Yesterday marked one of the few triathlons that I do where I can sleep at home the night before.  I love to travel and race, but it was nice to stay at home this weekend and race in the 17^th annual Boulder Peak Triathlon.  It was especially fun this time because I had the honor to race with my dad and wife.

After our 3:45AM departure from the house, we got into Boulder just before 5 AM and got everything set up.  My mom watched our boys for the morning and we felt so grateful that she was there to babysit!  My dad was in the first wave since he was 64 and Nikki and I were in the last waves so I was hoping to catch him before the finish.  The Olympic distance bike course takes us through Boulder County with a small mountain section carved out on the bike.  This was my 7^th go around at this race and I was excited to see what I could deliver after doing a lot of ½ Ironmans this season.  After the gun went off, I had the usual difficulty in sighting for buoys at this race because of the sun.  The weather for this race, or in Boulder for that matter, is typically cloudless in the morning, so navigation is challenging as we stare directly into the sun at the start.  After rounding the buoys toward the finish, I saw I had a small lead.  I then hopped onto my Trek and was on my way. 

On the 42K bike, I was feeling good, but have felt better on this course in the past.  I just kept pushing thinking that before I know it, the race will be over (2 hrs goes fast when your used to racing over 4 hrs).  I hit the hill in Left Hand Canyon and was feeling strong but was looking forward to the flats for the remainder of the course.  The Power Meter was working well and I just kept trying to keep up the watts.  I came into T2 leading my age group and felt very good beginning the out and back 10K run. 

I was hoping to catch my dad as I knew he was ahead of me somewhere, and sure enough at mile 4 I caught him as we exchanged some Elvis quotes – “Thank you, thank you very much.”  Soon after passing dad I saw Nikki who was looking great!  She is always such great motivation for me.  I finished in 2:04, and was 1^st in my age group and 2^nd Overall amateur, a result I was happy with! 

The best part of the day by far was my dad discovering he placed 3^rd in his age group.  He went up on the awards stage just loving it – you could just see it in his face.  I took some pictures and felt very proud of him.  Coming from sea level the day before, and at age 64, it was an impressive feat! Way to go dad!!!!

Thanks for reading –

Tim

I’m pretty sure that I asked myself the following questions about 5 or 6 times throughout this race…What in the world am I doing out here? Where are the rocks, dirt, trees, people crashing all over? Man, I’ve been running forever, am I done yet? It wasn’t that wasn’t having fun out there, because I definitely was, it was just the first half Ironman/road race of the year and I just couldn’t seem to find my rhythm. Luckily, nothing disastrous happened and it ended up being an alright day :)

The Swim – Let’s just say that starting a race at 6am that is about an hour away from the finish doesn’t really make for a good night’s sleep. I woke up at 3am to walk down to Keith’s hotel and drive to the ocean with him, Devon and Brooke. We got there in plenty of time, set up, warmed up, then tackled the crazy waves and current of the sea. The running start into the crashing waves was something I don’t really handle well and ended up being washed up several times before making it out to the first buoy. Not exactly the best way to start a race, but I tried to keep my head in it, stay focused, concentrate on not swallowing the entire ocean and sight as much as possible between the giant rolling waves coming over my head. Again, not the best of swims, but considering my history of panic attacks in the water, I was thrilled that nothing completely horrible went on.

The Bike – Aerobars, TT helmet, shoes already on the bike, what’s this?!? Just kidding…it did take me a while to get into a groove though as I’ve honestly only been on my race bike a half dozen times before this race and it still felt a little foreign. I did manage to settle in a bit and start cranking through the masses of people (I started in the second to last wave). The roads were somewhat sketchy and the course was pretty crazy as well. It was beautiful riding along the coastline but the endless crossings through intersections was pretty scary and the people being held up for the race were not the happiest of people. In some ways, dodging the cars and riding over bumpy/uneven road surface was somewhat Xterra-like. Throw in some good hills like we had and it was definitely a good match :) Although I felt super flat (no pop whatsoever) and had some derailleur issues, I managed a decent bike (6th fastest) without feeling absolutely spent at the end.

The Run – My favorite part…usually. This time was a bit different. I started the run with super tight hips and figured everything would loosen up as it always does. WRONG. Within the first mile, we hit a super steep hill that required small shuffling steps in order to get up it and I’m pretty sure this locked up my hips even more. At this point, I was already off pace and just not feeling motivated. I made a point to stop at every aid station to give myself something to look forward to, but the unusually high volume of fluids I consumed/poured on me only lead to a sloshing belly and squishy shoes which is even more annoying! Focus chica, focus…yeah, not today. I went through the motions and completed the race knowing I hadn’t won my age group which meant I wasn’t getting my slot to Clearwater which was disappointing as that is what I came there for. Little did I know, there were actually 2 spots available for our age group! Clearwater it is…

The Aftermath – Seeing the entire Timex Crew at the finish line was the highlight of the day and definitely a huge attitude changer for me. Not every race can be perfect and go smoothly but knowing that you have a huge support group there no matter was happens is absolutely amazing. I am one lucky girl to be part of such a spirited team with gratuitous amounts of energy and passion. This is honestly one of the most motivating factors for me in this sport and I couldn’t be more appreciative :)

MORE PICS AND VIDEOS TO COME!

Last week we made our usual summer trip to Minnesota and Wisconsin to visit family, water-ski and get out of TEXAS! Every year I seem to grow more weary of the oppressive heat and humidity we have here in the Houston area, so a trip up north is a welcome reprieve. Unfortunately, this trip was shorter than in years past due to my girls’ activities, but nonetheless, still enjoyable. I even managed to fit in a race while visiting…the Lifetime Fitness Triathlon.

My last OLY was nearly 3 years ago. I do not race OLYs often because it is brutal distance for me, but I couldn’t pass on the opportunity to have a ‘legitimate’ reason to take my bike with me on this brief trip. The race is well-run, on a beautiful course (the fact that I could tell you more about the homes along the bike route would indicate a lack of race day focus on my part), with awesome volunteers and spectator support. I was quite impressed. The race experience itself was a reminder to me as to why I do not race this distance often and why I prefer the longer distances.

The best part of the trip was heading to the theme park inside the MOA the day after the race. Hanna and I hung out all afternoon and it was nice Mommy-Daughter time. I think riding on some of those theme-park rides is more ‘painful’ than training! The fearless wonder-child I used to be has turned into a fearFUL-I-think-I-am-going-to-puke-37-year-old. Every ride I went on I kept thinking “I sure hope the engineers knew what they were doing when they designed this ride” and after awhile I just couldn’t ride any more because my head was spinning and my stomach was churning and I felt like I had drank a little too much red wine! However, the priceless memory of having my 7 year-old tell me, “Mommy, let go of me you are squeezing my hand too tight” is now something I will never be able to live down.

Enjoy your summer.

The inaugural 2008 70.3 Rhode Island race was quite an experience. The day prior to the race was a bit hectic with the logistics of registering in Providence, then traveling out to Naragansett to drop off our bikes. We had every intention of checking out the run and bike courses, however we ran a bit short on time and had to skip the preview. Team Timex had a big contigent at the race, which was a nice bonus: Richie Cunningham, Erin Kummer, Emily Herndon, Ian Ray, Oakes Ames, myself and Keith Meyer. Tristan had driven the team truck out for the race and was extremely helpful and supportive, as always.
Race morning:
Looking out onto the early morning surf, it felt like it was going to be a nice day. There was a little bit of wind that was blowing up some chop on the water, but nothing too extreme. The pros were starting at 6am and my wave was scheduled to go off at 6:40. The swim starts were going off on time and were extremely well organized. With a loud bang, my wave was off right on que and I attempted my dolphin dives into the water from our beach start. I had planned on attempting to swim close to a friend of mine, but not all plans are executed. A fellow competitor had gotten in between us and by the time I had managed to get open water, I had lost about 10 meters. I tried to bridge the gap, but I just wasn’t strong enough to do it. I realized that I had someone swimming to my left that was basically swimming the same speed, so I slowed and hopped on his feet. This was the first race that I have been aware enough during the swim to grab some good feet to follow. It turned out to be a very good decision, as the athlete had a big kick and created a good area to swim in. I was able to save a lot of energy and as we came into the other age groups, he navigated well thru the masses. I only got kicked in the face once and it wasn’t anything serious. I was nearing the end of the swim and I thouight I might be able to ride a wave in for the last stretch, but I was not quite able to time it well enough. I hit the timing mat in 28:05, a new PR along with a very enjoyable swim.
Onto the bike: I felt great. This would be the first half IM that I would be racing with my Timex heart rate monitor and Cyclops Power meter. I usually only race with the heart monitor for the full IM distance and I had just started using the power meter over the past month. My coach, Paul Regensberg, and I have been tweaking my ranges in order to triangulate between perceived effort, power, and heart rate. This really helped to hold me back for the first twelve miles of the bike, as I really wanted to go, but realized I was a bit too bulled up and dialed it down a bit. This reduced effort at the beginning really allowed me to stay much more consistent thruought the bike. In addition, with the constant data feedback, I was able to push harder thru moments when I started to lose focus and drop a bit. I was also able to concentrate on taking my nutrition properly on the bike as I felt much better and more aware of what I needed to do. The bike was going very well, then at about mile 45, we made a left turn and I eased up while making the corner. All of a sudden both of my hamstrings started to lock up on me. I did not have any salt tablets with me, but I made sure to down a bunch of my powerade. In addition, I dropped down in my gears and pedalled with a higher cadence for a little bit. Luckily, the combination worked and I was able to get back into the aerobars and grind out the end of the bike. At mile 51, the bike course enters urban Providence and the race becomes more of a road biking effort then time trial. It’s unique and really the only way they can get the athletes into downtown. I really enjoyed the bike section and thought it was a very fair course. As I was finishing the bike, I tried to kick out my legs a bit, in hope that my hamstrings would not lock up on me. Fortunately they did not and I crossed the timing mat with a 2:15:02 bike time.
T2 was very easy and the volunteers were great. I hit the run and tried to settle in. My heart rate seemed to still be in my cycling zone, even though my perceived effort seemed higher. I decided to focus on my perceived effort at this stage since the run was just beginning and I knew there would be some hard patches to come. A little before the .5 mile mark, the run came to its first climb and this is where I wished I had previewed the course. It was a pretty severe incline that sloped up, paused, then climbed again. I put my head down and knew I would need something left for the 2nd loop. The remainder of the 1st loop was relatively flat and rolling with the exception of the return down the big hill, which was a real quad burner. I focused on keeping a consistent effort and loop 1 went pretty well. As I approached the big hill for the 2nd time, I started to cramp a bit again. I had been taking gatorade and water at every aid station, but I needed some salt. I grabbed a banana at the aid station with a cup of water and preceded to try something new during the race. I have never had a banana while racing before and usually only have liquid calories during the run as my stomach is easily distressed. Well, shortly after taking the banana, I started to have GI issues. I tried to focus on my form and keep my mind off of the discomfort in my lower abdomin region. Fortunately, the distress passed and the potassium from the banana was enough to subside the leg cramps. I was over the hill for the second climb and realized that I needed to hold it together for the remainder of the run. I wasn’t quite sure where I stood in the amateur race due to the split wave start and two loop run, but I knew there were some fast competitors racing. At mile 10, I grabbed my first coke of the day, as I was starting to feel the fatigue set in and I hoped that the caffeine would give me a boost. It did, but it came with a bit more GI distress. I focused on my form again and it worked well enough to distract my thoughts. The last two miles were tough and I was definetely feeling tired. Every athlete has different motivating thoughts when things get tough during a race. I always think about my family and the sacrifices they make, so that I’m able to pursue my passion. Those thoughts help to keep things in perspective and enable me to just be happy to be out on the course.
The crowd was amazing over the last half mile of the run. The finish area was extremely cool as we ran up close to the steps of the capital. I crossed the line in 4:08:33. I ended up 1st amateur and got my first top 10 overall finish in 8th place. Thanks for reading, hopefully it wasn’t to long.

For those of you who I’ve not had the pleasure of meeting (which is 80% of the team!), here’s a bit of trivia about me: I’m a Brit, live just south of London in the summer, and in Oz in the winter, am a rookie pro long-course triathlete and my brother is a cage fighter (so don’t mess!). But don’t hold any of these things against me!

I thought I’d finally commit to the Team Timex blog with some good news: I finally got a clean bill of health from the sports docs. :) For the first time since January I am finally 100% free of injury. Long may it last!

I had hit a bit of a setback in early January when a virus wiped me out completely for a fortnight – the result of long-hauling it back from Oz to the UK for Xmas and not breaking from volume training – and then had very little recovery prior to going on Epic Camp NZ and beasting myself for 8 days. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the best part of the next 4 months were a blur of training ups and downs, cramping and muscle pain, fatigue and moodiness! Finally, a pile of normal blood tests later, it was given a name: post viral fatigue – though luckily not as severe as some cases I’ve since seen or read about. To add insult to injury – or perhaps injury to insult – I had also picked up shin splints in March as I continued to try to drill my body through excessive fatigue and general tightness (and a questionable pair of trainers too). Luckily for me the solution to both problems was pretty similar: rest, rest and more rest. So much of March and the whole of April was pretty much a write-off, and even in May, though my appetite for training was starting to return, the running was still on hold.

So, a load of rest, a few tonnes of ice, hours of massage, aquajogging and core, a handful of physio and podiatry sessions later (and did I mention orthotics?), I started to run with trepidation at the start of June – just a few kms a week to start, and gradually building (despite a small setback when i got totalled by a bus in London!). I even went to IMCdA knowing I wasn’t running the marathon – that was tough mentally! (But great to finally meet some of the team and Tristan, as well as ride the beautiful orange Trek in a race scenario). But this week I’m hitting 70kms running – a milestone for me as it is what I generally consider a weekly floor to run volume in ‘normal’ training.

I am finally back in training properly as of next week. Touch wood I’ve not jinxed the recovery process - but you can’t blame a guy for being positive! It is amazing how great such a simple thing as being able to run properly again, and enjoy training fully can make you feel. Its not to be taken for granted! With just over 7 weeks to IMUK, looks like my season will be starting a little later than anticipated, but better late than never.

Happy training! Looking forward to meeting the rest of the team at some point – perhaps in Florida?

Toby