MURTHA'S TRIATHLON BLOG

Gearing up for my 2nd stress test (hopefully doing better than the banks)!

2009-04-17T20:05:00.002-05:00

Well actually my bank (Regions Bank) is posting a suprise profit for the 1st quarter! So I think they are handling the stress test well. Now sponsor me damnit!

So I have the ING Georgia Marathon in the books. 26.2 miles in 4 hours and 20 minutes (~9:55/mi).

I have been swimming most of my workouts at 2.4 miles, (around 85 laps in my gym pool). I just need the water to warm up a bit more so that I can get out in lake Allatoona and log some miles in the lake. I was out there last weekend for half an hour (I think the water temp was 50 degrees) and I did swallow half the lake... have to get back into the habit of watching out for wakes when boats pass by!

Now the bike.... the problem is that this is the area I am lagging in, and I will spend the most time during the race in this event (I am looking to do this in about 7 hours or less, trying to be conservative). Soooo....... to solve this problem I have entered into a century ride with a friend on May 3rd in North Alabama. I am kinda excited actually, except for the small mountain (i did not want to insult anyone who is in the area to call it a hill) that you have to climb both ways (it is an out and back course). Oh well.... Make the event harder than the Ironman so the IM is a breeze.

Still have my checklist to check off. My bonus is not going to be as big as I thought (I am disputing it because the numbers tell me that my branch knocked the numbers off the charts, and the incentive division says we lost money??? WTF?) so I am really going to have to hunker down to pay for all this in cash..... I also paid my taxes in cash this year too, which I think is better than putting it on a credit card, but you know... you pay for one thing, which stops you from paying for something else. Supply and demand... I need more supply of dollars!!!

Weather is going to be beautiful on Saturday, so I am going to try and get 5 plus hours in of riding tomorrow. Sun it might rain, but I can always run inside as well as swim. Hope all of you will have a great weekend!

Murtha...

Tying it all together

2009-04-07T17:35:00.003-05:00

Well, there are 70 some days and change left before the "big dance" (as I like to call it). Up to this point I have a couple things left to do on my checklist as far as logistics go (and a few are big ticket items).

Bike Box/Travel Case, basically money issue
Money for shipping the bike on the flight
Last night's hotel room in Spokane before I leave back to Atlanta
Rental car for last day in Spokane
(And then the miscellaneous items... food, lots of IM memoribilia and clothing, etc)

I have enough money to knock out items 2, 3, and 4. I am very happy that at this point the only thing I originally charged in this endavour (which I have since paid off) was my Ironman Entry fee.

BTW I did complete the ING Georgia Marathon on March 29th, 2009 (My father's birthday and my training partner James as well). I will probably post some kind of race report in the next few days, but it won't be too serious, as I will probably have to go back to the race map to evoke a few memories of the actual race. I have put every other race report on here, so why stop now???

A new blogger emailed me the other night and asked me to check out her site, and I was sooo excited! We all need to welcome her to the community!

Valerie Triathlon

Her first triathlon is in May. I love it when people find their way to the triathlon life. I almost kind of feel like a missionary sometimes. I have gotten a few friends into it, and even more just interested in the sport, if not to compete.

I am way behind on my bike miles, but James and I are focusing on the bike for the next month (beginning last week) culminating in what might end up being my first century ride the beginning of May. Here is the link for the Century ride, so if any of you in the southeast need to get one of these under your belt early in the season, and you have enough miles in, this might be a good choice for you. I need it, even if I am a bit behind on my mileage. I have now swam 2.4 miles multiple times (albeit in a pool), and I have officially run a marathon in with my long runs. Why not cap off training with a century ride?

Cheaha Challenge Century Ride

Next few weeks are going to be challenging at work (while affecting my training schedule), this week being the worst. Scott, one of my employees is going back to school, as he never finished his undergraduate degree. His last day was today. One of my other employees, is on vacation. Because of the position they are both in, it has and will put an enormous amount of stress on my training and work this week, and after next week, tail off just a bit until I can find someone to replace Scott. But we endure, which is what makes us great!

I hope all of your training efforts are going great... I need to catch up on your blogs as well. Keep it up!

Murtha...

Trying something new...

2009-03-12T18:21:00.003-05:00

How about bringing life back to your favorite sport?
How about reinvigorating your senses to what you enjoy?
How about just trying something different (and new)?

Wednesday was that day for me. Just as I tried sushi for the first time last year and LOVED it, this was to be the same experience, yet not so much food related (and sodium infused)!

Tuesday I worked both jobs, so I took the day off as my one day off for the week. Yesterday I had to help Patsy with car stuff right after work when I remembered that she had scheduled us to go to YOGA. So yes, I have been kind of apprehensive about going, and I have found some excuses for not going. But I also know that it is good for you. This particular firm, which I will post their link at the bottom and give them a shout out, Atlanta Hot Yoga, is awsome! It was bikram yoga I believe, and the session was 1.5 hours.

We got there and I got in the newbie line (which was only me) to get registered and get my name in the computer in case I sign up for any additional classes. After which I then went with Patsy into the Yoga room, which was 105 degrees with humidity. Kind of like Atlanta in August for those of you who get to visit us down there in the South.

Without delving into the details, THIS IS AWSOME!!! I had been walking like an old decrepit man for two days after my weekend workouts and Mon/Tuesday's workouts were suffering because of it. I felt like a new man afterwards. Went through about 40 oz of water as well during the class. I felt so good I went and did 7.5 miles right after work on the treadmill at the gym and kept the pace above 7.0 mph for most of the time.

Working both jobs tonight, but got the swim in. Starting tomorrow is double duty for the next three days, with respect to training, regardless of the weather. It is supposed to rain this weekend. But I can not stop training. If it rains at CDA I will have no choice. But then again, if I go out training in the "elements" it would not be the first time. : )

Flight is booked. Hotel from Jun 17th-20th in spokane is booked, and then Hotel on Sat and Sunday is booked (James booked it, I just have to pay him for his half). Just need hotel for one more day, a rental car for a day or two, and bike case. I am not sweating the small stuff, as my b day is coming up soon and I am asking for gift cards/certificates from

All 3 Sports (my favorite place!)

Unfortunately, I also have my tax bill to mail out by April 15th, and I have to pay for my car tags! Only in Georgia does it seem we pay this stupid ad valorem tax, and the $25 emission testing fee to boot! I mean my car just turned 4 (and under 70K miles) and I seriously doubt that it will fail the emissions test. Especially considering I had a 1988 buick skylark limited with 125K plus miles on it that passed emissions every year until it died.

The money thing will come. It better, or Uncle Visa will be helping me out!

That's all for now folks, I will keep you posted with more details later.

Busy Weekend!

2009-03-10T18:18:00.002-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Atlanta was beautiful this past weekend! Of course so did the rest of the population who has been hibernating in their homes all winter long. The only difference is that I was out there training when the weather was cold and miserable. Saturday I had to work, but I was quickly out the door and headed over to the Silver Comet Trail with James to ride. We cranked out about 52.5 miles in 3 hours 2 minutes. A bit faster than I wanted to go on Saturday, but nonetheless it was another workout in the books. I followed it up with a 5 mile run and then it was straight home for some partying.

One of my business customers at the bank is Wednesday Night Drinking Club, a social networking group. They were holding a St Patty's Day party on Saturday from 1:30p - 2:30a, pretty intense. Patsy and I showed up at around 9:30p and of course everyone was indisposed at that time, but we still had fun for the few friends which were still there (there were around 2,500 ppl there at one point). Green attire, of course : )

Sunday was car shopping day (not for me), and I was on my feet all day long. I also had a 16.5 mile run scheduled and was not looking forward to it, as I had pushed to hard on the bike the day before (James does that to me, but he is a much better athlete). The run sucked. However, I finished it late enough in the evening so that it was not too hot. Got a swim in as well.

Monday I decided it was too nice of a day to not be outside, so I did one of the Atlanta rides (in reverse), so that I would not be affected by rush hour traffic too bad. It worked out well and I got about 18 miles in probably an hour and fifteen minutes. I was not attempting to go too fast, I just was trying to keep my heart rate down and work the hills at the same time.

Today is a rest day, collect my thoughts and plan out the rest of the week. I have to work both jobs on Thursday, which will put a cramp in everything, but I have saturday and sunday off, so two full days of hitting the pavement. I just need to make sure I don't get too crazy on Friday night, as my friend Melissa is having her 25th birthday in Buckhead, and this group likes to party!

Oh and one more thing! I am going to miss my 10 year high school reunion this year (actually it will be my 11 year, but there were problems last year with booking the venue, so they just pushed it back to this summer)!!!!!
The reason being is that it is the day before IMCDA. Well, I tried to get them to change the date, and they won't. It's their loss I think.

Talk to you guys (and gals) soon.

Murtha...

25 weeks to go!!!

2008-12-29T18:09:00.002-05:00

Now I realize why it pays to work at the bank (actually I knew all along)...

Bank holidays! Sure all you guys in corporate America get flexible schedules around your 9-5, can go wherever you want to for lunch, are not locked down to your office every day, and more importantly... Don't have to work SATURDAYS! But when it comes to federal holiday season (October-February), I have it made! I Basically worked 3 days last week, and I will only work 3 days this week, and I am not even taking any vacation for it.

More training for me!!!

Saturday was brutal! I thought I only ran 12 miles with James, however it was 14.5 miles, longer than I have ever run before, and I did it in about 2:10 somewhere (neither of us had watches but we looked at the car clock when we left and came back. Legs hurt like hell! I also saw at the pool about 2500M before Patsy got back in town, so I was not doing a late night workout when she got back in town from her Dad's place. Sunday was spinning on the bike inside, as the weather was nasty.

Gotta work both jobs today (actually at number two right now) so my spin at home tonight will be late. This week will be great for training, as I have Tue night off, then all day Wed, Thu, Sat and Sunday off! Sweet! I already have my schedule down for both jobs and my training so I know what I am to do every day, which is what i should have been doing months ago! That is ok, I will be just fine!

How are all of you doing lately?

I need to post some on y'all blogs this week so that you realize I exist again and bring back the blog stalking once again : )

Well it is off to greet customers on the floor, and more work to do!

Murtha...

Baby Steps to take the "Big Step"

2008-12-26T20:03:00.003-05:00

Ok,

Lets just not kid ourselves into thinking I am actually going to do this everyday! Clearly my life is too busy to be a rampant blogger and blogger stalker like I was 2 years ago. However, I can spend at least once a week to update my blog (and actually update the site as well, hell there are alot of new tools out there, and I don't even know what half of them are).

Workouts have been going well overall except for the fact I have missed a few here and there, as well as a few of them I have had to cut back on. Currently I am trying to get over some sinus stuff, and if I am not better by Monday, it is to the doctor for anitbiotics, I need to get better, or I cannot train properly. This weekend is going to be a big weekend once I get off work tonight (restaurant) and (bank) tomorrow at noon. Plan my ride tommorrow, and then Sunday hit up a 12 mile run or so (don't forget to splash some swimming in there as well ; ).

So... Let's be honest... I am still having a bit of trouble with getting stuff done with this Ironman, especially in two areas... documenting/planning the event and training, AND the time concept of how far away the event really is. James and I have this conversation every week when we see each other, but it still does not sink in. Add to that time is moving faster and faster the closer we get to the event, and it is a recipie for trouble. Kinda like gettting ready for a wedding. So I spent some time this week getting stuff back down on PAPER!! No fancy spreadsheets, no programs, etc, just paper and pen. (Yeah I do the NY Times crossword..... in PEN!) I also signed up for the ING Georgia Marathon (notice how they name it with every city name but Atlanta, like we are not big enough). That is 14 weeks away from this weekend I figure that is just over halfway to the final event (IMCDA). I am also trying to find a biking event somewhere in or around Georgia to go enter into, that is preferably 75+ miles. Swimming, I am just going to do it and not worry about trying to find and event, however, I do need to get back into open water swimming. It only has been about 3 months since I have done any.

Throwing things in the mix.... Possibly upgrading my apartment to get a roomie and then save some hella money this year, crossing that with my huge end of year bonus to pay off my car note, and I might have all my debt paid off this year (minus my student loans). That means I could go back to one job by the end of 2009 (if I don't get promoted at the bank this year, which I plan on doing). HOORAY!

Got a new girlfriend in the mix...... her name is Patsy. Actually she is not new, just new to you guys! She is very excited about my first Ironman, and she is being so supportive that she is helping me find ways of achieving my goal without sacrificing too much time from our relationship. HOORAY!

Anyways... I hope everything is going well with all of you, especially Sarah, Shelly, Eric, Wil and Wes! I have not stalked y'alls blogs in forever. I am only working three days next week, by chance, so I will be spending some time catching up on my magazines and your blogs. Also getting ready to potentially move!

Have fun this weekend, be safe, and train Hard!

Murtha...

Update!!!

2008-11-11T20:13:00.002-05:00

Yes I know, I know....

It has been way toooo long. I won't bother you with details. Why? This is my triathlon blog of all things, and so that is what I will speak about. I can say that my Ironman training has not been up to par, but at this point I can say although the window for goal "B" (finishing around 13 hours) is closing fast, the window for goal "A" (just finishing) is still wide open.

For those of you who did inquire as to which Ironman I would be completing in 2008, it is Ironman Coeur de Alene! My friend James Blaylock and I are both training for this race. I think that my interest in triathlons gave him a renewed interest, considering that he has a duathlon background. I have been scrimping and saving like a fiend to try and get ready for this event, and I still have a long ways to go. I think we are at about 31 weeks and change, I will have to break out the calendar later tonight to make sure that is correct. Either way I am happy that I am on this journey to do something that will push me mentally, physically and emotionally more than anything else has in my life up to this point. Yes that includes work, family, friends, significant others at the time, etc.

I don't know about the rest of you who have completed this event, however, I have had a roller coaster of a ride thus far. Motivational issues, injuries, sickness, financial issues, everything basically. And yet I try to endure. There are those few who have decided to support me with this and keep me motivated and happy about what I am doing, and I sincerely thank them for that.

In other news I will begin posting my workouts and mini races as frequently as i can, and if I am not posting every day, then I will catch up when I finally do post so that you all can keep up.

I will also try to update my blog. It needs it badly. There are people who don't blog anymore, new bloggers, changed blogs... I am waaaaay behind. I want to get caught up with all of you. And I am sure some of you want to get caught up with me.

Saturday: 10 mile run, 16 mile bike ride (easy, my friend Mike got a new bike and he was breaking it in, Silver Comet trail, run was by the house)

Sunday: 12 mile run, nothing else. ran from the house to brookhaven and back. Really close to one of the bars I like to hang out at, but I promise I did not stop, I did not have a wallet with me

Monday: 1500M swim, 1 hour spin class (18+ miles, the monday night instructor is hardcore and there are no breaks in her class. It is like a 2 second water break and into the next song)

Tuesday: Happy Veterans Day! Thank you all service men and women for all you do for us! 1500M swim and 6.5 mile run. will up my swim milage later in the week, the longest I have done thus far is 2500 M.

Good to be back, I will be checking up on your blogs throughout the week so look for a post. Wes yours has priority, I want to see your Ironman florida race report!

Murtha...

Possum Trot 10K June 21st 2009, Roswell, GA

2008-06-23T17:44:00.002-05:00

Hi Everyone!

I just did my first race of the year. Granted I am reporting on it two days later, but I don't think that matters. Heck the fact that I posted twice in about a week is amazing! So this was a last minute entry (i.e. Stopped by Big Peach Running because I really needed to do something last Thursday) and then I stopped at James' house Saturday morning 6:15am for the race. His wife Tandy and his two daughters ran the 1 mile fun run, and then at 7:30am the race was on.

The first half

Sooo... I went out like a gazelle. Ok, not that fast, but I was definately pushing just under 8:00 min/mi pace. Did not really feel the humidity until about mile two, as it had rained earlier that morning, and the sun was trying to burn through. Oh did I mention pancake flat, with the exception of two hills? Sweet. As I hit the turnaround, I kinda felt like I was losing gas, so I slowed up just a bit, because I knew that I wanted to have enough in the tank if I wanted to have a good finishing time.

The second half

Annnnd... I came back in like a hippo. As I got to mile three, I realized that I would need a "rabbit" (yes I normally pick the female type, so sue me :P ) so I hooked onto one that was passing me and followed her for about half a mile. At that point she started pulling away and I thought to myself, "Is she speeding up?" No, as it turns out, my Garmin was telling me that I was slowing down. Thanks Garmin, really appreciate it.

As I approached what I thought was the finish, I realized that everyone that was going down the finishing chutes was going in the opposite direction that I was running... What!!! we are not done yet? Awh Crap! As I looked down Garmin once again laughed at me and told me that indeed I had about 1.7 miles left to go.

About that small hill... yes, at this point I was pushing my HR max the second half of the race and if not for the fact that I could take much more punishment, the hill reared its ugly head and laughed. I had to walk part of it. I got up over the hill, to the 2nd turn around, which was the start of the race, and then headed directly back to the hill. At this point I looked at my watch and decided to get this crap over with, so I ran the hill and finished the race.

And the worst part was...

that I did not qualify for the Peachtree Road Race 2009. As my watch said 54:18, my official time ended up being 55.27. While I can understand the 45 seconds due to a mass start and I was at the back of the pack, I cannot fathom the 24 seconds after I crossed the finish line. I mean I crossed at 55.03 right when the clock was in front of my face, and somehow I got 55.27. There were some other people I raced with and they noticed the same problem, so I assume that everyone got that increase. You need sub 55 to prequalify and there is another lower tier of times to get subseeded in the Peachtree Road race. The race organizers (Atlanta Track Club) give preference to those people when then enter the following year, over general entrants.

I had a good time though, and in the end that is all that counted.

Once race in the books for the year.

In other news I signed up for the Tri-PTC triathlon in Peachtree City, GA. Not too far South of Atlanta for those of you who know the area, and moreover, a wannabe Buckhead for those of you who know Peachtree City oh too well. That one's for you Matt ; )

Finally, and I will let you guys guess this one, until I get a new clock up on my blog....

363 days...

Murtha...

What motivates you...

2008-06-15T16:47:00.002-05:00

Hey Everyone...

I have fallen off the face of the tri world. I have also fallen off the face of the tri world. It is interesting that so much has happened since my last post (March 25th) and yet I come full circle to where I was earlier this year. Once again trying to find my motivational drive to push on and do something I love, or thought I loved. We will get to all of this in just a minute.

I got out and went swimming yesterday! About damn time! I swam for about a half an hour at Gault's Ferry in Lake Allatoona. Nice to see it about full pool. Last year I was swimming in a shallow mess, and I would get a sinus infection everytime I got in that lake (GA drought last year that we are still kinda in). Anyways, the lake is pretty much back to full pool and it was sweet. Except for the kids. This one 13 yr old kid teasing me about my speedo. I just gave him a dirty look, considering his parents were sitting right there on the shore. ; )

My workouts have been few and far between as of late, heck let's be honest. All year long. I have not competed or signed up for one event of any type this year. Back up on weight, but not breaking 180..... yet. I mean I have not even gone out for a run/ride yet today, and to tell you the truth, I am not really in the mood. Just had one of my friends stop by for about half an hour and told him the whole story. He said I just need to figure it all out. The problem is that I don't know what "it" is.

Well yesterday was a start. I know I have not done anything today, and if I am going to do anything tomorrow or Tuesday, it will have to be in the morning, since I work both jobs at the beginning of the week. That is fine, get it out of the way.

Ironman CdA is this coming weekend. I am thinking about signing up on Sunday when online begins, yet I will not put too much thought into it. After not getting online signups last November with IMFL, which is a less popular event, I don't think it will happen this year. NA sports even issued an official statement in December stating that at the Full Distance level, you will pretty much have to sign up in person, volunteer then sign up, or pick a community slot, which is not necessarily a bad deal compared to volunteering (depending on where you volunteer at).

Good news that the 70.3 series is going to have a race in Augusta, GA next year. Same city as The Masters for those of you not very familiar with golf. I am excited about that one... for once a Ironman event that is not a 7-8 hour drive away (closest one without having to hop on a plane). I can feasibly take one day off work and then mosey on over to Augusta, rack my bike, hang out for the afternoon, and then get ready for race day, even hang out the day after (depending on Saturday/Sunday race).

I will get motivated again, I just need to figure everything out in my head. As much as this sport punishes your body, 80% of this game is mental. Period.

Murtha...

Hard weekend, but no water...

2008-03-25T18:34:00.002-05:00

Hello All,

I hope that everyone who celebrates Easter had a wonderful holiday weekend, and for those who do not, I also hope that you had a wonderful weekend in general...

Wed/Thu I had to work at night (Wolfgang Puck Express for those of you who have forgotten...hey it has been awhile since I have written). So Friday last week was kind of my Monday. I work for so long on days that I have two jobs that it is really hard for me to get up in the morning.

Friday
Training - Run
Location: Chastain Park Loop
Distance: 5.12 miles
Time:
Pace:
Avg HR:
Max HR:

Workout was not too bad, I tried to take it easy on the first lap since I knew I was doing two. I have been taping my feet more often lately since my feet have had a break for months now and I am adding on the mileage way faster than callouses would form.

Saturday
Training - Run
Location: Silver Comet Trail
Distance: 6.67 miles
Time: 95min 11sec
Pace:
Avg HR:
Max HR:

This was my weekend run with James. He was pushing out about 20 miles or so and he was late getting started because of his daughters' Softball games, so I told him that instead of meeting him on the way back, I would meet up with him on the middle third of the run. I also did not want to get caught doing more than last weeks mileage, which would have put me just over 8 miles in a day. I have really ramped up my mileage quickly this year from doing nothing. Fortunately I have been able to come back from long strings starting out doing runs in the 3-5 mile range as long as I am not trying to break the world record pace.

Sunday
Training - Bike
Location - Buckhead/Smyrna/Vinings area
Distance - ??? (14-15 miles)
Time - ??? (Around about an hour, maybe a few minutes more)
Pace -
Avg HR - ???
Max HR - At least 185!!!

It was really cold on Sunday! At least it was not raining. Earlier in the week it was forecasted to rain, I guess the front that was supposed to come through changed or dissapated. With the exception of a few nice downhills, this ride was one of those things your father talked about.... walking uphill both ways. There is a hill about two miles into the ride that lasts about 4-4.5 miles long, and it has varying degrees of grade with one small and one decent downhill. It was a killer. It ended up setting the pace for the rest of my ride (which was slow). What made it worse is that I have told myself (I have a Shimano 3 ring 105 front) that I will not go into the smallest ring. Now I know that the smallest ring of a 2 ring is smaller than my mid ring, however I am training myself to stay in larger gears. And in the event I get a bike with a 2 ring front (or new Shimano components), then I will be better bred for the small ring up hills.

It is great to begin to hear again from you guys. I forgot how much comradeship and friendship I have gained over these last few years with you all and it has been fun. I am going to make sure I don't try to get out of the loop anytime soon. I am working tonight and tomorrow night, so my training week will begin Thu this week. I am going to try and squeeze in something tomorrow between jobs, or early in the morning.

Murtha...

Out of hibernation!!!

2008-03-13T19:49:00.002-05:00

Hello All,

I know I am going to have to probably visit most of your blogs to let you know that I am back (or that I even still exist, thanks Wes and IronEric for checking up on me, even though I did not have the courtsey to write back).

Where in the hell have I been?!?!? Busy working two jobs, having a late quarter life crisis (almost at the age of 28), unsuccessfully trying to get back into grad school (i.e. having problems getting motivated to take GMAT, etc), and a whole other myraid of issues which has kept me from triathlon and this blog. Heck my favorite magazine publication (I will give you two guesses but you will only need one) has sat idle for the last three months and I have let my subscription expire. Oh and there is weight, I have gained some of that back as well, however not as bad as previously feared... I think I topped out at 178, and now I am hovering somewhere back in the low 170s.

But life happens : ) And we adapt. Just like in the sport of triathlon. Murphy's Law will ensue during your triathlon career, no matter what level or skill you compete at. All you can do is adapt to what comes your way and hope for the best.

I have been "back in the game" for about two weeks now. I have put in about 5 runs and two bike ride thus far (and no swimming). The blisters are back and I have shaved once. Not that you needed to know about that last part, I am just trying to make myself sound more accomplished thus far ;) I am beginning to put my race schedule together this year, but it is anything but sexy. If I do have one regret at the end of this year (and I try not to have too many) I think it will be that I wanted this third year in the sport of triathlon to be my breakout year. This in respect to more long distance races, as well as dramatically increased times (also I wanted to finish at least once on a podium this year even if only 3rd).

This year has the semblence of a lot of shorter distance races beginning in June and ending my season in November with longer races at the end. I am trying to find most of my races in Georiga this year with the possible exception being the "Great Florida Challenge (Half)" in November. Good time of year to head to FL.

For those of you who did not know and I may not have even posted it, I was unable to sign up for IM Florida. Florida always sold out in the past, just never that fast. It was one of those where it would not kill you to not drive down there and sign up, or if you missed online signup the first day, you could get to it the next day. Well I was sitting at my computer at 12:00p on that Sunday with James on the cellphone at his computer and a message shows up.... "We will be delaying online signups until 1:00p EST." I thought that was weird, however, James and I remained on the phone and the internet looking at hotel rooms and such in Panama City for the following year. 1:00pm approached, and it took me about 30 seconds to get everything submitted. Error in processing it said. Tried again. Error. Tried again. Error. Within 1 minute I had tried submitting my app 5 times. 6th time.... "We are sorry the Florida Ironman is full." Turns out after talking with a few people, that there were enough people who drove down to FL to sell the event out at the signups before it even hit online.

A few weeks later, NA Sports posts its new revised Ironman and Ironman 70.3 Signup guidelines. At the bottom of the letter the put a footnote that basically stated in order to sign up now you must sign up a year in advance and most likely sign up at the event in person. Whilst I do not mind signing up a year in person, I do have a problem with having to pay for an airline ticket (or pay for gas driving), Hotel, Food, etc... and then the entry fee, just so that I can go back and spend the same amount (ommitting the entry fee) the following year on the same race.

Saying this... James and I have been pondering the idea of flying to CdA this summer and signing up for the 2009 race. I think that we might even volunteer and make it a 4 day weekend of sorts. Maybe a three day weekend and leave Friday evening (the bank is normally slow on Monday) and come back on the Red Eye Tuesday morning, just in time for work. As I go off topic for a moment, I do not think I will ever fly from the left coast back to the east coast during the daytime. With the time change, and depending on where you come from you can lose anywhere between 6-8 hours of your day. No thank you, I will fly at night and sleep on the plane.

So.... I don't really know what else to post here, except that my blisters now have blisters and I remember finally what it feels like to be sore. But it is better to be back here with everyone I have befriended from my blog.

Nice to see you guys (and gals) again!

Murtha...

2007 Emerald Pointe Triathlon Race Report, October 7th, 2007 (Lake Lanier Islands Beach and Water Park , GA)

2007-10-09T07:32:00.000-05:00

The end of a season...

Wow! I sit here this morning at my computer, and it has finally sunk in. A third year under my belt, with many (mental) highs and lows. I think I am going to save most of this talk for my next post though, since it will be my 100th post on my Triathlon Blog.

Lets get down to business...

PRE RACE (LOTS HAPPENED HERE!)

I went to go and pick up my race packet on Saturday afternoon, and sure enough, Transition was bigger! I think that this race might rival the size that Tri-PTC was this year, next year. SWAG bag was pretty good. I did not realize that Hahnsgrohe was a company that sold shower fixtures and other bathroom stuff. What an interesting sponsor. Oh and going to pick up my race packet was between job #1 and job #2 the day before the race. By the time I got in bed Saturday night and fell asleep it was after 1:00am. That means a bit less than 3 hours of sleep.

Oh, and lets take account of how many workouts I did between the 4 weeks between races.
0 Swim workouts
+2 Bike workouts
+4 Run workouts
= Almost no training for a triathlete!

I got up at 4:15am, and got everything in the car. My roommate helped me pack my car since he was still up from the night before. Come to find out many of my friends were partying Saturday night so late that they were either still up or just going to bed when I was waking up. I picked up Jackie and we were off to the race. I was so tired I fell asleep for about 15 minutes or so in the car on the way up there. We arrived about 5:50am, and then I got my gear out of the car and rode my bike to the transition area. The parking lot was further away from the race this year, which was fine, since the previous year the parking lot they used was right next to the run/bike exits, which was bad for everyone.

Brought my headlamp, and began setting everything up. Pre race fuel was a banana nut clif bar, some oatmeal raisin cookie from my swag bag, Orange Burst Gu, and Accelerade. I also had some water as well. Went to the bathroom the first time, and then came out to stretch and take in some more fluids. Then as "the call of nature" hit me, the most horrible thing happened in my triathlon experience thus far...

MY GROSS STORY IS WORSE THAN YOUR GROSS STORY!

So I "answered my call of nature" by going back to the porta johns. Got inside and was about to take care of my business when I kinda slid on the seat. Now I was one of the earlier arriving athletes, so not many people had used the porta johns when I got there. Much to my horror, there was a reason why I slipped on the seat. It seems that someone tried to squat and "missed!" How you miss when the hole is probably 10 inches in diameter is beyond me, but it happened. And what is even worse, is that I still had to go! I am a guy, but that was the most disgusting thing that has ever happened to me in my life! I cleaned up as best I could, used almost the entire sanitizer spray dispenser in the john, and then ran to the lake (the only place where I had lots of water access) to clean up. I am done with this paragraph, I just cannot take it anymore.

Head back up to the transition area to grab my cap and goggles, and a few people commented that I went for an early swim. I half - heartely laughed and then went on about my business. Walked back down to the swim start site to listen to the USAT ref give the essential items out over the speaker phone, and said hey to my fellow Team Javelin race buddy! Swam about 100M to warm up, and then it was to the start line to begin the race.

THE SWIM

I felt really good on the swim. I think that I am getting used to open water swimming, my times are improving, and I am not feeling uncomfortable in the water like I used to, which caused my breathing to be erratic. I started towards the back of the pack, and I regret it. This is a fairly new race (this was the second year), and it is not a USAT gold/silver/bronze event, and is not directly tied to any regional or state championship race. So as you can assume the average swim times were ratched up a bit. I bascially had to change direction and swim sideways to get to the outside, and then swim in the correct direction! People were breast stroking, back stroking, doggy paddling, etc. Now I don't have a problem with this, I just thought it strange happening the first 50M of the event, in the Men's 20-24 and 25-29 wave. I was very happy with my time, out of the water, except that the pad for the swim/T1 line was about 100 yds away from the water, and uphill. So needless to say that my swim time had an additional 30 seconds or so (give or take) of me running up "Mount Transition." Last year they actually had the mats about 10-15 yds away from the water, so although everyone's transition time was longer, it was a more accurate representation of the swim. Well now it is time to climb "Mount T1!"

Swim
Distance: 400yds
Time: 9:59 (it is relative for everyone, but matt location added about 30 sec to my time)
Rank: 28/44 in AG

TRANSITION 1

I actually jogged up the entire hill this year, maxing out my HR, and passing about 10 or more people heading to my rack position. As I got to the top of the hill, I saw my Javelin teammate, Andrew, at his rack position getting his helmet on. My rack position was awsome!!! It was right next to the bike exit, so in both T1 and T2, I spent the majority of the time running without a bike and cleats in tow. Since I was not trying to break any records in this race, I decided to strap my shoes on, especially since the bike exit was a bit treacherous.

T1
Time: 2:19
Rank: 4/44 in AG

BIKE

Lets begin by reminding everyone that this was not an "A" race for me, and that I was here to do this race for fun! (No, I am not trying to have a pity party for myself, just to make a point) This course has short hills, yet there elevation grade is much steeper than almost all of the races I have done this year. Indian Springs had a few steep ones, but not as many as this race does. There are also two long incline grades, and the largest one is coming back into the park from miles 10-12. So there were two times during the ride where I purposefully slowed down because I did not want to overexert myself from lack of training. I was also having issues with the banana nut clif bar during the ride, so that was not helpful. I was supposed to take a Gu on the bike, but all I could get down was the Accelerade. I went a bit light on the mixture with the Accelerade, and I might do that more often, since it tasted lighter.

Oh and Andrew (my race teammate), DNF'ed a mile into the race. As I was riding by, he was about 10 feet away from his bike sitting there, and he saw me ride by. He did not have a happy look on his face. Bike did not look too bad, but he was cut up on his arm and knee really good.

Bike
Distance: 13 miles
Time: 41:35
Avg Spd: 18.8 mph
Rank: 14/44 ppl in AG

TRANSITION 2

Again, taking my time was the theme, since I was not worried about this race. I wore socks this time, so don't worry about my poor feet. I still have not "quick laced" my new shoes, so I was wearing my old Asics. Took water on the run this time, instead of Nuun, so that I could pour water on my body if I wanted, as well as drinking it. I think for shorter races I am just going to work on getting the right nutrition pre race, and then AT MOST taking in one gel and some Accelerade/Gatorade Endurance on the bike. And were off...

T2
Time: 1:21
Rank: 24/44 in AG

RUN

I remember this run from last year. 3-4% grade all the way out to about 1.25 miles and then downhill and flat until about mile 3, and then it goes back uphill into a flat finish. Piece of cake right? Sure, until I got to the uphill portion... I was pushing close to a 10min/mi pace at one point, and then I finally got it together, in addition to taking advantage of the downhill (like i did in my last race). My usual regulars that I see at every race passed me, and I think I just finished before the first female. Literally, like 5-10 seconds before. I finished really strong. My heart rate was getting into upper zone 4 by the second mile, and stayed up there for the remainder of the race. I ignored it. My rate of perceived effort felt a bit easier than what my HR was reading, so I went with it. My pace coming back in was close to 8:00min/mi. I feel like I should have something more to say here, yet I do not, this particular run was fairly straighforward.

Run
Distance: 3.1 mi
Time: 25:49
Pace: 8:20min/mi
Rank: 22/44 in AG

Totals
Time: 1:21:00.00 (BROKE LAST YEAR'S TIME BY 7MIN 50 SEC!!!)
AG Rank: 17/44 ppl (38%)
Mens Rank: 176/404 ppl (43%)
Overall Rank: 210/677 ppl (31%)

Man! If I knew I was going to do that well, I would have shaved my transition times and not let off on the bike portion, and I could have gained 2 minutes. That would have placed me top 15. With that in mind, I am very satisified with my results!

Don't quote me on it, but I will probably post something later this week, as well as update my blog links and such, and begin philosophying and discussing things that may be next year. There have been some new and interesting developments in my life as of late, and it may or may not affect my season next year (I certainly hope not!). As for now, my focus shifts to the Atlanta Half Marathon on Thanksgiving Day.

When I get pictures, I will post them to the site.

Murtha...

2007 Tri - PTC Race Report, September 8th, 2007 (Peachtree City, GA)

2007-09-09T19:17:00.000-05:00

Well,

As much as I want to let you in on my time (for better or worse), I will go through the race report first, and then I will let you see the final time at the bottom... Please note I have been trying to break 1hr 20min for quite some time in a sprint distance event.

PRE RACE

I had to go pick up my race packet first since Friday night pickup ends at 8:00pm. I don't know what they hell that Tri-Peachtree City is thinking when they do this. For those of you who don't know, Atlanta is either somewhere between #1 and #3 with the worst traffic in the US (I think Southern Cal and Chicago make up the other two). Can I say, AWSOME SCHWAG BAG!!!!! It rivals the Tri 101 series. And if you have visited their website, I can honestly say that they have the best schwag bag ever! Afterwards everyone went to Chili's to get there food on! I had a somewhat good meal of mostly protein and a salad, except for that damn skillet queso (I just can't get enough of chips, salsa, and dip). I also had a beer. While consuming said beer (Miller Lite), someone starting talking about Beer Pong. For those of you not familiar with beer pong, please visit this website when you are done. Even if you do not drink, you will fall in love with this game.

www.bpong.com

Well being both a graduate of the University of Georgia, and living the fraternity experience in college, I was well versed in Beer Pong. Needless to say there was no way I could say no to such a challenge. After dinner we went back to Matt's house (about 15 minutes south of the race event, convenient!), and began playing beer pong. My team won a game and then lost a game. Since I carry the team (based on my superior beer pong skills), if I am off, then we will lose, because there is no one to bring up the rear. After a couple of games, I had to stop so I could get my bike together and pack my transition bag. Matt brought home a portable breathalizer from his work, and I was the least intoxicated at .023 (just over 1 beer or some Listerine). Packed, taped, bungee corded, etc, and then it was off to bed at the early hour of 12:30am. Hey as my uncle once said,

"Hey if your parents tell you to be home early, then come home early. I personally think that 7:00am on a weekend is pretty damn early!"

I woke up at 5:45am, about 20 minutes after what I wanted to wake up. I was not too worried though, since I was only 15 minutes away from the race site. For breakfast I had 1 Nature Valley Bar, some Accelerade, and a packet of Jelly Belly Sports Beans. I got out the door ok and headed to the race site. On the drive there I consumed some more Accelerade and some Gu. The new Accelerade flavors are awsome, I got really tired of having the lemon lime all the time until this year. When it was all said and done I did not have too much time to put my stuff together in transition, since I forgot the that this was a championship series race for U23 in the USAT. That meant they started 15 minutes earlier than everyone else. I forgot my sunglasses! Fortunately the roads are shaded early enough that hour of the morning not to cause any problems. I spoke with a few perfectly nice strangers while setting up, just to pass the time. Then I headed over to the seeding site since they were about to begin the swim for everyone, and I met up with Josh Nickell and Robby Sprayberry. We all went to high school together. This was the third race (I think) I have been in with Josh, and this was Robby's first triathlon. Within about 5 minutes, I was next to be in the water (2 person staggered starts every 2 seconds)....

THE SWIM

I think overall you could call this the most chaotic swim that I have ever been in. I cannot tell you how many times that I was either hit/kicked or I hit/kicked someone during the swim. Total melee! Puts Ulitmate Fighting to shame! I had trouble getting rythm since I kept running into people, yet I felt that I was moving through the water pretty quickly. The first leg and the last half of the return leg were not that bad, it was the middle of the race that was horrible (between the two horizontal bouys). After leaving the water I maxed my heart rate out going into T1, I wanted to make sure that I got in and out as fast as I could. By the way, Lake Peachtree was really, really nasty!!!! I cannot even begin to describe to you how nasty it was.

Distance: 600M
Time: 11:49:00
Place: 24/44 in AG

T1

As I stated before, I maxed my heart rate out going into T1, basically sprinting to my rack position. This is pretty much the largest transition I have to go through, save Emerald Pointe (it is a long run from shore to the transition area and a steep uphill to get there). Everything was on ok, and again I wussed out and strapped on my shoes before I got on the bike. Other than the aforementioned factors, I was pleased with my transition time.

Time: 1:12
Place: 4/44 in AG

THE BIKE

Hmmm, I will have to say that I was very happy about this leg of the race. There is a no pass section of the bike that takes up about a bit over half a mile when you calculate both the out and back poritons of the "NO PASS" zone. Once out of that area it was on. There was no such thing that existed on my bike except for the big ring! I passed Josh around mile 2-3 of the bike. He is always faster than me on the swim, but I make up for it on the rest of the race. The first half of the ride was overall slightly downhill with you starting rollers at the top of a hill, whereas coming back you were hitting false flats and rollers beginning at the bottom of the first hill. If there was a hill, I just geared down on my rear cassette, and if I had do, get out of the saddle. I think my max on my bike (which was actually faster than my fastest downhill) was around 35mph. For my bike that was awsome, considering the highest gear I have is 53x12. I had some GI issues during the bike that were due to my breakfast, so I was a bit uncomfortable and was belching alot. The Accelerade I had on the bike in my Aero bottle was awsome, and I did not fell the need to take the Gu I had on my bike, since my stomach was acting up. I only got passed by a handful of people (maybe 6 at the most). I did pass some people, but not as many as I had anticipated. The majority of people I did pass were going uphill though. I think that my hill skills are improving, especially ther rollers. Once I got to about mile ten, I increased my cadence and geared down a bit to save my legs for the run, but not low enough to sacrifice speed. Right as I was about to enter the no pass zone again on the way back in, I got out of my cleats and peadled on top of them until I had to dismount.

Distance: 13.00mi
Time: 38min 1 sec
Avg: 20.8mph
Place: 13/44 people in AG

T2

After the perfect dismount, I hauled ass to my rack position. I almost missed the row, and quickly corrected my problem. I took about an extra 5-7 seconds in wiping my feet off since they were still very wet and covered in grass (the transition area was in a field). As I was about to run out a volunteer stopped me and told me that one of my cleats had fallen off the bike going into transition, and the put it at my rack position. I thanked the guy but I was really pissed that he stopped me, since all he had to do was place it where my stuff was, since he knew my number. I think what had happened was that I felt my bike jump when I was coming into the transition area, and that was my cleat hitting the ground attached to my crank, and then fell off. Shoes, number, sweatband on, water bottle with Nuun in it, and I was off.

Time: 1:20
Place: 19/44 in AG

THE RUN

This was going to be the make it or break it for my race goal, the INFAMOUS 1 hour and 20 minutes that has eluded me for a year and a half now. I got off to a really good pace for the first mile, and although my Garmin was beeping at me for being in and out of zone 5, my RPE at the time was more towards a 6-7. I had a brief "comfort zone slowdown" near the aid station, which was on an out and back section just before (and after) the turnaround of the 5K. When I got to mile 2, I began to crap out and the run kicked up slightly uphill. I needed some motivation, and so I found a rabbit to chase. That lasted all but for a quater mile, but it was what I needed, and it took me throught the steepest portion of any uphill area on the run. Once I got to the final .6 miles, I knew it was the home stretch and kicked it back up again, since it was downhill/flat for the rest of the race. I passed Robby when I was about 100yds from the finish, and he was just going out. I yelled at him, but I don't think that he heard me. Onto the Finish, and the times are below...

Distance: 5K/3.12mi
Time: 24min 29 sec
Avg: 7:54/mi
Place: 20/44 in AG

FINISH TIME

TIME: 1:16:49!!!!!!!!! I BROKE 1HR TWENTY AND I BEAT MY TIME LAST YEAR ON THIS RACE BY 5 MINUTES 56 SECONDS!!!
PLACE: 17/44 IN AG

Excited could nto describe how I felt. I called Wes, James my training partner, who realistically stated I would do a 1:18:30, my parents, friends who care about my triathlon life, etc. Everyone was proud of me, and I was proud of myself. I hung out awhile after the race to check out other results, as well as get my stuff packed and in the car. As I was going to transition, they told everyone to get out of the way, that the last person was coming into transition and that they needed to move out of her way. WHAT!!! I was very proud of this lady for being so determined to complete this event. I had time to finish, veg out, eat a bagel, 2 slices of pizza, and an apple, drink 2 bottles of water and sit down some more before I ran into this person in T2. I guess that is kind of like the pros in Kona who finish, go take a shower, eat and take a nap, then come back to cheer on all the people who finish before the 17hour cutoff time.

There will be some pictures to post in the coming week. For now I am going to get back on Athlete tracker and check out team raceAthlete and see how they are doing at IM Wisconson.

Murtha...

On the Eve on an Eventful (and long awaited) Weekend

2007-09-07T07:58:00.000-05:00

This weekend is going to be good.... real good.

This is not to say that my three day weekend last weekend filled with the first weekend of college football (and heading to my alma mater, UGA, for the first game of the season) wasn't great either ;)

I remember just about a year ago (maybe a bit less), there were 3-4 Bloggers (Wil, Stu, Kahuna, Everyman and a few others) that decided to create an organization that focused on the seeming "Everyday Age Grouper."

Team raceAthlete

Anyone could sign up, and share memories, input, tri philosophy, etc. I will quickly admit that I am a tri geek, and an information tri geek at that! I cannot get enough of it. If they were to create a triathlon channel on TV, I would either apply for a job or pay for whatever TV package covered the channel.

Fast forward through the raceAthlete blog archives (as well as coverage on the Tri Geek Dreams PodCast), and there was to be a huge announcement. We all waited in anticipation as the time went by and then it happened. Team raceAthlete was to fully sponsor eight age group triathletes and send them to Ironman Wisconson. People entered, and peeps were selected!!! The eight of you (Stu, Roman, Bolder, Tracy, Brett, Michelle, Tyler, and Chris) have shared your journey and experiences with us since that fateful week, and I for one have thoroughly enjoyed reading/listening to your journey(s). From sponsored schwag and gear to team training trips and group race events, we were able to watch the progression of eight age groupers and what their potential would be come race day.

Well, race day is upon us folks!!! I for one am super exicted. I for one will be out of commission for the best part of the race (the bike portion), and so I will catch all of you on athlete tracker during the swim and the marathon. Good luck to all of you this weekend, we are rooting for you.

I too have a race this weekend. This is the third year in my participation of the Tri-PTC, a sprint distance event. This was my very first race. Although there are some really other good races around, I have an attachment to this race for nostalgic and sentimental reasons. I have improved year after year in this race, and some of my closest friends usually attend. Last year I had almost 15 people show up to cheer me on, it was really fun! Maybe down the road, I will switch up to a bigger race either in or out of town, but until my life changes gears, I will be competing in this race for the time being.

I am contemplating signing up for one more race, a race that I competed in last year (Emerald Pointe Tri - Sprint).

After that, it is the off season and training for the Atlanta Half - Mary on Thanksgiving Day.

Just under 23 hours to go. I geeked up for the weekend, how about the rest of team raceAthlete???

Murtha...

2007 West Pointe Triathlon Race Report, LaGrange GA, 8/26/2007

2007-08-28T09:07:00.000-05:00

How to start? From the beginning I suppose.

For those of you who have actually read my blog (about 2 people, just kidding ;), you know that this year has not been my best year. Why? Because life happens. It happens to all of us. How does it concern this race report? Well, let's just say I was a bit worried going into this race. I have trained much more the second half of this season than the first half, but still short of what I set out to do (for the South Carolina Half I wanted to enter). Taper was a bit extreme, I think I completed 5 workouts in the two weeks prior to this race.

I was planning to drive down straight after work on Saturday, pick up my race packet, and scope out the entire course the night before. Needless to say this did not work out as planned, and so James (Badass duathlete and triathlete that is my boss at Wolfgang) and I left at 5pm after he got off of work to head down to LaGrange. We checked in at the hotel (Days Inn), and there was a glitch with the reservation. I find this really amusing since I booked the hotel online directly through Days Inn and not some 3rd party travel website. It was no problem though, and James and I hurriedly put our gear up in the room and headed down to the race site to check out the swim and the bike (we would not have time for the run since it had gotten so dark...).

The swim course had drastically changed due to the extreme low lake level instead of going around the peninsula, it went out and back like a V-shape. Also the last bouy (turn bouy) seemed way too far out, as if getting to the turn bouy in itself was 1500M. We later found out the next morning that it had drifted due to the current. We were very happy with transition, for it satisfied three things I like; small, flat, and direct in and out (there was only one main lane in transition and racks were on either side).

We scoped the bike, and loved it. There were two sections where it was somewhere between 2-3 miles of downhill = BIG GEARS!!! The rest of the course was nothing but rollers, and manageable ones at that. We then headed to some country buffett restaurant and loaded up on nutrition for the next morning.

James and I got back and immediately packed our transition bags and tweaked our bikes a bit (nothing major I swear). Wes called and said that he and his wife Dee Dee were on their way down but would not be there until late. He jokingly told me not to mess with my bike, that I was breaking one of the cardinal rules of racing in triathlons.... he he he:) After that we finally got settled down and went to bed just before 11pm.

Race Morning
Alarm went off at 4:30am. I cannot tell you how good it felt not to have to get up 1-2 hours earlier to drive to an event. I might just do this more often. James and I got our gear together, downed our morning fuel (for me it was two Nature Nalley bars, a handful of gummi bears, 1 GU gel, and lots of water), packed our gear back into the cars, and checked out of the hotel. I think that is the second shortest time I have been in a hotel. We took the freeway (which I had to research the directions, they wanted us to take the back roads through LaGrange on GA Multisport's website) and it took about 20 minutes to get to the race site. We walked in the dark just over half a mile to the transition and check in. James already had his packet, so he went in and I went to number pick up to get my stuff. Sometimes I hate how procedural things are. Think about it. Your hands are already almost full when you get your race number and goodie bag (if you do it the morning of the race), and then you go back to get "numbered." Then with your hands full they tell you that your number needs to be on your helmet, and your bike number needs to be on your bike before you enter transition. Needless to say, my helmet number fell off within half a mile of starting, and my bike number folded up so you could not see it when I was riding my bike.

Pre Race
After setting up in transition, I helped James with his tubulars on his bike (Xentis Mark 1 wheels), and then it was chill out time before the race. More water and what? No bathroom break! C'mon body! Be cooperative with me! Wes got there around 6:30am (I think) and told us that the lady at the hotel gave good directions except for one road she told them to veer off too early! He was kind of in a hurry setting up the bike, however, it seemed that he got everything set up ok. I introduced Wes to James and we talked for a few moments before heading over to the swim start. Got bit by a fire ant on the way over. Great, so this is how my race is going to be. I did a 200 M warmup, and I drafted, off a girl who ended up getting 3rd place (I think in female overall), just for practice. Got out of the water and Wes, James and I talked and waited until the race began.

The Swim
James was in the group behind us, and Wes started right in front of me. Staggered starts, two at a time, every two seconds. This was probably the best feeling swim I had next to Gulf Coast last year. No breast stroking, no stopping, no running out of breath, etc... It was a good feeling all around. Near the turn bouy I saw James pass me in the water, and I could tell by his facial expression that he knew he was passing me. I am ok with that. James' worst day is better than my best day ;) Oh No!!! Now I have to go!!! No problem, I just sped up in the lake for about 24-26 strokes and took care of business. I did not feel guilty since I started towards the back of the race and I was swimming wide to avoid people. My apologies to anyone out there who ended up behind me. Wes, James, and Renee were all ok since they either started before me or passed me. Towards the end of the swim I kicked like I was supposed to and felt good running into T1

T1
Sub 1 minute !!!! Yeah!!! The cooler part is that I wimped out, usually I don't secure my shoes on my feet until I am on the bike, but this time I did it while i was in T1. Dee Dee was there to cheer me on as I was leaving T1 onto the bike course.

The Bike
I felt really ready for this portion, since I knew ahead of time what I was getting myself into. It felt kind of lonely on the bike for this race, due to the number of entrants and the fact I was one of the latter people out of the water. I wasted about 30 seconds (going slower) getting my Garmin on my wrist on the bike. Due to going uphill and not being in the proper gear I was not going to risk falling over for my watch. I paced myself for the first mile or so, and then went to town. The only thing I regret is not pushing harder. My max HR on the bike was only 177bpm and that includes the two small hills on ther ride. I can say for the positive though, I kept my cadence fairly steady and pushed when I needed to push. I think after what has happened in the last couple of races, I wanted to make sure I had some left in me for the run. Between miles 6.5 and 9 there was a nice downhill, and after making the turn from an area where we doubled back there was also another nice downhill. I did not pass too many people on the bike since I started from the rear of the race, however, everyone I passed was going uphill except for three people I passed going downhill. WTF is up with that??? I do admit I got passed once going downhill, but the guy was flying and probably averaged 23mph or more during the bike. Aid station was great, and with the aero bottle that James let me borrow, it was perfect. There were two men on the bike whom I played cat and mouse with and finally beat both of them with about 4 miles to go, only to have one of them pass me on the run. I was out of my shoes with about 100M to go and ready to get off. They were really big on wanting us to slow down before the dismount line (I mean like slow enough to fall off your bike). They also wanted me to dismount off my bike 50 feet before the dismount line, and I was not having any of it. They could try to penalize me for all I care I was staying on until I had to get off. I had a few GI issues with my Accelerade and GU on the ride (I could not finish all my Accelerade because of it). I also waited about an extra 10 minutes to take down my last GU. I really wish I would have finished the rest of my Accelerade, since I had some cramping issues on the latter half of the run.

T2
Just a hair over 1 minute in T2. Was due to having problems getting shoes on damp feet and getting race belt, etc, everything else on. NO SOCKS!!!! More to come on this later...

The Run
After the adjustments I had made to my bike in the weeks preceeding the race and the results I had on brick workouts, I was exicited. No more cramping up within the first half mile of the run, no problems with heavy legs. The great thing about the run course is there was only a small amount of elevation and it was at the very beginning/end of the run (since it was a loop). I think there were 7/8 aid stations over the 10K distance. I averaged 8:45 for the first mile or two, and then I began slowing down. I knew I would not be able to keep up that pace for the entire run, but I had to try. Just after mile 2 I had to give a big shout out to a Tri DAWGS girl. I saw Wes about half a mile from the turn around, and he told me that I better pass him. That was motivation until I got to the turn, where I stopped to walk so I could take in some Gatorade Endurance. I did not take in my GU because of my GI issues earlier on the bike, and that was probably a mistake, since all I had in my bottle I was carrying during the run was 2 tables of NUUN. While good for electrolytes, bad for no calories!!! I began to cramp up in both my quads all the way back in, and I knew I would not be able to dial it up enough to get up and meet with Wes for the finish. I now had to work on finishing myself. There was a second area where I walked for about 60 quick steps and that was up a very short hill that just kicked up in elevation. I knew that I would not be actually running any faster if I jogged up the hill, so I opted to powerwalk instead. For the last two miles there was a female wearing an All3Sports jersey, and I decided that she was running just fast enough to be my "rabbit" for the rest of the race. I really need to thank her, or else I might have not finished as fast (and might not have finished in under three hours either). I finally passed her with about six tenths of a mile to go, and at the finish line she caught back up to me. Wes was walking back to watch me come down the final stretch and told me he had come in about 4-5 minutes before I did. Dee Dee was there to congratulate me at the finish!!! James had gotten done so long ago (finished in around 2 hours 22 min) that he went ahead and took his stuff back to the car and then came back. Wes, Dee Dee and I chatted about the race for a few minutes, got some food/drink, and chatted a few more minutes about their son's soccer tournament that was going on. James met back up with me in transition to help me carry my stuff out and back to the car. After packing the car, we walked back to catch prelimiary results and I was excited to see that I broke 3 hours, and that James finished in the top ten of his AG (7th in 40-44).

Post Race
My hat is also off to Team Sport Factory (and Jen Adley, I think she finished 3rd in her AG) for a strong showing, as well as my Tri DAWGS!!! If they would have been around when I was in college, I would have soo been on the team! Also a shout out goes to Renee, who finished 5th in her AG!!! Congrats to you all! Thanks for the pics Dee Dee! Wes you were awsome! And congratuations to James, although he is not on the blogging scene, he did great!

Only two small blisters on the bottom of my feet when wearing no socks. I will have to admit though, I was still wearing my old shoes, and not my new ones. This was because I had not put my yankz on my new shoes yet.

Times
13th/18 in AG, 215/335(people who actually raced)

Swim: 35:52
T1: :53
Bike: 1:18:26
T2: 1:01
Run: 59:55
______
Tot: 2:56:05

11 days until Tri - PTC!!! Sprint race that was my very first race I ever completed. This will be my third year competing in the event. I think I am going to focus on threshold and speed workouts for the next two weeks since the distances are so short, and I also need to work on maintaining my speed during a race this short.

With respect to completion of my first Olympic Distance Triathlon, I really liked this format a lot. I feel that this gives you a very good gauge of 1/2 and full iron distance races, and you only need to train just a bit more than for a sprint distance event. I think I might change my format to include more of those next year, and be very selective if I do any sprint races at all next year. I loved this course as well!

I am ready to read all the posts from all the races that happened this weekend! I have already read a few, and I am waiting on some peeps that finished IM Louisville.

Murtha...

Small Adjustments = Improvements, and Messed up New Shoes

2007-08-18T14:55:00.000-05:00

Hey!

This is going to be a short post, mostly due to the fact that I don't feel like putting in all of my workout data today, and I am going to try and update my blog tomorrow to update my sidebar to include new blogs I visit, training data, etc...

Swam once for 1500M (bad Andy, more swimming), rode my bike twice (once being a brick) and ran once with James. My "small adjustment," which I eluded to in my title, was to move my seat forward as far as possible on my bike, and then bring the seat up about a quarter inch. Now I am by no means a professional bike fitter, but the results were awsome! My legs felt better on the bike (especially when aero), and on my brick workout, I was having to force myself to slow down and run 8:30/mi splits!!! No cramping or problems getting going on the run!!!

Speaking of running, which leads into my new shoes.

I bought new shoes. I think they are the Saucony Progrid Trigon Guide. Tuesday I was out with James for a 5 mile run, and here is what happened (when you have new shoes paritally broken in with no socks.....

Murtha...

Catching up on what is happening...

2007-08-11T08:34:00.000-05:00

Hello All,

Nice to finally be posting again. I am coming in on my 100th post, and hopefully I can come up with something good like a summary/flashback/etc to cover how I started, where I have been, things of that sort.

This was a bad week for me, due to my work schedule. Now yes, I did set my work schedule so that I would know when I was working, but the way the week went, and other (extracirricular activites I participated in) things that occured, it shot my training week to hell. I got some stuff done last weekend, but it is on my Garmin (which I dont have with me to report), and I ran a tempo run on my new shoes (4 miles) on Wed night in the unbearable heat after I got home from work. I think I like my new shoes, but I will need to put a few more miles on them before I make my final decision. I am also going to try and get all the graphs up this weekend, so that I can create some kind of training log, and so I can quantify what I am actually doing. Wes gave me some HTML to update my blog.

Speaking of Wes, his wife is participating in the Acworth (Women's Only) Triathlon tomorrow morning. I am going to go, and I think that Jackie is coming with me, I am not sure. There are a few other people that will be there as well, both watching and participating. It will be my first tri that I watch/volunteer and not actually participate in. Well, really it is not that hard to fathom, since it is a women's only event, but just to be able to look at it from the participant's side, as well as being a cheerleader, will be pretty cool.

Training today and tomorrow, and getting my schedule set up for next week.

That is all I have for now.

Murtha...

Workouts, and I promise that technology works! (As long as you use it right)...

2007-07-27T07:29:00.000-05:00

Ok lets get the down and dirty details out of the way, with the exception that I did not bring my Garmin with me, so I will have to approximate the data.

07/26/2007 (Thursday)
Workout: Bike - Austell to Marietta Loop
Distance: ~ 26 miles
Time: 1:40:00-1:45:00
RPE: 6-9

07/27/2007 (Friday)
Workout: Run - Silver Comet Trail
Distance: 4.01 mi
Time: ~26:30
RPE: 7

The title of my blog now leads me into my short story. I was about 40-45 min into my workout, and sometimes, if a light at an intersection is long enough, I will stop my watch. Well I did that, and then the light was green, and I began my ride again. Let me add, without hitting the start button again. Did not see this until almost two miles down the road when I went to check my time. Now there is a feature on the Garmin where if you slow down (either running or biking) to a certain pace/speed, the watch will stop for you, and not begin again until you are back above that pace/speed. This is to precisely fix this situaiton. Maybe I need to sit down this weekend and set that up. Speaking of which, I need to do a couple of other things with bike(s). First, I need to get fitted for my bike. I never really got fit when I bought it, and I tweaked it until I thought it felt right. Then I got my aerobars. You should see how far forward I am on my seat when I am pounding it. Second, I need to install the Cateye on Jackie's bike. She has been waiting for me to do so, and I have not done it yet.

Working my other job for the next three days, but at least I don't have to close Saturday night. I am working a special wine tasting that we are having, and although we have to bus and clean up that area when we are done, we should be out of there by 10:15p, rather than me getting out at midnight. (Let us not forget that I then have to drive 35min to get home, traffic is lighter that time of night).

I am soo pissed at LA Fitness right now. I know that is my fault that I am slacking on my swimming workouts, but it definately does not help when I get motivated enough to work out, and then the gym closest to me (takes me 3-4 min to get there) is closed for almost a week for renovations. The next closest gym takes me 30-40 min in off-peak traffic to get to, round trip. I wanted to go this morning, but I did not get up early enough to go, swim and then come back to be at work on time.

I think I will get the peeps together and try to get a lake swim in this weekend, possibly Sunday morning again. If I can get a swim in on Sat and Sun this weekend that would be great. I am excitied about doing the West Pointe Olympic Tri with Wes. I am kinda bummed about not doing the last Tri the Parks - High Falls race, but I will get over it. You have to be able to improvise in this sport.

I also got my email notification about general elections for USAT. The person who is in charge of my region, I have seen before, and I think that he is part of the Peacthree City Triathlon team. I would not mind having him on again another year if he is allowed to be.

I will get caught up on all your blogs this weekend. I know that some of you raced in IMUSA, and some of you are tapering for IMLouisville.

Paitently waiting for my next issue of Triathlete Magazine..... for now.

Murtha...

Murtha......Murtha........Murtha?

2007-07-25T19:44:00.000-05:00

Yes,

I am here. For the few of you who email back and forth with me, you have known what I have been up to. Last week was my week 9 in my now 19 week training program (was 20, and then after I started the program for my race, they rescheduled the race a week earlier this year), and I decided to make it a rest/recovery week due to scheduling. I only got in two workouts, and I worked every day including 4 doubles last week, three of which were back to back to back. Kinda like "wash, rinse repeat." Except mine was "Bank, Wolfgang, sleep."

I have some updates on my race schedule for this year. I have officially signed up for the West Point Triathlon that is on Sunday August 26th. I will be racing with Wes in this event. I had to rack my brain on how I wanted my season to progress with my last race of the year I am anticipating to be the South Carolina Half. My schedule calls for one Olympic race and one Sprint race in the latter part of my training program. There was really no other option as far as a "local" Olympic distance race. However I think this will work out really well considering that while I am having to reschedule my training by 1 week for my taper, putting the shorter distance race seems to work well with my taper period. I will follow up the West Point Triathlon with my regimented annual race now (this is my 3rd season, and I have participated every year), the Tri-PTC. This is a Sprint distance triathlon two weeks after West Point, and one of my more favorite local races.

Tonight was pretty crappy. I was supposed to do a late night workout at the pool, and when I got there, I noticed that there was no one in the LA Fitness parking lot. I went up to the front door and there was a sign saying that it was closed due to Renovations until Friday. Well that sucks. So I came home and made some dinner, and started watching some of Stage 16 of the Tour de France. Vini sucks!!! He is one of the better cyclists in the world. He did not have to screw up his career by cheating. Sure he might not have done as well, but just to be known as one of the better cyclists in history, as well as one of the better cyclists of the Tour de France would be good enough for me.

That is about all I have for now, I want to get some reading in before I go to bed, as well as watch some more of the Tour. If I can think of anything else, I will post it tomorrow.

Murtha...

Rain, Rain Go Away (At least for my bike training days)...

2007-07-11T07:58:00.000-05:00

So,

Three out of the last four "bike training" days that I have had, it has rained. Now, as bad as Georgia needs the rain, it has all day and night to rain outside the few hours of each workout I have on my bike. Oh well, at least it keeps everything cool. It was probably only 70-75 degrees during and after the rain, and it would have been 85-87 degrees without the rain and humidity. Mallie jinxed me up here in Atlanta, I think ;)

There were only 20-25 people that were there for the ride, I think due to weather (c'mon people, a little rain will not hurt you!). James was out there tonight with me. Start was a bit slower, and this time I sucked his wheel going through the first hill. I stayed up with the group until the golf course, and then I began to lose them. As I was catching up with them through the first series of hills after the golf course, well, you know the "hill effect." And what makes it worse is that I am already a bit more cautious than the best riders there. Henceforth, the DROP.

One of the riders from team Cycleworks was in charge of the "second group," which I was leading. Well the funny part is that everyone behind me in the second (last) group decided they did not want to do the Oglethorpe Univ/Silver Lake area, so I was by myself. Except that the rider from the team decided to stay with me. We chatted for awhile, and I did not get his name ( I will next time). We traded places, and I think that when he got behind my wheel it was to let me set the pace and push me. When we got towards the last 1/4 of the ride though, I began trying to push the hills (not 110%, but more like 95%) and I turned around and he was not there. I got to the light at the top of the first ascent, and then he caught up. I did not say anything, but I was thinking, WTF??? The second ascent before we got to Chastain park (pretty much the final stretch with my dreaded large rollers). he got dropped. You must be kidding me. His chain must have broken or something. There is NO WAY this guy dropped. I finished up and James was waiting on me. As I was packing my bike, the guy pulled in and was talking to his teammates. I overheard, "yeah I have a Velodrome race tomorrow, and I was taking it easy tonight..." Well there you go.

With the rain, and not pushing it 110%, I finished in approximately 1:37:00.00. I am ok with that.

I will hopefully be signed up for a race in August after the weekend is over, and I have it narrowed down to two races. I am kind of excited. I also need to sign up for South Carolina half by the end of the month to get around the price increase. Crap. Yet another month of spending. IT NEVER ENDS.

In other news (on the topic of spending) I need to get new work pants for Wolfgang Puck. Holes are starting to form in the seams (in certain places) and they are just looking nasty, no matter how much I clean them. I also have not bought new "bank" clothes for work in almost 2 years. Why, well, because I am a guy, and because it costs money. But it is needed. I will use some Clark Howard tactics though, and try to shop around and save a few dollars.

I think I am going to skip my Thu night ride to ensure that I get some more running/swimming in this week. I am only working Sunday lunch shift. This means I have ALL day Saturday to train, and then Sunday morning early and Sunday afternoon/evening.

I'll keep you posted. Let's see if it rains on Thursday, since I will be training, but not on my bike.

Murtha...

Weekend Events...

2007-07-09T07:53:00.001-05:00

I hope all of you had a good weekend...

Short recap and then on to bigger and better parts of my post.

Saturday: Nothing - and there is nothing you can do about it :-b

Sunday: 50 mile Ride with Wes and his wife on the Silver Comet trail.

I got home from the Bank at about 1:00p on Saturday afternoon, a basketcase. I told myself that there are more important things to do rather than a workout, so I got some stuff done around the house, watched some of the prolouge of the Tour de France, and chilled out. Then it was back to work at Wolfgang Puck Express by 5:30p. This weekend at the restaurant was rough. They were high on labor costs, so they kept cutting people early (and of course it got busy). The HVAC broke on Saturday as well, so we were only running Air Conditioning in half the restaurant. Fun Stuff.

Wes posted to my blog earlier in the week wanting to know about working out at the SCT on Sunday morning (50 miler). It was supposed to be his peak bike workout before his taper (I think) for his Olympic Race in August. Hmmm, let me think.... yes! I must be crazy, because I worked a double with 5 hours of sleep on Friday, then a double with 5 hours of Sleep on Saturday, and then get up at 6am Sunday for this crazy ride. We all went a a training pace for the first 10 miles until Dee Dee turned around and headed back to the car, then it was soooooo on!

I don't know how Wes felt during the entire ride, but I felt like we were pounding it the entire time. It seemed like we were trying to make up for warm up time during the ride. I took in some nutrition during the ride in the way of Gu and Accelerade, and had some Nuun in my "water" bottle. On the way back in my legs seemed to be tiring, but I somehow found that extra bit of "oomph" that we all search for late in our workouts, and most of the time we do find it. We had another small group on the way back in the last 5-6 miles where we took turns pulling. At that point it was which group of us was going to hammer harder.

When we got done I told Wes I would call him later in the day about the swim, and then it was off to take care of cats and work! The kittens are hellions right now, and so you have to have paitence with them (which I had none of last night, I was exhausted). We were short yet again on Sunday, and so by the time I got off work at the Sauana, uh I mean very hot restaurant, it was going to be too late to hook up with Wes and Dee Dee for their evening swim. So I called Jackie to see what was going on. We went and got some dinner and then it was off to my sister's apartment to spend the night with the cats. I will say a definate positive was that it only took me 10-15 min to get to work this morning from her apartment, rather than the usual 45 min or more from Austell.

This week should be good.

There we go, positive mental attitude on a Monday morning, I love it.

Murtha...

Weekday workouts, My encounter with Get Fit Atlanta, and a bad time to take Excedrin

2007-07-06T07:33:00.000-05:00

I am feeling somewhat recovered today. I'll go through the motions first, but without stats, I don't have any of them with me.

Monday was a track workout where my main set was a 6x400

Tuesday was the Sandy Springs ride. James came with me, and he rode with the front group. He said that they are very unorganized and dangerous at times compared to the Roswell Thursday night rides.

Wednesday was nothing. It was a holiday damnit!

Thursday I tried to get in some intervals on my bike, I only got in 4 and then averaged probably 17mph the rest of the ride. More to follow on this below.

Monday I tried going to Osborne High School again for my track workout. This time they had it on lockdown. I didn't feel like climbing the high fence. This sucks. I have payed taxes for years now, as has my family, and a portion of that goes to pay for the public school system. All I want to do is use the track at a PUBLIC SCHOOL. Oh well, there is another high school to try about 5-10 minutes down the road. Yeah!!! it is open! Wait, what are all the people doing here? Soon to find out there is a coaching organization called Get Fit Atlanta had there track workout that day as well. I just mixed in with the group, and did my own thing. I later that night checked out their website, and they are raking it in, if they have enough members of course. There were about 40 people there.

Tuesday, as I stated before, James came with me for his first try at the Sandy Springs ride. I know that this ride is easier than riding up in Roswell, so he should end up in the front behind a few people (only because it was his first time). I stayed with the group this time further than I have ever been before (getting dropped), and it was to my detriment. I ended up as a basket case for the rest of the first half of the ride, and finally recovered enough to finish in an average time for the entire ride. I am kind of sad for the entire group. The past couple of years there were about 10-20 people that we either as fast as me, or just a bit slower. So on those past rides there would be about 3-4 of us and then the remainder would be in the final group behind me. I think due to the pace of how the front group wants to run, people got demoralized and quit coming. This now puts me at the back. Not that I have a problem, however, this is supposed to be an 18mph recovery ride, and ALWAYS turns into a 20mph ride easy. Only reason I did not finish dead last this week is that someone wrecked in the Lake neighborhood.

Wednesday I spent the afternoon at my sister's pool (at her apartment complex) and imbibed just a bit. I then had to work. We stayed late afterwards and had a few beers, and then I went home. I had a bad headache, and decided that the best course of action would be to take Excedrine Migrane. Bad idea!!! I don't drink caffinated beverages much anymore. There was enough caffine to keep me awake most of the night. I was a train wreck on Thursday. That basically translated into my crappy workout last night. I just did not feel on. I did get some intervals in though.

This weekend is going to be rough. Double today, double tomorrow, Sunday lunch at the Puck, and then double Monday. Skirted my swims again this week. Bad Andy!!! I think I might have an open water for Sunday morning. If I get at least 1 swim in with my brick and endurance run this weekend, I will be happy.

Working this 2nd job is really wearing on me. When I first started, I was working 4-5 shifts a week making more money, and having a good time. Now I am working 3-4 shifts a week, making less money, and my attitude has changed at that job. I try to be as positive as possible (since it is a customer service oriented job), but it just leaves me drained at the end of the day. Oh well, it is a means to an end. Hopefully be the end of the year the majority of my debt will be paid off and I will not only have that money to save, etc, but I will have all that time back to do what I want to do. No more debt = New tri gear!!! :)

I'll keep you posted on my weekend, other than that, I am just going to read all of your blogs!

Murtha...

Recapping the weekend...

2007-07-02T07:30:00.000-05:00

Well,

This weekend went really well. I did not double up on my workouts like I would have wanted to do, but that is fine. I had more important things to do, like hang out with friends, family, etc. Saturday morning I worked, and then went home and got some stuff done. Laundry, Cleaning the bathroom, cleaning the bedroom, etc... I was also waiting for the temperature of the afternoon to come down a bit. I also was in the hunt for a different running location. If any of you are ever looking for something different for the bike or the run, I think you need to choose these two websites out.

Map My Run
Map My Ride

I ended up doing a 5K from Kennesaw Mtn State Park over to downtown Marietta, 5 min break for Gu and Stretching, and then 5K back to my car at the Park. I will have to say, I probably should not have stopped for that short break (as much as I needed to stretch), since my lap average really suffered after that. I was taking it easy, so I was trying for 9:30/mi pace, and I pretty much hit that on the way out, but on the way back in there was a large stretch of road that was 11:30-11:45/mi. The last mile was flat/downhill, so I was able to get my heartrate back down and increase the pace faster again.

Sunday, I got up early (8:00a for Sunday) and I went to the gym to put in some laps. This is the one workout I have been slacking on lately. I did a 100M warmup, 50M worth of drills (just swimming on my sides) and then did 2x400M free drills. I did not time myself, I just did them as best as I could technique-wise. Halfway throught my second 400M I had to keep refocusing on what the heck I was doing. There was a lady who was in the lane next to me, and we were swimming about the same pace, so it was easy for me to see if I was off pace or not, from my RPE.

After that I spent the rest of the day down on the south side of Atlanta visiting with my aunt and uncle, and then my best friend and his wife. It was good to see all of them again.

This week is going to be pretty hectic for me. I will be working all weekend long, so I will have to get in over half my workouts during the week. I am also working at night on the 4th. Booo. The funny thing is that the fancy 4 star restaurant next door is only going to be open early in the morning for the Peachtree Road Race, and then closing promptly at 10:00a. We're opening at 2:00p and then staying open until 9:30p. Now you know at 9:30p no one is going to be there, because they are all going to be out watching fireworks and cooking out. They are going to waste all that money on labor and operating costs for the little money that they are going to make. I am sure Wes can throw his two cents in (since he is in the restaurant business) about how well as fast casual restaurant does on the holdidays (not well).

Oh, I also was up Sunday morning checking out the European Ironman Championship. I used to speak German very well, and now I hardly know any. I picked up some on what the announcer of the program online was saying, but mostly I was just focusing on the race. It was the perfect time in the morning for me as well, since Germany was six hours ahead. By the time I pulled it up on Ironman live, the men were in the last few kilometers of the finish. I was very suprised to see how far back Norman Stadler and Faris Al-Sultan ended up in the race. I guess every race cannot be your best race. However the duel between Nicole Leder and Andrea Brede was awsome!!! Just like a close superbowl or BCS championship game, this finish was great to watch.

Workout tonight, and then two tomorrow. If I can get two in on Thursday or (Thu nigh/Fri morning) then I will be really happy, since that will leave me with two remaining workouts for the weekend, as busy as I am going to be.

Murtha...

Just plodding through the week

2007-06-29T07:51:00.000-05:00

UPDATE: Pics to be posted this weekend when I get some time to get my scanner working again. I am also going to order the race pics once they are posted from the race's official picture site.

My legs were sore until Tuesday. I went on my Tuesday night ride, but I had to cut it short (in half to be exact) so that I could get Jackie's camera back before she went on her business trip. It was about 12-13 miles in 54 minutes. Sandy Springs ride. I kept up with everyone past the golf course this time until I got about a mile or two after that, and then I got dropped. See I am getting a little further every time.

Swimming did not end up working out Wednesday morning for logistical reasons. Thursday either. I really need to take care of that situation. Especially on nights where I am able to go to bed at a decent hour.

Thursday night was an endurance ride for me, 2 hours in the saddle. I forgot to bring half my stuff to work with me, and I really, really needed to pick up my dry cleaning, so I went to the Silver Comet Trail. I got started about 6:40p in the evening, and it was getting really cloudy and dark outside. I kept getting hit with sprinkes, but nothing serious....... until I made the turn to come back. After my first hour, I turned around and it hit me. for 5 miles it was drenching rain. I was probably riding 1/2 inch deep in some places, and I had to move the cellphone to the front of my tri shirt to try and keep it dry. That did not help too much, but my phone still works today, so that is promising. I did about 37.3 miles in 2 hours, averaging 18.6 mph. I purposely tried to average 18mph at the beginning of the ride as it was a tempo ride, but once I got about 20 miles into the ride, my legs loosened up and my body wanted to go faster. My mind was thinking control, but that is not how it played out. There was one area of about 1/2 mile where i felt burnt out for a moment (it was a false flat incline), but I kicked it in gear again when it flattened out. Once I got back to the car it was light rain, and I headed home to wash up and then get some dinner (Taco Mac).

I am pretty open this weekend, so I am going to try and get 4 workouts in this weekend (especially swimming) to make up for the week. Most of them are interval/speed training, so there will not be heavy volume of workouts back to back. I am not worried.

In other news, I have kind of mapped out what I think I am going to do over the next 12-14 months. I am toying with the idea of doing IM Louisville. It does not interfere with the wedding, it is fairly close (I can get there in 6 hours), and it is not at the end of the year (like IMFL). The ONLY negative is that it is not as flat as IMFL, but I don't think I want it to be. I also want to get some key events in before hand (such as Half-Mary in Nov, Mary in March, Century ride sometime between April-June). I had no clue until I started writing everything down how much planning and time you need to look ahead to do an event such as this.

And the $$MONEY$$!!! Now I know why the average person only does 1 Ironman Event a year (whether or not they do one close to them or they make a vacation out of it). In theory, I would leave Thu night to louisville, and get there late. Then I would take Friday and Monday off of work, and then come back Monday afternoon. 4 nights hotel, gas, 4 days of food, spending money for entertainment/Ironman SWAG, etc. I think the budget, including entry fees is coming somewhere near $1500!!! Since this is not an event that is popular enough to sell out, I am not too worried about signing up for it the day after yet....however, I am probably not going to take a chance. We shall see, I need to check on a few other things before I make a final decision on this one.

I just found out my schedule for next week at my other job, I am going to have to do the majority of my workouts during the week, because I am working double Wed, Fri, Sat and then I am working sometime on Sunday, but I do not know when yet.

Murtha...

2007 Tri the Parks - Indian Springs State Park, June 23rd, 2007

2007-06-25T12:08:00.000-05:00

Before we begin, I wanted to preview my race report with a little clarification on a definition.

BOMBED: (bombd) 1; v. the past tense of bomb, which is to cause a explosive device to detonate on a specified target. 2; adj. intoxicated by alcohol or drugs. 3; See Murtha's post below...

PRELUDE
Lets begin the night before, where I worked both jobs on Friday, and the manager for the night was nice enough to let me off a bit early. I think I got home somewhere between 10 and 10:30, and by the time I got done packing everything up, I got in bed around midnight. However, I don't think I fell asleep until about 1am. I woke up at 3:30am, took a quick shower, and downed some Gu and Gatorade. Got in the car and over to Jackie's house at around 4:40am. We packed everything up and then stopped back by McDonald's around 5am, and I got a Southern style chicken biscuit and some water.

YOUR DRIVING WHERE???
Flovilla, GA. Yes, about 45-50 minutes south of Atlanta. I have been close to there before cutting down Christmas trees, and I used to go camping at Indian Springs when I was younger with the family. There are some minor annoyances that I have with the race organizers of this "Tri the Parks" series, and I think most of it stems from the fact that they can get cheap venue setups by using the Georgia park system, and it benefits the park because we have to pay to get in the park (not included in race entry fee). I will state, however, that the park officials were "with it" this time (and the fact that we were not late due to freeway construction) and there were three guys moving cars through and taking money as fast as they could

MOUNT TRANSITION (DOOM)
It figures that my tri life is doomed. I don't know if I wrote about it on Thursday's post, but James told me that the best place to have my bike setup in transition is close to the bike exit, so that you run very little with your bike in T1 and T2. Of course my bike was at the very opposite end. I would not put too much emphasis on this, except that it was a parking area on a hill!!! Not a slight incline, but a hill!!! Again please see my aforementioned comment about the agreement between the organizers and the park system for this reasoning. I was at the end of the row, YES!!! extra room for my setup!

"YOU COULD NOT PAY ME TO TOUCH YOUR FEET....... BUT WAIT, THAT'S WHAT YOU GET PAID FOR!"
The only other issue I was worried about pre-race was my feet. For some reason they went to heck the last few days before the race, so I had to tape them up. Funny story, a lady, just before the race began, gave me a concerned look. I said hello, and then she asked me if I was racing with a broken foot. I was not paying attention when she told me that. Jackie then relayed the message to me, and I got a good chuckle out of it.

RACE TIME - SWIM (16:31.31, 24th/27 in AG)
I got in the water and swam about 100yds before the race began, and felt good. Gun went off, and I think I started the first 150M too fast because in the middle of the swim I had to breast stroke for about 50M to catch my breath. Otherwise, my breathing was good (bilateral) and I was breathing every 3 strokes. My sighting was also good, just that I purposely stayed wide of the bouys to avoid any hassles. The funny part was that slowed down once to sight, and I found someone drafting off my feet (i.e. running into me). I thought that funny seeing as how I finished almost last in my AG. I did get through it about 30 seconds faster than last race, but I felt like I did it 2 mins faster. Maybe because I was not swimming as hard as I needed to the last half.

MOUNT T1 (1:06.06 6th/27 in AG)
I had to run up sand and rocky forest area before I got to the top of the parking lot for T1. Forgot to have water up there, so I wiped my feet on the towel for a quick second and then planned what I practiced. Then I had to run my bike down the steep slope with my shoes undone, I was kind of paranoid, but made it out. I forgot to turn my Garmin on before the race began, so the satelittes did not pick up until 1 mile into the race.

BIKE - WHAT I THOUGHT WAS FAST REALLY WAS NOT (39:54.54 19th/ 27 in AG, 19.25mph)
Kind of worn out from the swim, and it took me longer than I needed to get velcro on shoes, since the velcro came out of the loops. Then the first thing I had to do was put up with the largest elevation climb of the ride (which would have normally not been that bad, but it was the first thing after the swim. Big geared it for most of the ride, and thought I did much better than my stats posted, since my Garmin was averaging 22-24mph. I guess I never looked down when I was going up those hills, and that first mile where my Garmin was down I was going pretty slow. I felt confident though, since I only had 4 females pass me this time, where I had probably a dozen catch me last time. Coming into T2, I took off my shoes and pedaled on top of them, and had no problems dismounting.

MOUNT T2 (1:30.30, 23rd/ 27 in AG)
Ok, so you ask, "how in the heck can you go from 6th in your AG to 23rd in your AG on T2?" Well, first off you have to have your rack position at the very top of the hill, such that you have to push your bike to the top. Then you have to have issues with your taped left foot and your running shoe, such that you lose 15 seconds playing with it. That would have put me down to 17th in my AG. I finally got out of there quickly after the tape debacule.

RUN - WHERE I "BOMBED" (30:00.00, 23rd/ 27 in AG, 9:40 min/mi pace)
I definately left the majority of the wad I wantd to blow on the bike portion of the course. Within the first half mile, my right hamstring locked up, and I had to stop for about 15 seconds and stretch it. I walked about 15-20 seconds, and then began jogging small strides. There was a female AG'er that was probably in the top 10 that I tried to stay with for about 100yds, but that was not happening. Hills were worse than John Tanner tri I did earlier this year. I got to about mile 1.5, when I had to walk part way up the hill because of my quads. the around mile 2.25 I had to do the same thing. With about .75 mile to go, my right hammie locked up again, and I walked it off for about 30 seconds, the jogged to the finish.

Total Time: 1:29:02.02, 21st/ 27 in AG

Thoughts... Well I missed my goal by just over 9 minutes. Do I care...? NO! I leared alot from this race, and also how my training has led up to the results of this race. I think the big problem is that I needt to figure how much letting off in one area will have an impact in another area. The problem therein lies that I don't think by letting off (for example) 1-2 min on the bike will significantly impact my run performance in a positive manner. I think I just need to up the volume a bit more OR change my training technique. I also did not taper for the event, as it is more of an event just to do leading up to my big race in the fall.

The biggest thing I have noticed is how I emotionally feel about my performance. I really don't care how I finished, just that I did finish (kinda the reason I got started in this whole tri thing three years ago). Even the fact that this was my slowest finish ever in a Sprint distance event does not seem to bother me.

I did not get to see Renee this weekend, mostly due to me having to cut out of the race as soon as I got finished to go up to Clayton (I did not get home until 1am Sunday morning, after being up for almost 24 hours). She got 7th in her AG! I am so proud of her! Totally kicked my butt by almost 4 minutes!!!

I will try and post pictures Tuesday if I have time, and get some of the other John Tanner pictures up as well.

Murtha...