Race Report: John Tanner Sprint Tri I

On Saturday April 27th, I raced my first triathlon of the year. I came in to the race fairly undertrained for the swim and bike, but I came out happy with the final results. I finished close to a PR (when you adjust for the differences in distance) and a renewed sense that all the running I have been doing is paying off. Now I just need to do the same for the swim and the bike.

Tri The Parks is a local triathlon race series that holds races throughout state parks in Georgia. Before Saturday, I had not raced one of their races before. There was no reason for this other then scheduling conflicts or races too far from home to drive in race morning.

1st Choice Healthcare is a local chiropractic/sports massage company that is very active in the running and triathlon communities. You will find their chiropractors often at local races providing free post race massages and stretching out tight muscles.They were giving away several race entries a few weeks ago and I was lucky to snag a free entry into the Tri The Parks race at John Tanner State Park in Carrolton, GA.

Carrolton is about a 2 hour drive from my home. I was lucky that Tri The Parks has a race packet pickup at All 3 Sports which is about 20 minutes from my office. By picking up my packet during the week, I was able to get an extra half hour of sleep on race morning.

Saturday morning I got up at 4 AM and the first thing I did was to check the weather. We were facing a threat of heavy rain and I had already decided I would skip the race if the weather was not going to cooperate. While it was raining heavy by the house and more was on the way, there was no sign of rain in Carrolton. We left about 5 AM and were there just after 7.

When we arrived, the first thing that stood out to me was how close we actually parked to transition. In the 5+ years I have been doing triathlons, I have become accustomed to walking anywhere from half a mile to a mile from parking to transition. I was no more then 100 yards from the entrance to transition. I was lucky enough to get a end spot on my transition rack, which was only occupied by 3 other bikes. After the usual race morning routines, including chatting with friends, I headed down to the lake to test the water.

The night before, I broke out my wetsuit to get it race ready. It is important that before you wear it after several months with no use that you prep your wetsuit for a new season. my first step was to soak it overnight. Then, on Friday I did a short open water swim in it to stretch it back out and get used to wearing it again. When I got in the water to warm up on Saturday, I could definitely tell the difference between how it felt the night before. It felt much more comfortable. For more great tips on wetsuit maintenance check out All 3 Sports's Wetsuit 101 page.

I was in the second swim wave with all the Masters and my fellow clydesdales. I tried my best to find a spot right in the middle of the action before we took off. When the horn went off, I took the first 100 meters to find my rhythm and find my spot in the pack. The swim course had you swim along the shore, make a sharp almost a u-turn and swim back in the opposite direction before making the turn in towards the shore. When I made the turn, I got the sense that I was towards the front of my wave.

I ended up third out of the water in Clydesdales by about 20 seconds. I ran into transition with my wetsuit half off. I had my wetsuit off as soon as I hit my rack and was ready to head out on the bike

 

I did not have very high expectations going into the bike. I had not been out on the road since last year. Most weeks I was doing one spin class and one trainer ride. My only goal was to push myself as much as possible, trying not to be passed by too many clydesdales. I was passed by one or two clydesdales on the bike, but was glad I was at least able to maintain over 17 mph on a hilly course.

On the ride, I came to an important realization. I was fit on my bike two years ago when I purchased it by the person who sold it to me at the local bike shop. I had positive results the first tri bike I bought there, so I didn't have too much concern. Unfortunately as I found out last week, my fit was totally wrong for me. It was so uncomfortable to be in aero, I spent most of the time sitting up. By the time I got off my bike, my back hurt and my legs were tight. When I was in aero, my knees tended to flair out to the side. After being re-fit this weekend by one of the best fitters here locally, I am feeling much better on the bike.

By the time I got out on to the run, I knew there was little chance of placing in the Clydesdale division, but I still wanted to push myself and see if a PR was possible. I crossed the first mile in 8:49 and was feeling really good. I wanted to really push myself on the run and see how much speed I might actually have without having done any speed work.The next mile was much slower, but this was due in part to the "massive" half mile hill you climb before the turnaround at mile 2. I took one or two short walk breaks as I climbed the hill, but once I turned around and headed downhill, I picked my pace back up and averaged 9:13 on my last mile. One thing I have noticed in the last few months since increasing my volume is that even when I have to slow down or walk up a hill, my heart rate and breathing recover much quicker so I can pick my pace back up. 

Overall I was pleased with my results.The weather was perfect and I pushed myself to the best of my current fitness level. They run this same race again in September and I have already decided to go back then and do even better.

Total Time - 1:33:03

Swim - 12:46 (2:08/100m)

T1 - 1:42

Bike - 48:02 (17.24 mph)

T2 - 1:39 (Got "lost" in transition")

Run - 28:54 (9:19/mi)

This race started off 4 straight weeks of racing. This past Saturday, I ran the Big Peach Leukemia 5K. It was a soggy, hilly, cold mess, but I finished in 28:52. I was happy with this result because I kept a fairly steady pace for all 3 miles, even though the course was hilly.

This weekend I have a 10 mile trail race that I am really looking forward to. It will be my first ever trail race. I have been running trails at least once a week for several months now. The only thing I am slightly concerned about is the weather. We have received several inches of rain in the past week. Over the weekend parts of this trail were flooded There is more rain in the forecast for tomorrow night and Saturday morning. This may turn the 10 mile trail race into a 10 mile mud race. Either way, I am looking forward to a fun race

March Totals and planning out the rest of the year

I know, I know, I am over a week late, but I just have to recap March. March was a spectacular month. I finished my first 50K, attained Marathon Maniac Status (#6820) , and ran the most miles in a single month that I ever have (107). I am feeling stronger then ever when it comes to my running. I still have some ways to go to reach PR paces, but I am finishing many of my runs faster then I started them. I even won a free entry into a sprint tri at the end of the month. Now I just need to work on my swim and bike.

My successes with running long is helping to build confidence and helping shape my schedule for the rest of the year. I have decided to pursue the longer-ish running distances for the year, and use triathlon mostly as cross training and to fill in the slow time during the summer where there aren't many local options for longer races. I won't likely ever give up triathlon, but right now, my heart just isn't in to spending the extended hours on a bike or in the pool that would be necessary to train for an Ironman. This may change next year, but for now I just want to focus on running and have put my goal to finish an ironman on hold.

In addition to the longer distance, I have begun running trails a couple times a week. One thing I know from researching races is that many of these races will be on trails or dirt roads. I am actually finding that I truly enjoy trail running. My county recently opened up several new dual use (mountain bike/pedestrian) trails close to my house, so it is easy to find time to hit the trails. I even leave the tunes at home when I run the trails and just focus on the run and my surroundings. I have even added some local trail races to my tentative schedule for the rest of the year.

Right now, I am signed up for the following:

4/27 - John Tanner Sprint Tri
5/18 - Turtle Crawl Olympic
7/26-7/28 Lake Guntersville TriCamp
11/9 - Disney Wine n Dine Half Mar

Jan 2014 - Disney Goofy

Tentative Races:

5/4 Big Peach Lukemia 5K
5/11 Mountain Man Dam Hard 4/10 Miler Trail Race
7/6 Merril's Mile 12 Hour - Dahlonega (Can either run day or night)
8/17 Area 13.1
9/28 North Face 50K (My B-Day Weekend)
10/12 Frogtown 4/10 Miler (Have always wanted to do this race)
10/19 Mountain Man Trail Half - Buford Dam
10/26 Silver Comet Half (Last chance to pace Cathy for WDW corral placement)
11/28 Tryptophan Half
12/8 Pine mountain 40 Miler


Those in Bold are races Cathy and I have already discussed about both doing. One of the things I have promised to do for her is help pace her to a sub 3 hour half marathon in order to improve our placement at the 2014 Disney Marathon. This year we were in the second to last corral. We would like to be in an earlier corral to give us additional time, including some time to actually stop for photo ops.


March Totals:

Swim:1,010 Meters
Bike: 29 Miles + 2 Spin classes
Run 107 Miles (281 miles for the year)

I am ahead of my goal to run 1,000 miles in 2013. As of tonight, I have run 322 miles. By the end of the week, I will be a third of the way to my goal, around 3 weeks ahead of schedule. My goal right now is to get settle into a weekly mileage to somewhere between 30-40 miles. Last week I ran 33 and expect to run at least that much this week.

I am thinking through some changes to the blog, including a new name. I started this blog to chronicle my journey to becoming a triathlete. I have accomplished that and so much more.

Race Report: Stroll in Central Park 12 Hour

A week ago Saturday, I completed my first 50K. It took 8 hours and almost 20 minutes, but I did it. I had an awesome time and am already looking for options for my next ultra race.

I have been trying to write this report all week. Work has been crazy busy and I just haven't had time to write It. I had hoped to write a more detailed report, but I have only had time to write the following breif report.

The race consisted of a 1.03 mile loop around the ball fields of a local park repeated for up to 12 hours. That neighborhood south of the park is where I live. It was nice to be so close to home for this race. 

My plan was to keep a super easy pace and as long as I could maintain a 4/1 Run/Walk plan. Through the first 13 miles, I maintained an average pace of about 12:30. While this was slightly slower then my pace at A1A, all the advice I received told me to take it really easy in order to make it all the way to 50K

Things slowed down for the next 7-10 miles. At some point I switched to a 3/2 plan and eventually all hopes of keeping any set run/walk By mile 20, I felt like I was crawling. At about mile 25, I started to find a bit of a second wind and at least increased the amount I was running again. At this point all I wanted to do was finish up.

I crossed my finish line when I finished up lap 31 for a total of 31.93 miles. I felt like I could have kept going, but I didn't want to put too much extra strain on my body which would prolong my recovery time. I have already planned to return next year and do the whole 12 hours.

One week post ultra, I am still recovering. I hope to be back to 100% in another week or two. For the next couple of months I will transition to tri mode and back off on at least the long run distance. Once I am recovered, I will at least build my weekday runs to about 5 miles each. By August, I will transition back into longer running in preparation for running long during the winter and spring.

By completing my 3rd Marathon or longer race in less then 90 days, I officially qualified for marathon maniac status. I am now Marathon Maniac number 6820.

February Totals and Plans for March

February was a great month for running, but not so great for swimming and biking. I have been enjoying running so much, it has been hard to get on the bike or in the pool. It's great having a gym at work. I can block time on my calendar and head down for a run on the dreadmill or once it is warmer again I can head out for a run on the nearby greenway. Now I just need to find time to swim and bike.

Swim: 1 stinking swim.

Bike: 3 Rides. 2 Trainer rides - 35 miles and one 45 min spin class

Run: 86.74 miles - still on track to reach my goal of 1000 miles this year

I ran two races in February

• The Cupid Chase 5K - Just a fun 5K
• A1A Marathon - 2nd marathon of the year, glad to finish another one, but still not a stellar performance (GI issues)

Had a little bit of calf pain a week out of A1A, but with a few days of no running and properly treating it, the pain is gone.

My plans for March, as with most of the year continues to evolve. My goal for March has been to achieve Marathon Maniac status by completing 3 Marathons in less then 90 days. My 3rd marathon was going to be the Publix GA Marathon.

This weekend, while on my long run, I ran into a friend from one of the running groups I sometimes run with. She is putting on a 12 hour race the same weekend as the marathon.. This race is half the price of the marathon, and is at the park that backs up to my neighborhood. When I got home, I researched the Marathon Maniac qualification standards and determined that as long as I complete at least 50K (31 Miles) in the 12 hours I can count that race. I don't necessarily have to complete all 12 hours, I can drop once I hit 50K if I would like, or continue on until the end. So it looks like I will be completing my Marathon Maniac status with my first Ultra. I am looking forward to it.

April's Half Iron is very much still up in the air. We have booked a room, but I haven't yet signed up for the race. There are a few things keeping me from signing up for this race. The first is my bike fitness, or lack thereof. I am not sure how much I will be able to gain in the next 6 weeks. 

The next issue is that after 3 months with 3 long races, it is probably a good idea to back down on my running mileage, especially in terms of my long run, for a few months. This will allow my legs to recover and be ready to start training for the Wine n Dine half in November. I am really hoping to go for a PR (and maybe even break 2 hours) in that race, so I need to have fresh legs to start that training. My only races in May - July are a few Olympic triathlons, and the training camp which I am really looking forward to.

One race I may do in April is the warrior dash. I have always wanted to do one, and I have a few friends doing it. I had leaned against doing it because it is 1 week prior to the half iron. Now that that race is looking less likely, I will probably do it.

Hope all of you had a great February and that March is even better

Win a free entry into the Publix Georgia Marathon

Tim over at 26.2 Quest is giving away a free entry into the Publix Georgia Marathon. This is the next race on my schedule. Why don't you stop by and enter for your chance to race for free?