Greater Cleveland Triathlon - 1st place overall

This race was my final "tune-up" for the USA National Championships...  it went pretty well!  I was not expecting to win anything... and stuck to my race plan until the last mile or two, when I thought I had a chance to win...

I came into the race with a specific plan to race to my Olympic race paces for Nationals, but do it on a sprint distance course as a dress rehearsal.  After a disappointing early season, I needed a confidence boost going into Nationals.  It was a fun and rewarding day to allow my fitness to come through and earn my first win in a while. 

There was a great turn-out of local athletes and SnakeBite Team members at the race, which made it more fun.

The race takes place at Mentor Headlands Beach... a wonderful venue, except that it faces into the prevailing winds off Lake Erie, and is often rough.   Sadly, last year at the GTC, there was a fatality during the rough swim.   This year, there was definitely rough conditions.  Ultimately, the swim was cancelled and an additional run would be the first leg.  This plays to my strengths.

When the race started, I stuck to my plan.  I started off comfortably with the lead group.  Within the first mile of the run, two guys attacked the group and pulled ahead.  I wanted to go with them, and knew that I could, but I was racing to a plan, and decided to stick to the plan.  The Swim (aka early run) went well for me, and I ran a comfortable 6:30/mi average for the first leg

Coming into transition for T1, I could see that I was going to catch and pass one of the two who went in front of me early.  One down... two to go.

I started out on the bike feeling good.  Again, my objective today was to race my Olympic race paces I was planning for Nationals... so I held back on the bike compared to how I would normally attack a sprint bike course.

About 5 miles into the bike, I caught up to my other competitor... now I'm leading on the road and pushing along at my race pace targets... nothing more.

I felt fine on the bike, fueled well, and was looking forward to the run.

Coming into T2, I knew I was in front of my wave and was ready to see how I felt on the run.

I felt great off the bike.  The speed came easy and felt right.  6:20/mi pace for the first mile.  Heading to the second mile, which was an out-and-back, I would get a chance to see where everyone else was.   My closest competition was about 0:20 back at the turn.  I held to my goal pace, despite knowing that I was being hunted down by Bill Marut.

By the time I got to mile 2 of the last leg, Bill pulled up next to me.  We talked briefly and I told him that I was holding my goal paces and  to go for it.   Bill pulled ahead... and I hated to let him go, but I was thinking about Nationals the next weekend and didn't want to push it too hard.

I noticed that Bill stopped pulling ahead of me... and started to yo-yo in front of me...

I held back the entire race, but within a mile of the finish, I could sense blood in the water, and was starting to picture how I would feel losing my wave by 5 seconds...   I couldn't take it anymore...  I had to RACE!

I surged and closed the gap to Bill quickly.  I pulled along side him and tried to talk to him again.  It was apparent that he was starting to labor...  I made my move.

Laid down a 5:30 mile for the last mile to put a permanent gap on Bill...

When I crossed the finish line, the timekeeper told me my time was the fastest on the day!  I was happy and surprised to hear that!  I knew I won my wave/age group, but didn't think about the overall!


Again, it was a fun and rewarding day to allow my fitness to come through and earn my first win in a few years.

Portage Lakes Olympic Triathlon - 4th overall

Pushed it hard from start to finish and never felt "bad".  I did get just a couple of hints of hammy cramps during the last 2 miles.  Been a couple of years since I've done the race, and the bike course and run course (2-3 miles of pure trail running) were both new to me.  I was 4th overall (3rd amateur if you exclude Pro Ryan Bates who crushed us all).  All in all, it was a good effort and a good day!

Swim:
I pushed it from the gun and was 2nd to the first turn buoy.  Gassed, I backed off a bit and got into a nice rhythm.  First race  in while where I wasn't getting the shit kicked out of me constantly.  It helped me focus on form, turnover and power.  Occasionally, I chased some feet, but they were either slow or terrible at sighting.  One guy was doing the backstroke - seriously - he was fast (passed me) but then veered way off course and I let him go.  No one else passed me that I saw to grab.

Out of the water around 26:00 by my watch...  saw my time, shrugged, and ran up the hill to transition.  (Last year and all prior years, seeing a time that slow would have upset me, likewise seeing a 21 would get me excited, but I've learned that swim courses are rarely accurate and to stop getting a feeling one way or the other.  After the race, everyone said they thought it was a long swim.

Pretty good transition, except I still get my wetsuit stuck on my left ankle/foot...  lost a little time there...  took a gel in transition and headed out.

That's about the time that the HR monitor (that was working all day yesterday and during warm-up today) decided to stop working and display "lost signal" again...  brand new battery.  I couldn't get my Garmin before tomorrow... so I shrugged again... nothing I can do now, but I hate to lose the data!  Tried a few more times during the first lap to get it to work.  No dice.  Gave up on it.

BIKE:
Pushed the bike, but not as hard as I usually start because of your advice and race plan.  I bounded up the hills (sure I spiked my HR each time) but passed so many people each time.  Felt good, so I kept it going.  Plowed through all of the sprint people left on the course in the first loop, had to make a couple of borderline dangerous passes to not kill my momentum thanks to some slower people riding 2 abreast and such.

Second lap I pushed harder effort, but honestly wasn't much faster in all likelihood... the good thing was it was only Olympic people now and I was eating up spots.  My split showed about 1:09 - and since I've never ridden the course before, I have no benchmark until I see the other splits posted.  My speedometer showed 25.5 miles...It was an undulating course, almost never flat.  A couple sections were very recently chip-sealed and were covered in loose stone... I stayed in the saddle for all of those climbs to avoid any mishap.  I was generally happy with my gear selection throughout.  A few times, I was in the small ring for some climbs.  Again - nothing was flat.  I used every single gear combination at least twice during the bike.

Saw a couple guys from wave before who were riding well and mixed it up with them a bit toward the end of the second lap, which helped us each work harder I'm sure... but some of the second lap was solo / no-man's land... no one to work off of and keep my pace honest.

T2 was uneventful, except a little trouble getting my cold, numb feet into my runners.  I followed Mike Schaffer (SSSMT) into T2 and was worried about that.  He's 41 also (but I didn't know until after the race he started with elite wave 2 waves in front).

RUN:
I chased Mike up the 1 mile long hill and passed him about 1/2 way up, and put in a kick to make sure he didn't get any ideas about trying to stick with me. Mile 1 was 6:40 by my watch... and was all uphill.  At about mile 1.5, the run course took a most interesting route through the woods on a mountain bike path for the next 1.25-1.5 miles.  It was a bit slippery/muddy and was riddled with big roots.  it was a non-stop tripping hazard to navigate.  Mile 2 sign I'm sure was misplaced, because I was about 8:10 for that mile, and about 6:05 for mile 3... so I'm calling both miles about a 7:07, which given the terrain, I was happy with.  Only one guy passed me on the run... a BAFF guy I've never seen before.  No age or anything on his leg, so no clue which wave or AG.

Started the second lap and was starting to feel the fatigue of the effort, and also was without anyone to chase or keep in front of me.  My mile splits were comperable to +0:10/mile.  They only had 1-3 miles marked, so mile "4" included the extra .25 (those with Garmins calculated 6.5 for the course)...  mile 4 was 8:13 (including the extra distance), Mile 5 (long mile) was 8:15 (vs 8:10 last lap) and Mile 6 was 6:16 (vs 6:05 last lap) and then into the finish chute.

Will get official splits later to see their times and if they mark the distances differently.

Weather:  approximately 52F at start.  Light wind.  Lake was calm.  "warmed up" to about 65F by end of race.  Wind stayed light and not noticeable.

NUTRITION:  breakfast about 3 hours before.
Bottle of sports drink in the car on the way down, as well as a cup of coffee and a bottle of beet juice (about 100 minutes before start of race was scheduled).   Sipped on some sports drink before the race, and took 1 caffinated gel 15min before scheduled start per plan.

Nothing during the swim, except the occasional, accidental lake water sip.  :)

T1 - took a caffeinated powerbar gel.

Bike - consumed 24oz EFS during the ride.  Took second gel start of 2nd  lap (about 35 min into bike) per plan.

T2 - Roctane gel (hated the consistency.. won't do that again during a race)

Run:
I consumed 1 gel during the run, about halfway through, and nearly all of 2 x 8oz bottles of EFS on my fuel belt, with a couple of sips of water at 1,4 mile aid station.

Recovery drink, banana, pretzels and water post-race... and a coke on the way home (guilty pleasure).

Rev3 Cedar Point Race Report - Full Rev - new PR (10:22)

This was my 6th Ironman distance triathlon, and this one didn't disappoint!  This year I set a new PR at 10 hours 22 minutes... which bested my previous PR of 10:40... finished 12th overall and 2nd in my age group in a major iron distance race... and renewed my confidence that I can break 10 hours in the next year or two.  I was on track to do so this year, but stomach/GI problems forced me to walk the aid stations and stop in the porta-potties a couple of times.  That's all part of the experience!

 This season, I was 50/50 if I was going to be able to pull off proper training for an IM distance race, given my new job as VP Operations with a new company I had started the fall before...  then in a bit of luck in early summer, I fell bass-ackwards into a Rev3 slot and that sealed the deal.

In the spring, I had been doing a lot of my run training with Jim LaMastra as he prepared for his first full season on the Pro circuit and in the summer AJ Baucco (2 years Pro) and I spent some solid time on the bike together.  I learned quite a bit about training at the next level from these two successful athletes.  I am simply amazed and impressed at the "next level" of dedication, focus, work and sacrifice that these guys have...  Much respect!

We hosted an out of town professional, Justin Harris for the days before and after the race. Another hard working and amazing athlete, who was racing his first Ironman distance as a Pro. Justin is a great guy who is going to have a bright future in the sport. I thought his goal of going 9 hours in his first Ironman was "aggressive"... but he came in at 9:02 (finishing just out of the money).

I found this note from Amy tucked into my race bag the night before the race...  It meant a lot to me!!  : )

I have to say, my family (Amy in particular) have always been supportive of what is often a "selfish" sport... especially when it comes to ironman training... many long hours on the road on the 12 weekends before the race... (6 hours bike rides, 3 hour runs).  Without their love and support, I could never do this, and certainly not do it successfully!!  THANK YOU GUYS!!


The Race:  2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile marathon... 10:22:36 (12 overall and 2nd in AG)


Swim:   2.4 miles - 1:10 (nothing special - plan was to go super-easy)
The mass start was moved off the beach into the water a bit because of extended shallows (about 400m)... so we did a "knee deep mass start" of about 400 athletes.  My plan was to start the day easy, find some feet to folow if possible, and get my day off to a good start.  I have enough experience now to know I can drive myself mad trying to save 5 minutes in the swim only to be a head case or tired when I come out of the water and look at my watch... 

I stayed extremely calm during the first 1.2 mile loop... conserving energy and emotion...  I felt great after the first loop and decided to push the pace just a bit on the second loop.  To my luck, I found a "good pair of feet" early in the second lap and jumped on them.  I let this guy "carry" me to the end of the swim course and thanked him as I passed him running into Transition.  I meant it sincerely, but I don't think he cared for it.

Bike:  112 miles - 5:02 (2nd fastest overall split - 22.2mph - plan was to be 5:10)
This is my strength, the bike, and I know this course well.  Much of my long-distance training this summer was along the main loop of the Rev3 course... a definite advantage to know my pacing and gearing and effort and such.

I held my effort back on the first loop, as planned, in order to avoid any kind of "blow up"...  this worked well and I was able to sustain my effort the entire bike course. Had I realized how close I would be to the 5:00 mark, I might have pushed the pace a bit more to break that symboic barrier

As I came to transition, knowing I had a good bike leg, Amy and the boys where there screaming and cheering for me - which was awesome.  Then Amy blew my mind and said that I was in 7th place overall coming off the bike!  I was excited to hear that, but then felt pressure of being so high up in such a large race!!

Run:  26.2 miles - 4:02 (stomach problems slowed me down 8 miles in...)
My head was spinning when I left transition... 7th place overall?  Yikes...  sad to say, that messed with my head a little at first.  I started out on the run feeling quite good, and my first couple of miles were about 7:00/mi pace... a little too quick, but felt good... but I needed to back off and slow down a bit or else die later...

About 5 miles into the marathon, I was averaging 7:27/mi pace when I was hit with a bad feeling in my GI system...   it required me to stop at a porta-potty and try to get things out.  No dice...  so after a few wasted minutes, I started to run again... but the feeling kept hitting me and forcing me to walk from time to time.  Very frustrating - as I was on pace to be very near to the 10:00 mark.

Carry on, that's what Ironman racing is all about... mind vs body vs luck.

Coming to the half-marathon turn-around, I saw Amy and the boys and some other friends... which was a great lift to my spirits... 127.5 miles down... 13.1 to go!!

I was able to see the Pros at the head of thier race... It was cool since I knew a few of them personally and others just from following the sport. They were finishing up (8:31 won the race) as I was into my second lap... I cheered those guys on and then focused on finishing up my own race.

Unfortunatley, I had to walk each aid station to refuel what my body was begging for, but my stomach was rejecting...  UGH... that feeling just sucks...

But then again...  that's what Ironman racing is all about... mind vs body vs luck.

Coming into the last couple of miles, I kept an eye on my watch and saw I was  close to being under 10:25... a significant milestone... so I pushed myself to make sure I did that.  I actually started to run and feel well again (go figure) and had a decent last couple of miles.

Amy and the boys were right there to greet my exhausted self as I crossed the finish line, stopping the clock at 10:22:36 - an 18 minute PR for me, and good enough for 12th place overall (out of ~ 400 who did the Full Rev) and 2nd place out of 48 in my age group.

Post Race:
Well, I was exhausted, as you might imagine... all I wanted to do was sit down... and sit I did...

They had a NorTech tent (compression recovery equipment) and I happily took a turn in there.  I liked the equipment and the way it helped make me feel as the day began to sink into my mind.  I did it... at 40 years old, I got faster yet again, and beat most of the field racing... many (most?) of whom were younger than me.  I know I only have a couple years left before I start the inevitable decline... but I am enjoying every minute of it right now!!

After getting some needed post-race nutrition and family time in...  I collected my gear, said good-by to the family (who drove back earlier because it was a 'school night').  I then stayed for a few more hours cheering in teammates, friends and random strangers who were putting themselves through the mental and physical torture that is an Ironman distance triathlon... 140.6 miles... 



What a great event!


It was a pleasure to have to call off work for the next day (Monday) so that I could attend the awards banquet / ceremony to collect my "goodies" for my 2nd place AG finish, and to see the "big checks" being handed out to the Professional Men and Women.

Vermilion Olympic Triathlon - 3rd place overall

This was just supposed to be for fun and a last pre-Ironman race-day rehersal...  Vermilion is a "home course" for us West-siders and SnakeBite Racing Team was planning to have a good turn-out.  I'd been training like mad for long distance, with no speedwork and dead legs from all of the long rides and runs.  My goal for the day was to bike pretty hard, and then run on tired legs to simulate Ironman racing.

 

I had my typical mid-pack swim (30th out of the water) and then went after everyone on the bike.  I posted the 3rd fastest split on the bike for the day... I was fine that I wasn't the fastest since my focus for the past month had been all endurance rides of 5-7 hours.

 

When I hopped off the bike, I expected my legs to be shot from all of the training miles and the effort of the day, and figured after a couple of quick miles (6:20/mi pace) that I'd start to feel the pain.  I ran those fast miles, and realized there were only a couple of guys in front of me...  Was I in 3rd place?  Maybe 2nd (since one of the two ahead of me was in regular running clothes = relay team member)...

Wow - I've been as high as 5th overall in the HFP races, but never top 3.  That gave some real motivation to push the run the whole way through and see where I could finish.  I gritted my teeth and ran my 3rd mile at about 6:20/mi again...  A little faster than I normally run Olympic Distance 10ks... (usually 6:45ish average)... at the 3.1 mile turnaround, I could see that I was defnitely the 3rd runner and while there were some coming behind me, nothing that looked a serious threat (at least in my wave).

The next two miles just sucked.  My pace slipped to about 6:30/mi and my legs were SCREAMING!  But knowing my position and the fact that another wave could have a faster person, I kept pushing the pace and gutting out the pain.

The last mile was easier mentally - knowing I had made it this far on my tired legs, held pace, and wasn't letting anyone get any closer (that I could see anyhow).  The last mile was about 6:25/mi pace and I put together my best 10k pace!

I burst across the finish line and finally let off the pressure...   The Chronicle-Telegram was there and got a nice photo (which was later used in their story about the race...).  At the time, it was beleived I was the 2nd overall (not counting the relay team)... but there was one guy in a later wave that managed to beat me too, which moved me to 3rd overall.  Still - I was VERY happy with my performance that day personally (Course Record for me by a big margin) and my highest overall finish in an Olympic Triathlon.

The Chronicle-Telegram did a nice story on the race in the paper the next day, and gave a nice portion of the story to my interview:  http://chronicle.northcoastnow.com/2012/08/20/vermilion-triathlon-avons-hagan-leads-local-pack/ 

SnakeBite Racing Team had a great showing on the day  -  lots of team members won or got a top 3 in thier age groups and everyone had a good time!!  It is always great to race and see so many of your teammates out there giving it their all!

 

All-in-all, it was a pleasant surprise to have done so well, given the lack of specific training / preparation for the race.  Sometimes the best races come when you least expect them!!