Now... interestingly... golfing and triathlons have some things in common... much like driving, chipping and putting... there is swimming, biking and running... each discipline in the respective sport requires attention and dedicated training. You can over practice in one area and under practice in another... and let's face it... there are some days where you just never know which person is going to show up... the one that can drive (swim) or the one that can putt (run)... but being able to string them all together on the same day is the goal!
Goal: top 10 Age Group finish
Event: 400y OWS/13 mile bike/5K run
Location: Oak Mountain State Park (VERY hilly bike and run but same course as Powerman)
Saturday 11 June 2011
0415- Alarm goes off... shower... shave... don race kit.... prepare coffee (thanks love for getting up and doing that)... prepare oatmeal.... scurry around the house going over the checklist one last time just to ensure I am not forgetting something.
Now the beauty of today is that Cassidy and Sydney are going to join me for the event... I cannot begin to tell you just how nice it is to have family there to cheer you on... the "GO DADDY GO!!!" gives me goosebumps and is a real motivator. Okay... the really amazing part is that my 16 year old and 10 year old daughters are going to get up at 0430 on a Saturday morning to go with me.... love you guys for making that sacrifice!
0500- out the door for the 1+15 hour drive... eat my oatmeal... drink water and coffee... mentally go over the transitions and bike course in my head...
0600- Eminem "Lose Yourself" on volume 11... just to get the game face on... the girls think I am nuts... probably some truth in there...
0615- arrive at Oak Mountain State Park... $7 to get in which... {grabbing soapbox}... really pisses me off that they stage an event in a State Park and you are forced to pay the entry fee to get to the event... charge me $5 more on my race entry fee and make the entry to the park free... one car per racer... sheesh... {off soapbox}
0625- arrive in Transition and begin the setup... everything goes as planned...
0700- Pre-race meeting to discuss course layout... then we head down to the water... plan is to get in and do a short warm up swim prior to the start...
0710- arrive at the water exit point... girls grab a prime seat on the bench located on the hill side and have a front row seat to the water exit area. I walk over to the swim start... DOH... forgot to put on my heart rate monitor strap... oh well... at this point I can sense where my heart rate is based on feel... no worries! I make my way into the water and realize that the entry.... which is a time trial start... is into a mucky lake bed filled with rocks, sticks, trash can lid, etc... racers are in there pulling out all of the debris to avoid people getting hurt on water entry... NOT GOOD TEAM MAGIC! I do a quick 50 yard out and back swim... I feel good!
0730- Time trial swim starts... I am #155... before I know it... I am next... "GO"... I run down into the mucky lake... and run by a couple of swimmers that chose to start swimming early to avoid the bottom... I dive in and start the swim... I quickly settle into a nice rhythmic pace and having learned my lesson at Peachtree... I come up for a buoy sighting every 10th stroke... first 3 are spot on... so I put my head down and decide to power swim for 20 strokes... low and behold... when I come up to sight... I have gone left and now I am inside the intended line... I hunker down and get back on track... I round the first buoy making a left hand turn and start a really nice pace... very controlled... I feel great... next thing I know I am approaching the second left turn.. around the buoy and headed to the beach... and I am passing people... before I know it I am in shallow water... I stand up and run to the waters edge... swim cap and goggles off... and up the hill... I hear "GO DADDY GO!!" (cue the goosebumps)
The swim time did not click over to T1 until we were at the top of the hill... and by all accounts I have read... most believe the swim was a bit long... Swim time= 7:55... 6th best in AG...
T1- I quickly make my way into Transition... find my bike... throw on my helmet, sunglasses, watch, cycling shoes and grab my bike... and run to the mount line... T1 time= 2:03... it could be a tad bit shorter but this included a lengthy run from the lake to the parking lot where Transition was staged.
FLYING MOUNT... I nailed it... passing several riders who stop to mount their bikes... I quickly start pedaling and once up to speed I click in my pedals... BEST ONE YET!!!
Bike- Now... I have ridden this course 7 times on several training rides as well as in the PowerMan Alabama race.. so I know the course and I have analyzed all the data... for some reason today was not my day on the bike... and for some other reason... I had my fastest average downhill speeds ever on this course and my slowest average uphill speeds... the result was a less than average ride... I am not really sure what was going on but I know I was very disappointed in the bike portion... I can only hope the guy that knows how to putt shows up today...
I get passed by several folks... all on triathlon bikes... I pass several on some of the climbs as well as a couple of folks on mountain bikes but that is less than satisfying... all in all it is a less than average ride.
T2- So I am coming into what I think is the end of the bike and the entry to Transition... I take my right foot out of my shoe and begin pedaling on top of my shoe... thinking I am about to make a left hand turn into T2.. but no one is signaling me to turn... I continue down the road and pass Transition on the left as I head back out into the woods the wrong direction... I panic... start pedaling harder... glad I have one foot still clicked in... I weave around the curvy, winding road... for what is a really scenic ride but there are ZERO people... and I do not see another rider anywhere... I make my way up the switchbacks... pedaling hard... in sheer panic that I am off course and missed a turn... I make it up the last switchback and realize I am heading back in the right direction finally... I can hear the announcer... WHEW... I am on the course... but this will serve as a serious lesson to double check the route and not assume it is the same as last time... I quickly take my left foot out of my shoe and pedal to the dismount line...
Bike time= 45:03 (my worst effort by more than 4 mins; 17.3 mph avg; 10th in AG)
I quickly hop off the bike and start running with it to my spot... I find it easily... rack my bike, helmet off, hat on... Now... I pre-staged socks just in case I decided to run with socks although I had practiced without... it was only 0825 but it was already in the 90s and humid... I was soaked with sweat from the bike ride and decided to run with socks... this obviously costs time but I made my decision...
Socks on... shoes on... grab my race belt... and I am off... I switch over my watch to running and will put my belt on as I run up the first hill... T2 time= 2:19
Run- now the run course was a mixed blessing.... it was on an unimproved road through the woods... so it was nicely shaded but IT WAS HILLY! the first 1/3 mile is straight up a hill... I feel pretty good but I am waiting for my legs to shift from biking... I get passed by a couple of dudes as well as two women... RUN YOUR OWN RACE... fortunately there were several water stations on the run and at each one I take a cup of water... a quick sip or two and then dump it on my head... I AM HOT... as we pass the 1 1/4 mile point we start a long uphill climb... but before I know it I am at the half way point turn around... a quick glance at the watch shows I am picking up speed... I settle into a nice pace with controlled breathing and based on my training I know I am running at the top of my aerobic zone... perfect... Now.. for some reason I feel REALLY good and pick up the pace... my stride length grows... my breathing is steady... and my plan is to keep this pace up for as long as I can.... I begin to pace people... LOTS of people to include one of the guys that passed me at the start as well as both women... one lady says "strong run dude... finish strong" as I go by her... I make my way up the last climb and as I make my way down the hill knowing the finish is near... I can hear someone coming up from behind... he is gaining on me... getting closer... then just as I exit the woods and head into the finishing chute... he slingshots around me... he had momentum but I decide that I am not going to get punked at the end... I start to run as fast I possibly can... a valiant effort but I am not going to catch him...
Turns out.. he is 18 years old and finishes 20th overall... but I cross the finish line just behind him to great fanfare as they watched the pass occur...
Run time= 23:34 (7:52/mile avg; 6th in AG)
Total time= 1:20:53... good enough for 10th in AG... goal accomplished despite a poor bike effort!
Post Race- Fluid Recovery drink, water and great conversation with some of the guys there I know... then pack up my stuff and head back home.
Overall- I had what was a good swim for me... and a real confidence booster... a below average bike... and a GREAT run... one of my best runs to date... all in all it felt like one of those days on the golf course where you hit nearly every drive in the rough or woods but then sink some long putts for par... it is a grinder kind of day... a lot of effort required to stay mentally focused but in the end the overall score is really not too bad... maybe a beer cart in triathlons would help!
HUGE shoutout to my family for once again supporting me in both my training as well as my girls getting up early to make the trek with me... a stop at Whataburger on the way home made the trip worth their sacrifice! GINORMOUS kudos to Cassidy for all the great photos along the way... I love you guys!
Attitude Trumps Pain!
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