Well I am feeling a million times better than the last time I blogged. It seems I have moved passed the whole Staph infection crap. The last week I have really been trying to get things back up to speed and find some confidence for the next two weekends. I leave this Friday for Lifetime Fitness and then next Friday for Vineman 70.3
The race this weekend will be my first Olympic distance in a long while. I think the last one I did was actually Lifetime. Back then it was the Elite Champ race that you had to qualify for in one of the other races in the series. I qualified at the LA Triathlon by getting 4th. When I got to the Champ Race I was pretty sure that I was going to get my ass handed to me but ended up getting second. So a quick lesson in "don't discount yourself until it's over".
This year the race is a qualifier as they moved the Champ Race to Dallas on the same weekend as the Hawaii Ironman. I am hoping to make top 4 this weekend so I can go to Dallas as I am not doing Hawaii. If you qualify they pay your way and hook you up. It was a really fun experience last time. If I don't make top 4 I will have one more shot when I race the Chicago Triathlon in Aug.
The funny part about this trip is that I am leaving on Friday Am, racing Saturday AM and flying back to Boulder Saturday at 2:30. That will officially be a "Travel PR" for me. Luckily I will be traveling with my buddy Jim who is also doing the race. He rolls in style so I think this should be a smooth trip!
Once back I just need to keep things moving until the next weekend as I leave that Friday to go race Vineman 70.3. I had to back out of Racine because I missed Buff Springs due to the infection and need a race that has 70.3 slots. Hopefully it will go well. I mean I have done the 1/2 once and the full twice so I can't say I don't know the course. Knowing a course is such an advantage in my mind.
I think it was all meant to be as my dad is racing the 1/2 and now I can be there for it. As well, my friend Brett will be doing his first 1/2 there too. Not to mention JZ is racing to defend her title. Seems like this is the race I am supposed to be at.
That is the update. Hopefully I will have good news to report back this weekend.
cheers,
bdc
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Curve ball.
Well there were actually 7 days on the ALC ride and I only wrote about 6 of them. Deal with it. If you want to know what Day 7 is like you should sign up and do the ride. Maybe, just maybe, you will get to experience a full police escort on PCH through Malibu with 5 other fast riders. Awesome!
My time in LA after the ride was pretty fun and I let loose a bit with some old friends. However, I think my immune was down as it seemed like I was always on the verge of getting something. I thought for sure that alcohol kills all that stuff....
I never really came down with anything and once I got back to Boulder I went back to Tri Dork and gave up the fun juice and got back to training. I had to start putting my head on about Buffalo Springs 70.3. After loading up on a big week of riding I figured I would be in great shape for it if I played my cards right in the next few weeks.
I had a nice recovery week and felt back on top of my game. SBR was all going very well and JZ and I decided to go hit Magnolia for a nice long run. My foot had been behaving and I was going to actually try and hit 1:45-2 hours. It had always been our plan to get me back up to longer runs if the foot did not act up.
JZ and I started out together and then I kinda ran off. I was feeling good and I don't seem to notice the high altitude up there that much. In fact, I think I would do quite well in a race that high. Anyway, I was moving along and had noticed that I had a slight blister on my heel. Nothing major but I could feel it. When I hit my turn around point I decided I would re tie my shoe to see if I could maybe make it not hurt at all.
Five steps later and I was not able to walk. Something happened after I stopped and the blister just went bananas on me. DAMN! JZ had gone on as she was running further and now I was up at Mags stranded about 7 miles from my car. The road up there is not heavily trafficed so getting a ride might be hard. I did try to run on it but that was not in the cards. I had my shoe off and the blister was massive.
I was so pissed that I was missing this run. It was my best to date and now I am trying to hitch hike. Several cars went by me like I was some kinda of mountain man rapist. Not even an "are you okay"? Finally some guy picked me up and it turns out that we had met on the track a week ago. He was coached by a friend of mine and I met him at a session on the track. Small world.
Once back at the car I waited for JZ to return. My foot was actually throbbing but I had nothing safe to pop it with so I just had to wait till I got home. Being a "picker" that was the first think I did when I got to the house. Needle to flame. Lance!
I was impressed with how much blood came out. It seemed like it was going to be okay now but I wasn't sure how it would fair on the long ride the next day. None the less, my buddy Billy Edward's was getting married and I had to cram it into a dress shoe and get to his wedding.
Seemed okay until I woke up the next day. It was extremely sensitive. So what do I do? Cram it in my bike shoe and ride to Estes Park of course! It was going to be a fun ride as we had a good group going. Denny and Matt were going to join and Belinda and Justin Granger were in town and I had not seen them in long while. Also, Marlyin McDonald was joining us and of course training wife JZ. I really didn't want to miss the ride with this fun group. So I grunted it out but every pedal stroke it just got worse.
The pace was a bit slow for a good while and I decided, in all my pain, that I would just get her done. I went off the front and started on my own pace. I was riding great minus that fact that my foot felt like it was going to explode. When I hit Glen Haven I was wondering where the hell Denny and Matt were. I wasn't riding that hard and I figured they would catch back up. Eventually they did and the three of us hit the Devils Gulch climb which is pretty damn steep. Nothing new to us, but a hard effort for the fittest rider.
Once at the top I almost passed out with pain. The foot was done. I must have used up all the endorphins on the climb. I couldn't even put the foot on the ground. I tried to ride into Estes with my feet on top of my shoes but even that hurt too much. Finally I had to stop. Eventually JZ and Marlin came up on me. I had a minor moment and then they helped me hitch a ride into Estes. From there my good buddy Jim Morriarty was on his way to come get me. He started with us but was only doing 2 hours so he was already home. A friend that will drive out to pick you up in Estes Park because you are too fucking dumb to not know when you shouldn't start a ride is A GOOD FRIEND!
Jim took me right to Urgent Care where they had to cut out the heel and inform me that it was loaded with Staph. Lab results would later confirm all this but they went right ahead and gave me two shots in the ass and some orals to start taking. The blister really looked bad now and it would appear that I was going to be out of everything for a good week. I was NOT happy.
The next day I went back to urgent care to get it re wrapped and checked out again. It seemed a bit better but I was feeling "off". I had a massage that day with Kim so I went up there but the massage was horrible. Not because of Kim, but because something was not right with me. My skin was hurting lightly all over. Long story short, I was having severe chills and fever within hours.
Cicely was at my house and had dinner with me but I made her come back when all this started. My fever was getting really high and I could not move. My legs had this ache in them that I had never felt before. I figured I had the flu but was curious about the feeling in my leg.
I made it through the night but around 5 AM all Hell broke loose and I started vomiting. I knew then that something was really wrong so we went to the ER and sure enough they were telling me that I had an infection that had now gotten into the rest of me. It was not pleasant and they said I was gong to have to be admitted to the hospital for a few days. Fun.
They took good care of me and the funny thing was that my first nurse had just had dinner with Belinda and Justin that night. Small world again! Not to mention that I had her as a nurse when I did actually have a severe case of the flu last January. When a gay guy gets sick like this twice in 6 months you go into a bit of a panic. Nobody likes to talk about it but I made those people give me an HIV test STAT and I wanted results ASAP. I was starting to go a bit mental at this point. My fever was so high and the drugs they were giving me was making any rational thought go out the window.
Once they admitted me I started to feel like things were getting under control. I had some test results back now and we were getting closer to an explanation. The big guns, HIV, Swine Flu etc were ruled out. However, they thought I might have West Nile because of some exposure to bites and I had all three of the major signs. That test takes longer to get back so we had to wait on it.
I thought I was feeling better. JZ, Carole and Cicely had all come by for extended periods of time to basically watch me sleep. When I was awake I thought I felt better but as soon as the PM rolled around things took a really bad turn. My fever went way up again and all the pain in my legs was back in full force. I was developing a migraine type headache and was starting to get a bit scared.
The night nurse started me on a Morphine, Vicodin, Fentinol cocktail. I am not a fan of these drugs at all but within a few more hours I was begging for them. It all sounds so dramatic but the pain I was getting in my legs was now traveling up my my body, into my arms and eventually was in my head. My eyes would move on their own when I would close them so sleeping was out of the question. All I could do is sit there and take it. My nurse had to come in and put me on ice and started mopping me down as the fever just would not break. 106 for 6 hours is pretty much the worst thing I have ever experienced.
3:30 AM rolls around and I had had the Morphine pumped in every hour since about 11PM. That is a lot of drugs for someone like me who doesn't even like Advil. Lucklily something magical happened. I exploded! Literally for 10 min I went into a sweat that was out of control. The bed looked like buckets had been poured on it. And just like that I felt 90% better. I took advantage of it and got up for a few, took a shower and tried to have some food. The window of freedom lasted about 2 hours and then it all came back. I spent the rest of the day with a mild form of the pain I had in the night. It was pretty bad but nothing like what I went through that night. Then later I dumped water again and the fever never came back. The leg pain was still there and all I did was sweat for the next day, but I was definitely out of the woods.
So two nights in the hospital and then another two days of bed rest at home. I was feeling better but totally out of it. Depressed and tired. The infection felt like it ruined everything. I was doing the best I could not to go to the "dark place". JZ is really good at those kinds of talks so she was on "dark place" watch LOL. The nurse did tell me that I would have some withdrawl from the narcotics I had. And that was the truth. I threw out the bottle of Vicondin they gave me to take home. I know myself well enough....
As I started to come back over the next few days I was eager to try and do something but at the same time my motivation was pretty much gone. Makes no sense I know. I had a 70.3 race lined up less than 11 days away and knew that wasn't going to happen now. It felt like my season was over. Everything hurt.
Getting a curve ball happens. The people that can still hit one have excellent control over how they react to it. I know that I have some weakness in that department so I decided that this would be the perfect time to work on that side of life. Curve balls come in all forms. Ask anyone screwed right now by the economic climate. I know that if I am to achieve any of my goals in life I am going to have to be stronger in this department.
Did I bitch about it? Sure. But that helps me. I like to express it and then try and let it go. Did I feel like it was over when I tried to go for a ride and had to sleep 5 hours after? Sure did. But after each "episode" I just let it go. I think it is good that I have all these feelings but I needed to make sure that they are kept in check and that I am the one in control. It can be hard to do when you are a crazy OCD triathlete.
As of now, each day is better and better and I think I will be fine. Did I have to get out of the pool this AM after 1K because my body hurt? Yes. Did I bark at Carole? Yes. Did I let it go and then have a great ride and run? Yes! Not so bad after all.
I think it all comes down to stress. I have Lifetime Fitness on the 11th and then Vineman 70.3 on the 19th. I want these to go well and now that I had a major curve ball it is uncertain how they will go. Really all that means is that the expectation needs to be lifted and just take it one day at a time and see what happens. There is less chance to do well when you think you have been screwed.
So we will see what happens in a week. I think I will get stronger and stronger and be in top form by my races. Then I can write about how all us crazy triathletes need more rest LOL! That is what I am banking on!
To sum up a long story- Don't pop your blisters. And if you do and end up in the hospital with an infection; don't come crying to me! haha.
Cheers,
bdc
My time in LA after the ride was pretty fun and I let loose a bit with some old friends. However, I think my immune was down as it seemed like I was always on the verge of getting something. I thought for sure that alcohol kills all that stuff....
I never really came down with anything and once I got back to Boulder I went back to Tri Dork and gave up the fun juice and got back to training. I had to start putting my head on about Buffalo Springs 70.3. After loading up on a big week of riding I figured I would be in great shape for it if I played my cards right in the next few weeks.
I had a nice recovery week and felt back on top of my game. SBR was all going very well and JZ and I decided to go hit Magnolia for a nice long run. My foot had been behaving and I was going to actually try and hit 1:45-2 hours. It had always been our plan to get me back up to longer runs if the foot did not act up.
JZ and I started out together and then I kinda ran off. I was feeling good and I don't seem to notice the high altitude up there that much. In fact, I think I would do quite well in a race that high. Anyway, I was moving along and had noticed that I had a slight blister on my heel. Nothing major but I could feel it. When I hit my turn around point I decided I would re tie my shoe to see if I could maybe make it not hurt at all.
Five steps later and I was not able to walk. Something happened after I stopped and the blister just went bananas on me. DAMN! JZ had gone on as she was running further and now I was up at Mags stranded about 7 miles from my car. The road up there is not heavily trafficed so getting a ride might be hard. I did try to run on it but that was not in the cards. I had my shoe off and the blister was massive.
I was so pissed that I was missing this run. It was my best to date and now I am trying to hitch hike. Several cars went by me like I was some kinda of mountain man rapist. Not even an "are you okay"? Finally some guy picked me up and it turns out that we had met on the track a week ago. He was coached by a friend of mine and I met him at a session on the track. Small world.
Once back at the car I waited for JZ to return. My foot was actually throbbing but I had nothing safe to pop it with so I just had to wait till I got home. Being a "picker" that was the first think I did when I got to the house. Needle to flame. Lance!
I was impressed with how much blood came out. It seemed like it was going to be okay now but I wasn't sure how it would fair on the long ride the next day. None the less, my buddy Billy Edward's was getting married and I had to cram it into a dress shoe and get to his wedding.
Seemed okay until I woke up the next day. It was extremely sensitive. So what do I do? Cram it in my bike shoe and ride to Estes Park of course! It was going to be a fun ride as we had a good group going. Denny and Matt were going to join and Belinda and Justin Granger were in town and I had not seen them in long while. Also, Marlyin McDonald was joining us and of course training wife JZ. I really didn't want to miss the ride with this fun group. So I grunted it out but every pedal stroke it just got worse.
The pace was a bit slow for a good while and I decided, in all my pain, that I would just get her done. I went off the front and started on my own pace. I was riding great minus that fact that my foot felt like it was going to explode. When I hit Glen Haven I was wondering where the hell Denny and Matt were. I wasn't riding that hard and I figured they would catch back up. Eventually they did and the three of us hit the Devils Gulch climb which is pretty damn steep. Nothing new to us, but a hard effort for the fittest rider.
Once at the top I almost passed out with pain. The foot was done. I must have used up all the endorphins on the climb. I couldn't even put the foot on the ground. I tried to ride into Estes with my feet on top of my shoes but even that hurt too much. Finally I had to stop. Eventually JZ and Marlin came up on me. I had a minor moment and then they helped me hitch a ride into Estes. From there my good buddy Jim Morriarty was on his way to come get me. He started with us but was only doing 2 hours so he was already home. A friend that will drive out to pick you up in Estes Park because you are too fucking dumb to not know when you shouldn't start a ride is A GOOD FRIEND!
Jim took me right to Urgent Care where they had to cut out the heel and inform me that it was loaded with Staph. Lab results would later confirm all this but they went right ahead and gave me two shots in the ass and some orals to start taking. The blister really looked bad now and it would appear that I was going to be out of everything for a good week. I was NOT happy.
The next day I went back to urgent care to get it re wrapped and checked out again. It seemed a bit better but I was feeling "off". I had a massage that day with Kim so I went up there but the massage was horrible. Not because of Kim, but because something was not right with me. My skin was hurting lightly all over. Long story short, I was having severe chills and fever within hours.
Cicely was at my house and had dinner with me but I made her come back when all this started. My fever was getting really high and I could not move. My legs had this ache in them that I had never felt before. I figured I had the flu but was curious about the feeling in my leg.
I made it through the night but around 5 AM all Hell broke loose and I started vomiting. I knew then that something was really wrong so we went to the ER and sure enough they were telling me that I had an infection that had now gotten into the rest of me. It was not pleasant and they said I was gong to have to be admitted to the hospital for a few days. Fun.
They took good care of me and the funny thing was that my first nurse had just had dinner with Belinda and Justin that night. Small world again! Not to mention that I had her as a nurse when I did actually have a severe case of the flu last January. When a gay guy gets sick like this twice in 6 months you go into a bit of a panic. Nobody likes to talk about it but I made those people give me an HIV test STAT and I wanted results ASAP. I was starting to go a bit mental at this point. My fever was so high and the drugs they were giving me was making any rational thought go out the window.
Once they admitted me I started to feel like things were getting under control. I had some test results back now and we were getting closer to an explanation. The big guns, HIV, Swine Flu etc were ruled out. However, they thought I might have West Nile because of some exposure to bites and I had all three of the major signs. That test takes longer to get back so we had to wait on it.
I thought I was feeling better. JZ, Carole and Cicely had all come by for extended periods of time to basically watch me sleep. When I was awake I thought I felt better but as soon as the PM rolled around things took a really bad turn. My fever went way up again and all the pain in my legs was back in full force. I was developing a migraine type headache and was starting to get a bit scared.
The night nurse started me on a Morphine, Vicodin, Fentinol cocktail. I am not a fan of these drugs at all but within a few more hours I was begging for them. It all sounds so dramatic but the pain I was getting in my legs was now traveling up my my body, into my arms and eventually was in my head. My eyes would move on their own when I would close them so sleeping was out of the question. All I could do is sit there and take it. My nurse had to come in and put me on ice and started mopping me down as the fever just would not break. 106 for 6 hours is pretty much the worst thing I have ever experienced.
3:30 AM rolls around and I had had the Morphine pumped in every hour since about 11PM. That is a lot of drugs for someone like me who doesn't even like Advil. Lucklily something magical happened. I exploded! Literally for 10 min I went into a sweat that was out of control. The bed looked like buckets had been poured on it. And just like that I felt 90% better. I took advantage of it and got up for a few, took a shower and tried to have some food. The window of freedom lasted about 2 hours and then it all came back. I spent the rest of the day with a mild form of the pain I had in the night. It was pretty bad but nothing like what I went through that night. Then later I dumped water again and the fever never came back. The leg pain was still there and all I did was sweat for the next day, but I was definitely out of the woods.
So two nights in the hospital and then another two days of bed rest at home. I was feeling better but totally out of it. Depressed and tired. The infection felt like it ruined everything. I was doing the best I could not to go to the "dark place". JZ is really good at those kinds of talks so she was on "dark place" watch LOL. The nurse did tell me that I would have some withdrawl from the narcotics I had. And that was the truth. I threw out the bottle of Vicondin they gave me to take home. I know myself well enough....
As I started to come back over the next few days I was eager to try and do something but at the same time my motivation was pretty much gone. Makes no sense I know. I had a 70.3 race lined up less than 11 days away and knew that wasn't going to happen now. It felt like my season was over. Everything hurt.
Getting a curve ball happens. The people that can still hit one have excellent control over how they react to it. I know that I have some weakness in that department so I decided that this would be the perfect time to work on that side of life. Curve balls come in all forms. Ask anyone screwed right now by the economic climate. I know that if I am to achieve any of my goals in life I am going to have to be stronger in this department.
Did I bitch about it? Sure. But that helps me. I like to express it and then try and let it go. Did I feel like it was over when I tried to go for a ride and had to sleep 5 hours after? Sure did. But after each "episode" I just let it go. I think it is good that I have all these feelings but I needed to make sure that they are kept in check and that I am the one in control. It can be hard to do when you are a crazy OCD triathlete.
As of now, each day is better and better and I think I will be fine. Did I have to get out of the pool this AM after 1K because my body hurt? Yes. Did I bark at Carole? Yes. Did I let it go and then have a great ride and run? Yes! Not so bad after all.
I think it all comes down to stress. I have Lifetime Fitness on the 11th and then Vineman 70.3 on the 19th. I want these to go well and now that I had a major curve ball it is uncertain how they will go. Really all that means is that the expectation needs to be lifted and just take it one day at a time and see what happens. There is less chance to do well when you think you have been screwed.
So we will see what happens in a week. I think I will get stronger and stronger and be in top form by my races. Then I can write about how all us crazy triathletes need more rest LOL! That is what I am banking on!
To sum up a long story- Don't pop your blisters. And if you do and end up in the hospital with an infection; don't come crying to me! haha.
Cheers,
bdc
Friday, June 5, 2009
ALC Day 4,5,6
Hello Hello from the road. Well actually right now I am in a hotel room of another rider. It is day 6 and I am not on my bike which is turning out to be a VERY good thing. I had started to feel a bit of a cold coming and last night while trying to sleep in the tent, it began to rain. The rain did not wake me up because I wasn't able to sleep in the first place as there were some extremely vocal frogs. They kept it up ALL NIGHT!. My super sonic NASA ear plugs couldn't even stop it. As well, Cicely and I had to set up the tent on a bit of a slant and I kept rolling into her. Long story short, is was a rough night in the tent and I woke up at 5am feeling pretty congested. Did I mention the tent wasn't water proof LOL! Wet pillow, wet feet, wet suitcase.
Luckily for me I have a friend on the ride that is working for a few other riders. He is helping them with all there stuff and they are in a hotel. One call and the Land Rover was on the way to pick my wet ass up. I was a bit bummed that I didn't feel up for riding because in all honesty the weather was not my issue. It was that I felt sick. However, Cicely just called me from camp (she is working bike parking) and told me that CHP has shut down the ride for the day because the rain in the mountains is so bad that they do not want riders descending. Obviously for riders at my level, the rain would not be an issue, but they have to make decisions based on the slower, less experienced riders. Boy am I happy that I am not stuck out there! That would not help my situation.
The last two days have been pretty good. We had a nice long day starting out of Paso Robles that took us up a pretty sweet climb they like to call the "Evil Twins". The Dope Peddlers and I had gone to coffee first and about two miles into the ride I realize I left my Camel Pack at Starbucks. That had a good majority of my calories in it. Mike waited with me as I tried to get a hold of someone at camp that could get it and take it to the next camp. By the time I found someone we were now way back and would have to pass a gazillion people. We did the majority of the passing on the climb which let me see how the other riders handled it. Lets just say I now understand why ALC gave the name "Evil Twins" to the two hills. There was some suffering going on and I am sure that having me fly by them wasn't exactly "encouraging".
I dropped Mike on the climb and ended up riding solo for most of the ride. I had waited at a rest stop after the descent but he ended up breaking his seat post and had to deal with all that. The ride was a bit uneventful. I was too far back to catch up to my crew so I just enjoyed the foggy day.
The next day was a shorter day and we made sure that we rolled out first so we could just get er done. 67 miles of some of the best riding So Cal has to offer. We went through Solvang which is very nice town. We didn't stop because we all had our sights set on South Side Coffee shop in Lompoc. We got there in just over 3 hours and then proceeded to sit there for about 4 hours LOL. It was nice and sunny and we all just soaked up the day. I could feel that cold coming though. I think it is allergies but no matter what, I definitely do not need to ride 85 miles in the rain today.
Xavier has gone out to rescue the other guys. I am going to take advantage of the hotel room and clean up. We will drive to Ventura in a bit and depending on the weather and how I feel I shall either be back in a tent or I may get a room. If I start to feel really crappy I am going to pull from the ride and have someone come get me and take me to LA. I am racing Buff Springs 70.3 at the end of the month and want to be sharp for it. Getting sick won't do me any good. Other than that I feel awesome. The riding is making me stronger and my feet are holding up. Like I said before....GAME ON!
You can still donate to the cause at: www.tofighthiv.org/goto/bdc
Cheers!
bdc
Luckily for me I have a friend on the ride that is working for a few other riders. He is helping them with all there stuff and they are in a hotel. One call and the Land Rover was on the way to pick my wet ass up. I was a bit bummed that I didn't feel up for riding because in all honesty the weather was not my issue. It was that I felt sick. However, Cicely just called me from camp (she is working bike parking) and told me that CHP has shut down the ride for the day because the rain in the mountains is so bad that they do not want riders descending. Obviously for riders at my level, the rain would not be an issue, but they have to make decisions based on the slower, less experienced riders. Boy am I happy that I am not stuck out there! That would not help my situation.
The last two days have been pretty good. We had a nice long day starting out of Paso Robles that took us up a pretty sweet climb they like to call the "Evil Twins". The Dope Peddlers and I had gone to coffee first and about two miles into the ride I realize I left my Camel Pack at Starbucks. That had a good majority of my calories in it. Mike waited with me as I tried to get a hold of someone at camp that could get it and take it to the next camp. By the time I found someone we were now way back and would have to pass a gazillion people. We did the majority of the passing on the climb which let me see how the other riders handled it. Lets just say I now understand why ALC gave the name "Evil Twins" to the two hills. There was some suffering going on and I am sure that having me fly by them wasn't exactly "encouraging".
I dropped Mike on the climb and ended up riding solo for most of the ride. I had waited at a rest stop after the descent but he ended up breaking his seat post and had to deal with all that. The ride was a bit uneventful. I was too far back to catch up to my crew so I just enjoyed the foggy day.
The next day was a shorter day and we made sure that we rolled out first so we could just get er done. 67 miles of some of the best riding So Cal has to offer. We went through Solvang which is very nice town. We didn't stop because we all had our sights set on South Side Coffee shop in Lompoc. We got there in just over 3 hours and then proceeded to sit there for about 4 hours LOL. It was nice and sunny and we all just soaked up the day. I could feel that cold coming though. I think it is allergies but no matter what, I definitely do not need to ride 85 miles in the rain today.
Xavier has gone out to rescue the other guys. I am going to take advantage of the hotel room and clean up. We will drive to Ventura in a bit and depending on the weather and how I feel I shall either be back in a tent or I may get a room. If I start to feel really crappy I am going to pull from the ride and have someone come get me and take me to LA. I am racing Buff Springs 70.3 at the end of the month and want to be sharp for it. Getting sick won't do me any good. Other than that I feel awesome. The riding is making me stronger and my feet are holding up. Like I said before....GAME ON!
You can still donate to the cause at: www.tofighthiv.org/goto/bdc
Cheers!
bdc
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
ALC Day 1,2,3.
DAY ONE:
I was way behind the eight ball in terms of sleep most likely due to travel and excitement to get this ride going. Cicely and I had been in San Francisco the two days prior and all I really wanted to do was sleep. Unfortunately that did not happen as there was much to do with checking in, seeing friends and taking care of all the last minute things that come with a training trip like this. Still, the alarm went off at the ripe hour of 4am. The thing with rides like this is that you have to start really early so the riders that who take all day have all day. Being fast, you still have to start first or you spend too much of the day saying "on your left".
Opening ceremonies takes place now at the Cow Palace. Much better way to start the ride since it cuts out any riding through the actual city. The ceremony is always a bit touching especially when they bring in the rider-less bike. The bike represents all of the people that are not as fortunate to ride because of HIV/AIDS. The bike is presented by all of the riders that are currently HIV positive. They each carry ALC flags that have been signed by people in honor of those they have lost. I signed one in honor of Doug Blasedale who was my first spinning instructor before I ever rode and my buddy Derek who passed this last month. He was 38.
Once the ceremony is over we all file out like sheep to where the bikes are parked. I got stuck behind a huge crowd and was going to have to ride out almost last. I wasn't bothered by that but I knew that it meant I would be passing people for a good part of the AM. That can be a bit annoying. More on that later.
The ride out was pretty cold and overcast as it always is in SF. The scenery is fantastic after about an hour into it. Then you end up on the PCH which is also a very nice view. I was cranking away and prepared to not have to stop at any aide station. I had made it past the majority of people and wasn't sure if there was anyone else ahead of me. Soon enough I saw some dude up the road appearing to be stopped. As I got closer it turned out to be Ben Armstrong who I met the first time I did the ride. He rides like his last name.
I was glad to see him and helped him fix the flat. He told me that there were some other fast guys up the road. I have to admit, I thought "they can't be that fast" since I was the last one out and I was pretty sure that they knew better and got out first. I had been told by some other friends that these guys called "Dope Peddlers" do the ride and that they are fast and kinda dicks. I didn't make any judgments about them as I don't know them. But I do know that in rides like ALC, the fast guys are always thought of as dicks. I was happy they were there because I knew that once we all find each other it will be GAME ON!
Ben and I rode together for a while. I had to test his fitness and see if he had progressed since I saw him last. Well, lets be honest, I had to show him how much I had progressed since he saw me last. I let him take a pull and he made it a good one. Just not good enough. I took my turn and had to drop him. The ride was on the Big Kahuna course at this point so I knew how far we had to go etc. It wasn't far.
Back in camp it turns out that we were the first ones in. We never passed the Dope Peddlers so they must have pulled into an aid station and we didn't see them. When they did arrive they were a bit shocked to see that there were two bikes parked. The butt sniffing was about to begin and you can guarantee that tomorrow the tape measures would be pulled out. We all sat on the grass and had some lunch getting to know each other as best we could. I had my bias of them from my friends but so far they didn't seem like dicks to me. They are just straight and fast.
Camp life was going to be fine for the week. I made friends with my gear truck so that they would put my luggage in last so I wouldn't have to wait. Cicely would be working bike parking so it looked like I was going to be setting up shop every day. That was fine with me as I didn't have anything better to do. I would, however, have to take camp down in the AM because she was going to be out super early to work. That was a bit of a bummer but I would deal.
DAY 2:
I got up early so that I would be ready to get out first. Ben was waiting at bike parking for me. We were going to ride together as it was a big day. 107 miles of rolling hills and wind. Normal you get some nice tail winds on this route but the forecast was opposite and we did end up with some nasty head and cross winds. There would be a lot of casualties today.
Ben wasn't feeling so hot and I ended up dragging his ass around all day. He goes out too hard. I tried to tell him that so that he would be of some use late in the day but I couldn't make contact with his brain. JZ would have a field day with him!
We blew all the aid stations and just pounded out the ride. It was probably the hardest I have ridden that far in training in a good while. Our ride time was 4:35 min. On a course like that with the wind that we had, I would have to say we were working. We still had not connected with the Dope Peddlers. At this point it was a bit like "Race For Your Life Charlie Brown". If you haven't seen that a portion of your childhood was robbed. Anyway, one in camp we did all get together and had a proper chat on the grass. We had to wait for our gear for over 2 hours as we beat the whole "city".
We decided that the next day we would all ride together. It was a shorter day (66) and I think we could all use the group. I knew there would be no break. These environments are not new to me.
I got my 9 mile run in a bit later and then proceeded to pass out by 8pm. Maybe earplugs and a tent are the key to my sleeping problems? It's probably just being down from altitude. I always sleep better low.
DAY 3:
I decided to get up really early because I wanted the help from Cicely to get the camp taken down. I was ready to ride by 5:45 but we can't head out until 6:30. Ben and I met up with Dope Peddlers and we were all ready to take the 66 miles as a group. The ride would include "Quad Buster", a hill that apparently busts quads. I have done it before. It's no big deal. Then we would end up on the back side of the Wildflower course. Kinda funny that day one and two I would be on sections of races that I have done.
Anyway, like I said before, the ride was not very tame. Quad Buster became a KOM and the rest of the ride was pretty rowdy. It was a fast pace but when you have a line going it is manageable. I like riding like that and don't get to do it that often. We all had a great ride and bonded a bit. I think tomorrows ride of 95 miles will be easier as we now have a clear group. We have to go over the "Evil Twins" which in my mind are a bigger deal than Quad Buster.
I am off to go swim now and then have some dinner with the rents. We are in Paso Robles so I get to score some more parent points! Dad was going to ride tomorrow but ended up with too much to do at work.
More to report later. Limited Internet from the road.
Cheers,
bdc
I was way behind the eight ball in terms of sleep most likely due to travel and excitement to get this ride going. Cicely and I had been in San Francisco the two days prior and all I really wanted to do was sleep. Unfortunately that did not happen as there was much to do with checking in, seeing friends and taking care of all the last minute things that come with a training trip like this. Still, the alarm went off at the ripe hour of 4am. The thing with rides like this is that you have to start really early so the riders that who take all day have all day. Being fast, you still have to start first or you spend too much of the day saying "on your left".
Opening ceremonies takes place now at the Cow Palace. Much better way to start the ride since it cuts out any riding through the actual city. The ceremony is always a bit touching especially when they bring in the rider-less bike. The bike represents all of the people that are not as fortunate to ride because of HIV/AIDS. The bike is presented by all of the riders that are currently HIV positive. They each carry ALC flags that have been signed by people in honor of those they have lost. I signed one in honor of Doug Blasedale who was my first spinning instructor before I ever rode and my buddy Derek who passed this last month. He was 38.
Once the ceremony is over we all file out like sheep to where the bikes are parked. I got stuck behind a huge crowd and was going to have to ride out almost last. I wasn't bothered by that but I knew that it meant I would be passing people for a good part of the AM. That can be a bit annoying. More on that later.
The ride out was pretty cold and overcast as it always is in SF. The scenery is fantastic after about an hour into it. Then you end up on the PCH which is also a very nice view. I was cranking away and prepared to not have to stop at any aide station. I had made it past the majority of people and wasn't sure if there was anyone else ahead of me. Soon enough I saw some dude up the road appearing to be stopped. As I got closer it turned out to be Ben Armstrong who I met the first time I did the ride. He rides like his last name.
I was glad to see him and helped him fix the flat. He told me that there were some other fast guys up the road. I have to admit, I thought "they can't be that fast" since I was the last one out and I was pretty sure that they knew better and got out first. I had been told by some other friends that these guys called "Dope Peddlers" do the ride and that they are fast and kinda dicks. I didn't make any judgments about them as I don't know them. But I do know that in rides like ALC, the fast guys are always thought of as dicks. I was happy they were there because I knew that once we all find each other it will be GAME ON!
Ben and I rode together for a while. I had to test his fitness and see if he had progressed since I saw him last. Well, lets be honest, I had to show him how much I had progressed since he saw me last. I let him take a pull and he made it a good one. Just not good enough. I took my turn and had to drop him. The ride was on the Big Kahuna course at this point so I knew how far we had to go etc. It wasn't far.
Back in camp it turns out that we were the first ones in. We never passed the Dope Peddlers so they must have pulled into an aid station and we didn't see them. When they did arrive they were a bit shocked to see that there were two bikes parked. The butt sniffing was about to begin and you can guarantee that tomorrow the tape measures would be pulled out. We all sat on the grass and had some lunch getting to know each other as best we could. I had my bias of them from my friends but so far they didn't seem like dicks to me. They are just straight and fast.
Camp life was going to be fine for the week. I made friends with my gear truck so that they would put my luggage in last so I wouldn't have to wait. Cicely would be working bike parking so it looked like I was going to be setting up shop every day. That was fine with me as I didn't have anything better to do. I would, however, have to take camp down in the AM because she was going to be out super early to work. That was a bit of a bummer but I would deal.
DAY 2:
I got up early so that I would be ready to get out first. Ben was waiting at bike parking for me. We were going to ride together as it was a big day. 107 miles of rolling hills and wind. Normal you get some nice tail winds on this route but the forecast was opposite and we did end up with some nasty head and cross winds. There would be a lot of casualties today.
Ben wasn't feeling so hot and I ended up dragging his ass around all day. He goes out too hard. I tried to tell him that so that he would be of some use late in the day but I couldn't make contact with his brain. JZ would have a field day with him!
We blew all the aid stations and just pounded out the ride. It was probably the hardest I have ridden that far in training in a good while. Our ride time was 4:35 min. On a course like that with the wind that we had, I would have to say we were working. We still had not connected with the Dope Peddlers. At this point it was a bit like "Race For Your Life Charlie Brown". If you haven't seen that a portion of your childhood was robbed. Anyway, one in camp we did all get together and had a proper chat on the grass. We had to wait for our gear for over 2 hours as we beat the whole "city".
We decided that the next day we would all ride together. It was a shorter day (66) and I think we could all use the group. I knew there would be no break. These environments are not new to me.
I got my 9 mile run in a bit later and then proceeded to pass out by 8pm. Maybe earplugs and a tent are the key to my sleeping problems? It's probably just being down from altitude. I always sleep better low.
DAY 3:
I decided to get up really early because I wanted the help from Cicely to get the camp taken down. I was ready to ride by 5:45 but we can't head out until 6:30. Ben and I met up with Dope Peddlers and we were all ready to take the 66 miles as a group. The ride would include "Quad Buster", a hill that apparently busts quads. I have done it before. It's no big deal. Then we would end up on the back side of the Wildflower course. Kinda funny that day one and two I would be on sections of races that I have done.
Anyway, like I said before, the ride was not very tame. Quad Buster became a KOM and the rest of the ride was pretty rowdy. It was a fast pace but when you have a line going it is manageable. I like riding like that and don't get to do it that often. We all had a great ride and bonded a bit. I think tomorrows ride of 95 miles will be easier as we now have a clear group. We have to go over the "Evil Twins" which in my mind are a bigger deal than Quad Buster.
I am off to go swim now and then have some dinner with the rents. We are in Paso Robles so I get to score some more parent points! Dad was going to ride tomorrow but ended up with too much to do at work.
More to report later. Limited Internet from the road.
Cheers,
bdc
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Aids Life Cycle: DAY ZERO
Well I got to San Francisco with no real issues. In fact I didn't even get charged for my bike at DIA. That is special! And now I am all checked in for the 7 day journey that will take me from San Francisco to Los Angeles. While the feat of the ride is not really that big of a deal for me, the charity attached to it IS! Over the past year, a majority of the HIV/AIDS funding in California has gone away. Events like the Aids Life Cycle are becoming more important as the years go by.
I would have to say that the "training" environment that I am now placed in is a bit different than what I am used to. I guess you could say that it is like a cross between an Ironman, circuit party and a local bike path. It's funny how you learn more and more about your comfort zone when you do things outside of the usual routine.
While I am gay, my usual routine does not involve being around this many gay people at one time. And while I lived in LA for most of my life and I have been out since I was 19, this many gays at one time is overwhelming to me. What is even more interesting, to me, is that I am not 100% comfortable around all the straight people that I train and hang with on a regular basis. I guess you could say that I am having an awakening to the fact that I am not sure where I am 100% comfortable. Growing up gay can kinda do that to you. Once you come out, it is like you are supposed to just join the whole "gay community". Or it least that is how it can feel. A little hard to explain but my issue has always been that I never thought my sexuality had to be the top thing that "defined" me. That can be a hard thing to not let happen because the reality is that it IS a huge thing that defines you. Being straight is a huge definer too. Most just take it for granted.
Anyway, Blah blah blah lets stop the Dr, Phil show before I start analyzing every part of my life on a blog and get back to the ride.
I have seen so many of my friends from LA and am excited to sleep in a tent for seven days. Okay, that was a lie. I am willing to sleep in a tent for 7 days. I am pretty willing to do a lot of things in fact. Hopefully we won't get any rain. Tent + Rain + Training all day = Credit Card + Hotel.
Better get off to bed. Have to wake up SUPER early as the ride starts at the butt crack of dawn. There are going to be some people out there all day every day and we have to start according to the slowest rider. I am going to try and find out who those people are and set up their tents if possible. See what a nice guy I can be if I want to be!
You can still donate: www.tofighthiv.org/goto/bdc
More later from ALC 8!
bdc
I would have to say that the "training" environment that I am now placed in is a bit different than what I am used to. I guess you could say that it is like a cross between an Ironman, circuit party and a local bike path. It's funny how you learn more and more about your comfort zone when you do things outside of the usual routine.
While I am gay, my usual routine does not involve being around this many gay people at one time. And while I lived in LA for most of my life and I have been out since I was 19, this many gays at one time is overwhelming to me. What is even more interesting, to me, is that I am not 100% comfortable around all the straight people that I train and hang with on a regular basis. I guess you could say that I am having an awakening to the fact that I am not sure where I am 100% comfortable. Growing up gay can kinda do that to you. Once you come out, it is like you are supposed to just join the whole "gay community". Or it least that is how it can feel. A little hard to explain but my issue has always been that I never thought my sexuality had to be the top thing that "defined" me. That can be a hard thing to not let happen because the reality is that it IS a huge thing that defines you. Being straight is a huge definer too. Most just take it for granted.
Anyway, Blah blah blah lets stop the Dr, Phil show before I start analyzing every part of my life on a blog and get back to the ride.
I have seen so many of my friends from LA and am excited to sleep in a tent for seven days. Okay, that was a lie. I am willing to sleep in a tent for 7 days. I am pretty willing to do a lot of things in fact. Hopefully we won't get any rain. Tent + Rain + Training all day = Credit Card + Hotel.
Better get off to bed. Have to wake up SUPER early as the ride starts at the butt crack of dawn. There are going to be some people out there all day every day and we have to start according to the slowest rider. I am going to try and find out who those people are and set up their tents if possible. See what a nice guy I can be if I want to be!
You can still donate: www.tofighthiv.org/goto/bdc
More later from ALC 8!
bdc
Monday, May 25, 2009
Bolder Boulder 10K Race Report
I decided after Wildflower that I wanted to run the Bolder Boulder 10K for fun. It is one of the biggest 10K's in the country and there are NO spectators. Why? Because EEERRRRRREEEEEYBODY in town runs it. I mean everyone! I haven't run an open 10K in years, and since my foot has been behaving I thought "why not"?
About 2 min after saying that in front of my friend Jim, I had an e-mail in my in box saying that I was registered for the race. My run time at WF got me in the "A Wave" so I wouldn't have to start behind the masses. That was a plus for sure. If you saw how many people there are you would understand.
JZ let me do the race as long as I used it as part of my long run and didn't take off my usual Saturday workout. I must say, Saturday was a pretty huge day. JZ served up a nice 3.8K swim that included a 2K TT. Then we hit the bike and popped off a nice 105 miles. The last hour I felt like crap but was still riding strong. When we got back to the home base I SOOOOO did not want to run. My desire to run was about as low as it gets and I was praying for a thunderstorm. One came but we still ran.
Sometimes you surprise yourself. After a few steps everything felt excellent. We were on our way to the track to do an 800 workout. I have started doing a second track workout off the bike on Saturdays in addition to my Wednesday track session that comes before the second long ride of the week. Saturdays workout is a bit slower than wed. So anyway, we get up there and I start out on the 800's. We ended up doing 4 of them starting at 2:55 and ending in 2:38. Felt great. I should add that as part of the "keep my feet in order" plan, I do 1/2 of the track stuff in the reverse direction.
All in all Saturday was a great day. Where am I going with this? Oh- Probably telling you this as a built in excuse about Bolder Boulder. I mean, it wouldn't be a true race report if you didn't list at least 10 reasons on why you could have gone faster!
I ran 4 miles to the race (excuse) and then when we got lined up for our wave they held us in the coral for about 15 min (excuse) and the first mile is down hill which I don't really care for (excuse). We are up to 4 excuses so far!
I ran into my buddy Sven, who actually ran at UCLA right before I did, and we had a quick chat about what we wanted to do for the 10K. He was thinking 5:30 pace so I thought I would just stick with him. Of course I went out faster than that (excuse). First mile was 5:15. And then the course started to go up. First time racing at altitude (excuse) and it was more of a climb than I thought (excuse). Man I am good at this excuse thing! I actually settled into a pace that wasn't too bad and finished with a 5:40 average. Here is the kicker- I won my age LOL! They do age by exact year so apparently all the 32 year olds slept in today.
I was happy with the effort. I recovered from the race the second I stopped running which was a good sign. I didn't really stop for too long actually. I just ran home. I was a bit cold and had nothing to change into. Plus JZ told me to run home.
Once home I met up with JZ, Carole, Monica and a few others for a swim. The swim went great and helped flush out any lactic acid left in them. Not a bad training day!
Now I am off to drink some beers at a BBQ. I have a few days left in Boulder before I head off to Cali for the California Aids Life Cycle. I will write a blog on that adventure in a few days and also plan to keep a daily blog while on the ride.
Cheers,
bdc
About 2 min after saying that in front of my friend Jim, I had an e-mail in my in box saying that I was registered for the race. My run time at WF got me in the "A Wave" so I wouldn't have to start behind the masses. That was a plus for sure. If you saw how many people there are you would understand.
JZ let me do the race as long as I used it as part of my long run and didn't take off my usual Saturday workout. I must say, Saturday was a pretty huge day. JZ served up a nice 3.8K swim that included a 2K TT. Then we hit the bike and popped off a nice 105 miles. The last hour I felt like crap but was still riding strong. When we got back to the home base I SOOOOO did not want to run. My desire to run was about as low as it gets and I was praying for a thunderstorm. One came but we still ran.
Sometimes you surprise yourself. After a few steps everything felt excellent. We were on our way to the track to do an 800 workout. I have started doing a second track workout off the bike on Saturdays in addition to my Wednesday track session that comes before the second long ride of the week. Saturdays workout is a bit slower than wed. So anyway, we get up there and I start out on the 800's. We ended up doing 4 of them starting at 2:55 and ending in 2:38. Felt great. I should add that as part of the "keep my feet in order" plan, I do 1/2 of the track stuff in the reverse direction.
All in all Saturday was a great day. Where am I going with this? Oh- Probably telling you this as a built in excuse about Bolder Boulder. I mean, it wouldn't be a true race report if you didn't list at least 10 reasons on why you could have gone faster!
I ran 4 miles to the race (excuse) and then when we got lined up for our wave they held us in the coral for about 15 min (excuse) and the first mile is down hill which I don't really care for (excuse). We are up to 4 excuses so far!
I ran into my buddy Sven, who actually ran at UCLA right before I did, and we had a quick chat about what we wanted to do for the 10K. He was thinking 5:30 pace so I thought I would just stick with him. Of course I went out faster than that (excuse). First mile was 5:15. And then the course started to go up. First time racing at altitude (excuse) and it was more of a climb than I thought (excuse). Man I am good at this excuse thing! I actually settled into a pace that wasn't too bad and finished with a 5:40 average. Here is the kicker- I won my age LOL! They do age by exact year so apparently all the 32 year olds slept in today.
I was happy with the effort. I recovered from the race the second I stopped running which was a good sign. I didn't really stop for too long actually. I just ran home. I was a bit cold and had nothing to change into. Plus JZ told me to run home.
Once home I met up with JZ, Carole, Monica and a few others for a swim. The swim went great and helped flush out any lactic acid left in them. Not a bad training day!
Now I am off to drink some beers at a BBQ. I have a few days left in Boulder before I head off to Cali for the California Aids Life Cycle. I will write a blog on that adventure in a few days and also plan to keep a daily blog while on the ride.
Cheers,
bdc
Friday, May 15, 2009
Wildflower Race Report
Wildflower is a race I always seem to want to do. It's a unique race atmosphere and kinda early in the season (for me) so I enjoy the fitness check. And let's just say Wildflower will NOT lie to you about how fit or unfit you are. It's BRUTAL. I actually got to write the chapter on "Wildflower" in "50 Greatest Triathlons". The book should be out soon. I hope I did the race justice.
Anyway, this was my third time doing the race. It was the first time I went into the race not injured. What a better way to race. Not injured. Go figure. I had a decent amount of prep for it and was very happy with my end result which was 2nd in 30-34, 5th AG overall and beating over 50% of the Pro Field. Not to mention I had a shocker of a run. 1:21.03 was the time. I really wasn't expecting to be able to go that fast on this course. I would have to say, given the training I have in my now, it is a pretty good sign.
The day before the race I was feeling a bit of the pressure. I think most of it was coming from the fact that my last race was Hawaii and last year I only did 2 other races, one of which didn't go well internally. The result was fine but the way it felt was another story. As well, my swim in Hawaii, while being a non wetsuit PR, had a major anxiety attack attached to it. I was obsessing about the swim at WF. In a way I guess I was just out of practice when it comes to racing and I felt like I didn't know what to do.
That feeling became even stronger about 30 seconds before the start of my wave. I was standing next to Patrick Baldwin (Not that Bachelor). I have gotten to know him over the last 2 years racing as he and I seem to always be right around the same time give or take. We both are not a big fan of the swim start so we jockeyed for the far left of the front line. I said something lame to him in a nervous chatter like "So what do we do"? It was such a strange feeling I was having. I had NO IDEA what I was supposed to do. Luckily triathlon is not rocket science and when the gun went off instincts took over and I swam like a mofo to that first buoy.
When I made the turn I was in a great position. Things were calm thus far and I had a pair of feet with a green cap. Unfortunately, those feet went out a bit too hard and I had to go around them. I felt so smooth in the water early on which is not normal for me. I usually take a while to find a rhythm. Maybe all those hard swims JZ has been making us do on Saturdays is paying off!?
It was crazy how many people from the wave before us we had to swim over. And not in the second 1/2. I was climbing over people by the second buoy. So the rest of the swim was my best attempt to be polite to yellow caps. It wasn't easy but I tried. As the swim progressed I would look up to see if I could find any green ones that I might be able to get on but I never saw any. Of course, part of me thought I might have been dropped by my wave. But then I thought "Hmmmm? Maybe I am swimming in the front of my wave?" Turns out I was. I got out third which was a first. I was stoked. I saw a 26 on the clock and that was good enough for me. It was probably the most effortless swim I have ever done. Maybe it was that new Orca 3:8 suit. I must say it was quite slick!
Out of the water I had a minor issue. I got to my bike and I was extremely dizzy. I bent down to get my stuff and was like "WHOA! I better sit down." SO I did and that helped but for the first few miles on the bike I had this strange vertigo feeling. Never had that before but I figured it came from the swim. I wasn't planing on riding very hard for the first 30 min so I just cruised along till it went away.
As I cruised, I was passed by Jonathan Toker (Salt Stick) and then by Patrick. I wasn't sure if I should let those two guys go but I did. They rode away from me pretty quickly and by the turn to the back side of the course they were both gone. I didn't have my power meter on the bike nor did I have a running time going. I was 100% numberless for this one and I wasn't sure how I was riding. I could clearly have a conversation with anyone. I wasn't working hard but my left quad felt a bit spent. Just the left one. So I rode using that as my gage.
Once I got to the "hill" some dude in my AG caught up to me and I decided that I needed to at least keep this guy in my scope. I rode the hill like I might in a training ride and then tried to keep the other guy in view the rest of the ride.
Somehow at about mile 48 I caught back up to JT and when I go by I ask him how far up Patrick was? He said that Patrick was just up the road. This lit a fire in me. I will admit that for most of the ride I thought I was out of the game. Apparently I was back in. I rode so easy that I should be able to run off this bike okay and hunt these guys down.
My transition to the run was quick and as I started the run I felt like I was just shuffling along. I was moving well but my stride was so tiny. I usually have a pretty long stride that actually makes me look like I am running slow. I just kept up with it and before I knew it I had Patrick in site and passed him at mile 3 and then saw the other guy. I passed him in the next 2 min. At that point I thought I was in front for my AG. That is what people were telling me.
I never really opened it up on the run. The progression to being injury free has been long and I wasn't about to screw that up. The Wildflower run would be hard enough on my feet as it is. From the running days, we would get green lighted in races. If you have a green light from coach you can open it up and run hard. Without it, you better do what he told you to do or you were gonna be in big trouble. I did not have a green light for this race. I was just supposed to run smooth. And that was all I was doing.
It felt great. I was actually present and aware of people watching. I had some interaction with the aid stations and my friends watching. It wasn't until about a mile and half to go that I spot my friend Matt Dixon watching and he tells me that there is one more guy in front of me. "DAMN! I thought I had this in the bag". There wasn't enough road left to try and get him. So I just kept trucking along at my pace. I really wanted to win my AG. I really wanted to be top AG of the day but that didn't happen and I was okay with it.
The race was a perfect start. The feet fell better than I expected afterwords. I don't have a race until Buffalo Springs 70.3 in late June so there is plenty of time to recover and move forward. Hopefully, I will be able to ride that new sweet Orbea Ordu I am on a tad faster :-)
The weekend was a blast and I look forward to next year!
Cheers,
bdc
Anyway, this was my third time doing the race. It was the first time I went into the race not injured. What a better way to race. Not injured. Go figure. I had a decent amount of prep for it and was very happy with my end result which was 2nd in 30-34, 5th AG overall and beating over 50% of the Pro Field. Not to mention I had a shocker of a run. 1:21.03 was the time. I really wasn't expecting to be able to go that fast on this course. I would have to say, given the training I have in my now, it is a pretty good sign.
The day before the race I was feeling a bit of the pressure. I think most of it was coming from the fact that my last race was Hawaii and last year I only did 2 other races, one of which didn't go well internally. The result was fine but the way it felt was another story. As well, my swim in Hawaii, while being a non wetsuit PR, had a major anxiety attack attached to it. I was obsessing about the swim at WF. In a way I guess I was just out of practice when it comes to racing and I felt like I didn't know what to do.
That feeling became even stronger about 30 seconds before the start of my wave. I was standing next to Patrick Baldwin (Not that Bachelor). I have gotten to know him over the last 2 years racing as he and I seem to always be right around the same time give or take. We both are not a big fan of the swim start so we jockeyed for the far left of the front line. I said something lame to him in a nervous chatter like "So what do we do"? It was such a strange feeling I was having. I had NO IDEA what I was supposed to do. Luckily triathlon is not rocket science and when the gun went off instincts took over and I swam like a mofo to that first buoy.
When I made the turn I was in a great position. Things were calm thus far and I had a pair of feet with a green cap. Unfortunately, those feet went out a bit too hard and I had to go around them. I felt so smooth in the water early on which is not normal for me. I usually take a while to find a rhythm. Maybe all those hard swims JZ has been making us do on Saturdays is paying off!?
It was crazy how many people from the wave before us we had to swim over. And not in the second 1/2. I was climbing over people by the second buoy. So the rest of the swim was my best attempt to be polite to yellow caps. It wasn't easy but I tried. As the swim progressed I would look up to see if I could find any green ones that I might be able to get on but I never saw any. Of course, part of me thought I might have been dropped by my wave. But then I thought "Hmmmm? Maybe I am swimming in the front of my wave?" Turns out I was. I got out third which was a first. I was stoked. I saw a 26 on the clock and that was good enough for me. It was probably the most effortless swim I have ever done. Maybe it was that new Orca 3:8 suit. I must say it was quite slick!
Out of the water I had a minor issue. I got to my bike and I was extremely dizzy. I bent down to get my stuff and was like "WHOA! I better sit down." SO I did and that helped but for the first few miles on the bike I had this strange vertigo feeling. Never had that before but I figured it came from the swim. I wasn't planing on riding very hard for the first 30 min so I just cruised along till it went away.
As I cruised, I was passed by Jonathan Toker (Salt Stick) and then by Patrick. I wasn't sure if I should let those two guys go but I did. They rode away from me pretty quickly and by the turn to the back side of the course they were both gone. I didn't have my power meter on the bike nor did I have a running time going. I was 100% numberless for this one and I wasn't sure how I was riding. I could clearly have a conversation with anyone. I wasn't working hard but my left quad felt a bit spent. Just the left one. So I rode using that as my gage.
Once I got to the "hill" some dude in my AG caught up to me and I decided that I needed to at least keep this guy in my scope. I rode the hill like I might in a training ride and then tried to keep the other guy in view the rest of the ride.
Somehow at about mile 48 I caught back up to JT and when I go by I ask him how far up Patrick was? He said that Patrick was just up the road. This lit a fire in me. I will admit that for most of the ride I thought I was out of the game. Apparently I was back in. I rode so easy that I should be able to run off this bike okay and hunt these guys down.
My transition to the run was quick and as I started the run I felt like I was just shuffling along. I was moving well but my stride was so tiny. I usually have a pretty long stride that actually makes me look like I am running slow. I just kept up with it and before I knew it I had Patrick in site and passed him at mile 3 and then saw the other guy. I passed him in the next 2 min. At that point I thought I was in front for my AG. That is what people were telling me.
I never really opened it up on the run. The progression to being injury free has been long and I wasn't about to screw that up. The Wildflower run would be hard enough on my feet as it is. From the running days, we would get green lighted in races. If you have a green light from coach you can open it up and run hard. Without it, you better do what he told you to do or you were gonna be in big trouble. I did not have a green light for this race. I was just supposed to run smooth. And that was all I was doing.
It felt great. I was actually present and aware of people watching. I had some interaction with the aid stations and my friends watching. It wasn't until about a mile and half to go that I spot my friend Matt Dixon watching and he tells me that there is one more guy in front of me. "DAMN! I thought I had this in the bag". There wasn't enough road left to try and get him. So I just kept trucking along at my pace. I really wanted to win my AG. I really wanted to be top AG of the day but that didn't happen and I was okay with it.
The race was a perfect start. The feet fell better than I expected afterwords. I don't have a race until Buffalo Springs 70.3 in late June so there is plenty of time to recover and move forward. Hopefully, I will be able to ride that new sweet Orbea Ordu I am on a tad faster :-)
The weekend was a blast and I look forward to next year!
Cheers,
bdc
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
