2019 Edinboro Sprint Triathlon

The Edinboro Triathlon returned in 2019 after missing 2018. This was a very well run race and lots of fun! The date of the race was June 8th. The day was warm and plenty of sunshine. This was my 2nd triathlon this week so I didnt expect a lot, especially since I am fairly week in the swim.

I got to the race early and got my bib and timing chip then entered into the transition to set up. I was thinking a lot about the swim, this would be the longest open water swim. I chatted with a lot with fellow Erie Triathlon Club (ETC) members and all gave advice on the swim. I finished setting up my transition and put the wet suit on then made my way to the water to swim a bit and get used to the cool water. As The Olympic distance event started I really didnt get as nervous as I thought i would. I stayed calm and just waited for our turn. The next ones up were the sprint distance males under 44.

A few minutes later I was up, it was time for the male 45 and over. as the horn went off i dove right in and actually kept calm and just swam. The water was cold but calm and thankfully they had red buoy's out to sight of off I just kept close to the red bouy's and kept looking for the first yellow one ( our turn around).  As I headed for shore I was still very calm and actually felt strong. soon I was out of the water and feeling very happy. As I went into transition I had half of my wet suit off and thought things were going well until I got the suit down to my ankles, the damn thing wouldnt come off!!!!!! After finally getting it off I got my cycling gear on and headed out with a vengeance. Having never rode the course I wasnt sure if I should slow up of keep digging.

Well I decided to just go all out and see what happens. As in other triathlons I was able to quickly make time and started passing folks right away. The ride was tough, lots of hills and I was likely riding harder than I should have. With 3 miles to go I was getting very tired but popped a Hammer gel and an endurolyte then very soon felt better. I finished the ride strong and hit the transition ready for the run.

I had a decent transition to the run and headed out. The run was fairly flat but very exposed and hot. I was able to pass a couple people on the first half of the run then went nearly a mile before I had an opportunity to pass one more, I had seen his age on his leg... he was in my age group so I had to pass him, lol.

In the end I finished 19th and took 2nd in the age group. I was very happy with the finish to say the least. To top all of his I did a 60 mile ride after.

Gear:
Suunto Ambit2 watch
ETC tri Kit
Specialzed Roubaix Sport
Specialized Evade Helmet
Sidi Shoes
Look Pedals
Saucony Guide ISO shoes

Fuel:

Hammer Sustained Energy - during race
Hammer Race PR Kit - pre race
Hammer Recoverite - recovery
Hammer Tissue Rejuvenator - recovery
Hammer CBD Balm - recovery

Hammer Gel - during race
Hammer Endurolyte - during race

Southern Tier Triathlon Series Race 1

This series runs on Wednesdays evenings 4 times over the summer. It has the same race director as the duathlon series, Mark Wilson. The races take place in Cassadaga, NY at 5:45 PM. The event consists of a 400 yard swim, 13 mile bike ride and 2 mile run.

The entire day threatened rain and the closer it got to race time the darker it got. At 5:40 we had a meeting in the water where Mark reviewed the rules and course. At 5:45 and on the word go we all went in to the swim. At first the water seemed very cold, it took a while before it felt comfortable. I did have a small panic attack just before the first buoy marking 150 yards. I was able to calm down and keep focused. As I turned the first buoy I realized I was actually passing people in the water ( first time experiencing this). As I rounded the 2nd buoy marking 350 yards I was still feeling very storing and aimed for the shore to finish the swim.

As I got to the shallow water I stood up and ran to the transition, where I struggled to get out of my swim suit. I looked around and saw a lot of bikes still in transition, which means for the first time I was not the last one out of the water!  I got on my bike and hammered as hard as I could, I had no idea how hilly the course would end up being but i know I wanted to pick as many people off as I could.

After about a mile I started passing people, which empowered me more. I just kept pushing the edge of where I thought I could and leave some in the legs for the run. Most of the ride was uneventful except that I kept picking folks off but then around mile 10 we started to climb a hill, that would not end. Funny thing was I wanted a top 10 finsh, top 5 if I could so I used that to push up the hill. One of the people I passed up the hill actually said...."God bless ya' as I went by. my quads were buring.....a lot!

As I finally topped the hill I had about 1 mile to go but had seen 2 more bike in front of me, i made it by them before transiton to the run. As we came into transiton I thought I had a good plan but I got passed by those last 2 people I had passed on the bike. Within a couple hundred feet I was able to get both positons back and by half a mile in I had passed another, at this point I had seen Mark Wilson pass by heading towards the finish line. The next half mile was down hill and I was closing in on another person, shortly after the turn around I passed him. Now it was a bit of up hill between me and the finsh line, I felt like I was running hard, as I turned the corner towards the finish line I was able to dig down just a bit more. I crossed the line and was greeted by Mark and several others with high fives. I finished 7th over all.

FYI: it didnt rain until the very end of the awards.

Happy doesnt describe the feeling!  Great race,good people!

Gear:
Suunto Ambit2 watch
STTC tri Kit
Specialzed Roubaix Sport
Specialized Evade Helmet
Sidi Shoes
Look Pedals
Saucony Guide ISO shoes

Fuel:

Hammer Sustained Energy - during race
Hammer Race PR Kit - pre race
Hammer Recoverite - recovery
Hammer Tissue Rejuvenator - recovery
Hammer CBD Balm - recovery

Race 2 of the Southern Tier Duathlon Series

This was the 2nd in a 3 race series. If you remember for the April blog I took 3rd over all and set a PR for the course. I was excited to see how my fitness improved over the month since the last race but didnt think i would surprise myself too much... boy I was wrong.

I got to the race site and started unpacking my gear and bike, looked around at who was there, like we all do ( sizing people up). I race against a few of the folks but did see some new faces as well. As I was warming up I was not feeling fast or ready, as I was in the middle of new training block and very beat up.

As we lined up to start the race I didnt push to the front like I have in the past, just kind of a few rows back, but then the race started... It took me a couple hundred feet but things started to kick in and I was in 3rd place ( so I thought). I pushed the run a bit but could not catch the first 2 guys. I had a great transition but could not even sight the 2nd place person. I raced the bike hard, I never stopped pumping my legs mashed the pedals on hills and pushed hard. I feared being passed on the bike like the month before and losing a chance at the podium. I have never attacked hills like I did on this day, I was slightly concerned that I was using up my legs that I needed for the last run but didnt care I was not going to get passed on the bike. Great news is that I wasnt...

I had another good transition but 4th place and I went out of transition together ( another mile on bike he would have caught me). It was Mark Wilson who I finished behind last month. This time i didnt have to make up 2 minutes on the run to try to catch him. We went out basically together and I ran away from him quickly. My legs were dead but I just kept putting one foot in front of the other. First place came flying by after his turn around, he wasnt looking tired at all a short while after 2nd place was coming back. I hit the turn around and figure he had a couple minute lead on me but I wasnt as far as I had wanted to be in front of Mark. after the turn around we had a small hill to climb then it was bascially flat to the finish. My plan was take the hill fairly easy then give my last energy for the remaining 3/4 of a mile.

I did exactly that I ran as if Mark was catching me and I had to be faster to hold the position. I looked back a few times and seen my lead on him was opening up but I pushed on to ensure he was not saving up for a 1/4 mile surge or something.

As I crossed the finish line I was amazed to find that the person on first place was actually part of a relay team and that I actually finished 2nd!!!!!!! I also set a PR for the course and set my age group record. The ironic thing about this finish was this; Mark beat me by 14 seconds the race before and he finished 2nd then 3rd for me. This month I beat him by 17 seconds and I was 2nd.

I surpased my expectations for the race and it was a lot of fun. PR and a course record made me feel strong the 2nd place finish was amazing. I guess that ties Mark and I for the series points and it will come down to the final race for the win!

I followed up this race with a 30 mile bike ride to cap off a great day!

Gear:
Suunto Ambit2 watch
STTC tri Kit
Specialzed Roubaix Sport
Specialized Evade Helmet
Sidi Shoes
Look Pedals
Saucony Guide ISO shoes

Fuel:

Hammer Sustained Energy
Hammer Race PR Kit
Hammer Gel
Hammer Recoverite
Hammer Tissue Rejuvenator
Hammer CBD Balm

2019 Outrun 24 (O24)

I had big plans going into this race weekend. I was in much better shape physically and mentally than in 2018. The goal was 100 miles in the 24 hours.....the actual was 31 miles in 6.5 hours... beyond the disappointment of not hitting the goal was a back pain that I have not felt in a long (nearly 20 years) time. It started Thursday evening somehow but when I woke up Friday I was in bad shape, I was able to get in to see a chiropractor before hitting the road for the race but then sat in a car for almost 2 hours and put up tents when getting to Chapin Forest in Kirtland OH.

After getting things set up I was able to relax for a bit then went to sleep hoping to wake up Saturday feeling better. When I woke up I did feel a bit better but not great but got dressed and fueled to go run. It was cool and very gray, misty and foggy. We also had a threat of rain most of the day.

This race has a great atmosphere and it was easy to get in the mood to run pre-race at the start line.
At 8 am we began the event that would officially end at 8 am Sunday. The first 10 miles went by fairly quick and I had built the buffer of time I wanted so now I just need to stay on pace to hit the goal by the next morning. Over the next 10 miles I fell into my grove and fueling was right on point.

Over the miles I ran into lots of folks I knew and got to meet some new friends and was having a good time. However as I got to 25 miles my back was starting to really cause me issues. By mile 29 I was starting to get behind my goal time to the point that I had eaten all of my time buffer up. When I realized that I would not be able to get to the 100 mile goal in the 24 hour time limit I decided to call it a day at the 50k.

I had and still have mixed feelings about stopping. Other than my back I felt great, alert, high energy and mostly enjoying the day. However, my back was happy to stop and with the type of event it is... its not like dropping from a normal race. This race is designed to do what you want or feel like on that day.

On Monday I went to the chiropractor again and he put my back in place...again. As of this blog post its Friday and my back feels pretty good and I jumped into a duathlon this weekend. All and all I am happy with how O24 turned out. My fueling needs were handled by #hammernutrition , shoes were from #columbia1938 , and of course I wore my trusty #suunto Ambit2

Gear:

Hammer race kit

Columbia Montrail Colorado's
Swifwick wool socks
Columbia Titan Ultra shorts
Amphipod handheld
Sunnto Ambit2

Fuel:
Hammer Gel
Hammer Sustained Energy
Hammer Raw Energy Bar
Hammer Tissue Rejuvenator
Hammer Endurance Amino
Hammer Race Day Boost
Hammer Recoverite

2019 Southern Tier Duathlon

on 4/20/2019 I  competed in my 2nd Southern Tier Duathlon. I took 3rd over all for the 2nd time but this year was a ton of fun.

I am going into this spring racing season about 8 pounds heavier than normal due to some regular weight lifting all winter. I felt strong for the race but the extra weight was a concern. I got there a bit early and did some small talk. The weather was chilly and had rained all night and into the morning but stopped for the race.

As the race started I took off and went straigt to the front after a very short time I could only hear 1 set of foot falls behind me and by the turn around two of us had really broke out from the pack. On the return trip we had to climb a small hill and the 2nd place person came up and we were side by side, I felt him surge a few times but I went with him. We ended up crossing the line in a tie. In that transition he blew me away and I was chasing him the entire ride slowly he became just a dot I would get a glimps of once in a while.

With about 3 miles to go 3rd place had caught me and passed, I had a very short moment of dispare but got over it quick and reached down a bit more than I thought I was able to do and passed him back. We exchanged positions a few times until about a half mile out where I moved back into 2nd and held it to transition.

I had a really bad transition ( lost about 2 minutes to the now 2nd place person) I had a rock stuck in the upper clip of my cycling shoe and could not get it off of my foot. When I did I took off as hard as I could. By the turn around I had closed a lot of the gap but I was fairly used up. I kept digging and as I got closer I could see him turning around pretty often to see where I was. I ended up 14 seconds behind him at the finish and I had to dig deep in pain cave.

If only it was a 5k instead of a 2 miler.... lol.

This was a lot of fun and reminded me that when we think we are done we always have a bit more!!!

Gear:
Suunto Ambit2 watch
STTC tri Kit
Specialzed Roubaix Sport
Specialized Evade Helmet
Sidi Shoes
Look Pedals
Saucony Guide ISO shoes

Fuel:

Hammer Sustained Energy
Hammer Race PR Kit
Hammer Gel
Hammer Recoverite
Hammer Tissue Rejuvenator
Hammer CBD Balm

fall and winter 2018

As 2018 comes to a close I am reflecting on the year... I can see that I have taken a step backwards in fitness. I had 2 job changes that took a huge demand of my time and energy. In Nov. I had a military school that took more time and a lot of energy. However December has given me the opportunity to refocus on me and the training I need/want. I took part in the Bigfoot trail race in Ohio at Salt Fork State Park, its a fun trail race in early December put on by Western Reserve Racing. I ran well and felt good.

The last couple years have brought me a passion for duathlons and triathlons. So much so that I have signed up for a half Ironman. Knowing this is a huge undertaking I went out and hired a coach to help me swim more efficiently and guide me on a path for success.

The last couple years also have shown me that introducing dairy and red meat back into my diet has hurt my body and my energy. In 2019 I will move back away from dairy in all forms and same goes for the red meat and back to more of my smoothies and protein from whey. I will also be playing with diet ideas from Matt Fitzgerald's book Racing Weight.

I am also reading and listing to everything I can find on how the mind works and why it tries to stop us from doing things that are beyond what it thinks we can do. The person who keeps coming up is
David Googins. I have listened to all I can find of his, and recently just got his book in the mail. I am implementing what I have got from his message each day. Just a few things I have found are - find your why.... why are doing what you are or want to do, - do something that sucks everyday in order to get out of the "feel good" zone. 


My events for 2019 are a lot lighter on ultras and more multi-sport events.

Just a Short Run half marathon								late march
Southern Tier Duathlon								4/20/2019
O24 Ultra								5/4/2019
Dam Tri								6/23/2019
Muskoka 1/2 Ironman								7/7/2019
Findley Lake Tri								8/3/2019
Lake Erie Duathlon								8/4/2019
Race for Recovery 5k								Sept
Tour De Tamarack								Sept
OC100k ultra								10/12/2019

In closing I am looking forward to training harder than the last 2 years and learning new types of racing. To date I am going to be sponsored for a 4th year by Hammer Nutrition. I am still waiting on an answer from Swiftwick Socks and Suunto. Columbia should come due in Feb. So 2019 hope your ready kolo 2.0 is coming in hot!!


#howihammer #chaseadventure

Race for Recovery 9/22/2018

The annual Race for Recovery benefits Gaudenzia Erie, Inc. and their mission to help people affected by chemical dependency...Saving lives, families and communities. 

This is my favorite 5k and its local to me. It is run at Presque Isle in Erie Pa. On this day it was cool and very windy. I went into this race not knowing what kind of speed I would have. I knew i was heavier than past years and I didnt do any speed work. The last 2 years I was able to capture 1st and 2nd place and was hoping at least for a top 5 this year. I felt good and was well fueled for the race thanks to Hammer Nutrition.

As the race started 4 of us pushed to the front and by the first turn a guy had pulled a head of the other 3 of us. by the 2nd turn we had dropped the 4th guy and seemed it would be a 3 man race. By the 1st mile marker 1st place was about 30 steps ahead and myself and another guy were going back and forth for 2nd and 3rd. At some point i realized that the other guy was not challenging me for 2nd place any longer and found him tight behind me, using me to block the wind and save energy. I moved all the way to the left side of the road since he seemed to like to run near the center of the road. As he passed me I tucked in behind him for a while. 

As we past the 2nd mile marker we were gaining on 1st by a lot. and as we got to the point were we had about 3/4 of a mile left there is a sharp turn. We caught 1st at this turn and for a second i moved into 1st place but we were 3 wide coming out of the turn. The other 2 guys had more than I did on this day and were able to pull away from me. I was just trying to keep what I had at this point and watched those two go back and forth for a few moments. Finally the guy who was running with me most of the time took over 1st and kept it.

In the end I took 3rd but this was the funnest 5k I have ever been in. Racing close like that and having 3 people put it all out there was a great experience. I do love this sport and how even though I am 44 years old I am still able to get out there and race in top spots. 

Fuel:
Hammer Gel pre race
Hammer Endurance Amino pre race
Hammer Race Day Boost pre race
Hammer Sustained Energy during race
Hammer Tissue Rejuvenator after race
Hammer Recoverite after race

Gear:
Hammer Running kit

Topo Magnifly shoes
Swifwick socks
Suunto Ambit 2