I Have a Sponsor! Mike's Mix Sports Nutrition

Today is an exciting day for me. I sent an email to my favorite sports drink nutrition company, Mike's Mix Sports Nutrition, requesting that they sponsor my racing endeavors. Well....they have.

I started using Mike's Mix as a workout recovery drink when doing P90X. It was much cheaper than the P90X product and I loved the taste of the chocolate mix. I also feel that it helps my recovery so that I can have a good workout the following day. Over the last couple of years I have made many purchases of the recovery drink and in the last few months have also started using their sports drink. I like the sports drink better than the alternatives because it is not overly sweet and has a good balance of sugar and electrolytes that I need for long distance biking.

I can't wait to sport their shirts at my next running races!

Here's their link if you want to check them out: http://mikesmixrecoverydrink.com/

Welcome to my blog - About Me

Tri to Achieve... Well, the name was available and I thought that it was fitting for my circumstances. My name is Dan Sherman and I am an aspiring age group triathlete. My endurance training story begins like this:

Starting some time in 1999 I decided to improve my health and start exercising. I am 5'10" and my weight bordered 200 pounds. My routine consisted of going to the gym 4-5 times per week for ~30 minutes per visit. I  lost 20 pounds and was was feeling good about myself so I quit exercising (dumb). 

Late 2011. I started and completed a 90 day round of P90X. This time I dropped from 210 pounds to 165 pounds. After finishing P90X I felt like I was in the best shape of my life. I started running and road biking regularly and eventually aspired to racing. 

During P90X training I discovered that I need structure and goals so that I will work out regularly. Without structure I will always be able to find excuses not to exercise  I signed up for my 1st century bike race in October 2012 and did well. I then captured a race bug that led me to sign up for the Phoenix Rock n' Roll Marathon. I trained for four months and completed the run in 3:53. Not my goal time of 3:40 but those last 5 miles were a killer. After various running and bike events I decided to give triathlon a shot so that my fitness could be better rounded. I started training for an Olympic distance triathlon in my area and completed that in May. I finished in the top 1/3rd of participants. I continue to race in running, biking, and triathlons and am only getting faster. 

My ultimate goal is the ACHIEVE a healthy existence through an active lifestyle of training and racing. Of course I also enjoy the feeling of doing well in races and placing in either my age group or overall.

The balance between family, training, and racing is something that I strive to achieve. Without the support of my wonderful wife my training and race goals would not be possible. Thank you to my wife and children for your patience, understanding, and support!

Race Report - 10/20/2013 - Going the Distance Series 5K

Location: Tempe, AZ - Kiwanis Park
Race Type: Run
Participants: 38
Overall Place: 3rd
Age Group Place: 1st
Time: 20:01

This was a 1st in a progressive series of running races put on by a new chip timing company in the Phoenix area; StartLineRacing. The timing company did an excellent job with food, organization, and course signs.

The course ran around a small lake and finished along a canal. There were nice little rollers and it was a lot of fun.

I ended up with a PR on this course and my GPS clocked my 5K time at 19:37 and the course length at 3.16 miles.

Race Report - 10/19/2013 - The Jim Stenholm 100

Location: Tempe, AZ - Kiwanis Park
Race Type: Road Cycling Charity Event
Distance: 52 Miles
Participants: ~300
Overall Place: NA
Age Group Place: NA
Time: 2:35:16

This is a charity ride to support the Phoenix chapter of the 100 Club. The event is in its 5th year and was brought about by the death of a Phoenix police officer, Jim Stenholm. His wife organized the event to bring together friends, family, and those who love to ride. 

I completed this event last year as well. It is unique in that it is a paced ride with motorcycle police leading the way. The ride was billed as being 60 miles so I'm not sure what happened but it was still a good time. 

The ride is generally a very easy pace of 20mph due to the cluster of people. Having said that, there was an 8 mile stretch where the escort let everyone go as fast as they liked. I didn't expect this and was dropped by the lead group of 100ish people. During that time I maintained a mostly solo pace of 23-24mph until everyone stopped at a SAG. The final 10 miles were an easy cruise to the free BBQ at the end. 

Race Report - 10/13/2013 - Ironcare Splash & Dash #3

Location: Tempe, AZ - Tempe Town Lake
Race Type: Aquathlon
Distance: 1000m swim, 5k run
Participants: 16
Overall Place: 4th
Age Group Place: 1st
Time: 47:56.  Swim: 24:31, Trans: 1:20, Run: 22:03

The splash and dash series is a friendly relaxed environment to prep triathletes for race events. Most of the participants today were swimming the 2000m followed by a 5k run in preparation for the Soma Half Ironman on 10/20/13. I didn't feel ready to take this distance on with an untried wetsuit and a general lack of swimming training.

The swim portion was uneventful. The new wetsuit worked well with no chafing or discomfort. I'm guessing that I swam an extra 100-150m due to poor sighting. I really need to work on finding a marker in the distance in line with the buoy. 

The transition also was uneventful. I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was to strip off the full body wetsuit. 

The run went well. I didn't push myself as hard as I could have but this event was a swim focus for me, not a run. 

Race Report - 9/22/2013 - Run FORE Cancer 5K

Location: Scottsdale, AZ 
Race Type: Run
Distance: 5K
Participants: 229
Overall Place: 4th
Age Group Place: 1st
Time: 21:12

The race was located at a golf course and was a charity event to raise money for cancer research. The turnout was good, there were plenty of snacks, and the course was full of turns and rollers. My legs were tired from doing a brick workout consisting of a 40 mile bike and 10 mile run the day before. The 1st place finisher was far ahead of me but I chased the 2nd and 3rd place for most of the race. I just didn't have it in me to push it for the last mile to take over 3rd. 

The finish was nice. I received a medal and a plaque. The 3rd place finishers wife was nice enough to take a picture of me and email it out. 

Race Report - 9/14/2013 - Ogden Valley Triathlon

Location: Ogden, Utah
Race Type: Triathlon
Distance: 1000 meter swim, 15.4 mile bike, 4 mile run
Participants: 234
Overall Place: 67th
Age Group Place: 15th
Time: 1:45:23.  Swim: 26:11, Trans1: 3:01, Bike: 40:53, Trans2: 2:10, Run: 22:03

I traveled to Eden, Utah to attend this race with by bike. My goal was to have fun and visit a friend that I haven't seen in years. This was his first triathlon and we agreed that if he would sign up I would make the trip. 

The weather when I arrived on Friday was rainy off and on. On Saturday morning the rain cleared up a few hours before the race. The event was put on by TriUtah and was in the 8th year running. The transition area was well laid out with rack assignments. I was unlucky in that I a middle rack with a position on the far end. 

The swim was in Pineview Reservoir. I found a person with a Garmin 910XT at the end and she clocked it at 1150 meters. The water temp was great for my sleeveless wetsuit and there were only a few waves when one of the lifeguards would come by with a skidoo. I hadn't been training a lot on my swimming so I was definitely slow. 

The swim to transition was tough as I had to run up a very steep hill that was wet mud from previous participants. I ended up walking most of it. This tired my out for the transition and I ended up with the slowest time to date. 

The bike course was a single loop with minimal turns. That said, I took a left too fast when trying to pass another person and ended up going off the course, into the rocks, and onto a sidewalk. I was able to recover without losing any time and minimal speed. Overall, I was happy with the ride and averaged 22.6mph. The bike to run transition was uneventful.

The run consisted of ~1.5 miles of road and ~2.5 miles of single track. I felt weak the entire time. I'm thinking that the elevation (5000 feet) was taking its tole on me. I had gone for a run the previous day and my heart rate was elevated for the speed I was going. Needless to say, my run was slower than I expected but it was fun to run the single track and have trees for shade. We don't get much of that in Arizona.

Overall, this was a fun race with a great friend. I hope to make it an annual event.