I chose this venue to close out my 2011 season. My earlier iron distance event (Rev3 CedarPoint) in September was good (race report still to come), but my run training leading up to that event was not where it needed to be.  This December race offered me more time to work on my run base and speed. On paper this course looked like to be a winner, flat and fast. Yep, December is very late in the season but I started my season in June and finally feeling in peak condition.

I’ve never been to the Palm Springs area before so was kinda excited to see what it’s all about. The drive over from San Diego was nice, I planned my departure time to miss the traffic. Its a three hour drive when cruising conservatively. The last 45 minutes is the most fun. The route goes east from Temecula over the mountains and then back down into the central valley/desert. The mountain road is nice and windy calling for  race car driver instincts. Keep the eye on the road and attack the turns, a fun drive. No arriving at the venue early to pre ride or swim. They had some pretty good interactive course info on their website which is a nice feature.

I actually left SD later than hoped and made it to the race expo/packet pick up with a few hours to spare. Not much of an expo but for some venders, I think they made some good money due to high demad for what they were offering  and no competition. With the close proximity to San Diego, many Tri Club of SD members will be in attendance. The expo may have been weak on sighst but the athlete dinner was one of the best I have ever attended, or I should say eaten. Plenty of pasta, PROPERLY cooked. Think there were three types of pasta,  gnocchi (which I did not eat),  fresh greens and awesome deserts – buffet style so all you can eat. It was carbo load time! Next hear I hope they bring out the heat lamps cause the expo/dining facility was pretty cold.

The blog title’s “Double Hit” is an indicator of my plans, race on Saturday and Sunday. HITS Triathlon Series offer all triathlon distances over the week end, since I was making the journey I figured I mind as well take full advantage of the opportunity. Race the sprint triathlon on Saturday and then Sunday race the iron distance.

So after chowing down it was time to headed over to Lake Chauilla Park about 10 minutes away for expo site, which will be the finish area for Sundays half and full iron races. Weather improved over the last week but still was 10 degrees cooler than normal and winds are hit and miss at this time of year. Was able to park the car about a quarter mile from the park entrance for no hassle race morning driving. I brought a couple of extra blankets and ski jacket to deal with the “cold” overnight temperatures.

HITS Saturday race morning

Saturday: Sprint triathlon (Oly was raced 30 minutes after the sprint start)

Transitioned opened at 5am and there was a line at the park entry gate by 4:45. Sill pitch black setting up transition but plenty of light with the flood lights. Each participant had their own individually marked transition space  and a fold up stool to use. My designated spot was the most inward in my row. I was not too worried about that “disadvantage” because it was a single wave start and I anticipated to arrive into T1 before the mayhem.

My personal transition space.

Air temperature was actually not as cold as I anticipated that morning. Still cold but not freezing. The lake water temp was dam cold, 55 to 58 degrees. Everyone knew water temperature was gonna be an issue. Booties and neoprene caps were dawned by many participats. For me just the cap, I have found my feet do not freeze, just my face and head. A proper warm up is mandatory for such extreme conditions. Fist splash the face and then the back of the neck, continue to wade slowly into the water and then make the full immersion. Spent about five minutes getting acclimated. Not too bad… let got going now.

Lake Cahuilla with it’s unique mountain back drop.

A brief swim start briefing, no national anthem. The start line was pretty messed up, we just lined up along the water’s edge. An advantage was for those who started further up the shoreline, and that was me. No big loud bang or “Go” over the mega phone. A clean start just the same heading directly into the sun to the far buoy. 375 meters out and straight back.  With my warm up, my body was ready for the chilly water and had not issues with the swim and the short jog into transition. Feet were a little numb but not time to worry and complain, it was just go go go. Swim split 11:54, 9th out of the water out of  252 competitors.

Working the zipper while heading to T1. Photo courtesy of Lisa R

Quick change out of the wetsuit, dawn the aero helmet and put on my running shoe, grab the bike and make a mad dash to the mount line and pedal away. Wind chill was not a factor on the bike. My feet did not freeze over. It was a pretty typical bike segment… just go hard and as fast as possible, flat course and not too much wind. The wind came blowing and did some massive damage to speed for the Olympic distance triathletes. I was battling it out for overall position with one gal on the bike. We traded positions a few times but male ego has it, ya just don’t wanta get chicked. I was able to hold her off but a few seconds leading  back into transiton. She did end up with a faster bike split than me. My buddy Bill W. was out there racing also, he passed me on course just about half way. He is a much stronger biker than me so that put me one spot further down in the age group standing. Not sure what he was so far off my pace on the swim since he is usually faster (I think), must have been that messed up swim start line. Bike Split of 35:54, 22nd OV.

Video capture of me bolting out of  T1. Full video link, this capture from minute 1:13 and 1:23.

A quick T2 transition, actually the fastest of all, with the Pyro Platforms. No need to change from bike to running shoes, Just ditch the bike and helmet, grab my Team Trakkers hat head of for the run. Running is my strength  and I use it to my advantage. Unfortunately being “so far off the pace” with my slow bike split I was not able to pick too many people a head of me. I had to work hard for the handful that I did catch. When I noticed my friend, Bill W., was in sight I made him my target. I made up massive ground on him the first three quarters of a mile and that was about it. Only 10 to 15 paces ahead and I could not get any closer. He knew I was hot on his trail and he admitted after it’s been a while since he ran that fast. He ended up nine seconds ahead of me, and since we’re the same age, he claimed 1st in the individual age group and I got second, which was 7th overall. That gal that I was duking it out on the bike finished three second behind me, but she was only 20 years younger than me. Of the top 10 finishers six were over forty and three were females.

The run course was quite a cluster F. Pylons for runners to run within were too close to the edge of the road so may of the runners, including myself, did not pay attention to then. So the out going runners were now running in close proximity of the incoming bikers, not safe at all. And then at the sprint turn around point, runners crossed paths with the bikers… a big no no. Fortunately the sun was not glaring down on us because there were no water provisitinos. The first aid station was just after the run turn around, oops! 25 yards makes a big difference in race logistics.

Felt pretty good after the race, legs not jacked up with lactic acid. I may have been able to press a little harder to catch Bill but my real race was the next day and I did not want to sacrifice my body for a mere 10 seconds. Run split was 19:53 for an average pace of  6:24. That is if the run was an actual 5k distance.

Garmin bike data
Garmin run data

Total time 1:10:00
2nd AG – 48 year olds
7th OV

Since bike check in for Sundays events was not until 4pm, I was able to help out/set up the Tri Club of San Diego boot at the expo. So just hanging out in the sun and wind and killing time. Saturdays race events pretty much quieted down by 1am, so the booth was folded up and packed away. This gave me a few hours of nap time and a solid rest. I had packed my cooler with cold tuna pasta salad for some carbo loading dinner and my Fluid recovery drink to start the recovery process.

TCSD tagging up with California Tri Club.

With my extended nap I was one of the last persons top load up their bikes in transition. Took my time to get things organized and laid out for tomorrow’s big event. Everyone again had their own assigned transition spaces.  It was actually pretty early but dark, around 6pm, so I  head off to social get together at the Beer Hunter to hang with the gang of the TCSD racers and California Tri Club members. Good way to kill time, hanging with friends and watching college foot ball.

Sunday: Iron distance triathlon (half distance started at the same time)

I  had been anticipating this event since I first heard about it back in early September. On paper it appeared to be fast,  and I anticipated setting an overall pr finish time or at least for the run portion. My body (plantar faciatis) finally healed and I put in the training and was hoping for rewards. With yesterday’s race I already knew I would not have my fastest swim due to the cold water temperature. If the winds were to howl like they did the day before the bike was gonna be a blood bath, fortunately no big winds this day. This days race was to finish at HITS equestrian complex, that meant taking a shuttle bus from the finish to the Lake bright and early. Since I missed the athlete meeting this was new to me and did not initially know about the logistics of the supplied shuttle transportation. Since the complex closed its gates the over night I had to find a safe place to park and spend the night, fortunately the road had massive shoulders, so I park just down the road again for an easy and close proximity to the morning starting point. I was offered a “comfortable” night’s lodging at the La Quinta Resort but  I declined in favor of sticking to my standard routine, sleeping in the car near or at the race start. I will have to admit I did wake up in the middle of the night and my lower back went “wack”, it stiffened up and I was in pain. I got out of the car and did 10 minutes of stretching to try to loosen things up. I was worried, scared and concerned, “Will I be able to race…twist my hips during the swim, hold that aero position for five plus hours and pound my spine into the ground for  three plus hour marathon.?” I self-massage with my knuckles diging deep to break up the tissue and get some new blood flow. Oh, ya I was praying big time also. Finally after a bit of unrest, I fell asleep. Come wake up time, 5am. my prayers had been answered. Only a slight bit of tightness, and as the morning progressed I forgot and did not have any issues with my back!

Another cold morning, fortunately the shuttle buses to the lake were well heated. I think I was on the third bus. No need to arrive too early since bikes were already racked and ready to go. Only reason to arrive  early was again to get a “warm up” swim. This was gonna be a bit tougher. My body can handle the cold up to a certain amount of time if over the limit it effect my core temperature and finger and motor skills. As I was stepping into the cold water, and setting my goggles on my face a small piece of plastic broke that held the head trap to the eye sockets. Dam, broken goggles, and these were my mirrored Sable’s that really enhance my vision during the swim and block out the sun. A .001 cent part ruins a 40 dollar pair of goggles. Fortunately I did pack another pair of goggles, an amber pair of Sables, same optical quality but without the mirrored protection.

The half and full distance athletes started at the same time, 2 loops for the crazy ones and one for the halfers. Sighting directly into the sun made sighting  a no brainer however, for insurance purposes I did have to stop a couple of time to make sure I was truly heading in the right direction. With only about 150 athletes between the half and full there was no brawling for position  as the start was given. That also meant not too many feet to draft off. At the end of lap one there was a short water exit before heading directly into the sun again. The second lap was totally solo. I was like a trance, trying to think warm thoughts and just keep the freestyle stroke in constant motion. I could have fallen a sleep and my arms/stork would have kept turning over on autopilot. Being competitive, I did keep an eye on  the return half of the course, I wanted to gauge how my people were ahead of me. By my observation there may have been three ahead. I gauged myself to be behind the leader by 20 minutes.

FInishing the swim in a time of 1:07 was on par with previous outings. I am sure the 55 degree water effected my stoke and overall time by a bout 2 or 3 minutes.  If had to be in the water much long my body may have revolted against that request. My feet were pretty frozen but reflex knew they had to get me to transition. This is where the portable stooles became handy. There was no way I was gonna lean or bend over to take off my wetsuit and put on my cycling shoes and helmet. A race volunteers offered her assistance in removing my wetsuit and getting my shoes on, they helped all the “non-functioning” athletes. My body was pretty darn cold and my dexterity was not functioning at normal capacity. T1 time of  four and a half minutes which was pretty slow considering the proximity of the swim exit to the exit of  T1. Other athlete transition times range from under 2 minutes to over 10 minutes. I noticed one half iron distance athlete had a T1 time of 27 minutes, think that person got a throughout defrost session.

With the sprints race the other day I was aware of the fist six miles  of the bike course but it was actually totally different. I WAS FREEZING. the wind chill was brutal. My arm coolers/warmers that I put on before the swim start needed a little more sun to dry out. They retained the water a bit longer than normal. I did shove a few plastic grocery bags down my top to act as a wind breaker. The sun was out and I did not want to put on a long sleeve top during transition because I knew at some time on the bike I would most likely take it off or it was going to flutter in the wind causing aerodynamic drag and/or added time. So for the first 20 miles my jaw was locked and I had a death grip on the aerobars, keeping the body tense to activate all my upper body muscles to generate internal heat.

Gloves, arm cooler,  arm and knee warmer, calf sleeves and plastic grocery bags  - the most I have ever worn for a race.

I do most of  most of my long rides solo and I knew going into this event it was to be a lonely 112 mile bike ride. The course (a two looper) took us thru desert valley agricultural fields, I do remember seeing the red and green leaf lettuce in the fields. Other than that not much scenery. Road surfaces had a mix of  everything; new smooth asphalt,  dried out mud cakes, small pot holes and typical road crakes. Like any other ride, ya gotta pay attention and take advantage of the “fast” part of the road. Race support/aid stations were every 10 to 15 miles and stocked with the usually. Support was a mixed bag, some of the helpers were there with water bottle in hand and other helpers just sat in their chairs as I passed with my open hand in jest and saying ” thanks for the water.” Yep, it’s up to the competitor to take care of their own needs and if I really needed anything I would have stopped to obtain. Just saying that bike support for this race was a bit lacking compared to other races such as Rev 3, IM and many independent ones. I will say this is primary agricultural area and “winter” time so the volunteer pool is pretty limited.

As mentioned earlier, on paper this look to be a fast course. I was hoping for a bike split in the 5:20s. But no, there was a constant “non” wind, just like those false flats. Ya think you should be going faster but your just not able to go. The fun part was actually catching a few a the halfers who were finishing their 56 miles as I was finishing my first loop. To keep myself on target and focused I spent a lot of time keeping an eye on my cadence and speed and finding the right gearing to allow me to go the fastest with out over taxing the legs. In hign sight, I could have pressed harder but if I did, I know I was going to pay for it on the run. From experience (24 previous iron distances races) I know not to do foolish things. Five hours and 58 later, I made it back to T2, a bit pissed at myself for the “slow” time but I could not control those external facters. I did manage to pass one racer fairly early, but I was passed by another shortly after the half way mark. My finish time netted me an average speed of 18.6 mph, 84 cadence, 149 watts and a Polar pedaling index of 21%. On the bike, the day’s temperature maxed out at 71 and a minimum of 52 so the average temperature on the bike was 64.

Finding my legs after the dismount line. Notice the amount of fluids left? The cool day required less hydration. Photo courtesy of Lisa R.

Hobble hobble, not the smoothest transition surface. Photo courtesy of Lisa R.

Sorry Team Trakkers shoe sponsor, Avia, had to do this marathon with a shoe that offered a little more forefoot cushioning. The Avia Bolt’s were great for the sprint tri the other day. Photo courtesy of Lisa R.

And we’re off, with my 1st Endurance flask full of EFS Liquid Shot. Enough to last the first half of the run and then it’s Gu time. Photo courtesy of Lisa R.

So, already off  my goal time, I now had to try to salvage the day with a speedy run. By now the temperature was in the low 60s (just a guess), perfect for running. I found my run legs right off the bike, but this race I had a different strategy… run at a consistent pace of  7:50 to 8:05 miles and that was gonna get me a finish time of  3:30, and hopefully setting a pr. Instead of tracking down racers ahead I was focusing on my Garmin to keep me in check. Like the bike, it was gonna be a lonely run. I have run a solo marathon before, when I was living in Chicago, and know how to stay focused. Aid stations just about every mile to mile and a half so that was good however some of the later ones were not supplied with coke on time and no chicken broth. Even though there were only 15- 20 athletes out there ya gotta know what athletes need. If race management/support is not there you will not survive. With a small field of athletes there is also an upside, at mile four of the run the race director came by in his support vehicle  and asked if  I was doing ok, did I need anything. Will have to give it to ‘em for being out there an offering personal support to the athletes. The first half of the run was pretty consistent, but then if fell off the pace by 15 to 30 seconds a mile. My legs were feeling find but it must have been the loneliness and lack of cheering that allowed me to slip off the pace. The course was a two looper, so we were able to see other races sporadically on course. The lead guy was massively in front, but the 2nd place guy seemed to be faulting and by the second sighting going in opposite directions he had a gap of  about a mile.  Since he had such a massive lead of the bike initially I thought I would have no chance at tracking him down. At marker 14.5, I had 12 miles to make up 8 to to 9 minutes on him. That’s what makes sports so fun and challenging, it’s not over until you cross the finish line or the clock runs out.

On course, I did get some suprise encouragement from the Team Trakkers leader, Carol S – aka Bama Bear. She was actually out for this event to support one of the event sponsors, SBR- as in TriSwim, Foggle and TriSlide. She and her co-drive were kinda bored from lack of  finish line, all the halvers had finished up, and headed out to see what was happening on course. They ended up taking quite a bit of video with their mini video camera (Hope to see a final cut). When your on film you want keep good face and I did my best. When I started asking the aid station for coke I got back a no answer, they must have over heard and by the next aid station they had some coke for me, it was not de-fizzed but the instant caffein gave me the jolt I needed. They also supplied me  at several points gap times of the guy just a head. It was dark by now and I was able to vaguely see a silhouette of a figure a head. It took forever to close the gap but sure enough by mile 23.5 he was no longer in second. Think he may have tried to hang with me for a little bit, I did not even look back. Ya never know if a person is gonna have a second wind and try to recapture their position.

When your our there alone, one thinks about everything and nothing, calculating pace, finish time, how far ahead, for the most part one is in a daze – a trance. Think it is the endorphins at work! As I made my finish line push I was upset with myself for not being able to hold  my desired pace, a personal disapointment. But I have to answer myself back and say, it was not an easy race, ya hung tough and did the best you could in the moment (a quote from Dave Scott). Marathon split 3:41 for a mile pace of 8:26. However it you take in the fact the run was actually 26.68 miles my pace was actually 8:17 and a 3:37 split. That was my 3rd fastest of all my iron runs.

Gotta say thanks to Lisa, Rich and Eve R. for cheering me during transition and at the  finish. They were out for the week end to cheer many TCSDers, it’s always nice to see a familiar face. For Lisa and Eva that was two iron distance races of support in three weeks… that is dedication!

The crowds go wild at the finish.

Breaking the tape. Photo courtesy of Lisa R.

Sure it was cold, but I needed a cool down. Photo courtesy of Lisa R.

The awards ceremony, with RD Mark Wilson, second place overall. Photo courtesy of Lisa R.

I did not meet my goals this time out, but I tested my mind and body one more time. I have set the bar for others to follow and hope it stays up for a while.

The rewards for a 13 hour weekend.

So that’s a 1:07 swim, 5:58 bike and 3:41run for a total time of 10:57 (transitions not noted).

Garmin data did not want to upload. It’s in the watch but not the computer… Garmin kinda sucks at times.

I’m sure I left out a bunch of details of this race report. and to be editing as I remember specific incidents/details.

This was HITS inaugural race week end. They are gonna have to step it up on some of their race preparation, safety, course details and community involvement if they want to make their 12 race series a success. I am sure they will make necessary improvements that enhance the enjoyment and safety of their events in the future. I wish them much success an will be following them on FB and the race results after every race.

OrangMan Half Iron Triathlon Date: 9.25.11
Location: Dana Point (that is in Orange County)

This event was fairly local, a two hour drive north of San Diego, so it was a no brainer race to do. The timing fit pretty good with my schedule, giving me two weeks rest after my Rev3 Cedar Point iron distance triathlon (10:32). The two week recovery consisted of  about 5 hours of training which included  a hard work out as part of the November TCSD Club race. I did the full swim (approx 700 meters),  five hard miles of the12 mile bike, and a fast 2 miles of the 4 mile run. Everything felt good, seemed to be fully recovered from the iron race and ready to race OrangeMan.

I have to thank the guys at Finishline Multisport/3rd Transition for their assistance with race entry. The event promoters ended up offering a 50% off coupon on groupon.com to attract more athletes. Besides the triathlon, they offered an aquabike and swim only divisions. The more people the merrier. OrangeMan promoted itself to be a fairly challenging course. The bike course had 10 mile of rollers and then another 15 or so of consistent climbing before the turn around and heading back. I did review the run map on line and it seemed to be pretty typical.

Driving up to the expo the day before hand was very easy, missed out on the traffic. I was kinda drifting off (woke up pretty early) as I drove up there so I was looking forward to a power nap after checking in. The check- in process was very easy and quick. Only a few venders at the expo, my friend, Sebastian from SLS 3, was there with their race apparel. After my power nap and listing in on part of the course talk it was time to grind, as in eat. I met up with a couple who were in the area, Andy was getting his USAT official recertification. We went to one of their Italian favorites, I ordered some very tasty eggplant parmesan. Since I carbo loaded the previous evening, I did not need lots of pasta again. After dinner I headed of to Salt Creek Beach Park where the transition was set up. I wanted to get a preview of how thing were laid out, so I knew what to expect when it opens at 5am race day. I discovered there were to be a few hills right off the bat. I was still kinda hungry and head off to find a grocery store. Found some nice mango sherbet and a turkey sandwich and Powerade. Also got a couple of bananas and bagels for the am. Being on the cheap I usually sleep in my car at away events. There was parking available at Salt Creek Beach parking lot but not free, so that was out. The nearest parking was an mile away, so I parked the car and got a good night’s sleep.

Up at 4:45 to get things together and ride over to transition. Gotta arrive early to get that “prime” spot. Transition racks were organized by wave/age starts and I chose a spot one in from the end,  giving me plenty of room for changing and not being in the center of all the activity. After setting up transition, I had plenty of time to relax, chat with fellow athletes (several TCSD members) and PPP Lab clients. Transition closed up a half  an hour before the first wave’s start time, so headed down to the beach, which consisted of a 60 foot 5 degree dirt trail hill, 300 yard concrete walking path and the beach. Swim exit to transition totaled to be a touch short of a quarter mile. Ocean temperature felt a bit chilly at first then once acclimated it felt perfect. The surf was very calm but then out of no where some nice shore breakers appeared, three to four footers but only a couple at a time and then calm again. They came out of no where. Swim warm ups are important to get one’s heart rate up, become acclimated with the surf entry depth and water temperature.

Now it time to race.

Swim My wave was the fifth to go off for a 7:13 start, three minutes between each wave. Relays and gals in the first two waves then the “younger” guys. The first wave got hammered but two shore breakers and then the remaining waves just happened to be timed without incident including mine. There may have been 125 in my start wave. There was plenty off room heading out to the first buoy, no bumping, banging or dunking. If participant entry doubles for next year there may be a bit more contact. I wish there had been more markers between the long straight aways of the swim. Sighting was not the easiest,  however I think I swam a pretty straight line out to the second and third buoys. The fourth buoy had no reference or anything to sight off of. It was just follow the mass of swimmers and hope they were correct and then when the marker came into view head straight for it. I know I did not swim the straightest line on that section. There were not any in between markers to follow, just a handful of lifeguards on surfboards to aid in direction. Swimmers were very spread out so when overtaking slower swimmers from the earlier waves there weren’t any issues, no climbing over anyone as I initially anticipated. There was a  massive swim exit arch to aim for on the last section heading back to the beach. Unfortunately, no waves to catch or aid in the surf exit. No watch on swims for me, but self-judging I felt I was possibly in the top 10 out of the water of my age group. Results show 16th. Ended up with a swim time of  32:50, nothing to write home about.

T1 As I mentioned above the distance up to T1 was a bit of a hike, which allowed time to get my wetsuit half way off. Upon entry of  the transition zone I stayed clear to remove the rest of the wetsuit. Nice and grassy to clean off any rock/sand from my feet from the run up. Yep, there were a handful of bikes already gone from my my section but a lot more remaining. My T1 time was 3:16 for the 2nd fastest split in the age group.

The Bike The Lab (PedPowerPerformLab - my business) is a retailer of Rolf Prima wheels and I had to experience first hand how these wheels performed. I did a combo set up with a Tdf58 front and a Tdf85 in the rear (carbon tubulars).  The right tire choice aided in the ride comfort and speed, the Lab uses (and recommends) Tufo Elite 23mm tires. I received the rims Friday and stretched and installed that evening. I was able to ride for a few minutes on the trainer to verify the gears were lined up. I do not recommend installing new equipment the night before unless absolutely necessary.

I digress… to the bike. On paper the course looked  pretty straight forward out and back course with one solid climb.

Immediately out of transition (leaving Salt Creek Beach Park) we faced a Cat 5 climb to get out of the park. Road surface for the course was pretty smooth and very fast in sections. The Rolf wheels made for a stiffer and more solid feeling ride. The rim/tire combo also were darn quiet and smooth. About seven miles into the bike course my chain started to skip when applying power and my left cleat was loose. Not a good combination to have. I had to hold back and be cautious on my pedaling effort. I swapped pedals the night before also and should have completely tested/verified cleat tension… my own fault. It really effected my confidence and limited my power production. I wanted to go faster and harder but could not. The chain skip was sporadic and only occurred in the last two small cogs. I figure I lost about 3 to 5 minutes going up the Ortega Highway. The climb was steady nothing overwhelming or taxing. Most of the time it was upright riding and sitting back on the saddle to produce power in the most effective way….aka a road bike.Coming back down Ortega Highway, I lost a lot of time. I prefer to be cautious on down hills but not that cautious. The chain skip and cleat problem was a real problem here. I was playing leap from with a very fast 51 year old lady on the declines. Were were cruising at 19 to 22 mph but I know I should have been going 23 to 27 mph on the flats. Of course on the steeper declines sections we were rolling  over 30 mph. I know I lost another 5 to 8 minutes. My chain for some reason pop off the big ring so I had to cautiously slow down and reinstall. That was a big momentum killer. On the last eight miles of flat I was able to catch up to some of the competitors who blew by me on the steep decline sections.

The whole bike course had well maintained surface, often I found the shoulder to be even smoother and I took ever advantage of it. With in the last three miles of the course we were greeted by a Cat 5 climb. Fortunately it was only 1.5 miles long. I serpentined it to take off a few degrees. Entering the park we coasted down the Cat 5 hill and I performed an awesome flying dismount right on the dismount line… who says slowdown! My bike split just missed the magic three hour mark, ended up with 3:01:58 (I believe I could have been six to eight minutes faster had it not been for those darn mechanical issues). The following day, I discovered the cause of the chain skip. It was not an improper chain length but one of the links was just about to “pop”. Sure glad It did not happen during the race and I wisely keep off the power.

Up and out of T1, on course, getting ready for a flying dismount.

T2 With one of my best flying dismount, I dashed into transition for a very fast transition. Got my Avia Bolts on and my grabbed my TCSD hat full of  Gu energy packs. 56 seconds, the fastest in age group.

The Run I did not  review the run course in depth before hand. From the online course map and profile it looked pretty tame with short climbs and I did expected it to be a little harder than the average course. In actuality it was quite different. The run course followed a walking path along and thru the Salt Creek Corridor Regional Park. Up and down. steep up, steep down only a few sections that were flat. Below is the course profile, green chart. I have also attached my pace chart, in blue. Notice the masive fluctuation in speed. My first mile was a bit slow, it tool a bit longer than usual to find my running legs.

Soon after, my legs and turn over were there when opportunity allowed. Those short steep hill pretty much brought everyone to a crawl… baby steps and lean forward to keep the momentum going. And on the down hills, watch out, let those legs go with long strides. Take the free speed gravity is offering. I was pretty much on “fire” and flying  compared to everyone else. Yes, I did get passed by a couple of athletes, but they were relay runners. I had such a “slow” bike, I had to make up as much time and pass as many athletes as I could. The run course was a two looper, out and back, so I was able to see and judge where I was in relation to the leaders. I was picking the competition off left and right. I did not over tax my heart rate or legs, it ended up averaging154 bpm which is right at my anaerobic threshold by a point or two. Plenty of aid station on course and fortunately the weather cooperated, think it was slightly overcast and a mild low 70′s is my guess. I had the 2nd fastest first loop and the fastest loop in my age group. I think I passed six in my group. Ended up with a time of 1:44:49… for 14.2 miles. That’s right, everyone got to run one extra mile! Not sure how that happened since it was an out and back course.

Notice the non heel strike form.

Final Thoughts I was happy with my effort but a little frustrated for not looking over my bike and making sure everything was in PERFECT working order. That will never happen again. With a finish time of 5:24:27that put me in 28th place overall (out of 458) and 6th (out of 60) in the age group. Missed the top three by four minutes.

This was a inaugural event and they did a very good job. The past couple of years I have participated in several first time events. OrangeMan did a very good job with race logistics, set up, organization etc…. The only bugger was the lack of markers between the long straight aways of the swim. The long run was ok since I do enjoy running and was not suffering. After the race, I do not know if there was an official massage tent but it would have been nice to have more than one. Pasta and pizza were offered as part of  the finishers buffet which is more than many races have to offer.

I did not hang around for the awards ceremony but I am sure it was very festive for all hte finisher had smiles on their faces. Just enough volunteers on hand to make the event operate very smoothly and assist athletes with their water and other goodies at the aid stations. I will say this event probably had the most USAT marshals on hand. Think that was due to the certification program held the day before. Fortunately no time penalties were “awarded” to me. Looking over my results from previous half iron distance races (40 in 12 years), I noticed this race was the 3rd ” slowest”. So, if you are looking for a challenging race this is one to do. Wish I did not have to wait 12 month to improve that bike split.

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The Triathlon

50 minutes is hardly a work out so  why not do the double. Duathlon and then a couple hours later the triathlon. Just wanta have more fun!

So after finishing up the duathlon I had about 40 minutes to get ready for the triathlon. I knew I was not gonna be a winner in this one, I just wanted to do another hard work out and it just happened to be a racing citation. I have done the double here before with less time for “recovery” so this was gonna be easy.

Taking the inside line since not much of a current.

The swim course is at Fletch Cove at the end of Loma Santa Fe Drive. Beach start with a few sets of waves but nothing to be extra cautious as in previous years. The course is a simple rectangle and head back to land there the lone palm tree to sight on. Can’t get lost on this one. After running up the beach, we tackled the100 yard / 6 or 7 degree ramp up and thru Fletcher Park, crossing the street and another 50 yards before entering T1. The quarter mile ocean swim with transition officially clocked in at 10:54.

The bike was a repeat of my earlier ride except a lot more competitors on course, requiring me to be a bit more courteous and nicer to the “slower” riders. Giving shouts of encouragement as I screamed past. The wind had picked up a touch from earlier. Legs still felt good. The bike course is advertised as 15k/9miles but my bike computers said 8.74). This time my bike split was 28:24, about two and a half minutes slower from my first ride of the day.

A quick T2 and off to attack the 5k run (think it was really 3 miles). There were so many people on the run course at this time, it was really hard to gauge who is who. Leading up to the turn around I could only guess who might be in my age group by noting “distinguishing” age features…s light graying of hair is one of the cues. There are a lot of fit “older” athletes in San Diego, so judging age is hard to do. This time on the run I could feel and sense a bit of tiredness  in the legs but one just has to press on. Just like the bike it was pass, pass and more passing with words of encouragement as I went by. I ended the run this time ’round with a split of 19:49, just 30 second slower than my duathlon time split.

So what did i get out of the days fun?

A finishers metal and a race bib to add to the collection.

Finish time 57:27., 5th AG (out of  80) and 39 OV out of 1106.

Solana Beach Duathlon and Triathlon
Sunday July 24th

I was pretty excited for this event. It’s a fast and flat course, except for the “hill” up to T1-for the triathlon only. The title sponsor is the Triathlon Club of San Diego and it seams like over half of the racers were Club members. I’t my fifth time doing the duathlon, third time dong the tri and second doing the double. It’s another race as part of the Koz Enterprises Triathlon Race Series, compromised of Spring Sprint (in Mission Bay), Super Frog/Seal, Solana Beach, San Diego International, Imperial Beach, and Mission Bay. Can you tell San Diego is a triathlon town?

The week leading up to the event, my work schedule was pretty hectic, working longer hours than normal and late. The night before worked until 1am. I was pretty restless and anxious for this race, set my alarm for 4am to be out the door early and find a prime parking spot. Some of these “small” local races have limited residential parking and one must arrive early to find good parking. Transition did not open until 5:45am, so I was able to get some additional rest once I arrived in Solana Beach.

I made a late decision to do the “double”, that is the duathlon and later the triathlon. Initially I, was just going to do the triathlon which is much more competitive and can usually expect a top 5-10  finish in my age group. My legs have been feeling good so I added the duathlon to really test my legs and foot .

Since I decided to compete in the duathlon my Aussie friend, Michael, was pretty syched. He won the AG last year ( I did not compete). He is a stronger bike but I have the running legs so it was to be a showdown. It was his last race here before heading back to Australia, and he wanted to depart on a victory. The duathlon started fist, around 6:50am with a 1mile run around a few of the city block. For some reason I felt a little slow, It may have been the lead group of three who me in their dust. I know from experience I would not survive if I tried to come close to matching their pace, 15 to 30 seconds faster. Finished in a time of 5:49, I belive that includes T1 also. Michael clocked in one second later.

For this year’s bike course, they threw in a “slow down section”. A quick turn off the 3 mile straight away to scrub off some speed to make it more community firendly. It’s hard to cross the street when bikers are zipping by at over 26 miles an hour. Now pedestrians can be safely be escorted across the street in slow zone. Yes, this does make previous race time non comparable, The bike course is a drag race on PCH, twice, three miles per section. Each lap has a 60 foot elevation gain after the northern turn around section. This year there was no wind to contend with for the duathlon but I did notice it pick up slightly a few hours later during my triathlon. As anticipated I would be passed by my buddy Michael, and a few others. I am not naturally gifted to have the combination of brute strength and power to be an “elite” cyclist. I have to train to keep myself just “in the hunt”. There was nothing I could do about it. I just have to let them go.

Result for the bike, a little over nine miles, include T2 kept me clocked me in at 25:55. The “fast” guys are a minute faster. Much to my surprise upon entering T2. I see and hear Michael shouting angrily,” my shoes, where the F* are my shoes”..or something to that effect. I thought he would be out on the run and I was might be able to catch him in the lat 100 yards. Well as it turns out with all that adrenaline and focus he lost it. He did not remember where he racked his bike. No one stole or hid his shoes as he initially thought. During my quick transition, I  said don’t worry about it, just do with what you have. Fight the anger and release it on the run. So that is what he did. This was all with in a couple of seconds, and we ended up leaving T2 at the same time. I gave him words of encouragement saying “stick with it, hang in there, it will make you stronger for next time”….as I left him in MY dust.

The run is also a drag race on PCH out and back twice, so we get to see where everyone is and say “hi” to friends, other competitors on course and receive cheers and encouragement from the spectators. As all my race report indicate I am a “strong” runner and able to catch may of the bikers who pass me, and this race was about the same often coming down to the last 100 yards to overtake other competitors. This time I was able to pick off another friend, Mike P. He may be in an older age group but I just wanted to improve my overall standing. It was a full sprint for the last 50 yards. Mission accomplished. No overall hardware with a 4th place finish. I finished the three mile run with a time of 19:27 and Ausie Mike’s was 20:55, which got me 1st in the age group. He was lucky he had his socks on or he would have been even slower and ended up with some messed up feet.

       

Finish time 51:08. 4th OV (out of  139) and 1st in AG out of 13. Overall winner,  my friend Kye G, was over two minutes ahead.

Garmin data – not in multisport mode.

Did my preflight bike check and prepared nutritional needs a couple of days ago.

Now it get ready time…. pack, travel, race and recover

Pack….

check.

Grabbed the SuperShuttle to the airport nice and early Friday am and arrive in Portland by 11am. Pick up the rental car and head to Vancouver for lunch at Subway and hit Walmart for some food supplies. New trick on not purchasing a foam cooler… Bring or purchase quality outdoor trash bags and a bag of ice. The quality bags are water proof and big enough to hold your supply of perishables such as yogurt, water, orange juice. It’s my newest travel cost saver. Also the Walmart parking lot is a great place to but the bike back together.

Portland airport (PDX) to Vancouver via the 205 is a quick 15 minute drive then over to the race venue at Blue Lake Park another 15 minutes. Total drive millage for this trip was only 35 miles or so. One of the shortest and easiest race logistics ever.

Since I was planning (and did) volunteer at race registration on Saturday, I had a volunteer/staff parking pass so I was able to park very close to the expo site. The remainder of the day was utilized to check out sections of the bike and run course (garmin data lined). During my pre-ride, I ended up making a few adjustment to my bike set up to this course specifics; extending the aero pad and extension reach and raising the saddle height.

With the venue’s last minute change in location and course, my goals for this race was to set a PR on the bike section and then see how the run goes after. My training leading up to the event over the last couple of month have been heavy on the bike miles and effort with minimal running and swimming. Initially the course was to be hill and challenging but changed to fast and flat, so this is a not too often chance to set a new record.

Whenever possible to volunteer for an out of town (or local) event take advantage of it. You get to meet new and nice people (the competition if working the check in station), get a volunteers t-shirt, free lunch, may get a special parking pass which can be used race day. Plus it kills half the day and allows for a generally peaceful and calm day of activity before the race.

After my am shift with athlete registration, installing fluorescent orange Yankz! laces in my Avia Stoltz, purchasing some co2 cartridges at the All 3 Sports tent,  a few walks to the swim start in Blue Lake Park and loading the bike into my assigned transition spot it was time for a deserved nap.

Individualized transition block – NO Racks! A big plus for choosing Rev3 races.

I was pondering on skipping dinner and just finish off some of my food supplies I purchased at Walmat, but decided to go for a little drive and I ended up in Troutdale and found an Italian restaurant. Ordered a basic dish of spaghetti and house salad which came with a lot of bread which was really need and did the job to fill the engine and storage tanks for the following days half iron triathlon.

Notice the jumping trout statue in the lower left corner.

Headed back to home base, expo/staff parking lot for the night. Yep, the rental car is my hotel. Gotta keep travel expenses low as possible so I can do more events. No need to rise early since transiton closes at 7:30 and my wave goes off at 8:40. Plenty of time to get ready and make the half mile journey from transition to the swim start. With the long trek the decision for all athletes was to pout on shoes at swim exit or make the journey bar foot. The exact path was not marked so no one knew if would be on the rough path or the smooth path with grass bordering. The day before I decided it had to be with shoes and would strip the wetsuit at the same time. Just in case I did rack a bag with extra shoes no matter what I decided. By then the route to T1 was clearly marked and I was able to make a few test runs and still haven’t decided.

Well, watching the pro wave, some headed straight for T1 without shoes and some did put on. I noticed grabbing the transition bag loaded with the shoes and putting on the shoes seemed to add extra tim and an extra struggle.

Part of the 4/10 mile route to T1.

No one had more than a couple minutes to warm un for the swim, no Saturday swim either. It was a beach start and I started in the front row with all the other over 40 males, clydesdales and aquabikers. The swim was pretty easy, was able to sight the buoys quite well thus eliminated a lot of extra swimming. During the swim I was concentrating on faster turn over and solid pulling of the water. There is so stroke analysis to think about while swimming, rotate, stretch, pull, head down, kick..etc.  NOt sure where the timing mat was for the end of the swim/beginning of transition but my swim time was right on par with some of my descent time. Ended up exiting first out of the 28 of my age group competition, time of 31:17. I ended up not doing the extra shoe song and dance and headed straight and fast to transition. Had to be light and swift on the feet and was able to take advantage of the grass the sidelined most of the path. Also has the fastest T1 so, I made the right decision.

I know biking in not my strongest segment of triathlon but I have worked hard over the last couple of years to improve my effort and efficiency. It has been paying off but still some guys just have the genetics to kick my ass. Coming into this race I knew the bike course was to be quite flat an was hoping to get a PR for this distance. The unknown factor is alway the weather (especially the wind) and the road conditions. My pre-ride scouting revealed the rode surface was excellent in spots (ultra smooth) and others some pretty bad chip and seal. Weather ended up being excellent, neutral/no wind. That adds up to a fast time, my fastest ever at 2:30:51, beating my previous by about 6+ minutes, and averaging over 22 mph. The fastest  guy in my group averaged over 28 mph, giving him 16 minute lead off the bike. I dropped back to 7th in the age group by the end of the bike. (Garmin Data). The Di2 was flawless never missed a shift and did not have to hesitate between shifts, this stuff is awesome!

View from the bike course, Mt Hood to the right.

Section of the run course.

Part berry and part vanilla blend.

and some of the rest of the fuel for the week end.

The flask lasts 4 to 5 miles (it hold a little over5 oz), for a half iron distance race then is using nutrition offered by the aid stations. For a full distance can last 8 to 9 miles.

It’s been a while since I last Zined my tri bike set up. What is Zin? It is Retul’s digital mapping tool. It plots the bike out in space and after marking 15 or so spots on the bike, the software generates a highly detailed and accurate report of the bike’s critical measurement.

Bike set up:

• USE fast forward seat post
• Sella Italia GT1 saddle (a triatlhon specific saddle), will swap out for my green accent ISM Adamo Breakaway.
  Both of these saddle allow to ride sitting back or on the nose
• 50mm front carbon clincer with Rolf  38mm in the rear
• -30 degree stem to get appropriate front end drop
• Syntace Stratos with Cobb Wrist Relief Extension
• 170mm cranks – I really notice the benefit of  using shorter cranks
• Install 11/25 cassette
• New chain- removed links
• Front and real derailleur adjustments
• Will be getting rid of the behind the saddle bottle rack/cages and install Oasis One-Tweve hydration system on downtube
• and of course Shimano Di2

My BreakAway all ready to get Zined.

Rev3 Portland (half IM) is about a week away and I want to verify and adjust any necessary setting before heading off to race. I’ve been doing 95 percent of my training in a road bike set up and only recently converted  to the tri bike setting for the last 5 percent of my training preparation. For the area I train, a road bike with clip-ons is more beneficial to build  leg/bike strength and is a whole lot safer. Will be putting in another 200 miles or so with this set up before race day on July 10th.When I get ready to race iron distance events,  I switch to the tri set up three weeks before race day.

It’s pretty hard to Retul oneself, so I go by rider feedback, visual observation in the Lab’s mirrors and 2d motion capture.

The generated report.

The main numbers I am looking for here are saddle height, effective seat tube angle (77 degrees) and pad drop in relation to saddle (-101mm).

After installation Adamo BreakAway saddle, have lowered saddle height,  extended aero pads and extensions, and raised stack 5mm. Man this bike is quiet and rides real smooth.

June was the official “beginning” of training season my cycling training really ramp up significantly, 100 miler every weekend and quality rides in between. My foot recovery seem to be on track and I’ve been able to increase my running days and mileage. Swim is still there, but definitely need to work on speed that will last a full hour. I like tracking/posting my activities on dailymile.com. It has great graphics and not over kill on the technical information.

With the ramped up training days, hours and miles, recovery is very important. I have found recovery drinks to be very helpful. Taking a recovery drink once a month after an event is really not going to help. The protein and “special” formulas for each brand needs time and frequency to work in the body to truly be effective. My recovery choice this time ’round has been Fluid, it’s a powder protein formulation. I will be posting a video of how I make the most awesome recovery drink. 1st Endurance also make a recovery drink/powder called Ultragen, I will be using later this year and will do a comparison report.  I have notice my leg muscles are not “worn out”, not tired, feel like I have energy to go and want to get out and up to get the next training session in. Unfortunately, work sometimes gets in the way and not able to get that training session in when I want.

I’ver been testing out a couple of wetsuit during my training (TYR Hurricane cat 5 and Synergy Endorphin) which I will be giving a detailed comparison (when I have time to do this web stuff). Added another shoe to my rotation of Avias, which has added comfort to the my recovery of plantar issue. It’s Sketchers Speed Pro, a report on these will be coming down the road also.

I haven’t gotten my dream bike yet (Kestrel 4000 LTd- a custom build), so I am still using and loving my Ritchey BreakAway. I gave it a overhaul this week and its ready for the miles and races a head. I love this bike for it’s “easy” travel break down and ability to be retrofitted as a road or tri bike. Yep, I will be posting images and detail of this transformations.

Race season kick off in July. I am ready! of course, training will still be kept at high levels and frequency with taper days leading up to races. I’m excited about the Rev3 Portland half iron distance event. Reports say it is fast and flat, so I am actually hoping for a fast time… PR on the bike leg is my goal for this race. I’ll let the run unfold on its own.

Sorry about the lack of picture on this post.

fast course. ran better/faster than expected
perfect weather.

Title Sponsor  - Avia

Date: 05.15.11
Location: Encinitas (San Diego), CA

Last year at this time I was racing the Rev3 aquabike Knoxville and coming off of cryosurgery for my plantar faciatis. This year I’m staying closer to home base and have finally starting to ramp up my running. I did this event a couple years ago so it will be a good test to gauge my recover,  training progress and compare to my previous effort here.

Saturday, I wason and off my feet all day at the festival expo (at the TCSD booth supporting the Tri Club and Oasis One-Twelve)… not complaining just giving some background. I normally would have been out for a long training ride but wanted to race with fresh legs. I did id not bring breakfast or lunch but was saved by the Mix 1 for the samples they had available and some horrible tasting baked potato chips.

Working the expo allowed me to scope out the parking situation for race day… limited parking near the transition. So race day, up early and out the door by 4:15am.. Transition opened at 5:30 or so this assured me a prime spot in transition. Rack space were assigned by waves and my wave/age group was along the outer perimeter so no need to deal with finding my bike amounghts the masses during the race.

This was going to be a real race for me,  not just a hard training effort. There was no competitor list to review and let me  knew who was going to beat me before the race even started and at the expo I did not see any of the heavy hitters. I was finally going to get to use some of my new equipment in a race situation, TYR Hurricane wetsuit and Avia Avi Stoltz (the fluorescent orange and blue version) running shoes. Full products reports are in the works.

The swim is at Moonlight Beach and transition is an “easy” jog up to street level. The swim is a simple out and back course with a land start… just had to gauge the current and hope our wave start would be optimally timed to make it thru the three to four foot waves.

With a late wave start I was able to practice my ocean entry and avoiding and catching wave. It’s been a while since I have played around in the surf. Watching the early waves, it gave me an idea of how much to adjust for the current. I started on the front row of our wave and when the “gun” went off I took off north for about 30 yard on the sand before heading into the surf. Our wave was pretty small, about 50 guys, and everyone seemed to scatter. Our wave start ended up being synched with the waves perfectly. No waves to push you back or big one to throw you back, just up and over and thru. I ended up mashing it out with one guy for about 30 yard side by side and somehow we split apart and took our individual lines to the far buoy. The current was not as strong as anticipated, so I had to back track/adjust my line just a bit, may have been able to save 10 seconds if all was perfect. Past the breaking waves there was sill a bit of chop, I noticed that my kick was not very effective for this reason, so I focused on a strong pull. After the far buoy there was a little push of the waves but missed the big one to ride in. The exit sight line is the lone/tall palm tree and I had a very straight line to the swim exit.

Its a long jog up to the transiton so no rush on getting the wetsuit off.. On the jog up, I took the top half off and one at my bike slipped the lower half off.  The racks appeared to be still pretty full of bike so it was hard to judge how may were already out on the bike course. For all sprit triathlons I use my Pyro Platform to avoid and extra shoe change in T2. During the week I went for a few rides and made adjustments for the platforms to fit perfectly but for some reason, things were not perfect and my saddle also felt a little low. I am sure I missed out on optimal power production. There were four of us who exited T1 at the same time, one guy took off after the first half lap an the remaining three battled it out back and forth, but I ended up back in T2 slightly ahead of them. I was off focus during the bike segment, I did not have the killer/go fast mind set for some reason this day. Will keep this in mind for the next race and make sure I stay focused. It was a two loop course that included residential streets with long straight a way segments on PCH. With the dips and turns in the residential area I was a bit cautious and on PCH was able to keep up the speed.

Now in T2, I could really see how many were ahead by how few bikes were already hanging on the transition racks. In the past my run is where I am able to make up ground but today something was off. May be my lack of run training, lack of speed work or the half marathon I did last week. I usually recover pretty quick but I definitely felt my heavy quads. I had no turn over and it sucked. About a hundred yards into the run I was passed by Mark E.  (who I usually pass on the run). We ran together for a bit but I could not hang and he increased his lead  and ended up with a faster run split by 1:07.

Messed up on setting the Garmin correctly, thought I had it set for auto multi-sport. I was focused on getting my shoes foot fit/feel right in my platforms  at the beginning of the bike segment so did not activate the start button on time. I like the technology, but it sucks when the wrong or no buttons are pushed. Since it was still on bike mode during the run, I was not able to properly view my pace. It displayed miles per hour not minute mile pace. Yes, I know the higher the number the better, anyways being a 5k run I really did not have time to worry or bother with looking at my watch.. it is just run, run, run.  In T2, I did not cinch my shoe  laces all the way so my Avi Stoltz felt a little loose, but I did not want to waste time to tighten. Probably should have taken the time to fix because if tighter/better contact around my feet I know I could have run faster. So my lack luster run paced out to be 6:40. I am hoping by the end of the year to have that back down to 6:15 or so. But with my iron distance race in September (Rev 3 Cedar Point) I will have to work more on endurance than speed.

Still waiting for race images but here are the results:

Swim: 15:31, 10th in AG –  Over 3 minutes slower than last time I did this course (fastest swimmer this year 11:30, fastest swimmer last time 8:56)
T1: 2:01, 2nd in AG – 1 second slower than last time.
Bike: 36:42, 12th in AG – 15 seconds slower than last time.
T2: 0:30, 1st in AG – 1 second slower than last time and still the fastest overall
Run:  20:32, 8th in AG – 1:02 seconds slower than last time.

So that makes overall time of 1:14:42. Good enough for 6th out of 52 in AG and 51st OV out of 632.

Lessons learned: Focus, have all equipment dialed in and verified twice! I am on track for this seasons end goal. It’s already about mid season and now time to go into phase two of the training season; add a few more longer rides and add two more run days (one being fast/tempo) to my weekly schedule.

images courtesy Brightroom.com

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