Woot! Awesome day! 3

Short version: The Nation's Tri (Oly) rocked.  I don't have the complete results yet (not posted), but based on watch times, I've got:

Swim: 26 minutes
Bike: 1:05
Run: 40:12

Total: 2 hours 16 minutes (+/- 30 seconds), based on original start watch.

I'm really psyched about it, and can't wait for the full results to post.  I'll write-up something more detailed once the results post.  As it stands now though, that's a 22 minute improvement over just 45 days ago.

Woot! Awesome day! 0

Short version: The Nation's Tri (Oly) rocked.  I don't have the complete results yet (not posted), but based on watch times, I've got:

Swim: 26 minutes
Bike: 1:05
Run: 40:12

Total: 2 hours 16 minutes (+/- 30 seconds), based on original start watch.

I'm really psyched about it, and can't wait for the full results to post.  I'll write-up something more detailed once the results post.  As it stands now though, that's a 22 minute improvement over just 45 days ago.

Through the washer & dryer - gel still good! 2

As I was folding clothes I found an unexpected guest - my Hammer Gel bottle (complete with gel still in it).  Apparently I had grabbed it out of my gym bag by accident when taking all of the clothes out and tossing them into the washer.

Amazingly though, the bottle was still sealed and the contents appear to be fine.  Nothing has grown yet on it, which seems like a variation of the 5 second rule.  Plus, I figure it's gotta be clean after the washer.  And it does look really clean and shiny.  It actually did a pretty good job at cleaning off some of the gel off the sides/top.  The important part of the bottle's aquatic and desert adventure is that it didn't open up.  Cause.that.would.have.sucked.

Either way, we'll find out if the contents are still good tomorrow, when I use it during my race.  I figure it's gotta be lucky if it made it through and didn't burst/break.  No reason to let perfectly good gel go to waste. :)

Through the washer & dryer - gel still good! 0

As I was folding clothes I found an unexpected guest - my Hammer Gel bottle (complete with gel still in it).  Apparently I had grabbed it out of my gym bag by accident when taking all of the clothes out and tossing them into the washer.

Amazingly though, the bottle was still sealed and the contents appear to be fine.  Nothing has grown yet on it, which seems like a variation of the 5 second rule.  Plus, I figure it's gotta be clean after the washer.  And it does look really clean and shiny.  It actually did a pretty good job at cleaning off some of the gel off the sides/top.  The important part of the bottle's aquatic and desert adventure is that it didn't open up.  Cause.that.would.have.sucked.

Either way, we'll find out if the contents are still good tomorrow, when I use it during my race.  I figure it's gotta be lucky if it made it through and didn't burst/break.  No reason to let perfectly good gel go to waste. :)

Cell phone in Ziploc is your friend on the bike 1

Perhaps this is stating the obvious.  But it took me about all summer to realize it.  If you toss your cell phone in Ziploc bag and then into your back jersey pocket, it not only keeps it from getting wet from an ancillary sweat - but also keeps it dry from the random out of the middle of nowhere rain showers.  Yes...the kind that make said cell phone look more like a sponge than a useful electronic device.  But my trusty little gadget keeps on ticking....err...buzzing.

Oh btw - ironically the plastic bag also keeps gels from getting on the cell phone keys.  Cause cleaning it off kinda sucks.  Go figure.

And in case your wondering - no, I don't use the cell phone while riding (or even touch it).  I have a policy (a me-policy) that says no matter how many times I may feel it vibrate back there, I won't answer it or even look at it.  It's there because if you're out on a long ride in the middle of nowhere and something happens to you, it can really be the only way to 'phone a friend'.

Cell phone in Ziploc is your friend on the bike 0

Perhaps this is stating the obvious.  But it took me about all summer to realize it.  If you toss your cell phone in Ziploc bag and then into your back jersey pocket, it not only keeps it from getting wet from an ancillary sweat - but also keeps it dry from the random out of the middle of nowhere rain showers.  Yes...the kind that make said cell phone look more like a sponge than a useful electronic device.  But my trusty little gadget keeps on ticking....err...buzzing.

Oh btw - ironically the plastic bag also keeps gels from getting on the cell phone keys.  Cause cleaning it off kinda sucks.  Go figure.

And in case your wondering - no, I don't use the cell phone while riding (or even touch it).  I have a policy (a me-policy) that says no matter how many times I may feel it vibrate back there, I won't answer it or even look at it.  It's there because if you're out on a long ride in the middle of nowhere and something happens to you, it can really be the only way to 'phone a friend'.

The US Government officially thinks I'm female 2

Yikes.  Situation not good.  I got a e-mail from the HR/Payroll department today that during a recent audit of payroll records against the Social Security Administration's records, there was an error found.  To be precise the error was:

Your information submitted for verification does not match SSA’s records.  Verification results:

Gender code does not match

After checking with HR - they validated that they have my marked as a male, and to take it up with SSA.  I called SSA - and navigated the MOTHER of all phone trees.  This is the phone tree nightmare that little home answering machines must aspire to be when they grow up.  It talked back to you and you talked to it - you swore at it, and it reminded you that "Because the SSA services over 150 Million Americans, there might be a slight delay in answering your call".  Cute.

After 15 minutes of navigating phone tree hell, I finally got through to a person.  This person confirmed that since birth they've thought I was a female.  Of course, they can't change it over the phone for some weird reason.  Instead I have to fill out a form, and then go to some physical office somewhere and present ID before they'll change it.

I'm wondering though - do you think at the rec center I could say "Hi, according to my government issued identification papers I'm a female, can I use the female locker room instead?".  Just thinking...this might not be all bad.

The US Government officially thinks I'm female 0

Yikes.  Situation not good.  I got a e-mail from the HR/Payroll department today that during a recent audit of payroll records against the Social Security Administration's records, there was an error found.  To be precise the error was:

Your information submitted for verification does not match SSA’s records.  Verification results:

Gender code does not match

After checking with HR - they validated that they have my marked as a male, and to take it up with SSA.  I called SSA - and navigated the MOTHER of all phone trees.  This is the phone tree nightmare that little home answering machines must aspire to be when they grow up.  It talked back to you and you talked to it - you swore at it, and it reminded you that "Because the SSA services over 150 Million Americans, there might be a slight delay in answering your call".  Cute.

After 15 minutes of navigating phone tree hell, I finally got through to a person.  This person confirmed that since birth they've thought I was a female.  Of course, they can't change it over the phone for some weird reason.  Instead I have to fill out a form, and then go to some physical office somewhere and present ID before they'll change it.

I'm wondering though - do you think at the rec center I could say "Hi, according to my government issued identification papers I'm a female, can I use the female locker room instead?".  Just thinking...this might not be all bad.

Two Thirds of an Oly Tri Tuesday 0

I had to drop a coworker at the airport (Dulles), so I took the opportunity to do tonight's ride out on the W&OD trail.  By starting out near Dulles it is much quieter and far fewer intersections.  I had only planned to do an hour long ride (I've got my last race of the season on Saturday, an Oly Tri), and then follow it with a 5.4 mile run.  But after I got out there I was feeling good and the pace was solid - so I decided to instead make it a 40K ride (~24 miles, typical Oly tri distance).

I posted my fastest ride of the season (training or race), averaging 21MPH - including stopping at 6-8 intersections for cars, etc... It was awesome.  Also did aerobars the entire time (I only got them last week).  I noticed that when I got back my front tire had slowly deflated to 45PSI, no wonder I thought it felt harder.  Doh.  I think that was caused by some gravel I hit at a construction area near the turnaround point. :(

After that I drove back to Old Town for my run with the running group.  My plan for the week was to do the Tuesday run at high intensity, and then lay off the high intensity runs for the rest of the week.  Today's run was 5.4 miles, with a few hills (total elevation gain of 170ft).  I knocked off 52 seconds off of last week's time on the same course, bringing my pace per mile for this course to 6:36.  I nearly did the mother of all flying face plants on the final mile, I didn't see a speed bump and caught my foot on it.  Close call, it would have left a mark.

I'm looking forward to Thursday's run though, where I'll be doing it at a really relaxed pace and just getting to know some of the group (it's about 20-30 people large).

Today was just a really good night overall.  I'm also really excited about this weekend's race - I'm hoping to see a solid improvement over my earlier (and only) Olympic Tri 45 days ago.

Two Thirds of an Oly Tri Tuesday 0

I had to drop a coworker at the airport (Dulles), so I took the opportunity to do tonight's ride out on the W&OD trail.  By starting out near Dulles it is much quieter and far fewer intersections.  I had only planned to do an hour long ride (I've got my last race of the season on Saturday, an Oly Tri), and then follow it with a 5.4 mile run.  But after I got out there I was feeling good and the pace was solid - so I decided to instead make it a 40K ride (~24 miles, typical Oly tri distance).

I posted my fastest ride of the season (training or race), averaging 21MPH - including stopping at 6-8 intersections for cars, etc... It was awesome.  Also did aerobars the entire time (I only got them last week).  I noticed that when I got back my front tire had slowly deflated to 45PSI, no wonder I thought it felt harder.  Doh.  I think that was caused by some gravel I hit at a construction area near the turnaround point. :(

After that I drove back to Old Town for my run with the running group.  My plan for the week was to do the Tuesday run at high intensity, and then lay off the high intensity runs for the rest of the week.  Today's run was 5.4 miles, with a few hills (total elevation gain of 170ft).  I knocked off 52 seconds off of last week's time on the same course, bringing my pace per mile for this course to 6:36.  I nearly did the mother of all flying face plants on the final mile, I didn't see a speed bump and caught my foot on it.  Close call, it would have left a mark.

I'm looking forward to Thursday's run though, where I'll be doing it at a really relaxed pace and just getting to know some of the group (it's about 20-30 people large).

Today was just a really good night overall.  I'm also really excited about this weekend's race - I'm hoping to see a solid improvement over my earlier (and only) Olympic Tri 45 days ago.

How to swim with your Garmin Forerunner GPS 23

After purchasing the Garmin Forerunner, I was determined to use it as much as possible to get the most out of my money.  On an average day I have two training runs/rides/swims, and I use the GPS for every outdoor workout I do.  One of the more challenging uses though is swimming with it when doing an open water swim.  Once configured you're all set, but getting a good configuration can be a bit tricky.  So after using it a number of times this past summer during open water swims (salt and freshwater), I can offer the following little tidbits of advice.  Keep in mind that this is based on my use of the Garmin Forerunner 305 device, but most devices will be similar.  I also take no responsibility for breakage to the device, although everything described below is within the allowed operating limits of the device.

To start with - here's what the manual says on page 53 regarding its aquatic functionality:

Water Immersion:
The Forerunner is waterproof to IEC Standard 60529 IPX7.  It can withstand immersion in 1 meter of water for 30 minutes.  Prolonged submersion can cause damage to the unit.  After submersion, be certain to wipe dry and air dry the unit before using or charging.  NOTE: This product is not intended to be used while swimming.

Let's take apart this paragraph.  You shouldn't go deeper than 3 feet.  But that shouldn't be an issue unless you've got some whacky submersion swim style (or you're drowning, in which case you should probably concentrate on rectifying that issue first).  You should ensure that if you do go longer than 30 minutes, you keep the unit dry - or that it's not actually fully submerged.  Typically the reason for most devices having time limits is that it's dependent on how long the seals can withstand the pressure of water (which is 800 times more dense than air).  The last line is there primarily because my guess is that they don't want you putting it on your arm (which would be very bad as you'd constantly be whacking it against the water).

Before we talk about placement, let's talk about protecting the device.  While I've gone swimming with the device straight in the water, I prefer to put it in a small Ziploc bag under my swim cap.  The best size of Ziploc bags are the small little 'snack' sized ones, they fit the device perfectly.  Also - it's easiest if you remove the device from the armband.  One of the best ways to do this is to buy the quick release kit, which makes it really easy to pop the device off and on (such as onto a bike as well).  Either way, I find the Ziploc bag makes me feel 'safer'

With all of that said, let's address the issue of placement of the GPS.  The best place to place the GPS is on your head.  If you place it in your pocket (assume you had a pocket), it won't get signal.  Been there, tried that.  If you place it under your wetsuit on your back - you might get signal (I haven't tried that) - but then how would you easily push the buttons or review it if you had to?

With placing it on your head, you have easy access to it for button pressing.  The key is exactly where you place it on your head.  The best place to put it is roughly where a ponytail would normally be if you had one.  If you were to put it directly on the top of your head when you put your head in the water (horizontal), the GPS would actually be lower in the water.  By placing it essentially on the back of your head, when you put your face in the water it will be pointed towards the sky.  I found some random photo on the Internet and doctored it up a bit, here's an example.  The orange square is the GPS.  Obviously the real thing is much smaller and rounder.

As you can see by the above photos, once you go horizontal, you want the device as close to the sky as possible.

Ok, so we've got the device in a bag, and you're read to place it under the swim cap.  This is where the trickery comes in.  The easiest way I've found is to simply place the device on your head first - and then put the swim cap on.  Also - I've found that by always placing the front of the GPS in the same direction as the front of your head, you can remember the button layout (start is simply the lower right hand corner).  And to state what may be obvious - turn on the device and get it ready to go BEFORE you put it on your head.  The only remaining task will be pressing the start button and ensuring you hear the little start beeps.  Make sure that it's firmly under the swim cap and won't slip out (that would suck), if you do it right - it shouldn't go anywhere.  If you're really concerned about losing the device to the deep blue, just get a small piece of string (maybe even a shoelace) and tie it to the zipper on your wetsuit.

So now the device is 'mounted' and you've pressed the start button.  This would be a good time to start swimming.  There really isn't anything more to do than swim.  Once your done swimming simply hit the stop button (also lower right on the face).  If you forgot, don't worry - you can easily edit the track later to remove the offending portions.

After you're done swimming you'll want to use a program to see how far you went.  I use Sport Tracks, which is where the below screen shots come from.  It's a free application with a very active user community - available here.  Either version 1.3 (current non-beta) or version 2.0 (beta) will work great (including working great with Vista).

Regarding the heart rate strap - I've had varied results with it.  I haven't had much of an issue without the wetsuit, but while wearing a wetsuit I seem to get intermittent to no signal.

Here's a couple of examples of what the different placement locations will do.

Good Placement (distance and swim direction consistent with reality):

Bad Placement (plus moderate waves - ocean swim) - the distance way off due to the bad signal: 

Hopefully this helps.  If you have any questions - I'm more than happy to answer any questions!

How to swim with your Garmin Forerunner GPS 1

After purchasing the Garmin Forerunner, I was determined to use it as much as possible to get the most out of my money.  On an average day I have two training runs/rides/swims, and I use the GPS for every outdoor workout I do.  One of the more challenging uses though is swimming with it when doing an open water swim.  Once configured you're all set, but getting a good configuration can be a bit tricky.  So after using it a number of times this past summer during open water swims (salt and freshwater), I can offer the following little tidbits of advice.  Keep in mind that this is based on my use of the Garmin Forerunner 305 device, but most devices will be similar.  I also take no responsibility for breakage to the device, although everything described below is within the allowed operating limits of the device.

To start with - here's what the manual says on page 53 regarding its aquatic functionality:

Water Immersion:
The Forerunner is waterproof to IEC Standard 60529 IPX7.  It can withstand immersion in 1 meter of water for 30 minutes.  Prolonged submersion can cause damage to the unit.  After submersion, be certain to wipe dry and air dry the unit before using or charging.  NOTE: This product is not intended to be used while swimming.

Let's take apart this paragraph.  You shouldn't go deeper than 3 feet.  But that shouldn't be an issue unless you've got some whacky submersion swim style (or you're drowning, in which case you should probably concentrate on rectifying that issue first).  You should ensure that if you do go longer than 30 minutes, you keep the unit dry - or that it's not actually fully submerged.  Typically the reason for most devices having time limits is that it's dependent on how long the seals can withstand the pressure of water (which is 800 times more dense than air).  The last line is there primarily because my guess is that they don't want you putting it on your arm (which would be very bad as you'd constantly be whacking it against the water).

Before we talk about placement, let's talk about protecting the device.  While I've gone swimming with the device straight in the water, I prefer to put it in a small Ziploc bag under my swim cap.  The best size of Ziploc bags are the small little 'snack' sized ones, they fit the device perfectly.  Also - it's easiest if you remove the device from the armband.  One of the best ways to do this is to buy the quick release kit, which makes it really easy to pop the device off and on (such as onto a bike as well).  Either way, I find the Ziploc bag makes me feel 'safer'

With all of that said, let's address the issue of placement of the GPS.  The best place to place the GPS is on your head.  If you place it in your pocket (assume you had a pocket), it won't get signal.  Been there, tried that.  If you place it under your wetsuit on your back - you might get signal (I haven't tried that) - but then how would you easily push the buttons or review it if you had to?

With placing it on your head, you have easy access to it for button pressing.  The key is exactly where you place it on your head.  The best place to put it is roughly where a ponytail would normally be if you had one.  If you were to put it directly on the top of your head when you put your head in the water (horizontal), the GPS would actually be lower in the water.  By placing it essentially on the back of your head, when you put your face in the water it will be pointed towards the sky.  I found some random photo on the Internet and doctored it up a bit, here's an example.  The orange square is the GPS.  Obviously the real thing is much smaller and rounder.

As you can see by the above photos, once you go horizontal, you want the device as close to the sky as possible.

Ok, so we've got the device in a bag, and you're read to place it under the swim cap.  This is where the trickery comes in.  The easiest way I've found is to simply place the device on your head first - and then put the swim cap on.  Also - I've found that by always placing the front of the GPS in the same direction as the front of your head, you can remember the button layout (start is simply the lower right hand corner).  And to state what may be obvious - turn on the device and get it ready to go BEFORE you put it on your head.  The only remaining task will be pressing the start button and ensuring you hear the little start beeps.  Make sure that it's firmly under the swim cap and won't slip out (that would suck), if you do it right - it shouldn't go anywhere.  If you're really concerned about losing the device to the deep blue, just get a small piece of string (maybe even a shoelace) and tie it to the zipper on your wetsuit.

So now the device is 'mounted' and you've pressed the start button.  This would be a good time to start swimming.  There really isn't anything more to do than swim.  Once your done swimming simply hit the stop button (also lower right on the face).  If you forgot, don't worry - you can easily edit the track later to remove the offending portions.

After you're done swimming you'll want to use a program to see how far you went.  I use Sport Tracks, which is where the below screen shots come from.  It's a free application with a very active user community - available here.  Either version 1.3 (current non-beta) or version 2.0 (beta) will work great (including working great with Vista).

Regarding the heart rate strap - I've had varied results with it.  I haven't had much of an issue without the wetsuit, but while wearing a wetsuit I seem to get intermittent to no signal.

Here's a couple of examples of what the different placement locations will do.

Good Placement (distance and swim direction consistent with reality):

Bad Placement (plus moderate waves - ocean swim) - the distance way off due to the bad signal: 

Hopefully this helps.  If you have any questions - I'm more than happy to answer any questions!

Aerobars Review Part II 1

I set out earlier last week to decide which were the best aerobars for me.  The bike shop guys were fairly useless in their ability to help me choose - but I was someone expecting that since it's a 'personal preference' thing. I picked up two sets at a bike shop, not really knowing which ones I would like best.   The first part of my 'review' is here.  On Thursday I went ahead and detached the first set of bars and put on these bars below (hereafter called the second set).

(Pair #2)

First of all - these bars were a pain in the butt to get installed in comparison to the other ones.  Of course, this might be more to do with perception as I was trying to do it as quickly as possible since the install was directly eating into my cycling time (I had to meet up with a running group at a set time, so every minute spent fiddling was one less minute on the road cycling).  But I would still ascertain that the first pair was easier to 'clip-on' then the second pair.  Not that it matters too much once it's installed, but worthwhile pointing out.

The arm rests are a bit different than the first pair in a couple of ways.  In the first pair, the padding is fully detachable via Velcro - making it easy to clean.  In this pair, they're stuck on like a sticker.  Also, on the other pair the arm rests were non-movable once installed.  In this set the arm rests actually go up and down on a set of springs (think like a clamshell, not vertically up and down) that could move throughout your ride.  Interesting concept, not entirely sure of the point though.

A few things I didn't like about these were that they made me feel more open than the first pair - it's plausible that I didn't have them configured correctly, but given where I would have to put my hands on these, it made my hands about 4-5 inches further apart then on the other ones - causing my body to naturally open up more and be less aerodynamic.  Secondly, I felt that the arm rest wings went too far out on the horizontal axis in comparison to the other ones - likely as a result of the hands being further apart - but it covered up useful room on my handlebars.

So, given everything I choose to keep the first pair (pictured below) and will be returning the second pair.  It really primarily came down to the feel of being more open on the second pair than the first pair.

(Pair #1)

I rode on them (the ones pictured above - the dual bars) yesterday for my two hour ride.  They felt pretty good and I was able to stay down in them the vast majority of the time - the only times I had to get out of them was when I was crossing towards 40MPH mark (I just didn't feel in control enough given the wet roads) and on some sharp corners.  Otherwise I felt pretty comfortable in them.

Aerobars Review Part II 0

I set out earlier last week to decide which were the best aerobars for me.  The bike shop guys were fairly useless in their ability to help me choose - but I was someone expecting that since it's a 'personal preference' thing. I picked up two sets at a bike shop, not really knowing which ones I would like best.   The first part of my 'review' is here.  On Thursday I went ahead and detached the first set of bars and put on these bars below (hereafter called the second set).

(Pair #2)

First of all - these bars were a pain in the butt to get installed in comparison to the other ones.  Of course, this might be more to do with perception as I was trying to do it as quickly as possible since the install was directly eating into my cycling time (I had to meet up with a running group at a set time, so every minute spent fiddling was one less minute on the road cycling).  But I would still ascertain that the first pair was easier to 'clip-on' then the second pair.  Not that it matters too much once it's installed, but worthwhile pointing out.

The arm rests are a bit different than the first pair in a couple of ways.  In the first pair, the padding is fully detachable via Velcro - making it easy to clean.  In this pair, they're stuck on like a sticker.  Also, on the other pair the arm rests were non-movable once installed.  In this set the arm rests actually go up and down on a set of springs (think like a clamshell, not vertically up and down) that could move throughout your ride.  Interesting concept, not entirely sure of the point though.

A few things I didn't like about these were that they made me feel more open than the first pair - it's plausible that I didn't have them configured correctly, but given where I would have to put my hands on these, it made my hands about 4-5 inches further apart then on the other ones - causing my body to naturally open up more and be less aerodynamic.  Secondly, I felt that the arm rest wings went too far out on the horizontal axis in comparison to the other ones - likely as a result of the hands being further apart - but it covered up useful room on my handlebars.

So, given everything I choose to keep the first pair (pictured below) and will be returning the second pair.  It really primarily came down to the feel of being more open on the second pair than the first pair.

(Pair #1)

I rode on them (the ones pictured above - the dual bars) yesterday for my two hour ride.  They felt pretty good and I was able to stay down in them the vast majority of the time - the only times I had to get out of them was when I was crossing towards 40MPH mark (I just didn't feel in control enough given the wet roads) and on some sharp corners.  Otherwise I felt pretty comfortable in them.

Long Day 0

Today was officially the longest day ever (well, for non-work stuff anyway's)... Started with a 6AM wake up, and now it's 3:30AM.  To recap:

6:00AM - Wake up and consume a banana

6:25AM - Out the door to meet running group

7:15AM - Arrive at running destination

7:30AM - 10AM - Run 18.4 miles (in hot and humid weather, with painful hills right form the start), Rock Creek Park (kinda DC, Maryland)

10AM - 10:45AM - Sit around water cooler waiting for others to return

10:45AM - Drive back towards home

11:15AM - Stop at Starbucks for breakfast sandwich (bacon and egg...mmm), then walk across street to smoothie place (more mmm).

11:40AM - Done with eating

11:50AM - Change into cycling stuff, fill water bottles/drink mix

12:00PM - Go out and pound out two hours on the bike, in the rain...the hot humid rain.

2:00PM - Rush to clean off bike to make it presentable, and then take quick shower (Note: I'm now 6 pounds lighter than 8 hours prior, and I've drank 80-100+oz of liquid)

2:20PM - Drop bike off at bike shop to get fork replaced (they cracked my carbon fork about 6 weeks, the replacement finally came in)

2:45PM - Head back to downtown DC

3:00PM - Meet up with friend to go play 18 holes of golf (note: I have no idea how to play golf)

3:30PM - 7:30PM - Go hole to hole stuck behind slower groups, manage to only lose one ball in the water and a few in the woods.  Oh, and I lost a pitching wedge somewhere.  I still have no idea how to play golf.  I think I'll stick with Tri's.

7:30PM - 8:30PM - Find super-good (and greasy) Five Guys burger shop downtown DC near Chinatown.  Finally, food.

9:00PM - Rush back to Alexandria to change & shower (it was hot and humid playing golf, all sticky - not so attractive)

10:00PM - Now zip back to the Capitol Hill again for a football/birthday party

10:15PM -2:15 AM - Watch University of Washington Huskies suck.

2:45PM - Finally leave party, drive back to Alexandria - avoid getting hit by a clearly drunk driver

3:00PM - Ahhh...the comfort of a bed.  Now I shall sleep.

 

Thanks god tomorrow (err...today) is only a 2200 yard swim and a 5 mile run.  It'll feel like a rest day....kinda.

Long Day 0

Today was officially the longest day ever (well, for non-work stuff anyway's)... Started with a 6AM wake up, and now it's 3:30AM.  To recap:

6:00AM - Wake up and consume a banana

6:25AM - Out the door to meet running group

7:15AM - Arrive at running destination

7:30AM - 10AM - Run 18.4 miles (in hot and humid weather, with painful hills right form the start), Rock Creek Park (kinda DC, Maryland)

10AM - 10:45AM - Sit around water cooler waiting for others to return

10:45AM - Drive back towards home

11:15AM - Stop at Starbucks for breakfast sandwich (bacon and egg...mmm), then walk across street to smoothie place (more mmm).

11:40AM - Done with eating

11:50AM - Change into cycling stuff, fill water bottles/drink mix

12:00PM - Go out and pound out two hours on the bike, in the rain...the hot humid rain.

2:00PM - Rush to clean off bike to make it presentable, and then take quick shower (Note: I'm now 6 pounds lighter than 8 hours prior, and I've drank 80-100+oz of liquid)

2:20PM - Drop bike off at bike shop to get fork replaced (they cracked my carbon fork about 6 weeks, the replacement finally came in)

2:45PM - Head back to downtown DC

3:00PM - Meet up with friend to go play 18 holes of golf (note: I have no idea how to play golf)

3:30PM - 7:30PM - Go hole to hole stuck behind slower groups, manage to only lose one ball in the water and a few in the woods.  Oh, and I lost a pitching wedge somewhere.  I still have no idea how to play golf.  I think I'll stick with Tri's.

7:30PM - 8:30PM - Find super-good (and greasy) Five Guys burger shop downtown DC near Chinatown.  Finally, food.

9:00PM - Rush back to Alexandria to change & shower (it was hot and humid playing golf, all sticky - not so attractive)

10:00PM - Now zip back to the Capitol Hill again for a football/birthday party

10:15PM -2:15 AM - Watch University of Washington Huskies suck.

2:45PM - Finally leave party, drive back to Alexandria - avoid getting hit by a clearly drunk driver

3:00PM - Ahhh...the comfort of a bed.  Now I shall sleep.

 

Thanks god tomorrow (err...today) is only a 2200 yard swim and a 5 mile run.  It'll feel like a rest day....kinda.

Wanted: Open water swim places in WashDC 9

When I did my first tri earlier this summer it was clear that I didn’t do enough open water swimming beforehand. By enough I mean ‘more than a few laps’ between two docks. Actually to be fair to myself, I did get in two 2500 yard open water workouts in, but they were in fairly shallow water and only at about 400 yards a shot requiring a brief stop at each end (between two points, see below screenshot).

I immediately made it a goal to get in as many open water workouts as I could whenever I traveled away from DC to a place that had open water places to swim. I immediately saw a dramatic improvement in my open water swimming skills within about two workouts.

The only problem for me is that in DC I simply have no open water swimming. None. Zip. Zilch. Zero. The nearest ‘available’ lake is over an hour’s drive south along I-95. Although I could actually consider going about 45 minutes away towards Annapolis and possibly get in some open water there near Sandy Point. But my policy on open water swimming is never do it alone unless I can stand up in the water at all times, and I have no friends that want to partake in such activities.  :(

Anyone know of any open water places around DC they’d like to share (and share in swimming as a buddy)? I figure it will take a few months until the water gets too cold for even wetsuits. Anything above  low-50's and I’m game!

Wanted: Open water swim places in WashDC 0

When I did my first tri earlier this summer it was clear that I didn’t do enough open water swimming beforehand. By enough I mean ‘more than a few laps’ between two docks. Actually to be fair to myself, I did get in two 2500 yard open water workouts in, but they were in fairly shallow water and only at about 400 yards a shot requiring a brief stop at each end (between two points, see below screenshot).

I immediately made it a goal to get in as many open water workouts as I could whenever I traveled away from DC to a place that had open water places to swim. I immediately saw a dramatic improvement in my open water swimming skills within about two workouts.

The only problem for me is that in DC I simply have no open water swimming. None. Zip. Zilch. Zero. The nearest ‘available’ lake is over an hour’s drive south along I-95. Although I could actually consider going about 45 minutes away towards Annapolis and possibly get in some open water there near Sandy Point. But my policy on open water swimming is never do it alone unless I can stand up in the water at all times, and I have no friends that want to partake in such activities.  :(

Anyone know of any open water places around DC they’d like to share (and share in swimming as a buddy)? I figure it will take a few months until the water gets too cold for even wetsuits. Anything above  low-50's and I’m game!

Twofer: New Aerobars & New Running Group 1

Tonight was a good night in training land.  I had decided last spring when I first got my road bike that I would just get 'decent' at handling a road bike before I put on aerobars.  I reasoned that if I tried to get used to riding a road bike at the same time as trying out aerobars, I'd likely face plant into the concrete or a car.  Both options being less than desirable.  So my plan was to wait until after my 'A' race in September (70.3) until I got them.

After doing some reading up on different bars it all seemed to come down to personal preference.  Given that I had no idea what I would prefer, I just went to the local Performance shop and picked up two different kinds and figured I'd return one of them.   The first pair that I'm trying is pictured below.

Last night I fit the first set to my bike.  The total install took about 15 minutes, 10 of which was moving other things that were in the way (light, reflector, GPS mount).  I then plopped on the trainer and rode with it a bit while adjusting it until it felt 'right'.  Of course, it's likely that I positioned them in the least efficient manner possible, but they generally are positioned in a manner consistent with what I saw everyone else doing (I adhere to the lemming theory that everyone else is probably right).

At any rate, I went out earlier this evening on a barely rolling, straight, low-traffic bike path and just rode for about an hour.  It was fun, something different.  They seemed good, but I'll have to compare them to the other set on Thursday to determine which ones I like more.  A couple of things I noticed:

• My cadence was higher - I believe this is due to the fact that I have no shifters on these aerobars, I'm more likely to stay in a given gear, rather than reach down and shift.  Although towards the end of the ride I got much quicker/better at shifting without nearly crashing.
• My speed was a touch higher, but since I had to wait at over 8 minutes worth of intersections, it was hard to tell.  I didn't get far enough out on the path to be able to go nonstop without random roads intersecting
• It was more comfortable than being on the drops.  At least that's what my back said.
• Your shadow looks way cooler on aerobars.  It was nearing sunset so it made a really cool shadow against the bushes as I would cruise by. :)

Ok, ride complete, I rushed (at about 78mph) back around the Beltway back towards Old Town/Home to catch the 7PM start time for a local running group.  I made it with about 20 seconds to spare.  Just to in time to be volunteered to lead a pace group.  It was also my first time with this group.  I had done a weekend 19 miler with them a few weeks back, but hadn't tried any of their Tuesday/Thursday runs.

The group was huge!  Like 25-30 people huge.  But it was pretty cool.  I was volunteered to run at or about a 7:30 pace.  But once we got out about 100 yards it was clear it was basically us (like 3 of us) and everyone else.  So we just ran.... and run we did.  Averaged 6:48/mi for 5.4 miles (a pre-defined course they have).  It was awesome, especially with the cooler weather!

The course went through some really nice streets/hills I never knew existed (despite living like two miles from them).  And the group of folks was pretty cool all around.  It really helps to have other folks out there when doing faster paced runs - it makes the time fly by.  Plus, we went sub-6 for the last mile :)

Looking forward to doing their Thursday run as well.  The Tues/Thurs 5-6 mile runs fit perfectly with my schedule, so it works really well.  All in all, a pretty good night. 

Twofer: New Aerobars & New Running Group 0

Tonight was a good night in training land.  I had decided last spring when I first got my road bike that I would just get 'decent' at handling a road bike before I put on aerobars.  I reasoned that if I tried to get used to riding a road bike at the same time as trying out aerobars, I'd likely face plant into the concrete or a car.  Both options being less than desirable.  So my plan was to wait until after my 'A' race in September (70.3) until I got them.

After doing some reading up on different bars it all seemed to come down to personal preference.  Given that I had no idea what I would prefer, I just went to the local Performance shop and picked up two different kinds and figured I'd return one of them.   The first pair that I'm trying is pictured below.

Last night I fit the first set to my bike.  The total install took about 15 minutes, 10 of which was moving other things that were in the way (light, reflector, GPS mount).  I then plopped on the trainer and rode with it a bit while adjusting it until it felt 'right'.  Of course, it's likely that I positioned them in the least efficient manner possible, but they generally are positioned in a manner consistent with what I saw everyone else doing (I adhere to the lemming theory that everyone else is probably right).

At any rate, I went out earlier this evening on a barely rolling, straight, low-traffic bike path and just rode for about an hour.  It was fun, something different.  They seemed good, but I'll have to compare them to the other set on Thursday to determine which ones I like more.  A couple of things I noticed:

• My cadence was higher - I believe this is due to the fact that I have no shifters on these aerobars, I'm more likely to stay in a given gear, rather than reach down and shift.  Although towards the end of the ride I got much quicker/better at shifting without nearly crashing.
• My speed was a touch higher, but since I had to wait at over 8 minutes worth of intersections, it was hard to tell.  I didn't get far enough out on the path to be able to go nonstop without random roads intersecting
• It was more comfortable than being on the drops.  At least that's what my back said.
• Your shadow looks way cooler on aerobars.  It was nearing sunset so it made a really cool shadow against the bushes as I would cruise by. :)

Ok, ride complete, I rushed (at about 78mph) back around the Beltway back towards Old Town/Home to catch the 7PM start time for a local running group.  I made it with about 20 seconds to spare.  Just to in time to be volunteered to lead a pace group.  It was also my first time with this group.  I had done a weekend 19 miler with them a few weeks back, but hadn't tried any of their Tuesday/Thursday runs.

The group was huge!  Like 25-30 people huge.  But it was pretty cool.  I was volunteered to run at or about a 7:30 pace.  But once we got out about 100 yards it was clear it was basically us (like 3 of us) and everyone else.  So we just ran.... and run we did.  Averaged 6:48/mi for 5.4 miles (a pre-defined course they have).  It was awesome, especially with the cooler weather!

The course went through some really nice streets/hills I never knew existed (despite living like two miles from them).  And the group of folks was pretty cool all around.  It really helps to have other folks out there when doing faster paced runs - it makes the time fly by.  Plus, we went sub-6 for the last mile :)

Looking forward to doing their Thursday run as well.  The Tues/Thurs 5-6 mile runs fit perfectly with my schedule, so it works really well.  All in all, a pretty good night. 

Need to find a pool while traveling? Check out Swimmers Guide 0

A few months ago while traveling I was trying to find information about local lap pools.  While most of the country/city pools tend to have web sites, many times they don't have particularly useful information (such as lap times, etc..).  Further, I couldn't find any consolidated place to look up pools.  That is - until I found the Holy Grail of pool locating resources: Swimmers Guide

The web site has just about every pool you can imagine in it.  It includes both private and public pools, and all the information you could ever want to know about it.  How many lanes, is there soap in the locker room, what are the peak times, etc... And it does all of this for 19,504 pools.  Yes - close to 20,000 chlorinated puddles of water!

If you're traveling and need to swim - this free site rocks.  No registration or anything, just simple searching.  Be sure to send in a few lines about your local pool though so the site continues to grow.  Being a bit of a community effort everyone has to do their part in order for it to continue to be awesome.  Check it out!

http://www.swimmersguide.com/

This morning though (I'm in Seattle this weekend), I got to meet up with a person on an internal distribution list within our company for triathletes.  We went for a nice casual Saturday open water swim.  By casual I mean every once in a while at various markers we would just stop, float and chat about tri-stuff.  But it was fun - and different than normal.  After a long summer of intense training, sometimes doing something different helps mix things up a bit.  Ended up swimming probably about a mile.  Water temp wasn't too bad - 71*, didn't bother with wetsuit because I didn't feel like having it fill up my suitcase this trip.

Need to find a pool while traveling? Check out Swimmers Guide 0

A few months ago while traveling I was trying to find information about local lap pools.  While most of the country/city pools tend to have web sites, many times they don't have particularly useful information (such as lap times, etc..).  Further, I couldn't find any consolidated place to look up pools.  That is - until I found the Holy Grail of pool locating resources: Swimmers Guide

The web site has just about every pool you can imagine in it.  It includes both private and public pools, and all the information you could ever want to know about it.  How many lanes, is there soap in the locker room, what are the peak times, etc... And it does all of this for 19,504 pools.  Yes - close to 20,000 chlorinated puddles of water!

If you're traveling and need to swim - this free site rocks.  No registration or anything, just simple searching.  Be sure to send in a few lines about your local pool though so the site continues to grow.  Being a bit of a community effort everyone has to do their part in order for it to continue to be awesome.  Check it out!

http://www.swimmersguide.com/

This morning though (I'm in Seattle this weekend), I got to meet up with a person on an internal distribution list within our company for triathletes.  We went for a nice casual Saturday open water swim.  By casual I mean every once in a while at various markers we would just stop, float and chat about tri-stuff.  But it was fun - and different than normal.  After a long summer of intense training, sometimes doing something different helps mix things up a bit.  Ended up swimming probably about a mile.  Water temp wasn't too bad - 71*, didn't bother with wetsuit because I didn't feel like having it fill up my suitcase this trip.

Tri Coach – should I get one? 0

As a follow-on to yesterday's post, I'm trying to figure out if I should get a coach, and if so - what type of coach I should get.  I think I'm at the point now where a coach would be significantly beneficial to my overall training and racing strategy.  While I'm keenly aware of which areas I can improve in, and have pretty decent ideas as to what I can do to remedy it - I'm not entirely sure on how it all fits together sometimes.

For example, my typical workout schedule is below:

Monday: Off
Tuesday: 4-6 mile run, 60-90 minute bike
Wednesday: 5-8 mile run, 2000-2400 yard swim
Thursday: Tuesday: 4-6 mile run, 70-100 minute bike
Friday: 5-8 mile run, 2000-2200 yard swim
Saturday: Long run (13-20 miles), Long Bike (2-3 hours)
Sunday: Swim (2200-2600 yards) & anything that might have been pushed from Saturday (sometimes I swap the three long workouts around)

So, with that all noted - the first thing that comes to mind is I'm probably running too much.  But on the other hand - my extra effort in that area has produced pretty good results.  Of course, I'm aware that a number of studies have said that running less can actually increase performance (if mixed with other sports, as above).

I know that I have the most to gain on the bike.  Meaning, if you compare my run performance at a tri (usually in the top 10-15%) with my bike/swim performance (usually in the 30% range), my bike and swim are the areas where improvement would make the biggest difference.  In particular, the bike on the longer events.

Oh...back to coaches....

So, my problem is that I know I need to improve my swim technique.  I've gone from recreational swimming in April 07 (which averaged 4:00minutes/100 yards) to now (which averages 1:41/100 yards).  Yes, a big improvement.  But in general I have terrible form and am wasting tons of energy (even if I am going at a good clip).  I don't really kick at all.  My legs are simply along for the ride.  My breathing is good though (I bilaterally breath), but I'm sure my stroke is less than ideal.

But here's where the dilemma is - if I purchase services from a remote coach (such as one of the various online-only coaches) - it doesn't seem as though that will do my swim any good from a form perspective.  So that means I need a swim coach.  The question becomes how well will the swim coach mesh with my online coach.  Do they coordinate training schedules, or does it become a bit of a mess?  And what does a swim coach typically cost?

Now you see my dilemma.  The good news is with my main race (IMC2008) being a year away, this seems the ideal time to figure it all out.

Tri Coach – should I get one? 0

As a follow-on to yesterday's post, I'm trying to figure out if I should get a coach, and if so - what type of coach I should get.  I think I'm at the point now where a coach would be significantly beneficial to my overall training and racing strategy.  While I'm keenly aware of which areas I can improve in, and have pretty decent ideas as to what I can do to remedy it - I'm not entirely sure on how it all fits together sometimes.

For example, my typical workout schedule is below:

Monday: Off
Tuesday: 4-6 mile run, 60-90 minute bike
Wednesday: 5-8 mile run, 2000-2400 yard swim
Thursday: Tuesday: 4-6 mile run, 70-100 minute bike
Friday: 5-8 mile run, 2000-2200 yard swim
Saturday: Long run (13-20 miles), Long Bike (2-3 hours)
Sunday: Swim (2200-2600 yards) & anything that might have been pushed from Saturday (sometimes I swap the three long workouts around)

So, with that all noted - the first thing that comes to mind is I'm probably running too much.  But on the other hand - my extra effort in that area has produced pretty good results.  Of course, I'm aware that a number of studies have said that running less can actually increase performance (if mixed with other sports, as above).

I know that I have the most to gain on the bike.  Meaning, if you compare my run performance at a tri (usually in the top 10-15%) with my bike/swim performance (usually in the 30% range), my bike and swim are the areas where improvement would make the biggest difference.  In particular, the bike on the longer events.

Oh...back to coaches....

So, my problem is that I know I need to improve my swim technique.  I've gone from recreational swimming in April 07 (which averaged 4:00minutes/100 yards) to now (which averages 1:41/100 yards).  Yes, a big improvement.  But in general I have terrible form and am wasting tons of energy (even if I am going at a good clip).  I don't really kick at all.  My legs are simply along for the ride.  My breathing is good though (I bilaterally breath), but I'm sure my stroke is less than ideal.

But here's where the dilemma is - if I purchase services from a remote coach (such as one of the various online-only coaches) - it doesn't seem as though that will do my swim any good from a form perspective.  So that means I need a swim coach.  The question becomes how well will the swim coach mesh with my online coach.  Do they coordinate training schedules, or does it become a bit of a mess?  And what does a swim coach typically cost?

Now you see my dilemma.  The good news is with my main race (IMC2008) being a year away, this seems the ideal time to figure it all out.

Ironman Canada 2008 - Registration Complete 1

It's now official.  I just finished plunking down the $490US for Ironman Canada 2008.  I think I did save $2 for the "Active Advantage", which I'm pretty sure is officially a huge waste money (the Active Advantage thing). You know you're probably in trouble when they ask you for your insurance information up front.  In addition they seem to go about asking eight different ways if you've ever nearly killed yourself in the past in a sporting event, or if you feel you are likely to kill yourself in the future.

I've been trying to piece together my overall race schedule, and high level training schedule for next year.  There are a ton of really cool races I'd love to try and fit in.  For example, Wildflower, Ironman California 70.3, Pacific Groove Tri as well as a few local races in both DC and Seattle.  This is in addition to a few running races I want to complete (mostly local).

I'm also still trying to decide if I want to leverage the services of a Coach.  I've heard a lot of good things about Mike at D3, as well as a few others.  I know that coaching will help a ton - I guess it's really a determination if I want to spend the money.  I've also got to decide if I want to hire a separate local swim coach to improve my 'style'. Cause really, I have the swimming style of a blowfish.

Ironman Canada 2008 - Registration Complete 0

It's now official.  I just finished plunking down the $490US for Ironman Canada 2008.  I think I did save $2 for the "Active Advantage", which I'm pretty sure is officially a huge waste money (the Active Advantage thing). You know you're probably in trouble when they ask you for your insurance information up front.  In addition they seem to go about asking eight different ways if you've ever nearly killed yourself in the past in a sporting event, or if you feel you are likely to kill yourself in the future.

I've been trying to piece together my overall race schedule, and high level training schedule for next year.  There are a ton of really cool races I'd love to try and fit in.  For example, Wildflower, Ironman California 70.3, Pacific Groove Tri as well as a few local races in both DC and Seattle.  This is in addition to a few running races I want to complete (mostly local).

I'm also still trying to decide if I want to leverage the services of a Coach.  I've heard a lot of good things about Mike at D3, as well as a few others.  I know that coaching will help a ton - I guess it's really a determination if I want to spend the money.  I've also got to decide if I want to hire a separate local swim coach to improve my 'style'. Cause really, I have the swimming style of a blowfish.

Triathletes vs Great White Sharks 0

On Friday while driving along the coast near Monterey I stumbled into preparations for the Pacific Grove Triathlon, which looks like an awesome race – and is definitely on the radar for inclusion next year. It was setup so that on Saturday you could do an Olympic distance tri, and then on Sunday you could do a sprint race. It was like hitting the double-jackpot. More importantly, the course looked amazing – incredibly scenery along the coast with great roads, crashing waves, barking seals and Great White sharks. Yup…that’s right – Great Whites. As I was milling about the registration expo, I noticed quite a few of these signs posted around the swim start area.

Nice! Not only do they tell you that recently at a nearby beach one of our floating brethren was ‘tasted’ less than week prior – but they include a picture of an actual great white shark – in full color! Complete with a handy recommendation that you not consider swimming in the area.

For anyone who says “Ahh, that was at a beach a few miles away – all good here!”, I remind you that sharks migrate up to 12,000 miles a year.

Actually, having dived in South Africa with Great White sharks (while in a cage, where I took the picture below), as well as dived with over 30 of them in French Polynesia (without a cage) – I can say they are incredible & remarkable animals that you shouldn’t be afraid of – generally speaking. However, wearing a dark wetsuit and swimming along on the surface of the known Great White shark infested waters looking remarkably like a seal would not be advisable. Just me though…

Triathletes vs Great White Sharks 0

On Friday while driving along the coast near Monterey I stumbled into preparations for the Pacific Grove Triathlon, which looks like an awesome race – and is definitely on the radar for inclusion next year. It was setup so that on Saturday you could do an Olympic distance tri, and then on Sunday you could do a sprint race. It was like hitting the double-jackpot. More importantly, the course looked amazing – incredibly scenery along the coast with great roads, crashing waves, barking seals and Great White sharks. Yup…that’s right – Great Whites. As I was milling about the registration expo, I noticed quite a few of these signs posted around the swim start area.

Nice! Not only do they tell you that recently at a nearby beach one of our floating brethren was ‘tasted’ less than week prior – but they include a picture of an actual great white shark – in full color! Complete with a handy recommendation that you not consider swimming in the area.

For anyone who says “Ahh, that was at a beach a few miles away – all good here!”, I remind you that sharks migrate up to 12,000 miles a year.

Actually, having dived in South Africa with Great White sharks (while in a cage, where I took the picture below), as well as dived with over 30 of them in French Polynesia (without a cage) – I can say they are incredible & remarkable animals that you shouldn’t be afraid of – generally speaking. However, wearing a dark wetsuit and swimming along on the surface of the known Great White shark infested waters looking remarkably like a seal would not be advisable. Just me though…

Big Kahuna 70.3 Half Iron Race Report 1

So here we go...my sorta long race report for the Big Kahuna 70.3 in Santa Cruz, CA.

Pre-race
I got up around 5AM after about 6 hours of sleep, pretty good for the night before a race, and a bit later than usual (wakeup time) – but I was so close to the start line that it made getting to the course easy. I sipped on a bottle of Heed/Perpetuem as my breakfast. I just wasn’t feeling the bagel I had prepared for breakfast. Since the hotel was only two minutes away by bike, I left around 5:45PM – along with about 3-4 other folks from our luxurious resort (Days Inn).

The transition area was already buzzing (as expected). The way it was laid out –there was clearly ‘good’ spots and ‘bad spots’. The entrances/exits were all along one side, so the best spots were those closest to the entry/exit. Those were of course gone, I value 90 minutes of sleep more than 30 seconds of T1/T2 speed. I decided to go with an aisle spot, a bit further away but it would minimize any mess in trying to getting my bike out. After getting everything unpacked onto the ground I realized I left my towel behind in the room. Had this been any other location, I might have decided to forgo it, but since I knew I had to wash the sand off my feet after the swim, I finished setting up and then made the quick bike trip back and forth to pick it up. I also contemplated adding air to my tires knowing they might have been a touch bit on the low side – but decided against it (not sure if that was a good or bad decision). Around 6:30AM I following the rest of the lemmings over to the beach (about a 1/3rd of a mile away).

Because it was a Hawaiian themed event (The Big Kahuna), they had some Hawaiian conch shell dude do his thing and bless the water/event with a big toot. No sharks attacked, so I figured that seemed to have worked. At this point they started randomly announcing people’s names and numbers and where they were from. Including a 15-year old kid that was racing. At that point I knew what would become my only real goal for the day.: Beating the 15 year old.

I went for a quick 5 minute dip in the chilly 57* water to get acclimated and then headed up into the crowd to prepare to start. I’ve found that for me the 5-minute pre-swim is the difference between a good swim performance and a dismal one. Without it, I just can’t get into a rhythm.

Swim
For reasons unknown to me, they mixed the ‘29 and under’ males with the Elites as the first wave. At first thought, I was thinking “Great, just what I wanted!”. But the more I thought about it, the better I realized this was. Primarily – because the elites would be out of the way within 1-2 minutes, it effectively cut the field in half making plenty of room for the rest of us that weren’t going to be swimming a 22 minute 1.2 miles.

The swim was also a beach start (meaning it started on the beach and you ran into the water). I wasn’t expecting this, but it turned out fine. At exactly 7:00AM they shot the gun and off we went. My strategy was multifold:

1) Don’t get eaten by a Great White shark (a Great White shark had attacked just down the road last weekend)
2) Don’t get attacked by a seal/sea lion (thus causing/instantiating #1)
3) Don’t get flattened by an elite
4) Swim a sub-35 minute swim

I’m happy to report I succeeded on all four fronts.

I got into the water and stayed a little to the right of the main pack, perhaps 10 yards off the right side and just kept a nice solid pace from the beginning all the way through to the end. It was kinda cool hearing the sea lions barking off in the distance from under wharf – as long as they stayed there. There really wasn’t much to report on the swim, I didn’t get kicked in the face or anything else – I just plodded along. I do wish they had more than three buoys, because of the gentle rolling seas it was a bit difficult to see the next point sometimes.

Total swim time: 34:13 (1.2 miles)

I’m the one in the middle in the photo below.

T1:
This would officially be the longest transition on earth. Seriously. I took some Virtual Earth imagery and doctored it up a bit to show how long it is. The red line is the swim course with the three orange buoys, and the red dots are the start/finish/T1. The blue line is the bike course as it heads out of town.


As far as execution on this, it involved first crossing 100 yards of loose beach sand, then going up a ramp, then down a concrete street for 1/3rd of a mile (yes, I measured it) in bare feet. Finally you get to the transition area.

Based on casual glances, I think my actual time in the transition ‘area’ was about 2:30 – a bit longer than I would have liked, but I knew that if I didn’t adequately take care of ridding my feet of all of the sand I would only pay the price later on the run. I did remember to have an extra water bottle with the lid removed with water at my bike to wash my feet. They also had Rubbermaid buckets with water at the entrance to T1. After loading everything up I was ready to go.

Total official T1 transition time was: 5:35

Bike:
Cycling is not my strongest suit. My general goal on the bike this year is to simply make it to the run with a respectable time. Well, actually – my real primary goal is for my bike not to malfunction. Based on all I’d heard from a number of folks who had done this course before, the idea was to make it quickly to the turnaround point (28 miles up the Pacific Coast Highway) before the headwinds kicked up, and then catch the daily southerly tailwinds back – the key being to make good time because the winds increase as the day goes on (thus making stronger headwinds for the way out). I basically followed that plan. My outbound was averaged 20mph and I made the turnaround point in 1:24:10. With the turnaround completed and I was all ready for that tailwind.

Hmm…no tailwind. In fact, I think there might be a slight headwind. No biggie, I’m sure in a few miles I’ll get a tailwind - perhaps I’m just at the wrong angle to the wind. 10 miles later…no tailwind. Ok. I guess I’m not getting a tailwind today. I was still maintaining pace, but I was slowing ever so slightly. I wasn’t sure if it was because I was tired, or if there was a head wind or what. And then I realized what the issue was. My front tire was slowly deflating. Not a ton, but enough that the bottom was slightly bulging.

I decided to press on for another couple of miles to see if it was just my brain playing tricks on me or if it was really slowly deflating.

Two miles later. Yup – deflating. I decided not to replace the tube and went with the pump instead. It took 90 seconds to complete the first pumping. This including standing over bike, get pump out, get tire situated for pumping and then pumping and putting it all away. Wow…the bike seemed fast after that. I was hauling. My average speed went from 18mph to over 22mph – with less effort to boot. It’s funny, on my speed charts from my GPS unit you can very clearly see where I inflated my tube, and then as time goes on a gradual slow down – and then it repeats again as I inflate/deflate again.

I ended up doing that drill once more around mile 49, roughly 10 miles after the first inflation. While these cost me some time, it saved me time changing a tube. I knew that if I changed a tube it would cost me at least 8-10 minutes. It was a gamble, but it worked. I strolled into town a short while later. When I picked up my bike after the race, my tire was fully deflated – it probably had less air in it than a new tire in the packaging.

The course was pretty cool, mostly just a lot of rolling hills. Here’s a shot on the way back into town (south toward Santa Cruz). As you’ll note, I haven’t started using aero bars yet – that’s on the list for the winter.

Overall Bike Time: 2:50:17 (Roughly 19.8mph)


Run
The run is my strongest sport and I count on it to make up time. I also know I over train for the run as I’m simultaneously following a marathon training plan for my run portion. I headed out of transition and onto the run, aside from a brief incline out of the transition area (maybe 100 feet), it was a very flat course. It basically strolls along the ocean’s edge, above the cliffs and crashing water. Very cool.

What wasn’t so cool was what happened around the first mile marker. My stomach wasn’t feeling quite right. I wasn’t sure what it was, but figured it wasn’t a big deal – just a minor stomach ache and that it would disappear. I was still maintaining a good pace – 7:37 minutes per mile, but things weren’t so good down south. I figured that maybe ridding myself of some of the liquid I had accrued during the run would help, and I happened to sight a port-a-potty just ahead (otherwise trees would have been in order). After a brief 60 second stop there, things still weren’t feeling so good. In fact, they were feeling downright bad. Pretty much like I was going to lose my breakfast.

At that point I remembered back to being sick as a kid and the rule of throwing up – it ALWAYS makes you feel better. So I figured that sounded like a great plan. At the 1.3 mile marker, the urge came and I threw up more than I ever have in my entire life. At least 30oz of pure liquid. It was like a firehouse. I’ve never done that before while exercising, so I’m not sure what happened. The whole trailside experience took about 5 minutes until there was simply nothing left, then I walked about 5 more minutes to let everything settle. I was surprised that while I was bent over 3 different people actually stopped and asked if I was alright (all racers, both male and female). Strangely no non-racers asked if I was alright (despite some passing by). I assured them that I was just giving nutrients to the plants and they carried on. Overall time lost: About 10-12 minutes (including the bathroom break).

As soon as I started running I was instantly back at around a 7:45 pace. I pretty much stayed at that pace for just about the rest of the race. I slowed down a touch on two long hills around miles 7/8.

The below photo is around mile 11 or so as we headed back into town. I’m the one in the photo who was told to smile. :)

There was one other evil part left. That would be the finish. If you refer to the swim map, the swim start is also where the finish line was, and the swim finish would be where you came down off the oceanside pathway (along left/bottom side of photo) and onto the beach for the last 1/3rd of a mile. Yes…the nice sandy beach. There was a group of four or five of us that all hit the sand at the same time and let out a communal groan. It was much like stepping off one of those flat people movers that are at the airport – you feel like you’ve just come to a stop. But with the finish line so close it wasn’t too bad. You made your way down to the water and ran along the water for a short distance, and then eventually back up onto the sand down a chute to the finish line. It was kinda fun dodging the water lapsing on the beach.

I finished in a time of 5:21:06. This ended up being about 9 minutes ahead of my goal time of 5:30, and within 60 seconds of my ‘predicted’ best case time based on some numbers I had run on Saturday night. Ironically all of my theoretical numbers were nearly dead on.

Conclusion
Overall I’m fairly happy with my first half iron. I lost a total of 3-5 minutes on the bike due to mechanical issues (tire), plus whatever unknown speed/work effort slowdowns I endured as part of the deflating tire. And I lost 10-12 minutes as part of the run cookie tossing incident. Without those I would have been in the 5:05-5:10 range. But what happens…happens, and I wouldn’t change a thing. Oh, and btw – I beat the 15 year old. Passed him at around the half way mark on the run. Because really…that’s all that counts.

I don’t know what caused my cookie incident, my suspicion is that my concentration of Heed/Perpetuem was to blame, but it’s never caused me issues in training. Not sure - I’ll have to keep tweaking that until I get it right, perhaps lowering the number of scoops.

I’m really looking forward to next spring and summer. I’ve got one more tri (The National Triathlon -an Olympic distnace one) this year left and then finish up with marathon season. After that I’m looking forward to working hard on the bike and swim to really improve in those areas. In the 4-5 months I’ve been cycling I’ve seen continual week over week improvements so I think a good solid winter of cycling will really help for next year. And ready to tackle Ironman Canada in 2008.

The Big Kahuna 70.3 race is a fun one and I’d definitely recommend it to anyone. There are some minor organizational things they could do tidy up, but nothing that took away from the event.

Big Kahuna 70.3 Half Iron Race Report 0

So here we go...my sorta long race report for the Big Kahuna 70.3 in Santa Cruz, CA.

Pre-race
I got up around 5AM after about 6 hours of sleep, pretty good for the night before a race, and a bit later than usual (wakeup time) – but I was so close to the start line that it made getting to the course easy. I sipped on a bottle of Heed/Perpetuem as my breakfast. I just wasn’t feeling the bagel I had prepared for breakfast. Since the hotel was only two minutes away by bike, I left around 5:45PM – along with about 3-4 other folks from our luxurious resort (Days Inn).

The transition area was already buzzing (as expected). The way it was laid out –there was clearly ‘good’ spots and ‘bad spots’. The entrances/exits were all along one side, so the best spots were those closest to the entry/exit. Those were of course gone, I value 90 minutes of sleep more than 30 seconds of T1/T2 speed. I decided to go with an aisle spot, a bit further away but it would minimize any mess in trying to getting my bike out. After getting everything unpacked onto the ground I realized I left my towel behind in the room. Had this been any other location, I might have decided to forgo it, but since I knew I had to wash the sand off my feet after the swim, I finished setting up and then made the quick bike trip back and forth to pick it up. I also contemplated adding air to my tires knowing they might have been a touch bit on the low side – but decided against it (not sure if that was a good or bad decision). Around 6:30AM I following the rest of the lemmings over to the beach (about a 1/3rd of a mile away).

Because it was a Hawaiian themed event (The Big Kahuna), they had some Hawaiian conch shell dude do his thing and bless the water/event with a big toot. No sharks attacked, so I figured that seemed to have worked. At this point they started randomly announcing people’s names and numbers and where they were from. Including a 15-year old kid that was racing. At that point I knew what would become my only real goal for the day.: Beating the 15 year old.

I went for a quick 5 minute dip in the chilly 57* water to get acclimated and then headed up into the crowd to prepare to start. I’ve found that for me the 5-minute pre-swim is the difference between a good swim performance and a dismal one. Without it, I just can’t get into a rhythm.

Swim
For reasons unknown to me, they mixed the ‘29 and under’ males with the Elites as the first wave. At first thought, I was thinking “Great, just what I wanted!”. But the more I thought about it, the better I realized this was. Primarily – because the elites would be out of the way within 1-2 minutes, it effectively cut the field in half making plenty of room for the rest of us that weren’t going to be swimming a 22 minute 1.2 miles.

The swim was also a beach start (meaning it started on the beach and you ran into the water). I wasn’t expecting this, but it turned out fine. At exactly 7:00AM they shot the gun and off we went. My strategy was multifold:

1) Don’t get eaten by a Great White shark (a Great White shark had attacked just down the road last weekend)
2) Don’t get attacked by a seal/sea lion (thus causing/instantiating #1)
3) Don’t get flattened by an elite
4) Swim a sub-35 minute swim

I’m happy to report I succeeded on all four fronts.

I got into the water and stayed a little to the right of the main pack, perhaps 10 yards off the right side and just kept a nice solid pace from the beginning all the way through to the end. It was kinda cool hearing the sea lions barking off in the distance from under wharf – as long as they stayed there. There really wasn’t much to report on the swim, I didn’t get kicked in the face or anything else – I just plodded along. I do wish they had more than three buoys, because of the gentle rolling seas it was a bit difficult to see the next point sometimes.

Total swim time: 34:13 (1.2 miles)

I’m the one in the middle in the photo below.

T1:
This would officially be the longest transition on earth. Seriously. I took some Virtual Earth imagery and doctored it up a bit to show how long it is. The red line is the swim course with the three orange buoys, and the red dots are the start/finish/T1. The blue line is the bike course as it heads out of town.


As far as execution on this, it involved first crossing 100 yards of loose beach sand, then going up a ramp, then down a concrete street for 1/3rd of a mile (yes, I measured it) in bare feet. Finally you get to the transition area.

Based on casual glances, I think my actual time in the transition ‘area’ was about 2:30 – a bit longer than I would have liked, but I knew that if I didn’t adequately take care of ridding my feet of all of the sand I would only pay the price later on the run. I did remember to have an extra water bottle with the lid removed with water at my bike to wash my feet. They also had Rubbermaid buckets with water at the entrance to T1. After loading everything up I was ready to go.

Total official T1 transition time was: 5:35

Bike:
Cycling is not my strongest suit. My general goal on the bike this year is to simply make it to the run with a respectable time. Well, actually – my real primary goal is for my bike not to malfunction. Based on all I’d heard from a number of folks who had done this course before, the idea was to make it quickly to the turnaround point (28 miles up the Pacific Coast Highway) before the headwinds kicked up, and then catch the daily southerly tailwinds back – the key being to make good time because the winds increase as the day goes on (thus making stronger headwinds for the way out). I basically followed that plan. My outbound was averaged 20mph and I made the turnaround point in 1:24:10. With the turnaround completed and I was all ready for that tailwind.

Hmm…no tailwind. In fact, I think there might be a slight headwind. No biggie, I’m sure in a few miles I’ll get a tailwind - perhaps I’m just at the wrong angle to the wind. 10 miles later…no tailwind. Ok. I guess I’m not getting a tailwind today. I was still maintaining pace, but I was slowing ever so slightly. I wasn’t sure if it was because I was tired, or if there was a head wind or what. And then I realized what the issue was. My front tire was slowly deflating. Not a ton, but enough that the bottom was slightly bulging.

I decided to press on for another couple of miles to see if it was just my brain playing tricks on me or if it was really slowly deflating.

Two miles later. Yup – deflating. I decided not to replace the tube and went with the pump instead. It took 90 seconds to complete the first pumping. This including standing over bike, get pump out, get tire situated for pumping and then pumping and putting it all away. Wow…the bike seemed fast after that. I was hauling. My average speed went from 18mph to over 22mph – with less effort to boot. It’s funny, on my speed charts from my GPS unit you can very clearly see where I inflated my tube, and then as time goes on a gradual slow down – and then it repeats again as I inflate/deflate again.

I ended up doing that drill once more around mile 49, roughly 10 miles after the first inflation. While these cost me some time, it saved me time changing a tube. I knew that if I changed a tube it would cost me at least 8-10 minutes. It was a gamble, but it worked. I strolled into town a short while later. When I picked up my bike after the race, my tire was fully deflated – it probably had less air in it than a new tire in the packaging.

The course was pretty cool, mostly just a lot of rolling hills. Here’s a shot on the way back into town (south toward Santa Cruz). As you’ll note, I haven’t started using aero bars yet – that’s on the list for the winter.

Overall Bike Time: 2:50:17 (Roughly 19.8mph)


Run
The run is my strongest sport and I count on it to make up time. I also know I over train for the run as I’m simultaneously following a marathon training plan for my run portion. I headed out of transition and onto the run, aside from a brief incline out of the transition area (maybe 100 feet), it was a very flat course. It basically strolls along the ocean’s edge, above the cliffs and crashing water. Very cool.

What wasn’t so cool was what happened around the first mile marker. My stomach wasn’t feeling quite right. I wasn’t sure what it was, but figured it wasn’t a big deal – just a minor stomach ache and that it would disappear. I was still maintaining a good pace – 7:37 minutes per mile, but things weren’t so good down south. I figured that maybe ridding myself of some of the liquid I had accrued during the run would help, and I happened to sight a port-a-potty just ahead (otherwise trees would have been in order). After a brief 60 second stop there, things still weren’t feeling so good. In fact, they were feeling downright bad. Pretty much like I was going to lose my breakfast.

At that point I remembered back to being sick as a kid and the rule of throwing up – it ALWAYS makes you feel better. So I figured that sounded like a great plan. At the 1.3 mile marker, the urge came and I threw up more than I ever have in my entire life. At least 30oz of pure liquid. It was like a firehouse. I’ve never done that before while exercising, so I’m not sure what happened. The whole trailside experience took about 5 minutes until there was simply nothing left, then I walked about 5 more minutes to let everything settle. I was surprised that while I was bent over 3 different people actually stopped and asked if I was alright (all racers, both male and female). Strangely no non-racers asked if I was alright (despite some passing by). I assured them that I was just giving nutrients to the plants and they carried on. Overall time lost: About 10-12 minutes (including the bathroom break).

As soon as I started running I was instantly back at around a 7:45 pace. I pretty much stayed at that pace for just about the rest of the race. I slowed down a touch on two long hills around miles 7/8.

The below photo is around mile 11 or so as we headed back into town. I’m the one in the photo who was told to smile. :)

There was one other evil part left. That would be the finish. If you refer to the swim map, the swim start is also where the finish line was, and the swim finish would be where you came down off the oceanside pathway (along left/bottom side of photo) and onto the beach for the last 1/3rd of a mile. Yes…the nice sandy beach. There was a group of four or five of us that all hit the sand at the same time and let out a communal groan. It was much like stepping off one of those flat people movers that are at the airport – you feel like you’ve just come to a stop. But with the finish line so close it wasn’t too bad. You made your way down to the water and ran along the water for a short distance, and then eventually back up onto the sand down a chute to the finish line. It was kinda fun dodging the water lapsing on the beach.

I finished in a time of 5:21:06. This ended up being about 9 minutes ahead of my goal time of 5:30, and within 60 seconds of my ‘predicted’ best case time based on some numbers I had run on Saturday night. Ironically all of my theoretical numbers were nearly dead on.

Conclusion
Overall I’m fairly happy with my first half iron. I lost a total of 3-5 minutes on the bike due to mechanical issues (tire), plus whatever unknown speed/work effort slowdowns I endured as part of the deflating tire. And I lost 10-12 minutes as part of the run cookie tossing incident. Without those I would have been in the 5:05-5:10 range. But what happens…happens, and I wouldn’t change a thing. Oh, and btw – I beat the 15 year old. Passed him at around the half way mark on the run. Because really…that’s all that counts.

I don’t know what caused my cookie incident, my suspicion is that my concentration of Heed/Perpetuem was to blame, but it’s never caused me issues in training. Not sure - I’ll have to keep tweaking that until I get it right, perhaps lowering the number of scoops.

I’m really looking forward to next spring and summer. I’ve got one more tri (The National Triathlon -an Olympic distnace one) this year left and then finish up with marathon season. After that I’m looking forward to working hard on the bike and swim to really improve in those areas. In the 4-5 months I’ve been cycling I’ve seen continual week over week improvements so I think a good solid winter of cycling will really help for next year. And ready to tackle Ironman Canada in 2008.

The Big Kahuna 70.3 race is a fun one and I’d definitely recommend it to anyone. There are some minor organizational things they could do tidy up, but nothing that took away from the event.