Back from a Winter Slumber!!

Well, the sun is starting to come out and the temperatures are just about perfect for the 2013 training/race season to begin. It has been several months since my last post, but I didn’t want to put you to sleep with my tales of indoor trainer sessions or lack of time put into the pool. So without further ado here is what is on tap this season.

First and foremost I want to thank TriSports.com for allowing me once again to represent their company as a “TriSports.com Champion”. I know what you are thinking and you are saying to yourself “Brooks is sponsored by TriSports? He sucks! I can race circles around him!” You are probably right and that is why TriSports.com sponsors me as an ambassador of the sport and not a competitive athlete. One day I hope to make their competitive team, but it will take several years of hard work and big finishes at big races. If you haven’t checked out all that TriSports.com has to offer, make sure you head over to their website www.trisports.com and see what they have. If you find something just use my discount code at the top of this blog and receive 10% off, also remember if you are a member of the El Paso Tri Club you get 15% your orders.

Over the winter I managed to put in a good number of run miles and worked out on the bike trainer pretty well. My swimming has been non-existent, but that has changed over the past couple weeks, so I hope to get my fitness up in a couple months. This race season will be light until the end of July. I plan on doing a few local sprints and then tackle Buffalo Springs 70.3 once again. I have redemption on my mind and will bust my tail to see it happen. After Buffalo Springs 70.3, the rest of the season is up in the air. I would like to do SOMA and possibly REDMAN, but need to see what kind of time constraints I will have as far as work and family.

Let me know what you have planned. I would love to see comments regarding races in Arizona, New Mexico, and other western states, but I’m open to travel anywhere for a quality race.

Remember to help the sport grow in El Paso, it is important to have a strong club. If you have not signed up to be a member of the El Paso Tri Club, go to this link https://www.signmeup.com/site/online-event-registration/83017 and make it happen! It only cost $40 a year and the discounts it provides easily cover the cost.

One last thing, I would like to congratulate Gretchen McElroy for being selected to represent our area on the Rocky Mountain Region USAT board of directors. Her experience and work ethic will be a great benefit to all.

Remember to follow me on twitter @tribrooks

Two Steps Forward and One Step Back

Two steps forward and one step back, that was the net result of this week’s Milkman Triathlon in Dexter, New Mexico. Before I get into the details I want to congratulate all the El Paso and Las Cruces athletes that participated. It was nice to see so many El Paso Tri Club and Run El Paso people there. Not only did the two groups have a high participation total, but both groups brought home more than their share of hardware! Great Job everyone! I also want to congratulate the Milkman racing staff and all the volunteers. The race was very well done, as always, and the amount and variety of post-race drinks and food was spectacular.

Waiting for the Swim start

Ok, time for the race report and the good and bad that took place. This being my second full year in the sport, I realize that every race is a learning experience and too soak in as much knowledge as possible is very important. I had a plan coming into this race to better last years’ time and really push myself on the bike and run. I also wanted to try-out a new wetsuit and see how it felt before I use it in Lubbock in three weeks. First, lesson of the day: Plans change.  

Out and back 500 meter swim

Race morning was very pleasant and when I went down to the lake to test the water temperature it felt a little cold. As a note to those of you who have not done an open water swim before, I’m  willing to bet all open water at 6:30 am feels a little cold so don’t freak out about it. If you’re expecting bath water temperature it just isn’t going to happen. At 7:15 am the race director announced that the water temperature was 74 degrees, so I decided to go for a little warm-up swim and then decide if I was going to wear my wetsuit or not. 74 degrees is a very nice temperature and even though it feels cold getting in, your body will adjust and pretty soon it will feel just fine. As many more experienced racers can tell you a great number of open water swims are done at 58-65 degrees, so 74 degrees is nice. I decided not to wear my wetsuit and that was my first mistake. It wasn’t a mistake because of the temperature, but for the fact that I had wanted to test my new wetsuit, and just because the water temperature was nice, doesn’t mean I should have abandoned my original plan. Yes, I would have been a little slower in transition, but the whole point was to try the suit out. So now I’ll be at the pool doing a workout in my suit and won’t have the benefit of using it in a race environment.

 

The Milkman Triathlon uses a wave start to begin the race, so I was part of wave #3 that consisted of men and women in the 35-39 age group. I was feeling great and couldn’t wait to get started. I have put in a good amount of time in the pool this season and wanted to see if the hard work was going to pay off. The gun sounded to start my wave and I quickly began my swim. I wanted to get a fast start just so I could avoid all the bumping and thrashing that occurs at the beginning of a swim. As I began to swim I was taking a breath every two strokes (As I always do), but after around 25 meters I realized I was not breathing OUT! This led to me not being able to catch my breath and just like that, my swim was falling apart. Since I was ahead of ¾ of the swimmers I didn’t want to just turnover on my back and get swam over, so I started to breast stroke. I was able to make forward progress, but didn’t catch my breath until the 250 meter mark. As I looked at my watch I was at 6:15 (Never a good sign when you can look at your watch during the swim)! I was able to start my freestyle stroke at the 250 meter mark and felt really comfortable the rest of the way. I was feeling very frustrated but happy that I swam the last 250 meters in 4:11 and finished the swim at 10:26. Not a good time at all and I had spotted the leader in my age group over a minute and a half and the elite racers in the field a full 3 to 3 and a half minutes.

Transition to the bike went fine, even though the pity party I was having probably cost me a few seconds, but I knew in order to get back into this race I need a strong bike. I headed out on the bike and hammered as hard as I could. The road was rough. I didn’t remember it being so bad last year, but this year I didn’t find a part in the course that wasn’t jolting my bike all over the place. I passed a ton of people and caught everyone in my age group except the leader and even though I was pedaling hard I felt that I had plenty left for the run. 

Transition into the run was smooth, but I do have a little advice for those new to the sport. I wear socks during races. I know many people that have been in the sport for a while don’t, but I don’t like the feeling in my shoes when I don’t have socks. Remember though that if the race begins in the water and you put on socks afterwards to ride the bike, the water will run down your leg and your socks will soak it up. When you get done with the bike, your socks will be swollen because of the water and you might have trouble getting your shoes on. I already have my shoes tied and just slip them on after the bike, but it is harder to get them on if your socks have soaked up water. The run course at the Milkman is flat, but a mixture of trail and pavement. As I was finishing my bike I saw the person in my age group that was leading heading out on the run and I wanted to run him down if possible. Overall I had a solid run and finished it in 21.20, but I just couldn’t catch the leader from my age group. He ended up beating me by 50 seconds and the minute and a half lead I gave him in the swim was my undoing.

The good news is that I beat my last years’ time be over three minutes and felt strong on the bike and run. I also didn’t feel bad on the swim once I caught my breath, so I’ll take that as a positive. Bobby Gonzalez won his age group and finished 3^rd overall and Albert Lugo and Cid Lopez finished first and second in the 40-45 AG and also 4^th and 5^th overall. Both had incredible races and I don’t look forward to moving into that age group next year. Jim Kehrle had a great race and took first in his age group and Greg Garcia finished with a strong third place showing in the 45-49 AG. Laura Bernal finished in third for her AG and did a great job out there! 

I look forward to racing the Buffalo Springs 70.3 in three weeks and just want to remind everyone that is going to get your hotel room soon. Rooms seem to become scarce every year for this race so book early.

Back in Action

Finally, another race weekend to get excited about! If you haven’t noticed this season I am spending much more time training for a few longer distance races and haven’t raced very much so far. I enjoy the training, but will be glad to compete in a race and see what I can do. This weekend I will be attending the Milkman Triathlon in Dexter, NM. This will be my third race this season and will be my tune-up for the Buffalo Springs 70.3. So how exactly does a sprint in a small rural community act as a tune-up for a very difficult 70.3 race in Lubbock? I’m glad you asked.

The Milkman Triathlon is a great race that has been around for over 28 years and is run by some of the best people in the region. Three factors make it a great tune-up for Lubbock;

1)      Competition. The race is “The Best of the US New Mexico State Championship” and attracts some of the very best in the region. Between some of the best athletes in New Mexico being there, you’ll also find racers from El Paso, Lubbock, and Midland/Odessa. Together all the top athletes make it very difficult to place, but the competition can really push you to your limits.

2)      Open Water Swim. As many experienced triathletes can tell you, swimming open water is very different than swimming in a pool. For me the hardest part is staying in rhythm while people are swimming over the top of me and smacking me in the face with their arms. The Milkman lets you experience open water, but in a very controlled environment that puts you more at ease. The wave start at the Milkman usually puts about 25 racers in the water at the same time (as opposed to a couple hundred or even a thousand at some of the bigger races). You will still get smacked around a little bit, but not nearly as bad as in Lubbock. Another aspect of the Milkman swim is the open water course. Lubbock and many other open water swims use a rectangle or triangle shaped course that requires a fairly good amount of sighting. At the Milkman the course is a straight out and back with a line of buoys attached to a rope. Even though sighting is a skill we all need to practice, the Milkman course allows you to follow the rope and buoys the whole time.

3)      Similar Roads, Heat and Wind. The roads used for the bike course at the Milkman are very similar as to what you will see in Lubbock. Rural asphalt roads that can get a little bumpy at times are par for the course. Lubbock has more climbing than the Milkman, but you will get an idea of how the roads at times have very little shoulder and have patch work repairs every now and then. Wind isn’t anything new to triathletes and especially ones from El Paso and Southern New Mexico, but it certainly can affect how you race. At the Milkman, just like in Lubbock, you can expect a decent headwind going out on the bike and for some reason instead of a tailwind coming back it is more of a cross-wind. Of course, this can change with the weather on that given day, but it should be prepared for. The heat is also similar to Lubbock. By the time you hit the run at the Milkman the temperature will start to climb and there is virtually no shade on the course. Even though the run portion is only a 5k, you can begin to get an idea of what to expect during your 13.1 mile run in Lubbock.

I hope everyone has a great weekend of racing and I’ll have a race report up early next week. Before I sign off I want to congratulate Gretchen McElroy for her incredible finish at Ironman Texas a couple of weeks ago. In her first attempt at an Ironman she completed the course in 11 hours and 59 minutes! Great job Gretch!!

Also, take advantage of the Trisports.com Promo Code: BVAN-S for any shopping that you might need to do.

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.