Due to lack of internet access over the past month or so, I have not been able to update this page. I reporting to you today thanks to the awesome guest computers at the UNCW library. Unfortunatley, I only have an hour a day on these computers, so I have to make every second count. Forgive me if I am brief.
So, I won the Wilmington Tri for the second time 2 weeks ago. I did not feel to great having just come off a long wedding weekend on the outer banks. Basically it turned into 4 straight days of surfing and partying with no training at all. Luckily though, I felt good enough to pull out the overall victory. The win was all the sweeter due to the fact that my girlfriend, Holli, was able to watch me race. Little did we know that a photog from the Lumina News was snooping around at the finish line at caught us in a rather candid moment shortly after I crossed the line. Needless to say, the photo ended up in the paper that week.
Due to my victory at Wrightsville, I am now poised to take over one of the top spots in the NCTS as I get for the final race in the series at Pinehurst this weekend. It certaintly won't be easy with the likes of Tom Clifford, Eric Bean, Tim Surface, and Richard Armstrong racing, but at this point I have nothing to lose. The way I see it, everyone should be worried about what I'm going to do and we'll see how everything pans out when the dust settles.
Ok, only 4 minutes left on the computer. Going to Phoenix on November 1st for the Amica Championship Race. $20,000 up for grabs in this first year event. Afterwards, I'm flying out to San Diego for a week to see my girl for some good old fashioned r&r.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Monday, August 10, 2009
Bandits Challenge
Just got back from a great weekend of racing and training up in the mountains of North Carolina. On Saturday, I raced the Bandits Challenge Triathlon up in Wilkesboro, NC. This race is often regarded as one of the toughest international distance tri's in the country for its challenging bike course and leg breaking hills on the run. The run in particular has a hill that about 90% of the field end up walking due to how steep it is.
Going into the race, I was not sure how things were going to go. I felt ok, but definitely had some fatigue from the last few weeks of training. Getting in on the swim, I felt smooth, but not very powerful. I still came out of the water first, with my buddy Dave Sokolofsky on my heels and the next closest guy about a minute back. Once I got on the bike though I started to feel a lot better. I managed to lop off 3 minutes from my bike split from last year, and came into t2 only 30 seconds down from Dave. I had worked pretty hard on the bike to try and maintain my lead, so I was a little worried about how my legs would feel once I got off and running. Much to my delight, my legs felt pretty good, and I was able to start turning over a very fast clip. I passed Dave within the first mile and held my lead to the end. I ended up taking the victory by over two and a half minutes and breaking the course record by over a minute. Dave was eventually passed by fellow Wilmington triathlete Tom Clifford, who came in second, while Dave held on for third. Overall, a great day for Wilmington triathlete's, sweeping the top 3 spots at the hilliest triathlon in North Carolina
The day after the race, me, Tom, and a couple guys hung around to ride some mountains for training. We ended up riding the 3 Mountain Madness course in Winston-Salem. Although I was tired and pretty broken down, I still managed to put in three and a half hours of quality mountain riding.
The training we did yesterday combined with the race on Saturday gives me an enormous amount of confidence heading into Nationals in 2 weeks. I was not rested for this weekend, so I'm very excited to see how I feel when I taper down.
Going into the race, I was not sure how things were going to go. I felt ok, but definitely had some fatigue from the last few weeks of training. Getting in on the swim, I felt smooth, but not very powerful. I still came out of the water first, with my buddy Dave Sokolofsky on my heels and the next closest guy about a minute back. Once I got on the bike though I started to feel a lot better. I managed to lop off 3 minutes from my bike split from last year, and came into t2 only 30 seconds down from Dave. I had worked pretty hard on the bike to try and maintain my lead, so I was a little worried about how my legs would feel once I got off and running. Much to my delight, my legs felt pretty good, and I was able to start turning over a very fast clip. I passed Dave within the first mile and held my lead to the end. I ended up taking the victory by over two and a half minutes and breaking the course record by over a minute. Dave was eventually passed by fellow Wilmington triathlete Tom Clifford, who came in second, while Dave held on for third. Overall, a great day for Wilmington triathlete's, sweeping the top 3 spots at the hilliest triathlon in North Carolina
The day after the race, me, Tom, and a couple guys hung around to ride some mountains for training. We ended up riding the 3 Mountain Madness course in Winston-Salem. Although I was tired and pretty broken down, I still managed to put in three and a half hours of quality mountain riding.
The training we did yesterday combined with the race on Saturday gives me an enormous amount of confidence heading into Nationals in 2 weeks. I was not rested for this weekend, so I'm very excited to see how I feel when I taper down.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Philly Tri, San Francisco, and a little Lifeguard Competition
So as you may have noticed, I have been slacking on my updates lately. It's been a very chaotic last three weeks. After two tri's and a lifeguard competition later, and I am finally getting back to neutral.
It all started with the Philadelphia Triathlon back on June 27th. This would be my first race back since my accident, and would give me an idea of where my fitness was going into the later half of the season. I was mainly just concerned about how I would feel on the swim, considering the separated shoulder was one of the more severe injuries I sustained. Ironically though, my swim felt great. I was able stay right on the heels on the lead pack of swimmers with relative ease. I had a decent T1, and was quickly out on the bike. The bike course in Philly is quite interesting. It had plenty of dead flat sections along the river, but four decent climbs equally separated throughout the two loop course. I struggled to find my rhythm on the first lap, and not to far in, lost contact with the leaders. I was a little disappointed, but thought it would be better to ride my own race rather than blow up towards the end of the bike. Coming into T2, I had a bit more company. A few guys had caught me towards the end of the bike. Heading out on the run, I felt strong, but was a bit demoralized to see that I had lost two minutes on the group I came out of the water with. I just tried to keep plugging away, and eventually came within striking distance of a few guys, but ran out of room. I ended up 11th place overall, which for getting hit by a car, did not seem all that bad. Nothing to really celebrate about, but still a decent result all things considered. Plus, there was no time to celebrate. After how good I felt on the swim, I figured I should definitely do the San Francisco ITU Pan Am Cup in two weeks.
Upon arriving home, I immediately started laying out plans for San Francisco. It was very short notice, but I was able to get some deals on a flight out of Charlotte and a place to stay. One thing I did not plan on was having my car act up on me again. The damn thing has been giving me issues for several months now. Sometimes it starts fine and then other times I stuck trying to crank it for 20 minutes. I had a switch replaced 2 months ago that was supposed to fix the problem, but it just cam right back. I took the car back in a week before San Francisco only to have them tell me that I need another switch replaced. At this point I'm about to go insane, but I had no other choice but to get this thing replaced. The only hitch was that they did not have the part in stock, so they would have to overnight the damn thing so that it arrived before I had to drive to Charlotte. I was planning on leaving at about 1:30 am on Thursday to make my 8:00 am flight out of Charlotte. The part finally came in on Wednesday morning. I dropped my car off and planned on picking it up after work. So I swung by around 6:00 paid the ridicules bill and hoped in my car. Click! NOTHING. The damn thing still would not start!. I was ready to murder everyone at the shop. Just as I'm going to tell them what happened, a guy walks over and says he thinks its the starter that causing all my problems. So he finds a new starter, installs it in about 30 minutes, and damned if you know it, the car started with no hesitation.
Ok, so in the interest of time, I'm going to cut to the chase. The race went well. Had a good swim, but ran past my bike, so I missed the lead pack on the bike leg. Came into t2 30 seconds down on the main pack, but was only able to muster a 38 min 10k. A little disappointing, but overall a decent race.
The lifeguard comp was awesome, as usual. I think I have more fun at these things than any other athletic competition. The events are so unique, and the atmosphere is incredible. I managed some top 3 performances in a few events. Most notably, I was second in the run-swim-run event with my two other teammates finishing 1st and 3rd. We crushed everyone, and were basically able to jog the last 100 meters.
The party that ensued Thursday night did not disappoint either. It doesn't get much better than 250+ lifeguards all getting rowdy. And we aint talking regular drunk, we're talking Myrtle Beach drunk!
Ok, I'm almost done with this damn post. I really need to post more often. So, yesterday I raced the innaugural Amica Triathlon at Lake Wylie. I basically needed to do this race in order to get 5 races in for the NCTS by the end of the season. I managed to pull off the victory by about 3o seconds. I'm basically just trying to race myself back into shape right now, so yesterday was really just a good workout.
Alright, I'm done. If you made it this far, I commend you. Next up on the calendar is Bandits Challenge followed two weeks later by Elite Nationals down in 'bama. August is going to be a painful month.
It all started with the Philadelphia Triathlon back on June 27th. This would be my first race back since my accident, and would give me an idea of where my fitness was going into the later half of the season. I was mainly just concerned about how I would feel on the swim, considering the separated shoulder was one of the more severe injuries I sustained. Ironically though, my swim felt great. I was able stay right on the heels on the lead pack of swimmers with relative ease. I had a decent T1, and was quickly out on the bike. The bike course in Philly is quite interesting. It had plenty of dead flat sections along the river, but four decent climbs equally separated throughout the two loop course. I struggled to find my rhythm on the first lap, and not to far in, lost contact with the leaders. I was a little disappointed, but thought it would be better to ride my own race rather than blow up towards the end of the bike. Coming into T2, I had a bit more company. A few guys had caught me towards the end of the bike. Heading out on the run, I felt strong, but was a bit demoralized to see that I had lost two minutes on the group I came out of the water with. I just tried to keep plugging away, and eventually came within striking distance of a few guys, but ran out of room. I ended up 11th place overall, which for getting hit by a car, did not seem all that bad. Nothing to really celebrate about, but still a decent result all things considered. Plus, there was no time to celebrate. After how good I felt on the swim, I figured I should definitely do the San Francisco ITU Pan Am Cup in two weeks.
Upon arriving home, I immediately started laying out plans for San Francisco. It was very short notice, but I was able to get some deals on a flight out of Charlotte and a place to stay. One thing I did not plan on was having my car act up on me again. The damn thing has been giving me issues for several months now. Sometimes it starts fine and then other times I stuck trying to crank it for 20 minutes. I had a switch replaced 2 months ago that was supposed to fix the problem, but it just cam right back. I took the car back in a week before San Francisco only to have them tell me that I need another switch replaced. At this point I'm about to go insane, but I had no other choice but to get this thing replaced. The only hitch was that they did not have the part in stock, so they would have to overnight the damn thing so that it arrived before I had to drive to Charlotte. I was planning on leaving at about 1:30 am on Thursday to make my 8:00 am flight out of Charlotte. The part finally came in on Wednesday morning. I dropped my car off and planned on picking it up after work. So I swung by around 6:00 paid the ridicules bill and hoped in my car. Click! NOTHING. The damn thing still would not start!. I was ready to murder everyone at the shop. Just as I'm going to tell them what happened, a guy walks over and says he thinks its the starter that causing all my problems. So he finds a new starter, installs it in about 30 minutes, and damned if you know it, the car started with no hesitation.
Ok, so in the interest of time, I'm going to cut to the chase. The race went well. Had a good swim, but ran past my bike, so I missed the lead pack on the bike leg. Came into t2 30 seconds down on the main pack, but was only able to muster a 38 min 10k. A little disappointing, but overall a decent race.
The lifeguard comp was awesome, as usual. I think I have more fun at these things than any other athletic competition. The events are so unique, and the atmosphere is incredible. I managed some top 3 performances in a few events. Most notably, I was second in the run-swim-run event with my two other teammates finishing 1st and 3rd. We crushed everyone, and were basically able to jog the last 100 meters.
The party that ensued Thursday night did not disappoint either. It doesn't get much better than 250+ lifeguards all getting rowdy. And we aint talking regular drunk, we're talking Myrtle Beach drunk!
Ok, I'm almost done with this damn post. I really need to post more often. So, yesterday I raced the innaugural Amica Triathlon at Lake Wylie. I basically needed to do this race in order to get 5 races in for the NCTS by the end of the season. I managed to pull off the victory by about 3o seconds. I'm basically just trying to race myself back into shape right now, so yesterday was really just a good workout.
Alright, I'm done. If you made it this far, I commend you. Next up on the calendar is Bandits Challenge followed two weeks later by Elite Nationals down in 'bama. August is going to be a painful month.
Monday, June 8, 2009
2009 Kestrels Have Arrived!
So, I just got my new 2009 Kestrels in, and let's just say they are the heat! Or you could just say they're awesome, but I like saying the heat. Ok, on to the reviews.
The first one to arrive was the Evoke SL. This is Kestrels classic round (or somewhat round) tube, lightweight road racing machine. The Evoke will be my weapon of choice for all draft-legal tri's as well as any road races and crits I decide to do throughout the season. Right out of the box, you can already tell this thing is built for racing. With its oversized down tube and seat tube, the Evoke has the stiffness to transfer all off your power forward. It's also remarkably comfortable too. The first day I took it out, I went for a solid 60-mile solo training ride over some smooth roads and some not so smooth roads. After the ride, I still felt nice a fresh. I didn't experience any lingering back pains or numbness. I'm really thrilled about the Sram Rival component spec as well. This group performs just as good if not better than my old Ultegra group and at a fraction of the cost. Each shift is accentuated by crisp feedback at the lever. I've ridden Sram's top of the line Red group as well, and aside from weight, they are nearly identical in function and performance. I'm really excited to get out and race this thing as soon as possible.
As I mentioned before, the Evoke will be strictly for draft-legal events due to its reliable handling and agility. For non-drafting events, I have been provided with the Airfoil Pro SL. I just finished assembling the Airfoil yesterday, and all I want to do is ride it. This thing is just begging to be ridden steep and aggressive, just the way I like it. The short head tube allows you to get as low as you could ever possibly need to go. In the past, I have ridden frames where I am slammed down on to the headset with no spacers and still feel like I need to get lower. I like the Airfoil, because you have a very wide range of fit options from super aggressive to relaxed without the need for one of those expensive adjustable angle stems. What was also quite remarkable was the weight. With its deep tube sections, you would think the Airfoil would be a bit on the chunky side. Not the case. My stock 56cm Airfoil without pedals weighed in at just over 17 lbs (17lbs 4oz to be exact). Not bad for an Ultegra build, training wheels, and stock steel railed saddle. Now all I need to do is get fit and I'm good to go.
That's all for now. I'll try and get some pics of the bikes up later today for a little eye candy. Next up on the war path is the NC State Road Race Champs this coming weekend. Following that is the Philadelphia Insurance Tri, which will be my first tri back since the accident. Training is going remarkably well, and I know I'm going to have a great race.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Ok, so I was just riding along....
Wow, what an interesting past 24 hours. So, you may or may not have heard by now, but I was involved in a slight accident. As the title implies, I was just riding along coming up Waynick Blvd. at Wrightsville Beach when a Blockade Runner employee decides to make a left hand turn into the hotel parking lot. Long story short, he nailed me and I shot across his hood and cracked my helmet wide open. Apparently the force was great enough the my arm/shoulder left a nice indentation trail across his hood. He claims I waved him on, which is a heaping load of shit. Pardon my language, but this guy better get his story straight before I see him again or else I'll straighten it out for him. Why on earth would I stop in the middle of Waynick and allow someone to cut in front of me? The answer is I would not, because I did not. I think he was just scared to admit that he was rushing, late to work, or flat out did not see me.
Either way, what's happened has happened, and it's time to move on. I now need to focus on getting better as soon as possible so that I can get back to training and racing. As of right now, it looks like the Austin Continental Cup is off for me. Not exactly what I want to hear right now, but I need to be realistic. Fortunately, I did not brake any bones although I did have a pretty good concussion. My left collarbone/shoulder is pretty sore and stiff, but should hopefully heal up quickly. My left foot is pretty swollen on top, but my ankle feels fine. Did I mention I had a concussion? (a little humor there). Apparently while I was in the hospital I was asking the same questions over and over again. Everyone was getting a kick out of that. Also, after we found out that I had no broken bones, my next concern was my Assos bib shorts! I was afraid they had gotten chewed up or they were going to have to cut them of me! It's funny the things that go through your head when in such a state.
I'm finally at home now. My good friend Kate to excellent care of me last night and this morning. Also, Melanie was with me the whole time, and made sure I was ok. It's so great to have people that care about you and will drop everything they are doing to help when your in need. As for now I'm just going to rest and ice. Maybe if I get around to it, I'll post a classic "thumbs up" shot like you always see in the paper!
Either way, what's happened has happened, and it's time to move on. I now need to focus on getting better as soon as possible so that I can get back to training and racing. As of right now, it looks like the Austin Continental Cup is off for me. Not exactly what I want to hear right now, but I need to be realistic. Fortunately, I did not brake any bones although I did have a pretty good concussion. My left collarbone/shoulder is pretty sore and stiff, but should hopefully heal up quickly. My left foot is pretty swollen on top, but my ankle feels fine. Did I mention I had a concussion? (a little humor there). Apparently while I was in the hospital I was asking the same questions over and over again. Everyone was getting a kick out of that. Also, after we found out that I had no broken bones, my next concern was my Assos bib shorts! I was afraid they had gotten chewed up or they were going to have to cut them of me! It's funny the things that go through your head when in such a state.
I'm finally at home now. My good friend Kate to excellent care of me last night and this morning. Also, Melanie was with me the whole time, and made sure I was ok. It's so great to have people that care about you and will drop everything they are doing to help when your in need. As for now I'm just going to rest and ice. Maybe if I get around to it, I'll post a classic "thumbs up" shot like you always see in the paper!
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Dilworth Criterium
So, spur of the moment I decided to head up to Charlotte for the 36th annual Dilworth Criterium. The Cat 3/4 race was set to go off at 12:30 which is great because this is the time the Austin Continental Cup is going off. I figured it would be the perfect tuneup to race in the heat of the day and throw a quick run in afterwards. Unfortunately, I had to make the trip solo, but I still had a great time.
On to the race. I showed up around 11:45 and had to immediately go register and get set up. By the time I was all suited up though, the maters race was almost done, and I had no time to warm up. After the masters finished, I was able to get in one lap of the course and then we were called to the line. It was a big field (about 50 or so) and unfortunately I had to line up at the back of it.
As is customary in crit racing, we got off to a fast start. There was on tight 90 degree turn at the bottom of a hill on the course which proved to be quite interesting in the first few laps. After about 4 laps, I had moved up to the front about 10 wheels back, and was sitting in good position. However, just as soon as I got there, some one decided to launch a move off the front on the downhill section of the course. I followed the move, thinking it would be nice to hit the turn at the bottom of the hill in the lead. Though, much to my surprise, the move had caused quite a bit of separation from the group as we headed up the one climb on the course. Eventually it was me a three other guys of the front increasing our lead with each lap. We were pushing a very hard tempo for the first 10 minutes, and there were a couple of times when I thought I was going to get dropped. The field was trying to pull us back in, but they could not get organised enough to finish off the job. So we just kept cranking away and eventually made it to about 8 laps to go and we still had a 30 second lead. We pretty much had it wrapped up at that point, but we still had to keep the pressure on.
Then, with just over 2 laps to go, one of my fellow escapees decides to attack when I'm on the front heading up the climb. I tried to follow his wheel, but he had sand bagged the last few laps and made a very powerful move. Eventually with one lap to go, my other two break partners and myself regrouped. We kept working trying to bring him in, but he had made quite a dent. My final desperate move for a win came at the downhill 90 degree bend. I lead into the corner and attacked with everything I had coming out of it. Unfortunately, it was still a ways to go, and I simply ran out of gas. The other two passed me with 200 meters to go and I ended up fourth.
All in all, this was a great race for me. I trained very hard all week, and was far from fresh for this race. I had to really work hard to stick with my breakaway group. I went for a short run immediately after finishing to see how the legs felt. It hurt, but when I'm rested I should be able to hop off the bike and run hard even after an intense effort like this. This was a great day of training and it was made sweeter by the fact that I won back my entry fee and some cash to cover gas money.
Next stop on the list is White Lake Sprint II next weekend. I decided to enter this race at the last minute figuring it would be a good tune up race for Austin on the 25th.
On to the race. I showed up around 11:45 and had to immediately go register and get set up. By the time I was all suited up though, the maters race was almost done, and I had no time to warm up. After the masters finished, I was able to get in one lap of the course and then we were called to the line. It was a big field (about 50 or so) and unfortunately I had to line up at the back of it.
As is customary in crit racing, we got off to a fast start. There was on tight 90 degree turn at the bottom of a hill on the course which proved to be quite interesting in the first few laps. After about 4 laps, I had moved up to the front about 10 wheels back, and was sitting in good position. However, just as soon as I got there, some one decided to launch a move off the front on the downhill section of the course. I followed the move, thinking it would be nice to hit the turn at the bottom of the hill in the lead. Though, much to my surprise, the move had caused quite a bit of separation from the group as we headed up the one climb on the course. Eventually it was me a three other guys of the front increasing our lead with each lap. We were pushing a very hard tempo for the first 10 minutes, and there were a couple of times when I thought I was going to get dropped. The field was trying to pull us back in, but they could not get organised enough to finish off the job. So we just kept cranking away and eventually made it to about 8 laps to go and we still had a 30 second lead. We pretty much had it wrapped up at that point, but we still had to keep the pressure on.
Then, with just over 2 laps to go, one of my fellow escapees decides to attack when I'm on the front heading up the climb. I tried to follow his wheel, but he had sand bagged the last few laps and made a very powerful move. Eventually with one lap to go, my other two break partners and myself regrouped. We kept working trying to bring him in, but he had made quite a dent. My final desperate move for a win came at the downhill 90 degree bend. I lead into the corner and attacked with everything I had coming out of it. Unfortunately, it was still a ways to go, and I simply ran out of gas. The other two passed me with 200 meters to go and I ended up fourth.
All in all, this was a great race for me. I trained very hard all week, and was far from fresh for this race. I had to really work hard to stick with my breakaway group. I went for a short run immediately after finishing to see how the legs felt. It hurt, but when I'm rested I should be able to hop off the bike and run hard even after an intense effort like this. This was a great day of training and it was made sweeter by the fact that I won back my entry fee and some cash to cover gas money.
Next stop on the list is White Lake Sprint II next weekend. I decided to enter this race at the last minute figuring it would be a good tune up race for Austin on the 25th.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
St. Anthony's Report
Just got back from St. A's yesterday. Wow, what a long trip but it was all worth it. I ended up about a minute and a half faster than last year under much more challenging conditions. As I'm sure many of you have heard by now, they had to cancel the swim for the age-groupers due to rough and windy conditions. Tough call to make, but what are your going to do? Despite the rough conditions, I managed to beat my swim time from last year by about 10 seconds where as a good number of guys were slower. I ended up coming out of the water 11th which made me feel pretty good considering the company I was in. As you might have guessed from the water conditions, there was a bit of wind out on the bike course, but again I beat last years split by about 15 seconds, averaging 25.4 mph. I felt strong the whole way through, and was very proud with that result. On to the run, I was sitting in about 19th overall and still felt pretty good. However, after a mile or so, I just felt flat, and unable to switch into my race gear. Though I still managed to run 35:05, about 50 seconds faster than last year. I would have liked to run low 34's, but I just ran out of gas. I ended up 21st overall on the day against a field that many thought to be one of the strongest ever in the history of the race. I'll try to get some pics up as soon as possible.
Next up on the list is the Austin ITU Continental Cup in Texas against another extremely stacked field. This will be my first draft legal event of the year and I'm really excited for it. I'm completely injury free and ready to build off my good fitness leading into this race. Last year at this time I had to take 2 months off from biking and running due to injury. It's amazing how much more you can get done when your not injured!
Next up on the list is the Austin ITU Continental Cup in Texas against another extremely stacked field. This will be my first draft legal event of the year and I'm really excited for it. I'm completely injury free and ready to build off my good fitness leading into this race. Last year at this time I had to take 2 months off from biking and running due to injury. It's amazing how much more you can get done when your not injured!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)