Random Ironman Thoughts

-You get used to the taste of saltwater after awhile
-Why did my nose run the whole bike ride
-All the athletes were so friendly, not like a marathon. People were genuinely interested
-2277 is a lot of people.
-I am not the slowest swimmer after all.
-Beer during a marathon tastes great.
-Chicken broth YUM
-Not nervous, just prepared
-My 12yr old said that he would like to do this some day! Wow that made it all worth while
-The finishers chute happens so fast.
-I spent how much?

Back in the game

Well it is time to get back in the game. I have been running a little bit. I continue to think about goals for next year. I have had a lot of people ask me what is next.

Still not sure. I will do the Disney Marathon in January. I am thinking about signing up for St Anthonys Triathlon. I would like to do atleast to half Ironman distances next year..

2009 another Ironman. I loved the experience so much. I want to do it again. I have areas to get better on. this weekend I will do a swim at Luckys, probably 2k and a 17 mile run iwth the group from the Y on Sunday. Trying to balance all of this extra time I have. But I do not want to loose my fitness level and all that I have achieved.

New goals

Working on new goals for next year. There are still areas I can work on as far as triathlon.


I can do better on my swim.
I need to learn to bi lateral breath.
Become a stronger cyclist.
More brick workouts
Run faster.

I would love to qualify for Boston. I would have to shave about an hour off my marathon time. 3:15 is the qualifying time. How in the heck do I do that?

Ironman Florida Race Report

IRONMAN Panama City Beach, Fl, November 3rd 2007
I am an IRONMAN!

What a great weekend. Thank you to all my friends and family for your support and encouragement on race day. It was helpful knowing that there were so many people tracking me online. I will do my best to recap the race and the weekend. So I will apologize in advance for the length of this race report.

THURSDAY NOV 1st:
My training partner Clint and I arrived in Panama City Beach on Thursday afternoon. We stayed at the Ocean Ritz, a 4 bedroom 4 bath Condo about which was about a mile down the beach from the race. We registered for the race picking up our assorted transition bags and the timing chip. We then hit the water for a little swim. Much to my relief the water was flat. I have done open water swims at Lucky that were rougher. My main goal with getting in the water was to figure out which wetsuit to wear. I tested out the sleeveless suit; the water was probably in the low 70’s.

Thursday evening was spent at the Athletes’ dinner. Paula Newby-Fraiser, Mike Reilly and Michael Lovato all spoke. All 2200 athletes and some family were all crammed in for a pasta dinner. After dinner, they went over rules such as no ipods, drafting on the bike and exposing yourself on the bike (use the porta potty or get arrested!). We were also assured that there were no sharks in the water, but perhaps bears on the bike course and Florida panthers on the run route (ha-ha).

FRIDAY NOV 2nd:
We went to expo for the pancake breakfast and to spend some (a lot) of money on Ironman merchandise. Later, Clint and I went for another swim. I tried the full wetsuit, I decided to race in the sleeveless suit, as I was worried that the full suit would restrict my movement. I need all the help I can get on the swim. By lunchtime, the families arrived. We gathered our transition bags and bikes and headed back to the expo the drop all our bags. (A lot of time was spent checking and double checking these bags.)

Family members making the trip to support me were my Parents, my Uncle Jon and Aunt Gail, my oldest son, JT and of course my wonderful wife, Kristy.


SATURDAY NOV 3rd RACE DAY!:
I had a 3am wake up alarm and I drank 2 bottles of ensure to get my calories started in my body. I tossed and turned until 4am. At 4am I got out of bed had some coffee, Gatorade and some Quaker Oatmeal bites. We headed for the start shortly before 5am.

We got to the transition area shortly after 5am. I dropped off my special needs bags and went to check on my bike. I loaded up my bike with my water bottles and some food. When entering transition we got body marked: 980 on my thighs and arm and age on my calf. I put on my wetsuit and headed to the water. It was still dark out. The pros were set to go off at 6:50 with the rest of us off at 7am. The swim start area was fenced off, but I was able to find my family. My plan was to wait about 20 second after the start and get in the water.



THE SWIM: 2.4 miles
The gun went off and everything seemed to happen quickly. I entered the water with Clint, we bumped a few times and that was the last I saw of him. I cannot describe the swim. Ironman Florida is a 2 loop swim course. It was crazy! About 2200 athletes all sharing the water. I got to one point and I just floated there. I had no where to go, no open water, no room. I did get hit and kicked. There is nothing like a good kick to the stomach to start your morning. I got a little freaked out. I had to do the backstroke a couple time to get it together. I had planne on being way to the right, but some how I would up in the middle, close to the markersRounding the first turn buoy was more like shuffling than swimming. I felt better on the inward leg, going towards shore. It started to clear out a bit and was not that bad. I excited the first loop at about 42 minutes. I grabbed a quick sip of fresh water and it was back in the water for the second loop. I did have time to thank one of the kayakers. It was nice to see all of the volunteers. I felt good for the second loop; I kept my head down and swam pretty well. This lap I swam inside the box and around the end markers. That worked great. I did bump into people from time to time. I exited the swim at 1:25. This is much better than I had expected.




TRANSITION 1: Swim to Bike
We exited the water and ran up the beach little, they had people there to strip your wetsuit. It was great, I sat down 2 volunteers yanked the wet suit off me! They said some words of encouragement, slapped me on the shoulder and off I went. PVC pipes were set up as showers over the path; this was great to rinse some of the salt water off me. As I am running towards T1 volunteers are yelling out my number. 980! 980! They had my swim to bike transition bag ready. I headed into the changing tent.

I loaded my bike jersey with the oatmeal raisin cookies and pretzels. I put on my helmet, bike shoes and race belt. There was a volunteer there to load my wetsuit and stuff into the bag. As I exited the tent, again volunteers are yelling my number so that some one else can grab my bike for me. T1 time 7:38

THE BIKE: 112 miles

The bike was pretty uneventful. I stuck to my plan. I drank my nutrition every 30 minutes and kept well hydrated. I carry one 6 hour bottle of Perpetuem from Hammer that must have about 1200 calories in it. There were water/Gatorade stops every 10 miles. Again, the volunteers here were great. There was one stop manned with Pirates. You would yell out if you wanted water or Gatorade and they would run along side you so that you could grab a bottle. I picked up my special needs bag at about mile 50. I quickly ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, yum!

There was a very rough bumpy road at mile 65 that was very painful. I did stop to use the porta potty twice, so I wouldn’t get arrested. These breaks probably cost me 10 minute on the bike. The wind started to pick up the last half the ride. The wind also seemed to turn with us; it always seemed to be a head wind. My average speed dropped because of the wind, but I didn’t want to push to hard and put my run in jeopardy. I was aiming for a little faster on the bike. I did feel good about passing some very expensive bikes with wheels that cost more than my bike…I ended up averaging 17.7mph on the bike with a total time of 6:19.


TRANSITION 2: Bike to Run
As I entered T2, I spotted my Uncle Jon & Aunt Gail and then as I was off my bike I saw Kristy, JT and my Parents. It was nice to see them after a long ride. Someone grabbed my bike to run bag and it was off to the changing tents. I flipped my race belt around so my number was visible from the front, put my run shoes on, grabbed my visor and sunglasses and headed out. I did have someone apply some sunscreen this time. I had missed this when I started out on the bike and it shows...T2 time 6:05.




THE RUN: 26.2 miles
The run was alright. It was a 2 loop run course that goes through some residential area, around my some condos and into the state park. The temperature was good for the run, in the 70’s. Aid stations were set up about every mile: water, Gatorade, cola, chicken broth, pretzels, cookies, gels, and fruit! It was great! Clint did say to consider this a long catered training day. I can not say enough good things on how supportive all the volunteers and crowds were. At one point in the run there were some girls dressed in rather provocative outfits. Good to keep your mind off the pain in your legs. I also managed to find a stand with some small cups of beer, so yet again I was able to have a beer in a marathon. As the 2nd loop started, I made a quick turn and headed back out. I was able to give Kristy a quick kiss. At that point I knew I had this. I could do it.


The second loop is kind of a blur, up until about 6 miles left. At the 20 mile mark you cross a timing mate, and displayed is a message from your family. It was nice to see a quick note from Kristy. I got to about 4-5 miles left and I start to figure out that if I hustle and keep my walk breaks to a minimum I could finish under 13 hours. I had always been thinking 15 hours; but under 13 hours would be great. This gave me some thing to think about and work towards.

I walked a little with a mile to go so that I had some energy for the finishers shoot. It was amazing. I waved my arms in the air to get the crowd going, I gave some high fives, I saw my family and then broke the finishers tape. What a day! 12 Hours 54 Minutes and 30 Seconds!

Pizza and Beer were waiting for me at the end, a toast with my parents, a kiss from my wife, and a high five from JT. But I was missing Sam and Grace. I had kept three pennies in my pocket the entire day, to remind me of my kids.


I can not say enough good things about the whole journey. Anything is possible. I could not have done this without the support of my family. It was great to have them there at the end. Also, along the way I had 2 great training partners that helped me not only in the physical training but the mental training as well. When I think that 18 months ago I could not swim the length of a pool, through commitment a goal setting I was able to become an IRONMAN. This is an experience I will never forget. I will do another someday. But now I want to spend some quality time with my family.


Thank you all for your support!
- Keith

12:54:30

I am an IRONMAN!!!

What a weekend..Race report to follow

Getting Ready

Am i ready? I have piles of stuff every where. I want to make sure I do not forget anything. Swam at clearwater Beach this weekend with the sleeveless wetsuit. It was fine the water was very rough. I did not want to swim out to far, as I was swimming alone. There will be soem comfort in swimming with a large group of people.

I know I can do the distance, I have trained. It is time to leave the self doubt and nerves at home and just have fun and enjoy the race.

Weather

Extended forecast for Saturday High of 76 low of 57

Worried about being cold at the start..Might need arm warmers for the bike.

Taper

Luckily, I am in Philadephia for some meetings. I am going crazy. I am not doing any workout over an hour. I am starting to question my training. Have I gone far enough, am I fit enough. What will happen when I get to the run. Will the water be cold, rough? Should I wear my full wetsuit or sleeveless? I am going crazy.

I have taken friday off. I have to pick up my bike from the bike shop. I have started making lists of things to bring to IMFL. I feel like I am eating everything in sight. I want the day to be here. I have trained for 1 year for 1 day. What a journey.

980

980

It's offial. I have a number 980!!!!!!

Race Ready

My weekend. I took Friday off. I had planned on one last 100 mile ride at Van Fleet Trail. I had some conference calls and work stuff that came up so I could only do 60 miles. Gary did 85. How crazy is that that a 60 mile bike ride or is only 60 miles. I only have to run for an hour. That is how it is.....The ride was fine. I adjusted my seat down and forward slightly. This seemed to help my hamstring. No issues of the bike. What a relief. Friday we had both Gary and Clint over for a cookout. I wanted our wives to meet as they are going to ride to Panama together.

Saturday. Gary and I met at Luckys for a swim. It was raining fairly hard but it did not effect the swim. The main goal here was to check out the wetsuit. I like the sleeveless a lot. It felt good and gave me good mobility. I did 1K with it and had to take it off, as the water was still 82. We did a total of 4K. Felt good. The balance of Saturday was spent doing family stuff. JT had a science experiment to do with Diet Coke and Mentos.

Sunday. 4am wake up call. I met Gary and for a 20 mile run... The plan was to do 2 loops so that we could stop at the Y and refill our water. We ended up doing a large loop as, we did not want to stop at the Y, for fear we might not start again. So we ran for just about 3 hours. I am calling it 20 miles as we had no way to measure. Good run, my legs felt good. I was worried about my knee and hamstring so no issues is good.

I dropped my bike off for a tune up. I am traveling through Thursday this week. So nice easy workouts on the treadmill and stationary bike. Its all downhill from here. Next weekend I will be in Clearwater for a wedding, so I can test my full and sleeveless wetsuits and obsess about that for a while. I need to start making list of things to bring. I should buy arm warmers and more Perpetuem..

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and it says IRONMAN!!

I want my race number.

Mt Dora Bike Festival

We met Saturday morning before sun up in Mt Dora. They were having a 2 day festival featuring a bunch of different bike rides. The 100 mile ride fit in our schedule. The $40 registration fee was worth it to have someone else plan the route. There were also 3 or 4 stops along the way we could stop and refuel.

There were a lot of bikers. We started tor wards the back and let the roadies go. We did end up passing a bunch of people, but there were also some big packs on the roads. The ride started out cool. I am glad I did not wear my long sleeve shirt. It got hot quick. At the end of the ride it was very warm. The wind seemed to be pretty constant all day. I was good the first 1/3 of the ride or more. Then about half way my hamstring on my left leg was killing me. I could not pedal without pain. Great. I was better when I was not in the aero position. Going up some of the hills were fine when I was out of my saddle. I am not sure what I did.

My MPH dropped the last 30 miles. We probably averaged a little less that 17mph. Much slower than I would have liked. I did down 4 Advil it helped a little.

Nutrition on the day was fine. I should have drank more. I need to make sure I take more Enduralytes. I had an issue getting at the stuff in my bento box. I need to keep more food in my jersey. I had little pretzel sandwiches with cheddar cheese in the middle from Hanover. They were very good..I will keep those for race day.

The ride took us back into Mt Dora. Gary and I loaded the bike in the car and went for a 5 mile run. I started and finished okay. The rest sucked. I tried stretching out my hamstring, but it had to shuffle run. I could not raise my left leg, bent at the knee to my waist.

Got home in time for Kristy to leave with Grace for a birthday party. I tried to take a nap, but both time I got woken up by the phone.

SUNDAY: We met at 5am for a run. The plan was to do 12. I managed about 8 and headed back. Still some hamstring issues. I do not want to push it to hard. We did get to Lucky's lake for an open water swim. It was "cold" out, but the water temp was 82. I got 3 crossings in(3K) and felt good. I could or should have done 1 more..

My sleeveless wetsuit should come today. I am excited to try it out vs the full suit. I would like to get a lake swim in next weekend. I am in Charlotte, NC today. I brought my workout stuff, but I might just use the hot tub and pool to stretch out.

Now, I thought I was headed to the TAPER. I have been looking at the Triathlete Magazine Ironman taper, from a couple month back. It has a 100 mile bike and 20 mile run this weekend. I might modify this depending on how my body feels. I know how my mind feels. I am toast. I am ready to slow down. We will see what happens. I need to think carefully about this week and weekend..

Okay I fell Better

Set the alarm for 4:45am this morning and was out the door by 5:15. I got in a good 18+ miles. I have not mapped the run out the know exactly. I felt great. It was not to hot or humid this morning. It was dark. So I did have to watch my footing in some spots. I ran to downtown Disney refilled my water bottle a couple times and then ran to some of the hotels and kind of wandered around to get mileage before heading home. My knee only hurt a couple times. I stopped to stretch it out had some Hammer Gel and kept going. IPOD Shuffle worked great. I listened to some podcasts and then music, it helped keep me going.

I have a parent teacher conference this morning and then lunch with my daughter. I hope to get 90 minutes in the pool later this afternoon. I am traveling tomorrow. So I will be able to ride the bike or something at the hotel.

This weekend I have a 100mile ride planned with a run after. I can almost see the taper. I am ready.

Saturday Bike

Clint and I met at my house for a planned 80 mile bike. We had to wait a bit till it got light enough to leave. Of, course as we were leaving it began to rain. It rained pretty steadily for first 10-15 miles. other than that the ride was pretty uneventful. We rode out to clermont, did a loop around the lake and then headed back. The wind picked up and it was not a fun morning. I am not sure if I was pushing to hard a gear or what, but my left hamstring and and right knee are sore.

We did about a 4.5 mile run off the bike. The plan was to go longer, but it was getting to hot and we did not feel great. It's funny it was raining or over cast most of the morning and we get on the run and it seems that the sun comes out and there is no wind.

I guess all of this is just good practice. Kristy did the Race for the Taste at Disney on Sunday, so no run for me. I did get a long 90 minute swim in.

I planned on running this morning, but I am concerned about my knee. A couple times while walking around yesterday, my knee seemed to give out and I had some shooting pain. So I will take it easy today and try for a long run in the morning.

I just picked up an Ipod Shuffle as my Nano is broken. I am loading it up for my next run.

Hotel treadmills

I am traveling in Raleigh, NC this week. I was at a Courtyard last night. I was able to get a good 90 minutes in on the treadmill. These treadmills were very old. I think the belt was about a foot wide. I had to be very careful. The "exercise" room was tiny and crammed with machines, it was very stuffy..

Staying at a full service Marriott tonight. Nicer exercise room. It looks like someone actually cleans the machines at night. I got to a local pool near the UNC campus. I was able to do about 1:15 in the pool, felt good. I will hit the stationary bike for a bit and then on to dinner.

The kids called, my new bike shoes have arrived. I am still waiting on my wetsuit...

Pool and a Movie

Got to the YMCA Aquatic center yesterday for a swim. My plan was to swim for 1:30, which would put me close to 2.5miles. I have given up trying to count laps of lengths.

I got there and half of the lanes were closed. There was also a film crew set up near the dive well. They had scaffolding set up with lighting and lots of crew and such. Come to find out they were filming an Ace Ventura movie there. I did not have my contacts in so I could not tell a lot of what was going on. I know that they were filming a dog doing some sort of tricks. This was all fine until, they stopped my from swimming while they were filming. I was only stopped a couple times for a few minutes while they were filming scenes. All and all a good swim. I am not sure how far I went. It was at least 90 minutes. I also forgot my watch so I was using the wall swimming clock.

I am trying to get a number of good workouts in this week as I approach the TAPER. I would like to get another ocean swim in before heading to Panama City Beach. I am still up in the air about this weekends planed. Kristy is running the Race for the Taste 10K at Disney on Sunday. SO I will bike on Saturday. I might go to Luckys to a long open water swim and they head out for a long bike ride..or maybe I should do another longer brick..

I should also practice changing a flat, decide what to wear, what to bring, write down my nutrition, run nutrition, should I run with my camera, new socks, get more body glide, more Boudreaux's Butt Paste, decide on pre race food, bike tune up, wheres my new wetsuit?, AHHHHH

Van Fleet Trail-Windy

Well I was solo for my Sunday ride. Plus, my ipod is broken. I got to the trail a little after 6:30, of course it was still dark. I had driven Kristy's minivan, so I stretched out in the front seat and waited for sunrise. I did fall asleep. I did not want to start out on the trail in the dark because I was not sure what I could run into.

The ride was okay. The first 29 miles was fine. I was averaging around 20mph and feeling good. I was actually a little chilled the start of the ride. I was maybe 75 out and humid. I am starting to think about what to wear and what to pack.

I am feeling good about my nutrition. I think I will put some sort of energy drink, to give me a little boost in my special needs bag for the bike and maybe the run.



The return ride. I was brighter and getting warmer. But the wind was picking up. It got pretty windy. I was able to still keep my cadence and mph up but not much. for the day I ended up about 18.5mph. On the way back I ran over some kind of snake with my bike. It freaked me out. I am not sure what kind of snake it was. I know it was big. I did not see much wild life wild life this trip. I did see a ton of thse huge spiders. I am covered in these thick spiderwebs at the end of a ride.


I ended up at around 80 miles. I quick changed into my running shoes, and put on my water pack. It was now very windy the trail was empty. I ran out 2 miles and back. The first mile my legs felt like crap, as expected. I ran through it and felt pretty good. On my last my or so I was running on the paved trail right next to the brush. I looked down and their was some kind of snake maybe 2 inches from my feet. I think I jumped straight up in the air..

I got home and showered and then it was time to sell popcorn in front of the Publix with my son Sam. I was fine, I was able to run to the Starbucks for a cup of coffee to get me through the rest of the day.

Saturday

Switched my schedule around this weekend. I did my long run on Saturday morning. Kristy had a conference to go to so I needed to get up early to run. Nothing like a 4:30 alarm.

I did about 16 or 17 miles. I should have gone a little longer, but the kids were home alone. I did a round about loop and wound up at downtown Disney. It is nice to run through there. Lots to look at and plenty of water and bathroom stops.

Starting to cool off a little. My shoes did not start squishing till the end of the run.

Goals

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Time valued

That's how this all started. The running, then triathlon. Setting goals and working toward accomplishing those goals. I think it is important for my kids to see me doing these things. They may not understand it now but maybe down the road. I have had 1 son do a triathlon and the other a 5K..So maybe it is working.

Things you think about while on the treadmill for an hour.

Tattoo

On business in South Florida. I went to the gym here and noticed a women with an Ironman Tattoo on her lower back.

I asked her which she did and it was Ironman Florida. She had great things to say. She did say every time she thought about the experience or the day she light up. And it was true. She wished my luck and told me I would do great. She said to have fun and enjoy the day.

she had great thing to say about the event itseld and all the volunteers. I am so looking forward to it. I am getting tired of all this hard work.

Full Circle

I raced the Disney Triathlon on Sunday. What a great race.

I arrived at the parking area at about 6am. My bike was already in the transition area as it is mandatory to have it checked in the night before. I organized may area. The 2 bikes on either side of me did not show up so I had some extra space. I made my way to the water to get body marked. With that done it was back to transition to apply some sunscreen. I go to my area and realized that i left my nutrition(gels and blocks) in the car. I did remember my water bottles which contained my bike nutrition.

I was able to get 1 gel pack from a neighbor. I should have begged for more. I was fine on the bike and swim, I could of used a gel or 2 on the run...Live and Learn.

The Swim: My age group Men 35-39 was split into 2 waves as there was a total of 142 athletes in my group. It is amazing what difference a year makes. Last year, I raced with Team in Training. Disney was my 2nd triathlon. Last year at the start I was nervous. This year I was nervous, but more excited energy. I entered the water and swam relaxed most of the 1.5K swim. The water was fine. I did bump into some people. But I held my own. I had a 36minute swim. Which is probably good for me. I did breast stroke a couple of times, if I swallowed some water or going around the markers and that was it..Last year I had a 45 minute swim. Out of the water I was 77 out of 142

T1: Un eventful, aside from the atleast 1/4 mile run 3:12

The bike: I have ridden parts of this course quite a bit so I knew what to expect. We had some head wind the last part of the route. My goal was to average 20mph on the bike and I came in just over that. I passed a good number of people and felt good. I did see on accident. Disney attracts a lot of Team in Training and new participant, which is great... But, I think some of these people lack time on the bike and might not be as comfortable on the bike. So I was cautious of this during the ride..the last 2-4 miles they had signs up that you could not pass. I used this to stretch out my legs, so no problems. Bike time 1:49 for 35 miles. place 46 out of 142

T2: cleaned my glasses put on my running shoes and I was off. 1:53

The Run: I am not a big fan of 2 loop courses, which this was..I could have used some gel and it was hot. That is pretty much all of my excuses. I did walk a couple of times. I need to work on my brick runs. This weekend I will do a 100 mile ride and a long run after. I did have a huge stomach issue on the 2nd loop. I could not get myself to burp and I had drank to much water Gatorade and it was sitting there..finally I let out the loudest burp and felt much better.

The run was very similar to the half ironman course.. We ran off road for probably a half mile each loop which rally sucked. I only run on pavement. I never train off road, so I did not like the uneven footing..10K run 62:31. 31 out of 142.

The finish. I was able to push the last 1/4 mile and pass some people at the end. It felt good to finish strong. Total time 3:32. 39 out of 142 in my age group. What a difference a year makes. I hope I get to Ironman Florida and I am as calm and have as much fun.

Back and forth

Taking it easy this week. I have the Disney Triathlon on Sunday. I got to the pool yesterday and swam for an hour. I could have kept going and maybe should have. I also needed to do a bunch of stuff for work..

I will head over to the expo today. I need to get my bike looked at. My front derauiler does not work right now. I also want to look at what kind of sales there are. It might be nice to find out what time my wave starts. I am not overly concerned about this race. It is just another training day. It will be good to get in the water with other people.

I will head to Luckys Saturday morning for a 1 or 2 K lake swim depending on the time. I am sure I will need to get to Disney by 5:30 or 6am. I will increase my milage the next couple weeks and then look forward tothe taper.

Van Fleet-VAN BORING

Well on Saturday we met bright and early for our planned 120 mile ride. We had to wait a little to get on the bikes as the sun was not up at 6:30. The trail is 29.2miles long so we did 2 round trips. We averaged over 18.5 miles per hour for the hole day. I got in a little trouble as my family was expecting me home a little sooner. The ride took over 6 hours....That takes up a good portion of the day.

I was good on nutrition for the day. It was very hot of course. We did get some wind for the last 29 miles. I mixed a 5 hour bottle of Perpeteum, flavored with lemonade mix. I had the aero bottle filled with water and 2 other bottles with water. I had 1 uncrustable at around 60 miles. I also snack on pretzel nuggets, a cliff bar and a Pay day. I make sure that everything is in bit sizes pieces, they seem to help me get more water down. I also use Enduralytes, 2 per hour.

The plan called for a run after the bike. We were able to run for about 2 miles after. Not a great run of course.

When I got home Saturday it was aquick shower and off the run errands. It was my sons birthaday on Sunday, so we were having 3 kids sleep over.

I was not able to take a nap that day and I paid the price on Sunday.

We were to do a 20 mile run on Sunday. I was exhausted. I could only manage about 10 miles. I cold have probably kept going, but I would have been worthless all day. It was Sam's 10th birthday and I did not think it would be fair to him. I have taken a ton of time away from my family with training and work. I will have to find time for a 20 miler soon. This Sunday is the Disney Triathlon. I will do a 1K swim on Saturday morning and then maybe a bike. Then I will race Sunday morning.

51 Days

YES that is right 51 days. YIKES. I spent lunch time doing laps in the pool. Back and Forth. Back and Forth. BORING. I was running out of things to think about. Besides what is that thing floating in the bottom of the pool, a clump of hair, furball? Lint? No Clue.. The YMCA still has short lanes in. I did not even think aobut counting today. I swam for an hour and a half. I figure I do about a 100yds in 2 minutes, pretty consistently. So I figure close to 4600 yds. Felt pretty good.

I just got my new shoes today. I will do a short run tonight to break them in a little. I ordered a new wetsuit, and new bike shoes this week. I am hoping it all comes soon. Tomorrow. 120 miles on the bike and a 30 minute run.

The Beach

Yesterday....

I awoke at 4am to meet Gary for a 4:30am run. We did an easy 8 miles. I was home before anyone even woke up at home. I took a personal day from work, so I was able to take care of some stuff at home. It was also probably the first time in over a year that I washed my car. Most of the time when I wash my car, I get help from one of my kids and the car never really gets washed.

I spent a hour on the trainer on the back porch. Gary and Clint met at my house for a trip to the beach. We figured it would be a good idea to get some ocean swimming in. In theory, it sounded great. Well, it was well over a 2 hour drive to get there because of traffic. We arrived a couple minutes before 6pm and got in the water. We swam with the St Pete Mad Dogs. We walked down the beach about a mile got in the water and swam back to where we started. So the whole swim we were parallel to the beach.

I now know what a bobber feels like. It was a little rough. I felt good as far as the distance. It was a little tough to get in a grove with the waves breaking. A couple times I must have been swimming on a sand bar, so I had to move out further. The swim probably took 40 minutes or so. We will do another ocean swim before the race. I am not sure we need to go all the way to St Pete. but it was a nice beach and the water was in the high 80's

We did a little run after the swim and grabbed a bite to eat and headed home. We did not get back to my house till close to 11pm. The drive to swim ratio was a little high..

Lake Swim

Got to Luckys this weekend for a lake swim. I have not been in several weeks. We have had an issue with Amoeba's in the local lakes. 3 young kids have died because they got infected with this bacteria. Apparently, this occurs in lake water over 80 degrees. In most cases it is in shallow still water.

This is not the reason I have not been to Luckys lately,,, The swim start on Saturdays, is now 7:45. It gets a little late in the day to do a couple crossings and then get on the bike. I met Gary at the Lake and there was probably 15- 20 others. Before, this Amoeba issue there would be a lot more people swimming. We did 3 crossins. Over and back is 1K, so I got a good 3K swim in. It is great being able to swim long, as opposed to the 25 yds at the YMCA. After, my swim I headed home. I did an hour on the bike and then a 30 minute run. I was under time constraints as my wife had a bridal shower to go to.

Sunday morning we met again at 5am to so a 12 mile run. Run felt good. It is still hot here, so I got squishy shoes towards the end. I am in need of new running shoes. I just ordered a pair on line and hope to have them before this weekend. I am in Danbury, Ct now. I plane on doing a light run on the treadmill. I am taking a personal day wednseday this week to get a good workout in. I will also head to St Pete to swim with the triathlon club over there. I would like to do 1-2miles in the ocean..Saturday we are planning a 120 mile bike with a run after and Sunday is another 20 mile run...FUN

The POOL

I spent some time at the YMCA aquatic center yesterday. I got a 1:21 swim in. I think that is about 4000yds. I have given up trying to count laps. With the short lanes in it is just to hard. I felt good and probably could have kept going. I think this weekend I will get an open water swim in at Luckys. I need more straight long swims. I am also planning on taking half a day wed next week to go to St Pete Beach and swim with the St Pete Mad Dogs triathlon group.

I hate swimming in the pool. I wreak of chlorine. I shampoo twice and scrub but can not get ride of the smell. I did an hour run after my swim outside. It was close to 90 so, I got to sweat all that chlorine out. It sucks when it gets in you eyes. My hair(what little there is) is like straw.

I am starting to freak out with only 8 weeks left. I need to get some ocean swims in and more bricks. Next weekend is a 120 mile bike with a run off. Ocean swim is priority 1...

Weighing in

Okay I biked for 101 miles on Saturday and ran 21 miles on Sunday. I gained 2 pounds? How is that possbile? I did not eat that much.

Getting it done.

This was a good training weekend. On Saturday, I met Clint and Gary at Van Fleet trail. The plan was for 100 miles. The trail is 29.2 miles out and 29.2 back. It is incredibly flat with not much to look at. I guess it is good training. We were able to average at least 19.5mph. Which was great. I still have some issues with my left foot. I am not sure if it is planter fasciitis or just a bruise. I had some pain to deal with for the last 40 miles. I may try moving my cleat back a little bit on my left shoe so I am not pushing on that part of my foot.


We saw plenty of rabbits, tortoises, and a few snakes. Apparently, rabbits like to cross the path when they see bikes, so it made for several near misses. I also almost hit a tortoise the size of a basketball. It did get warm towards the end of the ride and we were off the bikes before any rain or thunderstorms. All in all I felt good, but it was good to get off the bike. I could have rode another 12 miles, I Guess.

My family went to the beach Saturday afternoon to leave me to rest from the bike ride. They knew I would be busy training this weekend so they got away. Clint and I stopped at Tri N Run so I could by more HAmmer Gel and then we had some pizza. I spend the balance of the afternoon relaxing and rehydrating.


Sunday morning was another, 4am wake up. I can not wait to be able to sleep in. I met Gary and the group from the YMCA for a run. The plan was for a 20 miler. I ended breaking off with Awald and I think we did 21. Legs were a little spent the last 6 miles. But, my foot was not an issue. My toes did go numb at times...

I can not wait till the heat and humidity breaks. I think it was 80 at the start of the run and very humid. My shoes were squishy after 8 miles.

Today, is labor day, to I helped with a cub scout project and the plan is just to hang out. Trying to fugure my trainig for next weekend. I need to do an open water swim. not sure if we will go to Luckys (www.luckyslakeswim.com) or go to St Pete beach. I would like to get 50 miles in on the bike after the swim. I also need to work on my run off the bike. So much to do so little time left.

Getting it done.

Long Boring Ride

Well All, another early Saturday morning. Clint and I met at 5:40 am to drive to Cocoa Beach for a bike ride. We were on the bikes by 6:40 am. It was a nice morning. The ride started good enough. The plan was to ride 40 miles out and back. What a boring ride. We had figured that this was a good route for scenery. NOT. We followed A1A the hole was and did not see much.

We got to Sebastian Inlet and turned around at about 39 miles. It started to get hot on the way back. I spoted a clock at a bank on the way back and it did read 90…We did stop at a Publix on the way back to reload on water and stuff. I refueled with a Sobe Adrenaline Sugar Free. I do like my energy drinks. The caffeine helps. I am not sure if the rest does any thing. Maybe it is physiological. The ride was good all in all. We did a little over 78 miles averaging 18.5mph. The ride was probably a good representation of IMFL flat and windy.

I was able to sleep in a litte at get a 12 mile run in on Sunday. I debated whether or not to run with the group at the YMCA. In the end I opted to sleep the extra hour and run on my own. I did a out an back loop through downtown Disney. Good Run the bottom of my foot hurts now. I am not sure what it is. It could be from the bike, it is almost where my bike cleat is. I am concerned it could be something else like planter factitious. . I have never had any problems with the bottom fo my feet, so I am a little concerned. Like any thing I am hoping to wake up tomorrow and it will be gone.

I did a 1:06 swim at the Y before catching my flight. Good swim. Foot was not an issue. I will take it easy the next couple of days and see what happens. This weekend we are planning a 100 mile ride on Saturday and a 20 mile run Sunday. Yikes. I need to work on my brick runs. I am feeling good with each of the distances. I just need to put it all together.. I would like to do a couple Ocean swims with the St Pete Maddogs triathlon group.. I would feel a lot better to get osme experience there. I would like to do at least 1 swim with the group and then we can go over and swim on the weekend and work it into another work out…

Long Run and Squishy shoes

Got a bike and a run in this weekend. We met at the Clermont WaterFront park to do the Great Floridian Half Ironman Distance bike course. So we did the 56 mile bike and then did a quick run off of 2 miles. The bike course was fine. We finish with BuckHill and Sugar Loaf. I felt pretty good. We did average over 18mph. We are thinking about getting out to the Van Fleet trail next weekend to get some good mileage in.

I am feeling better with my nutrition. I am taking more Enduralytes, which seem to help in the heat.

Sunday morning I was up at 4am again to meet Gary and his group for an 18 mile run starting at 5am. Good run. My ankles were a little sore for the first half. I am so glad I was running with others, otherwise I would have done 12 and called it a day. At the end of my run I started to feel some blisters coming on as my shoes were squishing...Yuck.I am happy for my recovery day today. The kids started school today. I might try to get to the YMCA to do a little swim to help loosen up..

1 New Member

My son completed his first triathlon over the weekend! I was very proud. It was a 200yd pool swim followed by a 5 mile bike and a mile run. He completed it in about 45 minutes. He got body marked and everything. There were probably 40 kids. He struggled a little bit on the swim. We practiced at the Y a few times, but he does not really swim freestyle. I got him doing the breaststroke and survived the swim. Now maybe he has a better understanding of what his dad is doing.

I was able to get a 50 mile bike ride in after his race. I did not get on my bike till 10:15, so it was over 90. I have a lovely tri shirt sunburn on my back. I stuck with Perpeteum on the bike, I flavored it with a little raspberry crystal light. The bike was good, I averaged over 18mph which is pretty good for me. I felt good. I just had my bike professionally fit by, Adam at the NTC in clermont. I think I am getting a little more power out because of it. I am a ton more comfortable!

On Sunday I met Gary and some others at the Dr Phillips YMCA. We met up a little before 5am to get a 17 mile run in. Yes 5am it was plenty dark. We had to beat the heat. It was over 80 at the start.

I never run with anyone else so it was good to run with other people. It made the time go by. My legs felt good. I took 2 Enduralyte capsules(Hammer Nutrition)before the run and 2 ever hour or so. It seemed to help. We went to Starbucks after for a little coffee. I was able to sneak a nap in on the porch later in the day. I needed it! This coming weekend I will get a 60-75 mile bike in. I hope to get a little run in off the bike. Traveling this week in Charlotte, NC. I will get on the treadmill today and a little hotel pool time.

Van Fleet Trail-Flat

Got a good ride in on Saturday morning. I met Gary for a ride at the Gen Van Fleet trail. It is a rails to trails path in Mabel,FL. It is in the middle of no where. The website said there were 2 water stops on the trail, which I did not see. The path was tough to find or not easy to spot off of Rt 50. We met at 6:30 and were on our bikes shortly there after.

The trail is very flat, we were able to average 17.7mph. IThe trail is a straight 29.2 out We ended up doing 82.6 miles. I did have some saddle issues and really need to get my bike fit. Gary had just gone to the USAT center in Clermont, FL. I think I will make an appointment ASAP.

I tried to get a run in on Sundayu morning before my trip to portland, ME but only managed 1:30..

Nutrition for the bike. I had:
20oz water in my Aero bottle,
1 Perpeteum(un flavored)mixed for 5hrs with some rasberry ice Crystal light,
1 20oz Gatorade Rain
1 20 oz Gatorade
3 soyjoy bars cut up
20 bit sized pretzels
1 uncrustable

refilled with 3 bottles of water at the 60 mile mark
when we stopped to refuel.

On the way home I did drink my chocolate milk, some water and a Sobe Adrenaline, sugar free.

Legs felt good after the bike. I was stiff from being in the wrong saddle position.

JT has his mini triathlon next weekend at Turkey Lake park. We have been to the YMCA so that he could practice. Grace is very excited for her swim classes that start on Monday..

Raleigh, NC

Found a nice jogging trail near the Marriott in Raleigh, NC. It was nice to get out and get a 1-1/2 hour run in. I did of course get a little lost or misplaced. The weather was nice. It was a touch humid and I could have used more water on the run but good none the less.


I was going to do a swim at the hotel pool when I got back but it was over run by teens. I will have to swim tomorrow. My son JT has his new bike now. He will do his first tri in a couple weeks. I will get to the YMCA Aquatic center with him or maybe take him to Luckys on Saturday. I think he has a 200m or Yd swim. He is not a swimmer like his Dad. He swims like I used to. I liken it to Jerry Lewis trying to swim or the old Saturday Night live Synchronized swimming skit with Martin Short in a life Jacket"I am not a very strong swimmer"

I think he will be able to do it. I just want to make sure that he gets some training in. The tri will take place at Turkey Lake park and the swim is in a pool. Thank god for lane lines. I remember for my first time in the pool. Which was not that long ago...

I need to get to Tri n Run > for some nutrition for the bike. I have been using Hammer perpeteum. I may try something else. For my long bike last weekend I used Perpetuem, pretzels, SoyJoy bars, Gatorade and a Strawberry Uncrustable
I think that uncrustable was the best testing treat I have had.. I will definitely keep that my nutrition. I felt so good off the run.. I want to keep at it. I used ziplock bags that I placed in the back of my tri top. I was very tough to open the bags. I may switch to the old fold over style.

I am not sure who will be at Ironman Florida for my support crew. I know that my wife Kristy will be there. I do not think we will bring the kids. It would be nice to have them there and have them finish with my, but it is a long time for them to wait around and be patient. I might have my parents come. It would be nice for the support. I think I stressed the 15 hours of bore a little much. This race is like getting married or having kids, a very big milestone. I would like ot see loved one at the start and through out the race....We will see what happens.

Got my ride on.

We got a nice ride on Saturday. Clint and I met up at 6:15am we were on the bikes by 6:30. I think we rode every where in Florida. We started at the trail head at Kilarney Station. We rode to Howey in the hills, Mt Dora around a bunch of lakes and back through Clermont.

The temp started out okay, towards the end of the ride it was brutal hot. I felt good off the bike. I could have gone more. I thought I needed to get home to go to the beach for Kristy's Birthday.

My legs were good the next day. I am getting there.

The ride ended with the hills, going up buckhill and then SugarLoaf. The picture is the water stop at the top of SugerLoaf. One of the home owners puts fresh water out for people cycling up the hill.

Clint is off in Asia this week. I think I will get a good open water swim in on Saturday and then a 60 or 70 mile bike. I need a long run on Sunday morning. I am sure I will have to start extra early. I am traveling Tues thru thurs this week. I need to get some good pool swims in...

Swim

I got my 3000m swim in yesterday. I felt okay. I am really slow. I need to do more drills to work on or improve my form. I got half way through my laps and they turned the water jets on to refill or cool down the pool. I discovered this as I was taking a breath and got blasted with water. I was able to find and open lane. With a middle lane I was only hit with water coming and going. I could almost navigate to come up in the middle of 2 jets. I guess it would be good to learn how to flip turn.

I returned home from the swim did more work from the home office. I was able to get an hour run in at about 5pm. Of course it was still in the high 80's. HOT and sticky. There is nothing better than getting back from a run like that and soaking in the pool. I know a beer would have hit the spot, but the frig was empty. Planning on a long bike ride on Saturday, around 70 miles. I will try to get to Luckys Friday morning to do my open water swim..

We may go to the beach this weekend after my bike. So I can run in Bradenton.

Home

Went home for the weekend.

Beautiful upstate NY. I was there to attend my 20 year class reunion. It was nice to see everyone. I had a hard time recognizing some people and others had not changed a bit.

I was able to get a couple long runs in. I did 1:15 when I got in on friday and they 1:30 on Saturday. It was great. It was never very hot, NO humidity. I felt like I could run forever. I did however forget about hills. I am not a big fan. I also ran in the county where the were spreading manure or something in the fields..But all in all a good weekend.

I was home sunday later afternoon and used it as my recovery day. I was recovering from lack of sleep and too much beer. But it was a good time.

HOTTTTTTTTTTTT

Ran this morning. I think it was 90 already. I did a little over an hour. I have to figure out a way to get my long runs in without overheating. I did run with water, but I was sweating so much my shoes were soggy.. On my return from the out and back loop I spotted a bobcat crossing Apopka Vineland rd. It was like a big dog with a stub tail..Wish I could have taken a picture. This is the 2nd time I have seen a bobcat in about the same spot.
I was also able to get 3000m in at the YMCA Aquatic center..I need to get a bike ride in. I have my 20 year high school reunion this weekend. Which ofcourse is cutting into my training...

quickie

On my way up north for family vacation. I was able to get my 46 mile bike ride in yesterday. It was a little over 2.5 hours. I of course got caught in some pretty bad rain, which slowed my down. I drank a ton of water and snacked on SoyJoy bars. I was trying to see how I would do with out Hammer Perpetuem. It was very windy and sunny for most of the ride. I tried to put sun screen on my back but I guess I did not do a good job. I have a nice bike jersey water mark on my back....

I took this picture in roughly the same spot as I found the turtle.

Weekend Update

I am in Boston now for a trade show. I was able to get 2-1/2 crossings(2500m) in at Lucky's. I was there for the 7:20 crossing. I was the first one out, the lake as flat calm. I was making waves. It was very peaceful. I have come a long way from not being able to swim to the end of the pool last year. I have enjoyed going to Luckys every weekend. It has certainly helped my comfort level in the water. During the Half Ironman, I never got freaked out. I need to continue to get more crossings in, so that I will feel comfortable swimming the 2.4miles.

I arrived in Boston and did an hour on the treadmill. I am now taking today as a recovery day and will have to wake up early tomorrow to get a good workout in. I will probably go for a walk this morning to burn some energy. I have a hard time not working out for a day...

I am back!!

It has been a long time since I have posted. I am going to keep at this. It seems to me that this is a good way to document my training and log things. Today, I did a 50 mile bike and I felt good. It was hot of course and I am still trying to make sure that I drink enough.


I took this picture of the turtle on mile 38 or so of my bike ride..I thought it was cool. I will do 2 or 3 crossings at Luckys. I will then head to the airport. I have a trade show in Boston this weekend. It is going to be tough to find a pool. I am sure I will have some quality time on the treadmill as we are staying downtown. I am still trying to find the right training plan to work with. I have Gale Bernhardts book, that I will use as my main point of reference. I also have the Beginnertriathlete.com program.. I will continue to swim
at Luckys on Saturday and do my long bike afterwards. I will do my long runs on Sunday. I need to figure when to schedule the brick workouts. I am sure that I will have to forgo a swim or 2, perhaps I should swim there during the week...I will post a race report for the Florida 70.3 shortly. I want to get that down so that I can learn from it...

I'm Goofy

I ran the Goofy Challenge over the weekend at Disney. What a great time. It was hot this year for once. It seems like they changed the marathon course a little or maybe made a better effort to get fans and support on the boring stretchs. I ran the half with my wife.We hade fun. The half seems more crowded than the full marathon. We ran 2:30, not bad considering.

I ran the full in 4:22. I went out to slow. I felt good up until 22, I rans teady and did not stop often. I would have done great if not for the half marathon. I will now concentrate more on the Ironman. I would still like to do one more marathon, perhaps Atlanta.. This weekend calls for a 2+ hour bike ride with Clint. then I will get to the Pinewood derby ASAP.

We will watch some football at friends on Saturday night. I will go for a longer run on Sunday so no beer for me..

I have eased off on training this week. I swam and ran yesterday. Right now my ankle is bothering me. It seems to be more the muscle going from the ankle to the top of the foot. I am using the stick and ice. I only rode the bike and will take it easy tomorrow. I am not sure what else to do....

I am excited that the marathon will be warm. I do not think I have run a marathon that will be this hot. I am torn on what to wear, probably tri shorts and a compression top.

Happy New Year

I am back. We had a fun New Years celebration. I had to much to drink. I think I have sworn off Vodka.

One of my New Years resolutions is to stop drinking till after Ironman. I want to loose about 5 lbs and it seems that when I drink I eat to much junk. So it is easy enough to give it up. I tried my wetsuit on Christmas day and it fits. It is tight but, I am glad that I found the size 8.

Time to get serious and kick my training into gear. The Goofy Challenge is this weekend and it looks like it will be nice weather. Thank goodness it will not be freezing again this year. I am feeling pretty good. I will take it easy for the Half and see if I can go for 4 hours for the full. I am working on my Ipod playlist for the marathon as I will be running solo