after spending much of the 2008 season chasing down a slot for the world championships, i am left very disappointed. ill get to my personal misfortune in a minute. i am disappointed in the sport. what is supposed to be the ultimate test between the top athletes in the 70.3 distance turned into a total sham and became nothing more than a bike shop group ride with a transition run. everyone knows its a draft fest, and some age groups had a fairer race then others. for instance the 18-24 age group for both men and women was absolutely ridiculous and i dont blame the athletes as much as the race organizers. because of the flat narrow course, it is virtually impossible to avoid drafting in some of the swim waves, and if you actually want to compete you have to draft because everyone else is and they are not going to be penalized. its a joke. i really hope ironman thinks about the sport not money when they decide where to put the world championships in 2011.
i was feeling pretty damn good on saturday morning, as i came out of the water sub 26, crossing the mat in 26:04. those damn swim classes at nssc really helped. i will say that was the most violent swim start i have ever endured, the fighting lasted for about 700 meters!
after a relatively quick transition and struggling to mount my bike, i slowly got into the groove. about 5 miles in i really started to feel good. at about mile 20, the course became real narrow and populated. over the next 40k it was getting dangerous. i was literally yelling at people. i started yelling at them for blatantly sitting on my wheel, then i began to mad because it as downright dangerous. i broke from one pack, and a heavier guy came off my wheel looked at me and said, "ill ride shotgun!" i couldn't believe it.
the only way to get ahead of some of these peletons was to ride the shoulder and go for it. which i did. unfortunately the last time i did, i struck one of those reflectors from the side, and almost went down. the pack of thirty couldn't of cared less as they continued to cruise on. after regaining my balance i got back in the drops, and went after them again, but this time, i couldn't catch them. i was thinking, "damn, they are moving". as i got slower and slower, i realized there was a problem. i had a flat tire at mile 37.
i ended up walking my bike for a few minutes until i got to an intersection and found a cop. he radioed someone, and 28 minutes later i was back on my bike headed to t2. as i sat on the side of the road, i noticed one thing in particular, no one was not drafting! i cruised in debating whether or not to even finish. i was so pissed off, i needed to run.
i ran a relatively relaxed 1:24, finding it hard to dig deep because of the flat, crossed the line in 4:41 and i am left waiting for 2009 to begin. i am not finished with that race, and will not be until my next one. i had too much in my legs, my heart, and my gut. i have never once eaten food from the race after a half ironman, becaus ei am usually so sick. i was eating pizza within 15 minutes.
learning is such a huge par of this sport. i have learned more about triathlon this season then the 5 before it combined. consistency, quality, and bringing a flat kit are a few of my lessons. but, the great part is that it will all begin soon enough and redemption is sometimes more fun then getting it right the first time.
i am not sure if i ever want to return to clearwater, because the times are so insane due to drafting, but there will be 2009, 2010, and beyond. there will be plenty of races where i will continue to leave it all out there, and puke my way to the awards, but i will never forget what its like to finish the world championships with so much left in the tank and a 28 minute handicap.
congrats to kelly and her new PR! 42 SECONDS from breaking the 5 hour barrier ! 2009 for that too. it was still a blast to chill on the beach, get a sunburn, and eat some grouper tacos again.
a huge thanks to janda for his support all year, and especially for being there saturday. i could see him and michelle from a mile away because of that damn green shirt. next year...
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Friday, November 7, 2008
70.3 worlds tommorow
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Gloucester
So, in the past few months a lot has changed. Some would say my whole life has changed, but it has not. I left a career as an officer in the USCG, left where I had lived and trained for 3+ years (Houston, TX) and ended up back home in Gloucester, MA with no job. all with a smile.
When i left the uscg, the following is what i was berated with:
what's your plan?
do you have a plan?
do you have a job lined up?
how do you feel about being unemployed during a recession?
why are you giving up such a great career?
what about health care?
and a lot more of why? how? and when i answered, a lot of.. what?
the truth is it doesn't matter why, because if it truly did, i would never have wanted to leave. if you can follow the last sentence you get where im going without actually going there.
and as for how?
in my opinion life is not supposed to be cookie cutter and something un-original, or at all a string of experiences that we are all supposed to go through to get to the same finish, or a career of playing the game in order to achieve the vast summit of retirement. life is different for everybody. whether that is fair or not, is not up to me. some people will trot happily through their existence never questioning why or how, but always doing what they are supposed to, maybe or maybe not with a smile.
I thought we were all supposed to attempt the apparent impossible... happiness. maybe they are, maybe they are not. for me, i am still searching.
but as far as being unemployed in a recession, i am pretty happy. i am not too nervous, and when i find what i am looking for i will know.
Being home in Gloucester is truly a gift. I am with my family, and that matters (despite what the uscg thinks). being able to grab a cup of lone gull coffee and take a walk with jasper through stage fort park (above-top) during a november sunset would make anyone smile.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Back to the Pool
I was involved with a Master's team down in Texas last spring, and it was good in the sense that it got me to swim. But, it was a lot of junk, 25s and 50s. with no real coaching.
This past summer i came home and spent about 5 weeks executing mostly long great open water swimming. which really helped me in cancun, and got me back feeling confident about my swim fitness.
if there is one thing lacking about my triathlon training it is entirely my fault. it is my disdain for getting into a pool alone to do a workout.
solution: back in Gloucester, MA and swimming with my high school US Swim Team North Shore Swim Club. I swam with Dan and Tony throughout high school and was a decent swimmer. The thought of returning brought nostalgic smiles to my face, and a familiar group of water-phobic butterflies in my belly. i knew it was going to hurt. i also knew it would work.
i have been hitting north shore for about two weeks consistently now, and i am excited for the swim in clearwater. it has been hard, quality, and do-able. there has been no junk.
finding something that works for you in this sport is huge. this will work for me, and i am excited about it, yes when i hear dan spout, "Main Set" I get nervous, but i know it is worth it and i can handle it.
This past summer i came home and spent about 5 weeks executing mostly long great open water swimming. which really helped me in cancun, and got me back feeling confident about my swim fitness.
if there is one thing lacking about my triathlon training it is entirely my fault. it is my disdain for getting into a pool alone to do a workout.
solution: back in Gloucester, MA and swimming with my high school US Swim Team North Shore Swim Club. I swam with Dan and Tony throughout high school and was a decent swimmer. The thought of returning brought nostalgic smiles to my face, and a familiar group of water-phobic butterflies in my belly. i knew it was going to hurt. i also knew it would work.
i have been hitting north shore for about two weeks consistently now, and i am excited for the swim in clearwater. it has been hard, quality, and do-able. there has been no junk.
finding something that works for you in this sport is huge. this will work for me, and i am excited about it, yes when i hear dan spout, "Main Set" I get nervous, but i know it is worth it and i can handle it.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
CANCUN 70.3
It has taken me some time to post this blog, partly because i should not really have been in Mexico. Either way, I got down to the windy, humid world of Cancun and Quintana Roo, Mexico. By the by, Quintana Roo was the first "Triathlon bike" ever made.
I prepared for the race by getting in a lil' 15 min shake out run the day before the race. I have never sweat so much in 15 minutes in my life! That place is hot as hell. Coming from the not so cold state of Texas i knew i could handle it, but i needed electrolytes. Unfortunately, Mexico is not the haven for race day supplies, and i had to be creative, because i forgot my endurolytes. so the night before the race i ended up creating my very own cancun survival package, which included table salt and tic tac cartridges. i filled four empty tic tac boxes with salt and went on my merry way. p.s. - this works, but salt hurts your teeth if you might have a cavity. oww!
ten minutes before i was supposed to be at the beach, my front wheel went flat and my zipp extension fell inside the rim! i remained calm, but i could have broken things. a very nice mexican man helped me fix it, and also knocked my bike over on its side. either way, scratch or not, i had air in my tires.
the swim was a no wetsuit ridiculously choppy two loop course. got her done in 28 min, and was fine with that. it was gonna be windy. the bike was a two loop windy draft fest, but i tried to focus on my salt tic tac things in preparation for the run.
there is maybe 20 feet of shade on that run course. hot as hell. but i do love the little water bags they had. i continued to eat the salt, and just try not to pay attention to the heat. i thought i was in the lead of my age group, so i kept it kind of easy in efforts not to blow up. there was only a few people and some pros ahead of me, because i was the second wave. "one foot in front of the next" if they did not have rest areas every 1km! i would not have made it. this gringo would have combusted. at 10.5 miles i ran into a dude in my age group. i have come all this way, and finally i need to race! damn, i was tired!
so, i passed him, and he passed me. and it was on. i decided to run my own race and see what i had left. i ended up passing him, and he stayed on my heels. at 12.5 i made my move. skipped the last aid station(risky) and took off. at the turnaround for the second loop, i ran over the mat and it made that beepie noise. and 30 seconds later i heard the beep again. he was gone, and i cruised on for the W.
After finishing i went to the medical tent and got poked three times by mexican needles and finally they found a vein. i checked, they were new needles each time! creepy.
i was toast. truly toast. i puked in the hotel lobby 7 hours later on my way to the awards ceremony. in one of those flower pot things!
haha. i was really happy with my efforts. it was a greuling day, and i def killed some margaritas the following day before flying back.
i met chris leigh, and michellie jones. both of whom are amazingly down to earth and cool cats.
would i do it again? only if there was a 100% chance of rain!
I prepared for the race by getting in a lil' 15 min shake out run the day before the race. I have never sweat so much in 15 minutes in my life! That place is hot as hell. Coming from the not so cold state of Texas i knew i could handle it, but i needed electrolytes. Unfortunately, Mexico is not the haven for race day supplies, and i had to be creative, because i forgot my endurolytes. so the night before the race i ended up creating my very own cancun survival package, which included table salt and tic tac cartridges. i filled four empty tic tac boxes with salt and went on my merry way. p.s. - this works, but salt hurts your teeth if you might have a cavity. oww!
ten minutes before i was supposed to be at the beach, my front wheel went flat and my zipp extension fell inside the rim! i remained calm, but i could have broken things. a very nice mexican man helped me fix it, and also knocked my bike over on its side. either way, scratch or not, i had air in my tires.
the swim was a no wetsuit ridiculously choppy two loop course. got her done in 28 min, and was fine with that. it was gonna be windy. the bike was a two loop windy draft fest, but i tried to focus on my salt tic tac things in preparation for the run.
there is maybe 20 feet of shade on that run course. hot as hell. but i do love the little water bags they had. i continued to eat the salt, and just try not to pay attention to the heat. i thought i was in the lead of my age group, so i kept it kind of easy in efforts not to blow up. there was only a few people and some pros ahead of me, because i was the second wave. "one foot in front of the next" if they did not have rest areas every 1km! i would not have made it. this gringo would have combusted. at 10.5 miles i ran into a dude in my age group. i have come all this way, and finally i need to race! damn, i was tired!
so, i passed him, and he passed me. and it was on. i decided to run my own race and see what i had left. i ended up passing him, and he stayed on my heels. at 12.5 i made my move. skipped the last aid station(risky) and took off. at the turnaround for the second loop, i ran over the mat and it made that beepie noise. and 30 seconds later i heard the beep again. he was gone, and i cruised on for the W.
After finishing i went to the medical tent and got poked three times by mexican needles and finally they found a vein. i checked, they were new needles each time! creepy.
i was toast. truly toast. i puked in the hotel lobby 7 hours later on my way to the awards ceremony. in one of those flower pot things!
haha. i was really happy with my efforts. it was a greuling day, and i def killed some margaritas the following day before flying back.
i met chris leigh, and michellie jones. both of whom are amazingly down to earth and cool cats.
would i do it again? only if there was a 100% chance of rain!
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