Picks-Up in Red Raider Country

Wham, Bam, thank-you……..Tri-Raider Sprint. In what turned out to be a very fast trip (22 hours) I ended up participating in the Tri-Raider Sprint in Lubbock this weekend. I normally like to get to a race the day before and have enough time for packet pick-up, a good dinner, and plenty of rest. Unfortunately, that was not the case this weekend. Lubbock is a 5 ½ hour drive from El Paso and because I didn’t leave work early enough I didn’t get checked into my hotel until a little after 11 pm. I didn’t have dinner, didn’t get to pick my packet up, and was going to be short on rest because I needed to be at the race by 5:30 am to take care of all the registration requirements. Needless to say I was not in the best of moods Saturday morning, but I was determined to shake off the bad race I had in Lubbock in May. Those of you that read this blog (thank-you all three of you) will remember that at the race in May I cramped up within the first five minutes of the swim and was not able to finish. The weather for the May race was 55 degrees and the water temperature was roughly the same. This time the weather was almost the exact opposite. Water temperature was 74 degrees and by the end of the race the outside temperature was pushing 100.

For those of you that have never done a race at Buffalo Springs in Lubbock, it is a great race location with many challenging elements. Marti Greer and the other race organizers do a great job and even for the sprint distance races you get the feeling of a big time race. I highly recommend doing a race there. I arrived at the race and had no problem receiving my race packet and putting all my stuff into transition. I was happy to see a couple of my friends and fellow racers Bobby and John and went about continuing to warm-up and get ready for the swim. One of those challenges that I mentioned earlier in regards to buffalo springs is the 500 meter swim. It is a counter clock-wise arch that goes around a small point in the lake. The water levels were very low this year and for most of the swim the water was probably only four to five feet deep. The challenging aspect is that with a mass start and over 150 people entering the water, the course does not allow for much spacing. Now I know that is part of triathlon swimming, but usually you are able to find space after the first 100 meters or so, but that was not the case Saturday. I swam the entire 500 meters in a tight group and was kicked, slapped, and pulled the entire way. I managed to have an “ok” swim (just under 7 minutes), but really need to strengthen that part of my training.

Everything in transition went fine and I was off towards the bike portion of the race. Leaving the lake and heading out for the bike portion you have to climb two steep hills. I didn’t have too much trouble, but at the top of the second hill I noticed my front wheel was wobbling really badly. I stopped and got off my bike and discovered that I must have hit a small pot hole and had jarred the wheel loose. It was no big deal and I was able to tighten it up and only lose a minute on the other riders. The wind was blowing hard and going out on the bike portion I was able to push pretty hard. The challenge was at the turn around point I was now headed back into a pretty fierce headwind. I was able to lower my head and push the pace as hard as I could. I passed several riders that looked like they just ran out of gas and continued pushing it until I reached transition. I finished the bike portion in a little over 51 minutes.

The run course is flat with a couple tiny rolling hills, but by this time the temperature was starting to climb. I headed out on the run knowing that another racer in my age group was probably 15 seconds behind me. I settled into a nice pace and received shouts of encouragement from Gretchen who was there cheering us on as she waited for the 70.3 that took place on Sunday. It really means a lot to have a fellow triathlete, who knows what you’re going through, cheering for you and giving you words of encouragement. Long story short, I held off the other age grouper and finished the run in a little over 23 minutes. I was hoping for a better run time, but I think the heat played a role in keeping the run times a little slower than normal.

I finished second in my age group and thirteenth overall. Bobby won the master’s division and finished second overall. Despite having a fall on the run, John had a great race and finished second in the Clydesdale division.

To Do List:

Increase bike miles for 70.3 in September.

Work on negative splits during run training.

Learn to swim J     

Racing with Mountain Goats

I had previously blogged about how the Super Sully race in Alpine has the hardest 5k in all of the Southwest Challenge Series………I was horribly mistaken! This weekend I had the chance to race at the Ruidoso Sprint Triathlon and this course had the hardest 5k by far I have ever raced. I’ll get to more about the course, but first a little about the race itself.

If you have never been to Ruidoso you are in for a treat. The sleepy village of Ruidoso is only two hours from El Paso and is generally 10-15 degrees cooler. Race day was no exception. The early morning was nice and crisp and it warmed up into the high70’s, great racing weather.  The race begins with a 3.5 mile run that takes you from pavement to trail and back to pavement. I had heard that the run is very pleasant with a few rolling hills and a great view of a lake that we run around. Apparently, to meet USAT standards they change the course a little bit and those changes involved monster hills that only a mountain goat could climb! I started off at a good pace but held back a little as the thin mountain air was making it a little tough. Everything was going fine until we moved off the pavement and began a climb up a narrow path that couldn’t have been more than a foot wide. At the top of this hill I saw several runners begin to walk, but I kept my focus and continued on the course. Despite the narrow path I managed to keep my footing and pushed myself more than I have in past races. I made it to the transition area roughly in 18^th place and proceeded to get my bike and head out.

The bike out is up and down but mostly up! There are several good size hills and lots of bikers were having trouble with the climbs. I felt pretty good even though the hills did take their toll on my legs. I passed six or seven people and made the turn in good shape. The bike back was super-fast! Several times on the way back I hit 42-43 mph and made my way to the swim transition area.

The swim for this race is in a tiny pool that you actually swim 200 meters and get out, then run back to the beginning and swim another 200 meters. I didn’t mind the set up except that the pool did get pretty crowded and slowed things up a little bit. After you get out of the pool you have to go outside and run approximately 50 yards before you cross the finish line. As I left the pool I noticed the guy in front of me was just jogging so I took off and him and I had a full on sprint to the finish. He ended up sticking his chest out and beating me to the line, but my sensor crossed a split second before his and I ended up placing 1^st in my age group and 8^th overall.

Bobby crushed the course under an hour and won the overall title and Gretchen finished strong and took home first in her age group. Rob bounced back from the Milkman and had a strong race finishing 3^rd in the Clydesdale division and John wasn’t far behind with a fourth place finish. The awards were carved bears and really were a nice touch. The only problem was that they only gave awards to the top two finishers and third place was left with nothing. I’m not sure why they did it that way, but it is something they should consider changing next year.

Milkman Race Report

 

I had never been to the Milkman Triathlon before and wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was a well run race with plenty of ice cream and Honey Milk for everyone. As you might recall my last race lasted all of five minutes at the Buffman and Squeaky in Lubbock. A cramp 100 meters into the swim ended the race for me and left a bad taste in my mouth in regards to future open water swimming. I was determined to just relax and let the swim happen and not press to hard. The water was a little chilly at 68 degrees, but I decided to not wear a wetsuit and just tough it out. I had a very relaxed swim and didn’t tighten up at all. I thought I swam faster than my time of 10:02, but I guess all racers say that :)

After the swim came a 20k bike ride that was very rough. The course was pretty straight forward, but lots of bumps and very uneven pavement. Going out on the ride was fast because of a tailwind, but the return trip made us pay with a head wind of probably 10-20 mph. The later the wave you started in the harder the wind was for you. Rob, Gretchen, and Bobby all had major wind to deal with. The bike ride for me was uneventful and I felt pretty strong going into the run and I finished the bike in 36:22.

This was my first race of the season that had the run last and I wasn’t sure if I had done enough bricks to train for it, but everything went smooth. It began to heat up at the end, but I managed a respectable 22:15. I ended up second in my age group and fifteenth overall for males and seventeenth overall male and female with a time of 1:11.

Bobby and Gretchen both placed first in their age groups and second overall in the male and female categories respectively. The individuals that beat them were absolutely flying! The male champ completed the course in under an hour at 59:20!! Rob also had a strong race and finished fourth in his category and improved over last year’s race by over 6 minutes. John Gardea won the Clydesdale division with a 1:17 and had a very strong bike performance.

What really made this race enjoyable though was spending time with Rob, Bobby, and Gretchen. Those three are not stop laughs and I feel like a sponge soaking up all the triathlon knowledge I can from them. It was also great to see childhood friends Casey Vander Dussen and his mother Jane. The Vandivorts and Vander Dussens practically lived with each other growing up and some of my fondest memories are hanging out with them and enjoying each others company. Hope to see them again soon.