Celebrate Success

I just Ended the season with 2 sub-9 hour Ironmans. The second was a bot more of a challenge. From a rough swim start, with no warning before the canon to a flat on the bike; Ironman Arizona was Hard. I know, it is an Ironman, isn't it supposed to be? Well, sometimes race day comes, and everything feels good. Sometimes it feels like it takes a little more effort even to get your wetsuit off. The title of this is celebrate success, you may think that is to talk about my 20 min bike PR at IMAZ, yes with a flat, or my 30 min Ironman PR at IMFL. Well, those were exciting times....get ready for the real accomplishment! Before we get to that, some long overdue shout outs: The Quintana Roo CD0.1 is the most comfy machine I have ever ridden, and since I took 25min off my bike split, I would call her fast!! My Blueseventy wetsuit is awesome! As you can see in the pic, good for dancing and swimming! Powerbar has been amazing, keeping me fueled in training and racing. Tangerine gels. Every once in a while you hit that point...when you do, suck down 2 of these puppy's, and BAM! Good to go! Now the highlight of my triathlon season:

T2 Champion!!

Yes, I posted the fastest T2 at IMAZ. I have a few limiters, say running. But T2 is not one of them! I leave you with this:

What can you do in 66 seconds!...Enjoy the Offseason!

The Places In Between

2011.
2011 has been a HUGE transition year. Although I pride myself on a stellar T2, Life transitions can be a little more stressful. In order to get this story straight I need to go back and start at the beginning. The place in between 2010 and 2012 started one week before Ironman Arizona, funny because that is where I am at now.

11/10
IMAZ Prep one week out.
Last big ride ended up a bust. I got sick to boot. Congested headed into IMAZ. Not Ideal. Race day came, so I threw on a happy face, and went for it. Threw up on the bike, and suffered through the run. Thanks to Troy Jacobson for chatting me up through a bit of the run. Race fail. Oh well off season.

12/10
Off season
This joyous time of beer drinking, sleeping in, skiing, snowshoeing, winter running, and half a masters swim once in a while was anything but. It was a blast in the face to my level of discontent with life: job, city, social scene, life. This unhappiness lead to an off season of unhealthy behavior (bear attacks) unhealthy state of mind and a lack of drive which every athlete thrives on.

1/11
Death
I lost my grandfather. I felt for my father. I can't imagine the pain of watching the most important male in your life pass on. Luckily we still my loving and amazing grandmother.

2/11
Lost Friends
The Hoff, a guy who taught me a little about triathlon, and a lot about being great moved on from Durango. This sparked the fire to do the same.

3/11
Training
It was time to get back to and be in the middle of serious training. I went through the motions. Everything was lack luster, un inspired and a genuine struggle. I was gaining fitness from a few years of miles in my legs, and the occasional freak workout. I was not sleeping, ornery, totally off of my 'triathlon lifestyle' and surrounded by poor influences.

4/11
The Race season starts
Obviously I was not on form to race well, but I realized I needed to get my head on straight in order to even put on a race kit. So, I I tried to knuckle down and managed a few good weeks of training. This lead to a win at Tri the Rim Triathlon.

5/11
Wildflower: Fun race, long drive, total flop. Motivation to put in a good month of training even if I was unhappy. So I worked pretty hard as I finished out the school year. I had no choice, three weekends of racing coming up:
#1 Ironhorse
This weekend was a good one. Won a little money, had a PR on the Ironhorse bike race, took 2nd to Brandon Rakita in a 10 mile run, raced my first crit, had a PR in the mile swim, and the ironhorse TT.
The most import part of this weekend was the Tucson bug. I had been job hunting for a few months, definite time for a change. I NEEDED a change. I was looking at teaching jobs in Austin, TX. Warm weather, awesome town, more people, change. All of Texas is firing teachers. Not the best timing. I was getting pretty discouraged. Not sure what to do.
The Bug
A couple of friends came up for the Ironhorse, from Tucson. I was expressing my dilemma to them. Besides having great insight into bike racing, mustaches, and the shake and break; they also said, why not Tucson? The seed was planted.
The week between race 1 and 2 was busy since i was working to design a new curriculum for Ignacio Math. During this time I also sent out a bunch of applications to schools in Tucson. Okay, I should have been working. I am good at multitasking. I hope!!
6/11
Race #2
Mooseman 70.3
Well, a freezing swim, and hilly bike were tough, but i was able to muddle through and pull out a decent run. This left me able to finish 7th. One of my best 70.3 finishes. So, even though my head was not in the game, I was gaining fitness. a good thing. Back to celebration mode!
The Beach
The week between race 2 and 3 was spent on Cape Cod. I drank beers and spent time with a true friend, and very special person in my life. During this time I received a phone call about a job interview (3 beers in!) I must have done a pretty good job because he offered to fly me down to Tucson for an interview.
Race #3
Eagleman 70.3
FLAT. not a flat, I was just plan flat after the 2 weeks of racing, and not the best recovery. oh well. I got some great family time, as they are the most supportive parents a guy could ask for. They have been to all 10 of my ironman races, and a few of my 70.3s. Is it okay that my biggest fan is my mom?
7/11
The air is thick with change.
Back in Durango. Realizing One Thing. Time to GO. Flew down, and got the job in Tucson. Well, still mentally checked out of my own life but it is time to make a decision. Her goes. I'll take the job! time to out together a game plan. Okay, I'll buy a house, one whirlwind weekend later, offer made.

8/11
Offer accepted! Looks like i am a home owner (gulp) and I am moving to a town where I know next to no one, for a job i am a little unsure of. Woah. Good thing my head is still in the fog, cause my body is just making these decisions on its out. I hope my mind agrees in the end.

The move.
Either way, it just happened. Time to strap my mattress to my roof and drive to Tucson. I arrived, unloaded, and hoped on a plane to a wedding. As you can tell, my main focus this summer has been quality training, right? No. Life Changes.

9/11
Tucson.
Barely back in Tucson, a little bit of training, some IT Band issues. Train through it. Good plan. trying to get into a groove at work, this process turns into a huge struggle. I made it happen. Oh, by the way it has been 110 in Tucson. Great training weather. Sweet.

Ironman Wisconsin
Race fail. The IT band goes, and I end up jog/hobbling the marathon. I could not handle a DNF. Never had one. Lets keep it that way. Back to training.

10/11
Fair Winds.
The Tucson weather is improving. The benefits of the change are shining through. My job is getting easier. I have met a few people in Tucson. Life is actually pretty good! Change. Oh, it turns out I like my house. I didn't have enough time to know if I would when I bought it. Now I realize I do.
Since life is finally going well, my mind switches on. time to nail training, recover right, live the lifestyle I want to live. It has been a while, turns out I remember how.

11/11
Ironman FL
I will write about this in a double Ironman race report. Lets just say, 8:45. BOOM.
The 2 week gap until IMAZ, here goes!!

In conclusion:
Change. The only constant in life is change. Always make it happen for the better. It is your life, live it. 2011 was my year of too many changes, but it was for the better. Change is good. life is good.
Embrace It.

Bike Nutrition

I had my first long ride today after Ironman Louisville. My coach told me specifically to remember to eat like race day. I had forgotten how important this is on long rides! I had to run off the bike, so I wanted to be especially careful. I use a mix of powerbar bars, and gels. I stick to gels in the middle of hard efforts, and towards the end of the ride. This is so that my stomach is ready to run. Caffeine works for me, so I use the double latte gels. It is a personal preference, but I like the caffeine, and the flavor! I was able to end my ride strong, and run well off the bike. It is amazing what proper fueling can do! Thanks coach for reminding me of things I should know, and thanks powerbar for digesting so well. Rides like that give me the confidence I need to know I can ride hard at Ironman Arizona, and be fueled up to run fast.

The Road to Kona 2011 ~ Race Schedule

14-Feb	Dutchman half marathon
21-Feb	Desert Classic Duathlon
11-Apr	New Orleans 70.3
2-May	ST GEORGE Ironman
16-May	Tempe International
6-Jun	Boise 70.3
20-Jun	Coeur D'Alene Ironman
4-Jul	Boulder Peak
11-Jul	Vineman 70.3
1-Aug	Boulder 70.3
15-Aug	Timberman 70.3
12-Sep	Syracuse 70.3
5-Oct	KONA Ironman

Lifestyle Part 1: Nutrition

Everyone knows the foods that are ‘good’ and ‘should’ be eaten. Everyone knows the quantities of these foods are also important. Allowing the occasional treat is also a great way to stay sane and maintain an adequate caloric intake during heavy training. I started out my triathlon career with an extremely disciplined lifestyle. I still have maintained may of those priciples but gone way off track. Because of this my body composition has done the same. From being too lean to race well all the way to the other side of the coin.

In setting goals for 2011, I have my eye on Kona. That is no joke. For me to qualify for Kona I will need to be on the top of my game, and race well many times during the season. I have decided that in order to know that I am taking this season as seriously as I can to qualify I need to make some lifestyle changes. Why blog about this? Putting this in writing makes it much more real. So this is my attempt at making REAL lifestyle changes. The Irony is, I am writing this over a beer. Here is my nutrition strategy:

The best way to start out a strategy is to give your self an out right off the bat. I am going with the 90% of the time rule here, so may eat out once a week, grab pint of Ben and Jerry’s another night, and go out for quite a few drinks after a great race. Now that I have some exceptions here is the plan. The basic principle is to eat fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, and lean meat. Avoid all proceed foods, all flour, dairy, and most chemicals. I am going to limit my coffee intake, and pretty much cut out alcohol.

This diet may seem too strict at first, but they have breads, cereals, tortillas made from sprouted grain, not flour. Milk and cheese can be supplemented with almond milk, and almond cheese (the pepper jack is delicious!) I will also do my eating early in the day, so no foods after 8pm. This rule will be broken on regularity because of the exception that if I finish a workout after eight, I will eat some sort of recovery food before going to bed.

Another point to mention is that this type of lifestyle sometimes eliminates tubers, and legumes from your diet. I will not be doing that. I enjoy sweet potatoes too much! They will be a regular part of my diet in order to eat enough carbs to train well. The important thing about any lifestyle change is to make sure you are eating enough for recovery after workouts. I plan on going to the blender and recovery drinks to help that.

The final exception is during exercise. Then I can eat the fuels I will be racing with even if they contain flour and are highly processed. This crosses over into recovery drinks as well. If I lived in a perfect world and had the time and energy to make these myself, then I would. But here in the real world…I will just eat a Powerbar. Part one of the 2011 Kona push has begun. Back to a strict lifestyle, and dreams of Kona constantly rolling around in my head!

Ironman Louisville

After a 5 week rest, with just a touch of training, it was time for another Ironman. Ironman Louisville. The day topped out at 96 degrees with a ton of humidity. Not the most pleasant day. It was a bit of a sufferfest through an 85 degree river swim. super hot bike coarse, and deadly run. I was able to grunt it out for a rather slow IM finish, but I still managed to slide into 7th place. That happens to be my best finish at an Ironman event, so I was pretty jazzed up about that. My new hair cut and I enjoyed the finishing shoot this time ( I asked if anybody was coming behind me first!) then it was back to medical for me. It was a hot race, but a good trip! Now it is a little down time before deciding what is next.

IRONMAN LAKE PLACID

Race Report. Lake Placid 2010

9^th Place! Awesome result, season goals check.

The report for the coach: aka a detailed play by play –

Swim - Minus a huge speedsuit glitch, resulting in me borrowing a women’s medium PZ3 (fits great!) a perfect swim. I stayed with a good group and swam comfortably on feet for pretty much the entire swim. The beginning was a bit crazy as usual. But I stayed in a pretty good spot and faired ok.

Long ass run to T1! But T1 went fine, not crazy fast but I do not feel like I lost time to anyone there.

Bike – hhmmm

Lap 1 – Woah! Holy nice first lap. So, I exited the water in 10^th, and quickly rode into 7^th place. I caught Justin Daerr and new I was riding in a good position. I tried to hang with him as long as I could. It felt hard but manageable. Then we hit the turn around, and I saw how close I was to Ben, and got really excited, I took the lead from Daerr and set pace for a bit. Maybe a little too hard. After the first lap he gapped me and I got passed and slowed way down, I was pretty gassed on lap 2. Also the wind picked up, and that combo was deadly. I was on target for a 4:50, 4:55 bike split until the second half of lap 2 when my legs were shot.

Nutrition was tough, It wasn’t too hot, but I could not do gels. I tried once and almost tossed my cookies. I ate some bars but felt a little under fueled going into the run.

RUN –

I was off the bike in 8^th place, feeling good and knowing that I have the potential to run people down. Well it turns out when you are already in 8^th the people you are dealing with are all solid athletes and running them down is a bit more challenging. And it also turns out if you bike fairly well, some good runners are behind you and can run you down! At about mile 13 Brad Seng, and Tim Snow flew around me and I could not match them. I had just put on the fuel belt, and was sucking on Redbull, but it did not give me the wings to run with them. I feel like I had a good run, I did not kill it at the beginning, or die too much at the end. It was hard and I had to run my own race, but it was a marathon PR on a tough coarse, and I did finish 9^th so it turned out pretty well