Oceanside 70.3 #10...sticky wheel and wonky GI

This was my 10th Oceanside 70.3!  Oceanside was my first 70.3 and remains my all-time favorite.  This year was the added bonus a beach start,  real ocean swim and I loved it!   

I was fired up and excited to race-  with 6 of my athletes on the course, my coach and 30+ other D3 racers, 4 of my Nytro Women's Team and so many local friends, it was going to be such fun!    I was mentally in a good space, my confidence was about 90%, a bit lacking due to a sub-par Desert Tri, a not  so successful 1/2 Marathon and a botched TT.  But the rest of my training was good, the race sim was where I wanted it to be, so the day was about execution, positive mental space and being able to gut it out, suffer and get it done!                                                                                                                                                                                                                  The swim start was simply fun, surrounded by my Swim Masters lane mates, friends from years of racing, it was relaxing and social.   Off we went into some legit waves but managed to get out past the break without an issue. Ii felt strong swimming and did not look at my time- 29:39, slowest swim ever at this race, But with the new start it is hard to compare and I never look at my split mid-race, so I did not see this until the end.

pretty clear how I was feeling 

Onto the bike, which is really my jam.  Early on the watts were not coming easy,  but I have been there before and I have to trust my legs and hit the watts.  By mile 10 I was thinking my brake was rubbing so I opened up the front brake and still it was like I was riding through sand.  I kept it up and by mile 25 I was in a full-blown fucking panic attack, worried I was 8 min slower at this point than the last 8 years. WTF? I was wondering if my PM was off but my effort felt right, so I just went with it, knowing my bike split was likely 10 min slow. Or let's call it 12 min- The last 8 miles where I usually am aero and jamming home I was struggling to hit the watts.  My brain is all over the place wondering if I am now just over the hill and old and slowed down? But more the mantra was WTF is going on.  I did my best to stay calm, which was mildly successful,  and lots of self-taking that there was nothing I could do now but focus on the run.  The run is not always my best part of racing. My head was spinning and I was working hard on the mental gam I hit the end button and see 2:58.  Times are all relative  -other than my first year at Oceanside I have clocked 2:42-2:48 EVERY year and now I see 2:58.   I am not going to lie, full panic was setting in, but I crushed T2.

I reeled it back in and had to get out on the run.  I got my first run split about my competition and the delta was not what I was hoping for, so clearly, my bike split was very very slow for me.  I had work to do if I wanted to hold onto the lead.  The women behind me were too close for comfort.  So I got to work and was feeling pretty good, holding back and running steadily through mile 6.  I was able to leave the bike split in T2 and get 100% focused on the run.  Mile 7 it got hard, as in okay we go to counting to 20, finger tapping and staying in the moment. Run to see my coach, then up the ramps, down the ramps where Hillary and crew were,  more support at next mile, then the turnaround.... Mike sees me again and says I have to pick it up if I want the Win.  Meanwhile, I am negotiating that I will be slowing down 20sec per mile but ok, I pick up it to a 7:50 and well let's just say that did not last.  I am now at mile 10.5 and worried, everything hurts and the aid station gets stingy 1 oz of coke, I wanted to pull a Patrick Lange and grab the whole fcking bottle and chug it.  I took 10 cups and am guzzling it all.   And then it gets better, my gut flips, as in need a porta potty now.  Now I am trying to pick up the pace, clench my cheeks to prevent a literal sh#tshow.  I see another friend who says 2nd place is 20 sec back - Fck me.   So the idea of a quick porta potty stop means I lose the race. Do I want to win enough to poop my pants.... well yes.   Let's just say I don't feel any better and am losing it.  So it was get to the finish line - count to 10, repeat, what's that smell? oh it's me, OMG will I have diaper rash, stay focused and get to the GD finish line, did they move the finish? , where is Mike Reilly?, why is this mile never-ending, OMG is it running down my leg, ok no, thank goodness... cross the line and wait. With the rolling start, you don't really know your placement until the others behind you finish and well let's just say I won by 5 seconds. Holy Shit- literally! 

literally

It was not pretty, it was not fast - 1:49 but it got the job done on that day.  

And FWIW I had a full tune up on my bike UGH  pre-race but I did not spin the wheels.  My front wheel was gummed up with Gatorade and who knows what else but when I went to spin it I got 3 slow revolutions and then it stopped vs a whizzing of a clean wheel.    Took the wheel in yesterday and Nytro took it apart, cleaned it, more oil and now it spins freely.  Mechanic says "good thing you brought this in as you would not want to race on it, would cost you time for sure"  So there you have it...   

I did a practice ride pre-raceCoulda, shoulda, woulda and I did not.  So lessons learned!!!!   I should be happy with the W but I set really high standards for myself and to be 100% honest with that time I did not deserve the W, that is how my head works.   I am trying to be arrogant just being real.
but was with other people not focused!  that is on me...

Who knows how much time I lost on the bike, but it was a lot, 14 min slower than last year with the same Power is A LOT.  2017 my max speed 45.2, 2018 max speed 44.5,  2019 max speed 38.5.   I don't passed descending except by  BIG guys and I was getting passed left and right.  Ok Dunkle, LET IT GO! 

Wheel is fixed!   and onward to Honu we go.

I still love this race and was actually thinking I would sit out in 2020 but Fck I have redemption now!

Triathlon Camp In Solvang

stunning Solvang Riding

the flowers

 What does a week at camp look like?   23 Hours and 33 minutes of training, fun, suffering, new friends,  sweating, a lot of Gatorade Endurance, many shot blocks, lots of water, not much wine, laughs, fun and memories!    Why go to camp?  You are pushed beyond regular boundaries, you get to train without the usual distractions.  All you need to worry about is swimbikerun vs walking the dogs, cleaning the house , your kids, parents, school, work, life etc... you get it.  Being self-employed I had a few hours of work a day but the remainder of distractions were gone.   camp is easy, but that 4th swim at 5:40 am when it is 36 degrees outside is tough.  The recovery ride a that is not so recovery when you are smashed.  A race sim on day 5 of camp, when you normally do the sim rested.  But at camp you just do it!   And that race sim, went pretty damn well after 15 hours of training, so that is a confidence builder for Oceanside.

Meeting new friends, seeing friends from last year, sharing stories about triathon, life, travels and more.  Having prepared high-quality food every night when you are simply bone tired.  It's what camp is all about. There was a campfire and a movie but I was in bed before the movie started. 

Top of the FIG!! 

Painful run down from the Fig

My coach was at camp which is a bonus!  6 days with coach on deck, riding, running, heck staying next door- win: win!  And I had 4 of my athletes at camp, which was great for me.  Training alongside athletes is so beneficial, I get to see them swim/bike/run, handle stress, adversity, and a surprise swim/run in 37 degrees.  Furthering relationships with 6 days of fun! 

The few souls running on day 6

That day I had the polka dot jersey

I can break down the days but you get - big biking is the key to Solvang and it was stunningly beautiful!!!  The rest of this blog will be in pictures.  

Rae Sim Crew #d3powered 

D3 Race Sim crew

Even a cooking demo by @foodsensenow

First race of the season was.....

N
Not ideal.

Dusting off the triathlon gear, shaking out the cobwebs and toeing the line for the first race of the year is generally one of my favorite days.   This year it was for the Desert Tri- Olympic race,  I raced here 2 years ago and had an amazing race.  I loved the entire race and was so pumped to race, Oceanside 70.3, which was up next.  Feeling fit and knowing I still had a solid block to gain a bit more fitness is the ideal place to be in.

Well, let's just say Sunday was the opposite.  I was excited to get out there, had a ton of fun with teammate Polly on our road trip and swanky Travelodge Accommodations.  But race morning, I did not have the usual fire in my belly.  There was a lot of waiting around, and I was thinking that when the gun goes off I will be all in!  The gun went off and I took off but was not all in.  I swam hard and had a good swim but was not loving it.  Onto the bike, my jam, but the watts were low and the mojo was still in San Diego.  Lap 1 I worked hard to keep a few guys in sight and lap 2 I was dying as if I had ridden at 125% and was blowing up.  Calories were good but I was not.  I seriously thought about stopping, but who DNF's an Olympic.  I began dreading the run,  working on my attitude for the run. All the good mental talks about stay in the moment,  get after this,  why the F do I do this,  the run will be awesome, I may die on the run,    My transition was humorous, why we race a B race before an A race.  My socks were in a ball, my race number was already clipped,  my shoes were reversed, I forgot to take my feet out of my shoes so I was running in my bike shoes and my bike was the furthest away because I forgot to register for the race so I was literally the highest number and the furthest away spot to rack my bike.  I take off running and am feeling okay, I purposely did not look at my pace but accidentally did at .75 mile and it was not pretty.   I knew then it was not going to be a repeat of 2017 where I crushed the run.  Today I wanted to finish.  I took 1 mile at a time and just felt terrible, turned my watch around and just ran.  But honestly at mile 4, I was done, I did not quit, did not walk but my mojo was now in another country.   I jogged it in.

I was not happy at the finish line, but pretended to be for a hot minute and was gracious to the volunteers and then had a bit of a private tantrum.  And then it was time to get out of there.  I should be happy with my placement and I realize it may seem a bit arrogant, but I am hard on myself when I don't hit the goals  I struggle to find the silver lining.  I am working on this, promise. 

Mom, Sis and my nieces 

Why? What happened?  Who the F knows....had a long chat with the coach, lots of speculation but best to put it behind me and look forward!   After all, needed to jam home to get ready for an 85th Birthday party for my mom, that night at my house and unpack and repack to catch at 6:25 plane to Denver on Monday AM.

Mom and her friends 

The birthday party was great and a solid reminder of what really counts in life!  Family and health! I can only hope to be living large like my mom and her friends at 85. 

Denver was 1 degree, yes 1 degree when I arrived.  Let's be clear I ran on the TM and swam at an indoor pool.  I walked across the street and to and from the Uber. But I did get to have dinner with JD.

the yikes zone...

Before I discovered triathlon, when I was a youngin in my 30's,  yes I am old.  I was an avid downhill skier.  Instead of triathlon camps I went to ski camps, yes I am a camper at heart.   My last camp was the Steep and Deep Camp in Jackson Hole, WY.  I was nervous as get out for the camp as I was likely, and as it turned out, the least accomplished skier.  Our Coach was simply bad ass and her goal was for us daily, yes daily, to get into the "yikes" zone. That was out of our comfort zone.  For me, that meant a narrow chute, Corbets Coulier, that was a drop of 10 feet, followed by a quick right turn to avoid

smashing into one of the rock walls and another big jump on the mountain.  The camp was 5 days.  Day 1 we laid out our "yikes goals"  Each day I attempted my goals.  I was in the yikes zone but chickened out for 2 days at Corbets and on day 3 I woke up and just f'ing did it!  I was scared out of my mind and did it, no crashing.  But the jump was scarier and each day I tried and skied off and did not do it.  Day 5 I was on the hook for it, I tried and bailed 4 times and then waived the white flag. But at 3:45pm last run, I went for it and I crashed hard... but I tried.  Nothing broke but my ego. But I at least was all in 

Shortly after that I started in triathlon and on one of our annual ski vacations I was bombing the moguls and clipped and edge and bit it hard, yard sale kind of wipe out and my knee tweaked and everything hurt, I was 30 days out from Oceanside 70.3.  My passion for skiing was morphing to triathlon.  I was no longer willing to risk the injury, I was working so hard at my triathlon goals, I did not want to get sidelined due to a skiing injury.  I tried skiing blue runs, dialing it back, but shocking that is not me.  I am all in, in line when the lift open, ski until my quads are burning, taking risks, skiing the moguls, small jumps and going fast!  So I hardly ski anymore. 

But I do love triathlon!  And while I am not a fan of taking risks I descend fast!  But that is about fun.

Last week I felt like I was in the yikes zone, not in the same way as dropping into a chute but in an out of my comfort zone kind of way.  Coach is challenging me in new ways in the swim, bike and run.  It's about power and top end work, a place I don't go to very often.  A workout that looks easy in TP but man can 15 seconds in the pool cause a burn, 30 seconds on a hill or 20 seconds standing all out on the bike cause a lot of pain.  Max  HR's and burning that makes you want to curl up for a few minutes.   The volume of training is not high and the workouts while burn and cause 180bpm did not seem to take a toll.  But they did, I found myself Sunday with a high resting HR, as in 10 bpm high, feeling sluggish, hungry and grumpy.   

Dare I say, we are onto something?  The jury is out, but come March 3, 1st race of the season we will see!  April 6- the season opener Oceanside 70.3 is the real tell!   This is my 5th season with my coach and well he's definitely got my attention.  People often switch coaches for a change, we ge tired of the same workouts, the same progressing.  A  good coach will keep your workouts and program-changing so the athlete continues to grow and stay interested.  

And as I am always learning as a coach, my athletes are seeing some different training as well!  Change is good.  Some feel, hey this is working let's not change it up, but how do get better without change?   And well with goals of getting better at 52, it's lofty I know.  Maybe I will not beat my best Oceanside 70.3 time, but I have goals about where I want to place and how I will execute the race.

Speaking of skiing.... if you did not see Lindsay Vonn's last run, I encourage you to watch it. And to read this  - what a legend!!   https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/10/sports/skiing/lindsey-vonn-retired.html

Garmin swim rant....

I am 99% sure I have ranted on this before...but I am ranting again.  

Yes, a Garmin is great for tracking your swim yard!!! Yes, a Garmin can track your times.  NO, you should not be hitting the button every time you come in and send off. 

As a masters swimmer and a masters coach the #1 observation I have on this topic is in lane 1 and lane 2, the 1:15 and 1:20 send-off lanes, I see 0 as in NO ONE, pushing buttons as they come into the wall or as they send off.  What I do see coming in is tough and look at the clock and an underwater streamline off the wall that does not include pushing buttons.  

#2 the intervals are tight (when swimming on base or even more on -5) the focus is on swimming not buttoning (new word I made up)

Learn to use the clock and understand your times.   

The further down the pool, as in lanes on a slower send-off, the more I see of obsessive Garmin button pushing.   Connect the dots...

Sure, use the Garmin to track time and distance!  

If you have set you HAVE to remember the times then likely is an all-out hard set and use the  "button pushing" effort to streamline and get to the wall faster. 

I had a soul-crushing swim set this am.  LOTS of ALL OUT, did you get ALL OUT, 25's.   I can recall my times for 30 x 2, not each one but I could report back to my coach where I came in for most of them, how I felt gasping for air , and what the progression was.  I started my Garmin when I dove in and stopped it when I hopped out- I have total swim time and yardage and I use my brain for the rest. 

Got it?  
Any ??? 

When the off season is moving to THE season

I started this blog Jan 2 and now it is Feb 5, fkc!  I have tried to finish is so many times... every time I need to edit it a bit due to lag time.... but I am putting it out there now. 

I wrote this article for D3 Multisport-   https://tinyurl.com/y9s3v3pu 

 " The Off Season is Ending, Now What?"   You can read the article above for more insight but it has generated some questions and thoughts from others.

The bottom line is that its almost February and regardless of whether it is -30 or 88 degrees it's time to get focused!   Sure there are the exceptions but most are looking forward and 2019 is upon us. 

If you have not laid out your season's goals, its time.  I have all my athletes do it and we review them.  At the minimum identify your A races and goals for each-  whether those be time goals, nutrition or mental goals, lay them out.  I encourage a stretch goal (go big), a reasonable goal and what if everything happens plan.   So call it A and B goals, I don't do C goals, but I do think about how to handle "THAT' race, you lose your goggles, your chain is off and you have a flat, you drop your nutrition, you forgot socks and you hit 11 porta potties- what will you do?  Quit or roll with it.  The big goals are good to have- I have mine printed out and on my trainer and in my bathroom- a daily reminder of what I really want!  

You are "fat"  I put this in italics as I am sure you are NOT fat, you may feel that way due to some extra holiday lbs.   Well, get on the scale, assess the damage and then figure out what needs to change.  Likely you gained it in 4-6 weeks, so take the same approach to lose it.  The best way is to log your food and drink!  My Fitness Pal.   OR maybe you need to gain muscle?   What are you eating and when?  

What is your weakness and what are you going to do about it?  If you complain about your swim every year, but you continue to swim 2x a week on your own and say you are a terrible swimmer then guess what you will have the same swim.  Is it the bike or run or strength- what is YOUR plan, that is different, from last year to get better?

Asses what worked last year and what did NOT.  Don't keep doing the same thing and expect a change in performance. 

How about life goals?  Do you need more sleep? if yes, how will you get it? 

Alcohol-  people can argue all day on whether it is good or bad.  Honestly, it does not really matter - what matters are your goals?    I can argue that it does not help you lose weight nor does it help performance.   Only you know if you need to or if you should cut back.  I do encourage everyone to quit for 3 weeks- give it a go.  "test the brakes" per se.

I don't encourage you to QUIT everything- it's just not sustainable.  More along the lines of this below- when we do extremes it generally works for a few weeks and then you don't just fall off the wagon you are eating 3 boxes of thin mints at midnight with a bottle of vodka.  

NO	YES
Cut all sugar	Cut processes sugar- candy, sweets
NO processed foods	Limit what you eat out of a package when possible
NO alcohol	No alcohol for 21 days but if you  have a beer don’t flip out
I’m getting up every day at 5am when you have been up at 7am	3 days a week I will get a workout done before work
Lose 20 lbs	Lose 5 lbs – 1.25/week
Train 20 hours a week (when you have been training 5)	Increase by 10-20% /week

Be smart, get on track and get after it!  

Ironman Cozumel

The goal was run well, nail my nutrition and KQ.  Well I KQ'd!  But did not run well and as for the nutrition, the win was I did not puke or have diarrhea (which I have at every other hot humid IM) the lose was I had severe leg cramps for 23 miles, likely an electrolyte or salt issue.  So that is STILL a work in progress,

Let's break it down. 

SWIM- point to point with the current, advertised and reported to be "amazing, like an aquarium,  #1 Ironman swim"    Due to a NE storm we had a lot of chop, the marine life I was was mostly plastic bags and trash and the sea life were jellyfish.   I was tangled up twice in lobster pot ropes so I suppose that was a bit of a challenge.  It was fast for sure but not "amazing"   52:33

BIKE- 3 loops, lots of wind as promised.  I actually loved the bike courses.  9 miles protected with a tailwind, then 9 miles crosswinds, 9 miles headwind - paying for the tailwind.  I felt great on the bike from start to finish.   Sure the wind was tough, sure I got tired but each lap was consistent and I did not drop power towards the end.   

My nutrition plan was nearly spot on, other than forgetting the GF jelly sandwiches and having to sub gu's, the rest was as planned.   Each lap was progressively warmer 78, 86, 89 degrees and with increasing winds.   The big rides in Ocotillo primed for this long hot windy bike ride.    Aid stations every 10 miles and well stocked with bottles of ice water which I poured over my head, down my back.   I got a new helmet  The Giro Vanquish Aero Helmet and I love it. It is not the most aero helmet but its super light and has a lot of vents for cooling.  Knowing I overheat I am willing to sacrifice a bit of aerodynamics to keep my body cool.   I finished the bike feeling strong and happy with the bike split 5:34:46.  I rode at 70% and VI 1.01 so I SHOULD have been set up for a strong run.

RUN  I headed out feeling great!   light on my feet, cooled down with my long sleeve cool shirt, hat and running shorts. Holding back and feeling like this was going to be the run I have been working towards.  At mile 3 it felt like someone grabbed the inside of my thigh just above my knee, as in I nearly buckled. Wow, what was that?  I tried to shake it off and kept running.  By mile 4 the pain had traveled up to my groin and I was trying to figure out what the heck was happening. It occurred  to me this was cramping, something new and it was not fun.  By mile 6 it was both legs and WOWZA this was going to be interesting.  I was miserable and it got real so fucking fast that this was going to be a mother of a run.   I knew I had a solid lead but with the pain, I was in I began to worry.  My focus became run aid station to aid station and just survive.  John was amazing, supportive and all over ( in fact he ran 30 miles that day) but I was in the hurt locker and was trudging along.  I was worried I was going to get passed.  This is the part of Ironman that is so mental, it was staying in the moment, using the mental tools (many of which came from The Brave Athlete- Calm the Fck Down and How Bad Do You Want It ) So much of Ironman is mental.  I have an arsenal and I used many of the techniques, thumb tapping, counting to 100, visualizing Roo running, knowing that my body can go further and on and on.  I have 0 pictures of me running because John said I just looked miserable.  Even the final 2 miles when I knew I had the win, it was so fcking hard.  The magical finish line which was up a giant ramp into lights that were blinding was a struggle. I crossed the line and was heading down the other side and could see the catchers like 50 feet away and then it got dicey, black spots, weaving, I hit a barricade and lights out.  Wheelchair and med tent.  They were quick to tap the IV and I was panting like a dog so out came the O2 and the cramps were seizing up so then came some magical Mexcian spray that was lidocane, anti-inflammatory and who knows what else.   You could see my legs still working it was crazy.   The added something to the IV and finally, the cramping stopped.   My temp was 102 so my core was hot.  

To say I am disappointed with my race would be an asshole thing to do as I punched my ticket to Kona.  So yes I am happy with that but am so disappointed in my run but I am damn proud of persevering.  It was awful but quitting was never an option, it was about survival! 

Would I go back to Cozumel- NO.    Did I have fun ? Yes with John, Monica and Cindy we had a blast- lots of laughs from the 3 ft salmon to the 9th meal of rice, to the swim cap on the water faucet to be sure we did not accidentally use the tap water, the lack of building code in Cozumel, the post-race nachos and beer and the AM spiked smoothie-, Marty the 3ft iguana in our backyard, the compound we lived in with metal gates and bolts....  we had fun! Racing with friends and in this case also my athetes is a double win.   

For the race- my recommendation is to rent a house-  it is crazy inexpensive, near the finish line so you can walk to reg, walk from the finish.  We rode to bike drop off and taxi to swim practice. I like to eat my own food pre-race, especially in a 3rd world country,  and it's a lot of fun to have a group in a house.   We stayed in hacienda sombrero!    No car necessary.   Fly into Cozumel NOT Cancun, even if you save $$.  Taking the ferry over is a pain and with the storm, we had people we sick as dogs.  I used Tri Bike Transport as it was only $100 more than on American Airlines and I did not have to worry about my bike not making it due to weight on the plane.  On Cindy's flight, 15 bikes did not make it.  Also, you run the risk of damage in when you are on an Island there are fewer resources to fix it.   Post race we ate and drank on the town- which is probably fine all the time as tourism is their survival.   I am thrilled to say NONE of us got sick!!  Thank goodness...  

And now.... eating gluten, drinking alcohol, eating cookies.  A much-needed offseason or really some nonstructured time.  Today I rode 2.5 hours on my road bike and did not care about power, nutrition or hydration.  I had leftover pie for breakfast and a PBJ on the bike.  When I am regimented for so long I need a "pass" for a bit to just not care about how many g of protein I am getting, how many electrolytes, micronutrients....blah blah blah!  

December will be great- tons of travel!  First up is a very cool conference next weekend! Outspoken - Women in Triathlon Conference next weekend.  Outspoken is an opportunity for women in triathlon to connect with like-minded women, hear from industry leaders, and develop leadership skills related to their role in triathlon. The summit will provide a rich forum that will develop strong voices, inspire others and advocate for change in the sport you love. Together, summit attendees will work to elevate women's triathlon and women in the business of triathlon through partnership, community, a focus on solutions, and skill development.

From there to Reno for my other job.  Home for a few days then to Tucson for Johns marathon!  Then 2 days in Coronado for work and then to Boulder for the holidays!   Fun times... As for 2019- more on that later