2012 Season!

Well...here it is- the 2012 race season!!!

This weeks kicks off the year with Powerman Alabama. This year, the race will be a 10k-40k-5k race format since it is the elite national championship. The fitness seems right where it should be, so I'm excited to see what happens and give it a go. My training has been going well, hitting new bike power levels and running some quick workouts on the treadmill and lately the track.

Even more exciting is that my fiancee Jacqui will be racing as well! Ideally we will be leaving Alabama with some solid performances and possibly a spot on the US team for the Duathlon World Championships. I'll try to write a race recap with photos once I get back.

In other exciting life events, Jacqui and I bought our first house in Oakwood Hills, IL. We will use some of the summer to work on the house and clean it up a bit. Then hopefully move in at some point before our big wedding day on October 13th! It will definitely be nice to have a place of our own and even in an area that has good training grounds! So lots going on and 2012 is set up to be an incredible and memorable year!

Galena Tri RR

This past weekend I was pretty excited about going out to Galena (land of hills), IL for the Galena Triathlon. I planned this race in conjunction with work as I talked to the race director and partnering retail store about setting up PowerBar for the Post race party. I did this race last year, and to say the least, it was the beginning of an awful year. My front derailleur snapped last year and forced me to stay in the little ring for the entire bike course. This made the downhills pretty pointless and made for a very frustrating day.

So this year, I made sure all was working with the bike and felt confident that a good day was ahead. I packed up the car Friday evening with the bike, race gear, and whole PowerBar set up. I woke up around 3:30am and began the day by filling water jugs of PowerBar restore for the triathletes post race. Restore is my go-to drink for post events as it is the right blend of carbs, protein, electrolytes, and fluid to promote rapid recovery.

I took off from the house around 3:55 and sipped on my cappuccino for the 2 hour drive. I also loaded up on some PowerBar gel blasts (raspberry is my favorite!) and water. Upon arriving, I picked up my race material, dropped my bike and bike gear off in T2 and then hopped back into the car for a 30 min drive over to T1/finish area. After getting all of my race gear ready, I unloaded the car and set up the PowerBar tent, tables, banners, and drinks so that it would be all set to go once the race was complete. From there it was a quick 30 min trip BACK over to the swim start as this is a point to point race. Luckily, coach Sharone of Well-Fit was able to give me a lift over to the race start area.

The weather seemed pretty perfect with a cool breeze and slight clouds, but you could tell the clouds were going to bring some rain at some point. I took my bike out for a quick spin and to make sure all was working well and then parked it back into transition. One mistake was that I forgot to calibrate the Quarq powermeter so my numbers were slightly off. Its as simple as pedaling backwards 4 times! I'll have to make sure to remember this for the next one.

From there is was getting the wetsuit on for the chilly 60 degree temp water and waiting for the start.

While waiting, I found my grandparents who came to watch / support me. It was great to see them as they don't get many opportunities to come and see me race.

I lined up at the front as I knew I could hang with the lead swimmers. I didn't have many pre-race nerves, rather I was pretty confident that I could pull out some fast splits. My body was well rested from workouts and itching to go hard.

With the 10 second countdown, I put my head down, told myself to go hard and never doubt my abilities. The gun went out and I sprinted into the water trying to get in front of the large 100 person swim start. After about 30 seconds of redlining, I realized I was not focusing on form at all and was running out of breathe pretty quickly. I had a pretty bad panic attack from not being able to take in enough air. It scared me as I thought I may have to stop, but I was unable to due to the whole group of swimming right behind me. I knew if I stopped I would be clobbered and pushed under. So I kept pushing and tried to relax. I slowed the pace down and after the first turn buoy I was back to normal and feeling ok, but pretty tired from the quick start.

Three swimmers pulled away and I lead the next group of swimmers the rest of the swim. The front swimmer had about 30 seconds on me by the time we exited, which I was ok with as I progressively get stronger throughout the three disciplines.

Coming out of the water in 4th

I had a quick T1 and actually hopped on my bike about 10 seconds back of the leader. I was unsure of who was up front, but my it my focus to catch him and never look back. The start of the bike is a pretty large hill, which definitely wakes the legs up! I got to the top and then put my feet into the shoes. I realized that when I did this, the leader was pulling pretty far ahead. I didn't worry though as I knew once I was in and pedaling full strength I could catch him.





After going pretty strong, I kept an eye on my Power and realized it wasn't very high. I thought this was due to the downhills and not being able to get it too high. During the race I never even though about how I didn't calibrate it! I was catching up to the leader, but very slowly. I was surprised with how strong of a biker he was. Around 6 miles, I caught him and realized it was Mike Lavery (a PowerBar athlete) from Madison, WI. He is an exceptional triathlete and strong cyclist as well. We exchanged kind words (him telling me he was hoping for another mechanical! haha). I made it a mission to keep riding strong and get as much distance as I could.

Unfortunetely, around mile 8 Mike came back past me. We hit the biggest hill of the course and I did all I could to stay right on him. I used a lot of energy going up the large hill, and once we got to the top, he gapped me quite a bit. He pulled ahead by about 20 seconds as my legs were getting their energy back from the power zapping hill. I got back into a groove and kept the gap around 20-30 seconds all the way into the bike finish. I even hit 57 mph on the large downhill back into town! It was a pretty scary moment as my bike was doing the speed wobble and I was trying to turn. I just missed hitting a cone and cleared the turn. Phew..


I blasted through transition again and made up about 10 seconds on Mike. He was just in front of me and I turned the speed on..



I caught Mike about a minute into the run. This was at the point where we run up the largest hill of the course. I didn't think I was going very fast up it and even thought that Mike may catch back up to me from my lack of uphill speed. But once at the top, I started to push the pace and carried the momentum through the rest of the run. The course was all up and down, but nothing too major besides the first big hill. At mile 3, I started to feel really good and decided to push the last 1.3 miles as hard as I could. I knew I had the win locked up at that point, but wanted to have a solid run split.

Based on the time, my last mile was around 4:40. I felt great and pushed it all the way into the line. My finish time was 1:15:00...a full 8.5 minutes faster than last year.

I was pretty excited about how things went and look forward to the rest of the season. After the race I manned the PowerBar tent and even was able to show off the new Gel flavors - Berry Blast and Kona Punch. There were HUGE positive comments on both of these which is a good sign. I personally used both in the race and couldn't have been more pleased. So start looking for those at your local shop soon! If the shop doesn't have em...just make sure you talk to the manger and request it!!

The post race was good once the sun came out. I kept busy at the both and talked to a lot of athletes. I tore down, loaded the car, and then was back off to Schaumburg. Overall it was a long day, but definitely a fun one.

Nothing big is planned for a while. I hope to race at Muncie 70.3 in July, so it will be a large bike training block until then as well as working a bunch of events on the weekends. So make sure to stop by if you see me and try out some product!

Thanks for checking in....

rg

Planet X!

Yea!

New bikes rock :)

Thanks Planet X, Profile Design, SRAM, Quarq, and Selle SMP!!





Also...just weighed the road bike and it tips in at 14 lbs!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Quick Post

First just wanted to give a glimpse of the new ride! Looks awesome thanks to Planet-X, Profile Design, Quarq, Sram, and Selle SMP.

May be getting some new wheels for racing as well, but waiting for confirmation. I'll post an update as soon as I hear. I'm still dialing in the position, but right now it feels pretty good.




In other news, this past weekend was super busy with work. Lots of events going on with the nice weather coming around. On Friday I was over at Village Cycle Sports Spring Sale. They had TONS of bike on sale...not to mention a great deal of 50% off on on PowerBar gels, bars, and gel blasts. Seemed like we sold through quite a bit of it! I sampled some product and talked to customers as they came through. Their sale was from Friday-Sunday with each day getting nicer and nicer!

On Saturday I went over to Sammy's Bike shop in St. Charles and helped out at their in store event. Sammy just re-did his whole shop and it looks awesome. Reps from Sram, Zipp, Colnago, Cervelo, Sigma, and PowerBar were there. I set up a nice tent with products for athletes to try out. The whole group met at 8am to do a long bike ride. Since I was working, I was up at 4am to load the car and prepare all of the PowerBar goodies. I made a recovery drink in a large 10 gallon cooler, loaded up on recovery bars, gels, gel blasts, and protein bites. Threw all of that in the car along with my bike and was off.

Once everything was set up at Sammys, I decided to jump in the ride. I loaded up my bike pockets with Gels (over 50!) and carried them along. The group split after about 10 miles and then the hammer started to drop. I was thinking that the group would take it easy the whole day, but nope....there were multiple attacks off the front. I didn't realize this at first and when I looked ahead, the front group was way up the road. I took off trying to catch them and really made up some good ground. With good fortune, the group slowed to wait for everyone so I was able to rejoin. I was ready for this the next few times attacks were made...and even made a few on my own :) Each time we stopped, I offered the group some PowerBar gels, which were a huge hit. I ended the ride with only two of the original 50 left, with me not taking any! I was hurting, but would rather have the other individuals use them as I have the benefit of being overwhelmed with gels on a daily basis.

The ride really pushed me which was a good thing...and also bad. Bad because I was planning on running the Shamrock Shuffle 8k the following day. My legs were pretty tired when we finished, so I knew I would be hurting the following day. Overall, we rode for a total of 3 hrs.

Once back at the shop, I sampled the recovery drink and handed out PowerBar water bottles to the riders. Everyone loved the drink as well (I went through 10 gallons!). I myself overindulged in it all while also eating two PowerBar recovery bars. The rest of the evening was a lot of fun talking to athletes and listening to Olympian Shelia Tourmina talk about her journey in sport. I ended up working for over 11 hours that day, so overall it was pretty tiring!

The next morning, I was up early to go downtown for the Shamrock Shuffle. As usual, my family got a late start and we we rushing to get through the crowds. There are 40,000 runners in the race...so definitely a big mess. When rushing through the crowds, my little brother got separated from my dad. Jacqui and I were going to the elite start line, so he was supposed to stay with my dad and run with him. When I looked back, my little bro Alex was tagging along. I panicked because there was not much time. I told Jacqui to go to the start and get ready for the race while I search for my dad. I was never able to find him...so I left Alex with a family friend and took off for the start line. I checked my bag, ran through the crowds, and made it to the line with a few minutes to spare. Jacqui was a mess because of the whole rushed situation. Neither of us warmed up so it was a jump right into the race.



I actually felt good at the start and went out in a 4:50. I was sitting well right around 15th place, but could tell that 4:50 was too much for me with no warm up (and having tired legs from the day before). I kept pushing and started to pass a few runners and moved up into 12th at the 5k mark. Mile two was a 5:01 and Mile 3 was a 5:10. So I was slowing and really starting to hurt. Once a few runners passed me, I sucked it up and went with them. The next mile was a 5:00 and I passed 4 miles in 19:59. I knew I had to run all out in order to break my goal of 25:00....but there is a tough hill right at about 4.7 miles. I ran as hard as I could and sprinted to the line...but watched as it ticked at 25:00. My official time was 25:02...so my last mile was just over 5:00. I was glad to push hard and not keep slowing down after the 3 mile. I know that with being fresh, having a warm up (and not shocking my body with a hard first mile), I would be under 25.

Next up is Du Nationals at the end of April. I am taking time off of work so I should be rested and ready to go. I'm really excited about that race as it is my goal race of the year. I know with a good taper and rest from not working, I will be eager to race and ready to roll. Overall, it was a good weekend which ended on a pretty cool note. After the run, I went over to the White Sox game and was honored to throw out the first pitch. It was a bit wild, but still a neat experience.

Home Team Charity

As another update...I ran a 10k yesterday with the plan to take it easy (while trying to win). The winner of the race gets to throw out the opening pitch to the White Sox game while also getting tickets to a Bulls and Blackhawks game with VIP treatment. Not a bad prize! So I got to the race and went out with the lone leader. The first mile was a 5:10...which was a surprise. I honestly felt like I was jogging. I stuck right behind the leader hitting each mile in about 5:15-5:20. It was awesome running with no effort and knowing I would have a huge kick. At mile 5, I was at 26:15. I took off to open a lead and ran mile 5-6 in 4:48. I cruised it in to finish first with a time of 32:15. The course was slightly long at 6.3 miles as well. I know that I can be 30:xx in an open 10k. I have been waiting a while to feel like this (running quickly without the struggle!). The past few years, I would really have trouble holding a 5:15 pace, but not anymore!

Powerman Alabama Race Report

Sorry for the delay! I've been busy with work and organizing my life, but wanted to give a recap of my first race of the season. I decided to open the 2011 racing year with a race I've done two other times: Powerman Alabama. This race is put on by Team-Magic and they do a great job. I wanted to do this race because it was the Duathlon Long Course National Championships...not to mention there is a pretty good prize purse involved with $1000 going to the winner. I've never had a good race with my first one me getting a penalty on the bike (a very strange stagger rule that is involved with Powerman Elite races) and the other one me barely finishing and being hooked up on an IV once crossing the line (not to mention I finished almost last). This past winter, I switched focus and was tired of having the past few years flop on me. The 2010 season was more than disappointing. I constantly raced just trying to have a good performance and didn't focus on my training. Additionally, I had too many mechanicals on the bike to count. Starting in January, I started to ramp up my training and made it a goal to bike and run 6 days a week. My running increased from about 20 miles/week to over 55. So that was quite a jump. Another change was focusing on dropping my weight. If you've been reading my blog, you've seen the changes over the last 3 months (dropping over 15 lbs). The last change was deciding to get a coach to really focus my efforts on key races this year. I went to Sharone Aharone out of Well-Fit in Chicago. He has been writing all of my workouts and making sure each day I'm getting the right amount of intensities and durations. Ok, so onto the race. I'm going to jump right into it and start with: -Race morning: I woke up and had a usual pre-race meal of mainly carbs. At the race site, I jogged around a bit and felt a little sluggish. My calves were a bit sore from the weekend before where I ran a hard effort on a hilly course. It left me feeling sore for longer than I wanted, but it wasn't bad enough to fray my effort. This race started off with a 1ok run (6.2 miles), 60k bike (38 miles), and 10k run to finish. I was expecting the race to go out hard with some quick athletes such as Dereck Treadwell and David Thompson. Last year, I wasn't able to keep up with Treadwell and stuggled to hold onto Thompson. This year, I felt that with my improved running and weight, I would be able to run faster at a lower effort. In regards to the run course, there was one big change from the previous year...Around mile 3 of the run, we had to run 1.5 mile uphill coming to an 8% grade. Once at the top, we turned around and came right back down. It really ate the legs up and made for a difficult race. When the gun went off, I felt great and went out hard. My goal was to run comfortable, but try to get a lead and see how long I could hold on. Around mile two of the first run, I opened up a lead and was able to hold onto it. Once we started to hit the hills I really opened it up and got away from everyone in the field. I finished up the first 10k in 32:37 which was very surprising. I was expecting to be closer to 34:30 with the difficulty of the course. It was a good sign because I wasn't labored at all and still ran a faster time than the previous year while it being a harder course! Into the transition, I went as quick as possible. I wanted to make sure I took advantage of every second I could get. I ended up having the fastest transition! On the bike, this year I am riding a Quarq powermeter. I watched my watts right from the start. Sharone told me to go a little under my FTP and hold it. I kept my power pretty solid and low on the first loop of the 3. With the turnarounds, I was able to gauge where I was at in comparison to the competition. I honestly just wanted to not get caught by Treadwell and Thompson. I am used to being gobbled up right away. I was just happy to make it through the first lap holding onto 1st place. Once I started lap 2, I felt like I could pick the pace up a bit. I increased my power and kept taking in fluids and gels. I stuck with PowerBar Perform for fluids and PowerBar Rasberry Creme/Straw-Banana/Green Apple Gels. I was taking in a gel each 30 mins and drinking constantly. I noticed that the guys behind weren't really gaining on me, but rather, I was pulling ahead. It was a nice feeling staying up front! Onto the third loop, I was able to cut my efforts down and save some energy for the last run. In T2, I made sure to hurry and was able to get a time check to see how far up I was. I had over a 3 min lead and knew I could relax for the final 10k. There is nothing quite like leading a race and knowing you've won it with about 40 mins to go! I just enjoyed the run and tackled the hills the best I could. I was very surprised to see that I ran 35 mins on that hard of a course at the end. The victory gave me my first Powerman win and a great confidence booster to the year. I feel faster, more fit, and stronger than I ever have. I look forward to using this fitness and rolling it into my next big race of the race which will be Short Course Du Nationals in Arizona (end of April). *nice side note is that I had the same bike split as Joerie Vansteelant from the past year's race. He is the World Champ!! So that is definitely encouraging :)

Starting the Season Right

Powerman Alabama Winner!

Weekend

So this past weekend was the March Madness 1/2 marathon. This is one of my favorite kick-off season races and was the winner the past 3 years. I had plans on racing, but have other priorities now. I love the race particularly because it tests you in many ways. You need to stay relaxed in the first few miles because after about half way through, the hills really start to add up. Then they keep hitting you one after another. This year, I was fortunate enough to go out, set up a PowerBar table, and sample a GREAT recovery drink. I had Team Elite member, Russ Kuryk, out to help me as we whipped out the blenders and made drink after drink for a few hours. The runners really enjoyed the drink and hopefully aided in their recovery!

Here is a picture of Russ hard at work:


In terms of the race, I was really excited to watch the other half Jacqui as she was planning on seeing where she was at in terms of fitness. She has done this race the past 3 years as well and finished in 7th, 4th, and 3rd. This year, her focus is strictly running...so we were excited to see what that would bring. And to say the least...she absolutely dominated. Jacqui ended up winning to complete her progression and ran a new PR of 1:24....simply amazing. Now don't forget, this is on I would say the hardest 1/2 marathon course in the Midwest. The wind was howling..and not to mention the rain coming down pretty hard right from the gun. She still went out there and pulled off a PR. I really think she is in shape to put herself in contention for a breakthrough marathon this year! So congrats to her :)

In other news, not much is going on. I am continuing to train hard and feeling very fit. The weight has leveled out, so I'm looking to stay right in the 130-134 range. Maybe get a touch lighter for the key races, but other than that, I feel fit and leaner than I have any other racing season. I continue to keep busy with work...as seen from this past weekend at the half, and really enjoy interacting with athletes on a daily basis.

I'm looking forward to a down week in training as the past three have really beaten me up, but it will only make me stronger come race time. Can't wait to see the weather turn for good over here...but looks like many 30 degree days on on there way starting tomorrow, ugh. Time to keep riding the trainer!

Haha...in spirit of St. Paddys Day I came across this photo from a few years ago:

This was taken from the Shamrock Shuffle. The very talented and FAST Lukas V. is trailing...but eventually got me at the end.

I think if he were to race this year he'd smash the field. Good luck to him and keep tearing it up!

New Speed

Not sure what happened to my other post, but anyways I wanted to repost photos of my new ride. I am waiting on the arrival of components but once those are in it'll be built up and I'll post a few more pics.

Anyways here is a glimpse of what I'll be rolling on this year:

Thanks Planet-X for all your support and USPro Tri for setting up this great partnership!







Looks pretty aero and fast to me!