Tenderfoot Boogie–50 Mile Ultra trail run

August 6th, 2011

So I wanted to do an ultra trail race just to take a break from Triathlons and to get off the road. I enjoy not sharing space with cars. So I signed up for this one even though I'm not trained for it. I did a 4hr trail walk/run and did 21 miles for my longest training run. The Course: Squamish, BC to Whistler, 7500ft elevation gain. It's 3000ft at Whistler, and 0ft at Squamish. Highpoint is 4000ft, and there are two big bumps on the map to go over. The race started at 5am and I got about 2hrs sleep. I planned out my two drop bags, mile 17 and 35. Aid stations were about every 10 miles. I made sure I had 3hrs of water and food with me between them. You wouldn’t think 10 miles would take 3hrs, but on this course it did..

There was only 9 of us doing the 50, others did the 50k and 25k. So we started in the dark, and this is several trails put together, so you have to navigate and follow the streamers. But it's dark for the first 30 minutes. Everyone took off at a quick pace, no way was I running with them. I did a 10min pace on a flat trail and luckily I was with another guy who had a flashlight. We got off trail twice, a bit frustrating but 10 minutes is not a big deal. So we keep running, three of us now. An Aussie, a Brit and me.

 

So we cruise in the trees on a nice trail for 10 miles or so. We are expecting an aid station. Then we hit the main highway and run along the trail there. Then we see a sign 'Welcome to Squamish' What?!! I looked at my GPS and somehow the trail circled back around and shot us south on the road. Ugh so we ran an extra 2-3 miles, not to mention seeing the sign where we started. We run back uphill and see the aid station. I tried to block that out as it was bringing me down. So we keep going and we are now paying very close attention to every trail we intersect. We hit another intersection with no trail marking. So we go straight, into bushwhacking. It didn't seem right, we walked around lost a bit here and chose to go to the right. We got lucky, it was the right way. At this point i'm not happy. I don't want to run more than I have to, it's 50 freakin' miles for goodness sake. We then hit a sign with all the trails in the area. We see all three trails meet up at the same spot so we take the shortest one (no markings again, we are guessing). We guessed right as more markings show up as we go. So this trail is hiking, I can't imagine running on it, its steep up and climbing. So I hike it. It peaks out in a mile or so, not too bad. It starts to descend very steeply and is a tough trail. Rocks, roots, you name it. Very slow here, trying to not fall down its so steep.

 

The entire course is a climb, so going down is not a good thought because I know I have to go back up. I then hit lots of stairs going down, no running this entire section. After the stairs is a rock field to go down, no trail, just walking along big rocks.

 

At this point my stomach goes sour and its only mile 15. I think I was eating too many sweet calories. It was very humid, but luckily was cloudy and about 60 degrees. I felt very bad. I kept moving forward and felt better after a bit. The course kept going around a lake and flattened out but the trail was way too rough for me to run on. Woohoo! made it to mile 17 drop bag. That felt nice. I ate some chips and other items, re-fueled my pack up, changed socks, and off quickly. We were on a dirt road at this point and I did some running.

The next section is sort of a blur, lots of narrow road along a river. It's that type of trail with tons of river rock on it. Its hard to walk as its deep and the rocks hurt your feet. Even though some of it was flat, the rocks kept me from running on it. I walked it. Then its starts to climb, lots of climbing. This is where I zoned out my GPS and just kept hiking. Gorgeous views of a river, waterfall and train tracks distracted me from the tough climb. This trail seemed so desolate, like nobody went up there.

We eventually came out on the highway to Whistler. It was now clear, sunny and hot, probably 80. I ran along the highway for a few miles, very exposed and was sweating a ton. I kept drinking water and getting my Thermolytes (sodium, electrolytes) in. I could not drink enough water, it was tough. A mix of trail and road, got some running in but at this point a 12min mile was fast, and it felt like 8min mile effort. So somehow I made it to my mile 35 (estimated) drop bag. I sat down for a bit, not much shade and all the food and water was hot at this small aid station from being in the sun. This isn't a Triathlon where the aid stations are awesome. They have what you need, and very nice volunteers but not what I am used to. I ate a bit from my drop bag and I was done with sweet race stuff. I went with dried Mango, jerky and potatoes dipped in salt. Ok back on the move. This section was a really nice trail, but it was still climbing and any running was very difficult. I was getting pretty tired but in good spirit. I was determined to get this done. I caught two other racers. It was another rocky trail, but I tried to float over everything and lead the way. One guy had enough, he dropped. The trail weaved all over the place and came out at a rushing river and we crossed on the suspension bridge.

This trail went on for a long time and mostly was uphill. It seemed to take a long time to get to the next aid station which I guess was mile 42. I hit that up and continued on. Ok, so I'm doing ok at this point but I've been really slow the last 8 miles. I don't know the time but it must have been almost 3hrs just to go 8miles. So here it goes, mile 42, the biggest climb of the race. I start climbing and bam! I'm hurting. I feel like I'm hitting the wall. I had some inspirational notes on each snack that I had in my drop bag. My fiancé wrote them for me. anything from 'Run forest run' to some scripture. I pulled out my dried mangoes as that was my favorite food on the run. I thought I didn't have them, but when you are tired somehow you can't find stuff in your pockets I guess. I was wondering where they were for the last 10 miles. I pulled them out, so stoked I had them as eating at this point was very difficult. It had a note about how I was almost done and to push it to the finish. That really helped. I pushed up that climb and I can't describe in words how long and relentless it was.

Some amazing views of Blackcomb and whistler. Uh oh, the mosquitos were coming out it was past 5pm. I got eaten pretty good at this point, but what can you do? I was going very slow, I finally got caught by another racer. That helped, we stuck together and climbed and climbed and climbed. Then it flatted out, yes! we peaked! no we didn't, more climbing. Finally we headed back down the other side. We ran down a steep road which tore me up really bad, I didn't really have blisters at this point, but now I did. I would normally not run down this section but we needed to finish. So we hit the last aid station. We ran the final flat trail in whistler to the finish. 14hrs 55 minutes. oh and I got stung by a hornet earlier. Without getting lost I should have been 13hrs. the winner was 8.30hrs, not human. I'm proud of doing this distance and being able to stick with it to the end. Although I couldn't quit, where was i going to go? hitchhike on the highway? i needed a ride back to my car 50 miles back down the road.

I did not injure myself and somehow I'm walking just fine. My feet/ankles are a bit beat up, quads a bit sore, but that is about it. I'd like to say what a great race it was, but it doesn't feel like that right now. I feel very tough for doing it, but the last few hours were brutal. It was quite an adventure out there.

Thanks to everyone, especially Eva for all the support!

Chelan Man Triathlon - Long Course

Chelan Man - 1.2 mile swim, 58 mile bike, 13.1 mile run
July 16, 2010

Pre- Race

I woke up in the morning and was excited for the race. I had a good race plan and was excited for the swim as my swim has been feeling really good lately. This also was going to be a good test for my bike after two cortisone shots and a new bike fit. It also was going to be my first longer race on my tri bike.

Swim: 41:59 8/17 AG.. Goal was 38, but never swam in conditions like that.

I was a bit worried about the chop and the line was blown way off so I wasn't going to follow it on the way out. I did a practice swim and told myself to stay calm in the chop and stay relaxed. I started a bit wide left, but made sure I had swimmers to the left of me. I started out good, I then spotted a few times and swallowed a bunch of water. I panicked a bit and lost my cool. I stopped swimming to burp up water. I then did sidestroke to keep my head out of the water to calm myself down. It didn't work I struggled to get to the turnaround. I wasted a lot of energy as well. At the turnaround I calmed down a bit and got in a good rhythm. I swam well here and followed the line. With about 400-500 yds to go my arms were really tired and I kept form but felt slow. I did a bit of sidestroke again. I then felt my calf starting to cramp and soon after my hamstring. I stopped two times to stretch it out since I could stand in the shallow water. I came out of the water and I felt like it was a 50 minute swim, I guess when I was swimming I was doing well. I really wish I could have kept my cool and not stopped at all. Oh well, I'm not going to be upset about being 3-4 minutes slow in that chop.

T1 - 1:30
Despite the miserable swim, I stayed focused and had
a great T1.

Bike: 3:17.. 9/17 AG

My goal was 3:10, but it was 2 miles long, so I pretty much hit my goal. The bike course was fantastic, an out and back along the lake with some rolling hills. Then, the last 15 miles or so was two long hill climbs. I did get pretty worn down on the last hill climb. If I do this race again I’m getting a lower gear for the hills. Overall It was a great course and I’m happy with my performance.

T2 - 1:27
I felt really slow on T2, but guess I wasn't. I put on socks, shoes and got out of there quickly.

Run: 2:15, 7/17AG

My goal was 1:45 for the run.

Ok here we go! my bread and butter. I was shooting for a 5:45 race and I figued I would be a bit slow since my bike and swim were tough. I ran out of transition with a song in my head that gives me the right pace. I checked it with my garmin and I was right on a 8:05 pace. First mile felt ok, my legs were battered up, but felt good otherwise. I was thinking I can do this pace, I will just have to fight sore legs. Mile two was a similiar pace, just over 8minutes. On mile 3 I realized I was getting hot and decided to walk through the aid station and get two waters on me. I did and it felt good. I started to run up the slight incline and was doing a 9 minute pace. I then started to feel sick. I looked at my HR. It was high. Too high for the this run. I felt like I failed and walked some. I then started to run again and I couldn't even hold a 9 min pace. I was running next to a lady and we chatted a bit, I could tell she was seasoned racer. I told her I was having trouble with the heat and HR. She said dont' hurt yourself and be careful. At that point all I did was watch my HR and did the best I could at each aid station to cool down. Ice in my hat, rubbed ice on my heart, water over my head. Nothing worked. I was TOAST. I did a walk run the rest of the race and it was tough. I ran with the same lady later in the race and we were both hurting. We both did a run walk and motivated each other to the finish. Each mile was very long. I am very bummed about the run as I know I could have put in a great time. I'm going to review my numbers and try to figure out how to never let this happen again.


Finish: 6:19 6 out of 17 AG

I crossed the finish line slowly. This is the first time I haven’t been able to sprint the last part of a race until this race. I then heard Mike talking to me and I was getting very light headed. Thanks To Greg, Mike and Jill for getting me to the shade and on the ground. After getting in the water I started to feel better. What a miserable race. Not much enjoyment at all.

It was a great course, but the heat just killed me out there.

Five Mile Lake Triathlon

Five Mile Lake - 400m swim, 14 mile bike, 3 mile run
June 19th, 2010

Pre-Race - I was not very well prepared for this race as i didnt get home until 11pm from Cirque du soleil. I made sure I had everything ready for the race sitting by the front door. I even was too lazy to put on a new tire; i had a small cut from Issaquah tri on it. I just brought the tire and figured maybe i'd get in changed in the morning. I don't think I got much sleep. I get a little anxious for races. I woke up at 4:30, ate some yogurt and pop tarts. Greg picked me up and I had a small donut at 6. My stomach was a bit upset, but was ok. I was really hoping the rain would hold up. I had plenty of time and the on-site bike shop was not busy, so i had them put on my new tire. I got my wetsuit on and swam a bit. Water felt great!

Swim – 6:17 4 out of 10 Age Group

I was in the middle in the front, only 2-3 people behind me. My goal was to relax to first buoy and then turn it on a bit. I started the swim and could not find open water. Lots of slower swimmers in my way and I was constantly hitting their legs with my arms. I found it tough to find open water. I felt like I was passing a lot of people between the two buoys. Finally I got out in front of a group and really focused on the swim to the shore. I saw the first group getting out. I felt really good for this section and wished I could have swam that well for the entire race. I got out and ran pretty hard to transition. I felt great. I had a little difficulty getting my wetsuit off my ankles.

T1 - very good, minus 10 extra seconds with wetsuit.

Bike - 41:19 5/10 AG

This was going to be my first race since getting a cortisone shot in my back (cuz of flat at issy) and I was hoping it would really help me out. I was passed by a couple guys going really fast. I was able to pass a couple riders and was feeling ok. I also got a new bike fit to take some pressure off my back. I was pretty comfortable, but my hamstrings were in a bit of pain, but not as bad as before the cortisone. I don't have a lot to say about the bike, I wasn't as fast as i hoped i could go, but I held my own.

T2- I came off the bike right behind two guys. I had a great T2 and it paid off. I was ahead of the other guys who came in right ahead of me.

Run – 19:54 3/10 AG

Ok, time to make up my bike time here. I passed two guys in the first 100 yards with ease. I then passed another at a 1/4 mile in. No one was ahead of me. I had no idea what place I was in for AG. I felt like I must have been behind quite a few after the bike. I then hear these really fast feet behind me. I rarely get passed on the run, who is this guy? At 1/2 mile I get passed, and he is 45. So this guy is fast, he started after me. I tried to follow him but his pace was a little to fast for me as we hit the first climb. My Garmin beeped, first mile 6:32. I was happy with that given the hills. Mile 2 was very painful. Lots of rollers that were wearing me down. Somehow mile 2 ended, 6:45 pace. I can't complain, it was a lot of climbing. Here we go, one mile to go. Finish Strong, as painful as it felt. I wanted a fast finish. I turned it up a bit. I enter the park and was HURTING. I hear someone on my tail. I told myself, you can pass me but I'm going to blow by you the last 50 yards, so good luck. I kept my pace and kept waiting for him to make his move, making last turn and ready to kick it up. He never made a move, so I sprinted the last fifty yards and finished in miserable sprint like pain. I'm not sure on my mile 3 pace, but I finished with a 6:25, so I must of really had a great last mile.

Post Race - walked around in pain, knee and calf. I felt good about my race and talked to Greg who said I did really well. I didn't think much of it. Then Greg runs over and said I was 3rd in my AG. I didn't believe him for a while. I checked it myself and was really happy about it. After looking at my results I didn't kick butt at any particular event, but I put a great race together with great transitions. The two guys in 4th and 5th in my AG beat me by two minutes on the bike but my transitions, swim and run held them both off.

This was the most fun i've had racing i think. Team showed up big, and a well-run, fun race. 3rd place was icing on the cake.

18th overall out of 220, 3rd out of 10 Age Group.

Ironman Canada 2009

Ironman Canada - Penticton, BC
http://www.ironman.ca/
2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 run





Pre-Race







I was very excited to get to the start line of the race uninjured and not sick. After months of training and preparing you eventually just want to get it over with. Let's start this thing already! Unfortunately there is a lot to do. Pack transition bags, bike drop off, registration, etc.. etc.. I did not want to spend my days before the race waiting in lines and the hustle and bustle. Things worked out fairly well. I rode the run course, and registered later in the day so there was a small line. I was also able to drop off my bike on Saturday very quickly in the morning. I enjoyed the rest of the day before the race and just relaxed at a beautiful winery (had to limit the wine of course). The night before the race was tough. I did get some sleep but all I could do was think about the race. I was quite a bit worried about how many hills were on the coure and bad thoughts crept up about it being too hard. I got rid of those thoughts and told myself that my time didn't matter. I just wanted to finish. I woke up at 3:30am, ate what I could, and double checked my gear. It was time to go. I tried to stay calm and felt pretty good. After saying good luck to some fellow teammates, it was time to head to the start of the swim course


Swim: 1:22:57

















I lined up on the far left in hopes of avoiding getting crushed by the other 2600 swimmers. I was very calm before the start. After the gun sounded I slowly walked out into the water. After most everyone in front of me was in the water and swimming I did the same. I started a relaxed swim and just worked on not slamming into others. I was bumped a bit and focused on holding my ground without being aggressive. After about 500 meters I had some open space and drafted a few different swimmers. I felt great at the first turn. I swam over three of four scuba divers. My left calf started cramping and had to limit my kicking. I still felt good and was swimming by myself for a bit. I spotted and moved over to a pack so I could draft. I made the turn back and was holding strong. I ended up close the the buoys on the way back and it was a bit rough there. I got kicked in the goggles, but they stayed in place and I didn't lose the seal. My calf started cramping pretty bad. I was ready to be done with the swim, but I spotted the tall condo just to the right of the finish and it was quite a ways out. I kept trying to find the right person to draft but couldn't find anyone. I then started to struggle with my hamstring cramping. I had to focus a lot to keep my swimming form and found myself not breathing well. It took a long time to where I started seeing the bottom of the lake. At this point both hamstrings and calves were cramping, I was hurting. I told myself to swim close to shore instead of standing up in the shallow water. I had to stand up earlier than I wanted due to my leg cramps. I was stoked to see the 1:22 swim time. I ran in and was thankful it was over. I swam a faster pace than I did last year during my half Ironman.


T1: 6:22

I had my wetsuit stripped off by the volunteers, grabbed my transition bag and went into the changing tent. I didn't have any problems except I forgot socks for the bike. No biggie, my shoes are fine without socks. I had sunscreen put on and I ran to my bike.



Bike: 7:15:59












I was happy to be done with the swim and on the bike. Time to relax a little, hydrate and get my stomach settled down. I rode down main street in awe of the crowd and all the other racers around me. Soon the crowd thinned out further down the road and soon they were gone. A lot of cyclists passed me on the flat section on the lake, but I follwed Coach Jill's advice and easily cruised at 18mph. The first small climb was easy and I was feeling pretty good and started to get some calories. I knew it was critical to get enough calories and follow my nutrition plan. I tried to not worry about being passed and didn't take myself too seriously. I sang some songs and just kept an easy pace. This was going to be a long ride and I wanted to enjoy as much as I could. I broke the bike into 20 mile sections. Each 20 miles was a goal for me. The first 20 went by really fast. Then the next 20 was done. No problems at all. I was waiting for Richter pass, which is an 11km climb. I hit it soon enough. This turned into one of the most memorable parts of the race. I really felt part of something amazing. There were hundreds of us climbing that long hill with a bunch of screaming spectators, gorgeous views of vineyards, huge rocky cliffs, and you could see a line of cyclists down in the valley. It was an amazing feeling. I am a slow cyclist, but hills are my strength. I climbed Richter at a nice smooth cadence and passed a lot of riders. My legs felt great. Richter was over quickly and I was rewarded with a big descent. I knew it wasn't over, there were a series of shorter hills to go over. These turned out to not be that bad. Soon enough I was at mile 60, this is where my back started hurting. I usually only make it to mile 30 before it hurts, so I couldn't complain. Around mile 70 or so I hit the small out and back section where you can use any items you put in your special needs bag. While riding there I saw some teammates riding the other way, it was good to see some familiar faces out there. This section was tough, it was not flat. I finally made it to my bag and stuffed my face with some chips and half of a sandwich. I grabbed a couple bars and put in my pocket. Back on my bike for more climbing up Yellow lake. At mile 90, my back was done, but I still had to muster something up to get over the pass. I started the climb and it was brutal. A couple of riders and I slowly climbed and steadily got through the pain. I got to the top of the pass and was ready to go down the other side, but a significant headwind was pushing against me. I could see Penticton, but it sure looked far away at the end of the lake. The last 12 miles of the ride was torture, I was all by myself at this point and had to fight the head wind back in. I could barely go 12mph. I was wondering how I would feel on the run. My back hurt and I wasn't sure what was left in my legs.

Run: 4:32:18

I jumped off my bike at transition and ran to my bag and changing tent. I felt ok. I changed quickly and ran out. My legs were tired, but it was nice to be off the bike. I kept a nice easy pace. I had a long run to do, but it was all about one mile at a time; one aid station at a time. 'Stay hydrated, and keep getting the calories', was what I told myself. I was very motivated by seeing my girlfriend Eva, and Angela cheering for me when I started the run. Small moments like that really kept me going. I hit the first aid station, I did everything the same for the first half of the run: 9(ish) minute run pace, 1 minute walk through aid station, sponges squeezed over head (ice old water), drank water and a coke. It was very challenging to drink and eat. I was very nauseous. I then ran past Jill and Mike (my triathlon team's tent) and they cheered me on. It was tough to see all the runners about to finish as I was heading out. I just had to think I'd be there soon enough. The next few miles went by quickly and I hit the first hill on the run. I made a very smart decision to walk up the steeper part of the hills, I could not afford to wear down my legs anymore to save a couple of minutes. The next section along the lake was flat and fast. I tried to go with the flow and enjoy it before the set of hills coming up at miles 11-13. I soon went by my boys James and Greg. It was great to give motivation and get it back. I hit the hills and walked up most of them. I made it up them and was still feeling ok, despite feeling sick, and hit the turn around point. BAM! time to head back to the finish! I had to climb up the hills I just came down. This was tough, I walked up most of the hill and started running again. My legs were done. All I could think was I have to beat 14hrs. I told myself I had to dig deeper than I ever have in my life to keep my pace on the way back. I thought I had to run the same pace back to make 14hrs, I was actually wrong about that, but glad I was. It made me work harder. I changed my walk run to 5 minute run, 30 second walk, 5 minute run, 1 minute walk. If I hit the aid station before the 2nd five minute run I did my 1 minute walk then. It worked well for the next 7 miles. It kept my legs from dying. I hit the flat section along the lake and knew this was a good spot to be strong with my pace. I ran well through this section. I was passing people all over the place. Everyone was looking bad through here, mostly everyone was walking. I made it to mile 20 soon enough and switched to five minute run, 1 minute walk. I was able to rock a pretty good pace by doing this. I dreaded each aid station because I knew I had to drink water and coke there. It just didn't feel good to drink or eat anything but I had too. This made the miles go by quickly. Soon enough I was back on main street, the crowd pumped me up. At mile 23 I picked up the pace a bit, I had a little left to push it. I then got to the out and back section before the finish. I turned it on even more, Eva was screaming and jumping up and down! I was pumped to finish. The out section seemed to take forever. Last aid station to walk through, now for the last sprint. I was passing tons of runners here, I then saw the finish and passed a large group of walkers. I blasted through the finish line and jumped into the air. I'm not sure how I had the energy but it felt amazing. I then realized my legs were gone and I felt really sick. I saw James lying down on the ground and I did the same. It felt good to just lie down.




Overall Time: 13:22:12
1431 out of ~2600 Overall
144 out of 220 Division








Afterthoughts:





It didn't hit me until the drive back to Seattle that I am now an Ironman. It feels good, plain and simple. I can't thank all who supported me enough.

Issaquah Triathlon 2009

400m swim, 14 mile bike, 3 mile run. (actually nobody really knows)

Pre-Race:

I woke up at 4:30am and didn't get much sleep at all. Good thing it is a sprint. I had almost everything ready to go and was able to eat some breakfast and stretch a bit. I was feeling pretty good and a bit nervous for the race. I got to the park right at 5:30 and was one of the first few in transition. I was assigned the front rack and grabbed the end spot. I'm pretty sure I had the best position out of anybody. I did some stretching, hung out out the tent and though about the race. I then swam with a couple of teammates and we did almost the entire course. The water felt great and I was feeling good about racing.

Swim: 6:35
I decided to try the front outside for the swim. I was in the first wave, which I thought would be cool. The number of people in my age group was overwhelming. The gun went off and I ran and jumped in, I slammed into two swimmers and actually stood up. I looked around and there was nowhere to go, so back in I went. Every stroke I hit someone, and someone hit me. I popped my head up around the first buoy and noticed I sort of turned but was really wide. I don't even remember turning. I was a bit bothered by that but it was such a madhouse there wasn't much time to think. So I continued bumping people and the next thing I know we are headed back to shore. It was more of a brawl than a swim. I've never had to deal with that much contact past the first 50 yards or so. Crazy!

T1: 1:43

Had to run to the front, but much better than running that far with a bike. I had a lot of time to get my wetsuit down past my waist. I was a little slow getting my wetsuit off, but overall it was a decent transition. Simple and quick.

Bike: 41:17


I passed two people just by mounting faster than them. Then out of nowhere there are four duathletes in front of me in the no passing zone. I think we were going 8mph. I was getting a bit flustered and wanted to pass, but there was just no room and it wasn't worth getting a penalty. I must have lost over a minute behind them. Finally after the no pass zone ended I went ahead and started to hydrate. There was a small group of us riding through the cones, I held back a bit. After a few miles I pushed it a bit and was feeling good. Some great riders blew by me, but I felt like I was holding my own. I hit the climb and stood up and went hard to crest it. Right when I started descending I saw another biker crashed in the ditch. He must have just crashed. I kept cruising down the hill and my speed was good. I hit the turn around at exactly 20 minutes. I was very surprised that my hamstrings weren't hurting like normal. My heart rate was pretty high and I was happy about that as normally my legs hurt well before my HR goes up. I hit the steep climb and it was challenging. there was a pack of four riders who were blatantly drafting who passed me. That sort of upset me as I was not drafting them. I finished the bike strong and I could tell I went hard, but I still have a lot of room to improve.

T2: 1:01

Not much to say here except I really need to get those zip shoe lace things. My hands were trembling a bit and tying my shoes was a challenge.

Run: 21:05

Ouch! I was gasping for air right out of transition and was thinking that this was going to be one painful run. I was behind a guy who looked strong and stayed behind him for the first mile. I could not catch my breath. Eventually the guy ahead of me started to fade so I passed him. Then someone passed me looking very strong. I kept him in my sights but could never catch him. This was great being in the first wave and knowing that passing people mattered. I saw a runner ahead of me a bit, and I was pretty sure he was the one ahead of me drafting on the bike. I told myself that he was going down soon. The last mile I picked it up and caught him. It is crazy how I first think I can't catch someone, then I tell myself to go for it, then when I pass them I realize how much stronger I am then them. I hit the section in the trees and couldn't go much faster. I turned it on for the last 200yds and finished strong.

Overall: 1:11:41 24th out of 92 AG

This is the best performance in a triathlon I've ever put together. I could have not gone any faster. My heart rate was peaked out the entire race. I can feel myself getting stronger and it sure does pay off. This race was a ton of fun and even better with so many teammates around!

Mt Rainier Duathlon 2009

Enumclaw Wa, 5.1 Mile run / 28.8 Mile Bike / 3.8 mile Run

I woke up at 5am feeling good. All my equipment was ready to go from the night before. I wasn't too pumped for the race as it was quite painful the year before. My goal was to see what kind of shape I am in and hopefully improve from last year's time.

I arrived at the race and setup my transition area and took a bit to figure out what I was going to wear as the weather was bit cool. I got everything situated and spent some time chatting with my teammates and did a warm up run and stretches.

1st Run: ~7:58 pace - 40:37 - 5.1 miles

The first run I wanted to treat like the swim, to come into transition feeling energized and not worn out. My target was a 7:50 pace and I raced at that pace and kept an eye on my HR. My HR started out really high and steadily declined the entire run, I was feeling relaxed and happy with my pace. The miles went by rather quickly, and I even passed a few runners despite the elite field that shows up for this race.

Bike: 1:46:32 - 28.8 miles

I quickly got through transition and started the bike. As with every bike race I do, I have to deal with burning, painful hamstrings and back pain. Right as I started riding my glutes felt like they were going to burst, I was actually happy it wasn't my hamstrings like normal. I kept pedaling hoping for the pain to go away. I wasn't moving very quickly and just tried to keep pushing. The first five miles is pretty flat, but there was a bit of a wind that didn't' let me stop pedaling. It seemed if you stopped pedaling, you would slow very quickly, no coasting on this ride. I finally made it to the hill climb, yes I wanted to do it. I stood up a bit and it relieved the pressure from my glutes and hamstrings. After a few minutes of climbing my legs felt better. I felt good up the hill and made it to the top of the hill feeling good. I then made it to the downhill section, I thought that would feel good but with the wind I had to actually push it to keep a good speed. I didn't get any rest out of it. I hit the flat section and was happy to be done with lap one. The start of lap two was pretty painful as my hamstrings were hurting pretty bad. On a bright note, my back felt pretty good, much better than last year at this point. I struggled a lot through the first section of lap two. I kept pushing and kept hurting. Once again I was happy to climb. I got to use my quads and pushed up the hill, passing a rider. I had been riding alone for quite a while and it felt good to pass someone. I was pounding my legs up the hill, but at least it felt like normal muscles working instead of pain. I hit the plateau and had two riders in my sites. I slowly tracked one down and then passed them on the beginning of the downhill. I felt pretty good knowing there were just a few more miles, most of it downhill. I finished the 2nd lap and it was just a little slower than the first. Until I saw my time I felt pretty good about the ride and fighting through my pain.

2nd Run: ~7:34 pace - 28:45


I was dreading the 2nd run since last year it was a struggle. I started running and my feet were ice blocks. And those ice blocks were attached to jelly legs. I felt pretty worn down, but my pace was solid for the first mile, 7:45 pace. My goal was to beat my pace of the first run, which I feel is a huge challenge for this race. I was surprised my energy level was still high. I then quickly hit mile two and was pumped, more than halfway done with the run. I saw two runners ahead of me and knew I couldn't catch them. Then I thought, why not at least try? So I planned out how I was going to get within 25 yards of the guy in front of me and smoke him at the end sprint. With .8 miles left I picked up my pace slightly and started gaining ground, I was behind by about 100 years when I started. I then hit the turn to go through the dirt path and then sped up even more. I then passed the runner and there went the sprint.. oh well. The next runner was unfortunately out of reach. I decided to go all out anyway and finish strong and sprinted to the finish, thanks JFT2 for cheering me on!

Overall: 2:57:49

I felt pretty good after the race and ended up beating my time by 4 1/2 minutes. My bike time was only 45 seconds faster than last year which is disappointing to me, but its not due to effort or training, its due to something brought on by a back injury and I need to keep working with my PT and overcoming it. I'm very happy with my running and my training is paying off. It was a very tough race and was great to get out there wtih the team and bring it.

Mercer Island Half Marathon 2009

http://www.mercerislandhalf.com/
13.1 Miles

I did a lot of training the last few months in hopes of improving on my last year's performance and to take my running level up a notch. My training was a bit incomplete as I wasn't able to do much distance and hill training. My longest training run was 10 miles and I only did that once. I did however, feel confident in running the race in under 1:50. I studied my race from last year (Avg HR, pace etc) and compared it to a few training runs I did. My running plan was to run miles 1-3 @ 8:20 pace, miles 4-10 @ 170 HR mile 11 @ 175HR, mile 12 @ 180HR and mile 13 @ 185+ HR. I was hopeful my pace would be close to 8min miles.

I arrived to the race about an hour before start time. While preparing for the race I found my Garmin to be dead even though I charged it the night before. Thankfully, one of my teammates (Thanks Mark!) leant me his HR monitor and Garmin so I could track my pace and HR. I felt pretty good except I ate a big breakfast and thought less would have been better. I did some stretching and a easy warmup run.

I started the race in the front of the 8min per mile pack. As always there are tons of people in they way. I stayed to the inside and found my pace all over the place, but not much I could do about it for the first mile. I was running about an 8 min pace and felt great. I decided to keep at that pace for the first three miles. It took very little effort to keep my pace. First three miles felt really good, my time was 24:20. I really disliked the bank of the road last year and this time I moved to the bike line which was pretty flat for the angled sections. Miles 3-6 felt pretty good and I was now running based on my heart rate. I kept it at 170, but did have to settle down a few times as I was pushing it a little too hard and was at 173 -174 a few times. I was now running next to three of four people for a while. They would pass me up the hills as I slowed a bit to keep HR down. I then would pass them on the downhill and flat. My fisrt five mile time was exactly 40:00. My time for miles 3-6 was 24:10 and I was a bit surprised I was still keeping my pace even though some hills were in that section. I was still feeling good on mile seven and was pumped to make it to mile 10 so I could go hard and finishing this thing. At some point, probalby mile 8 I could tell my legs were tiring a bit and it seemed the entire course was up hill. I quickly arrived at mile 10, and right away I could feel blisters on my left foot. No problem, I can handle those for three miles. My hamstrings felt pretty dead at this point, it was strange to have gone from feeling amazing to having a painful blister and my legs going dead in a half mile stretch.

At mile 10 I knew the pain would begin as I had to speed up. I made the climb at this mile and was feeling tired. I bumped my HR up to 175 and was doing well. On Mile 11 I tried to kick it up to 180 but had a hard time doing that. Then I hit the long horrible hill and my HR shot up. I felt really slow up the hill. I was hurting and felt very nautious at this point, but I knew it was almost over and this was the last of the hills (sort of). I cruised down the other side. I don't have the data, but mile 10 time was 7:35. I'm not sure on my mile 11 time. I hit mile 12 and was really hurting. It took all I had to keep pushing. I kept pushing, and saw the last hill before the finish. I had to pick the sign on the hill as a goal, as the top of the hill made me ill to think about climbing. I didn' thave much left. I heard Jill, Mike and maybe others cheering me on. That helped a bit. I crested the hill and crossed the finish. My finish time was 146:04. I was very close to puking, but walked for a few minutes away from the finish crowd and started to feel better. I made my way to get water and some oranges. My legs took a serious beating, especially my hamstrings. So some really sore legs and a big blister, not too bad. I am very happy with my time as it was 10 minutes faster than last year.