my new toy :-)

Ok,
So I've started my first official week of training for Ironman Coeur d'Alene. I really enjoyed the time off and didn't really go as crazy as I thought I was going to. Last weekend in the Cities was really fun. I love being around other trigeeks like myself. Headed off to Gear West at 10 am Saturday morning and got my bike and got it fit with the retul system. A short explanation of that is that its a 3D motion capture system for bike fitting. Sticky sensors are put on the wrist, elbow, knee, and various places on the foot. Measurements are taken and there is an acceptable range to fall into. It was really cool and I'm glad I did it. The guy who fit me actually has TRIGEEK on his MN license plates - I thought that was amusing :-). After the bike purchase, Leah and I went to meet with my coach. And she sat there and internally rolled her eyes a few times while we talked about all things triathlon. We did a bike power test, a swim stroke analysis, and a run gait analysis. One little tidbit is that I averaged 307 watts over a 6 minute all out effort. I read about pro triathletes averaging 315 watts over the course of an ironman bike course... freakin amazing, cause that six minute effort nearly killed me :-). It is very nice to have a coach pick apart all of my disciplines and give me little things to work on too. So it was a great, successful, productive, and expensive weekend :-). Still need to get used to the new bike and to riding aero again - it's been a while since I've been "aero." And as always, so much thanks goes to Leah, who puts up with me and my extremely time and money consuming hobby :-). So this being "week 1" of my training, nothing too intense or long right now, but as always, I'll write when I feel so moved. Thanks for reading all!! Merry Christmas!!

Happy things

Hi all!!
I'm very excited about my nephew being born yesterday morning!! He's gonna kick my ass in a race in about 18 years - it's his destiny, I have forseen it :-)!! I'm very happy for Chris and Pam, and I'm psyched about my role as uncle. I keep telling them its all the fun and none of the responsibility. Then they tell me karma's a bitch :-)

Anyway, I've been to physical therapy a couple of times now and I'm feeling better after a few days of knee stabilization exercises - I got some ultrasound done last time, that seemed to help a little. Of course it may be helping cause I have it in my head that it'l help, but let's not worry about why... I am up to an hour on the indoor trainer - done that a couple times - feel pretty good doing it too. I'm gonna try about a 30 minute run this evening before yoga. My heartrate was not what I was used to last time I ran on the treadmill, but it will improve with base training starting in a couple weeks. Too bloody cold to run outside these days - I draw the line at about 5-10 degrees... And swimming is slowly coming together again, starting to "feel the water," as swimmer nerds say :-)

I am very excited about my new bike!! I actually called Gear West earlier today and talked to who I believe is the owner. I got to talk about triathlon and bike nerd stuff for a while with someone who actually gives a rat's ass about what I'm saying, so that was fun. I asked lots of questions about the bike I am contemplating - the Felt B2 Pro. I even put some money down to hold it for me because he told me that they're really going quickly. They have 3 of the size i need, the 56, and only 1 left in every other size - they're going very quickly he says. So, to summarize, I am very excited about a lot of things. Number 1 and most important, my new nephew. Number 2, my new bike :-). And number 3, my new coach.. The first one doesn't cost me anything, the second two.... not so much.... Lucky for me I have an AWESOME wife who puts up with, supports, and understands my obsessions and dreams. Thanks honey - I LOVE YOU. Oh what the hell, if you're reading this I LOVE YOU TOO.!! Over and out!!

Yay!!

So I saw the doc about my MRI yesterday and I was very happy with what I heard!! I got to look at the images on the screen with him on this fancy ass computer program that probably cost more than my house. It turns out I just have small amounts of fluid around the meniscus and small amounts of bruising somewhere (forget sorry...). He said there was no ligament damage or tendon damage requiring any scoping procedure. I believe the "official" diagnosis was patellofemoral arthralgia, which is a very common condition affecting endurance athletes. The things he saw on the MRI were normal things to see after an event such as the ironman or marathon, which does pretty major damage to your body that you cannot feel or see. So he told me I could get back into running and cycling being careful not to increase volume too quickly and I cannot hurt myself any worse. I'm also getting set up with some physical therapy to work on biomechanics and strengthening stuff. So I'm happy!! Will update soon!!



Don

Into December....

Hi all. Here we are the 1st of December already. My recovery is slowly progressing as far as I can tell. I haven't attempted anything over 40 minutes since the race. It has all been slow, easy stuff. I swam for the first time last saturday since my tattoo - surprisingly not bad considering I was out of the water for a little over 2 weeks. I also went for an MRI on my left knee on Monday morning. I really hope this will provide good news regarding what is wrong with it. It is really nothing major, just a little bit of pressure I can still feel behind the left knee at the top of my calf. I should say it doesn't feel like anything major, but I won't know for certain until I get the results from the doctor tomorrow. Like I said, I can't imagine it's anything too serious given my ability to jog, and ride my bike - not even noticeable when I'm walking or standing or sitting... So it'l be nice to get this out of the way, whatever "it" is. I also went to my first ever Yoga class yesterday - it wasn't easy and I am a little sore all over today - but I think I'm gonna go again, because the benefits of yoga are well known!! I am getting excited for my trip to Minneapolis in 18 days (not like I'm counting). I'm gonna get a new bike - full carbon, and I'm going to meet with my coach and do all kinds of startup testing with him. Well.... - kinda boring I realize but there's not much else to say. I'll update when I know more about the knee situation. Take care all.

Postrace news

Ok, so here we are almost two weeks after the race. My recovery has gone well for the most part. I have actually enjoyed the time off. I managed to get 1 swim in before I went to get my tattoo done. About another 10 days and I should be good to get back in the water. I am still nursing a little bit of a left posterior knee issue. It tightened up about mile 70 or so on the bike and I remedied it for the remainder of the race with some Advil. It was swollen as all hell the day after, but 2 days after it had gone way done. It is still noticeable, but barely. I went for a 40 minute easy run yesterday and today it actually feels better than yesterday, so hopefully it was just some tendonitis that has taken care of itself. I am going to see my sports medicine doc tomorrow to rule out anything major like a meniscus or pcl (posterior cruciate ligament??) issue. Like I said, I'm thinking it was just a hamstring or calf strain but I wanna know for sure before I ramp up the miles again. I plan on spin class today and a 40 minute easy run friday, ride saturday, jog sunday. If all goes well, I'd like to be at about 25 miles a week running by the time I go start with the new coach. My loyal and loving fans are throwing me a party tomorrow night so I'm looking forward to that. I'll update again soon when I am so moved. Stay strong everyone!!



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You are an Ironman!!

Wow!! It's Monday morning and I'm sitting in the Memphis airport waiting to go to Minneapolis and then back home to GF. I figured it would be a good time to write my race report, so here goes... I said goodbye to Leah and my dad about a quarter til 7, and made my way under the archway to the beach where the swim starts. Pros went off at 6:50 - they start separately from age groupers to ensure a fair start. I seeded myself at the front of the pack, so as to avoid crawling over everyone after the start. The cannon went off at 7 and off I went. Now I have heard horror stories about the chaos of a mass start of 2000 + people. It was different than a wave start but really not all that bad. What I found was more difficult to deal with were the (what I would call) slightly less than calm water conditions. Call them waves or swells or whatever - I was definitely rolling around out there. I finished the first lap in just under 28 minutes, ran out on the beach through the arch, grabbed some water, and headed back in for lap number 2. Definitely easier to navigate this lap, fewer people... I did swallow a fair bit of salt water, and got kicked a few times, but nothing deal breaking. Finished the swim in around 59 - I was happy with it.
Ran up the chute, got my wetsuit yanked off, and I headed off through the showers to T1. Definitely different than any other transition. Waited a little for my gear and headed into the change tent. Threw on my bike socks, shoes, race number, got my pills, put on the helmet, sunglasses, and arm warmers and headed out - got lathered up with sunscreen, a volunteer gave me my bike, and off I went. Sipped water for the first 30 minutes or so, then I started my nutrition. 4 bottles of EFS, 2 energy bars, 2 uncrustables, a can of redbull, couple of bites of cookie, and 1 bottle of gatorade endurance. I picked up water at almost every aid station, 2 more bottles of sports drink and the cookie and redbull in special needs, and the gatorade at the final aid station. My pace was up at about 20.8 for prob the first hour, and slowed to around 19.2 with the wind, a few rollers, and the special needs stop. The last 25 miles or so were on brand new paved road with the wind so that picked my pace back up. I was starting to feel it a little in my low back and back of my left knee, so I took 1 advil with about 40 minutes left on the bike. That perked me right up and so I pushed it a little near the end of the bike. I came in at about 5:36 - or about 20.1 mph or so - I was happy with the bike, but a little worried about the back of my knee at this point. If I could have done anything different, I would have gone without arm warmers.
Got into transition, handed my bike off, got my gear from the no-nonsense, johnny on the spot volunteers and went to change. Threw on my tri shorts, body glide, socks, shoes and visor - all the while a volunteer is unpacking and packing my gear up for me. Then I contemplated how far a marathon was, and headed out the door to the porta potty. Felt better!! Then I got more sunscreen from a young lady who was really into her job - she even gave me a hug. Then I set out on the run. 26.2 to go!! The marathon was about survival. I eventually settled into a comfortable pace and the heartrate came down a little. Definitely started to feel the back of the knee at about 3 or 4 miles in. I was telling myself to go as long as I could without more advil. That lasted until somewhere between 10K and 9 miles. Then I took 2 more advil (if you're keeping track, that's 3 total so far). Again that dulled the pain and I felt more comfortable. I loved the aid stations. Among them were MASH, a 70s theme, and one had women shall we say dressing and acting inappropriately - think leather :-) They made me smile. I took water, coke, gel, and gatorade at aid stations. Finished the first half marathon feeling not all together horrible. I picked up special needs, had another redbull, and got a long sleeve shirt to tie around my waist. Now the race begins as they say. The sun started to go down and I appreciated the slightly cooler temps. I continued to push forward, doing the run / walk thing, and chatted with a couple of people along the way. I got to about mile 20 and started to do math in my head, calculating how fast I needed to go to break 12 hours. So needless to say, I was in pain at this point, but I was going to finish. I started the chicken broth - tasted good actually. Several waters, gatorades, cokes, and broths later, I realized I would make my goal of sub 12. The last couple miles were the longest. I ran a quarter mile, then speedwalked a quarter. When I came around the corner onto Thomas drive, about a quarter mile to go, I decided to run the rest of the way. I came around the corner, under the first arch, and high fived my brother, and then ran the rest of the 30 yards or so with my arms up under the finishing arch and then looked to the sky. I was an ironman!! Got my medal, t-shirt, and hat. Then I got my picture - After looking at it, I look tired in the picture for some reason. Then followed high fives, and hugs and tears with my faithful followers. Then more pictures, then the recovery drink, then pizza - yummy :-)
Then slowly but surely we made our way back to transition. Chris came in to get my gear and bike with me. Let's just say I didn't need the emergency immodium during the race but did after :-) So I got my bike, my gear, got changed, hit up the porta potty, and then left transition and walked back to the car with the crew. Back at the condo I had more advil - 4 to be exact - then showered and ate more pizza. I went back to the finish line with Leah and Rodrigo for the last 90 minutes of the race. The best part of the ironman, aside from your own finish, is the last hour of the race. Really fun time!! Then I went home and went to bed. Woke up around 6:30, had mini wheats and advil for breakfast, realized the back of my knee really hurt, then left to go spend copious amounts of money on finisher's merchandise. Stood in line for an hour just to get in the store. Did the shopping, then hung out with friends and Leah the rest of the day. A couple more race notes - I was really happy with my heart rate control during the bike and run. Of course I couldn't really run fast enough to elevate the heart rate much the last 10K of the run :-)
What an experience!! Thanks so much for all the support and encouragement. FYI the leg is much better today than yesterday. Just a matter time I hope!! Now it's into maintenance and recovery mode til Christmas or so. I love you all. Thank you and good day!!

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The day before

This is the big pre-race thank you speech so prepare yourselves :-)

Well it's about 2:30 on Friday, November 6, the day before the race. There's absolutely nothing left I can do to prepare physically. I did a short swim behind my condo this morning, followed by a 30 minute spin and a 15 minute run. After eating, I proceeded to get my bike and run gear bags ready, as well as the bike itself. After taking my time getting everything in order, I took my bike and gear bags and checked them in to transition. I will see them next at about 5:30 in the morning or so. It seems like yesterday I was here volunteering with the intent of signing up for this year. Well a year has passed, and here I am!! I don't have any overwhelming feeling of nervousness yet - I'm assuming that will happen when I wake up and try and choke down my much needed pre-race breakfast - the same one I eat before every single race. We'll make our way down to the race start, I'll add a couple things to my bike gear bag - race number belt and pills, get my nutrition and fluids ready to go on my bike, then I'll air up my tires, hang around the porta potties for a while, then sit around and wait - same as every race.

I've kind of been thinking about the sacrifices that have been made over the past year. Not only by me, but mostly by those around me and close to me. The ironman is not a solo journey, not by a long shot. It is a family sacrifice. My family has done just that. I don't know how much time and money has been spent on racing, traveling, eating, new bike toys :-), and countless weekends away from home. How much of Leah's life has revolved around me and my racing? A whole lot of it would be the answer. I can't thank everyone enough for all the sacrifices that have been made so I can do this, especially her. Hopefully, you will all be rewarded when I cross the finish line. I don't really know what I'll do when I cross the finish line - it depends on how much energy I have left I guess - I'm guessing it won't be too dramatic - I'll probably make it up right before I do it. And lastly, I don't want to get too sentimental, but I know mom will be watching my every arm stroke, pedal stroke, and stride - of which there will be many!! This one's for you mom!!

And when I'm done, I am going to eat something I shouldn't. I'd love to make it back to the finish line for the midnight finishers - cause finishing the ironman is cool - but when you finish in the last half hour of the race, you are the center of attention and a rockstar. Again, we'll see how I feel. I might take the day after the race off too :-) So the next entry you'll see from me will be my race report. Follow along tomorrow on the internet - talk you you all after the race.

So I'm nicely settled in here in Panama City Beach. I arrived, got my car, luggage, and found the condo with relative ease. The only slight glitch I have had is a tear I found in my wetsuit. I went to the bike shop and the guys there let me take the repair stuff out of the packaging, and repair it on the spot instead of spending $30 for the whole package of stuff. So far, every volunteer and worker I have encountered has been very accomodating, understanding, and will go out of their way to make sure things go smoothly for you. That's the way it is at Ironman and I'm sure my number 1 fan appreciates the repair effort instead of dropping $500 on a new wetsuit :-) So last night after I got to my room, I got my bike put together pretty quickly, and went out for about a 30 minute spin up and down the main drag where the race starts and finishes - felt pretty good. Then I hit up Walmart and got some shopping done - made some pasta and chicken for supper - it was good :-) Today, I took my time getting going in the morning, and eventually went down to check in and get all my stuff. Numbers under 1000 got to go right to the front of the LONG line - I am number 224. After I repaired my wetsuit, I did about a 10 minute swim in the ocean to loosen up a bit. I have a 20 minute run at tempo later, which I'll get done before dinner. Tomorrow is an "off" day. But I think they have the swim course buoys set up tomorrow, so I might go cruise the swim course in the morning. I found a Starbucks today - no chocolate chip cookies to be seen :-( but the nice girl working there told me they'd be set out tomorrow or she could just give me some frozen ones now - I got some frozen ones - those are going in special needs for the bike and run. I am writing from a library that I found where there's a time limit on the computer. 22 minutes remaining..... I'll write at least one more time before the race - take care all and thanks for reading.

So I'm sitting in the vast expanse that is the Grand Forks airport getting ready to leave. I'm slightly annoyed that my bottle of chain lube got taken away from me - It's 4oz, the limit is apparently 3.4. Oh, and my individual packets of chamois cream weren't in a quart size container. And they let me keep my 10oz bottle of chamois cream - do the math - make any sense?? Guess that's one on miss G.I. Jane TSA chick who got all gung ho on me when I asked her if half an ounce was a big deal. Yay for the 6 am airport rant!! So after having one more injection in the medial retinaculum of both my knees yesterday, they both feel lots better. Swim felt fast on Saturday, bike felt good Sunday, and short jog felt good yesterday. So after I get there, the plan is to put my bike together, lube the chain with saliva, and do a short spin before dark. Then maybe a quick dip in the ocean or condo pool. Here's hoping the baggage morons can get my bike where it's supposed to be. I'll update you all soon.
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List :-)

Ok - little update on the knee. The shot seems to have done the trick. Swelling is way down. Felt good on my run last night. The big test will be Saturday's brick. That will determine whether I go to visit the doc on Monday again. So with my departure a mere 5 days away, I've started to think about my packing list. I thought I might share that with you just for fun. I will go by each discipline, with transitions in between.

Plan is to bring my bike pump and hand it off in the morning after I use it to whomever is lucky enough to accompany me to transition at 5:30 am :-)

Swim: wetsuit, goggles, cap, bodyglide before swim, bike shorts and 2XU race jersey under wetsuit.

T1 Bag - little white towel, chamois butter, body glide, bike socks, bike shoes, race number belt, helmet, sunglasses (regular and amber lenses), arm warmers, magic pills in ziploc (tylenol, ibuprofen - evil NSAID I know, immodium, salt tablets), nutrition and fluids already on bike, along with little pack of chamois butter, in seat pack will be 3 CO2, CO2 pump, tire levers, 2 tubes with valve extenders, zip ties

Bike special needs - 2 more EFS bottles, coke or red bull

T2 Bag - running shoes, running socks, tri shorts for running, hat, body glide for feet and arms

Run special needs - warm base layer shirt, red bull

Post race - socks, underwear, prepair crocs, shirt, sweat pants

I'll need training clothes for the week, 1 bike short, 1 jersey, 1 running shorts, and 1 running shirt

My plan is to put as much as I can besides my bike and wheels into my bike box, since I'll have to pay extra for it anyway, might as well make it worth it. Sunday is packing day, The only other bag I'm bringing is my black TYR transition bag. I'm bringing minimal clothing to wear during the week - can just wash while I'm there. I should be able to cram everything I need into the bike box and the backpack. Now all I need is for the airlines not to f up my packing job or lose my bike and I should be good. I'm shopping for food when I get there. I have friends getting there on Thursday, and family on Friday - and one person should be arriving during the race to see me finish - he gets the prize for the shortest trip - about 15 hours from landing to leaving again.

I hope I impressed you all with my list making ability. Rest assured, you will hear from me soon again!!

The doc

Ok, I promised all of my faithful readers an update after I went to the doctor - well I just got home, so here goes. First of all, I really like this doctor - I know he runs and has done triathlons, and he relates really well to his patients, judging by all the thank you autographs he has up in his exam room. So he took a look at my knee, and explained that it felt like I had a combination of patella-femoral syndrome (or runner's knee), and an inflamation of the bursa sac. and it was most likely the latter which was causing me pain. There was warmth and swelling and "bogginess," and maybe some fluid. (At this point, my brother will be explaining this in detail to my father). He clearly explained my options at this point, which were 1 -physical therapy, or 2 - a cortisone injection into the bursa sac. I chose the 2nd option. The risks and benefits of the injection were clearly spelled out to me, and I chose to do it. He explained that this 1 injection may be all it takes to take care of this issue, and it may never come back, or I may need physical therapy. But, I don't have time for physical therapy to work, and he seems smart and probably realized that, but is still obligated to explain all of my options to me. First, he numbed the knee, then he tried to draw some fluid out - getting an ever so small amount. Then he did the cortisone injection. He explained that he did the injection into the bursa sac because there was less risk doing it there then directly into the area of the tendon, where there is a "very small risk" of the tendon rupturing - he said he has never had it happen to a patient. He said if I have any problems to come back and see him on Monday before I leave on Tuesday, and that they would "get me in" - I even got the direct phone number :-). It's nice going to a doctor who seems like he cares and understands, because I know there are those that don't. I took yesterday off completely - skipping an hour easy ride. Today I'm going to go lift - I'm going to skip the squats and just do upper body stuff and abs - then no lifting next week. And because you all can't live without it, here's my training schedule for the next little while:



Tuesday 10/27 - Swim 1:00, zone 1-2 effort, speed work; Run :45, zone 1-2 effort

Wednesday 10/28 - Ride 1:00, cadence at 90+, zone 1-2 effort

Thursday 10/29 - Swim :45; Run :45, both zone 1-2

Friday 10/30 - Off day

Saturday 10/31 - Swim 1:00; Ride 2:00, Run 1:00

Sunday 11/1 - Ride 1:00 easy



Race week I'll figure out as I go. Talk to you soon all!!

The weekend

So I felt a little knee pain after my long ride 8 days ago. Not a whole lot to say about it during this past week. Actually felt good. Then I did my brick on Saturday. And I was definitely pathetically hobbling around all day yesterday. I was kind of pissy about it too. The left knee is pretty obviously bigger than the right and there is fluid in it from what I can feel. YAY!! :-) The only thing I can think of is that my bike seat is a little too low. So I skipped my 1 hour easy ride yesterday, took the day completely off - yes, I skipped a workout - I did raise my seat up a few millimeters too. Hopefully that makes a difference. My brick next Sat - 2:00 bike, 1:00 run should let me know if the problem is resolved. I do feel a little better today. I did manage to get an apt to go see my sports medicine doc today. Obviously, resting it is not an option at this point. So aside from a little peace of mind - we'll see what else arises out of the visit. Remember - whatever it takes at this point. I did not train six months to be stopped by a bum knee with 2 weeks to go. So if that means sticking a needle in my leg, sucking out fluid, and injecting me with some cortisone, then that's what it'l take. My doc's a good guy - he'll understand. So I'll let you know what comes out of this visit. Countdown is on - 12 days to go. Oh my!!......
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Update

Well,

I’m done with my last long ride – did that last Sunday. I rode with a buddy for the first 3 hours – it’s amazing how much faster the time passes when you can draft and talk while you’re riding J . I did a little less than 5 and a half hours out of a scheduled 6. I figure 3 rides of 5 + hours should do it. This weekend is 1:30 swim, 3:00 bike, and 1:30 run on Saturday, and 1:00 bike on Sunday. I suppose I should start to feel “rested” soon. I guess there’s all that waiting to do now. I’m kind of excited – I’ll probably drive everyone around me nuts the next couple of weeks, but they’ll deal J. I’ll save all the poetic speech ifying for race week – I’ll touch base soon. Take care all!!

untitled :-)

I came across this story on ironman.com and I wanted to pass it along. It’s a pretty good little column.

 

http://ironman.com/events/ironman/worldchampionship/kona2009/lee-gruenfeld-looks-back-at-this-years-ford-ironman-world-championship

 

It looks like I’ll be able to get my six hour ride in on Sunday. It says a high of 57 with “pm showers”. So hopefully that holds up and I can do what I need to do. No more long rides after Sunday. Next weekend is a long Saturday brick of 1:00, 3:00, 1:00, and a Sunday ride of 1:00 – almost taper time J. I’ll talk to you all some time next week.

Another week gone by

Hi all, another weekend in the books, the date is fast approaching. Did a swim, bike, run brick on saturday, with the bike on the trainer, and the run outside - 90 minute run. On sunday I spent 4 of the most boring hours of my life on the trainer, which is equal to 5 + hours on the road - take 3/4 of planned outside time and that equals time necessary on the trainer. It also helps me develop a tolerance for the heat and humidity which is useful for Florida. Hopefully I'll be able to do six outside on Sunday if the weather holds up, relatively speaking. I'm feeling good about my nutrition - I talked to a coach on the phone who I'll be working with for CDA and he gave me some good ideas and suggestions which I tried on Sunday and will again next week. That's all for now. Take care all.

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Monster weekend

So that was kind of a long training weekend - or monster weekend - as referenced in the title. Got up and ran 17 miles in a little under 3 hours on Saturday morning. I did a combination of about .93 run, and then walked til I hit the mile split. I really liked that way of doing things and I kept my splits relatively even throughout. I'm gonna stick with that method - "the galloway method." I also tried fueling with coke. I found that worked too - aside from it spraying out of my fuelbelt when the flasks were filled - that's why there's aid stations :-) Then I swam about 3500 in a hour after the run. No problems there. Sunday I did about 96 miles in 5 hours on the bike. Kinda chilly, cloudy, occasional misty rain, but light wind. Why can't it be sunny?? I like the cool, but bring on the sun damnit!! Towards the end of the ride, my legs felt pretty trashed. Guess something's working then... My position feels good on the bike - after multiple minute adjustments of saddle height the last couple weeks - my back is not too sore today - feel it a little in the knees, which might mean I need to go up a millimeter or so. I'll get it - really I will. All I can say is my back feels the best now out of all of my long rides... Next weekend, brick of 1:30, 1:00, 1:00 on Sat, and ride of 5:30 on Sunday. That's all for now - talk to you soon - oh ya, Kona's on Saturday, keep those guys in your thoughts and prayers.
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The lottery and some thoughts

October 1.... The lottery for Kona opens today. I am most definitely going to sign up. Why, you ask?? Because there's always a chance that YOU will be one of the lottery winners. What happens if I am selected? Maybe I can end up on that NBC documentary about the Ironman in Hawaii. Maybe I'll get to Kona when I'm 27, and maybe I'll be 67, who knows... Why spend the almost $100 every year to enter in a lottery where the odds of winning are miniscule at best? I suppose only a triathlete knows - no matter how much you try to explain to everyone else why you do it - it's only you that knows. Why do ironmans at all? Why train for years on end to put yourself through that much suffering? Why not stick to shorter distances that don't require as much training? Again, I suppose it's only you that knows - those that live with you get a pretty good idea over the course of 6 months of structured training as well. It's funny how I've never even done an ironman, and it's like I'm already addicted. I haven't even done one, and I want to do them all. One of my friends told me last night, "let's just focus on the first one." Very true. I don't know if I have ever been more focused on a single goal as I am on this race in Florida. Do me a favor, take five minutes and watch this short video on youtube - it gives me chills everytime I watch it - it's from the 2003 NBC documentary on Kona - it was also the 25th anniversary of the race:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EokseUskyDI

That being said, another 2:30 running, 1:00 swim on Saturday, and 5:00 riding on Sunday. Let's get that done. I'll let you know how that goes after I'm done. Take it easy all - thanks for reading....

Read :-)

42 days left until Ironman Florida. I am coming to end of my last rest week before my last big build up - then taper. I am feeling comfortable with all of my disciplines, my running seems to be falling into place. Did a 5 hour ride last Sunday, 2 this coming Sunday, and then 5, 5.5, and 6. I think I have my nutrition "plan" nailed down, about 550-650 calories / hour on the bike, with slightly less while training. Of course plans can change on race day depending on weather and other things. I'm doing a 10K this weekend - falls conveniently into my schedule. And on a related note, the Kona lottery opens on 10/1 and I'm going to enter it. 150 people selected out of thousands, so the chance is minimal. But everyone prob thinks that they have no chance, and then you get in. Then comes what I imagine is kind of a "holy shit" moment. The holy grail of races, every triathlete's dream - one day I will be there. I'm kidding myself if I think I'm fast enough to qualify, so it's up to chance - who knows... I might get lucky.... Or not depending on how you look at it... That's all for now people. More soon, promise :-)

Garmin Connect - Activity Details for 2:30 E3 Run

Here is a link to my 2:30 run from Saturday 9/20. I felt pretty good considering I haven't gone that long or far since April or May or so. And yes I know I'm a nerd for posting this....

Garmin Connect - Activity Details for 2:30 E3 Run

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Welcome... And Square Lake race report

Hi all,
I have decided to switch blog sites to this one since it seems to be a little more user friendly. For those of you who want to read what I have on my "other" one, the address is http://www.triathlondon.choseit.com. I will however be using this one from now on. So... Square Lake was last weekend. Overall, I was happy with the results. I was slightly faster than last year at the same race. My swim, bike, and both my transitions were faster to some degree. My run was not. It was a hot and humid day, the run course is hilly, and had little to no shade. All things considered, only about five minutes slower on the run is not too bad a result. It's five days after the race, and I feel I have recovered very well, and feel few lingering effects. I'm gearing up for a LONG training weekend, 1:30 swim and 2:30 run on Saturday, and 5:00 ride on Sunday. Only 50 days til Florida. The most important training is beginning. It's crunch time :-)