Week in Review - Mar 30th 2014: Back in the Groove with a Cold at the End

It was a good week. I was able to get some type of workout in every day. My main focus was biking since the Tour de Mesa 70 mile race is coming up on Saturday. I also wanted to get in 20 miles running and a couple of swims. I met my goals other than the swims. I went swimming once on Monday but the pool was crowded and I cut my workout short and went for a run.

There isn't much else to report this week except I picked up a couple of course records on Strava during my ride home on Wednesday and missed a 3.5 mile record on Sunday by 5 seconds. 

Oh yeah. I also caught another cold this week. It has left me a bit short of energy but not so bad. Of course it is in my chest again. I was feeling great on Wednesday and then Thursday I started to go down hill. Hopefully it clears up quickly...

One more thing, I also received another package of Mike's Mix chocolate recovery drink from my sponsor. I love the stuff after a long workout!

Training Details:
Monday: 10 mile ride to work, 500 yard swim, 5k run, 11 mile ride home
Tuesday: 10 mile ride to work and 7 mile run 
Wednesday: 12 mile ride home
Thursday: 10 mile ride to work
Friday: 33 mile ride
Saturday: 10 mile run
Sunday: 35 mile lunch ride to Pecos Rd and 10 mile ride home

Week in Review - Mar 24th 2014: Starting to Bike More

I haven't been writing my weekly updates lately. With race reports the last couple of weekends I didn't have the motivation to write more. I'll remedy that this week - although a day late.

As far as the week in training goes, it was good. I've started biking a bit more now that the weather is warmer. I'd been waiting for morning temperatures to consistently be above 55 degrees. Now that that is the case I have started to commute to work. It is about 10 miles each way, and while that is not quite enough for a good workout, it is good to get a few more miles in.

With the increase in biking I've had a decrease in running and swimming. OK, no swimming. I'll remedy that this week as I try to figure out a new training schedule. Ideally, I will target 2 long rides (commuting doesn't count), 1 long run, 1 medium run, and 2 swims.

Friday's ride turned into a bit of an adventure. About 15 miles from home I got a flat in the back tire. I installed a new tube and continued on. Five miles later, another flat in the rear. I performed a more thorough inspection of the tire, installed a new tube, and realized that I didn't have another CO2 cartridge. I had to call my wife for an extraction. I started walking and 10 minutes later a fellow cyclist that I've ridden with a few times comes by. He was nice enough to stop and fill by tube. I called my wife again, cancelled my extraction, and rode home with Tod.

Here 'a pick with me, my flat, and a Garuka Bar.

Training Details:
Monday: 10 mile ride home
Tuesday: 11 mile ride to work and another 11 miles home
Wednesday: 11 mile ride to work
Thursday: 10 mile run
Friday: 40 mile ride to Brenner Pass
Saturday: 6 mile run
Sunday: 40 mile lunch ride to Pecos Rd and 10 mile ride home

Race Report - 3/16/2014 - Bartlett Lake Olympic Triathlon

Location: Rio Verde, AZ
Race Type: Triathlon
Distance: 1500 meter swim, 24.8 mile bike, 6.2 mile run
Participants: 85
Overall Place: 23rd
Age Group Place: 4th
Time: 3:01:08.  Swim: 31:09, Bike: 1:39:24, Run: 50:35

I signed up for this triathlon a few months ago. It was the first triathlon on my calendar for the year and I hadn't been training well after the two marathons in January and the beginning of March. 

The olympic distance event was billed as the hardest triathlon course in Arizona due to the extreme amount of elevation change in both the bike and the run. My GPS unit logged 3,110 feet on the bike and 942 feet on the run. 

Packet Pickup

I picked up my packet the day before at Landis Cyclery. Landis is one of the oldest bike shops in Arizona and has multiple locations around the valley. 

There was a pretty good line for pickup and it took about 15 minutes as everyone had to sign a waiver and USAT form. The plus side was that the tech shirt was nice and there were plenty of goodies in the swag bag (2 water bottles, chapstick, etc.)

As I was leaving I noticed a pile of bike boxes that appeared to be going to recycling. I hit up an employee and he allowed my to grab one. Never hurts to have a spare box and I'll probably use it for travel to Syracuse in June. 

Pre-Race 

The location of the race, if you hadn't guessed by the title, was at Bartlett Lake. It was an hour and forty five minute drive with the last 45 minutes through beautiful desert landscapes. I had never been up that way so was looking forward to the experience. 

The transition area was not very busy when I arrived. 

I was able to pick up a spot at the end of the rack. As you may have noticed I brought the road instead of the triathlon bike. I figured that with the hill climbing it would be much more comfortable on the road bike. 

Having set up my transition area I was ready to find the bathroom and get my body marked up with my race number.

The Swim

The swim was a standing water start with a 500 meter buoy layout. The olympic distance triathletes were required to make three loops.

The race included a sprint and would be followed by olympic distance swimmers. The race organizers highly recommended wetsuits as the lake temperature was a chilly 60 degrees. Everyone waded into the water around 7:45 and the sprint distance participants started at 7:50. Three minutes later I was swimming with my fellow olympic distance racers. It was cold! My hands and face were freezing but they were second in my mind as I was pushing through the group of people trying to get through a fairly narrow set of buoys that would start the race. Due to the course length it was fairly chaotic through the entire swim. 

I kept the pace easy and finished in about 30 minutes. The beach was rocky so I had laid out my sandals at the start/finish. I slipped these on and jogged the quarter mile to the transition with the timing mat mid way in between.

Transition 1

Uneventful. I slipped on my socks, shoes, helmet, and bib belt and almost hopped on my bike. Not sure what I was thinking as there is no riding in the transition area. 

The Bike

The bike course was an out and back that was to be repeated twice.

I knew that there would be a lot of climbing and I definitely wasn't disappointed. The ascent started immediately out of transition. There were times when I was struggling to push nine miles per hour but I still managed to pass about 40 people over the course. 

I was pleased that nobody was able to pass me on the climbs but there were two brave souls that passed me on the downhills. I have to admit that I was a bit timid on the descent due to wind and higher speeds than I was accustomed to. At one point I hit 40 miles per hour and a strong gust pushed me around the road. After that I tapped the breaks and kept my speeds in the 30mph range. 

My nutrition went well as I had brought two bottles of Mike's Mix sport drink and a packet of Clif shot bloks for the ride. I finished a bottle and a serving of shot bloks during each climb and focused on staying alive for the descent. 

Transition 2

Another uneventful transition. Slipped off the bike shoes, slipped on the running shoes and tossed on the beanie I like to wear when running. Grabbed another shot bloks and headed out. 

The Run

The run course was a single out and back with a water station at miles 1.2, 3.1, and 5. 

The run followed the bike course for the first half mile. The climbing was steep during that time but increased again when we separated from the bike course. 

I was feeling pretty good and started feeling really good around mile two. Over the course of the run I was able to pass another six or seven people. While tough, I enjoyed the course. It was nice knowing that I could push myself on the uphill and could recover a bit on the down.

Near the end I still had plenty of energy and I picked up the pace for the last descent. I passed another runner and finished strong.

Race Recap

This was a well organized event with plenty of volunteers. I'd participated in one other race by the organizers, Tri Family Racing, and they do a good job. I look forward to doing this one again next year and moving up in the ranks.

(need to learn to smile for selfies...)

Race Report - 03/09/2014 - Going the Distance 8K

Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Race Type: Run
Participants: 84
Overall Place: 4th
Age Group Place: 1st
Time: 33:32
Pace: 6:44/mile

This was the second race in a progressive series put out by a local timing company. I ran in the 5K and was signed up for the 8K a while back but they cancelled due to weather. This race was a makeup for that event.

On the way to the race I was pretty nervous. I'd run five miles on Friday and my legs were extremely tired. I got home feeling like I'd just finished the last six miles of the marathon from the week before. As a result I took Saturday off for recovery.

The previous 5K event by this company was really small, about 30 people, so I didn't think that this race would draw much of a turnout either. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw ~100 people milling around the start line. Apparently they had run a Groupon to draw a larger crowd.

The race was held at a beautiful golf course at Talking Stick Resort. We were informed that we would be running the back nine of the long and short courses.

Before the race I snapped a photo of the start/finish line and jumped around a little to see how the legs felt. Not too bad. My hopes of a decent race started to rise.

I was targeting a 6:40 pace for this race but wasn't sure if I was recovered enough to push that effort. I completed mile 1 at a 6:20 pace and was in second place. The kid in front of me was much faster than I could pull off so I didn't attempt to keep up.

I slowed down a little after mile 1 to a 6:40 pace and was passed by one runner. Mile three was a bit slower again and I was passed, putting me in fourth place. By this time I was starting to drag and only pulled a 7:00 pace on my fourth mile. I blamed it on the cart path rollers :-).

The third place runner had about a tenth of a mile on me and I knew that I didn't have the energy to pick him off. I kicked it up a little for the final mile and finished with a 6:50 mile. Final time, 33:30. 6:44 pace average.

(bib number order)

Overall, I was pleased with my run. My legs felt pretty good and the course was well marked and interesting.

After the race I grabbed one of the event helpers to snap a photo. The sun killed it a little bit.

(finish line selfie)

(ok, one more shot)

(golf course and Superstition Mountains)

(waiting for medals)

Week in Review - Mar 2nd 2014: Done with Marathons for the Year

I took it easy this week in preparation for the Phoenix Marathon. Most of the excitement was covered in the previous post so I'll keep this one short.

Monday and Thursday I took out the road bike again and covered 20-25 miles during each ride while going at an easy pace. I was pleased that this was an average of ~19.5 mph as I really haven't been riding much lately.

On Thursday I ran ~9 miles at marathon race pace during lunch and rested Tuesday and Friday.

Saturday was the marathon and Sunday my legs were hurting so I went for another 20 mile ride at an easier pace with the hopes of speeding the recovery process. We'll see.

Overall, a good week; however, I neglected my swimming completely. With the upcoming olympic distance triathlon on 3/16 this might not have been a good idea. I'll go to the pool tomorrow and get in at least two more swims the rest of the week to get back in the groove and rest the legs a bit further.

Next Sunday I will compete in an 8K put on by a relatively new timing company. I expect attendance to be low which should increase the possibility of picking up a top finisher or age group medal.

Race Report - 03/01/2014 - Phoenix Marathon

Location: Scottsdale, Mesa, AZ
Race Type: Run
Participants: 1816
Overall Place: 274th
Age Group Place: 45th
Time: 3:34:00

Pace: 8:10/mile

Packet Pickup

Packet pickup was available on Thursday and Friday in the same shopping plaza as the finish line. This was convenient as it gave me a good idea how long it would take to get there from my house in the morning (this race required you to park at the finish and take a bus to the start). I found my bib number by looking through a book listing all the runners in alphabetical order and then headed to another booth with my number grouping so that I could pick up my bag. As you can see below bibs were divided by groups of 500 people. There was no wait so I grabbed my bag and strolled the vendors.

I'm usually not interested in what the vendors have to offer and this time was no different. That said, there were about 25 different vendors represented and they seemed to be doing good business. 

After perusing the outdoor vendors I was directed into the Sports Authority to pick up my race shirt. The shirt is of a great quality and has a zippered pocket built it. I will definitely use this one. I was also surprised to find a nice set of arm warmers in the bag as well.

On my way out of the store I dropped by the Honey Stinger booth for a photo op. and a few snacks. 

Tomorrow will be an early morning with a 3:15 wake-up so that I can make the last bus at 5am. 

Pre-Race

I had to wake up early for this one. I set the alarm for 3:20 but woke up around 2:30 and couldn't get back to sleep. Even with the early wake-up I was able to squeeze in 5 hours of sleep. 

I had prepared everything the night before so I got dressed, filled a few more water bottles, and headed out. The traffic was busy at the marathon start but the parking was good and efficient. The half marathon parking line was much longer.

After grabbing my gear I headed for the bus stop. There were 6 buses waiting for us and people filed on. Once full, the bus I was on headed out for the 25 minute trip to the start line. 

The bus climbed one of the few hills in the Phoenix metro area and dropped us off at a shooting range. There were an abundance of heaters and porta-johns for the hour wait until the start. 

Luckily it hadn't rained yet and the winds were staying under 10mph. I found a couple of friends that were also doing the full and we waited with our ponchos on. Right around 6am it started to rain. Not too hard but enough that we were glad for the rain gear. 

Slightly after 6am the organizers played the national anthem and launched some fireworks. Pretty cool!

We headed for the start line and passed a group of bagpipers. I personally love to hear bagpipes so this was a treat for me.

I lined up right behind the 3:30 pace leader and waited for the gun shot. 

The Race

It was still dark at 6:30 for the start with full sunrise being ~7:30. The rain continued as we started to run downhill for the first few miles.

The rain let up about 30 minutes into the run and I stripped off my gloves and poncho.

Miles 4-7 increased elevation by 200 feet and then it was mostly downhill the rest of the way. 

I stuck with the 3:30 pacer for the 1st 21 miles and then started to fade a bit. On mile 24 I was about one minute behind the pacer when I stopped to walk, eat a banana, and drink a couple cups of water. After that I felt much better and I was able to finish the race strong. 

Near the the finish line I heard that the 3:35 pace group was on my heals. I stepped up the effort to finish ahead of them.

My official time was 3:34 even. I captured this pick in the finishers corral. I should have looked at the photo since I didn't quite get the medal. Oh well. 

While I didn't meet my training goal of a 3:23 marathon I am happy with today's outcome. I look forward to having the rest of the year off from marathons and improving my time next year.