Laughing It Up In Tucson!!

What a weekend! Between the laughs and even more laughs the crew from El Paso showed that we went to Tucson for more than just good times, we came to qualify for the World Championships later this year in Nancy, France and qualify we did! 

Where to begin? I guess the drive up to Tucson from El Paso is as good a place to start as any. Bobby Gonzalez, Gretchen McElroy, and I all piled into Bobby’s truck and left early Friday morning. Ruben Rosales and Laura Bernal followed us in Ruben’s truck and together we arrived in Tucson sometime around noon. I love driving in the same vehicle as Bobby and Gretchen, because not only do they make me laugh, we talk non-stop triathlon. I get to pick up useful racing tips just being around them. We stopped by TriSports and did some shopping and picked up a few last minute nutrition items. If you have never been to the TriSports store in Tucson it is a must for all triathletes. They have everything and the staff was very helpful in getting us what we needed. 

Once we checked into the hotel we went to the host hotel to pick-up our race packets. The race packet had everything we needed for the next day as well as a nice race shirt, fuel belt, water bottle, and other odds and ends. We put our race numbers on our bikes and went to the race site to check-in our bikes. I had never had to check-in my bike the night before, but apparently at bigger races it is the norm. I found out the next day that by checking in our bikes the night before, race day is much less stressful. After we checked in our bikes, Bobby drove us around the course. The run looked to have a slight incline for the first mile and then you turn around and have a slight decline for a mile. The third mile is the one that is interesting. For the first part of the third mile you go down a pretty steep decline, but what goes down must come up and the last half of the third mile looked really steep.

The bike course was a two loop course that was very similar to what racers in the El Paso area consider freeway rollers. The only difference was that at about the two mile mark you have a mile and a half of a slow steady climb. 

The night of the race I was miserable. I had the worst headache and of course race jitters. I woke around 5:00 am and started to get ready. My headache had gone away and I felt as ready as ever. We made our way to the race site and were happy that the morning weather was nice and cool. Unfortunately, the cool weather did not last and once the race started it began to get a little warm. Francois Modave, another racer from El Paso, met us at the race site and we all began are warm-ups. 

Bike Transition

At 8:15 my wave was ready to begin. From my coach (Francois) to Bobby and Gretchen, everyone had told me to believe in my training and make sure not to go too fast during the first 5k. As the race horn sounded I heeded those words and my race began. The pace for the first 5k was incredible! Racers were doing 5:10-5:30 minute miles and I had to really make an effort to slow down. As other racers were pulling away, I just stuck to my game plan and let them build a lead on me. I was a little frustrated because I knew I could be running faster, but was worried about fading badly during the last 5k. I ended up running a 6:35 pace and entered transition feeling good. 

For those of you that know me, biking and I have a love hate relationship. I don’t particularly like the bike portion, but I can do well enough to hold my own. I’m certainly not the guy who is going to make-up anytime on the bike, but I usually don’t lose too much time on other riders. I felt good throughout the bike and felt like I was keeping a pretty good pace. I didn’t finish even close to the main group during the run so I was hoping to maybe catch a rider or two on the bike, but that really didn’t happen. I managed not to get passed by anyone else in my age group, but I believe I only caught one rider. I ended up averaging 22.1 mph on the bike and so far was a little bit faster overall than I expected.

The final run did not disappoint. I had never run a full duathlon before so I was nervous as to how my body would handle the second run. As most of you know once you get off the bike and start to run, you really can’t feel your legs for the first half mile. I was no exception. I wanted to run under a 7:00 pace for the first mile and was lucky enough to hit 6:50. The second mile was just as fast, but then we came to the dreaded third mile and the hill of agony! I lowered my head and grinded out the final mile and finished the second 5k with a 7:12 pace. I had made it to the finish line in 1:43:39, but had a done enough to qualify? 

I went to the results tent and received a print-out of my results and right there in black and white it showed that I had finished 18^th in my age group! The first 18 places in each age group qualify for TEAM USA and the World Championships! Yes! I was very happy and relieved that months of hard work had paid off. Now it was off to cheer for the rest of my friends. 

Bobby Gonzalez finished 5^th in AG, Gretchen McElroy finished 3^rd in AG, Ruben Rosales finished 21^st in AG (But because of roll downs I believe qualified for Worlds), Laura Bernal finished 17^th in AG, and Francois Modave finished 10^th in his AG.

Ruben, Laura, Bobby, Gretchen, and Me

 Overall a very successful day for El Paso!

Championship Weekend

This weekend is the USAT Duathlon National Championships in Tucson, AZ and me and several friends will try to qualify for Team USA and represent the USA at the World Championships in Nancy, France later this year. I have to admit that I have never been so hyped/nervous/anxious as I have the past couple weeks. I know I’m not the first athlete that has invested huge amounts of time and preparation for a big event, but this race is my early season Super Bowl and I want to have a good showing. 

My coach, Francois Modave, has done miracles with my training and I know that I am at my absolute best right now. Obviously, as I train throughout the year I will get better, but I know right now I’m in the best possible shape I can be in at this point in the season.

So what concerns do I have? Well, first and foremost is going out to fast during the first run. I need to tell myself that it is “ok” to let the other runners sprint away at the start of the race and focus on my own pace for the first 5k. But what is “my” pace? Good question! I’m really going to try to fall somewhere between the 6:30-6:40 range for the first 5k. I know I can run faster, but I need to have something left for the final run.

The bike is 35k and going to be a real mystery for me. It consist of two loops, so at least I will have an idea of what I need to do on the second loop based on my first loop time. I’m shooting for the hour mark on the bike portion.

The final run will be gut check time. Coming off the bike the legs will feel like cement, but I need to remember that it is now or never. Ideally, I would like to have a similar run time as the first 5k, but I will be happy with anything around 7:00 minute miles. If I don’t spend too much time in transition and I can hit my times, I should be able to finish somewhere around the edge of qualifying. This assumes everything goes perfect and as most of you know things rarely go perfect in competition.

Hope to have a race report up by Sunday. Good luck to everyone racing this weekend and especially the Mighty Mujer triathletes competing in El Paso.

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Life as a Spectator

On April 1^st I had the opportunity to attend the Mesilla Valley Triathlon in Las Cruces, NM, but the catch was that I was there as a spectator and cheering section for my friends. At almost all races I compete in I hang around and cheer on fellow racers and catch-up with friends, but this is the first time that I had been to a race and not competed. I have to admit that I was very anxious and it was hard not to run home and get my bike and race with everyone else. 

The weather was great and the times were very fast! Bobby Gonzalez won the race by breaking the hour mark and Gretchen, Art, Misha, and Cody had super-fast times. I did my best to cheer them on and took several pictures of each racer. I also had the chance to notice the event staff in action and they did a great job putting on the race. For local West Texas and New Mexico racers, I highly recommend this race. 

As promised I also want to make you aware of different sales and merchandise that Trisports.com has on sale this week. Trisports.com is celebrating their 12^th anniversary and has plenty of items to choose from. If you are looking for a new wetsuit or looking to get your first wetsuit, take a look at their website and you will have a huge selection to choose from. They even have the TYR Hurricane Freak that Lance Armstrong wears. Make sure you use Promo Code: BVAN-S for additional savings.