Well... another Christmas has arrived. We had our typical family traditions and of course everyone probably ate way too much. I received lots of cool new triathlon stuff from my parents, including some stuff from one of our sponsors, Zensah. I got to give their running tights, compression shorts, and skull cap a test run this afternoon in some harsh cold. I was amazed by their comfort and breathability on the 15-miler that I did this afternoon. These are definitely the best cold gear stuff that I've tried.
Another cool thing that my parents got me was a poster made on snapfish.com. They took several pictures from the trip to Kona for the IM and made a collage out of them. That was really cool and I could tell that they put a lot of thought into it. It brought back a lot of cool memories and emotions about the whole experience.
Of course, we all need to remember that the real meaning of Christmas is all about God sending his son to the world. We give gifts to each other out of tradition probably because people thought we should be like God and give something out of love to those close to us that requires some sort of sacrifice. Nowadays, the only winners in this tradition seem to be the retailers (well... maybe not this year!). Many Americans, and people around the world, seem to have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas. I think the epitome of this was displayed on Black Friday when a Wal-Mart employee was killed by shoppers fighting over trying to get some great deals. We need to get back to the true meaning of Christmas... because that is the only thing that will satisfy us for eternity. People spend so much money on Christmas hoping to make their loved ones happy, and it may work... but by next Christmas I bet that most gifts are hardly used anymore or are outdated... leaving the people unsatisfied.
Another thing I wonder about the Christmas season deals with the radio. Today people are so uptight about not offending people. Anything Christian is taboo, or at least it seems that way. I remember working at a restaurant a couple years ago and Christmas music was playing. I think at the time the song was Silent Night, or Away in a Manger. One of the employees there said something like, "What is this? I didn't think we were in a church!" That really bugged me. That person totally had no clue about the true meaning of Christmas. It also got me thinking/wondering how much longer it will be until explicitly Christian Christmas music will not be allowed to be played on the radio anymore because it may "offend people." I pray that American society never reaches that level... however I have a feeling that the time is not too far away.
Sorry about the depressing posting on Christmas... but I really felt like I needed to get that out there. I hope that you all enjoyed your family today (or will in the future when you do celebrate Christmas when you all can get together).
Xterra Wesuits
The Worlds Fastest, Most Flexible Wetsuit
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Plans for next race season
It isn't even Thanksgiving yet, and I'm already having withdrawal from not being in training for anything specific. It's driving me crazy. However, I've already mapped out three races for next season... and I'm looking forward to them. My first one so far is 70.3 Kansas. I hope to qualify for Clearwater this year and accomplish another goal. I've also registered for IM Louisville and IM Arizona. I'm a little concerned about how that last month of training will be considering the weather in the midwest can be a little crazy. However... I'm hoping for the best.
I'm looking forward to a little competition that I've organized at school as a fund raiser for the IWU Cycling/Triathlon Club. It's called Swim Across Indiana. The idea of this race is to get people to gather up a group of up to 5 people and accumulate enough combined laps in the pool to swim either north to south or east to west across the state of IN. I'm hoping this will help me keep my swimming up and get faster in the off season. I want to work up to about 27 or 28 miles in a week.
I Timothy 4:8
I'm looking forward to a little competition that I've organized at school as a fund raiser for the IWU Cycling/Triathlon Club. It's called Swim Across Indiana. The idea of this race is to get people to gather up a group of up to 5 people and accumulate enough combined laps in the pool to swim either north to south or east to west across the state of IN. I'm hoping this will help me keep my swimming up and get faster in the off season. I want to work up to about 27 or 28 miles in a week.
I Timothy 4:8
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Summer 2008 Racing Season
IronMan World Championship
October 11th 2008 -
Swim – 2.4 miles
The swim started out in the bay in Kona. It is amazing how much more bouyant people are in salt water in comparison to fresh water. It took some getting used to the taste of the water too. Fortunately I had some time to practice swimming in the ocean before race day. The swim started with the sound of a cannon firing and the 1600 amateurs all took off. It was mass chaos for the majority of the swim. I never really found a rhythm because of all the swimmers around me and fighting for position in the water. I came out of the ocean in 59 minutes. Thankfully they had some showers going into transition to wash out our mouths and rinse the salt off our bodies. I never was so happy to rinse my mouth out in my life.
Bike – 112 miles
This was by far the hardest bike I've ever done before. It started out nice with a slight tailwind. I was going 22 or 23 mph and making my way towards Hiwa (pronounced Hy-vee). However, about half of the way there the wind switched directions and we had a nice cross wind that was picking up. The bike was pretty desolate... and it made the miles go by pretty slow. There wasn't much scenery to look at except a bunch of lava fields. The last 7 or 8 miles into Hiwa was absolutely brutal. It was all up hill and the headwind/crosswind was so strong I couldn't even stay in aerobars. Those last 8 miles took over 30 minutes to climb into Hiwa. Even on the way back going down the hill out of Hiwa wasn't the easiest thing. The cross wind, which got even stronger, still made it impossible for me to ride in the areo-position. The northern part of the island was also hotter than Kona. By the last 15 miles of the bike, by back was really started from fighting the wind and being on the bike for a long time. Plus, on the way back towards Kona, the winds switch directions again and I had yet another headwind. I was never so happy to start the run and get off my bike.
Run – 26.2 miles
The run started out really good for me. I felt great (considering the circumstances) and was passing several people and cruising through the aid stations. It wasn't until about mile 16 on the run that I really began to hit a wall. Everything I tried to keep going wasn't working... so I had to swallow my pride and walk through some aid stations. I almost got to the point of fainting before I did this. I saw a thermometer in the 'natural energy lab' portion of the run that read 95 degrees! I was really upset about walking... but I knew that if I wanted to finish the race I had to walk. The other part about the run that made it really hard was that between miles 11 and 24 there was no spectators on the course because of going out of town. The only people I saw were other athletes and the volunteers at each aid station about a mile apart. Coming back into Kona, I was able to pick up my pace because of knowing how close I was and also having people cheering along the way. I crossed the finish line totally exhausted.
Overall:
I finished 519th and 15th in my age group. My time was 10:26. I was hoping to be about 30 minutes faster than this. So the next day while my parents and I were doing some much needed touring of the big island, I was thinking about why I couldn't hold it together on the run after feeling so good for the first portion of it. I realized that I may not have been taking in enough protein. I know that on the bike I alternate gels and powerbars and then when I get to the run I switch to gels only. I'm thinking that if I kept the same cycle of nutrition on the run as I do on the bike it could make a difference. However, I will have to wait until next year to find out if that theory holds true.
Thanks for reading and supporting me in accomplishing my life dream of racing in Kona. Your prayers were much appreciated! Thanks for taking time to read this too.
Mighty Mississinewa Triathlon
September 13th 2008 -
This past weekend I gathered up about 10 other people from IWU Cycling/Triathlon Club to go race at a triathlon about 30 miles from school. Before I get into the race report, I want to say that I was really happy to get as many first time athletes out to the race. I think I talked about 5 people into doing their first triathlon, and they all really liked it and felt really accomplished after completing the race. I love getting people hooked on this sport, because it is something that people can enjoy at any age.
Okay... now to the RR:
The swim was short... only 500 yards, which didn't give me a lot of time to put people behind me for the bike. I was the first one out of the water, with the second guy about 50 yards behind me... and he started in front of the start line by about 15 yards (I hate when people do this... it's obviously cheating!)
The bike was actually hilly for Indiana. The wind made things a bit challenging as well. I was passed by a guy around mile 4 or 5. I came off the bike in 3rd position with an average of 23.1 mph for 17 miles.
The run was a really nice course. About half of it is on the road and half of it is on a dirt road/trails. I started the run about 2 minutes back from the first place guy. I knew I had my work cut out for me because with only a 4 mile run, that meant I had to pace :30/mile faster than him. Unfortunately I was unable to catch him... he beat me by 14 seconds. However, I paced what I wanted to for the run, 5:55/mile. I think if I had a chance to redo that last mile, I might have been able to catch him. But coming in second isn't the end of the world... I learned something from it and that will help me compete better in the future.
Below is a picture of all but one person that competed from the school club. I wasn't wearing the USAT uniform b/c it was IWU Club event and the triathlon wasn't USAT Sanctioned. Hope that doesn't matter:
Louisville IM
August 31st 2008 -
Sunday morning we arrived at transition area around 5:00 and I got all my biking stuff finalized and made my walk to the swim start that was about a mile away. The swim start is a little different than other IronMan races because of being a river swim and not a lake. Due to the current, it makes it impossible to line up 2100 athletes in the water and expect them to stay in one spot. So we all lined up on a sidewalk that lead out to a dock, crossed a mat to give us our start time, and jumped into the Ohio River to begin the 2.4 mile swim. The first 1/3 of the swim was upstream and then we came back with the current. I thought the swim was a bit long, but since swimming is my strongest leg of the race, I didn't mind that. The water temperature was about 84 degrees, so it was good that I trained in the Portage YMCA all summer because that is about the temperature they keep the pool at. The water temperature was too warm for people to use wetsuits, but thankfully I planned ahead and bought a speedsuit through an IWU Cycling/Triathlon Club sponsor (Xterra Wetsuits) and was able to use that. It makes a huge difference... in fact those speedsuits are very similar to the suits that the olympic swimmers were using this year in Bejing. I came out of the water in 59 minutes and had the fastest swim in my age group.
The bike course was very well laid out. We started out going east, which is mostly uphill and happened to be into the wind. We rode out to La Grange and did about 30 mile loop there twice and started back to Louisville. I had a little trouble with my bike about half way through the course, but nothing too major. I wasn't able to get into my small chain ring to climb some of the hills. Thankfully, the biggest climbs were behind me and I didn't get slowed down too much by being force to stay in my big chain ring for the remainder of the bike ride. The last 20 or so miles seemed to take forever. Even with being mostly downhill and having a tailwind, the heat started taking its toll. I was drinking and pounding gels and Endurolytes like crazy trying to keep myself together and give myself as much energy to start the run as possible. I averaged 21.3 mph for the 112 miles and arrived back at transition about 5 hours and 17 minutes after I left. I had the fastest bike split for age group as well.
The run started off really well. After exiting transition and making a few turns, we ran about half way across the bridge that goes into IN. The breeze coming off the river felt really good. The first four miles of the run I averaged 6:30 pace. There were aid stations about every mile equipped with Gatorade Endurance formula, water, ice, chicken broth, coke, pretzels, bananas, energy bars, gels, and cold sponges. Every aid station I made sure I dumped ice down between my back and my uniform to help keep my core temperature down, drank some water, grabbed some sponges and rang them out over my head, and grabbed an energy gel if I wasn't already caring one. For the first part of the run, I took about two Endurolytes (salt tablets) about every-other aid station and an energy gel about every three miles. But on the second half of the run I was taking two salt tabs about every aid station and a gel every couple miles. The temperature got to about 95 degrees... I have no idea what the heat index was for the day. The most depressing thing about the run came around mile 14 when you come about 100 yards from the finish line, but instead of going towards it, you make a right hand turn and go back out into the sun for the remaining 12-ish miles. I was hoping to run the marathon in 3 hours, but due to the temperatures I finished the run in 3:28, which was good enough for the fastest run split in my age group as well.
Overall, I finished first in my age group and was 18th overall male (5th amatuer) and finished in 9:49:59. I really wanted to break 9:45... maybe next year. I beat a few pros and qualified for the World Championship IM in Hawaii this year. Qualifying for KONA has been a dream of mine for a long time. So I guess I got another race to add to my schedule this year on October 11th. I hope that my professors at school will understand and work with me to make this thing happen. I guess I got some scrambling to do to get things ready to make this dream a reality. Please pray for me that I would be able to balance school, clinicals, work, and training and still get everything done that needs to be done.
Thanks for taking time to read this and supporting me in anyway that you have in the past, whether it be just words of encouragement, training together, or any other way
Steelhead Triathlon
August 1st 2008 -
This was a really disappointing race for me... but I know we all have to take the good with the bad and press on.
The swim was canceled b/c the waves in Lake Michigan were about 4 feet high. This surprised me b/c anyone that qualified for Clearwater will be swimming in conditions like that. Anyways... the swim was replaced with a 2 mile run and was delayed by about an hour. It was so chaotic for the first portion of the race. I never was able to get up to speed because of the mass of people. This also kept me from getting the needed lead that I get on people during the swim so I can get off the bike around the same time as the strong bikers.
The bike course was beautiful... nice rolling hills most of the time. It was actually about 54 miles instead of 56 because the bike route was changed last minute because the first run was on the first portion of the bike leg. So with that taken into consideration, I averaged about 23 mph... got into transition knowing I had lots of time to make up on people in my age group because we all started the bike leg around the same time.
The 13.1 mile run went really well for me. I didn't get passed by anyone. The course was also very nicely laid out. We ran on a combination of road, bike/walking path, and parking lots. There was one big hill on the way out and then another one on the loop that we did twice. I ended up pacing about 6:22/mile.
I ended up finishing 41st out of about 1380 males that finished the race. Surprisingly, this wasn't good enough to qualify me for Clearwater! Jody Williford was 40th overall this race and he easily qualified for his AG (35-39). He was 4th in his AG and 10 went to Clearwater.
Tom Linck won his AG... great race for him!
I really think that if this would have been a triathlon instead of a duathlon, my chances of making Clearwater would have been very likely. But, I'd never raced a duathlon before (and I now have a bit more respect for duathletes... so Guy will be happy about that) and had no idea how to race one.
Muncie Endurathon
July 12th 2008 -
I was really hopeful that the weather would hold off... but I my drive to the race site on Saturday I could see lightening in the distance. In the back of my mind I kept telling myself that I didn't drive all the way down to Muncie to not race and was hoping for the best. Thankfully I was able to complete the race, but not with just about everything that mother nature could throw at us.
The swim at Muncie was great for me. They started the wave times about 3 minutes apart instead of 5 minutes b/c they wanted to get the athletes out of the water ASAP. I got to use my speedsuit for the first time in a race (water temp was 80 degrees). I got out infront of hte wave that I started in and quickly caught several people in the groups ahead of us. Over all, I came out of the water in 25:53... the 5th fastest swim time out of everyone there (including the pros).
The bike was... well... soaked. The first mile and the last mile was about the only time on the bike that it wasn't raining. Lightening started about 5 miles into the bike, and I was just hoping that they wouldn't call the race at this point. I told myself that even if they called the race I wanted to complete it, even if there was no volunteers on the course. Biking is where I struggle the most. I averaged 22.2 mph in the rain/hail and wind. There were a few gusts that made me get out of the areobars. Along with that, the rain was coming down so hard at times I could only see about 100 yards ahead of me.
By the time I got back to transition, I wasn't really looking forward to running in wet socks and shoes. But I did my best to keep a positive attitude and remind myself that everyone else is going to have to deal with it too. I got off the bike feeling a little stiff from riding in the areo position for so long, but within the first mile I shook it off. The sun didn't come out until about the last two miles of the run, and it started getting hot and humid super quick. I did my best to keep the calories coming in along with salt tabs. that I carry with me to fight off the cramps. I passed several people on the run, which made it seem much shorter than 13.1 miles. I ended up passing the first place guy in my age group around mile 10 and put about 6 to 7 minutes on him during the last three miles. I completed the run in 1:22:48 (6:20 pace) and copied Rich from the Johans race at the finish line by bending over to swipe my timing chip across the line. I took off the cheap plastic ankle strap they gave us during the run b/c it started cutting the skin around my ankle. I think this was the 5th fastest run time out of everyone there (including the pros).
Overall I placed 13th out of 590 people. I completed it 4:22:38. My first goal was to be in the top 25. My second goal was to break 1:25 in the run. And my other goal was to either break 4:30 (or 4:20 if I had I great race). So I guess I accomplished everything that I wanted to... just 2.5 minutes off of breaking 4:20...
Before completing this RR... I need to give a shout out to a few people:
1. The volunteers at the race: Not sure if anyone knows anyone that braved the weather to make the race possible for the athletes, but I am super grateful for them... make sure that you let them know.
2. Guy: For making the drive down to deliver some uniforms. I wore our team kit and found to be the most comfortable, and best fit, of any uniform that I've worn.
3. Joshua Smith: Doing a great job announcing at the race!
Warsaw Optimist Triathlon
June 28th 2008 -
This is race is a sprint distance, and since I'm not a "sprinter" I knew this would stretch me a bit. I'm much more of a 1/2 IM or longer racer. The longer the race, the better
The swim was only 400 yards. Being my strongest point of the race I wasn't able to put much time on people. The lake was a great temperature, and using a wetsuit for this short of a race wouldn't be worth it.
The bike ride was only 13.5 miles. The beginning of the bike has a couple good hills, then it becomes an out an back. The last portion of hte ride is pretty technical with lots of downhill cornering... something I need to work on. Since it is kinda technical at the beginning and end of the bike, it destroys a person's average because of being such a short ride. I averaged 22.5 mph.
The run is a great run course that takes the local bike paved bike path for about 2 miles of the 3.5 mile run. It was a great rolling hill, shaded, scenic route. Couldn't ask for anything better! At the beginning of the run me and another guy started out at the same time and I was leading for the first mile, then he lead until about a mile left to go. I picked up the pace to try to put distance between us and passed him. With about 1/2 mile to go we were neck and neck until the finishing kick. My legs were burning and I was hoping that he wouldn't have much a kick left b/c I knew I didn't have much left. He ended up out kicking me by 2 seconds! I was so frusterated with that... but the good news about it is that during that last mile of pushing it, I reached a new level of discomfort that I'm pretty sure I could push through longer during a race. So even though I came in 5th instead of 4th overall, I learned something from it and hopefully end up getting better results in the future.
I also finished about 2 min. faster than last year... so I'm seeing consistent improvement thoughout the season in comparison to last year.
I've been struggling with IT band issues and haven't been able to run much the last 2.5 weeks. I'm hoping to start back into some consistent running tomorrow... but will be easing into it. Looking forward to Muncie...
Johan's Trifest
June 21st 2008 -
Today, I raced my first triathlon of the season. I was worried about the weather b/c they were projecting race temps in the mid 50's, rain, and 20 mph winds. However, thanks be to God the weather cooperated for the most part. It ended up being around mid-60's to around 70 for race temps (water temp. was 60), the sun was shinning, but the winds were still there... all 20 mph of them. Anyways... here is a run down on how the race went:
Swim 1.5 Kilometers:
The water temp. was 60 degrees (so I took full advantage of the Vector Pro X2 wetsuit). I came out of the water in first place in about 19:50... which i think is my best swim time for this distance. The wind was so strong at this point that it was causing waves big enough to knock me off my straight line several times. I also got a few mouth fulls of water when trying to get a breath b/c of the large waves.
Bike: 40 Kilometers
The bike course was extremely windy (20 mph winds). The course had some descent size rollers. I paced 22.6 mph with the wind... and had the second best bike time. The fastest bike time was only 16 seconds faster than me. I rode my new disc wheel for the first time and could tell a huge difference, especially when riding into the wind. The amount of drag was significantly less. (Thank you Blackwell!!) I came into the transition to the run in first place.
Run: 10 Kilometers
The run course was extremely hilly and was a trail run. The down hills were hard to take advantage of because of all the roots and rocks on the trail. This was probably the hardest run course I've raced before. I didn't realize that IN had so many hills. I don't remember how my run time compared to all the other athletes, but I think it was like the 4th or 5th best (including the duathletes). I paced about 6:15/mile. This is about 15 to 20 seconds slower than a road run for me... but considering the course difficulty... I'll take it. If anyone has ever raced the Three Rivers Triathlon... the run course was comparable to that as far as hills goes.
Overall:
I finished in first place overall and was about 7:50 minutes ahead of second place. My finish time was 2:10 flat. I was a little disappointed with that time... but after talking to some guys after the race that raced here in previous years, they said the course was about 7 minutes slower than other years b/c of the wind. So that put me around my goal time... plus with a tough run course, a windy bike course, and waves big enough in the swim (d/t the wind) to knock you off a straight line, I'll take it.
I was interviewed by the Angola newspaper and gave credit to God for the victory. I know that He is the one that gave me the talent and drive to race and I know that he can take it away at any given time.
I also got time to chat with the Regional Coordinator for the Mideast region (Mark Lulling). I told him that I was racing for the Mideast Elite team and we talked about the team for a bit and racing. He seemed to be happy with how the team was shaping up (thanks to the hard work of Guy and Greg).
Racing for Recovery HIM
June 1st 2008 -
Today, I raced my first triathlon of the season. I was worried about the weather b/c they were projecting race temps in the mid 50's, rain, and 20 mph winds. However, thanks be to God the weather cooperated for the most part. It ended up being around mid-60's to around 70 for race temps (water temp. was 60), the sun was shinning, but the winds were still there... all 20 mph of them. Anyways... here is a run down on how the race went:
Swim 1.5 Kilometers:
The water temp. was 60 degrees (so I took full advantage of the Vector Pro X2 wetsuit). I came out of the water in first place in about 19:50... which i think is my best swim time for this distance. The wind was so strong at this point that it was causing waves big enough to knock me off my straight line several times. I also got a few mouth fulls of water when trying to get a breath b/c of the large waves.
Bike: 40 Kilometers
The bike course was extremely windy (20 mph winds). The course had some descent size rollers. I paced 22.6 mph with the wind... and had the second best bike time. The fastest bike time was only 16 seconds faster than me. I rode my new disc wheel for the first time and could tell a huge difference, especially when riding into the wind. The amount of drag was significantly less. (Thank you Blackwell!!) I came into the transition to the run in first place.
Run: 10 Kilometers
The run course was extremely hilly and was a trail run. The down hills were hard to take advantage of because of all the roots and rocks on the trail. This was probably the hardest run course I've raced before. I didn't realize that IN had so many hills. I don't remember how my run time compared to all the other athletes, but I think it was like the 4th or 5th best (including the duathletes). I paced about 6:15/mile. This is about 15 to 20 seconds slower than a road run for me... but considering the course difficulty... I'll take it. If anyone has ever raced the Three Rivers Triathlon... the run course was comparable to that as far as hills goes.
Overall:
I finished in first place overall and was about 7:50 minutes ahead of second place. My finish time was 2:10 flat. I was a little disappointed with that time... but after talking to some guys after the race that raced here in previous years, they said the course was about 7 minutes slower than other years b/c of the wind. So that put me around my goal time... plus with a tough run course, a windy bike course, and waves big enough in the swim (d/t the wind) to knock you off a straight line, I'll take it.
I was interviewed by the Angola newspaper and gave credit to God for the victory. I know that He is the one that gave me the talent and drive to race and I know that he can take it away at any given time.
I also got time to chat with the Regional Coordinator for the Mideast region (Mark Lulling). I told him that I was racing for the Mideast Elite team and we talked about the team for a bit and racing. He seemed to be happy with how the team was shaping up (thanks to the hard work of Guy and Greg).
Pathways to Pokagon State Park Triathlon
May 17th 2008 -
Today, I raced my first triathlon of the season. I was worried about the weather b/c they were projecting race temps in the mid 50's, rain, and 20 mph winds. However, thanks be to God the weather cooperated for the most part. It ended up being around mid-60's to around 70 for race temps (water temp. was 60), the sun was shinning, but the winds were still there... all 20 mph of them. Anyways... here is a run down on how the race went:
Swim 1.5 Kilometers:
The water temp. was 60 degrees (so I took full advantage of the Vector Pro X2 wetsuit). I came out of the water in first place in about 19:50... which i think is my best swim time for this distance. The wind was so strong at this point that it was causing waves big enough to knock me off my straight line several times. I also got a few mouth fulls of water when trying to get a breath b/c of the large waves.
Bike: 40 Kilometers
The bike course was extremely windy (20 mph winds). The course had some descent size rollers. I paced 22.6 mph with the wind... and had the second best bike time. The fastest bike time was only 16 seconds faster than me. I rode my new disc wheel for the first time and could tell a huge difference, especially when riding into the wind. The amount of drag was significantly less. (Thank you Blackwell!!) I came into the transition to the run in first place.
Run: 10 Kilometers
The run course was extremely hilly and was a trail run. The down hills were hard to take advantage of because of all the roots and rocks on the trail. This was probably the hardest run course I've raced before. I didn't realize that IN had so many hills. I don't remember how my run time compared to all the other athletes, but I think it was like the 4th or 5th best (including the duathletes). I paced about 6:15/mile. This is about 15 to 20 seconds slower than a road run for me... but considering the course difficulty... I'll take it. If anyone has ever raced the Three Rivers Triathlon... the run course was comparable to that as far as hills goes.
Overall:
I finished in first place overall and was about 7:50 minutes ahead of second place. My finish time was 2:10 flat. I was a little disappointed with that time... but after talking to some guys after the race that raced here in previous years, they said the course was about 7 minutes slower than other years b/c of the wind. So that put me around my goal time... plus with a tough run course, a windy bike course, and waves big enough in the swim (d/t the wind) to knock you off a straight line, I'll take it.
I was interviewed by the Angola newspaper and gave credit to God for the victory. I know that He is the one that gave me the talent and drive to race and I know that he can take it away at any given time.
I also got time to chat with the Regional Coordinator for the Mideast region (Mark Lulling). I told him that I was racing for the Mideast Elite team and we talked about the team for a bit and racing. He seemed to be happy with how the team was shaping up (thanks to the hard work of Guy and Greg).
October 11th 2008 -
Swim – 2.4 miles
The swim started out in the bay in Kona. It is amazing how much more bouyant people are in salt water in comparison to fresh water. It took some getting used to the taste of the water too. Fortunately I had some time to practice swimming in the ocean before race day. The swim started with the sound of a cannon firing and the 1600 amateurs all took off. It was mass chaos for the majority of the swim. I never really found a rhythm because of all the swimmers around me and fighting for position in the water. I came out of the ocean in 59 minutes. Thankfully they had some showers going into transition to wash out our mouths and rinse the salt off our bodies. I never was so happy to rinse my mouth out in my life.
Bike – 112 miles
This was by far the hardest bike I've ever done before. It started out nice with a slight tailwind. I was going 22 or 23 mph and making my way towards Hiwa (pronounced Hy-vee). However, about half of the way there the wind switched directions and we had a nice cross wind that was picking up. The bike was pretty desolate... and it made the miles go by pretty slow. There wasn't much scenery to look at except a bunch of lava fields. The last 7 or 8 miles into Hiwa was absolutely brutal. It was all up hill and the headwind/crosswind was so strong I couldn't even stay in aerobars. Those last 8 miles took over 30 minutes to climb into Hiwa. Even on the way back going down the hill out of Hiwa wasn't the easiest thing. The cross wind, which got even stronger, still made it impossible for me to ride in the areo-position. The northern part of the island was also hotter than Kona. By the last 15 miles of the bike, by back was really started from fighting the wind and being on the bike for a long time. Plus, on the way back towards Kona, the winds switch directions again and I had yet another headwind. I was never so happy to start the run and get off my bike.
Run – 26.2 miles
The run started out really good for me. I felt great (considering the circumstances) and was passing several people and cruising through the aid stations. It wasn't until about mile 16 on the run that I really began to hit a wall. Everything I tried to keep going wasn't working... so I had to swallow my pride and walk through some aid stations. I almost got to the point of fainting before I did this. I saw a thermometer in the 'natural energy lab' portion of the run that read 95 degrees! I was really upset about walking... but I knew that if I wanted to finish the race I had to walk. The other part about the run that made it really hard was that between miles 11 and 24 there was no spectators on the course because of going out of town. The only people I saw were other athletes and the volunteers at each aid station about a mile apart. Coming back into Kona, I was able to pick up my pace because of knowing how close I was and also having people cheering along the way. I crossed the finish line totally exhausted.
Overall:
I finished 519th and 15th in my age group. My time was 10:26. I was hoping to be about 30 minutes faster than this. So the next day while my parents and I were doing some much needed touring of the big island, I was thinking about why I couldn't hold it together on the run after feeling so good for the first portion of it. I realized that I may not have been taking in enough protein. I know that on the bike I alternate gels and powerbars and then when I get to the run I switch to gels only. I'm thinking that if I kept the same cycle of nutrition on the run as I do on the bike it could make a difference. However, I will have to wait until next year to find out if that theory holds true.
Thanks for reading and supporting me in accomplishing my life dream of racing in Kona. Your prayers were much appreciated! Thanks for taking time to read this too.
Mighty Mississinewa Triathlon
September 13th 2008 -
This past weekend I gathered up about 10 other people from IWU Cycling/Triathlon Club to go race at a triathlon about 30 miles from school. Before I get into the race report, I want to say that I was really happy to get as many first time athletes out to the race. I think I talked about 5 people into doing their first triathlon, and they all really liked it and felt really accomplished after completing the race. I love getting people hooked on this sport, because it is something that people can enjoy at any age.
Okay... now to the RR:
The swim was short... only 500 yards, which didn't give me a lot of time to put people behind me for the bike. I was the first one out of the water, with the second guy about 50 yards behind me... and he started in front of the start line by about 15 yards (I hate when people do this... it's obviously cheating!)
The bike was actually hilly for Indiana. The wind made things a bit challenging as well. I was passed by a guy around mile 4 or 5. I came off the bike in 3rd position with an average of 23.1 mph for 17 miles.
The run was a really nice course. About half of it is on the road and half of it is on a dirt road/trails. I started the run about 2 minutes back from the first place guy. I knew I had my work cut out for me because with only a 4 mile run, that meant I had to pace :30/mile faster than him. Unfortunately I was unable to catch him... he beat me by 14 seconds. However, I paced what I wanted to for the run, 5:55/mile. I think if I had a chance to redo that last mile, I might have been able to catch him. But coming in second isn't the end of the world... I learned something from it and that will help me compete better in the future.
Below is a picture of all but one person that competed from the school club. I wasn't wearing the USAT uniform b/c it was IWU Club event and the triathlon wasn't USAT Sanctioned. Hope that doesn't matter:
Louisville IM
August 31st 2008 -
Sunday morning we arrived at transition area around 5:00 and I got all my biking stuff finalized and made my walk to the swim start that was about a mile away. The swim start is a little different than other IronMan races because of being a river swim and not a lake. Due to the current, it makes it impossible to line up 2100 athletes in the water and expect them to stay in one spot. So we all lined up on a sidewalk that lead out to a dock, crossed a mat to give us our start time, and jumped into the Ohio River to begin the 2.4 mile swim. The first 1/3 of the swim was upstream and then we came back with the current. I thought the swim was a bit long, but since swimming is my strongest leg of the race, I didn't mind that. The water temperature was about 84 degrees, so it was good that I trained in the Portage YMCA all summer because that is about the temperature they keep the pool at. The water temperature was too warm for people to use wetsuits, but thankfully I planned ahead and bought a speedsuit through an IWU Cycling/Triathlon Club sponsor (Xterra Wetsuits) and was able to use that. It makes a huge difference... in fact those speedsuits are very similar to the suits that the olympic swimmers were using this year in Bejing. I came out of the water in 59 minutes and had the fastest swim in my age group.
The bike course was very well laid out. We started out going east, which is mostly uphill and happened to be into the wind. We rode out to La Grange and did about 30 mile loop there twice and started back to Louisville. I had a little trouble with my bike about half way through the course, but nothing too major. I wasn't able to get into my small chain ring to climb some of the hills. Thankfully, the biggest climbs were behind me and I didn't get slowed down too much by being force to stay in my big chain ring for the remainder of the bike ride. The last 20 or so miles seemed to take forever. Even with being mostly downhill and having a tailwind, the heat started taking its toll. I was drinking and pounding gels and Endurolytes like crazy trying to keep myself together and give myself as much energy to start the run as possible. I averaged 21.3 mph for the 112 miles and arrived back at transition about 5 hours and 17 minutes after I left. I had the fastest bike split for age group as well.
The run started off really well. After exiting transition and making a few turns, we ran about half way across the bridge that goes into IN. The breeze coming off the river felt really good. The first four miles of the run I averaged 6:30 pace. There were aid stations about every mile equipped with Gatorade Endurance formula, water, ice, chicken broth, coke, pretzels, bananas, energy bars, gels, and cold sponges. Every aid station I made sure I dumped ice down between my back and my uniform to help keep my core temperature down, drank some water, grabbed some sponges and rang them out over my head, and grabbed an energy gel if I wasn't already caring one. For the first part of the run, I took about two Endurolytes (salt tablets) about every-other aid station and an energy gel about every three miles. But on the second half of the run I was taking two salt tabs about every aid station and a gel every couple miles. The temperature got to about 95 degrees... I have no idea what the heat index was for the day. The most depressing thing about the run came around mile 14 when you come about 100 yards from the finish line, but instead of going towards it, you make a right hand turn and go back out into the sun for the remaining 12-ish miles. I was hoping to run the marathon in 3 hours, but due to the temperatures I finished the run in 3:28, which was good enough for the fastest run split in my age group as well.
Overall, I finished first in my age group and was 18th overall male (5th amatuer) and finished in 9:49:59. I really wanted to break 9:45... maybe next year. I beat a few pros and qualified for the World Championship IM in Hawaii this year. Qualifying for KONA has been a dream of mine for a long time. So I guess I got another race to add to my schedule this year on October 11th. I hope that my professors at school will understand and work with me to make this thing happen. I guess I got some scrambling to do to get things ready to make this dream a reality. Please pray for me that I would be able to balance school, clinicals, work, and training and still get everything done that needs to be done.
Thanks for taking time to read this and supporting me in anyway that you have in the past, whether it be just words of encouragement, training together, or any other way
Steelhead Triathlon
August 1st 2008 -
This was a really disappointing race for me... but I know we all have to take the good with the bad and press on.
The swim was canceled b/c the waves in Lake Michigan were about 4 feet high. This surprised me b/c anyone that qualified for Clearwater will be swimming in conditions like that. Anyways... the swim was replaced with a 2 mile run and was delayed by about an hour. It was so chaotic for the first portion of the race. I never was able to get up to speed because of the mass of people. This also kept me from getting the needed lead that I get on people during the swim so I can get off the bike around the same time as the strong bikers.
The bike course was beautiful... nice rolling hills most of the time. It was actually about 54 miles instead of 56 because the bike route was changed last minute because the first run was on the first portion of the bike leg. So with that taken into consideration, I averaged about 23 mph... got into transition knowing I had lots of time to make up on people in my age group because we all started the bike leg around the same time.
The 13.1 mile run went really well for me. I didn't get passed by anyone. The course was also very nicely laid out. We ran on a combination of road, bike/walking path, and parking lots. There was one big hill on the way out and then another one on the loop that we did twice. I ended up pacing about 6:22/mile.
I ended up finishing 41st out of about 1380 males that finished the race. Surprisingly, this wasn't good enough to qualify me for Clearwater! Jody Williford was 40th overall this race and he easily qualified for his AG (35-39). He was 4th in his AG and 10 went to Clearwater.
Tom Linck won his AG... great race for him!
I really think that if this would have been a triathlon instead of a duathlon, my chances of making Clearwater would have been very likely. But, I'd never raced a duathlon before (and I now have a bit more respect for duathletes... so Guy will be happy about that) and had no idea how to race one.
Muncie Endurathon
July 12th 2008 -
I was really hopeful that the weather would hold off... but I my drive to the race site on Saturday I could see lightening in the distance. In the back of my mind I kept telling myself that I didn't drive all the way down to Muncie to not race and was hoping for the best. Thankfully I was able to complete the race, but not with just about everything that mother nature could throw at us.
The swim at Muncie was great for me. They started the wave times about 3 minutes apart instead of 5 minutes b/c they wanted to get the athletes out of the water ASAP. I got to use my speedsuit for the first time in a race (water temp was 80 degrees). I got out infront of hte wave that I started in and quickly caught several people in the groups ahead of us. Over all, I came out of the water in 25:53... the 5th fastest swim time out of everyone there (including the pros).
The bike was... well... soaked. The first mile and the last mile was about the only time on the bike that it wasn't raining. Lightening started about 5 miles into the bike, and I was just hoping that they wouldn't call the race at this point. I told myself that even if they called the race I wanted to complete it, even if there was no volunteers on the course. Biking is where I struggle the most. I averaged 22.2 mph in the rain/hail and wind. There were a few gusts that made me get out of the areobars. Along with that, the rain was coming down so hard at times I could only see about 100 yards ahead of me.
By the time I got back to transition, I wasn't really looking forward to running in wet socks and shoes. But I did my best to keep a positive attitude and remind myself that everyone else is going to have to deal with it too. I got off the bike feeling a little stiff from riding in the areo position for so long, but within the first mile I shook it off. The sun didn't come out until about the last two miles of the run, and it started getting hot and humid super quick. I did my best to keep the calories coming in along with salt tabs. that I carry with me to fight off the cramps. I passed several people on the run, which made it seem much shorter than 13.1 miles. I ended up passing the first place guy in my age group around mile 10 and put about 6 to 7 minutes on him during the last three miles. I completed the run in 1:22:48 (6:20 pace) and copied Rich from the Johans race at the finish line by bending over to swipe my timing chip across the line. I took off the cheap plastic ankle strap they gave us during the run b/c it started cutting the skin around my ankle. I think this was the 5th fastest run time out of everyone there (including the pros).
Overall I placed 13th out of 590 people. I completed it 4:22:38. My first goal was to be in the top 25. My second goal was to break 1:25 in the run. And my other goal was to either break 4:30 (or 4:20 if I had I great race). So I guess I accomplished everything that I wanted to... just 2.5 minutes off of breaking 4:20...
Before completing this RR... I need to give a shout out to a few people:
1. The volunteers at the race: Not sure if anyone knows anyone that braved the weather to make the race possible for the athletes, but I am super grateful for them... make sure that you let them know.
2. Guy: For making the drive down to deliver some uniforms. I wore our team kit and found to be the most comfortable, and best fit, of any uniform that I've worn.
3. Joshua Smith: Doing a great job announcing at the race!
Warsaw Optimist Triathlon
June 28th 2008 -
This is race is a sprint distance, and since I'm not a "sprinter" I knew this would stretch me a bit. I'm much more of a 1/2 IM or longer racer. The longer the race, the better
The swim was only 400 yards. Being my strongest point of the race I wasn't able to put much time on people. The lake was a great temperature, and using a wetsuit for this short of a race wouldn't be worth it.
The bike ride was only 13.5 miles. The beginning of the bike has a couple good hills, then it becomes an out an back. The last portion of hte ride is pretty technical with lots of downhill cornering... something I need to work on. Since it is kinda technical at the beginning and end of the bike, it destroys a person's average because of being such a short ride. I averaged 22.5 mph.
The run is a great run course that takes the local bike paved bike path for about 2 miles of the 3.5 mile run. It was a great rolling hill, shaded, scenic route. Couldn't ask for anything better! At the beginning of the run me and another guy started out at the same time and I was leading for the first mile, then he lead until about a mile left to go. I picked up the pace to try to put distance between us and passed him. With about 1/2 mile to go we were neck and neck until the finishing kick. My legs were burning and I was hoping that he wouldn't have much a kick left b/c I knew I didn't have much left. He ended up out kicking me by 2 seconds! I was so frusterated with that... but the good news about it is that during that last mile of pushing it, I reached a new level of discomfort that I'm pretty sure I could push through longer during a race. So even though I came in 5th instead of 4th overall, I learned something from it and hopefully end up getting better results in the future.
I also finished about 2 min. faster than last year... so I'm seeing consistent improvement thoughout the season in comparison to last year.
I've been struggling with IT band issues and haven't been able to run much the last 2.5 weeks. I'm hoping to start back into some consistent running tomorrow... but will be easing into it. Looking forward to Muncie...
Johan's Trifest
June 21st 2008 -
Today, I raced my first triathlon of the season. I was worried about the weather b/c they were projecting race temps in the mid 50's, rain, and 20 mph winds. However, thanks be to God the weather cooperated for the most part. It ended up being around mid-60's to around 70 for race temps (water temp. was 60), the sun was shinning, but the winds were still there... all 20 mph of them. Anyways... here is a run down on how the race went:
Swim 1.5 Kilometers:
The water temp. was 60 degrees (so I took full advantage of the Vector Pro X2 wetsuit). I came out of the water in first place in about 19:50... which i think is my best swim time for this distance. The wind was so strong at this point that it was causing waves big enough to knock me off my straight line several times. I also got a few mouth fulls of water when trying to get a breath b/c of the large waves.
Bike: 40 Kilometers
The bike course was extremely windy (20 mph winds). The course had some descent size rollers. I paced 22.6 mph with the wind... and had the second best bike time. The fastest bike time was only 16 seconds faster than me. I rode my new disc wheel for the first time and could tell a huge difference, especially when riding into the wind. The amount of drag was significantly less. (Thank you Blackwell!!) I came into the transition to the run in first place.
Run: 10 Kilometers
The run course was extremely hilly and was a trail run. The down hills were hard to take advantage of because of all the roots and rocks on the trail. This was probably the hardest run course I've raced before. I didn't realize that IN had so many hills. I don't remember how my run time compared to all the other athletes, but I think it was like the 4th or 5th best (including the duathletes). I paced about 6:15/mile. This is about 15 to 20 seconds slower than a road run for me... but considering the course difficulty... I'll take it. If anyone has ever raced the Three Rivers Triathlon... the run course was comparable to that as far as hills goes.
Overall:
I finished in first place overall and was about 7:50 minutes ahead of second place. My finish time was 2:10 flat. I was a little disappointed with that time... but after talking to some guys after the race that raced here in previous years, they said the course was about 7 minutes slower than other years b/c of the wind. So that put me around my goal time... plus with a tough run course, a windy bike course, and waves big enough in the swim (d/t the wind) to knock you off a straight line, I'll take it.
I was interviewed by the Angola newspaper and gave credit to God for the victory. I know that He is the one that gave me the talent and drive to race and I know that he can take it away at any given time.
I also got time to chat with the Regional Coordinator for the Mideast region (Mark Lulling). I told him that I was racing for the Mideast Elite team and we talked about the team for a bit and racing. He seemed to be happy with how the team was shaping up (thanks to the hard work of Guy and Greg).
Racing for Recovery HIM
June 1st 2008 -
Today, I raced my first triathlon of the season. I was worried about the weather b/c they were projecting race temps in the mid 50's, rain, and 20 mph winds. However, thanks be to God the weather cooperated for the most part. It ended up being around mid-60's to around 70 for race temps (water temp. was 60), the sun was shinning, but the winds were still there... all 20 mph of them. Anyways... here is a run down on how the race went:
Swim 1.5 Kilometers:
The water temp. was 60 degrees (so I took full advantage of the Vector Pro X2 wetsuit). I came out of the water in first place in about 19:50... which i think is my best swim time for this distance. The wind was so strong at this point that it was causing waves big enough to knock me off my straight line several times. I also got a few mouth fulls of water when trying to get a breath b/c of the large waves.
Bike: 40 Kilometers
The bike course was extremely windy (20 mph winds). The course had some descent size rollers. I paced 22.6 mph with the wind... and had the second best bike time. The fastest bike time was only 16 seconds faster than me. I rode my new disc wheel for the first time and could tell a huge difference, especially when riding into the wind. The amount of drag was significantly less. (Thank you Blackwell!!) I came into the transition to the run in first place.
Run: 10 Kilometers
The run course was extremely hilly and was a trail run. The down hills were hard to take advantage of because of all the roots and rocks on the trail. This was probably the hardest run course I've raced before. I didn't realize that IN had so many hills. I don't remember how my run time compared to all the other athletes, but I think it was like the 4th or 5th best (including the duathletes). I paced about 6:15/mile. This is about 15 to 20 seconds slower than a road run for me... but considering the course difficulty... I'll take it. If anyone has ever raced the Three Rivers Triathlon... the run course was comparable to that as far as hills goes.
Overall:
I finished in first place overall and was about 7:50 minutes ahead of second place. My finish time was 2:10 flat. I was a little disappointed with that time... but after talking to some guys after the race that raced here in previous years, they said the course was about 7 minutes slower than other years b/c of the wind. So that put me around my goal time... plus with a tough run course, a windy bike course, and waves big enough in the swim (d/t the wind) to knock you off a straight line, I'll take it.
I was interviewed by the Angola newspaper and gave credit to God for the victory. I know that He is the one that gave me the talent and drive to race and I know that he can take it away at any given time.
I also got time to chat with the Regional Coordinator for the Mideast region (Mark Lulling). I told him that I was racing for the Mideast Elite team and we talked about the team for a bit and racing. He seemed to be happy with how the team was shaping up (thanks to the hard work of Guy and Greg).
Pathways to Pokagon State Park Triathlon
May 17th 2008 -
Today, I raced my first triathlon of the season. I was worried about the weather b/c they were projecting race temps in the mid 50's, rain, and 20 mph winds. However, thanks be to God the weather cooperated for the most part. It ended up being around mid-60's to around 70 for race temps (water temp. was 60), the sun was shinning, but the winds were still there... all 20 mph of them. Anyways... here is a run down on how the race went:
Swim 1.5 Kilometers:
The water temp. was 60 degrees (so I took full advantage of the Vector Pro X2 wetsuit). I came out of the water in first place in about 19:50... which i think is my best swim time for this distance. The wind was so strong at this point that it was causing waves big enough to knock me off my straight line several times. I also got a few mouth fulls of water when trying to get a breath b/c of the large waves.
Bike: 40 Kilometers
The bike course was extremely windy (20 mph winds). The course had some descent size rollers. I paced 22.6 mph with the wind... and had the second best bike time. The fastest bike time was only 16 seconds faster than me. I rode my new disc wheel for the first time and could tell a huge difference, especially when riding into the wind. The amount of drag was significantly less. (Thank you Blackwell!!) I came into the transition to the run in first place.
Run: 10 Kilometers
The run course was extremely hilly and was a trail run. The down hills were hard to take advantage of because of all the roots and rocks on the trail. This was probably the hardest run course I've raced before. I didn't realize that IN had so many hills. I don't remember how my run time compared to all the other athletes, but I think it was like the 4th or 5th best (including the duathletes). I paced about 6:15/mile. This is about 15 to 20 seconds slower than a road run for me... but considering the course difficulty... I'll take it. If anyone has ever raced the Three Rivers Triathlon... the run course was comparable to that as far as hills goes.
Overall:
I finished in first place overall and was about 7:50 minutes ahead of second place. My finish time was 2:10 flat. I was a little disappointed with that time... but after talking to some guys after the race that raced here in previous years, they said the course was about 7 minutes slower than other years b/c of the wind. So that put me around my goal time... plus with a tough run course, a windy bike course, and waves big enough in the swim (d/t the wind) to knock you off a straight line, I'll take it.
I was interviewed by the Angola newspaper and gave credit to God for the victory. I know that He is the one that gave me the talent and drive to race and I know that he can take it away at any given time.
I also got time to chat with the Regional Coordinator for the Mideast region (Mark Lulling). I told him that I was racing for the Mideast Elite team and we talked about the team for a bit and racing. He seemed to be happy with how the team was shaping up (thanks to the hard work of Guy and Greg).
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