Keep XTERRA Tri-ing...

On Sunday 6/15/08 I officially made my return to Triathlon at the XTERRA East Championships in Richmond, VA. It was an interesting trip, but I sure have my work cut out for me! It was also the first trip I have stayed overnight for in a long time... which brings me to the first problem with the race. I was staying at the Crowne Plaza in downtown Richmond which was the host hotel for the race. Its a nice place, and very convenient to the race site... but the 4AM fire alarm and evacuation of the building was not what I had planned. On top of that the building had a malfunction with the system so after my trip down the stairs from the 11th floor the alarm continued to go off 2 more times. Enough of that.... onto the race...
The Richmond XTERRA swim is in the James River, which is scary to say the least. This is the only Tri swim I know of where you can literally break your clavicle! There are a bunch of large rocks, trees, and other debris under the shallow sections of the course. It is interesting, but not my favorite kind of swim. After some frustrating experiences I got out of the water and into transition. I was trying to be minimal for it, but I just kept making more and more mistakes. I forgot to put on my headband, and I forgot my gloves and had to go back. If there is one thing I know its that racing in 90 degree heat in Virginia requires gloves. I used to have good bike splits... that was before my time off from Triathlon. I just felt like I couldn't get going for the first 30 minutes. It sounds like just an off day, but what relaly happened was my swim fitness. When I get better swimming I don't go faster, I just have much better bike splits. So I have some swimming to do!
The most positive part of the race was the run... I don't think I have ever said that before. I had a slow T2, but this was the first race where I felt good the whole run. Nest time I will wear regular racing flats instead of trail shoes. I wasn't fast, but I held my position pretty well. I ended up 11th in my group of 35-39 men, but I think I had an OK day. I will be training a lot more in the next few months, but I need to race Tri to be good at tri! Hopefully I will be adding some good XTERRA pics in the next day. Until then have fun riding!

Fly On The Wall

There was no racing for me this past weekend, and with a big race next week coming at the XTERRA East Championships in Richmond, VA I decided to take a break. I have never been to the US Pro Race in Philly so I decided to go up and see some racing in one of my favorite cities. It was HOT on the weekend! I know it is a little miserable for most, but I kind of like racing in the heat. It usually just increases the suffering and a good plan can make all the difference. I was definitely impressed with the wall in Manayunk; what a great course! I hope to go back and do it right another year and join the party!

This coming weekend is one of the only "Big" races I am doing this year before Ironman. If it goes well I may head to another XTERRA; it all comes down to Sunday.... just like I like it! Stay cool and enjoy the longest days of the year in the next few weeks!

What the Thunder Said....

It was the last weekend in May of 2008 so I decided to pre-register for a road race. I should of known what was to come, but I wanted to put in a good effort to get ready for some of my goal races in June. I was walking my dogs Saturday morning under some cloudy skies, but no rain. I was in the truck with Mary going to the Murad Memorial Road Race in Poolesville, MD when it started raining. By the time I got to Mt. Airy and got of I-70 it was coming down pretty steady. After a bunch of traffic delays I finally got to the race start just when the Pro 1/2 was staging. I rarely get a bad feeling about racing; I usually race no matter what the conditions. I don't like rain or cold, but I will race if I am registered no matter what; this was different. So I decided to leave and..... go to a brewpub! ...The Gordon Biersch in Tyson's corner . 10 minutes into my drive and it started thundering... then came the lightning. About 10 minutes after that it started hailing golf ball sized hail! Even after all of this I felt bad; I shouldn't have left the start area... I should have gotten out there and raced. After my 3rd Marzen and my burger I had rationalized that I needed the rest anyway. I think as athletes we feel almost a guilt when we don't finish our workout plans, even if there was no way to do it. Most people would see this as a flaw, but we all know that its the same drive and stubborn determination that brings us to our goals.
Monday night I got an email from one of my teammates about the race; it started, but during a cloud burst they neutralized the race. After a few more minutes they literally rode through a stream over the road and the race was stopped. After a 15 minute wait period they called it. I still don't know if the race ever re-started, but my friend left. There have been too many times when I fail to follow the signs; I blindly go on when there is something that is trying to tell me to come to my senses. Once I ended up with a broken hip in traction; and another time I got hit head on by a truck and broke my tibial plateau.

Sunday I went out on for a road ride under sunny skies. After about 45 minutes the clouds were thick and I started hearing thunder. The rain started coming down, then it got heavier, then it started hailing. Luckily Mary came to my rescue after I found shelter at a church. This time I got in the truck and went home. Who would have known what was to come if I decided to continue.... If there is one thing I am trying to learn it is to listen to those signs. When things continue to mount in the way of a ride or a workout there may be a reason... in the future I will try to listen to What The Thunder Said.