Out with a Bang!

For most of the season I have felt really good about the strides I have made in sprint distances, but have started to focus on 70.3 training. The sprint season for all intent and purposes is over for me and I’m happy with how it turned out. During the off-season I will spend a lot of time in the pool and also do more track work to get my 5k times consistently under 20 minutes. But enough of what has already happen and on to what I have been building up too.

I plan on participating in my first half-ironman on September 26^th at Elephant Butte and the training has been rough to say the least. The average week involves 150 bike miles, 25 run miles, and right around 7000 meters of pool time. First the good news, my bike riding has really taken off and I owe it to the group rides in the upper valley on Saturday and Sunday. Most of the rides are right around 50 miles and they are extremely fast!! The majority of the ride is with the hammer dropped and if you aren’t careful you’ll find yourself riding by yourself, because the pack has pulled to far away. Fellow triathletes Rob, Gretchen, Art, and Bobby are out there with at least 25 other bike riders. I plan on riding with this group during the off season and can’t wait to see how my bike splits look next year.

Now the bad, my running is very inconsistent. One day I’ll run 8 miles at 8:15 pace and the next time I run it will be 10 miles at 10:00 pace L On other occasions I’ll ride the bike for 50 miles and then run 4 miles at 7:30 pace with no problems. I’ve tried different rest days, gels, HEED, and the only thing that is consistent is my inconsistency. I know I’ll be able to run the 13.1 miles after the 56 miles of bike at Elephant Butte, the real question is will it be under 2 hours or 3?!

Swim training has been fine and really has never been an issue. The issues arise when you are in the middle of a mass start and get your goggles kicked off, swallow a bunch of water, get swam over, don’t sight well, and generally just panic. Depending on how many of those things happen to me will determine how well I swim that portion of the race. I’m hoping for the best, but have no problems taking a little extra time to gather myself in the water and push on through.

I have never raced a 70.3 distance before, but I have been to Elephant Butte to train and raced in the Dam It Man Sprint earlier this summer and here is what I can pass on to everyone who is going to be out there. 1) The water is very warm and you might want to consider NOT wearing a wetsuit. I know most people are faster with the wetsuit, but the day is likely to be very warm and you might not want to start losing a bunch of fluids during the swim. I’m 90% sure I will NOT wear my wetsuit. 2) The bike course is a good mixture of rolling hills, two climbs for the Olympic distance and three climbs for the 70.3 with a nice slight downhill grade on the way back to transition. I know every rider is different, but if you have a rear disk wheel, make sure you bring it. I plan on riding the course during a training ride with a disk and will let you know if it should be used. The bike course is also pretty easy to follow and shouldn’t be too difficult to stay on course.  3) The run will be very HOT and difficult. The run for the 70.3 goes from sand, to cement, dirt trials, to asphalt and has several climbs. Unlike the bike course, I feel the 70.3 run course can be a little confusing. Make sure you study the maps and then drive the course the day before. Pay special attention to the markings on the road.

Good luck to everyone doing the Eagle in the Sun this weekend! It should be a great event and fun for the whole family.