A foolish consistency

Ironman Arizona 2008 Race Report

A quick race report to tide you over until I get all the power meter and Garmin numbers :-)

The word of the day was "hot".  Just about everyone remarked on how damn hot it was. 

I saw Jill Fry at the start of the race, and of course I had my whole family and my daughter's friends and Danny along, all wearing their matching shirts.  I did feel very relaxed, and it was the first Ironman where I had more than 3 hours of sleep the night before. :-)

I saw Jill Brandon at the start and we hung out a bit, calming our pre-race nerves. Jill and I discussed how it's never the actual race that makes us nervous, it's the worry that you forgot some critical piece of equipment... very OCD.

I had a great swim. I drafted a bunch of people and came in 4 minutes faster than last year at 1:20.

I start out with high hopes on the bike, given the low wind forecast. Well, that just wasn't true.  The headwind was brutal, not because it was super strong but because it was strong and steady.  Unrelenting is the word. On the back half of the first loop it was an amazing tailwind.  I hit 34mph steady on the slight downhill, then steady 31 on the flats.  I had an 18.2 mph average on the first loop, about the same as last year. 

The second loop was even tougher than the first going out, but a bit less of a tailwind coming back.  The third loop had a lesser headwind, but by then my legs were starting to fade and my neck was killing me from the aero position. I was chafing, too, so I kept squirming around on the seat trying to find a better spot.  And on the return, the wind faded way back, so I didn't get to enjoy a strong tailwind.  I finished the bike in 6:33, about 22 minutes slower than last year.

This is pretty much what I expected, since I knew I was coming into this undertrained on the bike.  I was crossing my fingers for good conditions to make up for that, and didn't get it.

The good news was that my nutrition plan of "fuel bottles" of water & Carbopro along with 1000mg of sodium every hour worked really well.  I had no stomach problems at all on the bike, and except for exhausted legs I was fine.

Thus I started the run hopeful for a 3:50 marathon and maybe a sub-12 finish. But alas, the heat did me in.  I ran the first two miles, then started to get dizzy and had to walk an aid station.  Then I ran maybe another mile, then walked a bit more.  My stomach was a bit borderline, but I was trying to run as much as possible.  I saw Jill, and I was confident this would be like IMAZ06 where I got stronger every loop.

Somewhere around mile 9 I fell apart.  I suddenly got very dizzy, and I felt very chilled - I had goosebumps on my arms, and that shouldn't happen in 92 degrees. I also felt very sleepy.  I sat on a curb under a bridge (shade), head on my knees, waiting for that to pass.  Several people asked if I needed help, which I declined, and of course I wanted to dodge the medical people because I didn't want an involuntary DNF.  I wasn't all that bad, I thought, and that was proved true because after several minutes the dizzyness and chills were gone and I started moving again.

After that I stopped using ice and sponges so much, and just ran most of the time at 10:30 to 11 minute pace.  Pretty much as fast as I could go until my heart rate hit 150, which seemed to be when the dizziness would strike and I would have to walk a while.  I also walked the few short hills on the course (climbs up to the bridge decks, mostly).

The sun went down (finally!) at 6:57, and now I had an hour to run the last 7 miles or so for a sub-13 finish. But after some thought about my running pace, I figured I couldn't do the 30 seconds per mile faster that would take so I set my goal at a sub 5 hour marathon. Without the blazing sunshine, I pretty much ran the entire last loop, walking a few aid stations.  I haven't checked my Garmin, but I think the pace was 9:45 or so.

I came in with a 4:58 marathon and a 13:05 overall time.

Overall, it was by far the toughest of the three Ironman races I've done.  Last year was windier on the bike, but I was better trained and it wasn't as hot.  The run last year and the year before were cakewalks compared to the run this year.  According to weather.com, I ran all but the very last part of the marathon in the low 90s.

Plus, nearly all my race time goals were going by unmet. Last year, I was on a PR pace in all three sports and overall time.  It's a totally different mental game to be out there on the course suffering without those types of goals for motivation.  You have to dig deep and really bring it to keep on running on a day like yesterday.

Back after the race ...

I'm here in my hotel room with a brace on my ankle after RICE treatment since the race. I can't really walk much, but that's OK.

I was having a great race until mile 18 or so, where I stepped on something in the road and wrenched my left ankle. I was so focused on execution and keeping pace by focusing on reeling in faster runners ahead of me I didn't even see what I hit. I think it was one of those reflector markers.

Anyway I reached mile 20 right on schedule (2:33) but each mile after that was increasingly painful and slower. I hobbled in doing 9:30s or so for the last three miles at around 3:32 and went straight to the medical tent to ice it. I didn't think it was so bad, until I tried to stand up and nearly collapsed when I put weight on it.

Even though I didn't hit 3:20, I'm putting this one in the "win" column, because I trained properly for the event, I had a proper race strategy that I executed well, and I managed to gut out a PR even with my bad ankle.

Race Plan for RNR Arizona 2008

If you've been following my blog, you know my goal is to BQ (Boston Qualify) at Sunday's Rock-n-Roll Arizona Marathon.   There are about 10,000 marathoners and 25,000 half marathoners, so this should be quite a spectacle.  My youngest daughter Lana is flying down with me for a mini-vacation, and to be my cheering section at the start and finish lines. 

My last marathon was back in October, and I did a terrible job following my race plan.  I am fairly well trained, I think, for trying for a 3:20 in Arizona, but by no means is it in the bag.  I am confident I can do it if I race smart, eat right, don't go too hard too early, and nothing out of the ordinary happens.

Start to Mile 5: Run at 7:45 per mile, which will translate to around a 155 HR, although what with race excitement it may be higher.  RPE should be reasonable, since my last MAF test showed a 150 HR at 8:00 per mile for 5 straight miles (after 20 minute warmup).  Time to 5 mile marker: 38:45

Miles 6 – 13.1 (halfway):  Run at 7:40 per mile.  RPE should be a notch up, but not hard.  Time to the halfway point: 1:40:40 or so.

Miles 13.1 – 23: up to 175.  Run at 7:35 per mile. Again, a little higher up the RPE scale, and I expect my HR to start to rise around mile 17.  My long training runs showed a steady HR for the first 17 miles, then an upward climb after that.  In my past marathons, mile 18 to 22 have been where the trouble starts so I need to run this part smart and steady.  I should see the 18 mile mark at 2:18, and the 23 mile mark at 2:56.

Then to the end: Run at 7:30 per mile or faster.  This is where I need to kick it to ensure a sub 3:20 at the finish line.

Nutrition Gu gels, my on-board fluids, and on-course water and energy drinks.  I’ll have some Endurolytes along that I’ll take in the morning and at the 10 mile point.   I'll use my Amphipod RunLite Trail Endurance that worked well in Portland, and I'll load it with 6 gels, a snack bar, and 21 oz of a Carbo-Pro / Gatorade mix.  I'd have a gel at 15 minutes then every 45 minutes, and half a bottle of at 5, 10, 13.1, and 18 miles, with water on the course to dilute.

I think I weighed myself down with too many varied foods in Portland (I had some slight discomfort the last few miles), so I'm going to drop the candy and just go with some bars and organic cereal for about 400 calories in the morning.

I also have to make sure to jog the water stops.  Looking at my Garmin during the Seattle half, I was surprised by how much my average pace dropped during a short 30 foot walk of an aid station and how long it took to get it back up.

So there it is.  Time to bring it on Sunday!

Race Report - 2007 Seattle Half Marathon

I ran this back in November, the Sunday after Thanksgiving.  Like Portland, This was a test race on my path to the Rock 'N' Roll Arizona Marathon in less than two weeks.

The race starts in front of EMP; I arrived at the starting line just 2 minutes before the race start.   We got stuck in traffic and I had to abandon my wife and daughter and jog to the start while they parked. 

My race plan was simple: start the first mile in the 150s, then mile 2-5 around 170.   After mile 5, I’d keep it steady at 180, then mile 10 onward as hard as I could.

I came in with 1:40:40, which is disappointing in light of the 1:34 pace needed to say I was “on track” for a 3:20 in Arizona in January.  I’m happy with race execution though – I paced it well although I also didn’t negative split.  However, the big downhill at mile 1-2 gave me a fast 6:50 mile there, and then the hills in the back half added a couple minutes.

It’s my first time to run the half on that course, and it’s true what they say – the Seattle half is “all the hard parts” of the Seattle full course.

Here's the Garmin data (what's a race report without data?)

 

Mile 1-2 has the long downhill to I90 express lanes, mile 7-8 is the big climb on the route with 8-9 the downhill on that and another climb 9-10.  I went and looked more closely at mile 9-10 because my time was just too slow for the hill I remember.

It starts with an uphill that’s not too bad, but then gets crowded and twisty with poor pavement.  I recall weaving through people and a couple times getting stuck a moment behind a clot of slower runners.   The uphill accounts for maybe 20-30 seconds; but otherwise I think next time I’ll make sure to push through more aggressively.

 

 

 

 

 

There were a number of people from JFT2 racing both the full and the half.  I saw Mark and Shannon in front of EMP - amazingly even with thousands of people, we ended up right next to each other at the start.  I saw Blake right after his run, but then had to wait a long time to meet up with Theresa and Lea.  Theresa had already found Jill, so we went and found her and I shared my race report.  

Everyone on the team did pretty much what they expected without issues.  David Treadwell was doing the full for a BQ, and nailed it with a 3:03!  He encountered some cramps and had to stop and stretch a few times, otherwise he was on a sub-3 pace.  That’s pretty impressive and something to aim toward myself.

The picture to the left is about 90 minutes after race end.  Theresa has her big puffy blue cold weather coat, and you see me in my red hat with the sides turned up.  Quite Christmas-y, don't you think?  And Coach Jill and Jill Brandon.  Jill B also had a good run.

Triathlon Resolutions 2008

Tri Goals

These are the goals I've set for myself.

1. Reach 50th percentile on the swim at IMAZ in April (I was bottom 30th last year).
2. Sub 11 hour at IMC in August.
3. Bike average 20mph or higher on one Ironman and at Lake Stevens 70.3 - without killing my run.
4. Solid no-excuses performances at all of my events.
   

Tri Resolutions

And this is the plan for how to achieve my goals.

1. Create a realistic Annual Training Plan with my coach and commit to meeting those hours each week (no excuses!). In 2007, there were several periods where I was off-plan for weeks at a time.  Sometimes I had good reasons (work) other times not so much.
2. Consistently swim - 3 times per week early season, 4 time per week during peak training. I skimped on swimming too much after IMAZ. That's one reason I put IMC on my schedule
3. Learn to effectively train and race with my powermeter. I'm know my race performances aren't nearly what I am capable of delivering, and this tool will help me reach that potential.
4. Run more outdoors instead running on my treadmill. I didn't get into this sport to spend hours a week running in my garage watching DVDs, much as I enjoy combining two things I love together.
   

Happy New Year!

Portland Marathon 2007 Race Report

I ran in the Portland Marathon last Sunday October 7th, for the second time and my sixth open marathon.  I had a good race overall, I think, and I learned a lot (by hard experience) that I can use for in January when I run the Rock 'N' Roll Arizona Marathon.  My goal in Arizona is to beat 3:20 and qualify for Boston, and I found out in Portland that it's not going to be easy to accomplish that.  My time in Portland was 3:39, which is a PR but I was hoping for 3:35 - halfway to 3:20.  And I failed to follow my race plan, which was the most disappointing for me.

Before

Theresa and I drove down on Saturday, visited my father and sister, then checked into the Benson.  We wandered downtown for a bit, discovering that the famed Transit Mall is all but destroyed as it is being rebuilt for light rail.  In middle and high school teenager I used to ride the bus everywhere and spent a lot of time on the Mall.  It was strange to see it gone like that.  

I wanted to be finished with dinner by 6pm, so we headed to to the Macaroni Grill but discovered that dozens of other people had the same idea - a 2 hour wait.  So we went to Alessandro's instead. They had immediate seating, but clearly didn't understand that marathoners eat early - they were badly understaffed for a fully packed dinning room at 6pm on a Saturday.  So after a fairly lengthy wait, I had an excellent pasta dish, and Theresa enjoyed the saltimbocca. 

Back at the room I setup my equipment and reviewed the race plan.  My plan was to run by pace / RPE the first 5 miles, then by heart rate the remainder of the race.  I wanted to negative split each of the segments of the race like so:

Start to Mile 5: target HR 150. It's hard to figure out pace-to-HR for a race, but maybe an 8:35.  No higher HR than 155 bpm.  I know that I warm up slowly, and I finish stronger on long runs if I take it easier the first five miles.   So it’s critical for me to avoid starting too hard.

Miles 6 – 13:  target 160.   Maybe 8:15

Miles 13 – 20: up to 175.  Maybe 8:00

Then to the end: flat out.  Maybe mid to high 7s.

Nutrition Mostly Gu gels and on-course water and energy drinks.  I’ll have some Endurolytes along that I’ll take in the morning and at the 10 mile point.   I purchased an Amphipod RunLite Trail Endurance at the Expo, and I loaded it with 8 gels, a snack bar, and 21 oz of a Carbo-Pro / Gatorade mix.  I'd have a gel at 15 minutes then every 45 minutes, and half a bottle of at 5, 10, 15, and 20 miles, with water on the course to dilute.

Also, I planned on eating a lot more beforehand.  I awoke at 3:30 in the morning to eat 500 calories of 50/50 simple and complex carbs (bars, nuts, candy), then at 5:30 to eat some more complex carbs.

During

I seeded myself just a ways back from the starting line, instead of with my pace group.  I wanted to minimize the difference between the gun time and chip time, in case by some miracle I found myself already running a 3:20.   This kind of back-of-my-mind thinking was already setting myself up for failure to follow my race plan, which you'll see in a minute.  The gun went off and we were off!  

Here's the Garmin data for the run.

In short, I blew my race plan pretty much entirely.  I started too hard, ran strong in the middle, then faded at the end.

First, I ran the first mile and a half way too fast.  Yes, I was caught up in the excitement.  My HR was 115 just standing there at the start.  But more importantly, I looked at my Garmin and it said "9:30" and I thought, way too slow and I sped up what felt like a good amount.  Then it said "8:50" and I thought "really?" and sped up a little more.  Then I looked at it and it said "6:30" and I thought "OMG!  I misread the 8:50 - it must have been 6:50".   What a dope!

Miles 2-5 felt good and I was letting lots of people pass me.   But you can see that my HR was 10-15 bpm above plan, and my pace was 8:08 not 8:35 which would have been more sustainable.  RPE was good, though, so it didn't feel wrong at the time.  The weather was perfect - low 50s, high clouds, no rain.

Miles 5-13 also felt good, but my HR was too high for my RPE so I went by RPE.  My HR was around 170 or something - 10 higher than my plan.  Well, I'm thinking this was a mistake and I should have ran 160 or so regardless of pace. Also there was a headwind after the turnaround at mile 9 or so, and I kept trying to draft people but I couldn't find anyone to pace.

My half-marathon split was 1:45.  I was sort of surprised by this - I missed the 10, 11, and 12 milepost signs and suddenly there was the 13.1 timing mat.   1:45 was a bad sign, because I wanted my splits to be 1:50 and something less.  I wasn't aiming to beat 3:30.   So clearly I was running too fast...

Mile 13-20 were tougher. I sped up again per plan and my HR was again about 10 higher than plan with RPE feeling right.  

In retrospect, this was the critical decision point of the race.  I should have abandoned my negative split plan and aimed for a 1:50 for the second half.  But I didn't, I just stayed on plan.  At mile 13 beating 3:30 didn't feel impossible at all.  I had no pains or problems with my legs and body, and I still felt strong.  My nutrition plan was working fine.

But by mile 17, I was starting to feel tired.  And the hill just before mile 18 was tough - tougher than I recall from last year.  My average dropped by like 25 seconds per mile, and I couldn't regain it.

Mile 20-22 were a slog.  My HR was high but RPE was dropping.  My legs started to feel like lead.  It was like my brain said "Faster" and my legs said "Nah, we don't feel like it".  I just couldn't get the pace back up.  I'm sure the faster first half was catching up to me!   I took a fairly long break at the mile 21 aid station for a gel, some of my Carbo Pro mix, and two waters.

Miles 22 to the end had a headwind most of the way, same as the wind after the turnaround.  It was a slog, and I did manage to pick up the pace the last mile which was mostly downhill for a good finish.   That food break at mile 21 kicked in about mile 24, and I felt a lot stronger.

Just a few dozen yards from the finish line, I was coming up on a struggling runner and being passed by two faster runners.  The struggling woman stumbled to the ground in exhaustion, and both of the faster runners stopped to scoop her up and help her get going again, sacrificing their own time.  The crowd cheered mightily for this act of selfless good sportsmanship.  Two women spectators, obviously friends of the woman, came to out to help so the two men could continue on. 

After

I was happy and surprised to see my brother Brian at the finish line.  He has not been able to make it before, so that was cool.  I felt good - no injuries on the run, no calf pain, no ITB, no shins.  Back at the hotel, I spent 15 minutes in the tub, in the coldest water the faucet could make.  

Monday and Tuesday I felt beat up but in a good way - enough to know I had ran hard enough, but not injured.  I went to my Master's swim class on Tuesday night, and that seemed to really help.  I was totally back to normal Wednesday morning.

Ironman Arizona 2007 Experience

Yes, I haven't blogged in a long time.  I've got a few things saved up to blog about, so I'll be catching up over time. 

I had a good day at the event on April 15th, 2007 in Tempe, Arizona.  My race was marred only by heavy winds on the bike and some stomach problems on the run.  I achieved my time goal of 12 hours, finishing in 11:53.  I was 489 out of about 2066 starters (top 25%), and 99/330 in my Men 40-44 age group. 

I was bottom third on the swim, which was good because last year I was bottom tenth.  That’s a big improvement for me, since swimming is my weakest sport.   I was top 40% on the bike with 6:11, which was an improvement over bottom 40% last year. And I was top 13% on the run, which was great although I was hoping to break 4 hours and came in at 4:05.

For perspective, the winner Rutget Beke of Germany’s times were 8:21 overall (0:52 swim, 4:30 bike, 2:54 run) and the M40-44 age group winner David Jones was 9:48 (1:06 swim, 5:06 bike, 3:28 run).

Race Plan: Working with my coach Jill, the plan was a steady swim, a heart rate based race plan (148 first loop, 150 2nd loop, 152 3rd loop, maybe a little harder on the 3rd loop if RPE is good), and then a "go for it" sub 4 hour, negative split marathon based on a pace for each of the 3 loops.  I had these numbers written on a card in my T2 bag.

My nutrition plan was 90 g carbs an hour, and I decided I was going to use the PowerGels and Gatorade Extreme provided on course for all that, plus some water.   I had SaltStick electrolyte tablets on the bike and in my special needs bag, taking one an hour. This all-liquid nutrition plan proved to be a mistake...

Swim:  The 2.4 mile swim takes place in Tempe Town Lake, which is man-made from damming the otherwise dry-most-of-the-year Salt River.  It’s yucky – it’s a 2 mile long, ¼ mile wide Lake Bill.  The locals can’t imagine people swimming in it, and indeed it’s illegal except for special events.   My 1:23 swim was uneventful, although I now know why people refer to Ironman swimming as a full contact sport.  I was kicked in the shoulders, swatted numerous times on the legs, and partially swam over twice.  I managed a fairly straight swim and better than last years, where I zigzagged probably an extra 300 yards.  I came out of the water in good shape, not dizzy and I experienced no cramps on the swim, although I had one minor calf cramp as the suit strippers took off my suit.  This was easily my best long swim ever.

Bike:  The 112 mile ride is a three loop out-and-back affair on closed local roads.  The “out” portion enjoyed a steady 20-25 mph tailwind/crosswind, with gusts to 35.  The “back” portion suffers the same wind as a headwind.  Many people called the winds “brutal” but I like to call them “epic”.  Keep a positive outlook.  I dodged a number of rolling bottles, one bicycle crash directly in front of me,  a lot of blowing dust, and one four foot tumbleweed that sailed by a foot in front of me at about 30mph closing speed.   Surreal.

Keeping with my race plan, I raced only by heart rate.  I only turned my GPS on twice to see my speed with the tailwind (28+mph) and against the headwind (17-). 

My nutrition plan was working out OK but not great.  I had some issues with drinking enough since I wasn't good at staying on the bars and reaching for the bottles behind me.  I ended up drinking larger amounts less frequently than I planned.  I didn't like feeling like I was losing time whenever I needed to drink. And I failed to remember the electrolyte-tablet-an-hour plan at least twice.  I was using PowerGels in gel flasks, and those were working out well.

I had one potty stop at special needs, where I grabbed another gel flask and popped a tablet. 

Overall, the bike leg went well and seemed remarkably short for a 112 mile ride. 

Run: The 26.2 run is a three loop figure eight where you pass the starting area six times.   My race plan was a four hour run, and I was feeling good coming out of T2.  But after only a couple miles, it was clear I wasn't really getting into the running.  Holding pace seemed harder than it should have.  But I pressed on.  I had been needing to pee for a while, but I skipped the long porta-potty lines at T2 and used the nice clean public restrooms at the boat launch area at around mile 5 or so.  That worked out much better.

The next few miles were uneventful.  I grabbed liquids and gels at the aid stations and focused on pace and form.  I had seen the elapsed race time clock running out of T2, and I was spending some mental effort on doing the time math in my head.  I couldn't quite get my pace and my watch and that timing clock all to work out correctly, but I figured I was doing well on time, on a pace for a 3:55 finish.   This was a mistake ...

Somewhere around mile 14 I started feeling a little ill, and by mile 16 I felt I was slowing down, although my GPS data shows I actually wasn't.  My stomach felt full of liquids and I had skipped the tablets in my special needs bag, and that was a big mistake.  I think the all-liquids plan was just too much fluid for my stomach to process, or perhaps I was low on sodium etc.  I was fantasizing for a while how great it would be if I could just get sick enough to throw up and feel better rather than just feel nauseous.  But alas, no such luck. 

I suffered for a while until the first aid station with chicken broth at around mile 21, which tasted awful but I loved the salty flavor, if that makes any sense.  You can see from the GPS data below that mile 19 and 20 were really slow, but then I picked up the pace a bit. 

In my head I thought I was giving up a little time, but that I was still going to beat 4:00 by a comfortable margin. I even told Jill when I saw her after the finish that I did "around a 3:55 or so". I was floored that my time was 4:05, but then I realized my mistake: that elapsed time clock at T2 was for the pros who started at 6:45 am, not 15 minutes later. So there was a 15 minute offset in my timing calculations that I had attributed to the bike leg but in reality was part of the run.

Here are my splits for the three laps.  I had no idea my third lap had slowed down so much until I saw this data.  I also felt I had picked up the pace the last few miles, but the data shows I really didn't.

Lap splits.  You can see that my average heart rate was good (near my lactate balance point of 155) for the first two laps.  I wasn't really holding back early on so much as trying to negative split each lap, and I was on the numbers Jill and I had calculated for the first two loops.  The HR data suggests I could have ran a bit harder than I did, maybe 10 seconds faster a mile.

By mile splits.    I think I would have nailed my time goal had I not given up so much time the last loop being sick.

 

Results: 

Total 11:53:20, 489th overall, 99th of 330 in division (M40-44)

Swim 1:23:11, 244th in division, 1438th overall, 2:12 100m pace

T1 8:14

Bike 6:11:36, 130th in division, 694th overall, 18.1 mph pace

T2 4:31

Run 4:05:50, 50th in division, 265th overall, 9:23 pace

Race Report: Mercer Island Half Marathon 2007

A week ago Sunday I ran the Mercer Island Half Marathon; this was my first organized half marathon.   The short story is that I had a great run and a good time, finishing in 1:38:54 (gun time) which was 24th out of 210 in my age group (M40-44).  Yes, amazingly, I'm getting almost fast - that's the top 11th percentile!

I ran the event with my triathlon team (JFT2) - Jill, Sharon, Michael, Tina and her husband Blake, Char and Jason, and Dee (sorry to the bunch more I've left out).   I knew a several more people in the event including my collegue Tony, who deserves a big shout out for completing his first half marathon - woo hoo!

The morning was cold and rainy, but luckily the rain stopped before the first mile was up.  After that, just cloudy and cool.  The course itself is all rolling hills and twisty roads, with a lot of highly crowned or banked roads which are tough for me to run.

My race plan was AeT+10 to +15 on the heart rate monitor (thus 158-163) for the first 5-6 miles, then pick it up to AeT+20 to +25 (168 to 173 bpm) until mile 11, at which it was "hard as I can".   My goal was to "negative split" the distance - the second half faster than the fisrt.  The plan worked well, although I'll say that hammering the middle miles where the course was flat would have probably been better time-wise than hammering the last two miles which were more or less a steady uphill.  I felt I expended a lot of effort into the unyielding, uncaring hillside.  Great.  At least the last half mile or so was a flat downhill to the finish.

Edit: My coach Jill tells me "no no no".  Hammering the middle miles would have blown me up and I wouldn't have been able to deliver the pace I did the last two miles.  It's all about pacing, and I raced this exactly right..

I ran with my Garmin Forerunner 305 (of course) so here are the run details (via SportTracks):

IMAZ 2007 - four weeks out

A busy training week.  The volume totals: 5900 yards swimming, 92 miles on the bike, 41.25 miles running. 

Monday is my usual lighter day after a big weekend - just a 50 minute swim in the pool.  Tuesday was a 50 minute swim, followed by a 2 hour treadmill run of 13 miles. Wednesday I did the max VO2 testing, which was actually a lot of fun and a tough workout in itself.   Thursday had a 2 hour trainer ride followed by a 30 minute run.

I skipped Friday night's planned 2 hour trainer session and 30 minute run - the sun was shining, it was in the low 60s, and I decided the best way to spend the evening was with Theresa out on the deck, enjoying a few glasses of wine.  Much as I enjoy training, life is too short to make that the only thing in my life.  And a day of recovery couldn't hurt.

Saturday morning was a series of hill climbs with Jill and my triathlon team.  First we climbed "Zoo Hill" on Cougar Mountain (2.6 miles, 1200 foot elevation gain, 10% average gradient).  This was my first climb up what is often considered the toughest climb in the Seattle area.  I usually don't ride this, because I frequently ride most of 153rd Ave home at the end of rides, and I don't need a lot more hill climbing.

Anyway, it was tough the first time, especially since I didn't know what was around each turn. I'd driven down the hill once a few months ago, but that's totally different. I got caught on the inside of the tightest switchback, and I really had to grunt out that climb.  Never get caught on the inside of a switchback.  Jill's instructions for the hill were to stay at AeT+10 (158 for me) to AeT+25 (173).  No problem...

We rode down (with me doing alternating braking to avoid overheating my Zipp carbon wheels), and then rode up right back up Zoo Hill again.  The second climb was actually easier since the anxiety of not knowing what to expect was gone, and I didn't have try to keep something in reserve for the second climb.  

After the second climb, we headed over to and then down Lakemont Blvd and then climbed it twice, standing for the first mile (!!) then riding all the way to the top past the park and almost back to the top of Cougar Mountain before heading back down to do it again.  My rough GPS data shows we climbed about 900 feet in 3.1 miles on each ride.  My heart rate was steady at 160 or so during the standing climb.  I was really happy with that, because only a few months ago the idea of climbing the bottom of Lakemont Blvd while standing would have been crazy talk.  Those trainer workouts have really paid off...

All rides end with a run, so after I headed home (climbing over the top of my own local hill, another 200 feet of climbing) I headed over to Redmond for a 60 minute out-and-back run on the Sammamish River Trail.   Theresa and my daughter Lana came along; they shopped at Redmond Town Center while I ran my 6.4 mile run. 

Sunday I went for a 3 hour out and back run on the same trail, with Shannon and Mark who are also training for IMAZ.  It was great to have running partners to talk with and share tips and stories.  We separated on the way back so we could each run at AeT pace.  My 148 bpm pace was around 8:30 or so, which is a big improvement over last year.  The run totaled about 18.7 miles or so.   After the run, I headed over to the Pro Sports Club (aka "ProClub") and did a 50 minute, 1750 yard swim session.  The kickboard work was tough, and my arms were surprisngly tired as well.  Next time I think I'll swim first...

This week marks the end of high volume training before IMAZ on April 15th.  Now the nature of the workouts will change to more specific strength building and maintenance. 

IMAZ 2007 should be quite an event for me and my family.  My training is solid, the house rental was worked out, the whole family is coming - I'm really excited about it.

Garmin Forerunner 305 aerobar mount

I'm a big fan of the Garmin Forerunner 305.  It gives me all the numbers to make my data loving heart go pitter patter.  And mapping your travels onto the globe is like "stalking yourself", as my friend Pat once said.  Who wouldn't love that?

So when I bought my new Cervelo, I decided I didn't need any other device to tell me speed, distance, heart rate, etc.  I had it all on the little box I love.  But after one ride, it was obvious that a wrist mount just wouldn't do.  I needed a bike mount.

Garmin, following their usual practice, has announced a bike mount for the 305 but it's not shipping yet.  I didn't want to wait, so I considered different ways to mount it myself.  All seemed seriously complex and difficult, except for the "strap it sideways over the stem" approach which I've been using these past weeks. Sideways doesn't exactly enhance readability at speed.

I mentioned it to my colleague Warren (carbon fiber sailboat guru) but he felt making some carbon fiber gizmo would be overkill.  Pshaw I say, any excuse to use carbon fiber is worth it.  But I must admit he has a point.

After some research, I found that the common wisdom for mounting a Forerunner 305 on an aerobar is to use a Polar heart rate mount with a Profile Designs aerobar computer mount.  The next time I had a chance to go by REI, I picked up the parts and gee whiz, what do you know:

It works: