Here's what I'm thinking about for 2011--thoughts?
Havasu Sprint (to dethrone the 2x reigning AG champ) 3/19
Aquathlon Nationals 5/21
Summer Open Sprint 5/22
Boulder Sunrise Oly 6/5
USMS Open Water 6k National Championships 6/19
Loveland Lake to Lake Oly 6/25
Cochiti Oly (NM) 7/9 or Boulder Peak Oly 7/10
Alcatraz Challenge 7/17
Horsetooth Open Water 10k 8/7
USAT Age-group National Championships 8/20-21
Oktoberfest Sprint 9/25
Looks like a swim focus this season.
Friday, December 10, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Holy S...!! 10k is a long way!
Raced the Horsetooth 10k open water swim this morning. What can I say? That's a long way to swim.
When I registered in January, I had visions of training for this the right way. Didn't quite make it, but put in more pool and reservoir miles this summer than I probably have in the past couple of years combined. Despite coming in undertrained (my longest swim was 5k), I was relaxed and confident.
Race plan was simple: push the first k (to the point where I'd meet up with my paddlers, cruise to the halfway mark, build the next 3 k's and then ride the adrenaline home for the last 2 k's.
Pretty much stuck to plan. Paddler rendezvous was closer to the start this year than in the past. I set a nice, sustainable pace and the first hour simply flew by. Very comfortable. I picked it up at the halfway point and started reeling folks in. Aside from the obvious "just finish" goal for my first race at this distance, I had a little side bet with my friend Alison (who is generally a little faster than I am). I knew she'd start faster but I planned to let her go and then try to bring her back in the second half. By 8k, I was could see her and was closing.
Then, I hit the wall. I guess it's like mile 20 of a marathon. I went from pushing hard and feeling good to extreme discomfort in a matter of seconds. I lost all my power, my back ached, it was hard to kick. I focused on keeping my stroke long and tried to relax but the last 2 k's were the swimming equivalent of a death march. I passed a few other folks but really couldn't even sprint in the last few yards. Was happy just to cross the line.
In hindsight, my plan was probably a little to aggressive given my swim training and the fact that it was my first time at this distance. Still, a swim to be proud of and a baseline for the next one...
When I registered in January, I had visions of training for this the right way. Didn't quite make it, but put in more pool and reservoir miles this summer than I probably have in the past couple of years combined. Despite coming in undertrained (my longest swim was 5k), I was relaxed and confident.
Race plan was simple: push the first k (to the point where I'd meet up with my paddlers, cruise to the halfway mark, build the next 3 k's and then ride the adrenaline home for the last 2 k's.
Pretty much stuck to plan. Paddler rendezvous was closer to the start this year than in the past. I set a nice, sustainable pace and the first hour simply flew by. Very comfortable. I picked it up at the halfway point and started reeling folks in. Aside from the obvious "just finish" goal for my first race at this distance, I had a little side bet with my friend Alison (who is generally a little faster than I am). I knew she'd start faster but I planned to let her go and then try to bring her back in the second half. By 8k, I was could see her and was closing.
Then, I hit the wall. I guess it's like mile 20 of a marathon. I went from pushing hard and feeling good to extreme discomfort in a matter of seconds. I lost all my power, my back ached, it was hard to kick. I focused on keeping my stroke long and tried to relax but the last 2 k's were the swimming equivalent of a death march. I passed a few other folks but really couldn't even sprint in the last few yards. Was happy just to cross the line.
In hindsight, my plan was probably a little to aggressive given my swim training and the fact that it was my first time at this distance. Still, a swim to be proud of and a baseline for the next one...
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Won a tri last weekend
Not so great with the blogging stuff--is 5 months too long to wait between posts?
Horsetooth is two weeks away and my swim training is going well, though I'm putting in lower volume than I had planned. I expect I'll be able to finish with only moderate discomfort, but not sure how much of a "race" it will be. Excited about it for sure.
Last weekend, I raced a sprint that was just a few miles from the house. A buddy is the race director and he offered me a free entry after Bill and I put on a beginner clinic to help support the race. It fit into my schedule (in that I wasn't already racing) so I went for it. I'd call this a "C" race--lowest priority, trained right through.
I knew that most of the participants would be beginners and first-timers but figured there'd be a few folks really competing. I approached it as a hard hour of training and only grabbed my aerohelmet at the last second as I was leaving the house.
Pool swim--525 yards. After a briefly delayed start, I swam strong. At this point in my training, I'm generally not getting into a rhythm until 500 yards. I went out moderately hard and built from there. Lapped my lane mates twice and was into transition in under 7 minutes.
I was told there was one person already out on the road. The start was staggered so there was no way of knowing exactly where I stood--there was about a minute between the start of the first swimmer and the last swimmer in the wave. I made a slow T1 (getting a race top on when you're already wet is a challenge) and confidently headed out on the bike. I knew the swim, normally where I put time on the field, was too short to be a real advantage. The bike would have to be the place to push since I didn't expect to be able to do much on the run.
I rode hard and used my knowledge of the course to my advantage--pushing the uphills and resting on the downhills. I passed the guy who was ahead of me (my friend, Dick) on the first climb and powered around the two-lap, 11.7 mile course. I was back into transition well in the lead in just under 31 minutes.
Crazy fast T2 (34 seconds) and I was out on the run as a couple of guys were coming up the hill on their bikes into transition. I knew I'd be lucky to run 21 minutes for the 5k and I was probably about 90 seconds ahead. If either of those guys were really strong runners, I'd be sunk. I pushed hard early on the downhill portion of the course. After about a half mile, it was uphill for over a mile. I settled into a pace that I knew wasn't fast enough but would give me the ability to finish strong.
My timing chip was cutting into my heel and I stopped twice to adjust it, costing me a little time. At the two mile mark, I was probably leading by only 30 seconds. With mostly downhill to go, I tried to push it but the last quarter mile is uphill to the finish and I needed to save a little. I knew second place was getting closer but I held my pace to save something for the finish if it came down to a sprint. Up the hill toward the finish--as I turned the last corner, I peeked back and saw him coming. I turned on my sprint a little early and cruised across the line about 10 seconds ahead. 22 minutes for the 5k. Terrible, but it ended up being enough.
Third place was too far back to be in the mix, but with such small time between first and second, it would come down to when we started the swim. Turns out, he had gone before me by about 20 seconds so I got the win by 30 seconds.
Pretty exciting morning, although I am maintaining my perspective--this was a community race full of beginners. 200 people raced, but probably fewer than 10 had any thoughts of winning. Still, as I like to say, hardware is hardware. Not too many folks can say they won a tri. Happy to be one of the folks who can.
Horsetooth is two weeks away and my swim training is going well, though I'm putting in lower volume than I had planned. I expect I'll be able to finish with only moderate discomfort, but not sure how much of a "race" it will be. Excited about it for sure.
Last weekend, I raced a sprint that was just a few miles from the house. A buddy is the race director and he offered me a free entry after Bill and I put on a beginner clinic to help support the race. It fit into my schedule (in that I wasn't already racing) so I went for it. I'd call this a "C" race--lowest priority, trained right through.
I knew that most of the participants would be beginners and first-timers but figured there'd be a few folks really competing. I approached it as a hard hour of training and only grabbed my aerohelmet at the last second as I was leaving the house.
Pool swim--525 yards. After a briefly delayed start, I swam strong. At this point in my training, I'm generally not getting into a rhythm until 500 yards. I went out moderately hard and built from there. Lapped my lane mates twice and was into transition in under 7 minutes.
I was told there was one person already out on the road. The start was staggered so there was no way of knowing exactly where I stood--there was about a minute between the start of the first swimmer and the last swimmer in the wave. I made a slow T1 (getting a race top on when you're already wet is a challenge) and confidently headed out on the bike. I knew the swim, normally where I put time on the field, was too short to be a real advantage. The bike would have to be the place to push since I didn't expect to be able to do much on the run.
I rode hard and used my knowledge of the course to my advantage--pushing the uphills and resting on the downhills. I passed the guy who was ahead of me (my friend, Dick) on the first climb and powered around the two-lap, 11.7 mile course. I was back into transition well in the lead in just under 31 minutes.
Crazy fast T2 (34 seconds) and I was out on the run as a couple of guys were coming up the hill on their bikes into transition. I knew I'd be lucky to run 21 minutes for the 5k and I was probably about 90 seconds ahead. If either of those guys were really strong runners, I'd be sunk. I pushed hard early on the downhill portion of the course. After about a half mile, it was uphill for over a mile. I settled into a pace that I knew wasn't fast enough but would give me the ability to finish strong.
My timing chip was cutting into my heel and I stopped twice to adjust it, costing me a little time. At the two mile mark, I was probably leading by only 30 seconds. With mostly downhill to go, I tried to push it but the last quarter mile is uphill to the finish and I needed to save a little. I knew second place was getting closer but I held my pace to save something for the finish if it came down to a sprint. Up the hill toward the finish--as I turned the last corner, I peeked back and saw him coming. I turned on my sprint a little early and cruised across the line about 10 seconds ahead. 22 minutes for the 5k. Terrible, but it ended up being enough.
Third place was too far back to be in the mix, but with such small time between first and second, it would come down to when we started the swim. Turns out, he had gone before me by about 20 seconds so I got the win by 30 seconds.
Pretty exciting morning, although I am maintaining my perspective--this was a community race full of beginners. 200 people raced, but probably fewer than 10 had any thoughts of winning. Still, as I like to say, hardware is hardware. Not too many folks can say they won a tri. Happy to be one of the folks who can.
Monday, February 22, 2010
What kind of triathlete am I?
I finally got around to committing to my 2010 season. After giving some serious thought to what I love about the sport, what I'm actually good at (and what I'm not), and my results from last season, I've been forced to wonder what it is about the longer distances that appeals to me. I can't deny that I'm a swimmer, not a runner.
Cracking 5 hours at the half-Ironman distance last season was a huge goal realized, but I still have to take a lot of time (30+ minutes!) off my PR to be in the mix and considering the reality of my run right now--well, that's not going to happen right away.
Ironman excites me even less. Racing just to finish isn't that interesting. I could take an hour off my 11:53 PR and not even be close to a Kona slot. Until I can marathon strong, I don't think this distance will be for me.
So Olympic it is. I still have some work to do on my run (45 mins isn't going to cut it), but I'm closer here than anywhere else. I can swim at the front, often lead my wave, and hold my own on the bike. I'll focus on my 10k and see what happens.
Here's my schedule--all local:
5/23 Summer Open sprint
6/5 Boulder Sunrise Oly
6/26 Loveland Lake to Lake Oly
7/11 Boulder Peak Oly
8/7 Cherry Creek Streak Oly
8/15 Horsetooth 10k swim
9/11 Boulder Sunset Oly
10/10 Tri For Your Cause Sprint
My first year since 2004 without a HIM or longer. Feels a little strange but I think it's the right call. I'll sprinkle in a Stroke & Stride 6-pack too. The Horsetooth swim will be a big challenge. A big season even without going long.
Come on out and race me!
Cracking 5 hours at the half-Ironman distance last season was a huge goal realized, but I still have to take a lot of time (30+ minutes!) off my PR to be in the mix and considering the reality of my run right now--well, that's not going to happen right away.
Ironman excites me even less. Racing just to finish isn't that interesting. I could take an hour off my 11:53 PR and not even be close to a Kona slot. Until I can marathon strong, I don't think this distance will be for me.
So Olympic it is. I still have some work to do on my run (45 mins isn't going to cut it), but I'm closer here than anywhere else. I can swim at the front, often lead my wave, and hold my own on the bike. I'll focus on my 10k and see what happens.
Here's my schedule--all local:
5/23 Summer Open sprint
6/5 Boulder Sunrise Oly
6/26 Loveland Lake to Lake Oly
7/11 Boulder Peak Oly
8/7 Cherry Creek Streak Oly
8/15 Horsetooth 10k swim
9/11 Boulder Sunset Oly
10/10 Tri For Your Cause Sprint
My first year since 2004 without a HIM or longer. Feels a little strange but I think it's the right call. I'll sprinkle in a Stroke & Stride 6-pack too. The Horsetooth swim will be a big challenge. A big season even without going long.
Come on out and race me!
Monday, February 1, 2010
The Federal Government at Work (not a tri-related post)
Many of you know about the craziness I was dealing with at LISI regarding the contract we held with the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) (an agency of the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) which is under the Justice Department). The "quick" summary is as follows:
LISI, the company I'd been running for the past 10 years, had held a small contract to run an Information Center for NIC. In one form or another, LISI had been continuously operating this project for 30 years, had a top-notch staff, and had received only the highest reviews from the government. The contract is currently on a 5 year cycle. In the summer of 2008, the contract came up for bid and we wrote a very competitive proposal. We were rated as the top bidder in terms of technical merit and all other non-cost factors but were underbid by a technically inferior-rated company. The government awarded the contract to the other company against the established rules (this was a "best value" procurement, not a "low bid") and gave us one week to clear out.
With the help of an incredibly competent attorney who specializes in this sort of thing, we protested the decision to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The GAO ruled in our favor in March of last year and BOP reopened the procurement negotiations. BOP then changed some of the evaluation criteria to favor the other company. (Wouldn't you think corrections experience would be important for the operation of a corrections library?) We resubmitted our proposal with a few changes. In September of last year, BOP again awarded to the other company.
We protested again but knew it was a long-shot--it seemed likely that BOP had "papered over" the process to make their decision. As the legal dance unfolded, our attorney became more and more convinced that we actually had a winning case once again but in the end, the GAO denied our protest.
The protest decisions have finally been made public (links below). For my friends and family who have been following along with me, they might be interesting reading. The 3/25/09 decision is more "fun" to read than the 1/4/10 decision.
Ultimately, the government was able to begin the process with the end in mind. The GAO has ruled and there's no further recourse. I have moved on to a great opportunity with another company (more on that another time), but I'm very sad about the final decision and the way it went down. Less so as an employee of LISI and more so as a citizen and a taxpayer--incredible resources (hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars) were wasted to settle what seems to be a personal grudge.
We never asked for any entitlement--merely a level playing field upon which to win or lose. I remain convinced that we never got it.
The 15 months that the owner of LISI, our employees, and I went through were very difficult--and unnecessarily so. Over the past 12 years so I'd become used to the "quirks" that come along with working with the government but this whole experience has exceeded anything I could have imagined.
It is all tremendously disappointing.
Sustained protest: B-400646.2; B-400646.3, LIS, Inc., March 25, 2009. http://www.gao.gov/decisions/bidpro/4006462.htm
Denied protest: B-400646.4, LIS, Inc., January 4, 2010. http://www.gao.gov/decisions/bidpro/4006464.htm
LISI, the company I'd been running for the past 10 years, had held a small contract to run an Information Center for NIC. In one form or another, LISI had been continuously operating this project for 30 years, had a top-notch staff, and had received only the highest reviews from the government. The contract is currently on a 5 year cycle. In the summer of 2008, the contract came up for bid and we wrote a very competitive proposal. We were rated as the top bidder in terms of technical merit and all other non-cost factors but were underbid by a technically inferior-rated company. The government awarded the contract to the other company against the established rules (this was a "best value" procurement, not a "low bid") and gave us one week to clear out.
With the help of an incredibly competent attorney who specializes in this sort of thing, we protested the decision to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The GAO ruled in our favor in March of last year and BOP reopened the procurement negotiations. BOP then changed some of the evaluation criteria to favor the other company. (Wouldn't you think corrections experience would be important for the operation of a corrections library?) We resubmitted our proposal with a few changes. In September of last year, BOP again awarded to the other company.
We protested again but knew it was a long-shot--it seemed likely that BOP had "papered over" the process to make their decision. As the legal dance unfolded, our attorney became more and more convinced that we actually had a winning case once again but in the end, the GAO denied our protest.
The protest decisions have finally been made public (links below). For my friends and family who have been following along with me, they might be interesting reading. The 3/25/09 decision is more "fun" to read than the 1/4/10 decision.
Ultimately, the government was able to begin the process with the end in mind. The GAO has ruled and there's no further recourse. I have moved on to a great opportunity with another company (more on that another time), but I'm very sad about the final decision and the way it went down. Less so as an employee of LISI and more so as a citizen and a taxpayer--incredible resources (hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars) were wasted to settle what seems to be a personal grudge.
We never asked for any entitlement--merely a level playing field upon which to win or lose. I remain convinced that we never got it.
The 15 months that the owner of LISI, our employees, and I went through were very difficult--and unnecessarily so. Over the past 12 years so I'd become used to the "quirks" that come along with working with the government but this whole experience has exceeded anything I could have imagined.
It is all tremendously disappointing.
Sustained protest: B-400646.2; B-400646.3, LIS, Inc., March 25, 2009. http://www.gao.gov/decisions/bidpro/4006462.htm
Denied protest: B-400646.4, LIS, Inc., January 4, 2010. http://www.gao.gov/decisions/bidpro/4006464.htm
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Rant: Kona TV Coverage
Yup, I know the race was last October and the NBC TV package was aired in December. I watched a live video feed of the pro race on raceday--there goes 9 otherwise productive hours--and it was incredible to be a part of an IM in that way. Monday night, I finally found time and motivation to watch the 90 minute NBC show. On the plus side, there was decent coverage of the pro race. They definitely didn't capture the excitement of the race for second on the women's side (go Rinni!), but overall, I can't complain.
What I can complain about is the coverage of the age-group racers. This is the world championship afterall--not just for the pros. So the age-groupers they profiled were: a heart transplant survivor, a couple of amputees, a stroke survivor, a Biggest Loser (also on NBC...) competitor, a couple of Navy officers who did all their training on a boat (or submarine). I may have missed one or two, but you get the picture. Without taking away from their accomplishments which are incredible, can they just once (!!!) profile an athlete who had to overcome what most IM athletes have to overcome? Working training into family life? Having a full-time job?
I think it's safe to assume that aside from the Navy guys, no one else they profiled actually qualified for Kona. There are as many compelling stories about the IM World Championships as there are athletes competing. I'd like to hear about some of those folks.
Isn't 140.6 enough?
What I can complain about is the coverage of the age-group racers. This is the world championship afterall--not just for the pros. So the age-groupers they profiled were: a heart transplant survivor, a couple of amputees, a stroke survivor, a Biggest Loser (also on NBC...) competitor, a couple of Navy officers who did all their training on a boat (or submarine). I may have missed one or two, but you get the picture. Without taking away from their accomplishments which are incredible, can they just once (!!!) profile an athlete who had to overcome what most IM athletes have to overcome? Working training into family life? Having a full-time job?
I think it's safe to assume that aside from the Navy guys, no one else they profiled actually qualified for Kona. There are as many compelling stories about the IM World Championships as there are athletes competing. I'd like to hear about some of those folks.
Isn't 140.6 enough?
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Well, that was a bad idea...
To the extent that anyone cares 4 months later, racing twice in the same day is not something I recommend and I can confidently say I won't do it again. As I get ready to start blogging the 2010 season, I figured I'd tie up some loose ends of the 2009 season.
After my strong showing at Harvest Moon, I scooted up to Boulder for the Tri For Your Cause super-sprint. The weather was cold and threatening and just as I pulled into the Res, I saw a big lightning strike on (or really close to) the water. Swim cancelled. At least I wouldn't have to go through the the discomfort of pulling on a cold, wet wetsuit.
But now I was facing a duathlon--2 mile run/23 mile bike/4 mile run. With the 70.3 race in the morning, I was already 13.1 miles of running into my day. Swapping out a swim for an extra 2 mile run wasn't exciting and a lot of folks bailed on racing altogether, but I was committed to this stupid idea so I toed the line.
This race wasn't about "racing"--I was merely "participating." This was painfully clear within a few seconds. I was off at a jogging pace and finished several minutes behind in 17:17. I took my time through T1 and rode off to a 1:19 bike split in the soaking rain. I have to admit I was a little self-conscious on my fancy tri bike and aero helmet riding at the back of the race. But it hurt if I tried to push so I basically softpedalled around the course and came back into T2 with a smile. The point here was to finish without getting hurt.
The second run was ridiculous slow. 44 minutes for 4 miles. That includes a comedy porta-potty stop where the combination of being exhausted and really having to pee had me cracking up as I tried to wiggle out of my tri suit.
Finished near the bottom of the AG and overall. I'm super-proud of my morning results and I attacked that race the right way. A word of advice from experience: don't do what I did--I won't do it again. I have to say that the reality of the day was pretty rough (but I still think it's pretty cool to be able to say I raced twice in a day...)
More frequent posts to come--full recap of last season & plans for next season.
After my strong showing at Harvest Moon, I scooted up to Boulder for the Tri For Your Cause super-sprint. The weather was cold and threatening and just as I pulled into the Res, I saw a big lightning strike on (or really close to) the water. Swim cancelled. At least I wouldn't have to go through the the discomfort of pulling on a cold, wet wetsuit.
But now I was facing a duathlon--2 mile run/23 mile bike/4 mile run. With the 70.3 race in the morning, I was already 13.1 miles of running into my day. Swapping out a swim for an extra 2 mile run wasn't exciting and a lot of folks bailed on racing altogether, but I was committed to this stupid idea so I toed the line.
This race wasn't about "racing"--I was merely "participating." This was painfully clear within a few seconds. I was off at a jogging pace and finished several minutes behind in 17:17. I took my time through T1 and rode off to a 1:19 bike split in the soaking rain. I have to admit I was a little self-conscious on my fancy tri bike and aero helmet riding at the back of the race. But it hurt if I tried to push so I basically softpedalled around the course and came back into T2 with a smile. The point here was to finish without getting hurt.
The second run was ridiculous slow. 44 minutes for 4 miles. That includes a comedy porta-potty stop where the combination of being exhausted and really having to pee had me cracking up as I tried to wiggle out of my tri suit.
Finished near the bottom of the AG and overall. I'm super-proud of my morning results and I attacked that race the right way. A word of advice from experience: don't do what I did--I won't do it again. I have to say that the reality of the day was pretty rough (but I still think it's pretty cool to be able to say I raced twice in a day...)
More frequent posts to come--full recap of last season & plans for next season.
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