Taper????

Well it is now 13 days until Ironman Wisconsin. I'm back to feeling very confident. I know that I will finish and that really helps to take a lot of the pressure off. I still have it in my head that I would like to come in close to 11 hours. That will mostly depend on what the day gives me. I truly believe that the fitness is there and if I EXECUTE on race day it will happen. Of course that is the biggest challenge on race day. Executing the plan and making it through the dark periods that we all face during an IM.
I am attempting a different type of taper that I believe will help on race day. In years past with Ironman and marathons I've done 2-3 week tapers. After reading posts by ChuckieV and talking with Zach Ruble. I am going with very little taper. While both of these guys essentially say that training through the race will give you the best results I have decided to train through but at a slightly lower volume. I am still doing hard efforts this week and next week but the volume this week will be at approximately 90% of the last few weeks and next week will be at 65%. As always it is an experiment and the results are purely subjective. How can you really measure the effectiveness of a taper? If I feel good on race day it was a success, if I'm tired it didn't work out so well. Stay tuned for the results.

Catching up....

WOW, It's been a long time since I got to this. I guess in my quest to stay balanced writing got pushed to the side. It has been an incredible summer. We went to the Outer Banks in June with 2 other families. It was a great week of playing on the beach and learning to surf. Unfortunately my best friend tore his knee apart the week before we left so some of our play was hampered by his immobilizer. He had surgery to repair 3 of the 4 ligaments holding his knee together and is going through some horrific therapy now.(not at my hands) Training for IM has really gone well. Lots of big rides and some real focus to my LT training. Swimming dropped off for a while but has built up in the last few weeks and is starting to feel strong. My running frequency was picked up in July and the length of my weekday runs has never been this consistently high. I really think that this race will go well if I can execute on race day. Of course that is always the hardest part! I'm leaving for Madison in the morning to train on the course for 4 days. We will get close to 300 miles of riding in the first 3 days. There will be some transition runs after those rides and a loop of the course (13mi)on Sunday before we head for home. We have done this before and it really helps with knowing the course and building confidence in the training up to this point. It could be hot and I'm looking forward to practicing in some heat. It has been a record cold summer here in IN. Great for training but it has me worried that the heat will hit again on race day and I won't be used to it at all. The goal for a sub 11 hour race is still there and everyday I gain confidence. I'll try and stay updated on this more frequently. As always thanks for reading.

I feel a groove coming....

Really starting to feel good about training again. I've hit a good level of consistency and feel the fatigue building. It's been hard not to run more but I really think it will pay off to stick with more riding and swimming for another week. Having said that I'm going to do my first tri in the morning. That water is really going to be cold. Not really hoping for much as far as being competitive but we'll see what happens.

Great weekend!

Started out on Friday night getting in some yard work before the rain came and felt great to have that out of the way. Woke up early Sat and got dressed to go for a ride. Drinking my coffee and checking the weather was disappointing it was 41* outside and not what I consider ideal or really even pleasant. With time constraints I hopped on the trainer and caught up on TV and got a nice 2 hr ride done. Next up was running errands with G-Man and playing in the backyard. We started repaving the patio that has been torn up all winter and then he went down for a nap. I must say the patio turned out great. Movie with the guys that afternoon and dinner with all the kids and wives afterwards made for a great Saturday. Slept in on Sunday and played with G some before heading out to the farm to relocate the RC track then a very nice 55 mile ride in the afternoon with some guys from the club. Bonked hard on the way home and struggled the rest of the night to not eat everything I could find in the kitchen. Managed to get a little of everything in this weekend; training time, family time, and bro time. Great Weekend!

Race Report for Glass City Marathon (Toledo)

Well things did not go as planned for this race. I did manage to stay relaxed up until the night before the race. Woke up at 2 or 3 in the morning and was keyed up for the race. The distressing part was the severe change in temps the last few days before the race. It was HOT. Into the 80's for a few days and it was forecast to do the same on race day with a catch. T-storms were also forecast so there was hope for me. I got out of bed and it was cloudy and 54* with a light breeze, still decent conditions I thought. That all ended about 1/2 mile into the race. The clouds went poof and the full blue skies opened up. Heading out along the south side of the river into a nice breeze and still felt pretty good. I was staying at a nice 6:45 pace and feeling good but cautious. As the temps continued to climb my pace slacked a little and I began to think that I could stay 7:00 pace and maybe pick up some more time in the last few miles and still get under 3 hours. That goal was then replaced with stay within BQ time and go under 3:15. The turn back to Toledo on the north side of the river meant the light breeze was behind me and it felt like the oven had been turned on. At around 19 miles the warning signs of dehydration were starting to come on so I switched to getting done with out going into the med tent as my goal. This meant walking too much and taking it easy. Dumping water over my head all day had helped but at times I got to preoccupied with cooling off and did not drink enough. Lesson -- drink first then cool down -- especially when the aid stations are 2-3 miles apart. Only vomited once at the 25 mile mark and jogged the last mile in. Finished at 3:34:44 25th place overall and 10th in my age group. I was very discouraged after this race and even contemplated bagging Ironman. But I think I've worked through the doubts and accepted that it just wasn't my day on Sunday. One of these days I'll figure out how to race longer distances in the heat, I know I will be able to do it. Thanks for reading.

Taper Time

Well it's finally here. Taper time. This time I'm going to work on staying more relaxed and not get stressed out. Last year I had a great race at the Sunburst Half going in with the only goal of getting a quick training run and seeding time for Chicago. I'd like to think of this race as nothing special in my head and just let it happen. "Easier said than done."

I miss my bike.

Went out tonight after work on the bike. It was so nice and sunny that the training plan had to change. Called a freind and headed out for a nice spin. Ended up riding about 1 1/2 hours. I really enjoy getting out on my bike. I'm really looking forward to May when running will be a once a week thing while the legs recover. Right now the plan is to ride 4-5 days a week and swim 2-3 times with maybe one run just to keep the feel. Getting out on my bike is such an awesome feeling after riding the trainer all winter. I wonder if people in the warmer climes get that rush at any time? It isn't that running is a chore, it is my first love. Riding is a close second however. I don't know how to really describe the feeling.
I can't decide on a race for May. Our club race is on the 16th but that water is REALLY cold and it would be only 2 weeks past the marathon. I'm just waiting to see what happens for now. The rest of year looks like it will be:
June 7 Rockman Half Iron
June 14 Flag City Tri
July 11 Muncie Endurathon Half Iron
July 25-26 Pancake Stage Race
August 6-9 Madison Training Trip
Sept 13 Ironman Wisconsin
Sept 26 Fort 4 Fitness Half Marathon
Nov 7 Iceman Cometh MtB Race

Hoping to add in a shorter tri somewhere in May and July just not sure where yet. Maybe an Xterra event for the July race and some other MtB races in October to get ready for Iceman. Of course everything could change at the drop of a hat so this is just a loose outline for the season ;D