This year marks the 4^th year in a row that I have started my season in Oceanside, CA, at the Ironman California 70.3.   Being one of the first major US races of the season there is always a large amount of very talented athletes who show up and this year was no different.  Because I have done this race so many times, it has become a bit of a barometer for me.  To some extent I can subjectively compare year to year as well as get the first race of the year under my belt and see where I can improve and focus my training.  However, this year not only did it serve the usual purpose, it also was my first race since my stress fracture last spring.  I had not raced for 10 months so, yes there are certainly things I need to work on, manly my running, however, given the circumstances I am pretty pleased with my race and the results.  I finished 20^th in a very strong male pro field, however, and most importantly I ran without any pain in my hip at the site of my (former) stress fracture! :)

I arrived in sunny SoCal a few days early, and stayed with my friend Leslie in Solana Beach, THANKS LESLIE!  Oh, and by the way, it is official, I love San Diego!  On Race morning I woke up for my usually pre-race 3am breakfast of  24oz of Ultragen, a banana and apple sauce ( I was trying something different and skipped the tomato soup…sorry :( ).  I got to the race site around 5am with plenty of time until my 6:40 swim start.  I prepped my transition area, said hello to several friends and competitors and went for a short warm up jog with fellow Timex Team Member Tim Hola.  Had half a PowerBar, 20oz of sports drink and pre-race and before I knew it I was in the 59 degree water and ready to go!

Swim 26:40

A little slow, but I have been working very hard on my swim with Dave Williams of Triangle Multisport and fellow pro triathletes of the triangle and it is certainly paying off.  I had taken care putting on my Aquasphere wetsuit to make sure that it was well positioned on my body and it felt pretty good and certainly kept me warm in the chilly water.  A few sighting and tactical errors caused me to loose my group for the last quarter of the swim, but I felt strong and smooth throughout the whole swim, certainly an improvement! :)

Bike 2:24

I had only ridden my new Orbea Ordu a few times, however, it felt great out on the course today, very stiff and very smooth.  Also I should note this was the first time I had raced in the new Rudy Project Wingspam helmet, it was fantastic!  The first hour of the bike, as we cruised up the coast, I really pushed the pace and was very aggressive with my pacing.  I was taking in as much of my nutrition mixture as I could, however, it was tough while riding at this pace and I was getting very bloated.  I backed off on the caloreis and began to feel better.  My PowerTap was showing me numbers well above 300w for most of this portion.   I was really suffering for certain periods of this hour, however, I knew I needed to be aggressive to get into a strong, non-drafting, group of riders to help push each other.  At the 1hr mark I found myself with 4-5 other riders and as we turned away from the coast and begin to climb the hills of Camp Pendleton, I settled into my goal half-Ironman pace/power and rhythm and began to take in more nutrition.  The hills on the backside of Camp Pendleton were tough as always, however, the wind was stronger than in years past and made it tough at times.  I made a few surges though out this section to make sure I maintained contact with the group and it may have taken a little more out of me that I would have liked, but hey…it’s march.  At mile 45 one of the rides in our group took off ahead and I decided to go with him, however, by mile 50 I was riding harder than I wanted to at that portion of the race, so I eased off and cruised into T2 at a slightly more relaxed pace.

Run 1:25

Yeah, this was the one point of the race that I certainly need to improve on, however, again, given my injury last year, simply completing the run without hip pain is a big improvement.  As my wife said to me before the race, “anytime you feel horrible and want to stop, just think, last year you couldn’t even have tried to race, so be grateful and don’t give up!”  I found myself thinking of these words a several times on the course, but particularly the run.  The first half of the run my low back was very tight, which I have learned, from my Physical Therapist, is an indication that my running form is poor and I am placing undue stress on my hip, which often begins to hurt shortly after my lower back begins to tighten.  I thought I was going to have to go into “survival mode” as they call it.  I slowed my pace a little and focused on my form.  My lower back slowly loosened and my stride became more fluid and efficient, I found some energy and I actually got to take advantage of the quick toe off of my Brooks Ravenna running shoes.  The second half of the run felt much better, I was running pretty well and came pretty close to negative split on the run.  I continued to take in what nutrition I could and I caught up to and passed a few guys.  In the last mile there were 3 of us who were all within 20-30 seconds of each other, they surged ahead and I had nothing left in the legs, I was moments away from running out of fuel as I crossed the line.  In retrospect I forgot to take my gel at the end of the bike heading into T2, not sure why I forgot…I guess I am just of out practice.  I think this, along with my concern about my hip, may have been my mistake, lesson learned.

All in all, not a bad day in Oceanside.  I celebrated my return to racing with a fish taco and a carne asada burrito and washed it all down with an extra large portion of Ultragen, it was delicious!! :)  There were some highpoints and there were some low, but more importantly I am back to racing and on track to have a great season.  As always a huge thank you to Timex, my coach Kurt Perham, Larry Rosa for the photos, my teammates/training partners and all my sponsors and partners who help and support me along the way.  However, most importantly a huge thank you to my wife, Ashley, for being so understanding and patient with me through the last painful (physically and emotionally) 10 months.

I arrived at LAX on Tuesday.  I had a quick visit with my sister-in-law and one of my advisors for residency and my future sports medicine career.  On Wednesday I then drove down to San Diego where I am staying at a friends house in beautiful Solana Beach.  Team sports shipped my new Orbea bike here and I spent a good chuck on the afternoon building it up and took it for a shake down ride on the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH).  All I have to say is that it is awesome!!  Yesterday, got in a great swim (I love swimming in outdoor pools!) and then headed to Road Runner Sports to help with a training session to teach them about all the great Timex products they sell and provide tech support.  We mainly focused on the Ironman 50 lap sleek with Tap technology as well as the line of awesome heart rate monitors.  We even gave them a sneak preview of the Timex Global Trainer, the all-in-one GPS unit that will be coming out in the fall.

Get excited.  However, most importantly I am lying low today, grazing on PowerBars and getting ready to race Ironman California 70.3 tomorrow! :)  This will be the 4th year I have raced here and will be my first race since being side lined with an injury back in May of 2009.  It has been 10 months since my last race…FAR TOO LONG!  I’m going to go out there and just have fun!  It is always a very competitive race and a huge and talented field always shows up, so I have no expectations…obviously I want to race well, but there is bound to be some rust to shake off.  After my race I am headed back up to LA to hang out with my sister-in-law for a few more days and then back home to North Cackalacky.

For New Years my wife, dog and I made a whirlwind tour of New England.  We drove up from Durham, NC to visit various family and friends and while we were in Providence, RI I made a stop by the Tri Fit Lab.  Todd Kenyon has created a top secret new machine that will revolutionize the fit process and I was happy to be a guinea pig…I mean pioneer of this new method.  This new machine is top secret (hence the blurred out picture below), however, I can say that it enabled Todd to independently change various proportions and fit dimensions of the bike I was riding, while I was riding a hard threshold set.  We played around with various methods to determine the best way to determine the best fit with the best power production.  At first I watched my power while Todd told me what changes he was making and I would try to figure out what felt better.  However, I found it very difficult to be objective and honest with what position felt better or was more powerful.  We then decided to try changing parameters while holding a constant power and without giving me any information.  All I had to say was what felt better, “number 1, or number 2.”  Much like the eye doctor asks you which lens lets you see better without giving you any prior information.  I found this method very helpful and after some tweaks we got me into a great position where I was very comfortable and still able to produce optimal power.  This never would have been possible without this new machine.  It may sound cliche, but it is going to revolutionize the way that a rider if fit.  You can find a little more information about this machine at here and find out more about Todd and his fit services at www.ttbikefit.com.

Thanks, www.alexmmtri.com

I was unable to even try to qualify for Kona this year, due to my stress fracture, which was frustrating indeed, but I had a great consolation prize. My wife had already taken the week off from work (scheduled a year ago) just incase I qualified. However, we decided that we should still take a trip, so went to Denver and Telluride, CO for the week, in addition it was to celebrate our anniversary.  Being that half the team seems to be from Colorado, I figured it was time for a visit.  In short, what a great trip! I got to visit my friends from med school now living in Denver, and see their new baby. He is also the person who first got me into triathlon and it was great to reconnect with him. As for Telluride, let’s just say it is a magical place! ☺ My wife and I did lots of hiking (up to an elevation of almost 13,000 feet) had some delicious meals and had a wonderful time in general. Here are some photos from the trip.

Thanks

www.alexmmtri.com

For the past 2 years the final touch on my training for the Ironman World Championships in Kona, HI has been racing the Duke Liver Center ½ Iron Triathlon, which has now become my home town race since moving here in 2008. Regardless, of my current racing, or lack there of, this year, I could not let this race go by without being involved in some way. So, despite the rain and early morning start I rode my bike the 20 miles to the race, volunteered for a few hours and then rode home. It was a lot of fun to watch, help out and be involved from a different perspective. My injury and set backs this year finally gave me the time to volunteer.

I have always meant to volunteer more at races, however, with my own training and racing schedule normally very full I always found it difficult to find the time and the energy. This year I have had, at least the time and have found the energy. Between working the expo in Lake Placid to volunteering this weekend I had a great time and have a new found respect for the volunteers and expo workers within the triathlon industry. I would encourage everyone to get involved from a different perspective, if you have raced, volunteer. If you have volunteered, race! J

The best part of this weekend was watching my friends and occasional training partners rip it up on race day. Including Timex teammate Eric bean cross the line first!

Full Results here.

Thanks, www.alexmmtri.com