Nautica Malibu International Distance Triathlon

Malibu, California
I like this race a lot. It was an over-all well put together experience that I would do again. I experimented with this race. I decided to give the bike an all out effort and stop worrying about the run. I have lived the fear of not being able to finish the run for long enough. I hammered the bike and decided to just give it my all and worry about the run when I got there. If I blew up, I blew up. I averaged over 20 MPH despite some hills. That is good for me. I have gone slightly faster for an Olympic bike split, but that was a flat course. The weird part is that, not only did I not blow up on the run, I had my fastest 10K ever. I held an 8:26 pace for 6.2 miles. I have never run that fast even doing a 10K all by itself.

Swim Distance Challenge

Venice Beach, California

Because I successfully swam the 2.4 mile distance in this race last year, I was qualified to compete in the 4.8 mile distance this year. The 4.8 mile race is divided into 4 x 1.2 mile legs. At the completion of each 1.2 mile leg you have to swim through the surf, up shore and go up and get a medical check to make sure you are able to continue. During the first 1.2 mile leg three people went shoulder to shoulder to hold the lead for the whole first 1.2 miles. If they were friends, they obviously are not acquainted with the benefits of drafting. I swam right behind the center of these three swimmers for the entire first leg. There were others who wanted to take advantage of the great draft they were creating too, so there was a little shoulder bumping, but a small price to pay for the benefits of a phenomenal draft. You never get a three person wide bull dozer like that for 1.2 miles. Never! Running up the beach to the check station is the hardest part of each leg for me. It shoots my heart rate up. After crossing the timing matt and a quick drink of water it was back into the surf for the second leg. The bulldozer trio had either broken up or ended up behind me after the first check point. For the second leg I found a guy who put out the biggest kick I have ever seen for a distance swimmer. He was pacing well towards the front and a decent sighter. I followed him for the second and third legs. He sure was easy to follow. I ate a cliff shot gel at second and third check in. I also gulped down about four cups of water each time. It was nice to hydrate for once while swimming. At this point it was hard to tell where I was in the mix. I definitely know I wasn’t passed in the water, but it was hard to keep track at the check points. Entering the water for the final leg I decided I needed to drop the big kicker, he just wasn’t going fast enough anymore. I spotted a long armed skin swimmer who was picking up speed as he started the final leg. The 4.8 mile swimmers wore bright orange caps in this race and he was the only orange I could see in front of me. I hit the gas and closed the 50 yard gap between us and then settled into a draft behind him. I had to swim hard to stay with him. He was a great swimmer. Then something happened that has never happened to me in all my years of swimming. A muscle in my left forearm began to threaten to cramp. I had to stretch it while swimming. I couldn’t lose one of my paddles. It continued to twinge now and then, but never actually fully cramped thankfully. I kept track of it as I swam trying to load my right arm a little heavier and kick harder every time it started to threaten a cramp. The Albatross guy I was drafting was an excellent sighter and there were actually were some orange caps in front of us, which we passed. This guy was flying and I was flying right behind him. I thought he could possibly be in my age category, so I mentally prepared for the last 400 yards to shore. As we turned the buoy, I pulled out from behind his draft and hit the gas. He hit the gas with me. He did not want to let me pass him. I increased to 95 percent capacity and still he hung with me at my shoulder. As we neared the breakers I began to pull slightly ahead of him. Whoever he was, he is a better overall swimmer than me, but I think his sprint abilities had been taxed. I was ahead of him and closer to the finish chute and I thought I had him until he caught a wave and I didn’t. That put him about 10 yards ahead of me. Once he hit the beach running I knew I wasn’t going to be able to catch him in a sand run up the beach. I ran hard and my heart rate must have hit the roof, because after I crossed that matt I could barely breathe. I ended up finishing second in my age category.

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San Francisco 1st Half Marathon

San Francisco, California

The draw of this race is the course. It was a very iconic tour of San Francisco. I walked down from a few hundred yards from the Hyatt, where Lori and I were staying. The race starts on Embarcadero at the Ferry Building and runs through Pier 39 and Fisherman’s wharf. Alcatraz looms off the left in the early morning fog. We all got hungry as we ran right past Boudin’s Bakery as they were baking some early morning bread. Then it was up the hill by Fort Mason, down through the park and on to Chrissy Field which I remember well from my Alcatraz swim. At about mile 5 we head up a steep hill to the Golden Gate Bridge. Running the Bridge was the highlight for me. The bridge comprised 5 miles of the run. By the way, I never noticed that the bridge is not flat. You notice these things 5 miles into a run. After the bridge it is up another hill through the Presidio and then up and down, up and down through some residential neighborhoods until we hit Golden Gate park. I was looking for some flat course to make up the time I lost on the hills, but you won’t find it, even after you hit the Park. The hills and some occasional congestion cost me some time, but I went into the race with the attitude of enjoying the Experience more than fretting about time. I reached down and powered the Chrissy Field miles and the bridge to bring on some pain. All things considered, it was a good run for me. The race was only a small part of this great trip with Lori to San Francisco. San Francisco is the perfect summer get away. When the rest of the country is suffering in the heat, San Francisco is bundling up to go out for dinner. I wore gloves on my hands the entire run by the way.

Frontier 5K

Bountiful, Utah

This race was part of the celebration of Pioneer Day, which is a big deal in Utah. I ran this race with Christian and my nephew Skyler today. Skyler finished faster than I ever have. He needs to keep running.He didn’t even train. I finished good enough for a second place trophy. I left it at my parent’s house since it was a handcart and I thought they would like that. This race started with a canon blast. It went slightly uphill for about the last half of the race. There was a good free breakfast after this race. I was running on the slow side. I don’t know if it was the elevation or more likely all the overeating I have been doing this summer during my many various trips and vacations.

Mountain Man Triathlon

Flagstaff, Arizona

I had a surprisingly difficult swim. The water was muddy from recent rains. Visibility could be measured inches, and not many. I Started next to a former Olympic swimmer. I decided to try to stay with him. That was a mistake. Within about 300 yards I was gasping for breath and my muscles were cramping for lack of oxygen. I forgot I was swimming at 7,000 feet. That is 6,000 more than I am used to. I actually had to breast stroke for a few seconds for the first time ever in a triathlon to catch my breath. I have never had to do that before. This is not the first time I have swum at high altitude. I couldn’t seem to recover after that. I was almost done with the swim by the time I started feeling ok. This course is just beautiful. I had a good bike ride and my run was ok. I felt the elevation a bit again on the run. I don’t know what my deal was with that today. Christian won his division and was jazzed to get a trophy.

Kau Family Fun Fest 5K

Naalehu, Hawaii

This was the inaugural race. This was a unique 5K. I have never seen anything like it. The race went for about 200 yards before it headed up a road that was once used to access the sugar cane fields. This road was very steep. The grade never let up. Not for a yard. We ran straight up and then turned around to run straight down. I have never run a hill like that, let alone in the Hawaiian heat. This 5k race goes down as the hardest ever. EVER! I doubt you will ever find a more difficult 5k. The hill was so steep, that when I go to the turn around, I told Christian I was going to walk down. Not because I didn’t have any run let in me, but because I was afraid of injury. I am still amazed that both Christian and I made it up that hill without stopping. I repeat: I have never run a hill like that. I think the only reason we kept going is because we all believed that it would soon flatten out. It never did. I will call upon this race in the future for confidence. I doubt I will ever encounter a hill like that again. All other hills will be cake when I mentally compare them. Also of special note is the fact that this race while a bit remote is the most southern race in the United States. You can’t go any closer to the equator and still be in the United States than this race.

IRONMAN 70.3 Hawaii

Kohala Coast, Hawaii

What a race. This was my favorite race so far. The Fairmont Orchid is beautiful and luxurious. What a beautiful place. Everything for the race is on site. Check in, the expo, the race meetings, the bike shop, the gear bag drop off, free shuttles, T2, and the finish. I warmed up in a big living room all by myself outside our hotel room. I hopped aboard a waiting shuttle to Hapuna Beach and T1.
Swim Gorgeous, perfect water temperature and my best 1.2 mile time ever. We swim suspended 70 feet above the corral reefs below with perfect visibility. When you look down it is like flying. I went back and swam this bay two more times before we left Hawaii. I took Christian out there and he was amazed. It is hard to imagine a better swim.
Bike Biking the fabled Queen Kaahumanu highway was everything it was cracked up to be. It rolls more than I had imagined and you have to shift a lot. It is hot and I grabbed water at every aid station. That water is your life. Without it I would not have been able to finish. The water was always cold and I used every drop of it. I have never taken in so much water on the bike. We encountered a head wind climbing into hawi which became a tailwind once you hit the turn around. I was flying down from Hawi.
Run I had long feared this run. I had feared the heat far more than the course itself. If you think the bike is hot, just wait until you get off the bike and hit those humid grass golf course fields and baking lava rocks. The heat did not disappoint. It hits you like a wall once you are off the bike. I was so afraid of dropping on this course that I followed a meticulous nutrition and hydration plan. I started the run with 4 empty fuel belt bottles. I lost one in transition when I bent over, so I had to make it work with 3. Each bottle had 2 scoops of Infinit powder. I learned at Oceanside that I can’t drink it warm after drinking it warm for 3 hours on the bike, so my plan was to fill the bottles with cold water and ice at aid stations as needed. This would also reduce my weight as I ran. The plan worked. I had no problem drinking the Infinint solution as long as it was cold. I also left transition with a pack of Cliff 3X sodium shot bloks in my hand and my fuel belt pouch stuffed full of them. I ate a blok at ever mile, usually just before the aid station. They had aid stations just about every mile. Those aid stations saved my life. They always had cold water, and plenty of ice and sponges. I was using ice and sponges like a mad man. One lady even laughed at me when I grabbed 4 sponges. I would put a sponge in front and in back at my neck line. I would squeeze a third over my head. The fourth I would carry for awhile and squeeze water on my limbs whenever I felt even the slightest breeze. I would drink several cups of water and throw at least one cup of ice in my suit. I actually liked the run. It had a lot of variety and I just made it my goal to make it to the next aid station and before long I was done. It was my slowest half marathon to date, but I ran the entire thing while others walked and many even quit. The local woman who won the race threw up from the heat. After the race was over and Lori was talking about the bridge, the finish line and how it was set up and decorated I realized that I was more over heated than I may have realized as I did not remember any of the things she was talking about. Somehow I had run by all that stuff and not even seen it. .