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!

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

November 2009 'The Off Season'

November of 2009 has now passed us by. It's time for Christmas and the New Year!

This past month I focused on swimming. I spent more time in the water than I did on my bike (never thought I'd say that). Since I did plan for November to be a month of recovery, I didn't run very much at all. So what did I do?

November's totals:
Bike: 4h 30m 17s - 72.43 Mi
Run: 2h 28m 11s - 14.6 Mi
Swim: 4h 35m 40s - 12650 Yd
Strength: 4h 20m

Next I have my basic plan set up for training to race Ironman 70.3 Racine in July. I'll be doing 9 Weeks Prep, 15 Weeks Base, 6 Weeks Build, 3 Weeks Peak/Race/Taper for Racine. The Prep phase is underway as of this past Sunday. Racine is less than 230 days away. While I want to do really well at this race, my ideal goal will be to qualify for the Foster Grant Ironman World Championship 70.3 - November 13, 2010 in Clearwater, Florida.

Finding the Life/Work/Training balance will be tough, especially heading into June where I will be reaching the Critical Volume stage of training. There are 2 weeks of training will be huge, nearing 14,000km swimming, 475 miles biking and 60 miles of running. As always, family first then work followed by training. I've already started to plan my specific day to day training for each Phase of this process. So now I just need to sit back and do it :)

I will be a RACING GREYHOUND again in 2010! A few other Greyhounds will be going long in tri's as well, completing Half Iron distance events and even Ironman Florida (Trish).

I've been blessed to have a few specific people to train with this year. Next year I hope Craig will continue to kick my butt in the water and that Trixie will keep pushing my limits in biking and running (and now strength training too).

I'm lucky to have several people to train with. So a big 'Thank You' to those who choose to put up with me. Also to the great friends at BeginnerTriathlete.com and especially those the in SWBKRUN MG. You guys rock, thanks for continuing to encourage and inspire me.

Lastly, to my family: Thank you for supporting me. Specifically to Becky, Anna and Sophia - I Love you! This year will be highly rewarding for me on a very personal level and I won't be able to do it without you. I am truly blessed.

So how can you help? Give me a call anytime.

Loving Las Vegas and the End of the 2009 Race Season

Well, we are back home from our Vegas vacation. Becky and I had a great time and loved our time spent with friends. We were able to see many sights and eat some great food. This was our first real vacation since our honeymoon, almost 5 years ago.

For the first couple of nights we stayed with a good friend who lives in Henderson. She cooked for us and drove us everywhere!

On Friday we went to Lake Mead and Boulder City to get an overview of Saturday's triathlon. We visited the health expo at the race finish and did our packet pick up. Later we ate at Milo's - This is a great place to eat and I'll be attempting to remake my sandwich sometime in the near future! But our appetizer consisted of breads and fruits with baked Brie that had Pecans and dried cranberries over it. So very tasty. Friday night we went to Lake Las Vegas for an outdoor concert. This place is an amazing village inside the big city.

Saturday morning came quick and we were out the door for the race. The weather was great and Lake Mead water temp was 72 degrees F. I opted out of my wetsuit for the race for a few reasons, but one main reason was that this was a point to point race with 2 different transition setups. Anything that you'd leave in T1 had to be in a specific bag with your race # on it; it would then be brought to T2/Race finish after the race. Swimming was awesome! The sun popped up just before the race started and the nearly instant heat felt great while I was in the water. The race was very challenging physically and mentally. It was tough to comprehend the elevation for the bike ride. It was hard to maintain speed when there were no breaks in the climb during the bike. The run went well, but my legs were spent. Andrea placed #2 in her category so we stuck around for awards. Way to be!!

Saturday afternoon we got all things reorganized and packed up to head down to the Las Vegas strip. We stayed at the Rio hotel thanks to Andrea's parents. We ate a fabulous dinner at the Rio's Village Seafood Buffett. So many choices of seafood. I ate way too much, but between the 4 variations of crab legs, fish, sushi and desserts... it was so very yummy!

Saturday night we walked the Vegas strip and played some slot machines. We had VIP tickets to the VooDoo Lounge and spent a few hours hanging out and dancing. This bar is on the 51st floor of the Rio, it's outside and you can see the whole Vegas strip. Absolutely amazing view. We finished up our evening by playing a few more slots. Then off to bed for a couple of hours rest before heading back to the airport to return home.

We had an amazing time! Thanks to our friends for hosting and taking us around the city. Becky's mother was able to take some time off work to stay with the girls at our home, Saturday Becky's father came and my father was able to visit too. We are so greatful for our families to have helped out, which gave us the opportunity to take this vacation and make this final triathlon of the season possible.

With that all said, the Recovery stage of my triathlon training has fallen. I now plan to take a few weeks of easy workouts. I may join the US Masters Swimming and compete in one or 2 swim competitions over the next few months. When I get back into serious training, my main focus for the rest of the year will be swimming. Late this year or early next year I'll start training for next years race season.

I have been honored to be part of the 2009 RACING GREYHOUNDS Team. This team and sponsors are amazing! We have had several opportunities to race together and play together. I have made several new friends that I plan to bother for the rest of my life. Thank you GREYHOUNDS!! Next year I will have a different plan than I had this year, and I hope to be in contact with businesses and people over the next few months to secure opportunities for next year.

In 2010 I will have a different focus. I will not be racing as many events as this year. I'll be stepping up to the Olympic distance races (I plan to still run the Hawk Island Tri and maybe another sprint later). I hope to culminate next year's season by competing in a Half Ironman Triathlon (1.2 Mile Swim, 56 Mile Bike and a 13.1 Mile Run). I will consider an earlier HIM if my swim training goes well over the off season. I must also consider running a full marathon (26.2 miles). If I am able to race the Olympic distance, complete the HIM this year and race them the following year then in 2012 I may be able to consider a full Ironman (as that will complete my 5 year goal to run an IM) Late this year and early next year I will work on increasing my strength training, maintaining a bike/run base and general recovery. Then in February or March start a training program that will last for about 25 weeks until the HIM. But my main goal now is to recover from a long 13 race season.

Thank you to everyone who has encouraged and supported me over this last year of training and racing. I am blessed to have many friends to train with, many of whom have also given me invaluable advice and coaching; you know who you are and I would not be where I am today without you. Becky, Anna and Sophia - you make me who I am. Thank you for putting up with my love of racing and for going with me to the races, cheering me on and giving me hugs and 'high fives' along the course. You bring a smile to face. I love hearing "Daddy, you're all sweaty" and "Don't run too fast, you could fall down and get hurt" I am truly blessed for the support system that I have. Thank you all.

Lansing Legislator 2009 Race Report

Here is my race report for the Lansing Legislator this past weekend. I had a great time, took 3rd in my AG and was 19th OA out of almost 200 people.

Right click and view image in order to read it.


I ran 18 miles over 2 separate runs this morning; 12 miles easy and 6 miles in interval style.

Inter-Rockin' Triathlon

Race Report from Interlochen's Inter-Rockin' Triathlon

Click the image to view full size / readable image.

RR from BeginnerTriathlete.com

Hawk Island Triathlon Race Report

Hawk Island Triathlon (Sprint Distance) Race Report and Photo's:

Click on the photo for full size / readable image. A friend from Pure Enchantment Photography took some very sweet pictures. Very good stuff! Go Visit his site.

Good race overall. Now I need to consider my options and plan for the season. I still plan to race the Lansing Legislator, but I need to decide on either the sprint or Olympic distance. Maybe I'll run in one of the T-Rex series races, there are 3 of them... but it's rather expensive :) I still plan to run the Capital City River Run, and then I am planning on the PumpkinMan tri in Las Vegas for November! It's a huge race and should be a ton of fun!!

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!