Well, now that a full day has passed since the race, it's time to recap the day and look at the good and bad.
All in all, it was a good day. Ran a 7 minute PR with a final time of 2:48:57, something in the 6:26/mile pace.
Let's start with Saturday. Pretty uneventful trip into Philly with my friend Mike and the expo was super fast compared to when I did this race in 2007 (and ran a 3:07!). I was very happy to get in and out so we could find a place to eat and settle in for the night. We probably should have planned that better! It took us a couple HOURS and we walked way too far to finally rind a restaurant that served spaghetti and wasn't a 3 hour wait! We found a place not too far from our hotel and we were eating by 6pm, which was the goal. After eating, we went back to the room and got everythin in order for the morning. We managed to be in bed by 9, sleeping by 10 so we defintiely got enought rest.
Woke up on race morning, showered, and had a bagel and half a banana. For the next two hours I regretted that banana, but by the time we started racing it was forgotten about. We decided to walk to the start, about 1.6 miles, and then got in a mile warm up jog before stretching and doing plyometrics. With about 10 minutes to go, we made our way into the corral to line up. The weather was great, the wind was blowing, but temperature was fine. After the National Anthem, a little Eminem, and a 10 second countdown we were off!
The race runs downhill on the Ben Franklin Parkway with a slight tailwind. Stupid me opens with a 6:01 mile. So you'd think that I would realize that that was too fast. What do I come back with for mile 2? a 6:06. The problem is that I felt fine! My leg pain was non-existent and it felt so good to finally be running. I made my way through the 5k in about 18:30 and that's where I got to talking to a couple other guys. They were planning on a 2:46:00 marathon so I figured I'd try to hang with them and share some of the work as we made our way slightly back uphill and into the wind. The plan worked, but the pace was quick. I kept telling myself to control it, but we ended up throwing in some quick miles, even a 5:59 mile 8. By the time we got to the 10 mile mark, I was actually getting a little tired. Just past mile 10 was the last of the "major" hills on the course and I could feel the work I did in my quads. The next 5k to the half way mark was controlled and we came through the half right around 1:22:28. Too fast.
When I passed the mile 14 flag, I couldn't believe it. There's no way that I ONLY ran a mile. That was probably the toughest mile of the day. From there on, the race was nothing but hard. My fastest mile in teh second half was a 6:19, and I had six miles over 6:30.
I don't clearly remember any of those miles, I just know that it never got any easier. A rabbit was pacinga group of women through mile 15 so they could try for an Olympic Qualifier. We were in a nice pack up until that point, but one he left that whole group fell apart. Mile 16 was along the river and I ran that alone. I cought a couple people through mile 17, which come up an annoying little hill to an intersection. There was a little downhill, a 180 degree turnaround, and then an uphill for mile 18 and that was just painful. From there to mile 20 was OK. We went through a couple rollers but the course finally had some spectators which helped take the edge off. That led to mile 21, which was the last tough uphill.
After I passed the mile 21 mark, I started playing with the math of the race. I still hadn't given in to the fact that I was really hurting and I had hopes of coming in under 2:48, maybe even under 2:47. My race pace plan was to be able to run 5 miles in exactly 32 minutes. That made the math easy, but hitting the pace wasn't happening. Mile 22 felt like a 6:00 mile but was actually a 6:34. That was deflating. After another 6:35 mile, I knew there was just over a 5k left. That's nothing! A 5k is nothing!!! Ha, I wish.
From mile 22 back to the finish, the course was on one road, headed on one direction...into the wind. I was running alone and there was no one to work with and block any of the breeze. It was funny to watch as I was running along without any wind and watching leaves blowing towards me. Then, you felt it. The wind would slow you up like you were running up a mountain.
With 5k to go, my quads were shot. Every step was painful and the desire to stop was huge. There was ZERO crowd support over those last couple of miles, which made it very boring. FINALLY the crowds started to form and after the 25 mile mark, the finish felt attainable. A slight uphill, then a downhill and there was the finish line.
I'm happy with the result, but I know I could have raced smarter and better. Taking off another two minutes is a very real goal, and next year 2:45:00 will be a race plan...if the baby lets me train for one!
Here's the Garmin data...
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/130096044
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
New Jersey State Triathlon Race Report
It's been a while since I've posted, but here's a race report and there will be another one next week!
I woke up at 3am on race morning. This might have been the earliest I've ever woken up for a race. I didn't even have to get up this early for Ironman! Oh well, up early to have a bagel and gatorade. I had to be on the road by 415 to get to my friend Paul's house so we could push off by 445. I went through my usual slow motion morning of checking/sending emails, packing, and eating. I left on time but had to back track after forgetting my helmet. Got to Paul"s house, packed the car, and we were on our way.
We got to the race site a little after 6, which is a little later than I wanted to be. We still had to pick up our packets (which was quick, thankfully) and set up transition. Got everything sorted out and went for a warm up run.
It was hot.
I felt awful.
The last two days before the race I could tell I wasn't 100%. I felt VERY flat and heavy. Sure enough, I felt the same race morning. I ate a quick gel and went to swim. Same story there, arms felt heavy and I had no feel for the water.
So at the starting line I had no great expectations. My initial goal was to go in the 2:05 range but I wasn't even sure if I could break 2:15 at this point. The gun went off and we were on our way.
The first few hundred meters of the swim were physical. I was in the elite wave (which are great) and that meant everyone could swim. There was a good battle for positioning and that took a lot of energy out of me in the 88+ water. We finally get into an organized line but I felt terrible. It was hot and I felt like I was going to throw up. About half way in, two people passed me and I thought I was way out of the top 10. However, over the last few hundred meters I passed a few guys and I think I came out of the water in 5th.
Onto the bike and the nausea wasn't going away. After a few miles I could tell I was in 4th but eventually got passed by 4 people and came off the bike in 8th. I never felt good on the ride. I could never get into a rhythm. I took a gel around mile 15 and that only made things worse. Getting off the bike I was just hoping to hold on to a top 10 finish.
I headed out of T2 and tried to get work my way back. I hit the first mile in about 6:15 and had passed two people. I started to get a little cramp in my stomach and then got passed by another runner. I came through mile two in 6:29 and was not feeling good. There was a slight down hill and I was able to re-pass the guy who passed me. After that section, I started to feel better. From then on I was able to get into a nice rhythm and started running down some of the guys in front of me. By mile four I had moved from 7th to 3rd and everyone I passed, I had passed with confidence. It's always tough to pass people because you never know how they will respond. Each person I passed I was able to get behind them and get a feel for their pace. I would wait a few seconds and then give a strong surge around them. There was a little out and back section and I could see where second place was. I tried my best to find another gear and I was able to close the gap, but was unable to catch 2nd place.
So, in the end, I am very happy with the outcome. I had very low expectations at the starting line and had a very uncomfortable race. I'm not sure if I had a some type of cold before the race, but the two days before I was very run down. Four days later and I am feeling recovered and feeling fresh. I will be racing this weekend at the Pequannock Triathlon and have put in a few strong workouts this week. I am no longer feeling wiped out and am looking forward to a fast race on Sunday.
Congratulations to all those from the Tri Club who raced. It was not an easy day out there and you all powered through for strong finishes. I know a lot of you will be joining me on the starting line on Sunday. I'm looking forward to watching you continue your awesome race seasons!
I woke up at 3am on race morning. This might have been the earliest I've ever woken up for a race. I didn't even have to get up this early for Ironman! Oh well, up early to have a bagel and gatorade. I had to be on the road by 415 to get to my friend Paul's house so we could push off by 445. I went through my usual slow motion morning of checking/sending emails, packing, and eating. I left on time but had to back track after forgetting my helmet. Got to Paul"s house, packed the car, and we were on our way.
We got to the race site a little after 6, which is a little later than I wanted to be. We still had to pick up our packets (which was quick, thankfully) and set up transition. Got everything sorted out and went for a warm up run.
It was hot.
I felt awful.
The last two days before the race I could tell I wasn't 100%. I felt VERY flat and heavy. Sure enough, I felt the same race morning. I ate a quick gel and went to swim. Same story there, arms felt heavy and I had no feel for the water.
So at the starting line I had no great expectations. My initial goal was to go in the 2:05 range but I wasn't even sure if I could break 2:15 at this point. The gun went off and we were on our way.
The first few hundred meters of the swim were physical. I was in the elite wave (which are great) and that meant everyone could swim. There was a good battle for positioning and that took a lot of energy out of me in the 88+ water. We finally get into an organized line but I felt terrible. It was hot and I felt like I was going to throw up. About half way in, two people passed me and I thought I was way out of the top 10. However, over the last few hundred meters I passed a few guys and I think I came out of the water in 5th.
Onto the bike and the nausea wasn't going away. After a few miles I could tell I was in 4th but eventually got passed by 4 people and came off the bike in 8th. I never felt good on the ride. I could never get into a rhythm. I took a gel around mile 15 and that only made things worse. Getting off the bike I was just hoping to hold on to a top 10 finish.
I headed out of T2 and tried to get work my way back. I hit the first mile in about 6:15 and had passed two people. I started to get a little cramp in my stomach and then got passed by another runner. I came through mile two in 6:29 and was not feeling good. There was a slight down hill and I was able to re-pass the guy who passed me. After that section, I started to feel better. From then on I was able to get into a nice rhythm and started running down some of the guys in front of me. By mile four I had moved from 7th to 3rd and everyone I passed, I had passed with confidence. It's always tough to pass people because you never know how they will respond. Each person I passed I was able to get behind them and get a feel for their pace. I would wait a few seconds and then give a strong surge around them. There was a little out and back section and I could see where second place was. I tried my best to find another gear and I was able to close the gap, but was unable to catch 2nd place.
So, in the end, I am very happy with the outcome. I had very low expectations at the starting line and had a very uncomfortable race. I'm not sure if I had a some type of cold before the race, but the two days before I was very run down. Four days later and I am feeling recovered and feeling fresh. I will be racing this weekend at the Pequannock Triathlon and have put in a few strong workouts this week. I am no longer feeling wiped out and am looking forward to a fast race on Sunday.
Congratulations to all those from the Tri Club who raced. It was not an easy day out there and you all powered through for strong finishes. I know a lot of you will be joining me on the starting line on Sunday. I'm looking forward to watching you continue your awesome race seasons!
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Wyckoff-Franklin Lakes Tri Race Report
This past Saturday was the 29th Annual Wyckoff-Franklin Lakes Triathlon and my 7th year (in a row) racing here. There's something very special about this race and it is one that I plan on doing for as long as I can. It's the race that everyone talks about all year, the race that everyone competes in or goes to watch, and the race that offers some bragging rights amongst training partners until next year's race. The best part is that no matter the outcome, it's always a fun day of fast racing with great company.
So on race morning, there's always a positive buzz in the air. I got to the race real early and got my bike set up. Then, the Wyckoff Tri Club gathered to take a team picture which came out really great. Especially since we got new running tanks and everyone had it on. It's really great to see how for everyone in the club has come since January and they all had awesome races.
After the picture, it was time to warm up. I got 15 minutes of cycling in to check everything out, then ran an easy 1.5 miles with Ian to shake out the legs. Then I headed back to transition to hang out and get the wetsuit on. The transition area before this race is always fun. It's always filled my all my friends and training partners so the mood is light, but since we're all each others competition you can tell there's some tension in the air. I do my usual scope of the talent and psyche myself out. Eventually I head down to the water with Jeff and Ian to swim a little. We were unpleasantly surprised by the amount of weeds in the water, but nothing we can do about it now! So, that was it. Warmed up and ready to go. National Anthem is sung and the gun goes off. Wait! The gun went off!? All of the athletes who were standing by the water's edge couldn't hear the countdown or the timer start the race. When the race started, I still had my goggles on top of my head. Oh well, no time to complain, gotta start swimming!
The swim -
The plan was to go out hard and settle in once I got past the dock. Since there was some confusion at the start, I didn't get to find the guys I was looking for to swim with. When we passed the dock, I looked around and saw I was slightly out in front. Not where I wanted to be. I have a bad history of "pulling" people through the swim at this race. But I wasn't about to slow down, so I kept in controlled to the buoy. I thought for sure that someone would have beat me to the first buoy, but I got there first. I couldn't tell how close 2nd place was, but I knew I had to make a move or I would have the same fate as in previous years. I know that if I go hard, I can swim between the two buoys in about 1:45 so I picked it up and went for it. I got to the second buoy and knew no one was on my feet. Now I had to try to bring it in as straight and fast as possible. The glare coming in was tough, but swimming in the lake a few times had helped with sighting practice. I knew where I should be and trusted my instincts. I swam until I hit the sand and then did three dolphin dives until I could run out of the water. I saw the clock and it read 10:40 and I was shocked! I ran as hard as I could to the timing pad and officially my swim time was 11:40, which I am told is a new course record. I sped through T1 and was on the road with about 30 seconds of a lead.
The bike -
If only I could ride! I knew that I wasn't in great cycling shape coming in to the race, but thought I could hold my own. I got passed by Chris Gebhardt just after mile 4 and he passed me like I was standing still. I rode solo until about mile 12.5 when Mike Llerandi and some relay guy passed me. I was able to keep them in my sights and didn't let them pull away. All in all, I am pleased with my split. It's the fastest I've ridden the course and I entered T2 with Mike basically tied for 2nd. I had a super fast transition and was on the run in no time. Overall bike split was 44:54, 22.7mph.
The run -
As I was leaving transition, Paul Scire gave me a shout to tell me that Chris was about 1:50 ahead of me. This wasn't going to be easy. I've been running the fastest I've ever been, but Chris is still probably faster than me. I was able to put some space on 3rd place, but gaining in Chris was a slow process. After two miles I picked up a few seconds, but it wasn't looking good. At the 2.5 mile mark I actually got a bad cramp running up a hill and had to walk a few steps. After a few seconds of digging into my stomach, I was able to continue running but it was very uncomfortable. At the next out and back section I was able to assess Chris' position and he still had over a minute lead. We were already over 3 miles in and I was running out of miles. At this point, I basically knew I had to hang on for 2nd. As I came back down the out and back, I had a very comfortable lead on 3rd and 4th place so if I could hold the pace everything would be OK. Just past the 4 mile mark, both Chris and I missed a turn so we ended up adding about 0.15 miles onto our race. No change in the outcome (except for the additional time) so no one was upset. Even with the addition, I still ran a 30:28 for the 3rd fastest run of the day.
After seven years of racing here, I have the following results 80, 19, 9, 2, 5, 5, 2. I'm getting there! This was definitely my best race here. I surprised myself in the swim, plus I had the fastest times for T1 and T2. I always try to be as efficient as possible and it paid off here.
So on race morning, there's always a positive buzz in the air. I got to the race real early and got my bike set up. Then, the Wyckoff Tri Club gathered to take a team picture which came out really great. Especially since we got new running tanks and everyone had it on. It's really great to see how for everyone in the club has come since January and they all had awesome races.
After the picture, it was time to warm up. I got 15 minutes of cycling in to check everything out, then ran an easy 1.5 miles with Ian to shake out the legs. Then I headed back to transition to hang out and get the wetsuit on. The transition area before this race is always fun. It's always filled my all my friends and training partners so the mood is light, but since we're all each others competition you can tell there's some tension in the air. I do my usual scope of the talent and psyche myself out. Eventually I head down to the water with Jeff and Ian to swim a little. We were unpleasantly surprised by the amount of weeds in the water, but nothing we can do about it now! So, that was it. Warmed up and ready to go. National Anthem is sung and the gun goes off. Wait! The gun went off!? All of the athletes who were standing by the water's edge couldn't hear the countdown or the timer start the race. When the race started, I still had my goggles on top of my head. Oh well, no time to complain, gotta start swimming!
The swim -
The plan was to go out hard and settle in once I got past the dock. Since there was some confusion at the start, I didn't get to find the guys I was looking for to swim with. When we passed the dock, I looked around and saw I was slightly out in front. Not where I wanted to be. I have a bad history of "pulling" people through the swim at this race. But I wasn't about to slow down, so I kept in controlled to the buoy. I thought for sure that someone would have beat me to the first buoy, but I got there first. I couldn't tell how close 2nd place was, but I knew I had to make a move or I would have the same fate as in previous years. I know that if I go hard, I can swim between the two buoys in about 1:45 so I picked it up and went for it. I got to the second buoy and knew no one was on my feet. Now I had to try to bring it in as straight and fast as possible. The glare coming in was tough, but swimming in the lake a few times had helped with sighting practice. I knew where I should be and trusted my instincts. I swam until I hit the sand and then did three dolphin dives until I could run out of the water. I saw the clock and it read 10:40 and I was shocked! I ran as hard as I could to the timing pad and officially my swim time was 11:40, which I am told is a new course record. I sped through T1 and was on the road with about 30 seconds of a lead.
The bike -
If only I could ride! I knew that I wasn't in great cycling shape coming in to the race, but thought I could hold my own. I got passed by Chris Gebhardt just after mile 4 and he passed me like I was standing still. I rode solo until about mile 12.5 when Mike Llerandi and some relay guy passed me. I was able to keep them in my sights and didn't let them pull away. All in all, I am pleased with my split. It's the fastest I've ridden the course and I entered T2 with Mike basically tied for 2nd. I had a super fast transition and was on the run in no time. Overall bike split was 44:54, 22.7mph.
The run -
As I was leaving transition, Paul Scire gave me a shout to tell me that Chris was about 1:50 ahead of me. This wasn't going to be easy. I've been running the fastest I've ever been, but Chris is still probably faster than me. I was able to put some space on 3rd place, but gaining in Chris was a slow process. After two miles I picked up a few seconds, but it wasn't looking good. At the 2.5 mile mark I actually got a bad cramp running up a hill and had to walk a few steps. After a few seconds of digging into my stomach, I was able to continue running but it was very uncomfortable. At the next out and back section I was able to assess Chris' position and he still had over a minute lead. We were already over 3 miles in and I was running out of miles. At this point, I basically knew I had to hang on for 2nd. As I came back down the out and back, I had a very comfortable lead on 3rd and 4th place so if I could hold the pace everything would be OK. Just past the 4 mile mark, both Chris and I missed a turn so we ended up adding about 0.15 miles onto our race. No change in the outcome (except for the additional time) so no one was upset. Even with the addition, I still ran a 30:28 for the 3rd fastest run of the day.
After seven years of racing here, I have the following results 80, 19, 9, 2, 5, 5, 2. I'm getting there! This was definitely my best race here. I surprised myself in the swim, plus I had the fastest times for T1 and T2. I always try to be as efficient as possible and it paid off here.
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