10th Professional - 9:26:30 

I thought I should write a race report before I forget more of the details from this last weekend. Each Ironman that I race, I find another piece or two to “the puzzle” of having a great race. This time was no exception. Improvement is ALWAYS good and this race was just that. It was my first top 10 professional finish, it was a PR on a tough course and it is the first time that I have qualified to race in Kona as an elite.

All week everyone worried about the water temperature being too cold, but when we arrived at the start line on Sunday morning, it was back up to 59*F…perfect temp to me. The swim started off pretty well considering it was a beach start…I don’t do well with those. I missed the front group of guys that broke away, but ended up in the second pack about 4:45 behind. There was a wicked current that seemed to push us all over the place, so everyone came out a bit slow. I exited the water in 9th and hustled through T1 to make it out onto the bike in 7th.

Onto the bike I felt pretty good. I was really looking forward to the ride, as it is similar to what I have been training in. I let a few guys go, who were HAMMERING the first section, and just stayed steady. Having my Power Tap is a HUGE key to doing this. I stuck to my plan and rode along in 9th or 10th spot for most of the ride. I started to bring back time on a few guys up the road, but at about mile 70 I started to get tired. I just tried to take advantage of the downhills, stay aero where I could and keep on top of my nutrition. I wasn’t sure what was going on, but I just stayed positive and in the moment. The last 20mi were back into the wind and this section was pretty tough for me.

I got off the bike in 10th and was soon out on the run with Olly Piggin. We chatted a bit in the first few miles and had similar paces. The effort and pace seemed good, but I didn’t have the rhythm that I wanted. I hoped that I would find my groove and could settle in. I was pulling back time on the guys up the road, but then the wheels started to come off a bit. I knew I was in 9th or 10th, so I just focused on running as strong as I could. I was happy with my ability to not back off mentally when it got tough, this is easy to do. Soon, I was in the last mile (a looooooong downhill that feels awesome on the legs) and before I knew it, I was done.

I want to thank all my family, friends and sponsors who support and believe in me and my future in the sport. Timex, The Trek Store Madison, Blue Seventy, Coffee’s of Hawaii, Twin Six, SaltStick, Berkeley Running Company in Madison and my coach, Kurt Perham, for all his guidance. 

I want to give a huge shout out to the Fortis family for hosting me. You guys are awesome!! I also want to thank Sue Hutter and her family for setting everything up and always making sure that I had everything that I needed. 

One more fun fact: Tom Evans, who won, is 14yrs my senior :) Needless to stay I am just beginning!!! 

Next up is Ironman Wisconsin on Sept 7 and Kona on Oct 11!! 

“The boss,” Kurt, and I decided to go into this race with a little less rest than California 70.3 earlier in the year. The idea would be to get a little more quality training in before Ironman Coeur d’Alene in a few weeks. As last week rolled along, I was tired and didn’t start to feel better until Friday night before the race.

The weather forecast looked sketchy and did not disappoint. Hot temps, humidity and high winds were forecast, along with severe weather. The day before race, there were winds gusting to 60-70mph, humid temps in the high 80’s and storms with tornadoes in the area.

Our plan was to dial back the watts on the bike and pay close attention to electrolyte intake. It is one thing to have someone else beat you, but it is another thing to beat yourself.

Race morning came around and it looked like we might be able to get the race in without incident. With about 30min to go until the start, I checked over everything and started to head down to the water. I took about 10 steps, stopped and decided to go back and look at the tires on my bike, just to make sure I was ready to roll. A little OCD I think :), but I was glad that I did!! The front looked good, but as I looked at the rear I noticed a tiny lump in the rubber. I poked around and found a nail stuck all the way into the tire….WOW, this would have given me a flat for sure. The little things do matter.

I quickly headed down to the start and got in a very solid 15-20min of swimming. I really wanted to make sure I started the day off well. The gun sounded and I swam HARD. There were 15, 10, then 5, then 4 of us. I was determined to stay in the group and drilled myself. My HR monitor told me that my HR was between 180-186 for the first 12+ minutes of the race. BUT, I did make the group. With about 200m to go, the sprint began for the swim prime, which I didn’t want any part of. I was 4th out of the water and 2nd out of T1.

Once on the bike, I just used my Powertap to guide my effort. I dialed back the watts and focused on getting low/aero and just rode steady. It was windy, humid, but thankfully not sunny. I upped my electrolyte intake by about 50%, using Saltstick tabs. I got to the turn around, where I had about a 4:15 lead on the next athlete, Zach Ruble, who I know is very talented, so I still didn’t feel very safe. I rolled along, taking advantage of free speed where I could and arrived back to T2.

A quick transition and I was out on the run. The run course went out for about a half mile on the bike course before turning off. I didn’t see another cyclist, but anything can happen in long course racing. With 3 turn arounds on the run, the plan was to run hard, as long as I had to.

I turned after the half mile and all I could see was a black sky. I was HOT and actually rain didn’t sound that bad. I went through the first 3 miles feeling good with a solid pace/HR. Then the sky opened up. You couldn’t see anything!!! The path turned into a river and there was lightning everywhere.

I got to the first turn around and knew that I had a good gap, but still didn’t know where everyone else was. Since it was early in the race I decided to push until the second turn around. I headed across a wide open field and over a hill and was literally scared for my life. There were lightning bolts everywhere and I couldn’t see anything with the rain. At least I wasn’t hot anymore, right???

I got to mile 7 and the second turn around where I would get a chance to see everyone else. I was very happy to find out that I had a 12min lead with 6 miles to go. I thought, “As long as I don’t get struck by lightning or crushed by a tree, I am ok.” I eased off the pace, thanked the volunteers who stuck it out all day in the horrible weather and enjoyed all of the hard work that I have put in over the last 6 weeks, as well as what would be my largest paycheck to date.

With 2 weeks to go, I still have a few key workouts left and have to stay healthy, but feel very confident for June 22. Thank you to all of the family, friends and companies that believe in me. Timex, Blue Seventy, Twin Six Clothing, The Trek Stores of Madison, Coffees of Hawaii, Salt Stick, Berkeley Running Co. and Personal Best Multisport.

I hope to report back soon with more good results.

Full results for Rockman can be found here.

This last weekend I raced the first important race of the 2008 season at the California 70.3 Half Ironman.  I came into the race with 5 days rest as I started my taper for Ironman Arizona on April 13^th.
Training has been going well and I hadn’t been below 20hrs of training per week since the middle of December.  Needless to say I was anxious to see what I could do.
Race morning brought cool temperatures in the low 50’s, but not as cold as they could have been.   The water was also a chilly 60*, which hurt the face a little bit upon getting in.  I had my new Blue Seventy TST Wetsuit which is much improved over last year and I felt ready to go. 
We only had about 5-8min of warm-up before the gun went off, which I don’t think was enough for me.  I moved to the second row of athletes and keyed off of a few others who I thought were slightly faster swimmers.  Today, they were more than that.  The horn sounded and the effort was not hard, but I couldn’t get the arms to turn over like I needed.  Within 300 meters I was off the back and I thought I was in “no-man’s land”……until the turn buoy when I flipped on my back to check out the situation and saw I was pulling a group of over 20 athletes.  As I rounded the second turn buoy, I had NO idea where I was going and proceeded to turn 90* the wrong direction (sorry guys).  This actually ended up benefiting me.  Lewis Elliot took the lead and proceeded to sit in on his feet, as I had no idea where we were going.  We exited in a little bit over 27 minutes.  But about 2:30 back from the first pack.
Out of the water and onto the bike.  My Trek TTX 9.9 SSL and  Wireless Powertap SL was showing me the wattage that I was hoping for.  I rode steady out to hills, passing 10-15 athletes on the way.  Once through the tough climbs, I was greeted with a stiff headwind back to transition.  Normal Power for the ride was 308 watts.  This is 28 watts higher than I have seen in the past and a huge jump for me.
I took off onto the run with a few other athletes and found the first few miles a bit tough, but at mile 3 things got better.  I was still off of my goal pace, but not by much.  I ran the next 5 miles at about 5:55 per mile, but soon I had a few twinges and had to back off a bit.  I managed to pass a few more athletes to finish with a run of 1:20 and a finish time of 4:15.  It was good enough for 17^th place overall.
This was not a bad way to start the season at all and I have been able to gather a lot of confidence from this race in knowing that I can compete with almost any athlete on that start line. 
After the race I attended my Timex Team Camp is Carlsbad, CA and had a great time catching up with old teammates and meeting a few new ones.  We have a great support team this year which includes great managers and new sponsors including Trek, Powerbar, Bontrager, Powertap(Saris), Rudy Project, Timex and TP Massage Rollers.
I also want to thank my homestay in Cali, Sergio Gurrieri.  Your hospitality was much appreciated.  Now I had about 10 days to Ironman Arizona.  Be sure to check out live coverage at www.ironman.com on April 13^th, starting at 6:45am Pacific.

  ]]> http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/2008/02/10/a-good-start-to-the-season-in-tampa/feed/ http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/2008/01/17/to-drill-or-to-drill-it/ http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/2008/01/17/to-drill-or-to-drill-it/#comments Fri, 18 Jan 2008 01:46:17 +0000 Blake Becker Racing http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/2008/01/17/to-drill-or-to-drill-it/
 

We are now well into the colder months here in the northern hemisphere, or what some call the “off season.” It provides an opportunity to work on our weaknesses, which for a lot of us is swimming.

Ok, that gets us to the next question; How do I improve my swimming? Do I just do drills? Do I swim long….or hard? Do I swim more frequently? Which one is it coach?

You will talk to some who will tell you that swimming is 70%+ technique and 30% pure fitness, so most of your time should be spent perfecting your technique……ok.

Then there are those that like the phrase “more is more.” They will tell you that if you want to swim faster, you have to swim MORE. More meaning; longer, faster, more often…….ok

So which one is it? BOTH

I argue that to swim faster, you need to do both. You need to include drills at the beginning of your workouts, you need to swim hard during your main-sets and you need to swim more often.

You hear it all the time: “The best way to swim faster is to swim like a pure swimmer.”

Do you see swimmers excluding drills from their training?….no. Do you see them just out there drilling and swimming steady?…..no. They do both.

Here are a few ideas for you:

1) Swim as often as your schedule allows, but don’t forget about riding, running and your strength work. Keep these other disciplines in maintenance mode.

2) Structure your week around 2-4 key swim workouts, these workouts should have a warm-up with drills, a transition set(prepare you for main-set), a main-set and maybe a pull-set.

3) In your key workouts, ALWAYS include drills in your warm-up. Then focus on speed and strength. This includes HARD intervals(sprinting), pulling and paddle work.

4) Focus on drilling and aerobic sets during any extra swims that you add each week.

5) Get your stroke looked at every few weeks by a GOOD swim coach. When you are swimming easy, at race pace and fast (sprinting). Most people’s form changes significantly.

So if you are looking to bump up your swim this coming season, you need to keep the drills mixed in, but you also need to JFT…or SWIM HARD!

Off to the pool…

 BB

GOLFing in the Pool

I am about 5 weeks into my swim block and am making some great progress. I will share some times and number in another week or two, but first I wanted to share a great drill that I have learned and seem results using(in both myself and my athletes).

Over the course of the last 5 weeks I have learned a lot from those that have spent their entire lives in the pool. One “drill” or “game” that I have learned is called GOLF. No, there are no clubs or balls used in this game. It is easy, yet VERY effective. The goal is to swim fast with as few strokes as possible. The sets are usually made up of descending 50’s.

To get your score, you add the number of strokes it took you to complete the 50, to your time. For example, if you swam a 50 with 32 strokes in 40 seconds, your score would be 32 + 40, or 72.

The purpose of this drill is to keep you “long” in your stroke. Most triathletes have a tendency to have a short choppy stroke(especially when swimming fast) and this can be a fun way to work on improving that.

So, the next time you are at the pool, add in a set or two of “4×50 descending GOLF” on 15s rest in to your warm-up. The goal would be to get a lower score for each 50.

Try it, give it some time and let me know what you think.

 

My last race seemed like an eternity ago and since then a lot has happened, so I thought I would update everyone as to what I have been up to as Ironman Wisconsin approaches. I have put all of my ‘eggs’ in the Ironman basket this year. My training called for me to hold back for a huge portion of the year, this was something that was new to me and was also something that proved to be move difficult than I thought. But my coach, Luis Vargas, assured me that there would be a time to go hard and that it would pay off.

Well that time came and we decided to insert two races into the schedule. The races were treated as HARD training sessions. They would follow a big training block and would be preceded by 3 easy days. Here is a results summary, with details below.

Iron Abe Olympic

July 29, 2007

Swim: 22:27 Bike: 56:58 Run: 36:46 Finish 1:57:22

2nd Overall

http://www.onlineraceresults.com/pdf/5997.pdf

Pleasant Prairie Olympic

August 19, 2007

Swim: 19:13 Bike: 58:05 Run: 35:11 Finish 1:54:44

1st Overall

http://www.pleasantprairietriathlon.com/raceresults/index.asp

I found the Iron Abe Triathlon just a little over a week before I needed race. It was about a 4 hr drive south to Springfield, IL (birthplace of Abraham Lincoln…thus the name “Iron Abe Triathlon”) and I seemed like a good race. Oh yeah, it gave an opportunity for a small paycheck as well. Anyway, I stayed with a friend in the area and before I knew it I was getting set up on race morning.

The water was WARM, so there would be no wetsuits. But I had my Blue Seventy Pointzero3 speed suit. Through some testing done in the pool by myself, as well as another teammate, I knew that this suit could save a few seconds per 100m. The gun went off and I found myself gapped by a few meters, at the first buoy. I really try to build my swims to allow for me to have a few options as things sort out. In doing so, I was able to close the gap by the turn and decided to sit comfortably in the group. About ¾ of the way through the swim, I realized that there was another swimmer off the front!!! I had sworn that we were the first group, but there was another swimmer about 75m up. I tried to lift the pace, but it just wasn’t worth it.

I hopped on the bike and just tried to get into a good rhythm. The ride was flat, so I could see the lead rider just ahead. I was steadily clawing back time and the gap was down to about 40sec at the turn around. The roads were not all that smooth, but one really nice feature of the TTX is that the carbon really eats up the vibration from the roads. On the way back I got within about 20sec, when a car that was stopped at an intersection, decided to do a Y turn right in front of me. I nearly lost it, but managed to squeeze through. It was a bit frustrating, as the gap was now back to about 40 sec.

After a quick T2 I was out on the run about 30s down. I felt ok, but legs were just not there. I had only been doing speed work for a few weeks and I didn’t have the turn-over that I needed. Daniel Bretscher, a very talented short course guy, took the overall win and I cruised in about 2min back. It was a solid day, but I knew that I could do more.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

In the 3 weeks after the race I put in my most intense IM specific block of training. I was a little MIA at times, but I got through it. Ironman is so much more than just how many watts you can push and what pace you can run at what HR. There are so many unknowns that need to be addressed. This was where my focus was over these weeks and while I reached new levels of fitness, I also answered all those questions. I was now hoping for a good “fitness pop” before I start to taper.

After 3 lighter training days, I felt ready to give a good effort. I awoke to POURING rain….which was beginning to feel like the norm. We have had almost 10 inches in the last week alone and it wasn’t looking like it was going to stop for the race. I drove an hour to the race site from a relative’s house and was debating turning around, just about every exit. I arrived, parked and rode my bike from the remote parking to the race site…in the POURING rain. The buzz around the race site was that they would make an announcement soon. Well, somehow the weather let up and they decided to give things a go.

After a quick set-up, I put on my Helix…aka, “Second Skin” and jumped in the water for a good swim warm-up. I jumped out and we all lined up on the beach for the downhill FAST start. The gun went off and we sprinted for the water. I went out strong to find some feet and it worked out well. I was fourth in line and we were alone. Only problem is that the two guys directly in front of me popped, one-by-one. I pulled around and worked it solo for the remainder of the swim. I held the gap of about 15seconds and hopped out in a new PR of 19:13.

I got onto the bike and didn’t feel great right away, but tried to stay smooth. My Timex HR Monitor showed that I was where I needed to be, and my Powertap SL showed good power. I knew that it was just a matter of time until I felt better. I never got into a groove, but did hit the wattage that I had hoped for.

I came off the bike with a good lead, but still tried to push the pace as much as possible. I wanted to see if I could make a good improvement in my run split from my previous race. I came through mile 1 in 5:26 and felt good with a HR of 168. I knew that my training was working and pushed, but also enjoyed the rest of the race. I crossed in 1:54:44.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I now have three weeks until Ironman Wisconsin and I feel like I am right where I want to be. I have a great team, coach and support system to hopefully let everything fall into place on Sept. 9. I will check in again as we get close. Thank you to everyone for their support. Please visit my website for more info, www.blakebecker.com

My Coach Luis Vargas: www.luisvargas.com

Saris Cycling Group – www.saris.com

Timex Team Site: http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/

Madison Trek Bike Store: www.trekstoremadison.com

Fleet Feet Madison: www.fleetfeetmadison.com

Blue Seventy Wetsuits: www.blueseventy.com

]]> http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/2007/08/20/double-your-becker-buzz/feed/ http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/2007/07/09/the-becker-buzz-2/ http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/2007/07/09/the-becker-buzz-2/#comments Mon, 09 Jul 2007 16:31:22 +0000 Blake Becker Racing http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/2007/07/09/the-becker-buzz-2/ The Becker Buzz
July 8, 2007
 

Lake Stevens 70.3
Swim: 26:51   Bike: 2:21:20   Run: 1:21:17   Finish 4:11:36
10th Overall
 

            I headed out to the Northwest on Thursday before the race to hopefully see a little bit of the course, as well as the beautiful scenery.  The northwest is beautiful!!  The city of Seattle itself is a bit crowded, but does have its draws.  The city is comprised of “hills,” or neighborhoods that overlook various waterways and other geographical features.  The backside of the neighborhood where I am staying has a view that will raise a few hairs on anyone’s neck.   If you look to the left, you see Mt. Rainier.  If you look right, you look across the Puget Sound at the Olympic Mountains.  Definitely a “WOW” factor going on here.
 

Ok, onto the race.  I was able to drive both the bike and the run, which was good, but it would definitely have helped to have ridden the loop before the race.  No worries at all however.  My race plan was to try to swim with the pack, ride my own race and then have a good run. 
 

Race Day:
 

The weather was cloudy and cool at the start, with temps around 50*, so I made sure to get in a good solid warm-up.  I tried a longer swim warm-up of 20-30min, just as I would in the pool, and after this race I will make sure to keep it in my routine.
 

I racked my red rocket (the TTX) and thought I was ready to roll.  However, halfway through my swim warm-up I realize that I forgot to lay my socks out for the run.  I cut across the course, cut through transition, got them out and thought I was set again (more to come on this a bit later in my report).
 

I adjusted my Full Sleeved Blue Seventy Helix and before I knew it, I was on the starting dock.  As the National Anthem played, I looked around.  “Where did all of these guys come from?” I wondered.  There were over 20 male pros at the start. 
 

My plan was to find Chris Legh and stick to him like glue.  I somehow managed to lose him right before the gun went off (only to later realize he moved behind me).  Gun goes off, I find feet and we are cruising.  About 800m into the swim I look to my left and there is Chris.  “Great.” I thought.  “This is right where I want to be.  We zigzagged all over the place (the pack does NOT swim straight) and things were good until about 1600m into the swim.  Somehow, the notion popped into my head that I had forgotten to put my Power Tap computer on my bike.  I spent the remainder of the swim debating what I should do.  To add to things, the pack was going left and the exit was to the right.  I decided to break off, which proved to be a bad idea.  It is MUCH faster to sit in the group, no matter what!  I only lost about 25sec to them, but it would have been nice to have gotten pulled through entire swim.  Still, I exited in 26:51 a big PR for me.
 

I got to my bike and decided to leave the computer in my bag.  I didn’t know exactly where it was and I was supposed to ride by HR anyway.  I got on and just couldn’t get things rolling.  I was cautious about going too hard on the first of two challenging loops, but the legs were just not there and my HR was beginning to fall.  I had a few cyclists go by and just tried to keep my head in it.  At about 25 miles, things started to feel a little better, but my HR was still low.  Then I just decided to DRILL the first 10miles of climbing on the second loop to re-pass and pull away from a few others.  I got back to transition less than happy about my ride, but I did manage to negative split the loops by about 3 minutes.
 

As I headed out on the run, I was told I was in 12^th.  I could see a few guys up the road, but didn’t make any progress as I the first two miles were a bit slow.  Then at mile 2, Jordan Jones, a great runner from Boulder, came by.  I made a decision to stick to him and to my surprise I did.  We were clicking off miles just under and just over 6min pace.  My HR was not as high as I would have liked, but I just focused on hanging tough. 
 

I managed to pass Jordan back and catch Adam Jensen, who was just sixth as Ironman Coeur D’Alene and Brent Lorenzen in the final miles.  I came across with a solid run of 1:21 and in 10^th overall.
 

I was a bit tired from all of the IM training, as was indicated by my low HR’s, but I was satisfied that I went as well as I did.  The main focus is September 9^th.  Now I am taking it easy for a few days, before starting the next block of training.
 

Thank you to my great host family, my friends and family, as well my sponsors who believe in me. Congrat’s also to Gabriela and Laura on their 8th place and 10th place finishes!  Here are some related links as always:
 

Lake Stevens 70.3 Results: http://www.pem-usa.com/racedata/ls07/LS07elite.html
 

My Coach Luis Vargas: www.luisvargas.com
 

Timex Team Site: http://teamtimex.timexblogs.com/
Madison Trek Bike Store: www.trekstoremadison.com
Fleet Feet Madison:  www.fleetfeetmadison.com
Blue Seventy Wetsuits: www.blueseventy.com