100% Healthy... Almost

    Tomorrow is the first race of the season for me.  Usually get in an earlier race but decided to take it easy this year to maximize the recovery from my last hip and hernia surgery last September.  For some reason this recovery went way better than last years.  My run came back a lot faster as well as my bike power.  While I'm still not back to the training splits I had a few years ago I also recognize I'm now 35 and coming off surgeries on 6 body parts in the last 2.5 years.  

     While the surgeries have been no fun I've struggled to put my finger on why I just haven't felt right over the past few years. I thought it was more due to lack of training, sleep deprivation due to two new kids and an inconsistent training routine.  Then a couple of months ago I started having severe breathing issues.  Over the past few years I've had issues with this and was diagnosed with exercise induced asthma.  Although now I was struggling to breath all the time.  I couldn't even hold a simple conversation without being out of breath.  My wife who is now a doctor recommended that I stop taking my inhalers to see if anything got worse or better.  Reluctantly I did and there seem to be little or no change so I went in to see Dr. Knop who is one of the premier family practice docs  in the Twin Cities who specializes in athletes.  In the end he refereed me to a pulmanologist who started me on Singular, which is a drug to help with allergy induced asthma.  This was two weeks ago and might I say since then I've felt fantastic!  I'm no longer tired all the time nor do I have to fend off the hunger beast all the time.  Both of which I chalked up to over training.  On top of that my training has gone much better and I've enjoyed my workouts a lot more.  I'm still not 100% but I feel that I will get there soon.

      After everything I've been through the last few years I'm really optimistic about tomorrow.  I've upgraded from my old P3 frame to a Scott Plasma 3.  I also got professionally fit and moved up to a 56cm frame from my old 54cm P3.  All in all I'm hoping this will help my bike split.  While I'm not expecting to be running 5:40 splits tomorrow like I did in '09 and '10 I feel confident that I will be around 6 mins and not be destroyed doing it.  Most of all I'm really looking forward to swimming.  In the last couple of months my stroke has really come around and I'm feeling the water really well.  All in all I'm really hoping to be competitive with the always tough crowd at Minnetonka.  

      I also made the jump from Twin Cities Multisport Club to Gear West a few months ago.  It was a decision I did not take lightly.  I've been with TCMC since 2009 and have nothing but awesome things to say about them.  Although the club seems to be at a cross roads right now and I decided to look into other options.  I thought about Gear West back in 2009 although they seemed intimidating to me at the time.  I was a newcomer and everyone on the squad was a stud.  TCMC was new and I didn't want to get lost in a sea of studs.  Since then I've become friends with Kevin O'Conner and a lot of the GW guys.  They are all awesome people and am totally stoked to be racing with them.  I just want to put on a good first race flying the new GW red and black colors.  

     

Bike Vs. Run

   This last weekend I went up to Duluth for a Half Ironman.  After encouraging races at Buffalo and Minnetonka I was also forced to realize that I still have a long ways to go before I get back to the shape I was in 2009 and early 2010.  I worked hard on my bike in the last month and realized that pushing hard for short periods of time didn't work very well with my hips and legs being so uneven.  Rather longer slower distances were easier to maintain balance thus I decided to jump into the Duluth Half Ironman instead of doing some other short course stuff.
   In preparation I started hitting my tri bike in training more.  Especially on long rides.  I actually like the tri bike better which a lot of people would find strange.  I just like to go fast and straight.  I was also hoping that it would help my running as well.  Two weeks prior to the race I did a 54ish mile bike and followed it up with 7 x 1 mile repeats. Avg. pace was 6:20ish with 1 min rest in between.  This was an awesome workout but I wish I had done it the week prior since it beat me up pretty good.  By the beginning of last week I realized I was in trouble with over training.  Tuesday I rode my bike in the morning and had to shut it down early.  then I essentially stopped training for the week with the exception of a light swim on Wednesday and some light yoga until my Friday pre race workout. Luckily I felt good and was even hopeful that the hard taper would pay off.
     I stayed with my Buddy Josh Blankenheim in Duluth Friday night.  Josh has been battling an achilles surgery and unable to race this year.  Josh hooked me up with a great homemade meal and a bed to crash in.  It was ideal since Josh's place was about 25 mins from the race site not to mention free, which is a pretty good price.
    I knew my main competition was going to be Jmatt Keil.  We raced against each other at Buffalo where he blew by me on the run like I was going backwards just a mile or so in on the run.  I was hopeful that I could have a better swim and bike to hold him off on the run this time.
   Jmatt had introduced himself to me before Buffalo as we have a mutual good friend, Ross Weinzierl.  Jmatt is one of those guys that you instantly know is cool as ice, super friendly and a hoot to be around. I messaged him on Friday to talk some friendly smack.
    Race morning was nearly perfect.  Cool with a light breeze that would make the way out on the bike interesting but not too difficult.  Then a nice push on the way back in.  I knew my best chance would be to push as hard as I could on the bike without totally wearing myself out for the run and hope I could hold him off.  I figured I would need about a 10 min lead off the bike to do that.  I also hoped that if I could put 12 min on him it might break him to the point of racing for second instead of trying all out for first.
    The swim went well at the beginning.  I caught a good draft until the turn back towards shore on the first loop.  Then we were going against the wind and everyone seemed to break up.  I would try to catch up and get on someones feet but just could never seem to quite make it.  About 3/4 through the swim someone grabbed my leg and my calf seized up.  I had to stop and try to message it out to no avail.  At that point all I could do was just swim and hope it would loosen up.  Luckily it did until my other calf cramped in the same way.  This time I just slowed down and shook it out.  I came out of the water with a few others and figured I was about 10-15th out of the water. I had a solid transition and got on the bike in front of almost everyone I got out of the water with.
    I stayed in the small ring for the first 10-15 mins on the bike to find a rhythm.  Since I was going into the wind a wasn't loosing anything.  I could tell my calves and inner quads felt like they were on the verge of cramping so I started hitting the water pretty hard.  Regardless of the legs my turnover was perfect and the bike felt almost effortless.  I soon started passing a few guys and started wondering how far out of first I was.
     The first part of the bike was very smooth.  Then about 2-3 miles in it got bumpy, really bumpy.  It didn't bother me too bad so I just kept chugging along.  I then came on a guy who was pushing pretty good and started thinking I had to be in first or close.  Then I saw the next guy ahead of me and the lead motorcycle ahead of him.  I figured it was Jmatt and it was.  We exchanged a few pleasantries as I passed.  I don't have a computer on my bike so I had no idea how far into the bike we were. I knew it wasn't too far which was good for me. Then I saw a mile marker that said 13 miles.  At that point I thought I was in really good shape.  This would give me over 43 miles of bike to make time.  Then I made a huge mistake.  I refilled my aero bottle but when I went to put my bottle back in the cage I missed it.  On my P2 I train on the cage is on the seat tube but on this one it's on the other tube.  In the end the mistake probably cost me no more than 45 seconds if that and made no difference in my place.  In the past this type of issue might have caused me to panick but this time I was very calm about it.  Jmatt did pass me but I retook him shortly after.
     At the turn I looked at my watch to see how far back Jmatt was.  I clocked it as around 1:30.  Doing the math meant I had a 3 min lead.  Doing more math I figured I would have a roughly 9 min lead off the bike.  I know Jmatt can run and my running has been suspect this year so I wanted an even bigger lead but I thought 9 min might be enough.
     The trip back to T2 was one I will never forget.  The bumpy 11 mile section on the way out was even bumpier on this side of the road.  Every bump made my taint feel like I my seat was razorblades.  It was the longest 11 mile stretch of road I've ever ridden. It was also very flat so very few opportunities to get out of the saddle.  In fact I stood on a few mediocre hills that I would not have otherwise.  This was unfortunate because I loved this course and would do it again if it weren't for that section of road.  I talked to someone after the race who said they were going to fix that stretch until the rain storm last year that washed everything out. Now there's no telling how long until it gets done.  They also mentioned that they may adjust the bike course next year.  If something isn't done I don't know if I'll come back.  It was that painful.
     When I did finally get to T2 my quads and calves that never felt right on the bike definitely weren't.  My calves cramped up as I was getting off my shoes and my inner quads were already sore and tight.  My transition was very smooth and not too fast.  I later found out that I had about a 9 min lead off the bike as I thought.  Problem was my legs were very tender. For the first three miles I just tried to run easy and hope they loosened up.  Then the soreness went away and I was able to put together a pretty good stride.
    The run course was interesting. It was about a 3 miles and change to an out and back then it utilized a two loop run course before heading back to the finish.  At the out and back I looked at my watch to time how much of a lead I had over Jmatt.  The first time I clocked him at 4:30 behind.  What I didn't know was that he erased half the lead in the first 4 miles.  I thought he just came off the bike sooner than I hoped.  Although I was able to push just a little harder with the added motivation that he was coming. After the second loop I was 2:30 up and new it was going to be close.  Unfortunately not that close.  Jmatt had some sort of turbo boost waiting and erased the lead in the next two miles.  Then put another 2 min on me in the last 2 miles to take his first win. 
   While I was destroyed after the race I felt like I ran it as well as I could.  I suffered but not so much that I melted down.  A problem I've had in the 70.3 distance.  Jmatt and I hung out with his buddy that came up to watch while we waited for the awards.  Jmatt and his buddy were a total hoot to hang with and we added Chuck Jensen to the mix for some drinks.  We dominated the menu and had a couple of beers to rehydrate while waiting for Rod to hand out our Plate Trophies.  In all it was just what I was hoping for in a race.  While I didn't get the win I did get was I was hoping for... an awesome race with drama.  Jmatt definitely served that up and I look forward to every race we have in the future.
   

Buffalo Recap and Minnetonka Pre Race

     Well it's been almost two years since my last post.  Since then there have been a few setbacks.  First was a torn Posterior Tibial Tendon that is still not 100%.  While recovering from that I decided to check out my right hip.  I then found out both my hip sockets are too shallow, have arthritis and the labrams are torn.  I opted to fix my right one last year which has taken some time to heal but is now finally feeling pretty good. 
      Since I was going to be off my feet for a while with the hip scope I decided to fix my bunions at the same time.  While this was by far the most painful of the three surgeries it took the least amount of time to heal.  All in all this has been a long recovery and have been looking forward to getting back on the starting line since September of 2011.
      I had intended for Minnetonka Sprint to be my first race back but as the season got closer my endurance was up and training times were decent.  Since Buffalo fell on the weekend I was going to do my first brick I decided to jump in.  I had the hopes of doing a 2:05 and thought given the start list this might land me on the podium or close.  While I fell short of that mark by nearly 5 mins I would have to say this was one of my favorite races I've ever done. 
     To start there was no pressure.  I was relaxed and new that I can only do what I can do.  Before the race I also got a lot of "good to see you backs" from friends which was awesome.  Buffalo is an awesome race with a lot of great people.  I knew this was not going to be my fastest race ever so I concentrated on keeping a steady pace and not blowing up.  Normally I finish and nearly need medical attention but this time I finished and while I had pushed it I didn't need a ton of recovery time.  I finished 12th overall and even got chicked by Cathy Yndested.  No shame there as she will be in the hunt for national Athlete of the Year honors this year.  Still I had a warm and fuzzy after the race and was super happy with a 2:10.
     Since then I've gotten back to training like I used to.  My times are still not where they were in 2009-2010 but I feel good about them and enjoy my workouts more than I have in a long time.  I keep showing improvement and my energy level is still up.  The problem has been that my left hip and knee are showing real signs of wear and tear.  I'm already scheduled to have my right hip scoped in September and my knee may need to be scoped as well. It's an issue that has plagued me for nearly 8 years now and I need to get something done before there is a real problem that would keep me from running all together.  I'm hoping the doc says fixing the hip will fix the knee but something tells me there's been too much damage done.
     Having said all that I still hope to have a great race tomorrow.  The competition will be stiff with my buddies Patrick Parish, Scott Swensen and Ross Weinzierl there along with three time winner Brett Lovass and last years winner Brooks Gossinger.  There will more than likely be a couple of other fast guys in the mix as well.  I'm hoping for top 5 but realize that top 10 will be a victory. 
    After Minnetonka my future is uncertain.  My knee and hip are not responding to training well on a regular basis.  Some days they feel great while others I wonder if I should continue or move up the surgery date and scratch the rest of the season.  I want to get in at least one more race but health is a priority and believe getting the surgery(s) done sooner will help me get back close to 100% by the start of next season. 

Bad News!

I believe in four years I've only blogged in the off season once. That time it was to brag about my beautiful daughter being born. So you know when I blog this time of year it's going to be big. Unfortunately this time it's not on the good news side of things.

In September I was ramping up my mileage in preparation for the Mankato Marathon. I was feeling fantastic and running better than I've run all year. Then on a lunch run I felt a tweak in my inner ankle. I gingered it back to work and figured I would rest it for a few days. However I had long run with my buddy Ross Weinzierl two days later. On Friday night I was on the bubble but didn't want to let Ross down and I've run through things like this in the past. Unfortunately I'm not 28 anymore and running was a bad idea.

Ross and I ran two 8 mile loops with a ten minute breather in between. It was painful but not unbearable. The last couple of miles were especially bad but I was still able to run even though I was wincing with every step. At the end I thought "thank god I made it through that without making it worse." The ankle felt ok and was fully mobile. Later that night I woke up to go to the bathroom and nearly fell down with my first step being that my ankle was so stiff. I knew then I was in trouble.

I went to Tria a few days later to see if I could salvage it before the marathon. The PA told me it was post tibial tendonitis and I would be out for four to six weeks. I asked if there was anything I could to speed up the recovery. The PA gave me a boot and told me to see the Physical Therapist once a week. I did both but I was not getting much better. So I asked my wife for some help.

I am blessed to be an athlete with a doctor for a wife. She is in residency and doesn't specialize in sports injuries but she does know who does and who's the best at it. She asked her old professor Dr. Knop what it could be and he immediately feared the worst and that I had torn post tibial tendon (at least I think that's what it is). The doc recommended me to Dr. Cotzee who is supposedly one of the worlds best at this injury. In fact that is his direct specialty. The best part is He's at Twin Cities Ortho, no kidding, two miles from my house.

When I called they told me he was booked till March. Keep in mind I called in October. I told them who I was and my sad sob story. I also named dropped my wife and Dr. Knop and that got me in a month later. After examining me for a minute Dr. Cotzee shot me straight and said I had a 5% chance of not having surgery. I kept thinking, "so you're telling me their's a chance." I had an MRI last week and yesterday, my birthday, the doc called me and essentially said it's not bad it's really bad.

So apparently I have a two inch lateral tear in my posterior tibial tendon. Or that's the medical jargon I heard so don't quote me. Bottom line is I'm in a cast for two weeks after the surgery. Then I can swim. I can bike at a month or so, elliptical at 6-8 weeks, yoga in 8 and running in 12 weeks. Or at least that is what I'm shooting for.

For my rant of the week I have to say how disappointed I am with Tria and how thrilled I am with Twin Cities Ortho. When you tell someone your a competetive athlete they should treat you as such. When my ankle is swelled up like a bastard I want you to MRI it and not send me on my way. If I had been satisfied with Tria I may have damaged this thing to the point of never running again thinking it was just tendonitis. Or at least just have been out for three months before realizing it was something more. Luckily Dr. Cotzee immediately wanted to MRI it due to my lifestyle. Fortunately I only lost a month to the incompetence of the PA at Tria vs. three extra months.

The good news is that it's the off season and with my hopeful timeline I think I can get back into pretty good shape for June and the beginning of the season. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Didn't See That Coming

Wow!! What an Awesome race. I've come to grips with the fact that I'm not it the shape I was in 2009 so I was hoping to just not suffer too bad and finish sub 4:20. I knew Dan Arlandson would be their along with my buddy Ross Wienzierl. I figured Dan then me then Ross for the podium. I then hear Bennett Isabella was also there. I have only raced against him once at Turtleman where I flatted out. I knew he was a stupid fast runner but I was able to make up the difference in the first few miles of the bike before I flatted out. I had no idea what his swim was like. I knew he could be a contender but figured if he caught me on the run it would be around mile 9-10ish. What unfolded was probably my favorite race of the year and a totally unexpected result.

The morning was nearly perfect. Very light wind and about 60ish to start. Ross and I chatted at the start and went over our plans. As the gun went off I took it a little easy as planned but found a good stroke right off the bat. Ross was actually ahead of me and I drafted him to the first bouy. I then got ahead of him for about 100 yards till the next bouy. I then tried to put a little into it to drop him from my draft and thought I did. I then saw someone ahead of me a worked a little hard to see if I could close the gap and catch a draft. It worked perfect and later found out that for the third time in the three years I've done this race I was on Thomas Krenz's feet. Then about halfway I notice Ross was still on me. I figured he was working harder than he probably should since he is not known for his swimming. We ended up coming out of the water together and Ross and I were in 3rd and 4th to start the bike.

Ross and I rode together for the first few hilly miles of the bike and again I thought Ross might be a little ambitious for his first Half IM, which is a common mistake no matter how experienced you are. I then started putting distance between us at about mile 20 I looked back and couldn't see him so figured he had dropped back pretty far.

As I started the second loop I heard my mom yell that I was in good shape and was only a couple of minutes back. I knew Dan would destroy me in the water so I knew the only hope I had was to match his bike split and hope I somehow could out run him. A tall order, I know but it was all I could hope for.

I had made a gutsy decision for my bike nutrition plan. Since it was cooler at the start but would be getting warm I decided to not take a water bottle on my stem and only use my 1 liter Aero bottle with 16 oz of Heed in the extra cell. There was a water bottle drop at halfway and I would refill my main cell then use the Heed for the last 30 mins of the ride. I would also have four GU's taped to my top tube and I would have one every 30 mins. The strategy worked perfect as I took all the fluids I wanted and was literally sucking the Heed dry in the last mile of the bike.

As I came into transition I heard times from 30 secs to 2 min behind Dan. I knew I was close but also knew the next few miles would be where the race was decided. Rather than blasting out of T2 like I did against Rhett Bonner in 2009 I took a nice easy steady pace and just chugged along. Not worrying about Dan I knew I just had to concentrate on keeping my breathing slow and steady and not overheating.

My legs were fatigued but I was able to keep a decent pace. When I say decent it was probably 8:30 miles as the first half is almost all up hill with some rather steep inclines. I did notice that my hamstrings were almost cramping so I wasn't able to open up very much in order to keep from pulling one. The best way to put it was I was carefully running. I knew I needed to let my stomach absorb everything I had in it to keep the cramps at bay.

As I chugged along I noticed Dan wasn't putting much time on me. In fact at about Mile 4-5 I thought I might actually be gaining on him. Then I heard some seriously fast footsteps behind me. I honestly thought it was a recreational runner who was doing some speed work. No way was a competitor running that fast at this point in the race. As he went by I noticed it was Bennett. No way was I going to be able to run with him and he asked me if that was Dan ahead of me. I sad yes and that he was going to catch him.

As Bennett glided past me I was still focused on catching Dan. Then Bennett caught Dan. At that point I thought I saw Dan walking. Sure enough he was. Then he tried running again only to go back to a walk again. As I passed him he jumped in behind me for a bit then tried to pass but only made about a 10 yard gap before he started walking again. My strategy had payed off but yet I was still going to be 2nd. Or so I thought.

At the turn around I was impressed to see my buddy Ross. I was also a little shocked as he was only about 1:30-2:00 back. I thought this was a decent gap but I had to go or he would catch me. At the same time I thought there is no way Ross can keep this pace with it getting hotter. On the way back my legs were feeling a little better but I still felt the hamstrings tighten up ever now and again. Especially if I pushed it too hard for too long. With about 3 miles left I noted Ross was only about 45 seconds back and looking good. I did the best I could to push the pace. My legs were responding and I my heart rate wasn't spiking and breathing was under control. Problem was Ross was still putting time on me.

With about 1 mile and a half left Ross made the pass. I figured I would still try to keep a tough pace and hope he faded on the last hill. Unfortunately Ross just wasn't going to slow up. In fact he may have been able to keep that pace a while longer by the looks of it. I still haven't seen the results but Ross put down a serious run to grab second overall. It had to be Ross's best race yet and it was awesome to see a good friend have such an amazing race. Even if it meant finishing behind him.

After the race I got in the water for a bit and knew I needed electrolytes. Then I started to cramp up and bad. I had to drag myself to shore just as my mom brought me my recovery drink. Someone else brought me some Gatorade and I was able to get function back in my legs.

I have to admit that even thought this the outcome I was hoping for I was ecstatic with the result. I felt like I had put as good a race together as I could of, didn't suffer too bad and got to see a good friend take it to the next level. I also got to talk with Dan after the race. I could tell he was disappointed but as he put it, "some days you have it, some days you don't." Very true.

Bennett was a monster and I'm really curious to see his run split. It had to be serious along with Ross's. Congratulations to both of them. I think all three of us put together the best races we could have. It was a fantastic finish to a good season and left me with a feeling of anticipation for next season.

Next up Mankato Marathon followed by a pub crawl.

Square Lake Preview

I can't believe it's almost over. This will be my last multisport of the year and I feel strangely unfulfilled. Most year by the end of the season I am ready to throw in the the towel and get down to yard work. For some reason this year I want the season to last another month. I think it's partially because a somewhat disappointing August with a flat tire at Turtleman, good but not great performance at St. Paul followed by a frustrating race at Maple Grove. It could also be that I had higher expectations for this year. My '09 season I seemed to have everything go my way and had a huge August. I think I was hoping for a similar season. I did have a few ups, but also more downs than I am used to. In '09 it was almost all ups.
Another reason I want the season to be longer is that I feel like I am still improving or at least finally working out the kinks. I have my run where I want it and my swim feels like it comes around more often than not. However my bike power seems to be dropping. Funny how that is. Just when I feel like everything is pulling together, the season ends.
As for Square Lake, Dan Arlandson is on the register list so it looks like I will have to settle for at least second. My good buddy Ross Weinzierl will also be there to see how he fares at this distance. Ross tried to do Chisago Half last year but flatted out. For me I'm just hoping to come in somewhere between 4:15-4:20. In '09 I came in at 4:15ish on a warm day in a battle with Rhett Bonner. I believe my swim may be better than then but my bike is not. However my run could be faster. We'll have to wait and see.

Janickied

I was really looking forward to this race. There was a big buzz from last year and now there was the 111 race with Macca and some other pros. When I got to transition I was blown away. It was very well put together, a huge transition area and all the amenities of a pro level race.

I got my packet and headed into transition. They had a racking system that went by age but the Elite rack was not marked very well on the layout they had. The layout map was marked by wave except for the Elite wave. It took three volunteers to finally tell me they had no idea and to rack in the overflow. When I did I saw my friend Kim Gorman who is an official. She helped me out and showed me where the Olympic Elite was on the map. Now it made sense. It cost me a good 10-15 mins just to find my rack. When I found it though I got right to warming up.

I just got finished when they started kicking us out of transition so no loss with the racking. When we got to the water there seemed to be some more confusion as to the Olympic course swim and which direction to go. It eventually got settled and the swim went off without a hitch.

The Elite wave only had five guys in it and no one I recognized. I had a decent swim and came out of the water in first for the guys. I thought at this point that I had the race in hand but still wanted to push to see if I could go sub 2:05:00. The bike just never seemed to click. I'm guessing the intestinal bug I had earlier in the week hurt my power but I just kept pushing.

T2 was a little sloppy but not horrible. In an Olympic I'm not worried about it as much anyway. My legs felt sore in a different way than normal. They hurt but I had no problem with turn over. My first loop I felt fantastic and then it happened.

As I came down a hill near the park there was a sign saying sharp turn. There was a hard turn at nearly 180 degrees going down hill. I didn't feel right but I saw a volunteer about 20 yards after the turn and figured I would just make the turn and ask. When I got to him I said I was Olympic and needed to do a second lap. Where am I going? He told me that I was on track and to keep going. "I couldn't miss it." A few hundred yards later I noticed there was no where to start the second lap and I was in the finish shoot just before the finish. I've missed turns before but never on a run course. I stopped and thought "oh crap." The announcers Jerry Mcneil and Chris Swarthout shouted at me to keep going and I was having an amazing race. I told them I still needed to make a second lap. Jerry asked over the PA for help from a volunteer. I realized I needed to run back out the same way and just keep going where I was before the turn. At that point I made another mistake, I panicked a little. I ran back to where I made the wrong turn a little too hard to make up for lost time. Luckily I realized it before I blew up too bad and backed off.

The second loop I felt strong but knew I was starting to slow down. Unfortunately being the first one threw a course means the volunteers are not prepared for you. There was a water point that was only on the second loop so I was the first one through. I needed Powerade but they weren't ready for me so I had to grab a water. I was even more frustrated at this point as I knew I was going to have to go the rest of the way without and extra energy or electrolytes.

Fortunately I pushed through it and came down the finishing shoot as the first Olympic finisher. The wrong turn had meant nothing and like Minnetonka I was able to overcome it. I enjoyed talking with Claire Bootsma and Becky Youngberg in the lake to cool down and then we went up to see the finish of the 111 race. When I did my mom informed me that I was second on the finish list. I thought it was just someone who missed a lap and didn't think anything of it. I went about my business hanging out with my close friend Scott Swenson and figured I would go over and check the results. I was floored to see Doug Thiessen did in fact beat me by two minutes. Doug is from Thunder Bay, raced in the 30-34 AG and slipped under the radar. At this point I was frustrated that the wrong turn may have in fact made the difference. But it would have been close and there is no way to tell.

Since I was second overall I stayed for awards to see what I got. I was wondering how they would do it since Doug was the overall winner. Would they put me in an AG or just do Elite awards. They went all the way through the awards and announced me as the Elite winner. When I looked at the award it said Sprint Overall Champion. I went back to switch they gave me the Olympic Male Overall award. Doug was right there so I said give it to him. He deserves this since he won. I then asked if there was anything for me. They told me to wait and they would straighten it all out.

Then after they announced all the sprint I talked to one of the race directors. She explained they thought the overall winner would be an Elite and they didn't do a 2nd or 3rd place overall. In other words I waited 3 hours for awards. Then another 30 mins for awards to end to find out that I get nothing. I really don't care that I got nothing. I just care that I waited nearly 4 hours that I could have spent with my wife and baby daughter to find out that I got nothing. To be honest I feel bad for the 2nd and 3rd place Elites that stuck their neck out to jump in the first wave to get nothing. They should have just stayed in their divisions and gotten a nice AG award.

I guess you can see where this post was going. The event was very well organized. Great food, awesome venue, but they forgot the basics. Most importantly marking the course and properly briefing volunteers and having them in the right spots. I could care less about the awesome post race buffet if people get lost on the course. I also don't want to hear that it's the racers responsibility to know the course. That's just a cop out that race directors say so that they don't have to take responsibility for not properly marking the course or having volunteers that don't know what they are doing. I will say this. I thought the bike course was marked pretty well. Not awesome but close. The run course was very well marked and had great volunteers until what I would consider to be a point that obviously could be a trouble spot. When I came around for the second loop there were 5 volunteers directing you where to go so they must have figured out there was an issue after my wrong turn. I know my buddy Scottie made the same turn. Luckily the volunteer that sent me the wrong way learned from his mistake and sent him the right way. I also know at least on Elite female also made the turn only to be sent back by the same volunteer.

For any race directors out there who read this I offer advise and extend a challenge. Racers are not focused or thinking about the map you gave in the packet. While racing we are thinking about the 20 feet in front of us. We don't take the map out of our pocket and check to see if we are going the right way. My opinion is to not even give a map and dedicate that time to marking the course correctly and properly briefing volunteers. Then if anyone who makes a wrong turn on your course and it makes a difference in the results should receive a free entry for next year.

Congratulations to Doug Thiessen! He had a monster race and this post was not meant to say I would have beat him but... but more to vent about how important it is to make sure that the racers know where they are at all times. I met Doug at the awards and he is an ultra cool guy. Doug is coached by another cool Canuck by the name of Jon Balabuck. Maybe you've heard of him. I look forward to racing with Doug again. Hopefully he realizes how fast he is and jumps into the Elite wave next time so we can go head to head. I think it would make for a very exciting race.

Next up is Square Half. I'm actually finally feeling strong in the run and water. Hopefully the bike comes around and I can put it all together like I did at Twin Cities.