Today was the first race of the Aquaman Series put on by Without Limits Productions. I did the series last year and had a great time so of course I signed up again fro this year. The race is a 1 mile swim followed by a 5k run. So it's basically a race and speed workout.
The swim is triangle shaped course that is 1/2 mile long. So we swim a lap, pop out of the water to yell our number (run through some flags) then dive back in the water for lap number two. After that it's a short run up the beach to the transition area and off on on the bike path for the run. The run is basically slightly uphill on the way out and then slightly downhill coming home.
So my race... we all line up and Candy (the race director) starts us and we high step through the water and finally dive in heading towards the first buoy. A guy in a wetsuit takes the lead and I am happy just to sit on his feet. I had won all the swim last year in my wetsuit so I figured this year I would just wear some tri-shorts and have faster transitions but maybe a little slower swims. I was a little worried at first with this guy in the wetsuit taking it out fast that maybe I should have worn mine to stay with him. I bump into another swimmer a bit as we are both trying to get into the slip stream. We round the buoy and head along the back side of the course. The wetsuit guy seems to not be swimming the straightest so I pick my own line and just cruise. There is a lot of chop in the water but this part of the course is with the tide so it's all good. As we are going down the backside the wetsuit guy got passed by a young kid in a speedo, I figure he is probably one his schools swim team so probably fast. We round the last buoy and head back towards the beach, I am aiming towards the flags where we have to run through and yell our number, and the kid is angling a little more towards the shore. Well he gets to shallow water first and stands up before me, but I pop up too and just a few seconds separate us as we start lap number two. I had peeked over my shoulder and saw we had a gap on the next person so I was feeling pretty good. I decide to just follow the kid as he swam and out run him, but he swung way out on the first leg of the swim that I just sited the buoy and let him come back to me as we got closer. The second lap was uneventful and soon we were running up the beach to our shoes.
As you are in transition you can kind of keep an eye on someone else to see how fast they are chnging. I was hoping this kid wasn't on his schools track team! But I got to my towel, slipped on my first shoe (elastic laces), peeked at the kid and saw him hold socks to start putting on. A little chuckle and I knew I was going to leave him in transition. I slip my second shoe on, grab my visor and sun glasses and charge out of the transition. The kid watched me run by, hopefully next week he tries not using the socks, it's just a 5k.
After suffering through the running field test on Saturday I knew not to go out too fast. But it's a race and out of sight is out of mind. So I run hard through the parking lot, a little down hill and then starts the uphill run to the turn around. I work on keeping my stride long and a high turn over, I was actually feeling pretty good. Roll up on the first mile, just a tad over 6 minutes, not bad and still feeling pretty good. There is a race that is only a half mile swim and then a 5k run. They started a couple minutes behind us, but since they only swam one loop they were out on the run course ahead of me. Which is great because it gave me plenty of targets to aim for. I get to the turn around and start running back, and about 30 behind me is this kid running in a speedo. 'Damn is that the kid', I had peeked behind me leaving the parking lot and didn't see him leaving transition yet, so if so he is right on my pace! But the rest of the course is downhill and I know it's hard to close a gap on the downhill. So I roll through mile 2 in a little over 6 again. About 2.25 miles into the run I look back and see the kid still there, 30-40 second back I estimated. I run to where the course levels off, then a little uphill section to the parking lot then flat to the finish. I work the uphill bit and see the kid not catching me so I cruise through to the finish line.
Ends up the kid is a fast runner, but wasn't the one I swam with. He was from the 1/2 mile swim group so I had lapped him on the swim and he ran behind me. So another victory at the Aquaman, but a little closer competition than last year I think. Be interesting to see how wetsuit (he got second) does next week. If the swimmer kid decides to try and drop me or tries to sit on my feet.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Field Test - The Run
I did my bike field test Thursday... Saturday is the running field test. Today is the running field test. Unlike the bike field test, I have never done a CTS running field test as my running as always been ok. Mike isn't taking any chances and scheduled 3 X 1 mile repeats with 4 minutes recovery. No worries I was thinking as I have been running... running a lot of long runs, hilly runs and trail runs... not a lot of speed. But come on...
I run a little over a mile to the starting point of the Nielsen Challenge in Monument Valley Park. a 1 Mile loop on trails to save my self from the pounding of the trails. I take off on #1 and feel pretty good, hit the 1/2 mile and head back on the loop knowing the toughest part of the run is over. Cruise in to the finish with a 5:43. Not bad with no speed work I thought. I run a bit then walk and drink some energy drink before #2. Start off and after a minute am thinking 'Huh this is a bit more tiring... hit the halfway mark 8 seconds slower and pick it up and finish #2 in 5:52. 'Ok no problem#3 in under 6:00 and it's all good'. Four minutes FLEW by and I start #3 and it's a suffer fest trying to pick it up every minute to coax myself to run faster. I don't even look at the 1/2 mile split and finish in 6:14.
This is where I know that in my own coaching I do the long runs, the hilly runs, but that fast stuff I avoid (same with the bike). This is where Mike and CTS is going to get me to the top. He has a outside perspective, an honest feedback and a desire to see me succeed no matter how much he has to hurt me.
Bring it Mike... The first steps have been taken and I am looking forward to the jorney.
I run a little over a mile to the starting point of the Nielsen Challenge in Monument Valley Park. a 1 Mile loop on trails to save my self from the pounding of the trails. I take off on #1 and feel pretty good, hit the 1/2 mile and head back on the loop knowing the toughest part of the run is over. Cruise in to the finish with a 5:43. Not bad with no speed work I thought. I run a bit then walk and drink some energy drink before #2. Start off and after a minute am thinking 'Huh this is a bit more tiring... hit the halfway mark 8 seconds slower and pick it up and finish #2 in 5:52. 'Ok no problem#3 in under 6:00 and it's all good'. Four minutes FLEW by and I start #3 and it's a suffer fest trying to pick it up every minute to coax myself to run faster. I don't even look at the 1/2 mile split and finish in 6:14.
This is where I know that in my own coaching I do the long runs, the hilly runs, but that fast stuff I avoid (same with the bike). This is where Mike and CTS is going to get me to the top. He has a outside perspective, an honest feedback and a desire to see me succeed no matter how much he has to hurt me.
Bring it Mike... The first steps have been taken and I am looking forward to the jorney.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Bike Field Test
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a singl;e step" -Confucious
"A training plan begins with field tests" - Assumed CTS mantra... bastards
My conversation is like this with Mike on Monday... Me:'Hey Mike looking forward to this, running and swimming is going strong. Haven't been on the bike much.' Mike: 'Cool... bike Field Test Thursday?'
So Thursday rolls around and it's my work's company picnic and hot. Burgers and brats to fuel a CTS Field Test, stand around in the sun for a bit then bike all out. No worries...
Having done several field tests before I knew one thing... I was going to hurt. A CTS Field Test is a good warmup, then 8 minutes with the highest average power you can hold. Good news is you get a 10 minute recovery... bad news is you have to do it again. I like doing my Field Test on a trainer. No terrain, no stoplights and no vehicles. So I set up my trainer on the back deck on a 90 degree day. Hind sight being 20/20 I should have been inside next to a fan as I roasted but ohh well. The first round was what I expected, watts were a little lower than I wanted but a fairly consistant ride. I take my rest and start on round two and wham... no power and no focus. So I tell Mike in an email 'Every journey needs a starting point, and I guess that's ours.'
"A training plan begins with field tests" - Assumed CTS mantra... bastards
My conversation is like this with Mike on Monday... Me:'Hey Mike looking forward to this, running and swimming is going strong. Haven't been on the bike much.' Mike: 'Cool... bike Field Test Thursday?'
So Thursday rolls around and it's my work's company picnic and hot. Burgers and brats to fuel a CTS Field Test, stand around in the sun for a bit then bike all out. No worries...
Having done several field tests before I knew one thing... I was going to hurt. A CTS Field Test is a good warmup, then 8 minutes with the highest average power you can hold. Good news is you get a 10 minute recovery... bad news is you have to do it again. I like doing my Field Test on a trainer. No terrain, no stoplights and no vehicles. So I set up my trainer on the back deck on a 90 degree day. Hind sight being 20/20 I should have been inside next to a fan as I roasted but ohh well. The first round was what I expected, watts were a little lower than I wanted but a fairly consistant ride. I take my rest and start on round two and wham... no power and no focus. So I tell Mike in an email 'Every journey needs a starting point, and I guess that's ours.'
Monday, June 21, 2010
A Goal without a Plan is just a wish
I love that quote. I speaks to the simple truth that unless you commit to something then you aren't really giving it and yourself a chance to really achieve it.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
The Importance of Pacing, Sighting and Training
Well today was the 2010 USMS (United States Masters Swimming) 6k Open Water National Championship, in Windsor, CO. Me and two friends decided to give it a go and see how we did... 6k is a lot longer than 2.4! But on to the race...
The air horn went off and we (the wave of men under 45) took off. Right away a guy jumps to the lead so I get on his feet, if he is willing to lead I am willing to follow. A minute later another guy that started off to our right angles over and takes the lead. A couple hundred yards into the swim and we are a little train with me sitting in third place. Perfect... until #2 starts losing #1's feet. Decision time... Do I 1) Stay on the feet I am following and chill as we are early in a long race or 2) Try to close the gap on #1... I chose 2...
So I go around #2 and jump on #1's feet... for a few seconds as he is pulling away. But we are coming to the first buoy. We round the buoy and with my pre-race scouting (and actually talking to the people that set up the course) I knew exactly where to site for the swim. #1 well he didn't and swung out of the line. I continued to buoy #2 (yes I am using a lot of numbers in my race report... you will have to deal with it as it's my race report) of 3 (3 buoys... keep up) in my line. As we approach buoy #2, #1 (swimmer) starts angling towards it and as I took the shorter line the gap between us closed. He's faster but I sited better, almost a wash. We round the buoy and in talking with the course official I got a tip on sighting buoy #3 and took a peek and perfect right where he said it was. #1 obviously didn't see it and once again swung way out of line towards the buoy. This leg of the triangle course was choppy and I was expending a lot of energy out by myself. a few thoughts of slowing down entered my mind but I knew #1 was off course a bit and not too far ahead. I wasn't looking back so I figured if he kept swimming extra I might be able to stay near him. As we approach buoy #3, swimmer #1 angles back in and isn't that far ahead of me again. I chuckle as we round the buoys heading back towards buoy #1. That is probably the last laugh I had in the race.
The distance from buoy 3 to buoy 1 is a bit and swimmer #1 picks it up. I truly am in no mans land and probably took it out a little too hard, especially considering this is the longest straight swim I have done. Ironman swims are basically a formality. Don't get me wrong they are long (ish) but 50 minutes in the water vs 5 hours on the bike.. come on. Well 6k is more than half again an Ironman swim (55% more actually). So the question is... how much more is 55%. And honestly before and during the race I didn't know (or care) how much further it was than I was use to racing (or probably trained for... catching on to the title?), but now as I look back...55% more is a lot.
Lap two was basically me watching #1's green swim cap slowly pulling away, but I was still nailing all my sighting!
Lap 3 starts and I start assessing myself and come to the conclusion that lap 4 is going to hurt. To add insult to injury I got passed heading back out to buoy #1. Around buoy #1 and heading towards buoy #2 I take a few backstroke pulls and see another green cap right behind me. We make our way around buoy #2 and head through the choppy part to buoy #3. The green cap behind me is now the green cap next to me, on my left hand side. I'm left handed... I breath to the left. He's right handed (probably) and breathes to his right (confirmed) so we spend a couple hundred yards... stroke, stroke, hi, stroke, stroke, hi... We hit buoy #3 and start heading out towards lap #4.
As I am nearing buoy #1 for the last lap the arms turn to noodles. Not sure how many people have experienced this but it's like my arms are a millimeter thin and all wavy. So what do you do, you go back to basics. Think about your form. Hands catching water... check... elbow bending to get good pull... check... rolling into next stroke... check... it's not pretty but you keep moving. On lap #4 two more people passed me moving me back to 6th place, but this is the furthest swim race I have ever done, I am a triathlete not a swimmer (that actually hurt to say a little bit), I haven't trained for this distance.. and this is a national championship I'll take 6th!
On lap #4 I round the last buoy (right #3... good you are paying attention) and site the finish line... 'A Green Cap!!!!' I see a green cap between me and the finish line. 'One of those guys that passed me must be getting tired!' I drop my head and hammer (i.e. flail MORE) and catch the guy... then he peels off to start his 4th lap as I must have been lapping him. So I try to keep it going to the finish. Through the finish line buoys and 'Ahhhhhhh'. 6k Swim done! Time 1:22:48...
A friend asked if I wanted to try the 10k Swim at Horsetooth later this summer. My response was not PG-13... but now... 'Ummm coach?'
The air horn went off and we (the wave of men under 45) took off. Right away a guy jumps to the lead so I get on his feet, if he is willing to lead I am willing to follow. A minute later another guy that started off to our right angles over and takes the lead. A couple hundred yards into the swim and we are a little train with me sitting in third place. Perfect... until #2 starts losing #1's feet. Decision time... Do I 1) Stay on the feet I am following and chill as we are early in a long race or 2) Try to close the gap on #1... I chose 2...
So I go around #2 and jump on #1's feet... for a few seconds as he is pulling away. But we are coming to the first buoy. We round the buoy and with my pre-race scouting (and actually talking to the people that set up the course) I knew exactly where to site for the swim. #1 well he didn't and swung out of the line. I continued to buoy #2 (yes I am using a lot of numbers in my race report... you will have to deal with it as it's my race report) of 3 (3 buoys... keep up) in my line. As we approach buoy #2, #1 (swimmer) starts angling towards it and as I took the shorter line the gap between us closed. He's faster but I sited better, almost a wash. We round the buoy and in talking with the course official I got a tip on sighting buoy #3 and took a peek and perfect right where he said it was. #1 obviously didn't see it and once again swung way out of line towards the buoy. This leg of the triangle course was choppy and I was expending a lot of energy out by myself. a few thoughts of slowing down entered my mind but I knew #1 was off course a bit and not too far ahead. I wasn't looking back so I figured if he kept swimming extra I might be able to stay near him. As we approach buoy #3, swimmer #1 angles back in and isn't that far ahead of me again. I chuckle as we round the buoys heading back towards buoy #1. That is probably the last laugh I had in the race.
The distance from buoy 3 to buoy 1 is a bit and swimmer #1 picks it up. I truly am in no mans land and probably took it out a little too hard, especially considering this is the longest straight swim I have done. Ironman swims are basically a formality. Don't get me wrong they are long (ish) but 50 minutes in the water vs 5 hours on the bike.. come on. Well 6k is more than half again an Ironman swim (55% more actually). So the question is... how much more is 55%. And honestly before and during the race I didn't know (or care) how much further it was than I was use to racing (or probably trained for... catching on to the title?), but now as I look back...55% more is a lot.
Lap two was basically me watching #1's green swim cap slowly pulling away, but I was still nailing all my sighting!
Lap 3 starts and I start assessing myself and come to the conclusion that lap 4 is going to hurt. To add insult to injury I got passed heading back out to buoy #1. Around buoy #1 and heading towards buoy #2 I take a few backstroke pulls and see another green cap right behind me. We make our way around buoy #2 and head through the choppy part to buoy #3. The green cap behind me is now the green cap next to me, on my left hand side. I'm left handed... I breath to the left. He's right handed (probably) and breathes to his right (confirmed) so we spend a couple hundred yards... stroke, stroke, hi, stroke, stroke, hi... We hit buoy #3 and start heading out towards lap #4.
As I am nearing buoy #1 for the last lap the arms turn to noodles. Not sure how many people have experienced this but it's like my arms are a millimeter thin and all wavy. So what do you do, you go back to basics. Think about your form. Hands catching water... check... elbow bending to get good pull... check... rolling into next stroke... check... it's not pretty but you keep moving. On lap #4 two more people passed me moving me back to 6th place, but this is the furthest swim race I have ever done, I am a triathlete not a swimmer (that actually hurt to say a little bit), I haven't trained for this distance.. and this is a national championship I'll take 6th!
On lap #4 I round the last buoy (right #3... good you are paying attention) and site the finish line... 'A Green Cap!!!!' I see a green cap between me and the finish line. 'One of those guys that passed me must be getting tired!' I drop my head and hammer (i.e. flail MORE) and catch the guy... then he peels off to start his 4th lap as I must have been lapping him. So I try to keep it going to the finish. Through the finish line buoys and 'Ahhhhhhh'. 6k Swim done! Time 1:22:48...
A friend asked if I wanted to try the 10k Swim at Horsetooth later this summer. My response was not PG-13... but now... 'Ummm coach?'
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Kick in the pants
Every once in awhile you need a kick in the pants. Someone or something else can do it or you can kick yourself. I guess I am kicking myself to get going again. The past couple weeks have been great. I started seeing someone who has a zest for life and is a ray of sunshine. Training which was lacking is starting to come around... so I kicked myself. I signed up for a 6k swim that I am not ready for... and I have two weeks. But it will be fun. I have emailed some companies about potential sponsorship opportunities and set a HUGE goal for 2011 (more on that in another post).
But that's what you do right? See what you can accomplish? After all the energy into 2008 Ironman... and to get hurt and come up short... I just needed a recharge and maybe to forget so I could find it again. For a long time I didn't want to subject myself to that extreme again. You have a big goal you have to go big, that's a lot to do. You can say it all you want, but to do it, to commit that is a different story.
So here is the first step (stoke?) in this commitment. A 6k swim in a week and a half... yup alarm is set for tomorrows swim practice.
But that's what you do right? See what you can accomplish? After all the energy into 2008 Ironman... and to get hurt and come up short... I just needed a recharge and maybe to forget so I could find it again. For a long time I didn't want to subject myself to that extreme again. You have a big goal you have to go big, that's a lot to do. You can say it all you want, but to do it, to commit that is a different story.
So here is the first step (stoke?) in this commitment. A 6k swim in a week and a half... yup alarm is set for tomorrows swim practice.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Splash and Dash
O.k. time to start blogging again... more on why tomorrow. But today was the second Splash and Dash here in Colorado Springs.... swim... run.... no bike. I love it! These races are basically a 40 minute hard effort... they hurt, but it's fun.
Chris Bagg was here and I was really worried about him running past me. So the horn goes off and I hammer the swim. It's two 1/2 mile loops, so I took a peek at my lead half way through the swim and just tried to build on it. Then had a terrible transition and started running. I hit the first mile mark in 5:45, that was 10 seconds faster than two weeks ago. Mile 2 was 5:55, also 10 seconds faster than the last race. But I was starting to hurt, I tried to just relax and stride it out. I knew that Chris would have to be flying to make up time on me, but I still had 1.75 mile to go. I missed the last mile marker split but using the 2 mile mark I could see I was still just under 6 minute mile pace (the course is 3 loops of 1.25 miles so you see the markers for the all the mile each lap). I finally take a look back to see if I could see Chris and thankfully I didn't. So I just keep it smooth to the finish.
The swim was a little long probably, but you won' ever hear me complain about that. Now it's bed time and decide in the morning if I want to go to swim practice.
Chris Bagg was here and I was really worried about him running past me. So the horn goes off and I hammer the swim. It's two 1/2 mile loops, so I took a peek at my lead half way through the swim and just tried to build on it. Then had a terrible transition and started running. I hit the first mile mark in 5:45, that was 10 seconds faster than two weeks ago. Mile 2 was 5:55, also 10 seconds faster than the last race. But I was starting to hurt, I tried to just relax and stride it out. I knew that Chris would have to be flying to make up time on me, but I still had 1.75 mile to go. I missed the last mile marker split but using the 2 mile mark I could see I was still just under 6 minute mile pace (the course is 3 loops of 1.25 miles so you see the markers for the all the mile each lap). I finally take a look back to see if I could see Chris and thankfully I didn't. So I just keep it smooth to the finish.
The swim was a little long probably, but you won' ever hear me complain about that. Now it's bed time and decide in the morning if I want to go to swim practice.
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