Lonestar 70.3

Nothing like starting off my season with the US National Championships thanks to Lonestar 70.3 getting the honor after I had already decided to do it. Oh well, I was up for the challenge :) I headed down to Galveston, TX Friday evening with my parents. Unfortunately my husband had to stay home this trip (this is one of the only races he has actually missed) and it was definitely strange not having him there. However, my parents are experienced race supporters so I knew I would be in good hands. The flight down to Galveston was short and sweet. After traveling to and from Australia in March, this 3hour trip was a piece of cake. We arrived in Galveston late Friday night and were looking forward to checking in and going to bed. Unfortunately our hotel had overbooked the rooms and apparently given ours away. Nice! Luckily they were able to get us a room in the hotel next door (although it wasn’t quite as nice as the hotel we had booked) and since it was way too late to argue we took the room and hoped for the best. It turned out to not be too bad. The next morning I was up bright and early since pre-race day is always super busy. I ate breakfast and headed out for a run. I couldn’t believe how windy it was and the ocean was a mess. Fortunately the storm was expected to pass through and it was supposed to clear up by race day. I headed over to the expo to say hi to Jake, go to the pro meeting (a non-wetsuit swim, bummer), and then off to dinner with Jake, Sam and Cliff and Tim. We ate at this great little restaurant in the historic district of Galveston. All the food looked so good and I would have loved to try some of their more creative entrees but I had to settle for a bit safer pre-race dinner (which was still good). I was surprised with how well I slept that night since I was pretty wound up for this race. I had an interesting mix of nerves and excitement and found myself fluctuating between “Yippee!” and “OMG!” every few seconds for the past week. Anyway, I was glad when the gun finally went off and I could start racing. The nerves always go away instantly. The bad news is that the first part of the race did not go as planned. I was totally expecting to have a good swim here after all the swim training I had done in Australia and with my pool times improving. I’m not exactly sure what happened but I missed the pack right from the beginning and just never really found my groove. The water was a lot rougher than I expected and I just couldn’t get going. I headed into T1, gave my dad a dirty look because I KNEW how bad my swim was and headed off onto the bike. Things did not look to be going any better on the bike as I saw my mph were way slower than I had expected. I gave up on looking at my speedometer and just focused on my effort and sticking to my nutrition plan. I am notoriously bad at following a nutrition plan but I had strict instructions from Coach Dan (basically every detail starting planned with breakfast) and I knew he would kill me if I did not follow it. The bike course is an out and back and flat as a pancake. You go straight out for 23miles and then turn around and come straight back for 23miles. Not very exciting but it actually seemed to go by pretty quickly. I was surprised to see at the turnaround that the other pro women were not as far ahead of me as I had expected. I was also thrilled to find out that we had been riding into a pretty strong headwind and I was flying on the way back. My bike split ended up being a new PR for me (thanks in part to my speedy Orbea!) and I headed onto the run feeling good with my fingers crossed it would stay that way. I had pushed the second half of the bike pretty hard and was hoping it wouldn’t hurt me too much on the run. The run is 4 loops around the park with lots of twists and turns. It was a fun course and I was amazed at the number of spectators and support on the run course. I had a few bad spots on the run although my new best friend, the salt tabs, did save my life once or twice. The last lap of the run hurt pretty bad but at least I was able to keep moving. I crossed the finish line, got a big hug from Jake, grabbed a few bottles of water (it was getting hotter by the minute!), found my parents and headed right to the massage tent. Other than my horrible swim, my race ended up being one of my best halfs to date so I couldn’t be too disappointed. My parents and I headed off for some Mexican food and a quick tour of Galveston Island before headed back to Philly.

Las Palomas Triathlon Race Report

Jamie and I drove down to Rocky Point on Friday morning, having stopped at Sky Harbor to pick up Jamie's friend from college Jen who was going to join us and run her first 5K race. And of course, the dogs came with us as well for some fun on the beach and in the Sea of Cortez! We crossed the border quickly and arrived at the Las Palomas resort around 1:00pm. We had a beautiful two bedroom 4th floor condo overlooking the pool area and ocean on one side and the Transition area on the back. We were literally 4 stories above tranisiton! Set up was going to be so easy and relaxing. We picked up our packets and had an early dinner at the resort. I enjoyed a few beers and a maragrita and was ready for bed. I slept well.

Race morning dawned and we got up around 6:00. I made coffe and relaxed until about 6:45 when I started to bring our bikes down in the elevator to claim some rack space. It was empty so I put us up at the very front, only about 20 feet from the mount line. As such, i decided to not leave my shoes clipped in and would just run in them instead as it was so short.

Now I had checked the athlete list looking for the two guys who beat me last year and didn't see them so I was optomistic I might be able to win the race. The names I did recognize I knew I could handle, but of course it's the guy's you don't know about who can suprise you. One name in particular I was looking for was Patrick Bless, a 37 year old pro from Germany now living in Tuscon. He won last year and is usually first at other Olympic races locally when he enters. I mean, they guy went 9:14 in Koan the year I went 9:40.

We put on our wet suits up in the room and then went down to the beach about 20min before the start. The weather was great but the wind coming off the ocean was causing a lot of wave action. I swam around to warmp up a bit. There were two waves for the men, under 40 and over 40 seperated by 4:00. They sent the under 40 wave off at 9:00 and I watched as the surf blew them all to bits and pushed them all over the course. I knew what to expect now and made a decsion on the line I would take to the first marker. I stood at the front of my wave and at 9:04, we were off.

Swim- 1000 Meters, 18:23
I immediatley went hard to get away from everyone. I stayed well to the left as the waves and current were pushing everyone to the right and too far off course. i could see one other guy with me taking this line. The waves were crashing right into our faces and I had to stop a few times to empty out my googles! It was rough getting out there. I felt comfortable and rounded the first marker pretty much alone. Once on the down beach leg, the waves were coming from my right. I allowed the current to keep me well left of any othwer swimmers as I was now getting into the back of the first wave. You couldn't see the buoys due to the waves so I just swam and wuld occasionally glimpse a marker or the Sprint buoys so i was at least heading in the right direction. My thoughts at this time were not of my race but of Jamie who was about to start the Olympic race. I knew this would be the roughest water she will have ever had to contend with and I was hoping she wouldn't panic and make it. I put the odds at 50/50 she would pull out. One of the best parts of this day was when I saw her on the bike, I was so proud of her!

I finally found the turn buoy and headed back to the beach. You would body surf some waves and go flying forward and then the undertow would grab you and push you back out. It was wild! As soon as my hand touched sand, i jumped up and ran out of the water. My watch said 16:XX wich for 1000M made sense and I began the long run to Transition through some deep sand. I mean, it was a LONG way, like over 1:30 over running until the timing mat. It was so far they even had an aid staion along the way! Seriously.

Bike- 24.6 miles, 58:13
Once I got out onto the course, i settled into a nice grove. I had targeted a HR of about 162 but I sort of sat around 157. Due to the three loops with three out and backs, I had a chance to see who was ahead of me fromt he first wave....and there was Patrick. Oh, no. He went by and I was sure I was racing for second place. I was feeling very steady and consistant and each lap I manged to put a little time in on him. The same thing happened last year but there was another athlete between us who finished second. The course becoame VERY crowded by the second loop and I had to shout out "stay right" and "On your left" a lot, especially in parts where the pavement was bad and everyone was trying to ride on the few smooth parts. I drank a full water bottle with 3 gels mixed in for my nutrition/hydration combo. I was very please with this bike and was 2:36 faster this year than last year.

Run- 6.2 miles, 37:00
I headed out onto the course and settled into another nice grove. I was looking for a HR of around 168 for the first few miles and then building from there but I hit 162 and again just sort of sat there. The rolling nature of the course saw my HR move around a lot, but even on the flats, it was a bit low, eventually climbing into the mid 160's. There was one guy ahead of me, about 100 yards, that I could see. he was from Wave 1 and I was within 20 seconds of him. I ran him down by mile 2. He hung with me for about 1/4 mile and then dropped back. I was starting to catch the back of the 10K run race participants around the half way mark. I felt great, very comfortable, whic meant I wasn't really going hard enough, but I was enjoying myself. At mile 4 I saw patrick going the other way and shot him a wave. By the time I got to the same point on the course, it "seemed" to me it took longer than 4:00 which meant he would have still been in first. I ran back up the one really steep hill and down a fairway towards the beach. The finsih was after about a 100 yard beach run. I had my first beer in hand within 5 min. :)

Post Race
I found Patrick by the water and went over to shake his hand. I told him that I hadn't seen his name on the start list and was bummed when i saw him out on the bike. I assumed he had been weel clear of me and told him I was second and he won.We had a nice chat and caught up with our racing and plans for the season. I hung out with our friends until Jamie finsihed 4th in her AG, 15th OA. I was so porud of her hanging tough after a swim that really was hard for her.

With my second beer in hand, we went to get the dogs to let them play on the beach. While up in the room, after a nice shower, another beer, and putting on our pool party clothes, I heard the RD kimo Seymour announce my name asking me to come see him. That's odd. I told Jamie and Jen I would meet them on the beach after going to see Kimo. I found him by the recently posted results with Patrick and the guy I passed on the run course. I asked Kimo what was up. He said, "What wave did you start in?" I said, "Second, I'm 41, why?" Kimo looked at Patrick and back at me and said,"Well, you won." I looked at him and then at Patrick and said,"No, Patrick did." And then he showed my the results and I saw the splits. i had put 1:14 into him on the bike and run and won the race! I was kind of in shock, so was Patrick. He saw me on the course but had assumed I was in his wave. I went down to find Jamie and told her I had won! And I had another beer. :)

-Bryan

I’m new to the Zoot Ultra Team this year but everyone has been awesome to work with so far. Jake made sure that I had everything I needed well before the race so I could try everything out. Dave and Aaron helped me figure out which shoes I should be running in and the TT 3.0 worked great for this race with just a little bit of extra cushioning to help with all the downhill running. Not to mention it has been great getting to know a few of the team members at camp.

Injury, Training, and the Plan

With about 8 weeks of actual training after 6 weeks of zero running I really didn’t know how the race was going to go but after 3 long runs and a half marathon I felt strong and confident. I continued to do all of my normal bike and swim workouts leading up to the Saturday prior to the race. As usual I decided to follow Coach Patrick McCrann’s pacing guidelines that he shares at Endurance Nation and now Marathon Nation as well to make sure I did not go out too fast. This time it was particularly important because I was concerned with the limited training I did, plus I had to remember this was just meant to be a fun race as my big race is later in the year.
My race plan was simply to run the first 6 miles very easy, settle into a decent pace for the next 12, and then run last 8 as hard as I possibly could to see what I could do.

The Race

Mile 1-6: Starting back a few corals worked well as it forced me to stay at an easier pace for me for the first 6 miles. Of course I noticed right away that the course was definitely straight downhill but I was shocked at how narrow the road was. Again this was not big deal as I wanted to start out slow and I had no choice as there were 4,000 people in front of me.

Mile 7 to 16: Here I just slowly picked up my pace as planned. The course was still mostly downhill and I felt awesome so I did end up running a little quicker than I should have, but I couldn’t help it.

Mile 17 the road started to go up, but I stayed steady (although I was now working to run not trying to hold back) as my plan was to start running hard at 18. I started to really pace people at this point as everyone else seemed to slow down pretty quickly.

Mile 18 came and I tried to run fast, but I didn’t have any kick. I guess the downhill running affected me more than I thought it would. I did a few fast pickups and recoveries to try and get things going but I really didn’t have much. I did try to run as hard as I could at the time and all I had was a 6:15ish pace. About a mile and a half later all I could think of is man I am so screwed when heartbreak hill comes and if I can’t hold this pace now what’s going to happen when I hit the real hills. Well, next thing I knew I was running downhill, my legs were burning and a guy on a megaphone was congratulating us for going over heartbreak hill. Two thoughts instantly came to mind 1) Awesome, it’s all downhill from here 2) oh shoot, I just crushed myself and ran hard all the way up the toughest hill of the course and didn’t have anything left.

Miles 22 to 26.2 - My legs were DONE and I now had zero kick left. Interestingly the rest of my body felt just fine. My breathing and heart rate were under control and I was well fueled thanks to the two GU Roctane gels. My quads pretty much felt like they were on fire and my legs just did not want to move. Either way I just kept pushing as hard as I could I knew the sooner I made it to the finish the sooner I could stop running.

Thanks to the downhill I was able somewhat hold on for the last 4.2 miles and still managed to negative split the race overall. (1:25:28/1:24:11)

I ended up finishing in 2:49:39 which I’ve very pleased with everything considered. I knew I could go around 3:00 but I was hoping to break 2:50 and I did. It was only good enough to get me 504th place overall. I’m really glad there were that many faster runners there as I always had other people close by to work with and try to pass which I prefer over local races where I can’t even see anyone else at times.

Post Race
After most marathons my legs actually feel ok but the rest of my body is done. This time was different, my body felt fine but my quads were still on fire and getting stiff quick thanks to all the downhill running that I’m not used to. After a quick shower, some ALCiS on my quads and putting on my Zoot Recovery Compression Tights my legs felt much better. So the next mission was to get some food.



Up next
I am planning one more open half marathon this year to and then I switch to full triathlon training and racing. Thanks for reading and good luck to all the Zoot Ultra Team members racing soon. If you would like to read the long detailed version of my race report visit http://ironmancona.blogspot.com.

- Matt

Time to get my tri season started!

Las Palomas Triathlon, Rocky Point, Mexico. It's on like Donkey Kong this Saturday! Have a great weekend ZOOTERS!!!

-Bryan

Ironman California 70.3, 2010

The start of triathlon season is finally here! I traveled down to Oceanside, California to race Ironman California 70.3. This is my second season in the sport and Oceanside was my first attempt at the 70.3 distance. Less than two years ago my race was 4 minutes, now it is about 4 hours.
This race is usually the beginning of the season for many triathletes. It is rich in tradition and VERY deep in talent. There were several world champions, veteran professionals, savvy amateurs, and countless individuals that have been busting their tail in preparation for this race. I raced among all of them and I am very happy to have competed in this great event.

Thursday, March 25th
[Travel Day]
Two days out from the race I did a lot of the things the top pros were probably doing. I tuned my bike, packed up, took the day very easy, and got on a plane to San Diego. I also went to work teaching and coaching. I don’t think most of the pros can say they coached the 6th grade girl’s basketball team to a victory before they departed for the race, Go Cougars!
I flew down with Clara, Ramsey, and my good friend Scott Robertson. Traveling with Clara to races used to be a little bit easier before Ramsey, but he certainly gives racing more purpose. We got into Oceanside pretty late but found our rental to be more than sufficient for the weekend, walking distance to the start and a couple of comfy beds.

Friday, March 26th
[Pre-Race]
Strike 1 – The disc wheel I rented does not fit my rear brake, luckily in the future I will own one thanks to Zipp.
Strike 2 – BIKE CRASH!!! It was unavoidable and I went down hard on my right side.
Strike 3, I’m out!– Ramsey decided to eat a pill he found on the floor. A call to poison control later, all was fine and it was just one of my vitamins.
So, this was not exactly how I wanted my pre-race to go. One positive was getting to meet with my new sponsors at the expo. Jake from Zoot got me completely dialed in.
After strike 3 I gave my coach, Tony DeBoom, a call. In his very cool demeanor, Tony set me straight. I felt confident after speaking to Tony but still organized my gear and decided to go to bed before there could be a strike 4.

Saturday, March 27th
[Race Day/My 26th Birthday]
My alarm went off at 3:30AM, it was time to go. The first few steps to the kitchen were very telling. I felt as if I had woken up the day after an extremely hard training day. My body was not happy but I tried not to let it phase me, I was racing no matter how I felt. I ate a breakfast consisting of a bagel with almond butter, a cliff bar, some GU Brew, and a few Advil. After a final gear check, I kissed my wife and rubbed my son’s head for some luck. I rode off in the dark to Oceanside Pier where the race would begin and end.
The transition area was more crowded than I expected for my early arrival. I squeezed my bike onto my rack and went out for an easy jog. My body did not feel great but I knew that when the race started that I would not feel the damage my pre-race bike crash inflicted. After my jog I slipped on my new Zoot kit which is super cool, pulled on my new Zoot wetsuit, and walked down to the swim start. My wave went off behind the pro men, pro women, and challenged athletes. Twelve minutes after the pro men began, we were off!

{The Swim}






28:34
I am still having a hard time figuring the triathlon swim out! My swimming has improved dramatically since last year. I have increased my volume and have gotten a lot of help from some great coaches at North Bay Aquatics. Last year I could barely get across the pool and this year I have moved into the fast lane in a very competitive swim program. So, I must say I was disappointed with losing the pack. In my short career as a triathlete I have always felt lost in the swim, definitely not open water savvy YET. I was happy to survive another swim and get to the bike. My transition was solid and I was off on the bike.

{The Bike}

(Coach DeBoom, Check him out at enduranceconspiracy.com)

2:28.22
Coach Tony DeBoom is a really great guy and an amazing coach. After last season I went searching for a coach that would shoot me straight and set me on a course to race successfully in the world of professional triathletes. I guess I was looking for someone with a wealth of knowledge, a positive attitude, and a no bullshit approach to training. Tony was my guy! Tony knew I could run, the first week he coached me I ran a 1:09 half marathon. He also soon realized that I can handle a lot of training. Tony then realized that I needed to do a lot of work with my swim and bike. He has definitely jumpstarted my transition from a runner doing triathlons to a triathlete. We have worked hard to improve the front 2/3s of my race.
The 56 mile bike at Oceanside was tough. There were hills and a hefty headwind, not to mention this was my first time trying to figure this distance out. I am pleased with the outcome and learned a ton. My effort and pace for this race was similar to the Olympic distance bike legs I had last year, which is nice. I wanted to come off of the swim/bike portion in three hours or less and then try to crush the run. Mission accomplished on this but the run is where I would begin to learn a lot about the 70.3 distance.

{The Run}
1:18.28

(Headed to the finish, much learned)

I love getting off the bike with the idea that I am going to run everyone down. Of course, in a race like this, running EVERY athlete down would be unattainable. But, I was content with trying to catch a lot of them.
Triathlon racing reminds me of when I raced track relays. I would usually have the anchor leg responsibilities and would try to run people down. Some of my best times came from trying to get a win for my school. The feeling of a baton exchange is the same feeling I get when I rack my bike, pull on my shoes, and head out to the run course (the anchor leg for triathlon).
This feeling was present for me in Oceanside and probably led to my first two miles being 5:20 and 5:23. After 2, I settled into what I thought would be a sustainable pace for the final 11. Through the halfway mark I was on pace for a 1:13 half marathon, about what I thought I could manage. My form was steady, my mind was clear, and my awesome new Zoot Ultra TTs were springing me forward with each stride. It was not until mile 10 that I realized something was happening to me on this run. I was slowing down and unable to do anything about it. It wasn’t a hurt that I have felt before, just a slow fatigue of every muscle in my body. I took some Gatorade and some water, but it was too late. I was bonking! My final three miles were VERY slow and the duration of them gave me some time to think. Of course, my thoughts were about my race. I thought about the swim, the bike, my nutrition along the way and determined that I took the distance for granted. I made some rookie mistakes from the pre-race crash to the lack of calories consumed. Those three miles will do more for me in this sport than anything else and I am thankful for that. I crossed the finish line in 4:19.21 and finished 21st overall in the most competitive field that I will see all year. I hugged my son and wife, ate about 7 slices of pizza, and walked out of there as a wiser triathlete.

Thank you to my sponsors at Zoot, Orbea, Zipp, Alcis, GU, Fuelbelt, and Suunto. Thank you Tony for your amazing coaching. Clara and Ramsey, I could not live a day without your support.
Escape from Alcatraz is next and I will begin racing as a professional triathlete.
Please connect with me on RunRamsey.Com by setting up a profile and follow my miles and trials.
(Until next time....)

MIT. First race for me of 2010. Never give up!

Hello Zooters~! Hope you are all well and excited for the 2010 season! Rock Out in CA next weekend if you are racing!

A quick little note about the race. Or not so quick First off I was a bit anxious prior. The swim even though a strength, always seems to take a bit out of me and be pretty painful, i was a sprinter and butterflier. Anyhow, amazing day for starters (a bit of wind and in the 60's, we totally lucked out it could have been brutal), perfect, amazing people check, great volunteers and race directors check. Amazing sponsors so that I have all of the gear that I need including my Orbea Ordu, Zipp 808 wheels, components and Zoot clothing. First Endurance for great fuel and pre race nutrition, along with GU for a bit of gel out there. The race, we started at 7:12 2 minutes after the men and 10min later than usual b/c the sun came out a bit more for us. As we were all off, I made a good decision to start on the outside and diagonal in, I also was fortunate to get on the feet of a fellow athlete that has very good sighting. As we headed straight for all of the buoys and caught up to the pack in front of us b/c they made a semi-circle and swam out. Coming out of the water I was with 2 other girls 4th-6th. With a quick transition I was out. I made a bit of a technical error in not passing the girl in front of me over the bridge the first time and waited, loosing sight of the woman who was just ahead and probably could have stayed closer to but lost her and then just settled into my own pace. Not a bad idea, but great to have someone as well to stay out of the drafting zone but close enough that they are in site. Next time I won't make such a mistake, I will not doubt myself, my training or my ability to stick at a bit tougher pace right from the get go. Anyhow, the bike after that as solid, and I felt strong and consistent. Along with very familiar and happy. As before I moved to Boulder I lived in Miami for about 1year. Amazing to be back! I had 1 GU Expresso Love on the bike and 2 scoops EFS drink mixed with 1 scoop of Pre Race and water. I discovered that I should have probably gone with only 1 scoop of EFS b/c for me having something more watered down is typically better. I don't know why, but I know that with the extra sodium, which is great, it was just to high of a concentration, next time I'll measure better and not just dump some in from my travel bag. Off onto the run. Changing into my Zoot flats and hat I was off. Sitting in 5th place I knew that I would just give it my best shot. As the run is my, we will call it, area to improve most upon ;) I knew it would hurt, and I accepted and even kind of was excited in some ways for that. I still feel slow, but I tried to push to the best of my capabilities. Drinking water at every aid station, in a short race i do not typically take anything in on the run. And I was not about to start now, or take the drink that they had on the course that I'm not accustomed to. Been there, done that, not going back! Luckily it was also shaded and as I mentioned not an uber hot day for Miami! On the second lap, my training partner passed me at about mile 4. That put me in 6th place. Mind you, the top 6 places are paid. I kept my pace and tried to stay relaxed and smooth and calm. As well, think back to all of my consistent and painful winter training, and know that I could hold on to this pace. So Although Marybeth blew by me, I kept my pace and at the second turn around (run course was 2 laps about 3 miles each, and a turn around at 1.5 miles), she yelled at me :come on Becky." From the last turn around I knew that 7th place was coming fast behind me and she wanted me to hold on as much as I did. But it really hurt, and she was faster than me, by a long shot. There was a point when I just wanted her to pass me so I wouldn't have to worry about her behind me as the finish was about 1mile away. Sometimes when in suffering mode our minds let go and we just want out, we want to resign control. At about 400M to the finish line, everyone comes out of the "forest" path onto the uneven beach and then pavement for about 200M to the finish. A friend of mine was the running course coordinator and standing there. As the girl blew by me and started to make a gap. Ah, I was really suffering, as I'm sure she was as she had just run and caught up to me from a minute or so back. I thought I was falling off the pace and out of contention for the $, I'd have to settle for right out of the $ again, and it had been a good day. Berk on the other hand was not so sure, he yelled at me "Come on this is for the $, stay there get her." Despite what I believed and felt I was capable of at that moment I turned it on a bit more. I dug deeper and found that there was more, I got right behind her, as we came off the beach, she was in the center of the path and so I moved a bit to the side and as we came around the last corner with about 20Meters to go, I found that little bit of extra, that little bit that is deep in the heart, in the passion of the moment. When we stand up and refuse to be defeated, not by anyone or anything else, but by ourselves, and I passed her and took 6th, by about 3 seconds. And was welcomed by the arms of Billy and Linda, 2 of my favorite and best friends. It was special. So all and all it was a great day. I put it out there, I was nervous, but also excited, and thankful, feeling nothing less than truly blessed having the opportunity to do what it is that I do. Challenge my body and spirit, enjoy the outdoors with like minded people who are all challenging themselves to dig just a little bit more. I have a long ways to go in becoming the triathlete, athlete and person I aspire to be, but I'm in the journey baby, I'm in the journey. Finally, I am accepting and appreciating all of the moments as they come with gratitude and joy! What a life! Thanks to all of my amazing friends and family, the race directors Wilber and Amauri (Who were my first sponsors 3 years ago at Swim Bike and Run Tri Store here in Miami) for an amazing event, to all of the volunteers and spectators. To my sponsors always, I owe so much. First Endurance (for keeping on track nutrition wise during training, racing and all in between), Zoot (for helping me get sorted on the Ultra Team and amazing gear, clothing, shoes and support) Orbea (for a bike that makes it all possible), Zipp (for helping me go fast on and off the race course), Suunto (allowing me to stay on track and focused in training and during my races), Fuel Belt (organization and gear), AlCiS (health and healing), GU (keeping me energized in training and on the race course), Somerset Farms (an amazing living location in boulder), Colorado Sports Training (strenght in body and spirit), Modern Real estate (assistance to maintain a membership at an amazing training location). As well as my amazing new coach and coaching staff and training partners, Boulder Coaching! You all make this journey not only possible, but so much brighter and more enjoyable! Yeah, that is all! Go out and make it a great one! In an essay about perseverance by Jessica Barker of Mountain Athlete, I read, appreciated and was touched by this, I hope you enjoy it. All the disappointment, the failure, the hard work, was superceded by the perseverance, and the ultimate goal behind it. To persevere is to consciously suffer. It is the backbone of a true athlete. It is a suffering with purpose in mind, with the completion of a goal as reward at the other end. Perseverance instills humility and generates respect and perspective in my pursuits. Through perseverance I have found meaning and true appreciation for my accomplishments as a professional athlete. More will come, and I will embrace it, for I know what lies on the other side of the storm. Hugs and Cheers Becky

IRONMAN ARIZONA

2


Years, 1 Month, 5 Days....

That's how long it had been since I last raced a full Ironman. Although I had only planned on taking off a full race season of Ironman racing in 2008 to foucus on 70.3, the change of date for IMAZ extended my absence by an additional 8 months. Almost long enough to forget the pain, but not quite. To say my 2007 rookie Ironman campaign was a success would be an under statement. I exceeded all my hopes and dreams and I considered myself very fortunate. But ever since KQ at my first IM and finishing that race in Kona on October 13th, 2007, I have had to ask myself the following questions: Could I do it again? Had I found the key to unlock that door? What if I couldn't replicate a perfect race and how would the potential failure make me feel? For some facing the fear of 140.6 is their challenge. For me, it was what it was just a fluke, beginners luck. Although I was anxious about the prospect, I knew there was only one way to find out. I knew I had to put myself on that line again.

Once I had signed on the dotted line..and wrote the check to WTC..the expectation game began. Friends talking about how much fun it would be to rent a place in Kona again to come and support me, my wife looking at condo's in Kona where we could stay. Despite the assurances that even if I had a bad day, it didn't matter, I felt the pressure to perform, but mostly from myself. I wanted to feel like maybe I had earned my place in the sport, maybe I belonged, maybe I wasn't a fluke.

There is only one thing you have any control over when it comes to an Ironman and that is preparation and it is likely my greatest strength. I hired my coach again and he set forth a plan which he knew I would complete to the letter. The plan was different from my other two IM preparations. IMAZ 2007 was about finishing and hopefully a Kona slot. Kona was all about finishing. but this plan was new. This plan was designed with one goal in mind. Not finishing, or KQ'ing, or even AG podium. It was to RACE an Ironman for the first time.

I woke up on Sunday morning about 4:00 am after a very good night of pre-race sleep. I had my Cliff Bar and coffee and by 5:15 were off to pick up my Mom and head on down. I was very fortunate to receive 2 VIP passes from my Janus Funds internal wholesaler that Jamie and Mom could use all day. The VIP program afforded us parking right next to Transition which eliminated any of that worry and I was able to show up to the race with only an hour or so before the start. Jamie and Mom would also get to watch the swim start from a boat, be wet suit strippers, have access to the hospitality tent all day, and special finishing line viewing are. They were so excited and it was so very cool.

So we arrive and park in our special lot. I went in and pumped up the tires and loaded my nutrition on the bike. The Janus rep. was right by Transition exit and Mom and Jamie stayed with her. When I came back from my bike, the two of them are standing there talking to Michael Lavato! He would be their Janus guide all day! I told Michael the race hadn't even started and my wife was trading up the triathlon ladder from me! I went to check on my bike and run gear bags but when I got back, they had left for the boat dock, so I changed into my wet suit and left my bag by our parked car. It was time and I felt a wonderful sense of calm. It felt less like my two previous IM's, it felt like the start of the many shorter races I have done since where my attitude is to go hard and race. I was going to RACE today.

Swim Race Goal Time- :59-1:00
I made the decision to line up in the front, towards the center of the lake. It's not as crowded as everyone tries to stay far right to cut the curve of the lake. I figured I could angle towards the curve and then head straight to the turn marker, keeping the crowds to my right. The gun went off and I swam hard to get away and was immediately in clear water. Drafting was terrific, there were just enough people to swim behind but not so many as to have a lot of contact. I felt great, great turnover, steady breathing, good body position. My plan became a bit confused as once I got to the curve, suddenly it seemed there were more people to my left closer to the buoy line. I made an adjustment and joined that group as we made for the red turn marker. It wasn't too crowded at the turn markers which gave me hope that I was toward the front. I made the turn for home and I think it's here I made my mistake. I should have swum into the middle the lake, no man's land, and stayed off the bouy line as it would curve and eventually meet up with me. But the group I was trailing was on the line and I stayed with them. I was concerned if I went off to the right, I would sight poorly and go over too far towards the north shore. I swam well all the way back, but the damage was done at that point. Despite feeling like I was really moving well, I hit the stairs and saw the 1:01. Not what I wanted but not the end of the world either and I put it behind me. An important part of racing and executing an Ironman is to keep moving forward, not to dwell on what has happened or might happen in the future, just on what IS happening right now. And that would be the super fast wet suit strip I was given by two great volunteers. :)

Swim Split: 1:01:42

T1- 4:38
The problem with getting into the change tent in anything over an hour swim is that the tent is packed. All the volunteers are busy and you need to deal with your gear alone. It was also very dark in the tent as the sun was still low on the horizon. I manged to get my socks on, decided to pass on the arm warmers and gloves, got my race belt on and helmet and sunglasses in hand. At this point a grabbed a volunteer who I asked to pack up my wet suit and swim gearm, which was great and I was off. A volunteer brought me my bike and I rounded the corner to the mount line.

Bike Race Goal Time- 4:50-4:55
I was chilly for the first few miles of the bike, but I was quickly warming up as the sun rose higher. When I started heading east, I heard the familiar sound of a headwind rattling through my helmet. Despite a weather forecast which called for light winds of 5-10 out of the east/southeast, I hit a steady 10-15 coming due east all the way up the BeeLine. I would need to adjust my pacing and gearing accordingly. I focused on the immediate and continued to move forward.

I managed to overtake the majority of the fish by the time I hit the BeeLine and found myself in a small group of men. there were about 6 of us within a few hundred feet of each other. There was the usual back and forth passing and some very questionable close riding in this group. The headwind was trying to compress us and I made sure to either stay off the back, or put on a big surge and overatke properly. Unfortunately, three of them were really trying to hard to stay in front and were way too close. Fortunately, that's right about the time the marshal rode into town. :) He went by me and then immediatly started writing down numbers. Bang! Bang! Bang! and three riders got their well deserved red cards. Once I hit the turn, it was an express ride back to Tempe. My HR target for the bike was 142, which considering the temps would be a solid pacing effort. I was more in the 144-145 range for the first loop and kept trying to stay in check. Nutrition was 2 Cliff Bars cut into 4 pieces as well as 6 gels. Hydration was Gatorade and water. I knew hydration would be easy to stay on top of as the temps were cool. I had a gel within the first few miles and then every 3/4 of a lap would eat some of the bars and alternate with the gels. I really nailed my nutrition on the ride, I never felt bloated or uncomfortable, sipped water and Gatorade when I felt like it and really stayed down on my aero bars for 99% of the ride.

About halfway through the bike, the wind began to shift to a more southerly cross wind which still made going up the BeeLine a chore but provided less of a boost on the way back. I even went into my small ring on the way up to save my legs and try and spin a bit more. I was able to completely avoid any drafting issues. I was far enough in front of the big packs of AG'ers so that I always had very clear road. That's not to say that there weren't big packs. They were out there and I did see a lot of penalties. I also picked up my own little drafter. I passed an AG'er on the last loop who had likely been in front of me until now and he stayed behind. Sometimes too close behind me especially when I passed people. At one point I sat up, looked at him and motioned for him to come on through. He did and lasted about 1 min before I passed him back and dropped him. I spiked my HR but it was well worth it. It was impossible to tell where I was in the overall AG race as the crowds were so heavy and my race plan really wasn't going to start until I got to the run. As I came into town on the last loop, I overtook Lindsey Corbin about a half mile from transition. She was fussing with something and I called "On your left, Lindsey". That was fun. :) I rode down the chute, feet on top of my shoes, stretching my back and legs, and feeling like I just had the best ride of my racing career.

Bike Split- 4:51:30




I did my flying dismount and headed toward the run gear bag rows. I called out my number and ran down my row. I thought I was on the correct side, but I wasn't so I jumped over into the next row...and was immediatly smaked in the shoulder by a flying Lindsey Corbin! She knockd me out of the way and shot off to the change tent! It was AWESOME! Now the benefit of hitting T2 quickly? The changing tent was EMPTY. It was me and about 20 volunteers standing around wanting to help you! I was in and out in 61 seconds! As I hit the exit, Lindsey and Gina Kehr were right in front of me.



Run Race Goal Time 3:15-3:20
As I left the change tent, my coach Nick yelled out that I was in 13th place in the overall AG race. I wasn't sure where I stood in relation to the AG, but figured I was in the top 5. Now it was time to begin my race.This run would be very different from my previous IM runs. This run would be based soley on pace, no HR. This would be a run where I would look to move forward, not just hold my own. This would be a run where I would not let myself get passed. This was THE RACE.

As I headed west on the rec path, there was one person in front of me. It took a moment to realize that it was Gina Kehr! Lindsey Corbin was just up the road from us. I was about 2 yards behind Gina for the first two miles. It's so wierd being at the front of the race at the run start. We were just all alone. I knew Gina would likely be running in the 3:10-3:15 pace and that wasn't where I should be and she gradually dropped me and I settled into my pace, a pace honed by running as many of my long runs as close to a 7 flat pace as I could. Nick and I figured that would translate into a 7:30-7:40 pace for the race itself on tired legs, but the PE would feel similar. I went through the first 3.5 miles @ 7:14 pace and then dialed it back to a more manageable 7:26 pace for the next 8.6 miles. That's exactly what it felt like, too. I had learned to race using pacing and PE. I never, not once, took note of my HR. Sitting here this morning, I couldn't tell you what it was at any given time. It didn't matter. Manageing my HR was about finishing, but this was about racing. I trained to run a pace and I was going to try and hold on.

I had a gel flask in my jersey pocket and for the first half of the run, i made sure to take a hit before each aid station and then grab some water to wash it down. I was able to finish more than 3/4 of that flask before I got too sick of it, which was great. I had to be at least 12 miles into the run and was still using my basic nutrition. My stomach felt very settled and despite thinking I had to pee while I was ont he bike, my bladder as usual just quited down and once again, I finished an Ironman without peeing once. I have an iron stomach and I retain fluids like a camel. It helps so much to not have the common GI problems and not stopping to pee is a tidy time saver. :) The only initial issue I had was some very severe tightness in my lower back but that calmed down with the first few miles.

But I still knew what was coming. The first lap was great. I was cruising, I felt terrific, my form was perfect, I was alone and running the Ironman. The second loop was more workman like. It's that grey middle area of maintenance. The course is more crowded, aid stations need to be negotiated more carefully, and the fatigue begins to set in. Coming around at the end of the second lap, my condition was deteriorating. It was time to dig deep and it was time to start hitting the cola like crazy. I knew I was slowing into the high 7's and no one knew where I was in relation to the field. As it turns out, 2nd in the AG was a few min ahead and running much slower. This would have been my opportunity to actually see if I could close out this event truly as a RACE. If I had known that holding that 7:30 pace would put me in striking distance...who knows. Maybe I could have done it. Maybe I would have blown up. I do know I would have tried. I had managed to move up into the top 10 in the AG race. I had raced myself into that spot, but now I just wanted to be done.

This is a moment all Ironman athletes share, regardless of their ability. That point in the race where you are so tired, you hurt so very bad, and the thought of running another 10K seems almost impossible. At mile 20, I did the math. I was 8:30 and change into this race. if I could get my pace back down closer to my target I could make that 9:20. I stared down at the concrete and like every other competitor out there, I just kept running, but I found my form again and got myself back into the race. I knew that no one word care if I finished in 9:20 or 9:25...but I would. I crossed over the lake for the final time and was on the soft gravel of the south rec path heading towards Mill Ave. I knew the bridge was close enough to the finish, that the crowds and cheering would be there, that my firends and family who loved me were waiting, and that they were proud of me. And so I ran a little faster. I knew I was going back to Hawaii and had really raced my first Ironman and so I ran even faster still. I knew I had earned it, I did deserve to be there, that God had given me a gift and I was so blessed to have found it, that I wasn't a fluke. Now I was flying.

The crowds were huge around Transition. So many people out supporting their loved ones. I saw that little sign on the sidewalk, the one with a little arrow pointing off to the left, the one that said To The Finish. I ran through the parking lot we had parked in early that morning and afforded myself the very first and only look back over my shoulder to make sure no one was behind me. Ironman is all about moving forward and this was the only time I would look to see where I had come from. Just one small hill to climb, a few folks sitting along the sidewalk saying great job. I smiled and thanked them. The Ironman inflatable arch and a left turn to see the clock. 9:19:52. I measured the distance to the line and laughed. I wouldn't make it under 9:20, so it was time to enjoy the chute. I slapped hands the whole way down, weaving from left to right. Mike Reilly was doing his thing and I crossed the line...and I felt like I belonged there.

Run Split- 3:21:23



Final Time- 9:20:14, 35th OA, 10th AG'er, 3rd in M40-44

I just want to thank Jake and all the awesome people at ZOOT whose support has helped me so much this season. Also our incredible sponsors Orbea, GU, Fuel Belt, and SUUNTO. I feel so privileged to represent your products and I am humbled to be associated with my fellow team members who are such amazing athletes. See you in Kona, 2010.

Bryan