that for the next 2 miles I’d be able to run down the hill, hit the aid stations, and generally feel pretty decent with only one climb remaining. My first stretch downhill was pretty good. And honestly, despite my slow times I really felt like I could be happy with my race if I was able to just run through the remainder despite some slower times.
As I was getting some momentum down the hill and running fairly decently, the worst side-stitch of my life hit really hard and really fast. I tried pulling a Macca and digging my fingers into it, massaging it, deeper breathing...nothing helped. It got to the point of being so bad I struggled to breath and was groaning/grunting with each step.
I was pissed. I’ll have to look at the files, but other than the initial cramping and aid stations I don’t think I really stopped to walk until this point. My running was slow, but it was still running. I was also pissed off because I didn't feel bad. I remember specifically thinking that to myself too...that if it weren't for these leg cramps I'd be doing a whole lot better because I feel pretty good and pretty strong right now. That was incredibly frustrating.
The side stitch stayed with me down the entire hill. I tried some walk/run, but it was pretty bad and stayed with me. At this point I get a little blury as there was way more walking and a lot of cursing and frustration. I seem to remember the side stitch finally subsiding as I started up the hill for the last time (great timing). It didn’t go away, but became bearable. I did some jogging up the hill as best I could, but not being able to run down the hill like I wanted demoralized me pretty badly.
About halfway up the final climb with about 2 mile left to race I saw Aimee and my parents. I stopped to say hi and gave Aimee a kiss. Told them about the cramping and moved on. At that point I just wanted to make it enjoyable and was doing a run/walk based on how I felt. Based on the amounts I was drinking at each aid station, I doubted hydration would be an issue when I finished, but to make sure I started drinking more at each aid station. I wasn’t about to end up in medical.
I finished the run with a 2:10 and a lot of questions about this cramping. Is it really nutrition related? Is it bike fit related? It is always the same muscles that cramp, my quad (vastus medialis) Often referred to as the teardrop. (Although the Sartorius is right in that area too).
Plus my hamstring. However I don’t know that my hamstring would cramp if I didn’t have to deal with my quad. Typically my hamstring only cramps when I try to stretch my quad…not on its own.
Post race thoughts:
First I loved the race and the course. The whole area was beautiful and the race was very well run and a lot of fun. Despite my troubles I am really happy I went and would like to go back, next year if possible.
I got to see the zip by while on the bike. Wow!! Granted I was climbing a long steady climb as they were screaming down it with their hair on fire, but those guys were hammering HARD. It was pretty cool to see. It was like a freight train going by.
Monday my legs were still cramping with certain movements, mostly my hamstrings. The side-stitch was also sore to the touch. That’s a new one for me, side-stitch so bad it hurts the next day. My quads still hurt. Not just sore, they hurt. My hamstrings are touchy and hurt to massage.
Had the cramping not occurred my race would have been a lot different. I know for a fact that I am not pacing poorly. In Kansas it was pacing, but at Racine my power was fine, and in Vegas my pacing was fine. I've gone equally hard in training, if not harder and gotten off that bike and run a HELL of a lot harder with no cramping of any kind. Something is causing this. Something doesn’t make sense. I need to find out what that something is.
There really are only a few options.
It can't be my run fitness or pace because I'm getting these cramps too early. In most cases I feel the cramping before I'm done with mile 1 and every time they have hit running paces that I routinely do in training.
So first in my mind is my bike fit. It is vastly different from 2 years back when I never, ever cramped in a race. Waaaay more aggressive. I'm so much lower today that while on my base bars now, I am lower than I was on my aero bars back then. I should probably get my fit looked at again. Perhaps I am too far forward/backward on my bike and am putting too much pressure on the front of my quads. Perhaps the fit is just too aggressive. I’m really not sure.
Nutrition is a possibility. 2 years back I did ½ irons with 400-600 calories of Heed, almost no salt and just water. Never once cramped. That includes a rather hot Racine race. Maybe I need to get a salt study done. (Prior to this year I have never cramped in a race other than IMWI which I knew I was not in proper run shape for).
I should also point this out: Despite all the fluids I took in the night before the race (at least 80-100oz of Gatorade, plus water and other stuff.) (I had to pee 4 times during the night) I also took in 70oz race morning, 90-100oz on the bike, and the 2-3 cups of fluids I took in at every aid station (5oz x12 = 60oz while running)…I still only went to the bathroom one time during the race, and it was midway through the run, and it was not very much. I got off the bike feeling rather thirsty as well.
To top it off, I did not go to the bathroom again until much later that night. Having said that, I felt perfectly fine after the race, helped pack up my stuff and walked 15 minutes to the car almost immediately. (in the burning hot sun)
I’m not really sure what else that leaves for consistent quad/hamstring cramping. It will be the subject of many discussions this off season.
As for what’s next, I have not decided, nor do I have any goals set for next season. I’d like a few weeks to be unstructured, although I may do a couple races for fun. Jhawk, or a half marathon are possibilities. I’m not sure at this point.
I am considering the possibility of doing a training half Iron at really challenging paces in an effort to replicate the cramping in training. A really hard non-stop swim followed by a challenging ride at 250+ watts, followed by a run. Not a half marathon, but a hard 4-5 miles to see if I cramp. In every race so far I’ve been ready to cramp at mile 1, so I should know pretty quickly.
Anyone with ideas or crazy suggestions let me know. At this point I am open to suggestions.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
IM 70.3 Vegas - World Championships
So on Sunday September 9th I will be competing in Vegas. It will be my first opportunity to compete in a race of this calibur.
The word for this race is: "Deliver". It will be written on my forearms. I'd write it on my forehead if I could read that. From a preparation perspective, I am dialed in. My fitness across the board is as strong as it was in Kansas if not a little better. I am not injured in any ways that matter. My training has been strong. Mentally I am ready to go. But I have not been terribly successful at this race all year, and its time to rectify that. It's time to deliver.
My plan to deliver in Vegas is pretty simple.
Drink way more.
Eat more.
Instead of hammering the bike early on - build into it slowly.
Instead of starting out at a hard run pace early, build into it.
Over the last several weeks during my longer training days, I've really focused on trying a few different things to see how they affect my body. In particular, my nutrition plan has been a point of emphasis. In both Kansas and Racine I really took a beating in the run. As I look back at both races I came to the conclusion that nutrition and hydration were my biggest enemies. Especially in Racine. In Kansas I paced stupidly, but my fluids and salt were also way off. In Racine I did everything I planned to do, it just was not enough.
Vegas promises to be very hot, very hilly, and possibly windy. From what I have heard, it is one of the most challenging 70.3 races in the world. There are others more difficult, but not many and not by all that much. Races like that demand good decision making, and I'd like to think I've learned my hard lessons this season. So here are the details of my plan:
First, I need to really focus on hydration and sodium the day before the race. I have not taken in nearly enough in races past. I also need to take 2-4 saltsticks to load up. I used to do that, but got away from it for some reason. I'm also going to change my dinner to something more bland like chicken and rice. We are staying in a nice condo, so we will do some shopping and I can cook my own stuff. In all my races this year I've gotten up with really bad heartburn which has really hindered my ability to eat/drink on race morning. I'd rather wake up starving and ready to eat than feeling bloated and nasty with heartburn unable to take in the fluids and calories that I need for the race.
Second, early on race morning I need to drink way more than I have been. My best races have been when I need to pee during the race. In Kansas I did not go once. In Racine I only went once and it was very small. My plan is to have roughly 60-80oz of fluid between waking up and racing (3 hours). It will all have electrolytes. In Racine I had maybe 30oz and for a hot race, that's not enough. Having to pee in the water or on the bike is way better than stumbling across the finish line and going to medical. I also plan to stop using ensure shakes and go back to a small bowl of cereal, banana, and liquid calories/sodium instead. I've been burping up the ensure and don't like it.
Swim: I am going to swim like I did in Racine. I sincerely doubt I'll be coming out of the water in the lead, but honestly I don't want to. There should be several swimmers around my speed, and I would love nothing more than to draft the entire time and save my energy. Saving/conserving energy is a primary concern.
Bike: I am going to build into the ride. Looking at the elevation map, the first 5 miles are climbing, and I plan to take those miles very easy so I can catch my breath and get situated on the bike. I suspect a lot of guys are like I was in Kansas and come charging out of the gates. I would rather hold 230w and be feeling good. The next 5-6 miles are all downhill and should be rather fast. Holding power up will be difficult and I don't plan to worry about it.
For me, mile 12ish is where the race really begins. At that point I would like to build into 240-250w and see how that feels. If that feels really good after 10-15 miles I may bump it up...but I doubt it. The weather looks to be near 100 degrees, and I'll need to back off a bit to handle that kind of heat.
As I've never seen the course I really have no idea what to expect. Looking at some people that did Kansas and did Vegas, I should be adding about 5min to my bike time. And since I went too hard on the bike in Kansas, I will likely come in around a 2:37-2:40.
I have little doubt the uber-bikers will crush that, so I'll have to be prepared for guys to rip past me on the bike.
Bike Nutrition: The plan here is pretty simple and can be summed up in one word. "More". In Racine I put back about 75oz, and that wasn't enough. In Vegas where it will be equally hot I need to put back about 100oz. I also need to do it smarter. I typically drink every 15min or so during a race. At Kansas and Racine I waited to start doing that until the first 15min elapsed. I need to start my changes right there and start drinking the moment I am on the bike and then drink every 15min.
My normal bottles of calories are a 450 calorie concoction. I plan to continue with that and take in a little more water each time I drink (every 15min). I'll be on the bike longer than I was in Racine, so I need to be prepared for that and take in plenty of liquids. At this point risking a little stomach upset is worth the risk. I can run through discomfort, I have not been able to run through dehydration.
Run: The run is where it is at. And here is where I usually run into problems. The vegas course is a little unique in that according to the elevation map, I will never be on a flat gradient. It is a 3 loop course and I will either be climbime a 1.5 mile hill of 2-3% grade, or I will be running down that hill.
The course starts me out in the middle of "the hill" running down it. So I will probably come out of the gate a little strong running a normal half marathon pace (7:20's). But I plan to really back off on the first uphill. 1.5 miles is a long way to be climbing, and I'm thinking an 8:00-8:15 pace is pretty reasonable for the first climb. But I will make that decision once I see the hill as I am not really sure what 2-3% actually looks like on the road. I've been running a lot of hills near my house, so I may be closer to an 8:00 than 8:15. It will all depend.
Overall, the plan is to take it easy on the hills which I climb 3.5 times. And to run with good form and pick it up on the downhill sections. Ideally my pace will equate to something under an 8min/mile pace. Obviously the heat will also play a large factor.
Run Nutrition: In the past I've relied on the course for fluids. I generally hate the perform crap they serve but take it anyway. I also mix it with coke over time. This time I plan to wear a race belt. I need to make sure I get in at least 4oz fluid every mile and the best way to do that is a bottle vs. a cup. I can measure everything and also make sure adequate electrolytes are included. Plus it will eliminate gulping all the air that comes with drinking and walking/running. I'll have 24oz of fluid with me, and that should take me through the first 8 miles. From there I will have to deal with the course as best I can.
The way I figure it, if I have enough fluids in me at mile 8, I can most likely finish the race on minimal fluids and not be a complete wreck. As always, I will have to adapt as the day comes.
I'm not really worried about my time or splits. Ideally I'd like to PR and come in under a 4:53. From a fitness perspective I should be able to. Its all about execution.
The word for this race is: "Deliver". It will be written on my forearms. I'd write it on my forehead if I could read that. From a preparation perspective, I am dialed in. My fitness across the board is as strong as it was in Kansas if not a little better. I am not injured in any ways that matter. My training has been strong. Mentally I am ready to go. But I have not been terribly successful at this race all year, and its time to rectify that. It's time to deliver.
My plan to deliver in Vegas is pretty simple.
Drink way more.
Eat more.
Instead of hammering the bike early on - build into it slowly.
Instead of starting out at a hard run pace early, build into it.
Over the last several weeks during my longer training days, I've really focused on trying a few different things to see how they affect my body. In particular, my nutrition plan has been a point of emphasis. In both Kansas and Racine I really took a beating in the run. As I look back at both races I came to the conclusion that nutrition and hydration were my biggest enemies. Especially in Racine. In Kansas I paced stupidly, but my fluids and salt were also way off. In Racine I did everything I planned to do, it just was not enough.
Vegas promises to be very hot, very hilly, and possibly windy. From what I have heard, it is one of the most challenging 70.3 races in the world. There are others more difficult, but not many and not by all that much. Races like that demand good decision making, and I'd like to think I've learned my hard lessons this season. So here are the details of my plan:
First, I need to really focus on hydration and sodium the day before the race. I have not taken in nearly enough in races past. I also need to take 2-4 saltsticks to load up. I used to do that, but got away from it for some reason. I'm also going to change my dinner to something more bland like chicken and rice. We are staying in a nice condo, so we will do some shopping and I can cook my own stuff. In all my races this year I've gotten up with really bad heartburn which has really hindered my ability to eat/drink on race morning. I'd rather wake up starving and ready to eat than feeling bloated and nasty with heartburn unable to take in the fluids and calories that I need for the race.
Second, early on race morning I need to drink way more than I have been. My best races have been when I need to pee during the race. In Kansas I did not go once. In Racine I only went once and it was very small. My plan is to have roughly 60-80oz of fluid between waking up and racing (3 hours). It will all have electrolytes. In Racine I had maybe 30oz and for a hot race, that's not enough. Having to pee in the water or on the bike is way better than stumbling across the finish line and going to medical. I also plan to stop using ensure shakes and go back to a small bowl of cereal, banana, and liquid calories/sodium instead. I've been burping up the ensure and don't like it.
Swim: I am going to swim like I did in Racine. I sincerely doubt I'll be coming out of the water in the lead, but honestly I don't want to. There should be several swimmers around my speed, and I would love nothing more than to draft the entire time and save my energy. Saving/conserving energy is a primary concern.
Bike: I am going to build into the ride. Looking at the elevation map, the first 5 miles are climbing, and I plan to take those miles very easy so I can catch my breath and get situated on the bike. I suspect a lot of guys are like I was in Kansas and come charging out of the gates. I would rather hold 230w and be feeling good. The next 5-6 miles are all downhill and should be rather fast. Holding power up will be difficult and I don't plan to worry about it.
For me, mile 12ish is where the race really begins. At that point I would like to build into 240-250w and see how that feels. If that feels really good after 10-15 miles I may bump it up...but I doubt it. The weather looks to be near 100 degrees, and I'll need to back off a bit to handle that kind of heat.
As I've never seen the course I really have no idea what to expect. Looking at some people that did Kansas and did Vegas, I should be adding about 5min to my bike time. And since I went too hard on the bike in Kansas, I will likely come in around a 2:37-2:40.
I have little doubt the uber-bikers will crush that, so I'll have to be prepared for guys to rip past me on the bike.
Bike Nutrition: The plan here is pretty simple and can be summed up in one word. "More". In Racine I put back about 75oz, and that wasn't enough. In Vegas where it will be equally hot I need to put back about 100oz. I also need to do it smarter. I typically drink every 15min or so during a race. At Kansas and Racine I waited to start doing that until the first 15min elapsed. I need to start my changes right there and start drinking the moment I am on the bike and then drink every 15min.
My normal bottles of calories are a 450 calorie concoction. I plan to continue with that and take in a little more water each time I drink (every 15min). I'll be on the bike longer than I was in Racine, so I need to be prepared for that and take in plenty of liquids. At this point risking a little stomach upset is worth the risk. I can run through discomfort, I have not been able to run through dehydration.
Run: The run is where it is at. And here is where I usually run into problems. The vegas course is a little unique in that according to the elevation map, I will never be on a flat gradient. It is a 3 loop course and I will either be climbime a 1.5 mile hill of 2-3% grade, or I will be running down that hill.
The course starts me out in the middle of "the hill" running down it. So I will probably come out of the gate a little strong running a normal half marathon pace (7:20's). But I plan to really back off on the first uphill. 1.5 miles is a long way to be climbing, and I'm thinking an 8:00-8:15 pace is pretty reasonable for the first climb. But I will make that decision once I see the hill as I am not really sure what 2-3% actually looks like on the road. I've been running a lot of hills near my house, so I may be closer to an 8:00 than 8:15. It will all depend.
Overall, the plan is to take it easy on the hills which I climb 3.5 times. And to run with good form and pick it up on the downhill sections. Ideally my pace will equate to something under an 8min/mile pace. Obviously the heat will also play a large factor.
Run Nutrition: In the past I've relied on the course for fluids. I generally hate the perform crap they serve but take it anyway. I also mix it with coke over time. This time I plan to wear a race belt. I need to make sure I get in at least 4oz fluid every mile and the best way to do that is a bottle vs. a cup. I can measure everything and also make sure adequate electrolytes are included. Plus it will eliminate gulping all the air that comes with drinking and walking/running. I'll have 24oz of fluid with me, and that should take me through the first 8 miles. From there I will have to deal with the course as best I can.
The way I figure it, if I have enough fluids in me at mile 8, I can most likely finish the race on minimal fluids and not be a complete wreck. As always, I will have to adapt as the day comes.
I'm not really worried about my time or splits. Ideally I'd like to PR and come in under a 4:53. From a fitness perspective I should be able to. Its all about execution.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Oshkosh Race Report
So a couple weeks back I did a fun little race in Oshkosh. It was an Olympic distance race…sort of. The swim was ¾ or a mile as opposed to .9 miles. The bike was 32 miles instead of 24.8. But the run was still a 10k.
The lead up to this race was a bit interesting, so I’ll talk about that first as it impacted my race in a pretty significant manner.
Friday was a swim/long run day. Nothing really special about it except the run felt pretty poorly. After about 30min of running I started to feel alright and finished the 75 minutes without any problem. What I didn’t really think about after the run was hydrating for my big workout Saturday morning.
Saturday consisted of a 75 minute harder swim, 2 hours on the bike, and a 40 minute run. As usual I following my typical nutrition/hydration plan. Once again it was pretty hot outside, and during the ride I noticed I was dripping sweat everywhere…which is a little odd for me. It’s not that I don’t sweat, but this day I was really sweating. In any case, the ride did not feel that great despite being just a zone 2 ride. I got off for my 40 minute run and felt really bad. I cut the run about 20 minutes short and went into the Y to shower up and get ready. I felt bad enough where I decided to weigh myself…and I was 8 pounds lighter than what I should have been. I was dehydrated to say the least.
At that point I realized Oshkosh was not going to be a great day for me as there is no way to rehydrate that much in an afternoon.
Race Day
Got up and had my normal race nutrition…couple ensure shakes plus a couple other things. Made sure I also took in a bunch of fluids and electrolytes. Got to the venue and noticed right away that it was really windy and the lake was whipped up pretty good. Got my whole transition area set up, chatted with a few people, did some warm up and got ready to race.
Swim:
I was in the first wave, which was really nice. But in a sense I was a little nervous. I did not know the course and also knew there was a chance that I’d be leading the race. I was in wave 1, and being a good swimmer could put me up front. I wasn’t sure if there was a lead car or anything to help with navigation. I had looked over the map…but that’s only mildly useful.
Anyway, the horn goes off to start the first wave and off we go. My basic plan was to hit the swim at a pretty reasonable pace and go based on how I felt. But that plan was destroyed very early on as a rather large guy immediately to my right hit me upside my head to start the swim.
Now open water swimming can be a bit rough. And despite some pretty big talk on my part about gleefully hammering through crowds of newbies and being rough and all that, I really do try to be nice in the water. There isn’t any need to be mean, especially with new people.
Back to the race. So the fatty to my right hits me upside the head. We’re swimming next to each other, so maybe he didn’t realize I was so close. *whap*….he hits me again, in the back of the head...again. Okay, two times is a coincidence. *WHAP*. Okay, third time is no coincidence and I’m a little more than upset at this point. Keep in mind; we’ve only had the chance to take maybe 5-6 swim strokes. The race literally just started and he's hit me 3 times in the back of the head. The head (even mine) is a fairly small target.
*WHAP* -- THAT’S IT YOU FAT B*STARD. Four times is enemy action, no doubt about it.
I was downright mad. There is no call for hitting someone in the head 4 times. And frankly if your stroke sucks so bad that you’re swinging that wide accidentally, you don’t belong in the elite wave. Certainly not at the very front of the pack on the inside line. In any case, I came up out of the water like a great white shark coming for a fat seal. Put my arm in his upper back and took him underwater. I didn't hold him down or waste any time, just made sure he knew I wasn’t going to take that crap.
About 10-15s later the oddest thing happened. He swerved HARD left, right in front of me. I literally swam over his lower back because it was so unexpected. It was so odd that I actually thought I was off course for a second and had to look up for sighting before I realized it was him and not me. I was breathing to the left and I could literally see him swim right across and in front of everyone. Seriously, it was crazy as he swam at 90 degrees to the direction he should have been going.
After that I scrapped my plans to take it easy and dropped the hammer. I wanted out of the crowd...badly. The course was a big triangle and by the first buoy I was all alone and in the lead. From that point on I could not see another person anywhere around me.
I finished up the swim in 19:05, and as I got out of the water I actually heard people gasping and saying “holy sh*t, he’s already done swimming.” Looking at the final results, there was one person in another wave that beat me by 7 seconds. Except for him, the next fastest time was about 2 full minutes slower than us. So that's why people were talking about it...I was that far out in front of the elite wave.
The Bike:
I got on the bike and found out that there was a lead car. Keep in mind, this was a new experience for me. I’ve never led out a race before. As I was riding I very quickly noticed my legs were dead. Instead of holding 280w or so, I was averaging way less…embarrassingly so – 240w. I held onto the lead for almost the entire ride. But at mile 27/28 one biker passed me. I didn’t know it at the time but he was on a relay. The course was really nice and it was a pretty fun ride despite my case of dead legs. In hindsight its pretty obvious this was caused by dehydration.
I came into T2 and immediately saw the guy who passed me standing around and taking pictures. That’s when I knew it was a relay. So for the moment, I was actually in the lead. Hit the run and quickly realized I had forgotten my Garmin on the bike. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. I am tied to that thing, there is a biological connection between me and my Garmin. I rely on it for pacing and comfort. But I was already too far to go back and get it. Fortunately I had a stopwatch on my other wrist…so I used that for pacing at the mile markers. I really had no idea where others were on the course however.
The run:
So I started off, and kind of thought I was running pretty slow. I just focused on keeping my stride short and fast. I was fully merged with the sprint race at this point, so I had no idea of who was who. I just kept on running. At mile one I saw my split and was actually happy as it was close to a 7:05. Considering how I felt, I thought that was pretty good. I was still in the lead.
Mile two was roughly the same at 7:05ish. Still in the lead. At that point I was on an out and back section of the course for the Olympic distance only. I could see the relay runner a ways in front of me. A biker came by and told me I was in the lead, which I knew. At mile 3 there was a turnaround…and the mile marker must have been off, because my split was like a 7:40, and I did not slow down that much. But it was here where I got my first look at the guy right behind me. And he was gaining pretty quick.
As I saw him, I knew my time in the lead was coming to a rapid close. I picked up my pace as best I could, but he was running considerably faster than me and after about half a mile he passed me. We talked for a moment and I told him to enjoy the lead as the guy in front was a relay. He then picked it up with no problem. I stayed with him until about mile 4, but if you look at his splits, his 10k time was faster than mine by about 5 minutes. So he was a full minute per mile faster than me on the run. Not much I can do about that unless my plan is to finish the race in a ditch gasping for air.
My 4th mile was a lot faster, 6:10 or so. But I am pretty sure that was a function of the mile markers since the previous mile was a 7:40. Put the two together it is just under a 7min/mile pace. The next two miles I merged with the sprinters again and had no idea who was who…but one person went ripping passed me REALLY REALLY FAST. I didn’t even catch his bib number he went by so quickly in the crowd. It turns out that he was from a later wave and was the overall winner of the race. He ended up running almost 10min faster than me. I'm not sure I could run a 5k at his 10k pace.
I finished up and took 3rd overall and 1st in my age group. I was a little lucky as one guy from my wave finished 4 seconds behind me and I had no idea he was there due to all the sprinters.
Overall, I was happy with the result, but not so happy with my performance. But hydration is a big part of race preparation and I screwed it up. So there isn’t anyone to blame but myself.
The next race on the schedule is Vegas. Training has been going well. I had to spend a week in Texas for work. I had no pool or bike, so I put in about 50 miles of running that week. For those that don't know, that's a lot of miles when you're used to running 30-35 miles per week. But overall it was a good experience. My legs the following week were very very tired and needed an extra day off. But imaginary or not, I feel like a stronger runner for having done it.
I'll post my thoughts and plans on Vegas in a few days.
The lead up to this race was a bit interesting, so I’ll talk about that first as it impacted my race in a pretty significant manner.
Friday was a swim/long run day. Nothing really special about it except the run felt pretty poorly. After about 30min of running I started to feel alright and finished the 75 minutes without any problem. What I didn’t really think about after the run was hydrating for my big workout Saturday morning.
Saturday consisted of a 75 minute harder swim, 2 hours on the bike, and a 40 minute run. As usual I following my typical nutrition/hydration plan. Once again it was pretty hot outside, and during the ride I noticed I was dripping sweat everywhere…which is a little odd for me. It’s not that I don’t sweat, but this day I was really sweating. In any case, the ride did not feel that great despite being just a zone 2 ride. I got off for my 40 minute run and felt really bad. I cut the run about 20 minutes short and went into the Y to shower up and get ready. I felt bad enough where I decided to weigh myself…and I was 8 pounds lighter than what I should have been. I was dehydrated to say the least.
At that point I realized Oshkosh was not going to be a great day for me as there is no way to rehydrate that much in an afternoon.
Race Day
Got up and had my normal race nutrition…couple ensure shakes plus a couple other things. Made sure I also took in a bunch of fluids and electrolytes. Got to the venue and noticed right away that it was really windy and the lake was whipped up pretty good. Got my whole transition area set up, chatted with a few people, did some warm up and got ready to race.
Swim:
I was in the first wave, which was really nice. But in a sense I was a little nervous. I did not know the course and also knew there was a chance that I’d be leading the race. I was in wave 1, and being a good swimmer could put me up front. I wasn’t sure if there was a lead car or anything to help with navigation. I had looked over the map…but that’s only mildly useful.
Anyway, the horn goes off to start the first wave and off we go. My basic plan was to hit the swim at a pretty reasonable pace and go based on how I felt. But that plan was destroyed very early on as a rather large guy immediately to my right hit me upside my head to start the swim.
Now open water swimming can be a bit rough. And despite some pretty big talk on my part about gleefully hammering through crowds of newbies and being rough and all that, I really do try to be nice in the water. There isn’t any need to be mean, especially with new people.
Back to the race. So the fatty to my right hits me upside the head. We’re swimming next to each other, so maybe he didn’t realize I was so close. *whap*….he hits me again, in the back of the head...again. Okay, two times is a coincidence. *WHAP*. Okay, third time is no coincidence and I’m a little more than upset at this point. Keep in mind; we’ve only had the chance to take maybe 5-6 swim strokes. The race literally just started and he's hit me 3 times in the back of the head. The head (even mine) is a fairly small target.
*WHAP* -- THAT’S IT YOU FAT B*STARD. Four times is enemy action, no doubt about it.
I was downright mad. There is no call for hitting someone in the head 4 times. And frankly if your stroke sucks so bad that you’re swinging that wide accidentally, you don’t belong in the elite wave. Certainly not at the very front of the pack on the inside line. In any case, I came up out of the water like a great white shark coming for a fat seal. Put my arm in his upper back and took him underwater. I didn't hold him down or waste any time, just made sure he knew I wasn’t going to take that crap.
About 10-15s later the oddest thing happened. He swerved HARD left, right in front of me. I literally swam over his lower back because it was so unexpected. It was so odd that I actually thought I was off course for a second and had to look up for sighting before I realized it was him and not me. I was breathing to the left and I could literally see him swim right across and in front of everyone. Seriously, it was crazy as he swam at 90 degrees to the direction he should have been going.
After that I scrapped my plans to take it easy and dropped the hammer. I wanted out of the crowd...badly. The course was a big triangle and by the first buoy I was all alone and in the lead. From that point on I could not see another person anywhere around me.
I finished up the swim in 19:05, and as I got out of the water I actually heard people gasping and saying “holy sh*t, he’s already done swimming.” Looking at the final results, there was one person in another wave that beat me by 7 seconds. Except for him, the next fastest time was about 2 full minutes slower than us. So that's why people were talking about it...I was that far out in front of the elite wave.
The Bike:
I got on the bike and found out that there was a lead car. Keep in mind, this was a new experience for me. I’ve never led out a race before. As I was riding I very quickly noticed my legs were dead. Instead of holding 280w or so, I was averaging way less…embarrassingly so – 240w. I held onto the lead for almost the entire ride. But at mile 27/28 one biker passed me. I didn’t know it at the time but he was on a relay. The course was really nice and it was a pretty fun ride despite my case of dead legs. In hindsight its pretty obvious this was caused by dehydration.
I came into T2 and immediately saw the guy who passed me standing around and taking pictures. That’s when I knew it was a relay. So for the moment, I was actually in the lead. Hit the run and quickly realized I had forgotten my Garmin on the bike. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. I am tied to that thing, there is a biological connection between me and my Garmin. I rely on it for pacing and comfort. But I was already too far to go back and get it. Fortunately I had a stopwatch on my other wrist…so I used that for pacing at the mile markers. I really had no idea where others were on the course however.
The run:
So I started off, and kind of thought I was running pretty slow. I just focused on keeping my stride short and fast. I was fully merged with the sprint race at this point, so I had no idea of who was who. I just kept on running. At mile one I saw my split and was actually happy as it was close to a 7:05. Considering how I felt, I thought that was pretty good. I was still in the lead.
Mile two was roughly the same at 7:05ish. Still in the lead. At that point I was on an out and back section of the course for the Olympic distance only. I could see the relay runner a ways in front of me. A biker came by and told me I was in the lead, which I knew. At mile 3 there was a turnaround…and the mile marker must have been off, because my split was like a 7:40, and I did not slow down that much. But it was here where I got my first look at the guy right behind me. And he was gaining pretty quick.
As I saw him, I knew my time in the lead was coming to a rapid close. I picked up my pace as best I could, but he was running considerably faster than me and after about half a mile he passed me. We talked for a moment and I told him to enjoy the lead as the guy in front was a relay. He then picked it up with no problem. I stayed with him until about mile 4, but if you look at his splits, his 10k time was faster than mine by about 5 minutes. So he was a full minute per mile faster than me on the run. Not much I can do about that unless my plan is to finish the race in a ditch gasping for air.
My 4th mile was a lot faster, 6:10 or so. But I am pretty sure that was a function of the mile markers since the previous mile was a 7:40. Put the two together it is just under a 7min/mile pace. The next two miles I merged with the sprinters again and had no idea who was who…but one person went ripping passed me REALLY REALLY FAST. I didn’t even catch his bib number he went by so quickly in the crowd. It turns out that he was from a later wave and was the overall winner of the race. He ended up running almost 10min faster than me. I'm not sure I could run a 5k at his 10k pace.
I finished up and took 3rd overall and 1st in my age group. I was a little lucky as one guy from my wave finished 4 seconds behind me and I had no idea he was there due to all the sprinters.
Overall, I was happy with the result, but not so happy with my performance. But hydration is a big part of race preparation and I screwed it up. So there isn’t anyone to blame but myself.
The next race on the schedule is Vegas. Training has been going well. I had to spend a week in Texas for work. I had no pool or bike, so I put in about 50 miles of running that week. For those that don't know, that's a lot of miles when you're used to running 30-35 miles per week. But overall it was a good experience. My legs the following week were very very tired and needed an extra day off. But imaginary or not, I feel like a stronger runner for having done it.
I'll post my thoughts and plans on Vegas in a few days.
Monday, July 16, 2012
Racine 70.3 - Top Gun
As I was thinking about this race, I realized taht everything that happened could be captured within the movie Top Gun. So in an effort to keep myself sane, I am going to dedicate this race report to Top Gun.
For those that need a reminder, here is the opening scene.
Overall, here is a high level summary of my race:
That about sums it up.
So the plan for Racine was easy. Take the swim out fairly hard, but not crushing. Relax on the bike and hold around 250w. Maybe lower if the day called for it. And then the run...
My race preparation was pretty simple. The day before I started hydrating with Gatorade and water. I did not take any salt-sticks as I was taking in more than enough electrolytes with the Gatorade perform.
Overall I was feeling a little lethargic about the race. I don’t know exactly what the problem was. I’d had some good workouts leading into the race and two years ago really enjoyed the race overall. I suspect that recently I’ve just put too much pressure on myself to perform at a certain level. And in doing so am setting myself up for failure. Quite frankly I suspect the level I expect is a level I am not capable of...yet.
Anyway, the day of the race came and I got up pretty early to get prepped. Roughly 4am. I had a small bowl of cereal, two ensure shakes, and some digestive enzymes to settle everything down. Overall I was feeling good and had taken in about 800 calories. I topped it off with a bottle of Gatorade, carbo pro, and gu of about 400 calories. So pre-race I took in 1200 calories and 900mg sodium in preparation for the hot day.
The Swim:
We had a long wait for the start of my wave as I was in the dead last age-group. In any case, the race start came and I put myself into the front of the pack this time. The horn sounded and we had a fairly lengthy run in shallow water before swimming. A couple guys ran out REALLY fast, but within about 10s of swimming I went right past them. By the time we hit the first bouy I was well into the lead, or so I thought. After the first turn, some guy went ripping right past me. My first thought was to draft, but he was swerving all over the place and it was tough to stick with him. He ultimately went into the crowds of people and I lost him, but knew he was ahead of me.
Right at the final turn bouy I found him again and tried to draft with some success. Ultimately we hit the shallows together, but he was dead. I took a quick glimpse at him and literally ran right past him in the shallow water. Hit the timing mat in about a 26:30. I had the fastest swim in my age group, and was 18th overall. I beat out all but a couple age-groupers and many of the pros.
I would sum up the swim like this...
I'd also like to add a little shout out to Jeremy Angle who had a great race and a great swim. But as far as the swim goes I'm Maverick. (For some reason the remaining videos can't be embedded)
Look at the birdie!
Remember Jeremy...If I didn't like you I wouldn't poke fun. You may have beaten me on the day, but I was leading out of the water and off the bike!!!
I'm coming for you!
That's right, Ice Man...
T1:
Much longer of a run than I remembered. My T1 time was over 4 minutes…which was slow. But as usual I got my socks on. I also had some trouble with my bike shoes and helmet. A roll of electrical tape had fallen into my bike shoe, so I had to take it off, pull it out, and put the shoe back on. In any case I lost 15s to crap like that. I was also situated in a spot where I had a long run with my bike both coming in and leaving.
The Bike:
The plan was to hold about 250w, maybe less. Leaving T1 there is a small hill. In order to get away from the crowds I cranked up that hill. But its so short I didn’t feel like it had any real impact on me. Once I was out of the crowd I got aero and took off at my pace. Overall the first 10 miles I was right on target but noticed a little burn in my quads and some real soreness with the saddle and in my glute/hamstring.
The next ten miles were pretty similar, but overall I was questioning myself a bit. For the power I was holding, I expected to feel a lot better. And then for 5 miles after that I bumped it up 5w. Ultimately for the rest of the ride I dialed it back. I really wanted a strong run, and pushing the bike hard isn’t how to do that on a hot day.
I got off the bike in about a 2:25. Looking at the results I’m a little surprised. I know I am not an uber biker like some of the studs out there. But I was in first place getting on the bike and 11th place getting off the bike. I lost 10 spots and rode a fairly strong time. I had no idea that was the case at the time, just a little retrospective surprise.
In any case, I got off the bike and was feeling reasonably good. I wasn’t overly fatigued. I was worried about my glute, but that soreness usually goes away when I start running.
Overall getting off the bike I felt like this:
Volleyball Remix
T2:
Uneventful.
Run:
So the goal was to PR the run. A couple years back I ran a stand-alone 1:36. I’d like to think I’m faster than that today but have no real proof.
In any case once again I hit mile 1 and both quads cramped. I have no explanation for this. I was running fine at a 7:30ish type pace. Slower than the 7:15's I originally planned. Things were going well, and then wham. I stopped twice at the first aid station, once for fluids and once to stretch and massage my quads. I started running slowly after that and things seemed to be doing okay. But they held me back the rest of the day.
After that the run seemed to be going okay. My first 6.5 miles were around a 7:40ish type pace. Considering the conditions, not bad. I passed Scott around mile 2ish, but we missed each other because I was running so fast.
Around mile 7 I hit the first of the two minor hills on this course. I made the decision to walk the back half of the first hill and then walk most of the 2nd hill to save my quads. After that I started running again.
Sometime very quickly after that....
On the last leg I came across Scott and his family again. Here is what was going through my head...
Take the shot Mav!!
I think what frustrates me is that had I held back at the beginning of that run and simply held 8min miles, I really think I could have held that for the majority of the race. In doing so I would have saved 12 minutes and probably not suffered nearly as much.
Overall my race position was fine. I was 15th in my age group. Even if I had run well, I probably would not have broken he top 10. I could have gone from 104th overall to around 50th, which is a fairly big difference. But realistically not a big deal.
My problem right now is confidence. Espcially running. I've had a couple bad races now, and am not sure what to think of the situation...
You have a confidence problem.
I need to get some good races under my belt. I suspect I need to re-evaluate how fast I really am as compared to how fast I think I am. There appears to be an obvious disconnect. And I need to get ready for Vegas.
You're going to Top Gun
If I'm not careful I'll go in feeling like this:
Cougar's lost it!
For those that need a reminder, here is the opening scene.
Overall, here is a high level summary of my race:
That about sums it up.
So the plan for Racine was easy. Take the swim out fairly hard, but not crushing. Relax on the bike and hold around 250w. Maybe lower if the day called for it. And then the run...
My race preparation was pretty simple. The day before I started hydrating with Gatorade and water. I did not take any salt-sticks as I was taking in more than enough electrolytes with the Gatorade perform.
Overall I was feeling a little lethargic about the race. I don’t know exactly what the problem was. I’d had some good workouts leading into the race and two years ago really enjoyed the race overall. I suspect that recently I’ve just put too much pressure on myself to perform at a certain level. And in doing so am setting myself up for failure. Quite frankly I suspect the level I expect is a level I am not capable of...yet.
Anyway, the day of the race came and I got up pretty early to get prepped. Roughly 4am. I had a small bowl of cereal, two ensure shakes, and some digestive enzymes to settle everything down. Overall I was feeling good and had taken in about 800 calories. I topped it off with a bottle of Gatorade, carbo pro, and gu of about 400 calories. So pre-race I took in 1200 calories and 900mg sodium in preparation for the hot day.
The Swim:
We had a long wait for the start of my wave as I was in the dead last age-group. In any case, the race start came and I put myself into the front of the pack this time. The horn sounded and we had a fairly lengthy run in shallow water before swimming. A couple guys ran out REALLY fast, but within about 10s of swimming I went right past them. By the time we hit the first bouy I was well into the lead, or so I thought. After the first turn, some guy went ripping right past me. My first thought was to draft, but he was swerving all over the place and it was tough to stick with him. He ultimately went into the crowds of people and I lost him, but knew he was ahead of me.
Right at the final turn bouy I found him again and tried to draft with some success. Ultimately we hit the shallows together, but he was dead. I took a quick glimpse at him and literally ran right past him in the shallow water. Hit the timing mat in about a 26:30. I had the fastest swim in my age group, and was 18th overall. I beat out all but a couple age-groupers and many of the pros.
I would sum up the swim like this...
I'd also like to add a little shout out to Jeremy Angle who had a great race and a great swim. But as far as the swim goes I'm Maverick. (For some reason the remaining videos can't be embedded)
Look at the birdie!
Remember Jeremy...If I didn't like you I wouldn't poke fun. You may have beaten me on the day, but I was leading out of the water and off the bike!!!
I'm coming for you!
That's right, Ice Man...
T1:
Much longer of a run than I remembered. My T1 time was over 4 minutes…which was slow. But as usual I got my socks on. I also had some trouble with my bike shoes and helmet. A roll of electrical tape had fallen into my bike shoe, so I had to take it off, pull it out, and put the shoe back on. In any case I lost 15s to crap like that. I was also situated in a spot where I had a long run with my bike both coming in and leaving.
The Bike:
The plan was to hold about 250w, maybe less. Leaving T1 there is a small hill. In order to get away from the crowds I cranked up that hill. But its so short I didn’t feel like it had any real impact on me. Once I was out of the crowd I got aero and took off at my pace. Overall the first 10 miles I was right on target but noticed a little burn in my quads and some real soreness with the saddle and in my glute/hamstring.
The next ten miles were pretty similar, but overall I was questioning myself a bit. For the power I was holding, I expected to feel a lot better. And then for 5 miles after that I bumped it up 5w. Ultimately for the rest of the ride I dialed it back. I really wanted a strong run, and pushing the bike hard isn’t how to do that on a hot day.
I got off the bike in about a 2:25. Looking at the results I’m a little surprised. I know I am not an uber biker like some of the studs out there. But I was in first place getting on the bike and 11th place getting off the bike. I lost 10 spots and rode a fairly strong time. I had no idea that was the case at the time, just a little retrospective surprise.
In any case, I got off the bike and was feeling reasonably good. I wasn’t overly fatigued. I was worried about my glute, but that soreness usually goes away when I start running.
Overall getting off the bike I felt like this:
Volleyball Remix
T2:
Uneventful.
Run:
So the goal was to PR the run. A couple years back I ran a stand-alone 1:36. I’d like to think I’m faster than that today but have no real proof.
In any case once again I hit mile 1 and both quads cramped. I have no explanation for this. I was running fine at a 7:30ish type pace. Slower than the 7:15's I originally planned. Things were going well, and then wham. I stopped twice at the first aid station, once for fluids and once to stretch and massage my quads. I started running slowly after that and things seemed to be doing okay. But they held me back the rest of the day.
After that the run seemed to be going okay. My first 6.5 miles were around a 7:40ish type pace. Considering the conditions, not bad. I passed Scott around mile 2ish, but we missed each other because I was running so fast.
Around mile 7 I hit the first of the two minor hills on this course. I made the decision to walk the back half of the first hill and then walk most of the 2nd hill to save my quads. After that I started running again.
Sometime very quickly after that....
On the last leg I came across Scott and his family again. Here is what was going through my head...
Take the shot Mav!!
I think what frustrates me is that had I held back at the beginning of that run and simply held 8min miles, I really think I could have held that for the majority of the race. In doing so I would have saved 12 minutes and probably not suffered nearly as much.
Overall my race position was fine. I was 15th in my age group. Even if I had run well, I probably would not have broken he top 10. I could have gone from 104th overall to around 50th, which is a fairly big difference. But realistically not a big deal.
My problem right now is confidence. Espcially running. I've had a couple bad races now, and am not sure what to think of the situation...
You have a confidence problem.
I need to get some good races under my belt. I suspect I need to re-evaluate how fast I really am as compared to how fast I think I am. There appears to be an obvious disconnect. And I need to get ready for Vegas.
You're going to Top Gun
If I'm not careful I'll go in feeling like this:
Cougar's lost it!
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