The Road to Provence

Our coach always says to have a reward in mind when you race - the proverbial "carrot" that is hanging just past the finish line you are so desperately trying to cross.  For nearly a year now, our focus has been on our training and preparation; our focus has been the road to Zurich.  With just 11 days left, the road to Zurich is coming to an end.  Our focus is now on the reward for all the miles, the grueling hours, the chaffing, the soreness -- the experience of an international triathlon, the glory of crossing that finish line, hearing those four precious words "you are an Ironman," and all the wine and cheese we can consume in the lavender-filled fields of Provence. 

These 11 days, I can already tell, will be tortuous.  Anxiety is setting in.  I find myself unable to sleep well and unable to concentrate.  I find myself pouring over Youtube videos and IM Zurich blogs, reading and rereading the Ironman Zurich Athlete Guide, thinking about every detail of the day, my race plan, and how to execute it.  I am working to convince myself that the training is done and that I can do this, but I can't deny the lingering doubt.  The threat of failure may not be large but it weighs heavy.  Success is not simply crossing the finish line in under 16 hours (the race cutoff) but enjoying the experience.  I just hope that, while the race will certainly hurt, I am well enough prepared to avoid hitting the wall.  I want to finish strong.  I want to earn and enjoy our reward.

When you race a distance for the first time, the only goal is to finish.  OK, that takes some pressure off.  Trying to be more specific about my goals is next to impossible.  I have never biked 112 miles at once, never mind after swimming 2.4 miles and following it up with a marathon...so how could I possibly know how I will respond?  Well, I'll take a crack anyway.

Swim:  1:20.  I've been swimming well, and am pretty sure I can cover the distance in less time, but I don't want to be a hero on the swim. It's the warm up.  Plus the madness of the start will cost me time.  I plan to wait at least 1-2 minutes before I start swimming.

T1:  10 minutes.  Don't really know what to expect here in terms of logistics.  This is unlike any tri I've done.  I need to rely on volunteers to pump me through the transition as opposed to going to my little station.  I figure this is conservative.

Bike: 6:45.  Like the swim, I imagine that I can do this faster, even with breaks.  But since I still have to run a marathon, I will try to take it easy.  Where is the balance?  Will taking 30 minutes longer on the bike save me 30 minutes or more on the run?  Who knows.  My plan is to go by feel and not watch the clock for any reason other than timing my hydration and nutrition intake.  Never push, avoid burning up the legs.

T2: 10 minutes.  Like T1, this is a guess.  Hopefully a conservative one.

Run:  This is the biggest question mark.  NO CLUE.  5 hours would be awesome.  This might be way too aggressive if I'm mostly walking at the end, but let's dare to dream and leave it at that.

Total: 13:25 Hmm.  That seems fast.  Anything under 14:00 I'll be ecstatic.  Time will tell.  Tick tock.

140.6 to go.  Our seats are saved.

Chazy on Champlain

Last month Jen and I took a few vacation days and headed north for cooler temps and a long weekend of training in preparation for Zurich.  Our destination, Chazy, NY and a family lake house on the shores of Lake Champlain.  We loaded up the VW with all of our gear, bikes, and our mascot Islay for a long road trip hoping that we would avoid any major traffic issue as we navigated up the eastern seaboard.  For most folks a 9 hour plus road trip is a chore and while I would not want to do it every weekend Jen and I had fun with our pup and a good selection of tunes, news, and comedy bits via the Sirius satellite radio.  We hit the road early on Thursday morning and before you knew it we were sitting on the deck of the lake house, enjoying a fine pilsner and a great view of the lake, I think the only person in our party that was happier was Islay.  This was also the first time we had visited Jen's dad and his wife Barbara since Thanksgiving in 2012.

Our weekend of training included the following:

Thursday - 45 minute shake out spin on the bikes
Friday - 6 mile run in the morning followed by an hour swim in the afternoon
(We killed time in between with a boat ride across the lake and into Vermont where we enjoyed some sandwiches at a future pit stop on our big bike ride).
Saturday - 88 mile ride and four mile run
Sunday - 2.5 hour run (that one was tough, needed to beg for some water from the local ice cream shop on the way back)

Jen enjoying the chilly boat ride on Lake Champlain

With all of the training it is hard to classify this trip as a vacation but it was a great time and I am looking forward to going back.  It was a great chance to recharge the batteries, hang out with family, enjoy some good food courtesy of Jen's father, and wake up every morning to cool temps and the sounds of water lapping against the rocks.

IPAs on the deck

If you are in the area I recommend a beer and burger at the Squirrel's Nest in Rouses Point, just up the road from Chazy.  Try the poutine, it is a winner.

About the only fail on this trip was the fact we could not convince Islay to go swimming with us but she probably had a better time than any of us. 

Nokesville Century

Yesterday Jen and I completed our last "big" ride of the IM training, 100 miles.  It was one of those days where everything just seemed to go our way and gave us another little dose of confidence before the big event which is now just three weeks away.

I am not certain where other triathletes complete their training rides in the DC area but I can only do so many laps at Hains Point or Prince William Forest.  Our coach gave us the idea to check out a course in the Nokesville area which is a little less than an hour way from us.  Jen checked out Garmin Connect and found what we hoped to be paved century course over relatively flat terrain, only 4,600 feet of climbing over the distance according to my GPS.

With a course in mind and the route loaded on our Garmin, we prepped the bikes on Friday before the big ride on Saturday.  Like a true cyclist Jen even took care of swapping out her old tires for new ones while I cleaned the frames and lubed the chains. 

Islay made certain to have us up at 5 am as usual, I am not sure where she keeps her little alarm clock but that is definitely when her day begins regardless of how much sleep we have had the night before.  After some coffee and Celtic Crush, we loaded the VW and headed to Nokeseville for our big adventure.  Our mission, 100 miles in Z2 with a focus on hydration and nutrition just like race day, except I have not just completed a 2.4 mile swim but that is a minor detail.   Light traffic on our way to the starting point at Nokesville Community Park where we made the final preparations on the bikes and said our goodbyes.  Did I mention this ride was to be solo?  I gave Jen 25 minute head start but all she really needed was a five minute head start.  The weather was perfect cycling weather for Virgina in July with temps in the mid- 60's to start and a dewpoint in the 50s.  Now all we needed to do was pedal, pedal, pedal.

So six hours later including a couple of wrong turns (quickly noted by my Garmin) and I was back at the starting point ready for the 20 minute run and trying not to think about the fact I would need to run a full marathon after biking this far in just three weeks. 

Stats on the ride according to my Garmin:
Distance = 101.82
Time = 5:53:28
Average Speed = 17.3 (probably too fast but I would be very happy with this pace in Zurich)
Elevation Gain = 4,612 Feet

I would highly recommend this course for distance training on a tri bike.  The roads were in good shape, several sections where you could get into the aero bar position for a long stretch and a few places to stop and refuel at some small town general stores.  I also found the local drivers very courteous and light traffic on most sections.

My legs felt tire at around mile 70 but I think that is to be expected.  I can't say my legs felt fresh for the run but they did feel better than I expected.  The weather had something to do with that as well I suspect.  The best part of the day was rolling into the park and seeing Jen finishing up her run (this is why she did not need much of a head start from me). 

What is on tap for today?  Only a two hour run which mentally seems pretty easy.  Here is finishing the weekend with another strong effort and one more step on the road to Zurich.

Stokesville

Our reward for completing the Kinetic 1/2 was a camping trip on Memorial Day weekend to Stokesville.  The weather was perfect for camping and we took Islay along for her first long road trip and first camping trip as well.

Jen and loaded up the VW which left little room for Islay by the time we had all of the biking and camping gear.  I am not sure how the pioneers managed to travel across the entire country in a covered wagon and we have a full SUV for two nights of camping.  It must be all of the beer we needed to bring along. 

After arriving and setting up camp, including the CT3 EZ up we jumped on our bikes for a short ride before dinner.  Jen has never ridden the SM 100 and what better way to introduce her to the course than the first big climb up Lynn followed by the downhill on Wolf.  Lynn is typically a conga line during the race as riders hop off their bikes and push them up the nearly two mile climb.  I really thought I might be able to clear the entire section and was doing well until about the last 1/2 mile where I decided I was out here to have fun and not experience a cardiac arrest.  I think the climb may have given Jen some different ideas about ever doing the SM 100 but that training is for some other year.  

Our camp

The climb was well worth it.  Chris Scott and his crew have done some great work to improve the downhill on Wolf and we enjoyed the ride back down to the forest service road.  Back to camp for pasta and potluck dinner with Islay and a chance to see some friends from the mountain biking community.

The next day we rode with our friends Brad and Simona who are competing in several 100 mile mountain bike races this summer.  We rode the first section of the course including a super fun down hill section.  The riding this weekend made me remember how much I love mountain biking and my technical skills are not that bad considering my time away from the trails. 

Islay enjoyed meeting new people at dinner and made several new friends.  She also did a good job of navigating the skinnies, she may have a bit of circus dog in her.

Islay taking a break after navigating the skinny course.

We finished the weekend hanging out by the fire, drinking beers and some fine bourbon, and making smores.   A great way to spend Memorial Day weekend and a nice respite from the training. 

Worst Blogger Ever

Yes, that is my official title and I know I am going to regret not taking the time to document all of our adventures in this blog leading up to our big race.  We are now three weeks away from the big event in Zurich and so much has happened since my last post.  On a positive note, the training is going great and I feel confident in my ability to complete the race (thanks Coach T).

Time to hop in the time machine, hit 88 mph, and travel back in time to the events that have brought me to today.  Let's start with the Kinetic 1/2 Ironman on May 10.  Going into this race I really did not feel the pre-race jitters that I typically experience in the week leading up to the event.  That actually had me a bit worried that I was not taking the race and distance seriously enough and it would come back to haunt me on race day.  Jen summed up our trip down and the weather conditions in her post but here is a summary of my race experience.  First off the swim and the hardest part of any triathlon for me.  This swim was in a lake and with light winds the water was relatively calm and so was I.  It was also the first time I had the chance to try out my new wetsuit in race conditions.  My goal in the swim is just to get through it, stay relaxed, don't go anaerobic, and try to find something to think about to pass the time.  While I found the race generally well organized if there was one negative to the event it was the swim markers.  At the start of the event everyone was discussing the apparent zig zag of buoys and trying to determine which was the "right" side to swim on.  Of course that led to people zig zagging around in the water and bumping into a few people during the swim but nothing serious, just more annoying and I don't need annoying during the swim.  When I came out of the water I looked at my watch and I was just at 40 minutes which I know is slow but good for me (turns out my official swim time was 42:12 due to the time it took me to get from the water to the timing mat at the transition area).

Now I am happy, swim is done and off on the bike.  This was a training race for Zurich so I was less concerned about speed and more focused on riding a steady pace.  The bike course was in good shape and besides a few riders in groups and cars blocking the road I felt good on the bike and came in at 2:54.  The biggest surprise of the ride was in the transition area.  Who do I see but Jen right behind me on her bike which means she had a great ride and a great race.  All that was left for both of us was three loops on a hilly course with humid weather, easy right?

I always go into the run feeling confident but that did not last long on this day.  My legs were tired, the weather was against me, and my stomach felt like I just finished a five course meal sans the wine pairing.  Although I left the transition area before Jen it was not long before she left me behind like a dirty shirt on laundry day.  The hills took what little energy I had left and I ended up walking the hilly sections (which seemed like most of the course).  I did manage to run the last two miles and finished the run in 2:10 for an overall time of 5:51:57 with transition times.  Under six hours which should have made me happy but I was disappointed with my run time considering my goal was 2:00.

I see the finish line!

The best part of the race was seeing Jen and the finish line and then finding out she finished third in her age group for a podium.  As a reward I made her drive home like any good boyfriend.