Plans for 2014

As stated before, I am registered for Ironman Boulder.  It will be my first full distance Ironman race.  I met with Jeff a few weeks ago and he wants me to do a half in the May/June time frame.  Kansas looks like a likely target since it is driving distance and the time is right.  I will probably do a few local sprints.  The Caveman is only a few miles from the house and is in April.  The weather has been truly frightful in Dallas for most of December.  My pool closed for repairs from Thankgiving to New Years.  I haven't been able to swim much or ride the bike.  My running is on par for the most part.  It's always easy to run.  Jeff is going to give me a loose schedule for January and then it's on starting in February.  There will not be many races this year, but the ones on the schedule will be monsters.  I'll probably start checking in on a more regular basis in January to log my progress.  It has actually been nice not having a firm routine for the past month or two.

Off Season

After Kerrville, I shut things down completely for about 8-10 days.  I'm not getting workouts from Jeff right now and I'm doing some maintenance type stuff.  Pretty much what I want to do when I want to do it.  I don't worry about times or speed or anything else.  I'm still putting in base miles for everything.  We have lost the sun for the majority of the day so I'm only really riding on Saturday mornings.  I'm still getting in about 20 miles of running and swimming two or three mornings a week.  I would like to get more strength work in during the off season.  I only have one race on my schedule for 2014 and that is Ironman Boulder which I try not to think a whole lot about because the thought of it is still a little scary.  Jeff says we won't start worrying about that until late February.  I was really tired after Kerrville so it is good to have a little worry free down time.  My wife is running a 10k and half marathon so I will go to those and support her.  The Tri Series banquet is on the 22nd and we will head to Austin one more time for that.  It is a busy month for the family.  My son is a high school senior so we have colleges to visit and Thanksgiving is coming.  I will check in every so often but really don't plan on tracking anything again until 2014.

Kerrville Triathlon Festival - Half Iron Distance

The Kerrville Half is the 6th and last race of the Texas Tri Series.  I was in fourth place going into this race for the series in my age group.  I was behind by 10 minutes to second place (Doug) and 3 minutes to third place (Chuck).  The race was on Sunday and we left for Kerrville on Friday afternoon.  I was supposed to do a short swim on Friday but just didn't have enough time to get it worked in.  I wasn't sure what the water temps would be so I packed a wet suit, my speedsuit, and normal race tri kit.  Shelby gave me an Enduroshark jersey so I really hoped to wear that and my wetsuit for the swim.  I was going to ride the bike for about 45 minutes on Saturday so I brought some bike gear.  I still have Justin's aero helmet so I took that with me.  I checked with the bike shop and we decided to stay with my Zipp 404s on my bike for this race.  My Speedfil was properly mounted this time so everything looked good.  My wife and I left shortly before 5pm and headed out.  We passed little town after little town on the way down and seemed like most of them were playing football on Friday night.  The towns were empty with the exception of those little stadiums which was kind of cool.  We took the US281 route towards Burnet, headed to Fredricksberg and then south to Kerrville.  The hill country is really pretty and is a much better ride than 35 to Austin.  Kerrville is every bit of 5 hours but it didn't seem so bad going the scenic route.


The closest hotel to T1 and the swim was the Inn of the Hills, which was the official host hotel of the race and packet pickup.  Rooms weren't exactly as nice as they look on line but you really don't have alot of options in Kerrville.  We were able to sleep in on Saturday and grab a late breakfast at the hotel.  It was overcast, a little rain, and very humid on Saturday.  I went for a 45 minute ride on part of the bike course at noon to check things out.  I ran across this very cool spot on the Guadalupe.  The guy named Mark had been working on his spot on the river for three years. 

He tiered the land down to the lake complete with hammocks, giant wind chimes, rope swing, and now he has my sunglasses because I left them there.  I took them off to take a picture when he invited me over to take a look and I left them behind.  The summer of lost gear continues for me.  When I got back to the hotel, Patty went with me to pick up my packet and cruise around the expo.  It wasn't very big but they did have some good sales.  All of my stuff in transition had to be enclosed in provided plastic bags.  I had a sticker to apply with my race number (188).  We dropped off my bike in transition at T1 with the empty bag to be used for holding my swim gear.  The race officials would deliver my swim gear bag to T2 for me.  T2 was downtown and I loaded my run gear in a bag and had to hang it in the T2 area overnight.  After my gear was sorted and dropped off, we ate lunch/dinner at a local mexican restaurant and then headed to Ingram, Texas.  There is a Stonehenge replica and Easter Island statues in Ingram.  It was maybe 10-15 minutes from the hotel.  Kind of cool actually. 

On the way back, we tried to drive up some of the hills surrounding Kerrville to see what the view was like.  Deer were everywhere and they didn't seem all that afraid of us.  It is really pretty in Kerrville. 

Alabama was playing Ole Miss at 5:30 so I watched the game and fell asleep as best I could. 

I spoke with Jeff that evening about race strategy.  It was supposed to storm all morning on race day.  He suggested taking about 10 pounds of air out of my tires so I would have more traction on the road in case of rain.  I took a Shark salt that night and drank lots of water during the day.  He gave me some advice on pacing and nutrition intake.  I was ready to go. 

Pre-Race:  Slept ok but not great.  Started waking up sporadically around 2:30am.  I finally got up for good at 4:30 and took a shower.  It was no more than a few minutes walk from the hotel to T1.  It's great to be that close to transition.  At 5:30, I set up my transition area for the bike.  I took some toe socks and had them ready in T1.  I also had a pair in my run bag.  I felt going 13.1 miles without them would be catastrophic so I decided to give myself some options.  If it was raining like hell, I would use the socks in my run bag.  Otherwise, spend the time in T1.  I put 110 lbs of pressure in my tires, filled my Speedfil with Accelerade and took one small throw away bottle of Skratch.  I had plenty of GU and put lots of Shark salt in a M&Ms tube in my bento box.  I could carry the salt with me on the bike and the run.  I ate a honey stinger protein bar and waffle in the morning.  It was all I could really get down.  Wasn't much to do now except go back to the room, grab my wetsuit, swim gear, and head down to the river for the start.  They dammed the Guadalupe river in the swim area so it is more like semi-wide river.  Kind of like Town Lake in Austin.  The water felt warm but the race was classified as wet suit legal.  Many went without a wet suit.

Swim:  My wet suit has been hit and miss on fitting just right.  Patty helps me with it and she always does a good job with it.  We got my wet suit on and headed down to the Guadalupe for the start.  The race started at 7:30 and my wave was going off at 7:36.  Everything felt good and I was ready to go.

 My wave was the 50 and over group and it wasn't a huge group.  We had plenty of room in the water.  When I jumped in the water, my suit had me floating like a bobber, which always feels good.  They counted down our wave and we took off.  For the first hundred yards or so I was with the leaders but the range of motion in my arms was not great and I could feel the suit pulling on my neck.  Not good, not good at all.  The course was a counter clockwise rectangle so I swung out to the right and tried to figure this out.  I really needed a Kayak to hold on to and try to loosen up my suit.  I yelled at one but he went charging off in another direction.  Thanks alot.  It was probably 20-30 yards to the bank so I swam to the bank hoping to be able to stand up and fix my suit.  My heart rate was way too high and panic was starting to set in.  I knew a good swim was absolutely a must if I was going to close the gap on the two guys in front of me.  It felt like getting stuck in a traffic jam on the way to an important job interview is the best way for me to describe the feeling.  I could feel it all slipping away inside the first 10 minutes.  I loosened the velcro on the back of the suit and started swimming again.  I couldn't calm down and ended up heading to the bank one more time to try and settle down.  I could still feel the suit tugging me around my neck.  I really had to just bear down and fight through this.  There wasn't really any other option available.  I took off once again and still didn't feel great.  I came up on a Kayak and tried to loosen the suit one more time.  This time it felt better and I started to swim again.  Once the choking sensation around my neck went away, I just swam.  I hate counter clockwise swim courses.  I breathe right and it's hard to maintain a good line.  The tightness of the suit around my arms and shoulders never went away and added some unnecessary fatigue to the swim.  I couldn't seem to fall in line with the buoys at all.  The long swim down the back side of the rectangle was a test of will.  I just kept fighting.  The red turn buoys never seemed to make an appearance.  Once I turned and started to head to the finish, it was a big relief.  I could see and hear the finish line.  The wet suit strippers did a great job and I started the monster climb from the water to the transition area. 

I didn't even bother looking at my watch.  I just hit the lap button to start the T1 time.  I really was more in shock over the melt down than anything else.  I should have been out of the water in about 35-37 minutes.  My time was 46 minutes.  Brutal.  However, based on swimming all over the place, my Garmin reports I swam 1.5 miles instead of the requisite 1.2 so I added alot of unnecessary distance.

T1:  My rack spot was close to the fence and Patty was waiting.  I saw her face and knew the damage was bad.  She didn't bother to tell me how far behind I was which was a humane thing to do.  I really couldn't say anything either, it was crushing.  I decided to put my toe socks on in T1.  The rain was holding off and it would save some time at T2.  Toe socks are much harder to get on wet feet but so worth it for running so I took the hit. 

My T1 time was 3:47 which wasn't bad considering the long run up the hill from the water to transition.  I had to put all of my stuff in my empty swim bag for transport to T2 and I was off.

Bike:  A cold front had come through overnight and the wind was blowing from the north.  The course headed southwest out of town on highway 27 to start so we were being helped by the wind.  Jeff wanted me to take it easy for the first 10 miles or so.  I was easily hammering out 22-24 mph with the wind and not really pushing it at all.  Due to my crappy swim, I had alot of traffic to deal with.  The roads were smooth for the first three quarters of the ride out to the turnaround.  The crunchy chip seal made an appearance at the end of the highway 27 section and you really only had two options.  There was a small groove on the shoulder that was smooth or ride on the actual road which was far better than the shoulder.  I was passing quite a few people and ended up using both strategies.  The road was scary as it was open and the cars were whizzing by at high speeds.  At the turnaround, we made a turn on FM1350 and started working back to the northeast.  On the first lap, I really didn't feel much wind for the first half of the return.  However, I have never ridden on chip seal this bad.  It felt like my bike was going to fly apart at any moment.  The road vibration was terrible.  I saw one guy drop a chain.  I'm not sure if it was from the rough road or not.  I thought for sure there would be plenty of flats but I really didn't see many.  Finally, we got to some little town and turned off of 1350.  The roads were much better but there were several short but steep hills and one 180 degree turn down a road.  I remember at an hour into the bike, I was at 23 miles and was feeling really good.  Of course, I really didn't see anyone I recognized because that train left the station without me at T1.  My legs were responding really well.  Once we got closer to Kerrville, the north wind really started to kick in and there were some more bouts with really heavy chip seal on the way into town.  Turning off of Highway 16 on to Water Street marked the turnaround for the second loop and we passed through the finishing area.  I saw Patty downtown and it was great to see a familiar face.  Somewhere in here I checked my Garmin and I had covered 32 miles in an hour and a half.  Still on 20+ pace after fighting the hills and wind on the return section of the first loop.  I have never been this fast for half iron distance and that was encouraging.  I wasn't really worried about anyone else at this point.  I didn't want to burn out my legs for the run but I didn't really feel all that fatigued.  The next 12-14 miles down highway 27 was to the southwest again and the wind was really pushing me.  The race traffic had also dissapated.  There were a few people traveling at my pace and most of the quarter distance people had exited the course.  I passed a few more people the rest of the way but it was kind of lonely out there.  I didn't know what to make of this.  Was I way behind or sort of in a no mans land between the fast and the not so fast?  The chip seal on FM 1350 was a real shot to the kidneys.  It was mentally tough to power through this section a second time because I knew it was going to be long and arduous.  I remember reaching 41.5 miles at the 2 hour mark.  I wanted to break 20mph for the ride and the bad roads were not helping.  I handled the few steep hills really well.  My legs burned after the climbs but I recovered quickly.  The downhills back into town going north were tough.  I couldn't seem to maintain a pace any higher than 18mph.  When I got back to downtown, I slid my feet out of my shoes and got off my bike at the dismount line.  I just missed a 20mph average.  I ended up finishing the ride at 2:48:54 and averaged 19.9mph.  I was really happy.  My legs didn't feel drained like they did at Buffalo Springs either.

T2:  My rack was very easy to find and I had plenty of room to work with.  I racked my bike and untied my bag.  I had tried to seal the bag with hockey tape in case of rain.  I didn't want my towel, socks, shoes, and visor dripping wet.  It cost me a few seconds but my stuff was dry.  I changed and took off really quick.  I was in transition for 2:07 which was one of the fastest times in my age group.  I didn't need to change socks so it all worked out.

Run:  When I left transition, I think Patty told me I was about 10 minutes down to Doug.  I had basically had the same bike split as Doug which hasn't happened in a single race to date.  I figured to be way out of it so this was kind of inspirational.  The course was four loops and you could see the guys going the other way at least three different times on each loop.  Patty would also be able to tell me if I was closing the gap and I would be able to see whether I was making up ground as well.  I am a much better runner than Doug and pretty even with Chuck.  My goal now was to beat Doug, if only by one second.  I didn't see him on the first section going out of town.  I did see him on the section that turned south where you have to run down a hill and back up the other side.  After you go down this road and back, you hit the main road back to downtown where the turnaround/finish line is located.  I probably made up 2-3 minutes on the first loop but had to dodge into a portapotty and gave most of that time back.  I started a little slow and actually got slightly faster as the miles went by.  I was taking shark salt every 45 minutes to an hour.  I had three cherry lime GUs with me and didn't eat anything at the aid stations.  I did drink water, gatorade and dumped water on my head at each aid station.  I walked the aid stations for the first 6 or 7 miles and ran right through from there on out.  The aid stations were in great locations.  We were able to hit them twice going out and coming back which meant there 5 aid stations per every 3 miles.  I gave Patty a bottle of Accelerade and asked her to keep it with her.  This was a good plan.  She could run along side me and I was able to get some extra calories and electrolytes each time I passed her.  On the second lap, Patty told me I was down 7 minutes.  I could see the gap dwindling but I didn't know if I had enough time. 

I was feeling better as the time passed and never felt a need to walk.  I just tried to keep a consistent pace.  I never walked a hill and stayed the course.  After the third lap, the gap closed to 3 minutes.  At mile 11, I was close at one of the turnarounds.  I know he could see me as well.  Mile 12 had the hills in play and when I hit the top of the first hill, he was in sight.  I also saw Chuck rounding the corner for home so that was a lost cause.  Coming down the last hill, he was probably a couple hundred yards ahead of me and had to walk halfway up the hill.  He looked back at the top of the hill and started running.  He was running fairly fast but I continued to close the gap.  I caught him close to the 13 mile mark and kept going.  I could hear him trying to keep pace and slowly heard him fade away.  I ended up finishing 15 seconds ahead of him.  It was a minor victory for the race but didn't change anything for me for the overall standings.  Chuck beat me by 8 minutes.  If I just would have had a decent swim, I would have definitely gone to third and may have jumped to second.  I finished the race at 5:41:16 and really can't complain.  I have never done a half iron under 6 hours.  My half marathon was 2:00:27.  Considering the dive into the little blue room, this was probably the fastest half I have ever run.  Very encouraging.  I had alot to be happy about and know there are some things to improve upon.

Post Race:  Patty met me at the finish line and we found a table to sit down at.  I ate a few bananas and drank water and gatorade.  I never cramped at all.  My nutrition was dialed in really well.  I was afraid of taking too many shark salts but that was a good thing.  My Speedfil on the bike was awesome.  I never had to reach for anything, was able to put the hand ups straight into the reservois and stayed in aero position.  We walked over to the results table and found out I was 6th in my age group and 96 of 297 finishers.  It was a long ride home so we picked up my bike at T2 and headed back to the hotel.  The hotel wouldn't allow a late checkout which sucked so I had to pay them another $75 to stay until 4pm.  We really wanted a shower before heading back to Dallas.  I was sore but never had any issues on the way home.  It was another 5 hour ride back to Dallas.  Kerrville is a cool little town and was a fun event.  I am maxed out from all of the travel this year.  It was hard on everyone, especially my wife.  She was a big help this year.  The banquet for the Tri Series is on November 22 so there is one more trip to make and I'm looking forward to that.  No swimming, biking or running.  Just having a good time.  Aloha Texas Tri Series, it's been fun!

9.26.13 Taper

I swam yesterday for 36 minutes and covered a mile (1750 yards).  No drills, just straight swimming.  I was supposed to do 30 minutes as a part of the taper.  Felt ok.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/381329852

After work, I rode a soft 17 miles with the Enduroshark group.  Didn't really hammer any sections at all and it took about an hour.  Felt good on the hills.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/381513500

This morning was supposed to be an easy 3 mile run.  I headed out through the park this morning.  I was going to do about 1.5 miles and then turn around.  I kind of forgot to look and turned around at 1.6.  I then decided to go across the new trail on the south side of the park.  The old bridge appears to be permanently removed so I added some distance to get back home.  Ended up running almost 3.5 miles but my legs are coming around a little bit.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/381528375

9.22.13 Open Water Swim/Northshore Trail Run

It finally felt like fall this morning.  My truck said 59 degrees on the way to the lake.  I was the only one who showed up for the open water swim.  Shelby followed me around in his Kayak and I swam about a mile this morning.  The warm water and the cool air created a fog on the water.  Kind of cool looking, it was hard to see between the buoys.  Joe is in Lubbock this weekend so it was just me and the Matrix for our trail run.  Jeff had 8 miles on my plan so we ran from Murrell to Rockledge and back.  8.6 miles round trip.  With the weather being cool, it was so much easier than the last few weeks.  I think we were fairly fast but it didn't seem like we were working that hard.  Our average pace was about eleven and a half minutes, which is quick for a trail run.  Glad to see the weather turning.  Time to taper for the rest of the week.

Swim:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/379590760

Trail Run:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/379590784

9.21.13 Bike

It's the last official day of summer and the weather was nice.  I think it was 83 today for the high.  Patty did a mud run race this morning so I didn't ride the bike until about 2pm today.  It was really nice outside.  There were some big dark flying bugs and lots of grasshoppers when I got out to the country today.  Several of them bounced off me today and a few of them stung a little.  This is the last long ride before the race.  I dropped by the bike shop at the beginning of my ride and let the boys check out my bike.  I wanted to make sure I didn't screw anything up after the crash last week.  It checked out ok.  Didn't really push the pace much today.  51 miles in a shade over 3 hours today.  Jeff had me doing 3 hours today so I made that work.  Felt tired this afternoon and never could seem to get in a good groove.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/379178909

9.20.13 Swim/Run

It started raining last night and was still raining this morning.  We haven't seen that in quite a while.  No lightning in the area so the CARC was open this morning.  Had a fairly basic 2250 yard swim with some speed work and some kickboard work.  Left shoulder was still stiff but I did get a flu shot in that shoulder the other day.  This evening I had a slow recovery 31 minute run.  It was really humid and we still had a light rain.  I still feel a little fatigued but that should give way some next week.  My wife got hit by a guy who ran a stop sign this morning so I'm hoping she's ok.  Wild day to say the least.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/378652602

9.19.13 Tempo Run

Didn't have it today at all.  Jeff gave me a 8 mile plan with 2 warm up miles, 2 miles at 8:40, 2 miles at 8:20, 1 mile at 8:10 and a cool down mile.  I started late so I wasn't sure the whole run could be done or not.  I decided to try and get it in.  My miscalculation of distance before I left was in full effect again.  I ran my usual route backwards to get a new perspective and change things up.  However, I was on the 6 mile route instead of the 8.  I was able to tack on enough mileage to get about 7.7 miles in.  My legs were not buying in from the get go today.  It has been a hard two weeks of build.  My warm up miles were slow, 10:22 and 9:43.  I could tell getting up to speed was going to be rough.  The first two 8:40 miles were 8:51and 8:45 but I knew there wasn't alot in the tank today.  Getting down to 8:20 for the next two was going to be rough. I decided to knock out what was possible and turned in 8:55 and 8:52 for the next two.  Disappointing to be sure but I was doing the best I could considering the fatigue.  I was up late the night before and was not operating at full rest which was a possible contributor to my slow times.  I really tried to make the last fast mile but could only turn a 8:32 mile.  Just wasn't happening today.  When the seventh mile went off, I walked for about a tenth of a mile or so and then jogged it in.  My Garmin training effect for the day was a 5 which tranlates to "Overreaching".  I probably should have backed off a little and should not have been so concerned about the times.  It is my last fast training run so I stuck with the program as much as possible.  Training starts backing off now so the hay is in the barn at this point.  Shelby got me an Enduroshark jersey so I can support them in Kerrville unless the swim is not wetsuit legal.  Otherwise, I'll be wearing my Orca speed suit.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/378121392

9.18.13 Swim and Bike Intervals

Started the day with a 2500 yard swim.  Had some stiffness again in both shoulders this workout.   I am swimming four days a week right now and it may be an overuse problem.  I'm not sure.  Considering its about one week out from the race, it should be fine.  Next week will be light since it will be a taper week.  Lots of variation in the swim and I had alot to keep up with (fins, kick board, pull buoy).  Finished a shade under an hour.  Not too bad considering all of the work in the plan.  For the bike workout after work, I did intervals again.  I met Shelby and the Enduroshark group at the CAC in Flower Mound and we left from there.  Rode out to Bridlewood and back.  The roads were good for intervals.  Some sections were chopped up from stop signs and lights but Jeff gave me shorter hard intervals and recoveries that worked fine.  I needed about an hour and a half to finish so I left the group after we returned to the CAC.  There is a nice section of road from the rec center to the warehouses.  I saw a Coyote in the median on the way home.  It was dark and the Coyotes were on the prowl.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/377851060

9.17.13 Track Run

Start of my last build week before the Kerrville race.  Jeff gave me a fairly tough workout this morning.  Two warm up miles, 5x (1200 at 7:45-8:00 pace), cool down mile.  The gate at the school in Lewisville where we are running has been locked the past few weeks so I brought a ladder today.  My wife is a good fence climber but not so much for me.  After we got over the fence, I was ready to run.  My legs felt kind of dead on Monday so I was worried about making time.  I really did well and all of my 1200s were within the time range.  Patty hung around with me today until I was finished since I was the last one left.  I feel tired tonight and have a busy day tomorrow with a swim and a 90 minute interval ride.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/377105724

9.16.13 Sort of Rest Day

I woke up this morning feeling a little battered from the bike crash and sore from the 11 mile trail run.  I wasn't sure I really wanted to swim today.  I am resting legs today before my second build week before Kerrville.  I decided to go ahead and swim.  I usually feel a little better after a swim on Monday.  It usually works some soreness out.  I was a little slow and lethargic to start but I shook that off after 15 minutes and felt ok.  Pool was really busy this morning and saw a few guys that are always there and asked them about it.  I was told it was like that all morning.  I grabbed a lane from someone named Johan.  He asked me if I was training with someone and I told him Jeff.  Of course, everyone knows Jeff and he told me to say hello to him.  2200 yards this morning in 54 minutes.  Hopefully, my legs will come around for the track workout tomorrow.

9.15.13 Open Water Swim/Long Trail Run

My plan was for 11 miles today in prep for the Kerrville half iron in a few weeks.  I have been doing the open water swims with Shelby for the past few weeks.  I like getting a feel for the open water.  It makes things much more comfortable for race day.  I was able to do a little over a mile in the water and then came on in for the run.  The Matrix, Joe, and Fred were waiting for me at the boat ramp.  After changing into my run clothes and gearing up we left at about 7:45am.  We ran out to Rockledge and back from Murell Park which is about 8.4 miles.  Rich and Fred took off for home.  Joe and I reloaded at my truck and headed out for another 2.6 miles.  My legs were off and on for the run.  The climbs on the trail were tough.  I was real comfortable on the flatter sections.  Some kids have a aid station set up on the trail and you can buy water and Gatorade from them.  They even have a credit card reader.  Amazing.  We reloaded a little there at about the 6 mile mark.  Joe and I knocked out the mileage and ended up going 11.14 miles.  It took us 2 hours and 6 minutes today.  We were really tired.  I brought some camping chairs and we just sat down and drank some fluids and talked for awhile before heading home.  It was a good day for running.  The heat really didn't come on until the very end of the run.  You can feel fall coming.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/376218756

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/376218783

9.14.13 Bike Crash

I have been riding my bike for the past 2.5 years without a major incident and that changed today.  My goal was about 75 miles.  I met the Endurshark group at Murrell Park at Lake Grapevine.  In order to get my miles, I left the house around 6:15am to get an early 20 miles in before the group ride.  My wife was running with them at 6:30 and she packed some ice and water for me to refuel with prior to the group ride.  I was able to get about 21 miles in before the ride.  Shelby planned the Jeter loop for the group.  It's about 10 miles to the loop.  Based on what each person was training for determined the number of loops.  I planned five loops.  There are some good hills on the loop and the wind was pretty stiff for the east part of the route.  We ran it counterclockwise and I'm not real familiar with riding the roads in that direction.  The first two loops were fine.  After the halfway point on the third loop, I was in my aero bars and hit a pothole.  My elbow slid out of the pad and rotated my front wheel to the right.  It gets really weird from here.  The bike came out from under me and it felt like I was floating horizontally to the ground.  The front wheel steered my bike to the right off the road towards a fence.  My feet stayed clipped in and I kind of planted in some soft dirt that kept me from flying into a fence.  A truck skidded to a stop and asked if I was ok and I sent him on.  One of the people riding with us was fairly close behind me and she stopped to see if I was ok.  I was checking my arms and legs and there wasn't a cut on me anywhere.  However, she informed me I had landed right in the middle of a fire ant mound.  In the shock of the crash, I didn't realize there were ants everywhere.  I had to clip out and then get the ants off of me.  A few other people in the group stopped and everyone helped to get the ants off of me.  They were all over from head to toe.  After most of the ants were off, I had to fix my chain and my brakes.  There were no scratches on my bike with the exception of the outside of my pedal on the side of the bike that laid down on the ground.  I must have never hit the ground until I went off the road.  Fairly fortunate.  I finished my five loops and then finished the ride back to the house.  I'll need to get my bike checked out but it looks ok.  Could have been worse.  It was the most elevation gain I have had in a ride to date per my Garmin.  My legs were toast when I got home.  Long run tomorrow.  I'm not sure how that will work out.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/375607271

9.13.13 Swim and Short Bike

I'm getting a little bit of a break for my legs today before the weekend.  The swim was long today.  Almost 2700 yards and it took about 65 minutes.  My left shoulder was a little stiff this morning and never seemed to get loose.  I need to keep an eye on that.  Jeff wanted me to do a short easy bike ride for about 40 minutes as almost a recovery exercise for the past three heavy days of work.  I'll probably do it on the trainer when I get home.  We have tickets for the high school game tonight and the traffic in Coppell will be a mess this evening.

9.12.13 Tempo Run

Very tough run this morning.  In the last 48 hours, I have run 8 miles of intervals at the track, swam 2600 yards, bike intervals for 75 minutes and then ran another 7 miles this morning.  My legs were somewhat fatigued this morning.  Jeff's plan was more endurance at slower pace the week.  My seven miles this morning were 2 warm up miles, 4 miles at 8:10-8:20, and a cool down mile.  Once again my route management was flawed.  I run through a neighborhood across the street from us to tack on the extra mile to my usual six mile route.  For some reason, I thought my six mile route was seven miles.  I made it work and added on to the end.  My fast miles were 8:25, 8:12, 8:27, and 8:24.  Three of the four were just outside the target range but fairly close.  The humidity was really up this morning and I was exhausted after this one.  My heart rate ended up in zone 5 towards the end.  I'm glad tomorrow is a little bit of a break before a tough weekend.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/374534979

9.11.13 Swim and Bike Intervals

My plan called for the usual Wednesday double, swim in the morning and bike in the evening.  I finally felt better today during my swim.  I was fairly strong throughout the swim.  I did 2600 yards in about 70 minutes.  Lots of kickboard so it was a little slower in time terms but I felt really good throughout the swim.  Decided to drive over to the Flower Mound CAC tonight to do intervals.  The road over there is fairly flat in areas and good for interval work.  There usually isn't much traffic and I was a little late getting over there.  I ended up doing 15 minutes of warm up, 5X (3 minutes hard/3 minutes moderate), 10 minute recovery, 5X (3 minutes high cadence/3 minutes normal), and 10 minutes of cool down.  It was really humid as there was rain in Flower Mound this evening.  My legs were burning but it felt good to hammer the intervals.  There was a dead armadillo on the road that smelled something fierce.  The only bad thing about the ride.

9.10.13 Track Run

I have felt bad for the past 24 hours.  I swam yesterday at the CARC and was a little fatigued.  It got worse as the day went on and I went home early from work.  I was in bed by 6pm and faded in and out watching tennis and football last night.  My wife woke up at 5am and was going to the track.  She is training for a half marathon with the Enduro Shark group and they train at a new high school in Lewisville.  The track is brand new and very easy on the legs.  I decided to go with her and see how things went.  Jeff changed my plan somewhat for the week.  Lower intensity and more distance.  I had two warm up miles, three 7:30 miles with a couple minute rest between, and two cool down miles.  My fast miles were low 7:30s and one at about 7:40.  I really wasn't at my best today but I was able to get real close to nailing the times.  I still feel really tired this morning and don't know if I'll make it through the day.  Hope this passes, whatever it is.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/373542981

9.8.13 Sunday Swim and Trail Run

Went to Lake Grapevine to open water swim this morning at 6:45 with the Enduroshark group.  Swam for about 45 minutes and then met up with the usual trail crew and ran from there.  Felt really good in the water today.  We ran from Murrell Park to Rockledge and back.  Pace was really good this morning.  That end of the trail is a much easier run than the end at Twin Coves.  We ran for 95 minutes and covered about 8.6 miles.  We got out of there right before the heat started coming on.  I felt really good today on the run.  Hopefully, I can get a few good build weeks strung together here.  It was great to run with my regular trail guys today.

9.7.13 Bike

I haven't been able to get alot miles in on the bike for the past few weeks for a variety of reasons.  Looks like my schedule will build over the next few weeks before the taper prior to the Kerrville half.  My Saturday was to be a 4 hour endurance ride.  Shelby and the Sharks were leaving from the Flower Mound rec center at 7:30.  My wife is training with them for a half marathon and they were running at 6:30.  I went ahead and left the house at 6:30 to get an hour in before I met up with them.  We rode north towards Denton and back towards Flower Mound.  Shelby rode with me for about 2.5 hours and then I headed home.  I ended up being a little short on time at 3 hours and 45 minutes and about 60.5 miles.  Good to get some solid base miles in again.

9.5.13 Recovery Run

I was out of town yesterday and was not able to ride my bike.  Today was a slow and steady five mile run at 9-10 minute miles.  I cut it a little short due to time constraints but made the times relatively easily.  I'm a little sore after the run but feel good today considering what my legs have been through.  I will be dialing up the distances this weekend.  I have two big weeks of training before the next taper for Kerrville.  I feel like I'm just hanging on right now trying to maintain my fitness.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/371587476

9.4.13 Swim

My legs are really sore and beat up after Trirock.  I went to the CARC to swim this morning.  Swimming always seems to help work out the soreness.  2400 yards this morning and I used one of the swims from last week.  Jeff is getting ready for the World Championships in Vegas this week and I'll probably get a plan from him tomorrow for the rest of the week.  I was a little tired which was to be expected but it felt good to get moving.

TriRock Austin 9.2.13

TriRock Austin is race #5 of six races in the Texas Tri Series.  I had high hopes for this race but sometimes your enthusiasm gets the best of you and hard lessons are learned.  Here we go!

Travel Day:  My wife Patty and son Lance left Dallas with me and we headed to Austin on Sunday morning.  I was able to get a reservation at the Hyatt, which was the host hotel for the race.  The expo was at the hotel but of highest importance was the transition area located a few 100 yards from the front door of the hotel.  I can't recommend this enough.  It may cost a few extra dollars but way worth it in terms of convenience. 

After we checked in, I picked up my packet and we did some shopping at the expo.  I didn't buy anything on this day.  I did buy a new tri suit at the Trishop the previous day.  It is an RS1 suit from Orca which is supposed to include the technology used in speed suits but with a breathable fabric you can use for the entire race.  I wouldn't have to get out of a speed suit with this thing.  My neighbor Justin let me borrow his aero helmet and he had a Speedfil that I hooked up on my bike so I wouldn't have to reach for water bottles.  My local bike shop let me borrow a Zipp 808 for my rear wheel.  I also bought a new straw cowboy hat for the run.  I was ready with all of these upgrades.  Bike check in was on Sunday so I aired the tires one more time and checked my bike into transition.  The transition area at Auditorium Shores is in an open grass field surrounded by gravel paths to get to the concrete roads.  The grass has stickers in it so I was careful to not let my tires touch the grass at any time and diligently checked them in transition.  The rack spots were numbered and I had the spot at the end of the row on the aisle for the bike out and run out.  This was getting better every minute.  The racks were by age so I could keep my eye on the competition as well.  It was really hot on Sunday afternoon.  It had to be 100+.  I drank alot of water and had a few bottles of my daily Skratch Labs everyday hydration formula.  We ate at Threadgill's to get something healthy into my system and then headed back to the room.  I was really tired and probably fell asleep around 8:30pm.

Pre-Race:  I slept good but woke up a few times.  Finally, at 4:30am, I decided to just get up for good.  I took a shower, put on my trisuit and headed over to transition to get it all set up.  It was only a few minutes walk and I could head back to the hotel to rest until the race started.  I forgot bottled water to mix my Accelerade with so I loaded the Speedfil with ice and then walked back to get some water.  Once transition was set up and everything was loaded it was time to head back to the room.  The race started at 7:00am and my wave was going off at 7:36am.  I saw Doug in transition and said hi to him and wished him good luck.  He is in second place and I was 1:45 behind him in the standings.  I grabbed my goggles and swim cap and headed back to the cool air conditioning in my room.  I can't tell you how great it is to relax in the room and then head down to the race.  I saw two of Shelby's athletes with Enduroshark at the elevator.  They were doing the sprint race.  Patty and Lance were just about ready when I got back to the room.  I ate a honey stinger protein bar and waffle while I was sitting there.  It is so much calmer waiting at the hotel.  Standing around at the race site is a bit unnerving at times.  I really didn't do anything special to warm up.  You couldn't get in the lake and my bike was checked in the day before.  We rolled up to the swim start area a little after 7am and waited for my wave.

Every race I write the names of everyone that helps me get ready on a wrist band for good luck. My running buddy Joe lost his dog Kaytee a few days before the race.  She would sit in the yard with us before and after our runs.  She was a great dog.  I wrote her abbreviated name on my arm in honor of her.

Swim:  The water in the lake was covered in Hydrilla.  Hydrilla is a long plant that grows to the surface almost like an underwater ivy.  Once it starts growing, it is a mess.  They changed the course to try and find a somewhat Hydrilla free area to swim.  They were not successful.  There were several people being pulled from the water in the earlier waves after a few hundred yards.  I think they were a little freaked out.  With the course change, the rectangular course would turn after only 100 meters and would turn again heading down the lake (actually more like a wide river) after another 50 meters.  I'm not sure how many were in my wave.  I would guess at least 70 and the start area was only about 30-40 feet wide.  I dropped in the water off the dock and got a spot close to the front right in the middle.  I really didn't want to be in the middle but there was no where to go and everyone was kicking like crazy treading water before the start.  They counted us down and the horn went off.  It was a mess.  Arms and legs were flying everywhere.  Bodies were so crammed together I couldn't pass anyone and the people behind me were crawling on top of me.  The Hydrilla was getting wrapped around my arms and neck as we went along.  At the first buoy, it was a traffic jam and I had to basically stop and wait my turn to round the buoy.  Same situation at the second buoy.  Good news was it would be a long straight swim for about 800 meters at this point and should open up.  Sure enough, the field began to break apart and I was able to find some clean water.  We swam under the 1rst street bridge, rolled by our hotel and went under the bat bridge (Congress) before the turnaround.  Most of the way I could feel someone touching my feet every now and then.  This is a very easy swim to sight  because the lake is basically a damned up Colorado river and is narrow.  The turnaround was close to shore on the swim exit side of the lake and the Hydrilla was really bad there.  Too bad because that would have been a nice line back to the exit.  Instead, I had to swim back to the middle of lake.  I don't think it really mattered.  There didn't seemed to be a good way to avoid the stringy plants in the water.  I pictued myself coming out of the water looking like the creature from the black lagoon.  I did find someone to draft off for awhile that was basically swimming at the same pace as me.  I still felt someone behind me the whole way as well.  One thing I did like about the course layout was the distance was on the buoys so I knew exactly how far I had traveled.  I took a quick diversion to see who was behind me.  It was Doug.  He found me early in the swim and was sticking to me like glue.  In the last 200 meters, I sprinted away from him a little bit but wasn't able to put much distance between us.  I forgot to put my cowboy hat in transition so Patty and Lance handed it to me as I headed to my rack.  They told me he was right behind me but I knew that already.  I had a great swim.  I covered the mile in 29:43 which a PR for my swim at the Olympic distance.  It didn't feel fast with Doug on my heels but he had a good swim too.  When we were in transition, he thanked me for letting him draft off of me.

Out of the water and picking up my hat on the way to my rack.

 

T1:  It was a long run from the lake to my rack spot.  Doug and I ran together for the most part to our bikes.  I had no trouble getting into my shoes and putting my helmet on.  I attached my race belt and took off.  I made it about 20-30 yards and my tire stopped spinning.  I looked down and my Speedfil had twisted off my down tube and was wedged between the tire and the tube.  This was very bad news.  I had a small bottle of Skratch on the back but all of liquids and nutrition was in that Speedfil.  In a panic, I tried to lash it back down with the velcro ties.  I ran another 10 feet and it happend again.  Nothing much I could do but yank the tube out of the Speedfil and pull it off my bike frame.  I left my bike laying there on the ground and had to run back to my rack and leave the Speedfil in transition.  I had some honey stinger chews and a few gels but that was basically it.  The heat was coming.  All I could do is try to get this over with as fast as possible and hope for the best.

Bike:  As I left transition, my son had a small white board and wrote :45 on it.  I had given away almost a minute with the transition problem.  Patty and Lance positioned themselves on the corner at Ceasar Chavez and Congress.  They would be able to get me an update three times on each loop from there.  The race route was a three loop 9 mile course so I would get updates every three miles or so.  Going down S. Congress away from the capital and the lake was a fairly steady uphill climb.  It was probably 100 feet in elevation gain and a nice leg burner.  Coming the other way back down to the lake, I was hitting 35+mph so it was really fast.  The road had some bumps in it so you really had to be holding on tight.  It was like this for most of the course so it made it really difficult to eat the chews and reach for the Skratch behind my seat.  The climb up to the capital is not very steep and much easier on the legs.  I was slowly losing ground to Doug as I expected but is was managable.  I was doing a much better job on the bike than the last race.  Heading down Ceasar Chavez was fairly fast.  The road is a mixture of smooth asphalt and a rougher chip seal.  The chip seal sucked.  When you get to the Mopac for the turn around, you loop under the Mopac and then climb straight up to Ceasar Chavez again.  There was a large group of road bikers under the bridge and they were making alot of noise.  That was cool.  Seemed like it was downhill from the Mopac back to the 1rst street bridge.  I was able to hold mid 20s without a problem.  It was a little confusing where the lanes split to finish or continue on the second and third loops.  I followed the crowd and it went ok.  After the first loop, I think Lance wrote -1:30 on the board which was acceptable loss.  The second lap I continued to lose some time but I think it was around -2:15.  The guy in fourth place passed me on the bike with about 2-3 miles left to go.  The third lap was featured by the heat and humidity coming on fast.  I was working hard and was something like 3:20 down going into transition.  I didn't feel horrible yet but was very worried about being behind on my nutrition.  I finished the bike in 1:13:03 and average 20.4mph.  Another PR for me at this distance, I have never gone 20+ at Olympic distance.  It felt fast but I didn't know it was that fast until later.  Doug averaged .8mph faster than me on the bike and it was the closest I have been to him on a bike leg this year.  I was happy at this point.

T2:  I made a nice flying one legged dismount.  Perhaps this wasn't smart.  The run from the mount line to my rack had me crossing a sharp gravel rock trail and then running through the sticker laden grass.  I probably should have just run with my shoes on.  I had a little trouble getting my running shoes on and had an extra towel to wipe my feet.  I didn't want rocks or anything in my shoes. I had a pair of socks but opted out again since I was behind.  Grabbed my cowboy hat and headed out.  Transition was good and I made up almost 30 seconds on Doug so I was right at 3:00 back coming out of T2.

Run:  I was way behind on hydration and nutrition to start the run.  My plan was to run a very steady, fast pace and stop at every aid station for water, gatorade, and pouring water all of me to stay cool.  I hoped to get out of there before it got too hot.  A half mile into the run, I knew this was going to be a problem.  The course was a strange mix of running across a grass field, onto the street, back on the grass, and back on the street again.  After one mile, Lance's board said I had closed to 2:00.  My second mile was tough.  I slowed from an 8:30 mile (which I hoped to average) to a 9:00 mile.  Mile 2 featured a hill that slowed me down some.  When I got my update at mile 2, I was within a 1:30.  It all fell apart during mile 3.  I ran the whole mile but I was dying slowly and it was frustrating.  The heat was taking a toll and my energy was fading.  At the end of mile 3, I was still about 1:30 back. 

I had to walk during mile 4 and felt depressed.  There was nothing I could do.  At this point, a decision had to be made.  I could throw caution to the wind and push this to the limit.  It could have resulted in a DNF and my elimination from the series or make sure I finished and try to minimize the damage.  I opted for the latter.  I ran when I could and walked when I needed to.  Right at the mile 4 marker I saw Doug walking and I wasn't that far back.  As encouraging as that was, I just couldn't get my body to cooperate.  The damage was done on the bike.  My last two or three miles were 11 minute miles.  I ended up averaging 10 minute miles which is aweful.  I should have moved into second place and would have been able to hold off the fourth place guy.  As it was, 1:02:03 10k run was going to put me in fourth place for the series.  When I got to the finish line, I fell down and tried to get my breath.  What turned out as a very good start, was heartbreaking at the end.

Post Race:  The medical team took me directly to the medical tent and put me in the ice pool.  After 15 minutes or so, my quads and hamstrings started to cramp.  They tried to work it out while I was in the pool but the cramps kept coming.  They had an electrolyte drink I kept drinking but I was way behind.  After another 10 minutes or so, I asked to get up and lay down on a cot.  It was really hard to get up and when I got to the cot my legs seized up badly.  They probably worked on me for a solid 25 minutes.  I have never hurt that bad from leg cramps.  It was terrible.  I finally drank enough and the cramps subsided.  I was able to get up and meet Patty and Lance.  We walked to transition and I picked up my stuff and walked back to the hotel.  We took a shower and packed the truck.  One of my fraternity brothers from Alabama lives in Austin and we were going to meet him for lunch at Chuy's before heading back to Dallas.  On the way out of the hotel, Chris McCormack (Macca) was standing by the door.  I was like wow, and said hello to him.  Really great guy.  He asked me about my race and we spoke for a few minutes.  I was in a hurry but how often do you get to speak with a Kona winner.  I asked him if he would take a picture with me and he said yes.  Just when I need something to cheer up, Macca gave me some words of encouragement.  Awesome.

 

In the end, I learned a lesson that I already knew.  Cardinal rule of endurance racing:  Do not do anything at a race that you have not trained with.  Going with the Speedfil without really knowing how to attach it properly to the bike was my downfall.  JT at the bike shop asked about the race and I told him what happened.  He, of course, told me I broke the cardinal rule which I agreed and told him to stop.  I am killing myself over it already.  It was great in alot of ways and depressing in others.  I gave away time that I didn't have to give over stupidity but PRd my swim and bike.  It would have been nice to see where things would have been if I had done this right.  I can't change it so it's time to move on.  There is one race left and it's a half iron distance.  I can still make up some time and maybe get to second or third but it will be tough.  I won't break any cardinal racing rules this time.  Patty and Lance were really supportive and that helps alot.  She drove me home.  The ride from Austin is horrible because of traffic jams.  I couldn't do this without them.  I have three weeks to get ready for Kerrville.  September 29 is it for me for the race season and then I'm taking a break.

9.1.13 Day Before TriRock

We are leaving this morning for Austin.  I went on a short 40 minute ride this morning with only a few short hard efforts.  My local bike shop, Bicycles Plus in Coppell, let me use one of their Zipp 808s for the race tomorrow.  I was looking for something a little deeper since the course is fairly flat in downtown Austin.  My neighbor Justin let me borrow his Speedfil and his aero helmet so I needed to get some of this new gear dialed in before we leave this morning.  This should be a really fast race so I'm looking forward to it.  I also went by the Trishop and bought a new tri suit with some of the speed suit swimming technology built in.  Should be fun to see how this goes.  I need 1:45 to get back to second place.  The half iron distance race is at the end of the month so it all comes to a close soon.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/368700075

8.31.13 Taper Run

Last tune up run before TriRock Austin on Monday.  I found my self in the middle of a 5k race today in Andy Brown park.  I had no idea one was going on today.  I was about half to three quarters of a mile ahead of the race when it started.  This wasn't a fast run for me today and the race leaders did not catch me so that was fun.  I saw them when I turned around on the trail and headed back to the house.  They were basically on the same path as me since I was doing a very easy 3 miles today.  Once I got across the race finish line, I headed back into the race traffic to home.  I saw the Hammer and his wife Laura this morning going the other way.  All the traffic today made it a little more interesting.  I have a short bike ride planned tomorrow and then it's off to Austin.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/368078406

8.30.13 Swim

I'm resting the legs today and only had a short 34 minute/1300 yard swim today.  I took the regular workout and split everything in half hoping to get 30 minutes.  It worked well.  My efficiency and SWOLF was much better today than it has been.  I only did half the usual work so that may be the reason for the improvement.  My 910xt does not pick up my kickboard work because my arm isn't moving but the data is still good to have. 

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/367534420

8.29.13 Taper Run

My plan was a slow and steady four miles for today.  I got my route confused again and added an unnecessary mile.  One of these days I'm going to get this right in the morning.  My heart rate monitor was freaking out and I spent too much time trying to fix it so I got a late start.  My miles were all in the 9:16-9:38 range.  Very slow but deliberate.  I am backing off the intensity for the rest of the week.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/367211579

8.28.13 Taper Double

Wednesday is a double workout day.  I swam in the morning.  My plan was for about 40 minutes today.  I ended up going a little long at 55 minutes covering 2400 yards.  It's been a week since I was in the water and felt like a few extra minutes would be ok.  I definitely felt a little sluggish to start but picked it up towards the second half.  Lots of speed work today in the workout.  This evening I rode the bike for an hour.  Interval work today.  I started at the Flower Mound Rec Center and rode out to Murrell Park at Lake Grapevine and back.  Intervals were 3 minutes moderate, 3 minutes hard and 4 minutes recovery.  I repeated four times book ended by a 10 minute warm up and cool down.  It was still 95 degress at 6:45 but the heat was not a problem at all.  Legs felt good tonight.  It is the start of my taper for TriRock Austin so the workouts will be easy for the rest of the week.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/366896041

8.27.13 Track ??? Run

I was supposed to do a track run this morning but I didn't feel very good this morning.  One time around my block is almost a half mile so I decided to make my track workout a neighborhood loop workout.  Pretty simple today.  One mile warm up, 800 at 3:20- 3:30, 1200 at 4:45- 4:55, 800 at 3:20-3:30, 400 at 1:40-1:45, 1 cool down mile.  Doing the math, these intervals are all below the 7:00 mile pace which would be tough.  I think the math on the 1200 was a little off as this would have been a very hot pace and is the only one I missed.  All of the others were really good.  800-3:22, 1200-5:26, 800-3:28, 400-1:37.  Happy with the effort but I'm not sure my knees will be after a fast run on the concrete.  I hope it wasn't too much today.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/366211358

8.26.13 Damn Cell Phone

My wife and her boot camp crowd are having a rest week and she was looking for something less intense to do.  I asked Shelby if we could join the Enduroshark crew for his Monday boot camp.  He was good with that.  Since the boot camp we both were going to in the winter closed, I haven't had a chance to do too much with Patty, so that was fun.  Monday is a swim day so I was going to hold off until later in the evening.  It was the first day of school so the turnout was light.  I got burpees again on the blind tennis ball draw.  Happens every time.  I think half the balls in the bag are burpee balls.  I like doing the big rope during the station work.  In the afternoon at work, my phone wouldn't come on.  The touch screen was dead.  On further review, the LCD screen was cracked and I was screwed.  Patty and I had to go to the Verizon store and get a new phone.  Full price since no one was eligible for an upgrade.  I can't live without it.  I decided on insurance this time since I take it everywhere including the bike and running.  What this meant is I missed my swim workout.  Since it's a taper week before TriRock Austin, it probably isn't that big a deal.  First my Garmin falls off in the lake and now a cracked cell phone.  I'm on a bad run of luck right now.   

8.25.13 Northshore Trail Run

After missing a few days of work while moving my daughter into her house, I decided to get some work in on Sunday.  Our plane was due to arrive from Minneapolis at 9:20am.  I asked if my trail running crew could hold out until about 11am to run.  Joe confirmed, the Matrix decided to run coming off Leadville and so did Fred.  Excellent, I had some company.  Since I haven't logged much mileage on the bike this week, I rode my bike to Joe's house (~13 miles), run for 75 minutes on the trail, and then ride back home.  26 miles round trip riding the bike along with approximately six miles of running on the trail.  I left the house on my bike at 10:35am.  The wind was blowing from the east so it was a quick trip to Flower Mound.  I put my running gear in my camelback.  I took the water bladder out.  This worked great.  It was really hot as a downside. 

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/365085628

We took off on the trail at 11:28 by my Garmin.  I'm not sure if flying creates problems running or not.  I was sluggish but I was also tired from getting up early for the flight and moving stuff for the last few days.  I really had no intention on setting any PRs.  The heat really took a toll by the end of the run.  I don't think anyone was real happy about waiting to run with me but I appreciate the company.  I think we almost lost Fred.  He went into the hurt locker in the last mile.  When we got to Joe's, he turned on the hose in the back yard and we all cooled off in the shade pouring water on our heads.  I wasn't sure about the ride home but after a few minutes of cooling off and getting my body temperature back down, I felt good about heading home.  Rich started to feel good again and he was smoking fast for the last few miles.  I stayed with him for awhile and then let him go when my heart rate was spiking in to zone 5.  I needed to back off and have some reserve for the ride. 

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/365085653

It was almost 1:30pm when I headed back home.  45 minutes of really hot temperatures to ride through.  I had a full compliment of cold water bottles so it was fine.  One to pour on my head and one to drink.  I wasn't fast but I made it back easy.  I'm not sure if this was the brightest thing to do a week out from the race but it's in the books now.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/365085679

8.23.13 Minnesota River Tempo Run

We had to get my daughter moved into a house for her second year of college in St. Paul, Minnesota.  We left on Wednesday afternoon and arrived on Thursday evening. 

 

 

 

I was able to get a swim in on Wednesday morning but we were just too busy to get my bike workout in.  It was good to get a little rest and take my mind off of working out even though I have race #5 of the Tri Series on Labor Day.  One very cool workout was running in Fort Snelling state park on the Minnesota river.  It was very pretty along the river.  Patty went with me to run which was great.  On the way into the park on Friday morning, she took a picture of me with some wild turkeys.

We parked under the Mendota bridge which was at the end of the line for driving our car.  We decided to climb up to the bridge and walk across before starting our run. 

View from the Mendota Bridge

 

Downtown St. Paul



Downtown Minneapolis

Me and Patty on the Bridge



Jeff had a fairly tough tempo run for me to do.  One warm up mile, 7:30 mile, 8:00 mile, 7:30 mile and a cool down mile.  It was about a mile climb out of the park and across the bridge so I didn't really count that mileage.  The trail led downhill almost the entire way to my turnaround.  The first 7:30 mile was fairly easy.  The 8:00 mile was ok.  It was downhill for the first half but the last half was going back up the hill.  I was close to time.  The last 7:30 mile was a beast.  It was at least 100-150 feet of elevation gain basically going slowly up hill the entire mile.  I was good until the 20 yards or so of the climb.  I really felt a little dizzy and had to walk a little bit.  I wasn't going to make 7:30 but was around 8:00 pace until I walked.  Blew the last mile but wasn't too unhappy.  Met up with Patty for the cool down mile and then we walked the last mile over the bridge and down to the car.

 

 

 

 

 

 



I was tapped out.  Good work though.  Saturday, we spent the day shopping and moving Meghan in.  I don't know if you get credit for going up and down stairs.  If you do, I had a busy non documented workout on Saturday.  It was good that we were able to spend our last few hours with our daughter before heading back to Dallas.  That was more important to us than anything.