Not there....Yet

While I wouldn't call Waconia a bad race I certainly wouldn't call it my best either. The field was stacked and I was hoping to come in 8th and that is exactly where I came in. I started off with a decent swim but got caught behind some slower swimmers in the beginning and did not get to let loose until about 300 yards in. I came out of the water with Josh Blankenheim and Brooks Gossinger but felt I could've shaved at least 15 seconds off the swim. As I hit the bike I new I had a lot of time to make up but for some reason I just never felt like I could get in the groove and get any power. I don't know if it was the heat or if just wasn't my day but I had to settle for a mediocre bike split.

The surprise was my run. I had been battling a calf strain for about two weeks. I rested it for Minnetonka only to re injure it at the end of the race and the compounded it by doing a cool down run. I needed to get in some mileage last week and a good speed session in as I felt like I don't yet have my top gear like I did last year. While I did get in a speed session it was done very gingerly and at a lower intensity and I decided to keep the mileage down for one more week just to be sure. I wasn't expecting a good run because of this only to have one of the better feeling runs I've had this year. I came off the bike a good minute behind the next guy and as I got off the bike the legs actually felt pretty good. I started turning them over and chewing into the gap. I ended up passing Rhett Bonner, John Shelp, Curt Wood and Brett Lovaas was not far off. My split was slow but so was everyone else's. I felt great at the finish and felt as if I could've kept that pace for a 10k if not even faster. Monday the calf was fine, I wasn't even soar from the race and was able to run 7.5 that morning.

Brett Lovaas did get a little redemption from Minnetonka by beating me this week by about 18 seconds. I feel like there may be a little bit of a friendly rivalry brewing. Brett is a serious competitor and has been one of the guys I've thought of as one of the best. I look forward to racing with him again. I did exact a little redemption myself on Rhett Boner. Rhett is one of the nicest guys I've met yet in this sport. We shared an epic battle at Square Lake last year where Rhett came out the victor in a death race battle in miserably hot conditions. Rhett is not in as good of shape as he was last year and I caught him just past the turn around at mile two. After the race I went up to him and gave a friendly fist pump in the air to say I got this one. I believe I am now 1-2 against Rhett. I look forward to racing with Rhett every time as there is definitely a friendly rivalry between us.

As always I need to learn from this race. I didn't feel like I got 100% out of me and I need to adjust somethings in order to be ready for Lifetime. It was my fourth race in as many weeks to include a Half Ironman. I don't think this had a huge effect as I did have a great race at Minnetonka last week but you have to wonder. Regardless I need to work on my power on the bike and being able to push myself to the next level like I did at Buffalo. I also need to take lessons learned on the run and implement what went right.

Swimming has always been my achilles heal and I have not felt like my stroke has been right for some time. I took some lessons from Duane Dobke over the winter and was swimming like a champ but somewhere along the line my stroke fell apart. Monday night I got in a session with Duane and he confirmed what I had feared. My stroke was awful again. Duane got me to raise my elbows more and Tuesday morning I shaved 5-6 seconds off each set of 200s. Hopefully I can even improve on my form more in the next two weeks.

Waconia Triathlon

Last year I place fifth here and if it wasn't for a chain slip on the bike I would have nabbed 4th. This year is going to be a bit different though. There are at least 13 serious Elites this year in one of the most stacked races I have ever seen. I am racing good right now but I'm coming off of a very heavy month with Buffalo Olympic, Liberty Half (still pissed about the penalty) and somehow managed to win at Minnetonka Sprint. While the legs feel good I have been battling an achilles injury and have not gotten in the volume of running I would like at this point. Still I have managed to turn in decent run splits.

This weekend I will need something special or lucky to happen for me to place better than 9th. On the start list is Devon P, Matt P, Patrick P, Alex H, Bian B, Kevin O, Dan C, Curt W, Brett L, Rhett B, Josh B and Brooks G that I can think of. I guess I am hoping to beat out at least one person that I have yet to beat out. I would be ecstatic to beat out Brian, Kevin, Dan, or Curt. All four are guys who I have looked up to and thought of as unbeatable since I started this sport in 2005. Not that I don't want to beat Matt, Patrick or Alex but the odds are they are the front runners and the four fore mentioned are hopefully not in peak form. We'll see what happens come Sunday.

Minnetonka Recap

Saturday was exactly what I was hoping for. I knew last year I suffered from some sloppy transitions, especially T2. This year I practiced my transitions with more focus the day before. I also did a lot of visualization on how I wanted the the transitions to go so when they came up I could mentally prepare myself on the way to the zone. My first transition was only slightly faster than last year but I got my race number belt on and left my shoes in the clips. The mount went good and I had a slight bit of trouble getting into the shoes but all in all I was satisfied. Brett had some trouble with his mount missing his saddle twice and ejecting his water bottle and having to go back for it. I don't know if it made the difference in the race but it would have mad for a very exciting finish if he nails it. My second Transition was only 1 second slower than Brett and felt very smooth. It was a full 18 seconds faster than last year and was time that could have made the difference if Brett lands on his saddle on the first try.

I was also extremely pleased with my swim. It was slower than last year but so was everyone else's. I came out third behind a supersonic swimmer Thad Ingersoll and Brett. Erik Henderson passed me on the bike for a few seconds while I was getting on my shoes but as soon as I got them on I started hammering. I saw Brett passing Thad at about mile 5 and did not gain much ground until about mile nine when I started to real Brett in. I made the pass for first with about 3-4 miles left in the bike and came into transition with about a 15 sec lead. I knew I could outrun Brett as long as didn't burn out in the first half mile. Last year I paced of of Michael Williams for the first quarter mile and it proved to work rather well. This year I was on my own and felt good but not great. At the turn I had about a 30 sec lead and for some reason the back half felt a lot easier than the front. I definitely did not have much in the tank at the finish but enough to have a great race and take first by 49 sec.

This is one of my favorite races as it short and close to the cities allowing more of my friends and family to cheer me on. This year my old roommates and close friends Mike and Andrea Moonen came with their son Asher along with my new step father in law, sister in law, her fiance and my ever supportive mother. It was great that they got to see me get a win.

After the race Josh Blankenheim, Tony Schiller and I went on a recovery run together. Tony Schiller is a former pro who has been around forever. He was one of the top distance pros in the world in the late 80s and early 90s not to mention his incredible resume as an AG athlete. Tony won this race two years ago as a young 50 year old and went on to win Worlds that year in his age division. I never turn down a chance to rub shoulders with someone like Tony. Tony's experience and tips are some of the best training tools you can put in your tool box. I asked Tony if he saw anything I could improve on and he told me that I looked like I was bouncing a bit when I was running and showed me how I can correct it Great tip! To go along with being a star in the sport he has to be one of the most approachable guys I've met in the sport. As soon as he crossed the finish line at Minnetonka last year he asked who I was. Always a great compliment when someone you look up to wants to know who you are. Tony and I also shared some stories and even got to talk military for a time. Tony's brother is in the Navy and close to getting his own ship. A very impressive feat. I look forward to racing with Tony in the future and will try to put his tips into practice.

Next Level?

This weekend will be another great test to see how much I've improved and how far I've come. The Minnetonka triathlon has been dominated by Brett Lovaas for a number of years. There is no doubt he has this course dialed in every time. Although Brett has not been putting up the numbers he used to and I am racing fantastic right now. This could be a good shot to move up to the next level.

I remember just a few years ago looking at results and seeing big names like Brett and Dan Cohen, amazed at how fast they were/are. Saturday I have my best shot so far at proving that I belong amongst these super studs. The question is will I be able to put out another great race? Because that is exactly what it will take. Not to put out excuses but Liberty Half took a lot out of me last weekend and I ended up pushing it too soon and tweaking my Achilles earlier in the week. I expect it should be good to race on by Saturday but will it keep me from performing at my best. The time off may even help. We'll have to wait and see.

Last year I was held up by some sloppy transitions and ended up getting legged out for second by Josh Blankenheim by 1 lousy second. This year Josh will be back and so will Brett. Josh really put on a great race a few weeks ago at Buffalo and seems to be improving as much as I am. I'm not going to make any overall predictions but I'm guessing it's going to be Josh, Brett and myself battling it out for the podium spots.

Penalty?

I have always looked at the penalty portion of the results and felt sorrow for the people who got tagged with, more than likely, unwarranted penalties. I'm not sure I agree with how the USAT handles penalizing participants. I understand that rules are in place in order to keep a level playing field and to keep people safe however. Is this sport not supposed to be fun? Are we not supposed to go as fast as we possibly can as long as we don't draft?

Here is my beef. I was hit up with a 4:00 penalty this weekend. Not that I dispute that I may have crossed over a double line but I would like to know the circumstances of why. I'm sure I didn't due it maliciously or with total disregard for my own or the safety of others. Quite the contrary. I'm guessing that I crossed the line in order to A. pass someone safely or B. take a corner safely.

As for A. You might say that going into oncoming traffic in order to pass someone is dangerous. Is it? I would have to argue that it is less dangerous. Anyone who has ridden a bike during a race should know that passing someone (especially if you are a faster cyclist) takes only a couple of seconds. If there is no car in sight that should give you more than enough time to safely pass them. The alternative is to say on your left or hit the brakes and wait until there is a passing zone. If you say "on your left" you risk a serious accident. Not everyone is hip to that saying or is a quick thinker. I myself said this in a race a few years ago and had the person "panic" and go hard left. Luckily I gave them plenty of warning and started to go around them to the right only to have them dart back across and taking me out. Since then I have almost been involved in at least one other accident of similar circumstances and try not to use "on your left" unless absolutely necessary.

As for my cornering argument here me out. First, all corners should be controlled by volunteers so traffic should not be an issue. If it is, then you should be paying attention and see the car coming and avoid the wide turn. Second, most corners are not swept. Taking these corners at speed with a sharp turn can easily cause someone to wipe out. It is much safer to take a wider turn so that the apex is much more of a straight line in case there is loose gravel on the corner. Third, everyone who is competitive in these races takes wide turns. It is an extreme disadvantage to call a penalty on only one or two. If you are going to enforce the rules you must do it on all competitors not just one. Now I will have to worry about this call for he rest of my career while other racers do not, causing an unfair advantage not only in that race but in future races.

Since I hate people who complain and offer no suggestions on how to fix the problem I offer some ideas in order to improve the above situations. Let me first state that officiating should be subjective. A police officer has the right to intemperate whether a law was justifiably broken. This should also be the case in USAT races. Questions should be asked when making a call. What were the circumstances surrounding the violation? Did the violation cause someone to gain an unfair advantage? Did the violation put anyone in immediate danger or did it actually make the situation safer? Was the situation under control? To name a few questions that should be asked in the mind of the official when handing out a penalty. As for the corners I offer one simple solution... road cones. The should be two cones at every intersection. One to mark where the turn starts and the other to mark where the turn ends. If the racer misses either of these cones and the official feels that they made the turn with disregard for the cones then the penalty should be enforced but only if there are the resources to enforce this on everyone.

I can't tell you how elated I was with one of my best races I've ever had only to find out later that day that I was docked 4 min for a traffic violation. I don't want anyone else to have to experience the same disappointment of having that taken away on paper. Sure I know I had a great race but seeing it in the results is the same as accusing me of cheating. Triathlon is a sport that is supposed to be fun, not over officiated. Many of the people who compete in this sport dedicate 10 or more hours a week to training and thousands of dollars in gear. In my opinion you better have a very good reason to give someone a penalty who has that type of dedication to a sport that they have pay to do. I have never met anyone that I felt was, would or did, intentionally break the rules. Is there a problem with giving a warning? Most people don't even know they are doing something wrong. Not because they don't know the rules but because the official may have a different point of view.


Let them race! Let them Race!

Awesome Race at Liberty Half with Mediocre Result

I went into this race know that Josh Riff would probably be my toughest competition. Josh did not disappoint. I came out of the water next to a friend Micah Turman and ahead of Josh. This maybe the first time I have ever been ahead of my chief competition out of the water. Josh tracked me down about mile 6 on the bike, passed me and then slowed down a little. I then passed him back to see what he would do. Matt Payne told me that I would not be able to ride away from Josh and this scenario quickly became apparent as Josh then passed me back. I then formed a strategy of staying just out of drafting range for the first roughly 22 miles of the bike. Then I planned on putting a little steam into it and then back off a little to see what he would do. If he let me go I could put a little time on him before the run but my legs would surely suffer. If he caught back up I figured I could play a little cat and mouse on the second lap by passing him on the downhills and flats and make him work hard to catch me on the hills. Hopefully I could wear out his legs for the run. Josh is a fast runner and would surely out split me by a large margin if I didn't make him work on the bike. Sure enough josh came charging back and then slowed down again. I let him feel me on his back until about 3o miles in and I started my first charge. I managed to put a pretty good gap on him and saw him working hard to catch back up. When he did I let him go for a few minutes and then passed again with the same result. Each time we would have a short pleasant conversation about the battle that was taking place. As we got deeper into the race I started pushing it more and more. The strategy worked perfect as we came in off the bike together. Now it was time to find out if the strategy actually worked.

Unfortunately Josh's run was not affected by my attempt to tire his legs. I, on the other hand took the first half at a nice easy pace in order to run into my legs. A great lesson learned with my battle with Rhett Boner last year at square lake. Josh had about a 3-4 minute lead on me at the turn. As I made the turn I knew that the only thing I could go for was to beat 4:20 as Jerry at MN Tri News said that Josh would be the only one who could accomplish this. All of a sudden my legs started firing and I felt fantastic.

I picked up the pace and turned it on. Behind me was speedy Todd Landgraff, Todd is a former runner at the U of Minnesota and I knew he would have a ridiculous run split. Luckily I had about 8:30 at the turn on him and I knew as long as I didn't bonk I would have second wrapped up.

As the miles kept ticking off I kept felling better and better and increasing the speed. At the 10 mile mark I needed a sub 19 5k to make the 4:20. A feat I thought impossible for me. Although the legs felt good and there was a large wood chip down hill at the end that would allow me to run finish very fast. As I came up on the finish line I hit 4:20:40 and felt awesome. I may not have beaten 4:20 but I certainly proved that I was capable of it.

After the race I got to chat more with Josh Riff. This was Josh's first win and he was super excited. We chatted about the battle on the bike and how he was afraid I would catch him on the run. Little did he know that I didn't have a prayer but it still made for a very exciting race. I hope to see Josh on the course again as he was an awesome competitor and an ultra nice guy.

About five minutes after me Todd cam in. I have seen his name on many results pages before but never met him. I talked with him for a while about his awesome improvement this year. Todd is going to be racing at WI Ironman and the training is brining him to the next level. Todd's father was also there as well was my mother. The four of us hung out at the awards, shared some stories and had some laughs. Just a few more friends that this sport has helped me make. Congratulations to both Josh and Todd on an awesome race.

As I was on cloud nine all the way home I made calls to the wife and father to tell them about the race. Later that afternoon I checked the results to see I got hi with a 4:00 traffic penalty. My first response was, you have to be kidding me. Apparently I crossed over a double line on the course somewhere. I'll save my thoughts for my next blog as I think this deserves an entire section.

Eye on the Prize

A good and wise friend had a great quote a few weeks ago. "It's not the marathon that is the reward. It's the training it takes to complete the marathon." I need to remember that the goal this year is strictly Wisconsin Ironman. This weekend is my first big training test towards that goal. Not that I am calling the Liberty Half Ironman training, it's not. It's a race just like any other, I don't train through races...ever. I don't believe in not putting 100% into something. Saturday will be no different. While the main goal is to try to get my pacing down for longer distances my second goal is to beat out one tough opponent. Josh Riff came on the scene last year and immediately established himself as one of the best distance guys in the state. Last year he took second with a serious time of 4:17. While I am optimistic that it is possible for me to beat him I am also realistic that it is not probable. Josh was solid last year and showed only a slight weakness in his swim. I know the feeling. This year he has shown some serious improvement on at least the bike and I expect to see improvement in the water as well. So as my back up goal I am shooting for a 4:20. Last year I hit a 4:15 at Square Lake and got a little overambitious on the run causing me to hit the wall pretty hard. Jerry Macneil also posted that Josh is the only one in the race who can can take down a 4:20 this. I would like to prove him wrong. Sorry Jerry.

Better Lucky Than Good Somedays

Sunday was the much anticipated Buffalo Triathlon for two reasons. One, I was really looking forward to watching Matt Payne and Patrick Parish battle for the first time this year. Two, I was hoping to regain my honor back from the new kid on the block Sam Janicki. Here is how the race went down.

With a new wet suit and a few more lessons under my belt I hit the water with a little more confidence this year. I new I was about tenth coming out of the water and felt very good. I had a good but not lightening transition and hit the bike course. I know I should try to lay off the first few miles to let my legs get in the groove but that is just not me. I hit it hard right off the bat and pounded the pedals as hard as I could. I knew I was going to have to smoke the bike to catch up to Sam, Matt and Patrick. Sure enough about 10 miles in I passed Patrick, but not with as much of a speed difference as last year. The scary thing is Patrick has been riding a 58 cm frame and should be riding at most a 54 cm. A few more miles up I came across someone walking his bike back to the last corner. It was Sam Janicki. Then another guy on the other side who happened to be Matt Payne. Unfortunately both of them happened to flat out on the same corner. I immediately started doing math in my head. I figured Sam, Josh Blankenheim and myself were going to battle for fourth behind the Pro Chris Legh, Matt and Patrick. All of a sudden I realized that as long as I could hold off Josh on the run I could earn a nice $250 paycheck for this one.

I kept hammering away and passed my good buddy Jose Rosales. We shared some words of encouragement as I passed and at that point I knew I was in the lead for the amateurs. About 20 miles in I ran out of HEED (my energy drink) and had to make a decision. Keep hammering or pull back a little and play it safe. There is great reward for those who risk more so I kept hammering. As I came into T2 I got caught behind some short coursers, got impatient and yelled GO! GO! GO! My mom was also yelling for them to get out of the way in a panicked mother tone of voice. Sorry to who ever I yelled at. I was in the heat of the moment and want them to know that is not my typical demeanor. Whom ever it was seemed to know my name and apologized as I got around him and I did get to reply with a "no problem" and no harm was done.

I had another decent transition and off to the run course. I knew Patrick would be coming for me and Josh behind him. Sure enough about 2 miles in Patrick caught me. Usually Patrick passes me like I am going backwards but for some reason he got about a 50 yard lead and then I hung in with him. I thought either he was holding back since he knew he had it and wanted to save a little gas for the end or... maybe he was hurt or cramping. Sure enough I saw him grabbing his side and thought, maybe I got a shot at this.

Coming up to the turn around I saw this younger girl huffing and puffing the other direction. I thought who the hell was that? I just figured it was an age grouper who accidentally took the short bike course. She was moving pretty good though and I didn't even know if I had enough gas to pass her. As I hit the turn around I was hoping to have a big gap before I saw Josh and then there he was. I had a gap but it was not as much as I would've hoped and he was moving pretty good. We went back down the hill and then took a turn into a neighborhood for another quick out and back. When I was turning right onto the main street taking us back to the finish line I knew I was a about a mile and a half out and Josh was just turning right into the neighborhood for his out and back. I figured I had a least a two minute lead and should be able to hold Josh off.

As I got to the finish line I heard Jerry say I was second and I had PR'd. I though he meant second amateur and looked at my time of 2:00:32 seconds. I had no idea what to expect for a time but low 2 hours was on th high end of what I was hoping for. After I finished someone told me that Chris Legh was hurt and only did the swim and bike. The girl I saw on the course was his teammate. That meant I was now $500 richer instead of $250. A very nice payday. Not to mention I was only about a minute and a half from Patrick. I feat I was very pleased with.

Buffalo certainly didn't turn out like I had planned or anyone would have thought. I was hoping to regain my honor against Sam and Matt and Patrick should have battled for first and second. It may have not been how I would liked the circumstances to have turned out. Believe me, I don't like to win by default, but as my dad says. "Son, that's why they run the race." It is indeed. If everyone came in when they were supposed to and there were no variables like blown tires or missing turns there would be no point in competing. My hats off to Sam and Matt. That was a really tough break and they both handled it very well. Sam is fresh in the game and I would have blown my top when I was starting out. I had one of my lesser moments at Mankato a few years ago when I missed a turn/no one was there to direct me in the right direction and it may have dropped me from 2nd to 4th. Luckily Sam has a long and very promising career ahead of him and will have plenty more races.

Honeymoon in Switzerland

Kelly and I decided to hit Switzerland for our honeymoon. Initially we were pushing for Italy but the plane tickets were much cheaper into Zurich and Rick Steve's said Switzerland was the bomb. First up was three days in Luzern. Luzern has a really cool part of town called "Old Town" were there are tons of overpriced shops and really cool architecture. Kelly and I quickly found out that Europe was not a cheap place as we forked out nearly $30 US dollars for lunch at McDonalds. We also quickly found out that morning sickness (Kelly's prego by the way) would play a big part in our trip. Kelly was craving chicken McNuggets but once she took her first bite she went running to the bathroom to spew chunks for about five minutes. Reason number 23 not to go to McDonalds for me. They also have some ridiculous burgers over there. So ridiculous that I can't even remember them. I believe one was a burger with a chicken patty on it. Who would have thunk it?

One thing Kelly and I noticed in Luzern was that there were very few overweight people. If anyone can tell why this is please comment. I believe that it is because restaurants are two to three times more expensive over there. That or everyone seems to ride a bike or walk. I saw very few runners though.

Since hotel prices are no joke over there and my retirement plan of winning the Powerball has yet to come to fruition Kelly and I stayed in a converted jail that is now a hotel. Sounded fun when we booked it but probably the least romantic place we could've stayed. We made the best of it though, the price was right and we were close to all the action.

In the morning I went for a run around town. Running on vacation is always an adventure. Goal #1 don't get lost. This was made easy by me eventually running in a figure eight pattern. It did have some great hills and got my legs moving. Goal #2 scope out the town. This was pretty easy and I did find some cool places for Kelly and I to visit. The bonus was that Kelly doesn't feel well in the morning, hence the morning sickness, so she doesn't get going until 9 o"clockish. Perfect for me to get in a little training on our vaca.

The best part of Lucern was a walk we went on. It required a boat ride and a very sketchy rail/cable car ride up a very steep mountain. We then spent the afternoon on a breathtaking off the beaten path adventure. Once past the main tourist area we only saw a couple of other hikers. Then we had a lovely lunch overlooking the area from an incredibly amazing view from our table. Another kicker about the German part of Switzerland is if you don't each lunch or dinner at there designated times (I don't know what they are as we rarely hit them) hello sandwich because that is all they will offer. Just as well for me as the price was right and I brought my own supply of Cliff and granola bars.

Next up was Gimmewald. We were both super stoked for this part of the trip because Rick Steve's rated it as one of his top three places to visit. I would have to agree. The town has about 75 people and there is only one or two small cars that reach speeds of up to 150 KPH as they scream by you on there 75 meter drive from the local Hostel Bar. Everyone in town seems to have a room for rent or own a hotel and the views are amazing.

The next day after a morning run we planned to go up to Murren where they had a pool where I could get in a quick swim and mountain bikes to rent. When we got up there both the pool and mountain bike shop were closed....bummer. So we went down to Interlochen to catch a boat ride. Unfortunately the boat gods were not on our side this day either. No more boats were leaving for the day. I don't know if the Swiss just don't like to work past 4 pm or what but Kelly and I were reduced to another gorgeous walk along the shore of the lake next to the city.

The last stop on our trip was Lugano. Lugano was in the Italian region and we were greeted with temps in the 80s which was a nice change from Gimmewald and Luzern where it was in the 50s. There was a lake a block from our hotel to go along with an gorgeous outdoor 50 meter lap pool. I was like a kid in a candy store. The next day we went to the Belenzone Castles or Castle as we only made it to one. This was by far the coolest day we had on our honeymoon and if you have yet to see a real life middle ages castle I highly recommend you see one. This thing was hunourmous! I felt like I was Link in the Adventures of Zelda video game. We took tons of video and photos and hopefully I can get some posted.

After that we had one day in Zurich before our flight home. We hit the town and walked along the river and ate some of the most overpriced Mexican food ever. It was awesome, maybe the best Mexican food I've ever had, but still overpriced. Especially if you throw in the terrible service and the 45 minutes it took to get our food after we ordered it. What do you expect when it takes them 15 minutes to bring you a $5 bottle of water. I guess customer service over there is even worse than here. That or they just don't like Americans. Either way they can survive because it's all tourists and there is no repeat business anyway.

The flight home was way worse than coming over has we had to fight to stay awake. Kelly also was not feeling well which only made things worse. Kelly and I had a great time but we were definitely glad to be sleeping in our own bed. Despite Kelly's raging hormones from being pregnant as well as traveling together for eight days we still managed to get through it without wanting an annulment.