Race of Grace

This past Saturday I raced in the Race of Grace Triathlon in Philadelphia, MS. I entered at the last minute, thinking this would be more fun than doing the regular long run in the heat back in Jackson. Of course, it was also hot in Philadelphia!

This was the 5th running of this race and featured a new out-and back bike course and a new out-and-back run course. So really, a "new" race this year. The swim was a point-to-point 1/4 mile swim in a private lake, nicely marked with frequent left and right buoys (almost like lane lines at the pool!). The bike course was rolling terrain through the countryside and the run course was a series of short hills....both courses were very reminiscent of the Memphis in May course.




I snapped this photo with the iPhone. I was among the first to arrive. I got a kick out of the transition area located in the hay field.

It wasn't my best day at the races. You think ahead of time....How difficult could it be to swim 400m, bike 17 mi, and run 5k? And I think the same thing afterwards. But, yet....

There were some funny moments at the race. It was a time trial start, according to self-estimated swim times. I was #4....but there were no #1 or #2 (they reserved those #'s for last year's winners who failed to show). We get lined up before the start, in numerical order. The guy who's #5 looks at me (sort of up and down) and asks incredulously, "YOU'RE #4?" I sheepishly said yes. It turned out that he swam past me rather effortlessly. I'm sure he felt like the hero.

Beware the green carpet! The embankment at the swim exit was pretty steep....only 10-15 feet or so, but pretty steep. And the race people decided to have the green indoor-outdoor carpet stretch from in the water to the top of the embankment. Only 2 swimmers got out before me, but the carpet was totally wet for my exit. I started running up the carpet, fell, and slid on my belly back into the water. It created a bit of a stir....and the volunteers did their best to help. Glad no photos were taken.

It was tremendously hot and humid for the race. The first (and only) aid station for the run was at the 1-mile mark, at the top of a hill. By this point, I had already walked up the hill and concluded that I would be unable to eke out the 5k run. The volunteers were handing out water in the sunny street. Even though it was an extra 50 feet to walk, I took refuge under the aid station tent to regroup. Again, much attention from the volunteers....I just wanted to find an air conditioned vehicle to recover fromthe 1st mile of running. Hmmm....

I'm still hoping that one day I'll be able to show up at these races....and have a solid day. It ought to be easier. Next try....the Sunfish Triathlon in Meridian, MS, on July 11th.

Great Chesapeake Bay Swim 2009

Put the 2009 edition of the Great Chesapeake Bay Swim in the record book! I had a great weekend in DC and Annapolis with the family....and a great swim today to boot.

Recall, I did the 2008 race here as well. Immediately after the race, I told my family that I wouldn't make plans to do this again any time soon. But, with the passing of weeks (and eventually, months) you remember the good....and forget the bad. Once again I entered the lottery....and got a spot! Why can't this happen with the Kona lottery?

This year's race comes 2 weeks on the heels of a "crash and burn" performance at Ironman Brazil. There's been little training since then, but I did have a good short swim to lead-off a sprint tri relay with some friends back in Mississippi last Saturday. I didn't quite know what to expect for the 4.4 mile swim this year. Thinking back, my longest swim in the past year was 5200 yards....and I've logged about 40% less swim training than before last year's race. I was hoping to finish.

The weather was great this year....sunny skies, temps in the 70's, tolerable humidity. But there was a stiff breeze and the water was very rough. Not quite like the rough waters at IM Brazil, but close....and certainly rougher than at this race last year. Got off to a good start, settled into an aerobic pace, and tried to cruise from start to finish. Finished the miles (at least as they were marked!) in 19 min, 29 min, 30 min, 30 min, and the last 0.4 miles in 19 min. Not entirely sure things were marked correctly. Finished in 2:07, a few minutes slower than last year....and finished in 151st place, a few places better than last year. A great day in the water, I'd say.

In a 2-hour swim, there's ample time to think. I spent a lot of time thinking about coach Justin who raced yesterday in the Boise 70.3. He had a tough day at the races....mirroring my efforts 2 weeks ago at IM Brazil. He was very kind after my meltdown, finding just the right words....and he sounded so discouraged after his race yesterday. I thought again and again....need to have a good race here to get Team JD back on track. Don't let the team down again! I should talk Gordo into doing an article or blog piece about the aftermath of a bad race.

I had celebration dinner with my sister and folks at Cheesecake Factory, where I couldn't get enough food to eat!

Lori tells me to add that I'm laying now on her living room floor with the laptop while the others are eating dessert (that we took home from the Cheesecake Factory).

Looking forward to getting back to training. Next up....the Heart O' Dixie Triathlon on July 25th.

Heatwave Classic 2009

Great day at the races this past Saturday!

Nice, cool weather and the biggest crowd (athletes and spectators) ever for the 2009 edition of the Heatwave Classic here in Ridgeland, MS. I was recovering from the IM Brazil race the previous weekend and was thinking that I'd just come and cheer....but Bobby S. and Lesley R. talked me into doing the swim leg for their mixed relay team.

I had a great time. Compared to the previous week's race, it was pretty sweet to swim for just a few minutes, get out, and then cheer for our team and my many friends doing the race. We managed a 2nd place finish in the not-so-competitive mixed relay division. I stuck around for the awards after lunch....it was great to applaud the efforts of the friends who ended up on the podium. Congrats to friend and neighbor, Hastings P., for his 2nd consecutive win at the Heatwave! Awesome!

Back to some light training this week. Next up....Chesapeake Bay swim on Sunday!

Long Day at the Races

IM Brazil 2009 is in the record book!

It was a long day at the races, though....and I set new personal bests for slowest IM run and slowest IM race....and came pretty close to slowest IM bike, too! It's always a little sad when the highlight of your Ironman race day was a strong T1!

I truly appreciate all the well-wishes before and after the race. I told coach Justin on race night that it would take a while for my spirit to recover, but having ample encouragement from family and friends has helped.

I've shared some of the race day stories already, and any short account is an over-simplification, but here's how it went down....

The swim went reasonably well. The conditions were very rough, though (the worst I've ever tried to swim in, really). Because of the conditions, the race probably got off to a rather slow start....and this helped to avoid some of the typical fray at the beginning. I made it around the 2 loops in 1:02, thankful I didn't drown, but having spent much more energy than the swim usually takes....and much more energy than I'd like to have spent.

There was intermittent rain on the bike ride, the skies were cloudy, and the temps were in the 60's. It turned out to be a record-setting bike split for the winner, though, so conditions were pretty good. I got off to a rough start with a flat in mile #2....and it took me (and eventually, a mechanic) forever to change the tubular. I had troubles with high HR and low power output for the entire ride. The ride took 6:46 and finished with a 2nd flat. Looking back at the PT and Garmin files, it was a constantly decelerating ride, with ever-lower HR, too. I didn't have specific nutrition problems, but Justin and I were wondering now about dehydration. Who knows?

I set out on the run, determined to run to the finish, but lasted only the first hour or so before having to walk. I really wanted to finish, though, so it was a long (and eventually pretty lonely) evening on the run course. When I spotted the clock at the finish line, I had to sprint the final 50 yards to make it just under 15 hours.

Sometimes after a poor race, it's easy to point at one factor or another that was responsible. I'm not sure that's the case here, though. Training had gone well, I felt well rested at the start, conditions were good, nutrition seemed to work out OK, but somehow it didn't all come together at the race. So....I'm not sure yet what to learn from the IM Brazil experience.


We enjoyed a celebration dinner with the EST group at a Brazilian steakhouse on Monday after the race. Good food and good company....Gerd from Kona and Ron & Dina from Portland.

Looking ahead....

On Saturday, I'm doing the swim leg for a relay with Bobby S. and Lesley R. at the Heatwave Triathlon here in Ridgeland. I haven't been in town for this race the past 2 years, so it should be fun to race AND cheer for my friends as they finish the race.

And next Sunday, I'll be doing the Great Chesapeake Bay 4.4 mile swim. I'm looking forward to the weekend with family in DC/Annapolis and the chance to do a great open water swim on Sunday.

Then it's back to the training routine. I'm planning to do 3 shorter triathlons and finish the season with IM Florida in November.


Onward....