A new year...

I figured I would start off the new year atleast doing 1 blog post... my goal is once at least month but will see how that goes..  2011 was a good year.. My family is healthy and growing like little weeds.. My racing went pretty well.. it was capped off by winning the new Red Rock AZ Tri Series Championship Belt.. we are talking WWF style belt.. pretty sweet...

Now as 2012 comes I am focusing on an upcoming 50 Ultra Marathon on trails in early March.  From there it will be some triathlons, duathaons, and some bike races.. I am taking a break from Ironman in 2012 which is hard for myself to fathom but it is probably overdue.. I guess Chrissy Wellington and I have something in common.. of course I have not won every IM race I have done.. not even close.. but hey have to start somewhere right..

So I guess this is post 1 so I am starting off in the right direction...  

Nex post I will give some details on the mindset of the ultra training, the fun and pain..

Andy
 

I'm back... Talk about a delayed race report....

OK.... So I have been a bit behind (ok way behind) on my updates.. Since my last one I have done an Ironman, a sprint tri, olympic tri, gone and returned from my work sabbatical, and most importantly my wife and I were blessed with our 3rd child - Charlotte Susannah.

So big things first... Charlotte Susannah was born on June 12 at 6:52am - 8lbs 7ozs- 21inches. she has since grown quite bid by now and her big sister (5) and big brother (3) can't wait for her to mobile.  It is always amazing how small they are when they are born ... it makes my boy look like a grown adult... The kids have really taken to her with little issue.  Mom is doing wonderful.. she is an amazing woman.

So a couple of races...

Ironman St George:  Race went ok.   The morning started early like all long races.. breakfast and then off to the race venue to drop off bags.  I grabbed a ride with a couple others who were staying in the same building so I did not have to get the family up way too early... on the way to the race.. Utah's finest decided to pull the car over but after a quick no ticket stop we were on our way. 

I dropped off race bags and boarded the bus to the start...  It has been a while since I have done a long race with out the support of my large traning group Racelab. I got to the swim start and went to get my bike already... asked to borrow a pump for a minute (we could only bring what would fit in our morning clothes bag) and the guy next to me says' "Umm.... no I just want to go"  OK... hope karma finds its way to you in the morning... so I waited in the long line to ensure I had enough pressure in the tires...

Swim: The water was a baumy 56 degrees - so needless to say I had on a thermal cap, ear plugs and the race cap.  The swim was rough.. got beat up pretty bad by a bunch of people who just could not swim straight... some cut the course and kept rolling... not sure what happended to them.   I could not pull away as my right calf cramped twice and my left once during the swim.. gotta love cold water races...  the water had a long lasting effect on my all day as at the time I did not realize that the side stitch that I had would stay with me until I finished...

Bike:  The bike went well I tried to pace myself and stuck to my heartrate plan.  The only issue I had was trying to get rid of that stupid side stitch... it just wouldnot leave.. the climbs were nothing I was not trained for so they were not really that bad at all.. plus a slight tail wind on the steepest one helped.. we did climb alot.. something like 8000 ft but being a person of smaller size that was cool with me.. met some great people out there including a race marshal who I chatted with for a while. The scenery was amazing though!

Run: The run started off great considering you gain and lose 1400 feet each out and back portion.. started on target with a 8:05 pace on the uphill section on the way out. .then when I wanted to take advantage of the fast down hills my old friend side stitch decided he wanted to rear his ugly head and slowed me down.  I am not one to complain about pain but I could not eat/drink like I wanted to with it and it bit me on the butt.  I had to result to some walking which is not what I planned for.. i trained hard for this run and I set up the race to have a great run but with a knife in the side sensation and low food it was not to be.. so I pushed where I could and finished.. 11:40..  1 hr slower than I projected based on this course and all of it was lost on the run... I forgot to mention too.. I cut my foot in a training incident 4 days before the race, but that is another post...

So 2 weeks later I decided to do the Tempe International Sprint triathlon.. might as well have fun..  I cleaned the bike from Ironman and road for an hour or 2 since Ironman... ran a bit.. swam some too.. nothing much...  the race was fun and fast (except my swim - which was long).. but boy I did not have the power needed to push my normal pace on the bike.. much different than long sustained efforts of an Ironman... run went as I passed a few on the run to finished 8th overall. 

I then took some much need time off relaxing (aka training just not the volume) and kicked off my more serious training with the mountain man triathlon.  Race went well at an altitudeabove 7000 feet.  Swim went pretty well for a 200+ meter longer than supposed to be course... the bike is always challenge on this course as you have 3 climbs onthe way out you need to dose your energy out for.  road well.. caught the waves in front of me and was off on the run.. the run went well.. i ran down quite a few people on the flats as well as the 1 mile long switch back climb.  finished strong and in the top 15 so was happy...

next update wil lbe about my currnt training, upcoming races, and so great product review.. have a great day.

Sweet revenge....

As my Ironman St George preparations start to reveal the light at the proverbial end of the tunnel I am looking back from where I have come since "Running Hot" at my last 1/2 marathon....  After that slight hiccup in training, I have been feeling very well.  My workouts have been great and the numbers are saying I am on track.. now to just get to the line with the same energy levels and mojo I have now...

So to say it was sweet revenge on Sunday after I raced another 1/2 marathon about 5 weeks since my horrible race while getting sick would be an understatement... I went in last Sunday's race with significant volume leading up to the race the last 3 days including:

Thursday: 3hr ride at Base

Friday:  Swim 3000 meters, 6 mile tempo run w/6 trips up Tempe's A Mountain (400+ feet climb in less than 1/4 mile - ouch)

Saturday:  6 hour ride at South Mountain (10K of climbing)

So when Sunday came around I was not sure where my legs would be.  I tried to recover well on Saturday which always includes my First Endurance Ultragen.  I have been using FE products for over 6 years so I can attest to their greatness.. Ultragen enables me to recover well...  So Sunday morning wake up rolls around at 3:45am, drive to Tucson, and get ready to race.  So to warm up I brought out my bike on its ttrainer and rode for about 45 mins at the Racelab tent.  You can imagine how many looks I got riding my bike prior to the running race.   Listening to my tunes, joking with my teammates, and spinning helped get my legs nice and warm for the start and my spirits in a great mood...

Once the gun went off it was show time.. Like i said I was not sure what the legs had in them but I was going to see... I hit mile 1 in 5:50 and then subsequently hit mile 2 bit slower with a long steep uphill section (the out & back course all rolling hills)... I got my pace setteled in and before I knoew it my heart rate was my base zone and I was clipping off 5:50 - 6:10 miles... I hit the turn around at 39:50.. I could feel the workouts on my legs miles 8 -10 but kept plugging along.. Came across the line at 1:19.52 for a 9th Overall Finish and 1st in 35-39 Age Group.  

I felt great at the finish..legs felt strong, no aches.. walked through the food area.. grabbed some food for later, water to make my ulragen and then headed out to cheer everyone else on...

It was a great day and a great end of a hard training week!.. Revenge is sweet...

Do you know where your mojo is?

Many athletes train for many months and even years for that one "big event" - whether it is a 1/2 marathon, marathon or a iron distance triathlon - the mind set is the same.  We all have this single focused mindset with our goals in mind:  1. Finish  2. Have Fun  3.  Finish Fast.  So we train with our "eye on the prize" and leave everything else to the side.  We must get our training in so our new friends are Mr Pool, Mrs bike, and cannot forget the twins - Left Running Shoe and Right Running Shoe.  Our training buddies and coaches are on speed dial.. it is all systems go!

So the "big event" comes - you execute your plan, have fun, and maybe even race faster than you thought.  You bask in the glory that night and next few days or maybe weeks with your family,  friends,  training partners, coaches, etc.

So then what?  What is next?  You worked hard,  achieved your goals, and now your "big event" is over.  what do you do?

You do what is natural to you, the same thing you have done for the past months or maybe years - you hop back on bike and you roll towards the next adventure.  The ride is fun, seeing everyong is great but something does not seem the same.  You feel flat or at times not motivated... heck it may even seem more like a chore than the joy and fun it usually is. So you plan on doing another race but the training is off and results not what you wanted... you think to yourself.. this sucks. what is wrong...

Does this sound familiar?  If not you are lucky.  If so I have been there with you..

I have done the large events and raced well.. then hopped back in to the next training cycle... only to find my training being flat and at times going through the motion.. the fun seemed to be not there as much as the past.. so what do you do..

The first time this happened.. I was not prepared.. got through it but was not fun.. the second time though I was already planning my next fun adventure or race during my training.. so I had something to go towards afterwards.. A fun race.. It has helped a ton.. but like anything else goal related this works for some time and then it slowly dwindles..

I think I have finally figured out how to get back to the fun.. that is to go out and ride with friends for the pure joy and fun of riding.. is there a purpose sure.. but the purpose is to look at things in a different light.. turn off the powermeter, the speedometer, the garmin, etc.. and go ride.. enjoy nature.. stop to take pictures with friends, have a fun conversation, meet new people, say hello to the roadie riding by who is too busy to even say hello... basically go and have fun... get back to the reason you do train and race.. friends, good times, and post race fun (mm Margis).. that is what it is about.

I have been blessed with the opportunity to do this and let me tell you.. I have gotten my mojo back and it is stronger than it was before... and I am amazed what I can acheive with the new look on things..

so I want to thank all my family and great friends that helped make this happen.. without you I would still be plugging along but without that fire in the eyes and joy in my spirit..

Lets remember life is not about the desitiny but rather the journey to get there.

TriSwim, Running Hot, and Sharpie is gone...

As with most triathletes, we are either kicking off the training season or are in full training mode already as we get ready for those key early season races like Rev3 Knoxville.  We are all swimming in public pools unless you are luck enough to have your own 25 meter lap pool in your backyard (if so can you be my neighbor?) which means some annoying lane hogs (doing thier 2 minute 25m quasi breast stroke), old school speedo violations (breaking the laws of physics) and high levels of chlorine blessing us with that wonderful aromatic chlorine smell.   So when I started using my new SBR Sports TriSwim I was very excited on how well it worked.  The products eliminated the smell that says "Yes I swam at lunch today!" which is a wonderfull thing.  Check these products out if you have not done so already.. now if they could only come up with something to get rid of the old school speedo violations! Please?! 

So my training has been going well until I hit small bump in the road - named sickness.. caught whatever was being passed around here for a couple days.. which as nomral I refused to let my mind think I was sick.. it was not until mile 2 of Sunday's 1/2 marathon did I realize that holy crap I am sick, I can't respond to the recent pack surge, and this is going to hurt more than I was planning.  I mentally made the decision to push what I can and see where the chips fell but with low mental and physical energy it was tough.. I had to revise my goal from being top 5 to finishing under 1:29 and boy was that a struggle to hit that.. I made it across the line in 1:28, dehydrate, coughing, and not very energentic.  So I tried to eat some food, down some caffiene, and headed home for a nap... Little did I know the next morning I would feel like I had been ran over by a truck.. legs hurt, back hurt, arms hurt.. but dragged myself out of bed to ride a reduced time of 2.5 hours and climbed a little over 4000 feet.. afterwards the legs felt ok and I could atleast touch my toes.. but the energy was hit or miss.. time I felt the killer instinct and times I felt the can I fall back to sleep..   I feel better now and almost back to normal energy.  I am happy that I mentally stayed with it even though the body was saying no.. I tempered the stratagies and plans but it would have been so easy to say "I am done!"

So the last note is that my training partner, Sharpie, decided to head back north to remember what it was like to see snow, freezing temps, and ride the trainer.  Carole will be missed  y the Racelab group as we ride in ths beautiful weather but we were fortunate to have her around and look for her to return like the wind..
Happy training,

Andy

February training, my new Saucony shoes, and some new partners...

February training is going well out here in the nice Arizona weather... the Racelab team I train with has been very fortunate to have Trakkers' infamous Carole Sharpless out here for a while.. she is our new honorary Racelab member.. the team has been training well and pushing me hard as I work to get ready for an upcoming race in St George.. then time to focus on the Rev3 races..

My new saucony shoes came in the mail - the Saucony Tangent 4 and have done some great runs in them including a hard fast track workout last night as I get ready for my 4 hour mountainous ride saturday and my 1/2 marathon race sunday (crazy I know).. The shoes are awesome - they are comfortable and needed no break in time. If you need a good pair of light training shoes these are definitely ones to try out...

Also I wanted to send some notes out about some new sponsors/partners of racelab .. Michelob Ultra, Bareskin, Towels, Max Muscle Scottsdale, and the Ron Pina Agency of Farmers Insurance -.. check these guys out.. I will be sending more info on them later about the great products & services they offer...

Now it is time to go swim and work on getting those gills...

Andy

The Training Season begins

I hope all is well out there. The training season officially kicked off with a good week of training followed by racing the PF Chang's 1/2 Marathon in Phoenix. The race went well and I am happy with it.. especially after a 3hr+ bike ride the day before. right at 6:20 mile pace for a 1:23.01... The race also served as a good beta test for Trakkers as we had many athletes out there testing the devices. The testing went great and I look forward to the official launch of it.. keep checking www.trakkersgps.com..

I also have been training with my Friend from Boulder - Carole Sharpless. She is a hoot and holler as normal.. I am looking forward to my lunch she owes me after losing a bet on the PF Chang's race... can we say "Ruth Chris Steakhouse" .. just kidding I am sure it will be more like taco bell value menu.. but the company is all that matters..

So only about 15 weeks to St George Ironman and then time to think about the Rev2Tri races (www.rev3tri.com).. so the training is in full mode... looking forward to running in my new Saucony shoes..

BTW if you have not tried the new formula for First Endurance's Optygen HP - you should.. it is awesome... Thanks Robert and tema for making great products..

Finally a quick shout to my Coach Bettina a Racelab (www.racelab.com) who is continuing to find new ways to push me and work to get me stronger and faster... to deal with me she should get paid a lot more.. really she is great.. thanks Bettina and thanks everyone who was cheering on Sunday..

Happy Training.