The triathlon season has come to a close in the Phoenix area with the last big event, The Arizona Ironman, this Sunday. I look forward to attending this race as a spectator and will miss triathlon racing over the coming months. My next scheduled tri is the Lifetime Tri Marquee in Tempe on 4/13/14 and it seems far away.
In the meantime there are plenty of running events in the coming months. I am currently training for the Phoenix Rock n' Roll Marathon on 1/19/14. I will participate in a couple of half marathons and shorter distance races before this event but the marathon will be my "A" race. I will follow this marathon shortly after with another, the Phoenix Marathon, on 3/1/14. My goal for the Phoenix RNR is 3:30 and 3:25 for the Phoenix Marathon.
Saturday, November 16, 2013
Monday, November 11, 2013
Race Report - 11/09/2013 - HITS Lake Havasu Half Ironman
Location: Lake Havasu City, AZ
Race Type: Triathlon
Distance: 1900 meter swim, 56 mile bike, 13.1 mile run
Participants: 252
Overall Place: DNF
Age Group Place: DNF
I had a good taper the 10 days before the race with a few shorter runs, rides, and swims. Kristen and I headed out on Friday in time to make the pre-race briefing and drop of the bike in the transition area. This was my first HITS event and my first half ironman distance. I was excited and felt that I was ready both physically and nutritionally for the race. The weather looked great for Saturday with no clouds and temperatures starting in the low 60's and reaching mid to high 70's by the end of the race.
We arrived in Lake Havasu City and drove directly to the race site right next to the original London Bridge. Registration was quick and I was informed that there would be ~325 participants in the half. This was great as last year there were only ~60. There were a number of vendors and the transition area setup was fantastic. I'd heard that HITS does a great job with the transition area but it was still something great to see. I had been assigned a spot with a bench and box that my front tire would go into and with plenty of room to store my gear. The only downside was that I was right in front of the bathrooms but I was also right next to the bike exit.
The race director/owner started the pre-race briefing shortly after we arrived. He was funny, patient, and informative. After the briefing I racked my bike and headed to the hotel. Later, Kristen and I ate dinner by the bridge and then I was able to catch about 7 hours of sleep.
The morning of the race was chilly but not bad with the wetsuit on. The race director gave another briefing and a few minutes later the horn sounded. I stayed near the back and walked in with most of the other men in the half and full distances. The women were to start three minutes later. The water temperature was 66 degrees and the clarity was great! This was my first race where I could see the bottom of the lake in areas and could also see other participants through the water. This helped immensely for drafting.
There were two large 10x10 buoys in the water that made up two corners of the triangle swim with smaller buoys on the beach and between the larger ones. I had no problem sighting the large buoys and was feeling good until mid-way between the 1st and 2nd turn when I realized that I had not been paying much attention and had drifted off track quite a ways. I picked up speed and caught up with the other participants when rounding the 2nd buoy. The swim to the end was uneventful other than a sandbar that was present about 200 yards out that allowed me to walk a little ways. I finished up the swim mid-pack in ~43 minutes.
I felt great coming out of the water and jogged to my transition area past the strippers. Transition was quick and I was off to the bike course.
The bike course consisted of a 28 mile loop that was to be repeated 2x for the half and 4x for the full. About 14 miles in there were a few hills with steep grades of ~8-10% and even steeper drops on the backside. When climbing the 1st hill I realized that I had a flat in the back. I changed it out and removed a small thorn in my tire. I ran up the hill and passed a few people on their bikes. I then hopped on the bike and launched down the back side. It was such a fast drop that it felt like a roller coaster ride and made me a bit nervous. Seven miles later I had another flat in the back. I swapped out my last tube but couldn't find the cause. At this point I was starting to worry and had given up on making my time goal of 5:30 but was still in relatively good spirits. I was also out of tubes...
The rest of the 28 mile loop was uneventful and I passed a number of people. If it wasn't for the flats I would have been on target for a 20 mph bike average. After finishing the 1st loop and 4 miles on the island of the 2nd I had another flat on the London bridge; also in the back. I had to walk a half mile back to the start where a volunteer procured another tube. He helped me pump it up and I was off again. I was really nervous now. I still hadn't found what caused the last two flats and I felt that I wouldn't make it through the next 24 miles. Well, I didn't. My fourth flat came around mile 48 immediately after passing a woman who was walking. I waited for her to catch up so that I'd have someone to commiserate with. She had a blown front tube and a hole in her tire sidewall. I had given up at this point after having lost ~1 hour with all the flats. I offered to swap front rims with her, she accepted, and was gone. A short while later I took a ride from someone in a buggy back to the bridge. On the way I noticed that two women were down on the road from an accident. One of them looked like the person I'd given my rim to.
After getting back to the transition I packed up and waited for the woman to come in. After ~45 minutes I gave up and spoke with the race director. He had heard that a woman and her mother had gone to the hospital but didn't have details. Luckily, another HITS employee walked by and heard our discussion. He informed me that he just brought back two bikes. The person I'd given my rim to had not been hurt but her mother had. They had gone to the hospital together. The HITS employee brought me to her bike and I swapped my rim back.
I have never had a flat during a race and never had four during any ride that I've taken. It was just not my day. Having said that I was really impressed with the staff, professionalism, and quality of the event. I would definitely do this one again; after all, I need to redeem myself!!!
Race Type: Triathlon
Distance: 1900 meter swim, 56 mile bike, 13.1 mile run
Participants: 252
Overall Place: DNF
Age Group Place: DNF
I had a good taper the 10 days before the race with a few shorter runs, rides, and swims. Kristen and I headed out on Friday in time to make the pre-race briefing and drop of the bike in the transition area. This was my first HITS event and my first half ironman distance. I was excited and felt that I was ready both physically and nutritionally for the race. The weather looked great for Saturday with no clouds and temperatures starting in the low 60's and reaching mid to high 70's by the end of the race.
We arrived in Lake Havasu City and drove directly to the race site right next to the original London Bridge. Registration was quick and I was informed that there would be ~325 participants in the half. This was great as last year there were only ~60. There were a number of vendors and the transition area setup was fantastic. I'd heard that HITS does a great job with the transition area but it was still something great to see. I had been assigned a spot with a bench and box that my front tire would go into and with plenty of room to store my gear. The only downside was that I was right in front of the bathrooms but I was also right next to the bike exit.
The race director/owner started the pre-race briefing shortly after we arrived. He was funny, patient, and informative. After the briefing I racked my bike and headed to the hotel. Later, Kristen and I ate dinner by the bridge and then I was able to catch about 7 hours of sleep.
The morning of the race was chilly but not bad with the wetsuit on. The race director gave another briefing and a few minutes later the horn sounded. I stayed near the back and walked in with most of the other men in the half and full distances. The women were to start three minutes later. The water temperature was 66 degrees and the clarity was great! This was my first race where I could see the bottom of the lake in areas and could also see other participants through the water. This helped immensely for drafting.
There were two large 10x10 buoys in the water that made up two corners of the triangle swim with smaller buoys on the beach and between the larger ones. I had no problem sighting the large buoys and was feeling good until mid-way between the 1st and 2nd turn when I realized that I had not been paying much attention and had drifted off track quite a ways. I picked up speed and caught up with the other participants when rounding the 2nd buoy. The swim to the end was uneventful other than a sandbar that was present about 200 yards out that allowed me to walk a little ways. I finished up the swim mid-pack in ~43 minutes.
I felt great coming out of the water and jogged to my transition area past the strippers. Transition was quick and I was off to the bike course.
The bike course consisted of a 28 mile loop that was to be repeated 2x for the half and 4x for the full. About 14 miles in there were a few hills with steep grades of ~8-10% and even steeper drops on the backside. When climbing the 1st hill I realized that I had a flat in the back. I changed it out and removed a small thorn in my tire. I ran up the hill and passed a few people on their bikes. I then hopped on the bike and launched down the back side. It was such a fast drop that it felt like a roller coaster ride and made me a bit nervous. Seven miles later I had another flat in the back. I swapped out my last tube but couldn't find the cause. At this point I was starting to worry and had given up on making my time goal of 5:30 but was still in relatively good spirits. I was also out of tubes...
The rest of the 28 mile loop was uneventful and I passed a number of people. If it wasn't for the flats I would have been on target for a 20 mph bike average. After finishing the 1st loop and 4 miles on the island of the 2nd I had another flat on the London bridge; also in the back. I had to walk a half mile back to the start where a volunteer procured another tube. He helped me pump it up and I was off again. I was really nervous now. I still hadn't found what caused the last two flats and I felt that I wouldn't make it through the next 24 miles. Well, I didn't. My fourth flat came around mile 48 immediately after passing a woman who was walking. I waited for her to catch up so that I'd have someone to commiserate with. She had a blown front tube and a hole in her tire sidewall. I had given up at this point after having lost ~1 hour with all the flats. I offered to swap front rims with her, she accepted, and was gone. A short while later I took a ride from someone in a buggy back to the bridge. On the way I noticed that two women were down on the road from an accident. One of them looked like the person I'd given my rim to.
After getting back to the transition I packed up and waited for the woman to come in. After ~45 minutes I gave up and spoke with the race director. He had heard that a woman and her mother had gone to the hospital but didn't have details. Luckily, another HITS employee walked by and heard our discussion. He informed me that he just brought back two bikes. The person I'd given my rim to had not been hurt but her mother had. They had gone to the hospital together. The HITS employee brought me to her bike and I swapped my rim back.
I have never had a flat during a race and never had four during any ride that I've taken. It was just not my day. Having said that I was really impressed with the staff, professionalism, and quality of the event. I would definitely do this one again; after all, I need to redeem myself!!!
Saturday, November 2, 2013
Race Report - 11/02/2013 - Desert Grande Triathlon
Location: Coolidge, AZ
Race Type: Triathlon
Distance: 400 meter swim, 10.2 mile bike, 3 mile run
Participants: 215
Overall Place: 23rd
Age Group Place: 5th
Time: 1:05:43. Swim: 9:38, Bike: 34:16, Run: 21:49
I signed up for this race last week. I had been debating on this race and a 100 mile road cycling club event; The Heart of Arizona. With the 1/2 ironman distance tri coming up next week I felt that it would not be beneficial to ride that far and be gone from my family all day. Anyway, on to the race...
This race was the 22nd annual Desert Grande Triathlon. I had never been to Coolidge, AZ although it is only 30 minutes south of my house. After having reviewed last years times I felt that I could come out fairly well if the participant field was similar. With that in mind, I had the goal of pushing myself hard throughout the race (except the swim) and was shooting for a time of 1:01.
The race was held at Central Arizona College. The campus was nestled against a mountain and was quite beautiful. After racking my bike near the beginning of the transition area I then picked up my registration packet and walked around the pool. The pool had 8, 50 meter lanes. Having never swam in a 50 meter pool, I was looking forward to it. Next I walked the transition areas and asked questions to ensure that I knew the route to take. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that it was really cold out! It was 50 degrees (that is practically freezing for Phoenicians) and I was beginning to dread the bike portion.
At 7:15 I stripped down to my tri suit and headed towards the pool. My feet froze while walking on the grass but the sun was starting to warm things up a bit. The race director gave his speech and people started getting in the pool in 10 second intervals. We were all lined up by our estimated finish time so I stuck with the 8:30 group and waited as more than 1/2 of the participants started ahead of me. Once in, the swim was uneventful. I passed a few people and was passed by a couple. There were also a couple of points where I had to wait due to lines being blocked by slow swimmers. Oh, well. I came out of the pool a bit slower than expected but I was feeling good.
The bike transition went well. I put on a long sleeve shirt and was off. Unfortunately the lane was narrow exiting the bike area and I was stuck behind a slow rider for a quarter mile. Once out of the way I started pushing hard and was averaging 23 mph. I was able to hold this until we made a couple of turns and ended up in a mountain valley where the winds were moving strong against me. At that point I could barely push 18 mph and my average dropped down lower than expected. I ended the ride with a 21 mph GPS average but was pleased that I passed ~25 people and was not passed at all. The official results are skewed because both transitions were included during this leg.
The run transition went well. I stripped off the long sleeve shirt, put on the race belt and started chasing people down. After less than a 1/2 mile the course turned onto packed dirt. I wasn't expecting this and would have brought different shoes. I pushed hard and passed 10-15 people during the run. Once again, nobody passed me. There was a woman ahead of me the entire time and I used her to pace off but could never catch up.
I had to head for home immediately after the run so I did not see my results. For some reason they weren't posting any data real time. There was good food available that I missed out on but I did receive a finisher medal and a long sleeve shirt.
All in all, a good race that was well run and had a good showing. I will do this again next year.
Race Type: Triathlon
Distance: 400 meter swim, 10.2 mile bike, 3 mile run
Participants: 215
Overall Place: 23rd
Age Group Place: 5th
Time: 1:05:43. Swim: 9:38, Bike: 34:16, Run: 21:49
I signed up for this race last week. I had been debating on this race and a 100 mile road cycling club event; The Heart of Arizona. With the 1/2 ironman distance tri coming up next week I felt that it would not be beneficial to ride that far and be gone from my family all day. Anyway, on to the race...
This race was the 22nd annual Desert Grande Triathlon. I had never been to Coolidge, AZ although it is only 30 minutes south of my house. After having reviewed last years times I felt that I could come out fairly well if the participant field was similar. With that in mind, I had the goal of pushing myself hard throughout the race (except the swim) and was shooting for a time of 1:01.
The race was held at Central Arizona College. The campus was nestled against a mountain and was quite beautiful. After racking my bike near the beginning of the transition area I then picked up my registration packet and walked around the pool. The pool had 8, 50 meter lanes. Having never swam in a 50 meter pool, I was looking forward to it. Next I walked the transition areas and asked questions to ensure that I knew the route to take. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that it was really cold out! It was 50 degrees (that is practically freezing for Phoenicians) and I was beginning to dread the bike portion.
At 7:15 I stripped down to my tri suit and headed towards the pool. My feet froze while walking on the grass but the sun was starting to warm things up a bit. The race director gave his speech and people started getting in the pool in 10 second intervals. We were all lined up by our estimated finish time so I stuck with the 8:30 group and waited as more than 1/2 of the participants started ahead of me. Once in, the swim was uneventful. I passed a few people and was passed by a couple. There were also a couple of points where I had to wait due to lines being blocked by slow swimmers. Oh, well. I came out of the pool a bit slower than expected but I was feeling good.
The bike transition went well. I put on a long sleeve shirt and was off. Unfortunately the lane was narrow exiting the bike area and I was stuck behind a slow rider for a quarter mile. Once out of the way I started pushing hard and was averaging 23 mph. I was able to hold this until we made a couple of turns and ended up in a mountain valley where the winds were moving strong against me. At that point I could barely push 18 mph and my average dropped down lower than expected. I ended the ride with a 21 mph GPS average but was pleased that I passed ~25 people and was not passed at all. The official results are skewed because both transitions were included during this leg.
The run transition went well. I stripped off the long sleeve shirt, put on the race belt and started chasing people down. After less than a 1/2 mile the course turned onto packed dirt. I wasn't expecting this and would have brought different shoes. I pushed hard and passed 10-15 people during the run. Once again, nobody passed me. There was a woman ahead of me the entire time and I used her to pace off but could never catch up.
I had to head for home immediately after the run so I did not see my results. For some reason they weren't posting any data real time. There was good food available that I missed out on but I did receive a finisher medal and a long sleeve shirt.
All in all, a good race that was well run and had a good showing. I will do this again next year.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Keeping it all Together - Family, Work, Training, and Racing
Over the last couple of years I've had to learn how to balance family, work, training, and racing (in that order). It hasn't always been easy and sometimes it hasn't gone very well either. Family comes first, right. I have three small children; two in elementary school and one that will start next year. My wife works from home so she often needs a break by the time I arrive at night.
I have worked for the same company for over 13 years. My current position allows my to work four, ten hour days; one of which is a weekend. I find this schedule to be great. I don't have to be at work until 8am so this allows my to get up early, work out for 1-2 hours, take a shower, and help get my children ready for school. During the Phoenix area summers, morning workouts are a must. It is simply too hot during the day to do anything but bike or swim. During the cooler months I can run in the mornings and bike during my lunch break. I typically do not exercise on work nights because I get home near bed time and need to help with homework, baths, getting the children ready for bed, etc.
I have two week days where I do not work and two of the three children are in school. I typically try to get in a longer, 2.5 - 3.5 hour, single workout or brick on at least one of these days. During my one weekend day I also shoot for a long workout. My weekly goal is 10-15 hours of exercise for a three week average with 5-7 hours during the rest week. I am usually able to meet these goals.
Most of the races that I compete in occur early in the morning on Saturday or Sunday. I have only had to travel more than an hour for a few events so I am usually home by lunch time on my non-work day or I head directly to work. Triathlons eat up more of my day and have required more travel. I'm not fond of the local triathlon bike course for the Olympic to Half IM distances so I look elsewhere. If I can make a mini vacation out of a triathlon event, I will. Ideally the family will come along with me on these longer trips but that hasn't always worked out.
Without my wife working from home I don't think that I'd be able to keep my training schedule. The ability to leave every morning before the children wake up is what keeps my training strong. Besides, I am definitely a morning person. I enjoy the morning run or ride with next to no-one on the roads. I remember my father telling me on one occasion that mornings are God's time. I happen to agree. The world seems tranquil before the hustle and bustle of our lives takes over.
I have worked for the same company for over 13 years. My current position allows my to work four, ten hour days; one of which is a weekend. I find this schedule to be great. I don't have to be at work until 8am so this allows my to get up early, work out for 1-2 hours, take a shower, and help get my children ready for school. During the Phoenix area summers, morning workouts are a must. It is simply too hot during the day to do anything but bike or swim. During the cooler months I can run in the mornings and bike during my lunch break. I typically do not exercise on work nights because I get home near bed time and need to help with homework, baths, getting the children ready for bed, etc.
I have two week days where I do not work and two of the three children are in school. I typically try to get in a longer, 2.5 - 3.5 hour, single workout or brick on at least one of these days. During my one weekend day I also shoot for a long workout. My weekly goal is 10-15 hours of exercise for a three week average with 5-7 hours during the rest week. I am usually able to meet these goals.
Most of the races that I compete in occur early in the morning on Saturday or Sunday. I have only had to travel more than an hour for a few events so I am usually home by lunch time on my non-work day or I head directly to work. Triathlons eat up more of my day and have required more travel. I'm not fond of the local triathlon bike course for the Olympic to Half IM distances so I look elsewhere. If I can make a mini vacation out of a triathlon event, I will. Ideally the family will come along with me on these longer trips but that hasn't always worked out.
Without my wife working from home I don't think that I'd be able to keep my training schedule. The ability to leave every morning before the children wake up is what keeps my training strong. Besides, I am definitely a morning person. I enjoy the morning run or ride with next to no-one on the roads. I remember my father telling me on one occasion that mornings are God's time. I happen to agree. The world seems tranquil before the hustle and bustle of our lives takes over.
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Race Report - 10/27/2013 - Faster Gran Fondo Century
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Race Type: Gran Fondo
Distance: 100 Miles
Participants: ~100
Overall Place: 7/21 per Strava 2013 Faster Gran Fondo 100 segment
Age Group Place: NA
Moving Time: 5:31:15
Total Time: 5:42:25
Pace: 17.9 mi/h
Elevation Change: ~5000 feet
This was the 2nd annual Faster Gran Fondo. Faster is a high end cycling shop in North Scottsdale. I completed this event last year and wanted to come back for another round. My hopes were that there would be more people this year as last year there were only about 100 and I rode alone most of the time. It was also very windy.
This year the conditions were almost the same but the course was reversed. There were about the same number of people and the wind was almost as strong; 10 miles per hour sustained. A week before the event I received an email stating that due to cost constraints there would be no timing company. I was pretty disappointed by this but not enough to request a refund.
The course did not have traffic control so safety was up to the rider. This was the same as last year, and fine. I was not ecstatic that the course had been reversed and that I would now be taking almost all left turns but in reality it was no issue at all. After the first 10 miles there were very few places that required stopping.
I stayed with a group the first 30 miles. We skipped the 1st SAG at mile 20 and we all stopped at the 2nd SAG around mile 32. At this point the temperature was starting to increase but it was still comfortably in the high 70's. By the end of the ride this would change to ~90 degrees. After the 2nd SAG I decided to go it on my own. The group I'd been riding with was a bit slow for my tastes and I saw no reason to risk a wreck with inexperienced riders.
The next 9 miles consisted of a steady climb with the wind at my back; locally referred to as 9-mile-hill. I enjoyed the climb and didn't push it. Last year I went down this climb fighting the wind and it wasn't pleasant at all!
Over the next 70 miles I was surprised at home much I enjoyed the scenery and the quality of the roads. I didn't attempt to "race" but kept my heart rate in the 155-160 area while focusing on the pleasure of biking. I would occasionally pass other riders but was never passed myself. There were two more SAG's during this period where I refilled both my bottles. I definitely needed the water as the temps were increasing. The SAG support personnel were great and showed enthusiasm for the event. They held my bike and dumped ice water on my head during the last stop. Thanks!
The only downside of the ride was that at mile 90 I started receiving cramps in both my legs. I should have brought salt tablets! My planning for this ride was not what it should have been. I brought along 3 packages of Clif Bloks and 3 Stinger waffles. Of these, I ate all but one of the waffles. My initial bottles also had Mike's Mix Sports Drink. Lesson learned, bring salt. I was able to pedal through the cramps and eventually they went away with the occasional twinge.
Overall, this was a great course that was well marked. The registration fee included a Faster jersey (now I have two), a finisher medal, and beer at the end. I will probably do it again next year. The down sides were the lack of timing, the lack of participants, and the lack of promised pizza at the end (the 35 mile participants finished it off). There were also high end prizes for those that had the best times on the KOM's and overall effort; based on Strava times.
Race Type: Gran Fondo
Distance: 100 Miles
Participants: ~100
Overall Place: 7/21 per Strava 2013 Faster Gran Fondo 100 segment
Age Group Place: NA
Moving Time: 5:31:15
Total Time: 5:42:25
Pace: 17.9 mi/h
Elevation Change: ~5000 feet
This was the 2nd annual Faster Gran Fondo. Faster is a high end cycling shop in North Scottsdale. I completed this event last year and wanted to come back for another round. My hopes were that there would be more people this year as last year there were only about 100 and I rode alone most of the time. It was also very windy.
This year the conditions were almost the same but the course was reversed. There were about the same number of people and the wind was almost as strong; 10 miles per hour sustained. A week before the event I received an email stating that due to cost constraints there would be no timing company. I was pretty disappointed by this but not enough to request a refund.
The course did not have traffic control so safety was up to the rider. This was the same as last year, and fine. I was not ecstatic that the course had been reversed and that I would now be taking almost all left turns but in reality it was no issue at all. After the first 10 miles there were very few places that required stopping.
I stayed with a group the first 30 miles. We skipped the 1st SAG at mile 20 and we all stopped at the 2nd SAG around mile 32. At this point the temperature was starting to increase but it was still comfortably in the high 70's. By the end of the ride this would change to ~90 degrees. After the 2nd SAG I decided to go it on my own. The group I'd been riding with was a bit slow for my tastes and I saw no reason to risk a wreck with inexperienced riders.
The next 9 miles consisted of a steady climb with the wind at my back; locally referred to as 9-mile-hill. I enjoyed the climb and didn't push it. Last year I went down this climb fighting the wind and it wasn't pleasant at all!
Over the next 70 miles I was surprised at home much I enjoyed the scenery and the quality of the roads. I didn't attempt to "race" but kept my heart rate in the 155-160 area while focusing on the pleasure of biking. I would occasionally pass other riders but was never passed myself. There were two more SAG's during this period where I refilled both my bottles. I definitely needed the water as the temps were increasing. The SAG support personnel were great and showed enthusiasm for the event. They held my bike and dumped ice water on my head during the last stop. Thanks!
The only downside of the ride was that at mile 90 I started receiving cramps in both my legs. I should have brought salt tablets! My planning for this ride was not what it should have been. I brought along 3 packages of Clif Bloks and 3 Stinger waffles. Of these, I ate all but one of the waffles. My initial bottles also had Mike's Mix Sports Drink. Lesson learned, bring salt. I was able to pedal through the cramps and eventually they went away with the occasional twinge.
Overall, this was a great course that was well marked. The registration fee included a Faster jersey (now I have two), a finisher medal, and beer at the end. I will probably do it again next year. The down sides were the lack of timing, the lack of participants, and the lack of promised pizza at the end (the 35 mile participants finished it off). There were also high end prizes for those that had the best times on the KOM's and overall effort; based on Strava times.
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
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/
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/
Monday, October 21, 2013
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!
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