Panther Pride Triathlon Recap

The Panther Pride Triathlon, located in Iowa Falls, Iowa, was my second and final "trial run" before the Hy-Vee Tri. My goals for this triathlon were to increase my comfort zone and efficiency throughout, but most of all I wanted to be able to relax and complete the swim in good form.

Saturday morning was a cool 59 degrees, I was thankful for the indoor pool swim. I had the usual case of pre-race nerves, but nothing serious. I was just looking to have some fun today, no pressure. After a small breakfast of oatmeal and a waffle with peanut butter, I loaded up the truck and headed to to the tri. I wasn't excited about the 9am start but it actually gave me plenty of time to think things through and be prepared in every way.

I set up my transition space and then went to check out the pool. It's a nice indoor pool; we were going to be swimming down and back in each of the 6 lanes for a total of 300 yards.

I went back to look over my transition set up one more time and found that the person next to me had moved my stuff back behind my rear tire and put his stuff where mine was! His bike was facing the other way on the rack and he had his items behind his tire. He had a nice tri bike so I figured that his wasn't his first tri but I didn't want to assume so. I suggested we move things around a bit and told him that it would make his transition easier. He was actually very nice about it and accepted my suggestion. I'm glad he was easy to work with because and any confrontation was avoided. I really think that his transition likely went better for him with this arrangement also.

After that little crises it was getting closer to start time. I went back to the pool and got in to warm up a bit and get acquainted with the water temperature. I took a lap of the pool and then got out and watched some of the other swimmers warming up. I have really become a bit of a study on swim strokes and noticed a wide variety of them, very interesting and some quite humorous. I am definitely nobody to judge on swim stroke but I can now see some big differences.

Enough of the fluff, it's go time!

The Swim
I was athlete number 54 which meant that I was the 54th swimmer to start based upon my estimated swim time (pretty close to the middle of the pack). This gave me a great opportunity to watch several people swim and even some struggle through the water. Good or bad, watching a few other people struggle made me feel a lot less self conscious and more relaxed. It was all good, I wasn't going to be the only one that had some trouble. Again, my goal for this swim was to focus and staying relaxed and keeping good form.
I was calm and ready at the start with very little to no anxiety. The starter counted down and I was off! I did my best not to be aggressive and just swim, telling myself the entire way to relax and glide. The first lap went great, I made it down and back without any trouble and felt good. Towards the end of the second lap I actually caught up with the person in front of me. I was in my own little zone and it surprised me when I reached out and touched her feet in front of me. It threw me off a little but she paused and let me pass by her. Yes, I actually passed someone in the water! Then very shortly after that I was passed by the person behind me. I don't feel so bad about this because she had told me earlier that she had been a lifeguard when she was younger. I did have to breaststroke a few times to get my breath during this swim but the thing that I noticed is that it is a lot of work to get going again once you slow down like that. I also grabbed the side about 3 times to catch my breath. I know...not good if I am going to be lake swimming in two weeks. Regardless, I was out of the water in 8 minutes 54 seconds and the same position in which I had started. Progress!!

The Bike
So I was out of the water and ran to the transition area. My plan was to attempt to get my Garmin on for the ride and run but it was being uncooperative and taking too much time, so I just left it there. I was out of T1 in 1:06 and onto the bike. The bike was fairly uneventful, I was able to pass several people and never got passed back. There were a few hills and once we were out on the countryside it seemed like we had all headwind and no tailwind. I just focused on keeping a good fast cadence and finished well. It was supposed to be a 15 mile ride but we rode at least a good half mile past the 15 mile marker. My finish time on the bike was 51:26 which translates to about an average of 18mph.

The Run
Into T2 to prepare for the run. I have been practicing running without any socks in my Newtons. So far my runs have all gone well without any blisters or rubbing. T2 transition was 1:10 (I need to get speed laces) and I was off and running. We started up a slight incline and then quickly had a very steep decline. It was actually one of the more difficult hills that I have run down, that pounding is really hard on the body. I quickly found my groove after that hill and the 5K run was on! It was a challenging rolling course, lucky for me there is nothing but hills in my training area. I started picking off several runners and the first mile went by quickly. After the first mile they actually had a 1.5 mile marker, this is pretty unusual and I really didn't like it. In my opinion it just seemed to make those miles longer. After 2.5 though I figured that I could finish the last .6 with a good kick. But...that wacky course director had to throw in another big hill just before the finish. You know, one of those hills that makes you feel like your heart could explode as you run up it. Nice touch. I finally sprinted into the finish with a 5K time of 22:26 (7:14 pace). A little slower than I had expected but I will chalk that time up to the hills (not to mention the swim and bike prior to running).
My overall finish time was 1:25:04 which placed me second in my age group and 8th overall. Not bad for a rookie if I do say so myself!
View results here.

This was a difficult race, it definitely tested my abilities throughout. My strategy for the Hy-Vee Tri, which is an Olympic Distance tri, will be to just get through it. I don't feel like I will be quite strong enough or seasoned enough yet to "race" this one.

What I Learned

• I am going to have to fuel better before and during the Hy-Vee tri.
• I have two weeks to be able to relax on my swim. I estimate it will take me a good 45 minutes to complete it. (yeah, that's a long swim)
• My heels rubbed in my shoes this time. I will either need to wear socks or get my shoes laced tighter before the run.
• The weather is cooling down fast, I will have to purchase a wet suit and learn to swim in it within the next two weeks.

Things are coming down to the wire. I fear that I may have bitten off a little more than I can chew this time but there is no backing out now. I am going to do my best to be prepared and make it through this event. I know I can do it, it's just going to be one of the bigger challenges that I have faced. Ready or not, Hy-Vee Tri, here I come!

Swimming Anxiety

I am not typically a worrier, in fact I generally use stress as a motivator. I am all about pushing myself and testing my limits but currently, I seem to have a real battle going on in my mind. There are less than 3 weeks until the Hy-Vee Triathlon and my swimming confidence is far from where it should be. It seemed to be getting better, I had a nice couple of swims last week then I sent a video to the coach and he  gave me some pointers to improve my technique. I am going to be honest and tell you that this really 'effed up my swim this morning. I had an extremely difficult time trying to relax, which is a huge part of swimming. When you are running or biking, you don't have to think about much, it's pretty automatic. Being a new swimmer I have to try to think about hand position, body position, arm position throughout the stroke, how and when to kick, when to breath and how to breath without sucking in a gallon of water.It's all pretty damn overwhelming, mostly because I have signed up to swim 1500 meters in a lake in less than 3 weeks.

I am not defeated! 
My plan is to battle those little negative thoughts that keep creeping into my head, you know the ones that say, "will I have to have a boat pull me out?" and "can I stay relaxed and not panic in the water?". There is extra pressure because I will have several family members there to watch and the company I work for is sponsoring the event. How's that going to look if I drown in front of my family or have to get pulled out of the water in front of coworkers? The mind can be cruel.

My plan is to watch a YouTube videos on swimming techniques daily hoping to train my mind what good technique looks like. There are some great Total Immersion videos that teach you the little intricacies of swimming easier and more relaxed. I have written some positive affirmations to help build my confidence and force out the negative thoughts, and I will continue to work on relaxation, confidence, and skills in the few training swims that I have remaining. I know that I can do this, I just have to relax in the water and take my time getting through the swim one stroke at a time.

The start of my swimming affirmations

If you are really bored, this is my swim intervals video that I sent into the coach.

This is what swimming is supposed to look like.

Home made breakfast / energy bars

It can be tough to find something quick, easy, and nutritious for breakfast.  Most of the time I am in the habit of not eating much of anything before a morning run, it just doesn't seem like there is enough time to digest anything from the time you wake up until the time you hit the pavement.

I think I have found a solution! I stumbled across this recipe on one of my favorite recipe sites, allrecipes.com. This is a great place to see how other people rate, prepare, and tweak recipes submitted by others. The recipe I found is called Jo-Ann's Power Bars. You can check it out here and see what other people thought about it too. These bars taste awesome, digest easily, and are a great natural energy boost. My wife and I ate the first batch in about two days. She liked them so much she made a second batch and added some coconut. The other nice thing about these bars is that you can easily add, substitute, or change just about any one of the ingredients. I suggest you try the original recipe first and then tweak it to your liking.

Good luck and let me know what you think!

Jo-Ann's Power Bars

Ingredients

• 1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup wheat and barley nugget cereal (e.g. Grape-Nuts™)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 beaten egg
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 1/4 cup honey
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 (7 ounce) bag chopped dried mixed fruit

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Line a 9 inch square baking pan with aluminum foil. Spray the foil with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the oats, flour, cereal, and cinnamon. Add the egg, applesauce, honey, brown sugar, and oil. Mix well. Stir in the sunflower seeds, walnuts, and dried fruit. Spread mixture evenly in the prepared pan.
3. Bake 30 minutes, or until firm and lightly browned around the edges. Let cool. Use the foil to lift from the pan. Cut into bars or squares, and store in the refrigerator.

Nutritional Information

Serving Size	1/12 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe	12
Amount Per Serving
Calories	197
Calories from Fat	59
	% Daily Value *
Total Fat 6.6g	10 %
Saturated Fat 0.9g	4 %
Cholesterol 18mg	6 %
Sodium 40mg	2 %
Potassium 239mg	7 %
Total Carbohydrates 33.4g	11 %
** Dietary Fiber 2.3g	9 %
Protein 4.1g	8 %
** Sugars 10.4g
Vitamin A	10 %
Vitamin C	1 %
Calcium	3 %
Iron	26 %
** Thiamin	18 %
Niacin	18 %
Vitamin B6	10 %
Magnesium	15 %
Folate	14 %
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

My First Triathlon

So now this is where my running journey has taken me. After finishing four marathons I needed something new. Running 5 days a week according to a strict schedule just wasn't cutting it anymore. Enter the triathlon.

As I stated in a previous posting I am signed up for the Hy-Vee Triathlon in Des Moines on September 4th. I stumbled across the Crossroads Triathlon in the mean time and thought it would be a perfect way to break the ice and see what it's all about. Crossroads is a great beginners tri, it is a 200 meter swim, 8 mile bike, and 2.1 mile run. I knew the bike and run would go well, it's the swim that I was worried about...and rightly so.

The triathlon is located about an hour away and started at 7am. We were up and going at 4am, on the road by 5, and we arrived at the park by 6. I picked up my race packet, took my bike to the transition area and got everything set up.

My transition set up. Feel free to critique.

Ok, I made my first mistake when I registered for the race. They asked for an approximate time on the swim and I must have put in a pretty fast time because they had me starting SECOND! It is a pool swim where the fastest swimmers go first, they started us all off one at a time every 10 seconds. It is a 50 meter pool so we swam down and back twice. Sounds pretty easy right? Well let me tell you...when it's your first triathlon and you are the SECOND person in the water, not knowing what the hell you are doing...it's not so easy.

The calm before the storm...GULP!

 Nerves and anxiety got the better of me and I was struggling before I ever got to the end of the first 50 meters. People were passing me like crazy, I even stopped at the wall to let a couple of swimmers go by me. My anxiety elevated with every lap, I just wanted to be done! I finally finished the last lap mostly with a breast stroke so that I could breathe. I was 2nd to start and from what I could tell, I was 14th out of the water. That 200 meters was about the toughest swim of my life and I was never so excited to hop out of the pool and make for the transition area!

Blazing through the first transition.

The transition went smoothly, I wasn't rushed and everything came together just fine, I was on the bike and into my element fairly quickly. Once on the bike I was able to calm down and take control of things. I focused on keeping a high cadence and keeping things moving at a decent pace. The second mistake I made with this triathlon is that I forgot my water bottles. What?! Yes, I had everything set out except for the water bottle I was taking. I was trying to be smart and had it in the freezer. Lucky for me, it was a short bike and I had a bottle of Gatorade that fit into my bottle cage. I passed 3-4 people on the bike but had 2 pass me, not a big deal because I knew I would be strong on the run. Surprisingly the bike portion was over pretty quickly (maybe because it was only 8 miles). 

Finishing up the bike portion.

I transitioned to the run without any problems. The nice part of the transitions is that I found that I don't have to wear socks with the Newtons, this kept me from having to fight with putting socks on my wet feet. Once I started the run my legs were a little wonky but not bad. I think I was just running with my pedaling cadence (which is not a bad thing). During the run I tried to keep a smooth even effort. I was able to pick off 3-4 more people over the 2.1 miles. 

Start of the run.

Cruising downhill.

Finishing strong.

This was the first year that they had chip timing at this event and something went wrong. We waited for quite some time to see results and when they started reading them off they realized that it wasn't right. So the only time I can go by for now is the time I saw on the clock minus my 10 second start delay, which would give me about a 47:10 finish.

EDITED: RESULTS ARE IN!

I finished 1st in my age group and 16th overall. I am pretty psyched about this I just need some improvements in my swimming. You can check out the results here.

I definitely felt strong on the bike and the run but the swim about killed me. To give you an even better idea of how the swim went, my wife was embarrassed for me! That's ok, I really can laugh about it. This just means that I need some more swim training before September. 

My triathlon hobby is certainly not over. I am thankful that I was able to get in a good practice tri before my the big show in September. In spite of the swim, it was a great day!

The End

Camelbak 2011 Fairfax Review

Back in June, after a lot of research, I finally pulled the trigger and purchased my first Camelbak. I don't really enjoy carrying a bottle with me. I have a couple of versions that fit on a belt that work ok but still bounce around when full and at times have not been enough to get me through the run.
I had a lot of reservations about running with a Camelbak, I just knew it was going to bounce around and annoy me. I selected the 2011 Fairfax because of its smaller reservoir (50oz), it is listed as a minimalist pack for cross-training or cycling, and it came in a highly visible and cool looking green.

Right out of the box the Fairfax seemed to fit me perfectly. 

It is a small pack but has been great for hands free hydration!

My first trial run went off without a hitch, I was impressed! There is not any significant bouncing while running with this pack. I did learn right away to tuck the bite valve out of the way under the front strap while running. It flops around quite a bit which gets annoying but is easily fixed. 

Note the hose and bite valve. 

This pack has plenty of storage room for me also. I can easily keep my cell phone and much more in the upper center pocket that also has a handy key fob. I am a sweaty beast when I run, many times I have to put my cell phone into a sealed baggy to keep it dry. This pocket eliminates the need and keeps everything in good shape.

If you need more storage, the bottom pocket is quite generous too. You could likely fit an ultralight rain jacket, or other items in this pocket.

I have used the Camelbak on several runs now and on the bike. Sure I have bottles for my bike but it's pretty handy drinking from the bite valve.
The reservoir has a wide and easy to use fill opening that allows me to dump ice cubes into it and also helps facilitate the cleaning.

The only downside that I can see from using a Camelbak is that it takes a little extra time to clean it out. I don't do anything special other than rinse it well, run plenty of warm water through the hose and the bite valve, and hang it to dry.  Not quite as handy as a water bottle, but very manageable. On one of my cycling adventures in the rain the Camelbak had muddy tires streaks up the back of it. I pulled out the bladder and washed the shell on gentle cycle. It came out as good as new.

The 2011 Fairfax has been a great pack for me so far. It has put to rest my negative assumptions about wearing a Camelbak while running. The 50oz capacity is more than anything else in my hydration line up and I can safely carry my cell phone, energy bars, keys, and more. The minor inconvenience of cleaning it is really nothing when you consider everything else. This pack definitely gets my recommendation!

Tri - Update

Triathlon training update.

The Swim
I have to say that I am actually enjoying the swimming. It's not easy, but I am making a little progress each time I go out. Today I swam a total of 1,000 meters which included a couple of straight 200 meter swims. I still can't swim freestyle all the way but getting closer. I have learned to mostly stay relaxed in the water and not fight it which makes things much better.
I will say that I am still not 100% comfortable walking around in my tri shorts but they are pretty awesome while swimming.

The Bike
Being a runner, I never really thought much of biking, but since I started my training I enjoy it and it can be a nice workout too. One thing about biking is all of the cool stuff you can buy, or somebody with lots of money (not me). But...I did make a new purchase this week which should be arriving by Monday and they were really fairly inexpensive thanks to Amazon!

The Garmin Forerunner bike mount kit.

The Garmin Speed and Cadence Sensor

The Run

Actually now that I am only running 3 times a week instead of 5, I am enjoying it a lot more. I even had one of those dream runs where everything is just awesome earlier this week.

So....I know have 8 weeks to go before the Hy-Vee Triathlon.

I am seriously looking into a sprint tri coming up on July 23 to test the waters a bit ahead of time. I still have some serious swim work to do, but with 8 weeks to go I think I can get in another 16-18 practices including some open water swims.

It's a lot to bite off in that time but screw it, I will float on my back if I have to.