Oops, Where Did October and November Go?

This past 2 months have flown by.  I ran the Grand Rapids marathon and had a great experience at that site.  The venue was great and the spectator involvement was huge.  I didn't expect to see so many people out on the course cheering.  At the 18 mile mark (they typical area where people "hit the wall") there was such a huge crowd!  My finish time was 3h42 minutes - which was just over my "Perfect Race" goal of 3:30.  I won't complain at all since it was my first marathon.  Post race recovery was awesome!  (Beers)

Another great aspect to this race was that Becky and a few of her coworkers also ran the marathon as a relay.  Becky ran a leg longer than she has ever ran in a race before.  She did great and said that she felt great during the run.

Since the GR Mary I took a 2 week time of minimal training in order to recover.  I had hoped to run an Ultra Marathon in middle December but I opted to let my body rest and to take care of a small nagging injury to my right foot.  November became a month of rest.  I didn't plan to take the month off, but as time progressed it was a nice break.  Over the last 2 years I have taken November off to recover.  So not a big deal.

This month I will be starting my new training plan back up.  December and January are prep months - basically a way for me to get back into a regular routine without the specific demands of high intensity training; not that I won't be doing some high intensity stuff, but it won't be a mandatory part of the training plan.  During this time I'll be doing regular aerobic base building which means long and slow.  That means it's time to catch up on some movies while riding the trainer and going out to enjoy the cold weather for some runs.  Swimming hasn't been in my regular routine lately.  Why, you ask?  Good question... to which I have no good answer.  In part because I haven't had any specific event that forces me to stay in shape for the water.  In January I will be back in the pool regularly building that base back up.

I have a handful of races that I'd love to consider for next year.  There's not a chance that I'll be able to do every race that I want to do, so it'll be a slow selection process.  My A race of the year will be Ironman Racine 70.3 again.  Last year it was a great race experience and I'm stoked to go back and see what I can do!  I'm also considering Rev3 Cedar Point, also a half Iron distance race.  I wasn't able to go last year while several good friends did, and it sounds like it was an awesome venue with outstanding race support!  Races the I'm considering: 3D Motor City Oly, 3D  Racing for Recovery Half Iron Distance (yes, that would make 3 70.3's), and 3D Lansing Legislator Oly.  Also on the list would be Hawk Island Sprint Tri and, of course, another marathon - either Grand Rapids or Detroit.  I'd like to think that I could consider an Ultra next year, but my schedule is quickly filling.

I have decided against running with the RACING GREYHOUNDS team this year.  The last 2 years have been fun, but next year I will be racing for Team Motiv8.  Craig and I are starting this team as a non-profit with the main focus in educating young children about the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle through exercise and nutrition.  We plan to take our team out beyond the schools into the corporate world to encourage adults into the multisport world.  We will be leading a "Your First Triathlon" experience where we will help guide individuals into a successful first triathlon.  We will invite anyone and everyone to participate with our team during the year.  We will be raising funds for other charities during several races throughout the year.  We hope to be able to offer a special incentive to individuals who raise the most money during each event.  Details will follow soon, so check back here regularly and start frequenting our website.

Team Motiv8 is currently seeking out sponsorship opportunities.  So if you or someone you know would like to financially assist us in making this team a reality, I would love the opportunity to talk to you.  Our main focus will be in the programs that we will take into the elementary schools.  Sponsors will be listed on our print material, website and given promotion at multisport events.  We will be making a big impact and we would love the opportunity for you to join us.

I have finally decided to become a certified personal trainer.  About time, right?  A lot of the study material is review given my background.  I then hope to also become a USAT certified coach.  Good things in the mix for next year!

A huge Thank You to Fluid for their sponsorship this past year!  What a great product and a great company.  Rich and Dave, you guys rawk!  Check Fluid out for the perfect blend in a muscle recovery drink mix.  The new chocolate flavor is my favorite!

Thank you for all of your support over this race season!

What's Next??

August is here!  As summer will begin to wind down, fall approaches.  You know what that means?  The triathlon season is almost over and runners will be taking over the roads :)    Now is a great time to reflect over the last 7 months of the year to see where you've come.

I think that it's kind of funny, November is when I started my training plan for Ironman Racine.  This November, I will start the same basic periodization plan.  However I will be staring with my basic volume the same as it is right now.   I'm excited to think about next year's training and racing, even though it's still several months away.  I'm not ruling my tri season over yet, but September offers the last of the local tri's - so it's not far out.

With the August calendar now on the refrigerator, I look forward to this new page.

To me this is great for a few reasons:

• I chose to start a marathon training plan and I plan to run the Grand Rapids Marathon on October 17th... this year!  I'll be running it with a friend who is hoping for a BQ time, she's got to finish under 3:45, so we'll be training to finish at 3:30.  Just FYI - my BQ time would be 3:10... not happening!
• I am participating in a study at Michigan State University.  I will be one of a handful of people to be subjected to some pretty crazy testing that includes data tracking for 2 weeks of workouts, 1 week at a volume over 15 hours and a second week at a volume under 10 hours.  There will be a nutrition/metabolism and threshold/ VO2 Max treadmill tests and blood testing before and after the study.  It'll tell me a LOT about where I am, as well as where I could be in training intensity.
• September is the Rev3 Cedar Point half distance triathlon.  But due to some family happenings, I may not be able to run this race.  I'm waiting for word back from Rev3 about a couple of options for me to get in to this event.  Whether I do or do not do race this event, my training will have to peak during the same time frame due to the MSU study.
• Lastly, August marks the month that I hired in to the fire department - this year I become Senior Firefighter... which is a fancy way to say that I get a significant pay raise!  Sadly, I only have 1 person below me in seniority due to budget 'shortfalls'  The 2011 budget will be tight, but word is - 2012 will be worse for the area that I work.  Who knows.  Right now, I'm good.

Due to the Ironman Racine triathlon and the tapering for that race, my total training volume and distances for last month are lower than normal.  However my run totals are still higher than what I wrote down for monthly totals at the beginning of this year.  Last month I surpassed my total time swimming from all of 2009 and in August I will surpass my 2009 run total of 500 miles.  I'm very close to passing the 2009 total distance on the bike as well, maybe in September I will break that mark.

SO, where are you in your fitness?  Do you have a goal?  What motivates you?  What do you want to do this year or even next year?  Get healthy, stay healthy!  Live life to the fullest knowing that every step you take will influence someone close to you!!

A HUGE congratulations to The Nature Conservancy, Michigan Chapter (Lansing Office) for committing 5 people to run the Grand Rapids Marathon as a relay this year!  My wife will be on that team with 4 of her coworkers.  That's a huge step to take and I'm soooper proud of all of you.  Train like you want to win and represent TNC with pride!!

The Last Couple of Months

Wow, time has flown by since my last post!  Ironman Racine 70.3 is less than a month away and next week I reach the Critical Volume stage of training.  This will be the test of mental and physical endurance as this plan calls for "9/3 of the event distance per week"  That means swimming 3.6 miles, biking 168 miles and running 40 miles each week for 2 consecutive weeks. 

So over the past 2 months I've ramped up my running and biking, though my swimming has been lingering.  I've chosen to do a little better than 'just finish' my swim, but I hope to rock the bike/run at Racine.

I raced the sprint distance Hawk Island Triathlon and finished 3rd in my AG with an OA time of 1h01m and some change.  My swim felt good, but I averaged over 2min/100yds.  My bike avg speed was 21mph and my run avg pace was 7:11.  I expected to be a bit faster on the swim and definitely hoped to be much faster on the bike, based on previous trials of the bike course.  My legs were very tight on the bike and my calves were sore on the run, but loosened up after the first mile or so.  I had been a little sleep deprived at work for my previous 2 shifts worked the night before the race.  Perhaps that contributed to the tight legs, maybe not.  Nutrition was good and water intake was good.

The following week I went to Motor City Triathlon and competed with the RACING GREYHOUNDS on a relay team.  We raced the Oly distance and I completed the swim leg... yippers - you read that right.  I even did well.  I finished up the 1.5k swim in just under 30 minutes, pacing me at sub 2 min per 100 meters... in the past I've been at or just over 2 min per 100 yds.  I felt strong and didn't give up placement to those who chose to hit and kick me, I may have shoved back.  So that was a huge boost to my swim ego!  It was a good thing I didn't bring my bike along or I would have seriously been tempted to ride and run the Oly course.

All in all, training has been going well.  I have been shy on my volume for the last 3 consecutive weeks, but I'll concede that time for my family time.  These next two weeks will be brutal and recovery plans will need to be tailored specifically to each day's workout.  Then I'll be taking 2 weeks easy as a Taper for Racine.  I'm pretty excited!

I have been very blessed with my family for supporting me in these plans.  This past weekend was Father's Day.  I took some much needed time to spend with my beautiful girls (all 3 of them) and just relax.

I have also been honored to be part of the Fluid team as a sponsored athlete.  They provide a great tasting recovery drink that provides electrolyte replacement with added protein and l-glutamine - EVERYTHING you need after a long training session!

May Totals:
Bike - 10 hours - 172 miles
Run -13.5 hours - 83 miles
Swim - 4 hours - 11260 yds

June Totals (to date - I'll have 1 week of CV to add to these):
Bike - 10 hours - 171 miles
Run - 12 hours - 78 miles
Swim - 1.5 hours - 4k yds

Onward into 2010!

2009 has flown past and 2010 is here! What a great year to have raced and to have met many new friends in the triathlon community. I look forward to new opportunities that should come in to focus in this new year.

My Totals:

December wasn't planned to be low volume/distance, but it does appear to have taken that route after family things and the Holidays. I hit my running goal for the year. I think my bike goal was 1500, but I *secretly* wanted to hit 2k. I swam and biked more than double my '08 time and distance and I feel better about where I am right now with my swims.

2010:

I don't have a run 'goal' per-say. I'm where I want to be with speed and endurance. So I'll try to increase my overall mileage. I would like to break the 20 minute 5k as I was off by less than a minute this year. But it's not my focus in 2010.

Bike - I want to nail the bike this coming year. I'd love to break the 2k mileage mark and increase my overall race avg speeds to 24 mph (up from about 16 mph in 2008 and about 19/20 mph in '09)

Swim - My focus of 2010. These last few months have been great for me in the water. Now I just need to translate to OWS / Racing. The swim has been my limiter for the last 2 years. I would have placed significantly higher in a couple key races this year if I could have taken 3 minutes off of my swim time. So I've spent a high volume of time in the pool over the last 2 months to increase my endurance for distance. Now I plan now to start focusing on speed and stroke work.

My Race goal for 2010 - I'm not sure how to set a specific goal yet for Racine 70.3, but my general goal is to qualify for the IM 70.3 World Championships. I have just over 20 weeks from now until Racine. While the swim will be a serious stretch for me, I will race my best at Racine and I'm certain that I'll have a great time

The AVERAGE times for the top 10 in my age group from last years Racine race are:

Avg Racine by the Numbers:
Total Time - 4:20:06
Swim - 25:33 (1:13 /100 yds)
Bike - 2:21:25 (23.76 mph)
Run - 1:29:39 (6:50 pace)
T1 - 1:53 T2 - 1:13

Otherwise, I'd like to race the Olympic distance for a couple of races, just for fun (with another secret hope for a podium finish). I'd like to think that this year will also be my first full marathon but again, only for fun.

December's totals:
Bike: 3h 51m 11s - 61.6 Mi
Run: 2h 00m - 11 Mi
Swim: 3h 31m - 9800 Yd

2009 totals
Bike: 107h 47m 02s - 1840.85 Mi
Run: 77h 44m 08s - 504 Mi
Swim: 26h 10m 25s - 58280.96 Yd
Strength: 15h 47

2008 totals
Bike: 32h 23m 03s - 443.96 Mi
Run: 60h 58m 24s - 400.33 Mi
Swim: 11h 41m 57s - 18696.81 Yd
Strength: 19h 22m

October 2009

October of 2009 is now complete. The book is closed and my "Recovery" has begun. Unofficially 'recovery' must have began early in the month as my October training calendar shows more Yellow Days than any other month this year. In October I took 19 days off from training. (I'm not so sure Recovery is supposed to look like that). But I also ran 2 events that were both great for me.

October's totals:
Bike: 4h 05m - 66.51 Mi
Run: 3h 40m - 25.87 Mi
Swim: 2h 19m - 4874.89 Yd
Strength: 1h 15m
Elliptical Training: 55m
P90X: 2h 45m

The Off Season is here. What do I do? Most people 'In The Know' say that the off season is a time to allow your body to recover from a long race season. They suggest that rather than to eliminate workouts, switch out for something different; train and focus on the most weak of the 3 triathlon disciplines; and to strength train.

So I'll do it! I will be back on the elliptical trainer more in the next few months; I will be on the bike trainer doing some easy session; running will be for fun and I'll do it when I feel like it. Easy, right?

Swimming has been my limiter over the last 2 years. I initially focused on running, this year my focus was biking; this off season and next year I will improve my swims. I will also do more strength training in order to increase overall power output next year.

I may spend some time on the MTB and get out in the fresh fall air.

I was nominated and selected to be in a local health magazine about my weight loss...

My Story: I weighed 145 pounds in high school and struggled to get my weight up to 170's for the first few years after high school. After I started working for a private ambulance service and into the time where I worked as a volunteer firefighter, I found myself putting on the pounds. Late in 2006 I was over 200 pounds. I couldn't even run a whole mile without stopping.

January of 2007 I took part in a fitness challenge that I helped to coordinate with a few coworkers. I dropped over 30 pounds. Over the next year I began to run and did my first 5k. I found a local sprint distance triathlon and made it my goal to complete that race... though I couldn't swim.

In January of 2008 I chose to teach myself how to swim. I managed to complete 2 triathlons (though my swims were less than par). I did a handful of running events and decided that 2009 would be my breakout year for triathlon.

Early 2009 I bought my first Triathlon/Time Trial bike and stayed on it all year making some great gains in speed. I have now completed 13 races and taken Age Group and Overall medals in 5 races, and set a new PR for 5k at sub 21 minutes. This year I have ran 2 half marathons, a 10k and 5k, a few Time Trials (Individual - Bike), couple of duathlons and 5 triathlons.

Next year I will race the Olympic distance triathlon and complete my first Half Ironman event - a 70.3 mile race that consists of 1.2 Mile Swim, 56 Mile Bike, and a 13.1 mile run.

Now, if I could just decide what Half Ironman to do... What do you think?

Race: St. Johns Pumpkin Trot 10K

Where do I even start for this event???

I started off real strong. I started at a 5:20 pace per mile - way too fast to maintain for 6 miles, but I figured that if I could maintain a super fast pace for the first mile, then I could settle in to my groove (7:15) and finish well. Last year I took 1st in my AG at this race so I assumed I could do the same again. I quickly found out that there were only 4 of us in the lead pack. We stuck relatively close together... let's say that at the farthest - the leader was in sight. First climb was up the city sledding hill. I powered up it, and looked back. The next closest person wasn't even at the bottom of the hill yet. I've been training on this hill over the past 2 months, so I knew what to expect. First mile was a mix of paved walkway and trails.

Mile 1 at 6:22 - ok, time to settle in. Paved road for about a half mile, then dirt roads to the turn around. Return back towards town and run into the residential area of the city. Mile 4 was just back into the city with an aid station... but NO marking telling us which way to go. So I yelled out to the 1 guy at the aid station - he shrugged his shoulders in disconcern. The runner in front of me yelled back saying that the pavement had markings to go straight. So I followed them. Mind you, still in 4th. At the next main intersection 2 volunteers pointed us to our left. Ok, we're good... I thought.

This was the poorest race course marking I've ever seen. We followed what we assumed was the course as it was marked 10 with an arrow. Then later realized that those markings were from the 10 mile run earlier this year. At the point where we neared the city park (starting point of the race) I yelled out that we had to be going the wrong way. I KNEW that this race did not have any loops. We stopped for a quick second and agreed to head back towards the last main street. As we rounded a quick corner, we realized that about 10-15 people were following us.

Got back to the main road and past the volunteers who told us the wrong way. Ran north to the point where we figured the course crossed back over. I had my Garmin Forerunner, so as we talked between breaths we assumed we would still be close to 6 - 6.5 miles at the end of the race.

Then two guys sprinted out and left me and another guy back. I picked it up, dropping the other guy. I wasn't sure whether to just walk back to the start/finish or keep running. This had never happened to me before... being in the lead group or getting lost. I kept at the race and found the cross street that the course takes back to the park. I turned left. The 2 leaders went straight. They were too far ahead to hear me yell. I caught up to another guy and asked if he was in the 5k or 10k - 10k it was. I had no idea that he was the 'race leader' at that point. Turns out that after our group deviated course, this guy was left leading.

Pissed, I took off. Back in the 6 minute pace I felt like I was going to puke. The last part of the course was back up a hill. A bigger climb than the sledding hill and over a longer distance. Then gave it everything I had to cross the finish line strong. Sure enough - first overall finisher for the 10k. Now I felt like crap and went to the race director. Moments later the other leaders were by my side.

My FR showed a total distance of 6.29. So we ran the distance, just not the course. The director says that he had no way to know that some people went off course and didn't see any problem with our finish.

All in all, I unofficially ended up finishing first OA...

Looked at the race results and it showed me finishing 2nd OA... What??

First place finisher had a time 10+ minutes faster than my finish. Not possible as I was with the top finishers from the very start all the way until that last turn when the 2 made that last wrong turn. So I guess this other guy missed a turn somewhere too.

Many of us were so frustrated. I should have ended up 3rd OA. I took my 2nd OA medal and walked. I wasn't sure that I should have taken it. I took my AG last year and knew I would be faster this year, and since I still put in the distance, I just took it.

But the 2 turns that we missed were not marked on the pavement and once we asked a man at the aid station which way to go and he shrugged his shoulders. Another set of volunteers pointed us in the completely wrong direction. I'm trying to justify my feelings here. I'm not sure who really won that race. Not me. Even though we went farther and still finished on top, something just doesn't sit well in my gut.

Another friend of mine who ran just behind us would have been the first female finisher. The extra distance set her back by about 24 seconds and some other girl who was in front of her got the trophy for 1st OA Female.

*So pissed*

Finished with an avg pace of 7:24 per the Garmin. That's good, but I would have been faster without the confusion.

I'm not asking for any type of sympathy, but what would you have done? ever have an experience like this before?

Capital City River Run Half Marathon 2009

Capital City River Run
2009-09-27
Lansing, Michigan
United States
Impression 5 Science Center
60F / 16C
Overcast

Running
01:37:00 | 13.1 miles | 07m 24s min/mile

Entirely Z4/5. 59 min in Z4 and 49 min in Z5! Craziness! I guess I was running hard. Slowest complete mile was 7:47. Fastest complete mile was 6:59. Fastest single pace was sub 6.

Pre-race routine:

Not as much running as I should have been doing. I did a couple distance runs recently and some tempo runs.

Event warmup:

Basic stretching as I was 'running' behind after coming off of a 24 hour shift. I felt pretty good and was ready to race, but didn't feel like this was going to be a PR.

Comments:

I went out a bit too fast, as I always do. Found myself feeling great and running past the pacers (I started right behind the 8min pacer knowing I would pass him, but wanted to use him as motivation so that I would never be passed by him). Little did I know that I would quickly catch up to and pass the 7:30 pacer. I figured I would get passed by him and his group before too long.

HOWEVER, I was feeling great. My tempo runs have been pushing the 7:15 pace but only for 20 minutes and then I'd be whipped.... but after my last few distance runs I thought that pace was out of my range. Low and behold I looked down at my FR305 and saw a sub-6 pace. I completely knew that was out of my jurisdiction. So I *slowed* to a 7:15 and tried to stay there, but I was a horse chomping at the bit - so I cruised on the flats and downhills.

At mile 5 or 6 I expected to start feeling sore and tired and to slow, but I took a GU Roctane and took some water. By mile 8 I figured I'd be pushing the 8:30 pace but Not Today! I felt a slight rush, not the euphoric feeling, but probably the Gu taking affect.

Anytime I looked down and saw my pace fall below a 7:30 I picked it up. I did slow a few times to the 7:45 pace, but never to an 8. I passed the 9 mile mark and took a GU Chocolate. I didn't think that I *needed* it, but assumed that I would feel it like the last Gu. I grabbed a water at the next aid station and only sipped a bit.

At the 11 mile mark I had settled into a 7:30 pace but knew how close I was to my goal. I picked back up into a 7:15 pace and pushed faster on the last few straight-aways. The finish was up a slight hill but I didn't slow.

I saw the finish, my wife, daughters and family were there. I grabbed a high five from my wife and finished strong as they called my name and bib #. I was done.

I looked at my Garmin, 1h 37m. Earlier my goal was to be as close to 1h30m as possible. My last HM was 1h44m. Early August I started to focus on my speed and distance work for this race. But after 2 months of training runs I decided that an 1h40m time would be a more realistic goal. This past 2 weeks have been rough and I thought that there was no way I could break my last HM.

Today was a good day! My slowest complete mile was a 7:47 pace.


What would I do differently?:

You take what life deals. Sick children drain you, and over the last couple of weeks I haven't put in the work that I should have. But family first and training got put on hold.

I'm very happy with my results, but if I would have started training a month earlier and been able to stick to a plan, then maybe I could have been even more close to an 1h30m finish. But again, I'm pretty stoked with what I got after these past 2 weeks.

Warm down:

Easy walk and stretching. Food.

Event comments:

Great course with plenty of Volunteers to help out. Aid stations about every 1.5 miles. Good venue. Michigan Ave had unfinished construction so there was a brief bit through that mess.

July 2009

August is here, what's the deal? This month and the next few months, I'm only planning 1 race per month. I'm not saying that I won't race an additional race should it come up, but I'm only planning these last 3 races.

Last month I joined a virtual Tour de France Challenge. I met my 300 mile goal for the 2.5 weeks of the tour. Just after the TdF I did an impromptu 100 mile bike. I really wanted to get past the mental block for distance on the bike. I had fun, did well on nutrition and felt good the following days. Mental was on 100%. I didn't get stuck on the distance, I just went out and followed the route. I was thankfull to have a friend to ride that distance with, I train with her fairly regularly GoTrixie.com I'd like to do it again, but I'm not quite ready to commit to it yet. I think I could do it with a couple of days for prep. I'd like to push the pace next time. So the details of my 100 miler - 5 hours 19 minutes put me at a pace of 19 mph average. Per the GPS I burned more than 6200 calories - which is on track based on my previous rides.

This weekend I'll be racing the Lansing Legislator. I will do better in the swim this year than I did last year. I'm hoping to be at 12 minutes for the swim... we'll see. I'd also like to see my bike split to be above 22 mph and I'd like to break the 20 minute mark on the 5k run.

So my totals for the month of July are:

Bike: 23h 18m 40s - 412.91 Mi
Run: 6h 50m 24s - 38.64 Mi
Swim: 1h 19m 07s - 1746.81 Yd
Strength: 42m
Elliptical Training: 40m
Massage: 1h 00m
Yoga: 30m

Inter-Rockin' Triathlon

Race Report from Interlochen's Inter-Rockin' Triathlon

Click the image to view full size / readable image.

RR from BeginnerTriathlete.com

June is Here Already

May flew by quick, perhaps it was the 4 races I did. All in all, I have had a great year so far. I only met 1 of my 3 goals for the month, although with the planned races, my goals may have been slightly unrealistic. I wanted to hit 300 miles biking, 50 miles running and 5 hours in the pool.

So what's next? I'm not exactly sure. I'd like to think about another sprint tri as there are two great 3 race series taking place this summer at the Island Lake Rec Area. The way my work schedule falls, I won't be able to make either series, but I could do 2 races of each event. So there is potential for 1 race in June and 1 in July.

August will be the Lansing Legislator (possibly my first Oly tri). September will be the Capital City River Run half mary. And October will be another tri in Las Vegas.

Seems crazy to think about the end of the season so early in the season. But I've learned a few good lessons that I will carry with me for the future. One, for example, is that I cannot afford to race 15 races every year :)

So I need to set goals next year for better performance at longer distances. In this manner I should be able to race my first Half Ironman soon. My 5 year goal of running a full Ironman event seems much more realistic now too. Both of my girls will be in school/pre-school then and I'll have the necessary time to train for this type of endurance event. Man, it's exciting to think about an Ironman!! But, that's still a while away.

Thank you all as always for your support and encouragement! I look forward to the next race with great anticipation, whatever race it may be.

Rawk Squad Training

Rawk Squad Training - Michigan


A new group on Facebook that I hope will serve the purpose of a central location to plan training events. Check it out.

Starkermann TT and Du

This past weekend I had the Starkermann 40k Time Trial and Duathlon (5k/30k/5k). I did very well and placed in both races. For the TT I placed 1st in my AG, and in the Du I placed 2nd in my AG.

Race Reports on BeginnerTriathlete.com:
40k Time Trial
Duathlon

This was a lot of fun and challenged me physically and mentally. The hills were shear pain... That's it, pain. Part of the TT involved climbing what is locally called the "Big Nasty" hill, it's part of the Tree Tops Resort ski hills.

During the TT I had more than 1100 ft of climbing and for the bike portion of the Du there was more than 660 ft of climbing. The runs for the DU were the same out and back course that entailed more than 100 ft of climbs.

I did hit 46 mph on my bike during 1 portion (downhill, of course). That was just plain insane!!

All in all I had a good time. I will consider this event in the future. Today I'm pretty sore, so I went for a very easy trail run at Sleepy Hollow State Park (MI). Nice trails and lots of mud. Put in an hour and covered about 4 miles.

Here's a photo of one of the hills, not the 'Big Nasty'


2 weeks out from now is Hawk Island Sprint Triathlon. I'm so excited for this race because I know I'll hit the bike and run hard. I feel very confident that I'll do well. I'm still leary about the swim, but I've spent some good time in the water over the last few months. I need more time in the water and need to practice some open water swims over the next two weeks. But I am expecting good things. My goal will be to finish in under 1 hour. Last year I finished in 1 hour and 9 minutes. Since the course is pretty flat and I've done this before, I should do well.

The Start of May

May has started off strong! I built well last month with some good totals and that puts me ahead early for the season. I have 4 races on tap for this month. My first race was an impromptu 5k run simply to see if I could break the 20 minute mark. While I gave it my all, I fell short by 56 seconds... I'm perfectly OK with this for now, but I had to give it an honest attempt. I finished 58th overall out of 677.

My next races are back to back. I'm competing in two of the four Starkermann Series races in Gaylord, Michigan. My first event will be Saturday night with a 40k Time Trial (bike race). This will push me as I've been riding at that distance for regular training rides. I will then awake early to race in another duathlon. While I do not plan to medal in this race, I do hope to do better than my last du as the distances are the same. (Maybe here I will break the 20 minute 5k)

And my final race for this month is the Hawk Island Triathlon. This was my first triathlon last year. This is a sprint distance race, so the swim is 400 yards, bike ~12 miles, and run 3.1 miles. I'm certain that I'll break my time from last year, but can I break an hour?

From there, the rest of the season is up for whatever comes along. I am considering a few other races that I pooled together early this year. I will also consider a 3 race series that takes place at the Island Lake Rec Area. These would all be sprint distance races, just slightly longer than the Hawk Island Tri; Swims of a half mile, 12.4 mile bike and 3.1 mile runs. And then lastly, I need to decide about an Olympic distance race in August and consider a Half Ironman in November... Hmm. What do you think?

Steelcase Grand Duathlon

Sunday (4/26/09) I ran my first multisport event this year. It was the Steelcase Grand Duathlon. It was a 5k run, 30k bike and a second 5k run. I feel like I rocked it!

I've spent a lot of time on my bike this year, both outside and on the rollers. In fact I've put out over 650 miles on the bike alone. I've been running about 40 miles per month in hopes of hitting the 600 mile mark this year.

For the Steelcase Du I planned to race the first 5k as a race in itself. I've felt strong in training doing bike/run bricks. So pre-race I went near the front of the group... not in the front, near the front. The gun went off and I took off. I felt strong, looked at my FR305 and found my pace to be sub 6min/mile... Wow! My first mile was 5:46. I had to slow down or my heart was going to pop out of my chest. I hit the turn around and took another quick sprint. I was able to keep my eye on the front runners, so I knew I was in good pace.

A quick side note: I've had great anticipation of running a sub 21min/5k. I didn't think it was within my reach this year as I've been focused on my biking.

As I neared transition 1 I saw the clock - 20:56! I crossed the chip mat into T1 at 21:03. I was so excited about my time that my fingers were shaking! I actually had a hard time putting on my biking shoes. Grabbed my bike and I was out of T1 in 55 seconds.

The wind was a cross/head wind for most of the route. Good thing I spent some windy days on my bike charging into the wind. I faltered climbing some of the hills. The course didn't have huge climbs, but with the wind I did have to stand up a few times. I was only passed once on the bike, by another Cervelo owner, he deserved to pass me as he was flying. My fastest speed on the bike was only about 34mph. We never really got a tailwind. As I neared T2 I started to get my feet out of my shoes so I could hop off the bike and run into T2. I had a hard time getting my left foot out of the shoe and I actually had to unclip, stop and dismount and carry my left shoe into T2. My time for the 30k was 53:20. Not outstanding at an avg speed of 21mph.

I still ran into T2, racked my bike, donned my running shoes and I was out like a bandit in 33 seconds. Yeah!

As I rounded the first turn on the run I felt slow. I looked at my FR and realized that I left it on my bike, no big deal, I just wouldn't be able to tell my pace and heart rate (2 keys I use to help me run and finish stronger). I do normally feel slow running after my biking. So I figured that I was about an 8ish pace per mile. I could feel my calves were a bit sore, nothing bad, but I could feel them getting tight. I didn't want to bomb my second 5k as it would prove that I went too hard on the first run. I pushed on. There was a group of 3 guys just ahead of me, I couldn't catch up to them, but I figured that if I could keep the distance between myself and them that I would be ok. As I neared the finish I started to sprint again. I heard the announcer call out "Jeremy Hagerman of Saint Johns with the RACING GREYHOUNDS finishing strong!"

After first round of results were posted I saw my overall time of 1 hour and 38 minutes. I was pretty stoked. I thought that I surely medaled. Nope, the 30-34 age group is hardcore! The third place finisher in my AG finished more than 12 minutes ahead of me. Wow! I'm still excited. My previous fastest 5k time was 23:54, so I broke that by more than 2 minutes.

Steelcase was a fun race with a good course. The run was on a totally closed course. The bike was good and the intersections were well covered by the police. I had a lot of fun and will plan to run this race again!

March 2009!

March of 2009 has been a great month for me in the training department. I got my new Cervelo P2 - A carbon triathlon bike. With all of the excitement surrounding my new bike and a biking challenge through the BeginnerTriathlete.com website, I logged more than 279 miles in the month of March.

My total biking mileage for 2009 so far is 451.57 Miles. This is great because that means that I have already surpassed my total mileage for ALL of 2008. Craziness!!

My total running mileage for 2009 so far is 136.19 Miles. This puts me right on the baseline goal for the year. I wanted to have an average of 41 miles per month by the end of 2009.

My swimming total so far is 7700 yards. This is by no means great, hardly even good. However this is almost half of the total distance that I got in 2008. So while I still need more time in the pool, I feel more comfortable.

This year I have already competed in 2 races. The first was an indoor triathlon at a local YMCA. I took first place in my age group. For me personally, the higher achievment in this was that I swam for 20 minutes straight. I had not done that before. In this race I ended up with 975 yds. This gives me hope for the upcoming race season.

I also competed in a 28k Time Trial at Fisk Knob (near Grand Rapids). I placed 61 of 120 Overall. So right in the middle of the pack. That's not bad for my first ever TT. The weather was 38 degrees F and per Weather.com it felt like 27. We had snow flurries mixed with some light misty rain. It was rather miserable weather, but I raced well. I hit my fastest speed on my new bike at 39.6 mph per the Garmin Forrunner 305 gps. The hills were hard, but I feel confident that I will improve my overall biking ability this year.

Upcoming races that I am already registered for:

4/05 Martian Half Mary
4/26 Steelcase Duathlon
5/16 Starker-Mann 40k TT
5/17 Starker-Mann Duathlon
5/31 Hawk Island Triathlon

That completes the first half of the race season for me. I hope to race 1 to 2 races per month. We'll see how these first few races go and then I'll complete my schedule for the rest of this year.

I'm excited about some new opportunities. This year has great potential!

Thank you all for your encouragement and support! I look forward to racing this year. Give me a call and let's ride sometime.

February 2009

While February was only 28 days, it did go by pretty fast. So far this year I have stayed on track with my basic training for the upcoming triathlon season. As always, I should be spending more time in the pool.

For the most part, February was uneventful. I put in over 110 miles biking and over 50 miles running.

The exciting part of February was that I was able to buy my new bike. Cervelo P2C. It's pretty sweet. It will be a few more days before it's finished and delivered.

Today, March 1st was my first official triathlon. While it was an indoor tri, it was a good opener to the season. I swam 975 yards in 20 minutes. That's potentially one of my best swims to date. At the end of March I'll also race in a time trial event and then early April is my first half marathon of the year.

So I'm excited for this year and I hope to see some serious gains. Wish me luck!

RACING GREYHOUNDS 2009

It's time! RACING GREYHOUNDS 2009

I'm excited to be part of a team this season. The RACING GREYHOUNDS 2009. I will be racing as part of a team and have a lot of opportunities to better myself as an athlete in each discipline.

Base training is underway. My first planned triathlon this year will be Hawk Island. I have 2 others on the radar, but haven't made a final decision as of yet. There is also a MSU Triathlon Team sponsored IronMAC indoor triathlon coming in mid-March that would consider.

All in all there are several races that I hope to be able to compete in this year. This year will be my breakout year for triathlon. I have continued off season training throughout the winter, so my base for this season is significantly higher than where I was last year.

I still need to be in the pool more so I feel comfortable with the Olympic distance swim. This year I hope to run at least one Olympic distance tri, although if I train well enough, early on, that distance will be my regular racing distance.

I am looking forward to a great year!

2008

2008 has come and now gone. As many of you know, this year has proved to have moments of extreme joy and a few moments of sadness. It's hard to believe that my mother passed away almost a year ago. A friend once told me that the days never get easier; however, each day you find a new way to get by. I have found the joy of life displayed through laughter, hugs and kisses of my daughter; love of my wife; the never ending love from my family and the support of my friends.

This past year I accomplished fitness goals that I set for myself over a year ago. A few goals I even exceeded. My first goal for this year was to complete a triathlon, and that meant that I had to learn how to swim. I also planned to train harder than I ever have before by increasing my endurance and speed in running and biking. I hoped to be in the best shape of my life by my 30th birthday.

I completed 2 sprint distance triathlons in 2008. I finished just above mid-pack in both of those races. I also ran a half marathon and set a new personal best for the 5k distance run. I placed first in a 10k race and also took medals in two 5k races.

My annual goal for running in 2008 was to complete an overall average of 1 mile per day, totaling 366 miles: My final total was just over 400 miles running.

2009 brings new challenges and while I haven't set any specific goals for training, I do plan to complete with the RACING GREYHOUNDS. I was accepted onto the team this past week. I'll compete in 5 races / events that include cycling as per my contract. Ideally I will race in the same 2 triathlons that I completed this year and then I will also add another tri and enter into a couple of cycling events.

This month my family will grow with the birth of our second child. I will need to learn to balance my family with work and training. This may be my single most difficult goal of this year. I am excited to see what the future holds for my family.

As always, thank you all for your support. I look forward to this coming race season, meeting new people and learning more about the sport of triathlon.

300 + Miles

Today I headed out for a cool Saturday morning run. I left home and ran to the city park where I took the paved route to the sledding hill (recall the 10k Pumpkin Trot last week). While I didn't feel motivated to climb the hill again, I ran the trails out and around the city park. I ran 5 laps and then continued back home.

As I logged my run I was very excited. I am still over my goal for the day of the year / mileage... But today I also passed the 300 mile mark. To me this is pretty crazy! I'm stoked! 300 miles.

St. Johns Pumpkin Trot 10K

Today I ran a 10k (6.2 Mile) race. This was the St. Johns Pumpkin Trot 10k. It was run by the Lyons Club. I choose today's race last minute.

I had originally planned to race in a sprint triathlon hosted by the MSU Triathlon team. Several factors came into play as to why I did not run in this race, all in all it just wasn't meant to be.

Today was the first time I raced a 10k. I completed the half mary two weeks ago, but I've never competed in a 10k.

I briefly reviewed the course map and toed the start line. The weather was supposed to be in the mid-seventies, but I figured "Hey, it's October" So while I wore my basic summer runner attire, I choose a heavier shirt. This proved to be a bad idea as the temperature was in the high 70's and part of the race was over newly blacktopped road. This made the heat radiate back up, it got warm...

This course was one of the most hilly runs that I've ever done. The first hill was actually the 'sledding' hill near the city high school. I sprinted up it figuring that most people would tire out quickly and I'd have a few seconds lead. I was right, however maybe other people were aware of the upcoming hills and were reserving their energy. The next 3 hills were tough.

The course covered multiple terrains also. We started on a paved walkway, then on to the first hill, which was all fields. Next into the wooded trails those were uneven, but no big deal. The course then went to paved roads for a short bit and then dirt roadway for a while. The dirt roads made me nervous as I sometimes have lateral knee pain after running them. The uneven, potholed, washed out sections make it tough to maintain a good speed. The hills made it more tough. This part of the race was an out and back, I think it was intentional just for the enjoyment of the hills in reverse. I however did not find this part amusing. Back to the paved roadway, and here is when I noticed how warm it was. I seriously considered tossing my shirt to the side of the road with hopes that I could find it after the race. Lastly we moved back into the city residential streets. These were fine as long I stayed in the center of the road. Finally we moved back into the city park where the race ended.

I finished 6.2 miles in 50 minutes and 40 seconds. That put me at an average pace of 8m 10s per mile. Not too bad!

The best news: I finished first in my age group (24-29). I am pretty excited about this, it makes me glad that I raced here rather than the tri in EL.

So this probably marks the end of the racing season for me. Unless something pops up and grabs my attention, I'll be done for the year.

So now what? I am 10 miles over my scheduled goal for running 366 miles this year (297 miles to date). But I'm behind on my October Run Challenge, I'll catch up this week.

I also applied to a racing team for next year. While they aren't really a 'sponsor' they do supply race nutrition and weekly team training. But they are not in the Lansing area, so the weekly training may not benefit me. I should have an interview scheduled soon, at that time we'll discuss whether the team would benefit from my racing, and if they would benefit my training and races. With this team I have to be dedicated to racing at least 6 qualifying races (Tri, Du or Bike [MTB or Road]). I can do that. On this note, I hope to also hire a coach. I found one, we've talked and I just need confirm price and scheduling.

Lastly, I may consider looking for a few local sponsors this coming race season. I should be able to promote a business with my improving times. A sponsor would help cover my race entry fee's, training, clothing, equipment and equipment maintenance. We'll see how training goes for the winter and how life presents itself with the addition of our new baby.

As always, thank you all for your encouragement and support!